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ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA
SEVENTH EDITION.
THE
ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA
OR
DICTIONARY
ARTS, SCIENCES, AND GENERAL LITERATURE.
SEVENTH EDITION,
WITH PRELIMINARY DISSERTATIONS ON THE HISTORY OF THE SCIENCES,
AND
OTHER EXTENSIVE IMPROVEMENTS AND ADDITIONS;
INCLUDING THE LATE SUPPLEMENT,
A GENERAL INDEX,
AND NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS.
VOLUME IV.
ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK, EDINBURGH;
M.DCCC.XLII.
ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA
THEORETICAL ASTRONOMY.
OF THE MOON.
Theoretical Xl/rHEN we reflect on the immense addition that has
Astronomy. » » been made to our knowledge of the constitution
's^Y^w/ of the universe by means of the telescope, we may reason¬
ably indulge an expectation that the further advances yet
to be made will be closely connected with the extension
of the power of that invaluable instrument.
Besides the power which the telescope gives of pene¬
trating into remote space, it enables us to discover the na¬
ture and constitution of the bodies which are nearer to us.
The admirable discoveries of Newton, as will be explained
in the sequel, have taughtusthat the planets are not all com¬
posed of matter of the same density. But besides the pro¬
perty of weight, which belongs to all matter whatever, it has
others which are peculiar to certain bodies, such as solidity,
fluidity, &c. The Newtonian law of gravity reveals nothing
of these ; and it is only by the aid of the telescope that we
can ever hope to acquire the slightest knowledge of the
constitution of the planetary matter.
The structure of the more remote planets is probably
beyond our knowledge, even when aided by the most im¬
proved telescopes; but it seems not unreasonable to indulge
a hope of going some way in ascertaining the nature of
the bodies nearer to us. Jupiter’s belts have with great
probability been supposed to be masses of clouds in the
region of his equator; and Herscbel discovered, to the
great delight of astronomers, that the polar regions of Mars
assumed a whiteness of appearance when obliquely exposed
to the light of the sun, just as if, like those of the earth,
they were covered with snow. Above all, the moon pre¬
sents to the astronomer an extensive field, not barely for
conjecture, but for instructive observation. The solar spots
have given occasion to much ingenious speculation; but
the distance of the moon is only one four hundredth part
of the distance of the sun from the earth, and in the same
proportion our power of becoming acquainted with the con¬
stitution of the latter exceeds that of ever knowing inti¬
mately the constitution of the former. It is no wonder,
then, that the attention of astronomers in all ages has been
directed to the companion of our earth, whose structure
may with great probability be supposed to resemble con¬
siderably the body round which it revolves, and of which
it is not improbable that it may have once been a part.
VOL. IV.
CONTINUATION OF CHAP. HI.
Sect. IV.— Of the Rotation and Lihration of the Moon.
The surface of the moon is diversified by dark patches,
the number of which appears prodigiously increased in
the telescope. These patches or dark spots present no
changes of form like those of the sun, but permanently
exhibit the same uniform appearances, and .retain their re¬
lative situations with regard to each other, and also, with
some slight variations, to the apparent centre of the moon.
The moon, therefore, at all times presents very nearly
the same face to the earth. But if this were rigorously
the case, it would follow that the moon revolves about an
axis, perpendicular to the plane of her orbit, in the same
time in which she completes a sidereal revolution about
the earth, and that the angular velocities of the two mo¬
tions are exactly equal. It is, however, proved by obser¬
vation, that there are some variations in the apparent posi¬
tion of the spots on the lunar disk. Those which are situ¬
ated very near the border of the disk alternately disappear
and become visible, making stated periodical oscillations.
But as they suffer no sensible changes in their respective
positions, and always re-appear under the same form and
magnitude when they return to the same position, it is
inferred that they are permanently fixed to the surface of
the moon; and their oscillations consequently seem to in¬
dicate a sort of vibratory motion of the lunar globe, which is
known by the appellation of its lihration. This motion has,
however, no real existence. The phenomenon is the com¬
plicated result of several optical illusions, and does not de¬
pend in any degree on the rotation of the moon, which, rela¬
tively to us, is perfectly equable; or at least, if it be sub¬
ject to irregularities, they are too minute to be appreciated.
In order to form a precise idea of the phenomenon of
the libration, we must consider that the disk of the moon,
seen from the centre of the earth, is terminated by the
circumference of a great circle of the moon, the plane of
which is perpendicular to a line drawn from the earth’s cen¬
tre to that of the moon. The lunar hemisphere is projected
on the plane of this circle turned towards the earth ; and if
the moon did not revolve round her axis, the projection
would incessantly present different appearances to us, inas-
A
Theoretical
Astronomy.
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical much as the radius vector drawn from the centre of the earth
Astronomy, by which the plane of projection is determined, would inter-
'sect the surface of the moon in a different point, at every
new position in her orbit. But in consequence of her ro¬
tation, the radius vector is always directed to nearly the
same point of the lunar surface, and would be always di¬
rected exactly to the same point if the angular velocity
of rotation corresponded exactly with the angular velocity
in the orbit. But the rotation of the moon is sensibly uni¬
form ; while the motion of revolution, being affected by the
periodic inequalities, is sometimes slower and sometimes
more rapid. The apparent rotation occasioned by the
revolution of the moon round the earth is consequently in
such cases not exactly counterbalanced by the real ro¬
tation, which remains constantly the same. Hence the
different points of the lunar globe must appear to turn
about her centre, sometimes in one direction, and some¬
times in the contrary, and the same appearances be pro¬
duced as would result from a small oscillation of the moon,
in the plane of her orbit, about the radius vector drawn
from her centre to the earth. The spots near the eastern
or western edge of her disk disappear according as her
motion in her orbit is more or less rapid than her mean
motion. This is called the Libration in Longitude.
Further; the axis of rotation of the moon is not exactly
perpendicular to the plane of her orbit. If we suppose
the position of this axis fixed, during a revolution of the
moon it inclines more or less to the radius vector, so that
the angle formed by these two lines is acute during one
part of her revolution, and obtuse during another part of
it; hence the two poles of rotation and those parts of
her surface which are near these poles are alternately visi¬
ble from the earth. This is the Libration in Latitude.
Besides all this, the observer is not placed at the centre
of the earth, but at its surface. It is the radius drawn
from his eye to the centre of the moon which determines
the middle point of her visible hemisphere. But, in con¬
sequence of the lunar parallax, it is obvious that this radius
must cut the surface of the moon in points sensibly dif¬
ferent according to the height of that luminary above the
horizon. An observer at the surface of the earth per¬
ceives points on the upper part of the moon’s disk, at the
time of her rising, which could not be seen from the
centre. In proportion as the moon acquires a greater
elevation, these points approach the border of the disk, and
finally disappear, while new ones become visible on the
eastern part of the disk, which increase in number as the
moon descends towards the horizon ; so that in the course
of a day she appears to oscillate about her radius vector
in the direction of the earth’s rotation. This phenomenon
constitutes what is called the Diurnal Librarian, and is
evidently the effect of the lunar parallax.
The libration in latitude and the diurnal libration were
discovered by Galileo soon after the invention of the tele¬
scope. It was Hevelius who discovered the libration in
longitude, and explained it by the equable rotatory motion
of the moon combined with her unequal velocity in her
orbit.
To the inhabitants of the moon, if such there be, the
earth will appear as a species of moon, much larger than
the moon appears to us, but visible only to that hemi¬
sphere which is turned towards the earth. At those places
which are situated near the border of her visible disk,
the earth will sometimes rise a few degrees above the
horizon; and an inhabitant of the moon placed near
the middle of the hemisphere presented to the earth will
always see the earth near his zenith, making oscillations
of only a few degrees in consequence of the libration.
But an inhabitant of the other hemisphere will never see
the earth at all; so that while one hemisphere of the moon Theoretical
is constantly enlightened, during her long night, by the^^A;
light reflected from the earth, the other remains in con-^^^^
stant darkness. In regard, therefore, to the distributicm
of light, one of the lunar hemispheres enjoys very great
advantages over the other.
The elements of the rotation of the moon, that is to
say, the position of her equator, the place of its nodes, and
its inclination to the plane of the ecliptic, are found by the
same methods which have been explained for determining
the corresponding elements relatively to the sun. The
geocentric positions of the spots are observed in the same
manner ; and in converting them into selenocentric lati¬
tudes and longitudes, the same formulae may be employed,
with a slight modification rendered necessary by the in¬
clination of the lunar orbit to the ecliptic. One circum¬
stance, not less remarkable than the coincidence which
obtains between the times of rotation and sidereal revolu¬
tion, is, that the nodes of the lunar equator coincide with
those of the moon’s orbit, if not exactly, at least so near¬
ly, that the differences are so small as to fall within the
probable errors of observation and calculation. . All the
observations since the time of Hevelius agree in showing
that the longitude of the descending node of the equator
is very nearly equal to the mean longitude of the ascending
node of the orbit; whence it follows that the nodes of the
equator have a retrograde motion equal to that of the nodes
of the orbit. With regard to the inclination of the lunar
equator to the ecliptic, Mayer states it to be 1° 29', and
Lalande 1° 43'. According to the latest computations
made from the observations of Bouvard, the mean inclina¬
tion of the lunar equator to the ecliptic is 1° 28' 42". Mr
Baily makes it 1° 3CK lO'^S. Since the descending node
of the equator coincides with the ascending node of the
orbit, it is evident that its plane must be situated between
the planes of the ecliptic and orbit, making an angle of
about 1° 30' with the first, and of 3° 39' with the second.
Suppose three planes to pass through the centre of the
moon, one of which represents her equator, the second the
mean plane of her orbit, and the third parallel to the
ecliptic. It is evident, from what precedes, that these
three planes have a common section; that the first falls
between the other two, making with them respectively
the angles 3° 39' and 1° 30'. In the space of 6793 days,
the time of a revolution of the nodes of the lunar orbit,
the poles of the first two planes describe about the pole
of the ecliptic, in a direction contrary to the order of the
signs, two small circles parallel to the ecliptic, and of
which the semidiameters are respectively the arcs 1° 30'
and 5° 9'. Hence the difference between the longitudes
of these two poles is constantly 180°, and the three poles
are situated on the same great circle, that of the ecliptic
being between the two others.
These results, which rank among the most curious dis¬
coveries of modern astronomy, were first obtained by
Dominic Cassini: they were shown by Lagrange to be
necessary consequences of the attraction which the earth
exercises on the lunar spheroid.
Ihe positions of the spots on the moon’s surface are
determined by their distance from the lunar equator, and
from a conventional meridian, that is, by their selenocen¬
tric latitudes and longitudes, after the manner in which
the position of places is determined on the surface of the
earth. 'Ihe first meridian is assumed to be that which
passes through the pole of the visible hemisphere when
the true place of the moon in her orbit is equal to her
mean place ; hence the first meridian is always very near
the middle of the face which the moon turns towards the
earth, never deviating from it farther than by a quantity
ASTRONOMY. 3
Theoretical equal to the equation of the moon, or her libration in
Astronomy, longitude. The rotatory motion being equal to that of
revolution, the selenocentric longitude of the first meri¬
dian, at any epoch, is found by adding 180° to the mean
longitude of the moon; and this gives also the distance
of the first meridian from the ascending node of the lunar
equator. The position of the equator and first meridian
being determined, the co-ordinates of a spot are com¬
puted without difficulty; and in this manner catalogues
of the spots have been*formed, and arranged according to
their latitudes and longitudes.
Sect. V.— Of the Nature and Constitution of the Lunar
Substance.
It has already been observed, that a slight attention to
the different phases of the moon is sufficient to prove that
she is an opaque spherical body, shining only by virtue of
the light which she receives from the sun. The line
bounding the visible part of her surface has exactly the
form which would be produced by an illuminated hemi¬
sphere brought into different positions with respect to the
eye ; and the circular contour of the obscured portion of
the sun during a solar eclipse could only be caused by
the interposition of a spherical body. Besides, the parts
of her hemisphere turned towards the earth, which the
sun’s rays do not reach, are in some circumstances suffi¬
ciently discernible, and she has then the same circular
appearance which she exhibits when at the full.
But if the light which comes to us from the moon is
only that which she receives from the sun and reflects
back to the earth, how does it happen, it may be asked,
that the portion of her disk not directly exposed to the
solar rays is distinctly visible for some days after the new
moon ? This phenomenon was ascribed by the ancients
to the native light of the moon, to which, on account of
its pale ashy hue, they gave the name of lumen incinero-
sum. The explanation which is now generally given was
first suggested by a celebrated painter, Leonard da V inci.
It consists in supposing that a portion of the light which
is reflected from the illuminated hemisphere of the earth
to the moon undergoes a second reflection at the lunar
surface, and is transmitted back to the earth. Ihe an¬
cients were confirmed in their opinion respecting the na¬
tive light of the moon, by observing that she is not alto¬
gether invisible in her eclipses. Plutarch, indeed, inge¬
niously ascribes her appearance under these circumstances
to the light of the stars reflected from the moon ; a cause,
however, totally inadequate to produce the effect. This
phenomenon is now generally ascribed to the scattered
beams of the sun bent into the earth’s shadow by the re¬
fraction of its atmosphere.
The opinion that the moon’s light is chiefly, if not
wholly, caused by the reflection of the sun’s rays at the
lunar surface, has prevailed in all ages; and indeed no
other explanation seems to have been thought of till it
wTas suggested by Licetus, professor of philosophy at Bo¬
logna, as being more probable that the moon possesses a
phosphorescent quality, and that the sun’s influence is
only wanted to occasion the propulsion of the light which
lies absorbed in her substance. This idea has been adopt¬
ed by Professor Leslie, whose arguments in its support
are at least extremely plausible and ingenious. So far as
the appearances, and the explanation of the phases, are
concerned, it is evidently matter of indifference whether
we suppose that the solar rays are reflected from the sm-
face of the moon, or that they exert an action in virtue of
which the moon emits rays of her own. In either case it
is that part of her surface only which is exposed to the
impact of the solar rays that sends forth light to the Theoretical
earth.
The principal argument in favour of the phosphorescent
nature of the moon is founded on the quantity of light
which proceeds from her surface. It is evident that the
moon does not act as a polished speculum, and reflect the
whole of the incident rays; for in that case, as is known
from the laws of Catoptrics, she would merely reflect an
image of the sun, equally bright, varying in size according
to her different positions relatively to the sun and the earth,
and increasing till she arrives at her opposition, when her
diameter would appear equal to about the 458th part of
its real dimensions. Her phases could never be distin¬
guished, and she would only appear to approach to or re¬
cede from the earth, in proportion as her diameter in¬
creased or diminished. It follows, therefore, that the
moon’s surface must be irregular, or what is termed a mat
surface, that is, of such a nature, that from every point of
it the rays of light are reflected in all directions indiffer¬
ently. According to the experiments of Bouguer, a white
surface of this sort, for instance paper, or plaster of Paris,
reflects only about the 150th part of the rays which fall
upon it in a perpendicular direction ; and the proportion is
less as the angle of incidence becomes more oblique.
Making allowance for the irregular surface and obscure
spots of the moon, Mr Leslie computes that the solar
light which she remits to the earth must be attenuated
at least 105 million times; but Bouguer’s experiments
show that the moon’s light is between the 250,000th and
300,000th part of the direct light of the sun, or about 350
times greater than the computed amount of reflected
light. If every part of the moon’s surface reflected the
light in the most perfect manner, it may be shown that
only the 210,000th part of the rays which she receives
from the sun would be thrown off in the direction of the
earth; a quantity not much exceeding that which, ac¬
cording to Bouguer’s estimate, we actually receive from
her. Mr Leslie states that he found the intensity of the
moon’s light to approach the 150,000th part of the direct
light of the sun ; a result which, if admitted, must be en¬
tirely decisive of the question; for as the utmost possible
quantity of reflected light cannot exceed the 210,000th
part, it follows that the excess must be owing to the
spontaneous light of the moon. Hence this ingenious
philosopher concludes that the body of the moon is a
phosphorescent substance, like the Bolognian Stone, which
possesses the property of shining for some time when
carried into a dark room, after having been exposed to
the light of the sun. A fact first observed by the cele¬
brated Arago seems to increase the probability of this
opinion. All rays reflected from a surface not metallic
acquire a peculiar modification, or become polarized ; but
as the rays of the moon are not so modified, it is inferred
that they have not undergone a reflection at her surface.
The secondary light of the moon, of which we have al¬
ready made mention, affords arguments in favour of her
native light precisely similar to the above. If the earth
reflected, like a mirror, the whole of the incident rays,
the illumination produced by the reflection would amount
to about a 16,000th part of that which is caused by the sun ;
but as the sea reflects only about a 55th part of those
rays, and the land a still smaller proportion, we may sup¬
pose that the reflected light of the earth does not exceed
a millionth part of the direct light of the sun. It is ex¬
tremely doubtful whether a light so greatly attenuated
would suffice to render the moon visible. The lucid bow,
or silvery thread of light, which, proceeding from the ex¬
tremities of the lunar crescent, seems to embrace her un¬
enlightened orb, is easily explicable on this hypothesis;
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical whereas it can hardly be satisfactorily accounted for by
Astronomy, ascribing it to the secondary illumination from the earth.
“ I should rather refer it,” says Mr Leslie, “ to the spon¬
taneous light which the moon may continue to emit for
some time after the phosphorescent substance has been
excited by the action of the solar beams. The lunar disk
is visible although completely covered by the shadow of
the earth : nor can this fact be explained by the inflec¬
tion of the sun’s rays in passing through our atmosphere;
for why does the rim appear so brilliant ? Any such in¬
flection could only produce a diffuse light, obscurely
tinging the boundaries of the lunar orb ; and, in this case,
the earth, presenting its dark side to the moon, would
have no power to heighten the effect by reflection. But
even when this reflection is greatest about the time of
conjunction, its influence seems extremely feeble. The
lucid bounding arc is occasioned by the narrow lunula,
which, having recently felt the solar impression, still con¬
tinues to shine; and from its extreme obliquity, glows
with concentrated effect.” {Inquiry into the Nature and
Propagation of Heat.)
Although these arguments go far to support the ancient
opinion of the native light of the moon, they are not en¬
tirely conclusive; and indeed cannot be easily reconciled
with some of the phenomena. If the moon shines in vir¬
tue of her native light, rays will be emitted in all direc¬
tions from every point of her surface; whence, since a
visual angle of a given magnitude includes a much larger
portion of a spherical surface near the extremities of its
apparent disk than towards the centre, and as the number
of rays is proportional to the surface from which they
proceed, it follows that the intensity of the moon’s light
ought to be greater near the border than at the centre of
her disk. The reason why this is not the case with re¬
gard to the sun is, that a greater proportion of the rays
are absorbed in passing through a greater extent of the
solar atmosphere; but the moon, having no atmosphere,
ought to be sensibly most brilliant near the circumference
of her orb. The contrary is, however, the case ; her light
is greatest at the centre, and less intense towards the
circumference, exactly as it ought to be on the supposi¬
tion of its being occasioned by the reflection of the solar
rays. With regard to the ingenious argument of Arago,
it cannot be held to be conclusive till we become more
certainly acquainted with the nature of the lunar sub¬
stance. The only property which we can safely ascribe to
it as yet is density : whether in its physical properties it
resembles the substances with which we are acquainted,
is a question hardly within the bounds of legitimate in¬
vestigation.
The spots of the moon, affording grounds for conjectures
relative to her physical constitution and the nature of her
surface, have been observed with great interest since the
discovery of the telescope; and as they are of some
service in the observation of eclipses, astronomers have
been at much pains to determine their selenographic
positions. On account of their number, it has been found
necessary to distinguish them by particular names. Ilic-
cioli designated the most conspicuous of them by the
names of astronomers, and other eminent men. Hevelius
gave them the names belonging to countries, islands, seas,
and regions on the earth, without reference to situation
or figure. The nomenclature of Riccioli has, however,
been deservedly preferred by Schroeter and o'thers who
have particularly observed the phenomena of the lunar
surface, and is now universally followed. Mayer gave
a catalogue of 89 of the most remarkable of the spots,
with their selenographic latitudes and longitudes referred
to a first meridian, namely, that which passes through the
centre of the moon’s apparent disk, perpendicular to the Theoretical
lunar equator, accompanied by an accurate map of her sur- Astronomy,
face. Delineations of the lunar disk have also been given by
Hevelius inhis Selenographia; by Cassini, Russel, Schroeter,
Lohrmann, and others. The engraving (fig. 47) which ac- Fig. 47.
companies this article gives a pretty accurate view of the
appearance of the moon in her mean libration.
The following table contains the selenographic positions
of some of the principal spots. The sign -f- indicates a
northern, and — a southern latitude.
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
Iticcioli’s Names.
Zoroaster
Mercurius
Petavius
Langrenus
Endymion
Cleomedes
Atlas
Hercules
Censorious
Fracas torius
Possidonius
Theophilus
Cyrillus
St Catharina
Menelaus
Aristoteles
Ptolomaeus
Arzachel
Archimedes
Tycho
Plato
Pitatus
Eratosthenes
Clavius
Copernicus
Bullialdus
Blancanus
Heraclides
Keplerus
Gassendus
Aristarchus
Hevelius .
Schickardus
Grimaldus
Long.
West 72°
67
64
62
60
55
48
42
32
32
32
27
25
24
15
West 15
East 2
3
5
10
10
12
12
16
19
21
25
38
38
39
48
67
68
East 68
Lat.
+ 58‘
+ 40
— 24
— 8
+ 53
+ 26
+ 47
+ 48
0
— 22
+ 31
— 12
— 13
— 18
+ 16
+ 50
— 10
— 20
-f 28
— 43
+ 52
— 29
+ 14
— 60
+ 9
— 21
— 65
+ 41
+ 7
— 19
+ 24
— 1
— 49
— 5
That there are prodigious inequalities on the surface Great ine.
of the moon, is proved by looking at her through a tele- qualities
scope at any other time than when she is full; for thenon the sur-
there is no regular line bounding the dark and illuminated face of the
parts, but the confines of these parts appear as it wererno<in'
toothed and cut with innumerable notches and breaks ; and
even in the dark part, near the borders of the enlightened
surface, there are seen some small spaces enlightened by
the sun s beams. Upon the fourth day after new moon
there may be perceived some shining points, like rocks or
small islands, within the dark body of the moon; but not
far from the confines of light and darkness there are ob¬
served other little spaces which join to the enlightened
sui’face, but run out into the dark side, which by degrees
change their figure, till at last they come wholly within
the illuminated face, and have no dark parts round them
at all. Afterwards many more shining spaces are ob¬
served to arise by degrees, and to appear within the dark
side of the moon, which, before they drew near to the il¬
lumined portion of the disk, were invisible, being totally
immersed in the shadow. The contrary is observed in
the decreasing phases, where the lucid spaces which
ASTRONOMY.
5
■cal)
n
<s
e*
r-
Theoretical joined the illuminated surface recede gradually from it,
Astronomy. and remain for some time visible after they are quite se-
parated from the confines of light and darkness. Now it
is impossible that this should be the case, unless these
shining points were higher than the rest of the surface,
so that the rays of the sun may illumine their summits
before they reach their bases. Portions of considerable
extent are also perceived on the lunar surface, which are
never brilliant like the other parts, but remain constantly
obscure. These are supposed to be deep valleys or cavi¬
ties: they were formerly supposed to be seas, but, for
reasons about to be given, this idea has been abandoned.
These phenomena render it certain that the surface of
the moon is covered with mountains of a great height,
with rocks or masses of unknown matter, but possessing
the property of reflecting the sun’s light. The height ot
the lunar mountains may be determined in the following
manner.
Fig. 48. Let ABO (fig. 48) be the illuminated hemisphere of
the moon, SO the tangential solar ray, and consequently
O one of the points of the circle which separates the en¬
lightened from the obscure hemisphere. All the part
OD will be in darkness ; but if this part contain a moun¬
tain aM so elevated that its summit M reaches the solar
ray SO, the point M will be enlightened. Now, if the
line OM can be determined by observation, it will be
easy to deduce the arc Oa, and thence the height of the
mountain aM, in terms of the moon’s radius. Let E be
the place of an observer on the earth ; draw the lines EM,
EO, EC (C being the centre of the lunar orb), and Om
perpendicular to EM. The distance of the moon from
the earth being known, we have the distance EO: the
angle OEm is measured by the micrometer; therefore
Om, which is the projected distance of OM, is a given
quantity. Now OM - -■; and since OEm is a
J cos. MO»i
very small angle, EOm may be considered a right angle,
consequently MOm = MOE — 90° ; therefore OM
Om Om Om
- cos. (MOE — 90°) = sin. MOE ~ sin. EOS
• that is,
the distance between the summit of the mountain and
the illuminated part of the moon’s disk is equal to the
projected distance measured by the micrometer, divided
by the sine of the moon’s elongation from the sun. Sup¬
pose this distance OM zr n • CO ; we shall then have
CM = CO v'l + n\ and the height of the mountain
2
aM = 00(^1 + M2 — 1) = CO (neglecting in the
development of the radical the powers of n which are
higher than the square). According to the observations
of Hevelius, the greatest value of n is which gives the
height of the mountain equal to of the semidiameter
of the moon. Schroeter, who estimated the heights of
the lunar mountains by measuring the projections of their
shadows at the time the sun was near their horizon,
makes it in some cases The highest mountains
on the earth do not reach an elevation greater than
YMq of the terrestrial radius; the lunar mountains,
therefore, in proportion to the diameters of the earth
and moon, are nearly five times higher than those of
our globe. Their absolute height is above five English
miles. It is easy to see that these determinations are sus¬
ceptible of very little accuracy.
Not only is the moon’s surface rendered irregular by
high and precipitous mountains, but numerous cavities ap¬
pear in every part of her surface, some of which, accord¬
ing to Schroeter, are upwards of four English miles in
depth, and forty in circumference at the orifice. An in- Theoretical
sulated mountain is frequently observed to rise in the Astronomy,
centre of these enormous pits or caverns; and they are
surrounded by high annular ridges, the masses of which
would exactly fill the inclosed cavities. From this cir¬
cumstance, it is probable that the elevations and hollows
which abound on the surface of the moon have been pro¬
duced by volcanic eruptions. Herschel imagined that
he even observed volcanoes in activity. At the time of
the new moon he perceived on different parts of her ob¬
scure disk three luminous points, resembling pieces of
burning charcoal, covered with a thin coat of white ashes,
one of which, by a comparison with the third satellite of
Jupiter, appeared to be upwards of three miles in diame¬
ter. Their brilliancy continued during several days, un¬
dergoing variations altogether independent of the increase
of the moon’s apparent magnitude, and at the end of that
time they appeared to become extinct.
The existence of a lunar atmosphere has been a fertile
subject of controversy among astronomers. It has been
urged that, as the brightness of the moon is sensibly equal
at all times when she is not obscured by clouds in the ter¬
restrial atmosphere, she cannot be surrounded by an at¬
mosphere similar to that of our earth, so variable in its Lunar at-
density, and so liable to be obscured by clouds and va- mosphere.
pours. The assumption of an equable brightness in the
appearance of the moon has not, however, been allowed
to pass uncontroverted. Hevelius relates that he has se¬
veral times found in skies perfectly clear, when even stars
of the sixth and seventh magnitude were visible, that, at
the same altitude of the moon, at the same elongation
from the earth, and with the same telescope, the moon
and her maculae do not appear equally lucid and clear at
all times, but are much brighter and more distinct at some
times than at others. Several other observers have no¬
ticed that the moon is not always equally conspicuous du¬
ring total eclipses ; a fact which is held to be indicative of
accidental variations in the state of the lunar atmosphere.
Another objection against the existence of a lunar at¬
mosphere is derived from the circumstance that, if it ex¬
isted, its influence would be perceptible in the occultations
of the planets, or fixed stars, by the moon. When the
moon approaches so near to a star that part of her atmo¬
sphere (supposing she has one) is interposed between the
star and the eye of the observer, the star, it is contended,
ought to suffer a change in its colour in consequence of the
absorption of some of its light in traversing the denser
parts of the moon’s atmosphere. But when we consider
that the region of the vapours and clouds in the terrestrial
atmosphere does not exceed the height of four miles, or
the 1980th part of the earth’s diameter, and that conse¬
quently the obscure part of the lunar atmosphere, sup¬
posing it to be similarly constituted, would not subtend an
angle of one second (the mean apparent diameter of the
moon being 1889 seconds), and that this space is passed
over by the moon in less than two seconds of time, it will
scarcely be expected that observation will be able to de¬
cide whether the supposed obscuration takes place or not.
Some observers have, however, remarked instances of
stars, when about to be occulted, presenting an evident
diminution of light. (See a Paper by Mr Ramage of
Aberdeen, in the 2d vol. of the Memoirs of the Astronomi¬
cal Society.)
The existence of a lunar atmosphere cannot increase or
diminish the apparent diameter of the moon, because its ef¬
fect on the rays of light when they enter it will be exactly
counteracted at the time of their emergence. Itmightseem,
therefore, that in order to determine whether the light of
a star or planet is inflected when it passes very near the
6
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical border of the lunar disk, it would be sufficient to compare
Astronomy, the observed duration of the occultations of the stars, or
eclipses of the sun, with the time, calculated from the
theory of the moon’s motion, which she consumes in
passing through a space equal to her apparent diameter.
But if, as is generally supposed, a certain irradiation
is produced around luminous objects, by which their
image is dilated, the apparent diameter of the moon
will thereby be augmented when she is projected on the
dark sky. On the contrary, when the disk of the moon
is projected on that of the sun in annular eclipses, the
irradiation, by dilating the luminous ring which seems to
surround the moon, will cause her apparent diameter to
appear smaller than it actually is. On this account it
becomes very difficult to ascertain by direct measurement
the amount of the inflection of light at the border of the
lunar disk, or even to be certain of its existence. An in¬
direct method of arriving at the desired object was, how¬
ever, imagined by Dionis du Sejour, who regarded the ir¬
radiation and inflection as two unknown quantities to be
determined simultaneously from the observations of the
phases of eclipses, upon which their effects are different.
The observations best adapted for this purpose are those
of the magnitude of the luminous crescent, and its suc¬
cessive increase in annular eclipses. Du Sejour calcu¬
lated with great care the annular eclipse of the sun which
took place in the year 1764, and was visible over all
Europe; and which, by reason of the extent and variety
of its phases, presented a great many points of compari¬
son. He particularly employed the observations made
in different places of the instants of the formation and rup¬
ture of the ring. He likewise confirmed these observa¬
tions by measurements made by Mr Short, at London, of
the distance between the horns of the crescent at divers
instants. It resulted, from the comparison of an immense
number of observations, that the measurements could
not be reconciled without supposing an irradiation of 3"
on the semidiameter of the sun, and an inflection of near¬
ly the same amount round the disk of the moon, produced
by her atmosphere. According to this result, the hori¬
zontal refraction at the surface of the moon amounts to
1"‘5. The mean horizontal refraction observed at the
surface of the earth is 0°-585, and consequently about
1400 times greater than that at the moon. Hence, sup¬
posing the moon’s atmosphere of the same nature as that
of the earth, its density must be 1400 times less, and con¬
sequently rarer than the most perfect vacuum which can
be produced by the best pneumatic machines.
The existence of a lunar atmosphere, though of small
extent, is indicated with considerable probability by the
observations of Schroeter, who perceived that some ranges
of lunar mountains, when in the dark hemisphere, are
illuminated more feebly in proportion as they recede
from the boundary of light and darkness; an effect which
would be produced by the partial absorption of the rays
of light which pass near the moon’s surface. He also
remarked the same circumstance with regard to the
cusps, and perceived other indications of an atmosphere
in some changes of tint, which induced him to think
that a twilight might be discernible towards the cusps.
With a view to prove the accuracy of this conjecture,
he examined the moon with great care under the most
favourable circumstances, and at length descried a faint
glimmering which he took to be crepuscular light, ex¬
tending from the cusps into the dark body of the moon. Theoretical |
Its greatest breadth was 2"; and it extended E 20" from Astronomy-
the cusps, along the circumference of the lunar disk.
From these data he computed that the height of the lunar
atmosphere, to the limit where it ceases to inflect the
rays of light or diminish the brightness of a star, does
not exceed 5742 English feet. A ring of this breadth, at
the distance of the moon, will subtend an angle of only
0"*94; hence the almost imperceptible influence of the
lunar atmosphere.
Some observations, related by Mr Ramage of Aberdeen,
in a memoir already alluded to, of occultations of Jupiter
and his satellites, with an excellent reflecting instrument,
also tend to confirm the existence of a small lunar at¬
mosphere. On the approach of the satellites no diminu¬
tion of their light was perceptible. On coming into con¬
tact with the moon’s limb they did not disappear instant¬
ly, like fixed stars, but formed an indentation or notch
in the limb, as if imbedded in it, but at the same time se¬
parated from it by a fine line of light. The indentation
continued visible till about half their diameters were im¬
mersed, when it disappeared. (Memoirs of the Astronomi¬
cal Society of London, vol. ii. p. 87.)
The dark spots on the moon’s surface were formerly
supposed to be water; but as elevations and cavities are
distinctly perceptible in them, that hypothesis is evident¬
ly erroneous. Besides, the extreme tenuity of her atmo¬
sphere is inconsistent with the existence of water at hex-
surface. It is only by the weight of the terrestrial atmo¬
sphere that the liquids at the surface of the earth are
prevented from being dissipated in vapours. If the pre¬
sent atmosphere were removed, every liquid would con¬
tinue to be dissipated in this manner till a new atmo¬
sphere was formed, to which each would contribute in
proportion to its elastic force ; and the evaporation would
only cease when the tension of the vapour of each liquid
was equal to its elastic force in a vacuum at the same
temperature. But if the vapours were removed as they
arose, by any absorbing cause, the evaporation would con¬
tinue till the liquids entirely disappeared. Now we may
suppose this to have been the case with respect to the
moon, and that at one time she may have had an atmo¬
sphere, which the attractive force of the earth, aided by
some accidental circumstance, may have swept away and
united with our own. (Biot, Astr. Phys. tome ii. p. 413.)
Under these circumstances it is evident, that no animal,
similarly constituted to those which inhabit the earth, could
respire at the surface of the moon.1 * * * Every thing there ap¬
pears solid, desolate, and unfit for the production and sup¬
port of organized substances; and the excessive cold which
certainly prevails must be sufficient to destroy every
source of animal or vegetable life. May it not then be sup¬
posed that the moon is a planet which has not yet reached
a state of maturity—a maturity to be prepared by suc¬
cessive volcanic eruptions; or that, having fulfilled its
destiny, it is now in a state of decay ?
On the subject of this section, see Hevelius, Selenogra-
pjhia; Schroeter, Selenotopographische Fragmente; Hooke’s
Micrographia, 1665; Lemonnier, Selenographie; Mayer,
Cosmographische Nachrichten, 1748; Boscovich, De Luna:
Atmosphara, 1753; Dunn, Phil. Trans., 1762; Herschel,
Phil. Trans., 1 /SO and 1787, p. 229; Ferguson’s Astro¬
nomy, by Brewster; YAot,Astronomie, tome ii. p. 413; Schu¬
bert, Traite d'Astronomic Theorique, tome ii. p. 364.
1 It has always been a favourite opinion with mankind, that the celestial bodies, resembling the earth in some respects, are also like
it, peopled with rational beings. The author of the verses attributed to Orpheus ascribes to the moon many mountains and cities
and palaces: 5 ’
» woXk' nffr'.a, T'k/.a
ASTRONOM Y.
Sect. VI.—Of Eclipses and Occidtations.
In describing these interesting phenomena, we will first
consider the eclipses of the moon, which, for any given place
on the earth, are much more frequent than those of the
sun, and, by reason of certain circumstances about to be ex¬
plained, can also be computed with much greater facility.
1.—Eclipses of the Moon.
The earth being an opaque, round body, much smaller
than the sun, must project behind it in space a conical
shadow, limited by straight lines drawn from the extre¬
mities of the sun’s disk to touch the surface of the earth.
When the moon enters this shadow, and a portion of her
disk is still enlightened by the sun, the enlightened part
will necessarily have the form of a luminous crescent,
the concavity of which is turned to the conical shadow
of the earth; and this appearance will likewise be exhi¬
bited when the moon begins to emerge from the shadow.
As she approaches towards the shadow, her light is not
suddenly eclipsed, but passes insensibly through all
the successive gradations of obscurity, till the darkness
attains its greatest intensity. The reason of this will be
easily comprehended by considering that when an opaque
body is placed between an object and the sun, so as to
conceal only a part of his disk, the object is then less en¬
lightened than when none of the solar rays are intercept¬
ed ; and this in proportion as more or less of the sun is
concealed. Between full illumination and total obscurity
there are consequently intermediate tints and gradations
of light, which are denominated the Penumbra, in contra¬
distinction to the Umbra which covers those places to which
the sun’s rays are completely intercepted. Let S and E
(fig. 49) be the centres of the sun and earth, and ABB'A'
any plane whatever passing through the axis SE, in which,
let AB, A'B' be tangents to the sun and earth on opposite
sides of the axis SE; these tangents will meet the pro¬
longation of the axis in a point C. Let also AB', A'B
touch the sun and earth on opposite sides of SE, and
let C' be their intersection. If we now suppose the plane
to turn round the axis SC, a conical shadow or umbra, of
which the apex is C, will be formed behind BB'; and
if the moon is situated within any part of the cone BCB',
the sun will be entirely invisible. As soon as the moon
emerges from this cone, a part at least of the sun's rays
will fall upon her, and she will be in the penumbra. If
situated, for example, at M, and MN be drawn to touch
the earth and meet the solar disk in N, then the part of
that disk between A and N will be visible at M. The ex¬
tent of the penumbra is therefore determined by the an¬
gle DBC. When M is situated in the straight line BD,
die whole of the sun’s disk is visible; when M is in BC
the sun entirely vanishes, and his visible portion diminishes
from the instant M passes BD till it reaches BC. The
intensity of the penumbra, therefore, goes on increasing
from the first of these limits to the second, where it is
confounded with the total darkness. This explains the
progressive obscuration of the moon’s disk in her eclipses.
If we now attempt to determine the circumstances under
which an eclipse of the moon can take place, it is obviously
necessary to inquire, in the first place, into the length of
the conical shadow BCB'; for an eclipse can only happen
on the supposition of its extending beyond the" orbit of
pjat the moon. For this purpose let EF (fig. 50) be drawn
LXXXIII.parallel to AB, and meeting SA in F. We have then sin.
EB . .
= sm. 11 — sin. p, It
being the apparent semidiameter of the sun, and p his hori¬
zontal parallax. By reason of the smallness of these angles
/
the arcs may be substituted for the sines; hence the angle Theoretical
Astronomy.
ECB = R —p. But CE = —
:, therefore making'
50. TTOTi • CU'W SA-
LCB = sm. SLr — rr 
sin. ECB
EB, the radius of the earth, =r «, CE =
sm. (R—p)
From this expression it is evident that the value of CE
depends on the horizontal parallax, and therefore varies
with the sun’s distance from the earth. On calculating,
by means of the values of R, a, and p, given in the preced¬
ing sections, the values of CE at the perigean, mean, and
apogean distances, the following results will be obtained:—
Lengths of CE.
Sun in perigee 212‘896 terrestrial radii.
at mean distance 216-531
in apogee 220238
Now the greatest distance of the moon from the earth
is less than 64 terrestrial radii (sect, ii.), consequently
the shadow of the earth is projected into space between
three and four times farther than the distance of the moon.
Hence it appears, that if the moon moved in the ecliptic
she would traverse the earth’s shadow and be eclipsed
every revolution. On account of the inclination of her
orbit to that plane, the eclipses can only happen when she
is in or near her nodes. The greatest distances from the
nodes at which they can take place are called the Lunar
Ecliptic Limits.
In order to determine these limits, it is necessary first
of all to know the apparent diameter of a section of the
earth’s shadow, at the place where it is traversed by the
orbit of the moon. Let /MZ' (fig. 50) be a part of the
moon’s orbit, intersecting the lines AC and A'C in m and
m!; then mm! is the geocentric diameter of the shadow,
the half of which is measured by the angle m EC. Now
the angle raEC is the difference between the angles EmA
and ECA, the first of which, namely, EwA, is the ap¬
parent semidiameter of the earth seen from the moon, or,
in other words, the moon’s horizontal parallax. Let this
angle, therefore, be denoted by P. It has already been
shown that ECA = R —p; consequently we have wEC
= P _j_ jo — R in all cases; that is to say, the semi¬
diameter of the shadow is equal to the sum of the horizontdl
parallaxes of the sun and moon, diminished by the apparent
semidiameter of the sun. On calculating the amount of
this expression from the values of P and p given above,
the following table will be obtained, exhibiting the magni¬
tude of the apparent diameters of the earth’s shadow for
different distances of the sun and moon.
Apparent diameters
of earth’s shadow.
f ji in apogee 1° 15' 24"‘30
at mean distance 1 23 2*31
( in perigee 1 30 40 ‘SI
f j) in apogee 1 15 56 ’SB
Sun at mean distance, y at mean distance 1 23 34 *87
in perigee 1 31 12 ‘87
!j) in apogee 1 16 28 *29
at mean distance 1 24 6 *30
in perigee 1 31 44‘30
The greatest apparent diameter of the moon being
only 33'31""07, which is about a third part of the diame¬
ter of the earth’s shadow, it follows that the moon may
not only be completely enveloped in the shadow, but,
since she passes over a- space nearly equal to her own
breadth in an hour, that she may continue to be totally
eclipsed during a space of about two hours.
The above determination refers only to the umbra or
cone of total darkness; but the diameter of the penumbra
is obtained in a manner exactly similar. In the same
Sun in perigee,
ASTRONOMY.
8
Theoretical diagram the semidiameter of the penumbra is measured
Astronomy.by the visual angle /EC; but /EC = E/C' EC'/, and
V^V^/EC'/ = EC? zr C'EA + C'AE; therefore /EC = E/C'+
C'EA -j- C'AE; or, retaining the same denominations as
above, /EC = P-}-j9 + R. Hence, the semidiameter of the
penumbra is equal to the horizontal parallaxes of the moon
and sun, augmented by the apparent semidiameter of the sun.
All the different numerical values of the semidiameter
of the penumbra corresponding to particular positions of
the sun and moon may be computed exactly in the same
manner as in the case of the umbra.
The two expressions for the semidiameters of the um¬
bra and penumbra, viz. P p — R, and P-(-p -J- R> give
immediately the distance of the moon’s centre from the
axis of the cone when her disk comes into contact with
the shadow. Representing the apparent semidiameter
of the moon by r, her disk will just touch the umbra
when the distance of her centre from the axis SE is
equal to P + /> — R + ^; and it will touch the penumbra
when the distance is P4-j9-}-R + 7\ But on account of
the very feeble obscurity of the penumbra towards its ex¬
treme border, it is impossible to observe with any degree
of precision the time at which the moon enters it. In
computing the ecliptic limits, therefore, it is only neces¬
sary to have regard to the umbra.
In the table given above, the extreme values of
P -}- jt? — R, the, apparent semidiameter of the earth’s
shadow, are (1° 15' 24"’30) = 37' 42"T5, and (1° 31'
44"*30) zr 45' 52"T5; and the least and greatest values of
r, the apparent semidiameter of the moon, are respectively
14' 45" and 16' 45" (sect, ii.); therefore the least distance of
the moon’s centre from the axis of the shadow at the time
of her immergence or emergence is 37' 42"‘15 -f- 14' 45" =
52' 27"T5, and the greatest 45' 52"T5 -f- 16' 45" = 62'
37"* 15. The first is the limit within which an eclipse
must necessarily happen; the last that beyond which it
cannot happen.
It is now easy to ascertain the limits of the moon’s dis¬
tance from her node, within which the eclipses take place.
Let NC (fig. 51) be a portion of the ecliptic, NM part of
the moon’s orbit, N its node, C the centre of a section of
the earth’s shadow, M the centre of the moon; the verge
of the lunar disk touching, but not penetrating, the sha¬
dow at a. It is evident that, if the moon be at a greater
distance than CM from NC, there can be no eclipse. The
greatest value of CM, as we have just seen, is 62' 37"T5,
from which the corresponding ecliptic limit NC is easily
computed by means of the formula
rad. X sin. CM = sin. NC X sin. CNM.
Supposing the angle CNM, that is, the inclination of the
moon’s orbit to the ecliptic, to be 5°, which is its minimum
value, the value of NC is found from the logarithmic ta¬
bles to be 12° 2' nearly. Hence an eclipse of the moon
can only happen when she is within about 12° 2' of hfer node.
Under the most favourable circumstances, however, the
limits may extend to 13° 21'. A lunar eclipse will certainly
take place if the moon’s distance from her node, at the
time of her mean opposition, is not greater than 7° 4'.
When the moon’s disk only comes into contact with the
shadow, as in fig. 51, the phenomenon is called an appulse;
when the disk only enters into the shadow in part, the
eclipse is said to be partial} it is called total if the moon
entirely disappears, and central when her centre coincides
with the axis of the cone, or if at the time of the eclipse
the moon is exactly in her node.
In the preceding determinations the shadow has been
supposed to be conical, whereas, on account of the com¬
pression of the earth at the poles, it is not exactly a cone,
but a conoid on an elliptic base; and it varies at every in¬
stant by reason of the earth’s rotation. To determine ri- Theoretical
gorously the figure of the cone at every instant, and the Astronomy
diameter of its section where the moon enters and leaves
it, would require calculations of great complication and
prolixity. Such precision is, however, unnecessary; and
indeed it is impossible to attain to absolute accuracy so
long as the figure of the earth is not exactly known. It
is usual and natural to employ the largest diameter which
the shadow can have at the distance of the moon.
It has also been supposed that the shadow is terminated
by tangents to the sun and the earth; that is to say, that
all the rays of light which are not obstructed by the globe
of the earth pass in straight lines from the sun to the
moon. But the earth being surrounded by an atmosphere
which near the surface exerts a powerful action on the
solar rays, it is to be presumed that those rays which, if
unobstructed, would glance by the surface of the earth,
are absorbed by the lower strata of the atmosphere. The
effect of this will be to enlarge the diameter of the shadow;
and the requisite correction may be regarded as an aug¬
mentation of the earth’s radius, by adding to it a part of
the atmosphere; or, which amounts to the same thing, an
augmentation of the lunar parallax. Now, it is found by
experience that such a correction is necessary; and, ac¬
cording to Mayer, the lunar parallax must be augmented
by a 60th part in order to satisfy the observations.
Another effect of the action of the earth’s atmosphere
on the solar rays is to render the moon dimly visible even
when she is totally eclipsed,—a circumstance to which al¬
lusion was made in the preceding section. Let the circle
f g h i (fig. 52) concentric to the earth include that
part of the atmosphere which is sufficiently dense to pro¬
duce a sensible refraction of the rays of light. All those
rays which do not fall within that circle, such as W/itf,
Yiv, proceed in their direct course without suffering any
refraction ; but those which enter the atmosphere between
f and k, and between i and /, on opposite sides of the
earth, are gradually more bent inward as they go through
a greater portion of the atmosphere, until the rays and
V/, touching the earth at m and n, are bent so much as to
meet at q, a little short of the moon; and therefore the
dark shadow of the earth is contained in the space mopqm,
where none of the sun’s rays can enter; all the rest, R, R,
being mixed by the scattered rays which are refracted as
above, is in some measure enlightened by them; and some
of those rays falling on the moon, give her the colour of
tarnished copper, or of iron almost red-hot; so that if the
earth had no atmosphere, the moon would be as invisible
in total eclipses as she is when new. If the moon were so
near the earth as to go into its dark shadow, suppose
about p or q, she would be invisible during her stay in it,
but visible before and after in the fainter shadow R R.
After having pointed out the general phenomena of the
lunar eclipses, and the limits within which they take place,
it only remains to show in what manner the time of their
commencement, end, and duration, and also their magni¬
tude, may be determined by computation.
Let the line NE (fig. 53) represent the ecliptic, NO Plate
the orbit of the moon, C the centre of the terrestrial^NXXIt
shadow, and M the centre of the moon at the instant ofF’S- "3-
the opposition; then CM will be the circle of latitude on
which the opposition takes place. The centre of the
shadow C being always in opposition with the sun, moves
along the ecliptic from west to east, or from N towards
E, with the same velocity as the sun. The moon also,
at the same time, moves in her orbit from west to east, or
from N towards O. Now the velocities of these two mo¬
tions are given by the astronomical tables, and the ques¬
tion is to determine the instant of time at which the circles
ASTRONOMY.
4 L Theoretical representing sections of the moon and the earth’s shadow
°t Astronomy, meet each other either before or after the opposition.
> At the time of an eclipse the apparent distance of the
centre of the shadow from the moon is very small, conse¬
quently CM, and also the differences of the respective
longitudes and latitudes of C and M, may be regarded as
straight lines. During the short interval between the
commencement and end of an eclipse, the motion of the
sun, and consequently that of the centre of the shadow,
may likewise be regarded as uniform. By these supposi¬
tions, sufficiently accurate for our present purpose, the
problem is considerably simplified.
Suppose now that C' and M' are two simultaneous po¬
sitions of the shadow and moon at any instant before or
after the opposition. Let M' P be perpendicular, and
MQ, parallel, to NE. The velocities of the moon and ter¬
restrial shadow being known from the tables, the lines
C' P and Q M', which represent the mqtions of the centre
of the moon relatively to that of the shadow in longitude
and latitude, are known also; whence C' P and P M' are
given, and consequently C' M' the distance of the centres.
Let us assume
A == CM or ])’s latitude when in opposition,
s z= q’s motion in longitude,
m zz D’s horary motion in longitude,
?* = 5’s motion in latitude,
l zz time from M to M',
c z= C'M' the distance of the centres.
Now, since we suppose that CP and QM' are the ])’s mo¬
tion in longitude and latitude respectively in the time t,
it is evident that CP zz m t, and QM' = n t. But CC' is
the sun’s motion, or the motion of the terrestrial shadow
in longitude during the same time; therefore CC'= st.
We have then C'P zzmt — s t, and PM' zz X+ntj conse¬
quently
t? — (mt—5 024-(A+w #)2.
In this quadratic equation, if t is regarded as the unknown
quantity, the only arbitrary quantity contained in it will
be c, the distance of the centres, the others being all de¬
termined from the tables. On assigning, therefore, any
arbitrary value to c, the resolution of the equation will give
the corresponding value of t, and consequently the cir¬
cumstances or different phases of the eclipse which we
may wish to determine.
On arranging the terms of the above equation so as to
obtain the resolution relatively to t, we have
[(m — t2^_ 2 X‘ ntzz c2 — A2,
which may be still simplified by introducing an auxiliary
angle 6, such that tan. d zz ; for by this substitution
m — s J
there will result
w? $ + 2 A* n t sin.2 d zz (c? — A2) sin.2 6,
which gives the two following values of t :
t = ^— A sin.2 Q z±z sin. 6 Vc2 — A2 cos.2 t) j.
The first of these denotes the time at which the moon
enters, and the second that at which she quits, the um-
P bra or penumbra.
I he time at which the different phases of the eclipse
happen, are calculated directly from this equation. If,
for example, we wish to determine the time at which the
moon’s disk begins to enter the shadow, we make c = P
+ P 11 + ^ (neglectmg the small augmentation of the
shadow occasioned by the refraction of the atmosphere).
In the case of the penumbra we must take e= P-fy>-p.
R + r ,• and it is evident that, if in either case A is of such
a magnitude that c is less than A cos. d, the value of t will
be impossible; in other words, no eclipse can take place.
VOL. IV.
If we suppose P-f-p — R ~ A cos. 6, the two values Theoretical
of £ wdl be equal, and the duration of the phase will only Astronomy,
be for an instant, as in the case of the appulse, in which the^^^^^
moon s limb just touches the shadow without entering it.
In general, the portion of the diameter of the eclipsed
part is P-fp — R-f-r — A cos. 9; and consequently the
diameter of the part not eclipsed is equal to the diameter
of the moon, or 2r, minus this quantity, that is, equal to
A cos. 0 — P —p-j_R_!_r. When this expression is equal
to nothing the eclipse is just a total one; when negative,
the upper boundary of the moon’s limb will be under the
upper boundary of the section of the shadow, and the
total eclipse will continue for some time.
The instant at which the middle of the eclipse happens
will evidently be that at which the two values of t are
equal, or when the radical disappears, that is, when c zz
A cos. 9. In this case tzz-— — A sin.2 9, and the instant is
n
called that of the greatest phase. It is usual to express
the quantity of the eclipse in digits, or twelfths of the
lunar diameter; so that the eclipsed part is represented
by^(P+JP—P + r — A cos. 9). Thus, taking the
moon’s apparent diameter at 33' 18", and supposing the
eclipsed part to be 24' 52", this part expressed in digits
24' 52"
wiH be —- X 12 = 8-96 digits.
The obscurity of the penumbra renders observations
of the commencement and termination of the lunar eclipses
extremely uncertain. To obviate in some degree this in¬
convenience, care is taken to observe as accurately as
possible the instants at which the shadow arrives at or
passes different known spots on the moon’s disk; so that
the same eclipse offers in fact a great number of different
observations, the mean of which may be regarded as more
certain than any individual one. But after all the pre¬
cautions that can be taken, the eclipses of the moon are far
from affording results equally precise and certain as those
of the sun. They were formerly of much greater import¬
ance than they are in the present state of astronomy; for
the ancients had no other means of determining the geo¬
graphical longitudes of places on the earth. In fact, as
the eclipse is occasioned by the moon’s being deprived of
her light, the different phases of the eclipse happen at
exactly the same physical instant of time to all observers
to whom the moon is visible. The difference of the time
reckoned by two observers at the instant of the pheno¬
menon will therefore give the difference of the horary
angles, or of their meridians; but supposing each to have
made a mistake of 4 minutes of time in an opposite sense
(and the ancients could scarcely guarantee a greater de¬
gree of accuracy), the resulting error in the difference of
longitude would amount to 2°. The geographical tables
of Ptolemy contain errors of still greater magnitude.
2.—Eclipses of the Sun.
The eclipses of the sun are caused by the interposition
of the moon between the sun and the earth, and their ge¬
neral phenomena may be explained in the same manner
as those of the moon. When the conical shadow which
the moon projects behind her in space reaches the earth,
those points of the earth’s surface on which it falls are
completely deprived of the light of the sun, and involved
in total darkness. Those parts of the earth which are
covered^ by the penumbra are only partially deprived of
the sun’s light, because the moon does not conceal the
whole, but only a part of the solar disk.
B
O M Y.
10
A S T R O N
Theoretical In order to appreciate the different circumstances of
Astronomy. a soiar eclipse, the procedure to be adopted is in many
* respects the same as that which has been explained in
regard to the eclipses of the moon. The length of the
moon’s shadow, the first object of inquiry, is found exact¬
ly in the same manner as that of the earth; and it is only
necessary to substitute in the formulae already given the
values of the apparent diameter and parallax of the sun
which they would have at the surface of the moon. Now,
these values are easily found, for the diameter of the sun
as seen from the moon is equal to his diameter as seen
from the earth, increased in the ratio of the distances of
the moon and earth from the sun. In the same manner
the parallax of the sun relatively to the moon is equal to
his parallax relatively to the earth, augmented in the
ratio of the distances, and diminished in the ratio of the
diameters, of the moon and earth. Thus, let D represent
the distance of the earth from the sun, d the moon’s distance
from the sun, m the moon’s true semidiameter, and a the
semidiameter of the earth; the sun’s apparent semidiameter
as seen from the moon will be R • (R being his apparent
semidiameter as seen from the earth), and his horizontal
parallax will bep * ^ The formula then which expresses
the length of the terrestrial shadow CE (fig. 50), namely,
adapted to the case of the moon, becomes
and expresses the distance be-
sin. (R — yj
sin
7YI
taking into account the sun’s parallax, r + P'—
D Theoretical
-—j~ — Astronomy.
R'
D
d
D
The ratio of the distances in this and the pre¬
ceding formula, may be expressed in terms of the paral-
/ . a A a E>
laxes; for since p = and R = jj
D
771
Since also — =
a
d'
therefore
d
P’
according to the nature
m D
r P
- V—p
of parallax, we have likewise r + p
therefore, by substituting these values, the expression for
the semidiameter of the lunar shadow becomes
If to the apparent semidiameter of the shadow at the
point where it is ouched by the earth, we add the appa¬
rent semidiameter of the earth as seen from the moon, that
is to say, the moon’s horizontal parallax (P), the distance
between the centres of the moon’s shadow and of the
earth will be
P + (r _ R)
tween the centre of the moon and the apex of her shadow.
By means of this formula the following results, which refer
to the extreme cases in which the length of the shadow
is a maximum and minimum comparatively with the
moon’s distance from the earth, may be computed.
Length of Moon’s
shadow. distance.
Sun in apogee, Moon in perigee, 59*730 55*902
Sun in perigee, Moon in apogee, 57*760 63*862
In the first case the shadow of the moon will reach
beyond the centre of the earth; in the second it will not
reach even to the surface. It follows, therefore, that
even if the orbit of the moon coincided with the ecliptic,
she would not produce a total obscurity every time she
comes between the sun and the earth. At her greatest
distances, where the shadow does not reach the earth,
the effect of her interposition would be to conceal only a
part of the sun’s disk.
By introducing into the other formulae modifications
similar to the above, we shall find the apparent diameter
of the shadow and the solar ecliptic limits. The appa¬
rent semidiameter of the earth’s shadow has been shown
to be equal to P + — R; consequently the semidiameter
of the lunar shadow at the distance of the earth, as seen by
an observer placed on the moon, is equal to the parallax of
the earth, plus the parallax of the sun relatively to the moon,
minus the apparent semidiameter of the sun seen from the
moon. The parallax of the earth means simply the appa¬
rent semidiameter of the moon seen from the earth ; and if
we neglect the parallax of the sun, which cannot influence
the result to the extent of half a second, we shall have the
following theorem : The semidiameter of the lunar shadow is
equal to the excess of the apparent semidiameter of the moon
above the apparent semidiameter of the sun. Hence, denoting
the moon’s apparent semidiameter by r, the semidiameter
of the lunar shadow will be expressed by r — R * — ; or,
P —p
from which expression the solar ecliptic limits may be
readily computed. The result of the computation is, that
a solar eclipse may take place if the moon’s distance from
her node, at the time of her mean conjunction with the
sun, does not exceed 19° 4T. If her distance from the
node is less than 13° 33', the sun will certainly be eclipsed
in some part of the world.
The solar eclipses present a great variety of appearances,
depending on the relative positions of the sun, the moon,
and the spectator. If the apparent diameter of the moon
happens to surpass that of the sun, the eclipse will be total;
but if the moon’s diameter be the smaller, the observer
will see a luminous ring, formed by that part of the sun’s
disk which exceeds that of the moon, and the eclipse will
in that case be annular. If the centre of the moon is not
in the same straight line which joins the observer and the
centre of the sun, the eclipse can only be partial, as the
moon can only conceal % part of the sun’s disk. When
the moon merely touches without penetrating the solar
disk, the phenomenon is called an appulse ; and the eclipse
is central if the observer is placed at the centre of the
shadow, on the straight line joining the centres of the sun
and moon.
When the change happens within 17 degrees of the node,
and the moon is at her mean distance from the earth, the
point of her shadow just touches the earth, and she eclipses
the sun totally to that small spot whereon her shadow
falls ; but the darkness is not of a moment’s continuance.
The moon’s apparent diameter, when largest, exceeds
the sun’s, when least, only two minutes of a degree ; so that
in the greatest eclipse of the sun that can happen at any
time and place, the total darkness continues no longer than
whilst the moon passes over two minutes in her orbit, that
is, about 3 minutes and 56 seconds of an hour.
The moon’s shadow covers only a spot on the earth’s Extent of
surface about 180 English miles broad, when her diameter the moon’s
appears largest, and the sun’s least; and the total darkness shadow and
can extend no farther than the limits of the dark shadow, penumbra.
Yet the partial shadow or penumbra may then cover a
circular space 4900 miles in diameter, within all which the
sun is more or less eclipsed, as the places are less or more
distant from the centre of the penumbra. When the moon
changes exactly in the node, the penumbra is circular on
the earth at the middle of the general eclipse, because at
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical that time it falls perpendicularly on the earth’s surface;
Astronomy, but at every other moment it falls obliquely, and will there-
fore be elliptical; and the more so as the time is longer be¬
fore or after the middle of the general eclipse; and then
much greater portions of the earth’s surface are involved
in the penumbra.
To make several of the above and other phenomena
plainer, let S (fig. 52) be the sun, E the earth, M the
moon, and AMP the moon’s orbit. Draw the straight line
W e from the western side of the sun at W, touching the
western side of the moon at c, and the earth at e: draw
also the straight line V d from the eastern side of the sun
at V, touching the eastern side of the moon at d, and the
earth at e: the dark space ced included between these
lines is the moon’s shadow, ending in a point at e, on the
surface of the earth, because in this figure the moon is
supposed to be at her mean distance from the earth.
Had the moon been in her perigee, the shadow would
have covered a space on the surface of the earth of about
180 miles in diameter, to all places within which space
the eclipse would have been total. Had she been in her
apogee, the shadow would have terminated in a point
above e, and to an observer at e the sun would have been
eclipsed annularly. Draw the straight lines WXc?A and
YXcff, touching the contrary sides of the sun and moon,
and ending on the earth at a and b; draw also the straight
line SXM from the centre of the sun’s disk, through the
moon’s centre to the earth, and suppose the two former
lines WXdh and YXcg to revolve on the line SXM as
an axis, and the points a and b will describe the limits
of the penumbra TT on the earth’s surface, including the
large space aba, within which the sun appears more or
less eclipsed, according as the places are more or less
distant from the verge of the penumbra a b.
Draw the right line y 12 across the sun’s disk, perpen¬
dicular to SXM the axis of the penumbra; then divide
the line 3/ 12 into twelve equal parts, as in the figure, for
the twelve digits or equal parts of the sun’s diameter;
and at equal distances from the centre of the penumbra
at e (on the earth’s surface YY) to its edge ab, draw
twelve concentric circles.
To an observer on the earth at b, the eastern limb of
the moon at d seems to touch the western limb of the sun
at W when the moon is at M, and the sun’s eclipse be¬
gins at b; but at the same moment of absolute time, to
an observer at a, the western edge of the moon at c leaves
the eastern edge of the sun at Y, and the eclipse ends.
At the very same instant, to all those who live on the
circle next to ab, the moon cuts off or darkens a twelfth
part of the sun, and eclipses him one digit; to those who
live on the next interior circle, the moon cuts off two
twelfth parts of the sun; to those on the following circle,
three parts; and so on to the centre at e, where the sun
is centrally eclipsed. The different appearances of the
eclipse, as seen by spectators in these different situations,
with regard to the centre of the shadow, are represented
in fig. 54*, under which figure there is a scale of hours
and minutes, to show at a mean state how long it is from
the beginning to the end of a central eclipse of the sun
on the parallel of London, and how many digits are
eclipsed at any particular time from the beginning at A
to the middle at B or the end at C. Thus, in 16 minutes
from the beginning, the sun is two digits eclipsed ; in an
hour and five minutes, eight digits; and in an hour and
37 minutes, 12 digits.
Having determined the diameter of the moon’s shadow
at the earth, and the limits within which eclipses of the
sun can take place, the next object is to determine the
time of their commencement and termination. If the
1!
position of the observer were on the moon instead of the Theoretical
surface of the earth, our solar eclipses would appear
him as eclipses of the earth, and they would commence
at the instant when the earth’s disk began to penetrate
the lunar shadow. A spectator so situated might there¬
fore compute all the circumstances of a terrestrial eclipse
in exactly the same manner in which we compute those of
the moon; the same formulae would suffice, with the slight
modifications which have already been made. But rela¬
tively to an observer placed on the earth the case is alto¬
gether different. To him the eclipse does not begin when
the moon’s shadow comes into contact with the earth’s
disk, but when it begins to obscure his station. This,
therefore, is one circumstance which renders the compu¬
tation of solar more complicated and difficult than that of
lunar eclipses ; for it is necessary not only to determine
generally what portion of the terrestrial disk is covered
by the shadow, but also its position relatively to the equa¬
tor and to a given meridian, and likewise the path de¬
scribed by the centre and contour of the umbra and pen¬
umbra on the surface of the earth. There is another cir¬
cumstance which still further augments the difficulty of
the computation, namely, the position of the observer, on
account of which it is necessary to introduce the parti¬
cular conditions which depend on the parallax. In the
case of a lunar eclipse, it is only necessary that the moon’s
disk enter the earth’s shadow in order that the eclipse
may be visible to any part of the terrestrial hemisphere
opposite to the moon; but a solar eclipse may happen in
some parts of the earth without being visible at others—a
circumstance which is occasioned entirely by parallax.
When we abstract from the effects of parallax, or sup¬
pose the observer to be placed at the centre of the earth,
the problem of determining the different circumstances of
a solar eclipse is exactly the same as that relative to an
eclipse of the moon. But when the spectator is supposed
to be placed at the surface, the latitudes and longitudes
corresponding to his situation are different from the geo¬
centric latitudes and longitudes; and in order to adapt
the formula from which the time is given to these new
circumstances, it is necessary, as a preliminary step, to
compute the corrections which must be applied in conse¬
quence of the effects of parallax in longitude and lati¬
tude. The chief circumstance, therefore, in which the
calculation of solar eclipses differs from that of lunar, con¬
sists in its being necessary to compute the effect of
parallax in the direction of the angular distances which
form the data of the problem, in order to apply the re¬
quisite correction to the values of those distances fur¬
nished by the tables. The development of these compu¬
tations belongs to Practical Astronomy.
The sun’s ecliptic limits exceeding 17° 2F, while those
of the moon are only 11° 26', it follows that the eclipses
of the sun must be much more frequent than those of the
moon. Yet the lunar eclipses being visible to every
part of the terrestrial hemisphere opposite to the sun, and
those of the sun visible only to the small portion of the
hemisphere on which the moon’s shadow falls, it happens
that for any particular place on the earth the lunar eclipses
are much more frequently visible.
In any year the number of eclipses of both luminaries Number of
cannot be less than two, nor more than seven: the mostecbpses in
usual number is four, and it is very rare to have more thana ^ear*
six ; for the sun passes through both the nodes but once
a year, unless he passes through one of them in the begin¬
ning of the year; and if he does, he will pass through the
same node again a little before theyear is finished; because,
as these points move 19^ degrees backwards every year, the
sun will come to either of them 173 days after the other;
12
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical and when either node is within 17 degrees of the sun
Astronomy. at the time of new moon, the sun will be eclipsed. At
the subsequent opposition, the moon will be eclipsed in
the other node, and come round to the next conjunction
again ere the former node be 17 degrees past the sun, and
will therefore eclipse him a second time. When three eclip¬
ses take place about either node, the like number generally
happens about the opposite, as the sun comes to it in 173
days afterwards; and six lunations contain but four days
more. Thus, there may be two eclipses of the sun and one
of the moon about each of her nodes. But when the moon
changes in one of the nodes, she cannot be near enough
the other node at the next full to be eclipsed; and in six
lunar months afterwards she will change nearer the other
node: in these cases there can be but two eclipses in a
year, and they are both of the sun.
The eclipses of the sun being of gi*eat importance for
the determination of geographical longitudes, it is of con¬
sequence to be in possession of some easy method of as¬
signing the time at which they may be expected to occur,
in order to avoid the necessity of long and tedious calcula-
. tions. This may be done in a very simple manner, by con¬
sidering that if a time can be assigned after which the sun
and moon occupy exactly or nearly the same positions with
regard to the nodes of the lunar orbit, their motions after
that interval will recommence under the same circumstances,,
and the eclipses be reproduced in the same order. Now,
it has been shown (chap. iii. sect. 2) that the nodes of the
lunar orbit retrograde at the rate of 19°*3286 in a year,
consequently the time in which the sun returns to the
moon’s node is that which he requires to describe an arc
of 360° — 190,3286, or, as is found by a simple propor¬
tion, 346-619851 days. On comparing this with 29,5305887
days, the time of a lunation, it will be observed that these
numbers are nearly in the ratio of 223 to 19, so that after
223 synodic revolutions the moon has returned 19 times
to the same position relatively to the sun. But 223 sy¬
nodic revolutions are completed in 18 mean solar years
and 10 or 11 days, consequently after that interval all the
eclipses, whether of the sun or the moon, return again in
nearly the same order ; which gives a very simple means of
predicting them, since only 18 years of observation are re¬
quired. This period was known to the astronomers of
the remotest ages, and is generally supposed to be that
which the Chaldeans distinguished by the name of Saros.
(See Part I. of this article.)
But the ratio of 223 to 19 is not exact, and it is besides
subject to variation from the secular inequalities of the
sun and moon, by reason of which the rates of their mean
motions are sensibly changed. Discordancies will hence
arise; and in the course of time the order of eclipses ob¬
served in one of these periods will require correction.
But the variations are slow and gradual; the lunisolar
periods may, therefore, continue to be employed when
approximative results only are required. When rigorous
accuracy is wanted, recourse must be had to computation
from the astronomical tables.
Occulta Occultations of planets and stars by the moon are phe-
tions. nomena of which the calculation depends on exactly the
same principles, and is even made by the help of the
same formulae, as the eclipses of the sun. Let E (fig. 55)
denote the centre of the earth, M that of the moon, and
S a star or planet concealed by the moon; the straight
line SM will represent the axis of the lunar shadow, that
is to say, the portion of space which the rays proceeding
from the star cannot reach in consequence of their being
intercepted by the moon; and the angle EMO (EO being
perpendicular to SM) will be the apparent distance of
the centre of the shadow from the centre of the earth.
The expression for this angle in a function of the titne is Theoretical
obtained in exactly the same manner as in solar eclipses; Astronomy,
and by equating it with the different values of the angle
which correspond to the different phases of the occulta-
tion, and regarding the time as the unknown quantity,
the epochs will be obtained at which the phases take
place. There is only one circumstance which renders a
slight modification of the formulae necessary. In comput¬
ing the angle SEM, or the apparent distance of the centres
of the star and moon seen from the centre of the earth,
that distance may be regarded in solar eclipses as the
hypothenuse of a right-angled triangle, the sides of which
are respectively the latitude of the moon, and the differ¬
ence between the longitudes of the moon and sun. But
in occultations of the planets or stars, the star may be
out of the ecliptic, and consequently its latitude not zero ;
so that the sides of the right-angled triangle, of which
the apparent distance of the centres is the hypothenuse,
are the difference of latitude of the star and moon, and
the difference of longitude reduced to the moon’s place,
that is to say, multiplied by the cosine of the moon’s lati- ,
tude. It is evident that any of the planets may suffer an
occultation by the moon ; but with regard to the fixed stars,
it is only those which are situated at a distance from the
ecliptic not greater than the moon’s extreme latitude, that
can ever be hid by the interposition of the lunar disk.
The following is a list of all the solar eclipses that will
be visible in this country during the present century.
The time of the commencement of the eclipse, and the
number of digits eclipsed, are computed for the middle of
England. (See Baily’s Tables, &c. p. 52.)
LIST OF SOLAR ECLIPSES.
Year.
Day and Hour.
Digits
Eclipsed.
1832
1833
1836
1841
1842
1845
1846
1847
1851
1858
1860
1861
1863
1865
1866
1867
1868
1870
1873
1874
1875
1879
1880
1882
1887
1890
1891
1895
1896
1899
1900
July
July
May
July
July
May
April
October
July
March
July
December
May
October
October
March
February
December
May
October
September
July
December
May
August
June
June
March
August
June
May
27d-
17
15
18
8
6
25
9
28
15
18
31
17
19
8
6
23
22
26
10
29
19
30
17
19
17
- 6
26
9
8
28
2h- p. M.
5 A. M.
2 P. M.
3 P. M.
5 A. M.
8 A. M.
6 P. M.
6 A. M.
2 P. M.
1 A. M.
2 P. M.
2 P. M.
6 P. M.
4 P. M.
5 P. M.
8 A. M.
3 P. M.
A. M.
8 A. M.
9 A. M.
noon
A. M.
P. M.
A. M.
A. M.
8 A. M.
5 P. M.
9 A. M.
sunrise
5 A. M.
3 p. m.
11
0° 30'
9 36
11 18
contact
8 54
6 15
2 21
11 0
9 43
11 30
12
0
46
36
5 3
8 42
contact
9 36
3 43
6 18
0 33
4 0
24
18
11 58
4 39
contact
3 13
8 0
CHAP. IV.
ASTRONOMY.
13
theoretical
tsfronomy.
Sect. I.—General Phenomena of the Planetary Motions.
Having now described the motions and explained the
phenomena of the sun and moon, our attention will be
next occupied by the planets, those no less interesting
bodies, whose remarkable peculiarities of apparent motion
have attracted the curiosity, and formed a principal ob¬
ject of the labours, of astronomers in all ages. The sun
and moon move among the stars always in the same di¬
rection, and with velocities nearly uniform; but the pla¬
nets, though their apparent motions are most frequently
from west to east, sometimes appear to have no proper
motions, or to remain stationary among the fixed stars;
at other times they appear to move in a contrary direc¬
tion, or to retrograde; and hence the earth cannot be the
centre of the planetary orbits. The determination of that
centre, and the order of distance in which the orbits of
the different planets are placed around it, is comparative¬
ly an easy task since the telescope and micrometer have
made us acquainted with the phases and variations of the
apparent diameters of the planets; but the ancients, who
were guided by the apparent motions alone, found greater
difficulty in extricating the elements of their theories from
observations, and in framing hypotheses by which the phe¬
nomena could be represented with tolerable accuracy. The
different hypotheses which have been proposed for this
purpose are called, with sufficient impropriety, Systems of
the World.
In order to obtain a general notion of the path traced
by a planet in the heavens, it is necessary to attend close¬
ly to the various phenomena which it exhibits. As an
example, we may take Venus, the most brilliant and re¬
markable of all the planets.
A slight attention to the position of Venus, continued
a few days, suffices to show that she changes her place
with considerable rapidity among the fixed stars. If we
observe her in the evening, we shall soon find that her
greatest distance from the sun never exceeds an arc of
about 47°; that after attaining this distance she begins
again to approach the sun, the time which she continues
above the horizon after sunset gradually diminishing, till
at last she sets simultaneously with the sun, and is lost in
the effulgence of his rays. From the circumstance of her
appearing in the evening, and not remaining visible more
than about three hours after the sun has descended be¬
low the horizon, Venus has obtained the name of'Efmgos,
Hesperus, or the evening star; sometimes also she is called
the shepherd’s star.
A few days after the evening star has disappeared, a
brilliant star is observed in the morning preceding the
sun in the east, which was not seen while Venus followed
him in the west. At first it rises only a few minutes be¬
fore the sun, but every succeeding morning somewhat
earlier, till its distance from him is between 43 and 47
degrees. It then begins gradually to fall back; its elonga¬
tion or distance from the sun becomes less and less, till it
approaches so near to him as to be again lost in his
rays. This has been called <&uit<pogog, Lucifer, or the morn¬
ing star.
Hesperus and Lucifer were long regarded as different
stars. It could not fail, however, to be remarked, that
during the time the first continues to shine in the even¬
ing, the other is invisible in the morning, and as soon
as the bright harbinger of day makes its appearance, the
evening star ceases to be visible. It was, besides, ob¬
served that the one star disappears within a very short
distance from the sun, and that the other, when first seen Theoretical
after its periodical disappearance, is equally near to him Astronomy-
on the opposite side. The distance which each recedes
from the sun was likewise remarked to be the same; and
the times during which they are alternately visible were
found to be equal. These phenomena led some bolder
genius to affirm that Hesperus and Lucifer are the same
star, which is alternately visible in the morning and even¬
ing, according as it precedes or falls behind the sun.
Obvious as this conclusion is, it was not arrived at till
after many ages of reflection and experience.
Since Venus never appears at a greater distance from the
sun than about 47°, it is evident that the earth is neither
the centre of her orbit, nor included within it; for in
either case she would sometimes, like the moon, be seen
in opposition to the sun. From the appearances which
have as yet been described, it can only be inferred that
Venus is a satellite of the sun, and that her ox-bit is car¬
ried along with him in his annual revolution in the eclip¬
tic ; but the phenomena which she presents when seen
through the telescope afford the means of deducing more
definite conclusions.
When Venus, after having been for some time visible
in the evening, begins to approach the sun, she appears
through the telescope as a fine luminous crescent, the
horns of which are turned towards the east, and which
becomes narrower as her distance from the sun diminishes.
After she has passed the sun, and begins to appear in the
morning, the horns of the crescent are tux*ned towards
the west, and its breadth gradually enlarges in proportion
as the planet recedes from the sun, till she has gained
her greatest elongation, when her disk becomes a semi¬
circle. After this she begins to approach the sun
with an accelerated motion, and her disk becomes gib¬
bous, the illuminated or visible part being greater than a
semicircle; and when she overtakes the sun, her disk has
attained the dimensions of a full orb. Having passed the
sun, the oi’b begins again to contract, and passes through
the same gradation of changes on the eastern side of the
sun, till the planet comes again into conjunction, when it
vanishes entirely. All these phases, which neaidy resem¬
ble those of the moon, are illustrated by fig. 56. When Plate
Venus is in the superior conjunction at A, or in the same LXXXV-
straight line with the sun, she presents the full orb, be-' 5(>.
cause the hemisphere enlightened by the sun is turned
directly towards the earth at E. Arrived at B, the illu¬
minated hemisphere is not turned exactly towards the
earth, and consequently one side of her orb must appear
elliptical, the major axis being to the minor as radius to
the cosine of the inclination of the planes of illumination
and vision, as was shown in explaining the phases of the
moon. (Chap. iii. sect. 1.) At C, where the stx-aight
lines drawn from the planet to the earth and sun form a
x-ight angle, the minor axis of the ellipse vanishes, and we
have the half-illuminated orb. At D only a small portion
of the enlightened hemisphere is visible from E ; and when
the planet arrives at F, the inferior conjunction, her dark
side is wholly turned towards the earth, and she is invisible.
Mercury exhibits phenomena exactly analogous to those
of Venus. Like Venus, he oscillates on opposite sides of
the sun; but his oscillations are much quicker, and per¬
formed in a much smaller arc. His greatest elongation
or distance from the sun does not exceed 28° 20'; so that
he never appears above the horizon longer than an hour
and 50 minutes after sunset or before sunrise. He emits
a very vivid white light; but, by reason of his proximity
to the sun, he is seldom visible to the naked eye. His
phases resemble those of Venus, and he is frequently seen
as a dark spot passing over the sun’s disk.
ASTRONOMY.
14
Theoretical From these phenomena several important conclusions
Astronomy. may be drawn. In the first place, Mercury and Venus
are opaque bodies, which are only visible in consequence
of the sun’s rays reflected from their surfaces. In the se¬
cond place, their orbits are described about the sun, and
do not embrace the earth, because both planets pass be¬
tween the sun and the earth, and their digression from
the sun never exceeds a certain limit. For this rea¬
son they are called Inferior Planets. In the third place,
since the digressions of Venus are much more consi¬
derable than those of Mercury, it is obvious that her
orbit includes that of Mercury. This last fact is esta¬
blished by other phenomena. Their angular velocities
may be compared by means of the times which they re¬
spectively employ in returning to their conjunctions; and
in this way it is found that the angular velocity of Mer¬
cury is nearly three times greater than that of Venus—a
circumstance of itself sufficiently indicative of his greater
proximity to the sun. But the occultation of one of these
planets by the other furnishes a decisive evidence of the
disposition of their orbits. On the 17th of May 1737
Mercury was observed to be eclipsed by Venus near their
inferior conjunction ; whence it follows that Venus is near¬
er the earth, and consequently at a greater distance from
the sun. This fact was known to the Egyptians, and
the name of the Egyptian System given to that theory
according to which Mercury and Venus were regarded as
satellites of the sun ; but as the ancient astronomers were
unacquainted with one of its strongest proofs, namely, the
transits, and could only form inferences from the digres¬
sions, it was not generally adopted by them.
The revolution of Venus and Mercury about the sun
may also be inferred from the variations of their apparent
diameters, although, on account of the unequal distances
of the sun from the earth, these variations are subject to
considerable irregularities. When Venus approaches near¬
est to the earth, her apparent diameter subtends an angle
of about 61", while it does not amount to 10" when she is at
her greatest distance. The apparent diameter of Mercury
varies from 12" to 5", indicating corresponding variations of
distance. These variations of his apparent diameter are
not sensible to the naked eye, on account of the irradiation
which surrounds the disks of the planets, and which ren¬
ders it impossible to form any correct judgment respecting
the magnitudes of small luminous objects seen from so
great a distance.
The phenomena of the other planets differ in some re¬
spects from those of Mercury and Venus. Instead of re¬
maining constantly within a certain distance from the
sun, their angles of elongation assume all possible values,
and they are frequently seen in opposition, and conse¬
quently more distant from him than the earth is. Their
orbits, therefore, embrace the earth; and as they are never
observed in their conjunctions to pass, like the inferior
planets, over the sun’s disk, even when the direction of
their motion traverses the sun, it follows that the sun is
also included within their orbits. This fact is rendered
certain by the appearance of their disks at the time when
they are in conjunction. If they were then placed be¬
tween the sun and the earth, their disks would appear
cornicular, like those of Mercury and Venus; but they
uniformly present a full orb at the time of their conjunc¬
tion, and consequently the same hemisphere is presented
to the earth and the sun, at least if, as is certain, they
derive their light from him. They must therefore be si¬
tuated beyond the sun. From the circumstance that their
orbits include both the earth and the sun, they are called
Superior Planets. In order to determine whether the sun
or the earth is the centre of their motions, it will be con¬
venient to have recourse to observations of their apparent Theoretical
diameters, which, if their orbits are circular, and have Astronoi"y-
the earth in their centre, will always be of the same
magnitude. But the apparent diameter of Mars gradu¬
ally increases from his conjunction to his opposition; and
therefore, since the distance of the planet is directly pro¬
portional to the magnitude of its apparent diameter, Mars
is nearer to the earth at his opposition than at his con¬
junction. The variations of the apparent diameter of
this planet are very considerable, the limits being 18"*28
and 3"-6 ; so that Mars is five times farther from the earth
at his greatest distance than at his least. His orbit, there¬
fore, cannot be a circle described about the earth. We
might indeed suppose it to be an ellipse, or other elon¬
gated curve; but the enormous eccentricity which it
would be necessary to assign to it renders this supposition
extremely improbable. The analogy of Venus and Mer¬
cury will rather lead us to infer that the sun is the centre
of his motion ; and of this we have a geometrical proof in
the circumstance that the difference of his greatest and
least distances is equal to the diameter of the earth’s or¬
bit. Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus, present exactly similar
phenomena. We therefore conclude in the same manner
that they are superior planets, circulating about the sun.
The order of distance in which the superior planets are
disposed about the sun and the earth may be inferred
either from the rate of their motion when they are in op¬
position with the sun (it being natural to suppose that
their velocities will diminish in proportion to their dis¬
tances or the magnitude of the orbit which they describe),
or it may be determined from the variation of their appa¬
rent diameters. Now, the apparent diameters at the con¬
junctions and oppositions are nearly in the following ratio:
those of Mars as 1 to 5, of Jupiter as 10 to 15, of Saturn as
1 to 1*23; hence the diameter of the terrestrial orbit is
to the diameters of the orbits of Mars, Jupiter, and Sa¬
turn, as the difference of the preceding numbers is to
their sum, or as unity to the numbers H, 5, and 91. In
this manner we find that Jupiter is at a much greater dis¬
tance from the earth than Mars, and Saturn than Jupiter.
It has already been remarked that the apparent mo¬
tions of the planets are not always in the same direction.
Through the most considerable part of their orbits they
move from west to east, according to the order of the
signs; and their motion is most rapid when they are at
the greatest distance from the earth. It gradually relaxes
until the planet has reached its greatest eastern digres¬
sion if it is an inferior planet, or its eastern quadrature if
a superior one ; after which its proper motion is slower than
the sun’s motion in the ecliptic. In the course of a short
time the planet seems stationary among the stars for some
days, its right ascension undergoing scarcely any variation.
In the course of a few days more, however, it begins again
sensibly to change its place, and now moves in an opposite
direction, or retrogrades. This retrograde motion conti¬
nues to be accelerated as the planet approaches its infe¬
rior conjunction, or its opposition, at which point it at¬
tains its maximum. After this it begins to be retarded;
the planet becomes a second time stationary, and then
assumes its direct motion, to pass through another series
of similar changes. The arc and time of retrogradation
are different for each of the planets, being greatest in the
case of those which are nearest the earth, and least for
those which are at the greatest distance.
These phenomena, which are called the Stations and
Retrogradations of the planets, were observed with great
attention by the ancients and the astronomers of the
middle ages, to whom their explanation gave much em¬
barrassment on account of their being incompatible with
ASTRONOMY.
’heoretical tlie supposition that the earth is the centre of the celestial
Astronomy, motions. In fact, if the earth is supposed immovable, the
^v"v-''path described by the planets is a curve so extremely
complicated and irregular, that Aristotle, and even Ric-
cioli, who lived in an age when the celestial motions were
much better known, were reduced to the necessity of
supposing a genius or angel to reside in each of the
planets, directing its motions as the mind of man directs
the motions of his body. Suppose the earth to be at rest
’late in E (fig. 57), the orbit of a superior planet will resemble
iXXXIV.^g curve abcdef, &c. When the planet arrives at b, be-
ig- 57* fore it comes into opposition with the sun at A it becomes
stationary. From 6 to c it retrogrades, and is again sta¬
tionary at c. Its motion then becomes direct, and its dis¬
tance from the earth continues to increase while it runs
through the arc defgh, and till it arrives at h, and is in
conjunction with the sun at B. It is then at its greatest
distance, and in passing through the arc him continues to
approach the earth till it arrives at m, in opposition with
the sun at C. Here it exhibits the same phenomena as at
the former opposition, becoming stationary, retrograding,
&c.; and at every succeeding opposition describes a sort of
node or loop, similar to Imn. Its path is thgs made up of
an infinity of nodes, and presents a sufficiently striking
resemblance to an epicycloid. Fig. 58, which has been
copied from Cassini into most of the elementary treatises
of astronomy, represents the apparent motions of Saturn,
Jupiter, and Mars, in respect of the earth.
Such are the general phenomena presented by the mo¬
tions of the planets. We must next endeavour to deter¬
mine the nature of the curve described by each of them,
and the law according to which it is described, in order
to arrive at the solution of the principal problem of astro¬
nomy, viz. to express the position of the heavenly bodies
in terms of the time reckoned from a given instant.
System of The first successful attempt to frame a system by means
epicycles, of which the motions of the planets might be numerically
calculated, was made by Apollonius of Perga. Apollonius
supposed that a planet, instead of describing a circle about
the earth, moves in the circumference of a second circle,
the centre of which is carried round the circumference of
the first. Let us suppose two unequal circles, situated in
Plate the same plane, the greater of which ACB (fig. 59), which
LXXXV. is called the deferent, carries on its circumference the
Fig. 59. centre of the smaller PRP'S, which is called the epicycle ;
and let us also suppose that each of these circles turns
uniformly about its centre, according to the order of the
signs, that is, from west to east. The earth is situated at
E the centre of the deferent,, and the planet whose mo¬
tions we consider is placed on the circumference of the
epicycle. The phenomena resulting from this disposition
will be different according to the ratio of the velocities of
the two circles. In the first place, suppose the velocities
to be equal, and that at the first instant the planet is
placed at P, the extremity of the straight line which joins
the centres of the deferent and epicycle : the planet is
then at its apogee, and it is evident that its apparent velo¬
city is the greatest possible, being the sum of the veloci¬
ties in the two circles. It is evident also that the appa¬
rent velocity of the planet will diminish as it approaches
the lower extremity P' of its epicycle, or its perigee, and
that in this point it will vanish altogether, because the
perigee is carried backwards in the direction RP'S by the
motion of the epicycle with a velocity equal to that by
which it is carried forward by the motion of the deferent.
From this point the apparent motion will receive a gradual
augmentation of velocity, till the planet arrives again at
its apogee, where it will recommence a course perfectly
similar to the preceding. In this case, therefore, the
15
apparent motion of the planet, though alternately accele-Theoretical
rated and retarded, will always be direct. Astronomy.
Let us next suppose that the velocity of the epicycle is'^^^'^
greater than that of the deferent, which is the hypothesis
adopted by Apollonius and Ptolemy. From P to R the
motion of the planet is direct. At the point R its path
coincides with the tangent RE, and it would be stationary
if the epicycle were immovable; but as the epicycle ad¬
vances according to the order of the signs, the planet
will continue to move directly till it arrives at the point re,
where its retrograde motion in the epicycle, in the direc¬
tion nr P', is equal to the direct motion in the deferent.
At the perigee P' the planefrwill retrograde, because the
directions of the two motions are diametrically opposite,
and the retrograde motion in the epicycle is greater than
the direct motion in the deferent. At nr' it becomes a
second time stationary, after which it resumes its direct
motion, precisely according to the actual phenomena.
Lastly, if we suppose the velocity of the deferent to be Ptolemaic
greater than that of the epicycle, there will be neither system,
station nor retrogradation, and the planet will always
advance in the same direction, but contrary to that of the
motion of the deferent. This, in the Copernican system,
would be the motion of the moon with reference to a
spectator placed on the sun, and regarding the orbit of
the earth about the sun as the deferent, and that of the
moon about the earth as the epicycle ; for then the velo¬
city of the earth about the sun would be about thirty
times greater than that of the moon about the earth.
This method of representing the geocentric motions of
the planets was adopted and fully developed by Ptolemy,
who assigned the ratios of the radii of the epicycles and
deferents of each of the planets, and disposed the orbits
in the manner most conformable to the apparent motions.
It may be remarked that the absolute lengths of the radii
are immaterial; it is only their relative lengths to which
it is necessary to have regard. As observations were
multiplied, and new inequalities in the motions of the
planets detected, the system of simple epicycles was in
most instances found insufficient to explain the phenome¬
na. Double and triple systems were therefore introduced,
in which the first epicycle was regarded as a second de¬
ferent carrying its own epicycle, the second epicycle as
a third deferent, and so on, till every irregularity of mo¬
tion was explained. It is easy to conceive all this me¬
chanism, and even to reduce it to general formulae ; but
although it affords considerable facility for calculation, it
is much too complicated to have place in nature. It is
now wTell known that the orbits of the planets are not epicy¬
cloids, but ellipses : nevertheless, at a time when the circle
and straight line alone were admitted in the solution of
geometrical problems, it was extremely natural to inquire
whether any construction could be found, without em¬
ploying other curves, to represent the planetary motions;
and the system of epicycles which resulted from this in¬
quiry will remain a perpetual monument of the ingenuity
of its authors, Apollonius and Ptolemy.
In arranging the planetary system, Ptolemy placed the
earth at the centre of the universe, and nearest to it the
moon, whose synodic revolution is the shortest of all,
being performed in 201 days. Next to the moon he
placed Mercury, who returns to his conjunctions in 116
days. After Mercury followed Venus, whose periodic time
is 584 days. Beyond Venus he placed the sun, then
Mars, next Jupiter, and lastly Saturn, beyond which is
the sphere of the fixed stars. (See fig. 60.) Plato and
some other philosophers had placed the orbit of the sun
immediately after that of the moon, and Mercury and
Venus beyond the sun, on account that these planets
16
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical were never seen on the solar disk. Ptolemy, however,
Astronomy. remarked that this reason was inconclusive, because the
planets might easily be supposed to pass between the
sun and the earth, without appearing exactly on the
sun’s disk, in the same manner as the new moons do
not always cause a solar eclipse. In the system of
Ptolemy, it is, however, a matter of absolute indiffer¬
ence whether the orbits of these planets are placed above
or below that of the sun, inasmuch as the phenomena are
exactly the same in both dispositions. This fact doubtless
furnishes a strong objection to his system, and might have
led him, we are apt to suppose, to adopt the system of
the ancient Egyptians with regard to Mercury and Venus,
and place the sun at the common centre of their orbits.
But it must be recollected that Ptolemy had no means of
measuring the diameters of the planets, or of forming any
accurate notions of their distances; he was unacquainted
with the phases of Venus, which demonstrate the revolu¬
tion of that planet about the sun ; and, in short, knew of
no phenomenon which could not be reconciled with his
system. His object was solely to represent the apparent
motions by a geometrical construction, and by such means
as geometry at that time could legitimately employ; and
this object he fully accomplished. He never regarded his
system in any other light than as a mere hypothesis, by
means of which the celestial phenomena could be re¬
duced to calculation.
But while thus much must be conceded in favour of the
system of Ptolemy, it must be confessed that scarcely any
thing could well be imagined more complicated and
cumbersome; more at variance with the simplicity which
pervades the economy of nature, or, in a physical point
of view, more absurd. Yet so prone is the human mind to
cling to the ideas which have been first presented to it,
and with so much difficulty are errors which have once
obtained a firm footing eradicated, that, till the beginning
of the 16th century, it was implicitly followed by astro¬
nomers of all countries. The glory of bursting the fet¬
ters of prejudice and authority, and of building the
true system of the world on the ruins of a fabric which
had been erected with so much address and labour,
System of was reserved for Copernicus. This great man was led,
Coperni- by a profound meditation on the different hypotheses
cus. which had been imagined to account for the apparent
motions of the heavenly bodies, to adopt the ideas of some
of the ancients, and remove the earth from the centre of
the world, ascribing to it a double motion of rotation
about its own axis and of revolution about the sun. From
some scattered hints contained in the writings of the an¬
cient philosophers^ Copernicus composed the system which
retains his name ; a system of the truth of which the com¬
plete development of the planetary theory has furnished
the most convincing and satisfactory proofs. According
to this system the sun is the common centre of the or¬
bits of all the planets, which revolve around him in the
following orderMercury, Venus, the Earth, Mars, Ju¬
piter, and Saturn. Far beyond the orbit of Saturn he sup¬
posed the fixed stars to be placed, which formed the
boundaries of the visible creation.
Although the great simplicity and beauty of the Coper-
nican system soon recommended it to the adoption of the
most philosophical of the astronomers of that period, yet
Tychonic ^or a ^onS time it met with considerable opposition. The
system., most eminent of its opponents was the celebrated Tycho
Brahe, who could never bring himself to adopt the sup¬
position of the motion of the earth. The principal objec¬
tions which he urged against it were the immense distance
at which it is necessary to suppose the fixed stars to be
placed, in order to account for the smallness, or rather
the entire absence, of the annual parallax; the improbabi- Theoretical
lity that a heavy mass like the earth should have so rapid Astr°nomy.
a motion; and some passages of Scripture which seemv'-^’v“v-/
to suppose the motion of the sun and the immobility of
the earth. Tycho, therefore, proposed another system, in
wrhich he endeavoured to retain the most essential ad¬
vantages of the Copernican theory, and at the same time
preserve the earth’s stability. In the system of Tycho
the earth is supposed to be the centre of the solar and
lunar orbits, and the sun to be the centre of all the pla¬
netary orbits, the orbits of the two inferior planets being
smaller, and those of the superior larger, than the orbit
of the sun; a distinction which is necessary for the ex¬
planation of the conjunctions and oppositions. This dis¬
position of the orbits will be understood by referring to
fig. 61. The system of Tycho is far less philosophical than
that of Copernicus, and he has therefore exposed himself
to the charge of having made a retrograde movement in
science ; but it must be confessed that it affords a satis¬
factory explanation of all the phenomena, and that the
objections which can be urged against it are not of an as¬
tronomical, but of a physical or mechanical nature. In
fact, if the planets are supposed to revolve about the sun,
it is absolutely indifferent, so far as regards the pheno¬
mena, whether the annual motion is ascribed to the sun
or the earth; but it is a physical absurdity to suppose
that the sun, with its whole train of attendant planets,
revolves about the earth, which, in comparison of them,
is a mere atom.
Taking the truth of the Copernican theory for granted, Effects of
let us consider what effect the motion of the earth has the earth’s
upon the apparent motions of the other planets. Were motion on
the earth to stand still in any part of its orbit, the places d16 aPPear-
of conjunction both in the superior and inferior semi-31?^80^6
circle, as also of the greatest elongation, and consequently^ ane s*
the places of direct and retrograde motion, and of the
stations of an inferior planet, would always be in the same
part of the heavens ; whereas, on account of the earth’s
motion, the places where these appearances happen are
continually advancing forward in the ecliptic, according to
the order of the signs. In fig. 62 let ABCD be the orbit
of the earth ; efgh that of Mercury; © the sun; GFKI
an arc of the fecliptic extended to the fixed stars. When
the earth is at A, the sun’s geocentric place is at F; and
Mercury, in order to be in conjunction, must be in the line
AF; that is, in his orbit he must be at f or h. Suppose
him to be at f'm his inferior semicircle: if the earth stood
still at A, his next conjunction would be when he is in
his superior semicircle at h; the places of his greatest
elongation also would be at e and g, and in the eclip¬
tic at E and G. But supposing the earth to go on in
its orbit from A to B; the sun’s geocentric place is now
at K; and Mercury, in order to be in conjunction,
ought to be in the line BK at m. As by the motion
of the earth the places of Mercmy’s conjunctions are thus
continually carried round in the ecliptic according to the
order of the signs, so the places of his greatest elongations
must also be carried forward in the same direction. Thus,
when the earth is at A, the places of his greatest elonga¬
tion from the sun are in the ecliptic E and G; the motion
of the earth from A to B advances them forward from G to
L and from E to I. But the geocentric motion of Mer¬
cury will best be seen in fig. 63. Here we have part ofpjate
the extended ecliptic marked CY'’, b > rr, &*c., in the centreLxxXVI.
of which S represents the sun, and round him are the or-Fig. G3.
bits of Mercury and the Earth. The orbit of Mercury is
divided into 11 equal parts, such as he goes through once
in eight days; and the divisions are marked by numeral
figures, 1, 2, 3, &c. Part of the orbit of the earth is like-
ASTRONOMY. 17
Theoretical wise divided into 22 equal arcs, each arc being as much
\stronomy.ag the earth goes through in eight daj^s. The points of
division are marked with the letters a, b, c, d, e,f, &c.and
show as many several stations from whence Mercury may
be viewed from the earth. Suppose then the planet to be
at 1 and the earth at a ; draw a line from a to 1, and it
shows Mercury’s geocentric place at A. In eight days he
will have advanced to 2, and the earth to b; draw a line
from 2 to b, and it shows his geocentric place at B. In
other eight days he will have proceeded to 3, and the earth
to c; a line drawn from 3 to e will show his geocentric
place at C. In this manner, going through the figure, and
drawing lines from the earth at d, e, f g, &c. through 4, 5, 6,
7, &c. we shall find his geocentric places successively at
the points D, E, F, G, &c. where we may observe, that
from A to B, and from B to C, the motion is direct;
from C to D, and from D to E, retrograde. In this figure
22 stations are marked in the earth’s orbit from whence
the planet may be viewed, corresponding to which there
ought to be as many in the orbit of Mercury; but as
the periodic time of that planet does not include so many
intervals of eight days, his place is marked at the end
of every eight days for two of his periodical revolutions;
and to denote this, two numeral figures are placed at each
division.
The geocentric motion of Venus may be explained in
a similar manner; only, as the motion of Venus is much
slower than that of Mercury, her conjunctions, oppositions,
elongations, and stations, all return much less frequently
than those of Mercury.
To explain the stationary appearances of the planets,
it must be remembered, that the diameter of the earth’s
orbit, and even that of Saturn, are but mere points in
comparison of the distance of the fixed stars ; and therefore
any two lines, though absolutely parallel, drawn at the dis¬
tance of the diameter of Saturn’s orbit from each other,
would, if continued to the fixed stars, appear to us to
terminate in the same point. Let, then, the two circles
| Plate fig. 64 represent the orbits of Venus and of the Earth;
LXXXV. iet the lines AE, BE, CG, DH, be parallel to SP, we may
nevertheless affirm, that if continued to the distance of
the fixed stars, they would all terminate in the same point
with the line SP. Suppose, then, Venus at E while the
earth is at A, the visual ray by which she is seen is the
line AE. Suppose again, that while Venus goes from E
to F, the earth goes from A to B, the visual ray by which
Venus is now seen is BF parallel to AE ; and therefore Ve¬
nus will be all that time stationary, appearing in that point
of the heaven where SP, if extended, would terminate:
this station is at her changing from direct to retrograde.
Again, suppose, when the earth is at C, Venus is at G,
and the visual line CG; if, while the earth goes from C
to D, Venus goes from G to H, so that she is seen in the
line DH parallel to CG, she will be all that time station¬
ary, appearing in the point of the celestial sphere deter¬
mined by the prolongation of SP. This station is at her
changing from retrograde to direct; and both are in her
inferior semicircle.
As the superior planets move in larger orbits than the
earth, they can only be in conjunction with the sun when
they are on the side opposite to the earth; as, on the
other hand, they are in opposition to him when the earth
is between the sun and them. They are in quadrature
when their geocentric places are 90° distant from that
of the sun. In order to understand their apparent mo¬
tions, we shall suppose them to stand still in some part
of their orbit while the earth makes a complete revolu¬
tion; in which case any superior planet would have the
following appearances:—1. While the earth is in its
VOL. IV.
most distant semicircle, the motion of the planet will be Theoretical
direct. 2. While the earth is in its nearest semicircle, Astronomy,
the planet will be retrograde. 3. While the earth is nearv~‘^v^*^
those places of its orbit wdiere a line drawn from the
planet would be a tangent, it would appear to be station¬
ary. Thus, in fig. 65, let abed represent the orbit of the Plate
earth, S the Sun, EFG an arc of the orbit of Jupiter, EXXXVb
ABC an arc of the ecliptic projected on the sphere of the
fixed stars. Suppose Jupiter to continue at F, while the
earth goes round in its orbit according to the order of the
letters abed. While the earth is in the semicircle most
distant from Jupiter, going from aiob and from b to c, his
motion in the heavens would appear direct, or from A to B
and from B to C; but while the earth is in its nearest
semicircle ede, the motion of Jupiter would appear retro¬
grade from C to B and from B to A; for a, b, c, d, may be
considered as so many different stations from whence an
inhabitant of the earth would view Jupiter at different
seasons of the year; and a straight line drawn from each
of these stations through F, the place of Jupiter, and con¬
tinued to the ecliptic, would show his apparent place there
to be successively at A, B, C, B, A. While the earth is
near the points of contact a and c, Jupiter would appear
stationary, because the visual ray drawn through both
planets does not sensibly differ from the tangent Fa or
Fc. When the earth is at 6, a line drawn from b through
S and F to the ecliptic shows Jupiter to be in conjunction
with the sun at B. When the earth is at d, a line drawn
from d through S, continued to the ecliptic, would termi¬
nate in a point opposite to B; which shows Jupiter then
to be in opposition to the sun; and thus it appears that
his motion is direct when he is in conjunction, but retro¬
grade w'hen he is in opposition with the sun.
The direct motion of a superior planet is more rapid the
nearer it is to a conjunction, and slower as it approaches
to a quadrature with the sun. Thus, in fig. 66, let © Plate
be the sun, the little circle round it the orbit of theLikXX^*
earth, of which abedefg is the most distant semicircle,
OPQ an arc of the orbit of Jupiter, and ABCDEFG an
arc of the ecliptic in the sphere of the fixed stars. If we
suppose Jupiter to stand still at P, by the earth’s motion
from a to ^ he would appear to move directly from A to
G, describing the unequal arcs AB, BC, CD, DE, EF,
FG, in equal times. When the earth is at d, Jupiter is in
conjunction with the sun at D, and there his direct motion
is swiftest. When the earth is in that part of its orbit
where a line drawn from Jupiter would touch it, as in the
points e or g, Jupiter is nearly in quadrature with the sun;
and the nearer the earth is to any of these points, the
slower is the geocentric motion of Jupiter; for the arcs
CD and DE are greater than BC or EF, and the arcs BC
and EF are greater than AB or FG.
The retrograde motion of a superior planet is more rapid
the nearer it is to an opposition, and slower as it ap¬
proaches to a quadrature with the sun. Thus, let ©,fig.
67, be the sun, the little circle round it the orbit of thep]ate
earth, whereof ghiklmn is the nearest semicircle, OPQlxXXVF
an arc of the orbit of Jupiter, NKG an arc of the ecliptic.
If we suppose Jupiter to stand still at P, by the earth’s
motion from g to n he would appear to move from G
to N, describing the unequal arcs GH, HI, IK, KL, LM,
MN, in equal times. When the earth is at Jupiter
appears at K in opposition with the sun, and there his re¬
trograde motion is swiftest. When the earth is either
at ^ or w (the points of contact of the tangents Vg and
Yn), Jupiter is nearly in quadrature with the sun: and
the nearer he is to either of these points the slower is his
retrogradation ; for the arcs IK and KL are greater than
HI or LM, and the arcs HI and LM are greater than GH
c
18
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical or MN. Since the direct motion is swiftest when the
Astronomy. earth is at d (fig. 66), and continues diminishing till it
changes to retrograde, it must be insensible near the time
LX XX V c^anSe 5 and, in like manner, the retrograde motion
Plate * swiftest when the earth is in k (fig. 67), and dimi-
LXXXVI.n^h^g gradually till it changes to direct, must also at
the time of that change be insensible; for any motion
gradually decreasing till it changes into a contrary one
gradually increasing, must at the time of the change be
altogether insensible.
The same changes in the apparent motions of this pla¬
net will also take place if we suppose him to advance slowly
in his orbit; only they will happen successively when the
earth is in different parts of its orbit, and consequently
at different times of the year. Thus (fig. 65), let us sup¬
pose that Avhile the earth goes round its orbit, Jupiter
goes from F to G; the points of the earth’s orbit from
which Jupiter will now appear to be stationary will be x
and y; and consequently his stations must be at a time
of the year different from the former. Moreover, the
conjunction of Jupiter with the sun will now be when the
earth is at f, and his opposition when it is at e ; for which
reason these also will happen at times of the year different
from those of the preceding opposition and conjunction.
The motion of Saturn is so slow, that it occasions but little
alteration either in the times or places of his conjunction
or opposition; and the same will take place in a more
eminent degree in Uranus ; but the motion of Mars is so
much swifter even than that of Jupiter, that both the
times and places of his conjunctions and oppositions are
thereby very much altered.
Fig. 68 exemplifies the geocentric motion of Jupiter in
a very intelligible manner. In this figure O represents the
sun; the circle 1, 2, 3, 4, the orbit of the earth, divided
into twelve equal arcs for the twelve months of the year;
PQ an arc of the orbit of Jupiter, equal to that which he
describes in a year, and divided in like manner into twelve
equal parts, each representing the arc he describes in a
month. Now suppose the earth to be at 1 when Jupiter
is at a, a line drawn through 1 and a shows Jupiter’s place
in the celestial ecliptic to be at A. In a month’s time the
earth will have moved from 1 to 2, Jupiter from a to b;
and a line drawn from 2 to will show his geocentric
place to be in B. In another month the earth will be in
3, and Jupiter at c, and consequently his geocentric place
will be at C; and in like manner his place may be found
for the other months at D, E, F, &c. It is likewise easy
to observe that his geocentric motion is direct in the arcs
AB, BC, CD, DE; retrograde in EF, FG, GH, HI; and
direct again in IK, KL, LM, MN. The inequality of his
geocentric motion is likewise apparent from the figure.
Supposing the orbits of the planets to be circular, the
points of station, and the extent and duration of the retro-
gradations, may be geometrically determined with great
facility; but if we attempt to take into consideration all
the inequalities of the orbits, the problem becomes one of
extreme complication and difficulty. This, however, is the
less to be regretted, on account that it is more a problem of
curiosity than of any real importance, and the mean values
which result from the supposition of circular orbits are
more than sufficiently accurate for all the uses which are
now made of these phenomena.
Let S, fig. 69, be the sun, E and V two planets (which
we may suppose to be the Earth and Venus) revolving in
their respective orbits in the times T and t: the problem
is, to determine those points at which one of them, as
seen from the other, will become stationary, and the ex¬
tent of the arc through which it will appear to retrograde.
Suppose the spectator to be placed at E, and V to be the
point at which Venus is stationary. Also let the semidiame- Theoretical
ters of their orbits SE and SV be R and r respectively, the Astronomy,
angle of digression SEV=p, and the angle SVE=-4/. Du-Vw^"v-v^
ring a short time, at the station, the lines EV and ev (Ee
and Yv being very small arcs) may be considered as paral¬
lel; therefore (p=^>uv-=z Sew + ESezrp+ dp + ESe,whence
5©=—ESe. In like manner 'vj/irSue—VSv=-4/-J-
d-j/—VSv ; whence S-^zzVSv. But as the orbits are de¬
scribed uniformly, T : £ : : VSr : ESe, and consequently
T : £ : : ^ : <3p. Now, the triangle SEV gives the equa-
R
tion sin. •vj>=— sin. p, from which, by differentiating, we get
cos. ^ =
R
cos. f, and consequently : 8p
R cos. <p : r cos. Comparing this with the above propor¬
tion, we have T : £ : : R cos. p: r cos. -v}/, whence r cos.
=:Ar cos. p. Taking the squares, and adding r2 sin.2-^
= R2 sin.2 p, there results
R2(£2 cos.2p T2 sin.*p),
whence we derive
sm’ P— R ( T2—t* ) *
or, if we suppose and
From this formula, all the circumstances connected with
the stations and retrogradations are easily computed, when
the diameter of the orbit and the periodic time of the planet
are known. Thus, relatively to Venus, the quantity /, that
is, the ratio of the diameter of her orbit to that of the earth,
is, as will be shown in next section, equal to 0*723, and
* 224-7 n • /1*338 X *108
* = 365*25 = 0-6132’ whence sm. <p — J
'365*25
0*48208 ; and p-28° 49'.
615 X *385“
The angle is obtained from
the equation sin. which gives 4'—138° U'.
The angle VSE at the sun, or the heliocentric distance of
Venus and the Earth, which we shall designate by % is
180° — (p-|-'4')~ 13°. From this angle we likewise obtain
the time from the station to the conjunction; for since
the mean daily motion of Venus is 1° 36' 7"*8, and that of
the earth 59' 8"*3, the relative daily motion is 36' 59"*5,
13°
therefore the time from conjunction will be — r(. or
t5v3 Oc/ *0
about 21 days, and consequently the retrograde motion of
Venus will continue about 42 days.
1 /^T2 R2A
If in the equation sin. p = ^—) we suppose
rT = R£, the angle p vanishes; consequently there will
be no regression, and the station will only be momentary
at the inferior conjunction. In this case r : R :: £ : T, or
the distances of the planets are proportional to their pe¬
riodic times. If R£ were greater than rT, p would be¬
come imaginary, and the motion of the planet would
always be direct. The stations and retrogradations are
therefore consequences of that law of the system accord¬
ing to which the distances are to one another in a greater
ratio than the periodic times.
The following table, given by Delambre (Astro?iomie,
tcme iii. p. 9), exhibits the elements of the stations and
retrogradations of the planets, calculated from formulae
equivalent to the above.
ASTRONOMY.
19
'heoretical
.stronomy.
9
4,
%
Mean Arc
Limits
Duration
Limits
Mercury.
18° 12'
126 14
35 34
13° 24'
9°...16°
22d*9
211..231
Yenus.
28° 51'
138 9
13 0
15° 22'
14°...17°
42d-16
41...431
Mars.
136° 12'
27 1
16 47
14° 41'
10o...20°
72d-76
61...814
Ceres.
126° 7'
18 6
35 47
io° 3(y
97d-45
Jupiter.
115° 35'
9 59
54 26
9° 55'
9o*8...10°
120d-7
117...1221
Saturn.
108° 47'
5 42
65 31
6° 47'
60,7...6°*9
137d-6
135...139
Uranus.
103° 15'
2 55
73 52
3° 45'
3°l...40
151d,7
150...153
Theoretical
Astronomy.
Sect. II.—Of the Orbits of the Planets.
In determining the elements of the orbits of the sun
and moon, the labour of the astronomer is facilitated by
the circumstance that the earth, at which his observa¬
tions are made, either is, or may be regarded as, the
centre of motion. But in the case of the planets, the sun,
and not the earth, is situated in the centre of their orbits,
and consequently the elements of those orbits must be
determined from the measurement of certain linear and
angular distances from the sun: it is therefore necessary,
as a preliminary step, to convert the geocentric into helio¬
centric observations, that is, to deduce the true place of
a planet as seen from the sun, from its apparent place as
seen from the earth. On this account the determination
of the planetary orbits is attended with somewhat greater
difficulties than those which present themselves in the
cases of the sun and moon.
1. Nodes and Inclinations of the Planetary Orbits.—
Conformably with the plan which has been followed in
the two preceding chapters, we will first consider those
elements which determine the position of the plane of the
orbit of a planet; and then those which regard the orbit
itself, that is to say, the elements and position of the el¬
lipse which the planet describes. When these are known,
and the astronomer is also acquainted with the mean mo¬
tion, or the time of the periodic revolution of the planet,
and the instant at which it occupied any given point of its
orbit, he is in a condition to assign the epoch at which it
will again occupy the same or any other given point;
and this comprehends the complete solution of the pro¬
blem which he proposes to himself. It is proper, how¬
ever, to remark here, that although this method of con¬
sidering the elements separately is extremely convenient,
perhaps indispensable, for the purpose of illustration, it is
neither that which the practical astronomer follows, nor
that by which the various truths which compose the ac¬
tual system of theoretical astronomy were discovered.
No discovery in astronomy has perhaps ever been made
by a direct process. The elements first obtained from
the observations are imperfect and inexact, and it is only
by successive and frequently laborious approximations
that they are advanced to accuracy. Hypotheses are
first framed to account for or classify the phenomena; the
results of these arbitrary suppositions are computed and
compared with new observations; and the differences
which are found to exist between the computed and ob¬
served quantities serve to verify or correct the assumption,
or suggest other approximations still nearer the truth. In
astronomy, as Woodhouse remarks, scarcely one element
is presented simple and unmixed with others. Its value,
when first disengaged, must partake of the uncertainty to
which the other elements are subject, and can be sup¬
posed to be settled to a tolerable degree of exactness
only after multiplied observations and many revisions.
There are no simple theorems for determining at once
the parallax of the sun, or the heliocentric latitude of a
planet.
To give a general idea of the method of reducing geo¬
centric to heliocentric longitudes and latitudes, let S
(fig. 70) be the sun, E the earth, P the place of a planet
in its orbit NP, NA the ecliptic, and N the ascending
node, or that point of the ecliptic through which the
planet passes when it comes to the north of that plane.
Let S<y>, E<y>, be drawn from S and E to the first point
of Aries; and because the parallax of the fixed stars is
insensible, their distance being infinitely great in compa¬
rison of the distance of the earth from the sun, S op and
E fy* are considered as parallel to one another. Let also
PL be drawn perpendicular to the ecliptic, and the other
lines as in the figure. It is easy to see that as NPC,
NLA are regarded as the intersections of the planes of
the orbits of the earth and the planet with the celestial
sphere, the centre of which is occupied by the sun, they
are portions of great circles; and consequently every
question relative to the position of the planet may be re¬
solved by the formulae of spherical trigonometry. In fact,
PL being a circle of latitude, the arc ‘Y’NL is the He¬
liocentric Longitude of the planet, N the longitude
of the ascending node, and the spherical angle PNL the
inclination of the orbit. In order that the longitude of
the planet in its orbit may not differ greatly from its lon¬
gitude referred to the ecliptic, the former is not reckon¬
ed from the node N, but from another point equally dis¬
tant from the node with the vernal point ty ; so that the
longitude of the planet is obtained by adding NP to the
longitude of the node. The latitude also depends imme¬
diately on the distance NP of the planet from the ascend¬
ing node; hence NP is called the Argument of the Lati¬
tude; and the difference between the longitudes in the
orbit and ecliptic, that is, NP—NL, is called the Reduction
to the Ecliptic. The angle PEL, or the planet’s apparent
distance from the ecliptic to an observer at E, is the Geo¬
centric Latitude ; PSL, its distance from the ecliptic when
viewed from the sun, is its Heliocentric Latitude. It is evi¬
dent from the mere inspection of the diagram, that <y EL
and ry SL are the geocentric and heliocentric longitudes
respectively. The angles of the triangle ESL, from which
the reductions are computed, being of very frequent use
in practical astronomy, have received certain technical
denominations with which it is convenient to be acquaint¬
ed. The angle LES, which is the difference between
<yEL and <yES, the geocentric longitudes of the planet
and the sun, is called the angle of Elongation ; ESL, the
angle at the sun, is called the angle of Commutation ; and
SLE, which is the difference between the heliocentric
and geocentric longitudes, is called the Annual Parallax,
or the Prosthaphceresis of the Orbit. In the case of an in¬
ferior planet, the annual parallax SLE may have any
value between zero and 360° ; but if the planet be a su¬
perior one, the greatest value of the annual parallax has
place when the straight line drawn from the planet to the
20
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical earth is a tangent to the earth’s orbit. In any other si-
Astronomy. tuation of the planet the sine of the annual parallax will
v^v^^/be to the sine of the elongation as SE to SL.
In order to determine the position of the orbit of a
planet relatively to the ecliptic, it is necessary to discover
in the first place the place of the nodes. The longitude of
the node is the heliocentric longitude of the planet at
the instant when it is in the ecliptic, and its geocentric
and heliocentric latitudes are consequently both equal to
zero. If then, at the same instant, the planet should
happen to be in opposition with the sun, or (if an inferior
one) in its inferior conjunction, its geocentric longitude,
which is equal to the longitude of the sun 180°, would
be the heliocentric longitude of the node. But it can
happen very rarely that the latitude of a planet is zero
at the time of its opposition or conjunction, especially
with regard to those of which the periodic times are
considerable. Mercury and Venus, indeed, by passing
oftener through their nodes within a given time, afford
more chances of the occurrence of the phenomenon ; and it
does occur occasionally under very favourable circumstan¬
ces when those planets pass over the disk of the sun, for
at such times the latitude must be very small, that is,
the planet must be very near its node. But this simple
method of determining the heliocentric longitude of the
node, although it may frequently be had recourse to in
the case of Mercury, can seldom be practised with regard
to Venus, and is of no use whatever in the cases of the
other planets, because, on account of the greater length of
their times of revolution, the oppositions and passages
through the node take place simultaneously only after
very long intervals.
Leaving, therefore, out of consideration the circum¬
stance of opposition, let us inquire what other means are
in our possession for determining the longitude of the
node. It would be by an extraordinary chance that a
planet should happen to be observed at the precise in¬
stant of its passage through its node; but if observed when
very near it, the diurnal variations of latitude afford data
for determining that instant by interpolation. Suppose,
then, the planet to be in its node at N: the angle <y> EN
is obtained from observation, being the geocentric longi¬
tude of the node; and f^ES, the longitude of the sun, is
known from the solar tables. Hence, in the triangle
ENS the angle SEN = "yEN — 'V'ES is known, as is
also the side SE, which is the sun’s distance from the
earth. If, therefore, the angle at the planet, that is
ENS, can be found, every part of the triangle will be de¬
termined, and we shall then have the heliocentric longi¬
tude -rSN (equal to 180°—ESN+^ES), and also the
radius vector SN, or the distance of the planet from the
sun. Now, the sides of a triangle being proportional to
the sines of their opposite angles, — S-|n*. ^ ^ ^
oE sin. ENS
sin.(<y>EN—cyiES) r- ^ , •
-^M>SN—^EN); bUt fr°m thlS ecIuatlon nothin§
can be deduced, inasmuch as it contains two unknown
quantities, SN and <yi SN. Suppose, however, that the planet
is observed a second time in its passage through the same
node, and that the earth is then in another part of its
orbit at e: this second observation will furnish another
eouation viz SN _ sin- ^ sin. (>eN — w^S)
Se sin. eNS sin.(tvSN—cy. eN)’exact‘
ly similar to the former, and in which Se is equal to
SE. If, then, we suppose the place of the node has not
sensibly changed in the interval between the two observa¬
tions, this last equation will furnish a second relation be¬
tween the two unknown quantities SN and SN, by com¬
bining which with the former, the values of both those Theoretical
quantities may be determined. By repeating the same Astronomy,
observation, it will be seen whether the place of the node
is fixed, or is subject to any other variation than that
which arises from the precession of the equinoxes. Its
variation, if it does vary, can only be determined by ob¬
servations made at distant epochs.
When the longitude of the node has been determined
in this manner, it will be easy to deduce the inclination
of the orbit. For this purpose the planet may be ob¬
served at the time when the sun’s longitude is equal to
that of the node, and the earth is consequently situated in
the line of the nodes. By this observation the elongation
of the planet, which is then PEN (fig. 71), is given, as LXXXVf.
also its geocentric latitude PEL. Now, by reason of the
right-angled triangles PEL and PSL, we have PL zr EL
tan. PEL — SL tan. PSL, consequently tan. PSL
FT
= tan. PEL; but EL : SL : : sin. LSN : sin. LES,
SL
therefore tan. PSL =r tan. PEL. Now, by Na-
sm. LES J
pier's rules for circular parts, the right-angled spherical
triangle PNL gives also sin. NL cot. PNL tan. PL;
whence tan. PI/ = sin. NL tan. PNL; or, since tan. PL
= tan. PSL, and sin. NL = sin. LSN, therefore tan. PSL
= sin. LSN tan. PNL. By equating these two values of
tan. PSL, we have
• T OXT , -r»VTT sin. LSN -rvr-1-r
sin. LSN tan. PNL = ——tan. PEL;
sin. LES
therefore, ultimately,
—-.T tan. PEL
tan. PNL = T T?C
sin. LES
that is, the inclination of the orbit is given in terms of the
geocentric latitude and the longitude of the node.
The instant at which the sun is in the node of a planet’s
orbit cannot be easily seized ; but the sun’s mean motion
being known, if his longitude is observed when it is nearly
equal to that of the node, the time at which he passes
through it may be determined with all the necessary ac¬
curacy by a simple proportion. It requires also to be re¬
marked that the above method of determining the incli¬
nation takes it for granted that the position of the node is
exactly known; but even should some uncertainty remain
regarding this element, the resulting inclination would
scarcely be affected in any sensible degree by a slight er¬
ror, especially if at the time of the observation the planet
is not very distant from its quadratures. In fact, if we
make PNL = I, PEL = A, and LES = <p, the above
equation becomes tan.I =
tan. A
sm. <p
with respect to I and cp, gives d tan. I
dl
which being differentiated
</pcos.<ptan.A
sin.2p
But d tan. I = and from the equation itself we
derive cos.21 =r
sin.2 <p
sin.2 p -}- tan.2A
; therefore, by substituting
dl =
d p cos. p tan. A
sin.2 p + tan.2 A
From this it is evident that the error of inclination re¬
sulting from an erroneous position of the node will be
smaller in proportion as p is greater, and will disappear
altogether when p (that is, LES or the geocentric dis¬
tance of the planet from its node) is 90°, that is to say, at
the quadratures.
The process now explained for determining the posi¬
tion of the nodes gives at the same time the length of
ASTRONOMY.
21
\
eoretical the radius vector SN; and, in consequence of certain rela-
tronomy. tions which will be pointed out in the present section, all
''v'^N^the other elements of the orbit may be deduced from
simple observations of the passages of a planet through its
nodes. But when approximate values of these elements
are known, the heliocentric longitudes and latitudes may
be found from geocentric observations of various kinds.
If, therefore, the planet is observed several times before
and after its passage through the node, the diurnal varia¬
tions of longitude and latitude (which we at present sup¬
pose to be known very nearly) will give by interpolation
the instant at which the latitude was nothing, and the
heliocentric longitude, computed for that instant, will give
the place of the node. By means of this more accurate
determination the other elements may be corrected; and
on repeating the same process with the corrected values,
the longitude of the node will be obtained with still
greater precision. These indirect methods of correcting
the elements by one another were first employed by
Kepler, and are of extensive application in every depart¬
ment of astronomy. They lead to more exact values of
the elements of the planetary orbits than could be obtain¬
ed from any direct method whatever.
As the passage of a planet through either of its nodes
takes place only once during each periodic revolution, a
remote planet, like Uranus, which moves very slowly, can
very seldom be observed in those positions. Astronomers
have therefore sedulously employed themselves in de¬
vising other methods by which all the elements of a pla¬
net’s orbit may be discovered when a very small portion
of it has been made known by observation. But these
methods are the results of profound mathematical theory,
based on the principle of Universal Gravitation, and could
not therefore be properly explained in this place. Their Theoretical
application belongs to Practical Astronomy. Astronomy.
When the longitudes of the nodes of the planetary orb-
its are deduced by the methods explained above from an¬
cient and modern observations, it is found that the nodes are
not altogether fixed, but that, in respect of the fixed stars,
they retrograde, or move from easttowest; buttheir motion
is so slow, that, although it is in reality, like every motion of
the system, alternately accelerated and retarded, it may
be regarded as uniform during a very long period of time.
The inclinations of the orbits also undergo small vari¬
ations, scarcely sensible to observation. The retrograde
motion of the nodes of the planets, exactly analogous to
that of the nodes of the moon, is a necessary consequence
of the mutual gravitation of all the planetary bodies.
The same is the case with the variations of inclination, of
which the period and limits can only be calculated from
the same theory to which we owe the knowledge of their
existence. It is only indeed by the aid of the theories of
Physical Astronomy that the greater part of these small
secular variations can be disengaged from the periodic
inequalities.
The following table exhibits the inclinations of the orbits
of the planets, the positions of their nodes, and the varia¬
tions of those elements. For the old planets the epoch
is the commencement of the present century, that is to
say, midnight preceding the 1st of January 1801. For
Vesta, Juno, Ceres, and Pallas, the epoch is 1820. The
annual increment of the longitude of the node is referred
of course to the equinoctial point of Aries: to find its
motion in respect of the fixed stars, it is only necessary
to subtract the precession of the equinoxes, or 50"-l, from
the numbers given in the table.
Names.
Mercury.
Venus....
Mars 
Vesta....
Juno 
Ceres 
Pallas....
Jupiter...
Saturn...
Uranus..
Inclination.
7°
8
1
7
13
10
34
1
2
0
O' 9"T
23 28*5
6
9
9
26
34 55-0
18 51 3
29 35-7
46 28 -4
51
8
4
37
Secular Variation
of Inclination.
+ 18"'1828
— 4-5522
— 0-1523
— 22 -6087
— 15 -5131
+ 3-1331
Longitude of
Ascending Node.
45° 57'
74 54
48 0
103 13
171 7
80 41
172 39
98 26
111 56
72 59
30"-9
12 -9
3 -5
18 -2
40 -4
24 -0
26 -8
18 -9
37 -4
35 -3
Annual Variation of
Longitude of Node.
+ 42"-3
+ 32 -5
+ 26 -8
+ 34 -3
+ 30 -7
+ 14 -2
2. Of the Figures of the Orbits.—After the position of
the plane of a planet’s orbit in space has been determined,
it remains to trace its path on that plane, or to determine
the figure and elements of the orbit itself. This, it is
evident, may be accomplished, if we are in possession of
the means of assigning, at any instant, the planet’s dis¬
tance from a fixed point in the plane of its orbit, and like¬
wise the angle formed by the radius vector with a straight
line given by position on the same plane. With these
data a series of points may be laid down, representing the
positions successively occupied by the planet; and the
curve formed by joining them together will represent the
orbit. Now, when the place of the nodes and the incli¬
nation are known, the radius vector and elongation may
be computed by the rules of spherical trigonometry from
a single observation of the planet’s geocentric latitude and
longitude at any epoch whatever; but by making the ob¬
servations when the planet occupies certain situations
of its orbit with respect to the earth, the difficulties at¬
tending the computation may be in a great measure
eluded. If a planet, for example, is observed at the time
of its opposition or conjunction, there will be no occasion
for a previous deduction of the heliocentric from the geo¬
centric longitude; because, in either of those cases, the
radius vector of the planet, and the straight line EP
(fig. 72) drawn from it to the observer, are projected on Plate
the plane of the ecliptic in the same straight line ESL ;LXXXVII.
and consequently the planet, whether seen from the earth
or the sun, is referred to the same point of the ecliptic,
excepting indeed the inferior planets, which in their in¬
ferior conjunctions are referred to points diametrically
opposite. Let P, therefore, be the place of a planet in
opposition; then, in the spherical triangle PNL, right-
angled at L, the side NL, being the longitude of the pla¬
net minus that of the node, is given by observation (the
longitude of the node being supposed to be previously de¬
termined) ; the inclination PNL is also known; therefore,
by Napier’s rules,
T1XT tan. NL
tan. PN = 75vnr 5
cos. PNL
that is, the elongation of the planet is given in terms of
its longitude and the inclination of its orbit. The same
22 ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical triangle PNL also affords data for determining the radius
Astronomy, vector; for tan. PL = tan. PNL sin. NL; but PL is the
measure of the angle PSL, and consequently PSL, the
heliocentric latitude, also becomes known. Now, in the
triangle PES the angle PES is given by observation,
therefore EPS (= PSL — PES) is also given; but
PS : SE :: sin. PES : sin. EPS, whence PS = SE
sin. EPS
. or the radius vector is found in terms of the sun’s dis¬
tance from the earth and given angles.
In consequence of the incommensurable relation sub¬
sisting between the times of the periodic revolutions of
the planets and that of the earth, the successive oppo¬
sitions and conjunctions never take place at the same
points of the orbits; therefore, by making a number of
similar observations, as many different angles of elonga¬
tion and radii vectores will be found, which, unless the
orbits are circular, will all have different values. By com¬
puting, therefore, the values of these radii vectores in
terms of the greater axis of the earth’s orbit, and laying
them down in their true positions round the sun, we shall
obtain an approximation to the curve described by the
planet on the plane of its orbit. A few observations of
this sort will suffice to show that the orbit is eccentric;
and as we have already seen that the solar orbit is an el¬
lipse, analogy will immediately suggest the probability
that that of the planet is also an ellipse, having the sun
in one of its foci. It is easy to determine whether this be
the case or otherwise. Three points given by position
on a plane completely determine an ellipse of which a
focus is known: having therefore computed an ellipse
which satisfies three observations of a planet, its peri¬
phery, if the hypothesis of elliptic motion is correct, will
comprehend all the places of the same planet computed
from any other observations. Now, it is found that this
is what takes place with regard to every one of the pla¬
nets ; hence results the first of the three laws discovered
by Kepler which form the basis of the whole system of
First law modern astronomy, namely, that the orbits of the planets
ot Kepler, are ellipses, of which the sun occupies one of the foci.
By a comparison of the sectors formed by two conti¬
guous radii vectores and the arcs included between them,
with the time consumed by the planet in describing those
arcs, Kepler was led to the discovery of the second great
Sf Kn<YaW ^aW of*tlie Planetary namely, that the areas described
o Kepler. ^ radius vector of a planet are proportional to the times
employed in describing them. The data from which this
important conclusion was deduced were not rigorously
exact; but the fact itself has been confirmed by an infi¬
nity of observations since the time of Kepler; and New¬
ton, by the application of geometry to dynamics, demon¬
strated that it is necessarily true of all motions regulated
by a central force, whatever the nature of that force
may be.
Kepler having, by means of the most laborious compu¬
tations, established the existence of these two laws with
regard to each of the planets separately, next undertook
to discover whether any analogy could be found regulat¬
ing their mean distances from the sun. As there were
only six planets known in his time, he commenced his
investigation by comparing the intervals between their
respective orbits with the five regular geometrical solids.
Having failed in this speculation, and in various others
suggested by a mind equally fertile and persevering, he
at length, by a happy inspiration of genius, thought of
comparing the mean distances of the planets with their
respective periods of revolution, and soon perceived that
the numbers which represent the periodic times of the
planets, beginning with Mercury and ending with Saturn,
increase in a much greater ratio than those representing Theoretical
their mean distances from the sun. Jupiter, for example, Astronomy,
is four times more distant from the sun than the earth is ;
but his period is twelve times greater than that of the
earth. Kepler then tried the various powers of the dis¬
tances and periods. Unfortunately an error of computa¬
tion for some time concealed the discovery from him; but
having resumed the subject, he at length found, on the
15th of May 1618 (and few days, as Mr Playfair has re¬
marked, are more memorable in the annals of science),
with all the delight which a great and important disco¬
very gives rise to, that the squares of the numbers which Third law
express the times of revolution are to one another as the cubes Kepler.
of those which express the mean distances of the planets from
the sun.
These three general laws, which are necessary conse¬
quences of the law of gravitation, directly as the masses,
and inversely as the squares of the distances, greatly faci¬
litate the investigation of the orbit of a newly discovered
planet, and may even be regarded as more accurate than
the results obtained from any moderate number of obser¬
vations, however exact. Thus, instead of having recourse
to observation for the determination of the radius vector,
which cannot be found by direct observation but with
considerable difficulty, it is preferable to deduce it by
means of the third law from the planet’s periodic time,
which can always be determined with great precision, and
with much greater facility. They also afford a strong ana¬
logical proof of the annual motion of the earth. In fact, if
we compute from the third law the periodic time of a
body placed at the same distance from the sun as the
earth is known to be, the result will give exactly the si¬
dereal year. It is therefore certain that the earth obeys
the same laws as the planets; and, when classed among
them, the most perfect analogy pervades the whole system.
The periodic time of a planet may be determined by
observing the interval which elapses between two conse¬
cutive passages through the same node. The retrograde
movement of the nodes being, as we have seen, inconsi¬
derable, the planet, in returning to its node, also returns
to the same position very nearly with reference to the
fixed stars, and therefore has in the interval completed a
sidereal revolution. Hence the mean sidereal motion is
known, and consequently, from the third law of Kepler,
the planet’s mean distance from the sun, the double of
which is the transverse axis of the orbit. But the obser¬
vation of the passages through the nodes not only gives
the time of a sidereal revolution, but also approximate
values of the eccentricity and the position of the line of the
apsides; for, unless the orbit is circular, or the line of the ✓
apsides coincides with that of the nodes, the time the
planet consumes in passing from the ascending to the de¬
scending node, or from S to 25, will be different from
that in which it passes from 25 to & ; and, by a compari¬
son of this difference with the theory of elliptic motion,
it is easy to deduce the greatest difference between the
true and mean anomalies, that is, the greatest equation of
the centre, and thence the eccentricity. The method is
exactly similar to that which has already been described in
chap. ii. sect. 2.
But as these methods lead to results of no great accu¬
racy, and as the passages through the nodes in the case
of the distant planets occur only after considerable inter¬
vals of time, the astronomer requires some more accurate
and expeditious means of determining the elements of an
orbit; and three geocentric observations of the planet in
any part of its orbit whatever are sufficient to determine
these elements, when the nodes and inclination, mean
motion and mean distance, are known. Having already
ASTRONOMY.
23
heoretical explained in last section the manner in which the geocen-
. tronomy. trie are converted into heliocentric longitudes, and re-
' duced to the plane of the orbit, let us assume v, vT, v", to
represent three heliocentric longitudes so reduced, and v
the longitude of the perihelion, also reduced to the plane
of the orbit. The true anomalies corresponding to the
three observations will consequently be v — ff, ^ — v,
v" — t. Now, if, as in the series given in chap. ii. sect.
2, for the true anomaly in terms of the mean, we express
the mean motion by n, and the time elapsed since the
passage through the perihelion by t, the three correspond¬
ing mean anomalies will be respectively nt, nil, n t" ; and
it will be observed, that although t is unknown, yet as
^—£ and t" — £ (the intervals between the first and the
other two observations) are known, t' and t" are both given
in terms of t.
Omitting the square, and all the higher powers, of the
eccentricity e, the series just referred to gives the three
following equations,
nt =v —v—2esin. (v —v)
nt —v' — ir— 2 e sin. (V—n)
n ti'zz. 'd'— cr — 2 e sin. \v/'— -y)
from which we must deduce the three unknown quanti¬
ties t, e, cr, that is to say, the epoch of the planet’s passage
through the perihelion, the eccentricity, and the longi¬
tude of the perihelion. By subtracting the first of these
equations from each of the other two, we obtain
n(t' —i)—d —v — 2 e [sin. (y’ —ri) — sin. (y — cr)]
n(t' — t)—v" — v — 2 e [sin. (v" — or) — sin. (v — #)] ;
and if we assume
n(t? — t) — (v* — v)—a
n(f — t) — («/' — v)—b
(a and b being thus known quantities), these two equa¬
tions give us the two following,
a— — 2 e [sin. (d — $r) — sin. (v — <y)]
b— — 2e [sin. (d' — -y) — sin. (v — J ;
whence, by division,
a sin. (d —cr) — sin. («7 — y)
b ~ sin. (d' — y) — sin. (v — y)
Now, the numerator of this fraction
. , . f sin. (d— y) )
v 7 (.sin.(v — y) J
. , x fsin. ?/cos. y—cos. ?/sin. y
~ sin. (v — y) < — ; 
(. sin. v cos. y— cos. v sin. y
_gjn ^ Jsin.t/ — sin.# — tan.y(cos.?/—cos.v)}
7 l sin. v — cos. v tan. y j ’
}
and, similarly, the denominator
__ s;n. (v_ y) J sin.^— sin.il— tan, y (cos, v*— cos.z?) )
l sin. v — cos. v tan. y J
therefore
® sin. d — sin. v — tan. y (cos. d >— cos. ??)
b sin. d' — sin. v — tan. y (cos. d' — cos. v) ’
whence
tan. -r ~ —sin, v) — &(sin. d — sin, v)
a(cos. d' — cos. Vs)—b(cos. d — cos. v) ’
an equation which gives y, the longitude of the perihelion
reduced to the orbit, the angles v, d, d\ being given by
observation.
. Having thus found y, and consequently d — y, d' y,
it is easy to determine the eccentricity e. From the equa¬
tion ^
a — — 2 e [sin. (d — y) — sin. (v — y)1
we obtain /J
q   a Theoretical
6 ~ sin. (d — y) — sin. (v — y) ’
a formula which may be rendered better adapted for lo¬
garithmic calculation by being put under the form
a
£ — - -     
. . d — v — fd v \*
4 Sm- 2 C0S* \ 2 
By means of the values of e and v — y, which have now
been found, we obtain t, the epoch of the passage of the
planet through its perihelion, immediately from the equa¬
tion
n t ■=. v — y — 2e sin. (v — y).
The only element which now remains undetermined is
the radius vector, and this is given by the polar equation
of the ellipse, viz.
aq-*2)
1 + e cos. (y — y)’
in which a represents the semi-axis major, or mean distance
found by the third law of Kepler.
In this manner approximate values of the different
elements are obtained, but no method can be proposed
which will give them, without repeated corrections, so
accurately as to accord with the precise observations of the
present day; and the great object of the practical astrono¬
mer is to advance them gradually nearer and nearer to the
truth. From the laws of Kepler applied to a few observa¬
tions, formulae are constructed which represent the mean
values of the elliptic elements nearly; every successive
observation gives a geocentric latitude and longitude; and
by comparing these with the corresponding latitude and
longitude computed from the formulae, equations of con¬
dition are obtained, by means of which the formulae are
corrected and rendered still more exact. New observa¬
tions give new equations of condition, to be joined with
the former; and after a great number of such equations
have been obtained, geometry teaches us how to combine
them so that each may have its just influence in the de¬
termination of the final result. Thus the tables are gra¬
dually approximated to perfection, or to such a state that
they differ only insensibly from the mean of a great num¬
ber of observations.
But the great difficulty of obtaining an exact confor¬
mity between observation and the results of computation
arises from the circumstance that the different elements
of the orbits have no fixed values, but are incessantly
though slowly varying, in consequence of the mutual dis¬
turbances which the planets occasion to the motions of
each other. If the planets had no mutual attraction, and
obeyed only the central force of the sun, the problem of
determining the different circumstances of their motion
would be one of easy solution, and each of them would
accurately describe an ellipse on the plane of its orbit, ac¬
cording to the laws of Kepler. In consequence, however,
of their mutual attraction, every planet is compelled to
deviate more or less from its ellipse; so that when the
matter is viewed with mathematical precision, the laws of
Kepler belong only to an ideal system, and have no actual
existence in nature. It is in the determination of the
amount of these causes of perturbation, and the secular
variations they give rise to, that the most profound and
intricate theories of physical astronomy find their appli¬
cation ; for it is from theory alone that we can derive any
knowledge of the laws and periods of changes which are
completed only after many hundreds or thousands of
years. The planets whose motions are most disturbed
by their mutual attractions are Jupiter and Saturn; and
even with respect to them, observation, although it makes
24
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical known the existence of inequalities, can neither detect
Astronomy, their laws nor assign their periods. The only elements
which are exempted from secular changes occasioned by the
perturbing forces are the greater axes of the orbits, and the
mean motions depending on them according to the third
law of Kepler. The eccentricities of the orbits vary slowly.
With regard to Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter, those ele¬
ments are at the present time increasing; in the cases of
Venus, the Earth, Satuns, and Uranus, they are diminish¬
ing. The perihelia are also gradually shifting their places Theoretical
on the planes of the orbits. These motions are direct in Astronomy
the case of all the planets excepting Venus, the perihelion
of whose orbit, when referred to the fixed stars, moves in
a direction contrary to that of the signs.
The following table exhibits the mean motions of the
planets, and the elements and positions of their ellipses
on the planes of their orbits, at the commencement of the
year 1801. For the four new planets the epoch is 1820.
Planet.
Mean Sidereal
Revolution.
Mean Distance.
Eccentricity.
Secular Varia¬
tion of
Eccentricity.
Longitude of
Perihelion.
Ann. Var. of
Longitude of
Perihelion.
MeanLongitude
of Planet.
Mercury
Venus...
Earth....
Mars 
Vesta....
Juno 
Ceres....
Pallas....
Jupiter...
Saturn.
Uranus
87d
224 ■
365
686'
1325
1592
1681
1686
4332
10759
30686
969258
700786
256361
979645
743100
660800
■393100
•538800
•584821
•219817
•820829
0-387098
0-723331
1-000000
1- 523692
2- 367870
2-669009
2-767245
2-772886
5-202776
9-583786
19-182390
0-20551494
0-00686074
0-01678356
0-09330700
0-08913000
0-25784800
0-07843900
0-24164800
0-04816210
0-05615050
0-04667938
+ 0-00000386
— 0-00006271
— 0-00004163
+ 0-00009017
+ 0-00015935
— 0-00031240
74°
128
99
332
249
53
147
121
11
89
167
21' 46"-9
43 53 -1
30 5 -0
23 56 -6
33 24-4
33 46 -0
7 31 -5
7 4-3
8 34 -6
9 29 -8
31 16 -1
+
+
+
+
+
55"-9
47 -4
61 -8
65 -9
94-2
+ 121-3
+
+
+
57-1
69 -5
52 -5
166° 0'
11 33
100 39
64 22
278 30
200 16
123 16
108 24
112 15
135 20
177 48
48"-6
3 -0
10
55
0
19
11
57
23 -0
6 -5
23 -0
3. Of the real Dimensions of the Planetary Orbits, and
the Transits of Venus and Mercury over the Suns Disk.
—In what has hitherto been said respecting the mean
distances of the planets from the sun, those distances have
been estimated in parts of the semi-axis major of the
earth’s orbit; a convenient scale, which enables us to form
a very precise idea of the relative dimensions of the se¬
veral orbits, and likewise serves to express their absolute
dimensions, provided we can determine the distance be¬
tween the sun and the earth in terms of any measure
with which we are familiar. It is evident, indeed, in con¬
sequence of the relation that subsists between the mean
distances and mean motions, that it is only necessary to
determine the mean distance of any one of the planets
from the sun, in order to determine the mean distances of
all the others, and assign the dimensions of the whole so¬
lar system. Now there are various ways of determining
the sun’s distance from the earth in terms of the earth’s
semidiameter. The distance of a planet from the sun
may likewise be. obtained if we can find the means of
measuring its distance from the earth at any epoch; for
the geocentric positions of the sun and the planet being
known from the theory of their motions, the radius vec¬
tor of the orbit, or planet’s distance from the sun at that
epoch, may be found by a simple trigonometrical compu¬
tation. To determine the distance of a planet from the
earth, it might seem only necessary to determine its ho¬
rizontal parallax; but in general the parallaxes of the
planets are quantities by far too small to be directly ob¬
served. That of Mars, however, becomes very appreci¬
able in particular circumstances, that is to say, when
Mars is in opposition with the sun, and at the same time
near the perihelion of his orbit. Thus, in the year 1751,
on the 6th of October, that planet, being near his opposi¬
tion, was observed at the same instant of time by Lacaille
at the Cape of Good Hope, and by Wargentin at Stock¬
holm ; and the horizontal parallax deduced from the two
observations, in the manner explained in chap. i. sect. 2,
was found to amount to 24"-6. Now the distance of
the planet being equal to unity divided by the sine of
the horizontal parallax, the distance of Mars from the
earth at the time of the observation was consequently
, 24"*6 X 3-1416 648000
1 ^ 180° X 60X60 =: ~TV28 = 8381 terrestnal radii-
But the distance of Mars from the earth at that time, as
computed from the theory of his elliptic motion, was
0-435 parts of the radius of the earth’s orbit; consequent-
1 X 8381
ly the whole length of that radius is ——■ = 19226
semidiameters of the earth. Hence the distance of Mars
from the sun = 19226 -|- 8381 27607 semidiameters of
the earth. It will be remarked that these numbers are
only approximative, our present object being to explain
the method, and not to determine the exact quantities.
But besides the inconvenience attending the determi¬
nation of a planet’s distance by this method, which re¬
quires observations to be made simultaneously on opposite
sides of the earth, the method is in itself liable to great
uncertainty. The error of a result is always in a certain
proportion to the error of observation, and in the present
case a very large quantity is to be determined from a very
small one; hence a very slight error of observation will
occasion a very erroneous result in the computation of the
mean distance. It would be difficult in a single observa¬
tion of this nature to answer for an error of 2"; but here
2" is a twelfth part of the whole parallax; consequently
an uncertainty amounting to a twelfth part affects the
mean distance.
A much more accurate method of determining the
sun’s distance, and thence the dimensions of the plane¬
tary orbits, is afforded, though rarely, by the transits of
Venus over the sun’s disk. When Venus is at her infe¬
rior conjunction, and at the same time very near her node,
her body will be projected on the disk of the sun; and
through the effect of her proper motion, combined with
that of the earth, she will appear as a dark spot passing
over the disk, and describing a chord which will be seen
under different aspects by spectators placed at different
points on the earth, because, by reason of the parallax,
they refer the planet, to different points on the solar disk.
The position of the spectator not only occasions a differ¬
ence in the apparent path described by the planet, but
has also a very sensible influence on the duration of the
transit, in consequence of which the parallaxes both of
Venus and the sun can be determined with great exact¬
ness. In order to illustrate this, let E (fig. 73) represent
the earth, V Venus, and S the sun. An observer placed
at E, the centre of the earth, would see Venus in the di-
ASTRONOMY.
’heoretical rection of the visual ray EV: she would consequently
astronomy, appear to him projected on the sun’s disk at S, and in her
successive positions would appear to describe the line DS.
Other observers placed at O' and O" on the earth’s sur¬
face would see the planet at V' and V": to the first she
would appear to describe the chord D'V', and to the se¬
cond D"V". This is a necessary result of the difference
of the parallaxes of Venus and the sun ; and as the chords
D'V', D''V" differ in length according as they are more
or less remote from the centre of the disk, the duration
of the transit will be longer or shorter according to the
situation of the observer and the geocentric latitude of
the planet. If by reason of the relative parallax the
time of a transit is longer than the true time in one he¬
misphere, it will be shorter in the opposite ; and hence
the difference of the times (which may be observed with
great accuracy) at places having very different latitudes
may serve to determine the relative parallax, or the dif¬
ference between the parallax of Venus and that of the
sun. But the parallaxes are reciprocally proportional to
the distances; and the ratio of the distances being known,
therefore the ratio of the parallaxes is also known ; and
having thus the ratio and the difference of the two paral¬
laxes, it is easy to compute the separate amount of each.
This particular application of the transits of Venus to
the determination of the sun’s distance was first pointed
out by Dr Halley, when he announced the transits of 1761
and 1769. Kepler had before announced the occurrence
of a transit, but he regarded it only as a curious, and till
that time unobserved, phenomenon.
The transit of Venus which occurred in 1769 was anx¬
iously expected by astronomers, and observed in many
different parts of the world. The result of the whole of
the observations renders it extremely probable that the
parallax of the sun is included within the limits of 8"'5
and The mean 8"-6 has been adopted by Delambre
and Lalande. From the following table, computed from
the different observations, and published by Delambre in
the second volume of his Astronomic, p. 505, an idea may
be formed of its probable accuracy. Delambre, indeed,
remarks that the sun’s parallax is now sufficiently well
known for all the practical purposes of astronomy.
Places of Observation.
Otaheite, Wardhus 
Otaheite, Kola 
Otaheite, Cajaneburg 
Otaheite, Hudson’s Bay 
Otaheite, Paris and Petersburg.
California, Wardhus 
California, Kola  
California, Cajaneburg  
California, Hudson’s Bay 
California, Paris and Petersburg.
Hudson’s Bay, Wardhus 
Hudson’s Bay, Kola 
Hudson’s Bay, Cajaneburg 
Hudson’s Bay, Paris and Petersburg.
Sun’s
Parallax.
8"-7094
8 -5503
8 -3865
8 *5036
8 -7780
8"-6160
8 *3880
8 .1636
8*1521
8*7155
9"* 1260
8 *4589
8*1730
9 *2491
Difference
of
Parallaxes.
21"*561
21*166
20 *762
21*066
21 *730
21"*330
20 *765
20 *208
20 *284
21 *576
22"*592
20 *941
20 *233
22 *897
25
For this purpose Theoretical
Astronomy.
dimensions of all the planetary orbits
we have
sin. 8"*6 : 1:: radius of earth : sun’s distance ;
that is, on reducing the radius of a circle to seconds,
, 360° X 60X60 oqqq/1 + *•, j-
sun s distance 0 7 23984 terrestrial radii.
8*6x2X3*14159
Now, if we assume the semidiameter of the earth to be
4000 miles in round numbers, the distance of the sun, or
radius of the earth’s orbit, will consequently be 23984 X
4000=95936000 miles.
By means of this value the mean distances of the
planets from the sun, which in the table given above were
expressed in terms of the mean distance of the earth, may
be converted into miles. The following are the results in
round numbers.
Planet.
Mercury.
Venus....
Earth 
Mars 
Ceres 
Jupiter...
Saturn...,
Uranus...
Mean Distance from the
Sun in Miles.
37,000,000
68,000,000
95,000,000
142,000,000
262,000,000
485,000,000
890,000,000
1,800,000,000
Here the mean of the first 5 results is nearly...8"*59
of the next 5 8 *41
of the next 4 8 *75
of all 8*57
Having once obtained the value of the solar parallax, it is
easy to deduce the sun’s distance, and consequently the
VOL. IV.
The transits of Venus being phenomena of great im- Periodic
portance, in consequence of their practical application tore>currence
the problem of the sun’s distance, it becomes interesting0^ ^
to determine the periods at which they successively oc.tiansits*
cur. It is evident that, by reason of the inclination of
the orbit, they can only take place when Venus is very
near one of her nodes. Two conditions must therefore be
satisfied: Venus must be within a short distance of her
node, and at the same time in her inferior conjunction.
Now, the interval between two successive conjunctions,
that is, the period of a synodic revolution, is easily de¬
duced from the sidereal revolutions of the planet and the
earth. Thus, generally, let A and B be two planets, T
and t the times of their sidereal revolutions respectively,
and suppose T to be greater than t. In the time T, A
describes a complete circumference, therefore T: : 1:
— part of a circumference described by A in the time t.
But during the same time t, B describes a whole circum¬
ference; therefore 1—is what B gains on A in the
time t. But the successive conjunctions will always take
place when B has gained a whole circumference ; there¬
fore, denoting by S the interval between two successive
t Tt
conjunctions, we have 1 ^: 1:: £: S, whence S —y
From this simple formula the synodic revolution of any
of the planets is found by substituting for T and t the
times of the sidereal revolutions of the earth and planet.
Suppose, for example, we wish to find the time of a syno¬
dic revolution of Mercury. In this case T=365*256 days,
and t — 87*969 days ; consequently T—t = 277*287, and
0 365*256 X 87*969 ,7, i • u c
S = 277*287  “ 1I5‘877 days’ whlch> therefore,
is the time of a synodic revolution of Mercury.
In the case of Venus we have t = 224*700, whence
T —1-= 365*256 — 224*700 = 140*556, and consequently
S = ,, „   = 583*92 days; which is the period
140*556 J
of her synodic revolution.
26
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical Let us next attend to the other condition which must
Astronomy.be satisfied before a transit can take place, namely, that
the planet has returned to its node as well as to its infe*
rior conjunction. If we represent by m the number of re¬
volutions of the earth in the required period, and by n the
number of synodic revolutions of the planet in the same
yiYt
time, it is evident that we shall have mY z=. ^whence
— = ——. In the case of Mercury, therefore, — =
n 1—t n
87969 . /
; that is to say, after 87969 years, in the course of
which Mercury will have been 277287 times in conjunc¬
tion, the earth and Mercury will be again in conjunction,
occupying the same points of their orbits as at the com¬
mencement of the period, supposing the nodes fixed. But
periods of such enormous length are of no practical use:
it is necessary to find an approximating ratio expressed by
smaller numbers. For this purpose it is convenient to
have recourse to the method of continued fractions, from
which the following series is obtained:—
87969
277287
=^Ll
6+ro+i+
136
1079’
Here the first approximating fraction is which de¬
notes that in one year, during which there will happen
three synodic periods, Mercury will not be very far from
his conjunction, nor from the same point of his orbit in
which he was at the commencement of that time. The
Lie
next approximation is 3 + ^ = showing that after six
years, during which there will have been 19 conjunctions,
Mercury will be again nearly in conjunction at the same
point of his orbit. By continuing the process we obtain
the following series of fractions, each approaching nearer
87969
t0 277287’ name1^’
1 6 7 13 33 46
3’ 19’ 22’ 41’ l04 ’ 145’ &C’
of which the numerators express the number of years, and
the denominators the corresponding number of synodic
revolutions.
Approximative fractions might be found in the same
manner to express the ratio of the number of revolutions
of Mercury to those of the earth, or of A; but it is un¬
necessary to have recourse again to division, inasmuch
as they are easily obtained from the above. For example,
since the fraction ^ denotes that Mercury has gained
three revolutions on the earth in one year," it is evident
that he must have completed 3+1=4 revolutions. In
the same way, in six years Mercury gains 19 on the earth,
or completes 19 + 6 = 25. Hence, in the series required
the numerators of the fractions will continue the same
as in the series above, while the denominators will be
the sums of the terms of the corresponding fractions. The
new series will therefore be
1 JL 13 33 46
4’ 25’ 29’ 54’ 137’ l9p &c'
the numerators being the number of years, and the deno¬
minators the corresponding periods of Mercury.
Applying to the case of Venus and the earth the for¬
mula-^ = ^—^, we shall have t = 224*7008, T — t —
365*2563—224*7008 = 140*5555; therefore ~ = —. L^nomy!
The series of fractions approximating to this ratio, obtain¬
ed in the manner indicated above, is
1238 227 235243
1’ 1’ 2’ 5’ 142’ 147’ 152’ &C*
the numerators of which, as before, express the years,
and the denominators the synodic periods. Taking the
fourth fraction of the series, it appears that after eight
years, in which there are five synodic periods, Venus will
again occupy nearly the same position with respect to the
earth and the nodes of her orbit. This will take place
more nearly after 227 years, and more nearly still after
235; consequently, 235 years after a transit has taken
place, the occurrence of another may be expected with
great probability. The alteration, however, which takes
place in the position of the line of the nodes, which in the
preceding computations we have regarded as fixed, ren¬
ders the numbers a little uncertain.
Since Venus returns to her conjunction at nearly the
same point of her orbit after eight yeai*s, it may happen,
and sometimes indeed actually does happen, that a tran¬
sit will take place in about eight years after the occur¬
rence of a former one. But in that time the latitude of
Venus, in consequence of the inclination of her orbit, un¬
dergoes a variation amounting to 20' or 24'; in sixteen
years the change of latitude increases to 40/ or 48', which
is considerably greater than the diameter of the sun. It
cannot happen, therefore, that thx*ee transits will take
place within sixteen years. From the above series of
fractions we might infer that another could not take
place before 227 years; but that series was obtained on
the supposition that the transits only happen when Venus
returns to the same node; and it is evident that they
may equally occur when the planet is near the other
node, and consequently after an interval of half the length
of the former, or 113 years. If, at the occurrence of
the first transit, Venus has passed her node, the next will
happen eight years sooner; or, if she has not reached the
node, eight years later. Hence, after two transits have
occurred within eight years, another cannot be expected
before 105, 113, or 121 years, that is, 113=1=8 years.
But these periods sometimes fail: that of 235 brings
about the phenomenon with greater certainty, and 243
(which is the double of 121) is the surest of all. The
periods of 235 and 251 are that of 243 diminished
or augmented by 8. The whole calculation, therefore,
reduces itself to periods of 121 and =±= 8 years. The
last transits took place in 1761 and 1769; the next will
not happen till the years 1874 and 1882; and thus the
infrequency of these phenomena adds to the interest they
derive from their real importance.
Delambre has given a list of all the transits of Venus
for a period of 2000 years, from which the following is
extracted. (Astronomie, tome ii. p. 473.)
Year.
Month.
Mean Time
(at Paris)
of Conjunction.
Node.
1631
1639
1761
1769
1874
1882
2004
Dec. 6.
Dec. 4.
June 5.
July 3.
Dec. 8.
Dec. 6.
June 7.
17h 28m 40s
6 9 40
17 44 34
10 7 54
16 17 44
4 25 44
0 4
21
S3
S3
SS
es
S3
S3
ASTRONOMY.
'heoretical Sect. III.—Of the Physical Constitution of the Planets,
.stronomy. fair Magnitude, Potation, and other remarkable objects.
Mercury.
Mercury is a small star, but emits a very bright white
light, though, by reason of his always keeping near the
sun, he is seldom to be seen; and when he does make his
appearance, his return to the sun is so rapid, that he can
only be discerned for a short space of time. Delambre
was able to observe him only twice with the naked eye.
Mercury is about 3140 English miles in diameter, and
his mean distance from the sun about 37 millions of miles.
On account of his smallness and brilliancy it is extremely
difficult to find any spot on his disk so distinctly marked
as to afford the means of determining his rotation. Be¬
sides, by reason of his proximity to the sun, an observa¬
tion of a spot, if made in the evening, can scarcely be
well begun before the planet sets; or, if in the morning,
before the increasing twilight renders the spot invisible.
Hence it is only possible to observe daily a very small
arc of a small circle; and if the spot re-appears on the
succeeding day, it is doubtful whether the arc which it
has passed over exhibits the whole motion, or if one or
more circumferences ought to be added. By an at¬
tentive observation of the variations of the phases of
Mercury, Schroeter has, however, remarked that he re¬
volves about his axis in the space of 24 hours 5 minutes
30 seconds. M. Harding discovered in 1801 an obscure
streak on the southern hemisphere of the planet, the ob¬
servations of which, together with those of a spot disco¬
vered by Schroeter, gave the same period of rotation.
The results of Schroeter’s researches on Mercury may be
summed up as follows: ls£, The apparent diameter of
Mercury at his mean distance is 6"‘02; 2c?, His form is
spherical, exhibiting no sensible compression; 3c?, His
equator is very considerably inclined to his orbit, and the
differences of his days and seasons must consequently be
very great; kth, There are mountains on his surface which
cast very long shadows, and of which the height bears a
greater proportion to the diameter of the planet than
those of the Earth, the Moon, or even of Venus. The
height of Chimbora90 is yoTT °f the radius of the earth ;
one of the mountains in the moon has been estimated at
2 fy of her radius; the highest in Venus at ; and one
in Mercury at y^g-. The highest mountains are in the
southern hemisphere, which is also the case in respect of
the Earth and Venus. There are no observations to
prove decisively whether Mercury is surrounded by an
atmosphere.
Venus.
Venus, the most beautiful star in the heavens, is about
7700 English miles in diameter, and placed at the distance
of 68 millions of miles from the sun. Although the oscil¬
lations of this planet are considerably greater than those
of Mercury, and she is seldom invisible, yet on account
of the uniform brilliancy of her disk, it is extremely dif¬
ficult to ascertain the period of her rotation. Dominic
Cassini, after having long fruitlessly attempted to discover
any object on her surface so well defined as to enable him
to follow its motions, at length, in 1667, perceived a bright
part, distant from the southern horn a little more than a
fourth part of the diameter of the disk, and near the
eastern edge. By continuing his observations on this spot,
Cassini concluded the rotation of Venus to be performed
in about 23 hours; but he does not seem to have consider¬
ed this conclusion as deserving of much confidence. In
the year 1726 Bianchini, an Italian astronomer, made a
number of similar observations for the same pm'pose,
27
from which he inferred that the rotation of the planet is Theoretical
performed in 24 days 8 hours. The younger Cassini has Astronomy,
shown, however, that the observations of Bianchini, as'^~v^x/
well as those of his father, could be explained by a rota¬
tion of 23 hours and 21 or 22 minutes, whereas the rotation
of 24 days 8 hours cannot be reconciled with the appear¬
ances observed by the elder Cassini. The determination
of Cassini was regarded by astronomers as the more pro¬
bable of the two, particularly as Bianchini was not able
to make his observations in a connected manner, on ac¬
count that a neighbouring building intercepted his view
of the planet, and obliged him to transport his telescope to
a different situation. The question of the rotation of
Venus was finally settled by Schroeter, who found it to
be performed in 23 hours 21 minutes 19 seconds. Each
of the three observers found the inclination of the axis of
rotation to the axis of the ecliptic to be about 75°. Some
doubt, however, still exists with respect to the value of
this element.
Schroeter’s observations on this planet were principally
directed to a mountain situated near the southern horn.
The line which joins the extremities of the horns is always
a diameter; and the horns of the crescent of a perfect
sphere ought to be sharp and pointed. Schroeter re¬
marked that this was not always the case with regard to
the horns of Mercury and Venus. The northern horn of
the latter always preserved the pointed form, but the
southern occasionally appeared rounded or obtuse,—a cir¬
cumstance which indicated that the shadow of a moun¬
tain covered the part Bo (fig. 74), so that the line joining
the extremities of the horns appeared to be Ao, and not
AB (perpendicular to CD, the axis of the ecliptic); but
at d, beyond oB, he remarked a luminous point, which
he supposed to be the summit of another mountain, illu¬
minated by the sun after he had ceased to be visible to
the rest of that hemisphere. Now, in order that the horn
of the crescent may appear obtuse in consequence of the
shadow of a mountain falling upon it, and another moun¬
tain d present a luminous point, the two mountains must
be at the same time both at the edge of the disk and on
the line separating the dark from the enlightened part of
the planet. But this position cannot be of long conti¬
nuance ; for the rotation will cause d to rise into the en¬
lightened part, or sink into the dark hemisphere, and in
either case the mountain will cease to be visible. If, how¬
ever, the rotation is completed in 23 hours 21 min., the
mountain d will appear 39 min. sooner than it did on the
previous day ; for in the course of a day the boundary of
light and darkness will hardly have shifted its position
on the surface of the planet through the effects of the
orbital motion. Hence it is possible to obtain several
consecutive observations, from which an approximate
value of the period may be found; and this being
once obtained, it may be rendered still more exact by
observations separated from each other by a longer
interval. Thus Schroeter found that an interval of
20 days 11 hours 15 min. between two apparitions of
the mountain being divided by 23 hours 21 min., gave
2T005 revolutions. That intervals of 121 days 14 hours
25 min., 142 days 1 hour 40 min., 155 days 18 hours 11
min., divided each by 23 hours 21 min., gave 125-01,
146,02, 165‘09 revolutions respectively. All these com¬
parisons prove that the revolution of 23 hours 21 min. is
somewhat too short. They ought to have given 21, 125,
146, and 165 revolutions exactly, supposing the observa¬
tions to have been perfectly accurate. On dividing the
intervals by 21, 125, 146, and 165 respectively, the quo¬
tients will be each the time of a revolution very nearly ;
and by taking a mean among the whole, the most pro-
28
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical bable result at least will be obtained. In this manner
Astronomy. schroeter found the period of rotation already stated,
namely, 23 hours 21 min. 19 sec.
Since the time of rotation of Mercury and Venus is
nearly equal to that of the earth, the compression of these
planets at the poles, which results from the centrifugal
force, ought also to be nearly in the same proportion.
But at the distance of the earth the compression must be
imperceptible even in the case of Venus; for, supposing
it to amount to the difference between the radius of
her poles and that of her equator would only amount to a
tenth of a second as seen from the earth.
Atmo- During the transits of Venus over the suns disk in
sphere of 1761 and 1769 a sort of penumbral light was observed
Venus. round the planet by several astronomers, which was occa¬
sioned, without doubt, by the refractive powers of her
atmosphere. Wargentin remarked that the limb of Venus
which had gone off the sun showed itself with a faint
light during almost the whole time of emersion. Berg¬
man, who observed the transit of 1761 at Upsal, says that
at the ingress the part which had not come upon the sun
was visible, though dark, and surrounded by a crescent of
faint light, as in fig. 75 ; but this appearance was much
more remarkable at the egress ; for as soon as any part of
the planet had disengaged itself from the sun’s disk, that
part was visible with a like crescent, but brighter (fig. 76).
As more of the planet’s disk disengaged itself from that of
the sun, the part of the crescent farthest from the sun grew
fainter, and vanished, until at last only the horns could be
seen, as in fig. 77. The total immersion and emersion were
not instantaneous ; but as two drops of water, when about
to separate, form a ligament between them, so there was a
dark shade stretched out between Venus and the sun, as
in fig. 78 ; and when this ligament broke, the planet seem¬
ed to have got about an eighth part of her diameter from
the limb of the sun (fig. 79). The numerous accounts
of the two transits which have been published abound
with analogous observations, indicating the existence of
an atmosphere of considerable height and density. Schroe-
ter calculated that its horizontal refraction must amount
to 30' 34", differing little from that of the terrestrial at¬
mosphere. A twilight which he perceived on the cusps
afforded him the data from which he deduced this con¬
clusion.
Cassini and Montaigne imagined that they had observed
a satellite accompanying Venus; but this appears to have
been an optical illusion arising from the strong light
of the planet reflected back from the convex surface of
the eye upon the eye-glass of the telescope, and thence
reflected a second time back to the eye. This hypothe¬
sis at least will explain the appearances which they have
described; and although astronomers have sought for this
pretended satellite with great care, they have neither ob¬
served it on the sun during the transits of Venus in 1761
and 1769, nor in any other part of her orbit.
Mars.
After Venus, Mars is the planet whose orbit is nearest
to the earth. His diameter is about one half, and his vo¬
lume only about one fifth part of that of our globe. He
is of a dusky reddish colour, by reason of which he is
easily recognised in the heavens. His mean distance from
the sun is about 142 millions of miles.
The rotation of Mars was suspected before the year
1643 by Fontana, a Neapolitan astronomer; but it was
reserved for Cassini to demonstrate its existence and assign
its period. Cassini began to observe the spots on the
surface of Mars at Bologna in 1666; and after having
continued his observations for a month, he found they re¬
turned to the same situation in 24 hours and 40 min. The Theoretical
planet was observed by some astronomers at Home with Astronomy,
longer telescopes ; but they assigned to it a rotation of's-‘'’'v''v>
13 hours only. This, however, was afterwards shown by
Cassini to have arisen from their not distinguishing be¬
tween the opposite sides of the planet, which, it seems,
have spots pretty much alike. He made further ob¬
servations on the spots of this planet in 1670 ; which
confirmed his former conclusion respecting the time of
rotation. The spots were again observed in subsequent
oppositions, particularly for several days in 1704 by
Maraldi, who took notice that they were not always well
defined, and that they not only changed their shape fre¬
quently in the interval between two oppositions, but even in
the space of a month. Some of them, however, continued
of the same form long enough to allow the time of the
planet’s rotation to be determined. Among these there
appeared that year an oblong spot, resembling one of the
belts of Jupiter when broken. It did not reach quite
round the body of the planet; but had, not far from the
middle of it, a small protuberance towards the north, so
well defined that Maraldi was thereby enabled to fix the
period of its revolution at 24 hours 39 min., only one
minute less than what Cassini had determined it to be.
The near approach of Mars to the earth in 1719
afforded an excellent opportunity of observing him, as
he was then within 2^° of his perihelion, and at the
same time in opposition to the sun. His apparent mag¬
nitude and brightness were thus so much increased,
that he was by the vulgar taken for a new star. His
appearance at that time, as seen by Maraldi through a
telescope of 34 feet long, is represented in fig. 80. There
was then a long belt that reached half-way round, to the
end of which another shorter belt was joined, forming an
obtuse angle with the former, as in fig. 81. This angular
point was observed on the 19th and 20th of August, a
little to the east of the middle of the disk; and 37 days
after, on the 25th and 26th of September, it returned to
the same situation. This interval, divided by 36, the
number of revolutions contained in it, gives 24 hours 40
minutes for the period of one revolution ; a result which
was verified by another spot of a triangular shape, one
angle whereof was towards the north pole, and the base to¬
wards the south, and which on the 5th and 6th of August
appeared as in fig. 82. After 72 revolutions it returned
to the same situation on the 16th and 17th of October.
Some of the belts of this planet are said to be parallel to
his equator; but that seen by Maraldi was very much in¬
clined to it.
Besides these dark spots on the surface of Mars, astro- Bright
nomers had noticed that a segment of his globe about sPotsab°llt
the south pole exceeded the rest of his disk so much in f°les
brightness, that it appeared to project as if it were the1 aib'
segment of a larger globe. Maraldi informs us that this
bright spot had been taken notice of for 60 years, and
was more permanent than the other spots on the planet.
One part of it is brighter than the rest, and the least
bright part is subject to great changes, and has sometimes
disappeared.
A similar though less remarkable brightness about the
north pole of Mars was also sometimes observed, the ex¬
istence of which has been confirmed by Sir W. Herschel,
who examined the planet with telescopes of much greater
power than any former astronomer ever was in pos¬
session of. A very full account of Herschel’s observa-Herschel’s
tions on this planet is given in the 74th volume of the account of
Philosophical Transactions. Some of the remarkable ap- these spots,
pearances there described are represented in fig. 83—88.
The magnifying powers he used were sometimes as high
ASTRONOMY. 29
1 ;oretical as 932; and with this the south polar spot was found to
1- ronomy.be 41'" in diameter. Fig. 96 shows the connection of
^ tbe other figures marked 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, which
complete the whole equatorial succession of spots on the
disk of the planet. “ The centre of the circle,” Herschel
observes, “ marked 90, is placed on the circumference of
the inner circle, by making its distance from the circle,
marked 92, answer to the interval of time between the
two observations, properly calculated and reduced to
sidereal measure. The same is done with regard to the
circles marked 91, 92, &c.; and it will be found by pla¬
cing any one of these connected circles in such a manner
as to have its contents in a similar situation with the
figures in the single representation, which are marked
with the same number, that there is a sufficient resem¬
blance between them; though some allowance must be
made for the distortions occasioned by this kind of pro¬
jection.”
From these observations Herschel concluded that the
diurnal rotation of Mars is accomplished in 24 hours
39 minutes 21§ seconds; that his equator is inclined to
his orbit in an angle of 28° 42', and his axis of rotation to
the axis of the ecliptic in an angle of 30° 18'. Hence the
time of rotation and the seasons of this planet are little
different from those of the earth.
The bright appearance so remarkable about the poles
of Mars is ascribed by Herschel to the reflection of light
from mountains of ice and snow accumulated in those
regions. “ The analogy between Mars and the earth,”
says he, “ is perhaps by far the greatest in the whole
solar system. Their diurnal motion is nearly the same,
the obliquity of their respective ecliptics not very differ¬
ent ; of all the superior planets, the distance of Mars from
the sun is by far the nearest alike to that of the earth;
nor will the length of the Martial year appear very dif¬
ferent from what we enjoy, when compared to the sur¬
prising duration of the years of Jupiter, Saturn, and the
Georgium Sidus. If we then find that the globe we in¬
habit has its polar region frozen and covered with moun¬
tains of ice and snow, that only partly melt when alternate¬
ly exposed to the sun, I may well be permitted to surmise,
that the same causes may probably have the same effect
on the globe of Mars; that the bright polar spots are
owing to the vivid reflection of light from frozen regions;
and that the reduction of those spots is to be ascribed to
their being exposed to the sun.”
Since the discovery of the flattened form of the earth,
it was to be presumed that the rotation of the other planets
would produce a similar effect on their figures, and this
supposition has been fully confirmed by observation. The
time of the rotation of Mars is nearly equal to that of
the earth, but his diameter being only about half that of
the earth, the velocity of a point on his equator is conse¬
quently only half as great as that of a point on the earth’s
equator: hence we might expect that the deviation of his
figure from a perfect sphere would be much less consider¬
able. The contrary, however, appears to be the case ; and
his compression seems to be much greater than that of
the earth. According to Herschel, the ratio of his equa¬
torial and polar axes is 103 to 98. Schroeter estimates
the same ratio to be that of 81 to 80. This remarkable
compression at the poles of Mars arises in all probability
from considerable variations of density in the different
parts of his globe.
tmo- It has been commonly related by astronomers, that the
here of atmosphere of this planet is possessed of such strong re-
Lars. tractive powers as to render invisible the small fixed stars
near which it passes. Dr Smith relates an observation
of Cassini, in which a star in the water of Aquarius, at
the distance of six minutes from the disk of Mars, became Theoretical
so faint before its occultation, that it could not be seen by Astronomy-
the naked eye, nor even with a -three feet telescope. This'^,~v^^/
would indicate an atmosphere of a very extraordinary size
and density ; but the following observations of Herschel
seem to show that it is of much smaller dimensions.
“ 1783, Oct. 26th. There are two small stars preceding
Mars, of different sizes ; with 460 they appear both dusky
red, and are pretty unequal; with 218 they appear con¬
siderably unequal. The distance from Mars of the
nearest, which is also the largest, with 227, measured
3' 26" 20"'. Some time after, the same evening, the dis¬
tance was 3' 8" 55'", Mars being retrograde. Both of
them were seen very distinctly. They were viewed with
a new 20 feet reflector, and appeared very bright. Oc¬
tober 27th : the small star is not quite so bright in propor¬
tion to the large one as it was last night, being a good
deal nearer to Mars, which is now on the side of the
small star; but when the planet was drawn aside, or out
of view, it appeared as plainly as usual. The distance of
the small star was 2' 5" 25'". The largest of the two stars,”
adds he, “ on which the above observations were made,
cannot exceed the 12th, and the smallest the 13th or 14th
magnitude ; and I have no reason to suppose that they
were any otherwise affected by the approach of Mars, than
what the brightness of its superior light may account for.
From other phenomena it appears, however, that this
planet is not without a considerable atmosphere; for, be¬
sides the permanent spots on its surface, I have often
noticed occasional changes of partial bright belts, and also
once a darkish one in a pretty high latitude; and these
alterations we can hardly ascribe to any other cause than
the variable disposition of clouds and vapours floating in
the atmosphere of the planet.”
Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta.
The commencement of the present century was render¬
ed remarkable in the annals of astronomy by the discovery
of four new planets circulating between Mars and Jupiter.
Kepler, from some analogy which he found to subsist
among the distances of the planets from the sun, had long
before suspected the existence of one at this distance ; and
his conjecture was rendered more probable by the disco¬
very of Uranus, with regard to which the analogy of the
other planets is observed. So strongly, indeed, were as¬
tronomers impressed with the idea that a planet would
be found between Mars and Jupiter, that, in the hope of
discovering it, Baron Zach formed an association of 24
observers, who divided the sky into as many zones, and
undertook each to explore one carefully. A fortunate
accident anticipated a discovery which might have re¬
quired years of toil. An error in the catalogue of Wol¬
laston, who had laid down a star in a position in which it
is not to be found, engaged Piazzi, the superintendent of
the observatory at Palermo, to observe for several suc¬
cessive days all the small stars in the neighbourhood of
the place indicated. On the first day of the present cen¬
tury, the 1st of January 1801, he observed a small star in
Taurus, which, on the day following, appeared to have
changed its place. On the 3d he repeated his observa¬
tion, and was then satisfied that it had a diurnal motion
of about 4' in right ascension, and 3'-^ in declination to¬
wards the north pole. He continued to observe it till
the 23d, when he communicated his discovery to MM.
Bode and Oriani, giving them the positions of the star on
the 1st and 23d, and only adding, that between the 11th
and 13th its motion had changed from retrograde to di¬
rect. Before the communication reached them, however,
the planet was lost in the sun’s rays; and, owing to its ex-
ASTRONOMY.
30
Theoretical treme smallness, the difficulty of finding it after its emer-
Astronomy. gence was so great, that it was not again seen till the
v-'^v-v^31st of the following December, when it was detected by
Zach. In this was recognised the planet which Kepler
had suspected to circulate between Mars and Jupiter.
Piazzi, in honour of Sicily, gave it the name of the tute¬
lary goddess of that country, Ceres; and her emblem,
the sickle, , has been adopted as its appropriate symbol.
Ceres is of a reddish colour, and appears to be about
the size of a star of the eighth magnitude. The eccentri¬
city of her orbit is somewhat greater than that of Mer¬
cury ; and its inclination to the ecliptic greater than that
of any of the old planets. The distance of Ceres from
the sun is about 3-2 times that of the earth, or nearly 270
millions of miles. Schroeter found her apparent diameter
to be 2", corresponding to about 1624 miles; but Herschel
reduced this measurement to 0"'5, which would indicate
a diameter of about 160 miles. The nebulosity which
surrounds the planet renders it almost impossible to dis¬
tinguish the true disk; and hence arises the great dis¬
crepancy between the above estimates of its magnitude.
From a great number of observations, Schroeter inferred
that Ceres has a dense atmosphere, rising to the height
of no less than 675 English miles above the planet, and
subject to numerous changes. On this account he con¬
ceives that there is little chance of discovering the period
of its rotation.
Discovery The difficulty of finding Ceres induced Dr Olbers of
of Pallas. Bremen to examine with particular care the configura¬
tions of all the small stars situated near her geocentric
path. On the 28th of March 1802 he observed a star of
the seventh magnitude, which formed an equilateral tri¬
angle with the stars 20 and 191 of Virgo in Bode’s cata¬
logue. He was certain that he had never seen a star in
that place before, and at first imagined it might be one of
those which are subject to periodical changes of bril¬
liancy ; but after examining it for two hours, he remark¬
ed that its right ascension was diminishing, while its
northern declination continued to augment nearly in the
same manner as had been the case with Ceres when
that planet was first seen by him in almost the same
position. On the following day he found its right as¬
cension had diminished 10', while its northern declination
had increased 20'. From observations continued during
a month, M. Gauss calculated an elliptic orbit, the eccen¬
tricity of which amounted to ‘24764, much greater than
that of any of the other planets. He also found its in¬
clination to be 34° 39', exceeding the aggregate incli¬
nations of all the other planetary orbits; and its mean
distance 2-770552, almost the same as that of Ceres. On
account of these three circumstances, the new planet,
otherwise of little importance, became the most singular
in the whole system. One planet had been suspected to
exist between Mars and Jupiter, and two were now dis¬
covered. The great inclination of the last i*endered it
necessary to enlarge the boundaries of the zodiac ; but
the extent of the zodiac is entirely arbitrary, and had
been limited by the extreme latitudes of Venus. There
is no reason, as Delambre remarks, why it may not be ex¬
tended even to the poles. Dr Olbers gave the new planet
the name of Pallas, choosing for its symbol the lance, ^ ,
the attribute of Minerva.
The most surprising circumstance connected with the
discovery of Pallas was the existence of two planets at
nearly the same distance from the sun, and apparently
having a common node. On account of this singularity
Dr Olbers was led to conjecture that Ceres and Pallas
are only fragments of a larger planet, which had former¬
ly circulated at the same distance, and been shattered by
some internal convulsion. Lagrange made this hypothesis Theoretical ,
the subject of an ingenious memoir, in which he deter-J^stronotny i
mined the explosive force necessary to detach a fragmenti
from a planet with a velocity that would cause it to de¬
scribe the orbit of a comet. He found that a fragment
detached from the earth in this manner, with a velocity
equal to 121 times that of a cannon-ball, would become a
direct comet; and if with a velocity equal to 156 times
that of a cannon-ball, its motion would be retrograde. For
. 121 or 156 -
other planets the velocity must be - — , ana
V mean distance
consequently less as the mean distance of the planet from
the sun is greater. A smaller velocity would be required
to cause the detached fragment to move in an elliptic orbit;
and with regard to the four small planets we are now con¬
sidering, an explosive force less than twenty times that of
a cannon-ball would have sufficed to detach them from a
primitive planet, and cause them to describe ellipses si¬
milar to their actual orbits. This hypothesis served also
to explain the great eccentricities and inclinations by
which these planets are distinguished from the others be¬
longing to the system ; for it is evident that the explosive
force must have projected the different fragments in all
directions, and with different velocities. It followed also,
that other fragments of the original planet might proba¬
bly exist, revolving in orbits which, however they might
differ in respect of inclination and eccentricity, would
still intersect each other in the same points, or have com¬
mon nodes, in which the several fragments would neces¬
sarily be found at each revolution. Dr Olbers therefore
proposed to examine carefully every month the two op¬
posite parts of the heavens in which the orbits of Ceres
and Pallas intersect each other, with a view to the disco¬
very of other planets, which might be sought for in those
parts with greater chance of success than in a wider zone
embracing the whole limits of their orbits. Subsequent
discoveries demonstrated the soundness of his conjecture,
and gave a degree of probability to his hypothesis.
According to Herschel, the diameter of Pallas is only
about 80 English miles, or about one half of that which
he assigned to Ceres, while Schroeter estimates it at 2099
miles, Schroeter also found the atmosphere of Pallas to
be about two thirds of the height of that of Ceres, or about
450 miles. The light of the planet undergoes consider- .
able variations, the cause of which is uncertain.
While M. Harding, of the observatory of Lilienthal, Discover
near Bremen, was engaged in forming a complete zodiac0^11110,
of the small telescopic stars near the orbits of Ceres and
Pallas, with which these planets were likely to be con¬
founded, he determined, on the 22d of September 1804,
the position of a small star, by comparing it with the two
stars marked 93 and 98 of Pisces in Bode’s catalogue.
These two stars are situated very near the equator, and
at a small distance from one of the nodes of Ceres and
Pallas, and exactly in that sort of defile where, according
to Dr Olbers, an observer would be certain of detecting
in their passage the other fragments of the original pla¬
net of which Ceres and Pallas are parts. On the 4th the
star was no longer in the same position, but had moved a
little to the south-west. On the 5th and 6th M. Hard¬
ing, by means of a circular micrometer, determined the
rate of its motion to be 12' 42" in declination to the
south, and 7' 30" in right ascension, retrograde, the inter¬
val between the observations being 24 hours 14 min. 12 sec.
From this it was evident that the body belonged to the
planetary system. It had then the appearance of a star
between the eighth and ninth magnitudes. It was with¬
out any nebulosity, and of a whitish colour. A few days
ASTRONOMY.
31
1 eoretical afterwards the elements of its orbit were computed by
, trouomy. Gauss. This planet has received the name of Juno, and
' for its symbol 0, the starry sceptre of the queen of
Olympus.
Juno is distinguished from the other planets by the
great eccentricity of her orbit, which is so considerable,
that she describes that half of it which is bisected by the
perihelion in about half the time which she employs to
describe the other half. This planet is somewhat smaller
than Ceres and Pallas, and, though free from nebulosity,
must have, according to Schroeter’s observations, an at¬
mosphere of greater density than that of any of the old
planets.
scovery The success of M. Harding encouraged Dr Gibers to
Vesta, renew the plan of research which he had pointed out on
the discovery of Pallas; and on the 29th of March 1807
he perceived, in the constellation of Virgo, a star of the
fifth or sixth magnitude, which he suspected from the first
observation to be a new planet. A few subsequent ob¬
servations rendered this conjecture certain. Dr Olbers
left to Gauss the care of giving a name to the new pla¬
net, and of determining the elements of its orbit. Gauss
named it Vesta, and chose for its symbol an altar sur¬
mounted with a censer holding the sacred fire. Vesta is
the smallest of all the celestial bodies known to us. Her
volume is only about a fifteen thousandth part of that of
the earth, and her surface is about equal to that of the
kingdom of Spain. She is distinguished by the vivacity
of her light, and the luminous atmosphere with which she
is surrounded.
Jupiter.
Jupiter is by far the largest planet in the system. His
diameter is about 11 times, and his volume 1281 times,
greater than that of the earth. His distance from the
sun is 5J- times the radius of the ecliptic, or nearly
125,000 terrestrial semidiameters, and consequently above
490 millions of miles. His apparent diameter, which, at his
mean distance, is 36"*7, and varies between 45"*8 and SO7,
would subtend an angle of 3' 17" if seen at the same dis¬
tance as the sun. From Jupiter the sun will appear un¬
der an angle of 6' at most; the sun’s disk will appear to
be 27 times smaller than when seen from the earth, con¬
sequently the light and heat which Jupiter receives from
the sun will be only the 27th part of what is received by
our globe. His density is ‘99239, that of the sun being
considered as unity, or is about one fourth of the density
of the earth ; and a body which weighs one pound at the
equator of the earth, would weigh 2‘444 pounds if re¬
moved to the equator of Jupiter.
elts of Jupiter has the same general appearance with Mars,
I upiter. only the belts on his surface are much larger and more
ocxvni Permanent- Their usual appearance, as described by Dr
' * ‘Long, is represented fig. 97-100; but they are not to be
seen but by an excellent telescope. They are said to
have been first discovered by Fontana and two other Ita¬
lians, but Cassini was the first who gave a good account
of them. Their number is very variable, as sometimes
only one, but seldom more than three, may be perceived.
Messier at one time saw so great a number that the whole
disk seemed to be covered by them. They are generally
parallel to one another, but not always so; and their
breadth is likewise variable, one belt having been observed
to grow narrow, while another in its neighbourhood has
increased in breadth, as if the one had flowed into the
other: and in this case a part of an oblique belt lay be¬
tween them, as if to form a communication for this pur¬
pose. The time of their continuance is very uncertain:
sometimes they remain unchanged for three months, at
other times new belts have been formed in an hour or two. Theoretical
In some of these belts large black spots have appeared, Astronomy,
which moved swiftly over the disk from east to west,
and returned in a short time to the same place; whence
the rotation of this planet about its axis has been deter¬
mined. On the 9th of May 1664, Dr Hooke, with a twelve
feet telescope, observed a small spot in the broadest of
the three obscure belts of Jupiter; and observing it from
time to time, found that in two hours it had moved from
east to west about half the visible diameter of the planet.
In 1665 Cassini observed a spot near the largest belt of
Jupiter, which is most frequently seen. It appeared
round, and moved with the greatest velocity when in the
middle, but appeared narrower, and moved slower, the
nearer it was to the circumference; showing that the spot
adhered to the body of Jupiter, and was carried round
upon it. This principal, or ancient spot as it is called,
is the largest and the most permanent of any hitherto
known; it appeared and vanished no fewer than eight
times between the years 1665 and 1708: from the year
last mentioned it was invisible till 1713. The longest
time of its continuing to be visible was three years,
and the longest time of its disappearing was from 1708
to 1713. It seems to have some connection with the prin¬
cipal southern belt; for the spot has never been seen
when that disappeared, though the belt itself has often
been visible without the spot. Besides this ancient spot,
Cassini, in the year 1699, saw one of less stability, that did
not continue of the same shape or dimensions, but broke
into several small ones, whereof the revolution was but
9 hours 51 min.; and two other spots that revolved in
9 hours 521 min. The changes in the appearance of the
spots, and the difference in the time of their rotation,
make it probable that they do not adhere to Jupiter, but
are clouds transported by the winds, with different velo¬
cities, in an atmosphere subject to violent agitations.
By means of the spots, which can be easily observed,
the rotation of Jupiter has been determined with consider¬
able precision. The time of rotation, according to Cassini,
Maraldi, and others, is 9 hours and between 55 and 56
minutes: Schroeter makes it 9 hours 55 min. 33 sec.
The inclination of his equator to his orbit is only 3° 5' 30",
so that the variations of his seasons must be almost insen¬
sible.
The radius of Jupiter being nearly 11 times (10‘86)
that of our earth, and his rotation being 2*4 times more
rapid, it follows that the space passed over by a point
on his equator is 26 times greater than that passed over
by a point of the terrestrial equator in the same time.
Hence the centrifugal force is 26 times greater; and if
the spheroidal form of the earth is occasioned by the
diurnal motion, we may expect to find the same effects
on a much larger scale exhibited in the form of Jupiter.
And this is in fact observed to be the case; for the com¬
pression of Jupiter is about -j^th of his radius, the diame¬
ter of his equator being to that of his poles as 15 to 14
nearly, while that of the earth is only 3^5 th. According
to Struve, the equatorial diameter at the mean distance
subtends an angle of 38"‘327, the polar 35"*538; and the
ellipticity is 00728 =
The annual parallax of Jupiter is less than 12°, conse¬
quently the earth, as seen from Jupiter, will never appear
at a greater distance than 11° or 12° from the sun. The
digressions of Mars would be 17° 2', those of Venus 8°,
and those of Mercury only 4° 16'. An inhabitant of Ju¬
piter must therefore be probably ignorant of the existence
of Mercury, which will be almost constantly plunged in
32
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical
Astronomy.
Satellites
of Jupiter.
Occulta-
tions and
eclipses of
the satel¬
lites.
the sun’s rays, and likewise greatly diminished in splen¬
dour, on account of his great distance. From this we
may infer the possibility of the existence of planets infe¬
rior to Mercury, and invisible to us, for similar reasons.
On observing Jupiter through the telescope, he is seen
accompanied by four little stars, which oscillate on both
sides of him, and follow him in his orbit as the moon fol¬
lows the earth. On this account they are called satellites
or attendants. They were first noticed by Galileo within
a year after the discovery of the telescope; and it was
soon perceived that they revolve around Jupiter in nar¬
row circles, the planes of which deviate little from that
of the equator of the planet. They are distinguished
from one another by the denomination of first, second,
third, and fourth, according to their relative distances
from Jupiter, the first being that which is nearest to
him. Their apparent motion is oscillatory, like that of
a pendulum, going alternately from their greatest elon¬
gation on one side to their greatest elongation on the
other, sometimes in a straight line and sometimes in an
elliptic curve, according to the different points of view in
which we observe them from the earth. They have also
their stations and retrogradations, and exhibit in minia¬
ture all the phenomena of the planetary system.
Since the satellites revolve in orbits about the huge orb
of Jupiter, it is evident that occultations of them must fre¬
quently happen, by their going behind their primary, or
by coming in between us and it; in the former case when
they proceed towards the middle of their upper semicircle,
and in the latter when they pass through the same part
of their inferior semicircle. Occultations of the former
kind happen to the first and second satellites at every re¬
volution ; the third very rarely escapes an occultation; but
the fourth more frequently, by reason of its greater dis¬
tance. It is seldom that a satellite can be discovered
upon the disk of Jupiter, even by the best telescopes, ex¬
cepting at its first entrance, when, by reason of its being
more directly illuminated by the rays of the sun than the
planet itself, it appears like a lucid spot upon it. Some¬
times, however, a satellite in passing over the disk ap¬
pears like a dark spot, and can be easily distinguished.
This is supposed to be owing to spots on the body of these
secondary planets ; and it is remarkable that the same sa¬
tellite has been known to pass over the disk at one time as
a dark spot, and at another appearing so luminous that it
could not be distinguished from Jupiter himself, except at
its coming on and going off. To account for this diversity of
appearance, we must suppose either that the spots are sub¬
ject to change, or, if they be permanent, like those of our
moon, that the different portions of the surfaces of the satel¬
lites are not equally luminous, and that at different times
they turn different parts of their globes towards us. Possi¬
bly both these causes may contribute to produce the phe¬
nomena just mentioned. By reason of the spots, also, both
the light and apparent magnitude of the satellites are vari¬
able ; for the fewer spots there are upon that side which is
turned towards us, the brighter it will appear; and as the
bright parts only can be seen, a satellite must appear larger
the more of its bright side it turns towards the earth, and
smaller the more it happens to be covered with spots. The
fourth satellite, though generally the smallest, sometimes
appears larger than any of the rest. The third sometimes
seems least, though usually the largest; nay, a satellite
may be so covered with spots as to appear less than its
shadow passing over the disk of the primary, though we
are certain that the shadow must be smaller than the
body from which it is projected. To a spectator placed
on the surface of Jupiter, each of these satellites would
put on the phases of the moon; but as the distance of any
of them from Jupiter is but small when compared with Theoretic jii
the distance of that planet from the sun, the satellites Astron°i! L
are illuminated by the sun very nearly in the same man-v->'"v'v *'
ner with the primary itself; hence they appear to us al¬
ways round, having constantly the greater part of their ^
enlightened half turned towards the earth; and, indeed,
on account of their small size, their phases can scarcely
be discerned even through the best telescopes. Their
spots, or rather the observed variations of their brilliancy
at different times, have afforded the means of determining
the fact and the period of their rotation; and it is a very
remarkable circumstance that they all, like the moon, con¬
stantly turn the same face towards their primary, or com¬
plete a rotation about their respective axes in the same time
in which they perform a revolution in their orbits.
When the satellites pass through their inferior semi¬
circles, they may cast a shadow upon their primary, and
thus cause an eclipse of the sun; and in some situations
this shadow may be observed going before or following
the satellite. On the other hand, in passing through their
superior semicircles, the satellites may be eclipsed in the
same manner as our moon, by passing through the shadow
of Jupiter. And this is actually the case with the first,
second, and third of these bodies; but the fourth, by reason
of the greater magnitude and inclination of its orbit, passes
sometimes above or below the shadow, as is the case with
the moon. The beginnings and endings of these eclipses are
easily seen through the telescope, when Jupiter is at a suffi¬
cient distance from the sun. The same satellite disappears
at different distances from the planet, according to the
relative situations of Jupiter, the sun, and the earth; but
always on that side of the disk where the shadow of the
planet is known from computation to be. With regard to
the first and second satellites, the immersions only are vi¬
sible while Jupiter is passing from his conjunction to his
opposition with the sun, and the emersions while he passes
from his opposition to his conjunction. The third and
fourth sometimes disappear, and again appear on the same
side of the disk; and the time during which the satellite
continues invisible is exactly that in which, according to
computation, it would pass through the planet’s shadow.
When Jupiter is near his opposition, the eclipses take
place when the satellites are close to his disk; because
the eye of the spectator is then nearly in the axis of the
dark cone formed by his shadow.
These various phenomena will be better understood by
referring to fig. 101, where A, B, C, D, represent the
earth in different parts of its orbit; J Jupiter in his orbit
MN, surrounded by his four satellites, the orbits of which
are marked 1, 2, 3, 4. At a the first satellite enters the
shadow of the planet; at 6 it emerges from it, and ad¬
vances to its greatest eastern elongation at c. It appears I k
to pass over the disk of Jupiter like a dark spot at d, and 1 k
attains its greatest western elongation at e. Similar phe¬
nomena take place with respect to the other satellites.
Now, since the shadow of Jupiter is always directed away
from the sun, the immersions only will be visible to the
earth when the earth passes from the position C to the
position A; for the eastern limit of Jupiter conceals the
satellite at the time of emersion, as is evident by drawing
f ff in the direction of the visual ray. For the same rea¬
son the emersions only are visible while the earth is pass¬
ing from A to C, or when Jupiter advances from his op¬
position to his conjunction. This, however, is only strictly
true of the first satellite; for the third and fourth, as we
have already remarked, and sometimes even the second,
owing to their greater distances from Jupiter, occasionally
disappear and re-appear on the same side of the disk.
ihe disks of the satellites having no sensible magni-
ASTRONOMY.
33
1
poretical tude except in the very best telescopes, their diameters
ronomy. have only recently been determined by direct measure-
ment. Schroeter and Harding attempted to measure
jne”'^6 them by observing the time which the satellite takes to
'dlites epass over ^ JuPiter; but such observations are
liable to great uncertainty, by reason of differences in the
magnifying power of the telescopes, the sight of the ob¬
server, the state of the atmosphere, the distance of the
satellites from the primary, their altitude above the hori¬
zon, and even on account that, by reason of their rota¬
tion, they do not always present to us the same hemisphere.
Schroeter estimates their diameters relatively to Jupiter
as follows:—That of the first =j^, of the second =^,
of the third -=^, of the fourth = Tlie following are
the results of a series of micrometrical measurements
made by Professor Struve at the Dorpat observatory, with
the great refractor of Fraunhofer :—
Diameter of the first 1"*015
Diameter of the second 0 ‘911
Diameter of the third 1 *488
Diameter of the fourth 1 *273
These dimensions are adapted to the mean distance of
Jupiter, namely 5’20279. Compared with the earth, the
diameters of the satellites are approximately as follows :—
I. = II. — 1, III. = IV. = y. As seen from Jupiter,
the apparent magnitude of the first will be nearly equal
to that of our moon seen from the earth; the second and
third somewhat greater than half; and the fourth nearly
equal to a quarter of that of the moon. These four moons
must present to the inhabitants of Jupiter a spectacle of
endless variety, on account of the rapid rotation of the
planet, the short period of their revolutions, and their
eclipses, which happen almost daily.
Saturn.
Saturn, the remotest qf the planets known to the ancient
astronomers, circulates round the sun at a distance equal
to about 91 times the semidiameter of the terrestrial orbit,
or nearly 900 millions of miles. His apparent diameter at
his mean distance is only about 16"*2, yet his true diameter
is nearly 10 times, and his volume about 995 times, that
of our globe. The area of the sun’s disk, as seen from
Saturn, is only ifa of its apparent magnitude as seen from
the earth ; consequently the light and heat which any point
on his surface receives from the great luminary is 80 times
less than that which we enjoy. His density, compared
with that of the sun considered as unity, is supposed to
be ’55, or about ^ of the density of the earth ; and a body
which weighs one pound at the equator of the earth,
would weigh about T01 pound if transferred to the equator
of Saturn.
ig of This planet, in consequence of a luminous double ring
:urn. with which he is surrounded, presents one of the most
curious phenomena in the heavens. This singular ap¬
pendage was first noticed by Galileo, to whom the planet
presented a triple appearance, the large orb being situated
between two small bodies or ansce. Sometimes the ansse
are so enlarged as to present the appearance of a continu¬
ous ring; at other times they entirely disappear, and Sa¬
turn appears round like the rest of the planets. After a
certain time they again become visible, and gradually in¬
crease in magnitude; and they evidently do not adhere to
the surface of the planet, inasmuch as a vacant space be¬
tween them is distinctly perceived even in ordinary tele¬
scopes.
These curious appearances were shown by Huygens to
be occasioned by an opaque, thin, circular ring, surround¬
ing the equator of Saturn, and at a considerable distance
from the planet. Saturn moving in the plane of his orbit
VOL. IV.
carries the ring along with him, which, presenting itself Theoretical
to the earth under different inclinations, occasions all the Astronomy‘
phenomena which have been described. The ring being
only luminous in consequence of its reflecting the solar
light, it is evident that it can be visible only when the
sun and the earth are both on the same side of it: if they
are on opposite sides it will be invisible. It will likewise
be invisible in two other cases, namely, ls£, when its plane
produced passes through the centre of the earth, for then
none of the light reflected from it can reach us ; and, 2d,
when its plane passes through the sun, because its edge is
then only enlightened; and being very thin, the whole
quantity of reflected light will scarcely be sufficient to
render it visible. It is, however, evident that in these
two cases the effect will be modified in some degree by the
power of the telescope. In ordinary telescopes the ring
disappears sometimes before its plane comes into either of
the situations mentioned; but Herschel never lost sight of
it, either when its plane passed through the earth or the
sun. In the last case the edge of the ring appeared as a
luminous line on the round disk of the planet, measuring
scarcely a second in breadth ; but at the distance of Sa¬
turn a second corresponds to 4000 miles, which is equal to
the semidiameter of the terrestrial globe. The reason of
the ring’s disappearance will be easily understood by re¬
ferring to fig. 102, where the circle abed represents
the orbit of the earth, A B C D that of Saturn 9£ times
more distant from the sun. When Saturn is at A, the
earth and sun are both in the plane of the ring; its edge
is consequently turned towards us, and it will be invisible
unless telescopes of very high power are used. As Saturn
advances from A to B the ring gradually opens, and it
attains its greatest breadth at C, where its face is turned
more directly towards us, or a straight line perpendicular
to its plane makes a more acute angle with the visual
ray than in any other situation. As the planet advances
towards D, the plane of the ring becomes more oblique to
the visual ray ; the breadth of the ring consequently con¬
tracts, and it again disappears at E. From E to F, G, and
A, the same phenomena will be repeated, only in this
case it is the southern side of the ring which is visible to
the earth, whereas, while Saturn was in the other half of
his orbit, it was the northern side.
The successive disappearances of the ring form a period
of about 15 years, with some variations arising from the
different positions of the earth in its orbit. At present
(1830) the south side is presented to us; it will be invisible
in 1833; its northern side will become visible in 1838;
it will again disappear in 1847, and show its southern side
in 1855.
Sir W. Herschel’s observations have added greatly to
our knowledge of Saturn’s ring. According to him, the
ring is separated into two annular portions by a dark belt
or zone, which he has constantly found on the north side.
As this dark belt is subject to no change whatever, it is
probably owing to some permanent construction of the
surface of the ring ; and it is evidently contained between
two concentric circles, for all the phenomena correspond
with the projection of a circular zone. The matter of the
ring Herschel thinks no less solid than that of Saturn, and
it is observed to cast a strong shadow upon the planet.
The light of the ring is also generally brighter than that
of the planet; for it appears sufficiently luminous when
the telescope affords scarcely light enough for Saturn. It
is remarkable that the outer ring is much less brilliant than
the inner. Herschel concludes that the edge of the ring
is not flat, but spherical or spheroidal. The dimensions oi
the ring, or of the two rings with the space between them,
he gives as follows :—
E
34
Theoretical
Astronomy. inner diameter of smaller ring,
Outside diameter of ditto 
Inner diameter of larger ring..
Outside diameter of ditto 
Breadth of the inner ring 
Breadth of the outer ring 
Breadth of the vacant space, or dark zone
The following measures were taken by Professor Struve,
at Dorpat in Russia, in 1828, with a repeating wire-mi¬
crometer attached to the large refracting telescope of
Fraunhofer, belonging to the observatory at that place,
and may be regarded as decidedly the most accurate of
any that we possess. (See Memoirs of the Astronomical
Society, vol. iii. p. 301.)
Outer diameter of the outer ring 40"*095
Inner diameter of the outer ring 35 *289
Outer diameter of the inner ring 34 *475
Inner diameter of the inner ring 26 *668
Breadth of the outer ring  2 ‘403
Breadth of the division between the rings  0 '408
Breadth of the inner ring  3 '903
Distance of the ring from the ball  4 *339
Equatorial diameter of Saturn 17 •991
These dimensions are adapted to the mean distance of
. Saturn, 9*53877. According to the same excellent astro¬
nomer, the inclination of the plane of the ring to the
ecliptic is 28° 5'*9.
In observing the ring with very powerful telescopes,
some astronomers have remarked, not one only, but seve¬
ral dark concentric lines on its surface, which divide it
into as many distinct circumferences. In common tele¬
scopes these are not perceptible; for the irradiation, by
enlarging the space occupied by each ring, causes the in¬
tervals between them to disappear, and the whole seems
blended together in one belt of uniform appearance. (See
fig. 103.) Struve, however, noticed no trace of the division
of the ring into many parte.
Rotation gy means of some spots observed on the surface of the
°f t^ie ring, Herschel found that it revolves in its own plane in
10 hours 32 minutes 15*4 seconds; and Laplace arrived
at the same result from theory. It is particularly worthy
of remark, that this is the period in which a satellite, hav¬
ing for its orbit the mean circumference of the ring, would
complete its revolution according to the third law of Kep¬
ler. This circumstance furnishes a physical explanation
of the reason why the ring is able to maintain itself about
the planet without touching it; or at least brings the fact
within the general law by which the planets are sustained
in their orbits. The centrifugal force resulting from its
rotation, and the attraction of the planet, suffice to main¬
tain its equilibrium.
Rotation From observations of some obscure belts, and a very
of Saturn. conSpicuous spot on the surface of Saturn, Herschel con¬
cluded that his rotation is performed in 10 hours 16 mi¬
nutes, on an axis perpendicular to the belts and to the
plane of the ring; so that the planes of the planet’s equa¬
tor and ring coincide. According to the same astronomer,
the ratio of the equatorial and polar diameters of Saturn
is 2281 to 2061, or nearly 11 to 10. But it is very remark¬
able that the globe of Saturn appears to be flattened
at the equator as well as at the poles. The polar com¬
pression extends to a great distance over the surface of
the planet, and the greatest diameter is that of the parallel
of 43° of latitude, where, consequently, the curvature of
the meridians is also the greatest. The disk of Saturn,
therefore, resembles a square of which the four corners
have been rounded off. According to the latest observa¬
tions of Herschel, the axis of rotation, the diameter of the
equator, and the greatest diameter under the parallel ofTbeoreikal
43°, are to one another as the numbers 32, 35, 36. (See-^stronomy'
the Philosophical Transactions for 1806, Part II.)
Saturn is attended by seven satellites, but so small Satellites
that they can only be seen by the help of powerful tele- Saturn,
scopes. Huygens first discovered one of these satel¬
lites in 1655. It is the sixth in the order of distance, and
is the largest of them all. Four others w'ere discovered
about twenty years afterwards by Dominic Cassini;
and, lastly, Sir W. Herschel, in 1789, discovered twro new
satellites, at a time when the ring was visible only in a
telescope of forty feet. The orbits of these are interior
to those of the five satellites formerly discovered, but ex¬
terior to the ring, though so near to it that it is only
when the ring disappears that they can be seen. All
the satellites appear to revolve in the plane of the ring,
with the exception of the two last. The inclinations of
their orbits are, however, not known with much certainty.
Uranus.
Uranus is the remotest planet belonging to the system,
and is scarcely visible excepting through the telescope.
His distance from the sun is nineteen times the radius
of the ecliptic, or about 1800 millions of miles; and his
sidereal revolution is performed in 83 years 150 days and
18 hours. His diameter is about 35,112 English miles,
or nearly six and a half times that of the earth, and, seen
from the earth, subtends an angle of only 4", even at the
time of his opposition. The apparent diameter of the sun,
seen from this planet, is F 40"; consequently the surface
of the sun will there appear 400 times less than it does to
us, and the light and heat which is received will be less
in the same proportion. Analogy leads us to infer that
Uranus is opaque and revolves on his axis, but of this
there is no direct proof. Laplace has concluded from
theory, that the time of his diurnal rotation cannot be
much less than that of Jupiter and Saturn, and that the
inclination of his equator to the ecliptic is very incon¬
siderable. His density is supposed to exceed somewhat
that of the earth. Schroeter thinks that certain variations
in the appearances of his disk indicate that great changes
are going on in his atmosphere.
This planet was discovered by Sir W. Herschel at Bath on
the 13th of March 1781. His attention was attracted to it
by the largeness of its disk in the telescope, which exceed¬
ed that of stars of the first magnitude, while to the naked
eye it appeared only as a star of the seventh magnitude. In
the course of a few days its proper motion became sensible,
consequently it could not be a fixed star. Herschel at
first took it for a comet, but it was soon perceived that
it described a path which, instead of resembling the ec¬
centric orbits of the comets, was almost circular, like that
of the planets. It was then recognised to be one of the
principal planets of the solar system; and the observations
of the last fifty years have not only confirmed this fact,
but afforded data from which the elements of its orbit have
been determined with great precision. Herschel gave it
the name of the Georgium Sidus, in honour of his royal
patron George III. Foreigners for some time generally
called it the Herschel, after its discoverer; but the my¬
thological name of Uranus, suggested by the late Pro¬
fessor Bode of Berlin, is now generally adopted. In 1787
Herschel discovered that it was attended by two satel¬
lites : he subsequently discovered four others, so that
Uranus is accompanied by six satellites; and the whole
number of satellites now known to belong to the system
is consequently eighteen.
Before concluding this section, it will be proper to take
notice of the following curious relation of the numbers
ASTRONOMY.
Miles.
146345
184393
190248
204883
20000
7200
2839
ASTRONOMY.
;oretical which express, approximately at least, the distances of
ronomy. planets from the sun. It was first pointed out by Bode,
and, though purely empirical, and not even very accurate,
served to confirm the German astronomers in their anti¬
cipations of the discovery of a new planet between the
orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
Let the number 10 be assumed to represent the semi¬
diameter of the earth’s orbit; then the semidiameters of
the orbits of the other planets may be expressed in round
numbers as follows:—
Mercury...4
Venus 7 = 4 + 3-2°
Earth 10 3= 4 -}~ 3-21
Mars 16 = 4 + 3*22
Ceres 28 = 4 + 3-23
Jupiter...52 = 4 + 3-24
Saturn ...100 = 4 j- 3*25
Uranus..l96 — 4 + 3'2G
It will be remarked that every succeeding term of this
series of numbers, after the second, is the double of the
preceding, minus 4; the general term being 4 + 3'2”-2,
commencing with Venus, and n indicating the rank of the
planet.
A view of the proportional magnitudes of the orbits and
disks of the planets, as also of the comparative magni¬
tudes of the sun seen from each planet, is given in fig.
104.
On the subjects contained in this section the following
works may be consulted: Galileo, Nuntivs Sidereus;
Simon Marius, Mundus Jovialis anno 1609 delectus, &c.
1614; Cassini, Martis circa proprium axem revolubilis
Observationes Bononienses, Bonon. 1666 ; Idem, Disceptatio
Apologetica de Maculis Jovis et Martis, Bonon. 1667 ; Idem,
Nouvelles Decouvertes dans le Globe de Jupiter, Paris, 1690;
Bianchini, Hesperi et Phosphori Nova Phcenomena, 1728 ;
Cassini, Piemens d1 Astronomic, 1740; Schroeter, Aphro-
ditographische Fragmente, Helmstadt, 1796; Idem, Lilien-
thalische Beobachtungen der neu entdeckten planeten, Got¬
tingen, 1805 ; Gauss, Theoria Motus Corporum Ccelestium,
Hamburgi, 1801; Idem, Journal of Gotha, 1811 ; Laplace,
Mecanique Celeste, tome iv. p. 135; Idem, Systeme du
Monde; Delambre, Astronomic, tome ii. chap, xxvii.;
Schubert, Trade d'Astronomic Theorique, tome ii. Peters¬
burg, 1822; and the numerous papers of Sir W. Herschel
in the Philosophical Transactions.
Sect. IV.—Of the Orbits of the Satellites.
In order to establish a theory of the motions of the
satellites, the first thing necessary is to ascertain the di¬
rections in which they move writh reference to the primary
planet. Now, it is observed that their motion is some¬
times towards the east, and at other times towards the
west; but that the satellites are never eclipsed except in
passing from the west to the east of the planet. When an
eclipse takes place the satellite is always moving east¬
ward; on the other hand, the satellite is always moving
westward when it appears on the planet’s disk. From
this it results that the true motions of the satellites
around the planets are from west to east, according to the
order of the signs, or in the same directions as the mo¬
tions of the planets about the sun. This fact, which
holds true of the moon, and the satellites of Jupiter and
Saturn, is one of the most remarkable in the planetary
system. With regard to the satellites of Uranus, their
motions are performed in orbits almost perpendicular to
the ecliptic; they cannot therefore with propriety be said
to be either direct or retrograde.
. The eclipses of the satellites of Jupiter present an easy
method of determining their mean motions and periodic Theoretical
times; and, by reason of the small inclinations of the or-Astronom>''
bits, these are of very frequent occurrence; for the first
three satellites traverse the shadow of Jupiter in every re¬
volution, and the fourth only passes by it sometimes, in
consequence of the greater inclination of its orbit. If
the instants can be observed at which a satellite enters
and emerges from the shadow, the middle point of time
between these two instants will be that of the helio¬
centric conjunction of the satellite with its primary. The
interval between two central eclipses gives the synodic
period of the satellite; whence, since the motion of the
primary is known, the sidereal period of the satellite, and
its mean angular motion with regard to the straight line
joining the centres of the sun and the planet, are easily
deduced. Instead of two successive eclipses, it is prefer¬
able to compare two that are separated from each other
by a long interval of time; the interval divided by the
number of sidereal revolutions will give the mean time,
unaffected by any periodic inequalities which may exist
in consequence of the mutual action of the satellites on
one another. In order to render the result as accurate
as possible, those eclipses are chosen which take place
when the planet is nearly in opposition.
The distances of the satellites from their primary are
ascertained by measurement with the micrometer, at
the time of the greatest elongations. On comparing the
distances with the times of revolution, the beautiful law
of Kepler is found to prevail; and, as in the system of the
planets, so in the various systems of the satellites, the
squares of the periodic times vary as the cubes of the
mean distances from the central body. The distances of
the satellites of Jupiter and Saturn, compared with the
diameters of their respective primaries, are represented
in fig. 105.
The inclinations of the orbits of the satellites of Jupi¬
ter, and the positions of their nodes, together with the
other elements of their elliptic motion, are determined by
means of their eclipses. The plane of the orbit of the
first satellite nearly coincides with the plane of the equator
of Jupiter, the inclination of which to the plane of his or¬
bit is 3° 5' 30". The inclination of the orbit of the second
to the plane of the planet’s equator is 27' 49"*2. Its nodes
have a retrograde motion on that plane, and go through
an entire circuit in the space of 30 years. The orbit of
the third is inclined to the equator of Jupiter in an angle
of 12' 20"; and the line of the nodes retrogrades through
a whole circumference in 142 tropical years. Hence the
inclinations of the orbits of these two satellites to the or¬
bit of Jupiter are variable; that of the second varying
between 3° 19' 24"'6 and 2° 51' SS'H, and that of the
third between 3° 17' 50" and 2° 53' 10". The inclination
of the orbit of the fourth satellite to the orbit of Jupiter
is also variable. Its nodes have a retrograde motion, and
complete a revolution in 531 years. Since the middle of
the last century the inclination of this satellite has been
observed to increase, and the motion of its nodes to di¬
minish. (Laplace, Mecanique Celeste, tome iv. livre viii.)
The orbits of the four satellites are doubtless elliptical,
but those of the first and second are so small that it has
been found impossible to determine their eccentricity.
The eccentricity of the third is perceptible, that of the
fourth much more so. According to Laplace, the greatest
equation of the centre of the third, at its maximum in
1682, amounted to 13' 16"*4, and at its minimum in
1777, only to 5' 7"-5. The eccentricity of the orbit of
the fourth is still greater, and also subject to con¬
siderable variations. The line of the apsides has a direct
motion, amounting to 42' 58"*7 annually. The great in-
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical fluence of the compressed figure of Jupiter on these ele-
Astronomy. ments gives each of the orbits an eccentricity peculiar to
it. but each also participates in the eccentricities of the
' others. The mutual perturbations of the satellites greatly
affect their motions, and render their analytical theory ex¬
ceedingly complicated and difficult.
On comparing the mean longitudes with the mean mo¬
tions of the first three satellites of Jupiter, Laplace dis¬
covered the two following relations, which, by reason of
their remarkable simplicity, may perhaps be regarded as
among the most curious discoveries ever made in astro¬
nomy. Denoting by m!, m!', m'", the mean motions of the
three satellites respectively, and their mean longitudes by
t, l”, l", these laws are expressed by the formulae,
m' -j- 2 m!" — 3//i" — 0
l _|_ 21"' —31" =180°;
that is to say, the mean sidereal motion of the first, added
to twice that of the third, is equal to three times that of the
second; and the mean longitude of the first satellite, plus
twice that of the third, minus three times that of the
second, is always equal to a semicircumference. The first
of these relations is true of the synodical as well as of the
sidereal revolutions; and it follows from the second, that
the first three satellites can never be eclipsed at the same
time, because in that case their longitudes would be equal,
or /' -f. 21'" — 31"=0. These results of theory agree so
nearly with observation, that we are tempted to regard
them as rigorously exact, and to ascribe the slight differ¬
ences that may be perceptible to the unavoidable errors of
observation, and to the periodic inequalities in the motions
of the satellites, by reason of which their true motions are
alternately greater and smaller than their mean motions.
We must therefore infer that these relations depend on a
physical cause, by which they will be preserved for ever,
or at least during a long series of ages, notwithstanding
the small oscillations to which, from various sources of
perturbation, the mean longitudes of the satellites are
subject.
From observations of the eclipses of Jupiter’s satellites,
Roemer was led to the very important discovery of the
successive propagation of light. The times at which these
eclipses happen are found to differ from the times com¬
puted from the sidereal revolutions of the satellites, being
sometimes earlier and sometimes later, according to the
position of Jupiter relatively to the sun and the earth.
When Jupiter is in opposition with the sun, and his dis¬
tance from the earth consequently less than his distance
from the sun by the whole radius of the earth’s orbit, the
satellites are eclipsed sooner than they ought to be ac¬
cording to computation. On the contrary, when Jupiter
is in conjunction, and his distance from the earth greater
than his distance from the sun by the same quantity, the
eclipses happen later. These differences, which are ex¬
actly the same for all the satellites, cannot be ascribed
either to the eccentricity of the orbit of Jupiter, or to
inequalities in their motion; for the oppositions and con¬
junctions of the planet correspond successively to all the
different points of his orbit, and the eclipses also happen
when the satellite is at different points of its own orbit.
The simplest and most natural w'ay of explaining the phe¬
nomenon is to suppose that the light reflected from the
satellites is not transmitted to the earth instantaneously,
but occupies a sensible portion of time in traversing the
diameter of the terrestrial orbit. When Jupiter is near his
conjunction, the eclipses are observed to happen about 16
minutes 26 seconds later than when he is near his opposi¬
tion ; the difference between his distances from the earth
in these two positions is equal to the diameter of the earth’s
orbit, supposing the orbits to be circular: it follows, there¬
fore, that light employs 16 minutes 26 seconds in travers-Theoretical
ing the terrestrial orbit, and consequently the half of that Astronom?.
time, or 8 minutes 13 seconds, in coming from the sunv~^‘vv-/
to the earth. The exact agreement of this hypothesis
with observation renders its truth unquestionable. The
fact of the successive transmission of light led to another
discovery of the utmost importance in astronomy, name¬
ly, the aberration.
The eclipses of Jupiter’s satellites are useful in deter¬
mining the longitude of places on the earth, and on this
account the theory of the motions of these bodies has
been cultivated with the most laborious care. The epochs
at which the eclipses take place are calculated in advance,
and inserted in the Ephemerides. On comparing these
epochs, computed for a given meridian, with the imme¬
diate results of observation made in another place at a
given hour, the difference of time is obtained, whence
the difference of longitude is immediately deduced. The
method is the same as for the eclipses of the moon. Un¬
fortunately, by reason of the magnifying power required
to render the satellites visible, it cannot be employed at
sea, the instability of the vessel rendering the telescopes
unserviceable. The tables of Delambre, which were com¬
puted from the theory of Laplace, and the comparison of
an immense number of observations, give the places of
the satellites with all the precision which it is perhaps
possible to obtain.
The satellites of Saturn have not the practical utility
of those of Jupiter, because, by reason of their great dis¬
tance, their eclipses are invisible; and indeed some of
them cannot be perceived at all, excepting through tele¬
scopes of extraordinary power. Their periods, mean mo¬
tions, and some of the other elements of their orbits, are
determined by the micrometrical measurement of their
greatest digressions from their primary. At the time of
their greatest digressions they are always situated in the
same straight line with the greater axis of the ring, and
their distances from Saturn are then equal to the semi-
transverse axes of their apparent orbits. In their conjunc¬
tions the minor axes of their apparent ellipses seem only
half as great as their transverse axes, whence it is infer¬
red that the sine of their inclination is one half, and con¬
sequently that the inclination itself is about 30°, which is
nearly the inclination of the ring. Hence the satellites
seem to move in the plane of the ring. The only one
which deviates considerably from that plane is the seventh.
From certain observations made by Bernard in 1787, La-
lande makes the inclination of this satellite 22° 42' to the
orbit of Saturn, or 24° 45' to the ecliptic. There exists,
however, considerable uncertainty with regard to the in¬
clination of the orbits of the satellites, as well as with re¬
gard to that of the ring.
According to the theory of Laplace, the spheroidal
figure of Saturn must maintain the ring, and the orbits of
the interior satellites, in the plane of his equator. But
the amount of the compression is unknown: all that is
certain is, that the inclination of the orbits of the first five
satellites to the equator of the planet is insensible at the
distance of the earth; consequently all the satellites, ex¬
cepting the seventh, and probably also the sixth, will ap¬
pear, as well as the ring, to move in the plane of the equa-
to'. The orbit of the seventh satellite preserves the
same mean inclination to the plane of the equator of the
planet; and the line of its nodes has a retrograde motion
nearly uniform.
The orbit of the sixth satellite is elliptical. For the
meridian of Paris its longitude in 1800 was 67° 25' 47";
that of its inferior apside 203° 35' 7". Its mean motion
in 36525 days is 2290 revolutions -{- 202° 12'; in one day
ASTRONOMY.
37
eoretical 22° 34/ 37"'186. The eccentricity is -04887; and its
tronomy. greatest equation 5° 36' 8". By particular observations on
this satellite, Bessel found its inclination to the ecliptic to
be 24° 30', or 25° 55'; differing very sensibly from that of
the rine or the equator of the planet. It is, however, not
improbable that these two planes may have some inclina¬
tion to each other. (Delambre, Astronomic Theorique et
Pratique, tome iii. p. 510.)
The satellites of Uranus can be perceived with still
greater difficulty than those of Saturn. The orbits of
these satellites are almost perpendicular to the ecliptic.
The elements of the second and fourth have been deter¬
mined by actual measurement; the periods of the two
others have been theoretically deduced from the third law
of Kepler. The inclination of the fourth is 89° 30', or
90° 30', and the ascending node 171° or 249°, according
as it is conceived to be direct or retrograde.
The following table exhibits the mean distances and
sidereal revolutions of the satellites of Jupiter, Saturn,
and Uranus.
MEAN DISTANCES.
(The radius of the planet
being =x 1.)
Jupiter.
1st satellite
2d  
3d 
4th 
5-81296
9-24868
14-75240
25-94686
Saturn.
1st satellite
2d 
3d 
4 th 
5th 
6 th 
7 th  
3-080
3- 952
4- 893
6-268
8-754
20-295
59-154
SIDEREAL REVOLUTIONS,
According to
Laplace.
According to
Delambre.
Days.
1-7691378
3-5511810
7-1545528
16-6887697
Davs.
0-94271
1-37024
1- 88780
2- 73948
4-51749
15-94530
79-32960
d. h. m. s.
1 18 28 35-94537
3 13 17 55-73010
7 3 59 35-82511
16 18 5 7-02098
d. h. m. s.
0 22 37 32-9
1 8 53 8-9
1 21 18 26-2
2 17 44 51-2
4 12 25 11-1
15 22 41 13-1
79 7 53 42-8
Uranus.
1st satellite
2d 
3d 
4th 
5th 
6th 
13-120
17-022
19-845
22-752
45-507
91-008
Days.
5-8926
8-7068
10-9611
13-4559
38-0750
107-6944
d. h. m.
5 21 25
8 17 1
10 23 4
11 11 5
38 1 49
107 16 40
s.
0-
19-
1-5
CHAP. V.
OF COMETS.
The comets form a class of bodies belonging to the
solar system, distinguished from the planets by their phy¬
sical appearances and the great eccentricity of their or¬
bits. By reason of the smallness of their diameters, and
a nebulosity which renders them ill adapted to reflect
the rays of light, the greater part of them are only visible
in the telescope, and continue to be so only during a short
period of time; for as they advance to and recede from
the sun almost in straight lines, and with prodigious velo¬
cities, they are soon carried far beyond the limits of vision.
They have received the name of comets {coma, hair) from
the bearded appearance which they frequently exhibit.
Sect. I.— Of the Orbits of Comets.
The comets are not more remarkably contrasted with
the planets in the singularity of their physical appear¬
ances, than in the directions of the paths which they follow
in space. While the orbits of all the planets are confined Theoretical
within a narrow zone, or to planes not greatly inclined toAstro™”“y-
the ecliptic, those of the comets are inclined in all possible
angles, and some of them are even observed to be per¬
pendicular to the ecliptic. Nor is the contrast less strik¬
ing with regard to the figures of the orbits, which, instead
of being nearly circular, like those of the planets, have
the appearance of being almost rectilinear. Kepler was
of opinion that the cometary orbits are straight lines; Cas¬
sini supposed them to be very eccentric circles; and Ty¬
cho was for some time of the same opinion, but he after¬
wards found that the hypothesis of the eccentric circle
would not satisfy the observations of the comet of 1577.
Hevelius seems to have been the first who discovered, by
means of a geometrical construction, that the orbits might
be represented by parabolas; and Dbrfel first calculated
their elements on this hypothesis. After it was known,
however, that certain comets return to the sun in the
.same orbits, it became necessary to adopt an opinion, al¬
ready probable from analogy, that, in conformity with the
laws of Kepler, the cometary orbits are ellipses having
the sun in one of the foci. This hypothesis is now uni¬
versally admitted; but as the ellipses are in general ex¬
tremely elongated, and the comets are only visible while
they describe a small portion of their orbits on either
side of their perihelia, their paths during the time of
their appearance differ very little from parabolas ; whence
it is usual, on account of the facility of computation, to
assume that they really move in parabolic curves. New¬
ton employed the hypothesis of an elliptic motion to com¬
pute the orbit of the famous comet of 1680. Since that
time the orbits of more than a hundred and fifty different
comets have been computed on the elliptic hypothesis,
and their elements determined so as to satisfy all the ob¬
servations. It is possible that the orbits of some comets
may be in reality parabolic; but in this case the comet,
after having passed its perihelion, would recede to an
infinite distance from the sun, and never again visit our
system. Burckhardt imagined that the observations of
the comet of 1771 were best represented by supposing the
orbit to be an hyperbola. In fact, it is demonstrated in
the Principia, and every treatise on Physical Astronomy,
that the species of curve which one body describes about
another, in virtue of an attractive force varying inversely
as the square of the distance, depends only on its velocity
of projection. The curve must necessarily be a conic sec¬
tion ; but it may be an ellipse, a parabola, or an hyperbola,
according as the primitive impulsive force falls within
or exceeds certain assignable limits.
If the comets moved in parabolas or hyperbolas, and
had consequently only a temporary connection with the
solar system, the determination of their orbits would be
a matter of mere curiosity, and of no consequence what¬
ever to astronomy. But it is only by the accurate deter¬
mination of the elements of their orbits that it can be
discovered whether those bodies ever revisit the sys¬
tem ; for the appearances which they exhibit, depending
on the situation of the earth in its orbit with relation to
them at the time they are visible, are far too variable
and uncertain to afford any sure means of recognising
them. The comet of 1811 was scarcely visible in the
months of April and May; it was subsequently lost in
the sun’s rays, and, having passed its perihelion, re-ap¬
peared in August with a splendour and magnificence that
rendered it an object of admiration. It is therefore only
by observing that a comet follows the same orbit in its suc¬
cessive returns to the sun that we can be assured of its
identity. But even the determination of the orbit is not
always sufficient to lead to the detection of a comet in a
38
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical subsequent revolution; for if, in the course of the pre-
Astronomy.yious one, it came within the sphere of attraction of Jupi-
^'^v"'^'/ter, or any of the larger planets, the elements of its orbit
may have been greatly or entirely changed. The orbit
of the comet of 1770 was calculated by Lexell, and sub¬
sequently by Burckhardt, and both these astronomers
found that the observations could only be represented by
an ellipse in which the time of revolution was five years
and a half; yet the comet has never been seen since, or at
least seen moving in the same orbit. Hence it is conclud¬
ed with certainty that the attraction of Jupiter, near which
planet it approached, was so great as to compel it to move
in a totally different ellipse. Other causes also conspire to
render the chances of the discovery of periodic comets ex¬
tremely small. In the first place, it is only within a very
small portion of their orbits that they are visible; and this,
on account of its proximity to the sun, is passed over with
inconceivable rapidity. But in proportion as they recede
from their perihelia the solar action diminishes; and, to¬
wards the aphelion of its orbit, a comet may be almost
motionless, and for this reason not return for thousands
of years. In the second place, it may happen, that during
the greater part of the time the comet continues in the
visible portion of its orbit, it may rise above the horizon
only during the day, in which'case it will be invisible,
and may consequently pass through our system without
being observed. The comet of 1818 was present in all its
splendour long before it became visible, but in full day.
Seneca relates a very curious instance of one having been
seen during a total eclipse of the sun, in the year 60 be¬
fore our era. A third cause of uncertainty consists in the
difficulty of observing their true places with sufficient pre¬
cision to enable the elements of their orbits to be exactly
determined. The small comets are only nebulous points,
which can be distinguished with difficulty; the larger
ones are surrounded with a variable, ill-defined, and indis¬
tinct nebulosity. The comet of 1729 continued visible
during six months: its orbit was computed by three dif¬
ferent astronomers, whose results were far from coin¬
ciding, The same uncertainty exists with regard to the
orbits of several other comets. When, therefore, all these
circumstances are taken into consideration, it will not
appear surprising that, although the elements of above 150
comets have been computed, there are only three which
are certainly known to have been observed in their suc¬
cessive revolutions.
The first of the three periodic comets with which we
are yet acquainted was made known to astronomers by
Dr Halley. That active and indefatigable genius, having
perceived that in 1682 the elements of its orbit were
nearly the same as those of two comets which had
respectively appeared in 1531 and 1607, concluded that
the three orbits belonged to the same identical comet,
of which the periodic time was about 76 years. After a
vague estimate of the perturbations it must sustain from
the attraction of the planets, Dr Halley predicted its re¬
turn for 1757,—a bold prediction at that time, but justified
by the event, for the comet again made its appearance as
was expected, though it did not pass through its perihelion
till the month of March 1759, the attraction of Jupiter and
Saturn having caused, as was computed by Clairaut previ¬
ously to its return, a retardation of 618 days. This comet
had been observed in 1006; and the accounts which have
been preserved represent it as having then appeared to be
four times the size of Venus, and to have shone with a light
equal to a fourth of that of the moon. History is silent
respecting it from that time till the year 1456, when it
passed very near to the earth : its tail then extended over
60° of the heavens, and had the form of a sabre. An ob¬
ject so striking and so terrific could not fail, in a supersti-Theoretical
tious age, to excite universal dismay, and be regarded as Astronomy
portentous of the greatest calamities to the human race,
if not of the destruction of the world. Accordingly Pope
Calixtus ordered public prayers to be said over Christen¬
dom, in which he exorcised the comet, and the Turks,
who had at that time made themselves masters of Con¬
stantinople, and overthrown the eastern empire. Dr
Halley’s comet will return to its perihelion in 1835; but
whether on this occasion it will present any resemblance
to its former appearances, or whether it will even be vi¬
sible in Europe, cannot be certainly determined. The fol¬
lowing table of its elements in 1835 is given by Ponte-
coulant ( Theorie Analytique du Systeme du Monde, tome ii.
p. 147):
Instant of the passage through the perihelion
in October 1835 31d*2
Semiaxis major 17 *98355
Ratio of the eccentricity to the semiaxis major..O *967453
Place of the perihelion on the orbit 304° 34' 19"
Longitude of the ascending node  55 6 59
Inclination  17 46 50.
The two other comets whose periodic returns have
been verified by observation have received the names of
Encke and Biela, the astronomers who first computed
their orbits, or recognised them as having been observed
in their previous revolutions. The first returns to its
perihelion in 1208 days, and the second in 2440 days.
Encke’s comet, although its identity was not discovered
till 1818, has been frequently observed, as in 1789, 1795,
1801, and 1805, and on these occasions it exhibited very
different appearances, having been seen with and without
a nucleus, with and without a tail,—circumstances which
account for its having so long escaped being recognised
as a regular attendant on the sun. In its returns to its
perihelion in 1808, 1812, and 1815, it escaped detection;
but it re-appeared in 1818, and it was from the observa¬
tions of this year that Encke computed the elliptic ele¬
ments of its orbit. On its next return, in 1822, it was
invisible in Europe ; but it was observed at Paramatta, in
New South Wales, during the whole month of June, and
the time of its perihelion passage was found to differ only
by about three hours from that previously computed by
Encke. On its returns in 1825 and 1828 its observed
and computed places agreed equally well. The following,
according to Pontecoulant, are its elements for 1829-30,
computed from the observations at Paramatta:
Passage through the perihelion, 1829, January 10d*573
Mean diurnal motion 1069 *5570
Eccentricity 0 *8446862
Place of perihelion 157° 18' 35"
Longitude of ascending node 334 24 15
Inclination 13 22 SL
Encke’s comet presents in some respects a considerable
analogy with the planet Ceres, the inclination and greater
axis of its orbit being the same, while its sidereal revolution
is only 46 days shorter than that of Vesta. The orbit is,
however, greatly more elongated, for its perihelion falls
within the orbit of Mercury, and its aphelion is situated
between Jupiter and the new planets. The perturbations
it sustains are chiefly occasioned by the attraction of
Jupiter, that of the earth and Venus being extremely
small, while the action of Mercury is insensible.
The third periodic comet with which our knowledge of
the solar system has recently been enriched receives its
name from Biela, by whom it was first perceived in Bo¬
hemia, on the 25th of February 1825. The parabolic
elements computed from the first observations present¬
ed a striking resemblance with those of two comets
Tf
A'
v
ASTRONOMY.
3!>
1 oretical which had been observed in 1772 and 1806, which in-
A -onoroy. duced MM. Clausen and Gambart, the first at Marseilles
v. and the second at Altona, to compute the elements of the
three comets on the hypothesis of elliptic orbits; and, after
some attempts, each found an ellipse which represented
f.ll the observations so accurately as to leave no doubt of
the identity of the comet. Its period is six years and about
nine months, and it will return to its perihelion in Novem¬
ber 1832, about the same time with Encke’s. The fol¬
lowing table of its elements has been computed from the
observations of 1826, and the theory of the perturba¬
tions (Pontecoulant, tome ii. p. 158) :
Passage through the perihelion 1832, November 27d;4808
Eccentricitv         0‘75144,81
Place of the perihelion 109° 56' 45"
Longitude of ascending node 248 12 24
Inclination  13 13 13
Semiaxis major   3,53683.
Such is the present state of astronomy with respect to
periodic comets. There are two others besides, of which
the orbits are supposed to be known, though their returns
to their perihelia have not yet been verified. The first is
that which appeared in 1680, and of which Newton com¬
puted the period to be 575 years. It may therefore be
identical with those which are recorded in history to have
appeared in 1106, 531, 34 b. c. and 619 b. c. Ihe second
is that which appeared in 1556, and is supposed to have
made a former visit in 1264. This comet is expected to
appear again in 1848.
The following table, taken from one given by Delambre
in the third volume of his Astronomic, shows the com¬
paratively small distances within which the greater part
of the comets hitherto observed approach to the sun, and
the apparently fortuitous inclinations of the planes of their
orbits to that of the ecliptic. Supposing the sun’s dis¬
tance from the earth to be unity, then, of 120 comets,
there are
5 whose perihelion distance is less than...0T
3  between 0T and 0*2
6   0*2 and 0*3
11  0*3 and 0*4
10  0’4 and 0*5
22 0*5 and 0*6
12  0-6 and 0-7
11  0*7 and O^S
8  0*8 and 0*9
9  0*9 and 1
21   1 and 2
1 equal to 2*293
1    4-069.
Of the same number there are
4 whose inclination is between  1° and 5°
3   5 and 10
4  10 and 15
3  15 and 20
2  20 and 25
2.... 25 and 30
7  30 and 35
2  35 and 40
4  40 and 45
] 45 and 50
3  50 and 55
4  55 and 60
7 60 and 65
3 65 and 70
3 .70 and 75
3    75 and 80
4  80 and 85
2. 85 and 90.
The motions of the above 61 are direct; those of the Theoretical
remaining 59 are retrograde, and their orbits are distri-Astrononiy-
buted over the whole quadrant in the same random man-'v^^v^“
ner. This circumstance sufficiently indicates that the
mechanical causes, whatever they were, which gave the
same direction to the two motions of translation and rota¬
tion of all the planets and satellites, exercised no influence
on the comets. Hence many astronomers have entertain¬
ed the idea that these bodies have only a casual or tran¬
sient connection with the planetary system. ,
Sect. II.— Of the Appearances and Physical Constitution
of Comets.
Of all the celestial phenomena, those of the comets are
the most striking, and the most calculated to impress the
ignorant with the idea of supernatural agency. Appear¬
ing suddenly in the heavens, and under aspects the most
uncommon and terrific, they have been almost universally
regarded as visible demonstrations of the wrath, and har¬
bingers of the vengeance, of offended deities. These super¬
stitious terrors, arising from that vain propensity of the mind
of man to regard the universe as created for himself alone,
have only been dissipated by the progress of sound philo¬
sophy, and a more extended acquaintance with the riches
of nature, and the endless variety of her productions.
The appearances exhibited by the comets are exceed¬
ingly diversified, and sometimes extremely remarkable.
That which appeared in the year 130 b. c., at the birth of
Mithridates, is said to have had a disk equal in magni¬
tude to that of the sun. Ten years before this, one was
seen, which, according to Justin, occupied a fourth part
of the sky, that is, extended over 45°, and surpassed the
sun in splendour. Another, equally remarkable, appeared
in the year 117 of our era; and in 479 there was one of
which the disk, according to Freret, was of such magni¬
tude that it might have occasioned the extraordinary
eclipse of the sun which took place about that time. In
400 one was observed, which is said, on the authority of
Gainas, to have resembled a sword, and to have extended
from the zenith to the horizon. That of 531 was of greater
magnitude still, and its appearance more terrific. Those
which appeared in 1066 and 1505 exhibited disks larger
than that of the moon. It is, however, highly probable
that all these accounts have been greatly exaggerated,
through the ignorance and credulity of the historians by
whom they are related; for, since comets have been ob¬
served by astronomers, no instances have occurred in
which their magnitudes and appearances have been so
extraordinary. The most remarkable among those of
which we possess accurate accounts appeared in the years
1456, 1618, 1680, 1744, 1759, 1769, 1807, and 1811.
Fig. 106 is a representation of the celebrated comet ofpjate % Y
1680, taken from Lemonnier’s Histoire Celeste. It exhi¬
bits the nucleus or disk with its surrounding atmosphere.
Above is a sort of ring, wider at the summit, and narrower
towards the sides. A coma or beard succeeds the ring;
and lastly, an immense train of luminous matter, some¬
what less vivid than the nucleus. This luminous train, or
tail as it is called, is by far the most singular and striking
feature presented by the comets. That of the comet of
1744 was one of the most remarkable. It was divided into
six branches, all diverging, but curved in the same direc¬
tion ; and between the branches the stars were visible. It
is represented in fig. 107. The tail of the comet of 1811
was composed of two diverging parts inclined to each other
in an angle which varied from 90 to 15 or 20 degrees.
These branches were curved in opposite directions, and
descended from the nucleus like a veil: between the
40 ASTRO
Theoretical branches, and surrounding the nucleus, was a space com-
Astronomy. paratively obscure.
The nucleus, which is the densest and most luminous
part, may be said to form the true body of the comet. It
is, however, so far from having the dense and solid ap¬
pearance of the planets, that some astronomers have ima¬
gined it to be diaphanous, and even supposed that they
have observed stars through it. But supposing such an
observation certain, it may be accounted for with much
greater probability by the effects of refraction; and it is
besides extremely difficult to distinguish the nucleus from
the surrounding nebulosity. If the nucleus were an
opaque globular body, it would exhibit phases like Venus
or Mars, according to its different positions with relation to
the sun and the earth ; and such were observed, or at least
were supposed to be observed, in the case of the comet of
1682, by Hevelius, Picard, and Lahire. But the nebulo¬
sity renders the phases exceedingly obscure and indis¬
tinct, and prevents the true body of the comet from be¬
ing seen; in the same way as a globe of roughened glass
prevents us from distinguishing the form of the flame of
an inclosed lamp. The real nucleus has probably never
been observed by any astronomer; and, from the appear¬
ances, we are led to infer that a comet, at least near its
perihelion, is only an agglomerated mass of vapours. As
it recedes from the perihelion, the vapours may be con¬
densed by cold into a solid substance. This hypothesis is
also favoured by the extreme smallness of the density
of the comets, which is known certainly from the cir¬
cumstance that they produce no appreciable effect on
the motions of the planets. The comet of 1770 traversed
the system of Jupiter’s satellites without causing any sen¬
sible perturbation of those small bodies. This comet also
passed very near the earth ; and Laplace calculated, that
if its mass had been equal in density to that of the earth,
the effect of its attraction would have increased the length
of the sidereal year by two hours and twenty-eight minutes.
But since its influence was altogether insensible, it is cer¬
tain that its mass was not equal to the five thousandth
part of that of the earth, and probably much inferior even
to this quantity.
If the nuclei of comets are solid, the matter of which
they are composed must be extremely fixed in order to
enable them to resist the intense heat they necessarily
experience in their approaches to the sun. According to
the computation of Newton, the great comet of 1680, at
its perihelion, was only distant from the sun by the 163d
part of the semidiameter of the earth’s orbit, where it
would be exposed to a heat above 2000 times greater than
that of red-hot iron,—a temperature of which we can form
no conception, and which would instantly dissipate any sub¬
stance with which we are acquainted.
In order to explain the singular phenomena of the train
of light which frequently attends the comets, the follow¬
ing theory was proposed by Newton. The comets move
in very eccentric orbits, and consequently, towards their
perihelia, approach very near to the sun. The excessive
degree of heat they sustain near this point of their orbits
must convert into vapour every substance capable of va¬
porization ; and hence the prodigious extent of their at¬
mosphere in comparison of the smallness of their nuclei.
When this atmosphere has acquired all the volatility of
which it is susceptible, the impulsion its vapours receive
from the solar rays, however feeble that force may be
conceived to be, is sufficient to put them in motion, and
drive them off in a direction opposite to the sun. Thus
it is remarked, that the tail becomes most conspicuous
after the comet has passed the perihelion, and that its
direction, as was first observed by Appian, is the straight
N O M Y.
line joining the centres of the sun and comet. The slight Theoretical
curvature which is generally observed may be accounted Astronomy,
for by combining the motion given to the vapours by the
impulsion of the sun’s rays with the motion of the comet
in its orbit; for the detached vapours are driven by the
impact of the luminous particles beyond the sphere of
the comet’s attraction, and consequently cease to follow
the direction of the nucleus. Hence the curvature of the
tail must be greatest towards its extremity; and this is
observed to be actually the case. It may be remarked,
however, that although this hypothesis serves to explain
the phenomena when all the branches of the tail are bent
in the same direction, it is inapplicable when the direc¬
tions of the curvature are opposite, as was the case with
regard to the comet of 1811. In fact, no ultimate reasons
for several of the phenomena exhibited by comets have
yet been given which can be considered as entirely satis¬
factory.
The discovery of the periodic returns of certain comets
necessarily put an end to the apprehensions and terrors
which their unusual appearances were well calculated to
excite, and proved them to be permanent bodies belong¬
ing to the same system, and acted on by the same laws,
as the planets. But this very discovery gave rise to ap¬
prehensions of another kind, more natural, though, when
closely examined, hardly more reasonable. Since the
comets are so numerous, and their orbits traverse the
planetary system in all directions, and come within the
orbit of the earth, is there not a probability that some of
them may come into contact with our globe, and destroy
it by the direct collision; or at least approach so near as
to produce the most disastrous effects by their attrac¬
tion ? Halley found that the comet of 1680 had ap¬
proached its perihelion about the time of the universal de¬
luge, and thought it probable that that great catastrophe
might have been immediately occasioned by the earth’s
being enveloped in tbe aqueous vapours of its tail,—an idea
which was afterwards more fully developed by W'histon.
Lalande and Maupertuis have minutely detailed the ter¬
rible effects which might be produced by the shock of
a comet, or even by its approach to our earth. The va¬
pours brought by the tail would mingle with the atmo¬
sphere, and render it less respirable. The attraction of
the nucleus would destroy the equilibrium of the ocean,
and cause extraordinary inundations, which might sweep
off tbe greater part of the human species. The direct
shock might change the position of the earth’s axis, or
even cause the earth to leave its present orbit. It might
then become a satellite of the comet, and be carried away
with it to the extreme limits of the sun’s attractive in¬
fluence : or, as the mass of the comet would probably be
inferior to that of the earth, the earth would carry the
comet along with it in its orbit, and thus acquire a second
moon ; and it has even been surmised that the moon we
actually enjoy may owe its origin to an accidental occur¬
rence of this kind. But all these reveries have disappeared
before the calculus, by which it is demonstrated that the
orbit of the moon can never at any time have been greatly
different from what it now is. The collision of a comet with
the earth is not an impossible event; though so infinite¬
ly little probable, that it can never excite any just cause
ot alarm. The conjunctions of the planets anciently
caused terrors still more unreasonable; and the eclipses,
which now scarcely attract the notice of the vulgar, long
rivalled the comets in the terrors which they occasioned
to the inhabitants of the earth.
V arious opinions have been entertained respecting the
nature, and formation, and uses of the comets. Newton
supposed that, as some of them pass so near to the sun as
ASTRONOMY.
4!
eoretical to be involved in all probability within his atmosphere, the
tronomy. resistance they must consequently experience will cause
them to approach nearer and nearer to the great luminary
at every successive revolution, till at last they are preci¬
pitated into his substance; hence their use in the system
may possibly be to repair the losses which the sun sus¬
tains from the constant emission of light. Whatever des¬
tinies they may be appointed to fulfil, the recent discovery
of two comets of short periods must be regarded as of
great importance to astronomy, inasmuch as the frequency
of their appearance will enable observers to take notice of
any great changes with which either their masses or orbits
may be affected.
With regard to the actual number of comets belonging
to the solar system, there are no data from which we can
form any probable conjecture. Those only (with two or
three exceptions) which come within the orbit of the
earth are visible to us, and upwards of 150 have been
observed since the discovery of the telescope. If, then,
we suppose them to be equally distributed throughout
the whole system, it would follow that the number of
comets coming within the sphere of Uranus, the radius
of which is twenty times that of the earth’s orbit, amounts
to 1,200,000 (the cube of 20 multiplied into 150), assum¬
ing the average period of their revolutions to be that in
which 150 have come within the sphere of the earth.
Such computations, however, are scarcely deserving of
notice.
On the subject of comets, the reader may consult Aris¬
totle, Meteorol. lib. i. cap. vi.; Seneca, Qucust. Natural.
vii.; Hevelii Cometographia; Newton, De Mundi Syste-
mate, and Princip. lib. iii. prop. 42; Halley, Synopsis As¬
tronomies Cometicce, and Phil. Trans, vol. xxiv.; Euler,
Mem. Acad. Berlin, 1756; Dionis du Sejour, Essai sur
les Cometes, Paris, 1775 ; Lexell, Phil. Trans. 1779 ;
Clairaut, Mem. Acad. Paris, 1760; Lambert, Lettres
Cosmologiques, and Mem. Acad. Berlin, 1771; Bode, ibid.
1786, 1787; Sir H. Englefield on the Orbits of Comets,
4to, London; Pingre, Cometographie, 2 vols. 4to, Paris,
1784; Laplace, Mecanique Celeste, tome iv. p. 193, and
Systems du Monde, 4to, p. 127; Delambre, Astronomic
Theorique et Pratique, tome iii. chap, xxxiii.; also the Con-
noissance des Terns, Memoirs of the Astronomical Society,
and the various scientific Journals.
CHAP. VI.
OF THE FIXED STARS.
After having treated of the different classes of bodies
which compose the solar system, it only remains for us to
inquire what observation has been able to discover re¬
specting that innumerable host which “ studs the ga¬
laxy,”—that multitude of brilliant points which, on ac¬
count of their always sensibly retaining the same relative
positions, have received the name of Fixed Stars.
Sect. I.—Of the Arrangement of the Fixed Stars.
The great multitude of stars visible even to the naked
eye renders it impossible to distinguish each by a parti¬
cular name; astronomers have accordingly, for the sake
of reference, formed them into groups, to which they give
• the name of Constellations or Asterisms. To the different
constellations the early astronomers gave the names of
men, and animals, and other familiar objects, from some fan¬
cied resemblances or analogies, which, for the most part,
are not easily traced. These denominations, consecrated
by ancient usage, are preserved in modern catalogues;
and the practice of delineating the object itself on celes-
VOL. IV.
tial globes and charts has been only recently, if it has Theoretical
yet altogether, been abandoned. The ancients likewise Astronomr.
distinguished some of the brightest stars in the different
constellations by particular names; but when it was
wished to include others less conspicuous, it became ne¬
cessary to have recourse to a different mode of proceed¬
ing. According to the usual method, first introduced by
Bayer in his Uranometria, each of the stars in every con¬
stellation is marked by a letter of the Greek alphabet,
commencing with the most brilliant, which is designated
by a, the next most conspicuous is called f3, the third y,
and so on. When the Greek letters are exhausted, re¬
course is had to the Roman or Italic; but even with the
help of these the nomenclature cannot be extended far,
and the simplest and most comprehensive method is un¬
doubtedly to employ the ordinal numbers to particularize
the stars belonging to each constellation. It requires to
be remarked, that the order of the letters indicates only
the relative brilliancy of the stars in the same constella¬
tion, without any reference to those in other parts of the
heavens. Thus a Aquarii is a star of the same order
of brightness as y Virginis. The stars of the first order
of brightness are likewise denominated stars of the first
magnitude; those of a degree inferior in brightness are
said to be of the second magnitude ; and so on with the
third, fourth, &c. Below the sixth the same denomina¬
tions ar© continued; but the stars of the seventh and in¬
ferior magnitudes are no longer visible to the naked eye,
and are therefore called telescopic stars. It is obvious
that, in conferring these denominations, it has been
assumed that the brilliancy of the stars is proportional to
their magnitudes,—an hypothesis at least extremely doubt¬
ful. The terms are however only used for the sake of
distinction, and no exact ideas can be attached to the
numbers. Observers are even at variance on the subject,
certain stars being regarded by some of them as being ot
the first, which are considered by others as being only ol
the second magnitude.
A few stars have preserved the names conferred on
them by the Greek or Arabian astronomers. Some of
those names, belonging to stars of the first magnitude,
are the following :—Sirius, in the right shoulder of Orion ;
Bigel, in his left foot; Aldebaran, or the eye of the Bull;
Capella; Lyra; Arcturus; Antares; Spica Virginis;
Begulus, or the heart of the Lion ; Canopus ; Fomalhaut;
Acharnar, &c.
The number of constellations given by Ptolemy is 48.
They do not comprehend all the stars in his catalogue,
and those not included in the figures are called by him
unformed stars (agcppuroi, informes), and given at the end
of that constellation to which they are nearest. The fol¬
lowing table includes Ptolemy’s constellations, and those
which have been added by the moderns.
ptolemy’s constellations.
North of the Zodiac.
1. Ursa Minor,
2. Ursa Major,
3. Draco,
4. Cepheus,
5. Bootes, Arctophilax.
6. Corona Borealis,
7. Hercules, Engonasin,
8. Lyra,
9. Cygnus, Gallina,
10. Cassiopeia,
11. Perseus,
12. Auriga,
The Little Bear.
The Great Bear.
The Dragon.
Cepheus.
The Northern Crown.
Hercules kneeling.
The Harp.
The Swan.
The Lady in her Chair.
Perseus.
The Waggoner.
F
42
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical 13. Serpentarius, Ophiuchus, Serpentarius.
Astronomy. 14. Serpens,
15. Sagitta,
jg f Aquila, Vultur, et
( Antinous,
17. Delphinus,
18. Equulus, Equi Sectio,
19. Pegasus, Equus,
20. Andromeda,
21. Triangulum,
22. Aries,
23. Taurus,
24. Gemini,
25. Cancer,
26. Leo,
27. Virgo,
28. Libra, Chelce,
29. Scorpio,
30. Sagittarius,
31. Capricornus,
32. Aquarius,
33. Pisces,
The Serpent.
The Arrow,
f The Eagle and
1 Antinous.
The Dolphin.
The Horse’s Head.
The Flying Horse.
Andromeda.
The Triangle.
In the Zodiac.
The Ram.
The Bull.
The Twins.
The Crab.
The Lion, to which he join¬
ed some stars of Berenice’s
Hair.
The Virgin.
The Scales.
The Scorpion.
The Archer.
The Goat.
The Water-bearer.
The Fishes.
Southern Constellations.
34. Cetus,
35. Orion,
36. Eridanus, Fluvius,
37. Lepus,
38. Canis Major,
39. Canis Minor,
40. Argo Navis,
41. Hydra,
42. Crater,
43. Corvus,
44. Centaurus,
45. Lupus,
46. Ara,
47. Corona Australis,
48. Piscis Australis,
The Whale.
Orion.
Eridanus, the River.
The Hare.
The Great Dog.
The Little Dog.
The Ship.
The Hydra.
The Cup.
The Crow.
The Centaur.
The Wolf.
The Altar.
The Southern Crown.
The Southern Fish.
The constellations added by Hevelius are the
mg:
1. Antinous,
2. Mons Menelai,
3. Asterion et Chara,
4. Camelopardalus,
5. Cerberus,
6. Coma Berenices,
7. Lacerta,
8. Lynx,
9. Scutum Sobieski,
10. Sextans,
11. Triangulum,
12. Leo Minor,
Antinous.
Mount Menelaus.
The Greyhounds.
The Giraffe.
Cerberus.
Berenice’s Hair.
The Lizard.
The Lynx.
Sobieski’s Shield.
The Sextant.
The Triangle.
The Little Lion.
follow-
The constellations added
hemisphere are,—
1. Columba Noachi,
2. Robur Carolinum,
3. Grus,
4. Phoenix,
5. Pavo,
6. Apus, Avis Indica,
7. Apis, Musca,
8. Chamaeleon,
by Halley in the southern
Noah’s Dove.
The Royal Oak.
The Crane.
The Phoenix.
The Peacock.
The Bird of Paradise.
The Bee or Fly.
The Chameleon.
One of the most important objects of practical astrono¬
my is the formation of catalogues of the fixed stars, in
which their positions are determined for a given epoch ; Theoretical
for it is only by means of registered observations that the Astronomy,
state of the heavens can be compared at different times,
and any changes which take place be detected. The ap¬
parent place of a star is easily determined by observation ;
but in order to render such observations available for the
purposes of comparison, the mean place of the observed
star must be computed and reduced to a given epoch;
and this reduction, which involves a knowledge of the pre¬
cession, nutation, aberration, and in general of all the mo¬
tions which affect the star’s apparent place, is only ac¬
complished by a laborious process of calculation.
The principal catalogues of the stars which we possess Catalogues
are the following :— of stars.
Ptolemy’s catalogue, which contains 1022 stars. The
positions are referred to the ecliptic, and the longitudes
are for the year 137 of our era. It is supposed that the
greater part of the observations on which it is founded
were made and computed by Hipparchus 267 years be¬
fore, and that Ptolemy merely reduced them to his epoch
by adding to each of the longitudes 2° 40', which, accord¬
ing to him, was the amount of the precession of the equi¬
noxes in that interval. This catalogue forms part of the
Almagest.
The catalogue of Ulugh Beigh, containing 1017 stars.
Tycho’s catalogue, which contains only 777 stars, in 45
constellations.
Riccioli’s catalogue, which contains 1468 stars. Part
of it, however, was merely copied from more ancient ca¬
talogues.
Bayer’s catalogue, containing 1762 stars, in 72 constel¬
lations. It was published in his Uranometria in 1603.
The third edition of this work appeared at Ulm in 1661.
The catalogue of Hevelius, which contains 1888 stars,
of which it gives the latitudes, longitudes, right ascen¬
sions, and declinations, for the year 1661. Published in
his Prodromus Astronomies in 1690.
Flamsteed’s catalogue, containing 2884 stars. Publish¬
ed in the Historia Ccelestis Britannica in 1725. A less
perfect edition was given by Halley in 1712.
Catalogues of Lacaille.—The first of these, published
in his Astronomice Fundamenta, contains 397 stars; the
second, which is given in his Ccelum Australe Stelliferum,
contains 1942 of the stars in the southern hemisphere;
and the third, which was reduced from his observations by
the celebrated Bailly, contains the places of 515 zodiacal
stars.
Mayer’s catalogue, containing 998 zodiacal stars. It
appeared in his Opera Inedita, Gottingen, 1775, and was
reprinted in the Connoissance des Terns for 1778.
Bradley’s catalogue, containing 587 stars. This was
published in the first volume of his observations, edited
by Hornsby, in 1798. The positions of 389 stars, calcu¬
lated from Bradley’s observations, had been given by Ma¬
son in the Nautical Almanack in 1773. Bradley’s obser¬
vations extended to 3000 stars, but the greater part of them
remained useless to astronomy till they were reduced and
made the subject of discussion by Bessel in his Funda¬
menta Astronomice, Regiomonti, 1818.
Maskelyne’s catalogue of 36 stars.
Cagnoli’s catalogue, containing 501 stars. Published
in the Memoirs of the Italian Society.
Bode’s catalogue, which contains 17,240 stars, reduced
from the observations of various astronomers.
Piazzi s catalogue, which contains 6748 stars, reduced
to the year 1800. In 1814 Piazzi published a new cata¬
logue, comprising 7646 stars.
Zach s catalogue, inserted in his Tahulce speciales Aber-
rationis et Nutationis, Gotha?, 1806.
ASTRONOMY. 43
eoretical Catalogue of the Astronomical Society of London, con-
tronomy. taining 2881 stars, published in the second volume of their
Memoirs. Almost all the stars comprised in this cata¬
logue are to be found in the catalogues of Bradley or Piazzi,
from which they have been reduced to the year 1830.
In addition to the above, the records of great masses of
observations may be found in the Philosophical Transac¬
tions, the Connoissance des Terns, and the various astro¬
nomical and scientific Journals. Lalande has registered
in the Memoirs of the Academy of Paris, and his Histoire
Celeste, the positions of no fewer than 50,000; and Bes¬
sel, of the Konigsberg Observatory, who continues to ex¬
plore the heavens with unabated zeal, has already exa¬
mined an equal number. Astronomers are now aware of
the importance of extending their researches to the most
minute sidereal objects.
Sect. II.— Of the Parallax, Distance, Magnitude, and
Number of the Fixed Stars.
The fixed stars being the points of departure from
which all the celestial motions are estimated, one of the
first objects in astronomy is to determine the amount and
law of all the minute variations of position, real or appa¬
rent, to which they are subject. One of the most obvious
consequences of the hypothesis of the annual motion of
the earth is the existence of an annual parallax of the stars ;
but on account of the enormous distances of these bodies,
this effect of the earth’s motion is so small that it can¬
not be easily measured; and it is even doubtful, after all
the attempts that have been made to detect it, whether it is
at all sensible to the best instruments. The longest line
which nature has furnished us with the means of actually
measuring, is the circumference of our own globe. From
this geometry teaches us how to find its diameter; and
the diameter we employ as a scale with which to compare
the distances of the sun and moon, and the other bodies
of the solar system. But experience shows us that this
scale, large as it is in our conceptions, is only an insen¬
sible point in comparison of the distances of the fixed
stars. Astronomy has furnished us with another base,
about 24,000 times longer than the former, or above 190
millions of miles. This is the diameter of the earth’s or¬
bit, which is most conveniently used for expressing the
distances of the planets and comets from the sun. Yet
even this immense line is insensible when compared with
the distances of the stars ; for, on observing the same star
from its two extremities, at the end of six months, no va¬
riation whatever is perceptible in the star’s position, after
the proper corrections have been made for the small effects
produced by different and known causes. The limits of
the errors of modern observations cannot well be supposed
to exceed 1". It follows, therefore, that, seen from the
distance of the fixed stars, the diameter of the ecliptic,
which exceeds 190 millions of miles, subtends an angle of
less than 1". Had the annual parallax exceeded this
small quantity, it could scarcely have escaped the multi¬
plied efforts that have been made to detect it, not only by
Bradley, whose observations, undertaken for the express
purpose of determining the parallax of the stars, conducted
him to the grand discoveries of the aberration and nutation,
but also by other observers furnished with the more delicate
instruments of the present day; and particularly the obser¬
vations made with the splendid circle of the Greenwich
Observatory, the chef d’oeuvre of Troughton. Astronomers
are, however, not entirely agreed as to the fact that the
parallax is altogether insensible; and Dr Brinkley of the
Dublin Observatory has perceived indications of its exist¬
ence with regard to several stars. Dr Brinkley could dis¬
cover no parallax in his observations on the circumpolar Theoretical
stars, with regard to which the changes of declination result-
ing from the precession are most appreciable. He did not
even observe it in the case of the stars of the constellation
€ Cygni, some of which, having a very sensible proper
motion, may, with great probability, be considered as being
at a less distance from the earth ; but in Wega (a Lyrae)
he found a parallax of l"’13, and one of 1"‘42 in the star
Athair, in the Eagle. Bradley supposed the parallax of
Sirius to amount to l". These facts are, however, dis¬
puted by other eminent observers. In a series of 14 stars
Struve found the parallax to be negative; that is, the
small change of position which the observations seemed
to indicate was in a direction contrary to what it would
have been if it had arisen from the annual motion of the
earth. Mr Pond, the Astronomer Royal, thinks the pro¬
bable value of the parallax cannot exceed 0"*018, a quan¬
tity so extremely minute as to be altogether lost in the
uncertainties of instrumental errors, and the errors of re¬
fraction, which are at least 20 times greater.
Let us concede for a moment the disputed parallax of 1",
and inquire what must be the corresponding distance of the
star. The semidiameter of the terrestrial orbit being taken
at 95 millions of miles, the distance of a star whose parallax
is 1" will be expressed by ^ — X 95000000=206264 X
95000000=19,595,080,000,000, or about 20 billions of
English miles. To assist the imagination in forming some
idea of this almost inconceivable distance, we may cal¬
culate that a ray of light which darts from the sun to
the earth in the space of 8 min. 7 sec., would require
206264 X 8 min. 7 sec., or 3 years and 216 days, to reach us
from the star. A spider's thread before the eye of a spec¬
tator placed at the same distance would suffice to conceal
the orbit of the earth; and the breadth of a hair would
blot out the whole planetary system. But a star having a
parallax of 1" is at a moderate distance in comparison of
innumerable others, in which no parallactic motion what¬
ever can be distinguished. Supposing the distance of
one of these to be only a thousand times greater, a ray of
light darted from it would travel between 3000 and 4000
years before it reached the earth; and if the star were
annihilated by any sudden convulsion, it would appear to
shine in its proper place during that immense period, after
it had been extinguished from the face of the heavens.
Pursuing speculations of this kind, we may conceive, with
Huygens, that it is not impossible that there may exist
stars placed at such enormous distances, that their light
has not yet reached the earth since their creation.
When viewed with the naked eye, the magnitudes of the Magni-
stars appear to be very different,—a circumstance which tude of the
may be attributed either to a real diversity of magnitude, sfaX!’-
or, which is more probable, to the great differences in
their distances. The sensible magnitudes which they ex¬
hibit when viewed in this manner are owing only to the
numerous reflections of the rays of light from the aerial
particles surrounding the eye; as is proved by looking at
them through a long tube, which prevents any rays from
reaching the eye excepting those which come directly from
the star. In the telescope their dimensions are entirely
inappreciable : the greater the power with which they are
viewed, the smaller are their apparent diameters, because
they are then more completely divested of the effects of
irradiation. A star having a diameter of 1", and an an¬
nual parallax of 1", would be more than a million of times
larger than the sun. Nevertheless, Sir W. Herschel as¬
sures us, that, by means of the great powers which his
telescopes carried, he had seen the disks of some stars
perfectly round, and had even succeeded in measuring
44
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical their apparent diameters. He found the diameter of
Astronomy. Wega to be -y", that of Aldebaran 1"*5, and that of Capella
2'r'5. Supposing the measurement accurate, and the an¬
nual parallax of this last not to exceed 1", its volume
would be equal to 20 million times that of the sun.
Number of With regard to the number of the stars, it is altogether
the stars, impossible to form any satisfactory conjecture. Of those
which are visible to the naked eye, the number does not,
probably, at any time, exceed 1000, although, from the
effect of their twinkling, and the confused manner in which
they are seen, one is apt to suppose them to be much
more numerous ; but in the telescope they are prodigious¬
ly multiplied. Within the limits of a space extending 15°
by 2°, Herschel counted no fewer than 50,000. In the
single constellation of the Pleiades, instead of 6 or 7,
which can be distinguished by the unassisted vision, Hooke,
with a telescope of 12 feet, counted 78; and in tele¬
scopes of greater power the number appears to be vastly
larger. Although, by reason of their very unequal dis¬
tribution, no accurate estimate can be formed of the
number contained in the whole sphere by the examination
of any small portion of it, yet there is some reason to con¬
clude that there cannot be less than J5 millions of stars
altogether visible in a good telescope. Baron Zach es¬
timates that there may be at least a thousand millions of
stars in the entire heavens, without reckoning (what may
probably exist) opaque bodies which cannot be perceived,
and stars whose light has been extinguished. It is, how¬
ever, evident that all estimates of this sort have no other
limit than such as is imposed by the imagination. If an
observer could be transported to the remotest star visible
in his telescope, he would probably see extending be¬
fore him in the same direction, a firmament equally rich
and splendid as that which he beholds from our own in¬
significant planet.
Sect. III.—Of the Proper Motions of the Stars.
In Chap. II. four different causes of apparent motion
with regard to the stars have been explained ; namely, the
precession of the equinoxes, the nutation of the earth’s
axis, the secular diminution of the obliquity of the ecliptic,
and the aberration of light; all which are occasioned by
the various motions proper to the earth, and for that rea¬
son are called apparent motions. But if, after due allow¬
ance has been made for the effects produced by them, it
should happen that the observed place of any star, or
number of stars, does not correspond with former obser¬
vations, a new and peculiar motion would be indicated,
which must be explained by a new hypothesis. Now
there are obviously two ways of accounting for such a
phenomenon, namely, a parallactic motion and a proper mo¬
tion, from either of which the observed variation of position
may result. It has already been shown that the annual
parallax, or that apparent alteration in the places of the
fixed stars which might be expected from the motion of
the earth in its orbit, is insensible; but we may suppose,
and indeed observation has even rendered it probable, that
the sun, accompanied by his whole train of planets and
comets, is in motion in space; and if this is the case, the
stars must appear to change their relative situations as
soon as the sun has described a space bearing a sensible
ratio to their distance. The resulting motion would thus
partake of the nature of parallax, and is hence termed
parallactic. The other method of accounting for any ob¬
served alteration in the mutual position of the stars, is to
ascribe to them a proper motion, instead of supposing them
to be absolutely fixed. On this supposition the motion is
real; yet it may happen that the observed changes of po¬
sition result from the combined effects of a real and pa- Theoretical
rallactic motion. The effects of these motions are in their Astronomy,
nature sufficiently distinct, although, on account of theVy,-^PVV,/
extremely minute quantities to be determined, and the
uncertainty that still exists as to the exact amount of
some of the apparent motions with which they are blended,
it may for centuries to come be found impossible to sepa¬
rate them. If all the stars forming a group, or situated in
the same quarter of the heavens, appear to recede from
or approach to each other, their motions may with rea¬
son be ascribed to the translation of the solar system in
space, and consequently be parallactic : but if, on the con¬
trary, some appear stationary, while others appear to move
in different directions, the phenomena will indicate a real
change in the positions of the stars.
From the analogy of our own system we are naturally
induced to extend the principle of gravity to the sphere of
the stars, and to suppose, as a necessary consequence,
that none of the celestial bodies are in a state of absolute
repose. Their mutual attraction must communicate to
them a motion which would end in uniting them all in the
same mass unless it were counteracted by a centrifugal
force : hence the stars are supposed to move about distant
centres in orbits analogous to those of the planets. But
if the stars are not absolutely at rest in space, their mo¬
tions must be extremely slow, inasmuch as the actual
state of the heavens corresponds entirely with the descrip¬
tions that have been given of it by Hipparchus and
Ptolemy. Ptolemy has transmitted to us a great number
of observations on the relative situations of the fixed stars,
made by Hipparchus, whose method was to observe those
which are situated in an arc of the same circle, or which
can be intersected by the same straight line; and he
assures us that he himself, after an interval of 260 years,
could perceive no alteration. In order to furnish posterity
with the means of pursuing similar inquiries, Ptolemy
added the positions of many other stars determined by his
own observations ; and we owe to his labours the certain
knowledge that the relative positions of the stars, notwith¬
standing the numerous displacements of the ecliptic and
equator, are at present nearly the same as they were 2000
years ago. The ancient observations were, however, of too
rude a nature to admit of any satisfactory conclusion being
deduced from them respecting the minute quantities in
question. The accurate instruments of the present day
have enabled observers to remark some changes of posi¬
tion too decided to admit of doubt; hence astronomers
have inferred a proper motion in several stars, as well as a
translation of the sun and the planets in space. From the
comparison of a great number of observations, Sir W.
Herschel was of opinion that many of the proper motions
might be explained by supposing the solar system to have
a motion directed towards the star X in the constellation
Hercules. This conjecture has not, however, been con¬
firmed, or rather it has been entirely overthrown, by sub¬
sequent observations. Bessel, having subjected to a ri¬
gorous comparison a much greater number of the proper
motions indicated by comparing the catalogues of Brad¬
ley, Mayer, Piazzi, &c. arrived at the conclusion that many
points might be assigned in the sphere, some of them
even diametrically opposite to each other, situated in the
direction of those motions; but that, in whatever direction
the sun is supposed to move, so many proper motions will
remain unaccounted for, that there is no reason for pre¬
ferring one point to another. The proper motions of the
stars which have hitherto been remarked are evidently
subject to no one assignable law, and are directed to many
different points in space. It is therefore infinitely pro¬
bable that they are due, in part at least, to a real dis-
T1
h
ASTRONOMY.
45
T oretical placement of the stars, and not to a general translation of
A onomy. the solar system.
v Some recent observers have supposed they have de¬
tected proper motions in a great number of stars, the rates
of which they have inserted in their catalogues along with
those of the precession; but there is great discordancy
in the determinations of different astronomers. Baron
Zach, comparing Maskelyne’s observations of the right
ascensions of the Greenwich stars, reduced to 1802,
with those of Bradley, reduced to 1760, found results
which differ from those of Maskelyne himself, not only in
amount, but in several instances even in the direction of
the supposed proper motions. For example, the proper
motions (in right ascension) of y Pegasi, a Ceti, Rigel,
Sirius, Spica, y and /3 Aquilce, a Cygni, a Aquarii, and a
Pegasi, are all positive according to Zach, while Maskelyne
considers them as being all negative. Such is the uncer¬
tainty respecting the proper motions even of the Green¬
wich stars, which, by reason of the frequent observations
they have undergone, and the rigorous scrutinies to which
they have been subjected, are probably those whose places
are the most accurately determined of any in the whole
heavens. But the motions are so slow that they must remain,
for a considerable number of years at least, blended with Theoretical
the errors of observation. The double star 61 Cygni is in- Astronomy,
deed supposed by Bessel to have an annual proper motion
of -j- 5"’06 in right ascension, and 3W,34 in declination;
but in general the rates are confined within much nar¬
rower limits, and appear to amount only to a fraction of
a second. The number of stars in which this proper mo¬
tion has been supposed to be observed is, as we have al¬
ready noticed, very considerable. M. Bessel, by a com¬
parison of 2959 stars out of Bradley’s catalogue, with
the same stars in the catalogue of Piazzi, found that 425
of them had an annual proper motion, amounting to more
than 0"-2, in the arc of a great circle. The following
table, published by Mr Baily in the. second volume of
the Memoirs of the Astronomical Society, contains a list
of all those stars observed by Bradley and Mayer, whose
annual proper motions, according to Piazzi, as given in
his catalogue, amount to 0"-5 either in right ascension or
declination. The positive sign, in the column of declina¬
tions, denotes a motion towards the north, the negative
a motion towards the south. The numbers prefixed are
those of Flamsteed, unless when inclosed within a paren¬
thesis, in which case they are those of Piazzi.
Star.
11/3 Cassiopeke...
24 Ditto 
37 [i Andromedae.
1 Polaris 
37 8 Cassiopeiae...
107
52
13
12
23
27
40
1
Piscium.
Ceti 
Persei 
Eridani 
Ditto 
Ditto 
Ditto  
Orionis 
104 m Tauri 
15 d Leporis 
9 a Can. Maj....
10 a Can. Min....
78 (3 Geminorum.
15 -vj/3 Cancri 
9 / Ursae Maj...
81 cr Cancri 
25 0 Ursae Maj...
29 u Ditto 
7 a Crateris 
63 % Leonis 
53 ^ Ursae Maj...
94 f3 Leonis 
[3 Virginis 
c Ditto 
x Draconis....
Canum Yen.
y Virginis 
d Ditto 
Com. Ber....,
Virginis 
Ditto 
Ursae Maj...,
5
16
5
3
29
43
43
61
70
85
>1
Proper motion in
M.
+ 0"'
+ 1-
+ 1 ‘
+ 1'
+ 0*
— 1 •
+ 0'
+ 0'
— 2
+ o
+ 0
— 0
— 0
— 0
— 0
— 1
— 0
— 1
— 0
— 0
— 0
— 0
— 0
+ 0
— 0
— 0
— 1
— 0
— 0
— 1
— 1
82
78
20
47
64
■86
67
64
•21
•54
•69
•51
•71
•72
•60
•05
•55
•80
•60
•59
•53
•52
•53
•76
•55
•50
•02
•72
•65
•19
•30
D.
0-50
— 0"*72
— 0 *57
+ 0-84
+ 0-82
— 0-60
— 0-59
— 3*60
— 0*62
— 1 -14
— 0-98
— 0*60
0-64
+ 0-94
— 1 -08
— 0-53
Star.
5 6
16 «
19 A
23 d
44
41 y
49
18
40 ?
26 i
36 a
30
22 £
27 /
86 g
70 p
58 n
44 y
(SO)*
31 b
3
61 <r
53 a
60 13
15 z
(29) r
1 x
3 n
61
3
65 r
(36)
6 y
17 /
(249)
85
Centauri.
Bootis....
Ditto 
Ditto 
Ditto 
Serpentis..
Librae 
Scorpii 
Herculis...
Scorpii 
Ophiuchi..
Scorpii 
Ursae Min.
Draconis..
Herculis..
Ophiuchi..
Serpentis..
Draconis..
Sagittarii..
Aquilae 
Cygni......
Draconis...
Aquilae 
Ditto 
Sagittae....
Sagittarii..
Cephei 
Ditto 
Cygni 
Piscis Aust.,
Cygni 
Lacertae 
Piscium 
Ditto 
Ditto 
Pegasi 
Proper motion in
A3.
— 0"-63
— 1-17
— 0-55
— 0-80
— 0-91
— 0 -75
— 0*70
— 0-65
_ 0-59
— 0-58
— 0-82
— 0-51
— 0-67
+ 1-72
+ 0-92
+ 1 -28
+ 0-51
— 0-50
+ 1*24
— 0-80
+ 5-38
— 1 -09
+ 0-75
+ 0-78
+ 0*70
+ 0-90
D.
— P'*96
— 0 *54
— 1-31
— 0-53
1 -25
1-24
— 0-84
— 1 *17
— 0*68
— 0-54
+ 0-72
— 0*72
— 2-12
— 0-54
+ 0-76
+ 0-81
+ 3-30
+ 0-50
— 0*80
— 0-55
— 1-15
The proper motions of the stars are not susceptible of the observed position of any given star the corrections due
direct observation or measurement: they are only indicated to all the apparent motions with which we are acquainted,
by the minute differences which remain after applying to Thus, let M and M' be the mean places of any given star
46
ASTRONOMY.
Theoretical at two different epochs, the interval between which is t
Astronomy. years. p the annual precession of the equinoxes, and a?
the annual motion of the star in right ascension. It is ob¬
vious that x will be given by the formula
so that the value of x, or the amount of the proper motion,
is dependent not only on the accuracy of the observations,
and on the computations from which M and M', the mean
places of the star, have been deduced, but also on the
quantity P, which is calculated by a method of approxi¬
mation not entirely exact. For all these reasons it is easy
to see that the determination of the proper motions must
be attended with considerable uncertainty, and that hun¬
dreds, probably thousands, of years will be required to de-
velope their rates and directions, and assign the distant
centres round which they are performed.
Sect. IV.— Of Variable and Double Stars, Nebulce, and
the Milky Way.
The periodical variations of brilliancy to which some of
the fixed stars are subject, may be reckoned among the
most remarkable of the phenomena exhibited by those
bodies. Several stars, formerly distinguished by their
splendour, have entirely disappeared ; others are now con¬
spicuous which do not seem to have been visible to the
ancient observers ; and there are some which alternately
appear and disappear, or of which the light at least under¬
goes great periodic variations. Some seem to become
gradually more obscure, as l in the Great Bear; others,
like (3 in the Whale, to be increasing in brilliancy. Some
stars have all at once blazed forth with great splendour,
and, after a gradual diminution of their light, have again
become extinct. The most remarkable instance of this
sort is that of the star which appeared in 1572, in the
time of Tycho. It suddenly shone forth in the constella¬
tion Cassiopeia with a splendour exceeding that of stars
of the first magnitude, even of Jupiter and Venus at their
least distances from the earth, and could be seen with the
naked eye on the meridian in full day. Its brilliancy
gradually diminished from the time of its first appearance,
and at the end of sixteen months it entirely disappeared,
and has never been seen since. During the whole time
of its apparition its place in the heavens remained unal¬
tered, and it had no annual parallax; its distance was
consequently of the same order as that of the fixed stars.
Its colour, however, underwent considerable variations.
Tycho describes it as having been at first of a bright
white; afterwards of a reddish yellow, like Mars or Alde-
baran; and, lastly, of a leaden white, like Saturn. Another
instance of the same kind was observed in 1604, when a
star of the first magnitude suddenly appeared in the right
foot of Ophiuchus; it presented phenomena analogous to
the former, and disappeared in like manner after some
months. Kepler wrote a book on this singular apparition.
These instances sufficiently prove that the stars are sub¬
ject to great physical revolutions.
A great number of stars have been observed whose
light seems to undergo a regular periodic increase and
diminution, and these are properly called variable stars.
One in the Whale has a period of 334 days, and is re¬
markable for the magnitude of its variations. From being
a star of the second magnitude, it becomes so dim as to
be seen with difficulty through powerful telescopes. Some
are remarkable for the shortness of the period of their
variation. Algol has a period of between two and three
days, a Cephei one of 5^ days, /3 Lyrce one of 6f days,
g. Antinoi one of 7 days. The regular succession of these
variations precludes the supposition of their being occa- Theoretical
sioned by a real or permanent destruction of the stars; Astronomy,
neither can they be supposed to arise from a change of
distance; for as the stars invariably retain their apparent
places, it would be necessary to suppose that they ap¬
proach to and recede from the earth in straight lines,—an
hypothesis which is at least extremely improbable. The
most probable supposition is, that the stars revolve, like
the sun and planets, about an axis; and that the sur¬
faces of the variable stars are unequally covered with
dark spots, or unequally fitted to emit light; whence their
dark sides will be turned towards us after certain inter¬
vals by the effect of rotation. In this way Newton ac¬
counted for the phenomena. Other astronomers have de¬
vised different explanations. Maupertuis supposed that
the figure of the stars is not globular, but flat, and that
the variations of brilliancy depend on the angle which
their flat sides make with the visual ray,—an angle which
will be constantly varying if the stars are endowed with a
rotatory motion. Others, again, have imagined that the
partial obscurations of the stars may be occasioned by
their being eclipsed by opaque bodies or planets revolving
round them.
On examining the stars with telescopes of considerable Multiple
power, many of them are found to be composed of two or stars•
more stars placed contiguous to each other, or of which
the distance subtends a very minute angle. This appear¬
ance is probably in many cases owing solely to the optical
effect of their position relative to the spectator; for it is
evident that two stars will appear contiguous if they are
placed nearly in the same line of vision, although their
real distance may be immeasurably great. There are,
however, many instances in which the angle of position of
the two stars varies in such a manner as to indicate a mo¬
tion of revolution about a common centre; and in this case
the two stars form a binary system, performing to each
other the office of sun and planet, and connected to¬
gether by gravity or some equivalent principle. The re¬
cent observations of Messrs Herschel and South have
placed this singular fact beyond doubt. Motions have
been detected so rapid as to become measurable within
very short periods of time; and at certain epochs the sa¬
tellite or feebler star has been observed to disappear,
either on passing behind or before its primary, or by ap¬
proaching so near to it that its light has been absorbed
by that of the other. The most remarkable instance of a
regular revolution of this sort is that of the double star
£ Ursce Majoris, in which the angular velocity is 6°-4 an¬
nually, so that the two stars complete a revolution about
one another in the space of 60 years; and above three
fourths of a circuit have been already described since its
discovery in 1781. The double starp Ophiuchi presents
a similar phenomenon, and the satellite has a motion in its
orbit still more rapid, a Castoris, y Virginis, £ Cancri,
| Bootis, b Serpentis, and that remarkable double star 61
Cygni, together with several others, exhibit similar varia¬
tions in their respective angles of position.
The examination of double stars was first undertaken by
Sir W. Herschel, with a view to the question of parallax;
for it is evident, and indeed had been remarked by Gali¬
leo, that the apparent distance of two stars which are
very near each other will vary with the position of the
earth in its orbit, unless they are both so remote that, in
comparison of their distance from the earth, the diameter
of the terrestrial orbit is insensible. His attention was,
however, soon arrested by the new and unexpected phe¬
nomena which these bodies presented. Sir W. Herschel
observed in all 2400 of them. Messrs South and Herschel
have given a catalogue of 380 in the Transactions of the
Tfc
AH
ASTRO
T1 iretical Royal Society for 1824, and South added 458 to the list
A; imomy. jn the volume for 1826. Mr Herschel has published three
series of observations in the Memoirs of the Astronomical
Society, containing altogether 1000 double stars ; and the
catalogue of M. Struve of Dorpat contains 3063 of the
most remarkable. The object of these catalogues is not
merely to fix the place of the star within such limits as
will enable it to be easily discovered at any future time,
but also to record a description of the appearance,
position, and mutual distances, of the individual stars
composing the system, in order that subsequent observ¬
ers may have the means of detecting their connected
motions, or any changes with which they may be affected.
M. Struve has* also taken notice of 52 triple stars, among
which No. 11 of the Unicorn, £ of Cancer, and | of the Ba¬
lance, appear to be ternary systems in motion. Quadruple
and quintuple stars have likewise been observed, which
also appear to revolve about a common centre of gravity.
Every region of the heavens furnishes examples of these
curious phenomena,especially those which abound in stars;
though M. Struve remarks that some parts of the milky
way contain very few, while others present them in great
abundance.
Some of the double stars present curious instances of con¬
trasted colours, and generally assume the complementary
tints,—a circumstance which, Mr Herschel thinks, may
be owing in some degree, at least in cases where red and
green, yellow and blue stars are combined in a double star,
to the influence of optical deception. “ When I first observ¬
ed,” says that ingenious philosopher, “the double star No.
881, iE. 19 hours 8 minutes 56 seconds, P. D. 95° 45' 33", I
remarked it as a case of contrasted colour, the large star
being ruddy, and the small one blue. But on closer attention
I perceived the small star itself to be double; yet each of the
two very minute stars of which it consists appeared equal¬
ly blue while the eye continued under the influence of
the large one; but when this was withdrawn from the
field, they appeared of no particular colour, but just like
other small stars in the neighbourhood. It may be re¬
marked further, too, that yellow stars are, generally speak¬
ing, accompanied by blue small ones, blue being the com¬
plementary tint of yellow ; but when the large star has an
excess of red rays, the blue verges to green, as it ought
on the hypothesis of contrast. A most remarkable in¬
stance is that of No. 895 (Struve’s catalogue), JE. 6 hours
12 minutes, P. D. 84° 12', in which the large star is of a
full ruby red, and the smaller one of a fine green, but
which colour it also loses when the large star is conceal¬
ed behind the cross of the wires.” (Memoirs of the As-
tronomical Society, vol. iii. p. 186.)
1 aul®. The Nebulce, so called from their dim cloudy appear¬
ance, form another class of objects which furnish matter
for curious speculation and conjecture respecting the for¬
mation and structure of the sidereal heavens. When ex¬
amined with a telescope of moderate powers, the greater
part of the nebulae are distinctly perceived to be compos¬
ed of clusters of little stars, imperceptible to the naked
eye, because, on account of their apparent proximity,
the rays of light proceeding from each are blended to¬
gether, through the effects of irradiation, in such a manner
as to produce only a confused luminous appearance. In
others, however, no individual stars can be perceived,
even through the best telescopes; and the nebula exhi¬
bits only the appearance of a self-luminous or phospores-
cent patch of matter in a highly dilated or gaseous state;
though it is possible that even in this case the appear¬
ance may be owing to a congeries of stars so minute, or
so distant, as not to afford singly sufficient light to make
an impression on the eye. In some instances the nebula
N O M Y. 47
presents the appearance of a faint luminous atmosphere, Theoretical
of a circular form, and of large extent, surrounding a star Astronomy,
of considerable brilliancy. One of the most remarkable
nebulae is that which is situated in the sword-handle of
Orion. It was discovered by Huygens in 1656, and de¬
scribed and figured by him in his Systema Saturnium.
Since that time it has been examined and described by
various observers, particularly Fouchy, Mairan, Le Gentil,
and Messier, who have given engravings of it; and if any
trust can be placed in their descriptions of so indistinct
and difficult an object, it must have undergone great
changes in its form and physical appearances. Unfortu¬
nately, however, no satisfactory inference can be drawn
from the comparison of the different descriptions; for it
is found that the same nebula, viewed on the same night
with different telescopes, presents appearances so differ¬
ent as to be scarcely recognizable as the same object.
The effects of atmospherical variations also cause great
differences in its appearance, even when it is viewed
through the same telescope at different times ; so that it
is scarcely possible that any two observers will be found
to agree in their delineations of its outline. Mr Herschel,
in the second volume of the Memoirs of the Astronomi¬
cal Society, has given a detailed description of this nebu¬
la as it appeared in his twenty feet reflector in 1824,
together with a drawing which, on account of the supe¬
riority of his telescope, is probably a much more correct
representation of the object than any which previously
existed. Fig. 108 is copied from that drawing. Of that Plate XCL
portion of the nebula which he calls the Huygenian re¬
gion Mr Herschel gives the following account: “ I know
not how to describe it better than by comparing it to a
curdling liquid, or a surface strewed over with flocks
of wool, or to the breaking up of a mackarel sky when
the clouds of which it consists begin to assume a cir¬
rous appearance. It is not very unlike the mottling of
the sun’s disk, only (if I may so express myself) the grain
is much coarser, and the intervals darker; and the flocculi,
instead of being generally round, are drawn out into little
wisps. They present, however, no appearance of being
composed of small stars, and their aspect is altogether
different from resolvable nebulce. In the latter we fancy
that we see stars, or that, could we strain our sight a little
more, we should see them; but the former suggests no
idea of stars, but rather of something quite distinct from
them.”
Another very remarkable nebula is that in the girdle of
Andromeda, which, on account of its being visible to the
naked eye, has been known since the earliest ages of as¬
tronomy. It was re-discovered in 1612 by Simon Marius,
who describes it as having the appearance of a candle
seen through horn, that is, a diluted light, increasing in
density towards a centre. Le Gentil mentions that its
figure had appeared to him for many years round, but
that in 1757 it had become oval. He also remarks that
its light was perfectly uniform in all parts,—a fact which
is quite at variance with its present appearance, and which,
if true, argues that the nebulous matter is in a rapid state
of condensation. “ At present,” says Mr Herschel, in
the volume above referred to, “ it has not, indeed, a star
or any well-defined disk in its centre ; but the brightness,
which increases by regular gradations from the circum¬
ference, suddenly acquires a great accession, so as to offer
the appearance of a nipple, as it were, in the middle, of
very small diameter (10" or 12"), but totally devoid of any
distinct outline, so that it is impossible to say precisely
where the nucleus ends and the nebula begins. Its nebu¬
losity is of the most perfect milky, absolutely irresolvable
kind, without the slightest tendency to that separation
ASTRONOMY.
48
Physical into flocculi above described in the nebula of Orion ; nor
Astronomy. js there any sort of appearance of the smallest star in the
centre of the nipple. This nebula is oval, very bright,
and of great magnitude, and altogether a most magnifi¬
cent object.”
Sir W. Herschel, who devoted himself to the examina¬
tion of every uncommon appearance in the sidereal heavens,
has given catalogues of 2000 nebulae and clusters of stars
discovered by him, and has shown that the nebulous
matter is distributed through the immensity of space in
quantities inconceivably great, and in separate parcels of
all shapes and sizes, and of all degrees of brightness be¬
tween a mere milky appearance and the condensed light
of a fixed star. Finding that the gradations between the
two extremes were tolerably regular, he thought it pro¬
bable that the nebulae form the materials out of which
nature elaborates suns and systems, and conceived that,
in virtue of a central gravitation, each parcel of nebulous
matter becomes more and more condensed, and assumes
a rounder form; that from the eccentricity of its shape,
and the effects of the mutual gravitation of its particles,
it acquires gradually a rotatory motion ; that the conden¬
sation goes on increasing till the mass acquires consistency
and solidity, and all the other characters of a comet or
lanet; that by a still further process of condensation the
ody becomes a real star, self-shining; and that thus the
waste of the celestial bodies, by the perpetual diffusion
of their light, is continually compensated and restored by
new formations of such bodies, to replenish for ever the
universe with planets and stars. (See the Philosophical
Transactions for 1811.) These hypotheses or conjectures
give no doubt a mechanical reason for the formation of
stars, but the answer to them is exceedingly obvious.
Has any instance as yet been observed of a nebula being
succeeded by a star, or cluster of stars, or even of becom¬
ing so much more condensed as absolutely to change its
form ? Till a change of this sort has been observed, the
inferences are drawn from analogies too slender to entitle
them to be regarded as any thing more than mere fancies
and speculations. Even if every link in the chain were per¬
fect, and the gradation distinctly traced from the most dif- Physical
fuse nebula to the most compact star, the facts would still Astron',nij1
be insufficient to warrant the conclusion that the celestial
matter had actually undergone a transition from the ne¬
bulous to the stellar state, or that any star or nebula in
the heavens ever existed in a state different from its pre¬
sent. Though there is little reason to hope that we shall
ever obtain a full knowledge of the mysterious processes
which the great Architect of the universe has employed
in the formation of the celestial bodies, yet a long series
of observations with such instruments as are now con¬
structed may lead to the detection of changes sufficiently
indicative of the nature of the forces by which they are
produced. These cosmological speculations, however, it
may be well to remark, are not of the slightest value
to astronomy.
That great luminous tract which encompasses the sky Milky.,
like a girdle, and is called the Galaxy or Milky-Way, is Way.
supposed by Sir W. Herschel to be a nebula of which the
sun forms one of the component stars ; and hence it ap¬
pears immensely greater than other nebulae only in conse¬
quence of our situation with respect to it, and of its great¬
er proximity to our system. On examining any part of
it with a good telescope, we perceive a prodigious multi¬
tude of small stars, whose blended light occasions the
whitish appearance which forms so remarkable an object in
the heavens. Yet notwithstanding the apparent contiguity
of the stars which crowd the galaxy, it is certain that
their mutual distances cannot be less than a hundred
thousand times the radius of the terrestrial orbit. From
this we may attempt to form some notion of the incon- •
ceivable distances of the other nebulae, some of which,
probably not inferior in magnitude to the milky-way, ap¬
pear only as small luminous patches in the telescope.
See Tycho de Nova Stella anni 1572; Hevelius, Histo-
riola mirai Stellce in Collo Ceti, anno 1660; Maupertuis,
Figure des Astres, GEuvres, tome i. Lyon, 1756 ; Michel,
Phil. Trans. 1784; Pigott, Phil. Trans. 1785, 1797; Le-
monnier, Mem. Acad. Par. 1789; Lalande, Astronomic
(885) ; Herschel, Phil. Trans, passim. (s.)
PART III.1
PHYSICAL ASTRONOMY.
The whole science of astronomy may be reduced to
two general problems. The first is to express the position
of all the heavenly bodies in terms of the time reckoned
from a given instant, either in the past or the future dura¬
tion of the world. The same may be otherwise stated by
saying, that the thing required is, to express the position
of any one of the heavenly bodies in a function of the
time, the time being considered as the only variable quan¬
tity, though combined with other known quantities, which
enter into the function as the co-efficients of the different
terms. This is the most general view of that which is
usually called descriptive, or sometimes geometrical as¬
tronomy. The solution of this problem enables us to de¬
termine for any time the places of the heavenly bodies,
relatively to one another, and Relatively to any point on
the earth’s surface. It contains under it an endless variety
of subordinate problems, embracing a long series of suc¬
cessive generalizations, from the first observations to the
determination of the orbits of the heavenly bodies, and
the final reduction of all that concerns their motions into
the form of astronomical tables. The second problem is,
to compare the laws of motion in the heavens, as discover¬
ed from the preceding investigations, with the laws of
motion as already known on the surface of the earth, in
order to find out whether or not they are the same; and,
if not, in what their difference consists. The solution of
this problem constitutes what is called Physical Astro¬
nomy : it is the same with inquiring into the causes of the
celestial motions; for by causes we mean the general facts
concerning the motion of bodies which are observed to
take place on the surface of the earth.
Though the first of these two problems goes necessarily
before the second, for the solution of which it affords the
data, yet, after this solution is obtained, it affords great
assistance to many of the researches involved in the first,
and exemplifies, in a most remarkable manner, the use of
theory in the investigation of facts, and the re-action, as
it were, of the second problem on the first.
. Taking for granted the solution of the first problem, as
given under the other Parts of this article, we are now to
1 This portion of the piesent treatise is reprinted from the article on Physical Astronomy contributed by the late Professor Play¬
fair to the Supplement to the fourth, fifth, and sixth editions of this work.
ASTRONOMY.
49
„ lysical consider the second, and to explain the manner in which
A ronotny. it has been resolved by Newton and the philosophers who
^ have come after him.
The history of the first of these two problems is long
and interesting, beginning from the remotest period to
which the records or the traditions of mankind have ven¬
tured to ascend, and coming down to the present time;
and, in the ages to come, it is never likely to know any
limit but the movable instant which separates the past
from the future,—as long, at least, as science and civiliza¬
tion are inhabitants of the earth.
The history of the second comes within small compass;
because, between the first rude effort and the last refined
investigation there is hardly any intermediate step but one.
The concentric orbs of the ancient philosophers were an
attempt at an explanation of the physical causes of the
celestial motions, or at an assimilation of those motions to
such as we are accustomed to see on the surface of the
earth. The great phenomenon to be explained was the
diurnal motion of the heavens, by which so many bodies,
very distant from one another, all describe circles round
the earth, keeping time so precisely with one another, that
the revolutions, whether great or small, are accomplished
in the same interval. This could not be, unless a connec¬
tion subsisted between those bodies ; and the most simple
idea of that connection was, that the bodies were fixed in
the surface of a sphere which revolved on an axis, and
carried them along with it.
If the whole of astronomy had been confined to the
single fact of the diurnal revolution of the fixed stars, the
hypothesis just mentioned would have been quite satisfac¬
tory. But as some of the heavenly bodies, such as the
sun and planets, did not revolve precisely in the same time
with the rest, it was necessary to assign to them particular
spheres of their own. Those spheres, therefore, must be
transparent: light must find an easy passage through
them, and hence they must be crystalline. By degrees,
as more accurate knowledge was obtained of the motion of
the planets, it was found necessary so to increase the
number of the spheres, that the complication of the struc¬
ture was burdensome to the imagination; the hypothesis
did not answer the very first object of a theory, that of
connecting the facts together; and it was so unlike any
process of nature with which we are acquainted, that it
was highly improbable. The hypothesis of the homocen¬
tric orbs therefore fell into discredit, and, after the dis¬
covery of the earth’s motion, was entirely abandoned.
The next attempt to explain the whole system of the
celestial motions was that of Descartes, by means of vor¬
tices of subtile matter, and the pressure which, by the cen¬
trifugal force of those vortices, was produced on the gross¬
er bodies of the stars. But as a taste for accurate know¬
ledge increased, and as men reflected more on the true
objects of philosophic theory, the system of vortices ap¬
peared more and more defective, and at length ceased to
have any followers.
Newton succeeded, who, rejecting all the cumbersome
machinery, both solid and fluid, of his predecessors, adopt¬
ed a plan far more philosophical in the design, and far
more difficult in the execution, than any thing yet known
in the physical or mathematical sciences. Assuming as
true the three general facts concerning the planetary sys¬
tem known by the name of the laws of Kepler, he pro¬
ceeded to inquire by what sort of action on one another
the planets could be made to describe orbits having the
properties indicated by these three general facts. The
general facts to which we now refer, are,
I. That every planet moves so, that the line drawn from
it to the sun describes about the sun areas proportional to the
times.
VOL. IV.
II. That the planets describe ellipses, each of which has Physical
one of its foci in the same point, viz. the centre of the sun. Astronomy.
III. That the squares of the times of the revolutions of the
planets are as the cubes of their mean distances from the sun.
Sect. L—Of the Forces which retain the Planets in their
Orbits.
\. If a body gravitating to a fixed centre have a motion
communicated to it in a direction not passing through that
centre, it will move in a curve, and the straight line drawn
from the body to the centre will describe areas proportional
to the times.
Let S (fig. 109) be the centre to which the body A gra- Plate
vitates, at the same time that a motion is communicatedXCII.
to it in the direction AB. And first,- let the gravitating
or centripetal force be supposed to act, not continually, but
at intervals, producing instantaneously, at the beginning
of each interval, the same velocity that it would have pro¬
duced by acting continually during the whole of that time :
let AC be the" space which the body would describe by
the action of this force alone; also let AB be the space
which it would describe in the same time by the projectile
force acting on it alone. It will therefore describe the
line AD, the diagonal of the parallelogram contained by
AB and AC, and at the end of the first interval will be in
D. If, then, no new impulse of gravity were to act on it,
it would in the second interval of time go on in the direc¬
tion AD, and describe DF equal to AD. But if, at the
beginning of the second interval, an impulse of the centri¬
petal force be instantaneously impressed, sufficient to
carry the body in that time from D to E in the line DS,
it will describe the line DG, the diagonal of the parallelo¬
gram contained by DE and DF. The same is true of the
third interval, in which the body will go from G to L, and
of every subsequent interval. Join SB, SF, SK, &c. Ihe
areas of the triangles ABS, ADS are equal, the triangles
being on the same base AS, and between the same paral¬
lels AS and BD. For the same reason, the triangles
DGS, DFS are equal, and DFS is equal to ADS, because
they have equal bases and the same altitude. For the
same reason, the triangle SGL is equal to SDG, or to
ADS ; and the same is true of all the other triangles that
are described in the equal intervals ot time by the line
drawn from the body to the centre S. This holds, how¬
ever short the intervals may be, and however great their
number; and therefore it is true when the intervals are
infinitely small, and their number infinitely great, that is,
when the action of the centripetal force is continued.
But when the intervals of time become infinitely small,
the rectilineal figure ADGL passes into a curve. For
when these intervals diminish, the lines AB, DF, &c. the
lengths of the parallelograms, diminish in the same pro¬
portion ; but the lines AC, DE, &c. the breadths, diminish
in a greater proportion, viz. in that of the squares of these
intervals. Hence, the angles which AD, DG, GL, the
diagonals, make with the sides AB, DF, GK, continually
diminish; and therefore the angles ADG, DGL, or the
angle which each diagonal makes with that which is con¬
tiguous, increases without limit, so that, as the diagonals
diminish in length, the angles they make with one another
become greater than any finite rectilineal angles, and
therefore the figure becomes a curve line.
That the lines AC, &c. or the supposed effect of the
centrifugal force, diminish as the squares of the times, is
evident "from the laws of the descent of heavy bodies, as
explained under the head of Dynamics.
2. Hence, conversely, if a body move in a curve, so that
the line drawn from it to a fixed point describe areas pro¬
portional to the times, the body gravitates to that point,
or tends continually to descend to it.
50
ASTRONOMY.
Physical For, since it does not move in a straight line, it must be
Astronomy, continually acted on by a deflecting force ; and the direc¬
tion of the deflecting force must always pass through the
same point, otherwise the areas described about that point
would not be proportional to the time.
3. Corollary. The velocities of a body in different points
of the curve which it describes about a centre of force,
are inversely as the perpendiculars drawn from the centre
to the tangents of the curve at these points. Let ACA',
fig. 110, be the curve which a body describes about the
centre S. Let Aa and A!a! be two arches of the curve,
described in the same indefinitely small portion of time.
Join Sa, Sa', then the areas of the triangles ASa, A'Sa'
are equal by this proposition. At A and A!, draw the tan¬
gents AB' A'B', and from S let fall on them the perpendi¬
culars SB and SB'. Because the areas of the triangles
AS«, A'Sa', are equal, Aa X SB — A!a' X SB', or Aa : A'a'
:: SB': SB; but Aa is to A'a' as the velocity of the body
describing the curve at A to its velocity at A, therefore
these velocities are inversely as the perpendiculars SB,
SB'.
The straight line AB (fig. 109), according to which the
projectile motion was impressed on the body, is a tangent
to the curve at the point A.
4. On comparing the first and second of these proposi¬
tions with the first of Kepler’s laws, as just enumerated,
it is evident that the primary planets all gravitate to the
sun, and that the secondary planets gravitate every one to
its primary. The next thing, therefore, is to discover the
law observed by this force, or the function of the distance
to which it is proportional; and also, whether, in that
function, other variable quantities are not involved beside
the distance. The general fact that the orbits, or curves
described by the planets round the sun, are ellipses, may
assist in this investigation, and in expressing the velocity
of a planet, in terms of the radius vector, or its distance
from the sun.
5. Let ADBE (fig. Ill) be the orbit of a planet, S the
focus in which the sun is placed, AB the transverse, and
DE the conjugate axis, C the centre, and F the su¬
perior focus. Let the planet be anywhere at P; draw
a tangent to the orbit in P, on which from the foci let
fall the perpendiculars SG, FH. Draw also DK touching
the orbit in D, and let SK be perpendicular to it. Let
the velocity of the planet, when at the mean distance, or
at D, be = e, and when at P = v. Join SP, FP. Then,
by the corollary to the last proposition, the velocity at D
is to the velocity at P as SG to SK, that is, c : t;:: SG : DC,
DC
or r — c • sg*
But because the triangles SGP, FHP, are equian¬
gular, having right angles at G and H, and also the
angles SPG, FPH equal, from the nature of the ellipse,
SP : PF :: SG: FH, and therefore also SP : PF : SG2: SG
X FH. But SG X FH =:CD2, therefore SP:PF:: SG^CD2,
CD2 PF _ CD CD2
and =
SG2 SP*
Now v — c • , ov v2 — c1
o(jr
SG2’
and
PF
therefore v2 = c2 • ——.
hx
Hence, as the distance of a planet from the sun, at any
point in its orbit to its distance from the superior focus, so
the square of its velocity at its mean distance from the sun
to the square of its velocity at the point just mentioned.
6. If SL be taken in the greater axis equal to SP,
and FN == PF, so that SN = the transverse axis AB,
NL_„ SN—SP ^ _T. .
— c ’—oi  . Then as SN is a given line,
LS SP
v is expressed in terms where SP, the distance from the
sun, is the only variable quantity.
If, from the velocity of the revolving body thus ex- Physical
pressed in terms of the distance, a transition can be made Astronomy i
to that of a body descending in a straight line, the law of
the centripetal force will be easily investigated. This
will be facilitated by the following proposition:
An equal approach to the centre of force produces an
equal increase of the square of the velocity, whether the body
revolve in a curve about the centre, or descend to it in a
straight line. In like manner, equal recesses from the centre
of force produce equal diminutions of the square of the velo¬
cities, in whatever lines the bodies move.
Let ABC (fig. 112) be a curve which a body describes
about a centre, S, to which it gravitates, while another
body descends in a straight line AS, to that centre. Let
BC be any arch of the curve ABC, and let BD, CH, be
arches of circles described from the centre S, intersecting
the line AS in D and H ; the square of the velocity of the
body, which describes the arch BC, will be as much in¬
creased as the square of the velocity of that which falls
through DH.
From the centre S describe the arch bd, indefinitely
near to BD, and draw E/perpendicular to the arch B6.
Also let the centripetal force at B or D be called G.
Now, the part of this force which is in the direction B6,
and which is employed in accelerating the body moving
in that line, is G X ; and the increment of the space
being B6, therefore 2G X — * ^ is the momentary
13 x!j
crement of the square of the velocity of the body at B.
But B/" X B6 =: BE2, because BE6 is a right-angled tri¬
angle, and Ejf the perpendicular on the hypothenuse.
B/XB& _ _ ^ BE2
BE X BE
2G X Dg?. But 2G X Dg? is the momentary increment
of the square of the velocity of the body at D, or the in¬
crement of that square while the body falls from D to d.
These momentary increments therefore are equal; and
as the same may be shown for the next and every subse¬
quent instant, the whole increase of the square of the
velocities of the bodies in moving over BC and DH are
equal.
If the bodies moved in the opposite directions, the one
from C to B, and the other from H to D, it would be
proved, in the same manner, that the squares of their
velocities would be equally diminished.
7. Hence it is evident, that, if the velocities of the re¬
volving and of the falling body are equal in any one in¬
stance when they are equally distant’ from the centre,
their velocities will always be equal when they are equally
distant from that point; for equal quantities receiving
equal increments continue equal.
8. Suppose now that a planet revolves in the elliptical
orbit APB (fig. Ill), it will have at A, the higher ap-
yAF . .
or (if AN in the axis pro¬
duced be taken equal to A F) = c X Bet a body
at A begin to descend towards S with the same velocity;
then if SL = SP, the velocity of the planet at P will be
the same with that of the falling body at L. But the ve-
ypp /NL
pg — c X
therefore, a body descending from A, and falling directly
to the sun under the action of the same centripetal force
which urges the planet, would at any point L in its fall
have its velocity — c X Hence, at the point N
ASTRONOMY.
51
p»
si
hysical
I ronomy.
v
its velocity would be equal to 0, or the body must begin
to fall from N, in order that its velocity may be every¬
where equal to that which the planet has in its orbit,
when at the same distance from the sun.
The law, therefore, according to which the planets
oravitate is such, that any body under the influence of the
same force, and falling direct to the sun, will have its velo¬
city at any point equal to a certain velocity, multiplied into
the square root of the distance it has fallen through, divided
by the square root of the distance between it and the suns
centre.
This is a fact with respect to the law of gravity in the
solar system, of which, though there be no direct ex-
amplCj yet is it no less certain than the ellipticity of the
planetary orbits, of which it is a necessary consequence.
9. From the law thus found to regulate the velocity of
bodies falling in straight lines to the sun, the law of the
force by which that velocity is produced may be derived
by help of reasoning which is quite elementary.
Let C (fig. 113) be the centre to which the falling body
gravitates, A the point from which it begins to fall, and
let its velocity at any point B, be to its velocity in the
yAB
— to 1; it is required
to find the law of the force with which the body gravi¬
tates to C.
Let DEF be a curve, such, that if AD be an ordinate
or a perpendicular to AC, meeting the curve in D, and
BE any other ordinate, AD is to BE as the force at A
to the force at B, then will twice the area ABED be equal
to the square of the velocity which the body has acquired
in B. If, therefore, the velocity at B be v, that at the
/AB
middle point G being’c, v = e^/—, by hypothesis, and
AB
therefore 2ABED = c2 • —; and since AB = AC —
BC, 2ABED = c2.
AC
same reason 2A5ED = c2
BC
= ^AC
= — 1^- For the
 1^, and therefore the
difference of these areas, or 2BieE, that is, 2EB X B6
= c2(w ~~ l^u) := ^ ^ Wherefore, dividing
by Bb, 2EB = c2 . -|^2; or EB = c2 . ^ ; now c2 and
AG are given, therefore EB is inversely as BC2, that is,
the centripetal force at B is inversely as the square of
BC, the distance from the centre of force, /n the pla¬
netary system, therefore, the force with which any planet
gravitates to the sun varies in the inverse ratio of the square
of the distance of the planet from the suns centre.
10. The line CG is the same with the mean distance
of the planet, in an orbit of which AC is the length of the
transverse axis, and if the gravitation at that distance
• . Cl c*
— F, and the mean distance itself — a,Y — (?,—r — —,
a2 a
or «F — <?.
Let it next be required, the elliptic orbit of a planet
being given, to find the time in which the planet will re¬
volve round the sun.
If a be the mean distance, or the semitransverse axis,
b the semiconjugate, then nab — the area of the orbit.
But as c is the velocity at the mean distance, or the el¬
liptic arch which the planet moves over in a second when
it is at D, the vertex of the conjugate axis, therefore ^bc
is the area described in that second by the radius vector;
and since this area is the same for every second of the Physical
planet’s revolution, therefore the area of the orbit divided Astronom7-
by \bc will give the number of seconds in which the re-y
volution is completed, which is therefore = = ‘ffa or
\bc
since
c2 — a F, the time of a revolution = == 27r /-
a A.u V
a
/^F~ ~ v fr‘
11. Hence it is easy to compare the times of the revo¬
lutions of any two planets of which the mean distances
are known. Let t and H be the times of revolution for
two different planets, of which the mean distances are a
and and the gravitation at those distances F and F',
J, i
and, by what has just been shown, t : t'
a!
T’
p2
or
P:t?2::^
d
F'
But F : F :: o'2 : a2, by what is already
shown (Art. 9), therefore t2:?2::^: —, ov t2 \ If2 :a?: a'3,
that is, the squares of the times of revolution of any two pla¬
nets are as the cubes of their mean distances from the sun.
Thus the third law of Kepler is explained by the conclu¬
sions deduced from the other two.
12. The share which this third law has in establishing
the principle of universal gravitation does not seem to
have been always clearly apprehended. From the ellip¬
tical orbit of a planet, it is fairly inferred that, ov.er all
the circumference of that orbit, gravitation is inversely
as the square of the distance from the centre of the sun.
C^Cl
That force is shown to be (% being the distance from
the centre of force), and the same is true of every individual
planet; but whether da was a constant quantity, or one
which retained the same value through the whole planet¬
ary system, could not be known without comparing the
periods of different planets with their distances from the
sun. It was indeed highly probable that da was a given
quantity, or the same for every part of our system; but
it could not be considered as a thing demonstrated till the
evidence of the third law was introduced.
13. These laws hold of the secondary planets relatively
to their primary, just as with the primary planets rela¬
tively to the sun. Each system of secondary planets,
however, has a different numei’ator to the fraction which
expresses gravity; that is, the quantity da is the same for
all the satellites of Jupiter, but it is a different quantity
from that which belongs to the satellites of Saturn, and
different from that which belongs to the primary planets.
The quantity da seems therefore to depend on the cen¬
tral body of each system of planets, and the precise nature
of this connection requires to be farther examined into.
14. Let the centripetal force tending to a given centre
S be inversely as the squares of the distances, and let the
intensity of that force at any given distance from the cen¬
tre be also given; then, if a body be projected from a
given point, with a given velocity, and in a given direc¬
tion, it is required to determine the conic section which
it will describe.
Let the semitransverse, or the mean distance to be
found, = a, the semiconjugate — b, the velocity at the
distance a — c, and at the given distance d let the centri¬
petal force — f; and first let the direction of the initial
motion be at right angles to the radius vector, so that the
point of projection is either the higher or the lower apsis.
Let the velocity of the projection zz v, and the radius
vector at the point of projection — r.
Because the areas described in equal times are equal,
52
ASTRONOMY.
Physical be — rv; and if F denote the centripetal force at the dis-
Astronomy. g2 (fif
' tance a, c2 = a F, and F — —. But F = therefore
a a2
9 ?
and c —
bd
',J-• Hence, by substituting for c,
'Ji — rv, and &2cP/’ — ct'fiv2. But Z^2 — AS X SB ==
r (2 a — r), wherefore r (2 a — r) d2f — ar^v2, and a —
Thus a, the semitransverse axis, and there-
2d2j—rv2
fore the transverse axis itself, is found; and thence with
the focus S and the apsis A, the conic section may be
described.
15. The conic section will be a circle, when r, that is,
d2f
when 2 d2f — v2r — d2f or when d2/ — i?r, and v2 —
2d2f
16. But if 2d2f = rv2, ox v2 — the denominator va¬
nishes, and a becomes infinite, so that the trajectory is
a parabola, of which the focus is S, the vertex A, and the
parameter 4r. The square of the velocity which determines
the trajectory to be a parabola is, therefore, double of the
square of the velocity which determines it to be a circle.
17. When 2d2f'y-v2r, the value of a is affirmative and
the conic section is an ellipsis, and this ellipsis has its
d?f (frf
higher apsis at A, if v2<—; but when , and less
2d2f
A is the lower apsis.
18. When v2 goes beyond this last limit, or when
2d?f
v2 value of a is negative, and the trajectory
becomes an hyperbola.
19. Next, let the body be projected from B (fig.l 14) with
the velocity v, in the direction BD, oblique to BS. Find
the distance from which a body must fall to acquire at B
the velocity v, and let OB, taken in SB produced, be equal
to this distance; then is SO equal to the transverse axis.
Let BE be drawn, making with BD the same angle that
SB makes with BG, and let BE = BO, then is E the
higher focus. Produce SE toN, so that SN = SO, and
bisect EN in A, then is A the higher apsis; and if SP be
made equal to EA, P is the lower apsis, and AP the trans¬
verse axis; and therefore the foci and the transverse axis
being given, the elliptic orbit may be described.
20. From what has been shown at Art. 9, it is evident
that the primary planets gravitate to the sun with forces
that are inversely as the squares of the distances, and that
the secondary gravitate toward the primary, according to
the same law. This inference, however, does not apply
exactly to the moon, which, being a single satellite, does
not by comparison with any other afford a proof that, in
bodies revolving round the earth, the squares of the perio¬
dic times are as the cubes of the mean distances. The
centripetal force at the moon, however, from our know¬
ledge of her periodic time, may be compared with the
force of gravity at the earth’s surface, and will determine
whether that force decreases as we recede from the earth
in the inverse ratio of the squares of the distances.
Let a be the distance of the moon from the centre of
the earth, r the radius of the earth, g the velocity ac¬
quired by a heavy body at the earth’s surface by falling
during one second; let t be the period of the moon’s re¬
volution in seconds, and c the velocity of her motion.
Then, by Art. 14, ac2 = iPg, and therefore c — r /-.
V a
Now, the circumference of the circle described by the
moon is 2na, and this, divided by c, gives the periodic
time of the moon in seconds, or —^ X = t, so that Astronomy
„ 4‘7r2«3 rSgt2 a3 gt2 , a
t2 = —5—, and a6 = -p—,. Hence —^ = fhr > and - —
r2g 4<T“ r3 4irV r
(gt2 \l
pJ 3. Hence, as g, r, and t are known, we may find
-, or the ratio of the moon’s distance to the radius of the
r
earth, which, if it come out the same that it is known to
be from observations of the moon’s parallax, will prove that
the force which retains the moon in her orbit is the same
that causes bodies to fall at the surface of the earth, but
diminished in the same ratio that the square of the
moon’s distance is greater than the square of the radius
of the earth.
Now g — 32T66 feet, r — 3481279'4 fathoms or
20887676-4 feet, and t = 2360591-5 seconds. Hence -
r
= 60-218.
Now the mean equatorial parallax of the moon is found
by observation = 57' 0"-9, from which the mean distance,
in semidiameters of the equator, is found = 59-964.
But it is in mean semidiameters of the earth that the
moon’s distance is given in the former computation;
therefore, to reduce the last measure to the same scale,
it must be increased by a 600th part, as the mean radius
of the globe is about that much less than the radius of
the equator; the distance 59-964 then becomes 60-063,
which agrees with the former number to the small frac¬
tion -003 of the earth’s radius.
Thus, from the theory of gravity, combined with the
time of the moon’s sidereal revolution, her distance from
the earth is found to within a very small fraction of the
whole.
21. It is therefore a general proposition, derived from
the most rigorous induction, that the primary planets gravi¬
tate to the sun, and the secondary planets to the primary,
with forces which are inversely as the squares of the distances.
But since, in all communication of motion, the re-action is
equal to the action, when a planet gravitates to the sun,
analogy forces us to conclude that the sun gravitates to
the planet, in such a manner, that if the momentary ap¬
proach of the planet to the sun, and of the sun to the
planet, were respectively multiplied by the quantity of
matter in those bodies, the products, or the quantities of
motion, would be equal. Such a mutual tendency, there¬
fore, of the great bodies of our system to the sun, and of
the sun to them, doubtless takes place; but whether this
be in consequence of an attractive force residing in their
centres, as the magnetic force does in certain parts of the
loadstone, or if it arise from the mutual attraction of all
the particles of the one for all the particles of the other,
does not appear from the phenomena hitherto examined.
We may, however, observe that the bodies between which
this attraction in the inverse ratio of the squares of the
distances takes place, are all of a round form, and are
either accurately spherical, or nearly approaching to that
shape. It will therefore be of use for resolving this ques¬
tion, to inquire whether, if the particles of matter did at¬
tract one another with forces inversely as the squares of
their distances, the spherical bodies, compounded of such
particles, would attract one another according to the same
law. If this is found to be the case, it will be reasonable
to conclude that the gravitation of large bodies to one
another arises from the mutual attraction of their particles
to one another.
22. In order to determine the relation between the at¬
traction of a sphere and that of the particles of which it
consists, we may consider the sphere as made up of plates
ASTRONOMY.
p.sical or lamina infinitely great in number, and infinitely small
Asi nomy-in thickness. The attraction of each of these is to be es¬
timated, and from thence the attraction of the whole may
be computed. Let AFBG (fig. 115), therefore, be a circu¬
lar plate, of which the centre is C; CE a straight line
passing through C, and perpendicular to the plane AFBG;
E any particle in that line attracted by each particle of
the circular plate, as D, with a force inversely as the
square of DE, the distance between the particles; it is
required to find the whole force with which E is attracted
in the direction EC.
If DC be drawn, the force with which D attracts E
in the direction ED is inversely as DE2 or as and
53
• _ Physical
y — —. By substituting these values of y and y in the Astronomy.
expression for the attraction of the circular plate, that
2'vxxf^ d?13x}
attraction =—(1 ^
■)
(2axx — d?x +r3.r — ofixX
  y
But the attraction of this circular plate may be consi¬
dered as the fluxion of the attraction of the spherical seg¬
ment, generated by the revolution of the arch AD, and
therefore the fluent of the above fluxionary quantity will
give the attraction of that segment. Now, this fluent
that same force, reduced to the direction EC, is as
. fax? — d?x + iPx — T a?3\ , „ TI „
1 —-W 1i—) + C. Here C must be
so
EC
X Tvr =
From the centre C, with the radius DC,
EC
DE “ DE3'
let a circle DKH be described, and indefinitely near it
the circle dkh; then, since every particle in the ring of
matter contained between these circles has its attraction
EC
proportional to tf16 attraction of the whole ring will
FC • •
be as multiplied into the number of particles, or into
ED3
the solidity of the ring. But if EC — a, ED = x, and
AC = r, CD2 = x? — a2, and the surface of the ring
— 2‘ffxr. If then the thickness of the plate AFBG = m,
the solidity of the ring = 2‘xmxx, and its attraction in the
. 2ttmxx X a 2‘Ttamx ^ a . c
direction EC is = — ^} “uerd
which taken so as to vanish when DC rr 0, or when x = a,
2vma
\ «
determined that the fluent may be equal to 0, when the
arch AD = 0, or when x = y = a — r. Therefore C
=*(
1 a3 — ar2 + # r3
and the attraction
■ ar2 + ^ r3).
= -^(ax? — a^x+i^x — 3 + s «3-
a2 v
This is the attraction of the spherical segment generated
by the arch AD, and will become equal to that of the whole
sphere when AD=the semicircle ADB, or when x=a + r.
This substitution being made, and the terms reduced, the
. kitr3
attraction is found =
3a2*
4‘ffr3 . ■,.
But—is the solid content
is 2cm •
— 2cm
(■-9=
the attraction of the
circle DKH. Therefore, when x — AE, the whole attrac¬
tion of the plate, or the whole force which it exerts on the
(EC\
1— ^t)'
23. Next, let ABD (fig. 116) be a circle of which the
centre is C, and E a particle of matter anywhere in the
diameter AB produced. Draw ED to any point D in the
circumference ; draw also DC, and let DF be at right an¬
gles to AB. Then, when the whole figure revolves about
EB, the semicircle ADB will generate a sphere, and DF
a circle perpendicular to the plane ABD, and having its
centre in F. If all the particles of the sphere attract the
particle E with forces inversely as the squares of their
distances from it, then, by the last proposition, the attrac¬
tion of the circular plate, of which the centre is F, will be
EF\
ED/
2<xm(\— I.
of the sphere ; therefore the attraction of the sphere, on any
particle E, is as the quantity of matter in the sphere, di¬
vided by the square of the distance of its centre from E.
Hence also the sphere attracts any particle without it, as if
all its matter were united in its centre. The sphere, it is
also obvious, would attract another sphere just in the ra¬
tio of its quantity of matter, divided by the distance of
the centres of the spheres.
24. Thus, supposing that the particles of matter at¬
tract one another with forces which are inversely as the
squares of the distances, it is certain that the spherical
bodies composed of these particles would do so likewise,
or would attract one another with forces directly as their
quantities of matter, and inversely as the squares of the
distances of their centres. Since, therefore, it has been
found that round or spherical bodies, such as the sun and
the planets, do attract other bodies with forces that are
inversely as the squares of the distances, it is reasonable
to suppose that these bodies are composed of particles
gravitating towards one another, or attracting one another
with forces inversely as the squares of the distances. Gra¬
vitation, therefore, is not to be considered as a force residing
in the centres of the planets, but as a force belonging to all
the particles of matter, and as universally diffused through¬
out the universe.
And as it has been shown that between spherical bo¬
dies constituted of such particles, the force of attraction
is as the quantity of matter in the attracting body, divid¬
ed by the square of the distance between its centre and
that of the attracted body; if m be the mass or quantity
of matter in the former body, and x the distance of the
Let CE=a, ACzr/-, ED=a;, EF=?/, and the attraction
above will be 2vm(l— ^ ; and if x and y be variable, the
quantity m in this formula, or the thickness of the circu¬
lar plate, will be =y, and therefore the attraction of the
plate :=2iry^l—Q. In order to integrate this quantity, centres, is the value off, the accelerating force with
y must be expressed in terms of x, or x in terms of y.
Now, because AfL—a — r, and AFzry — a-\-r, FB
—2r — y-\-a — r—a-\-r — y, and AFxFBzz^ — a + r)
(a + r—y)—is‘—a2 + 2ay — t/2=DF2—a?2 — y-
a2 — r^ + cc2
r2 — a2 + 2ay = jc2, or y-
2a
'2 Hence
and therefore
which it attracts the other body.
25. Hence the masses of any two planets which have
bodies revolving round them may be compared with one
another. Let a and a’ be the mean distances at which
satellites revolve about any two planets, m and m' the
quantities of matter in those planets, t and t their periods
5-i
ASTRONOMY.
Physical
Astronomy. 0£* revoiution; it has been shown that t—
1
2<ra2
2vJ
dp
and consequently t
1
m'2
and m : m! :—z •.-z-.
f ' f2'
The masses, therefore, of any two planets are as the cubes
of the mean distances at which their satellites revolve, divid¬
ed by the squares of the periodic times of those satellites.
26. In this way the masses of the four planets which
have satellites may be compared with one another, and
with the mass of the sun.
When this calculation is undertaken with the most
correct data, it is found that, making
Mass of the Sun 1
that of the Earth 
of Jupiter.
354936
1
of Saturn.
1070-5
1
of Uranus.
3512
1
vity. Thus, if S denote the mass of the sun, and E that of Physical ^
the earth, the distances from the centre being CP and CS, As,ronotiij1 W
the orbit which each of the two bodies will appear to de-'^>rN/v ^
scribe round the other, is that which would be described
about an immovable centre C, with a centripetal force
_ S + E
“ SP2 *
Thus we have arrived at the knowledge of the principle
of universal gravitation, a power which pervades all
nature, extending to an unlimited distance, and determin¬
ing the condition of every body in the universe at any
instant, from its state in the former instant, and from the
relations in which it stands to all other bodies. Whether
this force can be explained upon any principle more ge¬
neral than itself, is yet undecided, though, from the bad
success which has hitherto attended all attempts towards
that object, it seems probable that such explanation is not
within the reach of the human understanding. Thus much,
however, we know with certainty, that the law of gra¬
vity, as just announced, may be considered as a very ac¬
curate expression of all the phenomena of the planetary
motions.
  “ 17918
Or if we make the mass of the Earth 1, that of the
Sun = 329630, of Jupiter 330-6, of Saturn 101-06, and
of Uranus 20-3. From this also may be derived the den¬
sities of the sun and of the four planets just mentioned.
Seen from a distance equal to the mean radius of the
earth’s orbit, the diameter of the sun subtends an angle of
1923", that of the earth would subtend 17"-4, of Jupiter
186"-8, of Saturn 177"-7, and of Uranus 74". The real
diameters, therefore, are in the proportion of these num¬
bers, and the bulk in the proportion of their cubes. By di¬
viding the quantities of matter by the bulks, we have the
densities; and if that of the earth be 4-713, which is its
mean density, that of water being — 1, then
Density of the Sun =1-1775
of the Earth =4-713
of Jupiter  =1-1678
of Saturn  =0-4055
of Uranus  =1-0348.
The mean density of the earth, in respect of water, is
here taken from the experiments made at Schehallien.
{Phil. Trans. 1811, p. 376.)
27. It has been already observed, that because action
is always accompanied by an equal re-action, when the
sun attracts a planet, the planet also attracts the sun,
and that the velocities impressed on the bodies by their
mutual attraction are in the inverse ratio of their masses.
In consequence of this mutual action the sun and the
planet must both move, and must describe orbits about
their common centre of gravity, the only point which the
mutual action of those bodies has no tendency to put in
motion.
In the solar system, therefore, the centre of gravity of
the whole is the focus about which all the orbits are de¬
scribed. Thus, if C be that centre (fig. 117), S the sun,
and P a planet; while P describes the elliptic arch PP'
about C, S describes the arch SS' similar to PP', and
having to it the ratio that SC has to CP, or the ratio
which the mass of the planet has to the mass of the sun.
The true orbits, therefore, are all described about the
same immovable point; but the orbit of any of the planets
may be referred to the sun as a centre, by supposing a
body placed in that centre equal to the sum of the masses
of the sun and of the planet. This is true, because the
bodies appear to approach one another, or to recede from
one another, with a force that is equal to the sum of the
forces with which they tend towards their centre of gra¬
Sect. II.-
■ Of the Forces which disturb the Elliptic Motion
of the Planets.
1. Of the force by which the Sun disturbs the motion of
the Moon round the Earth.
28. The motion of the moon in an elliptic orbit round
the earth is disturbed by the action of the sun: the gra¬
vity of the moon to the earth is increased at the quadra¬
tures, and diminished at the syzygies; and the areas de¬
scribed by the radius vector, except near these four points,
are never exactly proportional to the times.
Let ADBC (fig. 118) be the orbit, nearly circular, in
which the moon M revolves, in the direction C ADB, round
the earth E. Let S be the sun, and let SE, the radius
of the earth’s orbit, be taken to represent the force with
which the earth gravitates to the sun.
1 1 g£3
Then ^2: "gyp : : SE : —= the force by which the sun
draws the moon in the direction MS. Take MG=
SE3
SM2’
and let the parallelogram KF be described, having MG for
its diagonal, and having its sides parallel to EM and ES.
The force MG may be resolved into the two, MF and MK,
of which MF, directed towards E, the centre of the earth,
increases the gravity of the moon to the earth, and does
not hinder the areas described by the radius vector from
being proportional to the times.
The other force MK draws the moon in the direction
of the line joining the centres of the sun and earth. It is,
however, only the excess of this force above the force re¬
presented by SE, or that which draws the earth to the
sun, which disturbs the relative position of the moon and
earth. This is evident, for if KM were just equal to ES,
no disturbance of the moon relatively to the sun could
arise from it. If, then, ES be taken from MK, the dif¬
ference HK is the whole force in the direction parallel to
SE, by which the sun disturbs the relative position of the
moon and earth. Now, if in MK, MN be taken equal to
FIK, and if NO be drawn perpendicular to the radius
vector EM produced, the force MN may be resolved into
two, MO and ON, the first lessening the gravity of the
moon to the earth; and the second, being parallel to the
tangent of the moon’s orbit in M, accelerates the moon’s
motion from C to A, retards it from A to D, and so alter¬
nately in the other two quadrants.
Thus the whole solar force directed to the centre of
55
ASTRONOMY.
p.sical the earth is composed of the two parts MF and MO, which
Astpomy. are sometimes opposed to one another, but which nevei
^ affect the uniform description of the areas about E. Near
the quadratures the force MO vanishes, and the force
MF, which increases the gravity of the moon to the earth,
coincides with CE or DE. As the moon approaches the
conjunction at A, the force MO prevails over MF, and
lessens the gravity of the moon to the sun. In the oppo¬
site point of the orbit, when the moon is in opposition at
B, the force with which the sun draws the moon is less
than that with which the sun draws the earth, so that the
effect of the solar force is to separate the moon and earth,
or to increase their distance; that is, it is the same as if,
conceiving the earth not to be acted on, the sun s force
drew the moon in the direction from E to B. This force
is negative, therefore, in respect of the force at A, and
the effect in both cases is to draw the moon from the sun,
in a direction perpendicular to the line of the quadratuies.
29. The analytical values of these forces must be found
if a more exact estimate is to be made of their effects.
Let SE, considered as constant, — a ; EM, the radius vec¬
tor of the moon’s orbit, = r; the angle GEM = p; the
mass of the sun = m. The force SE, then, which retains
force is and by this quantity the moon’s gravita-Astronomy.
tion is diminished.
The mean quantity of the force which is thus continu¬
ally directed to or from the centre of the earth may also
be easily computed. Since for any point in the moon s
orbit, where the radius vector makes the angle <p with the
line of the quadratures, this force =-^3 (1 — 3sin.2p);
multiplying by 9, we have (p—sin.2 p), the fluent
of which = ^ ( — 2 P H" § s^n* P P)’ an^ t^s’
when <p is an entire circumference or four right angles,
is v —This is the sum of the forces for an en-
a? 2
tire revolution, and when divided by $r, gives the mean
force — |^, which being negative, shows that the solar
force, on the whole, diminishes the gravitation of the moon
to the earth.
the earth in its orbit, is and the sun s force in the di-
771
rection SM, if ML be drawn perpendicular to ES, is
— SL2-FLM2~(a—rsin.p^ + r’cos.p a2—2ar sin.p + r2’
The part of this force, which is in the direction ES or
MK, is therefore . 2  -5 r ^ , .-f. By raising the
’ (a2—2arsin. 9 + ^)
denominator to the power — §, rejecting the terms which
involve the higher powers of/’, and multiplying ma by those
m /, 3r . \
that are left, the force MK comes out zz—(1 + ~~ sin* f 1
(Z \ CL /
77t
nearly. Taking away from this ES or MH——, there re¬
mains the force MNzz—x 3/1 sin. cp.
or
771
Hence the force MO=^ • 3r sin.2©; and the force
cr r
771
NO at right angles to the radius vector = — • Sr sin. p
X cos. p — sin. 2p; also the force MF =
rejecting such terms as involve the square and higher
powers of r. Therefore MF—MO, or the whole solar
force increasing or diminishing at any point, the moon’s
771T
tendency to the earth is — 3 sin.2p).
30. At the quadratures where 9 vanishes, this force is
and is affirmative, increasing the moon’s gravity to the
earth. At a certain point, between the quadratures and
the syzygies, when 3 sin.2p = 1, or sin. p rr —that is,
when <p — 35° 15' 5", the same force becomes equal to 0,
and at this point in each quadrant the moon’s gravity to
the earth is neither increased nor diminished. From these
points to the conjunction and opposition, as sin. <p increases,
the quantity 1 — 3 sin.2 p is negative, and the moon’s gra¬
vity to the earth suffers a diminution. At the opposition
and conjunction sin. f = 1, and therefore the disturbing
Thus it appears, that at the quadratures the gravity of
the moon to the earth is increased by a quantity equal to the
mass of the sun, multiplied into the radius of the moons or¬
bit, and divided by the cube of the suns distance from the
earth; at the syzygies it is diminished by twice this quan¬
tity; and the effect on the whole is a diminution by one half
of the same quantity.
If be reduced to its numerical value, supposing the
a3
moon’s gravitation to the earth to be 1, it is found =
nearly. Hence the mean disturbing force of the sun is
nearly — of the moon’s gravity to the earth.
J boo
31. From the disturbing force of the sun arise two kinds
of inequalities which affect the lunar motions ; the one
kind affects the form and position of the orbit of that pla¬
net, the other immediately affects the motion of the pla¬
net in the orbit. When any of these inequalities is ex¬
pressed numerically, the measure of it so obtained is, in
the language of astronomy, called an Equation.
32. The line in which the plane of the moon’s orbit
cuts the ecliptic is called the line of the nodes; and this
line is subject to change its position continually, in such a
manner as to go back annually 19° 19' 42"-3. The way in
which this effect is produced may be thus conceived. That
part of the solar force which is parallel to the line joining
the centres of the sun and earth, is not in the plane of the
moon’s orbit, except when the sun itself is in that plane,
or when the line of the nodes, being produced, passes
through the sun. In all other cases it is oblique to the
plane of the orbit, and may be resolved into two forces,
one of which is at right angles to that plane, and is di¬
rected towards the ecliptic. This force of course draws
the moon continually towards the ecliptic, or produces a
continual deflection of the moon from the plane of her
own orbit towards that of the earth. Hence the moon
meets the plane of the ecliptic sooner than it would have
done if that force had not acted. At every half-revolu¬
tion, therefore, the point in which the earth meets the
ecliptic advances in a direction contrary to that of the
moon’s motion, or contrary to the order of the signs. This
retrograde motion is such that, in its mean quantity, it
amounts to 19° 19' 42"*3 in a year. The manner of de-
56
ASTRONOMY.
Physical ducing it from the theory of gravity is explained by New-
Astronomy. ton, Princip. lib. iii. prop. 31. This motion is subject to
many inequalities, depending on the changes in the quan¬
tity and direction of the solar force.
If the earth and the sun were at rest, the effect of the
deflecting force just described would be to produce a re¬
trograde motion of the line of the nodes till that line was
brought to pass through the sun, and of consequence the
plane of the moon’s orbit to do the same, after which they
would both remain in their position, there being no longer
any force tending to produce a change in either. The
motion of the earth carries the lines of the nodes out of
this position, and produces, by that means, its continual
retrogradation.
33. The same force produces a small variation in the
inclination of the moon’s orbit, giving it an alternate in¬
crease and decrease within very narrow limits.
34. The line of the moon’s apsides, that is, the longer
axis of her orbit, has also a slow angular motion round
the centre of the earth, which is progressive, or in the
same direction with the motions of the moon itself. To
conceive the cause of this phenomenon, we may begin
with supposing the moon at the lower apsis, or perigee;
and it is plain, if that planet were urged by no other force
than its gravitation to the earth, that after the radius vec¬
tor had moved over 180°, the moon would be at the higher
apsis, where its motion would be at right angles to the
said radius. But as the mean disturbing force in the di¬
rection of the radius vector tends, on the whole, to dimi¬
nish the gravitation of the moon to the earth, the portion
of her path, described in any instant, will be less bent or
deflected from the tangent, than if this disturbing force
did not exist. The actual path of the moon, therefore,
will be less incurvated than the elliptic orbit that would
be described under the influence of gravity alone, and will
not be brought to intersect the radius vector at right
angles, till this last have moved over an arch of more
than 180°.
Hence the solar force, by lessening the moon’s gravity
to the earth, produces a progressive motion in the apsides
of the lunar orbit. If the disturbing force had increased
the moon’s gravity to the earth, the motion of the ap¬
sides would have been in antecedentia.
The precise quantity of the motion of the apsides is not
however easily determined. Newton left this part of the
lunar theory almost untouched; and the only investiga¬
tion he has entered into having any reference to it, as¬
signed a measure only the half of that which is known
from observation to belong to it. Several years after¬
wards, when Clairaut attempted a more accurate investi¬
gation of the lunar inequalities than was to be obtained
by the method which Newton had followed, he at first en¬
countered the same difficulty, and found that his calculus
gave the motion of the apogee only half of the real quan¬
tity. He began, therefore, to suspect that gravity does
not follow so simple a law as the inverse of the squares of
the distances, but one which is more complex, and such
as cannot be expressed but by a formula of two terms.
The second of these terms he supposed to be inversely as
the fourth power of the distance, and proceeded to in¬
quire what must be the co-efficient of that term, in order
to make this new supposition represent the true motion of
the apsides. In order to this, he found it necessary to
carry his approximation farther than he had yet done,
and to include terms which he had before neglected.
When these terms were included, he found that the co¬
efficient he was seeking for came out equal to 0; the ne¬
cessary inference from which was, that there was no such
term; and that the Newtonian law of gravity, when the
approximation was carried far enough, was quite sufficient
to explain the motion of the apsides. This doubt con- Physical
cerning the law of gravity terminated, therefore, in the Astronoim
confirmation of it. ^ ~
35. When the doubts excited by Clairaut’s first attempt
were made known, and before his final solution of the
difficulty was fully understood, there were several mathe¬
maticians who, still following the method of Newton, en¬
deavoured to deduce the true motion of the moon’s ap¬
sides from the theory of gravity. Among those who were
most successful in this attempt were Dom. Walmesley,
and afterwards Dr Matthew Stewart, professor of mathe¬
matics in the university of Edinburgh. In his Mathema¬
tical and Physical Tracts he has demonstrated this re¬
markable theorem:
Let r be the radius of the moon’s orbit, supposing it to
be a circle, and the moon to be acted on only by F, her
gravity to the earth. If the mean disturbing force by
which the sun diminishes the moon’s gravity be f, then
will the greatest distance to which the moon will recede
F—3/*
from the earth be r x
and the cube of this dis-
F-5/’
tance will be to the cube of r, in the duplicate ratio of
the angle described by the moon from one apsis to the
same apsis again, to four right angles.
Hence the angle described by the radius vector from
This proposition, which is demonstrated by Dr Stewart
in the fourth of his Tracts, in a manner somewhat prolix,
on account of his rigorous adherence to the methods of
the ancient geometry, but in a way perfectly clear and
elementary, is employed by him to deduce the mean dis¬
turbing force from the motion of the apsides as ascer¬
tained by observation. But when the mean disturbing
force is known from other phenomena, the same proposi¬
tion may be employed to deduce the motion of the ap¬
sides from that force. Accordingly, if the disturbing
force be taken = 357^7> the motion of the apsides will
come out = 3° F 20" for a sidereal revolution of the moon,
very near the quantity actually observed.
36. Having determined the sun’s mean disturbing force
from the motion of the apsides, Dr Stewart proceeded to
determine from the former of these the sun’s distance
from the earth. The result of a very nice investigation
gave the sun’s parallax 6"*9, a quantity that is no doubt
too small, and makes of course the sun’s distance too
great. It is indeed but an inconsiderable part of the sun’s
disturbing force into which the parallax enters as an ele¬
ment, and therefore any deduction founded on it must be
liable to this inaccuracy, that a small error in the data
will produce a great one in the result.
37. After the inequalities which are conceived as be¬
longing to the moon’s orbit, come those which directly
affect the place of the moon in that orbit. The most con¬
siderable of these, after what is called the equation of the
centre, arising from the elliptic figure of the lunar orbit,
and independent of all disturbance, is the equation or in¬
equality called the evection, which was discovered by the
Greek astronomers. This depends on the position of the
transverse axis of the moon’s orbit in respect of the line
of the syzygies. When that axis is in the line just men¬
tioned, because the quantity by which the solar force di¬
minishes the gravitation of the moon in the syzygies is,
cceterisparibus, proportional to her distance from the earth,
it is greatest when the moon is in the apogee, and least
when in the perigee. In this situation of the orbit, there¬
fore, the greatest diminution is made from the quantity
of the moon’s gravitation which is already the least, and
ASTRONOMY.
Ij hysical the least from that which is already the greatest; the gra-
I tronomy. vitation at the perigee, and therefore the difference, is
f augmented, and the orbit appears to have its eccentricity
increased. When the line of the apsides is in the quad¬
ratures, the contrary happens ; the gravitation at the apo¬
gee is most augmented, and at the perigee least; the dif¬
ference is therefore diminished, and the eccentricity of
the lunar orbit seems also to be diminished. This is con¬
formable to observation; and when the evection is accu¬
rately deduced from the theory of gravitation, it appears
= (1° 20' 29"*9) sin. ^2 ( ([ — ©)—aj where d is the
mean longitude of the moon, 0 that of the sun, and a the
mean anomaly of the moon counted from the perigee.
138. The moon’s variation is an inequality which was
discovered by Tycho, and found to depend on the angu¬
lar distance of that planet from the sun. It is derived
from that part of the sun’s disturbing force which is at
right angles to the radius vector, and which accelerates
the motion of the moon from the quadratures to the sy-
zygies, and retards it from the syzygies to the quadra¬
tures. The effect of this force is found, from the theory
of gravity, to be represented by three terms, which, if a
be the angular distance of the moon from the sun, are,
+ (35' 41"-9) sin. 2 a
q- ( 0' 2" ) sin. 3 a
-j- ( 0' 14" ) sin. 4 a.
139. The lunar inequality, called the annual equation,
arises from the variation of the sun’s disturbing force ac¬
cording to the place wdiich the earth occupies in its orbit.
It is shown above that the sun’s disturbing force is, cceteris
paribus, as the cube of his distance from the earth ; so that
when the earth is in its perihelion this force is the great¬
est, and at the aphelion the least, its effect varying at the
Isame rate with the equation of the sun’s centre, or having
everywhere the same ratio to that equation. Hence this
equation is nearly (IT 12") x sin. sun’s mean anomaly,
with a contrary sign to the equation of the sun’s centre.
40. These inequalities are all phenomena which were
observed before the explanation of them was known. To
them may be added a fourth inequality, known by the
name of the moon’s acceleration. It appeared to astro¬
nomers as a continual increase in the velocity of the moon,
I or in the rate of her mean motion, amounting to about
10" in a century, and its effect, like that of all other con¬
stant accelerations, accumulating as the squares of the
times. It did not seem to'be periodical, like the other
lunar inequalities, but to be a constant increase of the ve¬
locity, and a corresponding diminution of the periodical
time of the moon, which must in the end change entirely
the relation of that body to the earth.
It is but within these few years that Laplace discover¬
ed it to be a periodic inequality, though requiring, in or¬
der to accomplish the series of its changes, a length of
time which science has not yet ventured to calculate.
For many centuries to come it may be expressed by this
formula, taking n to denote the number of centuries reck¬
oned from the year 1700, viz.
10"*7232 X «2 + 0"‘019361 x n\
The first term includes all that wras known from obser¬
vation previously to the discovery of Laplace. This,
however, must be considered not as the true form of the
equation, which must include the sines or cosines of cer¬
tain angles, but merely a provisional formula, to serve till
the true one can be rigorously assigned.
This inequality has in its cause a great affinity to the
annual equation.
Whatever changes the form of the earth’s orbit, has an
effect on the disturbing force of that body on the moon,
which is in the inverse ratio of the cube of the distance
VOL. IV.
57
between the sun and earth. But it is found that though Physical
the mean distance remains invariable, the eccentricity 0fAstr0'^^
the earth’s orbit changes, on account of the action of the
other planets, and in fact has been diminishing, from a
more remote antiquity than that to which the history of
astronomy extends. From this cause Laplace has deduced
the supposed acceleration of the moon’s mean motion.
41. All these inequalities have been pointed out by ob¬
servations, and have been explained in the most satisfac¬
tory manner by the principle of universal gravitation.
But when all these were reduced into equations and ar¬
ranged in tables, yet the places of the moon calculated
from them were never quite exact; and there seemed a
cause of error or a mass of small inequalities unknown in
their magnitude and form, to which this inaccuracy was
to be ascribed, and which operated, as it may be said, like
a mist which concealed the true place of the moon from
the calculator, and prevented his results from agreeing
completely with those of the observer. The most likely
way to discover these inequalities, if they arose from gra¬
vity, wras to push the approximation to the moon’s place
still farther, and to try if the terms hitherto neglected in
the approximation would not, when taken into account,
afford a complete analysis of the circle of confusion
which might be said to surround the moon on all occa¬
sions.
The problem on which mathematicians now entered,
and which Clairaut, already mentioned, Euler, and D’Alem¬
bert, all three resolved nearly about the same time, has
been called the Problem of Three Bodies. The thing
proposed is, three bodies which attract one another with
forces directly as their quantities of matter, and inversely
as the squares of their distances, being given, and any
motions whatever being impressed on them, to find the or¬
bits which they will describe round their common centre
of gravity. It is, however, only in certain cases that this
general problem admits of solution, and one of these is,
when one of the bodies is at a vast distance from the
other two. This is exactly the case with the moon and
earth in respect of the sun, the orbit of the earth being
nearly the same as if there only existed the sun and earth,
and the orbit of the moon relative to the earth being
nearly the same if there were only the moon and earth.
This solution of the problem, however, in this direct way,
leads to far more exact conclusions than can be obtained
from the more simple but more indirect method which
Newton followed. The general view which leads to the
most exact estimate of the merit of the two solutions is,
that the motions of the moon, when analytically and fully
expressed, necessarily form a number of different series,
each of which converges with more or less rapidity. The
prosecution of the direct method allows the terms of these
series to be computed to an indefinite extent, or till the
quantities omitted are too small to affect observation. The
method of Newton can go no farther than to compute the
first, or at most a few of the leading terms of each of the
series. Its accuracy is therefore limited; that of the
other knows no limits. Though this be a true estimate
of the value of the methods, yet that of the original in¬
ventor possesses infinite merit, as having first led the way
to this arduous investigation, and as still serving to carry
the imagination better along with it than the other, and
to keep the mechanical principles more directly in view.
The complete solution of the problem of the three
bodies has accordingly discovered a great number of new
equations, each individually small, which would sometimes
nearly destroy one another, and, at other times, having
many of them the same sign, would accumulate to a
considerable amount. This was the triumph of the the¬
ory, and the strongest evidence of its truth. The effect
H
ASTRONOMY.
58
Physical of these irregularities varied so much, and depended on
Astronomy. so many elements, that it may be doubted whether the
most accurate and most constant observation would ever
have enabled astronomers to discover their precise quan¬
tities, and to separate them from one another.
The tables of the moon, in the state to which they are now
brought, contain twenty-eight equations for the longitude,
twelve for the latitude, and thirteen for the horizontal
parallax of the moon. Of the first of these, twenty-three
have been deduced from theory alone; of the second, nine;
and of the third, eleven. This applies to the tables of
Burg ; those since published by Burckhardt contain more
equations, and are still more accurate.
2. Of the Disturbance in the Motion of the Primary Planets,
produced by their action on one another.
42. It is evidently necessary, in this inquiry, to know
the quantities of matter in the different planets, or, which
comes to the same, the intensity of the attraction of each
at a given distance from its centre. With respect to those
planets which have satellites, the Earth, Jupiter, Saturn,
and Uranus, their masses or quantities of matter have been
already determined. The masses of Venus and Mars have
been estimated by Laplace, from the effects which they
appear to produce on the earth’s motion. The mass of
Mercury has been estimated on the supposition that the
densities of that planet and of the earth are inversely as
their mean distances from the sun. This law holds with
respect to the Earth, Jupiter, and Saturn, and analogy
renders it probable that the same law includes the other
planets. Thus, the mass of the Sun being 1, that of Mer-
cury is aoako’of Venus 40^7? imd of Mars '
the masses of the other planets being as already stated.
43. The effects of the action of the planets on one an¬
other is more difficult to be investigated than the effects
of the sun’s action on the moon, because the disturbing
forces are not only more numerous, but because the dis¬
tance of the disturbing from the disturbed body is not so
great that the quantities divided by higher powers of that
distance can be so safely rejected. The general principle,
however, according to which the solar action on the moon
was resolved into forces either in the direction of the radius
vector or at right angles to it, is applicable to both questions.
Thus, supposing P and P' (fig. 119) to be two planets
revolving in orbits, nearly circular, about the sun at S; in
order to find how the motion of P' is affected by the action
of P, let PF, PS, and FS be drawn, and let the line A
denote the force with which P attracts a particle of matter
at the distance PS, then the force with which it attracts
PS2
a particle at the distance PP', will be A x pp? ■^'et
PS2
Fit = A x vsttw; and if FR be resolved into two forces,
rrA
P'M and P'N, the one in the direction of the radius vector
FS, and the other parallel to PS, take NO = A ; then the
remaining forces OP'and P'M are those which disturb the
motion of P', as was proved in the case of the moon. The
former of these, OP', may be resolved into OQ and P'Q, of
which P'Q diminishes the gravity of the planet to the sun,
and OQ accelerates its motion in a direction perpendicular
to the radius vector. Therefore, as the force P'M always
increases the planet’s gravity to the sun, P'M—P'Q is the
whole force increasing or diminishing the gravity of P' to
S; and the force directly employed in increasing or dimi¬
nishing the angular motion of P about S, is OQ or FT.
The analytical values of these quantities may be found, as
in the theory of the moon, though not with equal simpli¬
city, because SP cannot always be supposed great in re¬
spect of SP'.
44. In consequence of these actions, the orbit of every Physical
planet may be considered as an ellipsis, which is under- Astronomy,
going slowly certain changes in its form, magnitude, and
position, or in what are called its elements. By the ele¬
ments of the orbit of any heavenly body, are meant the
quantities that determine the position and magnitude of
that orbit, viz. the position of the line of the nodes, the
inclination of the plane of the orbit to the plane of the
ecliptic, the position of the line of the apsides, the eccen¬
tricity, and the mean distance. These are all quantities
independent of one another, and from them may be de¬
duced all other circumstances with respect to the elliptic
orbit. Of these five elements, which would be invariable
if the planet only gravitated to the sun, all except the
mean distance are subject to slow but perpetual changes.
45. The line of the nodes, in every one of the planets,
has a retrograde angular motion, which goes on continual¬
ly, and of which the amount, when calculated as due to
each planet, agrees very well with observation. The plane
of the orbit also varies its inclination, by certain small
periodical changes, which alternately increase and dimi¬
nish it, as in the case of the moon. The line of the ap¬
sides, from the same cause as in the planet just mention¬
ed, has a continued motion forward, or according to the
order of the signs. Thus, in Mercury the node goes back
about 7"*82 annually. The aphelion goes forward about
5"‘84 in a year, and the inclination of the orbit in the course
of a century increases about 18"T8, which, in the course
of succeeding ages, will be compensated by an equal di¬
minution, so as to preserve it always nearly of the same
quantity. In the same planet the equation of the centre,
which depends on the eccentricity, increases about 1"*6
in a century, indicating a small increase of eccentricity.
These variations in the orbit of Mercury arise from the
action of Venus, the Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn;
the effects of the first of these planets, on account of its
vicinity, being by much the most considerable. The mean
distance, however, of Mercury from the Sun, does not, any
more than that of the other planets, undergo any change
whatever.
46. Similar conclusions apply also to the orbit of Venus.
The orbit of the earth also is subject to similar changes,
the line of the apsides moving forward annually at the rate
of 11"’8, in respect to the fixed stars. The earth’s eccen¬
tricity is also diminishing, and the secular variation of the
greatest equation of the centre is — 17"'66.
The motion of the earth is subject to another inequali¬
ty on account of the action of the moon; for, to speak
strictly, it is not the centre of the earth, but the centre of
gravity of the moon and earth, which describes equal areas
in equal times about the centre of the sun. It is evident
that, on this account, the earth will be sometimes ad¬
vanced before, and sometimes will fall behind, the point
which describes the circumference of the ellipsis, in con¬
formity with the general law of the planetary motions.
From the same cause also, as the moon does not move in
the plane of the ecliptic, the earth will be forced out of
that plane, in order to preserve a position diametrically
opposite to the moon. These irregularities, however, are
inconsiderable. By observers on the earth’s surface, they
are transferred to the sun, but in an opposite direction.
The sun, therefore, has a motion in longitude, by which
he alternately advances before the point which describes
the elliptic orbit in the heavens, and falls behind it; and
also a motion in latitude, by which he alternately ascends
above and descends below the plane of the ecliptic. As
the mass of the moon, however, is not more than — part of
that of the earth, the distance of the centre of gravity of
the moon and earth from the centre of the latter must be
ASTRONOMY.
59
] ysical less than a semidiameter, and therefore the inequality thus
A onomy. pr0(iUCed in the sun’s longitude must be less than his
v- horizontal parallax. The alteration in latitude can hardly
amount to a second. This inequality in the sun’s motion
is called the menstrual parallax, and was first mentioned
by Smeaton, Phil Trans. 1768.
47. In the orbit of Mars the node moves backward 46 -6
annually, and the line of the apsides moves forward
15"*8, both in respect of the fixed stars. The eccentricity
of the orbit is increasing, and the secular variation of the
greatest equation of the centre is -j- 37".
In the case of this planet, however, the elliptic orbit
is not only changed by these quantities, but the place of
the planet in that orbit is sensibly affected by the ac¬
tion of Venus, Jupiter, and the Earth. The effect ot
the action of Venus is expressed by this formula, 5"* t sm.
(long. ? —3 long. S ) ; of the earth, 7"-2 sin. (long. © —
long. $ ). Several inequalities are produced in Jupiter.
48. The inequalities of the small planets Vesta, Juno,
Ceres, and Pallas, have not yet been computed. The dis¬
turbances which they must suffer from Mars and Jupiter
are no doubt considerable, and, on account of their vicini¬
ty, though their masses are small, they may somewhat
disturb the motions of one another. Iheir action on the
other bodies in the system is probably insensible.
As two of these planets have nearly the same periodic
time, they must preserve nearly the same distance and
the same aspect with regard to one another. This offers
a new case in the computation of disturbing forces, and
may produce equations of longer periods than are yet
known in our system.
The motion of the apsides and the change of eccen¬
tricity in the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn are chiefly pro¬
duced by their action on one another, but a part also de¬
pends on the action of the other planets. I he node, of
Jupiter moves backward annually 15""8, and his aphelion,
forward 6"-96. The secular change in the inclination of
the orbit is 22"*6, and in the first and last of these inequa¬
lities the action of Venus has the principal share. The
equation of the centre increases 56",25 in a century, of
wdiich nearly the whole arises from the action of Saturn.
In Saturn again the node goes back at the rate of 19"-4
annually, and the aphelion forward at the rate of 19"*4;
the secular change of the inclination is — 15"*5, and the
secular diminution of the equation of the centre 2'T.
There is, besides these variations in the orbits, an ine¬
quality in the motion of each of these planets, which it
has been found very difficult to explain, and has only
lately been fully accounted for, according to the theory
of gravity, by the profound investigations of Laplace.
These inequalities are both of a long period, viz. 918‘76
years, which is the time that they take to run through all
their changes. If n express a number of years reckoned
from the beginning of 1750, S the mean longitude of
Saturn, and I that of Jupiter, reckoned from the same
time, then the equation which must be applied to the mean
longitude of Jupiter, or the amount of this inequality, is
-U (20^ 49"-5 —w X 0"-042733) X
sin. (5 S —2 I + 5° 34/ 8" — ^ x 58"-88);
and that which must be applied to S is
— (48' 44" — n x 0"-l) x
sin. (5 S — 2 1 + 5° 34 8" — w x 58"*88). .
These two equations are to one another nearly in the
ratio of 3 to 7. The reason of the long period above men¬
tioned is, that the argument 5S — 21 — n x S8"*88 re¬
quires all that time to increase from 0 to 360°.
Uranus, on account of his great distance, suffers hardly
any disturbance in his motion, but from Saturn and Jupi¬
ter. The node moves backward at the rate of 36" annu¬
ally, and the aphelion forward at that of 2",55. Ihe ec¬
centricity is diminishing, and the secular variation of the Physical
greatest equation of the centre is 11"'03. Astronomy.
There is also an inequality in the longitude of this
planet, depending on the action of Saturn. If S be the
longitude of this last planet, U the longitude of Uranus,
and A the longitude of the aphelion of Saturn, the inequa¬
lity in question amounts to 2' 30" X sin. (S — 2 U + A).
49. Of all these inequalities, and of many other smaller
ones which theory has discovered, it must he observed that
they are periodical, each returning after a certain time to
run through the same series of changes which it had former¬
ly exhibited.
Another general remark is, that one element in every pla¬
netary orbit, viz. the mean distance, is exempted from all
change ; and since on the mean distance depends the time of
revolution, that time remains also unchanged. From the
invariability of the mean distance, and the periodical revolu¬
tion of all the inequalities, it follows that the actual condition
of the planetary system can never deviate far from the mean,
about which we may, therefore, conceive it to be continually
making small oscillations, which in the course of ages com¬
pensate one another, and therefore produce nothing like
disorder or permanent change. It is in this manner that
the stability of the planetary system is provided for by the
wisdom of its Author.
50. Comets, in describing their elliptic orbits round the
sun, have been found to be disturbed by the action of the
larger planets, Jupiter and Saturn; but the great eccen¬
tricity of their orbits makes it impossible, in the present
state of mathematical science, to assign the quantity of
that disturbance for an indefinite number of revolutions,
though it may be done for a limited portion of time, .by
considering the orbit as an ellipsis, the elements of which
are continually changing. This is the method of Lagrange,
and is followed in the Mecanique Celeste, Part ii. chap.
Dr Halley, when he predicted the return of the
comet of 1682, took into consideration the action of Ju¬
piter, and concluded that it would increase the periodic
time of the comet a little more than a year; he there¬
fore fixed the time of the re-appearance to the end of the
year 1758, or the beginning of 1759. He professed, how¬
ever, to have made this calculation hastily, or, as he ex¬
presses it, levi calamo. (Synopsis of the Astronomy of
Comets.)
The effects both of Jupiter and Saturn on the return of
the same comet were afterwards calculated more accu¬
rately by Clairaut, who found that it would be retarded
511 days by the action of the former planet, and 100 by
the action of the latter; in consequence of which, the re¬
turn of the comet to its perihelion would be on the 15th
of April 1759. He admitted at the same time that he
might be out a month in his calculation. The comet ac¬
tually reached its perihelion on the 13th of March, just
33 days earlier than was predicted ; affording, in this way,
a very striking verification of the theory of gravity, and
the calculation of disturbing forces. The same comet may
be expected again about the year 1835.
In some instances, the effect which the planets produce
on the motion of comets are far more considerable than
in this example. A comet which was observed in 1770
had a motion which could not be reconciled to a para¬
bolic orbit, but which could be represented by an ellip¬
tic orbit of no great eccentricity, in which it revolved in
the space of five years and eight months. This comet,
however, which had never been seen in any former re¬
volution, has never been seen in any subsequent one.
On tracing the path of this comet, Mr Burckhardt found
that between the year 1767 and 1770 it had come very
near to Jupiter, and had done so again in 1779. He
therefore conjectured, that the action of Jupiter may
60
ASTRO
Physical have so altered the original orbit as to render the comet
^ suonorny. for a ^^0 visible from the earth; and that the same
cause may have so changed it, after one revolution, as to
restore the comet to the same region in which it had for¬
merly moved. This is the greatest instance of disturbance
which lias yet been discovered among the bodies of our
system, and furnishes a very happy, as well as an unex¬
pected, confirmation of the theory of gravity.
I hough the comets are so much disturbed by the ac¬
tion of the planets, yet it does not appear that their re¬
action produces any sensible effect. The comet of 1770
came so near to the earth as to have its periodic time in¬
creased by 2‘246 days, according to Laplace’s computa¬
tion ; and if it had been equal in mass to the earth it
would have augmented the length of the year by not less
than two hours and forty-eight minutes. It is certain that
no such augmentation took place, and therefore that the
disturbing force by which the comet diminished the gra¬
vity of the earth is insensible, and the mass of the comet,
therefore, less than j^th of the mass of the earth. The
same comet also passed through the system of the satel¬
lites of Jupiter without causing any derangement of their
motions. Hence it is reasonable to conclude, that no ma¬
terial or even sensible alteration has ever been produced
in our system by the action of a comet.
3. Of the disturbances which the satellites of Jupiter suffer
from their action on one another.
51*. Idle same resolution of the forces by which one
satellite acts upon another, into two, one directed to the
centre of the primary, and the other at right angles to it,
serves to explain the irregularities which had been ob¬
served in their motions, and to reduce under known laws
seveial other inequalities, of which the existence only is
indicated by observation.
An instance of this we have in the very remarkable re¬
lation which takes place between the mean motions of the
first three satellites; the mean motion of the first satel¬
lite, together with twice the mean motion of the third,
being equal to three times the mean motion of the second.
Laplace has shown that, if the primitive mean motions of
these satellites were nearly in this proportion, the mutual
action of these bodies on one another must in time have
brought about an accurate conformity to it.
The first satellite moves nearly in the plane of Jupiter’s
equator, and has no eccentricity, except what is commu¬
nicated from the third and fourth, the irregularities of one
oi these small bodies producing similar irregularities in
those that are contiguous to it. The first satellite has,
beside, an inequality, chiefly produced by the action of
the second, and circumscribed by a period of 437*659
days.
52. The orbit of the second satellite moves on a fixed
plane, to which it is inclined at an angle of 27' 13", and
on which its nodes, have a retrograde motion, so that'they
complete a revolution in 29*914 years. The motion of the
nodes of this satellite is one of the principal data used for
determining the masses of the satellites themselves, which
are so necessary to be known for computing their dis¬
turbances. Ibis satellite has no eccentricity but that
w nch it derives from the action of the third and fourth.
Hie third satellite moves on a fixed plane, to which it is
inclined at an angle of 12' 20", and its nodes make a tro¬
pical revolution backwards in 141*739 years. The equator
of tic1,T1 ? tihe plane of his orbit at an anSle
of 3 5 30 . I he fixed planes on which the planes of the
orbits move are determined by theory, and could not
have been discovered by observation alone.
The orbit of the third satellite is eccentric, but appears
to have two distinct equations of the centre; one which
N O M Y.
really arises from its own eccentricity, and another which Physical p®
theory shows to be an emanation from the equation of the Astronoray. tr
centre of the fourth satellite. The first equation is refer-^
able to an apsis which has an annual motion of 2° 36' 39"
forward in respect of the fixed stars; the second equa¬
tion is referable to the apsides of the fourth satellite.
These two equations may be considered as forming one
equation of the centre, referable to an apsis that has an
irregular motion. The two equations coincided in 1682,
and the sum of their maxima was 13' 16". In 1777 the
equations were opposed, and their difference was 5' 6".
The two last inequalities were perceived by Mr War-
gentin, by observation alone; but their exact amount, and
the law which they observe in their changes, he could not
discover. The orbit of the fourth satellite moves on a
fixed plane, to which it is inclined at an angle of 14' 58";
and its nodes complete a sidereal revolution backward in
531 years. The fixed plane on which the orbit moves is
inclined at an angle of 24' 33" to the equator of Jupiter.;
the orbit is sensibly elliptical, and its greater axis has an
annual motion of 42' 58"*7. The motion of this axis is one
of the principal data from which the quantities of matter
of the different satellites have been determined.
If the mass of Jupiter be supposed unity, the mass of
the 1st satellite = *0000173281
of the 2d = *0000232355
of the 3d rr *0000884972
of the 4th = *0000426591
If the mass of the earth be supposed unity, that of the
third satellite will be found = *027337 ; and as the mass
°f the moon is = •012517, the quantity of matter
in the third satellite is about twice as great as that in the
moon. The fourth satellite is therefore nearly equal to
the moon, the second about one half, and the first some¬
what more than one third.
53. I he geneial result of this investigation concerning*
the inequalities in the motion of the planets, both primar?
and secondary, is, that in every one of these orbits two
things remain secure against all disturbance, the mean
distance and the mean motion, or, which is the same,
the transverse axis of the orbit, and the time of the
planet’s revolution. Another result is, that all the inequa¬
lities in the planetary motions are periodical, and observe
such laws that each of them, after a certain time, runs
through the same series of changes. This last conclusion
follows from the fact, that every inequality is expressed
by terms of the form A sin. nt or A cos. nt, where A is a
constant co-efficient, and n a certain multiplier of t the
time, so that nt is an arch of a circle, which increases
pi oportionally_ to the time. Now, in this expression,
though nt is capable of indefinite increase, yet, since nt
never can exceed the radius, or 1, the maximum of the
inequality is A. Accordingly, the value of the term
A sin. ^ first increases from 0 to A, and then decreases
i om A to 0; after which it becomes negative, extends
. and Passes from thence to 0 again. If, when the
inequality was affirmative, it was an addition to the mean
motion, when negative it will become a diminution of it;
and the sum of all these increments and decrements, after
, Passed over an entire circumference, or 360°, is
equal to 0; so that at the end of that period the planet is
in the same position as if it had moved on regularly all
ie v ule at the rate of the mean motion. As this hap¬
pens to every one of the inequalities, the deviation of the
system from its mean state can never go beyond certain
hmits, each inequality m a certain course of time destroy¬
ing its own effect. ^
BmI,t,"?uId bte far otherwise if into the value of any in¬
equalities a term entered of the form A X nt, A tan. nt,
ASTRONOMY. 61
) rs cal _ A_ jnequaiities so expressed would continually
t ^ 'my-gin. nt 1
^ ^ increase with the time, so as to go beyond any assignable
limit, and of consequence to destroy entirely the order of
any system to which they belonged.
Lagrange and Laplace, who discovered and demonstrat¬
ed that no such terms as these last can enter into the
expression of the disturbances which the planets produce
by their action on one another, made known one of the
most important truths in physical science. They proved
that the planetary system is stable, and that it does not in¬
volve any principle of destruction in itself, but is calculat¬
ed to endure for ever, or till the action of an external
power shall put a period to its existence. After the
knowledge of the principle of gravitation, this may be
fairly considered as the greatest discovery to which men
have been led by the study of the heavens.
The accurate compensation, just remarked, depends on
three conditions, belonging to the primitive or original
constitution of our system, but not necessarily determin¬
ed, as far as we know, by any physical principle. The
first of these conditions is, that the eccentricities of the
orbits are all inconsiderable, or contained within very
narrow limits, not exceeding in any instance one tenth or
one eighth part of the mean distance. The second con¬
dition is, that the planets all move in the same direction,
or from west to east. This is true both of the primary
and secondary planets, with the exception only of the sa¬
tellites of Uranus, which may be accounted retrograde;
but their planes being nearly at right angles to the orbit
of their primary, the direction of their motion, whether Practical
retrograde or otherwise, can have little effect. Lastly, Astronomy•
the planes of the orbits of the planets are not much in-
dined to one another. This is true of all the larger
planets, though it does not hold of some of the new and
smaller ones ; of which, however, the action on the whole
system must be altogether insensible.
Unless these three conditions were united in the con¬
stitution of the solar system, terms of the kind just men¬
tioned, admitting of indefinite increase, might enter into
the expression of the inequalities, which would indicate a
gradual and unlimited departure from the original order
and constitution of the universe. Now, the three condi¬
tions just enumerated do not necessarily arise out of the
nature of motion, or of gravitation, or from the action of
any physical cause with which we are acquainted. Neither
can they be considered as arising from chance; for the
probability is almost infinite to one, that, without a cause
particularly directed to that object, such a conformity
could not have arisen in the motions of thirty-one differ¬
ent bodies, scattered over the whole extent of the solar
system. The only explanation, therefore, which remains is,
that all this is the work of intelligence and design, directing
the original constitution of our system, and impressing such
motions on the parts as are calculated to give stability to
the whole. (n.)
For some further discussions connected with Physical
Astronomy, see the articles Comets ; Earth, Figwre of;
Precession of the Equinoxes ; and Tides.
PART IV.
PRACTICAL ASTRONOMY.
INTRODUCTION.
Practical Astronomy may be considered as compre¬
hending the observations which must originally have been
made to determine the facts which have now been em¬
bodied in a system ; also those which are continually mak¬
ing for its farther extension and improvement;—the ob¬
servations which are required to make the science useful
in the affairs of life ; and the rules and calculations which
must be applied to the observations, to obtain from them
the required result.
The division of labour in this, as in other subjects, has
been attended with advantage. One class of astronomers
now survey the heavens by telescopes of more or less
power. These, within the last fifty years, have enriched
the science by the discovery of five new planets in addi¬
tion to the six known from the most remote ages. The late
Sir William Herschel took the lead in this noble labour,
and he has been followed by many others. By their exer¬
tions various comets have been observed; and the perio¬
dic times and orbits of three have now been determined
with such certainty as to enable us to predict their re¬
turn. A second class observe the heavenly bodies with
instruments which combine increased powers of seeing,
with the means of measuring minute angular distances or
considerable angles with great accuracy. The establish¬
ed national observatories, and some private observatories,
conducted with not less zeal and intelligence, are engaged
in this important labour. These employ transit instru¬
ments, clocks, mural or meridian circles, quadrants, equa-
toral or azimuth and altitude instruments, of the best
workmanship. Their object is less to add new facts than
to improve and extend those which are already known.
By the observations made in observatories, the science is
continually advancing towards perfection ; but, like all
knowledge founded on observation, there will ever be room
for further improvement.
Although it is only a few individuals, comparatively
speaking, that can possess telescopes of such power as to
give reasonable hopes of extending astronomical know¬
ledge by the discovery of new phenomena, yet, by the li¬
berality of governments, the united efforts of learned bo¬
dies, and the fortunate possession of leisure, pecuniary
means, and zeal for the improvement of the science evinced
by some private gentlemen, telescopes of extraordinary
dimensions and excellence have been constructed, and
considerable additions have of late years been made to
our knowledge of the heavens in regions almost beyond the
flight of human imagination.
The great instruments, such as are placed in national
observatories, are also in general beyond the reach of pri¬
vate astronomers ; yet a few wealthy amateurs of the sci¬
ence have rivalled these establishments, both in the acqui¬
sition of instruments and in their application. With in¬
struments of an inferior construction little can be done
towards improving the primary elements of astronomy,
because the results they give are less correct and less to be
depended on than those obtained by superior instruments.
When the measure of an angle is determined to the accu¬
racy of a second, it is of no use to have another measure
which may err as much as ten seconds. However, it can¬
not be doubted that the best instruments now employed
will in time be superseded by others more perfect. After
a certain degree of accuracy has been obtained, it is only
by slow degrees and much labour that we can go beyond
it; and then, like differentials of different orders, every
ASTRONOMY.
62
Practical addition to the accuracy of a result is small in comparison
Astronomy, to that which went before it.
Another branch of practical astronomy, of no small
importance, applies the knowledge which the labour of
many years, or even ages, has accumulated, to the im¬
provement of geography, and to navigation, and the wants
of society. For this instruments are also required. These
are the portable transit instrument and chronometer; por¬
table azimuth and altitude circles; reflecting and repeat¬
ing circles; sextants, quadrants, and other minor instru¬
ments, down to the convenient garden sun-dial. These
instruments are within the reach of ordinary cultivators
of astronomy, and they are the most useful, because the
advantage they yield is immediate and obvious: for by
their aid the exact position on the earth of every point
visited by a traveller may be determined; ships may be
conducted in safety and with certainty to remote regions;
and true time may be ascertained in all places. A third
department of practical astronomy may comprehend the
calculations required for reducing the observations made
in observatories ; that is, in disengaging them from the ef¬
fects of refraction, parallax, nutation, aberration, instru¬
mental errors, &c. and fitting them for their place in the
annals of the science. The time spent in making an ob¬
servation is in fact often small in comparison to that re¬
quired for its reduction. The observation is a process
purely mechanical, requiring only steady attention, and an
expertness in observing a moving body, and in estimating
small portions of time by the beat of the clock, which may
be acquired by practice. But the reduction requires the
application of much theoretical knowledge of the science,
and an acquaintance with some of the refinements of mo¬
dern analysis; at least these must be possessed by the
person who frames the rules and directs the operations,
although a less degree of knowledge may suffice for the
mere numerical calculation.
The observations of the traveller and navigator require
also the application of mathematical science. Plane and
spherical trigonometry are indispensable for the intelligent
navigator; and the latter of these is required for the sim¬
plest observations, such, for example, as are made by a
quadrant or sextant, to find true time. It frequently hap¬
pens that the navigator is deficient in theory, contenting
himself with the practice of the calculation of his lunars, as
he calls observations made to ascertain the distance of the
moon from the stars. This is an evil which, we fear, some¬
times leads to the loss of many lives and much property.
Another kind of calculations is required in the con¬
struction of Almanacs and Ephemerides. These are made
under the direction of men well versed in the theory,
although the mere labour of numerical calculation can be
executed by correct arithmeticians according to prescribed
rules; and, to insure accuracy, each is commonly perform¬
ed by two persons, and their results compared by a third.
The attentive reader of the preceding treatise will
readily understand that much practical astronomy is in¬
volved in it; necessarily indeed, for the theory and the
practice cannot be entirely disengaged from each other.
Thus, it is shown (chap. II. sect. 1.) how the obliquity of
the ecliptic may be derived from observations of the sun’s
declination on three successive days about the time of the
summer solstice; and again, in section 2, a formula is
given for finding the eccentricity of the earth’s orbit from
the greatest equation of the centre, as determined from
observations; also another for determining the true ano¬
maly from the mean: these and various others, in chap.
III. and elsewhere, may be regarded as applications of
practical astronomy. We shall therefore here only far¬
ther give some examples of the more important problems
in what may be called spherical astronomy. 4
The important and very general problem of determining Practics,
what will be the position of any proposed body of the sys-Astroiion,
tern at any given time, past or to come, belongs to the 'w"Yv
division of the subject which we are now treating. Its
correct solution, however, requires an apparatus of tables
far beyond what can be comprised in the space to which
this article must be limited. Even the single case of the
moon would require a very considerable number of tables
and precepts. Such a body of tables is, however, not neces¬
sary even in works professedly on astronomy. The British
Nautical Almanac, the Connaissance des Terns, and the
Berlin Ephemeris {Berliner Astronomisches Jahrhucli), are
the sources from which the practical astronomer usually
derives a knowledge of the phenomena he expects to hap¬
pen, and for the observation of which he must prepare be¬
forehand. The same observation applies to various other
subsidiary tables, of which there are professed collec¬
tions. One of the most copious is the first of two large
volumes, forming a work on practical astronomy, by the
Rev. Dr Pearson; this contains tables expressly intend¬
ed for the reduction of astronomical observations, and
many others of great importance to the professed astro¬
nomer. There is a smaller collection, entitled Tables to
be used with the Nautical Almanac, by the Rev. W. Lax,
professor of astronomy and geometry in the University
of Cambridge. This is most essential to the navigator, for
whose use also a much larger work was published, viz. A
complete Collection of Tables for Navigation and Nautical
Astronomy, by Joseph de Mendoza Rios. There is an¬
other and later work, published in 1829 in France, en¬
titled Nouvelles Tables Astronomiques et Hydrographiques,
par V. Bagay, professeur d’hydrographie. This must be
valuable to the French navigator; but it is not less so to
practical astronomers of all countries, on account of its
portable size, considering that it contains a table of loga¬
rithmic sines and tangents to every second of the qua¬
drant. We must also notice with much approbation a
neat and comprehensive collection of astronomical tables
and formulae by Mr Baily, late president of the Astro¬
nomical Society of London. This work is chiefly adapted
to the practical astronomer on land. There is one part
of practical astronomy which at all times has, in a parti¬
cular manner, excited the attention of mankind; we mean
the determination of the exact time of new and full moon,
and the prediction of eclipses. To determine these with
as much accuracy as is sufficient to gratify ordinary stu¬
dents of practical astronomy, tables have been purposely
constructed, and are given in the sequel; with the addi¬
tion of plain precepts, applicable without any considerable
degree of mathematical knowledge. By means of them
the young astronomer may find the time of an eclipse of
the sun and moon, and exhibit its appearance by a geo¬
metrical construction. The places of upwards of 500 fixed
stars, and some tables useful in practical astronomy, are
also given ; and the principal instruments of astronomy are
described and exhibited by engravings in the superior
style which distinguishes the present from all former edi¬
tions of this work.
CHAP. I.
PROBLEMS IN PRACTICAL ASTRONOMY.
Problem I.— Given the right ascension and declination of
a star or planet, together with the obliquity of the ecliptic,
to find the stars longitude and latitude.
Let P (fig. 120, Plate XCIII.) be the pole of the equator
OqpQ, E the pole of the ecliptic I^L, and S the place of
the star. Let PR, the circle of latitude passing through
ract
stroi
ASTRO
j S, meet the equator in R; and EM, the circle of declina-
ny'tion, meet the ecliptic in M ; also let tE, be arcs of
^ great circles passing through the equinoctial point and
the poles of the ecliptic and equator respectively. Let
us now make
L = the longitude of S,
l — SM the latitude,
zr <y> R the right ascension,
D = SR the declination,
w = L^Q the obliquity of the ecliptic.
Since — ML = 90° — ML, and ML is the
measure of the angle SEP, we have or* Mz=L zz 90° SEP,
and, consequently, sin. L zz cos. SEP. Again, since "Y1 R
_ fy, Q _ RQ. = 90° — RQ, and RQ is the measure of the
angle RPQ, we have ^ R = zz 90° —RPQ; whence
sin. At = cos. RPQ = — cos. EPS. In like manner we
have Z = SM = 90° — ES, whence sin. / =z cos. ES ; and
also D = SR = 90° — PS, whence sin. D = cos. PS. Thus
the problem depends on the solution of the oblique angled
spherical triangle PES.
From the known properties of spherical triangles, we
have
cot. PS sin. EP = cot. PES sin. EPS + cos. EP. cos. EPS;
therefore, by substituting the values just found, and ob¬
serving that EP = w, we have
tan. D sin. w — tan. L cos. j^R — cos. w sin. JiR;
whence
T tan. D sin. u + sin. AR cos. w
tan-L = 
Assume an angle <p such that tan. <p — sin. ^R cot. D,
then
sin. D tan. <p = sin. AR cos. D,
^ sin. AR _ sin. AR cos. <z>
or tan. D =  '
tan. 9
whence, by substituting,
/;
tan. L = tan. AR (
\
sm. <p
'sin. w
tan. 9
+ cos.
u)’
. /(
sin. I = sin. D I
whence
. sin. D cos. (u + 9>)
sin. I — ^ 2Z
cos. ip
cos. <p
.(2.)
N O M Y.
cos. w sin. L •
63
tan. AR = •
• tan. I sin. w
cos. L
Assume tan. -vj/ = sin. L cot. I; then
, sin. L sin. L cos. -J/
tan. I =   r = : j ;
Practical
Astronomy.
tan. •vj/ sin. -vp
and by substituting this value of tan. I in the above equa¬
tion, it becomes
yr, x / • COS. -vlA
tan. AR = tan. L I cos. w — sin. co f ],
\ sm. -vp/
that is,
tan. J3i = tan. L (c05-" sin'^ ~ fn'" cos-^),
sin. -vp
whence
tan
/R _ tan. L sin. (^ —a>)
sin.  '
To find the declination, we have
cos. PS = cos. EP cos. ES + sin. EP sin. ES cos. PES;
that is,
sin. D. = cos. w sin. I + sin. u cos. / sin. L,
= (cos. w + sin. w cot. Z sin. L) sin. Z,
and by substituting ^ for cot. Z,
sin. D = (cos. m + sin. « tan. -v]y) sin Z,
 (cos. w cos. + sin. a sin. -v]/) sin. Z
cos. -vjy
therefore
. „ cos. (4 — w)
sin. D ~ 7
sin. Z.
(2.)
and by reducing,
T sin. (u + <p) ^ x
sm. cp
a formula from which the longitude L is easily computed
by means of the logarithmic tables.
To find the latitude Z, we have
cos. ES = cos. EP cos. PS + sin. EP sin. PS cos. EPS,
which gives
sin. Z = cos. « sin. D — sin. u cos. D sin. AR.
Assume as before, tan. <p = cot. D sin. AR, then, by
substituting,
sin. Z = sin. D (cos. w — sin. w tan. 9),
that is,
'cos. u cos. <p — sin. u sin. 9^
cos. 4
Corollary.—In the case of the sun, the latitude Z becomes
zero, and the formulae are considerably simplified. Thus,
let T be the sun’s place in the ecliptic; the relations sub¬
sisting between the longitude, right ascension, declination,
and obliquity, are given by means of the right-angled
spherical triangle <y) TR. The following are the formulae :
_ sin. D 1
sin. L =— ,
sin. w I /n
T tan. At I  ^
tan. L=
cos. w J
sin. AR = cot. a tan. D, ^ ^ ^
tan. AR = cos. u tan. L, J  ^
sin. D=rsin. a sin. L
tan.
1. D=sin. u sin. L I ^
1. D=tan. w sin. ^R, J  ^
Problem II.—Given the longitude and latitude of a star
or planet, together with the obliquity of the ecliptic, to de¬
termine its right ascension and declination.
The spherical triangle EPS gives the relation
cot. ES sin. EP = cot. EPS sin. PES + cos. EP cos. PES,
that is,
tan. Z sin. w — tan. ^R cos. L + cos. w sin. L,
whence
Problem III.— Given the latitude of the observatory, the
polar distance of a star, and its hour-angle at the pole,
to find its zenith distance, azimuth, and angle of varia¬
tion.
Let P (fig. 121) be the pole of the equator, A the zenith
of the place, and V the position of the star: we have then
given the two sides, AP and PV, of an oblique angled
spherical triangle, together with the included angle APV,
to determine the third side and the remaining angles.
Make X=AP the complement of the latitude,
A=PV the polar distance of the star, which is here
supposed to be north,
P=APV the hour-angle at the pole,
Z=AV the zenith distance,
A=VAP the azimuth,
V=AVP the angle of variation.
1. To find Z we have
cos. Z=cos. X cos. A + sin. X sin. A cos. P.
Assume tan. 9=tan. A cos. P; then by substituting,
cos. Z=cos. A (cos. X+sin. X tan. 9) ;
whence, by reducing,
64
Practical
Astronomy.
ASTRONOMY.
cos.(X—p) ,
COS. Z=COS. A   (1.)
cos. <p
2. To find A, we have from spherical trigonometry the
formula
cot. A sin. X
cot. A = -
sin. P
cot. A
cot. P cos. X.
Assume cot. -4/ = —r-, whence cot. A=cot. d/ cos. P,
cos. P
and, by substituting,
cot. A = cot. P (cot. sin. X — cos. X)
fcos. '4' sin* X — sin. 4/ cos. X\
J’
= cot. P (-
sin. 4/
whence
t
cot.A=COt-Psin-(,X—4') (2.)
sin. 4^
3. To find V we have
, Tr cot’. X sin. A
cot. V=
Assume cot. % =
sin. P
cot. X
• cos. A cot. P.
;, or cot. X = cot. ^ cos. P, then,
cos. P
by substituting and reducing as above, we have
cot. v = cot.Psin.(A-x)j 
sin- %
Problem IV.— Given the declination and zenith distance
of a star, and the latitude of the observatory, to determine
the hour-angle.
This is the case in the solution of spherical triangles}
in which the three sides are given to find one of the an¬
gles. The formula, therefore, from which P is computed
(see Spherical Trigonometry) is
tan.2 IP =
sin. 1(Z + X — A) sin. -|(Z — X + A)
sin. X(Z + X+ A) sin. ^(X+ A — Z)
Problem V.— Given the latitude of a place, and the sun’s
declination, to find, IsX the time of sunrise; 2d, the sun’s
amplitude at rising; 3d, the time when the sun is due east;
kth, the sun’s altitude when in that position.
In fig. 122 let AZP be the meridian, in which Z is the
zenith, and P the pole ; let ZO be the prime vertical, and
AOB the horizon, A being the south, O the east, and B
the north points; let SS' be the part of the parallel de¬
scribed by the sun between his rising and passing the
prime vertical, and PS PS' hour circles.
Let L = the latitude of the place — PB,
D — the sun’s declination = 90° — PS,
v = the time from midnight to sunrise = hour
angle SPB,
x — the sun’s amplitude at rising = OS,
y — the time from midnight to the sun’s coming
on the prime vertical — hour-angle S'PB,
z ~ the sun’s altitude when in the prime vertical
= OS'.
In the spherical triangle PBS, right angled at B,
0 „ tan. PB cos. PS
cos. SPB =: cos. BS =
'tan. PS’
cos. PB ’
and in the spherical triangle PZS', right angled at Z,
cos. ZPS =
tan. PZ
cos. ZS'
cos. PS'
cos. v — tan. L, tan. D   (1.)
_ sin. D , .
sm. x —   (2.)
cos. L
cos. y — cot. L, tan. D (3.)
sin. D ,. .
sm. z = ——j  (4.)
Practical
Astrotior
tan. PS'’ cos. PZ’
Now PB=L, PZ = 90° — L, PS=PS' = 90° — D, BS
= 90° — x, ZS'= 90° — z; hence we have these four
formula::
The hour-angles v and y must be converted into time
by allowing 15° to one hour.
Problem VI.— To find how much the rising of the sun or
a star is advanced by refraction.
Let ZPB be the meridian (fig. 123), Z the zenith, P
the pole, and OB the horizon. Let SS', the parallel de¬
scribed by the sun, meet the horizon in S. Were it not
for the effect of refraction, the sun or star would appear
to rise at S, and at rising the hour-angle from midnight
would be SPB ; but it is elevated by refraction (which
takes place in a vertical circle), and appears to rise at D,
while in fact it is below the horizon at S' somewhere in
the vertical circle ZD produced downward, and the time
of rising is accelerated by the small angle SPS'.
Let L denote the latitude of the place = 90 — PZ ; D
the declination of the star = 90— PS ; H the hour-angle
BPS, reckoned from midnight; r the arc DS of the ver¬
tical ZS, the effect of refraction; and x the angle SPS,
the acceleration of time of rising.
In the spherical triangle ZPS',
cos. ZS' = cos. ZP cos. PS' + sin. ZP sin. PS' cos. ZPS',
Now, cos. ZS' = cos. (90 + r) = — sin. r,
and cos. ZPS' = — cos. BPS' = — cos. (H — x);
therefore
— sin. r = sin. L sin. D — cos. L. cos. D cos. (H — x).
In like manner, in the triangle ZPS, in which cos. ZS
= cos. 90° =0,
0 = sin. L sin. D — cos. L cos. D cos. H;
hence, by subtraction,
sin. r = cos. L cos. D [cos. (H—x)—cos. HJ,
1 /TT \ TT _ Sin* r
and cos. (H — x) — cos. H — = ;
v cos. L cos. D
but cos. (H — x) — cos. H = 2 sin. ^ x sin. -
(Algebra, § 239, D);
therefore, 2 sin. i x sin. (H — r—_
14 \ 2J cos. L cos. D
Now, x and r being small angles, we may consider
2 sin. x x — x, sin. r = r, and sin. — ^ = sin. H.
T
We have then x = ———   — :
sm. H cos. L cos. D
and here H is determined by the formula
cos. H = tan. L tan. D.
The value of x just found is only a near approximation ;
let it be denoted by d, and let H' = H -p x', and we shall
have more nearly
r
£      _■
sin. H' cos. L cos. D’
c- xj _ 4. x .. ta sin. L sin. D
feince cos. H = tan. L tan. D =   —;
cos. L cos. D
r. • a xx cos*2 L cos-2 D — sin-2 L sin.2 D
• cos.2 L cos.2 D
Again, cos.2 L cos.2 D — sin.2 L sin.2 D
= (cos. L cos. D—sin. L sin. D)(cos. L cos. D + sin. L sin. D)
= cos. (L + D) cos. (L-D).
ASTRONOMY.
Prj ical
Ast iomy.
Therefore, sin.2 H =
cos. (L + D) cos. (L — D)
cos.2 L cos.2 D
and x [cos. (L + D) cos. (L — D)]*
The value of r is variable; but in general it is about
33 minutes of a degree, or 132 seconds of time. There¬
fore the acceleration by refraction is nearly, in time,
 132® 
[cos. (L + D) cos. (L — D)]
Problem VII.— To find the length of the twilight.
Let ZPB (fig. 123) be the meridian, Z the zenith, P the
pole, and SDB the horizon. Let S'S be the arc of the pa¬
rallel described by the sun between the beginning of the
twilight, when he is at S', and its end at sunrise, when he
reaches the horizon at S.
The twilight begins when DS', the sun’s depression be¬
low the horizon, is about 18°.
Let a denote the arc, DS the depression, L the lati¬
tude of the place = 90° — ZP, D the sun’s declination
= 90° — PS, H the hour angle SPB (from midnight),
x the angle SPS'.
Then, cos. ZS' = cos. ZP cos. PS' + sin. ZP sin. PS'
cos. ZPS';
that is, because cos. ZS' = — sin. «, and cos. ZPS =
—- cos. SPB,
— sin. a— — sin. L sin. D — cos. L cos. D cos. (H — x);
hence we obtain
/"TT \ -r T~V I Sm. d
cos. (H — x) — tan. L tan. D +  ^ —.
v 7 cos. L cos. D
Now, by Problem V. cos. H = tan. L tan. D (1)
Let be such an angle, that
sin. a
cos. 9 = = 
r cos. L cos. D
Then cos. (H — x) = cos. H + cos. <p
= 2 cos. i (H + 9) cos. i (H — 9) (2)
Now H is determined by formula (1); therefore x, the
angle described about the pole while the twilight lasts, is
determined by formula (2).
Problem VIII.— Given the right ascensions and declina¬
tions of two celestial bodies, to compute their angular
distance.
Let S and M (fig. 124) be the two stars (for example the
sun and moon), and let Z be the zenith, and P the pole of
the equator. In the triangle SPM, the side SM represents
the angular distance of the two stars; PS and PM are re¬
spectively their polar distances, or the complements of
their declinations, and therefore given; and the angle
SPM is also given, being the difference of ZPS and ZPM,
the right ascensions of the given stars. Let PS = A,
PM = A', the angle SPM = P, and SM, the distance
sought, —d. We have then
cos. d — cos. A cos. A'+ sin. A sin. A' cos. P.
Assume tan. 9 = tan. A cos. P; then, by substituting and
reducing, as in Problem II., we obtain
7 cos. A cos. (A' — a)
cos. d —  ——ZJ-.
cos. 9
Problem IX.—To determine the latitude of a place.
1* Of the various methods which are employed for de¬
termining the latitude, that which depends on the obser¬
vation of the double transits, or upper and lower culmina¬
tion of a circumpolar star, is perhaps the best, being inde-
VOL. iv.
65
pendent of the star’s declination, and of the effects of Practical
aberration and nutation. The accuracy of the result de- Astronomy,
pends, indeed, on the allowance made for refraction; but
unless the observed star at the lower culmination passes
within 15° or 20° of the horizon, the errors of the tables
will be very inconsiderable.
Let Z be the observed zenith distance, and R the re¬
fraction of the star at its lower culmination ; Z' and It' the
same quantities at its upper culmination, and X the cor¬
rect zenith distance of the pole, or the co-latitude; then
X = £(Z + Z')+^(R + R').
The quantities R and R' must be taken from the tables,
regard being had to the state of the barometer and ther¬
mometer.
2. Another method of determining the latitude, which,
by reason of the facility of observation and computation,
is extremely commodious, and therefore much employed,
especially by voyagers, depends on observations of the
meridional zenith distances of the sun or a star. Let P
(fig. 125) be the pole, Z the zenith, C the intersection of
the meridian and equator, and S the sun or star; then, l
being the required latitude,
/ = ZC = ZS r±: SC = Z dtz D,
according as the star is situated S or S', that is, above or
below the equator.
If the star is to the north of the zenith, and above the
pole, as at a, then
/ = ZC = Ca —Za-D —Z,
and if below the pole, at a!, then Ca' = 180° — D, and
l-ZC = Ca' — Za' - 180° —(Z + D).
Problem X.—To determine the difference of longitude be¬
tween two points on the earth's surface.
The different methods which have been proposed for
the solution of this problem, one of the most difficult in
practical astronomy, are the following: ls£, The eclipses
of Jupiter’s satellites; 2dr, the eclipses of the moon; 3J,
the eclipses of the sun ; \th, the occultations of fixed stars
by the moon; and, bih, the comparison of the moon’s
transits over the meridian with those of certain fixed stars
selected for the purpose. Of these five methods, the two
first give results affected by many causes of uncertainty;
and the third can seldom be practised, because solar
eclipses occur very rarely for any given point on the
earth’s surface. Of the remaining two, the last (which
is recommended by Mr Baily) seems entitled to the pre¬
ference, on account of its being independent of great ac¬
curacy in the rate of the clock or the position of the
transit instrument.
The difference of the longitudes of the two stations is
supposed to be nearly known from the chronometer, or
by other means; and the object is to correct or deter¬
mine the error of the first approximation.
Let A and B be the two stations, of which A is sup¬
posed to be the most westerly, and put
r — the difference (in sidereal time) of the transit
of the moon’s limb and the star previously
agreed on at A ;
r' r= the same difference at B;
t — the apparent Greenwich time of the culmina¬
tion of the moon at A ;
t! — the apparent Greenwich time of the culmina¬
tion of the moon at B ;
d — ^'s true declination! computed for the time
r = J’s true radius J t;
d, r1 — the same quantities computed for the timetf',*
s zz the length of the true solar day in seconds;
m zz D’s motion in AR in half that interval, ex¬
pressed in seconds of space ;
1
66
ASTRONOMY.
Practical ^ = the assumed difference of longitude, in time ;
Astronomy. — the correct difference of longitude.
Xhe angle comprised between the two horary circles
which pass respectively through the centre and limb of
the moon, at the station A, is ^ which being reduced
,, and expresses the sidereal time
to time, becomes r——
15 cos. a
in which the moon’s semi-diameter passes the meridian
2 sin. 1
Hence r
, is the observed difference of the
15 cos. d
of the star and moon’s centre at A, the upper sign being
taken when the first or western limb of the moon is ob¬
served, and the under when it is the eastern limb, the
star being supposed to precede the moon. In the same
7* • • • •
manner vv r is the sidereal time in which the semi-
15 cos. d
therefore, Practical
2 sin. i (Z' — Z) sin. 1-(Z; + Z) := 2 / cos.D sin.2£ P. •A-stronoinj,
But Z' — Z = x, and Z' + Z = 2 Z + x, ^
therefore,
2 sin. x sin. (Z ^ a?) zz 2 cos. I cos. D sin.2 g- P,
that is,
x cos. I x sin. Z 2 sin.2 i x cos Z
= 2 cos. I cos. D sin.2 i P,
or 2 sin. | x cos. ^ x 2 sin.2 ^ x cot. Z
2 cos. I cos. D . „ , „
zz  :—v sin.2 J, P.
sin. Z J
In order to resolve this equation, make cot. Z r= a,
cos. I cos.
 ^  sin/ jy P — b, and divide both sides by
sm. Z J
2 cos.2 x ; it then becomes
tan. x -{■ a tan.2 | a? zz
Whence
cos.2 X
zz 6 (1 -f- tan.2 \ x).
diameter of the moon passes the meridian at B, and
t z±= ; the observed difference of the /R of the
15 cos. a
star and moon’s centre. We have, therefore, by subtract¬
ing these two expressions,
r   P
' 15 cos. d -+“ 15 cos. d!
for the observed difference of the ^R of the moon’s centre,
during the time elapsed between the two observations.
Put this difference equal to a, then ^ -f- A is the differ¬
ence between t and V in sidereal time, which becomes
/ x 8640 , , . . .
(X + a)  when expressed in mean solar time.
Hence we have
* = *' + (X +
a)
8640
consequently, when the apparent Greenwich time at one
of the observatories is known, it is also known at the other
observatory. Now, let a and a! be the moon’s AR in space,
computed for the times t and t respectively (taken from
the ephemeris); then the formula for the correction of
the assumed difference of longitudes will evidently be
e= {l5A_0_a')}gi.;
and this added to % gives ^ e, the corrected difference
of longitudes.
Problem XI.— To find the meridional zenith distance of the
sun (or a star), from observations made near the me¬
ridian.
Let P (fig. 124) be the pole, Z the zenith, and S the
sun. Make
l zz 90° — PZ zz the latitude of the place ;
D zz 90° — PS zz the declination;
P zz ZPS the hour angle ;
Z zz Z — D zz the true zenith distance;
Z' zz-ZS the observed zenith distance;
x zz Z' — Z the correction.
The triangle. PZS gives
cos. ZS zz cos. ZP cos. PS + sin. ZP sin. PS cos. ZPS,
or cos. Z' = sin. I sin. D -f- cos. I cos. D cos. P;
but cos. (I — D) zz cos. I cos. D -p sin. I sin. D,
and cos. P zz 1 — 2 sin.2 ^ P,
therefore, '
cos. Z' zz cos. (/ — D) — 2 cos. I cos. D sin.2 I P,
or cos. Z' zz cos. Z — 2 cos. I cos. D sin.2 ^ P.
Now, by the trigonometrical formula (Algebra, p. 240),
cos. Z — cos. Z' = 2 sin. £ (Z' — Z) sin. £ (Z' Z),
tan.2 b x A   tan. 4 x
2 1 a — b 2
and, consequently,
1
1
tan’ * ~ . 2(a — b) — 2(a — b) Vl + 4 b(a — bf
Developing this expression, and rejecting all the powers
of b higher than the cube, we have
tan. \x=-b — «62 + (l + 2a2) 63 —, &c.
Now the series which expresses the arc in terms of its
tangent (see art. Algebra, p. 270), gives
\x zz tan. \x — ^ tan.3 + j tan.5 \x —, &c.
Therefore, by substituting, and rejecting the terms con¬
taining higher powers of b than the cube,
\x = b — aW + (§ + 2a2)Z»3 —, &c.
that is,
x = 2b — 2a62 + (f + 4a2)^3 —, &c.
and therefore, on restoring the values of a and b, and di¬
viding by sin. I",
-2(
cos. I cos.
-)
sin.2 4P
sin. 1"
2 cot. Z
•HP
sin. 1"
4(i+cot.2 Z) (
cos. I cos.
Dy
/cos. I cos. D>
\ sin. Z ;
sm
6 ip
sin. 1"
&c.
The last term of this series is scarcely sensible in any
case; it is therefore only necessary to compute the first
two.
If, instead of eliminating Z' by means of the equation
Z' — Z zz ^ we had eliminated Z, the resulting ex¬
pression would have been
  g /cos. I cos. D\ > sin.2 IP
x’~ v sin. Z' /
+ 2 cot. Z'f—’f C°S’D>)
\ sin. Z' /
sin. 1"
cos. I cos. D\2 sin.4 £P
sin. I"
-, &c.
Problem XII.—Given the times of two observed equal alti¬
tudes of the sun, to find the true time of his meridional
passage.
Let P (fig. 126) be the pole, Z the zenith, ZPM the
meridian, and A and C the places of the sun, before and
after his meridional passage, when his zenith distances
ZA and ZC are observed to be equal. In consequence
of the variation of the sun’s declination while he passes
from A to C, the hour angles APM and MPC are un¬
equal. Make BPM = APM zz P, and let BPC be de¬
noted by p. Now, APC = 2P + p; half of which is
P + therefore the true time of the meridional pas¬
sage will be found by subtracting ip from the mean of
the times of observed equal altitudes.
To find the value of <p, we have the equation
cos. ZA = cos. ZP cos. PA + sin, ZP sin. PA cos. APM;
ASTRONOMY.
67
Pi deal that Is (employing the denominations of last problem),
A*$ ’.omy. cos. Z = sin. I sin. D + cos. I cos. D cos. P (1)
Now, let A = B& be the small change of declination
corresponding to the variation of the hour-angle from P
to P + and let D + A be substituted for D, and P + p
for P in this equation. It then becomes
cos. Z=sin. I sin. (D + A) + cos. / cos. (D + A) cos. (P + ?)•
But as A and <p are very small arcs, their cosines may be
made equal to the radius, and their sines equal to the
arcs themselves; therefore, on expanding the above equa¬
tion, it becomes
cos. Z — sin. I sin. D + cos. I cos. D cos. P.
+ (sin. I cos. D — cos. I sin. D cos. P) A
— cos. I cos. D sin. P. <p. + cos. I sin. D sin. P. A. <p;
whence, in consequence of equation (1), and rejecting the
term multiplied by A. 9, .
(sin. I cos. D — cos. I sin. D cos. P) A—cos. I cos. D. sin. P.f;
therefore,
o = A^ tan,~ — tan. D cot. pV
r \sin. P /
Let l be the sidereal time of the first observation, t'
that of the second, and U — t — 28. Also let the diurnal
variation of D be denoted by v, expressed like the arcs 9
and A in seconds; we have then 241* : 20 :: w : A, whence
A = -fadv, and consequently
dx 7 Practical
But - = tan. ACM, and 5- = tan. ADM = tan. I; Astronomy.
x ay
Now ZMV = DMC
therefore tan. ACM = —:2 tan. 1.
— ADM — ACM, therefore tan. ZMV = tan. (ADM
tan. ADM — tan. ACM
ACM) ^ ADM tan. ACM ’
that is,
tan. v —
O-i)
tan. I
(iri2 — n2) tan. I
1 + ^ tan.2/
rri? + n2 tan.2 /
(mz _ n2) sin. I cos. I _ (m2—n2) sin. I cos. I
~ rri2 cos.2 I + n2 sin.2 / _ m2—(m2 —w2) sin.2r
Now, let m— rc = 1, or rc = m — 1; then, by substituting,
(2 m — 1) sin. I cos l
tan v —
rp — (2 m— 1) sin.2 /’
ing that sin. I cos. I — ^ sin. 2 Z,
sin. 2 Z
tan. v —
2 m
9
tan. D cot.
4
\,sin. P
Now, to convert 9 into seconds of time, it is only neces¬
sary to divide the number to which it is equal by 15;
therefore, expressed in time, 9 becomes
tan. Z
p=Tfe<te(|ni-ta”'Dcot
p>
or, neglecting the terms multiplied by —2, and recollect-
I = ^ sin. 2 Z,
(2——) ^ »
' 1 sin.2 Z
m
(8-v) (1+l-sin-!'):
(l - + — sin.2z)
\ 2 m m )
whence
tan. v
that is,
sin. 2 Z
tan. v —
2 m
sin. 2 Z
m
sin. 2 Z
For the angle P we may substitute 0 (half the time
elapsed between the two observations) converted into de¬
grees, and suppose D to be the value of the declination
at the instant of the meridional passage; the value of 9
being so small as not to be affected by these substitutions.
Therefore, ultimately,
if = -tan-D cot e)’
which, subtracted from 0, gives the true time of the me¬
ridional passage.
m
(1 ——f- — ?-cos.2Z+—sin.2/V
\ 2 m m m m )
but cos.2 Z — sin.2 Z = cos. 2 Z; therefore,
sin. 2 Z /, , 1 — 2 cos. 2 l\
tan. u = (^1 +  2^ j’
m \ ' 2 m
and 2 sin. 2 Z cos. 2 Z = 4 sin. 4 Z, therefore,
sin. 2 Z , sin. 2 Z —sm. 4 Z
tan. v — "T
m 2 m2
The last term of this expression cannot in any case
amount to 2", so that the angle of the vertical is very nearly
proportional to the sine of twice the latitude.
Problem XIII.—7b compute the angle of the vertical, or the
difference between the apparent and geocentric latitude
arising from the spheroidal figure of the earth (fig. 127).
Let AMP be a quadrant of the elliptic meridian, C be¬
ing the centre, and P the pole. The straight line VME,
perpendicular to the ecliptic in M, determines the appa¬
rent zenith V of the place M, while ZMC drawn through
C determines the true zenith Z. Hence the angle ADM
is the apparent latitude of M, and ACM its geocentric
latitude; and the angle ZMV between the true and appa¬
rent zenith is the angle of the vertical.
Let x and y be the rectangular co-ordinates of the point
M, the origin being at C, and make AC = m, CP = n,
ADM = Z, and ZMV = v.
The equation of the ellipse gives
7),
y2 — n2 g x2,
Problem XIV.—7b compute the parallax of the moon, or
a planet, in altitude.
Let P = the horizontal parallax,
p = the parallax of altitude,
Z = the apparent zenith distance.
It was shown in Chap. L Sect. 2 of Theoretical As¬
tronomy that sin. p = sin. P sin. Z ; now let Z' — the true
zenith distance, then Z = Z' + p, and consequently
sin. p = sin. P sin. (Z'+p) .
= sin. P (sin. Z' cos. p + cos. Z' sin. pf,
therefore
tan. p — sin. P (sin. Z' + cos. Z' tan. />)
tan. p (1 — sin- p cos. Z') = sin. P sin Z;,
whence .
sin. P sm. Z'
tan. jp
whence
ydy —
, xdx ;
therefore,
y n2 dx
x m? ’ dy'
1 — sin. P cos. Z'*
But by a well-known series,
p = tan. p — % tan.3 £ tan.5 p —, &c.
Substituting therefore the above expression for tan. p, and
reducing the powers to series, we find
sin. P sin. Z' , sin.2 P sin. 2Z'^ sin.3 P sin. 3Z' &c
p-
sin. 1"
sin. 2"
sin. 3"
1
68
ASTRONOMY.
Practical The first two terms of this series are in every case suffx-
Astronomy. c;ent for the computation ofp.
Problem XV.—To compute the parallax in right ascen¬
sion.
In fig. 128 let P be the pole, Z the zenith, A the true
place of the moon or a planet, depressed on the vertical
circle through the effects of parallax to B. Having join¬
ed PA and PB by arcs of great circles, the corresponding
variation in right ascension will be represented by the
angle APB. Make
P = the horizontal parallax;
p — AB, the parallax of altitude ;
n = APB, the parallax in right ascension;
l — 90° — ZP, latitude of place;
A — PA, the polar distance;
N = ZA, the true zenith distance;
= ZB, the apparent zenith distance;
H = ZPA the hour angle.
In the parallactic triangle APB we have
sin. PA : sin. AB : : sin. ABP : sin. APB;
that is,
sin. A : sin. p : : sin. ABP : sin. IT,
but sin. p = sin. P sin. (N -f /?)• See Theoretical
Astronomy, Chap. I. Sect. 2.
Therefore,
. sin. P sin. (N + V) sin. ABP
sin. A
Now, in the triangle ZBP, we have
sin. ZB : sin. ZP : : sin. ZPB : sin. ZBP (ABP);
that is,
sin. (N + p) : cos. I: : sin. (H + n) : sin. ABP.
Therefore,
a r.T> cos' ^ sin* (H + n)
sm. ABP =  :—-A !— \
sin. (N -f- jt?)
whence
. _ sin. P cos.
sin. n =  ;  — sm. (H + n).
sin. A v '
. . . sin. P cos. I
Make ;—-— = A; then
sm. A ’
sin. IT = A sin. (H + n) = A (sin. H cos. n + cos. H sin. n);
whence
tan. IT = A (sin. H + cos. H. tan. n),
and
tan. II (1 — A cos. H) = A sin. H;
that is,
„ A sin. H
tan. n =     w
1 — A cos. H
whence we have the following series,
tt — a s^n' H a <> sin. 2 H , „
n = A—— + A2- v +, &c.
that is (retaining the notation of last problem),
cos. A — sin, l cos. N _ cos. (A + w) — sin. I cos. (N+/>)
sin. N
whence
cos
sin. (N + />)
, . N cos. A sin. (N + i))
. (A + ff) = : A —
v y sin. N
sin. I [cos. N sin. (N +j») — sin. N cos. (N+p)~\
sin. N
cos. A sin. (N + j») sin. I sin.jo
sin. N sin. N ’
_ cos. A sin. (N + p) sin, / sin. P sin. (N + p)
sin. N sin. N.
therefore
, , . sin. (N+p),_ . , .
cos. (A+ff) = —^tTN— L008, A— sin. Zsin. P] ....(1)
Now, from the property of spherical triangles,
Sin. ZA: sin. PA :: sin. ZPA : sin. AZP,
therefore
sin.AZP= sin-PAsln:ZPA.
sin. ZA
For the same reason
sin. PB sin. ZPB
sin.BZP r=
sin. ZB
therefore
sin. 1"
sin. 2"
Problem XVI.— To compute the parallax in declination.
Make t = PB — PA (fig. 129) = the parallax in de¬
clination.
From the triangle ZPA we get
Cos. AP — cos. PZ cos. AZ
sin. PZ sin. AZ
cos. PZA —
and from ZPB
cos. PZB  cos. BP — cos. PZ cos. BZ
sin. PZ sin. BZ! ’
therefore
cos. AP — cos. PZ cos. AZ cos. BP — cos. PZ cos.BZ
sin. AZ
sin. BZ
sin. PA sin. ZPA __ sin. PB sin. ZPB
sin. ZA — sin. ZB ’
that is,
sin. A sin. H __ sin. (a + tt) sin. (H-j-lP)
sin. N sin. (N -\-p) *
whence
sin. (N+ff) _ sin. (A + t) sin. (H + n)
sin. N ~ sin. A * sin. H '
By substituting this in equation (1) there results
cos. (A+O = (A+Qsin. (H+n)
sin. A sin. H
[cos. A — sin. I sin. P]?
whence
f /a_i_ n sin. (H + n) f sin./sin. P)
cot. (A + t) = ^—pr—7 < cot. A 7 V .
sin. H i sin. A J
, sin. I sin. P
Make ; = cot. a, then
sm. A
/ A i \ sin. (H+n) . .
cot. (A + ff) =  >———7 (cot. A — cot. a),
sm. H v 7
that is,
, , N sin. (H + n) sin. (a — A)
cot.(A+7r)= “r—H-+ >—7
sm. H sm. a sm. A
from which, as A is known, cot. (A + t) maybe comput¬
ed, and thence <ir. A more convenient formula, however,
may be obtained by proceeding as follows. (See De-
lambre, Abrege d'Astronomic^ p. 154).
From the equation
. /A . x sin. (H + n)/ sin. / sin. P\
cot. (A + 't) =  +-£7—Mcot. A : )
sin. H \ sin. A /
we have
. sin. H cot. (A + tt) , sin. I sin. P
sin. (H + n) sin. A ’
whence
a * /a i \ sin. H cot. (A+?r)
. A- cot. (A+ff)= smTfH+n) +
sin. I sin. P
cot
+
sin. A
; but cot. A — cot. (A + cr)
Practical
Astronomt
Pf ical sin.fA + Ocos.A—COS^A+^^simA sm- .
Asti omy. sin. (A + cr) sin. A sin. (A + ^sin. a’
* therefore .
sin. it sm. I sin. r
sin. (A-!- cr) sin. A sin. A.
— cot. (A + ciOCsin. (H + n) — sin.H]
sin. (H + n)
Now, by the trigonometrical formulae, the difference of
the sines of two arcs is equal to twice the sine of half their
difference multiplied by the cosine of half their sum,
therefore
sin. (H + n) — sin. H = 2 sin.in cos. (H + ^n),
whence
sin. or . sin. I sin. P
sin. (A+ w) sin. A-- sin. A
2 sin. In cos. (H + ^n) cot. (A+w)
sin. (H + n)
and sin cr =r sin. I sin. P sin. (A +‘S’)
2 sin. -L n sin. A cos. (H +n) cos. ( A + tt)
sin. (H + n)
_ . T sin. n
or, since 2 sm. f n =  j——,
’ z cos. ^ n
sin. cr= sin. I sin. P sin. (A + sr)
sin. n sin. A cos. (H + ^n) cos. (A + cr)
cos. ^n sin. (H + n)
But it was shown in the last problem that
ASTRONOMY.
69
sin. P cos. I . /TT . v
sm. n =  —: sm. (H + n),
sin A.
whence
sin.n sin. A
= sin. P. cos. 1;
sin.(H + n)
consequently,
sin. t = sin. I sin. P sin. (A + tt)
sin. P cos. I cos. (H + ^ n) cos. (A + w)
cos. n
Make tan. a; = cos- + 2 ; then, by substituting,
COS* ^ XI
sin. w = sin. Z sin. P [sin.(A,+ 7r)—tan.a?cos. (A+cr)],
or sin. cr =
sm. / sm. r . . 1 ■. / a. \ \ * "1
—  [sin. (A + cr) cos. x — cos. (A + w) sin. £J,
cos. x
sin./sin. P ... x
sm. cr = sm. ( A + cr — x),
COS. X '
sin. cr —
sin./sin. P ,-.,A x . /.
  [sm. (A — a?) cos. cr + cos, (A — x) sin. cr];
cos. x '
whence,
tan. cr —
sin./sin. P
pole. It is consequently the highest point of the ecliptic Practical
above the horizon, or 90° from the horizon measured on Astronomy.
the ecliptic. _
Let HH' (fig. 129) be the horizon, EO the ecliptic, EQ
the equator, Z the zenith, P the pole of the equator, and
P the pole of the ecliptic. The great circle passing
through F and P intersects EO and EQ at right angles in
C and D, whence EC = ED = 90° = MQ, and therefore
EM = DQ. In like manner PD = 90° =: PC, conse¬
quently PP = CD the obliquity of the ecliptic.
The great circle PZNI which passes through the pole
of the ecliptic and the zenith is a circle of latitude and
also a vertical circle; hence the angles at N and I are
right angles, and O is the pole of PZNI; consequently
01 = ON = 90°. Now since ON z= 90°, the point N is
the nonagesimal, and its altitude IN — 90° — ZN zr ZP'
= the complement of the altitude of the pole of the eclip¬
tic, or the co-latitude of the zenith. In like manner its
longitude EN = 90° — NC = 90° — ZPP. Now in
order to compute ZP and the angle ZPP, we have given,
in the triangle ZPP', the side ZP = the co-latitude, PP
— the obliquity, and also the angle ZPP', for ZPP' — 180°
— ZPD = 180° — MD = 180° — (ED — EM) = 180°
  90° + EM = 90° + EM, and EM (which is the
right ascension of the zenith, or as it is technically called,
the right ascension of the mid-heaven) is given, being
equal to the sidereal time of observation converted into
degrees.
Let R = EM the right ascension of the zenith, X z= PZ
the co-latitude of the place (reducedby problem XIII.), «=
PP the obliquity of the ecliptic, K = PZ the co-latitude of
the zenith or altitude of the nonagesimal, N = 90° — ZPP
the longitude of the nonagesimal.
By the trigonometrical formulae,
cos. K =: cos. X cos. w + sin. X sin. w cos. (90° +R)
~ cos. X cos. w + sin. X sin. u sin. R.
Assume tan. (p ~ tan. X sin. R, then, by substituting and
reducing, we obtain
Tt- cos. X . i \
cos.K =  cos. (« + P).
cos. p
To find the longitude L, we have
tan. N = t - cot. (90 + E) cos. »
cos.#
tan
[sin. (A — #) + cos. (A—x) tan. cr];
, „ , , • sin. / sin. P
therefore (making — = B),
v cos. x '
B sin. (A — x) .
. cr =  tt-—^ consequently
1 — B cos. (A — x)
sin. (A — #) sin. 2 (A —x)
T = +B sin. 2” •
+ B3 rio. s (A-£) c
sm. 3"
Problem XVII.—To compute the altitude and longitude
of the nonagesimal.
The nonagesimal is the point of the ecliptic where that
circle intersects the vertical plane passing through its
sin. (90°+ R)
cot. X sin. w , A „
—    u tan. R cos. w,
cos. R
tan. 0 . sin. R
But tan. X = -—whence cot. X = ■
sm. R tan* f
whence, by substituting,
^ /sin. u , \
tan. N. = tan. R (    + cos. uj,
\tan. <p /
and on reducing,
tan.R . , , x
tan. N =    sin. (w + <p),
sm. <p
Problem XVIII.—To compute the parallax in longitude
and latitude.
Let A (fig. 129) be the place of the star situated on
the vertical ZAR ; Ea is its longitude, and P'A the com¬
plement of its latitude, or its distance from the pole of
the ecliptic. Suppose that, through the effects of parallax,
it is depressed from A to B ; its longitude then becomes
EZ>, and its distance from the pole of the ecliptic P'B, so
that ah is the variation in longitude, and P'B — PA the
variation in latitude, which it is required to compute.
Now it is evident that these quantities will be given in
terms of the different parts of the triangle AP'B, exactly
in the same manner as the parallax in right ascension
and declination has been found from the triangle APB
70
ASTRONOMY.
Practical (fig. 128). The angle ZPA, which was before denoted by
Astronomy, now becomes ZPA — Na r=Ea — EN = longitude
of the star — longitude of the nonagesimal, and ZPB be¬
comes ZP B rr NZ> zr: N« -f- ab. Retaining, therefore, the
notation employed in the three last problems, and making
L Ea the longitude of the star, A' z= PA its distance
from the pole of the ecliptic, k — ZP — 90° — K, If r= ab
its parallax in longitude, rr PB — PA its parallax in
latitude, we shall have If and cr' from the same formulae
as n and -r in Problems XV. and XVI., by changing l into
k, H into L — N, and A into A'. Hence (Problem XV.)
sin. P cos. k . ,T
sin. If := ^ rv—, sin. (L — N -f If),
sin. A'
,, • sin. P cos. k , ,
and by putting C rz ^ rz—? we deduce
tan. If —
sin. A'
C sin. (L — N)
n'= sin. C
sin. (L
1 — C cos.(L — N)
and
N) C2 sin. 2 (L
N)
sin. 2"
+ , &c.
sin. 1"
In like manner the formula for the parallax in decli¬
nation given in Problem XVI., viz.
. . sin. (H + n)T ^ A sin. I sin. P”]
cot. (A + ^r) zr  \ „ -- COt. A : —-
v y sin. H 1_ sin. A
becomes
. , . A sin.(L — N + n') P A sin.^sin.P”!
v 7 sin.(L — N) L sin. A' J
sin.(L-
from which, by proceeding in the same manner as in Pro¬
blem XVI., and making
cos. (L — N | If) cot, k
tan. a/ zzz
we deduce tan. -r'
cos. ^ If
sin. £sin. PP. , , , x , . ”1
=  —-— sin. (A' — af ) + cos* (A — tan.
COS*
whence, on making
sin. h sin. P
= D,
tan. t
consequently
cos. ad
, _ D sin. (A — ad)
1—Dcos.(A' — ad)'
sin. 1"
sin. 2"
Problem XIX.— Given the apparent altitudes of the moon
and the sun, or a star, and the apparent distance between
them, to find the true distance.
This is a problem of great importance in Practical
Astronomy, because the observed distance between the
moon and the sun or a star is the surest means the navi¬
gator has to determine his longitude.
To obtain the apparent distance and altitudes, it is con¬
venient to have three observers : one, the most expert,
takes the apparent distance of the limb of the moon from
that of the sun, or from the star; another observes the
moon’s altitude at the moment of the observation of the
distance; and a third takes the star’s altitude. For greater
accuracy, these simultaneous operations ought tobe repeat¬
ed several times, and a fourth assistant may, by a good
watch, note the intervals of time between them. A mean of
the whole will then be obtained, and the corresponding time
by the watch, by which the true time at that place will oe
nearly known. If there be only one observer, he must
take the altitudes immediately before and after the dis¬
tance, and endeavour to allow for the change of altitude
during the time between the observations.
The observed distance between the limbs of the moon
and sun must be increased by their semidiameters to ob¬
tain the distance of their centres. If the distance from a Practical
star is taken, because its diameter is insensible, the dis-A,tr°noiny
tance is to be increased by the moon’s semidiameter only.
The observed altitudes thus found are affected by pa¬
rallax and refraction. The moon’s horizontal parallax is
given in the Nautical Almanac: from this the parallax at
the time of observation may be found by Prob. XIV., but
the navigator avails himself of aid from The Requisite Tables,
which shorten the process of calculation. The sun’s pa¬
rallax is almost insensible, but it may be taken into ac¬
count ; that of a star is accounted nothing. The alti¬
tudes are diminished by the parallaxes, but they are in¬
creased by refraction. The sun’s altitude is more increas¬
ed by the latter than diminished by the former; but the
reverse happens with the moon. At sea the altitudes
must be also corrected for the dip of the horizon (that is, for
the height of the observer above the surface of the sea),
and the refraction for the height of the thermometer.
Supposing all this done, let S and M be the true places
of the sun or star and moon (fig. 130), Z the zenith; be¬
cause parallax and refraction take place only in vertical
circles, the apparent place of the sun, s, will be in the ver¬
tical ZS above S, and that of the moon, m, in ZM below
M. The apparent distance will be sm.
Let A = 90° — ZM be the moon’s true altitude ; a
— 90° — ZS the star’s true altitude; H = 90° — Zwthe
moon’s apparent altitude ; h — 90° — Zs the star’s appa¬
rent altitude; D = SM the true, and d = sm the appa¬
rent distance.
By spherical trigonometry, in the triangles SZM, sZm,
cos. D — sin. A sin. a
os. SZM
M^
cos. A cos. a
cos. d — sin. H sin. h
cos. H cos. h
From these equal values of cps. SZM we find
-p. / , • tt • i\cos- A cos. a . . . .
cosJD = (cos.a—sm. H sm./i)——pj———r + sin. A sin. a
cos. H cos. h
  r- 7 | /TT I 7 \ TT 7 “I COS. A. COS. Q!
— [cos. a + cos. (H + A) — cos. H cos. hi  j-r T
cos. H cos. h
+ sin. A sin. a
2 cos. £(H + h + d) cos. (H + A — ^)-°—^~cos^
^ v ' cos. H cos. A
— (cos. A cos. a — sin. A sin. a).
But the last term = cos. (A + a); subtract now both
sides from 1; then, observing that by the calculus of sines
(see Algebra)
1 — cos. D = 2 sin.2 ^ D,
1 -p cos. (A + a) 2 cos.2 ^ (A + a),
we have, after dividing by 2, and putting
F =
cos. A cos. a
cos. H cos. A’
sin.2 £ D = cos.2 ^ (A + a)
— cos. | (FI + A + c?) cos. ^ (H-p A — d)
X F
=cos.2i(A+a)r l_cos-KH+/‘+rf)<=°s4(H+A-^) p-|
L cos.“4 (A+a) XfJ'
sin
Let <} be such an angle that
s^=£2!i (H-pA+rf) cos.p (H-pA — d) cos. A cos. a
cos.2 £ (A+a) cos. H cos. A
and in this expression the value of F is put instead of it,
then we have
sin.2 i D = cos.2 £ (A-pa) cos.2 0;
and sin. £ D = cos. £ (A-pa) cos. 0.
The value of cos. D in the first formula may serve to
determine D, but not conveniently; by the various steps
of the analytic process it is transformed into another, viz.
ASTRONOMY.
71
Pra cal the last, which gives sin. ^ D, and consequently D readily
tstr|)my.ky logarithmic calculation.
^ The final result is the rule found by Borda: as a prac¬
tical rule it is very convenient, because no attention is ne¬
cessary to the signs of the trigonometrical quantities. On
this account it is well adapted to seamen.
Problem XX.—To find the longitude of a ship at sea by
an observation of the distance of the moon from the sun or
a star.
From the observed distance, the true distance as it
would appear if it could be seen from the earth’s centre,
may be found by the last problem : Now by the Nautical
Almanac this is given for every third hour, Greenwich time,
therefore, by an easy calculation, the time at which the ob¬
servation was made, as it would be given by a watch show¬
ing Greenwich time, may be obtained. But the time of
observation as reckoned at the ship may be found from
the ship’s latitude, the moon’s or star’s zenith distances
(found by the observation), and their polar distances as
given by the Almanac. Therefore the difference between
the time of the observation as estimated at the ship and
the corresponding Greenwich time becomes known : This
difference is the ship's longitude.
Example. At sea, June 5, 1793, about an hour and a
half after noon, in 10° 46' 50'' south latitude, and 149°
longitude, by account, by means of a set of lunar observa¬
tions made at a height of about 20 feet above the surface
of the sea, it was found that
Distance of nearest limbs of 0 and }) ...83° 26' 46"
Altitude of lowest limb of © 48 16 10
Altitude of upper limb of ]) 27 53 30.
Hence the longitude of the ship is required.
Reduction of the apparent to the true altitude.
Dist. of nearest limbs of © and j) 83° 26' 46"
Semidiam. ^ } from Naut. AlmanaC.  { »
Augmentation of the latter, prop, to altitude... 0 0 7
Apparent distance (d) of centres 83° 57' 33"
Altitude of sun’s lower limb 48° 16' 10"
Subtract for dip of horizon  0 4 24
48° IP 46"
Semidiameter  0 15 46
Apparent altitude of sun’s centre (fi) 48° 27' 32"
Itefr. — par. — correct, for therm — 0 0 43
True altitude of sun’s centre (a) 48° 26' 49"
Altitude of moon’s upper limb 27° 53' 30'
Correct for dip  — 0 4 24
27° 49' 6"
Semidiameter   0 15 1
Apparent altitude of moon’s centre (H) 27° 34' 5"
Par. — refr. -{- corr. for therm  0 46 43
True alt. of moon’s centre (A) 28° 20' 48"
Reduction of the apparent to the true distance by Prob. XIX.
d 83° 57' 33"
h 48 27 32 ar. com. cos. *1783835
H 27 34 5 ar. com. cos. *0523390
sum 159° 59' 10"
j sum 79 59 35 cos. 9-2399686
d—isum 3 57 58 cos. 9*9989587
a 48 26 49 cos. 9-8217187
A 28 20 48 cos. 9-9445275
A + a = 76° 47' 37". 39*2358960
£(A + a) = 38 23 48 2 log. cos. 19-7883324
2)19-4475636
<J = 31 57 33 cos. 0 9-7237818
sin. 9-9285875
Y(A + fl)= 38 23 48 cos.9-8941662
£ D = 41 40 27§ sin. 9-8227537
D = 83 20 55 nearly.
Computation of time at Greenwich.
By Nautical Almanac for 1793
t-. . c _ f at 15 hours.
Dist. ]) from O ) at jg
.83° 6' 1"
84 28 26
Increase of dist. in 3 hours zr 1° 22' 25"
Practical
Astronomy.
D  = 83° 20' 55"
Dist. ]) from © at 15 hours 83 6 1
0° 14' 54"
Hence it appears that in 3 hours the distance of the moon
from the sun was increased by 1° 22' 25" zz 4595", and
that between the time of making the observation, and the
15th hour, Greenwich time, the increase of distance was
0° 14' 54" zz 894." Now for small intervals the distances
will increase nearly as the times, therefore we have
4945" : 894" : : 3h. : Oh. • 5425 zz 32m. 33s.
Thus it appears that the observation must have been made
32 minutes 33 seconds after the 15th hour, Greenwich
time.
We have yet to find the correct time of the observation
as estimated at the ship. To determine this, we know
the sun’s altitude 48° 26' 49", and the sun’s declination,
which is given in the Almanac for Greenwich, noon ; and
from this the declination at the time of the observation
is found by making allowance for the difference of longi¬
tude and the hour from noon at the ship, both known near¬
ly. The declination thus found is 23° 22' 48" north. The
ship’s latitude, 10° 16' 40", is also known. Hence to find
the hour angle by Problem IV. we have
A the colat. zz 79° 43' 20",
A the pol. dist. zz 113 22 48,
z the zenith dist. zz 41 33 11.
To find P the hour angle, the computation (see formula
of Prob. IV.) may stand thus:—■
sin. l (z + x — A) 3° 56' 51" 8-8378559
sin. L (z„x + a) 37 36 19 9-7854851
sin. t (A _|- A -f- z) 117 19 39 ar. comp. 0-0513929
sin. g- (A -j- A — z) 75 46 28 ar. comp. 0*0135256
tan. (A P zz 12° 27' 17L")
P zz 24° 54' 35" ZZ
time at Greenwich zz
2)18*6882595
9-3441297
lh 39m 38s-3
15 32 33-0
Long, from Greenwich westward 13h 52m 548-7
Therefore, longitude east of Greenwich is 1011 7m Je-S
We have put down the result to seconds, as it comes out
by the calculation ; but such accuracy is not attainable in
nautical practice. Delambre says, “ even with the best
instruments, the most skilful navigators find anomalies for
which they cannot account. The lunar tables are in a
state of continual improvement, yet we cannot be sure that
there is not an error of 20" in a distance, which will pro¬
duce an error of 40" of time. To this possible error of
theory must be joined that of the observation, which may
be still greater. The error of the time may therefore
amount to 80", which is equivalent to 20', or ^d of a de¬
gree. This should be the maximum of the error ; and, in
general, this degree of accuracy is sufficient. Indeed a
greater accuracy than ^d or ^th of a degree may some¬
times be obtained, but still it is uncertain.
72 ASTRONOMY.
CHAP. II.
CALCULATION OF NEW AND FULL MOON, AND ECLIPSES.
Sect. I.—Tables for Computing New and Full Moon, and the Elements for Eclipses.
TABLE I.
The Mean Time of New Moon in January, New Style, with the Mean Anomalies of the Sun and Moon, and the Moon’s Mean Distanc;
from the Ascending Node from 1801 to 1900 inclusive.
1801
1802
1803
1804B.
1805
1806
1807
1808B.
1809
1810
1811
1812B.
1813
1814
1815
1816B.
1817
1818
1819
1820B.
1821
1822
1823
1824B.
1825
1826
1827
1828B
1829
1830
1831
1832B.
1833
1834
1835
1836B,
1837
1838
1839
1840B.
1841
1842
1843
1844B.
1845
1846
1847
1848B
1849
1850
MeanNewMoon
in January.
[. M. S.
14 7 39 9
3 16 27 43
22 14 0 21
11 22 48 55
29 20 21 32
19 5 10 7
8 13 58 41
27 11 31 18
15 20 19 52
5 8 27
24 2 41 4
13 11 29 38
I 20 18 13
20 17 50 50
10 2 39 25
29 0 12 2
17 9 0 36
6 17 49 11
25 15 21 48
15 0 10 23
3 8 58 57
22 6 31 34
11 15 20 8
1 0 8 43
18 21 41 20
8 6 29 54
27 4 2 31
16 12 51 5
4 21 39 40
23 19 12 17
13 4 0 51
2 12 49 25
20 10 22 3
9 19 10 37
28 16 43 15
18 1 31 49
6 10 20 23
25 7 53 1
14 16 41 35
4 1 30 10
21 23 2 47
II 7 51 21
30 5 23 59
19 14 12 33
7 23 1 8
26 20 33 45
16 5 22 19
5 14 10 54
23 11 43 31
12 20 32 6
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M. S.
0 26 7 39
11 5 55 49
10 11 33 0
8 21 21 11
7 26 58 22
6 6 46 32
4 16 34 42
3 22 11 53
2 2 0 4
0 11 48 14
11 17 25 25
9 27 13 35
8 7 1 46
7 12 38 57
5 22 27 7
4 28 4 18
3 7 52 29
1 17 40 39
0 23 17 50
11 3 6 1
9 12 54 11
8 18 31 22
6 28 19 32
5 8 7 42
4 13 44 53
2 23 33 4
1 29 10 1
0 8 58 25
10 18 46 35
9 24 23 46
8 4 11 56
6 14 0 6
5 19 37 18
3 29 25 28
3 5 2 39
1 14 50 49
11 24 39 0
11 0 16 11
9 10 4 21
7 19 52 32
6 25 29 43
5 5 17 53
4 10 55 5
2 20 43 15
1 0 31 25
0 6 8 36
10 15 56 47
8 25 44 57
8 1 22 8
6 11 10 19
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
+ 1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
5
5
5
6
6
6
6
7
7
7
8
8
8
9
9
10
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
AscendingNode.
S. D. M. S.
0 14 16 42
0 3 32 33
0 21 54 43
0 11 10 35
0 29 32 45
0 18 48 36
0 8 4 27
0 26 26 38
0 15 42 29
0 4 58 20
0 23 20 31
0 12 36 22
0 1 52 13
0 20 14 24
0 9 30 15
0 27 52 26
0 17 8 17
0 6 24 8
0 24 46 19
0 14 2 10
0 3 18 1
0 21 40 12
0 10 56 3
0 0 11 54
0 18 34 4
0 7 49 56
0 26 12 6
0 15 27 57
0 4 43 49
0 23 5 59
0 12 21 49
0 1 37 42
0 19 59 52
0 9 15 43
0 27 37 54
0 16 53 45
0 6 9 36
0 24 31 47
0 13 47 38
0 3 3 29
0 21 25 40
0 10 41 31
0 29 3 41
0 18 19 33
0 7 35 24
0 25 57 34
0 15 13 26
0 4 29 I?
0 22 51 27
0 12 7 19
i. D. M. S.
9 10 35 50
9 18 38 37
10 27 21 37
11 5 24 24
0 14 7 24
0 22 10 11
1 0 12 57
2 8 55 58
2 16 58 44
2 25 1 31
4 3 44 31
4 11 47 18
4 19 50 4
5 28 33 5
6 6 35 51
7 15 18 52
7 23 21 39
8 1 24 25
9 10 7 26
9 18 10 12
9 26 12 59
11 4 55 59
11 12 58 46
11 21 1 32
0 29 44 33
7 47 19
16 30 19
24 33 6
2 35 52
11 18 53
4 19 21 39
4 27 24 26
6 6 7 26
6 14 10 13
7 22 53 13
8 0 56 0
8 8 58 47
9 17 41 47
9 25 44 34
10 3 47 20
11 12 30 21
11 20 33 8
0 29 16 8
1 7 18 55
1 15 21 41
2 24 4 42
3 2 7 28
3 10 10 15
4 18 53 15
4 26 56 2
1851
1852B.
1853
1854
1855
1856B.
1857
1858
1859
1860B.
1861
1862
1863
1864B
1865
1866
1867
1868B.
1869
1870
1871
1872B
1873
1874
1875
1876B.
1877
1878
1879
1880B.
1881
1882
1883
1884B.
1885
1886
1887
1888B.
1889
1890
1891
1892B.
1893
1894
1895
1896B.
1897
1898
1899
1900C.
MeanNewMoon
in January.
D. H. M. S.
2 5 20 40
21 2 53 17
9 11 41 52
28 9 14 29
17 18 3 3
7 2 51 38
25 0 24 15
14 9 12 49
3 18 1 23
22 15 34 1
11 0 22 35
29 21 55 12
19 6 43 47
8 15 32 21
26 13 4 58
15 21 53 33
5 6 42 7
24 4 14 44
12 13 3 18
1 21 51 53
20 19 24 30
10 4 13 4
28 1 45 42
17 10 34 16
6 19 22 50
25 16 55 27
14 1 44 2
3 10 32 36
22 8 5 13
11 16 53 48
29 14 26 25
18 23 14 59
8 8 3 34
27 5 36 11
15 14 24 46
4 23 13 20
23 20 45 57
13 5 34 32
1 14 23 6
20 11 55 44
9 20 44 18
28 18 16 55
17 3 5 30
6 11 54 4
25 9 26 42
14 18 15 16
3 3 3 50
22 0 36 28
II 9 25 2
30 6 57 39
w
s.
_ 6
6
6
6
6
7
7
7
7
8
8
8
8
9
9
9
10
10
10
10
11
11
11
12
12
12
13
13
13
14
14
14
15
15
16
16
16
17
17
18
18
18
19
19
20
20
20
21
21
21
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M. S.
4 20 58 29
3 26 35 40
2 6 23 50
1 12 1 2
11 21 49 12
10 1 37 22
9 7 14 33
7 17 2 43
5 26 50 54
5 2 28 5
3 12 16 15
2 17 53 26
0 27 41 36
11 7 29 47
10 13 6 58
8 22 55 8
7 2 43 18
6 8 20 29
4 18 8 40
2 27 56 50
2 3 34 1
0 13 22 11
11 18 59 22
9 28 47 33
8 8 35 43
14 12 54
24 1 5
3 49 15
9 26 26
19 1437
0 24 51 48
11 4 39 58
9 14 28 8
8 20 5 20
6 29 53 30
'5 9 41 40
4 15 18 51
2 25 7 1
1 4 55 12
0 10 32 23
10 20 20 33
9 25 57 44
8 5 45 54
6 15 34 5
5 21 11 16
4 0 59 26
2 10 47 36
1 16 24 47
11 26 12 58
11 1 50 9
s.
+ 10
10
11
11
12
12
12
13
13
14
14
15
15
16
16
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
20
21
22
22
23
23
24
25
25
26
26
27
28
28
29
30
30
31
32
33
33
34
35
35
36
37
38
38
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M.
0 1 23 10
0 19 45 20
0 9 1 12
0 27 23 22
0 16 39 13
0 5 55 5
0 24 17 15
0 13 33 6
0 2 48 58
0 21 11 8
0 10 26 59
0 28 49 10
0 18 5 1
0 7 20 52
0 25 43 3
0 14 58 54
0 4 14 45
0 22 36 56
0 11 52 47
0 1 8 38
0 19 30 49
0 8 46 40
0 27 8 50
0 16 24 42
0 5 40 33
0 24 2 43
0 13 18 35
0 2 34 26
0 20 56 36
0 10 12 27
0 28 34 38
0 17 50 29
0 7 6 20
0 25 28 31
0 14 44 22
0 4 0 13
0 22 22 24
0 11 38 15
0 0 54 6
0 19 16 17
0 8 32 8
0 26 54 19
0 16 10 10
0 5 26 1
0 23 48 12
0 13 4 3
0 2 19 54
0 20 42 4
0 9 57 56
0 28 20 6
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
AscendingNode.
S. D. M.
5 4 58 48
6 13 41 49
6 21 44 35
8 0 27 36
8 8 30 22
8 16 33 9
9 25 16 10
10 3 18 56
10 11 21 43
11 20 4 43
11 28 7 30
1 6 50 31
1 14 53 17
1 22 56 4
3 1 39 4
3 9 41 51
3 17 44 37
4 26 27 38
5 4 30 24
5 12 33 11
6 21 16 11
6 29 18 58
8 8 1 58
8 16 4 45
8 24 7 31
10 2 50 32
10 10 53 18
10 18 56 5
11 27 39 5
0 5 41 52
-1
14 24 52
22 27 39
0 30 25
9 13 26
17 16 12
25 18 59
4 2 0
12 4 46
20 7 33
28 50 33
7 6 53 20
8 15 36 21
8 23 39 7
9 1 41 54
10 10 24 54
10 18 27 41
10 26 30 27
0 5 13 28
0 13 16 14
1 21 59 15
ASTRONOMY.
73
TABLE II.
Quantities to be added to the Epochs in Table I. for the Nineteenth Century, in order to obtain the Epochs of the
corresponding Years in other Centuries. The sign — indicates the past Centuries, and + the future, in respect
to the Nineteenth Century. .
TABLE III.
Secular Equations.
Years.
B. C.
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
A. C.
1
101
201
301
401
501
601
Time of
Mean New
Moon.
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
M. S.
52 5
34 54
18 21
2 27
47 11
32 33
18 35
5 16
52 36
40 35
29 14
18 33
8 31
0 59 10
0 50 30
D. M.
+ 6 56
6
5
5
4
4
4
3
s.
7
25 19
55 39
27 7
59 45
33 32
8 29
44 36
21 53
0 21
39 59
20 50
2 52
46 6
1.30 32
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
m. s.
18 44
17 20
15 59
14 41
13 17
12 16
11 8
10 3
Moon’s Mean
Distancefrom
Ascending
Node.
d. m. s.
1 22 19
1 16 13
1 10 21
1 4 42
0 59 18
0 54 6
0 49 9
0 44 26
0 39 56
0 35 40
0 31 39
0 27 51
0 24 18
0 20 59
0 17 54
Years.
A. C.
701
801
901
1001
1101
1201
1301
1401
1501
1601
1701
1801
1901
2001
Time of
Mean New
Moon.
H. M. s.
-0 42 30
0 35 10
0 28 32
0 22 35
0 17 19
12 44
8 51
5 41
3 12
1 25
0 0 21
0 0 0
0 0 21
0 1 26
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly,
d. m. s.
+ 1 16 11
1 3 4
0 51 9
0 40 29
0 31 2
0 22 50
0 15 53
0 10 11
0 5 44
0 2 32
0 0 38
0 0 0
0 0 38
0 2 34
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
s.
23
48
16
48
23
1 1
0 42
0 27
0 15
0 7
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending
Node.
D. M. S.
— 0 15 4
0 12 28
0 10 7
0 8 0
0 6 8
0 4 31
0 3 9
2 1
1 8
0
0
0 0 30
0 0 8
0 0 0
0 0 8
0 0 30
VOL. IV.
K
74
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE IV.
Mean Anomalies of the Sun and Moon, and Moon’s Mean Distance from Ascending Node for Mean Lunations.
No.
Mean Lunations.
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
Moon’s Mean Distance
from Ascending Node.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1
2
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
d. h. m. s.
29 12 44 3
28 1 28 6
29 14 12 9
28 2 56 11
27 15 40 14
26 4 24 17
25 17 8 20
24 5 52 23
22 18 36 26
22 7 20 29
November 20 20 4 31
December 20 8 48 34
14 18 22 1
S. D. M.
0 25 49
1 21 38
2 17 27
3 13 16
4 9 5
5 4 54
6 0 43
6 26 32
7 22 21
8 18 10
9 13 59 9
10 9 48 10
6 12 54 30
0 29 6 19
1 28 12 39
2 27 18 58
3 26 25 17
4 25 31 37
5 24 37 56
6 23 44 16
7 22 50 35
8 21 56 54
9 21 3 14
10 20 9 33
11 19 15 52
0 14 33 10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
0
D. M. S.
0 40 14
1 20 27
2 0 41
2 40 54
3 21 8
4 1 21
4 41 35
5 21 48
6 2 2
6 42 15
7 22 29
8 2 42
6 15 20
TABLE Y.
First Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon.
Argument. Moon’s Mean Anomaly.
O.s.
I.S.
II.S.
III.S.
IV.s.
V.S.
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
H. M. S.
0 0 0
0 9 28
0 18 56
0 28 24
0 37 52
0 47 19
0 56 45
1 6 10
1 15 35
1 24 59
1 34 21
1 43 42
1 53 2
2 2 20
2 11 37
2 20 51
30 4
39 15
48 23
57 29
6 33
3 15 34
3 24 33
3* 33 28
3 42 21
3 51 10
3 59 56
4 8 39
4 17 18
4 25 54
4 34 26
H; M. S.
4 34 26
42 54
51 18
59 38
7 54
16 4
24 10
32 12
40 9
48 1
55 48
6 3 29
6 11 5
6 18 36
6 26 1
6 33 20
40 33
47 40
54 41
1 36
8 24
15 6
21 41
28 9
34 30
40 44
46 52
52 50
58 42
4 26
8 10
H. M. S.
8 10 3
8 15 32
8 20 52
8 26 5
8 31 9
8 36 6
8 40 53
8 45 32
8 50 2
8 54 24
8 58 36
9 2 40
9 6 34
9 10 20
9 13 55
9 17 22
9 20 38
9 23 46
9 26 43
9 29 30
9 32 8
9 34 36
9 36 53
9 39 0
9 40 57
9 42 44
9 44 20
9 45 46
9 47 1
9 48 5
9 48 59
H. M. S.
9 48 59
49 42
50 14
50 35
50 45
50 44
9 50 33
9 50 10
9 49 36
9 48 51
9 47 55
9 46 48
9 45 29
9 43 59
9 42 18
9 40 26
38 22
36 8
33 42
31 4
28 16
9 25 16
9 22 5
9 18 44
9 15 10
9 11 26
9 7 31
9 3 25
8 59 8
8 54 39
8 50 0
H. M. S.
8 50 0
8 45 11
8 40 10
8 34 59
8 29 36
8 24 5
8 18 23
8 12 30
8 6 27
8 0 14
7 53 50
47 17
40 35
33 42
26 40
19 28
7 12 7
7 4 37
6 56 58
6 49 11
6 41 14
6 33 9
6 24 55
6 16 33
6 8 3
5 59 26
5 50 39
5 41 47
5 32 46
5 23 38
5 14 24
H. M. S.
5 14 24
5 5 2
4 55 34
4 45 59
4 36 18
4 26 31
16 38
6 40
36 3
46 27
36 13
3 25 54
3 15 31
3 5 3
2 54 31
2 43 56
2 33 16
2 22 34
2 11 48
2 0 59
1 50 8
1 39 14
1 28 18
1 17 20
1 6 20
0 55 19
0 44 17
0 33 13
0 22 9
0 11 5
0 0 0
+
XI.s.
+
x>
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4 '
3
2
1
0
+
IX.s.
+
VIILS-
+
VII.S.
+
YI.s.
ASTRONOMY.
75
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change the sign of the Secular Variation.
76
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE VII.
TABLE VIII.
Third Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon. Fourth Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon.
Argument. Moon’s Mean Anomaly Sun’s
Mean Anomaly.
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
O.s.
VI.s.
+
M. S.'
0 0
0 7
0 15
0 22
0 30
0 37
0 44
0 52
0 59
1 7
1 14
21
29
1 36
1 43
1 50
57
5
12
2 19
2 26
33
40
46
53
0
7
13
20
26
33
+
XI.s.
V.s.
1.6.
VII.!
+
M. S.
3 33
39
46
52
58
4
4 10
4 16
4 22
4 28
4 34
4 39
4 45
4 50
4 56
5 1
6
12
17
21
26
31
36
40
45
49
53
57
1
5
9
II.6*
VIILs
+
+
X.s.
IV.S.
M.
6
6 13
6 16
6 20
6 23
6 26
6 29
6 32
6 35
6 38
6 40
6 43
6 45
6 47
6 49
6 51
6 53
6 55
6 57
6 58
6 59
+
IX.s.
III.S.
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Argument. Moon’s Mean Anomaly minus Sun’s
Mean Anomaly.
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
0.6-
+
VII.s.
0 0
11
22
0 33
0 44
0 55
6
18
29
40
50
1
12
23
33
44
55
5
16
27
37
48
58
8
18
28
4 38
4 48
4 58
5 7
5 17
XI.s
+
V.s.
I.s
+
VII.s.
M. S.
5 17
27
37
46
55
4
13
22
6 31
6 39
6 48
56
5
13
21
29
37
45
52
59
7
8 14
8 20
27
34
40
8 46
8 52
8 58
9 4
9 10
X.s.
+
IV.S
II.s.
+
VIII.s.
M.
9
10
10
10
s.
10
9 15
9 20
9 25
9 30
9 36
9 41
9 45
9 49
9 53
9 57
10 11
10 14
10 16
10 19
10 21
10 23
10 25
10 27
10 29
10 30
10 32
10 33
10 33
10 34
10 35
10 35
10 35
IX.s
+
III.S.
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
ASTRONOMY.
77
TABLE IX.
TABLE X.
Fifth Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon. Sixth Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon.
Argument. Moon’s Mean Distance from Ascending
Node.
O.s-
+'
YI.s.
+
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
M. S.
0 0
0 4
0 8
0 12
0 16
0 20
0 24
0 28
0 32
0 36
0 40
0 43
0 47
0 51
0 54
0 58
1
5
8
11
15
1 18
1 21
23
26
1 29
31
34
36
38
1 40
XL*.
V.s.
I.*-
+
Vll.s.
+
M. S.
1 40
1 42
1 44
1 46
1 48
1 49
1 50
II.6.
+
VIII.i
+
M. S.
1 40
1 38
1 36
1 34
1 31
1 29
51
53
53
54
55
55
56
56
56
56
56
55
55
54
1 53
1 53
51
50
1 49
48
46
1 44
42
40
X>
IY.s.
26
23
21
18
15
11
8
5
1
0 58
0 54
0 51
0 47
0 43
0 40
0 36
0 32
0 28
0 24
0 20
0 16
0 12
0 8
0 4
0 0
IX.s-
III.s-
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
\
78
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE XL
Seventh Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon.
Argument. Twice the Moon’s Mean Anomaly
plus the Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
VI.S.
+
0
3
6
9
12
15
18
+
XI>
V.S.
I.S.
VII.s.
+
s.
18
21
23
25
28
29
31
+
X.s-
IV.s.
II.S.
VTIl.s.
+
s.
31
33
34
35
35
36
36
+
IX.s.
III.s.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XII.
Eighth Equation for the Times of New and Full Moon.
Aigument. i wice the Moon’s Mean Anomaly
minus the Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
VI.S
+
+
XI.S.
V.S.
I.S-
VII.s.
+
+
Xs.
IV.S.
II.S.
VIII.s.
+
9
9
9
10
10
10
10
+
IX.S.
IILs.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XIII.
Ninth Equation for the Time of Full Moon only.
Argument. Moon’s Mean Anomaly.
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
O.s.
+
VI.s.
0 0
0 9
0 11
0 12
0 14
0 15
0 17
0 18
0 20
0 21
0 22
0 24
0 25
0 27
0 28
0 30
0 31
0 33
0 34
0 35
0 37
0 38
0 39
0 41
0 42
0 43
I.S.
+
VII.s.
II.S.
+
VIII.S
M. S.
0 43
0 45
0 46
0 47
0 49
0 50
0 51
0 52
0 54
0 55
0 56
0 57
0 58
0 59
1 0
1 1
M. S.
1 15
1 16
17
17
18
1 10
1 11
XI.s.
+
V.s.
12
13
14
15
1 15
1 19
1 19
1 20
1 21
1 21
1 22
1 22
1 23
1 23
1 24
1 24
1 24
1 25
1 25
1 25
1 26
26
26
26
26
27
27
27
27
X.s-
+
IV.S
1 27
1 27
IX.s.
+
III.s.
table XIV.
Tenth Equation for the Time of Full Moon only.
Argument. Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
O.s.
+
VI.s.
o°,
5
10
15
20
25
30
0
3
6
9
11
14
16
XI.s.
+
V.s.
I.S.
+
VII.S.
s.
16
19
21
23
25
27
29
X.s.
+
IV.S.
II.S.
4*
VIII.S.
s.
29
30
31
32
32
33
33
IX.s.
+
III.S.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
30c
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
ASTRONOMY.
79
TABLE XV.
Sun’s Mean Motion from the Moon’s Perigee and Ascending Node, and Variation of the Sun’s
Mean Anomaly, for Hours, Minutes, and Seconds.
For Hours.
H.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Moon’s
Perigee.
m. s.
2 11
4 22
6 33
8 44
10 55
13 7
15 18
17 29
19 40
21 51
24 2
26 13
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
m. s.
2 28
4 56
7 23
9 51
12 19
14 47
17 15
19 43
22 11
24 38
27 6
29 34
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Ascending Node.
D. M. S.
0 2 36
0 5 12
0 7 47
0 10 23
0 12 59
0 15 35
0 18 10
0 20 46
0 23 22
0 25 58
0 28 34
0 31 9
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Moon’s
Perigee.
M. S.
28 25
30 36
32 47
34 58
37 9
39 20
41 31
43 43
45 54
48 5
50 16
52 27
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
m. s.
32 2
34 30
36 58
39 26
41 53
44 21
46 49
49 17
51 45
54 13
56 40
59 8
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Ascending Node.
D. M. S.
0 33 45
0 36 21
0 38 57
0 41 33
0 44 8
0 46 44
0 49 20
0 51 56
0 54 32
0 57 7
0 59 43
1 2 19
For Minutes and Seconds.
s.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Moon’s
Perigee.
0 9
0 11
0 13
0 15
0 17
0 20
0 22
0 24
0 26
0 28
0 31
0 33
0 35
0 37
0 39
0 42
0 44
0 46
0 48
0 50
0 52
0 55
0 57
0 59
1 1
1 3
1 6
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
0 10
0 12
0 15
0 17
0 20
0 22
0 25
0 27
0 30
0 32
0 34
0 37
0 39
0 42
0 44
0 47
0 49
0 52
0 54
0 57
0 59
2
4
6
9
11
14
Sun’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending
Node.
Sun’s Mean
Motion from
Moon’s
Perigee.
0 10
0 13
0 16
0 18
0 21
0 23
0 26
0 29
0 31
0 34
0 36
0 39
0 41
0 44
0 47
0 49
0 52
0 54
0 57
1
1
0
2
5
10
13
15
18
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
1 8
1 10
1 12
1 15
1 17
1 19
1 21
1 23
1 25
1 27
1 30
1 32
1 34
1 36
1 38
1 41
1 43
1 45
47
49
51
54
56
58
0
2
4
6
8
11
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
s. T.
1 16
1 19
1 21
1 24
1 26
1 29
1 31
1 34
1 36
1 39
1 41
1 43
1 46
1 48
1 51
1 53
1 56
1 58
2 1
2 3
2 6
8
11
13
15
18
20
23
25
28
Sun’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending
Node.
S. T.
1 20
23
26
1 28
1 31
1 33
1 36
1 39
1 41
1 44
1 46
1 49
52
54
57
59
2
5
2 7
2 10
2 12
15
18
20
23
25
28
31
33
36
80
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE XVI.
Equation of the Sun’s Centre for 1801, with the Secular Variation.
Argument. Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
0.3-
!Z2 si
>
I.3-
^ £
£3.2
02 ys
>
n.s.
+
2 -n
02 rt
>
III.3'
\.a
IV.s.
V.3.
m 3
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
D. M.
0 0
D. M. S.
0 58 48
D. M.
1 41
0 2 4
0 4 7
0 6 10
0 8 14
0 10 17
0 12 20
0 14 22
0 16 25
0 18 27*
0 20 28
0 22 30
0 24 31
0 26 31
0 28 31
0 30 30
0 32 29
0 34 27
0 36 25
0 38 21
0 40 17
0 42 13
0 44 7
0 46 0
0 47 53
0 49 45
0 51 35
0 53 25
0 55 14
0 57 2
0 58 48
XI.s.
0 34
2 18
4 1
5 43
7 23
9 3
10 41
12 17
13 52
15 26
16 58
18 29
19 58
21 26
22 53
24 17
25 40
27 2
28 21
29 39
30 56
32 10
33 23
34 34
35 44
36 51
37 57
39 1
40 3
41 3
X.«-
9
9
10
10
10
10
11
11
11
11
12
12
12
12
13
13
13
13
13
14
14
14
14
14
14
15
15
15
15
15
42 1
42 57
43 52
44 44
45 34
46 23
47 9
47 54
48 36
49 17
l 49 55
1 50 31
1' 51 5
1 51 37
1 52 8
1 52 36
1 53 2
1 53 25
1 53 47
1 54 7
54 24
54 40
54 53
55 4
55 13
55 20
55 25
55 28
55 28
55 27
IX.s
15
15
15
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
D. M.' S.
1 55 27
1 55 23
1 55 18
1 55 10
1 55 0
1 54 48
54 34
54 18
54 0
53 39
53 17
52 53
52 26
51 58
51 27
1 50 55
50 20
49 44
49 6
48 25
47 43
1 46 59
1 46 13
1 45 25
1 44 35
1 43 43
42 49
41 54
40 57
39 58
38 57
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
D. M. S.
1 38 57
37 54
36 50
35 44
34 36
1 33 27
32 16
31 3
29 49
28 33
27 16
25 57
24 37
23 15
21 52
20 27
19 1
17 33
16 4
14 34
13 2
11 29
9 56
8 20
6 44
5 6
1 3
1 1
1 0
0 58 25
0 56 42
28
48
7
15
14
14
14
14
14
14
13
13
13
13
13
12
12
12
12
12
11
11
11
11
10
10
10
10
10
9
9
9
9
8
D. M. S.
0 56 42
0 54 58
0 53 13
0 51 27
0 49 41
0 47 53
0 46 5
0 44 16
0 42 26
0 40 35
0 38 44
0 36 52
0 34 59
0 33 6
0 31 12
0 29 17
0 27 23
0 25 27
0 23 31
0 21 35
0 19 39
0 17 42
0 15 45
0 13 47
0 11 49
0 9 51
53
55
57
58
0
VIII.s
+
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
VII.S.
VI.s.
Multiply the secular variations by the number of years between the given time and the, year 1801, and divide the product by 100.
If the time is before 1801, change the sign of the secular variation. 1 J
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE XVII.
For the Moon’s Latitude and Inclination of her relative
Orbit to the Ecliptic in Eclipses.
Argument. Moon’s True distance from Ascending
Node.
0°
1
2
3
4
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Latitude.
O.s.
+
increasing.
VI.s.
increasing.
d. m. s.
0 0 0
0 5 17
0 10 33
0 15 49
0 21 5
0 26 21
0 31 36
0 36 50
0 42 4
0 47 17
0 52 30
0 57 41
2
8
13
51
0
8
18 14
23 19
28 23
1 33 24
1 38 24
1 43 23.
+
decreasing.
V.s.
decreasing.
XI.s.
Inclination.
30°
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
O.s.
left.
VI.s.
right.
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
M.
44
44
44
43
43
43
42
41
41
40
39
38
37
35
34
32
31
29
27
25
23
right.
V.s.
left.
XI.s.
In Lunar Eclipses change the designation “ right” or
“ left” of the Inclination.
TABLE XVIII.
For the Moon’s Latitude in Eclipses.
Argument. Moon’s True Anomaly minus True
Distance from Ascending Node.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
VI.s.
+
4"
XI.s.
V.s.
I.S.
VII.s-
+
s.
6
7
8
9
10
10
11
+
X.s.
IV.s.
II.S.
VIII.S.
+
11
11
12
12
12
13
13
f
IX.s.
III.s.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XIX.
For the Moon’s Latitude in Eclipses.
Argument. Preceding argument, plus Moon’N
True Anomaly.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s-
+
VI.s-
s.
0
2
4
7
9
11
13
XL*-
+
V.s.
I.S-
+
VII.s.
s.
13
15
17
18
20
21
22
X.s.
+
IV.s.
II.S.
4*
VIIIA
22
23
24
25
25
26
26
IX.s.
+
III.s.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XX.
For the Moon’s Latitude in Eclipses.
Argument. Moon’s True Anomaly plus True
Distance from Ascending Node.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
+
VI.s.
I.S.
+
VII.s.
s.
8
10
11
12
13
14
15
XI.s.
+
V.s.
X.S-
+
IV.s.
II.S.
+
VIII.1
15
15
16
16
17
17
17
IX.s.
+
III.s.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XXL
For the Moon’s Latitude in Eclipses.
Argument. Sun’s True Anomaly plui Moon’s
True Distance from Ascending Node.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
+
VI.s.
0
2
3
5
7
8
10
XI.s.
+
V.S.
I.S.
+
VII.s.
10
11
13
14
15
16
17
X.s.
+
IV.s.
II.S.
+
VIII;
17
18
18
19
19
20
20
IX.s.
+
III.s.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
81
VOL. IV.
82
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE XXII.
For the Moon’s Latitude in Eclipses.
Argument. Sun’s True Anomaly minus Moon’s
True Distance from Ascending Node.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
O.s.
+
VI.s.
s.
0
3
6
8
11
14
16
XI.s-
+
Y.s.
I.s.
+
VII.s.
s.
16
19
21
23
25
27
28
X.s.
+
IV.s.
II>
+
VIII.s.
s.
28
30
31
31
32
32
33
IX.s.
+
III.S.
30°
25
20
15
10
5
0
TABLE XXIV.
Diminution of the Moon’s Equatorial Horizontal Parallax,
and of the Latitude of a Place, on account of the Sphe¬
roidal Figure of the Earth.
Arguments. Latitude at the Side, and
Moon’s Horizontal Parallax at the Top.
0°
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
Diminution of
Parallax.
M. M. M.
53 57 61
s. s. s.
0 0 0
1 1 1
2 2 2
3 3 3
Diminution
of Latitude.
9 10 10
10 10 11
10 11 12
10 11 12
11 12 12
11 12 12
M.
0-0
2-0
4- 0
5- 8
7- 5
8- 9
10-1
11-0
11-5
11*7
11-5
11*0
10-1
9- 0
7-5
5-9
4-0
2-0
0-0
TABLE XXIII.
The Moon’s Equatorial Horizontal Parallax, Semidiameter,
and Horary Motion in her Orbit, at New and Full Moon;
and the Semidiameter and Horary Motion of the Sun.
Argument. Moon’s True Anomaly, or Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
Argu¬
ment.
s.
O. 0°
6
12
18
24
I.
0
6
12
18
24
II. 0
6
12
18
24
III. 0
6
12
18
24
IV. 0
6
12
18
24
V. 0
6
12
18
24
VI. 0
Moon’s
Equato¬
rial Hori.
zontal
Parallax.
m. s.
61 23
61 22
61 18
61 12
61 4
60 53
60 41
60 26
60 9
59 51
59 31
59 10
58 49
58 26
58 3
57 39
57 16
56 53
56 30
56 8
55 47
55 28
55 10
54 53
54 38
54 25
54 15
54 6
54 0
53 57
53 55
Moon’s
Semi¬
diameter.
M. S.
16 44
16 43
16 42
16 41
16 38
16 35
16 32
16 28
16 23
16 19
16 13
16 7
16 2
15 55
15 49
15 43
15 36
15 30
15 24
15 18
15 12
15 7
15 2
14 57
14 53
14 50
14 47
14 45
14 43
14 42
14 42
Moon’s
Horary
Motion.
Sun’s
Semi¬
diameter.
m. s.
38 13
38 11
38 7
37 59
37 49
37 36
37 21
37 3
36 43
36 21
35 58
35 33
35 7
34 40
34 14
33 46
33 19
32 53
32 27
32 2
31 39
31 17
30 56
30 38
30 22
30 8
29 56
29 47
29 40
29 36
29 35
M. S.
16 18
16 18
16 17
16 17
16 16
16 15
16 15
16 13
16 12
16 11
16 9
16 8
16 6
16 4
16 3
10 1
15 59
15 58
15 56
15 55
15 53
15 52
15 51
15 49
15 48
15 48
15 47
15 46
15 46
15 46
Sun’s
Horary
Motion.
33
33
33
33
32
2 32
2 32
2 32
2 31
2 31
2 30
2 30
2 29
2 29
2 28
2 28
2 27
2 27
2 26
2 26
2 25
2 25
2 25
2 24
2 24
24
23
23
23
23
15 46 2 23
Argu¬
ment.
XII. 0°
24
18
12
- 6
XL 0
24
18
12
6
X. 0
24
18
12
6
IX. 0
24
18
12
6
VIII. 0
24
18
12
6
VII. 0
24
18
12
6
VI. 0
ASTRONOMY
83
TABLE XXV.
TABLE XXVI.
Epochs of the Mean Longitude of the Sun’s Perigee, in¬
cluding the Secular Variation of the Precession of the
Equinoxes.
Years.
Longitude of Sun’s
Perigee.
B. C.
Old Style.
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
A. C.
Old Style.
1
101
201
301
401
501
601
701
801
901
1001
1101
S. D. M. S.
7 25 1 10
7 26 43 20
7 28 25 33
8 0 7 47
8 1 50 4
8 3 32 24
8 5 14 45
8 6 57 9
8 8 39 35
8 10 22 3
8 12 4 34
8 13 47 7
8 15 29 43
8 17 12 20
8 18 55 0
8 20 37 43
8 22 20 28
8 24 3 15
8 25 46 4
8 27 28 56
1201 8 29 11 51
1301 9 0 54 47
1401 9 2 37 46
1501 9 4 20 48
1601
1701
A. C.
New Style,
1501
1601
1701
1801
1901
2001
Secular
Variation
of Preces¬
sion of
Equinoxes
6 3 52
7 46 58
4 20 46
6 3 50
9 7 46 56
9 9 30 5
9 11 13 16
9 12 56 30
s.
60
57
56
53
50
49
46
44
42
39
37
34
33
30
27
25
23
21
18
15
■ 14
11
8
6
- 4
- 1
— 6
4
— 1
+ 1
Mean Motion of the Sun’s Perigee in Years, Months, and
Days.
Years.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Motion of
Sun’s
Perigee.
b. m. s.
0 1 2
0 2 4
0 3 6
0 4 8
0 5 9
0 6 11
0 7 13
0 3 15
0 9 17
0 10 19
0 20 38
0 30 57
0 41 16
0 51 35
1 1 54
1 12 13
1 22 32
1 32 51
1 43 10
Months.
January,
February,
March,
April,
May,
June,
July,
August,
September,
October,
November,
December,
Motion
of Sun’s
Perigee.
Days.
0 10
0 15
0 20
0 26
0 31
0 36
0 41
0 46
0 52
0 57
Motion
of Sun’s
Perigee.
7
13
19
25
31
84
ASTRONOMY.
TABLE XXVII.
The Sun’s Declination for the Year 1801, with the Secular Variation.
Argument. Sun’s True Longitude.
0°
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
O.s.
+
YI.s.
D.
0
10
10
0-0
0 23-9
0 47-8
1 11-6
1 35-5
1 59-3
23-1
46-9
10-6
34*3
57-9
21-5
44-9
8-4
31-7
54-9
18-1
4M
4*1
26-9
49-7
8 12*3
8 34-7
8 57-1
9 19-3
9 41*3
3-2
24*9
10 46*5
11 7-9
11 29’1
XI.s.
+
V.s.
Secular
Variation.
M.
-0-0
-0-0
0-0
0-0
0-1
0-1
-0-1
0-1
0-1
0-1
0-1
■0-1
0-2
0-2
0-2
0-2
•0-2
0-2
0-2
0-2
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-3
0-4
0-4
0-4
I>
+
VII.s.
D.
11
11
12
12
13
13
14
15
15
15
16
16
16
16
17
17
18
18
19
19
19
20
M.
29-1
50-1
10-9
31*5
12 52-0
13 12-2
32-2
51-9
11-5
14 30-8
14 49-8
8'6
27'2
45-5
3-5
21-2
38-7
55-9
12-8
29-4
17 45*6
1-6
17-3
18 32-6
18 47-6
2-3
19 16-6
19 30-6
44-2
57-5
10-4
X.s.
+
IV.s.
Secular
Variation.
M.
-0-4
-0*4
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-4
-0-4
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
- 0*5
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
-0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
-0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
■ 0-6
0*7
0-7
0*7
0-7
II.S.
4-
VIII.s.
D.
20
21
21
22
22
22
22
22
22
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
10-4
20 22-9
20 35-1
20 46*9
20 58-3
21 9-3
19-9
30-2
21 40-0
21 49-4
21 58-4
7-1
15-2
23-0
30-3
37-3
22 43-7
22 49-8
55*4
0-6
5*3
9-6
13-4
16-8
19-8
22-3
24- 3
25- 9
27*0
27-7
27-9
IX.s.
+
III.S.
Secular
Variation.
M.
-0-7
-0-7
0*7
0-7
0-7
0-7
-0-7
0-7
0-7
0-7
0-7
■ 0-8
0-8
0-8
0*8
0-8
■ 0*8
0-8
0-8
0-8
0-8
•0-8
0-8
0-8
0-8
0-8
0*8
0-8
0-8
0*8
0-8
30
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
and dividAhe product"b^tOQ011 Tf tJ16 n^mbe5 °* Jears between the given time and the year 1801
variation. P ' 10°- If the Slven be before 1801, change the sign of the secular
ASTRONOMY.
85
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ASTRONOMY.
86
Practical
Astronomy.
Sect. II.—Application of the Tables, and Projection of Eclipses.
Problem I.— To calculate the time of true new or full
moon for any period within the limits of the nineteenth cen¬
tury.
Precept 1. Write out the time of mean new moon in
January for the proposed year from Table I., together
with the mean anomalies of the moon and sun, and the
moon’s mean distance from her ascending node, applying
to each of these quantities the secular equation found by
its side by addition or subtraction, according as it has
the sign + or —. If you want the time of full moon in
January, add the half-lunation at the foot of Table IV.,
with its anomalies, &c. to the former numbers if the new
moon falls before the 15th of January; but if it falls after,
subtract the half-lunation, with the anomalies, &c. belong¬
ing to it, from the former numbers, and write down the
respective sums or remainders.
2. In these additions or subtractions, observe that 60
seconds make a minute, 60 minutes make a degree, 30
degrees make a sign, and 12 signs make a circle. When
you exceed 12 signs in addition, reject 12, and set down
the remainder. When the number of signs to be sub¬
tracted is greater than the number you subtract from,
add 12 signs to the lesser number, and then you will have
a remainder to set down. In the tables, signs are marked
S, degrees D, minutes M, and seconds S.
3. When the required new or full moon is in any
given month after January, write out from Table IV.
such one of the mean lunations, with the anomalies, &c.
as, added to the time of mean new or full moon in Janu¬
ary, will make the mean new or full moon to fall within
the given month, setting them below the number taken
out for January.
T Add all these together, and in leap-years (which
in fable I. have the letter B annexed to them) subtract
one day from the time of mean new or full moon when it
happens after 28th February. You will then have the
time of the required mean new or full moon, with the
mean anomalies, and the moon’s mean distance from the
ascending node, which are the arguments for finding the
proper equations.
5. With the signs and degrees of the moon’s mean
anomaly enter Table V., and therewith take out the first
equation for reducing the mean syzigy to the true; taking
care to make proportions in the table for the odd minutes
and seconds of anomaly, as the table gives the equation
only to whole degrees.
Observe in this and every other case of finding equa¬
tions, that, if the signs are at the head of the table, their
degrees are at the left hand, and are reckoned down¬
wards ; the equation being in the body of the table under
or over the signs in a collateral line with the degrees.
Ihe signs + and — at the head or foot of the tables
where the signs are found, show whether the equation is
to be added to the time of mean new or full moon, or to
be subtracted from it.
6. With the signs and degrees of the sun’s mean ano-
maiy enter Table VI. and take out the second equation
for »educing the time of mean to that of new or full moon,
with a proportional part of its secular variation in the co¬
lumn adjoining, corresponding to the number of years
elapsed since 1801, the whole variation being adapted for
a period of 100 years.
7. Add together the mean anomalies of the sun and
moon, and with the sum enter Table VII. and take out
the third equation. For this and the following equations
it will be sufficient to compute the arguments to minutes,
neglecting the seconds.
8. Subtract the sun’s mean anomaly from the moon’s
mean anomaly, and with the remainder enter Table VIII.
and take out the fourth equation.
9. Subtract the moon’s mean anomaly from twice the
moon’s distance from the ascending node, and with the
remainder enter Table IX. and take out the fifth equation.
10. The moon’s mean distance from the ascending node
is the argument of Table X., with which take out the sixth
equation.
11. To twice the moon’s mean anomaly add the sun’s
mean anomaly, and with the sum enter Table XI. and take
out the seventh equation.
12. From twice the moon’s mean anomaly subtract
the sun’s mean anomaly, and with the remainder enter
Table XII. and take out the eighth equation.
13. These are all the equations for reducing the time
of mean new moon to the time of true new moon ; but for
full moon other two equations are required, the argument
for equation ninth being the moon’s mean anomaly, which
equation is exhibited in Table XIII.; and the argument of
the tenth equation being the sun’s mean anomaly, the
equation being exhibited in Table XIV.
14. Add together the equations which have the sign
of addition, and also those which have the sign of sub¬
traction, and subtract the lesser sum from the greater,
giving to the remainder the sign of the greater; and add
or subtract the remainder, according as its sign denotes,
to or from the time of mean new or full moon, and you
have the time of true new or full moon required.
These tables are adapted to the meridian of Greenwich
observatory; and for any other place, its longitude in time
is to be added to or subtracted from the time given by
the tables, according as it is to the east or west of Green¬
wich, and the time as reckoned at the given place is ob¬
tained. The tables begin the day at noon, and reckon
forward from thence to the noon following. Thus January
the 31st, at 22 hours 30 minutes 25 seconds of tabular
time, is February 1st (in common reckoning), at 30 minutes
25 seconds after 10 o’clock in the morning. It is to be
further observed, that the time obtained from the tables is
mean time, or that shown by a well-regulated clock or
watch. But to make it agree with solar or apparent
time, or that given by a sun-dial, which is necessary in
the computation of solar eclipses, you must apply the
equation of time contained in Table XXVIII. as after¬
wards directed.
The method of calculating the time of any new or full
moon, without the limits of the nineteenth century, will
be shown farther on; and a few examples compared with
the precepts will make the whole work plain.
Practice
■Astronouj
ASTRONOMY.
f*lC,ract il
tror
1836. B 
Secular equations.
Four lunations 
Sum 
Subtract 1 day for leap-year.
Sum of equations 
Time of true new moon at
Greenwich 
Subtract for Edinburgh...
True time of new moon at
Edinburgh 
April..
May..
May
May..
May..
Time of
New Moon.
D. H. M. S.
18 1 31 49
— 3
28 2 56 11
16 4 27 57
1
15 4 27 57
— 2 24 2
15 2 3 55
12 44
15
1 51 11
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M. S.
1 14 50 49
+ 5
3 13 16 3
4 28 6 57
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M. S.
0 16 53 45
3 26 25 17
4 13 19
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending Node.
S. D. M. S.
8 0 56 0
— 1
4 2 40 54
0 3 36 53
Equations.
Argument I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
D mean anomaly  
O mean anomaly  
Secular variation  
D mean anomaly -j- O mean anomaly 
]) mean anomaly — 0 mean anomaly 
Twice ]) mean distance from ascending node.
Do.— J) mean anomaly 
J) mean distance from node 
Twice ]) mean anomaly 
Do. -j- O mean anomaly 
Do. — © mean anomaly 
Sum of equations.
s. n. m. s.
4 28 6 57
4 13 19 2
9 11 26
0 14 48
0 7 14
7 9 7
0 3 7
9 26 14
2 9 33
5 12 55
+
H. M. S.
3 0 15
6 58
2 42
12
+ 3 10 7
H. M. S.
5 31 43
10
1 39
34
3
5 34 9
+ 3 10 7
2 24 2
Example II.
Required the Time of True Full Moon in September 1830 at Greenwich.
1830 
Secular equations 
Subtract a half-lunation.
Full moon 
Eight lunations.
Sum of equations
True full moon...
Jan.
Aug.
Sept.
Time of
Full Moon.
D. H. M. S.
23 19 12 17
— 2
14 18 22 1
9 0 50 14
24 5 52 23
2 6 42 37
+ 3 54 10
2 10 36 47
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
s. D. 31. s.
9 24 23 46
+ 3
6 12 . 54 30
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending Node.
S. D. 31. S.
0 23 5 59
0 14 33 10
3 11 29 13
6 26 32 7
0 8 32 49
7 22 50 35
10 8 1 20 8 1 23 24
S. D. 31. S.
4 11 18 53
— 1
6 15 20 7
9 25 58 45
8 5 21 48
6 1 20 33
87
Example I.
Required the Time of True New Moon in May 1836 at Edinburgh, long. 0 hours 12 minutes 44 seconds west of
Greenwich.
Practical
Astronomy.
ASTRONOMY.
Practical
Astronomy.
Equations.
s. D. M. s.
Argument I. 10 8 1 20
II. 8 1 23 24
Secular variation 
III. 6 9 24
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX. 10
X. 8
2 6 38
1 24 40
0 1 21
4 17 25
0 14 39
8 1
1 23
Sum of equations.
+
H. M. S.
7 21 32
10
1 10
9 43
2 8
5
+ 7 34 48
— 3 40 38
+ 3 54 10
H. M. S.
3 38 33
24
3
1 9
29
— 3 40 38
Problem II.— To calculate the time of new and full moon
in a given year and month of any particular century
between the Christian era and the nineteenth century.
Note.—Prior to the sixteenth century the times are
supposed to be reckoned according to the Julian calendar, pra(J
or old style. Between it and the nineteenth century theyAstroml
may be reckoned according to either the Julian or Grego- y
rian calendar, or old or new style.
Precept 1. Find a year of the same number in the nine¬
teenth century, with that of the year in the century propos¬
ed, and take out the time of mean new moon in January for
that year, with the mean anomalies, and the moon’s mean
distance from the node at that time, as already taught, ne¬
glecting the secular equations contained in Table I.
Precept 2. Take from Table II. as many complete cen¬
turies of years having the sign — prefixed, and titled
either old style or new style, according to the given date, as,
when subtracted from the above said year in the nineteeth
century, will answer to the given year, and take out the
time of mean new moon and its anomalies, &c. belonging
to the said centuries, and add them to those for the year in
the nineteenth century, and the sums, after applying to them
the secular equations taken from Table III., making pro¬
portions for the odd years, will be the times and anomalies,
&c. of mean new moon in January or February, according
as the time is less or more than 31 days, in the given year
of the century proposed. Then work in all respects for
the time of true new or full moon, as shown in the above
precepts and examples.
Example III.
Required the True Time of New Moon in July 1339, Old Style.
1839
— 500
1339
Secular equations
Five lunations
Equations
Time of true new moon..
Problem III.—To calculate the true time of new or fill
moon in any given year and month before the Christian
era.
Precept 1. Find a year in the nineteenth century which,
being added to the given number of years before Christ
diminished by one, shall make a number of complete
centuries.
2. Find this number of centuries in Table II. and add the
time and anomalies belonging to it to those of the above-
found year of the nineteenth century, applying the secu¬
lar equations for the given year in Table III., and the sums
will denote the time and anomalies, &c. of mean new moon
in January or February of the given year before Christ.
Then for the true time of new or full moon proceed as above
taught, for any year between the Christian era and the
nineteenth century, observing that the given year before
Christ is or is not leap-year, according as the above-men¬
tioned year in the nineteenth century is leap-year or not.
Equations.
S. D. M. s.
Argument I. 8 23 27 51
II. 6 20 54 57
Secular variation 
III. 3 14 23
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
2 33
22 57
23 13
7 51
VIII. 10 26 1
Sum of equations.
+
H. M. S.
9 50 21
9 23
2 36
+ 10 2 26
—1 36 20
+ 8 26 6
1 27 56
1 0
6 52
27
5
— 1 36 20
ctk'al
cnomy.
ASTRONOMY.
89
Example IV.
Required the True Time of New Moon in September 610 before Christ.
189J.
2500.
610 b. c 
Secular equations.
Eight lunations.
Equations 
Time of true new moon,
August
Sept...
Sept...
Time of New Moon.
D. H. M. S.
9 20 44 18
27 4 43 18
37 1 27 36
— 3 20 0
36 22 7 36
24 5 52 23
30 3 59 59
— 8 41 51
29 19 18 8
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
S. D. M. S.
10 20 20 33
7 11 18 23
6 1 38 56
+ 5 58 37
6 7 37 33
6 26 32 7
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
D. M. S.
8 32 8
2 29 56
2 11 2
— 16
1 4 9 40
2 10 45 57
7 22 50 35
10 3 36 32
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending Node.
s. x>. m. s.
7 6 53 20
8 27 26 33
4 4 19 53
— 1 10 56
3 8 57
5 21 48
0 8 30 45
Practical
Astronomy.
Equations.
D. M. s.
Argument I. 1 4 9 40
II. 10 3 36 32
Secular variation 
III. 11 7 46
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
3 0 33
1 12 51
0 8 31
0 11 56
4 4 42
Sum of equations.
■+*
H. M. S.
2 41
10 35
34
+ 0 13 50
II. M. S.
5 9 13
3 32 36
12 51
46
— 8 55 41
+ 0 13 50
— 8 41 51
Problem IV.— To calculate the time of true new or full
moon, according to the Gregorian calendar or new style,
in any given year or month of the 20tfA or 2\st century.
Precept 1. Find a year of the same number in the nine¬
teenth century with that of the year proposed, and take
out the mean time and anomalies, &c. of new moon for
that year in Table L, omitting the secular equations.
2. Take so many years from Table II. having the sign
4- prefixed, as, when added to the above-mentioned year
in the nineteenth century, will answer to the given year in
which the new or full moon is required ; and take out the
time of new moon, with its anomalies, for these complete
centuries.
3. Add these together, and to the sum apply the se¬
cular equations for the given year found in Table III.,
then work in all respects as above shown.
Example V.
Required the Time of True New Moon in August 1999.
1899
+ 100
1999
Secular equations.
Seven lunations
Equations.
Time of true new moon.
July....
August
Time of New Moon.
D. H. M. S.
11 9 25 2
5 8 7 5
16 17 32 7
— 1 25
16 17 30 42
25 17 8 20
11 10 39 2
— 11 37 28
10 23 1 34
Moon’s Mean
Anomaly.
s. n. m. s.
11 26 12 58
8 15 30 40
8 11 43 38
+ 2 32
8 11 46 10
6 0 43 6
2 12 29 16
Sun’s Mean Anomaly.
s. d. m. s.
0 9 57 56
0 3 19 16
0 13 17 12
— 7
0 13 17 5
6 23 44 16
1 21
Moon’s Mean
Distance from
Ascending Node.
s. n. m. s.
0 13 16 14
4 19 26 11
2 42 25
— 30
2 41 55
4 41 35
0 7 23 30
VOL. IV.
M
90
Practical
Astronomy.
Equations.
ASTRONOMY.
Problem V.— To Jind the true anomalies of the sun and Practk
moon, and the moons true distance from the ascendingj
node at the true time of new or full moon. 1
S. D. M. S.
Argument I. 2 12 29 16
II. 7 7 1 21
Secular Variation 
III. 9 19 31
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
5 28
2 18
7 23
2 0
17 57
Sum of equations.
+
H. M. S.
44
6 42
0 30
9
+ 085
H. M. S.
9 8 24
2 28 47
6 8
2 13
— 11 45 33
+ 085
11 37 28
With the sum of equations already found for reducing
the time of mean new or full moon to that of the true,
enter Table XV., and take therefrom the sun’s mean mo¬
tion from the moon’s perigee, the change of the sun’s mean
anomaly, and the sun’s mean motion from the ascending
node, and apply these quantities to the mean anomalies
and mean distance from the node at the time of mean new
or full moon by addition or subtraction, according as the
sum of the equations has the sign + or —. Then with
the sun’s corrected mean anomaly as argument, take from
Table XVI. the equation of the sun’s centre, correcting it
for the secular variation as directed at the bottom of the
table, and add or subtract the same to or from the correct¬
ed mean anomalies and mean distance from the node, and
there will be obtained the true anomalies of the sun and
moon, and the moon’s true distance from the ascending
node at the time of true new moon or full moon.
Example VI.
Required the True Anomalies of the Sun and Moon, and the Moon’s True Distance from the Ascending Node at the
time of True New Moon in 1836.
The Sum of Equations is — 2h. 24m. 2s.
2 Hours...
24 Minutes.
2 Seconds.
Mean anomalies, &c.
Equation of sun’s centre.
Secular variation..  
Sun’s Mean Motion
from Moon’s Perigee.
s. o. m. s.
0 0 4 22
52
0
4 28
5 14
6 57
4 28 1 43
+ 1 22 57
— 4
4 29 24 36
Moon’s True
Anomaly,
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
Sun’s Mean Motion
from Ascending Node.
S. O. M. S.
00 4 • 56
59
0
— 5 55
4 13 19 2
4 13 13 7
+1 22 57
— 4
4 14 36 0
Sun’s True
Anomaly,
s. o. m. s.
0 0 5 12
1 2
0
0
— 6 14
3 36 53
0 3 30 39
+1 22 57
— 4
0 4 53 32
Moon’s True Distance
from Ascending Node.
At True New Moon.
Elements for the Projection of Solar Eclipses.
When at the time of true new moon the moon’s true
distance from the ascending node is between IP 11° 50'
and 0s 18° 10', or 5s 11° 50' and 6s 18° 10', there may at
that time be an eclipse of the sun to some place on the
earth’s surface; but if it is beyond those limits there can
be no eclipse. At the new moon in May 1836, the moon’s
distance from the node being within the limits, there may
be an eclipse of the sun at that time.
It being ascertained that there may be an eclipse, the
elements for predicting it are to be obtained as explained
in the following example of the solar eclipse in May
1836, which is to be predicted, as it will happen at Edin¬
burgh, in latitude 55° 57' N.
I. The moons latitude at the true time of new moon. The
moon’s true distance from the ascending node at the time
of true new moon is the argument of Table XVII.; the
moon’s true anomaly minus her true distance from the
ascending node is the argument of Table XVIII.; this
argument plus the moon’s true anomaly is the argument
of Table XIX.; the moon’s true anomaly plus her true
distance from the ascending node is the argument of
Table XX.; the sun’s true anomaly plus the moon’s true
distance from the ascending node is the argument of
Table XXL; and the sun’s true anomaly minus the moon’s
true distance from the ascending node is the argument of
Table XXII. With these arguments enter the respective
tables, and take out the proper quantities, and add toge¬
ther such as have the sign +, and also such as have the
sign —, and the difference of the two sums is the moon’s
latitude required, north if the greater sum has the sign
+, south if it has —.
ictical
onomy.
ASTRONOMY.
91
Example.
'The Moon’s Latitude at the time of true New Moon in
May 1836.
Arg. Table XVII.
  XVIII.
  XIX.
  XX.
  XXL
  XXII.
S. D. M. S.
0 4 53 32
4 24 31
9 23 56
5 4 18
4 19 30
4 9 42
Moon’s latitude north.
+
0 25 47
7
13
25
+ 0 26
32
30
; + 0 26 2
7
23
30
II. The inclination of the moon’s relative orbit to the
ecliptic is found in Table XVII., with the moon’s true dis¬
tance from the ascending node for argument. In the pre¬
sent instance the inclination is 5° 43’, left, signifying that
the axis of the moon’s orbit is to the left hand ot the
northern axis of the ecliptic.
III. The semidiameter of the earth's disk is equal to the
difference of the moon’s horizontal parallax corrected for
the latitude of the given place, and the sun’s horizontal pa¬
rallax, which may always be assumed equal to nine seeonds.
The moon’s equatorial horizontal parallax is found in
Table XXIII., with her true anomaly for argument; and
the correction to be subtracted therefrom is obtained in
Table XXIV., with the latitude of the place and equatorial
parallax as joint arguments. Thus, in the present instance,
the moon’s equatorial horizontal parallax is 54' 26"
The correction to be subtracted  8"
V. The moons semidiameter is likewise obtained in Ta- Practical
ble XXII., with her true anomaly as argument. Hence, Astronomy,
moon’s semidiameter = 14' 50".
VI. The moon's horary motion from the sun is equal to
the difference of the sun’s and moon’s horary motions; both
of which are found in Table XXII., with the sun’s mean
anomaly and the moon’s true anomaly as arguments.
Hence
Sun’s horary motion  2' 25"
Moon’s horary motion 30' 9"
Moon’s horary motion from the sun 27' 44"
VII. The sun's true longitude at the true time of new
moon is equal to the longitude of the sun’s perigee added
to his true anomaly. The longitude of the perigee is
obtained by taking from Table XXV. the epoch of the
first year of the century to which the given year belongs,
and adding thereto the motion in Table XXVI. answering
to the remaining number of years, months, and days, but
subtracting therefrom a proportional part of the secular
variation of the precession of the equinoxes found in
Table XXV. opposite the first year of the given century,
corresponding to the remaining number of years.
Example.
Longitude of
Perigee.
Leaving for reduced horizontal parallax ...54' 18"
which being again diminished by the sun’s horizontal pa¬
rallax, there remains 54' 9" for the semidiameter of the
earth’s disk.
IV. The sun's semidiameter is also obtained in Table
XXII., with his mean anomaly as argument. We have,
therefore, sun’s semidiameter 15' 51".
s.
1801  9
30 years 
5 do 
May 
15 days   
Longitude of perigee... 9
Sun’s true anomaly   4
Sun’s true longitude
n. M.
9 30
30
5
s.
5
57
9
20
2
10
14
6
36
33
0
1 24 42 33
VIII. The sun's declination is found in Table XXVIL,
with the sun’s true longitude for argument, and is to be
corrected by the secular variation given in the same table,
as directed at the bottom. The declination is north or
south according as it bears the sign + or —, and, in the
table, is given to tenths of a minute.
Example.
s. d. m. s.
Sun’s true longitude 1 24 42 33 Declination +18 58*0
_ 0-6X35 _n.o
Secular variation   jqq  —   
Sun’s declination, north  +18 5/-8
IX. The apparent time of new moon. The mean time the equation of time found in Table XXVIII., with the
of new moon, already found and reduced to the place for sun’s true longitude for argument, and corrected for the
which the prediction is to be made, is to be converted into secular variation given in the same table, as in the follow-
apparent time, by applying thereto, according to the sign, ing example :
Example.
Mean time of true new moon at Edinburgh on May 15, 1836
M.
Equation of time, +3 59
— 3
H. M.
1 51
S. D. M.
Sun’s true longitude 1 24 43
„ , . . — 10s X 35
Secular variation 
100
s
.+3
s.
11
56
Apparent time of true new moon 
X. The reduced latitude of the given plaee is obtained by
subtracting from the true latitude the correction in the
last column of Table XXIV. answering to the latitude.
In this particular case,
1 55 7
Edinburgh being in north latitude...   55° 57
The correction is * 
Reduced latitude     
92
ASTRONOMY.
Practical
Astronomy.
To Project an Eclipse of the Sun geometrically.
Take from a scale of any convenient length as many
equal parts as the semidiameter of the earth’s disk con¬
tains minutes of a degree, which for Edinburgh at the
time of the eclipse in May 1836 is 54' 10", or 54^'. Then
with this quantity as a radius describe the semicircle
AHB upon the centre C (Plate XCIV. fig. 136); which
semicircle shall represent the northern half of the earth’s
enlightened disk as seen from the sun. If the given
place were in south latitude, the southern half of the
earth’s disk must be represented.
Upon the centre C raise the straight line CH perpen¬
dicular to the diameter ACB; so ACB shall be a part of
the ecliptic, and CH its axis.
Being provided with a sector,1 open it to the radius
CA in the line of chords; and taking from thence the
chord of the sun’s greatest declination or the obliquity of
the ecliptic for the given time (in the present instance
23° 28') in your compasses, set it off both ways from H to
g, and to h in the periphery of the semi-disk; and draw
the straight line g V h, in which the north pole of the disk
will be always found.
When the sun’s longitude is between 0s. and VIs. the
north pole of the earth is enlightened by the sun ; but
whilst the sun is in the other six signs, the south pole is
enlightened and the north pole is in the dark.
And when the sun’s longitude is between IXs. and IIIs.
the northern half of the earth’s axis C XII. P lies to the
right hand of the axis of the ecliptic as seen from the sun;
and to the left hand while the sun is in the other six
signs. It is evident that a contrary rule prevails with re¬
gard to the southern half of the earth’s axis.
Open the sector till the radius of the sines be equal to
the length of Vh, and take the sine of the difference of
the sun’s longitude from III.S or IX.S, whichever it is near¬
est (in the present instance 35° 17'), in your compasses
from the line of the sines, and set off that distance from
V to P in the line gVh, because the northern half of the
earth’s axis lies to the right hand of the axis of the eclip¬
tic in this case ; and draw the straight line C XII. P for the
earth’s axis, of which P is the north pole. If the earth’s
axis had lain to the left hand of the axis of the ecliptic,
the distance VP would have been set off from V towards g.
To draw the parallel of latitude of the given place,
Edinburgh, or the path of that place, on the earth’s en¬
lightened disk, as seen from the sun from sunrise till sun¬
set, take the following method :—
Find the sum and difference of the reduced latitude
55° 46' and the sun’s declination 18° 58', which are 74°
44' and 36° 48'. Take these arcs from the line of sines
on the sector, CA being radius, and set them off from C
to the two points, each marked XII. in the line of the
earth’s axis.
Bisect XII.— XII., and through the point K draw the
line VI. K VI. perpendicular to the axis. Then, making
CA or CB the radius of a line of sines on the sector, take
the co-latitude of Edinburgh, 34° 14', from the sines in
your compasses, and set it both ways from K to VI. and
VI. These hours will be just in the edge of the disk at
the equinoxes; but at no other time in the whole year.
With the extent K VI. taken into your compasses, set
one foot in K as a centre, and with the other foot de¬
scribe the semicircle VI., 7, 8, 9, 10, &c., and divide it
into 12 equal parts. Then from these points of division
draw lines parallel to the earth’s axis C XII. P.
With the extent K XII. as a radius, describe the qua* Practica k
drantal arc XII. f and divide it into six equal parts, asAstronom
XII. a, ah, he, cd, de, and ef, and through the division
points, a, h, c, d, e, draw the lines VII. e V., VIII. d IV.,
IX. c III., X. h II., and XI. a L, all parallel to VI. K VI.,
and meeting the former lines in the points VII., VIII., IX.,
X. , XL, V., IV., III., II., and I.; which points shall mark
the several situations of Edinburgh on the earth’s disk, at
these hours respectively as seen from the sun; and the
elliptic curve VI., VIE, VIII., &c. being drawn through
these points, shall represent the parallel of latitude, or
path of Edinburgh, as seen from the sun from six in the
morning to six in the afternoon. On continuing the lines
VII. p, VIII. o, &c. IV. w, V. #, &c. on the other side of
VI. K VI., and setting off p V. equal to VII. p, o IV. equal
to VIII. o, &c., and continuing the elliptic curve through
the points V. IV. &c., VII. VIII. &c., the path of Edin¬
burgh, as seen from the sun before six in the morning
and after six in the afternoon, will be had; but it is need¬
less to draw the curve farther than the points where it
meets the periphery of the earth’s disk, which represent
the times of sunrise and sunsetting.
N. B. If the sun’s declination had been south, the diur¬
nal path of Edinburgh would have been on the upper
side of the line VI. K VI. If the latitude of the given
place were south, in which case the southern half of the
earth’s disk would be represented, the diurnal path be¬
tween six in the morning and six in the afternoon would
be between the line VI. K VI. and the centre of the disk,
when the sun’s declination was south, and the contrary
when north. It is requisite to divide the horary spaces into
quarters as in the figure, and if possible into minutes also.
In the present case the northern half of the axis of the
moon’s relative orbit lies to the left hand of the axis of the
ecliptic. Make CB the radius of a line of chords on the
sector, and taking therefrom the chord of 5° 43', the in¬
clination of the moon’s relative orbit to the ecliptic, set
it off from H to M on the left hand of CH, the axis of the
ecliptic; then draw CM for the axis of the moon’s orbit,
and take the moon’s latitude 26' 2" from the scale CA in
your compasses, and set it from C to in the line CH,
and through y draw the straight line NyS at right angles
to the axis of the moon’s orbit CM for the path of the
penumbra’s centre over the earth’s disk.
Take the moon’s horary motion from the sun, 27' 44", in
your compasses, from the scale CA (every division of
which is a minute of a degree), and with that extent
make marks along the path of the penumbra’s centre, and
divide each space from mark to mark into 60 equal parts
or horary minutes by dots; and set the hours to every
60th minute in such a manner that the dot signifying the
instant of new moon by the tables may fall into the point
Z, half-way between the axis of the moon’s orbit and the
axis of the ecliptic; and then the rest of the dots will
show the points of the earth’s disk, where the penumbra’s
centre is at the instants denoted by them in its transit
over the earth.
^PP]y one S1(^e a square to the line of the penumbra’s
pat i, and move the square backwards and forwards, until
the other side of it cuts the same hour and minute (as at
3 hours and 2£ minutes) both in the path of Edinburgh
and in the path of the penumbra’s centre; and the parti¬
cular minute or instant so pointed out is the instant of
the greatest obscuration of the sun, at the place for which
the construction is made, namely, Edinburgh in the pre¬
sent example. r
•n f lthu,Ugh a,sector be a convenient instrument in these
wiU be able to lay off an arc of any, number of degrees, also
projections, yet it is not absolutely
to make an angle of a given number
necessary. The intelligent student
of degrees, in various ways.
ASTRONOMY.
93
ical Take the sun’s semidiameter, 15' 51", in your compasses,
jmy.from the scale CA, and setting one foot on the path of
^ Edinburgh, at the point answering to the instant of the
greatest obscuration, namely, at minutes past three,
with the other foot describe the circle UY, which repre¬
sents the sun’s disk as seen from Edinburgh at the great¬
est obscuration. Then take the moon’s semidiameter, 14'
50", in your compasses, from the same scale, and setting
one foot on the path of the penumbra’s centre at the point
24 minutes past three, describe the circle TX for the
moon’s disk as seen from Edinburgh at the time when the
eclipse is at the greatest, and the portion of the sun’s disk
which is hid or cut off by the moon’s will show the quan¬
tity of the eclipse at that time; which quantity may be
measured on a line equal to the sun’s diameter, and divid¬
ed into 12 equal parts for digits. As the moon’s disk is
entirely contained within the sun’s, the eclipse as seen from
Edinburgh will be annular.
Lastly, take the sum of the semidiameters of the sun
and moon, 30' 41", from the scale CA, in your compasses ;
and setting one foot in the line of the penumbra’s centre
path, on the left hand from the axis of the ecliptic, direct
the other foot toward the path of Edinburgh, and carry
that extent backwards and forwards till both the points of
the compasses fall into the same instants in both the paths,
and these instants will denote the time when the eclipse
begins at Edinburgh. Then do the like on the right
hand of the axis of the ecliptic; and where the points
of the compasses fall into the same instants in both the
paths, they will show at what time the eclipse ends at Edin¬
burgh.
These trials give 35-1 minutes after one in the afternoon Practical
for the beginning of the eclipse at Edinburgh at the points Astronomy.
N and O, 2^ minutes after three for the time of greatest
obscuration, and 23^ minutes after four at R and S for
the time when the eclipse ends, according to apparent
time. To have the mean time, or that shown by well-re¬
gulated clocks and watches, apply the equation of time in
the contrary manner to that used for converting the mean
time of new moon into apparent time. Therefore, in the
present instance, subtract 3 minutes 56 seconds, or 4
minutes approximately, from the apparent times, and we
have
The Projection of Lunar Eclipses.
When the moon’s mean distance from either of her
nodes at the time of mean full moon is less than 13° 21'
there may be an eclipse of the moon ; but if greater, there
cannot be an eclipse.
We find by Example II. that at the time of mean full
moon in September 1830, the moon’s mean distance from
the descending node is only 1° 20' 33", which being so
much less than the limit, there will then be an eclipse.
By Problem Y. find the true anomalies of the sun and
moon, and the moon’s true distance from the ascending
node, at the true time of full moon.
H. M.
Beginning of eclipse at Edinburgh, 1 31A p. m.
Greatest obscuration   2 58^ —
End of eclipse  4 19| —
all according to mean time.
3 Hours...
54 Minutes.
10 Seconds.
Mean anomalies, &c.
Equation of sun’s centre.
Secular variation 
Sum of Equations, + 3h. 54m. 10s.
Sun’s Mean Motion
from Moon’s Perigee.
s. o. m. s.
0 0 6 33
1 58
0
10
+ 8
8 1
31
20
10 8 9 51
— 1 40 30
+ ^
10 6 29 25
Moon’s True
Anomaly,
Sun’s Mean
Anomaly.
Sun’s Mean Motion
from Ascending Node.
s. o.
0 0
M. S.
7 23
2 13
0
8
+ ^
1 23
36
24
8 1 33 0
— 1 40 30
+ 4
7 29 52 34
Sun’s True
Anomaly,
s. o.
0 0
M. S.
7 47
2 20
0
+ 10
1 20
7
33
1 30 40
1 40 30
+ 4
5 29 50 14
Moon’s True Distance
from Ascending Node,
At True Full Moon.
The elements for constructing an eclipse of the moon
are eight in number, as follows :
1. The true time of full moon, and at that time; 2.
the moon’s horizontal parallax; 3. the sun’s semidiame¬
ter ; 4. the moon’s; 5. the semidiameter of the earth’s
shadow at the moon; 6. the moon’s latitude; 7. the
angle of the moon’s visible path with the ecliptic; 8.
the moon’s true horary motion from the sun. Therefore,
1. To find the true time of full moon. Work as already
taught in the precepts. Thus we have the true time of
full moon in September 1830 (see Example II.) to be the
2d day at 10h. 36m. 47s. mean time at Greenwich.
2. To find the moon's horizontal parallax. Enter Table
XXIII. with the moon’s true anomaly 10s. 6° 29' 25", and
thereby take out her horizontal parallax; which, by
making the requisite proportions, will be found to be
59' 52".
3. 4. To find the semidiameters of the sun and moon.
Enter Table XXIII. with the sun’s mean anomaly and
moon’s true anomaly (8s. 1° 33' 0" and 10s. 6° 29' 25"), and
thereby take out their respective semidiameters, the sun’s
15' 54", and the moon’s 16' 19".
5. To find the semidiameter of the eartlis shadow at the
moon. Add the sun’s horizontal parallax, which is al¬
ways 9", to the moon’s, which in the present case is 59'
52" ; the sum is 60' 1", from which subtract the sun’s semi¬
diameter, 15' 54", and the remainder, 44' 7", being increas¬
ed by 50" for the effect of the earth’s atmosphere, we have
44' 57" for the semidiameter of the earth’s shadow, which
the moon then passes through.
94
ASTRONOMY.
Practical 6. To find the moon's latitude. Proceed as already direct-
Astronomy. e(j un(jer t}ie prediction of solar eclipses. Thus,
s. 0 ' " + s. — s.
Argument, Table XVII.
XVIII. 4 6 39  10
XIX.
XX.
XXI.
XXII.
5 29 50 14 52
4 6 39 
2 13 9 25
4 6 20 14
1 29 43 ,....17
2 0 2 28
+ 2 16
—10
10
Moon’s latitude north -j- 2 6
7. To find the angle of the moons visible path with the
ecliptic. Enter Table XVII. with the moon’s true distance
from the ascending node for argument, and the angle is
found to be 5° 44', left, signifying that the axis of the
moon’s orbit is to the left hand of the northern axis of the
ecliptic.
8. To find the moons true horary motion from the sun.
With the true anomaly of the moon and the mean ano¬
maly of the sun, take out their horary motions from Table
XXIII., and the sun’s horary motion subtracted from the
moon’s leaves remaining the moon’s true horary motion
from the sun; in the present case 33' 58".
These elements being found for the construction of the
moon’s eclipse in September 1830, proceed as follows:
Draw the line ACB for part of the ecliptic, and CD
perpendicular thereto for the northern part of its axis, the
moon having north latitude. (Plate XCIV. fig. 137.)
Add the semidiameters of the moon’s and earth s sha¬
dow together, which in the eclipse make 61' 16"; and
take this in your compasses, from a scale of equal parts,
and setting one foot on the point C as a centre, with the
other foot describe the arch ADB, in one point of which
the moon’s centre will be at the beginning of the eclipse,
and in another at the end thereof.
Take the semidiameter of the earth’s shadow, 44' 57",
in your compasses, from the scale, and setting one foot in
the centre C, with the other foot describe the semicircle
KLM for the northern half of the earth’s shadow; because
the moon’s latitude is north in this eclipse.
Subtract the semidiameter of the moon from the semi¬
diameter of the earth’s shadow, and the remainder is 28'
38", which take in your compasses from the scale, and
setting one foot on the point C as a centre, with the other
foot describe the arch OPQ; in one point of which the
moon’s centre will be at the beginning of total darkness,
and in another at the end thereof.
Draw the line CE on the left hand of the northern axis
of the ecliptic, and making an angle of 5° 44' therewith, Practk
which line represents the northern part of the axis of the Astronoi
moon’s orbit, the moon’s latitude being north.
Take the moon’s latitude, 2' 6", from the scale with your
compasses, and set it from C to G in the axis of the eclip¬
tic, and through the point G draw the straight line
RSGTU, at right angles to the axis of the moon’s orbit,
for the path of the moon’s centre. Then F, in the line
CE, is the point in the earth’s shadow where the moon’s
centre is at the middle of the eclipse ; G, the point where
her centre is at the instant of her ecliptical conjunction;
and the middle between them, the point where her centre
is at the time of true full moon by the tables.
Take the moon’s horary motion from the sun, 33' 58", in
vour compasses, from the scale, and with that extent make
marks along the line of the moon’s path; then divide each
space from mark to mark into 60 equal parts or horary
minutes, and set the hours to the proper dots, in such a
manner, that the dot signifying the instant of full moon
(36 minutes and 47 seconds after ten) may be midway
between the points F and G.
The point U, where the moon’s path intersects on the
right hand the arch described with the sum of the semi¬
diameters of the moon and earth’s shadow, denotes the in¬
stant when the eclipse begins, namely, at 52 minutes after
eight; the point T, where the moon’s path intersects on
the right hand the arch described, with the difference of
the semidiameters, denotes the instant when the moon’s
total darkness begins, namely, at 48 minutes after nine;
the point F denotes the middle of the eclipse at 39
minutes after 10; the point S, where the moon’s path in¬
tersects on the left hand the arch described, with the dif¬
ference of the semidiameters, denotes the end of the
moon’s total darkness at 30 minutes after eleven ; and the
point R, where the moon’s path intersects the arch de¬
scribed, with the sum of the semidiameters, denotes the
end of the eclipse at 26 minutes after 12, all mean time
according to the meridian of Greenwich. If the times
reckoned by any other meridian are required, apply the
longitude from Greenwich to the Greenwich times, by ad¬
dition or subtraction, according as the place is east or
west of Greenwich.
On F as a centre, with a radius equal to the moon’s
semidiameter, describe a circle which represents the
moon’s disk at the middle of the eclipse.
The line VX denotes the quantity eclipsed at the mid¬
dle of the eclipse, which may be measured on a line equal
to the moon’s diameter, and divided into equal parts for
digits. In the present case, the eclipse being total, the
quantity eclipsed is said to be greater than the moon’s
diameter, and is found to be 21^ digits.
ASTRONOMY,
95
CHAP. HI.
CATALOGUE OF FIXED STARS, AND TABLES OF REDUCTION.
Sect. I. Right Ascensions and North Polar Distances of Five Hundred and Twenty-nine Stars, not less
than the 4-5 Magnitude.
From Observations made at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich.
Reduced to January 1, 1830.
/3 Cassiopese.
y Pegasi 
, Ceti 
* Cassiopese.
?
Andromedse.
a CASSIOPE^E .
jS Ceti..
£ Andromedse..
j Cassiopese....
»Andromedse..
, Cassiopese 
4 Andromedse...
i Piscium.....
Polaris...
n Ceti 
3 Andromedse...
6 Cassiopese.
16 Ceti 
n Piscium 
51 Andromedse...
t Ceti 
s Cassiopese..
? Ceti 
a Trianguli..
2 y Arietis...-.
50 Cassiopese....
2 v Ceti 
y Andromedse..
a Arietis 
/3 Trianguli 
Cass. 35 Hev.
»Ceti 
6 Persei..
35 Arietis.
y Ceti....
/“ 
39 Arietis..
16 Persei...
41 Arietis..
2 t Eridani.
y Persei...
a Ceti....
P Persei...
11 Eridani.
Persei...
P 
S Arietis..
12 Eridani.
^ 
16 
2 3
2-3
4
4
4
4-5
4
3
3
2-3
4
4
4
3
4
4
2- 3
3- 4
2
4- 5
4-5
3
3
4
3-4
3-4
3-4
3
3- 4
4- 5
3
4-5
4-5
3- 4
3
4
4- 5
4-5
4
4-5
4
4
3
4
4
4
4-5
3
4-5
3
2- 3
4
3- 4
4
3-4
H. M. S.
0 0 9-47
0 4 29-55
0 10 46-03
0 23 24-15
0 27 32-62
0 27 49-37
0 29 35-49
0 30 15-47
0 30 54-60
0 35 3-27
0 38 20-69
0 38 52-10
0 40 28-30
0 46 30-77
0 47 20-76
0 54 7-74
0 59 32-00
1 0 2-46
1 0 14-34
1 0 48-07
1 14 2-29
1 14 45-78
1 15 31-68
1 22 23-97
1 27 36-04
1 36 10-45
1 42 15-11
1 43 4-45
1 43 24-74
1 44 1306
1 45 15-99
1 49 5-64
1 51 59-72
1 53 29-84
1 57 36-49
1 59 27-30
2 15 10-64
2 26 57-74
2 30 46-69
2 31 20-81
2 32 37-76
2 33 29-77
2 34 30-04
2 35 45-81
2 36 2-09
2 37 48-28
2 39 52-85
2 39 59-76
2 43 19-97
2 48 7-73
2 52 32 06
2 53 24-08
2 54 18-69
2 54 •••
2 56 50-48
2 57 8-25
3 1 55 29
3 4 51-29
3 7 34-85
3 11 57-63
Annual
Precession.
S.
+ 3-12
+ 3-08
+ 3-06
+ 3-32
+ 3-28
+ 3-17
+ 3-16
+ 3-17
+ 3-33
+ 3-00
+ 3-16
+ 3-53
+ 3-27
+ 3-53
+ 3-36
+ 3-11
+ 15-52
+ 3-00
+ 3-31
+ 3-56
+ 4-08
+ 3-83
+ 3-00
+ 3-19
+ 3-62
+ 2-78
+ 4-19
+ 2-95
+ 3-39
+ 3-26
+ 3-28
+ 4-91
+ 2-82
+ 3-63
+ 3-34
+ 3-52
+ 4-79
+ 3-14
+ 3-06
+ 2-89
+ 4-05
+ 3-49
+ 3-11
+ 3-21
+ 2-85
+ 3-53
+ 3-73
+ 3-50
+ 2-72
+ 2-92
+ 4-27
+ 3-12
+ 3-79
+ 4-14
Annual
Precession.
3-86
3-40
2-56
2-91
2-66
31 47 17-8
75 45 41-8
99 45 58-7
28 0 27-8
37 2 22-8
57 13 2-4
61 36 43-0
60 4 11-6
34 23 46-8
108 55 12-2
66 39 31-4
33 5 19-7
49 50 53-7
30 12 21-2
52 25 27-7
83 1 35-5
1 35 51-4
101 5 6-2
55 16 57-4
35 45 24-8
22 45 39-3
30 39 6-6
99 3 45-0
75 31 58-1
42 14 11-2
106 50 5-7
27 10 19-7
101 10 40-7
61 15 9-0
71 32 35-8
70 1 34-9
18 24 24-7
111 54 25-0
48 29 24-4
67 20 42-7
55 49 15-9
23 22 7-1
85 9 9-2
90 24 32-4
102 35 41-4
41 29 47-7
63 1 16-9
87 29 5-8
80 36 28-8
104 34 57-7
61 27 51-5
52 23 13-2
63 26 43-2
111 42 29-4
99 34 44-1
37 9 59-7
86 34 55-5
51 49 28-4
114 17 41-3
41 2 36-4
49 42 20-8
70 55 18-5
119 39 40-8
99 27 21-2
112 22 51-7
• 20-0
• 20-0
■ 20-0
. 19-9
• 19-9
■ 19-9
-19-9
■ 19-9
-19-9
-19-8
-19-8
-190
-19-7
-19-6
-19-6
-19-5
-19-4
-19-4
-19-4
-19-3
-190
-19-0
-19-0
- 18-8
-18-6
-19-1
-18-1
-18-1
-18-0
- 18-0
-18-0
- 17-8
-17-7
-17-6
-17-5
- 17-4
- 16-7
- 16-1
- 15-9
-15-8
-15-8
-15-7
-15-7
-15-6
-15-6
- 15-5
_ 15-4
_ 15-4
_ 15-2
_ 14-9
-14-6
-14-6
_ 14-5
_ 14-5
_ 14-4
-14-3
-14-1
-14-7
-13-7
-13-4
u Persei 
Camelopardali
a Tauri  
Camelopardali
l Tauri  
17 Eridani....
19  
§ Persei.
Mag.
b Pleiad. Elec...
S Eridani 
v Tauri 
£ Persei 
1 y Eridani.
x Tauri....
1 A Persei...
P 
a Eridani 
y Tauri 
41 Eridani 
II }Tauri....
43 Eridani 
e Tauri 
Aldebaran..
2 v Eridani 
53 
54   
Camelopardali
1 Orionis 
3  
8  
Aurigse 
10 Camelopardali
s Aurigse 
i Tauri.
* Aurigae.
105 Tauri...,
£ Leporis.
/3 Eridani.
A  
Capella..
i Leporis....
Orionis....
Rigel .....
r Orionis....
A Leporis...
/3 Tauri....,
n Orionis....
y Orionis..
(i Leporis....
S Orionis..
£ Columbse.
a Leporis....
1 <p Orionis....
A  
2- 3
4
4-5
4-5
4
4-5
4
4
3- 4
4- 5
4
4-5
3-4
3
3-4
3- 4
2- 3
4
4
4- 5
4-5
3- 4
3- 4
4
4- 5
4-5
4
1
4
4
4
4-5
4
4
4-5
4
4-5
4
4
4-5
4
4
4
3
4
1
4-5
4
1
4
4-5
3
4-5
2
4
2
4
3- 4
4- 5
4
H. M. S.
3 12 13-70
3 15 21-96
3 15 40-56
3 16 24-11
3 17 58 05
3 22 11-37
3 24 55-73
3 26 16-98
3 30 51-40
3 33 40-35
3 33 ...
3 34 47-67
3 35 6-52
3 37 23-57
3 43 27-87
Annual
Precession.
46 28-20
50 6 15
51 16-26
53 57-21
2 26-73
4 3 34-35
4 10 7-64
4 11 27-90
4 13 8-43
4 14 18-27
4 17 ...
4 18 41-97
4 26 10-50
4 27 49-73
4 30 24 03
4 33 0-62
4 37 12-41
4 40 37-16
4 42 9-59
4 45 24-15
4 45 56-10
4 48 19-87
4 49 47-20
4 50 36-70
4 52 56-62
4 54 36-39
4 57 45-97
4 58 16-21
4 59 30-11
5 1 0-94
5 4 8-61
5 4 22-23
5 5 23-18
5 6 22-29
5 9 21-30
5 11 44-82
5 15 33-14
5 15 56 01
5 16 100
5 20 57-86
5 23 19-57
5 25 10-76
5 25 14-17
5 25 29-4o
5 25 46-81
4-22
4-77
3- 22
4- 70
3- 23
2-97
2-88
2-64
4- 22
4-04
N. P. D.
+ 3-54
+ 2-87
+ 3-54
+ 3-74
+ 3-99
+ 2-79
+ 3-31
+ 4-44
+ 4-36
+ 2-92
+ 3-39
+ 2-26
+ 3-44
+ 3-44
+ 3-48
+ 3-43
+ 2-99
+ 2-75
+ 2-62
+ 5-88
+ 3-25
+ 3-19
+ 3-12
+ 3-89
+ 5-29
+ 4-28
+ 4-17
+ 3-57
+ 4-18
+ 3-57
+ 2-53
+ 2-95
+ 2-86
+ 4-41
+ 2-79
+ 2-88
+ 2-88
+ 2-91
+ 2-76
+ 3-78
+ 3-01
+ 3-20
+ 2-57
+ 3-06
+ 2-12
+ 2-64
+ 3-29
+ 3-30
40 45 5-1
30 39 40-5
81 34 29-4
31 43 11-6
80 51 54-5
95 39 47-6
100 2 18-7
112 12 26-3
42 45 50-6
47 57 58-3
58 15 ...
66 25 39-3
100 20 40 0
66 25 37-7
58 37 40-9
50 29 21-9
103 59 50-1
77 59 46 1
40 7 8-2
42 1 53-8
97 17 12-4
74 47 22 1
124 13 13-1
72 51 47-3
72 57 24-7
124 25 5-8
71 12 13-6
73 50 22-7
93 42 22-6
104 38 29-8
110 0 11-4
23 57 35-9
83 20 33-1
84 41 32-5
87 50 40-7
57 6 —
29 49 8-3
46 26 16-8
49 10 55-4
68 39 38-3
49 0 18-3
68 31 41-2
112 36 18-2
95 18 45-3
98 58 40-5
44 11 5-1
102 4 46-4
98 21 15-3
98 24 15-2
97 2 4-7
103 21 29-6
61 32 40-2
92 33 36-9
83 48 40-5
110 54 1-2
90 25 54-9
125 36 16 6
107 56 57-7
80 38 —
80 11 13-2
13-4
• 13-2
. 13-2
31-1
• 13-0
. 12-7
• 12-6
■ 12-5
12-1
■ 11-9
• 11-9
■ 11-9
■ 11-2
-11-7
-11-2
- 11-0
-10-8
■ 10-7
-10-5
- 9-8
- 9-8
- 9-2
- 9-1
- 90
- 8-9
- 8-7
- 8-0
- 8-0
- 7-8
- 7-C
- 7-4
- 7-1
- 6-8
- 6-7
- 6-4
- 6-4
- 6-2
- 6-0
- 6-0
- 5-8
- 5-6
- 5-4
- 5-3
- 5-2
- 5-1
- 4-8
- 4-8
- 4-7
_ 4-6
_ 4-4
- 4-2
- 3-9
- 3-8
_ 3-8
- 3-4
- 3-2
- 3-0
_ 3-0
_ 3-0
_ 3-0
96
ASTRONOMY.
RIGHT ASCENSIONS AND NORTH POLAR DISTANCES OF 529 STARS.
4
i Orionis...
K Tauri 
i Orionis.
a Columbse 
y Leporis  
? 
x Orionis 
136 Tauri  
/3 Columbse 
S Aurigae 
a Orionis 
/J Auriga 
n Leporis....
y Columbse.
v Orionis....
6 Leporis....
* Aurigse.
!j Geminorum...
2 Lyncis 
5 Monocerotis..
x Columbse......
> Geminorum...
Z Canis Majoris
/3  
X  
y Geminorum...
2? 
Sirius 
2 x Canis Majoris
Z Geminorum...
Camelopardali
o- Canis Alajoris
r 
§ 
22 Monocerotis..
27 Canis Majoris
X Geminorum...
7i Canis Majoris
/3 Canis Minoris
Castor 
Procyon 
26 Monocerotis..
* Geminorum...
Pollux 
i Argus 
15   
/3 Cancri 
o Ursse Majoris
§ Hydrae 
§ Cancri 
a Pixidis Naut
£ Hydrse 
s .....
1. / Ursse Majoris
6 Hydrse  
38 Lyncis 
40 
a. HydR^E....,
0 Ursse Majoris
Mag.
s.
3-4
3- 4
2
4
3
2
4
4- 5
3
4-5
3
3- 4
1
2
4
4
4
4- 5
4-5
4
4-5
4-5
4-5
4-5
3
3
2-3
4
3
3
4
1
4
4
4-5
2- 3
4
4-5
3- 4
4
4
3- 4
4- 5
4-5
4-5
3- 4
4
3
3
3
1-2
4- 5
4
2
4
3- 4
4
4- 5
4
4-5
4-5
4
4
3- 4
4- 5
4-5
4
4-5
2
3
R. A.
H. M. S.
5 27 7-29
5 27 29-35
5 27 35-44
5 30 12-93
5 32 11-07
5 33 29-83
5 37 22-75
5 39 15-42
5 39 41-72
5 42 38-79
5 44 58-10
5 45 31-98
5 45 58-29
5 47 3-62
5 48 7-76
5 48 39 94
5 51 30-62
5 57 52-01
5 58 27-82
6 4 32-78
6 4 37 00
6 4 36-91
6 6 33-95
6 10 30-48
6 12 40-59
6 13 47-41
6 15 12-93
6 15 54-19
6 27 53-37
6 33 28-25
6 35 44-77
6 37 39-27
6 43 29-65
6 47 4-94
6 48 33-42
6 51 56-89
6 54 1-30
6 54 48-83
6 54 57-03
6 55 55-79
6 56 4 04
7 1 28-81
7 3 10-96
7 7 19-63
7 8 19-06
7 9 57-93
7 15 9-56
7 17 22-48
7 17 55-69
7 23 44-48
7 30 24-05
7 33 7-56
7 34 10-53
7 34 54-22
7 42 8-86
8 0 18-43
8 7 17-48
8 16 4-20
8 28 39-10
8 35 0-94
8 36 46-10
8 37 46-16
8 46 24-16
8 47 31-81
8 51 58-89
9 5 30-95
9 8 14-53
9 10 40-73
9 19 14-07
9 21 26-46
Annual
Precession.
+ 2-93
+ 3-58
+ 3-03
+ 3-01
+ 3-01
+ 2-17
+ 2-52
+ 2-71
+ 2-84
+ 3-76
4- 2 -11
+ 4-92
+ 3-25
+ 4-39
+ 4-08
+ 2-73
+ 2-12
+ 3-42
+ 2-71
+ 3-83
+ 3-62
+ 5-30
+ 2-92
+ 2-13
+ 3-62
+ 2-30
+ 2-64
+ 2-19
+ 3-46
+ 3 69
+ 3-38
+ 2-64
+ 2-24
+ 2-49
+ 2-67
+ 2-35
+ 3-56
+ 13-22
+ 2-39
+ 2-50
+ 2-71
+ 2-44
+ 3-06
+ 2-44
+ 3-46
+ 3-59
+ 3-74
+ 2-37
+ 3-26
+ 3-85
+ 3-15
+ 2-87
+ 3-64
+ 3-69
+ 2-52
+ 2-56
+ 3-26
+ 5-09
4- 3-19
4- 3-42
4- 2-41
4- 3-20
4- 3-18
4- 4-13
4- 4-15
4- 3-12
+ 3-77
4- 3-70
4- 2-95
4- 4-06
96 1 41-1
68 58 8-3
91 19 2-2
92 42 17-4
92 2 21-2
124 10 19-0
112 30 32-6
104 53 28-6
99 44 10-4
62 26 10-7
125 50 27-0
35 44 23-5
82 37 54-8
45 4 47-2
52 48 30-6
104 12 17-1
125 18 33-3
75 13 6-5
104 55 33-6
60 26 51-9
67 27 7-7
30 56 25-4
96 13 45-5
125 5 29-6
67 24 26-5
119 59 34-1
107 52 36-9
123 21 25-7
73 27 47-8
64 42 32-3
76 55 41-9
106 29 20-1
122 19 3-9
113 58 35-9
106 50 21-9
118 44 43-5
69 11 17-0
7 17 22-7
117 41 45-0
113 35 25-8
105 23 16-7
116 7 41-3
90 13 4-1
116 3 51-4
73 9 36-7
67 42 44-3
61 52 190
118 58 34-4
81 22 29-6
57 44 49-0
84 20 44-2
99 9 37-2
65 12 5-6
61 34 13-2
114 26 16-2
113 49 7 9
80 17 46-9
28 43 21-9
83 42 31-5
71 13 34-7
122 34 42-2
82 57 45-9
83 24 44-7
41 17 49-0
42 10 40-3
86 58 22-1
52 29 0-1
54 53 37-9
97 55 30-9
37 33 H8
Annual
Precession-
2-9
2-8
2-8
2-6
2-4
2-3
2-0
1-8
1-8
1-5
1-3
1-3
1-2
M
1-0
1-0
0-7
0-2
0-1
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-6
0-9
1-1
1-2
1-3
1- 4
2- 4
+ 2-9
+ 31
+ 4-4
+ 3-8
+ 4-1
+ 4-2
+ 4-5
4- 4-7
+ 4-7
+ 4-8
+ 4-8
+ 4-9
4- 5-3
4 5-5
4 5-8
4- 5-9
+ 6-0
4 6-5
4 6-6
4 6-7
4 7-2
4 8-7
4 7-9
4 8-0
4 8-1
4 8-6
4 10-0
4 10-6
4 11-2
4 12-1
4 12-5
4 12-7
4 12-7
4 13-3
4 13-4
4 13-7
4 14-5
4 14-7
4 14-8
4 15-3
4 160
Leonis.
v Ursse Majoris
[a Leonis 
Regulus..
2 x Hydrse 
x Ursse Majoris
Z Leonis 
y Leonis....
P Ursse Alajoris
30 Leonis Min...
/u. Hydrse 
31 Leonis Min...
a Anti. Pneu....
g Leonis 
37 Leonis Min...
42  
v Hydr.&Crat.
o Leonis Alin...
54 Leonis 
a Hydr. & Crat.
/3 Ursse Majoris
a UrsjE Maj...
X Leonis 
^ Ursse Alajoris
ft Hy dr. & Crat.
S Leonis....
% Ursse Majoris
2 Hydr. & Crat.
tr Leonis 
y Hydr. & Crat.
r Leonis 
x Draconis...
87 Leonis 
i Hydr. & Crat,
v Leonis 
Z Hydr. & Crat.
X Ursae Majoris
v Virginis....
93 Leonis 
/3 Leonis....
/3 Virginis...
Hydrse 
y Ursa: AIaj...
o Virginis....
a Corvi 
2 UrsjE Maj...
y Corvi  
■n Virginis 
16 Comae Beren
2 Corvi....i 
8 CanumVen...
* Draconis...,
23 Comae Beren.
1. y Virginis....
£ Ursse Majoris
2 Virginis 
a Canum Ven..
36 Comae Beren.
£ Virginis 
Mag.
4-5
4
3
4-5
3
4-5
3- 4
1
4- 5
3- 4
4- 5
2
3
4-5
4
4-5
4-5
4
4
4-5
4
4-5
4-5
4
2
1-2
4-5
3-4
4
3
3
4
4
3-4
4
4
4
4
3- 4
4- 5
4
4
4-5
4
4
4-5
4
2- 3
3- 4
4
2
4- 5
4-5
4
3
3
3- 4
4- 5
3
4-5
2- 3
4-5
3- 4
4- 5
4
3
3- 4
2- 3
4- 5
3- 4
H. M. S.
9 22 0*57
9 32 4-29
9 36 11-35
9 38 49-74
9 43 4-87
9 51 13 54
9 58 3-37
9 59 18-72
10 2 18-27
10 6 48-76
10 7 13-32
10 10 35-36
10 12 10-29
10 16 8-97
10 17 52-51
10 18 1-80
10 19 23 00
10 23 51-27
10 29 8 06
10 36 23-65
10 41 14-59
10 43 46-84
10 46 23-82
10 51 30-01
10 51 31-67
10 53 9-86
10 56 14-77
11 0 4-56
11 3 18-52
11 5 3-60
11 5 18-82
11 9 5-99
11 9 16-68
11 10 50-87
11 12 22-16
11 15 3-48
11 16 23-79
11 19 11-76
11 21 12-88
11 21 37-91
11 24 39-51
11 28 3-92
11 28 14-98
11 36 9-43
11 37 2-56
11 37 7-25
11 39 12-56
11 40 23 04
11 41 50-66
11 44 20-40
11 44 51-00
11 56 32-88
11 59 39-65
12 1 23-75
12 6 58-38
12 7 4-53
12 11 12-55
12 18 28-80
12 21 4-86
12 23 19-23
12 25 28-40
12 25 39-18
12 26 10-64
12 26 22-73
12 33 3-09
12 46 31-60
12 47 2-59
12 48 3-90
12 50 30-83
12 53 43-01
Annual
Precession.
S.
+ 3-44
+ 3-22
+ 3-43
+ 4-36
+ 3-45
3-18
3-28
3-21
2- 93
3- 68
3 35
3-30
3-62
3-47
2- 90
3- 51
2- 74
3- 17
3-40
3-36
+ 2-95
+ 3-38
+ 3-27
+ 2-91
+ 3-68
+ 3-80
+ 3-09
-h 3-42
+ 2-94
+ 3-19
+ 3-16
-f 3-22
+ 3-27
+ 3-00
+ 3-10
-f 3-12
+ 2-99
+ 3-08
+ 3-70
+ 3-06
2- 95
3- 04
307
3-03
3-22
+ 3-09
+ 3-12
+ 3-07
+ 3-12
+ 3-01
3-21
3-07
3-07
3-07
3-00
+ 308
+ 3-07
+ 3-01
+ 3-10
+ 3-11
3-13
2-86
2-60
3-00
3-02
2-66
3-00
2-84
2- 97
3- 00
N. P. D.
66 17 12-8
79 20 17-0
65 26 49-1
30 10 0-8
63 11 47-4
81 8 36-2
72 24 41-8
77 12 16-7
101 31 0-1
46 14 25-0
65 44 22-4
69 18 5-2
47 38 56-5
55 20 27-2
105 58 14-0
52 25 27-8
120 12 14-3
79 49 15-0
57 8 35-2
58 25 28-2
105 18 20-7
54 52 14-3
64 20 43-6
107 23 40-7
32 42 30-0
27 19 58-4
81 44 47'6
44 34 50-3
111 53 54 1
68 32 44-9
73 38 32-0
57 30 55-3
55 58 43-8
103 51 33-2
83 2 24-2
78 32 6-4
106 45 2-2
86 12 29-2
19 43 55-8
92 3 57-9
120 55 1-9
98 51 44-3
89 53 8-1
107 24 18-9
41 16 41-3
82 31 4-8
68 50 11-1
74 28 39-3
87 16 38-3
122 57 481
35 21 35-0
80 19 19-2
113 46 46-0
111 40 22-1
32 1 19-7
106 35 48-1
89 43 15-5
62 13 53-7
105 34 3-1
105 15 10-4
112 27 15-8
47 43 3-1
19 16 24-3
66 26 0 0
90 30 55-2
33 6 56-8
85 40 35-5
50 45 42-5
71 40 18-9
78 7 28-8
Annual
Precession.
+ 15-5
+ 16-0
+ 16-2
+ 16-4
+ 16-6
+ 17-0
+ 17-3
+ 17-3
+ 17-5
+ 17-6
+ 17-7
+ 17-8
+ 17-9
+ 18-0
+ 18-1
+ 18-1
+ 18-1
+ 18-3
+ 18'a
+ 18-7
+ 18-9
+ 18-9
+ 19-0
+ 19-2
+ 19-2
+ 19-2
+ 19-3
+ 19-4
+ 19-4
+ 19-5
+ 19-5
+ 20-2
+ 19-6
+ 19-C
+ 19'6
+ 19-7
+ 19-7
+ 19-7
+ 19-8
+ 19-8
+ 19-8
+ 19-8
+ 19-9
+ 19-9
+ 19-9
+ 19-9
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 20-0
+ 19-9
4 19-9
4 19-9
4 19-9
4 19-9
4 19-8
4 19-6
4 19-6
4 19-6
4 19-6
4 19-5
ASTRONOMY.
RIGHT ASCENSIONS AND NORTH POLAR DISTANCES OF 529 STARS.
1 Comae Reren
p Hjdrae 
0 Virginis 
U Comte Beren..
, 1 Virginis  
y Hydrse  
/ Centauri 
Spica Vine..
£ UESjE Maj...
I Virginis 
» Ursje Maj...
j> Bootis 
3 Centauri 
0 Draconis 
x Bootis 
r Virginis....
r Hydrae 
6 Centauri...
a Draconis.,
* Virginis....
Arcturus ...
x Bootis  
X Virginis 
/ Bootis 
i 
y 
5 Ursae Minoris
x- Bootis 
f/. Virginis.
34 Bootis...
35  
s Booxis..
Mag-
09 Virginis 
j | a Libra: 
? Bootis 
j3 Ursa Min..
S Libne 
20 
j3 Bootis  
2 Lupi 
j3 Librae 
a Bootis  
/3 Coronae Bor.
! y Ursae Minoris
i Draconis..
37 Librae 
Coronae Bor.
S Serpentis 
« Cor. Bor....
40 Librae  
a Serpentis.
x 
£ Serpentis....
X Lupi 
p Serpentis....
$ Coronae Bor.
6 Librae  
Z Scorpii  
R. A-
y Serpentis.
$ Scorpii....
s.
4
4-5
4'5
4*5
4-5
4*5
3
1
3
4
2- 3
4
4-5
4*5
3
4-5
4-5
2
3- 4
4
4
1
4
4
4- 5
4
4
34
4
3-4
3- 4
4- 5
4-5
4-5
3
4
6
3
3- 4
3
4- 5
3- 4
3
4- 5
2- 3
3- 4
4
4
3- 4
5
4
4- 5
4-5
3
2
4’5
4-5
23
4 5
34
4-5
3- 4
4
3
4- 5
4‘5
4
3-4
3
3
H. M. S.
12 59 U07
12 59 54-95
13 1 9-47
13 1 4305
13 9 31-93
13 9 41-99
13 11 4-24
13 16 14-86
13 17 3-80
13 26 2 32
13 40 49-97
13 41 16-66
13 42 2-52
13 46 27-86
13 46 35-63
13 53 0-10
13 56 42-79
13 56 42-49
13 59 47-48
14 3 50-43
14 7 6-72
14 7 54-64
14 9 54-97
14 9 55-77
14 10 8-44
14 19 24-48
14 24 30-16
14 25 13-86
14 27 59-32
14 32 44-32
14 33 2-02
14 34 6-74
14 35 57-13
14 37 18-73
14 37 33-75
14 37 39-71
14 41 17-87
14 41 29-34
14 43 33-09
14 51 17-35
14 51 54-09
14 54 8-50
14 55 32-59
15 7 30-70
15 7 52-27
15 8 39-08
15 18 4-22
15 20 49-38
15 21 417
15 21 9-44
15 24 53-89
15 26 1-80
15 26 4-64
15 26 41-32
15 27 29-59
15 28 14-36
15 34 31-47
15 35 54-05
15 38 12 02
15 38 20 53
15 40 10-66
15 40 45-42
15 41 5-44
15 42 20-88
15 42 28-07
15 44 9-63
15 46 24-52
15 48 35-24
15 48 36-37
15 50 17-76
Annual
Precession-
S.
+ 2-88
+ 3-21
+ 3-10
+ 2-95
+ 3-11
+ 3-23
4- 3-36
+ 3-14
+ 2-41
+ 3-07
+ 2-37
4- 2-90
4 3-43
4 1-75
+ 2-86
4 3-04
4 3-38
4 3-49
4 1-62
4- 3-18
-l- 3-13
4 2-73
4 2-27
4 3-23
4 2-14
4 2-02
4 2-59
4 2-43
— 0-27
4 2-81
4 2-86
4 3-14
4 2-64
4 2-80
4 2-61
4 3-03
4 3-29
4 3-29
4 2-75
— 0-31
4 3-19
4 3-49
4 2-26
4 3-62
4 3-22
4 2-41
4 2-28
4 2-48
— 0-18
4 1-32
4 3-24
4 3 33
4 2-42
4 2-86
4 2-53
4 3-66
4 3-36
4 2-94
4 2-92
4 2-76
4 3-78
4 3-12
4 2-70
4 2-97
4 2-52
4 3-39
4 3-68
4 3-61
4 2-74
4 3-52
^ p n Annual
in. i - u- . Precession.
61 27 37-4
112 12 20 1
94 37 43-8
71 34 8-4
107 21 44-7
112 16 16-3
125 48 57-4
100 16 14-3
34 11 4-0
89 43 24-1
39 50 7-2
73 21 18-5
122 8 48-5
24 26 5-1
70 44 46-9
87 37 43-3
115 51 27-9
125 31 56-5
24 48 34-2
99 28 39-5
95 11 5-0
69 55 42-6
43 7 40-3
102 35 0-9
37 50 44-2
37 21 37-6
58 52 41-3
50 56 39-7
13 32 54-0
72 50 52-8
75 32 15-7
94 54 49-7
62 44 42-3
72 18 39-9
62 12 16-4
87 23 9-7
105 17 3-4
105 19 45-5
70 11 22-7
15 8 58-5
97 50 19-4
114 36 24-6
48 56 5-5
119 30 56-6
98 44 57-6
56 2 46-0
52 1 20-1
60 18 11-8
17 33 39-3
30 26 9-5
99 28 29-2
104 12 54-9
58 3 43-3
78 53 13-9
62 42 28-5
119 12 37-5
105 7 25-4
83 1 59 1
82 6 29-5
74 2 25-4
123 6 5-5
92 54 11-9
71 19 39-5
85 0 15-0
63 24 20-5
106 13 21-3
118 42 24-6
115 36 57-2
73 46 39-0
112 7 45-5
4- 19-4
+ 19-4
+ 19-3
+ 19-3
+ 20-2
+ 19-1
+ 19-1
+ 18-9
+ 18-9
+ 18-6
+ 18-1
+ 18-1
+ 18-1
+ 17'9
+ 17-9
+ 17-7
+ 17-5
+ 17-5
+ 17-4
+ 17-2
+ 17-0
+ 19-0
+ 16-9
+ 16-9
+ 16-9
+ 17-0
+ 16-2
+ 16-2
+ 16-0
4 15-8
+ 15-7
4 15-7
4 15-6
4 15-5
4 15-5
4 15-5
4 15-3
4 15-3
4 15-2
4 14-7
4 14-7
4 14-5
4 14-4
4 13-7
4 13-7
4 13-6
4 13-0
4 12-8
4 12-8
4 12-8
4 12-6
4 12-5
4 12-5
4 12-4
4 12-4
4 12-3
4 11-9
4 H-8
4 11-6
4 H-6
4 11-5
4 H-4
4 11-4
4 1D3
4 H-3
4 11-2
4 11-0
4 10-9
4 12-2
4 10-7
Stabs-
Mag-
X Ursae Minoris
$ Coronae Bor...
•x- Serpentis 
I Librae 
6 Lupi 
^ | /3 Scorpii,
6 Draconis....
» Scorpii 
S Ophiuchi.
tr Scorpii....
y Herculis.
Antares.
Ophiuchi.,
Draconis..
x Ophiuchi.,
fi Herculis..
29  
7 Scorpii 
X Ophiuchi.,
15 Draconis..
ff Herculis.,
s Scorpii....
j Ophiuchi.
s Herculis ....
r, Ophiuchi....
[// Draconis 
£ Ursae Minoris
36 Ophiuchi....
a Herculis..
0 Ophiuchi....
Herculis....
X Draconis 
t Herculis ..
p Ophiuchi..
68 Herculis ..
v Serpentis..
6 Ophiuchi..
69 Herculis ..
p Herculis..
o- Ophiuchi..
v Scorpii 
X Scorpii 
x Herculis 
Draconis....
a. Ophiuchi...
a Serpentis 
< Herculis 
(Z Ophiuchi..
y Telescopii.
y Ophiuchi..
pt, Herculis ..
» Ophiuchi..
^ Herculis...
I Draconis....
| Herculis ...
67 Ophiuchi...
y Draconis.
2 y Sagittarii...
70 Ophiuchi...
72 
a Herculis...
1 pt, Sagittarii..,
R. A.
Annual
Precession.
S.
4
4-5
4-5
4- 5
4
2
5- 6
4-5
4-5
3-4
4
3
3
4
3- 4
4
1
4- 5
3
4
2- 3
4-5
3- 4
3- 4
4- 5
4
3
3
3
4
4
3
2- 3
4
4
4-5
3- 4
4- 5
4
3
3- 4
4- 5
4
4-5
3- 4
4- 5
4
4-5
3- 4
3
4- 5
2
2
4-5
4
3
4
4
4
4
4
3- 4
4
4
2
4
4- 5
4
4
3-4
H. M. S.
15 50 18-68
15 50 33-22
15 54 58-76
15 55 1-75
15 55 —
15 55 33-96
15 55 34-57
15 56 52-70
15 57 27-04
15 58 —
16 2 7-72
16 5 26-69
16 9 20-00
16 10 52-16
16 14 25-43
16 14 38-13
16 18 59-77
16 21 25-10
16 21 42-11
16 22 20-91
16 22 54-95
16 24 39-23
16 25 18-87
16 27 48-44
16 28 21-12
16 28 37-64
16 34 52-83
16 37 4-30
16 39 10-80
16 45 58 03
16 49 37-66
16 53 47-33
17 0 38-29
17 1 49-10
17 3 40-59
4 54-30
6 53-98
7 52-85
8 3-15
8 19-10
17 9 7-88
17 10 49-25
17 11 3-03
17 11 16-38
17 11 34-74
17 11 48-82
17 17 49-36
17 18 5-16
17 19 —
17 22 4-53
17 23 52-28
17 26 35-76
17 27 2-85
17 31 51-90
17 34 40-21
17 35 4-74
17 38 17-49
17 39 22-36
17 39 48-60
17 49 40-25
17 50 25-62
17 50 35-62
17 51 9-67
17 52 8-11
17 52 39-78
17 54 53-57
17 56 52 00
17 59 17-63
18 0 54-90
18 3 36-06
— 2-38
+ 2-48
+ 2-58
+ 3-29
+ 3-91
+ 3-47
+ 3-49
+ 3-50
+ 1-15
+ 3-47
+ 3-13
+ 3-16
+ 3-63
+ 2-64
+ 1-80
+ 3-66
+ 3-42
+ 0-79
+ 3-02
+ 2-58
+ 2-81
+ 3-72
+ 3-29
— 0-16
+ 1-93
+ 2-25
+ 2-05
+ 3-87
+ 2-83
+ 2-85
+ 2-29
+ 3-43
+ 1-24
— 6-58
+ 3-67
+ 2-73
+ 3-07
+ 2-46
+ 0*15
4- 2-09
4- 3-57
4- 2-21
4- 3-36
4- 3-67
4- 2-07
4- 2-07
4- 2-97
4- 4-06
4- 4-06
4- 2-42
4- 1-34
4-2-77
4- 3-37
4- 1-69
4- 2-96
4- 4-07
4- 3-00
4- 2-37
-j-3-30
4- 2-05
4- 1-02
4- 2-32
4- 3-00
4- 1-39
4- 3-85
4- 3-01
4- 2-84
4- 2-34
4- 3-58
Annual
Precession.
II 41 12-6
62 37 28-9
66 43 5-2
100 53 49-2
126 19 —
109 19 54-6
109 19 ...
110 12 2-5
110 24 3-9
30 58 43-5
109 0 36-9
93 14 57-4
94 16 15-3
115 10 33-6
70 26 30-0
43 16 40-4
116 2 43-5
106 14 1-2
28 5 57-6
87 38 11-2
68 8 2-8
78 8 24-4
117 51 ] 4-1
100 12 54-1
20 51 51-8
47 12 28-9
58 5 3-7
50 45 0-4
123 58 35-9
79 32 52-1
80 21 17-9
58 49 4-2
105 30 21-3
35 18 12-0
7 41 49-2
116 20 35-3
75 24 32-7
90 14 46-3
64 57 16-4
24 4 32-7
52 59 40-0
110 55 17-3
56 42 40-7
102 39 58-4
114 49 12-9
52 31 31-6
52 41 33-4
85 42 16-8
127 9 —
126 58 30-7
63 45 18-9
37 34 10-3
77 18 32-6
102 46 33-5
43 53 57-4
85 21 15-9
126 59 21-3
87 13 17-1
62 10 27-2
99 44 39-6
52 43 19-0
33 5 52-5
60 43 40-4
87 3 10-5
38 29 16-6
120 24 51-7
87 27 10-4
80 27 11-8
61 15 17-8
III 5 38-3
+ 10-7
+ 10-7
+ 10-4
+ 10-4
+ 10-4
4- 10-4
+ 10-4
-I- 10-3
+ 10-2
+ 10-1
+ 9-9
4- 9-6
4- 9-3
4- 9-2
4- 8-9
8-9
8-6
8-4
8-3
8-3
4-
4-
4-
4- 8-2
4- 8-1
4- 8-0
4- 7-8
4- 7-8
4- 7-8
4- 7-3
4- 7-1
4- 6-9
4- 6-4
4- 6-1
4- 5-7
4- 5-1
4- 5-0
4- 4-9
4- 6-0
4- 4-6
4- 4-5
4- 4-5
4- 4-5
4- 4-4
4- 4-3
4- 4-2
4- 4-2
4- 4-2
4- 4-2
4- 3-7
4- 3-6
4- 3-5
4- 3-3
4- 3-1
4- 2-9
4- 2-9
4- 2-5
4- 2-2
4- 2-2
4- 1-9
4- 1-8
4- 2-6
4- 0-9
4- 0-8
4- 0-8
4- 0-8
4- 0-7
4- 0-6
+ 0-4
+ 1-4
4-
0-1
01
VOL. IV.
98
ASTRONOMY.
RIGHT ASCENSIONS AND NORTH POLAR DISTANCES OF 529 STARS,
/3 Telescopii.
2 Sagittarii..
Serpentis..
t Sagittarii..
x LyrEe.......
4
3- 4
4
3
4,3
4
4- 5
3
1
4-5
3
3
4-5
5
3-4
3- 4
3
4- 5
4
3
3
4-5
3
4
3- 4
t Draconis  4-5
 j 4
6 Vulpeculae.... 4
1 /3 Cygni ' 3
,£6 Aquilse | 4-5
4- 5
4
4
4
4
E Sagittarii....
Draconis ....
I Ursa Min.
a Lyra 
<p Sagittarii....
/3 Lyra 
Sagittarii....
1 & Serpentis 
2 9 
Z Sagittarii....
£ Aquilse 
y Lyrae 
a Sagittarii....
Mag.
X Aquilse 
Z Aqttila...,
t Sagittarii...
£ Draconis.,
x Cygni 
S Aciuila....
2 h Sagittarii.
» Aquilae....
9 Cygni 
a Sagittse....
<P Cygni 
y Auuila  3
2 Cygni ; 3-4
2 Sagitcse ' 4
a AUUILA [ 1-2
4
3- 4
4- 5
4-5
3-4
4
/3 ..v 
y Sagittse 
62 Sagittarii 
9 Aquilse 
1 a Capricorni.
2 o Cygni  
2 « Capricorni.
23 Yulpeculse....
S3 Cygni 
32 
2 /3 Capricorni..
x Cephei 
y Cygni 
41  
£ Delphini....
a Cygni 
Capricorni..
£ Aquarii 
3
y Delphini 
<* Microscopii...
£ Cygni 
4
3
4-5
4-5
4-5
3- 4
4- 5
3
4-5
4
4
4,5
3- 4
1
4- 5
4-5
4
4
4-5
3
18 6
18 10
s.
7-42
6-75
18 12 31-05
18 12 53-39
18 13 54-43
18 17 28-77
18 24 7-12
18 27 8-53
18 31 11-08
18 35 2-05
18 43 48-37
18 44 43-27
18 47 46-18
18 47 47-54
18 51 47-62
18 51 54-53
18 52 35-12
18 54 29-59
18 56 19-40
18 57 13-63
18 57 35-86
18 59 39-06
19 12 29-67
19 13 10-34
19 16 55-57
19 18 46-68
19 19 46-94
19 21 38-05
19 23 52-00
19 25 47-10
19 26 21-34
19 27 44-60
19 31 52-93
19 32 30 03
19 32 39-84
19 38 10-70
19 39 39-81
19 39 48-60
19 42 29-36
19 43 48-61
19 46 57-84
19 51 11-93
19 52 11-71
2 31-92
8 13-17
8 16-81
8 37-00
8 43-64
9 26-56
20
20
20
20
20
20
20 10 13-08
20 11 27-25
20 14 27-61
20 16 7-89
20 22 27-17
20 25 5-49
20 29 34-71
20 30 42-60
20 31 44-87
20 35 38-38
20 36 1-15
20 38 28-19
20 38 45-82
20 38 46-38
20 39 19-71
20 39 20-11
Annual
Precession.
+ 4-07
+ 3-84
+ 3-09
+ 3-98
+ 2-10
+ 3-70
— 1-07
+ 19-16
+ 2-03
+ 3-75
+ 2-21
+ 3-72
+ 2-98
+ 2-98
+ 3-82
+ 2-73
+ 2-24
+ 3-59
+ 3-76
+ 3-18
+ 2-75
+ 3-57
+ 0-02
+ 1-38
+ 3-01
— 1-06
+ 0-33
+ 2-50
+ 2-42
+ 2-92
+ 3-65
4- 3-23
+ 1-61
+ 2-68
+ 2-37
+ 2-85
+ 1-87
+ 2-67
+ 2-93
+ 3-06
+ 2-95
+ 2-66
+ 3-70
+ 3-10
+ 3-33
+ 1-89
+ 3-34
+ 2-48
+ 1-39
+ 1-85
+ 3-38
+ 1-88
+ 2-15
+ 2-45
+ 2-86
+ 2-80
+ 2-83
+ 2-78
+ 2-04
4- 3-57
4- 3-25
4- 3-17
+ 2-78
4- 3-77
4- 2-39
126 48 40-7
119 53 23-9
92 56 7-6
124 27 24-3
54 0 25-0
115 30 20-9
17 20 34-0
3 24 53-3
51 22 10-5
117 9 20-1
56 49 45-8
116 29 53-2
0 38-5
0 43-4
6 46-7
86
86
120
75 9 20-2
57 32 17-8
111 58 52-2
117 54 32-6
95 7 46-5
76 22 56-8
111 17 6-0
22 38 14-7
36 56 31-5
87 13 1-2
16 57 45-8
24 36 43-9
65 40 25-0
62 23 30-7
82 58 31-1
115 14 58-2
97 23 53-1
40 10 8-1
72 22 15-4
60 13 59-1
79 47 40-5
45 16 48-4
71 52 46-0
81 34 26-8
89 25 26-2
84 0 40-6
70 57 49-1
118 10 25-5
91 19 7-0
103 1 35-3
43 46 13-9
103 3 52-4
62 42 7-9
33 56 58-7
42 48 15-1
105 18 39-2
12 48 15-6
50 16 59-4
60 11 37-8
79 16 8-0
75 59 26-2
77 16 33-7
74 40 56-0
45 19 24-7
115 52 27-9
100 6 43-1
95 38 39-3
74 28 58-8
124 24 14-9
56 39 41 0
Annual
Precession.
0-5
0-9
0-4
1-1
1-2
1- 5
2- 1
2-4
2- 7
3- 1
3-8
3- 9
4- 1
4-1
4-5
4-5
4-6
4-7
4- 9
5- 0
5-0
5- 2
6- 2
6- 3
6-6
6-8
6-8
7- o
7-2
7-3
7-4
7-5
7-8
7-9
7- 9
8- 3
8-4
8-5
8-7
8-8
8- 5
9- 3
9-4
10-2
10-6
10-6
10-7
10-7
10-7
10-8
10- 9
11- 1
11-2
H-7
11- 9
12- 2
12-3
12-3
12-6
12-6
12-8
12-8
12-8
12-8
12-8
STARg.
» Cephei 
jj, Aquarii 
32 Yulpeculse
k Cygni 
2161 Cygni..
S Equulei.
a. 
a Cygni...,
1 Pegasi  
a. Cephei 
Z Capricorni....
/3 Aqitarii 
/3 Cephei 
y Capricorni....
/ Piscis Aust...
£ Pegasi 
1 v Cygni 
9 Pegasi 
2 Capricorni..
r Cephei 
Aquarii .
Pegasi.
2 sr
Z Cephei..
9 Aquarii.
£ Cephei..
y Aquarii..
31 Pegasi 
3 Lacertse....
Z Aquarii 
/3 Piscis Aust.
2 Cephei 
7 Lacertse....
57 Aquarii 
18 PiscLs Aust.
Z Pegasi 
x   
y. Pegasi...
1 Cephei..
X Aquarii.
Fomalhatjt.
« Andromdese...
p> Pegasi 
a Pegasi 
56  
88 Aquarii 
y Pisciuni 
1 x Andromedse.
1 Piscium 
y Cephei. 
oj Piscium........
30 
2 Ceti 
kAndromeda
Mag.
s.
3- 4
4- 5
4- 5
4
4
5- 6
6
3
4-5
4-5
4-5
4-5
4
3
4
3
3
4
4-5
2- 3
4-5
4-5
4
3- 4
4- 5
4-5
3
4-5
4
4
4
4
4-5
4-5
4
4-5
4
4
4
4-5
4
4 .
4
3
3
4-5
4
4
4
3
1
4
2
2
4-5
4-5
4-5
4-5
4-5
3
4-5
4-5
4
1
Annual
Precession.
H. M. S.
20 41 49-30
20 43 28-81
20 47 19-06
20 50 50-42
20 58 45-09
20 58 17-42
20 58 18-74
21 5 42-32
21 6 12-13
21 7 19-59
21 10 44-75
21 10 55-97
21 14 13-65
21 14 30-99
21 16 56-92
21 22 36-24
21 26 26-12
21 30 39-89
21 34 47-96
21 35 50-27
21 36 4-07
21 36 27-90
21 36 57-15
21 37 38-98
21 39 24-19
21 40 32-89
21 57 3-09
21 57 14-94
21 59 6-27
22 1 37-49
22 2 26-68
22 4 58-13
22 7 51-45
22 8 47-26
22 12 52-49
22 13 9-25
22 16 53-42
22 20 4-66
22 21 49-44
22 22 52-48
22 24 18-29
22 26 37-26
22 31 14-30
22 32 59-2?
22 35 2-61
22 38 21-09
22 41 48-42
22 43 38-92
22 43 44-52
22 45 37-35
22 48 14-31
22 54 7-01
22 55 32-60
22 56 17-98
22 58 50-57
23 0 22-36
23 8 21-24
23 29 16-19
23 31 12-63
23 32 26-52
23 50 35-17
23 53 14-60
23 55 1-61
23 59 37-04
s.
+ 1-22
+ 3-24
+ 2-55
+ 2-23
+ 2-17
+ 2-77
+ 2-77
+ 2-55
+ 2-92
+ 3-00
+ 2-35
+ 2-46
+ 2-76
+ 1-45
+ 3-44
+ 3-15
4- 0-81
+ 3-32
+ 3-60
+ 2-94
+ 2-12
+ 2-83
+ 2-71
+ 3-30
+ 0-89
+ 1-73
+ 3-09
+ 3-25
+ 2-76
+ 3-01
+ 2-65
+ 2-06
+ 3-16
+ 2-14
+ 3-09
+ 2-95
+ 2-34
+ 3-08
■4* 3*43
+ 2-20
+ 2-44
+ 3-08
+ 3-34
+ 2-98
+ 2-80
+ 2-87
+ 2-87
+ 2-12
+ 3-13
+ 3-20
+ 3-34
+ 2-73
+ 2-88
+ 2-98
+ 2-91
+ 3-21
+ 3-11
4- 2-89
4- 3-05
+ 2-39
+ 3-06
4- 3-07
4- 3 08
+ 3-08
28 49 10-1
99 36 54-2
62 35 3 9
49 29 M
46 44 48-3
52 4 54-3
52 4 55 6
60 27 58-2
80 40 36-9
85 26 59-6
51 18 50-9
55 48 46-3
70 55 5-2
28 7 57-7
113 8 29-8
96 18 51-0
20 11 4-0
107 25 29-7
123 47 49-7
80 54 0-6
39 35 0-1
73 25 32-5
65 7 57-4
106 53 36-4
19 28 14 0
29 39 41-8
91 8 30-4
104 41 23-7
65 28 54-6
84 38 4-5
57 39 10-0
32 38 5-2
98 37 33-1
33 48 7-6
92 14 25-5
78 38 52 9
38 37 13-0
90 53 13-5
123 12 53-7
32 27 7-4
40 25 21-5
90 59 27-3
117 55 35-4
80 3 11-0
60 39 55-5
67 19 35-3
66 17 37-3
24 41 31-5
98 28 53-5
106 43 18-9
120 31 14-4
48 35 8-3
62 50 15-1
75 42 25-8
65 26 50-2
112 5 33-2
87 38 40-8
44 27 42-9
85 17 38 3
13 18 57-1
84 4 38-5
96 57 30-3
108 16 53-2
61 50 53 5
Annua!
Precession.
■ 13-8
131
13-4
■ 13-6
• 14-1
■ m
■ 17-2
• 14-5
■ 14'G
■ 14'G
■ 14'S
• 14'8
- 15'0
■ lo'O
-15-2
-15'5
- 157
- la'D
■ 16’2|
■ 16-2
-16'2
-16-2
■ 16-3
-16-3
- 16-4
• 16'4
- 17'2
-17'2
-17-3
-17'4
. 17'5
• m
-177
■ l?/
. 17'9
. 17'3
. 18'0
. 182
- 18-2
- 18-3
-18 3
. 18’4
. 18C
. 18'G
-187
-18-3
- 18D
-18'9
. 181)
-19'«
. 19-1
. 19-21
. I9'3
. 19'3
. 19'3
. 19'4
. 193
. 19'9
. 19-3
. 19'9[|
. 20'0 j
. 20't)
. 20'«
. 20'0
A S T R O N O M Y. 99
p; ical The preceding catalogue has been selected from one
Ast iomy. containing the approximate right ascensions and north
W p0iar distances of 720 stars, from observations made with
two microscopes. This, however, is considered by the
astronomer royal, Mr Pond, only as a first approximation
to a more perfect catalogue, which is now forming at
Greenwich, from observations made with two mural cir¬
cles and six microscopes. A German astronomer, Bode,
has published a catalogue of 17,240 stars, with their right
ascensions and declinations, as a sequel to his Uranogra-
phia, which exhibits engraved figures of the constellations. Practical
The Memoirs of the Astronomical Society of London Astronoiny.
contain a catalogue of nearly 3000 stars, with accompany-
ing tables, by Mr Baily, who has stated every particular
relating to it in a most elaborate preface. This is fully
adequate to the wants of pi'actical astronomers: but the
principal astronomers in Europe have undertaken a sur¬
vey of the heavens, in which each has chosen a section;
and the completion of the labour will farther advance this
part of the science.
Sect. II.—Table for Converting Intervals of Sidereal Time into Intervals of Mean Solar Time.
HOURS.
M. S.
0 9-830
0 19-659
0 29-489
0 39-318
0 49-148
0 58-977
1 8-807
l 18-636
1 28-466
1 38-296
l 48-125
1 57-955
s.
7-784
17-614
27-443
37-273
47-103
56-932
6-762
16-591
26-421
36-250
46-080
55-909
MINUTES.
0-164
0-328
0-491
0-655
0-819
0-983
1-147
1-311
1-474
1-638
1-802
1-966
s.
2-130
2-294
2-457
2-621
2-785
2- 949
3113
3- 277
3-440
8-604
3-768
3-932
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
4-096
4-259
4-423
4-587
4-751
4- 915
5- 079
5-242
5-406
5-570
5-734
5-898
s.
6-062
6-225
6-889
6-553
6- 717
6-881
7- 044
7-208
7-372
7-536
7-700
7-864
s.
8-027
8-191
8-355
8-519
8-683
8- 847
9- 010
9-174
9-338
9-502
9-666
9-830
SECONDS.
0-014
0-027
0-041
0-055
0-068
0-082
0-096
0-109
0-123
0-137
0-150
0-164
The numbers in this table express the acceleration of
the fixed stars. Its use is to convert any interval of side¬
real into mean solar time.
Rule.— Take from the table the acceleration correspond¬
ing to the hours, the minutes, and the seconds ; subtract their
sum from the given sidereal interval; the remainder will
express its value in mean solar time.
Example.—Convert 7h- 14*m- 51s- sidereal time into solar
time.
H. M. S. M. S.
The acceleration on...7 0 0-00 is 1 8-807
  14 0-00 2-294
: .   51-00 -139
From sidereal time....7 14 51-00 1 11-240
Subtract acceleration. 1 11*24
Mean solar time 7 12 39-76, the answer.
The reduction of sidereal to solar time is constantly
wanted in the solution of the following important problem
in Practical Astronomy, viz.
To find the mean solar hour when any star in the preced¬
ing catalogue will be on the meridian at a given place, on a
given day, in a given year.
Solution.—The right ascension of the star at the given
time is the sidereal hour of its transit. The sun’s R. A.
in the Nautical Almanac, for the given time, is the side¬
real hour of its transit at Greenwich on that day ; from
this, and the longitude of the given place, the sun’s R. A.,
that is, the sidereal hour of its transit at that place, may
be found. Then the sidereal interval between the sun’s
transit and that of the star will be the difference between
the R. A. of the star and that of the sun. This convert¬
ed into solar time will give thd mean solar interval be¬
tween the sun’s transit and that of the star: to this the
equation of time must be applied, and the result will be
the hour of the star’s transit reckoned from mean moon.
Example.—At what hour will a Aquilae pass the me¬
ridian of Edinburgh on 1st October 1831 ?
The proposed time is about If year after the epoch of
the catalogue. The correction for change of R. A. by
precession will therefore be + 2s-93 X 1-75 = + 5s-12,
and the star’s R. A. will be 19h- 42m- 34s-5. Again, the
sun’s R. A. at Greenwich for the given day is 12h- 27m-
41s-3, and its daily increase is 3m- 37s-5. Now the longi¬
tude of Edinburgh is, in time, 12m- 44s- west from Green¬
wich, and corresponding to this, the change in the sun’s
R. A. will be ls-8; therefore the sun’s R. A. when on the
meridian of Edinburgh will be 1211* 27m- 43s-l.
h. m. s.
From R. A. star 19 42 34-5
Subtract R. A. sun 12 27 43-1
Difference in sidereal time  7 14 51-4
Correct for acceleration  1 11‘9
From apparent time  7 13 39-5
Subtract equation of time   10 9-3
Time of star’s transit  7 -3 30-2
Hence it appears that the star will pass the meridian
of Edinburgh at 7h- 3m- 30s- after mean noon. Here no
corrections are made on the R. A. of the star for aberra¬
tion and nutation; but these are too small to be sensible,
except by good astronomical instruments.
By this problem the astronomer finds the error and
rate of his clock, taking in, however, aberration and nu¬
tation, which need not be noticed in ordinary estimations
of time.
100
ASTRONOMY.
Sect. III.—Table of Atmospherical Refractions, with Corrections for the Height of the Barometer and Thermometer.
App.
Altitude.
0 0
5
10
15
20
25
1 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
2 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
3 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
Refr. B. 30
Th. 50°.
33 51
32 53
31 58
31 5
30 13
29 24
28 37
27 51
27 0
26 24
25 43
Diff. for Diff. for
1' Alt. + 1 B.
11-7
11-3
10-9
10-5
10-1
9-7
25 3
24 25
23 48
23 13
22 40
22 8
21 37
21 7
20 38
20 10
19 43
19 17
18 52
18 29
18 5
17 43
17 21
17 0
16 40
16 21
16 2
15 43
15 25
15 8
14 51
14 35
14 19
14 4
13 50
13 35
13 21
13 7
12 53
12 41
12 28
12 16
12 3
9-4
9-0
8-7
8-4
8-0
7-7
7-4
71
6-9
6-6
6-3
6-1
5-9
5-7
5-5
5-3
5-1
4*9
4-8
4-6
4-4
4-3
4-1
4-0
3-9
3-7
3-6
3-5
3-4
3-3
3-2
31
3-0
2-9
2-8
2-7
2-7
2-6
2-5
2-4
2-4
2-3
74
71
69
67
65
63
Diff. for
— l°Fa.
61
59
58
56
55
53
52
50
49
48
46
45
44
43
42
40
39
39
38
37
36
36
35
34
33
33
32
32
31
30
30
29
29
28
28
27
27
26
26
25
25
25
8-1
7-6
7-3
7-0
6-7
6-4
61
5-9
5-6
5-4
5-1
4-9
4-7
4-6
4-5
4-4
4-2
4-0
3-9
3-8
3-6
3-5
3-4
3-3
3-2
31
3-0
2-9
2-8
2-8
2-7
2-7
2-6
2-5
2-4
2-3
2-3
2-2
2-2
2-1
2-1
2-0
2-0
2-0
1-9
1-9
1-9
1-8
App.
Altitude.
4 0
10
20
30
40
50
Refr. B. 30
Th. 50°.
5 0
10
20
30
40
50
6 0
10
20
30
40
50
7 o
10
20
30
40
50
8 0
10
20
30
40
50
9 0
10
20
30
40
50
10 0
10
20
30
40
50
11 0
10
20
30
40
50
11 52
11 30
11 10
10 50
10 32
10 15
9 58
9 42
9 27
9 11
8 58
8 45
8 32
8 20
8 9
7 58
7 47
7 37
7 27
7 17
7 8
6 59
6 51
6 43
6 35
6 28
6 21
6 14
6 7
6 0
5 20
5 15
5 10
5 5
5 0
4 56
Diff. for Diff. for
1' Alt. + 1 B.
2-2
21
2-0
1-9
1-8
1-7
1-6
1-5
1-5
1-4
1-3
1-3
1-2
1-2
11
M
1-0
1-0
1-0
0-9
0-9
0-8
0-8
0-8
0-7
0-7
0-7
0-7
0-7
0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
0-6
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-5
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-4
0-4
24-1
23-4
22-7
220
21-3
20-7
20-1
19-6
19-1
18-6
18-1
17-6
17-2
16-8
16-4
16-0
15-7
15-3
15-0
14-6
14-3
14-1
13-8
13-5
13-3
131
12-8
12-6
12-3
12-1
11-9
11-7
11-5
11-3
111
110
10-8
10-6
10-4
10-2
10-1
9-9
9-8
9-6
9-5
9-4
9-2
9-1
Diff. for
— 1° Fa.
1-70
1-64
1-58
1-53
1-48
1-43
1-38
1-34
1-30
1-26
1-22
M9
M5
Ml
1-09
1-06
1-03
1-00
0-98
0-95
0-93
0-91
0-89
0-87
0-85
0-83
0-82
0-80
0-79
0-77
0-76
0-74
0-73
0-71
0-71
0-70
0-69
0-67
0-65
0-64
0-63
0-62
0-60
0-59
0-58
0-57
0-56
0-55
Explanation of the Table of Refractions.
This table is computed upon principles explained by the late Dr Young in
the Philosophical Transactions for 1819; and it appears to agree more perfectly
•with the latest observations than any other table before published.
The apparent altitude being found in the first column, the second shows
the refraction when the barometer stands at 30 inches, which is its mean
height on the level of the sea, and the thermometer at 50° of Fahrenheit.
The third column contains the difference to be subtracted or added for every
minute of altitude, reckoned from the nearest number in the first column.
The fourth shows the number of seconds to be added for every inch that the
height of the barometer exceeds 30, or to be subtracted for each inch that it
wants of 30: and the last contains the number of seconds to be subtracted
for each degree that the thermometer stands above 50°, or to be added for
each degree that its height wants of 50°.
If great accuracy be required, we must also deduct from the observed height
of the barometer ’003 inch for each degree that the thermometer near it is above
, and add an equal quantity for an equal depression. In fact, however, the
table, as it now stands, is found to require the temperature to be estimated
from the height of the thermometer within; and if we employed the height
of the thermometer without, which would be more consistent with the theory
it would probably be necessary to suppose the standard temperature of the’
table 48° only (or rather 47°), instead of 50°.
Examples.
1. At 7° 18' 13", barometer 29-87, thermometer 66° the refraction is 6' 52"-26,
from twenty-two observations of Bradley.
App.
Altitude.
12 0
10
20
30
40
50
13 0
10
20
30
40
50
14 0
10
20
30
40
50
15 0
30
16 0
30
17 0
30
18 0
19 0
Refr. B. 30
Th. 50°.
Diff. for
V Alt.
4 28-1
4 24-4
4 20-8
4 17-3
4 13-9
4 10-7
7-5
4-4
1-4
58-4
55-5
52-6
3 49-9
3 47-1
3 44-4
3 41-8
3 39-2
3 36-7
3 34-3
3 27-3
3 20-6
3 14-4
3 8-5
3 2-9
57-6
47-7
38-7
30-5
23-2
16-5
2 10-1
2 4-2
1 58-8
1 53-8
l 49-1
1 44-7
1 40-5
1 36-6
1 33-0
1 29-5
1 26-1
1 23-0
1 20-0
1 17-1
1 14-4
1 11-8
1 9-3
1 6-9
0-38
0-37
0-36
0-35
0-33
0-32
0-31
0-31
0-30
0-30
0-29
0-29
0-28
0-28
0-27
0-26
0-26
0-25
0-24
0-22
0-21
0-20
019
0-18
0-17
0-16
0-15
0-13
0-12
0-11
0-10
0-09
0-09
0-08
0-08
0-07
0-07
0-06
0-06
0-06
0-05
0-05
0-05
0-05
0-05
0-04
0-04
0-04
Diff. for
+ B
9-00
8-86
8-74
8-63
8-51
8-41
8-30
8-20
8-10
8-00
7-89
7-79
7-70
7-61
7-52
7-43
7-34
7-26
7-18
6-95
6-73
6-51
6-31
6-12
5-98
5-61
5-31
5-04
4-79
4-57
4-35
4-16
3-97
3-81
3-65
3-50
3-36
3-23
3-11
2-99
2-88
2-78
2-68
2-58
2-49
2-40
2-32
2-24
Diff. for
— l°Fa.
0-556
0-548
0-541
0-533
0-524
0-517
0-509
0-503
0-496
0-490
0-482
0-476
0-469
0-464
0-458
0-453
0-448
0-444
0-439
0-424
0-411
0-399
0-386
0-374
0-362
0-340
0-322
0-305
0-290
0-276
0-264
0-252
0-241
0-230
0-219
0-209
0-201
0-193
0-186
0-179
0-173
0-167
0-161
0-155
0-149
0-144
0-139
0-134
App.
Altitude.
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
Refr. B. 30
Th. 50°.
1 4-6
1 2-4
1 0-3
0 58-1
56-1
54-2
52-3
50-5
48-8
47-1
45-4
43-8
42-2
40-8
39-3
37-8
36-4
35-0
33-6
32-3
31-0
29-7
28-4
27-2
25-9
24-7
23-5
22-4
21-2
19-9
18-8
17-7
16-6
15-5
14-4
13-4
12-3
11-2
10-2
9-2
8-2
7-1
6-1
5-1
4-1
3-1
2-0
1-0
Diff for
1' Alt.
0-038
0-036
0-034
0-034
0-033
0-032
0-031
0-030
0-029
0-028
0-027
0-026
0-026
0-025
0-025
0-025
0-024
0-024
0-023
0-022
0-022
0-021
0021
0-020
0-020
0-020
0-020
0-020
0-020
0-020
0-019
0-018
0-018
0018
0-018
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
0-017
Biff, for Din
+ 1B. -1<
2-16
2-09
2-02
1-94
1-88
1-81
1-75
1-69
1-63
1-58
1-52
1-47
1-41
1-36
1-31
1-26
1-22
1-17
M2
1-08
1-04
0-99
0-95
0-91
0-87
0-83
0-79
0-75
0-71
0-67
0-G3
0-59
0-56
0-52
0-48
0-45
0-41
0-38
0-34
0-31
0-27
0-24
0-20
0-17
0-14
0-10
0-07
0-03
<H
0'1 i
O'l .
1
2. At 19° 18' 19", barometer 30-045, thermometer 34°, the refraction is 2'5
from three observations of Bradley.
3. At 13u 43', barometer 29-85, thermometer 45°, the refraction is 3' 55
from 156 observations of Mr Pond
1. Alt. 7° 20' II. 7'
+
8"
1-62
Diff. Alt.
j, 47,/ = v
B.
14"-3
— -13
Th.
9-62
16-74
+ 1 -62
1 -86
52-88
52-26
Error...
2. Alt. 19°
  0-62
It. 2' 47"-7
— 2 -93
Diff. Alt. "-16
18' 19" = 18 -3
B. 5"-61
Th
+ -045
2 44
5 -44
•77
•25
—. 2-93
•252
Error l"-0 2 50-46
3. Alt. 13° 40' It. 3' 55"
+
•5
•36
Diff. Alt. "-29
B. 7"-89
•15
Th.
•86
-85
87
_ 1
Error.
•18
•87
•01
2 -05
CHAP. IV.
ASTRONOMY.
101
Pi :ical
Ast ioray.
ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUMENTS.
There are two principal objects to be accomplished by
astronomical instruments; the one is the extension and
improvement of the science; and the other its applica¬
tion to geography, navigation, and the ordinary wants of so¬
ciety. Here we give the name astronomical instruments to
such as in their application are directed to the heavenly
bodies, as a telescope is directed to a star, and the axis of
a sun-dial to the pole; but we do not consider as astro¬
nomical instruments orreries, and machines composed of
wheels and pinions, such as exhibit imperfectly represen¬
tations of the celestial motions. Globes are indeed appro¬
priate furniture in an observatory, because they truly ex¬
hibit the relative positions of the stars and the different
countries; and they serve to resolve approximately the
different problems of the sphere. But complex orreries
and planetary clocks are mere playthings. They excite
admiration by the ingenuity displayed in their construc¬
tion, but they are of no practical use. Showmen pretend
to teach astronomy by their assistance; but their inutility
in giving just notions of the dimensions and magnitudes
of the bodies which form the solar system may be easily
conceived by reflecting, that if in an orrery the earth be
represented by a sphere one inch in diameter, the repre¬
sentation of the sun should be nine feet; also, that if the
representation of Mercury describe a circle of about four
inches radius, then the orbit of Uranus should have its
radius sixteen feet.
Judicious teachers of astronomy may, however, employ
with advantage simple contrivances to facilitate the ac¬
quiring of correct notions of the celestial motions; but
they will direct the attention to a single object at a time,
and not attempt to exhibit all the phenomena of the
heavens at once. Wooden wheels and catgut bands are
just as useful for the purpose in question as metallic
wheels and pinions. A globe moved by the hand round a
candle will serve to show the changes of the seasons; and
in like manner the phases of the moon, her nodes and
their motion, and the nature of eclipses, may be all ex¬
plained by simple and easy contrivances.
1. Astronomical Telescope.
In a subsequent part of this work the theory of the te¬
lescope, and the various kinds of telescopes, will be fully
explained. As, however, the telescope forms an essential
part of almost all complex astronomical instruments, it
will be proper to explain here in a general way its prin¬
ciples and use.
The astronomical telescope is composed of two princi¬
pal parts, the object-glass, and the eye-glass or eye-piece.
These are in opposite ends of a tube; and in its applica¬
tion the former is next the object, and the latter next the
eye. In telescopes of the best construction the object-
glass is composed of two and sometimes of three pieces.
(See Achromatic Glasses.) We shall here, however,
suppose it of the simplest form ; that is, a very thin double
convex glass, the opposite sides being portions of spheri¬
cal surfaces.
Let ABDE (Plate XCIII. fig. 131) be a lens of this
form, C being the centre of a sphere, of which ABE is
a portion of the surface. Let L be any point in an object
to be viewed with the telescope, and let a ray of light
proceeding from L fall perpendicularly on the convex
surface in B: it will pass through the glass without being
turned out of its direction, and will proceed straight for¬
ward on the prolongation of the line LBD.
Let another ray LI fall obliquely on the convex surface
at I: by the principles of optics this will be refracted, Practical
that is, turned out of the direction LI, and take a new •A-stronomy-
direction IPP. Draw Cl to the centre; the new direc-
tion will be such that the sine of the angle of incidence
MIL or CIL will be to the sine of the refracted angle
CIP or CIP in the constant ratio of a given number to 1.
We have therefore
_ sin. CIL _ sin. CIL sin. ICP_ 'CL IP
71 sin. CIP~sin. ICL ‘ sin. CIP~ H7 * CP’
Let us suppose the point I to be near B; then IP=BP
nearly, and IL = BL nearly, and we have
CL • BP
BL - CP' nearly-
(1)
When the ray arrives at the concave surface ADE, it
suffers a second refraction in passing into the air, and
changes its direction from PP into a new direction PL'.
Let C' be the centre of a sphere, of which ADE is a part
of the surface: draw the radius C'P, and we shall have
sin. CTL': sin. C'PP :: n : I; and therefore
_ sin. C' P L' _ sin. CTL' sin. P C' P _ C' L' PP
H ~ sin. C' P P “sin.PC'L'* sin. C'PP “PL'* C'P*
We suppose the arcs IB, PD, to be small; therefore PP
= PD nearly, and P L' = DL' nearly; hence
C'L'-PD
n = DL"^ near y*
Since the thickness of the lens is supposed to be incon¬
siderable, we may assume that PD = PB nearly, and that
DL' = BL nearly, and then we have
_ C'L'-PB
n “ BL' • C'P 
Let r = CB,r' = C'B, A = BL, A' = BL',
and equations (1) and (2) become
«(r + A) «>(r'+A')
n = — ( ; n — ■ j :
A (v — r) A'(r + /)
from these we obtain
n, _n—1 1 anj w _ 1 n—1
v r A’ v ~ A' / ’
= PB,
and hence
U.'l _ ,
When a ray of light passes out of air into glass, the sine
of the angle of incidence is to the sine of the angle of re¬
fraction as 3 to 2 nearly, or as to 1. In this case
n
= 1|, and
_L+i.=i fi+iy
A A' 2 \r ^ TV
This expression will be the very same if we put r in¬
stead of r', and r1 instead of r; also, if we put A for A',
and A' for A. Hence we may infer, that whichever of the
two convex sides of the object-glass be turned towards
the object L, the value of A' will be the same for a given
value of A; also, that if L' be the focus to which rays is¬
suing from L converge after refraction, then L will be the
focus to which rays issuing from L' would converge after
passing through the object-glass.
If A, the distance of L from the object-glass, be very
great, then — will be very small in respect of —; and in
the case of the heavenly bodies vanishes, and we have
simply
If we suppose both sides of the object-glass to be alike
convex, that is, r =: r', then A' = r ; hence we learn, ls£,
that all rays which come from any point whatever of a
.rAU
ASTRONOMY.
102
Practical very remote object, and which traverse a double convex
Astronomy. g]ass 0f eqUai curvature on both sides, are united by re-
fraction about its centre of sphericity, which is called its
principal focus ; 2d, that rays which proceed from a point
at the centre of sphericity do, after refraction, proceed
in lines which may be considered as parallel. All these
conclusions are only true approximately. They suppose
the convex arcs ABE ADE small, and the thickness of
the glass very little; nevertheless they differ but little
from truth: the focus L is not indeed a mathematical
point, but has a certain magnitude, which varies with the
distance of the object and the breadth of the lens.
If we now suppose that two lenses, BD, bd (fig. 132),
are adapted to the extremity of a tube, so that their cen¬
tres of sphericity coincide at the same point F, and that
this point and the centres of the lenses are in the same
straight line, then, from what has been explained, it fol¬
lows that rays coming from a distant object L, after pass¬
ing through the lens BD or object-glass, will be collect¬
ed at F (which is therefore called the focus of parallel
rays), and will there form an image of the object L:
also, that all the rays, after crossing in the focus F, will
proceed forward ; but in passing through the second lens
or eye-glass bd, they will be again refracted, and emerge
on the other side in parallel lines ; and if they enter an eye
now situated at O, these parallel rays will produce distinct
vision.
The eye does not see directly the remote object AC,
but only its image formed at the focus F, and this in re¬
spect to the object is inverted; for the rays proceeding
from A and falling on the object-glass at B, are by refrac¬
tion turned into the direction BF, and meet the glass at
d. In like manner, the rays which are emitted from C,
and pass through the object-glass at D, meet the eye-glass
on the opposite side at /3: thus the object AC and its
image formed at F have opposite positions.
The astronomical telescope, then, differs from the com¬
mon telescope for viewing objects at a distance, in revers¬
ing the position of objects seen through it, also the direc¬
tion of their motions, the upper limb of the sun or moon
appearing the lower, and all the heavenly bodies appear¬
ing to move from west to east. This, which would be an in¬
convenience with terrestrial objects, is of no consequence
in viewing the stars.
The surface of the object-glass being always much
greater than that of the eye-glass, which has a shorter
focus, and all the rays which fall on the surface BD of
the former being collected on the surface bd of the latter,
they are there condensed, and the illumination is increas¬
ed in the inverse proportion of the areas of the glasses;
so that if the intensity of the light which falls on the ob¬
ject-glass be represented by 1, that on the eye-glass will
be ; hence telescopes in general render objects
more luminous and more easily distinguished. They also
magnify objects; for let A be the centre and B the bor¬
der of an object (fig. 133). The point A is visible to
the eye O, by the ray ADaEO which traverses the object-
glass D and eye-glass E, but suffers no refraction. (We here
do not consider the oblique rays, which, proceeding from
A, are collected at the principal focus.) The border B
is visible by the ray BD6 at the focus b of the object-
glass. This ray meets the eye-glass at d, and is there turn¬
ed by refraction into the direction de ; and, in emerging
from the glass at e, is again refracted to O, its focus, so
that OE is parallel to Ei. The image is seen under the
angle eOE = bEa: but ab = Da tan. D, therefore
tan. E — T7- tan. D = — tan. D, or E = — D;
ha r 7 r
R being the radius of sphericity of the object-glass, and r Practical .
that of the eye-glass. The angle under which the object Astr™oci; |
is seen is therefore increased in the proportion of the two ^
radii, and the magnifying powder is the greater, as the ra¬
dius of the eye-glass is less than that of the object-glass.
Common astronomical telescopes generally magnify from
70 to 100 times ; some even magnify 300 times. This, how¬
ever, must not be understood in a rigorous sense; if, for
example, we expect to see the moon 100 times larger with a
telescope which is said to magnify 100 times, we may be
disappointed. To produce this effect, the telescope ought
to magnify more: it only represents the moon under an
angle 100 times greater; but it is not by the visual angle
alone that we judge of magnitude ; our opinion is greatly
influenced by the distance at which we suppose the ob¬
ject. When we see an object under the angle AKB (fig.
134) , nothing determines whether this object is truly AB,
or CD, or EFF; and according as we judge it to be in the
first, or second, or third of these positions, or in one more
remote, we assign to it magnitudes always increasing al¬
though the angle is still the same. But this judgment
being uncertain, and such as cannot be subjected to cal¬
culation, the magnifying power of a telescope is in prac¬
tice estimated by the angle of vision, which can always be
exactly determined.
Let F be the principal focus of the object-glass C (fig.
135) . If the angle FICG is such, that HG (=2 HF)z=2 CF
tan. HCF is equal to the diameter of the interior tube of
the telescope, the angle HCG is called the field of view :
every object whose focal image is greater than HG cannot
be seen entirely in the telescope. This happens in the
case of the sun and moon when viewed with telescopes of
about 8| feet, such as are used in considerable observa¬
tories. In these, the sun’s image will be about 9| inches.
This exceeds the diameter of the tube. But the opening
is yet more contracted by a perforated diaphragm, which,
besides other purposes, serves to cut off the rays irregu¬
larly reflected from the inside of the tube, also those
which produce colour in the image. To determine the
field in view as limited by the diaphragm, then, we have
,. . „ HG 2 HF T „
this equation ; 2 tan. HCA = = -p-p-. If we put r
for HF, the radius of the diaphragm, and R for CF, the
radius of sphericity of the object-glass, the field of view
, . 2 r
in seconds is —:——.
R sin. 1"
2. Dorpat Telescope.
The late Joseph Fraunhofer of Munich, a most skilful
artist and experimenter in optics (whose demise in 1826,
in the prime of life, was a great loss to science), con¬
structed a magnificent refracting telescope for the obser¬
vatory of the Imperial University at Dorpat. It was re¬
ceived by Professor Struve in the year 1825, and has since
been found to fulfil most satisfactorily his expectation and
the intentions of the maker. As this is one of the most
magnificent instruments of the kind that has hitherto been
constructed, and described by a figure, we have given an
engraving of it, copied from the Memoirs of the Astrono¬
mical Society. (See Plate XCV.)
The object-glass of this telescope is about 9^ inches in
diameter, and its focal length about 14 English"feet. The
main tube is 13-8 feet; and, in addition, there is the small
tube which holds the eye-pieces. Of these there are four;
the least magnifying power is 175, and the greatest 700.
After the telescope was received at Dorpat, a perfect mi¬
crometrical apparatus was ordered to be made for it. This
was to consist of four annular micrometers, of which two
w’ere to be double; a lamp circular micrometer, with four
Pi lical
Ast iomy
A S T R O N O M Y.
103
eye-pieces; a refracting lamp net micrometer, with posi-
• tion circles, and four eye-pieces.
The frame-work of the stand is made of oak, and the
tube of deal, veneered with mahogany. The whole weight
of the telescope and its counterpoises is supported at one
point, namely, at the common centre of gravity of all the
ponderous parts. These weigh 3000 Russian pounds, of
which the frame-work contains 1000 ; the remaining 2000
are so balanced in every position, that the telescope may
be turned, with ease and certainty, in every direction to¬
wards the heavens.
The basis of the frame is formed of two cross beams,
each nine feet seven inches long. The ends of these are
seen in the figure at A, B, C, D. They are braced by
four smaller bars forming a square, one of which is seen
at E. This braced cross is fastened to the floor by eight
screws, six of which are seen in the figure. A perpendi¬
cular post, about six feet high and seven inches square, is
fixed over the centre of the cross, and is propped at the
north, east, and west sides by three curved stays, de¬
noted by G, G', G", which are fixed at their lower ends to
the beams of the cross, and at the upper to the vertical
post. An inclined beam H of the same thickness rests
on the southern end of the meridian beam of the cross,
and is attached to the vertical beam in a position paral¬
lel to the polar axis. This axis, shown in the figure at I,
is a cylinder of steel 39 inches long, and proportionally
thick. It turns in two collars, and its lower end, which
is rounded and polished, rests on a steel plate attached to
the bearing piece K, which is secured to the inclined beam
H, and has therefore very little friction, the weight being
supported by friction rollers near the common centre of
gravity; and a counterpoise L is applied to support the
axis in any position. There is a circle 13 inches in dia¬
meter, graduated to minutes of time, fixed to the lower
end of the axis, and furnished with verniers. The axis
of vertical motion of the telescope, which has nearly the
dimensions of the polar axis, passes through a brass tube
at right angles to the latter; the tube, which is seen at
M, forms a part of the frame, and is fastened to the upper
end of the polar axis by twelve screws. This axis car¬
ries the circle of declination, which is 19 inches in dia¬
meter, and is divided to every 10', with a vernier reading
10" or 5" by estimation. The tube of the telescope is
fixed to the frame-work nearer to the eye end than the
middle, and has two counterpoises attached to levers,
which balance the two ends, and prevent the natural ten¬
dency of the longer end to bend. The brass frame hold¬
ing the two axes appears on the figure clamped to the
tube by two strong rings, one at each end of the centre
of motion. A bent lever, carrying the weight O, em¬
braces by a double ring the near end of the axis of the
declination circle. The axis itself carries another weight;
and by this and the weight O it is counterpoised. The
slow motion in altitude is given to the telescope by a
Hooke’s joint applied to the screw of the clamp, which
has a spring urging it against a strong iron bar P, at¬
tached to the end of the cylinder M, that forms a stop to
the circle; and a slow equatorial motion is given by a
second Hooke’s joint taking hold of an endless screw,
acting with the racked edge of the hour circle, while a
spring presses it into action uniformly, and a lever is em¬
ployed to raise it out of the rack when necessary. The
handles taking hold of these screws extend to the reach of
the observer, who can thus point his telescope in right
ascension and declination with the same certainty as the
best meridian instrument.
A regular sidereal motion is communicated to the in¬
strument by clock-work, which keeps a star apparently
at rest in the centre of the field of view; and there is a
contrivance by which the sidereal can be changed into a Practical
solar, also to a lunar angular motion. Astronomy.
This almost invaluable instrument cost 10,500 florins
(about 950 pounds sterling). The price, although it may
appear considerable, yet barely covered the expense of the
workmanship of its construction. This relinquishment of
the profit of trade does great credit to the ingenious and
liberal-minded artists, Fi'aunhofer, and Utzchneider, the
chief of the optical establishment at Munich.
3. Sir James South's Telescope.
Since the fabrication of the Dorpat telescope, an Eng¬
lish astronomer, Sir James South, has been so fortunate
as to procure, in France, an object-glass of even larger di¬
mensions than that of the Dorpat instrument. The dia¬
meter is, we believe, about 12 inches, and the focal length
20 feet. The liberal proprietor has been for a consider¬
able time past engaged in fitting it up, with the able as¬
sistance of the very ingenious artists Trough ton and Simms,
and has just finished an observatory for its reception.
It will of course be immediately applied to the explora¬
tion of the heavens; and considering what Sir James South
has done with instruments of much inferior power, we
look forward with confident expectation to the extension
of our knowledge of some of those sidereal systems which
have so much engaged the attention of astronomers.
4. Professor Parloivs Telescope.
The Dorpat achromatic telescope, and the still larger
and probably more powerful telescope which Sir James
South is so happy as to possess, are of the ordinary con¬
struction. The great difficulty was to obtain pieces of
flint glass of such a size as to form the object-glass. Not¬
withstanding the belief (we fear delusive) that this diffi¬
culty was overcome by the ingenuity of artists in Switzer¬
land, and the hope entertained from the partial success
of experiments in this country, the difficulty of obtaining
plates of glass of a proper size does still, and may per¬
haps always exist. Taking this view, Professor Barlow
of the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich turned his
attention to a mode of construction, in which the use of
flint glass, the great desideratum, might be dispensed with;
and from what he has already done, we have no doubt
whatever of his ultimate success. Upwards of forty years
ago, Dr Blair attempted to improve the common construc¬
tion of the achromatic telescope, by the introduction of
a fluid into the combination of glasses which formed the
object-glass; but Mr Barlow has proceeded in a differ¬
ent way : he placed an object-glass of plate glass (which
without much difficulty may be obtained good of con¬
siderable magnitude) in the farther end of the telescope ;
and in order to correct the colour, he placed, about midway
between the object-glass and its focus, a fluid lens, through
which the rays pass, and are refracted to a focus, so as to
produce a correct and colourless image.
A telescope thus constructed has two advantages. The
fluid lens, which is the most difficult part of the con¬
struction, is reduced to one half, or less than one half, of
the plate lens at the end of the tube ; and, what may be
considered as of still more importance, a telescope of this
kind, of 10 or 12 feet in length, will be equivalent in its
focal power to one of 16 or 20 feet of the ordinary con¬
struction. (See Mr Barlow’s papers in the London Phil.
Trans, for 1828-29-31.)
The fluid which has been selected is sulphuret of car¬
bon. This has a refractive index about equal to that of the
best flint glass, with a dispersive power more than double;
it is perfectly colourless, beautifully transparent, and, al¬
though very expansible, possessing the same, or very near¬
ly the same, optical properties, when hermetically sealed,
ASTRONOMY.
104
Practical under all temperatures to which it is likely to be exposed
Astronomy. for astronomical purposes.
Mr Barlow has actually constructed, and mounted in an
observatory, a telescope with a clear aperture of 7*8 inches,
which, before the introduction of Sir James South’s tele¬
scope, exceeded by about an inch the largest in this
country. Its tube is 11 feet, which, together with the eye¬
piece, makes the whole length 12 feet; but its effective
focus is 18 feet, and it carries a power of 700 on the
closest double stars in South’s and Herschel’s catalogue.
The ingenious inventor of this valuable instrument read
a paper to the Royal Society in December 1830, On the
performance of fluid refracting telescopes, and on the applica¬
bility of this principle of construction to very large instru¬
ments. From what he stated in this paper, it appears, that
although his telescope does not equal in power either Sir
James South’s 20-feet telescope, or the fine new reflect¬
ing telescope with a 20-inch speculum, constructed by Mr
Herschel, yet it makes a nearer approach to them, we be¬
lieve, than any other achromatic telescope now in Britain.
Finally, Mr Barlow declares that he is willing, with
proper aid, to undertake the construction of a telescope
of much greater dimensions: he suggests an aperture of 2
feet, and a length of 24 feet. We believe this is not one
of the innumerable projects which commonly end in dis¬
appointment ; and we hope that William IV., our present
gracious king, to whom Mr Barlow’s powers are well known,
may give him such countenance and support as his father
George III. afforded to the late Sir William Herchel.
5. Mr Rogers's Telescope.
The difficulty of procuring disks of flint glass of the re¬
quisite magnitude, for the object-glass of achromatic te¬
lescopes of the common construction, and their great ex¬
pense when obtained, has induced an ingenious mathema¬
tician, Mr Alexander Rogers of Leith, to attempt a con¬
struction in which the flint glass part of the telescope is
not required to be so large as that composed of the more
easily procured material, plate glass. He proposes to inter¬
pose between a single object-glass, formed of plate glass,
and its focus, a solid compound lens divested of refraction
by the opposing powers of a convex of plate and a concave
of flint glass, but possessing a dispersion equal to the dif¬
ference of the dispersions of its component lenses. This
construction appears also to possess the great advantage,
that the perfection of the telescope does not require any
very accurate knowledge of the refraction and dispersion
of the kinds of glass employed, or any extreme coinci¬
dence of the foci and curvatures of the lenses with those
proportions which theory requires, as the correction of
the optical aberrations is completed by certain adjustments
of the positions of the lenses. This construction is some¬
what like Mr Barlow’s; in both, the correction of colour
is produced, not at the object-glass, but at a considerable
distance from it, in a position where the cross section of
the rays, by their convergence, has been diminished, and
therefore where the interposed correcting lens admits of
a like contraction in size, in comparison with the object-
glass.
Mr Rogers has actually procured a telescope to be con¬
structed on his principles : we have seen it compared with
a common achromatic telescope of like dimensions, in look¬
ing at terrestrial objects, and it seemed to perform well.
The proper test, however, of a telescope, is a double, triple,
or quadruple star. In a telescope of moderate length the
comes of the pole-star answers very well. IVIr Barlow, with
a telescope of his construction, having an aperture of three
inches, could see this small star with a magnifying power
of 46. We know that a most competent judge enter¬
tains a favourable opinion of Mr Rogers’s construction;
but unless a man has leisure, and can perform the most Practb P"
important manipulations himself, or else has ample means Astronon lit'
of paying skilful workmen, the invention or improvment ^
of instruments is any thing but a profitable speculation to
him. (For an account of Mr Rogers’s telescope, see Mem.
Astr. Soc. Lond. vol. iii. part 2.)
The account here given of Messrs Barlow and Rogers’s
telescopes is to be considered merely as a notice; we shall
have occasion again to recur to them. We might have
adverted to two powerful telescopes, one a 20-feet reflec¬
tor, with an aperture of 18 inches, constructed by J. F. W.
Herschel, Esq., and the other, also a reflectox*, with an
equal aperture, but 25 feet in length, constructed by Mr
John Ramage of Aberdeen; but after what has been said,
it seems sufficient to refer for these to the Mem. Astr.
Soc. Lond. vol. ii. part 2, where they are fully described.
6. Transit Instrument, Meridian Circle, and Astronomical
Clock.
The primary problem in geography is to determine the
exact position of any proposed point on the earth’s sur¬
face in respect of the equator and some assumed meri¬
dian, as that of Greenwich or Paris; that is, to find its
latitude and longitude. The corresponding problem in
astronomy is to determine the position of every fixed stax*,
and in general of any celestial phenomenon, in respect to
the equinoctial circle in the heavens (or else the pole) and
a circle passing through the pole and the intersection of
the equinoctial and ecliptic; that is, to find its declination
or polar distance, and its right ascension (chap. i. sect. i.).
The former of these is found in great observatories by the
mural quadrant or mural circle, and the latter by the
transit instrument or meridian circle, and the clock.
The first transit instrument of which we have any ac¬
count was that of Roemer, which he described in 1700.
{Miscel. Ber. tom. iii.) Dr Halley placed a transit instru¬
ment in the Greenwich observatory in 1721. The axis
was iron, and the telescope about five feet in length.
This has been long laid aside, but we believe it has been
preserved as a relic. Transit instruments of the present
day are of two forms ; one, the most common, is adapted
to the determination of the right ascension only, the other
to the determination of both right ascension and declina¬
tion, either at once or by separate observations.
We have selected one of the most modern of the first
kind for description. It is now in Sir James South’s ob-
sei-vatory at Kensington, and was constructed for him in
1820, by his friend Troughton, with all the care he could
bestow on it; and, as far as the just proportions of its parts
are concerned, he regarded it as his happiest production.
The instrument, with its various parts, is represented in
Plate XCVI. Figures 1 and 3 represent two views of it.
EO is an achromatic telescope, of which E is the end
next the eye ; AA' is its axis of motion, with which the
tube is closely united at their junction, so as to form but
one body. Ihe extremities of the axis rest in notches
formed on two cheeks of metal at AA', which are firmly
attached to the inner faces of two stone pillars PP'; and
B, B', B", B", are four braces connecting the tube and axis.
These are the parts of the instrument which, on inspection,
immediately meet the eye. When adjusted, the axis of
motion of the instrument is truly horizontal and perpen¬
dicular to the plane of the meridian, and the optical axis
of the telescope is in the plane of the meridian ; the object
of the whole construction is to keep it precisely in that
plane, whatever position be given to the telescope by turn¬
ing on its axis.
The object-glass of the telescope is four inches in
clear, and its focal length seven feet two inches. The
body of the telescope and the axis are formed of conical
ASTRONOMY.
105
P'1 Pr ical tubes firmly united in a spherical centre-piece, on which
sl Ast: omy. their wider ends rest, and cover two thirds of its surface :
' tilus the tube of the telescope is formed of two pieces,
which taper towards its extremities, where their diame¬
ters are the same as that of the object-glass. The axis
in like manner tapers equally towards its extremities.
The centre-piece is perforated in the direction of the
telescope, and also in that of the axis ; the width of the
first opening being a little more than the radius of the ob-
iect-glass, and that of the second just enough to allow the
light of a lamp placed near the end of the axis to pass
uninterruptedly to the centre illuminator. The ends of all
the four cones, where they join the sphere, are strength¬
ened by circular pieces of cast brass, which extend full
four inches into the cones, and are fixed by solder and
pins. They are turned concave in front, so as to fit the
surface of the sphere into which they are rabbeted, and
serve to keep the opposite branches of the axis and tele¬
scope straight and perpendicular to one another; and to
these pieces are attached rings for the reception of the
screws which bind the whole together. The four branches
of the axis and telescope are solely united by tension bars.
These pass through the sphere, six in the direction of the
axis and four in that of the telescope. They are arranged
at equal distances between corresponding parts, but so as
neither to obstruct the rays of the object-glass nor the
light of the lamp that falls on the illuminator. They
screw into the rings of the brass pieces which enter the
cones. The tension bars serve a most important purpose
in giving stiffness and permanence of form to the instru¬
ment ; and he that would imitate it, would do well to
study Sir James South’s description in the Phil. Trans.
B. S. 1826. Fig. 3 is a section through the axis, and ex¬
hibits the six bars which bind together the cones of the
axis, and also the places of the four which are perpendi¬
cular to them, and which connect the tubes of the tele¬
scope. Fig. 4 is a section through the telescope; the bars
of the telescope are shown lengthwise, whilst those of the
axis are perpendicular. In both figures the illuminator with¬
in the telescope is shown, in one the polished surface, and
in the other the back of the plate. The illuminator crosses
the tube of the telescope at an angle of 45°. This position
requires that the opening in it, through which the light
coming through the object-glass passes, should be an
ellipse. The braces B, B', B", B'", extending from the
cones of the axis to those of the telescope, are attached
to the former about two inches from the pivots, and to the
latter about ten inches from the centre-piece. They exert
but a very slight pressure, and might have been omitted
in this instrument. They were added in imitation of the
Greenwich transit, to which they are essentially necessary.
The apparatus for giving the telescope any required
altitude is shown at the eye end in figures 1 and 2, but
on a larger scale in fig. 5. It consists of two complete
circles, six inches in diameter, firmly attached to the eye
end of the telescope : each is provided with two opposite
verniers, subdividing its divisions into minutes of a de¬
gree. The indices have clamps and slow moving screws,
and microscopes are attached to the verniers; a spirit
level is also attached to the index of each circle. The
apparatus is adjusted by setting the index to the place of
the star, and then, the telescope being moved round till
the bubble of the level stands in the middle of its range,
the star will traverse the field between the two horizontal
wires. If two stars differ but little in right ascension, as
Capella •and Rigel, so as not to allow time for changing
the index which was set to the altitude of that which
came first, then the index of the other circle may be set
to the altitude of the following star, and both observed.
When the same object is to be observed by direct vision,
and also by reflection, then one of the indices may be set
VOL. IV.
to point the telescope to the direct place of the star, and Practical
the other to its reflected image. Astronomy.
Figures 7 and 8 exhibit the plates or side-pieces, and Ys
in which the pivots of the axis rest. The plates, which
are semicircular, are imbedded in the stone piers, and are
firmly screwed to them. Figure 7 represents the eastern
plate, in which the contrivance for placing the axis truly
level is contained. This adjustment is made by a piece of
which the upper end is formed into a Y, and which may
be moved vertically, but not laterally. To raise or depress
it gradually, there is a piece having a short cylindrical
part in the middle; also a fine screw at its upper end,
which works in the movable piece, and a coarse screw at its
lower, which works in the fixed plates. The cylinder has
holes by which it can be turned round by a capstan pin.
By the ingenious contrivance of the two screws, the slid¬
ing piece is moved vertically, but slowly; for the space
gone through is only the difference of the spaces through
which it would have been pushed or drawn by each screw
acting by itself. Fig. 8 shows the western plate. In this
the Y piece admits only of a horizontal motion for the
purpose of placing the instrument in the meridian. The
adjustment is effected by two screws, which work in the
opposite sides of the piece, and whose heads abut against
the fixed plate. To produce motion, one of them must
be screwed and the other unscrewed by equal quantities
while the observer’s eye is at the telescope; and to effect
this the screws are connected by pinion work put in mo¬
tion by a handle hanging down close to the inside of the
western pier. (See fig. 1.)
Fig. 9 is a bird’s-eye view of the head of one of the
piers. This is meant to show the apparatus for relieving
the pivots of the axis and the Ys from a great part of the
weight which would otherwise bear on them. Imme¬
diately behind the adjustable Y piece, but rather broader,
is a plain piece of brass having a Y cut in its upper end:
a lever also is seen, one extremity of which passes into
a hole made in this Y piece, while the other end carries
a weight. The bar of the lever is expanded into a circle
whose centre is about one third of the lever’s length dis¬
tant from the pivot of the axis. The circle admits the
illuminating lantern. Two steel screws, with blunted,
hard, and polished points, are inserted in the diameter at
right angles to the direction of the lever: these rest on
hardened and polished planes, which are let into the
stone pier, and together form the fulcrum, in the manner
of a balance. The weight is a short cylinder hooked on
the end of the lever: it is hollow to receive small shot,
introduced, as a counterpoise, to relieve, more or less at
pleasure, the instrumental portion of the pivot, also the
instrument Y piece, of weight.
Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the eye end of the tele¬
scope. In it a micrometer is shown, which moves a plate
contiguous to that in which the five transit wires are in¬
serted : one wire is contained in the movable plate, and
is intended to facilitate the observation of the pole-star
and others near it.
In fig. 1, on the eastern side of the telescope, a pro¬
jecting finger-screw is seen. This gives motion to an ap¬
paratus within the tube of the telescope for regulating
the quantity of light projected by the illuminator on tlm
transit wires.
The Greenwich transit instrument, also the workman¬
ship of Troughton, and one of his much-admired produc¬
tions, was placed in that observatory in 1816. In its con¬
struction it is nearly the same as Sir James.South’s, but
of different dimensions. The object-glass of the telescope
is 5 inches in clear aperture, and the focal length 10 feet:
its horizontal axis, including the pivots, is 3 feet 10 inches.
The semicircles at the eye end of the telescope being in¬
sufficient to enable the observer to direct the instrument
106
ASTRONOMY.
Practical to the reflected image of a star, a divided circle, two feet
Astronomy. jn diameter, is attached to one end of the axis. The
pivots, originally of hard bell-metal, having suffered an
alteration of figure from constant use, were replaced in
1825 by others of hardened steel. There is no apparatus
whereby an observer can give a small azimuthal motion
to the instrument with his eye at the end of the telescope.
The piers are the same which supported the transit which
preceded this. They are two feet square, and were for¬
merly 6 feet 2 inches high ; but to adapt them to the pre¬
sent instrument their height was augmented one foot, by
placing on their top a semicylindrical piece, which pro¬
jects 3 inches over the old piers, and inwards, because the
axis of the present instrument is six inches shorter than
was that of the former.
There are seven fixed vertical wires in the focus of the
telescope, and two horizontal ones. Each of the latter is
placed about a minute and a half from the centre of the
field, and between them a star passes during an observa¬
tion : an interval of 18"3 seconds of time elapses while a
star in the equator passes between each adjoining two
vertical wires. Besides these, there is attached to the
eye-piece a fine micrometer, which carries a single verti¬
cal wire through a large range. This serves various prac¬
tical purposes, particularly in observing the pole-star, or
a star very near it.
The Greenwich instrument has no plumb-line ; the axis
is adjusted by a fine ground spirit-level, which, when in
use, stands above the axis, upon the pivots.
All transit instruments have a meridian mark, that is, a
mark on some remote object, by which it may be ascertain¬
ed at any time whether the instrument be truly in the me¬
ridian.
Transit or meridian circles are in their nature quite
analogous to the instruments we have described; with,
however, the important addition of a graduated circle of
considerable dimensions as a principal part of their con¬
struction. I he meridian circle which Trough ton con¬
structed for Mr Groombidge, but which afterwards passed
into the hands of Sir James South, is a fine example of this
kind of instrument. A figure and description of it may
be seen in Dr Pearson’s valuable work on Practical Astro¬
nomy. The observatories of Kdnigsberg and Gottingen
possess very fine meridian circles, constructed by the late
Reichenbach of Munich.
A clock of the very best construction is an indispensa¬
ble companion of the transit instrument. This may be
regulated so as to show either mean solar or sidereal time,
according to the principal objects in view, the one beim--
always easily convertible into the other. The attention
of ingenious men has been long directed to the construc¬
tion of the astronomical clock; but on this subject we
shall have occasion to treat fully elsewhere in our work.
The transit instruments here described are of the most
expensive kind, and adapted to the higher efforts in the
cultivation of astronomy; but there are also portable tran¬
sits which travellers may use, and which may serve to
determine true time. In all applications of the transits,
the axis must be placed truly horizontal by means of the
level; the line of collimation, that is, a line between the
centre of the object-glass and the centre of the cross wires,
must move in a great circle, or, which is the same thins?,
it must be perpendicular to the axis; and the vertical circle
which it describes must be the meridian : these are the
three principal adjustments. The Nautical Almanac gives
the exact time when the sun or certain considerable stars
pass the meridian. The observer gives the telescope
such a position that the star must appear in the field of
view in its passage. When it is seen, he notes the exact
time, by the beat of the clock, when it crosses each wire.
As there are always pairs of wires equally distant from the
middle wire, the instant of passing the middle wire and Practica
the middle instant between the times of passing any pair Astronoa
will be the same. The exact time of the passage is thus
found, not only by the middle wire, but also by each pair
equally distant from it.
As an example of an observation, the transit of the
star a Aquilse was observed to pass the wires of a small
instrument at the following times, 12th September 1827.
H. m. s.
1 wire 8 20 21
2  8 20 41-5
3  8 21 1
4  8 21 21-5
5  ....8 21 41
5) 105 6-0
21 1-2
The middle interval between the first and fifth wire is
8h- 20m- l3-, and between the second and fourth 8h- 20m-
ls*5; one agreeing exactly, and the other differing half a
second from the observed passage over the middle wire.
The mean of the whole is 8h- 21m- ls-2, and is obtained
by taking one fifth of the sum of all the observed times. It
was found from the right ascension of the sun and star
given in the Almanac, that the star passed the meridian
that day at 8h- 18m- 7S*9, hence it appeared that the clock
was 2m- 53s,3 fast.
In observing the sun’s transit, the time of the passage
of the preceding and following limbs must be observed;
and the middle instant is that of the passage of the sun’s
centre, or apparent noon. To this, the equation of time
being applied, the result will be the time before, or after
mean noon. As an example, the sun’s transit was observ¬
ed, July 25, 1827.
O 1 Limb. G 2 Limb.
H. M. S. H. M. S.
1 wire 0 6 00 0 8 14*0
2  0 6 22-0 0 8 35-5
3  0 6 43-0 0 8 56*5
4  0 7 4*5 0 9 17*5
5  0 7 25-5 0 9 39*0
Mean...O 6 43-0 0 8 56-5
0 centre passed  7 49*7
Eq. time   6 7*6
• . 1 42-1
Hence it appears that the clock must have been I™-
42s- fast.
7. Mural Quadrants and Circle.
Ihe Royal Observatory at Greenwich has two mural
quadrants, each about eight feet radius; these are fixed
on a, massive structure of hewn-stone, in the form of a
parallelepiped, one on each side, and hence their name.
lat whose telescope is directed towards the north is
chiefly of iron, and was erected by Graham in 1725, for
the lunar observations of Halley: it was, however, re¬
divided by Bird m 1753. The other, for the southern part
of the meridian, is of brass, and was constructed by Bird,
and Placed in its position in 1750: with this Bradley and
Maskelyne successively made their observations for forty-
six years. ^
Experience has now shown that entire circles have a
great advantage over quadrants; accordingly, the use of
the Greenwich quadrants has been discontinued, and in
their stead * mural circle six feet in diameter, construct-
t byJrghAt0n’ Was, PIaced in the observatory on 12th
June 1812. A second mural circle, nearly a copy of the
other constructed by Thomas Jones (another eminent
artist), was, in 1825, placed in the observatory, fronting
the former, and at a distance of seven feet; and with these
S
ASTRONOMY.
prE cal two instruments simultaneous observations are daily made
* .Ystr jimy. on the polar distances of the heavenly bodies. The stars
f are observed both directly, and by reflection from a sur¬
face of quicksilver; sometimes directly or by reflection
with both instruments, and sometimes directly with the
one and by reflection with the other.
Figs. 1 and 2 of Plate XC VII. give two view s of Trough-
ton’s mural circle. In fig. 1 the circle is seen obliquely
on the front or eastern face of the wall, with the greater
part of its apparatus. The breadth of the wall from north
to south is seven feet, its thickness from east to wrest
four feet, and its height ten feet. It is formed of four
stones laid one on another. The third stone has in its
under side a semicircular groove, cut in its middle from
wrest to east, six inches radius. The upper side of the
second stone being worked level, forms the diameter of
this semicircular arch-hole, and supports the axis work of
the instrument at about five feet above the floor. The
real centre of the instrument is about five inches higher.
The nucleus of the Greenwich circle is an octagon of
eight inches diameter at the corners; its depth is three
inches, and a circular perforation of six inches and a half
is made through its whole depth. The outward faces of
the octagon, which are each three inches square, support
eight of the circle’s conical radii, to which they are
screwed and steady-pinned. The other eight radii are
fitted in closely, each one between two of the former, so
that their lower ends come down on the coniers of the
octagon. The limb of the circle consists of twm rings,
the interior one having its plane parallel, and the exterior
perpendicular, to the plane of the circle, so that, when
united, their section will be represented by the letter T.
The interior or flat ring has in the engraving the appear¬
ance of passing through clefts in the middle of the outer
ends of the sixteen radii, which are there solid. The per¬
pendicular ring is fitted close on the exterior edge of the
other, to which it is screwed, and also to the ends of the
conical radii. The cones are bound together at half the
distance from the double ring to the centre, by a circle of
interposed bracing bars. The circular aperture of the oc¬
tagon is shut up by plates before and behind, which are
fastened to the octagon by strong steel screws. The pos¬
terior plate has a large circular hole, and the anterior a
smaller one, both truly wrought. Into these the axis of
motion is fitted, and united to the octagon and circle by
means of screws. The axis is a cone of brass nearly se¬
ven inches in diameter in front, but behind only half as
much, and nearly four feet long; this works in a socket,
which at each end receives it, and in which it fits with
the greatest possible exactness. The two parts which fit
the axis are soldered into a strong brass tube, larger than
the tube of the axis, but nearly of the same shape. On
the tube of the sockets in front is soldered a strong per¬
forated plate or upright bearing piece, at right angles to
the axis, which nearly fills the semicylindrical aperture
in the wall; and at the remote end is soldered a short
cylinder, the use of which will be explained. It is there
that the adjustments for placing the circle in the meri¬
dian, and for levelling the axis, are performed. Two
strong horizontal plates are fastened on the lower surface
(which is flat) of the perforation through the wall, one be¬
fore and the other behind. The bearing piece of the
socket in front only rests upon the plate, but behind, the
bearing cock and plate are screwed together. In front,
the plate and bearing piece are connected by a conical
piece of hardened steel, which is fixed under the middle
of this piece, and fits nicely into a hole in the plate, but so
as to revolve. At this end of the axis these parts do not
come quite in contact; for there are fixed under the bear¬
ing piece, at each extremity, about ten inches apart, two
short props, like buttons of hardened steel, the spherical
107
surfaces of which rest upon planes of hardened steel fixed Practical
in the plate. The central conical piece prevents the circle Astronomy*
from sliding sideways when angular motion is given round
this conical piece to bring the instrument into the plane
of the meridian. It has been stated that a short cylinder
was soldered on the remote end of the cone of the sockets.
This passes into a perforation in the cock behind, which
perforation is greater than that of the cylinder. Two
fine threaded screws at right angles to each other work
in the cock, one vertically for levelling, and the other ho¬
rizontally for meridian adjustment. The two screws only
press with their points against the sides of the short cy¬
linder ; but opposite to them are the ends of two small
cylinders standing in the same line, which are urged for¬
ward with spiral springs, and thus force the short cylin¬
ders into contact with the screws. The telescope is seen
on the face of the instrument; its focal length is six feet
two inches, which is the exact outer diameter of the
circle; the aperture is four inches, and its common mag¬
nifying power about 150. The telescope is attached to
the circle at the centre by a steel axis, which passes
through the proper axis of motion from end to end, and
was indeed the arbor on which the axis was turned. The
weight of the telescope is supported on its own axis, and
it may be fixed to the circle in any position, by means of
two clamps which keep hold of the border of the circle.
The graduation of the instrument is on the convex cy¬
lindrical surface of the exterior ring, therefore the read¬
ing microscopes have their direction parallel to the plane
of the instrument. The divisions on Troughton’s circle
are made on a narrow ring of white metal, composed of
four parts gold to one of palladium; and the figures which
count the degrees are engraved on a like ring of platina.
In Jones’s circle the divisions are on gold. None of these
metals tarnishes in the least degree. The divisions are by
lines, and suited to wires which cross in an acute angle
in the reading microscopes. The degrees are cut into 5'
spaces, and are numbered from the pole southward to the
same pole again, viz. from 0° to 360°. The 5' spaces are
subdivided by the microscopes to single seconds; and a
division representing this quantity on the micrometer head
may be easily estimated to the tenth of a second. There
are six reading microscopes; but in general the two hori¬
zontal ones only are used.
In order that the circle may move easily round on its
axis, there is an apparatus for counterpoising it, or for
lifting the whole weight, without which the load would
press altogether on the lower side of the front socket.
This is effected by means of two large rollers, shown be¬
low the axis in fig. 1. The rollers, set in a double frame,
act on the edge of the centre flanch, nearly in contact
with the radial cones. Two perpendicular bars of steel, at
about the height of the centre, are connected with the
frame of the rollers by hook and eye ; and these bars are
in a similar manner suspended by two beams, each re¬
sembling a common balance, at the top of the wall. J he
part which appears in front is shown in fig. 1, and one of
the beams, its fulcrum and counterpoising weight, near
the top of the wall, in fig. 2. This apparatus produces a
simple lift, without any tendency to affect the due motion
of the circle’s axis.
There is another flat, circular ring, somewhat larger
than the graduated one, fastened at several places to the
wall, and nearly touching it. On this ring the clamp and
screw for slow motion slide, and may be clamped to it at
any part of the ring.
The plumb-line of the mural circle, seen in fig. 2, is
for placing the axis truly horizontal. The apparatus by
which the plummet is suspended applies by dovetail fit¬
tings occasionally to the wall near its top, see fig. 1. The
apparatus itself is shown in fig. 2. In fig. 1 fixed micro-
ASTRONOMY.
108
Practical scopes are seen on the telescope, near its end for viewing
Astronomy. f]le plumb-line.
v^-y—w' Xhe wires of the telescope are illuminated by a diago¬
nal reflecting plate in the middle of the tube, which re¬
ceives the light by a circular aperture, seen in fig. 1, in a
line with the centre of the circle. A lantern, at four or
five feet distance, placed in the line of the axis, throws
light on the field of view.
The instrument seen in a vertical position on the back
of the wall is a zenith micrometer. It was erected to dis¬
cover, if possible, the parallax of a star that passes very
near the zenith; but it has never been used.
The mural circle has as an accompaniment a clock;
and since all observations made with it require to be cor¬
rected for refraction, which depends on the state of the
atmosphere (see table in page 100), every recorded ob¬
servation must have annexed to it the height of the baro¬
meter and thermometer.
We have now described the instruments which consti¬
tute the principal furniture of an observatory, and which
are all that the present state of the science absolutely
requires. We proceed next to describe some others which
are extremely convenient, and articles of luxury in the
science.
8. Equatorial Instruments.
An equatorial instrument is of great value to a practi¬
cal astronomer, for by means of it he can direct his tele¬
scope at once to any phenomenon, however minute, whose
right ascension and declination are known; and reverse¬
ly, he can determine the right ascension and declination
of any phenomenon to which it is directed, although out
of the meridian. There is a fine instrument of this kind
in the Greenwich observatory. It was made by Ramsden,
for Sir George Shuckburgh.
Plates XCVIII. and XCIX. give a representation of
Sir James South’s five-feet equatorial instrument. The
greater part of this instrument is composed of tinned iron
plate; and its characteristics are lightness, steadiness,
promptness in answering to its adjustments, and capa¬
bility of retaining them. Fig. 1 of Plate XCVIII. repre¬
sents the instrument as viewed at right angles to the de¬
clination circle. The polar axis is about 10^ feet long;
the lower end is a pivot attached to a cone, which,
reckoning upwards, is about a fourth of the whole length.
The higher side of the cone is cut in a sloping direc¬
tion, as seen in the figure, for the purpose of more con¬
veniently observing the vicinity of the pole. From the
upper end of the cone the polar axis branches into two
parts, between which is room for the declination circle
and the head of the observer. These two branches are
again united at the top by an open frame of bell metal,
represented in fig. 2, to which the upper pivot is attached.
This frame, as well as the iron-work which composes it, is
so contrived as to present the least possible surface to ob¬
struct the telescope ; for the same reason the pivot at the
top of the telescope is made as small as possible, whilst
that at the lower end is considerably larger. Both ends of
the axis are supported on stones, the northern end rising
within about tour inches of the level of the declination
circle, the rest of the support being of wrought iron. At
the southern end the stone rises very little above the
floor, but a cast iron frame supports the pivot at the height
of about two feet. 1 he Y, or angle which supports the
lower pivot, is placed upon the frame, and provided with
two Screw adjustments, one for giving the axis its due
elevation, and the other for bringing the instrument to
the meridian. The form of the iron-work will be under¬
stood by consulting the different figures. The two branches
of the polar axis on their upper sides are formed of broad
planes, making one continued plane. On these the axis Practi( p
and reading microscopes of the declination circle are fixed. Astronoi ^,1
The instrument is self-balanced by the position and figure v
of its parts, and the addition of a weight fixed to the co¬
nical part of the polar axis. The diameter of the decli¬
nation circle is four feet, the length of the telescope five
feet, and of the axis about thirty-two inches. In Plate
XCVIII. fig. 1, the declination circle appears quite plain,
like the head of a drum, with the telescope directed to¬
wards the equator. In Plate XCIX. fig. 1, the polar axis
is considerably fore-shortened, from the position of the
draughtsman in making the drawing of the instrument.
In this figure the edge of the declination circle is shown
as a short cylinder, with the telescope protruding beyond
it. In this figure, also, the shape of the declination axis,
and the two principal microscopes for reading the decli¬
nation, are shown. There is a third microscope, which
indicates zenith distances. This is seen in Plate XCVIII.'
fig. 1, between the eye end of the telescope and the in¬
strument’s elevated pole. In the same figure is shown a
narrow brass ring, whereon the graduation is made.
The hour-circle, two feet in diameter, is fastened to the
lower end of the polar axis; its edge is seen in Plate
XCVIII. fig. 1, and its under side in Plate XCIX. fig. 1
and fig. 3. One of the reading microscopes is well seen
in fig. 1 of Plate XCVIII., and both of them less perfect¬
ly in the other two figures. The circle is of brass, and
the divisions (fine lines) are on an inlaid ring of platina,
corresponding to twenty seconds each; these are subdi¬
vided by the microscopes to tenths of seconds. The de¬
clination circle is divided to five minutes, which are sub¬
divided by the micrometer screw of the microscopes to
single seconds. The instrument is furnished with two
ground levels. The divided side of the declination circle
is quite flat; but the opposite face is articulated, showing
how the parts are united. It is on this side that the levels
would be seen; one of them is parallel to the telescope,
and the other to the declination axis.
The clamps and screw's for slow motion are unusual,
but remarkably good. Instead of the common mode of
clamping the circle, in this instrument the clamp is made
to grasp the axis. There is soldered on each axis a ring
of brass, the outer edge of which is broad and cylindrical.
On this fixed ring a movable one is fitted, and afterwards
cut into three equal parts: these are again united in two
of the three sections by joints, like those which bind the
different parts of a wratch chain together. At the third
juncture the clamping takes place, a projecting part of the
ring having been there cut through, leaving one half on
each side of the section. Here the ring gapes, but a screw
passes through the projecting pieces or ears on each side
ot the disjunction, and, in bringing them together, grasps
the axis with a firm embrace. To the middle of the tri¬
partite rings are attached long arms of tinned iron plate,
at the extremities of which the slow moving screws have
their places. The fixed stud is in the lower screw, plant¬
ed in the iron support; that of the upper one is in the
polar axis. I he long screw for slow motion in right as¬
cension is acted on by a contrate wheel and a pinion at
right angles to the plane of the circle, as shown in fig. 1,
Plate XCVIII.; a long handle is attached to it, and shown
leaning against the northern pier. A similar screw for
declination, but without the contrate part, is seen in Plate
XCIX. fig. 1.
The illumination of the wires of the telescope is made
by a small lantern placed at one end of the declination
axis ; and there is a contrivance between the nozle of the
jantern and the end of the axis, by which the light is
adapted to different observations.
The eye-piece of the telescope is represented in Plate
XCIX. fig. 2, in which there is seen the edge of a gra-
ASTRONOMY.
109
ical duated circle, the front of a quadrant, and two small spirit
omy. ieveis. There is likewise shown, but partially, a double paral-
lei line micrometer, which also measures angles of position.
This instrument, when first constructed, was designed
to be placed where a meridian mark could not be obtain¬
ed. A mark, however, could be placed and seen to the
westward; and to take advantage of this, the axis of the
declination circle was converted into a telescope with two
object-glasses of equal focus, two sets of cross wires, and
an eye-glass that might be placed in either end; a mark
was then built up to the level of the axis, and in a line at
right angles with the meridian, and this formed a substitute
for a meridian mark. The instrument bears no maker’s
name, but the scheme of its fabric was devised by the late
Captain Huddart, F. It. S. The brass-work, &c. was made
by J. and E. Troughton, under his direction; and the ob¬
ject-glass for the telescope of 3| inches aperture by P. and
J. Dollond. To preserve the tinned work from oxidation,
it is well covered with white paint, and varnished ; thus it
has not only a neat appearance, but can be easily cleaned
at any time.
With this instrument, and another equatorial of seven-
feet focal length, the object-glass being made by the late
Tully, Sir James South and Mr J. F. W. Herschel made ob¬
servations on the apparent distances and positions of 380
double stars; a labour which they have since greatly extend¬
ed, to the no small advancement of this part of astronomy.
9. Azimuth and Altitude Circle.
An azimuth and altitude circle, called also an astrono¬
mical circle, is in itself a complete astronomical appara¬
tus, when combined with a good clock or chronometer;
for by means of it the latitude of the observatory may be
found with great accuracy, and afterwards the declination
or polar distance of any celestial phenomenon. It may be
used also as a transit, and applied to the determination of
right ascensions; and, when portable, it serves as a survey¬
ing instrument. The transit instrument and mural circle
can only be applied to meridian observations; but the
azimuth and altitude circle, like the equatorial instrument,
may serve to determine the position of a star in any quar¬
ter of the heavens. To a traveller who wishes to avail
himself of all opportunities of improving geography and
astronomy, this instrument is of the greatest value; and it
gives the cultivator of astronomy who happens to possess it
the means of gratifying his taste in making all kinds of
observations. It was with an instrument of this kind, con¬
structed by Troughton, that the present astronomer royal,
Mr Pond, made his valuable catalogue of the polar dis¬
tances of 44 principal stars, deduced from 1452 observa¬
tions, which detected the defects of the Greenwich mural
quadrants, and established his fame as an astronomer.
The observations were made at Westbury, and the instru¬
ment has hence acquired the name of the Westbury circle.
Its fame recommended it to the Glasgow Astronomical
Institution, who purchased it and placed it in an observa¬
tory ; but this scientific project failed, and we regret to say
that its funds were reduced to such a state as to induce the
institution to accept of fifty pounds for the Westbury circle.
It passed into the hands of an eminent English astrono¬
mer who knew its value, and who put it into complete re¬
pair, and reckoned it a great acquisition. He, however, was
rich in other instruments, and was induced to part with it
for (as we have heard) four or five hundred pounds.
Azimuth and altitude circles are of various sizes.
Troughton has constructed many portable ones, with the
vertical circle eighteen, and the horizontal fifteen, inches
in diameter. Sir Thomas Brisbane has a fine instrument
of this kind (by Troughton) in his observatory at Brisbane
Castle; but it is not portable, the axis being fixed in a
stone pier. Its vertical circle is two feet in diameter.
The Astronomical Institution of Edinburgh last year Practical
(1830) placed an azimuth and altitude circle in the ob-Astrono,r'y'
servatory on the Calton Hill. It is the workmanship of
Troughton, and another most ingenious artist, Mr Simms,
now associated with the veteran astronomical engineer. The
pier on which it stands is a frustum of a cone, having for
its base a square prism six feet ten inches in the side, and
rising nine inches above the floor of the observatory. The
part of the pier above the base is composed of eight stones,
each of which is a frustum of a cone, and the whole height
of the pier from the floor is nineteen and a half feet. The
diameter of the circular section of the pier at the base
is equal to the length of the side of the square on which it
stands, and at the top it is about two feet. The instru¬
ment is represented as it stands on its pier under the
dome of the observatory, and is composed of two principal
parts, the azimuthal or horizontal circle, and the verti¬
cal circle with its telescope. By this last the altitude of
any celestial object is taken, and by the former azimuthal
angles are measured. The axis, which is not seen in the
figure, is firmly attached by screws to the cross horizontal
bar, or thick plate, which bears the upright pillars of brass
that support the vertical circle; and it is also made fast
to the centre of the azimuthal or horizontal circle. The
stone pier is hollow to a certain extent downwards, and
receives a brass conical socket, which passes also through
the hexagonal stone on the top. The socket is suspended
in the cavity, without touching it, by a projecting flanch
at its open end, which is the base of the cone ; and this is
firmly screwed down to a flat brass ring fixed in the uppef
surface of the hexagonal stone, which is in fact a part of
the instrument. The axis of the horizontal circle goes
into the socket without touching its sides, and it rests
with its lower end, a blunt steel point, in a corresponding
steel cavity at the bottom; thus the socket bears the whole
weight of the instrument.
The upper end of the axis is kept in its place by a right-
angled hole, having two springs opposite the points of con¬
tact, which press it against its bearings, while it turns in
contact with only four points, with a steady and easy mo¬
tion. The bar in which the vertical axis is thus centred
is acted on by two adjusting screws that are independent
of each other, and stand at right angles the one to the
other, by means of which the axis is adjusted to its true
vertical direction, while the blunt point continues in its
subjacent cup at the bottom of the socket. The frame to
which this apparatus is attached is composed of an hexa¬
gonal central piece, from which six strong conical tubes of
brass proceed, and these are screwed to as many bearing
pieces or cocks, standing on and made fast to the hexa¬
gonal stone, as shown in the engraving.
The azimuthal circle is composed of ten smaller conical
radial tubes, and a circular limb of two feet diameter, di¬
vided into spaces of 5' all round, and, being firmly attach¬
ed to the vertical axis, turns round between the radiated
frame and the upper face of the stone pedestal. Its divi¬
sions are read off to seconds by two microscopes, one of
which is seen in the figure, the other is hid by the instru¬
ment. The circle has a slow motion, regulated by a screw
with two milled heads, which may also be turned by a
handle with a Hooke’s joint, which is seen near one of the
angles of the hexagonal stone. The screw acting in the out¬
ward end is a compound bar, that terminates in a ring on
the axis of the circle. The ring is cut into three portions,
which are again united by joints at two of the sections,
leaving the third open and gaping. There are two ears on
the ring, one at each side of this opening, through which
a strong screw passes. By turning the screw the opening
in the ring closes, and the three parts of which it is com¬
posed, by moving on the joints, embrace the axis firmly
and clamp it; the axis may be released by the reversed
no
ASTRONOMY.
Practical motion of the screw. There is another compound frame,
Astronomy. one 0f whjch is seen to the right of the former. This
carries the microscopes at its opposite ends. It surrounds
the central part of the main frame of radial cones that
carries the adjusting screws, and is fixed over the oppo¬
site zeros of the horizontal circle when the instrument is
placed in the meridian.
The vertical circle is 3 feet in diameter, and is divided
into spaces of 5'. Its horizontal axis is supported by
the two strong vertical pillars that turn with the conceal¬
ed vertical axis, and is composed of three strong tubes;
the middle one being cylindrical, and the two end ones
conical, admitting of the transmission of light like the
axis of a transit instrument. The axis is two feet long;
its pivots are of bell-metal, and rest in adjustable Ys simi¬
lar to those of a transit instrument. The circle is com¬
posed of two limbs, connected with its axis by conical
radii, each limb having its own, twelve in number. The
limbs are united by bars crossing obliquely, like net-work,
from the one to the other, as shown in the figure. The
divided face is read by a pair of opposite microscopes,
which are supported in a horizontal position by a bar
turned up at the ends, and fixed to one of the upright
pillars; and a revolving level, seventeen inches long,
hangs constantly on this piece, and is seen in the figure.
The telescope has an aperture of 31 inches, and a focal
length of 51 inches. The clamp of the vertical circle is
seen on the inside of one of the upright pillars; and this,
by turning the milled head of a screw, closes on the oppo¬
site flat sides of a portion of the limb that is not divided,
and holds it fast, but subject to the slow motion which
is produced by a double-headed milled screw, or by a
handle with a Hooke’s joint, which fits upon the axis of
the screw. The upright pillars, which are hollow, con¬
tain within them strong spiral springs; these, by pressing
upwards, support a large portion of the weight of the
circle, and thus relieve the Ys, which are supported by
gibbet-pieces attached to the pillars, as shown in the en¬
graving.
The axis of the vertical circle is placed exactly hori¬
zontal by means of a spirit level, which when used passes
between the cones of the circle, and rests with its reversed
Y feet on the pivots. But this level is not shown. A truly
vertical position is given to the axis of the instrument by Practi A*
means of a plumb-line suspended from an apparatus made Asaow
fast to the upper end of the long tube, seen to the left of f
the farther upright pillar, to which it is made fast at two r
places. The tube is 4 feet 6 inches long, and this is about
the length of the silver wire by which the plummet is
suspended; the plummet is a perforated cylindrical ves¬
sel containing lead shot, and is suspended in water con¬
tained in a cylinder, which fixes on the bottom of the
tube, and may be taken off*. The weight of the plummet
is just as much as the wire will bear out of the water
without breaking. The upper end of the wire is fixed in
the angular point of an adjustable bearing piece of metal,
that is moved by screws acting at right angles to each
other. A microscope enters horizontally the side of the
long tube, and with this the plumb-line is viewed, and at
the same time the image of a luminous disk, formed by a
perforation through a minute circle of metal, placed in a
circular surface of mother of pearl. This image will be
exactly bisected by the plumb-line in every position, if the
axis of the horizontal circle be truly vertical; otherwise
the adjusting screws must be applied to the axis until-the
image remains bisected, while the instrument is turned
completely round. There are seven fixed vertical and
three horizontal wires in the focus of the telescope; and
the eye-piece is made to slide to the right and left, so
that the eye may view directly the image of a star all the
way in its passage across the field of view.
In selecting instruments for description in the general
article Astronomy, we have chosen the principal, such
as are used at this time for the extension of the science.
There are others of secondary importance. These will
be explained in their alphabetical place. See Circle,
Collimator, Dynameter, Level, Micrometer, Ob¬
servatory, Sector, Telescope, Vernier, &c.
Writers professedly on Practical Astronomy are, Lud-
lam, Astronomical Observations, &c ; Vince, A Treatise on
Practical Astronomy; Pearson, Introduction to Practical
Astronomy; Francceur, Astronomic Pratique. See also
Account of a Trigonometrical Survey of Britain; Base du
Systeme Metrique, par Delambre ; Recueil d’ Observations
Geodesiques, &c. par MM. Biot et Arago; and in general
all Collections of Astronomical Observations.
Latitude and Longitude of various Places where Astronomical Observations have been made.
Abo Observatory 
Alexandria 
Altona Observatory 
Bagdad   
Barcelona 
Berlin Observatory 
Brussels 
Busheyheath Observatory 
Calcutta 
Cambridge Observatory 
Cape of Good Hope Observatory..
Coimbra 
Constantinople 
Copenhagen... 
Dantzig 
Dorpat Observatory 
Dublin Observatory 
Edinburgh Observatory 
Florence 
Geneva Observatory 
Gotha Observatory 
Gottingen Observatory 
Greenwich Observatory 
Kew Observatory 
Kbnigsberg Observatory 
Lilienthal 
Latitude.
j Longitude.
+ 60
+ 31
+ 53
+ 33
+ 41
+ 52
+ 50
+ 51
+ 22
+ 52
— 33
+ 40
+ 41
+ 55
+ 54
+ 58
+ 53
+ 55
+ 43
+ 46
+ 50
+ 51
+ 51
+ 51
+ 54
+ 53
27 0
13 5
32 51
19 40
21 44
31 45
50 59
37 44
34 15
12 43
55 42
12 30
1 27
41 4
20 48
22 47
23 13
57 17-5
46 41
12 0
56 8
31 50
28 40
28 37
42 12
8 30
H. M. S.
— 1 29 10
— 1 59 41
— 0 39 50
— 2 57 39
+ 0 8 40
— 0 53 34
— 0 17 29
+ 0 1 21
— 5 53 44
— 0 0 30
— 1 13 32
+ 0 33 38
— 1 55 41
— 0 50 20
— 1 14 31
— I 46 48
+ 0 25 22
0 12 43-6
— 0 45 3
— 0 24 38
—-0 42 56
— 0 39 46
0 0 0
+ 013
— 1 21 57
— 0 35 37
Lisbon Observatory 
London (St Paul’s)  
Madras (Flag-staff) 
Madrid 
Manheim Observatory....
Marseilles Observatory...
Milan Observatory  
Montauban Observatory.
Oxford Observatory 
Palermo Observatory 
Paramatta Observatory...
Paris Observatory 
Pekin Observatory 
Petersburg ", 
Philadelphia 
Quebec 
Quito 
Home 
Slough Observatory.
Stockholm 
Tubingen Observatory.
Turin  
Uraniburg Observatory.
Verona Observatory 
Vienna Observatory 
Viviers Observatory 
+ 38
+ 51
+ 13
+ 40
+ 49
+ 43
+ 45
+ 44
+ 51
+ 38
— 33
+ 48
+ 39
+ 59
+ 39
+ 46
—. 0
+ 41
+ 51
+ 59
+ 48
+ 45
+ 55
+ 45
+ 48
+ 44
42 24
30 49
5 0
24 57
29 18
17 49
28 2
0 55
45 39
6 44
48 45
50 14
54 13
56 23
56 55
47 30
13 17
53 54
30 20
20 31
31 10
4 0
54 38
26 7
12 40
29 14
Longitude.
H. M. S.
+ 0 36 16
+ 0 0 23
— 5 21 28
+ 0 15 9
— 0 33 52
— 0 21 29
— 0 36 46
— 0 5 23
+ 051
— 0 53 28
— 10 4 5
— 0 9 21
— 7 45 51
— 2 1 15
+ 5 0 46
+ 4 44 39
+ 5 15 0
— 0 49 59
+ 0 2 24
— 1 12 14
— 0 36 14
— 0 30 41
— 0 50 52
— 0 44 5
— 1 5 31
— 0 18 44
AST
AST
111
is ^ 1C ASTRUC, John, a celebrated physician, was born in
the year 1684, at the town of Sauves, in the province
as. 0f Languedoc. His father, who was a Protestant clergy-
r ^ ^ nian> bestowed particular pains upon the earlier part
of his education; after which he went to the university
of Montpelier, where he took the degree of master of
arts in the year 1700. He then began the study of medi¬
cine, and in two years obtained the degree of bache¬
lor, having upon that occasion written a dissertation on
the cause of fermentation, which he defended in a very
spirited manner. On the 25th of January 1703 he was
created doctor of physic; after which, before arriving at
extensive practice, he applied to the study of medical
authors, both ancient and modern, with uncommon assi¬
duity. The good eftects of this study soon appeared;
for in the year 1710 he published a treatise concerning
muscular motion, from which he acquired very high re¬
putation. In the year 1717 he was appointed to teach
medicine at Montpelier; which he did with such perspi¬
cuity and eloquence, that it was universally said he had
been born to be a professor. His fame soon rose to such
a height, that the king assigned him an annual salary;
and he was, at the same time, appointed to superintend
the mineral waters in the province of Languedoc. But
as Montpelier did not afford sufficient scope for his aspir¬
ing genius, he went to Paris with a great stock of manu¬
scripts, which he intended to publish, after subjecting
them to the examination of the learned. Soon after,
however, he left it, having in the year 1729 accepted
the office of first physician to the king of Poland. In
this capacity he remained only for a short time, and again
returned to Paris. Upon the death of the celebrated
Geoffroy, in the year 1731, he was appointed regius pro¬
fessor of medicine at Paris. The duties of this office he
discharged in such a manner as to answer even the most
sanguine expectations. He taught the practice of physic
with so great applause, as to draw from other universities
to that of Paris a great concourse of medical students,
foreigners as well as natives of France. At the same
time he was not more celebrated as a professor than a
practitioner. And even at an advanced age he perse¬
vered with unwearied assiduity in that intense study
which first raised his reputation. Hence it is that he has
been enabled to transmit to posterity so many valuable
monuments of his medical erudition. He died on the
15th of May 1766, in the 82d year of his age. The fol¬
lowing are the titles of his principal works :—1. Origine
de la Peste, 1721, 8vo. 2. De la Contagion de la Peste,
1724, 8vo. 3. De Motu Musculari, 1710, 12mo. 4. Me-
moires pour servir a FHistoire Naturelle de Languedoc,
1737, 4to. 5. De Morbis Venereis, libri sex, 1736, 4to;
afterwards enlarged to 2 vols. 4to, and translated into
French by Jault, 4 vols. 12mo. 6. Traite des Maladies des
Femmes, 1761-1765, 6 vols. 12mo. 7. L’Art d’Accou-
cher reduit a ses principes, 1766,12mo. 8. Theses de Phan-
tasia, &c. 9. De Motus Fermentativi Causa, 1702, 12mo.
10. Memoire sur la Digestion, 1714, 8vo. 11. Tractatus
Pathologicus, 1766, 8vo. Besides these, in 1759 he pub¬
lished Traite des Tumeurs, 2 vols. 12mo, and one or two
treatises not connected with medicine, one with the singu¬
lar title of Conjectures sur les Memoires originaux qui ont
servi a Moise pour ecrire la Genese, Paris, 1753, 12mo;
and a Dissertation on the Immateriality and Immortality
of the Soul, Paris, 1755.
ASTURIAS, one of the provinces of the Spanish mo¬
narchy, distinguished by the title of a principality, and
under that name conferred on the heir apparent to the
throne of Spain. It is bounded on the east by Biscay,
on the south by Leon, on the west by Galicia, and on the
north by the ocean. It was known to the Romans during
their empire in Spain by the name of the Ultramontane Asturias,
provinces, being surrounded on every side but the north,
wdiere the sea bounds it, by high mountains, which are
passable with difficulty by horses, and nearly impassable
by wheel carriages. Its surface extends to 308 square
leagues, and its population, according to the census of
1803, amounted to 364,238 souls. Although it is the
most populous of any of the larger divisions of Spain, it
contains few cities or large towns. The inhabitants are
mostly employed in the cultivation of the land, and in
such manufactures as cultivators require. The face of
the country is excessively irregular and mountainous;
the higher elevations are not cultivated; and even in the
valleys, which are irrigated by numberless streams, though
there is abundant pasture for cattle, there is a great de¬
ficiency of corn. The flour of maize constitutes the prin¬
cipal food of all but the higher classes of inhabitants.
Wheat is not much grown. The humidity weakens the
plant; and though at first it appears to flourish, and looks
well till it is in blossom, it scarcely ever forms grain.
Rye grows better, and constitutes part of the food, espe¬
cially when mixed with maize. Chesnuts, as in the other
pbrts of Spain, form an important portion of the suste¬
nance of the inhabitants. They are very abundant on
the hills, and the nuts as well as the wood are very valu¬
able products. Other kinds of timber are found in the
mountains, well calculated for ship-building; and several
medicinal plants, such as hellebore, valerian, angelica,
and others, which form trifling branches of commerce^
Cows and horses are reared in this province, and consi¬
derable numbers of them sent to Galicia, Leon, and the
two Castiles. Vines, for want of due attention, do not
flourish. Very little wine is made, and that little of bad
quality; but to compensate for this deficiency, they have
abundance of apples, and cider forms the common drink
of the people. In some parts of the province there are
very valuable mines of coal, which provide fuel to the
inhabitants and to such trades as require considerable
fires ; and some of the coal has been transported to Cadiz,
Carthagena, and other ports in the Mediterranean Sea.
In the lower parts of the country, especially on the sea
coast, at a distance from coal mines and forests, the in¬
habitants use turf or peat for firing. In the vicinity of
the river Avila there are some mines of copper worked;
and as fuel is plentiful, manufactories of copper utensils
have been established, from whence some parts of Leon and
Castile are supplied with furnaces, kettles, pots, and other
similar articles. Besides these, there is a royal manufac¬
tory near Oviedo, where, in blast-furnaces, they cast can¬
non-balls, granades, bombs, and cannon of all calibres.
These latter are sent to Pola to be bored, and then to
Oviedo, where they are mounted. Some coarse cloths
are made, but not sufficient to supply the inhabitants.
The mountains, which cover the whole province, gra¬
dually decline in height as they approach the ocean, along
the border of which is a narrow stripe of the best and
most populous portion of the principality. From the nar¬
rowness of this tract, it must be seen that the courses of
all the rivers are necessarily short and rapid, and that
they are very apt to overflow the country when the rains
descend on the mountains. The principal river is the
Nalon, which encircles the city of Oviedo, before which
it receives the river Caudal, formed by the junction of
two other rivers, the Pola de Leon and the Aller. After
passing Oviedo, the rivers Trubia and Narcea contribute
their streams, when, under the designation of the Pravia,
it falls into the ocean. Along the whole extent of the
coast of Asturias, a length of 130 miles, there is not one
good port. The best is Ribadesella, where a large frigate
may anchor; but its entrance is bad. Gijon will admit a
112 A S Y
Astyages vessel drawing 16 or 17 feet water, and when within, she is
11 sufficiently safe; but the entrance is very narrow and very
^—Sylurru ciangerous# It is a remark which has been made with
' sufficient accuracy to entitle it to credit, that on the whole
coast of Asturias the sea has been constantly gaining on the
shore; and if it continues to encroach for the next 50
years as it has done for the last fifty, the town of Gijon
will be deprived of its port. The principal city is Oviedo,
containing 6000 inhabitants. It is the see of a bishop,
and the seat of a superior tribunal of law. It has a uni¬
versity, a well-endowed hospital, and a lazaretto. The
cathedral is a large Gothic pile, with a tower of un¬
common height. It is surrounded with a beautiful walk.
The climate is very healthy, and its markets well furnished
with every necessary of life. Among other convents, that
of the Benedictines deserves notice, as the residence and
burial-place of Father Feijoo, whose writings do honour
to Spain. At a league from the city are the warm baths
of Caldas. The spring issues from a calcareous rock of
secondary formation: it is much resorted to, being found
highly beneficial in many diseases. Gijon, though not
the capital, is larger than Oviedo, and, on account of its
harbour, of more importance. It is honoured by having
been the native place of Jovellanos, one of the wisest and
best men that Spain has recently produced. He founded
here the Asturian Institution, destined for the instruction
of youth in mathematics, mineralogy, and navigation,
which still continues to flourish. He also projected a
road, now in progress, for wheel-carriages to Leon from
Gijon. The cabildo of Oviedo has done honour to his
fame, by erecting at the gate of their city, through which
this road passes, a stone with an inscription to perpetuate
the obligations his country owed to him. At 10 leagues
to the east-south-east of Oviedo stands the collegial
church and sanctuary of Covadonga, whose fame has been
extended by the history of the period when the remains
of the Goths were collected in the mountains of Asturias,
and who first commenced that opposition to and defiance
of the Moors which continued during seven centuries, till
the whole of the peninsula was cleared of that enterprising,
predatory, and oppressive race. The sea coasts, as well as
the small rapid streams, abound with fish of various kinds,
the latter especially with salmon and lampreys, which are
sent to supply the markets of Madrid. The important
events of the early history of this principality will be com¬
municated in the general historical account of Spain.—
Historia Natural de Asturias, por Don Mariano Lagasca;
Viage de Ponz ; Geografia de Espana, por Anti] Ion.
ASTYAGES, son of Cyaxares, the last king of the
Medes. He dreamed, that from the womb of his daugh¬
ter Mandane, married to Cambyses king of Persia, there
sprung a vine that spread itself over all Asia. She being
with child, he resolved upon the destruction of the infant
when born, and commissioned Harpagus to execute his
barbarous purpose, who, however, preserved the child,
which was named Cyrus. Astyages long afterwards hear¬
ing that his inhuman plan had been thus frustrated, caused
Harpagus to eat his own son. Harpagus called in Cyrus,
who dethroned his grandfather, and thereby ended the
monarchy of the Modes.
ASTYANAX, the only son of Hector and Andro¬
mache. After the taking of Troy he was thrown from
the top of a tower by Ulysses’s orders.
ASTYNOMI, in Grecian antiquity, magistrates in
Athens, corresponding to the sediles of the Romans: they
were ten in number.
ASYLUM, a sanctuary or place of refuge where cri¬
minals shelter themselves from the hands of justice. The
word is compounded of the privative particle a, and c-okau,
I hurt; because no person could be taken out of an asylum
ATE
without sacrilege. The asyla of altars and temples were Assy®
very ancient, and likewise those of tombs, statues, and other ||,
monuments of considerable personages. Thus, the temple Ater!?
of Diana at Ephesus was a refuge for debtors, the tomb
of Theseus for slaves. Among the Romans, a celebrated
asylum was opened by Romulus between the mounts Pa¬
latine and Capitoline, in order to people Rome, for all
sorts of persons indiscriminately, fugitive slaves, debtors,
and criminals of every kind. The Jews had their asjla,
the most remarkable of which were the six cities of re¬
fuge, the temple, and the altar of burnt-offerings. It was
customary among the heathens to allow refuge and im¬
punity even to the vilest and most flagrant offenders;
some out of superstition, and others for the sake of
peopling their cities. We even read of asylums at Lyons
and Vienne among the ancient Gauls; and there are some
cities in Germany which still preserve the ancient right
of asylum. Hence, on the medals of several ancient cities,
particularly in Syria, we meet with the inscription A2TAOI,
to which is added EPAI. This quality of asylum was
given them, according to M. Spanheim, in regard to their
temples, and to the gods revered by them. The empe¬
rors Honorius and Theodosius granting the like immuni¬
ties to churches, the bishops and monks laid hold of a
certain tract or territory, without which they fixed the
bounds of the secular jurisdiction; and so well did they
manage their privileges, that convents in a little time
became next akin to fortresses, where the most noto¬
rious villains were in safety, and braved the power of
the magistrate. These privileges were extended not only
to the churches and churchyards, but also to the bishops’
houses, whence the criminal could not be removed without
a legal assurance pf life, and an entire remission of the
crime. The reason of the extension was, that they might
not be obliged to live altogether in the churches, &c.
where several of the occasions of life could not be de¬
cently performed. But at length these asyla or sanc¬
tuaries were also stripped of most of their immunities,
because they served to make guilt and libertinage more
bold and daring. In England, particularly, they were
entirely abolished. See Sanctuary.
ASSYMETRY, the want of proportion between the
parts of any thing; being the contrary of symmetry. Or,
it is the relation of two quantities which have no common
measure, as between 1 and ^2, or the side and diagonal
of a square.
ASYMPTOTE, in Geometry, a line which continually
approaches nearer to another, but, though continued in¬
finitely, will never meet with it.
ASYNDETON, in Grammar, a figure which omits the
conjunctions in a sentence. As in veni, vidi, vici, where
et is left out; or in that of Cicero concerning Catiline,
abut, excessit, evasit, erupit.
ATE, the goddess of mischief, in the Pagan theology.
She was daughter of Jupiter, and cast down from heaven
at the birth of Hercules. For Juno having deceived Ju¬
piter, in causing Eurystheus to be born before Hercules,
Jupiter expressed his resentment on Ate, as the author
of that mischief, and threw her headlong from heaven to
the earth, swearing she should never return thither again
(Homer, II. xix. 125). The name of this goddess comes
from arccu, noceo, “ to hurt.”
ATEMPO Giusto, in Music, signifies to sing or play
in an equal, true, and just time.
ATERGAFIS, in Mythology, a goddess of the Syrians,
supposed to be the mother of Semiramis. She was re¬
presented with the face and breasts of a woman, but the
rest of her body resembled a fish. Vossius says the term
signifies withoutJish, and conjectures that the votaries of
this deity abstained from fish.
A T H A T H 113
ATESTE, a town in Austrian Lombardy, in Italy, now to the emperor Constantine, the Arian deputies accused Athanati
' called Este. ’ Long. 12. 6. E. Lat. 45. 25. N. him of having hindered the expor tation of corn from Alex- !1
St 11 la- ATH, or Aeth, a city of the circle of Tournay and pro- andria to Constantinople ; on which the emperor, without
nnlis. vjnce 0f Hennegau, in the kingdom of the Netherlands, suffering him to make his defence, banished him to Treves.
'iT ^ It is situated on the river Lender, is well built and strong- The emperor, two years after, gave orders that he should
ly fortified, has a new arsenal, with several bomb-proof be restored to his bishopric; but, on his return to Alex-
ma^azines, and, exclusive of the garrison, contained in andria, his enemies brought fresh accusations against him,
isf? a population of 8296 inhabitants, who are very in- and chose Gregory of Cappadocia to his see, which oblig-
dustrious, and employed in refining sugar and salt, in ed Athanasius to go to Rome to reclaim it of Pope Julius,
making soap, beer, and gin, and in the linen manufactory. He was there declared innocent, in a council held in 342,
It is 25 miles from Brussels. Long. 3. 44. 6. E. Lat. 50. and in that of Sardica in 347; and two years after was re-
42 17. N. stored to his see by order of the emperor Constans ; but
ATHANASIAN Creed, a formulary or confession of after the death of that prince he was again banished by
faith, long supposed to have been drawn up by Athanasius, the emperor Constantius, which obliged him to retire into
bishop of Alexandria, in the fourth century, to justify the deserts. The Arians then elected one George in his
himself against the calumnies of his Arian enemies. But room, who being killed in a popular sedition under Julian
it is now generally allowed among the learned not to have in 360, St Athanasius returned to Alexandria, but was
been his. Dr Waterland ascribes it to Hilary, bishop of again banished under Julian. His successor Jovian, how-
Arles, for the following among other reasons —1. Be- ever, being a Christian, restored him to his see. lo that
cause Honoratus of Marseilles, the writer of his life, tells emperor he addressed a letter, in which he proposed that
us that he composed an Exposition of the Creed; a more the Nicene creed should be the standard of the orthodox
proper title for the Athanasian than that of Creed simply, faith, and condemned those who denied the divinity of
which it now bears. 2. Hilary was a great admirer and the Holy Ghost. He was afterwards banished by Valens
follower of St Austin; and the whole composition of this in 367, but again returned from what has been termed
creed is in a manner upon St Austin’s plan, both with re- his fifth exile. St Athanasius died on the 2d of May 375.
gpect to the Trinity and incarnation. 3. It is agreeable to His works principally contain a defence of the myste-
the style of Hilary, as far as we can judge from the little ries of the Trinity, and of the incarnation and divinity
that is left of his works. Upon the whole he concludes, of the Word and Holy Spirit. There are three editions
that Hilary, bishop of Arles, about the year 430 com- of them which are esteemed; that of Commelin, print-
posed the Exposition of Faith, which now bears the name ed in 1600 ; that of Peter Nannius, in 1627; and that of
of the Athanasian Creed, for the use of the Gallican Father Montfaucon. As to the creed which bears his
clergy, and particularly those of the diocese of Arles; name, see the preceding article.
that, about the year 570, it became famous enough to be ATHANATI, in Persian Antiquity, a body of cavalry,
commented upon; but that all this while, and for several consisting of 10,000 men, always complete. 1 hey were
years longer, it had not yet acquired the name of Athana- called athanati (a word originally Greek, and signifying
sian, but was simply styled The Catholic Faith; that immortal), because, when one of them happened to die,
before 679 Athanasius’s admired name came in to re- another was immediately appointed to succeed him.
commend and adorn it, being in itself an excellent system AI HEIST, a person who does not believe the existence
of the Athanasian principles of the Trinity and incarna- of a Deity. Many, both ancient and modern, have pre-
tion, in opposition chiefly to the Arians, Macedonians, tended to atheism, or have been reckoned atheists by the
and Apollinarians. Such is the hypothesis of the learned world; but it may be justly questioned whether any man
author of the Critical History of the Athanasian Creed, ever seriously adopted such a principle.^ Among us, the
As to the reception of this creed in the Christian churches, greatest philosophers have been the principal advocates
we find that it obtained in France in the time of Hinc- for the existence of a Deity. So true is the saying of
mar, or about 850; that it was received in Spain about Lord Bacon, that though a smattering of philosophy may
100 years later than in France, and in Germany much lead a man into atheism, a deep draught will certainly
about the same time. As to our own country, we have bring him back again to the belief of a God and I rovi-
clear and positive proofs of this creed being sung alter- dence.
nately in our churches in the 10th century. It was in AJHELING, Adeling, Edeling, Ethling, or Ethe-
common use in some parts of Italy, particularly in the ling, among the Anglo-Saxons, was a title of honour, pro-
diocese of Verona, about the year 960, and was received perly belonging to the heir-apparent or presumptive to
at Rome about the year 1014. As to the Greek and ori- the crown. This honourable appellation was first conferred
ental churches, it has been questioned whether any of by King Edward the Confessor on Edgar, to whom he was
them ever received this creed at all; though some very great uncle, when, being without any issue of his own, he
considerable writers are of a contrary persuasion. It ap- intended to make him his heir.
pears, then, that the reception of this creed has been ATHELSTAN, a Saxon king of England, natural sonof
both general and ancient, and it may vie with any, in that Edward the Elder, and grandson of the great Alfred. He
respect, except the Nicene or Constantinopolitan, the succeeded to the crown in 925, and reigned 16 years,
only general creed common to all the churches. As to There was a remarkable law passed by this prince, which
its matter, it is given as a summary of the true orthodox shows his just sentiments of the advantages of commerce,
faith, and a condemnation of all heresies ancient and as well as the early attention to it in this country. It
modern. Unhappily, however, it has proved a fruitful declared, that any merchant who made three voyages on
source of unprofitable controversy and unchristian ani- his own account beyond the British channel or narrow seas,
niosity. should be entitled to the privilege of a thane or gentleman.
ATHANASIUS, St, bishop of Alexandria, and one of ATHENiEUM, in Antiquity, a public place wherein
the greatest defenders of the faith against the Arians, was the professors of the liberal arts held their assemblies, the
born in Egypt. He followed St Alexander to the council rhetoricians declaimed, and the poets rehearsed their per-
of Nice in 325, where he disputed against Arius, and the formances. The three most celebrated Athensea were
following year was made bishop of Alexandria, but in 335 those at Athens, at Rome, and at Lyons; the second of
was deposed by the council of Tyre; when, having recourse which was built by the emperor Adrian.
VOL. IV.
p
114 A T H
Athenaeus ATHENiEUS, a Greek grammarian, born at Naucratis
II in Egypt in the third century, one of the most learned men
°^is time. Of all his works we have none extant but his
Deipnosophi, i. e. the Sophists at Table. There is an in¬
finity of facts and quotations in this work, without which
we should have been ignorant of many curious circum¬
stances regarding the ancients. The first edition was
printed by Aldus in 1514, in folio. The best edition is
that by Schweighaeusen, published in 1801-7, in 14 vols.
8vo. There is a French translation of Athenaeus, in 5
vols. 4to.
ATHENAGORAS, an Athenian philosopher, flourished
about the middle of the second century, and was remark¬
able for his zeal for Christianity, and his great learning,
as appears from the apology which he addressed to the
A T H
emperors Marcus Aurelius Antoninus and Lucius Com- Ath«
modus. • don.
ATHENODORUS, a famous Stoic philosopher, born I ,
at Tarsus, went to the court of Augustus, and was made
by him tutor to Tiberius. Augustus had a great esteem '‘"'V
for him, and found him by experience a man of virtue and
probity. He used to speak very freely to the emperor, and
before he left the court to return home, warned him
against giving way to anger, but whenever he should be
in a passion, to rehearse the 24 letters of the alphabet
before he resolved to say or do any thing. He did not
live to see his bad success in the education of Tiberius. ■
ATHENREE, a town of Ireland, in the county of
Galway, and province of Connaught. Long. 8, 5. W.
Lat. 53. 14. N.
A T H
“ The eye of Greece'’ (to use Byron’s phrase), the capital
of Attica, and the birthplace of the most distinguished ora¬
tors, philosophers, statesmen, historians, and artists of an¬
tiquity, is situated in long. 23. 24. E. lat. 38. 32. N., at
the western extremity of the ancient territory of Attica,
about 100 miles north-east of Misitra (Spai’ta), and above
300 miles south-west of Constantinople. See Attica.
By whom The origin of Athens, like that of most other ancient
founded, and renowned cities, is involved in the obscurity of fable.
Its reputed founder was Cecrops, an Egyptian, who brought
from Sais the worship of the goddess Neith, called by the
Athenians A&jwj, and who, in the opinion of the learned,
was contemporary with Moses. The new city was built
on the rock of the Acropolis, which originally contained all
the habitations ofthe Athenians, and received from Cecrops
the name of Cecropia. But in the time of Erechtheus the
First, called by later writers Erichthonius, the second of
the early kings in succession from Cecrops, and the person
who instituted the festivals called Athenaed, in honour of
Afbjvjj or Minerva, it lost the name which it had derived from
its founder, and acquired that of Affyva/, Athens, from the
goddess to whose worship it was principally dedicated.
Ancient _ We have received little or no information respecting the
state. size or dimensions of Athens under its earliest kings.1 It is
generally supposed, however, that even as late as the time
of Theseus the town was almost entirely confined to the
Acropolis and the adjoining hill of Mars. But during the
six or seven centuries which elapsed between the Trojan
war and the reign of Peisistratus, it appears to have in¬
creased considerably both in extent and population ;2 while
the administration of that enlightened and patriotic usurp¬
er, so far from proving an impediment to the prosperity of
the city, operated in aid of its improvement; as has often
happened when power chances to fall into the hands of a
person of taste and magnificence. By establishing a public
E N S,
library, and by editing the works of Homer, Peisistratus and
his sons fixed the muses at Athens. Nor, in the midst of
all this attention to the cultivation of the arts and the em¬
bellishment of the city, had the means of defence against
external aggression been neglected. For, since Athens was
able to withstand a siege by the Lacedaemonians, during
the reign of Hippias, one of the sons of Peisistratus, we may
conclude that it already possessed walls and fortifications
of sufficient height and strength to ensure its safety.
But the invasion of Xerxes, and the subsequent irrup- Effects
tion of Mardonius, effected the entire destruction of the the Per j
ancient city, and reduced it to a heap of ruins; with the invasio
exception only of such temples and buildings as, from the
solidity of their structure, were enabled to resist the ac¬
tion of fire and the work of demolition. During their
temporary ascendency in Greece, the Persians displayedi
the same iconoclastic fury which had marked their career
of conquest in Egypt with havoc and desolation. But when
the battles of Marathon, Salamis, Plataea, and Myeale.
had dissipated the forces of the invader, and liberated
Greece from the danger of subjugation to a foreign power,
Athens, restored to peace and security, soon rose out of
its ruins with increased splendour; and having been pro¬
vided by Fhemistocles with the military works necessary
for its defence, it attained, under the subsequent adminis¬
trations of Cimon and Pericles, to the highest pitch of
beauty, strength, and magnificence. The former, indeed, is
known to have erected the temple of Theseus, the Dio-
nysiac Theatre, the Stoae, and the Gymnasium, and also to
have embellished the Academy, the Agora, and other
parts ofthe city, at his own expense ;3 while the latter com-
p eted the fortifications which had been left in an unfinish¬
ed state by Themistocles and Cimon—rebuilt several edi¬
fices which the Persian^ had destroyed—and, above all, im¬
mortalized himself by the construction of the temple of
The principal works on the topography of Athens, which has been discussed at length and with fTVOot , ,,
modern antiquaries and travellers, are Stuart’s Antiquities of Athens; Dodwell’s Classicfl Tour ^ g M ac™ra?Y ^d research, by
the Topography of Athens in Walpole’s Memoirs, vol. i. p. 480 : Colonel Leake’s TomZ^Ln/^h h C.Mr Hawkins Dissertation on
H,, .- and Mr Cramer’s Geograficl Hkt0^al DZrif,n o/SLTcreree 'T »»
Mr Cramer, have in general followed Pausanias who hnvincp himaolf ’a.u’ ’ kkef(: wnters, with the exception of
most remarkable edifices. But as it is admitted on all hands fhat Pausanias h « T*8*- ( eb'crike3’in his first book, its antiquities and
ed out by other authors, and that his de‘c”pUoi ™ Set dlfect^Ts^n^u^ .Tf106 SCTC.';‘“li,n|,0r!a"t build'nSs P0'1'1-
information supplied by Meursius in his AVarmr Qnfi k, _ particulars, we have availed ourselves of the additional
accurate a list as possible ofthe principal edifices and monumeJ^ ^ that; we might be enabled to form as
dicate a pkceof some^onsTdTra^ion.111 ^ tlme °f Homer’ who apphes toit the epithets of and which seem to in-
s Plutarch in Vit. Cimon.
| 1)1 'n:
1 sw of
^ tli 'alls.
ATHENS.
115
A ns*
Ag‘ f
Per es;
oop ition.
G «
P lum,
&
Eleusis, the Parthenon, and the Propylsea, edifices alike
unrivalled for classical purity of design and perfection of
execution. . .
It was, indeed, under the administration of Pericles that
Athens attained to that eminence in art which has excit¬
ed the wonder and admiration of all succeeding agesit
was to this illustrious man that the city was principally in¬
debted for the splendour of its architectural decorations, and
the republic for its prosperity and its power. At the period
in question the whole of Athens, with its three ports of
Peiraeus, Munychia, and Phalerum, connected by means of
the celebrated Long Walls, formed one great city, inclosed
within a vast peribolus of massive fortifications, extending
to not less than 174 stadia, of which the circuit of the city
amounted to 43, the long walls taken together to 75, and
the circumference of the three harbours to 56.1 There is
gome difficulty in ascertaining the amount of the popula¬
tion of Athens at this period. Xenophon informs us that
it contained more than 10,000 houses, which, at the rate
often persons to a house, would give 100,000 souls for the
whole population of the city. By a census of Pericles,
mentioned by Plutarch in his life of that statesman, it,
however, appears that the number of Athenians entitled to
exercise the rights of citizenship was confined to 14,040;
and at no subsequent period does this number appear to
have much exceeded 20,000, which indeed may be taken
as the average amount of the free adult male population of
Athens, enjoying the rights of citizenship. See Attica.
From the researches of Colonel Leake and Mr Hawkins,
it appears that the ancient city considerably exceeded in
extent the modern town; for, although the scanty remains
of the old fortifications are insufficient to enable us to judge
of their circumference, it is nevertheless evident, from the
measurement furnished by Thucydides, that they inclosed
a much larger space than that contained within the present
line of wall, particularly towards the north. It is probable,
indeed, that, on this side, the extremity of the city reached
as far as the foot of Mount Anchesmus ; and that, to the
westward, its walls followed the course of the small brook
which terminates in the marshy ground of the Academy,
until they met the point where some of the ancient foun¬
dations are still to be seen near the Dipylum ; while, to the
eastward, they approached close to the Ilissus, a little be¬
low the present church of the Mologitades or Confessors.
The entire peribolus of the fortifications, including the walls
of the city, the longimural inclosure, and the defences of
the ports, cannot therefore have been less than nineteen
miles; but from the extreme irregularity of the space in¬
closed, it is impossible to form any accurate estimate of
its dimensions. Ancient writers inform us, however, that
Athens was nearly equal in extent to Rome within the
walls of Servius; and Plutarch compares it in point of size
to Syracuse, which Strabo estimates at 180 stadia, or up¬
wards of 22 miles in circumference.
The number of gates in the fortifications of ancient
Athens is uncertain; but the names of nine have been
preserved by the classical writers. These are Dipylum
(otherwise called Thriasias, Sacrae, or Ceramics), Diomeiae,
Diocharis, Melitides, Peiraicae, Acharnicae, Itoniae, Hip-
pades, and Heriaeae. The Dipylum was situated in that
part of the wall which separated the inner from the outer
Ceramicus, and formed the communication between them;
Athens.
from which circumstance it was sometimes called the gate
of Ceramicus. It seems also to have been occasionally
named the Sacred Gate, from its leading into the Sacred
Way; and the Thriasian gate, or gate of Thria, from
its conducting to or forming the outlet in the direction of
Eleusis and Megara. On the north-west side of the
Acropolis, in a hollow adjoining a small church built on a
rock and dedicated to St Athanasius, there still remain
some appearances of the foundations of a gate ; and here,
accordingly, Colonel Leake and others have fixed the site
of Dipylum. The Diomeiae, probably so called from Dio-
meia, one of the Attic demi, which itself received its name
from the hero Diomus, was nearly opposite the entrance
of the suburban gymnasium called Cynosarges, a place
dedicated to Hercules, and situated to the north-east of
Athens. The gate of Diocharis fronted the entrance of
the Lyceium, near to the fountain of Panops; while that
called Melitides was situated in the southern part of the
wall, towards the sea and Phalerum ; and the Peiraicse, as
its name sufficiently implies, led to the harbour of the
Peiraeus. Traces still exist of the Melitides and Peiraicae,
as well as of the Dipylum. There can be little doubt that
the gate called Acharnicae was so named from its leading
to the demus of Acharnae, the situation of which was pro¬
bably at or near the modern village of Menidhi, close by
the spot where the present road to that village intersects
the line of the ancient walls. The site of the Itonian
gate, mentioned in the dialogue of Axiochus, is placed by
Colonel Leake about half-way between the Ilissus and the
foot of the hill of Museium, where the road leading direct
to Phalerum from the modern Inte-kapesi or Albanian
gate cuts the line of the ancient walls. Of the Hippades
we only know that it was the gate on the outside of which
was the sepulchre of the family of the orator Hyperides.
It seems to have derived its name from some equestrian
statues erected near it; and it is not improbable that the
Hippades may have been the gate between Dipylum and
the Peiraic, of which some vestiges still exist on the north
side of Mount Lycabettus. Lastly, the Herise or Heriaeae
was so called from its being the gate through which corpses
were usually conveyed to the burying-ground, but its pre¬
cise site cannot now be discovered. Athens, in fact, was
surrounded on every side with an immense cemetery. On
the north-west and north, from the northern long wall to
Mount Anchesmus, there was a continued succession of
sepulchres; and the excavations made in search of sepul¬
chral antiquities have proved that there were similar bury-
ing-grounds on the outside of the southern long wall.2
Pausanias commences his description of Athens appa- Pompeium
rently from the Peiraic gate. We shall imitate his ex-and temple
ample, and follow nearly the same course ; supplying his of Ceres,
omissions as we go along, and conjoining with our accounts
of ancient edifices and monuments notices ot their exist¬
ing state and condition where any traces or vestiges of
them still remain. On entering the city, the first build¬
ing remarked by Pausanias was the Pompeium. This was so
called from its being the depository of the sacred vessels
(rtotvirua) used in certain processions, which, being of great
value, had a separate building appropriated for their safe
custody. In the Pompeium there was also a statue of
Socrates by Lysippus, together with several portraits of
eminent individuals, amongst which that of Isocrates has
1 Taking the itinerary stadium at 575 English feet, or the length resulting from the equation of 19 English miles with 174-5
stadia, it would of course follow that the periholus of fortifications was just the same number of miles in extent. But it has been as¬
certained that the Greek stadium in the time of the Roman emperors exceeded the itinerary stadium by 30 feet, or, in other words,
was equal to 605 English feet; which, taken as the true value of the measure, would consequently give 605 X 1?4-{-5260=20-036
miles as the entire circumference. (Leake’s Topography, p. 369.)
s Leake’s Topography of Athens, p. 374, 375.
116
ATHENS.
Athens.
Ceramicus.
Ceramic
edifices.
been particularly mentioned. Near this edifice stood a
temple of Ceres, containing statues of that goddess, of her
daughter Proserpine, and of Inachus, executed by Praxi¬
teles ; and beyond it were several porticoes leading from
the city gates to the outer Ceramicus ; while the interven¬
ing space was occupied by some temples, the Gymnasium of
Mercury, and the house of Poly tion, where some Athenians
of distinction (probably Alcibiades and his companions)
are said to have celebrated mysteries similar to those of
Eleusis.1
There were two places in Athens known by the name
of Ceramicus ;2 one without the walls, forming part of the
suburbs; and the other within, including a considerable
and very important section of the city. The outer Cera¬
micus was covered with the sepulchres of the Athenians
who had been slain in battle, and buried at the public ex¬
pense, with the exception of those who fell at Marathon,
and who were interred on the spot where they had died
so gloriously; and it appears to have communicated with
the inner Ceramicus by means of the gate Dipylum, which
is understood to be the Ceramic entrance alluded to by
Philostratus. The Ceramicus intra muros probably in¬
cluded the Agora, the Stoa Basileius, and the Poecile,
besides various other temples and public buildings. An¬
tiquaries, it is true, are not decided as to the general ex¬
tent and direction of this portion of the ancient city; but,
from the researches and observations of Colonel Leake, it
seems pretty certain that it lay entirely on the south side
of the Acropolis,3 where it was of course bounded by the
city walls, which ran close to the fountain Callirrhoe, or
Enneacrunus; and that, consequently, its breadth could
not have exceeded one half of its length.4 We shall now
give some account of the edifices in this part of the an¬
cient city, reserving what we have to say of the outer
Ceramicus until we come to describe the suburbs.
The first building mentioned by Pausanias is the Stoa
Basileius, so called because the archon Basileius held his
court there, and which probably stood at the western ex¬
tremity of the Areiopagus. Its roof was adorned with
statues of baked clay; and adjoining it were statues of
Cimon, and Evagoras, king of Cyprus. Behind this porti¬
co was another, containing paintings of the twelve gods,
and of Theseus and “ the fierce democracy,”—thus implying
that he was the first to establish equal rights among the
citizens of Athens; together with a picture by Euphranor,
representing the achievements of the Athenian auxiliary
cavalry at the battle of Mantineia. The temple of Apollo
Patrons was situated in the vicinity of the latter portico,
and was dedicated to that god in his capacity of Alexica-
cus, on the supposition that he had put an end to the pes¬
tilence which desolated Athens during the Peloponnesian
war. The Metroum, a temple consecrated to the mother
of the gods, was the grand depository of the archives of the
state, and served also as a tribunal for the archon epony-
mus. Adjacent to the Metroum was the senate-house
(fiouXturr^iov), containing statues of Jupiter the Counsellor,
ot Apollo, and of the Athenian demus; and close to the
council-wall stood the Tholus, where the Prytanes usually
held their feasts and sacrifices; while somewhat higher
up were the statues of the eponymi, or heroes, who gave
names to the Athenian tribes, with those of Amphiarus, Atte j
Lycurgus the orator, and Demosthenes. Near the latter ^
stood a temple of Mars, having several statues within, and
around it those of Hercules, Theseus, and Pindar, who
was thus honoured for the praise he had bestowed upon
the Athenians ; close to which were the figures of Harmo-
diusand Aristogeiton. All the statues here mentioned were
carried away by Xerxes when he plundered Athens, but
were afterwards restored by Antiochus, as we learn both
from Pausanias and from Arrian. Above the Stoa Basi¬
leius was a temple of Vulcan, and also one dedicated to
Venus Urania, containing a statue of the goddess in Pa¬
rian marble, executed by the chisel of Phidias; both of
which edifices were situated near the western extremity
of the hill or ridge of Areiopagus.5
One of the most important of the Ceramic edifices was Stoa f
the Stoa Poecile, so called from the celebrated paintings “k-
with which it was adorned, although its more ancient
name appears to have been Peisianactius. The paintings
were almost exclusively devoted to the representation
of national subjects, as the contest of Theseus with the
Amazons, the battle of Marathon, and other achievements
of the Athenians; and were mostly executed by Polygno-
tus, Micon, and Pamphilus, the most celebrated amongst
the early Grecian artists. Here were also suspended the
shields of the Scionaeans of Thrace, together with those
of the Lacedaemonians taken in the island of Sphacteria;
and it was in this portico that Zeno first opened that ce¬
lebrated school, which thence received the appellation
of Stoic, and was destined to exercise a most powerful
influence both on the philosophy and legislation of suc¬
ceeding times. The Poecile is also memorable as the
scene where no less than fifteen hundred citizens of
Athens are said to have been destroyed by the Thirty Ty¬
rants. Some ancient walls which are still extant near the
church of Panagia Fanaromeni, Colonel Leake supposes,
with some probability, to be the remains of this once ce¬
lebrated portico. Near the Stoa Poecile was a statue of
Hermes Agoraeus, which, from its position close to a small
gate, was sometimes termed 'Eg/ijjs ergo; r?5 voXidj.6
The epithet Agoraeus naturally leads us to conclude Ceran
that this brazen figure of the god, described by the Ro- Agora
man satirist as furum aviumque maxima formido, stood in
the ancient Agora or market-place, by much the largest
portion of which was in the quarter of Ceramicus. Xe¬
nophon also informs us, that, at certain festivals, it was cus¬
tomary for the knights to make the circuit of the Agora
on horseback, beginning at the statue of Hermes just
mentioned, and paying homage as they passed along to
the statues and temples around itJ There is sufficient
reason to believe, however, that the ancient Agora never
extended to the southward and eastward of the ascent to
the Acropolis ; but it seems to have included a very large
space to the west and north-west of the Propylaea; which
is accounted for upon the supposition, which a number of
circumstances conspire to render probable, that the market¬
place, or at least its most frequented parts, had shifted their
position at different periods of the republic. In the more
remote ages, when the Acropolis or Cecropia was almost
the only inhabited part of the site of Athens, it is natural
! Demosthenes in Phorm.; Diogenes Laertius in Vit. Socrat. ; Plutarch in Fit. Alciliad. ; and Thucydides vi 27
Suid. u. fr°m the her° Ceramus’ or from Potteries which were formerly situated in the neighbourhood." Herod, v. 88;
' M p,.Scho1- Aristoph. 772 i Plutarch, Sjtt K s Hesychius, v.
t e"- ; Hmy’ 11 ‘ Harp0Crato' <- - **- and ; kuaan.
rnln'Dl0g7ene^f7ertlU?i*P Virl Ze,!onis ’ Plutarch in Fit. Citnonis; Pausan. Attic. 15 ; /Elian, Hitt. An. vil 28 ; iEschines deFals Us •
Topography of Athens, 118 ; Description of Ancient Greece, ii. 319. ne3 ae p als. Lxg.,
1 Xenophon, Hipparch. c. 3.
is. to believe that the Agora resorted to from the neighbour-
^ ing country must have been situated a little below the en¬
trance of Cecropia, free admission to which could scarcely
have been permitted to strangers in those barbarous ages.
But when the principal sacred edifices were erected on
the south side of the Acropolis, and the city began to
spread over the valleys to the south and west of the cita¬
del, the Agora may have extended into the western side
of the same space, with that most ancient place of popu¬
lar assembly, the Pnyx, above the middle of it. By de¬
grees the city stretched round the Acropolis, and the Ago¬
ra became enlarged in the same direction; until at length
the best inhabited part being on the north side of the for¬
tress, and the old Agora having been defiled by the massacre
of Sylla, and its buildings beginning to fall into decay, the
new Agora became fixed, about the time of Augustus, in
the situation where a portal of it is still to be seen. And
although the city has contracted its circuit since that time,
the southern and western parts of the ancient site having
become quite uninhabited, yet the position of the central
and most frequented quarter is the same as in the time of
die Romans, and the modern Bazaar occupies exactly the
same situation as the Eretrian or Roman Agora.1 The re¬
moval of the Agora to that part of the town which for¬
merly belonged to the demus of Eretria, Mr Hawkins
rightly conceives to have taken place subsequently to the
siege of Athens by Sylla, and the cruel butchery which
followed the capture of the place. “ After the Cerami-
cus had been polluted with the blood of so many citizens,”
says he, “ the Agora was removed to a part of the city
which was at this period in every respect more central
and convenient for it, and where it is remarkable that the
market of the modern Athenians still continues to be held
at the present day.”2
tions Our detailed description of the Agora must necessarily
'* be brief. It contained a street lined with Mercuries, and
forming the communication between the Stoa Basileius
and the Poecile. The Macra Stoa was a range of porti¬
coes extending from the Peiraic gate to the Poecile, be¬
hind which rose the hill called Colonus Agorseus, where
Meton erected a table for astronomical purposes. The
Leocorium stood also in the Ceramicus, which, as classi¬
cal readers know, is often used synonymously with Agora.
Pausanias makes no mention of this monument, which
was erected in honour of the daughters of Leos, who had
devoted themselves for their country, and near which the
tyrant Hipparchus was slain by Harmodius and Aristo-
geiton. The Ceramicus also contained the Agrippeium
or theatre of Agrippa, the Palaestra of Taureas, and the
Stoae of the Thracians and of Attalus. The portion strictly
appropriated as a market-place was divided into sections,
distinguished from one another by appellatives descrip¬
tive of the various articles exhibited for sale. Thus we
read of the yunocixs/a ayoea, where women’s apparel was
usually sold; of the tyJwTrwkig ayoga, or fish-market; of
the iiiccnovuXig ayopot,, or clothes-market; and of the ayopa
Agysiuv, Qiuv, Ksg&muv, where, among other things, stolen
goods were, it seems, publicly disposed of. The quarter
denominated Cyclus from its form, was the slave and pro¬
vision market. A peculiar stand was allotted to each
vender, who, when he had once chosen his station, was
not allowed afterwards to change it.3 The common-hall
of the Athenian mechanics was situated in the Ceramicus,
which seems to have been the great resort of the lower Athens,
orders, including courtesans, who, according to Lucian
and the scholiast on Aristophanes, principally frequented
this part of the city. In the new Agora were an altar
erected to Pity, and two gymnasia; one founded by Ptolemy
the son of Juba the Libyan, the other supposed to have
been established by Ptolemy Philadelphus, and each de¬
nominated Ptolemeium. To the northward of Fanaro-
meni there was found among the ruins,4 many years ago,
an inscribed pedestal, which had supported a statue of
Ptolemy the son of Juba; and Juba is said by Pausanias
to have been honoured with a statue in the Gymnasium of
Ptolemy.5 So much for the Ceramic edifices.
The next structure which demands our attention is the Theseium.
Theseium or temple of Theseus, which stood, and hap¬
pily still stands, at no great distance from the site of the
monuments last mentioned. The circumstances which
led to the erection of this noble edifice are deserving of
commemoration. About eight centuries after the death
of Theseus, the Athenians suddenly became ashamed of the
ingratitude of their ancestors towards their great bene¬
factor, in driving him out of Athens to die by violence in
a foreign country. This tardy fit of remorse is said to
have been occasioned by a rumour, which readily gained
belief, that the spectre of the patriot hero had been seen
fighting against the Persian host at Marathon. The Py-
thia was consulted in reference to the supposed apparition,
which of course was duly authenticated; and generously
directed the Athenians to remove his remains to the city,
which even his spirit had defended, and to honour him as
a demigod. His bones, with a brazen helmet and a sword
lying beside them, were discovered in the island of Scy-
rus, by Cimon, son of Miltiades. They were received
at Athens with processions and sacrifices. Games and
festivals were instituted in his honour; a heroum was
erected to him on the Colonus Hippius, and a temple, the
Theseium, in the city. This building was equalled in
sanctity only by the Parthenon and Eleusinium; its sa¬
cred inclosure was so large as occasionally to serve as a
place of military assembly; and it enjoyed the privileges
of a sanctuary, which rendered it a prison. It was built
about 465 years before the Christian era, and about thirty
years anterior to the erection of the Parthenon.6 The
Theseium is a peripteral hexastyle, with thirteen columns
on the sides, and it faces the east. The cell within mea¬
sures 40 feet in length and 20 feet in breadth. It has a
pronaos and a posticum, each of which is formed by a
prolongation of the side walls of the cell, having two co¬
lumns between the antm ; but the depth of the pronaos
is greater than that of the posticum, and the depth of the
portico of the pronaos is greater than that of the portico
at the back of the temple. The side porticoes are only
six feet in breadth; but the thirty-four columns of the
peristyle are nearly three feet four inches in diameter at
the base, and about nineteen feet in height, with an inter-
columniation of five feet four inches, except at the angles,
where the interval is smaller. The stylobate is formed of
only two steps; and the height of the temple, from the
bottom of the stylobate to the summit of the pediment, is
33‘5 feet. The eastern or chief front only of the temple
was adorned with sculptures; and, accordingly, the ten
metopes of that front, with the four adjoining metopes of
either flank, are those in which the labours of Hercules
1 Topography of Athens, pp. 103, 104, 105. 2 Dissertation in Walpole's Mem. vol. i. p. 490.
* Pausanias, Attic. 2 and 16; Herodot. vi. 108; Thucyd. vi. 54, i. 20; Julius Pollux, vii. 18; Plato Ac Leg. xi.; Cicero de Fin. v. 1.
* Stuart’s Antiquities of Athens, vol. iii. c. 1. s Leake’s Topography of Athens, p. 119.
' Plutarch in Thes. et Cimon.; Diodor. Sicul. 1. iv. c. 62 ; Pausan. Attic. 17, 30 ; Plutarch de Exil.; Thucydides, 1. vi. c. 61;
Diodor. Sic. ubi supra ; Plut. Faral. in Thes.; Hesych. vv, Qntritov et (dnamrotf ; Topography of Athens (additional note), p. 392.
118 A T H
Athens, and Theseus are represented in alto-relievo, while the
'V"—' other metopes are plain.1 The roof of the cell of the The-
seium is modern; the greater part of the beams and la-
cunaria of the porticoes are wanting; and the sculptures
have been purposely defaced by the Turks. When the
temple was converted into a Christian church, the two
columns of the pronaos were removed to make room for
the altar ; and a door was at the same time pierced in the
western wall. But when Athens was taken by the Turks,
who were in the habit of riding into the churches on horse¬
back, this door was shut up, and a smaller one made in
the southern wall. In other respects, however, the temple
is complete. It is formed entirely of Pentelic marble,
and stands upon an artificial foundation constructed of
large quadrangular blocks of ordinary limestone. At the
north-western angle of the temple, where the hill upon
which it stands is precipitous, six courses of the foundation
now appear above ground, and are gradually receiving so
much injury from the effect of the periodical rains as to
threaten the safety of this part of the building. The
sculptures of the Theseium are upon the eighteen metopes
already mentioned, upon a frieze over the entrance of the
pronaos, and upon another over that of the posticum. All
the metopes in the front of the temple which can be de¬
ciphered relate to the labours of Hercules, the kinsman,
friend, and companion of Theseus; whilst those on the two
Banks relate exclusively to the achievements of the hero
to whom the edifice was more immediately dedicated.
The subject of the frieze over the columns and antse of
the posticum or back vestibule was the most celebrated
event in the life of Theseus, his contest with the Cen¬
taurs ; and, from the analogy of the front and flank me¬
topes, it may reasonably be presumed that the panne!
over the pronaos, which has been completely defaced, re¬
lated to the exploits of Hercules. The interior of the
Theseium, as we learn from Pausanias, was anciently de¬
corated with paintings, representing the achievements of
Theseus, particularly his battle with the Amazons, and
the fight of the Centaurs and Lapithae, where his prowess
was most remarkably signalized.2 The stucco upon which
they were painted is still apparent, and shows that each
painting covered the entire Vail from the roof to within
two feet nine inches of the pavement.
Agraulium, Some difficulty exists as to the relative sites of the Ana-
&e. ceium and Agraulium, which Pausanias next proceeds to
describe. We know, however, that the Anaceium stood
befovj the Agraulium ; and from comparing the statements
of Herodotus, Pausanias, and Euripides in reference
to the latter, Colonel Leake has made it pretty evident
that the position of this ancient sanctuary of the Athe¬
nians was near the foot of the Acropolis, in some part of
the precipices which are situated to the eastward of the
Grotto of Apollo and Pan. These precipices were called
E N S.
the long rocks (n,a%pai mrgai); and here it appears to have Athe
been that the Persians under Xerxes ascended the steep-
est part of the hill, near the temple of Agraulus, in order
to scale the ramparts of the citadel; an enterprise in which
they were completely successful. The Agraulium was
rather a sanctuary or sacred inclosure (hgov rs/isvog) than
a temple, and some traces of its existence are still disco¬
verable near the centre of the north side of the Acropolis.
The Anaceium,3 or temple of the Dioscuri, a building of
great antiquity, stood immediately below the Agraulium,
close to the rock of the Acropolis, and near the gate which
now leads into an exterior inclosure of the citadel, forming
the modern approach from the town to the Propylsea. It
is said to have contained several paintings by Polygnotus
and Micon. Near to the Agraulium was the Prytaneium,
where the written laws of Solon were deposited. It stood
above the level of the main body of the city, and formed
the commencement of a street called Tripodes, leading to
the sacred inclosure of Bacchus, near the theatre; a cir¬
cumstance which seems to fix its site at the north-eastern
angle of the Acropolis, one of the very finest situations in
Athens, commanding a view of the sea, as well as of all
the northern part of the city and its plain. Not far from
the supposed site of the Prytaneium is a church of Pana-
gia Vlastiki, where are still seen the remains of some im¬
portant building, probably the temple of Serapis, which is
the first edifice mentioned by Pausanias upon descending
from the Prytaneium into the lower parts of the city.
“ The ruins at the church of Vlastiki,” says Colonel
Leake, “ are in a line between the new Agora and the arch
of Hadrian : the building therefore to which they belong¬
ed probably stood in the street leading from the Agora
to the Olympeium and Hadrianopolis, of which the arch of
Hadrian formed the termination.”4 The buildings erected
by Hadrian in this part of the city were denominated Ha¬
drianopolis, as we learn from an inscription on the remains
of the triumphal arch just mentioned.5
The Olympeium, Olympieium, or Olympium, one of the Ohm j
most ancient temples in Athens, was supposed to haveun1,
been originally founded by Deucalion. But it seems to
have fallen into decay at a very early period; for, about
the year 530 before the Christian era, Peisistratus com¬
menced a new and more magnificent structure upon the
site of the old building. The ancient Athens, however,
was not the only place in the world where it was found
easier to begin than to finish a temple. The expensive
wars in which the Athenians were not long afterwards
engaged put a stop to the progress of the building; and
nearly four centuries elapsed, including the most flourish¬
ing periods of the republic, before any attempt was made
to complete it. At length, however, Antiochus Epiphanes,
king of Syria, about the year 174 b. c. undertook this task,
and a magnificent edifice of the Corinthian order was be-
1 Leake’s Topography of Athens, p. 38 and 392.
For an account of the subjects of the sculptures in high relief which adorn the metopes of the front and two flanks of the temple,
and the friezes over the posticum and pronaos, see Stuart’s Antiquities of Athens, vol. iii. and especially Colonel Leake’s additional
note on the fheseium in his Topography of Athens, p. 392, to which we have been almost exclusively indebted for the above
particulars.
a This building was named Ava*s/flv because the Dioscuri (Castor and Pollux) were commonly called o\ amKis by the Athenians.
Plutarch, Vit. Thes. ; ^Elian, Hist. iv. 5; Harpocr.
4 Topography of Athens, p. 134.
s Above the north-west side of the arch there is inscribed AlAEISA©HNAI©H2E02HnpiNnoAlS, that is, atit tm AiW Gnaw fi
vo\is, This is Athens, formerly the city cf Theseus ; and, on the opposite side, are the following characters : AI AEISAAPIANOTKAIOTXI-
0H2EXi2noAl2, alot um A^iavay xat ov%t Qnmius rroXi;, This is Hadrianopolis, not the city of Theseus. Dr Chandler has supposed that
fust words of the former inscription should be read a ilu; AGnucti, instead of aiSs uai Atlnvai, or rather aiV ur' A6nmi; but Spon and
yv heier, Stuart, and a multitude of others, including Kavasila (Cabasilas), a modern Greek, have all declared in favour of the former
interpretation; and where the same contracted form of expression occurs in other inscriptions, Gruter, Crusius, and Meursius in¬
variably resolve it as we have done. In both cases, however, the meaning is the same. That side- of the arch which fronted the an¬
cient city pointed it out, whilst the portion of the monument which looked towards the erections of Hadrian in like manner marked
them out to the readers of the legend.
ATHENS.
119
3. gun by Cossutius, a Roman architect. But upon the death
J of Antiochus in 164 b. c. the work was again interrupted ;
and on the capture of Athens by Sylla, seventy-eight years
afterwards, the columns prepared for the building were car¬
ried away by order of the conqueror, and erected as part
of the temple of Jupiter Capitolinus at Rome. The Olym-
peium was in this imperfect and mutilated condition when
the kings and states in alliance with or in subjection to
Augustus undertook the completion of the edifice at their
joint expense. But, from various causes, the work was once
more interrupted; and the honour of completing and de¬
dicating the temple, as well as of erecting the statue of
the divinity, formed (if we may believe Pausanias) of ivory
and gold, was reserved for Hadrian, six centuries and a
half after its foundation by Peisistratus.1 There can be
little doubt that the cluster of magnificent columns of
Pentelic marble at the south-east extremity of the city
Athens, near the Ilissus, belonged to the celebrated
temple of the Olympian Jupiter. They are of the Corin¬
thian order, sixteen in number,2 six feet and a half in dia¬
meter, and above sixty feet in height, standing upon an
artificial platform, supported by a wall, the remains of
which show that the entire peribolus or circuit must have
been about 2300 feet, or little short of half a mile. From
the existing remains, it appears that the temple consisted
of a cell, surrounded by a peristyle, which had ten co¬
lumns in front and twenty on the sides; that the peri¬
style, being double on the sides and quadruple at the pos-
ticum and pronaos, consisted altogether of 120 columns;
and that the whole length of the building was 354 feet,
and its breadth 71. “ Such vast dimensions,” says Colonel
Leake, “ would alone be sufficient to prove these columns
to have belonged to that temple, which was the largest
ever built in honour of the supreme pagan deity, and one
of the four most magnificent ever erected by the ancients,
even if Thucydides had not pointed out this side of the
city as the position of the Olympeium, or if Vitruvius had
not left us a description of this edifice exactly conformable
with the existing ruins.”3
s °f To the taste and munificence of Hadrian Athens was
1 also indebted for a temple of Juno, another dedicated to
e_ Jupiter Panhellenius, and a temple common to all the gods,
or Pantheon. But the most remarkable edifice next to the
Olympeium, erected by this emperor, was that which has
been denominated the Stoa of Hadrian. When complete,
it was a quadrangle of 376 feet by 252, adorned at the
western end with a portal and colonnade of Corinthian co¬
lumns, 120 in number, and each three feet in diameter;
but of these, which wrere formed of Phrygian marble, only
ten are at present standing. In the centre are the ruins
of a building which now forms part of the church of Me-
gali Panagia, and consist, on one side of the remains of an
arch, and on the other of an architrave, supported by a
pilaster, and three Doric columns, each one foot nine
inches in diameter, and of a declining period of the arts: Athens,
round the inside of the inclosure, at a distance of twenty-
three feet from the wall, are also vestiges of a colonnade;
and in the northern wall, which still exists, there is one
large quadrangular niche thirty-four feet in length, and
two circular niches equal to it in diameter. The general
form and distribution of this building, which Pausanias
notices as the most magnificent of Hadrian’s works, are
those of a stoa, or place of resort for walking, conversa¬
tion, and reading; and the apartments projecting from
the wall of the peribolus accord precisely with the c/xjj-
/Aocra mentioned by Pausanias, which were resplendent
with alabaster and gilding, and adorned with pictures
and statues. The building at the church of the great
Panagia in the centre answers, Colonel Leake thinks, to
the library with which we know from several ancient au¬
thors4 besides Pausanias, that this magnificent stoa was
provided.5
Besides the street leading from the Prytaneium to the Tripodes,
Olympeium, there was another which branched off from Lenaeum,
the same place towards the Lenaeum or sacred inclosure ^ionysiac
of Bacchus, adjacent to the theatre, which was called theTlieatre’
Tripodes, from the tripods there dedicated by the leaders ^
of the chori victorious in the scenic contests decided in
the Dionysiac theatre. Several of these tripods were
placed upon temples dedicated to Bacchus and other dei¬
ties, and erected either in the quarter of the Tripodes or
within the inclosure of the Lenaeum ; others, again, stood
upon columns and rocks near the theatre, as the remains
of the monuments still indicate. Of the former descrip¬
tion was the beautiful little choragic monument of Lysi-
crates, vulgarly called the Lantern of Demosthenes, the
apex of which proves beyond a doubt that it once sup¬
ported a tripod, while its closed construction shows that
the victorious choragus who built this gem of art (veu:
vVoxa/Mvog Ttfj rgtftodi) preferred bestowing all the expense
on external decorations.6 From the inscription on this
monument it appears to have been erected in the archon-
ship of Evaenetus, about the year 335 b. c. ;7 and it is
consequently the oldest known specimen of the Corinthian
order, although considerably posterior to the epoch of its
invention.8 Colonel Leake thinks that the street of Tri¬
podes passed at the foot of the rocks under the east end
of the Acropolis ; and that, after reaching the south-eastern
angle of the rocks, it had one branch leading into the
Lenaeum, and another into the theatre of Bacchus. The
Lenaeum, situated on the western side of the theatre, was
a most ancient sanctuary of Bacchus; having within its
peribolus or inclosure two other temples similarly dedi¬
cated, with a couple of statues, one of which was surnamed
Eleuthereus,—and containing several pictures represent¬
ing different events in which the rosy god was believed to
have participated. This is the temple to which Thucydides
alludes as that of Bacchus in Limnis, or Bacchus in the
1 Thucyd. 1. ii. c. 15; Pausan. Attic. 28; Plutarch in Solon ; Vitruv. Procem. in 1. vii.; Liv. Hist. 1. xli. c. 20 ; Sueton. in August. GO;
Spartian. in Fit. Hadrian.
* There was a seventeenth column belonging to the western front standing until the year 1760, when it was taken down by order
of the governor of Athens, to build a new mosque in the Bazaar. (Stuart’s Antiq. of Athens, vol. iii. p. 15; Chandler’s Travels in
Greece, c. 15*j
* Topography of Athens, 43. See also note, p. 401. The other three temples alluded to in this extract were that of Diana at
Ephesus, that of Apollo near Miletus, and the Doric temple sacred to Ceres and Proserpine at Eleusis. The first was 425 feet long
by^220 broad, the second 368 by 165 feet, and the third 216 by 176 feet.
^ Eusebius, Chron. Can.; Cassiodorus, Chron. in Hadrian.; Syncellus, Chron. p. 349.
Topography of Athens, 120. Spon and Wheler conceived this building to be the temple of Jupiter Olympius, in which they were
certainly mistaken; and Stuart thought it the Poecile, which is incompatible with the feet he himself admits, that the columns were
the work of Roman times.
* Stuart’s Antiq. of Athens, vol. i. c. 4; Leake’s Topography, 155.
7 The. inscription, which is upon the architrave, testifies that Lysicrates, son of Lysitheides, led the chorus when the boys of
Acamantis gained the victory, when Theon played the flute, when Lysiades wrote the piece, and when Evsenetus was archon.
8 This order was first employed in the construction of the temple of Minerva Alea at Tegea about the year 385 u. c., or half a
century prior to the period in question. (Pausan. Arcad. e. 45.)
120
ATHENS.
Athens, marshes.1 The Dionysiac Theatre was situated near the
south-eastern angle of the citadel, where vestiges of it are
still to be seen. Like most of the other theatres of Greece,
its extremities were supported by piers of solid masonry,
while the middle of it was excavated in the side of the hill.
From the existing ruins, however, it is difficult to form
any correct estimate of the dimensions of this theatre ; but
if we are to credit Plato’s statement, that it was capable of
containing more than 30,000 spectators,2 it must have de¬
scended much lower down into the plain than has been ge¬
nerally imagined, or than the actual remains would lead us
to suppose. The Hierum of Epidaurus, which could not
have contained more than 15,000 spectators, allowing only
eighteen inches for each person, was 366 feet in diameter;
and the theatres at Argos and Sparta, as well as that near
Dramatzus in Epirus, were about 500 feet in diameter,
yet could not have admitted more than 30,000 spectators,
allowing for each the width of seat or room just mentioned.
If Plato’s statement be correct, it seems therefore to fol¬
low, that the diameter of the Dionysiac theatre must have
been not less than from 450 to 500 feet, and consequent¬
ly that it must have extended quite close to the foot of the
hill, where, indeed, the level space necessary for the or¬
chestra and the scene could alone have been found.3 This
celebrated theatre contained statues of all the great tragic
and comic poets, the most conspicuous of which were
naturally those of iEschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles,
among the former, and that of Menander among the lat¬
ter ; and Dicaearchus informs us that it was accounted the
most beautiful structure of the kind in existence. A little
to the eastward stood the Odeium of Pericles, with a roof
formed out of the masts and yards of the Persian ships
captured at Salamis, and rising to a point like the pavilion
of Xerxes, which the whole structure indeed was intended
to represent. It was richly decorated with columns, and
during the dominion of the Tyrants was generally occu¬
pied by their satellites. During the siege of Athens by
Sylla, Aristion, general of Mithridates, who was intrusted
with the defence of the city, set fire to this monument of
Athenian glory, lest the enemy should make use of the
timber for the purpose of assaulting the Acropolis ; and
although Vitruvius informs us that it was afterwards re¬
stored at the expense of Ariobarzanes, king of Cappadocia,
not a vestige or trace of the edifice remains. In the im¬
mediate vicinity of the citadel were a temple of Aescula¬
pius, with/a fountain; the temples of Themis, Venus Pan-
demus, and Persuasion ; the monument of Hippolytus ; be¬
sides the temple of Ceres Chloe, some remains of which
are supposed to exist at the foot of the Acropolis, near the
ascent which formerly led to the citadel.4
Acropolis. The ancient city of Cecrops is now a fortress or citadel,
with a thick irregular wall inclosing a large area about
twice as long as it is broad, and standing on the outer
ledges of an elevated rock abruptly terminating in preci¬
pices on every side, except the front, which is towards
the Peiraeus or west, and by which alone it is accessible.
Some portions of the ancient wall may still be seen on
the outside, particularly at the two extreme angles; and
in many places it is patched with fragments of columns and
marbles taken from the ruins. The physical character of Athe
this remarkable rock continues nearly the same as in the
days of Cecrops ; and notwithstanding all the devastations
which war, time, and fanatical barbarism have committed,
it still contains a large portion of the remaining antiqui¬
ties of Athens, and consequently demands a correspond¬
ing share of the researches both of the artist and topo¬
grapher. Anciently the Acropolis was filled with monu¬
ments of Athenian glory, and exhibited an amazing con¬
centration of all that was most perfect in art and most
magnificent in architectural decoration. It appeared, so to
speak, as one entire offering to the divinity, surpassing in
excellence, and unrivalled in richness and splendour. It
was the peerless gem of Greece, the glory and the pride of
art, the wonder and envy of the world. Hefiodorus, sur-
named Periegetes or the Guide, employed no less than fif¬
teen books in describing it; the curiosities of various kinds,
with the pictures, statues, and pieces of sculpture, supplied
Polemo Periegetes with matter for four volumes; and Stra¬
bo seems to think that as many more would have been re¬
quired for a minute description. The number of statues,
in particular, was prodigious. Tiberius Nero, who had a
remarkable taste for appropriating works of art which the
genius and means of others had executed, plundered the
Acropolis, as well as Delphi and Olympia; yet notwith¬
standing this spoliation, Athens, in the time of Pliny, had
no fewer than three thousand remaining, of which the most
valuable portion were in the Cecropian citadel. Even
Pausanias seems to be distressed by the multiplicity of
objects which here engaged his attention, and uncertain
where to commence his description. Such was the Acro¬
polis. What it is, Stuart and Revett, and Cockerell and
Leake, and other writers of inferior note, have told us;
and to their learned and accurate researches we are in¬
debted for the correct knowledge, which we have at length
attained, of those magnificent buildings which adorned
the citadel of Athens. We do not say that many curious
discoveries connected with the monuments of the Acro¬
polis may not still be made, when its platform shall have
been cleared of the wretched buildings which now cover
its surface and disfigure its appearance; but in regard to
the three great edifices, namely, the Propylaea, the Par¬
thenon, and the Erectheium, it is probable, from what has
been already discovered, that but little remains to be done.
The western side of the Acropolis, which, as we have Pro;
already said, furnished, and still furnishes, the only access
to the summit of the hill, was about 168 feet in breadth;
an opening so narrow that, to the artists of Pericles, it ap¬
peared practicable to fill up the space with a single build¬
ing, which, in serving the main purpose of a gateway,
should contribute to adorn as well as to fortify the citadel
This work, the greatest production of civil architecture
in Athens,5 which rivalled the Parthenon in felicity of
execution, and surpassed it in boldness and originality of
design, was begun in the archonship of Euthymenes, in the
year 437 b. c., and completed in five years, under the di¬
rections of the architect Menesicles, at the enormous cost,
if we may believe Heliodorus, of two thousand and twelve
talents.(> Of the space which formed the natural entrance
It
/■
* i-o iw- i C * Topography of Athens, CO-
2 Plato m Conviv. in. 173, 175, ed. Serran. 4 Ibid. \G2 ^ J
* Plulostratus, in his Life of Apollonius Tyanasus, says, gtv TlpoxuXaut wpcS <p,Xor,fu*v npxu xtu Tla.ohvw, 1. y. c. 5 ; and Demos¬
thenes, in his oration against Androtion, gives a similar indication of the Propylsea having been considered upon a level with the
Parthenon m point of architectural skill and decoration i ,J ™ JUx. ar. c
papthapaDi Ufa xopiycravns, x. <r. X. p. 597, ed. lieiske-
• "i ThiS It in“edible {°r many reasons. In particular, it appears, from Thucydides, that the expense of all the works of Pericles,
including the Odeium, the mystic temple at Eleusis, the Parthenon, and one of the long walls, as well as the Propylaea, did not
amount to three thousand talents; and it is therefore inconceivable that the last-mentioned edifice, one of five of which the Par-
g!-aphy o?A“oS6h)OU haVe C°St tW° thirdS °f SUm’ 866 a Very learned note on this sul)ject by Colonel Leake. (Topo-
to the Acropolis, 58 feet near the centre were left for the they formed so important a part; while the flanks of the Athens,
areat artificial entrance, and the remainder on either side bastions (if we may be allowed the expression) were also
was closed by wings projecting 32 feet in front of the uniform in their construction, each presenting a Doric
grand central colonnade. The entire building received the front of three columns in antis, each three feet in diame-
name of Propylzea from its forming the vestibule to the ter, supporting pediments, the summits of which were on
five gates or doors, still in existence, by which the cita- a level with the frieze of the Propylaeum properly so call-
del was entered.1 The wall in which these doors were ed. Besides, the inner or southernmost column of each
pierced was thrown back about 50 feet from the front of wing stood in a line with the great Doric columns of the
the artificial opening of the hill; and the whole may, there- Propylaeum ; and as both these columns and those of the
fore be said to have resembled a modern fortification, the wings were upon the same level, the three porticoes were
Propylaeum properly so called representing the curtain, all connected together, and the four steps which ascend-
and each of the two wings presenting a face and flank ed to the Propylaeum were continued also along the por-
or gorge like two adjoining bastions. This incomparable ticoes of the two wings. But here the symmetry of the
edifice was constructed entirely of Pentelic marble. The building ended; for, in regard to interior size and distribu-
Propylaeum or great vestibule in the centre consisted of a tion of parts, the wings were exceedingly dissimilar. In the
front of six fluted Doric columns, mounted upon four northern or left wing, a porch of twelve feet in depth con-
steps which supported a pediment, and measuring five ducted by three doors into a chamber of 34 feet by 26,
feet in diameter and near 29 in height, with an interco- the porch and chamber thus occupying the entire space
lumniation of seven feet, except between the two cen- behind the western wall of that wing ;3 whereas the south-
tral columns, which were 13 feet apart in order to fur- ern or right wing consisted only of a porch or gallery ot
nish space for a carriage-way. Behind the Doric colon- 26 feet by 16, which, on the south and east sides, was
nade was a vestibule 43 feet in depth, the roof of which formed by a wall connected with and of the same thick-
was sustained by six Ionic columns in a double row, so as ness as the lateral wall of the Propylaeum, and, on the
to divide the vestibule into three aisles or compartments; west side, had its roof supported by a narrow pilaster,
and these columns, although only three feet and a half in standing between the north-west column of the wing and
diameter at the base, were, including the capitals, nearly an anta, which terminated its southern wall. In front of
34 feet in height, their architraves being on the same the southern or right wing there stood, so late as the year
level with the frieze of the Doric colonnade. The ceiling 1676, a small Ionic temple, dedicated to Victory Apteros
was laid upon marble beams, resting upon the lateral walls (without wings). Wheler informs us that it was built of
and the architraves of the two rows of Ionic columns; white marble, and about fifteen feet in length by eight or
those covering the side aisles being 22 feet in length, and nine in breadth ; and we learn from Spon that it was then
those covering the central aisle 17 feet, with a proportion- used by the Turks as a powder-magazine. These biief
al breadth and thickness. Enormous masses like these, particulars are the only memorials we now possess of this
raised to the roof of a building, standing upon a steep hill, interesting monument; with the exception of a few frag-
and covered with a ceiling which all the resources of art ments still to be seen on the spot, and four mai’bles, with
had been exhausted to beautify, might well excite the ad- figures in relief, forming part of the frieze, which are now
miration of even a plain matter-of-fact topographer like in the British Museum, having been brought away by Lord
Pausanias, and at once account for and justify the enthu- Elgin about the year 1804. It may either have been
siasm with which he expresses himself when speaking destroyed in the siege of 1687, when the Venetians parti-
of the roof of the Propylaea.2 Of the five doors at the cularly directed their batteries against the entrance of the
extremity of the vestibule, the width of the central and citadel; or it may have been accidentally blown up by the
largest was equal to the space between the two central explosion of a bomb-shell; or, finally, the 4 urks may have
columns of the Doric portico in front, which was the same removed it in order to make room for the modern work
as that between the two rows of Ionic columns in the ves- which occupies its place, and appears to have been added
tibule; but the doors on either side of the principal one about the time of the siege.4 4 he left wing of the Pro-
were of diminished height and breadth, and the two be- pylaea was decorated with paintings by Polygnotus, re-
yond these again were still smaller in both dimensions, presenting a series of events connected with the siege of
These five gates or doors led from the vestibule into a back Troy ; and the structure was ornamented throughout with
portico eighteen feet in depth, which was fronted with a numerous equestrian statues. We may add, that the Pro-
Doric colonnade and pediment of the same dimensions as pylaea have ceased to be the entrance of the Acropolis,
those of the western or outer portico, but placed upon a The passage between the columns of the centre has been
higher level, there being five steps of ascent from the level walled up almost to their capitals, and above is a battery
of the latter to that of the former. From the eastern or of cannon. The way now winds before the front of the
inner portico there was a descent of one step into the ad- ancient structure; and turning to the left among rubbish
jacent part of the platform of the Acropolis. and wretched walls huddled together in the most irregular
The wings of the Propylasa were nearly symmetrical in manner, the stranger proceeds to the back part of the ves-
front, each presenting on this side a wall adorned only tibule and the five door-ways, without almost suspecting
with a frieze of triglyphs, and with antae at the extremi- that he is in the midst of that celebrated structure which
ties. The extreme simplicity of the wings in this direc- formed the external glory and defence of the rock of Ce-
tion was characteristic of the work of defence, of which crops.5
1 Heliod. apud Harpocrat. v. TXgoirvXaia.
* Ta is UooTruXaia. Xi6ov Xiux.nu o^otpnv s^s/, xeei xovu.m xtti (xiy'dii rut \16uv yi tfxou (Attic. C. 22.)
s “ In stating that the temple of Victory was on the right side of the Propylaea,” says Colonel Leake, “ and the oixvpa iXot y?*<pa{,
or chamber containing pictures of Polygnotus and other artists on the left, few persons will doubt that Pausanias meant the right and
left hand of the traveller, in his progress from the lower part of the city towards the Acropolis ; for although passages may be found
in this author where his meaning in the use of the words right and left is ambiguous, it can never be so where it is his evident inten¬
tion to describe a succession of objects on any particular line, as undoubtedly occurs in his account of the Propylsea and the adjacent
monuments.” (Topography of Athens, 195, 196.)
4 Fanelli, Atene Attiche, p. 308.
* Topography of Athens, p. 176, et seq. In the above description of the Propylsea, we have principally followed Colonel Leake,
whose known accuracy renders him a safe guide in all matters connected with the topography of this celebrated city.
122 A T H
Athens. The Parthenon, or temple of the Virgin Goddess, was
placed upon the highest platform of the Acropolis, which
Parthenon. was so far elevated above its western entrance that the
pavement of the peristyle of this renowned edifice was
upon the same level as the capitals of the columns of the
eastern portico of the Propylsea. It occupied the site of
an older temple called Hecatompedon (from its being a
hundred feet square), which had also been dedicated to
Minerva, but had been destroyed by the Persians under
Xerxes during the sack of Athens; and it was constructed
entirely of white marble from the quarries of Mount Pente-
licum. It consisted of a cell, surrounded with a peristyle,
having eight Doric columns in the two fronts, and seven¬
teen in the sides, or forty-six in all; each column six feet
two inches in diameter at the base, and thirty-four feet in
height, standing upon a pavement or platform, to which
there was an ascent of three steps. The total height of
the temple above its platform was about 68 feet, its length
228, and its breadth 102 feet. Within the peristyle, at
both ends, there was an interior range of six columns,
five feet and a half in diameter, standing before the end
of the cell, and forming a vestibule to its door, two steps
above the pavement of the peristyle. The cell, which was
625 feet in breadth within, was divided into two unequal
chambers, of which the western was about 44 feet in
length, and the eastern nearly 99 feet. The ceiling of
the former was supported by four columns of about four
feet in diameter, and that of the latter by sixteen columns
of about three feet. It is not known of what order were
the intercolumns of either chamber; but those of the west¬
ern one having been 36 feet in height, it is probable that
their proportion was nearly the same as that of the Ionic
columns in the vestibule of the Propylaea, and that the
same order was used in the interior of both these contem¬
porary edifices. In the eastern chamber of the Parthe¬
non, the smallness of the diameter of the columns leaves
little doubt that there was an upper range, as in the tem¬
ples of Paestum and JEgina. But it is to be lamented that
no remains of any of them have been found, as these
might have presented new proofs of the taste and inven¬
tion of the architects of the age of Pericles. Such, then,
was the simple construction of this magnificent temple,
which, by its united excellencies of materials,1 design,
and decoration, internal as well as external, has been uni¬
versally considered the most perfect which human genius
and skill ever planned and executed. Its dimensions were
sufficiently large to produce an impression of grandeur
and sublimity, which was not disturbed by any obtrusive
subdivision of parts; and, whether viewed at a small or
a great distance, there was nothing to divert the mind
of the spectator from contemplating the unity as well as
majesty of mass and outline; circumstances which form
the first and most remarkable characteristic of every
Greek temple erected during the purer ages of Grecian
taste and genius. Nor was it until the eye had become
satiated with the contemplation of the entire edifice that
the spectator could be tempted to examine the decora¬
tions with which this building was so profusely adorned;
for the statues of the pediments, the only decoration
which was very conspicuous from its magnitude and
position, being inclosed within frames, which formed an
essential part of the design of either front, had no more
obtrusive effect than an ornamented capital to a single
column.2
E N S.
It is not our intention, in this place, to attempt any de- Athens
tailed or minute description of an edifice which would re-
quire a volume for its complete illustration. We may ob-^?ecora-
serve, generally, that as it was one of the great objectstlons•
of Pericles to furnish employment in every branch of art
to the ingenious and skilful artists with whom Athens at
that period abounded, so he had contrived that the temple
should be of a design the best adapted to the decorations
of sculpture, and that it should be adorned with every
species of it which was most esteemed among the Greeks.
Within the cell was a specimen of chryselephantine sculp¬
ture, having but one rival in Greece, and that by the same
master; under the colonnade, and in other parts of the tem¬
ple, stood numerous statues in bronze; in the reti or pedi¬
ments were two compositions near eighty feet in length,
each consisting of about twenty entire statues of colossal
size; under the exterior cornice, in harmony with the pro¬
jecting features of that part of the building, were ninety-
two groups, raised in high relief, from tablets about four
feet three inches square; and, lastly, along the outside of
the cell and vestibules ran a frieze of about three feet four
inches in breadth and 520 in length, to which a relief,
slightly raised above the surface of the naked wall which it
crowned, was peculiarly applicable. This frieze represent¬
ed the procession to the Parthenon on the grand quinquen¬
nial festival of the Panathenaea. No part of the work is now
attached to the temple, but a tolerably correct idea of it
may be formed from the drawings of Carrey, taken before
the explosion which ruined the building, added to the de¬
signs of Stuart, and the fragments of the original which
have been disinterred from the ruins and are now deposit¬
ed in the British Museum. The procession is represented
as advancing in two parallel columns from west to east;
one proceeding along the northern, and the other along
the southern side of the temple, part facing inwards after
turning the angle of the eastern front, and part meeting
towards the centre of that front. Of the metopes on the
frieze of the peristyle, ninety-two in all, viz. fourteen on
either front and thirty-two on either flank of the temple,
the greater part on the northern side and the two fronts
have perished by wanton violence or by casual destruction;
whilst of those which belonged to the southern side, where
the progress of dilapidation had been less ruinous, fifteen
are now in the British Museum and one in Paris. From
these fragments, together with the drawings of Carrey and
Stuart, it has been conjectured, with much probability, that
the metopes of the northern side related to the war of the
Amazons, whilst those on the opposite side of the temple
related principally to the other great fabulous Athenian
contest with the Centaurs. The two pediments of the
temple were decorated with magnificent compositions of
statuary, one representing the birth of Minerva, and the
other the contest between that goddess and Neptune for
the possession of Attica; the birth being delineated on the
western and the contest on the eastern pediment. The
statue of the virgin goddess stood in the eastern chamber
of the cell, and consisted of ivory and gold. On the sum¬
mit or apex of the helmet was placed a sphinx, with grif¬
fins on either side. The figure of the goddess was repre¬
sented in an erect martial attitude, and clothed in a robe
reaching to the feet. On the breast was a head of Me¬
dusa wrought in ivory, and a figure of Victory about four
cubits in height. The goddess held a spear in her hand,
and an aegis lay at her feet; while on her right, and near
Zfm the eflSptSei ““ SUCCeSSiVe e‘f°‘'tS °f 5t“',i'mS *0 eICel tbeir Predecei-
* Topography of Athens, p. 209, cl se<p ; Stuart’s Antiq. of Athens, vol. ii. p. 57*
ATHENS.
123
« the spear, was the figure of a serpent, believed to repre-
J sent that of Erichthonius. According to Pliny, the entire
height of the figure was twenty-six cubits; and the artist
Phidias had ingeniously contrived that the gold with which
the statue was encrusted might be removed at pleasure.
The battle of the Centaurs and Lapithse was carved on the
sandals; the gigantomachia and the battle of the Ama¬
zons were represented on the aegis which lay at her feet;
and on the pedestal was sculptured the birth of Pandora.
Pausanias also notices statues of Iphicrates, Pericles, his
father Xantippus, Anacreon, and a brazen Apollo by Phi¬
dias. A portion of the southern wall was adorned with the
battle of the giants; and here also were represented the
conflict of the Athenians and Amazons, the battle of Ma¬
rathon, and, lastly, the defeat of the Gauls in Mysia,
sculptured at the expense of Attalus. The statue of Ju¬
piter Polieus stood between the Propylaea and Parthenon ;
and the brazen colossus of Minerva by Phidias, dedicat¬
ed from the tenth of the spoils of Marathon, and com¬
monly called Minerva Promachus, appears to have occu¬
pied some part of the space between the Erechtheium and
Propylaea, near the Pelasgic or northern wall. The archi¬
tect of the Parthenon was Ictinus, who appears to have
designed as well as executed the building; while Phidias
had the control of the whole sculptural decorations, and
with his own unrivalled hand executed those prodigies of
art with which this great temple was adorned.1
hei- The Erechtheium, or temple of Erechtheus, so called
, c. from having been founded by Erechtheus, otherwise named
Erichthonius, stood on the northern side of the Acropolis,
and was one of the most ancient structures of Athens, be¬
ing alluded to by Homer in the second book of his Iliad.
There is, however, some confusion respecting this edifice,
which seems to have been of a double construction, or
divided into two parts, from the circumstance of the en¬
tire building being often called the temple of Minerva
Polias as well as the Erechtheium; a practice which, as
Colonel Leake remarks, is not at all surprising, consider¬
ing that the temple of Minerva Polias was the most im¬
portant part of the building, and that the statue of the
goddess here worshipped was the most sacred in Attica,
not even excepting the Minerva of the Parthenon. The
truth, however, seems to be, that the Erechtheium con¬
sisted of two divisions; the eastern or more important
forming the temple of Minerva Polias, the peculiar pro¬
tectress of the citadel; and the western, that of Pandro-
sus. The former had a hexastyle front; before the colon¬
nade was an altar of Jupiter, and under it were altars of
Neptune and Vulcan ; on the wall of the portico were the
pictures of the Butadse; and within the cell were the
Erechtheian salt-well, the wooden statue of Minerva, with
the lamp and brazen palm-tree before it, the altar of
oblivion, the sacred serpent, the wooden statue of Hermes,
the chair of Daedalus, and the Persian spoils. The Pan-
drosium, or chapel sacred to Pandrosus, one of the daugh¬
ters of Cecrops, consisted of two chambers, of which the
western was narrow, and opened into the portico at either
end. The northern portico consisted of six Ionic columns,
four in the front, with one on either flank; and it stood
not far from the edge of the precipice, at the foot of
which was the temenos of Agraulus. The southern por¬
tico was smaller than the northern, and its roof was sup¬
ported by six caryatides, standing upon a podium and dis¬
posed like the columns of the northern portico, four in
front and two on the flanks. In the western or narrow Athens.
chamber of this chapel grew the tree of Minerva, and the v—
crooked Pancyphus, which was held in such high vene¬
ration by the Athenians, and which the Persians, during
their invasion, had burned but not destroyed. As to the
eastern or interior chamber, which was contiguous to the
cell of Minerva Polias, Colonel Leake thinks with Stuart
that it formed the Cecropium, and quotes an inscription
which countenances that opinion. “ That Cecrops,” says
he, “ was buried in this edifice appears to have been the
common belief; and upon an inscribed marble (brought
to England by Dr Chandler, and presented by the Society
of Dilettanti to the British Museum) wherein different
parts of this building are specified, we find the Cecropium
mentioned in a manner which leaves no doubt of its hav¬
ing been an integral part of the building.” The number
of statues in the Acropolis was prodigious; and there were
likewise several hiera or sanctuaries, such as that of Jupi¬
ter Polieus, Diana Brauronia, and the genius of good men.
The whole of the Acropolis was surrounded by walls, built
on the natural rock of which the entire hill is composed.
But the most ancient part of these defences was con¬
structed by the Tyrrhenian Pelasgi, who, in the course of
their multifarious migrations, settled in Attica, and were
employed by the Athenians of that early period in the
erection of those ramparts which are often mentioned in
the history of Athens under the name of Pelasgicum. Be¬
fore the Persian war, however, they had fallen into de¬
cay ; for on that occasion it was found necessary to erect
palisades and other temporary defences. At a subsequent
period the hill was re-fortified by Cimon and Themisto-
cles ; and it is probable that the greater part of the exist¬
ing wall, although disfigured by the reparations ot vari¬
ous ages, consists of the original Hellenic work hastily
raised by these celebrated men, before the alarm occa¬
sioned by the Persian invasion had entirely subsided. “ A
part of the southern wall,” says Colonel Leake, “ where
the profile is not less than sixty feet in height, appears in
particular to consist almost entirely of the ancient Cimo-
nian work ; and the centre of the northern side still bears
the strongest evidence of the haste with which Thucy¬
dides describes the fortifications of Athens to have been
restored after the Persian war, when the Athenians re¬
turned to the city upon the departure of the barbarians,
and found nothing left but a small part of the walls, and
some of the houses which had been occupied by the Per¬
sian grandees.”2
In his descent from the Propylaea, in the direction of Grotto of
the outer Ceramicus and Academy, Pausanias describes the Pani Are.-
Cave or Grotto of Pan and the Areiopagus, both of which °Fgus-
lay nearly in his route, and were the only objects of im¬
portance which had not yet been noticed by him. The
grotto sacred to Apollo and Pan he describes as a cavern
converted into a temple, and as situated under the Pro-
pyleea, near to a spring of water. Now, under the wall of
the northern wing of the Propylaea, near the road which
forms the present access to the citadel from the centre of
the town, are both the cavern and the spring; the ioiroer
containing two excavated ledges for the altars and statues
of the two deities, together with several niches for votive
offerings; and the latter supplying water to an artificial
fountain a little way down the hill, whence the streamlet is
conveyed by means of an aqueduct to the principal mosque,
near the Bazaar.3 The Areiopagus, or hill of Mars, so called,
Pliny, 1. xxxvi. c. 5 ; Pausan. Attic. 25.
Leake’s Topography, p. 257 and 264.
1 Topography of Aihent, ubi supra ;
’• Ate Van coin of Athens which has been pubhshed hy Stuart^
tiquities of Athens, vol. ii. p. 37) and Barthelemy (Recueil des Cartes, $c. relatifs au Voyage du Jeune Anacharsis, N o. 27). It Presents
• of'the north-western side of the Acropolis, with the Propylaea to the right, the Parthenon to the left, and the colossal statue of
a view
Minerva
pTomXsTr^ of Pan is represented S little to the left of the stairs which formed an ascont
assengers from the north side of the city to the Propykea. {Topography of Athens, p. 62, 63.)
for foot passengers
124
ATHENS.
Athens, it is said, in consequence of that god having been the first
person tried there for the crime of murder, was beyond
all doubt the rocky height which is separated from the
western end of the Acropolis by a hollow forming a com¬
munication between the northern and southern divisions
of the city. It appears, however, that the court of Arei-
opagus and the temple of the Semnae occupied only the
eastern or highest summit of the hill, which agrees with
the authorities indicating that other buildings were situ¬
ated on the more western parts of the ridge. This court
consisted originally of an open space, in which were an
altar dedicated to Minerva Areia, and two rude seats of
stone for the plaintiff and defendant, or the accuser and
accused, as the case might be. But we learn from Vitru¬
vius that, at a later period, this space was inclosed, and
roofed in with tiles, and the ancient Druidical mode of
administering justice in the open air altogether aban¬
doned. The Persians occupied a position on the Areio-
pagus at the time when they made their attack on the
western end of the Acropolis. Near to the spot on which
the court stood was the temple of the Furies, as well as
the building in which the sacred ship of the great Pana-
thenaic festival was deposited.1
Pnyx,Mu- In ancient times the Pnyx was the most common place
seium, &c. 0f pUbiic assembly, especially during elections; but lat¬
terly it was less frequented for that purpose than the
Dionysiac theatre, which has been already described. It
appears to have been situated over against the Areiopa-
gus, in view of the Propylaea, and near the city walls;
and it was constructed for the meetings of the people, not
with the magnificence of a regular theatre, but with a
simplicity characteristic of the earlier and severer age of
Grecian liberty. The orators addressed the people, not
from a rostrum splendidly decorated, but from a or
plain pulpit of stone, which at first looked to the sea, but
in the time of the Thirty was turned towards the interior
of the country. Some traces of this ancient structure still
exist on a height or eminence, the situation and bearings
of which, to the north of the Museium and the west of
the Areiopagus, accord perfectly with the position of the
Pnyx, as determined by the statements of the Greek wri¬
ters.2 The range of hills which rises to the south-west
of the citadel seems at some distant period to have borne
the name of Lycabettus. Plato informs us that it was
opposite the Pnyx, and Antigonus Carystius relates a fa¬
bulous story which would lead us to imagine that ancient¬
ly it approximated more closely to the Acropolis than is
at present the case. The Museium was another elevation
in the same vicinity, and, like the Pnyx, it was included
within the peribolus or circumference of the ancient walls.
It derived its name from the poet Musaeus, who was in¬
terred there. At a later period a monument was erected
on this eminence by Philopappus, a descendant of the
kings of Commagene in Syria, who, having been consul
under the reign of Trajan, retired to Athens (as we learn
from the inscription) to spend the remainder of his days,
“ from toils and cares remote,” in the bosom of that renown¬
ed city. Among the inferior courts of judicature men¬
tioned by Pausanias, after describing the Areiopagus,
were the Parabystum, where petty causes were tried ; the
Ingonum, so called from its shape; and the Batrachium
and Phoenicium, which probably received their names
from some peculiarities of colour in the edifices where Ath
they were held. The Helicea, a tribunal of greater im- ^
portance, is often alluded to by Aristophanes and other
Greek classical writers. It was situated near the Agora,
and so named from its being held sub dio, in the open air.
The Palladium was a court where persons accused of mur¬
der were commonly tried. Those, however, who confess¬
ed to the act of slaying, but set up a justification of the
deed, as, for example, that it had been done in self-defence,
were sent to be judged in the Delphinium, a tribunal
which probably derived its name from being situated near
the temple of Apollo Delphinius.3
This completes our survey of the principal buildings,
monuments, and localities within the city, which we have
described as fully as the limits to which the present ar¬
ticle is confined would possibly admit; omitting nothing
which we considered of material importance, either for
conveying a just notion of the ancient splendour and mag¬
nificence of Athens, as contrasted with its actual state of
decay and ruin, or for enabling the reader to understand
and appreciate the innumerable allusions, references, and
descriptions with which the Greek writers, whether poets,
historians, philosophers, or dramatists, abound. It now
only remains, therefore, to notice briefly the remarkable
edifices and situations in the suburbs and environs.
The quarter called Ccele was appropriated as abury-Cde
ing-ground, and consequently must have been without the Meli
city, since Cicero assures us that no one was allowed toc°lyi
be interred within the walls. Cimon and Thucydides were
both entombed in this hollow space or valley, which He-
sychius classes among the Attic demi, and which, accord¬
ing to Colonel Leake, was situated to the south of the
Acropolis, near the gate of Lumbardhari, which answers
to the Portae Melitenses. There are indeed, he adds,
some remarkable sepulchral grottoes just within the site of
the gate, and the place is moreover contiguous to the
quarter of the Pnyx where Cimon dwelt.4 Melite, ano¬
ther demus, is supposed to have been principally within
the walls, and we learn from Demosthenes that it was not
far from the Leocorium. Populous and well frequented,
it contained the house of Phocion, a temple of Diana
Aristobula erected by Themistocles, and another of Her¬
cules Alexicacus, with a celebrated statue by Geladas, the
master of Phidias. Here also was the place of rehearsal
for the tragic actors, the Eurysaceum, or sanctuary of
Eurysaces the son of Ajax, and the temple of Menalippus.
Colyttus, a third suburban demus, contiguous to Melite,
was remarkable as the birth-place of Plato, the prince of
philosophers, and of Timon, the most celebrated of misan¬
thropists ; and vEschines the orator was said to have re¬
sided there for the long period of five and forty years. It
is sometimes written Collyttus.5
The far-famed Ilissus, from which Athens was princi- Ilisst -■
pally supplied with water, and which Plato in a well-known hnn( 1
passage of his Phwdrus has described as a perennialnus'
stream, is now almost always dry, its waters being drawn
off, either to irrigate the neighbouring gardens or to sup¬
ply the artificial fountains of the modern city. It rises to
the north-east of the town, and, after a course of a few
miles, loses itself in the southern marshes. Not far from
the supposed site of the Lyceium it is joined by another
stieam, or rather water-course, which is believed to be the
[ JuJ* Po11- viii. 10 ; /Eschyl. Eumenid. 680 ; Herod, viii. 52.
: w - «*•
tribe mppSlnkfSrtom/ii.^Te!’ P' *'■ ^ “ instl'iPti'»' dted V SP™ « learn that Coele belonged to the
*schFI£plthJcto! HnpoSt m“' 192’ v' 326! m°str- s0Phi“- “•1 Tertull. de Amm. cap. 20; Xenoph. HdL v. i. 23;
ATHENS.
125
J a* Eridanus of Pausanias. The fountain of Callirrhoe or
* ^ Enneacrunus supplied the only spring water used by the
Athenians, that of the other wells being either salt or
brackish. According to Thucydides, it was situated on the
south side of the city, close to the temples of Bacchus
and Jupiter Olympius; but other authors affirm that it
rose near the stream of the Ilissus ; and here, in fact, Spon
and Wheler observed a fountain, a little below the south¬
eastern angle of the Olympeium, to which the natives
still applied the name of Kalliroi. Colonel Leake says
that it now forms a pool, which in the drought of summer
becomes muddy and scanty, but which is still resorted to
as the only place in the neighbourhood furnishing sweet
water.1
C 0d( m, Near the fountain of Callirrhoe or Enneacrunus stood
i pie ni- an Odeium (which the reader will be careful to distinguish
1 *m c- from that of Pericles, formerly mentioned), adorned with
various statues of the Egyptian Ptolemies, as well as of
Philip, Alexander, Lysimmachus, and Pyrrhus, and pro¬
bably erected by some prince of the Macedonian dynasty.
This seems to have been a sort of minor theatre, intended
for recitation and music without action. In Agree, the
south-eastern suburb of Athens, and on the left bank of the
Ilissus, a little above Enneacrunus, was the Eleusinium, or
temple of Ceres and Proserpine, set apart for the celebra¬
tion of the lesser Eleusinian mysteries. It is conjectured
to have stood in an island between the Stadium and Olym¬
peium, formed by the diverging torrents of the Ilissus, which
seems well adapted for a place that was closed and kept
sacred from the vulgar, and where the foundations of an
ancient building are still observable. Plutarch informs us
that the Stadium was erected by Lycurgus the son of Ly-
cophron, for the celebration of games during the great
Panathenaic festival. Pausanias describes it as an asto¬
nishing structure, rising in the shape of an amphitheatre
above the Ilissus, and extending to the banks of that
stream. It was originally constructed about the year 350
b. c. for the purpose just mentioned; and about five cen¬
turies afterwards it was covered with seats of Pentelic
marble by Herodes Atticus, who is said to have been in¬
terred within its walls. The marble seats have all disap¬
peared, but the entire cavea remains, together with the
masses of masonry by which the semicircular end on the
south was formed out of the torrent-bed of the Ilissus;
and similar ruins are also observable at the opposite end,
with the piers of a bridge over the Ilissus, and the site of
a building on the summit of either hill. The temple of
Triptolemus, which Pausanias also places above Ennea¬
crunus, was probably the beautiful little Ionic building
which the drawings of Stuart have preserved from obli¬
vion. It formed in his time the church of Panagia on
the Rock, but has now almost entirely disappeared. Tra-
' vellers have sometimes taken this building for the Eleu¬
sinium ; but it is scarcely credible that the edifice where
It the sacred mysteries of Ceres were celebrated should have
been of so small dimensions.2
I h (iuai. Higher up the river was Agrae, containing the temple
of Diana Agrotera, an altar dedicated to Boreas, and ano¬
ther sacred to the Musae Ilissiades. In the vicinity, too,
were some gardens, and a temple of Venus celebrated for
a statue of the goddess, executed by Alcamenes, a pupil
of Phidias. But the most interesting spot in this quarter
was the Lyceium, a sacred inclosure dedicated to Apollo
Lycius, where the polemarch originally held his court. It
was decorated with fountains, plantations, and ornamental Athens,
edifices by Peisistratus, Pericles, and Lycurgus, and be-
came the usual place of exercise for such of the Athenian
youth as devoted themselves to military pursuits. Nor
was it less frequented by philosophers and others addict¬
ed to retirement and study. The Lyceium is indissolubly
associated with the immortal name of Aristotle, who de¬
livered his prelections, esoteric as well as exoteric, while
walking within its sacred inclosure, and whose followers,
thence called peripatetics, have added to the celebrity of
the spot which formed the favourite resort of the greatest
philosopher of the ancient world. The position commonly
assigned to the Lyceium is on the right bank of the Ilis¬
sus, nearly opposite to the church of Petros Stauromenos,
which is supposed to correspond with the temple of Diana
Agrotera, on the other side of the river.3
Cynosarges was a spot consecrated to Hercules, andCyno-
possessed a gymnasium, with groves frequented by thesarges.
philosophers, as well as a sort of consistorial tribunal for
deciding in all questions of legitimacy. After the battle
of Marathon, when the city was threatened by the Persian
fleet, which had doubled the promontory of Sunium (Cape
Colonna), the Athenian army took up a position at Cyno¬
sarges, in order to cover the capital from attack, and to
give battle to the enemy should they venture to land,
which, however, they did not. Philip, the son of Deme¬
trius, is said to have encamped on the same spot with a
very different intention, and to have destroyed the groves
and buildings around it, as well as those of the Lyceium.
Cynosarges is supposed to have been situated at the foot
of Mount Anchesmus, now the hill of St George, and to
the southward of the place called Asomato.4
Beyond this hill, and outside the city walls, was the ex-Outer Ce-
terior Ceramicus, of which we have already spoken inci-ramicus*
dentally. Here were interred Pericles, Phormio, Thrasy-
bulus, and Chabrias; in this vast cemetery the bravest
and the best men, who had proved themselves the orna¬
ments of their country and the benefactors of their spe¬
cies, lay as it were in state beside that celebrated capital
which their valour had defended or their genius illustrat¬
ed ; and, as far as the Academy, the road was lined on ei¬
ther side with the sepulchres of those Athenians who had
fallen in battle. Over each tomb was placed a stele or
pillar, whereon were commemorated the names and tribes
of the deceased. Among the several monuments enume¬
rated by Pausanias we may notice those of the soldiers
who fought at Tanagra before the Peloponnesian war, on
the Euromedon under Cimon, at Potidaea under Callias,
and at Amphipolis and Delium. One column commemo¬
rated the names of those who had fallen in Sicily; that
of Nicias, however, was excepted, in consequence of his
having surrendered to the enemy; while, on the other
hand, Demosthenes was adjudged worthy of having his
name inscribed, because, although he had capitulated for
his army, he refused to be included individually in the
treaty, and made an attempt on his own life. Here, also,
were the cenotaphs of those who fell in the naval combat
on the Hellespont, at the battle of Chaeroneia, and in the
course of the Lamiac war: here rose the tombs of Cleis-
thenes, who increased the number of the Attic tribes, of
Tolmides, of Conon and Timotheus, whose exploits were
only surpassed by those of Miltiades and Cimon: and here
rested from their labours, in honoured repose, Zeno and
Chrysippus, Harmodius and Aristogeiton, Ephialtes and
1 Plat. Phcedr. p. 229 ; Leake’s Topogr. p. 49; Wheler’s Travels, p. 370 ; Spon, tom. ii. p. 122.
2 Pausan. Attic. 14 and 19 ; Philostr. Vit-Herod.; Stuart, Antiq. of Athens, iii. 5; Leake, 116.
3 Liog-.Laert. Vit. Antisihen.; Steph.; Leake, p. 150.
4 Pausan! Attic. 29; Plutarch, Vit. Lycurg. in Dec. Rhet.; Leake, p. 150.
126 A T H
Athens. Lycurgus, besides many others whom it would be tedious
to enumerate. The games called Lampadephoria were
celebrated in the outer Ceramicus.1
Academy. The Academy (of which we have already spoken under
that head) was situated at the extremity of this cemetery,
about six stadia from the gate Dipylum. It was originally
a deserted and unhealthy spot; but it was afterwards sur¬
rounded with a wall built at a great expense by Hippar¬
chus, and it was planted, divided into walks, and supplied
with fountains of water, by Cimon. Before the entrance
was an altar of love; within was a temenos of Minerva,
containing a temple of Prometheus, with an altar in the
vestibule, whereon were figured in relief Vulcan and Pro¬
metheus, and whence also the race of the Lampadephoria
usually commenced. Here likewise was a sanctuary of
the Muses, built by Xenophon, containing statues of the
Graces, dedicated by his disciple Speusippus, and a sta¬
tue of Plato by Silanion, dedicated by Mithridates, a Per¬
sian. The Academy had likewise altars of Hermes, of
Hercules, and of Jupiter Catsebates, also surnamed Morius,
from the sacred olives called morice, which grew near the
sanctuary of Minerva; and contained the garden of Atta¬
ins, where the sophist Lacydes had his school, besides a
jSo^o; or tank, and some magnificent plane-trees of unu¬
sual height and size, which the Roman barbarian Sylla
caused to be cut down during the siege of Athens. The
modern name of Ahathymia leads the traveller directly to
this once favourite haunt of philosophers and poets; where
the divine spirit of Plato poured forth its lofty fancies and
sublime speculations in a stream of eloquence which the
gods themselves might envy; where genius was married to
science, and poetry to philosophy; and where the founda¬
tions were laid of a school which was destined to exert a
powerful and (we may add) permanent influence on the
opinions of mankind. But the name is the only memorial
that remains of the Academy. “ It is now,” says Mr
Hawkins, “ an open piece of ground, not exceeding five
acres, and presents nothing remarkable in its appearance.
A few scattered olives grow on it; and some paces farther
west we saw a number of gardens and vineyards, which
contained fruit trees of a more exuberant growth than in
any other part of the plain.”2
Long We have already had occasion to allude generally to
Vi alls. fortifications of Athens, including the celebrated Long
Walls which connected the city with its several ports. The
latter were first planned and commenced by Themistocles,
after the termination of the Persian war; evidently with
the intention of preventing any future invader from inter¬
cepting the communication between the city and the Pei-
raeus, and thus starving the former into submission. But
the hero of Salamis did not live to execute this great under¬
taking, which was continued after his death by Cimon, and
finally completed by Pericles. These walls, which were de¬
servedly considered by the ancients as one of the greatest
objects of curiosity at Athens, were flanked at intervals
with towers, some traces of which are still to be seen, and,
together with a portion of the walls of the Asty and of the
Peiraeus at either end, formed an inclosure, winch consti¬
tuted one of the three great garrisons into which Athens
was divided, and which, in this light, was sometimes deno¬
minated the long fortress (ro /xaxsov rs/^og). They were de¬
signated by the names Peiraic and Phaleric; the Peiraic or
northern rampart (fioguov nr/og) measuring 40 stadia, and
the Phaleric or southern rampart 35 stadia in length.
From an expression of Plato, quoted by Harpocration
(biu.[iiOQ\i rtrxpg), it has been supposed that there was a
e n a
third or intermediate wall; but this Is evidently an erroiv Athc [
originating in a total mistake respecting the import of the
term (dia^aov) as applied by the philosopher, who uses the
word, not in allusion to a wall interposed between the Pei¬
raic and Phaleric ramparts, which indeed would be a great
absurdity, but with reference solely to the whole of the long
fortress (jAcixecv niyoi) situated between Athens and the ma¬
ritime city. The long walls remained entire for about fifty-
four years after their completion; that is, until the capture
of Athens by the Peloponnesian forces, when they were
dismantled and much injured; but eleven years subsequent
to this disaster they were rebuilt by Conon, with the as¬
sistance of Pharnabazus, and the interior as well as the
exterior rampart was guarded at intervals by towers and
other defences. In the siege of Athens by Sylla, how¬
ever, they were again broken down, and almost entirely
destroyed. With regard to the existing remains, “ they
are chiefly remarkable,” says Colonel Leake, “ towards the
lower end, where they were connected with the fortifica¬
tions of Peirseus and Phalerum. The modern road from
Athens to the port Drako, at something less than two
miles short of the latter, comes upon the foundations of
the northex-n long wall, which are formed of vast masses
of squared stones, and are about twelve feet in thickness.
Precisely parallel to it, at the distance of 550 feet, are
seen the foundations of the southern long wall; the two
thus foi*ming a wide street running from the centre of the
Phaleric hill, exactly in the direction of the entrance of
the Acropolis.”3
Maritime Athens was divided into three districts andMarii
as many havens or ports; namely, Peirseus, Munychia, Athei
and Phalerum. From the earliest times Peirseus was a
demus; but it did not become a harbour for ships until
the administration of Themistocles; for hitherto Phale¬
rum had been the usual port, as it was nearest the sea.
The harbour of Peiraeus was subdivided into three lesser
havens, named Cantharus, Aphrodisium, and Zea. The
first was appropriated as a dock-yard for the construction
and repair of ships of war; the second seems to have been
the middle or principal port; and the third, which was
the outermost, appears from its name to have contained
the granaries in which the Athenians deposited the corn
imported from the counti'ies on the Hellespont and other
places for the supply of the capital. The most remark¬
able edifices and sites in the Peiraeus were the maritime
bazaar or emporium called Macra Stoa, consisting of five
porticoes, so connected together as to form in fact only
one grand or long portico; the market-place, called Hip-
podameia; the Deigma or exchange ; the Serangium or
public bath; the Phreattys or court of criminal justice,
with a sort of admiralty jurisdiction; a theatre, of which
some remains are still to be seen; and, lastly, the tomb of
Themistocles. The Peirseus is now known by the name
of Port Dx*ako or Leone, from a colossal figure of a lion
which once stood upon the beach, but was removed by the
Venetians in the year 1687. The port of Munychia, so call¬
ed, it is said, from Munychusan Orchomenian, was situated
at the outer extremity of a promontory or narrow neck of
land, at no great distance from the Peiraeus. Strong by
nature, Munychia, when inclosed within fortified lines
connecting it with the other harbours, became a most
important position, from the security it afforded to the
maritime dependencies of Athens; and accordingly we
find it always mentioned as the point which was most
particularly guarded when any attack was apprehended
on the seaward side. This port, which is neai’ly circular,
1 Leake, Topography of Athens, 290. * Topography of Athens, in Walpole’s Mem. vol. i. p. 488, note.
* Leake’s Topography of Athens, p. 351. See also p. 354 and 357.
ATHENS,
127
j At 1S. is known to the Greeks of the present day by the name of
gtratioki. Phalerum, the most ancient of the Athenian
ports, ceased to be of any importance in a maritime point
of view, after the erection of the docks in the Peiraeus ;
but it was nevertheless inclosed within the fortifications
of Themistocles, and, as we have already seen, gave its
name to the southernmost of the long walls, by means of
which it was connected with Athens. Its modern name
is Porto Fanari.1
Having thus completed the description of Athens, with
its suburbs and dependencies, all that now remains to be
done is to notice a few of the most remarkable epochs in
its history, and to conclude with some account of the
modern town, collected from the most recent authorities.
“His y of The history of Athens, from the death of Alexander to
*the y. the present time, may be compressed within comparative¬
ly narrow limits. Soon after the premature decease of
the Macedonian hero the citizens revolted ; but they were
defeated by Antipater, who garrisoned Munychia. Ano¬
ther insurrection followed with no better success. The
garrison and oligarchy were reinstated ; Demetrius, sur-
named the Phalerean, was appointed governor of the city;
and no less than three hundred statues were erected in ho¬
nour of this man, by the degenerate descendants of those
Athenians who had thought a place in the foreground of a
picture, painted at the public expense, an adequate reward
for the victory of Marathon. But Demetrius, surnamed
Poliorcetes, “ the shame of Greece in peace, her thunder¬
bolt in war,” withdrew the garrison, and restored the de¬
mocracy ; a service for which he was deified by the Athe¬
nians, who assigned him a residence in the opisthodornos
of the Parthenon, as a guest worthy of being entertained
by Minerva herself, and afterwards placed the Peiraeus,
with Munychia, at his disposal. As usual, however, they
soon became weary of their idol, expelled his garrison, and
regained their independence; chiefly, as is said, by the
intercession of Craterus the philosopher, who persuaded
Demetrius to leave them in possession of their liberty.
Antigonus Gonatas, the next king of Macedonia, proved
less scrupulous than “ the Taker of Cities,” and again seiz¬
ed upon Athens, where he established a garrison. But,
on the death of Demetrius, son of Gonatas, the people,
aided by Aratus, recovered their liberty; and the Peirseus,
Munychia, Salamis, and Sunium, were restored to them,
on payment of a considerable sum of money by way of
equivalent. Disregarding this arrangement, however,
Philip, the son of Demetrius, invaded Attica, and, encamp¬
ing near the city, burned and destroyed the sepulchres
and temples in the villages, slaughtered the inhabitants,
and laid waste the greater part of the country.
Driven to despair by these barbarous proceedings, the
Athenians were forced to solicit the protection of the
Romans, which was readily granted, and to receive a gar¬
rison into the citadel, which it continued to occupy until the
war with Mithridates, king of Pontus. But, taking advan¬
tage of the embarrassments of Rome, occasioned by one of
the most arduous contests in which she had yet engaged, the
Athenians, at the instigation of Aristion, general of the
royal linguist, rose upon their protectors and expelled the
garrison. This act of ingratitude met with an exemplary
punishment. War was immediately declared; and Sylla soon
afterwards appeared in Attica at the head of a powerful
army. Unable to withstand the fury of the Romans, Arche- Athens,
laus, the Athenian general, relinquished the defence of the l^v^'
long walls, and retired into the Peiraeus and Munychia.
Sylla, on the other hand, immediately laid siege to the Pei¬
raeus, as well as to the city itself where Aristion command¬
ed ; and having received information that some persons
had been overheard conversing in the Ceramicus, and blam¬
ing Aristion for his neglect of the avenues near the Hep-
tachalcos, where the wall was accessible, he instantly re¬
solved to assault the town in that quarter. According^,
about midnight he entered the city by the gate Dipylum,
which he forced, and, having overcome every obstacle be¬
tween it and the Peiraic gate, was soon master of Athens.
Aristion fled to the Acropolis; but being at length compell¬
ed to surrender from want of water, the supply of which had
been cut off, he was dragged from the sanctuary of Minerva,
where he had sought refuge, and instantly put to death. .
This event took place in the year of Rome 607, or about
140 years before the Christian era. Sylla raged against
the unfortunate city with the fury of a barbarian; burn¬
ing the Peiraeus and Munychia, defacing the monuments
in the town and suburbs, and not even sparing the sepul¬
chres of the dead in the Ceramicus.
In the civil war between Caesar and Pompey, the Athe¬
nians declared for the champion of liberty. But although
the battle of Pharsalia placed them at the mercy of Caesar,
that great and generous conqueror, “ whose brow was girt
with laurels more than hair,” scorned to sully the lustre
of his renown by any act of vengeance, and, with a magna¬
nimity native to his character, dismissed the envoys who
had been sent to propitiate him, with this fine observation :
“ I am content to spare the living for the sake of the dead.”
The same lingering affection for liberty which had led the
Athenians to side with Pompey, also induced them to take
part with Brutus and Cassius, in the wars of the second
triumvirate; and they had even the spirit to erect statues
to the two Roman patriots, beside those of their own de¬
liverers, Harmodius and Aristogeiton. But at Philippi,
as at Pharsalia, the gods declared against liberty,2 and the
Athenians were again on the losing side. Nor were they
more fortunate in the contest which ensued between Octa¬
vius and Antony; for having joined the latter, who gave
them iEgina, Cea, and other islands, they incurred the re¬
sentment of Augustus, now become master of the Roman
world, who treated them with the utmost harshness and
severity. Under Tiberius the city declined, but it still
continued to enjoy a considerable share of freedom, and
was regarded as an ally of the Romans. Germanicus con¬
ferred upon it the privilege of having a lictor to precede
the magistrates ; but he was censured for this act of con¬
descension, as “ the race of noble bloods” was now be¬
lieved to be extinct, and the Athenian people a mixture
of all nations. The emperor Vespasian reduced Achaia
into the form of a province, and gave it a proconsular go¬
vernment. But Nerva proved more indulgent to Athens;
and under his successor, Trajan, Pliny exhorted Maximus,
when intrusted with the government, to be mindful of the
ancient glory of that classic land, and to rule Greece as if
it had still been composed of free cities.3 Hadrian, prouder
of the archonship of Athens than of his imperial dignity,
gave the city a digest of laws compiled from the codes of
Draco, Solon, and other legislators, and testified his af-
1 For a full and accurate account of the present state of the Peiraeus and its adjoining ports see Colonel Leake’s work, p. 312,
325, and 326.
* The fine, though somewhat irreverent, sentiment expressed in the following line of Lucan, is not altogether inapplicable here
44 Victrix caussa diis placuit, sed victa Catoni.”
3 “ You will revere the gods and heroes their founders,” said he ; “ you will respect their pristine glory, and even their age; you
will honour them for the famous deeds which are truly, and even for those which are fabulously, recorded of them: remember it is
Athens you approach.”
128 A T H
Athens, fection for it by unbounded munificence. Antoninus Pius,
who succeeded Hadrian, and Antoninus the philosopher,
also proved themselves benefactors of Athens, though on
a less magnificent scale than their predecessor.
In the reign of Valerian, the northern barbarians first
appeared in Asia Minor, where they laid siege to Thes-
salonica. This extraordinary apparition having alarmed
all Greece, the Athenians restored their city wall, which
Sylla had dismantled, and otherwise placed the town in a
state of defence sufficient to secure it against a coup-de-
main. But under Gallienus, the next emperor, Athens
was besieged, and the archonship abolished; upon which
the strategus or general, who had previously acted as in¬
spector of the Agora, became the chief magistrate. Under
Claudius the city was taken, but recovered soon after¬
wards. Constantine the Great gloried in the title of Gene¬
ral of Athens, which had been conferred upon him, and
expressedhigh satisfaction on obtaining from the people the
honour of a statue with an inscription ; a distinction which
he acknowledged by sending to the city a yearly gratuity of
grain. He also conferred on the governor of Attica and
Athens the title of Msyas Aou^, or Grand Duke, which
soon became hereditary; and his son Constans bestowed
several islands on the city, in order to supply it with corn.
In the time of Theodosius I., that is, towards the end of the
fourth century, the Goths laid waste Thessaly and Epirus ;
but Theodorus, general of the Achaeans, acted with so
much prudence that he saved the Greek cities from pil¬
lage and the inhabitants from captivity; a service which was
most gratefullyacknowledged. But this deliverance proved
only temporary. The fatal period was now fast approach¬
ing ; and, in a real barbarian, Athens was doomed to expe¬
rience a conqueror yet more savage and remorseless than
Sylla. This was Alaric, king of the Goths, who, under
the emperors Arcadius and Honorius, overran both Italy
and Greece; sacking, pillaging, and destroying. Never
indeed did the fury even of barbarian conquest discharge
itself in a fiercer or more desolating tempest. The Pelo¬
ponnesian cities were overturned; Arcadia and Lacedae¬
mon were both laid waste; the gulfs of Lepanto and iEgina
were illuminated with the flames of Corinth; and the
Athenian matrons were dragged in chains to satisfy the
brutal desires of these rampant barbarians. The invalu¬
able treasures of antiquity were removed; stately and
magnificent structures were reduced to heaps of ruin; and
Athens, stripped of the monuments of her ancient splen¬
dour, was compared by Synesius, a writer of that age, to
a victim of which the body had been consumed, and the
skin only remained.
After this dreadful visitation Athens sank into insigni¬
ficance, and became as obscure as it had once been illus¬
trious. We are indeed informed that the cities of Hellas
were put in a state of defence by Justinian, who repaired
the walls of Corinth, which had been overturned by an
earthquake, and those of Athens, which had fallen into de¬
cay through age. But from the time of this emperor a chasm
of nearly seven centuries ensues in its history; except
that, about the year 1130, it furnished Roger, the first king
of Sicily, with a number of artificers, who there introduced
the culture of silk, which afterwards passed into Italy.
The worms, it seems, had been brought from India to Con¬
stantinople in the reign of Justinian.
Doomed apparently to become the prey of every spoil¬
er, Athens again emerges from oblivion in the thirteenth
century, under Baldwin and his crusaders, at a time when
it was besieged by a general of Theodorus Lascaris, the
E N S.
Greek emperor. In 1427 it was taken by Sultan Murad; Ather
but some time afterwards it was recovered from the infi- v-Y
dels by another body of crusaders, under the marquis of
Montferrat, a powerful baron of the West, who bestowed
it, along with Thebes, on Otho de la Roche, one of his prin¬
cipal followers. For a considerable time both cities were
governed by Otho and his descendants, with the title of
dukes ; but being unable to maintain themselves in their
Greek principality, they were at length succeeded by
Walter of Brienne, who, soon after his succession, was
expelled by his new subjects, aided by the Spaniards of
Catalonia. The next rulers of Athens were the Acciaioli,
an opulent family of Florence, in whose possession it re¬
mained until 1455, when it was taken by Omar, a general
of Mahommed II., and thus fell a second time into the
hands of the barbarians. The victorious sultan settled a
Mahommedan colony in his new conquest, which he in¬
corporated with the Ottoman empire; and Athens, as well
as Greece, continued to form an integral part of the Turk¬
ish dominions, until the treaty of Adrianople in 1829,
following up the provisions and stipulations of the treaty
of London, 7th July 1827, established the new state of
Greece within limits which, though not definitively fixed,
are understood to include the ancient capital of Attica.
From the period of the Ottoman conquest to the com-Sieges,
mencement of the insurrection in 1821, Athens was only
known in history by two attempts, on the part of the Ve¬
netians, to expel the Turks and make themselves masters
of the city. The first of these took place in 1464, only
nine years after its capture by the Osmanlees, and proved
an entire failure. But the second, which was undertaken
in 1687, more than two centuries later, was crowned with
a temporary and fatal success. In the month of Septem¬
ber of that year, Count Konigsmarck, a Swede in the ser¬
vice of Venice, having disembarked at the Peiraeus a force
of 8000 foot and 870 horse, forming part of the armament
under Francesco Morosini, afterwards doge, marched to
Athens; and having summoned the citadel without effect,
he erected a battery of heavy ordnance on the hill of the
Pnyx, and placing two mortars near the Latin convent at
the western foot of the Acropolis, bombarded it for seve¬
ral days. The fire of the cannon was chiefly directed
against the Propylsea, and the modern defences below
that edifice; whilst the mortars continued, without inter¬
mission, to throw shells into the citadel. The conse¬
quence was, that the beautiful little temple of Victory
without wings, the frieze of which is now in the British
Museum, was completely destroyed by the breaching
battery; and the Parthenon, besides being greatly in¬
jured by the bursting of the shells, was, towards the
close of the attack, almost rent in pieces by the explosion
of a powder magazine, which reduced the middle of the
temple to a heap of ruins, threw down the whole of the
wall at the eastern extremity, and precipitated to the
ground every statue on the eastern pediment. The west¬
ern extremity was fortunately less injured, and a part of
the opisthodomos was still left standing, together with some
of the lateral columns of the peristyle adjoining to the
cell. But the shock was nevertheless abundantly disas¬
trous ; and when the Turks afterwards regained possession
of the citadel (from which, on this occasion, they were
expelled), they did all in their power to complete the
destruction which the Venetians had so vigorously begun,
by defacing, mutilating, or burning for lime every fragment
of the edifice within their reach.1
In the course of the late revolutionary war, Athens sus-
1 It has been often remarked of the Turks that they are encamped rather than settled in Europe. Far from improving the coun¬
tries they govern, they scathe every thing that comes within their reach; they destroy monuments, but build none; and when at
length they are driven out by the chances of war or revolution, the only traces they leave of their sway are to be found in the deso-
A T H
A T H
129
At ns tained three sieges. The first was laid by the Greeks in
1822 Having carried the town by stornij and diivcn the
A' 'r* Turks into the citadel, they established a strict blockade
st e‘ of the fortress, which was continued until the advance
~ J of the pasha at the head of 4000 men induced them to
abandon their enterprise, and fly, with the Athenians, to
Salamis and iEgina. Two months afterwards, the pasha
having left Athens to the defence of 1500 men, the Greeks
again ventured to attack the town, and succeeded in ob¬
liging the Turks to seek refuge in the citadel, which they
forthwith determined to besiege ; but, from ignorance and
want of means, no progress whatever was made in the
operation, until they obtained possession of the well which
supplied the garrison with water, when the lurks agreed
to capitulate, upon condition of being immediately em¬
barked with their families, and sent to Asia Minor. On
various pretences, however, the embarkation was delayed
from time to time; and when intelligence at length ar¬
rived that a large Turkish force was advancing upon
Athens, the Palicari, instead of manning the walls and
preparing for a vigorous defence, rushed in a body to the
houses where the prisoners were confined, and commen¬
ced an indiscriminate massacre, in which the young and
beautiful inmates of the harem, the aged and infirm, and
the brave but defenceless spahis and janissaries, fell alike
beneath the merciless yataghan. This atrocity, for which
no possible palliation can be alleged, and which, in every
circumstance of cruelty, exceeded that previously perpe¬
trated at Tripolizza, reflects indelible dishonour on the
Greek character, and proves that they inherit the faith¬
lessness of their ancestors, with the innate ferocity of their
former masters. The third siege was laid by the 1 urks
in 1826. The Greeks had left a strong garrison in the
Acropolis, with provisions for several months; and a spring
of water having been discovered in the cave of Pan, and
inclosed by Odysseus within the defences of the citadel,
there was no danger of its being starved into a sui render.
But the Turks having established batteries near the Pnyx
and on the hill of the Museium, and having drawn a line
of trenches round the citadel, with the view of intercept¬
ing all communication between the besieged and the Gi eek
army, the garrison was hard pressed; and although Colo¬
nel Fabvier succeeded in forcing his way through the
Turkish lines with 500 men and a supply of ammunition,
and thus affording immediate relief, yet the total de eat
of the Greek army under General Church, at the battle
of Athens, fought in the hope of raising the siege, led
soon after to the surrender of the Acropolis, which remain¬
ed in the hands of the Turks until the termination of the
revolutionary war. #
We have no means of ascertaining the extent of the
additional damage done to the remaining monuments of
the Acropolis during these various operations. Pouque-
ville, speaking of the siege of 1822, says, “ Les monumens
sont restes intacts par un de ces hazards qu on ne pent
expliquer.”1 But even if this were true of the siege in Athens
question, which we do not believe it is, there is too much li
reason to fear that the succeeding one, which terminated ^herton.
in restoring to the Turks their ancient possession, after a
battle and a victory, was attended with the destruction of
every thing within the reach of the infuriated Osmanlees.
Hence we cannot help felicitating ourselves that so many
of the most precious remains of Grecian art and antiquity
had been rescued from every hazard, and deposited in a
secure asylum, long before the commencement of the late
troubles. For this we are indebted to the earl of Elgin,
who, while British ambassador at Constantinople, made
that invaluable collection, which has since become the pro¬
perty of the nation, though it is still most deservedly
known by the name of the noble collector.
The modern town of Athens (now called by the various Modern
names of Athene, Athinia, and Setines), was a small open town-
place, with extremely narrow and irregular streets. The
houses were for the most part mean and straggling; many
of them had large courts or areas in front; and in the
lanes, the high walls on either side, which were common¬
ly whitewashed, reflected strongly the heat of the sun,
and thus added to the discomfort of the place. But it is
now little better than a heap of rubbish; and it is even
doubted whether an attempt will be made to rebuild on^
the same site, especially as the ground to the westward ot
the walls presents a more desirable position. The popu¬
lation has been variously estimated by travellers. Dr
Clarke supposes it to have amounted in his time to about
15,000 souls. When Mr Hobhouse visited Athens, at a
later period, it contained 1200 or 1300 houses, of which
300 were occupied by Albanians, 400 by Turks, and 500
or 600 by Greeks; and if we allow ten persons for each
house, its population, at this time, must consequently have
amounted to 12,000 or 13,000, divided, or rather classed,
in the proportions just mentioned. Other travellers,
again, think that it did not exceed from 8000 to 10,000
souls; an estimate which, considering recent events, and
the necessary removal of a great many Turkish families,
must still be greatly beyond the truth as applicable to the
present time. Of mosques, churches, and chapels of all sorts,
there were nearly two hundred; but how many oi how few
of these remain it is impossible to say. The modern town
lies chiefly on the north and north-west side of the Acro¬
polis, and is completely commanded by the fortress. The
harbour of the Peiraeus is now almost entirely desolate,
not a single house being near it except a miserable hut
called a custom-house; but outside the port, about two
miles to the westward, is a good roadstead, with nearly
eighteen fathoms water. It is still frequented, however,
by a few English and French vessels of small size, which
occasionally resort thither to trade in oil, the staple pro¬
duction of Attica. The modern Athenians also carry on
some little traffic in wool, silk, wax, olives, honey, and
a few other articles. . (A-)
ATHEROMA, in Surgery, an encysted tumour, con¬
taining a soft substance, resembling pap, intermixed with
hard and stony particles.
ATHERSTONE, a market town of the hundred of Hem-
lingford, in the county of Warwick, 109 miles from Lon¬
don. It has the benefit of the Coventry canal, which passes
near the town, and some trade in ribbons, woollen stuffs,
and hats. The market is on Tuesday. Population m
1801, 2650; in 1811, 2921; and in 1821, 3434 inhabitants.
ATHERTON, or Chowbent, a township in the parish
of Leigh, and hundred of West Derby, in Lancashire, 199
miles from London. It is one of those places which has
, . ..u i t’Vipv mav be compared to a flight of locusts eating up and destroying
lation with which they everywhere encompass 1 ^d at last, when swept from the face of the earth by some kindly blast,
whatever they alight upon; conferring no benefits m return, ana 5 p
only remembered from the havoc they had committed. ^ iuimHan 11124 Par F. C. H. L. Pouqueville,
< Hutolre dc la Rtginiration de la Grice, comprenmt le precis des Evenemens depms 1740 W en 1824. Par iJ. c « 4
tome iii. p. 556. r
VOL. iv.
130 A T H
Athletae grown to wealth and populousness since the extension of
II the cotton trade. Population in 1801, 3249; in 1811,
3894; and in 1821, 4145.
ATHLETiE, in Antiquity, persons of strength and agi¬
lity, disciplined to perform in the public games. The
word is originally Greek, a^Xjjrjjs, formed from a^Xo;, cer-
tamen, combat; whence also, e&Xoi', the prize or reward
adjudged to the victor. Under athletae were comprehended
wrestlers, boxers, runners, leapers, throwers of the disk,
and those practised* in other exercises exhibited in the
Olympic, Pythian, and other solemn sports.
ATHLONE, a market town in Ireland, lying partly in
Westmeath, and partly in Connaught. It is situated on
the river Shannon, by which it is intersected, the oppo¬
site sides being connected by an ancient stone bridge.
This afforded the principal passage over the river; and
hence, in the war of 1688, the possession of the town was
considered of vital importance. Accordingly, it under¬
went two sieges, the first by William III. in person,
which failed; and the second by General Ginkle, who, in
the face of the Irish, forded the river, and took possession
of the town, not losing more than fifty men in the attack.
At present it is one of the principal depots for arms and
military stores, and quarters a large garrison, upon the
expenditure of which the town chiefly depends. Distant
55 miles west of Dublin. Long. 7. 50. W. Lat. 53. 20. N.
ATHOL, the most northern district of Perthshire, in
Scotland, extending about 45 miles in length by 40 in
breadth. It is bordered on the north by Badenoch, on
the west by Lochaber, on the east and south-east by
Mar and Gowrie, on the south by Stratherne and Perth
Proper, and on the south-west by Breadalbane. This dis¬
trict is rough and mountainous, interspersed with woods
and valleys, but withal beautiful and romantic. In Blair,
amidst a wilderness of old trees, stands Blair Castle, the
principal seat of the duke of Athol. In the same neigh¬
bourhood is situated the pass of Killicranky, memorable as
being the scene of action between the troops of William
III. under General M‘Kay, and the highland adherents
of James II. under the celebrated Viscount Dundee.
Athol possesses a few villages; but it is destitute of towns
of any importance.
ATHOS, a celebrated mountain of Chalcidia, in Ma¬
cedonia, situated in long. 26. 20. E. and lat. 40. 10. N.
The ancients entertained extravagant notions concern¬
ing its height* On many accounts it was famous amongst
them, but it is no less so among the moderns. The
Greeks, struck with its singular situation, and the vene¬
rable appearance of its towering ascent, rising as it does
in the form of an isolated pyramid, erected so many
churches, monasteries, hermitages, &c. upon it, that it
became in a manner inhabited by devotees, and from
thence received the name of the Holy Mountain, which
it still retains, though many of those consecrated abodes
are now decayed. This mountain advances into the Archi¬
pelago, being joined to the continent by an isthmus about
half a league in breadth. It is 3353 feet in height, about
30 miles in circumference, and may be seen 90 miles off.
It abounds with many different kinds of plants and trees,
particularly the pine and fir. The appearance of the
mountain at present is exceedingly interesting. Upon its
sides there is scattered a profusion of convents, chapels,
villages, cells, and grots, inhabited by a number of monks
of various countries, who never marry, and subsist on the
most penitential fare. They are very industrious, culti¬
vating the vine and the olive in the field, and practising
various mechanical arts in their secluded abodes. The
researches of Professor Carlyle for some years have at
Jength completely dissipated the expectations long indulg-
e of finding valuable manuscripts in these monasteries.
A T L
Through this mountain, or rather through the isthmus Ath it
behind it, Xerxes, king of Persia, is said to have cut a \\‘ r
passage for his fleet when about to invade Greece. In Atlant
this work he spent three whole years, employing all the
forces on board his fleet. The truth of such a canal being
cut was long denied, but has at length been proved. Its
remains were distinctly seen by Dr Sibthorp, partly filled
with water. (See Walpole’s Memoirs relating to Turkey,
1817.)
ATHY, a town of Ireland, in the county of Kildare,
intersected by the river Barrow, which is there navigable.
The county assizes are held at this place and Naas alter¬
nately. Distant 32 miles S. W. of Dublin. Long. 7.1. W.
Lat. 52. 19. N.
ATIENZA, a town of Spain, in the southern division
of the province of Sorea. It is on the declivity of a hill,
contains five churches, a monastery, and 1950 inhabitants.
Near to it are several salt springs, which are boiled in three
villages in the neighbourhood.
ATKINS, Sir Robert, lord chief baron of the ex¬
chequer, was born in 1621, and educated at the univer¬
sity of Oxford, from whence he removed to the inns of
court, and became eminent in the law. He was made
knight of the bath, with many other persons of the first
distinction, at the coronation of King Charles II. In 1672
he was appointed one of the judges of common pleas, in
which honourable station he continued till 1679, when,
foreseeing the troubles that soon afterwards ensued, he
resigned his office, and retired into the country. In
1689 he was made lord chief baron of the exchequer by
King William; and about the same time held the office
of speaker to the house of lords, which had been pre¬
viously refused b’^ the marquis of Halifax. He distin¬
guished himself by an unshaken zeal for the laws and
liberties of his country. He wrote several pieces, which
have been collected into an octavo volume, under the
title of Parliamentary and Political Tracts. It has been
remarked, that whoever wishes thorough information on
the true constitution of his country, on the grounds and
reasons of the revolution, and on the danger of suffering
prerogative to jostle law, cannot read a better or plainer
book than those tracts. He died in 1709, aged 88.
Atkins, Sir Robert, son of the preceding, was born
in 1646. He wrote The Ancient and Present State of
Gloucestershire, in one large folio volume. He died Octo¬
ber 29, 1711.
ATKYNS, Richard, was born of a good family at
Tuffleigh, in Gloucestershire, in the year 1615. He*was
educated at Oxford, from whence he removed to Lincoln’s
inn. During the civil wars he distinguished himself by
his loyalty to King Charles I., and raised for him a troop
of horse at his own expense. At the restoration he was
made one of the deputy-lieutenants of Gloucestershire,
and was remarkable for his attachment to the government.
But at length bemg committed prisoner to the Marshal-
sea, in Southwark, for debt, he died there on the 14th of
September 1677. He wrote several pieces, particularly a
tieatise On the Original and Growth of Printing.
ATLANTIC Ocean, that sea which is bounded by
Europe and Africa on the east, and by America on the
west.
ATLANTIDES, in Astronomy, a denomination given
to the Pleiades, or seven stars, sometimes also called Ver-
gilice. They are thus called, as being supposed by the
poets to have been the daughters either of Atlas or his
brother Hesperus, who were translated into heaven.
ATLANTIS, Atalantis, or Atlantica, an island
mentioned by Plato and some others of the ancients, con¬
cerning the real existence of which many disputes have
been raised. Homer, Horace, and the other poets make
A T L
two Atlanticas, calling them Hesperides and Elysian Fields,
and representing them as the habitations of the blessed.
The most distinct account of this island we have in Plato’s
Timams, of which Mr Chambers gives the following abridg¬
ment: “ The Atlantis was a large island in the Western
Ocean, situated before or opposite to the Straits of Gades.
Out of this island there was an easy passage into, some
others, which lay near a large continent, exceeding in size
all Europe and Asia. Neptune settled in this island (from
whose son Atlas its name was derived), and divided it
amongst his ten sons. To the youngest fell the extremity
of the island, called Gadir, which, in the language of the
country, signifies fertile, or abundant in sheep. The de¬
scendants of Neptune reigned here, from father to son,
for a great number of generations, in the order of primo¬
geniture, during the space of nine thousand years. They
also possessed several other islands; and passing into
Europe and Africa, they subdued all Libya as far as Egypt,
and all Europe to Asia Minor. At length the island sunk
under water; and for a long time afterwards the sea there¬
abouts was full of rocks and shelves.” Many of the moderns
also are of opinion that the existence of the Atlantis is not
to be looked upon as entirely fabulous. Some take it to
have been America; and on this supposition, as well as
from a passage in Seneca’s Medea, and other obscure
hints, they imagine that the new world was not unknown
to the ancients. But allowing this to be the case, the
above-mentioned continent, which was said to lie beyond
Atlantis, would seem rather to have been the continent
of America than Atlantis itself. The learned Rudbeck,
professor in the university of Upsal, in a work entitled
Atlantica sive Mankeim, endeavours to prove that Sweden
and Norway are the Atlantis of the ancients; but the
situation assigned to it renders this notion untenable.
Kircher supposes it to have been an island extending
from the Canaries quite to the Azores ; adding, that it was
really swallowed up by the ocean, as Plato asserts, and
that these small islands are the shattered remains of it
which were left standing.
ATLAS, king of Mauritania, a great astronomer, con¬
temporary with Moses. From his taking observations of
the stars on a mountain, the poets feigned him to have
been turned into a mountain, and to sustain the heavens
on his shoulders. Being an excellent astronomer, and the
first who taught the doctrine of the sphere, they tell us
that his daughters were turned into stars; seven of them
forming the Pleiades, and other seven the Hyades.
Atlas, a chain of mountains in Africa, lying between
the 20th and 25th degrees of north latitude, and supposed
almost to divide the continent from east to west. They are
said to have derived their name from Atlas, king of Mauri¬
tania. They are greatly celebrated by the ancients on ac¬
count of their height, insomuch that the above-mentioned
king, who is said to have been transformed into a moun¬
tain, was feigned to support the heavens on his shoulders.
M. Desfontaines, who with the eyes of a learned botanist
surveyed a great part of this system of mountains, con¬
siders it as divided into two leading chains. The southern
one, adjoining the desert, is called the Great Atlas; the
other, lying towards the Mediterranean, is called the Little
Chain. Both run east and west in a parallel direction,
and are connected together by several intermediate moun¬
tains running north and south, and containing between
them both valleys and table-lands; but it is worthy of
remark that the Great and Little Atlas of Ptolemy, the
one of which is terminated at Cape Felueh, and the other
at Cape Cautin, differ from the chains of the French
traveller, being lateral branches which shoot off from the
main system, to form promontories on the sea-coast. Ac¬
cording to Dr Shaw, if we conceive a number of hills,
A T M 131
usually of the perpendicular height of 400, 500, or 600 Atlas •
yards, with an easy ascent, and several groves of fruit or li
forest trees, rising up in a succession of ranges above one Atmome
another,—and if to this prospect we add now and then a v. er’
rocky precipice, having generally a miserable mud-walled
village on the summit,—we shall then have a just idea of
the mountains of Atlas. The observations of Shaw, how¬
ever, were confined to eastern Barbary, through which
alone he travelled; but Jackson, and other later observers,
who saw these mountains from Morocco, describe them as
rising to the height of 12,000 or 13,000 feet, and, even in
this tropical climate, having their summits covered with
perpetual snow.
According to M. Chenier, they are formed by an end¬
less chain of lofty eminences, inhabited by a multitude
of tribes, whose ferocity permits no stranger to approach.
“ Nothing, perhaps,” says he, “ would be more interest¬
ing to the curiosity of the philosopher, or conduce more
to the improvement of our knowledge in natural his¬
tory, than a journey over Mount Atlas. The climate,
though extremely cold in winter, is very healthy and
pleasant; the valleys are well cultivated, abound in fruits,
and are diversified by forests and plentiful springs, the
streams of which uniting at a little distance, form consi¬
derable rivers, and lose themselves in the ocean. Accord¬
ing to the reports of the Moors, there are many quarries
of marble, granite, and other valuable stone, in these
mountains.” Lead, silver, and copper, are extracted from
different parts of them. It is even reported, and Mr
Jackson thinks with some truth, that gold and silver
might be obtained in them, but for the jealousy of the
sovereigns of Morocco. There is also a copious supply of
antimony, an article in extensive demand throughout the
surrounding countries as a cosmetic for tinging the eye¬
brows ; and sulphur occurs abundantly in the south-east¬
ern tract. The inhabitants are composed of the ancient
race of the Berbers or Berebbers, who have always main¬
tained a sort of savage independence.
Atlas, in matters of literature, denotes a book of uni¬
versal geography, containing maps of all the known parts
of the world, or simply a collection of maps and charts.
ATMOMETER (from ar/j.og, vapour, and /isrgoi/, a mea¬
sure'), an instrument contrived by Professor Leslie, for
measuring the quantity of moisture exhaled from any
humid surface in a given time. It consists of a very thin
ball of porous earthenware, from one to three inches in
diameter, having a small neck firmly cemented to a long
and rather wide tube of glass, to which is adapted a brass
cap, with a narrow collar of leather to fit close. Being
filled with distilled or pure water, the waste and descent
of this column serves to indicate the quantity of evapo¬
ration from the external surface of the ball. The tube
is marked downwards, through its whole length, by the
point of a diamond, with divisions across it, amounting to
from 200 to 500, each of which corresponds to a ring of
fluid, that, spread over the whole exhaling surface, would
form a film only one thousandth part of an inch in thick¬
ness. This graduation is performed by previously sealing
one of the ends of the tube with wax, and introducing
successive portions of quicksilver, to mark every 20, 50,
or 100 of those divisions; being calculated of equal bulk
to. disks of water, that have the surface of the ball (ex¬
clusive of the neck) for their base, and so many thousand
parts of an inch for their altitude.
The instrument, being thus constructed, has its cavity
filled with pure water, and its cap screwed tight, and is
then suspended freely out of doors, sheltered indeed from
rain, but exposed to the action of the wind. The water
transudes through the porous substance of the ball just
as fast as it evaporates from the external surface; and
]32 ATM
Atmome- this waste is measured by the corresponding descent of
ter> the liquid in the stem. At the same time, the column is
suspended in consequence of the tightness of the cap,
and prevented from oozing so freely as to drop from the
ball. As the process of evaporation goes on, minute
globules of air, separated by the removal of atmo¬
spheric pressure from the body of the water, or partly in¬
troduced by external absorption, continue to rise in fine
streamlets to the top, where they partially occupy the
space left by the subsidence of the fluid column. We
need scarcely observe, that, after the water has sunk to
the bottom of the stem, it will be requisite again to fill
the cavity.
It is a fact of main importance for the accuracy of the
atmometer, that the rate of evaporation is nowise affected
by the quality of the porous ball, and continues precisely
the same whether the exhaling surface appears almost
dry or glistens with excess of moisture. This rate must
evidently depend on the effect of the dryness of the air
combined with its quickness of circulation. In a close
room the instrument might therefore serve the purpose
of an hygrometer ; and, placed out of doors, first screened,
perhaps, for an hour, and then exposed during an equal
space of time, it would furnish data for calculating the
velocity of the wind.
This instrument is of extensive application and great
practical utility. To ascertain readily and accurately the
rate of evaporation from any surface, is an important ac¬
quisition, not only in meteorology, but in agriculture, and
in the various mechanical arts. The quantity of exhala¬
tion from the surface of the ground is not of less conse¬
quence than the measure of the fall of rain, and a know¬
ledge of it might often direct the farmer advantageously
in his operations. On the rapid dispersion of moisture
depends the efficacy of drying-houses, which are gene¬
rally constructed on most erroneous principles.
The atmometer, in its most compendious form, is admi¬
rably fitted for delicate experiments on the evaporation
which takes place in close vessels when absorbent sub¬
stances are introduced. Let the ball of the instrument,
for example, be immersed in air variously rarefied or con¬
densed, under a receiver covering a surface of sulphuric
acid which has different degrees of strength; and, things
being thus disposed, on extracting the common air, and
introducing hydrogen gas, the rate of evaporation will
then be nedrly tripled.
We shall close this notice with mentioning a striking
fact, which shows the necessity of extreme caution in all
physical inquiries. Let the ball of an atmometer be ce¬
mented to a narrow glass tube of three or four feet in
length, and the whole capacity filled with fresh distilled
watei*. Now invert the instrument upright in a basin of
quicksilver, and secure it in that situation; the quicksilver,
following the column of water, will rise at first quickly,
and then by degrees more slowly, till it reaches, perhaps,
an elevation of 28 inches, where it will remain stationary
and afterwards sink down, when the evaporation is nearly
spent. Ice-water is raised in this way about 26 inches
only, and common water scarcely 24 inches; the air se¬
parated from such liquids forming near the top of the
ball a thin medium, which, by its elasticity, counteracts
in part the pressure of the external atmosphere support¬
ing the mercurial column. But a similar experiment,
where the shoot of a vine was cemented to a tube holding
quicksilver, has been thought, by Dr Hales and M. Du
Hamel, quite conclusive in proving the power of the living
principle of vegetation. It is obvious that the force of
evaporation alone was sufficient to explain the facts ad¬
vanced by those ingenious philosophers. See Meteo¬
rology.
ATM
ATMOSPHERE is the name applied to the invisible Atmo lit
elastic medium which surrounds the globe of the earth to sphen
an unknown height. The fluid of which it is composed is ''“'V
usually distinguished by the name of air.
It is well known that the pressure of the atmosphere
is the cause of the rise of the mercury in the barome¬
ter. Now the mean height of the barometer at the level
of the sea is 29-82 inches. Hence it follows that the
whole weight of the atmosphere is equal to that of a sphere
of mercury covering the whole surface of the globe, and
extending to the height of 29-82 inches. The specific
gravity of mercury is 13-568, and a cubic inch of water
at the temperature of 60° weighs very nearly 252-5 grains.
Hence a cubic inch of mercury will weigh 3425-92 grains,
or 0-48956 lb. avoirdupois; and a column of the atmo¬
sphere reaching from the surface of the earth to the utmost
height to which that elastic fluid reaches, and whose base
is a square inch, weighs about 14-6 lbs. avoirdupois, or
exerts a pressure equal to 14-6 lbs. upon the earth or any
substance on which it rests.
The atmosphere consists chiefly of air, an elastic fluid
composed of a mixture of four volumes of azotic with one
volume of oxygen gas. Now, from the most exact expe¬
riments hitherto made, it follows, that at the temperature
of 60°, and under the mean pressure of the atmosphere, a
cubic inch of air weighs 0-311446 grains. If, therefore,
the air were everywhere of the same density, the height
of the atmosphere above the surface of the earth would
be 328,021 inches, or 27,335 feet, or 5-17 miles.
But air is an elastic fluid, the particles of wdiich repel Densit
each other with a force varying inversely as the distance the at
of the centres of the particles from each other. It is ob-sP^ere
vious, from this property of air, that its volume, and conse¬
quently its density, will depend upon the pressure. The
greater the pressure, the smaller the volume. Those por¬
tions of the atmosphere that are in contact with the earth
are pressed upon by the whole portion above them. The
air at the top of a mountain is pressed upon by all the air
above it; while all that portion below it, or lying between
the top of the mountain and the surface of the sea, exerts
no action on it whatever. This will be better understood
by the following diagram. Let ABCD be conceived to be
a section of a vessel extending from
the surface of the earth at AB to the
limit of the atmosphere CD, and filled
with air. Let this pillar of air be di¬
vided into an infinite number of equal
sections, each exceedingly thin, by the
planes ef, gh, ik, Im, no, &c. Since the
density of air is always as the com¬
pressing force, it follow s that the den¬
sity of the stratum ABcf is to that of
the density of the stratum efgh as
efCD to g-ACD. So that the difference
between the pressures on ef and gh is
equal to the quantity of air efgh. For
the same reason, the differencebetween
the pressures on gh and ik is equal to
^ the quantity of air ghik ; and this ratio
A holds to the very limit of the atmo-
^ sphere. Therefore the densities of air
in these spaces are proportional to the
quantities of which they themselves are the differences.
Now, when there is a series of quantities whose terms are
proportional to their own differences, both those quanti¬
ties and their differences are in geometrical progression;
therefore the densities of the strata of air ABef, efgh,
ghik, iklm, &c. are in geometrical progression.
It is equally obvious that the heights of these equal
spaces above AB, the surface of the earth, are in arithme-
D
A.
Atn tical progression. If ef be 1 inch above the earth’s sur-
. h, face, gh will be 2 inches, ik will be 3 inches, and so on.
Y J aii this we derive this remarkable conclusion, that
if the altitudes above the surface of the earth be taken in
arithmetical progression, the densities of the air at these alti¬
tudes will be in geometrical progression decreasing. If at
a certain altitude above the earth’s surface the density of
the air be one half what it is at the surface of the earth,
then at twice that altitude the density will be reduced
to one fourth of the density at the earth’s surface, and
ATMOSPHERE.
133
Atmo¬
sphere.
so on.
We can calculate the density of the atmosphere at all
heights above the earth’s surface very readily by means
of a table of logarithms; for logarithms constitute a set
of numbers in arithmetical progression annexed to another
set of numbers which are in geometrical progression. If,
therefore, we take logarithms to represent the heights,
the numbers to which these logarithms are attached will
represent the corresponding densities of the air. Suppose
the density of the air at one mile above the surface of the
earth to be represented by unity ; then, from the common
tables of logarithms, we easily deduce the following den¬
sities at greater heights:
Height. Density.
1 mile 1*
2  0*7943
3  0*6309
4  0*5011
5  0*3981
6  0*3163
. 7 0*2511
8  0*1995
9  0*1585
10  .0*1260
So that at 10 miles the density of the air is only J-th of
its density at one mile above the surface of the earth,
ts 1 »ht. These observations are sufficient to show that the height
of the atmosphere above the surface of the earth must
greatly exceed five miles; but how much, we have no
data to enable us to determine.
Air possesses the property of refracting light; that is,
of bending it from a right line, and making it move in a
curve. The consequence of this property is, that the
sun continues visible for some little time after he sets,
and is seen also a short time before he rises. Nor are we
deprived of all the benefits of his rays so long as any of
them are capable of reaching the utmost limit of the at¬
mosphere. This light, brought to the surface of the earth
by the refracting power of the atmosphere, is called twi¬
light; and mathematicians have endeavoured to deter¬
mine the height of the atmosphere by observing how many
degrees below the horizon the sun must sink before twi¬
light ends. The result of this calculation is, that, at the
height of 45 miles, the atmosphere has no sensible power
of refracting light. Its rarity therefore at that height
must be very great.
There is another way in which an estimate may be
formed of the height of the atmosphere. That height
must ultimately depend upon the degree of rarity which
air is capable of bearing. The particles of air repel each
other with forces varying inversely as the distances of
the centres of these particles from each other. Now
there is no great difficulty in rarefying air by means of
a good air-pump, till it is capable of supporting a column
of mercury only y\yth of an inch in height. In such a
case air is rarefied about 300 times, and tbe distance be¬
tween the centres of its particles is increased seven times;
consequently the force of repulsion between these par¬
ticles is reduced to -^th of what it is when air is of its
mean density. If we suppose that this is the utmost limit
to the rarefaction of air (a supposition not at all likely to
be strictly true), we are entitled to infer that the atmo¬
sphere extends to the height of 40 miles, with properties t
yet unimpaired by extreme rarefaction.
If matter be infinitely divisible, the extent of the at¬
mosphere must be equally infinite. But if air consists of
ultimate atoms no longer divisible, then must the expan¬
sion of the medium composed of them cease at that dis¬
tance where the force of gravity downwards upon a single
particle is equal to the resisting force arising from the
repulsive force of the particles. If the air be composed
of indivisible atoms, our atmosphere may be conceived to
be a medium of finite extent, and may be peculiar to our
planet; but if we adopt the hypothesis of the infinite
divisibility of matter, we must suppose the same medium
to pervade all space, where it would not be in equilibrio,
unless the sun, the moon, and all the planets, possess
their respective shares of it condensed around them, in
degrees depending on the force of their respective at¬
tractions.
It is obvious that the atmosphere of the moon (suppos- Has a
ing it to have any) could not be perceived by us; for,limit,
since the density of an atmosphere of infinite divisibility
at her surface would depend upon the force of her gravi¬
tation at that point, it would not be greater than that of
our atmosphere when the earth’s attraction is equal to
that of the moon at her surface. Now this takes place
at about 5000 miles from the earth’s surface,—a height
at which our atmosphere, supposing it to extend so far,
would be quite insensible.
But since Jupiter is fully 309 times greater than the
earth, the distance at which his action is equal to gravity
must be as ^309, or about 17*6 times the earth’s radius;
and since his diameter is nearly 11 times greater than
17*6
that of the earth, -jy- = 1*6 times his own radius will be
the distance from his centre at which an atmosphere
equal to our own should occasion a refraction exceeding
1°. To the fourth satellite this distance would subtend
an angle of about 3° 37'; so that an increase of density to
31 times our common atmosphere would be more than
sufficient to render the fourth satellite visible to us when
behind the centre of the planet, and consequently to make
it appear on both sides at the same time. It is needless
to say that this does not happen, and that the approach
of the satellites, instead of being retarded by refraction, is
regular till they appear in actual contact; showing that
there is not that extent of atmosphere which Jupiter
should attract to himself from an infinitely divisible medium
filling space.
If the mass of the sun be considered as 330,000 times
that of the earth, the distance at which his force is equal
to gravitation will be ^330,000, or about 575 times the
earth’s radius; and if his radius be 111*5 times that of
575
the earth, then this distance will be = 5*15 times
the sun’s radius. But Dr Wollaston has shown, by the
phenomena attending the passage of Venus very near the
sun on the 23d May 1821, that the sun has no sensible
atmosphere. For the apparent and calculated place of
that planet were the same when the planet was only
53' 15" from the sun’s centre. M. Vidal of Montpellier
observed Venus on the 30th May 1805, when her distance
from the centre of the sun was only 46' of space ; and the
apparent and calculated positions of that planet corre¬
sponded. These observations leave no doubt that the
sun has no sensible atmosphere, and of course are incon¬
sistent with the notion of the infinite divisibility of the
matter of our atmosphere.
ATMOSPHERE.
134
Atmo- But if air consist of atoms incapable of further division,
sphere, it is obvious that the height of the atmosphere has a limit,
and that limit is the place where the gravitation of the
atoms of air just balance the force of their repulsion.
The exact situation of this limit we cannot assign; but it
About 45 cannot far exceed the height of 45 miles above the earth’s
miles high, surface. Nor are the objections to this determination
drawn from meteors of sufficient weight to overturn the
force of the arguments just adduced. Dr Halley observed
a meteor in the month of May 1719, whose altitude he
computed to be between 69 and 73^ English miles, its
diameter 2800 yards, and its velocity about 350 miles in
a minute. The celebrated meteor which appeared on
the 18th August 1783 was not less than 90 miles above
the surface of the earth. Its diameter must have been
at least equal to that of Dr Halley’s meteor, and its velo¬
city certainly not less than 1000 miles in a minute. We
know too little about the nature of these meteors to con¬
nect them with the earth’s atmosphere. Indeed their
velocity would lead to the conclusion that they were re¬
volving round the earth like satellites. The light which
they emitted, or the state of combustion which they ex¬
hibited, we cannot explain. But the same difficulty oc¬
curs to account for the volcanoes which have been seen
in the moon, though we are quite certain that her atmo¬
sphere is far too rare to support combustion.
Air a mix- The ancients thought that air constituted one of the
tureoftwofour elements, from which, in their opinion, all things ori*
gases, ginated; and this doctrine continued prevalent till after
the year 1774. It was during that year that Dr Priestley
first discovered oxygen gas, and showed it to be a consti¬
tuent of air. He determined several of its most remark¬
able properties, and called it dephloffisticated air, from a
notion he entertained that it was air deprived of phlogiston.
oxygen When azotic gas, the other constituent of air, was disco-
and azotic, Vere(j soon after, the difference between its properties
and those of oxygen gas could not fail to strike the most
careless observer. Bodies burn more rapidly, with much
greater splendour, and with the evolution of much greater
heat, in oxygen gas than they do in common air; while
in azotic gas they cannot be made to burn at all. Ani¬
mals breathe oxygen gas without inconvenience, and they
live much longer when confined in a given bulk of it, than
when in the same volume of common air; but in azotic
gas animals cannot live at all. When plunged into it
they die Of suffocation, precisely as they would do if
plunged under water. Dr Priestley considered oxygen
gas as the pure elementary principle of the ancients:
common air was oxygen united to a certain quantity of
phlogiston, while azotic gas was oxygen saturated with
phlogiston.
Scheele discovered both oxygen and azotic gas, without
any knowledge of what had been done in Britain ; and he
first drew the proper consequences from his experiments.
Air, in his opinion, consists essentially of a mixture of
two distinct elastic fluids, namely, oxygen and azote. He
determined the properties of each, and made a set of ex¬
periments to ascertain the relative volumes of each con¬
tained in the atmosphere. The result of these experi¬
ments led him to the conclusion that air is a mixture of
27 volumes oxygen gas,
73 volumes azotic gas.
100.
Lavoisier drew the same conclusions as Scheele had
done; and he assures us that he did so before he knew
any thing of the researches and discoveries of the Swed¬
ish chemist; and, what is very remarkable, he deduced
the same volumes of each gas, as constituents of the atmo¬
sphere, as Scheele had done. His experiments were made
in the same way as Scheele’s, and no doubt the mistakes Atu
of both had the same origin. sphe jjj
It was in 1782 that Mr Cavendish, by a careful ana- J
lysis of the air in the neighbourhood of London, repeated
frequently, and continued for a whole year, determined
that the volume of oxygen gas in atmospherical air is a
good deal smaller than Scheele and Lavoisier had made
it. He found the constituents of air to be—
79‘18 volumes of azote,
20,82 volumes of oxygen.
100-00.
He found that these proportions never varied, though he
analyzed air at different periods of the day, and during
all the different seasons of the year. Hence it followed
that the conclusions drawn by Dr Ingenhousz and others,
that air differs in the proportion of oxygen gas which it
contains in different parts of the earth, and that the salu¬
brity of different places is connected with this difference,
were erroneous.
These experiments of Mr Cavendish were published in
the Philosophical Transactions for 1783; but they conti¬
nued for many years unattended to. The determination
of Scheele and Lavoisier was universally adopted; and
the notion of Dr Ingenhousz, that the proportions between
the oxygen and the azote vary in different places, was
also adopted. At last, in 1802, Berthollet announced
that he had frequently analyzed the air in Egypt, by ab¬
sorbing its oxygen by means of a stick of phosphorus, and
that he had always found it a compound of
79 volumes azote,
21 volumes oxygen.
100.
Davy about the same time announced that he had tried
air from the coast of Africa, from Cornwall, and from the
neighbourhood of Bristol, and had uniformly found it com¬
posed of 79 volumes of azotic gas and 21 volumes of oxy¬
gen gas. It was soon after analyzed in Edinburgh, in
North America, and in France, with the very same re¬
sults. Gay-Lussac and Humboldt made a set of careful
experiments to determine the exact proportions of the
two constituents, and confirmed the ratio of 21 volumes
of oxygen gas and 79 volumes of azotic gas. This ratio
has been generally adopted by chemists.
But there is a circumstance which cannot avoid strik-intb^
ing an attentive observer; namely, the very near approachporii i
of these numbers to 80 volumes azotic and 20 volumes80 T
oxygen gas, or four volumes azotic and one volume oxy-^01;'
gen gas. It has been deduced from a great variety of^'£
unexceptionable experiments, that a volume of azotic gas 'f
is equivalent to an atom, while half a volume of oxygen
gas is equivalent to an atom. Hence four volumes azotic
and one volume oxygen gases are equivalent to four atoms
azote and two atoms oxygen, or to two atoms azote and
one atom oxygen. If, therefore, we were to admit that
air consists of 80 volumes azotic and 20 volumes of oxy¬
gen gases, it would follow that it is a compound of two
atoms azote and one atom oxygen. There is no evidence,
indeed, that in air the oxygen and azotic gases are che¬
mically combined; the phenomena of air rather lead to
the conclusion that the two elastic fluids are merely
mixed. And the hypothesis of Dalton, that the particles
of elastic fluids only repel particles of their own kind,
but that two elastic fluids are not mutually elastic to each
other, will enable us to account for their remaining inti¬
mately mixed, though not chemically united.
It may seem immaterial, then, whether air be a mix¬
ture of azotic and oxygen gases in the proportion of two
atoms of the former to one atom of the latter, or in the pro-
ATMOSPHERE.
135
lt Atn portion (as chemists at present think) of 1*975 atom azote
! sphe and 1*05 atom oxygen; or, as fractions of atoms can
^ hardly be admitted, of 79 atoms of azote and 42 atoms
of oxygen. But certainly the constitution of air must
appear much simpler, and therefore much more agreeable
to contemplate, when viewed as consisting of the simple
ratio of two to one, than in the much more complex ratio
of 79 to 42. The writer of this article was induced in
consequence to make a set of experiments with all pos¬
sible attention to accuracy, in order to deduce the volume
of oxygen gas which it contains. The air was collected
in a grass field at some distance from houses and trees;
and this spot was selected as likely to furnish air contain¬
ing as great a proportion of oxygen as it ever contains, be¬
cause grass and vegetables in general are supposed to make
up the waste of oxygen which the air sustains by the
processes of combustion and respiration,1 and because the
quantity of carbonic acid which it was likely to contain
would be too small to make any sensible alteration in
the experiments.
Ten measured volumes of this air were placed succes¬
sively in a small glass jar, over mercury, together with a
stick of phosphorus. After the oxygen gas had been re¬
moved by the phosphorus, the air was washed, and then
measured. The following table exhibits the result of
these ten trials. 100 volumes of air consist of
Volumes of Volumes of
Azotic Gas. Oxygen Gas.
1  80*927 19*073
2  79*246 20*754
3  80*504 19*496
4  79*532 20*468
5  79*851 20*149
6  79*652 20*348
7  79*374 20*626
8  80*770 19*230
9  79*843 20*157
10 80*028 19*972
Mean, 79*9735, 20*0265
The mean of these ten trials gives us air, a mixture of
79*9735 volumes of azotic and 20*0265 volumes of oxy¬
gen gas. Now, this approaches as near 80 volumes of
azotic and 20 volumes of oxygen gas as the mode of ex¬
perimenting permitted, for the measure employed to de¬
termine the volume of the gases was about half an inch
in diameter.
It was found, also, that when 100 volumes of air were
mixed with 42 volumes of hydrogen gas, and an electric
spark passed through the mixture, the diminution of bulk
by the explosion was precisely 60 volumes; and this in three
successive experiments. Now, this diminution is owing
to the oxygen of the air uniting with the hydrogen gas
and forming water, and water is a compound of two vo¬
lumes hydrogen and one volume oxygen gas. The third
part of the diminution, therefore, gives us the quantity of
oxygen gas consumed. Now, the third of 60 is 20, which
constitutes therefore the volumes of oxygen gas in 100
volumes of air.
If we employ less than 42 volumes of hydrogen gas,
the whole oxygen of the air is not consumed. Thus, when
we employ a mixture of 100 volumes of air and 40 vo¬
lumes of hydrogen gas, the diminution of volume after
combustion is only 57 volumes, which would indicate 19
volumes of oxygen instead of 20 in the air ; so that one
volume of oxygen in this case has escaped combustion. Atmo-
When we mix more hydrogen than 42 volumes with 100 sphere,
volumes of common air, the diminution of volume is some-
what greater than 60, and it goes on increasing slowly
till the volume of hydrogen gas is equal to that of the
air. 100 volumes of air being mixed with 100 volumes
of hydrogen gas, and fired, the diminution amounted to
64 volumes. This would raise the amount of the oxygen
in 100 volumes of air to 21^ volumes.
It is obvious from these experiments that absolute cer¬
tainty cannot be obtained by firing mixtures of air and
hydrogen gas. The reason, doubtless, is, that when the
surplus of hydrogen is considerable, a little of it unites
with the azotic gas of the air, and forms ammonia, which,
being absorbed by the water over which the explosion is
made, occasions a greater diminution of bulk than would
have proceeded from the simple union of all the oxygen
of the air with hydrogen gas.
Knowing the composition of air to be 80 volumes azotic Specific
and 20 volumes oxygen gas, and knowing the atomic gravity of
weight of these bodies to be azote T75 and oxygen 1, these two
we can easily deduce the specific gravity of azotic andSases*
oxygen gases, reckoning that of air unity, in the follow¬
ing manner:—
100 parts of air by weight must be a compound of
oxygen 22*22=a,
azote 77-77=6.
Let #=specific gravity of oxygen gas,
=specific gravity of azotic gas,
2±^ = land * = 5-4*
x \ \y w a :b and x =
Hence 5 — 4*=^^, from which we deduce
56 5X77*77
77 zz zn 0*9722
4« + 46 4 X 22*22 + 4 X 77*77 ~
and *=5 — 4*=5 — 3*8888=1*111 i.
Thus, the specific gravity of these two gases is as fol¬
lows :—
oxygen gas 1*1111,
azotic gas 0*9722.
That the specific gravity of these two gases hitherto
determined by the most careful experimenters is inaccu¬
rate, is obvious from this, that when we calculate the spe¬
cific gravity of air from them, it never comes out unity,
but usually higher than unity.
Besides oxygen and azotic gases, air contains likewise Air con-
a little carbonic acid gas. Who first made that remark tains car-
we do not know; but it could not avoid being inferredb011*0 acid»
as soon as the cause of the difference between caustic and
mild alkali came to be known. Chemists at first stated
the volume of carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere at 1
per cent., but this determination was not founded on any
accurate experiments. Mr Dalton found the quantity
much smaller than had been stated by preceding experi¬
menters. He observed, that if a glass vessel, filled with
102,400 grains of rain water, be emptied in the open air,
and 125 grains of lime water poured in, and the mouth
then closed, by sufficient time and agitation the whole of
the lime water is just saturated with the carbonic acid
which it finds in the inclosed volume of air; but 125 mea-
It is easy to show, that whether the oxygen thus withdrawn from the air be supplied or not, no alteration in the proportions of
the constituents amounting to one millionth part can possibly have taken place. It would therefore be quite insensible as far as our
means of estimating it can go.
136
Atmo¬
sphere.
atmosphere.
.   r. u Htv nf it constantly thrown into the atmosphere by the Ate
sures of lime water require 70 measures of carbonic acid ; f animais and the combustion of fuel. *
Hence it follows that 10,000 vo- breatmngo^ mean volume of carbonic acid gas in ^
gas to saturate them.   #
lumes of air contain 6-8 volumes of carbonic acid. f
nard ascertained by means of barytes water that 10,000
volumes of air which he examined contained 3*91 volumes
of carbonic acid.2 This is little more than half the quan¬
tity found by Mr Dalton. But by far the most complete
set of experiments on the volume of carbonic acid gas in
the atmosphere was made by M. Saussure. He abstract¬
ed the carbonic acid from given volumes of air by means
of barytes water. The carbonic acid was estimated by
dissolving the precipitated carbonate of barytes in muria¬
tic acid, and throwing down the barytes in the state of
sulphate from the solution. The sulphate of barytes, ig¬
nited and weighed, easily furnished the weight of carbo¬
nic acid; and this weight, together with the known speci¬
fic gravity of carbonic acid gas, furnished the data for de¬
termining its volume. The experiments were continued for
two years. Sometimes (indeed most commonly) the air
examined was collected at Chambeisy, a meadow about
three fourths of a league from Geneva, elevated about 521-
feet above the lake, and distant from it 820 feet. Its
elevation above the level of the sea is 1272 feet. It is
dry, open, and consists of a clay soil, a little inclined.
The mean quantity of carbonic acid gas found in 10,000
volumes of air deduced from 104 observations made dur¬
ing both day and night, and at all seasons, was 4T5 vo¬
lumes. The greatest quantity was 5*74 volumes, and
the smallest 3*13 volumes. The quantity of this gas is
affected by rainy weather; for when the soil is soaked
with water, it has the property of imbibing this gas.
Hence in rainy seasons the quantity of carbonic acid gas
in the atmosphere is usually rather less than in dry sea¬
sons. On the contrary, it would seem, from the observa¬
tions of Saussure, that a continued frost has a tendency to
augment the quantity of carbonic acid in the atmosphere,
doubtless because the frozen and dry soil does not pos¬
sess the property of absorbing it.
Air taken from the surface of the lake of Geneva, at an
elevation of four feet, was found in general to contain less
carbonic acid than the air of Chambeisy; but the same
kind of variation, depending on the season of the year,
was observable in both. Air from the streets of Geneva,
on the contrary, was found rather more loaded with car¬
bonic ac^d than the air above Chambeisy; but the differ¬
ence was not great. The volume of carbonic acid in air
from the tops of mountains was found to be rather greater
than that of carbonic acid in air from the low country;
and this difference is more remarkable in rainy than in
dry weather.
Wind has rather a tendency to augment the quantity
of carbonic acid in the air in low situations, doubtless by
mixing together the air on the mountains and in the val¬
leys ; but the difference is so small that it only becomes
perceptible by a long series of observations.
In general, the air over plains contains a greater pro¬
portion of carbonic acid during the night than during the
day; but this difference is not nearly so great in winter
as in summer. Indeed during that season of the year the
quantity is often as great or even greater during the day
than during the night.3
The reason why the quantity of carbonic acid gas in
the atmosphere is greater in the superior strata than at
the surface of the earth, is, probably, that vegetables have
the property of absorbing it and applying it to the pur¬
poses of vegetation. Hence, doubtless, the reason why it
does not increase, notwithstanding the prodigious quan-
air to be 0*000415, then the true component parts of 100 ^
volumes of air will be
Azotic gas   9*9668
Oxygen gas 19*9917
Carbonic acid gas  0*0415
100.
This, doubtless, will somewhat modify the specific gra¬
vity of oxygen and azotic gases; but the alteration is too
insignificant to claim any attention.
Besides these three constituents, there is a fourth, name-Air co
ly, the vapour of water, from which air is never altogether tains ^
free, and the proportion of which, owing to causes whichP0Ur’
cannot at present be fully explained, is continually af'ter-
ing. The consequence of this is, that if we weigh air in
its natural state ever so often, we shall hardly ever find
its weight in any two consecutive experiments altogether
the same. It is sufficiently known that water evaporates
spontaneously at all temperatures, and mixes with air in
the state of an invisible elastic fluid known by the name
of vapour or of steam when its elasticity is so great as to
balance that of the atmosphere. The elasticity of vapour
varies with the temperature. At 32° it is capable of sup¬
porting a column of mercury 02 inch high. At 80° it
supports a column of 1 inch, at 163° of about 10 inches,
at 180° of about 15 inches, and at 212° of about 30 inches.
Now, the quantity of it which can exist in the atmosphere
at the same time is proportional to this elasticity.
Mr Dalton has shown, that if/> = pressure of the atmo-hsvi
sphere in inches of mercury, / = elasticity of vapour con-Jter
tained in the atmosphere, x — volume of dry air in 100
volumes of the given atmospherical air; then
100
PX = 100; consequently x =■ p .
P—f
r
Let air be saturated with moisture at 32°.
we have
30
-/
In that case
px
P—f
~ 29*8
100
1*00671
= 99*333
1*00671
so that the volume of vapour (supposing its specific gra¬
vity 0*625) in 100 volumes of such air will amount to
0*666, which is just Part of the volume of the air.
At the temperature of 60° f — 0*52, we have therefore
-^7* = = 100, and * = 98*267; so that the vo-
p—f 29*48
lume of vapour capable of existing in the atmosphere at
17*33
60° is qqq of the atmosphere.
The highest temperature that the writer of this article
has had an opportunity of witnessing in Great Britain was
93°. At that temperature / = 1*5
= 100, and a? = 95;
p—f 28*5 ’
so that the volume of vapour capable of existing in the
5
20*
To determine the volume of vapour in the atmosphere
atmosphere at such a temperature is or
Phil. Mag. (1st series), xxiii. 354.
2 Traitt Elem. de Chim. i. 303.
3 Ann. de Chim. et de Phyt. xliv. 5.
ATMOSPHERE.
137
at any particular time, various instruments have been con-
trived, called hygrometers, some more and some less exact;
but the simplest and most accurate method of all is that
employed by Leroi, and afterwards by Mr Dalton. Take
a glass tumbler, as thin as possible, and fill it with water
somewhat colder than the temperature of the air at the
time. Observe if vapour be condensed on the outside of
the tumbler; if not, the water employed is not cold enough
for our purpose. Its temperature must be lowered either
by putting pieces of ice into it or by dissolving in it some
carbonate of soda or sulphate of soda, retaining their wa¬
ter of crystallization, but in powder. If vapour condense
on the outside of the tumbler, pour out the water into ano¬
ther glass and wipe the outside of the tumbler dry. When Atmo-
the temperature of the water has had time to be a little sphere,
elevated, pour it into the tumbler again, and observe whe-
ther moisture condense on the outside of the glass. If it
do, pour out the water, wipe the outside of the tumbler
again, and repeat the process when the water has become
a little warmer. This method of proceeding is to be per¬
severed in till you find the temperature at which the mois¬
ture just ceases to be condensed on the glass. That tem¬
perature, by means of the following table, will enable you
to determine the volume of vapour (of the specific gravity
0-625) existing in the atmosphere at the time that your
observation is made.
at Glas¬
gow.
following table gives the mean force of vapour in Glasgow
during every fortnight, from May 1823 to February 1824:
Force of Vapour Quantity
in Inches of Mercury, of vapour
1823. May, 1st fortnight 0-2707
2d 0-3494
June, 1st 0-3052
2d 0-2822
July, 1st 0-3526
2d 0-3819
August, 1st 0-4000
2d 0-3546
September, 1st 0.3790
2d 0-3404
October, 1st 0-3233
2d 0-3026
November, 1st 0-2808
2d 0-3230
December, 1st 0-2449
2d 0-2453
1824. January, 1st 0-2481
2d 0-2578
February, 1st 0-2468
2d 0*2170
Suppose we find that the temperature of the water
when moisture ceases to be condensed on the outside of
the tumbler is 40°, we look into the above table, and op¬
posite to 40° in it, we find 0-26 inch of mercury. This
denotes the force of the vapour contained in the atmo¬
sphere at the time our experiment was made. Suppose
the barometer to be standing at 30 inches, then the volume
of vapour in the atmosphere is or nearly of the
volume of the atmosphere.
The absolute quantity of vapour in the atmosphere is
usually greatest in summer on account of the temperature
being so much higher; but the moisture or dryness of
the air does not depend so much upon the absolute quan¬
tity of vapour which it contains, as on its approach to satura¬
tion. Suppose the temperature of the air to be 60°, and
that a tumbler filled with water of 60° condenses water
on its outside. This would indicate a force of vapour
equal to 0-52 inch of mercury. Now, as this is the force
of vapour at 60°, it is clear that as much vapour exists in
the air as is possible at that temperature. The air is
saturated with moisture, evaporation cannot go on in it,
and moisture will be deposited upon all bodies the least
colder than the air itself. Such a state of things takes
place pretty frequently in this country during winter,
though rarely during summer. Hence the atmosphere is
moister during winter than during summer, though the
absolute quantity of vapour which it contains may be much
le’ss.
With respect to the quantity of vapour in the atmo¬
sphere we have still very few data. Mr Daniel, in his
book on Meteorology, has given a table of the force of
vapour in the atmosphere at London for three years. The
VOL. IV.
The mean force of vapour in the atmosphere in Glas¬
gow is nearly 0-3 inch, which indicates the quantity of
vapour capable of existing in the atmosphere at 45°. Now
the mean temperature of Glasgow is 47°*75. It is ob¬
vious from this that the atmosphere in that part of Scot¬
land is moist.
It would be very interesting if we knew the force of
s
ATMOSPHERE.
138
Atmo- vapour at all the different seasons in the torrid zone. The
sphere, regularity of the weather in these climates, and the little
alteration in height of the barometer, would make a set
of such observations particularly valuable. They would
probably throw more light on the theory of rain than has
yet been done. The only set of observations which we
have seen on the quantity of vapour in countries approach¬
ing the torrid zone, are the following by Dr Heinecker,
in which he gives the maximum and minimum dew points
at Funchal in Madeira (lat. 32^ N.), during the year 1828,
which in that part of the world was remarkably dry.
Maximum. Minimum. Rain in Inches.
January 65° 50° 4<,08
February 56  50  1*64
March 65  48  1*68
April 63  45  3*35
May 69  51  2*14
June 70  54 0*21
July 72  61  0*10
August 73  63  0
September...75  69  1*39
October 74  56  0
November....72*5  54  2*56
December....67  50  0*52
17-671
These observations are not sufficient to give us an ac¬
curate notion of the state of the atmosphere at Funchal.
The highest dew point is 75°, indicating a force of va¬
pour amounting to 0*8581 inch, so that the vapour at that
time in the atmosphere was nearly gjth of its volume.
The lowest dew point is 45°, indicating a force of vapour
amounting to 0*3059 inch, so that the vapour at that time
in the atmosphere was nearly yJo of its volume. The
mean dew point deduced from the maxima and minima
is 61°, indicating a force of vapour of 0*5377 inch, or a
quantity of vapour amounting to nearly yyth of the volume
of the atmosphere. The mean temperature of Madeira
is 66°*3. Now since the mean dew point is 61°, it is
obvious that the atmosphere over Madeira is much drier
than at Glasgow, though the absolute quantity of vapour
which it contains is much greater.
Why t5ie Thus the atmosphere is a mixture of at least four dif-
(1 erent . ferent elastic fluids, namely, azotic gas, oxygen gas, car-
remain lirb°nic ac*d ^as, and the vapour of water. Doubtless all
mixed. other gaseous bodies and many vapours exist in it also,
but in too small quantities to be discovered by the most
delicate tests that we have it in our power to apply. These
different elastic fluids are mixed equably together; and
though there be a considerable difference in their speci¬
fic gravities, that difference has no tendency to cause
them to separate. The reason of this equable mixture
was first pointed out by Dalton. It depends upon a prin¬
ciple not yet generally recognised, but of the existence
of which recent observations leave little doubt. This
principle is, that the particles of elastic fluids are not mu¬
tually elastic to each other. The particles of oxygen re¬
pel the particles of oxygen, the particles of azotic gas re¬
pel those of azotic gas ; but a particle of oxygen does not
repel a particle of azotic gas. Hence, when a gas issues
from an orifice into a space filled by another gas, it rushes
precisely as if it were flowing into a vacuum. But the full
development of this important principle belongs to the
article Pneumatics.
Sf tv.1*"1/ A sreat d.eal ?ias been written about the salubrity of the
mosphere. atrnosPbere in different countries. It has been supposed, and
is still believed, that the average length of life in different Atmc
places depends chiefly upon the state of the atmosphere. spherf
It has been generally admitted that the atmosphere is fre- II
quently a vehicle by which diseases are communicated; and V^QD1
the prevalence of certain epidemic diseases, as the plague
and the yellow fever, in particular places, at particular sea¬
sons, has been accounted for in this way. But no satisfac¬
tory evidence has ever been adduced to satisfy us of the
accuracy of these opinions. The constituents of the atmo¬
sphere, azotic and oxygen gases, never undergo any sen¬
sible change in their proportions. Carbonic acid varies
somewhat, but its proportion is always so small that it
cannot be considered as a source of disease. The propor¬
tion of aqueous vapour is much more variable, and there
can be no doubt that it may have an effect upon in¬
dividuals predisposed to certain diseases. Consumptive
patients suffer much more when they breathe a very moist
than when they breathe a dry atmosphere. There are
few places in the habitable globe, if there be any, where
the atmosphere is constantly saturated with moisture;
and it cannot prove very injurious, even to consumptive
patients, except when in this state. Besides, that a very
dry atmosphere is not the best adapted for the continu¬
ance of health, is obvious from the sufferings to which
those who inhabit the west coast of Africa are liable dur¬
ing the prevalence of the sirocco, a wind so excessively
dry that even the wood of the floors shrinks in consequence
of its action.
Nothing has been more completely ascertained than
that marshy countries are subject to intermittent fevers,
and that the malignancy of these intermittent fevers in¬
creases with the heat of the climate. These diseases dis¬
appear when the marshes are drained, and therefore are
connected with moisture; but that they are not owing
to mere moisture, is obvious from this, that they do not
appear at the sea-shore or on the banks of rivers, though
the moisture be as great as in marshy countries. It is
the general opinion that these diseases owe their origin
to certain vapours which are given out during the putre¬
faction of vegetable substances; but of the nature of these
miasmata nothing is known. In the West Indies marshes
are most fatal to the inhabitants just when they are almost
(but not quite) dried up by the heat of the weather. It
is then that the exhalations are most abundant and most
deadly. It is known that smallpox, &c. may be commu¬
nicated by the mixture of a particular matter with the
blood. It is possible, though not very probable, that this
matter may at times exist in the atmosphere in the state
of vapour, or in combination with one or other of the con¬
stituents of air, most probably the aqueous vapour, and
the disease may be communicated by breathing such air.
It is a conceivable thing that the matter, which, like a
ferment, is capable of inducing certain diseases when it
enters into the blood, may exist occasionally united to the
aqueous vapour in the atmosphere.
It has been ascertained, by experiments that seem con¬
clusive, that these noxious states of the atmosphere, how¬
ever they originate, may be destroyed, and the air ren¬
dered healthy, by mixing it with chlorine. This is most
easily accomplished by introducing into the chamber to
be so purified a quantity of chloride of lime in an open
dish and pouring on it sulphuric acid. The chlorine is
disengaged and speedily fills the apartment. Then the
mixture is withdrawn and the room ventilated. See Cli¬
mate, Meteorology, Pneumatics. (l.)
ATOM, in Philosophy, a particle of matter, so minute
as to admit of no division. Atoms are the minima naturae,
1 Brewster’s Journal (new series), i. 34.
A T R
■ and are conceived to be the first principles or component
-• ‘mo. hy parts of all physical magnitude.
II ATOMICAL Philosophy, or the doctrine of atoms, a
Htrii • gygtem which, from the hypothesis that atoms are endued
^ with gravity and motion, accounted for the origin and
formation of all things. This philosophy was first broach¬
ed by Democritus, and afterwards cultivated and improv¬
ed by Epicurus, whence it is denominated the Epicurean
Philosophy.
ATOMIC Theory. See Chemistry.
ATONEMENT. See Expiation.
ATOOI, one of the larger Sandwich Islands, in the
South Pacific Ocean. Towards the north-east and north¬
west the country is rugged and broken, but to the south¬
ward it is more level. The hills rise from the sea with a
gentle acclivity, and at a little distance back are covered
with wood. The produce of this island is the same with
that of the rest of the cluster ; but its inhabitants greatly
excel their neighbours in the management of their planta¬
tions. It is nearly 30 miles in length, and contains about
54,000 inhabitants. Long. 200. 20. E. Lat. 21. 57. N.
ATREBATII, a people of Britain, who inhabited part
of Berkshire and Oxfordshire, next to the Bibroci. This
was one of those Belgic colonies which came out of Gaul
into Britain, and there retained their ancient name. They
are mentioned by Cmsar among the nations which com¬
posed the Belgic confederacy against him ; and the quota
of troops which they engaged to furnish on the occasion
to which he refers was 15,000. Comius of Arras was a king
or chieftain among the Atrebatii of Gaul in Caesar’s time ;
and he seems to have possessed some influence over the
Atrebatii of Britain, for he was sent by Caesar to persuade
them to submission. This circumstance renders it pro¬
bable that this colony of the Atrebatii had not been set¬
tled in Britain very long before that time. The Atrebatii
were amongst the British tribes which submitted to Caesar;
nor do we hear of any remarkable resistance they made
against the Romans at their next invasion under Claudius.
It is indeed probable that, before the time of this second
invasion, they had been subdued by some of the neigh¬
bouring states; perhaps by the powerful nation of the Cat-
tivellauni; which may also be the reason why they are so
little mentioned in history. Calliva Atrebatum, mention¬
ed in the seventh, twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth Iti¬
nera of Antoninus, and called by Ptolemy Calcula, seems
to have been the capital of the Atrebatii. But our anti¬
quaries differ respecting the situation of this ancient city;
some of them placing it at Wallingford, and others at II-
chester.
ATREUS, in Fabulous History, the son of Pelops and
Hippodamia, and the father of Agamemnon and Menelaus,
is supposed to have been king of Mycenae and Argos about
1228 years before the Christian era. He drove his bro¬
ther Thyestes from court for having criminal intercourse
with JErope his wife; but, understanding that two chil¬
dren were the fruit of this connection, he recalled his bro¬
ther, and made him eat them; at which horrid action the
sun, it is said, withdrew his light.
ATRI, or Atria, a town of Naples, in Abruzzo Citra,
with the title of a duchy. It is seated on a craggy moun¬
tain, 28 miles north-east of Aquila. Long. 13. 58. E. Lat.
42. 32. N.
ATRIENSES, in Antiquity, a kind of servants or offi¬
cers in the great families of Rome, who had the care and
inspection of the atria and the things lodged therein.
ATRIUM, in Ecclesiastical Antiquity, denotes an open
place or court before a church, making part of what was
called the narthex or ante-temple. The atrium in the an¬
cient churches was a large area or square plat of ground,
surrounded with a portico or cloister, situated between
ATT 139
the porch or vestibule of the church and the body of the Atrophy
church. Some have erroneously confounded the atrium II
with the porch or vestibule, from which it was distinct; Atten^lon/
others wdth the narthex, of which it was only a part. The
atrium was the mansion of those who were not suffered to
enter farther into the church; and more particularly, it was
the place where the first class of penitents stood to beg
the prayers of the faithful as they went into the church.
ATROPHY, in Medicine, a disease in which the body,
or some of its parts, does not receive the necessary nutri¬
ment from the blood, but wastes and decays incessantly.
ATROPOS, in Fabulous History, the name of the third
of the Parcce or Fates, whose business it was to cut the
thread of life.
ATTACHMENT, in English Law, implies the taking
or apprehending of a person by virtue of a writ or precept.
It is distinguished from an arrest by proceeding out of a
higher court by precept or writ; wheueas the latter pro¬
ceeds out of an inferior court by precept only. An arrest
lies only against the body of a man; whereas an attachment
lies often against the goods only, and sometimes against
the body and goods. An attachment by writ differs from
distress in not extending to lands; and a distress touches
not the body, as an attachment does.
ATTACOTTI, an ancient people of Britain, mentioned
by Ammianus Marcellinus and St Jerome, as well as in
the Notitia Imperii. They are represented as allies and
confederates of the Scots and Piets, and therefore proba¬
bly their neighbours; though their precise situation has
not been determined by antiquaries.
A TTAINDER, in Law, is that species of infamy which
is incurred by one who has been capitally convicted of a
felony, treason, or other great crime. In that case the law
sets a note of infamy upon him, puts him out of its pro¬
tection, and takes no further care of him than barely to
see him executed. He is then called attaint, attinctus,
stained or blackened. He is no longer of any credit or re¬
putation ; he cannot be a witness in any court, neither is
he capable of performing the functions of another man;
for, by an anticipation of his punishment, he is already
dead in law. This is after judgment; but there is a great
difference between a man convicted and attamted, although
they are frequently through inaccuracy confounded toge¬
ther. After conviction only a man is liable to none of
these disabilities ; for there is still in the contemplation of
law a possibility of his innocence. Something may be
offered in arrest of judgment; the indictment may be er¬
roneous, which will render his guilt uncertain, and there¬
upon the present conviction may be quashed: he may ob¬
tain a pardon, or be allowed the benefit of clergy ; each of
which supposes some latent sparks of merit, which plead
in extenuation of his fault. But when judgment is once
pronounced, both law and fact concur in holding him com¬
pletely guilty; and there is not the remotest possibility
left of any thing effectual being said in his favour. Upon
judgment of death, therefore, and not before, the attain¬
der of a criminal commences; or upon such circumstances
as are equivalent to judgment of death, as judgment of out¬
lawry on a capital charge, pronounced for absconding or
fleeing from justice, which tacitly confesses the guilt; and
therefore, upon judgment either of outlawry or of death,
for treason or felony, a man is said to be attainted.
ATTENTION, a due application of the ear or of the
mind to any thing said or done, in order to acquire a
knowledge thereof. The word is compounded of ad, to,
and the verbal substantive derived from tendo, I stretch.
Attention, in respect of hearing, is the stretching or
straining of the membrana tympani, so as to make it more
susceptible of sounds, and better prepared to catch even
a feeble agitation of the air; or it is the adjusting of the
140
ATT
Attenua- tension of that membrane to the degree of loudness or low-
tion ness of the sound to which we are attentive.
II According to the degree of attention, objects make a
yjfstronger or weaker impression. Attention is requisite
even to the simple act of seeing: the eye can take in a
considerable field at one look, but no object in the field is
seen distinctly except that singly which fixes the atten¬
tion ; in a profound reverie, which totally occupies the at¬
tention, we scarcely see what is directly before us. In a
train of perceptions, no particular object makes such a
figure as it would do singly and apart; for when the at¬
tention is divided among many objects, no particular ob¬
ject is entitled to a large share. Hence the stillness of
night contributes to terror, there being nothing to divert
the attention.
Attention is classed by Mr Dugald Stewart as a dis¬
tinct faculty of the mind; an arrangement from which
some other philosophers have dissented. But his admi¬
rable illustrations of the effects or results of attention are
not at all dependent on the opinion which may be formed
on this question. (See Elements of the Philosophy of the
Human Mind, ch. ii.)
ATTENUATION, the act of making any fluid thinner
and less consistent than it was before, or of enlarging bodies
in superficial extent. The word is compounded of ad,
to, and tenuis, thin.
ATTERBURY, Dr Francis, son of Dr Lewis Atter-
bury, was born at Milton in Buckinghamshire, in 1662;
educated at Westminster; and thereafter elected to Christ
Church in Oxford, where he soon distinguished himself by
his fine genius and taste for polite literature. In 1687 he
was made M. A., when he exerted himself in the contro¬
versy with the papists; vindicated Luther in the strongest
manner; and showed an uncommon fund of learning, en¬
livened with great vivacity. In 1690 he married Miss
Osborn, a distant relation of the duke of Leeds, and a
lady of great beauty, but of small fortune.
In February 1690 and 1691 we find him resolved to
“ bestir himself in his office in the house,” that of censor
probably; an officer peculiar to Christ Church, who pre¬
sides over the classical exercises. At the same time he
held the catechetical lecture founded by Dr Busby.
It must have been about this period that he took or¬
ders, and entered upon another scene and another sort of
conversation; for in 1691 he was elected lecturer of St
Bride’s Chqrch in London, and preacher at Bridewell Cha-
pel. ^ An academic life, indeed, must have been irksome
and insipid to a person of his active and aspiring temper.
It was hardly possible that a clergyman of his fine genius,
improved by study, and with a spirit to exert his talents,
should remain long unnoticed; and accordingly we find
that he was soon appointed chaplain to King William
and Queen Mary.
The share which he took in the controversywith Bent¬
ley, about the genuineness of Phalaris’s epistles, is now
veiy clearly ascertained. In one of the letters to his noble
pupil, dated Chelsea 1698, he says, the matter had cost
him some time and trouble. “ In laying the design of
t ic book, in writing above half of it, in reviewing a good
part of the rest, in transcribing the whole, and attending
the press, he adds, “ half a year of my life went away.”
. n ,a stl larger field of activity opened, in which
Atterbury was engaged four years with Dr Wake (after¬
wards archbishop of Canterbury) and others concerning
the rights, powers, and privileges of convocations; an in¬
vestigation in which, however the truth of the question
may be supposed to he, he displayed so much learning
and mgenuity, as well as zeal for the interests of his orde£
that the lower house of convocation returned him their
thanks, and the university of Oxford complimented him
ATT
with the degree of D. D. On the 29th January 1700 heAtterbi f
was installed archdeacon of Totness, being promoted to WY' r\
that dignity by Sir Jonathan Trelawney, then bishop of
Exeter. The same year he was engaged, with some other
learned divines, in revising an intended edition of the
Greek Testament, with Greek scholia, collected chiefly
from the fathers by Mr Archdeacon Gregory. At this
period he was very popular as preacher at the Rolls Cha¬
pel ; an office which had been conferred on him by Sir
John Trevor, a great discerner of abilities, in 1698, when
he resigned Bridewell, which he had obtained in 1693.
Upon the accession of Queen Anne in 1702, Dr Atterbury
was appointed one of her majesty’s chaplains in ordinary;
and in October 1704 he was advanced to the deanery of
Carlisle. About two years after this he was engaged in a
dispute with Mr Hoadly concerning the advantages of vir¬
tue with regard to the present life, occasioned by his ser¬
mon preached 30th August 1706, at the funeral of Mr
Thomas Bennet, a bookseller. In 1707 Sir Jonathan Tre¬
lawney, then bishop of Exeter, appointed him one of the
canons residentiaries of that church. In 1709 he was en¬
gaged in a fresh dispute with Mr Hoadly concerning the
doctrine of passive obedience, occasioned by his Latin
sermon, entitled Condo ad Clerum Londinensem, hahita in
Ecclesia S. Elphegi. In 1710 came on the famous trial
of Dr Sacheverell, whose remarkable speech on that oc¬
casion was generally supposed to have been drawn up by
our author, in conjunction with Dr Smalridge and Dr
Freind. The same year Dr Atterbury was unanimously
chosen prolocutor of the lower house of convocation, and
had the chief management of affairs in that house. On the
11th May 1711 he was appointed by the convocation one
of the committee for comparing Mr Whiston’s doctrines
with those of the church of England; and in June follow¬
ing he had the chief hand in drawing up A Representation
of the Present State of Religion. In 1712 Dr Atterbury was
made dean of Christ Church, notwithstanding the strong
interest and warm applications of several great men in
behalf of his competitor Dr Smalridge. The next year
saw him at the summit of his preferment, as well as of his
reputation ; for, in the beginning of June 1713, the queen,
on the recommendation of Lord Chancellor Harcourt, ad¬
vanced him to the bishopric of Rochester, with the dean-
ery of Westminster in commendam. He was confirmed
on the 4th July, and consecrated at Lambeth the next
day.
In the beginning of the succeeding reign his tide of
prosperity began to turn ; and he received a sensible mor¬
tification presently after the coronation of King George I.,
when, upon his offering to present to his majesty, with a
view, no doubt, of standing better in his favour, the chair
of state or royal canopy, his own perquisite as dean of
Westminster, the tender was rejected, not without some
evident marks of dislike to his person.
During the rebellion in Scotland, and after the Pre¬
tender s declaration had been widely distributed, the
arc ibishop of Canterbury, and the bishops in or near
one on, drew up and published a Declaration of their ab-
1011 ence of the present Rebellion, and an Exhortation to the
ergy and People to be zealous in the discharge of their
u us to His Majesty King George; but the bishop of
Rochester refused to sign it, and engaged Bishop Smal-
nege o join in the refusal, on account of some reflec-
mns i contained against the high church party. In fact
e appeared generally among the protestors against the
measures of the king’s ministers, and for the most part
drew up the reasons of the protests with his own hand.
n we find him advising Dean Swift in the ma-
nagement of a refractory chapter. On the 26th April
172^ he sustained a severe trial in the loss of his lady,
ATT
ri .y by whom he had four children. In this memorable year,
W ^ also, on a suspicion of his being concerned in a plot in fa-
r vour of the Pretender, he was apprehended (24th August),
and committed prisoner to the Tower. This commitment
of a bishop upon suspicion of high treason, as it was a
thing rarely practised since the Reformation, so it occa¬
sioned various speculations, which amused the nation at
that time; and men, as usual, judged of things by tlie
standard of their own affections and prejudices.
On the 23d March 1723 a bill was brought into the
house of commons for inflicting certain pains and penal¬
ties on Francis, Lord Bishop of Rochester, a copy of which
was sent to him, with notice that he had liberty of coun¬
sel and solicitors for making his defence. Under these
circumstances the bishop applied by petition to the house
of lords for their direction and advice as to his conduct
in this conjuncture; and on the 4th April he acquainted
the speaker of the house of commons, by letter, that he
was determined to give that house no trouble in relation
to the Dill depending therein, but should be ready to make
his defence against it when it should be argued in another
house, of which he had the honour to be a member. On
the 9th the bill passed the house of commons, and was
the same day sent up to the house of lords for their con¬
currence.
May the 6th being the day appointed by the lords for the
first reading of the bill, Bishop Atterbury was brought to
Westminster to make his defence. The proceedings con¬
tinued above a week; and, on May the Ilth, he was per¬
mitted to plead for himself. This he did in a very elo¬
quent speech, which he feelingly opens by complaining of
the uncommon severity he had experienced in the tower,
and which had been carried to so great a length that not
even his son-in-law Mr Morice was permitted to speak to
him in any other way than by standing in an open area,
whilst the bishop looked out of a two-pair-of-stairs win¬
dow. On the 13th he was carried for the last time from
the tower in order to hear the reply of the king’s coun¬
sel to his defence. On the 15th the bill was read a third
time, and, after a very long and warm debate, passed on
the 16th by a majority of 83 to 43. On the 27th the king
came to the house and confirmed it by his royal assent.
On the 18th June 1723 this eminent prelate, having the
day before taken leave of his friends, who, from the time
of the passing of the bill against him till the day of his
departure, had free access to him in the tower, embarked
on board the Aldborough man-of-war, and landed the Fri¬
day following at Calais. When he went on shore, being
informed that Lord Bolingbroke (who, after the rising of
the parliament, had received the king’s pardon), was ar¬
rived at the same place on his return to England, he said,
with an air of pleasantry, “ Then I am exchanged.” And
it was, in the opinion of Mr Pope expressed on the same
occasion, a sign that the nation was afraid of being over¬
run with too much politeness, when it could not regain one
great man but at the expense of another. The severity of
the bishop’s treatment did not cease with his banishment;
the same vindictive spirit pursued him even in foreign
climes; and no British subject was permitted to visit him
without the king’s sign manual, which Mr Morice was al¬
ways obliged to solicit, not only for himself, but for every
one of his family whom he carried abroad with him, for
which the fees of office were very high.
When Bishop Atterbury first entered upon his banish¬
ment, Brussels was the place destined for his residence ;
but, by the arts and instigation of the British ministers,
he was compelled to leave that city, and retire to Paris.
A T T
141
There, being solicited by the friends of the Pretender to Atterbury.
enter into their negociations, he changed his abode for
Montpelier in 1728; and after residing in the latter place
about two years, returned to Paris, where he died on the
15th February 1732. The affliction which he had sus¬
tained by the death of his daughter in 1729 wras thought
to have hastened his own dissolution.
How far the bishop may have been attached by in¬
clination to the cause of the Stuart family, to which he
might have been led by early prejudices of education and
the divided opinion of the times, it is not necessary here
to inquire; but that he should have been weak enough
to engage in a plot so inconsistent with his station, and so
clumsily devised, to say nothing of his solemn asseveration
of innocence, is utterly inconsistent with that cunning
which his enemies ascribed to him. The duke of W har¬
ton, it is well known, was violent against him, till con¬
vinced by his unanswerable reasoning.
His body was brought over to England, and interred
in Westminster Abbey, in a vault which, in the year 1722,
had been prepared by his directions. Some time before
his death he published a vindication of himself, Bishop
Smalridge, and Dr Aldrich, from a charge brought against
them by Mr Oldmixon, of having altered and interpolated
the copy of Lord Clarendon’s History of the Rebellion.
Atterbury’s Sermons are extant in four volumes in octavo.
Those contained in the first two were published by himself,
and dedicated to his great patron Sir Jonathan Trelawney,
bishop of Winchester; those contained in the last two were
published after his death by Dr Thomas Moore, his lord¬
ship’s chaplain. Four admirable Visitation Charges ac¬
company his Epistolary Correspondence, published by Mr
Nichols in 5 vols. 8vo.
As to Bishop Atterbury’s character, however differently
the moral and political part of it may have been repre¬
sented by the opposite parties, it is universally agreed
that he was a man of great learning and uncommon abili¬
ties, a fine writer, and a most excellent preacher. His
learned friend Smalridge, in the speech he made when
he presented him to the upper house of convocation, as
prolocutor, styled him Vir in nullo literarum genere hospes,
in plerisque artibus et studiis diu et feliciter exercitatus, in
maxime perfectis literarum disciplinis perfectissimus. In his
controversial writings he was sometimes severe to excess
upon his adversary, and dealt rather too much in satire and
invective; but this his panegyrist imputes more to the natu¬
ral fervour of his wit than to any bitterness of temper or in¬
herent malice of disposition. In his sermons, however, he
is not only every way unexceptionable, but highly to be
commended. The truth is, his talent as a preacher w'as
so excellent and remarkable, that it may not improperly be
said that he owed his preferment to the pulpit. “ He has,”
says an author in the Tatler, “ so particular a regard to
his congregation, that he commits to his memory what he
has to say to them; and has so soft and graceful a beha¬
viour, that it must attract your attention. His person, it
is to be confessed, is no small recommendation; but he
is to be highly commended for not losing that advantage,
and adding to propriety of speech (which might pass the
criticism of Longinus) an action which would have been
approved by Demosthenes. He never attempts your pas¬
sions till he has convinced your reason. All the objec¬
tions which you can form are laid open and dispersed
before he uses the least vehemence in his sermon; but
when he thinks he has your head, he very soon wins
your heart, and never pretends to show the beauty of
holiness till he has convinced you of the truth of it.”
U2
ATT
Attica.
Bound¬
aries and
extent.
Soil and
climate.
Chief
cities.
Ogyges,
An ancient kingdom of Greece, situated between the
Strait of Euripus or Negropont on the north-east, and the
Gulf of Saron or AEgina on the south-west, may be consi¬
dered as forming a triangle, the base of which constitut¬
ed the conterminous boundary with Boeotia, while the
two other sides, washed by the sea, had their vertex at
the promontory of Sunium or Cape Colonna. The pro¬
longation of the south-western side northward till it reach¬
ed the extremity of the base at the foot of Mount Cithae-
ron served as the line of demarcation between tbe Athe¬
nian territory and that belonging to the small state of
Megara. Hence Attica may be described generally as
bounded on the north-east by the channel of Negropont,
on the south-west by the Gulf of vEgina and part of Me¬
gara, and on the north-west by the territory which formed
the ancient Boeotia; including, within these limits, an area
or superficies of about 750 square miles.
The soil of Attica was not so unsuited to the purposes
of agriculture as has commonly been supposed. It was,
indeed, stony and uneven in many places; a considerable
part consisted of bare rock, on which little or nothing could
be grown ; but even the less fertile portion produced barley
and wheat, the latter, it is true, with difficulty; and the
mildness of the climate allowed all the more valuable pro¬
ducts of the earth to ripen the earliest and go out of sea¬
son the latest. Every kind of plant and animal throve
notwithstanding the poverty of the soil; and the advan¬
tages which nature had denied were, in a great measure,
compensated by the effects of skill and industry. It sel¬
dom happens that the richest countries are the most pro¬
ductive ; or that the bounty of nature, where it has been
profusely lavished, is improved by corresponding exertions
on the part of man. Repugnant to labour where labour
can be dispensed with, it is necessity alone that compels
him to earmhis bread with the sweat of his brow, and to
torture the ungrateful soil for its scanty products. But
habits of exertion being once formed, a variety of causes
gradually contribute to stimulate his activity and extend
his resources. He naturally aspires to improve his condi¬
tion and circumstances by all the means in his power; 
experience soon teaches him better modes of exerting
his industry;—as society advances, the natural reward of
labour and skill is increased;—and if the public policy of
the state be wisely directed to accelerate the operation of
natural causes, the most striking results may be produced,
and countries originally barren covered with well-cultivat¬
ed fields, teeming with abundant harvests. Such seems
to have been the progression of improvement in Attica;
which, though one of the least fertile of the Grecian pro¬
vinces, was, by the industry and skill of its inhabitants,
rendered ultimately one of the most productive in propor¬
tion to its extent and the portion of its surface which was
susceptible of cultivation.
The chief cities in the ancient kingdom of Attica were
Athens the capital, ot which a very full description has
been given under that head (see article Athens) ; Eleusis,
situated on the gulf of the same name, at an equal distance
from Megara and the Peiraeus, where the greater myste-
i ies of Ceres were quadriennially celebrated; and, lastly,
Rhamnus, famous for the temple of Amphiaraus, and a
statue of the goddess Nemesis, executed by Phidias.
Ogyges has had the imputation of being the first kin0,
°f Attica; and chronologers have even undertaken to fix
the date of his reign, which has been variously set down
1 C A,
at 150 and 200 years before the arrival of Cecrops. But Attic
we have no assurance that even the name of Ogyges was
known to the older Grecian authors; and if any thing
can be gathered from the traditions concerning this fabu¬
lous personage, reported by later writers, it is, that, at some
very remote period, a flood, having desolated the rich fields
of Bceotia over which be reigned, drove many of the in¬
habitants to establish themselves in the adjoining district
of Attica, which, though hilly, rocky, and little fruitful,
wras yet judged preferable to a champaign country, sur¬
rounded on all sides by mountainous tracts, and conse¬
quently exposed to a recurrence of the calamity by which
so many of them had been overwhelmed. We may there¬
fore safely consign this legendary monarch to that primi¬
tive obscurity in which his existence, his origin, and his
achievements are equally involved.
At the same time there cannot be a stronger proof ofCecrop;
the early civilization of Attica, or at least of its capital city,
than the remote period to which its history is carried back
in a clear and consistent series. This series commences
with Cecrops, an Egyptian, believed to have been contem¬
porary with Moses. Having led into Attica a colony of his
countrymen, and brought along with him from Sais the wor¬
ship of Neith, afterwards called Athene, this adventurer
settled on the rock of the Acropolis, which hence received
the name of Cecropia, and soon extended his dominion
over the whole tract, which was afterwards denominated
Attica. He divided his newly-acquired territory into
twelve districts, with a principal town or rather village in
each, where he caused justice to be administered accord¬
ing to some salutary laws he had established ; and he also
taught his subjects a more regular and effectual mode of
defence against the incursions of their neighbours, from
which even their poverty did not exempt them. He fix¬
ed his residence in the Cecropia, which was peculiarly
under the patronage of the Egyptian goddess, whom the
Greeks worshipped by the name of Athene, and the Latins
by that of Minerva; while many, induced by the proxi¬
mity of the port and the protection of the fortress, erect¬
ed their habitations around the base of the latter, and
thus gave rise to that city which was destined to become
afterwards so illustrious both in arts and in arms. Cecrops
is also said to have been the founder of religion as well as
laws; to have established the worship of Jupiter, and in¬
stituted marriage among the Greeks; to have taught his
subjects the arts of ship-building and navigation ; to have
divided them into four tribes, which were afterwards in¬
creased to ten by Cleisthenes; and, finally, to have insti¬
tuted the celebrated tribunal of Areiopagus.
Among the successors of Cecrops, those whose names His r
have been chiefly recorded in Athenian tradition are,(Hates
1. Amphictyon, son of Deucalion of Thessaly, who is saidcessor
to have succeeded to the throne in right of his wife Atthis,
daughter of Cranaus, a native Athenian, who succeeded
Cecrops. From Atthis the country, which had hitherto
been called Actea, is said to have taken the name of
Attica. 2. Erechtheus the First, called by later writers
Erich thonius. He set up an image of Minerva, made of olive
wood, in the Cecropia; and instituted festivals called Athe-
naea in the Attic cities or head towns of districts, which
were then twelve in number. Erechtheus was fabled to
have Deen the son of Neptune and the earth, to have been
educated by Minerva, to have acted as her assistant in
the invention of war-horses and chariots, and to have been
A
ATTICA.
U3
buried in the temple which he had dedicated to her in
> the Cecropia, and which, from this circumstance, was to
the latest period known by the name of the Erichtheium.
3. Pandion the First. In his reign lived Triptolemus, who
was supposed to have been instructed in the art of husband¬
ry by Ceres, and to have instituted the Eleusinian mysteries.
4. Erechtheus the Second. He colonized a part of Euboea,
and defeated Eumolpus, who, with a body of Thracians, had
seized on Eleusis; but he was unhappily slain in the ac¬
tion. The daughters of Erechtheus are said to have de¬
voted themselves to death that their father might prove
successful in the Eleusinian war; and about the same time
the daughters of Leos were immolated to avert a conta¬
gious sickness, in obedience to the Delphic oracle, which
prescribed human sacrifices upon the occasion. These
and similar remains of barbarism appear from Homer to
have prevailed among the Greeks as late as the time of
the Trojan war. 5. iEgeus, who, after the direct succes¬
sion had been considerably disturbed by the collateral
branches, recovered the throne, and enjoyed a long reign
of thirty-nine years. 6. Theseus. In his way to Athens
from Troezen, where he had been living in obscurity, The¬
seus cleared the country of the robbers who opposed him,
and for these exploits was acknowledged by iEgeus and
the Athenians as successor to the throne. He afterwards
relieved Athens from a disgraceful tribute exacted by the
king of Crete ; and having succeeded to the royal autho¬
rity, laid the foundation of the early pre-eminence of his
country, by founding the Prytaneium as a court of judica¬
ture common to all Attica, and by estahJishing the Pana-
thenaea in thh Erichtheium as a festival for the whole pro¬
vince. The immediate consequence of this change, which
occurred about the year b. c. 1300, was the decline of the
other eleven Attic cities ; a concentration of the govern¬
ment in the town of Athens ; and a great increase of popu¬
lation in Attica, attracted by the protection and security re¬
sulting from the new laws of Theseus. But these signal be¬
nefits, gilded as they were by the brilliant exploits of the pa¬
triotic hero, failed to secure him the gratitude of those for
whom he had laboured, and fought, and suffered. In conse¬
quence of the intrigues of Mnestheus, the son of Pteus, and
great-grandson of Erechtheus, he was forced to flee from
Athens, and at length died in exile in the island of Scyros.
?- Mnestheus ascended the throne from which Theseus
°* had been expelled, and reigned twenty-four years. He lost
his life at the siege of Troy, and was succeeded by Demo-
phon, one of the sons of Theseus by Phaedra, who vras
likewise present at the siege, but had the good fortune to
return in safety. In the reign of the latter prince was erect¬
ed the famous court of the Ephetae, consisting originally
of fifty Athenians and as many Argives, appointed for the
purpose of trying persons accused of the crime of wilful
murder. By this court the king himself afterwards sub¬
mitted to be tried for having accidentally killed one of his
subjects. Mnestheus was succeeded by his son or brother
Oxyntes, who again was succeeded by his son Aphydes;
and this last was murdered by a natural brother of the name
of Thymaetes. But the bastard usurper discovered many
base qualities unworthy of the station he had assumed, and
was at last deposed by his subjects on account of the fla¬
grant cowardice he had displayed on a critical occasion.
ius, Thymaetes was appropriately succeeded by a knavish
adventurer called Melanthus, who, after a long reign of
thirty-seven years, left the kingdom to his son Codrus.
The latter reigned twenty-one years, during which period
the Dorians and Heracleidae had regained all Peloponne- Attica
sus, and were upon the point of invading Attica. Codrus, v—
being informed that the oracle had promised them victory
provided they did not kill the king of the Athenians, came
immediately to a resolution of dying for his country. Dis¬
guising himself, therefore, as a peasant, he went into the
enemy’s camp, and having quarrelled with some of the com¬
mon soldiers, was killed in a brawl. On the morrow the
Athenians, knowing what had happened, sent to demand
the body of their king, at which the invaders were so ter¬
rified that they decamped without striking a blow.
Upon the death of Codrus, a dispute which happened Bemo-
among his sons concerning the succession furnished the^O'*
Athenians with a pretence for ridding themselves of their
kings, and changing the monarchical into a republican form
of government. It was highly improbable, they said, that
they should ever again have so good a king as Codrus;
and, to prevent their having a worse, they resolved to have
no king but Jupiter.1 That they might not, however, ap¬
pear ungrateful to the family of Codrus, they made his
son Medon their supreme magistrate, with the title of ar-
chon ; an office which was afterwards rendered decennial,
but nevertheless continued in the family of Codrus. But
the extinction of the Medontidae having at last left them
without restraint, they not only made this office annual,
but at the same time created nine archons. By the lat¬
ter expedient they provided against the exorbitant power
of a single person, as by the former they took away all ap¬
prehension of the archons having time to establish them¬
selves, so as to be able to change the constitution. In a
word, they now attained what they had long sought after,
namely, rendering the supreme magistrates entirely de¬
pendent upon the people.
There has been handed down to us an enumeration of Archons,
these archons for upwards of six centuries, beginning withBraco.
Creon, who lived about 684 years b. c., and coming down
to Herodes, who lived only sixty years prior to that era.
The first archon of whom we hear any thing really worthy
of notice was Draco. He governed about the middle of the
39th Olympiad, when it is supposed he promulgated his
laws ; but although his name is very frequently mentioned
in history, no connected account can be found either of the
lawgiver or of his institutions. We only know generally
that his laws were excessively severe, awarding the punish¬
ment of death for the smallest offences no less than for
the most heinous crimes; and that, as Demades remark¬
ed of them, they seemed to have been written, not with
ink, but with blood. For this extraordinary and undis¬
criminating severity he gave no other reason than that the
smallest faults appeared to him to be worthy of death, and
that he could find no higher punishment for the great¬
est. He was far advanced in years when he legislated
for Athens ; and he appears to have been vastly conceited
of his institutions, which he would not suffer to be called
laws, but sanctions, as if they had been emanations ol di¬
vine wisdom. The Athenians, however, soon grew weary
both of the sanctions and their author; upon which Draco
was obliged to retire to iEgina, where he was received in
the most fluttering manner. But the favour of the inha¬
bitants of this place proved more fatal to him than the
hatred of the Athenians; for coming one day into the
theatre, the audience, to evince their regard for the ex¬
iled legislator, threw their cloaks upon him, and fairly
stifled the old man to death with their kindness.
Not long after the expulsion of Draco, we find the re-Mityle-
1 “ It is remarkable,” savs Mr Mitford, “ that Athenian and Homan superstition, without any connection between the people,
should have agreed so exactly in the extraordinary circumstance that, after the abolition ot royalty among both, and while t le very
name of king was abhorred as a title of civil magistracy or military command, yet equally the title and the office were scrupu ous y
retained for the administration of religious ceremonies.” (History of Greece, vol. i. p. 90, London, 1829, 8vo.)
/
IU
ATTICA.
Attica, public engaged in a war with the Mitylenians about the
city Sigaeum, situated near the mouth of the river Sca-
mander. The Athenian army was commanded by Phry-
non, and that of the Mitylenians by Pittacus, one of the
seven sages of Greece; but the generals, thinking the ho¬
nour of their respective countries concerned, and being at
the same time desirous to spare the effusion of blood, agreed
to settle the dispute by single combat. They met accord¬
ingly ; but the sage, trusting more to cunning than to cou¬
rage, concealed behind his shield a net, wherewith he
suddenly entangled his antagonist, and easily slew him.
This, however, not putting an end to the war, Periander
of Corinth interposed; and both parties having submitted
to his arbitration, he decreed that Sigaeum should belong
to the Athenians.
Cylon’s About seven years after the Mitylenian war, a conspi-
conspiracy.raCy was entered into by Cylon, son-in-law of Theagenes,
prince of Megara, for the purpose of seizing on the sove¬
reignty of Athens. . Having consulted the Delphic oracle
as to the most proper time, and received directions to make
the attempt while the citizens of Athens were engaged in
celebrating the great festival of Jupiter, Cylon and his
associates made themselves masters of the citadel by a
coup-de-main, at the time when the greater part of the
citizens had repaired to Elis to witness the celebration of
the Olympic games. But being instantly besieged by
Megacles, who was at that time archon, and soon reduced
to great distress from want of water, the chief conspirator
and his brother contrived to effect their escape; upon
which the remainder fled for safety to the temple of Mi¬
nerva, where they were barbarously massacred by order of
Megacles, and in virtue of one of those sophistical quibbles
by means of which men sometimes reconcile their minds
to the perpetration of the foulest and bloodiest deeds.
War with At this period of confusion the Megarensians attacked
Megara. and took both Nisea and Salamis. The former was a place
ofclittle or no importance in any, the latter one of the very
greatest in every view; but so completely were the Athe¬
nians routed in every attempt to retake it, that a law was at
last passed, declaring it capital for any one to propose the
recovery of Salamis. About the same time the city was
disturbed by reports of frightful appearances, and filled
with superstitious fears. The oracle at Delphi was there¬
fore consulted, and an answer returned that the city must
be purified by certain expiatory rites. This was accord-
ingly done' under the superintendence of one Epimenides,
a Cretan, who prescribed the sacrifice of white and black
sheep, and also caused many temples and chapels to be
erected, including one dedicated to Contumely, and an¬
other to Impudence ! This man, after looking wistfully
for a long time to the port of Munychia, spoke as follows
to those that were near him: “ How blind is man to the
future ! For, did the Athenians know what mischief will
one day be derived to them from this place, they would
eat it with their teeth.” This prediction was thought to
have been accomplished two hundred and seventy years
after, when Antipater constrained the Athenians to admit
a Macedonian garrison into that place.
Solon. _ About 577 years b. c., Solon, the famed Athenian le¬
gislator, began to show himself to his countrymen. He
is said to have been lineally descended from Codrus, but
left by his father in circumstances rather necessitous,
which obliged him to apply himself to merchandise. From
the first he appeared in the character of a patriot. The
shameful decree, that none under pain of death should
propose the recovery of Salamis, grieved him so much,
that having composed an elegy such as he thought cal¬
culated to inflame the minds of the people, he ran into
the market-place as if he had been insane, with his night¬
cap on his head, repeating his verses. A crowd soon col¬
lected around the pretended madman; his kinsman Peisis- Att;
trains mingled with the people, and observing them moved ^ ✓
with Solon’s words, agreed to second the patriotic poet
with all the eloquence he was master of; and at length
they prevailed so far as to have the law rescinded, war
declared against the people of Megara, and an expedition
immediately fitted out for the recovery of Salamis; which
was ultimately effected by a stratagem more creditable to
the ingenuity than the bravery of the Athenians.
The success of this enterprise at once established the
reputation of Solon; who, on his return to Athens, was
greatly honoured by the people, and soon afforded them
another occasion of admiring that wisdom for which they
had already given him credit. The inhabitants of Cirrha,
a town situated in the Bay of Corinth, having repeatedly
wasted the territory of Delphi, at last besieged the capi¬
tal itself, with a view of makirig themselves masters of
the treasures contained in the temple of Apollo. Advice
of this intended sacrilege having been sent to the Amphic-
tyons, or the states-general of Greece, Solon advised that
the matter should be universally resented, and that all the
s-tates should join in punishing the Cirrhaeans, and in saving
the Delphic oracle. This suggestion was adopted, and a
general war against Cirrha declared. Cleisthenes, prince
of Sicyon, commanded in chief, and the Athenian contin¬
gent was under the orders of Alcmaeon. Solon accom¬
panied the expedition as assistant or counsellor to Cleis¬
thenes, and under his direction the war was conducted to a
prosperous issue. According to Pausanias, the city was re¬
duced by a singular stratagem, said to have been invented
by Solon. He caused the river Plistus, which flowed through
Cirrha, to be turned into another channel, hoping thereby
to distress the inhabitants for want of water; but finding
they had many wells within the city, and were not to be
reduced by that means, he caused a vast quantity of roots
of hellebore to be thrown into the river, which was then
suffered to return into its former bed. The inhabitants,
overjoyed at the sight of running water, came in troops to
drink of it; the consequence of which was, that an epi¬
demic flux ensued, and the citizens being no longer able
to defend the walls, the town was easily captured. This,
as far as we know, is the only instance on record of a
town taken by physic.
On his return to Athens after the hellebore achieve-Atbei
ment, Solon found things again in the utmost confusion.?reat
The remnant of Cylon’s faction gave out that all sorts oru810‘
misfortunes had befallen the republic on account of the
impiety of Megacles and his followers ; and this clamour
was heightened by the retaking of Salamis about the same
time by the Megarensians. Solon interposed, and persuad¬
ing those who were styled “ execrable” to abide a trial,
three hundred persons were chosen to judge them. The
issue was, that the whole of Megacles’s party who were
alive were sent into perpetual exile, and the bones of such as
had died were dug up and sent beyond the limits of their
country. But although this decision restored tranquillity
for the time, the people soon becamp divided into three
factions, contending about the proper form of government.
These were called the Diacrii, Pedisei, and Parali; the
first of whom, consisting of the inhabitants of the hilly
country, declared positively for democracy; the second,
dwelling in the low country, and far more opulent than
the former, were in favour of an oligarchy, supposing the
government would fall mostly into their own hands; whilst
the third party, who inhabited the sea-coast, were people
of moderate principles, and therefore friendly to a mixed
government. But besides the agitations occasioned by
this difference of political sentiment, disturbances of a
much more serious character arose, in consequence of the
lamentable condition to which the labouring classes had
ATT
j At a. been reduced. According to Plutarch, the poor having
become indebted to the rich, either tilled their grounds and
paid them the sixth part of the produce, or impignorated
their persons for their debts, so that many were made slaves
at home, and not a few sold as such into foreign countries;
while some were even obliged to sell their children to pay
their debts, and others in despair quitted Attica altoge¬
ther. The greater part, however, were for throwing off
the yoke, and began to look about for a leader, openly de¬
claring that they intended to change the form of govern¬
ment, and to introduce an agrarian law.
Soi0 ,j)0. In this extremity the eyes of all were turned to Solon,
• sc;', lion.and some were for offering him the sovereignty at once;
but, perceiving the intentions of these misjudging persons,
he behaved in such a manner as to deceive both parties,
and showed that he thoroughly understood the character of
his countrymen. He refused the sovereignty tendered to
him, not because he had any objection to sovereign power,
but because he disliked an invidious name ; and, preferring
the substance to the shadow, he quietly took upon himself,
without any pomp or pageantry, the unqualified exercise
of the supreme authority of the state, in all its branches,
and wielded it with an absolutism which would have been
intolerable except under the disguise of republican forms.
He was chosen archon without having recourse to the bal¬
lot, an anomaly of which there is no other example; and,
after his election, he proved the wisdom of the choice
which the people had made, by disappointing the interested
expectations of all parties. It was a fundamental maxim
with Solon, that those laws will be best observed which
power and justice equally support. Hence, wherever he
found the old constitution in any measure consonant to
justice, he refused to make any alteration at all, and was
at extraordinary pains to show the reason of such changes
as were actually introduced. In a word, being a consum¬
mate judge of mankind generally, and, above all, tho¬
roughly conversant with the character of his countrymen,
he sought to rule only by showing the people that it was
their interest to obey, and contented himself with giv¬
ing them such institutions as they were prepared to re¬
ceive, instead of forcing upon them those which might be
esteemed theoretically the most perfect. Hence, to one
who inquired whether he had given the Athenians the best
laws in his power, he replied, “ I have established the best
which they could receive.”
*: Sei h- With reference to the main cause of sedition, namely,
' thi the oppressed state of the meaner class, Solon removed it
by a scheme which he called seisachthia, or discharge.
Ancient authors, however, are not agreed as to the pre¬
cise nature of this contrivance. Some say that he cancelled
all debts then in existence, and prohibited the seizure of
any man’s person in default of payment of a debt for the
future ; whilst others affirm that the poor were relieved, not
by cancelling the debts, but by lowering the interest, and
increasing the value of money, so that a mina, which before
was equal to seventy-three drachmas only, was by him
made equal to a hundred. The more probable opinion is,
that the seisachthia was a general remittance of all debts
whatsoever; for if the fact had been otherwise, Solon
could scarcely have boasted, as he did in his verses, that
he had removed the marks of mortgages which were every¬
where frequent, that he had freed from apprehension such
as were driven to despair, and had removed a source of in¬
terminable discord and confusion. It must be confessed,
however, that there is little ground for the ovation in which
theAthenian legislator appears to have indulged. His con¬
trivance, whichever way it be interpreted, was a manifest
wrong, which nothing but necessity—and scarcely even that
—could have justified. If by the seisachthia we are to un¬
derstand a general remittance of all debts, the nature of the
VOL. IV.
I C A. 145
proceeding scarcely requires to be characterized. It was an Attica,
act of open robbery committed on the creditor, who was
despoiled and ruined by law in order to relieve the debtor.
If, again, its operation was limited to lowering the rate of
interest and increasing the value of money, it was still an
act of robbery, though the spoliation of the creditor in this
case was only partial; while, by disturbing all existing ar¬
rangements, and by utterly destroying public confidence, it
was evidently calculated to strike at the sources of national
industry, and ultimately to aggravate the very evils which
it was intended to remedy. In this view it can scarcely
be regarded in any other light than as a fraudulent bank¬
ruptcy ; the less excusable as it seems to have been sanc¬
tioned, not so much from the pressure of any immediate
necessity, as from a desire to conciliate the multitude, and
to secure that hollow popularity which no man ever trusted
to without having cause to repent his credulity.
But in the midst of all the glory which Solon acquired
by this notable expedient, an accident occurred which for
a time clouded his reputation, and had almost entirely
ruined his schemes. Having, it seems, consulted Conon,
Clinias, and Hipponicus, three of his friends, on an oration
he had prepared with a view to engage the people’s consent
to the seisachthia, these worthies, thus apprized of the con¬
templated measure, availed themselves of their knowledge
to borrow large sums of money before the law was promul¬
gated, with the intention, of course, to take advantage of its
provisions, and refuse to repay the lenders. We cannot won¬
der that Solon himself was at first believed to have been cog¬
nizant of the scheme, and a partner in this fraudulent ad¬
venture. But, happily for his credit, these suspicions were
obliterated when it was discovered that the lawgiver was a
creditor to a large extent, and likely to become a consider¬
able loser by the operation of his own law. His friends,
however, never recovered their credit (it would have been
marvellous if they had), but were ever afterwards stigma¬
tized with the opprobrious appellation of chreiocopidce or
debt-sinkers.
From these and other causes the Athenians were as
little pleased with Solon’s management as with their for¬
mer condition; the rich, thinking he had done too much
in cancelling the money-debts due to them ; and the poor,
that he had done too little because he had not made an
equal division of the lands of Attica. But, with the fickle¬
ness characteristic of democracy, they at length acquiesced
in the new institutions, and gave a more public token of
their approbation than they had before shown of their dis¬
pleasure, by instituting a solemn sacrifice under the name
of seisachthia; at the same time that Solon was unani¬
mously elected legislator of Athens, with full powers to
make laws, and to alter or new-model the constitution as
he might think fit.
Solon being thus invested with unlimited authority, setCompila-
about the arduous task of compiling a body of laws for thetlon oi a
turbulent people of Attica; and having at last completed00 e’
his task in the best manner he could, or at least in the best
manner that the character of the people would admit, he
caused them to be duly ratified, and declared to be in
force for a century from the date of their publication.
Those which related to private actions were preserved on
parallelograms of wood, with cases which reached from
the ground, and turned upon a pin like a wheel, whence
the appellation of axones; and were placed, first in the
citadel, and afterwards in the Prytaneium, that all the
subjects of the state might have access to consult them
whenever they chose. Such as concerned public institu¬
tions and sacrifices were inscribed on triangular tablets of
stone called cyrbes. The Athenian magistrates were sworn
to observe both ; and in process of time these monuments
of Solon’s wisdom became so famous that all public acts
T
146 ATT
Attica, were from them named axones and cyrbes. With regard
to the axones or jus 'privatum of Solon, our information is
exceedingly imperfect; but if it be true that the decem-
viral constitutions were principally borrowed from this por¬
tion of his code, the fragments which remain of these
celebrated laws are certainly calculated to give us no mean
idea of his fitness for the task which circumstances as
well as inclination had induced him to undertake. Nor
will our opinion of the legislator be lowered by attending
to his system of public law; concerning which more exact
details have been preserved, and some account will be
given when we come to speak of the Athenian government.
After the promulgation of his code, Solon found himself
obliged to leave Athens, to avoid being continually teazed
for explanations and emendations of his laws; an annoy¬
ance, it is to be feared, with which all codificators, modern
as well as ancient, must lay their account. He therefore
pretended an inclination to merchandise, and obtained
leave to withdraw himself for ten years, in the hope that
during the period of his absence his laws would grow
familiar to the people. From Athens Solon accordingly
travelled into Egypt, where he conversed with Psameno-
phis of Heliopolis and Sesonchis of Sais, the most learned
priests of that age, from whom he learned the situation of
the island Atlantis, and wrote an account of it in verse,
which Plato afterwards continued. Leaving Egypt, he
visited Cyprus, where he was well received by one of the
petty kings, and assisted in the foundation of a new city,
the site of which he had pointed out, and which, out of
gratitude to the Athenian legislator, was called Solos.
But while Solon was thus travelling in quest of wisdom,
which is not always found in the course of tours and per¬
ambulations, his countrymen, resolved on being dissatis¬
fied at all events, had again divided themselves into three
factions. Lycurgus was at the head of what may be called
the country party; Megacles the son of Alcmason swayed
those who lived on the sea-coast; and Peisistratus ap¬
peared as the champion of the poorer sort, under the pre¬
tence of protecting them from tyranny, but in reality with
the view of seizing on the sovereignty for himself. All
these factions pretended to have a prodigious regard for So¬
lon and his laws, at the same time that they were secretly
desirous of a change; but in what way they were to be
benefited by a counter-revolution none of them knew, or
even pretended to know. An abstract love of change for
its own sake, rather than ariy definite purpose of improve¬
ment, seems to have been the ruling principle of these
factions; nor was the agitation produced the less violent
because no one knew exactly what it was he desired. In
the midst of all this confusion the legislator returned. Each
of the factions paid their court to him; affecting to receive
him with the deepest reverence and respect, and beseech¬
ing him to resume his authority, and compose the dis¬
orders to which they themselves had given birth. But
Solon declined this hollow invitation, on the ground that
his age rendered him unable to speak and act as formerly
for the good of his country: he however sent for the chiefs
of each party, and entreated them in the most pathetic
manner not to ruin their common parent, but to prefer the
public good to their own private interest; sound advice,
doubtless, but, like most sage admonitions, entirely thrown
away on those to whom it was administered.
Feisktra- Peisistratus, who of all the chiefs had unquestionably
tus. the least intention of following Solon’s advice, appeared to
be the most affected with his discourses; but perceiving
that he affected popularity by all possible methods, Solon
easily penetrated into his design of assuming the sovereign
power. Ihis he spoke of privately to Peisistratus himself;
but as he saw that his admonitions had no effect, he un¬
veiled the designs of this ambitious chief, that the public
I C A.
might be on their guard against him and his artful machina- Attici
tions. But all the wise discourses of Solon were lost upon
the Athenians. Peisistratus had got the meaner sort en¬
tirely at his devotion, and therefore resolved to cheat them
out of the liberty which they could not appreciate, and de¬
served to lose. With this view he wounded himself, then
drove into the market-place, and there showed his bleeding
body, imploring the protection of the people against those
whom his kindness to them had rendered his implacable
enemies. It was for being their declared friend, he said,
that he had thus suffered. They saw it was no longer safe
for a man to be a friend to the poor; they saw it was no
longer safe for a man to live in Attica, unless they would
take him under that protection which he implored. A
crowd being instantly collected, Solon came among the
rest, and, suspecting the deceit, openly taxed Peisistratus
with his perfidious conduct; but to no purpose. A gene¬
ral assembly of the people was summoned, wherein it was
moved that Peisistratus should have a guard. Solon was
the only person present who had resolution enough to op¬
pose this measure; the richer Athenians remaining silent
through fear of the multitude, which implicitly followed
Peisistratus, and applauded every thing he said. But
when he saw that all his endeavours were vain, he left the
assembly, remarking as he withdrew, that he was wiser
than some, and stouter than others. A guard of four hun¬
dred men was then unanimously decreed to Peisistratus;
and with this inconsiderable body he managed, partly by
stratagem and partly by force,- to possess himself of the
supreme power, b. c. 560. Solon inveighed bitterly against
the meanness of his countrymen, in thus tamely surrender¬
ing their liberties, and attempted to rouse them to take
up arms in defence of the constitution and the laws; but
finding his efforts unavailing, he withdrew, remarking that
he had done his utmost for his country; and immediately
retired from the dominion of Athens, to which he refused
to return, even at the solicitation of Peisistratus himself.
Peisistratus, having thus obtained the sovereignty, did Govern;
not overturn the laws of Solon, but on the contrary usedwMH
his power with the greatest moderation. It was not in the™ 61'1'
nature of things, however, that the Athenians could long
remain satisfied with any form of government. On the usur¬
pation of Peisistratus, Megacles and his family had retired
from Athens, ostensibly in order to save their own lives;
but having entered into a treaty with Lycurgus, whom they
brought, along with his party, into a scheme for deposing
the usurper, they concerted matters so skilfully, that Pei¬
sistratus was soon after obliged to withdraw from the city;
and, on his departure, the Athenians ordered his goods to
be confiscated. But Megacles had no sooner succeeded
in his project against Peisistratus, than, finding his ally
Lycurgus untractable, he changed sides, like a thorough-
paced intriguer, and began to plot the return of the very
man whom he had just succeeded in expelling as a tyrant
and usurper. And in this counter-project, as may easily be
supposed, he found an able coadjutor in Peisistratus him¬
self, whose recall was at length,effected by means of a
trick worthy of the parties engaged in this little political
drama, and eminently characteristic of a people who re¬
sorted to finesse in every thing, and were always con¬
tent to be gulled, provided the thing was cleverly execut¬
ed. Having found out a woman of the name of Phya, of
a mean family and fortune, but of great stature and very
handsome person, they dressed her in armour, placed her
in a chariot, and having disposed things so as to make her
appear to the utmost advantage, they conducted her to¬
wards the city, sending heralds before, with orders to ad¬
dress the people in the following terms: “ Give a kind
reception, O Athenians, to Peisistratus, who is so much
honoured above all other men by Minerva, that she her-
k
ATTICA.
147
i' ah i. self condescends to bring him back to the citadel.” The
/JX «✓' report being universally spread that Minerva was bringing
back Peisistratus, and the ignorant multitude believing
this woman to be the goddess, addressed their prayers to
her, and received Peisistratus with the utmost joy. When
he had recovered the sovereignty, Peisistratus married the
daughter of Megacles, in fulfilment of a stipulation made
between them to that effect, and also gave the mock god¬
dess as a wife or mistress to his son Hipparchus,
s'jecoi But unfortunately Peisistratus did not long enjoy the au-
>xpu an. thority to which he had been restored in this creditable
manner. He had indeed married the daughter of Me¬
gacles according to treaty ; but having children by a for¬
mer marriage, and remembering that the whole family of
Megacles were execrated by the Athenians, he thought
it expedient to suffer his new spouse to remain in a state
of perpetual widowhood. This the lady bore patiently for
some time; but at last acquainting her mother with the
state in which she was compelled to live, the affront was
highly resented; and Megacles immediately entered into
a treaty with the malcontents, of whom there was always
a great number at Athens under every form of govern¬
ment. Peisistratus, apprized of this step on the part of
his father-in-law, and perceiving that a new storm was ga¬
thering, voluntarily quitted Athens and retired to Eretria;
where, having consulted with his sons, he resolved to reduce
Athens, and repossess himself of power by force of arms.
With this view he applied to several of the Greek states,
including that of Thebes, who furnished him with the troops
he desired; and at the head of a considerable force he
returned to Attica,—reduced Marathon, the inhabitants of
which had taken no measure for their defence,—surprised
and routed the republican forces, which had marched out of
Athens to attack him,—and finally re-established himself
in power, by using victory with his accustomed moderation.
? Ret i. Peisistratus being thus reinstated once more in the sove¬
reignty, took a method of securing himself in power directly
opposite to that which Theseus had adopted. For, instead
of collecting the inhabitants from the country into towns,
as his predecessor had done, Peisistratus, made them re¬
tire from the towns into the country, in order to apply
themselves to agriculture ; and thus prevented their meet¬
ing together in bodies and caballing against him as they
had hitherto been accustomed to do. By this means also
the territory of Athens was greatly ameliorated, and ex¬
tensive plantations of olives were reared over all Attica,
which had hitherto been not only destitute of corn, but
also naked and bleak in appearance from the total want
of trees. And had he stopped here it would have been
well. But actuated by that partiality for sumptuary laws
which seems to have been the foible of nearly all the an¬
cient legislators, he commanded his subjects in the city
to wear a kind of sheepskin frock reaching to the knees,
and appears to have set great store by this absurd enact¬
ment, which was doubtless intended to restore the simpli¬
city of ancient manners. The Athenians, however, ve- Attica,
hemently resented this interference with their habits ; and
so odious did the sheepskin garment become, that in suc¬
ceeding times the frock or jacket of Peisistratus was a sort
of by-word for the badge or garb of slavery. Experience
shows that it is comparatively an easy matter to rob men of
their liberty, and trample both on their political and civil
rights ; but an interference with their private habits or the
adornment of their persons is almost always dangerous. As
prince of Athens, Peisistratus exacted for the service of
the state the tenth part of every man’s revenue, and even
of the fruits of the earth; a heavy tax, undoubtedly, and
one which might well justify a little grumbling on the part
of those who had to pay it; nor could all the magnificence
with which the public revenue was expended reconcile the
Athenians to the heavy burdens they were called upon to
bear. Indeed they not unnaturally fancied themselves op¬
pressed by tyranny, and indulged in perpetual complaints
from the time Peisistratus first ascended the throne to the
day of his death; which happened about thirty-three years
after he had first assumed the sovereignty, of which pe¬
riod, according to Aristotle, he reigned about seventeen
years.1
In taking a retrospect, however, of the government and
character of this celebrated man, it is impossible to doubt
that the one was enlightened and the other humane. The
ancient writers are all agreed that he made no change ot
any consequence in the Athenian constitution. All the
laws continued in force ; the general assembly, the coun¬
cil of state, the courts of justice, and the magistracies,
respectively retained their constitutional powers; and it is
known that the usurper himself obeyed a citation from the
Areiopagus upon a charge of murder. His hand, it is true,
lay heavy on the purses of the people in the matter of tax¬
ation. But the sums which he raised were religiously ex¬
pended in the decoration and improvement of the capital,
or in works of public utility; and it cannot be questioned
that, although he resorted to iniquitous or contemptible
expedients to obtain power, he never abused it, either for
the gratification of selfishness or revenge. “ Take away
only his ambition,” said Solon ; “ cure him of the lust of
reigning, and there is not a man more naturally disposed
to every virtue, nor a better citizen, than Peisistratus.” He
embellished the city with a great variety of edifices; he
improved and strengthened its defences; he enlarged and
ameliorated its harbours ; and by various acts of taste and
magnificence, not less than by his attention to the cultiva¬
tion of the public mind, he may be said to have fixed the
muses at Athens. In a word, if he was ambitious he was
also enlightened and humane ; and although no one can jus¬
tify the modes which he took to possess himself of power,
his use of it was characterized by a moderation and pa¬
triotism which have never as yet been exemplified by any
other usurper, ancient or modern ; insomuch that, review¬
ing his character and conduct, we are almost tempted to
The government of Peisistratus, as we have seen, resolves itself into three distinct periods, interrupted by two exiles. Aristotle
and Herodotus both agree in this. Further, the term of one exile being ten or eleven years that of the other ™>;s\have b^n
or six. Thus far all is clear. But the duration of his three periods of government, especially ot the first and third, 13 "ot .soRsat
ly ascertained; and chronologers have accordingly adopted various schemes tor the arrangemen o leseperio ’ • j
Larcher, and Du Fresnoy, make the first tyranny one year; Blair and Clavier make it two and ten years respectiveiy. Corsmi and
Blair make the first exile one year; Barthelemy two; Larcher, Clavier, and Du Fresnoy, five years Larcher Bkir and Du
Fresnoy, make the second tyranny one year; Corsini and Clavier four and two years respec ive y. orsm tvrannv twelve
second exile at fourteen ; Larcher, Blair, Clavier, and Du Fresnoy, at only eleven years. Corsini 63 SI second
Larcher fifteen, Blair eighteen, Clavier five, and Du Fresnoy fifteen ; while Barthelemy estimates the beco"d tyranny, the second
exile, and the third tvraiiny, as extending together to thirty years. We may remark, however, that those chronologers as Comm,
Blair, and Barthelemy, who make the first exile less than five years, are at variance with the authorities; and tlat ^S',J1A1Seen
ticular, is inconsistent in his dates, since, according to his own principles, the second exile should be eleven years, instead offourteen,
which last number alone accords with his arrangement. Larcher, Clavier, and Du bresnoy, rig yg}'e ie i -i hptween them
years; but they differ materially in the duration of the first and last tyranny; nor on this point is it easy to
It is almost superfluous to add, that the general results of these different evaluations coincide, with the exception of that given by
Corsini, which is 32, or one year less than the others, (Clinton’s Fasti Hellemci^ Appendix, ISo. u. p. ; > ■>
148
Attica.
Hippar¬
chus and
Hippias.
ATTICA.
subscribe to the sentiment expressed by the poet Clau-
dian, Nunquam gratior extat libertas, quam sub rege pio.
Peisistratus left behind him two sons, Hipparchus and
Hippias, both men of abilities, who shared the government
between them, and behaved for a time with lenity and mo¬
deration. But though, by the mildness of their government,
the family of the Peisistratidae seemed to be fully establish¬
ed on the throne of Athens, a conspiracy was unexpectedly
formed against the brothers, by which Hipparchus was slain,
and Hippias narrowly escaped death. There were at that
time living in Athens two young men, called Harmodius and
Aristogeiton. The former being remarkable for his per¬
sonal beauty, was, on that account, it is said, unnaturally
beloved by the other, and also by Hipparchus, who, if we
may believe Thucydides, actually forced him. This was
vehemently resented by Aristogeiton, who, in consequence,
determined on revenge, which another circumstance con¬
tributed to accelerate. Hipparchus, finding that Harmo¬
dius endeavoured on all occasions to shun him, publicly
affronted the youth, by refusing permission to his sister to
carry the offering of Minerva, as if she had been a person
unworthy of that distinction. The two young men, not
daring to show any public signs of resentment, consulted
privately with their friends, amongst whom it was resolv¬
ed, that at the approaching festival of the great Panathe-
naea, when the citizens were allowed to appear in arms, they
should attempt to restore Athens to its former liberty; and
in this they imagined they would be seconded by the whole
body of the people. But when the appointed day arrived,
they perceived one of their number talking familiarly
with Hippias; wherefore, dreading a discovery, they imme¬
diately fell upon Hipparchus, and dispatched him with
many wounds. In this exploit, how'ever, the people were so
far from aiding the conspirators, that they suffered Plarmo-
dius to be killed by the guards of Hipparchus ; and seizing
Aristogeiton, delivered him up to the vengeance of Hip¬
pias. But with their usual fickleness, they soon changed
their opinion, and some time afterwards paid the most ex- Attica
travagant honours to the memory of these conspirators ; wL
causing their praises to be sung at the great Panathenaea,
forbidding any citizen to call a slave by either of their
names, and erecting brazen statues to them in the agora
or market-place.1 Several immunities and privileges were
also granted to the descendants of these (so called) patriots,
and all possible means were taken to render their memory
respected and revered by posterity.
Hippias being nowr sole master of Athens, and burning Cruelty
to revenge the murder of his brother, began by torturing Hippie
Aristogeiton, in order to force him to disclose his accom¬
plices. But this proved fatal to his own friends; for Aris¬
togeiton impeaching such only as he knew to be best af¬
fected to the government of Hippias, the latter were instant¬
ly put to death without further inquiry; and when he h?d
exhausted his list, he at last told Hippias, that he now
knew of none who deserved to suffer death except the
tyrant himself. Hippias next vented his rage on a wo¬
man named Leaina, who had been kept by Aristogeiton,
and who was put to the torture ; which, however, she had
the courage to endure without making any confession.
After the conspiracy was thought to be quashed, Hippias
set about strengthening his government by every means he
could think of. With this view he contracted alliances with
foreign princes ; he increased his revenues by different ex¬
pedients ; he married his only daughter, Archedice, to
ALantides, son of Hippocles, tyrant of Lampsacus; and he
endeavoured, by affecting various arts of popularity, to
conciliate that public opinion which his excessive severi¬
ties had so rudely shocked. But all these precautions
proved fruitless. The lenity of the government of'Peisis-
tratus had alone supported it; and although Hippias had
fewer difficulties to contend with than his father, the vehe¬
mence of his resentment on account of his brother’s murder
betrayed him into courses repugnant alike to sound policy
and to the interests of his family, and at last proved the
1
1 However much we may be shocked at the alleged cause of this tyrannicide, it is impossible not to admire the beautiful verses,
ascribed to Kallistratus, in which the act of supposed patriotic immolation is commemorated. The 'K^aiiov has, in fact, shed
around the affair a ray of glory which does not in truth belong to it, when viewed in its proper light. The song, accompanied with a
translation nearly literal, is subjoined :—
Ev [Avorov xXtiSi ro tp'i^viru
'Clcttio 'Kp[j.oiic; *’ AetrrTo'yiiTO't,
tjv Tfjavvov xrotvSTyiv
1<tovoi/,ovs r' Atinvas strojjjo’arjjv.
't’lXrccH’ 'Agfiodi', on n •rou
Nfitrois S' iv /uccxageov <n (patriv uvcu
’iva weg •ro'Swxv;
TkSsAiv ts Quriv Aio//.n^ioc.
Ev /Avorov xXoiSi to f/ipsy
’Clirorsg'Agfx.oIjios x’ A^urroyuTov^
Or AUnvouvis sv (utncus
AvSga rvooovvov 'iwra^ov SKamrsyv.
An trlpoiv xXios arrirai xccr' a/av,
^tAraff ‘Aofjoo’hii x' AourTnyitToVy
On rov ru^a-vvov xrotvirov
\ffovay.ouz r ASnva.} twoinrairov.
I’ll wreath a beauteous myrtle bough.
As did Harmodius, round the sword,
When he of old the tyrant slew,
And Athens’ equal laws restored.
Ne’er shalt thou die, Harmodius, ne’er,
For in the blessed isles they tell
That thou hast gone, beloved one, where
Hiomed and Achilles dwell.
With myrtle will I wreath my sword,
As at Minerva’s festival,
Harmodius, when the despot lord
Beneath thy sword was doomed to fall.
Oh, glory shall for ever crown
Thee, loved Harmodius, for thy sword
The tyrant unto death struck down,
And Athens’ equal laws restored.
r f7" Mr Mi^Td’ most ancient composition of its kind extant, may be seen, with an elegant Latin translation, in
wsbon T uT °n {History of Greece, yol. i. p. 508, 509, note. London, 1830, 8vo.) A Latin translation
of this son<7 oithor ‘n ^ |’c^rce 7 ai ° e e eSant ? 111 j1® edition of the Lectures with which we are acquainted has any translation
marks “ Snnd sfnost m “VT ’ beei\f ttemPte?- .After Toting the Greek, however, the accomplished prelate just named re-
drctlos eUnoraJuSiSulUsof (lulsP;am taie aliquod carmen plebi tradidisset, inque Suburram, et fori
circulos, et m ora vulguntuhsset, actum profecto fuisset de partibus, deque dommatione Ctesarum : plus mehercule valuisset 'Amo-
tested hrSrtfrrecoSSTrffi f: Sr? P°C!> P^1- P- 1»- Ox»„. W3,V) The translation above'It-
names would admit A free naranhm ^ 1 m i.6ra ^ oseness’ 111 as ^ a!' ^eas^ as the somewhat unmanageable nature of the proper
calhurpose which we ^d^n view^FxooT.to?-11?^ al °We rn«reP°etlcal embellishment, but would not have answered the histori¬
cal Purpose which we had in view. Executed in this manner the ast quatrain for example, might have been rendered thus
Oh, glory shall follow thee ever and ever,
And song shall enshrine in its numbers thy name •
Nor till Athens and liberty finally sever,
Will the halo grow dim that encircles thy fame.
ate <
ATTICA.
149
%tic cause of his expulsion from power in rather less than four
]£. J years after the death of Hipparchus. This revolution was
r principally brought about by the party of the Alcmaeonidae,
by which name the adherents of Megacles became known
after the death of that inveterate intriguer. Hippias re¬
tired to Sigseum, an appanage of his family, where he seems
to have died, without making any vigorous or effectual effort
to recover his lost authority.1
After the expulsion of the Peisistratidae, the Athenians
"then did not long enjoy the tranquillity which they had promised
themselves. They became divided into two factions; one
of which was headed by Cleisthenes, chief of the Alcmseo-
nidae; and the other by Isagoras, a man of quality, and
highly in favour with the Athenian eupatrids or nobility.
Cleisthenes cultivated the people, and endeavoured to gain
their affection by increasing as much as possible their
power; whilst Isagoras perceiving that the popular arts of
his rival would secure him an ascendency, applied to the
Lacedeemonians for assistance; at the same time reviving
the old story of Megacles’s sacrilege, and insisting that
Cleisthenes ought to be banished as being of that person’s
family. Cleomenes king of Sparta readily entered into his
schemes, and suddenly dispatched a herald to Athens with
orders to declare war provided all the Alcmaeonidae were
not immediately banished. The Athenians had the pusil¬
lanimity to comply with this insolent requisition, and to
banish Cleisthenes with all his relations. But their base
poltroonery and ingratitude did not answer their purpose.
Cleomenes entered Attica at the head of a Spartan army;
and arriving at Athens, condemned to banishment seven
hundred families, in addition to those previously sent into
exile. And, not content with this, he would have dissolved
the senate, and vested the government in the heads of the
faction of Isagoras; but happily the Athenians were not yet
degraded enough to submit to such humiliation ; so, taking
up arms, they drove the Spartan troops into the citadel,
where, after sustaining a short siege, Cleomenes surrender¬
ed, on condition that all who were in the castle should
retire unmolested ; a stipulation which was shamefully vio¬
lated on the part of the Athenians.
Tire Spartan king, however, had no sooner withdrawn
from Athens, than he formed a strong combination in fa¬
vour of Isagoras; having engaged the Boeotians to attack
Attica on the one side, and the Chalcidians on the other,
whilst he at the head of a powerful Spartan army enter¬
ed the territory of Eleusis. But this powerful confede¬
racy was quickly dissolved. The Corinthians, who had
joined Cleomenes, doubting the justice of their cause, re¬
turned home : the rest of his allies likewise began to waver ;
and his colleague Ariston, the other king of Sparta, differ¬
ing in opinion with Cleomenes, the latter was obliged to
abandon the enterprise. The Spartans and their allies
having withdrawn, the Athenians quickly routed the Boeo¬
tians and Chalcidians, and carried off a great number of
prisoners, who were afterwards set at liberty on paying a
ransom of two minse a head. The Boeotians, on the other
hand, immediately vowed revenge, and engaging on their
side the people of TEgina, who had a hereditary hatred of
the Athenians, the iEginetans landed a considerable army,
and ravaged the coasts of Attica while the Athenians were
, occupied with the Boeotian war.
f P4 pt In the meanwhile Cleomenes, exasperated by his un-
1 jre successful expedition against Attica, and anxious for an
opportunity of effacing the remembrance of his defeat, pro- Attica-
duced at Sparta certain pretended oracles which he alleged v-^v^-
he had found in the citadel of Athens while he was besieged .
therein, the purport of which was, that Athens would soon
become a rival of Sparta. At the same time it was disco¬
vered that Cleisthenes had bribed the priestess of Apollo to
cause the Lacedaemonians to expel the Peisistratidae from
Athens; which was sacrificing their best friends to those
whom interest necessarily rendered their enemies. This
pitiful jugglery had such an effect, that the Spartans re¬
penting their folly in expelling Hippias, sent for him from
Sigaeum, in order to restore him to his principality; but the
other states refusing to countenance the projected resto¬
ration, the Spartans were forced to abandon the enterprise,
and Hippias returned to Sigaeum to digest his disappoint¬
ment with what appetite he might.
About this period Aristagoras the Milesian, having Persian
stirred up a revolt in Ionia against the Persian king, ap- war.
plied to the Spartans for assistance ; but sickened already
with bootless crusades of this description, they declined
to have any hand in the matter; and it would have been
wmll if the Athenians, to whom the disturber next made
application, had followed this wise and prudent course.
One would have thought that their own intestine broils,
aggravated by the interference of the Lacedaemonians,
might have indisposed them to foment disturbances in
other countries, against the government of which they
had no ground or even pretence for complaint. But the
fact proved otherwise; and Aristagoras was by them fur¬
nished with twenty ships, under the command of Melan-
thus, a nobleman universally esteemed.2 * This rash action
cost the Greeks very dear; for no sooner did the king of
Persia hear of the assistance sent from Athens to his re¬
bellious subjects, than he declared himself the sworn ene¬
my of that city, and solemnly besought the deity that he
might one day have it in his power to be revenged on them.
But besides the displeasure which Darius had conceived
against the Athenians on account of the assistance they
had afforded the lonians, he was further encouraged, by
the intrigues of the ex-tyrant Hippias, to undertake an ex¬
pedition against Greece. Immediately on his return from
Lacedaemon, as above related, Hippias passed over into
Asia; proceeded to Artaphernes, governor of the adjacent
provinces belonging to the Persian king; and excited him
to make war upon his country, promising to do homage to
the Persian monarch provided he was restored to the
principality of Athens. Apprized of this step on the part
of their late tyrant, the Athenians sent ambassadors to
Artaphernes, desiring permission to enjoy their liberty in
peace. But the Persians returned for answer, that if they
would have peace with the Great King, they must imme¬
diately consent to receive Hippias ; and as the Athenians
were bv no means disposed to purchase the forbearance
of the "Persian monarch at the price of compliance, they
resolved to assist his enemies by every means in their
power. This resolution being made known to Darius, he
commissioned Mardonius to avenge him of the insults
which he thought the Greeks had offered him; but that
commander having met with a storm at sea and other ac¬
cidents, which rendered him unable to do any thing, Datis
and Artaphernes (the son of the Artaphernes above men¬
tioned) were commissioned to chastise Grecian insolence
and presumption.
1 The Peisistratidae were expelled before the fourth year of Hippias was completed, ®?Shteen yeare after the death o^Pe' ' ’
twenty years before the battle of Marathon, a hundred years before the consUtution of 1 ^ Hundred and n. c. (Hero
dotus, v. 55; Thucydides, vi. 59, and viii. 68 ; Plato, HvpVarch. p. 229; Schol. I^istrat. 619 ^^f^ n 20
* Herodotus, v. 37, 38, 55, 97, 98, 99. Charon Lampsacenus apud Plutarch. Mor. p. 861, Fasti II 5 _
slain in Thrace, b. c. 497.
Aristagoras was
ATTICA.
Battle of
Marathon.
War being thus declared, the Persian commanders, fear¬
ing again to attempt doubling the promontory of Athos,
where their fleet had formerly suffered, drew their forces
into the plains of Cilicia, and passing thence, through the
Cyclades to Euboea, directed their course towards Athens.
Their instructions were to destroy both Eretria and Athens,
and to bring away the people. The first attempt was made
on Eretria; and on the approach of the Persian fleet the
inhabitants sent to Athens to apply for assistance. Nor
did they sue in vain. With a magnanimity almost unparal¬
leled, considering the crisis, the Athenians sent 4000 men
to their aid; but unhappily the Eretrians were so greatly
divided in opinion, that, though the danger was urgent,
nothing could be resolved on. One party was for receiving
the Athenian succours into the city; another declared for
abandoning the city and retiring into the mountains of
Euboea; whilst a third was base enough to seek to betray
their country to the Persians. Matters being in this hope¬
less state, the Athenian commanders withdrew the auxi¬
liary force, and retiring by Oropus, escaped the destruc¬
tion with which they were threatened; whilst Eretria, be¬
trayed into the hands of the Persians, was pillaged, burn¬
ed, and its inhabitants sold for slaves ; a fate which their
cowardice and treachery richly merited.
On the tidings of this disaster the Athenians imme¬
diately drew together such forces as they could muster,
amounting in all to about 10,000 men; and these, with
lOOOPlataeans who afterwards joined them, were command¬
ed by ten general officers, with equal power, amongst
whom were the illustrious names of Miltiades, Aristides,
and Themistocles, men distinguished alike for their valour,
their conduct, their patriotism, and their virtue. But it
being generally thought that so small a body of troops
would be unable to resist the formidable power of the
Persians, a messenger was dispatched to Sparta to en¬
treat the immediate assistance of that state. He com¬
municated his business to the senate in the following
terms:—“ Men of Lacedaemon,” said he, “ the Athenians
desire you to assist them, and not to suffer the most ancient
of all the Grecian cities to be enslaved by the barbarians.
Eretria is already destroyed, and Greece consequently
weakened by the loss of so considerable a place.” The
assistance was readily granted ; but the promised succours
arrived too late for the occasion which required them;
and, happily for their own glory, the Athenians were ob¬
liged to fight without waiting for their arrival. In the me¬
morable engagement on the plains of Marathon, whither
Hippias had conducted the Persian host, the latter were
defeated with great loss by the Athenian infantry, under
the command of Miltiades, and driven to their ships.1
They then endeavoured to double Cape Sunium (Colonna),
in order to surprise Athens before the army could return.
But in this they were prevented by Miltiades, who, leaving
Aristides with 1000 men to guard the prisoners, return¬
ed so expeditiously with the main body, that he reach¬
ed the temple of Hercules before the barbarians had time
to commence a serious attack on the city. In the mean¬
while the virtuous Aristides discharged the trust reposed
in him with the strictest integrity. Though there was
much gold and silver in the Persian camp, and the tents
and ships they had taken were filled with all manner of
riches, he not only forbore taking any thing for his own
use, but exerted himself to the utmost in order to prevent Att
others from appropriating the spoils of the enemy, which ^
were religiously reserved for the public service of the
state.
After the victory of Marathon, the inhabitants of PlataeaAthei
were declared free citizens of Athens, and Miltiades, The-ingrai
mistocles, and Aristides were at first treated with all pos-tude’
sible marks of admiration and respect. But the gratitude
of nations, more especially of republics, is proverbially
short-lived. Miltiades having undertaken the command
of an expedition against the island of Paros, in which he
proved unsuccessful, he was, on his return, accused and
condemned in a fine of fifty talents, the whole expense of
the expedition; and, being unable to pay so large a sum,
he was barbarously thrown into prison, where he soon after
died of a wound received in the service of his country. Nor
did Aristides fare much better than his illustrious colleague.
Miltiades had proposed an expedition, which failed, and in
which it was possible he might have had sinister designs;
but against Aristides not so much as even a suspicion of
guilt could with any plausibility be alleged. On the con¬
trary, his extraordinary virtue had procured him the title of
The Just, and he had never been found to swerve from the
maxims of strict equity. His downfal was occasioned by
the intrigues of Themistocles ; who being a man of great
abilities, and hating Aristides on account of the charac¬
ter which the latter deservedly bore among his country¬
men, took all opportunities of insinuating that his rival
had in reality made himself master of Athens without the
parade of guards and royalty. “ He gives laws to the
people,” said he; “ and what constitutes a tyrant but giving
laws ?” By this strange kind of reasoning a strong party
was formed against him, and it was resolved to banish
him for ten years by the ostracism. In this species of
ballot the name of the accused was written upon a shell
by every one who desired his exile, and this conch was
carried to a certain place in the agora, inclosed by means
of rails. If the number of shells so collected exceeded six
thousand, the sentence was inflicted; if it fell short of
this number, the accused was exonerated from the charges
against him. When the agents of Themistocles had suf¬
ficiently accomplished their purpose, the people suddenly
flocked to the market-place, loudly demanding the ostra¬
cism. On this occasion a clown, who had just come from
some place in the country, bringing a shell to Aristides,
said to him, “ Write me Aristides upon this.” Aris¬
tides, surprised, asked him if he knew any ill of that
Athenian, or if he had ever done him any hurt? “ Hurt
me!” replied the rustic, “ no, I don’t so much as know
him ; but I am weary and sick at heart from hearing him
everywhere called The Just.” The reason was unanswer¬
able. Aristides took the shell; wrote his own name upon
it; and when informed that the ostracism had fallen upon
him, modestly retired from the agora, saying, as he with¬
drew, “ I beseech the gods that the Athenians may never
see the day which shall force them to remember Aristides.”2
About three years after the banishment of this virtu-Xe
ous citizen, Xerxes king of Persia sent to demand of the’1?'1
Greeks earth and water as tokens of submission and ho- K
mage. But Themistocles, desirous to widen the breach
with that monarch, put to death the interpreter for pub¬
lishing the decree of the king of Persia in the language
the article “ The AthSl f G of, Wlt^ millt^ dfails of the Greek armies, including the Athenian, see
used runnirt for the nmnost if cZfn r °Ug , , Ma"at.h°n’ ^ Herodotus, “ were the first among the Greeks known to have
the Medkndress and if the mii wh? °T 1° u°!t % U and they wer« the ^ withstood (in the field) even the sight of
e i leuian dress and ot the men who wear it; for hitherto the very name of Medes and Persians had been a terror to the Greeks ”
writers°of th^highest1authority. laVG glVen great °ffence to Plutarch> but is c™fi™ed by Plato (m Menexen. 1. ii. p. 240) and other
c. a^'Lme'To'weve^thinkthatit to^nWe t4,83 vT® .he was recallf 7^ (Plutarch, Arlstld.
} ’ nowever’tbmk that 11 took place the following year; and, in fact, he seems to have been in exile at the time of the
ATT
I ic 0f the Greeks; and having prevailed with the several
states to lay aside their animosities and provide for their
common safety, he got himself elected general of the Athe¬
nian army.
When the news arrived that the Persians were advancing
to invade Greece by the Straits of Thermopylae, and that
with this view they were transporting their forces by sea,
Themistocles advised his countrymen to abandon the city,
embark on board their galleys, and encounter their enemies
while yet at a distance. But this advice being disregarded,
Themistocles put himself at the head of the army, and hav¬
ing joined the Lacedaemonians, marched towards Tempe.
Here intelligence was received that the Straits of Thermo¬
pylae had been forced, and that Bceotia and Thessaly had
submitted to the Persians; and the army in consequence
returned without attempting any thing. In this extremity
the oracle at Delphi was consulted by the Athenians,
and at first returned a very alarming response, threaten¬
ing them with total destruction ; but after much humilia¬
tion, a more favourable answer was obtained, in which,
probably by the direction of Themistocles, they were pro¬
mised safety in walls of ivood. This being interpreted as
a command to abandon Athens, and place all their hopes
of safety in their fleet, the greater part began to prepare
for embarkation, and money was distributed among them
by the council of the Areiopagus, to the amount of eight
drachmas a head ; but this not proving sufficient, Themisto¬
cles publicly gave out that somebody had stolen the shield
of Minerva, and, under pretence of searching for the lost
aegis, he seized on all the money he could find. Some,
however, still refused to embark, and understanding the
oracle in its literal sense, raised fortifications of wood,
resolving to wait the arrival of the Persians, and defend
themselves to the last. About this time Aristides was
recalled, not so much, it is said, from a sense of the in¬
justice which had been done to him, as from a groundless
apprehension of his going over to the Persians and assist¬
ing them with his advice.
“ apti of The Persians having advanced to Athens soon after the
^the: inhabitants had deserted it, met with no opposition ex¬
cept from the few who had resolved to remain; and as
they would listen to no terms of accommodation, they were
put to the sword, and the city utterly destroyed. Xerxes,
however, being defeated in a great naval engagement at
Salamis, was forced to fly with prodigious loss. Themis¬
tocles was for pursuing him and breaking down the bridge
of boats which he had thrown over the Hellespont; but
this advice being overruled, the crafty Athenian sent a
trusty messenger to the king, acquainting him that the
Greeks intended breaking down his bridge, and at the
same time suggesting the propriety of his making all haste
in order to prevent his retreat being cut off. This advice,
though misinterpreted by some, was certainly a prudent
one, as Xerxes, although he had sustained a defeat, was
still at the head of an army capable of destroying all
Greece; and had he been driven to despair by finding
himself shut up or even too hotly pursued, it is impossible
to say what might have been the event. “ Make a bridge
of gold for a flying enemy,” is a rule which the expe¬
rience of war in all ages has sanctioned.
The defeat of Xerxes at Salamis disposed Mardonius,
who had been left to carry on the war by land, rather to
treat with the Athenians than to fight them ; and with this
view he sent Alexander, king of Macedon, to Athens to
propose an alliance with the republic, exclusively of the
other Grecian states. But this proposal was rejected; in
I C A. 151
consequence of which Athens was a second time destroy- Attica.
ed,1 and the Athenians were forced to retire to Salamis.
But they were soon freed from the apprehension of final
subjugation by the total defeat and death of Mardonius at
Plataea, where Aristides and the Athenian troops under his
command particularly distinguished themselves. And, by a
singular coincidence, on the same day that the battle of Pla¬
taea was fought, another division of the Persians was defeat¬
ed at Mycale in Ionia, where the Athenians also behaved
with more signal gallantry than any of the other Greeks.
The Persians being thus disposed of, the troops who had
fought at Mycale crossed over to the Chersonesus, and laid
siege to Sestos, which they at length captured after an ob¬
stinate defence by the garrison ; a circumstance which ap¬
pears to have irritated them so much that they put both
the commanders to death in the most barbarous manner.
One of them, Oibazus, was sacrificed to a Thracian god;
whilst the other, Artyactes, was impaled alive, and his son
stoned to death before his face, on the absurd pretence
that he had rifled the sepulchre of Protesilaus.
After the victories of Plataea and Mycale the Athenians, City re¬
freed from all apprehension respecting the Persians, be-built and
gan to rebuild their city in a more magnificent mannerfortlfie<1-
than ever. But, as usual, disputes immediately arose about
the form of government most proper to be adopted, and
threatened to plunge the city into anarchy. The com¬
mons, with Themistocles at their head, declared for a de¬
mocracy ; whilst Aristides, dreading the inconstancy of a
purely popular government, wished to organize a kind of
mixed administration, but withdrew his opposition when
he found the general opinion hostile to his views. Ac¬
cordingly it was proposed that every citizen should have
an equal right to the government, and that the archons
should be chosen out of the body of the people without
preference or distinction; which being agreed to, put an
end for a season to all discontents on this head. About the
same time Themistocles suggested the necessity of imme¬
diately fortifying the city, so as to prevent its being again
destroyed whenever the Persians might deem it expe¬
dient to invade Greece. The Lacedaemonians disrelish¬
ed this project exceedingly, and remonstrated against it,
upon the hollow ground, that were Athens to be strongly
fortified, and the Persians to become possessed of it, it
might be impossible ever to dislodge them. The Athe¬
nians were not imposed on by this shallow pretence,
which was soon changed into a peremptory command not
to raise their walls higher; but, considering the great power
of Sparta at that time, Themistocles advised the Athenians
to temporize, and to assure the Spartan envoys that the
work should not be proceeded with until by a special em¬
bassy satisfaction had been given to their allies. Being,
at his own desire, named ambassador in conjunction with
some other Athenians, Themistocles set out alone, telling
the senate that it would be for the interest of the state to
delay sending the other ambassadors as long as possible.
Arrived at Sparta, he put off from time to time receiving
an audience, on the pretence that his colleagues had not
yet joined him ; but in the meanwhile the walls of Athens
were building with the utmost expedition, neither houses
nor sepulchres being spared for materials, and men, women,
children, strangers, citizens, and servants, labouring at the
work without intermission. The truth, however, having at
length oozed out, Themistocles and his colleagues, who had
by this time arrived, were summoned before the ephori,who
immediately began to exclaim against the Athenians on ac¬
count of their breach of compact. But Themistocles stoutly
battle of Salamis. But ten months afterwards he commanded the Athenian forces at the battle of Platsea; so that his recall must
have taken place between those two actions. (Herodotus, ix. 28.)
1 Athens was occupied by Mardonius ten months after its occupation by Xerxes the preceding year, u. c. 400.
152 ATTICA.
Attica, denied the charge; his colleagues, he said, assured him of
'V^v-,<<ta/the contrary; at all events, it did not become a great state
to give heed to vague rumours of this description ; and if
they had any doubts about the truth of his statement, the
proper course would be to send deputies to inquire into
the fact of the matter, whilst he should himself remain as
a hostage to be answerable for the event. This plausible
suggestion being agreed to, Themistocles engaged his as¬
sociates to advise the Athenians to commit the Spartan
ambassadors to safe custody until he should be released;
after which he publicly avowed the whole transaction, ac¬
knowledged himself the author of the scheme, and told the
Lacedaemonians that “ all things are lawful for our coun¬
try.” The Spartans indeed were completely overreached;
but seeing no remedy, they concealed their resentment,
and sent Themistocles back to Athens in safety.
The following year, the last of the seventy-fifth Olym¬
piad, Themistocles, observing the inconvenience of the port
of Phalerum, formed the resolution of improving the Pei-
raeus, and rendering it the principal harbour of Athens.
The wily statesman did not at first think proper to mention
publicly his scheme; but having signified to the people
that he had something of importance to communicate, they
appointed Xantippus and Aristides to examine his project
and report thereupon. This they did accordingly; and hav¬
ing informed the people that what Themistocles proposed
would be of the utmost advantage to the state, at the same
time that it might easily be carried into effect, they were
desired to lay the matter before the senate, who, coming
unanimously into their measures, sanctioned the project;
on which the work was set about and executed with as
much expedition as the defences of the city, in order to
prevent the possibility of opposition on the part of the La¬
cedaemonians. By these wise and prudent measures, un¬
dertaken and carried through with equal energy and ad¬
dress, the naval power of Athens was fixed on a sure basis,
and the ascendancy in Grecian politics transferred from
the Spartans to the Athenians.1
Ihemisto- It now came to the turn of Themistocles to experience
eies banish- the ingratitude of his countrymen. His services had been
too great ever to be repaid; so essential, in fact, that the
treatment he received may perhaps be a sufficient excuse
for modern patriots when they connect their own interest
with the service of the country. Themistocles had confess¬
edly saved the state from ruin by his advice; he had pre¬
eminently distinguished himself by his valour ; he had ren¬
dered Athens, by his policy, superior to the other states of
Greece; and he had entirely subverted the Lacedemonian
scheme of power. Yet notwithstanding all this, he was
banished by the ostracism, without the shadow of crime
being even alleged against him, except that he was hated
by the Lacedemonians, and that he had erected a temple
near his own house, dedicated to Diana, the Giver of the
best Counsel; intimating, with pardonable vanity, that he
had himself given the best counsel for the safety both of
Athens and of Greece, which was no more than the truth.
Ihe state he had exalted, the country he had saved, cast
him forth, like an unclean thing, as if unworthy to breathe
the common air on the soil of Greece, which he had de¬
livered from the presence of the invader; and he was at
length forced to seek shelter from the very monarch whose
fleets he had defeated, whose ambition he had thwarted,
and whose glory the ascendancy of his genius had for ever \
tarnished. But more magnanimous and more enlightened^
than the inconstant race who insolently denominated him
a barbarian, the king of Persia received his great enemy in
the kindest and most gracious manner, endeavouring by his
princely munificence to make him forget his misfortunes •
and the conqueror of Salamis was never afterwards re¬
called, “ because,” as an old writer quaintly observes, “ the
Greeks had no occasion for his services.”2
But the war with Persia was not yet discontinued, be-Ext
cause the Greeks found their advantage in plundering andofC
enriching themselves with the spoils of the Persians. For
this reason, about the end of the seventy-seventh Olym¬
piad, they equipped a navy, under pretence of relieving cer¬
tain Greek cities in Asia, subject to the Persians, and gave
the command of it to Cimon, the son of Miltiades by a
daughter of the king of Thrace. Cimon had already tasted
the justice and generosity of his countrymen, having been
thrown into prison for his father’s fine, from which he was
released by Callias, whom his sister Elpinice had married
on account of his great wealth, procured, it is said, by no
very honourable means. But he nevertheless accepted of
the command, and gained such immense booty in this ex¬
pedition, that the Athenians were thereby enabled to lay
the foundation of that longimural inclosure which united
the port to the city ; as also to adorn the Agora with palm-
trees, and beautify the Academy with delightful walks and
fountains. Soon after this expedition, the Persians having
invaded the Chersonesus, and made themselves masters of
it, with the assistance of the Thracians, Cimon was hasti¬
ly sent against both. He had only four ships under his com¬
mand ; but with these he captured thirteen of the Persian
galleys, and reduced the whole of the Chersonesus; after
which he attacked the Thracians, who had made them¬
selves masters of the goldmines situated between the rivers
Nyssus and Strymon, and speedily obliged them to yield.
But Cimon was as wise and politic as he was brave. Many
of the Greek states, in virtue of a general tax established
by Aristides with the view of providing a fund for the com¬
mon defence, were bound to furnish men and galleys, as well
as to pay for their support. But when they saw themselves
exposed to danger from the Persians, most of them evinced
an unwillingness to furnish their contingent of men. This
exasperated the Athenian generals, who, finding them ob¬
stinate in their refusal, were for having immediate recourse
to force; but Cimon overruled this proposal, permitted
such as were desirous of staying at home to remain, and
accepted a sum of money instead of a galley completely
manned ; by which means he inured the Athenians, whom
he took on board his galleys, to hardship and discipline,
whilst the allies, who remained at home, became enervated
through idleness, and, from being confederates, dwindled
into tributaries or slaves.
It was scarcely possible, however, for any person whoCirr
had effectively served the state to escape banishment atl®11^
Athens. Cimon had gained great wealth both to the state
and to himself; but in. his public character he had acted
with unimpeached integrity, and as a private citizen he had
dedicated his wealth to the most laudable purposes. He had
demolished the inclosux’es about his grounds and gardens,
permitting every one to enter and take what fruits they
pleased ; and he had kept open table, where both rich and
ehiafsee fortifi“tions of the caI>itol »f the L»”g Wall., and the defences of Pemeus, Phalerum, and Munj-
. 2 Aeijnsidcratiicpenod appears to have elapsed between the banishment of Themistocles by the ostracism b c 471 and his flight
I TV f. t,.’ temwtocL c. 2d , and Ihucydides, i. Ido. It would indeed seem that the plans of Pausanias had been communi¬
cated to him during his exile ; a proof that he had been living in a state of banishment a considerable period before he nassed over
into Persia, and sought the protection of his former enemy. penou Delore ne passed ovei
ATTICA.
153
Mt a. poor were plentifully entertained. If he met a citizen
a tattered suit of clothes, he made some of his attend¬
ants exchange with him; or if the quality of the person
rendered such a kindness unsuitable, he caused a sum of
money to be privately given him. But all this was in¬
sufficient to save him ; he did not concur with every mea¬
sure of the commonalty, or evince a proper deference for
the wisdom of the sovereign people ; and therefore the po¬
pular party resolved on putting him to death. The crime
laid to his charge was, that by presents from the Macedo¬
nians he had been prevailed upon to let slip a manifest op¬
portunity of enlarging his conquests, after taking from the
Persians the gold mines of Thrace. To this accusation Ci-
mon replied, that to the utmost of his power he had prose¬
cuted the war against the Thracians, and other enemies of
the state of Athens ;—that it was indeed true he had not
made any inroads in Macedonia, because he did not ima¬
gine he was to act as a public enemy of mankind, and be¬
cause he was struck with respect for a nation which appear¬
ed modest in their carriage, just in their dealings, and
strictly honourable in their behaviour towards him and the
Athenians;—that if his countrymen looked upon this as
a crime, he must abide their judgment;—but that, for his
own part, he could never be brought to think such con¬
duct deserving of condemnation. His great rival, Pericles,
was appointed to accuse him ; but this celebrated states¬
man and orator, rising superior to the occasion, of which a
meaner spirit would have availed himselfy spoke in such a
manner as showed plainly that he did not think the accused
guilty; the consequence of which was that Cimon, instead
of being condemned to death, as his enemies had fully
anticipated, was only banished by the ostracism.
Wa nth The Athenian power had now risen to such a height
Spa) * that all the other states of Peloponnesus looked upon the
republic with a jealous eye, and were continually watch¬
ing for opportunities of making war upon it when engaged
in troublesome affairs, or hard pressed by other enemies.
These attempts, however, so far from lessening, generally
contributed to increase the power of the Athenians. But
in the year b. c. 458 the republic entered into a war with
Sparta, which eventually proved nearly as fatal to the state
as to the city. For this war no recent provocation had
been given on the part of the Spartans. They had indeed
sent a considerable army to assist the Dorians against
the Phocians; but the Athenians had no interest in the
contest, and only sought an occasion to revenge former
quarrels. Having therefore engaged the Argives and
Thessalians as confederates, they posted themselves on
the isthmus, so that the Spartan army could not return
without encountering them. The Athenians and their con¬
federates amounted to 14,000, and the Spartans to 11,500
men. The Lacedaemonian general, however, unwilling to
hazard a battle, turned aside to Tanagra, a city of Bceotia,
where some of the Athenians who were favourable to
aristocracy entered into a correspondence with him. But
before their designs were ripe for execution, the Athe¬
nian army marched with great expedition to Tanagra, and
instantly made arrangements for the attack. They were
however defeated with great loss, as they justly deserved
to be, considering the unprovoked nature of the aggression.
Another engagement soon followed, in which both armies
suffered so much that they were glad to conclude a short
truce, that each might have time to recruit their shatter¬
ed forces. But the scale of fortune soon turned in favour
of the Athenians. The Thebans, who had been deprived
of the command of Bceotia on account of their having
sided with Xerxes, were now restored to it by the Lace¬
daemonians. At this the Athenians were so greatly dis- Attica,
pleased that they sent an army under Myronides the son's-^v^^
of Callias into Bceotia to overturn all that had been done.
That general was encountered by the Thebans and their
allies, who composed a numerous and well-disciplined
army ; but although the Athenian army was but a handful
in comparison of that of their enemies, Myronides gained
a victory over the allies, which, in a purely military point
of view, may perhaps be considered as more glorious than
either that of Marathon or of Plataea. In these battles they
had fought against the effeminate and ill-disciplined troops
of Persia; but now they encountered and defeated a su¬
perior army composed of the bravest Greeks. After this
victory Myronides marched to Tanagra, which he took by
storm, and afterwards razed to the ground. He then plun¬
dered Bceotia ; defeated another army which the Boeotians
had drawn together to oppose him; next fell upon the Lo-
crians ; and having penetrated into Thessaly, chastised the
inhabitants of that country for having revolted from the
Athenians ; after which he returned to Athens laden alike
with riches and with glory.
About this time Cimon was recalled from banishment by Death of
the will of the sovereign people, and soon after fell to his Cimon.
old employment of plundering the Persians; having nothing
less in view, according to Plutarch, than the conquest and
subjugation of the whole Persian empire. But, however
this may be, the Great King, finding he could have no rest
whilst he continued in a state of hostility with the Athe¬
nians, sent instructions to his generals Artabazus and Me-
gabizus, to conclude, if possible, a treaty of peace ; which,
after much discussion, was at length effected upon the fol¬
lowing conditions: 1. That the Greek cities in Asia should
be free, and governed by their own laws ; 2. that the Per¬
sians should send no army within three days’ journey of
the sea; 3. that no Persian ship of war should sail be¬
tween Thessalis in Pamphylia andCyrene in Lycia. Whilst
this treaty was pending Cimon died, b. c. 449, but whether
of sickness or of a wound which he had received in battle
remains unknown.
One thing, however, is certain, that after the death of this Truce with
remarkable personage, the Athenian affairs began to fall in- Sparta,
to confusion. It was now the misfortune of the republic to
be alike hated by her enemies and by her allies ; and hence
the latter missed no opportunity of throwing off their allegi¬
ance, when they thought they could do so with impunity.
The Megarensians, for instance, who had long been under
the protection of Athens, thought proper to disclaim all de¬
pendence on their ancient protectrix, and to have recourse
to Sparta, with which they entered into a strict alliance,
offensive and defensive. Exasperated at this proceeding,
and determined to punish the ingratitude of their former
allies, the Athenians ravaged the country of the Megaren¬
sians ; a step which soon brought on a renewal of the La¬
cedaemonian war, which had been suspended rather than
terminated. But Pericles procured the return of the first
Lacedaemonian army without bloodshed, by bribing Chan-
drides, the young king of Sparta’s tutor ; and the Lace¬
daemonians, finding it was not for their interest to carry
on the war, concluded a truce or pacification with the
Athenians for the period of thirty years.1
Six years after the conclusion of the peace between Reduction
Athens and Sparta, a war broke out between the Samians of Samos,
and Milesians, about an insignificant town situated under
Mount Mycale in Ionia. In this war the Athenians took
part, for what reason we are not informed; and the island
of Samos was reduced by Pericles, who established there
a democracy, and left an Athenian garrison. He was no
1 On the subject of the thirty years’ truce, concluded b. c. 445, the reader may consult and compare Andocid. cle Pace, p. 14, 24 ;
iEschin. FaU. Leg. p. 23, 51. It was about this time that Pericles began to assume the sole direction of affairs.
VOL. IV.
u
154 ATT
Attica, sooner gone, however, than the Samians, disliking their
new form of government, rose in arms and expelled the
garrison ; but Pericles quickly returning, besieged and
took their city, demolished their walls, and fined them in
the whole expense of the war; part of which he obliged
them to pay down, and took hostages for the remainder.1
Corcyrian This insignificant contest was almost immediately fol-
war. lowed by a war between the Corcyrians and Corinthians,
which arose out of the following circumstances. An in¬
testine broil breaking out in the little territory of Epidam-
num, a town of Macedonia, founded by the Corcyrians,
one party applied for aid to the Illyrians, and the other
to the Corcyrians. But the latter having neglected the
matter, Corinth was appealed to, as the Corcyrians were
originally a colony from that place ; and the Corinthians,
partly out of pity for the Epidamnians, partly from dislike
to the Corcyrians, dispatched a considerable fleet to the
assistance of the former, by which means the party which
had appealed to Corinth gained the ascendency. This
being resented by the Corcyrians, they sent a fleet to
Epidamnum to support the exiles ; but although this fleet
began to act offensively on its entering the port, the chief
commanders had instructions to propose terms of accom¬
modation. To these, however, the Corinthians refused to
accede; and next year the Corcyrians defeated the Co¬
rinthians and their allies at sea, took Epidamnum by
storm, and wasted the territories of the allies of the Co¬
rinthians. The latter, therefore, began to make great
preparations for carrying on the war, and pressed their
allies to imitate their example, that they might be in a
condition to retrieve the honour they had lost, and to
humble the ungrateful colony, which had thus insulted
the metropolitan city.
When the Corcyrians became acquainted with these
proceedings, they dispatched envoys to Athens to sue for
aid ; and these were quickly followed by others from Co¬
rinth on the same errand. At first the Athenians inclined
to favour the Corinthians, but with their usual fickleness
they soon changed their minds and took part with the Cor¬
cyrians ; contenting themselves, however, with entering
into a defensive alliance with that little state, and furnish¬
ing the Corcyrians with ten galleys, under the command of
Lacedaemonius the son of Cimon. But this determination
did not retard the preparations of the Corinthians, who, as
soon as the season permitted, sailed for the coast of Corcyra
with a fleet pf 150 ships, under the command of Xenoclides,
assisted by four other Corinthian admirals; each squadron
of their allies being commanded by an admiral of its own.
The Cor.cyrian and Athenian fleet amounted to 120 sail,
but the Athenians had orders to give as little assistance as
possible. A brisk action ensued, in which the Corcyrian
right wing broke the left of the Corinthian fleet, and drove
some of the ships on shore; whilst the Corinthian ships
in the right wing defeated the Corcyrian ships opposed to
them. Next day preparations were made on both sides
for renewing the battle ; but twenty ships arriving op¬
portunely from Athens to the assistance of the Corcy¬
rians, turned the scale against the Corinthians, who there¬
fore declined the combat.
As soon as the Corcyrian war broke out, the Athenians
sent orders to the citizens of Potidaea to demolish part of
their wall, to send back the magistrates they had received
from Corinth, and to give hostages for their own-behaviour.
The Potidaeans, however, refused to comply with this de¬
mand, upon which the Athenians dispatched a consider¬
able fleet against them, under the command of Callias, a
man celebrated for his courage; whilst the Corinthians, on
I C A.
the other hand, sent one Aristeus, with a considerable body Attij i
of troops, to the assistance of the city. An engagementy
ensued, in which the Athenians were victorious, but their
brave general fell in the action. Phormio, who succeeded to
the command on the death of Callias, then invested the
city in form, and blockaded its harbour with his fleet;
but the Potidaeans, dreading the vengeance of the Athe¬
nians, made a most obstinate defence, at the same time
warmly soliciting the Corinthians to perform their pro¬
mises, and to engage the rest of the states of Peloponnesus
to take part in their quarrel.
Meanwhile the Lacedaemonians having heard the com-Rep,™
plaints of the Corinthians and other small states of Greecedeman
against the Athenians, sent ambassadors to Athens to
demand reparation for the injuries done to these states,
and, in the event of refusal, to denounce war. The terms
demanded were, first, that all Athenians who were allied to »
the family of Megacles should be expelled from Attica; se¬
condly, that the siege of Potidsea should be raised; third¬
ly, that the inhabitants of Angina should-be left free; and,
lastly, that a decree prohibiting the Megarensians from re¬
sorting to the ports and markets of Athens should be re¬
voked, and all the Grecian states under the dominion of
Athens set at liberty.
By the persuasion of Pericles, however, these degrad-Refus
ing terms were rejected; and while the right arbitrarily
claimed by the commonwealth of Sparta to interfere in
the concerns of the other Greek states, in the charac¬
ter of a lord-paramount, was peremptorily denied, an ac¬
commodation was proposed upon the fair principles of
equality and reciprocity. In recommending the mea¬
sure which he suggested for the adoption of his country¬
men, this celebrated statesman argued, that whatever
the Lacedaemonians might pretend as to the complaints
of the allies, the true ground of their resentment was the
prosperity of the Athenian republic, which they had al¬
ways hated, and now sought an opportunity of humbling;
and that it must be owing to the Athenians themselves if
this design succeeded, because, for many reasons, Athens
was better able to engage in a long and expensive war
than the Peloponnesians. He then laid before the people
an exact account of their circumstances ;—reminding them
that the treasure brought from Delos amounted to no less
than ten thousand talents; that, although four thousand
of these had been expended on the magnificence of their
citadel, six thousand still remained in their coffers; that
they were also entitled to the subsidies payable by the
confederate states ; that the statues of their gods, the spoils
of the Persians, and other valuable property, were worth
immense sums ; that many private individuals had amassed
vast fortunes; that, considering the extent of their trade
and commerce, they might calculate upon a certain annual
increase of wealth; that they had on foot an army consisting
of 12,000 men, besides 17,000 in their colonies and garri¬
sons ; that their fleet amounted to 300 sail; and, finally, that
the Peloponnesians, with whom theymightbe called to con¬
tend, had none of these advantages, and, as compared with
the Athenians, were nearly destitute of all those resources
which constitute the sinews of war. For these reasons he
proposed, as at once the most consistent and most equit¬
able satisfaction that could be given, to reverse the decree
against Megara, provided the Lacedaemonians agreed to
accede to the principle of reciprocity in favour of the
Athenians and their allies; to consent to leave all those
states free which were acknowledged as such at the con¬
clusion of the last peace with Sparta, provided the latter
state also agreed to give freedom to all the states which
1 Thucydides, i. 117.
ATTICA.
155
*. i were under their dominion; and, finally, to submit to ar-
bitration all disputes which might in future arise between
the parties to this arrangement. He concluded by advis¬
ing them to hazard a war in case these terms were reject¬
ed; telling them, that they should not think they ran that
hazard for a trifle, or retain a scruple in their minds as if
a small consideration moved them to it, because on this
matter depended their safety, and the reputation of their
constancy and resolution. If they yielded in this, the
next demand of the Lacedaemonians wmuld be still more
extravagant; for having once discovered that the Athe¬
nians were to be acted upon by fear, they would thence
conclude that nothing could be denied them, whereas a
stout resistance in the present case would teach them to
treat Athens in future upon terms of reciprocity.
If pei( n- The firm attitude which Athens assumed on this occa-
«nesi sion, under the guidance of her most illustrious stat.es-
11 war man, may be considered as the origin of the Peloponnesian
war, which makes so prominent a figure in ancient history.
The immediate preliminary to general hostilities, however,
was an attempt of the Thebans to surprise Platma. With
this view they sent Eurymachus with three hundred men
to assist those of the Plataeans whom they had drawn over
to their interest, in making themselves masters of the place.
But although the design succeeded very well at first,—
the Platseans, who had promised to open the gates, keeping
their words exactly, so that they instantly obtained posses¬
sion of the city,—yet the other party, perceiving the small¬
ness of the number they had to contend with, unanimously
rose upon them, killed a great many, and forced the. remain¬
der to surrender themselves prisoners of war. The Thebans
sent a reinforcement to assist their countrymen, but it ar¬
rived too late to be of any service, and the whole were ul¬
timately obliged to withdraw. As soon as the A thenians
were apprized of this attempt, they caused all the Boeotians
in their territory to be arrested ; and when they understood
how their allies had delivered themselves, they immedi¬
ately dispatched a considerable convoy of provisions to
Platsea, together with a numerous body of troops for the
purpose of escorting the wives and children of the inlia-
bitants to Athens. This attempt leaving no doubt that
all hopes of accommodation were at an end, both parties
began to prepare in good earnest for war. Most of the
Grecian states inclined to favour the Spartans, partly be¬
cause the latter assumed the character of deliverers of
Greece, and partly also because many of the states either
had been, or feared they would be, oppressed by the Athe¬
nians. Accordingly, the whole of the Peloponnesians ex¬
cept the Argives and part of the Achaeans made common
cause with the Spartans; whilst, on the continent of Greece,
the Megarensians, Phocians, Locrians, Boeotians, Ambra-
ciots, Leucadians, and Anactorians, declared for the Athe¬
nians; as also did the Chians, Lesbians, Plataeans, Messe-
nians, Acarnanians, Corcyrians, Zacynthians, Carians, Do¬
rians, Thracians, and all the Cyclades, excepting Melos
t and Thera, together with Euboea and Samos.
I year. The Peloponnesian war commenced in the year b. c.
431. The Lacedaemonian army, consisting of no less than
60,000 men, assembled on the isthmus, and, after a vain
attempt at negociation, the campaign opened. The La¬
cedaemonian army was commanded by Archidamus, king
of Sparta; that of the Athenians by Pericles, with nine
generals under him. Soon after the opening of the cam- Attica,
paign, the Spartan force entered Attica and committed hor-
rible ravages; Pericles having no force capable of oppos¬
ing it, and steadily refusing to engage on disadvantageous
terms, notwithstanding prodigious clamours were in conse¬
quence raised against him by bis countrymen. The invad¬
ers, however, had no great reason to boast of the advan¬
tages they had gained; for an Athenian fleet ravaged the
coasts of Peloponnesus, whilst another infested the Lo¬
crians, expelled the inhabitants of iEgina, and repeopled
the island from Athens and Attica. Cephalenia, and some
towns in Acarnania and Leucas which had declared for the
Lacedaemonians, were also reduced; and in the autumn,
when the Peloponnesians had retired, Pericles entered the
Megarensian territory, which he laid w^aste with fire and
sword, in revenge for the devastation committed in Attica.
But the spring of the second year proved signally dis- Second
astrous to Athens ; for a dreadful plague carried off great re¬
numbers of the citizens, whilst the Peloponnesians, under
Archidamus, wasted every thing abroad. In the midst of
all these calamities, however, the firmness of Pericles re¬
mained unshaken; and he would suffer none of his country¬
men to stir from the city, either to escape the plague, which
committed horrible ravages within the walls, or to assail
the enemy, who desolated the country without.1 He me¬
ditated deeper game, namely, an inroad into the enemy s
territory, which in fact had been left completely uncovered
by the attack upon Attica. With this viewhe caused a large
fleet to be equipped, on board which he embarked 4000
foot and 300 horse, and immediately set sail for Epidau-
rus. This diversion produced the desired effect, in com¬
pelling the enemy to withdraw from Attica; but in other
respects the expedition failed on account of the plague,
which committed so great havoc among his men, that Peri¬
cles brought back to Athens only 1500 of the 4300 com¬
posing the expedition. By this disaster the Athenians
were thrown into utter despair, and immediately sued for
peace; but the Spartans refusing to accede to any terms
of accommodation, their despair gave place to fury against
their great statesman and commander, whom (as the mob
must always in such cases have a victim) they basely dis¬
missed from their service, and amerced in a heavy fine.
And, as if this had not been enough, at the same time that
Pericles experienced the ingratitude of his country, the
plague carried off his children and nearly the whole of
his kindred, leaving him almost alone in the world, child¬
less and forsaken. This accumulation of misfortunes
preyed deeply on his spirits and overwhelmed him with
melancholy, in consequence of which he secluded himself
for a time entirely from public view. But through the
persuasion of Alcibiades and other friends, he was at
length induced to show himself to the people; who, ever
inconstant, and often as prompt to pardon as to condemn,
received him with acclamations of joy, and declared him
the only man qualified to save the state in its present exi¬
gency. The first use Pericles made of his recovered po¬
pularity was to procure the repeal of the iniquitous law
which he had himself caused to be enacted, whereby all
Athenians of the half blood were disfranchised of their na¬
tural liberty, and reduced to a state of helotism; a mea¬
sure which was not altogether disinterested on his part, as
he was thereby enabled to enrol in the list of citizens his
■ In this campaign the Peloponnesians remained forty days in Attk^
raging within the city, and while the Athenians seemed abandoned to utter t espair. o , annroaches nearest
Thucydides, ii. 47, whose description has been often imitated, but never equat e , ar ess suipa ■ ‘ . ., j 0p tiie ge.
to it in horrible truth and picturesqueness of delineation is the description of the plague m Egypt and also^n the pr son ot the be
radio at Constantinople, contained in the novel entitled Anastasius, or Mernovs
tafents, and gives a more vivid and faithful picture of society and manners m the countries of the Levant, than all the boohs which have
yet been written on the subject.
m
Attica.
ATTICA.
Third
year.
Fourth
year.
only remaining son by a Milesian mother, whom the ope¬
ration of the law in question had of course bastardized.
But this was destined to be one of the last public acts of
the great Athenian statesman and patriot.
The third year of the Peloponnesian war was chiefly re¬
markable for the death of Pericles, who at length fell a vic¬
tim to the plague, which had already desolated his house,
but who left behind him a name that will never die.1 Pla-
taea was also besieged by Archidamus, but without suc¬
cess ; for although the greater part of it had been set on
fire, the Plataeans resolved to submit to every extremity
rather than abandon the Athenian cause. In the end,
therefore, the king of Sparta was obliged to convert the
siege into a blockade, and to return to Peloponnesus.
In the following summer the Peloponnesians under Archi¬
damus again invaded Attica, wasting every thing with fire
and sword; and at the same time the whole island of Les¬
bos, except the district of Methymna, revolted against
the Athenians. In the meanwhile Plataea was strictly
blockaded, and its inhabitants being reduced to the great¬
est extremity from want of provisions, the garrison came
to the resolution of forcing a passage through the enemy's
lines. When the moment arrived, however, for carrying
this design into execution, many of them became intimi¬
dated ; but the greater number persisting in their resolu¬
tion, succeeded in their gallant attempt, and above two
hundred reached Athens in safety.
Fifth year. In the beginning of the fifth year the Peloponnesians
sent forty ships to the relief of Mitylene, which the Athe¬
nians had invested after the revolt of Lesbos; but this
effort proved unavailing, since the place had surrendered
before the fleet could come to its assistance. Paches, the
Athenian commander, then drove off the Peloponnesian
fleet; and returning to Lesbos, sent the Lacedaemonian
minister, whom he found in Mitylene, together with a de¬
putation, to Athens. On their arrival the Lacedaemonian
wras immediately put to death ; and in a general assembly
of the people, it was resolved that all the Mitylenians who
had attained to manhood should also be put to death, and
the women and children sold as slaves. But the next day
this cruel decree was revoked, and a galley dispatched to
countermand the sanguinary order; which, however, arriv¬
ed before the reversal, owing to the slow sailing of the
vessel sent off with the latter. But Paches, being a man
of great humanity, had fortunately taken a day to con¬
sider the onjers he had received ; and the last-mentioned
galley arriving during this interval, only about a thousand
of the principal insurgents were put to death. The wails
of the city were however demolished, their ships taken
away, and their lands divided among the Athenians, who
let them again to their former proprietors at exorbitant
rents. About this time also the Platseans who had failed
in the attempt to break through the enemy’s lines surren¬
dered at discretion, and were cruelly put to death by the
Lacedaemonians, who sold their women as slaves. The city
was soon after razed by the d hebans, who left only an inn
to show where it stood; but the fame of Plataea induced
Alexander the Great afterwards to rebuild it on a more
extensive scale.
In this year also happened the famous sedition of Cor- Att
cyra, proverbial for the horrors with which it was accom- Wy
panied. We have already seen that the dispute between SeditI
the Corcyrians and Corinthians was mainly instrumental ^orc):
in bringing on the Peloponnesian war, one of the most
protracted and sanguinary contests of ancient times. At
the commencement of this struggle a great number of
Corcyrians were, it seems, carried as prisoners into Pelo¬
ponnesus, where the chief of them were well treated, and
the remainder sold as slaves. The motive of this conduct
on the part of the Corinthians was a design they had form¬
ed of engaging these Corcyrians to influence their coun¬
trymen to join the Corinthians and their allies. With this
view the latter treated them with all imaginable lenity
and tenderness, endeavouring to instil into their minds a
hatred of democratic government; after which they were
informed that they might obtain their liberty upon con¬
dition of exerting their influence at home in favour of the
allies, and to the prejudice of Athens. This the Corcy¬
rians readily promised and endeavoured to perform ; and
at first the partisans of aristocracy so far prevailed, that,
assisted by a Peloponnesian fleet, they murdered such of
the opposite party as fell into their hands. But the Athe¬
nians having dispatched first one fleet and then another
to the assistance of their friends, the Peloponnesians were
forced to withdraw, leaving the aristocrats at the mercy
of the democratic party; who, having thus gained the as¬
cendency, literally exterminated their antagonists with cir¬
cumstances of horrible atrocity. Nor was this all. For,
the example once set, the several states of Greece in their
turn experienced similar commotions, which were inva¬
riably fermented by agents of Sparta or of Athens; the
former endeavouring to establish an aristocratic and the
latter a democratic form of government, wherever their
influence happened to prevail.
While the Athenians were thus engaged in a contest Sicilian
in which they were already overmatched, they foolishly war.
rushed into a new one, which in the end proved more
disastrous than any in which they had yet embarked.
The inhabitants of Sicily were, it seems, divided into two
factions; the one called the Doric, at the head of which
was Syracuse; the other the Ionic, at the head of which
was Leontium. But the Ionic faction finding itself too
weak to contend with its rival without foreign aid, sent
Gorgias of Leontium, a celebrated orator, sophist, and
rhetorician, to Athens to apply for assistance; and he by
his fine speeches so captivated the giddy and inconstant
multitude, the Msya Ogs/Afia, or Great Beast (as the po¬
pulace were sometimes contemptuously styled in private,
by those who did not scruple to pander to their worst pas¬
sions in public), that they rushed headlong into a war which
they were unable to maintain while engaged in a death-
struggle with nearly all the states of the Peloponnesus.
Accordingly, bewrayed by the wily sophist,2 and probably
enticed by the hope of effecting the conquest of Sicily, they
dispatched a fleet to the assistance of the Leontines, un¬
der the command of Lachetes and Chabrias; and this had
no sooner sailed than another destined for the same service
was begun to be fitted out. In the mean time the plague
he „e/„ appear in S S’b.TS dl eS hS B ^
n°t have exceeded fourscore at the time of his death, which took place in b. c. 429. ^ B' C' 444; 80 that he could
i. T)rus’ Xu‘ 53, Se,e also rausanias, vi. 17, 5, and Philostratus in Vit. Gore;. This celebrated artdst In h a f, e
making the worse appear the better reason, would seem to have been a singular specimen of “ heakh and Inle > da^f0US cra? °f
to I hilostratus, rW ^ ; but the sounder opinion seems to be that v,P wafh 7 ? u l accordlBg
and died soon after b. c. 380, at the ao-e of in'i nr ino XTn in ^ »eems to be, that he was born about b. c. 48o,
{Fasti Hellenici, p. 63.) ’ g ° °6' He WaS m rePutatlon as a sophist and rhetorician for nearly fourscore years.
ATT
il Att' continued its ravages to such an extent that in the course
of this year four thousand citizens, and a much larger num¬
ber of the lower class of people, fell victims to its fury,
d The sixth year of the Peloponnesian war was notremark-
!«!Ven able for any great exploit. Agis, the son of Archidamus,
91 ears. kjng 0f Sparta, assembled an army in order to invade At¬
tica; but he was prevented doing so by earthquakes, which
shook almost every part of Greece, and produced general
consternation. The next year, however, he entered At¬
tica with his army; whilst the Athenians, on their part,
sent a fleet, under the command of Demosthenes, to in¬
fest the coasts of Peloponnesus. As this fleet passed the
coast of Laconia, the commander observed that the pro¬
montory of Pylos, which was joined to the continent by a
narrow neck of land, had before it an island about two
miles in circumference, which, though barren in itself,
nevertheless contained an excellent harbour, sheltered
from all winds either by the headland or isle, and capable
of admitting the most numerous fleets; circumstances
which led him to conclude that a garrison left here would
alarm the Peloponnesians, and induce them to think rather
of protecting their own country than of invading that of
their neighbours. Accordingly, having raised a strong for¬
tification, he established himself in the post, reserving five
ships of war for its defence; and ordered the rest of the
fleet to proceed to its intended destination. On the news
of this event the Peloponnesian army immediately re¬
turned to besiege Pylos, and soon made themselves mas¬
ters of the harbour, as well as of the island of Sphacteria,
which was taken by a chosen body of Spartans. They then
made a vigorous attack upon the fort, hoping to carry it
before succours could arrive ; but Demosthenes and his
garrison made an obstinate defence ; and an Athenian fleet
arriving in the interval,.relieved the besieged from all ap¬
prehensions on account of the superior force of the enemy.
Battle was immediately offered; but as the Peloponnesian
fleet declined the challenge, the Athenians sailed boldly
into the harbour, and sunk or destroyed most of the ene¬
my’s ships, after which they besieged the Spartans in
Sphacteria. Alarmed at finding the war carried into their
own territory, the Peloponnesians now began to treat with
their enemies; and whilst the negociations were carrying
on at Athens, a cessation of hostilities was agreed to, upon
the condition that the Peloponnesians should in the mean
time deliver up all their ships, but that in the event of the
treaty not taking effect, these should be immediately re¬
stored. In as far as regards the negociations, the Athe¬
nians, having heard the propositions of the Spartan pleni¬
potentiaries, were at first strongly inclined to put an end
to this ruinous and destructive war, all the evils of which
had been so greatly aggravated by the dreadful pestilence
which at the same time ravaged the city of Athens and
part of the territory of Attica. But the orator Cleon, a
warm and headstrong man, persuaded his countrymen to
insist on the most unreasonable terms; and as the confe¬
derates were by no means so far reduced as to suffer the
Athenians jsam imponere morem, to dictate terms of peace,
the plenipotentiaries withdrew, and by doing so, of course
put an end to the armistice. The Peloponnesians then
demanded the restoration of their vessels, conformably to
the stipulation above mentioned; but the Athenians re¬
fused to deliver them up, on the miserable and dishonest
pretence that the former had violated the truce. Hosti¬
lities, therefore, were immediately recommenced on both
sides; and the Lacedaemonians attacked the Athenians
I C A. 157
at Pylos, while the latter attacked the Spartans at Sphac- Attica,
teria. But the Lacedaemonians, though only a handful of
men, and under every imaginable discouragement, defend¬
ed themselves with so much bravery that the siege pro¬
ceeded very slowly; and the people of Athens becoming
uneasy at its duration, began to wish they had embraced
the offers of the Spartans, and to rail vehemently against
Cleon, who had been primarily instrumental in occasioning
their rejection. To excuse himself, however, the orator
affirmed it would be an easy matter for the general of the
forces which they were then sending to attack the Spartans
in the isle, and reduce them at once. Nicias, who had just
been appointed to the command, replied that if Cleon be¬
lieved he could perform such wonders, he would do well
to repair to the scene of action in person. The orator, com¬
pelled to sustain his part, rejoined without hesitation that
he was ready to go with all his heart; upon which Nicias
caught him at his word, and declared that he had relin¬
quished his command. Startled at this renunciation, the
speech-maker protested that he was no general; but Nicias
tauntingly assured him that he might some day become
one; and the people, amused with the controversy, held
the orator to his word. Cleon then advancing, told them
he was so little afraid of the enemy, that, with a very in¬
considerable force, he would undertake, in conjunction with
that already at Pylos, to bring to Athens in twenty days
the Spartans who had given them so much trouble. The
people laughed at this apparent gasconade; but having
furnished him with the troops he desired, the orator, to
the infinite surprise of every one, brought the Spartans
prisoners to Athens within the time he had specified.1
In the eighth year of the war Nicias reduced the island Eighth
of Cythera on the coast of Laconia, and Thyraea, a fron-year*
tier territory, which had been given to the iEginetans
when expelled from their own country by the Athenians.
In Sicily, Hermocrates of Syracuse, having persuaded the
inhabitants of the island to adjust their differences with¬
out foreign interference, the Athenian generals returned
home ; a step which so greatly displeased their countrymen
that two of them were banished, and the third was senten¬
ced to pay a heavy fine. The Athenians, under the conduct
of Hippocrates and Demosthenes, next laid siege to Me-
gara ; but Brasidas, a Spartan general, coming to its relief,
a battle ensued, which, though indecisive in its result,
gave the Lacedaemonian faction an ascendency in Megara,
and forced many who had favoured the Athenians to with¬
draw. In Bceotia some commotions were raised in favour
of the Athenians; but their generals Hippocrates and
Demosthenes being defeated by the Lacedaemonian party,
all hopes ceased of the Athenian power being established
in this district of Greece.2
In the ninth year the Spartans made new proposals of Ninth
peace, which the Athenians were now more inclined toyear*
accept than formerly; so, finding their affairs much un¬
settled by the loss of Amphipolis, which had been reduced
by Brasidas, a truce for a year was agreed on, while nego¬
ciations were immediately opened for restoring a general
peace. But this pacific scheme was soon overthrown by a
misunderstanding, arising out of an occurrence purely ac¬
cidental, and the war was in consequence renewed.
The following year commenced with an attempt by Nician
Brasidas upon Potidaea ; but this having failed, the Athe-pacifica-
nians began to recover some courage ; and the truce ex-tlon*
piring on the day of the Pythian games, Cleon advised
the Athenians to send an army under his own command
1 Thucydides, iv. 39.
2 Alcibiades seems to have already begun to take part in public affairs. See a passage in the Wasps of Aristophanes, 44, where his
Manner of speaking is ridiculed. At this time he was about twenty-four years of age.
158
ATTICA.
Attica, into Thrace. They agreed to this proposal, and imme-
diately fitted out a force, consisting of 1200 foot and 300
horse, all Athenian citizens, embarked on board thirty
galleys, of which the orator took the command. Brasidas
was inferior in numbers to his opponent; but, observing
that the Athenian commander was careless, and neglect¬
ful of discipline, the Spartan suddenly attacked him, and
routed his army with the loss of half its numbers, while
that of the assailants amounted to only seven killed and a
few wounded. In this encounter, which appears to have
been a complete surprise, the commanders on both sides
were slain ; and although the Athenians might well spare
their orator-general, whom impudence and accident had
invested with a military command, the death of their brave
leader was a serious loss to the Spartans, who, in fact, la¬
mented him more than the Athenians did the loss of the
battle. In consequence of this event, however, the latter
were now much more disposed than formerly to hearken to
terms of accommodation. Amongst the Spartans, too, there
was a party, at the head of whom was Plistonax, their king,
who earnestly wished for peace; and as Nicias laboured
no less assiduously at Athens to bring about this desirable
event, a peace was at last concluded between the two na¬
tions for the period of fifty years.1 The conditions were,
a restitution of places and prisoners on both sides; with
the exception of Nissea, which was to remain in the hands
of the Athenians, who had taken it from the Megarensians,
and of Plataea, which was to continue in possession of the
Thebans, who could not possibly give it up without un¬
covering the whole of their territory. The Boeotians, Co¬
rinthians, and Megarensians, refused to be included in this
peace; but the rest of the allies acquiesced; and being
accordingly ratified, it received the name of the Nician
pacification, from that of the individual who had been
mainly instrumental in restoring the blessing of peace to
his country.
New mis- But although peace had been nominally established,
under- tranquillity was far from being restored. Dissatisfied with
standings. tjie treajy on various grounds, several states of the Pelo¬
ponnesus, headed by Argos, immediately commenced or¬
ganizing a new confederacy; even the Lacedaemonians
found it impossible to fulfil exactly the stipulations of the
agreement; and the town of Amphipolis in particular
peremptorily refused to return under the government of
Athens; for which reason the Athenians also refused to
evacuate Pylos. In the course of the winter fresh negocia-
tions were opened, but nothing definite was agreed upon,
and the time passed in mutual complaints and recrimina¬
tions. At Athens, in particular, the flame of discontent
was artfully fanned by Alcibiades, who now began to rival
Nicias in public favour, and who, perceiving that the Lace¬
daemonians paid their court principally to his rival, took
every opportunity of incensing his countrymen against
that nation. On the other hand Nicias, whose reputation
was concerned in maintaining the treaty inviolate, used
his utmost endeavours to bring about a reconciliation, and
even undertook a journey to Sparta, in the hope of effect¬
ing an accommodation; but, most unhappily, the artifices
of Alcibiades, added to the turbulent and haughty dispo¬
sition of both nations, rendered all his efforts unavailing,
and at length satisfied him that a renewal of the war was
inevitable. If the intrigues of this remarkable man, how¬
ever, were mainly instrumental in bringing about a rup¬
ture, it cannot be denied that he took the most prudent
methods for insuring the safety of his country. With this
view he entered into a league with the Argives for the
long term of a hundred years; he then marched into the
territories of that state at the head of a considerable force; Att
and he exerted all his influence, both at Argos and at Pa- ^
trae, to persuade the people to connect their cities with the
sea by means of walls, in order to facilitate the landing
of succour, when it might be necessary, by the Athenians.
But, though vigorous preparations were now made for a re¬
newal of the war, nothing of any consequence was under¬
taken this year ; if we except an attempt by the Argives
to make themselves masters of Epidaurus, which was, how¬
ever, defeated by the Lacedaemonians throwing a strong
garrison into the place.
The next being the fourteenth year of the Pelopon-Rene
nesian war, a Spartan army, under the command of Agis,thew
entered the territory of Argos; but just as battle was
on the eve of commencing, a truce was suddenly conclud¬
ed between two of the Argive generals and the king of
Sparta. But it so happened that neither party felt sa¬
tisfied with this proceeding, and both the king and the
generals were very ill received by their respective fellow-
citizens. Accordingly, on the arrival of some fresh troops
from Athens, the Argives immediately broke the truce;
and a battle ensuing soon afterwards, the allied army
was defeated with great slaughter by Agis, who thus
achieved a victory on the very spot which was afterwards
destined to acquire additional celebrity as the scene of
one of the most disastrous defeats which the Spartan arms
ever experienced. In the winter a strong party in Argos
joined the Lacedaemonians ; in consequence of which that
city renounced her alliance with Athens, and concluded
peace with Sparta for the period of half a century. Fur¬
ther, in compliment to their new allies, the Argives abo¬
lished democracy in their city, substituting an aristo¬
cracy in its stead; and they also assisted the Lacedaemo¬
nians in forcing the Sicyonians to adopt a similar form of
government. Notwithstanding all this, however, the Ar¬
gives, with a levity natural to the Greeks, renounced their
alliance with Sparta the following year ; abolished aristo¬
cracy, drove the Lacedaemonians out of the city, and re¬
newed their league with Athens. On the other hand the
Athenians, convinced of the bad faith of Perdiccas, king of
Macedonia, abjured his alliance and declared war against
him; preferring, as they said, an open enemy to a treach¬
erous friend. And as Argos was still distracted by adverse
factions, Alcibiades in the course of the ensuing year ter¬
minated all disputes between them by the expulsion of the
Spartan party. He then sailed for the island of Melos,
which had shown the greatest inveteracy against his
countrymen, in order to punish the inhabitants for re¬
peated acts of .wanton hostility; but perceiving that die
reduction of the island would be a work of time, he left a
considerable body of forces there, and returned to Athens.
In his absence, however, the capital of Melos surrendered
at discretion, and the inhabitants were treated with the
utmost severity; all the men capable of bearing arms
being slaughtered, and the women and children carried
into captivity.
In the beginning of the seventeenth year, Nicias wasLoss *
appointed commander-in-chief of an expedition destined^1
to act against the Sj^racusans, with Alcibiades and Lama-^j
chus as colleagues. But whilst the necessary preparations iCI
were being made, Athens was thrown into terrible con¬
fusion by the defacing of the Hermae or statues of Mer¬
cury, of which there was a great number in the city; an
outrage equally wanton in itself, and appalling to the
people of Athens, who revered these statues both as mo¬
numents of art and as symbols of religion. Great efforts
were in consequence made to discover the perpetrators of
I
i
k
*
Thucydides, v. 18, 19, 20.
ATTICA.
159
this sacrilege ; but although ample rewards were offered,
J n0 disclosure was then made. At last, from some cause un¬
explained, suspicion fell upon Alcibiades, who in conse¬
quence received orders to return immediately from Sicily
in order to take his trial for this alleged crime. But he
knew the temper of his countrymen too well to trust him¬
self to their mercy; wherefore, instead of returning to
Athens, he fled to Sparta, where he met with a gracious
reception; whilst the Athenians were severely punished
by the loss of their army, generals, and fleet, in Sicily; a
disaster which the superior abilities of Alcibiades would
in all probability have prevented,
i The nineteenth and twentieth years of the war were
■ spent by the Athenians in equipping a new fleet in order
to repair their losses ; but Alcibiades hurt their interests
greatly by persuading Tissaphernes the Persian to league
with the Spartans against them, and at the same time
stirring up several of the Ionian states to revolt against
what he described as the mob government of Athens.
Equally restless and profligate, however, this celebrated
Athenian had scarcely established himself amongst his
new allies when he contrived, by means of a handsome
person and an insinuating address, to debauch the wife of
Agis the Lacedsemonian commander; and as the latter
strongly resented the affront which had been put upon
him, the Athenian seducer was obliged to quit Sparta and
pass over into Persia. Here, however, he met with a fa¬
vourable reception from Tissaphernes, who profited much
by his advice, which, in fact, was equally shrewd and insi¬
dious. “ Let the Greeks,” said he to the Persian general,
“ exhaust themselves by their mutual wars ; foment dis¬
cord among them, which you will always find compara¬
tively an easy task; take care never to let one state be
totally destroyed, but always to support the weaker party
against the more powerful;—follow this policy for a time,
and the Greeks will themselves spare you the trouble of
conquering them. By their incessant contests they will
so weaken themselves that their country will become the
prey of the first invader.”
i As may easily be supposed, Tissaphernes readily ac¬
quiesced in these counsels; upon which Alcibiades wrote
privately to some of the officers in the Athenian army at
Samos, informing them that he had been treating with the
Persians in behalf of his countrymen, but that he did not
choose to return till the democracy should be abolished ;
adding, that the Persian king disliked a democracy, but
would immediately assist them if that was abolished, and an
oligarchy established in its stead. On the arrival of Pisan-
der and other deputies from the army with the proposals of
Alcibiades, the Athenians without hesitation resolved to
overturn the democratical form of government which they
had all along so strenuously defended; in consequence of
which Pisander and the deputies received directions to re¬
turn to Alcibiades, in order to ascertain precisely on what
terms the king of Persia was disposed to enter into an al¬
liance with them. But perceiving that Tissaphernes was
by no means inclined to assist the Athenians, on account of
their recent successes, Alcibiades artfully set up such ex¬
travagant demands in the king of Persia’s name, that the
Athenians of themselves broke off the treaty, and thus ena¬
bled him to outwdt both parties without offending either.
But notwithstanding the failure of the negociations with
l issaphernes, the democratical form of government was abo¬
lished, first in the cities subject to Athens, and afterwards
in the capital itself; whilst, according to the scheme sub¬
stituted in its stead, it was provided that the old form of
government should be entirely dissolved ;—that five Pry-
tanes should be elected;—that these five should choose
a hundred others, and each of the hundred choose three
more;—that the Four Hundred thus elected should become
a senate with full power, but should nevertheless consult Attica,
occasionally with Five Thousand of the wealthiest citizens,
who alone were henceforth to be accounted The People; 
and that no authority whatever should remain in the hands
of the lowest class of citizens. Such was the scheme pro¬
posed by Pisander; and although the people were opposed
to this change, those who conducted it, being men of great
parts, found means to establish it by one of those uncere¬
monious acts of audacity which commonly distinguish re¬
volutions in popular governments.
In the meanwhile the Athenian army having changed The army
their mind, declared for a democracy; and recalling Alci-
biades, they invested him with full power, and insisted on *or a cle'
his immediate return to Athens for the purpose of restor-mocracy*
ing the ancient government. But he peremptorily refused
to comply with their wishes ; persuaded them to stay where
they were in order to save Ionia; and further prevailed
on them to allow some deputies, who had been sent by the
new governors of Athens, to deliver the message with
which they were charged. When the deputies had done
so, Alcibiades enjoined them in reply to return imme¬
diately to Athens, and acquaint the Four Flundred that
they were commanded instantly to resign their authority
and restore the senate ; adding, that the Five Thousand
might retain their power for the present, provided they
used it with moderation. By this answer the city was
thrown into the utmost confusion ; but the party of the
new government prevailing, ambassadors were dispatched
to Sparta with orders to conclude peace upon any terms.
This, however, was not so easy a matter as some had
hastily imagined; for the Spartans proved intractable; and
Phrynicus, the chief of the embassy, was murdered on
his return. When the news of his death arrived, Thera-
menes, the head of the democratical party, seized the
leaders of the Four Hundred; upon which a tumult en¬
sued that had almost proved fatal to the city itself; but
the mob being at last dispersed, the Four Hundred imme¬
diately assembled, and sent deputies to the people, pro¬
mising to comply, with all their reasonable demands. A
day was accordingly appointed for convoking a general as¬
sembly, and settling the form of government; but when it
arrived, intelligence was brought that the Lacedeemonian
fleet was in sight, and steering directly for Salamis. Thus
all was again thrown into confusion; and the people, in¬
stead of deliberating on the subject proposed, ran in crowds
down to the port, whence a fleet of thirty-six ships was im¬
mediately dispatched, under the command of Timochares,
to engage the enemy, who were perceived to be making
for Euboea. But this fleet was utterly defeated, twenty-
two ships being taken, and the remainder either sunk or
disabled; and this disaster was followed by the revolt of
all Euboea, except the small district of Orcus. When the
dismal tidings reached Athens, every thing was given up
for lost; and had the Lacedaemonians taken this opportu¬
nity of attacking the city, they would undoubtedly have
succeeded in the attempt, and thus put an end to the war
by the subjugation of Athens. But being at all times slow,
especially in naval affairs, they allowed the Athenians time
to equip another fleet, and to retrieve their affairs; while
Alcibiades, by his intrigues, so effectually embroiled the
Persians and Peloponnesians that neither party knew whom
to trust, and mutual distrust at length rose to such a pitch
as almost to involve them in open hostility; and several
advantages gained by the Athenians at sea tended to re¬
vive their hopes and restore their confidence.
During the succeeding years of this celebrated war the Alcibiades
Athenians were also in the first instance very successful, triumph-
Thrasybulus obtained a signal advantage at sea; and in the a!lt; ar,d
same day Alcibiades gained two victories, one by land anddlsSracei *
another by sea, capturing the whole Peloponnesian fleet,
ATTICA.
160
Attica, besides an immense spoil. The Spartans, humbled by
these reverses, were reduced in their turn to the necessity
of suing for peace. But the Athenians, intoxicated with
success, sent back the envoys without vouchsafing an an¬
swer to their proposals; and the Spartans, justly incensed
at this insolent and contemptuous conduct, renewed the
war with the utmost vigour, and soon after made themselves
masters of Pylos. Nor was this the only misfortune of
the Athenians. The Megarensians surprised Nysaea, and
put the garrison to death ; an act which so exasperated
the Athenians that they immediately sent an army against
that people,—defeated them with great slaughter,—and
committed horrid devastations, in revenge for the affair
of Nysaea. But these misfortunes were still in some mea¬
sure counterbalanced by the great actions of Alcibiades,
Thrasybulus, and Theramenes. Indeed, when Alcibiades
returned in triumph to Athens, he brought with him a
fleet of two hundred ships, together with such a load of
spoils as had never been seen in the capital since the
conclusion of the Persian war. The people crowded to
the port to behold the hero as he landed; old and young
blessed him as he passed; and next day, when he had
delivered a harangue to the assembly, they directed the
record of his banishment to be thrown into the sea, ab¬
solved him from the curses he lay under on account of
the alleged sacrilege, and created him generalissimo of
their forces. But this enthusiasm was too violent to be
lasting; and in point of fact a casual reverse which Alci¬
biades sustained soon after this obliterated all remem¬
brance of his former services, and involved him in disgrace.
Having sailed to the Hellespont with part of his fleet, he
left the remainder under the command of Antiochus his
pilot, with strict orders to attempt nothing in his absence.
But the pilot chose to disobey his instructions, and having
provoked Lysander the Lacedaemonian admiral to an en¬
gagement, he paid for his temerity by a total defeat, with
the loss of fifteen ships, and that of his own life into the
bargain. On receiving intelligence of this disaster, Alci¬
biades returned, and endeavoured to induce the Lacedae¬
monian commander to hazard a second battle ; but Lysan¬
der was too prudent to incur such a risk; and in the mean¬
while the Athenians, with their usual ingratitude and incon¬
stancy, deprived Alcibiades of his command, and named ten
new generals in his stead. By this iniquitous proceeding
their ruin was sealed. Conon, who succeeded to the com¬
mand, w^s beaten by Callicratides, Lysander’s successor;
but being afterwards strongly reinforced, he retrieved this
disgrace by defeating the Lacedaemonians with the loss of
no less than seventy-seven ships. Such a victory might
have been supposed to inspire the Athenians with some
gratitude towards the generals who had gained it; but in¬
stead of this eight of them were recalled, on pretence of
their not having assisted the wounded during the engage¬
ment : two were prudent enough not to return; and the
six who trusted to the justice of their country were all put
to death without mercy.
Athenians The following year Lysander, appointed commander of
defeated at the Peloponnesian fleet, succeeded in capturing both Tha-
Aigosop- sus an(j Lampsacus. Conon was immediately dispatched
against him with a hundred and eighty ships; a force so
superior to that under Lysander, that the Lacedaemonian
declined accepting battle, and was consequently blocked
up in the river vLgos. While the Athenians lay there ob¬
serving him, they grew quite idle and careless, insomuch
that Alcibiades, who had built a habitation for himself in
the neighbourhood, entreated them to be more watchful,
as he well knew Lysander’s great abilities, and dreaded that
they might have reason to repent their security if they
disregarded his advice. They replied by expressing their
wonder at the assurance of a fellow who was an exile and
a vagabond, in pretending to offer advice to them; add- a 1
ing, that if he gave them any further trouble, they would ^ 7
seize and send him a prisoner to Athens. The conse¬
quences of such conduct may easily be imagined. Ly¬
sander fell unexpectedly upon the presumptuous fools,
and gained a complete victory; Conon, with only nine gal¬
leys, escaping to Evagoras at Cyprus: after which the
Lacedaemonian commander returned to Lampsacus, where
he put to death Philocles with 3000 of his soldiers, and
the whole of the officers except Adimantus. He then re¬
duced all the cities subject to Athens, and artfully sent
home their garrisons, that the city, overstocked with inha¬
bitants, might thus be rendered incapable of holding out
for any length of time when he came to besiege it.
Nor was any time lost in undertaking this decisive opera-Can
tion. Lysander appeared before the harbours with a fleet ;Atli
while Agis, at the head of a powerful army, invested it on
the land side. For a considerable time the Athenians re¬
sisted both attacks ; but they were at last forced to send
deputies to Agis, who referred them to Sparta; and when
they repaired thither they were told that no terms could
be granted except they consented to demolish their walls.
They next applied to Lysander, but he also referred them
to Sparta; to which Theramenes, with other deputies, was
immediately dispatched. On their arrival they found as¬
sembled the council of the confederates, who all except
the Spartans gave their votes for the utter destruction of
Athens; but the latter would on no account consent to the
ruin of a city which had deserved so well of Greece. The
Athenian envoys did all in their power to mitigate the se¬
verity of the terms, but without effect; and finally peace
was concluded, on condition that the long walls and the
fortifications of the port should be demolished, and that
the Athenians should deliver up all their ships excepting
twelve, receive back such as had been banished for po¬
litical offences, and consent to follow the fortune of the
Lacedaemonians. And these severe terms were punctually
executed. Lysander caused the walls and fortifications
to be pulled down; established an oligarchy expressly
against the will of the people; and thus completed the ruin
of Athens in the twenty-seventh year of the Peloponnesian
war, and the 404th b. c.
As soon as the Lacedaemonian had demolished the longy^,,
walls and the fortifications of the Peiraeus, he constitutedtyT 6
a council of thirty, with power, as was pretended, to make
laws, but in truth to subjugate the state. These were the
persons so famous in history under the title of The Thirty
Tyrants. They were all the creatures of Lysander; and as
they derived their power from conquest and the law of the
sword, they exercised it in a manner worthy of its origin.
Instead of making laws, they governed without them; they
appointed a senate and magistrates at their will; and, lastly,
they applied for a garrison from Lacedaemon, that, under
the protection of a foreign military force, they might give
a freer and bolder scope to the licentiousness of tyranny.
Critias and Theramenes, two men of the greatest power Cril I
and abilities in Athens, were at the head of this odious Tht11
oligarchy. The former was ambitious and cruel beyondnes‘
measure; but the latter was of a more merciful and humane
disposition. The one pushed on all the bloody schemes
framed by his confederates, and carried into execution
many of his own; the other always opposed them, at first
with moderation, at last with vehemence. In the course
of his expostulations he said, that power was given them to
rule and not to despoil the commonwealth; that it became
them to act like shepherds, not like wolves; and that they
ought to beware of rendering themselves at once odious
and ridiculous, by attempting to domineer over all, being
a mere handful of men, whom the slightest resistance would
crush. This hint was not thrown away; for the remaining
ATT
J Att j• oligarchs immediately chose three thousand persons, whom
J they constituted the representatives of the people, and on
* whom they granted the notable privilege of not being lia¬
ble to be put to death except by judgment of the senate;
thereby assuming by implication a power of sacrificing the
other Athenian citizens at their pleasure. Nor were they
slow in practically confirming the justice of this interpre¬
tation ; for as many as they conjectured to be unfriendly
to the government in general, or to any of themselves in
particular, they put to death, without cause and without
mercy. Theramenes stoutly resisted this wantonness of
cruelty; and absolutely refusing to concur in such mea¬
sures, Critias accused him to the senate as a man of un¬
steady principles, sometimes for the people, sometimes
against them, and favourable to nothing except innovation
and revolution. The accused admitted that he had some¬
times changed his measures, but alleged that he had al¬
ways done so for the benefit of the people. It was solely
with this view that he made peace with Sparta, and ac¬
cepted of office as one of the Thirty; nor had he ever op¬
posed their measures while they cut off the wicked; but
when they began to destroy men of fortune and family,
then he owned he had differed with them, which he con¬
ceived to be no crime against the state.
3Thei Whilst Theramenes was speaking, Critias, perceiving the
- iiem iut impression made upon the senate by his words, withdrew
to de i. abruptly; but he soon returned with a guard, crying out that
he had struck the name of Theramenes out of the list of the
three thousand; that the senate had therefore no longer
cognizance of the cause; and that the Thirty had already
judged and condemned him to death. Theramenes, see¬
ing that they intended to seize him, fled to the altar in
the midst of the senate-house, and laying his hands there¬
on, said, “ I do not seek refuge here because I expect to
escape death, or desire it'; but that, tearing me from the
altar, the impious authors of my murder may interest the
gods in bringing them to speedy judgment, and thereby
restore freedom to my country.” The guards then dragged
him from the altar, and carrying him to the place of exe¬
cution, he drank the poison with undaunted courage; re¬
minding the people, with his last breath, that the same ty¬
rants who had arbitrarily struck his name out of the list of
the three thousand, might also strike out any of theirs, and
that none could say whose turn it might next be to drink
the fatal cup which he had just drained. The death of
this heroic man was followed by a train of murders such
as are to be found recorded only in the annals of republi¬
can oligarchies or aristocratical republics. Almost every
citizen of any eminence had either died a violent death or
been driven into exile.1
Ayr iy At length Thrasybulus, and such as like him had taken
t shelter in the Theban territory, resolved to hazard every
thing rather than remain in a state of perpetual exile from
their country; and although he had not more than thirty
men on whom he could depend, yet, inspired by the remem¬
brance of the victories he had heretofore obtained in the
cause of his country, he boldly made an irruption into Atti¬
ca, and seizing on Phyle, a castle at a short distance from
Athens, numbers flocked to his standard, and he soon found
himself at the head of seven hundred men, who, driven
mad by cruelty and oppression, were prepared to devote
themselves for their country. The tyrants of course had
the disposal of the Spartan garrison, which they employed
I C A. J61
to reduce Thrasybulus and his party; yet he prevailed in Attica,
various skirmishes, and at last obliged them to decamp
from Phyle, which they had intended to blockade. The
Thirty and their partisans conceiving it. expedient to ob¬
tain possession of Eleusis, marched thither; and having
persuaded the people to go unarmed out of their city,
on the pretence of numbering them, the monsters instant¬
ly commenced an indiscriminate massacre. But the forces
of Thrasybulus increasing daily, he seized on the Peirseus,
which he fortified in the best manner he could; and al¬
though the tyrants came down against him with the ut¬
most force they could raise, he defended himself with so
much obstinacy, that in the end they were forced to re¬
treat, having lost before the place not only a great number
of their men, but Critias, the president of the Thirty, and
other members of this sanguinary oligarchy. By this gal¬
lant resistance the fate of the oligarchy was sealed. The
people indeed differed among themselves; and the sangui¬
nary monsters, who during their short administration had
destroyed more men than had fallen during half the Pe¬
loponnesian war, had still a considerable party in Athens.
But happily the cause of humanity prevailed; the tyrants
were expelled, and ten men of each tribe were chosen to go¬
vern in their stead.
But although the citizens had changed the government, Spartans
they had made no agreement with those in the Pei-attempt
raeus ;2 whilst the tyrants, who had retired to Eleusis, sentto reduce
deputies to Lacedasmon to announce the revoltof the Athe- Atheils a
mans, and request assistance to reduce them. Nor did time>
their application prove fruitless. Besides remitting them
a large sum of money to aid their intrigues, the Lace¬
daemonians appointed Lysander commander-in-chief, and
his brother admiral; resolving to send both a fleet and
an army, in order to reduce Athens a second time, and,
as most of the Greek states then strongly suspected, to
add it to their other dominions. Nor is it improbable that
this design would have taken effect, had not Pausanias,
the rival and enemy of Lysander, resolved to obstruct it
by every means in his power. With this view he caused
another army to be raised, of which he took the command,
and immediately marched for the ostensible purpose of be¬
sieging the Peirseus. But while he lay before the place,
and pretended to attack it, he entered into a private cor¬
respondence with Thrasybulus, instructing him what pro¬
positions to make in order to induce the Lacedaemonians,
who were suspected by their allies, to abandon the con¬
test, and conclude peace upon equitable terms. These in¬
trigues had all the success that could be desired. The
Ephori who were with Pausanias in the camp concurred
in his measures; and in a short time a treaty was con¬
cluded, by which, amongst other things, it was provided
that all the citizens of Athens should be restored to their
homes and privileges, with the exception of the Thirty,
the Ten who had succeeded them, and the Eleven who
during the time of the oligarchy had been constituted
governors of the Peirseus ; that all should remain quiet for
the future in the city; and that, if any persons were afraid
to trust to this agreement, they should have permission to
retire unmolested to Eleusis. Pausanias then marched
away with the Spartan army; and Thrasybulus at the
head of his forces entered Athens, where, having laid
down their arms, they sacrificed with the rest of their
fellow-citizens in the temple of Minerva, and then, to the
1 Alcibiades died during the tyranny of the Thirty. He was then in the forty-fourth year of his age, and had been more or less
engaged in public affairs for about twenty years. He was a bold, bad man; of great personal and mental endowments, but utterly
devoid of principle, and addicted to the most shameless profligacy ; prompt, skilful, brave, enterprising, restless, ambitious, yet fond of
intrigue and finesse in all things ; an enemy to liberty under the mask of ultra-democracy ; and reckless of every consideration which
was opposed to the gratification of his pride, vanity, ambition, sensuality, revenge, and love of perpetual bustle and turmoil.
i o! tv TUi^aui, that is, Thrasybulus and his party.
VOL. iv.
X
162 ATT
Attica, great delight of all, restored the popular form of govern-
merit, which was afterwards consolidated by an act of ge¬
neral amnesty and oblivion.1
Virtue of Throughout the whole of this transaction the conduct
Thrasybu- of Thrasybulus was admirable. When he first seized the
*us- castle of Phyle, the tyrants privately offered to receive him
into their number instead of Theramenes, and to pardon at
his request any twelve persons whom he might choose to
name. But he nobly replied that he considered his exile far
more honourable than any authority could be, purchased
on such terms ; and by persisting in his design he accom¬
plished the deliverance of his country from a ferocious
and sanguinary oligarchy, which, as Isocrates informs us,
had put fourteen hundred citizens to death without any
form of law, and had driven five thousand more into banish¬
ment, besides committing a variety of other acts of cruelty
and oppression.
But, although Athens was thus restored to liberty by the
virtuous patriotism of Thrasybulus, the age of Athenian
glory had passed away. From this period till the reign of
Philip of Macedonia the republic gradually sunk in ener¬
gy, though it still continued to enjoy tolerable prosperity;
and although many of the great masterpieces of Athenian
genius were the productions of a later age, the most splen¬
did of these only serve to prove beyond all question that
the national spirit had degenerated, and that, “ sunk in its
glory, decayed in its worth,” the Athenian Demos, which
had once been the wonder and terror of the world, was
now prepared to receive the law from the hands of almost
any master. Philip accordingly found but little difficulty
in extinguishing the feeble remains of liberty; and his son
Alexander having completed the subjugation of Greece,
the history of the Grecian states henceforward ceases to be
of almost any interest. With regard to the capital, how¬
ever, a rapid sketch of its history from this period till the
present time will be found under the article Athens, to
which reference is accordingly made.
Having thus laid before the reader an outline of the
general history of Attica, it now only remains to give, as
briefly as possible, some account of the character, govern¬
ment, religion, and public economy of the Athenians.
Character National character may be defined the aggregate of those
of the qualities or peculiarities, physical, moral, and political, by
Athenians, which one community of men is distinguished from another;
in other words, it is a complex result produced by the action
and re-action of primary and secondary causes, or the joint
effect of all the circumstances, original and accidental, in
which a people happens to be placed. But these causes
are so various, both in kind and degree,—the operation of
one is so much affected and modified by that of another,
and direct physical become so much blended with indirect
moral and political influences,—that, whilst it is compara¬
tively an easy matter to determine in what respects the ge¬
neral characters of nations differ, it is exceedingly difficult,
not to say impossible, to resolve that of any one into its
constituent elements, and to assign to each its due share
in the production of the ultimate result. The instrument of
analysis which, employed in the investigation of physical
laws, has led to the discovery of the most sublime truths,
and extended the knowledge and consequently the power
of man over the material world, is applicable only in a very
limited degree even to the most complex phenomena of
mind. Here we possess no manner of control over the
subject of pur inquiries; we have no power of placing it in
new situations, of trying it by a variety of tests, or of sub¬
mitting it to a course of skilfully-contrived experiments.
All that we can possibly do is either carefully to watch its
I C A.
manifestations, where these fall under our own notice, or to h\
apply the principles of a sound logic to such observations ^ ,
as have been recorded by others, and thus to endeavour to
make the nearest approximation we can to the truth. In
such a method of investigation, however, the liability to
error must necessarily be great; for, independently of its
own obvious imperfection, the subtile nature of the phe¬
nomena observed, and the constant transitions and modi¬
fications they experience, produce continual mistakes upon
the part of the observer; whilst the spirit of system or of
theory, which is generally most active where our know¬
ledge is least accurate and extensive, instead of facili¬
tating the correction of such mistakes, contributes rather
to render them inveterate, and thus opposes a serious ob¬
stacle to the progress of sound inquiry. In attempting to
form a judgment of the national character of a people,
therefore, it becomes us to be equally on our guard against
dogmatism in the statement of facts, and rash generaliza¬
tion in the inferences deduced from them. The former, in¬
deed, are but too frequently stated without the qualifications
proper to be applied to them; the latter is almost certain
to lead into error and mystification. In cases where phy¬
sical and moral causes are blended together in their ope¬
ration; where primary results experience endless modifica¬
tions from the influence of circumstances and the re-active
working of positive institutions ; and where we are in pos¬
session of no instrument of analysis by which the complex
whole can be reduced into its constituent parts or elements;
it is manifest that no theory which human ingenuity can
invent will ever be sufficient to explain all the phenomena
of national character, or to account for the varied and often
incongruous phases which it assumes. Some writers, for
instance, have amused themselves with referring to the in¬
fluence of climate all the varieties observable in the cha¬
racters and institutions of different nations; whilst others,
again, have ascribed to the joint effect of moral and poli¬
tical causes, operating under peculiar circumstances, the
diversities in question. But it must be obvious, on the
slightest consideration, that both these theories are equally
untenable, inasmuch as national character is not the re¬
sult of one cause or set of causes, but of all the causes
and influences, of whatever kind, which act, either direct¬
ly or indirectly, upon the general mind of a people. In¬
stead of attempting to generalize, therefore, where ge¬
neralization is from the very nature of things inadmissible,
let us endeavour simply to point out some of the leading
features in the character of that illustrious nation which
in ancient times inhabited the territory of Attica, and fill¬
ed the world with the renown of their achievements both
in arts and in arms.
The Athenians surpassed all the other Greeks in physical
conformation no less than in mental endowments. Among
this people, indeed, strength and symmetry of body were
happily united with many of the rarest attributes of mind.
For these advantages they were indebted partly to nature,
and partly to a system of education, which, apparently
limited and imperfect, was nevertheless singularly calcu¬
lated to develope their peculiar capabilities. Habitual ex¬
ercise may not be capable of creating beauty of form origi-
nally, but it certainly tends greatly to improve it; and in the
human frame elegance and grace are seldom divorced from
the free and flexible vigour acquired in the palaestra. A
similar observation may be applied to the human mind.
Admitting that certain tribes or races of men are, taken
as a whole, gifted by nature with finer faculties, nicer per¬
ceptions, and more acute sensibilities, than others, no one
can doubt that these may be prodigiously improved by
The whole of this war lasted ten months. (Xenophon, ii. 4, 43.)
ATT
1 Al, education ; which, in fact, is to the mind what the chisel of
J sculptor is to the rude block of marble,—that which
fashions it, by scarcely perceptible degrees, into the fairest
proportions, and gives animation and expression to that
which was originally inert and lumpish. The Athenians
were early sensible of this important truth ; and although,
till the age of Pericles, the three principal preceptors of
their youth were the grammarian, the teacher of music,
and the master of the gymnasium, yet even this limited
circle of instructors was not ill adapted to call forth and
keep in exercise the peculiar faculties for which they were
so remarkably distinguished, and to prepare them for a
more extended range of instruction. To the study of mu¬
sic, indeed, they were enthusiastically devoted, because
in that delightful art they found a natural scope for the
gratification of those nice and delicate perceptions which
constituted a prominent characteristic of their minds;1
nor will its union with the study of grammar be deemed
surprising, when we reflect, that it was probably this cir¬
cumstance, aided by an organic and intellectual sensibi¬
lity altogether unrivalled, “ which gave form to the most
harmonious language ever spoken among men, and guided
invention to the structure of that verse which, even under
the gross disguise of modern pronunciation, is still univer¬
sally charming.”2 But there were other elements in the
Athenian character besides a love of music, poetry, and the
fine arts, to which both nature and education had contri¬
buted to form them.
Speaking of this people, Plutarch, after describing them
as at once passionate and placable, prone to anger yet
easily appeased, goes on to observe, that their minds were
not formed for laborious researches, and that although they
seized a subject as it were by intuition, yet they wanted
the patience and perseverance requisite for a thorough
examination of its various bearings and ramifications. An
observation more superficial in itself, and arguing a greater
ignorance of the real character of the Athenians, cannot
easily be imagined. That they were remarkable for ardour
and vivacity of temperament, quickness of sensibility as
well as of apprehension, and versatility of feeling as well
as of genius, has not been disputed. But there is nothing
in all this which necessarily pre-supposes or implies an
incapacity for the prosecution of subjects requiring patient
thought and persevering attention. The French, in point
of national character, hold nearly the same relative place
among the modern nations of Europe, that the Athenians
held among the states of ancient Greece; yet it is matter
of notoriety, that in the cultivation of the natural and the
exact sciences, that is, in the prosecution of those subjects
where patience and perseverance are pre-eminently in¬
dispensable, they have for a considerable time outstripped
all competition, and now bear the palm alone. This was
precisely the case with the Athenians. A love of profound
research and curious speculation seems to have been as
inherent in their character, and as congenial to their na¬
tional temperament, as a love of poetry, music, and the
fine arts.
^ ko\ )f The fire which Thales lighted up was never afterwards
spei itive wholly extinguished amongst them. He had kindled his
U1(ll ‘es- torch at the altar of science in Egypt, and it burned brightly
in the propitious atmosphere to which it was transferred by
the father of Greek philosophy. The Ionian school, of which
this philosopher became the founder, was followed in quick
I C A. 163
succession by the Italian and Eleatic, where the physical and Attica,
metaphysical sciences were cultivated with equal success ;
and in the dialogues of Plato ample evidence may be found
of the zeal and ardour with which the laws both of mind
and of matter were investigated in Athens, as soon as the
violence of political contention had subsided, and a respite
from wars and revolutions gave leisure for the discussion
of such subjects. God, the Universe, and Man, at once di¬
vided and engrossed the whole of their attention. The
question first asked was, What is God ? and to this vari¬
ous and discordant answers were of course necessarily
given. According to Thales, he is the most ancient of all
things, for he is without beginning; he is air, said Anax¬
imenes; he is a pure mind, quoth Anaxagoras; he is both
air and mind, contended Archelaus. Democritus thought
him mind in a spherical form ; Pythagoras, a monad and
the principle of good; Heracleitus, an eternal circular fire;
Parmenides, the finite and immovable principle, in a spheri¬
cal form; Melissus and Zenon, one and every thing, the
only eternal and infinite. But these answers, being all
more or less physical, did not satisfy the question ; a va¬
cuity was still left; and Necessity, Fate, and Fortune or Ac¬
cident, were the principles called in to fill it up. The Uni¬
verse gave rise to another set of disputations. According
to some, what is, has ever been, and the world is eternal;
others, again, argued that the world is not eternal, but
that matter is eternal. And here a multitude of questions
arose. Was this matter susceptible of forms, of one or of
many ? Was it water, or air, or fire, or an assemblage of
corpuscular atoms, or an infinite number of indestructible
elements ? Had it subsisted without movement in the void,
or had it an irregular movement ? Did the world appear
by intelligence communicating its action to it, or did the
Deity ordain it by penetrating it with a part of his essence ?
Did these atoms move in the void, and was the universe
the result of their fortuitous concourse ? Are there but
two elements in nature, earth and fire, and by these are
all things produced; or are there four elements, whose parts
are united by attraction and separated by repulsion ? In a
word, “ causes and essences ; bodies, forms, and colours ;
production and dissolution; the great phenomena of visible
nature, the magnitudes, figures, eclipses, and phases of the
two heavenly luminaries; the nature and division of the
sky; the magnitude and situation of the earth; the sea
with its ebbs and flows ; the causes of thunder, lightning,
winds, and earthquakes;—all these furnished disquisitions,
which were pursued with an eagerness of research and in¬
tenseness of application peculiar to the Greeks.”3 Nor did
Man form a subject of less interesting and curious specula¬
tion than the universe of which he was considered an epi¬
tome. All allowed him a soul and an intelligence, but all
differed widely in their ideas respecting this soul or intel¬
ligence. Some maintained that it was always in motion,
and that it moved by itself; others thought it a number in
motion ; some considered it the harmony of the four ele¬
ments; others, again, variously represented it as water, fire,
blood, a fiery mixture of things perceptible by the intellect,
which have globose shapes and the force of fire, a flame
emanating from the sun, an assemblage of fiery and spheri¬
cal atoms, like those subtile particles of matter which are
seen floating in the rays of the sun.
Such were a few of the speculations which science had
devised for employing the thoughts of the active-minded
1 “ What the music of the ancients ever was, we have now, as a very competent observer (Mitford, Hist, of Greece, vol. i. p. 151)
remarks, little means of judging, as none of it has been transmitted intelligible to us ; but that the Grecian music, even fiom the ear-
best times, had extraordinary merit, we have Plato’s testimony in very remarkable words (Afiwo#, 46 ; Convimum, 3.1.1); and Aristotle,
who, according to Montesquieu, had two ruling motives to guide his decision, affection for Alexander, and a jealousy against a o,
upon this subject (Polit. 1. viii. c. 5) coincides in judgment with his great master.” (Mitchell’s Aristophanes, prel. disc. p. xxxv. xxxvi.)
s Mitchell’s Aristophanes, prel. disc, ubi supra. 3 Ihld' P' *h‘ et te^‘
164
ATTICA.
Attica.
Effects of
political
institu¬
tions.
men in Greece, particularly in Attica; and when to these
we add the ethical and political systems of the Academy,
the Lyceium, the Porch, and the Gardens, to say nothing of
that of the New Academy founded by Arcesilaus, and ably
maintained by Carneades, or of the attention paid by al¬
most all the philosophers to the cultivation of pure geome¬
try, some idea may be formed of the extent of Plutarch’s
misrepresentation of the Athenian mind, when he describ¬
ed it as incapable of pursuing laborious researches, and as
wanting in persevering and continuous attention. The
very reverse of this, as has just been shown, was the truth ;
and, independently of the exemplification of a similar ca¬
pacity for deep and laborious researches on the part of a
modern nation, whose character in many particulars re¬
sembles that of the ancient Athenians, it is no more than
a sound view of the principles of human nature might, an¬
terior to all experience, have led us to anticipate. For,
as travellers often reach the same destination by different
routes, so men frequently pursue the same course from dif¬
ferent motives or impulses. In the prosecution of scien¬
tific investigations, for instance, the Frenchman and the
German are each persevering and laborious. But the for¬
mer is impelled by an ardent curiosity and an overmaster¬
ing ambition, which concentrate the whole energies of his
mind on the subject which has powerfully attracted his
attention, and merge all his feelings and desires in the at¬
tainment of one great object. The latter, without effort
and without enthusiasm, perhaps with no definite object of
ambition in view, pursues a similar career, because it be¬
longs to his phlegmatic and passionless nature to persevere
in whatever he may have undertaken or commenced. The
principles by which these inquirers are set in motion are
different, and the rates of advancement consequently un¬
equal ; but diligent and persevering labour is nevertheless
alike predicable of each. The one travels, so to speak, in a
light chariot, and compasses the distance to be travelled
over at an accelerated pace ; the other trundles it slowly
along in a heavy lumbering post-waggon, but in time he
also reaches the same destination. This analogy will pro¬
bably serve to bring out the distinction here pointed at,
and which indeed it is necessary to keep steadily in view,
in order to form a just conception of the Athenian cha¬
racter. The native of Attica may be considered the
Frenchman of Greece ; quick, lively, sensitive, versatile,
inconstant, full of that mercurialized spirit which shows
itself equally in extreme delicacy of organic perception,
and intuitive rapidity of mental apprehension ; yet endued
with an ardent and unquenchable curiosity, together with
an inherent taste for subtile and abstract speculations, un¬
der the joint influence of which he was capable of penetrat¬
ing the most recondite mysteries of science. Much of the
excellence attainable in art is doubtless due to superiority
of physical constitution and of natural character; but in
science, although original genius will always assert its pre¬
eminence, and distinguish itself by the felicity of its in¬
tuitions, unremitting labour is the conditio sine qua non of
great and signal success; and it is not a little remarkable
to find this condition so strikingly exemplified in the cha¬
racter of a people, whose more obvious qualities would
seem incompatible with steady concentration of thought,
and whom a superficial observer has accordingly pro¬
nounced incapable of that intense, resolute application,
which, in fact, constituted one of their most distinguishing
national peculiarities.
Politically considered, the Athenian character took by
reflection the hue of those republican institutions to which
it had originally given birth ; and this, blending and inter¬
mingling with its natural lights and shadows, produced a
composite mass, which moral analysis unfortunately has no
pi ismatic power of resolving into its primary elements.
Love of liberty, however, as liberty was then understood, Att
formed the ruling principle as well as passion of the people. ^
An equality of political rights, or, in other words, an equal
right in all free citizens to aspire to the exercise of poli¬
tical power, constituted the essence of the Athenian form
of government. It wras for the most part a despotism un¬
der the disguise of republican forms, and, even in its best
times, it may be described as the tyranny of all over all.
Civil liberty, the benign discovery of modern times, was
then unknown, or at least unenjoyed, and, indeed, is scarce¬
ly compatible with a purely democratical form of polity.
Political equality was the only species of liberty under¬
stood or enjoyed in the ancient republics, and in those of
Italy during the middle ages. It was this which had so
powerful charms for the citizens of those democracies; it
was this of which they were so passionately enamoured;
it was this wPich gave so effective a stimulus to all the
faculties of the human mind, and produced those wonders
of genius and of art which have exhausted the admiration,
and rendered hopeless the rivalry, of succeeding times.
The glory of the country in fact formed the glory of every
citizen belonging to it; and he felt himself directly parti¬
cipant in all that contributed in any way towards its ag¬
grandizement or renown. For a short time, indeed, an
oligarchical usurpation might oppress the people, or the
ambition of a fortunate soldier or crafty statesman might
prove dangerous to liberty; but a sudden popular explo¬
sion might overturn the one, and the ostracism expel the
other; whilst, in the frequent revolutions of the wheel of
fortune, he who occupied the lowest station to-day might
by to-morrow be elevated to ambition’s utmost round, and
in a condition to give the law to those from whom he had
lately received it. The re-action of such a political system
upon the national character could not fail to be powerfully
marked. Its immediate products were extreme jealousy
of those intrusted with power, and an incessant watchful¬
ness over all their proceedings; an intense, passionate de¬
testation of tyrants and tyranny; an ardent and active zeal
in defence of public liberty when assailed, whether from
within or from without; overweening nationality of feeling,
mixed with no small degree of contempt and even aversion
for the natives of other less favoured states; and, we fear it
must be added, a spirit of aggression and conquest singular¬
ly at variance with that love of liberty which free institu¬
tions naturally inspire. Factious turbulence, inconstancy,
and love of change, may also be numbered amongst the
elfects of a system of government purely democratical;
and, paradoxical as it may seem, these for a time consti¬
tute its best if not its only safeguards. A democracy, in
truth, is little else than revolution systematized; nor is
there any thing which is so much calculated to endanger
its existence, if not to bring about its entire subversion,
as any relaxation in that jealous watchfulness which leads
the people constantly to suspect, distrust, and combine
against those invested with power. Much has been said
and written about republican ingratitude, which, indeed,
has long been proverbial; but those who declaim on this
theme do not reflect, that while the vice in question is
not the peculiar reproach of democracy, the essence of
that form of government consists in anxiously guarding
against the aggrandizement of individuals or classes, and
in crushing every aspirant who attempts to raise his head
above the common level. Republics have often had occa¬
sion to regret their rewards, seldom their punishments.
If we are not greatly mistaken, these observations fur-Gene
nish a key to the right intelligence of the Athenian cha-resu*
racter, the leading features of which were unquestionably
moulded and fashioned by their political institutions.
They were fickle, versatile, liable to sudden gusts of pas¬
sion, but easily appeased; inconstant in their affections,
ATT
but not implacable in their hatreds; jealous, factious, tur-
^ J bulent, impatient of command, and prone to resent the as¬
sumption of superiority; attentive to the information and in¬
struction afforded them by eminent citizens, yet intolerant
of dictation, and, in their best days, ready to repress an over-
o-rown and dangerous reputation; fond of flattery, and too
apt to lend a delighted ear to the adulation of sycophants
or demagogues, but not insensible to virtue, nor unwilling
to listen to those honest patriots who proved their sin¬
cerity by courageously exposing the vices and follies of
their countrymen; brave in the field, and liable to be ex¬
cessively elated with victory or depressed with misfor¬
tunes, but seldom chargeable with dishonouring success
by inhumanity to the vanquished, or deepening the dis¬
grace of defeat by humiliating or abject concessions to the
victor; generous in their sentiments ; bold and free in their
opinions; invariable in their sympathy with and admiration
of genius; constant in their love of liberty and their coun¬
try; and never backward to repair the errors or injustice
committed under the influence of pernicious advice, pas¬
sionate excitement, or the headlong impetuosity of an ar¬
dent and uncontrollable temperament. In their private con¬
duct they were courteous, mild, humane, polished, liberal,
and enlightened; simple in their manners, frugal in their
habits, and but little addicted to any kind of ostentation or
parade, even after their victories had brought them in con¬
tact with oriental luxury, and when their riches enabled
them to rival in costliness and in splendour the nations whom
they conquered. All their sumptuousness and magnificence
was reserved for and lavished on those public edifices and
monuments of art which made Athens the pride of Greece,
the envy of the surrounding nations, and the admiration of
the world at large. Such was the Athenian Demos in the
days of its glory and independence, when, by the mouth of
Aristides, it declared to the ambassadors of the Great
King, “ that it was impossible for all the gold in the world
to tempt the republic of Athens, or to prevail with it to sell
its liberty and that of Greece,” and when public virtue
maintained the purity and vigour of public institutions.
Gin a- During the period which elapsed from the abolition of
mei royalty till the appearance of Solon in the character of a
lawgiver and codificator, the constitution of the Athenian
government experienced frequent mutations. To the
kings succeeded the hereditary archons, who held their
office for life, and were in fadt sovereigns under another
designation. Of this the people were at length sensible ;
and, accordingly, on the death of Alcmaeon (b. c. 647), Cha¬
mps was raised to the archonship upon the condition of
holding it for ten years only. He was followed in succession
by six others, who exercised the functions of the office un¬
der the same decennial limitation.- But on the expiration
of the archonship of Eryxias, a further and greater change
took place. The duration of the office was limited to a
single year, and its duties were divided amongst nine per¬
sons, chosen by lot out of the first order of the state, the
eupatrids or nobles only. These functionaries all bore the
title of archon, but differed in dignity as well as in the
particular nature of their duties. The first in rank, call¬
ed Archon Eponymus, or simply the archon, represented
the majesty of the state, and by his name the year of his
magistracy was distinguished; the second bore the title
of king, and was the head of the religion of the common¬
wealth, to the care and protection of which his functions
principally related; and the third, or polemarch, was ori¬
ginally a sort of minister at war or commander-in-chief.
The six other archons, denominated thesmothetes, pre¬
sided as judges in the ordinary courts of justice, and form¬
ed together a tribunal with a special jurisdiction. The nine
together constituted the Council of State. The legisla¬
tive functions remained with the assembly of the people;
I C A.
165
but the whole executive powers of the state, political, Attica,
military, judicial, and religious, were exercised by the ar- v'—
chons.
This is the substance of the information derived from the Legisla-
ancient authors respecting the Athenian government attion of
the period to which we refer; but as writing had hither-Draco,
to been little practised in Greece, and as laws were pro¬
mulgated orally and preserved by tradition, it is neces¬
sarily scanty and imperfect; nor was it possible, under
such circumstances, that the sciences of legislation and
government should receive any material improvement, or
the rights and interests of the many meet with due respect
and attention, when the authority of the state was lodged
in the hands of an irresponsible few. The commonwealth
was distracted by a perpetual scramble for the sovereign
power, which, being open to all the principal families,
some who could not obtain it by legal sought to grasp by
illegal means. Factious ambition and lawless turbulence
found equal scope for displaying themselves; and amidst
continual alternations of despotism and anarchy, of usur¬
pation and revolution, the intolerable evils of an unsettled
government and an uncertain jurisprudence became deep¬
ly felt and almost universally acknowledged. A remedy
was accordingly sought for in a stern and sanguinary code,
which Draco about this period introduced; but the talents
of the legislator were unequal to the task he had undertaken,
and the indiscriminate severity of his system speedily de¬
feated its own purpose. He made no attempt to reform
the political constitution of his country, the real source
of the miseries under which it groaned, but established a
new penal code, which denounced the highest punishment
against the most trivial offences as well as the most enor¬
mous crimes, upon the ground that the slightest breach
of any positive law deserved death as treason against the
jurisprudence of the state. A system so revolting to the
natural feelings and sentiments of mankind could never
be reduced into practice, nor rendered productive of any
thing but evil; for every principle of reason and of humani¬
ty conspired to defeat its operation ; and whilst its obvious
tendency was to provoke the commission of heinous crimes,
it at the same time multiplied the chances of impunity in
favour of criminals. The laws of Draco, therefore, instead
of applying a remedy to the evils of a defective system of
polity, served rather to increase them, and to make the
people feel strongly the necessity of a more radical and
comprehensive reform than that which had been proposed
by this stern and inflexible moralist. Nor was it long ere a
change was effected in the constitution of the government,
which laid the foundation of the Athenian system of polity
properly so called, and which, though it subsequently under¬
went frequent and considerable alterations, may neverthe¬
less be regarded as the basis of Athenian liberty. This was
accomplished by Solon, one of the greatest characters that
Greece ever produced, and one of the wisest men of whom
any age or country can boast. We now accordingly pro¬
ceed to give some account of his legislative labours, as
these were embodied in the constitution which he reform¬
ed and remodelled on a plan suited to the circumstances
and wants of his country.
By the fundamental law of this constitution the sove- Legisla-
reign power was vested in the general assembly of the tionof So-
people. But an important question here arises, namely,lon-
Who were accounted The People, legally entitled, in their
collective capacity, to the exercise of the supreme power
of the state, as well as to provide effectually for the exclu¬
sion of those upon whom that high privilege had not been
conferred ? The population of Attica, or, in other words, p0pU[a.
the component members of the Athenian commonwealth, tion.
consisted of three classes, viz. Athenian citizens; resident
aliens, or freemen liable to the capitation tax, who had
165
ATTICA.
Attica.
Popula¬
tion.
Assembly
of the
people.
not the rights of Athenian citizens; and slaves in actual
bondage: and these classes differed from one another in
numbers no less than in rank and condition. The num¬
ber of citizens has been variously estimated, and, in point
of fact, must have differed at different times. According to
the census taken in the time of Pericles, they amounted to
no more than 14,040 persons; but Mr Mitford conjectures1
that this enumeration included only those above the age
of thirty, who alone were competent to be admitted as
jurymen or assessors for the trial of causes. In the first
speech of Demosthenes against Aristogeiton, they are,
however, reckoned at nearly 20,000; Plato, in his Critias,
assumes the same amount for the most ancient times,
having doubtless transferred the number that was com¬
monly computed in his own day to the earliest periods of
the state; and the modern Grecian writers, as Libanius,
for instance, follow the same statement. But the enume¬
ration made by Demetrius Phalereus gives more precise
and definite results. According to this census, which was
taken in the fourth year of the 117th Olympiad, there
were 21,000 citizens, 10,000 resident aliens, and 400,000
slaves; an estimate which, according to the usual statis¬
tical rule of taking the adults as a fourth part of the po¬
pulation, would give for the total number of citizens
84,000, and for that of aliens 40,000; whilst the slaves,
having no head or status of any kind in the commonwealth,
are reckoned absolutely, comprehending under the 400,000
all those in actual bondage, men, women, and children,
without distinction of age or sex. But, from various con¬
siderations, into which it is unnecessary to enter, Boeckh
has shown2 that the census of the archon requires con¬
siderable modifications; and, upon grounds which appear
to be completely conclusive, he reckons the free inhabi¬
tants at 90,000, the resident aliens at 45,000, and the
slaves at 365,000, together with women and children,
which latter, however, were proportionally few. Assum¬
ing this estimate, then, as a pretty close approximation to
the truth, it follows that the number of adult citizens was
above 22,000, and that The People, in the political sense of
the term, consisted of only about a twenty-third part of
the entire population of the country. It is of the great¬
est importance to keep this fact steadily in view, as it has
an immediate bearing upon the whole political system of
the Athenians, and serves to reconcile many apparent
anomalies by which superficial inquirers have been so of¬
ten perplexed and misled. Nothing indeed can be more
erroneous than the notion, which has been repeatedly pro¬
mulgated, that the Athenian constitution was purely de-
mocratical. On the contrary, it was, in the strictest sense
of the term, a republican aristocracy,—the whole power
of the state being vested in the privileged class called
citizens, who, as we have just seen, constituted but a
small portion of the entire population; whilst the two other
classes had no recognised political existence whatsoever,
and that which was by far the most numerous remained
in a state of more abject servitude than the villains under
the feudal system or the serfs in Russia and Poland.
We have already said that, by the fundamental law of the
Athenian constitution, the sovereign power was vested in
the general assembly of the people. This body consisted
of all the citizens, or privileged class, who had attained a
certain age; excepting such as had been attainted and
rendered infamous by a judicial sentence. Yielding to
the temper of the times and the force of circumstances,
Solon confirmed to this body an authority universally and
uncontrollably absolute; yet, with singular inconsistency,
he at the same time sought to establish a balancing power, Ati
capable in some measure of restraining the excesses into
which a sovereign multitude is ever ready, on the slight¬
est excitement, to plunge. With this view he made a
new division of the people into four ranks or classes, ac¬
cording to the relative value of their possessions or pro¬
perty. The first rank consisted of those whose lands pro¬
duced annually five hundred medimni of corn, wine, oil, or
any other commodity, dry or liquid ; and who were hence
called Pentacosiomedimnians. The second rank was com¬
posed of persons whose lands yielded at least three hun¬
dred measures, and who were denominated Hippeis; be¬
cause although enjoying the same exemption as the first
rank from service in the infantry or on shipboard, they were
bound to maintain, at their own charge, a horse for the pub¬
lic, and, within the military age, to serve personally in the ca¬
valry. The third rank, orZeugites, consisted of those whose
lands produced upwards of two hundred, but less than three
hundred measures, and who were bound to serve in the in¬
fantry of the line (oirXirai), and to be completely provided
with arms for the purpose. The rest of the citizens not pos¬
sessed of lands yielding two hundred measures were com¬
prehended under the name of Thetes, and were also liable
to military service either in the infantry of the line or among
the light troops, according as they chanced to be provid¬
ed with arms; and when Athens afterwards became a mari¬
time power, it was also from this class that the fleet was
principally manned. The diligent researches of Arbuthnot
show the extreme difficulty, or rather impossibility, of as¬
certaining, by modern standards, the precise relative value
of an Attic estate in the age of Solon ; but it seems to be
tolerably clear that the object and intention of the Athe¬
nian lawgiver in forming such division, was to give to
property a preponderance over numbers; and, according¬
ly? by bis constitution, it was expressly provided that the
magistracies should be filled from the first, second, and
third ranks, to the exclusion of the fourth. But the po¬
licy of this arrangement was completely neutralized by
leaving the appointments to be made by popular election,
and admitting the fourth rank to the exercise of the right
of voting in common with the others; for the poorest
class being in all societies the most numerous, an equality
of suffrage in the sovereign assembly of the people, com¬
bined with a difference of rank not founded in exclusive
political privileges so much as on the grosser and more
invidious distinction of wealth or riches, sufficed to unite
the highest number against the greatest amount of pro¬
perty; to overturn the feeble and exceedingly artificial
barriers which Solon had reared up; and ultimately to
place unlimited power in the hands of those who may
fairly be supposed the least capable of exercising it with
judgment or moderation.3 The Athenian lawgiver, there¬
fore, committed a grave practical error, highly favourable
indeed to the development of the democratical spirit, but
wholly inconsistent with that system of checks and coun¬
terpoises which it seems to have been one great object of
his legislative labours to organize, and render effectual in
restraining the indiscretion of the multitude.
Another ot Solon’s balancing expedients was the insti-Coun'l
tution of a council or senate, consisting of one hundred S^e
persons chosen out of each of the four wards or districts
into which the people of Attica were divided, or four
hundred in all, but afterwards raised to five hundred,
when the number of wards or districts was increased to
ten, and fifty counsellors or senators allotted for each. Its
common designation was, The Council; but, for the sake
1 History of Greece, vol. i. p. 367. London, 1830, 8vo.
* of Athens, vol. i. p. 49, et seqq. Engl. TransL London, 1828.
Mitford s History of Greece, vol. i. p. 371, et seqq.
ATTICA.
1G7
of distinction, it was called The Council of Five Hundred,
or simply The Five Hundred. The members were chosen
annually by lot from among those who were legally quali¬
fied for the office and desirous of obtaining it; but, prior
to their admission, they had to undergo, before the exist¬
ing council, a strict scrutiny, termed Dokimasia, concern¬
ing their past life, and if any thing prejudicial to their cha¬
racter came out in course of the inquiry, they were rejected.
Thecounsellorsof each tribe, in turn, for the space of thirty-
five days, enjoyed superior dignity and additional authority
under the title of Prytanes; and from them the council-
hall or place of meeting was denominated Prytaneium.
The Prytanes officiated in turn as presidents of the coun¬
cil, each holding the office only one day, during which he
had the custody of the public seal, with the keys of the
treasury and those of the citadel; and the whole assem¬
bly formed the Council of State of the commonwealth.
This body, partly deliberative and partly executive, had
the initiative of all laws; and, in fact, its peculiar and
most important function consisted in preparing business
for the assembly of the people, where nothing could be
proposed which had not previously received the sanction
of the council, and where the whole procedure was regu¬
lated by functionaries of its appointment. Attendance at
the general assemblies was made compulsory on the part
of the citizens, and four were held during the presidency
of every Prytaneia, or term of thirty-five days, for the re¬
gular dispatch of public business, which was duly appor¬
tioned and subdivided amongst them. The first conform¬
ed or rescinded the appointments of magistrates, received
accusations of public offences presented by the thesmo-
thete archons, and heard the catalogue of fines and con¬
fiscations for the service of the state ; the second enacted
laws, and disposed of petitions, public and private; the
third gave audience to the ministers of foreign powers;
and the fourth regulated such matters as concerned re¬
ligion. All citizens who attended in due time received a
small recompense or pay from the treasury. The Epistates,
chairman, speaker, or president of the assembly, was ap¬
pointed by lot from the nine Proedri or foremen, who
were nominated in the same way from the council, that
is, one from the counsellors of each tribe whose repre¬
sentatives were not at the time Prytanes ; and with these
functionaries sat the Nomophylaces, otherwise called, from
their number, The Eleven, whose duty it was to watch
over the laws, and to explain to the people the tendency
of any proposal which seemed contrary to the spirit of
the constitution, as well as to superintend the administra¬
tion of justice.1
re- Solon took none of those severe precautions to maintain
his constitution which were adopted by some other ancient
J democratical legislators; neither exacting an oath, like
Lycurgus, who by a species of artifice sought to render
its obligation perpetual, nor ordaining, like Charondas,
that whosoever proposed to abrogate an old law or enact
a new one, should come into the assembly of the people
with a halter about his neck. On the contrary, aware that
regulations, however well adapted to the circumstances of
the commonwealth at one period, might prove wholly un¬
suitable to its circumstances at another, and that time, the
great innovator, rendered certain changes and modifica¬
tions necessary, he even went so far as to enjoin an annual
revision of the laws, and to prescribe the form in which
this might with most propriety be effected. If the assem¬
bly of the people declared alteration in any point neces¬
sary, a committee was to be appointed, with directions
to consider the change proper to be made; and if a new
law was in consequence prepared, five officers were at the Attica,
same time named to defend the old one before the assem-
bly, which then decided between them. The persons com¬
posing such a committee were denominated Nomothetes,
and in later times amounted to so many as a thousand:
the persons nominated to defend an old law had the name
of Syndics. This was the only form in which it was safe,
or indeed constitutional, to propose any alteration in the
existing law at Athens. But as the passing of a law by
the assembly without the regular formalities of previous
publication, or of one couched in ambiguous and fallaci¬
ous terms, or contrary to a former law, subjected the pro¬
poser to penalties, it became usual to repeal the old law
before any new measure was brought forward; and the
delay occasioned by this double procedure served as an
additional security to the constitution, which was equal¬
ly guarded against rash innovation on the one hand, and
the danger resulting from the absence of all improvement
or amelioration on the other.
The regular and ordinary mode of enacting a law at Mode of
Athens may be very shortly described. As the council had enacting
the initiative of all laws, so it was their duty to frame thea *aw-
bills which were to be submitted to the general assembly
of the people. But any citizen having aught to propose
for public consideration, might address it to the Prytanes,
whose duty it was to receive all petitions, suggestions, and
communications, and to transmit them to the council. When
the matter had been there approved and digested into pro¬
per form, it became a probouleuma or bill, and being writ¬
ten on a tablet, was exposed during several days for public
perusal and consideration. At the next assembly it was
read to the people, after which the question was asked by
the public crier, “ Who of those above fifty years of age
chooses to speak ?” And these, if any were so disposed,
having delivered their sentiments, the crier again pro¬
claimed, “ Any Athenian, not disqualified by law', may now
speak.” The circumstances absolutely disqualifying were
flight in battle, a large amount of debt to the common¬
wealth, and conviction for a crime inferring infamy; but
the Prytanes had the privilege of enjoining silence at dis¬
cretion, although the injunction was not effectual unless
ratified or acquiesced in by the assembly. When the de¬
bates had ended, the suffrages were taken by a show of
hands, which was the ordinary way of voting; but in ex¬
traordinary cases, particularly where the question to be
determined related to alleged mal-administration on the
part of magistrates, the votes were given by casting peb¬
bles into vessels prepared for the purpose by the Prytanes,
who, after the foremen had examined the suffrages, and
declared the majority, dismissed the assembly.2 Such was
the legislative mechanism of the Athenian constitution.
But not satisfied wfith all these checks and precautions, Court of
which seem to have been wisely contrived for steadying Areiopa-
the naturally eccentric and irregular movements of a de- gus-
mocracy, Solon hoped to provide a further and more pow¬
erful restraint against aberration by restoring the Court
of Areiopagus, improving its regulations, and extending
its powers. We have no account of the origin of this cele¬
brated tribunal, which, indeed, the partiality of succeeding
ages carried too far back into the fabulous ages to be now
discovered. It is certain, however, that the institutions
of Draco had nearly abolished its authority and supersed¬
ed its use; and that, at the period of its restoration by
Solon, it had sunk into comparative insignificance. By
this renowned lawgiver its jurisdiction was revived and
greatly extended. It was composed of those who, having
executed the office of archon with credit, and passed the
1 Mitford’s History of Greece, ubi supra.
2 Mitford, uM supra.
168
ATTICA.
Attica.
Other
courts.
etithyne or scrutiny concerning their conduct while in
power, were considered best qualified, by their experience
and integrity, for being admitted members of this tribu¬
nal ; and, in order to place them above being influenced
either by fear or favour, they held their offices not for a
year, which was the ordinary official term in the Athenian
commonwealth, but for life. The powers of the court of
Areiopagus were very great indeed. It is said to have
been the first which adjudged the punishment of death for
murder; and capital offences amongst the Athenians were
for the most part cognizable by it alone. It was the only
court from which there lay no appeal to the assembly of
the sovereign people. It had power to stay execution of
all judicial decrees, not excepting those pronounced by
the general assembly itself, and to annul an acquittal or
to extend mercy to the condemned; it directed all issues
from the public treasury; in its censorial capacity it
punished impiety, immorality, and all disorderly conduct,
and exercised a general superintendence over the morals
and behaviour of the people ; it required every citizen to
account to it annually for his means of livelihood, and to
show that he earned his subsistence by honest industry in
his particular calling; lastly, it took a fatherly care of the
youth of the republic, and provided that all should re¬
ceive an education suitable to their rank and fortune.
For the dispatch of judicial business the court of Areio¬
pagus sat only during the night, and in perfect darkness,
that the members, it is said, might be the less liable to
prepossessions either for or against the accused; and, on
the same precautionary principle, advocates were required
to confine themselves to a simple narrative of facts and
statement of the law, without digressing into rhetorical
embellishment, or attempting to influence the understand¬
ings by appealing to the passions of the judges. In a word,
this celebrated institution, which appears to have been of
Egyptian origin, and which, after its restoration by Solon,
long maintained a high reputation for severe wisdom and
strict justice, formed a sort of State Inquisition, and seems
to have been organized for the double purpose of check¬
ing that constant tendency to excess which is inherent in
all purely popular governments, and of maintaining that
public and private virtue which has rightly been pro¬
nounced the principle of democracy.
Besides the Areiopagus, which ought properly to be re¬
garded as constituting part of the machine of government,
there wer;e no less than ten courts of judicature at Athens,
of which four had jurisdiction in criminal and six in civil
causes. Before the time of Solon the archons officiated as
supreme and sole judges in nearly all manner of suits;
but these functionaries being appointed by lot, and often
very ill qualified for discharging so important a duty, it
had become usual for each to choose two persons learned
in the law to assist him; and the latter, under the name
of paredri or assessors, were at length recognised as re¬
gular constitutional officers, and appointed with the same
formalities as the archons themselves. Solon, however,
discerned the inconveniencies of this system, and reform¬
ed it altogether. “ That,” said he, “ is, in my opinion,
the most perfect government, where an injury to anyone
is the concern of all.” The principle from which he set
out was therefore to give to all an immediate concern in
the administration of justice. With this view he ordain¬
ed, that in the courts just mentioned causes should be tried
by select bodies of men, resembling modern juries, and
called to perform nearly the same functions ; the archons
merely superintending the preparation of causes, and pre¬
siding at the trial of them in the manner of our judges.
All questions of law or of practice were determinable solely
by the latter; but in all questions of fact, or in the general ^ ,
issue of guilty or not guilty, the jury were the exclusive
judges; and it was the bounden duty of the presiding ma¬
gistrate to give immediate effect to their decision, whatever
it might be. Any Athenian above thirty years of age, and
not under legal disqualification, was eligible as a juryman,
on delivering his name and addition to the thesmothete
archons; but as no one could be compelled to serve in
this capacity, a small honorarium was given by the trea¬
sury to induce such as had leisure to offer themselves.1
From the general list of those who voluntarily tendered
their services, the thesmothete archons appointed by ballot
juries to the different courts; and these appear to have
officiated for a definite period in each, somewhat in the
manner of the Roman judices, who were, to all intents
and purposes, a species of standing jury. It thus appears
that the honour of inventing jury trial is due to the great
Athenian lawgiver; and that, in his hands, the institution
reached a degree of perfection which it has not yet at¬
tained among many modern nations, who affect the great¬
est admiration for the ancient jurisprudence, and boast of
having transfused into their codes its wisest rules and pro¬
visions. It is necessary to add, that, in order to save the
inhabitants of the country the trouble and expense of re¬
sorting to Athens for justice, in cases of inferior import¬
ance, itinerant judges, called from their number The Forty,
were appointed to make regular circuits through the towns
or boroughs of Attica, with full powers to judge and deter¬
mine in all actions of petty assault, and in all disputes about
property under a certain value.
In all countries, and throughout all ages, religion and Eel
civil government have, with few exceptions, been so inti¬
mately, or rather so inseparably connected, that an expo¬
sition of the one would be incomplete and even unintelli¬
gible without some account of the other. The magistrate
has almost everywhere sought the alliance of the priest;
and the hopes and fears arising from a supposed depend¬
ence on superior power or a belief in a future state of ex¬
istence have been employed as useful auxiliaries in go¬
verning men and managing their affairs in the present life.
The possibility of ruling nations by means of their reason
alone, and by a due regard to their secular interests, with¬
out any reference to their religious opinions or observances,
is an idea which seems never to have entered the mind
of any ancient legislator, and which even now, when the
mighty volume of past experience is unfolded for our instruc¬
tion, many still consider as little better than downright poli¬
tical heresy. It was deemed alike impious and impractica¬
ble to attempt to establish any form of polity of which re¬
ligion or the church did not constitute one of the main pil¬
lars, or to seek to promote the happiness of men in society
without at the same time prescribing by law the mode in
which they ought to worship the gods. In the Athenian
constitution, as settled by Solon, religion and government,
the church and the state, were so intimately connected,
and became so indissolubly blended together, that, with¬
out any sensible error, we may at will consider the religion
as part of the government, or the government as part of the
religion, and both as alike the creatures of positive enact¬
ment or legislative ordination.
A sense of dependence on some superior power is so
natural to an imperfect being like man, and has been so
universally manifested by him in all the conditions and
circumstances under which he is found, that it may be re¬
garded as one of his most prevailing instincts. His own
helplessness, compared with the stupendous powers of
1 Milford’s History of Greece, ubi supra.
ATTICA.
169
I iiti u nature which he sees constantly in operation around him,
J necessarily leads the savage to look anxiously for some
being of a higher order, on whom to rely for protection
against the evils and dangers, real or imaginary, by which
he is surrounded; whilst the more enlightened have only to
exercise the faculties of their mind in reflecting on them¬
selves, their own relative situation, and the appearances in
the world around them, their knowledge and their igno¬
rance, their strength and their weakness, their happiness
and their misery, their beginning and their end, in order to
be directed to the same belief; coupled with an expectation
of some future state of existence, where the inequalities and
evils of the present life will be fully redressed, and where
ample scope will be afforded for the gratification of those
desires and the expansion of those powers which are here
confined and repressed. The first suggestions of religion
in the human mind, therefore, naturally produce a belief
in the existence of a deity, and in the consequent duty of
worshipping and serving him. Its primary doctrine is pure,
and its primary practice is simple; nor, from the causes
which have now been mentioned, can it ever be wholly lost
among mankind. But, through the imperfection of hu¬
man nature, and the debasing alliance of purely human
institutions, religion is so prone to degenerate, that super¬
stition in one state of society and scepticism in another,
separated perhaps by short intervals of enthusiasm or fa¬
naticism, are almost the only aspects in which history pre¬
sents it to our view. The variety, indeed, and the gross¬
ness, of the corruptions of religion, from which few pages
in the annals of the world are pure, may well, as Mr Mit-
ford remarks,1 excite wonder on first reflection ; but if we
proceed to inquire into their origin, and to investigate those
circumstances in the nature and condition which have com¬
bined to produce them, we shall soon find enough to sa¬
tisfy us that nothing short of a constant miracle could
have prevented that degeneracy to which the history of
all countries in all ages bears testimony. The fears of
ignorance, the follies of wisdom, the interests of cunning,
the frauds of priestcraft and statecraft, and even the pride
of science, have all and each proved sources of corruption;
nor is there almost any human passion which, in one way
or other, has not contributed its share to the work of de¬
terioration. Yet, strange to say, this religious debase¬
ment has been frequently found co-existent with a high
degree of intellectual improvement and an advanced state
of civilization.
s Sou : of The religion, like the science and art of Greece, was
j1' the -eek not indigenous, but exotic. Derived originally from Egypt,
i the great storehouse of superstition, it found a congenial
soil in the country to which it was transplanted, and in
time put forth a multitude of new shoots and branches,
worthy of the stock from which they sprung. Its general
character and quality, indeed, remained pretty much the
same, rationally considered; but many of its harsher pe¬
culiarities were mitigated, and as it branched into greater
variety, and became more intermixed with the native pro¬
ducts of the soil, it lost not a little of the grossness and
extravagance for which it had been originally distinguish¬
ed. In Egypt, where priestcraft formed the inalienable
inheritance of a particular order of men or a sacerdotal
nobility, who monopolized all learning and all knowledge,
superstition naturally presented itself under a hideous and
revolting aspect, because the security of this order was in¬
compatible with any condition except that of general de¬
basement. But in Greece, where policy had not made
professions and callings hereditary through all ranks of
men, where religion became the ally of free institutions, Attica,
and where the genius of the people naturally led them to
embellish whatever they chose to imitate, the crude and
monstrous fictions which had been originally imported from
the banks of the Nile were gradually worked up into that
graceful though somewhat fantastic and sensual system of
mythology which the young are still taught to admire, and
which even the old find it difficult to condemn. Among
the Greeks, however, as among the Egyptians, two differ¬
ent religions prevailed, both derived from the same source,
both acknowledged by the same persons, and both equally
warranted by the civil law. But one of these only was com¬
mon to all the people, revered as the sanction of oaths and
obligations, and thus constituted the religion of the state.
The other, denominated the mystical, was confined to a
select few, who wrere bound to inviolable secrecy respect¬
ing the whole of its doctrines and the greater part of its
ceremonies; so that its real character can only be conjec¬
tured from the displays made in some public exhibitions,
or from casual and scattered hints in the writings of those
who had been initiated into its mysteries. The former
embraced that system of rites and observances which the
legislator and the magistrate publicly recognised and en¬
forced upon grounds of political expediency, and with a
view merely to promote the objects and ends of civil govern¬
ment. The latter was in all probability chiefly doctrinal,
and confined to those grand elementary principles of na¬
tural religion which, as they are the first that present
themselves to the human mind, so, without some positive
and permanent means of conservation, they are the soon¬
est debased and forgotten; but being rigorously denied to
public discussion, and communicable only to the few who
had qualified for receiving its esoteric revelations, it had
small influence comparatively on public affairs, and in fact
is very little noticed by ancient historians.2 It is to the
exoteric form, therefore, as delivered by Homer, expound¬
ed by succeeding writers, and found continually connect¬
ed with politics, that we shall here direct our attention;
promising that a general sketch is all that we intend offer¬
ing on the subject.
Various are the opinions which have been expressed by Origin of
philosophers, and the traditions which have been handed Polythe-
down by poets, respecting the origin of polytheism. Plato,lSra-
after stating his belief that the host of heaven had origi¬
nally been the only objects of worship, records a different
and very remarkable tradition, according to which “ One
God once governed the universe: but a great and extra¬
ordinary change for the worse taking place in the nature
of men and things (for originally there was perfect virtue
and perfect happiness upon earth), the command then de¬
volved upon Jupiter, with many inferior deities to preside
over different departments under him.” Here we find the
original unity of the deity asserted, and an attempt made
to account for the rise of polytheism, on the assumption of a
great and deplorable change in human nature and the state
of all things upon earth. Plato himself pronounces no opi¬
nion on the subject, for the fate of his master Socrates had
probably taught him caution ; but the notion of such a re¬
volution as that assumed in the tradition which he records
was universally entertained, and has been transmitted in
a detailed form by Hesiod and other ancient authors ; and
it is not a little singular that this notion is for the most
part combined with an assertion of the unity of the deity.
“ It is a tradition,” says Aristotle, or whoever else was
the author of the treatise On the World, “ received from of
old among all men, that God is the creator and preserver
VOL. IV.
1 Mitford’s History of Greece, vol. i. p. 89, et seqq. t, nr
* Mitford, iibi supra. See also Warburton, Divine Legation of Moses Demonstrated, b. in. On the Myst.
Y
I
ATTICA.
170
Attica, of all things, and that nothing in nature is sufficient to
its own existence without his superintending protection.
Hence some of the ancients have held that all things are
full of gods, obvious to'sight, hearing, and to all the senses ;
an opinion consonant enough to the power but not to the
nature of the deity. God being one, has thus received
many names, according to the variety of effects of which
he is the cause.” The testimony of Herodotus is, if pos¬
sible, still more direct and explicit. After giving an ac¬
count of the origin of the names of the principal divinities
in the Greek Pantheon, he proceeds to say, that, being at
Dodona, he was there informed, probably by the priests
of the temple of Jupiter, that the Pelasgic ancestors of the
Greeks sacrificed and prayed to gods to whom they gave
no distinguishing name or appellation, “ for they had never
heard of any, but called them gods as the disposers and
rulers of all thingsfrom which it appears that the Pe-
lasgians acknowledged but one God; for where polytheism
is believed, there will always be a corresponding nomen¬
clature, and it is only the doctrine of the unity of the
deity that precludes all use or need of distinguishing ap¬
pellations.1
But this purer religion, said to have been brought into
Greece by some of its first inhabitants, must have been
originally confined to a few, and exposed, from a variety of
causes, to speedy corruption and debasement. Its primary
doctrines were doubtless preserved in the mystical form
which was at a very early period established; but it is in¬
conceivable that, in the popular belief, these could co-exist
with the absurdities of polytheism imported from Egypt,
and greedily received by the rude natives, in an age when
superstition in some form is inseparable from the human
mind. Nor, even if the case had been otherwise, is the
transition violent from a vague idea of an omnipresent
deity to the belief of a separate divine essence in differ¬
ent places and in different things. On the contrary, the
superstitions of almost all nations prove it to be congenial
to the human mind in its unenlightened state; which, un¬
able to exalt its thoughts to the steady conception of one
almighty and boundless being, naturally satisfied itself
with ascribing all effects of which it knew not the causes
to the immediate presence and agency of distinct powers.
But polytheism having been once introduced, soon disse¬
minated itself among a people remarkable for the liveli¬
ness of their imaginations as well as for a love of the mar¬
vellous ; and the Greeks in time far exceeded the bounds
of the system which they had derived from their Egyptian
instructors. Hence, besides Juno, Vesta, Themis, and
others, which they added to the catalogue of the divinities
imported from the banks of the Nile, every mountain had
its Oread, every wood its Dryad, every fountain its Naiad,
every river its god; the sea had its’ Tritons and its Ne¬
reids ; the variety of the seasons gave birth to the Hours;
and the Muses and the Graces were the immediate off¬
spring of the poetical genius of the people.2 In the manu¬
facture of gods unbounded scope was given to the imagi¬
nation ; and thus, even in Homer’s time, divinities were so
multiplied that nobody any longer cared to say how many
there were not. Nor was the balance of power at all well
adjusted in the hierarchy of the Greek polytheists. Ju¬
piter, the chief of their gods, was neither omnipotent, nor
omnipresent, nor omniscient; and as perfect goodness
was nowhere to be found in heaven any more than upon
earth, perfect happiness was equally a stranger to its in¬
habitants. Father Jove himself was supposed to be under
the control as well as protection of Fate, which was also
pei sonified ; and he is described as living under perpetual
apprehension of the inferior deities, as subject to innu- Att i
merable weaknesses and vices, as liable to be overcome with
passion, and as an object of incessant jealousy to his some¬
what termagant and unreasonable spouse. Ate, the god¬
dess of mischief, was said to be his eldest daughter; and,
probably under her influence, the inferior deities were re¬
presented constantly at work to disturb rather than to
support or aid the government of their chief. Profligacy,
perjury, treachery, sensuality, corruption, and insubordi¬
nation, were the vices of heaven as well as of earth, and,
in point of downright villany and wickedness, the gods,
as of right, claimed a marked superiority over men. Such
are the representations of poets, and such seems to have
been in a greater or less degree the popular belief. But
the legislator and the magistrate found it necessary to
teach, however inconsistently, that Jupiter would not fa¬
vour the false; that the gods loved not evil deeds, but
honoured justice and the righteous works of men; and
that, although the chief of the gods sometimes granted the
spoil to hardened and wicked men, the fear of vengeance
dwelt on their minds. Religious sanctions were felt to
be indispensable for enforcing civil obligations; and gross
as were the fictions which composed the body of the po¬
pular faith, their aid was sought in maintaining moral and
political order, especially as they involved some faint and
indistinct notions of future retribution. But how frail that
aid really proved, and how much better calculated such a
system of religious belief was to subvert than to maintain
public or private morality, no one acquainted with the his¬
tory of Greece need now be told.
At the same time it was a system of show and parade, Genii:
of festivals and ceremonies, of rites and observances, and,ffis«
as such, singularly adapted to take a powerful hold of theS'011,
popular mind, more especially when it became intimately
blended with the literature as well as with the political
institutions of the country. It imposed no particular set
of doctrines, and exacted no peremptory compliances, but,
addressing itself exclusively to the senses and the imagina¬
tion, it was acquiesced in without inquiry, and maintained
without persecution. As the religion of the state, an out¬
ward respect was due to it and required; but crimes against
this religion were only punished as they affected the state,
and not on the abstract grounds of impiety or sacrilege.
Socrates was condemned to death, not because he revered
the deity and taught a purer faith than that entertained by
his countrymen, but because he attacked the religion of
the state as by law established, and closely interwoven with
the whole system of national policy; and even this sacrifice
to the violated law was speedily and deeply repented; for
the genius of polytheism was essentially tolerant. Hence
mere raillery, when general and not directed against po¬
sitive institutions, seldom or never incurred the animad¬
version of the magistrate, and was often highly relished
by the people. Aristophanes, for example, made as free
with the gods as he did with the great, and lashed the
supposed foibles of the former with as little mercy as the
vices and follies of the latter; yet his wit produced no in¬
convenience to its author, and was even loudly applauded
by his countrymen. iEschylus, indeed, incurred some dan¬
ger from a suspicion of having betrayed the secrets of
Eleusis ; but as this was always considered a crime of the
greatest magnitude, and as it imported a violation of the
most sacred human obligations, as well as of the public po¬
licy of the state in a matter where the sanctions of its laws
were peculiarly severe, no inference can justly be drawn
from this against the general toleration exercised, viz. when
its sallies were directed only against the public religion.
1 Milford’s History of Greece, ubi supra.
2 Ibid.
 v
' ATT
a. Another circumstance deserving of notice is, that the
■—' ministers of religion were not confined exclusively to
ood. ^0 service of its altars. The sacerdotal dignity was in¬
deed incompatible with the exercise of any regular pro¬
fession, and for this reason the priests had a fixed reve¬
nue secured to them; but they were eligible to the most
important offices in the state, and might, if so inclined,
serve as soldiers in the field. Their salaries were in gene¬
ral proportioned to the dignity of their functions and the
rank of the deities whom they served; and these were paid
out of the sacred revenues, which were derived partly
from fines that individuals were condemned to pay for
various offences, partly from the produce of lands conse¬
crated to the gods or appropriated to defray the expense
of sacrifices offered in the name of the republic, partly
from particular grants, and partly from a tithe of the spoils
taken in war, although the last were commonly consider¬
ed the exclusive property of Minerva. These, with the
produce of accidental confiscations, formed the regular
sources of income ; but the credulity of the people sup¬
plied an inexhaustible fund, which enriched the temples
of Delos and Eleusis, and supported the magnificence and
splendour amidst which the Delphic oracle was enshrined.
The solemn festivals, such as the Dionysiac and Panathe-
naic, which indeed constituted the greater part of this re¬
ligion, and contributed alike to maintain its hold of the po¬
pular mind and to nourish a taste for the arts, were cele¬
brated at the expense of the choragi or leaders of the cho¬
ruses, of which each tribe furnished one; and the richest
citizens only were appointed to the office, which, though
ruinous, was eagerly solicited, as, like the curule dignity
at Rome, it paved the way to more substantial honours,
and formed a passport to the favour of a people ever ready
to reward him who ministered profusely to their pleasures.
Panem et Circenses!l bread and amusement! maybe con¬
sidered as at once summing up the immediate wants of
the sovereign multitude, and pointing out the mode in
which wealth might be rendered indirectly subservient to
the purposes of ambition. Hence the privilege enjoyed
by the choragus who had proved victorious in the scenic
contests, of inscribing his name on the tripod erected by
his tribe, or of perpetuating the memory of his success by
a choragic monument, was not the only recompense looked
for by those who had incurred the ruinous expense of mi¬
nistering to the pleasures of the people. Lastly, although
Athens had a state religion, it had no sacerdotal hierar¬
chy. The priests did not, as in Egypt and in other coun¬
tries, form a distinct order or caste, which, indeed, would
have been incompatible with a democratical form of go¬
vernment. They were not a separate body united by pe¬
culiar laws under a chief whose authority extended over
all its inferior members. The dignity of supreme pontiff
was unknown, and each priest served his particular shrine
unconnected with his brethren. The temples of the prin¬
cipal divinities, indeed, such as those of Minerva, Neptune,
Ceres, and Proserpine, had each a high-priest who pre¬
sided over its service; and the number of subaltern mi¬
nisters employed was commonly in proportion to the rank
of the particular deity, and the wealth accumulated at his
shrine : but the pontifical dignity was altogether local; and
the priests of one temple formed a society wholly distinct
from those of another. Hence the ministers of the gods
at Athens were not judges in matters of religion, nor au¬
thorized to take cognizance of or to punish crimes against
the deity. This, as we have already said, was exclusive¬
ly within the competency of the civil magistrate; and,
I C A. ’ 171
accordingly, we find that it was in consequence of a civil Attica,
sentence alone, and not in virtue of any power or autho- '
rity in themselves, that the Eumolpidae launched their
anathemas against Alcibiades, and that Socrates was ad¬
judged to die the death.
The subject of the public economy of the Athenian Public eco-
state, embracing inquiries concerning prices, wages, and the nomy.
interest of money ; the administration of finance and the Prices-
public expenditure; the ordinary and extraordinary reve¬
nues ; and the peculiar financial measures of the Greeks;
is too vast and complicated to be treated here at full length.
In Boeckh’s learned and laborious work, however, there will
be found a prodigious accumulation of curious facts rela¬
tive to all these branches of the subject; and although the
science of the author is greatly inferior to his erudition, and
his conclusions are frequently at variance with sound prin¬
ciple, yet he has furnished abundant means for the cor¬
rection of his own errors, and collected a body of informa¬
tion, the value and importance of which it is difficult to over¬
estimate. A large part of his first book is dedicated to an
enumeration of the various prices of commodities in Atti¬
ca, by comparing which with the actual prices of the same
commodities in different countries, he endeavours to de¬
termine the relative wealth of Attica according to modern
standards. But although this collection is equally inte¬
resting and valuable, the utility of such a comparison may
be fairly questioned, upon the ground that no certain infe¬
rence can be drawn from the similarity or dissimilarity of
ancient and modern prices. The proportion between the
value of any given commodity and that of gold or silver
may be a safe enough criterion in the same place and for
short periods of time ; but for distant ages and countries
such a comparison can lead to no result upon which any
reliance can be placed; and for this plain reason, that we
have no common or invariable standard to which we can
refer. For a comparison with prices in other countries at
the same time, and for such a purpose as that to which
Boeckh has applied it in examining the statement of Po¬
lybius respecting the valuation of Attica, his list of prices
may be used with safety and advantage ; but whether the
precious metals, labour, or any other standard, be adopted
as a medium of comparison between the prices of commo¬
dities in ancient Greece and in modern Europe, the re¬
sult must, for the reason already stated, be equally falla¬
cious and nugatory. The standard employed, whatever it
may be, is itself indeterminate; or, in other words, the
measure assumed and the thing to be measured by it are
equally uncertain.
Again, with regard to the interest of money, it is evi- Interest of
dent that no sound conclusion can be drawn as to its ratemone7-
from a consideration of the vavrixog roxoi or interest of
money lent on bottomry, which Boeckh takes as a crite¬
rion ; because this was doubtless a most hazardous spe¬
cies of investment, on account of the imperfect state of
nautical science, the dangerous navigation of the Greek
seas, and, worse than all, the insecurity of the laws and
the corruption of the tribunals; and the premium paid by
the borrower to the lender would of course be in some
measure commensurate with the risk to which the capital
of the latter was exposed. Nor is this all. For, it the
rate of interest be that sum which the lender receives
and the borrower pays for the use of a certain amount of
monied capital, without any consideration for trouble in
the collection of the income, or for risk as to the punctual
repayment of the interest or principal at stipulated periods,
it may fairly be doubted whether there was any thing
1 Pan y toros ! Bread and bulls ! exclaims the philosopher
trymen the Spaniards, unconsciously parodies the expression
sorrowful at the degeneracy that surrounded him.
Jovellanos, who, in lamenting the fallen and degraded state of his coun¬
employed on a similar occasion by an old Roman, at once indignant and
172 ATT
ATT
Attica, which can justly be considered as a general or an establish-
ed rate of interest at Athens. There were no public se¬
curities, no means of investing money under the guarantee
of the national credit; whilst, from the continual dread of
revolution or foreign invasion, the insecurity of property
was such that the punctual repayment of interest or prin¬
cipal at stipulated periods must have been liable to very
great, but at the same time very variable, risks ; a state of
things wholly incompatible with a general or an established
rate of interest. And with respect to money lent on mort¬
gage or land-pledge, which in the settled communities of
modern times approaches nearest to the public securities
in point of safety, the tenure of land in Attica was, from the
causes already mentioned, so precarious and insecure that,
in this case also, a large yet variable indemnification, in the
name of interest, must have been paid, and consequently
no particular rate could have been general or common.
Revenue. Mr Mitford has been led to accuse the Athenian state
of neglect in the administration of its finances, but without
reason, as Boeckh has most conclusively shown. Of all
charges, indeed, the government of Athens is the least open
to that of want of diligence in exacting the utmost farthing
of revenue which its available resources could by any artifice
of taxation be made to afford. The ordinary revenues of the
Athenian state consisted chiefly of duties arisingfrom lands,
houses, and similar property of the state, or from companies
and temples; of the produce of the mines, which were public
property, though commonly let in fee-farm under certain
conditions, including the payment of a twenty-fourth part
of the gross produce in the name of rent, and over and above
the grassum or fine which the tenant originally paid for the
lease; of custom-house duties; of harbour duties and market
tolls; of tithes, poll-taxes, taxes upon industry, protection-
money, taxes on slaves, and taxes on prostitutes ; of judicial
fines and fees; of appeal-money, and fines in general; of
confiscations, and tribute of various kinds ; to say nothing
of a variety of minor sources which it would be tedious to
enumerate. The extraordinary revenues were of course
variable, but arose principally from a species of property-
tax, which was laid on in seasons of great emergency, when
increased means were required for the defence of the
state, or for the assertion of its dignity and independence.
The spoils of war were also included under this head.
Property of all kinds appears to have been commonly let Attli
upon lease; and all leases were sold by auction to the high-
est bidder. For this purpose the conditions of lease were ^0(le
previously engraved upon stone and fixed up in public.
The names of the lessees were subsequently added, and^ro^r
the document which had been originally exhibited then be¬
came a regular contract of lease; or if not, a fresh agree¬
ment was afterwards set up. A proposal or advertisement
of this kind, copied from the original document engraved on
stone, and still extant, being preserved in the British Mu¬
seum, is to the following effect:—“ In the archonship of
Archippus, Phrynion being demarch. The Peirseans let
Paralia, and Halmyris, and the Theseium, and all the other
sacred lands, upon the following conditions: That the ten¬
ants for more than ten drachmas are to give sufficient secu¬
rity for the payment of the rent; and that those for less
than ten drachmas are to provide a surety, whose property
shall be liable for the same. Upon these conditions they let
the lands, tax and duty free. And if any property-tax be
imposed upon the farms according to their valuation., the
burghers will pay it. The tenants shall not be allowed to
remove wood or earth from the Theseium and other sa¬
cred lands, nor injure whatever wood there is on the farm.
The tenants of the Thesmophorium, and the Schoenus, and
the other pasture-lands, shall pay half the rent in Heca-
tombaeon (the first month) and the other half in Poseidon
(the sixth month). The tenants occupying Paralia, and
Halmyris, and the Theseium, and any other grounds that
there may be, shall cultivate them for the first nine years
in whatever manner they please, and according to cus¬
tom ; but in the tenth year they shall plough the half of
the land, and no more, so that the succeeding tenant may
be able to begin preparing the soil from the sixteenth of
Anthesterion. And if he shall plough more than half, the
excess of the produce shall be the property of the burgh¬
ers.”1 Then follows a stipulation that the tenant shall
receive a house connected with one of the farms, in good
repair. This document, which is in several respects a
remarkable one, shows that the public economy of Athens,
in as far as concerns the law of landlord and tenant, had
attained considerable advancement, and that the state
had not been wanting in a due regard to the security as
well as the improvement of property. (a.)
!*(
k
«
ATTICFfS, Titus PomUonius, one of the most distin¬
guished men in ancient Rome. He understood so thorough¬
ly the art of conducting himself with address, that without
in any degree compromising his neutrality, he preserved the
esteem and affection of all parties. His strict friendship
with Cicero did not prevent him from being at the same
time on terms of great intimacy with Hortensius. The con¬
tests at Rome between Cinna’s party and that of Marius in¬
duced him to retire to Athens, where he continued for a
considerable time. Atticus was much attached to polite
learning, and kept constantly employed at his house several
librarians and readers. He might have obtained the most
considerable offices in the government; but he chose rather
not to interfere, because amidst the corruption and faction
which then prevailed he could not discharge the duties con¬
nected with them according to the laws. He wrote Annals,
or Universal History, embracing (as we learn from Cicero)
a period of700 years; and some other pieces, of which none
has been preserved. He married his daughter to Agrip-
pa. Having reached the seventy-seventh year of his age,
1 This inscription was first published by Chandler from a most inaccurate transcript, together with a Latin version, also very indiffer-
r? exf1cuted- 11 was afterwards given by Boeckh, in the appendix to his Staatshaushaltung der Athener, where he corrected many
ot Chandler s errors ; and he has since repeated it with some additional improvements in his collection of Greek Inscriptions p. 141.
!t consists of twenty-three lines without the date, which is written in larger characters upon a projecting ledge of the stone, and,
with the final corrections of the English translator of Boeckh, is as follows:— “
Em hpyjx-Trou ag^ovrog, <1>pvvi'mos dq/Mgysou.
Kara. rA= ^<W;v kcc, 'AXpv^a. to Qwruov kcc, t xixa Tipiou. tcvccvroc' rov; txio l A : lozyua.; KzhaTU.-!M
axonpvix.ct tvs piir6uffu»( a.g,ox^a>v, tous liras A lyyvvrw aro'hdopnoi ra ixurou tvs fiirffufias. Esn rourh fu^outriv ocnonriuvroo xcu artXv Eai
is ns lurtpo^a. yiywrat axo rcoi x^^i roo npvfiaros, rovs 'hporas rvi Ss uXvi xoci mi yvi pv ilirroi sgaysiy tous lviu6uiTau,iiovs /mm l* rov
Qvrtiou fxvTi sk tui ooXXeoi TifisiuV pvm mi vXvv...c<r» too °‘ g^mgsio, to Qst/vo^ioi kooi to tou 'Zxohovitos xcu t aXXa. tnoiua, mi pucrforti
xaruthirou/ri, mv pn v/xirsai sv too Execrogfiocioii mi os vpireay si ru llomhun. Oi fiuo-Humusio, Tla^aXiooi xa, ‘‘AXfiUOila. xat to Qvmtoi xai r *XXn it
xou n arn, ora. oiov n xat hfuroi sirrii soyznfxz xotui, Kara rah i^yaaoirat, ra fx.ii susa tm oxus ai frouXoiirat, ru h Osxara imt mi vaitnai aooui
xai /m xXuu, oxus ai r>> ft.iaSuitaff.sioi y.sra ravra eg?) Ixsoya^saSat axo ms s*ms svt 'isxa tou Aiham^aios' sai Si xXs/u aaoav V mi vfiitnav, rat
inyorui ittru o xapxos o xXueor mi otxiosi mi si 'AXauoio, artyouaai xctoaXafoui xai otfvi x.o-.ru mi auiSvxvi. Uaaal Ss a! oixit '
The date, mutilated at the end, is either Olymp. 114. 4, or 115. 3.
ATT
]ie was seized with an incurable disorder; and his case
1 if being considered hopeless, he anticipated the consumma-
"Htrac n. tjon disease, by abstaining from food, in consequence
'W J of which he died upon the fifth day, b. c. 33.
ATTIGNY, a small town of France, in the department
of Ardennes. It was a place of some celebrity at an early
period, from its being usually selected as the summer resi¬
dence of the kings of France. It is situated on the river
Aione, in long. 4. 47. E. lat. 49. 30. N.
ATTILA, king of the Huns, surnamed the Scourge of
God, may be ranked amongst the greatest and fiercest of
conquerors, since there was scarcely any province of Eu¬
rope which did not feel the weight of his victorious arms.
His death was attended with singular circumstances. He
had married a beautiful virgin named Ildico. His nuptials
were celebrated with great festivity at his palace beyond
the Danube, and he retired late to bed oppressed with wine.
In the night a blood-vessel burst in his lungs, and suffo¬
cated him. The bride was found in the morning sitting
by the bedside, lamenting his death and her own danger.
The body, inclosed in three coffins, of gold, silver, and iron,
was interred in the night time ; and to prevent the violation
of his remains by the discovery of the place where he had
been buried, all the captive slaves employed in the solem¬
nity were massacred. This happened about the year 453.
With Attila ended the empire of the Huns. His sons, by
dissension and civil war, destroyed one another, or were
dispossessed by more powerful chieftains.
ATT 173
ATTLEBOROUGH, or Attleburgh, a market-town Attle-
of the hundred of Shropham, in the county of Norfolk, borough
ninety-three miles from London, and six from Norwich. II
This place is said to have been formerly a large city, the fraction,
capital of the county, and at one time had a collegiate
church. There is a market held every Thursday, and an¬
other every alternate Tuesday. The population in 1801
was 1333; in 1811, 1492; and in 1821, 1659.
ATTLEBURY, a town in the county of Norfolk in
England. Long. 0. 40. E. Lat. 52. 23. N.
ATTOCK, a celebrated town and fort of Hindostan, in
the province of Lahore, situated on the eastern bank of
the Indus, which is here from three fourths to one mile
across. It is the place where Alexander, Tamerlane, and
Nadir Shah crossed the river in advancing eastward into
India. The emperor Akbar built the present fortress in
1581. The fortress still retains the ancient name of Va-
ranas or Benares, though it is more generally known by
that of Attock. Long. 71. 15. E. Lat. 33. 6. N.
ATTORNEY at Law answers to the procurator or
proctor of the civilians and canonists. He is one who is
put in the place, stead, or room of another, to manage his
matters of law.
Attorney-General, a great law-officer under the
king, whose duty it is to exhibit informations, and prose¬
cute for the crown, in matters criminal, and to file bills in
the exchequer for any thing concerning the king in inhe¬
ritance or profits.
ATTRACTION.
The word Attraction is used to denote what we observe
when one body approaches another, or tends to approach
it, without any apparent impulse or other cause to which
the motion can be ascribed.
jj'Jene We have instances of attraction when iron approaches
Hsa the magnet, when certain bodies are placed near an ex-
l0ns' cited electric, and when a stone falls to the earth. We say
likewise that the earth attracts the moon; by this mode
of expression meaning no more than that the moon is con¬
tinually deflected towards the earth, from the rectilineal
course which it would otherwise pursue. It is likewise in
this sense that we must be understood when we say that
the sun attracts all the planets.
In the instances already mentioned, attraction extends
to a distance. In other cases it is confined within limits
so extremely narrow as to become imperceptible at an
interval which cannot be appreciated by the senses. Of
this kind is the attraction which takes place between the
particles of the same fluid, as is apparent from the round
figure of small drops. To this class likewise belongs the
attraction between fluid and solid bodies; whence origi¬
nate the very interesting appearances observed in capil¬
lary tubes, and other kindred phenomena. An attraction
between the small elementary particles of all solid bodies
is manifest from the force with which they cohere or re¬
sist an endeavour to separate them. In many cases the
intensity of this force is prodigiously great in contact or
at the nearest distances ; while it ceases to act upon mak¬
ing the smallest separation between the parts. Lastly,
chemistry developes innumerable instances of attraction
between the molecules of the bodies about which it is
conversant; insomuch that it is to this principle, under
the name of affinity, that we must ultimately ascribe the
various decompositions and new combinations which occur
in that science.
All these phenomena, although very different from one
another in other respects, have yet this in common, that
we observe in certain bodies a tendency to approach one
another, and to resist a separation, with some degree offeree.
The facts are certain, and are attended with no ambigui¬
ty ; and it is to express these facts that the term attrac‘
tion is used in physics.
We likewise observe, in some bodies, a tendency to fly
off from one another when they are brought near. This
is called repulsion.
The word force has, in general, some degree of obscu¬
rity. It is used to denote the cause of motion; but we
have no direct knowledge of it, and we judge of its in¬
tensity by the effect which we suppose it to produce. In
all our reasoning concerning forces, it is the changes of
motion which we measure and compare together, and
which are really the subjects of our thoughts. Attraction
and repulsion are forces or principles of motion, known to
us only by the phenomena we observe ; but the circum¬
stance of their implying action at a distance is an addi¬
tional source of obscurity in which other kinds of force do
not participate.
It certainly is inconceivable that motion should be pro¬
duced at a distance, when no connection can be traced
between the body moved and that which is supposed to
produce the motion. We are strongly impressed with the
prejudice, that a body cannot act but where it is; and we
find difficulty in admitting that the mere presence of two
bodies, without the intervention of any mechanical means,
can be a satisfactory cause of motion. On this account
attraction has been classed by some with the occult quali¬
ties of the schools ; and the favourers of this doctrine have
been reproached with reviving exploded notions in philo¬
sophy. Impulse is a principle of motion more familiar
to us, and to which we are not disposed to make equal
objection. Whenever the communication of motion can
be traced to this source, we are satisfied that the effect
is justly explained. Hence many philosophers have been
of opinion, that impulse is the only cause of motion that can
m r r ATTRACTION.
Attraction.be admitted in physical science ; and many attempts have
accordingly been made to reduce to this principle all cases
in which distant bodies act on one another. With regard
to these attempts, it will be sufficient to remark here, that
they are all built upon hypothesis. No evidence is adduced
to prove that such things exist as the elastic ether or
gravific matter which they set out with supposing. And,
as far as such systems have no other object than to obviate
the difficulty of action at a distance, this argument alone
is sufficient to confute them, without adverting to the dif¬
ficulties that attend each of them separately, their in¬
consistency with the received laws of motion, and the
innumerable contradictions and improbabilities to which
they are liable on every side.
A little reflection is sufficient to show that, in reality,
we have no clearer notion of impulse as the cause of mo¬
tion than we have of attraction. We can as little give a
satisfactory reason why motion should pass out of one
body into another on their contact, as we can, why one
body should begin to move, or have its motion increased,
when it is placed near another body. It is equally im¬
possible in both cases to prove that there is a necessary
connection between the related facts ; and in this respect
both the phenomena are alike inexplicable.
When motion is produced by impulse, it is probably
the circumstance of contact apparently taking place which
leads us to think that the effect is so clearly explained.
It is in this manner only, or by actual contact, that we
ourselves can move external objects. We have no power
of producing motion in distant bodies, except by the in¬
tervention of other bodies on which we act immediately.
Impulse is, therefore, a cause of motion familiar to us, and
strikes us as the plainest and most satisfactory ultimate
principle at which we can arrive. On the other hand,
when one body attracts another at a distance, there is
nothing familiar to us with which we can compare it; our
curiosity is excited, and we are led to seek out some hid¬
den connection between them.
But it may be doubted whether there is actual contact
in any case of the communication of motion. When a
body is impelled by the air, it will hardly be affirmed that
the particles of that elastic fluid are in contact with one
another, since there is no space, however small, within
which a given bulk of it may not be compressed, by apply¬
ing an external force sufficiently great. The particles of
air, therefore, act on one another at a distance ; and the
same thing must be true of all other elastic fluids. And,
by the way, what is here said is sufficient to prove, that
no scheme, founded on the hypothesis of an elastic ether,
will enable us to account for attraction; because such a
contrivance can do nothing more than substitute one
species of action at a distance instead of another. There
is good reason to think that absolute contact never takes
place in the component parts of the hardest and most
compact solid bodies. This seems to be an unavoidable
consequence of the fact, well established by experience,
that all bodies contract in their bulk by cold, and ex¬
pand by heat. It is therefore not only not impossible,
but it is even in some degree probable, that the commu¬
nication of motion may, in every instance, be a case of ac¬
tion at a distance.
If, then, we are apt to think that impulse is a clearer
physical principle than attraction, there is in reality no
good ground for the distinction; it has its origin in pre¬
judice, and in our mistaking the proper object of natu¬
ral philosophy. All our researches in nature are con¬
fined to the phenomena we observe, and to the laws by
which they are regulated. A physical cause is no other
than a general fact discovered by a careful observation
and an attentive comparison of many particular and sub¬
ordinate facts. We have no evidence, independent of ex-Attra
perience, that any consequence, deduced from a physical ^
cause, will actually take place. There is in this case no
necessary connection from which we can, with absolute
certainty, infer the expected event. If, then, we regard
impulse and attraction as principles founded in fact, and
regulated by laws confirmed by observation and experi¬
ment, they are both equally entitled to be classed as phy¬
sical causes, and they ought both to be admitted as of
equal authority in explaining the phenomena of the uni¬
verse.
If we turn our attention to the different kinds of attrac¬
tion enumerated above, and inquire what progress has been
made in the investigation of their laws of action, we shall
find that, generally speaking, this branch of physics has
been little advanced. We are very imperfectly acquainted
with magnetical and electrical attraction. We know still
less of those attractive powers which take place at small
distances, and which are confined within such narrow li¬
mits that their mode of action escapes the observation of
our senses. Attraction is, indeed, much used by philoso¬
phers to account for many important natural phenomena;
but their explanations are often vague, and destitute of
that precision which ought always to be aimed at in phy¬
sical science. There is only one class of phenomena in
which the laws of attraction have been fully developed.
We allude to gravitation, that principle which occasions
the fall of heavy bodies at the surface of the earth, and
which retains the planets and comets in their orbits. Re¬
ferring the other species of attraction, which are little
susceptible of general discussion, to their several heads,
we shall now confine our attention to gravitation
Traces of the principle of gravitation are to be found Cisco
in writers of great antiquity; but their speculations on0^
this subject do not go beyond a vague notion of a tenden-^
cy which the planets have to one another, or to a common
centre. It would contribute little either to entertainment
or instruction to collect all the passages of ancient au¬
thors that speak of this principle. The revival of the true
system of the world by Copernicus introduced the most
admirable simplicity in the explanation of the planetary
motions, and likewise led to more just conjectures concern¬
ing the laws by which they are upheld. Copernicus himself
attributed the round figure of the planets to a tendency
which their parts possess of uniting with one another, thus
extending to all the planets that attraction which we ob¬
serve at the surface of the earth. He stopt short indeed
at this point, conceiving attraction to be confined to the
matter of each planet, without making it extend from one
planet to another, so as to actuate all the bodies of the
system. This step was made by the bold and systematic
genius of Kepler. Adopting the opinion of Dr Gilbert of
Colchester, that the earth is a great magnet, Kepler form¬
ed to himself a notion of attraction, in some respects re¬
markably just. He says that the earth and moon attract
one another, and, were it not for some powers which re¬
tain them in their orbits, they would move towards one
another, and would meet in their common centre of gra¬
vity. He attributes the tide to the moon’s attraction
(virtus tractoria quce in luna est), which heaps up the
waters of the ocean immediately under her. But in many
respects his notions of attraction were fanciful and extra¬
vagant ; a more perfect knowledge of the laws of motion
than had been attained to in his time, and a new geome-
try, were both wanting in order to guide him in this re¬
search without danger of wandering. Yet he was able to
penetrate so far into the causes of the planetary motions,
as to foresee that they would not long continue latent; and
he tells us, he was persuaded that “ the full discovery of
those mysteries was reserved for the next age, when God
1
ract;
ATTRACTION.
175
• would reveal them.” So full an exposition of a physical
system of the world as is contained in the writings of
Kepler could not fail to draw the attention of succeeding
philosophers. Many remarks concerning the principle of
gravitation are to be found in the writings of Fermat,
Roberval, Borelli, and other authors; but no one before
Newton entertained so clear and systematic a view of the
doctrine of universal gravitation as Dr Robert Hooke. In
his work on the motion of the earth, published in 1674,
twelve years before the appearance of Newton’s Principia,
he lays down these three positions as the foundations of
his system, viz.,
« That all the heavenly bodies have not only a gra¬
vitation of their parts to their own proper centre, but
likewise that they mutually attract each other within
their spheres of action.
« 2dly, That all bodies having a simple motion will con¬
tinue to move in a straight line, unless continually de¬
flected from it by some extraneous force, causing them to
describe a circle, or an ellipse, or some other curve.
“ Mly, This attraction is so much the greater as the
bodies are nearer.”
The principle of universal gravitation is here very precise¬
ly enunciated. Dr Hooke seems to have clearly perceived
that the planetary motions are the result of an attraction
towards the sun, and of a rectilineal motion produced by
a projectile force. Not having discovered the law accord¬
ing to which the force diminishes as the distance from
the sun increases, he contrived experiments to elucidate
his theory. Having suspended a ball by means of a long
thread, he placed another ball upon a table immediately
under the point of suspension, and he caused the sus¬
pended ball to revolve round the stationary one. When
the movable ball was pushed laterally with a force pro¬
perly adjusted to its deviation from the perpendicular, it
described an exact circle round the ball on the table: in
other cases it described an ellipse, or an oval resembling
an ellipse, having the other ball in the centre. Dr Hooke
observed, that although this experiment in some measure
illustrated the planetary motions, yet it did not represent
them accurately; because the ellipses which the planets
describe have the sun placed in one focus, and not in the
centre. Thus, at the appearance of Newton, many things
were known, or rather surmised, that prepared the way
for the discovery of the principle which regulates the ce¬
lestial motions. This does not detract in any degree from
the glory of Newton, who, discarding the conjectures of
his predecessors, proposed to himselt to investigate, with
mathematical strictness, the law of the attractive force,
and to ascertain with precision its sufficiency to retain
the planets in their orbits. He invented a new kind of
geometry, which was necessary to enable him to accom¬
plish his purpose. With this help, and by admitting no¬
thing without the sanction of the established principles
of Dynamics, he deduced from the motions of the celestial
bodies the law of universal gravitation, the most impor¬
tant and the most general truth hitherto discovered by
the industry and the sagacity of man, viz. “ that all the
particles of matter attract one another, directly as their
masses, and inversely as the squares of their distances.
Having arrived at a principle which belongs to every
part of matter, another inquiry comes into view. Setting
out from this principle, it is now necessary to proceed in
an inverted order, and deduce from it, by synthetical
reasoning, the phenomena which we observe in the uni¬
verse. The first step in this process is to find out the
attractive force of the planets, which arises from the
united attractions of their component parts. Two things
only are involved in this investigation, viz. the known law
of attraction between the particles of matter, and the
figure of the attracting bodies. This is a subject of great Attraction,
importance, and it is connected with some principal points
of the system of the world, with the theory of the figure
of the planets, that of the tides, and many other pheno¬
mena. It is but imperfectly discussed in Newton’s im¬
mortal work ; and there is no part of his philosophy which
has been improved more slowly by the labours of his fol¬
lowers. We now propose to treat of it at some length,
endeavouring to lay before our readers as complete a
view of this part of science as the nature of our work
will permit.
We begin with laying down some definitions, and de-Definition
monstrating some properties, of elliptical spheroids. and pro-
Def. 1. A solid generated by the revolving of an ellipse PeTtl£!s
about either axis is called a spheroid of revolution. If^jT^j^
the ellipse revolve about the less axis, the spheroid is p
oblate; if about the greater axis, it is oblong.
Let k and k! denote the two axes of the spheroid, k
being that of revolution ; and let x and y be two co-ordi¬
nates of a point in the surface of the spheroid, having
their origin in the centre, x being parallel to the axis
of revolution, and y perpendicular to it; then the equa¬
tion of the spheroid, whether oblate or oblong, will be
_ i
k2 k'2
Def. 2. An elliptical spheroid, in general, or an ellip¬
soid, is a solid bounded by a finite surface of the second
order. Let ACB and ADE (Plate CL fig. 1: this fi¬
gure represents one eighth of an ellipsoid contained in
one of the solid angles formed by the three principal
sections) be two ellipses that have the same axis AO, the
same centre O, and their planes perpendicular to one an¬
other : from any point K in the common axis, let there
be drawn ordinates in both ellipses, as KC and KD ; then,
having described an ellipse of which KC and KD are the
semiaxes, the periphery DMC of that ellipse will be in
the surface of the ellipsoid. This solid figure has a
centre, three axes crossing one another at right angles
in the centre, and three principal sections made by planes
passing through every two of its axes.
Let A, #, denote the three semiaxes, viz. h — OB,
ft — OE, K' — OA ; and let a?, y, z, denote three rectan¬
gular co-ordinates of a point M in the surface, the co-ordi¬
nates being parallel to the axes, and having^ their origin
in the centre, viz. MN — x, NK — y, and OK — z ; then
the equation of the surface will be + "pa — ^ ’
as it is easy to prove from the foregoing construction.
The ellipsoid becomes a sphere when all the three
axes are equal: it becomes a spheroid of revolution when
two of them are equal.
1. If any plane cut an elliptical spheroid, the section will
he an ellipse. In the spheroid of revolution, a section made
by a plane perpendicular to the axis of revolution is a circle.
All this follows so easily from the nature of the. solids,
that we need not stop to give a formal demonstration.
2. If a straight line cut tivo concentric ellipses that are
similar and similarly situated, the parts of it between the
outer and inner peripheries are equal to one another.
Let AHBK and MDNC (Plate Cl. fig. 2) be two
similar and similarly situated ellipses that have the same
centre O ; and let the straight line AB cut them both ;
then AC and BD are equal. Bisect CD in-L, and through
L and the common centre draw the straight line HMNK
to cut both ellipses. Because the ellipses are similar and
similarly situated, and that CD is an ordinate of the dia¬
meter MN, it is plain that AB will be an ordinate of the
diameter HK ; wherefore, AB and CD being both bisected
in L, AC is equal to BD.
ATTRACTION.
. 3. If there he two ellipses, one within the other, such that,
any straight line being drawn to cut them, the parts of it
between their peripheries are equal to one another, these el¬
lipses are concentric, similar, ami similarly situated.
Let D (fig. 2) be any point in the inner ellipse, and
through D draw EF, terminating in the outer ellipse:
then, if we make FG r= DE, G must be a point in the
inner ellipse. Hence all the points of the inner curve are
determined when the outer ellipse and the point D are
given: wherefore there cannot be two different curves,
both passing through D, that will answer the conditions.
But an ellipse described through D, concentric with the
outer ellipse, and similar to it, and similarly situated, will
answer the conditions (2). Wherefore the two ellipses
are concentric, and similar, and similarly situated.
4. If a straight line be drawn to cut tico elliptical sphe¬
roids that have the same centre, and are similar and simi¬
larly situated, the part of it between the outer and inner sur¬
faces will be equal to one another.
Conceive a plane, which contains the straight line, to
pass through the common centre of the solids: the sec¬
tions made by the plane will be concentric ellipses (1);
and these will be similar and similarly situated, because
the solids are so : wherefore the parts of the straight line
between the surfaces are equal (2).
5. If two elliptical spheroids that have the same centre,
and are similar and similarly situated, be cut by a plane,
the two sections will be concentric ellipses that are similar
ami similarly situated.
For the sections are ellipses (1); and, any straight line
being drawn to cut them, the parts of it between the
peripheries will be equal (4). Wherefore the ellipses are
concentric, similar, and similarly situated (3).
6. LetADE and CFG (fig. 3) be two concentric ellipses
that are similar and similarly situated ; let AO and CO, in
the same straight line, be two of their axes, and let DE,
drawn through C, be perpendicular to AO ; then if CF and
CG be two chords of the interior ellipse that make equal
angles with the axis CO, and if the chords DM and DN of
the exterior ellipse be drawn respectively parallel to CF and
CG ; the sum of CF and CG will be equal to the sum or
difference of DM and DN, according as they both fall on
the same side, or on different sides of DE.
For draw EP parallel to CF, and it will likewise be pa¬
rallel to DM. Because CF and CG are equally inclined
to CO and to DE, it is plain that DN and EP, which are
parallel tb CF and CG, are likewise equally inclined to
DE: consequently DN = EP. Draw a straight line
through the common centre to bisect DM in L, and that
straight line will likewise bisect EP, parallel to DM, in
H: and because the ellipses are similar and similarly si¬
tuated, the same straight line will likewise bisect the
chord CF of the interior ellipse, in K. Because DC = CE,
therefore DL -{- EH — 2CK — CF. Wherefore DM 4-
DN = 2DL + 2EH = 2CF = CF + CG.
The demonstration of the other case, when DM and
DN fall on different sides of DE, is entirely similar.
Some general Properties, resulting from the Law of Attrac¬
tion that obtains in Nature.
i. Let AD and EF (fig. 4) be two indefinitely slender
pyramids, that are similar to one another, and both composed
of the same homogeneous matter, which attracts in the inverse
proportion of the square of the distance: the attractions of
the pyramids upon particles placed at the vertices A and E
are proportional to the length of the py ramids.
• ^®n<?e*ve each the pyramids to be divided into an
indefinitely great number of thin slices of equal thickness,
by planes parallel to its base; then, if CD and GH be any
two of these slices, their attractions upon particles placed
at A and E will be proportional to and : Now ^
these are equal; for the solids CD and GH having the
same thickness, they are proportional to the sections CM
and GN, that is, to AC2 and EG2, because the pyramids
are similar. Wherefore the attraction of any one of the
slices in the pyramid AB, upon a particle placed at A, is
equal to the attraction of any one of the slices in EFupon
a particle placed at E. Consequently, the whole attrac¬
tion of the pyramid AB is to the whole attraction of the
pyramid EF as the number of slices in AB to the number
of slices in EF, that is, as the length AB to the length
EF.
Cor. 1. The attractions of any portions of the pyramid
are as the lengths of the portions. For the attractions are
proportional to the number of slices in the portions, that
is, as the lengths.
Cor. 2. If the pyramids have different densities, their
attractions are proportional to the lengths multiplied by
the densities. For, in this case, the attraction of each
slice will be proportional to its density; wherefore the at¬
tractions will be as the densities multiplied by the num¬
ber of slices, or as the densities multiplied by the lengths.
8. If there be two similar solids composed of the same ho¬
mogeneous matter, which attracts in the inverse proportion,
of the square of the distance ; any two particles of matter, si¬
milarly situated with regard to the solids, will be attracted
by them with forces that are proportioned to any of the ho¬
mologous lines of the solids.
Because the solids are similar, they may be resolved in¬
to an indefinitely great number of slender pyramids, and
frustums of pyramids, that are similar to one another, and
similarly placed in the solids; each pyramid having its
vertex at one of the attracted particles. The direct at¬
tractions of any corresponding pair of pyramids will have
constantly the same ratio to one another; for they will
be as the lengths of the pyramids or frustums (7); that
is, because the solids are similar, as any two homologous
lines of the solids. Wherefore the whole attractive forces,
compounded of all the direct attractions which act in di¬
rections that make the same angles with one another, will
likewise have to one another the proportion of any two of
the homologous lines of the solids.
Cor, If the two solids have different densities, their at¬
tractions will be proportional to the densities multiplied
by any homologous lines of the solids (7, Cor. 2).
9. If there be two concentric elliptical spheroids that are
similar and similarly situated, a particle placed anywhere
within the inner surface will be in equilibrium, or will be
urged equally in all opposite directions by the shell of homo¬
geneous matter contained between the two surfaces, supposing
the laiv of attraction to be that of the inverse proportion of
the square of the distance.
Let P (Plate CII. fig. 5) be a particle placed within
such a shell, and let a slender double pyramid, having
P for the common vertex, be extended to meet the sur¬
faces of the solid on both sides of P. The portions of the
pyramid AGFIB and CEFD between the surfaces on op¬
posite sides of P, will have equal lengths (4); wherefore
these portions will attract a particle placed at P with equal
forces (7, Cor. 1). The same thing maybe proved of all
the pyramids which have their vertices at P, and fill the
spheroids. Wherefore P is attracted equally in all oppo¬
site directions by the homogeneous matter contained be¬
tween the surfaces of the spheroids.
10. To find the attractive force of an indefinitely slender
prism, acting in a direction parallel to the prism, upon a
particle of matter placed anywhere.
Let BC (Plate CII. fig. 6) be a prism of homogene¬
ous matter, upon the indefinitely slender base CH, and
A T T R A
J&h , 3n. let a particle of matter be placed at A; draw AB and AC
fj!”' j t0 the extremities of the prism, and AE to any point in
^ 1 if and draw AD perpendicular to BC. Let S rr base
CH, and put AD — a, DE •=. x ; the element of the prism
is = S X dx, the element of the attraction in the direc-
S doc
tion AE is = — „2 ■, and the element of the attraction
in the direction parallel to the prism is =
S X dx
AE2
X^TP =
DE S X xdx
(a2 + a?2)2
S X xdx
AE
Now,
/
Const.
S
:= Const.—
(VZ+a?2)-
S
AE’
V d2 x2
and the constant quantity is determined by making the
fluent begin at the end of the prism nearer to A; where¬
fore the whole attractive force of the prism, in the direc¬
tion parallel to the prism, is
= S X
i}-
Cor. In like manner may the attractive force of the
prism be found, when the attraction of the particles is pro¬
portional to any function of the distance.
Let AB = f AC = suppose that <p (f) is the func¬
tion of the distance that expresses the law of attraction ;
and put J'df. <p (/) = T (/) ; then the attraction paral¬
lel to the prism is
= S X =±= [Y (/) — T (/')], _
observing that the attraction is always positive.
ATTRACTION OF 'SPHERES.
\ttr ion 11. Spheres of the same homogeneous matter attract par-
1 >f sp res. tides placed on their surfaces ivith forces proportional to
their radii.
Spheres being similar solid figures, this proposition is
no more than a particular case of what was before proved
W* . . . ,
Cor. If the spheres have different densities, the attrac¬
tions at their surfaces are proportional to their radii mul¬
tiplied by their densities. (8, Cor.)
12. The force with which a particle, placed anyivhere
within a sphere of homogeneous matter, is urged towards the
centre, is proportional to its distance from the centre.
Conceive a concentric sphere to be described, which
contains the attracted particle in its surface; the matter
between the two surfaces will exert no force on the par¬
ticle (9), which will therefore be urged to the centre, only
by the attraction of the inner sphere, in the surface of
which it is placed; but this force is proportional to the
radius of the sphere, or to the distance of the particle
from the centre (11).
13. Let PNQ and ABC (fig. 7) he tico spheres of the
same homogeneous matter, which attracts in the inverse pro¬
portion of the square of the distance ; let the centres of the
spheres be at M and D, and take MB equal to the radius
of the sphere ABC, and ED equal to the radius of the
sphere PNQ ; the attractions of the spheres upon particles
placed at B and E are to one another as the squares of the
radii of the spheres.
In the spheres draw two great circles perpendicular to
the diameters PQ and AC, that pass through the points
II and E; and let PjoQ. and A&C be two great circles,
making equal indefinitely small angles NMp and BD& with
the great circles PNQ and ABC. Let UK and EG, pa¬
rallel to PQ and AC, be any two chords of the circles
PjPQ and A6C, that subtend similar arcs, or arcs contain-
VOL. IV.
C T I o N.
177
ing the same number of degrees ; and through HK and Attraction.
EG let planes perpendicular to the circles Pjo^Q and A&C, v'—
be drawn to cut the portions of the spheres contained in
the angles NMjo and BDZ>; join RH, RK, MH, MK, DF,
DG, EF, EG. Because the arcs subtended by HK and
EG are like parts of their circumferences, it is plain that
the angle RMH = EDF, and RMK = EDG. And be¬
cause ED = MH = MK, and RM — DF — DG (hyp.'),
therefore RH = EF, and RK = EG.
Conceive the chords HK and FG, together with the
planes passing through them, to change their place a
little, so as to describe two slender prisms, or elements of
the portions of the spheres contained in the angles NM/>
and BDX. It is plain that MX and DO, the distances of
the chords HK and FG from the centres of their circles,
are constantly proportional to MN and DB, the radii of
the spheres ; wherefore XT and OS, the perpendicular
sections of the small prisms, are similar figures, and have
to one another the same ratio that MX2 has to DO2, or
MN2 to DB2. Now, the attraction of the prism HK urg¬
ing a particle at R to the centre M, is
rk)’ (10)5
urging a particle at E to the centre D, is
= XT X
prism FG
= OS X
(±
Vri
urg
(— Ly
\EF EG/
and the attraction of the
But in consequence of what
was proved,
1
RK
1
EF
f
EG
= t—^ ; wherefore the at¬
tractions of the prisms are to one another as XT to OS, or
as MN2 to DB2. The same thing may be proved of all
the elements of the two portions of the spheres contained
in the angles NMp and BD6; wherefore those portions
attract particles at R and E with forces proportional to
the squares of the radii of the spheres. But because the
small angles NM/> and BD6 are equal, each of the spheres
may be divided into an equal number of such portions;
wherefore the attractions of the whole spheres upon par¬
ticles placed at R and E are proportional to the squares
of the radii of the spheres.
Cor. This proposition is true when the particles of
matter attract one another with forces proportional to any
proposed function of the distance.
Let RH — EF = f and RK = EG = f; then, adopt¬
ing the same notation as before (10, Cor.), the attrac¬
tions of the prisms urging particles placed at R and E to
the centres M and D, are respectively XT X
[Y (/) - Y(/)], and OS X =!= [Y (/) _ Y (/] :
consequently, those attractions have the same proportion
that XT has to SO, or MN2 to DB2. Wherefore the
attractions of the whole spheres are in the same propor¬
tion.
14. A particle placed anywhere ivithout a sphere of ho¬
mogeneous matter which attracts in the inverse proportion of
the square of the distance, will he urged to the centre of the
sphere with a force that is inversely proportional to the
square of the particles distance from the centre.
Let ABC (Plate Cl. fig. 8) be the sphere, O its cen¬
tre, and P a particle without the sphere ; conceive a con¬
centric sphere PMN, of the same homogeneous matter
with the sphere ABC, to be described with the radius
PO. Then, by the last proposition, the attraction of the
sphere ABC upon the particle P is to the attraction of
the sphere PMN, upon a particle placed at A, as AO2
to PO2. But the attraction of the sphere PMN upon a
particle placed at A is equal to the attraction of the
sphere ABC upon the same particle ; for the attraction of
the matter between the two spherical surfaces exerts no
force upon a particle at A (9). Wherefore, in the pro¬
portion set down above, the two middle terms are con-
ATTRACTION,
• stantly the same wherever the point P is placed without
the sphere ABC ; consequently the first term of the pro¬
portion must follow the inverse ratio of the last term;
that is, the attraction of the sphere ABC upon the exter¬
nal particle at P is inversely proportional to PO2.
15. The same law of attraction being supposed, a homo-'
geneous sphere will attract a particle placed ivithout it, with
the same force as if all the matter of the sphere ivere collect¬
ed in the centre.
Let f denote the distance of the particle from the cen¬
tre ; then it follows, from the last proposition, that the at¬
traction of the sphere upon the particle will have for its
measure ; A denoting a constant quantity that will be
determined by any particular case ; that is, by the actual
attractive force corresponding to any determinate distance
from the centre. Let r denote the radius of the sphere,
and M its mass ; then no part of the matter of the sphere
being nearer the attracted particle than (/— r), and none
of it more remote than (/ + r), the attraction of the
M
sphere on the particle will be greater than/ -r-r—and
(/+ rf
M A .
less than q. Therefore -p is always contained be¬
tween those limits, which requires that A M. For, if
A were greater than M, such values of /might be found
A . M
as would make
72 equal to or greater than  — ;
J (f—rr
and
if A were less than M, such values of/might be found as
would make ^ equal to or less than ^ x
/ (f + rf
There¬
fore A = M ; and the attraction of the sphere is equal to
M
p2, or the same as xf all the matter were collected in the
centre.
If the radius of the sphere = r, the density of the mat¬
ter contained in it = d; then the mass, or M, — 4
(V being the circumference of the circle whose diameter
is unit), and the attraction of the sphere at the distance/
from the centre This is still true at the surface
of the sphere when f = r, so that the attraction at the
4 ffvd
surface = —^—; which expression, with the help of
what is proved in (12), enables us to compare the in¬
tensities of the attractions of homogeneous spheres, at
all distances from the centre, without or within the sur¬
faces.
Cor. 1. A shell of homogeneous matter contained be¬
tween two concentric spherical surfaces, will attract a
particle placed without it, with the same force as if all the
matter of the shell were collected in its centre.
For the attractive force of such a shell is equal to the
di erence of the attractions of two concentric spheres of
the same homogeneous matter with the shell.
Cor. 2. A sphere composed of concentric shells, that
vary m their densities according to any law, will attract
a particle placed without it, with the same force as if all
the matter were collected in the centre.
For this having been proved of one shell (Cor. 1) it
must be true of any number of shells.
If <p (r) denote the density at the distance r from the
centre, the quantity of matter in the sphere will be
= 4<r.J p (r). Tfidr; and the attraction on a particle
without the sphere at the distance / from the centre An
_ 4“r ./p (r) . iPdr
- j2 .
16. Ttvo spheres, each composed of concentric shells of
variable density, attract one another with the same force as
if all the matter of each were collected in its centre.
For the attraction of a sphere A upon every particle of
another sphere B will remain the same, if we suppose all
the matter of A to be collected in its centre (15). But
the attraction of any particles of matter placed in A’s cen¬
tre upon the sphere B is equal and opposite to the attrac¬
tion of B, upon the same matter so placed; and again,
the attraction of B upon all the particles placed in the
centre of A, will remain unchanged, if we suppose the
matter of B to be collected in its centre. Wherefore A
attracts B with the same force as if the matter of each
were collected in its centre.
17. Supposing that the particles of matter attract ivitk a
force proportional to the distance, a body of any shape will
attract a particle of matter placed anywhere with the same
force, and in the same direction, as if all the matter of the
body were collected in its centre of gravity.
Suppose that the attracted particle is placed at P (fig.
9), and the centre of gravity of the attracting body atG;
join PG, and let any plane pass through that line. Let
L be a small part, or element of the body, and from L
draw LK perpendicular to the plane passing through PG,
and KF perpendicular to PG ; join PL and PK. Put dm
to denote the quantity of matter, or the mass of the ele¬
ment L ; then its attractive force, urging the particle in
the direction PL, is rr PL X dm, which, by the resolu¬
tion of forces, is equivalent to the two forces PK X dm
and KL X dm ; and again, the single force PK X dm is
equivalent to the two forces FK X dm, and PF X dm
= PG X dm G F X dm. Wherefore, the attraction
of the element L upon the particle at P is equivalent
to these four separate forces, viz. PG X dm, GF X dm,
FK X dm, KL X dm, which urge the particle P respec¬
tively in the directions PG, GF, FK, KL. But, from the
nature of the centre of gravity, the sum of all the forces,
KL X dm, that urge the particle P to one side of the plane
passing through PG, is just equal to the sum of the forces
that urge it to the other side of the same plane ; and the
sum of all the forces, h K X dm, that urge P to one side of
the line PG, is just equal to the sum of the forces that
urge it to the other side of the same line ; and the sum of
all the forces, GF X dm, that urge P towards the point G,
is just equal to the sum of the forces that urge it from
the same point. Wherefore all the preceding forces mu¬
tually destroy one another, excepting the forces PG X dm,
the sum of which, when extended to all the elements
of the attracting body, is z= PG X mass of the body.
Wherefore the whole attraction upon P is the same as if
all the matter of the body were collected in its centre of
gravity.
Cor. Supposing that the particles of matter attract with
a mice proportional to the distance, a homogeneous sphere
will attract a particle placed anywhere, in the same man¬
ner as if all the matter of the sphere were collected in
the centre.
Foi the centre of gravity of a homogeneous sphere is
t ie same as the centre ol its figure. This corollary is
ikewise true of a sphere composed of concentric shells of
variable density; and it is easy to apply the demonstra¬
tion of (16) to prove that, in this law of attraction, two
spheres, each composed of concentric shells of variable
ensity, will attract one another with the same force as if
the matter of each were collected in its centre.
18. To investigate what are the laws of attraction in re-
ATTRACTION.
179
Urac fo.gard to the distance according to which a shell of homo-
^ geneous matter, contained between two concentric spherical
surfaces, will attract a particle placed without it, in the same
manner as if all the matter of the shell were collected in the
centre. ,
It has been proved that this property actually belongs
to homogeneous shells in the law of attraction which ob¬
tains in nature, and likewise when the particles of matter
attract with a force proportional to the distance; but it
is interesting to know whether it is confined to these two
cases alone, or extends to other laws of attraction. This
can only be discovered by a direct analysis.
Let r = PC (fig. 10), the distance of the attracted
point from the centre of the shell; « = C A, the radius of
the inner surface of the shell; /= PM, the distance of
P from any point in the surface. Having drawn the dia¬
meter AD through P, let AMD and AND be two great
circles, making with one another an indefinitely small
angle MAN = dq ; and let two small circles BMG, bmg,
indefinitely near one another, of which A and D are the
poles, meet the former circles in M, N, m, n ; and draw
MS, NS to the centre of the circle BMG. Put Q for
the measure of the arc AM ; then MS = u sin. 6; MN =
dq.u sin. 6; Mm = udd; and the quadrilateral space MNwm
— u2.dq.dd sin. 6. We may suppose the thickness of the
shell indefinitely small, since, if the property belong to an
elementary shell indefinitely thin, it will be true of one of
a determinate thickness, which can be resolved into such
elements. Suppose the thickness of the shell to be = du ;
then the quantity of matter in the part standing upon the
quadrilateral space MNwm = u?du .dq.dd sin. Q. Let <p (f)
represent the direct attraction of a particle at M in the
direction PM; then its attraction directed to the centre
C = p (/) X p^- = j X <p (f); and the attrac¬
tion of the element of the shell in the same direction ==
, r—ucos.Q . .
wdu.dq.ddsm. 6 X  -j. .<p (/)• Ibis expression is
proportional to dq, when d and f remain constant; and
therefore (denoting by cr the circumference of the circle
whose diameter is unit) the attraction of the whole zone
contained between the small circles BMG, bmg, will be
y COS* @
= 2^. w2 . dd sin. 6. y——. <p (/); and the attractive
force of the whole shell will be
2‘ir.u-du J dd sin. 6. y— • <f> (/);
the fluent to be extended from 0 = 0 to 0 := cr.
Again, the quantity of matter in the shell is = 4cr. u^du ;
and the attraction of this matter placed in the centre, at
the distance r from P, is = 4«r. u2du .<p(f).
If now we equate the attraction of the shell to the at¬
traction of its matter placed in the centre, and leave out
the factors common to both, we shall get
2P0) =fdd sin. d. r~Uy0S~. tp(f),
the limits of the integral being the same as before.
But/2 zz r2 — 2ru cos. 0 + m2 : then dd sin. d also
J ’ ru
fi + r* m2
r—u cos. d = —  : wherefore, by substitution, we
2r J
get
4.^(r) .m=f (/2+^ — u2).df.(p (/);
or, which is equivalent, 4. r2^ (/•). u =
(/*+ >* - «*) -fdf. f (/) - if/dffdf. f (/),
the limits of this integral being from/zz r — utofzzr-\-u,
which correspond to 0 = 0 and d zzk.
Now let fdf. <p(f) zzY (/) ; and Jfdf Jrlf. <p (f) = Attraction.
ffdf.Y (J) = Tr (/) ; then, by taking the fluents be-
"tween the proper limits, we get
4. (r) .« = 2r. [(r -}- «) T (r-f- m)—(r—w) y (r—u)l
— 2 [Y' (r+u) — Y' (r — ?*)].
If we develope the binomial functions in the last ex¬
pression, all the even powers of u will disappear, and the
odd powers only will remain ; these last terms being all
contained in this general formula,
4
viz.
{r
1.2.3...2rc+l
d?n+}r Y (r) cPn+1Y' (r)
}•
u2n+l
dr2n+1 dr2"*1
d Y' (r)
and, observing that = rY (r), the same expression
will become
{
1.2.3....2«+ 1*
df2n+1rY(r) dQ.nrY(r)
dr2n+1 d/2n
which, again, is more simply expressed thus, viz.
d?nrY(r)
4/^
d.
};
f 1 > (jPnrY(r) \
(r dr2*1 J
.u2n+1-
1.2.3....2»+l dr
Wherefore, by substituting the development instead
of the functions, and then dividing by 4^, we get
A ^ \ d2.rY(r)
1
9(r) =
d.Y(r)
dr
}
1.2.3.
dr2
dr
d' f 1 d'k rY (r) 1
( r dr* j
dr
^ 1.2.3.4.5
+ &c.
From the nature of the function Y (r), we get <p (r)
rf.Y(r)
dr
be separately equal to nothing ; hence
rf?rY(r)
wherefore each of the remaining terms must
d
fl d‘l r Y (r) ) _
‘\r dr2 / “ u ’
from which we find r Y (f) — \ Ar3 + AV—A", A, A', A"
being arbitrary constant quantities; and this value of rY (r),
it is plain, will likewise render all the succeeding terms
of the development evanescent. Wherefore
, \ £?.Y(r) A , A"
•t^=-c[r = *r+-^-
Thus the most general expression of the law of attraction,
that possesses the property in question, is a combination
of the two laws above mentioned, with each of which it
coincides, according as we make the one or othei of the
constant quantities equal to nothing. We have, there¬
fore, a direct proof that the law of nature is the only one
which will make the attraction decrease as the distance
increases, and in which a spherical shell, or a sphere, will
attract in the same manner as if all the matter were col¬
lected in the centre.
Laplace has arrived at the same conclusion by a difter-
ent process. (Mec. Celeste, livre ii. chap. 2, No. 12, Rem.
part.)
attraction of spheroids of revolution.
19. Let APBQ (Plate CII. fig. 11) and CMDN be^™*1™
two concentric ellipses, similar to one another, and similarly roids of
situated, of which AB and CD are either the greater or fess revolution.
180
ATTRACTION.
Attraction, ; and let PCQ be perpendicular to AB. Conceive the
'—ellipses to revolve about PQ, so as to describe an indefinitely
small angle ; then, supposing the law of attraction to be in¬
versely proportional to the square of the distance, the thin
solid of homogeneous matter described by the ellipse APBQ
will attract a particle placed at P, in a direction perpendi¬
cular to any plane passing through PQ, with the same force
that the thin solid of the same matter described by the ellipse
CMDN, will attract a particle placed at C perpendicularly
to the same plane.
From C draw CM, CN, making equal angles with CD,
and PR, PT respectively parallel to CM, CN; and let
Cm, Cm, Vr, Vt, be drawn in the same manner, and inde¬
finitely near the former lines. While the ellipses revolve
about PQ, the small sectors will describe pyramids that
have their vertices at C and P. It is manifest that the
pyramids so described are similar; for their angels at C
and P in the planes of the ellipses are equal; and their
other angles, described by revolving about PQ, are likewise
equal, because the sectors are equally inclined to that
axis. Wherefore the direct attractions of all the small
pyramids upon the particles P and C are proportional to
the lengths PR, PT, CM, CN (7) ; and consequently the
forces that urge the particles P and C in a direction at
right angles to any plane passing through PQ are propor¬
tional to the perpendiculars let fall upon that plane from
R, T, M, N. But because PR, PT, CM, CN are equally
inclined to PQ, they will make equal angles with any
plane passing through PQ ; wherefore the perpendiculars
drawn to the plane from R, T, M, N, will be respectively
proportional to PR, PT, CM, CN. But CM + CN
= PR + PT (6) ; wherefore the sum of the perpendicu¬
lars drawn to the plane from M and N will be equal to
the sum of the perpendiculars drawn to it from R and T.
Consequently the force of the pyramids PR and PT,
which urges the particle P at right angles to the plane, is
equal to the force of the pyramids CM and CN, which
urges the particle C in a parallel direction. The same
thing is true of all the small pyramids that make up the
thin solids described by the ellipses APBQ and CMDN;
and it is therefore true of the whole solids.
It is to be observed that when the pyramids PR and
PT fall on opposite sides of PQ, it is the difference of
their attractions which is equal to the sum of the attrac¬
tions of CM and CN; and it is the difference of the per¬
pendiculars/let fall from T and R on opposite sides of the
plane, which is equal to the sum of the perpendiculars let
fall from M and N.
20. Let APBQ be a spheroid of revolution, PQ the axis
of revolution, and A CB a plane through the centre perpen¬
dicular to PQ (Plate CII. fig. 12). If D be a particle
in the surface of the spheroid, and DL perpendicular to the
plane A CB ; then the attraction of a spheroid on a particle
placed at the pole P, will be to the force with which a par¬
ticle placed at D is attracted in the direction DL, as PC is
to DL.
Through D draw a plane parallel to the plane ACB,
and let the plane so drawn cut the axis PQ in F; draw
the straight line DFE to terminate in the spheroid, and
describe another spheroid through F, having the same
centre with the spheroid APBQ, and similar to it, and
similarly situated. Conceive an indefinitely great number
of planes, making indefinitely small angles with one ano¬
ther, to be drawn through DE, so as to divide the two
spheroids into an indefinitely great number of thin solids
or slices ; then the sections which every one of the planes
make with the spheroids will be similar ellipses, having
the same centre (5); and it is manifest that a straight
line drawn through F at right angles to DE, in any one
of the planes, will pass through the centre of the two el¬
lipses contained in it, and will coincide with an axis ofAttrad
each. Wherefore the force with which every one of the''-^V
slices or elements of the spheroid APBQ attracts a parti¬
cle placed at D in the direction DL, is equal to the force
with which the corresponding slice or element of the sphe¬
roid GFHK attracts a particle placed at F in the direc¬
tion FC (19). Wherefore, the whole attraction of the
spheroid APBQ upon a particle at D, in the direction DL,
is equal to the whole attraction of the spheroid GFHK
upon a particle at F. But the attractions of the sphe¬
roids APBQ and GFHK upon particles placed at P and
F, are to one another as PC to FC (8). Wherefore, the
attraction of the spheroid APBQ upon a particle at P, is
to the force with which the same spheroid attracts a par¬
ticle at D, in the direction DL, as PC is to FC or DL.
21. Let APBQ be a spheroid of revolution, and PQ the
axis of revolution as before. If D be a particle in the sur¬
face, ADPB (fig. 13) a section through D, and the axis
PQ and DL perpendicidar to PQ; the attraction of the
spheroid upon a particle at A will be to the force with which
a particle at D is attracted, in the direction DL, as AC is
to DL.
Through D draw a plane perpendicular to AB, which
cuts the section ADB in the straight line DFE; and let
a spheroid FGHK be described through F, having the
same centre with the spheroid APBQ, and similar to it,
and similarly situated. Then, conceiving the two sphe¬
roids to be divided into an indefinitely great number of
thin slices by planes passing through DE, the force with
which every slice or element of the spheroid APBQ at¬
tracts a particle at D in the direction DL, will be equal
to the force with which the corresponding slice or element
of the spheroid FGHK attracts a particle at F (19). But
the attractions of the spheroids APBQ and FGHK upon
particles placed at A and F are to one another as AC to
CF (8). Wherefore, the attraction of the spheroid APBQ
upon a particle at A is to the force with which the same
spheroid attracts a particle at D, in the direction DL, as
AC to FC or DL.
The two last propositions will enable us to find both the
direction and the intensity of the attraction of a homoge¬
neous spheroid of revolution upon a particle placed any¬
where on the surface, when we have ascertained the at¬
tractive forces at the poles and at the circumference of
the circular section made by a plane through the centre
perpendicular to the axis. For the whole attraction at
any point is the compound force arising from the attrac¬
tions perpendicular to the axis, and parallel to it. The
next object «bf our research is, therefore, to determine
the two forces above mentioned, viz. the attraction at the
poles, and at the circular section equally distant from both
poles.
22. Let ABD be an indefinitely slender pyramid, of ivhich
the base BD is perpendicular to the edge AD (fig. 14);
let B—base BD, and f—length ADs then — —the at¬
traction of the whole matter of the pyramid upon a particle
placed at the vertex A.
Let AM == x, then the section MN parallel to the base
BD=—,2 , and MP = element of the prism = ^ y2—, and
the attraction of the element upon a particle placed at
.   MP B. efa? . . Ba:
A —  yT" ’ t‘ie fluent of which is — -yg — attrac¬
tion of the pyramid AM upon a particle at A. And,
when x —f, this becomes = — = attraction of the pyra*
mid AD upon a particle placed at A.
t 23. To investigate the attraction of a homogeneous sphe-
' void of revolution upon a particle placed at the pole.
Let P (fig- I5) be the pole, PCQ the axis of revolution,
and APBQ a section of the spheroid by a plane passing
through PQ, and any point M, in the surface; draw PM,
Ym indefinitely near PM, and Mm perpendicular to Pm.
Conceive the plane PMQ to revolve about PQ, so as to
describe the indefinitely small angle BCO ; then the small
triangle MPm will describe a slender pyramid, having its
vertex at P, and of which the base is a rectangle, contain¬
ed by Mm and RT; for the point M moving parallel to
R it will describe a line equal and parallel to that de¬
scribed by R, namely, to R1.
Let PM =/, and the angle KPM, which PM makes
with a perpendicular to the axis, = d, and the indefinitely
small angle BCO = dtp. Then Mm =fdd, RT = CR X
=zf cos. d . dp, and B, the base of the slender pyramid de¬
scribed by the triangle MPm, =dp.dd cos. 0 .f2; where¬
fore the direct attraction of the pyramid on a particle at
ATTRACTION.
181
=.k?e2, then the element of the attractive force will be-Attraction,
come, by substitution,
2h!‘2k , z^dz 2h!2k.dp f edz 1
\ T=^-edz) ;
k? ;^r’\-~e2z2 We?
whence, by proceeding as before, we get the measure of
the attractive force of the oblong spheroid on a particle
placed at the pole equal to
^ 3M ri , . 1 +e \
1 ' W?' 12 hyp- lo«- — ‘ j '
Cor. In an oblate spheroid differing little from a sphere,
e2 will be a very small fraction, of which we may reject
the higher powers. When this is done, the preceding
expression of the polar attraction, viz.
4w.M'2 . .
. (e — arc. tan. e),
We?
will be = 4dfc. (1 + e2). — £ e2) =
4cr£
“IT
0
+14
And, if # = & + r = £ Vl + e2 be the radius of the equa-
P=l(22) — dp.dd cos. 6 .f and the elementary attrac- tor, then 2 ^ = e2, so that the attraction at the pole will be
7
tion of the spheroid in the direction PC = direct attrac-
PS
tion of the pyramid X = dp. d 6 cos. 0 sin. 6./.
Again, let MR = *, CR = g, PC = k, AC = h!; then
y = /cos. 0,x=zk —/ sin, 6: if we substitute these values
in the equation of the solid (Def. 1) we get
(k—f sin. d)2 /2 cos. 2 d . ,
V - + —TF2  = X > whence
4vk
~3~
•(1+!-I>
k*
/=
2m
sin. Q
cos.2 ^ sin-2 ^
By substituting the value of/ just found in the preced¬
ing expression of the elementary attraction of the spheroid,
it will become
2 m , dd cos. 0. sin.2 0
-.d p. 
k2
m
cos.2 ^ sin-2 &
which must be integrated from p zzQ to p — 2?r, and from
0 = 0 to 0 = -r denoting always the half-circumference
when radius is unit.
In an oblate spheroid, k is less than h! \ put k'2 — k2
= A2. e2, and z = sin. 6; then the element of the attractive
force will become, by substitution,
2h!2k j z‘2dz _2h!‘2k.dp f 7 edz
~W~-d<P • l + e2*2 “ h!2& 't T+7^
and by integrating from z = 0 to z = 1, we get
2li!‘2k. dp
k2.<?
. [e — arc. tan.e]
for the force with which the matter between the planes
PBQ and POQ urges the particle P to the centre. Where¬
fore the whole attractive force of the spheroid upon a par¬
ticle at P is = •
4 nr. k'^k r . ,
. [e — arc. tan. ej.
24. To investigate the attraction of a homogeneous sphe¬
roid of revolution on a particle placed in the circumference
of the circular section made hy a plane through the centre,
at right angles to the axis of revolution.
Let P (Plate CII. fig. id) be the pole, PC the axis of
revolution, A a point in the circular section AOB, made
by a plane through the centre perpendicular to PC. Let
M be any point in the surface of the spheroid, AMO a
section through A and M by a plane perpendicular to
to AOB, Am a line in that plane indefinitely near AM,
and Mm perpendicular to Am, MR perpendicular to AO,
and RS to AB. Conceive the plane AMO to revolve
about A, so as to describe an indefinitely small angle
OAQ; then the triangle AMm will describe a slender py¬
ramid, having its vertex at A, and of which the base is
equal to a rectangle contained by Mm and RT; for the
point M moving parallel to the point R, it will describe a
line equal to that described by R, namely, to RT.
Let AM —f the angle MAR = 6, and the angle OAQ
—dp-, then Mm — fdd, and TR = AR X dp =/cos. d .dp.
Wherefore B = base of the pyramid described by MAm
= dp.dO cos. 6 .f2, and the direct attraction of the pyramid
g
in the direction AM = —r (22) = dp .dd cos. d .f. Where¬
fore the elementary attraction of the spheroid in the direc-
• j AR AS
tion AC — direct attraction of the pyramid X X
= dp cos. p. dd cos.2 d .f.
Again, let MR = *, RS = y, CS = z, CP = k, and AC
= k'; then (Def- 1)
x2 . y2 + z2 _ ,
k2 ^ k'2
But x =/ sin. d, y — AR. sin. p =/cos. d sin. p, and
z — h!—/cos. d cos. p; wherefore, by substitution, we get
■/COS. d COS. p)2 __ J
And because
k?e3
47r. k'(2k
f2 sin.2 d A f2 cos.2 d sin.2 p , (h'
h2 “ + W
h!2
= mass of the spheroid = M, we
From this equation we get
get the measure of the attraction of the oblate spheroid
upon a particle placed at the pole equal to
f=2h!
cos. d cos. p
• I '
cos.2 d -p sin-2 d
, 3M r
■ arc. tan. e~\.
In an oblong spheroid, k is greater than h!; put k2—h!2
Let this value of/ be substituted in the expression of
the elementary attraction of the spheroid before found,
and it will become
182
Attraction.
ATTRACTION.
2# . d<p cos.2 p .
d& cos.3 &
cos.2 6 + -j-z ^in.2 6
hr
which expression, when integrated fVom p = 0 to p = cr,
and from ^ = 0 to ^ will give the attraction of half
the spheroid: and the double of it, viz.
.,. , „ dO cos.3 0
M'. dp cos.2 p .   —  ,
COS.2 0 + '£2 si11*2 ^
being integrated between the same limits, will give the
whole attraction of the spheroid.
In the oblate spheroid, k is less than kr: Let k12 — k2
= k?#, and z = sin. 0; and, by substitution, the element
of the attractive force will become
, „ dz(l — z2)
i dtp cos.2 p . y 7 —
W
I + e?z2
1 + e2 f edz
4>k'. dp . cos.2 p . -f- . ^ j
edz
c-5' (. 1 + e2?2 1 + e2J
And by integrating from z = 0 to z =1, we get
W . dp cos. p . —^ - . | arc. tan. e — —^ ;
for the force with which the matter between the sections
that contain the angle OAQ attracts the particle A to
the centre. But J^dp cos.2 p =fdi • (l + cos. 2p)
= 1 s^n> va^ue of which, between the limits
p = 0, and p = t, is = -: wherefore the attraction of the
spheroid on a particle at A is equal to
{arc-‘a"-
2<rr . k'
1 + e2
e3
Because
. k'2k __ 4cr, k3 . (1 + e2)
~ M; we get
2* . (1 + e2) =
3 M
2k3 :
wherefore the measure of the at¬
tractive force of the oblate spheroid on a particle placed
anywhere in the circumference of the circular section
made by a plane through the centre at right angles to
the axis, is equal to
t 3 M f e )
A*2krr? • larc-tan-e-rTPj *
 1° the oblong spheroid, k is greater than k'; put k2 A'2
— k2 .e2, then the element of the attractive force will
become, by substitution,
4# . dp cos.2 p . - 4# . dp cos.2 p . —~ f.
edz
1 — e2
edz 1
1 — eVi ’
whence, by proceeding as before, we get the measure of
the attractive force of the oblong spheroid upon a particle
placed anywhere in the circumference of the circular sec¬
tion made by a plane through the centre at right angles
to the axis, equal to & s
t * 3 M
• {rrh ~ s 'w- los- t4“} •
* 2A3 • g3 _ _ _ x
Cor. In an oblate spheroid, differing little from a'sphere,
the higher powers of e2 may be neglected. The expres¬
sion ot the attractive force at the equator, viz.
2‘k .k', —i— . J arc# tan> e —. —f— 1
l 1 + e2/ ’
will then become
2,.*.(1+e*) (!_!<,)=«
And if k', the radius of the equator, = A + r; then ~ ^
k
(23, Cor.')-, and the attraction at the equator will be equal to
25. An oblate spheroid of revolution being given, it is
required to find the measures of the attractive forces that urge
a particle placed anywhere in the surface, in a direction per¬
pendicular to the axis, and in a direction parallel to it.
Let k and k’ be the semiaxes of the ellipse, by the re¬
volution of which the spheroid is described, k being the
axis about which it revolves; and let b be the perpen¬
dicular distance of the particle from the axis, and a its
distance from the plane, drawn through the centre at
right angles to the axis: then, from what was proved
in (20) and (21), the attractions sought will be found by
multiplying the attractions at the pole, and at the circular
section equally distant from both poles, by t and —.
k h'
Thus we get the attraction in the direction of a equal to
3 M _
a * It—e3 ’ ^ — arC’ tan* e-l’
and the attraction in the direction of 5 equal to
; v 3M f el
4 x ' iarc' tan‘e ~T+"^J •
The same formulae likewise serve for finding the attrac¬
tions upon a particle placed anywhere within the spheroid.
I oi the atti action upon a particle within the spheroid is
equal to the attraction of a similar concentric spheroid,
which contains the particle in its surface (9); and it is
evident that the co-efficients which multiply a and b in
the above expressions depend only upon the proportion
of k and k', and they are therefore the same for all simi¬
lar spheroids.
If we denote by A and B the co-efficients of a and b
in the expressions of the attractive force found above, the
whole attraction of the spheroid, which is compounded of
the forces a . A and b . B, will be = VdiAA + 6.2B2.
And if T denote the angle which the direction of this
force makes with a, or with the-axis of the spheroid; then
tan. Y =
a . A
Cor. In the very same manner we may determine the at¬
tractions of an oblong spheroid of revolution, upon a point
in the surface, or within the solid.
26 If h, h', h!, the semiaxes of a homogeneous ellipsoid,
be related to h, h!, h", those of another ellipsoid of the same
matter, so that k'2 — k2 — h!2 — h2 and k"2 k2 — h"2 — h2,
the attractions perpendicular to the planes of the principal
sections, which the first ellipsoid (Plate CII. fig. 17) exerts
upon a point determined by the co-ordinates h sin. m, h' cos. ni
sin. n, h" cos. m cos. n, respectively parallel to k, k', k", will be to
the attractions which the second ellipsoid exerts upon a point
determined by the co-ordinates k sin. m, h! cos. m sin. n,
k" cos. m cos. n, respectively parallel to h, h', h”, in the direct
proportion of the areas of the principal sections to ivhich the
attractions are perpendicular.
This proposition is an extension to all elliptical spheroids
°t what was proved of the sphere in (13). It is here enun-
ciated of the ellipsoid, because the demonstration is not
moie difficult for that solid than for spheroids of revolution.
-Rr' an e^ips°id, the semiaxes of which are
., ’ ~ and AC = A"; and abdm another ellip-
soid, ot which the semiaxes are be -h,ec- h', and ac
— v those quantities being so related that h'2 — W-lfi
~ hl and ^ -.f = h"2 - h2. Also, let G be a point
about the elhpsoid ABDM, so determined that GH, pa¬
rallel to BC, - h sin. m; HK, parallel to CE, = h' cos. m
ATTRACTION.
gin. n; and CK = h" cos. m cos. n ; and let ^ be a point
about the ellipsoid abdm, so determined that gh, parallel
to be, — k sin. m ; hk, parallel to ce, == h! cos. m sin. n ;
and ck — k" cos. m Cos. n. Then the force with which the
ellipsoid ABDM attracts a particle placed at G in the direc¬
tion GH, will be to the force with which the ellipsoid abdm
attracts a particle placed at g in the direction gh, as the
area of the section AEDM to the area of the section aedm,
or as k' k" to ti h".
Let RP = ^ sin. 6; PO = A' cos. d sin. <p; and CO
=: h!> cos. & cos. <p; which suppositions are allowable, be¬
cause they satisfy the equation of the ellipsoid (Def. 1),
whatever be the angles Q and 9. Draw CPM through
the centre, and CN indefinitely near it; then CP =
cos. & \/kt2 sin.2 <p + k"2 cos.2 f ; and when cos. 0=1,
CM = Vh'2 sin.2 <p + k"2 cos.2 <p ; wherefore = cos. 0.
PO k'
Let the angle DCM = Y; then tan. Y = —— = -r^tan. <p;
vJ ti'
183
and, by taking the fluxions,
rfY
cos.2 Y
k"
1
— 1 _L * 9 ^'2 sin-2 9 + ^"2COS.2 0
= 1 + tan.2 Y = Hr- L —.
h"- end.2 m
dtp
cos.2 <p ’
CM2
but
cos.2 Y ' h"2 cos.2 <p k”2 cos.2 <p
wherefore dy . CM2 = twice the sector MCN = k'k" . dp.
And, in like manner, in the other ellipsoid,\frp=h sin. 0 ;
po = h! cos. 0 sin. p • and co = h" cos. 0 cos. p: then ^
cm
=. cos. 0, and twice the sector men = h' h" dp.
It is plain, from what has been shown, that, when 0 va¬
ries and p remains constant in the expressions of the co¬
ordinates, the points P and p wdll move along CM and cm,
so that, in every position, ~ = SI. Let Q and q be in-
ivt U me 2
definitely near P and pand through P and Q draw lines
parallel to MN, and through p and q draw lines parallel to
mi. Let S denote the quadrilateral contained between the
parallels drawn through P and Q, and S' that contained
Q
between the lines drawn through o and a: Then  ——
* MCN
_ QC2 — PC2 , S' qJ — pd2 , „
~ ~MC2—’ and MCN = ; wherefore’ since
PC _ pc , QC qc . . , S MCN
ivfp — and ivFn — —5 it is manifest that -k- =  
ML me ML me S' men
__ h! k"
~ h' //
Upon the quadrilaterals S and S' let upright prisms RS
and rs be erected, and be prolonged to meet the surfaces
of the spheroids ; join GR, GS, gr, gs. Then,
GR2=(/< sin. m—A sin.0)2 + (Ji' cos. msxn.n—h! cos. 0 sin.p)2.
+ (/t" cos. m cos. n — h!' cos. 0 cos. p)2;
gi^zz^k sin. m—h sin.0)2 + (A'cos.wsin.w—//cos. 0 sin.^j)2.
+ (kv cos. m cos. n — h" cos. 0 cos. p)* ;
And, by expanding these expressions, we get
GR2 = [(Zt2 + (A'2 — A2) cos.2 m sin.2 n +
(A"2 -— A2) cos.2 m cos.2 n)
‘— cos.2 0 sin.2 p (A"2 — A2) cos.2 0 cos.2 p)
2 (Jik sin. m sin. 0 + A' A' cos. m cos. 0 sin. n sin. p
+ A" A" cos. m cos. 0 cos. n cos. © )] ;
and gr2 = [(A2 + (A'2 — A2) cos.2 m sin.2 n +
, (A"2 — A2) cos.2 m cos.2 n)
*" 2.—cos*!2 ^ sin.2 p + (A"2 —A2) cos.2 0cos.2 p')
— 2 (hk sin. m sin. 0 + A' A" cos. m cos. 0 sin. n sin. p
+ A" A" cos. m cos. 0 cos. n cos. p)].
these expressions are equal, because A'2 — A2 =A'2 — A2,
and A" A2 = A"2 — A2 ; wherefore RG = rg =f. And,
ln llke manner, it is shown, that GS =gs= /'.
Now, the attraction of the prism RS urging a particle Attraction,
at G in the direction GH, is equal to S X  (10);
and the attraction of the prism rs urging a particle at q
f 1 1 1 ° 1 ^
m the direction gh, is = S'X | -— j : wherefore these
attractions are to one another as S to S', or as A' A" to A' A".
Phe same thing may be proved of all the elementary
prisms that make up the two portions of the ellipsoids
contained between the planes BCM, BCN, and bem, ben ;
wherefore those portions attract particles placed at G and
g, with forces proportional to A' A" and A' A". But the two
ellipsoids may be divided into an equal number of such por¬
tions; wherefore the ellipsoids attract particles placed at
G and g, in the directions GH and^A, with forces propor¬
tional to A' A" and A'A", or to the sections AMDE and amde.
Cor. 1. This proposition is true when the law of attrac¬
tion is expressed by any function of the distance. The
demonstration is the same as in the corollary of (13).
Cor. 2. If the two ellipsoids be so placed that their
centres, and the planes of their principal sections, shall
coincide, the surface of the one will be entirely within
the other. Also the point which one ellipsoid attracts
will be in the surface of the other, as is plain from the
expressions of the co-ordinates. And hence the attraction
of one ellipsoid upon a point without the surface is made
to depend upon the attraction of another ellipsoid upon a
point within the surface.
Cor. 3. When the ellipsoids become spheroids of revo¬
lution, the two principal sections through the axis of re¬
volution become equal, and will be represented by any
two sections whatever passing through the axis at right
angles to one another. But, in this case, the attractions
of the spheroids on the points may be reduced to two,
one acting perpendicular to the axis, and one parallel to
it; and it is plain that these attractions will be to one
another as the areas of the sections perpendicular to their
directions.
27. Co find the attraction of an oblate spheroid upon a
particle placed without the surface.
Let A' be the radius of the equator, and A the axis of
revolution ; and let a be the perpendicular distance of the
point without the spheroid from the plane of the equator,
and A its distance from the axis. In the first place, it is
necessary to determine the semiaxis of another oblate
spheroid that shall contain the given point in its surface,
and such, that it shall have the same centre, and its equa¬
tor in the same plane, as the given spheroid ; and like¬
wise the difference of the squares of its semiaxes equal
to the difference of the squares of the semiaxes of the
given spheroid. Let A' denote the radius of the equator,
and A the semiaxis of the required spheroid; then, be¬
cause the attracted point is to be in the surface of the
A2
solid, we have -7^ 4-
h2 ‘
A'2
= 1; and, because
A'2
A2 = A'2 — A2 we get
A2
A2 +
A2— f
Whence,
2 A2 z= «2 + A2 — t2 + V(a2 A2 — s2)2 -}- 4a212; and
when A is determined, then A' = VA2 s2.
a2 A2
In consequence of the equation -^5 + = 1> we may
suppose a =z h sin. m, and A = A' cos. m ; let a! ■=. k sin. m,
A A'
and A' = A' cos. m ; or a! = T a, and U — X b: then
n n
the point determined by the co-ordinates a' and A' will
be in the surface of the given spheroid, and consequently
184
ATTRACTION.
Attraction, it will be within the surface of the other spheroid. Let
'M' denote the mass of the spheroid of which the axis is
£>2 7,2 i>2 7,2
h; and let (P = —^— : then (25) the attrac¬
tions of this spheroid upon the point within its surface,
determined by the co-ordinates a and b, are these, viz.
That perpendicular to the equator, equal to
3M'
a! X
h?e'5
. — arc. tan. e'] ;
and that perpendicular to the axis, equal to
7, 3M' f A ^ e' )
b x w^-|arc-tan^-nr?)
1 + e'2
But (26, Cor. 3) the attractions of the given spheroid,
whose semiaxes are k and k', upon the point without its
surface determined by the co-ordinates a and b, will be
found by multiplying the preceding expressions respec-
7/2 7,//
tively by -p- and jjr Let M be the mass of the given
M Ifik h? M
spheroid; then ^ ^; consequently =
h'2 ~ M'
M « , kb! M A' M A . r ,
Wa'’wim=W'-Ti = WV: wherefore the attrac-
tions of the given oblate spheroid upon a point without
the surface determined by the co-ordinates a and b, are
as follows, viz.
The attraction perpendicular to the equator, equal to
a x ^ ~ arc‘tan< ;
and that perpendicular to the axis, equal to
arc. tan. d — ——^.
, 3M f
^ ^ e'3
2A? e'3 " 1 + e'2
Cor. In the very same manner we may determine the
attractions of an oblong spheroid of revolution upon a
point without the surface.
ATTRACTIONS OF ELLIPSOIDS.
Attrac- 28. Let AMBNbe one of the'principal sections of an ellip-
tions of sold, C the centre, AB and MN the axes, JD a point in theperi-
ellipsoids. pfayy qf the section, and DO perpendicular to MN (Plate
CII. fig. 18) ; the attraction of the ellipsoid upon a particle
placed at the pole A is_ to the force with which a particle
placed at D is attracted in the direction DO, as AC to DO.
Draw DFG perpendicular to AB, and through F de¬
scribe an ellipsoid similar to the given ellipsoid, and simi¬
larly situated, and having the same centre. Conceive an
indefinitely great number of planes, making indefinitely
small angles with one another, to be drawn through DG,
so as to divide the two ellipsoids into an indefinitely great
number of thin solids or slices; then the sections of the
ellipsoids made by every one of the planes will be similar
and concentric ellipses, each of them having an axis per¬
pendicular to DG (5). Wherefore the attractions of the
elements of the ellipsoid FHKL, upon a particle at F, are
respectively equal to the attractions of the elements of
the ellipsoid AMBN, upon a particle at D in the direction
DO (19). Wherefore the whole attraction of the ellip¬
soid FHKL, upon a particle at F, is equal to the attrac¬
tion of the ellipsoid AMBN, upon a particle at D, in the
direction DO. But the attractions of the ellipsoids
AMBN and FHKL, upon particles at A and F, are to
one another as AC to CF (8). Wherefore the attraction
of the ellipsoid AMBN, upon a particle at the pole A, is
to the force with which it attracts a particle at D in the
direction DO, as AC to DO.
29. The attractions of ellipsoids upon particles placed in
the surface, urging them in directions perpendicular to awyAttra
of the principal sections, are proportional to the distances of^,
the particles from that section.
Let AMBN be one of the principal sections of an ellip¬
soid, C the centre, AB and MN the axes of the section, and
P a point in the surface of the solid : the attraction of the
ellipsoid upon a particle at the pole A (Plate CII. fig. 19) is
to the force with which a particle at P is attracted in a
direction parallel to AB, as the semiaxis AC is to the dis¬
tance of P from the principal section perpendicular to AC.
Draw PDQ perpendicular to the section AMBN, and
let it meet the surface again in Q; through D describe
an ellipsoid similar to AMBN, similarly situated, and hav¬
ing the same centre ; and through P draw a section SPRQ
perpendicular to AB. As before, divide the solids into an
indefinitely great number of thin slices, by planes drawn
through PQ: the sections made by every one of those
planes will be similar, and concentric ellipses having an
axis of each perpendicular to PQ (5). Wherefore the
attractions of the elements of the ellipsoid AMBN, upon
a particle at P, in a direction perpendicular to the plane
PRQS, are respectively equal to the attractions of the
elements of the ellipsoid FHKL upon a particle at D, in
a direction perpendicular to the same plane (19). Where¬
fore the attraction of the ellipsoid AMBN, upon a par¬
ticle at P, in a direction parallel to the axis AB, is equal
to the attraction of the ellipsoid FHKL upon a particle
at D in the same direction. But the ellipsoids AMBN and
FHKL being similar, their attractions upon particles at A
and F are to one another as AC to CF (8); and the at¬
traction of the ellipsoid FHKL, upon a particle at the
pole F, is to its attraction upon a particle at D, in a di¬
rection parallel to AC, as FC to CN (28). Wherefore
{ex cequali) the attraction of the ellipsoid AMBN, upon
a particle at the pole A, is to the force with which it at¬
tracts a particle at P, in the direction AC, as AC to CN.
This proposition will enable us to find the attractions of
an ellipsoid on all points on the surface, or within the so¬
lid, when the attractions at the poles are determined.
30. To investigate the differential expressions of the at¬
tractions at the poles of an ellipsoid.
Let APD be an ellipsoid; C the centre; AC, CE, and
PC, the semiaxes; and PMB a section made by a plane
through PC and any point M in the surface: draw PM
(fig. 20) Pm indefinitely near PM, and Mm perpendicular
to Pm; also MR perpendicular to the plane ADB, MS
perpendicular to PC, and RH perpendicular to AD. Con¬
ceive the plane PCB to revolve about PC, so as to de¬
scribe an indefinitely small angle BCO ; and let PM =/;
the angle KPM which PM makes with a perpendicular
to the axis = d; and the angle DCB = <p: then, by pro¬
ceeding as in (23), it will be found that the attraction of
the small pyramid described by the triangle MPm, urging
a particle at P to the centre of the ellipsoid, is =d<p . dll
cos. 0 sin. d ,f.
Again, let MR = x, HR = y, CH =z; also let PC = h,
AC — h!, CE then x — h—f sin. d; y —f cos. dsin.jp;
z — f cos. d cos. <p; and if we substitute these values in
the equation of the ellipsoid (Def. 2), we shall get
(h—/ sin. d)2 t f‘2 cos.2 d sin.2 <p , f‘2 cos.2 dcos.2ip__1
k‘2 W + F2
whence
  k
~Y2
2 sin. d
sm.^
+
cos.2 d sin.2 <p , cos.2 d cos.2 <p
_ q- - —
hr2
This is the value of f at the pole of h ; and, by a like
procedure, its values at the poles of U and Id may be
found, viz.
ATTRACTION.
185
on.
r. _ k'  2 sin, Q 
J ~ A'2 sin.2 6 , cos.2 6 sin.2 <p t cos.2 6 cos.2 cp
H rr> h
A' = 4 ttk
k'‘2
k"‘2
k2
n   2 sin. 6 
J ~~ sin.2 6 A cos.2 ^ sin.2 <p , cos.2 ^ cos.2 <p
~Wr Y2 + Y2
Suppose that k is the least of the semiaxes; and let
K2 . k2
■L
vi . a? dx
Attraction.
V [ 1 + (»i — 1) . \_n + (rn — n) a?2]
n . x? dx
b* ft* .
#2 = —, and k"2 = — ; then the values of f at the poles ting x —
m n a r
of h My Y, will be respectively   ?
jr. __ 2 k sin. 6
J sin.2 0 + m cos.2 6 sin.2 <p n cos.2 6 cos.2 p
n 2 k! sin. 6 X m
/=
A" = 4 *]<!’ .    
V [1 + (w — 1) a2] . [m + (n — rn) a^]
These expressions have the inconvenience of contain¬
ing different factors in the denominators; but they may
be reduced to others having the same factors, by put-
in the second, and x —
V m + (1 — m) r2
m sin.2 6 + cos.2 6 sin.2 p + w cos.2 6 cos.2 <p
n _    2 k" sin. 6 X n
J n sin.2 b + cos.2 & sin.2 <p vi cos.2 6 cos.2 <p
Now let A, A', A", denote the attractions of the sphe¬
roid upon particles placed at the poles of k, k', k"; then,
by substituting the values of/just found in the foregoing
differential expression, we get
A — k X CC 2 d (p.d 6 cos. 6 sin.2 6
sin.2 6 m cos.2 0 sin.2 <p n cos.2 6 cos.2 <p
A> — k! x ff m ^ ^ V ' d ^ cos* ^ s^n-2 ^ 
m sin.2 6 -j- cos.2 6 sin.2 p n cos.2 6 cos.2 <p>
A" — k" x ff n X 2d p . d 6 cos. 6 sin.2 6 
n sin.2 0 -j- cos.2 0 sin.2 p m cos.2 6 cos.2
the limits of the integrals being from 0 = 0 and p = 0
*7*
to 0 = — and p — 2 it.
31. To reduce the expressions of the polar attractions to
the most simple integrals.
Let us consider the general expression
r r d p . d 6 cos. 6 sin.2 0
J J a sin.2 0 _j_ cos.2 0 sin.2 p y cos.2 0 cos.2 p'
which includes all the formulas found in (30). Let
p — a sin.2 0 _|_ /3 . cos.2 0, and q — a sin.2 0 -f- 7 cos.2 0;
then the above expression will become
'dp. d 0 cos. 0 sin.2 0
V w + (1 — n) r2
A — ^rrk . f-
J \
in the third; we thus get
x* dx
V \_m + (1 — m) xP~\ * [« + (1 — n) a^3
A' = i*k-r-
J f:
[m + (1
A" =
= 4fr/i" . P
J \
Now let
1 — m k!2
■ m) r2] 2 . [w -f- (1
n . r2 dr
• n) r2] 2
\n + (1 _ «)r2]f . [m + (1 ■
Y . „ , 1—n k"2—k2
= A2, and
m U2 n k2
Also let the mass of the ellipsoid = M =
= A'3:
kvkk' k’
  4 irk3
3 Vmn
tion, we get
, 3 M 4‘r i ^ , , •
then —rs— = —  : wherefore, by substitu-
Vmn
k3
. , 3 M r»
x? dx
A! = k!
A" = Y •
V (1 + A2^) • (1 + X2x?)
3 M x2dx
Y J ^ + x3^]f • [1 + A'2
3 M x?dx
k3 J p + . [1 + A'2*2]!’
ff
p sin.
Suppose .
p q cos.2 p
sin. p sin. u
cos. p
\p J cos. p cos
expression will become, by substitution,
du .d 0 cos. 0 sin.2 0
; then the preceding
the integrations extending from a: = 0 to a; = 1.
These integrals cannot be expressed in finite terms.
When A and A', or the eccentricities of the ellipsoid, are
small, the values of the integrals may easily be found to a
sufficient degree of exactness by series. They may like¬
wise be all expressed by means of this fluent, viz.
■pp _ ~ dx  
~JY (1 + A2 a?) • (1 + A* x2j
(from a; = 0 to a:
ff-
V p.q
the limits of u being from 0 to 2ic •, wherefore, by inte¬
grating with regard to u, and restoring the values of and
q, the integral becomes
2 -y./L c? 0 . cos. 0 sin.2 0 
JY (a sin.2~0 + /3 cos.2 0) . (a sin.2 0 + 7 cos.2 0)
and, by putting x ~ sin. 0, the integral, which is to be
taken from 0 = 0 to 0 = |, or from a? = 0 to a; = 1, will
become
“1) and its partial fluxions. Thus we have, in general,
P of dx
J\/ ^
  + i.
^(1 + A2a^) * (1 + A^a^) ^
V(1 + A2 a?2) • (1 + A'2 xf)
x? , 1 {dY\ 1
*;J+V
Wherefore, making a; = l, we get
A =k™- f 1
& \Y (1 + A2) * (1 + A'2)
+HS)^-(D}
x2 dx
A! = k' *
A" = k" .
YW+ (a~ (3) a?2] . [7 (a _ y)
If now we take a, (3, 7, so as to make the assumed ex¬
pression coincide with the quantities A, A', A", respec¬
tively, we shall get > > > r
A =4> irk . f x2 dx
Y [w + (1 — m) xf] , [n + (1 — n) x2]
3 M
k3
3 M
k3
1
A
l_
X'
fdl
\.dXj
fdl
idX'J
VOL. IV.
32. To find the forces with which a homogeneous ellipsoid
attracts a particle placed in the surface, or within the solid,
in directions perpendicular to the principal sections.
Let k, k', k”, denote the semiaxes of an ellipsoid, and
a, h, c (respectively parallel to k, k!, k") the perpendicu¬
lar distances of a particle placed in the surface, or within
2 a
186
ATTRACTION.
Attraction, the solid, from the principal sections: then, from what is
proved in (29), the attractions we are seeking will be
found by multiplying the polar attractions by -^7.
Wherefore the forces that urge the particle in the direc-
3 M
tions of «, b, and c, are respectively a X
{
V (l + x2). (l + x'2)
b X
and c X
3 M
F
3 M
k3
, ■ , r
J ' \dX'J j
x \^x/
1_ /dF\
x' ’ V/X7'
Which formulas serve both for points in the surface and
within the solid, for the reason already explained in (25).
33. To find the attractions of an ellipsoid upon a particle
placed without the surface.
Let h, h!, h!', be the semiaxes of the ellipsoid, and a, b, c
(respectively parallel to h, k', k") the co-ordinates of a
particle without the surface. Let h, h', h", so related to
k, k', F, that h!2 — h2 = k'2 — k2 and h"2 — h2 = k"2 — k2,
denote the semiaxes of another ellipsoid, which contains the
attracted point in its surface, and has its principal sections
in the same planes as the given ellipsoid: then, because
the attracted point is in the surface, we have (Def. 2)
k2 ^ h'2 T A"2 ~ ’
and, because A'2 — A2 = A'2 — A2 = s2, and A"2 — A2 = A"2
A2 =
we get
y2
+
a*
F
A2
c2
A2 + s2 A2 -J- i'*
This equation now contains only one unknown quantity;
and it is plain that one value of A, and only one, can be
found from it. For, when A = 0, the function on the left
hand side is infinitely great; and while A increases from 0
ad infinitum, the same function decreases continually from
being infinitely great to be infinitely little. When A is
found, then A' = VA2 + i2, and A"
VA2 + t'2. Because
a, b, c, are the co-ordinates of a point in the surface of the
ellipsoid, we may suppose a — h sin. m, b — A' cos. m
sin. w, c — h" cos. m cos. n; let a'= A sin. m, bt — h!cos.m
sin. n, d — A" cos. m cos. n; or
_ A ., _ A'
-h*a>i=i/
X b, d — ~ X c; then a!, b', d, will be the co-ordi¬
nates of a point in the surface of the given ellipsoid, and
consequently it will be within the other solid. Let M'
denote the mass of the ellipsoid of which A, A', A", are the
fp /p jp jp
semiaxes ; also let X2 = ——; and X'2 =
A2
A2
A"2-
A"2 — A2
then, F denoting the same fluent as
A2 A2
before, the attractions of this ellipsoid upon the point
within it, determined by the co-ordinates a', b’, d, in the
directions of those co-ordinates, are (32) respectively
equal to
3M'f f
43 1V O -F x2) (i + x'2)
•(Dx
3M'
X
+
X \dxj
-4
b' X
A3
X
o' -h
3M'
A3 X
> I f >
1
X ’
X'
\dx)’
and
Now, the attractions of the given ellipsoid upon the^ttrac
point without the surface, determined by the co-ordinates V—y
a, b, c, will be found (26) by multiplying the preceding
Jfjl
expressions respectively by Let M be
M A A' A"
the mass of the given ellipsoid; then — = ^ ^ ;
conse-
, A'A" MAM
quently ^ ^ w ' k~ w
hit" M
A A" "" M' X A'; and
A h!
A A'
M e
M d
wherefore the attractions of the given
ellipsoid upon the point without the surface, determined
by a, b, c, in the directions of those co-ordinates, are re-
3M
spectively equal to a X X
I
^(1 + x2)(l + X'2) 1 X \dxj
1 /7F\ 1 A
+ "(^1 + F • li
D}>
, 3M 1
6><-F X X
fdF
\dX
)■
and
c X
3 M
,, Jl . (dl\
A3 X' \dX’J
The preceding propositions contain a complete theory
of homogeneous elliptical spheroids. They enable us to
compute the attractive force with which a solid of this
kind urges a particle placed anywhere in the surface,
within tlie solid, or without it. It remains, indeed, to find
the exact value of the function F in its general form, to
which we can do no more than approximate by series;
but this is an analytical difficulty which it is impossible to
overcome, because the nature of this function is such that
it cannot be expressed in finite terms by the received nota¬
tion of analysis.
In the preceding investigations we have followed the
method of Maclaurin for points situated in the surface of
a spheroid or within the solid. This method has always
been justly admired; but neither its inventor, nor, as far
as we know, any other geometer, has applied it, excepting
to spheroids of revolution; and it is here, for the first
time, extended to ellipsoids. In regard to points without
the surface, we have employed the method first given by
Mr Ivory, in the Philosophical Transactions for 1809.
The combination of these two methods has enabled us to
derive the attractions of an ellipsoid on a point placed
anywhere from the attractions at the poles. Thus, this
extremely complicated problem has, by geometrical rea¬
soning of no great difficulty, been reduced to the investi¬
gation of the polar attractions, which are the only cases
that require a direct computation.
34. Of the attractions of spheroids composed of elliptical
shells that vary in their densities and figures according to
any law.
When a spheroid is composed of concentric elliptical
shells of variable density and figure, we may consider
every shell as the difference of two homogeneous sphe¬
roids of the same density with the shells, and having
their surfaces coinciding with the surfaces of the shell.
The attractions of the spheroids being computed by the
preceding methods, their difference will be equal to the
attractions of the shell, and the integral obtained by sum¬
ming the attractions of all the shells will give the attrac¬
tions of the heterogeneous spheroid. This case, therefore,
gives rise to no new difficulties, except such as are purely
mathematical, and depend upon the law according to
which the densities and figures of the shells are supposed
to vary. (k. k.)
A T TV
A T W 187
twoc
'TT
Attraction of Mountains. See Mountains.
ATTRIBUTE, in a general sense, is that which m$y be
predicated of a person or thing as a determining charac¬
teristic, inherent quality or accident, the negation of which
involves either a falsehood, a contradiction, or an absurdi¬
ty. Thus understanding is an attribute of mind, and ex¬
tension an attribute of matter. That attribute which the
mind conceives as the foundation of all the rest is called
its essential attribute ; thus extension is by some, and solidi¬
ty by others, considered the essential attribute of matter.
ATTRIBUTES, in Theology, the several qualities or
perfections of the divine nature.
Attributes, in Logic, are the predicates of any sub¬
ject, or what may be affirmed or denied of any thing.
ATTRIBUTIVES, in Grammar, are words which are
significative of attributes; and thus include adjectives,
verbs, and particles, which are attributes of substances,
together with adverbs, which denote the attributes only
of attributes. Mr Harris, who introduced this distribution
of words, denominates the former attributives of the first
order, and the latter attributives of the second order.
ATTRUCK, a river of Persia, which has its rise in a
branch of the Elburz Mountains that borders on the north¬
ern deserts of Khorassan. It collects the streams of an
extensive valley, and of several subordinate glens, and con¬
veys in a westerly direction to the desert a large body of
water, which being joined by several other streams, falls
into the Caspian Sea at Kooroo-Soofee, 40 or 50 miles
to the north of Asterabad.
ATTU, or Attoo, one of the Aleutian Islands, about
60 miles in length, mountainous, and covered with snow,
but inhabited. It is 215 miles east of Behring’s Island.
Long. 172. E. Lat. 54. N.
ATWOOD, George, an author celebrated for the ac¬
curacy of his mathematical and mechanical investigations,
and considered particularly happy in the clearness of his
explanations, and the elegance of his experimental il¬
lustrations, was born in the early part of the year 1746.
He was educated at Westminster school, where he was
admitted in 1759. Six years afterwards he was elected
off to Trinity College, Cambridge. He took his degree
of bachelor of arts in 1769, with the rank of third wrang¬
ler ; Dr Parkinson of Christ’s College being senior of the
year. This distinction was amply sufficient to give him a
claim to further advancement in his own college, on the list
of which he stood the foremost of his contemporaries; and
in due time he obtained a fellowship, and was afterwards
one of the tutors of the college. He became master of
arts in 1772, and in 1776 was elected a fellow of the
Royal Society of London.
The higher branches of the mathematics had, at this
period, been making some important advances at Cam¬
bridge, under the auspices of Dr Waring, and many of the
younger members of the university became diligent la¬
bourers in this extensive field. Mr Atwood chose for his
peculiar department the illustration of mechanical and ex¬
perimental philosophy, by elementary investigations and
ocular demonstrations of their fundamental truths. He
delivered, for several successive years, a course of lectures
in the observatory of Trinity College, which were very
generally attended and greatly admired. In the year
1784 some circumstances occurred which made it desir¬
able for him to discontinue his residence at Cambridge ;
and soon afterwards Mr Pitt, who had become acquainted
with his merits by attending his lectures, bestowed on him
a patent office, which required but little of his attendance,
in order to have a claim on the employment of his mathema¬
tical abilities in a variety of financial calculations, to which
he continued to devote a considerable portion of his time
and attention throughout the remainder of his life.
The following, we believe, is a correct list of Mr At- Atwood,
wood’s publications:—1. A Description of Experiments to
illustrate a Course of Lectures; about 1775 or 1776, 8vo.
2. This work was reprinted, with additions, under the
title of An Analysis of a Course of Lectures on the Prin¬
ciples of Natural Philosophy. Cambridge, 1784, 8vo.
3. A General Theory for the Mensuration of the Angle
subtended by two objects, of which one is observed by
rays after two reflections from plane surfaces, and the
other by rays coming directly to the spectator’s eye.
Phil. Trans. 1781, p. 395. 4. A Treatise on the Rectili¬
near Motion and Rotation of Bodies, with a Description
of Original Experiments relative to the subject. Cam¬
bridge, 1784, 8vo. 5. Investigations founded on the
Theory of Motion for determining the Times of Vibration
of Watch Balances. Phil. Trans. 1794, p. 119. 6. The
Construction and Analysis of Geometrical Propositions,
determining the positions assumed by homogeneal bodies,
which float freely, and at rest, on a fluid’s surface ; also
determining the Stability of Ships, and of other Floating
Bodies. Phil. Trans. 1796, p. 46. 7. A Disquisition on
the Stability of Ships. Phil. Trans. 1798, p. 201. 8. A
Review of the Statutes and Ordinances of Assize which
have been established in England from the 4th year of
King John, 1202, to the 37 th of his present Majesty. Lond.
1801, 4to. 9. A Dissertation on the Construction and
Properties of Arches. Lond. 1801,4to. 10. A Supplement
to a Tract entitled a Treatise on the Construction and Pro¬
perties of Arches, published in the year 1801; and con¬
taining Propositions for determining the Weights of the
several Sections which constitute an Arch, inferred from
the Angles. Also containing a Demonstration of the Angles
of the several Sections, when they are inferred from the
Weights thereof. To which is added, a Description of Ori¬
ginal Experiments to verify and illustrate the Principles in
this Treatise. With occasional Remarks on the Construc¬
tion of an Iron Bridge of one Arch, proposed to be erected
over the river Thames at London. Part II. By the author of
the first part. Lond. 1804, 4to. Dated 24th November 1803.
11. A Treatise on Optics is mentioned by Nichols as having
been partly printed by Bowyer in 1776,butnever completed.
It may be very truly asserted that several of these
works of Mr Atwood have materially contributed to the
progress of science, by multiplying the modes of illustra¬
tion which experimental exhibitions afford for the assist¬
ance of the instructor ; at the same time they can scarcely
be said to have extended very considerably the bounds of
human knowledge, or to have demonstrated that their au¬
thor was possessed of any extraordinary talent or energy
of mind in overcoming great difficulties or in inventing new
methods of reasoning. The Analysis of a Course of Lec¬
tures has been little read; and it bears evident marks of
having been composed before Mr Atwood had acquired
a habit of accurate reasoning on physical subjects. In
the first page, for example, the forces of cohesion and
gravitation are completely confounded; and in the third
we find the idea of perfect spheres touching each other in
a greater or less number of points, notwithstanding the
appearance of precision which the author attempts to
maintain in his language.
The object of the paper on Reflection is, to illustrate
and improve the construction of Hadley’s quadrant; and
Mr Atwood proposes, for some particular purposes in
practical astronomy, two new arrangements of the specu-
lums, by which the rays are caused to move in different
planes, and which he considers as affording greater accu¬
racy for the measurement of small angles than the com¬
mon form of the instrument, although not of general uti¬
lity, nor very easily adjusted for observation.
The treatise on Rectilinear Motion and Rotation exhi-
188 A T W
Atwood, bits a good compendium of the elementary doctrines of
mathematical mechanics; but it shows a great deficiency
in the knowledge of the higher refinements which had
been introduced into that science by Daniel Bernoulli,
and Euler, and Lagrange. The properties of simply ac¬
celerated and retarded motion are first discussed, and the
phenomena of penetration experimentally examined ; the
laws of varying forces are then investigated, and the pro¬
perties of the pendulum demonstrated; the vibrations of
an elastic chord are calculated, “ considering the whole
mass to be concentrated in the middle point,” as an ap¬
proximation ; and then, instead of imitating and simplify¬
ing the elegant but complicated demonstrations of the
continental mathematicians, the author most erroneously
repeats, in the words of Dr Smith, the exploded doctrine,
that “ the string, during any instant of its vibration, will
coincide with the harmonic curve.” The subject of a re¬
sistance, varying as the square of the velocity, is next
examined; and some useful experiments on the descent
of bodies in water are stated in confirmation of the theory.
On this occasion, the author observes, with regard to the
formation of the different strata of the earth, that bodies
disposed to break into large masses, though specifically
lighter, may easily have descended more rapidly through
a fluid, than denser but more brittle bodies, so that the
natural order of densities may thus have become inverted.
He next examines the theory of rotation, and relates some
very interesting experiments on rectilinear and rotatory
motions; and he shows that Emerson and Desaguliers
were totally mistaken in asserting that “ the momentum
produced is always equal to the momentum which pro¬
duces it.” The last section of the work, which is devoted
to the subject of free rotation, is the most elaborate of the
whole ; but it exhibits no material extension of the earlier
investigations of the Bernoullis and Professor Vince ; nor
does it contain the important proposition of Segner, re¬
lating to the existence of three axes of permanent rota¬
tion, at right angles to each other, in every body, how¬
ever irregular.
Notwithstanding these partial objections, the work may
still, in many respects, be considered as classical. The
paper on Watch-balances is principally intended to show
the advantages which may be obtained, in Mr Mudge’s
construction, from the effect of subsidiary springs in ren¬
dering the vibrations isochronous, their actions being li¬
mited to certain portions of the arc of motion. If the au¬
thor has here again omitted to follow the continental ma¬
thematicians in some of their refinements of calculation,
it must be confessed that his view of the subject has, in
this instance, not only the advantages of simplicity, but
also that of a nearer approach to the true practical state
of the question, than is to be found in the more com¬
plicated determinations which had been the result of the
labours of some of his predecessors.
But, whatever may be the merits of these investiga¬
tions, they appear to be far exceeded in importance bjr
the papers on Ships, the first of which obtained for its
author the honour of a Copleian medal. Its principal
object is to show how much the stability of a ship will
commonly vary, when her situation with respect to the
horizon is materially altered; and how far the assump¬
tions of theoretical writers, respecting many others of
the forces concerned in naval architecture, will generally
differ from the true state of these forces when they ac¬
tually occur in seamanship. In the second part of the
investigation, some errors of Bouguer and of Clairbois are
pointed out; and the theoretical principles of stability are
exemplified by a detailed calculation, adapted to the form
and dimensions of a particular vessel, built for the service
of the East India Company.
A U B
The latter years of our author’s life do not appear to Auk
have been productive of any material advantage to science. i
His application to his accustomed pursuits was unremit- Auk
ting, but his health was gradually declining. He had ^
no amusement except such as was afforded by the con¬
tinued exercise of his mind, with a change of the object
only; the laborious game of chess occupying, under
the name of a recreation, the hours which he could spare
from more productive exertions. He became paralytic
some time before his death; and although he partially
recovered his health, he did not live to complete his 62d
year.
His researches concerning the history of the Assize of
Bread must have required the employment of consider¬
able diligence and some judgment in the discovery and
selection of materials, although certainly the subject was
not chosen for the purpose of affording a display of ta¬
lent. His opinion respecting the operation of the as¬
size, as favourable to the community, may by some be
thought to be justified by the want of success which
has hitherto attended the experiment on its suspension;
but the advocates of that measure would certainly not
admit the trial of a year to be sufficient for appreciating
its utility.
The title-pages of the works on Arches explain the oc¬
casion on which they were brought forward, and at the
same time exhibit a specimen of the want of order and
precision which seems to have begun to prevail in the au¬
thor’s faculties; while the works themselves betray a ne¬
glect of the fundamental principles of mechanics, which
is inconceivable in a person who had once reasoned with
considerable accuracy on mathematical subjects. An
anonymous critic, who is supposed to have been the late
Professor Robison (British Critic, vol. xxi. January 1804),
very decidedly, and at the same time very respectfully,
asserted Mr Atwood’s error in maintaining that there was
no manner of necessity for the condition, that the general
curve of equilibrium of an arch should pass through some
part of every one of the joints by which it is divided;
and in fact we may very easily be convinced of the truth
of this principle, if we reflect that the curve of equilibrium
is the true representative of the direction of all the forces
acting upon each of the blocks, and that, if the whole
pressure be anywhere directed to a point situated beyond
the limit of the joint, there can be nothing whatever to
prevent the rotation of the block on the end of the joint
as a centre, until some new position of the block shall
have altered the direction of the forces, or until the
whole fabric be destroyed. The critic has also very truly
remarked that the effects of friction have never been suf¬
ficiently considered in such arrangements ; but a later
author, in an anonymous publication, has removed a con¬
siderable part of this difficulty by showing that no other
condition is required for determining these effects than
that every joint should be perpendicular to the direction
of the curve of equilibrium, either accurately or within
the limit of a certain angle, which is constant for every
substance of the same kind, and which he lias termed the
angle of repose. (l. l.)
AUBAGNE, a town of France, in the department of
the Mouths of the Rhone, and arrondissement of Mar¬
seilles. It possesses manufactures of earthenware, and
has a population of about 5000. It lies on the Yeaune,
17 leagues N. W. of Aix.
AUBAINE, in the old customs of France, a right vest¬
ed in the king, by virtue of which he claimed the inheri¬
tance of all foreigners that died within his dominions, not¬
withstanding any testamentary settlement made by the
deceased. An ambassador was not subject to the right
of aubaine; and the Swiss, Savoyards, Scots, and Portu-
I
A U B
I' a v euese, were also exempted. This ancient privilege of the
'll crown was abolished in 1819.
• ibus i* AUBE, a department of France, deriving its name from
that of the chief river by which it is watered. It is bound¬
ed on the north by the department of the Marne, on the
east by that of the Upper Marne, on the south-east by
that of the Cote d’Or, on the south-west by that of the
Yonne, and on the north-west by that of the Seine and
theMarne. It extends over 2400 square miles or 1,536,000
acres, is tolerably productive in corn and wine, and breeds
a considerable number of sheep. At the last census its
inhabitants were 244,720, who work some iron mines, and
manufacture silk, linen, and woollen goods, together with
glass, paper, and leather. The department returns two
deputies to the legislative assembly. It is divided into
five arrondissements or circles. The chief city is Troyes.
AUBENTON, a small town of France, in the depart¬
ment of Aisne, situated on the river Aube. Long. 4. 30.
E. Lat. 44. 37. N.
AUBETERRE, a small town of France, in the depart¬
ment of the Charente, nine leagues south of Angouleme.
AUBIGNY, or Avigny, a town of France, in the de¬
partment of the Cher. It contains about 2500 inhabitants,
who manufacture cloth, and carry on a trade in woollens,
thread, linen, &c. Long. 2. 31. E. Lat. 47. 29. N.
AUBIN DE CORMIER, St, a town of France, in the
department of the Ule and Yilaine, containing about 1500
inhabitants. It is situated six leagues N. E. of Rennes.
AUBONNE, a circle in the canton of Waadt or Vaud,
in Switzerland, containing one town, four villages, and
6620 inhabitants. The capital of the circle is of the same
name. It is small but well built, containing 1700 inhabi¬
tants, who make good wine, and pursue agriculture with
skill.
AUBREY, John, descended from an ancient family in
Wiltshire, was born in 1626. He made the history and
antiquities of England his peculiar study and delight, and
contributed considerable assistance to the Monasticon An-
glicanum. He succeeded to several good estates ; but
law-suits and other misfortunes consumed them all, and
reduced him to absolute want. In this extremity he found
a valuable benefactress in the Lady Long of Draycot in
Wilts, who gave him an apartment in her house, and sup¬
ported him till his death, which happened about the year
1700. He was a man of considerable ability, learning, and
application, but credulous, and tinctured with superstition.
He wrote Miscellanies, and A Perambulation of the County
of Surry, in 5 vols. 8vo. Besides these, he left many pieces
in manuscript, among which are Monumenta Britannica,
or a Discourse concerning Stonehenge and Roll Rich
Stones in Oxfordshire; and Architectonica Sacra, or a
Dissertation concerning the Manner of Church Building
in England. In 1813, his Lives of Eminent Men, and a
Collection of Letters, were published from the originals
preserved in the Bodleian library, in 3 vols. 8vo. The
Lives are replete with curious matter ; and that of Hobbes,
in particular, is very full and elaborate.
AUBURG, a bailiwick on the Aue, belonging to Hesse
till 1815, but then ceded to Hanover, and now included
in the province Hoya and Diepholz of that kingdom. It is
about 22 square miles or 14,000 awes in extent, but has no
town, and only 274houses, with 2309 inhabitants, who sub¬
sist by agriculture, and spinning and weaving coarse linen.
AUBURN, or Albourn, a market-town of Wiltshire,
in England, about 70 miles from London.
AUBUSSON, an arrondissement in the department of
the Creuse, in France. Its extent is 860 square miles, or
550,400 acres. It is divided into 10 cantons, and these
into 113 communes, containing 93,298 inhabitants. The
capital, of the same name, is a city on the banks of the river
A U D 189
Creuse, containing a population of 3520 persons, chiefly Audi
occupied with manufactures of silk, of carpets, and of I]
cloths. AudiHir.
AUCH, one of the arrondissements of France, in the
department of the Gers. It extends over 540 square
miles, or 537,600 acres, and is divided into six cantons and
136 communes, containing 56,098 inhabitants. The chief
city, of. the same name, is situated on the river Gers. It
contains a population of 9215 persons, mostly occupied in
manufactures, viz. coarse woollens, serges, and leather.
AUCHTERARDER, a town and parish of Scotland,
in the county of Perth. The town consists of a single
street about a mile in length. It was formerly a royal
burgh, but is now disfranchised. It has near it an an¬
cient castle, said to have been a hunting seat of Mal¬
colm Canmore. This place is 15 miles S. S. W. of Perth,
and the population of the parish amounts to 2508.
AUCHTERMUCHTY, a town and parish of Scotland,
in the county of Fife. The town has not the privilege of
voting for a member of parliament, though it is governed
by its own magistrates. A considerable manufacture of
brown linen is carried on here. The population is 2404,
and it is nine miles west from Cupar.
AUCKLAND-BISHOPS, a market-town in the ward
of Darlington and county of Durham, 257 miles from Lon¬
don and 12 from the city of Durham. It stands on the
banks of the river Wear, at its confluence with the Gaun-
less or Wandless. Its name is derived from the great num¬
ber of oak-trees that formerly surrounded it, and from
the palace belonging to the bishop of Durham. The town
is remarkably well built. The parish church, a Gothic
structure, is one mile from the town, at Auckland St An¬
drews. It has some manufactures of muslins and other
cotton goods. The market is held on Thursday. The
population in 1801 amounted to 1961, in 1811 to 2007,
and in 1821 to 2180.
AUCTION, a kind of public sale, much in use for the
disposal of household goods, books, plate, and other articles.
By this method of sale the highest bidder is always the
buyer. Auction was originally a kind of sale among the
ancient Romans, performed by the public crier sub liasta,
i. e. under a spear stuck up on the occasion by some magi¬
strate, who made good the sale by delivery of the articles.
AUDE, a department of France, taking its name from
the river, which rises in the Eastern Pyrenees, and runs
through it in two branches to the Mediterranean Sea.
It is bounded by the department of Herault on the north¬
east, that of the Tarn on the north, by the Mediterranean
on the east, and by the department of the Arriege on the
west. Its extent is 2550 square miles, or 1,632,000 acres.
It is divided into four circles, viz. Narbonne, Limoux,
Carcassonne, and Castelnaudry ; which are again divided
into 31 cantons, and these subdivided into 436 communes
or parishes. The inhabitants by the last census amounted
to 262,190. The soil produces corn, fruit, wine, olives, and
mulberry trees. The manufactures are of linen, woollen,
and silk. The canal of Languedoc, which passes through
the department, is highly beneficial to its trade. The chief
city is Carcassonne. The department sends two members
to the legislative assembly.
AUDEUS, the chief of the Audeans, obtained the name
of a heretic, and the punishment of banishment, for cele¬
brating Easter in the manner of the Jews, and attributing
a human form to the Deity. He died in the country of
the Goths, about the year 370.
AUDITOR, in a general sense, a hearer, or one who
listens or attends to any thing.
Auditor of the Receipts is an officer of the exchequer
who files the tellers’ bills, makes an entry of them, and
gives the lord treasurer a certificate of the money receiv-
190 A U D
Auditors ed the week before. He also makes debentures to every
II teller before they receive any money, and takes their
Au(Iran.' accounts>
Auditors of the Revenue, or of the exchequer, officers
who take the accounts of those who collect the revenues
and taxes raised by parliament.
Auditors of the Prest and Imprest, officers of the ex¬
chequer, who received and made up the accounts of any
money impressed to any man for the king’s service. They
received poundage on all accounts passed by them; but
the office is now abolished.
AUDITORS, in Ecclesiastical History, those who form¬
ed one branch of the Manichean sect, which was divided
into elect and auditors; corresponding, according to some
writers, to clergy and laity, and according to others, to the
faithful and catechumens among the Catholics. By the
Manichean rule, a different course of life was prescribed
to the elect from that of the auditors. The latter might
eat flesh, drink wine, bathe, marry, traffic, possess estates,
bear magistracy, and the like; all which were forbidden
to the elect. The auditors were obliged to maintain the
elect, and kneel down to ask their blessing. Beausobre
observes that the elect were ecclesiastics, and in general
those who made profession of observing certain counsels
called evangelic, such as the clergy and monks ; and they
were called the perfect by Theodoret. The auditors were
the laity, and so denominated because they heard in the
church, whilst others taught and instructed.
AUDITORIUM, in the ancient churches, was that part
of the church where the auditors stood to hear and be
instructed.
AUDRAN, Claude, a French engraver, the first of
the celebrated artists of that name, was the son of Louis
Audran, an officer belonging to the wolf-hunters in the
reign of Henry IV. of France, and was born at Paris in
1592. He never made any great progress in that art, so
that his prints are held in little or no estimation. Yet
though he acquired no great reputation by his own works,
it was no small honour to him to be the father of three
great artists, Germain, Claude, and Girard; the last of
whom has immortalized the name of the family. Claude
Audran retired from Paris to Lyons, where he died in
1677.
Audran, Carl, a very eminent engraver, was brother
to the preceding, though some assert he was only his
cousin-german, and was born at Paris in 1594. In his in¬
fancy he discovered a great taste and disposition for the
arts; and to perfect himself in engraving, to which he
appears to have been chiefly attached, he went to Rome,
where he produced several prints which did him great ho¬
nour. At his return he adopted that species of engrav¬
ing which is performed with the graver only. He settled
at Paris, where he died in 1674. The Abbe Marolles,
who always speaks of this artist with great praise, attri¬
butes 130 prints to him; amongst which, the Annuncia¬
tion^ a middle-sized plate, upright, from Hannibal Car¬
racci, and the Assumption, in a circle, from Domenichino,
are the most esteemed. In the early part of his life he
marked his prints with C, or the name of Carl, till his
brother Claude published some plates with the initial only
of his baptismal name, when, for distinction’s sake, he
used the letter K, or wrote his name Karl, with the K in¬
stead of the C.
Audran, Germain, the eldest son of Claude, men¬
tioned in the preceding article but one, was born in 1631,
at Lyons, where his parents then resided. Not content
with the instructions of his father, he went to Paris and
perfected himself under his uncle Carl; so that, upon his
return to Lyons, he published several prints which did
great honour to his burin. His merit was in such esti-
A U D
mation that he was made a member of the academy esta- Ai
blished in that town, and chosen a professor. He died at''- l
Lyons in 1710, and left behind him four sons, all artists,
namely, Claude, Benoit, John, and Louis.
Audran, Claude, the second of this name, and second
son to Claude above mentioned, was born at Lyons in
1639, and went to Rome to study painting, where he suc¬
ceeded so well that on his return he was employed byLe
Brun to assist him in the Battles of Alexander, which he
was then painting for the king of France. He was re¬
ceived into the Royal Academy in the year 1675, and
died unmarried at Paris in 1684.
Audran, Girard, or Gerard, the most celebrated artist
of the whole family of the Audrans, was the third son of
Claude Audran mentioned in a preceding article, and was
born at Lyons in 1640. He was taught the first princi¬
ples of design and engraving by his father; and, following
the example of his brother, he went to Paris, where his
genius soon began to manifest itself. His reputation there
brought him to the knowledge of’Le Brun, who employed
him to engrave the Battles of Constantine, and the Triumph
of that emperor ; and for these works he obtained apart¬
ments at the Gobelins. At Rome, whither he went for
improvement, he is said to have studied under Carlo
Maratti, in order to perfect himself in drawing; and in
that city, where he resided three years, he engraved seve¬
ral fine plates. That great encourager of the arts, M. Col¬
bert, w as so struck with the beauty of Audran’s works
whilst he resided at Rome, that he persuaded Louis XIY.
to recall him. On his return he applied himself assiduous¬
ly to engraving, and was appointed engraver to the king,
from whom he received great encouragement. In the
year 1681 he was named counsellor of the Royal Academy.
Fie died at Paris in 1703, without male issue.
“ He was,” says the Abbe F'ontenai, “ the most cele¬
brated engraver that ever existed in the historical line.
We have several subjects which he engraved from his
own designs, that manifested as much taste as character
and facility. But in the Battles of Alexander he sur¬
passed even the expectations of Le Brun himself.” These
consist of three very large prints, lengthwise, each con¬
sisting of four plates, which join together, from Le Brun;
namely, The Passage of the Granicus, The Battle of Ar-
bela, and Porus brought to Alexander after his defeat.
1 o this set are added two more large prints lengthwise, on
two plates each, also from Le Brun, namely, Alexander
entering the Tent of Darius, and The Triumphal Entry of
Alexander into Babylon. The former was engraved by
Girard Edelink, and the latter by Girard Audran. It is
to be remarked of all these plates, that those impressions
are generally most esteemed which have the name of
Goyton the printer marked upon them. The Pest, from
Peter Mignard, a large plate, lengthwise, also deserves
particular notice. In the first impressions, the figure in
the clouds is Juno with her peacock behind her; in the
latter the peacock is obliterated, and the wings of an an¬
gel are added to the figure.
Audran, Benoit, the second son of Germain Audran,
was born at Lyons in 1661, where he learned the first
principles of design and engraving under the instruction
of his father. But soon after going to Paris, his uncle
Girard Audran took him under his tuition; and Benoit
so greatly profited by his instructions, that though he
never equalled the sublime style of his tutor, yet he de¬
servedly acquired great reputation. He was honoured
witi the appellation of the king’s engraver, and received
t le loyal pension in 1715. He wras made an academician,
and admitted into the council. He died unmarried at
Louzouer, where he had an estate, in 1721. His manner
was founded upon the bold clear style of his uncle. His
AUG AUG 191
ludr
outlines were firm and determined, his drawing correct,
the heads of his figures in general very expressive, and
the other extremities well marked.
Audran, John, the third son of Germain Audran, was
born at Lyons in 1667, and, after having received in¬
structions from his father, went to Paris to perfect him¬
self in the art of engraving under his uncle Gerard Au¬
dran. At the age of twenty years the genius of this great
artist began to display itself in a surprising manner; and
his subsequent success was such, that in 1707 he obtained
the title of engraver to the king, and had a pension al¬
lowed him by his majesty, with apartments in the Gobe¬
lins ; and the following year he was made a member of
the Royal Academy. He was eighty years of age before he
quitted the graver, and nearly ninety when he died at the
apartments assigned him by the king. He left three sons
behind, one of whom was also an engraver, as we shall
see below. The best and most masterly prints of this
artist are those which appear not so pleasing to the eye at
first sight. In these the etching constitutes a great part;
and he has finished them in a bold rough style.
Audran, Louis, the last son of Germain Audran, was
born at Lyons in 1670, and thence went to Paris, after
the example of his brothers, to complete his studies in the
school of his uncle Girard. He died suddenly at Paris in
1712, before he had produced any great number of prints
by his own hand.
Audran, Benoit, the second engraver of that name,
was the son of John Audran, nephew to the former Be¬
noit, and also established at Paris. He engraved but few
plates. It is necessary, however, to be careful not to con¬
found him with his uncle. But a little attention will
easily prevent this mistake ; for the second Benoit is vast¬
ly inferior to the first in point of merit. We have some
few portraits by this artist; and, among other plates, the
Descent from the Cross, from a picture of Poussin.
AUERBACH, a small city, with 1350 inhabitants, in
the bailiwick of Eschenbach and circle of the Upper
Maine, in the kingdom of Bavaria.
Auerbach, a city on the river Golzsch, with 1800 in¬
habitants, mostly7 weavers of cotton goods. It is in the
bailiwick of Plauen and circle of Voigtland, in the king¬
dom of Saxony.
AUERSTADT, a village of 500 inhabitants, celebrated
for the victory more commonly known by the name of
the neighbouring city of Jena, which the French gained
over the Prussians in October 1806. It is situated in the
circle of Eckartsburg and government of Merseburg, in
the Prussian province of Saxony.
AUGEAS, in fabulous history, was king of Elis, and
particularly famed for his stable, which contained 3000
oxen, and had not been cleaned for thirty years. Hercules
was desired to clear away the filth from this stable in one
day; and Augeas promised, if he performed it, to give
him a tenth part of the cattle. This task Hercules is said
to have executed by turning the course of the river Al-
pheus through the stable ; when Augeas refusing to stand
by his engagement, Hercules slew him, and gave his
kingdom to Phyleus his son, who had shown an abhor¬
rence of his father’s insincerity.
AUGRE, or Awgre, an instrument used by carpenters
and joiners to bore large round holes, and consisting of
a wooden handle, and an iron blade terminated at bottom
with a steel bit.
AUGSBURG, a city of Bavaria, the capital of the circle
)f the Upper Danube, celebrated in all the periods of
jerman history. It is built on a beautiful plain between
he rivers Lech and Wertach, and is surrounded with walls
ind ditches; but these form very imperfect defences
igainst an enemy. The city is generally ill built, and most
of the streets are narrow; but the Max street is very Augsburg
magnificent, both for its breadth and the grandeur of the Confession
buildings. The public buildings especially are very noble . H
edifices. The inhabitants amount to 28,900, of whom Augus-
16,800 are Catholics, and 12,060Lutherans. The manufac-
tures are respectable, and produce, though in diminished
quantities, silver goods, linen, parchment, tobacco, leather,
paper, silk goods, looking-glasses, soap, sealing-wax, and
printed cottons. The commerce is still very respectable,
as this city is the centre of communication between the
south of Germany and Italy. Long. 11. 0.14. E. Lat. 48.
21. 24. N.
Augsburg Confession denotes a celebrated confession
of faith drawn up by Luther and Melanchthon, on behalf
of themselves and other reformers, and presented in 1530
to the emperor Charles V. at the diet of Augusta or Augs¬
burg, in the name of the evangelic body. This confession
contains twenty-eight chapters, of which the greater part
is employed in representing, with perspicuity and truth,
the religious opinions of the Protestants, and the rest in
pointing out the errors and abuses that occasioned their
separation from the church of Rome.
AUGUR, an officer among the ancient Romans, appoint¬
ed to foretell future events by the chattering, flight, and
feeding of birds. There was a college or community of
these functionaries, consisting originally of three mem¬
bers ; afterwards the number was increased to nine, four
of whom were patricians and five plebeians. They bore
an augural staff or wand, as the ensign of their authority;
and their dignity was so much respected that they were
never deposed, nor any substituted in their place, even
though convicted of the most enormous crimes.
AUGURY, in its proper sense, the art of foretelling fu¬
ture events by observations on birds; though it is used
by some writers in a more general signification, as com¬
prising all the different kinds of divination.
Augury was a very ancient superstition. We know
from Hesiod that husbandry was in part regulated by the
coming or going of birds; and most probably it had been
in use long before his time, as astronomy was then in its
infancy. In process of time these animals seem to have
attained a greater and more wonderful authority, till at
last no affair of consequence, either of public or private
concern, was undertaken without consulting them. They
wrere looked upon as the interpreters of the gods; and
those who were qualified to understand their oracles were
held among the chief men in the Greek and Roman states,
and became the assessors of kings, and even of Jupiter
himself.
AUGUST {augustus), in a general sense, something
majestic, venerable, or sacred. The appellation w'as first
conferred by the Roman senate upon Octavius, after he
had been confirmed by them in the sovereign power.
August, in Chronology, the eighth month of our year,
containing 31 days. August was dedicated to the honour
of Augustus Caesar, because in the same month he was
created consul, thrice triumphed in Rome, subdued Egypt
to the Roman empire, and made an end of the civil wmrs.
It was previously called Sextilis, or the sixth month from
March.
AUGUSTA, or Austa, an island in the Adriatic Sea,
on the coast of Dalmatia, near Ragusa, subject to Venice.
Long. 17. 50. E. Lat. 42. 35. N.
Augusta, a city in the intendancy of Catania, in Sicily.
It stands on a tongue of land near Cape Croce, and has a
good harbour, from which some salt, honey, and wine are
exported. It is well built and strongly fortified, and con¬
tains 1836 houses, with 9425 inhabitants. Long. 15. 13.
15. E. Lat. 37. 12. 50. N.
AUGUSTALES, in Roman Antiquity, an epithet given
192 AUG
AUG
Augustalia to the flamens or priests appointed to sacrifice to Augus-
II . tus after his deification; and also to the ludi or games
celebrated in honour of the same prince on the fourth of
the ides of October.
AUGUSTALIA, afestival instituted by the Romans in
honour of Augustus Caesar, on his return to Rome, after
having settled peace in Sicily, Greece, Syria, Asia, and
Parthia; on which occasion they likewise built an altar to
him, inscribed Fortunce Reduci.
AUGUSTALIS Pbjefectus, a title peculiar to a Ro¬
man magistrate who governed Egypt, with a power much
like that of a proconsul in other provinces.
AUGUSTAN Confession. See Augsburg Con¬
fession.
AUGUSTENBURG, a ducal circle in the divisions of
the Danish kingdom, known as the adlichen or noble dis¬
tricts. The duchy consists of seven parishes on the island
of Alsen, and of one town and two villages on the conti¬
nent. It is a part of the duchy of Sleswick.
AUGUSTIN, or Austin, St, the first archbishop of
Canterbury, was originally a monk in the convent of St
Andrew at Rome, and educated under St Gregory, after¬
wards Pope Gregory I., by whom he was sent into Britain
with forty other monks of the same order, about the year
596, to convert the English Saxons to Christianity. The
missionaries landed in the isle of Thanet; and having sent
some French interpreters to King Ethelbert with an ac¬
count of their errand, the king gave them leave to convert
as many of his subjects as they could, and assigned as their
place of residence Durovernum, since called Canterbury,
to which they were confined till the conversion of the king
himself, whose example had a powerful influence in promot¬
ing the conversion of his subjects; but though he was ex¬
tremely pleased at their becoming Christians, he never at¬
tempted to compel them. Augustin dispatched a priest
and a monk to Rome, to acquaint the pope with the success
of his mission, and to desire his resolution of certain ques¬
tions. These men brought back with them a pall, and
several books, vestments, utensils, and ornaments for the
churches. His holiness, by the same messengers, gave
Augustin directions concerning the settling of episcopal
sees in Britain ; and ordered him not to pul] down the idol
temples, but to convert them into Christian churches,-only
destroying the idols, and sprinkling the place with holy
water, that the natives, by frequenting the temples they
had been always accustomed to, might be the less shock¬
ed at the if1 entrance into Christianity. Augustin resided
principally at Canterbury, which thus became the metro¬
politan church of England; and having established bishops
in several of the cities, he died on the 26th May 607.
The Popish writers ascribe several miracles to him. The
observation of the festival of St Augustin was first enjoin¬
ed in a synod held under Cuthbert, archbishop of Canter¬
bury, and afterwards by the pope’s bull in the reien of
King Edward III.
AUGUSIINE, St, an illustrious father of the church,
was born at Thagaste, a city of Numidia, on the 13th of
November 354. His father, a burgess of that city, was
called Fatricius, and his mother Monica, who being a
woman of great virtue, instructed him in the principles of
the Christian religion. In his early youth, while in the rank
of the catechumens, he fell dangerously ill, and earnest¬
ly desired to be baptized ; but the violence of the distem¬
per ceasing his baptism was delayed. His father, who
had not yet been baptized, made him study at Thagaste,
Madaura, and afterwards at Carthage. Augustine having
read Cicero s books of philosophy, began to entertain a
love for wisdom, and applied himself to the study of the
Holy Scriptures ; nevertheless, he suffered himself to be
seduced by the Mamcheans. At the age of nineteen he re¬
turned to Thagaste, where he gave instructions in grammar ;\u
and also frequented the bar: he afterwards taught rhe^ ?
toric at Carthage with applause. The insolence of the scho-%
lars at Carthage made him take a resolution to go to Rome ^
though against his mother’s will. Here also he had many
scholars ; but disliking them, he quitted Rome, and settling
at Milan, was chosen public professor of rhetoric in that
city. Here he had opportunities of hearing the sermons
of St Ambrose, which, together with the study of St
Paul’s epistles, and the conversion of two of his friends,
determined him to retract his errors, and quit the sect of
the Manicheans: this was in the thirty-second year of his
age. In the vacation of the year 386 he retired to the house
of a friend of his named Verecundus, where he seriously
applied himself to the study of the Christian religion, in
order to prepare himself for baptism, which he received
at Easter in the year 387. Soon after this his mother
came to see him at Milan, and invite him back to Carthage;
but at Ostia, whither he went to embark in order to re¬
turn, she died. He arrived in Africa about the end of
the year 388 ; and having obtained a garden-plot without
the walls of the city of Hippo, he associated himself with
eleven other persons of eminent sanctity, who distinguished
themselves by wearing leathern girdles, and lived therein
a monastic way for the space of three years; exercising
themselves in fasting, prayer, study, and meditation, day
and night. Hence sprung the Augustine friars, or eremites
of St Augustine, who were the first order of mendicants;
those of St Jerome, the Carmelites, and others, being but
branches of that of St Augustine. About this time, or be¬
fore, Valerius, bishop of Hippo, ordained him priest much
against his inclination: nevertheless he continued to reside
in his little monastery with his brethren, who, renouncing
all property, possessed their goods in common. Valerius,
who had appointed St Augustine to preach in his place,
allowed him to do it in his presence, contrary to the cus¬
tom of the churches in Africa. He explained the creed
in a general council of Africa held in 393. Two years
after, Valerius, fearing he might be preferred to be bishop
of another church, appointed him his coadjutor or colleague,
and caused him to be ordained bishop of Hippo, by Mega-
lus, bishop of Calame, then primate of Numidia. St Au¬
gustine died on the 28th of August 430, aged seventy-six
years; having had the misfortune to see his country in¬
vaded by the Vandals, and the city where he was bishop
besieged for seven months. The works of St Augustine
extend to ten volumes: the best edition of them is that
of Maurin, printed at Antwerp in 1700.
Augustine, St, a fort of North America, on the east
coast of Cape Florida, situated in Long. 81. 40. W.
Lat. 30. 0. N.
Augustine, a cape of South America. Long. 35. ll.W.
Lat. 8. 38. S.
AUGUSTINS, or Augustinians, an order of religious,
thus called from St Augustine, whose rule they observe.
The Augustins, popularly also called Austin friars, were
originally hermits, whom Pope Alexander IV. first con¬
gregated into one body, under their general Lanfranc, in
1256. Soon after their institution this order was brought
into England, where they had about thirty-two houses at
the time of their suppression. The Augustins are clothed
in black, and make one of the four orders of mendicants.
AUGUSTOW, a woiwodship of Poland, which takes
its name from the city which is its capital. The woi¬
wodship is the northernmost part of the kingdom, a long
strip, extending from the Bug to the Niemen, between
long. 21. 20. and 23. 9. E. and lat. 52. 40. and 55. 5. N.
Its extent is 6870 square miles, and it incloses the greater
portion of the lakes of Poland, and many districts of ex¬
tensive woods; but it has some patches of good arable
A U L
w ]and. It is divided into five obwods or circles, and con-
SP tains’ 335,000 inhabitants. . , _ „
Au! Augustow, a circle or obwod in the woiwodship ot
^ the same name in Poland, formed out of the ancient cir¬
cles of Sonion and Bober. It extends over 1515 square
miles, and contains about 75,000 inhabitants.
Augustow, a city, the capital of the woiwodship of
that name, on the river Netta, near an extensive lake. It
contains 1980 inhabitants, of whom one quarter are Jews,
who have much trade with Russia in horses and cattle.
It is situated in long. 22. 53. 10. E. and lat. 53. 49. 30. N.
AUGUSTUS, Fort, a small fortress seated on a plain
at the head of Loch Ness, in Scotland, between the rivers
Tarf and Oich.
Augustus, the appellation conferred upon Caesar Oc-
tavianus, the first Roman emperor. The obscure name
Odavianus, Mr Gibbon observes, he derived from a mean
family in the little town of Aricia. It was stained with
the blood of the proscription; and he was desirous, had
it been possible, to eraze all memory of his former life.
The illustrious surname of Caesar he had assumed, as the
adopted son of the dictator; but he had too much good
sense either to hope to be confounded, or to wish to be
compared, with that extraordinary man. It was proposed
in the senate to dignify their minister with a new appella¬
tion ; and, after a very serious discussion, that of Augustus
was chosen from among several others, as being the most
expressive of the character of peace and sanctity which
he uniformly affected. Augustus was therefore a personal,
Caesar a family, distinction. The former should naturally
have expired with the prince on whom it was bestowed;
and, however the latter was diffused by adoption and fe¬
male alliance, Nero was the last prince who could allege
any hereditary claim to the honours of the Julian line.
But at the time of his death the practice of a century had
inseparably connected those appellations with the impe¬
rial dignity, and they have been preserved by a long suc¬
cession of emperors, Romans, Greeks, Franks, and Ger¬
mans, from the fall of the republic to the present time.
A distinction was, however, soon introduced. The sacred
title of Augustus was always reserved for the monarch ;
the name of Caesar was more freely communicated to his
relations, and, from the reign of Hadrian at least, became
appropriated to the second person in the state, who was
considered the presumptive heir of the empire.
AUK. See Ornithology.
AULA is used by Spelman for a court-baron; by some
old ecclesiastical writers for the nave of a church, and
sometimes for a court-yard.
Aula Regia, or Regis, a court established by William
the Conqueror in his own hall, composed of the king’s
great officers of state, who resided in his palace, and were
usually attendant on his person. This court was regu¬
lated by the article which forms the eleventh chapter of
Magna Charta, and was established in Westminster Hall,
where it has ever since continued.
AULCESTER, a market-town in the county of War¬
wick, distant 103 miles from London and 14 from Warwick.
It stands at the junction of the two rivers Alne and Ar¬
row. It was formerly a place of more importance, and
the residence of some of our monarchs in remote periods.
It still has a church, which is a fine Gothic structure.
The market is held on Tuesday. The population amount¬
ed in 1801 to 1625, in 1811 to 1862, and in 1821 to 2229.
AULETES, in Antiquity, denotes a flute-player. One
of the Ptolemies, kings of Egypt, father of Cleopatra,
bore the surname or denomination of Auletes.
AULIC, an epithet given to certain officers of the em¬
pire, who compose a court which decides, without appeal,
m all processes entered in or submitted to it.
VOL. IV.
A U N 193
Aulic, in the Sorbonne and foreign universities, is an Aulic
act which a young divine maintains upon being admitted II.
a doctor of divinity. It begins by a harangue of the
chancellor, addressed to the young doctor, after which he
receives the cap, and presides at the aulic or disputation.
AULPS, a city on the river Braque, with 2947 inha¬
bitants, in the arrondissement of Draguignan, in the de¬
partment of the Var, in France.
AULUS Gellius. See Gellius.
AUMBRY, a country word denoting a cupboard.
AUME, a Dutch measure for Rhenish wine, containing
40 English gallons.
AUNCEL WEIGHT, an ancient kind of balance, now
out of use, being prohibited by several statutes, on account
of the many deceits practised by it. It consisted of scales
hanging on hooks, fastened at each end of a beam, which
a man lifted up on his hand. In many parts of England
auncel weight signifies meat sold by the hand, without
scales.
AUNE, a long measure used in France to measure
cloths, stuffs, ribbons, &c. At Rouen it is equal to one
English ell, at Calais to 1-52, at Lyons to L061, and at
Paris to 0‘95.
AUNGERVYLE, Richard, commonly known by the
name of Richard de Bury, was born in 1281, at St Ed¬
mund’s Bury, in Suffolk, and educated at the University
of Oxford; after which he entered into the order of Be¬
nedictine monks, and became tutor to Edward prince of
Wales, afterwards King Edward III. Upon the accession
of his royal pupil to the throne, he was first appointed
cofferer; then treasurer of the wardrobe, archdean of
Northampton, prebendary of Lincoln, Sarum, and Lich¬
field, keeper of the privy seal, dean of Wells; and last of
all he was promoted to the bishopric of Durham. He like¬
wise enjoyed the offices of lord high chancello.r and trea¬
surer of England, and discharged two important embas¬
sies at the court of France. Learned himself, and a patron
of the learned, he maintained a correspondence with some
of the greatest geniuses of the age, particularly with the
celebrated Italian poet Petrarch. He was also of a most
humane and benevolent temper, and performed many sig¬
nal acts of charity. Every week he caused eight quarters
of wheat to be made into bread, and given to the poor.
Whenever he travelled between Durham and Newcastle,
he distributed eight pounds sterling in alms ; between Dur¬
ham and Stockton five pounds; between Durham and Auk-
land five marks; and between Durham and Middleham
five pounds. He founded a public library at Oxford for
the use of the students, which he furnished with the best
collection of books then in England; and appointed five
keepers, to whom he granted yearly salaries. At the dis¬
solution of religious houses in the reign of Henry VIII.
Durham College, where he had fixed the library, being dis¬
solved among the rest, some of the books were removed
to the public library, some to Baliol College, and some
came into the hands of Dr George Owen, a physician of
Godstow, who bought that college of King Edward VI.
Bishop Aungervyle died at his manor of Aukland, 24th
April 1345, and was buried in the south part of the cross
aisle of the cathedral church of Durham, to which he had
been a benefactor. He wrote, 1. Philobiblos, containing
directions for the management of his library at Oxford,
and a great deal in praise of learning, but in very bad
Latin. 2. Epistolce Familiarium ; some of which are ad¬
dressed to Petrarch. 3. Orationes ad Principes ; mention¬
ed by Bale and Pitts.
AUNIS, formerly a small province in France, but now
included in the department*of the Lower Charente, and
belonging to the arrondissements of Rochefort, La Ro¬
chelle, and Varennes.
2 B
194 A U R
Aurach AURACH, a town of Germany, with a good castle, in
IJ the kingdom of Wirtemberg.
^urillac. AURiE, in Mythology, a name given by the Romans to
^e nymphs of the air. They are mostly to be found in
the ancient paintings of ceilings, where they are repre¬
sented as light and airy, generally with long robes and
flying veils of some lively colour or other, and fluttering
about in the rare and pleasing element assigned to them.
They are characterized as sportive and happy in them¬
selves, and as well-wishers to mankind.
AURAY, a small seaport town of Lower Brittany, in
France, situated on the gulf called Morbihan, and in the
department of the same name. It consists of only one
handsome street, and is chiefly known for its trade. Long.
2. 25. W. Lat. 47. 48. N.
AURELIA, in Natural History, the same with what is
more usually called chrysalis, and sometimes nymph. See
Entomology.
AURELIANUS, Lucius Domitius, emperor of Rome,
commanded the armies of the emperor Claudius with such
glory, that after the death of that emperor all the legions
agreed to place him on the throne. This happened in the
year 270. He defeated the Goths, Samaritans, Marco-
manni, the Persians, Egyptians, and Vandals, and con¬
quered Zenobia queen of the Palmyrenians, and Tetricus
general of the Gauls, both of whom were compelled to
grace his triumph in the year 274. He was killed by one
of his generals in Thrace in the year 276, when he was
preparing to enter Persia with a great army.
AURELIUS Victor. See Victor.
AUREOLA, in itsoriginal signification, signifies a jewel,
which is proposed as a reward of victory in some public
dispute. Hence the Roman schoolmen applied it to de¬
note the reward bestowed on martyrs, virgins, and doc¬
tors, on account of their works of supererogation; and
painters use it to signify the crown of glory with which
they adorn the heads of saints, confessors, and martyrs.
AUREUS, a Roman gold coin, equal in value to 25
denarii. According to Ainsworth, the aureus of the higher
empire weighed near five pennyweights, and in the lower
empire little more than half that weight. We learn from
Suetonius that it was customary to give aurei to the vic¬
tors in the chariot races.
AURICH, a bailiwick in the Hanoverian province of
East Friesland, which contains, in one city and 23 villages,
3950 houses and 20,087 inhabitants. The extent is 270
square miles, or 172,800 acres. The land is marshy, but
there are some good meadows. The capital of the baili¬
wick is of the same name, containing 2660 inhabitants, who,
by means of a canal to the Ems, carry on some trade in
pipes, tobacco, paper, and corn spirits. It is situated in
long. 7. 33. 11. E. and lat. 53. 28. 17. N.
AURICLE, in Anatomy, that part of the ear which is
prominent from the head, called by many authors auris
externa. Auricles are likewise two muscular bags situated
at the basis of the heart, and intended as diverticula for
the blood during the diastole.
AURIFLAMMA, in the French history, properly de¬
notes a flag or standard belonging to the Abbey of St De¬
nis, suspended over the tomb of that saint, which the re¬
ligious, on occasion of any war in defence of their lands or
rights, took down with great ceremony, and gave to their
protector or advocate, to be borne at the head of their
forces. Am iflamma is also sometimes used to denote the
chief flag or standard in any army..
AURIGA, the Waggoner, in Astronomy, a constella¬
tion of the northern hemisphere. It contains, in Bodes
catalogue, 261 stars. Capella, a well-known, beautiful,
double star, is in this constellation.
AU RILL AC, an arrondissement in the department of
A U R
the Cantal, in France, extending over 796 square miles, or Aurio
509,440 acres. It is divided into eight cantons, and these Islan
into 94 communes, containing 90,576 inhabitants. The H
chief city of the same name stands on the river Jordone,
and contains 10,333 inhabitants, employed in making ^ea
woollen stuffs, lace, and carpets.
AURIOL’S Island, one of the Aladin Islands, on the
east side of the Bay of Bengal, about 12 miles in circum¬
ference. Lat. 9. 22. N.
AURISCALPIUM, an instrument to clean the ears,
and serving also for other operations in disorders of that
part.
AURORA, the morning twilight, or that faint light
which appears in the morning when the sun is within 18
degrees of the horizon.
Aurora, the goddess of the morning, according to the
Pagan mythology. She was the daughter of Hyperion
and Theia, according to Hesiod, but of Titan and Terra,
according to others. It was under this name that the
ancients deified the light which foreruns the rising of the
sun above our hemisphere. The poets represent her as
rising out of the ocean in a chariot, with rosy fingers drop¬
ping gentle dew. Virgil describes her ascending in a
flame-coloured chariot with four horses.
Aurora, one of the New Hebrides Islands in the South
Sea, in which Mr Forster supposes the Peak dEtoile men¬
tioned by Mr Bougainville to be situated. It is about 12
leagues long, but not above five miles broad in any part;
and it stretches nearly north and south. The middle lies
in lat. 15. 6. S. long. 168. 24. E.
Aurora Borealis, Polar Light, Northern Lights, or
Streamers, is a beautifully luminous meteor, appearing in
the form of beams or rays, and sometimes in that of arches
or crowns. The rays are seldom stationary, generally
flitting with greater or less velocity throughout the hea¬
vens ; the arches are sometimes single ; sometimes several
concentric ones are seen. These lights, or meteoric co¬
ruscations, are most brilliant in the arctic regions, appear¬
ing mostly in the winter season and in frosty weather. In
the Shetland Islands, the merry dancers, as they are there
and elsewhere called, are the constant attendants of clear
evenings, and serve to diminish materially the gloom of the
long winter nights. They commonly appear at twilight
near the horizon, and sometimes continue in that state for
several hours without any sensible motion ; after which
they send forth streams of stronger light, which rise from
the horizon in a pyramidal undulating form, shooting with
great velocity up to the zenith, assuming columnar and
other shapes, and varying in colour from a reddish yellow
to the darkest russet. At other times they cover the whole
hemisphere with their flickering and fantastical corusca¬
tions. On these occasions their motions are amazingly
quick, and they astonish the spectator with rapid changes
of form. They break out in places where none were seen
before, skimming briskly along the heavens ; then they are
suddenly extinguished, leaving behind a uniform dusky
track, which, again, is brilliantly illuminated in the same
manner, and as suddenly left a dull blank. Some nights
they assume the appearance of vast columns; exhibiting
on one side tints of the deepest yellow, and on the other
melting away till they become undistinguishable from the
surrounding sky. They have generally a strong tremulous
motion from end to end, which continues till the whole
vanishes. According to the state of the atmosphere, their
colours vary, fhey sometimes assume the hue of blood,
on which occasion their appearance is considered porten-
t^,s' ihen the rustic sages become prophetic, and ter-
rify the gazing spectators with the dread of war, pestilence,
and famine. I his superstition is not peculiar to the north-
ein islands; nor are these appearances of recent date. The
Aur
'Bore
ornr
15 ire.
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AURORA BOREALIS.
195
ancients called them chasmata, and trabes, and bolides, ac-
i. cording to their forms or colours.
In early times, it is said, these meteoric lights were ex-
y tremely rare, and on that account were the more taken
notice of. From the days of Plutarch to those of our sage
historian Sir Richard Baker, they were supposed to por¬
tend great events, and lively imaginations shaped them
into aerial conflicts:
.Fierce fiery warriors fight upon the clouds.
In ranks, and squadrons, and right form of war.
Dr Halley tells us, that when he observed a great aurora
borealis in 1716, he had begun to despair of ever seeing
one at all; none having appeared, at least of any consider¬
able extent, from the time he was born until then. But
notwithstanding this long interval, it seems that, in some
“ In the afternoon of this day there was a peculiar bright- Aurora
ness in the atmosphere near the horizon, for several de- Borealis,
grees on each side of the true north point, which indicat-
ed the approach of an aurora ; indeed we have reason to of
suspect that it was a faint appearance of one; while the Gosport,
sun shone in all his splendour, without the interposition
of cloud or vapour. Shortly after sunset an aurora bore¬
alis gradually rose above the northern horizon, and at a
quarter past five o’clock it had assumed the form of an
arch of refulgent light, ten degrees in height, and seventy
degrees in width. From this time till half-past five it con¬
tinued to increase in the intensity of its light, expanding
to the western point of the horizon, and fifty-five degrees
to the eastward of north, which made the chord of the
aurora a hundred and fifty-five degrees. Now, a bright
periods, the aurora borealis had been seen much more flame-coloured rainbow-like arch, between three and four
frequently; and perhaps this, as well as many other na- A " 1 "ro11 Q* ,to ,,r‘r'pr Pf1o-P.
tural phenomena, may be subject to periodical changes
and variations.
The only thing resembling a distinct history of this phe¬
nomenon is that which has been given by the learned Dr
Halley, in the Philosophical Transactions, No. 347. The
first account he gives is of the appearance of what is called
bv him burning spears, which were seen at London on the
30th January 1560. This account is taken from a book en¬
titled A Description of Meteors, by W. F. D.D., reprinted
at London in 1654. The next appearance, according to the
testimony of Stow, was on the 7th October 1564. In 1574
also, according to Camden, and Stow above-mentioned, an
aurora borealis was observed two nights successively, viz.
on the 14th and 15th of November, having much the same
appearances as that described by Dr Halley in 1716, and
which we now so frequently observe. Again, an aurora was
twice seen in Brabant, in the year 1575, viz. on the 13th
of February and 28th of September. Its appearances at
both these times were described by Cornelius Gemm, pro¬
fessor of medicine in the university of Louvain, who com¬
pares them to spears, fortified cities, and armies fighting
in the air. After this, Michael Maestlin, tutor to the great
Kepler, assures us, that at Baknang in the county of Wur-
temberg in Germany, these phenomena, which he styles
chasmata, were seen by himself no less than seven times
in 1580. In 1581 they again appeared, in an extraordi¬
nary manner in April and September, and in a less degree
at some other periods of the same year. In September
1621, a similar phenomenon was observed all over France,
and described by Gassendus, who gave it the name of
aurora borealis ; yet neither this, nor any similar appear-
degrees broad, and pretty well defined at its upper edge,
emanated from the curved edge of the aurora to an alti¬
tude of thirty-five degrees; and while it remained ap¬
parently stationary, a beautiful rainbow-like arch, still
more brilliant, formed about ten degrees south of the
zenith, by streamers suddenly springing up from the N. E.
by E. and W. by S. points of the horizon, and meeting
in the zenith, so that these two bows presented them¬
selves at the same time. At thirty-five minutes past five,
the latter bow, in some parts four and in others six degrees
in width, divided a little to the eastward of its vertex; and
the long streamers which formed it passed off gently to the
southward in very bright patches, two in the south-east
and one in the south-west quarters, like luminous clouds,
and continued in sight nearly a quarter of an hour. One
of these bright patches nearly covered Orion several mi¬
nutes. At forty minutes past five another rainbow-like
arch, equally wide and bright, was formed by long streamers
from about the same points of the horizon, whose point of
convergence was the same, and its course through the
feet of Gemini, near the Pleiades, through Aries, the
square of Pegasus, the head of Equuleus, and the bow of
Antinous. It passed off gradually towards the south; and
at a quarter before six the planet Mars, then near the meri¬
dian, and about forty-five degrees in altitude, rested, as it
were, conspicuously on it. At six it had gone far towards
the southern horizon, and could scarcely be perceived,
leaving the sky unusually clear and bright. By this time
the bow over the aurora had much increased in altitude,
and was nearly effaced.
“ At a few minutes past six, after a great many coloured
columns of light had risen from the north-east and north-
ance posterior to 1574, is described by English writers till west quarters, and passed the zenith, the aurora sunk con-
the year 1707, which, as Dr Halley observes, shows the siderably towards the horizon ; but its upper edge remam-
prodigious neglect of curious matters that then prevailed, ed bright and very well defined. Some of the streamers
From 1621 to 1707, indeed, there is no mention made of or columns were long, others short, and the widest gene-
an aurora borealis having been seen by any body; and, rally remained long enough to pass through a gradation o
considering the number of astronomers who during that prismatic colours. At half-past six the aurora agal£ m’
period were in a manner continually poring over the hea- creased in altitude, and vivid coruscations radiated trom
vens, we may very reasonably conclude that nothing of the every part of its arch, and, on intermixing with each other,
kind really made its appearance until after an interval of formed wide columns, which were so grand with crimson
eighty-six years. A small one was seen in November 1707; tints as to astonish every spectator. Between seven an
and during that and the following year, the same appear- eight the aurora had spread at least two thirds over t e
ances were repeated five times. The next on record is heavens, and as far as the shoulders of Orion on the east-
that mentioned by Dr Halley in March 1716, which ern side of the meridian, when large perpendicular co-
from its brilliancy attracted universal attention, and was lumns, and short pointed luminous coruscations, rising
considered by the vulgar as marking the introduction of a from the aurora, glittering like spears and conical points
foreign race of princes. Since that time these meteors in nearly parallel rows, now mixing and then dividing,
have been much more frequent. Many of those observed all passed through red, orange, lake, crimson, green, and
in this island have been described. The following account purple tints; so that the appearance altogether over so
of a splendid aurora borealis, as seen from the Gosport great an extent of the heavens was exceedingly gran ,
Observatory on the 7th January 1831, will give an idea of particularly when contrasted with the cerulean sky, and
the brilliancy of this meteor, and of its colours, lustres, its spangled constellations, in the southern portion ot the
arches, and beams. hemisphere.
AURORA BOREALIS.
196
Aurora “ At ten minutes before eight the aurora was in its great-
Borealis. esf; splendour. At five minutes before eight another lu-
minous rainbow-like arch* stretched across the heavens
from the eastern point of the horizon, and displayed several
prismatic colours while passing southward. Soon after
eight a large dark space, in and near the horizon, present¬
ed itself several degrees on each side of the magnetic
north, and the aurora, still far over the heavens, gradu¬
ally diminished. At nine it again ascended, and wide
columns rose from every part of its arch, and passed
through the same colours as before-mentioned. Between
nine and ten the magnetic needle, which in the early
part of the evening stood at twenty-four degrees west of
the true north, was disturbed, and receded upwards of
half a degree northward, either by the influence of the
aurora, or by a change of wind from north-east to south¬
west, and of course a change in its electrical state. At
a quarter before eleven there was a grand display of about
twelve or fourteen glowing columns from the aurora, se¬
veral of which passed beyond the zenith, when a per¬
fect red rainbow-like arch, ten degrees above the aurora,
was visible. At eleven another bow three degrees and a
half wide rose from the aurora, and passed through Aries,
Cassiopeia, Ursa Minor, and the square of Ursa Major,
until, reaching the zenith, it gradually disappeared. At
half-past eleven the aurora again began to sink slowly,
and did not rise afterwards. At five minutes before
twelve, a large brilliant meteor, the only one observed
through the night, passed under Ursa Major. At one
o'clock A. m. the highest part of the aurora, about the
magnetic north, had sunk to within six or seven degrees
of the horizon ; yet bright coruscations occasionally ema¬
nated from it till two, when the observations were discon¬
tinued, as no more interesting meteoric appearances were
likely to occur.”
Aurora The auroras observed, one at Cumberland House and
Cumber- another at Fort Enterprize, in North America, are de-
House scriked by Lieutenant Hood, in Captain Franklin’s Nar¬
rative. The account of the former is as follows:—
“ For the sake of perspicuity,” says Mr Hood, “ I
shall describe the several parts of the aurora observed
at Cumberland House, which I term beams, flashes, and
arches. The beams are little conical pencils of light,
ranged in parallel lines, with their pointed extremities to¬
wards the earth, generally in the direction of the dipping
needle. Hheflashes seem to be scattered beams, approach¬
ing nearer to the earth, because they are similarly shaped,
and infinitely larger. I have called them flashes, because
their appearance is sudden, and seldom continues long.
When the aurora first becomes visible, it is formed like a
rainbow, the light of which is faint, and the motion of the
beams undistinguishable. It is then in the horizon. As
it approaches the zenith, it resolves itself at intervals into
beams, which, by a quick undulating motion, project them¬
selves into wreaths, afterwards fading away, and again
brightening, without any visible expansion or concentra¬
tion of matter. Numerous flashes are seen in different
parts of the sky. That this mass, from its short distance
above the earth, would appear like an arch to a person si¬
tuated at the horizon, may be demonstrated by the rules
of perspective, supposing its parts to be nearly equidistant
from the earth. An undeniable proof of it, however, is
afforded by the observations of the 6th and 7th of April,
when the aurora, which filled the sky at Cumberland
Flouse, from the northern horizon to the zenith, with
wreaths and flashes, assumed the shape of arches at some
distance to the southward.
But the aurora does not always make its first appear¬
ance as an arch. It sometimes rises from a confused mass
of light in the east or west, and crosses the sky towards
the opposite point, exhibiting wreaths of beams, or coronee Aur
boreales, in its way. An arch, also, which is pale and Bore
uniform at the horizon, passes the zenith without display- ^
ing any irregularity or additional brilliancy; and we have
seen three arches together very near the northern horizon,
one of which exhibited beams, and even colours; but the
other two were faint and uniform. On the 7th of April
an arch was visible to the southward, exactly similar to
that in the north, and it disappeared in fifteen minutes.
It had probably passed the zenith before sunset. The
motion of the whole body of aurora is from the northward
to the southward, at angles not more than twenty degrees
from the magnetic meridian. The centres of the arches
were as often in the magnetic as in the true meridian.
“ The colours do not seem to depend on the presence of
any luminary, but to be generated by the motion of the
beams, and then only when that motion is rapid, and the
light brilliant. The lower extremities quiver with aflery
red colour, and the upper with orange. We once saw
violet in the former. The number of aurorae visible in Sep¬
tember was two, in October three, in November three,
in December five, in January five, in February seven, in
March sixteen, in April fifteen, and in May eleven. Calm
and clear weather was the most favourable for observa¬
tion ; but it is discernible in cloudy weather, and through
mists. We could not perceive that it affected the wea¬
ther. The magnetic needle, in the open air, was disturbed
by the aurora, whenever it approached the zenith. Its
motion was not vibratory, as observed by Mr Dalton;
and this was, perhaps, owing to the weight of the card
attached to it. It moved slowly to the east or west of
the magnetic meridian, and seldom recovered its original
direction in less than eight or nine hours. The greatest
extent of its aberration was 45". A delicate electrometer,
suspended at the height of fifty feet from the ground, was
never perceptibly affected by the aurora; nor could we
distinguish its rustling noise, of which, however, such
strong testimony has been given to us, that no doubt can
remain of the fact.”
The account of the aurora observed at Fort Enterprize Auror
is also interesting and instructive with reference to the^ort.
theory of the phenomenon. terPri:
“ The shapes of the aurora observed at Fort Enterprize,
at its entry into the horizon, and progress through the sky,
may be reduced under two general descriptions. In the
first I shall class those which are formed like rainbows or
arches in the earliest stage of their appearance. They
rise with their centres sometimes in the magnetic meridian,
and sometimes several degrees to the eastward or west¬
ward of it. The number visible at the same time seldom
exceeds five, and is seldom limited to one. The altitude of
the lowest, when first seen, is never less than four degrees.
As they advance towards the zenith, their centres (or the
parts most elevated) preserve a course nearly in the mag¬
netic meridian, or parallel to it. But the eastern and west¬
ern extremities vary their respective distances, and the
arches become irregularly broad streams in the zenith, each
dividing the sky into two unequal parts, but never crossing
one another till they separate into parts. Those arches
which were bright at the horizon increase their brilliancy
in the zenith, and discover the beams of which they are
composed when the interior motion is rapid. This inte¬
rior motion is a sudden glow, not proceeding from any
visible concentration of matter, but bursting out in seve¬
ral parts of the arch, as if an ignition of combustible mat¬
ter had taken place, and spreading itself rapidly towards
each extremity. In this motion the beams are formed,
such as are described in the preceding observations upon
the subject. They have two motions ; one at right angles
to their length or sideways; and the other a tremulous
AURORA BOREALIS.
197
^nd short vibration, in which they do not exactly preserve
• their parallelism to each other. By the first they project
J themselves into wreaths, serpentine forms, or irregular
broken curves. The wreaths, when in the zenith, present
the appearance of coronae boreales. The second motion
is always accompanied with colours; for it must be ob¬
served, that beams are often formed without any exhibi¬
tion of colours; and I have not, in that case, perceived
the vibratory motion. The beams, in different aurorae,
and sometimes in the same, are of different magnitudes,
arising, probably, from their various distances. These
evolutions, often repeated, destroy the shape and cohe¬
rence of the several arches, though they doubtless retain
the arched appearance to the eye of a spectator at the
southern horizon; for it would be absurd to suppose that
these changes occur only in the zenith of one particular
place. The observations at different places in 1820 af¬
ford satisfactory proof to the contrary; and the number
of arches often increased or diminished in their advance
to the zenith, by a dismemberment of which, from their
distance, we could not distinguish the particulars. How¬
ever, their several parts passed gradually to the south¬
ward, where they assumed the form of an arch. They
are also sometimes distributed into flashes, and other de¬
tached portions, which pass to the south-eastward. The
revolution of an arch from north to south occupies a space
of time varying from twenty minutes to two hours. At
Cumberland House, the arches were in many instances
almost stationary for several hours, a proof that if their
motion was not slower, their distance from the earth was
greater, than at Fort Enterprize. The arches, which are
faint at the horizon, very frequently pass the zenith with¬
out any increase of brilliancy or apparent internal motion.
“ The second general class of aurorae are those which
propagate themselves from different points of the compass,
between north and west towards the opposite points;
sometimes also originating in the south-east quarter, and
extending themselves towards the north-west. They may
be subdivided, like the former, into the distant arches
which pass to the southward without much visible change
in their appearance, and those which discover beams, and
separate at intervals into wreaths, flashes, and irregular
segments, exhibiting all the phenomena described above.
In explaining the mode by which the two general classes
of aurorae are conducted into the horizon, I shall call the
motion of the arches, which is in a plane seldom deviat¬
ing more than two points from the magnetic meridian,
the direct motion ; and that by which the aurorae propa¬
gate themselves nearly at right angles to the magnetic
meridian, the lateral motion. Let us suppose a mass of
aurorae to be modelled at its birth in a longitudinal form,
crossing the meridians at various angles, the whole to be
impelled with a direct motion towards the magnetic south,
but the parts having different velocities, and each extre¬
mity continually removing itself by a lateral motion from
the centre, so as to increase the length of the mass. If
the centre enter the northern horizon, it will appear like
an arch, the real extremities being invisible; and its di¬
rect motion will carry it to the southward in that form.
But if one extremity first enter the horizon, it will extend
itself by its lateral motion to the opposite point, passing,
at the same time, by its direct motion to the southward.
Of the unequal velocities of the parts, we had many in¬
stances, in the direct motion of the arches, by which the
centres were often carried from the zenith sixty or seventy
degrees to the southward, while the extremities did not ma¬
terially alter their positions. Nor can this be accounted
for by any application of the rules of perspective, because
arches exactly similar sometimes changed the bearings of
their extremities in proportion to the advance of their
centres; and at Cumberland House, on two occasions, Aurora
the extremities of arches arrived at the east and west Borealis,
points of the compass, while their centres remained only
ten degrees above the northern horizon.”
It was for a long time matter of doubt whether this me- Aurora
teor made its appearance only in the northern hemisphere, Austrahs-
or whether it was also to be observed near the south pole.
But the occurrence of the aurora in the antarctic regions
was clearly ascertained by Mr Forster, who, in his voyage
round the world with Captain Cook, observed it in the
high southern latitudes, though with phenomena some¬
what different from those which are seen here. On the
17th February 1773, when the navigators were in latitude
58° south, “ a beautiful phenomenon was observed,” says
Mr Forster, “ during the preceding night, which appear¬
ed again this and several following nights. It consisted
of long columns of a clear white light, shooting up from
the horizon to the eastward, almost to the zenith, and
gradually spreading on the whole southern part of the sky.
These columns were sometimes bent sidewise at their
upper extremities ; and though in most respects similar to
the northern lights (aurora borealis) of our hemisphere,
yet differed from them in being always of a whitish colour,
whereas ours assume various tints, especially those of a
fiery and purple hue. The sky was generally clear when
they appeared, and the air sharp and cold, the thermometer
standing at the freezing point.” The accounts of subse¬
quent navigators, particularly Weddell, though given more
in detail, differ in no material respect from that just quot¬
ed, and therefore need not be cited at length. They prove
that this splendid meteor is not confined to the northern,
but occurs also in the southern regions of the globe,
though with considerable diversity in the accompanying
phenomena.
Colour.—The colours of the polar lights are of various
tints. The rays or beams are steel gray, yellowish gray,
pea-green, celandine green, gold yellow, violet blue, purple,
sometimes rose red, crimson red, blood red, greenish red,
orange red, and lake red. Some of the beams appear as
if tinged with black, and resemble dense columns of smoke.
The arches are sometimes nearly black, passing into violet
blue, gray, gold yellow, or white bounded by an edge of
yellow. The colours are also sometimes vivid and prisma¬
tic. Maupertuis describes a very remarkable red-coloured
polar light which he saw at Oswer Zornea on the 18th
December 1786. An extensive region of the heavens
towards the south appeared tinged of so lively a red,
that the whole constellation Orion seemed as if dyed in
blood. The light was for some time fixed, but soon be¬
came movable; and after having successively assumed all
the tints of violet and blue, it formed a dome, of which
the summit approached the zenith in the south-west. Its
splendour was so great as to be in no degree affected
by the bright light of the moon. Maupertuis adds, that
he observed only two of these northern lights in Lapland,
which are of very rare occurrence in that country, al¬
though the aurora there assumes a great variety of tints;
hence they are considered by the natives as of portentous
omen, and as the forerunner of some great calamity.
These red-coloured polar lights have of late years been
observed in the Shetland Islands ; in many parts of Scot¬
land, as in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh; and in Eng¬
land, from its northern to its southern extremity.
Lustre of the Polar Lights.—The lustre varies in kind
as well as intensity. Sometimes it is pearly, sometimes
imperfectly vitreous, sometimes also metallic. Its degree
of intensity varies from a very faint radiance to a light
nearly equalling that of the moon.
Progressive Motions.—The reverend James Farquharson
states that “the aurora borealis follows a determinate order
AURORA BOREALIS.
198
Aurora in its appearance and progress; that the streamers or beams
Borealis, generally appear first in the north, forming an arch from
east to west, having its vertex at the line of the magnetic
meridian ; that when this arch is yet only of low elevation,
it is of considerable breadth from north to south, having
the streamers of which it is composed placed crossways in
relation to its own line, and all directed towards a point
a little south of the zenith ; that the arch moves forward
towards the south, contracting its lateral dimensions as it
approaches the zenith, and increasing in intensity of light
by the shortening of the streamers near the magnetic me¬
ridian and the gradual shifting of the angles which the
streamers near the east and west extremities of the arch
make with its own line, till at length these streamers be¬
come parallel to that line, and then the arch is seen as a
narrow belt, 3° or 4° only in breadth, extending across
the zenith at right angles to the magnetic meridian;
that it still makes progress southwards; and, after it has
reached several degrees south of the zenith, again en¬
larges in breadth, by exhibiting an order of appearances
the reverse of that which had attended its progress to¬
wards the zenith from the north; and that the only con¬
ditions which can explain these appearances are, that the
streamers of the aurora are vertical, or nearly so, and
form a deep fringe or arch, which stretches a great way
from east to west at right angles to the magnetic meri¬
dian, but which is of no great thickness from north to
south; and that the arch moves southward, preserving
its direction at right angles to the magnetic meridian.”
The same gentleman elsewhere remarks, that “ the whole
lights in the north part of the sky made a rapid pro¬
gress southward; and the manner of this progress was
repeatedly finely exhibited in the fringes and fragments
that had reached or passed the zenith, by the extinction
of streamers at their northern faces, and the formation of
new ones at their southern faces. The advanced southern
fringe expired when it had reached about 25° south of
the zenith; and all did so, either when they attained a
similar angle south, or before they had gone so far. The
confused mass of streamers in the north, as they came for¬
ward in succession to the zenith, and passed that point,
unfolded themselves into narrow zones of light at right
angles to the magnetic meridian, or very nearly so; for
there was occasionally a small deviation from parallelism
among themselves. The zones were more numerous than
usual, and were separated from each other by less inter¬
vals, sometimes not exceeding 3° or 4°, sometimes, how¬
ever, 15° or 20°.” (Edinh. Phil Mag.)
Height of the Polar Lights.—Opinions differ as to the
elevation of the aurora borealis above the surface of the
earth, which is a point that can be determined only by a
series of accurate observations. Dr Halley observed that
the aurora described by him rose to a prodigious height,
it being seen from the west of Ireland to the confines of
Russia and Poland on the east, nor did he know how
much farther it might have been visible; so that it ex¬
tended at least 30 degrees in longitude, and from latitude
50 degrees N. it was seen over all the northern part of
Europe ; and, what was very surprising, in all those places
where it was visible, the same general appearances were
exhibited which Dr Plalley noticed at London. But he ob¬
serves, with seeming regret, that he could by no means
determine its height for want of observations made at differ¬
ent places; otherwise he might easily have calculated the
i o ^ rf i?6 aurora’ as that of the luminous ball of
1719. rather Boscovich, says he, determined the height of
an aurora borealis, observed on the 16th of December 1737
by the Marquis of Poleni, to have been 825 miles; Berg-
mann, from a mean of thirty computations, makes the ave¬
rage height of the aurora borealis to be 70 Swedish or
upwards of 460 English miles; Euler supposes it to be A a
several thousands of miles in height; and Mairan also as- ho is,
signs it a very elevated region. In the 74th volume of ^
the Philosophical Transactions Dr Blagden, speaking of
the height of some fiery meteors, remarks that the “ auro¬
ra borealis appears to occupy as high if not a higher region
above the surface of the earth, as may be judged from the
very distant countries to which it has been visible at the
same time.” On the 22d October 1804 it is said that the
same polar light was seen at the same time in Saxony and
in Liefland. Mr Dalton of Manchester, in a paper read
to the Royal Society of London on the 17th April 1828,
describes a polar light which he observed on the 29th
March 1826, assuming the form of a regular arch at right
angles to the magnetic meridian, and continuing for above
an hour in the same position; thus affording a favourable
opportunity for obtaining the data requisite for determin¬
ing its height. He took great pains to collect as many
authentic accounts as possible of the apparent position
of this luminous arch with reference to the stars, when
seen from various places where it had been observed in
England and in Scotland. And according to Mr Dal¬
ton’s view of the distribution of the meteor, it appears to
have been seen in places 170 miles distant from one ano¬
ther in a north and south direction, and 45 miles distant
from east to west, thus comprising an area of 7000 or
8000 square miles; but it musfhave been visible over a
much greater extent. Accounts were received of its hav¬
ing been seen as far north as Edinburgh, and as far south
as Manchester and Doncaster, and at most of the inter¬
mediate towns. From the exact correspondence of the
descriptions at all these places, it was inferred that they
referred to the same individual luminous appearance. In
proceeding from north to south, the apparent altitude of
the arch continually increased, still keeping the south of
the zenith to the distance of Kendal, at which place it
very nearly crossed the zenith. At Warrington, which is
farther south, the culminating point of the arch was north
of the zenith; and, wherever seen, the arch always seemed
to terminate nearly in the magnetic east and west, at two
opposite points of the horizon. The observations in which
the author placed the greatest confidence for determining
the height of the aurora were those made at Whitehaven
and at Warrington, places which are distant 83 miles
from each other, and situated nearly on the same mag¬
netic meridian. Calculating from the data they afford,
he found the height of the arch very nearly 100 miles
above the surface of the earth, and immediately over the
towns of Kendal and Kirkby-Stephen. This conclusion is
countenanced by observations made at Jedburgh; yet if
the former be compared with those at Edinburgh, the
height will come out to be 150 or 160 miles, and the
position vertical above Carlisle; but he thinks the former
result more entitled to confidence. Assuming the height
to be 100 miles, it follows that the breadth of the arch
would be eight or nine miles; and its visible length, in an
easterly and westerly direction from any one place, would
be about 550 miles.
But we are disposed to reject these calculations of
Dalton, because from the particular details in his memoirs,
and the known distribution of the aurorae, it is highly pro¬
bable that the aurorae said by him to have been seen at
the same time at great distances were different aurorae,
and then not much elevated above the clouds. Indeed Mr
rarquharson, in the Philosophical Transactions, part i. 1829,
when discussing the value of Mr Dalton’s observations,
thinks that the observations made from Edinburgh to War¬
rington might be explained on the supposition that there
were several nearly vertical arches of the aurora, almost
contemporaneously hanging over many lines from Edin*
AURORA BOREALIS. 19!)
i rc burgh to Warrington, at a few thousand feet above the sur-
fcrea face. The observations of Dr Richardson, Captain Franklin,
* Lieutenant Hood, and others, render it highly probable that
many polar lights occur at heights not higher than the re-
mon of clouds. Dr Richardson’s observations seem to show
that the aurora is occasionally seated in a region of the at¬
mosphere, below a kind of cloud which is known to possess
no great altitude, namely, that modification of cirro-stratus
which, descending low in the atmosphere, produces a hazy
sheet of cloud over-head, or a fog-bank in the horizon. In¬
deed Dr Richardson is inclined to infer that the aurora bo¬
realis is constantly accompanied by, or immediately pre¬
cedes, the formation of one or other of the forms of cirro-
stratus. On the 13th of November and 18th December
1826, at Fort Enterprize, its connection with a cloud inter¬
mediate between cirrus and cirro-stratus is mentioned; but
the most vivid coruscations of the aurora were observed
when there were only a few thin attenuated shoots of cirro-
stratus floating in the air, or when that cloud was so rare
that its existence was only known by the production of a
halo round the moon. The natives of the arctic regions of
North America pretend to foretell wind by the rapidity
of the motions of the aurora; and they say, that when it
spreads over the sky in a uniform sheet of light, it is follow¬
ed by fine weather, and that the changes thus indicated are
more or less speedy, according as the appearance of the
meteor is early or late in the evening; an opinion not im¬
probable, when it is recollected that certain kinds of cirro-
stratus are also regarded by meteorologists as sure indi¬
cations of rain and wind. Dr Richardson frequently ob¬
served the lower surface of nebulous masses illuminated
by polar lights; a fact illustrative of the comparatively low
situation of these aurorae. Biot, also, in the island of Unst,
observed many aurorae that could not be higher than the re¬
gion of clouds. Captain Franklin in like manner observed
low aurorae. “ The important fact,” says he, “ of the exist¬
ence of the aurora at a less elevation than that of dense
clouds was evinced on two or three occasions this night
(13th February 1821, at Fort Enterprize), and particularly
at 11 hours 50 min., when a brilliant mass of light, varie¬
gated with the prismatic colours, passed between an uni¬
form steady dense cloud and the earth, and in its pro¬
gress completely concealed that portion of the cloud
which the stream of light covered, until the coruscation
had passed over it, when the cloud appeared as before.”
Captain Parry, as stated in his third voyage, observed
aurorae near to the earth’s surface. It is said that while
Lieutenants Scherer and Ross and Captain Parry were ad¬
miring the extreme beauty of a polar light, they all simul¬
taneously uttered an exclamation of surprise at seeing a
bright ray of the aurora shoot suddenly downward from
the general mass of light, and between them and the land,
which was only three thousand yards distant. The ray or
beam of the polar light thus passed within a distance of three
thousand yards, or less than two miles, of them. Further,
Mr Farquharson observed in Aberdeenshire an aurora bo¬
realis not more than four thousand feet above the level of
the sea; and he agrees with Richardson, Franklin, &c., in
believing that the aurorae occur in a region immediately
above that of the clouds, and of course vary in height
with the different states of the atmosphere. But al¬
though this region was very low on the 20th December
1829, in the polar light seen from Alford, we know that
at times it is several miles high, agreeing with the observa¬
tions of these intelligent travellers. We have frequently
seen the aurora when the height of the clouds could not be
estimated at less than two or three miles, and at other
times not higher than a thousand or fifteen hundred feet.
Position of the Polar Lights.—The arches of the polar
fights generally cross the magnetic meridian at right
angles; when two or more appear at once they are con- Aurora
centric, and tend to the magnetic east and west. The Borealis,
beams or streamers in the direction of their length coin-
cide with the plane of the dip of the needle, or nearly so ;
and each individual streamer is, in fact, parallel to the dip¬
ping needle. Dr Richardson thinks he has observed a pola¬
rity in the masses of cloud belonging to a certain kind of
cirro-stratus approaching to cirrus, by which their long dia¬
meters, having all the same direction, were made to cross
the magnetic meridian nearly at right angles. But the ap¬
parent convergence of such masses of cloud towards the
opposite points of the horizon, which have been so frequent¬
ly noticed by meteorologists, is an optical deception, pro¬
duced when they are situated in a plane parallel to that on
which the observer stands. These circumstances, says Dr
Richardson, are here noticed, because, if it shall hereafter
be proved that the aurora depends upon the existence of
certain clouds, its apparent polarity may perhaps, with
more propriety, be ascribed to the clouds themselves
which emit the light; or, in other words, the clouds may
assume their peculiar arrangement through the operation
of one cause (magnetism, for example), while the emission
of light may be produced by another, namely, a change in
their internal constitution, perhaps connected with a mo¬
tion of the electrical fluid.
Magnetic Property of the Polar Lights.—Many years ago
philosophers remarked that the magnetic needle was agi¬
tated during polar lights; and hence it was inferred that
these lights were somehow connected with magnetism
Other observers, again, maintained that these observa¬
tions must be erroneous, as they could not in any instance
perceive the compass affected by the presence of this me¬
teor. But the late observations, of Biot, Hansteen, Gay-
Lussac, Kupfer, and particularly of Richardson, Frank¬
lin, and Farquharson, have demonstrated that the magnetic
needle is affected by the polar lights. As the fact is one of
the most curious in meteorology, we shall now state some
particulars illustrative of its nature. In Captain Frank¬
lin’s observations, the horizontal compass was placed in a
firm sheltered stand, fixed to the back wall of the house
at Fort Enterprize, three feet above the ground, on a
northern exposure; and the dipping needle was similarly
fixed to the end of the storehouse, at the distance of forty
feet. There was no iron near either of them. The house
stood on a sand-hill, and there were no large stones in
its immediate neighbourhood. The horizontal compass
belonged to a small variation transit made by L)ollond;
and its graduated scale, of one and a half inch radius, wras
divided into degrees, the degrees counting from north to¬
wards west to 360. Each degree was subdivided into 20,
and, by the assistance of a magnifying glass, he could read
it off accurately to within three minutes. The horizontal
position was preserved by means of a spirit-level attached
to the instrument.
The manner in which the needle is affected by the au-Action of
rora will require some description. “ The motion com-the polar
municated to it,” says Captain Franklin, “ was neither sud-™
den nor vibratory. Sometimes it was simultaneous Avith pasg<
the formation of arches, prolongation of beams, or certain
other changes of form or action of the aurora. But gene¬
rally the effect of these phenomena upon the needle was
not visible immediately, but in about half an hour or an
hour the needle had attained its maximum of deviation.
From this its return to its former position was very gra¬
dual, seldom regaining it before the following morning,
and frequently not until the afternoon, unless it was ex¬
pedited by another arch of the aurora operating in a di¬
rection different from the former one.
“ The arches of the aurora,” he adds, “ most commonly
traverse the sky nearly at right angles to the magnetic
200
AURORA BOREALIS.
Aurora meridian, but the deviations from this direction, as has
Borealis. been already stated, were not rare ; and I am inclined to
consider that these different positions of the aurora have
considerable influence upon the direction of the needle.
When an arch was nearly at right angles to the magnetic
meridian, the motion of the needle was towards the west;
this westward motion was still greater when one extre¬
mity of an arch bore 301°, or about 59° to the west of
the magnetic north, that is, when the extremity of the
arch approached from the west towards the magnetic
north. A westerly motion also took place when the ex¬
tremity of an arch was in the true north, or about 36°
to the west of the magnetic north, but not in so great a
degree as when its bearing was about 301°. A contrary
effect was produced when the same end of an arch ori¬
ginated to the southward of the magnetic west, viz. when
it bore from about 245° to 234°, and, of course, when
its opposite extremity approached nearer to the magnetic
north. In these cases the motion of the needle was to¬
wards the east. In one instance only a complete arch was
formed in the magnetic meridian; in another, the beam
shot up from the magnetic north to the zenith; and in
both these cases the needle moved towards the west.
“ The needle was most disturbed on February 13, p. m.,
at a time when the aurora was most distinctly seen pass¬
ing between a stratum of clouds and the earth, or at least
illuminating the face of the clouds opposed to the obser¬
ver. This and several other appearances induced me to
infer that the distance of the aurora from the earth varied
on different nights, and produced a proportionate effect on
the needle. When the light shone through a dense hazy
atmosphere, when there was a halo round the moon, or
when a small snow was falling, the disturbance was gene¬
rally considerable ; and on certain hazy cloudy nights the
needle frequently deviated in a considerable degree, al¬
though the aurora was not visible at the time. Our ob¬
servations do not enable us to decide whether this ought
to be attributed to an aurora concealed by a cloud or haze,
or entirely to the state of the atmosphere. Similar devia¬
tions have been observed in the day-time, both in a clear
and cloudy state of the sky, but more frequently in the
latter case. Upon one occasion the aurora was seen im¬
mediately after sunset, whilst bright day-light was remain¬
ing. A circumstance to which I attach some importance
must not be omitted. Clouds have been sometimes ob¬
served during the day to assume the forms of the aurora,
and I am inclined to connect with the appearance of these
clouds the deviation of the needle, which was occasionally
remarked at such times. An aurora sometimes approached
the zenith without producing any change in the position
of the needle, as was more generally the case; whilst at
other times a considerable alteration took place although
the beams or arches did not come near the zenith. The
am ora was frequently seen without producing any percep¬
tible effect on the needle. At such times its appearance
was that of an arch, or an horizontal stream of dense yel¬
lowish light, with little or no internal motion. The dis¬
turbance in the needle was not always proportionate to the
agitation of the aurora, but it was always greater when
t ie quick motion and vivid light were observed to take
place in a hazy atmosphere. In a few instances, the mo¬
tion or the needle was observed to commence at the in¬
stant a beam darted upwards from the horizon; and its
former position was more quickly or slowly regained ac-
cor ing to circumstances. If an arch was formed imme¬
diately afterwards, having its extremities placed on op¬
posite sides of the magnetic north and south to the former
one, the return of the needle was more speedy, and it ge¬
nerally went beyond the point from whence it first started.”
A senes of interesting observations on this subject were
also made in December 1829, by the reverend James Far- ji
quharson, F. R. S., of Aberdeenshire, with an apparatus B ^
transmitted to him by the Royal Society of London. This ^ v
apparatus consisted of a horizontal brass circle, about one
foot in diameter, graduated to divisions of ten minutes,
and capable of adjustment to a perfect level by means of
spirit levels and screwed feet. Concentrically within this
divided circle moved a circular horizontal brass plate, its
edge touching the divisions, and having at opposite points
two verniers, which, by means of attached microscopes,
indicated the movements which it made to 60th parts of
ten minutes, or 10". The movement of the plate within
the circle was effected by means of a screw. A circular
brass needle-box was attached to the surface of the inner
plate, and a vertical pointed steel wire for supporting the
needle formed the centre. At opposite points in the
needle-box were fixed two micrometers, with cross wires
in the foci, for adjusting the needle to a level, and observ¬
ing any change in its direction. The top of the needle-
box was a circular plate of ground glass in a brass ring,
made to slip easily off' and on, and having screwed into
its centre a vertical brass tube about eight inches long,
for the purpose of suspending the needle with fibres of
silk, for measuring the time of its oscillations. A horizon¬
tal brass pin, with a minute perforation for the silk near
its middle, passed through the vertical tube near its top,
and being contrived with several motions, served to ad¬
just the suspended needle, and bring it correctly over the
steel point, where its levelling could be completely ascer¬
tained. The magnetic needle itself was a rectangular plate
about five inches long, half an inch broad, and ^th of an
inch thick. An agate cup set in brass admitted of being
screwed in either at the narrow or flat side of the needle;
and a little fixed ring of brass, with a minute perforation
in its top, rising over the cup, admitted of the ready at¬
tachment of the silk; so that the needle could be placed
on the steel point, or suspended with the silk, with its flat
face either vertical or horizontal. This apparatus mea¬
sured, with great accuracy, very minute changes in the
declination of the needle, one so small as 10" being quite
sensible by it.
The observations made with this apparatus, and pub¬
lished in the Transactions of the Royal Society of London
for 1830, also show, in a most satisfactory manner, that the
magnetic needle is actually affected by the presence of the
polar lights. They equally prove that the needle is not in
every instance agitated by the polar lights, even when they
are very brilliant; the oscillations taking place only when
the beams or fringes of the meteor are in the same plane
with the dip of the needle. But as the needle is affected
in those planes only where the fringes or arches are in the
plane just mentioned, it is evident that observers in dif¬
ferent latitudes may obtain very discordant results in the
same evening. The observations collected by Dalton, of
the appearance of the aurora of the 29th March 1826,
prove that many fringes or arches may be parallel to each
other at remote distances; and the observations of the
President of the Royal Society, on a luminous arch in
Cornwall, 29th September 1828, which appeared simulta¬
neously with a remarkable aurora of many arches extending
over the whole of Aberdeenshire, show that the meteor
is sometimes active over a space nearly coincident with the
extent of the kingdom; and there is reason for believing
that it often extends much farther. There might, there¬
fore, be an extensive succession of observations of distur¬
bance and non-disturbance of the needle at the same in¬
stant from north to south over many degrees of latitude.
Noises from the Aurora Borealis.—Having, many years
ago, both in this country and in the Shetland Islands, heard
very distinctly noises proceeding from the polar lights, we
—-
AURORA BOREALIS.
?()]
Aur
Sort
have always given full credit to the statements of those Oh¬
s’ servers who have published accounts of this fact. It is true
^ that late observers, as Scoresby,1 Richardson,2 Franklin,
Parry, and Hood, never heard such noises, although they
do not deny that they may have been heard. Thus Rich¬
ardson says, “ I have never heard any sound that could
be unequivocally considered as originating in the aurora;
but the uniform testimony of the natives, both Crees and
Copper Indians, and Esquimaux, and of all the older resi¬
dents in the country, induces me to believe that its mo¬
tions are sometimes audible.” Captain Franklin says, “ I
have not heard the noise ascribed to the aurora, but the
uniform testimony of the natives and of the residents in
this country induces me to believe that it is occasionally
audible.” Parry frequently listened for sounds, from the
polar lights, but never heard any. Lieutenant Hood says
(Franklin’s Narrative, p. 535), “ We repeatedly heard a
hissing noise, like that of a musket bullet passing through
the air, which seemed to proceed from the aurora ; but Mr
Wentzel assured us that this noise was occasioned by se¬
vere cold succeeding mild weather, and acting upon the
surface of the snow previously melted in the sun’s rays.
The temperature of the air was then — 35°, and on the
two preceding days it had been above zero. The next
morning it was — 42°, and we frequently heard a simi¬
lar noise. Mr Hearn’s description of. the noise of the
aurora agrees exactly with Mr Wentzel’s, and with that
of every other person who heard it. It would be an
absurd scepticism to doubt the fact any longer, for our
observations have rather increased than diminished the
probability of it.” Muschenbroeck says that the Green¬
land fishers in his time assured him that they had fre¬
quently heard noises proceeding from the aurora borea¬
lis. Mr Nairne is confident that he has heard a hiss¬
ing and whizzing noise when the polar lights were very
bright; and Mr Cavallo affirms that he more than once
heard a crackling noise from polar lights. Giesecke, who
resided so long in West or Old Greenland, says, “ the polar
lights sometimes appear very low, and then they are much
agitated, and a crashing and crackling sound is heard, like
that of an electric spark, or the falling of hail.” Professor
Parrot of Dorpat describes a magnificent polar light he
witnessed on the 22d October 1804, from which a crackling
and rustling noise proceeded. “ We learn from the inhabit¬
ants,” says Captain Brooke, in hisinteresting travels through
Norway, “ with respect to the polar or northern lights, that
they had frequently heard the noise that sometimes at¬
tends them, which they describe like that of a rushing
wind. At Hammerfest they said they were violent, and
descended so low that it would appear almost possible to
touch them.” In a letter from Mr Ramm of Tonset in
Norway, addressed to Professor Hansteen, and published
ln the Magazin fur Naturwidenskaberne, Christiana, 1825,
we are told that he several times heard a quick whispering
noise simultaneously with the motion of the beams of the
polar lights. In the same journal, Professor Hansteen says,
“ The polar regions being in reality the native country of
the polar light, we ought to be particularly interested in
obtaining any additional information on the natural history
of this remarkable phenomenon; and we have so many
certain accounts of the noise attending it, that the nega¬
tive experience of southern nations cannot be brought in
opposition to our positive knowledge. Unfortunately, we
hve, since the beginning of this century, in one of the great
pauses of this phenomenon ; so that the present generation
knows but little of it from personal observation. It would
therefore be very agreeable to receive, from older people, Aurora
observations of this kind, made in their youth, when the Borealis,
aurora borealis showed itself in full splendour. It can be
proved mathematically that the rays of the northern lights
ascend from the surface of the earth, in a direction inclin¬
ing towards the south (an inclination which, with us, forms
an angle of about 73°). If, then, this light occupies the
whole northern sky, rising more than 17° above the zenith,
the rays must proceed from under the feet of the observer,
although they do not receive their reflecting power till they
have reached a considerable elevation, perhaps beyond our
atmosphere. It is therefore conceivable why we should
frequently hear a noise attending the northern lights,
when the inhabitants of southern countries, who see the
phenomenon at a distance of many hundred miles, hear
no report whatever. Wargentin, in the fifteenth volume
of the Transactions of the Swedish Academy, says, that
Dr Gisler and Mr Hellant, who had resided for some time
in the north of Swreden, made, at the request of the aca¬
demy, a report of their observations on the aurora borea¬
lis.” To these observations Professor Hansteen adds, that
Captain Abrahamson, in the Transactions of the Scandi¬
navian Literary Society, has given an account of several
observations of noises that were heard proceeding from
the northern lights. The professor concludes with stating
that he himself knows several persons who have distinctly
heard the same sounds; he expresses his surprise that a
fact so well established should be called in question; and
he relates, with some sharpness, a conversation he once
had on this subject with an Englishman, who remarked
that the Norwegian tales of noises proceeding from polar
lights were akin to the ghost stories of this country.
Theory of the Aurora Borealis.—The theory of this
phenomenon is involved in the copious details which have
been given under the different foregoing heads; and, in¬
deed, from all that is known, it appears reasonable to infer
that it is intimately connected with electricity and magne¬
tism. “ The aurora borealis,” says Dr Young, “ is certainly
in some measure a magnetical phenomenon; and if iron
were the only substance capable of exhibiting magnetic
effects, it would follow that some ferruginous particles must
exist in the upper regions of the atmosphere. The light
usually attending this magnetical meteor may possibly be
derived from electricity, which maybe the immediate cause
of a change in the distribution of the magnetic fluid con¬
tained in the ferruginous vapours which are imagined to
float in the air.” (Lectures, vol. i. p. 687.) This assump¬
tion of ferruginous particles or vapours, however, seems pure¬
ly gratuitous and imaginary; and as iron is not the only sub¬
stance or matter capable of exhibiting magnetic effects,
light itself being susceptible of polarization, the above hy¬
pothesis is therefore untenable even on the ground on which
it has been rested by its author. But it is nevertheless cer¬
tain that the cause of this luminous meteor is intimately
connected with magnetism and electricity; or rather, as
the magnetic is variously modified and affected by the
electric power, with the phenomena of electro-magnetism.
“ It is doubtful,” says Dr Young in another place, “ whether
the light of the aurora borealis may not be of an electric
nature; the phenomenon is certainly connected with the
general cause of magnetismand he refers in support of
this opinion to the ascertained fact that the primitive beams
or rays of light are constantly observed in a direction paral¬
lel to that of the dipping needle; adding, that “ although the
substance be magnetical, the illumination which renders it
visible may still be derived from the passage of electricity,
1 Arctic Regions, and Journal of a Voyage to the Northern Whale Fishery.
8 Remarks on the Aurora Borealis, in Franklin and Richardson’s Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea.
2 c
VOL. IV.
202
A U R
Aurora at too great a distance to be discovered by any other test.”
Borealis. (Lectures, vol. i. p. 716.) The fact is, that in magnetism,
the agency of electricity is now clearly made out, and they
are shown to stand to each other in the relation of effect
and cause, at least in as far as that all the phenomena of
magnetism are producible by electricity; but no electric
phenomena have ever been hitherto produced by magne¬
tism. (JAer&cheYs Preliminary Discotirse, Hence
the aurora “ is certainly connected with the general cause
of magnetism,” in as far as it is a joint result or effect of
the cause by which it is now known that all the phenome¬
na of magnetism are producible ; but this connection is one
of relation or coincidence merely; and hence it is to the
agency of electricity that the phenomena of the aurora are
primarily to be ascribed. “ This wonderful agent,” says Mr
Herschel, “ which we see in intense activity in lightning,
and in a feebler and more diffused form traversing the upper
regions of the atmosphere in the northern lights, is pre¬
sent, probably in immense abundance, in every form of mat¬
ter which surrounds us, but becomes sensible only when
disturbed by excitements of peculiar kinds.” (Prelim. Dis¬
course, p. 329, 330.) Mr Canton, likewise, conceives that
the aurora is occasioned by the rapid transition or passage
of electrical matter from positive towards negative clouds,
throughout the upper region of the atmosphere, where the
resistance is the least; but he supposes that the aurora
which appears at the time when the magnetic needle is dis¬
turbed is not the cause of this disturbance, which he at¬
tributes to the heat of the earth, and that it is merely the
electricity of the heated air above, disengaged chiefly in
the northern regions, wdiere the alteration in the tempera¬
ture of the air is greatest. Be this as it may, however, the
experiment contrived by Mr Canton shows clearly that the
phenomena of the aurora are intimately connected with, or
rather consequent on, a particular constitution of the at¬
mosphere in regard to density and electricity. If, for ex¬
ample, a glass tube about three feet in length be partially
exhausted of air, hermetically sealed, and then applied
longitudinally to the prime conductor of an electrical ma¬
chine, the whole tube will be illuminated from end to end,
and this illumination will continue for a considerable time
after it has been removed from the conductor. If, again,
the tube be drawn through the hand either way, the light
will become remarkably intense throughout its whole length;
and although a great part of the electricity will bedischarg-
ed.by this operation, the tube will nevertheless emit flashes
at intervals, if held by one extremity and kept quite steady;
while, if grasped by the other hand at a different place,
vivid flashes of light will dart from one end to the other,
and continue to be emitted for a considerable time with¬
out any fresh excitation. It is to be observed, however,
that if the density of the air included in the tube be either
increased or diminished beyond a certain limit, none of
these luminous appearances will be exhibited; and it is
this circumstance which shows that the phenomena of the
aurora depend on a certain constitution of the atmosphere
in point of density and electricity, and that the meteoric
appearances or coruscations can never attain the elevation
ascribed to them by some philosophers, but must in every
case be confined within the limits of our atmosphere, con¬
formably to the observations of Biot and others already
detailed. Beccaria, indeed, conjectures that there is a
constant and regular circulation of the electric fluid from
north to south ; and he gives it as his opinion that the
am oi a boiealis is this electric matter performing its transit
south war ds, in a state of the atmosphere which renders it
visible, or approaching nearer than usual to the earth. But
such a transition or circulation as that here suggested
could only be produced by the diurnal revolution of the
cal th i ound its axis; and as the meteor is observed in the
A U R
southern with nearly the same appearances as in the Au
northern hemisphere, there must consequently be a circu- 1
lation from south to north as well as from north to south;J
in other words, if there be any such tendency as that
which Beccaria supposes, it must proceed equally or nearly
so from both poles towards the equator. The following
is a list of the most important papers, treatises, and works
on this subject: Berlin Mem. 1710, i. 131; Halley, Phil.
Trans. Yl\Q), 1719, xxix. 406, xxx. 584; Hearne, Phil.
Trans, xxx. 1107 ; Langworth, Huxham, Hallet, and Cal-
lendrini, Phil. Trans, xxxiv. 132, 150; Maier, C. Petr.
iv. 121 ; Mairan, Traite de VAurore Boreale, 1733, 1754;
Weidler, de Aurora Boreali, 4 ; Wargentin, Phil. Trans.
1751, p. 126, and History, 1752, p. 169, 1753, p. 85;
Bergmann, Schw. Ahh. 200, 251 ; Wiedeburg, iiber die
Nordlichter, 8, Jena, 1771 ; Hiipsch, Vntersuchung des
Nordlichts, 8, Cologne, 1778; Van Swinden, Recueil de
Memoires, Hague, 1784 ; Cavallo, Phil. Trans. 1781, p.
329 ; E. M. Physique, art. Aurore Boreale; Wilke von
den Neuesten Erhldrungen des Nordlichts, Schwedisches
Mus. 8, Wismar, 1783; Hey, Wollaston, Hutchinson,
Franklin, Pigott, and Cavendish, Phil. Trans. 1790, pp.
32, 47, 101; Dalton’s Meteorological Observations, 1793,
p. 54, 153; Chiminello on a Luminous Arch, Soc. Ital.
vii. 153 ; Ritter on the Lunar Periods of the Aurora, Gilb
xv. 206.
AURUNGABAD, a large province of Hindostan, in
the Deccan, about 300 miles in length by 160 in average
breadth. It is situated principally between the 18th and
19th degrees of north latitude, and is bounded on the north
by Gujerat, Khandeish, and Berar; on the east by Beeder;
on the south by Bejapoor, from which it is separated by the
Neera and Beema rivers; and on the west by the Indian
Ocean. The great chain of the Ghauts runs through this
province in a direction north and south, at the distance
of about 100 miles from the Indian Ocean, and rises to a
very considerable elevation; and the surface of the country,
particularly in their neighbourhood, is irregular, and in ge¬
neral mountainous. The rivers which rise on the western
declivity of these mountains, and flow into the Indian
Ocean, have necessarily a short course, and are inconsi¬
derable in size; while those again which have their sources
on the eastern declivity of the mountains, and flow east¬
ward into the Bay of Bengal, such as the Beema, the
Neera, and the Godavery, do not attain any considerable
size until they are beyond the limits of this province.
Rice is the great staple of agriculture, especially in the
lower districts, which are in general fertile, and, besides
supplying the wants of the inhabitants, yield a surplus
for exportation. A different mode of agriculture is how¬
ever followed in the higher districts. The other vegeta¬
ble productions, besides rice, are the same as in other parts
of Hindostan. Horses of a hardy breed are reared in great
numbers for the Mahratta caValry; but they are neither
strong nor handsome, though they suit the light weight of
the riders for whom they are intended. A great proportion
of this province, and almost all the sea-coast, were long
in possession of the Mahrattas, who were pirates by sea
as well as robbers by land: they seldom ventured on the
ocean except as pirates, and they continued their preda¬
tory habits by sea and by land until they were restrained
by the strong arm of British power. Three-fourths of
the province were formerly subject to the Peishwa, and
the remainder to the Nizam; with the exception of the
islands of Bombay, Salsette, and a few tracts on the main
land. The inhabitants are not supposed to exceed six
millions, of whom not above one-twentietb are of the Ma¬
hometan persuasion. The language commonly used is the
Mahratta, but there are besides various provincial dialects.
Aurungabad, the capital of the above province, which
A U S
A U S 203
,z was formerly named Gurka. It was the capital of the
Mogul conquests; and having become the favourite resi-
ia' dence of Aurungzebe during his viceroyalty of the Dec-
J can, it received the name of Aurungabad, from which the
name of the province was derived. The city contained
the capital of the modern Nizams after they became in¬
dependent of Delhi, until they quitted it for Hyderabad.
The city has fallen from its ancient grandeur. The inte¬
rior is but half peopled and in ruins, and presents all the
appearances of desertion and decay. The population is,
however, still considerable; and in the bazaar, which is very
extensive, are exposed for sale various kinds of commodi¬
ties, European and Indian, particularly silks and shawls.
The walls are similar in their construction to those of all
the other cities in this quarter in India, being rather low,
with round towers. The travelling distance from Poona
is 186 miles, from Bombay by Poona 284, from Hydera¬
bad 295, from Madras 647, from Delhi 750, and from
Calcutta 1022 miles. Long. 75. 33. E. Lat. 19. 54. N.
AUSCHWITZ, a city at the confluence of the Sola and
the Vistula, formerly a ducal seat, in the circle of Mysle-
nicze, in the Austrian province of Galicia.
AUSI, an ancient and very savage people of Libya.
Herodotus tells us that they were unacquainted with mar¬
riage, and had all their women in common. The children
were brought up by their mothers till they were able to
walk; after which they were introduced to an assembly of
the men, who met every three months, and the man to
whom any child first spoke acknowledged himself its fa¬
ther. They celebrated annually a feast in honour of Mi¬
nerva, in which the girls, dividing into two companies,
fought with sticks and stones, and those who died of their
wounds were concluded not to have been virgins.
AUSONIA, the ancient name of Italy, so called from
its earliest inhabitants the Ausones.
AUSONIUM Mare, in Ancient Geography, a part of
the Ionian Sea, extending southward from the promontory
Japygium to Sicily, which it washes on the east, as it does
the Bruttii and Magna Graecia on the south and east. It
is separated from the Tuscan Sea by the Strait of Messina.
AUSONIUS (Decimus Magnus), one of the best poets
of the fourth century, was the son of an eminent physi¬
cian, and born at Bourdeaux. Great care was taken of
his education, the whole family interesting themselves in
it, either because his genius was very promising, or that
the scheme of his nativity, which had been cast by his
maternal grandfather, led them to imagine that he would
one day rise to great honour. He made uncommon
progress in classical learning, and at the age of thirty
was chosen to teach grammar at Bourdeaux. He was
promoted some time after to be professor of rhetoric; in
which office he acquired so great a reputation that he
was sent for to court to be preceptor to Gratian, the em- Auspex
peror Valentinian’s son. The rewards and honours confer- II
red on him for the faithful discharge of his office prove the
truth of Juvenal’s maxim, that when fortune pleases she
can raise a man from the humble rank of rhetorician to
the dignity of consul. He was actually appointed consul
by the emperor Gratian in the year 379, after having
filled other considerable posts; for besides the dignity of
questor, to which he had been nominated by Valentinian,
he was made prefect of the praetorium in Italy and Gaul
after that prince’s death. His speech, returning thanks
to Gratian on his promotion to the consulship, is highly
commended. The time of his death is uncertain ; but he
was alive in 392, and is said to have attained a great age.
The emperor Theodosius had a great esteem for Ausonius,
and pressed him to publish his poems. There is great in¬
equality in his works; and in his manner and style there
is a harshness which was perhaps rather the defect of the
times in which he lived than of his genius. The best edi¬
tions of his poems are that of Amsterdam in 1671, in 8vo,
and that of Paris in 1728, in 4to.
AUSPEX, a name originally given to those who were
afterwards denominated augurs. The word is evidently
formed from avis, bird, and inspicere, to inspect; auspices,
q. d. avispices.
AUSSERHODEN, one of the districts of the canton
of Appenzell, in Switzerland, comprehending two thirds of
that territory, being 227 square miles, or 145,280 acres,
and containing 42,000 inhabitants. It is subdivided into
two parts, namely, the Hither and Farther Gitten. All
the inhabitants of this latter district adhere to the Pro¬
testant reformed church, as those of the former do to the
Romish faith, which renders the administration of the two
parts distinct from each other.
AUSTER, one of the four cardinal winds, as Servius
calls them, blowing from the south.
AUSTERLITZ, a small town of Moravia, situated twelve
miles south-east of Brunn. It contains hardly 2000 inha¬
bitants, but has been rendered memorable by the great
victory obtained in its vicinity, on the 2d December 1805,
by the French under Napoleon, over the united forces of
Austria and Russia under their respective emperors.
AUSTLE, St, a market-town of the hundred of Pow-
den, in the county of Cornwall. It stands in the centre
of the county, and is surrounded by a district rich in
mines, and abounding in clay used in the potteries of
Staffordshire. There are also some manufactures of wool¬
len cloths. The market is held on Friday, and is well
supplied. It is 243 miles from London, and 13 from
Truro. The population in 1801 amounted to 3788, in 1811
to 3686, and in 1821 to 6175. The increase of inhabit¬
ants between 1811 and 1821 has therefore been great.
AUSTRALASIA,
jc. In modern geography, the fifth great division of the earth’s
'ser-surface. A systematic classification in geography is as ne¬
cessary to enable us to form clear and comprehensive
views of its objects, as it is in botany, mineralogy, geo¬
logy, or any other department of physical science, though
incapable of being brought to the same degree of perfec¬
tion. The rapid progress made, during the last fifty years
of the past century, in the discovery of those almost in¬
numerable islands that are scattered over the three great
oceans, the Indian, the Southern, and the Pacific, peopled
by various races of human beings, differing in their fea¬
tures, manners, dispositions, and language, forcibly demand¬
ed some such systematic arrangement, otherwise, as the
President de Brosses has observed, “ the sight would be
dazzled and confounded, if care were not exerted to re¬
lieve it, and fix its attention by divisions marked from dis¬
tance to distance.”
It was this learned and very intelligent writer who first
suggested that all the lands and islands in the Austral
world should be divided into three portions, corresponding
with the three great oceans, the Indian or Ethiopic, the
Atlantic, and the Pacific; those in the Indian Ocean and
to the south of Asia to be named Australasia; those in
the two Pacifies, from the multitude of islands, Polynesia
(a name first used, we believe, by De Barros) ; and those
in the Atlantic to the south of Cape Horn and the Cape
204 ' AUSTRALASIA.
Australasia, of Good Hope, Magellanica. The last, however, became
unnecessary, as soon as it was ascertained that the Terra
Australis incognita had no existence. Some idea may be
formed of the rapid progress made in maritime geography,
even within the last fifty years, and of its imperfection
previous to that period, when it is stated, that, in the year
1770, an enlightened and industrious hydrographer, the
late Alexander Dalrymple, asserted that the great south¬
ern continent was not then a matter of discovery, for that
it had been seen on the west by Tasman in 1642, and on
the east by Juan Fernandez above half a century before;
adding, without any doubt or hesitation, that “ the coun¬
tries intermediate, equal in extent to all the civilized part
of Asia, from Turkey to China inclusive, still remain un¬
explored.” Nay, more, “ that it extended from 30° south
to the pole, and that the number of its inhabitants was
probably more than fifty millions.” All these facts he dis¬
covers in the Spanish and Portuguese voyages in the South
Pacific Ocean. (^Historical Collections.*)
The two divisions of Australasia and Polynesia will be
found to comprehend, with sufficient convenience, all those
islands that cannot with propriety be referred to any of
the four continents of the globe. Nor is there any diffi-
culty in drawing a line of separation between these two
divisions; though it is not quite so easy to mark the dis¬
tinct boundary between the Australasian and the Asiatic
islands, where they melt into each other, about the equa¬
tor, at the north-west extremity of Papua or New Guinea.
In a geographical view, the small islands of Waygiou, Sal-
watty, Batanta, Mysol, and Timorlaut, ought strictly to
belong to Australasia; but, peopled as they are by Asia¬
tics of the Malay tribe, and under the influence of the
Dutch settlements, it may perhaps be more proper, in a
moral and political point of view, to consider them as be-
longing to the Asiatic islands; more particularly as we
shall then have all the Australasian population, with very
few exceptions, marked with more or less of the African
or Negro character. But, in fact, all geographical divisions
are and must be to a certain degree arbitrary.
Boundaries. If, then, we take the equator as ;he northern boundary
from the 132° to the 175° of east longitude; continue a
line on the latter meridian to the 55th parallel (bendino- a
little to take in New Zealand) for the eastern; another
line along the same parallel to the 65th degree of east lon¬
gitude for the southern; and a slanting line to the point
on the equator from which we set out, so as to include
Kerguelen s Land, and pass on the eastern sides of Timor¬
laut, Ceram, Mysol, and Salwatty, for the western boun¬
dary ; those lines will circumscribe the whole of the Aus¬
tralasian islands. We have included the uninhabited is¬
lands of Kerguelen and St Paul and Amsterdam, because
they cannot properly be considered as African islands,
though arranged, we believe, under that division by Pin¬
kerton : they are of less importance to geography than to
geology. »
Australasia, then, may be subdivided into the following
groups and islands :— &
1. Notasia, or New Holland.
2. Van Diemen’s Land.
3. Papua, or New Guinea.
4. New Britain, New Ireland, and neighbouring islands.
5. Solomon’s Islands.
6. New Hebrides.
7. New Caledonia.
8. New Zealand and Isles to the southward.
in f,erpUei 6na IAslands’ or Islands of Desolation,
in. bt Paul and Amsterdam.
11. Numerous reefs and islets of coral scattered over the
Australasian Sea.
land. H°1' L The ^ attemI’t t0 explore this island, which, from
its size, may be considered as the fifth continent of theAust j
earth, is unquestionably due to the Dutch; for although j1
some part of the northern coast may have been seen by
the early navigators of Spain and Portugal, there is no di¬
rect testimony in favour of such a discovery. There are two
charts in the British Museum which belonged to the Har-
leian Collection ; one French, without date, which was pro¬
bably the original; and the other English, apparently a
copy : the latter is dedicated to the king of England, and
bears date 1542. In both of these charts is marked down
an extensive tract of country to the southward of the Mo¬
luccas, under the name of agreeing more nearly p
with the position and extent of New Holland than any other ^ f
land. The form given to the north-west part of the coast
in these charts approaches nearest to the truth; a part, in¬
deed, which may have been seen by those early navigators
who visited the Moluccas long before the date of the Eng¬
lish chart. It is a singular coincidence in geographical
nomenclature, that, on the east coast of the French chart,
something like a Botany Bay should be designated under
the name of Coste des Herbaiges. The Abbe Prevost, in
the Histoire Generate des Voyages, and the President de
Brosses, in his Histoire des Navigations aux Terres Am-
trales, are not very happy in advancing a claim in favour
of Paulovier de Gonneville, a French captain, to the dis¬
covery of this Terra Australis in 1504. It was the coast
of Madagascar upon which Gonneville was driven, as is
evident by their own accounts.
The best and most authentic abstract of the Dutch dis¬
coveries on the coasts of New Holland is contained in the
instructions given by the governor-general of Batavia to
Commodore Abel Janzen Tasman, and published by Mr
Dalrymple in his Collection concerning Papua. From this
document it appears that the Dutch government of Ban¬
tam in 1605 dispatched the Duyfhen yacht to explore
the islands of New Guinea. Returning to the southward
along the islands on the northern side of Torres Strait, she
came to that part of the Great South Land which is now
called Cape York; but all these lands were then thought
to be connected, and to form the southern coast of New
Guinea. “ Ihus,” says Captain Flinders, “ without being
conscious of it, the commander of the Duyfhen made the
first authenticated discovery of any part of the Great South
Land, about the month of March 1606.” About the same
place, and in the same year, Torres, a Spanish navigator,
being second in command to Fernandez de Quiros, saw the
Terra Australis, but had as little knowledge of the nature
of his discovery as the commander of the Duyfhen. He
passed the strait, however, which divides this Terra Aus¬
tralis from New Guinea, whose existence was not gene-
J’ally known till 1770, when it was re-discovered and pass¬
ed by our great circumnavigator Captain Cook. Of this,
and his other discoveries, Torres addressed an account to
the king of Spain, and, as it afterwards appeared, had
taken the precaution to lodge a copy of it in the archives
of Manilla; for, when that city was surrendered to the
British forces in 1762, Mr Dalrymple snatched from obli¬
vion this interesting document of early discovery, and, as
a just tribute to the enterprising Spanish navigator, he
gave to this passage the name of Torres Strait, by which
it is now universally known.
In 1617 the Dutch sent a second expedition, but “ with
little success; the journals of which were lost. In 1623,
t le yachts Pera and Arnheim were dispatched from Ani-
boyna, under the command of Jan Carstens, who, with
eig it of the Arnheim s crew, was treacherously murdered
by the natives of New Guinea; but the vessels prosecut¬
ed the voyage, and discovered the great islands Arnheim
and the Spult. The Arnheim returned to Amboyna; the
Pera persisted, and ran along the west coast of New
AUSTRALASIA.
205
i. Guinea, as they thought, but in reality New Holland, to
' Cape Keer-veer or Turn-again, and from thence explored
the coast farther southward, as far as 17°, to Staten River.
« in this discovery were found everywhere shallow water
and barren coasts, islands altogether thinly peopled by di¬
vers cruel, poor, and brutal nations; and of very little use
to the (Dutch East India) Company.”
The next expedition sent by the Dutch was from Banda
in the year 1636, when Gerrit Tomaz Pool proceeded with
the yachts Klein Amsterdam and Wesel, and nearly at the
same place, on the coast of New Guinea, met the same
fate which had befallen Carstens; but the supercargo,
Pieterson, continued the voyage, and discovered the coast
of Arnheim, or Van Diemen’s Land, in 11° S., and sailed
along the shore 120 miles, but without seeing any inha¬
bitants.
Abel Jansen Tasman sailed on a second voyage of dis¬
covery from Batavia in 1644; but no account of this voy¬
age was ever made public, nor is it known to exist. No
chart bearing his name is now known, but there is little
doubt that the north-west coast of New Holland was first
explored by him; and it is singular enough that Dampier
should say he had Tasman’s chart of it. Tasman is also
supposed to have sailed round the Gulf of Carpentaria ; an
opinion which Captain Flinders considers to be strength¬
ened, from the names of Tasman, of the governor-general,
and of two of the council, who signed his instructions, being
applied to places at the head of the gulf, as well as that of
Maria, the governor’s daughter, to whom Tasman is said
to have been attached. Tasman had sailed, on a former
voyage, from Batavia in 1642, for the Mauritius; whence
steering south and eastward upon discovery, he fell in
with land, to which he gave the name of Anthony Van
Diemens Land, in honour of the governor-general, “ our
master,” he adds, “ who sent us out to make discoveries.”
The last voyage undertaken by the Dutch for the dis¬
covery of Terra Australis was in 1705, when three Dutch
vessels were sent from Timor, “ with orders to explore the
north coast of New Holland better than it had been done
before.” The account, however, given by the President
de Brosses is so vague and imperfect that very little sa¬
tisfactory information is to be obtained from it. It is on
the west coast that the Dutch appear to have been most
successful. In Tasman’s instructions it is stated, that “ in
the years 1616, 1618, 1619, and 1622, the west coast of
this great unknown southland, from 35° to 22° south lati¬
tude, was discovered by outward-bound ships, and among
them, by the ship Endragt.” Dirk Hartog commanded
this ship, and seems to have made the coast in latitude
about 26° 30' S., and to have sailed northward along it
to about 23°, giving the name of Landt van Endragt to
the coast so discovered; and that of Dirk Hartog’s Road
(called afterwards Shark's Bay by Dampier) to an inlet
on the coast a little to the southward of 25°. A plate of
tin was found in 1697, and again seen by Baudin in 1801,
on one of the islands which forms the roadstead, bearing
an inscription that the ship Endragt of Amsterdam arriv¬
ed there on the 25th October 1616. After this several
outward-bound ships fell in by accident with different
parts of this coast.
The Dutch made little progress in any other part of the
extensive coasts of New Holland. The instructions to
lasman say, “ In the year 1627 the south coast of the
threat South Land was accidentally discovered by the ship
the Guldee Zeepard, outward bound from Fatherland for
the space of 1000 miles.” From the circumstance of this
ship having on board Pieter Nuyts, who was sent from Ba¬
tavia as ambassador to Japan, and afterwards appointed
governor of Formosa, the name of Nuyts' Land was given
to this long range of coast.
The first English navigator who appears to have seen Australasia,
any part of New Holland is the celebrated William Dam-
pier, who, in his buccaneering voyage round the world, in
January 1686, touched at the north-west coast, for the
purposes of careening his vessel and procuring refresh¬
ments. He made the land in latitude 16° 15/, and ran
along the shore to the north-east till he came to a bay or
opening fit for the purpose. In 1699 Dampier a second
time visited the north-western coast of this Terra Austra¬
lis, being now legitimately employed in making discovery
in his Majesty’s ship the Roebuck. Of this part of the
coast little more is yet known than what has been describ¬
ed by Dampier, and that little is due to the exploration
of Captain King.
It was left for our celebrated navigator Captain Cook
to complete the grand outline of the fifth continent of the
world. The reign of George III. will ever be distinguish¬
ed for the liberal principles on which voyages of discovery
were undertaken, and their results communicated to the
world. The Endeavour was fitted out to observe, at Ta-
heite, the transit of Venus over the sun’s disk; on her re¬
turn, in 1770, Captain, then Lieutenant Cook, explored
the whole east coast of the Terra Australis Incognita, from
Cape Howe to Cape York, not minutely entering into the
details of every part, which would have been impossible,
but laying down a correct general outline. “ He reaped,”
says Captain Flinders, “ the harvest of discovery; but the
gleanings of the field remained to be gathered.” In his
passage through Endeavour Strait, between Cape York
and the Prince of Wales’ Islands, he not only cleared up
the doubt which till then existed, of the actual separation
of Terra Australis from New Guinea, but, by his accurate
observations, enabled geographers to assign something like
a true place to the former discoveries of the Dutch in these
parts.
In 1777 Captain Cook, in the Resolution and Discovery,
visited Van Diemen’s Land; but as Captain Furneaux, in
his Majesty’s ship Adventure, had preceded him four years,
and Tasman and Marion had examined the coast, little
was here supposed to remain for discovery, except in de¬
tail. It was long subsequent to Furneaux’s visit that
Van Diemen’s Land was ascertained to be an island; a
discovery which may have been retarded by that officer
having given an opinion “ that there is no strait between
New Holland and Van Diemen’s Land, but a very deep
bay.” The existence of such a strait was however suspect¬
ed ; but the various attempts to ascertain it, without suc¬
cess, by different navigators from both sides of the coast,
seemed to have decided the question in the negative, when
Mr Bass, surgeon of the Reliance, having observed, as he
ran down the east coast in an open whale boat, that a heavy
swell rolled in from the westward, was satisfied in his own
mind that such a swell could proceed only from the great
Southern Ocean. To ascertain whether this was the fact,
was a point of great importance to the new colony on the
eastern coast; and for this purpose Mr Flinders, together
with Mr Bass, was sent on this service in a small decked
boat. At the end of three months they returned to Port
Jackson, with an interesting account of the survey of the
coasts of Van Diemen’s Land, which they had completely
circumnavigated, and thus confirmed the conjecture of Mr
Bass, whose name the strait deservedly bears.
The French are entitled to the honour of some partial
discoveries on Terra Australis. Captain Marion was dis¬
patched in the year 1772 from the Isle of France with two
ships, the Mascarin and Marquis de Castries, on a voyage
of discovery, one of the objects of which was that of the
supposed southern continent. He touched at Van Die¬
men’s Land, quarrelled with the natives, and finding no
fresh water, and the weather being stormy, he set sail for
206
AUSTRALASIA.
Au'-tralasia.New Zealand, having added very little to the prior disco-
veries of Tasman.
In the year 1792, Rear-Admiral D’Entrecasteaux, having
been sent out with two ships, La Recherche and L’Esperance,
in search of the unfortunate La Perouse, made the south
coast of New Holland, which he explored as far as the
Termination Island of Vancouver; the deficiencies ot whose
chart he was able to supply, by the state of the weather
permitting him to keep the coast closer on board than the
English navigator had been able to do. Termination Is¬
land was found to be the first of a large group laid down
by Nuyts, whose accuracy is praised by the admiral, he
having"found “ the latitude of Point Leeuwin and of the
coast of Nuyt’s Land laid down with an exactness surpris¬
ing for the remote period in which they had been disco¬
vered.” This liberal acknowledgment did not, however,
prevent him from giving to the group of islands, which he
only saw, but did not survey, the name of Archipel de la
Recherche. But the most important discovery of D’En¬
trecasteaux was an inlet on the south coast of Van Die¬
men’s Land, which was found to be the entrance into a
fine navigable channel, running more than thirty miles to
the northward, and there communicating with Storm Bay;
containing a series of excellent harbours, or rather one
continued harbour the whole way, from beginning to end.
“ The charts,” says Captain Flinders, “ of the bays, ports,
and arms of the sea, at the south-east end of Van Diemen’s
Land, constructed, in this expedition, by Messieurs Beau-
temps, Beaupre, and assistants, appear to combine scien¬
tific accuracy and minuteness of detail with an uncommon
degree of neatness in the execution. They contain some
of the finest specimens of marine surveying, perhaps, ever
made in a new country.”
In 1800 Captain Baudin was sent out with two armed
vessels, Le Geographe and Le Naturaliste, on a voyage of
discovery nominally round the world, but actually, as ap¬
pears from his instructions, to examine every part of the
coasts of New Holland and Van Diemen’s Land. The
first volume of the account of this voyage was published
by M. Peron, one of the naturalists, in 1807; the second
never appeared. All the old names of the capes, bays,
inlets, and islands, were unblushingly changed to those*of
Napoleon, his family, his marshals, and members of the
Institute ; and to 900 leagues of the southern coast, com¬
prehending all the discoveries of Nuyts, Vancouver, D’En¬
trecasteaux, Flinders, Bass, and Grant, was given the ge¬
neral name of Terre Napoleon, while not 50 leagues of
real discovery were effected which had not been antici¬
pated by Captain Flinders, who, after losing his ship, and
proceeding homewards, was scandalously detained as a
prisoner in the Isle of France, “ to give time for the pre¬
vious publication of the voyage of M. Baudin, to prepos¬
sess the world that it was to the French nation only the
complete discovery and examination of the south coast of
Australia was due.”
Captain Flinders, however, ultimately triumphed. After
an unjust and cruel captivity of seven years, he arrived in
England in 1810, and in 1814 published his discoveries in
two volumes, accompanied with an atlas of charts, which
may be held forth as models in maritime surveying. At
this time not a single chart of coast, bay, or island, of
Captain Baudin s discoveries had appeared, though shortly
afterwards an atlas was published by Freycinet, the first
lieutenant, differing in their form and structure very little
from those of Captain Hinders, but bearing the names re-
coided in M. Peron s first volume. The frontispiece to
this atlas affords an instance of that almost impious adu¬
lation which Buonaparte was in the habit of receiving from
his creatures. An eye, having an N within it, darts its rays
thiough a dark cloud overshadowing a globe with the
southern pole uppermost, on which is drawn the outline Aus
of New Holland, with this inscription, “ Fulget et ipso.” ^
It is to Captain Flinders that we owe the completion
in detail of the survey of the coasts of New Holland, with
the exception of the west and north-west coasts, which he
was prevented from accomplishing by the loss of his ship.
Dampier had said, in anchoring near the south end of De
Witt’s Land, behind Rosemary Island, which was one of
an extensive cluster, “ by the tides I met with a while after-
wards, I had a strong suspicion that there might be a kind
of archipelago of islands, and a passage possibly to the
south of New Holland and New Guinea, into the Great
South Sea eastwardbut whether it might be a channel
or strait, or the mouth of a large river, he seems not to
have made up his mind. Vlaming saw an opening 12 miles
wide near the same place, and could find no anchorage.
It has now been ascertained that there is no outlet into
the great Ocean eastward, nor into the Gulf of Carpenta¬
ria, nor into Bass Strait; but the geographical problem
yet remains to be solved, whether the opening in the coast
behind Rosemary Island be not the mouth of a large river.
Le Geographe and Le Naturaliste, under Baudin, stood
along this coast, examined in a very slovenly manner some
particular points, but assisted geography less than they
perplexed it, by unwarrantably changing every old name
for that of some of the upstarts created by the French re¬
volution. Never, indeed, were two naval officers so ill se¬
lected for the purpose of discovery as Captains Baudin and
Hamelin; but not so those in the scientific department, who,
under every unfavourable and discouraging circumstance,
effected more for physical science than could be expected.
Except those parts therefore that were examined by Cap¬
tain King, a great portion of the northern part of this coast
may still be considered as terra incognita ; and it is some¬
what remarkable, that the local government of New South
M ales, which, we believe, has under its command several
colonial vessels, should not before this have taken occa¬
sion to ascertain this point, on which so many curious and
unexplained phenomena in the geography and geology of
the fifth continent depend. We are now, however, in a
fair way of having our knowledge of the western side of
New Holland considerably enlarged by the establishment
of the new colony of Swan River, under the auspices of
Captain Stirling of the navy; which, though not well adapt¬
ed for an agricultural, there is every reason to believe,
will turn out a prosperous pastoral settlement. Towards
the end of 1830 the number of settlers amounted to not
less than 2000 persons, with 3000 head of sheep, 500 head
of horned cattle, and above 100 horses. The country is
sandy and of light soil; but the herbage is nutritive, and
the cattle thrive well upon it. The climate is excellent,
and water is abundant and good. A bar across the mouth
of the river prevents ships from entering Melville Water,
which is extensive, and of sufficient depth for a first-rate man
of war; but a little to the southward of it there is safe and
extensive anchorage in Cockburn Sound. Along the coast
whales are most abundant, and a fishery has already com¬
menced. A succession of three ranges of hills, the first
at thirty miles distance from the coast, has not prevented
discoveries to the eastward of them. In the valleys among
these hills is abundance of wood and pasturage, and be¬
yond the third range has been discovered a river of con¬
siderable magnitude, running to the northward through a
rich valley. This river will probably be found to termi¬
nate in Shark’s Bay.
A discovery has also been made of a bay to the east¬
ward of Cape Leeuwin, into which a river called Black¬
wood falls; and to the eastward of this is another inlet or
estuary, into which several rivers fall; and farther to the
eastward still is the station of King George’s Sound, with
AUSTRALASIA.
207
u,tra a.its two harbours. All these are comprehended within,
' and connected with, the Swan River Settlement. Its
" position is highly favourable for a speedy communication
with India and the Indian Islands, the Cape of Good
Hope, and the Mauritius, and it bids fair to become a flou¬
rishing and important settlement. It is a remarkable fact,
that in a period not far short of thirty years since the
settlement of Port Jackson was first made, all beyond as
many leagues was a complete terra incognita to the settlers,
till not long ago, when Mr Evans, the land-surveyor, pe¬
netrated behind the hitherto impassable barrier, the Blue
Mountains, to the distance of about 300 miles, in two
separate journeys.
jm-n i Of these journeys it may be necessary to give a brief
i the ■ abstract. On the 19th November 1813 Mr Evans left
srior Emu Island in the Nepean, and returned on the 8th
January 1814, having performed a journey of 154 miles
nearly west. At the end of 48 miles he had cleared the
ranges of mountains, which, he says, consist of granite,
with loose flints and quartz pebbles strewed on the sur¬
face ; and here, for the first time, he fell in with a small
stream running to the westward. The farther he ad¬
vanced the more beautiful the country became; both hill
and dale were clothed with fine grass, the whole appear¬
ing at a little distance as if laid out into fields divided
by hedgerows. Through every valley meandered trick¬
ling streams of fine water, all falling down towards the
Fish River, so called by him from the vast abundance of
fine fish resembling trout, which his party caught with
ease whenever they had occasion for them. Many of the
hills were capped with forest trees, chiefly of the Eucalyp¬
tus; and clumps of these, mixed with Mimosas and the
Casuarina, were interspersed along the feet of the hills
and in the valleys, so as to wear the appearance of a suc¬
cession of gentlemen’s parks. The river, which at first
consisted of a chain of pools connected by small stream¬
lets, had assumed in the neighbourhood of Macquarrie’s
Plains the character of a considerable stream, and had
become unfordable, which made it necessary to construct
abridge of large trees to transport the people, the horses,
and baggage. Evans says, the country was now more beau¬
tiful than he had ever seen. A fine river, running in a
deep channel over a gravelly bottom, and its banks skirted
with trees, excepting at the sloping points of hills round
which it winded, and which were covered with a fine green
sod down to the margin, intermixed with the white daisy;
—all this, added to the temperate climate, put him in mind
of England. Farther on, and before they reached Bath¬
urst’s Plains, the river was increased considerably in size,
by the junction of another stream, which he called Camp¬
bell’s River; and to the united streams he gave the name
of Macquarrie’s River, the general direction of which ap¬
peared to be to the northward of west. Fish continued to
abound of the same kind as those first caught, but of a size
from eleven to fifteen pounds each. Governor Macquarrie
says, these fish resemble perch, are not unlike that usually
called rock-cod, and have been caught from seventeen to
twenty-five pounds weight each. Large herds of emus were
seen crossing the plains, and kangaroos in great abundance;
but not a native human being appeared until on his return,
when, near Bathurst’s Plains, two women and four chil¬
dren were come upon by surprise, and became so terrified
that they fell down with fright. It was observed that
both tlm women had lost the right eye. Evans makes
Bathurst's Plains near 150 miles from Emu Island; but
Governor Macquarrie, who subsequently visited this place,
states the measured distance from Sydney town to be only
40 Hides. It is represented as an eligible situation for
establishing a settlement, as the land is excellent; plenty
of stone and timber for building, but no limestone; abun-.
dance of water, though the river, at the time of the go-Australasia,
vernor’s visit, just at the close of an unusually dry season,
was reduced to a chain of pools, the intermediate channels
being dried up.
In May 1815 Mr Evans was dispatched a second time,
in order to follow the course of Macquarrie’s River. He
proceeded about 115 miles, from whence he could see
across an extensive plain, 40 or 50 miles, at the extremi¬
ty of which was a range of blue mountains, separated by
an opening in the north-west, through which, he had no
doubt, the river flowed; and he appears to have had as
little doubt that it crosses the continent, and falls into
the sea somewhere in De Witt’s Land, probably through
Dampier’s Opening, behind Rosemary Island. A recent
discovery has proved that this opinion is not well founded.
In January 1831 an expedition undertaken by Captain
Sturt has pretty nearly determined this point. With a view
to determine the course of the Murrambidgee River, or the
outlet of its waters, this enterprising officer started a se¬
cond time; and the result has been that, instead of the Mac¬
quarrie and the Lachlan, and other streams that run to the
westward, falling into a great inland sea or extensive marsh,
as was conjectured, their united waters constitute a large
river, which, under the name of Murray, was found to turn
to the southward, and empty itself into an extensive estu¬
ary, 60 miles in length by 30 or 40 in width. The river
near the point where it fell into this lake or estuary was
about 400 yards wide and 20 feet deep. The whole coun¬
try on both banks was composed of undulating and pictu¬
resque hills, at the bases of which extended plains and
valleys, within sight of many thousand acres of the richest
soils.
The mouth through which the waters of the estuary
communicated with the sea was in Encounter Bay, in
long. 139.40. E. and lat. 35. 25. 15. S., a little to the east¬
ward of the Gulf of St Vincent, and round the point named
Cape Jervis. The river was well stocked with fish, and
its banks more populous than any other part of the coun¬
try that had been traversed. Some accounts state the
total number seen to have amounted to not less than 4000
souls. They could scarcely be brought to believe that
the discovering party were of the same genus as them¬
selves ; they placed their hands against those of the
strangers, in order to ascertain if the number of fingers
on each corresponded. Nothing surprised them more
than the act of taking off the hat, believing, it would seem,
that this superstructure of felt formed a part of the strange
animal that had come into their country.
That part of the country which was passed over by
Evans and Oxley was but thinly peopled. The na¬
tives who were seen resembled, in their persons and fea¬
tures, those of Sydney, but spoke a different language;
and they were better clothed, being well covered with
kangaroo skins, sewed neatly together with the sinews of
emus. They wore the fur side next the skin, and the
outer or flesh side was very ingeniously marked with re¬
gular ornamental devices, among which the cross appeared
to predominate. They were exceedingly terrified at the
sight of Mr Evans on his horse, as they took the rider
and horse to be one animal, and did not recover from
their fright or surprise on seeing him dismount. When a
little tranquillized, and more familiar, they were found to
be a good-humoured, laughing people, exhibiting none of
the savage alid furious spirit of the natives of Sydney,
excited no doubt by the settlers. They were attended
with dogs not unlike the jackal, with which they catch
kangaroos. The spears they carried were heavy and
clumsily made, and they could only throw them to a short
distance, something like the New Zealanders.
The country beyond Bathurst was even superior to that
208
AUSTRALASIA.
Natives.
Australasia, first explored. The vast herds of emus and kangaroos
were truly astonishing. These animals, and the fish of
the river, appeared to be the principal articles of subsist¬
ence for the natives. In one large plain, covered with
kangaroos and emus, Evans discovered an immense quan¬
tity of a white substance, resembling comfits or sugar¬
plums, which he took to be manna, but which appears to
be a pure saccharine substance, an exudation probably
from some particular plant. He passed whole mountains
of fine blue limestone, and picked up topazes, crystals,
and other pebbles, such as are met with on the coast of
Bass’s Strait. He also mentions forests of pines, the trees
forty feet in height without a branch. Governor Macquar-
rie, however, observed, that as the soil and grass-lands im¬
proved, the timber trees decreased in size. (See the dif¬
ferent works of Dalrymple, Burney, Cook, D'Entrecas¬
teaux, and Flinders.)
General If, however, but little is yet known of the interior of
view of New Holland, and the detail of the western coast still re-
ird H01" (lu^res t0 k0 filled up, the grand outline of this large island,
or more properly continent, has been completed, and its
limits correctly ascertained. It extends in latitude from
Cape York, in 10° 45' south, to Wilson’s promontory, in
39° 9' south; and in longitude from Dirk Hartog’s Island,
in Shark’s Bay, in 113° east, to Point Look-out, in Glass¬
house Bay, in 153° 35' east; the mean breadth from north
to south being about 1200, and length from east to west
2100 geographical miles, making an area equal to about
three fourths of the continent of Europe. A remarkable
sameness in all the productions of the three kingdoms of
nature prevails in every part of its extensive coasts, and
as remarkable a difference in two of them (the animal and
vegetable) from those of the rest of the world.
The natives, wherever they have been met with, are of
the very lowest description of human beings. In the jour¬
nal of the Duyfhen, the north coast is described as thinly
“ inhabited by wild, cruel, black savages, by whom some
of the crew were murdered and the ship Vianen, touch¬
ing on the western coast about 21° south, observed “ a
foul and barren shore, green fields, and very wild, black,
barbarous inhabitants.” In 24° south, Polsert, who com¬
manded the Batavia, saw four natives, whom he describes
as wild, black, and altogether naked, not covering even
those parts which almost all savages conceal.” Tasman
“ found in Hollandia Nova, in lat. 17° 12' south, a naked
black people, with curly hair, malicious and cruel, using
for arms bows and arrows, hazagaevs, and kalawaeys.”
Dampier describes them as being “ a" naked black people
with curly hair, having a piece of the rind of a tree tied
like a girdle about their waists, and a handful of long grass
or three or four green boughs full of leaves, thrust under
their girdle to cover their nakednessthat “ the two fore¬
teeth of the upper jaw are wanting in all of them, men
and women, old and young; neither have they any beards.”
And^ he remarks, “ they have no boats, canoes, or bark-
logs. The south coast is so barren, and the naked hil-
Jocks of sand so continuous, that there appears to be no¬
thing for human inhabitants to subsist upon. “ It is not
surprising,” says D’Entrecasteaux, “ that Nuyts has given
no details of this barren coast; for its aspect is so uni-
orm, that the most fruitful imagination could find no-
t ung to say of it.” None of our navigators, however,
saw more than the coast line, which is either of rock or
hillocks of sand. But where the country begins to im¬
prove towards the eastward, in the neighbourhood of
Kangaroo Island, Captain Flinders found not the least
\cstige of inhabitants; and, from the stupidity of the
kangaroos on that island, “ which,” he observes, “ not
unfrequently appeared to consider us as seals,” he con¬
cludes there either are no natives, or that they are igno¬
rant of every kind of embarkation. Towards the north-Am
ern part of the eastern coast, the same navigator thinks ^
they are somewhat superior to those near Sydney, having
belts round the waist, and fillets about the head and up0-
per part of the arm, associating in greater numbers, and
dwelling in huts of a superior construction. They also
catch fish with nets, which he thinks is alone a feature of
distinction from those who only spear the fish, as a net re¬
quires more than one person to manage it, consumes much
time in making, cannot easily be dragged about, and, in
short, must occasion a sense of the advantage to be de¬
rived from mutual assistance, and suggest the necessity
of a permanent residence. The native of the colony of
Sydney we know pretty well to be a gloomy, solitary, un¬
settled being; seldom appearing, even in the town, with¬
out his spear, his throwing-stick, or his club. “ His
spear,” says Colonel Collins, “ is his defence against ene¬
mies. It is the weapon he uses to punish aggression and
revenge insult. It is even the instrument with which he
corrects his wife in the last extreme ; for, in their passion,
or perhaps oftener in a fit of jealousy, they scruple not to
inflict death. It is the plaything of children, and in the
hands of persons of all ages.” Turnbull says, the natives
of this part of New Flolland are, beyond comparison, the
most barbarous on the surface of the globe, and that the
influence of European settlers has had no effect in render¬
ing them more sensible of the benefits of civilization; that
every day men and women are to be seen in the streets
of Sydney and Paramatta naked as in the moment of their
birth ; yet he contends that they are far from being stu¬
pid ; that they are the greatest mimics alive; and that
the oddities, dress, walk, gait, and looks of all the Euro¬
peans of any rank, from the time of Governor Philip down¬
wards, are so exactly imitated, as to form among them a
kind of historic register of their several actions and cha¬
racters ; and they are great proficients in the slang lan¬
guage of the convicts. But this seems to be the sum
total of all their acquisitions from European intercourse.
In other respects they remain, generally speaking, the
same untutored, unprotected, improvident, and comfort¬
less savages we first found them. But why is this ? Be¬
cause no pains have been bestowed on their improvement;
no kindness shown them to encourage that improvement.
In the district under the command of Sir Edward Parry, the
natives have been treated like human beings, are sensible
of the advantages of civilization, and several of them have
made considerable progress in reading and writing, attend
the religious duties which the captain and his lady have
regularly performed, and they vie with each other in
being neat in their persons and clothing. They are de¬
scribed, however, as hideously ugly, with flat noses, wide
nostrils, eyes sunk in the head, overshadowed with thick,
black eyebrows ; the mouth extravagantly wide, lips thick
and prominent, hair black and clotted, but not woolly, the
colour of the skin varying from dark bronze to jet black.
I heir stature is below the middle size. They are remark¬
ably thin and ill made, their limbs small, and almost with¬
out any appearance of muscle. They live chiefly on fish,
w nch they sometimes spear and sometimes net, the wo¬
men on parts of the coast aiding to catch them with the
ook and line. If a dead whale happens to be cast on
s lore, numbers flock to it from every part of the coast,
just as the vultures smell out a dead carcass, and they
feast sumptuously while any part of it remains. Those
in the interior are stated to live on grubs, ants and their
eggs, kangaroos when they can catch them, fern roots,
various kinds of berries, and honey. These sylvan satyrs
are described as having long and lean legs and arms, owing,
as is supposed, to their climbing of trees, which they as¬
cend by notches cut into them by stone hatchets, in which
■g >
AUSTRALASIA.
209
sia.the great toe is placed, and by these means they ascend
J trees that are seventy or eighty feet in height.
To add to their natural deformity, they thrust a bone
through the cartilage of the nose, and stick with gum to
their hair, matted with moss, the teeth of men, sharks,
or kangaroos, the tails of dogs, jaw-bones of fish, &c. and
daub their faces and bodies with red and white clay, and
scarify the skin in every part with sharp shells. The wo¬
men and female children are generally found to want the
first two joints of the little finger of the left hand; and
the reason they assign is, that they would otherwise be
in the way of winding the fishing-lines over the hand.
They have no fixed habitations, the climate generally
allowing of their sleeping in the open air, in the crevices
of rocks, or under the shelter of the bushes. Their tem¬
porary hovels consist of the bark of a tree, each hovel being
just large enough to receive a single person; but to the
northward, on the east coast, some were discovered a little
larger, so that a family might, on an emergency, squeeze
under one of them; they are, however, without furni¬
ture or conveniences of any description. They seem to
have no idea of the benefits arising from social life; their
largest clans extend not beyond the family circle, of each
of which the eldest is called by a name synonymous with
that of father. They are totally without religion, paying
neither the least respect nor adoration to any object or
being, real or imaginary. Hence they have nothing to
prompt them to a good action, nothing to deter them from
a bad one; hence murder is not considered as any heinous
crime, and women think nothing of destroying, by com¬
pression, the infant in the womb, to avoid the trouble, if
brought alive into the world, of carrying it about and
finding it subsistence. Should a woman die with an in¬
fant at the breast, the living child is inhumanly thrown
into the same hole with the mother, and covered with
stones, of which the brutal father throws the first. They
are savage even in love, the very first act of courtship, on
the part of the husband, being that of knocking down his
intended bride with a club, and dragging her away from
her friends, bleeding and senseless, to the woods. The
consequence is, that scarcely a female of the age of ma¬
turity is to be seen without her head full of scars, the un¬
equivocal marks of her husband’s affection. The nearest
relations are also perpetually destroying each other, either
by stratagem or open combat; for, savage as they are,
they have a singular custom of expiating an offence, even
murder, by the criminal exposing himself to as many of
the injured family as may choose to stand forth and hurl
their spears at him. From the moment that he is so
dreadfully mangled that he can stand no longer, or has
the good fortune to parry all their shafts, a reconcilement
takes place, and friendship is restored. If the criminal re¬
fuses to stand this trial, he and all his family are consi¬
dered as fair game to attack and murder wherever they
are met with. The English used to attend these unequal
combats, and thus gave countenance to a savage practice,
which not unfrequently ended in the death of the person
who was thus put on his defence. (See Collins, Flinders,
Turnbull, &c.)
If no very essential difference be perceptible in the
moral and physical qualities of the man of New Holland
and the rest of the species, except that which arises
from the different circumstances under which they are
placed,—if the rocks and mountains, and the earths, re¬
semble nearly the inorganic substances that are met with
in other parts of the world,—there is at least a very extra¬
ordinary and a distinct characteristic difference in both
the animal and vegetable part of the creation, which
makes a considerable class of subjects in both these
kingdoms peculiar to New Holland. The quadrupeds
VOL. IV.
hitherto discovered, with very few exceptions, are of Australasia,
the kangaroo or opossum tribe; having their hinder legs
long out of all proportion when compared with the
length of the fore legs, and a sack under the belly of the
female for the reception of the young; of which family,
though divided into different genera, there are at least
fifty distinct species. They have rats, and dogs of the
jackal kind, all exactly alike; and a little animal of the
bear tribe, named womat; and these pretty nearly com¬
plete the catalogue of four-footed animals yet known on
this fifth continent. There appears, indeed, such an appa¬
rent affinity of the natural objects in New South Wales, that
Dr White observes, all the quadrupeds are like opossums,
all the fish like sharks; and that every part of the land,
all the trees, and all the grasses, resemble one another.
There is, however, an animal which resembles nothing in
the creation but itself,—which, being rejected by natu¬
ralists from the classes mammalia, aves, and pisces, must,
we suppose, be considered as belonging to the amphibia,—
we mean the ornithorhyncus paradoxus, “ a quadruped
with the beak of a bird, which is contrary to known facts
and received opinions.” When the head of one of these
beasts was brought to the late Dr Shaw of the British
Museum, he suspected it as an idle attempt to impose on
his judgment, and did not hastily believe that nature had
set the bill of a duck on the head of a quadruped; but
so it has since proved to be the case.
The birds are no less singular than the beasts, there
being black swans and white eagles, the former everywhere
in such multitudes as to spoil a proverb that had held good
for two thousand years; and their song, if we may credit
Mr Bass, “ exactly resembles the creaking of a rusty sign
on a windy day.” The Mcenura superba, with its scal¬
loped tail feathers, is perhaps the most singular and beau¬
tiful of that very elegant race of birds known by the name
of birds of paradise ; cockatoos, parrots, and parroquets,
are innumerable, and of great variety. The mountain
eagle is a magnificent creature; but the emu is perhaps
the tallest and loftiest bird that exists, many of them
standing full seven feet high.
The plants are no less singular than the animals. Of Plants,
these Mr Brown has given a very curious and instructive
account in his Geographical and Systematical Remarks, in
the Appendix to Flinders’s Voyage. He collected nearly
3900 species of Australasian plants, which, with those
brought to England by Sir Joseph Banks and others, sup¬
plied him with the materials for a Flora Terrce Australis,
consisting of 4200 species, referable to 120 natural or¬
ders ; but he remarks, that more than half the number of
species belong to eleven only of those orders. Of the Eu¬
calyptus or gum-tree, the largest yet discovered, there
are not fewer than 100 different species. “ The Euca¬
lyptus globidus of Labillardiere,” says Mr Brown, “ and
another species, peculiar to the south of Van Diemens
Land, not unfrequently attain the height of 150 feet, with
a girth near the base of from 25 to 40 feet. Of this mag¬
nificent genus there are 50 different species within the
limits of the colony of Port Jackson. Of the beautiful and
elegant Melaleuca Mr Brown collected upwards of 30 spe¬
cies, all of which, with the exception of the two species
Leucodendron and Cajaputi, appear to be confined to Terra
Australis. The tribe of Stackhousece is entirely peculiar
to that country. Of the natural order of proteacece, con¬
sisting of about 400 known species, more than 200 are
natives of New Holland, of which they form one of its
characteristic botanical features; the Banksia, in parti¬
cular, being one of the most striking peculiarities of the
vegetable kingdom. The Casuarina, of which 13 species
have been discovered, is another characteristic feature of
the woods and thickets of New Holland. The most ex-
2 D
210
AUSTRALASIA.
General
view of
Van Die¬
men’s
.Land.
Australasia, tensive genus, however, is the leafless ^4cacta, of which
w-vf'w/ there are more than 100 species; and this, with the Eu¬
calyptus, “ if taken together,” says Mr Brown, “ and con¬
sidered with respect to the mass of vegetable matter they
contain, calculated from the size as well as from the num¬
ber of individuals, are perhaps nearly equal to all the
other plants of that country.” The Casuarina and the
Eucalyptus are represented as furnishing excellent timber
for ship-building, and for all the purposes of domestic
furniture and agricultural implements; and the gum of
the Eucalyptus is medicinal,—that of one species might
be employed as pitch. Freycinet says they procured a
resinous substance from the Xanthorrhea, which served
them to caulk their vessels. The bark of a tree on the
Hawkesbury is said to be as efficacious in tanning leather
as the oak-bark; and a creeping plant (smilax) is used
as a substitute for tea. Nutmegs were found by Flinders
on the northern coast, but they were small, and had so
little of an aromatic flavour, that Mr Brown gave the
plant the specific name of insipida. Among the curious
productions of the vegetable world is the Cephalotus
follicularis, or pitcher plant, of which a very correct and
detailed drawing is given in the Atlas to Flinders’s Voy¬
age.
II. Having marked the progressive discovery of this
fair and fertile island, until it was ascertained to be such
by Tasman, Marion, Furneaux, Cook, D’Entrecasteaux,
Bass, and Flinders, we shall not think it necessary to
notice the minor discoveries of Bligh, Hunter, Cox, &c.
but proceed to give a general outline of its dimensions,
surface, and natural productions. It is situated between
the parallels of 41. 0. and 43. 32. S. lat., and 144. 32. and
148. 25. E. long.; its medial length from north to south
being about 160, and breadth from east to west 145 geo¬
graphical miles. Its surface possesses every variety of
mountain, hill, and dale,—of forests and open meadows,—
of inland lakes, rivers, and inlets of the sea, forming safe
and commodious harbours,—that can render a countiy
valuable or agreeable ; and it enjoys a temperate climate,
which is perhaps not very different from that of England,
though less subject to violent changes. In May, corre¬
sponding to our November, Labillardiere observed the
mountains in the interior covered with snow. The wes¬
tern and southern coasts are bold, steep, and rocky; the
latter terminating so abruptly as to appear as if it had
been, broken off, and the group of islands named De
Witts Isles, to the southward, twelve in number, formed
out of the fragments. Cook found the cliffs on the eastern
side composed of sandstone ; but the vast buttresses that
look towards the southern seas of ice are stated by Flin¬
ders to be composed of basaltic columns, appearing like
so many stacks of chimneys. Labillardiere found, near
this southern extremity, a stratum of coal, 3-t feet thick
and 200 fathoms long, resting on sandstone.
The soil in general is represented as more productive
than that of the east side of New Holland; and the
island has the advantage of being intersected by two fine
rivers, rising near the centre; the one named the Tamar,
falling into Bass s Strait on the north, and forming Port
Dalrymple; the other, the Derwent, which discharges
itself into the sea on the south-east extremity, spreading
its waters, in the first instance, over the Great Storm
Jiay, which communicates with North Bay, Norfolk Bay,
and Double Bay, on the east, and with D’Entrecasteaux’s
Channel on the west. The Tamar in its course receives
three streams,—the North Esk, the South Esk, and the
Lake river; and the tide flows about 30 miles up the
river, to the point where it is joined by the two Esks.
At the head of the western arm of Port Dalrymple is si¬
tuated York Town, on the skirt of a beautiful, rich, and
well-wooded country. There is also a town named Ho-Aus 4
bart Town, which is now the capital, on the right bank of ^ w
the Derwent, about five miles inland. The country be¬
tween these two towns was traversed in 1807 by Mr Grimes,
who describes it to be everywhere rich and beautiful,
abounding in grassy plains, marshes, and lakes, bounded
on each side by hills, well clothed with wood, rising into
high and rocky mountains.
The description given by D’Entrecasteaux of the channel
that bears his name, and the surrounding shores, is grand
and imposing, and corresponds generally with the follow¬
ing animated account of it from M. Peron, ten years af¬
terwards. “ Crowded on the surface of the soil are seen
on every side those beautiful Mimosas, those superb Me-
trosideros, those Correas, unknown till of late to our coun¬
try, but now become the pride of our shrubberies. From
the shores of the ocean to the summits of the highest
mountains may be observed the mighty Eucalyptus, those
giant trees of Australasian forests, many of which measure
from 162 to 180 feet in height, and from 25 to 30 and
even 36 feet in circumference. Banksia of different spe¬
cies, the Protea, the Embothria, the Leptosperma, form an
enchanting belt round the skirts of the forests. Here the
Casuarina exhibits its beautiful form ; there the elegant
Exocarpus throws into a hundred different places its ne¬
gligent branches. Everywhere spring up the most de¬
lightful thickets of Melaleuca, Thesium, Conchyum, Evo-
dia, all equally interesting, either from their graceful
shape, the lovely verdure of their foliage, the singularity
of their corollas, or the form of their seed-vessels.” ( Voy.
aux Terres Australes.)
All the navigators who have visited the southern part
of Van Diemen’s Land describe the natives as a mild,
affable, good-humoured, and inoffensive people ; with the
exception of Marion, the effect of whose fire-arms, Labil¬
lardiere thinks, had made them afraid of Europeans.
Flinders and Bass conceived that the natives of this
island were sunk still lower in the scale of human exist¬
ence than those in the neighbourhood of Port Jackson,
though they saw but one man, and he is described as
having “ a countenance more expressive of benignity and
intelligence than of that ferocity or stupidity which ge¬
nerally characterized the other natives.” They are ob¬
viously the same people as those of New Holland, and go
entirely naked, both men and women ; but their language
is altogether different. They have the art, too, of striking
fire with two flints, which is not known to the other Aus¬
tralasian islanders; and it is also singular that they set
no value on iron. The women refused from Cook’s people
all presents, and rejected all their addresses, not so much
from a sense of virtue, it was supposed, as from the fear
of the men, of whom they stood in great awe. In some
places were found miserable huts of twigs, and rude bas¬
kets, made of a juncus or rush; but these were all the
signs that appeared of civilization. Cook, D’Entrecas¬
teaux, and Baudin, all observed many of the largest trees
with trunks hollowed out, apparently by means of fire;
and as the hollow side invariably faced the east and
south-east, the lee-side to the prevailing winds, it was
concluded they were intended as habitations. In D’En¬
trecasteaux s Channel only were indications of huts made
of the bark of the Eucalyptus, consisting of three rolls
stitched together. (D’Entrecasteaux, Labillardiere, Flin¬
ders, &c.)
III. This great island is, after New Holland, not only Pa] er
the first in point of magnitude, but claims a priority i11 „
discovery over that and every other island in the Austral-Gu
asian Sea. In the year 1526, when the Portuguese and
the opaniards were disputing their respective claims to
the Spice Islands, Don Jorge de Meneses, of the former
AUSTRALASIA.
211
nation, had, in his passage from Malacca to the Moluc- which he was more confirmed by observing their houses Australasia,
cas, by extraordinary and accidental circumstances, dis- built upon stakes eight or nine feet from the ground. At
covered the north coast of Papua, so called, according to the two little islands of Moa and Insou, on the north-east
some, because the word signifies black, which was the co- coast, the friendly natives supplied them with abundance
lour of the natives, or curled hair, according to others, of cocoa nuts. At 28 leagues from Moa, Schouten fell in
Meneses remained at a port called Versija till the change with a group of fourteen small islands covered with wood,
of the monsoon, and then returned to the Moluccas. The but apparently uninhabited; but sailing to the northward,
next navigator who touched at Papua was Alvarez de they were followed by six large canoes, the people in which
Saavedra, on his homeward voyage from the Moluccas in were armed with javelins. Those in some canoes from
1528, for New Spain ; and from an idea that the country another island were of a tawny complexion, had long curly
abounded in gold, he gave to it the name of Isla del Oro. hair, and appeared, by their persons and language, to be a
From the resemblance of the natives to African negroes, different race from the natives of Papua: they had rings
being black, with short curly hair, the name was after- of coloured glass, yellow beads, and vessels of porcelain,
wards changed by the Spaniards to New Guinea, and not, which were regarded as “ evidences of their having com¬
as some have supposed, because it was thought that Gui- munication with the East Indies.” Schouten’s Island is
nea and Papua were situated under the same parallel of the largest of this group. Tasman visited all these islands
latitude; which, however, they certainly are, though one and the coast of New Guinea in 1643, and obtained vast
happens to be north and the other south latitude. He numbers of cocoa nuts and bananas from the friendly na-
staid a month, and obtained provisions ; but some Portu- tives of Moa and Insou. Tasman made no discoveries in
guese deserted with the only boat the ship had, and were this part of his voyage.
left behind. They found their way, however, to Gilolo, Our countryman Dampier saw the coast in 1699, but
and reported that Saavedra had been wrecked; but on did not land: the natives came off1 to his ship, and he
his subsequent arrival they were tried, condemned, and speaks in admiration of their large and picturesque proas.
executed. He is supposed to have added about 50 leagues He discovered, however, a strait unknown before, which
of discovery to that of Meneses. In 1529 Saavedra divides New Guinea from New Britain, and is now called
sailed a second time from New Spain, and, according to after his name. Bougainville was less fortunate, when,
Galvaom (or Galvano), followed the coast of Papua east- in 1768, he touched on the coast of what he considered
wards above 500 leagues. a separate island, and to which he gave the name of Loui-
In 1537 Gonzalvo and Alvarado were dispatched on siade: there is, however, some reason to believe that it is
discovery by the viceroy of Peru; but the former being a continuation of New Guinea. D’Entrecasteaux, in 1792,
killed in a mutiny, the crew chose another commander ; passed along the northern coast of Louisiade, and through
and the first land they made was Papua. The ship was Dampier’s Strait, but left the point of its identity writh or
in so crazy a state that she was abandoned; the crew, separation from New Guinea undecided,
only seven in number (the rest having died of hunger and Sonnerat published A Voyage to New Guinea, though
fatigue), were made captives, and carried to an island he evidently never was there, but describes the natives and
called Crespos (curly-haired men), wdience they were sent productions from what he saw and from what he could
to the Moluccas and ransomed. collect at the island of Gibby, to the eastward of Gillolo.
In 1545 Ynigo Ortiz de Retz, in his voyage from Ti- Forrest, in 1775, anchored in the Bay of Dory, on the
dore to New Spain, came to an archipelago of islands near northern extremity of New Guinea, and collected some in-
the land of Papua; sailed 230 leagues along the north formation respecting the inhabitants from a Mahommedan
coast; and not knowing it had been before visited by Hadji, who accompanied him. Captain Cook, also, in his
Europeans, he called it Nueva Guinea, from the resem- first voyage in 1770, made the coast in about 6° 30' south
blance of the natives to those of the coast of Guinea. latitude, a little to the northward of Cape Valscher, but
In 1606 Torres made the east coast of New Guinea, did not bring his ship to anchor, on account of the hosti-
in his way to the Moluccas, sailed westward 300 leagues, lity of the natives. A party landed near a grove of cocoa-
doubled the south-east point, sailed along the southern nut trees, and not far from it found plantain and the
coast, saw the northern coast of New Holland, and passed bread-fruit tree. The breeze from the trees and shrubs
the strait which now bears his name. He describes the is said to have been charged with a fragrance not unlike
coast of New Guinea as inhabited by a dark people, naked, that of gum benjamin. Three Indians rushed out of the
except a covering round the middle, of painted cloth made wood with a hideous shout, and ran towards the party; the
of the bark of a tree. They had arms of clubs and darts foremost throwing something out of his hand which burnt
ornamented with feathers. He fell in with many large like gunpowder, the other two hurling their lances at the
islands, large ports, and large rivers. Towards the northern same time. Before they reached the pinnace, from 60 to
extremity he met with Mahommedans, who had swords 100 had collected, all stark naked ; their appearance as to
and fire-arms. stature, colour, and crisped hair, resembling that of the
In 1616 Schouten came in sight of a burning mountain New Hollanders. They let off fires by four or five at a
on the coast of New Guinea, which he named Vulcan, and time, but for what purpose could not be imagined. These
immediately after of the coast itself. The island was well fires appeared to be discharged from a piece of stick, pro-
inhabited, and abounded with cocoa nuts ; but no anchor- bably a hollow cane ; and the fire and smoke exactly re-
ing ground could be found. The natives were black, with sembled those of a musket, but without any report. I hose
short hair; but others appeared of a more tawny colour, with who were on board ship, at a distance, concluded they
canoes of a different shape. Among the islands in sight had fire-arms ; and even those in the boat might have sup-
to the northward, four small ones continually smoked. On posed them firing volleys, had they not been so near as to
approaching the mainland, the natives, whom he calls real ascertain that there was no report. 1 orres had observed
Bapoos, came off, “ a wild, strange, and ridiculous people, something of the same kind in about 4° south latitude on
active as monkeys, having black curled hair, rings in their the same coast, where, he says, the inhabitants were black,
cars and noses, and necklaces of hogs’ tusks.” They had but better clothed than those southward ; that among the
all some personal defect; one was blind, another had a weapons used by them were hollow bamboo sticks, which
great leg, a third a swelled arm; which made Schouten they filled with lime, and by throwing it out endeavoured
conclude that this part of the country was unhealthy, in to blind their enemies. This explanation, however, does
212
AUSTRALASIA.
Australasia,
General
view of
Papua.
Animals.
New Bri¬
tain, New
Ireland,
and neigh,
bouring
islands.
i. not account for the fire. Forrest says that the Chinese
from Tidore trade with Papua under Dutch colours ; per¬
haps, therefore, gunpowder may be one of the articles
carried by them in exchange for the slaves, ambergris,
sea-slugs (biche-de-mer), tortoise-shell, loories, birds of
paradise, &c. which they carry back to China.
If we suppose the Louisiade of Bougainville to be con¬
nected with New Guinea, this island extends in a south¬
east by east direction from the Cape absurdly called
Good Hope, nearly under the equator, to Cape Deliverance,
in 11° 3CK south, being in length about 1400, and medial
breadth about 150 geographical miles. The accounts of
all the navigators who have touched on the different parts
of its coast describe it as a rich and magnificent country,
containing, in all human probability, from its situation and
appearance, the most valuable vegetable products of the
Moluccas and the several Asiatic islands. Forrest found
the nutmeg-tree on Manaswary Island, in the Bay of Dory;
and he learned that a people in the interior, called Hara-
foras, cultivate the ground, and bring their produce down
to the sea-coast; that they are very poor, and some of
them have long hair; and that they live in trees, which
they ascend by cutting notches in them. The people of
New Guinea, in many parts of the coast, live in huts or
cabins placed on stages which are erected on poles, com¬
monly in the water, and probably as a protection against
snakes and other venomous creatures, though Forrest
seems to think against the Haraforas. On these stages
they haul up their proas or canoes. These people are in¬
variably described as being hideously ugly; their large
eyes, flat noses, thick lips, woolly hair, and black shining
skin, denoting almost to a certainty their African origin and
their affinity with the natives of New Holland: but the
difference of language, and the want of all the useful pro¬
ductions on the latter, which abound on New Guinea, in¬
duced Captain Cook to Conclude that there is no inter¬
course between the two people. The Papuans increase
their natural deformity bypassing bones or pieces of stick
through the cartilage of the nose, and frizzing out their
curly locks like a mop, sometimes to the enormous circum¬
ference of three feet. They appear, however, to be one
degree farther removed from savage life than the New
Hollanders, having permanent houses, and both men and
women wearing wrappers round the waist, which are among
the articles brought to them by the Chinese and Malays.
The only quadrupeds that are known to exist on this
large island are dogs, rats, and wild hogs ; but the feather¬
ed race are of great beauty and infinite variety. New
Guinea is the native country of those singular and match¬
less beauties, the birds of paradise, which were once thought
to have no legs, but to be always on the wing, and which
are known by the name of paxaros da sol, birds of the sun.
They are said to migrate in large flocks, in the dry mon¬
soon, to the islands of Arroo, and other islands to the west
and north-west of New Guinea. The great crown pigeon,
parrots, loories, and minas, are natives of Papua.
The whole of this great country is indented with deep
bays on every side, some of which nearly intersect the
island; and the coast is surrounded on every side by a
multitude of small islands, all peopled with the same de¬
scription of blacks, excepting those already mentioned on
the north-west, near the equator, most of which are under
the government of Mahommedan Malays, with whom both
the Dutch and Chinese have long kept up a considerable
intercourse.
I V. I here can be little doubt that this extensive range
of glands was partially seen by Le Maire and Schouten
in 1616, who, after discovering the Groene Island and
the Marquen Islands, steered along the northern coast of
New Ireland, as did Fasman also in 1642. Dauqiier,
however, first ascertained New Britain to be an island dis-Aus
tinct from New Guinea, by passing the strait which has ^
since borne his name. He visited Port Montague on this
island, and speaks of the black natives resembling the
Papuans, their dexterity in managing their canoes, their
woody hills, fertile vales, and delightful rivulets. He
also anchored in Slinger’s Bay, on New Ireland, whichDia
he conceived to be the same land with New Britain; but
Carteret, in 1727, discovered and passed through a strait
which separates them, and to which he gave the name of
St George’s Channel. The Admiralty Islands of Carteret,
to the north-westward of New Britain, had previously
been discovered by Schouten, and named the Twenty-
five Islands. New Britain was seen by Roggewein in
1722, and by Bougainville in 1768.
D’Entrecasteaux, we believe, was the last navigator
who passed along the north coast of New Britain, and
through St George’s Channel, which divides it from New
Ireland, and from thence to the Admiralty Islands; and
from his voyage, published by Rossel, together with Labil-
lardiere’s and Carteret’s, we shall extract a few gleanings.
The extent of New Britain and Ireland is not exactly Get
known, nor have they been sufficiently explored to enabledesc
geographers to lay them down with accuracy, or even totion
state what number of islands the group consists of. One
of considerable extent lies off the north-west end of New
Ireland, which has been named New Hanover, and is it¬
self surrounded by low woody islands. The whole group
occupies a space between 2° 30' and 6° of south latitude,
and 149° and 153° of east longitude, and may probably
contain an area not less than 10,000 geographical miles.
Carteret, in passing through the strait, saw but few na-Nat
tives on the south coast of New Ireland, who showed mark¬
ed signs of hostility, and were armed with lances headed
with flint; they had also slings and good fishing-tackle.
They were black, and had woolly hair, but their lips, he
says, were not thick, nor their noses flat; their cheeks
were streaked with white, and their hair and beards were
covered with a white powder. Their canoes were long and
narrow, and had generally outriggers; one of them mea¬
sured 90 feet in length, and was formed out of a single
tree. The two large islands, and the whole group, in fact,
were nearly covered with wood; and thick cocoa-nut
groves skirted all the low parts of the coast. Labillar-
diere says that New Ireland produces nutmegs; and he
also mentions a new species of the Areca palm, 108 feet
high, the stem consisting of hard solid timber.
The natives of the Admiralty Islands, lying to the
north-west, were found by Carteret to be less black than
those of New Britain and Ireland, with agreeable coun¬
tenances, not unlike Europeans; their hair was curly,
smeared with oil and red ochre, and their bodies and
faces painted with the same material; the glans penis was
covered with the shell called the bulla ovum, serving the
same purpose as the wooden sheath of the Caffres in
South Africa, whom, indeed, they seem to resemble as
closely as the natives of New Guinea do those of the
western coast of Africa. The women wear a bandage
round the waist. The central island is tolerably large,
and of a beautiful appearance, clothed with the most
luxuriant verdure, and cultivated to the very summit.
Among the groves of cocoa-nut trees are numerous ha¬
bitations, and the natives have evidently attained to a
higher degree of civilization than their southern neigh¬
bours ; they use earthen vessels, and chew the betel leaf
with chunam or lime. This central island is surrounded
by nearly thirty small flat islets of coral, and reefs in the
varmus stages of their progress towards islets.
I roceeding to the westward and to the north-west, we
meet with other little clusters of islands, as the Her-
AUSTRALASIA.
213
UStra i3'
loir 's
slam
Nat's.
mites, the Portland, the Echiquier (chess-board), vul¬
garly called Exchequer Islands, all of which consist, like
the Admiralty Archipelago, of a larger central island sur¬
rounded by a chain of islets and reefs, most of them co¬
vered with beautiful verdure. The natives of these groups,
as they approach the equator, gradually assume a lighter
colour and longer hair, till they lose entirely the negro
character, and melt into that of Malays and other Asia¬
tic islanders. (See Schouten, Dampier, Carteret, Labil-
lardiere, &c.)
V. This archipelago of islands was one of the first dis¬
coveries of the Spaniards in Australasia, though the cre¬
dit of it is given to Alonzo de Mendana, who was sent on
an expedition of discovery in 1567 from Callao by the
viceroy of Peru. He anchored in a port on the island
of Santa Ysabel, to which he gave the name of Porta de
la Estrella; and he also built a brigantine to make further
discoveries, in which she was particularly successful, having
fallen in with no fewer than thirty-three islands, “ of very
fine prospect.” Many of them were of considerable size,
to which they gave particular names, as Galera, Buona-
vista, Florida, San German, Guadalcanal San Christoval,
Santa Catarina, and Santa Ana. Guadalcanar, however,
was the most attractive, having a port which they named
De la Cruz, and a river which they called Galego. Of
this island Mendana took possession for the king of Spain.
When the voyage was published, the name of Solomon s
Islands was given to the group, “ to the end that the Spa¬
niards, supposing them to be those isles from whence So¬
lomon fetched gold to adorn the temple at Jerusalem,
might be the more desirous to go and inhabit the same
but it has been said that Mendana’s advice was, that they
should not be colonized, “ that the English, or others,
who pass the Strait of Magelhanes to go to the Moluccas,
might have no succour there, but such as they get from
the Indians.” The truth, however, is, that Mendana, on
a second voyage for the discovery of the Solomon Islands,
returned without being able to find them, which gave oc¬
casion to the remark, that “ what Mendana discovered in
his first voyage, he lost in his second.” He discovered,
however, in this second voyage, the great island of Santa
Cruz, which is situated at the south-east extremity of So¬
lomon’s Islands, and may very fairly be considered as one
of the group. This island, which has an excellent har¬
bour, La Graciosa, was first revisited after Mendana’s dis¬
covery by Carteret, in 1767, who changed its name to that
of Egmont, and made it the principal island of a group
which he called Queen Charlotte’s Islands. Here Men¬
dana died, and Quiros succeeded to the command; but
the search for Solomon’s Islands was abandoned when
they were not more than 40 leagues from Christoval. It
is a singular fact that Solomon’s Islands, whose name was
sufficient to tempt adventurers, were lost to Europeans
for two centuries after their discovery, and that we know
at present little, if any, more than Mendana gave to the
world after his first voyage. They were revisited by
Bougainville in 1768; by M. Surville in 1769, on a voy¬
age from Pondicherry of mercantile speculation, and who,
from a ridiculous mistake, called them the Archipelago of
the Arsacides, to mark the natives as assassins ; by Lieu¬
tenant Shortland of the British navy, in 1788, who chose
to call them New Georgia; and frequently, since that
time, by various British and French navigator's ;—still the
little we know of them is from Mendana.
Santa Ysabel, he says, was inhabited by people who
had the complexion of mulattoes, with curly hair, and
little covering to their bodies ; who worshipped serpents,
toads, and such like creatures; whose food was cocoa-nuts
and roots; and who, it was believed, ate human flesh,
“ for the chief sent to the general a present of a quarter
of a boy, with the band and arm.” Buonavista is twelve Australasia,
leagues in extent, very fertile, and well peopled, the natives
living in regular villages or towns. On Florida, twenty-
five leagues in circuit, the natives dyed their hair red,
collected together at the sound of the conch-shells, and
ate human flesh. Sesarga was well inhabited, produced
plenty of yams and bread-fruit, and here the Spaniards
saw hogs. In the midst of the island was a volcano con¬
tinually emitting smoke. They saw bats which measured
five feet between the tips of the wings. At Guadalcanar
they received in barter two hens and a cock, the first
fowls that had been seen. At San Christoval the natives
were very numerous, and drew up to give battle to the
Spaniards, their arms being darts, clubs, bows and arrows ;
but they were dispersed by the fire of the muskets, which
killed one Indian, and wounded others. In the neigh¬
bouring village was found a quantity of cocoa-nuts and
almonds, sufficient to have loaded a ship. Santa Ana was
well peopled and fertile. It has a good port on the east
side, where the Spaniards were attacked by the natives,
who wounded three of the invaders, while a dart pierced
through the target and arm of the Spanish commanding
officer. The blacks had boughs on their heads, and bands
round their waists. The Spaniards observed here hogs
and fowls.
VI. To the south-east of Solomon’s Islands, and between New He-
the parallels of 14° SO and 20° south latitude, are found a brides,
number of islands, some of very considerable magnitude,
called the New Hebrides or Hebudes. They were first
discovered in 1606 by Pedro Fernandez de Quiros, who,
with Luis Vaez de Torres, was sent by the king of Spain
from Lima with two ships and a zabra (launch) to esta¬
blish a settlement at the island of Santa Cruz, and from
thence to go in quest of the Tierra Austral or southern
continent. This voyage has been considered, and justly
so, among the most celebrated undertaken by the Spaniards
since the time of Magelhanes. In April 1606 they dis¬
covered an island, to which they gave the name of Santa
Maria, from whence they saw another island to the south¬
ward, “ so large,” says Torres, “ that we sailed for it.”
On the 2d May they anchored in a bay large enough to
hold a thousand ships, to which they gave the appropriate
name of San Felipe y Santiago. Quiros at once deter¬
mined that he had now discovered the long-sought-for
southern continent, and in this conviction named it the
Australia del Espiritu Santo. Two rivers fell into the
bay, one the Jordan, the other the Salvador. The sur¬
rounding country was beautiful, and is thus described by
the historian of the voyage: “ The banks of the rivers
were covered with odoriferous flowers and plants, parti¬
cularly orange flowers and sweet basil, the perfumes of
which were wafted to the ships by the morning and even¬
ing breezes; and at the early dawn was heard, from the
neighbouring woods, the mixed melody of many different
kinds of birds, some in appearance like nightingales,
blackbirds, larks, and goldfinches. All the parts of the
country in front of the sea were beautifully varied with
fertile valleys, plains, winding rivers, and groves, which
extend to the sides of the green mountains.” (Torque-
mada, as quoted in Burney’s Account of Discoveries in the
South Sea.) .
Of this terrestrial paradise, which the Spaniards re¬
garded as their own, it was intended to take immediate
possession. They landed in great numbers; the islanders
were also numerous, became alarmed, made them presents,
and signified a wish for them to return to their ships.
They, however, landed from their boats, on which the
chief drew a line on the ground with the end of his bow,
and made signs that the Spaniards must not pass that
boundary. It is said that Torres, to show his contempt
214
AUSTRALASIA.
Australasia, of the idea of being restrained by barbarians, imraediate-
ly passed the line. A battle ensued, in which the chief
was killed, and all the rest fled into the woods. This rash
act, however, was fatal to the views of the Spaniards,
who never afterwards could prevail on the islanders to
have any friendly communication with them ; and they left
this country, after some ridiculous formalities of taking
possession in the name of Philip III., and founding a city,
dignified with the name of the Nero Jerusalem. -
So anxious was Quiros of “ adding the Australia del
Espiritu Santo to the other possessions of the Spanish
monarchy,” that, after his return to Spain, he is said to
have presented no less than fifty memorials to the king.
One of these, which was printed at Seville, begins thus :
“ I, Captain Pedro Fernandez de Quiros, say, that with
this I have presented to your majesty eight memorials re¬
lative to the settlement which ought to be made in Aus¬
tralia Incognita.” In these memorials he enumerates the
many valuable productions of this supposed southern con¬
tinent,—cocoa-nuts, plantains, sugar-canes, yams, batatas,
oranges, limes, papas, pumpkins, almonds, nutmegs, mace,
ginger, pepper in great quantities, and woods for “ build¬
ing any number of ships.” The animals are hogs, goats,
and dogs; fowls, and a variety of useful birds; various
good fish, and pearl oysters. The climate is described as
so fine, with such a freshness in the air, that neither by
labour, exposure to the sun, or rain, or dews, nor by in¬
temperance, did any of the Spaniards fall sick; and among
the natives many aged people were seen. They wear a
covering round the middle : Torres says they are all black
and naked. They are described by Quiros as corpulent
and strong, cleanly, cheerful, sensible, and grateful; their
houses stood on the ground, and not on poles, built of
wood, and thatched. They weave nets, and make earthen
vessels, have plantations inclosed with palisades, construct
vessels which navigate to distant countries, and have
places appropriated for burying the dead; and, he adds,
as the last and decisive test of their progress in civiliza-
tion, “ they cut their hogs and make capons.”
^ his archipelago of islands, like that of Solomon, was
lost to the world for a century and a half, when Bougain¬
ville revisited them in 1768, but, except landing on the
Isle of Lepers, did nothing more than discover that the
land was not connected, but composed of islands, which
he called the Great Cyclades ; which, on being more accu¬
rately and extensively explored by Cook in 1774, under¬
went another change to that of New Hebrides, which they
now bear in all our charts. According to the survey of
our great navigator, they consist of Tierra del Espiritu
Santo, the largest of the whole, St Bartholomew, Malli-
colo, the Isle of Lepers, Aurora, Whitsuntide, Ambrym,
Apee, Paoom, Three-hills, Sandwich, Montagu, Hinchin-
brook, Shepherd’s Isles, Erromango, Tanna, Immer, Anna-
tom, and Erronan. The two which are more particu¬
larly described are Mallicolo and Tanna, the natives of
which differ remarkably in their persons and language;
those of the latter having curly but long hair, dark but
not black, and without any thing of the negro character
in their features, which are regular and agreeable, their
persons slender, active, and nimble. They were found to be
hospitable, civil, and good-natured, but they displayed a
jealousy of their visitors seeing the interior of the island,
which could only be equalled in Japan or China. All
the plantations were fenced, and laid out in a line; they
consisted of sugar-canes, yams, plantains, bread-fruit, &c.
le yams were remarkably fine, one of them weighing fifty-
six pounds, every ounce of which was good; and they had
pigs and poultry. The juice of the cocoa-nut and water
appeared to be their only beverage. Their arms were
clubs, darts, lances, and bows and arrows. Their canoes,
Descrip¬
tion.
Natives.
clumsily sewed together, had outriggers, and were work-Aus j
ed by paddles and by sails. The men wore a wrapper ^ !!
round the loins, and the women a sort of petticoat reacf *
ing to the knee.
The natives of Mallicolo are called by Captain Cook
“ an ape-like nation,” the most ugly, ill-proportioned peo¬
ple he ever met with, and different from all others, dimi¬
nutive in their persons, dark coloured, with black hair
short and curly, but not so woolly as a negro’s; they had
long heads, flat faces, and monkey countenances; and a
belt round the waist, pulled tight across the belly, made
them look not unlike overgrown pismires. The women
were equally ugly; and the dress of both sexes was in
other respects the same as that of Tanna, as were also
the productions of the island. Their houses were low, and
covered with palm thatch. (See Dalrymple, Burnev
Cook, &c.)
VII. This large island, surrounded with coral islets andNev ne
reefs, was wholly unknown till Captain Cook in 1774 felldoni
in with the north-western extremity in steering south¬
west from Mallicolo, from which it is distant not more
than about eighty leagues. He anchored within a small
island called Balabea, and opposite to the district Balade.
The great island extends between latitude 20° 5' and
22° 30', in the direction of north-west and south-east, about
250 miles long by 60 broad. The land bears a great re¬
semblance to that of New South Wales, and many of its
natural productions appeared to be the same, but the na¬
tives were different. They are represented as a strong,
robust, active, well-made people, courteous and friendly,
and not in the least addicted to pilfering, in which respect
they differ from every other tribe of Australasia. They
are nearly of the same colour as the natives of Tanna, and
appeared to be a mixed race between that people and
those of the Friendly Isles, or of Tanna and New Zealand,
their language being a mixture of them all. Of the same
disposition as the natives of the Friendly Islands, they
were found to excel them in affability and honesty; and
the women, like those of Tanna, were chaster than the
females of the more eastern islands, not one of the ship’s
company having been able to obtain the least favour
from any one of them. They wear a petticoat of the fila¬
ments of the plantain tree, “ at least six or eight inches
thick, but not one inch longer than necessary for the use
designed.” They paint and puncture their bodies, and
wear ear-rings, and necklaces, and bracelets, of tortoise
and other shells. Both men and women have good fea¬
tures and agreeable countenances; and some of the men
measure m height six feet four inches. Their hair is
fiizzled out like a mop, and is very black, coarse, and strong,
but different from that of a negro. The rough mop-heads
make use of “ scratchers,” composed of a number of sticks
of hard wood, about the thickness of knitting-needles, fast¬
ened together at one end like a sort of comb ; the women
ave their hair cropped short. The men wear a wrapper
round the loins, made of the bark of a tree. Their houses
resemble bee-hives, with peaked roofs, entered by a hole
just big enough to admit a man bent double. The sides
are of spars and reeds, and both these and the roof well
thatched with dry grass. They boil their roots and fish
m earthen jars. They have nets made of plantain fibres,
and the sails of their canoes are of the same material.
lese vessels consist of two trees fixed together by a
p at orm. -They have plantations of sugar-canes, plan-
ains, bread-fruit, and cocoa-nut, but none of them very
productive. The whole appearance of the country, indeed,
is described as unable to support many inhabitants. The
greater part of the visible surface consists of barren rocky
mountains; and though the plains and valleys appeared
o be fertile, Captain Cook was of opinion that “ nature
itral 1
island we know in this sea.
AUSTRALASIA.
215
has been less bountiful to it than to any other tropical
D’Entrecasteaux passed the opposite extremity of New
Caledonia in 1792, when on his search after the unfortu¬
nate La Perouse, but was prevented by a barrier reef of
™ i from approaching the coast; and, in the following
vear he visited Balade on the north-west. The account
of the inhabitants, as given by Rossel and Labillardiere,
differs altogether from that of Cook. Instead of finding
them friendly, honest, and inoffensive, they are described
as the worst of cannibals, not only eating the flesh of
their enemies, but feeding on little children, ferocious in
their dispositions, the most audacious thieves, and the
women the most shameless prostitutes. But their own
account of their transactions there, the confidence with
which they straggled over the country, and the readiness
of the savages to serve them, by no means warrant the
bad character they have thought fit to give them; and
they had no more proof of their being cannibals than they
had for accusing the people of Van Diemen’s Land of the
same practices, because the surgeon-major mistook the
bone of a kangaroo for that of a young girl. They appear
to have endeavoured by signs to extort a confession to
this effect from the poor savages, who, on their part, were
also persuaded that the French were the real cannibals.
The charge brought against the women is grounded sole¬
ly on two young girls having been prevailed on by some
of the crew to expose what decency requires to be con¬
cealed, in return for some pieces of cloth or iron. Labil¬
lardiere thinks the inhabitants, as well as the vegetable
productions, resemble those of Van Diemen’s Land. There
was no want of different kinds of esculent plants, though
a great scarcity prevailed from drought or other cause
when they arrived. The young shoots of the Hybiscus
tiliaceus, the fruit of the Cordia sebestina, the Dolichos
tuberosus, Helianthus tuberosm, Arum escidentum, and
Macrorrhizon, Hypoxis, Aleurites, figs, oranges, plantains,
sugar-canes, cocoa-nuts, and the bread-fruit, all afforded
them articles of food. Yet Labillardiere says they eat
steatite, and that he saw one man devour a piece of this
stone as large as his two fists. They also eat a species of
spider. They had lost the hogs which Cook left them,
but some half dozen of cocks and hens were seen by the
French. (See Cook, Labillardiere, &c.)
ea- VIII. Though these islands geographically belong to
Australasia, the natives are, in their physical character
and language, Polynesians. They were first discovered
on the 13th December 1642, by Abel Jansen Tasman, on
his voyage of discovery from the Mauritius; and, on the
18th, the Heemskirk yacht and the fly-boat Zeehaan
came to anchor in a bay to which they afterwards gave
the name of Moordenaar’s or Murderer’s Bay, and to the
island that of Staaten Land, in honour of the states-gene-
ral, and in the possibility that it might join the Staaten
Land to the east of the Tierra del Fuego. “ It is a fine
country,” says Tasman, “ and we hope it is part of the
unknown south continent.” The expedition of Hendrik
Brower to Chili the following year cut off the latter Staa¬
ten Land from any continental connection, and the name
of the former was then changed to that of New Zealand.
On the 19th a boat with thirteen natives came within a
stone’s throw of the Heemskirk. The language in which
they hailed was unlike that of the Solomon’s Islands, of
which Tasman had a vocabulary. Their vessel consisted
of two narrow canoes, joined together by boards, on which
the people sat; their paddles, about a fathom long, were
pointed at the end; their clothing appeared of mats or
cotton, but their breasts were naked. They were invited
on board, but in vain. The ships, however, were moved
nearer in shore, upon which seven double vessels came off.
A boat, dispatched from one ship to the other, had pre- Australasia,
viously been attacked. Three men belonging to the Zee- v-^Tw/
haan were killed, and one mortally wounded; one of the
killed was dragged into the canoes. After this, despair¬
ing of getting water or provisions, they weighed and set
sail, twenty-two of the native boats following them, eleven
of which were full of people. The ships fired, and the
canoes returned to the shore.
The next visitor, at the distant period of a hundred and
twenty-seven years, was Captain Surville, who in 1 /69 put
into a bay on the north-eastern extremity, and gave it the
name of Lauriston Bay. In the same year Lieutenant
(afterwards Captain) Cook of the Endeavour, made the land
on the 6th of October, the enormous height of which be¬
came the subject of much conversation; and the general
opinion was, that they had now discovered the Terra Aus¬
tralis Incognita. This voyage, however, and the circumna¬
vigation of the islands of New Zealand, entirely subvei ted
the theory of a great southern continent. In \ 112 Cap¬
tains Marion du Fresne and Crozet put into the Lay of
Isles, where the former and some of the crew were mur¬
dered by the natives. In March 1773 Captain Cook in
the Resolution, with Captain Furneaux in the Adventure,
revisited New Zealand, where the latter had a whole
boat’s crew with a midshipman murdered by the inhabi¬
tants. In 1776 and 1777 a thjrd visit was made to these
islands by Captain Cook. In these several visits, accom¬
panied as he was with men well versed in every branch
of natural knowledge, there will be found in the Voyages
of Cook and Forster every species of information that
the ferocious disposition of the inhabitants made it prac-
ticable to collect*
The two great islands of New Zealand extend between Descrip-
latitude 34° and 48° south, longitude 181° and 194° east;tion.
that to the northward, called Eaheinomawe, is about 400
geographical miles long by 90 in medial breadth ; the name
of the southern island is Tavai Poenammoo, and it is about
450 geographical miles long by 95 broad ; the former has a
rich and fertile soil, well clothed with trees, some of them
more than20feetin girth, and 90 feethigh, without a branch.
Some of them resembled spruce, and were “ large enough
for the mainmast of a 50 gun ship.” The highest hills were
covered with forests, the valleys with grass and shrubbery,
and the plains were well irrigated with rills of clear water.
The southern island is very mountainous ; one peak, re¬
sembling that of Teneriffe, was estimated by Forster, but
without sufficient data, at 14,000 feet in height; it was
covered with snow in the middle of January. Both as to
appearance and temperature, they may be considered as
the British isles of Australasia. Fahrenheit’s thermometer
in February was never higher than 66°, and was not lower
in June than 48°.
A great part of the western side of those islands had,
however, a desolate and inhospitable appearance; exhi¬
biting ranges of yellow sandstone, or white sand hills,
with scarcely a blade of verdure. It is worthy of remark,
that this extraordinary difference prevails between the
two coasts of South Africa, the two coasts of New Hol¬
land, and the two coasts of Van Diemen’s Land.
The natives are stout, well limbed, and muscular, vi- Natives,
gorous and active, excelling in manual dexterity; their
countenances intelligent and expressive, of an olive com¬
plexion, but not darker than a Spaniard. In the appear¬
ance of the women there is not much feminine delicacy;
but on Cook’s first visit they found them more modest
and decent in their behaviour than any of the islanders
they had met with. They were covered from the shoulders
to the ankles with a sort of netted cloth made of the split
leaves of the flax plant (PAormizm tenax), the ends hang¬
ing down like fringes. A party once came upon some
216
AUSTRALASIA.
Australasia, women by surprise as they were fishing, naked, for lob-
^ sters, and “ the chaste Diana, with her nymphs, could not
have discovered more confusion and distress at the sight
of Actaeon, than these women expressed upon our ap¬
proach.” On the third visit, however, they had got rid of
all their modesty, and a rusty nail was sufficient to pur¬
chase the last favour.
The black hair of the men is bound in a knot on the
top of the head, that of the women is cropped; both
sexes anoint their hair with rancid oil, and smear their
bodies with grease and red ochre. The faces of the old
men are covered with large furrowed black marks, gene¬
rally spiral lines, and have a horrible appearance. The
women wear in their ears pieces of cloth, feathers, sticks,
bones, &c. and bracelets and anklets of bone, teeth, shells,
&c. Captain Cook did not observe any appearance of
disease, or bodily complaint, or eruption on the skin, or
marks of any; and the most severe wounds healed most
rapidly. Very old men, without hair or teeth, showed no
signs of decrepitude, and were full of cheerfulness and
vivacity. They are mild, gentle, and affectionate towards
each other, but ferocious and implacable towards their
enemies ; and it unfortunately happens, that the little so¬
cieties into which they appear to be divided, are in an
almost perpetual state of hostility, which makes it neces¬
sary for them to dwell in happahs or villages, fortified
with embankments, ditches, and pallisadoes. They give
no quarter, and feast with apparent relish on the bodies
of their enemies, which they cut up and broil in holes
dug in the earth; they suck out the brains, and preserve
the skulls as trophies. They made no hesitation in de¬
vouring human flesh in presence of the English officers,
and their provision baskets had generally a head or a
limb of a human subject.
The only quadrupeds on the islands are dogs, small and
ugly, and rats, the former of which they eat, and with
their skins cut into strips they adorn their clothing; but
their principal food consists of fish, and the bruised roots
of fern. They cultivate, however, and with great neat-
ness, sweet potatoes, eddas, and gourds, all planted in re¬
gular rows; and Cook observed near the villages both
privies and dunghills. Their houses have a ridge-pole to
the roof, which, with the sides, are built of sticks and
grass, and lined with bark; they sleep on the floors cover-
ed wRh straw; and the furniture consists of a chest to
hold their tools, clothes, arms, and feathers, provision
baskets, and gourds to hold water, which is their only
beverage ; the New Zealanders being among the very few
people, civilized or savage, who are ignorant of the means
ot intoxication.
Their double canoes or whale boats are admirably
constructed with planks from 60 to 70 feet in length, and
their prows and sterns are tastefully and curiously carved
and ornamented; all of which is performed by adzes and
axes of a hard black stone, or green talc or jade, and with
cmsels of human bone or jasper. Of these materials also
their offensive weapons are made : these are lances four¬
teen feet long, sharp at both ends, of hard wood neatly
carved; and a battle-axe of jade or bone about a foot
long. I heir war canoes carry from 60 to 70 men each ;
they keep exact time with their paddles, singing, with
g at vociferation and distorted features, their savage war-
song, when bound on any hostile expedition. Their war-
strie^th? nnindUCte-d in the Same furious and extravagant
2th 711?USICa- lnstrument, if it can be called one,
which they use, is a triton shell, which sounds like a cow’s
They have, however, a taste for music, and the women
are said to sing m a soft, slow, and mournful cadence
making use of semitones. When their husbands are slain
in battle, they cut their legs, arms, and faces, with boneAu
or sharp shells; and there are few of them who do not wear v *
scars on their bodies as testimonials of their affection and ^
sorrow for their deceased friends.
The natives of New Zealand exhibit a strange mixture
of civilized and savage life. It was hoped, from the state
of their cultivated grounds, of which several hundred
acres were seen, that presents of hogs, kids, and poultry
would have been most acceptable, and considerable num’
bers were left with them on the first and second visits
of Captain Cook; but, excepting the cocks and hens
which had bred plentifully, and flew about wild in the
woods, the others had been wantonly destroyed. In 1791
Vancouver touched at Dusky Bay," and remained there
for some time, examining the bays and creeks in the
neighbourhood; but he did not see one human being
And in 1793 D’Entrecasteaux passed between the Three
Kings’ Island and Cape Maria van Diemen, but had no
other communication with the natives except in their
canoes. Unlike in every respect to the Otaheitans, they
have evidently a common origin; their language not differ¬
ing more than the language of the two New Zealand
Islands from each other. The few notions they have of
superior beings also accord with those of Otaheite. (See
Cook’s Voyages?)
A missionary of the name of Marsden, from merely
seeing some New Zealanders in New South Wales, had
the hardihood to accuse Captain Cook of having drawn
a false picture of the New Zealanders.” He undoubted¬
ly thought so, and went to the islands with a view of con¬
verting the natives to Christianity. He soon, however,
abandoned this “ noble race of men,” as he calls them,
being unable, by his own account, “ to lay the first stone;”
consoling himself for his disappointment by the reflection
that “ the pious Israelites could not build the walls of
Jerusalem without holding the sword in one hand and the
trowel in the other. Captain Cook’s accuracy is too well
established to be shaken by such authority. The follow¬
ing horrible transaction proves how well he described the
character of these cannibals. In December 1809, the
ship Boyd, from Port Jackson, was at Wangarrooa, in
the Bay of Islands, and admitted, without due caution,
too large a number of natives on board, when the crew
were suddenly attacked, overpowered, and slaughtered.
Captain Alexander Berry, of the ship Edinburgh Castle,
being on the coast, was soon after apprized of this horrible
event; and, proceeding to the bay, found the remains of
the Boyd, which had been burned by the savages. On
andmg, he discovered that the massacre had been direct-
et by Tippahee, the old chief who had been so much ca¬
ressed at Sydney. The bones of the unfortunate men lay
scattered on the ground, where their bodies had been de¬
voured by the savages. Sixteen were murdered and cut
up on the deck of the vessel; five others, who had fled
tor safety upon the yards, were told by the old cannibal,
ttiat it they would come down their lives should be spared,
which, after some hesitation, they consented to do. They
were sent on shore, and in five minutes after their dead
bodies lay on the beach. The only survivors which Cap-
ain Berry contrived to save were, a woman, two children,
and a boy. Well might Captain Berry conclude the nar-
ra ive o his horrid murder by an admonition, “ Let no
man trust a New Zealander.”
Commerce, however, that great civilizer, has done more
tor the Zealanders than the missionaries could effect. An
active and increasing trade is carried on between these
islands and New South Wales and Van Diemen’s Land;
and the southern whale-fishery ships are constantly call¬
ing^ ere for refreshments. The result has been not only
an improvement in the condition of these islanders, but a
AUSTRALASIA.
217
asm ia. softening down of their ferocious disposition, and a steady French, where they had landed in a boat and lodged a Australasia.
>~v -'' march in progressive civilization. piece of parchment in a bottle, into Christmas Harbour ; ^
To the eastward of New Zealand is an island of consi- and called a round high rock Bligh’s Cap, which had
derable extent and well peopled, discovered by Mr been named by M. de Kerguelen the Isle of Rendez-
Broughton in 1791, when on a voyage round the world vous,—although, says Cook, “ I know nothing that can
with Vancouver. He called it Chatham Island. The people rendezvous about it but fowls of the air ; for it is certain-
and the productions are the same as those of New Zea- ly inaccessible to any other animal.” Kerguelen thought
land. (See Vancouver’s Voyage.) he had discovered the Terra Australis Incognita, but
It may be proper here to notice a recent discovery of a Cook soon determined that it was of no great extent.
u!k! I’sgroup of islands directly south of the south cape of Tavai The hills were but of a moderate height, and yet in the
roiip Poenammoo, one of the New Zealands, named Lord Auck- middle of summer were covered with snow; not a shrub
ilani; land’s Group by the discoverer, Mr Bristow, master of a was found on this island, and not more than 17 or 18 dif-
South Sea Whaler, in gratitude to the nobleman whose ferent plants, one half of which were either mosses or
name they bear, for having, when a boy, procured him grasses. The chief verdure was occasioned by one plant
admission into the school of Greenwich Hospital. This not unlike a saxifrage, spreading in tufts, and forming a
group, seven in number, was first seen on the 10th of surface of a pretty extensive texture, over a kind of bog or
August 1806; and on the 20th of October 1807 Captain rotten turf: the highest plant resembled a small cabbage
Bristow came to anchor with his ship, the Sarah, in a fine when shot into seed, and was about two feet high. No land
harbour on the largest island, which he called Enderby, animals were met with, but great plenty of the ursine
and to the harbour he gave the quaint name of Sarah’s seal (Phoca ursina). Penguins were very abundant, as
Bosom. They are situated in lat. 50° 40' south, and long, were also shags, cormorants, albatrosses, gulls, ducks, pet-
1660 35' east. Wood and water being plentiful and easily terels, and sea-swallows. A few fish of the size of a had-
procured, they are represented as holding out, in this de- dock were taken with the line, and the only shell-fish were
solate and remote region, considerable advantages to the a few limpets and muscles.
southern whale-fishery. The climate, however, is unusu- The steep cliffs towards the sea are rent from the top
ally severe, and the weather tempestuous. In the middle downwards, but whether by rains, frost, or earthquakes,
of summer (December) every day was attended with could not be determined. The productions of the hills
snow, sleet, or rain. Yet this severity of climate appear- were composed chiefly of a dark blue and pretty hard
ed to make no unfavourable impression on the vegetable stone, intermixed with small particles of glimmer or quartz,
productions, as the woods were covered with verdure as Lumps of coloured sandstone, and of semitransparent
early in the spring as October. He observed four kinds quartz, are also common. Nothing appeared like an ore
of timber trees, the principal of which was said to be or metal of any kind. (Cook s Third Voyage, vol. i.)
mangrove, growing to the height of 30 or 40 feet; but the X. These small uninhabited islands are interesting only gt Paul
trunks were so twisted and turned by the violent winds in a geological point of view. Situated in the midst ofand Am-
that it was difficult to find a straight piece of ten feet in the great Indian Ocean, at the distance of 2000 milessterdam.
length. There was no want of shrubbery and herbaceous from the nearest land, and removed but 18 or 20 miles
plants; there were neither men nor quadrupeds of any from each other, they have no common point of resem-
kind, but seals, sea-elephants, and sea-fowl, in great plen- blance; the one being the product of a volcanic eruption
ty. The woods abounded with a variety of singing birds scarcely yet cooled, with a few mosses and grasses on its
with sweet melodious notes, and among them was a species surface; the other composed of horizontal and parallel
of lark; wild ducks, teals, and snipes, were plentiful; and strata of rock, covered with frutescent plants—an appear-
he caught a kind of rock-cod with the hook and line. ance which led the scientific gentlemen in D Entrecas-
To the southward of the group another small island teaux’s expedition to conclude that an organization so re-
was discovered in 1811, to which was given the name of gular could not proceed from a volcanic origin. A French
Campbell’s Island; and to the south-west of them Mac- seal-catcher from the neighbouring island had set fire to
quarrie s Island, in latitude 55° south and longitude 160° the shrubbery, which continued to burn when the naviga-
east. Several other islands are scattered about those of tors passed the island; and imagining that they saw pits
New Zealand; Chatham Island to the eastward of it, and of smoke issuing from the crevices between the strata,
a group of small ones near it, seen by Cornwrallis in 1807 ; some of them were disposed to consider this circumstance
Bounty Island to the south-east; and to the southward of as infallible indications of subterranean fire. Perron, the
the latter a little island which, from its position with re- seal-catcher above mentioned, with the gentlemen of
gard to England, has been named Antipodes Island. (Bris- Lord Macartney’s embassy, who explored the southern-
tow’s MS. Letter.) most island, Amsterdam, says that the shores of St Paul’s
Ker IX. Between the parallels of 48° 30'and 50° south, and abounded with pumice stone; but the presence of this
cn- ancl. longitude 69° east, lies the barren and uninhabited Land of light material is by no means an infallible criterion of a
Kerguelen, so named from the French officer who first dis- proximate eruption.
covered it in 1772, and who, on a second visit in 1773, dis- Of the recent creation of Amsterdam there can be lit-
covered some small islands near it, but on neither occasion tie doubt; indeed, it is scarcely yet cooled, and is alter-
was able once to bring his ships to an anchor upon any ed considerably since its first discovery by Vlaming in
part of the coast. Captain Cook was more fortunate. He 1696. From every part of the sloping sides of the crater,
had heard of Kerguelen’s discovery at the Cape of Good which is nearly 1000 yards in diameter, and into winch
Hope, and wondered he should not have seen this land the sea has forced its way, either smoke, or hot water, or
when he passed it so closely in 1770. In 1776, however, hot mud, is seen to issue; and everywhere is felt a tre-
he fell in with these islands, and as no account of Ker- mulous motion, and a noise heard like that of boiling water,
guelen s voyage had been made public, he gave new names In many parts of the crater, in the centre of which the wra-
to each island. Speaking of the main island, “ I should,” ter is 174 feet deep, the sea-water is tepid from the hot
says Cook, “ from its sterility, with great propriety call springs below; and numbers of these springs are found
it the Island of Desolation, but that I would not rob on the margin, below the high-water mark, of various
M. de Kerguelen of the honour of its bearing his name.” temperatures, from 100° to the boiling point. One very
He changed, however, the Baie de VOiseau of the copious spring, slightly chalybeate, issues, in a copious
VOL. IV. 2 E
218
AUSTRALASIA.
Australasia, stream, into the crater, nearly on a level with the lowest
state of the tide. These springs cannot possibly descend
from the summit of the island, the highest part of which is
the edge of the crater, about 600 feet; and the whole area
of the island is not more than eight square miles, a surface
totally inadequate to collect and condense the clouds, so as
to produce these permanent springs. Why some modern
geologists, and among them M. de Humboldt, should doubt
of sea-water being converted into steam, and undergoing
the process of distillation by subterranean fire, we are at
a loss to know; or in what other manner they would ac¬
count for such large and permanent streams of fresh water
so situated as those are of Amsterdam Island.
Another singularity which this island presents is in its
mosses and grasses, which are all European. To these may
be added the Sonchus oleracea, or sow thistle, and the
Apium petrosilenum, or parsley; and the common Lycopo¬
dium, or club-moss, which grows luxuriantly on the bleak
heaths of North Britain, seems to thrive equally well on
the boggy soil of Amsterdam, heated, at the depth of a
foot below the surface, to the temperature of 186° of
Fahrenheit’s scale.
The crater abounds with an excellent perch of a reddish
colour, which is easily caught with the hook, and may be
dropped at once into one of the hot springs on the margin
and boiled alive; and, so caught and dressed, we are told
it affords an excellent repast. The bar across the mouth
of the crater is represented as one mass of cray-fish ; and
in the sea, outside the bar, are vast multitudes of whales,
grampuses, porpoises, seals, and sea lions, so as to be
dangerous for boats to pass. It was the same in Vlam-
ing’s time, who “ found the sea so full of seals and sea
lions that they were obliged to kill them to get a passage
through; when they steered from the shore there was also
an astonishing number of fish.”
Coral reefs XI. From the volcanic island of Amsterdam, we must
?n J lslets now take a glance of those innumerable low islands and reefs
tralasian" °f'r0cks ^hich are scattered over the greater part of the
Sea.' Australasian Sea to the eastward and northward of New
Holland, and which are produced by an operation of nature
different from that which lifted up Amsterdam; less vio¬
lent, indeed, and with less eclat than the latter, but equally,
if not more firmly established on the solid foundations of
the deep abyss. A volcanic island not unfrequently breaks
down its supporters, and sinks back into the cavity out of
which it was hurled, as was recently the case with the Sa¬
brina Island, near St Michael’s; but the island of coral, crea¬
ted by slow and imperceptible degrees, hardens with time,
and becomes one solid mass from the summit to the base.
We know very little as yet of the nature of the marine
polypi that construct these wonderful fabrics, but we can¬
not be blind to the effects of their operations. Through¬
out the whole range of the Polynesian and Australasian
islands, there is scarcely a league of sea unoccupied by a
coral reef or a coral island; the former springing up^ to
the surface of the water perpendicularly from the fathom¬
less bottom, “ deeper than did ever plummet sound and
the latter in various stages, from the low and naked rock,
with the water rippling over it, to an uninterrupted forest
of tall trees. “ I have seen,” says Dalrymple, in his In¬
quiry into the Formation of Islands, “ the coral banks in
all their stages; some in deep water, others with a few
rocks appearing above the surface: some just formed into
islands, without the least appearance of vegetation; others
with a few weeds on the highest part: and, lastly, such as
axe covered with large timber, with a bottomless sea at
a pistol-shot distance. In fact, as soon as the edge of
the reef is high enough to lay hold of the floating sea-
wreck, or for a bird to perch upon, the island may be said
to commence. The dung of birds, feathers, wreck of all
kinds, cocoa-nuts floating with the young plant out of theAus
shell, are the first rudiments of the new island. With ^
islands thus formed, and others in the several stages of
their progressive creation, Torres Strait is nearly choked
up; and Captain Flinders mentions one island in it cover¬
ed with the Casuarina, and a variety of other trees and
shrubs, which give food to paroquets, pigeons, and other
birds, to whose ancestors it is probable the island was ori¬
ginally indebted for this vegetation. The time will come,
—it may be ten thousand or ten millions of years, but
come it must,—when New Holland, and New Guinea,
and all the little groups of islets and reefs to the north
and north-west of them, will either be united into one
great continent, or be separated only by deep channels,
in which the strength and velocity of the tide may ob¬
struct the silent and unobserved agency of these insigni¬
ficant but most efficacious labourers.
A barrier reef of coral runs along the whole of the east¬
ern coast of New Holland, “ among which,” says Captain
Flinders, “ we sought fourteen days, and sailed more than
500 miles, before a passage could be found through them
out to sea.” Captain Flinders paid some attention to the
structure of these reefs, on one of which he suffered ship¬
wreck. Having landed on one of these creations, he says,
“ we had wheat sheaves, mushrooms, stags’ horns, cab¬
bage leaves, and a variety of other forms, glowing under
water, with vivid tints of every shade betwixt green, pur¬
ple, brown, and white.” “ It seems to me,” he adds, “ that
when the animalcules which form the coral at the bottom
of the ocean cease to live, their structures adhere to each
other, by virtue either of the glutinous remains within, or
of some property in salt water; and the interstices being
gradually filled up with sand and broken pieces of coral
washed by the sea, which also adhere, a mass of rock is
at length formed. Future races of these animalcules erect
their habitation upon the rising bank, and die in their turn,
to increase, but principally to elevate, this monument of
their wonderful labours.” He says that they not only
work perpendicularly, but that this barrier wall is the
highest part, and generally exposed to the open sea, and
that the infant colonies find shelter within it. A bank is
thus gradually formed, which is not long in being visited
by sea birds; salt plants take root upon it, and a soil be¬
gins to be formed; a cocoa-nut, or the drupe of a panda-
nus, is thrown on shore; land birds visit it, and deposit
the seeds of shrubs and trees; every high tide and gale
of wind add something to the bank ; the form of an island
is gradually assumed; and last of all comes man to take
possession.
If we should imagine one of these immense coral reefs
to be lifted up by a submarine volcano, and converted in¬
to an insular or continental ridge of hills, such a ridge
would exhibit most of the phenomena that are met with
in hills of limestone.
It is worthy of remark, that, in this great division of
the globe, fully equal in extent to that of Europe, there
is no quadruped larger than the kangaroo; that there is
none of a ferocious character, and, in many of the islands,
none of any description. Man only in Australasia is an
animal of prey; and, more ferocious than the lynx, the leo¬
pard, or the hyaena, he devours his own species, in countries
too where nature has done every thing for his comfort
and subsistence. The consequence is, that population is so
much checked and thwarted, that the number of all the
natives who have been seen on the coasts of all the islands,
from the first discovery to the present time, would not in
the aggregate amount to 20,000 souls. The only hope of
impiovement must depend on the future colonization of
these healthful and fertile regions of the globe by some
European power.
219
AUSTRIA.
Aust . This great empire is situated nearly in the centre of
J Europe, extending from the 44th to the 51st degree of
north latitude, and from the 8th to the 26th degree of
east longitude. Its configuration is irregular, but its extent
corresponds to that of an oblong of fully 600 miles in length
from east to west, and above 400 miles in breadth from
north to south. Compared with France, the Austrian
dominions have a form nearly as compact, but their fron¬
tiers are by no means so strongly defined, nor so well
guarded by physical barriers. France resembles a five¬
sided figure, having on three sides the sea, and on the
other sides the Pyrenees, the Alps, and the Vosges;
while in Austria the chief ranges of mountains are in the
interior. In extent of surface, the Austrian dominions
considerably exceed those of France, for they cover a
space of no less than 260,000 square miles. They com¬
prise a remarkable diversity of tribes, and even nations,
differing from each other in language, habits, religion,
and comparative civilization.
The component parts of this great empire consist of six
countries bearing each the name of kingdom, viz. Hun¬
gary, Bohemia, Galicia, Lombardy and Venice, Illyria,
and Dalmatia; one archduchy, Austria; one principality,
Transylvania; one duchy, Styria; one margraviate, Mo¬
ravia ; and one county, Tyrol. We shall begin with an his¬
torical notice of this empire, that our readers may have
a distinct view of two important subjects; first, of the
means by which Austria, at first a small state, progres¬
sively rose into importance; and, next, of those resources
by which she withstood the reverses sustained in her long
contest with revolutionary France,
listt The cradle of Austrian power was the fertile tract lying
along the southern bank of the Danube to the eastward
of the river Ens. It is said to have been overrun and
partly colonized by Germans under Charlemagne; but
be that as it may, after the empire of Germany was con¬
stituted in the ninth century, the district in question,
afterwards called Lower Austria, was declared a mili¬
tary frontier for repelling the incursions of the Huns and
other barbarous tribes to the eastward. It was called
Ost-reich, the east country, from its position relatively to
the rest of Germany; and its governor received from the
head of the empire the title of margrave (in German
mark-graf, or lord of the marches), which his descendants
bore for centuries without anticipating the future great¬
ness of their house. Towards the middle of the twelfth
century their territory received an important accession
m the province west of the Ens, which, from its vicinity
to the Alps, and the greater elevation of its surface, was
called Upper Austria. The governors of this augmented
domain were now raised by the emperors of Germany
from the humble rank of margrave to that of duke; and
it was one of their number, Duke Leopold, who, towards
the end of the twelfth century, ungenerously detained our
Richard I. in confinement on his return from the Holy
Land. It was at this time also that the important pro¬
vince of Styria came to the dukes of Austria by bequest.
Hitherto the ducal residence had been in a castle on the
high ground of Kahlenberg, near Vienna; but it was now
removed to that city. In 1246 the male branch of the
ducal line, originally from Bamberg in Franconia, be¬
came extinct, and Austria underwent a long interregnum.
he reigning emperor of Germany declared both that
duchy and Styria to have lapsed to the imperial crown,
and appointed a lieutenant (statthalter) to govern them Austria,
on the part of the empire. But claims to the succession
were brought forward by descendants of the female branch
of the Bamberg line ; and after various contests, Ottocar,
son of the king of Bohemia, was, in 1262, duly invested
with the government of Austria and Styria. Carinthia,
Istria, with part of Friuli, soon after devolved on Ottocar
by succession; but he forfeited all these advantages by
his imprudence in refusing to acknowledge as emperor
Rodolph of Hapsburg, who had been regularly elected to
that high station. Hostilities ensued ; the talents of Ro¬
dolph prevailed; and, in 1276, Ottocar was obliged to re¬
nounce his title to Austria and its appendant states.
Notwithstanding this renunciation, Ottocar re-entered
Austria with an army, but soon after fell in battle. The
ducal throne being then vacant, Rodolph vested the suc¬
cession to it in his sons; and having obtained the sanction
of the electors of the empire to that important act, the
reign of the Hapsburg dynasty over Austria commenced
in 1282.
In the beginning of the following century the dukes of
Austria lost a part of their Swiss territory by the insur¬
rection of the cantons. This they never recovered ; but
in 1364 they acquired Tyrol; and Austria, hitherto known
only as a remote province, little connected with the im¬
proved part of Germany, was soon after brought into con¬
tact with the general politics of the empire. The rank
of emperor of Germany had been held successively by
Saxon, Franconian, Suabian, and Bohemian princes, Aus¬
tria having as yet supplied only one of the number (Al¬
bert I.); but, in 1438, another Albert, duke of Austria,
was raised to that dignity, and, from close connection with
Bohemia and Hungary, the power of Austria became so
much greater than that of any other state in the empire,
that from 1438 the imperial crown was regularly vested
in the chief of the Austrian family. In the latter part of
the century of which we are treating (the fifteenth), Maxi¬
milian I., an emperor of the Austrian line, made great
additions to the power of his house by matrimonial con¬
nections, having himself espoused the heiress of the Ne¬
therlands, and afterwards married his son to the heiress
of the crown of Spain. Of the latter marriage the issue
was the well-known Charles V., who held the crown of
Spain by inheritance, and the empire of Germany by elec¬
tion. Several years after his election, viz. in 1527, on
the death of the king of Hungary and Bohemia, these
extensive countries, formerly held by the house of Aus¬
tria, reverted to it, along with Moravia, Silesia, and Lu-
satia, and were all governed by Ferdinand, a younger
brother of Charles. Such were the countries directly or
indirectly subject to the sovereign who carried on such
obstinate conflicts with France, and was accused, like
Louis XIV., of aiming at the sovereignty of Europe.
But the dominions of Charles V. did not long remain
under one ruler. Spain was made over to his son Philip,
along with the Netherlands; whilst Austria, Hungary, and
his German states, were vested in his brother Ferdinand.
These formed a splendid possession, but their efficiency
in a political sense was not at all proportioned to their
extent. A long time elapsed before Hungary and the
eastern provinces became cordially attached to the impe¬
rial family. The treatment they in general experienced
from their sovereigns was far from conciliatory, and the vi¬
cinity of the Turks afforded a ready support to insurgents.
AUSTRIA.
220
Austria. Meanwhile, in the north of Germany, the religious anti-
pathy of Catholics and Protestants led first to repeated
dissensions, and eventually to the obstinate and sangui¬
nary contest known from its duration (from 1618 to 1648)
as "the Thirty Years’ War. On the one side were the
Catholic princes of the empire, with Austria at their head;
on the other, Saxony and the Protestant states, assisted
at one time by Sweden, and subsequently by France.
The most distinguished commanders were Gustavus Adol¬
phus on the part of the Protestants, and, on that of the
Catholics, Wallenstein the Austrian. Both were greatly
superior to the age in which they lived, and evinced, at
the battle of Lutzen, fought in 1632, talents not inferior
to those displayed on the same fields in 1813. Wallen¬
stein survived his illustrious opponent, but his end was
tragical: he met a violent death by order of his imperial
master, against whom he had ventured to conspire. The
war was at last ended by the peace of Westphalia, by
which Austria was obliged to relinquish Lusatia to Saxony,
and Alsace to France.
The peace of Westphalia, like that of Utrecht in a sub¬
sequent age, restored tranquillity throughout Europe.
It continued many years, and might have lasted much
longer, had not the ambition of Louis XIV. alarmed the
neighbouring states, and obliged them to look for safety
in arms. Belgium, held at that time with a feeble hand
by Spain, was the prize at stake; and the dread of that
fertile and populous country falling into the power of
France called forth the greatest efforts on the part of
both Austria and Flolland, which, from the extent of its
financial means, was at that time a power of great influ¬
ence. Louis was surrounded by able generals and well-
disciplined armies. Flattered with the pi’ospect of suc¬
cess, he attempted the conquest of the Netherlands in
no less than three wars, in two of which (those begun in
1672 and 1689) Austria bore a principal part. In the
last she received the co-operation of England, which then,
for the first time, came forward as a principal in conti¬
nental coalitions, contributing largely both in troops and
subsidies. The chief scenes of conflict were the Nether¬
lands and the banks of the Rhine. The French, acting
with all the advantage of unity, had frequently the supe¬
riority in action; but the allies, numerous and resolute,
were never discouraged by defeat. At last, in 1697, came
the peace of Ryswick, which left, as peace often does,
the contending parties in nearly the same relative posi¬
tions as at the outset of the contest. They had the satis¬
faction, however, of having compelled the aspiring Louis
to stop short in his encroachments and schemes of aggran¬
dizement.
But with so restless a prince at the head of a population
of 20,000,000, peace could not be of long continuance ;
and, on the death of the king of Spain, Austria, Englandj
and Holland, found it again necessary to take the field.
The question now related not merely to the Netherlands,
but whether a French or an Austrian prince should suc¬
ceed to the crown of Spain. Flence the name of War of
the Succession, given to this long contest, which, begin¬
ning in 1701, lasted no less than twelve years. The su¬
periority in military skill was now for the first time on
the side of the allies. The Austrians and other Germans,
subsidized by Holland and England, were led to repeated
victories by Eugene and Marlborough. France sent forth
numerous armies, and showed, in Villars and Vendome,
generals worthy of the better days of Louis ; but in Italy
and the Low Countries the allies were completely success¬
ful ; and it was in Spain only that they failed. Such was
the state of circumstances in 1711, when the death of the
reigning emperor took place unexpectedly, and the elec¬
tion to that dignity fell on his brother, who had been
destined by the allies to the throne of Spain. The pros- Ai
pect of the junction on one head of the crowns of Spain ^
and Austria brought to recollection the ambitious pro¬
jects of the emperor Charles V., and inclined many who
had supported the war from a dread of France, to consi¬
der the transfer of Spain to a grandson of Louis XIV. the
less dangerous alternative of the two. This, joined to
the change of ministry in England, the removal of Marl¬
borough from the command, and the impatience of the
Dutch under so long and burdensome a war, led to the
peace of Utrecbt, to which Austria, after urgent remon¬
strances with her allies, and fruitless efforts in the field,
acceded, by a treaty concluded the year after (1714) at
Baden. Well might she give her assent to a treaty which
transferred to'her not only the Low Countries, but ex¬
tensive possessions in both the north and south of Italy.
The emperor, anxious to confirm his authority in Hun¬
gary and Transylvania, now directed his troops against
the Turks. The latter had, during more than a century,
been ready to take part with the insurgents in Hungary
against the Austrians, and had at one time, in 1683, ad¬
vanced to the walls of Vienna, whence they were driven
by a Polish army under Sobieski. This was the first se¬
rious check given to these confident barbarians. At a
subsequent date Prince Eugene defeated them in several
actions, and the peace concluded with them at Carlowitz,
in 1699, secured to Austria a considerable accession of ter¬
ritory on the side of Hungary. Still that country continued
divided and of doubtful allegiance to Austria. Eugene led
thither, in 1716, a part of the armies with which he had
conquered in Italy and the Netherlands, and applied Euro¬
pean tactics against the Turks with distinguished success.
The result was a series of splendid successes, and a treaty
of peace highly favourable to Austria.
Sucb, however, was not the case in the last scene of
the military career of Eugene, when, nearly twenty years
after (in 1735), he headed the Austrian armies on the
Rhine. The French had taken the field in support of the
claims of Spain on the south of Italy. Austria was evi¬
dently overmatched in force ; and England, guided by the
pacific counsels of Walpole, declining to interfere, the re¬
sult was a treaty, by which the emperor relinquished to
Spain the contested territory in Italy.
In 1740 the death of the reigning emperor, Charles VI.,
brought to a close the male line of the house of Haps-
burg, the succession devolving on Charles’s daughter,
Maria Theresa. The death of Charles became the signal
for attack on his dominions by almost all the neighbouring
powers ; by Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and even by France.
But England came forward to support the cause of Aus¬
tria with a liberal subsidy, while the Hungarians, now
united and loyal, recruited her armies. The aspect of
affairs was soon altered; the Bavarians were driven back;
and the French, who had ventured to advance as far as
Bohemia, were obliged to retire to the Rhine. Frederick
II. of Prussia proved a more obstinate opponent; and, as
the interest of England and Holland called the Austrian
forces to the Low Countries to maintain the great contest
carrying on in that quarter against France, Maria The¬
resa was induced to subscribe, first in 1742, and after¬
wards in 1745, a separate treaty with Frederick, by which
sbe ceded to him the chief part of Silesia. But the un¬
provoked attack of Frederick sunk deep in her mind; she
watched an opportunity of revenge; and, in 1756, formed
that coalition of powers against Prussia, which gave rise
to a war of seven years, and to an extent of devastation
such as Germany had not witnessed for more than a cen¬
tury. On one side was the whole Austrian force, aided
by 80,000 French, and, at particular periods of the war,
by the Russians and Swedes; on the other stood Prus-
AUSTRIA.
221
sia and England, inferior numerically to their antagonists,
J but managing their resources, and directing their military
efforts, with all the ability belonging to the character of
Frederick and Lord Chatham. On the side of the French
there appeared no commander of eminence ; but on that
of the Austrians, Marshals Daun and Laudohn were gene¬
rals worthy of being opposed to Frederick. After a num¬
ber of battles and great alternations of success, both sides
became tired of the waste of blood; and a contest, waged
for a time with a rapidity of movement and an eagerness
for conflict almost equal to those displayed in the French
revolution, was marked towards its close by the cautious
tactics of Turenne. At last, in 1763, a general peace was
concluded, and the rival powers were left very nearly in
the same position as at the beginning of the war.
From this time Germany enjoyed peace during thirty
years. In 1778 the death of the elector of Bavaria gave
rise to pretensions on the part of Austria, which drew
once more into the field Frederick II., now grown grey in
command. Austria opposed to him forces fully equal in
number and scarcely inferior in discipline, but happily the
campaign proved bloodless, each side anticipating a close
of the dispute by negociation. In that manner, accord¬
ingly, it ended; Austria being content with the cession
by Bavaria of the frontier district, called the quarter of
the Inn.
Maria Theresa had married Francis duke of Lorraine,
who was afterwards elected emperor of Germany, but
died in 1765. Their son, Joseph II., was then joined in
the sovereign power with his mother; and, on her death in
1780, he became sole ruler. The princes of the house of
Austria, disposed rather to follow than to lead, have sel¬
dom been the authors of political change; but the emperor
Joseph was imbued with all the ardour of a sanguine in¬
novator. He gave a loose to this disposition after 1780,
issuing a number of edicts, of which several were praise¬
worthy in their objects, but abrupt and premature in their
operations. He established general toleration in religion,
abolished a number of monasteries and convents, dis¬
mantled various fortresses, and took steps for new-model¬
ling the existing systems both of law and of national edu¬
cation. Had the public in his dominions been ripe, as in
France, for a general political change, Joseph would have
been hailed as a subverter of abuses, and as the author of
general improvement; but the Austrians, attached to old
usages, understood little of his plans, and merely received
them with passive acquiescence. The actual effect was
thus very limited, notwithstanding the example of new in¬
stitutions in the United States of America, and soon after
in France. But in Belgium the case was different: the con¬
tagion of the French revolution spread over the country,
and produced a sudden rising against the Austrians. This
unexpected revolt, and the chequered success of the war
then carrying on against Turkey, are understood to have
preyed on the sensitive mind of the emperor, and to have
caused his death in 1790.
Leopold, the brother and successor of Joseph, had
a very short reign, the crown devolving in 1792 on his
son Francis II., the present emperor. Francis had hard¬
ly succeeded to it when he found himself involved in a
contest with France, the length and vicissitudes of which
proved such as to cast^into the shade all former wars
between that country and Austria. The first important
blow was struck in November 1792 at Jemappes, where
the numbers and audacity of the French obtained a sig¬
nal success. Next year the superior efficiency of the
Austrian armies secured to them a temporary superiori¬
ty ; but, in 179F, the multitudes of Frenchmen brought
forward by the energetic measures of the terrorists, and
the talents of commanders such as Pichegru, Moreau,
Kleber, young in years, but full of enterprise and acti- Austria,
vity, led to the conquest of the Netherlands, and to the
retreat of the Austrians beyond the Rhine. France now
offered to Austria a separate peace ; but England engaging
to furnish large subsidies, the emperor declined a treaty
that would have involved the cession of Belgium. The
French, determined to obtain this cession by force of arms,
crossed the Rhine, in the autumn of 1795, with two for¬
midable armies. Prussia had withdrawn from the contest,
and allowed the whole weight of it to fall upon the emperor.
It was then that the talents of Marshal Clairfayt, as yet
known only to military men, became apparent to Europe
at large. With numbers inferior to the two French ar¬
mies collectively, he found means, by rapid movements,
to concentrate a force superior to either singly, and drove
them across the Rhine with great loss. Next year, how¬
ever, the French, undismayed by failure, resumed the of¬
fensive, and crossed the Rhine again with two armies ; one
of which penetrated into the heart of Franconia, whilst
the other overran Suabia and part of Bavaria. But these
armies had not the means of affording each other ready
support; they were separated by the Danube, while the
Austrians were in possession of the bridges on that river,
and could move within a smaller circle. They were thus
enabled to repeat their manoeuvre of the preceding year,
by detaching a superior force against the French army in
Franconia, and thus obliging it not only to evacuate the
country it had overrun, but to seek safety beyond the
Rhine. Such was also the case with the southern army
of the French, although the retreat conducted by Moreau
was the subject of general commendation.
But whilst in Germany success inclined to the side of
Austria, the case was very different in Piedmont and
Lombardy. In Piedmont indeed the war had long been
carried on between the French and the allies without de¬
cisive success on either side. The opposing forces were
nearly equal, and the mountainous nature of the coun¬
try afforded so many strong positions, that there seemed
no means of bringing the contest to a speedy termina¬
tion. But all this was suddenly changed by the genius
of one man. Buonaparte appeared on the scene, and in
less than a month after receiving the command, defeated
the allies in three engagements; obliged the court of
Turin to make a separate peace; and, pouring his forces
into Lombardy, drove the Austrians from every posi¬
tion in that country except Mantua. The strength of the
latter place, however, bade defiance to the attacks of the
French, and enabled the emperor to make repeated at¬
tempts for the recovery of Lombardy. No part of the
war is more deserving of attention than this campaign;
for none displayed in a more striking light the extensive
resources of Austria, or the inventive mind of Buonaparte.
Threatened in the end of July by an Austrian army of
great strength, but which was imprudently advancing in
two bodies, he hesitated not a moment in sacrificing his
artillery, that by sudden marches he might assail his op¬
ponents before they effected a junction. In this he suc¬
ceeded ; but his loss was heavy, and the Austrians were
rather repulsed than defeated. Six weeks after, a repe¬
tition by Buonaparte of these daring movements was at¬
tended with decisive success. When apparently march¬
ing against the Austrian troops in Trent, he turned sud¬
denly to the right, and advancing by a valley, reached
the head-quarters of their army before they were pre¬
pared. The result was a series of actions, which cut off
the retreat of their main body, and obliged it to fly for
refuge to Mantua. But ere two months had passed the
Austrians prepared another army, which, advancing to¬
wards Verona, Buonaparte marched to encounter, using in
his dispatch to Paris these remarkable words: II fautfrap-
222
AUSTRIA.
Austria, per Vennemi comme la foudre, et le balayer des son premier
Pas- On this occasion, however, fortune was not favourable
to him. He was worsted twice in action (on the 6th and
12th November); yet, far from being discouraged, he con¬
ceived the extraordinary plan of quitting his camp at
night, and gaining the rear of that army which had twice
repulsed him. He reckoned on the effect of a surprise;
but his hopes were disappointed by the time unavoidably
lost in attacks on the village of Arcole, which stood in
his way. The main body of the Austrians had time to
advance, and the result was a series of conflicts, attended
with great loss on both sides.
Thus ended the campaign of 1796, sanguinary beyond
example even in those days of waste of life, and not alto¬
gether conclusive in its results. Next year, however, the
chances of war were no longer doubtful. The Austrians
having reinforced their army, made a final effort to re¬
lieve Mantua; but Buonaparte having intercepted a dis¬
patch with their intended plan of operations, was enabled
to make such a disposition of his troops as to insure success ;
and the results were, the victory of Rivoli, the surrender
of the force destined to relieve Mantua, and the complete
expulsion of the Austrians from Italy. The French now
crossed the mountain barrier, and advanced toward the
heart of Austria. This, joined to the approach of their
armies from the Rhine, obliged the emperor to conclude
preliminaries of peace at Leoben, and afterwards a treaty
proceeding on these as a basis at Campo Formio. This
treaty involved the cession by Austria of Belgium and
Lombardy, but gave her, in return, Venice and its depen¬
dent provinces, making an absolute loss in population of
1,500,000 souls.
This peace, however, proved only a truce. The absence
of a portion of the French armies in Egypt, and the evi¬
dent misgovernment of the directory, induced England
to form a new coalition, and renew the continental con¬
test early in 1799. The Austrian troops took the field,
powerful equally in numbers and discipline; and the
French, commanded for the first time by inferior leaders,
were driven back both in Germany and Italy. The arri¬
val of Russian auxiliaries, and the talents of Suwaroff,
bore forward the tide of success, until the autumn of the
year, when increased levies on the part of the French,
and a better choice of generals, began to turn the scale
in their favour. The capricious Paul now withdrew from
the coalition, and the Austrians entered on the campaign
of 1800 with their own forces only. These proved, as
formerly, insufficient to withstand the French, especially
when the latter were commanded in Germany by Moreau,
in Italy by Buonaparte. Battles, unfortunately too deci¬
sive, took place ; the victories of Hohenlinden and Marengo
led to the treaty of Luneville, and to the cession by Aus¬
tria of almost all her Venetian acquisitions.
This peace, though not so short as the preceding, lasted
only four years. In 1805 Austria and Russia, provoked by
Buonaparte’s aggressions, and stimulated by English sub¬
sidies, took the field with numerous armies; but the suc¬
cessive overthrows at Ulm and Austerlitz rendered peace
again indispensable to Austria. It was obtained (6th Au¬
gust 1806) by the surrender of the remainder of the Ve¬
netian territory, of the Tyrol, and of various districts, com¬
prising a sacrifice in all of three millions of subjects. Soon
after these reverses, Francis II. renounced the title and au¬
thority of emperor of Germany, and assumed the title of em¬
peror of Austria. Taught by repeated disasters, he remain¬
ed passive in the great contest in 1806 and 1807 between
France, Prussia, and Russia; but in 1809 the war in Spain
having withdrawn a very large portion of the French force,
he ventured once more to try his fortune in the field. The
Austrian armies were numerous; but Buonaparte had still
a powerful French force at command, and was aided by \u
all the troops of the confederation of the Rhine. The'—'j
Austrians, worsted in Bavaria, retreated to Vienna; and
although temporary hopes were excited by their success
at Aspern (21st and 22d May), they were blasted by the
disastrous day of Wagram, and peace was again purchased
by a sacrifice of territory containing more than three mil¬
lions of inhabitants. Austria, now reduced to a popula¬
tion of twenty millions, remained in peace during the
years 1810, 1811, and 1812; but when the disasters of
the French in Russia once more raised the hopes of Ger¬
many, and brought friendly standards into Saxony, Aus¬
tria took part with the grand alliance, and her troops
bore a conspicuous part in the battle of Leipsic and the
invasion of France. The definitive treaties of 1814 and
1815 reinstated her in all her former territories, except
Belgium, and gave her substantial additions on the side
of Italy. Satisfied with these, the Austrian government
has ever since wisely abstained from war, directing its
attention to the reinstatement of its finances, and the
promotion of its productive industry.
Popidation of the Austrian Empire in 1831; the provinces^'
classed by the comparative density of the inhabitants. divi 5
and ii.
Inhabitants per
Square Mile.
.780,000 50
Population of the
Province.
Tyrol.
58
Dalmatia 340,000
M TuAey1'01'116'’ adj0ining.} 1,000,000 73
Sclavonia  370,000 85
Transylvania 2,000,000 88
Hungary 9,000,000 100
Styria  850,000 102
Governments of Laybach 1
and Trieste (Carinthia > 1,160,000 105
and Istria) J
Croatia  600,000 110
Upper Austria and Salzburg... 900,000 130
Galicia of the Buckowine 4,400,000 135
L7fernnfustria> “cIudi"gl 1,300,000 165
Moravia and Austrian Sile-( 9 nnn nnn
sia j ’ ’  
Bohemia 3,900,000 190
Lombardy and the Venetian!
provinces j
4,400,000 245
Population of the empire 33,000,000
Yearly increase, computed) inn nnn
from the last 10 years.... /
Average of the whole empire per square mile,)
nearly }
130
Such are the constituent portions of this great empire.
Differing as they do in climate, soil, language, and customs,
no general description can possibly apply to the whole.
We shall therefore recapitulate the chief characteristics
of each in succession, classing them in the following order:
The archduchy of Austria; Hungary and the adjacent
provinces; Bohemia, Moravia, Galicia; the Alpine Pro¬
vinces ; Lombardy and Venice.
AUSTRIA, THE ARCHDUCHY.
The archduchy of Austria consists of two nearly equal
parts, viz. Upper and Lower Austria. The river Ens,
flowing northward from the Alps to the Danube, inter¬
sects the archducal territory nearly in the middle; the
country to the east of the river being Lower, and that to
AUSTRIA.
223
the west Upper Austria. Lower Austria, in particular the
/ fertile tract adjoining the Danube above and below Vienna,
formed originally fhe nucleus of that union of states which
now constitute the second empire in Europe. That dis¬
trict is both the site of the capital and the seat of exten¬
sive manufactures. These consist principally of woollens,
cottons, and hardware, the yearly value of which, added to
the lesser fabrics of hardware, leather, glass, hats, and pa¬
per, is computed at three or four millions sterling. In the
mountainous part of the province are mines of iron, coal,
and rock salt; but the wealth derived from these is slight
compared with that resulting from the agricultural pro¬
ducts of the more level part of the country. These consist
of wheat, barley, oats, and other corns raised in England;
and, in the warmer situations, of maize and vines. Advan¬
tage is taken here, as in Lombardy, of the numerous
streams which flow from the mountains in the south to¬
wards the Danube. They are used for irrigation, the great
desideratum of the agriculturist in a warm situation. Be¬
sides, the produce of the land along the Danube, from
Vienna to the Bavarian frontier, has been greatly increas¬
ed within the last half century, by the use of marl. The
traveller, in pursuing this track, sees in all directions a
quantity of marl pits, wrought with great activity; but
still the crops raised are much smaller than they would
be under a system like that of our improved countries.
Upper Austria, or the country west of the Ens, was
added to the sister province in the twelfth century: it is
called Upper, from its comparative vicinity to the Alps, and
its greater elevation of surface. Its wealth consists not in
manufactures, but in agricultural produce. It is too cold
for the culture of the vine ; but the low grounds are pro¬
ductive in corn, while the pasturages are extensive both
in the hills and the valleys. The sides of the mountains
are covered with forests, the timber of which finds to a
certain extent an outlet by navigable rivers, of which the
chief are the Ens, the Salzach, the Traun, and the Trasen.
One of the principal sources of employment to the lower
orders in the forest-lands consists in felling their timber
and conveying it to these rivers, whence it is floated to
the towns along their banks, or to the Danube, the great
channel for the transport of bulky commodities. Upper
Austria, since the acquisition of Salzburg, has an extent
(about 7500 square miles) nearly equal to that of Lower
Austria; but in population it is far inferior, containing only
900,000 inhabitants, while the lower province reckons
1,300,000.
Population of the Chief Towns.
HUNGARY,
Austria.
Lower Austria.
Vienna 300,000
Neustadt 8,000
Krems .,..5,000
Upper Austria.
Lintz 20,000
Salzburg 11,000
Steyer 9,000
The early inhabitants of Austria are understood to have
come partly from among the Germans in the west, partly
from the Sclavonian tribes in the north and east. German
is now almost the sole language of the inhabitants, but it
differs considerably from the German spoken in Saxony.
A.s to religion, almost all the inhabitants are Catholics.
Situated to the south-east of Germany, and comparative¬
ly backward in civilization, Austria was long considered as
rather an outwork than an integral part of the empire ; it
was not until 1438 that the election to the imperial crown
fell almost invariably on the head of the house of Haps-
burg. The power of the sovereign in the archduchy is
almost unlimited, but it is exercised with mildness, and
with the concurrence of a parliament or states, composed,
as in the other great divisions of the monarchy, of prelates,
noblemen, and the deputies from the barons and principal
towns.
The most extensive of the great divisions of the Aus¬
trian empire, is of an oblong or rather heptagonal form :
its length is 370 miles, its general breadth above 300, and
its superficial extent, nearly 9000 square miles, is equal to
that of Great Britain. For the purposes of administration,
Hungary is divided into four circles or provinces, called
respectively the circle north of the Danube, the circle
south of the Danube, the circle west of the Theiss, and
the circle east of the Theiss.
The latitude of Hungary is between 45° and 49° north.
The degree of elevation of the surface is very different in
different parts, the Carpathian range extending over a great
part of the west and north of the kingdom, while the cen¬
tral and south-east divisions consist of a succession of plains.
The climate is marked by equal differences, the moun¬
tainous districts being cold, while the plains are warm,
and, in the summer months, much hotter than in England.
The products of the higher grounds are oats, barley, rye ;
of the lower, wheat, maize ; and in the rich alluvial soil
adjoining the rivers, rice. But tillage is as yet extremely
backward in Hungary, the improvements so familiar to
our agriculturists, such as draining, irrigating, and even
inclosing, being here almost unknown; while iron being
high priced for the means of the farmers, their imple¬
ments are wretched, and their ploughs do little more
than scratch or move the surface of the ground. The
poverty of the peasantry in most parts of Hungary is such,
that to pay their rent in money is out of the question:
they accordingly discharge it partly in produce, partly in
personal service.
The climate of Hungary being sufficiently warm for the
vine, its cultivation is carried on extensively, though with
much less skill than in France. Hemp, flax, and tobacco, are
also raised in considerable quantities. Though artificial
grasses are unknown in this country, the natural pastures
are good ; and horses from Hungary form, as is well known
to military men, a large proportion of the Austrian light
cavalry,—though small of size, they are swift and active.
As to horned cattle, this is perhaps the only country in
Europe that can vie with England. The oxen are large
and well shaped, and roam over the pasture districts in vast
herds: but they are exposed with little or no shelter to
the cold of winter and to the heat of summer; and hence at
certain seasons there have occurred among them diseases
attended with great mortality. The sheep in like man¬
ner pass almost the whole year in the open air; and the
shepherds may be said to share in this exposure, having
no habitations that deserve the name. The quality of the
wool, though greatly inferior to that of Saxony, has re¬
ceived improvement in the course of the present age.
Appropriation of the land in Hungary, Sclavonia, and
Croatia, exhibited in proportions of 100:
Under tillage  ^
Vines, orchards, gardens  £
In pasture, chiefly natural  11
Forest land  ^
Marshes, high mountains, sandy plains, and other as
yet uncultivated tracts  48
100
This shows but too plainly how great a proportion of
Hungary and the adjacent provinces is still in a neglect¬
ed and half-cultivated state. In some parts the extent of
sandy plain is so great as to remind the traveller of an
African desert, and to fatigue the eye by an horizon with¬
out a boundary. The extent of marsh land in Hungary
is computed at 3000 English square miles; but there are
also large tracts along the banks of rivers lost to cultiva-
224
AUSTRIA.
Austria, tion, from occasional inundations caused by heavy rains or
the melting of snow in the Alps and Carpathians.
The chief towns of Hungary are as follows :—
In the western half of the king¬
dom.
Population.
Pesth 40,000
Ofen or Buda, the 1 gQ qqq
present capital.. J ’
Presburg,formerly) oc nnn
Zombor 18,000
Raab 14,000
Stuhl Weissemburg...l3,000
(Edenburg 13,000
Kremnitz 10,000
In the eastern or more remote
part of the kingdom.
Population.
Debretzin 42,000
Erlau 17,000
Gross Wardein 15,000
Miskoloz 14,000
Kaschau 12,500
Temesvar 12,000
Bekess 11,000
Szathmar 11,000
Such are the only towns containing 10,000 inhabitants
or upwards, in a population of nearly nine millions. Four-
fifths of the inhabitants of Hungary are scattered over the
country in huts; and in fact the towns, with the exception of
the three which stand first on the list, are little more than
collections of cottages. In a country so deficient in town po¬
pulation, and so backward in other respects, manufactures
are necessarily in a rude state. They are limited to coarse
woollens, coarse linen, and other articles woven in the cot¬
tage of the manufacturer, in the homely manner of our ances¬
tors two centuries ago. Tobacco is raised and manufactured
here in large quantities, but it is consumed in the country.
There are mines of iron, copper, lead, gold, and silver, but
all of limited extent. The foreign trade of Hungary is
confined to an annual import of manufactured goods, and
an export of wool, hides, and other raw materials. The
Danube traverses almost the whole kingdom from west to
east, as does the Theiss from north to south ; and the depth
of both is such as to admit the ready passage of vessels
down their streams, but the navigation upwards will be
difficult until aided by steam or mechanical power. The
chief intercourse in Hungary, whether for produce or
merchandise, is consequently carried on by land; and De¬
bretzin owes its comparatively large population (42,000)
to its position on one of the very few high roads in this
country, where it is a central station for traffic between
Transylvania in the east and Hungary in the west.
The name of Hungary (in German Ungarn) is said to
be derived, not from the Huns, who entered this country
in such numbers under Attila in the fifth century, but from
the word Unger, “ new comer,” applied by the natives to
invaders of later date. Be that as it may, the population
of Hungary is of a very mixed character, whether we con¬
sider their origin, religion, or language. As to religion,
the computation is, that the Catholics amount to 5,000,000,
the Protestants to above 2,000,000, the Greek church to
1,800,000, and the Jews to 160,000. Germans, or descend¬
ants of Germans, reside in most of the larger towns; and
whatever can be termed improved husbandry has been in¬
troduced from their country, from Austria, Bavaria, and
Suabia. The Germans are found chiefly in the west of Hun¬
gary, the part nearest to the empire, but they bear a small
proportion to the rest of the population. At the head of
the latter are the Magyars or Madjars, the descendants of
a tube from the east of the Wolga, who settled in Hungary
under a leader of the name of Arpad in the ninth century.
I hey are a comely and spirited race, who prefer agricul¬
ture and the tending of cattle to mechanical employments.
The aborigines were doubtless of the Sclavonian race,
and their descendants consist at the present day of vari¬
ous tribes, viz. the Slowacs, the Rascians or Serbians, the
Reusmacs (from Red Russia), and the Wallachians. The
most numerous of these different tribes are the Slowacs.
1 ic languages spoken in Hungary are almost as varied as
the descent of the inhabitants. The Magyar is properly a
the Hungarian language, and is spoken currently bv all ^
who bear the name of Magyar; but as it is wholly differ¬
ent from German, Latin, which is generally understood,
and even spoken by the upper classes, is made the vehicle,
not only of official business, but of newspapers, or what¬
ever is intended for general circulation.
The political connection between Hungary and Aus¬
tria goes back nearly four centuries, the crown having de¬
volved to the Austrian family in 1437, and having been
vested ever since 1527 in the head of that house. A very
long time, however, elapsed before the Austrian govern¬
ment became popular in Hungary. On the one side des¬
potic habits and intolerance in religion, on the other the
restless spirit of the great barons, were the cause of re¬
peated insurrections, and of coalitions with the Turks,
which twice (in 1529 and 1683) brought an Ottoman
army to the walls of Vienna. Montecuculi, Sobieski, and
Prince Eugene, successively routed these undisciplined
hosts ; but it was not until the early part of last century
(in 1718), when the final victories of Prince Eugene drove
the Turks out of Hungary, and the court of Vienna adopt¬
ed a conciliating course, that the Hungarians, as a nation,
became impressed with that attachment to their Austrian
sovereigns which has ever since been eminently their
characteristic.
In no country is the line more strongly drawn between
the upper and the lower classes. The former have an ex¬
clusive right to public appointments ; and a grant of land
by the sovereign to a plebeian must be accompanied by
a patent of rank, the right of possessing land in Hungary
being confined to the higher classes. They are exempt
also from all direct imposts; tithes, toll-dues, and a tax
called the thirtieth penny, being all assessed on the pea¬
santry and the inhabitants of towns. The duty of the
nobility and gentry in Hungary is of a higher order; it is
to serve personally under their sovereign, taking up arms
whenever a war has received the approbation of the diet.
The emperor Joseph II. was inclined to put his Hungarian
subjects on a more equal footing; but he found, on the
one hand, that the lower classes were not ripe for the ad¬
vancement he intended them, and on the other, that what
seemed their greatest grievance (an undue share of taxa¬
tion) was more nominal than real, the peasantry obtain¬
ing in their rents, and the inhabitants of towns in the en¬
hanced price of articles, an indemnity for their greater
share of the public burdens.
The regular or standing army in Hungary in time of
peace is about 50,000 men ; in war that number is readi¬
ly doubled, at the call of the crown, by an extraordinary
levy called insurrectio. In the frontier line extending
along the Turkish territory, military service is accepted
from the inhabitants in lieu of tithe and taxes, so that
there is a strong permanent militia in that quarter. The
public revenue of Hungary is between L.3,000,000 and
L.4,000,000 sterling. It is derived partly from the regalia
or rights of the crown, such as the crown-lands, the mo-
nopoly of salt, the mines, and assessments on the church
lands; partly from taxes voted by the diet, such as a land-
tax, a poll-tax, and an impost on cattle. 'The diet or par¬
liament consists here, as in Bohemia, of four “ states” or
classes; the Catholic prelates, the magnates or peers,
the representatives of the inclyti or landholders, and the
deputies from towns. The two first mentioned form the
upper, the twro last the lower house. The president of
the former is the prince palatine, and in his absence
the noble of highest rank: in the lower house the impe¬
rial, or, as he is here termed, the royal commissioner, is
president. The deliberations generally proceed in sepa¬
rate chambers ; but in case of non-agreement, the two are
&
AUSTRIA.
225
united in one, and questions are decided by a majority of
^ votes. No serious division, however, has for a long time
taken place either in the diet or between the diet and the
executive government. The power of the sovereign in
Hungary, though not so great as in Bohemia or the here¬
ditary states, is very considerable, comprising not only the
executive administration, but the proposition of all bills
to the diet, and the patronage of the Catholic church. A
council of state at Buda, and a higher council at Vienna,
constitute what may be termed the cabinets for the affairs
of Hungary.
The principality of Transylvania is very extensive,
having a territory of considerably more than 20,000 square
miles, with a population of nearly two millions. It is si¬
tuated to the east of Hungary, and its name was given to
it on account of the vast forests which separate it from
that kingdom. Its surface is very diversified, consisting
of alternate mountains and valleys. In so wide a tract of
country there is necessarily a number of plains ; but few of
them are of great extent. The changes of temperature
consequent on change of wind are frequent, and, at times,
great in degree. The soil, though not deficient in natural
fertility, has as yet been little cultivated : the chief pro¬
ducts are maize and vines in warm situations; wheat,
oats, and barley, on the higher grounds. The forests have
long been, and still are, very extensive. There are here
a number of mines of the precious metals, which, though
less profitable than is commonly supposed, give employ¬
ment to many thousands of the lower class. The manu¬
factures are generally in a rude state, and can hardly be
otherwise so long as the country remains destitute of con¬
veyance by water, or of good roads. The inhabitants are
chiefly of Sclavonian descent, and with as many varieties
as in Hungary, each tribe adhering to its peculiar cus¬
toms, though settled in the immediate vicinity of other
tribes. The prevailing religion of the Transylvanians is
that of the Greek church : it is professed by nearly three
fourths of the population, while the Protestants amount
to 400,000, and the Catholics to only half the number.
To one or other of these belong the descendants of Ger¬
mans who settled in this country, and who are in number
about 400,000. The constitution of Transylvania is nearly
the same as in Hungary, the diet or representative body
being on a similar footing. The languages spoken here
are as various as in Hungary ; Latin being used for public
papers and communications of importance, the Magyar for
personal intercourse. The public revenue is about 500,000
a year.
Croatia, an extensive province to the south-west of
Hungary, is marked by physical features similar to those
of Upper Austria or Carinthia, being pervaded by moun¬
tains in almost every direction. The climate consequent¬
ly differs according to the elevation of the soil, the degree
of cold being in many parts nearly as great as on the
Carpathian Mountains; while the tract along the coast of
the Adriatic has a comparatively mild climate, as also the
plains in the interior. In the latter are raised maize,
vines, and the fruits common in the south of Europe.
The forests of Croatia are of great extent, consisting of
oak, elm, ash, beech, and, in the higher grounds, of fir and
pines. The mines, though naturally productive, are as yet
very imperfectly wrought, not excepting those of iron. The
extent of this province is between 5000 and 6000 square
miles. The inhabitants, in number about 600,000, are
almost all Catholics: the majority are of Sclavonian de¬
scent, and speak the language of their ancestors. The
Germans are comparatively few, and are the descendants
of those who from time to time settled in this uncivilized
quarter to exercise mechanical employments, with which
the natives were unacquainted.
VOL. IV.
Sclavonia, situated to the east of Croatia, is somewhat Austria,
less extensive, having a surface of about 5000 square ''
miles, with a population of 370,000. The figure of this ®c^avonG-
province is long and narrow; its northern frontier, formed
by the Drave and Danube, separating it from Hungary,
while the Save, also a large river, divides it on the south
from the Turkish territory. From its position under the
45th and 46th degrees of north latitude, its climate would
be warm throughout, were it not traversed throughout its
whole length by a chain of lofty mountains, covered with
forests. The consequence is, that the low grounds alone
have a sufficient degree of temperature for the cultivation
of maize and the fruits of the south of Europe. The
higher districts produce wheat, barley, flax, hemp, and
madder. The rivers and streams flowing from the hills
often inundate the low country, and leave, as in Hungary,
a quantity of stagnant water, the effect of which is very
injurious to health. The dwellings of the peasantry are in
general mere mud huts; but in the forest tracts they are
log-houses covered with slate. This extreme poverty of
Sclavonia is to be ascribed to its having been long the seat
of war between the Turks and Hungarians ; for it was not
till the year 1700 that it came definitively into the pos¬
session of Austria. The majority of the inhabitants are
consequently of the Greek church; the Germans settled
here being, as in Croatia, comparatively few.
The Military Frontiers form a long and narrow tract of The Mili-
country, extending several hundred miles, from the Car- tai7 Eron-
pathians in the east to the Adriatic in the west, along thetierb'
confines of Transylvania, Hungary, Sclavonia, and Croatia.
The climate, the state of agriculture, and the degree of
civilization, are similar to those of the adjoining provinces.
After the year 1718, when the successes of Prince Eugene
had obliged the Turks to cede this country to Austria, a
constitution adapted to a frontier district was framed for
it, and has continued in force ever since. Its fundamen¬
tal principle is to enable the inhabitants to defend them¬
selves by being accustomed to the use of arms, and by
giving personal service in the field in lieu of taxes and
the rent of land. Every man along this extensive line
may be said to be born a soldier ; at least in every family
one of the males is bound to do military duty, and all are
liable to serve when called on. In return they are ex¬
empted from tithe and all direct taxes. They have also
assigned to them portions of land, which descend from fa¬
ther to son. Even civil affairs in this country are conduct¬
ed in a military form ; the different magistrates bearing the
rank respectively of generals, colonels, and captains. The
population of this extensive line of country is nearly
1,000,000, the efficient force about 50,000 militia.
BOHEMIA.
Bohemia, which ranks immediately after Hungary Situation
among the great members of the Austrian union, bearsandextent-
the title of kingdom, and is amply entitled to it by its
extent, its population, and its progressive improvement.
Backward as it still is, its resources, as the imperial go¬
vernment is well aware, are of a nature very different
from those afforded by the mountainous provinces of the
Alps, or the half-civilized districts on the side of Turkey.
It is situated between the 48th and 51st degrees of
north latitude ; its form is an irregular square; its area,
not yet accurately ascertained, is computed at fully 20,000
square miles, or three fourths of the extent of Scotland.
It is separated from the surrounding countries by ranges
of mountains which encircle it on every side. From this,
and from the general appearance of the interior, there
seems little doubt that in an early age the chief part of
Bohemia was covered with water, and that such conti-
2 F
226
AUSTRIA.
Austria, nued the case until an outlet was opened at the northern
and least elevated part of the chain, in the direction by
which the Elbe still flows, carrying with it the waters of
tributary streams from almost every part of the kingdom.
This separation from the adjacent countries, particularly
from the comparatively improved states of Saxony on the
north and Franconia on the west, necessarily operated to
the disadvantage of Bohemia, and retarded its advance in
civilization. German settlers resorted to it from time to
time, but individually or in small parties, never in nume¬
rous bodies, or in a manner that enabled them to dissemi¬
nate extensively the improvements of their respective
countries.
History. Of the aboriginal inhabitants of Bohemia there are no
distinct accounts; but the name of the country confirms
the current tradition that they were the Boii, a well-
known Celtic tribe. Christianity appears to have been
introduced among them only towards the close of the ninth
century, the era of the commencement of their historical
records. The ruler or governor then bore the name of
grand duke, and the succession under that, as under the
subsequent title of king, was for a long time elective. In
the thirteenth century Ottocar I., a prince of ability, passed
laws similar to those which were enacted in England about
the same time by Edward L, exempting the inhabitants
of villages from dependence on the neighbouring barons,
and enabling them to possess their little properties in se¬
curity. His son and successor, Ottocar II., followed a si¬
milar course ; a system of laws was compiled and reduced
to writing in German; and Prague, the capital, became a
town of importance. Bohemia was, as is well known, the
country of John Huss and Jerome of Prague, who expos¬
ed the fallacies of the church of Rome, but at too early a
date; for the public, not then enlightened by the art of
printing and the circulation of sound doctrines, misunder¬
stood their views; a civil war burst out, and the result
tended to perpetuate the abuses which these well-mean¬
ing men had laboured to remove.
The crown of Bohemia, like that of Hungary, had at
different intervals been held from marriage connection by
princes of the house of Austria; but in 1526 both crowns
devolved on the head of that house, and have ever since
been held by it in hereditary succession.
Climate The climate of Bohemia varies greatly, according to
ami soil. the elevation of the ground; the plains and valleys being
warm, while the mountains in the south, as in the north,
are cold and bleak. The annual fall of rain differs in like
manner according to situation; but 20 inches a year is
said to be a frequent average. The soil of Bohemia is in
general good, but the agriculture extremely backward.
The chief products, as in a similar latitude in England,
are wheat, barley, rye, oats, potatoes; also hemp, flax, and
hops. In some warm situations vines are cultivated, but as
yet on a small scale. The pastures, on the other hand,
are extensive, and in many parts as good as those of
Saxony and Silesia; but the inhabitants are far behind
their neighbours in the management of their flocks and
the quality of their wool. In the rearing and training of
horses the case is otherwise: considerable improvement
has been made in both, studs having been established in
different parts of the country by the Austrian govern¬
ment, which draws a large proportion of its cavalry from
this quarter.
Forests, The forests of Bohemia are of great extent; and large
rivers. quantities of timber are annually cut down and shipped
in the parts adjoining a navigable river. The Elbe and
Moldau are of great use for the conveyance of these as
well as of other bulky commodities. The Elbe rises in the
east of the kingdom; but the Moldau, which at their junc¬
tion is the larger river, rises in the southern extremity of
Bohemia, and has a course of above 150 miles, nearly the At
whole width of the kingdom. The Eger, the river next ^ 1;
in size, rises in the west, and has a course of about 100
miles, with a less rapid current than the Moldau.
Bohemia is divided into sixteen circles or counties, va¬
rying, of course, in extent and population, but containing
on an average nearly 1300 square miles, and 250,000 in¬
habitants.
Population of the Chief Towns.
Prague 90,000
Eger 10,000
Reichenberg 10,000
Pilsen 8,000
Budweis 7,000
Konig-groetz 6,000
Besides these there are about fifteen petty places with
2000, 3000, or 4000 inhabitants each; but altogether the
town population, with the exception of the capital, is in¬
significant. That of the country is very different: it ap¬
proaches in density to that of Ireland ; the farms being
small, and the cultivation being carried on almost wholly
by manual labour.
The manufactures of Bohemia have made considerable
progress in the last and present age: they consist chiefly
of woollens, linen, and leather, but they comprise also cot¬
tons, hardware, and glass. The value of these different
fabrics approaches to an annual total of three millions
sterling, a large amount for so poor a country. Great
part of the woollen and linen is woven, as in the last age
in England, in cottages. The mountains contain ores of
iron, lead, tin, cobalt, and silver; but iron alone is extract¬
ed on a large scale. The foreign trade of Bohemia with
Saxony and the north of Germany is carried on by the
Elbe, but with most other parts by land-carriage. The
communication now making, partly by canal, partly by
railway, from the Moldau to the Danube, will be of great
advantage to Bohemia, as will a farther extension of the
turnpike roads, which at present hardly exceed 1000 miles
in total length, or one twentieth of the roads of England;
and nowhere are good roads more wanted than in Bo¬
hemia, for business there is still carried on, in a great
measure, by itinerant dealers, who pass the summer in
conveying their goods to public fairs held periodically at
the different towns.
The population of Bohemia has greatly increased in
the last and present age. In 1791 it was considerably
below 3,000,000. At present it amounts to 3,900,000, and
bids fair to rise soon to 4,000,000. Of these about a third
part are of German extraction, the other two thirds being
descended from the aboriginal stock. The ancestors of the
Germans settled here from time to time, as mechanics,
miners, and traders; employments which the uninstruct¬
ed natives, like the cottagers of Ireland, were not capable
of exercising. At present, even, it is by the German part
of the population that whatever relates to public business
or to foreign trade is conducted; the Bohemians gene¬
rally confining themselves to husbandry in the country, or
to common labour in towns. The middle classes, in ge¬
neral, speak both German and Bohemian; but the latter,
which is quite different from German, is the only lan¬
guage of the lower orders, particularly in remote districts.
I he power of the sovereigns is as great in Bohemia as in
any part of the Austrian dominions. The parliament or
states consist of four classes of members ; the clergy, the
great nobility, the nobility of the second class, and the
representatives of the chief towns. But their duties are
little more than nominal. They deliberate on the mea¬
sures proposed to them by the royal commissioner, but
they have no power to originate a bill. As to public reve¬
nue, Bohemia contributes fully two millions to the impe¬
rial treasury, and maintains a force in regulars and militia
of 50,000 men. 6
AUSTRIA.
w . Moravia, and Austrian Silesia, which is now annexed
try S to it, contain an area of 11,000 square miles, with a
Hora i. population of 2,000,000, a degree of density approach¬
ing to that of England, and nearly double the average
population of Germany. This is owing chiefly to the fer¬
tility of the soil; for although chains of mountains cross
the country in several directions, the plains and valleys
are extensive, yielding in abundance wheat, rye, oats,
barley, and, in the warmer situations, vines. The pas¬
tures also are good, and a number of horses and horned
cattle are exported annually. Here, as in Bohemia, the
majority of the inhabitants are of Sclavonian descent; and
the language of the lower orders is not German, but a
dialect of the Sclavonic. Moravia resembles Bohemia in
other respects,—in the religion of its inhabitants, who are
chiefly Catholics; and in the limited power of its states or
parliament, who deliberate on such subjects only as are pro¬
posed to them by the executive government. But it sur¬
passes Bohemia, and every part of the Austrian dominions,
except the Vienna district, in its extent of manufactures
and the use of machinery. Woollens, linen, and, since the
beginning of the present century, cottons, are here made
in large quantities, both for home consumption and export.
Austrian Silesia has an area of 1900 square miles, with
a population of 400,000. It consists of two circles or
counties, called, from their respective chief towns, Trop-
pau and Teschen; but, for the administration of justice
and other public purposes, Austrian Silesia is considered
as united with Moravia. It resembles that country, too, in
the activity of its productive industry. The density of
its population is owing less to an advanced state of tillage
than to extensive manufactures of linen and woollens.
The pastures of this country are in general rich, and the
export of wool, already considerable, is likely to increase.
Galicia bears the title of kingdom, to which it is well
entitled; for its territory, above 32,000 square miles, is
greater than that of Scotland, and its population, distinct
trom that of the Buckowine, exceeds 4,000,000. It is of
an oblong form, and is divided for purposes of govern¬
ment into two parts, called respectively East and West
Galicia. The name of Lodomeria (in Polish Wlodomir)
is now obsolete, or used only in diplomatic papers. The
whole belonged formerly to Poland; and in its physical
aspect Galicia greatly resembles that country, consisting
of a succession of plains, with few elevations except in
the south, where it is intersected by a part of the Carpa¬
thian range. The climate is consequently temperate, and
even warm. The chief products are, as in a similar lati¬
tude in England, wheat, oats, rye, and barley. The sum¬
mer heats being much greater than in this country, the
culture of the vine is practicable in certain situations,
hut has not yet been carried to any considerable length.
Ihe pastures, on the other hand, are extensive, and sup¬
ply the Austrian cavalry with a number of good horses,
farming, however, is as backward here as in the rest of
Boland, or in the least improved parts of Germany. The
peasantry, till lately in a state of servitude, have still the
indolent habits of vassals, and must often be driven to
t leir labour by compulsion. The roads in Galicia are in
general very bad, and the extent of river navigation is
very limited; but the level surface of the country is fa¬
vourable to the forming of both roads and canals; and
were Galicia less distant from the sea, its exports, parti-
eu any of corn, would soon become considerable. Ger¬
man is the language for public documents and official bu¬
siness, but Polish is spoken by the people at large. In
* ^,.n?an1n®r’ as to religion, the Roman Catholic is the es-
oS, faith; but the majority of the inhabitants, being
' • c f oman descent, are of the Greek church. Here,
*in he rest of Poland, the dealers and traffickers are
227
almost all Jews, whose total number approaches to half Austria,
a million. Of the backwardness of this country in manu-
factures and the mechanical arts we may judge by the
smallness of the town population; Lemberg, the capital,
being the only place which as yet sends deputies to the
Galician diet. The members of that assembly consist
wholly of prelates and landholders.
Extensive as the portion of Galicia subject to Austria
is at present, it was formerly still larger. Russia having
taken part against Austria in the disastrous campaign of
1809, the latter power was obliged by Buonaparte to cede
to Russia the eastern part of Galicia. Nor was this va¬
luable territory restored in the general adjustment of
1815, because the principle of that adjustment was, that
Russia should be indemnified in Poland, as Austria was in
Italy, and Prussia on the banks of the Rhine.
The Buckowine is an extensive district, formerly part The
of Moldavia, but ceded by the Turks to Austria in 1777. Bucko-
It now forms a circle or county of Galicia, having an areawine-
of 3700 square miles, and a population of 260,000. The
western part adjoining the Carpathian Mountains is high
and barren; but the rest of the country is in general fer¬
tile. The forests of oak are here of great extent, and
seem to have given name to the country, buckow in Scla¬
vonian signifying an oak.
THE ALPINE PROVINCES.
The duchy of Styria, one of the earliest acquisitions ofStyria.
the Austrian family, has an extent of nearly 9000 square
miles, with a population of 850,000, of whom more than
half are of German descent, while the remainder are
Wends or Sclavonians. The inhabitants differ in lan¬
guage, but are agreed in religion, being almost all Ca¬
tholics. Styria bears a resemblance to the adjoining pro¬
vince of Carinthia, both in soil and climate; Upper Sty¬
ria being very mountainous, while in Lower Styria the
ground has less elevation as it recedes from the Alps.
Hence a corresponding difference in temperature and
products; the mountainous part being covered with forests,
and fit only for pasture, while the plains and valleys pro¬
duce wheat, barley, oats, rye, and; in the warmer situa¬
tions, maize. The culture of potatoes, though introduced
less than a century ago, has now become general, and has
been the means of adding largely to the population. The
mines are extensive, particularly those of coal and iron ;
the steel of Styria is as noted in Germany as the Swedish
steel in the north of Europe. Salt also is obtained here
in great abundance.
Tyrol bears in official papers no higher name than that Tyrol,
of county (in German Graf-schaft); but it is by far the
largest county in Europe, having an extent of above
15,000 square miles, with a population of 780,000. It is
traversed in every direction by mountains, many of them
of great height; while the low grounds consist, not of
plains of any extent, but of a succession of long valleys to
the number of more than twenty. In these the climate
is comparatively warm, and the soil in man}' parts fertile,
producing corn in considerable quantity, and, in favour¬
able situations, vines. The ploughs and agricultural im¬
plements used in this country are extremely rude; but
the inhabitants show both ingenuity and industry in culti¬
vating slopes and summits, wherever there is enough of
soil to reward their labour. In this mountainous region
waterfalls are frequent, and many of them are made
available to the movement of mills and other machinery.
Mineral ores are found in Tyrol to an extent that justifies
the expectation that they may be made to afford eventu¬
ally considerable employment and income to the inhabit¬
ants ; but in a country so rugged in its surface, and so
228
AUSTRIA.
Carniola.
Austria, deficient in machinery, little progress has as yet been
made in working mines. Manufactures are equally back¬
ward ; the work required for them, whether spinning, knit¬
ting, or weaving, being almost all performed by the hand.
The domestic animals in Tyrol are, in general, of a di¬
minutive size. The forests contain wolves, bears, goats,
and many other animals in a wild state ; hence the num¬
ber of chasseurs or sportsmen in Tyrol, and their dexterity
as sharp-shooters, so frequently evinced in the late wars.
The Tyrolese, though of a warlike character, and strongly
attached to the house of Austria, dislike the restraints of
discipline. They perform, however, militia duty, and are
called out for training during several weeks in the year.
The language of the Tyrol is German. Like the other
provinces of the Austrian empire, it has its states or parlia¬
ment, composed of deputies from the clergy and nobility,
to whom there have been added, for some time past, de¬
puties from the peasantry.
Carinthia. Carinthia adjoins Tyrol, and, like it, consists of a suc¬
cession of mountains separated by narrow valleys. It con¬
tains a number of lakes, formed, as in the highlands of
Scotland and other mountainous countries, by water col¬
lecting in hollows, and finding no outlet, except at a con¬
siderable height. Tillage is here on a very limited scale;
but the pastures are more extensive, and the forests which
cover the sides of the mountains would be very valuable,
were it practicable to convey the trees to a navigable
river. The mines of this province are extensive, particu¬
larly those of iron, lead, and quicksilver. The extent of
Carinthia is 4000 square miles; its population 300,000.
The chief towns are Clagenfurth and Villach.
Carniola, the adjacent province, is more populous than
Carinthia; because, though mountainous in the north, it
has in the south extensive valleys and fertile plains. Here
are also a number of mines of iron, lead, and quicksilver.
The agricultural products are not merely wheat, rye, and
barley, as in Carinthia, but maize and vines, the sure indi¬
cation of a warmer sun. Of a population of half a mil¬
lion, only a tenth part are of German descent; the rest
are Sclavonians. Carinthia, Carniola, Istria, and part of
Friuli, form the present kingdom of Illyria, which is di¬
vided, for purposes of administration, into two great dis¬
tricts or governments, Laybach and Trieste.
Dalmatia, though dignified with the title of kingdom,
is a long, narrow, and, as yet, thinly peopled tract, ex¬
tending along the east shore of the Adriatic, from lat. 42.
to 45. It comprises the whole of what was formerly Ve¬
netian Dalmatia, along with the smaller territories of Ra-
gusa and Cattaro. Its extent is about 6000 square miles;
its population 340,000. Its agricultural products, maize,
vines, olives, and silk, give proof of a climate considerably
warmer than in any of the above-mentioned provinces.
Here, as in those provinces, the ranges of mountains are
extensive ; but there are also beautiful and fertile valleys.
The iron mines and the marble quarries of Dalmatia are
both of great extent; but as yet they are little wrought,
on account chiefly of the thinness of the population. Such
parts of the forests as adjoin navigable rivers, or have
ready means of conveyance to the coast, are made avail¬
able for ship-building; the Austrian government adopting
the views of Buonaparte in considering Dalmatia of great
importance towards forming a navy. No part of Europe
abounds more with good harbours than the mainland of
Dalmatia, and the numerous islands along the coast.
Dalmatia.
separate it from the rest of the empire. In treaties and Aw
other public acts, this country is styled the Lombardo- ^;
Venetian kingdom, from its two great divisions, situated
respectively to the east and west of the river Mincio,
which, flowing from north to south, divides the country
into two nearly equal parts. Lombardy, or the western
province, is called the government of Milan; while the
province to the east of the Mincio is the government of
Venice. Each government is further divided into dele¬
gations, each of the extent of our middle-sized counties,
as follows:
Government of Milan.
Government of Venice.
Delegation.
Venice 115,000
Verona  55,000
Rovigo  7,000
Padua  48,000
Vicenza  30,000
Belluno  8,000
Treviso  15,000
Udina  18,000
Delegations.
Milan 160,000
Pavia  20,000
Lodi  14,000
Bergamo  28,000
Brescia  32,000
Cremona  26,000
Mantua  23,000
Sondrio  3,500
Como  8,000
The amount of town population exhibited in this list is
far beyond that of any other portion of the Austrian em¬
pire ; and the same holds in regard to the agriculture and
manufactures of this interesting country. Its extent is
18,000 square miles, about two thirds of that of Ireland,
and it is level almost throughout; its large and beautiful
plains extending with little interruption from the Ticino
or Tesin on the western frontier, to Venice on the east, a
distance of 200 miles. The soil, naturally rich, is so much
improved by centuries of cultivation, that it has been fre¬
quently called the garden of Europe. The warmth of the
climate makes irrigation the chief desideratum with the
husbandman, and his labours for that purpose are greatly
facilitated by the number of rivers and streams flowing
from the Alps across extensive plains to the Po. Wheat,
maize, rice, and vines, are the principal products, to which
are to be added silk, flax, and hemp. The pastures also
are rich and extensive. The chief exports are corn, cat¬
tle, silk, wool, and fruits.
The population of Austrian Italy is nearly four and a
half millions. It was under the control of France during
eighteen years, from 1796 to 1814. It was then re-occu¬
pied by the Austrians, and erected into a kingdom, which,
thobgh declared to be inseparable from the Austrian
crown, has a constitution of its own, with a prince of the
imperial family at its head having the title of viceroy. Its
revenue is larger in proportion to its extent than that of
any other part of the empire except Vienna and its dis¬
trict. Venice is the city of the north of Italy which has
the least partaken of prosperity in the present age; a
natural consequence of its loss of sovereignty in I79f.
But it is now declared a free port by the Austrian govern¬
ment ; and the inhabitants have hopes of recovering, in
some degree, the commercial activity of former ages.
Austrian
Italy.
After this description of particular portions of the em¬
pire, we shall proceed to state what is common to the
whole under the following heads :—Physical Aspect, Soil»
and Climate; Products, Manufactures, and Trade; Na¬
tional Income ; Military Establishment; Religion, Educa¬
tion, and National Character; Government and Laws;
Foreign Politics.
We now enter on a very different scene; for nothing Physical Aspect, Soil, and Climate.
can exhibit a stronger contrast than the portion of Italy Of the rivers in the Austrian territory, by far themostK
subject to Austria, and the mountainous provinces which interesting is the Danube. Before entering the imperial
AUSTRIAN ITALY.
AUSTRIA.
229
i tr dominions, it receives a number of rivers flowing north-
rv- J ward from the Alps, of which the principal are the Inn,
the Iser, the Iller, and the Leek. It next receives the Ens,
and flows eastward with a full stream, varying in breadth
from a quarter to half a mile. It is bordered throughout
this part of its course by high grounds or ridges of moun¬
tains, the distance of which from the water is generally
greater on the south than on the north side. It is of suf¬
ficient depth to bear barges and large boats throughout
the whole Austrian territory, and in Hungary it admits
vessels of considerable size. Its navigation, however, is
not easy, its banks being in various parts steep and rocky;
while in the level countries, in which its waters are more
widely spread, its bed is often encumbered with shoals.
The use of sails has not yet been introduced on the Danube
to the extent practised on the Rhine and the Vistula; and
as the application of steam to navigation on this river is
still in its infancy, the alternative in the case of boats
going up the stream is to tow them along the banks ; but
both the towing tracks and the boats are as yet in a very
rude state. Unluckily for the commerce of Austria, the
course of the Danube is towards countries devoid of mer¬
cantile activity, and which offer no encouraging markets
for the produce or manufactures it might be made to con-
vey.
The other great rivers in the Austrian dominions are
the Save, the Drave, and the Muhr, which convey to the
Danube the waters from the eastern face of the Alps.
The Marsch or Morawa brings to it the tribute of Mora¬
via, while the still larger streams of the Theiss and Maros
collect all that flow from the southern side of the Carpa¬
thians. All these rivers abound with fish, and are of
sufficient depth to be navigable ; but flowing through poor
and thinly-peopled countries, they have as yet been of
little use in a commercial sense.
■akes id Lakes and marshes are both numerous and extensive
urs! in the Austrian dominions. In Styria, Tyrol, and other
mountainous tracts, they are formed, as in the highlands
of Scotland, by water collected in valleys which, from the
structure of the ground, are pent up in all directions. In
Hungary, Galicia, and other level countries, their origin
is different: they are a consequence of neglect of drain¬
age, and of that backward cultivation which prevails in
almost all countries until population and agricultural im¬
provement attain a certain height. It was thus that
marshes, heaths, and forests covered the surface of Eng¬
land in former ages, and that large tracts are at present
lost to every useful purpose along the banks of the Danube,
the Theiss, the Drave, the Save, and other rivers in Hun¬
gary, which inundate the country, when swelled by heavy
rains or the melting of the snow. To drain these low-
lying tracts would require skill, capital, and machinery, all
of which are wanting in these poor and backward coun¬
tries.
The other striking physical features of the Austrian
territory are successive chains of mountains, viz. the Alps
in the south-west, and the Carpathians in the north-east
of the empire, all of great height and extent. In the bleak
climate of Norway the higher parts of mountains pre¬
sent little else than continued sterility; but in the central
and southern parts of Europe vegetation is seen to rise to
a great height. The base of a mountain is often covered
with vines and maize ; the ascent with green pastures, or
with wheat, barley, and similar kinds of corn. The trees
in the lower and middle region are often the oak, the elm,
or the ash; while, in the approach towards the summit,
the yew and the fir are chiefly seen to brave the fury of
the tempest. Many parts of Tyrol, Styria, Carinthia, and
Carniola, abound with picturesque views, and recall to the
traveller the scenery of Switzerland. Styria, in particu¬
lar, has, like that country, its cascades, its glaciers, its per- Austria,
petual snows, and its tremendous avalanches.
German writers are in the habit of dividing the climate Climate,
of the Austrian empire into three regions or zones, viz.
the northern, situate between the 49th and 51st degrees
of north latitude, and comprising nearly the whole of Bo¬
hemia, with the high-lying parts of Hungary, Moravia,
Galicia, and the Buckowine ; the whole extending over a
surface of 70,000 square miles. The weather in these
countries, though colder in winter and warmer in summer
than in England, bears, in its average temperature, a con¬
siderable resemblance both to our climate and to that of
the north of France. In products also there is a remark¬
able correspondence ; wheat, barley, oats, and rye, forming
the great bulk of the yearly crops. The middle region of
the Austrian dominions is considerably more extensive;
containing the whole of Lowrer Austria, with the chief part
of Upper Austria, Moravia, Hungary, Transylvania, and
Galicia. It extends along the entire length of the empire,
and has a surface of fully 150,000 square miles. This vast
tract lies between latitude 46° and 49°. The summer and
autumn heats are here much greater than in England; and,
in addition to wheat and other products mentioned above,
vines and maize are cultivated in favourable situations, as
in the middle part of France. Lastly comes the south¬
ern region, extending from latitude 46° to 42°, and com¬
prising Lombardy, the Venetian States, the coasts of
Croatia and Dalmatia, with the southern line of Sclavo-
nia, and the Bannat of Temesvar. In these different
countries the winter lasts during two or three months only,
and the cold seldom exceeds that of our month of March.
Here are raised not only maize and vines, but olives,
myrtles, and other southern products, as in the south of
France. This temperature extends over a surface of from
30,000 to 40,000 square miles.
We have stated these distinctions of climate according
to latitude ; but it is proper to add, that in no country does
there exist greater difference of temperature in the same
latitude, in consequence of the very marked differences in
the elevation of the soil; one line presenting a succession
of mountains, and another of plains and valleys. Thus, the
Alpine Provinces, with the extensive tracts adjoining the
Carpathian range, and the lofty barrier between Bohemia
and Moravia, partake of all the rigour of the north, though
situated to the south of latitude 49° ; while Galicia and
the interior of Bohemia, though to the north of that line,
are considerably warmer, because their surface is in gene¬
ral even, and little elevated above the level of the sea.
The average fall of rain is considerably greater in the
mountains than in the plains. In Vienna, and the low-
lying tracts generally, 28 inches are a frequent average
for the year; but in the mountains it often amounts to
40 inches and upwards.
It remains to state how the summer heats in Austria
are considerably greater than in the same latitude in Eng¬
land, while the cold of winter is often more intense. In
this country, and still more in Ireland, the vicinity of the
ocean induces a frequency of rain, with a medium degree
of heat and cold in the prevailing winds, which by no
means exist in Poland, Austria, or any country in the in¬
terior of the continent. But the transitions from heat to
cold, and vice versa, are in many parts of Austria as fre¬
quent and as remarkable in degree as in this country.
Products, Manufactures, and Trade.
In a country covered in so many parts by mountains, Mines and
the extent of mineral produce can hardly fail to be large.111 mera s-
Iron ore is abundant in many parts of Bohemia, Upper
Austria, Styria, and Carinthia; and if the quantities of
tin or copper hitherto wrought in these provinces be com-
230
AUSTRIA.
Austria, paratively small, it is owing to most of the mountain dis-
tricts being as yet imperfectly explored. The mines al¬
ready wrought in Bohemia afford good tin, and those of
Hungary excellent copper. In the latter country, parti¬
cularly at Schemnitz and Kremnitz, are mines of gold and
silver, wrought on the account of government, not from a
monopolizing spirit, but because without such aid it would
not be practicable to secure continued employment to the
natives on the spot, so scanty and uncertain are the re¬
turns.
Annual Produce of the Mines of Hungary.
Gold about L.80,000 sterling.
Silver  160,000
Antimony  250 tons.
Lead  1,200 tons.
Copper  2,000 tons.
Iron  15,000 tons.
Small as is the quantity of gold obtained, the mines of
Schemnitz and Kremnitz are visited by foreigners for in¬
struction in that respect, because gold is so seldom found
in the more improved countries of Europe. Saxony is far
before Austria in scientific knowledge, but its mines are
of silver, not of gold; exactly as those of Cornwall are
of tin and copper, to the exclusion of the precious metals.
The companies lately formed in England for working the
gold mines of Brazil have derived useful information from
the mines of Hungary.
Coal mines. A far more important mineral than silver ore, we mean
coal, has been found in many parts of the Austrian domi¬
nions, in Bohemia, Moravia, Austria Proper, Hungary,
and Styria; but the quantity raised is large only in situa¬
tions contiguous to a navigable river. One of the main
sources of the superiority of England to other countries,
has been the ease of conveying coal in former ages by sea,
and latterly also by canals and railways, to situations where
fuel is of importance for manufactures. But in a country
like Austria, which has no coast, where canals are almost
unknown, and railways have been heard of only of late,
the opportunities of such conveyance are as yet very rare.
This, joined to the abundance of wood fuel, has prevented
the working of many coal mines; but they bid fair to be a
source of general employment to the lower classes, and of
advantage to those who manage them when manufactures
shall be conducted on a larger scale, and the communica¬
tions assimilated to those of England or the Netherlands.
Salt Similar observations apply to the raising and distribut-
irunes. ing 0f rock saitj mines 0f which are found in various parts
of the empire. Those of Bochnia and Wieliecka in Gali¬
cia are known to be the greatest in Europe. A number
of others are found along each side of the great Carpa¬
thian range, and may be said to extend with greater or
less intervals all the way from Moldavia to Suabia. This
very extensive tract comprehends the salt mines of Wal-
lachia, Transylvania, Galicia, Upper Hungary, Upper
Austria, Styria, Salzburg, and finally of Tyrol. They are
found either at the base or on the ascent of great moun¬
tains, the salt extending in horizontal or undulating strata,
and alternating with strata of clay.
Agricul- To an English traveller agriculture appears in a very
backward state, even in the best provinces of Austria.
Capital has as yet been applied to it on a very limited
scale, while the ploughs and other implements in use are
much inferior to those of England. Add to this, that scien¬
tific instruction in agriculture, though the subject of vari¬
ous publications m the Protestant part of Germany, is in
a manner unknown in Austria and the Catholic countries
in the south. Nowhere, however, is there a fairer field
for improved husbandry, for no part of Europe presents a
greater extent of good soil. Lower Austria has, like Lom¬
bardy, the advantage of extensive plains watered by streams Ai
flowing from a range of mountains which form the back- ^ ^
ground of the prospect contemplated by those who tra¬
vel along the banks of the Danube. Moravia has a simi¬
lar climate, and almost equal advantages of soil and posi¬
tion. Galicia is likewise fertile, the most so perhaps of any
of the Polish provinces; while in the south and east of the
empire many of the plains of Hungary and Transylvania
might be rendered productive were the population more
dense, and acquainted with the method of draining, irri-
gating, and properly tilling the ground. The land of
second rate fertility is in the Alpine provinces. The slopes
of the mountains, up to a certain height, are favourable
to pasture, and the raising of oats and other like grain;
but in many parts the height is so great as to outweigh
the advantage of latitude, and to confine the inhabitants
to a scanty return for their labour.
Comparative culture of Great Britain, France, and Austria,
exhibited in proportions of 100.
Great Britain The Austrian
and Ireland. * ranee- Empire-
Land under tillage  34  44  34
Vines, orchards, gardens.... 1  5  3
Land in grass, whether na¬
tural or sown  40  14  17
Forests, plantations, copses 5  17  26
Poor land, as heath, marshes,
commons; also land to¬
tally unproductive, as
rocks, summits of moun¬
tains, lakes, beds of ri¬
vers, roads  20  20  20
100 100 100
Comparative population.—
Inhabitants per square
mile   220 165 ..130
This table suggests several conclusions of importance.
First, the proportion of land altogether uncultivated is
nearly equal in the three countries; the mountains of
Scotland, the bogs of Ireland, and the commons of Eng¬
land, containing a surface corresponding to that of the
high mountains in the Alpine provinces of Austria, and the
marshes and sandy levels of Hungary. But the proportion
of land covered with forests, and thus lost to useful culti¬
vation, is far greater in France, and still more in the Aus¬
trian empire, than in this country. The inducement to
convert such land into pasture is far greater in Britain
and Ireland, in consequence of our numerous population,
and the high price of butcher-meat, wool, and hides. To
this is to be added a very different consideration, viz. that
the facility with which all our large towns are supplied
with coal makes it quite unnecessary to keep up forests,
as on the continent, for the purpose of fuel.
Next, as to the land under tillage, the great proportion off21 ^
such in France is owing to the lower orders living almost er
wholly on bread and vegetables, to the exclusion of ani¬
mal food. In Austria the proportion of land in tillage is
equal to that in Great Britain; but jthere is the greatest
difference in the nature of the cultivation, the produce in
even the best districts of Lower Austria being thirty per
cent, less than would be obtained from similar soils in this
country. In the nature of the produce there is a consi¬
derable resemblance, the bulk of it in either country con¬
sisting of wheat, barley, oats, rye, pease, beans, potatoes,
along with flax and hemp. Of rye, the proportion raised
is larger in Austria; that of potatoes much smaller. Maize
is raised in the southern provinces of Austria, as of France,
and is said to yield much more nourishment for either
AUSTRIA.
231
ties.
gstl men or horses than could be obtained from wheat on a si-
ify ' milar soil.
The northern parts of the empire, viz. Bohemia, Gali¬
cia, and part of Moravia, are too cold for vines; but in the
central part of the empire they are cultivated extensively,
and wine is sold in large quantities for home consumption.
The prices of the different qualities vary from sixpence to
one shilling a bottle. The port is far inferior to that obtain¬
ed from France, in consequence chiefly of the want of con¬
veyance. Lower Austria and Hungary, the fittest coun¬
tries for the vine, have navigable rivers only to the east¬
ward, and these lead to countries which either raise wine
for their own use, or are too poor to make purchases from
their neighbours. The exports from the Austrian states
are thus limited to small quantities of choice wines, such
as the well-known Tokay, which is raised on the last chain
of the Carpathians, near the district of Zemplin. This
wine is cultivated alon£ a tract of about seventy square
miles: its qualities are various; the richest kind proceed¬
ing from the grape with little or no pressure ; while the in¬
ferior sort is said to be made from the dried grape, reduced
into a sort of pap, and mixed with other Hungarian wines.
But it by no means follows that all the wine sold under
the fashionable name of Tokay is the product of the dis¬
trict in question; for, even in Vienna, there is not perhaps
a tenth of real Tokay among the wines which bear that
name.
anui Manufactures have in the last and present age received
res. considerable extension in the Austrian dominions. They
are still, however, on a footing very different from those
of our country. In England they are generally conducted
on the plan of particular towns or districts restricting
themselves to specific branches; as Manchester to cottons
and Birmingham to hardware. Hence our minute division
of employment, our nicety in workmanship, and the sur¬
prising quantities produced. But in Austria the case is
different: woollens, linen, hardware, and of late years cot¬
tons, are made in almost every place of considerable po¬
pulation ; a sure proof that their establishments are on a
small scale, and that they avail themselves very imper¬
fectly of local advantages or of the division of labour.
In many parts, indeed, weaving and other sedentary work
is performed in cottages, as was the case in England a
century ago. Spinning wool and flax has from time imme¬
morial been the habitual employment of the lower class of
females in Germany; and still continues to be so, notwith¬
standing the competition of machinery. Linens are woven
in every province of the empire ; but the finest qualities
are made in Lower Austria, Moravia, and certain parts of
Bohemia. These countries supply little for export be¬
yond the limits of the empire, but a great deal to the ad¬
jacent provinces. Woollens also are a very general ma¬
nufacture throughout the empire. As to hardware, the
mines in the mountainous districts supply an ample store
of materials, the manufacture of which takes place partly
on the spot, partly in the larger towns, such as Vienna,
Prague, and Karlsbad. Bohemia is remarked for the
number of its glass works, a consequence of fuel being
cheap in several districts which have the advantage of
water conveyance. Hungary, Transylvania, and the Buck-
owine, having extensive pastures, as well as forests con¬
taining vast herds of cattle in a wild state, hides are an
article of export from the same cause as in the thinly-peo¬
pled provinces of Russia or the wilds of Buenos Ayres. A
very different object of trade, paper, is also made to a con¬
siderable extent in the Austrian states, in consequence of
the cheapness of linen rags.
All these are manufactures of old date ; but cottons are
comparatively of recent introduction, and are confined to
icnna and some of the principal towns. The cheapness
of labour is in favour of such undertakings in Austria; Austria,
the obstacles to it are the distance which the raw mate- v«—,
rial, whether landed at Trieste or at Hamburg, must be
brought by land, as well as the inferiority of the machi¬
nery to that of England.
Comparing these different manufactures with those of
an improved country like England, we find the foreign
articles generally higher in price and more homely in ap¬
pearance, but at the same time more durable than ours.
This distinction is found to hold in regard to fabrics the
most different in their nature; the muskets made in Ger¬
many and France being heavier, exactly as their woollens,
cottons, and linens, are thicker than ours. Lightness of
workmanship and dispatch in completing an article are
the result of long practice: the comparatively limited ex¬
perience of foreigners, and their imperfect subdivision of
work, require both longer time and a larger consumption
of raw materials.
In her intercourse with foreign countries, Austria ex-Foreign
periences all the disadvantages of an inland position, and trade,
of a very limited access to the sea; the portion of coast
belonging to her being in a corner of the empire. Its ex¬
tent is about 500 miles, comprising the north and east
shores of the Adriatic, from the mouths of the Po on the
west, to Ragusa and Cattaro on the east. The commer¬
cial sea-ports are Venice, Trieste, and Fiume; the first
being the inlet to Friuli and Lombardy, the second to
Carniola, and the third to Croatia. From Venice the ac¬
cess to the interior is easy, the country being flat, and
admitting of intersection by canals; but Fiume, and still
more Trieste, have to the east ranges of mountains, over
which the transport of bulky commodities is attended with
great labour and expense. Roads to the interior have
been made at the public charge; and it is said that the
canal now making from Vienna to the southward may per¬
haps be continued until it connect the Danube with the
Adriatic; but that must be the work of a future age, and
of means far greater than can be applied to it by any
mercantile association, the distance being fully 300 miles
along a line on which, if the mountains be avoided, it would
be indispensable to erect aqueducts over the numerous
rivers that flow from them. The expense of so vast a work
could be defrayed only by the government; who, aware
that improved roads are more useful for military purposes
than canals, are likely to prefer that mode of employing
the funds of the public.
Venice was made a free port by the Austrian govern¬
ment in 1830, and the inhabitants have hopes of recover¬
ing in some degree their former prosperity. Trieste is a
port of considerable activity; the shipping belonging to it
exceeds 100,000 tons, manned by about 6000 seamen.
The harbours along the coast of Dalmatia are both nu¬
merous and commodious, but their trade must be incon¬
siderable until the country inland acquire population and
wealth. In the northern part of the Austrian empire
there are also great obstacles to foreign trade. Bohemia
communicates with the sea only by the Elbe, and Galicia
with still more difficulty by the Vistula. Here there are
vast tracts of level country, alike favourable for canals and
for improved roads ; but the distance to the sea from even
the northern line of the Austrian territory is great,—almost
200 miles to the Baltic, and 300 to the German Ocean.
National Income and Finances.
In commercial countries, like England and Holland, the
public revenue arises principally from the excise and cus¬
toms; but in a country chiefly agricultural, such as France,
and still more Austria, the case is very different. In these
the limited extent of foreign trade renders the customs
comparatively small; while the small number of towns, and
232
AUSTRIA.
Austria.
their scanty population, lessen greatly the produce of the
excise. An extra share of the public burdens must there¬
fore fall on land, the assessment of which ought from time
to time to be altered according to the amount of rents: In
England, since the first imposition of the land-tax in 1692,
there has been no renewed survey, or attempt to adapt it
to the augmented rental; but in France and Austria the
absolute insufficiency of other taxes rendered an increase
of the land-tax indispensable, and the fonciere in France is
now collected on a valuation made so lately as 1815. In
Austria, the emperor Joseph, among other changes, pro¬
posed a land and poll-tax on a uniform plan, and attempt¬
ed a general survey of the empire. Several years were
devoted to this great work ; but it encountered many ob¬
stacles, as well from the difference of value between the
plain and mountain territory, as from the difficulty of
computing rents in almost any province of the empire,
the property of the peasantry obliging them to pay their
landlords in produce or in labour instead of money. Since
1815 the Austrian government has endeavoured to correct
defects in the existing assessment, but it is still in a very
imperfect state. In the Hereditary States, as well as in
Bohemia and Galicia, the land-tax is levied without dis¬
tinction of class or rank; but in the aristocratic countries
of Hungary and Transylvania the noblesse or gentry are
exempt from it.
Public Revenue of Austria.
Land and house-tax, corresponding to the
fonciere in France 
Poll or personal tax paid by the Jews 
Poll or personal taxes on the other inhabitants
of the empire 
Inland customs collected on the frontiers of
the different provinces L.500,000
Salt duties  650,000
Monopoly of tobacco  300,000
Stamps  350,000
Liquors  250,000
Post-office  100,000
Lottery  200,000
All other indirect taxes  650,000
. Sterling.
L.5,000,000
300,000
1,200,000
Total of indirect taxes... 3,000,000
Crown revenue—from the forests L.800,000
from the mines... 500,000
from the demesnes
or lands  200,000
  1,500,000
Import duties, and all other sources of re¬
venue   2,000,000
Total net revenue L. 13,000,000
Public debt, after reckoning the reductions
since the peace of 1815, about  75,000,000
Amount of government bonds in circulation 8,000,000
The cost of collecting the revenue, which in England
is not quite five per cent, on the amount, is in Austria
ten per cent.
The Austrian government has not yet, like the English
and French, adopted the plan of giving their finance ac¬
counts to the public. There are thus no satisfactory
means of estimating the amount of national income, even
that arising from the rent of land and houses throughout
the empire; but as the two together can hardly amount
to thirty millions sterling a year, perhaps not to twenty-
five millions, it follows that of all income in Austria arising
from real property, L.20 in L.100 are paid, even in time
of peace, to the public treasury. The poll-tax on the
Jews is a toleration tax. The next head in the list, viz.
the inland customs, arises chiefly from the difference in Au
taxation between Hungary and the Hereditary States.
Dues are consequently collected on the transit of certain
articles from one to another, as was the case between
different provinces in France before the revolution. The
duty on salt, though not high, is injurious both to agri¬
culture and manufactures, by limiting the consumption.
As to tobacco, there is no duty in Hungary and Transyl¬
vania ; but in the rest of the empire the government, like
that of France, keeps in its own hands the exclusive ma¬
nufacture and sale.
The tax on liquors, slight in its rate, is small in its pro¬
duce, from the limited population of the towns : in coun¬
try parts, where the population is thin, the excise does not
repay the expense of collecting. But nothing in the fis¬
cal list is more interesting to a statistical inquirer than
the net receipts from the post-office, which in this coun¬
try are L. 1,200,000 a year; in France L.600,000; in Aus¬
tria only L. 100,000. What can show more clearly the li¬
mited correspondence and the scanty traffic of this great
empire, or that the badness of the roads is productive of
an expense which more than balances the low wages and
general cheapness in the post-office establishment?
The imperial demesnes or crown lands yield about
L.200,000 to the treasury, a sum to be carefully distin¬
guished from the personal property of the reigning family,
of which the yearly rental amounts to about L.100,000.
Among the lesser imposts in Austria, not specified in
the above table, are those on carriages, pleasure-horses,
hair-powder, starch, as well as legacy-duties, and fees on
titles of nobility. The list of taxes, in short, is nearly as
long in Austria as in England, and the complaint of their
pressure almost as general. What, then, are the causes
that, with so fertile a soil and so numerous a population,
the public revenue of Austria should be so inferior to that
of France ? The inquiry is interesting, and the causes
are briefly as follow.
In manufacturing and commercial countries, such as
England or the Netherlands, agriculture is conducted with
the benefit of capital and machinery; and the labour ot
30 or 40 persons in 100 is sufficient to raise subsistence
for the community at large. But in the other countries
of Europe the case is very different, the labour of half or
of more than half the inhabitants being required to raise
the needful subsistence. Thus in France, a great part of
which is more backward than an untravelled Englishman
can readily conceive, between 50 and 60 persons in 100
are and must be employed in country work, in conse¬
quence of the great inferiority of their agriculture, their
farms being small, their ploughs and other implements
miserably defective, their capital scanty, and machinery,
such as threshing-mills, in a manner unknown. Hungary,
Transylvania, and the southern frontier along the Danube,
being still more backward than any part of Francs, more
destitute of capital, and more deficient in machinery, the
consequence is, that of the average population of the Aus¬
trian empire, the labour of not fewer than between 60 and
70 persons in 100 is needed for raising provisions; thus re¬
ducing to a comparatively small number the population of
the towns, the persons disposable for trade and manufac¬
ture. This is at once apparent from a comparison of the
town population in these different countries. If we make
it between France and England, we shall obtain a result
decidedly favourable to England; but a comparison of
France and Austria exhibits, in almost every case, a
greater number in the towns of France. Thus,
The twelve largest Towns in France.
Paris 850,000
Lyons 140,000
AUSTRIA.
233
. Marseilles.... 115,000
J Bordeaux 100,000
Rouen  95,000
Nantes  80,000
Lille  65,000
Strasburg  50,000
Toulouse    50,000
Orleans  45,000
Metz  45,000
Nismes  40,000
The twelve largest Towns in the Austrian Dominions.
Vienna 300,000
Milan.. 160,000
Venice   115,000
Prague  90,000
Pesth and Buda (they are contiguous)... 70,000
Verona  55,000
Lemberg (in Galicia)  54,000
Padua  48,000
Debretzin (Hungary)  42,000
Presburg  42,000
Trieste  42,000
Gratz  35,000
Of the twelve places cited above for the Austrian do¬
minions, no less than five are in Italy, so deficient is the
rest of the empire in town population. Of the total num¬
ber of its inhabitants (33,000,000), it is computed that
three fourths, or 25,000,000, reside in the open country.
■ Another very important point in estimating the re¬
sources of different countries, is the degree of density in
* the population generally. In England, by the census of
this year (1831) it is nearly 220 persons to a square mile ;
in France, about 165 ; in the Austrian empire, under 130.
Now it almost always happens that in a thickly-peopled dis¬
trict the wages are better and the consumption of taxed ar¬
ticles greater, per head, than in one that is thinly peopled;
and hence the contribution to the public treasury is larger.
Thus the inhabitants of Lombardy, Bohemia, and the
Vienna district, pay considerably more per head than those
of Hungary, Carinthia, or Upper Austria. Add to this, in
the third place, that while England has all the benefit of
an insular situation, and France possesses an extensive
line of coast, with considerable trade, the maritime pro¬
vinces of Austria are both limited in extent, and but re¬
cently acquired ; in short, the empire may be said to have
as yet wanted almost entirely the stimulus to industry
arising from communication by water. In the fourth and
last place, in the remote provinces of the Austrian empire,
particularly on the side of Turkey, the contributions of
the subjects to their sovereign are made, not in money,
but in military service.
All these reasons tend to one point: they account for the
money 'payment in name of taxes and all public burdens
in Austria not exceeding twelve shillings a head, whilst in
France it is double ; and for the net revenue of the Austrian
empire not exceeding thirteen millions sterling, while that
of France is above thirty millions. Accordingly, in forming
a bona fide estimate of their resources, we have to make
an addition on the side of Austria on two grounds : first,
for the greater value of money in that country ; and ne^L
for the frontier provinces discharging their contribution
to the state by military service in lieu of taxes. It fol¬
lows, that in estimating the financial means of the two
countries, we shall not materially err in assuming them to
bear the proportion of twenty to thirty; in other words,
that were the total contribution of the subjects of the em¬
peror to be discharged in money, and in money of the value
borne by the circulating medium of France, it would
amount to about twenty millions sterling a year.
VOL. iv.
Austria, like England, has a sinking fund, and one of Austria,
which the operations are equally vaunted; but in either
country the only true sinking fund is the extension of the
national industry, and a reduction of the interest of the
debt consequent on continued peace, and on a general
abatement in the interest of money.
Military Establishment.
Austria has taken so prominent a part in the wars of
the last and of the present age, that the nature and extent
of her military means are subjects of great interest. The
disposition of the inhabitants of Hungary, and of the more
remote provinces of the empire, is well adapted to a mili¬
tary life. They are accustomed to pass their time out of
doors, to indulge in active exercise, to follow the chase,
and to occupy themselves with the care of horses. To
such men marching and encamping are but a slight devia¬
tion from their established habits. The fire of the nightly
watch is not more uncomfortable than that of their smoky
cottages ; whilst a loaf of bread, a slice of coarse pork, and
a glass of spirits, are all the food and drink they desire.
But to accustom these rude combatants to the restraints
of discipline was found no easy task: still the Austrian
government judged it indispensable to their meeting on
equal terms the armies of France and Prussia. It is noWj
somewhat more than a century since the Prussians began
to take a lead in military discipline, the father of Frederick
II. having carried both the manual and platoon exercise
to a nicety unattempted by almost any other tactician.
He left a highly disciplined army of nearly 80,000 men
to his son, who, on the death of the emperor Charles VI.
in 1740, conceived that such a force would soon enable
him to accomplish the conquest of Silesia. He lost no
time in making preparations for war. The court of Vienna,
alarmed, sent a special envoy to dissuade him from it; but
Frederick was not to be deterred by any remonstrances,
however urgent. The envoy adverting, on the one hand,
to the careful training of the Prussians, and on the other
to the recent practice of the Austrians in the field, de¬
clared to the king, “ Vos troupes, Sire, sont belles, mais
les notres ont vu le loup.” “ Vous convenez,” replied the
king, “ que mes troupes sont belles, je vous ferai convenir
quelles sont bonnes." The words of the king were made
good; the events of the war which ensued, as well as of
the more arduous contest begun in 1756, having proved,
on many trying occasions, the great advantage of a high
state of discipline. This led the Austrian generals and
war ministers to follow the example of the Prussians, as
well by carefully training their infantry, as by new-mo¬
delling the “ free corps” of horsemen, Croats, Sclavo-
nians, and Hungarians, who had hitherto been left to
their national mode of fighting. By dint of perseverance,
Marshal Lascy and other military men in Austria suc¬
ceeded at last in bringing these half-civilized combatants
under the discipline of regular cavalry. _
The French, in the wars of the revolution, were remark- Mode of
able for celerity of movement in collective bodies, but discipline,
bestowed comparatively little attention on the minutiai of
discipline. The Austrians were charged with following
a contrary system; with too much care as to details, and
too little as to general movements. Their lines are said to
have suffered on various occasions, in particular in the
dreadful conflicts at Essling and Wagram, from continued
exposure to the field-pieces of the enemy; and their infan¬
try was said to be slow in executing most movements ex¬
cept those from front to rear. Their own officers, however,
did not admit this inferiority; and whatever may have
been the case in the last age, there is reason to believe
that the Austrians have now attained that celerity of
movement which has so long distinguished their rivals in
2 G
234
AUSTRIA.
Austria. France and Prussia, and which became so conspicuous in
our own troops after their first campaigns in Spain.
Military In former times the Austrian government, conscious of
education, the deficient education of its subjects, gave important
commands to Italian officers, amongst whom the most re¬
markable were Montecuculi and Prince Eugene. At pre¬
sent there are military schools at Vienna and several of
the provincial towns; and as these have of late been much
improved, another generation will probably witness the
removal of the charge of deficient instruction from the
Austrian armies.
It is unnecessary here to enter into any particulars re¬
garding either the absolute numerical strength, or the re¬
lative apportionment and distribution of the Austrian mi¬
litary establishment, at the present time, seeing that these
subjects have been already treated of under the proper
head in the article Army, where detailed information,
derived from the most authentic sources, is given respect¬
ing the constitution, organization, discipline, divisions, and
numbers of this establishment, as well as of its different
branches or arms separately. In referring to the above
article, however, it is proper to add, that recent events,
particularly the contest in Poland, coupled with the ac¬
tual state of affairs in France, Italy, and the Netherlands,
have produced a considerable augmentation of the dispo¬
sable military force of Austria. (June 1831.)
Mode of In most of the provinces of the Austrian empire the le-
recruiting. vies are at first made for militia service (landwehr), and the
regular regiments are kept up by successive draughts from
that force. But in Hungary, recruits are raised at once for
the regular service, the emperor proposing a specific num¬
ber to the diet, who deliberate on the demand; and on its
being assented to, the magnates or great landholders un¬
dertake to levy their respective proportions on their estates.
Horses The horses for the Austrian light cavalry are drawn
and equip-from Hungary and Galicia; those for the heavy cavalry
ments. chiefly from Bohemia and Moravia. Clothing, arms, ammu¬
nition, and harness, are all furnished at different stations,
in Bohemia, Moravia, and the Hereditary States. The
duration of military service in Austria was long unlimit¬
ed ; but in the early part of the present century it was re¬
duced, as in this country, to specific periods. For invalids
and veteran soldiers there is a provision similar to what is
made for our military; they are either received into hos¬
pitals or allowed small out-pensions.
Magnitude The limited revenue of Austria, and her equally limited
a0ou2eeSoTCreA SenS6’ Prevent her frora ^king a
great mihtary exertion at short notice. She cannot, un¬
less when aided by English subsidies, equip for offensive
operations, or send to a distance, armies of any very con¬
siderable force. Flence her power in attack is restrict¬
ed so as to form a remarkable contrast to the extent of
her means for continuing a contest by filling up the blanks
in her regiments, year after year, by fresh levies. In her
long and arduous struggle with France, the losses of each
campaign appeared to be supplied without making a se¬
rious impression on her numbers, or distressing her pro¬
ductive industry. The causes of this are obvious/ A
country like England, possessing monied capital, can at
short notice embody an army, and send it to a distance,
f., P4 e(lulPPed and provided; whilst an agricultural nation
, w m"?d in its extent of exertion at the
Zlefinit/^f0"1 the am°Unt of its Population, almost
indefinite in its resources. The long duration of several
on *eIThS A bf aSCribed t0 two causes; her inability,
on the one hand, to overpower her opponents by a great
effort; and her power, on the other, to keep up a ceX
degree of exertion for a long period. It was Jhus that Aus"
tria carried on the contest in Germany about religion du-
ring thirty years, and persisted in the war with France in
Austria.
1713, after England and Holland had'withdrawn. Maria a \
Theresa wmuld have done the same towards Prussia in ^ w 0
1763, had she not been forsaken by her allies; whilst, in
the wars with revolutionary France and Buonaparte, we
have seen Austria, worsted in five successive contests
return as often to the charge.
The Austrian navy is as yet merely in an incipient Shijl
state, but is entitled to notice, because the possession offf:ir
Venice, Trieste, and the fine harbours along the coast of
Dalmatia, hold out a prospect of its being, in course of
time, considerably increased. At present it is confined to
a few ships of the line, dismantled or cut down, eight fri¬
gates, as many corvettes, and about twenty brigs and
sloops. Venice is the naval station.
Religion, Education, National Character.
The population of the Austrian empire, classed accorded a.
ing to their respective creeds, will stand thus: Catho¬
lics 26,000,000, Protestants 3,000,000, Greek church
3,000,000, Jews 500,000, other religions 500,000.
Although Austria took, two centuries ago, so decided a
part against the Protestants in the north of Germany, her
internal tranquillity was never disturbed by religious con¬
tests except in Bohemia, the country of the unfortunate
John Huss and Jerome of Prague. Her sovereigns have
been tolerant from character, if not from conviction; and
during the last half-century indulgence to Protestants and
other dissenters has existed in a liberal form. The north
and west of Germany frequently exhibit Catholic and
Protestant communities in the same vicinity; and nowhere
are the superior industry and intelligence of the latter
more strongly marked. The traveller who passes from
Saxony into Bohemia cannot fail to regret that the refor¬
mation should not have made its way into the Austrian
dominions: the result would doubtless have been a very
decided advancement in science and productive industry.
Literature, manufactures, trade, would then have been
cultivated in the south and east of Germany with the same
zeal, and probably the same success, as have marked their
progress in the south and west. At present we can hard¬
ly flatter ourselves with any considerable number of con¬
verts to Protestantism. The Catholic clergy are in gene¬
ral assiduous in the discharge of their duties: they possess
the attachment of their flocks; and the Austrian people
at large are too little enlightened to exchange a worship
which dazzles the imagination by its pomp and ceremony
for one which appeals chiefly to the understanding.
In Austria, as in France, the Catholic clergy are gene¬
rally educated in humbler seminaries than universities.
Oratory forms no part of their studies, and would, in fact,
be misplaced before a German congregation, which meets
for the purpose of fulfilling, soberly and tranquilly, a reli¬
gious duty. Sermons therefore are, in almost all parts of
the Austrian dominions, little more than plain moral les¬
sons deduced from the sacred writings; and the reputa¬
tion of a clergyman, particularly in country parts, rests
chiefly on his attention to the sick, and the performance
of private and unostentatious duties. But while the coun¬
try curates and other inferior clergy are thus assiduous
and unassuming, the conduct of the heads of the Romish
church has often been very different. Protestants who
lave not lived in a Catholic country can hardly conceive
the extent of the pretensions made by the popes in former
ages, or which they are still disposed to make in the less
en ightened parts of Europe. These the sovereigns of
Austria have in general resisted ; reserving to themselves
seveial important rights, such as the imposing of taxes
on church property, the nomination of bishops and arch*
is lops, and the option of restricting or even preventing
the circulation of papal bulls.
AUSTRIA.
^st, The extent of landed property in Austria belonging to
!|y J the Catholic church is very considerable, as may be in¬
ferred from the number of abbeys and convents. Though
a good deal reduced within the last half-century, there
are still nearly 300 abbeys and above 500 convents in the
empire. The head of the Austrian church is the arch¬
bishop of Vienna; but the bishop of St Polten appoints
the regimental chaplains, and is the superior of all clergy¬
men doing duty with the army.
The followers of the Greek church are chiefly in Gali¬
cia, Hungary, Croatia, and Transylvania, forming a total
of 3,000,000. They are in a state of gradual increase, as
well by the progress of population as by arrivals of their
brethren from Turkey. Galicia comprises a body of Ar¬
menian Catholics, and there are a few of that sect in
Hungary. The well-known association of Hernhuters or
Moravians took their origin from that province in the mid¬
dle of the eighteenth century. The emperor Joseph, in his
ardour for toleration, extended it to Jews, and even to Ma¬
hometans ; but he found that the Jews were hardly in a
state to be incorporated with the rest of his subjects,
or to take advantage of the privileges held out to them.
Their old habits and prejudices remain; so that ages will
be required in Austria, as in Poland and other backward
parts of Europe, before they can be identified with their
Christian neighbours. In tolerating Mahometanism, Jo¬
seph had in view the vicinity of Turkey, and the impor¬
tance of inducing traders from that country to travel and
settle in his dominions.
atioi A deficiency in national education has long been a sub-
lucat i. ject of reproach to the Austrians, and their apathy in re¬
gard to literature and politics is often ascribed by fo¬
reigners to restraints on the press. But these restraints,
slight in their nature, are by no means intended to check
useful inquiry. The truth is, that the majority of the
Austrians are occupied with the tranquil enjoyment of
the good things of life: they are unambitious, uninquisi-
tive, and, in general, satisfied with following a beaten
track, with going over the same routine as their fathers
and forefathers. The desire of acquiring property is, of
course, as strong or nearly as strong in this as in other
countries; but the inhabitants have still to acquire that
intellectual activity which stimulates so largely to exer¬
tion in England, in France, and, above all, in the Pro¬
testant part of Germany. Saxony is the centre of litera¬
ture for that country; and the society which is within the
reach of a youth at the university of Vienna is not to be
compared to that of Dresden or Leipsic. The Austrian
dialect of Germany is unpleasant, having a slowness of ac¬
cent and a hissing tone, particularly in the mouths of the
lower orders. Hence French is the language used not
only at court and by diplomatists, but by genteel society
generally. The universities in the Austrian empire are
as follow: Vienna, Prague, Pesth in Hungary, Lemberg
in Galicia, Inspruck in Tyrol, Griitz in Styria, and Padua
and Pavia in Lombardy; in all eight universities, attend¬
ed by nearly 7000 students. There are seven academies,
and thirty lyceums or high schools. Of military schools
there are in all ten in the empire; the two principal in
V ienna, the others in provincial towns. The primary or
elementary schools throughout the empire correspond in
some measure to the parish schools in Scotland. They
ere greatly increased half a century ago in the reign of
oseph II., and in the Austrian provinces they appear to
^ e adequate to the wants of the population; but in Hun¬
gary and the remote parts of the empire there are still
great deficiencies in the provision even for this, the first
stage of education. The university of Vienna dates from
e middle of the thirteenth century, the time when the
residence of the court, being fixed in that city, began to
235
give importance to it, and to call for improvements in pub- Austria,
lie education. It was long under the management of the
clergy, who in the middle ages were the only men of let¬
ters ; but, a century ago, Von Swieten, the celebrated phy¬
sician, induced the government to take it into their own
hands, and to give a great extension to the medical de¬
partment ; Vienna, from the number of its inhabitants and
the extent of its hospitals, being much fitter for a medi¬
cal school than any other city in Germany. The conse¬
quences of Von Swieten’s representations were the fitting
up of a botanical garden, an anatomical theatre, a military
hospital, and, at a subsequent date, a veterinary school.
The university of Vienna is thus at the head of the medi¬
cal schools in Germany. It contains also public classes
for law, theology, classics, philosophy, and general lite¬
rature, in most of which the reputation of the professors
is respectable, though not greater than in other universi¬
ties, such as Gottingen, Leipsic, and Halle. The number
of students at the Vienna university is from 1200 to 1500.
Vienna contains also an academy for the fine arts, a se¬
minary for the eastern languages, and facilities for the
study of modern Greek. Among the military institutions
are a school for cadets, and of late years a polytechnic
school for engineers. This capital has also several semi¬
naries like the Ecole Normale at Paris, for training teach¬
ers for provincial towns and villages. The imperial li¬
brary at Vienna is very extensive, as is the collection of
medals and coins. The university of Prague is of old
date, and well attended by Bohemians, but it does not
rank high in the scale of German seminaries. Pesth,
Lemberg, Gratz, and the other universities, are of im¬
portance only to the population of their respective towns
and their vicinity.
In travelling for instruction, the Austrians, like the
French, are far behind our countrymen, in consequence
partly of the want of pecuniary means, partly of their
unambitious and uninquiring character. Individuals, how¬
ever, may be cited among the Austrians, who, like Baron
Humboldt among the Prussians, have traversed remote
regions in quest of information ; but their number is small
when compared with the extent and population of the em¬
pire. Still Austria can boast of several names of emi¬
nence in literature. Of this class are the two Schlegels,
one of whom, Frederick, has long been known by his pub¬
lications on the language and philosophy of India; while
his brother has acquired reputation by his translation of
Shakspeare and his works on dramatic criticism. Ham¬
mer, the founder of the Oriental Society at Vienna, has
long been known for his acquaintance with Persian lite¬
rature ; but the majority of Austrian writers have given
their attention less to works of imagination than to classics,
geography, and statistics. These studies, requiring rather
continued attention than vivacity or power of imagination,
are best suited to the laborious habits of the Germans.
In painting and sculpture, as in architecture, the Aus¬
trians have as yet made no great figure; but the case is
very different in regard to music. Haydn and Mozart were
both formed at Vienna; and it has been said with truth,
that a foreigner can hardly receive a higher gratification
than by being present at the oratorio at Vienna in com¬
memoration of Haydn. If in vocal music the Germans
are inferior to the Italians, they fully maintain the com¬
petition in instrumental performance. In short, the pas¬
sion for music exists here in the humblest ranks, and
under circumstances apparently the least favourable to it.
The traveller, in passing through villages, observes wan¬
dering musicians performing on the most homely and im¬
perfect instruments. He finds this equally in the popu¬
lous districts adjoining the Danube, and in the secluded
spots of Tyrol and Carniola.
236
AUSTRIA.
Austria.
National
character.
Statistical writers class the population of the Austrian
empire according to national descent, thus,
Of German origin  6,000,000
Of Italian  5,000,000
Of Jewish  500,000
Of Sclavonian 15,000,000
Of Magyar  4,500,000
Of Wallachian  2,000,000
The Sclavonians (called in Latin Slavi or Sclavi, and in
their own language Sloivacs) inhabited, in remote ages,
a part of the vast tract of country known to the ancients
by the name of Scythia. Their descendants are widely
spread; for their language and habits are to be traced in
the Illyrian provinces, in Hungary, Poland, the east of
Germany, and even in the western frontier of Russia.
They form the most backward and uninstructed portion
of the population of the empire; being generally em¬
ployed on common country labour, and many of them
being still in a state of servitude. The Wallachians are
almost equally backward; but the Magyars, though illi¬
terate, are a spirited race, averse to sedentary work, accus¬
tomed to exercise in the open air, and prompt in obeying
a summons to military duty.
In Styria, Carinthia, and other mountainous tracts, the
manners of the inhabitants are very primitive. Content
with the produce furnished by their lands and cattle, and
as cheerful and frank as moderate desires can make them,
they seem to have no wish beyond the limits of their na¬
tive districts. They are, it must be allowed, very igno¬
rant and superstitious; being still blindly attached to tra¬
ditionary usages, and among others, to that of making pil¬
grimages to a distance as the best means of obtaining for¬
giveness for trespasses.
The character of the Germans in the Austrian domi¬
nions is in general entitled to praise. Sincerity, industry,
and habits of order, are all conspicuous in them ; and the
number of criminal offences committed among them is
remarkably small. In many extensive districts year after
year passes without a necessity for capital punishment.
The French soldiers, who, in marching through Austria,
were very often lodged in detached cottages, and at the
mercy of the inhabitants, bore a favourable testimony to
their humanity; and there scarcely occurred, either there
or elsewhere in Germany, any example of those secret
assassinations which were unfortunately so prevalent in
Spain.
The habits of the females in Austria, in the large as in
the small towns, are very domestic. Without taking so
active a part as French women in either business or con¬
versation, they claim regard for a steady fulfilment of the
duties of wives and mothers. The lower orders have si¬
milar habits; and a traveller may visit village after vil¬
lage without hearing of a single instance of domestic dis¬
quietude. The care of children, the performance of their
daily tasks, and punctual attendance on divine worship,
seem to occupy all their thoughts.
A striking feature in the national character of the Aus¬
trians is a continued equanimity, a general good humour
and forbearance, as if they had little or no cause for com¬
plaint in regard either to individual circumstances or
public affairs. This tbrtunate disposition seems the re¬
sult of various causes; of an habitual acquiescence under
their superiors; an unacquaintance with the state of
other countries ; and in fertile districts, such as the banks
of the Danube, of a general abundance of provisions, and
an exemption from penury.
But as in national character almost every good quality
has a corresponding drawback, that habitual content, and
aversion to change, which has kept the Austrians tranquil
amidst the convulsions of other countries, is connected
with a blind adherence to old usages, and a disinclination Ai %
to almost every kind of innovation. Hence their station- ^ ^
ary condition, their backward agriculture, their slowly im.
proving manufactures, and their extravagant deference to
hereditary rank—a deference often dearly paid for in war,
when men of inferior talents have been intrusted with
important commands. On the whole, it must be admitted,
that no country in Europe stands more in need than Aus¬
tria of the benefits arising from the diffusion of know¬
ledge. This applies to the upper as well as to the lower
classes. In former times the government partook of the
national prejudices, and exhibited strong indications of it
in their conduct both in the cabinet and the field. This
is forcibly stated in the memoirs of one who had long and
arduous contests with them; we mean Frederick II. of
Prussia. The court of Vienna was, he said, altogether
untractable in negociation, after obtaining even a partial
success in the field, or whenever it had any prospect of
success; at the same time that it evinced no discrimina¬
tion in the choice of its general officers. In the cam¬
paign of 1744 Frederick entered Bohemia with a strong
army, and soon overran the whole country ; but the vete¬
ran Marshal Traun being sent against him, found means,
with an inferior force, so to straiten the Prussian army
as to oblige it to quit oneqiosition after another, until it
evacuated the whole kingdom. “ Yet this man,” says
Frederick, “ whom I have ever since regarded as my mas¬
ter in the art of war, the court of Vienna removed next
year from the chief scene of operations, and sent to Italy
with an inferior command.” In our own days similar dis¬
appointments have been but too often caused by the Aus¬
trian cabinet; in 1796, when Marshal Clairfayt was led
to resign, after a very brilliant campaign; and in 1805,
when a great army was intrusted to General Mack, who,
far from having acquired a reputation, had failed in al¬
most every thing he had attempted.
We should, however, err greatly were we to suppose
the apparent slowness of the Austrians indicative of defi¬
ciency of invention. On the contrary, their tranquil and
sedate habits are more favourable to original combinations
than the sprightliness of the French. But in Austria, as
in other parts of Germany, mechanical ingenuity is often
applied rather to make a display of skill, or to gratify a
fancy, than to accomplish a useful purpose. In one part
of a journey through that country a traveller finds a ma¬
chine so framed that, with a slight impulse, it performs
the functions of a chess-player; in another part he sees
a head which may be made to imitate the human voice;
and in a third place, an instrument uniting the most varied
sounds of music. In machinery, as in politics, the specu¬
lations of the Germans often bear evidence of consider¬
able ingenuity, but at the same time of the absence ol
practice and experience.
Government and Laws.
• ' ( I
Having described the constitutions of Hungary and thef° “ I
other countries under their respective heads, it remains^'
merely to state the part of the political system which is111
referable to the empire at large. The executive adminis¬
tration for the whole of the Austrian dominions is vested
in the emperor, and is exercised at Vienna in nearly the
same manner as that of France and England in their re¬
spective capitals. At Vienna, as in London and Paris,
the chief public offices are the treasury, the home depart¬
ment, the foreign affairs, and the army; to which are to
be added, the boards for the affairs of Hungary, and for
the general superintendence of the mines. The name of
Aulic is not confined, as is generally supposed, to the
military board; it is given to several councils or boards,
among others to that of the treasury.
AUSTRIA.
237
I List .. The Germanic confederation bore, as is well known,
^ during many centuries, the name and form of an empire,
:onn< consisting of a number of separate states, of which Austria
ion1 was by far the greatest. Her dominions in Germany
na'comprised Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia, in addition to
'C the circle of Austria, which contained Austria Proper,
Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola; hence the successive
election, during nearly four centuries, of the head of the
house of Austria to the rank of the emperor of Germany.
This dignity being renounced by Francis II., the present
sovereign, in 1806, the connection of Austria with the
rest of Germany on the previous footing was dissolved :
nor was it renewed in the final adjustments of 1815, by
which the Germanic body was declared a confederation,
but not an empire; for it has no longer an acknowledged
head, questions affecting the confederation at large being
discussed in the diet or assembly of deputies from the dif¬
ferent states, and determined by a majority of votes. Each
confederate state is pledged to supply, when required by
the diet, a military force proportioned to its population.
Austria having in Germany a population of ten millions,
her quota in time of war is nearly 100,000 men ; that of
Prussia is 80,000.
The re- since the abrogation of the imperial form in Germany,
!ltai: the “ Circle of Austria” is no longer an official designa-
tion; but the name of “ Hereditary States,” so often used,
has reference to the same provinces, viz. Austria Proper,
Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola, which during five cen¬
turies and upwards have belonged to the house of Haps-
burg by hereditary descent. In these the authority of
the emperor, though exercised with mildness, is almost
uncontrolled. He is the head not only of the executive
power, but of the church, and virtually of the legislature.
The Hereditary States have parliaments, composed, as in
Hungary and Bohemia, of the Catholic prelates and the no¬
bility, with deputies from the landholders and free towns ;
but they meet seldom, and never fail to give a ready as¬
sent to the propositions of the sovereign.
Dive ;y There exists considerable diversity in the constitutions
;utio
.aw
ot tne component parts ot tne Austrian empire, particu¬
larly in regard to their origin and date. The constitution of
Lower Austria is founded on a charter granted so long ago
as the year 1156. Hungary claims to be governed by laws
of still older date, the first going back to the ninth century,
others dating from the thirteenth; while in Bohemia, con¬
firmations of the privileges of the nobility, and restrictions
on the executive power, were enacted so lately as the se¬
venteenth and eighteenth centuries. Galicia, differing in
several respects from these countries, traces part of its po¬
litical constitution no farther back than its annexation to
Austria in 1773. Notwithstanding all these discrepancies,
it is in one quarter only, we mean Italy, that the sovereign
of Austria has to apprehend deficient loyalty on the part
of his subjects. In the other states of his empire, how¬
ever remote from each other, however different in lan¬
guage or national manners, the prevailing feeling is at¬
tachment to the government and aversion to change.
Nothing could show this more clearly than the steady
loyalty of the people during the repeated invasions of the
French, and their ready assent to the levies which year
after year filled up the blanks in the imperial regiments,
caused by a contest at all times sanguinary, and often un¬
successful. And even as to Italy, although the moun¬
tains which separate it from the north are as lofty and
rugged on the side of Austria as of France, there are in
the former no intermediate states like Switzerland and
liedmont; and hence the ease with which an army may
inarch from Germany to Lombardy, and the promptitude
Wl“l which it may put down insurrection.
fhe judicial body in Austria is far more numerous than
in this country, the difficulty in travelling requiring that
there should be courts of justice in a great number of
provincial towns. Their salaries are greatly below our
scale, the profits of pleaders being too small to disincline
even the most eminent from relinquishing their business.
The administration of justice in Austria long took place,
as in this country, by reference to ancient usage, and to a
multitude of decisions, without much system or consider¬
ation of general principles. The perplexity attendant on
this vague and undefined course being doubly felt in a
country where individuals were in general ignorant, and
the press inefficient, the government became aware, so
long ago as the middle of last century, of the necessity
of publishing the laws in a collective form. Accordingly,
in the year 1767, a code was published in eight folio
volumes. This was a first step towards improvement; but
the work, from its bulk and its deficient arrangement,
proving of little use, instructions were given by the govern¬
ment to an eminent civilian named Von Horten, to recast
it in a condensed and improved form. This was neces¬
sarily a work of great time and labour, and it was not till
1794 that the first part of the civil code came forth in an
improved shape. The remainder followed in a few years,
when printed copies were distributed in all directions, and
local commissions appointed to report on its applicability
to the usages of the different provinces of the empire.
At last, in 1812, the civil code was definitively promulgat¬
ed, and applied to practice. With the criminal code a
similar course had been adopted somewhat earlier ; it had
been promulgated in 1803, and introduced into practice
the year after. Fortunately, the number of criminal of¬
fences in Austria is small compared with the magnitude of
the population.
Austria.
Foreign Politics of Austria.
We shall conclude this account of Austria with a few re- Towards
marks on her situation in regard to the great powers who France,
are her neighbours. To begin with France : It is now about
three centuries since Austria, by the definitive acquisition
of Bohemia and Hungary, became equal to France in ex¬
tent of territory, and ventured to contend with her for
ascendency both in Italy and the Netherlands. In ferti¬
lity of soil Austria is fully equal to her rival, but in other
respects France has had and still has great advantages.
Her people all speak the same language, and the country is
to a certain degree maritime ; main points in facilitating in¬
tercourse, and in promoting civilization, trade, and national
wealth. Hence the greater increase of the towns ; a more
general diffusion of education ; and a larger proportion of
intelligent public officers, of able statesmen and command¬
ers. Add to this, that while France was relieved from in¬
testine troubles so early as the year 1600, or the reign of
Henry IV., Austria did not obtain the complete attach¬
ment of her subjects in Hungary and the eastern provinces
until 1720, more than a century later. The consequence
of all this was, that with a few exceptions, such as the
brilliant reign of the emperor Charles V., or the still
more brilliant age of Marlborough and Eugene, the balance
of success inclined to the side of France ; and Austria lost
first Alsace, afterwards the Netherlands, and for a time
Lombardy.
The adjustments of territory by the general treaties of
1815 are certainly more favourable than any former ar¬
rangement to the maintenance of peace between France
and Austria. By these treaties Austria definitively relin¬
quished Belgium, which had so long been a ground of
quarrel between the two countries; and Prussia became
the power to which England and Holland look for co-ope¬
ration in the event of war in the Netherlands. It was
with this view that Prussia received an extension of ter-
238 A U T
Austria ritory on the Rhine, exactly as Lombardy and Venice
11 were restored to Austria, in the understanding that the
thones" P°^^ca^ guardianship of Italy should be committed to her
care. In pursuance of this system, an Austrian army be¬
came the sole agent in reinstating the royal authority in
Naples in 1820; and to the same power has been lately in¬
trusted the task of preventing the spread of revolution in
the States of the Church. Has Austria to apprehend that
questions arising out of the politics of Italy will be of a
nature to involve her with France ? To this the only an¬
swer that can at present be given is, that the intermediate
power (the court of Turin) has the strongest motives to
prevent such collisions, and that the French people have
never gone along with their rulers in desiring Lombardy
as they desired Belgium.
Another and an equally interesting question is, what
seem to be the comparative prospects of these rival states
in regard to increase of resources ? The country which
shall most steadily cultivate the arts of peace and pro¬
ductive industry, will assuredly advance most effectually
in its wealth and power. Since the overthrow of Buona¬
parte, and the general settlement of territory by the trea¬
ties of 1815, the Austrian government has evinced a decid¬
ed tendency to peace, and a solicitude to heal the wounds
inflicted by twenty years of war. Bosnia and Servia, de¬
tached from the central part of Turkey, and immediately
adjoining the Austrian frontier, offered strong temptations;
but the court of Vienna has declined to be a party to any
plan for dismembering the Turkish empire. Let us hope
that this abstinence from aggression has proceeded from
enlightened views, and from a solicitude to promote im¬
provement at home, by leaving capital and labour disposa¬
ble for productive purposes. Of a disposition to that effect
there have been several symptoms since the peace: ex¬
port duties have been lowered; the assessment for the
land-tax has been amended; several of the high roads
from Germany to Italy have been improved; those in Bo¬
hemia have been extended; and several marshes, in par¬
ticular an extensive one near Laybach, have been drained.
These different undertakings are on a scale insignificant
to the view of an Englishman, but important, as indicative
of a disposition on the part of government to contribute to
public works in a country where formerly their utility
was not appreciated. No state, assuredly, would profit
more largely by the extension of such works than Austria.
Territory she possesses in abundance; her great requisites
are, a more close connection, and a greater approach to
uniformity in her different provinces. This can be ac¬
complished only by extending the communications, by
opening new roads and improving the old, as well as by
excavating canals in situations where they are preferable
to railways. The difficulty and expense attendant on
such labours, great in almost every country, are particu-
A U T
larly so in mountainous regions like Spain, Switzerland, Am f
or the Alpine provinces of Austria; but in most parts of
the empire the obstacles are lessened by the great extent
of level ground. 1
The points of possible collision between Austria anclTou„'1
Russia are on the side of Poland and Turkey. Were weplU«
to draw a parallel between these two empires, the results
would be directly the reverse of those in the comparison
with France; Russia being far more backward than Aus¬
tria in national education, in manufactures, in the size of
her towns, and in the average of individual property.
Yet the vast extent of Russia, and the eclat she acquired
by occasioning the overthrow of Buonaparte, has led the
public, during the last twenty years, when comparing
Russia and Austria, to regard the former as decidedly
the greater power. On considering, however, the rigour
of the Russian climate, the inconvenience of vast dis¬
tances, and the general barbarism of the people, we can¬
not assent to this opinion without considerable qualifica¬
tion. In defensive war Russia is almost invincible, be¬
cause her uncultivated provinces afford no resources to
an invading force; but her financial means are not as yet
greater than those of Austria, and the armies she has sent
to a distance have been formidable only when subsidized
by England. Russia has, however, one great advantage;
a consciousness of the deficient education of her natives,
and a readiness to accept the services of intelligent fo¬
reigners. How important would it be for Austria to call in
similar aid, until her system of national education should
be so far improved as to approach to that of France, Eng¬
land, and the north of Germany ?
Prussia made common cause with Austria against France Tow;
in 1792, but withdrew from the coalition as early as 1795;P™:
and during the subsequent invasions of the empire by the
French, her government was considered a willing specta¬
tor of their success, calculated as it was to shake the influ¬
ence of Austria over the Germanic body. But the grounds
of such jealousy appear to have been removed by the
arrangements of 1815, by which Prussia has the northern
and Austria the southern portion of Germany under her
influence. Though Prussia has long had the twofold ad¬
vantage arising from the reformed religion and an en¬
lightened government, she has no title to be placed on a
level with Austria in point of resources. Her soil is in
many parts so sandy and unproductive, that the average
of her population, reckoned by the square mile, is less
than that of the Austrian empire; while her revenue is
only half, and her total population less than half, of that
of her southern rival. The successes obtained by Prussia
in the wars of the last century were owing chiefly to one
cause, the talents of Frederick II.; and a recurrence of
them ought not to be expected at any time when Austria
shall be judiciously governed. (m. m.)
AUTOCHTHONES, an appellation assumed by some
nations, importing that they sprung, or were produced,
from the same soil which they still inhabited. In this
sense Autochthones is nearly synonymous with Aborigines.
The Athenians valued themselves on their being Autoch¬
thones, self-born, or yriyivug, earth-born; it being the pre¬
vailing opinion among the ancients, that, in the beginning,
the earth, by some prolific power, produced men, as it still
does plants. The proper Autochthones were those primi¬
tive men who had no other parent beside the earth; but
the name was also assumed by the descendants of these
men, provided they never changed their ancient state, nor
suftered other nations to mix with them. In this sense it
was that the Greeks, and especially the Athenians, pre¬
tended to be Autochthones, and, as a badge of this distinc¬
tion, wore a golden grasshopper woven in their hair, an in¬
sect supposed to have the same origin.
AL IOCRATOR, a person vested with an absolute in¬
dependent power, by which he is rendered unaccountable
to any other for his actions. The power of the Athenian
generals or commanders was usually limited; so that, at
the expiration of their office, they were liable to fender an
account of their administration. But, on some extraordi¬
nary occasions, they were exempted from this restraint,
and sent with a full and uncontrollable authority; in which
sense they were styled Aurox^arogs;. The same people also
applied the name to some of their ambassadors, who were
vested with a full power of determining matters according
A U T
^uto fe to their own discretion. These were denominated TLpfffaii
Auroxpoirogis, and resembled our plenipotentiaries.
Anti n. AUTO da Fe, act of faith. See Act of Faith.
^ AUTODIDACTUS, a self-taught scholar.
AUTOGRAPH denotes a person’s own handwriting, or
the original manuscript of any book, &c.
AUTOLITHOTOMUS, he who cuts himself for the
stone. Of this a very extraordinary instance is given by
Reiselius, in the Ephemerides of the Academy Naturce
Curiosorum, dec. 1, an. 3, obs. 192.
AUTOMATON (from aurog, ipse, and (laopcu, excitor),
a self-moving machine, or one so constructed, by means
of weights, levers, pulleys, and other mechanism, as to
move for a considerable time as if endowed with animal
life. According to this description, clocks, watches, and
all machines of that kind, are automata.
Under the article Androides, it was observed that the
highest perfection to which automata could be carried
was to imitate exactly the motions and actions of living
creatures, especially of mankind, which are with more diffi¬
culty imitated than those of other animals. Very surprising
imitations, however, have been made of other creatures.
So long ago as 400 years before Christ, Archytas of Ta-
rentum is said to have made a wooden pigeon that could
fly; nor will this appear at all incredible, when we consi¬
der the flute-player made by M. Vaucanson, and the chess¬
player made by M. Kempel. Dr Hooke is also said to have
made the model of a flying chariot, capable of supporting
itself in the air. But M. Vaucanson above mentioned
distinguished himself still more eminently. That gentle¬
man, encouraged by the favourable reception of his flute-
player, made a duck, which was capable of eating, drink¬
ing, and imitating exactly the natural voice of that fowl.
Nay, what is still more surprising, the food it swallowed
was evacuated in a digested state; not that it was really
in a state of natural excrement, but only considerably al¬
tered from what it was when swallowed; and this diges¬
tion was performed on the principle of solution, not of
trituration. The wings, viscera, and bones, of this artifi¬
cial duck, were also formed so as very strongly to resem¬
ble those of a living animal. Even in the actions of eating
and drinking this resemblance was preserved; the artifi¬
cial duck swallowed with avidity and with quick motions of
the head and throat, and likewise muddled the water with
its bill, exactly like a natural one. See Androides.
AUTONOMIA, a power of living or being governed
by our own laws and magistrates. The liberty of the ci¬
ties under the faith and protection of the Romans consist¬
ed in their autonomia; that is, they were allowed to make
their own laws, and elect their own magistrates, by whom
justice was to be administered, and not by Roman presi¬
dents or judges, as was done in other places which were
not indulged with the autonomia.
AUTOPYROS, from ccurog, and wugog, wheat; in the an¬
cient diet, an epithet given to a species of bread, wherein
the whole substance of the wheat was retained, without
retrenching any part of the bran. Galen describes it
otherwise, viz. as bread where only the coarser bran was
taken out; and thus it was a medium between the finest
bread, called similagineus, and the coarsest, called farfu-
raceus. This was also called autopyrites and syncomistus.
AUTUMN, the third season of the year, when the har-
yest and fruits are gathered in. Autumn is represented
ln Pouting by a man at perfect age, clothed like the ver¬
nal, and likewise girded with a starry girdle, holding in
one hand a pair of scales equally poised, with a globe in
each, and in the other a bunch of divers fruits and
£r^Pef* His age denotes the perfection of this season ;
and the balance that sign of the zodiac which the sun
enters when our autumn begins.
A U X 239
Autumn begins on the day when the sun’s meridian dis-Autumnal
tance from the zenith, being on the decrease, is a mean Equinox
between the greatest and the least, which in these coun- ^UXpnne
tries is supposed to happen when the sun enters Libra. t_rl
Its end coincides with the beginning of winter. Several
nations computed the years by autumns; the English
Saxons, by winters. Tacitus tells us that the ancient Ger¬
mans were acquainted with all the other seasons of the
year, but had no notion of autumn. Lidyat observes of
the beginning of the several seasons of the year, that
Dat Clemens hyemem, dat Petrus ver cathedratus,
Aistuat Urbanus, autumnat Eartholomaeus.
Autumn has been reputed an unhealthy season. Tertul-
lian calls it tentator valetudinum ; and the satirist speaks
of it in the same light: Autumnius Libitince questus acerbce.
AUTUMNAL Equinox, that time when the sun enters
the autumnal point.
Autumnal Point is that part of the equinox from
which the sun begins to descend towards the south pole.
Autumnal Signs, in Astronomy, are the signs Libra,
Scorpio, and Sagittarius, through which the sun passes
during the autumn.
AUTUN, one of the arrondissements of the department
of the Saone and Loire, in France, extending over 647
square miles, or 414,080 acres. It is divided into eight
cantons, and again into 87 communes, and contains 69,192
inhabitants. The chief city of the arrondissement bears the
same name. It is built on the banks of the river Arroux,
and contains 9310 inhabitants. During the revolution
there was at Autun a vast foundery for cannon, and manu¬
factories for other arms. At present the chief industry ex¬
ercised consists in making cotton goods, hosiery, tanning,
and paper mills. There are many Roman antiquities in
the neighbourhood. Long. 4. 11. 50. E. Lat. 46. 56. 58. N.
AUVERNAS, a very deep-coloured heady wine, made
of black raisins so called, which are produced near Or¬
leans. It is not fit to be drunk before it is above a year
old, but if kept two or three years it becomes excellent.
AUXERRE, an arrondissement in the department of
the Yonne, in France. Its extent is 774 square miles, or
475,360 acres, divided into 12 cantons and 130 communes,
with 102,122 inhabitants. The chief city of the arron¬
dissement is of the same name. It is situated on the
banks of the Yonne, in a district productive of wine ; and is
built in an antique fashion, with an ancient cathedral and
a splendid palace. The inhabitants are 12,084, who, be¬
sides their trade in wine and in fire-wood, carry on ma¬
nufactories of cloths, druggets, serges, cotton and woollen
stockings, and some considerable tanneries. Long. 3. 28.
16. E. Lat. 47. 47. 54. N.
AUXESIS, in Mythology, a goddess worshipped by the
inhabitants of iEgina, and mentioned by Herodotus and
Pausanias.
Auxesis, in Rhetoric, a figure whereby any thing is
magnified too much.
AUXILIARY, whatever is aiding or helping to another.
Auxiliary Verbs, in Grammar, are such as help to
form or conjugate others; that is, are prefixed to them, to
form or denote the modes or tenses thereof; as, to have and
to be in the English; etre and avoir in the French; ho and
sono in the Italian, &c. In the English language the aux¬
iliary verb am supplies the want of passive verbs.
AUXO, in Mythology, the name of one of two Graces
worshipped by the Athenians. See Hegemone.
AUXONNE, a city in the arrondissement of Dijon and
department of Cote d’Or, in France. It is on the Saone, and
is strongly fortified. The inhabitants are 5280, who, be¬
sides their manufactures of cloth and serges, carry on by
the river considerable traffic with Lyons. Long. 5. 17. 4.
E. Lat. 47. 11.24. N.
240
A V A.
Ava. AVA. This extensive country is situated in the south-
east of Asia, in the region beyond the Ganges. It is pos¬
sessed by the Burmese, the limits of whose dominions,
having been greatly enlarged by conquest, cannot be
very correctly defined. On the west, where they border
with the British territories in India, they are bounded by
the province of Arracan, surrendered to the British by the
treaty concluded with the Burmese in 1826, and by the
petty states of Cassay or Kathe, and Assam, from which
countries they are separated by lofty ridges of moun¬
tains ; on the south by the Indian Ocean and the Siamese
territories; on the north and north-east by the Chinese
province of Yunan ; and on the east by the independent
and Siamese portion of Lao. The real extent of this
country has not been ascertained by Europeans; and Mr
Craufurd, who resided as ambassador at the court of Ava,
and to whom we are indebted for the most recent infor¬
mation concerning it, states that he has nothing better to
offer than conjecture on this important subject. The ex¬
treme western limits he describes as extending to the 93d
degree of east longitude, and the eastern limits to 98° 40'.
The southern limits are in lat. 15° 45' N., and to the north
they probably extend to between the 26th and 27th degree.
The Burmese territories may therefore be estimated at
an extent in breadth of about 350 miles, and in length of
pearly 700. The area of the country is conjectured by Mr
Craufurd to contain 184,000 square miles. That portion
of the kingdom which is farthest removed from the capital
is divided into provinces or viceroyalties; but we have no
information respecting their number or extent, or the power
of their several rulers. Another and a more common
division is into Myos or townships, of which, according to
the statements of the natives, 4600 are contained within
the limits of the Burmese empire; but they are so much
addicted to exaggeration, that little reliance can be placed
on this estimate. The number of townships has accord¬
ingly been reduced to 163, and the villages are reckoned
to amount to 1300. But even this statement is founded
chiefly on conjecture.
Aspect of That portion of Asia in which Ava is situated slopes
the coud- from the central mountains towards the south ; and as it
tlT- approaches the Indian Ocean, it subsides into an exten¬
sive champaign country, which is overflowed in the rainy
season by the swelling of the rivers. The Burmese ter¬
ritory is watered by four great streams, namely, the Irra¬
waddy ; the Setang, sometimes called the Lokiang; the
Saluem, called also the Pegu; and the Kyen-dwen, a tribu¬
tary of the Irrawaddy. The first three of these rivers have
their sources in the northern chain of mountains in the in¬
terior, some of which are covered with perpetual snow;
and they run with a northerly course to the Indian Ocean.
The Irrawaddy and the Saluem are the largest, and they
intersect the Burmese country, which they overflow during
the season of the rains. The delta of the Irrawaddy ex¬
tends about 150 miles from the sea, to 171 degrees of N.
lat.; and this tract of country is low and champaign, inter¬
sected everywhere, during the overflow of the rivers, by
canals and branches from the main stream. Eastward,
where the Saluem enters the ocean, in the Gulf of Marta¬
ban, the country is of the same character; but it is not so
extensively overflowed, owing to the inferior size of the
latter stream. I he tract along the sea-coast is the only
low-lying portion of the Burmese territories. From this
point the country begins to rise, and thence for about
300 miles farther it may be considered hilly and elevated;
and beyond this it is wild and mountainous. To the
west and north-west it is divided from Arracan, Cassay, w
and Assam, by mountainous ridges often of great eleva¬
tion. The country of Ava may therefore be distinguish¬
ed into four divisions, namely, 1^, the great alluvial plain
at the mouth of the Irrawaddy, the Setang, and the Saluem
rivers ; 2d7?/, the upland country, which commences about
150 miles from the shores ; Sdly, the external mountainous
regions towards the north, where are the sources of the
great rivers ; and, \thly, the hilly regions, which form the
western boundaries of the valleys of the Irrawaddy and
the Kyen-dwen. The tract of sea-coast extends along
the Indian Ocean about 240 miles, from Cape Negrais to
the new British settlement of Amherst, near Martaban,
and at the mouth of the river Saluem. All this coast is
low, marshy, and broken by at least twenty channels of
rivers or arms of the sea; but these being exposed without
protection to the surf from the ocean, are choked by sand¬
banks, and cannot be entered by any vessel of burden.
Hence there are only on the coast the three harbours of
Martaban, Rangoon, and Bassein.
The alluvial division of Ava has a rich and fruitful soil;Nat
and the upland country is also productive, though inferiorp™
in fertility to the low-lying tracts. Its productions consist1™
of rice, maize, millet, wheat, various pulses, palms, the
sugar-cane, tobacco, cotton, and indigo. Rice is the great
staple of agriculture throughout the kingdom, both in the
upper and the lower provinces ; and in the latter maize is
cultivated to a considerable extent. Wheat, which would
not thrive in the hot climate of the lower plains, is grown
in the neighbourhood of the capital, and, considering its
excellent quality, might be an important article of expor¬
tation. But it has long been the policy of the govern¬
ment, in which there is little prospect of any change,
rigidly to prohibit the exportation of every species of grain.
Bread is besides not the favourite food of the people, and
the cultivation of wheat is consequently not encouraged.
The sugar-cane appears to have been long known to the
Burmese; but though the climate and soil are extremely
favourable, it is not generally cultivated, and the art of ma¬
nufacturing sugar is scarcely known. This is partly owing
to a tyrannical edict of the government, prohibiting the
exportation of this article, which might otherwise have
been abundantly produced, and have become a valuable
article of trade. A cheap and coarse sugar is obtained
from the wine of the palmyra, which abounds in the upper
provinces, especially in the arid country, for about 200
miles south of the capital, where numerous groves of this
tree are to be seen. The cocoa and areca palms are not
common. The tea plant is cultivated in the hills by some
of the mountain tribes at the distance of about five days’
journey, and by others in still greater perfection at the
distance of abooit ten days’ journey, from Ava. The leaves
are elliptic, oblong, and serrated, and there is little doubt
of its being the genuine tea plant of China. It is singular,
however, that they never infuse it as they do the Chinese
tea, but eat the leaf prepared with oil and garlic. Cotton
is grown in every part of the country and its dependencies,
but chiefly in the dry lands and climate of the upper pro¬
vinces. Indigo is an indigenous product, and is universal¬
ly cultivated, but in a very rude manner; and it is still
more rudely manufactured, so that it is wholly unfit for
exportation.
In the cultivation of fruits the Burmese are careless and
unskilful. The most common fruits are the mango, the
A V A.
jiva orange, the pine, the custard apple, the jack, the papaya
ry ; fig, and the plantain. Most of these fruits grow spontane¬
ously in the congenial soil and climate of the country.
They are generally of indifferent quality, especially those
which require care in the cultivation. The durian and
the mangostin are found no farther north than Tavoy, in
the latitude of 14 degrees. In horticulture and gardening
the ignorance of the Burmese is still more remarkable.
Though green vegetables and fruits form a great portion
of their diet, they are at no pains to cultivate them, but
are content with gathering those which grow spontaneous¬
ly in the forests and marshes, such as the young shoots of
the bamboo, wild asparagus, the succulent stems of a va¬
riety of aquatic plants, and other shrubs which would not
be deemed fit for food in any other country. They are
strangers to all the ordinary garden vegetables, such as
peas, carrots, cabbages, turnips, mustard, cresses, radishes,
&c. Even melons, cucumbers, and the egg-plant, so gene¬
rally cultivated in India, are here little attended to. In
the upper provinces the yam and the sweet potato are
cultivated, but not extensively; and the common potato
is unknown. Onions are produced in some of the upper
provinces; and capsicum, which, after salt, is the most
ordinary condiment used by the Burmese, is cultivated
everywhere.
The forests of Ava abound in the finest trees. Of these
the teak holds a conspicuous place, and the forests of this
tree in Ava are the most extensive in India. The soil in
the alluvial lands within the reach of the tides is not
favourable to its growth, but it thrives in all the high
grounds. The finest teak forest is that of Sarawaddy,
which furnishes nearly all that is exported to other coun¬
tries. Other extensive forests of teak exist in the pro¬
vinces, and Ava the capital is supplied from a place distant
fifteen days’ journey. Almost every other description of
timber known in India is produced in the Burmese forests.1
The soondry, so much esteemed in Hindostan for the
toughness and hardness of its wood, grows in abundance
and of a large size within the influence of the tides. The
bamboo also grows to an extraordinary size; its circumfe¬
rence is occasionally 23 or 24 inches. Varnish is another
useful product of Ava, which is used by the Shans and the
Burmese in their manufacture of lacquer ware. Stick-
lack of an excellent quality is obtained in the woods.
in0 s. Ava js jn minera]S) producing gold, silver, copper,
tin, lead, antimony, amber, coal, petroleum, nitre, natron,
salt, limestone, and marble, noble serpentine or green
stone, and precious stones. Gold, carried down from the
higher grounds by the mountain streams, is found in the
sands of different rivers: it is also found near the town of
Eegu, and more abundantly in Lao. It is not plentiful,
however, in the Burmese territories, and is imported from
China. Silver mines are wrought in the country of Lao,
towards the Chinese frontier, at a place called Bor-twang,
about twelve days’journey from B’hamo, which is 250 miles
north by east from Ava. Those mines are let at a rent of
L.4800 per annum, to the Chinese, who among their semi-
barbarous neighbours the Tonquinese, Siamese, Malays,
and Burmans, generally engross every branch of industry
which requires either ingenuity or capital. The moun¬
tainous districts of Lao in the east contain all the other
metals, but such is the rude state of the people, that they
neglect those natural advantages; and it is doubtful whe¬
ther the copper, tin, and lead ores which are seen in the
market of Ava are produced in the Burmese territories,
or are imported from China. Iron is found abundantly in
t m eastern country of Lao, and it is wrought, though with
241
little advantage. Owing to ignorance and the want of Ava.
proper machinery, about 30 or 40 per cent, of the metal
is lost in the process of forging. The province of Marta¬
ban, and the mountains near the capital, contain lime in
great abundance and of remarkable whiteness; and sta¬
tuary marble, equal to the best Italian specimens, is found
about 40 miles from Ava, on the eastern bank of the
Irrawaddy. Mines of amber are wrought, and their pro¬
duce must be abundant, judging from the price of this
article, which at Ava does not exceed four shillings per
pound. Nitre, natron, and salt, are found in the neigh¬
bourhood of the capital, and in the upper provinces; also
traces of coal, and there is little doubt that this mineral
is extensively diffused. It has not, however, been extract¬
ed from the earth by the ignorant and lazy inhabitants,
who are content to use in its stead wood, which is scarce
and dear. Petroleum, which is used by all ranks among the
Burmese for burning in lamps, and also for smearing wood
as a preservative against insects, is found near the village
of Re-nan-gyaong, on the banks of the Irrawaddy. Here
are about eight or ten pits or wells, the general depth of
which is from 210 to 240 feet; some of them are deeper,
and one is sunk to the depth of 300 feet. The shaft is
of a square form, about three feet in diameter, and is
formed by sinking a wooden frame. The liquid appears
to boil up from the bottom like an abundant spring, and
is extracted in buckets, and sent to all quarters of the
country. In those parts where its price is raised by a
long land-carriage until it comes into competition with
Sesamum oil, the latter is preferred. This useful article is
sold at the wells at from 5d. to 7d. per cwt., not above the
100th part of the price of whale oil, the cheapest article
of the kind which can be procured in this country: at a
greater distance its price rises to 3s. 4d. and 4s.4d.per cwt.,
which is still a remarkably low price for the quantity of
light which would be afforded by a hundredweight of this
oil. The produce of these springs pays a tax of one twen¬
tieth ; the annual amount of this tax, according to the col¬
lector or farmer, is 25,000 ticals, or L.2500 per annum. He
calculates that he loses L.800 annually by smuggling, which
would make the total produce of the tax L.3300 per annum,
and the annual value of the whole produce of the wells
L.66,000. Captain Cox was informed that there were
180 wells at one place, and at 4 or 5 miles distance 340
more. These wells belong to the owners of the soil: they
are highly valued, yielding a sure rent, and are handed
down from father to son as a valuable property. The ex¬
pense of sinking a well is estimated by Cox at 2500 rupees,
and the annual produce at the half of that sum.2
The precious stones which are produced in the Burmese
territories are chiefly of the sapphire species and the
spinelle ruby. They are found at two places, about five
days’ journey in a south-east direction from the capital, in
the beds of rivulets or small brooks, from which they are
separated by washing. The varieties of these stones are
the oriental sapphire, the oriental ruby, the opalescent
ruby, the star ruby, the green, the yellow, and the white
sapphires, and the oriental amethyst. The common sap¬
phire is by far the most frequently found. The crown,
as in all despotic countries, lays claim to the produce of
these rivers; and all the stones that exceed the value of
L.10 are accordingly sent to the treasury. No stranger,
not even Chinese or Mahommedan, is ever permitted to
approach the spots where these precious stones are found.
Noble serpentine or green stone is found in these moun¬
tains, and is exported in considerable quantities to China,
where it is used for rings and amulets.
Syiaes’s Embassy to Ava.
VOL. IV.
2 Journal of a Residence in the Burmese Empire, by Captain Hiram Cox.
2 H
A V A.
242
Ava. The country of the Burmese, abounding in deserts and
forests, affords extensive shelter to the wild animals. The
Animals. elephant, and the rhinoceros with a single horn, are found
in all the deep forests of the country, and especially in
Pegu. The royal tiger, the spotted leopard, and several
species of wild cats, also the civet cat, are numerous in
all the southern provinces. The hog is found in the wild
parts of the country, and several species of deer, such as
the Indian roe and the stag. Oxen and buffaloes are na¬
tives of the Burman forests; but no species of antelope
is seen, and none of the canine tribe. There are, it is
said, neither wolves, jackals, foxes, nor hyenas, in any of
the tropical countries east of Bengal. The horse is known
in the high lands, but not in the lower country of Pegu.
Of birds, the wild cock is common, and is seen in coveys
in all the forests of the country. Two species of phea¬
sants not known to the naturalists of Europe are nume¬
rous in Pegu; they are of a small size, and inferior in
beauty of plumage to the pheasants of China and Nepaul.
There are peacocks, partridges, and quails, and in marshy
places snipes; also geese and ducks in the upper pro¬
vinces, and ducks in the alluvial plains.
The domestic animals of the Burmese are the ox, the
buffalo, the horse, and the elephant. The oxen are used
in the upper country, and the buffaloes in the low lands.
They are of a good description, and, ranging in the luxu¬
riant pastures of the plains, they commonly appear in high
order. The care of these animals is all that is attended
to in the rural economy of the Burmese. The buffalo is
confined to agricultural labour, and the ox alone is used as
a beast of burden or of draught. The Burman horses are
rarely more than thirteen hands high ; the full-sized horse
being unknown in the tropical countries of Asia east of
Bengal. Horses are never used but for riding, and only
in the upper country, there being no footing for a horse
in the alluvial districts. The elephant is not used by the
Burmese, except perhaps in the eastern country of Lao,
as a domestic animal. He is not employed as a beast of
burden, and seems to be maintained merely for royal
luxury and ostentation. About 1000 elephants are kept
for the pleasure of the king, some of them of fine qua¬
lity, and of a white colour. The hog is a domestic ani¬
mal, but of the most filthy and disgusting habits. The
dog, as in most other parts of the East, is neglected, and
is seen prowling about the streets a prey to disease and
famine. Cats are numerous ; and about the capital a few
goats and sheep, of a puny race, are kept more for curiosity
than for use. A few asses are also seen, which are brought
from China. The camel is not known even in the upper
country, where he would be found extremely useful Of
poultry only a few common fowls and ducks are reared,
for the purpose of being, it is said, clandestinely sold to
the Chinese, and to Christian and Mahommedan settlers.
Popula- The extensive country which has been conquered by
tlon* the Burmese contains many distinct tribes and nations,
who, though they differ in language, and often in manners,
customs, and religion, appear, from their resemblance in
features and form, to be the same race with the inhabitants
of the countries that lie between Hindostan and China.
The most considerable of these tribes are the proper Bur-
mans, the Peguans or falains, the Shans or people of Lao,
the Cassay or Kathe, the Zubaing, the Karens, the Kyens,
the \o, and the Laira. They may be generally describ¬
ed as of a stout, short, active, but well-proportioned form ;
of a brown but never of an intensely black complexion,
with black, coarse, lank, and abundant hair, and a little
more beard than is possessed by the same races to the
south, namely, the Siamese and the people of Lao. Nor1^ v
does the climate appear sensibly to affect their physical
appearance ; the inhabitants of the low and marshy plains
being rather of a larger make, and more athletic, than
those who dwell in the upper country. The population of
the country has been variously estimated and grossly exag¬
gerated by the ignorance of Europeans, who have raised it
to 17,000,000, 19,000,000, and even 33,000,000. There is
no enumeration of the inhabitants in any part. Mr Crau-
furd, on the best data that he could procure, estimates
them at 2,414,000, which is probably above rather than
under the truth.
The Burmans appear to be inferior to the Hindoos, and Pol i
still more to the Chinese, in arts, manufactures, and in-anc icid
dustry, and in all the institutions of civil life. Their’”8 •
government is a pure despotism, the king dispensing tor-tl01
ture, imprisonment, or death, according to his sovereign
discretion. One of his customary titles is lord of the life
and property of all his subjects; and they frequently find to
their cost that this is no vain title. The chief object of
government seems to be the personal honour and aggran¬
dizement of the monarch; and the only restraint on the
exercise of his prerogative is the fear of an insurrection.
He is assisted in his administration by a public and a
privy council, through which all orders are issued, and
by a majority of whom all public matters are decided.
Every royal edict must be sanctioned by this council;
and each member is a judge, and, besides, exercises an
appellate jurisdiction in the last resort. All questions,
before they are submitted to the public advisers of his
majesty, are debated in the privy council, which con¬
sists of four officers, and to which are attached four de¬
puties, thirty secretaries, and five other officers, who carry
messages, and report from time to time the proceedings
of the council to the king, and who are in reality pri¬
vileged spies. The paymaster-general is an officer of high
importance; and there are other officers of distinction,
such as the daywoon or king’s armour-bearer, and the
master of the elephants, though they bear no share in the
administration of public affairs.1 The king may order any
of those great officers to be punished at his pleasure; and
Mr Craufurd mentions, that, during his residence at Ava,
the favourite minister, on a complaint from seme of the
women of the court, was, by an order from the king, seized
by the public executioner, and laid at the side of the road
for two hours under the burning sun, with a weight upon
his breast; and, after undergoing this disgraceful punish¬
ment, he continued to discharge his high functions as
before. The country at large is ruled by provincial go¬
vernors ; and it is divided into provinces, townships, dis¬
tricts, villages, and hamlets. The governor is vested with
the civil, military, judicial, and fiscal administration of
the province. He is assisted by a deputy, who is a judge,
and exercises the power of life and death, though in all
civil cases an appeal lies from his sentence to the chief
council at the capital; and also by a collector of taxes,
and another of customs. In all these courts there is an
officer who acts as a kind of sheriff or principal conserva¬
tor of the peace, another officer who acts as public in¬
former, and a third as assessor to the chief judge. To
each court is attached a proper complement of messengers;
and the executioner is always present, along (as Mr Crau¬
furd adds) with his “ band of branded ruffians.” There
are in all the townships and villages judges with a subor¬
dinate jurisdiction. I he three towns composing the ca-
of tlf/p^y councilf Atwemwun^; ffie of the ^eat ^
A V A.
243
pital have each a governor, and they are assisted by a sort
' of head constables, who are known to all strangers “ as
the busy, corrupt, and mischievous agents of the local au¬
thorities.” But from a mere dry detail of the provincial
administration and judicial institutions of the Burmese,
their extreme inefficiency can scarcely be known. No
Burmese officer ever receives a fixed salary. He is paid
by an assignment either of land or of the labour and in¬
dustry of a given portion of the inhabitants, and the in¬
ferior magistrates by fees, perquisites, and other emolu¬
ments ; and hence the most shameful extortion and bribery
prevails amongst all the functionaries of the Burmese
government, from the highest to the lowest. Justice is
openly set to sale; and the exercise of the judicial func¬
tions is found to be so lucrative, that the two executive
councils have by their encroachments deprived the re¬
gular judge of the greater part of his employment. So
notoriously corrupt are all the judges among the Burmese,
that a lawsuit is considered by all prudent men as a serious
calamity.
The criminal code of the Burmese is barbarous and
severe, and the punishments inflicted are shocking to hu¬
manity. Gang robbery, desertion from the king’s service,
robbing of temples, and sedition or treason, are consider¬
ed the most heinous crimes, and are most severely punish¬
ed, the criminal being in some cases embowelled, or thrown
to wild beasts. In these cases they generally meet death
with Asiatic indifference; and it is related of one woman
who was adjudged to the latter punishment, that she de¬
liberately crept into the cage of the tiger, and making
an obeisance to the animal, was immediately killed by a
single blow of his fore-paw, and dragged into the inner
recesses of his den. For lesser offences, fines, whipping,
and imprisonment are the punishments adjudged. In im¬
portant cases torture is applied both to the principals and
witnesses; and the jailers often torture their prisoners
in order to extort money from them. The English and
Americans who, during the late war, were thrown into
prison, were frequently tortured, and were compelled to
pay fines to the jailer in order to procure milder treat¬
ment. The trial by ordeal is sometimes resorted to, as
well as other superstitious modes of procedure, which de¬
note the lowest state of barbarism. But the administra¬
tion of justice among the Burmese, however vexatious and
expensive, is far from efficient; and the police is as bad
as can possibly be conceived. Hence the country is over¬
run with pirates and robbers, and a general laxity, negli¬
gence, and corruption, pervade every branch of the inter¬
nal administration.
Among the Burmese, society is distinguished into seven
classes, who have each peculiar privileges. These are
the royal family, the public officers, the priesthood, the
rich men, the cultivators and labourers, slaves and out¬
casts. There are no hereditary honours under the Bur¬
mese government, as all the public functionaries may be
dismissed from their offices, and deprived of their rank, at
the caprice of the sovereign. Any subject, with, the ex¬
ception of a slave or outcast, may, however, aspire to the
first offices in the state, to which, in reality, persons of
very mean origin do frequently attain. The Burmese
are extremely punctilious and strict in maintaining the
various orders and distinctions of society. The great
officers of government hold the first rank after the king
and the princes of the blood, and they are distinguished
hy a chain or badge, which is the order of nobility, and
ot which there are different degrees, distinguished by the
number of strings or small chains which compose the or¬
nament. Three of open chain-work mark the lowest rank;
three of neatly-twisted wire the next; there are then six,
nine, twelve, and finally twenty-four, which the king alone
is entitled to wear. But every article possessed by a Ava.
Burman for use or ornament,—his ear-rings, cap of cere-
mony, horse furniture,—the metal of his spitting cup or
drinking cup, if it be of gold or any other metal,—the colour
and quality of his umbrella, an article in general use,and one
of the principal insignia of rank, whether it be of brown var¬
nished paper, red, green, gilded, or plain white, the royal
colour,—all indicate the rank of the person ; and if any of
the lower orders usurp the insignia of a higher class, he
may be slain with impunity by the first person who meets
him; and so prevalent is the aristocratical spirit of the
higher orders, that such an usurption would be sure to
meet punishment.
When a merchant acquires property, he is registered
by a royal edict under the name Thuthe, or “ rich man,”
which gives him a title to the protection of the court,
while it exposes him also to regular extortion. The priest¬
hood form a separate order, who are interdicted from all
other employment, and are supported by voluntary contri¬
butions. They are distinguished by the yellow colours
in their dress, which it would be reckoned sacrilege in
any other person to wear; and a formal complaint was
made, during the conferences with the British previous to
peace, because some of their camp followers were seen
dressed in yellow clothes. There is also an order of nuns
or priestesses, who make a vow of chastity, but may at
any time quit their order. The free labouring population
consist of proprietors or common labourers; and they are
all considered the slaves of the king, who may at all
times call for their services as soldiers, artisans, or com¬
mon labourers. Hence a Burman, being the property of
the king, can never quit the country without his especial
permission, which is only granted for a limited time, and
never to women on any pretence. The British and others
who had children by Burmese women while they resided
in the country experienced the greatest difficulty, even
with the aid of heavy douceurs, in taking them along with
them. There are two classes of slaves; namely, those
who have mortgaged their services for a debt, and who
are used as slaves until the debt is paid; and prisoners of
war, who are always reduced to slavery. The class of
outcasts consists of the slaves of the pagodas, the burners
of the dead, the jailers and executioners, who are gene¬
rally condemned criminals, lepers and other incurables,
who are held in great abhorrence, and treated with sin¬
gular caprice and cruelty. They are condemned to dwell
alone, and in a state of disgrace; and any man who is in¬
fected with this disease, however high his rank, is forced,
by continual bribes to the officers of justice, to purchase an
exemption from the penalties which attach to him. Pros¬
titutes are also considered as outcasts, but not women of
loose character, chastity not being in any repute among
the Burmans. The women in Ava are not shut up as in
many other parts of the East, and excluded from the sight
of men: on the contrary, they are suffered to appear open¬
ly in society as in Europe. In many other respects, how¬
ever, they are exposed to the most degrading treatment.
They are sold for a time to strangers; and the practice
is not considered shameful, nor the female in any respect
dishonoured. They are seldom unfaithful to their new
master ; and many of them have proved essentially useful
to strangers in the Burmese dominions, being generally
of industrious and domestic habits, and not addicted to
vice.
The taxes from which the public revenue arises are in Finance
general rude and ill-contrived expedients for extortion, and taxes,
and are vexatious to the people at the same time that
they are not productive to the state. One of the most
common is a house-tax on the cultivation of the soil.
Nearly all the cultivated land of the kingdom is assign-
244
Ava.
' n-'
Manufac¬
tures and
commerce.
AVA.
ed to favourites of the court or to public functionaries in
lieu of stipends or salaries, or is appropriated to the ex¬
penses of public establishments, such as war-boats, ele¬
phants, &c.; and this assignment conveys a right to tax
the inhabitants according to the discretion of the assignee.
The court favourites who receive these grants generally
appoint agents to manage this estate; they pay a certain
tax or quit-rent to the crown, and their agents extort
from the cultivators as much more as they can by every
mode of oppression, often by torture. Besides this stated
tax, extraordinary contributions are levied by the council
of the state immediately from the lords and nobles to
whom the lands are assigned, who in their turn levy it
from the cultivators, and generally make it a pretence for
plunder and extortion. It is the Burmans and Talains,
the most improved class of the population, who pay this
tax. They may, besides, be called on to labour in the
public works. The Karyens, a ruder class, who cultivate
the lands, are subjected to a regular capitation, and are
in consequence exempted from the occasional corve.es to
which the others are exposed. Taxes are also laid on
fruit trees, on the teak forests, on the petroleum springs,
on mines of gold and precious stones, on the fishery of
ponds, lakes, rivers, and salt-water creeks, on the manu¬
facture of salt, on the eggs of the green turtle, and on
esculent swallows’ nests. The custom duties amount
on all imports to 10 per cent., and on exports to 5, be¬
sides 2 per cent, on the former and 1 per cent, on the
latter to the local officers. European and other square-
rigged vessels are, besides, subjected to a long list of
heavy and vexatious charges; and until within a few years
they were obliged to unship their rudders, and to land
their guns. These oppressions were done away by the
treaty concluded between the British and Burmese in
1820. There are no transit duties, nor any duties at fairs
or markets; and as the consumption of wines, spirits,
opium, and other intoxicating drugs, is forbidden by law,
they cannot of course be subject to any tax.
In the useful arts the Burmese have not made any
great advances. I he whole process of the cotton manu¬
facture is performed by women, who use a very rude spe¬
cies of loom, and are much inferior in dexterity to the
Indian artisans. No fine linen is ever manufactured at
home; and the home manufacturer, even in the interior
of the country, cannot withstand the competition of
British cotton goods. Silk cloths are manufactured at
different places; the finest at Ava or Amarapura, from
law Chinese silk, and the coarsest at She-daong, from
the raw material of Pegu. The Burman manufactures
of silk are generally coarse, high-priced, and durable.
I he common coarse unglazed earthenware, which is ma¬
nufactured in Ava, is of an excellent quality; and a better
description of pottery is also made. They are entirely
ignorant of the art of making porcelain, which is import¬
ed from China. Iron ore, as already mentioned, is smelt¬
ed ; but the Burmans cannot manufacture steel, which is
brought from Bengal. Coarse articles of cutlery, includ¬
ing swords, spears, knives, also muskets and matchlocks,
scissors, and carpenters’ tools, are manufactured at Ava.
Brass wire is manufactured at Sagaing, the copper being
procured from China, and the zinc from Lao. Gold and
silver ornaments are manufactured in every considerable
place in the country, but in a decidedly rude and clumsy
mannei. About forty miles from Ava, on the eastern
bank of the Irrawaddy, is an entire hill of pure white mar-
tj6"] „Heie, are scu^Ptured marble images of Gautama or
Buddha, ihe marble is of the finest quality; but the
workmanship is rude, and displays neither taste nor fancy.
Considering the fertility of the country, and its natural
advantages, the commerce of Ava is not extensive. It
has of late years, however, and especially since the relaxa¬
tion of the East India Company’s monopoly in 1814t, con-
siderably increased. The internal trade of the country
centres chiefly in Ava, the capital, and the sea-ports of
Rangoon, Tongo, and Bassein. The traders in those parts,
and in the lower parts of Pegu, generally bring to the ca¬
pital and upper provinces rice, pickled and dried fish, and
foreign commodities imported from Bengal, the Asiatic
Archipelago, and Europe. They receive in exchange pe¬
troleum, which, as already mentioned, is a great article of
internal consumption ; saltpetre, lime, paper, lacquer ware,
cotton and silk fabrics, iron, cutlery, some brass ware, ter¬
ra japonica, palm, sugar, onions, tamarinds, &c. &c. The
Shans or people of Lao, from the east, import into Ava
cotton and silk stuffs, some raw silk, varnish, stick-lack,
ivory, bees-wax, lacquer ware, swords, gold, lead, and tin.
They receive in return the articles of the lower country,
which are chiefly salt, with pickled and dried fish. One
of the most important branches of the trade of Ava is that
carried on with the Chinese province of Yunan. The
principal marts of this trade are Mide, six miles to the
north-east of Ava; and B’hamo, the chief place of a pro¬
vince of the same name, bordering on China. It is car¬
ried on at annual fairs. The Chinese caravan, setting out
from the western province of Yunan at the close of the
periodical rains, generally arrives at Ava in the beginning
of December, after a journey of six weeks over difficult
and mountainous roads, on which only horses, mules, and
asses can travel. No part of the journey is by water; from
which it would appear that the upper streams of the Irra¬
waddy, near to the Chinese frontier, are not navigable.
The principal fair is, however, held at B’hamo, com¬
paratively few traders arriving at Ava. The articles im¬
ported from China are wrought copper; orpiment or yel¬
low arsenic from the mines in Yunan, of a very fine qua¬
lity, which finds its way into western Asia, and into Eu¬
rope through Calcutta; quicksilver, vermilion, iron pans,
brass wire, tin, lead, alum, silver, gold and gold-leaf;
earthenware, paints, carpets, rhubarb, tea, honey, raw
silk, velvets and other wrought silks; spirits, musk, verdi¬
gris, dry fruits, paper, fans, umbrellas, shoes, wearing ap¬
parel, and a few live animals, such as dogs, pheasants, and
ducks. The metals are chiefly produced in the province
of Yunan, which, though poor, is rich in minerals. The
tea, which is coarse and black, is supposed to be from
the same province, and is retailed at the rate of 6^d. a
pound, though the price paid to the Chinese importer is
not halt that sum. The annual value of the raw silk,
which is the chief article of import, is L.80,000 sterling.
I he articles sent to China consist of raw cotton to the
amount of twenty millions of pounds yearly, and by far
the most considerable article of export; feathers, chiefly of
the blue jay, for ornamenting the dresses of ceremony of
the Chinese mandarins, and which are so much valued
that the bird is pursued by the Burmese hunters as far as
the province of Cuttack in India; esculent swallows’ nests,
ivory, rhinoceros and deers’ horns; sapphires, used for
buttons to the caps of the Chinese officers of rank, and
noble serpentine, with a small quantity of British w oollens.
I he annual value of this trade is estimated to be from
L.400,000 to L.700,000 sterling.
I he foreign trade of Ava, carried on chiefly through
the central part of Rangoon, is with Chittagong, Dacca,
and Calcutta, in Bengal; Madras and Masulipatam on the
Coromandel coast; the Nicobar islands and Penang; also
occasionally with Bombay, and with the Persian and Ara¬
bian Gulf. I he articles exported are teak wood, chiefly
to Calcutta; terra japonica, stick-lack, bees-wax, elephants
teeth; raw cotton of a fine quality, from Ava to Dacca;
gold and silver, especially from Bassein, and by the over-
A V A.
245
land route of Arracan, to the annual value of L.65,000.
J The principal imports are cotton piece goods, formerly fur¬
nished to the Burmese, who have no cotton manufactures,
from the Coromandel coast. To these were afterwards
added the cheaper fabrics of Bengal, and both are now
in a great measure superseded by the British manufac¬
tures. The other imports are British woollens, iron, steel,
quicksilver, copper, cordage, borax, sulphur, gunpowder,
saltpetre, fire-arms, coarse porcelain, English glass-ware,
opium, tobacco, cocoa and areca nuts, sugar, and spirits.
Neither the areca nor the cocoa palms flourish in the Bur¬
mese territory; and their produce being in general use, is
largely imported. The internal trade in the low country,
where there are scarcely any roads, is carried on mostly
by the rivers and canals; and the Irrawaddy is navigated
by vessels of 100 tons burden. In the upper country
goods are mostly conveyed in carts drawn by oxen or
small horses; and the merchants, as in other parts of
Asia, travel in caravans for security.
The progress and civilization of a country may be gene¬
rally very accurately measured by the state of its currency;
and that used by the Burmese is of the rudest description.
For the smaller payments lead is employed; and for the
larger payments gold or silver, but principally the latter.
These are not coined into pieces of any known weight and
fineness; and in every payment of any consequence the
metal must be weighed and generally assayed, for which
a premium is paid to the bankers or money-changers, of
per cent., besides one per cent, which they say is lost in
the operation. These bankers are said by Symes to be
workers in silver, and every merchant has one with whom
he lodges his cash, and who receives on this account a
commission of one per cent. The want of a more con¬
venient currency must tend greatly to embarrass the ope¬
rations of trade. The high interest received for money,
which is 25 and 60 per cent, when no security is given, is
another proof of the low state of commerce among the
Burmese.
The Burmese, as may be supposed, are entirely igno¬
rant of literature and science. Their astronomy and astro¬
logy they have borrowed from the Hindoos, and the Brah¬
mins have still the exclusive care of such matters. Ac¬
cording to their calendar, a common year consists of 12
months, of 29 and 30 days alternately; the year conse¬
quently is of 354 days ; and, in order to preserve the solar
time, the fourth month of every year is doubled, and the
additional days and hours are supplied by the royal edicts
as they are required. The natural day is divided into 60
parts, called Nari; and time is measured by means of a
copper cup perforated at the bottom, and placed in a vase
ot water. This cup sinks to a particular mark at the ter¬
mination of each part, when a great bell is struck, which
is suspended from a tall belfry close to the palace. The
Burmese are entirely ignorant of navigation, and in their
voyages to Calcutta during the fine season, they creep
along the coast, never losing sight of it. They are equally
ignorant of geography and of all the kindred sciences, and,
m lieu of useful knowledge, they cultivate the vain art of
alchemy, labouring with intense anxiety to convert the
baser metals into gold. Morality, as in most semi-barba¬
rous states, is at a low ebb among them; and their rulers,
according to the depositions of several Europeans, British
and others, taken before Mr Craufurd at Rangoon, have
no conception of the moral excellence or utility of good
taith. “ They would,” says the Rev. Mr Judson, the re¬
spectable American missionary, “ consider it nothing less
than folly to keep a treaty if they could gain any thing by
breaking it. The fidelity observed by the British govern-
nient in fulfilling the stipulations of the late treaty stupi-
ed the Burmans. They knew not what to make of it, but
some of them have now begun to admire it. I heard many Ava.
make use of expressions like the following: ‘ These Kulas
(English), though they drink spirits and slay cattle, and
are ambitious and rapacious, have a regard for truth and
their word which is quite extraordinary, whereas in us
Burmese there is no truth.’ The first circumstance in the
conduct of the British which struck them with surprise,
was the return of Dr Sandford on his parole; and next,
Sir A. Campbell’s returning six lacs of rupees offered him
after the money was in his power.”
The Burmese army is recruited from the whole male Military
population of the country, who are at the absolute dispo-force,
sal of the king, for war or any other purpose; but there
is no fixed plan for calling out this conscription, nor any
limited period of service; and the inhabitants are far
from being of a warlike character. The conscripts, when
brought together, are a mere rabble, without discipline or
valour. They are always dragged unwillingly into the
service, and when an expedition was sent against Junk-
seylon and the Siamese, they were seen by Europeans,
who stated the fact to Mr Craufurd, embarked by hun¬
dreds with their hands and legs tied, as if they had been
so many cattle. They were unable to withstand the at¬
tack of the European force, even though protected by
stoccades; and they were completely dismayed by the
resolution with which those new enemies advanced to
close quarters, and by the destructive effects of their ar¬
tillery, rockets, &c. From their success against all the
neighbouring tribes with whom they had been engaged,
they embarked in a war with the British in the vain con¬
fidence of an easy triumph; but the entire destruction of
a corps of 1000 men at Rangoon, the subsequent assault
of the Burman lines, and the retreat of the army to
Donabew, entirely dissipated these hopes, and overwhelm¬
ed both the court and the people with astonishment and
dismay. From the composition of the Burmese force, it
cannot long be maintained in the field, and is sure to be
entirely dispersed by a defeat; and accordingly, when
the British army had advanced to within 45 miles of the
capital, it was scarcely possible to collect 1000 men for
its defence. The Burmese are very indifferently armed,
with clumsy two-handed swords, spears, matchlocks, as
many old European muskets as they can purchase, rude
padereros of native manufacture, and a few old iron and
brass cannon, purchased from strangers, and in no good
condition; but they excel in the construction of field
works, which they raise on the best positions, and with
surprising celerity. Since the conquest of Cassay or Mun-
nipore the Burmese have maintained a body of cavalry,
chiefly composed of the Cassay horsemen, who act as a
body-guard to the king. They are provided with a spear
about seven or eight feet long, which they manage with
great dexterity. The peace establishment of the sovereign
of Ava is very limited; and Symes mentions that he could
never observe any assemblage ot more than 2000 troops
in the capital.
The Burmese are not votaries of Brahma, but sectaries Religion,
of Boodh, who is universally considered by the Hindoos as
the ninth Avatar, or descent of the Deity in his capacity
of preserver; and the rites, doctrines, and priesthood are
nearly the same as in the countries to the east of the Gan¬
ges, namely, Siam, Camboja, and in Ceylon, and formerly
in the Asiatic islands. Neither Christianity nor Mahom-
medanism has made any progress. Foreigners enjoy the
most perfect religious toleration, and there is no hostility
either to Europeans or to Christians, as in Mahommedan
countries; but the Burmese rulers view any attempt to con¬
vert the natives to the Christian or any other foreign faith
as an interference with their allegiance, and they discou¬
rage all such schemes. An American mission was settled
246
A V A.
Ava-
History.
there under the conduct of Mr Judson, who brought to
the execution of this perilous service zeal and sound dis¬
cretion ; but it entirely failed of success, not from any
bigotry on the part of the natives, but from the opposi¬
tion of men in power. On the war breaking out with the
British the missionaries were imprisoned, and narrowly
escaped with their lives. They are now prosecuting their
missionary labours in the British province of Martaban.
The ancient history of Ava is very imperfectly known,
and the sketch compiled by Mr Craufurd, from oral tra¬
dition, and from written documents which he procured
during his residence in the country, consists chiefly of
dynasties and kings, of which little more is given than
the names. We learn from the Portuguese navigators,
that, about the middle of the 16th century, four powerful
states ruled over those countries which lie between the
south-east province of British India, Yunan in China, and
the Eastern Sea, namely, Arracan, Ava, Pegu, and Siam.
By the help of the Portuguese the Burmans subdued
the Peguers, and maintained their supremacy over them
throughout the 17th and during the first 40 years of the
18th century, when the Peguers revolted, and a war en¬
sued, in the course of which, by the aid of arms procured
from Europeans, they gained several victories over the
Burmans, and having taken their capital Ava, and made
the king prisoner, they reduced the whole country to
submission. Alompra, a man of low extraction, who had
been left by the conqueror in charge of Monchaboo,
an inconsiderable village, planned the deliverance of his
country. He attacked the foreigners at first with small
detachments ; but when his forces increased, he suddenly
advanced, and took possession of the capital in the au¬
tumn of 1753. In 1754 the Peguers, anxious to recover
their lost conquests, sent an armament of war-boats
against Ava; but after an obstinate and bloody battle
they were totally defeated by Alompra. In the districts
of Prome, Donabew, Loonzay, &c. the Burmans revolted,
and succeeded either in expelling or putting to the sword
all the Pegu garrisons in their towns. In 1754 Prome was
besieged by the king of Pegu, when he was again de¬
feated by Alompra in a severe battle, and the war was
transferred from the upper provinces to the mouths of
the navigable rivers, and the numerous creeks and canals
which intersect the lower countiy. In 1755 Alompra defeat¬
ed in a general battle Apporaza the king of Pegu’s brother,
after which the Peguers were driven from Bassein and
the adjacent country, and were forced to withdraw to the
fortress of Syriam. About the year 1754 Alompra, hav¬
ing subdued the Cassayers, who had revolted, laid siege to
this fortress, which was taken by surprise, when the gar¬
rison were mostly put to the sword, and the Europeans
were made prisoners. In these wars the French sided
with the Peguers, the English with the Burmans. Mon¬
sieur Dupleix, the governor of Pondicherry, had sent two
ships to the aid of the former; but the master of the first
was decoyed up the river by Alompra, when his vessel
was taken, and he along with his whole crew was mas¬
sacred. The other escaped by being accidentally de¬
layed, and carried accounts of this disaster to Pondicherry.
Alompra was now master of all the navigable rivers; and
the Peguers, being entirely shut out from foreign aid, were
finally subdued. In 1755 the conqueror laid siege to the
city of Pegu, which finally capitulated, on condition that
the king should govern the country, but that he should do
homage for his kingdom, and should also surrender his
daughter to the victorious monarch. Alompra, with Asiatic
perfidy, violated these conditions, and at last succeeded
by treachery in obtaining possession of the town, which
he abandoned to the fury of his soldiers. In 1757 the
Peguers endeavoured to throw off the yoke, but they
were overthrown in a decisive engagement near Rangoon;
and Alompra arriving soon after, quelled the rebellion. ^
He afterwards reduced the town and district of Tavoy,
and finally undertook the conquest of the Siamese. His
army advanced to Mergui and Tennasserim, both which
towns were taken; and he was besieging the capital of
Siam when he was taken ill. He immediately ordered
his army to retreat, in hopes of reaching his capital alive;
but he expired before this, in 1760, in the 50th year of
his age, after he had reigned eight years. He was suc¬
ceeded by his oldest son Namdojee Praw, whose reign
was disturbed by the rebellion of his brother Shembuan,
and afterwards by one of his father’s generals. By his
vigour he succeeded in quelling these revolts; and he
afterwards turned his arms against the refractory Peguers,
who were reduced to subjection. He died in little more
than three years, leaving one son in his infancy. On his
decease the throne was usurped by his brother Shembuan,
who never acknowledged the rightful heir. He was in¬
tent, like his predecessors, on the conquest of the adja¬
cent states; and he accordingly made war in 1765 on
the Munnipore Cassayers, and also on the Siamese, with
partial success. In the following year he renewed the
war with the latter, defeated the Siamese, and, after a
long blockade, obtained possession of their capital. But
while the Burmans were extending their conquests in
this quarter, they were invaded by a Chinese army of
50,000 men from the province of Yunan. This army was
hemmed in by the skill of the Burmans; and being haras¬
sed by the want of provisions, it was afterwards attacked
and totally destroyed, with the exception of 2500 men,
who were sent in fetters to work in the Burmese capital
at their several trades. In the mean time the Siamese
revolted from the Burmese yoke; and while the Burman
army was marching against them, the Peguer soldiers
who were embodied in it rose against their companions,
and commencing an indiscriminate massacre, pursued the
Burman army to the gates of Rangoon, which they be¬
sieged, but were unable to capture. In 1774 Shembuan
was engaged in reducing the marauding tribes. He took
the district and fort of Martaban from the revolted Pe¬
guers ; and in the following year he sailed down the Irra¬
waddy with an army of 50,000 men, and, arriving at
Rangoon, he put to death the aged monarch of Pegu,
along with many of his nobles, who had shared with him
in the guilt of rebellion. He died in 1776, after a reign
of 12 years, during which he had extended the Burmese
dominions on every side, having reduced to a state of
vassalage the petty states in the neighbourhood, and the
uncivilized tribes in the western hills, as well as those in
the mountainous tracts to the east of the Irrawaddy. He
was succeeded by his son, a youth of 18, who proved
himself a blood-thirsty despot, and was put to death by
his uncle Mindragee Praw in 1782, who ascended the
vacant throne. In 1783 he sent a fleet of boats against
Arracan, which was conquered, and the rajah and his fa¬
mily made prisoners. Cheduba, Ramnee, and the Bro¬
ken Isles soon afterwards surrendered.
The Siamese who had revolted in 1771 were never af¬
terwards subdued by the Burmans. They retained their
dominion over the sea-coast, as far as Mergui; and in the
year 1785 they attacked the island of Junkseylon with a
fleet of boats and an army. But they were ultimately
driven back with loss; and a second attempt by the Burman
monarch, who in 1786 invaded Siam with an army of
30,000 men, was attended with no better success. R
1793 peace was concluded between these two powers, the
Siamese yielding to the Burmans the entire possession
of the coast of T ennasserim on the Indian Ocean, and the
two important sea-ports of Mergui and Tavoy.
A V A.
In 1795 the Burmese were involved in a dispute with
*-> ^ the British in India, in consequence of their troops to the
amount of 5000 men entering the district of Chittagong
in pursuit of three robbers who had fled from justice across
the frontier. Explanations being made, and terms of ac¬
commodation offered by General Erskine, the command¬
ing officer, the Burmese commander retired from the Bri¬
tish territories, when the fugitives were restored, and all
differences for the present amicably arranged.
But it was evident that the gradual extension of the
British and Burmese territories would in time bring the
two powers into collision, and would in all probability
lead to a war between them. And it happened, accord¬
ingly, that the Burmese, having conquered the neighbour¬
ing states of Pegu, Siam, and Arracan, and the northern
countries of Cassay and Assam, came into contact with the
British frontier near Sylhet on the north-east, which was
occupied by chiefs dependent, though somewhat loosely,
on the British government. The Burmese leaders, arrest¬
ed in this manner in their career of conquest, and flush¬
ed with past success, were impatient to measure their
strength with their new neighbours. It appears from the
evidence of Europeans who resided in Ava, that they
were entirely unacquainted with the discipline and great
military resources of the Europeans. They imagined that,
like the other nations in the East, they would fall before
their superior tactics and valour; and their cupidity was
inflamed by the prospect of marching to Calcutta and of
plundering the country. With such dispositions, it was
not to be supposed that causes of quarrel would long be
wanting; and accordingly, on the whole frontier line, the
Burmese were continually committing petty acts of ag¬
gression, which the British troops would have been justi¬
fied in repelling by force. At length their chiefs, throw¬
ing off the mask, ventured on the open violation of the
British territories. They attacked a party of Sepoys within
the frontier, seized and carried off British subjects, and
at all points their troops, moving in large bodies, assumed
the most menacing positions. The island of Shaparee, at
the mouth of the Naaf river, had been occupied by a small
guard of British troops. These were attacked on the 23d
September 1823, during the night, by the Burmese, and
driven from their post with the loss of several lives; and
to the repeated demands of the British for redress no
answer was returned. On the north-east frontier, in the
district of Sylhet, the Burmese troops entered the terri¬
tories of Cachar, which were under the protection of the
British, in pursuit of certain alleged fugitives; and they
proceeded, according to their custom, to fortify their posts
by strong palisades. Here they were attacked in January
1824, and driven from their positions. Several other ac¬
tions took place, in some of which the British were forced
to fall back from the stoccaded posts of their enemies; and
in May the Burmese invaded Chittagong in great force,
and surrounded a British detachment under Captain No-
ton, which was almost entirely destroyed. The alarm
which this disaster occasioned in the British territories
was great, and extended as far as Calcutta.
Hostilities having now commenced, the British rulers
m India, with their usual boldness and energy, resolved
to carry the war into the enemy’s country; and with this
view an armament was fitted out under the orders of Com¬
modore Grant and Sir Archibald Campbell, which entered
me Irrawaddy river, and anchored off Rangoon on the 10th
May 1824. After a feeble resistance this great sea-port
of the Burmese surrendered, and the troops were landed.
he place was entirely deserted by its inhabitants, the
247
provisions were carried off or destroyed, and the invading Ava.
force took possession of a complete solitude. The devas-
tation of the country, which was part of the defensive
system of the Burmese, was carried into execution with
unrelenting rigour, and the invaders were soon reduced to
great difficulties. Being destitute both of provisions and
of the means of transport, they were confined within the
limits of Rangoon, where they were soon surrounded on
all sides by an overwhelming force, posted behind stoc¬
caded entrenchments, which were constructed with equal
celerity and skill. The flat country at the mouth of the
Irrawaddy is extremely favourable for defence, being
mostly covered with a thick and tenacious jungle, inter¬
sected by a few narrow and uncertain foot-paths, only
known to the Karyan tribes, who cultivate the lands; or
by numerous creeks and rivers, from whose thickly-wooded
banks a destructive fire might be poured on the invading
force. The unskilful Burmese did not, however, profit
by the localities as they might have done for the defence
of the country. They continued to erect their stoccade
under cover of the jungle, and, gradually encroaching on
the British position, to harass the outposts and foraging
parties, and to prevent all communication between the
invaders and the inhabitants. On the 28th May Sir A.
Campbell ordered an attack to be made on some of the
nearest posts of the enemy, which were all carried after a
feeble defence. Another attack was made on the 10th
June on the stoccades at the village of Kemmendine.
Some of these, being too strong to be attacked by escalade,
were battered by artillery ; and the shot and shells struck
such terror into the Burmese that they fled from their
works in the utmost precipitation. The monarch of Ava,
enraged at these defeats, sent large reinforcements to his
dispirited and beaten army; and early in July a new at¬
tack was commenced on the British line, with no better
success than before. On the 8th the British general di¬
rected an assault to be made on the enemy’s entrenched
positions, in which the armament on the river co-operated
with the land force. The enemy were beaten as formerly
at all points ; and their strongest stoccaded works, batter¬
ed to pieces by a powerful artillery, were in general aban¬
doned by their defenders. Towards the end of August
an attack was made on the British position by the prince
of Sarawaddy, which was quickly repelled. But with this
exception, the enemy having learned by fatal experience
the necessity of caution, allowed the British to remain
unmolested in their quarters during the months of July
and August. This interval of leisure was employed by
Sir A. Campbell in subduing the maritime provinces of
the Burmese to the east, namely, Tavoy, Mergui, and the
whole coast of Tennasserim, which quickly submitted to
the British arms. This was an important conquest, as the
country proved to be salubrious, and afforded convalescent
stations to the sick, who were now so numerous in the
British army, owing to severe duty, and to the incessant
rains and privations of every kind to which they were ex¬
posed, that scarcely 3000 soldiers fit for duty could be
mustered in the lines. The climate of Mergui proved to
be so healthy that the sick who had been languishing for
months at Rangoon rapidly recovered.1 An expedition
was about this time sent against the old Portuguese fort
and factory of Syriam, at the mouth of the Pegu river,
which was taken; and in October the province of Marta¬
ban was reduced under the authority of the British.
The rainy season terminated about the end of October,
and the court of Ava, alarmed by the discomfiture of its
numerous armies, resolved on recalling the veteran legions
1 Narrative of the Burmese War, by Major Snodgrass.
A V A.
248
Ava. which were employed in Arracan, under their renowned
leader Maha Bandoola, in vain attempts to penetrate the
British frontier. Relinquishing his plans of offensive war,
Bandoola, with his army, hastened by forced marches to
the defence of his country, and, by the end of November,
an army of 60,000 men had surrounded the British position
at Rangoon and Kemmendine, for the defence of which
Sir Archibald Campbell had only 5000 efficient troops.
On the 1st December the enemy in great force made
repeated attacks on the post of Kemmendine, noways
daunted by the heavy broadsides which were poured from
the shipping in the river. These attacks were invariably
repulsed by the steadiness of the troops—the last, which
was made after dusk, with great loss; and the fire rafts
which had been set afloat for the destruction of the ship¬
ping, were towed ashore by the sailors, where they occa¬
sioned no injury. Several encounters took place with the
enemy on the succeeding days; and on the 7th the army
of Bandool^ was completely routed in a general attack by
Sir A. Campbell. The fugitives retired to a strong posi¬
tion on the river, which they again entrenched; and they
were here attacked by the British on the 12th, who, sur¬
mounting every obstacle, carried the stoccaded ramparts
at the point of the bayonet, and drove the enemy in com¬
plete confusion from the field. After this defeat the rem¬
nant of the Burmese army retreated to Donabew.
Sir Archibald Campbell, thus victorious in every en¬
counter, now resolved to advance on Prome, about 100
miles higher up the Irrawaddy river. Having provided
the means of .transport, and having succeeded in acquir¬
ing the confidence of the inhabitants, many of whom had
returned to their homes, and were found extremely useful
to the army, he moved with his force in two divisions
along different branches of the Irrawaddy. By the 22d
he reached Sarrawah, about 50 miles from Rangoon. Here
he expected intelligence of the reduction of Donabew by
the force under General Cotton, which was left in the
rear for that purpose. He had advanced 26 miles far¬
ther when he learned that General Cotton’s attack on
Donabew had failed. He instantly began a retrograde
march; on the 27th he effected a junction with Ge¬
neral Cotton’s force, and on the 2d April carried the en¬
trenchments at Donabew with little resistance, the enemy
being panic-struck by the death of the general-in-chief,
Maha Bandoola, who was killed by the explosion of a
bomb. Sir A. Campbell, resuming his march to Prome,
entered that place on the 25th, the Burmese flying at his
appioach, after setting fire to the town. Plere he remain¬
ed during the rainy season to refresh his troops, exhaust¬
ed by privations and severe service. On the 17th Sep¬
tember an armistice was concluded between the contend¬
ing armies for one month. In the course of the summer
General Morrison had conquered the province of Arracan;
in the north the Burmese were expelled from Assam ; and
the British had made some progress in Cachar, though
their advance was finally impeded by the thick forests
and jungle with which the country was covered.
The armistice between the Burmese and Sir A. Camp¬
bell having expired on the 17th October, the army of
Ava, amounting to 60,000 men, advanced in three divi¬
sions against the British position at Prome, which was de¬
fended by 3000 Europeans and 2000 native troops. But
the science, courage, superior equipment, and high disci-
p me of the British still triumphed over the undisciplined
lorues of the Burmese army, who being hastily brought
together, and inexperienced in war, were unable to with¬
stand the close encounter of their veteran adversaries.
After several actions, in which the Burmese were the as¬
sailants, and were partially successful, Sir A. Campbell,
on the 1st December, attacked the different divisions of
their army, which were imprudently separated from each -
other, and which, notwithstanding the entrenchments by
which they were protected, were, in the course of four
days, successively driven from all their positions and dis¬
persed in every direction. The Burmese retired on
Meaday and afterwards on Mellone, along the course of
the Irrawaddy, where they occupied with 10,000 or 12,000
men a series of strongly fortified heights and a formi¬
dable stoccade. On the 26th they sent a flag of truce to
the British camp, and a negociation having commenced,
peace was proposed to them on the following conditions:
1st, The cession of Arracan, together with the provinces
of Mergui, Tavoy, and Yea; 2d, The kingdom of Assam
and its contiguous petty states, and also Munnipore, were
to be placed under princes and residents named by the
British government; 3c?, The company to be paid a crore
of rupees as an indemnification for the expenses of the
war; 4?A, Residents from each court to be allowed, with
an escort of fifty men. It was also stipulated that British
ships should no longer be obliged to unship their rudders
and land their guns as formerly in the Burmese ports.
This treaty was agreed to and signed, but the ratification
of the king was still wanting; and it was soon apparent
that the Burmese had no intention to send it, but were
preparing to renew the contest. On the 17th January,
accordingly, Sir A. Campbell attacked the enemy’s posi¬
tion at Mellone and carried it, the Burmese troops aban¬
doning their defences in complete disorder. Another offer
of peace was here made, which was found to be insincere,
and the fugitive army resolved to make at Pagahm-Mew
a final stand in defence of the capital. They were at¬
tacked and overthrown on the 9th February 1826; and
the invading force being now within four days’ march of
Ava, Dr Prince, an American missionary, who, with other
Europeans, had been thrown into prison when the war com¬
menced, was sent to the British camp with the treaty rati¬
fied, the prisoners of war released, and the stipulated in¬
stalment of 25 lacs of rupees. The war was thus brought to
a successful termination, and the British army immediately
began its retreat. Mr Craufurd has since this period resid¬
ed on the part of the British in the capital of the Burmese
monarch, and from his work we derive much valuable in¬
formation respecting the trade, resources, manners, and in¬
stitutions of this people, who until the embassy of Colonel
Symes in 1796 were almost entirely unknown to Europeans.
Ava, the capital of the Burman empire. It is situated
on the Irrawaddy, which is here 3282 feet broad, and
which, making a bend out of its ordinary course, flows
past the city on the north. On the east it has the river
Myit-nge, a rapid stream 450 feet broad, which flows into
the Irrawaddy close under its walls. From this river a
canal has been dug, through which its waters flow on the
south-east angle of the city, and are again brought into
the same river. On the south flows the deep and rapid
torrent of the Myit-tha into the Irrawaddy, and thus
forms the defences both of the south and west faces of the
town. Ihis place is divided into the upper and lower, or
the lesser and the larger town, both of which are fortified.
The brick wall that surrounds the city is 15^ feet in
height and 10 feet in thickness, on the inside of which
is thrown up a bank of earth, forming an angle of 45 de¬
grees.^ There is a ditch round the outer wall, which is
inconsiderable, and in the dry season fordable in every
part. The wall round the upper or lesser town, which
forms the north-east angle, is better constructed than
that of the large town. The ditch over the south and
west faces of it is also broader and deeper, and when full
in the wet season is not to be forded. There are, how¬
ever, three causeways across, which communicate with
the surrounding country. The lesser town is mostly oc-
A V A
I A cupied by the palace, the hall of justice, the council
chamber, the arsenal, and the habitations of a few cour-
•A'’3)11, tiers of distinction. A strong, well-built wall, about 20
"r feet high, surrounds the square in which these are situ¬
ated; and on the outside of the wall is a teak-wood stoc-
cade of the same height. The circumference around the
walls, and excluding the suburbs, is about 5i miles; but
over this extensive area the houses are but thinly scat¬
tered, and some quarters are indeed wholly destitute of
habitations, and have the appearance merely of neglected
commons. In general the habitations of the inhabitants
are of the most miserable sort, being mostly mere huts
thatched with grass. Some of the dwellings of the chiefs
are constructed of planks, and tiled; and there are not,
according to Mr Craufurd, more than half a dozen houses
I built of brick and mortar. Ava, like all the other Bur¬
mese towns, is adorned with numerous temples, of which
the gilded spires, rising aloft, present, on a distant view
of the place, a splendid and imposing appearance, which
is far from being realized on a nearer inspection. The
largest of these temples contains two distinct edifices;
one in the ancient, the other in the modern form ; the
former containing an image of Guatama, not of marble, as
Symes supposes, but of sandstone. It is in a sitting pos¬
ture, and is 24 feet in height. The head is eight feet in
diameter. There is another very large temple, and a
third called the “ Beautiful.” The one called Maong-
Ratna is of great celebrity; it is the one in which the
public officers of the government take, with the most so¬
lemn forms, the oath of allegiance. The temple called
Maha-mrat-muni had an addition lately made to it, of
which Mr Craufurd mentions that the numerous and
richly-gilded pillars, and splendid ceiling, exceeded any
thing that was to be seen without the palace. Ava con¬
tains eleven markets or bazaars, composed of thatched
huts and sheds, which are well supplied with all that is
necessary for the wants of the people. Besides native com¬
modities, there is exposed in these markets the produce
of China and Lao, with British cottons, woollens, glass
AVADOUTAS, a sect of Indian Brahmins, who in auste¬
rity surpass all the rest. The other sects retain earthen
vessels for holding their provisions, and a stick to lean on ,
but none of these are used by the Avadoutas ; they only
cover their nakedness with a piece of cloth, and some of
them even dispense with that, going quite naked, and be¬
smearing their bodies with cow-dung. When hungry, some
enter into houses, and, without speaking, hold out their
hands; eating on the spot whatever is given them. Others
retire to the sides of holy rivers, and there expect the
peasants to bring them provisions, which they generally
do very liberally.
AVAL. See Bahrein.
avalanches, a name given to prodigious masses
°1 consolidated snow, which, disengaged from the summits
or more elevated peaks, frequently roll down the sides of
the Alps. See the article Alps.
AVALLON, an arrondissement in the department of
the Yonne, in France, extending over 456 square miles, or
1)840 acres,and comprehending five cantons, divided into
seventy communes, with 43,295 inhabitants. The capital
the arrondissement is of the same name. It is situated
on a bed of granite, at the foot of which the river Voisen
ows. It has some manufactures of cloth, hats, hosiery,
eather, and paper, and a considerable traffic in fire-wood,
w nch, by the Voisen and the Eure, is conveyed into the
t ^‘ne’ ancl floated to Paris. It contains 1830 houses and
inhabitants. Long. 3. 46. E. Lat. 47. 28. N.
VOL. IV.
AVA 249
and earthen-ware. I lie Burman monasteries are mostly Ava
built of wood; and of these, consisting of more solid II
materials, a few ancient ones are all that are to be seen. Avellino.
The only exception is a monastery lately built by the
queen, adjoining the palace, which is an unshapely fabric
of immense size, and a very conspicuous object.
The capital of the Burman dominions, according to the
political divisions of the empire, comprehends the town of
Sagaing on the opposite shore of the Irrawaddy, and the
town of Ummerapoora or Amarapura, four miles to the
east, with large districts attached to each. The town of
Sagaing extends along the Irrawaddy for more than a
mile and a half, but is of inconsiderable breadth. It con¬
sists of mean houses, thinly scattered among gardens and
orchards, the principal trees in the latter consisting of
fine old tamarinds. Over the site of the town and its en¬
virons are scattered innumerable temples, some of them
old and ruinous, others modern. On the river face it has
a brick wall about ten feet in height, with parapet and
embrazures like that of Ava, and extending for above
half a mile along the river. Ummerapoora, to the east, is
a large place, and was formerly the capital of Ava. But
Ava, which was twice before the capital, was again made
so in 1822, by his present majesty. To each of the towns
of Ava, Sagaing, and Ummerapoora, are attached districts,
which extend the two former twelve miles along the river,
and are of equal breadth. The district of Ummerapoora
is of equal size, so that Ava must be considered as not
only the name of the capital, but of a large district around,
which includes an area of 288 miles, containing, accord¬
ing to the most accurate estimate, 354,200 inhabitants.
But the city of Ava is not supposed to contain more than
50,000 inhabitants; and, according to Mr Craufurd, half
that number would be nearer the truth. Long. 96. E.
Lat. 21. 50. N. (Embassy to the Kingdom of Ava, by
Michael Symes; Journal of a Residence in the Burman
Empire, by Captain Hiram Cox; Narrative of the Bur¬
mese War, by Major Snodgrass ; Journal of an Embassy
to the Court of Ava in 1827, by J. Craufurd.) (f.)
AVEIRO, a town of Portugal, in the province of Beira,
containing a population of 7000 inhabitants. It has a
thriving trade in oil, salt, and fish. Long. 8. 34. W. Lat.
40. 40. N.
AVEIRON or Aveyron, a department so called from
the river of the same name, which runs through it from east
to west. It is bounded on the north by the department of
Cantal, on the north-east by that of Lozere, on the east
by that of the Gard, on the south-east by that of He-
rault, on the south-west by that of the Tarn, and on the
west by that of Lot. It extends over 3740 square miles,
or 2,393,000 acres. The face of the country is mountain¬
ous and woody; and hence, though corn and wine are
produced, and much cattle fed, the chief productions are
fish, game, and wood. It contains mines of copper, iron,
lead, alum, sulphur, and coal. The capital is Rodez.
The population at the last census amounted to 327,424,
and it sends to the legislative assembly three representa¬
tives.
AVELGHEM, a market-town on the left bank of the
Scheld, in the circle of Courtray and province of West
Flanders, in the Netherlands. It contains 3780 inha¬
bitants.
AVELLA, a town of Naples, in the province of Terra
di Lavoro, in a fine situation, and commanding most ex¬
tensive prospects. It is distant about 15 miles from the
city of Naples, and contains 5050 inhabitants.
AVELLINO, a large town of the Principato-Ultra, in
2 i
250 A V E
Ave-Maria the kingdom of Naples, about 25 miles to the eastward of
II the metropolis. It is the see of a bishop, and contains
VenUf.‘i many churches, though with nothing peculiarly striking ex-
cept some most grotesque ornaments. It is a manufactur¬
ing town of some consequence, and eminent for its blue
cloth, the dyeing of which forms the patrimony of a
princely family. The soil around is fertile, and provisions
of all kinds are very abundant. The population amounts
to 13,460 persons.
AYE-MARIA, the angel Gabriel’s salutation to the
Virgin Mary, when he brought her the tidings of the in¬
carnation. It is become a prayer or form of devotion in
the Romish church. The chaplets and rosaries are di¬
vided into so many ave-marias and so many pater-nosters,
to which the Papists ascribe a wonderful efficacy.
AVENCHES, a circle of the Canton Waadt or Vaud,
in Switzerland, divided into two arrondissements, contain¬
ing 3760 inhabitants. It is situated on the borders of the
Murten Lake. The chief town is of the same name, and
contains 1100 inhabitants, who cultivate fruits and tobacco.
AVENOR, an officer belonging to the king’s stables,
who provides oats for the horses. He acts by warrant
from the master of the horse.
AVENTINE, John, author of the Annals of Bavaria,
was born in the year 1466, at Abensperg, in the country
just named. He studied first at Ingoldstadt, and after¬
wards in the university of Paris. In 1503, he privately
taught eloquence and poetry at Vienna, and, in 1507, he
publicly taught Greek at Cracow in Poland. In 1509,
he read lectures on some of Cicero’s works at Ingold¬
stadt, and, in 1512, was appointed preceptor to Prince
Louis and Prince Ernest, sons of Albert the Wise, duke
of Bavaria, and travelled with the latter of these princes.
After this he undertook to write the Annals of Bavaria,
being encouraged by the dukes of that name, who settled
a pension upon him, and gave him hopes that they would
defray the charges of the book. This work, which gained
its author great reputation, was first published in 1554, by
Jerome Zieglerus, professor of poetry in the university of
Ingoldstadt; and afterwards at Basil, in 1580, by Nicholas
Cisner. He died in 1534, aged 68.
AVENTINUS Mons, one of the seven hills on which
ancient Rome stood. The origin of the name Aventinus
is uncertain; but this hill was also called Murcius, from
Murcia, the goddess of sloth, who had a little chapel there ;
and Collis Diance, from the temple of Diana; likewise
Remonius, from Remus, who wanted to build the city,
and who was buried there. It was taken within the com¬
pass of the city by Ancus Martius. To the east it had
the city walls, to the south the Campus Figulinus, to
the west the Tiber, and to the north Mons Palatinus;
in circuit two miles and a quarter.
AVENUE, in Gardening, a walk planted on each side
with trees, and leading to a house, garden-gate, wood, &c.
and generally terminated by some distant object. The
trees most proper for avenues with us are the English
elm, the lime, the horse-chestnut, the common chestnut,
the beech, and the abele. The English elm will do in all
grounds, except such as are very wet and shallow; and
this is preferred to all other trees, because it will bear
cutting, heading, or lopping in any manner, better than
most others. The rough or smooth Dutch elm is approv¬
ed by some, because of its quick growth. This is a tree
which will bear removing very well; it is also green al¬
most as soon as any plant whatever in spring, and con-
A V E
tinues so as long as any; it makes an incomparable A\
hedge, and is preferable to all other trees for lofty espa-
liers. The lime is valued for its natural growth and fine
shade. The horse-chestnut is proper for all places that are
not too much exposed to rough winds. The common
chestnut will do very well in a good soil, and rises to a
considerable height when planted somewhat close, though
when it stands single it is rather inclined to spread than
to grow tall. The beech is a beautiful tree, and naturally
grows well with us in its wild state ; but it is less to be
chosen for avenues than the before-mentioned, because it
does not bear transplanting well, and is very subject to
miscarry. Lastly, the abele is fit for any soil, and is the
quickest grower of any forest tree. It seldom fails in
transplanting, and succeeds very well in wet soils, in which
the others are apt to fail. The oak is but little used for
avenues, because of its slow growth.
AVENWEDDE, a town on the Dalke, with 2880 inha¬
bitants, in the circle of Wiedenbruck and government of
Menden, in the Prussian province of Westphalia.
AVENZOAR, Abu Merwan Abdalmalec een Zohr,
an eminent Arabian physician, who flourished about the
end of the eleventh or the beginning of the twelfth century.
He was of noble descent, and born at Seville, the capital of
Andalusia, where he exercised his profession with great
reputation. He was contemporary with Averroes, who,
according to Leo Africanus, heard his lectures and learn¬
ed physic of him. This seems the more probable, because
Averroes more than once gives Avenzoar very high and
deserved praise, calling him admirable, glorious, the trea¬
sure of all knowledge, and the most supreme in physic
from the time of Galen to his own. Avenzoar, notwith¬
standing, is by the generality of writers reckoned an em¬
piric ; but Dr Freind observes that this character suits
him less than any of the rest of the Arabians. He wrote
a book entitled The Method of Preparing Medicines and
Diet, which was translated into Hebrew in the year 1280,
and thence into Latin by Paravicius, whose version has
passed through several editions.
AVERAGE,1 a term used in commerce and navigation
to signify a contribution made by the individuals to whom
a ship, or the goods on board it, belong, or by whom it or
they are insured, in order that no particular individual or
individuals amongst them, who may have been forced to
make a sacrifice, or submit to a loss for the preservation of
the ship or cargo, or both, should lose more than others.
Average is either general orparticidar. General average
is when a sacrifice is made for the common benefit of the
ship and cargo, or a loss is incurred in providing for their
mutual safety. “ Thus,” says Mr Sergeant Marshall,
“ when the goods of a particular merchant are thrown
overboard in a storm, to save the ship from sinking; or
when the masts, cables, anchors, or other furniture of the
ship are cut away or destroyed for the preservation of the
whole ; or money or goods are given as a composition to
pirates to save the rest, or an expense is incurred in re¬
claiming the ship, or defending a suit in a foreign court
of admiralty, and obtaining her discharge from an unjust
capture or detention; in these and the like cases, when
any sacrifice is deliberately and voluntarily made, or any
expense fairly and bona fide incurred to prevent a total
loss, such sacrifice or expense is the proper subject of a
general contribution, and ought to be mutually borne b)
the owners of the ship, freight, and cargo, so that the loss
may fall equally on all, according to the equitable maxim
Average is said by Cowell to be derived from the Latin word averagium, from the verb averare, to carrv. He supposes it to
have been introduced into commerce to show the proportion to be paid by every man according to his goods carried. Loccenius, on
the other hand, derives it from the French havre, or the German fjafint, a port; it being a contribution paid for having goods brougM
safely to port. (De Jure Mantimo, lib. n. cap. viii. sect. 1.) c 6 ft
AVERAGE. 251
of the civil law, nemo debet locupletari aliena jactura” of the heaviest and most cumbersome articles, may be Average.
J (On Insurance, book i. chap. xii. sect. 7.) proofs of the necessity and propriety of the act; but they
Particular average is when a sacrifice is made for the are not the only nor the essential proofs. Indeed, in this
sake of the ship only, or of the cargo only, or when a loss case, as in many others, too close a compliance with forms,
is incurred on account of one or other of them. General at a period of supposed danger, has very justly excited a
average affects all who have any interest in the ship or suspicion of fraud. In all cases, however, and in all coun¬
cargo, proportionally to that interest; particular average tries, it is justly required of the master, that he draw up
affects only the owners of the ship, or the owners of the an account of the jettison, and verify the same by the
cargo, or part of the cargo. oath of himself and some of his crew, as soon as possible
There are also some small charges, called or ac- after his arrival at any port, that there may be no op-
eustomed averages. They consist of disbursements on ac- portunity to purloin goods from the ship, and then pre¬
count ofpilotage, light-houses, beaconage, quarantine, &c. tend they were cast over in the hour of danger.” (Ab-
When these charges are incurred in the ordinary course bott, Lord Tenterden, On the Law of Shipping, part. iii.
of the voyage, they are not considered as a general average, cap. 8.)
but are set down, one third to the ship, and two thirds The third condition above stated as requisite to war-
to the cargo. If, however, they are incurred for any ex- rant a general contribution, viz. “ that the saving of the
traordinary purpose, or to relieve the ship and cargo from ship and cargo be actually owing to the means used with
some impending danger, they are to be reputed general that sole view,” is not only incapable of proof, but is in
average. itself unreasonable and absurd. There is, however, no
The word average is also met with in bills of lading, contribution, unless the ship and the rest of the cargo be
when it is said that so much freight shall be paid for the saved. Hence, if goods be thrown overboard in a storm,
goods “ with primage and average accustomed.” In this and the ship afterwards perish in the same storm, there
sense it merely signifies a small duty or premium, which is no contribution of the goods saved, if any, because the
those who send goods in ships belonging to others are in object for which the goods were thrown overboard was
the habit of paying to the master, over and above the not attained. But if a ship, preserved by a jettison, and
freight, for his care and attention to the goods intrusted continuing her course, be afterwards lost, the goods saved
to him. from this last misfortune, if any, must contribute to the
The doctrine of average contributions seems to have loss sustained by the jettison, because to it their preser-
grown out of the necessity which must have been early vation at a previous period was owing. (Marshall, b. i.
experienced, of occasionally throwing overboard part of a c. xii. § 7.)
cargo, in order to provide for the safety of the remainder. No general average takes place in consequence of a
The justice of making those whose property was saved con- jettison that has been rendered necessary by the ship
tribute to place those who had been called upon to submit being overloaded, or by goods being placed in some im-
tosuch a sacrifice in the same situation as themselves, is so proper place, as on the deck. The loss in such cases falls
very obvious, that it could not long escape the notice of wholly on the owners and master; for it must have origi-
commercial legislators. The principle is clearly laid down nated either in the negligence or misconduct of one or
in the Rhodian law, “ Omnium contributione sarciatur (it both of those parties. (Loccenius De Jure Maritimo, lib.
is there said), quod pro omnibus datum est. iEquissimum ii. c. viii. § 14.)
enim est, commune detrimentum fieri eorum qui, propter Formerly it was a customary practice in this, as it still
amissas res aliorum, consecuti sunt, ut merces suas salvas is in some foreign countries, to ransom ships when cap-
haberent.” {Dig. lib. xiv. tit. 2.) This sound principle, tured by an enemy, the ransom being made good by ge-
with some of the cases illustrating its application, was early neral average. But this practice having been deemed
embodied in the Roman law; and having been applied disadvantageous, was abolished by statute 22 Geo. III.
and modified according to the greater experience afford- c. 25, which declares, “ That all contracts and agree-
ed by the extraordinary extension of navigation, the sub- ments which shall be entered into, and all bills, notes, and
ject of average forms a most important and interesting other securities which shall be given, by any person or
chapter in all modern systems of maritime jurisprudence, persons, for ransom of any ship or vessel, merchandise or
No general average ever takes place unless it can be goods, captured by the subjects of any state at war with
shown that the danger was imminent, and that the sacri- his majesty, or by any person committing hostilities
fice made was indispensable, or believed to be indispensable, against his majesty’s subjects, shall be absolutely void in
by the captain and officers, for the safety of the ship and cargo, law, and of no effect whatever.” Any person entering
It has been stated {Lex Mercat. 148), that in order to le- into such a contract is subjected to a penalty of L.500.
galize the act of throwing goods overboard, three things The principles already laid down apply equally to all
must concur: injuries done to the ship, or to extraordinary expenses
That what is so condemned to destruction be in incurred on her account, for the common safety. 1 hus,
consequence of a deliberate and voluntary consultation if damage be voluntarily done to a ship, by cutting her
held between the master and men ; sides or deck to facilitate a necessary jettison, or by run-
2dly, That the ship be in distress, and that sacrificing ning her on shore to avoid an enemy or the danger of a
a part be necessary, in order to preserve the rest; storm ; or if the captain, compelled by necessity, cut away
Sdly, That the saving of the ship and cargo be actual- and abandon his masts, or any other part of the rigging
ly owing to the means used with that sole view. or furniture, to lighten the ship in the moment of distress;
But, however desirable, deliberate consultation is not the loss and expenses occasioned by these sacrifices must
to be expected when danger is imminent; and, in point of be made good by a general average.
fact, the only thing necessary to legalize the jettison, as it But injuries to the ship, not voluntarily incurred for her
is termed, is that it be deemed essential by the master safety and that of the cargo, are not compensated by ge-
and seamen for the common safety. Provided it be the neral average. Whatever happens in the ordinary course
effect of danger and the cause of security, all authorities of wear and tear, or by a peril of the sea, as the loss of
agree that contribution ought to be made, though the masts, sails, &c. in a storm, is particular average, and falls
forms may not have been complied with. “ Previous de- on the owners only. The ship, to borrow the admirable
liberation, if there be time to deliberate, and a due choice illustration given in the civil law, is like the tool or instru-
252
AVERAGE.
Average, ment of a workman in his trade. If in doing his work he
break his hammer, his anvil, or any other instrument, he
can claim no satisfaction for this from his employer. “ Si
conservatis mercibus deterior facta sit navis, aut si quid ex-
armaverit, nulla facienda est collatio: quia dissimilis earum
rerum causa sit, quae navis gratia parentur, et earum pro
quibus mercedem aliquis acceperit. Nam etsi faber incu-
dem aut malleum fregerit, non imputaretur ei qui locave-
rit opus: sed si voluntate vectorum vel propter aliquem
metum id detrimentum factum sit, hoc ipsum sarciri opor-
tet.” (-Dig- lib. xiv. tit. 2.)
Much doubt has been entertained whether the expenses
incurred by a ship in an intermediate port, in which she
has taken refuge, should be general average or fall only on
the ship. But on principle, at least, it seems pretty obvious,
that if the retreat of the ship to the intermediate port be
made in order to obviate the danger of foundering, or some
other great and imminent calamity, the expenses incurred
in entering it, and during the time she is obliged by stress
of weather or adverse winds to continue in it, should be¬
long to general average. But if the retreat of the ship to
port be made in order to repair any injury occasioned by
the unskilfulness of the master, or in consequence of any
defect in her outfit, such, for example, as deficiencies of
water, provisions, sails, &c., with which she ought to have
been sufficiently supplied before setting out, the expenses
should fall wholly on the owners.
When a ship, supposed to be sea-worthy, is forced to
take refuge in an intermediate port because of a loss oc¬
casioned by a peril of the sea, as the springing of a mast,
&c., then, as the accident is not ascribable to any fault of
the master or owners, and the retreat to port is indispen¬
sable for the safety of the ship and cargo, it would seem
that any extraordinary expense incurred in navigating the
ship into port ought to be made good by general average.
Supposing, however, that it could be shown that the
ship was not at the outset sea-worthy, or in a condition
to withstand the ordinary perils of the sea; that the mast,
for example, which has sprung, had been previously da¬
maged ; or supposing that the mischief had been occa¬
sioned by the incapacity of the master; the whole blame
would, in such a case, be ascribable to the owners, who,
besides defraying every expense, should be made liable in
damages to the freighters for the delay that would neces¬
sarily take place in completing the voyage, and for what¬
ever injury might be done to the cargo.
These, however, are merely the conclusions to which,
as it appears to us, those should come who look only to
principle. The law with respect to most of the points now
stated differs in different countries, and has differed in
the same country at different periods. “ A doubt,” says
Lord Tenterden, “ was formerly entertained as to the ex¬
penses of a ship in a port in which she had taken refuge
to repair the damage occasioned by a tempest; but this
has been removed By late decisions,—and it has been held
that the wages and provisions of the crew during such
a period must fall upon the ship alone. But if a ship
should necessarily go into an intermediate port for the
purpose of repairing such a damage as is in itself a proper
object of general contribution, possibly the wages, &c.
during the period of such detention, may also be held
to be general average, on the ground that the accessory
should follow the nature of its principal.” (Law of Ship¬
ping, part m. chap. 8.)
. lei^iaPs the reader who reflects on the vagueness of
this passage will be disposed to concur with Lord Tenter¬
den s remark in another part of the same chapter, “ That
the determinations of the English courts of justice furnish
less of authority on this subject (average) than on any
other branch of maritime law.” J
Within these few years it was decided, in the case of a AvI
British ship that had been obliged to put into port in con- ^
sequence of an injury resulting from her accidentally
coming into collision with another ship, that so much of
the repair she then underwent as was absolutely necessary
to enable her to perform her voyage, should be general ave¬
rage. (Plummer v. Wildman, 3 M. and S. 482.) The
judges, however, spoke rather doubtfully on the subject;
and it is not very easy to discover any good grounds for
the judgment. According to the usual terms of the char¬
ter-party, the owners bind themselves, “ that the ship shall
be tight, staunch, and strong, and furnished with all ne¬
cessaries for the intended voyage ;” and also, “ that during
the course of the voyage the ship shall be kept tight and
staunch, and furnished with sufficient men and other neces¬
saries, to the best of the owners’ endeavours.” And these
conditions are no more than what the law requires of
every owner who takes goods on board without a charter-
party. Seeing, therefore, that the owners are bound to
carry the cargo to its destination, they must consequent¬
ly be bound, in the event of the ship sustaining any acci¬
dental or natural damage during the course of the voyage,
either to repair that damage at their own expense, or to
provide another ship to forward the goods. In point of
fact, too, such subsidiary ships have frequently been pro¬
vided ; but w'e have yet to learn that it was ever pretend¬
ed that their hire was to be defrayed by a general ave¬
rage, though, according to the principle of the decision in
the case alluded to, this should be the case.
Practically, it is now the custom in this country, when
a vessel puts into port on account of damage belonging
to particular average, which requires to be repaired be¬
fore she can safely proceed on her voyage, to allow as
general average the expense of entering the port and
unloading; to charge the owners of the goods or their un¬
derwriters with the warehouse rent and expenses attend¬
ing the cargo; and to throw the expense of reloading and
departure on the freight.
According to the law of England, when a ship is in¬
jured byT coming into collision with or running foul of
another, if the misfortune has been accidental, and no
blame can be ascribed to either party, the owners of the
damaged ship have to bear the loss; but when blame
can be fairly imputed to one of the parties, it of course
falls upon him to make good the loss done to the other.
The regulations in the Code de Commerce (art. 407) har¬
monize in this respect with the law of England. Ac¬
cording to the laws of Oleron and Wisby, however, and
the famous French ordinance of 1681, the damage occa¬
sioned by an accidental collision is to be defrayed equally
by both parties.
ihe laws of different states, and the opinions of the
ablest jurists, vary as to whether the loss incurred in de¬
fending a ship against an enemy or pirate, and in the
treatment of the wounded officers and men, should be
made good by general average. The ordinance of the
Hanse Towns (art. 35), the ordinance of 1681 (liv. hi.
tit. 7, art. 6), and the Code de Commerce (art. 400, § 6),
explicitly declare that the charges on account of medi¬
cine and attendance upon the officers and seamen wound¬
ed in clefending the ship shall be general average. A
regulation oi this sort seems to be founded on reason.
But other codes are silent on the subject; and though
the contrary opinion had been advanced by Mr Serjeant
Marshall, and by Mr Justice Park in the earlier editions
of his work, the Court of Common Pleas has unanimously
decided, that in England neither the expense of repairing
a ship injured by successfully^ resisting and beating off
an enemy, nor the cost of curing the wounds incurred by
the sailors in the action, nor the ammunition expended
AVERAGE.
253
Ei, in it, was the subject of general average. (Taylor v.
^ Curtis, 2 Marsh. 309.)
Perhaps the most that can be said in favour of this de¬
cision is, that it is conformable to the opinion of Emerigon
(Traits, des Assurances, tome i. p. 627), who contends that
an attack of pirates or enemies is to be considered in the
same point of view as any ordinary peril of the sea. But
though Emerigon supports his opinion with great learn¬
ing, the principle on which it is founded appears to be
altogether unsound. Losses voluntarily incurred, in cut¬
ting down masts, rigging, &c. in order to avert a peril of
the sea, are, as every one allows, peculiarly proper sub¬
jects for general average; but an attack by an enemy or
pirate is a danger that is, in most cases, of the most im¬
minent kind, and cannot be resisted without voluntary
sacrifices, involving the risk of death on the part of the
crew; and if such sacrifices be made, and the danger be
in consequence averted, it seems quite clear, even on
Emerigon’s own ground, that they cannot, either consis¬
tently or justly, be made particular average.
The ordinance of tbe Hanse Towns (art. 35) declares
that such seamen as are maimed or disabled in defending
a ship against an enemy or pirate, shall be maintained at
die public expense during the remainder of their lives.
The ship, freight, and every thing remaining on board
that can be deemed a part of the cargo, must contribute
to general average. Money, plate, and jewels, though
their iveight could not have increased the danger of the
ship, are not exempted; for the advantage derived from
the sacrifice was not in proportion to the weight, but to
the value of the things saved. But the persons on board,
their wearing apparel, and the jewels or ornaments be¬
longing to these persons, do not contribute. Neither are
the seamen’s wages subjected to this charge; if they were,
they might sometimes, perhaps, be tempted to resist a
sacrifice necessary for the general safety.
Different states have adopted different modes of valu¬
ing the articles which are to contribute to an average. In
this respect the law of England has varied considerably
at different periods. At present, however, the ship is
valued at the price she was worth at the port of delivery;
and most foreign states follow the same rule. The value
of the freight is the clear sum which the ship has earned,
after seamen’s wages, pilotage, and all such small charges
as come under the name of petty averages, are deducted.
It was formerly the custom in England to value the goods
lost or thrown overboard at prime cost, if the loss happen¬
ed before half the voyage was performed; but if after,
then at the price they would have borne at the port of
delivery. But this distinction has been exploded, and it
is now the settled practice with us to estimate the goods
lost, as well as those saved, at the price they would have
fetched at the port of delivery on the ship’s arrival there,
freight, duties, and other charges, being deducted. Each
person s share of the loss bears, of course, the same pro¬
portion to the value of his property that the whole loss
bears to the aggregate value of the ship, freight, and
cargo. The necessity of taking the goods lost into this
account is obvious, for otherwise their owners would be
tht? only persons who would not be losers.
when the loss of masts, cables, and other furniture of
the ship is the subject of general average, it is usual, as
ie new articles will in all ordinary cases be of greater
value than those that have been lost, to deduct one third
iom the value of the former, leaving two thirds only to be
contributed.
But the mode of adjusting an average loss will be bet-
er understood by the following example, extracted from
“ T1 n^ei ^en'S work On the Law of Shipping.
I he reader will suppose that it became necessary
in the Downs to cut the cable of a ship destined for Average.
Hull; that the ship afterwards struck upon the Goodwin,
which compelled the master to cut away his mast, and
cast overboard part of the cargo, in which operation an¬
other part was injured; and that the ship, having cleared
from the sands, was forced to take refuge in Ramsgate
harbour, to avoid the further effects of the storm.
“ Amount of Losses.
“ Goods of A cast overboard L.500
“ Damage of the goods of B by the jettison  200
“ Freight of the goods cast overboard  100
“ Price of a new cable, anchor, and mast L.300
“ Deduct one-third  100
200
“ Expense of bringing the ship off the sands  50
“ Pilotage and port dues going into the harbour
and out, and commission to the agent who made
the disbursements  100
“ Expenses there  25
“ Adjusting this average  4
“ Postage  1
“ Total of losses L.1180
“ Value of Articles to contribute.
“ Goods of A cast overboard L.500
“ Sound value of the goods of B, deducting freight
and charges  1000
“ Goods of C     500
“ Of D  2000
“ Of E  5000
“ Value of the ship  2000
“ Clear freight, deducting wages, victuals, &c  800
“ Total of contributory value   L.11800
“ Then L.l 1,800 : L.1180 L.100 ; L.10.
“ That is, each person will lose 10 per cent, upon the va¬
lue of his interest in the cargo, ship, or freight.
Therefore A loses L.50
B 100
C 50
D 200
E 500
The owners 280
“ Total L.1180, which is the exact
amount of the losses.
“ Upon this calculation the owners are to lose L.280;
but they are to receive from the contribution L.380 to make
good their disbursements, and L.100 more for the freight
of the goods thrown overboard, or L.480 minus L.280
“ They therefore are actually to receive  200
“ A is to contribute L.50, but has lost L.500; there¬
fore A is to receive  450
“ B is to contribute L.100, but has lost L.200; there¬
fore B is to receive  100
“ Total to be actually received L.750
“ On the other hand C, D, and E have lost 5 ^
nothing; and are to pay as before, viz  1 rr)()
“ Total to be actually paid L.750
which is exactly equal to the total to be actually re¬
ceived, and must be paid by and to each person in valu¬
able proportion.
“ In the above estimate of losses I have included the
freight of the goods thrown overboard, which appears to
be propel’, as the freight of these goods is to be paid, and
254 A V E
Average their supposed value is taken, clear of freight as well as
II other charges.” {Law of Shipping, part iii. chap. 8.)
Avernus. -pj-jg supject 0f average does not necessarily make a part
0f t]ie }aw 0f insurance; but as insurers, from the terms
of most policies, are liable to indemnify the insured against
those contributions which are denominated general ave¬
rage, its consideration very frequently occurs in questions
as to partial losses. But in order to confine assurances to
that which ought to be their only object, namely, an in¬
demnity against real and important losses arising from the
perils of the sea, as well as to obviate disputes respecting
losses arising from the perishable quality of the goods in¬
sured, and all trivial subjects of difference and litigation,
it seems to be the general law of all maritime states, and
is expressly, indeed, provided by the famous ordinance of
1681 (see liv. iii. tit. 6, § 47, and the elaborate commen¬
tary of M. Valin), that the insurer shall not be liable to
any claim on account of average unless it exceed one
per cent. An article (No. 408) to the same effect is in¬
serted in the Code de Commerce; and, by stipulation, this
limitation is frequently extended in French policies to
three or four per cent. A similar practice, and for a si¬
milar object, was adopted in this country in 1749. It is
now constantly stipulated in all policies, that upon certain
enumerated articles of a quality peculiarly perishable, the
insurer shall not be liable for any partial loss whatever;
that upon certain others, liable to partial injuries, but
less difficult to be preserved at sea, he shall only be liable
for partial losses above five per cent.; and that as to all
other goods, and also the ship and freight, he shall only
be liable for partial losses above three per cent. This
stipulation is made by a memorandum inserted at the bot¬
tom of all policies done at Lloyd’s, of the following tenor :
“ N. B. Corn, fish, salt, fruit, flour, and seeds, are war¬
ranted free from average, unless general, or the ship be
stranded; sugar, tobacco, hemp, flax, hides, and skins, are
warranted free from average under five pounds per cent.;
and all other goods free from average under three pounds
per cent., unless general, or the ship be stranded.”
The form of this memorandum was universally used, as
well by the Royal Exchange and London Assurance Com¬
panies as by private underwriters, till 1754, when it was
decided that a ship having run aground was a stranded
ship within the meaning of the memorandum, and that
although she got off again the underwriters were liable to
an average or partial loss upon damaged corn. This de¬
cision induced the two companies to strike the words, “ or
the ship be stranded,” out of the memorandum, so that
now they consider themselves liable to no losses which
can happen to such commodities, except general averages
and total losses. The old form is still retained by the
private underwriters.
For further information with respect to this important
subject the reader is referred to the famous work of M.
Valin, Commentaire sur V Ordonnance de 1681, tome ii. p.
147-198, ed. 1760; to Emerigon, Trade des Assurances,
tome i. p. 598—674; Park on Insurance, chap. vii.; Mar¬
shall On Insurance, book i. chap. xii. sect. 7 ; Stevens’s Es¬
say on Average ; Benecke On the Principles of Indemnity in
Marine Insurance; Lord Tenterden’s excellent work on
the Law of Shipping, part iii. chap. viii. &c. (c. c.)
AVERDUPOIS. See Avoirdupois.
AVERNES, or AVENNES, a small but well-fortified
town in Hainault, on the frontier of France towards the
Netherlands. It is the head of an arrondissement in the
department of the North, and contains a population of
2700. Long. 4. E. Lat. 50.7. N.
AVERNUS, a lake of Campania in Italy, near Baiae,
famous among the ancients for its poisonous qualities. It
is described by Strabo as situated within the Lucrine Bay,
A V E
deep and darksome, surrounded with steep overhanging
banks, and only accessible by the narrow passage through
which you sail in. Black aged groves stretched their 4
boughs over the watery abyss, and with impenetrable foil- ^
age excluded almost every ray of wholesome light; and
mephitic vapours ascending from the hot bowels of the
earth, being denied free passage to the upper atmosphere,
floated along the surface in poisonous mists. These cir¬
cumstances produced horrors fit for such gloomy deities;
while a colony of Cimmerians, as well suited to the rites
as the place itself, cut dwellings in the bosom of the sur¬
rounding hills, and officiated as priests of Tartarus. Super¬
stition, always delighting in dark ideas, early and eagerly
seized upon this noxious spot, and hither she led her
trembling votaries to celebrate her dismal orgies. Here she
evoked the manes of departed heroes; here she offered
sacrifices to the gods of the infernal regions, and attempt¬
ed to dive into the secrets of futurity. Poets enlarged
upon the popular theme, and painted its awful scenery
with the strongest colours of their art. Homer brings
Ulysses to Avernus, as to the mouth of the infernal abodes;
and, in imitation of the Grecian bard, Virgil conducts his
hero to the same gloomy regions. Whoever sailed thither,
first did sacrifice, and endeavoured to propitiate the in¬
fernal powers, with the assistance of some priests, who
attended upon the place and directed the mystic per¬
formance. Within, a fountain of pure water broke out
just over the sea, which was fancied to be a vein of the
river Styx. Near this fountain was the oracle ; and the
hot waters, frequent in those parts, were supposed to be
branches of the burning Phlegethon. The poisonous ef¬
fluvia from this lake were said to be so strong that they
proved fatal to birds endeavouring to fly over it. Virgil
ascribes the exhalation, not to the lake itself, but to the
cavern near it, which was called Avernus, or Cave of the
Sybil, and through which the poets feigned a descent to
Orcus. Hence the proper name of the lake is Lacus Aver-
ni, the lake near the cavern, as it is called by some an¬
cient authors.
The sanctity of these shades remained unimpeached for
many ages. Hannibal marched his army to offer incense at
this altar ; but it may be suspected he was led to such an
act of devotion rather by the hopes of surprising the gar¬
rison of Puteoii, than by his piety. After a long reign of
undisturbed gloom and celebrity, a sudden glare of light
was let in upon Avernus ; the horrors were dispelled, and
with them vanished the sanctity of the lake. The axe of
Agrippa levelled its forest with the ground, disturbed its
sleepy waters ivith ships, and gave room for all its malig¬
nant effluvia to escape. The virulence of these exhala¬
tions, as described by ancient authors, has appeared so
very extraordinary, that some modern writers, who know
the place in a cleared state only, charge these accounts
with exaggeration; but others think them entitled to
more respect, since even now the air is feverish and dan¬
gerous, as the jaundiced faces of the vine-dressers, who
have succeeded the Sybils and Cimmerians in the posses¬
sion of the temple, most ruefully testify.
AVERROES, one of the most subtile philosophers that
ever appeared among the Arabians, flourished at the end
of the eleventh and beginning of the twelfth century. He
was the son of the high-priest and chief judge of Cordoba
in Spain; and, educated in the university of Morocco,
he studied natural philosophy, medicine, mathematics,
law, and divinity. He died at Morocco in the year 1206.
He was excessively fat, though he ate but once a day-
He spent all his nights in the study of philosophy, and
when he felt fatigued, amused himself with reading poetry
or history. He was extremely fond of Aristotle’s works,
and wrote commentaries on them; whence he was styled
<r
0
yerr
^ic<
A V I
ts the commentator by way of eminence. He likewise wrote
a work on the whole art of physic, besides many amatory
a- verses ; but when he grew old, he very wisely threw these
J last into the fire. . . . ,
AVERROISTS, a sect of Peripatetic philosophers, who
appeared in Italy some time before the restoration of
learning, and attacked the immortality of the soul. They
took their denomination from Averroes, from whom they
borrowed their distinguishing doctrine. The Averroists
held that the soul was mortal, according to reason _ or
philosophy, yet pretended to submit to the Christian
theology, which declares it immortal. But the distinc¬
tion was accounted suspicious ; and this divorce of faith
from reason was rejected by the doctors of that time, and
condemned by the last council of the Lateran under pope
Leo X. . .
AVERRUNCI (Dei), certain gods, whose business it
was, according to the Pagan theology, to avert misfor¬
tunes. Apollo and Hercules were of the number of these
gods among the Greeks, and Castor and Pollux among
the Romans.
A VERSA, a town of Italy, in the kingdom of Naples,
and a bishop’s see. It is situated in a very fine plain,
in long. 14. 20. E. lat. 41. 0. N.
AYES, one of the Carribbee Islands, 451 miles south of
Porto Rico, with a good harbour for the careening of ships.
It is so called from the great number of birds that frequent
it. There is another of the same name lying to the north¬
ward of this, in lat. 15. 0. N.; and a third near the east¬
ern coast of Newfoundland, in lat. 50. 5. N.
AVESBURY, Robert, an English historian, of whom
little more is known than that he was keeper of the re¬
gistry of the court of Canterbury in the reign of Edward III.
and consequently that he lived in the fourteenth century.
He wrote Memorabilia gesta magnifici regis Anglia domi-
ni Edwardi Tertii post Conqucestum, procerumque ; tactis
primitus quibusdam gestis de tempore patris sui domini Ed-
wardi Secundi, quce in regnis Anglia, Scotia, et Francia,
ac in Aquitania et Britannia, non humana sed Dei poten-
tia, contigernnt. This history ends with the battle of
Poictiers, about the year 1356. It continued in manuscript
till the year 1720, when it was printed by Hearne at Ox¬
ford, from a manuscript belonging to Sir Thomas Sea-
bright.
AVEZZANO, atown of Naples, in Abruzzo Ulteriore,
containing about 2700 inhabitants. Long. 13. 32. E. Lat.
41. 58. N.
AVIARY, a place set apart for feeding and propagat¬
ing birds. It should be so large as to give the birds some
freedom of flight; and turfed, to avoid the appearance of
foulness on the floor.
AVICENNA, or Avicenes, the prince of Arabian phi¬
losophers and physicians, was born at Assena, a village in
the neighbourhood of Buckharia. His father was from
Balkh in Persia, and had married at Buckharia. The first
years of Avicenna were devoted to the study of the koran
and the belles lettres. He soon showed what he was like¬
ly to become afterwards ; and the progress he made was
so rapid, that when he was but ten years old he was per¬
fectly intelligent in the most hidden senses of the koran.
Abu-Abdallah, a native of Naplous, in Syria, at that time
professed philosophy at Buckharia with the greatest repu¬
tation. Avicenna studied under him the principles of logic;
but being soon disgusted with the slow manner of the
schools, he set about studying alone, and read all the
authors who had written on philosophy, without any other
help than that of their commentators. Possessed with
an extreme desire to become acquainted with all sorts of
sciences, he likewise devoted himself to the study of medi¬
cine ; and, persuaded that die medical art consists as much
A V I
255
in practice as in theory, he sought every opportunity of visit- Avigliano
ing the sick, and afterwards confessed that he had learned jl
more from experience than from all the books he had read. Avignom
He was now in his sixteenth year, and was already cele-
brated as being the light of his age. At this period he
resolved to resume his studies of philosophy, which me¬
dicine had caused him to neglect; and he spent a year
and a half in this painful labour, without ever sleeping all
the time a whole night together. If he felt himself op¬
pressed by sleep or exhausted by study, a glass of wine
refreshed his wasted spirits, and gave him new vigour for
study ; if, in spite of him, his eyes for a few minutes shut
out the light, he then endeavoured to recollect and me¬
ditate upon all the things which had occupied his thoughts
before sleep. At the age of twenty-one he conceived the
bold design of incorporating, in one work, all the objects
of human knowledge; and carried it into execution in a
kind of Encyclopaedia, to which he gave the title of the
Utility of Utilities. He died at Hamadan, aged 58 years,
in the 428th year of the Hegira, and of Christ 1036.
The knowledge he had of physic did not secure him
from the ailments that afflict human nature. He was at¬
tacked by several maladies in the course of his life, and
in particular was very subject to the colic. His excesses
in pleasures, and his infirmities, made a poet who wrote
his epitaph say, that the profound study of philosophy
had not taught him good morals, nor that of medicine the
art of preserving his own health.
Avicenna, after his death, enjoyed so great a reputation,
that till the twelfth century he was preferred for the study
of philosophy and medicine to all his predecessors. His
works were the only writings in vogue in schools, even in
Europe. The following are their titles:—1. Of the Utility
and Advantage of Science, twenty books. 2. Of Inno¬
cence and Criminality, two books. 3. Of Health and
Remedies, eighteen books. 4. Canons of Physic, fourteen
books. 5. On Astronomical Observations, one book. 6.
On Mathematical Sciences. 7. Of Theorems, or Mathe¬
matical and Theological Demonstrations, one book. 8. On
the Arabic Language and its Properties, ten books. 9.
On the Last Judgment. 10. On the Origin of the Soul,
and the Resurrection of Bodies. 11. Of the End we should
propose to ourselves in Harangues and Philosophical Argu¬
mentations. 12. Demonstration of the Collateral Lines in
the Sphere. 13. Abridgement of Euclid. 14. On Finity
and Infinity. 15. On Physics and Metaphysics. 16. On
Animals and Vegetables, &c. 17. Jhe Encyclopaedia
mentioned above.
AVIGLIANO, a small town of Piedmont in Italy. Long.
7. 5. E. Lat. 44. 40. N.
AVIGNON, an arrondissement in the department of
Vaucluse, in France, the extent of which is 174 square
miles, or 117,360 acres. It comprehends five cantons, di¬
vided into 21 communes, containing 52,504 inhabitants.
The capital of the arrondissement is of the same name, and
situated in a beautiful valley on the left bank of the Rhone.
The city is surrounded by walls planted with trees, which
form an agreeable promenade. The houses are old but
large, the streets narrow and crooked, but some of the
public edifices are magnificent. The dwellings at the last
census were 2800, and the inhabitants 23,789. The chief
object of industry is the preparation of silk and the manu¬
facture of goods dependent on that substance. There are,
besides, manufactures of paper, leather, hats, jewellery,
and some other articles. Up to the French revolution the
city belonged to the papal see, and was the residence of
the several popes from 1303 to 1376. By an act of atro¬
cious injustice it was seized by the republicans, and after
some barbarous proceedings was at length united to France.
Long. 4. 52. 20. L. Lat. 43. 56. 58. N.
256
Avila
II
Avlona.
A V L
AVILA, one of the four provinces into which Old Cas¬
tile in Spain is divided. It is the least of the four, and
, most thinly peopled. The extent is 215 square leagues,
and the population 118,061 souls. The high ridge of the
mountains of Guadarrama separates it from the province of
Madrid. The principal river which waters it is the Adaja,
on which the capital Avila, a small and insignificant city,
though the see of a bishop, is built. This province, once
flourishing, has gradually declined in wealth and popula¬
tion during the last two centuries, and the exertions of
industry have not been directed of late to improvement.
The principal production is the wool of the Merino sheep,
a great number of which are shorn in this province ; and
the fleeces, after being washed and sorted, are sent to the
northern ports to be shipped to the different countries
where they are consumed. It contains one city, 82 towns,
202 villages, 299 parishes, 28 monasteries, and 19 nunne¬
ries. The inhabitants obtain of wine 150,000, of brandy
2000, and of oil 3000 arobas, and of silk 300 cwt. It is si¬
tuated between long. 4. 14. and 5. 55. W. and lat. 30. 48.
and 41. 18. N.
Avila, a town of Spain, in the province of Old Cas¬
tile. It is situated on the banks of the river Adaja, which
running towards the north and joining the Arevalillo,
empties itself into the Duero. The town is situated on a
plain, and the fields around it are highly productive in
fruits and grain. It is the seat of a bishop, and has one
cathedral, eight parish churches, sixteen monasteries, five
hospitals, 1000 houses, and 4200 inhabitants. Long. 4.59.
W. Lat. 40. 43. N.
AVIO, a market-town with 2045 inhabitants, employed
chiefly in the silk manufactory. It is situated on the river
Etsch, in the Italian confines of lioveredo, in the Austrian
principality of Tyrol.
AVIS, a walled town of Portugal, situated on the river
of the same name in Alentejo, and containing about 1500
inhabitants. It is nine miles north-west of Estremoz.
. AVISON, Charles, organist of Newcastle, and a dis¬
ciple of Geminiani, was the author of an essay on musi¬
cal expression, published in the year 1752, in which are
some judicious reflections on music in general. Through¬
out his book he celebrates Marcello and Geminiani; the lat¬
ter frequently to the prejudice of Mr Handel. In the year
1753 came out Remarks on Mr Avisoris Essay on Musical
Expression, the author whereof first points out sundry er-
rois against the lules of composition in the works of Avi-
son. In the same year Avison republished his essay, with
a reply to the author of the remarks; and a letter, con¬
taining a number of loose particulars relating to music,
collected in a course of various reading, unquestionably
written by Dr Jortin. Avison promoted and assisted in
the publication of Marcello s music to the Psalms, adapted
to English words. Of his own composition there are ex¬
tant five collections of concertos for violins, forty-four in
number, and two sets of sonatas for the harpsichord and
two violins, a species of composition little known in Eng¬
land till his time. The music of Avison is light and ele¬
gant, but it wants originality; a necessary consequence of
his too close attachment to the style of Geminiani, which
in a vttV Par^cu^ars only ho was able to imitate.
v LOis A, a 1 urkish European paschalic, comprehend¬
ing a part of the ancient Albania, and a province on the
sea-coast. It is bounded on the north and north-east by
the paschalic of I bessan, on the south-east by Yanina, on
tne south by Deloma, and on the west by the Adriatic
8ea. ihe climate and soil resemble that of the south of
trance, and the productions are similar. The woods
abound with game, and the rivers and coasts with fish. The
chief trade is the export of corn, salt, and pitch, with
some five cattle. I he inhabitants amount to about 250,000,
A X A
of whom two thirds are Arnauts and Greeks of the Greek v
church, and one third Arnauts and Turks of the Mahom- ' 3
medan faith. The Kimariots are few in number, but leadAxa iti
a wild life among the mountains, in a kind of savage re- ^ J
publican state of equality. Most of them are of the Greek
faith, but some are Mahommedans. It extends from lone.
19. 38. to 20. 25. E. and from lat. 39. 50. to 40. 51. N.
Avlona, or Valona, a city, the chief place of the
province of the same name, deriving its name from the
bay on which it is situated. The harbour is sheltered
from all winds, and the anchorage is good, with never less
than fifteen nor more than twenty-three fathoms in depth.
It has about 5000 inhabitants, many of whom are employ¬
ed in making arms of different kinds to supply the Arnauts.
It is the seat of a Greek bishop.
AVOIRDUPOIS. This was formerly the weight used
for the larger and coarser commodities, such as groceries,
cheese, wool, lead, &c. The proportion of a pound avoir¬
dupois to a pound troy is as 17 to 14.
A VOL A, a city of Sicily, in the intendancy of Sara-
gosa, on the sea-coast, with 6780 inhabitants. There are
some sugar plantations near it, but from their unprofitable¬
ness they are nearly abandoned.
AVOSET. See Ornithology.
AVRANCHES, an arrondissement in the department
of Calvados, in France, the extent of which is 475 square
miles, or 304,000 acres. It is divided into nine cantons,
and these into 127 communes, containing 106,144 inhabi¬
tants. The capital of the arrondissement is of the same
name. It stands on a hill, at the foot of which the river
Seez flows, which at high tide is navigable from the sea,
about three miles distant. It has some trade in corn, cider,
and salt. The number of inhabitants is 6144. Long. 1.
25. E. Lat. 48. 41. N.
AVSTA, a mining village in the barony of Rasgard
and province of Storakopparber (formerly Dalcarleia), in
Sweden. It suffered by fire in 1803, but has since been re¬
built and increased. It contains 115 houses and 600 in¬
habitants, all employed in the various mineral products of
the vicinity. There is a mint for coining copper money.
AWA, in Japan, the capital of a province on the south
coast of the island of Niphon, 85 miles south of Jeddo.
Long. 140. 4. E. Lat. 34. 24. N.
AWARD, in Law, the judgment of an arbitrator, or of
one who is not appointed by the law a judge, but chosen
by the parties themselves for terminating their difference.
AWASI, or Awadsi, an island of Japan, about 60 miles
in circumference. It is situated near the south coast of
Niphon. Long. 133. 44. E. Lat. 34. 30. N.
AWL, among shoemakers, an instrument wherewith
holes are bored through the leather to facilitate the stitch¬
ing or sewing of the same. The blade of the awl is usually
a little flat and bended, and the point ground to an acute
angle.
AWME, or Aume, a Dutch liquid measure, containing
eight steckens or twenty verges or verteels, equal to the
tierce in England, or to one sixth of a ton in France.
AX, a carpenter’s instrument for hewing wood. It is
furnished with a long handle or helve, for the purpose of
being used with both hands.
AX AMENT A, in Antiquity, a denomination given to
the verses or songs of the Salii, which they sung in ho¬
nour of all men. The word is formed, according to some,
from axare, q. d. nominare. Others will have the Carmine,
Saliaria to have been denominated axamenta, on account
of their having been written in axibus, or on wooden ta¬
bles. Ihe axamenta were not composed, as some have
asserted, but only sung by the Salii. The author of them
was Numa Pompilius; and as the style might not be al¬
tered, they grew in time so obscure that the Salii them-
A X I
* selves did not understand them. Varro says they were
“ll 700 years old. Quint. Inst. Or. lib. i. c. 11. _
Jtxii Axamenta, or Assamenta, in ancient music, hymns or
®al1 songs performed wholly with human voices,
kvJ axbridge, a market-town, formerly a borough, of the
hundred of Winterstoke, in the county of Somerset. It
stands on the river Ax, just below the range of the Men-
dip hills, near the great chasm through them known by
the name of Chedder Clift. The corporation is of great
antiquity, as is the large Gothic parish church. It is 130
miles from London. The market is held on Thursday.
The population in 1801 amounted to 819, in 1811 to 853,
and in 1821 to 988. . _ , T.1J
AXEL, a small fortified town in Dutch Flanders. Long.
40. 0. E. Lat. 51. 17. N.
AXHOLM, an island in the north-west part of Lincoln¬
shire, in England, formed by the rivers Trent, Idle, and
Dan. It is about twenty miles in circuit, and contains
three villages, Crowle, Epworth, and Hyrst.
AXILLA, in Anatomy, the arm-pit, or the cavity under
the upper part of the arm.
AXILLARY, something belonging to or lying near the
axilla. Thus, axillary artery is that part of the subclavian
branches of the ascending trunk of the aorta which passes
under the arm-pits ; axillary glands are situated under the
arm-pits, enveloped in fat, and lie close by the axillary ves¬
sels; axillary vein is one of the subclavians, which pass¬
es under the arm-pit, dividing itself into several branches,
which are spread over the arm. See Anatomy.
AXIM, a small territory on the Gold Coast of Africa,
due east of Apollonia. The climate in this part is so ex¬
cessively moist that it is proverbially said to rain eleven
months and twenty-nine days of the year. I his exces¬
sive moisture renders it very unhealthy, but it produces
great quantities of rice, water melons, lemons, oranges,
&c. Here are also produced vast numbers of black cat¬
tle, goats, sheep, tame pigeons, &c. The whole coun¬
try is filled with beautiful and populous villages, and the
intermediate lands are well cultivated; besides which the
natives are very wealthy, from the constant traffic carried
on with them by Europeans for their gold. The capi¬
tal, which is also called Axim, by some Achambone, stands
under the cannon of the Dutch fort St Antonio. This
fort is commodious, in an agreeable and commanding po¬
sition, and vessels may land with perfect safety. Behind,
it is secured by a thick wood that covers the whole decli¬
vity of a neighbouring hill. Between the town and the
sea runs an even and spacious shore of beautiful white
sand. All the houses are separated by groves of cocoa
and other fruit trees, planted in parallel lines, each of an
equal width, and forming an elegant vista. The little
river Axim crosses the town, and the coast is defended by
a number of small pointed rocks which project from the
shore, and render all access to it dangerous. The capital
is situated in long. 24. 0. W. lat. 5. 0. N. This canton is
a kind of republic, the government being divided between
the Caboceroes or chief men, and Manaceroes or young
men. It must be observed, however, that in their courts
there is not even a pretence of justice; whoever makes
the most valuable presents to the judges is sure to gain
the cause, the judges themselves alleging the gratitude
due for the bribes received as a reason ; and if both par¬
ties happen to make presents of nearly equal value, they
absolutely refuse to give the cause a hearing.
AXINOMANCY, Axinomantia, from securis,
and fianna, divinatio; an ancient species of divination, or
a method of foretelling future events by means of an ax or
hatchet. This art was in considerable repute amongst the
ancients, and was performed, according to some, by lay¬
ing an agate stone on a red-hot hatchet, and also by fix-
VOL. IV.
A Y A
257
Axiom
ing a hatchet on a round stake so as to be exactly poised;
then the names of those suspected wrere repeated, and II
he at whose name the hatchet moved was pronounced Ayamonj?-
guilty.
AXIOM, Axioma (from a^/ow, dignum censeo, I account
worthy), a self-evident truth, or a proposition the truth of
which every person perceives at first sight. Thus, the
whole is greater than a part; a thing cannot be and not
be at the same time ; and from nothing, nothing can arise ;
are propositions or truths of this description.
Axiom is also an established or elementary principle in
science. Thus, it is an axiom in physics, that nature
does nothing in vain ; that effects are proportional to their
causes, &c. It is an axiom in geometry, that things equal
to the same thing are also equal to one another; that if
to equal things you add equals, the sums will be equal,
&c. And it is an axiom in optics, that the angle of inci¬
dence is equal to the angle of reflection, &c.
AXIS, in Geometry, the straight line in a plain figure,
about which it revolves, to produce or generate a solid.
Thus, if a semicircle be moved round its diameter at rest,
it will generate a sphere, the axis of which is that diame-
ter.
Axis, in Astronomy, is an imaginary right line suppos¬
ed to pass through the centre of the earth, or through
that of a heavenly body, about which it performs its diur¬
nal revolutions.
Axis, in Conic Sections, a right line dividing the sec¬
tion into two equal parts, and cutting all its ordinates at
right angles.
"Axis, in Mechanics. The axis of a balance is that line
about which it moves, or rather turns about. Axis of os¬
cillation is a right line parallel to the horizon, passing
through the centre, about which a pendulum vibrates.
Axis in Peritrochio, one of the six mechanical powers,
consisting of a peritrochium or wheel concentric with the
base of a cylinder, and movable together with it about
its axis.
Axis, in Optics, is that particular ray of light, coming
from any object, which falls perpendicularly on the eye.
Axis of a Vessel, is an imaginary right line passing
through the middle of it, perpendicularly to its base, and
equally distant from its sides.
AXMINSTER, a market-town in the hundred of the
same name, in the county of Devon. It takes its name
from the river Axe, on which it stands, and the ancient
abbey church or minster which ornaments the centre of
the town, and which was built by King Athelstane to com¬
memorate a victory over the Danes. It is 147 miles from
London, on the great road to Exeter, from which it is
twenty-six miles distant. It is distinguished for its manu¬
factory of the best and most costly description of carpets;
and besides that, there is some trade in making gloves,
tapes, and druggets. The market is held on Saturday.
The population in 1801 amounted to 2154, in 1811 to
2387, and in 1821 to 2742.
AXUNGIA, in a general sense, denotes old lard, or the
driest and hardest of any fat in the bodies of animals; but
more properly it signifies only hog’s lard.
AY, or Ai, a town of France, in the department ot
Marne, containing 2500 inhabitants. It is celebrated for
its wines, which are esteemed superior to any in Cham¬
pagne. Five leagues south of Rheims.
V AYAMONTE, a town of Spain, in the province of Se¬
ville. It is a sea-port in the centre of the gulf of Huelva.
The Guadiana, increased by the stream of the Chauza, pass¬
es the town, and empties itself into the ocean at this spot.
Ayamonte is well fortified, and the harbour is good, but,
on account of a bar at its mouth, it is of difficult entrance.
Considerable employment is furnished to the sailors oi
2 K
258
AYR
Aylesbury this place by the fisheries, especially for sardinias and for
II the tunny, both of which are highly prized. It contains
5500 inhabitants. Silk spinning is carried on here. Lat.
37. 9. N. This also is the name of a town in Portugal, in the
province of Alentejo, three miles north-west of Minfort.
AYLESBURY, a market and borough town of the
hundred of the same name, in the county of Buckingham,
and thirty-nine miles from London. It stands on a gentle
hill in the centre of a fertile vale, through which one of
those small streams runs, the waters of which contribute to
form the Thames. It is favoured by the extension to it of
the Grand Junction Canal, which affords water-carriage
for coals and other heavy substances from Staffordshire,
and brings it into connection with the metropolis. There is
but little employment in manufactures, which are almost
wholly confined to bone lace. The county jail is here,
and the elections for the county are also held at Ayles¬
bury, as well as the sessions, and in alternate times the
assizes. The market is held on Saturday. The popula¬
tion in 1801 amounted to 3186, in 1811 to 3447, and in
1821 to 4404.
AYLMER, John, bishop of London in the reign of
Queen Elizabeth, was born in the year 1521, at Aylmer-
ha.ll, in the parish of Tilney, in the county of Norfolk.
W hilst a boy, he was distinguished for his quick parts by
the marquis of Dorset, afterwards duke of Suffolk, who
sent him to Cambridge, and made him his chaplain, and
tutor to his children. One of these children was the un¬
fortunate Lady Jane Grey, who soon became perfectly ac¬
quainted with the Latin and Greek languages. His first
preferment was to the archdeaconry of Stow, in the dio¬
cese of Lincoln ; which gave him a seat in the convocation
held in the first year of Queen Mary, where he resolutely
opposed the return to popery, to which the generality of
the clergy were inclined. He was soon after obliged to
flee his country and take shelter among the Protestants in
Switzerland. On the accession of Queen Elizabeth he re¬
turned to England. In 1562, he obtained the archdea¬
conry of Lincoln, and was a member of the famous synod
of that year, which reformed and settled the doctrine and
discipline of the church of England. In the year 1576, he
was conseciated bishop of London. He died in the year
1594, aged 73, and was buried in St Paul’s. He was a
learned man, a zealous father of the church, and a bitter
enemy to the Puritans. He published a piece entitled
Harborowe for Faiihfull and Trewe Subjects against the late
blowne Blaste concerning the Government of Women, &c.
Ihis was written whilst he was abroad, in answer to Knox,
who published a book in Geneva under this title, The
First Blast of the Trumpet against ike Monstrous Regiment
and Empire of Women. He is supposed by Strype to
have published Lady Jane Grey’s letter to Plarding. He
also assisted Fox in translating his History of Marturs
into Latin. ^
AYLSHAM, a market-town of the hundred of South
Erpingham, in the county of Norfolk, 112 miles from
London. It has a good market-place, is a cheerful look¬
ing town,^ and is connected with the sea by a navigable
canal. There was formerly some trade in knitting stock¬
ings, which has much declined of late years. The market
f ^urday- The population in 1801 amounted
ivZffnr811 17G0\and ln 1821 to 1853.
Yi! 1ARGUES, a city in the arrondissement of Nismes
and department o the Gard, in France. It is situated on
tandylutfllerie. y’ ‘md ^ 1800 inhabita"‘8> ™h
AYORA, a well-built town, pleasantly situated, in the
government of Cof rentes and province of Valencia, in Spain,
containing 5850 inhabitants. 1
A\ R, a loyal burgh, the capital of Ayrshire, is situated
AYR
at the influx of the river Ayr into the Irish Sea. The a
spot has been inhabited from a remote antiquity. It was ^ j
the site of a Roman station; and it has been ascertained
that a hamlet remained here until the year 1197, when
William the Lion engrafted a new town upon it, which
about the year 1202 he constituted a royal burgh. In an¬
cient times Ayr was distinguished both for its trade and
military strength; and being an important point of con¬
centration on the w^est, it was the scene of frequent con¬
flict, and repeatedly changed hands during the wars of
Scotish independence in the times of the Edwards and
the Bruces. Here Edward I. fixed a powerful garrison,
and here the patriotic exploits of Sir William Wallace com¬
menced. When Scotland was overrun by Oliver Cromwell,
he fixed upon it as the site of one of the four forts which
he built to command the country. This fortification, term¬
ed the citadel, inclosed an area of about ten or twelve
acres, including the old church where the Scotish parlia¬
ment met and confirmed the title of Robert Bruce to the
throne : but the church was converted into a storehouse;
the Protector partly indemnifying the inhabitants for this
seizure by liberally contributing towards the erection of a
new place of worship, which was made large enough to ac¬
commodate 2000 individuals. The town of Ayr forms a
tolerably regular parallelogram, extending up the south
side of the river Ayr, which is crossed by two bridges; and
it possesses several good streets and a number of elegant
public and other buildings. The Ayr academy is a hand¬
some edifice ; and the town-house, recently erected, is con¬
sidered the finest structure of the kind in the west of Scot¬
land. There are also the county buildings, which afford
extensive accommodation for the circuit and provincial
courts and the various local authorities. Contiguous to
these stands the jail, a well-regulated establishment. In
addition to the church already mentioned, there is a mo¬
dern erection, besides several dissenting places of worship
and a Roman Catholic chapel. Ayr possesses numerous
charitable establishments, a dispensary, a flourishing me¬
chanics’ institution, an extensive subscription library; and
it also supports a weekly newspaper. There are two
weekly markets and four yearly fairs. The principal ma¬
nufactures of Ayr are tanning, boot and shoe making,
soap-boiling, and ship-building to a small extent. The
trade of the port is carried on in small vessels only, the
water never rising above twelve feet. The exportations,
however, are extensive for the size of the town; con¬
sisting of coal, iron, brown paint, coal-tar, casks, lamp¬
black, soapers’ salts, and Water-of-Ayr stones. The im¬
ports are also considerable from South America, the colo¬
nies, and Ireland; consisting of hides, tallow’, beef, but¬
ter, barley, yarn, linen, spars, deals, hemp, &c. Two re¬
flecting light-houses are erected to guide vessels to the
entrance ot the harbour. There is a steam-boat convey¬
ance to and from Glasgow during the summer months, and
there are regular traders to several of the principal English
and Scotish ports. It is 75 miles S. W. of Edinburgh.
Long. 4. 37. W. Lat. 55. 27. N. The population of the
burgh and parish in 1831 was 7606.
Ayr, Newton upon. While the burgh of Ayr ex¬
tends along the south side of the river Ayr, this small pa¬
rish is situated on the north side of the same river. It is
a burgh of considerable consequence, having a baronial
jurisdiction, and governed by a magistracy elected by free¬
men, but without parliamentary representation. It is of
very ancient erection, owing its privileges to Robert Bruce;
who, upon being attacked by leprosy, came to reside in
this place, and was induced to establish a lazarhouse, and
to confer considerable favours on the town, and on the small
village of Priestwick, about two or three miles distant.
In Newton-upon-Ayr are a number of very good houses.
AYR
AYR 259
A
I
Ayrf
Agr
tun
It has a tolerably good harbour, chiefly occupied with the
coal trade. From its situation on the banks of the Ayr
■e. an(i the sea-coast, the soil is mostly flat and sandy. Its
^ extent is about three miles in length and one and a half
in breadth. In 1811 the population was 2809.
Ayr, a river in Ayrshire, which takes its rise in the
high grounds dividing the shire on the east from Lanark¬
shire, and, pursuing a westerly course for 18 miles, falls
into the sea at the town to which it gives name. The
volume of its waters is not large, but it sometimes shifts
its bed, and does considerable damage. It contains those
whetstones called Water-of-Ayr stones, which are export¬
ed in considerable quantities.
AYRSHIRE, a county in the west of Scotland, consi¬
derable for its population and industry, is bounded by
Wigtonshire and the stewartry of Kirkcudbright on the
south, by the counties of Dumfries and Lanark on the
north-east and east, by Renfrewshire on the north, and
by the Irish Sea and the Frith of Clyde for about 70 miles
on the west. It contains about 1060 square miles, or
665,600 statute acres, consisting of the following descrip¬
tions of soil, viz. clay soil 261,960 acres, sand or light soil
120,110 acres, and of moss and moorlands 283,530 acres.
About one half of the whole is now under cultivation.
The middle part of the county is broadest, and extends to
about 25 miles across, both ends diminishing to a few miles
in breadth. The high ridgy land which stretches along
its eastern boundary shuts it out, in a general sense, from
the adjacent counties, and the surface inclines either to
the sea or to the rivers which flow towards it. Ayrshire
possesses only six rivers of note, Ayr, Stinchar, Girvan,
Boon, Irvine, and Garnock; but the streams are very nu¬
merous, and fresh-water lakes abound, of which Doon is
the most extensive, and the parent of the river bearing
that name. None of the mountains are deserving of par¬
ticular notice. In former times the shire was divided into
three districts; Carrick, lying on the southern side of the
Doon; Kyle, lying between the rivers Doon and Irvine;
and Cunningham, comprehending the whole of the county
north of the river Irvine. These divisions, although abo¬
lished by the statute, still continue to be recognised in
statistical descriptions of the county. Carrick is a hilly,
wild region, and only of value in its northern quarter.
It contains nine parishes, and comprises 393 square miles.
Kyle possesses much valuable land towards the coast, but
the interior is rough and mountainous ; it contains twenty-
one parishes, with a superficies of 403 square miles. But
the most fertile part of the county is Cunningham, which
is comparatively level, comprising 244 square miles, and
sixteen parishes. The valued rent is L.191,605 0s. 7d.
Scots, and in 1811 the real rent of the lands was L.336,471
10s., and that of the houses L.22,823 sterling. The division
of property is considered as not unfavourable to the pros¬
perity of the different classes of the population, though
it appears that more than a third part of the whole county
is held under settlements of entail. The advantages pos¬
sessed by Ayrshire, besides its sea-coast and several ex¬
cellent harbours, may be traced to the coal and limestone
found in great abundance in almost every part of it,—the
pne so necessary to its manufactures, and the other to
its agriculture; and the chief natural disadvantage under
which it labours is the humidity of its climate, aggravated
by the quality of a considerable part of the soil, which is
a tenacious clay.
1- Agriculture, according to the more approved courses of
management, has nevertheless made considerable pro¬
gress of late in this county. The old rotation of three
consecutive crops of corn, followed by six years hay and
pasture, has been very generally abandoned in the new
Rases; and, on the better soils, an alternation of white
and green crops, and an interchange of tillage and pas- Ayrshire,
turage, as in the eastern counties of Scotland, begin to
prevail. The dairy is, however, the chief object of atten¬
tion to the Ayrshire husbandmen, and their valuable breed
of cows, and rich yet mild cheese known by the name of
Dunlop cheese, are in great repute in most parts of Bri¬
tain. Their horses, under the general name of Clydes¬
dale or Lanarkshire horses, are equal, if not superior, to
those of any other race in the island; almost every small
farmer (and the farms are generally too small) either
rearing one or more himself, or purchasing them when
young, and reselling them to the eastern counties after a
year or two of very moderate labour. Nevertheless, it must
be admitted that the agriculture of Ayrshire is much in¬
ferior to that of the counties on the east coast. No regular
system of cleansing and manuring the soil, nor of fallow¬
ing and draining the wet lands, is to be seen throughout
the greater part of the district. The size of the farms is
commonly from 50 to 150 acres, affording little scope for
the employment of capital or the division of labour; and
yet the rents are surprisingly high, some favoured spots
bringing not less than eight pounds or guineas an acre.
Ayrshire, as a manufacturing district, seems to stand Manufac-
next in importance among the Scotish counties to the con-tures.
tiguous shires of Lanark and Renfrew. Various branches
of the woollen manufacture are carried on to a consider¬
able extent in different parts of it. In Kilmarnock, har¬
ness and printed worsted shawls are manufactured to the
yearly amount of L.200,000, carpets to L.100,000, boots
and shoes to L.32,000, and bonnets to L.12,000; and be¬
sides the public establishments there, and in other parts
of the county, many private families in almost every pa¬
rish take a share in the manufacture of blankets and
coarse cloths; a part of which, after supplying their own
wants, is carried to the fairs and markets of the county.
Beith has long been noted for its thread manufacture.
But the cotton works at Catrine are by far the most ex¬
tensive of all its manufactories, employing about 1800
hands, who are said to make 35,000 yards of cloth per
week. At Muirkirk and Glenbuck, pig and bar iron are
wrought to a great extent, and founderies have been erect¬
ed there and in other places. Leather, saddlery, earthen¬
ware, kelp, and salt, are the only other kinds of manufac¬
ture worthy of notice in this county.
Ayr, Irvine, and Saltcoats, were, till very lately, the Commerce,
only harbours much frequented; and at these places there
has long been a little trade with Ireland, America, and the
Baltic, and a considerable trade coastwise. The port of
Ayr has 60 small vessels of about 6000 tons burden; and
Irvine, Saltcoats, Troon, Ardrossan, Largs, and Arran, 100
vessels of about 10,000 tons burden. Coal is the staple
article of export, and corn the most considerable of its
imports ; the ports on the Clyde having hitherto been the
grand emporium of the west of Scotland.
This county exhibits examples of public spirit in its
great landed proprietors beyond any other in Scotland, or
probably in the British empire. The harbour and other
works at Ardrossan, begun under the auspices of the late
Earl of Eglintoun, the harbour of Troon, and the railway
from thence to Kilmarnock, formed almost entirely at the
expense of the Duke of Portland, are worthy monuments,
no less of the enlightened judgment and energy, than of
the wealth, of these two patriotic noblemen; and the dis¬
tant prospect of remuneration, which it is much to be
wished could be amply realized, can detract in no respect
from the merit of such grand and princely undertakings.
The harbour of Ardrossan has been for many years in
a state to receive shipping, and is considered as one of the
safest, most capacious, and most accessible on the west
coast of Scotland; possessing many advantages over the
260
AYS
Ayrshire harbours in the Frith of Clyde, situate in a narrow chan-
li nel, which can be navigated only when the wind blows
' Ayscue. ^ from particular points, and which, for upwards of twenty
miles below Glasgow, is both shallow and dangerous. A
harbour. circu^r pier of 900 yards was finished in 1811; and the
wet dock and other appendages, which, according to Mr
Telford's plan, were to contain from 70 to 100 vessels, in
water sixteen feet deep, were begun and nearly completed,
when the death of the Earl of Eglinton in 1820 brought
them to a stand. They were merely suspended, however,
and will be resumed when the present earl attains majo¬
rity, which will happen in a year or two. It was part of
the plan to raise a neat, regular-built town at Ardrossan, in
which some progress has been made; and excellent baths
have been constructed, which draw to it a number of vi¬
sitors during the summer season.
The harbour of Ardrossan was only part of the gene¬
ral plan, and that from which, viewed by itself, the small¬
est advantages perhaps were to be expected. The lead¬
ing idea was to open up a direct communication between
Glasgow, Paisley, and other large towns in the vicinity,
and the west coast, instead of the present circuitous pas-
Canal. sage by the Frith of Clyde. A canal was therefore to be
cut from Glasgow to Ardrossan, about thirty-one and a
half miles, at the estimated expense of L.125,000. Of
this only a third has been executed, that is, from Glasgow
AYS
to Johnstone, which cost about L.90,G00. The rest of the A;
track will be completed by a railway, of which some miles
have been already laid from Ardrossan eastwards. A
The harbour at Troon, connected as it now is with Kil- ^
marnock, by means of a railway, seems to possess all the?”
advantages of that of Ardrossan. The wet and dry docks D°U
are also excellent, and very well employed. There are
also extensive warehouses, and a yard for building vessels.
The railway from Troon to Kilmarnock, a distance of tenBai v,
miles, has been in full operation for fifteen years, and an¬
swers all the purposes for which it was originally intend¬
ed. There are upwards of 3000 acres of coal fields in its
course, which must in time indemnify the duke of Port¬
land for his outlay both on this and the harbour. Coals
have been hitherto the principal article of conveyance to¬
wards the Troon, at the rate of 100 tons daily; and from
thence timber, iron, grain, &c. are transported to Kilmar¬
nock and the country adjacent. Locomotive engines were
attempted upon it about 15 years ago, but the experiment
did not succeed. However, from the improvements re¬
cently made upon these machines, it is probable that they
may soon be resumed. This railway has cost the duke
upwards of L.50,000, and the harbour is estimated at
about the same sum.
The following abstract will exhibit a comparative viewPo] >
of the population of Ayrshire in 1811, 1821, and 1831:—-tiw
1811.
DISTRICTS.
Carrick 
Cunningham.
Kyle 
2,997
6,206
6,204
15,407
By how
many Fa¬
milies oc¬
cupied.
3,450
10,167
7,877
21,494
132
138
192
462
OCCUPATIONS.
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Agricul¬
ture.
1,474
1,725
2,186
5,385
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Trade, Ma¬
nufactures,
or Handi¬
craft.
1,335
6,133
3,886
11,354
All other
Families
not com¬
prised in
the two
preceding
classes.
641
2,390
1,805
4,755
PERSONS.
Males.
7,665
21,390
19,451
48,506
Females.
8,557
24,737
22,154
55,448
Total of
Persons.
16,222
46,127
41,605
103,954
1821.
DISTRICTS.
Carrick 
Cunningham.
Kyle 
HOUSES.
3,608
7,419
6,815
17,842
By how
many Fa¬
milies oc¬
cupied.
4,888
11,775
9,982
26,645
110
143
153
406
OCCUPATIONS.
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Agricul¬
ture.
1,690
2,375
2,142
6,207
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Trade, Ma¬
nufactures,
or Handi¬
craft.
2,586
7,505
4,917
15,008
All other
Families
not com-
pi-ised in
the two
preceding
classes.
612
1,895
2,923
5,430
PERSONS.
Males.
10,523
26,426
24,128
61,077
Females.
10,803
29,404
26,015
66,222
Total of
Persons.
21,326
55,830
50,143
127,299
In last the population of Carrick amounted to 25,536 ; of Cunningham to 63,506; and of Kyle to 56,066 ; total 145,108.
AYRAINES, a town in the department of the Somme tained the honour of knighthood from King Charles L
an le arron issemento Amurs, in France, with a popu- which, however, did not withhold him from adhering to
lation of 1560 inhabitants.    tt   
lation of 1560 inhabitants,
'^'ERY, hawks, a nest or company of hawks,
so called from the old French word aire, which signifies
the same thing.
AYSCLE, Sir George, a gallant English admiral,
descended from a good family in Lincolnshire. He ob-
the parliament in the civil war. He was by them consti¬
tuted admiral of the Irish seas, where he is said to have
done great service to the Protestant interest, and to have
contributed much to the reduction of the whole island.
In 1651 he reduced Barbadoes and Virginia, then held for
the king, to the obedience of the parliament; and soon
a? ^
A Z E A Z O 261
i after the Restoration behaved with much gallantry in the
war with the Dutch. In the famous engagement in the
an-beginning of June 1666, when Sir George was admiral of
J the white squadron, his ship, the Royal Prince, i-an upon
the Gallop-sand, where, being surrounded with enemies,
his men obliged him to strike. He went no more to sea
after this, but spent the rest of his days in retirement.
AYTON, a village and parish of Scotland, in the coun¬
ty of Berwick, on the river Eye. The population is 1379.
It is % miles west of Berwick.
AZAMOR, a small sea-port of the kingdom of Morocco,
in Africa. It is situated on the river Morbeya, in the
province of Duguella, at a considerable distance from its
mouth. This town, though formerly very considerable, is
ill fitted for maritime commerce, the entrance of the river
being very dangerous. It was unsuccessfully besieged by
the Portuguese in 1508; it was taken, however, in 1513,
by the duke of Braganza, but abandoned about the end of
the sixteenth century. According to Mr Jackson, the
present population does not exceed 1000. Long. 8. 15. W.
Lat. 33. 20. N.
AZARIAH, or Uzziah, a king of Judah, succeeded
his father Amaziah, 810 years before Christ. He assem¬
bled an army of above 300,000 men, with which he con¬
quered the Philistines, demolishing the walls of Gath,
Jabniel, and Ashdod, and built up the walls of Jerusalem,
furnished the city with conduits, and planted gardens and
vineyards; but at last, being elated with his prosperity,
and resolving to usurp the office of high-priest, he was
struck with leprosy, which obliged him to remain shut
up in his palace for the rest of his days. He died about
759 years before the Christian era, and was succeeded by
Jotham his son. There are several other persons of this
name mentioned in the sacred Scriptures.
AZAZEL. This word relates to the history of the
scape-goat, under the Jewish religion. Some call the
goat itself by this name, as St Jerome and Theodoret.
l)r Spenser says, the scape-goat was to be sent to Aza-
zel, by which is meant the devil. M. Le Clerc translates
\tprcecipitium, making it that steep and inaccessible place
to which the goat was sent, and where it was supposed to
perish.
AZEITAO, a town of Portugal, in the bailiwick of St
Ubes and province of Estremadura. It is situated on a
small river that runs into the Tagus, and contains 552
houses, with 2342 inhabitants. There is here a calico
printing manufactory, as well as several tanneries.
AZERBIJAN, a province of Persia, part of the ancient
Media. It is separated from Armenia on the north by
the river Araxes, and from Irak on the south by the Kizilo-
zein or Golden stream. It has the Caspian Sea and Ghi-
lan on the east, and Armenia and Kurdistan on the west.
The country is superior to the southern provinces of Persia,
being richly diversified with wood and water. It differs
entirely from the provinces of Ears and Irak, as it consists
of a regular succession of undulating eminences, partially
cultivated, and opening into plains, such as Anjan, Tabreez,
and Urumea or Ooroomea or Van. To the south the
mountains of Sahund rise in an accumulated mass to the
clouds; and on the north the black rocks of the district
of Karabang disappear in the luxuriant vegetation of the
plain of Mogam, which is 225 miles in length by seventy-
five in breadth, and famed for its luxuriant pastures.
Azerbijan is a fertile country, and of a most pleasing as¬
pect. It is reckoned one of the most productive provinces
of Persia, and the villages have a more pleasing appear¬
ance than those of Irak. The orchards and gardens, in
which they are for the most part embosomed, yield deli¬
cious fruits of almost every description. Provisions are
cheap and abundant, and wine is made in considerable
quantities. This province is watered by several consider- Azimuth
able rivers, namely, the Araxes, the Kizilozein, and the II
Jugatty, which issues from the mountains of Ardelan, and
is perhaps larger than either. The other rivers are the 1_<_
Yezdican, which has its source sixty miles east of Lake ‘
Urumea, and joins the Araxes ; the Agi, whose waters are
drained away in irrigation ; and the Shar, which falls into
the lake of Urumea. This is a great lake, about 300 miles
in circumference. Its waters are more intensely salt
than the sea. It is surrounded by some of the most fer¬
tile districts in Persia. The country to the north and
west, namely, the districts of Ooroomea and Selmart, con¬
tains, the first 400 villages, and the second between 300
and 400 villages, flourishing and populous. This is the
most picturesque and the most prosperous part of Azer¬
bijan ; yet even here the traveller from the more civilized
regions of Europe laments at every step the sloth and
want of enterprise among the inhabitants, who entirely
neglect the natural advantages of their country. There
are many rivers which fall into the lake, by which the pro¬
duce of the rich and well-cultivated valleys through which
they run might be transported across its waters, and dis¬
persed among the different towns in the province. But -
there is not a single boat on this extensive expanse of
water. The truth is, that individual exertion is damped
by the tyranny of the government; the inhabitants fear¬
ing, that if boats were constructed for the navigation of
the lake, they would be subjected to heavy duties, or arbi¬
trarily impressed into the service of government. The
bulk of the people are so held down by their rulers, that,
in the hope of bettering their condition, they would hail
with pleasure the approach of a Russian army. Lead,
copper, saltpetre, and sulphur, are found within the con¬
fines of Azerbijan; also a kind of beautiful transparent
marble or jasper, which takes the highest polish, and is
used in the buildings of Tabreez, Schiraz, and Ispahan, under
the name of Tabreez marble. The province is divided into
twelve districts. The chief towns are Tabriz or iabreez,
containing 30,000 inhabitants; Meanna, Ardebil, Shebus-
ter; Tasouj, in ruins; Selmart, with 2000 inhabitants;
Khoee, with 25,000; Ooroomea, with 12,000; and Maraga,
with 15,000. The climate is healthful, in summer and au¬
tumn hot, but cold in winter, which is severely felt by the
lower orders, owing to the want of fuel, for which there is no
substitute except dried cow-dung mixed with straw. The
spring is temperate and delightful in the plains, but on the
mountains snow lies for eight months in the year; and
hail storms are so violent as frequently to destroy cattle in
the fields. The best soils yield from fifty to sixty fold when
abundantly irrigated; and supplies of water for this purpose
are drawn from the many small rivers by which the pro¬
vince is intersected. Oxen are generally used to draw
the plough. (Kinneir s GcoQTaphiccil MemoiT of tuo Per-
siccn Empire $ Fraser s Travels and Adventures in the Per¬
sian Provinces on the Caspian Sea.')
AZIMUTH, in Astronomy, an arch of the horizon, in¬
tercepted between the meridian of the place and the
vertical circle passing through the centie of tlm object.
Magnetical Azimuth, an arch of the horizon, intercept¬
ed between the vertical circle passing through the centre
of any heavenly body and the magnetical meridian.
Azimuth Compass, an instrument for finding either the
magnetical azimuth or amplitude of a heavenly object.
Azimuth Circles, called also azimuths or vertical circles,
are great circles of the sphere intersecting each other in
the zenith and nadir, and cutting the horizon at right an¬
gles. On these are reckoned the height of the stars and
that of the sun when not in the meridian.
AZOGA Ships were those Spanish ships commonly
called the quicksilver ships, from their carrying quicksilver
262 A Z O
Azoni to the Spanish West Indies, in order to extract the silver
II from the ore obtained in the mines of Mexico and Peru.
'^zorf-j These ships were not permitted to carry goods unless for
the king of Spain’s account.
AZONI, in Ancient Mythology, a name applied by the
Greeks to such of the gods as were deities at large, not
appropriated to the worship of any particular town or coun¬
try, but acknowledged in general by all countries, and
worshipped by every nation. These the Latins called dii
communes. Of this sort were the Sun, Mars, Luna, &c.
AZOPH or Asow, a city on the sea of that name, situ¬
ated at the embouchure of the river Don. It was formerly
a place of great importance, but has declined since 1774,
when it became a fixed part of the Russian empire. The
harbour is nearly choked up, and the fortifications are ne¬
glected. It now contains about 3000 inhabitants, chiefly
occupied in fishery. The country around, although un¬
healthy, is fruitful in vines. It is in long. 39. 8. E. and
lat. 47. 6. N.
AZORES, or Western Islands. These form a range
situate in the Atlantic Ocean, extending in an oblique
line from north-west to south-east, between the 37th and
40th degrees of north latitude, and the 25th and 32d de¬
grees of west longitude. It has been a subject of some
controversy among geographers, to what quarter of the
world they ought to be referred. Originally attached to
Africa, they were afterwards, w-ith evident impropriety,
transferred to America, and are now more generally view¬
ed as part of Europe, although their connection with and
general resemblance to the other African groups rather
incline us to adhere to the first arrangement.
It does not appear that the ancients had any knowledge
of the Azores, or of any group in this sea, except the Ca¬
naries, to which they finally applied the celebrated appel¬
lation of the Fortunate Islands. But the Arabian geogra¬
phers, Edrisi and Ibn al Vardi, describe, after the Cana¬
ries, nine other islands, situate in the WTstern Ocean.
That these were the Azores is rendered highly probable,
by considering that their number is exactly nine, and that
mention is made by these writers of the abundance of a
, species of eagle or hawk; a circumstance which afterwards
appeared to the Portuguese so remarkable, that they de¬
rived the name of the islands from it. The climate in
which they are placed also makes them north of the Ca¬
naries. Some other coincidences might be pointed out
did our limits permit; and, upon the whole, we see no
reason to doubt that the Azores are really the nine is¬
lands enumerated by the Arabians, although two of the
number might probably be Madeira and "Porto Santo,
whilst the small islands of Corvo and Flores might remain
unnoticed. The Arabian writers represent them as having
been populous, and as having contained cities of some
magnitude; but they state that the inhabitants had been
greatly reduced by intestine warfare.
The first European discovery of this group is claimed
by the Flemings. The Portuguese, eagerly bent upon
pursuing their career of navigation along the coast of
Africa, did not readily turn into any other direction. A
Flemish merchant, called Van der Berg, is reported, in
sailing from Lisbon, to have been driven upon these shores.
The intelligence soon reached the court of Lisbon, where
it excited considerable interest. It is even said that
Prince Henry went in person to examine the value of
this new discovery. In 1459 the islands began to be
planted and colonized, and in so fertile a soil the inha¬
bitants rapidly multiplied. In 1466 Alphonzo V. is said
to have granted them to his sister the Duchess of Bur¬
gundy, though in that case they must have soon reverted
to the Portuguese crown. In 1580 they fell, with the
other Portuguese territories, under the dominion of Spain.
A Z O
The Azores were at this time the grand rendezvous in the Ai j.
voyage homewards of the fleets, which came laden with ^ J
the wealth of both the Indies. Hence they became a
theatre of that maritime warfare which was carried on
with such spirit by the English under Queen Elizabeth
against the peninsular powers. In 1586 Sir Walter
Raleigh equipped two pinnaces of 35 and 40 tons, the
command of.which he gave to Captain Whiddon. Hav¬
ing taken two or three prizes, they fell in, off St Michael,
with the great fleet of Spanish galleons, consisting of 24
sail, two of them caracks of 1000 or 1200 tons. They at¬
tacked them, however, without hesitation, hoping to cut
off some straggling member of this great body. It will
not surprise our readers that they were unable to make
any impression upon it; but they retired without loss.
In 1587 Sir Francis Drake, after having swept the har¬
bour of Cadiz, sailed for the Azores, where he took an
East India carack, richly laden, and the first that had ever
fallen into the hands of the English. In 1589 the Earl of
Cumberland fitted out a squadron, sailed for the Azores,
and made numerous prizes.
Under the active administration of Pombal, consider¬
able exertions were made for the improvement of the
Azores; but the stupid and bigoted government which
followed rather tended to destroy these benefits, and to
make the islands take a retrograde course.
The Azores have of late attracted some attention as the
theatre of contest between the parties contending for the
crown of Portugal. The adherents of the constitution,
who support against Miguel the rights of Maria da Gloria,
obtained possession of Terceira, where they have succeed¬
ed in maintaining themselves. They have even by the
latest accounts been able to occupy Fayal; but St Michael
is still held by their adversaries.
In giving a description of these islands, we shall begin St >lpl
with St Michael, the largest and most populous, and
the one in which the peculiar physical structure of the
Azores is exhibited on the greatest scale. It consists
generally of a fertile plain, but diversified by an infinite
variety of hills and mountains, all bearing evident marks of
volcanic action. The centre of the island contains chiefly
small conical hills; but the eastern and western quarters
rise into lofty mountains, with deep valleys and lakes in¬
tervening. The face of the country is almost everywhere
smiling; the plains are covered with luxuriant crops;
vines and oranges grow on the hills; and even the moun¬
tains are adorned with myrtles, laurels, and other ever¬
green shrubs. All appears a paradise ; nor could the ob¬
server at first suspect that this was a spot chosen, as it
were, by nature for the display of all her most terrible
phenomena. The form of the mountains, however, soon
indicates their history. There are few which, after being
moulded by the volcano, have not been rent by the earth¬
quake. In some cases the chasm is so complete, that a
level path has been formed between the severed members.
One of the most remai’kable appearances of this kind oc¬
curs in the Porto de Ilheo, a small island about a quarter
of a mile from the harbour of Villa Franca. Here a vol-
canic rock, 2000 feet high, has been completely split, ex¬
hibiting a chasm 39 feet wide from the top, to seven feet
below the surface of the water. It thus forms, for a few
small vessels, a harbour perfectly safe from every vicis¬
situde of the weather.
In the year 1591 a most tremendous earthquake ap¬
pears to have been felt all over the Azores, and to
have shaken St Michael for twelve days without inter¬
mission. Since that period there is no record of any
such great convulsion, except one in 1757, of which we
have no particulars, and it was probably much less for¬
midable ; nor are any of its volcanoes at present in a state
A Z O
Az( 5. of action. Hot springs abound in every part of the island,
> ^ and from almost every crevice vapour is seen issuing. But
the most remarkable phenomena are the Caldeiras or boil¬
ing fountains, which rise chiefly from a valley called the
Furnas, near the western extremity of the island. The
water ascends in columns to the height of about twelve
feet, after which it dissolves in vapour, forming clouds of
various shapes and colours. The heat is such as to boil
an egg in two minutes, though the sulphureous impregna¬
tion unfits it for being employed in culinary purposes. The
ground in the immediate vicinity is entirely covered with
native sulphur, like hoar frost. At a small distance is a re¬
markable phenomenon called the Muddy Crater, the vertex
of which, forty-five feet in diameter, is on a level with the
plain. Its contents are in a state of violent and continual
ebullition, accompanied with a sound resembling the waves
of a tempestuous ocean. Yet they never rise above its level,
unless occasionally to throw to a small distance a spray of
the consistence of melted lead. The Furnas abound also
in hot springs, some of which it is impossible to touch
without being scalded. There is almost always, however,
a cold spring near to the hot one, so that the water can be
brought to any temperature that may be desired. These
springs, after being long neglected, have, within the last
half century, been greatly resorted to, and the cures per¬
formed in cases of palsy, rheumatism, and similar mala¬
dies, are said to have been very wonderful.
St Michael is about 50 miles in length, and varies in
breadth from about 5 to 12 miles. The plains are fertile in
wheat, barley, and Indian corn ; whilst vines and oranges
grow luxuriantly on the sides of the mountains. They
are made to spring even from the interstices of the vol¬
canic rocks, which are sometimes blasted in order that they
may receive the plants. Raised in this manner, these fruits
are said to be of superior quality ; but the great expense
originally required in such a mode of cultivation confines
jt to persons of some capital. The western part of the
island yields hemp, which might be raised to a consider¬
able extent. There is also a mountain called Pico de
Fer, which appears to be rich in iron, though no means
are at present employed for extracting the ore. The
exports consist of wine, fruit, and provisions. Foreign in¬
tercourse used to be confined rigorously to Lisbon; but
since the emigration of the court, the inhabitants have as¬
sumed the privilege of trafficking directly with England,
America, and other countries. After defraying the ex¬
pense of its local government, it yields L.28,000 of revenue
to the mother country.
Ihe principal town in the island is Ponta del Gada,
which contains about 12,000 inhabitants. It is built with
ffilerable regularity, the streets being straight and broad.
1 he religious edifices are numerous and elegant. They
consist of two large convents of the orders of St Francis
and St Augustin, four for professed nuns, and three re-
co himentos for such as are not professed. The har-
our receives only small vessels : those of any magni-
ude must anchor in an open road, which, though not dan¬
gerous, cannot be occupied during the prevalence of south-
es'. H however, the best roadstead in the
Is ana' Hibeira Grande is also a large town on the south
coast, containing nearly as many inhabitants as Ponta del
a a. It has two large convents, and there are several
warm springs situate in its neighbourhood. Villa Franca,
aiso, though nearly destroyed by the earthquake of 1591,
‘ now a considerable city. Alagoa, Agoa de Pao, Porto
rmoza, and a few others, are also of some magnitude,
pj lWQn°ie»umber °f inhabitants in the island is estimat-
tahlp Vi 90,000. The people appear to be hospi-
fip .’. ut ^dolent and luxurious, and entirely under the
dominion of the priesthood.
A Z O
263
St Mary is a small island immediately adjacent to St Azores.
Michael, through the medium of which its trade is con- v—
ducted, as it has no good harbours of its own. It pro-St Mar>r-
duces wheat in abundance, and exports a considerable
quantity. The soil is composed of clay, which is partly
manufactured into pottery.
Terceira, though smaller than St Michael, yet being Terceira.
placed in a more central position with respect to the other
islands, has been chosen as the seat of government. The
port of Angra is also superior to any of those in St Michael.
This island does not exhibit nearly the same extensive traces
of volcanic action ; and the summits of its mountains are
generally level. It is represented by Adanson, however, as
entirely composed of volcanic products. The lava, he says,
is of a thicker grain than that of Teneriffe. It abounds in
grain and cattle ; but the wines are inferior, and the fruits
are-raised merely for internal consumption. The residence
of the government renders the society somewhat superior
to that which is found in the other islands. The number
of inhabitants is estimated at 50,000.
Fayal is the most frequented of all the islands, as itFayal
has the best harbour in the Azores, and lies directly in
the track of vessels that are crossing the Atlantic in any
direction. The principal town is called Villa de Horta.
Captain Cook observes that all sorts of fresh provisions
may be got there ; the bullocks and hogs are good, but the
sheep small and wretchedly poor. The town is defended
by two castles and a wall, both in decay, and serving ra¬
ther for show than strength. The city contains two con¬
vents for monks and three for nuns, with eight churches.
These are the only good buildings in it, no other having
glass windows. The bay is two miles in length and three
quarters of a mile in breadth, and the depth of water from
six to twenty fathoms. Though a good road, it is not al¬
together free from danger in south-south-west and south¬
east winds.
A considerable quantity of wine is exported from this Pico,
place under the appellation of Fayal wine, but really
the produce of Pico, one of the most remarkable of the
Azores. This island is composed of an immense conical
mountain, rising to the height of 7000 feet, and bearing
every trace of volcanic formation. The soil consists en¬
tirely of pulverized lava, and the ground has even been
said to sound hollow when struck. All the lower parts
of the mountain are in the highest state of cultivation, and
covered with vine and orange plantations. The wine an¬
nually exported to the amount of about 5000 pipes forms
a sort of inferior Madeira, which, selling fifty per cent,
lower, is in considerable demand. Pico produces also a
valuable species of wood, resembling and equal in quality
to mahogany.
Graciosa and St George are two small islands, situated be- Graciosa
tween Fayal and Terceira. Graciosa is chiefly noted for the an(l St
extreme beauty of its aspect and scenery. St George has^001^6,
recently been exposed to one of those awful visitations to
which the Azores are subject. In 1808 a caldeira, situate
in the centre of the island, was observed to be in a state
of violent fermentation. It continued during several days to
emit subterraneous noises, and to cause violent convulsions
throughout every part of the island. At length the great
crisis came; vast streams of fire issued forth in every di¬
rection, with clouds of smoke, which, but for the volcanic
light, would have involved every thing in midnight dark¬
ness. The principal stream took its direction towards the
beautiful town of Ursula, which it seemed on the point of
swallowing up; but suddenly changing its direction, it
rushed into the sea by a different channel; a happy event,
which superstition ascribed to the prayers of the Ursuline
nuns. Many hundred acres of fertile land, however, were
covered with scoriae and ashes; some lives were lost, and
264 13 V
Azores general gloom and consternation diffused throughout the the surface of the water, but appeared immediately under &■<
il island. The inhabitants, however, showed no disposition it, with the waves dashing furiously round them. The ,
15• to emigrate, and soon applied themselves to repair the previous soundings are said to have been eighty fathoms. ^
damages which their island had sustained. On taking a general view of these phenomena, and of
Corvo and The two small and most westerly islands of Corvo and the other peculiarities of the Azoies, it is impossible not
Flores. Flores seem but imperfectly to belong to the group. They to lament that they should not yet have b|pGn surveyed
lie also out of the usual track of navigators; but to those by any scientific observer; and we would fain entertain
who, missin0- their course, are led thither, Flores affords the hope that some travellei, pi operly qualified, may at
good shelter in its numerous bays. Its poultry is said to length be induced to turn his attention to a group of
be the finest in the world ; and the cattle are numerous, islands which, more than any other, seems to otter a rich
but small. The surplus produce of these islands is not of field of observation and discovery to geologists and na-
much importance. turalists in general. < j Tt n j -
It would be improper to close this notice without men- See Hartmann s hidnsi Voyages des Idollandois, tome
tionino- one of the most striking occurrences in nature, i.; Astley’s CW/ecftow, vol. i.; Masson s Account of St Mi-
sometimes exhibited in this quarter—the sudden emer- guel, in Phil. Trans. 1778; Cook’s SecondVoyage; Adan-
sion of new islands from the bosom of the ocean. I he sons Voyage to Senegal; History of the Azores, London,
first relation of such an event is given by Kircher in. his 1813. (e.)
Mundus Subterraneus. He describes it as announced by AZZARA, Joseph Felix Nicholas de, a celebrated
violent earthquakes, which lasted for eight days; then a Spanish naturalist. He was born in 1731, at Barbanales,
fire broke from the surface of the sea, and rose to the a village near Barbastro, in the province of Aragon. He
clouds, whilst vast quantities of stones, earth, sand, and discovered an early disposition towards the arts and scien-
minerals, were at the same time vomited out. At length ces, which was directed and stimulated by his near rela-
a group of rocks burst forth, which gradually increased tion the celebrated painter Mengs. He entered into the
till they covered several miles in circumference, and, af- military service at an early age, and in the capacity of
ter being shattered by a new earthquake, settled into a officer passed to South America, and resided many years
solid consistence. in different parts of the province of Buenos Ayres. Here
A narrative of a similar phenomenon is given in the 32d he indulged his disposition for the study of zoology, and
volume of the Philosophical Transactions. John Robison, lived many years in some of the most sequestered parts,
master of a small vessel, is stated to have arrived on the making collections and drawings of the various animals of
10th December 1720 at Terceira, “ near which island he that extensive country. The latter, with descriptions,
saw a fire break out of the sea.” On his arrival at Angra, the were at length published at Paris in 1801. When he re¬
governor hired his vessel for the purpose of going to view turned from South America, he was employed in the di-
it. “ On the 19th,” says he, “ at two afternoon, we made plomatic department, and appointed ambassador to Pope
an island all fire and smoke. The ashes fell on our deck Clement XII., by which he was brought into contact
like hail and snow. The fire and smoke roared like thun- with Buonaparte, who was then occupied in the conquest
der or great guns.” He adds, that quantities of pumice of Italy. He became much attached to that conqueror,
stone, probably common lava, and of half-broiled fish, were and obtained the appointment of ambassador to him from
found floating on the sea in its vicinity. the court of Madrid. Amidst the shifting politics of that
A similar phenomenon took place in February 1811, court, he seems to have been, in his latter years, the fre-
about half a league from the western extremity of the quent victim of its indecision. He was at one time re¬
island of St Michael. It seems to have been attended called suddenly, then banished to Barcelona, again ap-
with nearly the usual symptoms; fire bursting from the pointed to the embassy, and again as suddenly deprived
sea, and ascending into the air like a host of sky-rockets, of it. These vexations affected him, and are said to have
accompanied with vast volumes of smoke and showers of hastened his death. He died in Paris on the 26th of
scoriae and lava. The rocks, however, did not rise above January 1804.
B.
"O the second letter, and first consonant, in all known
-L®? alphabets, excepting the Ethiopic, where it oc¬
cupies the ninth place. It is a labial and mute, repre¬
senting the compression of the lips, and consequently in¬
capable of being uttered or pronounced without the aid
of a vowel, or a forcible expiration equivalent in effect to
vocality. This letter has a near affinity to the other la¬
bials, with which, indeed, it is interchangeable according
as the compression of the lips, which it primarily indicates,
is modified by simultaneous expiration; and hence, al¬
though its ordinary power or effect is intermediate be¬
tween the smooth and easy sound of P, and the rough as¬
pirations of PH, F, and V, yet, in the articulation of many
languages, it is habitually confounded with one or other
of the letters of the same class, and, in the same language
at different times, is frequently interchanged with its cog¬
nate consonants. Thus /3o<rxw in Greek becomes pasco in
Latin ; yiX/Sos, gilvus; f3gtyu,frenio; Kvt'og, buxus; apfu, OW’
bo ; <pa\aivu, balcena ; Spag(3og, triumphus ; and so in many
other instances. Again, in Latin, the B of the olden time,
and of the inscriptions, passes into V in a subsequent age;
while, on the other hand, the P of the antique orthgraphy
is commuted into B in that of a more recent date. Hence
we have abavus for ababus, ave for abe, vixit for bixit, cmT‘
vdtus for curbatus, and hundreds of other analogous in¬
stances in Gruter, Reinesius, Funccius, Gorius, Dempster,
Freret, and Lanzi, not to mention the Monumenti degli Sci-
pioni, and similar works ; while Poplins for Publius, P°P‘
liens for Publicus, Poplicola for Publicola, are of frequent
occurrence in the inscriptions and other elder monuments
of the Latin language. This letter is also sometimes in¬
serted in the middle of compound words for the sake c
Ba;
zebi
BAA
BAB
265
euphony, and to prevent the hiatus which would otherwise
result from the concurrence of vowels, as ambages, amhio,
amburo; it is servile in the dative and ablative plural of
the third, fourth, and fifth declensions of Latin nouns, and
in the prseterimperfect and future tenses of the first and
second conjugations; and it is interchangeable with P, F,
and other letters, both in the composition and conjugation
of a number of verbs.—In Hebrew, the name of the second
letter, n'a, bith or beth, indicates the original hieroglyph to
have represented a house or temple ; whilst an abbreviated
form of the figure has been employed to denote the initial
sound of the word in the spoken language; a principle,
also, upon which the ancient Egyptians appear to have
constructed their phonetic alphabet, or used the symbolical
characters of their complex system of writing, for repre¬
senting the constituent sounds of proper names and of
legends. A difference, however, will be observed between
the two Phoenician forms of this letter ; the first of which
is that of a house or temple, whilst, in the second, another
figure seems to have been combined with the first; from
which it is probable that this people, the inventors of al¬
phabetical characters or signs, had originally two hiero¬
glyphs for the letter, and consequently two words by
which it was named. This compound hieroglyph seems
to have been composed of the beth or house, and of the
head and horns of some animal placed over it, perhaps
those of a ipn, boher, ox or wild goat; which would ex¬
plain the assertion of Hesiod, that the second or third let¬
ter of the Phoenicians was represented by an ox. At all
events the Phoenician, reproduced in the early Greek, has
served as the basis of most modern varieties in the languages
of thewest; and, amidst every change which time, accident,
or caprice, has superinduced, it is still easy to detect and
distinguish the elementary or primitive form. With regard
to the different sounds or powers attached to the letter in
modern languages, these have varied within the limits of
its natural affinity; the Germans giving it the effect of
P, the Spaniards, Gascons, and others, that of V; and the
modern Greeks, sometimes that of V, but more frequent¬
ly sounding it as we do F. The satirical epigrammatist
who affirmed that, in Gascony, bibere is the same as vivere,
stated a literal truth, in as far at least as the pronuncia¬
tion of the words is concerned. In abbreviations B stands
for Badio, beatus, Beleno, bene, beneficiarius, berna for ver-
na, biga, bivus for vivus, bixit for vixit, bonum, Brutus,
buna, bustum. (a.)
BAAL, the same as Bel or Belus, an idol of the
Chaldeans and Phoenicians or Canaanites. The word Baal,
in the Punic language as well as in the Hebrew, signi¬
fies “ lord” or “ master,” and doubtless meant the supreme
Deity, the Lord and Master of the universe. Some learn¬
ed men think that the Baal of the Phoenicians was the
Saturn of the Greeks; others are of opinion that Baal was
the Phoenician or Tyrian Hercules, a god of great anti¬
quity in Phoenicia.
Baal-berith, the god of the Shechemites. Bochart
conjectures that Berith is the same as Beroe, the daughter
nt Venus and Adonis, who was given in marriage to Bac¬
chus ; and that she gave her name to the city of Berith
m Phoenicia, of which she became afterwards the patron
goddess.
Baal-peor, Baal-phegor, or Beel-phegor, an idol of
the Moabites and Midianites. We are told that “ Israel
joined himself to Baal-peor,” and that Solomon erected
an altar to this idol upon the Mount of Olives. Selden
conjectures that Baal-peor is the same with Pluto ; which
'<r gr°unds upon these words of the Psalmist, “ They join-
de ^ »mse^ves unt0 Baal-peor, and ate the offerings of the
Baal-zebub, Beel-zebub, or Belzebub, the idol or god
VOL. IV.
of the Ekronites. In Scripture he is called the Prince of
Devils. His name is usually rendered the “ Lord of
Flies,” which, some think, was a mock appellation be¬
stowed on him by the Jews. But Scaliger derives the <
name of this deity from Baalim-zebahim, which signifies
the “ Lord of Sacrifices;” the plural number (Baalim)
being here, as in many other instances, used with a sin¬
gular effect.
BABATAG, a city of the government of Silistria, in
Turkey in Europe. It stands on the lake or estuary
Rasim, which communicates with the Black Sea, and it is
surrounded by mountains covered with woods. It is a large
city, containing 10,000 inhabitants, amongst whom are
many Jews and Greeks. It used to be the winter head¬
quarters of the Turkish army during former wars with
Russia. Long. 28. 32. E. Lat. 44. 55. N.
BABEL, a city and tower undertaken to be built by
the whole human race soon after the Flood, and remark¬
able for the miraculous frustration of the attempt by the
confusion of languages. As to the situation of ancient
Babel, most authors are of opinion that it was exactly in
the place where the celebrated city of Babylon afterwards
stood. That it was in the same country, appears indis¬
putably certain from Scripture ; but that it was exactly in
the same place, cannot be proved. Authors have been much
divided about the motive by which the whole race of man¬
kind were induced to join as one man in such an under¬
taking. Some have imagined that it was from the fear of
a second deluge; others, that they knew beforehand that
they were to be dispersed through all the different coun¬
tries of the world, and built this tower in order to defeat
the design of the Deity, because, having a tower of such
vast height as they proposed, those who were at a dis¬
tance could easily find their way back again. Others again
suppose that the top of this tower was not to reach up
to heaven, but to be consecrated to the heavens, that is,
to the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, of the fire, air,
&c., and other natural powers, as deities ; and therefore that
the true Deity interposed in order to prevent a total and
irrecoverable defection. Less speculative persons think
that the tower was erected as a fortress for the establish¬
ment of tyrannical power. As to the materials made use
of in the building of this tower, the Scripture informs us
that they were bricks, and slime or bitumen. According
to an eastern tradition, three years were occupied in mak¬
ing the bricks, each of which was thirteen cubits long, ten
broad, and five thick. Oriental writers say that the city
was 313 fathoms in length and 151 in breadth'; that the
walls were 5533 fathoms high, and 33 in breadth ; and that
the tower itself was no less than 10,000 fathoms, or 12
miles high. Even St Jerome affirms, from the testimony
of eye-witnesses, who, as he says* had examined the re¬
mains of the tower, that it was four miles high ; and there
are other statements still more extravagant. The only
account of its dimensions which can be at all depended
upon (supposing it to have been the same which after¬
wards stood in the midst of the city of Babylon, and round
which Nebuchadnezzar built the temple of Belus) is that
given under the article Babylon.
BABELMANDEL, or Babelmandeb, “ the gate of
mourning,” a famous strait in the Indian Ocean, between
the coast of Arabia Felix in Asia, and that of Adel and
Zeila in Africa, at the entrance into the Red Sea. By
some it is also called the Strait of Moka. It is narrow,
being only seven miles wide, and difficult to navigate on
account of the sand-banks. At the mouth of the strait
is a small island called also Babelmandel, which is five
miles in circumference, but barren and scarcely inhabited.
Long. 44. 30. E. Lat. 12. 40. N.
BABENHAUSEN, a town and hereditary magistracy
2 L
Babatag
II
Baben-
hausen.
266 BAB
Baber belonging to the mediatized prince of Fugger-Baben-
II hausen, now a part of the circle of the Upper Danube, in
Babylon. tjie kingdom 0f Bavaria. The district comprehends four
market-towns, ten feudal castles, and sixty-one villages,
with 11,156 inhabitants. The town, the residence of the
prince, is on the river Gunz, and contains, besides his
castle, about 300 houses and 2000 inhabitants.
BABER, an island in the Eastern Seas, surrounded by
some smaller ones. It is about 18 miles long by six in its
average breadth, and is situated between the 130th and
131st degree of east longitude.
BABINGTON, Gervase, bishop of Worcester, was
born, according to Fuller, in Nottinghamshire; but in
what year is uncertain. He was sent to Trinity College,
Cambridge, of which he became a fellow; and, in 1578, he
was incorporated master of arts at Oxford. He appears,
however, to have made Cambridge the place of his resi¬
dence, where he became an eminent preacher; and, having
taken the degree of doctor of divinity, he was made do¬
mestic chaplain to Henry earl of Pembroke. In this sta¬
tion he is supposed to have assisted the countess in her
translation of the Psalms. In 1588 he was installed pre¬
bend of Hereford, and in 1591 consecrated bishop of Lan-
dalf. In 1564 he was translated to the see of Exeter, and
thence to Worcester in 1597. About this time, or soon
after, he was made queen’s counsel for the marches of
Wales. He was a considerable benefactor to the library
belonging to the cathedral of Worcester, where he was
buried in May 1610, without a monument. The several
historians who have mentioned this prelate agree in giving
him the character of a learned and pious man. His works,
consisting of notes upon the five books of Moses, an ex¬
position of the creed, &c. were printed both in folio and
quarto in 1615, and again in folio in 1637.
BABOON. See Mammalia Index.
BABUYANES, a group of small islands about 30 miles
north ot the island of Luzon, and generally considered
the most northerly of the Philippines. They are mostly
from 25 to 30 miles in circumference, and run out into
many rocky islets. The principal productions are wax,
ebony, bananas, cocoas, and plantains! They are a noted
haunt of piratical vessels from Mindanao. Long, from
121. 15. to 122. 5. E. Lat. from 18. 58. to 19. 42. N.
BABYLON, the capital of the ancient kingdom of
Babylonia or Chaldtea, situated about long. 44. 20. E. lat.
32. 30. N. Semiramis is said by some, and Belus by
others, to have founded this city. But by whomsoever
Babylon was founded, Nebuchadnezzar was the person who
completed it, and made it one of the wonders of the world.
The most famous works in and about the city Avere the
walls, the temple of Belus, Nebuchadnezzar’s palace, the
hanging gardens, the banks of the river, the artificial lake,
and the canals.
City de- The city was surrounded with walls, eighty-seven feet
scribed. jn thickness, 350 feet in height, and 480 furlongs, or sixty
of our miles, in compass. Such, at least, is the statement of
Herodotus, who was himself at Babylon. Diodorus Siculus,
however, diminishes the circumference of these walls very
considerably, and takes somewhat from their height as given
by Herodotus. It is observed, that those who make the
height of these walls but fifty cubits, speak of them as they
existed after the time of Darius Hystaspes, who had caus¬
ed them to be greatly reduced. These walls formed a
square, each side of which was 120 furlongs, or fifteen
miles, in length; and they were built of large bricks ce¬
mented together with bitumen. The city was encompassed,
Ayithout the Avails, with a vast ditch filled with water, and
lined Avith bricks on both sides ; and, as the earth that had
been dug out of it served to form the bricks, avc may
judge of the depth and largeness of the ditch from the
BAB
height and thickness of the Avails. In the whole compass of Ba )n IB
the wall there were an hundred gates, that is, twenty-five ^ V ■
on every one of the four sides, all formed of brass. Be-
tAveen each two of these gates, at proper distances, Avere
three towers, and four more at the four corners of this
great square, and three between every corner and the next
gate on either side ; and these towers were ten feet higher
than the walls. But this is to be understood only of those
parts of the walls where towers were needed for defence;
for in some parts of them, which rested upon a morass and
were inaccessible to an enemy, the labour and cost of such
defences were spared. The whole number, then, of these
towers amounted to no more than 250. From every one
of the twenty-five gates on each side of this square there
ran a straight street, extending to the corresponding gate
in the opposite wall; whence the whole number of the
streets must have been only fifty; but then they were each f
about fifteen miles in length, one half of them, or tAventy-
five, crossing the other twenty-five at right angles. Besides
these whole streets, however, we must reckon four half
streets, consisting of rows of houses facing the four inner
sides of the walls. But these four half streets were
properly the four sides of the city within the walls, and
each of them was 200 feet broad, the whole streets being
about 150 feet broad. By this intersection of the fifty
streets the city was divided into 676 squares, every one of
four furlongs and a half on the side, or two miles and a
quarter in compass. Round these squares, on every side
tOAvards the streets, stood the -houses, many of which were
several stories in height, and adorned with all manner of
embellishment; while the space within each of these
squares was occupied by fields or gardens, either for plea¬
sure or convenience.
A branch of the Euphrates divided the city into two
parts, running through the midst of it from north to south;
and over it, in the very middle of the city, was a bridge
a furlong or rather more in length. This bridge is said
to have been built with wonderful art, in order to supply
a defect in the bottom of the river, which was all sandy.
At its opposite ends were two palaces, namely, the old
palace on the east side, and the neAv one on the west side of
the river; the former of which occupied four of the squares
above mentioned, and the latter nine. The temple of
Belus occupied another of these squares.
The Avhole city stood in a large flat or plain, in a very
fat and deep soil; that part or half of it situated on the
east side of the river constituted the old city, and the
other on the west was added by Nebuchadnezzar, Avhile
both were included within the vast square bounded by the
walls already mentioned. The form of the whole was pro¬
bably borrowed from Nineveh, which was also 480 furlongs
in circuit. It is supposed that Nebuchadnezzar, who had
destroyed the old seat of the Assyrian empire, intended
that this new one should rather exceed it; and that in
order to fill it with inhabitants, he transported thither
vast numbers of captives from other countries.
According to the description of Herodotus, Babylon
must have covered ten times as large a space as London.
It is certain, hoAvever, that much of the ground was occu¬
pied with fields and gardens; and hence it was rather an
inclosed district, with groups of buildings interspersed,
than a city in the modern sense of the term.
One great work of Nebuchadnezzar Avas the temple ofTej ^ j
Belus. But the Avonderful tower connected with it was0
built many ages before, and is supposed to have been the
same structure with the tower of Babel. This tower
is said by Herodotus to have been composed of eight
pyramidal ones raised above one another, and to have
been a furlong in height. The ascent to the top was bv
means of stairs on the outside passing round it. Until
Bal.y
Ian2 ;
rarde
Banl if
jthe i t
rana &
BABYLON.
21 >7
the time of Nebuchadnezzar, it is thought that this tower
' was the only temple of Belus; but that king made great
additions to it by erecting vast edifices round it, in a
square of two furlongs on every side, and a mile in cir¬
cumference. On the outside of these buildings was a
wall which inclosed the whole; and in this wall were se¬
veral gates, all of solid brass, leading into the temple. In
the temple thus enlarged were several images or idols of
massive gold, and one of them, forty feet in height, is
supposed to have been that which Nebuchadnezzar con¬
secrated in the plains of Dura.—On the east side of the
river stood the old palace of the kings of Babylon, which
was four miles in circumference ; and opposite to it, on
the other side of the river, was the new palace built by
Nebuchadnezzar, eight miles in circumference, and con¬
sequently four times as large as the old one.
But nothing was more wonderful at Babylon than the
hanging gardens, which Nebuchadnezzar formed in com¬
plaisance to his wife Amyte; who, being a Mede, and
retaining a strong predilection for the mountains and fo¬
rests of her own country, was desirous of having some¬
thing like them at Babylon. They are said to have con¬
tained a square of four plethra, or 400 feet, on each side;
and to have consisted of terraces raised one above ano¬
ther, and carried up to the height of the wall of the city,
the ascent from terrace to terrace being by steps ten
feet wide. The whole pile consisted of substantial arches
upon arches, and was strengthened by a wall 22 feet thick
surrounding it on every side. The floors on each of them
were constructed in this order: first, on the tops of the
arches was laid a bed or pavement of stones, sixteen feet
long and four feet broad, over which was a layer of reeds
mixed with a great quantity of bitumen; and this again was
covered with two courses of bricks closely cemented toge¬
ther with plaster; while over all these were placed thick
sheets of lead, on which was laid the earth or mould of the
garden. This floorage was designed to retain the moisture
of the mould, which was deep enough to give root to the
largest trees, that were planted upon every terrace, together
with a great variety of other vegetables pleasing to the eye.
Upon the uppermost of these terraces was a reservoir, sup¬
plied with water from the river by means of an engine;
and from this reservoir the gardens on the other terraces
were irrigated, as occasion required.
The other works attributed to Nebuchadnezzar by Be-
i rosus and Abydenus, were the embankments on the side
c-of the river, the artificial canals, and the great artificial
lake said to have been formed by Semiramis. The canals
were cut out on the east side of the Euphrates, to convey
the waters of the river, when it overflowed its banks, into
the Tigris, before they reached Babylon. The site of the
lake was to the west of Babylon; and, according to the
lowest computation, it was 40 miles square, 160 in com¬
pass, and in depth 35 feet, as Herodotus states. This
lake was dug to receive the waters of the river, while the
embankments were building on each side of it. But both
the lake and the canal which led to it were preserved af¬
ter that work was completed, being found of great use,
not only to prevent all overflowings, but to keep water
all the year, as in a common reservoir, to be let out on
proper occasions by sluices for the improvement of the
The embankments were built of bricks and bitumen, on
both sides of the river, to keep it within its channel, and
extended on each side throughout the whole length of the
city, and even farther, according to some, who reckon their
ongitudinal extent 160 furlongs, or twenty miles ; whence
it is concluded they must have commenced two miles and
a half above the city, and been continued an equal dis- Babylon,
tance below it, the length of the city being no more than
fifteen miles. Within the city they were raised from the
bottom of the river, and were of the same thickness with
the walls of Babylon itself. Opposite to each street, on
either side of the river, was a brazen gate in the embank¬
ment wall, with stairs leading down from it to the river;
and these gates were open by day, but shut by night.
The tower or temple stood till the time of Xerxes; but
that prince, on his return from his Grecian expedition,
having first plundered it of its immense wealth, demo¬
lished the whole, and laid it in ruins. Alexander, on his
return to Babylon from his Indian expedition, proposed
to rebuild it, and accordingly set 10,000 men to work to
clear away the rubbish ; but the work proved too herculean
for such means, and his death happening soon after, a
stop was put to all further proceedings in this design.
After the death of the Macedonian conqueror, the city of
Babylon began to decline apace; which was chiefly owing
to the proximity of Seleucia, built by Seleucus Nicator,
and peopled with 500,000 persons drawn from Babylon.
Such is the description we have received from ancient
historians of the grandeur of this city. Many of the mo¬
derns, however, are of opinion that their accounts are
greatly exaggerated. The remarks of Goguet on this sub¬
ject are particularly deserving of attention, as embody¬
ing sound sense and judicious criticism. We come now
to give some account of the ruins of Babylon as they are
described by modern travellers.
Amongst all the remains of ancient grandeur, there are
none perhaps which possess equal interest wfith the ruins
of Babylon; none, except those of Egypt, which present
so many striking images to the imagination, or carry back
the mind into such a depth of antiquity. It happens for¬
tunately that their site, through the learned investigations
of Major Rennell, may be considered as completely fixed
to the small district situated immediately to the north of
the village called Hillah.1 Its position on the Euphrates,
the fountains of bitumen at Hit or Heet, the distance
from the ascertained position of Seleucia and Ctesiphon,
and the character of the surrounding country, combine in
establishing this point beyond a doubt. The appellation
of ruins, in its proper sense, cannot, however, be applied
to the present remains of Babylon, which consist almost
wholly of bricks, fragments, and rubbish, piled, as it were,
in masses, and serving as quarries for the construction oi
new cities. In this condition, nevertheless, they have
deservedly attracted the attention of modern travellers ;
and interesting notices have been successively given by
Della Valle, Niebuhr, Ives, Otter, and Beauchamp. But
the recent observations of Mr Rich, enlightened by the
previous inquiries of Major Rennell, have been so much
more careful and complete, that they nearly supersede all
prior information. We shall therefore, in the first place,
give a view of the objects which presented themselves to
Mr Rich in traversing this celebrated ground; and then
offer some remarks respecting those ancient edifices, of
which these objects are to be considered as the remains.
Mr Rich commenced his observations at Hillah, and
proceeded to the north, along the eastern bank of the
Euphrates. After passing some smaller mounds, he came
to a vast mass, 1100 yards in length and 800 in its great¬
est breadth, whilst its most elevated part rose 50 or 60
feet above the level of the plain. It consists almost wholly
of earth formed from decomposed brick, and strewed with
various species of fragments. The name of Amran is
given to it from a tradition, seemingly unfounded, of a
son of Ali having been buried in it. Then, after tra-
/
1 Hillah is nine miles from Mohawil, and nearly forty-eight from Bagdad. (Rich’s Memoir on Babylon.)
268
BABYLON.
Babylon, versing a valley 550 yards in length, and crossed by
some smaller ruins, he came to the second grand mass,
forming nearly a square of 700 yards every way. This
part of the ruins is extremely interesting, containing se¬
veral walls in a pretty entire state: these are eight feet
thick, in some places ornamented with niches, in others
strengthened by pilasters and buttresses. Some remains of
painting and sculpture are still to be seen on them. The
bricks are of the very finest kind, and cemented with lime.
We may here observe that the city, as Major Rennell sus¬
pected, appears to have been built partly of burnt and
partly of unburnt bricks. Three kinds of cement have
also been used. The unburnt bricks are in general merely
bound together with reeds or chopped straw, which are
still found in great quantities. The burnt bricks are ce¬
mented, partly with bitumen, but more frequently with
lime; a material, the use of which had escaped the no¬
tice of observers previous to Mr Rich. He states it to
be much the most efficacious of any. Bricks cemented
with bitumen could be easily separated; but where good
mortar had been used, no power of art could detach them
from the wall, without breaking them in pieces. Some
parts of the edifice in question have been deeply exca¬
vated, with a view to the removal of the bricks; but the
workmen have been intimidated in consequence of the
rubbish having fallen in and buried some of their num¬
ber ; and they have given up the walls, on account of the
extreme tenacity with which they are cemented. This
edifice is called by the natives the Kasr or palace.
A mile to the north of the Kasr, and about half a mile
from the river, is a mass equally remarkable. It is an ir¬
regular oblong, the sides being respectively 200, 219, 182,
and 136 yards in length; and the greatest elevation 141 feet.
Near the summit of the western side appears a low wall,
built of unburnt bricks, cemented with reeds and straw.
The summit is covered with heaps of rubbish, and with
innumerable fragments of pottery, brick, bitumen, pebbles,
vitrified brick, and even shells, bits of glass, and mother
of pearl. There are many dens of wild beasts in this part
of the ruins, and most of the cavities are filled with bats
and owls. As there appeared a niche or recess near the
summit of the northern face, Mr Rich caused it to be dug
into. The workmen successively extracted two wooden
coffins, containing skeletons in high preservation. He
was of opinion that the whole passage, wrhatever might be
its extent, would have proved to have been occupied in
the same manner.
This mass, denominated the Mujelibe, being the most
elevated part of these remains, has been considered by
most tiavellers as the Tower of Belus, which formed one
of the two grand features in the wonders of ancient Ba¬
bylon. The other was the palace, with its hanging gar¬
dens; and this had been clearly pointed out by ancient au¬
thorities as on the side opposite to the tower of Belus.
The tower then being on the eastern, the palace was to
be sought on the western bank of the river. With the ex¬
ception, however, of a slight notice collected by D’An-
ville, modern travellers had given no information of any
ruins situate in that quarter. Major Rennell very pro-
perly pointed out this as a grand object of investigation
i<r i 'm6 /^ff^irers. Mr Rich, on reaching the summit
o t ic i lujehbe, whence he commanded an extensive view
across the river, was much surprised at discovering no
trace of any rums whatever. Not satisfied with this dis¬
tant view he crossed and carefully surveyed the ground,
but could discern only some mounds of small dimensions,
vdnch conveyed no idea of the immense structures of
which he was in search. Before leaving this neighbour¬
hood however, he went to visit a tower, which had been
imperfectly observed by Niebuhr, about six miles south¬
west of Hillah, and beyond the site assigned to ancient Ba
Babylon. Our traveller, who had formed no high expec- 3
tations from this object, was struck with the utmost
amazement at its magnitude and grandeur, which decid¬
edly surpassed any thing he had yet witnessed among
these interesting remains. It consists of a mound of an
oblong figure, 762 yards in circumference ; rises in a coni¬
cal form to the height of 198 feet; and has on its sum-
mit a solid pile of brick 37 feet high, diminishing in thick¬
ness to the top. The bricks are of the finest description,
with inscriptions on them, and so well cemented with
lime that it is nearly impossible to extract one of them
entire. This ruin is called by the Arabs the Birs Nim¬
rod. Every thing remarkable is by them ascribed to
Nimrod; but the meaning of the term Birs seems un¬
known even to themselves. By the Jews it is called Ne¬
buchadnezzar’s Prison. At a trifling distance to the east
is a mound equal in elevation to the Kasr, and all around
are traces of ruins to a considerable extent.
Mr Rich having thus described these ruins, begins very
cautiously to form conjectures respecting their origin and
nature. At the first sight of the Birs Nimrod he had
involuntarily exclaimed, that if the situation rendered it
possible, this certainly must be the tower of Belus. Be¬
sides its extraordinary magnitude, there is some appear¬
ance of its being built in stages, as described by ancient
authors; and the mound on the east might correspond to
the temple, which occupied part of the quadrangular in¬
closure that surrounded the tower. After considering
these circumstances, Mr Rich is led on to inquire whe¬
ther it be so certain as is generally supposed that the
tower of Belus must be found on the eastern side of the
river, and the palace and hanging gardens on the western.
But after some acute remarks his path becomes entangled,
and he is obliged to stop without arriving at any satisfac¬
tory distribution of the objects which had fallen under his
observation. The subject is certainly involved in much
darkness and uncertainty; but as it is of considerable in¬
terest, we shall present our readers with such observa¬
tions as its consideration has suggested to us.
It is stated by ancient writers, in the most positive and
circumstantial manner, that the palace, with its grand ap¬
pendage of hanging gardens, was situate upon, or very
near to the river, whence, indeed, the gardens were arti¬
ficially watered. Now, modern Babylon presents, near to
the river, no ruins of any magnitude, except those on its
eastern bank,—the Amran, Kasr, and Mujelibe. It seems
unquestionable, therefore, that these, if any, must be the
remnant of those immense structures. Then, following
Herodotus, we must look for the tower of Belus on the
western side of the river. But here we are crossed by
the statement of Diodorus, to which Mr Rich does not
seem to have fully adverted. That author reports that
there were two palaces built on the opposite sides of the
Euphrates, of which by far the most extensive and mag¬
nificent was that on the western bank. This Major Ren¬
nell naturally infers to be the one which other writers call
the 'palace. But it deserves notice that Diodorus is the
only authority for there being two palaces. Herodotus
and Curtius, the former an eyewitness, mention only one,
and evidently entertain no idea that any more existed.
It seems also quite unaccountable, that while inferior
structures exhibit vast piles of ruins, this western palace,
which must have been the grandest and most extensive
of all, should not have left the slightest trace of its exist¬
ence. It may therefore deserve consideration whether
Diodorus, who wrote only from hearsay, might not have
been deceived, by varying accounts of one palace, and thus
led to form the idea that there were two. The striking
similarity in his two descriptions, as to situation, plan, and
BABYLON.
a i ornament, somewhat favours the conjecture. We are sen-
+Z > sible that it is a bold orfe; but can only say, that without
I T jt the aspect of modern Babylon is wholly inexplicable;
for it seems quite ascertained that there are no ruins of
any magnitude close to the river, unless on one side, which
is the eastern. It may not be amiss, therefore, to follow
out the supposition, and to inquire how far, by its aid, the
ancient and the recent descriptions can be brought to ac¬
cord. . , . .
Ancient Babylon consisted of an immense square, di¬
vided by the Euphrates into two nearly equal parts. It
is distinctly stated by Herodotus, that the palace and
tower were in divisions opposite to each other. If, then,
the ruins on the eastern side be the palace, we must look
to the western for the tower. And there we find the Birs
Nimrod, a stupendous pile, the dimensions and character
of which are precisely such as the tower, in a state of
total dilapidation, might have been expected to exhibit.
Yet, to its really being the remains of that edifice, the
objections are formidable. First, its distance of nearly ten
miles from the Mujelibe would, to include it within the
city, require an extension even of the vast limits assigned
by Major Rennell. But it is certain that the extent of
Babylon was immense; that it rather resembled an in¬
closed district than a city. A great part of its area was
under cultivation; and it has even been asserted, that
the produce raised within the walls could, in case of siege,
support its immense population. Without resting on the
authority of Herodotus, although it be confirmed by Pliny,
even the dimensions of Strabo, reckoned according to his
own estimate of the stadium, would give upwards of
eleven miles to each side of the square. But it is suppos¬
ed that the palace and tower must each be in the centre
of their respective divisions; an arrangement certainly
incompatible with the actual situation of the ruins. The
expression of Herodotus, no doubt, is sv /isoy, in the
middle} which Major Rennell has translated centre. We
doubt much, however, if this expression can be under¬
stood in so precise and mathematical a sense. It is fami¬
liarly said that a building is in the middle or heart of a
city, when it is completely inclosed within it, and sur¬
rounded by its buildings, even though it may approach to
one of its extremities. No one, we suppose, would hesi¬
tate to say that Pall-mall or Westminster Abbey was in
the middle of London. Such, it appears to us, might be
the present meaning, especially since the palace, being
upon the river, could not, geometrically speaking, be in
the middle of its division. The Kasr above described
seems pretty exactly what we should expect in the orna¬
mented and inhabited part of the palace. The Mujelibe,
Mr Rich conceives, might be the hanging gardens. We
would suggest the mound of Amran as a more probable
situation, from its vicinity both to the river and to the
palace, while the Mujelibe is at an inconvenient distance
from both. This last structure, from Mr Rich’s observa¬
tions, seems decidedly to suggest the idea of a royal se¬
pulchre. Of such structures, several are mentioned in
Babylonish history, particularly that of Ninus, said to
have been built within the palace, and of extraordinary
elevation. (Diod. lib. ii. cap. 7.)
Since the above was written and published in the Sup¬
plement to the last edition, we have had an opportunity
of consulting Mr Rich’s second memoir. It does not
contain many additional facts ; but the examination made
on this occasion tended strongly to confirm his first con¬
jecture, that the Birs Nimrod is the remains of the tower
of Belus. “ The masonry,” says Mr Rich, “ is infinitely
superior to any thing I have ever seen; and leaving out
of the question any conjecture relative to the original
destination of this ruin, the impression made by a sight of
it is, that it was constructed in receding stages, and faced
with fine burnt bricks, having inscriptions on them, laid
in a very thin layer of lime cement; and that it was re¬
duced by violence to its present ruined condition. The
upper stories have been forcibly broken down, and fire
has been employed as an instrument of destruction, though
it is not easy to say precisely how or why.” This result
is to us gratifying, since he appears to have come to the
same conclusion which, as above expressed, we had drawn
from the facts stated in the first memoir. Mr Rich in¬
deed adds, that just on closing this memoir, he received
at Bagdad a copy of our volume, and expresses in very
handsome terms his satisfaction at the coincidence. Mr
Buckingham’s more recent observations tend altogether to
confirm Mr Rich’s views. On examination he discovered
traces of four stages in this pile ; and admitting the origi¬
nal height to be a stadium, as Herodotus states, the sta¬
dium to be 500 feet, and the stages or stories to be equal,
it will follow that vestiges of four stories should exist
within the existing elevation of 235 feet.
Very recently, however, Captain Mignan has published
the result of a most careful and meritorious survey of
these ruins, with interesting representations of their pre¬
sent condition. This writer, supported by the high au¬
thority of Major Rennell, adopts an opinion decidedly op¬
posite. According to him, the Birs Nimrod has no con¬
cern whatever with ancient Babylon. The tower of Be¬
lus, the most memorable among its structures, is, according
to him, the edifice above described, called the Mujelibe.
To us, however, all the facts stated by this traveller, and
his representations of these remains, which are the best
yet given to the public, appear to refute his own opinion,
and confirm that which we had previously formed. Let us
take a comparative view of these two structures, which
contend for the honour of representing the grandest of
Babylonic monuments. The Mujelibe is an irregular ob¬
long, without any correspondence as to dimensions, only
about half the height of its rival ruin, and composed al¬
most entirely of the inferior material of sun-dried bricks.
The Birs Nimrod, on the contrary, is of a form manifestly
pyramidal, as the tower is described to have been. It is
coated with the very finest materials employed in the
construction of Babylon, is much more elevated than
any of the other remains, and bears evident marks of hav¬
ing formerly risen considerably higher. There are also
manifest traces of its having been built in successive
stages. The one, therefore, presents in itself every mark
of having been the tower of Belus, the other presents
none. Our opinion is much strengthened by the obser¬
vations of Captain Mignan himself, that this structure,
instead of standing solitary, as has been generally suppos¬
ed, is surrounded by extensive ranges of ruins, bearing in
their shattered fragments every mark of ancient import¬
ance. There hence appears no room to doubt that this
quarter was completely included within the vast circuit
of ancient Babylon. When we learn also from Mr Buck¬
ingham that the ground to the south of this structure is
covered with extensive marshes, and even lakes, and find
the ancient authorities describing the approach to the
south-west gate of Babylon to be through obstacles of
this very description, the conclusion that the Birs was
within the limits of Babylon seems no longer to admit of
doubt. The idea of Captain Mignan, that it was an ad¬
vanced bastion of defence, seems not at all to agree with
its extraordinary elevation, its superior workmanship, and
the fine materials of which it is composed.
Both Buckingham and Mignan observed a long, hollow
space, damp, and sometimes marshy, through which, in¬
stead of its present course, it might be supposed that the
Euphrates anciently flowed. We do not very much ad-
2/0
BAB
Babylonia, mire the system of supposing changes in the grand fea-
''^v^*^tures of nature, with the view of adapting them to modern
hypotheses. That a canal, perhaps artificial, may have
anciently been conducted through this hollow, seems pro¬
bable enough, though by no means established; but the
breadth of the supposed channel, stated by Captain Mig-
nan at not more than 160 yards, seems quite insufficient to
contain the main body of the river, which, from his plan,
appears to occupy about three times that space.
Mr Rich collected sundry antiquities among the ruins.
These were bricks or pieces of hardened clay, gems, slabs
of stone, and bits of brass with engraved figures or cha¬
racters. But no Babylonian coins or darics have been
discovered at Hillah. (See Memoirs on the Ruins of Ba¬
bylon, by Claudius James Rich, Esq. Lond. 1815, 1818,
8vo.; Buckingham’s Travels in Mesopotamia; Mignan’s
Travels in Chaldea, 1829.)
BABYLONIA, or Chaldea, a kingdom of Asia, and
the most ancient in the world, being founded by Nimrod,
the grandson of Ham, who also, according to the Bible,
founded Nineveh, the capital of the kingdom of Assyria.
The country was bounded on the north by the desert part
of Mesopotamia, on the east by the Tigris, on the south by
the Persian Gulf, and on the west by the Arabian desert.
The confines of the kingdom, however, were at times
much more extensive.
Passing over the early portion of Babylonian history,
which is obscure and doubtful, we shall limit ourselves to
a short account of the events which terminated in the
subversion of the kingdom.
War had been begun between the Medes, Persians, and
Babylonians, in the reign of Neriglissar, the father of Na-
bonadius, which had been carried on with very bad suc¬
cess on the side of the Babylonians. Cyrus, who com¬
manded the Median and Persian army, having subdued
the several nations inhabiting the great continent from
the iEgean Sea to the Euphrates, bent his march towards
Babylon. Nabonadius, hearing of his march, immediate¬
ly advanced against him with an army. In the engage¬
ment which ensued, the Babylonians were defeated; and
the king, retreating to his metropolis, was blocked up and
closely besieged by Cyrus. The reduction of this city was
no easy enterprise. The walls were of a prodigious height,
the number of men employed to defend them was great, and
the place was stored with all sorts of provisions for twenty
years. Cyrus, despairing of being able to take such a city
by storm, caused a line of circumvallation to be drawn
quite round it, with a large and deep ditch; reckoning
that if all communication with the country were cut off
the besieged would be obliged to surrender through fa¬
mine. _ That his troops might not be too much fatigued,
he divided his army into twelve bodies, appointing each
body its month to guard the trenches; but the besieged,
looking upon themselves as out of all danger by reason
of their high walls and magazines, insulted him from the
ramparts, and looked upon all the trouble he gave himself
as so much unprofitable labour.
After Cyrus had spent two whole years before Baby¬
lon, without making any progress in the siege, he at last
thought of the following stratagem, which put him in
possession of it. He was informed that a great annual
solemnity was to be held at Babylon, and that the inha¬
bitants on that occasion were accustomed to spend the
whole night m drinking and debauchery. This he there¬
fore thought a proper time for surprising them; and ac¬
cordingly sent a strong detachment to the head of the
canal leading to the great lake, with orders, at a certain
time, to break down the great bank which was between
the lake and the canal, and to turn the whole current into
the lake. At the same time he stationed one body of
BAB
troops at the place where the river entered the city, andBa
another where it came out; ordering them to march in ^ v a
by the bed of the river as soon as they should find it
fordable. Towards the evening he opened the head of
the trenches on both sides of the river above the city, that
the water might discharge itself into them; by which
means, and the breaking down of the great dam, the river
was soon drained. Then the two bodies of troops above-
mentioned, according to their orders, entered the channel,
the one commanded by Gobryas and the other by Ga-
dates; and finding the gates all left open in consequence
of the disorders of that riotous night, they penetrated
into the very heart of the city without opposition, and
meeting, according to agreement, at the palace, they sur¬
prised the guards and cut them in pieces. Those who
were in the palace opening the gates to know the cause
of this confusion, the Persians rushed in, took the palace,
and killed the king, who came out to meet them sword
in hand. Thus an end was put to the Babylonian empire;
and Cyrus took possession of Babylon for one called in
Scripture Darius the Mede, most probably Cyaxares IL,
uncle to Cyrus. From this time Babylonia never was
erected into a distinct kingdom, but has always followed
the fortune of those great conquerors who at different
times have appeared in Asia. It is now subject to the
Turks. I
Of the manners, customs, and institutions of the Baby¬
lonians, and of the nature of their country, a very clear
account has been given by M. Sabbathier.
“ As all the nations under the dominion of Cyrus, be¬
side the ordinary tributes, were obliged to maintain him
and his army, the monarch and his troops were supported
by all Asia. I he country of Babylon alone was obliged to
maintain him four months of the year; its fertility, there-
fore, yielded a third of the produce of Asia. The govern¬
ment of this country, which the Persians termed satrapy,
was richer and more extensive than any of the rest. It
maintained for the king, besides the war-horses, a stud of
800 stallions and 16,000 mares. So great a number of
Indian dogs were likewise bred in this province for the
king, that four of its cities kept those animals; and in
return, they were exempted from all taxes and tributes.
“ It rained very seldom in this country, according to
Herodotus. The earth was watered by the river, which
was here diffused by human industry, as the Nile is over
Egypt by nature; for all the country of Babylon was di¬
vided by canals, the greatest of which was navigable, and
flowed from south to north, from the Euphrates to the
Tigris. In short, it was one of the finest countries for
corn in the world; but for producing trees, the fig-tree,
the vine, and the olive, it was not famous. It was so
luxuriant in grain, that it commonly yielded a hundred
times more than what was sown; and in good years it
yielded three hundred times more than it received. The
leaves of its wheat and barley were four inches broad.
4 Though I know,’ says Herodotus, ‘ that the millet and
the sesame of that country grow to the size of trees, I
will not describe them particularly, lest those who have
not been in Babylonia should think my account fabulous.’
They had no oil but what they made from Indian
corn. I he country abounded with palm-trees, which grew
spontaneously; and most of them bore fruit, of which the
inhabitants made bread, wine, and honey. They culti¬
vated these trees and their fig-trees in the same manner.
Some of them, as of other trees, the Greeks called mate
ones. They tied the fruit of the male to the trees which
boi e dates; that the musquitto, leaving the male, might
cause the date to ripen, by penetrating it; for with¬
out that assistance it did not come to maturity. Mus-
quittoes bred in the male palms as in the wild fig-trees.
BAB
,vii i. “ But we must not here omit to give an account of the
-Y ' peculiar and surprising construction of their boats of
skins, in which they sailed along the river to Babylon.
These boats were invented by the Armenians, whose
country lay north from Babylonia. They made them with
poles of willow, which they bent, and covered with skins;
the bare side of the skins they put outwards; and they
made them so tight that they resembled boards. The
boats had neither prow nor stern, but were of a round
form like a buckler. They put straw on the bottom. Two
men, each with an oar, rowed them down the river, laden
with different wares, but chiefly with palm wine. Of
these boats some were very large and some very small:
the largest carried the weight of 500 talents. There was
room for an ass in one of their small boats; they put
many into a large one. When they had unloaded, after
their arrival at Babylon, they sold the poles of their boats
and the straw, and loading their asses with the skins, re¬
turned to Armenia; for they could not sail up the river, its
current was so rapid. For this reason they made their boats
of skins instead of wood; and on their return to Armenia
with their asses, they applied the skins to their former use.
“ As to their dress, they wore a linen shirt, which came
down to their feet. Over it they wore a woollen robe;
their outer garment was a white vest. Their shoes re¬
sembled those of the Thebans. They let their hair grow.
On their heads they wore a turban. They rubbed their
bodies all over with fragrant liquors. Each man had a
ring on his finger, and an elegant cane in his hand, with
an apple at the top, or a rose, a lily, or an eagle, or some
other figure; for they were not suffered to use canes with¬
out devices.
“ With regard to their policy, Herodotus thinks that
their best law was one which the Heneti, an Illyrian
people, likewise observed in every town and village. When
the girls were marriageable, they were ordered to meet
in a certain place, where the young men likewise assem¬
bled. They were then sold by the public crier: but he
first sold the most beautiful one. When he had sold her
at an immense price, he put up others to sale, according
to their degrees of beauty. The rich Babylonians were
emulous to carry off the finest women, who were sold to
the highest bidders. But as the young men who were
poor could not aspire to have fine women, they were con¬
tent to take the ugliest with the money which was given
them; for when the crier had sold the handsomest, he
ordered the ugliest of all the women to be brought, and
asked if any one was willing to take her with a small
sum of money. Thus she became the wife of him who
was most easily satisfied ; and thus the finest women were
sold, and from the money which they brought, small for¬
tunes were given to the ugliest, and to those who had
any bodily infirmity. A father could not marry his daugh¬
ter as he pleased; nor was he who brought her allowed
to take her home, without giving security that he would
marry her. But, after the sale, if the parties were not
agreeable to each other, the law enjoined that the pur¬
chase-money should be restored. The inhabitants of any of
their towns were permitted to marry wives at these auc¬
tions. Such were the early customs of the Babylonians.
“ But they afterwards made a law, which prohibited
the inhabitants of different towns from intermarrying, and
by which husbands were punished for treating their wives
1 * When they had become poor by the ruin of their
metropolis, fathers used to prostitute their daughters for
gain. There was a sensible custom among the Baby-
omans, worthy to be related. They brought their sick
mto the forum, to consult those who passed on their dis-
c^ses; for they had no physicians. They asked those
w 10 aPProache"d the sick, if they had ever had the same
B A C 271
distemper; if they knew any one who had had it; and Babylonian
how he was cured. Hence, in this country, every one I!
who saw a sick person was obliged to go to him and in- Bacchms.
quire into his distemper.
“ They embalmed their dead with honey, and their
mourning was like that of the Egyptians.
“ There were three Babylonian tribes who lived only
upon fish, and who prepared them in the following man¬
ner : they dried them in the sun, and then beat them in
a mortar to a kind of flour, which, after they had sifted
through linen, they baked into rolls.
“ The Babylonians at first worshipped only the sun
and the moon; but they soon multiplied their divinities.
They deified Baal, Bel, or Belus, one of their kings, and
Merodach-Baladan. They also worshipped Venus under
the name of Mylitta. She and Belus were the principal
deities of the Babylonians. They counted their day from
sunrise to sunrise. They solemnized five days of the year
with great magnificence, and almost the same ceremonies
with which the Romans celebrated their Saturnalia.
“ The Babylonians were very much addicted to judicial
astrology. Their priests, who openly professed that art,
were obliged to commit to writing all the events of the
lives of their illustrious men; and on a fancied connection
between those events and the motions of the heavenly
bodies the principles of their art were founded. They
pretended that some of their books, in which their histo¬
rical transactions and revolutions were accurately com¬
pared with the courses of the stars, were thousands of
years old. This assertion of their judicial astrologers we
may reasonably dispute; but that their astronomers had
made a long series of observations, is incontestably true.
It is certain that some of these were extant in the days
of Aristotle, and that they were older than the empire of
the Babylonians.” (See History of Astronomy.)
BABYLONIAN, Babylonius, is used by some ancient
writers to signify astrologer, or any thing relating to astro¬
logy. Hence Babylonia cura means the art of casting
nativities; and numeri Babylonii, the computation of
astrologers.
BABYLONICA Texta, a rich sort of weavings or hang¬
ings, denominated from the city Babylon, where the art of
interweaving divers colours in hangings or tapestry was
first practised. Hence also Babylonic garments, Baby-
Ionic skins, Babylonic carpets, housings, &c.
BACCHiE, in Antiquity, the priestesses of Bacchus,
who celebrated the orgia or mysteries of that god. The
word was also used for the ivy crowns or garlands worn
by the priests of Bacchus at the Dionysiac festivals.
BACCHANALIA, feasts celebrated in honour of Bac¬
chus by the ancients. The two most remarkable were
denominated the greater and lesser. The lesser, called
Lenora, from a word signifying a wine-press, were held
in the open field about autumn; the greater, called Dio-
nysia, from one of the names of Bacchus, were celebrated
in the city about the spring time.
BACCHIC, something relating to the ceremonies of
Bacchus. The celebrated intaglio called Michael Ange¬
lo’s ring, is a representation of a Bacchic feast.
Bacchic Song is sometimes used for a chanson a boire,
or composition calculated to inspire jollity; but in a more
proper sense it is limited to a dithyrambic ode or hymn.
BACCHIUS, a follower of Aristoxenus, supposed by
Fabricius to have been tutor to the emperor Marcus An¬
toninus, and consequently to have lived about a. d. 140.
He wrote in Greek a very short introduction to music, in
the form of dialogue, which Meibomius has published
with a Latin translation. The dialogue was first publish¬
ed in the original by Mersennus, in his commentary on
the first six chapters of Genesis.
272 BAG
Bacchus BACCHUS, the god of wine, with whose fabulous cha-
II . racteristics and adventures every school-boy is acquainted.
' Baccio. divinity is seldom named in modern times, except as
the supposititious patron of sensuality and excess; but he
was regarded in a more respectable light by the ancients,
who worshipped him in different countries under various
appellations. It is natural to suppose that the Greeks and
Romans ascribed to the Bacchus whom they worshipped
the several actions and attributes of the many divinities
known by that and by other equivalent appellations in
different countries. It is evident, however, that antiquity
distinguished two divinities by the title of Bacchus,
namely, him of Egypt, the son of Ammon, commonly
known by the name of Osiris ; and the Bacchus of Thebes
in Boeotia, the son of Jupiter and Semele.
With regard to the dithyrambics which gave birth to
dramatic representations, Dr Burney is of opinion that
they are as ancient as the worship of Bacchus in Greece;
and there is little doubt that the ceremonies observed at
the celebration of his mysteries gave rise to scenic or
theatrical representations in that country. Many of the
most splendid exhibitions on the stage, both at Athens
and at Rome, were performed at the festivals of this di¬
vinity ; and hence all those who were employed in them,
whether in singing, dancing, or reciting, were called ser¬
vants of Bacchus.
BACCHYLIDES, a famous Greek poet, was the ne¬
phew of Simonides, and flourished about 450 years before
Christ. He wrote Odes, Hymns, and Epigrams, of which
there are some fragments in the first volume of Brunck’s
Analecta.
BACCIO, or Baccius, Andrew, a celebrated physician
of the sixteenth century, born at St Elpideo. He prac¬
tised physic at Rome with great reputation, and was first
physician to Pope Sixtus V. The most scarce and valu¬
able of his works are the following:—1. De Thermis;
2. De Naturali Vinorum Historia, de Vinis Italice, et
de Conviviis Antiquorum; 3. De Venenis et Antidotis;
4. De Gemmis ac Lapidibus Pretiosis.
Baccio, Fra. Bartolomeo, called Bartelemi di S. Marco,
a celebrated historical and portrait painter, born at Savign-
ano, near Florence, in 1469, was a disciple of Cosumo Ro-
selli; but his principal knowledge of the art was derived
from Leonardo da Vinci. He understood the true princi¬
ples of design better than most masters of his time; and
being also a considerable painter in perspective, Raphael
had recourse to him, after quitting the school of Perugi-
no, and, under his direction, studied the art of managing
and uniting colours, as well as the rules of perspective.
Some years after the departure of Raphael from Florence,
Baccio visited Rome; and by the observations he made
on the antiques and the works of Raphael, which were
then the admiration of the whole world, he improved
greatly, and manifested his acquired abilities by a picture
of St Sebastian, which he finished at his return to Flo¬
rence. This was so well designed, so naturally and beau¬
tifully coloured, and so strongly expressive of suffering
and agony, that it was found necessary to remove it from
the place where it had been exhibited, in the chapel of a
convent, in consequence of the too powerful impression it
had made on the imaginations of many women who beheld
it. Baccio was very laborious, and made nature his per¬
petual study; his designs were distinguished for correct¬
ness and purity, his figures had a great deal of grace, and
his colouring was admirable. He is usually accounted the
inventor of the machine called a layman by the artists,
and which to this day is in general use among the gentle¬
men of the pallet and brush. Upon it he placed his dra¬
peries, to observe with greater exactness their natural
dependence and more elegant convolutions. There is a
BAG
capital picture of the Ascension, by Baccio, in the Flo- ]
rentine collection. He died in 1517.
B ACHA, a city, chief of the bailiwick of the sameBa m
name, containing 4162 inhabitants. It stands on the river M
Werra, in the duchy of Saxe Weimar, and contains a po-^ v
pulation of 1820 persons.
BACHELOR, or Batchelor, a common term for a
man not married, or who is yet in a state of celibacy. The
Roman censors frequently imposed fines on bachelors.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus mentions an old constitution,
by which all persons of full age were obliged to marry.
But the most celebrated law of this kind was that made
under Augustus, called the Lex Julia de Maritandis Ordi-
nibus, by which bachelors were made incapable of taking
legacies or inheritances by will, unless from their near re¬
lations. By the laws of Lycurgus bachelors were branded
with infamy, and excluded from all offices civil and military,
nay even from the shows and public sports. At certain
feasts they were exposed to public derision, and led round
the market-place. In the canon law we find injunctions
on bachelors, when arrived at puberty, either to marry, or
to turn monks and profess chastity in earnest.
Bachelor was anciently a denomination given to those
who had attained to knighthood, but wanted the number
of vassals sufficient to entitle them to have their banner
carried before them in the field of battle; or who, being
of the order of bannerets, were not yet of age to display
their own banner, and consequently obliged to march to
battle under the banner of another. Bachelor was also a
title given to young cavaliers, who having made their first
campaign, received the military girdle accordingly; and
it further served to distinguish him who had overcome an
adversary in a tournament the first time he had ever en¬
gaged.
Knights-Bachelors, the most ancient, but the lowest,
order of knights in England, known by the name of
knights only. They are styled hnights-bachelors, either, ac¬
cording to some, as denoting their degree, quasi “ has che¬
valiers;” or, according to others, because this title does not
descend to their posterity. Knights are called in Latin
equites aurati; aurati, from the gilt spurs they wore, and
equites, because they always served on horseback; for it
is observable that almost all nations call their knights by
some appellation derived from a horse.
Bachelors, in universities, are persons who have taken
the first degree in the liberal arts and sciences. See De¬
grees, Academical.
B ACHIAN, one of the Molucca islands, about fifty-four
miles in length by twenty in breadth, with an isthmus in
the centre which widens towards each end. It is sepa¬
rated, by a narrow channel called the Strait of Patientia,
from the island of Gilolo. It yields gold dust, sago, fruits,
and the best cloves of the Moluccas. The inhabitants are
Malay Mahommedans. Long. 127. 33. E. Lat. 1. 0. S.
BACHMUT, a circle in the European Russian govern¬
ment of Catherinoslav. It is very extensive, including
within it a very large portion of the steppes, which are
destitute of wood and scantily supplied with water, but
feed great numbers of sheep and oxen. The chief town,
of the same name, contains about 5000 inhabitants, who
are great dealers in and breeders of horses. Long. 38. 3.
E. Lat. 48. 32. N.
BACKGAMMON, an ingenious game played with dice,
upon a table, by two persons. The table is divided into
two parts, upon which there are twenty-four black and
white spaces, called points. Each adversary has fifteen
men, black and white, to distinguish them, and they are
disposed of in the following manner; Supposing the game
to be played in the right-hand table, two are placed upon
the ace point in the adversary’s table, five upon the six
BAG
BAG
273
!- point in the opposite table, three upon the cinque point in
the hithermost table, and five on the six point in the right-
'' ]iarc} table. The grand object in this game is for each
player to bring the men round into his right-hand table,
by throwing with a pair of dice those throws that contri¬
bute towards it, and at the same time to prevent the ad¬
versary doing the like. The first best throw upon the dice
is esteemed aces, because it stops the six point in the outer
table, and secures the cinque in the thrower’s table; so
that the adversary’s two men upon the thrower’s aqe point
cannot get out with either quatre, cinque, or six. This
throw is an advantage often given to the antagonist by the
superior player. When he carries his men home in order
to lose no point, he is to carry the most distant man to his
adversary’s bar point, that being the first stage he is to
place it on; the next is six points farther, viz. in the place
where the adversary’s five men are first placed out of his
tables; and he must go on in this method till all his men are
brought home except two, when by losing a point he may
often save the gammon, by throwing two fours or two fives.
When a hit is only played for, he should endeavour to gain
either his own or adversary’s cinque point; and if that
fails by his being hit by the adversary, and he finds him
farther advanced than himself, in that case he must throw
more men into the adversary’s tables, which is done in this
manner: He must put a man upon his cinque or bar point;
and if the adversary neglects to hit it, he may then gain
a forward game instead of a back game. But if the adver¬
sary hits him, he should play for a back game; and then
the greater number of men which are taken up makes his
game the better, because by these means he will preserve
his game at home. He should then endeavour to gain both
his adversary’s ace and trois points, or his ace and deuce
points, and take care to keep three men upon the adver¬
sary’s ace point, that in case the latter hits him from
thence, that point may remain still secure to himself. A
back game should not be played for at the beginning of a
set, because it would be a great disadvantage, the player
running the risk of a gammon to win a single hit. The
subsequent calculations will show the odds of entering a
single man upon any certain number of points. Upon two
dice there are thirty-six chances, and upon these chances
the following points, viz.
Points.
2 Aces  4
2 Deuces  8
2 Trois 12
2 Fours  16
2 Fives...   20
2 Sixes.... 24
6 and 5 twice 22
6 and 4 twice 20
6 and 3 twice 18
6 and 2 twice 16
6 and 1 twice 14
5 and 4 twice 18
5 and 3 twice 16
5 and 2 twice 14
5 and 1 twice 12
4 and 3 twice 14
4 and 2 twice 1
4 and 1 twice 10
3 and 2 twice 10
3 and 1 twice    8
2 and 1 twice  6
rp,. Divide by 36)294(8
Dus proves, that upon an ave- 288
rage the player has a right to  
y points each throw   6
VOL. IV.
The chances upon two dice calculated for backgammon Backgam-
are as follow : mon
t
t
t
t
t
t
As it
tbirty-six chances what are the odds of being hit upon a
certain or flat die, let the following method be pursued.
The player may observe in the table that the chances
marked thus f are,
f 2 aces  1
f 6 and 1 twice  2
•f 5 and 1 twice  2
f 4 and 1 twice    2
f 3 and 1 twice  2
f 2 and 1 twice  2
Total, 11
When deducted from 36
2 Sixes..
2 Fives..
2 Fours.
  1
  1
  1
2 Trois  1
2 Deuces  1
2 Aces  1
6 and 5 twice  2
6 and 4 twice  2
6 and 3 twice  2
6 and 2 twice  2
6 and 1 twice  2
5 and 4 twice  2
5 and 3 twice   2
5 and 2 twice   2
5 and 1 twice  2
4 and 3 twice  2
4 and 2 twice  2
4 and 1 twice  2
3 and 2 twice  2
3 and 1 twice  2
2 and 1 twice  2
36
seem difficult to find out by this table of
There remains 25
From which it appears that it is 25 to 11 against hitting
an ace upon a certain or flat die. And this method holds
good with respect to any other flat die. For example, what
are the odds of entering a man upon 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 points ?
Answer.
To enter it upon for against for agt.
1 point is 11 to 25 or about 4 to 9
2   20... 16   5... 4
3  27 ... 9   3 ... 1
4  32 ... 4   8 ... 1
5  35 ... 1   35 ... 1
The following table shows the odds of hitting with any
chance, in the reach of a single die.
To hit upon for against for agt.
1 is 11 to 25 or about 4 to 9
2 ... 12 ... 24   1 ... 2
3 ... 14 ... 22   2 ... 3
4 ... 15 ... 21   5 ... 7
5 ... 15 ... 21   5 ... 7
6 ... 17 ... 19   81... 91
The odds of hitting with double dice are as follow:—
To hit upon for against for agt.
7 is 6 to 30 or about 1 to 5
8 ... 6 ... 30   1 ... 5
9 ... 5 ... 31   1 ... 6
10 ... 3 ... 33   1 ... 11
11 ... 2 ... 34   1 ... 17
12 ... 1 ... 36   1 ... 35
2 M
274
BAG
BAG
Backgam- How to find out the odds of being hit upon a six, by
mon. the table of thirty-six chances.
2 Sixes    1
2 Trois  1
2 Deuces  1
6 and 5 twice  2
6 and 4 twice  2
6 and 3 twice  2
6 and 2 twice  2
6 and 1 twice    2
5 and 1 twice  2
4 and 2 twice  2
17
Which deducted from 36
There remains 19
By which it appears to be 19 to 17 against being hit
upon a six.
The odds on the hits.
2 love is about 5 to 2
2 to 1 is 2 to 1
1 love is 3 to 2
If a player has taken up two of the adversary’s men,
and happens to have two, three, or more points made in
his own tables, he should spread his men, that he may
either take a new point in his tables, or be ready to hit
the man which the adversary may happen to enter. If
he finds, upon the adversary’s entering, that the game is
upon a par, or that the advantage is on his own side, he
should take the adversary’s man up whenever he can, it
being 25 to 11 that he is not hit; except when he is play¬
ing for a single hit only, because then, if playing the
throw otherwise gives him a better chance for it, he ought
to do it.
It being five to one against his being hit with double
dice, he should never be deterred from taking up any one
man of the adversary’s.
If he has taken up one of the adversary’s men, and
happens to have five points in his own tables, yet is forced
to leave a blot out of his tables, he should endeavour to
leave it upon doublets in preference to any other chance,
because in that case the odds are 35 to 1 that he is not
hit; whereas it is only 17 to 1 that he is hit upon any
other chance.
When the adversary is very forward, a player should
never move a man from his own quatre, trois, or deuce
points, thinking to bear that man from the point where he
put it, as nothing but high doublets can give him any
chance for the hit. Instead of playing an ace or a deuce
from any of those points, he should play them from his
own six or highest points, so that, throwing two fives or
two fours, his six and cinque points being eased, would
be a considerable advantage to him; whereas if they had
been loaded he would have been obliged to play otherwise.
It is the interest of the adversary to take up the player
as soon as he enters. The blot should be left upon the
adversary’s lowest point; that is to say, upon his deuce
point rather than upon his trois point, or upon his trois
point rather than his quatre point, or upon his quatre
point preferably to his cinque point, for a reason before
mentioned. All the men the adversary plays upon his
trois or his deuce point are deemed lost, being greatly
out of play; so that those men not having it in their
power to make his cinque point, and his game being
crowded in one place and open in another, the adversary
must be greatly annoyed by the player.
If the player has two of the adversary’s men in his
tables, he has a better chance for a hit than if he had
more, provided his game is more forward than that of his
antagonist; for if he had three or more of the adver¬
sary’s men in his tables, he would stand a worse chance Ik
to be hit. ‘
When a player is running to save the gammon, if he^'^ 5
should have two men upon his ace point and several men
abroad, although he should lose a point or two in putting
his men into his tables, it is his interest to leave a man
upon the adversary’s ace point, because it will prevent his
adversary from bearing his men to the greatest advantage,
and at the same time the player will have a chance of the
adversary’s making a blot, which he may chance to hit.
However, if a player finds upon a throw that he has a
probability of saving his gammon, he should never wait
for a blot, as the odds are greatly against his hitting it,
but at once embrace that opportunity to escape.
Suppose the adversary has so many men abroad as to
require three throws to put them into his tables, and at
the same time that the player’s tables are made up, and
that he has taken up one of the adversary’s men; in this
case it is about an equal wrager that the adversary is gam¬
moned ; for in all probability the player has borne two
men before he opens his tables, and when he bears the
third man he will be obliged to open his six or cinque
point. It is then probable that the adversary is obliged
to throw twice before he enters his men in the player’s
tables, twice more before he puts that man into his own
tables, and three throws more to put the men which are
abroad into his own tables; in all seven throws. Now the
player having twelve men to bear, he may be forced to
make an ace or a deuce twice before he can bear all his
men, and consequently will require seven throws in bear¬
ing them; so that, upon the whole, it is about equal whe¬
ther the adversary is gammoned or not.
Suppose a player has three men upon his adversary's
ace point and five points in his own tables, and that the
adversary has all his men in his tables, three upon each
of his five highest points; has the player a probability of
gammoning his adversary or not ?
Points.
For bearing three men from his 6th point is 18
From his 5th point 15
From his 4th point... 12
From his 3d point  9
From his 2d point    6
In all 60
Bringing his three men from the adversary’s ace
point to his six point in his own tables, being 18
points each, and making together 51
There must remain  6
From which it is plain that the player has much the
best of the probability of the gammon; exclusive of one or
more blots which the adversary is liable to make in bear¬
ing his men, and supposing at the same time the throws to
be upon an equality. But suppose two blots are left, either
of which cannot be hit but by double dice ; one must be
hit by throwing eight, and the other by throwing nine;
so that the adversary has only one die to hit either ot
them. What, then, are the odds of hitting either of them ?
The chances of two dice being in all .86
The chances to hit 8 or 6 and 2 twice  ^
5 and 3 twice        2
2 Deuces    1
2 Fours    1
The chances to hit 9 or 6 and 3 twice  ^
5 and 4 twice      2
2 Trois  1
For hitting in all  11
Chances for not hitting remain 25
So that the odds are 25 to 11 against hitting either of
these blots.
BAG
1 . This method may be taken to find out the odds of hit-
'' ting three, four, or five blots upon double dice, or blots
i icui us.maje upon double and single dice at the same time. Af-
W’- ter knowing how many chances there are to hit any of
these blots, they must be added all together, and then
subtracted from the number 36, which are the chances of
the two dice; and the question is solved.
The laws of backgammon are as follow: 1. If a man
is taken from any point, it must be played; if two men
are taken from it, they also must be played. 2. A man is
not supposed to be played till it is placed upon a point
and quitted. 3. If a player has only fourteen men in play,
there is no penalty inflicted, because by his playing with
a lesser number than he is entitled to, he plays to a dis¬
advantage for want of the deficient man to make up his
tables. 4. If he bears any number of men before he has
entered a man taken up, and which of course he was ob¬
liged to enter, such men so borne must be entered again
in the adversary’s tables as well as the man taken up.
5. If he has mistaken his throw and played it, and his ad¬
versary has thrown, it is not in the choice of either of the
players to alter it, unless they both agree so to do.
BACKER, or Bakker, Jacob, portrait and historical
painter, was born at Harlingen in 1609, but spent the
greater part of his life at Amsterdam. He is mention¬
ed as a skilful painter, particularly of portraits, which he
executed with boldness, spirit, and grace. He was re¬
markable for an uncommon readiness of hand and free¬
dom of pencil; while his incredible expedition in his man¬
ner of painting appeared even in a half-length portrait of
a lady from Haerlem, which was begun and finished in
one day, although he adorned the figure with rich drapery
and several ornamental jewels. He also painted historical
subjects with considerable success; and in that style there
is a picture by him of Cimon and Iphigenia, which is ac¬
counted an excellent performance. He died in 1651.
BACKERGUNGE, a district in the province of Ben¬
gal, a considerable proportion of which, called Boklah,
extends along the western bank of the great Ganges,
nearly to its mouth, at the island of Rabnabad, which
forms the south-east angle of the Bengal Delta. About
the year 1584 part of this district was laid waste by an
inundation of the ocean, from which it has never yet re¬
covered. The other parts, however, are extremely pro¬
ductive, being fertilized by the inundations of the river,
and yielding annually two crops of rice. It is very un¬
healthy, owing to the damp, and is infested with tigers and
alligators of an enormous size; and by the still greater
plague of river pirates, who have had their abode there
from time immemorial, and plunder, and frequently mur¬
der, those who fall into their power, or torture them in
order to extort from them a disclosure of their hidden
wealth. All the efforts of the British government to sup¬
press this banditti have hitherto failed, although a strong
establishment of boats and sepoys is maintained at the
town of Backergunge, which is the capital of the district,
and the residence of the judge and magistrate. It is 120
miles east of Calcutta. Long. 89. 20. E. Lat. 22. 42. N.
BACKING the Sails, in Navigation, is to arrange them
m a situation that will force the ship to move backwards.
BACKSCHISARAI, a city in the European Russian
government of Taurida, formerly the capital of the penin-
sma, and the residence of the khan. It was formerly a
place of considerable trade, and in 1793 contained 1560
muses, with 5777 inhabitants. It has, however, greatly
declined since the peninsula was transferred to Russia.
Long. 38. 39. E. Lat. 44. 39. N.
BACULARIUS, in writers of the middle age, an eccle¬
siastical apparitor or verger, who carries a staff, bacillus,
ln 118 ‘land, as an ensign of his office.
BAG
275
BACON, Roger, a Franciscan friar of great genius and
learning, was born near Ilchester in Somersetshire in the
year 1214. He began his studies at Oxford, but in what
school or college is uncertain. Thence he removed to the
university of Paris, which in those times was esteemed
the centre of literature. Here, we are told, he made such
rapid progress in the sciences, that he was esteemed
the glory of that university, and was much caressed by
several of his countrymen, particularly by Robert Great-
head, afterwards bishop of Lincoln, his friend and patron.
About the year 1240 he returned to Oxford, and, assum¬
ing the Franciscan order, prosecuted his favourite study
of experimental philosophy with unremitting ardour and
assiduity. In this pursuit, in experiments, instruments,
and scarce books, he tells us he spent, in the space of
twenty years, no less than L.2000, which, it seems, was
given him by some of the heads of the university to ena¬
ble him to continue his interesting inquiries. But such
extraordinary talents, and astonishing progress in sciences
which, in that ignorant age, were totally unknown to the
rest of mankind, whilst they raised the admiration of the
more intelligent few, failed not to excite the envy and
malice of his illiterate fraternity, who found no difficulty
in possessing the vulgar with the notion that Bacon dealt
with the devil. Under this pretence he was restrained
from reading his lectures; his writings were confined to
his convent; and, finally, in 1278, he was himself impri¬
soned in his cell. At this time he was sixty-four years
of age. Nevertheless, being permitted the use of his
books, he persevered in the rational pursuit of knowledge,
corrected his former labours, and wrote several curious
pieces. When he had been ten years in confinement, Je¬
rome de Ascoli being elected pope, Bacon solicited his
holiness for release, but did not immediately succeed
in his object. However, towards the latter end of that
pope’s reign he obtained his liberty, and spent the re¬
mainder of his life in the college of his order, where he
died in 1294, in the eightieth year of his age, and was
buried in the Franciscan church. Bale and others have
enumerated a multitude of pieces as written by Bacon,
and existing in manuscript in various collections. Se¬
veral of his tracts were published in the work entitled
Epistolcc Fratris Rogeri Baconis de Secretis Operibus
Artis et Natures, et de Nullitate Magics. Paris, 1542,
4to; Basil, 1593, 8vo. His Opus Majus, which forms a
sort of digest of his preceding writings, remained unpub¬
lished till 1733, when it was given to the world in a hand¬
some folio volume by Dr Jebb. Some of his chemical
tracts may be found in the Thesaurus Chemicus, published
in an octavo volume at Frankfort in 1603 and 1620. By
an attentive perusal of his works, the reader will find
that Roger Bacon was a great linguist and a skilful gram¬
marian; that he was well versed in the theory and prac¬
tice of perspective; that he understood the use of convex
and concave glasses, the camera obscura, burning-glasses,
&c.; that he was conversant in geography and astronomy;
that he knew the great error in the calendar, assigned
the cause, and proposed the remedy; that he understood
chronology well; that he was in all probability the inven¬
tor of gun-powder; that he possessed considerable know¬
ledge in the medical art; and that he was an able mathe¬
matician, logician, and theologist.
Bacon, Sir Nicholas, lord keeper of the great seal in
the reign of Queen Elizabeth, was born at Chislehurst in
Kent in 1510, and educated at the university of Cam¬
bridge, after which he travelled in France, and made some
stay at Paris. On his return he settled in Gray’s Inn,
and applied himself with such assiduity to the study of
the law, that he quickly distinguished himself; and, on
the dissolution of the monastery of St Edmund’s Bury in
Bacon.
276 BAG
Bacon. Suffolk, he had a grant from King Henry VIII., in the
thirty-sixth year of his reign, of several manors. In the
thirty-eighth of the same king he was promoted to the
office of attorney in the court of wards, which was a place
both of honour and profit. In this office he was continued
by King Edward VI.; and in 1552 he was elected trea¬
surer of Gray’s Inn. His great moderation and consum¬
mate prudence preserved him through the dangerous reign
of Queen Mary. In the very dawn of that of Elizabeth
he was knighted; and on the 22d of December 1558, the
great seal of England having been taken from Nicholas
Heath, archbishop of York, was delivered to him, with the
title of Lord Keeper; and he was also made one of the
queen’s privy council. He had a considerable share in the
settling of religion ; and, as a statesman, he was remark¬
able for a clear head and wise counsels. But his great
parts and high preferment were fi.r from raising him in
his own estimation, as appears from the modest answer he
gave Queen Elizabeth when she told him his house at
Redgrave was too little for him: “ Not so, madam,” re¬
turned he; “ but your majesty has made me too great for
my house.” After having held the great seal more than
twenty years, this able statesman and faithful counsellor
was suddenly removed from the scene of his labours. He
had been under the hands of his barber, and, thinking
the weather warm, had ordered a window before him to
be thrown open; but he fell asleep as the current of fresh
air was blowing in upon him, and awakened some time
after distempered all over. He was immediately remov¬
ed into his bed-chamber, where he died a few days after,
on the 26th of February 1578-9, equally lamented by the
queen and her subjects. He was buried in St Paul’s,
where a monument was erected to him, which was destroy¬
ed by the great fire of London in 1666. Mr Granger
observes that he was the first lord keeper who ranked as
lord chancellor; and that he had much of that penetrating
genius, solidity, judgment, persuasive eloquence, and com¬
prehensive knowledge of law and equity, which afterwards
shone forth with so great splendour in his illustrious son.
Bacon, Francis, baron of Verulam, viscount of St
Alban’s, and lord high chancellor of England under King
James I. See Verulam, Francis Bacon, baron of.
This reference is made in the expectation that we shall be
able, by means of it, to give a more correct and compre¬
hensive sketch of Lord Bacon’s life than could be drawn
from our present materials. His philosophy is fully ex¬
plained in the historical dissertations forming the first vo¬
lume of this work. See vol. i. p. 32 and 453.
Bacon, John, academician, born 24th November 1740,
who may be considered as the founder of the British
school of sculpture, and whose works are still its greatest
boast, was the son of Thomas Bacon, cloth-worker in
Southwark, whose forefathers possessed a considerable
estate in Somersetshire.
At the age of fourteen he was bound apprentice in Mr
Crispe’s manufactory of porcelain at Lambeth, where he
was at first employed in painting the small ornamental
pieces of china, but soon attained the distinction of being
modeller to the work. The produce of his labour was
devoted by him, from his earliest years, towards the sup¬
port ot his parents. While thus engaged, he had an op¬
portunity oj seeing the models executed by different sculp¬
tors of eminence, which were sent to be burned at an
adjoining pottery. An observation of these productions
appears to have immediately determined the direction
ot his genius; and his progress in the imitation of them
was no less rapid than his propensity to the pursuit was
BAG
strong. His ardour and unremitting diligence are best bn
proved by the fact, that the highest premiums given by v1
the Society for the Encouragement of Arts in those par¬
ticular classes in which he w^as a competitor, were ad¬
judged to him nine times between the years 1763 and
1776. During his apprenticeship he likewise formed the
design of working statues in artificial stone, which he af¬
terwards carried to perfection.
Mr Bacon first attempted working in marble about the
year 1763, and, during the course of his early efforts in
this art, was led, by the resources of his genius, to im¬
prove the method of transferring the form of the model to
the marble (technically called getting out the points), by
the invention of a more perfect instrument for this pur¬
pose, and which has since been adopted by many sculp¬
tors both in this and other countries.1 The advantages
which this instrument possesses above those formerly em¬
ployed are, its greater certainty and exactness, that it
takes a correct measurement in every direction, is con¬
tained in so small a compass as not to encumber the work¬
man, and is transferable either to the model or the mar¬
ble, as may be required, without the necessity of a sepa¬
rate instrument for each.
In the year 1769 the first gold medal given by the
Royal Academy was adjudged to Bacon, and in 1770 he
was associated by that body. His first work in sculp¬
ture was a bust of his majesty George III., intended for
Christ Church College. It is said, that of sixteen differ¬
ent competitions in which he engaged with other artists,
he was unsuccessful in one case only. His knowledge of
the antique style was for a time called in question; and
on occasion of the doubts which were raised on this point,
he is reported to have modelled his head of Jupiter To-
nans, as the most satisfactory method of repelling the
charge. The objection probably originated from the cir¬
cumstance, that in some of his principal works the figures
were represented in the costume of modern times, of which
his statue of Justice Blackstone at All Souls College, Ox¬
ford, and that of Howard in St Paul’s Cathedral, are re¬
markable examples. But his genius was not subjected to
the trammels of this or of any one style exclusively. Many
of his emblematical figures are designed after the purest
models, and in a taste altogether classical. Among several
of this character, the monument to Mrs Draper, in the
cathedral of Bristol, is exquisitely simple. In his later
productions, likewise, particularly those of a monumental
kind, he introduced frequent examples of the ancient
style ; as in the well-known monument to the earl of Chat¬
ham in Westminster Abbey, that to Lord Robert Man¬
ners, and others which might be mentioned. “ Another
marble, scarcely finished at the time of his death,” says
Dallaway, in his Anecdotes of the Arts in England, “ will
secure him a lasting fame for originality and classical taste.
It is the cenotaph lately erected in Westminster Abbey to
the poet Mason. A muse, holding his profile on a medal¬
lion, reclines on an antique altar, on which are sculptured,
in relief, a lyre, the tragic masque and laurel wreath; all
of the most correct form, as seen on ancient sarcophagi of
the pure ages.”
On the 4th of August 1799 Mr Bacon was suddenly
attacked with an inflammation of the bowels, wrhich occa¬
sioned his death in little more than two days. He died
in his 59th year, leaving a widow, his second wife, and a
family of six sons and three daughters.
Of his merit as a statuary, the universal and establish¬
ed reputation of his works has afforded the decisive proof.
“ The works of Bacon, Bankes* Nollekins, Wilton, and
1 The invention has sometimes been erroneously ascribed to Monsieur Hudon, a French sculptor.
BAD
BAD
I Bgc piaxman,” says Dallaway, and to these might now perhaps
1 Aho be added other names of nearly equal promise, “ will rescue
I li the present age from being totally indebted to foreigners
!a " for perfection in statuary.” The various productions of this
J artist which adorn St Paul’s Cathedral, Christ Church
and Pembroke Colleges, Oxford, the Abbey Church at
Bath, and Bristol Cathedral, give ample testimony to his
powers; above all, those great and prominent works among
the monuments in Westminster Abbey.
But it was not as an artist only that Mr Bacon was
esteemed ; die was no less distinguished by the firmness
of his mind, and the uprightness of his private character.
His principles were deeply founded, and the virtues which
he strove to attain were measured by a standard more
unbending than the mere dictates of feeling or of a culti¬
vated taste. He was an avowed believer in the truths of
the Christian religion; and in him this belief exhibited
its corresponding effects, by producing a consistent influ¬
ence upon his whole character and conduct. In this man¬
ner, the strength of his principles, and the reality of his
conviction, were daily manifested throughout his life, than
which, no test of sincerity is more unequivocal, no instruc¬
tion more useful, and no recommendation more persuasive.
Mr Bacon was remarkable for the simplicity of his
manners, and was in all things devoid of ostentation. Of
the general powers of his mind, and particularly of his
acute and just perception in matters of taste connected
with his art, a very favourable opinion will be formed by
those who peruse the article Sculpture which he con¬
tributed to Dr Rees’s edition of Chambers’s Dictionary.
See Memoir of the late John Bacon, R. A., by the
Reverend Richard Cecil. London, 1811.
BACONTHORP, John, called the Resolute Doctor, a
learned monk, was born towards the end of the thirteenth
century, at Baconthorp, a village in Norfolk. He spent
the early part of his life in the convent of Blackney, near
Walsingham, in the same county, whence he removed to
Oxford, and thereafter to Paris, where, being distinguished
for his learning, he obtained degrees in divinity and laws,
and was esteemed the principal of the Averroists. In 1329
he returned to England, and was immediately chosen
twelfth provincial of the English Carmelites. In 1333 he
was sent for to Rome, where, we are told, he first maintain¬
ed the pope’s sovereign authority in cases of divorce ; but
this opinion he is understood to have afterwards retract¬
ed. He died in London in the year 1346. Leland, Bale,
and Pitts, unanimously give him the character of a monk
of genius and learning. He wrote, 1. Commentaria, seu
Qumtiones super quatuor libros Sententiarum ; and, 2. Com¬
pendium Legis Christi, et quodliheta ; both of which pass¬
ed through several editions.
BACTRIA, or Bactriana, an ancient kingdom of
Asia, bounded on the west by Margiana, on the north by
the river Oxus, on the south by Mount Paropamisus, and
on the east by the Asiatic Scythia and the country of the
Massagetae. It was a large, fruitful, and well-peopled
country, containing, according to Ammianus Marcellinus,
a thousand cities, though of these only a few are particu¬
larly mentioned by historians, of which that formerly call¬
ed Maracanda, now Samarcand, is the most considerable.
BACTROPERATA, an ancient appellation given to
philosophers by way of contempt, denoting a man with a
staff and a budget.
BACCULE, in Fortification, a kind of portcullis or
gate, made like a pit-fall with a counterpoise, and sup¬
ported by two large stakes. It is usually erected before
the corpade guard, not far from the gate of a place.
BADAJOZ, a city, the capital of the province of Es-
tremadura, in Spain. It is situated on a plain on the left
bank of the Guadiana, is strongly fortified, and contains
an arsenal and military academy, a cathedral, five parish Badakshan
churches, twelve religious houses, and five hospitals. The II
inhabitants are 14,500. In the late war it was twice
taken after severe sieges, which injured the prosperity of 1
the city; but it has now recovered from these calamities,
and is the seat of a flourishing trade with Portugal. Long.
6. 21. W. Lat. 38. 30. N.
BADAKSHAN, or Buducsh an, a mountainous district,
situated to the north of the great Himalaya ridge, which
bounds Hindostan on the north. It is about twenty days
journey east-south-east of Buckharia, and nearly south of
Kokaun. It comprehends the higher valley of the Amoo,
which is here called the Jihonor the Jaxartes, together with
all the other valleys of its tributary streams, and all the
mountains connected with them as far nearly as the sources
of that river. The district of Badakshan rises gradually
to its level from the lower and northern part of the pro¬
vince of Balkh, which occupies the left bank farther down
the river. This country is described as mountainous and
well wooded, and the people uncivilized, and even savage
in their manners. They live in villages surrounded with
gardens, and situated in the little glens and recesses of
the hills. The mountainous districts of this province are
famed for some of the richest mines of lapis lazuli and of
rubies that are known. The former is found in veins,
sometimes of considerable thickness, in a gray matrix;
and masses of'this stone are occasionally procured capa¬
ble of being wrought into large slabs. They are car¬
ried to Buckharia for sale, and thence to Russia. The
rubies are found imbedded in a white earth, in large
masses of crystal. Some large and coarse crystals are
also found, as well as emeralds, according to the informa¬
tion of Fraser. The chief town is Fyzabad, which is said
not to be more than 150 miles from Balkh. There is ano¬
ther town of the same name as the province, and of consi¬
derable importance. Mr Fraser could gain little authentic
information concerning the people of this remote country,
their hahits, or the nature of their government. 4hey
are, however, rigid and intolerant Mahommedans, among
whom it would be dangerous for any European to reside.
(Fraser’s Journey into Khorassan. Elphinstone.)
BADALONA, a town of the province of Catalonia, in
Spain, on the sea-coast, 10 miles north-east from Barce¬
lona. It is defended by a castle, and remarkable as the
landing place of the archduke Charles of Austria in the
war of the succession in 1704. It contains about 2800
inhabitants, mostly seamen and fishermen.
BADEN, a grand duchy. See Germany.
Baden, or Baden-Baden, a town in the grand duchy
of Baden, celebrated for its medicinal springs, which rise
from twenty-six wells of the warmth of from 110° to 118°
of Fahrenheit. This is a place of great resort for company
in the summer, as well on account of the baths as for the
picturesque scenery of the vicinity. I he city contains
about 3000 resident inhabitants; but the numbers visiting
it in the appropriate season very far exceed the regular
population. There are bathing-houses and promenades,
conversation and gaming rooms, libraries, and all the
other appendages of a fashionable watering place. It is
about lour miles from the Rhine, in the Black Forest,
near an ancient castle with some curious subterranean
apartments.
Baden, a city in the canton of Aargau, in Switzerland,
which gives its name to a circle around it containing 54
townships, with 42 parish churches, 850 heuses, and about
5950 inhabitants. The city is on the river Limmat, and
near it are several warm springs of great medicinal cele¬
brity, which induces crowds of visitors to repair to them in
the appropriate season. It contains about 1650 resident
inhabitants, who depend chiefly upon the annual visitors.
278
Baden
I]
Baetvlia.
BAD
Baden, a small city in the Austrian province of the
Lower Ens, in the circle of Wiener Wald. It is about
twelve miles from Vienna, and is the most fashionable
summer resort of the inhabitants of that capital. The si¬
tuation is highly romantic, and the prospects in its vicinity
are picturesque and beautiful. There are many warm
baths, which are visited for the restoration of health by a
great number of patients. Accommodations and amuse¬
ments are here as amply furnished to the visitors as at the
other German Spas. It suffered much by a fire in 1812,
but has since been very elegantly rebuilt. The archduke
Charles has a residence at this place; and the imperial
family are frequently to be seen here in a plain domestic
style. The resident inhabitants are about 2300, but the
occasional visitors commonly exceed that number. It
stands on the rapid river Schwachat, whose water-falls
add to the beauties of the walks.
BADENOCH, a district of Inverness-shire in Scotland.
(See Inverness-shire.)
BADEN-WEILLER, a town of Germany, belonging
to the lower margravate of Baden. Long. 7. 50. E. Lat.
47. 55. N.
BADENS, Francis, historical and portrait painter,
born at Antwerp in 1571, died in 1603. His touch was
light and spirited, and his colouring warm, in which, in¬
deed, he had the honour of being the first who introduced
a good taste among his countrymen.
BADGER. See Mammalia Index.
BADILE, Antonio, historical and portrait painter,
born at Verona in 1480, died in 1560. By great study
and application he acquired a more extensive knowledge
of the true principles of painting than any of his prede¬
cessors. He was confessedly a very eminent artist; but
he derived greater honour from having had two such dis¬
ciples as Paolo Veronese and Baptista Zelotti, than from
the excellence of his own compositions.
BADIUS, Josse, sometimes called Badius Ascen-
sius, from the village of Asche, where he was* born in
1462, an eminent French printer, whose printing esta¬
blishment was celebrated under the name of Prelum
Ascensianum. He illustrated with notes several of the
works which he printed, and was himself the author of
several pieces, particularly a life of Thomas a Kempis, and
a satire on the follies of women, entitled Navicida Stulta-
rum Mulierum. He died in 1535.
BiETICA, a province of ancient Spain, so called from
the famed river Bsetis, afterwards Tartessus, now Guadal¬
quivir or the great river. It was bounded on the west by
Lusitania, on the south by the Mediterranean and Sinus
Gaditanus, and on the north by the Cantabric Sea, now the
Bay of Biscay. On the east and north-east its limits can¬
not be so well ascertained, since they are thought to have
been in a continual state of fluctuation, as each petty mo¬
narch had an opportunity of encroaching upon his neigh¬
bour.
BiETl LIA, anointed stones, worshipped by the Phoe¬
nicians, by the Greeks before the time of Cecrops, and
by other barbarous nations. They were commonly of a
black colour, and consecrated to some god, as Saturn,
Jupiter, the Sun. Some are of opinion that the true ori¬
ginal of these idols is to be derived from the pillar of
stone which Jacob erected at Bethel, and which was af¬
terwards worshipped by the Jews. These bcetylia were
the objects of much veneration among the ancient hea¬
thens. Many of their idols were in fact no other; and no
sort was more common in eastern countries than that of
erect oblong stones, hence termed by the Greeks x/owf,
pdlars. In some parts of Egypt they were planted on
both sides of the highways. In the temple of Heliogaba-
lus in Syria, there was one said to have fallen from hea-
B A G
ven; and in Phrygia there was a black stone, also consi- i
dered an aerolithe, which the Romans sent for, and re- 1
ceived with much ceremony, Scipio Nasica having been & <1,
at the head of the embassy. ^ si
BJEZA, a city of Andalusia in Spain, seated on a high
hill three miles from the Guadalquivir. It is the see of
a bishop, and has a kind of university founded by John
d’Avila. It was taken from the Moors about the end of
the fifteenth century. Long. 3. 15. E. Lat. 37. 45. N.
BAFFIN’S BAY, a gulf of North America, separating
Greenland from the north-eastern part of America. Davis’
Straits form the lower part or entrance of this bay or gulf.
BAFFO, a town in the island of Cyprus, with a fort
built near the site of the ancient Paphos, of which some
ruins yet remain, particularly fragments of columns, which
probably belonged to the temple of Venus. Long. 32.20.
E. Lat. 34. 50. N.
BAGDAD, a city of Asia, formerly the capital of the
empire of the caliph, and long renowned for its commerce
and its wealth. It is situated on an extensive and desert
plain, with scarcely a tree or village throughout its whole
extent; and, though it is intersected by the Tigris, it
stands mostly on its north-east bank, close to the water’s
edge. Old Bagdad on the west is now considered only as
a suburb to the larger and more modern city on the east¬
ern shore. It has, however, numerous and extensive
streets, well furnished with shops, and is protected by
strong wralls, and three gates opening towards Hillah on
the Euphrates and Kazameen. Beyond these recent
bulwarks, vestiges of ancient buildings, spreading in va¬
rious directions, are visible in the plain, which is strew¬
ed with fragments of brick, tiles, and rubbish. A bury-
ing-ground has extended itself over a large tract of land
formerly occupied by the streets of the city; and here is
the tomb of Zobeida, the favourite wife of Haroun el
Raschid, built of brick, of a high octagonal shape, and
surmounted by a lofty superstructure in the form of a
cone. The two towns of Old and New Bagdad are con¬
nected by a ruinous bridge of thirty pontoons, so decayed
that few of the natives venture across it. The form of
the new city is that of an irregular oblong, about 1500
paces in length by 800 in breadth; and a brick wall, 1500
paces in length and about five miles in circuit, incloses
the town on both sides of the river. This wall, which is
built of brick, has been constructed and repaired at dif¬
ferent periods; and, as in most other works of the same na¬
ture in Mahommedan countries, the oldest portion is the
best, and the more modern the worst part of the fabric.
At the principal angles are large round towers, with smaller
towers intervening at short distances; and on these large
towers batteries are planted, with about fifty brass cannon
of different calibre, badly mounted. On two of these an¬
gular towers, Mr Buckingham remarked that the work¬
manship is equal to any ancient masonry that he had ever
seen. The wall has three gates, one on the south-east,
one on the north-east, and a third on the north-west of
the city; and it is surrounded by a dry ditch of consider¬
able depth. The town has been built without the slight¬
est regard to regularity. The streets are even more in¬
tricate and winding than those in many other eastern
towns; and, with the exception of the bazars and some
open squares, the interior is little else than a labyrinth of
alleys and passages. The streets are unpaved, and in many
places so narrow that two horsemen can scarcely pass
each other; and as it is seldom that the houses have win¬
dows facing the great public thoroughfares, and the doors
are small and mean, they present on both sides the gloomy
appearance of dead walls. All the buildings, both public
and private, are constructed of furnace-burnt bricks, of a
yellowish red colour, taken chiefly from the ruins of other
BAG
w edifices, as their rounded angles evidently show. A
It' house is generally laid out in ranges of apartments open-
ing into a square interior court, and furmshed with sub¬
terranean rooms called serdaubs, into which the inhabi¬
tants retreat during the day for shelter from the intense
heats of summer; and with terraced roofs, on which
they take their evening meal, and sleep in the open air.
In the months of June, July, and August, the thermome¬
ter at break of day generally stands at 112° of Fahren¬
heit; at noon it rises to 119°, and a little before two
o’clock to 122°; at sunset it is about 117°, and at mid¬
night 114°. In some seasons it rises even higher; and
at these times the inhabitants during the day take refuge
in the subterranean apartments, where they contrive, by
every possible device, to mitigate the intolerable heat. In
the interior the houses of the rich are splendidly furnished,
and ornamented in the ceilings with a sort of chequered
work, which has a grand appearance. A great portion of
the ground within the walls of the town is unoccupied by
buildings, especially in the north-eastern quarter; and
even in the more populous parts of the city, near the river,
there is a considerable space between tbe houses, occupied
by gardens, in which are produced pomegranates, grapes,
figs, olives, and dates, in great abundance, so that the city,
when seen from a distance, has the appearance of rising
out of the midst of trees.
The public buildings in Bagdad are chiefly the mosques,
the khans or caravanserais, and the serai or palace of the
pasha. This latter building, which is situated in the
north-western quarter of the town, not far from the 1 igris,
is rather distinguished for extent than grandeur; it is a
comparatively modern structure, and being built at differ¬
ent periods, it forms a large and confused pile, without
either architecture, beauty, or strength. There are no
remains of the ancient palace of the caliphs.
In all Mahommedan cities the mosques are conspicuous
objects. The number in Bagdad is above 100; but of
these not more than thirty are distinguished by their par¬
ticular minarets or steeples, the rest being merely chapels
and venerated places of prayer. The most ancient of these
mosques was erected in the year of the Hegira 633, or 1235
of the Christian era, by the Caliph Mostanser. All that
remains of the original building is the minaret, and a small
portion of the outer walls ; the former a short, thick, heavy
column of the most ungraceful proportions, built of bricks,
diagonally crossed, and of various colours. The jamah or
mosque of Merjameeah, not far distant from the former,
though the body of it is modern, has some remains of old
and very rich arabesque work on its surface. The door is
formed by a lofty arch of the pointed form, bordered on
both sides by rich bands exquisitely sculptured, and hav¬
ing numerous inscriptions. The mosque of Khassakey is
chiefly distinguished by the niche for prayer, which, in¬
stead of a simple and unadorned recess, is crowned by a
Homan arch, with square pedestals, spirally-fluted shafts,
a rich capital of flowers, and a fine fan or shell-top in the
Roman and not in the Arabic taste. Around the arch is
a sculptured frieze; and down the centre, at the back of
the niche, is a broad band, richly sculptured with vases,
flowers, &c. in the very best style of workmanship; the
whole executed on a white and fine ground marble. The
mosque of the vizier, near the Tigris, has a fine dome and
lofty minaret; and the great mosque in the square of El
^laidan is also a noble building. The others do not merit
particular notice. The domes at Bagdad are mostly
mgh, and disproportionately narrow. They are richly
ornamented with glazed tiles and painting, the colours
279
chiefly green and white, which being reflected from a Bagdad,
polished surface, give rather a liveliness than a magnifi-
cence to the aspect of these buildings. But, in the opinion
of Mr Buckingham, they are not to be compared to the
rich and stately domes of Egypt, as the minarets, although
they have the same bright assemblage of colours, are far
from being equal “ to the plain and grave dignity of some
of the Turkish towers at Diarbekir, Aleppo, and Damascus,
or to the lighter elegance of many of those in the larger
towns on the banks of the Nile.”1
There are about thirty khans or caravanserais in Bagdad,
all of inferior construction to those in the other large towns
of Turkey. The bazars, which are numerous, are mostly-
formed of long, straight, and tolerably wide avenues. The
one most recently built is the longest and the best, though
it has still an air of meanness about it not common in the
bazars of large Turkish cities. It is long, wide, and lofty,
and well filled with dealers and wares of all sorts. Several
of these bazars are vaulted over with brick work; but the
greater number are merely covered with flat beams laid
across, to support a roof of straw, dried leaves, or branches
of trees and grass. There are about fifty baths in Bag¬
dad, which are also far inferior in their accommodations to
those in the other large towns of Mesopotamia.
Bagdad is about 500 miles from the mouth of the Tigris,
including its windings, and about 400 from Bussora; and
with this latter place it carries on a constant communica¬
tion by means of boats, from twenty to fifty tons burden,
though the river is navigable for larger vessels. With a
northerly wind these boats will make the passage to Bus¬
sora in seven or eight days; in calms, when they have
merely the aid of the current, the passage occupies from
ten to fifteen days. Sir R. K. Porter mentions that the
stream of the Tigris runs at the rate of seven knots an
hour. This, however, is probably during floods, since, with
such a powerful current, a boat could not occupy ten or
fifteen days on its passage from Bagdad to Bussora. In
coming up the stream, thirty or forty days are consumed
before reaching Bagdad. The smaller craft, used for
bringing supplies of provisions and fruit to the city, are
circular boats of basket-work, covered with skins, the
same that have been employed from the remotest antiqui¬
ty. The communication with Bussora used formerly to
be carried on by the way of Hillah on the Euphrates ; but
the banks of this river are now in possession of a tribe of
Arabs, who detain and plunder all vessels sailing down the
river, and frequently murder the crews. The Euphra¬
tes and the Tigris are liable to spring floods; and the
streams of both rivers being joined, inundate the desert
plain on which Bagdad stands, when the city appears like
an island in the midst of the sea. The inhabitants are
supplied with water from the Tigris, which is brought to
their houses in goats’ skins; the convenience of water¬
works, cisterns, and pipes, being entirely unknown.
Bagdad has declined from its ancient importance. It
was formerly a great emporium of eastern commerce ; and
it still receives, by way of Bussora, from Bengal, the ma¬
nufactures and produce of India, which are distributed
over Arabia, Syria, Koordistan, Armenia, and Asia Minor.
This trade has increased, owing to the moderate demands
of the government, from two annual vessels to six under
the English flag, besides those under Arabian colours. At
the same time the inland trade from Persia and the East
has declined. The productions and manufactures of Per¬
sia which were intended for the Syrian, Armenian, and
Turkish markets, and were sent to Bagdad as a central
depot, now reach Constantinople by the more direct route
DAD.
Buckingham’s Travels in Mesopotamia, vol. ii. chap. vii.
2S0
BAGDAD.
Bagdad, of Erzerum and Tocat. Wealth appears to be deficient
among all classes, and Bagdad has many symptoms of a
decayed city.
The population is a mixture of nations from various quar¬
ters of the East. The chief officers of government, whether
civil or military, are of the families of Constantinopolitan
Turks, though they are mostly natives of the city; the
merchants and traders are almost all of Arabian descent;
while the lower classes consist of Turks, Arabs, Persians,
and Indians. There are some Jews and Christians, who
still remain distinct from the other classes; while the
strangers in the town are Koords, Persians, and Desert
Arabs in considerable numbers. The dress of the Bagdad
Turks is not nearly so gay or splendid as that of their
northern countrymen ; and the costume of the Bagdad re¬
sidents is, upon the whole, unusually plain in comparison
with that of other Asiatics. As every nation retains its
own peculiar dress, it may be easily conceived what an
amusing variety of costume must be seen in the streets
of Bagdad. The dress of the females is as mean as that
used in the poorest villages of Mesopotamia; women of
all classes being enveloped in a blue checked cloth, such
as is worn by the lowest orders in Egypt, and having their
faces covered by hideous veils of black horse-hair.
Bagdad is governed by a pasha, assisted by a council.
The pasha receives his appointment from the sultan of
Constantinople; which, however, has to be ratified by the
public voice, not ascertained by votes, but expressed in
the tumultuous acclamations of the populace. The pasha
is chosen from a body of Georgian Mamelukes, maintain¬
ed by importations from Georgia, which are said to in¬
crease every year. Among this body are distributed all
the lucrative offices, as well as all the military commands.
The pasha has a force of 2000 horsemen, 10 pieces of artil¬
lery, and a body-guard consisting of 1000 men. On par¬
ticular emergencies he can call for the service of some
Arab tribes of the Desert, who are bound to this duty in
return for provisions supplied by the pasha ; the pashas of
Koordistan also aid him with 5000 or 6000 horse in case
of need ; so that on a short notice he can collect a force of
20,000 or 30,000 undisciplined troops for the defence of
the city. He is generally considered as quite independent
of the sultan of Constantinople. His revenue arises from
a custom-duty on all merchandise entering Bagdad; and
he seldom resorts to forced exactions for the supply of his
treasury. The moderation and justice pursued by the
government has the effect of giving great activity to
commerce, and general satisfaction to all engaged in it.
The police of Bagdad is extremely defective, and murders
frequently take place at the gates of the palace and of the
gi eat mosque, without any attempt being made to bring the
criminals to justice. Mr Buckingham mentions, that one
murder was committed in open day, on the street, before a
hundred witnesses, no one of whom thought of interfering;
it being, according to the maxims of the Arabs, an affair of
blood, which it belonged to the relatives of the slain to re¬
venge, or the pasha to investigate, and which they had no
business to meddle with. Robberies are also frequently
committed with impunity. The English and French main¬
tain each a consul at Bagdad. The late Mr Rich, whose
amiable qualities furnish a theme of praise to every tra¬
veller, was appointed to that situation by the East India
company, with a large establishment, and was considered
the most powerful man in Bagdad next to the pasha.
Bagdad was founded by A1 Mansour, second caliph of
the race of Abbas, m the 145th year of the Hegira (a. d.
74/). It was adorned with many noble and stately edi¬
fices by the magnificence of the renowned Haroun el
Racshid, who also built on the eastern side of the river,
connecting the two quarters of the town by a bridge of
boats. Under the auspices of Zobeida, the wife of that B
prince, and Jaffer Barmecide, his favourite, the city may ^ vi
be said to have attained its greatest splendour. It con¬
tinued to flourish and increase, and to be the seat of ele¬
gance and learning, until the 656th year of the Hegira
(a. d. 1257), when Holakoo the Tartar, the grandson of
Genghis Khan, took it by storm, and extinguished for ever
the reign of the Abbassides. The Tartars retained pos¬
session of Bagdad till about the year 1400 of our era
when it was taken by Tamerlane, from whom the sultan
Ahmed Ben Avis fled, and finding refuge with the Greek
emperor, contrived afterwards to repossess himself of the
city, whence he was finally expelled by Kara Ausef in 1417,
In 1477 his descendants were driven out by Usum Cassim'
who reigned 39 years in Bagdad, when Shah Ismael the
First, the founder of the royal house of Sefe, made himself
master of it. From that time it continued for a long period
an object of contention between the Turks and Persians.
It was taken by Soliman the Magnificent, and retaken by
Shah Abbas the Great; and it was afterwards besieged
by Amurath the Fourth, with an army of 300,000 men.
After an obstinate resistance, it was forced to surrender,
A. n. 1638, when, contrary to the terms of the capitulation’
most of the inhabitants were massacred by torch-light.
Since this period it has remained under a nominal subjec¬
tion to the Turks. Ashmed, the greatest of the pashas of
Bagdad, and the first who rendered the pashalic inde¬
pendent of the porte, defended the town with such cou¬
rage and success against Nadir Shah, that he was com¬
pelled to raise the siege, after suffering great loss. The
population of Bagdad is variously estimated at from 50,000
to 100,000. Mr Buckingham’s estimate is 80,000, which
is probably not far from the truth. Long. 44. 24. E.
Lat. 33. 21. N. (Buckingham’s Travels in Mesopotamia;
Sir R. Ker Porters Travels in Georgia, Persia, Armenia,
and Ancient Babylonia,; Kinneir’s Geographical Memoir
of the Persian Empire.}
Bagdad, or, as it is sometimes called, Arabian Irak,
is also a Turkish pashalic or government of Asia, and is
computed to extend 840 miles in length by 636 in breadth.
It stretches, in a north-west direction, from the mouth of
the Shat-ul-Arab at Bussora, to Merdin, situated near the
source of the Tigris; and from the confines of Persia west
to the banks of the Khabaur, which separates it from
the pashalic of Orfa. Its general boundaries are the Eu¬
phrates and the Arabian desert of Nedjed to the west and
south, Kusistan and Mount Zagros to the east, the pasha¬
lic of Diarbekir to the north-west, and Armenia with the
territories of the Kurdish chief of Julamerick to the north.
This great tract comprehends ancient Babylonia, and the
greatest part of Assyria Proper. The first includes the
space inclosed by the Tigris and the Euphrates, which is
also known under the general appellation of Mesopotamia;
and the second, that which is beyond the Tigris, com¬
monly called the Lower Koordistan. This tract of country
is an extensive plain, extremely fertile, and is watered by
the Tigris and the Euphrates, which at Bagdad approach
within 25 miles of each other, and afford an inexhausti¬
ble supply of the finest water. Only some parts of those
fertile districts, however, are cultivated, as the popula¬
tion consists in many places of wandering Arabs, who
a^.e. averse agriculture, and who, in their vagrant life
v lc"en^ss and rapine, neglect all the natural advantages
of a fertile country. The most productive portion of the
pashahc is on the banks of the Shat-ul-Arab, in the neigh¬
bourhood of Bussora. This tract, for upwards of 30 miles
below that city, is well cultivated, and yields vast quanti-
T?S u ^a^es’ wheat, barley, and various kinds of fruits.
Ihe banks of the Euphrates produce abundant crops of
dry grain. Higher up the Euphrates, the country which
BAG
is possessed by the Arabs is a low marshy tract, formed
lil by the expansion of the Euphrates, and is famed for plen-
lagll. tiful crops of rice. Among the mountainous districts of
rr J the Upper Euphrates the country is highly picturesque
and beautiful; it is watered by the river Mygdonius, and
is in a tolerable state of cultivation. The finest fruits,
such as grapes, olives, figs, pomegranates, which are
esteemed the most delicious in the East; apples, pears,
apricots of an inferior quality; and the finest dates, on
which the inhabitants, as in other parts of Asia, depend in
many cases for subsistence; are produced in abundance.
The domestic animals are, the horse, for which the coun¬
try has long been famed, the ass, camels, dromedaries,
buffaloes, and mules. Of the wild animals, the jackal is
the most destructive. The lion, the hyena, the wolf, and
the wild boar, are also common; and antelopes are seen in
great numbers. Hares are plentiful, but foxes are sel¬
dom seen. All sorts of poultry are- bred excepting the
turkey. On the cultivated lands, and on the borders of
the rivers, the black partridge is met with in great numbers.
Snipes and almost every species of wild fowl may be
found in the marshes, and pelicans on the banks of the
Euphrates and Tigris. In addition to these two rivers,
the country is watered by the Khabaur or Chaboras, form¬
ed of a variety of little brooks about ten miles to the south¬
west of Merdin; by the Mygdonius, which joins the Kha¬
baur ; and also by the Hermes, a tributary of the Myg¬
donius,
In ancient times the plain of Mesopotamia was occu¬
pied by the great and wealthy cities of Nineveh, Baby¬
lon, Seleucia, Ctesiphon, &c. and was in a high state of
cultivation. It was intersected by many well-constructed
canals and other works, which, in dispersing over the
country the superfluous waters of the Tigris and of the
Euphrates, proved extremely useful to agriculture. These
works are now all ruined, and not a vestige remains of
many of the canals, while the course of others can only be
faintly traced in their imperfect remains. One canal is
still to be seen, which connects the Euphrates and the
Tigris exactly half-way between Bussora and Bagdad, and
is navigable in spring for large boats.
The pashalic of Bagdad is occupied by Arabian tribes,
some of them very powerful. The sheik of Montefidge,
whose tribe inhabits the banks of the Euphrates from
Korna to Samavat, can bring into the field 4000 horse
and a proportionate number of foot. The Beni Lam, who
possess the western bank of the Tigris between Korna and
Koote, can muster 1500 horse and 2000 foot. The Beni
Hashem, between Samavat and Khuzil, are a small tribe.
The Khuzil are more numerous, and possess the country
near the marshes of Lemloon. The Gerbai is a powerful
and licentious tribe, who have lately come from Nedjed,
the central district of Arabia, and they are continually
roving about from Kerkesia to Bagdad. There are about
thirteen other smaller tribes, who wander about the pro¬
vince, plundering travellers, and rendering insecure the
navigation of the Tigris and the Euphrates.
BAGLANA, a large and mountainous district of Hin-
dostan, in the Mahratta territories, province of Aurun-
gabad, through which many fertile plains and valleys are
interspersed. It is situated between the 20th and 21st
degrees of N. lat.; and the natural strength of the country
is augmented by a number of strong fortresses erected on
^e summits of lofty mountains. This province was first
conquered by the Mahometans in 1296, but they were
unable to retain their conquest; and from its natural ad-
'antages, and the martial disposition of its natives, it ap¬
pears never to have been entirely subdued, either by the
sovereigns of the Deccan or the Moguls. Aurungzebe
Wlt" ‘lls powerful armies made inroads into this country;
vol. iv.
BAG, 281
but he never obtained more than its nominal subjection, Baglivi
and an irregularly paid tribute. It revolted from the Delhi II
emperors on the first appearance of the Mahratta chief Bagpipe.
Sevajee; and it was wholly held by different Mahratta
chiefs till 1818. It was partitioned among a variety of
leaders, the limits of whose territories frequently fluc¬
tuated. It has no towns of any note.
BAGLIVI, George, a celebrated physician of Italy,
was a native of Apulia, and born about the year 1668.
He studied at Padua, where he became doctor; and then
went to Rome, where he was chosen professor of anatomy.
He died at Rome in 1706, at the early age of thirty-eight.
A collection of his pieces, which are all in the Latin lan¬
guage, was published in 4to in 1704, and has been several
times reprinted in the same form. An edition in 2 vols.
8vo was published in 1788.
BAGMUTTY, a river of Hindostan, which has its
source in the hills to the north of Catmandoo, the capital
of Nepaul, whence it flows in a southerly direction, and
joins the Ganges after a course of 300 miles.
BAGNARA, a city of the province of Calabria Ulte-
riore, in the kingdom of Naples, on the Tyrrhenian Sea.
It suffered by the earthquake in 1783, when, out of 4938
persons, 3324 perished. The injury has been in a great
measure repaired, and it now contains a population of
4000 individuals, who carry on a considerable trade in
silk, oil, and wine, and in the fishery.
BAGNAREA, a town of Italy, in St Peter’s patrimony,
and in the territory of Orvieta, with a bishop’s see. Long.
12. 10. E. Lat. 42. 36. N.
BAGNERES, an arrondissement of the department of
the Upper Pyrenees, in France, 770 square miles in ex¬
tent, comprehending ten cantons and 202 communes, with
a population of 73,630 persons. The capital is the city
of Bagneres de Biggore, celebrated for its medicinal
springs. It is at the entrance of the beautiful valleys of
Medouse and Campan on the Adour, and is much fre¬
quented both for health and pleasure. The population is
about 6500. Long. 0. Lat. 43. 3. N.
BAGNIALACK, a large town of Turkey in Europe, in
the province of Bosnia. Long. 18. 10. E. Lat. 44. 0. N.
BAGNOLAS, a town of Lower Languedoc, now the de¬
partment of Gard, in France. It has a handsome square,
and two fountains which rise in the middle of the town,
the waters of which being received in a basin, are con¬
veyed by a canal out of town, and thence to the lands
about it. Long. 4. 43. E. Lat. 44. 10. N.
BAGNOLI, a city in the province of Principato-Ulte-
riore, in the kingdom of Naples, where several Roman
antiquities are found, containing 4850 inhabitants.
BAGNOLIANS, or Bagnolanses, in Ecclesiastical
History, a sect of heretics, who in reality were Maniche-
ans, though they somewhat disguised their errors. They
rejected the Old Testament and part of the New, held the
world to be eternal, and affirmed that God did not create
the soul when he infused it into the body.
BAGNOLO, a city in the kingdom of Sardinia, in the
continental province of Saluzzo. It stands on the river
Grana, and contains 4374 inhabitants.
BAGPIPE, a musical instrument, of the wind kind,
chiefly used in Scotland and Ireland, but not uncommon
in some of the mountainous districts of Italy, particularly in
Calabria. The peculiarity of the bagpipe, from which in¬
deed it takes its name, is, that the air which blows it is col¬
lected in a leathern bag, whence it is propelled by the arm
into the pipes. These pipes consist of a bass and tenor
or rather treble, and they are different according to the
species of the pipe. The bass part is called the drones
and the tenor or treble part the chanter. In all the spe¬
cies the bass never varies from its uniform note, and
2 N
282
BAG
Bagpipe, therefore very deservedly gets the name of drone; the
compass of the chanter is likewise very limited. There is
a considerable difference between the Highland and Low¬
land bagpipe of Scotland; the former being blown with
the mouth, and the latter with a small bellows; though
this difference is not essential, every species of bagpipe
being capable, by a proper construction of the reeds, of
producing music either with the mouth or bellows. The
following are the species of bagpipe most commonly known
in this country.
The Irish Pipe is the softest, and in some respects the
most melodious of any. The chanter, like that of all the
rest, has eight holes or ventiges, like the English flute,
and is played on by opening and shutting these as occa¬
sion requires; the bass consists of two short drones and
a long one. The lowest note of the chanter is D on the
German flute, being the open note on the counter-string
of a violin; the small drone, one of them being com¬
monly stopped up, is tuned in unison with the note above
this, and the large one to an octave below ; so that a great
length is required in order to produce such a low note,
on wdiich account the drone has sometimes two or three
turns. The instrument is tuned by lengthening or short¬
ening the drone till it sounds the note desired.
The Highland Bagpipe consists of a chanter and two
short drones, which sound in unison the lowest note of the
chanter except one. This is exceedingly loud, and almost
deafening if played in a room; and is therefore mostly
used in the field for marches, and at a distance. It re¬
quires a prodigious blast to sound it, so that those unac¬
customed to it cannot imagine how Highland pipers can
continue to play for hours together, as they are frequently
known to do. For the same reason, those who use the
instrument are obliged either to stand on their feet or
walk when they play. This instrument has but nine notes ;
its scale, however, has not yet been reduced to a very re¬
gular standard in comparison with that of other instru¬
ments, so that little can be said as to its compass. Those
who are acquainted with it, however, affirm that it plays
only the natural notes, without being capable of variation
by flats or sharps. Pipe-music is now written out accord¬
ing to a peculiar notation.
The Scottish Lowland Pipe is likewise a very loud in¬
strument, though less so than the former. It is blown with
bellows, and has a bass like the Irish pipe. This species
is diffeient from all the rest, as it cannot play the natural
notes, but has F and C sharp. The lowest note of a good
bagpipe of this kind is unison with C sharp on the tenor
of a violin tuned to concert pitch ; and, as it has but nine
notes, the highest is D in alt. From this peculiar con-
stiuction, the Highland and Lowland bagpipes play two
species of music essentially different, as each of them also
is from every other species of music in the world. Hence
these two species of bagpipes deserve notice as curiosi¬
ties ; for the music which they play is accompanied with
such peculiar ornaments, or what are intended as such,
that neither violin, nor even organ, can imitate it, except
m a very imperfect manner. This kind of bagpipe was
tormeily very much used in Scotland at weddings and
other festivals ; being indeed extremely well calculated for
p aymg that peculiar species of Scottish music called reels,
t as often been matter of surprise how this was possible,
as the instrument has only a compass of nine or ten notes
at the utmost, and which cannot be varied, as in other in¬
struments ; but within this range it will play an incon¬
ceivable variety of tunes. As its notes are naturally high,
there is scarce any one tune that is not transposed by it,
r,0 lat wou d be a flat note on the key proper for
the violin may be a sharp one on the bagpipe; and al¬
though the latter cannot play any flat note, it may never-
B A H
theless in this manner play tunes which on other instru- Ea
ments would be flat, to as great perfection as these instru. 'w
ments themselves.
The Small Pipe is remarkable for its diminutive size
the chanter not exceeding eight inches in length; for
which reason the ventiges are so near each other, that it
is with difficulty they can be closed. This pipe has only
eight notes, the lower end of the chanter being common¬
ly stopped to prevent the slurring of all the notes, which
is unavoidable in the other species; so that in the hands
of bad players they become the most shocking and unin¬
telligible instruments imaginable. But, by having the
lower ventige closed, and also by the peculiar way in
which the notes are expressed, this pipe plays all its tunes
in the manner called by the Italians staccato, and cannot
slur at all. It has no species of music peculiar to itself, and
can play nothing which cannot be much better executed
upon other instruments; although it is surprising what
volubility skilful performers on this instrument display,
and how far they are able to overcome its natural disad¬
vantages. Some of this species, instead of having drones
like the others, have their bass parts consisting of a wind¬
ing cavity in a kind of short case, and are tuned by open¬
ing these to a certain degree by means of sliding covers,
from which contrivance they are called shuttle-pipes. Be¬
sides these there are a variety of others called Italian,
German, Organ, &c. bagpipes, which have nothing different
in their construction from those above described, nor any
good quality to recommend them.
BAHAMAS, or Lucayas, a chain of islands of great
extent, stretching from off the northern coast of St Do¬
mingo, to that of East Florida, and situated between the
21st and 28th degrees of north latitude, and the 71st
and 81st of west longitude. They have never been re¬
gularly surveyed, nor their numbers ascertained with any
degree of certainty ; but they are estimated at above 500.
01 these the principal are, Acklin’s Island, Andros Island,
Atwood’s Key, Great Bahama, Berry Island, Biminis,
Caicos, Castle Island, Crooked Island, Eleuthera, Exumas,
French Keys, Hog Island, Hog Key, Harbour Island,
Heneagus, Little Island, Long Island, Long Key, Maya-
guana, New Providence, Ragged Island, Rose Island,
Royal Island, Rum Key, Russell Island, St Salvador,
Turk’s Islands, Watling’s Island.
St Salvador, one of the islands composing this chain, was
the first land discovered by Columbus on his memorable
voyage. At that period the Bahamas were inhabited by
a mild and peaceable race of Indians, who, seduced by
the arts of the Spaniards, were afterwards consigned to
perpetual bondage in the mines of St Domingo, or sent
to act as divers in the pearl fisheries of Cumana. From
this period the islands continued devoid of inhabitants
until 1629, when New Providence was settled by the
English, and held till 1641, at which time the Spaniards
expelled them, but made no attempts to settle there them¬
selves. It was again colonized by England in 1666, and
again ravaged by the French and Spaniards in 1703; after
which it became a rendezvous for pirates till 1718, when
these were extirpated, a regular colonial administration
established, and the seat of government fixed in this island.
In 1/81 the Bahamas wrere surrendered to the Spaniards;
but at the conclusion of the war they were once more
annexed to the British empire, to which they have ever
since belonged. At the close of the American war many
of the British royalists sought refuge in these islands, and
colonized the principal of them, from which period we may
date their gradual though slow cultivation and improve¬
ment.
Many of the Bahamas are situated on the Great Baha¬
ma Bank, others upon the Little Bahama Bank, and some
BAH
B> a 3 out of soundings in the Atlantic Ocean. The greater part
! of them consist merely of bleak and barren rocks, others
Bah are entirely covered with wood; and in general they are
Wry, J very flat, presenting the appearance of sand-banks. In
the islands which have been cultivated, the soil is thin, and
generally light or sandy, but interspersed with partial spots
of rich mould. Though destitute of running streams, they
have a number of springs; and by digging wells in the-
rocks down to the level of the sea, fresh water is obtain¬
ed. The productions of the soil comprehend all the va¬
rieties of a tropical climate. Provisions, such as Guinea
and Indian corn, yams, sweet potatoes, plantains, cas¬
sava, &c., and fruits, such as oranges, lemons, limes, pine
apples, cocoa nuts, &c. are produced in abundance; and
so also are different species of timber and dye-woods, such
as mahogany, fustic, lignum vitae, pines, cedars, and the
like. There are no sugar plantations, but a little cotton
and coffee is raised. Oxen, sheep, horses, poultry, and a
great variety of live stock, are reared. The shores and
creeks of all the Bahamas abound in turtle and excellent
fish of different sorts. There are many varieties of birds ;
and wild hogs, guanas, &c. are found in the woods. The
climate is in general dry and salubrious, and the hurri¬
canes are not violent.
New Providence is about twenty-five miles long by nine
miles broad, and is situated between long. 77. 10. and 77.
38. W. and lat. 25. 3. and 25. 20. N. It differs little in soil
and productions from the rest of the Bahamas, except that
it is considerably in advance in point of cultivation. Nas¬
sau, the capital town, the centre of trade, and the seat of
government, is situated on the north coast of the island.
The houses are built of a stone found in the island, and are
remarkably good ; the public buildings in particular, such
as the government-house, custom-house, courts of justice,
&c. are very handsome. New barracks have been lately
erected in a situation not very beautiful it is true, but
much more healthful than the former. There are several
churches, public schools, and charitable institutions in this
town, which are well supported. The three other regular
ports of entry are the Turk’s Islands, Great Exuma, and
the Caicos; but their trade is very trifling, and they are
still far behind New Providence in cultivation and im¬
provement.
The Bahamas are of more importance to Britain by com¬
manding the Gulf of Florida than from their trade and
commerce. The exports consist chiefly of cotton, dye-
woods, mahogany, turtle, fruits, and coffee. The salt trade,
which was at one time considerable, is now in a great mea¬
sure abandoned ; and the imports consist principally of arti¬
cles of clothing, provisions, and prepared wood. A great
proportion of the inhabitants gain a livelihood by picking
up the fragments of wrecks, so frequent in this labyrinth
of shoals and rocks, sometimes to the number of 200 ves¬
sels annually, and also in giving assistance to those who
are in danger, in which precarious trade a vast number of
vessels are employed. The population of the Bahamas,
according to the returns made to parliament in 1829, con¬
sists of—whites, exclusive of wrhite troops, 4152; free blacks
and coloured, exclusive of black troops, 2791; slaves, 9297.
BAHAR, a large province of Hindostan, which lies
principally between the 22d and 27th degrees of north
atitude. On the north it was, until the conquests from
^epaul in 1815, bounded by a range of hills and a low
w00(|y country; on the south by the ancient Hindoo
province of Gundwana; and on the west by Allahabad,
ude, and Gundwana. It comprehends an area of 51,973
square miles, of which one half, consisting of 26,000 square
I*?1 es> arable plain, fertile, populous, and highly cul-
jvated. fhis plain is divided into two nearly equal por-
10ns bT Ganges, which runs across the province in an
BAH 283
easterly course for 200 miles. The northern division ex- Bahar.
tends 70 miles from the Ganges, to the forests of Nepaul
and Morung, on the upper streams of that great river. It
is one uninterrupted flat, which was subdivided by the
emperor Akbar into four districts, namely, Tirhoot, Hajy-
poor, Sarun, with Chumparun or Bettiah, including four
pergunnahs from Monghir. The central division of Bahar
extends south of the Ganges sixty miles, to the commence¬
ment of the hilly country, which stretches southward; and
it contains 18,000 square miles, not nearly so produc¬
tive as the plains. This central division contains the dis¬
trict of Bahar, which is in the middle of it, and occupies
about one half of the whole level area; the plains of Mong¬
hir, one sixth more; and the rest are mountainous. Rhotas,
the south-western district, lies between the rivers Soane and
Caramnassa; the remaining district Shahabad extends
along the south side of the Ganges. There is, besides, a
straggling hilly country of 8000 square miles, which is not
productive. This province has great natural advantages,
and it is favourably situated, between Bengal and the up¬
per provinces, for being the medium of internal commerce.
Its climate is temperate, and the soil is fertile, well watered,
and productive of the higher grains, as also of opium and
other luxuries, which are in request in northern countries.
Agriculture, as well as commerce and manufactures, have
always flourished in Bahar. Opium may be considered
the staple commodity of the country; but, according to
the narrow maxims of the East India Company, all that is
produced in Bahar and Benares is monopolized by the go¬
vernment, and disposed of in Calcutta by public sale. In
addition to those articles, the country yields the ordinary
productions of grain, sugar, indigo, oil, betel leaf, and a
variety of flower essences, especially roses. Saltpetre is
principally manufactured in the divisions of Hajypoor and
Sarun, and it scarcely passes the eastern limits of Bahar.
Cotton cloths for exportation are manufactured every¬
where. The climate is extremely hot; and in Bahar Pro¬
per and the contiguous districts, the country is visited by
a parching windfrom the westward,which prevails through
a large portion of the hot season, blowing with great
strength during the day, and commonly succeeded at night
by a cool breeze in an opposite direction. Sometimes it
ceases for days and weeks, giving way to easterly gales.
Farther westward, and in the interior of the country, the
climate is still hotter, owing to the parching winds which
prevail; and it is not so much tempered by refreshing
breezes or cooling showers of rain and hail. The Bahar
province during the cold season is sometimes liable to a
blighting frost. The country is well watered. Its prin¬
cipal rivers are the Ganges, the Soane, the Gunduck, the
Dummoodah, the Caramnassa, and the Dewah, besides
numerous smaller streams, which supply the country with
moisture, and aid its cultivation. The chief towns are
Patna, Chuprah, Daoudnagur, Goya, Boglipoor, Monghir,
Arrah, Chittra, and Muzutferpoor.
Ever since the British acquired possession of this pro¬
vince in 1764, which is about sixty-six years, it has en¬
joyed the most profound tranquillity. Hence its cultivation
has been continually increasing, and in many parts it is
overflowing with people, owing to the predilection of the
natives for the settled districts rather than the contiguous
wastes. The land in Bahar is divided into smaller ze-
mindaries than in Bengal, and a greater portion of it is in
jaghires. The lands have always been let to farm ; and
from the time that the British acquired the right of col¬
lecting the land revenue, no settlement had been conclud¬
ed with the proprietors of the soil until the final assess¬
ment in 1792. The tenantry, though they are left at the
mercy of the zemindars or landlords by the revenue
settlement, are on the whole in a prosperous condition.
284 B A 1
Bahir Experience has taught the zemindars the necessity of
II. treating them justly; and, accordingly, one half of the pro-
Baiae. js j-]ie usuai allowance of the cultivators, and there
1 is such a demand for their industry, that in some cases
they are enabled even to make better terms. The hire
of a ploughman, since the year of the perpetual settlement
in 1792, has nearly doubled, while the price of grain has
fallen. This territory was at an early period subdued by
the Mahommedan invaders. The large towns on the
Ganges have always been their favourite residences, and
hence a considerable proportion of the population. About
one fourth profess the Mahommedan faith. The amount of
the land tax is 6,152,435 rupees, and of the abkarry or
excise duties on consumable articles 594,103.
BAHIR, a Hebrew term signifying “ famous” or “ il¬
lustrious,” but particularly applied to a book of the Jews,
treating of the profound mysteries of the Cabala, being
the most ancient of the rabbinical works.
BAHLINGEN, a bailiwick in the circle of Schwartz-
wald, or the Black Forest, in the kingdom of Wirtemberg.
It extends over 132 square miles, and comprehends two
cities, one market-town, and thirty-five villages, with
28,164 inhabitants. Its agriculture is little productive,
but manufactures of various kinds are more advanced.
The city, which gives name to the bailiwick, is on' the
Eynach, and contains 3220 inhabitants. Long. 8.45.52. E.
Lat. 48. 16. 0. N.
BAHREIN, a cluster of islands on the south-west side
of the Persian Gulf, near the Arabian shore, the princi¬
pal of which is named Bahrein. This island, which is
about fifteen miles from the coast, is one of the finest in
the gulf, and is covered with villages and date gardens.
The town and fort of Medina, which contains about 800
or 900 houses, carries on a considerable trade with Bus-
sora and other ports in the gulf. Here is a harbour ad¬
mitting vessels of 200 tons, which trade to Bushire, and
with a fair wind make the voyage in fourteen hours. This
island has always been famous for the pearl fishery carried
on in its neighbourhood. The oyster banks produce the
finest pearls in the world. They are found in a small
muscle attached to the bottom by a thin fibre of great
length, which is cut by the diver. These pearls are of
two sorts, white and yellow; and are sent to India, and
through Bussora and Bagdad into Asia. The fishery is
farmed out by the different chiefs on the coast, who
draw a large revenue from this source. These islands
once belonged to the Portuguese. They afterwards fell
under the dominion of an Arabian chief, from whom
they were seized by the Persians. They were afterwards
taken possession of by the Wahabees.
BAHRY, a town of Hindostan, in the province of Agra,
ten miles to the north of the Chumbul. It is a town of
some consequence; many of the houses are two stories
in height, and have a greater appearance of comfort than is
usual in Indian towns. It is chiefly inhabited by Patans,
and is distinguished by several handsome Mahommedan
tombs. Long. 77. 35. E. Lat. 26. 47. N.
BAHUS, a strong town of Sweden, and capital of a
government of the same name, seated on a rock in a small
island. Long. 11. 10. E. Lat. 57. 52. N.
B AI7E, an ancient village of Campania, in Italy, situat¬
ed between the promontory of Misenum and Puteoli, on
the Sinus Batanus, and famous for its natural hot baths,
which served the wealthier Romans for the purposes both
of medicine and pleasure. The variety of these baths, the
softness of its climate, and the beauty of its landscape,
captivated the minds of opulent nobles, whose passion for
bathing knew no bounds. Abundance of linen, and disuse
of unguents, render the practice less necessary in modern
life; but the ancients performed no exercise and engaged
B A J
in no study without previous ablutions, which at Rome I
required an enormous expense in aqueducts, stoves, and
attendants ; and therefore a place where waters naturally t
heated to every degree of temperature bubble spontane- ^ J
ously out of the ground, in the pleasantest of all situations,
formed a treasure which could not be overlooked. Such
was Baise in the highest perfection: its easy communica¬
tion with Rome was also a great advantage. Hither re¬
tired for temporary relaxation the mighty rulers of the
world, to recruit their strength and revive their spirits,
fatigued with bloody campaigns and civil contests. Their
habitations at first were small and modest; but increasing
luxury soon added palace to palace with such expedition,
that ground could no longer be had for new erections;
while enterprising architects, supported by boundless
wealth, carried their foundations into the sea, and drove
that element back from its ancient limits. From being a
place of occasional resort for a season, Baiae now grew up
into a regular city; and whoever found himself disquali¬
fied by age or infirmity for any longer sustaining an ac¬
tive part on the political theatre ; whoever, from indolence
of disposition, sought a place where the pleasures of a
town were combined with the sweets of rural life; who¬
ever wished to withdraw from the dangerous neighbour¬
hood of a court, and the baneful eye of informers, flocked
hither to enjoy life untainted with fear or trouble. Such
a confluence of wealthy inhabitants rendered Baiae as
much a miracle of art as it had before been of nature; and
its splendour may still be inferred from its innumerable
ruins, heaps of marbles, mosaics, stucco, and other pre¬
cious fragments of taste. It flourished in undiminished
magnificence till the days of Theodoric the Goth ; but the
destruction of these enchanted palaces followed quickly
upon the irruption of the northern conquerors, who over¬
turned the Roman power, sacked and burned all before
them, and destroyed or dispersed the whole race of nobi¬
lity. Loss of fortune left the Romans neither the means
nor indeed the thought of supporting such expensive es¬
tablishments, which can only be enjoyed in perfection
during peace and prosperity. No sooner had opulence
failed, and the guardian hand of man been withdrawn,
than the sea rushed back upon its old domain; moles and
buttresses were torn asunder and wmshed away; and pro¬
montories, with the proud towers that once crowned their
brows, were undermined and tumbled into the deep. Yet,
in its ruined state, and stripped of all its ornaments, Baiae
still presents many striking objects for the admiration of
the traveller and the pencil of the artist. Long. 14.45. E.
Lat. 41. 6. N.
BAJAZET I. sultan of the Turks, a renowned warrior,
but a tyrant, was conquered by Timour, otherwise called
Tamerlane, and exposed by him in an iron cage; the fate
it is said which he had destined for his adversary if he had
proved the victor. The iron cage, however, so long and
so often repeated as a moral lesson, has been rejected as
a fable by modern writers, who appeal to the Persian his¬
tory of Sherefeddin Ali in support of their scepticism. Of
this work a French version has been given, and from it
Mr Gibbon has collected the following more specious nar¬
rative of this memorable transaction :—“ No sooner was
Timour informed that the captive Ottoman was at the
door of his tent, than he graciously stepped forwards to
receive him, seated him by his side, and mingled with
just reproaches a soothing pity for his rank and misfor¬
tune. ‘ Alas,’ said the emperor, 4 the decree of fate is
now accomplished by your own fault: it is the web which
you ha ve woven, the thorns of the tree which yourself have
planted. I wished to spare, and even to assist, the cham¬
pion of the Moslems : you braved our threats; you despis¬
ed our friendship; you forced us to enter your kingdom
B A I
B A I
285
]V t with our invincible armies. Behold the event. Had you
31 vanquished, I am not ignorant of the fate which you re-
Baihi ?n*served for myself and my troops. But I disdain to reta-
^ liate: your life and honour are secure; and I shall ex¬
press my gratitude to God by my clemency to man.’ The
royal captive showed some signs of repentance, accepted
the humiliation of a robe of honour, and embraced with
tears his son Mousa, who, at his request, was sought and
found among the captives of the field. The Ottoman
princes were lodged in a splendid pavilion; and the re¬
spect of the guards could be surpassed only by their vigi¬
lance. On the arrival of the haram from Boursa, Timour
restored the queen Despina and her daughter to their
father and husband ; but he piously required that the Ser¬
vian princess, who had hitherto been indulged in the pro¬
fession of Christianity, should embrace without delay the
religion of the prophet. In the feast of victory, to which
Bajazet was invited, the Mogul emperor placed a crown
on his head and a sceptre in his hand, with a solemn as¬
surance of restoring him with an increase of glory to the
throne of his ancestors. But the effect of this promise
was disappointed by the sultan’s untimely death : amidst
the care of the most skilful physicians, he expired of an
apoplexy at Akshehr, the Antioch of Pisidia, about nine
months after his defeat. The victor dropped a tear over
his grave: his body, with royal pomp, was conveyed to
the mausoleum which he had erected at Boursa; and his
son Mousa, after receiving a rich present of gold and jew^-
els, of horses and arms, was invested by a patent in red
ink with the kingdom of Anatolia. Such is the portrait
of a generous conqueror, which has been extracted from
his own memorials, and dedicated to his son and grand¬
son, nineteen years after his decease ; and, at a time when
the truth was remembered by thousands, a manifest false¬
hood would have implied a satire on his real conduct. On
the other hand, of the harsh and ignominious treatment
of Bajazet there is also a variety of evidence. The Turk¬
ish annals in particular, wdiich have been consulted or
transcribed by Leunclavius, Pocock, and Cantemir, unani¬
mously deplore the captivity of the iron cage; and some
credit may be allowed to national historians, who cannot
stigmatize the Tartar without uncovering the shame of
their king and country.” From these opposite premises,
Mr Gibbon thinks a fair and moderate conclusion may be
deduced. He is satisfied that Sherefeddin Ali has faith¬
fully described the first ostentatious interview, in which
the conqueror, whose spirits were harmonized by success,
affected the character of generosity. But his mind wras
insensibly alienated by the unseasonable arrogance of Ba¬
jazet; the complaints of his enemies, the Anatolian princes,
were just and vehement; and Timour betrayed a design
of leading his royal captive in triumph to Samarcand. An
attempt to facilitate his escape by digging a mine under¬
neath the tent, provoked the Mogul emperor to impose a
harsher restraint; and in his perpetual marches an iron
cage on a waggon might be invented, not as a wanton in¬
sult, but as a rigorous precaution. Timour had read in
sqme fabulous history a similar treatment of one of his
predecessors, a king of Persia; and Bajazet was condemn¬
ed to represent the person and expiate the guilt of the
Homan Caesar. But the strength of his mind and body
fainted under the trial, and his premature death might
without injustice be ascribed to the severity of Timour.
BAIHINGEN, a bailiwick of the kingdom of Wirtem-
berg, in the circle of the Neckar. It extends over seventy
square miles, and comprehends three cities, two market-
towns, and sixteen villages, with 20,146 inhabitants, ihe
city which gives name to the bailiwick is on the river
Eos, and contains a castle, a church with some ancient
monuments of the former counts of Bahin, and 3105 in¬
habitants, who cultivate extensively the vine. Long. 8.
47. 50. E. Lat. 48. 55. 45. N.
BAIKAL, a gi’eat lake of Siberia, in the government of
Irkutsk, 366 miles in length from south-west to north¬
east, and from twenty to fifty-three miles in breadth.
This vast reservoir is, according to accurate observations,
about 1715 feet above the level of the sea. It is fed by
several large rivers, namely, the Upper Angara, Selinga,
Bargazin, and others; while the only visible outlet is by
the Lower Angara, which is incapable of carrying off any
thing like the quantity of water which is received. The
vt-ater is excellent and extremely clear, so that the bottom
can be seen at the depth of eight fathoms. The depth of
the lake varies from twenty-two to ninety fathoms. It
yields abundance of fish, and there is a profitable fishery
of seals on its shores during the whole summer. The cli¬
mate is extremely severe ; the waters of this great inland
sea are frozen over about the beginning of January, and
the ice does not break up till May. This lake facilitates
the Russian trade with China, and also between Irkutsk
and Dauria. It is navigated by the Russians in summer,
and in winter they travel across it on the ice. Several
hot springs and mineral waters are seen on the margin,
and naphtha is sometimes found floating on the surface.
It lies between the 52d and 55th degrees of north latitude.
BAIL, Ballium (from the French Sm'Z/e/y which is de¬
rived from the Greek (3aWsiv, and signifies to deliver into
hands), is used in our common law for the freeing or set¬
ting at liberty of one arrested or imprisoned upon any
action, either civil or criminal, on surety taken for his ap¬
pearance at a day and place certain.
BAILIFF, or Bailie, in a general sense, denotes an
officer appointed for the administration of justice in a cer¬
tain district or bailiwick. The term is formed from the
French word bailiff, that is, prcefectus provincice. The
chief magistrates in divers towns are called bailiffs or
bailies; and sometimes the persons to whom the king’s
castles are committed are termed bailiffs, as the bailiff of
Dover Castle.
Of ordinary bailiffs there are several sorts, viz. sheriffs'
bailiffs, bailifts of liberties, &c. Sheriffs’ bailiffs, or she¬
riffs’ officers, are either bailiffs of hundreds or special bai¬
liffs. Bailiffs of hundreds are officers appointed over those
districts by the sheriffs, to collect fines, to summon juries,
to attend the judges and justices at the assizes and quar¬
ter-sessions, and also to execute writs and process in the
several hundreds. Bailiffs of liberties were those bailiffs
appointed by every lord within his liberty, to execute
process, and do such offices as the bailiffs-errant were
wont to do at large in the county.
BAILII, David, painter of perspective views and por¬
traits, was the son of Peter Bailii, an artist of some note,
and was born at Leyden in 1584. From his father he
learned to draw and design ; but he was afterwards placed
under the care of Adrian Verburg, and continued with
him for some time; and when he quitted that master, he
studied to much greater advantage with Cornelius Van-
dervoort, an excellent portrait painter, and with him he
spent about six years. As Vandervoort possessed many
capital paintings of some great masters, Bailii, for his own
improvement, copied them with critical care and observa¬
tion ; and particularly copied one perspective view of the
inside of a church, originally painted by Stenwyck, which
he finished with such accuracy, that even Stenwyck him¬
self could scarcely determine which was the original or
which the copy, when both were placed before him. He
travelled through several parts of Italy to see the works
of the celebrated masters of that country, and resided
a few years at Rome; and abroad, as well as in his own
country, the correctness of his drawing, and the delicate
Baikal
It
Bailii.
286
B A I
Bailiwick handling of his pictures, procured him employment, ad-
Baillie m*rers’ anc^ friends. In the latter part of his life he dis-
' j continued painting, and only drew portraits on vellum
with a pen, which he heightened with black lead, and
thus gave them wonderful force and roundness. He died
in 1638.
BAILIWICK, that liberty which is exempted from the
jurisdiction of the sheriff of the county, and over which
liberty the lord thereof appoints his own bailiff, with the
like power within his precinct as an under-sheriff exer¬
cises under the sheriff of the county. Or it signifies the
precinct of a bailiff, or the place within which his juris¬
diction is terminated.
BAILLET, Adrian, a very learned French writer and
critic, born in June 1649, at the village of Neuville, near
Beauvais, in Picardy. His parents were too poor to give
him a proper education, which, however, he obtained by
the favour of the bishop of Beauvais, who afterwards pre¬
sented him with a small vicarage. In 1680 he was ap¬
pointed librarian to M. de Lamoignon, advocate-general
to the parliament of Paris, of whose library he made a
copious index in thirty-five volumes folio, all written with
his own hand. He died in January 1706. In the list of
his numerous works the following are the most conspi¬
cuous :—1. Histoire de Hollande depuis \Q09jusqu d 1690,
4 tom. I2mo. This work was published under the name
of Neuville. 2. Les Vies des Saints, 3 tom. fol. 3. Des
Enfants devenus celebrespar leurs Etudes etpar leurs Ecrits,
2 tom. 12mo. 4. Vie de Descartes, 2 tom. 4to. 5. Juge-
mens des Savants sur les prbicipaux Ouvrages des Auteurs,
9 tom. 12mo. The last is the most celebrated and the
most useful of all the works of this learned and indefati¬
gable writer. The edition of it published in 1722 by
M. de la Monnoye, in seven volumes quarto, contains the
Anti-Baillet of M. Menage, besides notes; but the edi¬
tions subsequently published in Plolland are esteemed
still more complete. *
BAILLEUL, a town of France, in the department of
the North, formerly very strong, but now without any
fortifications. Long. 2. 45. E. Lat. 50. 45. N.
B AILLIE, Robert, one of the most learned men among
the Scotish presbyterians of the seventeenth century, was
born at Glasgow in the year 1599. His father, who is
described as a citizen, was a son of Baillie of Jerviston,
who belonged to the family of Carphin, a branch of the
ancient family of Lamington, in the county of Lanark;
his mother was Helen Gibson, connected with the Gib¬
sons of Durie, one of whom was an eminent judge in the
supreme court. In the year 1617 he was matriculated in
the university of Glasgow, under the name of Robertus
Eaillize; and here it may be remarked that, according to
the careless practice of the age, he afterwards exhibited no
small variety in the orthography of his surname, writing
it Laylie, Baily, Bailie, and Baillie. His studies were partly
conducted under the superintendence of John Cameron, a
man of great learning and reputation, who had been a pro-
lessor m the protestant university of Saumur, and who in
1622 was appointed principal of the university of Glas-
gow. From him Baillie imbibed the doctrine of passive
obedience; and, in consequence of this prejudice of edu¬
cation, he only gave a tardy assent to the strenuous mea¬
sures which were afterwards adopted against Charles the
hirst. Having taken the degree of A. M. he applied him¬
self to the study of divinity, and in due time received or¬
dination from Archbishop Law.
On the 16th of August 1626 he was admitted one of the
regents of the university; and, on taking his chair, he
delivered an inaugural oration De Mente agente. Dr
otrang, a man of talents and learning, had been appointed
principal a few months before. About the same period,
B A I
Baillie appears to have prosecuted the study of the orien- b
tal languages, in which he is allowed to have attained to
no mean proficiency. He was anxious to promote similar
studies in the university; and in the year 1629 he deli¬
vered an oration In Laiidem Linguce Hebrcece.
One of the pupils intrusted to his charge was Lord
Montgomery, eldest son to the earl of Eglintoun,by whom
he was presented to the living of Kilwinning in Ayrshire.
His induction must have taken place between 1630 and
1632. With this noble family he continued to live on
terms of intimacy; and as he was a person of excellent
character, he equally enjoyed the approbation of his own
parishioners, and the confidence of his ordinary the arch¬
bishop of Glasgow. In 1633 he declined the offer of a
living in Edinburgh. Between 1634 and 1636 he was
much employed in discussing, by means of private corre¬
spondence with his brethren, certain questions respecting
Arminianism, and the ceremonies obtruded on the church
by the partisans of Laud. In 1638 the presbytery of Ir¬
vine elected him a member of the assembly which was
held at Glasgow, and which laid the foundation of mate¬
rial changes in church and state. During the ensuing
year his countrymen raised a considerable army, which
was placed under the command of Alexander Leslie, an
old and experienced officer; and Baillie appears to have
caught some portion of the military ardour which now
prevailed in this cause of religion and liberty. “ It would
have done you good,” he remarks in one of his letters,
“ to have cast your eyes athort our brave and rich hills as
oft as I did, with greater contentment and joy; for I was
there among the rest, being chosen preacher by the gen¬
tlemen of our shire, who came late with Lord Eglinton. I
furnished to half a dozen of good fellows, muskets and pikes,
and to my boy a broad sword. I carried myself, as the
fashion was, a sword, and a couple of Dutch pistols at my
saddle; but, I promise, for the offence of no man, except
a robber in the way; for it was our part alone to pray and
preach for the encouragement of our countrymen, which
I did to my power most chearfully.” {Letters, vol. i. p.
174.) He afterwards states, “ Our soldiers grew inexpe¬
rience of arms, in courage, in favour, daily. Every one
encouraged another. The sight of the nobles, and their
beloved pastors, daily raised their hearts. The good ser¬
mons and prayers, morning and evening, under the roof
of heaven, to which their drums did call them for bells;
the remonstrances very frequent of the goodness of their
cause ; of their conduct hitherto, by a hand clearly divine;
also Lesly’s skill, and prudence, and fortune, made them
as resolute for battle as could be wished. We were feared
that emulation among our nobles might have done harm,
when they should be met in the field; but such was the
wisdom and authority of that old, little, crooked soldier,
that all, with an incredible submission, from the beginning
to the end, gave over themselves to be guided by him, as
if he had been great Solyman....Hadyou lent your ear in
the morning, or especially at even, and heard in the tents
the sound of some singing psalms, some praying, and some
reading Scripture, ye would have been refreshed. True,
there was swearing, and cursing, and brawling, in some
quarters, whereat we were grieved; but we hoped, if our
camp had been a little settled, to have gotten some way
for these misorders; for all of any fashion did regret, and
all promised to do their best endeavours for helping all
abuses. For myself, I never found my mind in better
temper than it was all that time since I came from home,
till my head was again homeward; for I was as a man who
had taken my leave from the world, and was resolved to
die in that service without return.” This enthusiastic ar¬
my had advanced to the borders of the kingdom, and had
pitched its -camp on Dunse Law; the royal forces were
B A I L L I E.
287
within a very short distance; and the adverse parties were
j on the eve of a general engagement, when the treaty of
Berwick, negociated with Charles in person, produced a
temporary cessation of open hostilities. But the seeds of
dissension were too widely scattered, and had taken too
deep root, to be so speedily checked in their growth: the
notions of the king, sufficiently arbitrary in themselves,
were at variance with the elastic spirit of the age; and
his subjects, in both divisions of the island, were gradually
impressed with a deep conviction of his insincerity. In
the year 1640 the Covenanters again had recourse to
arms’7; and having invaded England, they took the town of
Newcastle. Baillie now resumed his attendance in the
camp; and before the close of the year he was employed
in London, along with other commissioners, in preparing
charges against Archbishop Laud, for the innovations
which he had obtruded on the church of Scotland. He
had very recently published The Canterburiaris Self-Con¬
viction, which seems to have been industriously circulated,
and which arrived at a fourth edition. About this period
of his life he composed various other works of a contro¬
versial nature, and was regarded as one of the most stre¬
nuous defenders of the presbyterian cause.
His merit was now so conspicuous that he was offered
a professorship in each of the four universities. Having
been appointed one of the professors of divinity at Glas¬
gow, he delivered, on the 6th of July 1642, an inaugural
oration De Hcereticorum Autocatacrisi. About this pe¬
riod he must have taken the degree of D. D.; for the re¬
cords of the university describe him as “ Doctor et Pro¬
fessor SS. Theologiae.” His colleague David Dickson,
who had been appointed in 1640, is described in the same
manner; but neither of them assumed the title of doctor
in his printed works. Both professors discharged the
functions of clergymen in the city; and in such of his
publications as bear the author’s name, Baillie styles him¬
self minister at Glasgow, or minister of the gospel at
Glasgow, without any addition. While he filled this chair,
it is to be inferred that his chief employment consisted in
teaching the oriental languages. Dr Dickson having been
removed to the university of Edinburgh, he was admitted
to the higher professorship of divinity on the 17th of Ja¬
nuary 1651. His labours were various and extensive.
He was much engaged in the public affairs of the church,
and was a member of all the general assemblies from 1638
to 1653, with the exception of those which were held
during his attendance at Westminster. In 1642 the as¬
sembly appointed him to visit and preach in the north of
Ireland during four months. To the assembly of West¬
minster, which commenced its sittings in the year 1643,
the church of Scotland sent Alexander Henderson, Robert
Douglas, Samuel Rutherford, Robert Baillie, and George
Gillespie, together with three ruling elders, the Earl of
Cassilis, Lord Maitland, and Sir Archibald Johnston of
Warriston. Of the proceedings of this ecclesiastical coun¬
cil, Baillie has given an interesting account in his corre¬
spondence. His modest opinion of himself, and his
high estimate of his colleagues, are equally conspicuous.
“ These things are so high, and of so great concernment,”
he remarks in a letter to Robert Blair, “ that no living Baillie.
man can think Mr Henderson may be away; and to put'■"Y'*"
him to go and return, it were very hard to venture such a
jewel, that is so necessary to the well-being both of church
and state of all these dominions. Mr Samuel, for the
great parts God has given him, and special acquaintance
with the question in hand, is very necessary to be here.
...Mr G. Gillespie, however I had a good opinion of
his gifts, yet I profess he has much deceived me. Of
a truth there is no man whose parts in a publick dispute
I do so admire. He has studied so accurately all the
points ever yet came to our assembly, he has gotten so
ready, so assured, so solid a way of publick debating, that
however there be in the assembly divers very excellent
men, yet, in my poor judgement, there is not one who
speaks more rationally, and to the point, than that brave
youth has done ever; so that his absence would be pre¬
judicial to our whole cause, and unpleasant to all here that
wishes it well.” {Letters, vol. i. p. 451.) In 1645 he re¬
turned from England, in order to give to the general as¬
sembly an account of the proceedings at Westminster;
and having resumed his station among the assembled di¬
vines, he continued to reside for some time longer in the
English metropolis.1 He now stood very high in the es¬
teem and confidence of his countrymen; and in 1649 he
was one of the commissioners sent to Holland for the
purpose of inviting Charles II., and of settling the terms
of his admission to the government. In the controversy
which prevailed among the presbyterians between 1650
and 1660, he adhered to the party of the Resolutioners
against that of the Protesters. The commission of the
general assembly had adopted two resolutions, by which
they consented to the repeal of the act for reforming the
army, and the act by which certain classes of persons were
excluded from places of power and trust, on account of
their immoral conduct, or of the opposition which they had
evinced towards the cause of civil and religious reform;
and the resolutions having been approved by twro subse¬
quent assemblies, a formal protest against the constitution
and proceedings of those assemblies was entered by va¬
rious ministers and elders.
After the restoration, Patrick Gillespie, who had en¬
joyed the special favour of Cromwell, was ejected from
his office; and on the 23d of January 1661 Baillie was ad¬
mitted as principal of the university of Glasgow. For this
promotion he wras indebted to Lauderdale, who had not
yet appeared in his true and hideous colours. According
to some writers, he might have exchanged his academical
office for a bishopric; but he was deeply grieved at the
establishment of episcopacy, and would not accept of
preferment in the church. When the new archbishop of
Glasgow, Andrew Fairfoul, arrived at his metropolitan
seat, he did not fail to pay his respects to the learned
principal. Baillie admits that “ he preached on the Sun¬
day, soberly and well.” “ The chancellor, my noble kind
scholar,” he afterwards states, “ brought all in to see me
in my chamber, where I gave them sack and ale the best
of the town. The bishop was very courteous to me. I
excused my not using of his styles, and professed my
. addressed to the famous Dr Fuller:
le, I am fallen so in love with your
l*n, that I am sorie I wes not before acquaint with it. and with yourself, when from me to 1647 I lived at Worcester house,
and preached in the Savoy, that then, when I had some credite there, I might have used my best endeavours to have done yow plea¬
sure.” (Baillie’s MS. Letters, vol. iv. p. 423.) Of the pulpit-oratory, and of the general talents of the Scotish divines who visited
London, the Earl of Clarendon and Mr Hume have given the same unfavourable account; but on this subject, as well as on many
others, their opinion is strongly contested by Mr Erodie. “ These famous divines preached as chaplains, by turns, in one ot the lec-
ture-rooms; and, as was to have been expected at such a juncture from ipen of their reputation, capacity, and profound as well c.s
varied erudition, they drew immense crowds. If we may form an estimate of their pulpit-oratory from their works, we may safe y
pronounce that the English did not discredit themselves by flocking to hear such preachers.” (History of the British Empire, voi. in.
p. 41.) 3
B A I L L I E.
288
Baillie. utter difference from his way, yet behoved to intreat his
favour for our affairs of the college ; wherein he promised
liberally. What he will perform, time will try.” (Letters,
vol. ii. p. 461.) According to another account, the arch¬
bishop visited him during his illness, and was accosted in
the following terms“ Mr Andrew, I will not call you
my Lord. King Charles would have made me one of
these lords; but I do not find in the New Testament that
Christ has any lords in his house.” In other respects he
is said to have treated the prelate very courteously; and
it may not be superfluous to remark, that this mode of
using the Christian name instead of the surname was not
unusual at that period. Baillie died in the month of July
1662, at the age of sixty-three.
His first wife was Lilias Fleming, of the family of Car-
darroch, in the parish of Cadder, near Glasgow. Of this
marriage there were many children, but only five surviv¬
ed him. 1. Henry, a clergyman, who was never beneficed.
His posterity inherited the estate of Carnbroe, which was
recently sold by General Baillie. 2. Lilias, married to
Eccles of Kildonan in Ayrshire. 3. Helen, married to a
bailie of Glasgow, named Colquhoun. 4. Elizabeth, mar¬
ried to Mr Hamilton, a gentleman of Strathbane in the
kingdom of Ireland. 5. Mary, married to Walter Buchanan
of Orchard. The mother of.these children died on the
7th of June 1653, after a lingering illness. She is men¬
tioned by her husband in terms of much respect and af¬
fection. On the 1st of October 1656 he married Mrs
Wilkie, who was a widow, and the daughter of Dr Strang.
The issue of this marriage was Margaret, who became
the wife of Walkingshaw of Borrowfield.
Wodrow, the zealous and faithful historian of the per¬
secuted church of Scotland, has formed a very high esti¬
mate of Baillie’s literary character. “ Mr Robert Bailie
may most justly be reckoned among the great men of this
time, and was an honour to his country, for his profound
and universal learning, his exact and solid judgement, that
vast variety of languages he understood, to the number of
twelve or thirteen, and his writing a Latin style which
might have become the Augustan age.”1 This commen¬
dation of his Latinity may admit of some abatement; for
although he evidently possessed a very familiar know¬
ledge of the language, his Latin style cannot safely be
said to reach the standard of ancient purity and elegance.
An episcopalian writer, the author of the Appendix to
Spotswood, has commemorated Baillie as “ a learned and
modest man : though he published some very violent writ¬
ings, yet those flowed rather from the instigation of other
persons, than his own inclinations.”2 Mr Brodie, a recent
historian of much ability and research, bestows the fol¬
lowing commendation on Baillie and his associates. “ The
clergy, on whom they greatly depended, were profound
scholars, and no despicable politicians. Nothing can be
more misplaced than the ridicule which has been so pro-
tusely levelled at that body. They proved themselves
ambitious; but, to be satisfied of their talents, and to ad¬
mire their knowledge, it is only necessary to peruse their
works. The writings of Baillie, even his familiar letters,
breathe a manliness of spirit, and evince intelligence and
erudition, that must for ever rescue from contempt a class
of which he did not conceive himself entitled to rank at p,
the head.”3 \2.
Baillie had devoted much attention to the study of the
oriental languages, and was skilled in Hebrew, Chaldee
Syriac, Samaritan, Arabic, and Ethiopic. In his corre¬
spondence with the scholars of the continent, he urged
Golius, Buxtorf, and other learned men, to compose ele¬
mentary works on such of these languages as were not
already provided wjth them. In an unpublished letter,
dated at Glasgow on the 27th of August 1656, and ad¬
dressed to Mr Crawford, a minister of London, he re¬
marks, “ The reason of my calling to you at this tyme is
my desyre to know the condition of that excellent book,
the best to me that ever was printed, Dr Walton’s Poly-
glott Bible.” He was solicitous that the learned pro-
testants should undertake an Encyclopaedia of arts and
sciences; and urged his correspondent not to permit the
education of youth, and the composition of books for ele¬
mentary instruction, to be so generally engrossed by the
Jesuits.
Of Baillie’s publications, the following is as complete a
list as we have been able to furnish.
1. Ladensium Avroxaraxoitug, the Canterbvrians Self-
Conviction ; or, an evident Demonstration of the avowed
Arminianisme, Poperie, and Tyrannic of that Faction, by
their owne confessions: with a postscript to the personal
Jesuite Lysimachus Nicanor,4 a prime Canterburian.
Written in March, and printed in Aprile, 1640, 4to.—This
book was speedily reprinted at Amsterdam ; and a “ third
edition, augmented by the author, with a large Supple¬
ment,” was printed for Nathaniel Better, 1641, 4to. The
additional part was likewise published in a separate form,
under the title of “ A large Supplement of the Canter-
bvrian Self-Conviction.” Imprinted 1641, 4to. A fourth
edition of the work bears the title of “ The Life of Wil¬
liam now Lord Arch-bishop of Canterbvry, examined.’’
Lond. 1643, 4to.
2. A Parallel or briefe Comparison of the Liturgie with
the Masse-Book, the Breviarie, the Ceremoniall, and other
Romish Ritualls.5 Lond. 1641, 4to. Reprinted in 1661.
3. Queries anent the Service-Book.
4. An Antidote against Arminianism.
5. The Unlawfulnesse and Danger of limited Epis-
copacie; whereunto is subjoined a short Reply to the
modest Advertiser and calm Examinator of that Trea¬
tise : as also the Question of Episcopacie discussed from
Scripture and the Fathers. Lond. 1641, 4to.
6. Satan the Leader in chief to all who resist the Re¬
paration of Sion; as it was cleared in a Sermon to the
Honourable House of Commons at their late solemn Fast,
Febr. 28, 1643. Lond. 1643, 4to.
7. Errours and Induration are the great Sins and the
great Judgements of the Time: preached in a Sermon be¬
fore the Right Honourable House of Peers, in the Abbey-
Church at Westminster, July 30, 1645, the day of the
monethly Fast. Lond. 1645, 4to.
8. A Dissvasive from the Errours of the Time: where¬
in the 1 enets of the principall Sects, especially of the In¬
dependents, are drawn together in one Map, &c. Lond.
1645, 4to. Lond. 1646, 4to.
ofjZes^Wodrw^M C“ f ScotIan^ 1 P- 128. Edinb. 1721-2, 2 vols. fol._See the same author’s Lift
st' t\t T’ > Y' Pr°fessor °f Dwimty m the University of Glasgow, p. 30. Edinb. 1828, 12mo.
, Jr* Aliddleton s Appendix to the History of the Church of Scotland, p. 23. Lond. 1677 fol
3 Brodie s Hist, of the British Empire, vol. ii. p. 506.
lelle(?'oiir^w1eeteharmonV,!mdrrrirrp«J^rSHnaC^U-3 ^,1.canor’ of the Societie of Jesu, to the Covenanters in Scotland; wherein is paral-
author of thTs Enistle S d|VerS materi3li P011?ts of Doctrine and Practice. Anno Domini 1640, 4to—The
aueno or inis -Epistle was John Corbet, a Scotish clercrvman. who havimr taken rpfiicrp hi « i j : vorv
author of this Fnistlp was Tnhn Or.NA- ^ aim Tractice. Anno Domini 1640, 4to—uk
-' 1~ mrnSwr ? SC01S c erb7man’ who having taken refuge in Ireland, was “ hewed in pieces in the very
(Baiihe s Historical Vindication, p. 2.) Some notices of him may be found in Burnet’s Life of Bishop Bedell,
armes of his poore wife,
p. 140. Lond. 1685, 8vo.
5 Some animadversions on this work are subjoined to L. Womock’s Beaten Oylefor the Lamps of the Sanctvarie
Lond. 1641, 4to.
B A I L L I E.
? ga i 9. An Historical Vindication of the Government of the
^ Church of Scotland, from the manifold base Calumnies
which the most malignant of the Prelats did invent of old,
and now lately have been published with great industry
in two pamphlets at London ; the one intituled Issachars
Burden, &c., written and published at Oxford by John
Maxwell,1 * * * a Scottish Prelate, &c. Lond. 1646, 4to.
10. Anabaptism, the trve Fovntaine of Independency,
Brownisme, Antinomy, Familisme, &c. in a Second Part of
the Disswasive from the Errors of the Time. Lond. 1647,
4to.
11. A Review of Doctor Bramble, late Bishop of Lon¬
donderry, his Faire Warning against the Scotes Disciplin.
Delf, 1649, 4to.—This tract was afterwards incorporated,
without being reprinted, in a collection entitled Three
Treatises concerning the Scotish Discipline. Hagh, 1661,
4to. The other two treatises are Bramhall’s Fair Warn¬
ing and Watson’s Second Fair Warning, in answer to
Baillie; and the volume likewise includes a virulent epis¬
tle by another Scotish writer, Dr Creyghton, afterwards
bishop of Bath and Wells. Baillie’s Review was reprint¬
ed at Edinburgh; and having been translated into Dutch,
it was published at Utrecht under the inspection of Gis-
bert Voet.
12. A Scotch Antidote against the English Infection of
Arminianism. Lond. 1652, 12mo.
13. Appendix practica ad Joannis Buxtorfii Epitomen
Grammaticae Hebraeae. Edinb. 1653, 8vo.
14. Catechesis elenctica Errorum qui hodie vexant Ec-
clesiam; ex nudis sacrae Scripturae Testimoniis, in brevi-
bus et Claris Quaestionibus ac Responsionibus proposita,
in gratiam studiosae Juventutis Academiae Glasguensis.
Lond. 1654, 12mo.
15. A Reply to the Modest Inquirer.—Perhaps relating
to the dispute between the Resolutioners and Protesters.
This tract, together with numbers 3 and 4, we have not
seen. They are all mentioned in Baillie’s papers, in the
possession of Dr M‘Crie.
16. The Disswasive from the Errors of the Time, vin¬
dicated from the Exceptions of Mr Cotton and Mr Tombes.
Lond. 1655, 4to.
17. Operis Historic! et Chronologic! libri duo ; in qui-
bus Historia sacra et profana compendiose deducitur ex
ipsis Fontibus, a Creatione Mundi ad Constantinum Mag¬
num. Amstelodami, 1663, fol.—Some copies have the
addition of an index, with a new title bearing the date
of 1668.
18. Letters and Journals; containing an impartial Ac¬
count of public Transactions, civil, ecclesiastical, and mi¬
litary, in England and Scotland, from the beginning of
the Civil Wars in 1637, to the year 1662; a period, per¬
haps, the most remarkable and interesting in the British
History: now first published from the manuscripts of
Robert Baillie, D. D. Principal of the University of Glas¬
gow. Edinb. 1775, 2 vols. 8vo.—Some copies, bearing
the same date, have a different title, which states that the
Letters were “ carefully transcribed by Robert Aiken.”
Many of them are addressed to the author’s cousin-ger-
man William Spang, minister of the Scotish staple at
289
Campvere, and afterwards of the English congregation at Baillie.
Middelburg in Zeeland. . It was chiefly from the mate-
rials thus communicated that Spang prepared two differ¬
ent publications. The first is entitled “ Brevis et fidelis
Narratio Motuum in Regno et Ecclesia Scoticana, ex-
cerpta ex scriptis Utriusque partis scitu dignissimis, per 5
Irenseum Philalethen.” Dantisci, 1640, 4to. This work
only prosecutes the narrative till the first of October
1638; but he speedily reprinted it, and added a continua¬
tion to the year 1640. “ Rerum nuper in Regno Sco-
tiae gestarum Historia.” Dantisci, 1641, 8vo.—These
letters were published from a copy belonging to Matthew
Baillie of Carnbroe, Esq.; and the editor likewise consult¬
ed the copy preserved among the archives of the church .
of Scotland. The copy which belonged to the author’s
family is now in the possession of Dr M‘Crie, to whose
kindness we are indebted for the use of it, as well as for
several biographical notices. This manuscript consists of
four volumes in folio, and is in a tolerably good state of pre¬
servation. Baillie’s Letters and Journals are of great his¬
torical value; and as the editor, besides omitting many
detached passages, has suppressed a considerable number
of entire letters, we beg leave - to suggest, and even to
urge, the expediency of a new and complete edition.
Baillie had apparently some concern in the publication
of a posthumous work of his learned predecessor Robert
Boyd, principal of the university of Glasgow : In Epis-
tolam Pauli Aposloli ad Ephesios Prcdectiones supra cc.
Lond. 1652, fol. Prefixed is a life of the author by Rivet,
with whom Boyd had been intimately acquainted; but the
preface is subscribed with the initials R. B. A biogra¬
phical notice, bearing the same signature, is prefixed to
the work of his father-in-law Dr Strang, De Interpretatione
et Perfectione Scripturce. Roter. 1663, 4to. (x.)
BAILLY, Jean Sylvain, a celebrated philosopher and
astronomer, was born at Paris on the 15th of September
1736. He was originally intended for the professipn of
painting, which his family had pursued for several gene¬
rations, and he even had made some progress in the art.
But the bias of his mind leaned too much to literary pur¬
suits, especially to poetry and works of imagination, to per¬
mit him to give that application which is necessary to se¬
cure success and eminence in any profession.
The friends of Bailly, who had witnessed the early
dawn of his genius, saw that it wras alike fitted to ap¬
pear with advantage in the study of polite literature, or
to shine in the walks of science; and they recommended
the latter chiefly to his attention. His acquaintance with
Lacaille, the celebrated geometer, commenced; and this
at once decided the object of his studies, which were now
almost entirely devoted to scientific investigations. The
first of his labours was a calculation of the comet which
appeared in the year 1759. In January 1763 he was ad¬
mitted a member of the Academy of Sciences ; and in the
same year he published a reduction of the observations
made by Lacaille in 1760 and 1761 on the zodiacal stars:
an elaborate compilation, and of very extensive utility. His
attention was afterwards directed to the consideration of
the theory of Jupiter’s satellites. Lagrange, who now pro-
1 John Maxwell, D. D., was the son of Maxwell of Cavons in Nithsdale; and after having been beneficed at Murthlack and in
Edinburgh, he became bishop of Ross in the year 1633. He was deposed and excommunicated by the assembly of 1638, and took
refuge in England. In 1640 he was appointed bishop of Killala in Ireland ; but the rebellion speedily ensued, and after being stript
malted and severely wounded, he was again compelled to seek a place of refuge in England, and lor some time he attended the king at
Oxford. In 1645 he was appointed archbishop of Tuam, and died on the 14th of February 1G46. Ihe work which Baillie answered
is entitled “ The Burthen of Issachar: or, the Tyranical Power and Practises of the Presbyteriall Government in Scotland.” Printed
w the yeare 1646, 4to. Dr Maxwell is the author of another work, which was answered by Rutherford: “ Sacro-sancta Regum Majes-
^; or, the sacred and rovall Prerogative of Christian Kings.” Oxford, 1644, 4to. According to Bishop Burnet, he was “ a man
ol eminent parts, and an'excellent preacher; but by his forwardness and aspiring he was the unhappy instrument of that which
brought on all the disorders in Scotland.” (Life of Bishop Bedell, p. 141.) He is mentioned anj described in the Life, Diary and
Correspondence of Sir William Dugdale, p. 437- Lond. 1827, 4to.
Vol. iv. 2 o
290 B A I
Bailly. mised to become the first mathematician in Europe, was
the formidable rival of Bailly in the competition for this
prize question in 1764. The results of his investigations
were collected into a treatise, which also contained the
history of that part of astronomy, and were published in
1766. In 1771 appeared his interesting and important
memoir on the Light of the Satellites, which was marked
with a degree of precision and accuracy till that time un¬
known in the observations of their eclipses.
The studies of Bailly were not entirely limited to the
cultivation of abstract science, nor to profound physical
speculations; his genius shone with equal lustre in those
departments of literature which require a discrimination
of character, and no common powers of eloquence, in or¬
der to attain excellence. His Eloges on Charles V., Cor¬
neille, Leibnitz, Moliere, Cook, Lacaille, and Gresset,
were universally admired as valuable specimens of fine
writing, and they added much to his reputation. The dis¬
tinguished place of secretary of the Academy of Sciences
became vacant in 1771; and, supported by the patronage
and influence of Buffon, he offered himself a candidate.
But, in this instance, he was unsuccessful. Condorcet, then
rising into reputation, and supported by the active influ¬
ence of D’Alembert, was preferred to the office.
In the year 1775 he published at Paris the first volume
of his great work, the History of Astronomy, containing
the history of astronomy from its origin to the foundation
of the Alexandrian School; and this was followed by three
volumes on the history of modern astronomy, published
between 1776 and 1783. This work, which is of inesti¬
mable value, is distinguished alike for animated descrip¬
tion, luminous narration, and interesting detail. Besides,
he published, in 1777, a work entitled Letters on the Origin
of the Sciences, and of the People of Asia ; and this was fol¬
lowed by another series of Letters on the Atlantis of Plato,
and theAncientHistoryof Asia, as a continuation of the same
work. These volumes were addressed to Voltaire, with
whom he had commenced an ingenious correspondence
and discussion on this curious subject. The coincidence
of his opinions with those of Buffbn in points respecting
some of the favourite theories of the latter, brought on an
intimate acquaintance and close friendship with that cele¬
brated naturalist; which, however, declined and was en¬
tirely dissolved, in consequence of the opposition which
Bailly made to the election of the Abbe Maury into the
French Academy. Bailly had been chosen secretary of
the academy in 1784; and in the following year he was
admitted into the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles
Lettres. This was the only instance, since the time of
Fontenelle, of the same person being at once a member
of all the three academies.
In the year 1784 he was nominated one of the commis¬
sion to investigate the nature of the animal magnetism of
Mesmer; and he drew up a very elegant report, which
was presented to the academy of Sciences. This report,
which was soon afterwards translated into English, not
only marked the acuteness and discernment of the author,
and contained the most satisfactory and decisive evidence
with regard to its object, but it may be held up as an excel¬
lent model of imitation for those who are engaged in simi¬
lar investigations. In developing the physical effects pro¬
duced by moral causes, it is of the greatest value ; and it is
particularly interesting when we consider the political influ¬
ence which causes of this nature have exerted on the gene¬
ral opinions of society, and even on the destiny of nations.
In 1 / 87 he published, in one volume 4to, the History of
Indian and Oriental Astronomy $ a work of great erudi¬
tion and ability, but in which he is thought to have made
some eironeous calculations, and to have overrated the
antiquity of the Indian observations.
B A I
Hitherto we have contemplated Bailly in the shades of r j
retirement, and in the calm undisturbed retreats of philo- ^ £
sophy, employing the energy of a vigorous and compre¬
hensive mind in the profound researches of physical truth.
We are now to follow him in his political career, and to !,
behold him struggling with the adverse interests of fac¬
tions, and contending with the unbridled fury of a law¬
less mob, in defence of the rights of a people whose minds
were not prepared to understand, and whose habits were
not yet formed to enjoy, the blessings of rational liberty.
He was one of the first and most zealous promoters of
the revolution in France; and in the part which he acted
in this bloody struggle, he has had the good fortune to be
well spoken of by opposite factions. He has never been
charged with want of integrity or with selfish designs;
but apparently actuated by a misguided zeal, and dazzled
with the prospect of freedom which the warmth of his
imagination held out, he rashly committed himself in a
cause which, as he had espoused it with enthusiasm, so
he supported it with his utmost exertions. But in that
cause he fell a sacrifice to the unrelenting spirit of vio¬
lence and faction which had been easily roused, but which
it was found impossible either to subdue or to regulate.
When the states-general of France were assembled in
1789, he was elected a deputy to the tiers-etat, of which
he was afterwards chosen president; and when the na¬
tional assembly had been constituted, he continued in the
chair, and officiated as president at the time the king’s
proclamation was issued ordering that body to disperse.
During the struggle which took place between the national
assembly and the court, Bailly was amongst the most
forward in asserting those popular rights which were
then new in France; and it was he who dictated the fa¬
mous oath to the members of the tiers-etat, by which they
pledged themselves “ to resist tyrants and tyranny, and
never to separate till they had obtained a free constitu¬
tion.” On the 14th of July following, the day on which
the Bastille was stormed and taken by the people, he was
appointed mayor of Paris with universal consent. In this
high office he is allowed to have acted with great inte¬
grity, courage, and moderation, and to have discharged
its arduous and sometimes perilous duties in a manner
highly honourable to his character. While he held this
conspicuous situation, he was instrumental in promoting
the various measures by which the popular party at length
prevailed over that of the court; for which, as well as for
his conduct in other respects, he obtained a high degree
of favour among the people. But the tide of public opi¬
nion now swelled beyond all bounds; and no restraint could
oppose its violent course. The multitude, newly un¬
shackled from the fetters of despotism, greedy of novelty,
fired with enthusiastic and unsettled notions of freedom,
and daily panting for change, would brook no opposition.
Bailly, who now perhaps saw when it was too late the
general disposition of the people to anarchy, still wished
the laws to be respected, and hoped by their vigorous
execution to restore and maintain tranquillity. He or¬
dered some deputies from the military insurgents of
Nancy to be arrested, and firmly opposed the rash pro¬
ceedings of Marat and Hebert; he became a member of
a less promiscuous club than that of the Jacobins; and he
exerted himself strongly to persuade the populace to per¬
mit the king and royal family to depart to St Cloud. By
these measures, which were little relished by a fickle and
infuriated people, he lost their confidence and favour.
But what finally destroyed his popularity, was his conduct
on the occasion of the tumultuous meeting of the populace
on the 17th of July 1791, to demand the abolition of mo¬
narchy ; for being called by the national assembly to dis¬
perse the mob, who had assaulted the soldiery, he ordered
B A I
B A I
291
it the latter to fire, by which means forty persons were
killed and above a hundred wounded. Having thus be¬
come obnoxious to the people, whom he had faithfully
served, it was no longer desirable for him to hold his
charge. He therefore resigned his office at the dissolution
of the constituent assembly in the end of the year 1791;
and having resumed his philosophical researches, lived
for some time in retirement. But the times of bloody
proscription approached ; and he was doomed to fall a sa¬
crifice to the ferocious vengeance of the plebeian tyrant
who now bore unlimited sway. He was accordingly de¬
nounced as an enemy to the republic, arrested, and thrown
into prison. Arraigned before a sanguinary tribunal, he
was summarily condemned to death as a conspirator, and
executed the day following, near the spot where he had
given the order for the military to fire on the people. On
the day of execution, his sufferings, which he bore with
the utmost calmness and magnanimity, were studiously
protracted. Instead of that sympathy and compassion
which even the worst and the lowest criminal often expe¬
riences when he is about to expiate his offences with his
life, he was treated by an incensed and fanatical populace
with the most ignominious indignity and cruelty. He
wore the red shirt, or badge of conspiracy, and was placed
in a cart with his hands tied behind his back. During
the whole time of his progress to the place of execution,
the rain poured incessantly on his head. The populace,
as he passed, threw mud at him, and cruelly insulted him
with every kind of opprobrious language. Arrived at the
place of execution, it was found necessary to remove the
guillotine from the spot where it had first been erected,
to firmer ground. During this time he was forced to get
out of the cart, and walk round the field, in order to gra¬
tify more fully the implacable and unrelenting malice of
the populace. While he was ascending the platform, a
spectator who happened to be near him, exclaimed, in a
tone of insult, “ Bailly, you tremble“ Yes,” he instant¬
ly replied, “ but it is from cold.”
Several works written by Bailly, and found in manu¬
script, have been published since his death ; particularly
an Essay on Fctbles and their History, and Memoirs of a
Witness of the Revolution, which come down to October
1789.
In his person Bailly was tall, and of a sedate but striking
countenance. He possessed great firmness and decision
of character; but in him these qualities were far removed
from sullenness or apathy. Few philosophers have been
more distinguished in so many various departments of
science and literature, or have acquired such deserved
reputation. In his public stations, as well as in the re¬
tirement of domestic life, his integrity and disinterested¬
ness remained pure and untainted. In the time of his
magistracy he spent part of his fortune m relieving the
wants of the poor. His wife, whom he married in 1787,
survived him. She was the widow of Raymond Gaye,
who had been his intimate friend for twenty-five years.
BAILMENT, from the French bailler, to deliver, means,
m law, a delivery of goods in trust upon a contract, ex¬
pressed or implied, that the trust shall be faithfully exe¬
cuted on the part of the bailee or person to whom they
are delivered, and the goods re-delivered as soAn as the
time or use for which they were bailed shall have elapsed
or been performed. There is a valuable Essay on the Law
Bailment by Sir William Jones.
BAINBR1DGE, Dr John, an eminent physician and
astronomer, born at Ashby de la Zouche, in Leicester-
snire, in 1582. He taught a grammar school for some
years, and practised physic, employing his leisure hours
m astronomy, which was his favourite study; but at
ength, removing to London, he was admitted a fellow of
the college of physicians, and raised his character by his Baireuth
description of the comet in 1618. The next year Sir il
Henry Savile appointed Bainbridge his first professor of Bairout-
astronomy at Oxford; and the masters and fellows of
Merton College made him first junior, and then superior,
reader of Linacre’s lecture. He died in 1643. His pub¬
lished works are, 1. An Astronomical Description of the
late Comet, Lond. 1619. 2. Procli Sphcera, 1620. 3. Ca-
nicularia; a Treatise concerning the Canicular Days;
published at Oxford in 1648. Several of his writings
have never been published; but the manuscripts are pre¬
served in the library of Trinity College, Dublin.
BAIREUTH, a city, the capital of the circle of the
Upper Maine, in the kingdom of Bavaria, as well as of
the magistracy of the same name. It is situated on a branch
of the river Maine, in a pleasant valley, and is a very an¬
cient place, surrounded with walls, but in a state to unfit
them for defence. It contains two Lutheran, one Catho¬
lic, and one Reformed church. The number of inhabitants
in 1827 was 13,985. These find employment in various
manufactures, especially in weaving and printing cottons,
in the several modes of preparing leather, in breweries,
and in making porcelain and other earthen wares. It is
besides an extensive corn market. The magistracy of
Baireuth extends over 121 square miles, comprehending
two market-towns and 104 villages, and, besides those of
the city, contains 21,200 inhabitants. Baireuth is in
long. 11. 34. 10. E. lat. 49. 56. 50. N.
BAIROUT, Beirout, or Baruti, anciently Berytus,
in Greek Brigurog, a seaport of Syria, in the pashalic of Saide
or Acre. A tongue of land, which presents a conspicu¬
ous headland when viewed from the north, extends it¬
self in a plain about five or six miles from the mountains
towards the sea; and on the northern edge of this plain
the town is situated, on a rising ground, which contributes
both to its cleanliness and salubrity. To the north the
projection of the land forms a fine bay, the bottom of
which is five or six miles east-south-east of the town ; and
there is thus a roadstead to the north-east, secured from
the south-west wind, which is the prevailing one. The
harbour is now choked up with sand and rubbish ; and all
that remains of the ancient structure is a pier, to which
boats can approach sufficiently for discharging goods. All
along its front are ranged fine shafts of gray granite pil¬
lars, which are used for mooring small vessels. Merchant
vessels and ships of war anchor at a distance in the road¬
stead. The town itself is an irregular squai’e, open to¬
wards the sea, and surrounded on the three sides which
face the land with a wall built by Djezzar Pasha, defended
by a few round towers of little strength, and far too feeble
to resist an attack of artillery. Near the sea is an old castle,
on which are six pieces of artillery; and at the common
landing place is a ruined tower, built on a rock in the sea.
The town is in general better built than any along the
coast, and the streets are wider, being paved with large
stones. The dwelling-houses are spacious, lofty, and well
built; the bazars are amply furnished with provisions,
as well as with the manufactures of the country and of
Europe; and the magazines near the sea-shore are large
and convenient. The town contains three mosques, with
their courts, fountains, and minarets; and four Christian
churches. Water is abundantly supplied at all seasons
from several fountains, constructed by Djezzar Pasha. The
suburbs are nearly as large as the town, consisting of
houses interspersed with gardens, which, being planted
with fruit-trees, are extremely beautiful. “ The situation,”
says Mr Carne, “ is the most beautiful of all the Syrian
towns; the environs are laid out in plantations of mulberry-
trees, and a quantity of silk is produced and exported.”
Indeed, the commerce of Bairout is greater than that of
292 B A J
Baiting any other port in Syria; and it is increasing. It is the
\\ maritime emporium of Damascus, and of the surround-
'Bajulug., jng country. British manufactures, such as cottons, mus-
[ins, cloths, &c. with bar-iron, lead, coffee, spices, indigo,
&c. are imported. The returns are made in cotton, corn,
raw silk, which is the staple commodity of the country,
sometimes in wine and oil, and occasionally in specie.
The wall of the town is supposed to be not more than a
mile in circuit; yet it is thought to contain from 6000 to
7000 inhabitants. Bairout still boasts some relics of the
ancient magnificence of Berytus, that celebrated “ nurse
of tranquil life” (B^uroj (Sioroio ycc'krivaioio as Non-
nus has called it (Dionysiaca, lib. xli. p. 708. ed. Falk.
Antv. 1569.) Here a public school of jurisprudence,
founded in the third century, acquired and long maintain¬
ed a high reputation. During the reign of Justinian, the
two imperial cities and Berytus were the only places with¬
in the limits of the empire where law was permitted to be
publicly taught; and of the three, the Syrian school (of
which Theophilus and Dorotheus, the associates of Tri-
bonian in the compilation of the Institutions and the Digest,
were antecessores or teachers), appears to have stood high¬
est in general estimation. But the prosperity of Berytus was
first interrupted, and finally subverted, by some of the great
convulsions of nature. In the year 384, the town was
greatly injured by an earthquake, and in 554 it was visit¬
ed by another earthquake, which left it a heap of ruins.
After this last catastrophe the professors transferred their
school to Sidon, and the surviving inhabitants made an
effort to raise a new city from the ruins of the old; but
another calamity awaited them, and this famous seat of
jurisprudence w^as totally consumed by fire. After a long
interval, the modern town of Bairout was founded by the
Derouzis near the ancient site, and was possessed by the
emirs as their capital and only seaport, until they were
expelled by Djezzar pasha of Acre. Long. 35. 32. E.
Lat. 33. 45. N. (Buckingham’s Travels among the Arab
Tribes; Volney’s Travels in Syria and Egypt. Game’s
Letters from the East; Bond’s Memoir of the Rev. Pliny
Flish; Jowett’s Christian Researches in Syria and the
Holy Land, &c.)
BAITING, the act of attacking and harassing greater
and stronger animals by smaller or weaker ones. In this
sense we hear of the baiting of bulls or bears by mastiffs or
bull-dogs.
BAJALUK A, a city, the capital of a sandschak or pro¬
vince of Bosnia, in Turkey in Europe. It stands on the
river Berbas, and is strongly fortified with a citadel, being
the frontier garrison towards Austria. It contains 2700
houses, forty mosques, and, with the suburbs, which are
chiefly occupied by Greeks, 15,000 inhabitants. It is a
place of considerable traffic and manufactures. Among
the latter, gunpowder is the most productive. Near it
are some celebrated warm medicinal springs.
BAJAROTOS, a town of the province of Aragon, in
Spain, containing 2600 inhabitants.
BAJULUS, an ancient officer in the court of the Greek
emperors. There were several degrees of bajuli; as, the
grand bajulus. who was preceptor to the emperor; and
the simple bajuli, who were sub-preceptors. The word is
derived from the Latin verb bajulare, to carry or bear a
thing on the arms or on the shoulders; and the origin of
the office is thus traced by antiquaries: Children, and
especially those of condition, had anciently, besides their
nurse, a woman called gerula, as appears from several
passages of ’lertullian; when weaned, or ready to be
weaned, they had men to carry them about and take care
of them, who were called geruli and bajuli) a gerendo et
bajulando. Hence it is that governors of princes and great
lords were still denominated bajuli, and their charge or
B "A K
government bajulatio, even after their pupils had grown ] L j
too big to be carried about. The word passed in the ^ v
same sense into Greece.
BAKER, Sir Richard, author of the Chronicle of the.
Kings of England, was born at Sessinghurst, in Kent, about
the year 1568. After going through the usual course of
academical learning at Hart Hall, in Oxford, he travelled
into foreign parts ; and upon his return home was created
master of arts, and soon after, in 1603, received from King
James I. the honour of knighthood. In 1620 he was made
high sheriff of Oxfordshire : but having engaged to pay
some debts of his wife’s family, he was reduced to poverty,
and obliged to betake himself for shelter to the Fleet
prison, where he composed several books; amongst which
are, Meditations and Disquisitions on the Lord’s Prayer;
Meditations, &c. on several of the Psalms of David; Me¬
ditations and Prayers upon the Seven Days of the Week;
Cato Variegatus, or Cato’s Moral Distichs varied, &c. Mr
Granger observes, that his Chronicle of the Kings of Eng¬
land was ever more esteemed by readers of a lower class
than by such as had a critical knowledge of history. In
the reign of the British Solomon, the language was con¬
sidered polite; and it long maintained its reputation,
especially amongst country gentlemen. But the author
seems to have been sometimes more studious to please
than to inform, and with that view to have sacrificed even
chronology itself to method. In 1658, Edward Philips,
nephew to Milton, published a third edition of this work,
with the addition of the reign of Charles I. It has several
times been reprinted since, and by successive additions
brought as far down as the reign of George I. Sir Richard
also translated several works from the French and Italian;
and died very poor, in the Fleet prison, on the 18th of
February 1645.
Baker, Thomas, an eminent mathematician, was born
at Eton in Somersetshire about the year 1625, and enter¬
ed at Magdalen Hall, Oxford, in 1640, after which he be¬
came vicar of Bishop’s-Nymmet, in Devonshire, where he
wrote The Geometrical Key, or the Gate of Equations un¬
locked ; published at London in 4to in 1684. He died at
Bishop’s Nymmet on the 5th of June 1690.
Baker, Thomas, a very ingenious and learned antiquary,
descended from a family ancient, well esteemed, and dis¬
tinguished by its loyalty and affection for the crown, was
born at Crook in 1656. He was educated at the free
school at Durham, and thence removed to St John’s Col¬
lege, Cambridge, in 1674. He proceeded A. B. in 1677,
A. M. in 1681, was elected fellow in March 1680, ordain¬
ed deacon by Bishop Compton of London in December
1685, and priest by Bishop Barlow of Lincoln the follow¬
ing year. Dr Watson, tutor of the college, who had been
nominated, but not yet consecrated, bishop of St David’s,
offered to take him for his chaplain; but this he declined,
probably in the prospect of a like offer from Lord Crew,
bishop of Durham, which he soon after accepted. His
lordship collated him to the rectory of Long-Newton in his
diocese, in June 1687 ; and, as Dr Grey was informed by
some of the bishop’s family, the prelate further intend¬
ed to give him that of Sedgefield, worth L.600 or L.700
a year, with a golden prebend, had he not incurred his
lordship’s displeasure and left his family for refusing to
read King James II.’s declaration for liberty of conscience.
I he bishop, who disgraced him for this refusal, and was
excepted out of King William’s pardon, took the oaths to
that king, and kept his bishopric till his death. Mr Baker
resigned Long-Newton on the 1st of August 1690, refusing
to take the oaths ; and retired to his fellowship at St John s,
in which he was protected till the 20th of January 1716-17,
when, with one and twenty others, he was dispossessed of it-
After the passing of the Registering Act in 1723, he w-as
B A K
ai desired to register his annuity of L.40, which the last act
^ required before it was amended and explained. Though
this annuity, left him by his father for his fortune, with
L.20 per annum out of his collieries by his elder brother,
from the day of his death in August 1699, and during the
remaining part of the lease, which expired at Whitsun¬
tide 1722, was now his whole subsistence, he could not be
prevailed on to secure himself against the act. He re¬
tained a lively resentment of his deprivations ; and wrote
himself in all his books, as well as in those which he gave
to the college library, socius ejectus, and in some rector
ejectus. He continued to reside in the college as com¬
moner-master till his death, which happened on the 2d
of July 1740, in consequence of a paralytic stroke. In the
afternoon of the 29th June, being alone in his chamber, he
was struck with a slight apoplectic fit; but this abating a
little, he recovered his senses, and knew all those about
him, who vvere his nephew Burton, and Drs Bedford and
Heberden. He seemed perfectly satisfied and resigned;
and when Dr Bedford desired him to take some medicine
then ordered, he declined it, saying he would only take his
usual sustenance, which his bed-maker knew the times
and quantities of giving. He was thankful for the affection
and care his friends showed him ; but, hoping the time of
his dissolution was at hand, he would by no means endea¬
vour to retard it. His disorder increased, and the third
day after he was seized with the disorder he died. Hav¬
ing been appointed one of the executors of his elder
brother’s will, by which a large sum was bequeathed to
pious uses, he prevailed on the other two executors, who
were his younger brother Francis and the Hon. Charles
Montagu, to lay out L.1310 of the money upon an estate
to be settled upon St John’s College for six exhibitioners.
He likewise gave to the college L.100 for the considera¬
tion of'L.6 a year, then only legal interest, during his life;
and to the library several choice books, both printed and
in manuscript, with medals and coins; besides what he
left to it by his will, which were “ all such books, printed
and manuscript, as he had, and were wanting there.” All
that Mr Baker printed was, Is#, Reflections on Learning,
showing the insufficiency thereof in its several particulars,
in order to evince the usefulness and necessity of Revela¬
tion, Lond. 1709-10, which went through many editions;
and, 2d, The preface to Bishop Fisher’s Funeral Sermon
for Margaret countess of Richmond and Derby, 1708;
both without his name. The latter piece is a sufficient
specimen of the editor’s skill in antiquities to make us re¬
gret that he did not live to publish his History of St
oohn s College, from the foundation of old St John’s House
to the present time ; with some occasional and incidental
accounts of the affairs of the university, and of such private
colleges as held communication or intercourse with the
°*d house or college; collected principally from manu¬
scripts, and carried on through a succession of masters
to the end of Bishop Gunning’s mastership, 1670. His
manuscript collections relative to the history and antiqui¬
ties of the university of Cambridge, amounting to forty-
nine volumes in folio and three in quarto, are divided be¬
tween the British Museum and the public library at Cam-
ndge; the former possesses twenty-three volumes, the
atter sixteen in folio and three in quarto. Dr Knight
styies him “ the greatest master of the antiquities of this
°ui university; ’ and Hearne says, “ Optandum est ut sua
quoque collectanea de antiquitatibus Cantabrigiensibus
jmis facial publici Cl. Bakerus, quippe qui eruditione sum-
ma judicioque et subacto polleat.” Mr Baker intend¬
ed something like an Athena: Cantabrigienses, on the plan
oi Jj16 Athena; Oxonienses.
aker,//ercry, an ingenious and diligent naturalist, was
rn ln Fleet-street, London, either near the end of the
B A K 293
seventeenth, or very early in the beginning of the eighteenth Baker,
century. His father s profession is not known, but his
mother was in her time a midwife of great practice. He
was brought up under an eminent bookseller, who preced¬
ed the elder Dodsley, to the business of a bookseller; in
which, however, he appears not to have engaged at all after
his apprenticeship, or, if he did, it was soon relinquished
by him ; for although it was in his power to have drawn
away all his master’s best customers, he would not set up
against him. Mr Baker being of a philosophical turn of
mind, and having diligentlyattended to the methods which
might be practicable and useful in the cure of stammering,
especially in teaching deaf and dumb persons to speak,
made this the employment of his life. In the prosecu¬
tion of so valuable and difficult an undertaking he was
very successful, and several of his pupils have borne tes¬
timony to the ability and good effect of his instructions.
He married Sophia, youngest daughter of the famous
Daniel Defoe, who brought him two sons, both of whom
he survived. On the 29th of January 1740 Mr Baker
was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and
on the 12th of March following, the same honour was con¬
ferred upon him by the Royal Society. In 1744 Sir God¬
frey Copley’s gold medal was bestowed upon him, for
having, by his microscopical experiments on the crystalli¬
zations and configuration of saline particles, produced the
most extraordinary discovery during that year. Having
led a very useful and honourable life, he died at his apart¬
ments in the Strand on the 25th of November 1774, being
then above seventy years of age. His wife had been dead
some time before ; and he only left one grandson, William
Baker, who was born the 17th of February 1763, and to
whom, on his living to the age of twenty-one, he bequeathed
the bulk of his fortune, which he had acquired by his profes¬
sion of teaching deaf and dumb persons to speak. His furni¬
ture, printed books (but not manuscripts), curiosities, and
collections of every sort, he directed to be sold, which was
accordingly done. His fine collection of native and foreign
fossils, petrifactions, shells, corals, vegetables, ores, &c.
with some antiquities, and other curiosities, were sold by
auction the 13th of March 1775 and the nine following
days. He was buried, as he desired, in an unexpensive man¬
ner, in the church-yard of St Mary-le-strand ; within which
church, on the south wall, he ordered a small tablet to be
erected to his memory. An inscription for it, he said,
would probably be found among his papers; if not, he
hoped some learned friend would write one agreeable to
truth. This friendly office, however, remains as yet to be
performed. Mr Baker was a constant and useful attend¬
ant at the meetings of the Royal and Antiquarian Socie¬
ties, and in both was frequently chosen one of the council.
He was peculiarly attentive to all new improvements in
natural science, and very solicitous for the prosecution of
them. Several of his communications are printed in the
Philosophical Transactions; and besides the papers writ¬
ten by himself, he was the means, by his extensive corre¬
spondence, of conveying to the society the intelligence
and observations of other inquisitive and philosophical
men, both at home and abroad. The Society for the En¬
couragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, is
under singular obligations to this worthy naturalist. As
he was one of the earliest members of the society, so he
contributed in no small degree to its rise and establish¬
ment. At its first institution he officiated for some time
gratis as secretary. He was many years chairman of the
committee of accounts, and he took an active part in the
general deliberations of the society. He drew up a short
account of the original of this society, and of the concern
he himself had in forming it; which was read before the
society of antiquaries, and would be a pleasing present to
294 B A K
Baker the public. Mr Baker was a poetical writer in the early
il. part of his life. His Invocation of Health got abroad with-
Baking. 0U(. ^jg knowledge ; but was reprinted by himself in his
Original Poems, serious and humorous, 8vo, 1725 and 1726.
Among these poems are some tales as witty and as loose
as Prior’s. He was the author likewise of The Universe,
a poem intended to restrain the pride of man ; which has
been several times reprinted. His account of the water
polype, which was originally published in the Philosophi¬
cal Transactions, was afterwards enlarged into a separate
treatise, and has gone through several editions. But his
principal publications are, The Microscope made Easy, and
Employment for the Microscope. The first of these, which
was originally published in 1742 or 1743, has gone through
six editions. The second edition of the other, which, to
say the least of it, is equally pleasing and instructive, ap¬
peared in 1764. These treatises, especially the latter,
contain the most curious and important of the observations
and experiments which Mr Baker either laid before the
Royal Society or published separately. It has been said
of Mr Baker, that “ he was a philosopher in little things.”
But if it was intended by this language to lessen his repu¬
tation, there is no propriety in the stricture. He was an
intelligent, upright, and benevolent man, much respected
by those who knew him best; his friends were the friends
of science and virtue ; and it will always be remembered
by his contemporaries, that no one was more ready than
him to assist those of whom he had acquaintance, in their
various researches and endeavours for the advancement
of knowledge and the benefit of society.
Baker, David Erskine, son of the former, was a young
man of genius and learning. Having been adopted by
an uncle, who was a silk-throwster in Spitalfields, young
Baker succeeded him in the business, but wanted the pru¬
dence and attention which are necessary to secure pro¬
sperity in trade. Like his father, he was both a philo¬
sopher and a poet, and wrote several occasional poems in
the periodical collections, some of which were much ad¬
mired at the time; but so violent was his turn for dra¬
matic performance, that he repeatedly engaged with the
lowest strolling companies, in spite of every effort of his
father to reclaim him. The public were indebted to him
for The Companion to the Play-house, in two volumes,
1764, 12mo; a work which, though imperfect, had con¬
siderable merit, and showed that he possessed a very ex¬
tensive knowledge of our dramatic authors, and which has
since, under the title of “ Biographia Dramatica,” been
considerably improved.
Baker, a person whose occupation or business it is to
bake bread. The learned are in great doubt about the
time when baking first became a particular profession,
and bakers were introduced. It is, however, generally
agreed that they had their rise in the East, and passed
from Greece to Italy after the war with Pyrrhus, about
the year of Rome 583. Till that time every housewife
was her own baker; for the word jofsfor, which we find in
B A K
Roman authors before this period, signified, as Varro Ba ell
justly observes, a person who ground or pounded the grain
in a mill or mortar to prepare it for baking. According 13 #
to Athenaeus, the Cappadocians were the most approved v
bakers ; after them the Lydians ; and then the Phoenicians.
To the foreign bakers brought into Rome were added a
number of freedmen, who were incorporated into a body,
or, as they termed it, a college; from which neither
they nor their children were ever allowed to withdraw.
They held their effects in common, and could not dispose
of any part of them. Every bakehouse had a patronus
intrusted with the superintendence of it; and these pa-
troni again elected one of their number every year, who
had superintendence over all the rest, and the care of the
college. Out of the body of the bakers one was every
now and then admitted among the senators; and to pre¬
serve honour and honesty in the college, they were ex¬
pressly prohibited all alliance with comedians and gla¬
diators. Every one had his own shop or bakehouse, and
they were distributed into fourteen regions or wards of the
city. They were excused from guardianships and other
offices which might divert them from their employment.
By British statutes bakers are declared not to be handi¬
craftsmen. No man for using the mysteries or sciences
of baking, brewing, surgery, or writing, shall be inter¬
preted a handicraftsman. The bakers were a brotherhood
in England before the year 1155, in the reign of King
Henry II., although the white bakers were not incorpo¬
rated till 1407, by King Edward III., and the brown ba¬
kers not till 1621, in King James I.’s time. The French
had anciently a great baker, grand panetier de France,
who had the superintendence of all the bakers of Paris.
BAKEWELL, Robert, a distinguished agriculturist
and improver of live stock, was born at Dishley, in Leices¬
tershire, in 1725 or 1726, and he died there in October 1795.
Though all the different kinds of domestic animals were
objects of his experiments and ameliorations, his attention
was more particularly devoted to the improvement of the
race of sheep known by the name of the Dishley or New
Leicestershire breed; and so successful was he in this
line, that some of his rams were let for the season at the
extraordinary sum of four hundred guineas. His life
presents no incidents or claims to notice, other than what
arise from the improvements alluded to; but these were
such as to secure him a high rank among the benefactors
of British husbandry.
Bakewell, a market-town in the county of Derby, in
the High Peak on the river Wye, 152 miles from London.
The market is held on Saturday. It is remarkable for
excellent trout-fishing, and for a chalybeate spring fre¬
quented by invalids. The fine seat of the Duke of De¬
vonshire, at Chatsworth, is about six miles from the town;
and Haddon Hall, the ancient family residence of the
Dukes of Rutland, is in the vicinity. The population in
1801 amounted to 1412; in 1811, to 1483 ; and in 1821, to
1782.
BAKING
Is the art of making bread, meaning thereby loaf-bread,
which is white, soft, full of cavities, has an agreeable taste,
and is easily digested.
History ot . 1. Like most of the arts of primary importance, its ori-
tae art. gjn precedes the period of history, and is involved in the
obscurity of the early ages of the world. There is no
evidence from Scripture that Abraham was acquainted
with the method of making loaf-bread. Cakes and un¬
leavened bread are repeatedly mentioned as made by him,
but no notice is taken of loaf-bread. We are certain that
it was known in the time of Moses, as in the Jewish law
there is a prohibition against making use of it during the
celebration of the passover. (Exodus, chap. xii. verse 15.)
Egypt, both from the nature of the country and the early
period of its civilization, seems very likely to have been
the place where this art was first practised. The Chal¬
deans, however, put in a claim. They were civilized
nearly as early as the Egyptians, and they were cele-
B A K
brated among the ancients for the excellence of their
J bread. The Greeks assure us that they were taught the
art of making bread by the god Pan. This lively and su¬
perstitious people ascribed almost all the important arts of
common life to their gods; or rather, perhaps, their gra¬
titude induced them to deify the authors of these most
useful inventions. Bakers were unknown in Rome till
the year of the city 580, or about 200 years before the
commencement of the Christian era. They settled in
that city during the war with Perseus, King of Macedon.
(Plinii Hist. Nat. xviii. 11.) It was then that the Ro¬
mans became acquainted with the refinements of the
Greeks, and that their capital became crowded with ad¬
venturers of all kinds, with artists and philosophers, from
the prolific soil of Achaia. Before this period the Ro¬
mans were often distinguished or reproached by the ap¬
pellation of the pulse-eating nation.
Since the introduction of bakers into Rome, the art of
making bread has always been practised in the south of
Europe. But it made its way into the north very slowly;
and even at present, in the northern countries of Europe
and Asia, loaf-bread is seldom used except by the higher
classes of inhabitants. In Sweden, for example, you see
rolls frequently in the towns, but never loaves. Gdtten-
burg is a town containing about 23,000 inhabitants. In
the year 1812 it was crowded with merchants from all
parts of Europe, being the great connecting link between
Britain and the Continent. Towards the end of that year
the captain of an English packet ordered a Gottenburg
baker to bake for him a quantity of bread, amounting to
L.l sterling in value. The baker was confounded at so
great an order, and refused to comply till the captain
gave him security that he would carry off and pay for the
loaves, declaring that he could never dispose of so great a
quantity of bread in Gdttenburg if it were left upon his
hand. In the country part of Sweden you meet with
nothing but rye-cakes, as hard nearly as flint, and which
are only baked twice a year. About thirty years ago
loaf-bread was almost as rare in the country places and
villages of Scotland, barley bannocks and oaten cakes con¬
stituting the universal substitutes among almost all ranks.
But the case is wonderfully altered at present. At that
time no wheat was raised in the fertile valley of Strath-
earn; and the village of Crieff, the largest in that valley,
with a population of nearly 3000 persons, contained only
two bakers, who could scarcely find employment. At pre¬
sent it contains five or six, and each has a brisk trade.
In many parts of England it is the custom for private
families to bake their own bread. This is particularly the
case in Kent, and in some parts of Lancashire. In the
}ear 1804 the town of Manchester, with a population of
90,000 persons, did not contain a single public baker. We
do not know whether or not it contains any at present.
1 ' "n °n^ sul)stance adapted for making loaf-bread
is the flour of wheat, a grassy plant, distinguished among
otanists by the name of triticum. This plant is culti¬
vated perhaps over a greater extent of the globe than any
other, and, like man, it seems to adapt itself to almost
every climate. We have seen excellent crops of it raised
in north latitude 60°. It is cultivated in the East Indies,
considerably within the limits of the torrid zone; and, in
ie north of Hindostan, it constitutes a chief article in the
j00 1" Ih® inhabitants. The original habitat of this plant
is unknown. We know, however, that it improves consi-
erably in its quality as we advance south. The wheat
ssex and Kent brings a much higher price than the
eat raised in East Lothian and Berwickshire. French
eat is superior to that of England. The Italians have
e superiority over the French in their wheaten crops,
perhaps the best wheat of all is raised in Barbary
295
and Egypt. _ Mr Bruce found wheat growing wild in Abys- Baking,
sinia ; and, in his opinion, that kingdom is the native coun-
try of the plant. R would seem to be originally an Afri¬
can plant, since it thrives best in Barbary and Egypt;
and perhaps the mountains of Abyssinia, though within
the torrid zone, may not differ much in point of climate
from the more northern plains of Egypt. In India the •
plant seems to have deteriorated. It is always dwarfish,
and the crop, we have been told, is less abundant than in
more northern climates.
3. The culture of the different varieties of wheat, as
practised in this country, and the method of grinding and
fitting the flour for the baker, being foreign to the present
subject, we cannot with propriety touch upon them. It
may be sufficient to say, that originally in England the
baker was his own manufacturer. He purchased his own
wheat, and got it ground as he wanted it. At that pe¬
riod the miller separated the wheat into three portions ;
namely, flour, pollard, and bran. The bran was the out¬
side of the grain. It was not used as food at all, or only
given to horses. The pollard was the portion of the grain
next the husk; it was coarser and darker coloured than
the flour, which constituted the interior or central por¬
tion of the grain. This flour, at an average, amounted to
three fourths of the wheat ground. But, by insensible
degrees, the manufacture of bread became separated into
two distinct employments; that of the mealman, who
ground the wheat and sold the flour, and that of the
baker, who converted it into bread. The mealman made
different kinds of flour, some extremely fine and white,
while others were very coarse and unpalatable. This
white flour, when made into bread, was so pleasing to the
eye and the taste, that it gradually got into general use,
and the people refused to purchase the bread made of the
whole of the flour. At present, in the mills in the neigh¬
bourhood of London, wheat is divided into no fewer than
seven distinct kinds of flour. The following are the
average proportions of these obtained from a quarter of
wheat:—
Fine flour 5 bushels 3 pecks.
Seconds 0 2
Fine middlings 0 1
Coarse middlings 0 0'5
Bran 3 0
Twentypenny 3 0
Pollard 2 0
14 2-5
Thus we see that wheat almost doubles in bulk by being
ground into flour.
During the bolting of the wheat there is a fine white
gritty substance, called sharps, obtained. It constitutes
the centre and finest part of the grain of wheat. This is
partly sold to the biscuit-makers, and is employed in bak¬
ing the finest kind of sea-biscuit. It is partly ground
again, and constitutes the finest and most valuable kind
of flour.
4. The bakers in Great Britain at present are restricted Different
by act of parliament to bake only three kinds of bread, kinds of
namely, wheaten, standard wheaten, and household. Thebreat1,
first must be marked with a W, the second with S W, and
the third with H; and the baker who neglects to mark
them in this manner is liable to a penalty. The wheaten
loaf is made of the finest flour, the standard wheaten of
the whole flour mixed together, and the household of the
coarser flour. The loaves baked are usually peck loaves,
half-peck, and quartern loaves; the weights of which,
provided they be weighed within forty-eight hours of the
time of baking, must be as follows:—
I N G.
296
BAKING.
Baking. lbs. oz. dr. Avoirdupois.
Peck loaf. 17 6 0
Half-peck   8 11 0
Quartern 4 5 8
Before these loaves are put into the oven they weigh,
lbs. oz.
Peck loaf. 19 12
Half-peck  9 14
Quartern  4 15
From this it appears that the average loss of the quar¬
tern loaf in weight by baking is 91 ounces, or not quite so
much as one seventh of the whole. From the experi¬
ments of Tillet and the other French commissioners who
were appointed to examine the subject in 1783 (in conse¬
quence of an opinion prevailing in Paris that the bakers
did not give the full weight, while these tradesmen de¬
clared that they put the proper quantity of flour in the
loaves), it appears that the French loaf loses a consider¬
ably greater weight in the oven. A loaf which, when put
into the oven, weighed 4‘625 lbs., when taken out of the
oven weighed at an average only 3‘813 lbs., or 0812 lb.
less than at first. This amounts to somewhat more than
one sixth, or very nearly to jfths of the whole. This
greater loss is chiefly owing to the difference between the
shape of the English and French loaf. The English has
nearly a cubic form, while the French loaf is very long
and slender. For it is obvious that the loaf which pre¬
sents the greatest surface must lose most weight in the
oven.
The French commissioners, however, found that this loss
of weight was by no means uniform, even with respect to
those loaves which were in the oven at the same time, of
the same shape, in the same place, and which were put in
and taken out at the same instant. The greatest differ¬
ence in these circumstances amounted to 0*2889 or 7*5
parts in the hundred, which is about ykth part of the
whole. According to this rate, we may suppose that an
English quartern loaf, when taken out of the oven, may
vary in weight yjth part, which amounts to rather more
than 4^ ounces. So that the law which subjects the baker
to a penalty if his bread weighs one ounce less than it
ought to do, seems too severe, and must have a tendency
to injure the goodness of the bread, by making the baker
more solicitous about the weight than the quality of his
loaf. To this we ascribe in part the badness of the Lon¬
don bread in general, compared with the bread in other
places, particularly in Edinburgh, where it is remarkably
good. But there are other causes for this deterioration
of the London bread, which we believe to be of recent
date. These we shall notice hereafter.
Number of 5. A sack of flour weighing 280 lbs. and containing five
loaves m a bushels, is supposed capable of being baked into 80 loaves
in the acts of Parliament regulating the assize upon bread.
According to this estimate, one fifth of the loaf consists of
water and salt, the remaining four fifths of flour. But the
fact is, that the number of quartern loaves which can be
made from a sack of flour depends entirely on the good¬
ness of that article. Good flour requires more water than
bad flour, and old flour more than new flour. Sometimes
82, 83, or even 86 loaves, may be made out of a sack,
sometimes scarcely 80.
Process of 6. Let us now proceed to give a short description of
baking. the mode of baking as practised in Great Britain.
The bakehouse ought to be a large room. On one side
should be erected a dresser with suitable shelves above
it; on another side a kneading-trough, about seven feet j
long, three feet high, two feet and a half broad at top, ^
and nineteen inches at bottom, with a sluice-board to pen
the dough up at one end, and a lid to shut down like that
of a box. On a third side should be a copper capable of
holding three or four pailfuls of water, with a fire-place to
warm the liquid. The oven of course occupies the fourth
side. It is a square apartment, about three or four feet
high, with an arched circular roof and a brick or stone
floor, and furnished with a door which may be shut close.
It is the general custom to heat the oven with wood, either
faggots or brushwood; but it would be much more eco¬
nomical and cleanly to employ pit-coal for that purpose.
The requisite fire-place should be erected at one side of
the oven, and the heat may be easily communicated by
making the flue wind round the oven. This fire may also
be employed to heat the copper and the water in it, which
would save an additional fire, or spare the baker the dis¬
agreeable necessity of heating the copper in the oven it¬
self, which is pretty generally practised in London. We are
persuaded that an oven constructed upon this principle
would save the baker a considerable annual expense,
which for many years past has been continually increas¬
ing. Indeed it is obvious that the price of wood must
keep pace with the augmentation of the population and
wealth of the country.
The temperature to which the oven must be raised to
fit it for baking bread is 450°. (Encyclop. Method, des Arts
et des Metiers, i. 275.) The bakers do not employ a ther¬
mometer ; but they reckon the oven sufficiently heated
when flour thrown on the floor of it becomes very soon
black without taking fire.
Let us suppose that a baker is going to convert a sack
of flour into loaves. He pours the flour into the kneading-
trough, and then sifts it through a fine wire sieve, which
makes it lie very light, and serves to separate any impu¬
rities with which the flour may be mixed. An ounce of
alum1 is then dissolved over the fire in a tin pot, and the
solution poured into a large tub, called by bakers the sea¬
soning tub. Four pounds and a half of salt are likewise
put into the tub, and a pailful of hot water. When this
mixture has cooled down to the temperature of 84°, three
English pints of yeast are added; the whole is well mix¬
ed together, strained through the seasoning sieve, emptied
into a hole in the flour, and mixed up with the requisite
portion of it to the consistence of a thick batter. Some
dry flour is then sprinkled over the top, and it is covered
up with cloths. This operation is called in London settiiv)
quarter-sponge.
In this situation it is left about three hours. It gra¬
dually swells and breaks through the dry flour scattered
on its surface. An additional pailful of warm water is now
added, and the dough is made up into a paste as before;
then the whole is covered up. This is called setting half¬
sponge. In this situation it is left about five hours.
Three pailfuls of warm water are now added; the
whole is intimately blended and kneaded upwards of an
hour. The dough is then cut out in pieces with a knife,
thrown over the sluice-board, and penned to one side of
the trough. Some dry flour is sprinkled over it, and it
is left in this state for four hours. It is then kneaded
again for half an hour. The dough is now cut into pieces,
and weighed in order to furnish the requisite quantity for
each loaf; four pounds fifteen ounces being allowed for
every quartern loaf. The method of moulding the dough
nIinSr^rnduri,itvhter,reJaeaf00dnf Si°f brfcad is estimated entirely by its whiteness, it is usual with those bakers who employ flour of
one half and the}deLipnlvS ?UC|h 38 comm°n salt to the douSh ? or, in other words, the quantity of salt added is diminished
much whiteJ and firmer 7 PP 7 “ ^ weight of alum* This imProves the look the b?ead very much, rendering it
BAKING.
, into a loaf can scarcely be described, and can only be
<' learned by ocular inspection. The loaves are left in the
oven about two hours and a half. When taken out, they
are carefully covered up, to prevent as much as possible
the loss of weight.
The above description applies only to the mode of bak¬
ing as practised in London. No doubt, slight differences
exist in different countries. The French loaf, which is
baked in a pan, requires obviously a different process from
the English loaf, and it is kept a longer time in the oven.
Alum is not added by all bakers. The writer of this
article has been assured by several bakers of respectabi¬
lity, both in Edinburgh and Glasgow, on whose testimony
he relies, and who made excellent bread, that they never
employed any alum. The reason for adding it, given by
the London bakers, is, that it renders the bread whiter,
and enables them to separate readily the loaves from each
other. This addition has been alleged by medical men,
and is considered by the community at large, as injurious
to the health, by occasioning constipation ; but if we con¬
sider the small quantity of this salt added by the baker,
not quite 5^ grains to a quartern loaf, we will not readily
admit these allegations. Suppose an individual to eat the
seventh part of a quartern loaf a day, he would only swal¬
low eight tenths of a grain of alum, or in reality not quite
so much as half a grain; for one half of this salt consists
of water. It seems absurd to suppose that half a grain of
alum swallowed at different times during the course of a
day should occasion constipation.
7. The addition of the yeast of beer to make the dough
swell is an improvement of the original practice. Leaven
was used by the ancients for this purpose. Hence we
read in the Old Testament of unleavened bread, as distin¬
guished from loaf-bread. The method of baking by means
of leaven is this: A quantity of flour is made up into dough
with water; and this dough being set in a warm place,
is left for about thirty-six hours. During that period it
swells considerably, and becomes of a thinner consistency;
in short, it undergoes a species of fermentation. It has
now acquired a peculiar smell and a disagreeable sour
taste, and is the substance known by the name of leaven.
If this substance be mixed with a quantity of fresh dough,
it occasions the whole to undergo a speedy fermentation,
and to swell precisely in the same manner as dough mix¬
ed with yeast. Bread skilfully baked in this manner is not
inferior to yeast bread ; but when unskilfully managed, it
has a sour taste, and contains a quantity of acetic acid.
According to the experiments of Mr Edlin, a pound of
hour, when converted into leaven, contains as much acetic
acid as requires 40‘grains of carbonate of potash to neu¬
tralize it. If by carbonate he means, as is probable, bi¬
carbonate of potash, 40 .grains of it contain 21 grains of
potash, which require for saturation 22*- grains of acetic
acid.
■ Charms us that yeast in his time was employed
ln kpain and Gaul as a ferment of bread. Gallice et Ilis-
pani(B frumento in potum resoluto, quibus diximus generi-
us, spuma ita concreta pro fermento utuntur. Qua de
causa levior Mis quam cceteris panis est. (Hist. Nat. lib.
xvni. c. 7.) From this passage we see that the Romans
employed leaven to raise their bread, but that they were
sensible of the superiority of yeast. Leaven, however,
rna e its way both into France and Spain, and was uni¬
versally employed in the manufacture of bread till to-
i a/ s t‘*e end of the seventeenth century, when the
to 6181 ^>ar'S beSan ho import yeast from Flanders, and
employ it pretty generally as a substitute for leaven.
sf6 aveilere a striking instance of the blindness and ob-
with^b' ^earne^ and the powerful,,and the readiness
w lcb they are disposed to arm tkemselves against
v OL* IV# ^ vi
v
297
all alterations and improvements. The bread by this sub- Baking,
stitution was manifestly improved both in appearance and ^
in flavour. This variation excited attention; the cause
was discovered ; the faculty of medicine in Paris declared
it prejudicial to the health ; the French government inter¬
fered, and the bakers were prohibited, under a severe pe¬
nalty, from employing yeast in the manufacture of bread.
But it is in vain for governments, colleges, and univer¬
sities, to oppose themselves to those improvements which
take place in the arts and manufactures essential to civi¬
lized society. The ingenuity and perseverance of self-
interest is proof against prohibitions, and contrives to
elude the vigilance of the most active government. The
laws of Queen Elizabeth, however tyrannical and absurd,
did not prevent the introduction of indigo as a dye-stuff
into England. Neither did the authority of Louis the
Fourteenth, nor the decision of the physicians, deter the
Parisian bakers from persisting in their improved mode of
making bread. The yeast in Flanders was put into sacks;
the moisture was allowed to drop out; and in this compa¬
ratively dry state it was carried to the capital of France.
The superiority of yeast bread became gradually visible
to all; the decisions of the medical faculty were forgotten ;
and the prohibition laws were allowed tacitly to sink into
oblivion. The new mode of baking by degrees extended
itself to other countries, and is now, we believe, practised
everywhere. In warm climates, where the yeast of beer
cannot be had, other substitutes are employed, which
answer the same purpose. In the East Indies, bread is
raised by means of the liquor called toddy, which flows
out of the cocoa-nut tree when its branches are cut, and
which ferments so rapidly, that in two or three hours it
becomes an intoxicating liquor. In the West Indies dun-
der is employed for the same purpose. This is the liquid
which remains in the still after the rum is distilled off,
and is therefore analogous to what our distillers call spent
wash. It no doubt consists of a solution of unaltered
sugar, prevented from fermenting by the alcohol which
the liquid contained before distillation, and mixed, doubt¬
less, with a quantity of yeast. In that warm climate it
undergoes a very speedy fermentation, and on that ac¬
count answers all the purposes of yeast in the baking of
bread. In this country it is no uncommon thing to con¬
vert the spent wash into small beer, which the workmen
drink with avidity; but it only undergoes this change
when fermented in the usual way with yeast.
8. The appearance of wheat flour is too familiar toconstitu-
every person to require any description here. The an-entsof
cients knew that it consisted chiefly of a substance called wheat
starch, which, as Pliny informs us, was first separated f°ur-
from wheat by the inhabitants of the island of Chio; and
in his time the starch of Chio was considered as the
best and lightest, because it was made from wheat which
was not ground. (Hist Nat. xviii. 7.) This is the mode
still followed by the manufacturers of starch, and is no
doubt the reason why the other constituents of wheat
were so long in being discovered. About the year 1728
Beccaria, an Italian philosopher, discovered another con¬
stituent of wheat, to which the name of gluten has been
given. His method of obtaining it was this : He took a
quantity of flour, and formed it into dough with water;
this dough he kneaded continually between his fingers,
while a small stream of water dropt upon it. tie continu¬
ed the kneading as long as the water ran off milky. By
this process, the whole of the starch was washed away,
and there remained in his hand a gray-coloured, elastic,
and very adhesive substance, which was the gluten. (Col¬
lect. Academ. partie etrang. x. 1.) No other grain besides
wheat contains gluten in any considerable quantity. Tra¬
ces of it may be discovered in barley. But the gluten of
2 p
298 B A K
Baking, barley cannot be separated by washing. It is obtained by
solution in water; for gluten is soluble in a small propor¬
tion in cold water. But when that liquid is heated to 120°
or 130° the gluten coagulates, and falls down in gray-
coloured flocks. By this method gluten may likewise be
discovered in the leaves of many trees.
The water employed to wash out the starch soon depo¬
sits that substance in the form of a white powder. If
this water be now filtered, evaporated to a small quantity,
filtered again to separate the coagulated gluten, clarified
with white of egg, and then evaporated to the consist¬
ence of a syrup, it deposits, according to Mr Edlin, crys¬
tals of sugar in four-sided prisms, with dihedral summits.
(Edlin On Bread Making, p. 49.) If this experiment be
correct, wheat contains a portion of common sugar. But
we have great doubts respecting it. We scarcely believe
it possible to obtain in regular crystals the very small
quantity of sugar that must be contained in a pound of
wheat by the process described by Mr Edlin, for he mere¬
ly set the syrup aside to crystallize in a cool place. Com¬
mon sugar thus treated would concrete into a hard mass,
but would not crystallize. We believe that wheat flour
contains a portion of saccharine matter, but it is a species
different from common sugar. We have never, indeed,
made any experiments on the sugar of wheat, but we have
made a great many on the saccharine matter of barley,
which we found similar in its properties to the sugar into
which starch is converted by being long boiled in very
dilute sulphuric acid. There is every reason to believe
that the sugar in wheat is similar to that in barley. Now
the sugar in barley crystallizes in spheres similar to can¬
died honey.
9. Starch, the first, the most important, and by far the
most abundant constituent of wheat flour, is a white, crisp,
crystalline-like substance, insoluble in cold water, but
forming with hot water a thick paste, which has the pro¬
perty of gluing bodies together. If it be roasted on the
fire till it assume a brown colour it becomes soluble in
water, and acquires the properties of gum. If it be boiled
for forty-eight hours in water holding one hundredth part
of its weight of sulphuric acid in solution, it is dissolved
and converted into a species of sugar. This sugar is
heavier than the starch from which it was formed; the
sulphuric acid remains unaltered; and no gaseous body is
either absorbed or emitted. Hence it has been conclud¬
ed that this sugar is merely a combination of starch and
water, and that the acid acts only by promoting the solu¬
tion of the starch, without which it is incapable of uniting
with water. Starch is one of the most nourishing articles
of food, and is undoubtedly the portion of the wheat flour
that renders bread so nutritive.
10. The gluten, the second constituent of wheat flour,
is but small in quantity when compared with the starch.
It is a gray substance, exceedingly elastic and adhesive.
It is not sensibly soluble in water after it has been collect¬
ed into an adhesive mass, nor does it dissolve in alcohol
or ether. When dried, it becomes brown and semitrans¬
parent ; and when thrown on hot coals, it emits a smell si¬
milar to that of burning horn. If it be put into a vessel,
moist, and set in a damp place, it undergoes a species of
fermentation. Bubbles of gas separate from it. After
some days it becomes of a much thinner consistence, and
may then be employed to agglutinate substances together.
In about ten days or a fortnight it acquires exactly the
smell and taste of cheese, which it resembles in every
thing but the colour, which is too dark. This caseous fer¬
mentation, if the expression may be permitted, distin¬
guishes gluten from all other vegetable bodies with which
we are acquainted. It is to the gluten that wheat flour
owes the property of being converted into loaf-bread. All
I N G.
other grains are unfit for that purpose ; but they become Be z
fit as soon as we add to them a sufficient quantity of glu- ^ j
ten, or mix them with wheat flour. In this way barley,
potatoes, and even turnips, may be made into very good
bread.
11. The sugar is by far the smallest in proportion, of
all the constituents of wheat flour. If it be starch sugar,
as we believe it to be, it possesses the following proper¬
ties : It does not crystallize in prisms like common sugar,
but assumes the form of spheres like honey. It is not so
hard as common sugar, neither is it so soluble in water.
Its sweetening power, according to Kirchoff, is to that of
common sugar as 1 to 2^. But the most distinguishing
property is, that, when dissolved in water, it ferments of
itself, without the addition of any yeast; whereas common
sugar does not undergo that process unless yeast be mix¬
ed with its aqueous solution. Hence the reason why the
dough of wheat flour ferments, and is converted into lea¬
ven. This fermentation does not take place if the sac¬
charine matter be washed out of it by water, as Mr Edlin
ascertained by direct experiment. The fermentation of
wheat flour is at first confined to the saccharine matter.
It first undergoes the vinous fermentation : here the pro¬
cess, if possible, ought to be stopped. But as this is
usually not possible, the acetous fermentation commences,
and vinegar is formed. Probably at last the starch itself
is acted on, and occasions the bad taste of ill-baked lea¬
vened bread, though this is doubtful.
12. As to the proportions of these three constituents,
they differ so much in different kinds of wheat flour, that
nothing precise on the subject can be determined. The
greater the proportion of gluten, the better in all cases is
the flour. When the wheat has not fully ripened, or
when it has been exposed to rain while lying on the field,
the gluten cannot easily be separated from the starch by
the process above described; nor does it form an elastic,
adhesive mass, but a friable substance, distantly resem¬
bling the fibrous matter of potatoes. Hence the goodness
of the flour may be determined by the state of the gluten.
The writer of this article has repeatedly applied this test
to London flour, but he has been always unlucky enough
to find it decidedly bad. From the flour furnished by
two or three different bakers in different parts of the town,
he either was unable to obtain any gluten, or it wanted
the adhesiveness which characterizes the gluten of good
wdieat. No doubt there must be abundance of excellent
flour in London, but we believe (and our opinion is found¬
ed on the bread, which in general is greatly inferior in
goodness to the Edinburgh bread) that a very consider¬
able proportion of the flour used is bad. The inhabitants
of London pride themselves on the goodness of their
bread, but never was any set of men more mistaken. I he
London bread is indeed whiter, but, in other respects,
worse than any we have met with in Great Britain, ex¬
cept the bread baked in Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is
very bad, owing entirely to the unskilfulness of the bakers.
To furnish an idea of the proportions of the constituents
of flour in good wheat, we shall give the result of an ana¬
lysis of Mr Edlin’s. He separated a pound avoirdupois
of wheat into the following ingredients:
Bran  3 oz. 0 dr.
Starch  10 0
Gluten  0 6
Sugar  0 2
Loss  2 0
Total 16 0 i
In this case it appears that the gluten amounted to gt 0
the whole flour, the sugar was -g^th part, the bran j-th, an
the starch almost fds of the whole flour.
BAKING.
299
13. The yeast which is employed to ferment or raise
^the dough is obtained in London from the brewers of ale.
f In Edinburgh the greater part of the yeast used by the
)a! 3 bakers is either prepared by these tradesmen themselves,
:t’ 0r procured from those who manufacture yeast on purpose
to supply the bakers. Various methods and various in¬
gredients are used for this purpose; but the following
method is, we believe, as good as any.
Add ten pounds of flour to two gallons of boiling water:
stir it very well into a paste. Let this mixture stand for
seven hours, and then add about a quart of yeast. In
about six or eight hours this mixture, if kept in a warm
place, will have fermented, and produced as much yeast
as will bake a hundred and twenty quartern loaves.
Yeast made in this way answers the purposes of the
baker much better than brewers’ yeast, because it is
clearer, and free from the hop mixture, which sometimes
injures the yeast of the brewer. Some years ago the
bakers of London, sensible of the superiority of this arti¬
ficial yeast, invited a company of manufacturers from Glas¬
gow to establish a manufactory of it in London, and pro¬
mised to use no other. About L.5000, accordingly, were
laid out on buildings and materials, and the manufactory
was begun on a considerable scale. The ale-brewers, find¬
ing their yeast, for which they had drawn a good price, lie
heavy on their hands, invited all the journeymen bakers
to their cellars, gave them their full of ale, and promised
to regale them in that manner every day, provided they
would force their masters to take all their yeast from the
ale-brewers. The journeymen accordingly declared in a
body that they would work no more for their masters un¬
less they gave up taking yeast from the new manufactory.
The masters were obliged to comply; the new manufac¬
tory was stopped, and the inhabitants of London were ob¬
liged to continue to eat worse bread, because it was the
interest of the ale-brewers to sell their yeast. Such is the
influence of journeymen bakers in the metropolis of Eng¬
land.
What the substance in yeast is which induces fermen¬
tation, has not yet been determined. Beer yeast may be
dried, and kept in that state for a considerable length of
time; and if moistened again with water, it becomes ca¬
pable of acting again as a ferment. If it be washed in al¬
cohol, its fermenting power is destroyed. If it be kept
in a moist place, it undergoes a change very similar to the
caseous fermentation of gluten. But yeast and gluten are
distinct substances; for gluten is incapable of producing
the vinous fermentation. Sugar of starch ferments of it¬
self when diluted with water; and the juice of grapes also
rerments of its own accord, because it contains a quantity
sugar similar to the sugar of starch.
But, as far as baking is concerned, the knowledge of the
peculiar substance which occasions fermentation is not
material. The only useful purpose which fermentation
m dough serves, is to generate a quantity of carbonic acid
gas. If the dough be impregnated with this gas by any
rvT rnet^0(^’ fermentation is not necessary. Mr Henry
o Manchester found, that if flour be kneaded into dough
with water saturated with carbonic acid gas, the dough
rises as well, and the bread is as light and well tasted, as
w en it is baked with yeast. Hence those bakers who
|ve near Seltzer water, or any water impregnated with
car oiue acid gas, may substitute that liquid for yeast
wi out injuring the quality of their bread. The quan-
1 y o salt contained in a quartern loaf may be reckoned
out an ounce avoirdupois, or 437 grains. If, instead of
Aounce salt, you dissolve in water 2 oz. 5 dr. 45 gr.
i ? common crystallized carbonate of soda, and mix the
u ion well with your dough; if you now add 7 oz. 2 dr.
gr- of muriatic acid, of the specific gravity of 1\121,
and knead it as rapidly as possible with the dough, it will Baking,
rise immediately, fully as much, if not more, than dough
mixed with yeast, and, when baked, will constitute a very
light and excellent bread.
14. These examples are sufficient to explain what is Panary
called the panary fermentation. There is, in fact, no such fermenta-
thing as a fermentation peculiar to bread. But wheattion-
flour contains a portion of saccharine matter, which readi¬
ly undergoes the vinous fermentation. During this fer¬
mentation, carbonic acid gas is evolved in every part of
the dough. This gas is prevented from escaping by the
gluten, which forms everywhere through the dough an
adhesive web, through which gaseous substances cannot
make their way. Hence the dough swells in every direc¬
tion, the particles of starch are separated from each other,
and by the heat of the oven they are arrested in that po¬
sition ; so that the loaf, when cut, appears full of round
and oblong cavities, each of which in the dough had been
filled with a globule of carbonic acid gas. It is to the
presence of these cavities that the bread owes its light¬
ness, its agreeable taste, and its easy digestion. Even its
colour is owing, in a great measure, to the same cause;
for when loaves of wheat flour are baked without the ad¬
dition of yeast, or the presence of carbonic acid, they
constitute one solid, dark-coloured, disagreeable-tasted
mass, which has been found not only nauseous to the pa¬
late, but likewise of difficult digestion. These disagree¬
able qualities are, in a great measure, obviated by convert¬
ing the dough into thin cakes, and baking them rapidly
on a hot iron plate over the fire. Accordingly, this is the
method followed when wheat flour is converted into bread
without fermentation.
Thus, then, the theory of bread-making is completely Nutritive
developed. Nothing can be simpler or more ingenious qualities of
than the process followed by the baker. Nor ought the bread,
wonderful composition of wheat flour, which adapts it so
well for the manufacture of bread, to be passed over in
silence. Without the presence of the saccharine matter,
the fermentation could not be produced in it, carbonic
acid gas would not be evolved, and the bread would be
hard, heavy, black, and difficultly digestible. Without
the presence of the gluten, the carbonic acid would make
its escape as soon as formed, and the advantages of the
fermentation would be lost. And, finally, without the
presence of the starch in such a notable proportion, the
bread would neither be a palatable nor a nourishing arti¬
cle of food. It has been supposed, indeed, that the gluten
is the substance which renders bread so nourishing. But
we conceive this to be a mistake. In the first place, its
quantity, when compared with that of the starch, is trifling;
and, in the second place, we know from other circum¬
stances, that starch is peculiarly fitted for being the food
of animals. Nearly one half of the human race live almost
wholly on rice, a grain which consists almost entirely of
starch; and the small quantity of that grain which con¬
stitutes the daily food of an inhabitant of Hindostan, and
which supports his life, is truly astonishing.
15. As no other grain except wheat flour contains these Potato
three constituents in the requisite proportions, it would bread,
be in vain to attempt to convert them into bread by the
same process as is followed by the baker in making wheaten
bread. Potatoes, for example, contain no sensible quan¬
tity of saccharine matter. It would be in vain, therefore,
to expect them to ferment like wheat dough when mixed
with yeast; but we have little doubt that mashed pota¬
toes might be made into very good bread if they were
kneaded with water impregnated with carbonic acid gas,
or still better, if, instead of common salt, the constituents
of that substance were added in the proper proportions,
as they have been already given in this article. Potatoes
300
baking.
Baking, contain a very great proportion of water, and when boil-
ed in water, they communicate a brown colour, and give
the liquid a disagreeable taste and smell.
It is proper that this substance, which some have con¬
sidered as of a poisonous nature, should be previously re¬
moved. Einhof has given us the following substances as
the constituents which he found in potatoes :
Water 
Starch 15-0
Fibrous matter  7-0
Albumen  1"4>
Mucilage  4*0
100-0
Dr Pearson’s analysis is somewhat similar, only he ob¬
tained a greater proportion of water. Einhof found both
tartaric and phosphoric acid in potatoes. The fibrous
matter in potatoes seems to be a peculiar modification of
starch. It supplies the place of the gluten in wheat flour,
and gives to the paste of potatoes considerable stiffness
and adhesiveness. It is upon these properties that we
found our opinion, that if the paste of potatoes were pro¬
perly impregnated with carbonic acid gas, it would make
a good-looking and well-tasted loaf. There is, however,
the less occasion for this attempt, as potatoes, when pro¬
perly boiled, constitute an agreeable substitute for bread
without any further preparation. When made into bread,
they are always mixed with wheat flour. A mixture of
two parts flour and one potatoes makes an agreeable
bread, which cannot be distinguished from wheaten bread.
The starch of potatoes is remarkably beautiful, and goes
farther than wheat starch. We have been assured, that
what is sold in the shops under the name of Indian ar¬
row root, is nothing else than potato starch mixed with a
little gum tragacanth. It is well known what an agree¬
able food this preparation is capable of furnishing.
Bye bread. Rye is very much used as an article of food in northern
countries. In Sweden it constitutes almost the only bread
of the common people, not baked in loaves, but made up
into cakes, which are usually as hard as wood. When
baked into loaves, it has a brown colour and a sweetish
taste, which gives it a considerable resemblance to gin¬
gerbread. Rye, according to the analysis of Einhof, is
composed of the following constituents :
Albumen  3*27
Moist gluten  9-48
Mucilage 1T09
Starch 6T09
Saccharine matter  3*27
Husk  6-38
Moisture  5,42
100-00
The saccharine matter present in this grain is p’-obably
sufficient to cause it to undergo fermentation; but tne
proportion of gluten is very small, probably not amounting
to 3 per cent. Accordingly, when rye flour is washed in
water, the whole of the gluten is dissolved in that liquiu.
Hence it is obvious, that, in order to make good rye bread,
it ought to be mixed with a quantity of wheat flour. This
kind of bread is very much used in the counties of Nor¬
thumberland and Durham, and we have no doubt that it
is both palatable and nourishing. Certainly it is very su¬
perior to the rye cakes used by the peasants in Sweden.
We have been told that rice flour may be made into
loaf-bread; but we have never had an opportunity of
seeing these loaves, and do not know how far they resem¬
ble those of wheat flour. Rice has never been subjected
to chemical analysis. We do not know, therefore, what
its constituents are, though there is every reason, from
its properties, to consider it as almost entirely composed Bafe
of starch.
16. Gingerbread is composed of flour, treacle, butter,
common potashes, and alum. After the butter is melted,
and the potashes and alum dissolved in a little warm wa¬
ter, these three ingredients, along with the treacle, are
poured into the flour which is to form the basis of the
bread. The whole is then kneaded into a stiff dough.
The alum renders the bread crisper and lighter, and acce¬
lerates the period at which the dough is fit for baking;
for gingerbread dough must stand over from three or four
to eight or ten days before it is fit for baking. The rea¬
son of this is, that the carbonic acid gas, by means of
which the bread is to be raised, exists in the potashes,
which, so far as they are useful, consist of carbonate of
potash. This gas is evolved by the action of an acid on
the carbonate, derived chiefly from the fermentation of
the treacle, and its partial conversion into acetic acid.
This conversion is more or less rapid in different circum¬
stances. Hence the uncertainty respecting the time when
the dough becomes fit for being baked.
This method of making gingerbread, at present univer¬
sally followed, is obviously a bad one. The length of time
that the dough must lie before it becomes fit for baking
is apt to injure its quality. The large quantity of potash
used affects the taste of the bread, unless it be concealed
by the addition of some aromatic ingredient. It would be
much better, therefore, to substitute some other less in¬
jurious method. Were we, for every 7^ parts of common
salt which would be required for the bread, to add 10|
parts of bicarbonate of soda, and then incorporate the
dough with 13|| parts by w-eight of the common muriatic
acid of commerce, the carbonic acid gas evolved would
be amply sufficient to render the bread exceedingly light,
and the dough would be immediately fit for baking, while
the additions thus made would be merely equivalent to
the quantity of common salt used in baking loaf-bread.
Dr Colquhoun, in his Essay on Raking, published in
the Annals of Philosophy (2d series), vol. xii. p. 276, has
proposed the following mode, which he found by trial to
make excellent gingerbread. “ Take a pound of flour, a
quarter of an ounce of carbonate of magnesia, and one
eighth of an ounce of tartaric acid. Let the butter, trea¬
cle, and aromatics, be added in the same way as at pre¬
sent. The magnesia should be intimately mixed with the
flour before the latter is wetted. Dissolve the tartaric
acid in a small quantity of water, and pour it, together
with the melted butter and treacle, into the flour. Let
the whole be incorporated into a mass of dough by knead¬
ing, and then set aside the dough for an hour. If now
baked, it makes a light, spongy, pleasant bread.” The
baker would accomplish the same object if he were to
mix bicarbonate of potash with the dough, in the pro¬
portion of four parts bicarbonate to three parts tartaric
acid.
.17. Having now given a description of the method ofAssiz
baking bread, and explained the nature of the process,^1 ie
we might here conclude this article. But it may be of^j ie
some utility, if we give a short statement of the principal^ ^ m
laws which have been enacted in Great Britain respect¬
ing bread, and wre endeavour to lay before the public the
present state of the bread trade in London, and explain
the abuses and frauds which are practised by those con¬
cerned in it in that capital. We despair of seeing these
abuses rectified, but it is a great point at least to make
them known.
In the period of English history between the Norman
conquest and the reign of Edward the First, the price of
wheat fluctuated enormously. Thus, in the 43d year ot
Henry the Third, it was sold for 20s. or 60s. of our money
—
‘ftekii
BAKING.
301
a quarter. Multitudes of poor people were forced to live
upon the bark of trees, and upon horse-flesh, and above
20,000 died in London of famine. In the same reign, as
appears from the statutes, the price of wheat was as low as
Is. a quarter. These prodigious fluctuations show the little
communication at that time existing between the different
countries of Europe. Farming must then have been in a
very low state in England. When wheat was very cheap,
the farmer could not dispose of his crop, which lay rot¬
ting on his hands. When it was dear, there was such a
scarcity that he could hardly procute seed for sowing his
fields, or was unable to afford money to purchase it.
It was conceived that these evils would be in a great
measure remedied by fixing the price of bread, which was
accordingly done by a proclamation of King John. This
absurd innovation being found ineffectual, it was repealed
by the statute of assize, enacted in the 51st year of Henry
the Third, a. d. 1267. By this law the price of bread
was regulated by the price of wheat, and the baker was
allowed 7£d. for baking a quarter of wheat, and furnishing
salt and the other ingredients which are added to bread;
besides the profit which accrued from the additional loaves
made from a quarter of wheat beyond what the statute al¬
lows. This money allowance was gradually augmented
to the baker in different reigns, according to the follow¬
ing statement:
s. d.
Edward I to 1 1
Henry VII 2 7
Elizabeth 6 10
Elizabeth 6 0
Anne 12 0
George II 15 6 ,
George III 14 0
This last regulation took place in the year 1798. By this
act, the magistrates were enjoined to set the assize from
a sack of flour, instead of a quarter of wheat, and to al¬
low the baker 11s. 8d. for his expenses. The new duty
on salt, during the French revolutionary war, raised this
sum to 12s., at which it continued. By the act of parlia¬
ment, the baker was supposed to make 80 quartern loaves
from the sack of flour; whatever greater number the sack
produced was so much more profit to the baker.
Very particular laws were enacted, obliging the corn-
factors to give in the quantities and prices of the flour
sold, and the bakers the quantities and prices at which
they bought it. Penalties were enacted to prevent false
returns, to prevent adulterations and improper combina¬
tions between the bakers, or the corn-factors and bakers.
The weight of the loaf was determined, and all loaves de¬
ficient in weight one ounce, or not marked with the letters
W, S W, H, according to the quality of the bread, may
be seized; and the baker, besides the loss of his bread, is
subjected to a penalty. These laws are so numerous and
so minute that it would be tedious to copy them. No¬
thing would be learned from them but the amount of
the penalty for each offence, varying from L.50 to Is.,
according to the supposed enormity of the transgression.
It is the business of the magistrates in towns, and of jus¬
tices of the peace in the country, to regulate the assize ;
and the price of bread is determined by the price of wheat,
according to a table given in one of the acts. When that
price varies 6s. the quarter, then the price of the loaf is
varied one assize, or a halfpenny the quartern loaf. Ma¬
gistrates likewise may alter the price of the loaf half an
assize, or a farthing in the quartern loaf.
Whoever considers the indecent way in which oaths
are administered in English courts (for it is upon the oaths
ot the bakers and corn-factors that the acts depend for
the accuracy of the returns), and the little regard paid to
them by merchants and manufacturers, partly in conse¬
quence of this indecency, partly in consequence of their
multiplicity, and partly on account of the many absurd
impediments that the legislature has thrown in the way
of merchants and manufacturers; whoever considers these
things, will be at no loss to conclude, that all these checks,
and penalties, and oaths, have entirely failed in producing
the intended effects. In London, where the number of
bakers is great, and the competition in consequence ought
to insure the best bread at the lowest possible price, the
bread-laws, by making the prices of all bakers the same,
have destroyed this competition; formed the bakers into
a regular company, having occasional meetings to consult
their peculiar interest; and raised in them a feeling of
honour, which makes them consider it unhandsome to un¬
dersell their neighbours. The price of flour is easily re¬
gulated between the bakers and the corn-factors ; the con¬
sequence of which regulation is, that the quartern loaf is
always 2d. dearer than in any other part of Great Britain.
The reason assigned is, that the finest flour only is em¬
ployed in London, and that the London bread is better
than any other. The waiter of this article is well aware
of the contrary. The London bread is, in his opinion,
nearly the worst bread in Great Britain ; and the flour is
greatly inferior to that which is used by the bakers in
Edinburgh. He has frequently examined flour purchased
from bakers in both cities, and the Edinburgh flour, ex¬
cept in bad years, when the crop had been injured, was
uniformly superior in quality to the London flour.
The magistrates of London have at last become sensi¬
ble of the truth of these facts ; and that the government,
by their officious interference and their minute enact¬
ments, have injured instead of improved the quality of the
bread. They have, in consequence, applied to parlia¬
ment, and by their influence, the assize on bread, as far
as it affects London and its environs, has been taken off.
But the good effects expected have not yet resulted from
this judicious measure. The spirit of monopoly has been
sunk so deep into the minds of the bakers by the assize laws,
that some time must elapse before it can be eradicated. It
is said that they have a weekly meeting, and settle the as¬
size privately in the same manner as it was before public¬
ly done by the lord mayor and aldermen of London. But
this esprit de corps cannot continue very long. Where
there are 1600 bakers, as in London and Westminster, it
is not consistent with the nature of things to suppose that
they can long continue united, so as to act only together
and by concert. Self-interest will induce first one in¬
dividual, and then another, to consult to his own private
advantage, and to endeavour to secure an increase of busi¬
ness by underselling his neighbours. The bond will thus
be broken asunder, and every one will be obliged to serve
the community at the lowest possible rate.
It is a pity that the legislature would not see that the
same liberty which has been given to the baker ought to
be extended to the corn trade in general. The deprecia¬
tion of money, which was the consequence of the unna¬
tural state into which Europe was brought by the French
revolution, our almost total seclusion from the Continent,
and a series of bad crops for several years, raised the price
of corn in this country to an enormous height. The land¬
lords took advantage of this increase to raise the rents,
while government loaded the farmer with heavy taxes. But
in a state of peace, and supposing the seasons to be tolera¬
bly favourable, the prices cannot be kept up. The landed
proprietors, indeed, conceived that the price of corn could
be continued in this country at its unnatural height, sim¬
ply by prohibiting the importation of foreign corn. It was
with this view that the corn-bill was brought into parlia¬
ment and carried in the year 1815 by a great majority,
Baking.
302 B A K
Baking, notwithstanding the almost universal expression of the
inhabitants of Great Britain against the measure. These
legislators did not consider that the average deficiency of
corn in Great Britain does not amount to a week’s con¬
sumption ; that though they may prevent corn from being
imported into Great Britain, they cannot prevent such ot
the inhabitants as choose it from going to those places
where corn is cheap. The corn-bill will not have the ef¬
fect of keeping up the price of corn; but it will act as an
encourager of emigration. Suppose the population of Great
Britain to be 16,000,000, the emigration of 100,000 in¬
habitants would probably be sufficient to prevent the ne¬
cessity of importing corn. Perhaps a smaller number
would be sufficient, as those who will be obliged to emi¬
grate are chiefly families with small fortunes, who may be
supposed to consume more wheaten bread than the very
lowest of the people. The hardships of the farmer can¬
not be alleviated in any other manner than by lowering
his rent, and easing him of his oppressive taxes. The
present mode of allowing the importation of foreign corn
at a tax which diminishes as the price advances, till it is
reduced at last to Is. per quarter, is an improvement on
the old mode, but it is still defective. Prices never can
become steady till all restrictions on the trade of corn are
removed.
18. About sixty years ago the dealers in corn in Lon¬
don carried on their business at Bear Quay; but, this
situation being very inconvenient, the Corn Exchange in
Mark Lane was erected by a company of proprietors, for
the accommodation of the factors and dealers. Seventy-
two stands were allotted on which the samples of corn are
exposed to sale. Sixty-four of these stands are let out
on lease to factors or dealers, and the remaining eight are
appropriated to the use of the Kentish hoymen. “ Al¬
though the Corn Exchange is considered as open to all
who come to buy and sell, yet no person can carry on the
business of a corn-factor, to any considerable extent, un¬
less he is in possession of one of these stands. Here the
factors are at liberty, either to expose all their samples
at the same time, or as few of them as they think fit;
so that a buyer has no means whatever of judging, from
the appearance of the samples exposed on the stands,
during any period of the market, what the supply is, or
what quantities of corn are imported, coastwise or from
abroad.” (Report of the Cormnittee of the Mouse of Com¬
mons respecting Corn.')
Here the millers, mealmen, and corn-chandlers, trans¬
act their business with the corn-factor, and not with the
seller. These men purchase the wheat, carry it down to
Essex and other counties, convert it into flour, and bring
B A K
it back to London to supply the bakers. The profits of Bat
the baker are but small, supposing him to carry on his ^
trade without any fraud. Let us suppose him to bake
twelve sacks a week, which, from the evidence of the
bakers examined before the committee of the House of
Commons, seems to be a fair average. They are allowed
12s. for each sack, which amounts in the week to L.7.
Let us suppose further, that every sack yields eighty-two
loaves instead of eighty, so that they have a profit of two
loaves on each sack. This, when the quartern loaf is at
10d., will amount to L.l more. And let us suppose still
further, that the puddings, pyes, and meat, which they
bake, will defray the expense of their fuel. By this state¬
ment, their weekly income will be L.8, out of which they
have to pay for salt and yeast, and likewise their journey¬
men’s wages. Now, L.4 seems as little as can well be
allowed for these purposes. According to this state¬
ment, L.208 a year seems to be the amount of an ordinary
baker’s income in London, supposing him not to practise
any fraud.
The consequence of this small profit is, that men of
capital seldom embark in the trade. The bakers in Lon¬
don are mostly poor men, who begin the world without
any capital, and, in consequence of the great competition,
are never able to deal so extensively as to acquire one.
It is scarcely necessary to observe what must be the con¬
sequence of this. They are at the mercy of the meal-
men, who supply them with flour as they think proper,
of what quality they think proper, and at what price
they think proper. Hence the high price and the bad¬
ness of the London bread. The profits go all into the
pockets of the mealmen, who keep the bakers in a state
of comparative slavery, and oblige the inhabitants of Lon¬
don to eat the worst and the dearest bread in Great Bri¬
tain.
Some ingenious bakers in London, in order to make up
for the smallness of their profits, have hit upon the plan of
mixing potatoes with their flour ; and we are credibly in¬
formed that not less than 300 tons of potatoes are con¬
sumed for this purpose every week. Perhaps the quality
of the bread is not much injured by this practice; for
some of the bakers most in repute employ potatoes to a
considerable extent, and the consumption of wheat is very
materially diminished by it. But the grievance is, that
the same price is taken for a potato loaf as for a loaf of
the finest wheaten flour, though it must cost the baker
much less.
The reader will find some account of the substitutes
which have been proposed for wheat flour, in seasons of
scarcity, under the article Bread. (l.)
BAKU, or Badku, a town, with an adjoining district
of the same name, in Persia. Badku is the most spacious
and convenient port in the Caspian, and stands in the pe¬
ninsula of Absharon, in long. 51. 7. E. lat. 42. 22. N.
It is a place of considerable trade, and is defended by a
double wall and ditch, constructed during the reign of Pe¬
ter the Great. The town is situated on a declivity, and is
of an obtuse triangular form. It was a celebrated resort
of the ancient worshippers of fire, and before the conquest
of the Saracens was annually visited by thousands of pil¬
grims. In the adjacent district a great quantity of excel¬
lent cotton is produced, and is exported from Badku; to¬
gether with fruit, opium, rice, silk, wine, rock-salt, and
naphtha. Cloths, dye-stuffs, iron, linen, and silk stuffs, are
imported from Astracan, from which six or eight vessels
airive yearly, and with which its principal trade is car¬
ried on. In the plain to the south-east of the city, enor¬
mous quantities of naphtha are produced. It is drawn
from wells, some of which yield from 1000 to 1500 pounds
in a day. These wells contain inexhaustible springs of
oil; and they are no sooner emptied than the oil begins
to flow, and continues until it has attained its former le¬
vel. It is used by the natives for lamp-oil, and emits a
clear light, with much smoke and a disagreeable odour.
All around the town the country is deeplyr impregnated
with inflammable matter, both above and below the sur¬
face. About ten miles to the eastward is a fine temple
of the Guebres; a remarkable spot, something less than
a mile in circumference, from the centre of which a blu¬
ish flame is seen to arise. Here are some small houses;
and the inhabitants, when they wish to smother the flame,
cover the space inclosed with walls by a thick loam of
B A L
earth. When an incision is made in the floor the flame
i1||S arjses* and it is again suppressed when it is no longer
Sad wanted for culinary or other purposes, by closing the aper-
' ture. The whole country around Badku has at times the
appearance of being enveloped in flames. It often seems
as if the fire rolled down from the mountains in large
masses with incredible velocity; and at night a bright
blue light is observed to cover the whole western range
of hills. This fire does not consume, and no warmth is
felt even though a person be in the middle of it. The
jurisdiction extends over thirty-two villages. It was ceded
to Russia in 1723, and was restored to Persia in 1735.
It was several years under the dominion of a Persian
prince, and was taken possession of by the Russians in
1801, by whom it is now retained. Long. 51. 7. E. Lat.
42. 22. N. .
BALAAM, a prophet and diviner of the city of Pe-
thor, on the Euphrates, whose practices with Balak, king
of the Moabites, are recorded in the book of Numbers,
chap. xxii. It is a question much debated among divines,
whether Balaam was a true prophet of God, or no more
than a magician or fortune-teller. The Scripture, 2 Pet.
ii. 16, denominates him a prophet; and this by some has
been thought decisive of the point; although it is ex¬
pressly stated that he “ loved the wages of unrighteous¬
ness,” and was “ rebuked for his iniquity” by “ the dumb
ass,” which “ forbade the madness of the prophet” As to
what passed between him and his ass, when the latter
was miraculously enabled to accost its master and rebuke
him, commentators are divided in opinion ; some doubting
whether the fact really and literally happened as Moses
relates it, and others thinking it an allegory only, or the
mere imagination or vision of Balaam. Philo, in his Life
of Moses, passes over this wmnderful incident in silence;
and Maimonides pretends that it happened to Balaam in a
prophetic vision only. But St Peter (ubi supra) speaks of
this fact as literal and certain, and so most interpreters ex¬
plain it. St Austin, who understands it exactly according
to the letter, finds nothing in the whole account more sur¬
prising than the stupidity of Balaam, who heard his ass
speak to him, and answered it as if he had talked with a
reasonable person. Le Clerc thinks that Balaam might
probably have imbibed the doctrine of transmigration of
souls, which was certainly very common in the East; and
on this account he might probably be the less astonished at
hearing a brute speak. Gregory of Nyssa seems to think
that the ass did not utter any word articulately or dis¬
tinctly, but that, having brayed as usual, the diviner, whose
practice it had been to draw presages from the cries of
beasts and singing of birds, comprehended easily the ass s
meaning by its noise; Moses designing to ridicule this su¬
perstitious art of augurs and soothsayers, as if the ass had
really spoken in words articulate.
BALACHNA, a circle of the Russian government of
Nishegorod, containing about 90,000 inhabitants. The
chief place is a city of the same name, at the junction of
the river Usola with the Wolga. It contains about 4500
inhabitants, who carry on a trade in linen, and in salt pro¬
duced from springs near it. Long. 43. 25. E. Lat. 56.
BALADAN, the Scripture name for a king of Babylon,
called by profane authors Belesus or Belesis, Nabonassar
or Nanybrus. Baladan was at first no more than governor
of Babylon; but having entered into a confederacy with
Arbaces, governor of Media, and rebelled against Sarda-
napalus, king of Assyria, both generals marched against
him with an army of 400,000 men, and were defeated in
three different battles. The Bactrians, however, deserted
the king, and having gone over to Baladan and Arbaces,
the rebels, thus reinforced, attacked their enemy in the
B A L
303
night, and made themselves masters of his camp. After Balaghaut
this misfortune, Sardanapalus retreated to Nineveh, and II
left the command of his army to his brother-in-law Sala- Balance-
menes. The conspirators attacked Salamenes, and de-
feated him in two great battles; after which they laid
siege to Nineveh. Sardanapalus sustained the siege for
three years ; but the Tigris, in the third year, overflowing
its banks, beat down twenty furlongs of the walls; upon
which the conspirators entered the city and took posses¬
sion of it, after Sardanapalus had burnt himself and all
his most valuable effects upon a funeral pile erected for
the purpose in his palace. Baladan was acknowledged
king of Babylon, as Arbaces was of Media.
BALAGHAUT Ceded Districts. This country, which
is in the south of India, comprehends an extensive table¬
land, supported like a terrace by the stupendous moun¬
tain wall of the Ghauts. It is a vast extent of level
plains, stretching from the Krishna to the southern extre¬
mity of the Mysore, and is named Balaghaut, or “ Above
the Ghauts,” in contradistinction to Payenghaut, or “ Be¬
low the Ghauts.” This tract of country, which was ac¬
quired by the British in 1800, comprehends all the terri¬
tory south of the Toombuddra and Krishna rivers, which
are its proper boundaries, and which, owing to its ele¬
vated surface, are the only large rivers which it pos¬
sesses. The country, the greater proportion of which is
under dry cultivation, produces sugar, indigo, and cotton.
In 1806 a census was made out of the population, which
amounted to 1,917,376. After these districts were ob¬
tained from the Nizam in 1800, they were placed under
the management of Colonel Munro, and since this period
they have made great advances in population and prospe¬
rity. In the course of seven years the land revenues in¬
creased from 1,006,593 to 1,517,272 pagodas; and the in¬
habitants, from being a horde of lawless freebooters, were
reclaimed to habits of civilization and submission to the
laws. In the year 1808 the total amount of the revenue
was 1,802,570 pagodas. In ancient times these provinces
formed part of the Hindoo kingdom of Bijanagur; and
many of the modern polygars claim their descent from
the officers, and some from the royal family, of that king¬
dom. On the fall of the Mogul government it was broken
into several independent states. It was conquered by
Hyder between the years 1766 and 1780, but in 1800 was
transferred to the British.
BALAGUER, a city of the province of Catalonia, in
Spain. It is situated on the river Segra, in a fruitful dis¬
trict, is fortified and defended by a citadel, and contains
4200 inhabitants, who are chiefly occupied in the pursuits
of agriculture. Long. 1. 24. E. Lat. 41. 43. N.
BALAMBANGAN, a rich and fruitful island in the
Eastern Seas, situated between Magindanao and Borneo,
from the latter of which it is 15 miles distant. The East
India Company formerly had a settlement here; but it is
now abandoned, and is uninhabited. Long. 117. 5. E.
Lat. 7. 15. N. c \ *
BALAMBUAN, or Padambuan, a strong town ot Asia,
in the Indies, on the east extremity of the island of Java,
and capital of a territory of the same name. Long. 114.
10. E. Lat. 7.50. S. . . u ^ „
BALANCE, a machine for ascertaining the weight ot
substances. There are several kinds of balances, as the
common balance or scales, the steelyard, the Danish or
Swedish balance, the Chinese balance, the hydrostatic ba¬
lance, &c. The same name is also given to certain kinds
of apparatus employed for measuring or comparing the
intensities of very small forces, as the balance of torsion,
the electric balance, &c.
The common balance, which is of the most extensive
use in the affairs of life, as well as in the arts and experi-
BALANCE.
mental physics, consists of a beam, AB (fig. 1, Plate CIII.),
supported in the middle by a fulcrum or prop C, round
which it turns freely, and having a scale or dish attached to
each of its extremities A, B, one of which holds the weight,
and the other the substance to be weighed. The balance,
therefore, in reference to the mechanical powers, is a le¬
ver of the first kind; that is to say, having the fulcrum
placed between the power and the weight to be raised;
hence its theory is easily deduced from the statical pro¬
perties of the lever. Let P represent the weight in the
scale D, and Q that in E ; then (supposing AB an inflexible
straight line without weight), when AB becomes stable in
the horizontal position, or when P balances Q, the condition
of equilibrium is expressed by the equation
P X AC = Q X BC.
In order, therefore, that the two bodies P and Q may
have precisely the same weight, or both exert the same
force in turning the beam about its axis of motion, it is
indispensable that the two points of suspension A and B
be exactly equidistant from the fulcrum C.
When the two arms of the balance are not exactly of
the same length, it is obvious that the two weights P and
Q, which, in the case of equilibrium, are reciprocally as
CA and CB, must also be unequal, in order that the fore¬
going equation may still be true. If, for example, AC is
longer than CB, then a less weight in D will balance a
greater in E ; and it is on this principle that false balances
are constructed. The fraud, however, may be easily de¬
tected by transferring the weights P and Q to the opposite
scales; for then the less weight P being attached to the
shorter arm CB, the product P X CB will be smaller than
Q X CA, and the equilibrium consequently destroyed.
It may be remarked, that the true weight of a body
may easily be found by means of a false balance of this
kind. It is only necessary to weigh the body first in the
one scale and then in the other, and the true weight will
be a mean proportional between the two weights thus in¬
dicated. To demonstrate this property, let w be the true
weight of the body in grains, and suppose that when placed
in the scale E it balances p grains in D, and that when
transferred to D it balances q grains in E, and makes
m — AC, n — BC ; by the statical property of the lever
we have the two equations,
mp — nw, nq — mw ;
i m w m q
whence — = — — = — ;
n p n w
therefore ~—-~L anj w — yrr.
p w
so that w is a mean proportional between p and q, and is
consequently found by multiplying those numbers to¬
gether, and extracting the square root of their product.
• y1^1^ piecedes, the beam has been regarded as an
inflexible rod devoid of weight; but in order to investi¬
gate fully the properties of the instrument, and the con¬
ditions that must be fulfilled in order to render it practi¬
cally useful, it is necessary to have regard to the weight
ot the beam, and the position of its centre of gravity in
respect of the axis of motion. The great requisites of a
good balance are sensibility and stability; that is to say,
it ought to be such that a very small weight added to
either scale disturbs the equilibrium, and causes the beam
to deviate sensibly from the horizontal position; and also
such, that when the equilibrium has been disturbed, it may
return quickly to a state of rest. In order to discover the
construction best adapted to confer these two properties,
r //Ono\euie^ t0 re£ard the beam as a bent lever. Let
• in • 6 r16! centre of gravity of the beam, O the
middle point of the straight line joining the points of sus¬
pension A and B, IT H a horizontal straight line drawn
through C, and GD, OE, BH, AH', perpendiculars to
H'H. Make ^
W = weight of beam,
L — weight of scales with their load,
P = the preponderating weight,
<p — COE = BOK = angle of inclination.
The condition of equilibrium is now
L.CE + W.CD = P.CH;
whence, since CH = EH — EC = OK EC,
L.OC sixi. <p + W.GC sin. <p = P.OB cos. o — P.OC sin. a •
therefore, gin. <p [(L + P) . OC + W.GC] = P.OB cos!®’
i * sin. a P.OB
and tan. <p =   = —   
r cos. <p (L + P) . OC + W . GC'
From this equation it appears that, for any given value
of P, the tangent of the angle of inclination, which mea¬
sures the sensibility of the balance, is directly as the
length of the beam, inversely as the weights of the beam
and load, and also inversely as the distances of G and 0
from the axis. The sensibility is therefore greatest when
the quantity (L + P) . OC + W . CG is the least pos¬
sible. On the other hand, when P = 0, the stability, or
the force acting to restore the beam to the horizontal po¬
sition, is sin. p [L.OC + W. CG], which will be di¬
minished by diminishing the value of L . OC + W. CG.
In what precedes we have supposed the points G andO
both to fall below the centre of the motion C ; but the ba¬
lance may be constructed so that one or both of these
points shall coincide with C, or fall above it. Suppose, in
the first place, the arms to be bent upwards, so that 0 falls
above the fulcrum, while G remains below it. In this case
the measure of stability is sin. p (W.CG —L.OC), whence
it appears that a balance of this sort can only be used for
small weights; for if the load is increased till L.OC becomes
equal to W.CG, the balance has no restoring power, and
is indifferent to any position. If L.OC exceeds W.CG, it
would entirely upset by the slightest deviation from the
horizontal position.
Suppose next that the centre of gravity G falls above
the fulcrum, O remaining below it. The measure of sta¬
bility now becomes sin. <p (L.OC — W.CG), and conse¬
quently the balance is only useful for heavy weights; for
as L.OC is diminished, the stability is lessened, and when
L.OC is equal to or less than W.CG, the balance is use¬
less. Hence it appears that when either of the points
G, O, falls above C, the balance can only be employed in
particular cases.
Let the point G coincide with C, and O fall below it.
In this case CG vanishes, and the measure of stability be¬
comes sin. <p L.OC, which, for any given value of <p, in¬
creases with the load, or the weight of the substance to
be weighed. A balance of this sort would be unfit for
weighing small bodies on account of its want of stability,
though it might be used in the estimation of great weights.
Lastly, let O coincide with C, while G falls below the
axis. The three points of action A, C, B, are now arranged
aw an^,ra^V' dl)e’ and the measure of stability is sin. <p
W . CG, which is constant for a given value of <p. The re¬
storing force is therefore independent of the load in the
sea es, so that a balance of this sort can be employed in
a cases, whether the weights are great or small; and as
u is easy, diminishing W and CG, to give it any requir-
ec degree of sensibility, it is this form that ought to be
ac opted in every case where great precision and accuracy
are necessary.
Another reason for this disposition of the three points
o action in a straight line is, that unless C is in the same
straight line with A and B, an equilibrium will subsist be¬
tween two unequal weights when AB is not exactly hori-
zontal. In fact, since the weights P, Q, suspended from A
and B, act in the direction perpendicular to H'H, the mo-
w 1
BALANCE. 305
, merits of these weights, or their energies in turning the
J beam round its axis, are respectively P X CH', and Q X CH ;
^ therefore, when BCH is a greater angle than ACH', and
the line CH consequently less than CH', a smaller weight
at A will balance a greater at B, and the beam remain
at rest though loaded with unequal weights. It is hence
important, in all accurate weighing, to make certain that
when the equilibrium takes place, the line AB is exactly
^Having determined from theory the conditions that
ou°ht to be observed in the construction of the balance,
we°shall now proceed to give a brief description of the in¬
strument as it is constructed for assaying or other delicate
purposes. In the first place, the beam ought to be as light
as possible, consistently with its perfect inflexibility; for
it is evident that the friction of the axis will be increased
with its weight, and the sensibility proportionally diminish¬
ed. To combine the qualities of lightness and inflexibility,
it is found most advantageous to form the arms of the ba¬
lance of two hollow cones of brass, very thin, but strength¬
ened and inflexible by means of circular rings driven into
them at proper intervals. In order to diminish as much
as possible the extent of the surfaces in contact, the axis
is formed of two sharp edges of tempered steel, lying in
the same straight line, and supported on two planes of
steel, agate, or crystal, finely polished, and placed with
the greatest precision, in the same horizontal plane. In
a balance made by the celebrated Troughton, the sharp
edges are ground on the low'er side of a cylinder of steel,
which crosses the beam in the middle, and they extend
over the agate planes about ^th of an inch. The angle
of the edges is about 30°. The suspension at the extre¬
mities of the beam ought also to be made by sharp, edges,
crossing each other at right angles ; and in order to obviate
any risk of displacement, the edges may be concave, those
formed in the beam being sharp upwards, and the others,
to which the scales are attached, being sharp downwards.
The horizontality of the beam is usually indicated by a
slender pointed rod called the tongue of the balance, rising
perpendicularly above the beam, and passing through the
centres of gravity and motion. A divided ivory scale,
placed contiguous to it, shows deviations of the tongue from
the perpendicular, and renders sensible the slightest mo¬
tion of the beam. In some balances the tongue is placed
below the beam, pointing downwards, in order to diminish
the volume of instrument. But the preferable method is
to bring the arms themselves to terminate in sharp points,
and place a divided scale behind each. By this means
the tongue is rendered unnecessary, and any flexure of
the beam immediately becomes evident. Care must be
taken that the zeros of the two scales be placed exactly
in the same level. The points of suspension at the ex¬
tremities of the arms ought to be adjustable both horizon¬
tally and vertically ; horizontally, for the purpose of giving
the two arms exactly the same length; and vertically, in
order to bring the three points of action into a straight
line. A nut or bob, formed of some heavy substance,
placed near the middle of the beam (in the interior of the
cylinder if it be hollow), and capable of being raised or
lowered by a screw, serves to increase or diminish the dis¬
tance of the centre of gravity of the beam from the axis
of motion, and consequently to accelerate or retard the
oscillations at pleasure. Two supporters, the upper ends
of which are formed into angles, are placed under the
bwim. These, being raised by means of a screw, lift the
beam from the supporting planes, and relieve the sharp
edges when the balance is not in use. If the arms of the
balance are hollow, this object may be accomplished with
less risk by placing the supporters under the extremities
of the cross steel bar on which the sharp edges are form-
vol. IV.
ed. Props should also be placed under the scales while Balance,
loading or unloading them ; and care taken to confine the
oscillations within narrow limits, or prevent the beam
from deviating much from the horizontal position, by
which the points of action might be endangered. The
sensibility, as we have seen, increases with the length of
the beam ; but the liability to flexure also increases in the
same proportion : and the arms of a balance, such as has
been described, cannot, perhaps, safely exceed nine or ten
inches. When great delicacy is required, the apparatus
must be protected from the disturbing influences of cur¬
rents of air, by being inclosed within a glass case, having
doors at the ends for the convenience of loading and un¬
loading the scales.
Fig. 3, Plate Oil. represents a balance by Fortin, a
celebrated mechanician of Paris. The beam is made of
tempered steel, and the arms slightly bent, so that all the
parts of action may be situated in the same plane, and
the centre of gravity fall a little below the axis of motion,
which is here under the beam. The planes of support are
of steel, and highly polished. The suspension at the ex¬
tremities of the arms is represented by fig. 4.
With a balance of great sensibility, weighing is not only
a delicate, but also tedious operation. When the adjust¬
ments are all perfect, and the beam nearly poised, the os¬
cillations should be extremely slow and regular, and ex¬
tend to equal distances on each side of the zero of the
scale. In fact, it is by the equality of the excursions of
the index from zero that the horizontality of the beam
must be inferred ; for a very long time would elapse before •
the oscillations entirely cease. The sensibility of a balance
constructed with the requisite care, according to the prin¬
ciples above explained, is very great. Those of Fortin of
Paris have been found to oscillate by the addition of a
single milligramme, when loaded with a weight of 1000
grammes in each scale ; so that the weight is indicated to
the millionth part. A balance constructed by the late Mr
Ramsden, for the Royal Society of London, is said to vi¬
brate with the seven-millionth part of its load. In general,
however, no such exactness can be hoped for; and even
when the greatest precautions are taken, and the most de¬
licate instruments employed, it would seldom be safe to
vouch for the truth of any figure carried beyond the fourth
decimal.
But notwithstanding the high state of perfection to
which the mechanical arts have arrived, the mathematical
equality of the length of the arms, and their symmetry
in respect of the axis of motion, can never be practically
attained; it is therefore desirable to have the means of
obtaining results in as great a degree as possible indepen¬
dent of such extreme precision. The following method
of weighing, ascribed by the french writers to Borda,
gives results not affected by the inequality of the arms, or
other imperfections to which the balance is principally
subject, and ought to be practised whenever very great
accuracy is necessary. Let the body to be weighed,
which we shall call P, be placed in the scale A, and for
a counterpoise put into the scale L, substances of any
sort, for instance bits of copper, lead, wire, or even chips
of paper, added in small quantities till the beam becomes
perfectly horizontal, which is known by the index pointing
to zero. This being done, remove gently the body P from
A, and substitute for it known weights, as grains and frac¬
tions of a grain, till the equilibrium is restored, and the
index again settles at zero. Now it is evident that the
weights in A, having been placed exactly in the same cir¬
cumstances with the body P, and producing equally with it
an equilibrium with the loaded scale B, must be the exact
equivalent or weight of P. In fact, the accuracy of this
process can only be affected by two circumstances; the
2 Q
306
BALANCE.
Balance, first is, the friction of the axis, or the want of sensibility in
the balance ; and the second is, a change of position in the
point of suspension. Unless the points of suspension are
identical in both operations, the weights which succes¬
sively produce equilibrium with B will not be exactly
equal; for even if no change takes place in the length of
the arm, the friction developed at the new points of con¬
tact will have a different value, and consequently require
a different force to overcome it. The chief objects to be
attended to, therefore, in practising the method of double
weighing, are, that the mode of contact may receive no
change during the loading and unloading of the scales;
and that the friction may be reduced to its least possible
value by giving the finest polish to the edges, as w^ell as
the plane of support.
With regard to the weights that ought to be employed,
it may be sufficient to state, that, in delicate weighing, and
for philosophical purposes, they are usually reckoned by
Troy grains. The geometrical series 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, &c.
offers one considerable advantage, namely, that a smaller
number of weights is required than when any other system
is adopted; but it would, perhaps, be more convenient in
practice to follow the decimal division, and use weights of
the following values: 1, 2, 3, 4, &c.; 10, 20, 30, 40, &c.;
100, 200, 300, 400, &c.; 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, &c., up
to 9000; and *1, *2, -3, *4, &c.; *01, *02, *03, 0’4, &c.; '001,
•002, *003, ‘004, &c. By this means the trouble of adding
would be entirely avoided, and the number of weights in
the scale would equal the digits in the number by which
the grains are expressed. Thus a load of 735-4 grains
would be counterpoised by weights of 700 grains, 30 grains,
5 grains, and 4-10ths of a grain.
See Euler, Comment. Petrop. tom. x. p. 3. Phil. Trans.
for 1766; Shuckburgh in ditto for 1798, part 2d ; Prony,
Annales de Chimie, tom. xxxvi. p. 3; Biot, Traite de
Physique, tom. i. p. 9; Ure’s Dictionary of Chemistry;
Leslie’s Elements of Natural Philosophy, vol. i. p. 185.
The Steelyard is a balance by which the weights of
bodies are estimated by means of a single weight. This
machine, which is represented by fig. 5, is likewise a le¬
ver of the first kind, haying two unequal arms. The load
L to be weighed is suspended from the extremity of the
short arjn C A, and the counterpoise or constant weight P
is movable along CB. Divisions traced on CB indicate
the weight of L corresponding to each of the positions of
P. In the East, where the steelyard is much in use, the
standard weight P is generally made to resemble a pome¬
granate in shape; whence the instrument acquired the
name of Romman, and from this circumstance it has fre¬
quently but erroneously been denominated the Roman
balance or Statera.
To find the points of division of the arm CB, let W be
the weight of the bar AB, exclusive of L and P; and let
p be the weight in pounds of the body L. Let CA = l,
and x be the unknown distance of the centre of gravity
of the beam from the fulcrum C. Then, carrying P along
the arm CB till the beam is horizontal, let A: be the point
at which P rests, and put CA: — Xj. Now, the beam is
kept in equilibrium by its own weight acting at the centre
of gravity x, and by the weights p and P acting respec¬
tively at A and Ax; therefore the condition of equilibrium
is expressed by the equation
Nl x -{• pi PX1 = 0.
Let another weight p, equal to the former, be suspended
from A, and let A2 be the position of P when the equili¬
brium is restored. Make C A2 = X2, and the above equa¬
tion now becomes
Nx +2 pl+ PX2 = 0.
In this mannei, by the successive addition of equal weights
p to A, the following system of equations is formed:
\Nx + pi + PXj =r 0
W a; + 2 pi + PX2 =r 0
W x + 3^+ PXg =0
Bala
s
W a? + npl -p PX„ = 0.
By subtracting the first of these equations from the se¬
cond, the second from the third, and so on, we have
plf-Y (X2 — XJ = 0
joZ + P (X3 — X2) = 0
^+P(X4-X3) = 0
jo/+P(Xn-XB_1) = 0.
The successive differences X2 — X15 X3 — X2, &c. are
therefore constant, each being equal to the constant quan-
pl . .
tity -L-. The divisions of the arm CB may therefore be
found as follows:
Having suspended the given weight p from the extre¬
mity of the shorter arm CA, find the point Aj at which it
is necessary to place P in order that the beam may be
horizontal. Then, having removed p, substitute for it
another weight, which is an exact multiple of p, as np,
and let P be moved toward C till the equilibrium is re¬
stored, A„ being the point where P is now placed. Di¬
vide the distance Aj A„ into n — 1 equal parts, and the
points of division will be respectively those at which P
will balance the intermediate weights between p and np.
If, therefore, each of those points is marked with the cor¬
responding value of p, the weight of any body whatever
suspended from A will be indicated by the number of the
division at which P rests when the beam is horizontal.
The distances Aj A2, A2 A3, &c. may be divided into
tenths, or other fractional parts.
For weighing heavy loads the steelyard is a convenient
instrument; but for small weights it is not susceptible of
so much accuracy as the common balance. The pressure
on the fulcrum, and consequently the friction, is greater,
when the commodities to be weighed are less than the
constant weight P, and the subdivision of the arm cannot
be effected with the same precision as that of weights for
the balance. It may be proper, however, to remark, that
the instrument ought to be constructed so that the con¬
stant centres C and A may be in the same straight line
with the divisions of the beam, and that the centre of
gravity of the unloaded beam, when placed horizontally,
shall be in the vertical passing through C, and a little
below that point, as in the common balance. An index
or tongue shows when the beam takes the horizontal situ¬
ation.
The Chinese Balance is a sort of steelyard for weighing
small commodities, formed of a slender tapering rod of
wood or ivory, about a foot in length, perforated generally
with four holes through which silk threads are passed, to
serve as so many points of support. Four different sets
of divisions are marked on the corresponding sides of the
rod; and when any thing is to be weighed, the rod is held
up by one of the strings, and a sliding weight of about 1^
ounce Troy employed as a counterpoise to the substance,
which is placed in a small scale suspended from the extre¬
mity of the shorter arm. The position of the standard
weight indicates the weight of the substance, as in the
ordinary steelyard.
The Danish or Swedish Balance, which is commonly
employed in many parts of the north of Europe for weigh¬
ing coarse commodities, is of a very simple construction.
It consists usually of a batten of hard wood, having a
heavy lump A (fig. 6) fixed at one end, and a swivel
hook at the other. The goods to be weighed are fixed to
the hook, and the whole is suspended in a loop of whip¬
cord C, in which the rod is slid backward and forward
BALANCE.
307
till the equilibrium is established. The weight of the
j load L is determined by the position of the loop on a
scale of divisions, which may be formed in the following
manner.
Let O be the centre of gravity of the beam and the at¬
tached weight at A, W their weight, L the load to be
weighed, and make BO = «, BC zr x. The equation of
equilibrium is Lr rr W {a — x), whence x =
Now, if we suppose a to be 30 inches, W = 2 lbs., and
substitute for L the numbers 1, 2, 3, &c. successively, we
shall have the following values of x :
When L = 1, a? = 20 inches
L — 2, a: = 15
L = 3, a? = 12
L = 4, a; = 10
&c.
A balance constructed in this manner is obviously sus¬
ceptible of very little accuracy.
The Bent Lever Balance, which is represented by fig.
7, is sometimes employed for expedition in the coarser
processes of weighing. To one extremity of a bent lever
ACB, is attached a constant weight B, which acts as a
counterpoise to the load placed in the scale suspended
from A. Through C, the point of support, draw the ho¬
rizontal line DE, and through A and B the perpendicu¬
lars AD, BE, meeting DE in D and E. Now the equi¬
librium will take place when CE is to CD as the load at
A to the constant weight B; and if the arms are bent so
that the lines joining CA and CB are at right angles,
then as B moves upward, its momentum increases in pro¬
portion to the sine of the arc it describes, while the mo¬
mentum at B decreases in proportion to the cosine of a
similar arc. The weight on A corresponding to any po¬
sition of B, may therefore be expressed on a graduated
circular scale placed behind the index at B. Theoreti¬
cally considered, the range of this balance is very consi¬
derable ; but the indications are little to be depended on
when B approaches either the perpendicular or the hori¬
zontal line passing through C.
The Hydrostatic Balance is an instrument contrived
for weighing bodies in water, and thereby determining
their specific gravities.
It is constructed in various forms; but we shall con¬
tent ourselves here with describing that which appears of
all others the most accurate. VCG (fig. 8) is the stand
or pillar of this hydrostatic balance, which is to be fixed
in a table. From the top A hangs, by two silk strings,
the horizontal bar BB, from which is suspended, by a ring
i the fine beam of a balance b, which is prevented from
descending too low on either side by the gently springing
piece txyz, fixed on the support M. The harness is an-
nulated at o, to show distinctly the perpendicular position
of the examen, by the small pointed index fixed above it.
The strings by which the balance is suspended, passing
over two pulleys, one on each side of the piece at A, go
down to the bottom on the other side, and are hung over
the hook at v; which hook, by means of a screw P, is
movable about one inch and a quarter backward and for¬
ward, and therefore the balance may be raised or de¬
pressed so much. But if a greater elevation or depres¬
sion be required, the sliding piece S, which carries the
screw P, is readily moved to any part of the square brass
rod VK, and fixed by means of a screw.
The motion of the balance being thus adjusted, the
rest of the apparatus is as follows. HH is a small board,
fixed upon the piece D, under the scales d and e, and is
movable up and down in a low slit in the pillar above C,
and fastened at any part by a screw behind. From the
point in the middle of the bottom of each scale hangs, by
a fine hook, a brass wire ad and ac. These pass through Balance,
two holes m, m, in the table, d o the wire ad is suspended
a cylindric wire rs, perforated at each end for that pur¬
pose. This wire rs is covered with paper, graduated by
equal divisions, and is about five inches long.
In the corner of the board at E is fixed a brass tube, on
which a round wire hi is so adapted as to move neither
too tight nor too free, by its flat head I. Upon the lower
part of this moves another tube Q, which has sufficient
friction to make it remain in any position required. To
this is fixed an index T, moving horizontally when the
wire hi is turned about, and therefore may be easily set
to the graduated wire rs. To the lower end of the wire
rs hangs a weight L; and to that a wire pn, with a small
brass ball g about one fourth of an inch diameter. On the
other side, to the wire ac, hangs a large glass bubble R,
by a horse hair.
Let us first suppose the weight L taken away, and the
wire jow suspended from S ; and, on the other side, let the
bubble R be taken away, and the weight F suspended at
c in its room. This weight F we suppose to be sufficient
to keep the several parts hanging to the other scale in
equilibrium; at the same time that the middle point of
the wire jure is at the surface of the water in the vessel O.
The wire pn is to be of such a size that the length of one
inch shall weigh four grains.
Now, it is evident, since brass is eight times heavier
than water, that for every inch the wire sinks in the wa¬
ter it will become half a grain lighter, and half a grain
heavier for every inch it rises out of the water: conse¬
quently, by sinking two inches below the middle point, or
rising two inches above it, the wire will become one grain
lighter or heavier. Therefore if, when the middle point
is at the surface of the water in equilibrium, the index T
be set to the middle point a of the graduated wire rs, and
the distance on each side ar and as contains 100 equal
parts; then, if in weighing bodies the weight is required
to the hundredth part of a grain, it may be easily had by
proceeding in the following manner.
Let the. body to be weighed be placed in the scale d.
Put the weight X in the scale e ; and let this be so deter¬
mined, that one grain more shall be too much, and one
grain less too little. Then, the balance being moved
gently up or down by the screw P, till the equilibrium be
nicely shown at o, if the index T be at the middle point
a of the wire rs, it shows that the weights put into the
scale e are just equal to the weight of the body. By this
method we find the absolute weight of the body; the re¬
lative weight is found by weighing it hydrostatically in
water, as follows.
Instead of putting the body into the scale e, as before,
let it hang with the weight F at the hook c by a horse
hair, as at R, supposing the vessel O of water were away.
The equilibrium being then made, the index T standing
between a and r at the 36 division, shows the weight of
the body put in to be 1095*36 grains. As it thus hangs,
let it be immersed in the water of the vessel N, and it
will become much lighter; the scale e will descend till
the beam of the balance rest on the support z. Then,
suppose 100 grains put into the scale d restore the equi¬
librium precisely, so that the index T stand at the 36 di¬
vision above a, it is evident that the weight of an equal
bulk of water would in this case be exactly 100 grains.
The Balance of Torsion is an instrument invented
by Coulomb, for comparing the intensities of very small
forces. It consists essentially of a metallic wire, suspend¬
ed vertically from a fixed point, to the lower end of which
a horizontal needle is attached, with a small weight for
the purpose of keeping the wire stretched. The inten¬
sity of any small force made to act on the extremity of
BALANCE.
308
Balance the needle is measured by the arc which the needle passes
H over, reckoned from the point of repose. Ihe force is thus
Balance of ba]anced by the torsion of the wire, whence the name of the
Power. • . r
instrument.
1 To prevent any derangement from the agitation of
the air, the apparatus must be covered by a glass cylin¬
der, to which a circular scale is applied horizontally, for
the purpose of measuring the amplitude of the arc tra¬
versed by the needle. A divided circle is also adapted to
the top of the cylinder, and capable of being turned round
on it, by means of which, and a fixed index attached ho¬
rizontally to the hook from which the wire is suspended,
the wire may be twisted any required number of degrees.
This apparatus is represented by fig. 9. The length of
the wire and the needle must be regulated by the object
in view. If the forces to be measured are very small,
and great sensibility is consequently required, the wire
must be long and very fine; for the force of torsion is Eaiat
inversely proportional to the length of the wire, and di- ||
rectly as the fourth power of its diameter. It must alsoBalan«
be formed of a substance possessing considerable elasti- ^we
city, and for this reason brass wire is greatly superior to Wv'
iron. By experiments undertaken for the purpose, Cou¬
lomb found the elasticity of some wires so perfect, that
on keeping them twisted through eight circumferences
for thirty hours together, the centre of torsion was not
displaced by a single degree. Their length was about a
metre, or 39 inches.
The balance of torsion is used chiefly in experiments
on electricity, magnetism, the adhesion of fluids, &c.; and
it was by means of this instrument that Cavendish made
his famous experiments on the attraction of lead balls,
from which he deduced the mean density of the earth
equal to about 5*5, that of water being unit. (s.)
BALANCE OF POWER,
Among states, a most important principle of foreign po¬
licy, intimately connected with the general peace and in¬
dependence of nations, but which some have treated as
altogether chimerical, and others represented as having
led only to pernicious results. It is more generally admit¬
ted, however, to have a real foundation in the rules of in¬
tercourse and union among states, and to have exercised
a great and beneficial influence on the affairs of modern
Europe. We say of modern Europe, because, though the
policy in question was not wholly unknown to other ages
and countries, it was nowhere systematically pursued but
among the European nations of modern times. Previous
to the sixteenth century there was little political connec¬
tion among those nations, their circumstances not being
such as to admit of any regulated attention to foreign af¬
fairs ; but about the commencement of that century they
began to form one grand community or federal league, of
which the actuating principle was the preservation of the
balance of power. The attention to this principle thence¬
forth influenced all the great wars and negociations, and
made every foreign movement, however remote, an object
of interest throughout every part of the European system.
We shall endeavour to sketch a general outline of this
important subject; and, in doing so, we shall notice,
though in a brief way, all the principal topics which it
seems to present for discussion.
Principle i. The ultimate intention of the system founded on the
of a balance balance of power, is to secure every state in the full pos-
ot power, session and enjoyment of all its rights, by making its safety
founded^on an^ in(^ePendence objects of interest and guardianship to
‘ its neighbours. It endeavours to accomplish this great
end by teaching that it is the interest of all states to check
the first encroachments of ambition, to watch every move¬
ment of foreign powers, and to unite their respective forces
in support of the weak against the strong. It is called the
balancing system, because its aim is to prevent any state
from aggrandizing itself at the expense of its neighbours,
and to counterpoise any state that may have become too
powerful, by a union of the forces of others.
The metaphorical terms applied to this system seem to
have given rise to some very absurd misconceptions of its
true theory and purposes. It has sometimes been sup¬
posed that its object was to equalize the powers of states
composing a common system ; and as it is plainly impossi¬
ble either to effect or to maintain such an equality, it has
thence been concluded, that the whole system is founded
upon a chimera. But, with a view to the objects of this
system, the question is, not what amount of power above
another any state possesses, provided the power so pos¬
sessed be fairly acquired, but whether any state possess¬
es its power in such circumstances as to enable it to tres¬
pass at pleasure on a weaker neighbour. If there be
no other state, or confederacy of states, capable of coun¬
teracting any injurious designs which a greater power
might undertake, then it is said there is no balance; but
if there be such a counterpoise, this is all that the balan¬
cing system requires to produce what, in its language, is
called an equilibrium. In order to make this point as
clear as possible, we beg to refer to the following defini-
tion$ of the balance of power, as given by Vattel and by
Gentz: “ By this balance,” says the former, “ is to be
understood such a disposition of things, as that no one
potentate or state shall be able absolutely to predomi¬
nate and prescribe laws to the others.” {Law of Nations,
b. iii. c. iii. § 47.)—“ What is usually termed a balance of
power,” says M. Gentz, “ is that constitution subsisting
among neighbouring states, more or less connected with
one another, by virtue of which no one among them can
injure the independence or essential rights of another,
without meeting with effectual resistance on some side,
and, consequently, exposing itself to danger.” {Fragments
on the Political Balance, c. i.)
Thus, then, it is distinctly understood that the balan¬
cing system is not grounded upon an equality among states
in respect of power, but upon a union of powers to repress
the enterprises of the strong and ambitious, and to coun¬
teract the effects of necessary individual inequalities by
aggregate strength.
It is quite indispensable to the existence of such a sys¬
tem, that one state should not be permitted to obtain such
a superiority of power as to enable it to overawe all oppo¬
sition, and make the safety of those around it dependent
on its will; and as it is the disposition of all unchecked
power to extend itself, the balancing system inculcates it
as the interest, as well as the right, of every state to join
in opposing the first encroachments of any ambitious po¬
tentate or community. It teaches that the danger ex¬
tends much further than to the party immediately attack¬
ed or menaced; that one encroachment will pave the way
to another ; and that it is therefore wise to meet the dan¬
ger whilst yet distant, and capable of being combated
with less peril or loss. The right of interference to put
down a danger of this kind is, in fact, only a modification
of the right to resist an immediate attack. All human
experience shows, that the state which is suffered to ag¬
grandize itself at the expense of one neighbour, will with
BALANCE OF POWER.
fits increased means acquire stronger dispositions to en-
S'c croach still further; and therefore self-defence authorizes
' us to treat as already an invader, any potentate whose
conduct entitles us to conclude that he only waits a con¬
venient opportunity to become so in effect. “ As long,”
vs Bacon, “ as men are men, and as long as reason is rea¬
son a lust fear will be a just cause of a preventive war;
but’especially if it be part of the case that there be a na¬
tion that is manifestly detected to aspire to new acquests,
then other states assuredly cannot be justly accused for
not paying for the first blow, or for not adopting Poly-
hemus’s courtesy, to be the last that shall be eaten up.”
(Speech concerning a War with Spam.) It is peculiarly
and emphatically the language of the balancing system,
Principiis obsta'—in other words, look well to the safety
and independence of your neighbours, even the most re¬
mote, if you wish to preserve your own.
Upon this point it is by no means necessary to enter
into any lengthened deductions. The principle of inter¬
ference to prevent the progress of a dangerous power rests,
both as to right and policy, upon the most obvious dic¬
tates of experience and prudence. No state ever yet ac¬
quired a preponderating power without abusing it; and
therefore it is the right and interest of all states to pre¬
vent any one from rising to such an ascendency as may
endanger the common safety.
The right in question, however, is that of guarding
against injury justly to be apprehended from the conduct
of a state which uses improper means of aggrandizement.
As far, therefore, as measures of hostility are concerned,
there must be actual encroachment in order to warrant
them. The balancing system does not say there shall be
no alterations in the relative strength of states; for a
state may fairly and honourably increase her power by
wise legislation, or by the cultivation of her own internal
resources. To attempt to impede a state which takes this
road to greatness, would be to make war upon those very
arts by the successful cultivation of which peace and hap¬
piness are spread throughout the world. The aggrandize¬
ments to which the balancing system stands opposed, aic
those attended with immediate violence to some, and
which infer further violence to others. All that nations
can do when a neighbour becomes formidable in a fair
way, is to watch her, and to draw closer those ties of al¬
liance which may enable them to counteract any bad use
of her power. When Lord Bacon, in his Essay on Em-^
pire, counsels princes “ to keep due sentinel, that none ot
their neighbours do so overgrow by increase ot tenitory,
by embracing of trade, by approaches or the like, as to be¬
come more able to annoy them than they were, he does
not mean that the growth ot a state by commerce is to
be prevented in the same way as in the case ot its exten¬
sion by a seizure of territory, but, that all great power,
however acquired, is in its nature dangerous, and ought to
be counterpoised by timely confederation.
There is another way in which a state may become
formidable, and that of a sudden, where the balancing sys¬
tem does not authorize immediate hostile interference.
We allude here to the case of a sovereign who acquires
a great accession of power by marriage or by inheritance.
“ It is a sacred principle of the law ot nations, says Vat-
tel, “ that such an increase of powqr cannot, alone and of
itself, give any one a right to take up arms in order to op-
309
pose it.” (B. iii. c. 3, sect. 43.) Grotius and PuifendorfBalance of
maintain the same opinion in terms equally decided. But, Bower,
suppose a sovereign, who has already displayed an en-
croaching disposition, is about to acquire in this way an
accession of power, which would render him more and
more formidable to his neighbours ; in this case, as Vattel
shows, the maxims of the balancing system authorize an
immediate interference to procure securities; or, accord¬
ing as the danger is imminent, altogether to prevent the
impending aggrandizement. It is perhaps wholly unpre¬
cedented, as this writer observes, that a state should re¬
ceive any remarkable accession of power, without giving
other states just grounds to interfere ; but if it should be
otherwise, the only course to be pursued is that which the
balancing system recommends, namely, to keep a watch¬
ful eye on all the proceedings of the formidable state, and
the formation of a counterpoise by means of alliances. _
These, then, are the grand expedients of the balancing
system : vigilant inspection to discover, and prompt union
to counteract, in their birth, all such projects of encroach¬
ment as powerful states will ever, when opportunity of¬
fers, be ready to form. By employing resident agents to
procure speedy information, and by the weight of joint
warnings and reclamations in every case of apprehended
or of real injury, the balancing system furnishes the only
peaceful means which human wisdom can devise to con¬
trol the conduct of independent states; the only means
which can be employed to guard against injustice, or ob¬
tain redress, without an actual appeal to the sword. It was
the habitual employment of these expedients, with a view
to guard against distant dangers^ that distinguished the
balancing system, as exemplified in modern Europe, from
those momentary efforts and loose confederacies in which
all nations, and even the rudest tribes, have occasionally
united, in order to repel or pull down a powerful and com¬
mon enemy.1 Without this habitual attention to foreign
affairs, and constant application of the principles of coun¬
terpoise, there cannot, indeed, be said to exist any thing
like a system of reciprocal guarantee of the independence
of nations, such as is involved in the idea of a balance of
power.
What particular alliances each state ought to form, with a
view to maintain this balance, is a matter of circumstances,
and must accordingly vary with them. The object of
the system is always the same,—to preserve such a dis¬
tribution of power amidst the varying relations of states,
as shall most effectually check the spirit of encroachment,
and confine every potentate to his own dominions.
In the preceding observations we have had it in view
to give a general idea of the nature, intention, and means
of maintaining a balance of power among a number of con¬
nected nations of different degrees of power and magni¬
tude. But before proceeding to any remarks on the history
and results of this branch of policy, we shall recapitulate,
in the words of M. Gentz, those fundamental maxims
which constitute the necessary conditions of the benefi¬
cial existence of such a system as we have described.
These are,—
“ That no one state in the common system must ever
become so powerful as to be able to coerce all the rest
put together;— . , ^ ^ ,
« That, if the system is not merely to exist, but to be
maintained, without constant perils and violent concus-
1 “ The grand and distinguishing feature ef the baEneing syste passions and antipa-
the constant watchfulness over every nation which it prescribes, J , -t dictates, of nations most remotely situated,
thies to the fine and delicate view of remote expediency; the unc g effected of all the European powers obeying certain
and apparently unconnected with ourselves fner^ of J^iial inspection, universally recognized among civilized
laws, and actuated in general by a common principle, in tine, tne rig c _ . 1,. , n
states in the rights of public envoys and residents.” (Brougham s Co oma j,
310
BALANCE OF POWER.
Balance ofsions, every member which infringes it must be in a con-
11 t'0 coerced, not only by the collective strength
of the other members, but by any majority of them, if not
by one individual;—and,
“ That if ever a state attempts, by unlawful enterprise,
to attain, or does in fact attain, to a degree of power,
which enables it to defy the danger of a union of several
of its neighbours, or even of the whole, such a state
should be treated as a common enemy; and if it has ac¬
quired that degree of force by an accidental concurrence
of circumstances, without any acts of violence, whenever
it appears upon the public theatre, no means which poli¬
tical wisdom can devise for the purpose of diminishing its
power should be neglected or left untried.” {Fragments
upon the Political Balance, c. 1.)
Ancient 2. The knowledge of the ancients in regard to these
knowledge great principles of national safety, and the period when
lance6 f*" Came t0 obtain a deci^e(i influence among the mo-
])owei% and derns’ are P°*nts considerable historical interest. Mr
rise of the Hume has proved, in a very satisfactory manner, that the
modern principle of preserving a balance of power is distinctly to
system. be recognised in many of the great political transactions
of the ancient world. The same thing had previously
been shown by Kahle, a famous physician and professor,
in a learned and able work, of which a French trans¬
lation by Formey, entitled La Balance de VEurope, was
published at Berlin in 1744. The anxiety of the Greeks
with regard to the principle of equilibrium among states
was particularly manifested in that famous league against
the rising power of Athens which produced the Pelopon¬
nesian war. Athens herself showed that she both knew
and practised this policy, by constantly throwing her
power into the lighter scale, when Thebes and Sparta
came to contend for the mastery of Greece. Mr Hume
also traces the influence of this salutary principle in the
contests which arose among the successors of Alexander;
their attention to it having “ preserved distinct, for seve¬
ral ages, the partitions made after the death of that con¬
queror. {Lssays, vol. i.) The orations of Demosthenes
frequently display very clear and extensive views in this
branch ol policy. In that for the Megalopolitans, in par¬
ticular, “ we may see,” according to Mr Hume, “ the ut¬
most lefinements in the balance of power that ever en¬
tered into the head of a Venetian or English speculatist;”
and by a later writer this speech is also pointed out as
“ containing discussions of some of the most delicate parts
of the theory.” (Brougham’s Colonial Policy, b. iii. sect.
1.) All who peruse this remarkable oration with due at¬
tention must indeed perceive that it fully bears out this
character. Its reasonings may be analyzed into these
leading doctrines of the balancing system: that it is the
interest of every state to prevent the formation of a pre¬
dominating power; that to this end the first encroach¬
ments ought to be promptly checked; and that it is neces¬
sary to join even a rival against a former friend, when
that friend would otherwise infringe upon the balance.1
It seems, in short, to be no longer a question, that it
was only with the phrase, and not the idea, of a balance
of power, that the ancients were unacquainted. But we
cannot agree with Mr Hume when he goes so far as to
say that this principle, though it has been more generally
known and acknowledged in modern times, has not had
an authority much more extensive in practice, than it had
among the nations of antiquity. {Essays, vol. i.) This
opinion stands clearly refuted by all the great facts, and
by the whole tenor of modern history, from the com B
meftcement of the sixteenth century. It was the more Po! f
constant operation of the principle in question which ora- ^
dually formed the nations of Europe into one great repub!
lie or federal league, whose common bond of union was
the guarantee which it afforded of their respective inde-
pendence. But neither, on the other hand, can we agree
with Mr Brougham, when he affirms that the. ancient
states displayed nothing beyond a mere speculative know¬
ledge in this department. ( Colonial Policy, b. iii. S 1)
It may be very true that those more enlarged ideas of fo.
reign policy which Demosthenes disclosed in some of his
orations were not generally understood or acted upon by
his contemporaries; but it is nevertheless perfectly clear
from Mr Hume’s statements, the accuracy of which has
never been called in question, that among the Grecian
states the maxim of preserving a balance of power, though
it had not produced any course of policy so regular and
authoritative as the modern international system, was yet,
on many occasions, the sole moving spring of their wars
and alliances.
This maxim, indeed, lies so much within the sphere of
common sense, that it can scarcely fail to be attended to,
wherever there is a collection of states capable of observ!
ing and attacking each other. But circumstances may be
more or less favourable to the growth of a consistent po¬
licy in this respect. In modern Europe, a number of
considerable states were formed under such circumstances
as tended peculiarly to promote a regular intercourse
among them, and consequently to develope and systema¬
tize this great principle of national security. But it did
not begin to manifest itself until, in the gradual and simi¬
lar progress of European society, the power of the sove¬
reigns of these states was so far consolidated as to enable
them to give part of their attention to foreign affairs, and
to maintain armies beyond their own frontiers. It was in
Italy, where civilization was more advanced, and where
there existed a number of small states and commonwealths
whose safety required that their rulers should recipro-
cally keep watch on each other, that the modern system
of interference took its beginnings. From an early period
of the fifteenth century, we see the balance of power as
constant an object of concern among these states as, in
the next, it came to be throughout Europe. “ Their jea¬
lousy of each other,” says Guicciardini, “ made them
watchful of every motion or measure which they conceived
might any way increase the power of their neighbours
and he presents a splendid picture of the beneficial ef¬
fects, the long peace, and general independence, attend¬
ant upon this habitual attention to the balancing principle.
{History of Italy, b. i.) 61 1
It was about the end of the same century that these ideas
began to extend to other quarters, and to actuate the
movements of greater potentates. There were now seve¬
ral princes possessed of large kingdoms, with powers and
prerogatives which enabled them to take part in distant
wars and negociations. The first great movement of an
ambitious neighbour would naturally, therefore, excite
tlieir jealousy, and bring them into concert. Thus, when
Charles VIII 0f France, in 1494, invaded Italy and laid
claim to Naples, the sovereigns of Germany and Spain
saw t ie expediency of listening to the Italian princes,
w 10 suggested a confederacy to prevent France from
gaining an accession of power which could not but ren¬
der her a dangerous neighbour. Dr Robertson regards
is the most exolicit. been.frequently quoted as pointing out the leading aim of the balancing system in
kina'ot SvrapiiKP  ■ . .
terms the most explicit,
in the war
ost explicit. The historian, after mentionina that HWn lT'S out tbe leading aim of the balancing system in
of the auxiliaries, adds, « ™ely m assisting the Carthaginian
po entia, ut cum eo postea de tuo quamvis manifesto jure disceptare ex tequo non”'mai"0''"-'’-"5'11'5 cul<luam astruenda es
(Lib. i. cap. 83.)
BALANCE OF POWER.
311
Fthe expedition of Charles as the first great exertion of
,Z ’ those new powers with which the progress of society had
Kt invested the princes of Europe; and views the confederacy
' formed against him, as the first considerable extension of
ti10Se ideas of a balance of power whose influence had
hitherto been limited to the narrow sphere of Italian po¬
litics. “ F^111 tllis era’” he says’ “ we can trace the Pro"
ess* 0f that intercourse between nations which has
linked the powers of Europe so closely together, and can
discern the operations of that provident policy which,
during peace, guards against remote and contingent dan-
ers, and in war has prevented rapid and destructive con¬
quests.” ( View of the Progress of Society in Europe, § 2.)
If we look only a little later, we shall everywhere see a
constant jealousy of the increase of power, and a vigilant
attention to all foreign operations, combined with the ap¬
plication of those means of safety which peculiarly dis¬
tinguish the balancing system. ‘£ During that triumvirate
of kino-s,” says Lord Bacon, in his usual expressive lan¬
guage, “ Henry VIII. of England, Francis I. of France,
and Charles V., Emperor, there was such a watch kept,
that none of the three could win a palm of ground, but
the other two would straightways balance it, either by con¬
federation, or, if need were, by a war; and would not, in any
wise, take up peace at interest.” (Essays on Empire.)
It has been objected to Dr Robertson that he has re¬
presented “ the principle of the balance of power as a
discovery made by the Italian politicians in consequence of
this invasion of Charles; whereas it was not to any such
single event that the balancing system owed either its ori¬
gin5 or refinement, but to the progress of society, which
placed the whole states of Europe in the same relative si¬
tuation in which the states of Italy were at that period,
and taught them not to wait for an actual invasion, but to
see a Charles at all times in every prince or common¬
wealth that should manifest the least desire of change.”
(Brougham’s Colonial Policy, b. iii. § 1.) What is here
said as to the origin of the balancing system is no doubt
true. We have already stated that the principle on which
it rests is a principle of our common nature, which can¬
not fail to manifest itself in certain situations; but that
nations must have arrived at an advanced stage of civili¬
zation and intercourse before it can be acted upon with
consistency and concert. It would therefore be absurd
to represent that system as taking its rise in any single
event, or its principle as a discovery of some long-sighted
statesman. But Dr Robertson knew human nature too
well to seek the origin of this principle in an accidental
occurrence; and he knew history too well to fix its oidgin
“ as a consequence” of Charles’s invasion. On the con¬
trary, throughout the whole of his masterly chapter on
the progress of the nations of Europe, with respect to the
command of the national force requisite in foreign opera¬
tions, he speaks of this system as holding progress with
the growing improvement and intercourse of these na¬
tions ; and, so far from representing the principle of the
balance of power as a discovery consequent upon the
event alluded to, he expressly speaks of the league against
the French monarch as only exemplifying an extension
of those ideas which had long been familiar to the Italian
statesmen “ in regulating the operations of the petty
states in their own country.” ( View of the Progress of
Society, § 2.)
Before concluding these very general remarks on the
rise of the balancing system in modern times, we shall
briefly advert to a conjecture of M. Villers upon this sub¬
ject, which occurs in his able work on the Reformation.
Long before the states of Europe became united in a ge¬
neral system, Italy and Germany, he observes, had formed
partial sys^ms, with a view to restrain the members with¬
in them, each by the other, and thus maintain a balance Balance of
of power. It is possible, he adds, that the idea of the Bower.
general balance of Europe may have been copied from
these partial confederacies. (Essai sur VEsprit et VIn¬
fluence de la Reformation, 2de partie.) This conjecture,
if we rightly understand the learned author, appears to us
exceedingly unphilosOphical. The states of Europe em¬
braced the idea of a balance of power in proportion as
their circumstances enabled them to act upon it, and not
in consequence of any estimate of its effects, as displaj^ed
on those earlier and narrower stages of its agency.
3. It appears, then, to have been about the beginning General
of the sixteenth century that the principle of maintaining results and
a balance of power came to be generally recognised and recent Ins-
acted upon by the states of Europe ; “ at first,” as M. tllis
Gentz says, “ more in a practical way, and, as it were,s^°
from political instinct, but afterwards with clear, reflect¬
ing, and methodical constancy.” (Fragments.) What
the advantages were which Europe reaped from this course
of policy we shall endeavour to show, after we have ad¬
verted to certain arguments generally employed by those
who wish to give an unfavourable view of the balancing
system.
By some this system is represented as productive only
of wars ; as but a convenient pretext to cover projects of
ambition, or to screen the restless movements of national
jealousy. Others talk of it as being merely a brilliant
conception, and appeal to the many violences and usurpa¬
tions which modern history records, as proofs, if not of its
nonentity, at least of its inefflcacy. But there is surely
no great respect due to that sort of estimate of the system
which is founded solely on the abuses to which it is lia¬
ble, or upon imperfections from which no human institu¬
tion is free. They who decry or who ridicule the balan¬
cing system should be prepared to show, not that it has
sometimes afforded plausible pretexts for unnecessary
wars, or has sometimes failed to protect the weak against
the outrages of the strong, but that it is wholly useless to
interest ourselves in the safety of neighbouring nations;
to take any trouble to avert dangers which are yet dis¬
tant; or to seek to strengthen ourselves against a power¬
ful enemy with any strength not our own. This view of
things, were it to prevail, would, as M. Gentz observes,
open the most desirable prospects to every sovereign
whose power and ambition might prompt him to aspire to
universal domination.
It must, we think, appear obvious to every one who re¬
flects upon the subject, that the balancing system is, upon
the whole, favourable to peace. The wars which pecu¬
liarly belong to it are in the nature of a sacrifice of a
smaller present, to secure a greater future good; and the
tendency of the system is to render these wars less and
less frequent. The evil passions which give rise to ambi¬
tious attacks, like all other evil passions, will be more apt
to be indulged the less exposed they are to opposition or
restraint. And it cannot be questioned that, in pi oportion
as the maxims of this system are vigilantly and steadily
pursued, there will be less inducement, because less pro¬
spect of success, for ambitious undertakings.
Its object is to alarm, and to arm all against the prince
whose power prompts him to transgress upon others ; and
the prince who knows that all his motions are keenly
watched, and that his first successes would only expose
him to a more extended contest, must see how hopeless
would be any attempt to possess himself of the territories
even of the weakest of his neighbours. Such is the ge¬
neral tendency of the system; and however it may have
occasionally failed to prevent outrages, it cannot be doubt¬
ed that it has proved a formidable barrier against conquest,
and a rampart of defence to the weaker states.
BALANCE OF POWER.
312
Balance of The complaint of a certain class of French politicians,
Power, alluded to by Mr Burke in his Letters 011 a Regicide Peace,
“ that Rome had frequently acquired more territory in a
single year, than all the power of France, actuated by all
her ambition, had enabled her to acquire in two centuries”
forms, in fact, though unintended, one of the finest pane¬
gyrics that could have been pronounced upon the salutary
influence of the modern system. The advocates of that
system can, indeed, appeal to history for the most satis¬
factory of all proofs of its efficacy, in the remarkable fact,
that, for a period of nearly three centuries, no European
state, however small, has lost its independence from exter¬
nal violence. When we recollect the number of small states
which, during so long a period, enjoyed an independent
existence in the immediate neighbourhood of powerful
nations, and reflect for a moment on those evil passions
which have, in all ages, prompted the strong to prey on
the weak; we must admit that, but for that salutary jea¬
lousy of power, and united resistance to its encroachments,
which it was the object and office of this system to nour¬
ish and enforce, these otherwise helpless states would
have been speedily absorbed, or their independence anni¬
hilated, by the mighty masses with which they were in
contact. It was not the preservation of such countries
as Portugal or Holland, of Sweden or Denmark, which,
though small compared with many others in the system,
were yet possessed of considerable means of self-defence;
—it was not the preservation of such states as these
merely, but of a multitude of feeble communities in Ger¬
many, in Switzerland, and Italy, which affords the proud¬
est proof of the salutary influence of the balancing system
on the fortunes of modern Europe. “ Consider, for in¬
stance,” to use the impressive words of a distinguished
writer and orator, “ the situation of the republic of Gene¬
va ; think of her defenceless position in the very jaws of
France ; but think also of her undisturbed security, of her
profound quiet, of the brilliant success with which she
applied to industry and literature, while Lewis XIV. was
pouring his myriads into Italy before her gates; call to
mind that happy period when we scarcely dreamt more
of the subjugation of the feeblest republic of Europe, than
of the conquest of her mightiest empire ; and say whether
any spectacle can be imagined more beautiful to the mo¬
ral eye, or which affords a more striking proof of progress
in the noblest principles of true civilization.” (Mackin¬
tosh’s Speech on the Trial of John Peltier, in 1803.)1
Such were the results of the system founded on the
balance of power. It was a bridle upon the strong and a
bulwark to the weak. When it failed to prevent the in¬
roads of violence and injustice, it yet acted as a restora-L 1
tive principle, and replaced injured nations in their former Pm!
state of independence. It was at the memorable and fa- ''•‘y
tal era of the partition of Poland in 1772 that it first lost
this character; that the first example was set of a deli-
berate, successful, unchecked conspiracy against the in¬
dependent existence of an unoffending country. It is here
proper to mention, that some authors have spoken of this
infamous transaction in terms which seem to imply that
it was quite in consonance with the principles of the ba¬
lancing system.2 It is indeed true, that the maxims of
that system were still so far operative as to effect a rela¬
tive equality in the division of the spoil. But as the whole
intention of this system is to maintain the integrity and
independence of nations against unlawful attacks, the par¬
tition was just as diametrically opposite to its principle, as
if the whole spoil had been appropriated by one robber
instead of being shared by three. The equality of the
division did not take away from the danger of the exam¬
ple ; the example of states combining, not to uphold, but
to destroy,—not to enforce respect to the great principles
of national safety, but to set them at defiance; an exam¬
ple too soon followed by similar violences, and which, in
fact, paved the way for that total overthrow of the ancient
system of Europe which ere long took place.
The origin of a project so pernicious in its consequences
is a matter of some interest in the history of the balancing
system. We learn from Rulhiere’s Histoire de TAnarchk
de Pologne, published in 1807, that the distractions of
this country had suggested the project of a partition as
early as 1658; that a Swedish minister, named Stippen-
bach, proposed it to his own court, to Austria, and the
grand duke of Prussia, whose armies were then in posses¬
sion of the country; and that it would, in all probability,
have been acted upon but for the discovery of the scheme
by France, and the consequent interference of that power.3
With regard to the project actually carried into execution
in 1772, each party concerned was desirous to shift the
blame of the first proposal on the others; but it was ge¬
nerally believed to have originated with Frederick, though
some were of opinion that he was indebted for the idea
to his brother, Prince Henry. Frederick, however, in one
of his posthumous pieces (Mentoires de 1763 jusqud
1775), states that the scheme was devised by the empress
Catharine ; and this is corroborated by M. Rulhiere, who
asserts that she communicated it to Prince Henry during
his visit to St Petersburg in 1770; a piece of informa¬
tion, he adds, which was detailed to him in the most cir¬
cumstantial manner, by three different secretaries, who
We shall here add a striking passage 111 reference to our subject from this celebrated oration. “ These small states were, in many
respects, one of the most interesting parts of the ancient system of Europe. Unfortunately for the repose of mankind, great states
are compeued, by regard to their own safety, to consider the military spirit and martial habits of their people as one of the main ob-
jec a 0 eir policy. Frequent hostilities seem almost the necessary condition of their greatness; and, without being great, they can-
no ong remain safe. Smaller states, exempted from this cruel necessity—a hard condition of greatness, a bitter satire on human
na ure—- evoted themselves to the arts of peace, to the cultivation ot literature, and the improvement of reason. They became
places ot refuge for free and fearless discussion; they were the impartial spectators and judges of the various contests of ambition
which from time to time disturbed the quiet of the world. They thus became peculiarly qualified to be the organs of that public
opinion which converted Europe into a great republic, with laws which mitigated, though they could not extinguish, ambition; and
mora 11 UIja s to which even the most despotic sovereigns were amenable. If wars of aggrandizement were undertaken, their
thrn,^lWefreurr?I?rednin the.faCe ofyuroPe. If acts of internal tyranny were perpetrated, they resounded from a thousand presses
onwpvf u f 1 C1VlllZf? C°fufnes- Fences on whose will there were no legal checks thus found a moral restraint which the most
braVe With absoluf.e; imPunity- They acted before a vast audience, to whose applause they could not be
I, Spn ii ihe ve?T c°nstltutlon ff human nature, the unalterable laws of the mind of man, against which all rebellion is
however snotlexc 1C blou{ es yrants t° Bus control. No elevation of power,—no depravity, however consummate,—no innocence,
Iiowevei spotless,—can render man wholly independent of the praise or blame of his fellow-men.”
Pouvotr' 5ei'uM ini Which Hertzberg speaks of the partition, in his essay, Sur la Balance du Commerce et exile dn
ZZZ:U Z i 6 laTa"?,of y- Geljtz opon this subject, in his able work, L’Eto* de VEurope avant et apr'es la Tie-
inconsistent with’ ami V1?*10 ^ e*c®Ptlonable ; but in his later work, referred to in this article, he condemns the partition as wholly
inconsistent with, and as having in fact led to the subversion of, the balancing system. 1
sent ignorde.”tr°(Tom. h p! y!) llulhi®re’ “ dans les archives des affaires dtrangeres de France, cette anecdote importante, et jusqu’d pre-
B A L
B A L
313
. .faccompanied the prince to the Russian court. (Tome iv.
I’owf A 151-210.) It seems to be generally acknowledged,
that the proposal, when first made to the cabinet of Vi-
5alas< • enna, was opposed by that power; and that her accession
>v' would not have been obtained but for the astonishing
apathy displayed by France, and, indeed, by all the other
states of Europe. The silence of England during the
perpetration of this shameless plot against the independ¬
ence of nations, if it can be accounted for, can never, at
any rate, be excused; inasmuch as the fact appears pretty
well established, that, had she, as the guardian of the po¬
litical balance, raised her voice against the partition, Eu¬
rope might have been saved from tbe fatal effects of that
new system of robbery and oppression which the spoilers
of Poland were suffered, without any sort of interruption,
to exemplify. “ To my certain knowledge,” says Mr
Burke, “ if Great Britain had at that time been willing to
concur in preventing the execution of a project so dan¬
gerous in the example, even exhausted as France then was
by the preceding war, and under a lazy and unenterprizing
prince, she would have at every risk taken an active part
in this business.” ( Thoughts on French Affairs in 1791.)
ntere of 4. We have still to allude to the question, whether Bri-
Ireat i-tain, protected as she is on all sides by nature, ought to
jiin h ie consider it as a necessary part of her policy to attend to
alaRl; ’ the European balance of power ? This has been consider-
Su ed as constituting a separate question, by some who make
no doubt that the other states of Europe could not long
preserve their independence secure by any other course.
Taking the question generally, we do not think there
is any great difficulty in regard to it. With the mul¬
titude, to be sure, it always will be popular to argue, that
Britain stands in need of no other defence than what the
seas and her invincible navy afford her, and that all con¬
tinental connections are useless or pernicious. But the
argument from the advantages of our insular situation
would not in fact bear out this conclusion, even were the
seas and the navy a stronger defence than it is possible
they can always be. Our commerce and our colonies, the
supports of that navy, render it indispensably' necessary
that we should more particularly observe some nations,
Balbec.
and ally ourselves with others. These great concerns Balance of
make it, indeed, nothing less than absurd to talk of our Bower
being insulated as an empire or state, because Britain is an
island. And, with regard to invasion, it is clear that we
could not always be as secure and as free from uneasy ap¬
prehensions, in a state of total insulation from foreign con¬
nections, as with friends and confederates to employ or
oppose a formidable enemy on his own confines.
But supposing the balance of power to constitute a great
national object, the line of conduct which that object im¬
poses upon us may, no doubt, be affected by our insular
situation. We may on some occasions allow other nations
who are more exposed to danger, and who ought, on that
account, to be more on the alert to prevent encroach¬
ments, to take the first measures, and bear the first ex¬
pense of resistance. We may watch and warn, and use
the influence of our remonstrances and our counsels, with¬
out having recourse, except in urgent cases, to the extre¬
mity of arms.1 It is only, in a word, as to the application
of the general principle, and not as to its being necessary
and worthy to be entertained, that there seems any fair
room for difference of opinion among British statesmen.
In point of fact, all our later statesmen, however differing
in other respects, have distinctly assented to the general
doctrine, that the balance of power was an interest of the
highest importance to England. The last time, we be¬
lieve, that this question can be said to have been fairly
brought into debate, and fully discussed in Parliament,
was on occasion of the famous armament against Russia
for refusing to restore Oczakov to the Porte; and on
that occasion, though Mr Fox and his followers reprobat¬
ed the armament in the strongest terms, they did so, not
because they' denied the great principle to which the mi¬
nister appealed, as the sole justification of the measure,
that the balance of power was a British concern, and gave
Britain an undoubted interest to mingle in the affairs of
the continent,—not because they thought that Britain
ought never to guard against any distant danger,—but be¬
cause there was no such degree of danger from the reten¬
tion of that city and its district, as called upon this coun¬
try to interfere at the risk of a war.2
Balance of Trade. See Political Economy.
BALASORE, a seaport of Hindostan, in the province
of Orissa. It is built along the banks of the Booree Bel-
laun river, where the stream is not navigable for vessels
of greater burden than 100 tons, and these can only get
over the bar at spring tides. The English, Dutch, and
Portuguese formerly had factories at Balasore, which was
once famed for a manufactory of fine cotton cloths. The
English factory was burnt down in November 1688, when,
on account of a rupture with Aurungzebe, Captain Heath
attacked and plundered the town. The company’s ser¬
vants were at that time carried up the country, and it does
not appear that they were ever released. This town was
ceded to the Mahrattas in 1751, but was given up to the
English by the Nagpoor rajah at the conclusion of the
peace in 1803. The navigation of the Ganges to Cal¬
cutta being extremely dangerous, and requiring skilful
pilots, it is in Balasore roads that those who undertake
that service wait the arrival of vessels. It is 110 miles
south-west from Calcutta. Long. 87. 13. E. Lat. 21. 31. N.
BALAYAN, a province of the island of Manilla, in the
East Indies. It lies next to the city of Manilla, and ex¬
tends along the coast on the east side of the island, a
little beyond the Bay of Batangas.
BALBEC, a city of Asia, in Syria, anciently called
Heliopolis, and by the Arabians, “ The W onder of Syria.
It is situated at the foot of Anti-Libanus, on the last ris¬
ing ground where the mountain terminates in the plain.
1 “ Other nations must watch over every motion of their neighbours; penetrate, if they can, every design ; foresee every minute
event; and take part, by some engagement or other, in almost every conjuncture that arises. But as we cannot be easily nor suddenly
attacked, it may be our interest to watch the secret workings of the several councils abroad; to advise and warn ; to abet and oppose;
but it never can be our true interest easily and officiously to enter into action, much less into engagements that imply action and
expense.” (Bolingbroke’s Idea of a Patriot King.) , „
2 Earl Grey, the only survivor of that illustrious group of orators and statesmen who opposed the armament, repeatedly and for¬
cibly declared his adherence to the general doctrine; affirming, that though the epithets wild and romantic had sometimes been
applied to it, he nevertheless considered the poorest peasant in England as interested in the preservation of the balance of power;
and that this country ought to interfere whenever that balance appeared to be really in danger. Of all those who joined in this, op¬
position, Mr Burke was the only statesman who did so upon a ground, as it appears to us, equally erroneous in fact&mi principle,
namely, that Turkey never had been, nor ought to be, taken into consideration, in any question as to the maintenance of the balance of
power in Europe. (See Debates in the House of Commons, 29th March and 12th April 1791, &nd 29th February and 1st Marc 179-.)
VOL. IV. 2 R
314 B A L
Balbec. From the south, the city is first discovered at the distance
^of about a league and a half, behind a hedge of trees, over
the verdant tops of which appears a white edging of domes
and minarets. After about an hour’s journey the travel¬
ler reaches these trees, which are very fine walnuts; and
soon after, crossing some ill-cultivated gardens by winding
paths, arrives at the entrance of the city. Here he per¬
ceives a ruined wall, flanked with square towers, which
ascends the declivity to the right, and traces out the pre¬
cincts of the ancient city. This wall, which is only ten
or twelve feet in height, admits a view of those void
spaces and heaps of ruins which are invariable character¬
istics of every Turkish city ; but what principally attracts
attention is a large edifice on the left, which, by its lofty
walls and rich columns, is soon recognised as one of those
temples which antiquity has left for our admiration. These
ruins, which are among the most beautiful and best pre¬
served of any in Asia, merit a particular description.
To form a just idea of them, the reader must imagine
himself descending from the interior of the town. After
crossing the rubbish and huts with which it is filled, the
first thing deserving of notice is a vacant space, which ap¬
pears to have been a square: there, in front, towards the
west, is a grand ruin, consisting of two pavilions ornament¬
ed with pilasters, joined at their lower angle by a wall
160 feet in length. This front commands the open coun¬
try from a sort of terrace, on the edge of which are with
difficulty distinguished the bases of twelve columns, which
formerly extended from the one pavilion to the other, and
formed a portico. The principal gate is obstructed by
heaps of stones ; but, that obstacle surmounted, the travel¬
ler enters an empty space, which is a hexagonal court of
180 feet in diameter. This court is strewed with broken
columns, mutilated capitals, and the remains of pilasters,
entablatures, and cornices; and around it is a row of
ruined edifices, which display all the ornaments of the
richest architecture. At the end of this court, opposite
the west, is an outlet, which formerly was a gate, through
which is perceived a still more extensive range of ruins,
the magnificence of which strongly excites curiosity. To
have a full prospect of these, it is necessary to ascend a
slope, at the top of which is the entrance of a square
court, much more spacious than the former, being 350
feet in width and 336 in length. The eye is first attracted
to the end of this court, where are six enormous and ma¬
jestic columns nearly entire. Another object not less in¬
teresting is a second range of columns to the left, which
appear to have formed part of the peristyle of a temple.
But the edifices which inclose this court on either side claim
attention in the first instance. These form a sort of gal¬
lery containing various chambers, seven of w hich may be
reckoned in each of the principal wings, namely, two in a
semicircle, and five in an oblong square. The base of the
apartments still retains pediments of nichesand tabernacles,
the supporters of which have been destroyed. On the
side of the court they are open, while four columns on the
one side and six on the other have been totally destroyed.
It is not easy to conceive the use of these apartments; but
this does not lessen the admiration excited by the beauty
of their pilasters and the richness of the frieze of the en¬
tablature. Neither is it possible to avoid remarking the
singular effect which results from the mixture of the gar¬
lands, the large foliage of the capitals, and the sculpture
of wild plants, with which they are everywhere ornament¬
ed. In the middle of the court is a little square espla¬
nade, where anciently stood a pavilion, of which nothing
now remains but the foundation. With regard to the six
columns above mentioned, it is impossible to survey them
without being struck with the boldness of their elevation
and the richness of their workmanship. Their shafts are
B A L
twenty-one feet eight inches in circumference, and fifty- Balt*
eight in height; so that the total height, including the en-y
tablature, is from seventy-one to seventy-two feet. The
sight of this superb ruin, thus solitary and desolate, is ex¬
ceedingly imposing; but a more attentive examination
discovers a series of foundations, marking an oblong square
of 268 feet in length and 146 in width, which probably
formed the peristyle of a grand temple, the primary pur.
pose of this whole structure. It presented to the great
court, that is, to the east, a front of ten columns, with
nineteen on each side; which, with the six already men¬
tioned, make in all fifty-four. The ground on which it
stood is an oblong square, on a level with the court, but
considerably narrower, so that there was only a terrace of
twenty-seven feet wide round the colonnade; while the
esplanade thus produced fronts the open country towards
the west, by a sloping wall of about thirty feet. In ap¬
proaching the city this descent becomes less steep, so
that the foundation of the pavilion is on a level with the
termination of the hill; whence it is evident that the whole
ground of the courts has been artificially raised. Such
seems to have been the former state of this edifice; but
the southern side of the grand temple was afterwards
blocked up in order to build a smaller one, the peristyle
and walls of which are still remaining. This temple, si¬
tuated somewdiat lower than the other, presents a side of
thirteen columns by eight in front, or thirty-four in all,
which are likewise of the Corinthian order, their shafts
being fifteen feet eight inches in circumference, and forty-
four feet in height. The building they surround is an ob¬
long square, the front of which, turned towards the east, is
out of the line of the left wing of the great court. To reach
it the traveller must cross trunks of columns, heaps of
stone, and a ruinous wall, by which it is now hid. After
surmounting these obstacles he arrives at the gate, where
he may survey the inclosure which was once the habita¬
tion of a god; but, instead of the awful scene of a pros¬
trate people, and sacrifices offered by a multitude of priests,
the sky is seen through the open roof, which lets in light
enough to show a chaos of ruins covered with dust and
weeds. The wralls, formerly enriched with all the orna¬
ments of the Corinthian order, now present nothing but
pediments of niches and tabernacles, of which almost all
the supporters have fallen to the ground. Between these
niches is a range of fluted pilasters, the capitals of which
support a broken entablature ; but what remains displays
a rich frieze of foliage resting on the heads of satyrs,
horses, bulls, and other animals. Over this entablature was
the ancient roof, which was 57 feet in width and 110 in
length. The walls which supported it are thirty-one feet
high, and w ithout a window. It is impossible to form any
idea of the ornaments of this roof, except from the frag¬
ments lying on the ground; but it could scarcely have
been richer in ornament than the gallery of the peristyle.
The principal remaining parts contain tablets in the form
of lozenges, on which are represented Jupiter seated on
his eagle, Leda caressed by the swan, Diana with her
bow and crescent, and several busts of emperors and em¬
presses. It is unnecessary to enter more minutely into
the description of this astonishing edifice. The lovers ol
the arts will find it described with the greatest truth and
accuracy in a work published at London in 1757, under
the title of Ruins of Balbec. This work, compiled by
Mr Robert Wood, the world owes to the attention and li¬
berality of Mr Dawkins, who, in 1751, visited Balbec and
Palmyra. Several changes, however, have taken place
since their journey, and some of the columns then stand¬
ing have been overturned or destroyed.
When we consider the extraordinary magnificence of
the temple of Balbec, we cannot but be astonished at
B A L
j . t]ie silence of the Greek and Roman authors respecting it
cer Mr Wood, who carefully examined all the ancient writers,
has found no mention of it except in a fragment of John
ildintj-0f Antioch, who attributes the construction of this edifice
'''V' t0 Antoninus Pius. The inscriptions that remain corro¬
borate this opinion; which, moreover, accounts for the
constant use of the Corinthian order, since that order was
not in general use before the third age of Rome. But we
ought by no means to allege as an additional proof the
bird sculptured over the gate; for if his crooked beak,
large claws, and the caduceus he bears, give him the ap¬
pearance of an eagle, the tuft of feathers on his head, like
that of certain pigeons, proves that he is not the Roman
eagle. Besides, the same bird is found in the temple of
Palmyra, and is therefore probably an oriental eagle, con¬
secrated to the Sun, who was the divinity adored in both
these temples. Heliolatry existed at Balbec in the most
remote antiquity. The statue of the Sun, which resem¬
bled that of Osiris, had been transported thither from the
Heliopolis of Egypt; and the ceremonies with which he
was worshipped there have been described by Macrobius
in his curious collection, entitled Saturnalia. Mr Wood
supposes, with reason, that the name of Balbec, which in
Syriac signifies “ City of Bal,” or of the Sun, originated
in this worship. The Greeks, in naming it Heliopolis,
have, therefore, only given a literal translation of the ori¬
ental word; a practice to which they have not always ad¬
hered. We are ignorant of the state of this city in re¬
mote antiquity; but it is to be presumed that its situation
on the road from Tyre to Palmyra secured it some part
of the commerce of these opulent capitals. Under the
Homans, in the time of Augustus, it is mentioned as a
garrisoned town; and there is still remaining on the wall
of the southern gate, at the right of the entrance, an in¬
scription which proves the truth of this; the words Ken-
turiaPrima, in Greek characters, being still legible. One
hundred and forty years afterwards, Antoninus built the
temple above described instead of the ancient one, which
was doubtless falling into ruins; but Christianity having
gained the ascendency under Constantine, the modern
temple was neglected, and afterwards converted into a
church, a wall of which, that screened the sanctuary of
the idols, is still remaining. It continued thus until the
invasion of the Arabs, when the church, being less fre¬
quented, fell into decay ; and wars succeeding, it was con¬
verted into a place of defence: battlements were built
on the wall which surrounded it, on the pavilions, and at
the angles which still subsist; and from that time the
temple, exposed to the casualties of war and continual di¬
lapidation, fell rapidly to ruin.
BALBRIGGEN, a fishing town of Ireland, in the coun¬
ty of Dublin, with a good quay, where ships of burden
can unload and receive their cargoes. It is 19 miles north
of Dublin, and its population is 3024.
BALCARRY, a sea-port of Scotland, on the Solway
Frith, in the county of Kirkcudbright. It is 10 miles east-
south-east of Kirkcudbright.
BALDINGER (Ernest Godfrey), a German physi¬
cian of considerable eminence, and the author of a great
number of medical publications. He was born near Er-
turth, 13th May 1738, and was originally destined for the
church; but having acquired a strong predilection for
medicine, his father yielded to his wishes, and allowed
him to embrace that profession; and he prosecuted his
studies with this view both at Erfurth and at Jena. In 1761
he was intrusted with the superintendence of the military
hospitals connected with the Prussian encampment near
lorgau; and he there gave public lectures with great ap¬
plause. Having acquired considerable experience in army
practice by his assiduous attention to the duties of his of-
BAL 315
fice, he published in 1762 a dissertation on the diseases Baldinucci
of soldiers, which met with so favourable a reception from II
the public, that he enlarged the plan of his work, and re- Baldwin,
published it under the title of Treatise on the Diseases
that prevail in Armies, Langensalz, 1774, 8vo. It has
since gone through another edition. In 1763 he was ap¬
pointed professor of medicine at Gottingen, where he en¬
joyed considerable reputation. The Landgrave of Hesse
Cassel, Frederick II., invited him to take up his abode at
Cassel, conferring upon him the title of first physician to
his court, and director-general of all his medical establish¬
ments. He was afterwards professor of the theory of me¬
dicine at Jena; and in 1785 was promoted to a professor¬
ship at Marpurg, where he died of apoplexy on the 2d of
January 1804.
His writings are exceedingly numerous ; many of them
are scattered in various collections and journals; and, be¬
sides these, no less than eighty-four distinct treatises are
mentioned as having proceeded from his pen. He had
collected an extensive library, consisting of 16,000 vo¬
lumes, of which a catalogue was published after his death.
His funeral oration was pronounced by Professor Creut-
zer. He was well versed in botany, and has published
several works on that branch of natural history, of which
the following are the principal: Catalogus Dissertationum
quae Medicamentorum Historiam, facta, et vires exponunt.
Altemburgi, 1768, 4to. On the Study of Botany, and
the Method of learning it, in German. Jena, 1770, 4to.
He was for many years the editor of a periodical work
entitled Magazine for Physicians, 12mo, Cleves, which af¬
terwards changed its name to the New Magazine, in 8vo,
from 1779 to 1799. But the principal work of this kind
which he conducted was his Sylloge Opusculorum Selec-
torum Argumenti Medico-Practici, being a collection of
detached essays and dissertations, which extended to six
vols. 8vo. Gottingen, 1766-1782.
His Litteratura Universes Materice Medicos, &c. Marpurg,
1793, 8vo, is a work of great labour, but little discrimina¬
tion. He edited Burner’s Lives of Physicians, in Ger¬
man. The only other work of his deserving notice, is the
Historia Mercurii et Mercurialium Medica. Gottingen,
2 tom. 8vo, 1783 and 1785.
BALDINUCCI, Philip, a distinguished Italian wrriter
on the history of the arts, was born at Florence about
1624. Flis chief work is entitled Notizie de Professori del
Disegno da Cimabue in qua, Secolo v. dal 1610 al 1670,
and was first published in six vols. 4to in 1681-8. An
edition in 20 vols. 8vo, with notes by Manni, was published
at Florence in 1767-74. Baldinucci died in 1696.
BALDOCK, a market-town of the county of Hertford
and Hundred of Broadwater. It is thirty-eight miles
from London, on one of the great roads to York. The
market is held on Thursday. The town belonged for¬
merly to the knights-templafs, who are said to have built
the four large churches still remaining there. The popu¬
lation in 1801 amounted to 1283, in 1811 to 1438, and in
1821 to 1550.
Baldock, Ralph de, bishop of London in the reigns
of Edward I. and II., was educated at Merton College,
Oxford, became dean of St Paul’s, was afterwards promot¬
ed to the see of London, and at last was made lord high
chancellor of England. He wrote Historia Anglica, or a
History of the British Affairs down to his own time ; and
A Collection of the Statutes and Constitutions of the Church
of St Paul. The former, though it was seen by Leland,
is not now extant; the latter is preserved in the library
of that cathedral. Bishop Baldock died at Stepney, July
24, 1313.
BALDWIN, archbishop of Canterbury, was born of ob¬
scure parents at Exeter, where, in the early part of his
316 B A L
Bale, life, he taught a grammar-school. After this he took or-
ders, and was made archdeacon of Exeter; but he resign¬
ed that dignity, and became a Cistercian monk in the mo¬
nastery of Ford in Devonshire, of which, in a few years,
he was made abbot. In the year 1180 he was consecrat¬
ed bishop of Worcester. In 1184 he was promoted to
the see of Canterbury by Pope Lucius III., and by his
successor Urban III. was appointed legate for that diocese.
He laid the foundation of a church and monastery in ho¬
nour of Thomas a Becket, at Hackington, near Canter¬
bury, for secular priests ; but being opposed by the monks
of Canterbury and the pope, he was obliged to desist. In
1190 he crowned King Richard I. at Westminster, and
soon after followed that prince to the Holy Land, where
he died at the siege of Ptolemais or St Jean d’xVcre.
Giraldus Cambrensis, who accompanied him in this expe¬
dition, says he was of a mild disposition, and practised
great abstinence. He wrote various tracts on religious
subjects, which were collected and published by Bertrand
Tissier in 1662.
BALE, John, bishop of Ossory, in Ireland, was born at
Cove, near Dunwich, in Suffolk, in the year 1495. At
twelve years of age he was entered in the monastery of
Carmelites at Norwich, and thence sent some years after¬
wards to Jesus College in Oxford. He was educated a Ro¬
man Catholic, but afterwards converted to the Protestant
religion by Thomas Lord Wentworth. On the death of
Lord Cromwell, the favourite of Henry VIII. who protect¬
ed him from the persecutions of the Romish clergy, he
was obliged to fly into the Low Countries, where he con¬
tinued eight years. Soon after the accession of Edward
VI. he was recalled; and being first presented to the liv¬
ing of Bishop’s Stocke in Hampshire, in 1552, he was no¬
minated to the see of Ossory. During his residence in Ire¬
land he was remarkably assiduous in propagating the Pro¬
testant doctrines ; but to very little purpose, it would seem,
and frequently at the hazard of his life. On the accession
of Queen Mary the tide of opposition became so powerful
that, to avoid assassination, he embarked for Holland;
but he was very unfortunate in his attempt to escape, being
first taken by a Dutch man-of-war, and robbed by the cap¬
tain of all his effects, then forced by stress of weather
into St Ives in Cornwall, where he was arrested on sus¬
picion of treason. Having obtained his release, however,
after a few days’ confinement, the ship anchored in Dover
road, where he was again seized on a false accusation, but
soon liberated. On his arrival in Holland he was kept
prisoner for three weeks, but at length obtained his liberty
on paying L.30. From Holland he travelled to Basil in
Switzerland, where he continued till Queen Elizabeth as¬
cended the throne. After his return to England he was
in 1560 made prebendary of Canterbury; and died in
November 1563, at Canterbury, in the sixty-eighth year of
his age. He was the author of many works, the most
noted of which is his collection of British Biography, en¬
titled Illustrium Majoris JBritannice Scriptorum Catalogus,
a Japheto sanctissimi Noce filio ad An. Dom. 1557. This
work was first published in 4to in 1549, and afterwards
with various additions in folio in 1559. Ames and Herbert
have given the following list of his other works:—1. The
Actes of Englysh Votaries, comprehending their unchast
practyses and examples by all ages, from the world’s be¬
ginning to this present year, collected out of their own
legendes and chronicles, 8vo, 1546, 1548,1551, and 1560.
2. Yet a course at the Romyshe Fox, by John Harri¬
son, i. e. Bale, Zurich, 1543. From this was published
the Declaration of William Tolwyn, London, date un¬
certain ; Ames says 1542, which must be a mistake. 3.
The Apology of Johan Bale agaynste a ranke Papyst,
answering both hym and hys doctours, that neyther their
B A L
vowes nor yet their priesthode are of the gospel, but of Balea
Antichrist; with this, A brefe exposycion upon the xxx 3
chapter of Numeri, London, 1550, 8vo. 4. An Expos- Bale
tulation or Complaynt, agaynste the blasphemyes of a
frantic Papyst of Hamshyre, with metrical versions of
the 23d and 130th Psalms, London, 1552 and 1584, 8vo.
5. The Image of both Churches, after the most wonder¬
ful and heavenly Revelation of Sainct John the Evange-
list, contayning a very fruitefull exposicion or paraphrase
upon the same, first, second, and third parts, London,
1550 and 1584, 8vo. 6. A brefe Chronicle concernkw
the examinacion and death of the blessed Martir of Christ,
Sir Johan Oldecastle, Lord Cobham, 1544 and 1576, 8vo,
reprinted also in 1729. 7. The vocacyon of Johan Bale
to the Bishoprick of Ossorie in Ireland, his persecucions
in the same, and final deliveraunce, London, 1553, 8vo.
Herbert mentions two editions in the same year. 8. A
Declaration of Edmonde Bonner’s Articles, concerning
the Cleargye of London Dyocese, whereby that execrable
antychriste is in his righte colours reueled in the year of
our Lord 1554. Newlye set forth and allowed. London,
156 , 8vo. 9. The Pageant of Popes, containing the
lyves of all the bishops of Rome, from the beginninge of
them to the yeare of grace 1555, London, 1574, 4to. This
is a translation from Bale’s Latin edition, by J. S. i. e. John
Studley. 10. A new Comedy or Interlude, concerning
the Laws of Nature, Moises, and Christ, London, 1562,
4to. This was written in 1532, and first printed in the
time of Edward VI. 11. A Tragedie or Enterlude, mani¬
festing the chief promises of God unto man, by all ages
in the olde lawe, from the fall of Adam to the incarna¬
tion, London, 1577, 4to. 12. A Mystereye of Inyquyte
contayned within the heretycall genealogye of Ponce Pan-
tolabus, is here both dysclosed and confuted, Geneva,
1545, 16to. 13. The First Examination of the worthy
servaunt of God Mastres Anne Askew, Marpurg, 1546,
16to, and the Lattre Examinacion of the same, ibid.
1547. 14. A briefe and faythfull declaration of the true
Faith in Christ, 1547, 16to. Mr Herbert conjectures
this to be Bale’s. The initials only of the author are
given. 15. The laboryouse journey and serche of Johan
Leylande, for Englandes Antiquitees, &c. London, 1549,
16to, reprinted in the Life of Leland (with those of Wood
and Hearne) 1772, and followed there by a memoir of
Bale. 16. The confession of the synner after the sacred
scriptures, 1549, 8vo. 17. A Dialogue or Communycacyon
to be had at a table between two chyldren, gathered out
of the Holy Scriptures, by John Bale for his two yonge
sonnes, Johan and Paule, London, 1549. He also tran¬
slated, 1. Bapt. Mantuanus’s Treatise on Death, London,
1584, 8vo. 2. The true hystorie of the Christen departynge
of the reverend man D. Martyne Luther, &c. 1546, 8vo.
3. A godly Medytacyon of the Christen Soule, from the
French of Margaret queen of Navarre, London, probably
1548, 8vo. Tanner has given a list of his manuscripts, with
the names of the places where they are preserved.
BALEARES Insulae, or the Balearic Islands. The
appellation is commonly derived from (SuXXuv, jacere, be¬
cause the inhabitants were excellent slingers. They are
two in number, the Greater and the Less, or Major and
Minor; and hence the modern names Majorca and Mi¬
norca. See Majorca and Minorca.
BALEN, Hendrick van, historical and portrait paint¬
er, was born at Antwerp in 1560. He was a disciple of
Adam van Oort, but he quitted that master to acquire a
better taste in design and composition by pursuing his
studies at Rome, where he resided for a considerable time.
He died in 1632. All the historical subjects painted by
Van Balen have merit. His designs of the Deluge, of
Moses striking the Rock, and the Drowning of Pharaoh,
B A L
Les are meritorious compositions. His Judgment of Paris is
|| accounted a masterly performance; and the figure of
!5aW Venus, in particular, is so elegantly designed, so full of
jjfe) and so round, that it seems to stand forth from the
canvass. . .
BALES, Peter, a famous master in the art of penman¬
ship, and one of the first inventors of short-hand writing.
He was born in 1547, and is described by Anthony Wood
as “ a most dexterous person in his profession, to the
oreat wonder of scholars and others.” We are also in¬
formed that “ he spent several years in sciences among
Oxonians, particularly, as it seems, in Gloucester Hall; but
that study, which he used for a diversion only, proved at
length an employment of profit.” He is mentioned for his
skill in micrography, or miniature writing, in Hollingshed’s
Chronicle, anno 1575 ; and Mr Evelyn has also celebrat¬
ed his wonderful skill in this delicate operation of the
hand. “ Hadrian Junius, speaking as a miracle of some¬
body who wrote the Apostles’ Creed and the beginning
of St John’s Gospel within the compass of a farthing:
what would he have said,” adds Mr Evelyn, “ of our fa¬
mous Peter Bales, who, in the year 1575, wrote the Lord’s
Prayer, the Creed, Decalogue, with two short prayers in
Latin, his own name, motto, day of the month, year of the
Lord, and reign of the queen, to whom he presented it at
Hampton Court, all of it written within the circle of a
single penny, inchased in a ring and borders of gold, and
covered with a crystal so accurately wrought as to be very
plainly legible; to the great admiration of her Majesty,
the whole privy-council, and several ambassadors then at
court?” He was likewise very dexterous in imitating
handwritings, and about 1576 was employed by Secretary
Walsingham in certain political manoeuvres. We find him
at the head of a school near the Old Bailey, London, in
1590, in which year he published his Writing School-
master, in three parts. In 1595 he had a great trial of
skill in the Blackfriars with one Daniel Johnson, for a
golden pen of L.20 value, and won it; and a contemporary
author further relates that he had also the arms of calli¬
graphy given him, which are azure, a pen or. In 1597
he republished his Writing Schoolmaster, which was in
such high reputation that no less than eighteen copies
of commendatory verses, composed by learned and ingeni¬
ous men of that time, were printed before it. Wood savs
that he was involved in Essex’s treasons in 1600; but this
seems to be a mistake, for he was only engaged, and that
very innocently, in serving the treacherous purposes of one
of the earl’s mercenary dependants. We know little more
of this curious person than that he seems to have died
about the year 1610.
BALEY, Walter, the son of Henry Baley of Warn-
well in Dorsetshire, was born at Portsham in the same
county, and educated at Winchester school, from which
he was sent to Oxford, and, after two years’ probation, ad¬
mitted perpetual fellow of New College in the year 1550.
Having taken his degrees in arts, he practised physic, and
in 1558 was proctor of the university. About this time
he obtained a prebend of Wells, which he resigned in
1579. In the year 1561 he was appointed queen’s pro¬
fessor of physic, in 1563 proceeded doctor in that faculty,
and afterwards became one of her majesty’s physicians in
ordinary. He was thought skilful in his profession, and
had considerable practice. He died in 1592, aged sixty-
three, and was buried in the inner chapel of New Col¬
lege. His works are, 1st, A Discourse of three kinds of
Pepper in common use, 1588, 8vo. 2d, Brief Treatise of the
Preservation of the Eyesight, first printed in the reign of
Elizabeth in 12mo, afterwards at Oxford in 1616 and
1654, 8vo. 3d, Directions for Health, Natural and Artifi¬
cial, with Medicines for all Diseases of the Eyes, 1626, 4to.
B A L
BALFRON, a village and parish of Scotland, in the
county of Stirling, where a manufacture of cotton was es¬
tablished in 1789, and flourished for some time. The po¬
pulation is 1968, and it is 22 miles north of Glasgow.
BALFROOSH, a large commercial town of Persia, in
the province of Mazanderan, about twelve miles distant from
the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. It is built in a
low, swampy, though rich country; and, from the deep and
almost impassable roads which lead to it, seems not at all
favourably situated for the seat of an extensive inland trade.
It is, however, purely^ a mercantile city, being peopled en¬
tirely by merchants, mechanics, and their dependants;
and is wholly indebted for its present size and importance
to its commercial prosperity. The town is of a very pe¬
culiar structure and aspect. It is placed in the midst of
a forest of tall trees, by which the buildings are so se¬
parated from one another, and so concealed, that except in
the bazars it has no appearance of a populous town. The
streets are broad and neat, though generally unpaved;
and they are kept in good order. No ruins are to be seen,
as in other Persian towns; the houses are comfortable, in
good repair, and roofed with tiles, and they are inclosed
by substantial walls; and, according to Fraser, by whom
it was visited in 1822, it had a plain and simple air of
plenty, ease, and comfort, attended with a bustle and show
of business which is rarely to be seen in the Persian towns.
There are no public buildings of any importance. The
only places of interest are the bazars, which extend fully
a mile in length, and consist of substantially-built ranges
of shops, covered with a roof of wood and tiles, and well
stored with commodities. There are about ten principal
caravanserais, several of which are attached to the bazar,
and are let as warehouses for goods; and not less than
thirty medressas or colleges, the place being as much cele¬
brated for learning as for commerce. From a census late¬
ly taken by authority, Mr Fraser is of opinion that it
contains 200,000 inhabitants. It is 20 miles west of Fehra-
bad. Long. 32. 40. E. Lat. 35. 55. N.
BALGUY, John, an eminent English divine, was born
at Sheffield in Yorkshire in August 1686. He was ad¬
mitted of St John’s College, Cambridge, in 1702, and in
1705-6 took his bachelor’s degree, soon after which he
quitted the university. In 1711 he obtained a small liv¬
ing, and in 1729 was preferred to the vicarage of North¬
allerton, in which preferment he remained till his death
in 1748. Besides Sermons, an Essay on Redemption, a
treatise entitled Divine Rectitude, or a brief Inquiry con¬
cerning the Moral Perfections of the Deity, and some
other theological tracts, he published a philosophical piece
on the Foundation of Moral Goodness, written in answer
to Dr Hutcheson’s work on the Origin of our Ideas of
Beauty and Virtue. Some of these pieces were, by the
author himself, collected into one volume, and published
with a dedication to Bishop Hoadley.
Balguy, Thomas, D. D., son of the above, was born
in 1716. After studying at St John’s College, Cambridge,
where he took his first degree in 1737, he was in 1746
presented to the rectory of North Stoke in Lincolnshire.
He afterwards became archdeacon, first of Salisbury, and
thereafter of Winchester. He was offered the bishopric
of Gloucester in 1781, but was prevented from accepting
it by the declining state of his health. He was after¬
wards afflicted with blindness, and died at Winchester in
January 1795. Besides Sermons and Charges, he was
the author of a very able and well-known work, entitled
Divine Benevolence Asserted and Vindicated from the
Reflections of ancient and modern Sceptics. It was pub¬
lished in 8vo, in 1782.
BALHARRY, a town of Hindostan, in Mysoi'e, situ¬
ated on the west side of the Haggry River, 187 miles
317
Balfron
ii
Balharrv.
318 B A L
Bali north from Seringapatam, and the capital of the collector-
11 ship of the same name, into which, and Cuddapah, the
Balaghaut ceded districts are divided. It is a hill fort,
with a fortified village. It was taken by Hyder in 1775.
BALI,Bally,or Little Java,one ofthe Sundaislands,
in the Eastern Seas, separated from Java by the straits of
the same name, which are five miles wide. It is a large
island, being seventy-five miles in length by forty in breadth.
A chain of mountains crosses the island in a direction east
and west, and terminates on the east in the peak of Bali,
which is volcanic. The climate and soil are the same as
in Java; it has mountains of proportionate height, and
streams well fitted for the purposes of irrigation, and it is
equally fertile. But from the mountainous nature ot the
country, advantage cannot so easily be taken of the periodi¬
cal rains; and hence the lands are chiefly irrigated from
the rivers and streams. Rice is produced in great quan¬
tities, and two crops are raised in the year; wdiile in the
dry season the lands yield a crop of maize. The other
productions are tobacco, oil, and salt, also cotton of an
excellent quality; but there are no forests, and the island
is supplied with wood from Java. The inhabitants, though
originally sprung from the same stock as those of Java,
exceed them in stature and muscular power, as well as in
activity and enterprising habits. “ They have,” says Sir
Stamford Raffles, “ a higher cast of spirit, independence,
and manliness, than belongs to any of their neighbours.”
They are also more moral, not being addicted to drunken¬
ness or licentiousness, though they indulge in the practice
of eating opium. Their favourite amusements are gam¬
ing and cock-fighting, to which they devote themselves
with all the vehemertce and energy of their character.
They are inferior to their neighbours the Javanese in me¬
chanical art and industry. Cotton is spun into yarn, and
made into cloth by the women. Knives, and warlike in¬
struments, such as matchlocks, are also manufactured.
The principal exports are rice, birds’ nests, coarse cloths,
cotton yarn, salted eggs, &c. The imports are opium,
betel nut, ivory, gold, and silver. The traffic in slaves was
formerly great, and still exists to a certain extent; all
prisoners of war, insolvent debtors, and those who attempt
to evade the laws against emigration, being reduced to the
condition of slaves. The Hindoo superstition is preva¬
lent here, not more than 100 or 200 of the natives being
Mahommedans. The island is divided into seven different
states, each independent of the other, and subject to its
own chief. The total population is estimated at 800,000.
(Thorn’s Memoir of Java, Raffles’ History of Java, &c.)
BALINDERRY, a village and parish of Ireland, in the
county of Antrim, seventy-three miles from Dublin. Its
population is 4948.
BALIOL, or Balliol, Sir John de, founder of Baliol
College in Oxford, was the son of Hugh Baliol, of Ber¬
nard's Castle, in the diocese of Durham, and very eminent
on account of his power and riches. During the con¬
tests and wars between King Henry III. and his barons he
firmly adhered to the king. In 1263 he began the foun¬
dation and endowment of Baliol College, which was after¬
wards perfected by his widow. He died in the year 1269.
BALK, or Bulk, was formerly a province of Persia,
but is now a dependency of the kingdom of Cabul or Af¬
ghanistan. European geographers have but an imperfect
knowledge of these countries, situated in the depths of
Asia, and defended against the visits of Christian travel¬
lers by the fierce intolerance of their inhabitants. The
country of Balk is bounded, according to the most accu¬
rate accounts, by the Oxus on the north, by the great moun¬
tain range of the Hindoo Coosh and Paropamisus on the
south, by Badakshan on the east, and generally by sandy
deserts on the west. It is supposed to be 250 miles in
B A L
length from east to west, and from 100 to 120 miles in
breadth from north to south. Towards the south the ^ v
country abounds in hills which branch out from the Hin¬
doo Coosh range. Here the soil is generally stony,
though there are many well-watered valleys. The cen¬
tral portion of the country is level, fertile, and well wa¬
tered from the vicinity of the hills; while towards the
north, near the stream of the Oxus, it is sandy and barren.
The western part of the country of Balk, which borders
on the desert, partakes of its nature; but in the east
there are mountainous tracts which are well watered, and
occasionally fertile. The country descends very rapidly
from the mountain range of Hindoo Coosh, which bounds
it on the north, and towards the Oxus is of a lower level
and of a much hotter climate than those parts of Afghan¬
istan which lie to the south of these mountains. Balk is
inhabited by the Usbeck Tartars, Tanjiks, and Arabs.
These races have not relinquished their pastoral habits,
some dwelling in tents, although the greater part now re¬
sort to the towns. In different parts of the country the
soil is good ; but it is chiefly occupied by wandering tribes
of the Usbecks and Toorcomans, who derive their sub¬
sistence from their flocks and herds, and neglect agricul¬
ture. The Usbecks are the ruling tribe of Balk, and in¬
deed the principal part of the population. They are gene¬
rally short and stout, and have the genuine Tartar features,
namely, broad foreheads, high cheek-bones, thin beards,
and small eyes; yet they are a handsome race compared
with the Kalmucks and other Tartar races. Their charac¬
ter is also superior to that of many other Asiatic tribes.
They are considered sincere and honest, yet they exercise
great barbarity in war, giving no quarter to their enemies,
except they mean to sell them for slaves. As rigid Ma¬
hommedans, they entertain all the hatred for Christians pre¬
scribed by that intolerant creed. In the inaccessible parts
of the country of Balk, amidst snowy mountains, deep pine
forests, and small but fertile valleys, live a singular race,
called by the Mahommedans Kauffers, or unbelievers, and
persecuted by them with the most deadly enmity. Mr
Elphinstone and Mr Fraser give some curious particulars
of this race, who appear to have been the ancient idola¬
ters of the country, and to have taken refuge from their
Mahommedan invaders among the fastnesses of the moun¬
tains. They are considered extremely savage, but re¬
markably well formed and beautiful; insomuch that their
country is liable to constant inroads from their Mahomme¬
dan neighbours, who carry off both men and women into
slavery.
The chief cities are Balk, the capital; Meymoonah; And-
khooee ; Tansk Koorghan, the capital of Khootoom, con¬
sisting of 8000 houses ; and another town, the capital of the
district of Khoondooh, still larger. This province formed
the ancient Bactra. In modern times it was conquered
by Nadir Shah, and afterwards reduced by Ahmed Shah,
the sovereign of Afghanistan. The country has since ex¬
perienced many vicissitudes, and been exposed to severe
calamities, from the contests for its dominion between dif¬
ferent tribes. At present it is ruled by an independent
chieftain, Killich Ally, who acknowledges only a nominal
superiority to the sovereign of Afghanistan, and whose
administration bears a high character for vigilance, libe¬
rality, and justice. He exempts all merchants from ex¬
actions during their journeys, and inflicts on highway rob¬
bery the severest punishments. The population of Balk
is estimated at 1,000,000.
Balk, or Bulk, formerly a great city, but now an im¬
mense and melancholy mass of ruins. It is situated on
the river Dehast, in a large and fertile plain. Originally
it was regularly built, the streets intersecting each other
at right angles; and it contained some splendid bazars
B A L
arcaded and vaulted, with caravanserais, and many magni*
^ J ficent mosques and colleges. But nothing now remains of
1 its ancient magnificence except such buildings as were con¬
structed of solid brick masonry, and by their strength have
withstood the hand of time and the rage of war; so that
this once superb capital, denominated the “ Mother of
Cities,” which contained a population of some hundred
thousands, has now dwindled to 6000 or 7000, thinly scat¬
tered among the ruins of the city. Balk was taken and
sacked by Ghengis Khan : it was again taken and destroy¬
ed by Tamerlane, who carried the inhabitants without the
walls, and massacred them in great numbers; so that a
pestilence was created, which raged with great violence,
and gave a character of insalubrity to the place. The
ruin of Balk was completed by Nadir Shah; and it has
never since recovered any degree of consequence. This
city is supposed to be the Bactra of the Greeks, and is of
high antiquity. Long. 65. 16. E. Lat. 36. 28. N.
BALLAD is a word frequently used as synonymous
with song: but it properly denotes an historical song, or
a song containing a narrative of adventures or exploits,
either serious or comic. It is one of the most ancient
species of composition, and still constitutes a great por¬
tion of the literature of the more uncivilized tribes of
mankind. Giovanni Finati, who supplies us with much
information respecting the manners and customs of the
East, has recorded the following anecdote of ballad-litera¬
ture among the Benysackr Arabs, whom he found en¬
camped near the shores of the Dead Sea. Their chief,
Ibn Fays, he states, “ had strangers with him from Da¬
mascus, and feasted his guests so plentifully, that the
wooden dish out of which we all fed had four iron handles
to it, and required three persons to lift it and set it before
us. Afterwards, a great earthen pan of grease was light¬
ed as a lamp for the company, and Ibn Fays himself,
and his brother, sung a sort of slow plaintive ballad to an
instrument with one string, the purport of which was the
tragic account of a battle against a neighbouring tribe, in
which their own father perished.”1 The leader of this
wandering horde might himself be the author, as well as
die reciter, of the ballad which thus regaled his guests.
Most of the nations of modern Europe have consider¬
able collections of the ballads which delighted their fore¬
fathers ; and in some countries the political influence of
such compositions has been found to be very powerful.
“ Of these,” says Dr Aikin, “ the most copious source is
party; and there has seldom been an occasion of political
contest in countries permitting such freedoms, in which
appeal has not been made to the popular feelings by
means of comic and satirical ballads, often with great ef¬
fect. The share that Lilliburlero had in producing the
Revolution in this country has been noticed by grave
historians. In the war of the Fronde in France, ballads
were a weapon as much employed as muskets, and those
written for and against Cardinal Mazarin filled several
volumes. The French give to these compositions the ap¬
propriate title of Vaudeville, implying their fitness to walk
B A L 319
the streets ; and indeed street-poetry in general belongs Ballad,
to the ballad class.”2 The Spaniards3 and other nations
of the south have preserved ample collections of their
early ballads; but the affinity of our own nation and
tongue with those of the northern tribes, renders their
literary reliques an object of more particular interest. The
various tribes of Scandinavians have generally^ been dis¬
tinguished for their love of poetry. Many ancient reliques
of Islandic poetry are still preserved, and are regarded as
very curious specimens of the literature of the different
ages to which they belong; nor are the kindred nations of
Sweden and Denmark without their early and recent poets,
some of whom have attained to high reputation. Of the
ballad-poetry of these northern nations, many remnants
have descended to our times; and ample collections of
Danish, Swedish, and even Feroese ballads have recently
been published by respectable editors. “ The songs men¬
tioned by Tacitus in his account of the Germans,” says
Mr Jamieson, “ those collected by the order of Charle¬
magne, and those which the Goths brought with them out
of the East, ai’e now not to be found ; yet it is more than
probable that much more of them is preserved, in how¬
ever altered a form, than we are aware of; in the elder
northern and Teutonic romances, the Danish and Swedish,
Scottish and English popular ballads, and those which are
sung by old women and nurses, and hawked about at fairs,
in Germany.”4 The same ingenious and well-informed
writer has elsewhere expressed his conviction, that many
of the traditionary ballads still current in this kingdom
have been preserved in the north of England and the low¬
lands of Scotland, ever since the arrival of the Cimbri in
Britain.5 Many of our historical ballads may at all events
be considered as the productions of a remote period; but
it is not to be supposed that they have been transmitted
from one generation to another without innumerable trans¬
formations. A great proportion of them have doubtless
been preserved by oral tradition ; and they seem in gene¬
ral to have undergone such changes as brought them
nearer to the current speech of each successive genera¬
tion ; for, without this progressive adaptation, the lapse of
a few centuries would have rendered them unintelligible
to the great body of the people; nor is it usual for any
combination of words to be retained in the memory with¬
out being understood. Thus, for example, we have rea¬
son to believe that the ballad of Sir Patrick Spence de¬
rives its origin from a very early age ; but the variations
to which it must gradually have been subjected, may easily
be inferred from a comparison of the different copies
which are now to be found.6 A story may thus be pre¬
served, when most of the original words have been chang¬
ed. The close affinity between the old Danish and the
old Scotish and English ballads has been noticed by vari¬
ous writers, by Pinkerton, Jamieson, Nyerup, Geijer, and
Grimm :7 their resemblance is to be traced in the general
spirit and contrivance of the poems; while some of the
Danish and Scotish ballads exhibit a remarkable coinci¬
dence in their particular stories. Whether these effects
1 Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Giovanni Finati, translated by William John Bankes, Esq. vol. ii. p. 272. Lond. 1830,
2 vols. 8vo.
2 Aikin’s Essay on Song-Writing (p. xviii.) prefixed to Vocal Poetry, or a Select Collection of English Songs. I.ond. 1810, 8vo.
8 See the introduction to Depping’s Sammlung der besten alien Spanischen Historischen Ritter-und Maurischen Romanzen. Altenburg
and Leipzig, 1817, 12tno.
8 Illustrations of Northern Antiquities, p. 245. Edinb. 1814, 4to.
Jamieson’s Popular Ballads and Songs, vol. ii. p. 87. Edinb. 1800, 2 vols. 8vo.—See however Mr Finlay’s Scottish Historical and
Romantic Ballads, vol. i. p. xxv. Edinb. 1808, 2 vols. 8vo.
s Percy’s Reliques of Ancient English Poetry, vol. i. p. 81. Scott’s Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, vol. i. p. 7- Jamieson’s Popular
BaUads and Songs, vol. i. p. 157 See Mr Motherwell’s Minstrelsy, Ancient and Modern, p. xliv. Glasgow, 1827, 4to.
Pinkerton’s Enquiry, vol. i. p. 304. Jamieson’s Ballads, vol. ii. p- 87- Nyerup, Danske Viser, Bind v. S. 12. Geijer, Svenskrc
Folk-Visor, del. i. s. liv—The affinity between the old English and the old Danish ballads is noticed in the preface (S. xxxi.) to Altdii-
nische Heldenlieder, Balladcn, und Marchen, ubersetzt von Wilhelm Carl Grimm. Heidelberg, 1811, ffvo.
320
B A L
B A L
Ballad.
are to be imputed to so remote a cause as the emigration
of the ancient Scandinavians, may however admit of much
doubt and hesitation. Fiction moves from one region to
another with very elastic steps, and in many instances it
is impossible to trace her progress.
The earliest collector of Danish ballads was Anders
Sorenson Vedel, chaplain to the king of Denmark, and an
intimate friend of the celebrated astronomer Tyge Brahe.
His publication bears the title of an hundred select Danish
ballads, or Et hundrede vduaalde Danske Viser. Ribe, 1591,
8vo. It is now a very rare book, even in Denmark; but
a copious account of it is given by Nyerup, in the last vo¬
lume of the more recent collection of Danske Viser. Af¬
ter an interval of more than a century, another clergyman,
Peder Syv, reprinted this collection of Vedel, and added
an equal number of ballads. Kiobenhavn, 1695, 8vo. But
the most extensive collection appeared under the follow¬
ing title : Udvalgte Danske Viser fra Middelalderen ; efter
A. S. Vedels og P. Syvs trykte Udgaver, og efter haand-
skrevne Samlinger, udgivne paa ny af Abrahamson, Ny¬
erup, og Rahbek. Kiobenhavn, 1812-14, 5 Bind. 8vo.
This work is accompanied with notes and illustrations, and
appears to us to possess no inconsiderable value. A simi¬
lar collection of Swedish ballads was published by Geijer
and Afzelius: Svenska Folk- Visor frun Eorntiden, sam-
lade och utgifne af Er. Gust. Geijer och Arv. Aug. Af¬
zelius. Stockholm, 1814-16, 3 del. 8vo. These volumes
are accompanied with music, printed in a quarto form.
Of Feroese ballads there is a recent collection: Fcerd-
iske Qvaider om Sigurd Fosnersbane og hans 2Et, med
et Anhang: samlede og oversatte af Hans Christian Lyng-
bye, Sogneprsest i Gjesing; med en Indledning af P. E.
Muller, Dr. og Prof, i Theol. Randers, 1822, 8vo. Dr
Muller, the. author of the introduction, is a learned and
able writer, well known as the author of more important
works.
Debes mentions that, at their weddings, and at Christ¬
mas, the Feroese were accustomed to “ recreate them¬
selves with a plain dance, holding one another by the
hand, and singing some old champion’s ballad.”1 These
islands were peopled in the ninth century by a colony of
Norwegians.2 The language of the people, as it appears
in these ballads, is removed to a considerable distance
from the Islandic as well as the Danish. The plan of
publishing a Feroese dictionary was formed about half a
century ago; and the English prospectus printed upon
that occasion furnishes so curious and entertaining a spe¬
cimen of the language, that we are tempted to insert it
with all its peculiarities.
“ Subscription.—We are minded after many years trou¬
blesome Collection to acquaint the World with the Tongue,
used upon the Isles of Fero, a Dialect of the old noble
Tongue in former Times written and spoken in Norway,
Denmark, Jsland, Swede, and in a good Deal of the eng-
lish Dominion. Now it appears for the world translated
in Latin, Danish, and conferr’d with the islandsh Tongue.
“ If we were men of Wealth, we would not forbear to
Regard the Expences of printing this Dictionary as a
great Trifle, because it, very likely, not will exceed a
good Volume in 4to; but we are poor-men. Nevertheless
we hope to bring it forth by Way of Subscription and for
that Reason We invite hereby our Neighbours, the brave
and Reasonable Englishmen to Deal with us the Honour
of bringing this Dialect out of the Darkness, wherein it
lies, and let it see the Day-Liht. No*Body of our Coun¬
trymen, as we know, has thought this before.
“ Perhaps this moment in our Life, that has been the
first in Time for this Purpose, will be the Last, and no £
body afterwards would attend it. The Price will be 2 ^ St’
pence a Sheet and upon good Paper 3 pence.
“ N. 'Mohr. J. C. Svabo."
The two pages which follow are divided into columns
for the Names of the Subscriptors and the Number ofExem.
plars; but it appears that the well-meaning and pains-tak¬
ing creatures met with too little encouragement to pro¬
ceed in their enterprise. The prospectus is without a
date ; but we learn from Muller and Nyerup that Svabo
was employed in collecting Feroese ballads in the years
1781 and 1782. (x.)
BALLAST, any heavy matter, as stone, gravel, or iron,
thrown into the hold of a ship, in order to make her sink
a proper depth in the water, that she may be capable of
carrying a sufficient quantity of sail without upsetting.
There is often great difference in the proportion of bal¬
last required to prepare ships of equal burden for a voyage;
the quantity being always more or less according to the
sharpness or flatness of the ship’s bottom, which seamen
call the floor.
The knowledge of ballasting a ship with propriety cer¬
tainly deserves the attention of the skilful mariner; for
although it is known that ships in general will not carry
a sufficient quantity of sail till they are laden deep enough
for the surface of the water to glance nearly on the ex¬
treme breadth amidships, yet more than this general know¬
ledge is required; since, if a vessel has a great weight of
heavy ballast, as lead or iron, in the bottom, it will place the
centre of gravity too low in the hold ; and although this will
enable her to carry a great sail, she will nevertheless sail
very heavily, and run the risk of being dismasted in agale
by violent rolling. To ballast a ship properly, therefore, is
the art of disposing those materials so that she may be duly
poised, and maintain a proper equilibrium on the water,
without either being too stiff or too crank, which are con¬
ditions equally pernicious; for in the former case, al¬
though the ship may be fitted to carry a great sail, yet
her velocity will not be proportionably increased, whilst
her masts are more endangered by sudden jerks and ex¬
cessive labouring; and, in the latter, she will be incapable
of carrying sail, without the risk of upsetting. Stiffness,
in ballasting, is occasioned by disposing a great quantity
of heavy ballast, as lead or iron, in the hold, which natu¬
rally places the centre of gravity very near the keel; and
that being the centre about which the vibrations are made,
the lower it is placed, the more violent will be the motion
of rolling. Crankness, on the other hand, is occasioned by
having too little ballast, or by disposing the ship’s lading
so as to raise the centre of gravity too high, which also
endangers the mast in carrying sail when it blows hard.
For, when the masts are deflected from the perpendicular,
they strain on the shrouds in the nature of a lever, which
increases as the sine of their obliquity; and a ship that
loses her masts is in great danger of being lost.
The whole art of ballasting, therefore, consists in placing
the centre of gravity to correspond with the trim and
shape of the vessel, so as neither to be too high nor too
low, neither too far forwards nor too far aft; and to lade
the ship so deep, that the surface of the water may rise
nearly to the extreme breadth amidships, by which means
she will be enabled to carry a good sail, incline but little,
and ply well to the windward.
Ships are said to be in ballast when they have no other
loading. Masters of vessels are obliged to declare the
quantity of ballast they bear, and to unload it at certain
places. They are prohibited unloading their ballast in
lal
B
'ei
’ Debes’s Description of the Islands and Inhalitants of Foeroe, Englished by Dr Sterpin, p. 273. Lond. 1676, 12mo-
2 Torfsei Conimentatio historica de Rebus gestis Fcereyensium seu Fardensium, p. 7. Havniae, 1695, 8vo.
B A L
B A L
321
i havens, roadsteads, &c. the neglect of which prohibition
has ruined many excellent ports.
BALLENDEN, Sir John. See Bellenden, Sir John.
a' BALLENSTEDT, a city in the duchy of Anhalt-Bern-
^burg. it is situated in the Hartz Forest, in a most pic¬
turesque district, selected for a seat of the sovereign,
whose castle is accommodated with the usual appendages
of courtly residences. The city, besides the court, con¬
tains about 2800 inhabitants, who are very industrious in
linen manufactures, and in gardening.
BALLET, Balet, or Balletto, a kind of dramatic
poem, representing some fabulous action or subject divid¬
ed into several entries; wherein several persons appear,
and recite things under the name of some deity, or other
illustrious character.
Ballet also denotes a theatrical action, represented
by dancing guided by music.
BALLINA, a post-town of Ireland, in the county of
Mayo, situated on the river Moy. In 1798 General Hum¬
bert, who landed with the French troops in Ireland, took
possession of this place. The population is 4422, and it
is 6 miles S. of Killala.
BALLINAHINCH, a post-town of Ireland, in the coun¬
ty of Down, near which is a much-frequented chalybeate
spa. In 1798 a strong body of insurgents were defeated
here, and half the village was destroyed. The population
is 884. Ballinahinch is 94 miles N. by E. from Dublin.
BALLINAKIL, a market-town of Ireland, in Queen’s
county, with woollen manufactures. The population is
1951, and it is 66 miles S. W. of Dublin.
BALLINASLOE, a thriving town of Ireland, in the
county of Galway, on the river Suck. Here is held a great
fair for wool, and several cattle fairs. The population is
1800. It is 90 miles W. of Dublin, and 30 miles W. of
Galway.
BALLINGARRY, a post-town of Ireland, in the county
of Limerick. The population is 1553. It is 142 miles
S. W. of Dublin.
BALLINROBE, a post-town of Ireland, in the county
of Mayo. Its population is 2191. It is 147 miles W. by
N. from Dublin.
BALLISTA, a machine used by the ancients for shoot¬
ing darts, and which resembled in some measure our cross¬
bow. The wrord is Latin, signifying a cross-bow, and is
derived from the Greek fSaXhu, to shoot or throw. Vege-
tius informs us that the ballista discharged darts with such
rapidity and violence that nothing could resist their force ;
and Athenseus adds, that Agistratus made one of little
more than two feet in length, which shot darts 500 paces.
BALLISTEUM, or Ballistr^ea, in Antiquity, a mili¬
tary song or dance used on occasions of victory. Vopiscus
has preserved the ballisteum sung in honour of Aurelian,
who, in the Sarmatian war, was said to have killed forty-
eight of the enemy in one day with his own hand. Mille,
mille, milk, mille, mille, mille decollavimus; Unus ho¬
mo milk, milk, mille, mille decollavit; mille, mille,
milk vivat, qui mille, mille occidit. Tantum vini hahet
nemo, quantum fadit sanguinis. The same writer subjoins
another popular song of the same kind: Milk Francos,
milk Sarmatas, semel occidimus; mille, mille, mille,
milk, milk Persas qucerimus. It took the denomination
ballisteum from the Greek fSaXku, jacio, or jacto, to cast
er toss, on account of the motions used in this dance,
which consisted in elevating, swinging, and throwing round
die hands. The ballistea wrere a kind of popular ballads,
eomposed by poets of the lower class, without much regard
to the laws of metre.
BALLISTIC Pendulum, an ingenious machine, invent-
e .. y Benjamin Robins for ascertaining the velocity of
mi itary projectiles, and consequently the force of fired
VOL. iv.
gunpowder. It consists of a large block of wood, affixed Balloon
to the end of a strong iron stem, having a cross steel axis II
at the other end, placed horizontally, about which the B?.lm of
whole vibrates together like the pendulum of a clock. The t
machine being at rest, a piece of ordnance is pointed
straight towards the wooden block or ball of this pendu¬
lum, and then discharged: in consequence of which the
ball strikes, enters the block, and causes the pendulum
to vibrate more or less according to the velocity of the
projectile or the force of the blow; so that by observing
the extent of the vibration, or the chord of the arc,—which
is ascertained by means of a ribbon fixed to the lower ex¬
tremity of the pendulum, and passed through a couple of
steel edges something in the manner of a drawing pen,—
the force of that blow becomes known, or the greatest
velocity wdth which the block is moved out of its place,
and consequently the velocity of the projectile which
struck the blow and urged the pendulum. See Gunnery.
BALLOON. See Aeronautics.
Balloon also denotes a kind of game something re¬
sembling tennis. The balloon is played in the open field,
with a great round ball of double leather blown up with
wind, and thus driven to and fro with the strength of a
man’s arm, fortified with a brace of wood.
BALLOTING, a method of voting at elections, &c. by
means of little balls, usually of different colours, called by
the French ballots, which are put into a box, in such a
manner as to enable the voter, if he chooses, to conceal
for whom or for wdiat he gives his suffrage.
BALLYBAY, a market and post-town of Ireland, in the
county of Monaghan. Its population is 1378, and it is 76
miles N. by W. of Dublin.
BALLYCASTLE, a small sea-port town of Ireland, in
the county of Antrim, divided into an upper and lower
town. Its population is 1436, and it is 180 miles N. from
Dublin.
B ALLYMATRON, a market and post-town of Ireland,
in the county of Longford. The population is 1135. It
is 68 miles W. by N. of Dublin.
BALLYMENA, a town of Ireland, in the county of
Antrim, situated on the river Maine. Linen manufactures
are carried on here, and there is a weekly market for
horses and cattle. The population is 2740. It is 30 miles
N. of Belfast.
BALLYMONEY, a village of Ireland, in the county of
Antrim, where there is a monthly market for linens. The
population is 1949. It is 150 miles N. of Dublin.
BALLYMOTE, a post-town of Ireland, in the county
of Sligo, where the linen manufacture has been establish¬
ed. The population is 884, and it is 119 miles N. W.
from Dublin.
BALLYR AGGET, a post-town of Ireland, in the coun¬
ty of Kilkenny, on the river Nore. The population is
1604. It is 76 miles S. W. of Dublin.
BALLYSHANNON, a town of Ireland, in the county
of Donegal, on a bay at the mouth of a river flowing from
Lough Erne, which is crossed by a bridge of 14 arches.
It has a good harbour, and a fishery of eels and salmon.
The population is 3831. It is 127 miles N.W. from
Dublin.
BALLYTORE, a post-town of Ireland, in the county
of Kildare, on the river Grees. The population is 824.
It is 35 miles S. W. of Dublin.
BALM OF GILEAD. The earliest specifics against
personal injuries, resorted to by mankind, were probably
the different parts of vegetables produced in their respec¬
tive countries; and hence we find that most savages are
acquainted with vulneraries prepared by the hand of na¬
ture, or that they seek to improve them from decoctions
and infusions of roots, flowers, and leaves. Among the
2 s
322
B A L
B A L
Balm of more precious substances obtained from plants, applied
Gilead, as curative of wounds by the ruder inhabitants of the
eastern climates, the balm of Gilead, or balsam of Mecca,
has been eminently distinguished during many ages. But
although the balm of Gilead is well known from several
scriptural allusions, and highly esteemed, it is only of se¬
condary quality to the balsam of Mecca, for which it is
frequently substituted ; and illustrations of its nature and
properties must chiefly be derived from the latter. This
balsam is a resinous matter, exuding, like ordinary resin,
from incisions in the bark of two different vegetables; at
least there are apparently two, though the distinction is not
well characterized or described by naturalists, which cir¬
cumstance has excited conjectures that there is only one,
and that it is subject to certain external modifications
from soil and climate. The plant producing the balsam of
Mecca was first ascertained by Forskal to belong to the
genus Amyris. He transmitted one or two specimens to
Linnaeus, who has characterized it as the “ Amyris Opobal-
samum, leaves pinnate, with sessile leaflets, a native of
Arabiawhile he characterizes the other as “ Amyris Gi-
leadensis, leaves ternate, very entire peduncles, one flower¬
ed lateral, a native of Abyssinia.” We shall, however, con¬
sider it more in detail. This plant grows to the height of
fourteen feet, flourishing in a hot climate, and in a stony bar¬
ren soil. In general it is lower; and Mr Bruce describes
a specimen five feet and a half in height, and five inches
across the stem where thickest. The wood is white, light,
and of open texture, covered with a smooth bark, reddish
or bluish white, resembling that of a healthy standard
cherry-tree, green within, and emitting a very fragrant
odour ; that of the branches, which are very flexible and
resinous, being equally agreeable. The leaves, which are
evergreen and scanty, bear some resemblance to those of
rue; and the flowers, which are leguminous and of a
purplish colour, resemble those of the acacia. The fruit
consists of small pointed ovoidal berries, containing a
yellowish fluid similar to honey, of a bitterish taste, and
exhaling a pleasant perfume, approaching the odour of
balm. This plant is called Balessan in the East; but
it would require new botanical researches to ascertain
definitely, and beyond dispute, whether it is of different
species, as is most probable, and what is its real character;
—points which we must consider as remaining to be esta¬
blished.
It has been maintained that the plants producing the
balsam of Mecca are restricted to a plantation of little
more than thirty acres in extent, at Beder Hunein, a sta¬
tion for pilgrims in Arabia, half-way between Mecca and
Medina. Yet it cannot be positively affirmed that this is
one distinct species ; that Abyssinia, the country ascribed
to the other, is deprived of it; or that the balm of Gilead
grows exclusively in Abyssinia. These are facts which
require elucidation from future botanical researches. The
plantation belongs to a noble family of Arabs, of the tribe
Beni Koreish, from which Mahommed originated, unless
the incursions of the Wahabees, who interrupted the wont¬
ed pilgrimages, have dispossessed them.
The balsam in question flows from incisions in the tree,
which are made with an axe, in July, August, and the be¬
ginning of September, when the circulation of the sap is in
the greatest activity ; and it is received into a small earthen
bottle. Each day’s produce is collected, and poured into
one of larger dimensions; but the quantity obtained is
very small, and its collection is tedious and troublesome;
for the total exudation is usually but three or four drops
in a day, nor does the most productive tree afford above
sixty. Its scarcity, therefore, and the difficulty of pro¬
curing it, have no inconsiderable effect in enhancing its
value. I he odour is at first strong and pungent, occa¬
sioning a sensation like that of volatile salts rashly in-
haled. Its intensity is proportioned to its freshness and Gfc.
the care it receives ; for if neglected and exposed to the ^ v
influence of the air, the fragrance entirely decays. It is
also of a rough, acrid, pungent taste. Originally the bal¬
sam is of a light yellow colour, somewhat turbid, and of a
whitish cast, which is supposed to arise from the globules
of air absorbed along with it; and it dissolves readily in
water. It then acquires greater consistence, resembling
honey, and becomes pellucid; and after the lapse of some
years grows of deeper yellow, or gold colour, when it is very
tenacious, and may be drawn out in threads. It is difficult,
however, to obtain the balsam in a state of purity; for several
different substances are employed in its adulteration, to de¬
tect which various experiments are resorted to. If dropped
into a glass of clean water, it falls to the bottom without
rising again to the surface ; or if it remain still on the sur¬
face, like oil in a drop, it is certainly adulterated. If, on the
contrary, it spreads on the surface of the water, diffusing it¬
self in a thin pellicle, scarcely visible to the eye, and ca¬
pable of being collected with a thread or a feather, it is the
pure and natural product. In this state it will coagulate like
milk, but not if otherwise. If pure it collects in a globule
when dropped on hot iron; if adulterated, it runs and
spreads itself all around. The different substances used in
the adulteration of this balsam are honey, wax, oil of sesa-
mum, turpentine, and ostrich fat. Sweetness of taste be¬
trays the honey, and a turbid appearance the presence
of wax. Adulteration with oil is detected by its yielding
a darker and grosser flame than that which issues from the
genuine balsam when dropped on burning coals. When
the consistency becomes too great, which seems a conse¬
quence of age and long preservation, fluidity is restored
by the simple application of heat.
Besides the balsam now described, which is the purest
and most valuable kind, and is called Opobalsamum, other
two of inferior quality are obtained from the balessan;
first, Carpobalsamum, which is prepared by expression
from the fruit when it has attained maturity, and which, if
good, should be ponderous, of a pungent taste and balsamic
odour; secondly, Xylobalsamum, which is elaborated from
a decoction of the twigs. The latter are collected in
small faggots and sent to Venice, and the circumstance
which determines them to be the shoots of the year is
said to consist in their being knotty, the bark red, and the
wood white, resinous, and exhaling balsamic odour. Vari¬
ous impostures are likewise practised here, in substituting
spurious compounds for the real drug; and the inge¬
nuity of mankind in this species of deception has been
carried to such an extent that detection proves extremely
difficult.
Numerous virtues are ascribed to the balm of Gilead,—
so numerous, that modern empirics, availing themselves
of that credulity which characterizes our nature in all mat¬
ters connected with health, do not hesitate to offer specifics
of their own invention, under the same name, with bold
asseverations that the human race will there find a pallia¬
tive for most of the evils with which they are afflicted.
Prosper Alpinus, one of the older naturalists, ascribes
many properties to the balsam of Mecca, esteemed the
most precious of all that bear the appellation of balsam, and
in ordinary description considered as synonymous with the
balm of Gilead ; and the modern Arabs, Turks, and Egyp¬
tians, entertain great confidence in its efficacy. It is a
powerful vulnerary, a quality of which Mahomet took
advantage; for he affirmed that a grove of the trees
sprung up from the blood of his own tribe killed in battle,
the juice of which cured the wounds of the faithful, how¬
ever deadly, nay, that it recovered some of them from
death itself Hasselquist says it is useful as a stomachic
I
(
B A L
j jn (jQges of three grains. It is also taken for complaints
G it in the breast, and in fevers, and is applied for rheumatism.
✓ jts repute as an antiseptic is very great; and it is esteemed
so effectual an antidote against the plague, that when
this distemper makes its appearance the Egyptians take a
certain quantity daily. The balsam of Mecca, however,
is principally used as a cosmetic by the eastern females
of rank. After being kept in a very warm bath, the face
and breast are anointed with it; and the same process is
continued every third day during a month. Oil of al¬
monds and other cosmetics are then rubbed over the same
parts, by which means the skin and complexion are beau¬
tifully renovated. Lady Mary Wortley Montague relates
that she was induced to try the experiment; and that, in
consequence, her face became swelled and red for three
days, during which time she suffered so much pain as to
restrain her from repeating the application. But her com¬
plexion was greatly improved; and she adds, that the
ladies of Constantinople, by whom it is used, have the
finest bloom imaginable.
The balm of Gilead has been celebrated from a very re¬
mote antiquity. We have the testimony of Moses that
it was an article of commerce in the earlier periods of
Jewish history; for at the time Joseph was confined by
his brethren in a pit, and during their deliberations on
his fate, it is said, “ And they sat down to eat bread,—and
they lifted up their eyes and looked, and behold a com¬
pany of Ishmaelites came from Gilead, with their camels
bearing spicery, and balm, and myrrh, going to carry it
down to Egypt.” Jeremiah particularly alludes to the vir¬
tues of the balm in Gilead. Josephus, however, does not
carry the knowledge of it so high ; for he observes, that the
queen of Sheba or Saba, “ who was inquisitive into phi¬
losophy, and on that and other accounts was also to be
admired,” brought the balm of Gilead as a present to So¬
lomon, on her visit to Jerusalem, about a thousand years
before the Christian era. “ They say also that we pos¬
sess the root of this balsam, which our country still bears,
from that woman’s gift.” This is not inconsistent with
the words of Jeremiah, who probably flourished about
four thousand years later; and to reconcile the statement
of Moses with this account, some critics have supposed
that Judea did not possess the real balm of Gilead earlier
than the queen of Sheba’s gift, but an inferior kind of bal¬
sam ;—a fact not improbable. Further, it appears, that
what was in highest esteem as the balm of Gilead, was
in truth the balsam of Mecca. The best testimony of
its value is its having been the subject of royal donation
among the rarities brought for the acceptance of so illus¬
trious a prince as Solomon. It appears from the writings
of the ancients who were contemporary with Josephus,
that Judea was generally believed to be exclusively pos¬
sessed of this product. Pliny remarks,—“ but to all
other odours whatsoever is to be preferred that balsam
which is produced in no other part of the world than
the land of Judea, and there in two gardens only, both
belonging to the king, one not exceeding twenty acres
in size, and the second still smaller.” Strabo, however,
in the opinion of Mr Bruce, ascertained the real spot
where the balsam originated, in ascribing it to that coun¬
try over or near to which the queen of Sheba reigned.
“ Near to this,” he says, “ is the most favoured land of
the Sabaeans, and they are a very great people. Frank¬
incense, myrrh, and cinnamon, grow among them, and on
me coast that is about Saba, the balsam also.” Whence
Mr Bruce observes, that “ among the myrrh-trees behind
Asab, all along the coast to the Straits of Babelmandel,
is its native country. It grows to a tree above fourteen
eet high spontaneously and without culture, like the
myrrh, the coffee, and the frankincense tree; they are all
B A L 323
equally the wood of the country, and occasionally cut Balm of
down for fuel.” Diodorus Siculus likewise affirms that Gilead,
this balsam grew in a valley of Arabia Felix. But Mr^-1
Bruce, who investigated the subject with considerable
care, supposes that it was towards the era of Pliny that
it received its name of Balsamutn Judaicum, or balm of
Gilead, and thence became an article of commerce and
fiscal revenue, which might probably operate as a dis¬
couragement to bringing it from Arabia; as also that it
might be prohibited as contraband. Some centuries later
than the time of those ancient authors, we see that it was
known in Ai’abia, and perhaps in the place now most ce¬
lebrated for it. A traveller who assumes the name of
Ali Bey says that there is no balsam made at Mecca;
that, on the contrary, it is very scarce, and is obtained
principally in the territory of Medina; and also that it was
called belsan. As the repute of the balsam of Mecca rose,
the balm of Gilead disappeared; though in the era of
Galen, who flourished in the second century, and travelled
into Syria and Palestine purposely to obtain a knowledge
of this substance, it grew in Jericho, and many other parts
of the Holy Land. The cause of its total decay has been
ascribed, not without reason, to the royal attention being
withdrawn from it by the distractions of the country. In
more recent times its naturalization seems to have been
attempted in Egypt; for Prosper Alpinus relates, that
forty plants were brought from Arabia by a governor of
Cairo, to the garden there, and ten remained when Belon
travelled in Egypt, nearly 250 years ago; but whether
from not agreeing with the African soil or otherwise, only
one existed in the last century, and now there appears to
be none.
The balsam of Mecca has always been deemed a sub¬
stance of the greatest value. When Selim, emperor of
the Turks, reduced Arabia and Egypt under his dominion
in the year 1516, he exacted a tribute of three pounds
weight of it yearly; which continues to be sent to Con-
stantinople to this day. Besides this, part of the gover¬
nor of Cairo’s appointments include a right to receive a
pound of balsam; the like quantity was due to an officer
who conducted the caravan of pilgrims to Mecca, and
half a pound to the pasha of Damascus, who superintends
the whole pilgrimage.
Notwithstanding the celebrity of this plant, Mr Bruce
denies that it had ever been seen by the ancients, by
whom he probably means the Romans, as their descrip¬
tions are so various and discordant. Prosper Alpinus, who
lived in the sixteenth century, does not seem to know the
real class to which it belongs; and even within these few
years M. Duplessy, who has paid much attention to the
exudations of vegetables, is apparently not aware of its
having been figured by Bruce, and also more recently by
Dr Woodville. Such uncertainties of old excited a vio¬
lent dispute between the inhabitants of Rome and Venice
whether the drug used in medicinal compounds was truly
the balm of Gilead; and the point being referred to the
pope, his holiness directed that information should be ob¬
tained from Egypt, in consequence of which he decided
in favour of the Venetians.
The balsam of Mecca is not the only one possessing
exclusive medicinal properties, though it is, perhaps, more
eminently distinguished for them. Sixteen balsamic plants
of the same genus are enumerated by botanists, each ex¬
hibiting some peculiarity; and the balsam of Tolu, ob¬
tained from incisions on a shrub growing in some of the
South American provinces, is thought to approach the
nearest to the virtues of this famous balm. It is highly
aromatic, a powerful antiseptic, and not less efficacious as
a vulnerary. It is also very rare and difficult to be pro¬
cured, which has induced impostors to offer adulterations
324
B A L
B A L
Balmerino or counterfeits under its name. That which is particu-
II larly substituted is the balsam of Peru, the product of
Balotade. another tree, which can be obtained in abundance either
from incisions or decoction of the different parts. The
secretions of these plants, however, are neither invariably
odoriferous nor salutary: the balsam of Carthagena ex¬
hales a penetrating disagreeable smell; and there is a low
evergreen shrub, a native of North Carolina and the Ba¬
hama Islands, producing a fruit which is deadly poison,
and a balsam as black as ink.
BALMERINO, a village and parish of Scotland, in the
county of Fife, situated on the Tay, where are the ruins
of an abbey founded by Alexander II. in 1229. I he
population is 921. It is about 8 miles north-west of St
Andrews.
BALNAVES, Henry, a Scottish protestant, born in
the shire of Fife in the reign of James V., and educated
at the university of St Andrews. He went afterwards
to France in order to finish his studies, and returning
to Scotland, was admitted into the family of the earl
of Arran, who at that time governed the kingdom; but,
in the year 1542, the earl dismissed him for having
embraced the protestant religion. In 1564 he joined
(says Mackenzie) the murderers of Cardinal Beaton; for
which he was declared a traitor, and excommunicated.
Whilst that party were besieged in the castle of St An¬
drews, they sent Balnaves to England, who returned with
a considerable supply of money and provisions; but being
at last obliged to surrender to the French, he was sent
with the rest of the garrison a prisoner to France. During
his confinement at Rouen he wrote the work entitled
Confession of Faith ; but it was not published till 1584, five
years after his death. He returned to Scotland about the
year 1559, and having joined the Congregation, was ap¬
pointed one of the commissioners to treat with the duke
of Norfolk on the part of Queen Elizabeth. In 1563 he
was made one of the Lords of Session, and appointed by
the General Assembly, with other learned men, to revise
the Book of Discipline. Knox, his contemporary and fel¬
low-labourer, gives him the character of a very learned and
pious man. Balnaves died at Edinburgh in the year 1579.
BALNEARII Servi, in Antiquity, servants or at¬
tendants belonging to the baths. Some were appointed
to heat them, called fornicatores; others were denomi¬
nated capsarii, who kept the clothes of those that went
into them; others aliptce, whose care it was to pull off
the hair; others unctuarii, who anointed and perfumed
the body.
BALNEARIUS Fur, in Antiquity, a kind of thief who
practised stealing the clothes of persons in the baths;
sometimes also called/M?- halnearum. The crime of those
thieves was a kind of sacrilege, for the hot baths were
accounted sacred; and hence they were more severely
punished than common thieves, who stole out of private
houses. The latter were usually acquitted on paying
double the value of the thing stolen; but the former were
generally punished with death.
BALOGNES, an arrondissement in the department of
Manche, or of the Channel, in France, extending over
325 square miles, and comprehending seven cantons and
122 communes, with 94,676 inhabitants. The capital is
a city of the same name, on the river Merderet. It con¬
tains 1050 houses, and 7112 inhabitants, employed chief¬
ly in making woollen and linen goods, and gloves. Near
it have been discovered some Roman antiquities, espe¬
cially the ruins of an amphitheatre. Long. 1. 34. W.
Lat. 49. 30. N.
BALOTADE, a term in the manege, signifying a leap
made by a horse between two pillars, or upon a straight
line, in such a manner that when his fore feet are in the
air, he shows nothing but the shoes of his hinder feet Bals
without yerking out.
BALSOVER, or Bolsover, a market-town in the him- !V
dred of Scarsdale and county of Derby, 155 miles from ^ '
London. It is celebrated for the manufacture of tobacco
pipes, and for an ancient magnificent castle built by the
family of Hastings, earls of Abergaveny. The number of
inhabitants in 1801 amounted to 1091, in 1811 to 1151,
and in 1821 to 1245. The market is held on Friday.
BALTA, a town, the capital of the circle of the same
name, in the Russian government of Podolia. It stands
on the Kodima, near its junction with the Bug, and carries
on a trade in corn by that river with Warsaw and Dantzic.
The population is 1600. Long. 29. 33. E. Lat. 47. 46. N.
BALTIC SEA. The denomination of the Baltic, ap¬
plied to the inland sea which forms the subject of this ar¬
ticle, is first found in the work of Adam of Bremen, who
was canon of that city at the close of the eleventh century,
entitled Chorographia Scandinavia;. The etymology of
this name has given rise to many conjectures. The
Swedes derive it from the Scandinavian word baelt, a
girdle, because its waters encircle the land ; the Prussians,
from the Sclavonian or Lettonian word bait, white, from
its being frozen part of the year, or from Baltus, one of
their kings ; while by others it is derived from Baltea, the
name of an island mentioned by Pytheas, a merchant of
Marseilles, who, in the second or third century before the
Christian era, is supposed to have sailed as far north as
this sea. In the countries which bound it, its ancient
name was Variatzkoie More, or the Sea of Variaghi; by
the modern Russians it is called Baltiskoe More ; and by
the Swedes, Danes, and Germans, the East Sea.
I. The Baltic is entered from the British or Northern Geri
Ocean by the Skager-Rack, Cattegat, Sound, and Great and desc .
Little Belts. The Skager-Rack extends from the Naze off™
Norway and the north-west point of Jutland, to the Gulf
of Gottenburg and north point of Jutland, or Scagen
Point, better known to English seamen by the name of
the Scaw. The narrowest part of the Skager-Rack is 19
leagues. The Cattegat extends from Gottenburg and the
Scagen Point to the Sound and Belts. The greatest
depth of the Cattegat is 35 fathoms; but it decreases
as it approaches the Sound. The Sound is the channel
between the coast of Sweden and the island of Zealand.
A mass of rocks on the Swedish shore distinguishes its
entrance from the Cattegat; its termination is between
Falsterbo in Sweden and Cape Stevens in Zealand. Its
narrowest part is between Elsineur and Helsingborg,
where, measured on the ice, it is 2840 yards. Between
Copenhagen and Landscrona it is between six and seven
leagues across. Its greatest depth, where narrowest, is
19 fathoms. Towards the Danish shore, at the entrance
of the Sound from the Cattegat, its depth is 16 fathoms;
but near Copenhagen it is not more than four fathoms.
Close to the Swedish shore there is a gradual accumula¬
tion of sand. The Great Belt, between the islands of Zea¬
land and Funen, is between seven and eight leagues wide
at its broadest place, between Corscer in Zealand, and Ny-
borg in Funen. The little island Sprogce lies nearly in the
middle of it. The coasts are in general low and sandy;
and the greatest depth is about 22 fathoms. The Little
Belt, between Funen and the coast of Jutland, is in its
greatest breadth about seven miles, and, where narrowest,
about three quarters of a mile. In general the shores are
little elevated. Its greatest depth is 27 fathoms.
The Baltic extends 240 leagues fromTorneo to the Island},
of Wollin, on the coast of Pomerania. Its northern extre-ti
mity is situate in the latitude of 65° 51', and its southernex-
tremity is in 53° 30'. It runs first in an easterly direction
as far as Memel, a length of 300 miles, with a mean breadth
BALTIC.
Dep
the.
Lev
its i
of
itic
Ti
of 140-' It then sweeps northwards to the Aland Isles, sensible tides in the Skager-Rack; but these begin to dimi- Baltic.
^ a ]ength of 350 miles, with a mean breadth of 70. Its nish in the Cattegat, are very trifling in the Sound and
northern portion forms the Gulf of Bothnia, which is 150 Belts, and in the Baltic, properly so called, are scarcely, if
leagues in length, with an extreme breadth of 162 miles, at all, perceptible. There are, however, irregular variations
The archipelago of Aland lies at its entrance from the Bal- in the level of the waters of the Baltic, which bear some
tic and forms three channels between the coast of Sweden resemblance to tides. These elevations generally occur
and the islands composing the archipelago. The breadth in autumn, when the weather threatens rain ; and they
of the channel is between eight and nine leagues. This is last sometimes a few days, sometimes several weeks. The
called the Sea of Aland by the Swedes. The space between maximum rise is three feet and a half, and the low shores
Aland and the coast of Finland is filled with numerous are occasionally inundated. They also render the fresh-
islands, among which are two channels. The lower part water lakes which communicate with the sea brackish,
of the gulf from Aland to Umeo is called by the Swedes In the Gulf of Bothnia, the fall of the waters is usually
the Sea of Bothnia. Between Umeo and Wasa the succeeded by north winds; whereas, near Stockholm,
channel is narrowed by a number of rocky islands, form- these winds usually follow the elevation. M. Kraft, far¬
ing a strait eight or nine leagues wide, from which the merly professor of experimental philosophy in the Im-
gulf widens very considerably, and to its head is called perial Academy of Sciences at Petersburg, in his trea¬
ty the Swedes the Gulf of Bothnia. Its greatest as- tise on the inundations of the Neva at the autumnal equi-
certained depth is 50 fathoms. On the east the Baltic nox, observes, that three or four days before or after the
forms the Gulf of Finland, which is 80 leagues long and full or new moon, a violent north-west wind drives the
from II to 22 broad. Its entrance is between Spinthamer waters of the Northern Ocean, during the influx of the
Point in Esthonia, and Hangoe Head in Finland. Its great- tide, into the Baltic, and is accompanied or immediately
est depth is 60 fathoms, which, in some places, decreases succeeded by a south wind in that sea and the Gulf of
to five fathoms. A vast number of rocky islands and Finland. By Schultens, a learned Swede, who paid par-
reefs, many of them level with the water, renders the na- ticular attention to the physical geography of the Baltic,
vigation of this sea extremely dangerous. the irregular elevations of this sea are attributed to the
Df The general depth of the Baltic is 60 fathoms ; but to- state of the atmosphere. He had observed that when the
tic. wards its south-east extremity, and nearly in the middle, waters were about to rise the barometer fell, and that when
are two spots, with 110 and 115 fathoms of water. Prom they were about to fall it rose. Hence he inferred that
the east mouth of the Sound to Bornholm, the depth va- the unequal pressure of the atmosphere on different per¬
ries from 9 to 30 fathoms; from thence to Stockholm tions of the water deranged the level of the waters. The
it is from 15 to 50 ; a little south of Lindo it is 60; and difference between the greatest and the least rise of the
among the Aland Islands it is from 60 to 110. barometer in the northern parts of Europe is two and a
of It was long a generally received opinion that the wa- half inches, which answers to three and a half feet of wa-
ers. ters of the Baltic were considerably more elevated than ter, or the difference of the elevation of the waters at
those of the German Ocean, and that they were gradually their extremes.
diminishing. This seems to have rested entirely on the In the Sound there are superior and inferior currents. Superior
fact of a constant current setting out of the Baltic ; and These were first observed by some Englishmen, who, be-and infe-
to this it is ascribed by Vice-Admiral Nordenancker, who ing in a boat in the middle of the channel, found thatrior cur-
was president of the Swedish Academy in 1792. In a they drifted towards the Cattegat; but having let downrents-
paper published in their Transactions, he maintains that, a loaded bucket to the depth of four or five fathoms, the
from observations made at different periods, the height boat became stationary; and when the bucket was sunk
of the waters of the Baltic was diminishing at the rate of deeper, the boat drifted against the superficial current,
about four and a half lines annually. Celsius, a learned The general currents of the Baltic are strong, and evi-
Swede, who flourished towards the middle of last cen- dently occasioned by the vast number of rivers and streams
tury, advances the same hypothesis; and, from observa- that pour their waters into it, many of which, especially to-
tions made on the coasts of the Baltic, he estimated the wards the north, rise thrice in the course of the year. At
diminution at 45 inches in every hundred years. This the northern extremity of the island of Bornholm, a violent
hypothesis was supported by Linnaeus, who founded on it agitation of the waters, or kind of whirlpool, called by the
a theory of the earth; but the chief facts brought for- Swedes malt-quern, or the grinding-mill, is occasioned by
ward in support of it, namely, marks on several rocks in the current rushing over a circular cluster of sunken rocks,
the Gulf of Bothnia, and the remains of vessels found at The waves of the Baltic are short and broken, in conse-
considerable distances from the present shores, by no quence of sudden changes of wind, irregular depths, and
means warrant it. M. Otto, in his physical observations strong currents.
on this sea, has suggested another theory to account for The waters of this sea are not nearly so salt as those of Saltness,
its apparent decrease. He supposes that, instead of real- the ocean ; and when the wind blows strong from the
ly subsiding, it may be only shifting its position, and gain- north, they become so fresh as to be fit for drinking or
ing in one quarter what it loses in another; and this he cooking meat. The degree of their saltness varies in dif-
ascribes to the large and rapid rivers, which carry along ferent parts, and even in the same parts, according to the
with them an immense quantity of earth and sand, by season or wind. According to Bergman, in his Physical
which the beds at their mouths are raised, and their banks Geography, the waters near the south coast of Norway,
extended towards the sea. But recent observations, made at the entrance of the Skager-Rack, contain from j^th to
at the locks of the canal of Holstein, prove that the levels -fth part of their weight of salt; in the Cattegat ; in
of the Baltic and the ocean are at present generally the the Baltic ^th; and in the Gulf of Bothnia from ^th to
same ; and that the trifling differences which may be j\yth. The south-west and west winds augment the salt-
occasionally observed are owing to accidental and tern- ness, by introducing the waters of the ocean. In the sum-
porary causes. Hence we may infer that the constant mer it requires 300 tons of the water of the Gulf of Both-
current setting out of the Baltic is solely owing to the nia to produce one ton of salt, but in the winter only 50
abundance of the waters which it receives from its rivers, tons. This difference is caused by congelation, and by
It is generally believed that there are no tides in the less fresh water flowing into it.
naltic. This, however, is not strictly correct. There are The analysis of three pounds of water taken up from
326
BALTIC.
Baltic.
Analysis of
its waters.
the British Sea, on the coast of East Friezland, and the
same quantity from near Rostock in the Baltic, gave
British Sea. Baltic.
Muriat of soda 522  263
Muriat of magnesia  HI
Sulphat of lime  23    12
Sulphat of soda  I3  1
Residue   1A-  1
746i 388
The following are the results of some experiments made
by Dr Thomson on the specific gravity of the water in the
Frith of Forth, the Baltic off Tunaberg, the Sound, and
off the Scaw Point; and also on the comparative weight
of salt obtained from 1000 grains of each of the waters
evaporated.
Specific Weight of
gravity. Salt.
Water of the Frith of Forth 1*02900 36*6
Baltic off Tunaberg 1*00476  7*4
Sound 1*00701 11*2
Scaw 1*02037 32*0
In the salt obtained from the water off the Scaw, he
found
Muriat of soda 55*7
Sulphat of magnesia 25*
Muriat of magnesia 19*3
100
Wllcke ascertained that the specific gravity of the wa¬
ter of the Baltic was much influenced by the wind. When
the wind was at east it was 1*0039
West 1*0067
North-west 1*0098
Storm at west 1*0118
Tempera- There is great difference in the temperature in different
ture. parts of the Baltic. The general temperature of the Gulf
of Bothnia in July is from 48° to 56°, but it is sometimes
heated to 70° ; the medium of the thermometer through¬
out the year at Uleoborg is 29°, and at Stockholm 42^°.
Near the land in the Gulf of Bothnia, the temperature of
the atmosphere in the month of July was observed to be
68°, while the temperature of the surface of the water
was 65°; and in October the temperatures of both were
respectively 39° and 46°. In the Sound, the temperature
of the atmosphere in the month of August was 70°; on
the surface of the water 68°; and at three fathoms 66°.
On the 10th of October 1813 Dr Thomson found the
temperature of the Sound to be 54°. The Skager-Rack
and Gulf of Norway are open to navigation all the winter,
whereas several portions of the Baltic are covered wdth
ice in a very moderate degree of cold; and generally the
bays and channels are encumbered with ice at the latter
end of December. The waters towards the heads of the
Gulfs of Bothnia and Finland are first frozen ; and the ice
being conveyed by the currents to the south, the masses
of it are, by the increasing cold, united into vast fields,
which become stationary on the west towards Stockholm,
and in the east towards the islands of Dagce and GEsel. In
the southern parts of the sea the ice begins to break up
in April, but the Gulfs of Bothnia and Finland often con¬
tinue closed till May. The rigour of the climate in the
Baltic is supposed to be considerably diminished by the
clearing of the forests and the progress of cultivation; at
least more intense and long-continued colds, as well as
greater extent and solidity of ice, are recorded during the IS;
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, than what have hap- ''■'* j I
pened latterly. -*
The winds are extremely variable in the Baltic, but
they blow most commonly from the east in the spring, and
from the west in autumn ; calms are seldom experienced,
except in the middle of summer.
II. There is historical evidence that the herring fishery p;,}
was a branch of national industry in the Sound as earlyoftlS11
as the year 1168 J and in 1389 Philip de Mezieres saysBalt |
that such vast shoals of herrings crowded into the Sound,
that 40,000 boats, with from six to ten men each, were em¬
ployed in the fishery, besides 900 large vessels, in which
the herrings were salted. In the Gulfs of Flensborg and
Slie, besides what are consumed fresh, about 1000 tons salt¬
ed are annually exported to Copenhagen and Germany;
and, according to the registers of the custom-house at
Dalborg, on the south shore of the Gulf of Limfiord, this
city exported yearly, from 1720 to 1730, above 23,000
tons, but from 1754 to 1765 the exportation had fallen to
about 8000 tons. In the year 1748 the herring first ap¬
peared in shoals in the Gulf of Gottenburg; at first they
arrived in August and September, but gradually later,
and at present not till November or December. In 1752,
there were 1000 tons taken ; in 1753, 2000 tons ; in 1761,
100,000 tons: from 1790 to 1796, nearly 2,000,000 tons
were salted, and it was estimated that from 50,000 to
100,000 tons were consumed fresh.
Pilchards abound in the Gulfs of Bothnia and Finland,
into the bays of which they arrive in shoals in spring and
autumn. The pilchard fishery is one of the most import¬
ant branches of industry to the inhabitants on both sides
of the Gulf of Bothnia. As soon as the ice breaks up,
upwards of 200 families, with their children and servants,
transport themselves to the rocks and islets that line the
coast, where they remain fishing till the end of autumn.
The annual produce of all the pilchard fisheries is esti¬
mated at 300,000 tons at least, which are entirely con¬
sumed in the Baltic.
Salmon ascend the rivers from April to June, according
as they are free from ice. On the south they abound
most in the Oder, Vistula, Diina, and Narrowa; on the
north, in the Motala, Dalecarlia, Uleo, Kemi, Torneo, and
Keymen. Salmon trout is taken in some bays of the
Baltic. In the middle of the river Kemi is a small island,
where an annual salmon fair is held. The salmon fish¬
eries of Sweden are very considerable, both in the Catte-
gat and the Gulf of Bothnia : from 20,000 to 25,000 tons
are salted annually.
Whales very rarely enter the Baltic. The common
porpoise is the only one of the lesser species of cetaceous
animals that lives habitually in this sea; and at Middle-
fart, in Funen, is a company, which enjoys the exclusive
privilege of taking it. There are two varieties of the
common seal, both of which are hunted for their oil in
March and April, by the peasants of the isle of Gottland,
and of the islands in the Gulfs of Bothnia and Finland.
III. The coast of the Baltic, including under that appel-Ca ^
lation the Skager-Rack, the Cattegat, the Sound, and '
Belts, as w ell as Baltic Proper, may be regarded as com- lL'
mencing on the north side at the Naze of Norway. This
is the extremity of a rocky peninsula joined to the main
by a narrow isthmus; it is surrounded by rocks, of which
those named the Bishop and Clerks, five miles to the
south of the Naze, are most dangerous to navigators.
1 “ In the year 1238 the inhabitants of Gothia (Sweden) and Frise were prevented, by their fear of the Tartars, from send¬
ing, as usual, their ships to the herring fishing on the coast of England; and as there was no exportation, 40 or 50 of these fish were
sold for a shilling. (Matthew Paris, p. 396.) It is whimsical enough that the orders of Mogul Khan, who reigned on the borders ot
China, should have lowered the price of herrings in the English market.” (Gibbon’s Roman Empire, vol. xi. p. 422.)
BALTIC.
327
From the Naze to the east, the shore is formed of ele¬
vated barren and dreary rocks. The principal rivers of
Norway which fall into the Skager-Rack and Cattegat are
die Glonnnen, the Laugen, the Louen, the Drammen, the
Mandal, and the Nid. At the distance of five miles from
die Naze is the town of Mandal, situated on the river of
diat name: from this place is exported a considerable
uantity of smoked and salted salmon, esteemed the best
in Norway. About 15 miles to the east of this is Chris-
dansand, which has a good roadstead, besides the advan¬
tage of the little river Torvedal, to the east of the town ;
it exports timber, salt, fish, and iron. Next comes Aren-
dal the most secure and capacious harbour in Norway,
formed by the Sound between the Island of Fleckerce and
die Main. On the river Louen is the town of Laurwig,
which exports a great deal of iron from the founderies in
its neighbourhood. The Gulf of Christiana lies some
leagues to the east of it. This gulf runs up into the land
20leagues, and divides into several branches: the en¬
trance to it is indicated by the island of Faerdar, on which
there is a light. The town of Christiana stands at the top
of the gulf: its port admits the largest vessels, there being
from 30 to 40 feet water close to the quay; and its exports,
which consist of fir planks and rafters, pitch, tar, soap,
iron, copper, and alum, generally amount to L. 100,000
annually, the timber constituting four fifths. There are
several little villages on the gulf, where vessels load with
dmber. To the east of it is a deep inlet, called Swine-
sund, which separates Norway and Sweden ; it consists of
two basins, the outer of which communicates with the in¬
ner by a very narrow strait. On the inner basin, and at
die mouth of a small river, is Fredericshall, the commerce
of which consists principally in the export of planks, saw¬
ed by thirty-six mills on the river.
The Swedish shores of the Skager-Rack and Cattegat
are high, with a most rugged and dreary appearance, par¬
ticularly near Marstrand, where the shore is lined with
steep rocks projecting into the sea. The coast of Schonen
forms a striking contrast to the shores of the Skager-
Rack and Cattegat, being nearly level and free from rocks.
The Swedish coast from Bleshingar to the Gulf of Both¬
nia is lined with islands and rocks, and broken into a
great number of gulfs and bays. Both shores of the Gulf
of Bothnia are rugged and broken ; that of Sweden, in
particular, forms a sort of alpine ridge. The first river
in Sweden, towards its western limit, is the Gotha, which
flows into the Cattegat by two branches surrounding the
island of Hysingen. This river, and the Motala, which
falls into the Bay of Browick at Nordkoeping, are the only
rivers of consequence in the southern provinces of Swe¬
den. Between the provinces of Soedermanland and Up¬
land is the lake Maelar, which communicates with the
Baltic at Stockholm by two currents called the north and
south; its elevation is six feet above the level of the Baltic.
The river Dahl, or great river of Dalecarlia, the Umeo,
Torneo, and several others, which rise in the mountains of
Lapland and Norway, fall into the Gulf of Bothnia: the
northernmost are subject to three inundations annually;
tlie first in March or April, when the snow on the low
ground melts; the second towards the end of May, when
the snow melts on the more elevated grounds; and the last
towards the end of summer, when the thaw has reached
the high lands and dissolved the glaciers. The first com¬
mercial port of Sweden of any note is Uddevalla, a staple
town; its exports are iron, planks, and herrings. The
town of Marstrand, on an island of the same name, suc¬
ceeds: it is also a staple place, and its inhabitants are en¬
gaged in the herring-fishery, and io supplying provisions
to the vessels which run in for shelter, and which exceed
300 annually. The Paternosters are dangerous rocks some
miles north of Marstrand. On the southern branch of the Baltic.
Gotha, some leagues from the sea, is the city of Gotten-
burg; the port is seldom closed by the ice, and is ca¬
pable of receiving the largest ships ; the harbour is about
one fourth of a mile in breadth, and is formed by two
chains of rocks.
Before the entrance of the Gotha is the island of Win-
gee, with a very high light-house. The south point of
the Bay of Skelder is formed of a mass of rocks lying at
the entrance of the Sound, named Kullen; this mass pro¬
jects far into the sea, and on the highest point, 200 feet
above the sea, is a fire-tower. On the Swedish shore of
the Sound are several villages of little consequence. Hel-
singborg, which is the usual place from which people cross
to Elsineur, is the only one deserving of notice. Four
leagues to the southward is Landscrona, a small and ill-
sheltered port, with 20 feet water; it is a staple town.
The next port is Malmoe, which has a considerable trade,
although its harbour is not capable of receiving vessels of
any great burden. To the south are Skanor and Falsterbo,
on the peninsular point which forms the entrance of the
Sound from the Baltic. Close to the latter is a fire-
tower, to direct vessels clear of a large reef which runs
off from the point. The first Swedish ports on the Baltic
of any consequence are Christianstadt and Carlshamn.
The former is situated on the Helge, which falls into a
gulf that separates the provinces of Schonen and Bleckin-
gen ; the latter has 40 trading vessels engaged in foreign
voyages. The principal export of Carlshamn is potash,
which is esteemed of superior quality. They are both
staple towns. The principal part of the town of Carlscrona
is built on the island of Trosce, the rest of it on several
rocky islets joined to the main by bridges. It is a staple
town, and has about 40 vessels employed in foreign trade:
the port is capable of admitting 100 sail of the line: on
one of the islands is a dock for four sail of the line. Carl¬
scrona is the principal station of the Swedish navy. The
Strait of Calmar, which is from two to three leagues broad,
separates the mainland from the island of Giland. Near
the middle of the strait stands the town of Calmar, which,
though not a staple place, has a considerable trade, and
vessels from 100 to 300 tons, belonging to it. North of
Calmar are several small towns on the coast, one of which,
Westerwic, has some ship-building. In East Gothland,
the province which lies to the north of Smaland on the
Baltic, are two considerable gulfs, Slcetbacken and Bro¬
wick. On the river Motala, which falls into the latter,
stands the staple town of Nordkceping, from which are
exported considerable quantities of iron, iron cannon, and
copper, though its port can only receive vessels of light
burden. From 300 to 400 enter it annually; and 30 or
40 trading vessels belong to it. North of the entrance of
a sound which communicates with Lake Maelar by a canal,
is Landsort Island, where there is a light, and whence
ships take pilots for Stockholm.
Stockholm is built on seven or eight islands and penin¬
sulas, at the entrance of Lake Maelar: the channel is 12
leagues in length, very winding, and terminates in a basin
capable of holding 1000 ships. The largest island, on which
the city stands, forms two channels, through which the
waters of the lake rush out with great impetuosity.
The only ports of any consequence in the province of
Upland, are Grislehamn, opposite the islands of Aland,
where travellers embark or take sledge for Abo; and QSre-
grund, on an island in the channel of Aland, from which
the iron from the founderies of Danemora is exported.
Formerly it was sent chiefly to England, where it was con¬
verted into steel. From Gefle, a staple town on both sides
of a river of the same name, are exported considerable
quantities of iron, planks, tar, and potash; its imports are
328
BALTIC.
Baltic.
Ports.
corn and salt. The smaller islands in the Baltic belonging
to Sweden have already been noticed. Besides these there
are Huen, (Eland, and Gottland. Huen lies in the Sound,
four miles from Landscrona, three from the nearest point
of Sweden, and four from the nearest point of Zealand:
it is about six miles in circumference. (Eland is separated
from the coast of East Gothland by the Strait of Calmar :
the east coast of the island is bold and clear, but the west
is dangerous for mariners. Between (Eland and a^ group
of rocks is the southern channel into the Strait of Calmar.
Nearly in the middle of the strait is a rock, almost per¬
pendicular, 240 feet high, surrounded by reefs. Gottland,
which is 18 leagues from the nearest point of Sweden,
and about the same distance from Courland, is 20 leagues
in length, and seven at its greatest breadth. Its shore in
some places is nearly perpendicular, in other places it as¬
cends gradually. Wisby, the capital, is built on the west
coast; at present its port is capable of receiving only a
few small vessels. Slitehamn, on the east of the island, is
one of the best ports in the Baltic, and is defended by the
fort of Carlsbelt.
The coasts, rivers, gulfs, and principal commercial ports
of the south and east of the Baltic, are next to be describ¬
ed ; and, beginning at the entrance from the German
Ocean, those of Denmark first present themselves. The
north point of Jutland, in the Scaw, is surrounded by a
reef several leagues in extent, and on its extremity is a
light-house, 64 feet above the level of the sea. The north
and east coasts of this peninsula are generally low; the
northern extremity is composed of sands, which are often
conveyed by whirlwinds to a great distance, and do con¬
siderable damage. In order to fix them, a variety of
plants, particularly the Elymus arenarius, sea lime-grass,
are sown. The east coasts of Sleswick and Holstein de¬
scend gently to the sea. On all these coasts there are
numerous gulfs and bays; the first towards the north is
the Limfiord, which nearly divides the peninsula of Jut¬
land, being separated from the German Ocean only by a
sandy isthmus three or four miles broad; another arm of
it advances southward to the town of Wyborg, a length
of about 80 or 90 miles; its entrance is two miles wide,
but afterwards it becomes greatly wider ; sands that very
sensibly increase, and masses of granite, obstruct its en¬
trance. In Jutland there are also the Gulfs of Mariager
and Banders, and several bays. In Sleswick, on the Baltic
side, are the Gulfs of Golding, Flensborg, Slie, which re¬
sembles a great river, and Ekernefiord; in Holstein are
the Gulfs of Kiel, which separates this province from Sles¬
wick, and of Lubec, and the Bay of Colberg. The Guden
is the chief river in Jutland, which falls into the Baltic,
at the Gulf of Banders, after a course of 40 miles.
From the Scaw to the entrance of the Gulf of Limfiord
there are only small towns, chiefly inhabited by fisher¬
men and pilots. On the north shore of the entrance of
Limfiord is the fort of Hals, where vessels of too great
depth to ascend higher discharge their cargoes; and on
the south shore, four leagues and a half from the sea, is
Aalborg, the chief town of Jutland. It possesses consider¬
able commerce, its exports consisting of corn, cattle, and
fish ; and it has 60 or 70 trading vessels belonging to it.
Frederica, which stands on a promontory at the entrance
of the Little Belt, has an inconvenient and badly-shelter¬
ed port: the merchant-vessels passing through the Little
Belt pay toll here. Golding, at the head of the gulf of the
same name, which separates Jutland and Sleswick, is a
commercial town, and has a port of two miles in circuit,
and of depth sufficient for the largest vessels. The trade
of Sleswick, which stands at the head of the Gulf of Slie,
has much declined: the entrance to its port being filled
up with sand, a canal has been cut into it.
Of the Danish islands, Zealand is the principal; its pia
length is 24 leagues, its breadth varies from 20 to 14; thej
Gulf of Isefiord, divided into two branches, penetrates
the north side of it, at the entrance to which there is only
nine feet water, but it deepens within to seven fathoms.
The most remarkable river in Zealand is the Nesaa, which
nearly traverses it, and enters the Baltic. Elsineur, on
the narrowest part of the Sound, has only a roadstead:
here the duties of the Sound are paid. The origin of these
duties may be traced to the middle ages, when they were
established by the sovereigns of Denmark for the support
of light-houses and the protection of the navigation of
the Baltic from pirates. These duties vary from 450,000
to 600,000 rix-dollars annually. The mails and passage-
boats cross the Sound from Elsineur to Helsingborg.
Copenhagen is built partly on the mainland, and partly
on the island of Amak, which is separated from it by a
narrow channel, crossed by two bridges. The port be¬
tween Amak and the main is one of the best in the Baltic,
both by nature and art. Within are basins capable of
containing 500 sail, but the entrance admits but one ship
at a time. There are two royal dock-yards constructed
on islands, where every ship has her particular magazine:
the dry-dock is constructed of wood, and requires 20
hours to pump it dry, which is done by horses. Copen¬
hagen is a free port, and for a long time was the only one
in Denmark which enjoyed the privilege of importing the
produce of Iceland, Greenland, India, China, and Ame¬
rica ; and, even yet, the principal returns from these
countries are made to it.
Maeen island is separated from the south-east end of
Zealand by Ulfsund, a narrow strait. It is about five
leagues long and from one to three broad. It exports
15,000 tons of corn. Samsce, midway between Zealand
and Jutland, is near five leagues long, and is formed of
two peninsulas, the largest of which is five miles broad.
The other islands belonging to the government of Zealand
are of little consequence. Saltholm, in the Sound, may
however be particularized; it is four miles long and two
broad; almost covered by the sea in winter, but in sum¬
mer affords good pasturage, and from it are exported to
the capital, marble, freestone, and lime.
Funen, the second of the Danish islands in extent, is 16
leagues long and 11 broad. The Gulf of Odenzee runs
considerably into it on the north-east. At the head of the
gulf stands the town of Odenzee, the capital. From twenty
to thirty trading vessels belong to it. At Nyborg, on the
Great Belt, a duty is paid by all merchant-vessels passing
through; it is also the usual crossing place to Zealand,
and has a good port, with about as many vessels belonging
to it as Odenzee. The island of Funen exports corn ; and
in the year 1799 there belonged to it fifty-seven vessels
above 20 tons, amounting to 2522 tons, wuth 109 men. From
Budkeeping, the only town on Langland, an island between
Funen and Zealand, corn, salted meat, hides, honey, and
wax are exported.
Laaland, the third of the Danish islands in size, is H
leagues long and from six to eight broad. Considerable
portions of its coast are so low as to be inundated during
the irregular elevations of the sea. The feathers of aqua¬
tic birds and corn are its principal exports. From this
island Falster is separated by Guldborg Sound, and from
Maeen by Grensund. It is eight leagues long and from
one to four broad. It exports corn and fruit. In the year
1799 there were in the bailiwick of Laaland and Falster
fourteen vessels, of 460 tons and 40 men. In the govern¬
ment of Jutland are the islands of Lessee and Anholt, in
the Cattegat; the latter is surrounded by dangerous banks.
Bornholm is an island about seven leagues and a halt
from the coast of Sweden, and upwards of 17 from the
BALTIC.
b island of Rugen. It is eight leagues long and five and a
r half broad. Its shores are composed of steep rocks, sur-
r rounded by dangerous reefs. The principal imports are
coffee, sugar, and tobacco; the principal exports are salt¬
ed cod, corn, poultry, clay for the porcelain manufac¬
tory of Copenhagen, and freestone for its public buildings.
The centre of commerce is at Ronne, near the middle of
the west side of the island. In 1800 this place employed
60 vessels and 130 boats, chiefly in the fisheries.
The first shore on the south of the Baltic is that of
Holstein, the principal port-town of which is Kiel, a place
of considerable commerce. The territory of Lubec suc¬
ceeds. The city of Lubec is situated on the Trave, five
leagues from its mouth. Its commerce is chiefly tran¬
sit and on commission, drawing from Russia, Sweden,
and Denmark their raw commodities, and supplying them
with wines, silks, cloth, hardware, and colonial goods. It
admits vessels of from 150 to 200 tons. In 1802 it had
from 70 to 80 merchant-vessels, and the same year 1368
entered and 1234 cleared out. Travemunde, at the
mouth of the Trave, about nine miles from Lubec, is the
port where vessels destined to and from Lubec take their
station. The Trave, near Lubec, is joined by the Wake-
nitz, which, issuing from the Lake of Ratzeburg, thus
facilitates the water communication between Lubec and
the interior. •
On passing the Trave, the duchy of Mecklenburg is
entered. Wismar, a bay within the isle of Poel, and Ros¬
tock, on the left bank of the Warn aw*, three leagues from
its mouth, are the principal commercial places in Meck¬
lenburg. The exports from the latter are corn, hemp, flax,
hops, wax, butter, honey, cattle, apples, and feathers.
The coast of Pomerania exhibits the effects of the con¬
stant action of the waters of the Baltic. On the west, the
peninsula of Bars and the island of Zingst form the basin
called Des Bars, which has six feet depth. The Strait of
Gellen, farther east, separates the island of Rugen from
the main. This strait varies in breadth from fourteen
miles to one and a quarter, and the eastern entrance, call¬
ed the Bodden, is navigable for the largest vessels; but in
the narrows there is only from three to four fathoms ; and
the sand accumulates so fast here as to require a toll on
all vessels passing through it, to defray the expense of
clearing it.
The Gulf of Dantzic lies beyond the eastern limits of
Pomerania, the western extremity of which, called the
Gulf of Putzic, is formed by a curved tongue of land. On
the coast of Prussia are the two remarkable basins called
the Fresch-Haff and Curish-Haff. The waters of both
are fresh, being supplied from the rivers of Poland ; and
each communicates with the Baltic by a single strait.
The Fresch-Haff, which, besides three branches of the
Vistula, receives the rivers Elbing, Passarge, and Pre¬
gel, is 16 or 17 leagues long and from one to five broad.
Ihe communication of this basin with the Baltic has
changed several times, and the present passage, near Pil-
lau, was formed by a great storm in 1500 ; its depth is
from 13 to 16 feet. The tongue of land called the Fresch-
Nehrung, which separates it from the Baltic, commences
near Dantzic, and runs east about 19 leagues ; its breadth
varies from one to three leagues. The Curish-Haff, or
Sea of the Cures, a people of Courland, is 19 leagues
long and from one to three broad. Its depth is very ir¬
regular, and there are many sand banks in it. Near the
upper end there is little current, but in the other parts the
currents are very rapid. It communicates with the Baltic
by a channel near Memel, 3200 feet wide and from 11 to
13 feet deep. The spit of land which separates it from
the Baltic, called the Curish-Nehrung, is about 80 miles
long, in some places three miles broad, but in other places
von. IV.
it is so very narrow that the waves of the Baltic wash over
it into the basin. Its surface, which is principally sand, "
continually changes by the fury of the winds. From its
ancient name, Mendoniemi, or Promontory of Pines, it was
probably covered with those trees. It is inhabited only
by fishermen and pilots, whose dwellings are not unfre-
quently overwhelmed by the sand. It is frequented by
immense numbers of crows and hawks ; the former of
which supply food to the inhabitants, and the tithe of
them forms part of the revenue of the pastor.
The whole coast of Prussia and Courland is low, sandy,
and covered with pebbles ; the latter, however, has calca¬
reous cliffs, which seem to run under water to the island
of Gottland. The Gulf of Livonia or Riga has Domes-
ness for its southern limit, between which and the Swa-
verort is the entrance, eight leagues wide; but from
Domes-ness a sand bank runs off, and a reef from Swa-
verort. The coast of Livonia, and the islands off it, are
in general higher than those of Courland, and are com¬
posed of sand, gravel, and calcareous strata. Entering
the Gulf of Finland, on the south side is the bay of Rog-
gerswic, inclosed by islands. The whole of the coast of
Finland is naked, stony, lined with rocks and islets, and
nearly bare of vegetation.
The principal rivers of Prussia that flow into the Baltic
are the Oder and the Vistula. The Oder, after dividing
into four principal branches near the frontiers of Pome¬
rania, again flows into one stream near Stettin, and falls
into the Gros-Haff. Between the Oder and the Vistula
several lesser rivers discharge themselves, and being ge¬
nerally navigable, form ports at their mouths. Three of
the branches of the Vistula fall into the Fresch-Haff;
and the fourth, which alone retains its original name, en¬
ters the Gulf of Dantzic at Weixelmunde. The Pregel,
which is deeper than the Fresch-Haff, into which it falls,
is navigated by vessels of considerable burden. The Elb¬
ing issues from Lake Dramsen, and, as has been already
noticed, falls into the Fresch-Haff. The Niemen, below
Tilsit, separates into two branches, one running to the
south-west and the other to the north-west; thus both
subdivide, and fall into the Curish-Haff near Memel. The
Dange, which gives a port to Memel, has a short course,
but is wide and deep.
Stralsund is the first commercial port on the Pomera¬
nian shore of the Baltic. Its harbour is inclosed by jet¬
ties, but the access is dangerous and difficult, on account
of sand banks. It has a considerable export trade in
brandy, starch, and linens. Stettin, on the Oder, suc¬
ceeds. Vessels of moderate burden go up to it, but large
ones discharge at Swinemunde, on the channel into the
Gros-Haff, which separates the islands of Usedom and
Wollin. Between the years 1787 and 1796 the annual
exports were 3714 tons. The imports consist of ma¬
nufactured goods from England; salt, wines, and fruits
from France, &c.; and linseed from Russia. About 160
vessels, manned by 1000 seamen, belong to it. From
Politz, near the mouth of the Oder, are exported several
thousand bushels of hops, chiefly to Sweden.
The principal islands off the coast of Pomerania are
Rugen, Usedom, Ruden, and Wollin. Rugen is separat¬
ed from the mainland by the Strait of Gellen. It is of a
very irregular shape, and consists of the island proper
and three peninsulas. It is supposed to contain 142,000
acres. Two of the peninsulas terminate in promontories,
composed of chalky cliffs, one of which is 430 feet high.
There is no port on the island; but from the roads are ex¬
ported herrings, cattle, corn, and salted geese. The coasts
are very dangerous, scarcely a year passing in which
some vessels are not stranded; and several ancient regu¬
lations are still in force respecting the assistance which
2 T
329
Baltic.
330 B A L
Baltic, the inhabitants are bound to give in case of shipwrecks.
The islands of Usedom, Ruden, and Wollin, are formed
by the alluvion of the Peene and the Oder ; they are very
low, and in general sandy.
Dantzic is the principal commercial place in Prussian
Poland. It is situated on the western branch of the Vis¬
tula, five miles from its mouth, and at the confluence of
the rivulets Motlau and Radaune. These form its port, to
which there is an entrance by a canal giving a new chan¬
nel to the Vistula, the old one being choked up. Dantzic
has long justly been considered one of the granaries of
Europe. Its annual exports of corn average about 700,000
tons. Its other exports are timber, beer, brandy, horse-hair,
hogs’ bristles, feathers, wool, amber, honey, wax, linens,
masts of ships, cork-wood, hemp and flax, potash, salt,
tar, skins, fruits, &c. Its imports are English manufac¬
tures and London porter, herrings, fruits, lead, coffee,
tea, sugar, indigo, wines, &c.
Pillau, whence there is a considerable export of tim¬
ber, stands on a peninsula washed by the Frescb-Haff on
one side, and by the Baltic on the other. From Konigs-
berg, on an island at the mouth of the Pregel, are ex¬
ported nearly the same articles as from Dantzic, in be¬
tween 600 and 700 vessels annually. From Elbing, at
the. mouth of the river of the same name, corn, starch,
linseed oil, soap, cordage, sail cloth, saltpetre, potash,
and timber, are exported in between 300 and 400 vessels
annually. The port of Memel, formerly the mouth of
the river Dange, is liable to be encumbered with mud;
its chief exports are ship timber, masts, linseed of a su¬
perior quality, hemp, flax, hides, and tallow.
The first Russian river of consequence that falls into
the Baltic is the Western Dwina. It is navigable from
its source to within a few miles of Riga, where ridges of
rocks form fourteen falls. These, however, do not pre¬
vent the floating down of immense quantities of timber.
It is frozen from the end of November to the beginning
of April. It separates Courland from Livonia, and, after
a course of 180 leagues, falls into the Gulf of Livonia be¬
fore Riga. The Narrowa, which is the only ojitlet of
Lakes Peipus and Plaskoff, falls into the Gulf of Finland
at Narva, but its navigation is obstructed half a league
above that town by a fall. The Neva, which issues from
Lake Ladoga, disembogues itself by several branches at
Petersburg, above which it is from 150 to 200 fathoms
broad. It is shallow, and is frozen from the end of Octo¬
ber to the end of April. The principal rivers in Finland are
the Wuoxen, which falls into Lake Ladoga; the Kymene,
which discharges itself into the Gulf of Finland; and the
Kumo, Uleo, Kemi, and Torneo, which fall into the Gulf
of Bothnia, at the towns of their respective names. In
Courland, Russia has only two ports of any commercial
consequence, Liebau and Windau. From the former, on
a river of the same name, 111 vessels cleared out, and
113 entered it, in the year 1800; and the value of its
exports amounted to 1,065,700 rubles, and of its imports
to 620,000. Riga and Pernau are the principal ports in
Livonia. Riga is one of the most commercial cities of the
Baltic, and the second of Russia in this respect. Its port
can only receive small vessels, large ones being obliged to
lie in the roads. The exports consist of corn, hemp, flax,
ship timber, pitch, potash, hides, tallow, iron, &c. The
imports are woollen and cotton goods, hardware, wines,
oils, spirits, and colonial produce.
Though the entrance to Revel is through dangerous
shoals, and the town stands on a river which alfords little
or no intercourse with the interior, yet its commerce is
considerable. Its exports and imports are nearly the
same as Riga.
Petersburg is built on both sides of the Neva, and on
TIC.
several islands. The mouth of the river being choked by ft
sand, there are only from seven to eleven feet of water ^
over it, according as the wind blows from the east or west.
With easterly winds the river often falls three or four
feet below its general level, whereas westerly winds some¬
times raise it from ten to fifteen feet. Loaded ships of
any considerable burden cannot, therefore, approach with¬
in four miles of the city. The principal exports are iron,
hemp, flax, cordage, tallow, hides, linseed oil, hemp and
flax seed, planks and rafters, leather, soap, candles, wax
and honey, fish, caviar, tobacco, rhubarb, tea, isinglass,
feathers, linen, and furs. The principal imports are Eng¬
lish cotton manufactures, French wines, colours, coffee,
sugar, drugs, &c.
Cronstadt, the principal station of the Russian fleet, is
built on a little island on the Gulf of Petersburg, four
leagues below the city, the same distance from Ingria,
and nine leagues from Finland. The channel to the capi¬
tal lies between this place and the coast of Ingria. Its na¬
vigable breadth is three quarters of a mile, its depth four
fathoms. The channel between Cronstadt and the coast
of Finland has only five feet of water. Cronstadt has three
havens, two for ships of war and one for merchant vessels.
The dry docks, wRich communicate with the sea by a
canal, require nine days to empty them. The principal
man of war’s port has space for thirty sail of the line.
The first commercial port in Finland is Wyborg, built
on a peninsula in a gulf of the same name. It exports
corn, butter, tallow, fish, fish oil, salted provisions, timber,
tar, and hops. Helsingfors, the best port in Finland for
large ships, is on a bay; and opposite to it is Sveaborg,
the Gibraltar of the north. It occupies seven islands, and
has two basins for repairing ships of the line and smaller
vessels. At the entrance of the Gulf of Bothnia, on a
peninsula, stands Abo. Vessels drawing nine or ten feet
go up to the town. While it belonged to Sweden it was
a staple town, with some trade to the Mediterranean,
France, and Holland, whither it exported iron, nails, cop¬
per, deals, rafters, pitch and tar, salted provisions, hides,
furs, coarse linens, and firewood, to Stockholm and Copen¬
hagen. From Abo there is no commercial place of con¬
sequence till we come to Gamla Carlby, which, in 1794,
had fourteen ships of 1530 tons, thirteen of which were
employed in foreign trade. Its exports that year were
1800 barrels of tar, 1500 of pitch, between 3000 and 4000
deals, 2000 lbs. of butter, 273 cwt. of tallow, and 900
barrels of corn. Brahested, a staple town while Finland
belonged to Sweden, possesses commerce nearly of the
same kind and to the same amount as Gamla Carlby. It
lies in a bay between two peninsulas. Uleoborg, the chief
town of East Bothnia, on the Uleo, exports annually a
considerable quantity of pitch and tar, butter, tallow, sal¬
mon, pike, herrings, and deals. On the islands at the
mouth of the river are two building places, from which
five or six ships are launched annually. Torneo is situate
on a peninsula, and had formerly a good harbour, but the
accumulation of sand has almost ruined it. The exports,
besides the general articles from the other ports of Fin¬
land, are salted and smoked rein-deer flesh, and the furs
of the rein-deer, fox, wrolf, and ermine, procured from the
Laplanders, who visit the town once a year.
The Russian islands at the northern extremity of the Gulf
of Livonia, CEsel and Dagce, and the numerous islands and
rocks in the Gulf of Finland, require no particular notice.
The archipelago of Aland, which was ceded to Russia
along with Swedish Finland in 1809, is composed of one
considerable and above eighty lesser islands and rocks.
They are in general elevated, rising on rocky peaks, with
numerous caverns. The principal island is nearly round,
and twenty leagues in circumference. There is no town
BALTIC.
331
Balt
anal?
le Be
on any of them. Besides fire-wood, 12,000 loads of which
' are sent annually to Finland and Sweden, the inhabitants
export salted beef, seal skins and oil, tallow, hides, pil¬
chards, and butter, chiefly to Stockholm.
IV. The commerce of the Baltic is considerably tacin-
,, tate(i' and increased by means of different canals, which
form a communication with different parts of it, with it
and other seas, and with the interior of the countries, the
shores of which it washes. . .
The ancient Scandinavian chronicles mention a natural
water communication between the Baltic and the German
Ocean through the Danish peninsula, by means of the
Gulf of Kiel, the river Lewensau, the lake Flemhud, and
the river Eyder. When the communication ceased to be
practicable, an attempt to renew it was made in the mid¬
dle of the seventeenth century by the duke of Holstein
Gottorp. It did not however succeed, in consequence of
the opposition of the king of Denmark. The union of
Holstein and Denmark taking place in 1773, the proposed
canal was begun in 1777, and finished in 1784. It enters
from the Baltic by the Gulf of Kiel, near the mouth of
the Lewensau, the waters of which serve to supply it; then
joins the northern extremity of Lake Flemhud, unites with
the Upper Eyder, passes "by Rendsburg, and falls into
the German Ocean at Tonningen. The perpendicular fall
towards the Baltic is twenty-five feet six inches, and that to¬
wards the ocean twenty-three. To Lake Flemhud, which
is the highest point, vessels are drawn by horses, and
elevated by three locks of nearly ten feet fall each; three
other locks lower them to the Eyder; and from Rends¬
burg to Tonningen vessels use their sails. The whole
length of the navigation from sea to sea is about 105
miles, of which the canal forms 20|: its breadth is 100
feet at top, 54 at bottom, and the least depth 10 feet, so
that it can admit vessels of about 140 tons burden. Up¬
wards of 2000 pass it annually. The Baltic and the Ger¬
man Ocean are also united by means of the canal of
Stecknitz. This canal unites the rivulet of that name
which falls into the Trave with the Devenau, a rivulet
that runs into the Elbe at Lauenburg. This navigation
is fit only for flat-bottomed boats, and is very tedious.
The Baltic has communication with the interior of Ger¬
many by the canals of Muhlrose and Finow. The first
unites the Oder above Frankfort with the Spree, one of
the tributary streams of the Elbe. The canal of Finow
joins the river of this name, which falls into the Oder, with
the Havel, another branch of the Elbe. By means of these
and some lesser canals a long navigation through Silesia,
Brandenburg, Lower Saxony, and Pomerania, is maintained.
There is also an artificial navigation which unites the Vistula
and the Oder: thisisthe canal of Bromberg, which joins the
Brahe, a tributary of the Vistula, with the Netze, which
falls into the Warthe, and the latter into the Oder. The
Niemen, in conjunction with the Dnieper, affords a com¬
munication between the Baltic and the Black Sea; the
canal of Pinsk uniting the former river near its head with
the Priapetz, which falls into the Dnieper. These seas
are also united by means of the Dwina and Dnieper.
The boats employed in this navigation ascend the Dwina
to the Ulla, which they also ascend as far as the Lake
Bieloe, out of which it flows. By crossing this lake they
reach the river Essena, which they ascend to Lake Bere-
sina. Here they enter a canal four leagues in length, which
conveys them into Lake Plawia. From this lake flows the
river Sargutsch, which joins the river Beresina, and this
latter falls into the Dnieper; but the cataracts in this river,
about 250 miles above its estuary, greatly impede the in¬
tercourse which might otherwise be established by these
two navigations between the Baltic and the Black Sea.
The Baltic and Caspian Sea are united by the canals
of Ladoga and Vyschnei Volotschok. The canal of La- Baltic,
doga, so called, not because it enters that lake, but as
winding along its margin, extends from the river Volchof
to the Neva. In the original navigation the boats pass¬
ed from the canal of Ladoga up the Volchof to Lake
Ilmen, and from this lake entered the river Masta; but in
consequence of the fatal accidents that happened on the
rapids of this river, one of which is six or seven leagues
long, a canal was cut directly upon the Volchof to the
Masta above the rapids. The old route is here only fol¬
lowed at a certain season, and by boats of a peculiar con¬
struction. Ascending the Masta, the boats enter the Lake
Mstinskoja, and thence the river Shlina, from which, by
means of a canal with a lock, they enter the Sna, and by
another lock the canal of Vyschnei Volotschok. This is
a league in length, and from it a lock lowers the boats
into the Twerza, which they descend to the Wolga. In
order to facilitate the ascending navigation from Peters¬
burg, which is rendered tedious by the rapidity of the
Volchof and the Masta, a canal has been cut, combining
the Tichwin, which falls into the Ladoga, and the Somina,
which falls into the Molaga, a tributary of the Wolga. In
spring the vessels may draw two and a half feet water,
but in summer only twenty-six inches. In autumn the
navigation from Vyschnei Volotschok to Petersburg is
performed in rather more than a month, in summer in
three weeks, and in spring in a fortnight.
By these canals a navigation is established nearly the
whole way from Petersburg to the frontiers of China,
there being an interruption only in two places, both not
more than sixty miles. The distance from Petersburg
is between 1600 and 1700 leagues; but the rivers being
navigable only in the fine season, it requires three years
to complete the passage. The extent of the commerce
is about one and a half million of rubles annually.
The Baltic and the Caspian are also connected by the
canal of Maria. The boats ascend the Neva, cross the
Lake Ladoga, and enter the Swir, which they ascend to
Lake Onega. From this lake they ascend the Wytegra,
which is united by the canal of Maria to the Kowska. By
ascending this they arrive at Lake Bieloe, and crossing it
enter the river Tchesna, which they descend to the Wol¬
ga. A canal has long been projected to form a communi¬
cation between the Baltic and the White Sea; but though
it was begun more than fifty years ago, there is only a
small portion of it executed.
Ever since the time of Gustavus Vasa, the Swedes have
been anxious to form an inland navigation between Stock¬
holm and the Cattegat, principally in order to avoid the
payment of the duties of the Sound, and Danish privateers
in case of war. This navigation presented no very formidable
difficulties. The Gotha flows out of Lake Venar; this is at
no great distance from Lake Hielmar; and this again is still
nearer Lake Mselar, which communicates with the Baltic
at Stockholm. Hence it appears that the plan of form¬
ing an internal water communication between Glottenburg
and the capital may be divided into three principal parts ;
the junction of the Hielmar and the M^selar, of the Hielmar
and the Venar, and the rendering the Gotha navigable
from the Venar to Gottenburg. The Hielmar is seventy-
three feet higher than the Mselar, which is six feet above
the Baltic. These two lakes were united in the reigns
of Christina, Charles XL, and Charles XII., by the small
river Ulvison and the canal of Arboga. Nine locks are
necessary to establish this communication. The obsta¬
cles that opposed the navigation of the Gotha from Lake
Venar were principally just at its first issuing from that
lake, at the four cataracts, twenty leagues above Got¬
tenburg, called by the general name of Trollhseta; the
fall of Akerstrom, about a mile below these cataracts, and
332 B A L
B A L
Baltimore a bed of rocks at Edit, considerably nearer Gottenburg.
II The first impediment was removed in the reigns of Charles
Balustrade, xi. and XII. by the Carlsgraf Canal. Attempts were
made to remove the second by carrying a canal along the
channel of the river; but these not succeeding, it was re¬
solved to cut the canal through the solid rock which forms
its banks. This work was begun in 1793, and complet¬
ed in seven years. The canal commences below the first
fall of Trollhaeta (for this fall, by the former plan, had been
nearly turned into still water), and is carried nearly a
league before it again joins the river; its breadth is twen¬
ty-two feet and its depth six and a half, and it has eight
locks and a large reservoir. A communication between
Lake Mselar and the Lake Sodra Barken, on the borders
of Dalecarlia, is effected by means of the canal of Straehms-
holm, several small lakes, a river, and several locks, some
of which have a fall of thirty-eight feet. A communi¬
cation between Lake Maelar and the Baltic, considerably
to the south of the exit of that lake, and much shorter
than by it, is afforded by means of a canal that joins Lake
Mmlar with the Sound, at the head of which stands the
town of Seeder Telje.
See Thomson’s Travels in Sweden; Tableau de la Mer
Baltique, par Catteau; Tableau des Etais Danois, par
Catteau ; Macpherson’s edition of Anderson’s History of
Commerce ; Oddy’s European Commerce ; Maritime Geo¬
graphy and Statistics, by Tuckey.
BALTIMORE, a decayed town of Ireland, in the county
of Cork, situated on a headland projecting into the sea,
with a good harbour. It is 13 miles south-east of Bantry.
Baltimore, a town of Maryland, in North America.
It is situated round the head of a small bay, which is an
arm of the Chesapeak, and near the mouth of the river
Patapsco. The basin which forms the harbour is of a
circular form, with a narrow entrance guarded by a fort,
and is large enough to contain 2000 merchant vessels.
Baltimore is now the third port, in point of trade, in the
United States, New York and Philadelphia only being
superior. Its progress has been rapid beyond example.
In 1750 it was a village of ten or twelve houses, and in
1818 it contained 60,000 inhabitants. The merchants
■here are considered among the most enterprising in the
United States. The tonnage belonging to the port in
1815 amounted to 107,137 tons. A British force attack¬
ed Baltimore in September 1814; but the ships of war
being unable to force the entrance to the harbour, the
attack by land proved unsuccessful, and the troops with¬
drew, with the loss of the commander, General Ross, and
200 men. The houses in Baltimore are generally well
built, and many of the public edifices are extremely hand¬
some. The Roman Catholics are the most numerous class;
the other considerable sects are the Episcopalians, Pres¬
byterians, Baptists, and Quakers. The democratic party
have a more decided superiority in Baltimore than in any
other great city in the United States. Long. 76. 40. W.
Lat. 39. 10. N.
BALTINGLASS, a town of Ireland, county of Wick¬
low, on the river Slaney. It carries on a manufacture of
linen and woollen cloths. Here an action took place in
1798, between the royalists and the insurgents, in which
the latter were defeated. The population is 1500, and it
is 37 miles south by west of Dublin.
BALUBALAGAN, a cluster of thirteen small, flat,
wooded islands in the Straits of Macassar, having navigable
channels between them, but uneven anchorage. There is
a fishery here for biche-de-mer.
BALUSIER, a small kind of pillar used for balustrades.
BALUSTRADE, a series or row of balusters, joined
by a rail, and serving as well for a rest to the elbows as
lor a tence or inclosure to balconies, altars, staircases, &c.
BALUZE, Etienne, awriter eminently distinguished by na
his knowledge of history, ecclesiastical antiquities, and the ^ j
canon law, was born at Tulle on the 24th of December 1630,
being the descendant of a family which had long adhered
to the legal profession. He received his elementary edu¬
cation at the place of his nativity, and afterwards prosecut¬
ed his studies in the university of Toulouse, where he ob¬
tained an exhibition in the College of St Martial. Having
finished his course of philosophy, he commenced his at¬
tendance in the schools of law; but although he attained
to great proficiency in certain departments of jurispru¬
dence, he felt no inclination for the ordinary occupations
of a lawyer, and never followed the profession of an advo¬
cate. He possessed a natural alacrity of mind, and was
capable of the most intense literary exertion ; and his life
being prolonged beyond the ordinary limits, he succes¬
sively engaged in many undertakings of great research
and of great utility. Before he quitted the university, he
appeared in the character of an author. His earliest in¬
quiries related to different subjects of ecclesiastical anti¬
quities ; and the reputation which he thus acquired recom¬
mended him to the notice of M. de Montchal, archbishop of
Toulouse, who granted him access to his library. This pre¬
late was succeeded by M. de Marca, who soon became
archbishop of Paris, and who was profoundly skilled in
those branches of knowledge which Baluze so long con¬
tinued to cultivate. In 1656 the archbishop invited him
to the metropolis. Here he improved in the good graces
of his patron, and even participated in his learned re¬
searches. From an individual of so much influence at court,
he might naturally have hoped for a competent share of
preferment; but before his hopes were realized, the prelate
died on the 29th of June 1662.
He speedily found another favourer of his studies in
M. le Tellier, afterwards chancellor of France, who, with
the view of engaging him in the service of his son the
Abbe le Tellier, the future archbishop of Reims, conferred
upon him many benefits, of which he retained a grateful
remembrance. But, from various causes, the proposed
arrangement never took place ; and he was next connect¬
ed with the establishment of M. de Lamothe-Houdancourt,
archbishop of Auch. In 1667 M. Colbert offered him the
situation of keeper of his library, one of the most magnifi¬
cent private collections in Europe; and its value, both in
manuscripts and in printed books, was greatly augmented
by the judgment and zeal of the learned librarian. Having
retained his office for some time after the death of Colbert,
he resigned it in the year 1700 : the library had then de¬
scended to the archbishop of Rouen, and he had ceased
to find his situation agreeable. He appears to have oc¬
cupied apartments connected with the library; and we
are informed that he now retired to a house belonging to
the Scotish College.
In the year 1668, the Abbe Faget published some works
of his relation M. de Marca; and, in the life prefixed, he
took occasion to state, that when the prelate was at the
point of death, he enjoined Baluze to place all his papers
in the hands of his son the president. He had in reality
committed his manuscripts to the care of Baluze himself,
who was therefore greatly offended at this statement, and
vented his spleen in different letters. The abbe replied
in the same strain, and aftenvards inserted their angry
correspondence in his collection of Dissertations. The
heat which Baluze displayed upon this occasion excited
the more surprise, as his disposition was habitually gentle.
Of his animosity against Faget he has left a further re¬
cord in his life of De Marca, prefixed to the treatise
Concordia Sacerdotii et Imperii.
In 1670 he was appointed professor of the canon la"
in the Royal College. The canon law had long been taught
B A L U Z E.
333
. the university of Paris, and there indeed it was long
J ght to the entire exclusion of the civil law ; but this
was a new chair which the king was pleased to erect in his
favour- and of his high qualifications for such a professor-
chin he has left the most unequivocal proofs. Nor was this
the only preferment which his learning procured him. He
was appointed a canon of the cathedral of Reims; and in
,he privilege appended to his edition of Marius Mercator,
nrinted in the year 1684, he is designated “ EstienneBaluze,
nrieur de Beauvais.” It may therefore be inferred that he
enioved a considerable pension from that abbey; nor were
such arrangements uncommon at that period of the history
of France. He is described as “ simple tonsurean expres¬
sion which denotes that he was not a priest or a deacon,
but had only been initiated into one of the lowest of the
seven holy orders. In order to recompense M. Martin,
who had been the tutor of Colbert’s children, that minister
had procured him a pension of 2000 livres, payable out of
the bishopric of Auxerre; but the conscientious ecclesi¬
astic represented to his patron that he had rendered no
services to the diocese of Auxerre, and therefore could
accept of no share of its revenues, more especially as a
compensation for services which were not of a spiritual,
but of a temporal nature. One half of this pension was
then bestowed upon Baluze, whose scruples do not appear
to have been equally powerful. In 1683 he had publish¬
ed a volume of councils, and it was his original intention
to extend the collection to several volumes; but some of
the materials which he had prepared could not be much
relished at Rome; and as his pension required the sanction
of that most corrupt of all courts, he thought it expedient
to abandon his design. Of the acts of the council of
Basel he had proposed to print a very ample collection;
and this was indeed the part of his plan for which the
whole had chiefly been undertaken. After an interval of
ten years, he published his lives of the popes of Avignon;
a work of curious research, which procured him a pension
from the crown, and afterwards the office of director of
the Royal College, where he succeeded the Abbe Gallois
in the year 1700. But the favour of a court is at ah times
and in all places held by a very precarious tenure. Baluze,
who had attached himself to Cardinal de Bouillon, and had
been employed in writing the history of his family, was
involved in the disgrace which attended this illustrious
prelate. He had traced the cardinal s lineage to the an¬
cient dukes of Guienne and counts of Auvergne; and
when his patron had retired to a foreign country, the
tyranny of Louis XIV. endeavoured to mortify him in the
person of his family-historian, who was charged with abet¬
ting the cardinal’s pretensions to independence. A lettre
de cachet removed him from Paris: his place of exile was
repeatedly changed, and his residence successivelyrestrict-
ed to Rouen, Blois, Tours, and Orleans; nor could he ob¬
tain his recall till the year 1713, after the peace of Utrecht:
but although he was at length permitted to revisit Paris,
he never recovered his two offices of director and professor
of the Royal College. Such proceedings as these, which
were very far from being uncommon, are sufficiently cha¬
racteristic of the old despotism of France.
Although this persecution commenced when he had near¬
ly attained the age of eighty, it did not quench his literary
ardour; for, during his exile, he employed himself in prepar¬
ing an edition of the works of St Cyprian, which was publish¬
ed after his death. His constitution had never been vigor¬
ous, but the sobriety and regularity of his habits enabled
him to reach a mature and healthy old age; and, accord¬
ing to the expression of Niceron, he lived with pleasure
and died with resignation.1 He died on the 28th of July Baluzc
1718, in the eighty-eighth year of his age ; and his remains
were interred in the church of St Sulpice. A person who
had lived so long in the midst of learned dust, without
either wife or children to blow it aside, could not well be
without his share of peculiarities. He was not entirely
exempted from caprice, and his testament exhibited this
caprice in no very amiable light; his relations and domes¬
tics were almost totally forgotten, and the bulk of his pro¬
perty was bequeathed to a woman who appears to have
had no claim upon him. Some scholars, who have collect¬
ed libraries with much labour and at great expense, are
inclined to cherish an anxious wish that they should be
preserved entire; but, on the contrary, he was desirous
that his library should be sold in detail, lest any one indi¬
vidual should be put in possession of those literary treasures
which he himself had gradually amassed. This collection
consisted of 10,799 articles, including more than 1500 ma¬
nuscripts, together with 115 printed books which he had
interspersed with annotations. The manuscripts were
added to the Royal Library.
Baluze was a man of great learning and research in
those departments to which he had devoted his chief at¬
tention ; and his publications have in an eminent degree
elucidated various branches of law, history, and antiqui¬
ties. His merits are perhaps more conspicuous as an edi¬
tor than as an author. He was particularly conversant
with ancient manuscripts; and being likewise possessed of
much erudition and critical skill, he has published valuable
editions of many ancient monuments. If his labours had
not extended beyond the Capitularia Begum Francorum,
his name would always have been mentioned with respect
by lawyers and historians; but some of his other publi¬
cations greatly illustrate the history of the middle ages;
nor must we forget the light which they reflect upon the
history of the canon law, and upon the writings of the
Latin fathers.
Of the principal works which he published in a separate
form we shall subjoin a catalogue, interspersed with a
few brief notices.
1. Antifrizonius. Tolosae, 1652, 12mo.—-This work con¬
tains an exposition of the inaccuracies to be found in the
Gallia Purpurata of Pierre Frizon, a doctor of the Sor-
bonne, published in 1638.
2. Dissertation sur le Temps ou a vecu S. Sadroc,
Eveque de Limoges. Tulles, 1655, 12mo.
3. Dissertatio de Sanctis Claro, Laudo, Ulfardo, Bau-
mado, quorum sacrse Reliquiae servantur in Cathedrali
Ecclesia Tutelensi apud Lemovices. Tutelae, 1656, 8vo.
4. Petri de Marca, Archiepiscopi Parisiensis, de Concor¬
dia Sacerdotii et Imperii, seu de Libertatibus EcclesiaeGal-
licanae, libri viii. a Stephano Baluzio emendati. Paris. 1663,
fol. Paris. 1669, fol. Paris. 1704, fob—The first edition, con¬
sisting of four books, had been published in 1641, when the
author was president of the parliament of Pau. The edition
of 1663 contains four additional books; and the two subse¬
quent editions received further augmentations from Baluze.
The life uf the author had been published in a separate form,
under the title of “ Stephani Baluzii Tutelensis^Canonici
Remensis, Epistola ad clarissimum et eruditissimum vi-
rum Samuelem Sorberium, de Vita, Rebus gestis, Moribus,
et Scriptis illustrissimi viri Petri de Marca, Archiepiscopi
Parisiensis.” Paris. 1663, 8vo. . .
5. Salviani Massiliensis et Vincentii Lmnensis Opera,
ad fidem veterum codicum manuscriptorum emendata,
notisque rllustrata. Paris. 1663, 8vo. Paris. 1669, Svo.
Paris. J684, 8vo.—The last edition is considered the best.
1 Nicei'on, Memoires pour scrv'xr d
VHistoxre cies Hommes illustrcs dam la Rqmllique des Lettres, tom. i. p. 150.
334
B A L U Z E.
Baluze.
6. Servati Lupi, Presbyteri et Abbatis Ferrariensis,
' Opera. Paris. 1664, 8vo.
7. S. Agobardi, Archiepiscopi Lugdunensis, Opera;
item Epistolae et Opuscula Leidradi et Amulonis Arch.
Lugd. notis illustrata. Paris. 1666, 2 tom. 8vo.
8. Concilia Gallise Narbonensis, cum notis. Paris.
1668, 8vo.
9. S. Caesarii, Arelatensis Episcopi, Homiliae xiv. notis
illustratae. Paris. 1669, 8vo.
10. Petri de Marca, Arcbiepiscopi Parisiensis, Disser-
tationes tres : Stephanus Baluzius in unum collegit, emen-
davit, notis illustravit, et appendicem adjecit actorum ve-
terum. Paris. 1669, 8vo.
11. Reginonis Abbatis Prumiensis libri duo de Eccle-
siasticis Disciplinis et Religione Christiana; accessit
Rhabani Archiepiscopi Moguntini Epistola ad Heribal-
dum Episcopum Antissiodorensem, cum notis. Paris.
1672, 8vo.
12. Antonii Augustini, Archiepiscopi Tarraconensis,Dia-
logorum libri duo, de Emendatione Gratiani, cum notis.
Paris. 1672, 8vo.—Gratian, as the learned reader is suffi¬
ciently aware, was the compiler of the Decretum, one of
the constituent parts of the Corpus Juris Canonici. His
work is not without errors and inconsistencies, which
are discussed with a considerable degree of freedom by
the very distinguished archbishop of Tarragona; and
his text is ably illustrated in the annotations of Baluze.
The text and the notes were soon afterwards republished
by another eminent canonist. “ Ant. Augustini, &c. libri
duo. Gerh. von Mastricht, J. C. edidit iterum, recensuit,
in hanc formam digessit, et Stephani Baluzii suasque
notas in eundem et Gratianum, item in fine Orationem
Andr. Schotti, de Vita et Scriptis Auctoris, adjecit.”
Duisburgi ad Rhenum, 1677, 8vo.
13. Petri Gallandi Vita Petri Castellani, Magni Francise
Elyemosinarii, edente cum notis Stephano Baluzio, qui
etiam duas ejusdem Castellani Orationes, habitas in Fu-
nere Regis Francisci I., adjecit. Paris. 1674, 8vo.
14. Capitularia Regum Francorum; additae sunt Mar-
culfi monachi et aliorum Formulae veteres: Stephanus
Baluzius in unum collegit, notis illustravit. Paris. 1677,
2 tom. fol.—In a copy of the book he had inserted many
emendations and additions; and after an interval of a
century appeared “ Nova editio auctior et emendatior ad
fidem autographi Baluzii, curante Petro de Chiniac.”
Paris. 1780, 2 tom. fol. This edition is splendidly printed.
Of Baluze’s preface a translation was published by L’Es-
calopier de Nouras, under the title of Histoire des Capi-
tulaires des Rois Frangais. Haye, 1775, 12mo. Another
version was published by M. de Chiniac. Paris, 1779,
8vo. It is accompanied with a translation of the life of
Baluze, written by himself, and finished by Martin, a
bookseller; and likewise with a catalogue of his works,
and of the various books in which he had inserted manu¬
script notes.
15. Miscellanea: hoc est, Collectio veterum Monu-
mentorum, quae hactenus latuerunt in variis Codicibus ac
Bibliothecis. Paris. 1678-1715, 7 tom. 8vo.—A new edi¬
tion, considerably enlarged, was published by Mansi. Lu-
cae, 1767, 4 tom. fol.
16. Lucii Caecilii Firmiani Lactantii liber ad Donatum
Confessorem de Mortibus Persecutorum: nunc primum
prodit opera et studio Stephani Baluzii. Paris. 1680, 8vo.
~ The woik which he thus rescued from oblivion was pub¬
lished from a manuscript in the Colbert Library, and it
naturally attracted a great degree of attention. This edi- W
tion was speedily followed by several others; and an
English translation was published by Dr Burnet, after¬
wards bishop of Salisbury.1 The preface, notes, and other
illustrations of Baluze, are to be found in the edition cv.m
notis variorum, published by Paul Bauldri, a French pro-
testant, who was professor of ecclesiastical history in the
university of Utrecht. Trajecti ad Rhenum, 1692, 8vo.
Various copies of the same edition bear the date of 1693*.
With respect to the genuineness of this treatise, different
opinions have been entertained by learned men; but the
claims of Lactantius are satisfactorily stated by Lord
Hailes in the preface to his translation : Of the Manner in
which the Persecutors died ; a Treatise by L. C. F. Lac¬
tantius. Edinb. 1782, 8vo.
17. Petri de Marca, Archiepiscopi Parisiensis, Opus¬
cula, nunc primum in lucem edita. Paris. 1681, 8vo.
18. Epistolarum Innocentii III., Pontificis Romani, li¬
bri xi. accedunt Gesta ejusdem Innocentii, &c. Paris.
1682, 2 tom. fol.
19. Nova Collectio Conciliorum, cum notis. Tom. I.
Paris. 1683, fol.—This was intended as a supplement to
the great collection of Labbe; and we have already men¬
tioned the reason which induced the editor to discontinue
his labours.
20. Marii Mercatoris Opera: Stephanus Baluzius ad
fidem veterum codicum MSS. emendavit, et notis illustra¬
vit. Paris. 1684, 8vo.—Marius Mercator lived in the age
of St Augustin, and somewhat later; but although his
works are of some extent, his name is not mentioned by
any ancient writer. “ Ante hanc aetatem nostram,” says
Baluze, “ nullus inventus est qui mentionem faceret ope-
rum Marii Mercatoris, tamenetsi constet his usos esse
quosdam veteres scriptores. Primus eorum notitiam ha-
buit vir doctissimus Lucas Holstenius, Bibliothecae Vati-
canae praefectus.” They were first published by Gamier
at Paris in the year 1673.
21. Marca Hispanica, sive Limes Hispanicus; hoc est,
Geographica et Historica Descriptio Catalauniae, Barci-
nonis, et circumjacentium Populorum, auctore 111. V. Pe¬
tro de Marca. Paris. 1688, fol.
22. Vitae Paparum Avenionensium. Paris. 1693, 2 tom.
4to.
23. Lettre pour servir de Reponse a divers Ecrits, qu’on
a semez dans Paris et a la Cour, centre quelques anciens
Titres qui prouvent que Messieurs de Bouillon descendent
en ligne directe et masculine des anciens Dues de Guy-
enne et Comtes d’Auvergne. Paris, 1698, fol.
24. Histoire Genealogique de la Maison d’Auvergne,
justifiee par des Chartres, Titres, Histoires anciennes, et
autres Preuves autentiques. Paris, 1708, 2 tom. fol.
25. Historiae Tutelensis libri tres. Paris. 1717, 4to.
26. Bibliotheca Baluziana. Paris. 1719, 8vo. This is
described as a publication of “ plusieurs pieces manuscrites
de ce savant auteur.” (Biographic Universelle, tom. hi.
p. 298.) v r
27. S. Caecilii Cypriani, Episcopi Carthaginiensis et
Martyris, Opera, ad MSS. codices recognita et illustrata
studio et labore Stephani Baluzii. Absolvit post Baluzium,
ac praefationem et vitam S. Cypriani adornavit unus ex
Monachis Congr. S. Mauri. Paris. 1726, fob—The monk
of St Maur, who completed this last labour of the learned
and indefatigable editor, was Prudent Maran. (x.)
is beholding to the happy huiustrv^f ^ tl?Il®^tl0.n» Bis^10P Barnet remarks, that for this work of Lactantius “ the world
world, but enriched itPwith his learned notes T earl?®d Baluzius’ vyho having found this treatise, not only communicated it to the
great’sincerity, -ny that have already appeared, of hi.
Bub
BAM
BALZAC, John Lewis Guez de, born at Angouleme
• 1694 He was one of the most distinguished and po-
J a. pU]ar writers of his day, but his works have long since
J * [, into comparative obscurity. Voltaire allows him
the merit of having been the first who gave numbers and
harmony to French prose, but censures his style as some¬
what bombastic. His writings extend to two folio volumes,
which were published in that form in 1665, with a pre¬
face by the Abbe Cassaigne; but his reputation was chiefly
founded upon his Letters, which passed through many edi¬
tions and were translated into, various languages. He
died in 1655, and was buried in the hospital of Notre
Dame des Anges, to which he bequeathed 12,000 livres.
He also left an estate of 100 franks per annum for a gold
medal to be bestowed every two years for the best dis¬
course on some moral subject.
BAMBA, a province of the kingdom of Congo, in Africa.
It is situated between the rivers Ambriz and Lose, the last
of which separates it from Pemba on the east, as the Am¬
briz does from the province of Sogno on the north. Along
the sea-coast Bamba extends itself northward to the river
Lelunda, and on the south to that of Danda. Ambriz is the
chief sea-port, and the character of the coast corresponds
with that generally described under the head of Angola;
but the interior is known only from the imperfect and
doubtful accounts of the Portuguese missionaries, who
penetrated into it more than two centuries ago.
1 BAMBARRA, an extensive and important country of
interior Africa, with which the journeys of Park, who was
perhaps the first European that reached it, have made us
tolerably acquainted. It is situated between the 1st and
5th degrees of east longitude, and the 12th and 15th of
north latitude. It has on the west the countries of Man-
ding, Kaarta, and Ludamar; on the north Beeroo; on the
east Masina and Jinbala, which separate it from Tim-
buctoo; on the south Baedoo, Maniana, and the high re¬
gion of Kong. It consists of a spacious and fertile plain
watered by the Niger, having on the south the chain of
mountains which here traverses the interior of the con¬
tinent, and on the north the African desert.
In consequence of this situation the climate over the
greater part of Bambarra is intensely hot. On the borders
of the northern desert it is absolutely scorching. In the
sandy tracts, during the middle of the day, the ground is
often too hot for the foot to tread upon ; and Mr Park, as he
lay in his tent, felt sensible pain in applying his hand to the
current of air as it entered through the crevices. In the
southern districts, which are copiously watered, the air,
especially in the mornings and evenings, is much more
temperate. In the beginning of June a strong south-west
wind begins to blow, accompanied with violent storms
and tornadoes, which produce the most pernicious effects
on the health, especially of Europeans. This forms the
commencement of the rainy season, which continues with
violence for three months, during which the country is de¬
luged ; all the streams, formerly shallow and almost dried
up, now swell and overflow their banks; and the country
situated along the Niger and its tributaries is generally in¬
undated. In August the rain ceases, the waters disappear,
and the soil is found to be highly improved and fertilized
by this alluvion.
The rich plain, thus copiously watered, is fitted for pro¬
ducing in abundance all the richest tropical products. Cul¬
tivation also is by no means deficient, though not brought
to the same perfection as in the improved districts of Eu¬
rope ; yet the vicinity of the great towns reminded Mr
Park of the finest tracts of England. The imperfect
diffusion of culture is proved by the circumstance, that
there is no private property in land, nor is any price at¬
tached to it. It is judged to belong either to the king or
BAM
335
the village; and any individual who wishes an additional Bambarra.
quantity may obtain it on application, subject only to a
penalty if he fails to bring it under cultivation. The grains
chiefly reared are Indian corn, rice, and millet. The
plough is unknown; the hoe being, as in other parts of
native Africa, the only instrument used in turning up the
ground. The pine-apple, orange, banana, and other fine
fruits peculiar,to tropical countries, though partially in¬
troduced on the coast, have not found their way into this
interior kingdom. Several peculiar and valuable trees
and shrubs, however, are produced on its plains. Among
these is the shea-toulou, or tree producing vegetable but¬
ter. It very much resembles the American oak; and the
valuable substance consists in the kernel of a nut, some¬
what resembling a Spanish olive. The butter, in Mr Park s
opinion, is firmer, whiter, and of richer flavour than that
made from cow’s milk, and has the advantage of being
easily preserved during the whole year without salt. In
the neighbourhood of Sego it grows in peculiar abundance,
and forms a subject of export to the surrounding coun¬
tries. The lotus, a celebrated and classical shrub, whose
berries, on being pounded and dried, are formed into
cakes resembling the best gingerbread, grows along the
northern border of Bambarra; to which may be added
the kolla or gooroo nut, the agreeable bitter taste of
which is universally relished by the negroes. Cotton and
indigo, as the materials, the one for weaving, the other
for dyeing their cloths, are cultivated with diligence and
success. Tobacco is cultivated; but neither the sugar¬
cane, the coffee, nor the cocoa-tree, appears to be even
known in this part of Africa.
The staple manufacture in Bambarra, and, indeed, ge¬
nerally in central Africa, is that of cotton stuffs dyed with
their fine indigo. The process is exceedingly simple;
the juice of the indigo leaves is extracted by pounding,
mixed in a lye of wood ashes, and the cloth is then steeped
in the vat. By this process a beautiful and durable co¬
lour is produced. The natives have also the art of tan¬
ning the leather of sheep and goats, and staining it with
red and yellow colours. They possess, besides, the ait of
smelting iron, and forming it into spears, hoes, and other
warlike and useful instruments; but they have in vain
attempted the fabrication of fire-arms. They fashion the
gold which abounds in the neighbouring districts into
bracelets, necklaces, and other ornaments, with a variety
of taste and an elegance of fancy which would excite ad¬
miration in the best European workmen.
The commerce of Bambarra is carried on partly along
the Niger, partly by inland caravans proceeding in differ¬
ent directions. The Niger becomes navigable at Bamma-
koo, the very point where it enters Bambarra, and conti¬
nues to be so during its whole course through that king¬
dom. The trade is considerable, and numerous boats are
seen passing and repassing. These boats are of a singu¬
lar construction, consisting of the trunks of two large
trees hollowed out, and joined together lengthwise, with¬
out decks or masts. They are disproportionably long and
narrow, though very capacious, since Mr Park saw in one
of them four horses and a great many passengers cross¬
ing a ferry. The most extensive traffic, however, here,
as in all the countries of interior Africa, is carried on by
land-caravans. The chief object of import is salt, a ne¬
cessary of life of which Bambarra, like all the tracts si¬
tuated on the interior rivers, is entirely destitute; but it
is procured from large pits in the interior of the desert.
There are imported, also, considerable quantities of Euro¬
pean goods, arms, cloths, toys, and ornaments. These
are brought partly from the coast, partly from Barbary
by way of Timbuctoo, partly by the direct route from
Aroan to Sansanding. The exports consist of gold, not
336 B A M
Bambarra. produced within the kingdom itself, but in the high dis-
tricts to the south, and found in the sands of the rivulets
which fall into the Niger, whence, by mere agitation in
water, it is separated in the form of dust. The other
great staple consists in slaves, for which, till lately, the
European settlements on the coast afforded so very ex¬
tensive a market. The slaves from Bambarra, belong¬
ing to a more civilized and industrious race than the in¬
habitants of the turbulent little states into which Africa
is generally divided, are subjected to less restraint, and
bear a higher value in the market. This unjust and cala¬
mitous traffic, which excited and prolonged African wars,
has been greatly diminished since the prohibition by Eng¬
land of her own trade, and since she obtained permission
from the other powers to put a stop generally to that car¬
ried on north of the line. Doubtless, however, there is
still an extensive contraband.
Bambarra is the point where the two great races of in¬
terior Africa, the Moors and negroes, meet and mix with
each other. The great inroad by which the former have
occupied so large a proportion of this continent, is bound¬
ed generally, though not uniformly or completely, by the
Niger. The nations to the north and east of Bambarra
are mostly Moors, to the south and west negroes. With¬
in the country itself the negro is still the ruling power;
though in many of the large eastern towns the Moors
are the most numerous, and have the almost entire muni¬
cipal jurisdiction. They are generally superior to the na¬
tives in intelligence, and, as in the rest of Africa, are a stir¬
ring, trafficking, bigoted, turbulent race. Their fanatical
enmity to Christians probably causes them present them¬
selves to our travellers under a more unamiable aspect than
they would otherwise exhibit. They are possessed of some
knowledge of letters, of which the native tribes are altoge¬
ther destitute; and by imparting these first elements of
knowledge, they extend both their faith and their influence.
They make a much less laudable use of the credit thus
acquired, by composing saphies or charms, to which the
credulous negroes attach the most extraordinary virtues,
purchasing at a high price this delusive mode of protec¬
tion. The negroes, on the other hand, are a race general¬
ly harmless, thoughtless, voluptuous, but kind and open-
hearted. Their hospitality was in several instances sig¬
nally displayed towards Mr Park, and “ to suffer the king’s
stranger to depart hungry, was considered an heinous of¬
fence.” They possess a good deal of agricultural industry,
practise some fine manufactures, and have even a talent
for extemporary poetry; but their intellectual culture on
the whole ranks very low. Polygamy is generally esta¬
blished, though only the chiefs and very opulent indivi¬
duals can or do carry it to a great extent. Domestic sla¬
very is also general, but under a mild form; the master
and slave living almost as equals, and sometimes eating
at the same table.
Sego, or Sego-see-korro, the capital of Bambarra, is a
large town, containing about 30,000 inhabitants. It is di¬
vided by the Niger into two nearly equal parts; and the
opposite parts are each divided into two quarters, which
being respectively surrounded by a mud-wall, have the ap¬
pearance almost of separate towns. Although the houses
be only of clay with flat roofs, yet those of the higher
ranks have two stories, with their roofs whitewashed,
while Moorish mosques, with their minarets, rise in dif¬
ferent quarters. The city, on the whole, with its highly-
cultivated vicinity, presented a scene such as Mr Park
little expected to find in the heart of Africa. The com¬
munication between the two towns was by a ferry. The
chief seat of Bambarran trade is Sansanding, which pre¬
sented also a scene of busy and orderly traffic, very dif¬
ferent from what was expected in the interior of Africa.
B A M
The different commodities were well arranged, not indeed Barr.i
in shops or warehouses, but in a spacious public market, | f,
shaded by mats from the heat of the sun. In one were k
the cloths of Houssa, of superior quality to those manu-^ J
factored in this country: in others indigo, the universal
dye; antimony, the great African cosmetic; and beads,
the favourite ornament. A separate market, however,
was appropriated for salt, the main staple of African trade.
The great commercial town of Jenne, farther down the
river, was at the time of Park’s visit under the jurisdic¬
tion of Bambarra; but according to Caille the connection
has since been dissolved.
BAMBOCCIO, a celebrated painter, was born atLaeren,
near Narden, in 1613. His name was Peter van Laer;
but in Italy they gave him the name of Bamboccio, on
account of the uncommon shape of his body, the lower
part being one third longer than the upper, and his neck
so short that it was buried between his shoulders. Nature,
however, had made him amends for the unseemliness of
his limbs, in the superior beauties of his mind. His style
of painting was sweet and true, and his touch delicate, with
great transparency of colouring. His figures were always
of a small size, well proportioned, and correctly designed;
and although his subjects were taken from the lower kinds
of nature, such as plunderings, playing at bowls, inns, far¬
riers’ shops, cattle, or conversations,.yet whatever he paint¬
ed was so correctly designed, so happily executed, and so
highly finished, that his manner was adopted by many of
the Italian painters of his time. We may add that his
works are still admired, and that he is justly ranked
amongst the class of eminent masters. In the latter part
of his life he was severely tormented with an asthmatic
complaint, which he endured with much impatience; and
it is reported, that as the disorder seemed to him insup¬
portable, he threw himself into a canal to shorten his mi¬
sery, and was drowned. His death happened in 1673.
BAMBOO. This plant is generally ranked by botanists
in the number of reeds ; but some, less sensible of its ana¬
logies with them, incline to institute a separate genus for
it. In the SystemaNaturce, Linnaeus describes two species,
under the genus Bambusa, which is characterized thus:
“ scales three, covering the spikelets, which are about five
flowered; calyx none; corolla, a two-valved glume; style
bifid; seed one.” Loureiro, who had an opportunity of
studying the nature of the bamboo in its own climate,
characterizes it as having “ flowers with six stamina;
panicle diffused, with imbricate spikelets; branches of the
culm spiny; calyx one flowered.” We shall abstain from
discussing the more minute botanical characters, as it is
to the real utility of the plant that our attention is to be
directed. The bamboo is, then, a native of the warmer
climates only, though growing luxuriantly without the
limits of the torrid zone. It rises to the height of forty,
sixty, or even eighty feet, with a slender hollow stem,
shining as if varnished. Many, however (probably ac¬
cording to the particular species), are only twelve or
fifteen feet high ; and those which attain the greatest
height here mentioned are rather to be viewed in the
same light as the overgrown vegetable productions of our
own country. The stem is extremely slender, not ex¬
ceeding the thickness of five inches in some which are
fifty feet high, and in others reaching fifteen or eighteen
inches in diameter. The whole is divided into joints or
articulations, separated by a short interval, called a knot
or internode ; and in some there is the distance of several
feet between each. Small alternate branches spring from
the base to the top, and, together with the narrow-pointed
leaves issuing from the knots, give the tree an elegant
feathered appearance as it waves in the wind.
The rapidity of growth is surprising in the bamboo. B
A
BAM
sometimes vegetates three or four inches in a single day.
i ^CCUrate observers have seen it rise twenty feet, and ex¬
pand as thick as a man’s wrist, in five or six weeks ; and it
has been known to reach thirty feet in six months. This
enables us to credit the assertions of those naturalists who
maintain that its full dimensions are attained in a year;
and that the only subsequent change is greater thickness
and induration of the wood. It is always more solid and
compact towards the root, and the hollow cells of the stem
become wider in proportion as they ascend. In Malabar
it is said to bear fruit when fifteen years old, and then
to die. Slenderness is a distinguishing characteristic of
the whole plant, and it seems probable that there are
several different species which have not yet been recog¬
nised by systematic botanists. Soil and climate may have
also produced effects which would disappear on uniformity
of circumstances. An observer of the bamboos of China,
in general, considers that there are ten species or varie¬
ties, and an observer of those in Cochin-China admits of
eight. The former judges the difference to consist, Jirst,
in the size and height; for there is here the greatest dis¬
parity in those that are full grown. 2dly, The distance
of the knots, or length of joint, which, in certain species
of full-grown bamboo, is only four inches, while in others
young and slender it extends to nine or ten feet. Mly,
In the colour of the wood, which is whitish, yellow, brown,
pale blue, or speckled. Uhly, In the size and form of the
knots, some swelling out from the stem above and below ;
others encircling it like a cord, and not penetrating with¬
in so as to interrupt the tubular part of the bamboo, bthly,
In the surface and figure of the internodes being chan¬
nelled or covered with tubercles; and a kind is said to
exist called the square bamboo. The varnished surface
is also of different quality. (Sthly, In the substance and
thickness of the wood, which, varying without any rela¬
tion to the dimensions of the plant, afford sufficient cha¬
racteristics for constituting a species. The wood is either
soft and tender, or very hard and of great strength; and
the stem is either very thin and hollow, or almost totally
filled up and solid, like other trees. But elsewhere, in
Bangalore for example, this solidity is not ascribed to the
difference of species, but to the tardiness of its growth in
stony places. Ithly, It is said that there are bamboos en¬
tirely devoid of branches, however old they maybe ; whilst
other branches protrude as they spring from the earth.
Sthly, There is a great difference both in the hue and
figure of the leaves, as also in their size ; they are bluish,
ash-coloured, reddish, or mottled. Some are so large as to
make very good fans. Qthly, The roots, though knotty and
irregular, are found in one species to penetrate like a large
tuft of filaments into the earth. \Othly, There are cer¬
tain singularities which distinguish the species of this
plant, as excrescences from the knots, which maybe eaten;
a saccharine pith; and wood of a red colour and agree¬
able odour.
It will easily be observed that these remarks are too
general to warrant the establishment of species from all the
bamboos enumerated; but it is not improbable that a
plant so widely diffused may consist, as before observed,
of a greater number than has yet been recognised.
The bamboo grows wild in most places of the East, and
the warmer parts of the West, and is resorted to as oc¬
casion requires. 'Where the country is principally de¬
pendent on its use, it is cultivated in regular plantations,
and, in more ungenial climates, preserved by the curious
ln greenhouses. Its culture is different, according to soil
and climate; but apparently it succeeds best in low shel¬
tered grounds, with rich, soft, spongy earth. Contact of
the root with water is reputed to be immediately destruc-
Llve, and too much humidity occasions gradual decay.
Vol. iv.
BAM
337
This plant is propagated by shoots deposited in pits at the Bamboo,
close of autumn or commencement of winter, eighteen
inches or two feet deep; and if it be designed to obtain
bamboos of considerable size, the scions are cut over as
they spring up. Some scrupulous cultivators among the
Orientals take care to preserve the plant exactly in the
same position, with respect to the cardinal points, as that
in which it originated. The greater the number in a plan¬
tation, the better is the chance of success, as they shel¬
ter each other in their progress. Their subsequent treat¬
ment depends entirely on the uses to which they are to
be converted, whether of profit or pleasure; much care
being bestowed on those designed for beauty or ornament
only. They are propped up with rods of a proper height,
by which they are trained and supported; and, if com¬
plete plants, cut over in order to obtain suitable shoots,
which are chiefly sought after; besides, this operation
makes the root strike out and take a secure hold of the
ground. In a rainy season, it is always necessary to sur¬
round the plantation with a ditch, in order to drain off the
superabundant humidity, which would otherwise be preju¬
dicial. Various expedients are followed to obtain good
bamboos, of which one of the most usual is to take a vi¬
gorous root, with firm wood, and transplant it, leaving only
four or five inches above the joint next the ground. The
cavity is then filled with a mixture of horse-litter and sul¬
phur. According to the vigour of the root, the shoots
will be more numerous; but they are destroyed at an early
stage during three successive years ; and those springing
in the fourth resemble the parent tree. It is affirmed
that no culture can obtain any thing of larger size.
Scarcely has this plant been put in the ground before
its utility becomes conspicuous. The soft and succulent
shoots, when just beginning to spring, and only a few inches
long, are cut over and served up at table, like asparagus.
Like this vegetable, also, they are earthed over to keep
them longer fit for consumption ; and they afford a supply
in succession during the whole year, though more abundant¬
ly in autumn. They are also salted and eaten with rice,
or prepared after different other fashions. As the plant
grows older, a kind of fluid of grateful taste and odour is
secreted in the hollow joints, affording an agreeable beve-*
rage, and in sufficient quantity to satisfy several persons.
If allowed to remain in the tree, a concrete substance,
highly valued for its medicinal properties, called tabaxir
or tabascheer, is produced from it. The presence of the
fluid is ascertained by agitating the bamboo; after some
time its quantity gradually diminishes, and then the stem
is opened to reach the tabascheer. This substance, par¬
ticipating in nothing of a vegetable nature, has been sup¬
posed to be nearly allied to siliceous earths; it resists the
impression of all acids, is indestructible by fire, and with
alkalies forms a transparent glass. Notwithstanding its
repute in tlfe East, we are not aware that it has yet been
received into the European materia medica. Besides the
tabascheer, many parts of the bamboo are said to be en¬
dowed with medicinal properties; a decoction of the leaves
is recommended for coughs and sore throat; the baik
for fever and vomiting; the buds as a diuretic, and a com¬
pound of the root with tobacco-leaves, betel nut, and oil,
is believed to form an efficacious unguent. But setting
aside its medicinal properties, it is highly valuable as an
article of food, for many of the poorer classes in the most
populous countries subsist on it in times of scarcity. The
seed which it produces is recorded in Chinese history to
have preserved the lives of thousands; the Hindoos eat it
mixed with honey as a delicacy, equal quantities of each
being put into a hollow joint, coated externally with clay,
and thus roasted over a fire.
From the copious draught which a joint of the bamboo
2 u
338
BAM
B A M
Bamboo, naturally yields, mankind are taught its use as a vessel for
carrying water, and in some places no other bucket is em¬
ployed. The eastern nations build their houses solely of
the wood, without any auxiliary substance: if entire, it
forms posts or columns; split up, it serves for floors or
rafters; or interwoven in lattice-work, it is employed for
the sides of rooms, admitting light and air. The roof is
sometimes of bamboo solely, for which two species grow¬
ing in Laos, an Asiatic country, are described as spe¬
cially adapted; and when split, which is accomplished
with the greatest ease, it can be formed into laths or
planks. It is employed in shipping of all kinds; and as
houses are constructed entirely of it, so are complete ves¬
sels framed out of it, and fitted for sea. The hull is obtain¬
ed from the stem; and some of the strongest plants are
selected for masts of boats of moderate size. In Bengal
a boat of four or five tons may be furnished with both
mast and yard from the same bamboo, at the cost of three¬
pence ; and the masts of larger vessels are sometimes
formed by the union of several bamboos built up and join¬
ed together. Those of considerable dimensions are used
in the higher yards of ships of four or five hundred tons,
for which service they are well adapted by their great
strength and lightness.
The bamboo is employed in the construction of all agri¬
cultural and domestic implements; and in all materials
and implements required in fishery, hooks and nets ex¬
cepted. In Thibet the strongest bows are made of it, by
the union of two pieces with many bands ; and, in the same
country also, it is employed, as we use leaden pipes, in
transmitting water a distance of several miles to reser¬
voirs or gardens. The species from which these pipes
are constructed is said to grow in the mountains ; and
from other light and slender stalks the inhabitants obtain
shafts for their arrows. In the south-west of Asia there
is a certain species of equally slender growth, from which
writing pens or reeds are made.
From the extreme flexibility of this substance, and also
its divisibility, for it splits like whalebone from top to
bottom, it can be reduced to the smallest dimensions, and
bent into every shape. It is woven into baskets, cages,
hats, or various ornamental articles. By a particular pro¬
cess in bruising and steeping the wood or bark, a paste is
procured that is made into paper. In short, from its very
origin until its decay, it never ceases to produce some¬
thing beneficial. It has justly been observed; “ All that
composes a bamboo is profitable, of whatever species it
may be. The artists of China have each made their
choice, and, in the works they produce, show the advan¬
tages they have derived from it. Its uses are so numerous,
so various, and so beneficial, that it is impossible to con¬
ceive how China could now dispense with this precious
reed. It is no exaggeration to affirm, that the mines of
this vast empire are of less importance to it than the pos¬
session of the bamboowhich, we may add, is also the
chief instrument of government.
It has been proposed to naturalize the bamboo in France.
Perhaps were the naturalization of plants and animals
attempted by slow and regular gradation, instead of great
and sudden transition, experiments might be more success¬
ful than former practice has shown them to be. Probably
it would require the renewal of several successive genera¬
tions, each advanced into a different climate, not remote
from the abode of the one which preceded it, before natu¬
ralization could be completely effected. Some European
climates might not prove noxious to the bamboo; but the
same rapidity of vegetation, the same natural qualities,
could not be expected, or only in an inferior degree, even
in the most favourable situation, and consequently its
utility would be greatly diminished. (n. n.)
BAMBOROUGH, a village in Northumberland, on the e
sea-coast, fourteen miles north of Alnwick, was once a tor
royal borough, sending two members to parliament, and
even gave name to a large tract extending southward,?^
which was called Bamboroughshire. It had also three
religious foundations, a house of friars preachers founded
by Henry III., a cell of canons regular of St Austin, and
an hospital. Its very ancient castle stands on an almost
perpendicular rock close to the sea, and accessible only
on the south-east side, on a spot where, according to the
monkish historians, there stood the castle or palace of the
kings of Northumberland, said to have been built by King
Ina, who began his reign about the year 559. Part of the
present ruin is by some supposed to be the remains of
King Ina’s work.
BAMBOUK, a country in the interior of western
Africa, situated between the Ba-Fing and the Faleme, the
two great upper tributaries of the Senegal. The chief
characteristic of this country is the quantity of gold with
which its soil is almost universally impregnated. This
precious metal exists in a perfectly pure state, mechani¬
cally united with earth or stony substances in the form of
dust, grains, and sometimes little fragments. Almost every
spot throughout the country which is within the reach of
river inundation is covered with a portion of the ghingam
or yellowish earth, which contains gold dust. A portion
of this earth is poured into a wooden vessel called a
calabash, which is then filled with water, and agitated till
the coarse earthy matters are cleared off, and there re¬
mains at the bottom a black dust, which by careful wash¬
ing leaves the gold dust in a pure state. Besides this
golden sand or earth, however, Bambouk contains several
conical hills entirely filled with that metal, mingled with
earth and stony substances, and occurring sometimes in
pieces of considerable size. The mine of Semayla is the
richest; but the metal is there imbedded in hard sub¬
stances, and can only be extracted by reducing them to
powder, for effecting which the natives have only a pestle
of hard wood, which is soon worn away by the attrition
of these substances. The mine of Natakon, though less
absolutely rich, has the gold only imbedded in softer mat¬
ters, from which it can be easily extracted. In working
the mine one person digs out the sand or stony fragments
which contain the gold, and hands them to another, who
extracts the metal by the process of pounding or agita¬
tion. The natives, finding often a rich vein suddenly
terminate, and coming to earth that is wholly unpro¬
ductive, fancy gold a capricious being, who delights in
mocking their research. They often dig out deep pits
with perpendicular sides, which fall in and bury the unfor¬
tunate workmen employed. The survivors, however, very
coolly conclude that a certain potent subterranean deity,
whom Europeans name the devil, has carried them off to
assist in his own mining operations; but that he treats them
well; and when in digging deeper they find the bodies,
they merely conclude that this mysterious personage has
found them unfit for his purpose, and disdainfully thrown
them back. We have seen no estimate, nor do there
appear any data from which to form one, of the quantity
of gold drawn from the mines of Bambouk; but it is cer¬
tainly considerable, and is exported partly by way of the
coast, partly through Bambarra to Timbuctoo.
The Portuguese, it appears, penetrated early into Bam¬
bouk, and were even for some time masters of the coun¬
try ; but the inhabitants, inflamed by their oppressions,
made a general rising, and completely drove them out.
Since that time the people of Bambouk, with the most
extreme jealousy, have excluded all foreigners from their
territories. The French, when they formed their settle¬
ment on the Senegal, soon directed their eager search
BAN BAN 339
r towards a country abounding in so valuable a commodity; BANAT, one of the divisions of Hungary, which is in- Banat
5an' ! 1 ut their efforts to penetrate into it proved for a long time eluded in the military frontier provinces. It extends over i|
Ban; bortive. At length, in 1716, one Compagnon succeeded, 2973 square miles, or 1,802,720 acres, and contains one Bancook.
bufa L ^eat address, and not without risk, in gaining the fa- market-town, two cities, and 162 villages, with 174,650
iry 1 v^Uj. 0f some leading persons, and obtaining a view of the inhabitants. The latter are mostly of the Greek church,
mineral treasures of this country. David and Levens, two but about one third are Catholics, with a few Lutherans,
successive French governors, afterwards contrived to effect It borders on Wallachia, and on the Turkish territory,
an entrance. Sieur Brue, the most enterprising of the Part of the Banat consists of a level plain, but much is
o-overnors of Senegal, laid before the French administra- mountainous, especially towards Wallachia, where it com-
tion a plan, by which, with 1200 men, he undertook to prehends a portion of the Carpathians within its boun-
conquer and maintain Bambouk. Such an expedition dary. It is very productive in corn, cattle, flax, and hemp;
might very probably have been in the first instance sue- but the cultivators want markets and access to places of
cessful, and the French might probably, by skilful work- consumption. There are none but domestic manufactures,
ino-, have greatly increased the produce of the mines ; The chief city is Pancsova, at the junction of the Themes
but when we consider the various casualties and difficul- with the Danube.
ties attendant on the occupation of this interior region, it BANBURY, a market and borough-town of the hun-
must appear very doubtful if this would have been in the dred of Banbury, in the county of Oxford, seventy-five
end a profitable possession. miles from London. The corporation consists of a mayor,
Bambouk is fertile and populous along the banks of the recorder, high steward, and six burgesses, who returned
rivers, but many of the interior districts are arid and bar- a member to the House of Commons, in the election of
ren. There is a king, but the farims or chiefs compose whom the Earls of Guildford long had the patronage. It
nearly an independent feudal body. The population is has some, but not considerable manufactures, and depends
Manding, yet the Mahommedan religion is professed ; but chiefly on the numerous villages around it, which send their
the observance consists chiefly in some outward ceremo- agricultural productions to the market every Thursday,
nies, and the marabouts or priests of that faith are care- The inhabitants in 1801 amounted to 2755, in 1811 to
fully excluded from the kingdom. (e.) 2841, and in 1821 to 3396.
BAMBURG, a city of tlie circle of Upper Maine, in BANC A, an island in the Eastern Seas, about 130 miles
the kingdom of Bavaria, which gives its name to a magi- in length by forty or fifty in breadth, lying off the north-
stracy. It w^as formerly under a sovereign bishop, but eastern coast of Sumatra, from which it is separated by
secularized by the revolution in France. It stands on the the Strai ts of Banca. This island has in all ages been
Ilegnitz, in a beautiful situation, surrounded with vine- celebrated for its mines of tin, which have yielded immense
yards and gardens. Like all the ecclesiastical cities, it quantities of ore, and appear to be inexhaustible. They
abounds in religious edifices of some antiquity. The pre- were discovered about the year 1710, and are worked by
sent number of churches is twenty-five, besides the cathe- a colony of Chinese, who are said to amount to 10,000.
dral and fifteen chapels. It has become a place of consi- These miners, from long practice, have arrived at such
deration from its trade, which is assisted by the improved perfection in reducing the ore into metal, employing wood
navigation of the Regnitz, and by the manufactures, which instead of coal in their furnaces, that the tin of the Banca
have recently been much extended. These consist of mines is preferred to European tin in the market of Can-
linen and woollen cloths, of numerous breweries and dis- ton, as being more malleable. From 133 pounds of ore
tilleries, of leather of all kinds, and of various smaller are obtained seventy-five pounds of metal. This island is
wares. The inhabitants of the city in 1827 amounted to opposite the river of Palembang, in the island of Suma-
20,500, chiefly Catholics. The magistracy extends over tra, and it belonged to the sovereign of the district of
sixty-seven square miles, and contains, besides those in Palembang, who exacted from the proprietors of the mines
the city, a population of 8780 individuals. The city is in a certain quantity of its produce at a fixed price, which
long. 11. 48. 16. E. lat. 49. 53. 31. N. he re-sold to the Dutch at a small advance of profit.
BAMIYAN, a city of Asia, in the province of Zables- The island was ceded to the Dutch in 1812, in conse-
tan, ten days’journey from Balk, and eight from Gazna. quence of an expedition against its sovereign, which was
BAMPTON, or Bampton-in-the-Bush, a market- sent from Batavia. A fort was erected two miles west of
town of the hundred of Bampton and county of Oxford, a small town called Minto; but the situation proved so
It stands in a flat situation near the banks of the Isis, unhealthy that it was afterwards removed to a more in¬
seventy miles from London, and eighteen from Oxford, land spot. By the convention concluded in 1814, Banca
The church is a magnificent ancient edifice. The market was ceded to the Dutch. The miners and some pirates
is held on Saturday. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to were formerly its only inhabitants. The Straits of Banca
1003, in 1811 to 1232, and in 1821 to 1460. are formed by the island of Sumatra on the west, and that
Bampton, a market-town in the hundred of Bampton, of Banca on the east. They are about 100 miles in length,
in the county of Devon, 164 miles from London, and of unequal breadth, and the depth of water very irregular,
twenty-one from Exeter. It formerly returned members shoaling in some places at once from twelve to seven
to parliament, and has now a corporation governed by a fathoms. The tide rises and falls about eleven feet,
port-reeve. The market is held on Saturday. A great Long. 105. 15. to 106. 40. E. Lat. 1. 27. to 3. 4. S. Ano-
battle was fought here in 614, between the West Saxons ther small island of this name, amid a cluster still smaller,
and Britons, in which the former were defeated with the lies off the north-east extremity of the island of Celebes,
loss of 20,000 men. The number of inhabitants in 1801 BANCAPOOR, a large town of Hindostan, in the pro-
was 1364; in 1811, 1452; and in 1821, 1633. vince of Bejapoor, and formerly a place of importance.
BANAGHER, a market and post-town of Ireland, in The fort was dismantled by Tippoo's army. It is 50 miles
King’s county, on the river Shannon, over which is a S.S.E. from Darwar. Long. /6. 16. E. Lat. 14. 58. N.
bridge. The population is 2813; and it is 81 miles west BANCOOK, a sea-port of the kingdom of Siam, situat-
by south of Dublin. ed on the east side of Siam river. It is properly the sea-
BANALBUFAR, a town on the western coast of the port of Siam, few ships ascending higher up the river; and
island of Majorca, belonging to Spain, where the best it is distant from it forty-two miles. In the reign of Louis
wine is produced. It contains 3745 inhabitants. XIV. this place was ceded to the French, who here erect-
340 BAN
Banda ed a fortress, which they retained for several years. They
Islands, were afterwards expelled from the country about 1690,
and have never since recovered their influence in it.
BANDA ISLANDS. These islands, situated 130 miles
to the south-east of Amboyna, are ten in number, viz.
Banda Neira, Gonong Apee, Banda Lantoir, Pulo Ay or
Way, Pulo Rondo or Pulo Roon, Rosyngen, Pulo Pisang,
Craka, Capella, and Sonangy.
Of these, Banda Neira is the seat of the supreme govern¬
ment, and it is secured by one principal fortification, situate
on the south side of the island, consisting of a small square
fort, having a wet ditch, with a horn-work towards the sea.
This fortification, which is calledFortNapau, forms the chief
defence of the Banda Islands. The troops are quartered,
and the public granaries are kept, in this fort; but the
storehouses for the nutmegs and mace are on the outside,
as well as the government-house. Above Fort Napau, on
a neighbouring eminence, stands the castle of Belgica, an
old pentagon, with round towers at the angles. It is sur¬
rounded with a wall, secured by small bastions, but has no
ditch, and is said to have been built by the Portuguese.
Banda Lantoir or Great Banda is to the northward of
Banda Neira. It is commanded by a considerable fort,
which also domineers over the harbour, and is called
Fort Hollandia. At first view the situation of this fort
appears preferable to Banda Neira for the residence of
government, not only on account of its strong and com¬
manding situation, but because the island is the largest
as well as the richest in the produce of spices. Its un¬
healthiness has been found, however, to be a sufficient
objection. The water is said to be bad, and the vapour
which sometimes descends from the volcanic mountain of
the neighbouring island, Gonong Apee, is represented as
particularly noxious. Such fatal effects were produced
by these causes, that when the Wirtemberg Company
formerly garrisoned the island, out of a hundred men
eight died and forty fell sick in the course of two months.
The numbers of decayed houses, also, which are seen in
different parts of the island, show that the experiment of
a settlement has already been tried, and has not been
found to answer. This island appears very high from the
sea; its sides are steep, and from the top of them there
is a sort of table-land, which extends nearly from one end
of the island to the other.
Gonong Apee is to the northward of Banda Neira, and
derives its name from a large volcano about 2000 feet
above the level of the sea, which constantly emits smoke,
and sometimes cinders and ashes, accompanied with a
crackling noise. On the south side of this island are two
forts, originally intended to defend the west channel of
Lantoir harbour; but, owing to an eruption of the volcano
in 1778, at the same time that a dreadful hurricane laid
waste the island, the lava flowed down in such quantities
as to form a considerable promontory between these bat¬
teries and the channel they were intended to defend, so
that they are now in a great measure useless. This
island is generally unproductive, its surface being covered
with a quantity of sulphur and chalk. There is no vege¬
tation whatever on upwards of one third of the eminence
on which the volcano is situated. Towards the sea the
descent is exceedingly steep; but towards the harbour
the declivity slopes gradually to the water, on the side of
which are some plantations and a few straggling houses.
Pulo Way is about nine miles to the westward of Go¬
nong Apee, and is defended by a strong fort, ft is es¬
teemed the most healthy of the whole group, and pro¬
duces abundance of nutmegs, of a kind superior in quality
to those of the other islands. Pulo Rondo, or Pulo Roon,
is about four miles farther, in a somewhat more northerly
direction. On this island the English had a factory, from
BAN
which they were expelled by the Dutch about the period fr
of the massacre of Amboyna; and the island having been Isl!
since abandoned, has become a wilderness. Rosyngen is
about seven miles to the south-east of Lantoir. It pro-
duces nutmegs, mace, yams, and subsistence for a few
cattle. The convicts of Amboyna were formerly kept on
this island, and were compelled to cultivate the land for
the use of the supreme government. Pulo Pisang is about
two miles north-east from Banda Neira, and yields some
fine fruits, as well as nutmegs and mace. The other three
islands are uninhabited, being little more than barren
rocks.
The Banda Islands were discovered in the year 1511
by the Portuguese, who immediately took possession of
them in the name of their sovereign. About the year
1603 they were expelled by the Dutch. In 1608 the
English, with the permission of the king, built a factory-
house on Pulo Way, which the Dutch demolished as soon
as the ship which brought out the factors returned to
England. The natives of Banda, notwithstanding the op¬
position of the Dutch, assisted the English in forming a
new colony; and shortly afterwards they, along with the
natives of Lantoir, made a formal resignation of their re¬
spective islands to the new settlers. In 1620 Pulo Roon
and Pulo Way were added to the English dominions, and
these cessions were confirmed by a treaty concluded be¬
tween the English and the Dutch. But, in defiance of
this treaty, the latter determined on the expulsion of their
rivals from those islands, in the possession of "which they
appeared to be gradually establishing themselves. They
accordingly attacked them with a strong force, seized
their factories, magazines, and shipping, and, after strip¬
ping the factors naked, first whipped and then loaded
them with irons. Some notion may be formed of the
trade, then in its infancy, by the quantity of spices seized
here, which amounted to 23,000 lbs. of mace and 150,000
lbs. of nutmegs. In 1654 the Dutch were compelled, by
the firmness of Cromwell, to restore the island of Pulo
Roon, and to make satisfaction for the massacre of Am¬
boyna. But the English settlers not being adequately sup¬
ported from home, were unable to resist the power of
their rivals, and the island was retaken by the Dutch in
1664. They retained undisturbed possession of their con¬
quests in this quarter of the globe until the year 1796,
when the Banda Islands, along with all the other Dutch
colonies, were conquered by the British. They were re¬
stored by the treaty of Amiens in the year 1800, but were
again captured, and finally restored by the treaty of Paris
concluded in the year 1814.
In the space between Banda Lantoir and the islands of
Banda Neira and Gonong Apee there is a very good har¬
bour formed with entrances both from the east and west,
which enable vessels to enter it from either of the mon¬
soons. These channels are well defended with several
batteries, particularly the western one, which is very nar¬
row. Between Gonong Apee and Banda Neira there is
a third channel into this harbour from the north, but it is
navigable only for small vessels.
The great articles of commerce in these islands are
nutmegs and mace, which are engrossed at a fixed price,
for the benefit of the Dutch East India Company; and the
laws and regulations generally established are calculated
to support and promote this monopoly rather than the
happiness of the people or the improvement of the coun¬
try. With this view, the cultivation of the nutmeg is only
allowed in the islands of Banda Neira, Gonong Apee, Banda
Lantoir, and Pulo Ay. In all the other islands the tree
has been carefully extirpated, because, being at a distance
from the seat of government, they were supposed to afford
better opportunities for smuggling. In the islands which
BAN
B A N
341
e appropriated to the cultivation of the nutmeg, they
£ lither feed cattle nor produce grain sufficient for the
t' j m -ntenance of the inhabitants; and they are on this ac-
r' count dependent on Batavia for annual supplies of rice,
and other articles of provision. In consequence of the low
state of agriculture occasioned by this policy, the inhabit¬
ants are few, and the number of hands that would be neces¬
sary to bring the nutmeg plantations into the highest state
of cultivation cannot be procured. This scarcity of hands
renders it necessary to recruit the declining population by
the importation of slaves. It would appear, also, that the in¬
habitants suffer severely when the supplies of provisions, on
which they depend from abroad, happen to be interrupted.
About fifteen months before these islands were last conquer¬
ed by the British, some reforms in the system of administra¬
tion were carried into effect by a new governor, who had
been appointed for that purpose. But before this period
most of the planters were in great distress, having been
charged with very heavy debts, incurred on account of loans
in rice and money, made at different periods by the former
o-overnors; and this circumstance, joined to the great loss
which they sustained by the dreadful hurricane of 1778,
entirely ruined their private fortunes as well as their plan¬
tations. While they were in these distressed circum¬
stances, the Dutch government, with an unfeeling avarice,
aggravated their misery by compelling them to deliver
their nutmegs at the reduced price of three fai things
per pound, and the mace at a still lower rate. Undei
this accumulated distress, the spirit which had animated
their fathers in the days of their independence seemed
once again to revive, and they remonstrated in bold and
determined language. They claimed the lands as their
own prescriptive inheritance, which was undoubtedly the
case, and actually proceeded to portion out their respec¬
tive properties to each other. The Dutch, though, they
were touched by no feeling for the deplorable situation to
which they had reduced the country, were nevertheless
alarmed when they saw their discontented subjects deter¬
mined to resist, and it was thought advisable to adopt a
more just and conciliatory conduct. With this view, the
accumulated arrear of debt claimed by the company from
the planters, and which most of them were unable to pay,
was cancelled. Several judicious regulations were also
adopted regarding the management of slaves, and the
prices at which the government received the spices of the
planters were at the same time increased from the low
rate to which it had been reduced to seven and a half
stivers per lb. for mace, and to two and a half stivers for
nutmegs, with a deduction of 17 per cent, in favour of the
company and their servants.
In return for these concessions, it would appear that
the company, after having pacified their subjects, seized
their lands; and in this manner they continued to practise
the same oppression as before, though the mode adopted
was somewhat different. The planters in general, if they
had once been freed from the enormous debt claimed by
government, would, from the produce of their plantations,
have speedily discharged all other claims; and they con¬
sidered it hard, therefore, that, under colour of remitting
this debt, they should be deprived of their respective pro¬
perties, to which prescription gave them an undoubted
right.
Tire nutmeg-tree is a native of several of the islands to
the eastward ; but it has been in a great measure extirpat¬
ed from all of them except Banda. It begins to bear fruit
at ten years’ growth, the fruit improving in quality, and
increasing in quantity, until the tree has attained the age
of an hundred years. In its appearance it is handsome
and spreading; the bark is smooth, and of a brownish gray
colour. The leaves resemble those of the laurel, and af¬
ford, when bruised, a grateful aromatic odour. When the Banda
tree first begins to produce fruit, little yellowish buds Islands,
make their appearance, out of which small white flowers
are blown, two or three hanging upon slender peduncles.
In the centre of the flower is an oblong reddish knob,
from which the fruit is produced, though no more than
one blossom out of three commonly ripens to a nutmeg.
It is eight or nine months before the fruit arrives at ma¬
turity ; but blossoms and ripe fruit are found together on
the same tree, and the nutmegs are generally gathered
three times in a year. The nutmeg, when ripe on the
tree, has a very curious and beautiful appearance. It is
almost the size of an apricot, and nearly of the same co¬
lour, with the same kind of hollow mark all round it. In
shape it is somewhat like a pear. When perfectly ripe,
the rind over the mark, which is nearly half an inch thick,
and of a whitish colour, opens and displays the nutmeg
in its black and shining shell, encircled by a net-work of
scarlet mace. The shell in which the nutmeg is inclosed
is about as thick as that of a filbert, and very hard. In
preparing the fruit for use, the mace is first stript off and
kept in baskets to dry in the sun, and the nutmeg in its
shell is placed before a slow fire to dry, in five different
houses made of split bamboos, fitted up for the purpose.
In each of these houses it remains a week, till it is heard
to shake within the shell, which is then easily broken.
The nutmegs thus prepared are sorted into separate par¬
cels. Each sort is put up by itself into baskets, and soak¬
ed three times in tubs of sea-water and lime ; after which
they are put into distinct closets, where they are left for
six weeks to sweat, that the lime, by closing the pores of
the nutmeg, may prevent its strength from evaporating.
The lime is necessary to preserve the fruit from worms
and other insects; and it requires much experience, as
well as a considerable degree of judgment, to ascertain
the precise time that the fruit should be suffered to remain
in the lime; for if it be taken out too soon, it is worm-
eaten, and if it is left to remain too long in the lime, it is
burnt up and rendered useless.
The nutmeg is distinguished into three sorts, namely,
the male or barren nutmeg, the royal nutmeg, and the
queen nutmeg. The two last, species are distinguished
by the different sorts of fruit which they produce, that of
the royal nutmeg being longer and more pointed, and its
green shell being also thicker. It does not ripen so fast;
and after opening it preserves its freshness eight or nine
days. The mace is more substantial and three times as
long as that of the queen nutmeg, and its stripes or thongs,
of which there are from 15 to 17 principal ones, are of a
livelier red; they are also broader, longer, and thicker, and
not only embrace the nut through it whole length, but
pass it, and cross under it as if to prevent it from falling.
The royal nutmeg is generally from 15 to 17 lines long,
and thick in proportion. It remains on the tree a long
time after the opening of the green shell, and gives birth
to an insect in the shell, which feeds upon and destroys
it. The queen nutmeg produces much smaller nuts, only
nine or ten lines long, not so thick by a third, and well
marked by a longitudinal groove on one side. They are
round, and the green shell is not so thick as that of the
royal nutmeg. The mace, which is composed of nine or
ten principal stripes, grows only half down the nut; thus
leaving it at liberty to detach itself, and to escape from
the insect formed in the shell In two or three days also
the green shell, losing its freshness, soon falls away from
the nut.
Nutmegs should be chosen large, round, heavy, and firm;
of a lightish gray colour on the outside, and the inside
finely marbled ; of a strong fragrant smell, warm aromatic
taste, and a fat oily body. The oblong kind and smaller
342 BAN
Banda ones should be rejected. The real quantity of nutmegs
Islands, produced has never been exactly ascertained. The larg-
„ j] „ est quantity sold by the Dutch East India Company at
' J1-one time was 280,694 lbs. in the year 1737. In 1756
there were sold 241,427 lbs.; and in 1778, 264,189 lbs. The
average quantity annually sold in Europe has been stated
at 250,000 lbs. exclusive of about 100,000 lbs. disposed
of in the East Indies. The produce, however, has since
greatly declined, which may be imputed to various causes.
In the year 1778 the nutmeg plantations were laid waste
by a tremendous hurricane; and this calamity was suc¬
ceeded by oppressions on the part of the government, and
by disturbances among the people. Agriculture and in¬
dustry were in consequence neglected, and the annual
produce of spices of all sorts, which amounted to 600,000
lbs. was suddenly reduced to 50,000 lbs. For seven years
previous to the commencement of the war with France in
1793, the average quantity of nutmegs sold in Holland
amounted only to 22,459 lbs. and that of mace to 7504
lbs. When Banda was taken by the English in 1796, the
quantity of spices in the warehouses amounted to 84,777
lbs. of nutmegs, and to 19,587 lbs. of mace. In the seve¬
ral years of 1803, 1804, and 1805, when the Banda Islands
were in possession of Britain, there were imported of nut¬
megs 104,094, 117,936, and 35,851 lbs., which were sold
for L.46,233, L.54,733, and L.23,742. The quantity re¬
tained for home consumption amounted on an average
to 39,071 lbs. per annum, and the revenue which they
yielded to L.7879. The permanent duty levied on nut¬
megs imported from any British possessions is 2s. 6d.
per lb., and from other parts 3s. 6d. per lb.
Of mace, the quantity consumed in Britain has decreas¬
ed since the establishment of the East India Company.
In the year 1615, the consumption amounted to 15,000
lbs. In 1803, when the islands were in possession of
Britain, the whole quantity amounted only to 24,234 lbs.,
and the total value was L.53,356. The quantity retained
for home consumption is on an average about 5400 lbs.
per annum. The duty on mace imported is 3s. 6d. per lb.
when imported from any British colony; from other parts it
is 4s. 6d. Mace should be chosen fresh, rough, oleaginous,
of a fragrant smell, and a bright reddish yellow colour. The
smaller pieces are esteemed the best. (See Milburn’s Ori¬
ental Commerce, and the Asiatic Annual Register.') (f.)
BANDALEER, or Bandelier, in military affairs, a
large leathern belt, thrown over the right shoulder, and
hanging under the left arm. It was worn by the ancient
musketeers, both for sustaining their fire-arms, and for
the carriage of their musket charges, which, being put up
in little wooden cases coated with leather, were hung, to
the number of twelve, to each bandaleer.
BANDELLO, a celebrated Italian novelist, was born
at Castelnuovo, in the neighbourhood of Tortona, about
1480. In his youth he studied both at Rome and at
Paris ; and his education being completed, he went to re¬
side at Mantua. There he remained for several years
much esteemed by Pirro Gonzaga, who intrusted him
with the education of his daughter, the celebrated Lucre-
zia Gonzaga. The incidents in the lives of the literary men
who flourished in Italy during the sixteenth and seven¬
teenth centuries have in many respects a strong similarity.
Like most of his literary contemporaries, Bandello passed
from one petty court to another, and was frequently em¬
ployed in political missions by the patron whom he serv¬
ed at the time. At this period the small states of Italy
were divided between the French and Spanish interests.
Bandello had chiefly attached himself to those princes of
Lombardy who favoured the French party; and, in con¬
sequence, when the decisive battle of Pavia put the Spa¬
niards in possession of Milan, where Bandello at that time
BAN
resided, his paternal mansion was burned, and the property Bar ]
of his family confiscated. He fled in disguise from Milan C j i
and after wandering from town to town, he placed himself
under the protection of Cesar Fregoso, a celebrated cap-
tain of that age, who had recently quitted the Venetian
for the French service. With this general Bandello re¬
sided in Piedmont, till a truce was concluded, when he
accompanied his patron to France. After the death of
Cesar he continued to live with his widow and family at
Agen, to the bishoprick of which he was raised by Fran¬
cis I. in 1550, and continued to reside in the vicinity of
that town till his death, which happened about 1562.
During his residence at Agen, Bandello revised and
added to the novels which he had written in Italy during
his youth, and which some of his friends had recovered
from the hands of the Spanish soldiers who burned his
house at Milan. His Tales were first published at Luc¬
ca in 1554, 4to. In the complete editions of Bandello,
the work is divided into four parts ; the first, second, and
third parts containing fifty-nine stories, and the fourth
comprehending twenty-eight. The whole are dedicated
to Ippolita Sforza, though she died before their publica¬
tion, because it was at her desire that the work was ori¬
ginally undertaken. Besides this general dedication, each
novel is addressed to some Valoroso Signore, or Chiaris-
sima Signora ; and in these introductions the novelist ge¬
nerally explains how he came to a knowledge of the event
he is about to relate. He usually declares that he heard
it told in company, details the conversation by which it
was introduced, and pretends to report it, as far as his
memory serves, in the exact words of his authority.
Bandello is chiefly indebted for his celebrity to these
novels, which belong to a class of composition that en¬
joyed for many centuries the utmost popularity in Italy.
The tales of the French Trouveurs, having passed into
Italy towards the close of the thirteenth century, were
first imitated in the Cento Novelle Antiche; which also
contains stories formed from episodes in the romances of
chivalry, the ancient chronicles of Italy, and jests or re¬
partees preserved by oral tradition. Boccaccio, whose De-
cameron appeared shortly after, identified this species of
composition with the history of Italian literature and the
progress of the Italian language. That celebrated writer
was followed by Sacchetti, Ser Giovanni, Centhio, and a
numerous tribe of imitators, of whom Bandello is by much
the best known and most celebrated, at least in this coun¬
try. His popularity, however, has not been so great in
Italy, which may probably be attributed to the negligence
and impurity of his style; a fault of which the author him¬
self appears to have been conscious, as he repeatedly apo¬
logizes for his defects in elegance of diction. lo non sow
Toscano, ne bene intendo la proprietd di quella lingua;
anzi mi confesso Lombardo. Napioni, in his eulogy of
Bandello, confesses that he is not remarkable for that har¬
mony of periods, and delightful naivete of expression, for
which Boccaccio and others of his predecessors were so
distinguished; but he adds, that none of the Italian no¬
velists is so interesting for the development and illus¬
tration of minute historical facts, which would in vain be
sought for in the histories: of the revolutions of the Italian
states. Some of the novels of Bandello, however, it must
be admitted, are little edifying; and it is curious that one
of his stories, which is perhaps the most obscene in the
whole series of Italian novels, should be declared, in the
introduction, to have been related by the celebrated Na-
vagero to the princess of Mantua and duchess of Ur-
bino. Besides, notwithstanding the repeated assertions
of Bandello, that all his stories have some foundation in
fact, and the light which his eulogists suppose that they
throw on the history of the Italian republics, it cannot be
BAN BAN 343
. 4enied that the greater proportion of them are derived the emperor, and took the opportunity of dedicating to Bandini
roi from the Fabliaux of the French Trouveurs, and the that monarch his Specimen Litteraturoi Florentince, which ii.
i works of preceding Italian novelists, with an alteration was then printing at Florence. In the following year he ^pditti.
Ban '■ of the names, and some slight variations in the incidents, returned by the way of Venice, Padua, Ferrara, and Bo-
^ gut ^jie Bandello has thus copied largely from preced- logna, and united himself in friendship with the learned
• filers, none of their works has suggested more to men in all these cities. Having resided some time at
others, or is more curious for illustrating the genealogy Florence, he repaired to Rome, and entered into orders,
of fiction, and the transmission of fabulous incident from passing the whole of his time in the library of the Vati-
the novelist to the dramatic poet. Many of the tales of can, and in those of the Cardinals Passionei and Corsini.
Bandello were translated by Belleforest in his Histoires At that time the famous obelisk of Augustus was disinterred
Tragiques, whence they found their way into Paynter’s from the ruins of the Campus Martins. Bandini, by the or-
Palace of Pleasure, and other works of a similar descrip- der of Benedict XIV., undertook to describe and explain
tion which appeared in England during the reign of Queen this curious monument; but finding that the air of Rome
Elizabeth. In this manner they furnished the plots of was injurious to his health, he returned to Florence. In
many tragedies and comedies to the most numerous and 1750 he was selected by Alexander Marucelli to take
noble race of the English dramatic poets. That part of charge of the valuable library which his uncle the Abbe
Shakspeare’s Much Ado about Nothing which relates to Francis Marucelli had left, and which, according to the
Don John, Claudio, and Hero, is taken, with little varia- will of the founder, was to be open to the public. But he
tion in the incidents, from the twenty-second tale of the had scarcely entered upon the duties of this charge when
first part of Bandello; and The Twelfth Night is borrowed the proprietor died, after bequeathing all his effects to
from the thirty-sixth of the second part. Massinger has the library, and appointing the Abbe Bandini perpetual
been indebted for his Picture, which is, perhaps, the most librarian and his testamentary executor. It required two
agreeable and fanciful of his dramas, to the twenty-first years to liquidate the succession and to form the com-
ofthe first part; while Beaumont and Fletcher have de- plete catalogue of this vast library, which was at length
rived from the same source their comedy of the Maid in opened to the public in the year 1752. In 1756 he was
the Mill, and the Triumph of Death, which is the third of preferred by the emperor to a prebend at Florence, and
their “ Four Plays in One.” The thirty-fifth of the second appointed principal librarian to the Laurentian library,
part of Bandello is the same story as the plot of Horace During forty-four years he continued to discharge the
Walpole’s Mysterious Mother, and the thirtieth tale of the duties of this situation, and died in 1800, generally es-
Queen of Navarre. As the works of Bandello and the teemed and regretted. On his death-bed he founded a
Queen of Navarre were printed nearly at the same period, public school, and bequeathed the remainder of his for-
it is not probable that they copied from each other; and tune to other charitable purposes.
it may be presumed, that some current tradition furnished The first work by which Bandini became known as a
both with the horrible incident they relate. Mr Walpole, man of letters was his Dissertatio de Veterum Saltationi-
however, disclaims having had any knowledge of the tale bus, which he wrote at the age of twenty-two, and which
of the Queen of Navarre or Bandello at the time he was inserted by his learned friend Lami in the fifth yo-
wrote this drama. Its plot, he says, was suggested by a lume of the works of Meursius, published in 1745. The
story he heard when very young, of a lady, who, under most remarkable of his other works are, 1. Specimen Lit-
uncommon agonies of mind, had waited on Archbishop teraturae Florentinae Seculi X\. &c. 2 vols. 8vo. . 2. De
Tiilotson, and besought his counsel in what manner she Obelisco Augusti Csesaris, e Campi Martii Ruderibus nu-
should act under the fatal circumstances that had occurred, per eruto. 1750, fol. 3. Gollectio Veterum aliquot Mo-
Besides his Tales, Bandello is author of a poem in numentorum ad Historiam, praecipue Litterariam, perti-
eleven cantos, which was his first work, and is now very nentium. 1752, 8vo. 4. Elogio dell ab. Irancisco Ma-
scarce, entitled Delle Lodi della Signora Lucrezia Gon- rucelli Fondatore della Publica Libreria Marucelliana.
zaga, printed at Agen, 1545, in 8vo. He also wrote a 1754, 4to. 5. Vita e Lettere di Amerigo Vespucci,
complimentary poem, in three cantos, on the birth of a 4to. 6. De \ ita et Scriptis Joan. Bapt. Donii Patricii
son of his patron, Cesar Fregoso. Both these productions Florentini libri V. Adnotationibus illustrati; accedit ejus-
are written without taste or spirit; but it is said that dem Doniilitterarium Commercium, nunc piimum in^lu-
some good verses, composed by Bandello, on different cem editum. 1755, fol. 7. Vita di Filippo Strozzi. 1/56,
subjects, are still preserved in manuscript in the library 4to. 8. Vita del Cardin. Niccolo da Prato. Eod. an.
of the academy of Turin. 4to. 9. From 1/63 to 1 /66 he employed himself in pub-
BANDER CONGO, a small sea-port town in Asia, lishing successively the works of some of the minor Greek
seated on the Persian Gulf. Long. 54. 10. E. Eat. 19. 0. N. poets, which he enriched with notes and various readings.
BANDINI, Angelo Maria, a learned Italian, was These were Callimachus; the two poems of Nicander on
born at Florence on the 25th of September 1726. Having Poisons and Antidotes; the Phenomena ot Aiatus; the
been left an orphan in his infancy, he was supported by his Poems of Musaeus ; those of Coluthus on the Rape of
uncle, Joseph Bandini, a lawyer of some note. He received Helen, and iryphiodorus on the taking of Hoy; 1 leog-
his education among the Jesuits, and discovered an early nis, Phocylides, and the golden verses of Pythagoras. 1 he
passion for the study of antiquities. A desire which he Greek text of these poems was carefully collated with the
also manifested to distinguish himself as a poet was for- best manuscripts; and there were added translations in
tunately checked by the ill success of his first attempt; Italian verse by Ant. Mar. Salvmi. 10. Catalogus Codi-
and, from that period, he devoted himself principally to cum Manuscriptorum Graecorum, Latinorum, et ftaloium,
literary history and archaeological science. The cele- Bibliothecae Laurentianae. 1764—78, 8 vo s. o . . i-
brated Dr Lami, with whom he had the good fortune to bliotheca Leopoldina Laurentiana, sive Catalogus i lanu-
contract a friendship, assisted him with his counsels, and scriptorum, qui jussu Petri Leopoldi in Laurentianam
encouraged him to persevere in that path to which his translati sunt. 1791-93, 3 vols. fol. 12. De Florentini
genius seems to have directed him. Juntarum Typographia, ejusque censoribus. 1 /91, 2 parts,
In the year 1747 Bandini undertook a journey to Vien« 8vo. (See Diographie Lniverselle, tom. in.) (kQ
n3) in company with the bishop of Volterra, to whom he BANDIT FI, from the Italian bandito, persons pro-
acted in the capacity of secretary. He was introduced to scribed, or, as we call it, outlawed, and sometimes deno-
344
BAN
BAN
Bandon
II
Banff.
minated banniti or toris banniti. It is also a denomination
given to highwaymen or robbers who infest roads in troops.
BANDON, or Bandonbridge, a town of Ireland, in
the county of Cork, on the river Bandon, which flows into
the sea at Kinsale. Its public buildings are two churches,
a handsome Roman Catholic chapel, and a court-house.
It has two market-houses and a spacious quay on the
south side of the river. It has manufactures of linen,
camlets, and coarse woollen stuffs; also tanneries, brew¬
eries, and dye-works. The population is 10,179. It is 18
miles S. W. of Cork.
BANDORA, the capital of the island of Salsette, on
the western coast of the peninsula, on this side the Ganges.
Long. 72. 30. E. Lat. 19. 0. N.
BANDORE, the name of a musical instrument with
strings, resembling a lute, and said to have been invented
in the fourth year of Queen Elizabeth, by one John Rose.
BANDROL, a little flag, in the form of a guidon, ex¬
tended more in length than in breadth, and usually hoist¬
ed on the masts of vessels; a pennant or streamer.
BANE, from the Saxon bana, a murderer, signifies de¬
struction or overthrow. Thus, “ I will be the bane of
such a man,” is a common saying; when a person receives
a mortal injury by any thing, we say, “ it was his bane
and he who is the cause of another man’s death is said to
be le bane, that is, a malefactor.
BANFF, the capital of Banffshire, is pleasantly situated
on the western bank of the river Deveron, at the point
where it discharges itself into the sea. The town is of
great antiquity, and its erection is traditionally ascribed
to Malcolm Canmore. A charter was afterwards granted
in 1165 by William the Lion (Carte of Moray). Its for¬
mer charters were confirmed by Robert II., on the 7th
October 1372 ; and also by different succeeding monarchs,
down to the time of James VI., who granted charters in
1581 and 1592, which are the latest held by the town.
Banff was originally endowed with an ample patrimony,
but this was lost to the burgh by the rapacity of its ma¬
gistracy and the neighbouring proprietors, about the time
of James VI., who granted charter's to enable them to feu
and sell in perpetuity.
The form of the town is irregular. The houses, with the
exception of a few modern structures, are old and incom¬
modious ; some of the streets are narrow and ill paved;
and no extension can be now expected, as it is hemmed
in on all sides by lands held in strict entail. The great
north road passes through Banff, and enters the town by a
beautiful bridge across the Deveron. The accommodation
for religious instruction is ample; and there is an excellent
academy, besides several private and charity schools. The
charitable foundations are also extensive. The shipping
interest has long been on the decline, particularly since
the peace with France ; and all attempts to revive it, with
the exception of the Banff and London Shipping Com¬
pany, at present very flourishing, have failed. In 1815
a speculation in whale fishing was entered into, and a
new harbour projected, principally for the accommoda¬
tion of the whale vessels ; but the harbour has been found
useless as a place of safety. The old harbour is quite safe,
although of difficult access, and only fitted for the reception
of small craft. The exports are corn, cattle, pork, butter,
herrings, salmon, and other fish. The imports are merchant
goods, coals, iron, staves, and other articles necessary for
the herring fishery. There are no manufactories of any
description within the town, although the place and near
neighbourhood afford many facilities for that purpose. A
cast-iron foundery was, however, established in 1825, which
has hitherto proved very successful. The town was light¬
ed with gas in November 1831.
The lower part of the town was inundated by the great
flood in 1829, and considerable damage was done. BanffBan
has a weekly market for provisions, a monthly corn market, ^ "
and four fairs annually. By the census of 1831, the po-
pulation of the town and parish amounted to 3711. Banff
is 46 miles N. W. from Aberdeen, and 75 N. N. E. from
Edinburgh. Long. 2. 32. W. Lat. 57. 40. 58. N.
BANFFSHIRE, a county in the north of Scotland,
bounded by the Moray Frith on the north, by Aberdeen¬
shire on the south and south-east, and by the county of
Moray on the west, is situated in the 58th degree of north
latitude, and between 2° 13' and 3° 40' west longitude.
The number of acres which the shire contains, has never
been properly ascertained. The general aspect of Banff,
shire is various. The lower district, which is divided from
the upper by a chain of hills, is a fine open country, of a
rich, deep, and highly cultivated soil, agreeably diversifi-
ed with gentle risings and young plantations. The upper
district is mountainous, and at a distance wears a bleak,
forbidding appearance. But the scene changes on a near¬
er approach. Extensive farms are found embossomed in
its fertile and well-cultivated glens. Some of the mountains
are covered with trees in full luxuriance of growth ; some
presentingabeautiful intermixture of rock and copses, while
others are covered with brown heath. The Spey flows along
its western, and the Deveron along its eastern boundary;
and both yield a considerable revenue from their salmon-
fishings. The principal mountains of Banffshire are Bel-
rinnes, Knockhill, and Cairngorm, the last of which rises
to an elevation of 4050 feet above the level of the sea. In
the lower part of the country, towards the coast, there are
several elegant mansions, of which the most conspicuous are
Duff-House, Cullen-FIouse, Park-House, Forglen House,
and Gordon Castle. These, and a number of gentlemen’s
seats in the interior, are surrounded by extensive policies
or ornamental plantations, very tastefully laid out. The
natural woods are inconsiderable both in extent and value.
Many of the mountains are caped with moss, regularly
stratified, and contain the remains of plants, trees, and
vegetables. Some there are, the tops of which are formed
of granite, protruding through thick beds of gneiss passing
into mica slate. The prevailing rocks throughout the
county are granite, gneiss, graywake, graywake slate,
quartz rock, sienite, trap rock, old red sandstone, mica
slate, clay slate, primitive, transition, and new formation
limestone. The direction of the strata is from north-east
to south-west. Few of the primitive 1'ocks appear stratified.
The hill of Durn, adjacent to Portsoy, is wholly^ composed
of stratified quartz, which appears to lie on a thick bed of
gneiss; and along the eastern side of the hill there runs from
Portsoy, in a south-westei'ly direction, a vein of beautiful
serpentine. The bold and precipitous rock of Troup Head,
470 feet in height, consists of graywake. At the farm
house of Findon, near Gamrie, in a bed of breccia, com¬
posed of angular pieces of clay slate resting on the new
red sand stone, an extensive deposit of petrified fish or
ichthyolites has lately been discovered inclosed in cal¬
careous nodules. To the westward of Whitehills there
is a bed of transition limestone, alternating with gray¬
wake, graywake slate, and coarse gritstone, imbedded in a
limestone paste; and about a mile to the westward of
Banff is a bed of blue clay, containing a variety of orga¬
nic remains. This bed of clay extends for many miles
both along the coast and up the country. To the east¬
ward of Portsoy is found a bed of that peculiar structure
called graphic granite; and near Keith is a vein of sulphuret
of antimony, embedded in fluor spar. Rock-crystals and
topazes are found on the mountains of Cairngorm, and
other parts of that elevated range which forms the south¬
western boundary of Banffshire. Cudbear, or archil, a
vegetable substance, is found growing on rocky situations.
BAN
The agriculture of Banffshire is conducted upon the new-
nilS est and most approved principles. The soil, though vary-
nA • ing even inadjacentfields, isin general rich and productive,
-T yielding heavy crops of wheat, barley, oats, and other grain;
and the grass and green crops are equally abundant. The
quantity of soil under cultivation has never been proper¬
ly ascertained, but it may safely be affirmed that the
amount now under the plough is more than double of
what it was thirty years ago. The extent of the farms is
in general from 150 to 200 arable acres, independently of
moorland and pasture grounds. The rent per acre, at an
average, may be stated at 22s., and the duration of leases
at nineteen years; although there are some individuals who
possess on liferent, and a few who hold leases for a longer
term. The whole of the farms, even the smallest pendicles,
are under regular rotations of cropping, generally a five or
seven course shift. The fields are well laid out and sub¬
divided, and properly cleaned and manured, for which last
purpose large quantities of lime and bone dust are annually
imported; and, lately, some experiments have been tried
with prepared kelp as a substitute for bone dust, which
can now be but partially procured, and at a very high
price. The ridges are all straight, and the fields, at least
many of them, are inclosed with stone dykes or other
fences ; the swamps and wet grounds have also been drain¬
ed and cultivated, so as to effect a total revolution in the
ancient modes of agriculture within the county. The cat¬
tle and stock of every description are of the finest breeds
which can be procured, and are sought after by the dealers
at home, as well as conveyed by sea to London, where
they always bring the highest prices of any in the market.
This district was much indebted to one of the earls of
Findlater, who, as early as the year 1754, not only intro¬
duced and exemplified on some of his ovrn farms the most
approved practices then known in England, but held out
liberal encouragement to his tenants to follow his example.
Green crop cultivation, however, did not become general
till after the commencement of the late war with France.
Latterly, improvement has been promoted by agricultural
associations, and the annual premiums held out for the best
specimens of live stock, and the best productions of the
soil. The valued rent is L.79,200 Scots ; but the real gross
rent of land or of houses has never been ascertained.
The entailed properties, comprehending almost the
whole lands within the county, are fettered with restric¬
tions and limitations which prove a very heavy grievance
to the tenant, checking industry and improvements, and
BAN 345
limiting the duration of the lease frequently to a very short Banffshire
period. Astricted multures still prevail in all their feudal II
rigour, and are particularly oppressive. Bangalore.
An iron-foundery was established at Banff in 1825, and
has proved of great utility, particularly to agriculture, in
supplying the requisite machinery and implements. There
are also a number of extensive distilleries which produce
excellent spirits, and a small bleachfield at Cullen. The
shipping trade is carried on at the ports of Banff, Macduff,
Portsoy, and Gardenstown. The imports consist of coals,
iron, merchant goods, staves, salt, and other necessaries
for the herring fishery. The exports from June 1830 to
June 1831 consisted, of grain 65,000 quarters, of meal 740
tons, of black cattle 276 head, and upwards of 1000 swine,
besides some horses and other live stock, all principally
for the London market. Salmon and other fish are also
exported in considerable quantities ; and a very extensive
connection has been formed with various ports of the
southern shores of the Baltic. The herrings are general¬
ly exported to Hamburg and Ireland. In 1815 there
were only two boats of fifteen tons each employed in the
herring trade, but in 1826 they amounted to 470 of from
fifteen to twenty-five tons each, and the value of the fish
caught was estimated at nearly L.100,000 sterling. Cod,
ling, haddocks, and other white fish, are also caught in con¬
siderable quantities, and to a large amount in value.
Banffshire was the scene of many bloody conflicts be¬
tween the Scots and their Danish invaders, but details
of these encounters belong more properly to the history of
Scotland. From 1624 to 1645 it was the theatre of almost
incessant struggles. During that period, the outrages of
the Covenanters, combined with the frequent conflicts of
the clans, were productive of serious evils. Several re¬
mains of antiquity are pointed out in different parts of
the country. Of these the churches of Mortlach and
Gamrie are perhaps the most remarkable. Ruins of
castles and traces of encampments are often to be met
with, and a great number of cairns and tumuli are also
found. Amongst the distinguished men which Banffshire
has produced may be mentioned Archbishop Sharpe of St
Andrews ; George Baird, distinguished for his services as
sheriff of the county during the time of the Covenanters ;
Thomas Rudiman the grammarian; Walter Goodall, the
defender of Mary Queen of Scots; James Ferguson the
astronomer ; Dr Gregory, and his brother James Gregory.
The population, as taken under the acts of 1811, 1821,
and 1831, is given in the table below.
YEAR.
1811
1821
HOUSES.
8043
8971
By how
many Fa¬
milies oc¬
cupied.
8612
9885
223
210
OCCUPATIONS.
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Agricul¬
ture.
3815
4150
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Trade, Ma¬
nufactures,
or Handi¬
craft.
2195
2939
All other
Families
not com¬
prised in
the two
preceding-
classes.
2602
>2796
Males.
PERSONS.
16,465
20,193
Females.
20,203
23,368
Total of
Persons.
36,668
43,561
In 1831 the population was as follows:—Families, 10,855; males, 22,743; females, 25,801 ; total, 48,004.
BANGALORE, a fortified town of Hindostan, in the
rajah of Mysore’s territories, founded by Hyder. The fort,
which was constructed by Hyder after the best fashion of
Mahommedan architecture, was destroyed by his son Tip-
poo, after he found that it was incapable of effectually resist-
jog the British army. It was afterwards repaired in 1802.
The gardens made here by Hyder and Tippoo are exten-
sive, and, owing to the height of the ground, the town being
by observation 2901 feet above Madras, European fruits
and plants may be reared. During the reign of Hyder
this city was populous, but was much injured by the
edicts of Tippoo, prohibiting all trade with the dominions
of Arcot and Hyderabad, and by his forcing the merchants
to buy from him a large quantity of goods at a high price.
To complete its misfortunes, the town was stormed by
the British troops under Cornwallis, and abandoned to
2 x
346 BAN
Banghir plunder. The travelling distance from Seringapatam is 74
II miles, from Madras 215, and from Hyderabad 352. Long.
Banians. 77_ 46> E< Lat> 12> 57. N.
BANGHIR, a town of Ireland, in King^s county, in the
province of Leinster, seated on the river Shannon. Long.
8. 5. W. Lat. 53. 10. N.
BANGOR, a city, the see of a bishop, in the county of
Carnarvon, in North Wales, 253 miles from London, on the
magnificent new road to Ireland by Holyhead. A harbour
has recently been constructed, at which are loaded nu¬
merous vessels with slates, from the extensive quarries
in that neighbourhood. The cathedral is very ancient,
but neither large nor elegant: it is also used as a parish
church. The diocese of Bangor comprehends the whole
of Carnarvonshire except three parishes, all Anglesea, and
a part of Denbigh, Merioneth, and Montgomery, contain¬
ing in all 107 parishes. 4 he inhabitants in 1801 amounted
to 1790, in 1811 to 2393, and in 1821 to 3579.
Bangor, a town of Ireland, in the county of Down,
situated on the south shore of Carrickfergus Bay. Here
is a small harbour, and a considerable fishery is carried on
for soles, plaise, and turbot, and during the winter for cod
and oysters. It is 114 miles N. by E. of Dublin.
BANGUEY, an island in the Eastern Seas, lying off
the north coast of Borneo, and separated by a channel three
miles wide, from the island of Balambangan. It is about
23 miles in length by 11 in breadth. Long. 117. 25. E.
Lat. 7. 15. N.
BANIAK, an island in the Eastern Seas, off the west
coast of Sumatra. It is one of a cluster of islands, and is
about 17 miles in length by 7 in average breadth. Sea-
slug or biche de mer is obtained here. Long. 96. 48. E.
Lat. 2. 10. N.
BANIALUCH, or Bagnaluch, a city of European
Turkey, the capital of Bosnia, upon the frontiers of Dal¬
matia, near the river Setina. Long. 18. 20. E. Lat. 44.
20. N.
BANIANS, a religious sect in the empire of the Mogul,
who believe in metempsychosis, and therefore refrain from
eating any living creature, or killing even noxious animals,
but endeavour to release them when in the hands of others.
The name of Banian is used with some diversity, which has
occasioned much confusion, and given rise to many mistakes.
Sometimes it is taken in a less proper sense, and extend¬
ed to all the idolaters of India, as contradistinguished
from the Mahommedans; in which sense Banians in¬
cludes the Brahmins and other castes. But Banians, in a
more proper sense, is restricted to a peculiar caste or tribe
of Indians, whose office or profession is trade and merchan¬
dise ; in which sense Banians stand contradistinguished
from Brahmins, Cuttery, and Wyse, the three other castes
into which the Indians are divided. The four castes are
absolutely separate as to occupation, relation, marriage,
and condition, though all of the same religion, which is
more properly denominated the religion of the Bi’ahmins,
who constitute the ecclesiastical tribe, than of the Banians,
who form the mercantile. The proper Banians are called,
in the Shaster, or book of their law, by the name of
Shuddery; under which term are comprehended all who
live after the manner of merchants, or deal and transact
for others, as brokers, exclusively of the mechanics or
artificers, who make another caste, called Wyse. These
Banians have no peculiar sect or religion, unless it be that
two of the eight general precepts given by their legislator
Brahma to the Indian nation are, on account of the pro¬
fession of the Banians, supposed more immediately to re¬
late to them; namely, those which enjoin veracity in their
word and dealings, and abstinence from circumvention in
buying and selling. The Banians sometimes quit their bu¬
siness, and, retiring from the world, make a regular profes-
B A N
sion of religion, assume a peculiar habit, and devote them- u-
selves more immediately to God, under the denomination
of Vertea ; and these, although they do not thereby change
their caste, are commonly reckoned Brahmins of a more
devout kind; just as monks in the Romish church, although
frequently not in orders, are reputed a more sacred order
than even the regular clergy. Indeed the name Banian
imports as much in the sacred language of India, the de¬
pository of their written law; in which it means a people
innocent and harmless, void of all guile, so gentle that
they cannot endure to see .either a fly or a worm injured,
and who, when struck, will patiently bear it, without resist¬
ing or returning the blow. Their mien and appearance are
thus described by a modern author : “ A people presented
themselves to my eyes clothed in linen garments, some¬
what low descending ; of a gesture and garb, as I may say,
maidenly, and well nigh effeminate ; of a countenance shy
and somewhat estranged.” Gemelli Carreri divides the
Banians into twenty-two tribes, all distinct, and not allow¬
ed to intermarry. The author above quoted affirms that
they are divided into eighty-two castes or tribes, corre¬
sponding to the castes or divisions of the Brahmins or
priests, under whose discipline they are in religious mat¬
ters ; although the generality of the Banians choose to be
under the direction of the two Brahminical tribes, the Vi-
salnagranaugers and Vulnagranaugers.
The Banians are the great factors, by whom most of the
trade of India is managed ; in which respect they are com¬
parable to the Jews and Armenians, and not behind either,
in point of skill and experience, in whatever relates to
commerce. Nothing is bought but by their mediation.
They seem to claim a kind of jus divinum, grounded on
their sacred books, to the management of the traffic, just
as the Brahmins do to that of religion ; and for this pur¬
pose they are dispersed throughout all parts of Asia, and
abound in Persia, particularly at Ispahan and Gombroon,
where many of them are extremely rich, yet not above
acting as brokers where a penny is to be got by doing so.
They act also as bankers, and can give bills of exchange
for most cities in the East Indies. Their form of contract
in buying and selling is remarkable, being done without
words, in the profoundest silence, and only by touching
each other’s fingers. The buyer, loosing his pamerin or
girdle, spreads it on his knee, and both he and the sel¬
ler having their hands underneath, by the intercourse of
the fingers mark in pounds, shillings, or pence, the price
demanded, offered, and at length agreed on. When the
seller takes the buyer’s whole hand it denotes a thousand;
and as many times as he squeezes it, as many thousand
pagodas or rupees, according to the species in question,
are demanded. When he takes the five fingers, it denotes
five hundred; and when onlyone, one hundred; half a finger,
to the second joint, denotes fifty, and the small end of
the finger, to the first joint, stands for ten.
BANIER, Anthony, member of the Academy of In¬
scriptions and Belles-lettres, an ecclesiastic of the diocese
of Clermont in Auvergne, was born in 1673. He is princi¬
pally celebrated for his translation of the Metamorphoses
of Ovid, with historical remarks and explanations ; which
was published in 1732, at Amsterdam, in folio, finely or¬
namented with copperplates by Picart, and reprinted at
Paris in 1738, in two vols. 4to ; and for his Mythology or
Fables of the Ancients, explained by History ; a work full
of information, which was translated into English, and
printed at London in 1741, in four vols. 8vo. He died at
Paris in November 1741.
BANISTER, John, a physician and surgeon in the
reign of Queen Elizabeth, was educated at Oxford. E
1573 he took the degree of bachelor of physic; and, ob¬
taining a licence from the university to practise, settled at
BAN
u 'a Nottingham, where he lived many years in great repute,
r^;, *n(j wrote several medical and surgical treatises. The
II jjme 0f his death is not known. His works were collected
iiiruj anj published in a 4to volume in 1633.
BANJARMASSIN, a town and district of Borneo, on
the south-eastern coast, situated on a river of the same
name, which has a shallow bar at the entrance. Many
Chinese reside in this place, and carry on a considerable
trade with China, exporting pepper, camphor, gold dust,
wax, rattans, edible birds’ nests, biche-de-mer, and spices,
and importing opium, piece goods, coarse cutlery, gun¬
powder, and fire-arms. The Dutch for a long time main¬
tained a factory here for the collection of pepper and
rough diamonds. In 1700 the English also established a
factory here; but the place was found to be extremely
unhealthy, and the company’s servants were finally attack¬
ed by the natives, whom they repulsed with great difficulty.
The settlement was afterwards abandoned.
BANK, in Political Economy, an establishment for
keeping money secure, and for dealing in money by dis¬
counting bills and otherwise. The history of banks will
be given under the article Money. That class of banks
whose object is to encourage habits of saving among la¬
bourers, called banks for savings, will be treated under
the head of Savings Banks.
BANKER, a person who traffics and negociates in
money. The ancient bankers were called argentarii and
numnularii; by the Greeks rgavefyrou, %o7Xvfiifirai, and ao-
yogo/ioifioi. Their chief business was to put out the mo¬
ney of private persons to interest. They had their boards
and benches for this purpose in all the markets and pub¬
lic places, where they took in the money from some in
order to lend it to others.
BANKING, or the science of a banker or dealer in
money. This important subject will be treated under
Money.
Banking also denotes that branch of civil engineering
which relates to the formation of banks to oppose the
force of rivers, the sea, &c. See Embankment.
BANKRUPT, a person publicly declared to be in debt
beyond his power of payment. Bankruptcy is distinguish¬
able from insolvency. An insolvent is one who owes more
than he can pay; he becomes a bankrupt when that in¬
ability is proclaimed by some public or judicial proceeding.
In England one is made bankrupt only by the issuing
of a commission under the great seal, which deprives him
of all his funds, and vests them in certain commissioners,
to be assigned, managed, sold, and divided among his
creditors.
In Scotland a person may be made bankrupt either,
ls£, by a judicial process called sequestration, analogous
to the English commission, by which his estate and effects
are taken from him and vested in a trustee, to be managed
and divided among his creditors; or, 2dly, by imprison¬
ment for debt, or by absconding, taking sanctuary, or
defending himself against the officers sent to arrest him.
The law for regulating bankruptcy has had in view
chiefly persons engaged in trade: and the object in both
countries has been to preserve the funds of a debtor on
the eve of failure from being secreted, or placed in the
hands of confidants, or given to favourite relations; to
prevent the bankrupt from dealing unequally with his cre¬
ditors on the eve of his failure; to place his estates and
funds under economical management, in order that they
may be realised, and the price divided among his credi-
to^s> to ascertain the true amount of his debts; to have
a fair distribution made at certain terms; and to provide
for the safety of the debtor’s person, where he has dealt
justly with his creditors, and given up every thing fairly
or their payment. There is also ingrafted upon this pro-
BAN 347
ceeding, in either country, a mode of stopping short, after Bankrupt,
due inquiry into the amount of the debts and value off^T^
the funds, and enabling a certain large majority of the
creditors to make an agreement, which shall bind the
whole, whereby the proceedings are superseded, imme¬
diate payment of part of the debts accepted as a compo¬
sition for the whole, and the rest of the debt discharged.
This is called a composition contract.
Provisions have also been made in both countries for
regulating the interests of creditors, and the evil of im¬
prisonment for debt, where the insolvent debtor is not
engaged in trade. A short account of the laws establish¬
ed in both countries for regulating both those states of
insolvency may be useful.
1. Law of Bankruptcy and Insolvency in England.—
1. Commission of bankruptcy against persons engaged in
trade.—The law relating to the bankruptcy of persons
engaged in trade is consolidated in one statute, 6 Geo.
IV. c. 16. Where a trader or manufacturer either com¬
mits certain acts with the intent of defeating or delaying
his creditors ; or, having been arrested, lies for twenty days
in prison; or declares himself insolvent, and gives notice
thereof in the Gazette ; a commission may, on the peti¬
tion of a creditor making oath of debt to the amount at
least of L.100, be issued by the Lord Chancellor under
the great seal, appointing certain persons called commis¬
sioners of bankrupts to take order and direction with the
body of the bankrupt, and his lands, estates, and funds of
all kinds, and to make sale thereof for payment and satis¬
faction to the creditors. Notice is immediately published
in the Gazette, and certain days are named, on which the
bankrupt is to appear before the commissioners, and be
examined in presence of his creditors; and the creditors
are to appear and prove their debts, the commissioners
having large inquisitorial powers for discovery of the
bankrupt’s funds. After the creditors have proved their
debts, they are empowered to choose trustees, to whom
the estate shall be assigned by the commissioners, in or¬
der to be sold and converted into money for division; and
among the estates and funds so to be assigned are com¬
prehended, ls£, all goods and chattels in the possession,
order, disposition, and reputed ownership, of the bank¬
rupt; 2d, all lands, debts, goods, &c. which, after insol¬
vency, and without adequate consideration, the bankrupt
shall have conveyed or transferred to his children or
others ; 2>d, all property and effects transferred or affected
by contracts or other dealings, or by executions or attach¬
ments subsequent to an act of bankruptcy, provided the
party concerned have had notice of such act of bank¬
ruptcy, or that it shall have taken place within two ca¬
lendar months of the commission. The assignees are or¬
dered to make dividends among the creditors at certain
periods, as the funds shall be realized, notice being given
in the Gazette; and the bankrupt may be discharged
from all his debts on procuring a certificate signed by a
certain proportion of his creditors in number and value,
and having it sanctioned by the Lord Chancellor, on
hearing any objections which may be stated against the
discharge. But no bankrupt can thus be discharged who
has lost money at play, or by stockjobbing, to a certain
amount; or who has destroyed his books, or made false
entries, or concealed his property, or been privy to the
proving of fictitious debts on his estate. Finally, the
whole proceeding under the commission may be super¬
seded by the Lord Chancellor, if, after the bankrupt shall
have passed his last examination, proof shall be given to
him of an offer of composition made by the bankrupt or
his friends, and acceded to by nine tenths of the creditors
in number and value.
2. Insolvency.—Provision has at various times been
made in England, by occasional or temporary acts, for re¬
lieving insolvent persons not within the bankrupt laws,
imprisoned for debt. But in 1820 a new court was esta¬
blished for the purpose of affording permanently the means
of such relief, 1 Geo. IV. c. 119, and 5 Geo. IV. c. 61.
The court consists of a chief and three commissioners, to
sit in London, called the Court for relief of Insolvent Debtors.
Any person in custody for debt within the walls of a pri¬
son in England is entitled to apply to this court, by sum¬
mary petition, for his discharge from prison, and to have
future liberty of his person from all debts due by him at
the date of the petition, upon delivering a correct sche¬
dule of all his debts, and of all property and assets of
every kind, and assigning every thing (except wearing
apparel, bedding, &c. to the value of L.20), to the officer
of the court, for the satisfaction of his creditors; to be by
him made over to assignees appointed by the court, to
sell and distribute the proceeds. Provision is made for
due notice to the creditors, for the investigation of debts
claimed, for the proper disposal of all the property, for
the duly accounting of the assignees; and all conveyances
and preferences given to creditors within three months
are declared void. The prisoner’s right to a discharge
from prison is to be judged of by the court, on hearing
the creditors and examining the prisoner; and the court
is empowered to discharge him from prison if satisfied
with his conduct, or to prolong his imprisonment in their
discretion (not, however, exceeding three years), where
he has concealed funds, destroyed books, &c. The court
has power, where the debtor is not to be discharged, to
order the creditor or creditors at whose suit he is detain¬
ed, to pay to the prisoner a sum not exceeding four shil¬
lings by the week, on failure of which the prisoner is to be
discharged. To avoid the expense of proceedings in Lon¬
don, the court may order the investigations to proceed in
the court-house of the assize-town of the county; one of
the commissioners of the court there attending, with all
the powers of the court. And the court may appoint
examiners to assist in the necessary investigations in coun¬
ties. A prisoner found entitled to the benefit of the act
is not liable to imprisonment for debts due previous to
these proceedings, unless he shall succeed to or acquire
property, and refuse to assign it to the assignees, for the
benefit of his creditors ; in which case the assignees may
apply to have him remanded to prison; and provision is
made for compelling the debtor to submit to examination
as to property subsequently acquired.
II. Law of Bankruptcy and Insolvency in Scotland.—
1. Bankruptcy of persons engaged in trade.—By 54 Geo.
III. c. 137, a judicial proceeding, called sequestration, is
authorized to be issued by the Court of Session, on the
petition of an insolvent trader or manufacturer in Scot¬
land, with concurrence of a creditor swearing to a debt of
L.100, or of a creditor to that amount without the con¬
currence of the debtor, provided the insolvency have been
followed by imprisonment, absconding, or taking sanctuary,
or by the execution of certain judicial warrants, if he be
privileged from arrest. By this process the whole estates
and effects of the debtor, real and personal, are placed
under sequestration, to the effect of being made over to
a trustee, as soon as the creditors can meet and choose a
fit pei’son; for which purpose a day is appointed, and no¬
tice given in the Gazette. The property is in the mean¬
while managed by a factor, appointed by the creditors;
and the trustee, when chosen, has the whole property as¬
signed to him, and is entitled to recover, for the benefit
of the creditors, all property and effects made over to
confidential persons after insolvency, or conveyed to cre¬
ditors in satisfaction or security of previous debts, within
two months before sequestration or imprisonment. The
trustee’s duty is to bring the whole estate to sale, with B s
certain precautions ; to receive and investigate the claims Sh' eph,
of the creditors, and to reject or admit them, subject to re- ^ ^
view of the Court of Session by summary petition. At
certain appointed times he is required to make successive
dividends, till the whole funds shall be exhausted. The
debtor and his family must submit to public examinations
on oath before the sheriff of the county in which his trade
was carried on ; and he may receive a judicial protection
from arrest, if four fifths of his creditors in number and
value shall think him entitled to it, and the trustee shall
certify his conduct to be unexceptionable. And on the
same conditions he may, after a certain time, be discharg¬
ed of all his debts by the court, after hearing any credi¬
tor in opposition. The whole may also be superseded by
composition, if (after the examinations as to the funds,
and the lapse of sufficient time for the creditors to appear)
a proposal of composition shall be made by the bankrupt,
and assented to by nine tenths of the creditors in number
and value: the court may judicially sanction it by dis¬
charging the bankrupt of all his debts on payment of the
composition.
2. Bankruptcy of persons not engaged in trade.—By a
statute in the end of the seventeenth century (1696, c. 5)
the Scottish parliament provided, that any person insol¬
vent and imprisoned upon caption, or taking sanctuary, or
absconding, or defending himself by force against arrest,
shall be deemed a bankrupt; and the effect of this is, Lf,
that no preference given to one creditor over others with¬
in two months previous to the bankruptcy shall be effec¬
tual ; 2^, that all attachments of goods, debts, &c. within
the same term shall be unavailing to give preference to
the creditor using them; 3(7, that the debtor may apply
to the Court of Session to be discharged from prison, af¬
ter a month’s imprisonment, on making a complete cessxo
bonorum, or surrender to his creditors of all his estates and
effects; the court having power to judge of his right to
such discharge, and to prolong his imprisonment (or rather
to refuse his discharge), according to his conduct. His
future acquisitions are liable to be attached by his credi¬
tors.
BANKS, John, a dramatic writer, was bred to the law,
and belonged to the society of Gray’s Inn; but this pro¬
fession not suiting his natural disposition, he quitted it for
the service of the muses. His turn led him entirely to
tragedy, in which his merit is of a peculiar kind; for at
the same time that his language must be confessed to be
extremely unpoetical, his numbers uncouth and unharmo-
nious, his characters very far from being strongly marked
or distinguished, and his episodes extremely irregular,
yet it is impossible to avoid being deeply affected by the
representation, and even by the reading, of his tragic
pieces. These are, 1. Albion Queens. 2. Cyrus the Great.
3. Destruction of Troy. 4. Innocent Usurper. 5. Island
Queens, which is only the Albion Queens altered. 6. Ri¬
val Kings. 7. Virtue Betrayed. 8. Unhappy Favourite.
The Albion Queens was rejected by the managers in 1684,
but was acted by Queen Anne’s command in 1706. Nei¬
ther the time of the birth nor that of the death of this
author is ascertained. His remains, however, lie inter¬
red in the church of St James’s, Westminster.
Banks, Sir Joseph, for upwards of forty years the
distinguished president of the Royal Society of London,
was born in Argyle Street, London, on the 13th of Feb¬
ruary 1743. He was the only son of Mr William Banks,
a gentleman of considerable landed property, whose father
had derived his fortune principally from successful prac¬
tice as a physician in Lincolnshire, who had, on one occa¬
sion, been sheriff of that county, and had for some years
represented Peterborough in parliament. The family was
BAN
BAN
349
originally Swedish, though it had for several generations
^SiSlh.been settled in England.
J Very few particulars are known respecting the early
^ life of Mr Banks, which was passed principally at Revesby
hall the seat of his father, in Lincolnshire. His educa¬
tion was for some years intrusted to a private tutor. He
was afterwards sent to Harrow school, and thence was re¬
moved to Christ’s College, Oxford. He there made con¬
siderable proficiency in classical knowledge, but evinced
at the same time a very decided predilection for the pur¬
suits of natural history. Botany, in particular, was the
favourite occupation of his leisure hours. The character
of Linnaeus excited his admiration; and the fame of that
illustrious naturalist presenting itself to his youthful mind
as the noblest object of emulation, he devoted himself
with enthusiastic ardour and perseverance to the cultiva¬
tion of that fascinating science. An anecdote is told of
his being, on one occasion, so intent in exploring ditches
and secluded spots in search of rare plants, as to have ex¬
cited the suspicions of some countrymen, who, conceiving
that he could have no innocent design, surprised him one
day, while he lay asleep, exhausted with fatigue, and
brought him as a thief before a magistrate, by whom,
however, he was, after a strict investigation, soon liberat¬
ed ; but the incident occasioned much amusement in the
neighbourhood.
At the age of eighteen he lost his father, and thus suc¬
ceeded to an ample inheritance at a period of life when
the attractions of pleasure too often operate with irresist¬
ible force. His attachments to science and to intellectual
enjoyments were fortunately sufficiently powerful to ena¬
ble him to resist the fascination; and the noble bent of
his ambition was happily fostered by the judicious con¬
duct of his mother, who added the effectual motive of her
encouragement, and gave the best direction to his youth¬
ful energy.
Soon after the death of her husband, Mrs Banks re¬
moved with her family, consisting of her son and daugh¬
ter, from Lincolnshire, and was induced to fix her resi¬
dence at Chelsea, as a spot affording peculiar advantages
for the pursuit of botany, in consequence of the numerous
gardens in the vicinity, appropriated to the cultivation of
curious plants of every description. The garden of Sir
Hans Sloane, bequeathed by him to the company of apo¬
thecaries of London, was among the number; and this, as
well as the Chelsea Botanic Garden, and various nursery
grounds in the neighbourhood, furnished our student with
abundance of objects of research.
It was about this period that he formed an acquaintance
with Lord Sandwich, contracted while enjoying together
the amusement of fishing, of which they were both equally
fond. To the friendship of this nobleman, afterwards ap¬
pointed first lord of the admiralty, Mr Banks was, in the
course of his life, indebted for essential aid in the fur¬
therance of his numerous projects for the advancement of
scientific knowledge. Mr Banks was no sooner of age
than he quitted the university, and undertook a voyage to
Newfoundland and the Labrador coast, for the purpose of
exploring the botany of those unfrequented regions, and
brought home from thence valuable collections, not merely
of plants, but also of insects and other natural productions.
Subsequently, through the interest of Lord Sandwich,
then at the head of the admiralty, he obtained from go¬
vernment an appointment in the ship commanded by the
great navigator Captain Cook, who had been commission¬
ed to observe the transit of Venus in the Pacific Ocean,
and to fulfil also the usual objects of a general voyage of
discovery. The preparations made by Mr Banks for
turning to the best account the opportunities that might
present themselves during the voyage were commensu¬
rate with the magnitude of the undertaking. He pro- Banks,
vided himself with the best instruments for making all Sir Joseph,
kinds of observations, and for preserving specimens of
natural history. He prevailed upon Dr Solander, a dis¬
tinguished pupil of Linnaeus, who had lately become resi¬
dent in England, and was zealously devoted to the pur¬
suits of science, to become his associate in this enterprise.
He engaged draftsmen and painters to delineate all ob¬
jects of interest that did not admit of being transported
or preserved ; and also other persons whose services might
in various ways be wanted in the execution of his de¬
signs.
The time we are speaking of forms a remarkable epoch
in the history of science, as being that in which several
contemporaneous expeditions for the promotion of scien¬
tific knowledge were made by the direction of the leading
sovereigns of Europe. The one intrusted to Captain Cook
had for its object the alliance of navigation with astrono¬
my, from which the nation has since reaped such import¬
ant advantages. This was also the time when the em¬
press Catharine of Russia ordered extensive expeditions
in Siberia under the direction of the celebrated Pallas,
the primary object of which was also the observation of
the transit of Venus in that part of the world, but which
gave occasion to the great advancement of natural his¬
tory, and the acquisition of magnificent collections of spe¬
cimens. It was also at this period that Bougainville was,
by command of Louis XV., circumnavigating the globe,
accompanied by Commerson, to whom science is indebt¬
ed for such rich accessions of knowledge. But not the
least among the valuable fruits of these researches has
been the lesson they have imparted to mankind, how
much more imperishable is the glory that redounds to
princes and to nations from such conquests in the unex¬
plored regions of science, than from the unprincipled ex¬
tensions of empire or the barbarous triumphs of the sword.
The voyages of Captain Cook, and the interesting dis¬
coveries that accrued from them, have so long been justly
esteemed an important accession to the fame of our coun¬
try, that a portion of that reputation must be allowed to
descend to all those whose exertions contributed to their
success. Of this merit a considerable share must be ad¬
judged to Mr Banks, who brought home a splendid col¬
lection of specimens, more particularly from Otaheite,
New Zealand, and Australia.
This voyage occupied three years of the life of Banks;
and no sooner was he returned from it than, with una¬
bated ardour, we find him eager to undertake another of
equal extent. He had engaged his passage in the second
expedition under Captain Cook, and had made all the
necessary preparations for embarking, when he was sud¬
denly obliged to relinquish his design in consequence of
the conduct of Sir Hugh Palliser, who, he discovered,
had been using all his influence with the admiralty to
thwart his views, and frustrate the accomplishment of all
his objects. It is due to the memory of Cook to state,
that he took no part in this intrigue, but expressed his
uniform friendship for Banks, and his deep regret at being
deprived of his able co-operation. Disappointed in his
hopes, Mr Banks immediately directed his efforts to the
equipment of a ship at his own expense; and taking with
him Dr Solander, Dr Lind, De Troil, a Swedish naturalist,
and others, who were to have been his companions in the
second expedition with Captain Cook, he sailed for Ice¬
land in July 1772 ; and after exploring, during two months,
that interesting region of volcanoes, he returned enriched
with valuable specimens and still more valuable informa¬
tion respecting its productions.
The island of Staffa, the existence of which was at that
period scarcely known beyond the immediate neighbour-
350
BANK S.
Banks, hood, was visited by our travellers on their way to Ice-
Sif Joseph. ]and, and its extraordinary groups of basaltic columns at-
tracted much of their attention. The account of these,
together with the drawings taken on the spot, was libe¬
rally communicated by Mr Banks to Pennant, for publica¬
tion among his works. The information relating to Ice¬
land was given to the world by M. de Troil, who was af¬
terwards appointed bishop of Linkioping.
But a great part of the knowledge resulting from the
various travels of Mr Banks was communicated by him,
from time to time, in papers to the Royal Society of Lon¬
don, of which he had been elected a fellow in the year
1766, and admitted in the following year, previous to his
voyage with Captain Cook. He was a constant attendant
on the meetings of that society, and took a very active
part in its proceedings. On the resignation of Sir John
Pringle, in the year 1778, Mr Banks was elected presi¬
dent of the Royal Society, an honour which he continued
to enjoy till his death. A fierce dispute having arisen re¬
specting the superiority of pointed over blunt conductors
for lightning, it would appear that Sir John Pringle had
the ill fortune to differ in opinion from the men then in
power at court, who, to flatter the prejudices of the sove¬
reign, arrayed themselves in opposition to the discoveries
of Franklin, which, emanating from America, were sup¬
posed to have necessarily a i'evolutionary character. It
was in vain that the honest president of the Royal So¬
ciety made an humble representation that the preroga¬
tives of his office did not extend to the control of the laws
of nature ; superior influence compelled him to retire from
a situation which he could not retain with honour amidst
the angry passions called forth during these philosophical
polemics. His successor was more fortunate, and enjoyed
during his whole life the favour of the court; in proof of
which the title of baronet was conferred upon him in the
year 1781. In 1795 Sir Joseph Banks obtained also from
his majesty the order of the bath; and in 1797 he was
appointed a member of the privy council. It does not
appear, however, that he mingled much in politics, though
he occasionally gave his opinion, when consulted on such
questions of public interest as involved subjects of sci¬
ence. But to the honour of Sir Joseph Banks it ought
certainly to be recorded, that, whilst he was unremitting in
his solicitude to retain the full influence he enjoyed with
those in power, he never made that influence subservient
to the purposes of a selfish ambition, and invariably ex¬
erted it for the promotion of scientific objects, and the
encouragement of those who pursued them. He made
the most generous use of his library and collections, which
were always open to every inquirer of respectability. His
ample fortune enabled him to supply pecuniary assistance
to useful works and enterprises; and, what was often as
effectually serviceable, he freely gave to those who sought
it the benefit of his counsel and experience.
As proofs of the unreserved manner in which he com¬
municated the scientific treasures he had amassed to
those capable of making a proper use of them, many works
on natural history may be mentioned which have been en¬
riched by the information derived from these collections,
and which even owe their existence to the encouragement
thus afforded to their authors. It was by their aid that
the celebrated habricius was enabled to prosecute his ex¬
tensive entomological researches. Broussonnet availed
himself largely of Sir Joseph Banks’s specimens of fishes
for his work on ichthyology. Botanists, in particular, de¬
rived the greatest assistance from the stores of his herba¬
rium. From this source it was that Gaertner obtained the
most valuable materials for his excellent history of fruits
and seeds. The admirable work of Mr Robert Brown, On
the Plants of New Holland.) was conducted under the im¬
mediate eye of Sir Joseph Banks, and with the aid of the ]'■
materials derived from his collections. ^
Sir Joseph Banks evinced an anxiety to diffuse over ^
each region of the globe the productions of other climates.
Thus he brought into Europe the seeds of the plants of
the South Sea Islands, as he had already distributed to
the latter those of Europe. We are indebted to his ex¬
ertions for many of the beautiful plants which adorn our
gardens and shrubberies. The sugar-cane of Otaheite was
by him transplanted into the colonies; and the bread¬
fruit tree of the Pacific was introduced into the tropi¬
cal soil of America, destined perhaps to repay in a future
age to its inhabitants the benefits we ourselves have de¬
rived from the potato they formerly furnished. The flax
brought from New Zealand, superior in many of its quali¬
ties to that of Europe, is among the presents he has made
us. The black swan and the kangaroo are among the
animals from Australia, for the introduction of which into
this country we are indebted to Sir Joseph Banks.
The establishment of the British colony in New South
Wales was one of the results of the expedition of Captain
Cook, to which the exertions of Sir Joseph Banks mainly
contributed; and who will venture to predict the import¬
ant consequences this event may have on the future des¬
tinies of that vast continent of which it forms a part?
At the commencement of the American war the French
king, Louis XVL, had issued general orders to his officers
in all parts of the world, to offer no molestation to the ves¬
sels engaged in the expedition of discovery under Captain
Cook, but, on the contrary, to furnish them with every re¬
quisite assistance in the prosecution of their objects. Sir
Joseph Banks, in the spirit of generous reciprocity, exert¬
ed himself successfully to obtain, that a perpetual immu¬
nity from the evils of war for those engaged in scientific
enterprises should be recognised, as it now is, as one of
the laws of civilized warfare. This virtuous principle,
which forms an honourable exception to the demoralizing
tendency of national animosities, was adhered to in the
case of the expedition of La Perouse, orders being sent
by the British government, in time of war, to make every
inquiry respecting the fate of that unfortunate navigator,
and supply every aid that might be required, in case the
survivors should be discovered. After the disastrous ter¬
mination of the expedition under D’Entrecasteaux, the
collection of Labillardiere being captured and brought to
England, Sir Joseph Banks exerted himself successfully
to obtain its release and delivery, untouched, to the French
government. His motive for abstaining from the inspec¬
tion of its contents was, as he expressed in a letter to
Jussieu, lest any part of that knowledge, to the acquisition
of which so eminent a botanist had devoted the best years
of his life, should become alienated from its rightful owner.
On ten different occasions collections addressed to the
National Museums of Paris, and captured by British pri¬
vateers, were in like manner restored and forwarded to
their proper destination.
Sir Joseph Banks continued to fill the exalted station
of president of the Royal Society, the just reward of his
ardent zeal and unwearied exertions in the cause of
science, for a period of more than forty years; enjoying
the correspondence and confidence of most of the distin¬
guished men of learning of this and other nations. His
name was enrolled amongst the associates of almost every
academy and learned society in Europe. His house and
his table were ever open for the reception and entertain¬
ment of the leading members of the Royal Society, and
of foreigners eminent for their scientific attainments, with
that spirit of liberality which is so conducive to the union
of interests and co-operation of efforts requisite for the
successful cultivation of knowledge. The want of such a
'A
BAN
, centre of union has often led to the destruction of that
' osiai harmony which should ever characterize men engaged in
Ilf a common pursuit, calculated to raise them above vulgar
lam; / passions; and the want of such harmony has always proved
*rY ' highly detrimental to the interests of science.
Notwithstanding the liberality that marked the conduct
of Sir Joseph Banks in his intercourse with men of science
of all countries, he had many bitter enemies ; and his me¬
mory, soon after his death, was assailed by virulent invec¬
tive. Yet his name will ever be remembered with grati¬
tude by the friends of science, whom he benefited while
living, and for whose use he bequeathed to the British
Museum his books and botanical collections, under the
care of that most distinguished botanist Mr Robert Brown.
It is, however, not a little singular that, among the whole
of his bequests, there is not one in favour of that society
over which he had presided for above forty years, and
from his connection with which he derived so much of the
lustre which encompassed him ; it would almost seem, in¬
deed, as if he wished to be forgotten by them, since there
is not a single syllable in his will expressive of his own
recollection of that society.
Sir Joseph Banks was married, but had no family. Dur¬
ing many of the latter years of his life he was a great suf¬
ferer from the gout, which almost totally deprived him of
the use of his feet and legs. He died on the 19th of
March 1820, having attained the age of 77. He was suc¬
ceeded in the chair of the Royal Society for the remainder
of the year by Dr Wollaston, and, at the ensuing anni¬
versary, by Sir Humphry Davy, names that will ever re¬
main illustrious in the annals of science. The only au¬
thentic particulars that have been yet published respect¬
ing the life of Sir Joseph Banks are contained in the Eloge
Historique by the Baron Cuvier, which was read to the
Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris on the 2d of April
1821, and published in the fifth volume of the Memoirs
of that academy. (y.)
BANKS’S ISLAND, an island of New Zealand, of a
circular form, about 60 miles in circumference, and vi¬
sible at the distance of twelve or fifteen leagues. It is of
a broken, irregular surface, and presents a barren appear¬
ance, though it is inhabited. It is fifteen miles from Tavai-
Poenammoo. The south point lies in long. 186. 30. W.
lat. 43. 32. S.
BANN, or Ban (from the Brit, ban, i. e. clamour), is a
proclamation or public notice, any public summons or
edict, in short, whereby a thing is commanded or forbid¬
den. The word banns is used in England and in Scot¬
land in publishing matrimonial contracts; which is done
in the church before marriage, to the end that if any per¬
sons can speak against the intention of the parties, either
in respect of kindred, precontract, or other just cause,
they may take their exception before the marriage be con¬
summated. The use of matrimonial banns is said to have
oeen first introduced into the Gallican church, though
something like it obtained even in the primitive times ; and
it is this that Tertullian is supposed to mean by trinundina
promulgatio. The council of Lateran first extended the
usage and made it general.
Bann is also used to denote proscription or banishment
or a crime proved, because anciently published by sound
of trumpet; or, as Vossius thinks, because those who did
pot appear at the above-mentioned summons were pun¬
ished by proscription. Hence “ to put a prince under the
aim of the empire,” was to declare him divested of all his
dignities.
Bann is further used as a solemn anathema, or excom-
uiumcation attended with curses. In this sense we read
w papal banns, &c.
BANNER denotes either a square flag, or the princi-
BAN 351
pal standard belonging to a prince. We find a multipli- Bannerets
city of opinions concerning the etymology of the word II
banner ; some deriving it from the Latin bandum, a band Nlomn
or flag; others from the word bann, to summon the vas-V^^^V
sals to appear in arms; others again from the German
ban, a field or tenement, because landed men alone were
allowed a banner; and, finally, there are persons who think
it a corruption of panniere, from pannus, cloth, because
banners were originally made of cloth.
BANNERETS, an ancient order of knights, or feudal
lords, who led their vassals to battle under their own flag
or banner, when summoned by the king. The word seems
formed from banner, a square flag, or from band, which
anciently denoted a flag. Bannerets are also called by
ancient writers milites vexilliferi, and vexillarii bannerarii,
bannarii, banderisii, fyc.
Anciently there were two kinds of knights, great and
little; the first, called bannerets, composed of the upper,
and the second, called bachelors, of the middle nobility.
The banneret was allowed to march under his own flag,
whereas the bachelarius eques followed that of another.
Banneret, according to Spelman, was a middle order
between a baron and a simple knight. Hence he was
sometimes called vexillarius minor, to distinguish him from
the greater, that is, from the baron, to whom alone pro¬
perly belonged jus vexilli, or privilege of the square flag.
Hence the banneret was also called bannerettus, quasi baro
minor; a word frequently used by English writers in the
same sense as banneret was by the French, though neither
of them occur before the time of Edward II.
Some are of opinion that bannerets were originally per¬
sons who had a portion of a barony assigned them, and
enjoyed it under the title of baro proximus, with the same
prerogatives as the baron himself. Others, again, £nd the
origin of bannerets in France, in Brittany, or in England;
attributing the institution to Conan, lieutenant of Maxi¬
mus, who commanded the Roman legions in England
under the sway of Gratian in A. d. 383. According to
them, this general having revolted, divided England into
forty cantons, and among these cantons distributed forty
knights, to whom he gave power of assembling, on occa¬
sion, under their several banners, as many eftective men
as were to be found in their respective districts; whence
they are called bannerets. But however this be, it appears
from Froissart and others that, anciently, such of the mi¬
litary men as were rich enough to raise and subsist a
company of armed men, and had a right to do so, were
called bannerets : not, however, that these qualifications
rendered them knights; they were only bannerets, and
the appellation of knight was added thereto because they
were simple knights before.
Bannerets were second to none but knights of the gar¬
ter. They were reputed the next degree below the nobi¬
lity, and were allowed to bear arms with supporters, which
is competent to none else under the degree of a baron. In
France, it is said, the dignity was hereditary; but in Eng¬
land it died with the person who gained it. On the in¬
stitution of baronets by King James I. the order dwindled,
and at length became extinct. The last person created
banneret was Sir John Smith, who received the dignity
after Edgehill fight, for his gallantry in rescuing the stand¬
ard of King Charles I.
BANNOCKBURN, a village of Scotland, in the county
of Stirling, and noted for the ever memorable battle fought
near it on the 24th June 1314, between the Scottish and
English armies, in which the latter was totally defeated.
BANQUETING Room or House. The ancient Ro¬
mans supped in the atrium, or vestibule, of their houses;
but in after-times magnificent saloons or banqueting-
rooms were built, for the more commodious and splendid
352 BAN BAP
Banska entertainment of their guests. Lucullus had several of
II these, each distinguished by the name of some god ; and
Bantry was a particular rate of expense appropriated to each.
, Plutarch relates with what magnificence he entertained
Cicero and Pompey, who went with a design to surprise
him, by only telling a slave who waited, that the cloth
should be laid in the Apollo. The emperor Claudius,
among others, had a splendid banqueting-room named
Mercury. But every thing of this kind was outdone by
the lustre of the celebrated banqueting-house of Nero,
called domus aurea, which, by the circular motion of its
partitions and ceilings, imitated the revolution of the
heavens, representing the different seasons of the year,
which changed at every service, and showered down
flowers, essences, and perfumes, on the guests.
BANSKA, a city in the circle of Hither Danube, in
Hungary. It is the seat of a bishop, and of the civil and
military rulers of the Comitat of the Gran. There is a
Catholic and a Lutheran ecclesiastical seminary esta¬
blished here. The inhabitants amount to 10,619, and are
employed in making various metallic goods, and in the
fabrication of arms. Long. 19. 3. 40. E. Lat. 48. 45. N.
BANTAM, a town of Java, capital of a district of the
same name, at the north-western extremity of the island,
situated on the Bay of Bantam, near the mouth of a river
which falls into the bay. It was once a large, rich, and
flourishing city, but now exhibits nothing except ruins, the
memorials of its departed greatness. It is about 61 miles
west from Batavia, and is situated on a low, swampy beach,
surrounded by jungle, and intersected with stagnant
streams, so that its climate is even more unhealthy than
that of Batavia. The king formerly resided in a kind of
palace built in the European style, within an old ruinous
fort, containing 80 pieces of cannon ; and contiguous to it
was the Dutch fort. All these fortifications, both Euro¬
pean and native, the Dutch fort as well as the sultan’s
fort, are levelled with the ground; and the few European
habitations which have not been pulled down are falling
fast into decay, and totally deserted. The court of the
sultan, who resided here, had dwindled into insignificance,
and the high-sounding title was merely retained. After
Batavia surrendered to the British arms in 1812, this
kingdom was in a state of great distraction ; wherefore the
British government of Batavia interfered in favour of the
rightful heir, and restored him to the throne. Since that
period the sultan, from apathy, and labouring under disease,
has wholly resigned the government of Bantam, and volun¬
tarily retired on a pension assigned him by the British,
who took into their own hands the management of the
country. In former times Bantam was a free port, open
to the commerce of all nations. In 1683 the trade was
monopolized by the Dutch, who erected Fort Spielwyk,
to shut out all other merchants. This odious policy excit¬
ed great discontents among the people, who were always
the bitter enemies of the Dutch; but they were unable
to shake off the yoke of their oppressors, who, about the
year 1742, had succeeded in completely establishing their
authority. The Bay of Bantam was formerly a commodi¬
ous retreat for vessels; but it is now so choked up with
daily accessions of new earth washed down from the moun¬
tains, as well as by coral shoals extending a considerable
■way to the eastward, that it is inaccessible to vessels of any
considerable burden. Prior to the Dutch conquest, Bantam
was a powerful state, the sovereign of which extended his
conquests in the neighbouring islands of Borneo and Su¬
matra. The trade in pepper is the most considerable car¬
ried on here. Long, of the town of Bantam, 106. 3. E.
Lat. 6. 4. S.
BANIRY BAY, a bay on the north-west coast of
Ireland, in the county of Cork, about twenty-five miles
long by six or eight broad, with between ten and fourteen Ba
fathoms of water, surrounded by high mountains, and in- ^
dented by creeks and inlets. It affords a very fine har¬
bour for shipping, and contains two small islands, Bear
and Whiddy. In 1796 a French fleet anchored herewith
a view of invading Ireland, and landed in a boat eight men.
who were immediately taken prisoners. The fleet soon
after left the coast. Long. 9. 24. to 9. 45. E. Lat. 51.30.
to 51. 40. N.
BAPTISM, in matters of religion, the ceremony or sa¬
crament by which a person is initiated into the Christian
church. The word is drived from the Greek a
frequentative form of jSaftru, to dip or wash. Baptism is
known in ecclesiastical writers by divers other names
and titles. Sometimes it is called palingenesia, or rege¬
neration ; sometimes salus, or life and salvation; some¬
times cppayig, signaculum Domini, and signaculum fidei,
or the seal of faith ; sometimes absolutely mysterium, and
sacramentum; sometimes the sacrament of faith; sometimes
viaticum, from its being administered to departing per¬
sons ; sometimes sacerdotium laid, or the lay priesthood,
because allowed, in cases of necessity, to be conferred by
laymen; sometimes it is called the great circumcision, be¬
cause it was imagined to succeed in the room of circum¬
cision, and to be a seal of the Christian covenant, as circum¬
cision was the seal of the covenant made with Abraham.
In respect that baptism had Christ for its author, and not
man, it was anciently known by the name of dugov and
Ku^/ou, the gift of the Lord; sometimes it was sim¬
ply called Bwgov, without any other addition, by way of
eminence, because it was both a gratuitous and singular
gift of Christ. In reference to the making men complete
members of Christ’s body, the church, it had the name of
reXeiuffig, and rit-ar,, the consecration and consummation,
because it gave men the perfection of Christians, and a
right to partake of ro reX?/ov, which was the Lords Supper.
It had also the name of yvrfiig, and gvtsrayu'yia, the ini¬
tiation, because it was the admittance of men to all the
sacred rites and mysteries of the Christian religion.
Baptism has been supposed by many learned authors
to have had its origin in the Jewish church, in which, as
they maintain, it was the practice long before Christs
time to baptize proselytes or converts to their faith, as
part of the ceremony of admission; and this practice,
according to some, obtains among them to this day, a
person turning Jew being first circumcised, and, when
healed, bathed or baptized in water, in presence of the
rabbin, after which he is reputed a good Jew. Others,
however, insist that the Jewish proselyte baptism is not
by far so ancient; and that John the Baptist was the first
administrator of baptism among the Jews. Of this opi¬
nion were Deylingius, J. G. Carpzovius, Boernerus, Werns-
dorfius, Zeltnerus, Owen, Knatchbull, Jennings, Gill, and
others.
Grotius is of opinion that the rite of baptism derives
its origin from the time of the Deluge, immediately after
which, he thinks, it was instituted in memory of the world
having been purged by water. Some learned men think
it was added to circumcision soon after the Samaritan
schism, as a mark of distinction to the orthodox Jews.
Spencer, who is fond of deriving the rites of the Jewish
religion from the ceremonies of the Pagans, lays it down
as a probable supposition, that the Jews received the bap¬
tism of proselytes from the neighbouring nations, who
were wont to prepare candidates for the more sacred
functions of their religion by a solemn ablution, that, by
this affinity of sacred rites, they might draw the Gentiles
to embrace their religion, and that the proselytes, in the
gaining of whom they were extremely diligent, might the
more easily comply with the transition from Gentilism to
S
BAPTISM.
35
)o
Banl
Judaism. In confirmation of this opinion, he observes, first,
J tjiat there is no divine precept for the baptism of prose¬
lytes, God having enjoined only the rite of circumcision
for the admission of strangers into the Jewish religion;
and secondly, he contends, that, among foreign nations,
the Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and others, it
was customary for those who were to be initiated into
their mysteries or sacred rites, to be first purified by dip¬
ping the whole body in water. The same learned writer
adds, as a further confirmation of his opinion, that the cup
of blessing, added to the paschal supper, seems likewise
to have been derived from a pagan original; as the Greeks
at their feasts had one cup called 'itorri^m aya^ov daiaovog,
the cup of the good demon or god, which they drank at
the conclusion of their entertainment when the table was
removed. Since, then, a rite of Gentile origin was added
to one of the Jewish sacraments, namely, the passover,
there can be no absurdity, he thinks, in supposing that
baptism, which was added to the other sacrament, namely
circumcision, might be derived from the same source. In
the last place, he observes, that Christ, in the institution
of his sacraments, paid a peculiar regard to those rites
which were borrowed from the Gentiles; for, rejecting
circumcision and the paschal supper, he adopted into his
religion baptism and the sacred cup; thus preparing the
way for the conversion and reception of the Gentiles into
his church.
The design of the Jewish baptism, if baptism was prac¬
tised by them, is supposed to have been to import a rege¬
neration, whereby the proselyte was rendered a new man,
and from being a slave became free. The effect of it was, to
cancel all former relations ; so that those who were before
akin to the person, after the ceremony ceased to be so. It
is to this ceremony Christ is supposed to have alluded, in
his expression to Nicodemus, that it was necessary that
he should be born again, in order to become his disciple.
The necessity of baptism to salvation is grounded on these
two sayings of our Saviour, “ He that believeth, and is bap¬
tized, shall be saved and “ Except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”
The ancients did not generally think the mere want of
baptism, where the procuring of it was impracticable, ex¬
cluded men absolutely from the hopes of eternal salva¬
tion. Some few of them, indeed, are pretty severe upon
infants dying without baptism; and others seem also, in
general terms, to deny eternal life to adult persons dying
unbaptized. But when they interpret themselves, and
speak more distinctly, they make some allowances, and
specially except several cases in which the want of bap¬
tism may be supplied by other means. Such is mar¬
tyrdom, which commonly goes by the name of “ second
baptism in men’s own blood” in the writings of the ancients,
because of the power and efficacy it was thought to have
in saving men by the invisible baptism of the Spirit, with¬
out the external element of water. Faith and repentance
were also esteemed a supplement to the want of baptism,
in such catechumens as died whilst they were piously pre¬
paring themselves for baptism. Constantly communicating
with the church was also thought to supply the want of
baptism to persons who had been admitted to communion
on a presumption of their having been duly baptized,
though the contrary afterwards appeared. For infants
dying without baptism, the case was thought more dan¬
gerous; as here, no personal faith, repentance, or the
'ke, could be pleaded, to supply the defect, and to wash
away original sin. On this account, they who spoke most
avourably of them, as Gregory Nazianzen, and Severus,
. op ol Antioch, only assigned them a middle state,
neither in heaven nor hell. But the Latins, as St Augus-
In’ ^gentius, Marius Mercator, and others, who never
VOL. iv.
admitted the opinion of a middle state, concluded, that, Baptism,
as they could not be received into heaven, they must go
to hell. Pelagius and his followers, who denied original
sin, asserted that they might be admitted to eternal life
and salvation, although not to the kingdom of heaven;
between which a distinction was made. Where the fault
lay not on the side of the child, nor his parents, but on
that of the minister, or where any unavoidable accident
rendered baptism absolutely impossible, Hincmar and
others made an exception, holding that the child might
in that case be saved without baptism.
The receiving of baptism is not limited to any time, nor
to any age of life. Some contend for its being administered
like circumcision, precisely on the eighth day, as Gregory
Nazianzen; while others would have it deferred till the
child is three years of age, and able to hear the mystic
words, and make answer thereto, though he do not under¬
stand them. In the canon law we find divers injunctions
against deferring the baptism of infants beyond certain
days, as the ninth, thirtieth, and thirty-seventh, some of
them involving pecuniary forfeitures in case of disobe¬
dience.
Salmasius, and Suicerus after him, deliver it as authen¬
tic history, that for the first two ages no one received bap¬
tism who was not first instructed in the faith and doc¬
trine of Christ, so as to be able to answer for himself that
he believed; and this by reason of the words, “ He that
believeth and is baptized;” which in effect is to say, that
no infant, for the first two ages, was ever admitted to
Christian baptism. They own, however, that paedobap-
tism afterwards came in, upon the opinion that baptism
was necessary to salvation. But Vossius, Dr Forbes, Dr
Hammond, Mr WTalker, and especially Mr Wall, who has
exactly considered the testimony and authority of almost
every ancient writer who has said any thing upon this
subject, endeavour to evince that infants were baptized
even in the apostolical age; and it is certain that Ter-
tullian pleads strongly against giving baptism to infants ;
which at least shows that there was some such practice
in his age, though he disapproved of it. But the ordinary
subjects of this sacrament in the first ages were converts
from Judaism and Gentilism, who, before they could be
admitted to baptism, were obliged to spend some time in
the state of catechumens, to qualify them for making their
professions of faith and a Christian life, in their own per¬
sons; for, without such personal professions, there was
ordinarily no admission of them to the privilege of bap¬
tism. Those baptized in their sick beds w7ere called cli-
nici, and held in some reproach, as not being reputed
good Christians; and hence we meet with several censures
of clinic baptism in councils and ecclesiastical writers. But
this clinic baptism was not sufficient to qualify the person,
in case of recovery, for ordination. Some had their baptism
put off by way of punishment, when they fell into gross
and scandalous crimes, which were only to be expiated by
a long course of discipline and repentance. This sometimes
included five, ten, twenty, or more years; in particular
cases the whole of life to the very hour of death, when
very flagrant crimes had been committed.
In the earliest ages of the church, there was no stated
time or place for the reception of baptism. Afterwards,
Easter, Whitsuntide, and Epiphany, became solemn sea¬
sons, out of which baptism was not administered, except
in cases of necessity. The catechumens who were to re¬
ceive it at these times were called eompetentes; and it is
to these that St Cyril addresses his catecheses. In the
apostolical age, and some time after, before churches and
baptisteries were generally erected, they baptized in any
place where they had convenience; for example, John
baptized in Jordan, Philip baptized the eunuch in the
2 y
354 BAPTISM.
Baptism, wilderness, and Paul baptized the jailer in his own house.
'—But in after-ages baptisteries were built adjoining to the
churches; and then rules were made that baptism should
ordinarily be administered nowhere except in these build¬
ings. Justinian, in one of his novels, refers to ancient
laws appointing that none of the sacred mysteries of the
church should be celebrated in private liouses. Men
might have private oratories for prayer in their own
houses; but they were not to administer baptism or the
eucharist in them, unless by a particular license from the
bishop of the place. Such baptisms are frequently con¬
demned in the ancient councils, under the name ffagaputf-
nSiMTa, baptisms in private conventicles.
As to the attendant ceremonies and manner of baptism
in the ancient church, the person to be baptized, if an
adult, was first examined by the bishop or officiating
priest, who put some questions to him; as, first, whether
he abjured the devil and all his works, and, secondly,
whether he gave a firm assent to all the articles of the
Christian faith ; to each of which he answered in the affir¬
mative. If the person to be baptized was an infant, these
interrogatories were answered by his sponsores or god¬
fathers. Whether the use of sponsors was as old as the
days of the apostles is uncertain ; the probability is it was
not, since Justin Martyr, speaking of the method and form
of baptism, says not a word of them. After the questions
and answers, followed exorcism, the manner and end of
which was this : The minister laid his hands on the per¬
son’s head, and breathed in his face, implying thereby the
driving away or expelling of the devil, and preparing the
convert for baptism, by which the good and holy s.pirit
was to be conferred upon him. After exorcism followed
baptism itself. And, first of all, the minister, by prayer,
consecrated the water for that purpose. Tertullian says,
“ any waters may be applied to that use; but then God
must be first invocated ; on which the Holy Ghost present¬
ly comes down from heaven, and moves upon them, and
sanctifies them.” The waters having been consecrated,
the person was baptized “ in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghostby which “ dedica¬
tion of him to the blessed Trinity, the person,” says
Clemens Alexandrinus, “ is delivered from that corrupt
trinity, the devil, the world, and the flesh.” In perform¬
ing the ceremony of baptism, the usual custom, except
in clinical cases, or where there was scarcity of water,
was to immerse the whole body. Thus St Barnabas,
describing a baptized person, says, “ We go down into
the water full of sin and filth, but we ascend bearing
fruit in our hearts.” And this practice of immersing the
whole body was so general, that we find no exception
made from respect either to the tenderness of infants or
the bashfulness of the other sex, unless in case of sick¬
ness or disability. But, to prevent any indecency, men
and women were baptized apart; to which end, either
the baptisteries were divided into two apartments, one for
the men, the other for the women, as Bingham has ob¬
served ; or the men were baptized at one time and the
women at another, as is shown by Vossius, from the Ordo
Romanas, Gregory’s Sacramentarium-, and other authori¬
ties. Add to this, that there was anciently an order of
deaconesses, one part of whose business was to assist at
the baptism of women. These precautions, however, ra¬
ther indicate a scrupulous attention to delicacy, than im¬
ply any indecency in the circumstance of immersion itself.
From the circumstance of candidates being immersed,
however, there is no reason to infer that immersion was
made in a state of nudity. The present Baptists never
baptize naked, though they always immerse. After im¬
mersion followed the unction ; by which, according to St
Cyril, was signified that they were now cut off from the
wild olive, and were ingrafted into Christ, the true olive Ba
tree ; or else to show that they were now to be champions 'w
for the gospel, and were anointed thereto, as the old ath-
letae were for their solemn games. With this anointing
was joined the sign of the cross, made upon the forehead
of the person baptized ; which being done, he had a white
garment given him, to denote his being washed from the
defilements of sin, or in allusion to that of the apostle,
“ As many as are baptized in Christ have put on Christ.”
From this custom the feast of Pentecost, which was one
of the annual seasons of baptism, came to be called White-
Sunday or Whitsunday. The garment in question was
afterwards laid up in the church, that it might be an evi¬
dence against such persons as violated or denied that faith
which they had owned in baptism. When the baptism
was performed, the person baptized, according to Justin
Martyr, “ was received into the number of the faithful,
who then sent up their public prayers to God for all men,
for themselves, and for those who had been baptized.”
The ordinary ministers, who had the right of adminis¬
tering this sacrament, that is, of applying the water to the
body, and pronouncing the formula, were presbyters or
bishops ; but on extraordinary occasions laymen were ad¬
mitted to perform the same.
The present form of administering baptism in the
church of Rome is as follows:—When a child is to be
baptized, the persons who bring it wait at the door of the
church for the priest, who comes thither in his surplice
and purple stole, attended by his clerks. He begins with
questioning the godfathers, whether they promise, in the
child’s name, to live and die in the true Catholic and
Apostolic faith, and what name they would give the child.
Then follows an exhortation to the sponsors; after which
the priest, calling the child by its name, asks, “ What dost
thou demand of the church ?” The godfather answers,
“ Eternal life.” The priest proceeds : “ If you are desir¬
ous of obtaining eternal life, keep God’s commandments,
tbou shalt love the Lord thy God,” &c.; after which he
breathes three times in the child’s face, saying, “ Come
out of this child, thou evil spirit, and make room for the
Holy Ghost.” Then he makes the sign of the cross on
the child’s forehead and breast, saying, “ Receive the sign
of the cross on thy forehead and in thy heart;” upon
which, taking off his cap, he repeats a short prayer, and
laying his hand gently on the child’s head, repeats a se¬
cond prayer; then he blesses some salt, and, putting a
little of it into the child’s mouth, pronounces these words,
“ Receive the salt of wisdom.” All this is performed at
the church door. The priest, with the godfathers and
godmothers, coming into the church, and advancing to¬
wards the font, repeat the apostles’ creed and the Lord’s
prayer. Arrived at the font, the priest exorcises the evil
spirit again; and taking a little of his own spittle, with
the thumb of his right hand rubs it on the child’s ears
and nostrils, repeating, as he touches the right ear, the
same word, Ephatha, be thou opened, which our Saviour
made use of to the man born deaf and dumb. Lastly, they
pull off its swaddling-clothes, or strip it below the shoul¬
ders, during which the priest prepares the oil. The spon¬
sors then hold the child directly over the font, observing
to turn it due east and west; whereupon the priest asks
the child, “ whether he renounces the devil and all his
works ;” and the godfather having answered in the affirm¬
ative, the priest anoints the child between the shoulders
in the form of a cross ; then taking some of the consecrat¬
ed water, he pours part of it thrice on the child’s head, at
each perfusion calling on one of the persons of the Holy
Trinity. The priest concludes the ceremony of baptism
with an exhortation. It may be added, that the Romish
church allows midwives, in cases of danger, to baptize a
BAPTISM.
m_ before it comes entirely out of its mother’s womb;
«-/ but it is to be observed, that as some part of the body of
the child must appear before it can be baptized, it is bap¬
tized on that which first appears: if it be the head, it is
not necessary to rebaptize the child; but if only a foot or
hand appears, baptism must be repeated. A still-born
child thus baptized may be buried in consecrated ground.
The Greek church differs from the Romish as to the rite
of baptism, chiefly in performing it by immersion, or
plunging the infant all over in the water.
The forms of administering baptism among us being
too well known to require a particular description, we shall
only mention one or two of the more material differences
between the form as it stood in the first liturgy of King
Edward, and that in the English Common Prayer Book
at present. First, the form of consecrating the water did
not make a part of the office in King Edward’s liturgy, as
it does in the present, because the water in the font was
changed and consecrated but once a month. The form
itself likewise was something different from that now used,
and was introduced with a short prayer, that Jesus Christ,
upon whom (when he was baptized) the Holy Ghost came
down in the likeness of a dove, would send down the same
Holy Spirit, to sanctify the fountain of baptism ; which
prayer was afterwards left out at the second review. By
King Edward’s first book the minister was required to
dip the child in the water thrice; first, the right side ;
secondly, the left; and, lastly, the face toward the foot.
This triple immersion was a very ancient practice in the
Christian church, and used in honour of the Holy Trinity;
though some later writers say that it was done to repre¬
sent the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, together
with his three days’ continuance in the grave. But after¬
wards, when the Arians made an improper use of it, per¬
suading the people that it denoted a distinct substantiality
of the three persons in the Trinity, the orthodox left it off
and used only one single immersion.
By the first common prayer of King Edward, after the
child was baptized, the godfathers and godmothers were
to lay their hands upon it, and the minister was to put on
him the white vestment, commonly called the chrysome,
and to say, “ Take this white vesture as a token of the
innocency which, by God’s grace, in this holy sacrament
of baptism, is given unto thee, and for a sign whereby
thou art admonished, so long as thou livest, to give thy¬
self to innocence of living, that after this transitory life
thou mayest be partaker of the life everlasting.” As
soon as he had pronounced these words he was to anoint
the infant on the head, saying, “ Almighty God, the fa¬
ther of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath regenerated thee
by water and the Holy Ghost, and hath given unto thee
remission of all thy sins, may he vouchsafe to anoint thee
with the unction of his Holy Spirit, and bring thee to the
inheritance of everlasting life.”
The custom of sprinkling children instead of dipping
them in the font, which at first was allowed in case of the
weakness or sickness of the infant, has so far prevailed
that immersion is now quite excluded. What principal¬
ly tended to confirm the practice of affusion or sprink¬
ling was, that several of our Protestant divines flying into
Germany and Switzerland during the bloody reign of
Queen Mary, and returning home when Queen Elizabeth
came to the crown, brought back with them a great zeal
for the Protestant churches beyond sea where they had
been sheltered and received; and having observed that
at Geneva and other places baptism was administered by
sprinkling, they thought they could not do the church of
England a greater piece of service than by introducing a
practice dictated by so great an authority as Calvin. This,
together with the coldness of our northern climate, was
355
what contributed to banish entirely the practice of im- Baptism,
mersing infants in the font.
The different notions which have been entertained con¬
cerning the effects of baptism, it would be endless to enu¬
merate. The Remonstrants and Socinians reduce baptism
to a mere sign of divine grace. The Romanists, on the
contrary, exalt its power, holding, that thereby all sin is
entirely taken away by it; that it absolutely confers jus¬
tification, and consequently grace ex opere operato. Some
also speak of an indelible character impressed on the soul
by it, called character dominicus, and character regius;
but others hold this a mere chimera, maintaining that the
spiritual character conferred in regeneration may easily
be effaced by mortal sins. Dodwell contends that it is by
baptism that the soul is made immortal, and that those
who die without it cannot rise again; but he limits this
effect to episcopal baptism alone. From the effects ordi¬
narily ascribed to baptism, even by ancient writers, it
would seem that the ceremony is as much of heathen as
Jewish origin, since Christians do not restrain the use of
it, like the Jews, to the admission of new members into
the church, but hold, with the heathens, that it contains
a virtue for remitting and washing away sins. The Brah¬
mins are still said to baptize with this latter view at cer¬
tain seasons in the river Ganges, to the waters of which
they ascribe a cleansing or sanctifying quality; and hence
it is that people flock from all parts, even of Tartary,
in expectation of being thus eased of their load of sins.
But in this point many Christians seem to have gone be¬
yond the folly of the heathens. It was only the smaller
sins of infirmity which these latter held to be expiable by
washing; for crimes of a blacker dye, they allowed, no
water could efface, no purgation discharge them. The
Christian doctrine of a total remission of sins by baptism
could not fail, therefore, to scandalize many amongst the
heathen, and furnished the apostate Julian with an occa¬
sion for ridiculing Christianity itself: “ Whoever,” says he,
“ is guilty of rapes, murders, sacrilege, or any abominable
crime, let him be washed with water, and he will become
pure and holy.”
In the ancient church, baptism was frequently confer¬
red on Jews by violence; but the church itself never seems
to have allowed of force on this occasion. By a canon of
the fourth council of Toledo, it is expressly forbidden to
baptize any one against his or her will. That which looks
most like force in this case is to be found in two orders
of Justinian; one of which appoints the heathen, and the
other the Samaritans, to be baptized, with their wives and
children and servants, under pain of confiscation. By the
ancient laws, baptism was not to be conferred on image-
makers, stage-players, gladiators, aurigce or public drivers,
magicians, or even strolling beggars, until they quitted
such professions. Slaves were not allowed the privilege of
baptism without the testimony and consent of their mas¬
ters ; excepting the slaves of Jews, heathens, and here¬
tics, who were not only admitted to baptism, but, in conse¬
quence of the rite, had their freedom conferred on them.
Baptism by Fire, spoken of by John the Baptist, has given
rise to much conjecture. The generality of the fathers
held that believers, before they enter paradise, must pass
through a certain fire, which is to purify them from all
pollutions remaining unexpiated. But some, with St Basil,
understand it of the fire of hell; others, of that of tribu¬
lation and temptation; while a few, with St Chrysostom,
will have it to denote an abundance of graces. Some
suppose it to mean the descent of the Holy Ghost on the
apostles, in the form of fiery tongues; others maintain, that
the word fire here is an interpolation, and that we are only
to read the text, “ He that shall come after me will bap¬
tize you with the Holy Ghost.”
356 BAP
Baptism. The ancient Selucians and Hermians, understanding the
passage literally, maintained that material fire was neces¬
sary in the administration of baptism. But we do not
find how or to what part of the body they applied it, or
whether they were satisfied with obliging the person bap¬
tized to pass through the fire. Valentinus rebaptized all
who had received water-baptism, and conferred on them
the baptism of fire.1 Heracleon, cited by Clemens Alex-
andrinus, says that some applied a red-hot iron to the
ears of the person baptized, as if to impress some mark
upon him.
Baptism of the Bead, a custom which anciently prevad-
ed among some people in Africa, of giving baptism to the
dead. The third council of Carthage speak of it as a thing
which ignorant Christians were fond of. Gregory Nazian-
zen also takes notice of the same superstitious opinion pre¬
vailing among some who delayed to be baptized. In his
address to this kind of men, he asks, whether they stayed
to be baptized after death. Philastrius also notices it as
the general error of the Montanists or Cataphrygians, that
they baptized men after death. The practice seems to
have been grounded on a vain opinion, that when men
had neglected to receive baptism in their life-time, some
compensation might be made for this default by receiving
it after death.
Baptism of the dead was also a sort of vicarious bap¬
tism, formerly in use, when, in the case of a person dying
without baptism, another was baptized in his stead. Ihis,
St Chrysostom tells us, was practised among the Marcionites
with a great deal of ridiculous ceremony. When a catechu¬
men happened to die, they hid a living man under the bed
of the deceased : then coming to the dead man, they asked
him whether he would receive baptism ; and he making no
reply, the other answered for him, and said he would be
baptized in his stead; and so they baptized the living for
the dead. Epiphanius assures us the like was also prac¬
tised amongst the Corinthians. This practice they pretend¬
ed to found on the Apostle’s authority, alleging that text
of St Paul for it, “ If the dead rise not at all, what shall
they do who are baptized for the dead ?” a text which
has given occasion to a great variety of different systems
and explications. Vossius enumerates no less than nine
different opinions among learned divines concerning the
sense of the phrase, being “ baptized for the dead.”
Hypothetical Baptism was that formerly administered
in certain doubtful cases, with the formula, “ If thou art
baptized, I do not rebaptize ; if thou art not, I baptize
thee in the name of the Father,” &c. This sort of bap¬
tism, enjoined by some ancient constitutions of the Eng¬
lish church, has now fallen into disuse.
Solemn Baptism was that conferred at stated seasons.
Such, in the ancient church, were the paschal baptism,
and that at Whitsuntide. This is sometimes also called
general baptism.
Lay Baptism we find to have been permitted both by
the common prayer-book of King Edward and by that of
Queen Elizabeth, when an infant is in immediate danger
of death, and a lawful minister cannot be had. This was
founded upon the mistaken notion of the impossibility of
salvation without the sacrament of baptism; but after¬
wards, when they came to have clearer notions of the sa¬
craments, it was unanimously resolved, in a convocation
held in the year 1575, that even private baptism, in a case
of necessity, was only to be administered by a lawful
minister.
Baptism is also applied abusively to certain ceremo¬
nies used in giving names to things inanimate. The an-
B A P
cients knew nothing of the custom of giving baptism to Bapt v
inanimate things, as bells, ships, and the like, by a super- V 1
stitious consecration of them. The first notice we have
of this is in the capitulars of Charles the Great,, where it ®af ^
is mentioned with censure ; but afterwards it crept by de- ^ J
grees into the Roman offices. Baronius carries its anti¬
quity no higher than the year 968, when the great bell of
the church of Lateran was christened by Pope John III,
At last it grew to such superstitious height as to form a
ground of complaint in the Centum Gravamina of the
German nation, drawn up in the public diet of the empire
held at Nuremberg in the year 1581 ; where, after de¬
scribing the ceremony of baptizing a bell, with godfathers,
who made responses as in baptism, and gave it a name, and
clothed it with a new garment as Christians were used to
be clothed withal, and all this to make it capable of driv¬
ing away tempests and devils, they conclude against it
as not only a superstitious practice, but contrary to the
Christian religion, and a mere seduction of the simple
people.
BAPTISMAL Vow or Covenant, a profession of obe¬
dience to the laws of Christ, which persons in the ancient
church made before baptism. It was an indispensable
part of the obligation on catechumens before they were
admitted to the ceremony of regeneration. The vow was
made by turning to the east, for what mystical reason is
not well agreed on.
Baptismal Presents, in use in Germany, were made by
the sponsors to the infant, and consisted of money, plate,
or even sometimes fiefs of lands, which by the laws of the
country were to be kept for the child until he became of
age; the parents having only the trust, not the right of
disposing of them.
BAPTIST, John Monnoyer, a painter of flowers and
fruit, was born at Lisle in 1635, and educated at Ant¬
werp, wdiere he perfected himself in the knowledge of
his art, and in his first years was intended for a painter
of history; but having soon found that his genius more
strongly inclined him to the painting of flowers, he appli¬
ed his talents to those subjects, and in that style became
one of the greatest masters. His pictures are not so ex¬
quisitely finished as those of Van Huysum, but his com¬
position and colouring are in a bolder style. He died in
1699, leaving a son, Anthony, who followed his father’s
profession, and had great merit.
BAPTISTS, in Ecclesiastical History, a denomination
of Christians, distinguished from other Christians by their
particular opinions respecting the mode and the subjects
of baptism.
Instead of administering the ordinance by sprinkling,
they maintain that it ought to be administered only by
immersion. Such, they insist, is the import of the word
; so that a command to baptize is a command
to immerse. And thus it was understood by those who
first administered it. John the Baptist and the apostles
of Christ administered it in Jordan and other rivers and
places where there was much water. Both the adminis¬
trators and the subjects are described as going down into
and coming up again out of the water; and the baptized
are said to be buried in baptism, and to be raised again;
which language could not, they say, be properly adopted
on supposition of the ordinance being administered in any
other manner than by immersion. Thus also, they affirm,
it was in general administered in the primitive church;
thus it is now administered in the Russian and Greek
church; and thus it is at this day directed to be admi¬
nistered in the church of England to all who are thought
* Bis docuit tingi, transducto corpore flamma. (Tertull. Carm. contr. Marc. lib. i.)
BAP
3_ capable of submitting to it in this manner. With regard
t0 the subjects of baptism, the Baptists say that this or¬
dinance ought not to be administered to children or in¬
fants at all, nor to grown up persons in general; but to
adults only of a certain character and description. Our
Saviour’s commission to his apostles, by which Christian
baptism was instituted, is to go and teach all nations, bap¬
tizing them; that is, say they, not to baptize all they
meet with, but first to instruct them, to teach all nations,
or to preach the gospel to every creature, and whoever
receives it, him to baptize in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. To such persons,
and to such only, baptism appears to have been adminis¬
tered by the apostles and the immediate disciples of
Christ. They are described as repenting of their sins,
as believing in Christ, and as having gladly received the
word. Peter acquaints those who were converted by his
sermon, that without these qualifications he could not have
admitted them to baptism; Philip holds the same language
in his discourse with the Ethiopian eunuch ; and Paul
treats Lydia, the jailer, and others, in the same manner.
Without these qualifications Christians in general think
it wrong to admit persons to the Lord’s supper; and for
the same reasons, without these qualifications, or at least
a profession of them, the Baptists think it wrong to admit
any to baptism. Wherefore they withhold it, not only
from the impenitently vicious and profane, and from infi¬
dels, who have no faith, but also from infants and children,
who have no knowledge, and are incapable of every action
civil and religious. They further insist that all positive
institutions depend entirely upon the will and declaration
of the founder; wherefore, that reasoning by analogy from
abrogated Jewish rites is to be rejected, and the express
commands of Christ respecting the mode and subjects of
baptism ought to be our only rule.
The Baptists in England form one of the denominations
of Protestant dissenters. They separate from the esta¬
blishment for the same reasons as their brethren of the
other denominations do ; and an additional motive is de¬
rived from their particular tenets respecting baptism. The
constitution of their churches, and their mode of worship,
is congregational or independent; and in the exercise of
it they are protected, in common with other dissenters,
by the act of toleration. Before this act they were liable
to pains and penalties as nonconformists, and often for
their peculiar sentiments as Baptists. A proclamation was
m fact issued out against them, and some of them were
burnt in Smithfield in 1538. They bore a considerable
share in the persecutions of the seventeenth and preced¬
ing centuries, and, as it should seem, in those of even an
earlier date; for among the Lollards and the followers
of \\ ickliffe there were several who disapproved of infant
baptism, and there were many of this persuasion among
the Protestants and reformers abroad. In Holland, Ger¬
many, and the North, they went by the names of Anabap¬
tists and Mennonites; and, in Piedmont and the south,
they were found among the Albigenses and Waldenses.
The Baptists subsist under two denominations; the
Particular or Calvinistical, and the General or Arminian.
I he former is by far the most numerous. Some of both
denominations allow of mixed communion, that is, with per¬
sons who have been sprinkled in their infancy, and there-
tore unbaptized in the view of the Baptists. Others, again,
disallow it; and a few of them observe the seventh day
ot the week as the Sabbath, apprehending the law that
enJoined it not to have been repealed by Christ or his
apostles. But a difference of opinion respecting these and
°tier matters is not peculiar to the Baptists, being com-
ttion to all Christians, and to all bodies of men who think
and judge for themselves.
BAP 357
BAPTISTERY, in ecclesiastical language, the name of Baptistery
a place in which the ceremony of baptism is performed. II
In the ancient church it was one of the exhedrae or build- Bj?r-le-
ings distinct from the church itself, and consisted of a
porch or anti-room where the persons to be baptized made
their confession of faith, and an inner apartment where the
ceremony of baptism was performed. Thus it continued
till the sixth century, when the baptisteries began to be
taken into the church-porch, and afterwards into the
church itself. The ancient baptisteries were commonly
called (pwrigrripa,, photisteria, or places of illumination, be¬
cause they were the places of instruction preceding bap¬
tism ; and in these the catechumens seem to have been
trained up, and instructed in the first rudiments of the
Christian faith.
Those baptisteries were anciently very capacious, be¬
cause the stated times of baptism returning but seldom,
there were usually great multitudes to be baptized at the
same time; and also because the manner of baptizing by
immersion or dipping under water made it necessary to
have a large font. In Yenantius Fortunatus it is called
aula baptismatis, the large hall of baptism; which was in¬
deed so large, that we sometimes read of councils meet¬
ing and sitting therein. This hall, or chapel, was always
kept shut during Lent, and the door sealed up with the
bishop’s seal, not to be opened till Maunday-Thursday.
The baptistery was always reputed a sacred place. In the
Roman order baptisteries were built of a round figure,
and distinguished with the image of St John the Baptist,
while over the basin or font was a figure of a dove in gold
or silver, to represent the Holy Ghost.
The name baptistery is sometimes also given to a kind
of chapel in a large church, which served for the same
office. It is an observation of some learned men, that an¬
ciently there was but one baptistery in a city, namely, at
the bishop’s church; and that afterwards they were set
up in parish churches, with the special allowance, how¬
ever, of the bishop.
BAR, in courts of justice, denotes an inclosure made
with a partition of timber, where the counsel are placed to
plead causes, and where prisoners are brought to answer
to indictments, &c. It corresponds to what among the Ro¬
mans was denominated tribunal. The French call it barre
d'audience. In England, lawyers who are called to the
bar, or licensed to plead, are termed barristers, an appel¬
lation equivalent to licentiate in other countries.
Bar, in Heraldry, an ordinary in form of the fess, but
much less. See Heraldry.
Bar, in Music, a stroke drawn perpendicularly across
the lines of a piece of music, including between each two
a certain quantity or measure of time, which is various
as the time of the music is either triple or common. In
common time, between each two bars is included the
measure of four crotchets; in triple, three. The princi¬
pal use of bars is to regulate the beating of time in a con¬
cert. The use of bars is not to be traced higher than the
time when the English translation of Adrian le Roy's book
on the Tablature was published, namely, the year 1574;
and it was not until some time after that the use of bars
became general. Barnard’s cathedral music, printed in
1641, is without bars; but bars are to be found through¬
out in the Ayres and Dialogues of Henry Lawes, publish¬
ed in 1653; from which it may be conjectured that we
owe this improvement to Lawes.
Bar, in Hydrography, denotes a bank of sand or other
matter, whereby the mouth of a river is in a manner
choked up. The term is also used for a strong beam
wherewith the entrance of a harbour is secured; but this
is more commonly called boom.
BAR-le-Duc, an arrondissement of the department of
358 BAR
liar-sur- the Meuse, in France, extending over 560 square miles,
Aube comprehending eight cantons and 128 communes, and
Barallots containing 75,580 inhabitants. The capital, a city of the
'jtra os. game namej stands on the river Ormain, in a rich and
beautiful district. It contains 1100 houses, with 9970 in¬
habitants. Long. 5. 50. E. Lat. 48. 46. N.
BAR-sur-Aube, an arrondissement of the department
of the Aube, in France, extending over 461 square miles,
and comprehending four cantons and ninety-two com¬
munes, with 37,500 inhabitants. The chief place is the
city of the same name, in a district the wine of which is
highly valued. It contains 4100 inhabitants. Long. 4.44. E.
Lat. 48. 13. N.
BAR-sur-Seine, an arrondissement of the department
of the Aube, in France, extending over 648 square miles,
comprehending five cantons and eighty-six communes, and
containing 50,449 inhabitants. The chief place of the
same name has a population of 2600 persons, employed in
manufactures, and trading in the wine grown in its neigh¬
bourhood. Long. 2.15. E. Lat. 48. 5. N.
BARA, the name of a festival formerly celebrated with
much magnificence at Messina, and representing the as¬
sumption of the Virgin. Though used as the general de¬
nomination of this festival, bara signifies more particu¬
larly a vast machine fifty feet high, at the top of which a
young girl of fourteen, representing the Virgin, stood upon
the hand of an image of Jesus Christ.
BARABINZIANS, a tribe of Tartars, living on both
sides of the river Irtisch. They seem to dei’ive their name
from the Barabaian desert, the lakes of which supply them
abundantly with fish, on which and the products of their
herds they chiefly subsist.
BARACOA, a town in the north-eastern part of the
island of Cuba. Long. 74. 50. W. Lat. 20. 25. N.
BARA-FRANCA, a city in the intendancy of Calata-
nisetta, in the island of Sicily, with the largest convent of
barefooted friars in the kingdom. It is on a gentle hill, in
a healthy situation, and contains about 6000 inhabitants.
BARAHAT, a town of northern Hindostan, situated
among the mountains of Serinagur. This town was al¬
most destroyed by an earthquake in 1803; and from the
houses having been built of large stones with slated roofs,
the calamity was greatly aggravated. From its central po¬
sition it maintains a free communication with all parts of
the hills, and those who make the pilgrimage to Gangautri
generally halt here, and lay in a stock of provisions for
their journey. There is near this village a curious trident,
the pedestal of copper, the shaft of brass about twelve feet,
and the forks about six feet, in length. There is no tra¬
dition to show the origin of this curious relic of antiquity.
Long. 78. 22. E. Lat. 30. 48. N.
BARAICHE, a town of Hindostan, in the province of
Oude, and chief town of the district of Baraiche. It is
finely situated on the river Sy, in long. 81. 36. E. lat. 27.
31. N. The district of Baraiche extends along the north
side of the river Goggia, and is separated from the terri¬
tories of Nepaul by a lofty range of mountains. A portion
of this district wras ceded to the English in 1800, but the
greater part belongs to the nabob of Oude.
BARALIP TON, among logicians, a term denoting a
syllogism of the first indirect mode of the first figure.
Hence a syllogism in baralipton is when the first two pro¬
positions are universal affirmatives, the third a particular
affirmative, and the middle term the subject in the first
proposition, and the predicate in the second. For example,
Ba. Every evil ought to be feared ;
RA. Every violent passion is an evil;
lip. Therefore something that ought to be feared is
a violent passion.
BARALLOTS, in Ecclesiastical History, a sect of he-
B A R
reties at Bologna in Italy, who are said to have had all
things in common, even their wives and children.
BARAN, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Hungary Bi
extending over 1681 square miles, or 1,075,840 acres. It'* -v
lies at the south-east angle formed by the Danube and the
Drave, and comprehends one city, seven towns, and 328
villages, with 223,400 inhabitants. The greater part of
the land is fertile, but a portion of it is marshy and un¬
healthy. The chief products are corn, wine, flax, tobacco
and potash. There are some valuable quarries of marble
and millstones, and many mines of fossil coal. It is sub¬
divided into four smaller circles. The capital is Funf-
kirchen.
BARANGI, officers among the Greeks of the lower
empire. Cujacius calls them in Latin protectores, while
others give them the name of securigeri. It was their
business to keep the keys of the city gates where the
emperor resided.
BAR ANWAHR, a town of Lower Hungary, in a coun-
ty of the same name, taken by the emperor of Germany
from the Turks in 1684. It is situated between Buda and
Belgrade, in long. 18. 5. E. lat. 46. 0. N.
BARATHRUM, \w Antiquity, a deep dark pit at Athens,
into which condemned persons were thrown headlong. It
had sharp spikes at the top, that no man might escape out;
and others at the bottom, to pierce and torment such as
were cast in.
BARATIERE, or Barettier, Philip, an extraordi¬
nary instance of the early and rapid expansion of the men¬
tal faculties. This surprising genius was the son of Fran¬
cis Baratiere, minister of the French church at Schwobach,
near Nuremberg, where he was born on the 10th January
1721. The French was his mother tongue, together with
some words of High Dutch; but in consequence of his fa¬
ther insensibly talking Latin to him, it became as familiar
to him as his native idiom; so that, without knowing the
rules of grammar, he, at four years of age, talked French to
his mother, Latin to his father, High Dutch to the maid or
neighbouring children, and all this without mixing or con¬
founding the respective languages. About the middle of
his fifth year he acquired Greek in like manner; so that
in fifteen months he perfectly understood all the Greek
books in the Old and New Testament, which he readily
translated into Latin. When he was five years and eight
months old, he entered upon Hebrew, and in three years
became so expert in the Hebrew text, that from a Bible
without points he could give the sense of the original in La¬
tin or French, or translate extempore the Latin or French
versions into Hebrew, almost word for word; he also ac¬
quired by heart all the Hebrew psalms. He composed at
this time a dictionary of rare and difficult Hebrew words,
with critical and philological observations; and, about his
tenth year, amused himself for twelve months in read¬
ing the rabbinical writers. With these he intermixed
the study of the Chaldaic, Syriac, and Arabic; and ac¬
quired a taste for divinity and ecclesiastical antiquity, by
studying the Greek fathers, and the councils of the first
four ages of the church. In the midst of these occupa¬
tions a pair of globes having come into his possession, he
was able in eight or ten days’ time to resolve all the pro¬
blems on them ; and in about three months (January 1735)
devised his project for the discovery of the longitude,
which he communicated to the Royal Society of London
and the Royal Academy of Sciences at Berlin. In June
1731 he was matriculated in the university of Altorf; ana
at the close of the year 1732 he was presented by his
father at the meeting of the reformed churches of the
circle of Franconia, which, astonished at his wonderful
talents, admitted him to assist in the deliberations of the
synod; and in order to preserve the memory of so singular
BAR
n an event, it was ordered to be registered in their acts. In
I 1734 the margrave of Brandenburg-Anspacli granted this
} garbi es.voung scholar the use of whatever books he wanted from
j ^ J Anspach library, together with a pension of fifty flo¬
rins, which he enjoyed for three years; and his father re¬
ceiving a call from the French church at Stettin in Pome¬
rania, young Baratiere was, on the journey, admitted mas¬
ter of arts, with universal applause, at the university of
Halle. While at Berlin he was honoured with several con¬
versations with the king of Prussia, and received into the
Royal Academy. Towards the close of his life he acquired
a taste for the study of medals, inscriptions, and antiqui¬
ties, which he relieved with metaphysical inquiries, and
investigations in experimental philosophy. He wrote se¬
veral essays and dissertations ; made astronomical remarks
and laborious calculations; prepared materials for a his¬
tory of the heresies of the anti-trinitarians, and of the
Thirty Years’ War in Germany ; and, lastly, wrote a trea¬
tise, which appeared in 1740, on the succession of the
bishops of Rome. The final work he engaged in, and for
which he had accumulated large materials, was Inquiries
concerning Egyptian Antiquities. But the substance of
this blazing meteor was now almost exhausted. He had
always been weak and sickly, and he died on the 5th Oc¬
tober 1740, aged nineteen years, eight months, and sixteen
days. He published eleven different pieces, and left
twenty-nine manuscripts on various subjects, the contents
of which may be seen in his life, written by M. Formey,
professor of philosophy at Berlin.
BARBACAN, or Barbican, an outer defence or for¬
tification of a city or castle, used especially as a fence to
the city or walls; also an aperture made in the wall of a
fortress, to fire through upon the enemy.
Barbacan is also used to denote a fort at the en¬
trance of a bridge or the outlet of a city, having a double
wall with towers.
BARBADOES, one of the Caribbees, is the most easter¬
ly of the West India islands, and the oldest colony of the
British empire. It was probably discovered by Colum¬
bus or some of his companions, but they seem to have de¬
serted it in pursuit of more splendid acquisitions; as, on
the landing of the English in 1605, it was covered with
thick forests, and destitute both of inhabitants and culti¬
vation ; they found a breed of swine, however, a proof of
its having been previously visited. The favourable reports
which these navigators gave of it on their return induced
some enterprising Englishmen to plant a colony in it; and
the island becoming a sanctuary for the royalists during the
civil wars, it was rapidly peopled, and soon rose to great
opulence. The earl of Marlborough obtained a grant of
the island from James I.; and in 1627 it was made over by
patent to the earl of Carlisle, from whom it was taken and
given to the earl of Pembroke, but afterwards restored.
When at the height of its prosperity, which was about the
time of the restoration of Charles II., upon the planters
appealing to the king, the earl of Carlisle was deprived of
the hereditary proprietorship, and the legislation vested in
the crown; the planters being confirmed in their posses¬
sions by submitting to a duty of four and a half per cent,
on all the exported produce of the island; which tax is still
continued, and is considered by the proprietors and mer¬
chants as an oppressive and vexatious impost.
Barbadoes is about twenty-one miles in length by nine
of average breadth, and contains above 100,000 acres of
land, of which 80,000 are under cultivation. The country
js comparatively very level, and without the high central
hills so frequent in the Antilles; the highest being only
1100 feet above the level of the sea. This is centrally si¬
tuated, and called Mount Hillaby; the north-eastern part
is hilly and bleak, and is in consequence called Scotland.
BAR 359
The primeval forests having at length been cleared away,Barbadoes.
there is now a scarcity of wood throughout the island;-y''*''
although the proprietors, where they conveniently can,
plant cocoa-nut, mahogany, and other tropical trees. The
estates are said to average about 200 acres, and upon
each of these there are a number of negro dwelling-houses,
the planter’s house, and a sugar-work; which, uniting with
the great varieties of tropical trees and shrubs, form a
scene highly picturesque, and give Barbadoes the appear¬
ance of a cluster of villages, and a characteristic beauty,—
that of finished cultivation and domestic comfort. The
soil covers a coralline rag, and has not only been long
exhausted, but, being in general very thin, requires the ut¬
most degree of manuring before it can be rendered pro¬
ductive. The mould varies in colour and quality according
to the situation, but the black is considered best suited
for the cultivation of the cane. Unlike the neighbouring
islands, it is only very partially irrigated with one or two
small streams; but the rains, which commence in May or
June, and continue for several months, afford a sufficient
supply of moisture. There are also a number of springs,
but few of them good, the wTater being in general brackish.
One of these casts up a bituminous matter called Barba¬
does tar, which is useful in some complaints of cattle ; and
another of them emits a constant stream of sulphuretted
hydrogen gas, which may be lighted with an ignited
match. The productions of the soil are various, compris¬
ing all the fruits and other trees peculiar to such climates ;
but the article for which it is distinguished, and accord¬
ingly that by far the most extensively cultivated, is the
sugar-cane. Ginger and aloes are also grown to a great
extent; besides which maize and Guinea corn are raised
in very considerable quantities; but no coffee plantations
remain. There are upon the island a very great number
of oxen, horses, and other cattle, which are not only valu¬
able for the purposes of labour, but for the manure they
supply. Oxen are in most general use, and only on the
principal estates horses are employed.
Considerable numbers of hogs and poultry are reared,
principally by the negroes, on the little plots of ground
allotted them, by which provision their comforts are ma¬
terially increased; the overplus goes to supply ships, or
is exported to various neighbouring islands. Wild fowl,
such as the plover and curlew, annually frequent the
island in great numbers; and wild duck, teal, with many
other descriptions of water-game, also abound in their sea¬
son. The climate of Barbadoes is comparatively salubrious,
and the hurricanes which frequently desolate the other
islands have not visited it with any severity since the me¬
morable one of 1780, which laid it waste.
Bridgetown, the capital, and the mart of commerce,
lies on the south-west coast, in the interior of Carlisle Bay,
and is about two miles in length by half a mile in breadth.
The population exceeds 20,000. The city, without exhi¬
biting much regularity or splendour in its buildings, pos¬
sesses many handsome edifices, uniting elegance, conve¬
nience, and comfort in a higher degree than is to be found
in any other of the English islands. There is a large
and plain cathedral, with a number of other churches and
chapels. Beyond the cathedral is the king’s house, occu¬
pied by the commander of the forces on the station; a
little farther in the country stands the government-house,
called Pilgrim; and at the southern extremity of the
town is the garrison of St Ann’s, possessing large and
spacious barracks, with a very fine parade ground. There
are a number of charitable institutions in this town and
throughout the island, particularly the central school,
where white boys are educated upon the plan of the na¬
tional schools of England, and another in the neighbour¬
hood where girls are taught; besides which there are a
360 BAR
Barbara variety of seminaries for the tuition of coloured and slave
II children, several societies for the poor, and a house of in-
Barbary clustry where trades are taught; and all are well sup-
' J^tates. either by government or the more opulent inha-
bitants. Libraries and literary societies have also been
formed. Fourteen miles from Bridgetown stands the col¬
lege, founded and liberally endowed by Colonel Codring-
ton, where young men have not only the benefit of a uni¬
versity education, but receive orders, and are allowed to
exercise their pastoral functions throughout the Leeward
Islands. It is also intended to appropriate this seminary
for the reception and instruction of catechists. Upon the
estates of the college there is a chapel, a school, and an
hospital, almost exclusively for the use of the negroes.
There are three other towns on the island. Holetown
lies about seven miles from the capital; it is very small,
and only remarkable for being the first settlement of the
English, who landed in the neighbourhood, and named
their hamlet Jamestown, in honour of the first Stuart.
Speight’s Town, seven miles farther to the north, is a con¬
siderable place : it has a roadstead and wharf, and former¬
ly exported sugar directly to England; but the practice is
now to send it to Bridgetown!, with which there is a daily
communication by water. It possesses several religious
houses, and some other neat buildings, with a considerable
population, for the most part coloured. There is a fortress
and signal station situated on Dover Hill, about half a mile
from this place. The other town, called Oistins or Austins,
is very inconsiderable ; it stands a few miles to windward
of the capital.
Barbadoes is peculiarly distinguished from most of the
West India colonies, by the large quantity of provisions
which is raised within the island, instead of depending
upon foreign supplies. This is no doubt attributable to
the crowded state of the population, to the traffic with
the troops, and to many local circumstances consequent
upon the great division of property. The exports of su¬
gar are large, amounting on an average to 300,000 cwts.
annually. Maize is also exported to the amount some¬
times of 20,000 bushels yearly; besides rum, molasses,
and other articles. The importations chiefly consist of
articles of clothing, rice, corn, meal, flour, &c. and pre¬
pared wood, such as staves, shingles, lumber, and hoops;
besides horses and oxen in very considerable numbers.
Barbadoes lies twenty leagues east of St Vincent’s, and
sixty north-east of Trinidad. Long. 59. W. Lat. 13. 10.
N. The population of the island in 1829, according to
returns made to parliament, was as follows: whites, 14,959;
free coloured, 3119; free black, 2027; slaves, 81,086.
BARBARA, among logicians, the first mode of the
first figure of syllogisms. A syllogism in barbara is one
of which all the propositions are universal affirmatives,
the middle term being the subject of the first proposition,
and the attribute in the second.
BAR
Bar. Every wicked man is miserable;
ba. All tyrants are wicked men;
r.4. Therefore all tyrants are miserable.
BARBARANO, a town in the Austrian kingdom of
Venetian Lombardy, in the delegation of Vicenza. Also
the chief place of a district of the same name, at the foot
of the Bernis Mountains.
BARBARIAN, a name given by the ancient Greeks
and Romans to all who were not of their own country, or
were not initiated in their language, manners, and cus¬
toms. In this sense the word signified with them no
more than foreigner; not, as among us, a rude or uncivi¬
lized person.
BARBARISM, in a general sense, a rudeness of lan¬
guage or behaviour.
Barbarism, in Grammar, an offence against the purity
of style or language, or a form of speaking or writing con¬
trary to the true idiom of any particular language.
BARBAROSSA, Aruch and Hayraddin, two fa¬
mous corsairs, the sons of a potter in the Isle of Lesbos,
who, turning pirates, carried on their depredations with
such success and conduct, that they soon became possessed
of twelve galleys besides smaller vessels. Of this fleet
Aruch, the elder brother, called Barbarossa from the red¬
ness of his beard, was admiral, and Hayraddin the se¬
cond in command. They called themselves the “friends
of the sea,” and the “ enemies of all who sailed upon it;”
and their names became terrible from the straits of the
Dardanelles to those of Gibraltar. But with this power
they wanted an establishment. The opportunity of settling
themselves, however, presented itself in 1516, in conse¬
quence of an inconsiderate application made to them by
Euteni, king of Algiers, for assistance against the Spaniards.
Aruch, leaving his brother to command the fleet, carried
5000 men to Algiers, where he was received as a deliverer;
and secretly murdering the prince he had come to aid,
caused himself to be proclaimed king in his stead. To this
usurpation he added the conquest of Tremecen, when his
exploits and piracies induced the Emperor Charles V. to fur¬
nish the marquis de Gomarez, governor of Oran, with troops
to put him down ; which was accordingly done, as he was
defeated and killed near Tremecen. His brother Hay¬
raddin, known also by the name of Barbarossa, assumed
the sceptre at Algiers with the same abilities, and with
better fortune; for the Spaniards being too much em¬
ployed in Europe to give him any disturbance, he regu¬
lated the interior police of his kingdom with great pru¬
dence, carried on his naval operations with vigour, and
extended his conquests on the continent of Africa. He
put his dominions under the protection of the Grand
Signior, Suleiman the Magnificent, and obtained the com¬
mand of the Turkish fleet. With so powerful a protector
he acquired the kingdom of Tunis, in a manner similar to
that by which his brother obtained Algiers.
BARBARY STATES.
The name of Barbary, or the Barbary States, is applied
by the moderns to an extensive district, occupying, with
the exclusion of Egypt, the whole northern coast of Afri¬
ca. It comprehends also that portion of the western
coast which lies to the north of the Great Desert. The
states included within this district are entirely independ¬
ent of and even hostile to each other, and they also dif¬
fer in some particulars of their political constitution.
There prevails, however, a striking similarity in the whole
of their moral and physical circumstances. Throughout
all these states we see the same races inhabiting the
towns, the plains, and the mountain districts; the same
forms of social life; the same degraded and corrupted
barbarism succeeding to ancient grandeur and civiliza¬
tion. Nature presents a corresponding similarity in all
the peculiar qualities of aspect, soil, and climate. These
resembling features constitute Barbary decidedly one re¬
gion ; and it will, therefore, be convenient to introduce
here a general view of what is common to that region,
while under the heads of Algiers, Morocco, Tripoli, I unis,
«j
BARBARY STATES.
j)ai 7 &c. will be given a view of the special history and circum-
t Sta1, stances of each.
^ This part of the world has at different periods been
subject to memorable revolutions, and made a distinguish¬
ed figure in history. It was the domain of Carthage, the
most flourishing seat of commerce, and one of the most
powerful states in antiquity,—of the prosperous Greek
colony of Cyrene,—and of the potent kingdom of Numi-
dia. Even when entirely subjected to the Roman power,
it ranked as one of the most valuable provinces of that
empire, and fully shared in the measure of civilization
which its influence diffused. In a few centuries, however,
it was overpowered by the barbarous torrent of Vandal
invasion, when Genseric made Carthage the seat of a
powerful piratical dominion. In the seventh century the
rapid tide of Saracen inroad swept over the whole of this
coast, and subjected it to the Moslem creed and institu¬
tions, which have remained unaltered to the present day.
On the establishment, however, of the Turkish power on
the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, the barbarous
corsairs, Barbarossa and Dragut, seized the leading sea¬
ports upon this coast, and converted them into dens of
the most atrocious piracy. This system was prosecuted
without interruption for several centuries, till it was ar¬
rested by the interposition of the great European powers.
France has even undertaken, with regard to the fiercest
and most powerful of these states, a system of conquest
and colonization, the result of which, however, remains
yet to be decided, in as far, at least, as regards the latter.
Phv 1 Among the natural objects which this region presents,
a?pe the most prominent is that immense and celebrated moun¬
tain chain which, under the name of Atlas, traverses nearly
its whole extent. The loftiest portion is that which tow¬
ers over the plain of Morocco, and, notwithstanding the
intense heat of the climate, presents a range of summits
clad in perpetual snow. The most recent traveller in this
country, known by the name of Ali Bey, states that, after
a very careful measm-ement, he found its highest pinnacles
to rise 13,200 feet above the level of the sea. The lower
stages are well cultivated and of luxuriant fertility; while,
in ascending, the sides exhibit every variety of climate,
from the torrid to the frigid zone. In skirting the king¬
doms of Algiers and Tunis, its height is greatly diminish¬
ed, and is represented by Dr Shaw as not exceeding the
loftier eminences of our own island. The greater part of
its declivity is here covered with vines and forests; and
only occasionally a rocky precipice rears its head above
the rest. This part of the range separates into various
branches, differently named, of which the most elevated
is Mount Jurjura, in the province of Algiers, covered
with snow during a great part of the year. It forms a
species of chain by itself, rising very high above all others
east of Morocco. Besides the grand chain, there is found
between it and the sea another, called the Little Atlas,
extending from the Straits of Gibraltar to Bona in Al¬
giers.
The structure and component parts of this vast range
have been very imperfectly explored. It appears proba¬
ble, however, that, as in other mountain groups of the
first magnitude, the central mass, as well as the loftier
pinnacles, is composed of granite. Ali Bey states, that
the rocks on the coast consist of secondary granite, with
sandstone resting on it; a combination which seems de¬
serving of notice, from its resemblance to that which oc¬
curs at the southern extremity of Africa. Marble also
is said to occur abundantly in the western regions. The
lower and eastern branches appear, however, to contain a
large proportion of calcareous rocks. The chain, consi-
ering its extent, is thought not peculiarly rich in metal-
lc ores, though this character may have been derived
VOL. iv.
361
from the supine neglect of the inhabitants in exploring its Barbary
mineral treasures. Silver and copper are procured to a States,
considerable amount in the Tunisian territory. Algiers
produces lead, and a small proportion of iron. Morocco
contains no mines that are known or worked, unless in the
province of Suse, the southern extremity of the empire.
There, iron is found at Idaultit, and copper in consider¬
able quantity in the vicinity of Tessellert. The report of
gold and silver mines is treated as a fable by Chenier;
but Jackson asserts that he saw evident traces of them in
the neighbourhood of Messa. He also confirms the report of
Leo, that the sovereigns of Morocco discourage the work¬
ing of these mines, lest the natives, who at present can
with difficulty be retained under the yoke, should thus be
enabled to set them completely at defiance.
That narrow tract between the Atlas chain and the sea,
which comprises the Barbary States, forms a plain of luxu¬
riant fertility, traversed by innumerable streams descend¬
ing from this mighty storehouse of vraters. Chenier cal¬
culates that upwards of six thousand are poured down
from the western Atlas upon the plains of Morocco. The
vicinity, however, of the receptacle to their source pre¬
vents their forming rivers of any great magnitude. The
principal are, in Morocco, the Seboo, the Morbeya, the
Tensift, and the Suse; in Algiers, the Shelliff; in Tunis,
the Mejerdah. The soil, which is naturally of the same
loose and sandy character prevalent over northern Africa,
is, by this profusion of moisture, rendered equal in ferti¬
lity to any in the world. Its lightness is even beneficial,
by rendering it capable of being worked with the utmost
facility; so that, according to Dr Shaw, a yoke of oxen can
plough an acre in the day. But wherever water fails, de¬
serts are produced; presenting, on a smaller scale, the same
appearances with those immense wastes which extend south
of the Atlas. Thus the moisture which these mountains
supply is the sole spring of fertility to northern Africa;
and Tripoli, where they terminate, borders almost imme¬
diately on the sandy waste.
Along the southern base of the Atlas extends a vast
region, called Bildulgerid, or more properly Bled-el-Je-
reed, the dry country. It presents a gradual transition
from the luxuriant plains of Barbary to the sterile desola¬
tion of the Sahara. Large streams, descending from the
great chain, traverse it from north to south, till they ex¬
pand into lakes, or are lost in the sands of the desert.
The moisture, evaporated by the scorching winds which
blow from the south, is not sufficient for the production
of wheat, barley, or the finer fruits: dates are its abun¬
dant and almost sole product. They form the food of its
inhabitants, and the basis of their commerce. Considered
in a political view, this region is nominally subject to those
states of Barbary which lie in contact with it; but the
subjection scarcely amounts to more than the payment of
a certain tribute. The part contiguous to and dependent
upon Morocco is known by the names of Tafilet and Sigil-
messa.
The whole of Barbary abounds, in a very remarkable
degree, with different species of saline substances. Com¬
mon salt, particularly, is found in every form, and in the
greatest abundance. That drawn from the mines of Mo¬
rocco is of a red colour, very strong and coarse; but a white
and finer kind is produced by evaporation on the sea-
coast. The lakes of - Barbary are almost all salt to an
equal degree with the sea itself; and in the course of the
summer many of these dry up entirely, leaving the mine¬
ral encrusted on their beds. Near the lake of Marks, in
the Algerine territory, there is a mountain composed en¬
tirely of salt; and all the chains which traverse it contain
copious repositories of this mineral. Most of the springs
which are not warm are salt; and in the territory of Tunis
2 z
362
BARBARY STATES.
Parbary there is no fresh water unless from rain. Many of the
States, rivers, when they dry up in summer, leave their banks
copiously encrusted with nitrous and saline exudations.
Saltpetre is not found in a concrete state; but at Tlemsan,
Kairwan, and many other places, the earth is so impreg¬
nated with it, that six ounces are obtained from a quintal
of soil.
The Atlas Mountains, as far as is hitherto known, are not
the seat of any volcanic eruptions. In East Barbary earth¬
quakes are frequent during the hot and dry season, and
have sometimes thrown down houses, and even carried
them to a considerable distance; but these are rare in¬
stances, for their effects are by no means so terrible as in
the south of Europe and other countries particularly ex¬
posed to their ravages. The interior heat, however, ma¬
nifests itself by that which it communicates to a large
proportion of the waters which flow through this territory.
Most of the streams of the Jereed are at least lukewarm ;
and near Oran, Tlemsan, Gabs, and other places in the
territory of Algiers, they acquire a temperature which
fits them for warm baths. About forty miles to the east
of Constantina are those called the Hamman Meskouteen,
the heat of which is so intense as to boil animal food in
a quarter of an hour. The rocks over which this rivulet
flows are entirely calcined by its influence, which, act¬
ing variously on the different substances, consuming some
and leaving others nearly entire, produces some curious
phenomena. The rocks at one place represent a line of
regular cones, believed by the Arabs to be the tents of
their ancestors converted into stone. At another place
the action is still deeper and more irregular; the figures
of sheep, horses, camels, even of men, women, and chil¬
dren, are presented to the eye, all of which are believed
by the natives to have undergone the same transforma¬
tion.
Vegetable The productions of the soil in Barbary are not mate-
and animal rially different from those of southern Europe, the climate
nroduc- being brought by the vicinity of the mountains to pretty
nearly the same temperature. The grains chiefly culti¬
vated are wheat and barley, of which the crops are abun¬
dant, though there is not above one in the year. Oats
are not frequent, but beans and lentils are very common.
Peas have been introduced by Europeans. Pot herbs
and fruits are abundant, and nearly resemble those of Eu¬
rope ; with the addition, in the last branch, of the palm-
tree and the lotus.
The animal world, particularly in its wild members, pre¬
sents an interesting field of observation. The Numidian
lion still retains its ancient character of strength and fe¬
rocity. To guard against its attacks, the villages and en¬
campments are surrounded with a species of palisade,
and upon the slightest alarm large fires are kindled; yet
these multiplied precautions are not always sufficient to
prevent the irruption of this lord of the forests. The ani¬
mal called here a tiger is in reality only a panther. Wild
boars are very numerous, and the hunting of them affords
a favourite amusement. The hyena is common, and is
called the dubbah. Jackson mentions an animal called
\he aoudad, which inhabits the most lofty and precipitous
regions of the Atlas; but, on account of its rugged and
inaccessible haunts, has never been sufficiently observed
or described. Ihe antelope, or gazelle, from its beauty, is
the favourite of the Arabs. The Barbary females paint
their eyes with a preparation of lead called Elkahol-filelly,
in order that they may rival the largeness and blackness
of those of the gazelle. Gazelle here, as angel with us,
is the most flattering epithet that can be applied to fe¬
male beauty. Although the antelope be the swiftest of
al animals, he is soon fatigued, so that the greyhound at
ength comes up with him. The flesh is valued, and is
produc
tions.
similar to venison. Among the smaller animals the most &
noted are the jerboa and jird, which are about the size of St '
a rat, burrow in the ground, and afford agreeable food. *'—■ "j
Among birds, the chief is the ostrich, a species often Ein'
described, and which occurs along the whole northern
border of the desert. About Wedinoon and Cape Boja-
dor they are said to be the largest, and to have the finest
feathers, of any in the world. The feathers form a con¬
siderable article in the commerce of Morocco.
The serpent species is very numerous. The great boa Sen
constrictor frequently appears in the Sahara. It is not ‘
poisonous, and destroys merely by its strength and fero¬
city. There are several species which contain a very
active poison; but these, Dr Shaw conceives, do not exist
in that great variety which is enumerated by ancient wri¬
ters. There are also domestic serpents, of a more harmless
nature, never molested, and held even in a kind of venera¬
tion. The most destructive of this class are the scorpions,
which swarm to such a degree that, in summer, they are
often found in the beds. It is believed in Morocco that the
flesh of this animal affords a cure for its bite; and most
of the inhabitants on that account keep a bottle of scor¬
pions preserved in olive oil. Shaw observes that those of
Algiers and Tunis, to the north of the Atlas, are not very
noxious, causing only a slight inflammation and fever; but
that in the Sahara they are much larger, and their venom
more malignant.
The insect tribe in this country presents a much moreins „
terrible enemy, the locust. This destructive insect is
bred on the confines of the desert; but at irregular in¬
tervals, impelled by some unknown cause, its swarms take
their direction towards the cultivated regions. They
move in vast bodies, and with an order which resembles
that of regular armies. The march is all in one direction,
led by a chief, called by the natives Sultan Jeraad. All
attempts to stop their course by digging deep pits or by
kindling fires have proved abortive. The foremost, in¬
deed, fall victims to these means of annoyance; but the
vast mass behind, undismayed by the fate of their fore¬
runners, continue to pour on, file after file, in close and
uninterrupted succession. The fires are extinguished;
the pits are filled up; and the husbandman abandons in
despair all attempts to arrest their progress. Every
thing green is thoroughly consumed ; and the fields, from
being clad in all the verdure of spring, assume at once
the aspect of wintry desolation. This scourge sometimes
continues for several years, and is not unfrequently fol¬
lowed by the still more terrible evil of plague. It forms
a very inconsiderable compensation to the inhabitants,
that they use the locusts as food, and in that view re¬
gard them even as a delicacy.
The domestic animals do not differ materially from Do ^
those of Europe, with the exception of the camel, which,ani: -'
though frequent in Barbary, belongs more properly to the
desert. The excellence of the horse was formerly the
boast of Numidia; and Barbai’y horses have been highly
valued, even in modern times. But the breed is said to
have degenerated, chiefly in consequence of the best
horses being liable to be seized by persons in power. The
ass, and still more the mule, are the animals chiefly em¬
ployed in labour. The cows are small, and produce little
milk. The sheep fed on the Atlas are often of exquisite
flavour. The wool being left entirely to nature, is of va¬
rious quality, some of it coarse, but some very fine. The
goats of Morocco produce that species of leather, the soft¬
ness and pliability of which cause it to be held in such
high estimation.
After surveying the aspect of nature, our attention isR#:^
drawn to the ruins of ancient art. The whole extent of° •‘l'
Algiers and Tunis, and even deep into the desert, is co-a*
BARBARY STATES.
(r vered with the most superb monuments of Roman gran-
BSta ■ dear. Constantina (the ancient Cirta), Spaitla (Suffetula),
L, J £1 Gemme, and many other places, exhibit specimens of
the architecture of that people in its highest perfection.
The temple at Spaitla is considered by Bruce as the most
perfect example of the composite order existing. It seems
matter of regret, as well as of surprise, considering the
general interest taken in these objects, that the drawings
made by Bruce, or under his direction, though said to be
very fine, should never have been given to the public.
The remains of Carthage are entirely subterraneous, yet
these still convey an idea of the greatness and industry of
that celebrated capital. Of the immense aqueduct which
conveyed water to the city from the distance of sixty
miles, many hundred arches are still to be seen, and seve¬
ral cisterns, nearly entire, are used as habitations by the
Arabs. A few years ago, in digging among the ruins of
Utica, some labourers found a number of beautiful sta¬
tues, some mutilated, but others in complete preservation.
Among them were two of Tiberius and Augustus, the for¬
mer very finely executed; also four female figures, two
of them exquisite specimens of Grecian sculpture. The
spirit of antiquarian research seems to be active among
the Christian inhabitants of Tunis ; and many, even of the
poorer classes, are said to be in possession of medals, en¬
graved stones, and other curiosities. These, however, by
being dispersed, are in some measure lost to the public.
Diffi it The population of the Barbary States is made up of a
' class of number of distinct races. A particular survey of each
bha wiH therefore be necessary, in order to afford any complete
a!;h view of the subject.
The first and most numerous class are the Moors. This
is a European term, derived from the ancient Mauri, of
whom probably no traces are now to be found. It is ap¬
plied to the inhabitants of the cities of Barbary, and the
country in their immediate vicinity. Generally speaking,
a Mahommedan city presents a uniform aspect. Every¬
where the same silence and seclusion, the same absence of
all gaiety, bustle, and animation ; narrow and dirty streets,
bordered on each side by lines of dead wall; every in¬
dividual burying himself in the interior of his family, and
shrouding his existence, as it were, from all other eyes ;
while the female sex, who in Europe form the ornament of
society, are immured in the apartments of theharam, bought
and sold almost as slaves. Withal, however, there is com¬
bined an outward deportment of great gravity, solemnity,
and decorum, with which neither the sentiments nor ac¬
tions are found to correspond. But this is more particular¬
ly true of the cities of Morocco ; for in Algiers and Tunis,
an unsettled government, and the habits of a seafaring life,
have produced, especially in the lower orders, a greater
appearance of activity and turbulence, though without any
departure from the general tenor of oriental habits.
A collection of Letters has been published by a female
relation of Mr Tully, formerly consul at Tripoli, which gives
a very lively picture of the manners of a Barbary court,
and particularly oBfemale society. This she had peculiar
access to observe, in consequence of the intimate footing on
which she lived with the ladies of the palace. The wives of
the pasha and the other grandees are generally Georgian
or Circassian captives, who are purchased at Constanti¬
nople at an early age, and trained in all those accomplish¬
ments which fit them for the harams of the great. By
the Mahommedan law, each individual may have four wives
and an equal number of concubines; but there is one prin¬
cipal wife, who alone shares the sovereign power. She
has usually the same origin with the others, and enters the
haram as a slave, but succeeds, by address and superior
powers of captivation, in raising herself to this envied
dignity. It is unlawful for the daughters of the sovereign
363
to marry a subject; and as they do not usually form alii- Barba
ances with foreign states, they have no resource but to States,
marry Turks and renegadoes, the refuse of society. They
thus often choose as companions for life persons unworthy
even to appear in their company. Accordingly, the hus¬
band is ruled with the most absolute sway, and treated
usually worse than their slaves; to all which he quietly
submits, in consideration of the lucrative offices this con¬
nection secures his advancement to.
The toilet of a Moorish lady is said to be formed en¬
tirely after the ancient model. No dressing-table is used;
but a number of slaves attend, to each of whom a differ¬
ent office is assigned. One plaits and perfumes the hair,
another arranges the eyebrows, a third paints them, and
so on. A profusion of the richest Arabian perfumes and
scented waters is used, and powdered cloves in vast
quantity are stuffed into the hair. The eyelashes, by a
very tedious process, are painted black, and, by pulling
out a number of the hairs, are formed into a particular
shape. This operation, though attended with very acute
pain, is cheerfully submitted to. In short, a Moorish lady
cannot be fully dressed under several hours ; and her ap¬
pearance is then so completely altered, that her nearest
relations could scarcely recognise her.
These ladies are represented, in the Letters alluded to,
as by no means spending their time, as usually supposed,
in listless indolence. It is their task to overlook the nu¬
merous slaves who grind, spin, and perform all the neces¬
sary domestic offices. They are particularly expected to
superintend the culinary operations, in order to guard
against poison, the administering of which at meals is not
unusual in these countries. These cares, with those of
their family, fill up the time of the more amiable and do¬
mestic members of the haram ; whilst those of a lighter
turn find full occupation in the difficult and dangerous in¬
trigues to which their disposition prompts them. With a
few exceptions, however, they seem tolerably cheerful;
and the view which these Letters give of their character
is, on the whole, favourable.
The inhabitants of the towns do not form a race by
themselves, but are aggregated from the various races who
inhabit, or have inhabited, the country districts; the Arabs,
the Brebers, probably in part also the ancient possessors,
and the Vandal conquei*ors of Northern Africa. All these
have been cast into that mould which Moslem despotism
invariably forms. There is, however, a peculiar race, call¬
ed Andalousie, descendants of those Moors expelled from
Spain by the stupid despotism of that government. They
inhabit chiefly the northern cities of the empire of Mo¬
rocco, pique themselves on their descent, and seem to
retain somewhat of that pride of birth which was probably
formed during their residence in Europe.
The sciences, which anciently formed the glory of the
Saracen name, are now, throughout the whole of this region,
entirely extinct. Instruments are still shown, which dis¬
play the most exquisite mechanical skill; but they are pre¬
served merely as antique curiosities, without any know¬
ledge of the principles by which they were constructed.
Astronomy does not extend to the construction of a sun¬
dial, nor chemistry beyond the making of rose-water.
With regard to medicine, the estimation in which that sci¬
ence, once so flourishing, is held, may be judged from
the emolument reaped by its professors. The fee of a
physician scarcely ever exceeds sixpence, and the most
serious operations are performed for a shilling. These
humble practitioners, however, succeed tolerably when only
external wounds are to be healed; but in all internal ma¬
ladies it appears very doubtful whether more patients die
of the disease or of the remedies administered.
The Jews form a numerous class throughout all the
364 BARBARY STATES.
Barbary cities, both of Eastern and Western Barbary. They seem
States. exist there nearly on the same footing as in Europe
during the middle ages, the objects of universal hatred,
contempt, and derision, and their plunder the invariable
resource, whenever the sovereign finds himself in pecu¬
niary embarrassment. Yet their knowledge of trade, and
entire devotion to it, have almost secured to them the
monopoly of mercantile and money transactions; and they
are thus enabled to make such enormous profits as induce
them to endure all this oppression. In Morocco, however,
long-suffering appears at length to have wearied out their
patience, and their numbers have been considerably thinned.
In the capital, they are not now supposed to exceed 2000.
But no such diminution seems to have occurred in the
other states. Tunis is calculated to contain above 15,000.
The country Moors, or those who cultivate the plains
of Barbary, appear to differ very widely from the inhabi¬
tants of the cities. The property, or rather the occupa¬
tion of land, is, as usual in despotic countries, much sub¬
divided. The manners of the cultivators have been little
observed, but they are said to be characterized by a pe¬
culiar degree of ignorance and simplicity.
The inhabitants of the pastoral districts intermediate
between the sea-coast and the Sahara are known by the
name of Arabs. They appear, in fact, to comprise such
of the descendants of the conquerors of Barbary as have
adhered to their original and native employments. They
exhibit the same migratory habits, the same simplicity of
life, and the same union of hospitality and plunder, which
distinguish their countrymen in Arabia. The touch of
despotism has, however, taken from them much of that
sense of honour and dignity which elevate the latter above
the common level of barbarous tribes. They live in tents,
thirty or forty of which united form a camp or douar,
under the command of a scheik ; and the supremacy over a
number of these camps constitutes a great scheik or emir.
I he tents are made by themselves, of camels’ hair and the
fibres of the palm-tree ; and they are arranged generally in
three concentric circles, around the habitation of the scheik.
The cattle go out to pasture during the day, and are tend¬
ed by the men and boys; at night they are brought with¬
in the circle of the tents, where they are further guarded
by a number of vigilant dogs, which bark incessantly. The
complexion of the Arabs is of a deep copper. The females
possess beauty when young, but quickly lose it. They
adorn themselves by puncturing and tattooing, practices
unknown to the other inhabitants of Barbary. When the
spot occupied by a douar is exhausted, they remove to
another; the women are then conveyed in groups, gene¬
rally of three upon the back of each camel; whilst the
children, lambs, and kids, are lodged in panniers on the
sides. The scheiks embrace every opportunity of acting
independently; and whenever a weak government or civil
war occurs, they immediately begin to plunder. Of all the
inhabitants of Barbary, the Arabs are animated with the
most bigoted zeal for the Moslem tenets, and the deadliest
enmity to the Christian name. This disposition, the effects
of which have been felt by all European visitors, has pro¬
bably darkened somewhat beyond reality the picture drawn
by them of these tribes.
from the inhabitants of the plains, we ascend to those
of the mountain districts. The greater part of the decli-
vity of the Atlas chain is cultivated by a very remarkable
people, called the Brebers. They have been named also
o u’ ^erebkers> Barbars; and from them the name of
Barbary is supposed to be derived. They appear to be
descended from the original possessors of this region ; view
t lemselves still as its rightful owners; and regard with
boundless indignation all the other nations by whom it is
now occupied. Their subjection has always been very
imperfect, the slightest injury being sufficient to drive Ba
them into rebellion. Their chiefs are elective, and they St f j
alone, in this part of Africa, have a government moulded w ^ *
into somewhat of a republican form. They bear an ex¬
tremely warlike character, and excel the inhabitants of the 1
plains in the management of fire-arms. The army of Mo¬
rocco has often been completely defeated by them, and
pursued to the gates of the capital. In general, however
they carry on war chiefly by surprise and ambuscade!
The idea formed of them by the Saracen conquerors may
be conceived by a passage in a celebrated Arabian wri¬
ter, Bakoui, who gravely informs us that they are the off¬
spring of the giant Goliah, whom they resemble in strength
and wickedness. They are divided into various tribes, of
whom the Errifi, inhabiting a province of the same name
between Algiers and Morocco, are the most powerful and
ferocious.
The Brebers are distinguished from the other inhabi¬
tants of Barbary by a language which has nothing in com¬
mon with any of the rest. It is considered by Adelung
as being the same, allowing for some variation of dialect,
with that of the Tibboo, the Tuarick, and of all the indi¬
genous population of this part of Africa. Marsden and
Tangles have supposed it to be a corruption of the ancient
Punic language; but Mr Pinkerton forcibly argues, that
a language which has no abstract terms, none belonging
to the arts and sciences, and no written characters, could
scarcely be even a corruption of the language of a civi¬
lized people. Its high antiquity, however, cannot well
be doubted. t
The Shelluhs inhabit the southern parts of Morocco. 1
They are smaller in stature than the Brebers, and in cha¬
racter somewhat less rude. In all other respects they ex¬
actly resemble, and may be considered as a branch of, that
race. Some writers have asserted that their language is
different; but the vocabulary given by Chenier, and the
information of Dupuis, seem to leave no doubt that it is
merely a dialect with very slight variations.
To these different classes we may finally add one which is
not inconsiderable, namely, that of the negroes. Originally
brought as slaves from Soudan and Timbuctoo, they have
multiplied greatly, and have even risen to distinguished
situations. The sovereigns of Morocco, unable, from the
natural jealousy of despotism, to trust their own subjects,
have placed their entire confidence in negro troops. These
form the standing army of the empire, the body-guard of
the sovereign, and the garrison of all the principal for¬
tresses. Their pay is very limited, not exceeding a penny
a day ; but its smallness is compensated by the license
in which they are allowed to indulge. A person well
acquainted with Morocco being asked its amount, an¬
swered, “ Whatever they can rob or steal.” Muley Ish-
mael maintained nearly 100,000 of these troops. Their
fidelity to their monarch is said to be exemplary. Negro
slaves still continue to be imported in great numbers,
particularly into Morocco.
The different states, however, have each features pecu¬
liar to itself, which will be noticed under their respective
heads.
ihe political state of this extensive region has suffer-
ed no change from the lapse of time, and is that of a sa-^^ , |
vage, uncontrolled, and turbulent despotism. In Turkey
and the Asiatic empires, there are public bodies render¬
ed venerable by religion, by law, and even by knowledge,
who share and moderate the power of the despot. In
Barbary there are none such ; the will, or rather momen¬
tary caprice, of the sovereign, rules every thing. Yet the
throne, though thus absolute, is not thereby rendered se¬
cure : resting on no basis, it is overturned by the slight¬
est storm that arises. The death of a sovereign is almost
BARBARY
. invariably followed by disputed succession and civil war ;
K 1 g0 that tranquillity, the sole boast of despotism, is not even
^ J secured by it to this unfortunate country.
The religion of Barbary is well known to be throughout
Kelij ’’ Mahommedan, professed with a degree of rigour and into¬
lerance unknown in any other region of the globe. There
is not, however, as in Turkey, any great body, like the
Ulema, to act as the depositary of its doctrines and in¬
fluence. This power is here enjoyed by individuals who
raise themselves, by personal merit or demerit, to the
character of saints. Saints, in Morocco, almost share with
the sovereign the power of the empire. Sidi Ali and Sidi
Alarbi are the two most eminent reigning saints. _ Their
consideration is chiefly supported by working miracles,
and does not require any sacrifice of the pleasures of life.
They indulge in all without reserve, and, besides the usual
number of wives, keep numerous concubines. The dis¬
tricts in which these saints reside pay no taxes, and are
subject to no authority except theirs; and they are per¬
petually surrounded by a body of armed men, to chastise
their own enemies and those of the prophet. At some
distance from Tripoli is a fortified village possessed by a
saint, called the Lion, serving as an asylum for every spe¬
cies of criminals, even those who are guilty of high trea¬
son. Idiots throughout Barbary are generally reputed
saints; and some, in order to maintain the reputation of
sanctity, find it expedient to counterfeit the total absence
of reason.
Aim t of The population of Barbary has been very variously re-
tlle: u- ported, and has never been fixed on any precise or authen-
latio tic data. We shall collect the different statements made
on the subject. Mr Jackson gives that of Morocco at
14,886,600, of whom the cities and towns contain 895,600,
the provinces within Atlas 10,341,000, the Berebbers
amount to 3,000,000, the Tafilets to 650,000. He states
these numbers to be founded upon information extracted
from the Imperial Register. They are quite improbable,
and very far beyond any estimate formed by preceding
travellers. Chenier does not conceive that the empire
can contain above six millions; and some have even redu¬
ced the estimate as low as two. Mr Macgill heard the
population of the Tunisian territory generally estimat¬
ed at five millions, but is inclined to reduce the estimate
to half that amount. Of these he supposes that 7000 may
be Turks, 100,000 Jews, 7000 Christians ; the rest Moors,
Arabs, and renegadoes. The Algerine territory has been
estimated at somewhat more than two millions and a half.
Tripoli is reckoned by Ali Bey to contain two millions,
which is probably beyond the truth. Of the great cities,
Morocco is generally supposed to contain 30,000 ; Fez,
by Jackson 380,000, by Ali Bey only 100,000; Tunis, by
Mr Macgill 100,000, by Mr Blaquiere 130,000 ; Algiers,
by Dr Shaw 117,000; Tripoli, by Mr Blaquiere 25,000,
by Ali Bey only 15,000.
j'rce- With a soil so fertile, and where manufacturing indus¬
try is in so low a state, the productions of the earth must
form the staple articles of export. Barbary, in ancient,
and even in modern times, has been the granary of southern
Europe. More lately, however, this branch of trade has
been nearly cut off by a general prohibition, in all the
states, against the exportation of corn. The materials for
export are thus reduced to fruits, gums, hides, wax, and
the produce of the very few manufactures which flourish
throughout these states. Of these Morocco leather is the
most important. Fezisthe place where this manufacture has
been brought to the highest perfection; but it is also carried
on in the other cities of Morocco, as well as those of East¬
ern Barbary. Fez is also distinguished by the manufac¬
ture of woollen haiks, a species of long cloths universally
worn by the Moors when they go abroad; of sashes and
STATES. 365
silk handkerchiefs; and of carpets, which are little infe- Barbary
rior to those of Turkey. Tunis is famous for the manu- v States,
facture of a species of conical woollen caps called scull-
caps, universally worn, not only in Barbary, but over the
Levant. This fabric formerly employed fifty thousand
persons; but the manufacturers of Leghorn and Mar¬
seilles now imitate it, and succeed in underselling the
Tunisians, though, in the quality of the stuff, the latter
remain still unrivalled. Robes and shawls of woollen
gauze are also made to a great extent. Concerning the
manufactures of Algiers and Tripoli we have few details ;
but, with the exception of caps, they appear to be nearly
similar to those of Tunis.
The caravan trade with the interior of Africa is chiefly
carried on from Morocco and Tripoli. From the former
it is very extensive. The caravans carry chiefly salt, to¬
bacco, and European goods; and bring back slaves, ivory,
and gold dust. Lempriere estimates the amount of the
former at one million, the latter at ten millions; which, if
at all correct, would imply that the profits on this trade
are immense. The trade from Tripoli has been greatly
diminished, in consequence of the pasha having em¬
broiled himself with his Arab neighbours, who, occupying
the route by which the caravans must pass, render the
communication extremely precarious.
The European goods for which there exists a demand
in the Barbary States are exceedingly various. They in¬
clude more or less of almost every article, both of manu¬
facture and of colonial produce. In the former class are
such articles as, being of inferior quality, can be afforded
at a cheap rate; Yorkshire cloths, particularly druggets
and serges; muslins of the coarsest and cheapest sorts ;
coarse linens, particularly German. Raw silk and Spa¬
nish wool were imported to a great extent when their
manufactures were more flourishing. French wines are
imported into the eastern states, where the precepts of
Mahomet are less rigidly observed. The other imports
are tin and lead to a considerable extent, English being
preferred ; coffee, sugar, and the different kinds of spices ;
hardware, cutlery, toys, in some demand; also alum, vi¬
triol, cochineal, gum-lac, and vermillion, for their manu¬
factures.
The commerce of Eastern Barbary bas hitherto been
carried on chiefly from Legborn and Marseilles. Louis
XIV. established at the latter port a Royal African Com¬
pany, which formed several establishments upon the coast
of the Algerine province of Constantina. The objects were
the corn trade and the coral fishery, which they shared
at first with an English company already established; but
the latter failing, the whole trade fell into the hands of
the French. Their first establishment was at the Bastion
de France, at the western extremity of Algiers; but this
was abandoned, and they settled at La Cala, Bona, 11 Col,^
and Tabarca. They paid L.4000 a year to the dey of
Algiers, and 100 per cent, to the bey of Constantina, on
the grain exported; in addition to which they were ob¬
liged to submit to various forms of extortion and humili¬
ation. The continental war, and the extinction of the
French naval power, threw a large proportion of this
trade into the hands of the British; and Malta became
the channel through which it was conducted. In 1806
the British government contracted with the dey of Al¬
giers for the possession of La Cala, Bona, and II Col; in
consideration of which they stipulated to pay him the sum
of 50,000 dollars (L.l 1,000 sterling). Mr Blaquiere, and
other persons acquainted with this coast, are of opinion
that very important advantages might be derived from
this settlement. The coral fishery alone might employ
500 boats and 9000 men ; besides which, there is a large
export of hides, wax, and weol. It is added, that the
36G BARB ARY STATES.
.Barbary country produces ship-timber, particularly oak, of the best
States. quaiity, and in inexhaustible abundance; and that excel-
ient hemp and flax might be raised. The British govern¬
ment, however, never formed any establishment or derived
any benefit from the privilege thus purchased. The co¬
ral fishery is carried on by a small number of French and
Neapolitan boats ; and the spirited attempts made by the
merchants at Malta to open a communication with this
quarter have been frustrated.
Christian We shall finally consider these states under the view
slavery. which has so justly excited the interest and sympathy of
the British nation. Piracy, with the main view of cap¬
turing Christians as slaves, has for ages formed the main
employment of the barbarous states situated along the
Mediterranean. To be placed under the absolute con¬
trol of the most brutal and corrupted of mortals, whom
religious antipathy has besides divested of every human
sympathy—without any law or earthly power to appeal
to—the hopeless victims of brutal cruelty, and still more
brutal voluptuousness;—this is certainly the most dread¬
ful fate to which human beings were ever devoted. Yet
such has been the fate of thousands of Europeans, among
whom were often those who, from rank, sex, and cultiva¬
tion of mind, must have been most keenly sensible of its
horrors. Painful as the subject is, it seems indispensable
to give some details which may illustrate the extent of
the evil, and the necessity which existed for some ar¬
rangements to remedy it.
The most particular and authentic account of the treat¬
ment of slaves at Algiers is that given in the American
work already alluded to. On the 23d October 1792, the
ship President saw approaching an armed xebeck, bear¬
ing Spanish colours till she came within gun-shot, when
she instantly hoisted the bloody flag, and flred. Escape
was now impossible ; the xebeck instantly put out a boat,
with thirty armed men, who rowed furiously towards the
vessel, and boarded it with the wildest shouts and out¬
cries. No resistance being made, they began to strip the
crew with a fury of avarice of which it was impossible to
form an idea. Sometimes several fell upon one Ameri¬
can, and fought over him for the clothes of which he was
stript. Having ransacked every corner, they then order¬
ed the Americans to descend into the boat; and those
who showed any hesitation were instantly knocked down
and kicked over into it. On reaching Algiers the distri¬
bution took place. The dey first made his choice, which
was formerly limited to an eighth of the whole, but at this
time extended to as great a number as he chose to demand.
For this purpose they were conducted to the palace, and
drawn up in files along a court, where they passed under
this review. Having made his selection, he dismissed
the rest with the compliment, “ Go, you Christian dogs,
and eat stones.” The youngest w'ere employed in menial
offices about the palace, the rest were put to work in the
marine and in public buildings. Whenever a foreign ves¬
sel was in the port, they were loaded with thirty or forty
pounds weight of chains, in order to prevent their escape.
Their heaviest labour consisted in dragging immense
stones from a neighbouring quarry, for the repair and en¬
largement of the mole. A body of Turks attended to
urge them on, but gave no aid, unless by continually roar¬
ing out Hyomoly, “ heave away,” with a noise so tre¬
mendous, that it was heard at the distance of more than
a league. At night they were locked up in two huge
buildings called bagnios, the lower part of which was em¬
ployed for shops, and the upper for the joint accommoda¬
tion of the captives and of the wild beasts belonging to r
the dey. There was no bed in the place, and they were St! }
obliged to lie on the floor, till their own ingenuity enabled ^ J
them to erect some humble substitute. The daily allow- E
ance of food was a pound of very bad bread and a small
quantity of oil. Many sunk under this accumulation of
distress, and were carried to the Spanish hospital, the
only relief provided for their miseries. The sympathy of
the American people having been at length excited by
reports of their sufferings, they opened a negociation, and
at the expense of nearly 800,000 dollars, procured the re¬
lease of the captives.
The observations made by Captain Croker during his
visit in 1815 agree with the narrative of the Americans
and prove that no improvement had taken place. At the
period of his arrival, three hundred Christian captives had
been driven in from Bona, exposed to such treatment that
fifty died within six days after reaching Algiers. They
were still employed in the quarries, and loaded with chains,
as before. His description of the house in which they
were locked up is, that, “ if it had light,” it would re¬
semble those in which the West Indian negroes keep their
pigs. When at peace with the great powers, their piracy
is chiefly exercised on Naples and Sardinia, with whom
they have always taken care to continue at war. Euro¬
pean, and even English colours, are assumed to entrap
the unfortunate victims. They frequently also make de¬
scents on the coast, and sweep away all the inhabitants,
without distinction of age or sex. The Tunisians, at the
commencement of the reign of the late bey, landed on the
island of St Pierre, belonging to Sardinia, and carried off
the whole population, amounting to upwards of a thou¬
sand. At Tunis and Tripoli the treatment of slaves is
not so utterly inhuman as at Algiers. The most dreadful
fate is that of those who are judged fit to be received
into the haram of the prince, or any of his principal
officers; which, in consequence of the depraved propen¬
sities here prevalent, is not confined to one sex. Of those
who become the slaves of private persons, both at Tunis
and Algiers, some are tolerably, and a few very well
treated.
It is not easy to ascertain the precise extent to which
this enormous evil existed. Mr Blaquiere, though he re¬
presents its horrors in the most glowing colours, considers
the whole number of captives as amounting only to a
thousand. Mr Macgill calculates two thousand in Tunis
alone, and the Americans the same number at Algiers.
The first estimate, however, is probably the more correct,
as, by a calculation of the amount and rate of ransoms
returned, the number in Algiers, at the time of Lord Ex¬
mouth’s first expedition, appears to have been four hun¬
dred and fifteen.
For the measures by which, in each of the Barbary
states, the system of piracy has been at last suppressed,
and for the formation, in the greatest of these states, ol
a French colony, which promises to effect a remarkable
change in the condition of this part of the African conti¬
nent, the reader is referred to the separate articles on
Algiers, Tunis, &c.
See Shaw’s Travels; Jackson’s Account of Morocco;
Macgill’s Account of Tunis; Blaquiere’s Letters on Sicily;
Tully’s Letters; Ali Bey’s Travels; Keatinge’s Travels;
Appendix to Robert Adams’s Travels in the Interior of
Africa ; Account of Algiers, and of the Treatment of Ame¬
rican Captives, by James Wilson Stephens, of Philadel¬
phia. (e.)
B A R
B;irb ro BARBASTRO, a city of the province of Aragon, in
m Spain, on the river Vero, near its junction with the Cinca.
Barbi ac.jt is fortified, and has a cathedral and seven other
U-' ^ churches, with several hospitals, and 6200 inhabitants,
chiefly employed in tanning and currying leather. Long.
0. 20. W. Lat. 41. 54. N.
BARBATELLI, Bernardino, otherwise called Po~
chetti, a painter of history, fruit, animals, and flowers, was
born at Florence in 1542. He was the disciple of Ridolfo
Ghirlandaio at Florence. His touch was free, light, and
delicate, and the colouring of his objects inexpressibly
true; and, besides his merit in this style of painting, the
historical subjects which he designed from sacred or pro¬
fane authors were much admired. He died in 1612.
BARBE, or Barb, is an old word, denoting the armour
of the horses of the ancient knights and soldiers, who
were accoutred at all points. It is said to have been an
armour of iron and leather, wherewith the neck, breast,
and shoulders of the horse were covered.
BARBEL. See Ichthyology, Index.
BARBER, one who makes a trade of shaving or trim¬
ming the beards of other men for money. Anciently a
lute, viol, or some such musical instrument, made part of
the furniture of a barber’s shop; which then used to be
frequented by persons above the ordinary level of the
people, who resorted to the barber either for the cure of
wounds, or to undergo some chirurgical operation, or, as
it was then called, to be trimmed, a word that signified
either shaving or cutting and curling the hair;—these, to¬
gether with letting blood, formed the ancient occupations
of the barber-surgeon. As to the other important branch
of surgery, the setting of fractured limbs, that was prac¬
tised by another class of men called bone-setters, of whom
there are hardly any now remaining. The musical instru¬
ments in his shop were for the entertainment of waiting
customers, and answered the end of a newspaper.
BARBERINO, Francis, one of the best poets of his
age, was born at Barberino, in Tuscany, in the year 1264.
As his mother was of Florence, he settled in that city, where
his profession of the law, but especially the beauty of his
poetry, raised him a very considerable character. The
greater part of his works are lost; but that which is entit¬
led d'Amore, being a moral poem calculated to
instruct those in their duty who have a regard for glory,
virtue, and eternity, has had a better fate. It was publish¬
ed at Rome in quarto in 1640, by Frederic Ubaldini, who
prefixed a life of the author; and as the poem contains
many words which had grown obsolete, he added a glos¬
sary to explain them, which illustrates the sense by the
authority of contemporary poets. Barberino died in 1348.
Barberino, a town of Tuscany, in Italy, situated at
the foot of the Appennine Mountains. Long. 12. 25. E.
Lat. 43.40. N.
BARBET. See Ornithology, Index.
BARBEYRAC, John, was born at Besiers, in Lower
Languedoc, in 1674. He was successively professor of
belles lettres at Berlin, of law and history at Lausanne,
and of public law at Groningen. His death took place in
1729. He translated into French the two celebrated
works of Pufendorf, his Law of Nature and Nations, and
his Duties of a Man and a Citizen ; to both of which he
wrote excellent notes, and to the former an introductory
preface. He translated also Grotius’s treatise De Jure
Belli ac Pads, with large and excellent notes ; several of
Tillotson’s Sermons; Cumberland’s treatise on the Law
of Nature; and various other works. He compiled a sup¬
plement, in five vols. folio, to the collection of treaties
BAR 387
named Grand Corps Diplomatique ; and was the author of Barbe-
an original work entitled Traite de Jeu, 2 vols. 8vo. zieux
BARBEZIEUX, an arrondissement of the department I!
of Charente, in France, extending over 465 square miles,
and comprehending six cantons and eighty-eight com-
munes, with 51,279 inhabitants. The town, from which
it takes its name, is in a mountainous situation, with 2152
inhabitants. Long. 0. 5. W. Lat. 45. 23. N.
BARBIERI, Giovanni Francesco, otherwise called
Guercino da Cento, an eminent historical painter, was
born at Cento, a village not far from Bologna, in 1590.
At first he was a disciple of Benedetto Gennari; but he
afterwards studied for some time in the school of the
Caracci, though he did not adopt the manner of that fa¬
mous academy. He seemed to prefer the style of Cara¬
vaggio to that of Guido or Albano, imagining it impossible
to imitate nature truly, without the assistance of strong
lights and strong shadows; and on that principle the light
was admitted into his atelier from above. His taste in
design was natural, easy, and often grand, but without
any extraordinary share of elevation, correctness, or ele¬
gance. Towards the decline of his life he observed that
the clearer and brighter style of Guido and Albano had
attracted the admiration of all Europe; and therefore he
altered his manner, even against his own judgment. But
he apologized for this conduct, by declaring, that formerly
he had painted for fame and to please the judicious, but
that now he painted to please the ignorant and enrich
himself. He died in 1666. His best performance is the
history of S. Petronilla, which is considered one of the
ornaments of St Petex*’s at Rome.
Barbieri, Paolo Antonio, da Cento, painter of still life
and animals, was the brother of Guercino, and born at
Cento in 1596. He chose for his subjects fruits, flowers,
insects, and animals, which he painted after nature with a
lively tint of colour, great tenderness of pencil, and a
strong character of truth and life. He died in 1640.
BARBOUR, John, the contemporary and in some re¬
spects the rival of Chaucer, is the author of a poem which
may justly be described as a national work : it relates the
exploits of a very heroic monarch, whose memory is still
cherished by his countrymen, and it displays so conspi¬
cuous a union of talent and patriotism, that, after the lapse
of nearly five centuries, it has not ceased to attract an
uncommon degree of attention. The orthography of this
poet’s name is very unsettled ; it is to be found under the
different forms of Barber, Barbere, Barbar, Barbara, and
Barbour. It evidently belongs to that very numerous
class of names originally derived from trades or occupa¬
tions ; but as Barbour appears to have been the ancient
orthography of the word denoting this particular trade,
there is sufficient propriety in adhering to the form now
so generally adopted, and writing the name Barbour in¬
stead of Barber. Those authors who aver that he was
born at Aberdeen, and educated in the abbey of Aberbro-
thick, seem to have substituted conjecture for evidence ;
no document which can enable us to ascertain the place
of his birth or education has yet been discovered. His
birth has been referred to the year 1316. When he
describes the person of Randolph, says Lord Hailes, he
seems to speak from personal observation; and as Ran¬
dolph died in 1331 and Barbour in 1396, the poet, if we
suppose him to have reached the age of eighty, would have
been fifteen years old at the period of that illustrious war¬
rior’s death.1 This however is but a vague calculation,
resting on no solid basis; for he neither professes to de¬
scribe the person of Randolph from actual observation,
1 Hailes’s Annals of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 3.
368 BARBOUR.
Barbour, nor is Ms description so minute and graphic as to justify
the inference that he must have acquired his knowledge
in this manner. It has been suggested by Dr Jamie¬
son, that the strongest presumption of his having been
born at so early a period, is to be found in the circum¬
stance of his being a dignitary of the church in the year
1357. If we suppose him to have been born in 1316, he
may have obtained this preferment about the age of for¬
ty ; and the same learned writer remarks that it must
have required very powerful interest to obtain it at a
much earlier period. We are not however sufficiently
acquainted with the details of his personal history, to be
enabled to estimate the probability of his rapid promo¬
tion ; but, according to the canon law, he could be regu¬
larly appointed an archdeacon at the age of twenty-five.1
We must therefore be content to leave conjectural dates
as we found them, without attempting to decide whether
he was born in 1316, 1326, or 1330; but more authentic
notices of this venerable archdeacon have fortunately been
preserved. On the 13th of August 1357, Edward III.,
on the application of the Scotish king, granted Barbour
a safeconduct to visit the university of Oxford, accom¬
panied by three students.2 This instrument expressly
mentions that they are to repair thither for the purpose
of study, and of performing scholastic exercises; and it
has been stated by a distinguished ornament of the uni¬
versity that Barbour studied there during the years 1357
and 1365.3 But as the safeconduct describes him as
archdeacon of Aberdeen, we cannot so easily admit that
he comes under the common denomination of an academi¬
cal student, if by this term we understand a person sub¬
jected to college discipline, and following a prescribed
course of study; nor is it unreasonable to conclude that
the scholastic exercises were solely to be performed by
the three scholars who accompanied him. That he com¬
pleted his studies in this celebrated university, is how¬
ever sufficiently probable, though it must apparently have
been at an earlier period of life. We may venture to in¬
fer, that on the present occasion he repaired to Oxford,
as many individuals still repair to it, for the purpose of
conferring with learned clerks, and of consulting books
which he had no opportunity of consulting at home; and
such a document may therefore be regarded as an ho¬
nourable testimony of his love of learning. Nor is it the
only document of this kind. There is another safecon¬
duct, dated on the 6th of November 1364, and authoriz¬
ing the archdeacon of Aberdeen to visit England with
four horsemen, in order to study at Oxford or elsewhere,
as he may judge expedient ;4 and a third, dated on the
30th of November 1368, authorizes him to travel through
England with two servants and two horses, on his way
towards France for the same purpose of study.5 On the
13th of September 1357, the bishop of his diocese had
nominated him one of the commissioners who were to
meet at Edinburgh, to deliberate concerning the ransom
of the captive king ;6 but as he must then have received Lai ]
his passport for Oxford, it is conjectured that this nomi-'— w »■
nation was only intended as a compliment, and that the
actual duty was to devolve on a coadjutor, who is named
in the same instrument. On the 16th of October 1365
Edward had granted him permission to travel through
England, with six companions on horseback, towards St
Denis and other sacred places ;7 an expression which
seems to indicate that the object of his expedition was of
a religious nature. After an interval of several years, his
name occurs in another authentic record ; namely, in the
list of the auditors of exchequer, appointed on the 18th
of February 1373, or, according to our present computa¬
tion, 1374. Here he is described as archdeacon of Aber¬
deen, and “ clericus probacionis domus domini nostri Re¬
gis and in the same commission we find the name of
Sir Elugh Eglintoun.8
About this period, he was engaged in the composition
of the work which has transmitted his name to posterity;
for it appears from his own statement that in the year
1375 his work was more than half-finished.9 Dr Henry
has stated, but apparently without any competent autho¬
rity, that it was undertaken at the request of David II.,
the son and successor of the heroic monarch whose ac¬
tions the author commemorates ; and that a considerable
pension was granted to him as an encouragement to pro¬
secute this design.10 It is to be recollected that David
died in 1371, several years before Barbour had written
one half of his poem. The history of his pension was in¬
volved in much obscurity, which has at length been re¬
moved by the researches of Dr Jamieson. Hume of Gods-
croft had affirmed that his merit as the author of this
poem w^as rewarded by a pension from the exchequer
during his life, that he transferred this pension to the
hospital of Aberdeen, and that it still continued to be
paid in his own lifetime.11 The terms of this statement
are evidently at variance with each other; but the fact of
his having received a pension, or rather two different pen¬
sions, from the crown, rests on unquestionable authority;
and this fact cannot but be regarded as creditable to the
government of his country, nor must the extent of such
liberality be estimated by so fallacious a standard as the
present value of money. At a much later period, Hector
Boyce enjoyed a revenue of forty marks, as principal of
King’s College, Aberdeen. Barbour’s pensions consisted
of ten pounds payable from the customs of Aberdeen,
and twenty shillings payable from the rent of the lands
and fisheries which that city held of the crown.12 The
first was merely an annuity for his life, but the other was
granted to him and his assignees, with an express permis¬
sion to dispose of it in mortmain ; and it appears from the
records to have been granted by Robert II. as a reward
for the composition of his historical poem.13 This sum he
did not bequeath to the hospital, but to the dean and
chapter of Aberdeen, under the condition that they
Rymer, Fcedera, tom. vi. p. 31. Rotuli Scotke, tom. i. p-
s Rotuli Scotice, tom. i. p. 926.
7 Itymer, tom. vi. p. 478. Rotuli Scotia, tom. i. p. 897-
I Decretalia Gregorii IX. lib. i. tit. vi. cap. vii. §. 2.
3 Warton’s Hist, of English Poetry, vol. ii. p. 154. Price’s edit.
4 Rotuli Scotice, tom. i. p. 886.
fi Rymer, Fcedera, tom. vi. p. 39.
s Accounts of the Great Chamberlains of Scotland, vol ii. p. 19.
9 And in the tyme of the compiling
Off this buk, this Robert wes king,
And off his kynrik passit was
Fyve yer; and wes the yer off grace
A thousand, thre hundyr, sevynty
*9 Henry’s Hist, of Great Britain, vol. iv. p^l^’ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ (Barbour’s Bruce' ?• 2?4’ Jamieson’s edit.)
II Hume’s Hist, of the Houses of Douglas and Angus, p. 31. Edinb. 1644, fol.
» manysubaeqaent«.«!«««
BARBOUR.
369
t r< should say a yearly mass for the repose of his soul.1 His
^ j larger pension seems likewise to have been conferred by
the same king; and although this circumstance has not
been traced in any record, it was probably conferred for
the same reason.
Although the Bruce is the only work of Barbour that
is known to be extant, it is not the only work of which
he was the author. He appears to have written another
book, doubtless in rhyme, comprising a genealogical his¬
tory of the kings of Scotland, and deducing their origin
from the Trojan colony of Brutus.2 * We may venture to
conclude that his principal materials were drawn from
very dubious sources; but although the historical value
of this production may not have been very conspicuous,
it would undoubtedly have been regarded as a curious
relique of the literature of the middle ages. The exist¬
ence of such a work is fully established by various pas¬
sages in Winton’s chronicle.
This Nynus had a sone alsua,
Sere Dardane lord of Frygia.
Fra quham Barbere sutely
Has made a propyr Genealogy,
Tyl Robert oure secownd kyng.
That Scotland had in governyng.*
Of Bruttus lyneage quha wyll her,
He Ink the tretis of Barbere,
Mad in-tyl a Genealogy
Rycht wele, and mare perfytly
Than I can on ony wys
Wytht all my wyt to yowe dewys.4
It is apparently the same book w7hich the prior of Loch-
leven repeatedly quotes under the title of the Brute ; and
we agree with Dr Jamieson in thinking it highly probable
that this book is quoted by Barbour himself in the subse¬
quent passage.
Als Arthur, that throw chevalry
Maid Bretane maistres and lady
Off twelf kinrykis that he wan;
And alsua, as a noble man,
He wan throw bataill Fraunce all fre,
And Lucius Yber wencusyt he,
That then of Rome was emperour ;
Bot yeit, for all his gret valour,
Mordreyt his systir son him slew,
And gud men als ma than inew,
Throw tresoune and throw wikkitnes;
The Broite beris thairoff wytnes.5
The archdeacon, as has already been hinted, died in
1396 ;6 and as he had enjoyed his preferment for at least
thirty-nine years, he must evidently have reached an ad¬
vanced period of life. His character, if we may be allow¬
ed to form a conjecture from the general strain of his
work, was of an amiable kind ; and his name has long been
respected by his countrymen. The earliest edition of the
Bruce which has hitherto been traced was published at
Edinburgh in 1616; but, as Patrick Gordon, whose poem
was licensed in 1613, describes it as “ the old printed
book, ? there is reason to believe that the first impression
is of a much earlier date. Several other editions appear- Barbour,
ed in the course of the seventeenth century; “ and there
are many later editions of no value, published by different
booksellers, to answer the demand of the common people
for this book ; which, to the credit of their good sense, is
very great.”8 A more elaborate edition was at length pub¬
lished by Mr Pinkerton, from a manuscript in the Advo¬
cates Library; but as the transcript was neither execut¬
ed by himself, nor under his immediate inspection, many
gross inaccuracies were suffered to escape.9 After an
interval of thirty years, another edition, the best that has
yet appeared, was published by Dr Jamieson from a more
careful collation of the same manuscript.10 This appears
from the colophon to have been transcribed in 1489, by
John Ramsay, who is supposed to be the same person that
was afterwards prior of the Carthusian monastery at Perth.
The transcript wras executed at the request of Simon
Lochmalony, vicar of Moonsie; and thus every individual
more immediately concerned, the poet, the copyist, and
his employer, belonged to the church.
When wre endeavour to appreciate the literary merit of
Barbour, we must at the same time endeavour to transport
ourselves to the remote and unrefined age in which he
lived ; we must recollect the general barbarism of many
preceding centuries, the difficulty of acquiring liberal
knowledge, the rude and grotesque taste of almost all his
contemporaries. When all these circumstances are duly
considered, his poem will be found entitled to an ample
share of our approbation. Fortunate in the choice of a
subject, he has unfolded a series of remarkable events,
and has diffused over a very long narrative that lively in¬
terest which an ordinary writer is incapable of exciting.
Here we are not to expect the blandishments of modern
poetry: the author stands conspicuous amid the ruins of
time, and, like an undecayed Gothic tower, presents an
aspect of majestic simplicity. The lively strain of his nar¬
rative, the air of sincerity which he always exhibits, his
earnest participation in the success or sufferings of his
favourite characters, as well as the splendid attributes of
the characters themselves, cannot fail of arresting the at¬
tention of every reader familiarly acquainted with the lan¬
guage in which he writes. The age of the great King
Robert was the age of Scotish chivalry, and the monarch
himself presented the most perfect model of a valiant
knight. Whatever inconsistencies may have appeared in
his early conduct, the best portion of his life was undoubt¬
edly spent in the exercise of heroic valour or of political
wisdom. Such a hero and such a crisis were a most
fortunate selection; and although the intrinsic merit of
the poet is very conspicuous, yet the attraction of the
poem is partly to be ascribed to his judicious choice of a
subject.
Barbour was evidently skilled in such branches of know¬
ledge as were then cultivated, and his learning was so well
regulated as to conduce to the real improvement of his
mind: the liberality of his views, and the humanity of his
1 Accounts, vol. ii. p. 402.
With respect to the story of the Trojan origin of another nation, “ Ueber die Sage von der Trojanischen Abkunft der Franken,”
01je oorious notices may be found in W. C. Grimm’s Adtd'dnische Heldenlieder, Balia den, und M'drchen, S. 431. Heidelberg, 1811 8vo.
4 ri.in^on s pr0nyk'il of Scotland, vol. i. p. 26.
Ibid. vol. i. p. 54—Another early poet mentions Barbour as the author of different works.
Master Barbour, quhilk was a worthi clerk,
5 r, , , He said the Bruce amang his othir werk. (Henry’s Wallace, p. 353.)
’ GorHnn’S/^rMCeAV-2°‘■ ' 6 ^^artulary °f Aberdeen, f. 115.
s t>- i .S *aniovs Histone of the renounea and valiant Prince Robert, surnamed the Brvse, King of Scotland. Hort, 1615. 4to.
9 y)nkorton s List of the Scotish Poets, p. Ixxxiii.
publish oa cUCei 0r’ the I,idory 0f Ro1)ert I- KinS of Scotland : written in Scottish verse by John Barbour. The first genuine edition,
77 R°m a manuscriPt dated 1489 ; with notes and a glossary by J. Pinkerton. Lond. 1790, 3 vols. 8vo.
bioffranbLoirMiCC^ Wallace; published from two ancient manuscripts preserved in the Library of the Faculty of Advocates: with notes,
K P ical sketches, and a glossary. Edinb. 1820, 2 vols. 4to.
370
BARBOUR.
Barbour, sentiments, appear occasionally to have been unconfined
by the narrow boundaries of his own age. He has drawn
various illustrations from ancient history and from the
stories of romance, but has rarely displayed his erudition
by decking his verses with the names of ancient authors:
the distichs of Cato,1 and the spurious productions of
Dares Phrygius and Dictys Cretensis are the only pro¬
fane books to which he formally refers. He has borrowed
more than one illustration from Statius, who was the fa¬
vourite classic of those times, and who likewise appears to
have been the favourite of Barbour: the more chaste and
elegant style of Virgil and Horace was not so well adapt¬
ed to the prevalent taste, as the strained thoughts and
gorgeous diction of Statius and Claudian. The manner in
which he has incidentally discussed the subject of astro¬
logy and necromancy, maybe specified as not a little cre¬
ditable to his good sense. It is well known that these
branches of divination were assiduously cultivated during
the ages of intellectual darkness. The absurdity of astro¬
logy and necromancy he has not openly attempted to ex¬
pose ; for as the opinions of the many, however unfound¬
ed in reason, must not be too rashly stigmatized, this
might have been too bold and decided a step. Of the
possibility of predicting events he speaks with the caution
of a philosopher ; but the following passage may be con¬
sidered as a sufficient indication of his deliberate senti¬
ments :
And sen thai ar in sic wenyng,
For owtyne certante off witting,
Me think quha say is he knawis thingis
To cum, he makys gret gabingis.2
To form such an estimate, required a mind capable of re¬
sisting a strong torrent of prejudice; nor is it superfluous
to remark, that in an age of much higher refinement, Dry-
den suffered himself to be deluded by the prognostications
of judicial astrology.3 * It was not however to be expect¬
ed that Barbour should on every occasion evince a decid¬
ed superiority to the general spirit of the age to which he
belonged. His terrible imprecation on the person who
betrayed Sir Christopher Seton, “ In hell condampnyt mot
he be !” ought not to have been uttered by a Christian
priest. His detestation of the treacherous and cruel King
Edward induced him to lend a credulous ear to the re¬
port of his consulting an infernal spirit. The misfortunes
which attended Bruce at almost every step of his early
progress, he attributes to his sacrilegious act of slaying
Comyn at the high altar. He supposes that the women
and children who assisted in supplying the brave defenders
of Berwick with arrows and stones, were protected from Bai
injury by a miraculous interposition. Such instances of^
superstition or uncharitable zeal are not to be viewed as
marking the individual: gross superstition, with its usual
concomitants, was the general spirit of the time; and the
deviations from the ordinary track are to be traced in
examples of liberal feeling or enlightened judgment.
His encomium on political freedom is distinguished by
a manly and dignified strain of sentiment:
A ! fredome is a noble thing !
Fredome mayss a man to haiff liking
Fredome all solace to man giffis:
He levys at ess that frely levys.
A noble hart may haift' nane ess,
Na ellys nocht that may him pless^
Gyff fredome failyhe; for fre liking
Is yharnyt our all othir tiling.
Na he that ay hass levyt fre,
May nocht knaw weill the propyrte,
The angyr, na the wrechyt dome
That is cowplyt to foule thyrldome.
Bot gyff he had assayit it,
Than all perquer he suld it wyt,
And suld think fredome mar to pryss
Than all the gold in war Id that is.*
From the satisfaction with which the poet seems to
contemplate any example of the gentler virtues, we may
venture to draw a favourable inference respecting the na¬
tive benevolence of his disposition. The subsequent pas¬
sage cannot be passed without particular notice: the an¬
nals of heroes furnish but few instances of so pleasing a
nature, whether it be that heroes seldom stoop to actions
of mere benevolence,5 or that their historians do not think
it of much importance to transmit such actions to poste¬
rity.
The king has hard a woman cry ;
He askyt quhat that wes in hy.
“ It is the layndar, Schyr,” said ane,
“ That her child-ill rycht now has tane,
“ And mon leve now behind ws her;
“ Tharfor scho makys yone iwill cher.”
The king said, “ Certis it war pite
“ That scho in that poynt left suld be ;
“ For certis I trow thar is na man
“ That be ne will rew a woman than.”
Hiss ost all thar arestyt he,
And gert a tent sone stentit be,
And gert hyr gang in hastily,
And othyr wemen to be hyr by,
Quhili scho wes deliuer, he bad,
And syne furth on hi» wayis raid :
And how scho furth suld caryit be,
Or euir he furth fur, ordanyt he.
Jr.
1 And Catone sayis ws in his wryt,
That to fenyhe foly quhile is wyt. (Barbour’s Bruce, p. 13.)
This passage evidently refers to the collection of distichs which bears the name of Dionysius Cato, whom Chaucer likewise calls Caton
or Cathon ; a circumstance which, as Mr Warton remarks, shews that he was more familiarly known from the French translation than
from the Latin original.
Insipiens esto quum tempus postulat aut res:
Stultitiam simulare loco, prudentia summa est. (Catonis Disticha, lib. ii. 18.)
This work of Cato was held in the highest estimation during the middle ages, and it has been translated into Greek, Anglo-Saxon,
German, French, and English. It comprehends a series of moral lessons, which are often conveyed with a considerable degree ol
terseness and compression. The author possesses so much purity of diction, that Joseph Scaliger supposes he cannot have flourished
subsequently to the reign of Commodus or Severus; and Hen. Cannegieter, who was alike conversant with philology and the civil law, has
employed several arguments, drawn from the history of the Roman jurisprudence, to prove that this poet must at least have preceded
the reign of Constantine. (Rescripta Boxhornii de Catone, cap. xviii.) Cato, for example, speaks of divorcing a wife, if she should
become troublesome, “ si coeperit esse molesta.” (Lib. hi. 13.) But after the law of divorce had been modified by that emperor, it
was not competent for a husband to dismiss his_ wife, merely because he did not find her agreeable. {Codex Theodosianus, lib. iii- tit. xvi.J
The most complete edition of Dionysii Catonis Disticha de Moribus ad Filium, is the second published by Otto Arntzenius.
Amst. 1754, 8vo. It contains the notes of many learned commentators, the Greek versions of Planudes and Scaliger, with the dis¬
sertation of Boxhornius, and the very copious reply of Cannegieter.
2 Barbour, p. 88. * Johnson’s Lives of English Poets, vol. ii. p. 109.
^ Barbour, p. 10.
0 Oi ya./) rtoui; 
Kaxoov iToiuoi p.oi/./.o'j b ivinymn. (Menatidri Fragmenta, p. 158. edit. Meineke.)
BARBOUR.
This wes a full gret curtasy,
That swilk a king, and sa mighty,
Gert his men duell on this maner
Bot for a pouir lauender.1
Barbour seems to have been acquainted with those
nicer springs of human action which elude vulgar obser¬
vation ; he catches the shades of character with a delicate
eye, and sometimes presents us with instances of nice dis¬
crimination. His work is not a mere narrative of events ;
it contains specimens of that minute and distinct delinea¬
tion which marks the hand of a skilful artist. An illus¬
tration of this remark may perhaps be found in the fol¬
lowing incident. When Bruce has with his single arm
defended a narrow pass against a party of two hundred
Gallovidians, his soldiers are represented as flocking around
him with the same eager curiosity as if they had never
had another opportunity of seeing him.
Syk wmrdis spak thai of the king,
And for his hey wndertaking
Farlyit, and yarnyt hym to se,
That with hym ay wes wont to he.*
In the opinion of an exquisite critic, Barbour has adorn¬
ed the English language by a strain of versification, ex¬
pression, and poetical imagery, far superior to the age.3
And Dr Nott remarks that he “ had given his country¬
men a fine example of the simple energetic style, which
resembled Chaucer’s best manner, and wanted little to
make it the genuine language of poetry.”4 The best me¬
thod of estimating the merit of his versification, will be
to compare it with that of some English poet who flou¬
rished about the same period; and, if placed in competi¬
tion with the versification of Chaucer, Gower, or Lydgate,
the most celebrated English poets of that era, it must cer¬
tainly be admitted to appear with sufficient advantage.
Although a general conclusion cannot safely be drawn
from a particular instance, it may yet be worth while to
compare the following quotations from Chaucer and Bar¬
bour:
The byrdes that han lefft her songe,
Whyle they han suffred colde full stronge
In wethers grylle, and derke to syght,
Ben in May, for the sunne bryght,
So glad that they shewe in syngyng
That in her herte is suche lyking,
That they mote syngen and ben lyght:
Than doth the nyghtyngale her myght
To maken noyse and syngen blythe;
Than is blysfull many a sythe
The chelaundre and the popyngay;
Than yonge folke entenden aye
For to ben gay and amarous,
The tyme is than so sauorious. *
This wes in ver, quhen wynter tid,
With his blastis hidwyss to bid,
Was our drywyn, and byrdis smale,
. As turturis and the nychtyngale,
Begouth rycht sariely to synge,
And for to mak in thair singyng
Swete notis, and sownys ser,
And melodys plesand to her;
And the treis begouth to ma
Burgeans, and brycht blomys alsua,
To wyn the helyng off their hewid,
That wykkyt wyntir had thaim rewid.e
Here the versification of Barbour is certainly not inferior
0 that of Chaucer; but we have no intention to aver that
371
the general merit of the two poets is equal. Chaucer has Barbour
attempted a great variety of subjects, and, for the most II
part, with eminent success. His measures are also varied; Barbuda,
and, if we compare his versification with that of preced-
ing poets, or indeed with that of his immediate successors,
it will be found entitled to high commendation. He re¬
formed the taste and improved the language of his native
country. The merit of Barbour, though more circum¬
scribed, is yet so eminent as to entitle him to a very ho¬
nourable place in the history of British poetry.
The style of this poet is distinguished by its terse¬
ness, and he often exhibits a happy brevity of expression.
His work contains a greater proportion of French idioms
than we discover in the writings of the preceding Scotish
poets, though their positive number is far from being con¬
siderable. Fiction is not inseparably connected with verse.
The historical merit of Barbour’s poem has been admit¬
ted by very competent judges; and, among others, Lord
Hailes has repeatedly acknowledged the general fidelity
of his narrative. King Robert died in 1329 ; and, as Bar¬
bour was employed in writing his poem within forty-six
years from that period, he must have enjoyed many op¬
portunities of collecting information. He might himself
have conversed with warriors who fought at Bannock¬
burn ; and on one occasion he quotes the authority of
a valiant knight, Sir Allan Cathcart, who was personal¬
ly engaged in a particular exploit which he is about to
relate.
A knycht, that then wes in his rowt,
Worthi and wycht, stalwart and stout,
Curtaiss and fayr, and off gud fame,
Schyr Alane off Catkert by name,
Tauld me this taile, as I sail tell.7
Of the general merit of Barbour’s work, so favourable
an estimate has been formed by Mr Pinkerton, that it may
not be improper here to produce his testimony. “ Per¬
haps the editor may be accused of nationality, when he
says, that, taking the total merits of this work together,
he prefers it to the early exertions of even the Italian
muse, to the melancholy sublimity of Dante, and the amo¬
rous quaintness of Petrarca, as much as M. Le Grand does
& fabliau to a Provencal ditty. Here indeed the reader
will find few of the graces of fine poetry, little of the At¬
tic dress of the muse; but here are life, and spirit, and
ease, and plain sense, and pictures of real manners, and
perpetual incident, and entertainment. The language is
remarkably good for the time, and far superior in neat¬
ness and elegance even to that of Gawin Douglqs, who
wrote more than a century after. But when we consider
that our author is not only the first poet, but the earliest
historian of Scotland, who has entered into any detail,
and from whom any view of the real state and manners of
the country can be had; and that the hero whose life he
paints so minutely, was a monarch equal to the greatest
of modern times; let the historical and poetical merits
of his work be weighed together, and then opposed to
those of any other early poet of the present nations in
Europe.”8 (x.)
BARBUDA, one of the Caribbee islands, is 21 miles in
length by about 12 in breadth, presenting a very flat sur¬
face, covered to a great extent with forests of small trees,
in which excellent deer abound. Many varieties of very
fine shell and other fish are found on the coast, which is
* 5ark,our’ P- 320. * Barbour, p. 118. 3 Warton’s History of English Poetry, vol. ii. p. 154.
T Ji tS Dissertation °n the State of English Poetry before the sixteenth Century (p. cxc.), prefixed to the Works of Surrey and Wyatt.
•L-ond. 1815, 2 vols. 4to.
* Saucer’s Romaunte of the Rose: Workes, f. cxxviii. edit. Lond. 1542, fob
Barbour, p. 80. ’ Barbour, p. 183. 8 Pinkerton’s Preface to Barbour, p. x.
372 BAR
Barca a]so frequented by large flocks of water-game. The part
!• of the island cultivated is fertile, but there is no sugar
Ikircelona. ^ ^ there any plantations of importance, the
labour consisting principally in raising provisions, building
droghens, and rearing cattle, with which some of the neigh¬
bouring islands are supplied. Barbuda possesses no towns,
but negro hamlets are scattered over its surface, and a
church has lately been erected. The climate is salubrious,
and invalids resort thither from other parts of the West
Indies. This island is the entire property of the Codnng-
ton family. It is situated 12 leagues to the north-east of
Antigua,"and 24 to the north-north-east of St Christo¬
phers, and contains a population of about 1000 inhabit¬
ants. Long. 61. 46. W. Lat 17. 36. N.. , * u
BARCA, the name which has been given by the Arabs
to an extensive country between Tripoli and Egypt, occu¬
pying the site of the ancient Cyrenaica. . It is from this
identity, and from the monuments which it presents, that
the region in question is now chiefly interesting. Indeed,
since the important expeditions of Radio and Beechey
have made us well acquainted with the country, it is un¬
der the classic name that it is almost exclusively recog¬
nized. We shall therefore describe it and its ancient
monuments under the head of Cyrenaica.
BARCELLOS, a city of the province of Entre-Douro-
e-Minho, in the kingdom of Portugal. It is on the river
Savado, is fortified, and contains a population of 5000 per¬
sons, who, in the fertile district around them, cultivate the
celebrated white wine which takes the name of the city.
BARCELONA, a city of Spain, the capital of the pro¬
vince of Catalonia. It is situated on the shore of the Me¬
diterranean Sea, between the mouths of the river Besos
and the Llobregat, about one mile from each, on a plain
of great fertility, covered with gardens and country houses.
The city is but imperfectly fortified; but it is defended
by the fortress of Montjuic, which commands every part
of it. The buildings are irregular, and most of the streets
narrow ; but some of the plazas or squares, especially that
of the Pallacio and the Born, are very respectable. It
contains a Gothic cathedral of majestic appearance, 92
other churches, 37 monasteries, 7 hospitals, and about
11,000 houses; and, including the suburb Barcelonetta,
about 140,000 inhabitants. There are here various insti¬
tutions for the education of medical practitioners, one for
mathematical tuition, and one for navigation. It was a
place of considerable manufactures, but the loss of the
South American colonies has injured that kind of indus¬
try, and lessened the tonnage of ships that have enter¬
ed and left the port. The vessels that cleared out in 1816
were 1231, and in 1826, 1009. There is here a naval
arsenal, a light-house, a foundery for cannon, and exten¬
sive barracks. Long. 2. 5. 55. E. Lat. 48. 23. 8. N.
The Spaniards, who are proud of the antiquity of their
cities, ascribe the founding of Barcelona to the Carthagi¬
nians under Hamilcar, and the name to Borcino, a general
of that nation. It was the theatre of hostilities, both
during the government of the Moors in Spain, and in the
wars subsequent to that period. During the War of the
Succession it adhered to the house of Austria; and, at
the close of it, was reluctantly reconciled to the dynasty
of the Bourbons. At the commencement of'Buonaparte’s
attempt to seize on the government of Spain, the French
BAR
troops obtained possession of the fortress, which commands Ba
the city ; and thus, during the continuance of that war, it in
was held in most unwilling subjection to the enemies of
the cause which its inhabitants most zealously espoused. ®ai
BARCELONETTE, an arrondissement of the depart- W
ment of the Lower Alps, in France, 472 square miles in
extent, containing 4 cantons, 20 communes, and a popu¬
lation of 18,304 persons. The capital is a market-town of
the same name, on the river Ubayd, 3600 feet above the
level of the sea, with 2130 inhabitants.
BARCELOR, a town of Asia,^ in the East Indies, on
the coast of Malabar. It is supposed to be the ancient
Barace, and has a considerable trade in pepper. Long.
74. 15. E. Lat. 13. 45. N.
BARCLAY, Alexander, an English poet of consider¬
able celebrity, appears to have been a native of Scotland.
The place of his nativity has indeed been disputed; but
Bishop Bale, in a work published during Barclay’s life¬
time, mentions him as a Scotsman;1 and, according to Dr
Bulleyn, another contemporary writer, he “ was born be¬
yond the cold river of Tweed.” Holinshed likewise de¬
scribes him as a Scot. On the other hand, Dr Pitts, who
wrote at a more recent period, avers that he was an Eng¬
lishman, and that his native district was probably Devon¬
shire ; but this averment is apparently founded on the
mere circumstance of his having obtained preferment in
that county.2 Wood, adopting a similar opinion, designates
him Alexander de Barklay, and suggests that he seems to
have been born at or near a town so called in Somerset¬
shire.3 It is however to be remarked that the poet’s
name is altered to suit this hypothesis, and that there is
no such town or village in the county of Somerset. Berke¬
ley is the name of a place in the county of Gloucester, but
Berkeley and Barclay are not the same; and we adhere
to the opinion of Ritson, that “ both his name of baptism
and the orthography of his surname seem to prove that
he was of Scotish extraction.”4 Certain however it is
that he spent most of his life in England. He is said to
have been partly educated in the university of Oxford,
and is conjectured to have belonged to Oriel College; but
this account is apparently to be received with some de¬
gree of caution, and may rest on no better foundation
than the fact of his having dedicated his Ship of Fooles to
Dr Cornish, provost of that college, and suffragan bishop
of Tyne in the diocese of Bath. He describes himself as
the bishop’s humble chaplain, but this may perhaps be
considered as merely a courteous form of speech; for in
the poem itself, he represents himself as the “ chaplayne
and bedeman” of “ my master Kyrkham.” Barclay ap¬
pears to have taken the degree of doctor of divinity. On
one occasion he makes an allusion to what he had ob¬
served at Cambridge. It may be considered as highly
probable that he completed his studies in one of those
universities, and that the connexions which he thus had an
opportunity of forming, induced him to fix his residence
in the south; and when we suppose him to have enjoyed
the benefit of an English education, it need not appear
peculiarly “ strange that in those days a Scot should ob¬
tain so great reputation in England.”5 From his first
eclogue, we learn that he spent some of his earlier days
at Croy^don in Surrey; and in the year 1508 we find him
a prebendary of the collegiate church of St Mary Ottery
1 “ Alexander Barkeley, Scotus, rhetor ac poeta insignis.” (Bale! Illnstrium Majoris Britanmee Scriptorum Summarium, f. 254. b.
Gippeswici, 1548, 4to.) In a more recent publication, he mentions Barclay as a person, “ quem alii Scotum, alii Anglum fuisse con-
tendunt.” {Scriptorum illustrinm Majoris Britannia Catalogus, p. 723. Basileoe, 1559, fol.) , ,
2 “ Quibusdam Scotus fuisse videtur, sed Anglus vere fuit, patria, ut probabile est, Devoniensis. Nam ibi ad S. Mariam ae
Otery presbyter primum fuit.” (Pitseus De illustribus Anglia: Scriptorilus, p. 74.5. Paris. 1619, 4to.)
3 Wood’s Athena Oxonienses, vol. i. col. 205. 4 Ititson’s Bibliographia Poctica, p. 46.
* Biographia Britannica, vol. i. p. 586.
BAR
in Devonshire. He afterwards became a Benedictine
j j^onk of the monastery of Ely, and at length assumed the
habit of St Francis at Canterbury. Having survived the
dissolution of the monasteries, he became successively
vicar of Much-Badew in Essex, and, in 1546, of Wokey
in Somersetshire ; and was finally presented by the dean
and chapter of Canterbury to the rectory of All-Saints in
Lombard-street. As he retained some of his preferments
in the reign of Edward VI., it is presumed that he must
have complied with the changes of the times. Having
reached a very advanced age, he died in the year 1552,
and was interred at Croydon.
Barclay wrote at a period when the standard of English
poetry was extremely low; and, as excellence is always
comparative, this circumstance may partly enable us to
account for the high reputation which he enjoyed among
his contemporaries. If not entitled to the name of a poet,
he is at least a copious versifier. His most conspicuous
performance is the Ship of Fooles, first printed by Pinson
in the year 1509. The original design, and many of the
details, were derived from Sebastian Brandt,1 a civilian of
Strasburg, who in 1494 published a poem entitled Das
Narren Schyff,2 which was so well adapted to the taste of
the age that a Latin and a French version appeared in
1497, and another French version in 1498. Barclay pro¬
fesses to have translated “ oute of Eaten, Frenche, and
Dochebut to the original cargo he has added many fools
of English growth. Under the representation of a ship
freighted with fools of various denominations, the poet ex¬
poses the prevalent vices and follies of the age; and al¬
though, as Warton remarks, the poem is destitute of plot,
and the voyage of adventures,3 the general design was
found to possess many attractions. Another publication
of Barclay is the Mirrour of good Manners, translated from
the poem of Mancini De quatuor Virtutibus. His Eglogues
chiefly excite curiosity as the earliest specimen of pasto¬
ral poetry in the English language, but their other attrac¬
tions are not very powerful. They are of a more recent
date than Henryson’s Robene and Mahyne, and are cer¬
tainly very inferior in poetical merit. Among his prose
works we find a version of Sallust’s history of the war with
Jugurtha: it was twice printed by Pinson, and is an early
specimen of an English translation from the classics, (x.)
Barclay, William, M. D. was the brother of Sir Pa¬
trick Barclay of Tolly,4 and was likewise related to his
learned namesake mentioned in the next article. This
latter fact is ascertained by the hendecasyllables subjoin¬
ed to his notes on Tacitus, and bearing the subsequent
inscription: “ Nobili et clarissimo viro Guil. Barclayo cog-
nato meo, pro explicate Taciti Agricola, Joannes Barclayus
Guil. F. scripsi.” The writer of these verses, we may
remark, must then have been only seventeen years of
age. Barclay prosecuted his studies in the university of
Louvain under Justus Lipsius, a great master of Roman
bar 373
literature; and to him this distinguished professor has Barclay,
addressed two of his printed letters.5 He describes him-
self as A. M. and M. D.; but where he took those de¬
grees we are not informed. Having been appointed a
professor in the university of Paris, he there taught hu¬
manity for several years, and acquired a considerable share
of reputation by his talents and learning. He afterwards
visited his native country, where he appears to have fol¬
lowed the medical profession; but it may be inferred from
Dempster’s brief notice, that, in consequence of his adhe¬
rence to popery, his situation was rendered uncomfort¬
able by the clergy, and having returned to France, he re¬
sumed his former occupation at Nantes in Bretagne.6 The
same literary historian mentions, that, at the period of his
writing, Barclay was residing in Scotland, and, according
to his information, was pursuing the practice of physic.
The following is a list of all the publications of Dr Bar¬
clay with which we are acquainted.
1. Guilielmi Barclay! Oratio pro Eloquentia. Ad v. cl.
Ludovicum Servinum, Sacri Consistorii Regii Consilia-
rium, et in amplissimo Senatu Parisiensi Regis Advoca-
tum. Paris. 1598, 8vo.
2. C. Cornelii Taciti Opera quae exstant, ad exemplar
quod J. Lipsius quintum recensuit. Seorsim excusi com-
mentarii ejusdem Lipsii meliores plenioresque cum curis
secundis, et auctariolo non ante adjecto. Guil. Barclayus
Praemetia quaedam ex Vita Agricolae libavit. Adjecti
sunt indices aliquanto ditiores. Paris. 1599, 8vo.—Me¬
nage, in his Remarques sur la, Vie de Pierre Ayrault, p.
230, has ascribed these Prcemetia to the civilian, and the
same error has been committed by other writers.
3. Nepenthes, or the Vertves of Tabacco. By William
Barclay, Mr of Art, and Doctor of Physicke. Edinb.
1614, 8vo.—This tract is dedicated to the author’s nephew,
Patrick the son and heir of Sir Patrick Barclay of Tolly;
and the dedication is preceded by “ A merie Epistle of
the Author to the Printer,” who is no other than “ good
Master Hart.” To this worthy friend he makes the fol¬
lowing communication : “ If I find fauour in this essay, I
shal send you shortly, Godwilling, a scholasticall subiect,
and a curious litle worke, fit onely for those which aspire
to the top of Pindus. The one wil bring to your shop the
common sort of people, the other the most learned.” At
the end of the tract he has inserted six little poems, the
first of which is addressed to Alexander Craig.
4. Guil. Barclayi, Amceniorum Artium, et Medicinse
Doctoris, Judicium de Certamine G. Eglisemmii cum G.
Buchanano, pro Dignitate Paraphraseos Psalmi ciiii. Non
violandi Manes. Adjecta sunt, Eglisemmii ipsum Judicium,
ut editum fuit Londini, typis Eduardi Aldaei, an. Dom.
1619; et, in gratiam studiosae juventutis, ejusdem Psalmi
elegans paraphrasis Thomas Rhaedi. Lond. 1620, 8vo.—
Dr Eglisham, like a fair as well as a bold critic, exhibited
his own verses in competition with those of Buchanan,
Sebastian Brandt, doctor of laws, was born at Strasburg about the year 1458. He studied in the university of Basel; and after
laving publicly taught there, as well as in his native city, he became syndic of Strasburg, where he died in the year 1520. (Adami
\ '£ GerrnanorurnJurcconsultOTum et Politicorum, p. 5. edit. Francof. ad Moen. 1706, fol.) He is extolled by his contemporary Trithe-
mius as “ utriusque juris professor insignis, et tam in divinis Scripturis, quam aliis saecularis literaturae disciplinis egregie doctus, po-
e icam non mediocriter catlens, ingenio subtilis, eloquio disertus, consilio ac actione praecipuus.” {De Scriptorihus Ecdesiasticis, f. ccii.
ent'tf a ariS' 15*2’ ^t0‘) His writings embrace a considerable variety of subjects. We have a copy of one of his professional works,
pitied Titulorum omnium Juris tam Civilis quain Canonici Expositiones. Cngduni, 1608, 8vo.
a vfr6 Ebert’s Allgemeines bibliographisches Lexikon, Band i. S. 230.
4 .P Eton’s Hist, of English Poetry, vol. iii. p. 74.
sit t - ^rc^ay kas himself mentioned the place of his birth. “ Nam Collonia (sic castrum vocatur in quo primum terram tetigi)
cumA ln,. ore <lu°fl ‘ tam vasto atque aperto mari pulsatur.’ Quo looo, ut obiter dicam, non pauca sunt vestigia veterum bellorum,
tnv n nA. Prsesertiin. Est in eodem littore, in territorio gentis Barclayanse, portus quidam, qui nostra lingua Auld-heauen appella-
un. {Praemetia, p. 561.)
6 Epist. select, cent. iii. ep. xxxiii. Epist. cent, ad Germanos ct Gallos, ep. Ivi.
coese *6 . Cotiai^ profectus aliquantisper substitit, donee ministri illi Sathanse magna eum molestia afficientes solum vertere
tonim*1 i2^U) ^ ^terum docere bonas artes sustinuit Nanneti in Britannia Minore.” (Dempster. Hist. Ecclesiast. Gentis Sco-
374
BAR
BAR
Barclay, and had no reason to congratulate himself on the issue.
He was likewise assailed by another learned physician,
Arthur Johnston, who, in two sarcastic and elegant poems,
treated his case as one of decided insanity.
5. Guil. Barclaii, M. D. Poemata. Delitice Poetarum
Scotorum, tom. i. p. 137.—These poems only occupy four
pages and a half. (x.)
Barclay, William, LL. D. a distinguished civilian, was
born in Aberdeenshire in the year 1541. He spent the
early part of his life, and much of his fortune, at the
court of Mary queen of Scots, from whose favour he had
reason to expect preferment. In 1573 he went over to
France, and at Bourges commenced student of the civil
law under the famous Cujacius. He continued some years
in that seminary, where he took his doctor’s degree; and
was soon after appointed professor of the civil law in the
university of Pontamousson, recently founded by the duke
of Lorraine. That prince afterwards made him counsel¬
lor of state and master of requests. In the year 1581
Barclay married Anne de Malleville, a French lady, by
whom he had a son, who became a celebrated author, and
of whom the reader will find an account in the next arti¬
cle. This youth the Jesuits would gladly have received
into their society; but his father refused his consent, and
for that reason these disciples of Jesus soon contrived to
ruin him with the duke his patron. Barclay now embark¬
ed for Britain, where King James offered him a consider¬
able preferment, provided he would become a member of
the church of England ; but not chusing to comply with
this condition, he x*eturned to France in 1604, and, soon
after his arrival, was appointed first professor of the civil
law in the university of Angers, where he died the year
following, and was buried in the Franciscan church.
Barclay was a man of superior talents, and still main¬
tains a conspicuous place among civilians.1 In his politi¬
cal opinions he was directly opposed to his illustrious
countryman Buchanan, and was a strenuous defender of
the rights of kings : his own speculations on the principles
of government are best known to some readers from an
incidental confutation by Locke, in his Treatises on Go¬
vernment. A list of his publications shall close this very
brief notice.
1. De Regno et Regali Potestate, adversus Buchana-
num, Brutum, Boucherium, et reliquos Monarchomachos,
libri sex. Paris. 1600, 4to.—This volume contains, or
ought to contain, a portrait of the author, which however
has in many instances been transferred to the portfolio of
some collector.
2. In Titulum Pandectarum de Rebus creditis et Jure-
jurando Commentarii. Paris. 1605, 8vo.—This commen¬
tary is reprinted in Ottos Thesaurus Juris Romani,
tom. iii.
3. De Potestate Papae; an et quatenus in Reges et
Principes seculares jus et imperium habeat: Liber post¬
humus. Mussiponti, 1610, 8vo.—This work may likewise
be found in Goldasti Monarchia, tom. iii. p. 621. It was
translated into French ; and an English version is printed
with the treatise of Sheldon, Of the Lawf ulness of the Oath
°f Allegiance. Lond. 1611, 4to. Barclay’s two treatises,
Ds Regno and De Potestate Papce, have repeatedly been
printed in the same volume. Hanoviae 1612, 8vo. H-?-
noviae, 1617, 8vo.
Barclay, John, son of the eminent civilian mentioned
in the last article, was born at Pontamousson on the 28th
of January 1582. He was there educated in the College
of the Jesuits, and excited in his instructors so favourable
an opinion of his capacity, that they made an attempt to
entice him into their order; an attempt which was indig-
nantly resisted by his father. At the age of nineteen, he
evinced his literary ambition by publishing annotations on
the Thebais of Statius. In 1603, when his father resign¬
ed his professorship in disgust, the young and aspiring
scholar accompanied him to London; and at the begin¬
ning of the following year he presented his Kalendce Ja¬
nuaries as a poetical offering to King James, to whom he
soon afterwards dedicated the first part of his work en¬
titled Euphormionis Lusini Satyricon. Both the father
and the son were willing to accept of employment, and no
doubt they both expected preferment. But, as Lord
Hailes has remarked, “ William Barclay was conscien¬
tiously attached to the church of Rome, and his son pro¬
fessed the religion of his forefathers. In those days a
pension bestowed upon a Scottish Papist would have been
numbered among the national grievances ; and the vulgar
would not have distinguished between favour shown to
genius or learning, and partiality for the opinions of the
person favoured.”^ In the year 1604 they both returned
to France, and Dr Barclay was again placed in a situation
suited to his talents and learning, having been appointed
first professor of the civil law in the university of Angers.
His taste for external magnificence appears to have been
somewhat prominent: when he went to read his lecture,
he was dressed in a superb gown, with a massy chain of
gold about his neck, and was followed by his son and two
valets.3
The younger Barclay, whose hopes of advancement had
begun to revive, returned to England in 1605; but after
a further residence of twelve months, he still found him¬
self unsuccessful in his pursuit. His father died towards
the close of the same year; and he afterwards removed
to Paris, where he married Louise, the daughter of Mi¬
chael Debonnaire, “ Tresorier des Yieilles Bandes.” He
speedily fixed his abode in London, and there his wife
bore him a son and two daughters, William, Anne, and
Louise. M. de Peiresc, who was himself a man of
learning, and was very extensively connected with the
learned, found him in this metropolis in the year 1606,
and their acquaintance was succeeded by an intimate
friendship. During this year he published the second
part of his Satyricon, which he dedicated to the earl of
Salisbury; and likewise a brief narrative of the gunpowder
plot, bearing the title of Series patefacti divinitus Parri-
cidii, in ter maximum Regem Regnumque Britannice cagi-
tati et instructi. In 1610 he published an apology for his
Satyricon, which had excited so much resentment that he
found it necessary to attempt some palliatives and expla¬
nations. A tract was published at Paris in 1620, under
the title of Censura Euphormionis ;4 * * and this was an¬
swered in a Censura Censures Euphormionis, written by
Pierre Musnier, canon of Yezelay.
Da iiVi
\ Bjowne’s BmarA:# on the Study of the Civil Law, p. 25. Edinb. 1828, 8vo.
eS S SketGh of the Life of John Barclay, p. 2. 4to edit.
4 cTn11*180’- Rr'marVues sur la Vi.e de Pierre Ayrault, p. 230.
annarentlvallud^mifr wqUer V eXV Pa—v1’ qu1 Se,ton’ Ecossois’ est Auteur de ce petit livre.” (Menage, p. 233.) The writer
f^eus sive de Scrittorih^n^pf^^ C1!^?n, whom 1 omasini enumerates among the eminent scholars of the1 age. (Parnassus Eu-
fddressed the stcond t ^vfclar^ P‘ 8- Pftayii, 1647, 4to.) Balzac celebrated him in his Latin verses; Scioppius
much resnect bv Jarionfhi-s Paradoxa Liter aria. “ Guilhelmo Setonio Scoto Jurisconsultoand his name is mentioned with
site JeSfp! 177. Lond. 1652, Svo!” °f ^ Same Peri°d' He 18 highly extolled in Sir Thomas Urquhart’s Discovery of a most exqui-
BAR
BAR
375
During the same year, 1610, he published an able work
^ 'j 0f 1^3 father, Be Potestate Papce, to which he prefixed a
' preface of nine pages, concluding with a clear intimation
of his purpose to defend his father’s memory against any
unseemly attack. “ Quod si aliquis hoc opus refellere
instituet, velim ne oratoria fraude tantum levia quaedam
carpat, in quibus nec ipse author multum subsidii po-
suerit; seel ipsam vim rationum excutiat, diluendi aut as-
serendi vitia accuset. Si quis aliter faxit, sciat Guilielmi
Barclaii cineres loqui posse.” It was not the object of
this treatise to controvert the spiritual supremacy of the
pope, which the author was ready to admit in its most
orthodox sense; but while he acknowledged his power
and jurisdiction in things spiritual, he strenuously con¬
tended against his usurped power over sovereign princes
in things temporal. The work, which is written with
learning and ability, excited no small degree of attention ;
and it was soon attacked by Cardinal Bellarmin, one of
the most formidable defenders of the doctrines of the
church, and of the pretensions of its visible head. The son
was anxious to evince that the ashes of his revered father
were yet capable of speaking. . He had not neglected to
study the law under so excellent a preceptor; and as he
was by no means diffident of his own abilities, he did not
shrink from a contest with so redoubtable an antagonist.
He accordingly published a large volume bearing the title
of Joannis Barclaii Pietas; sive publiccc pro Regibus ac
Principibus, ac privatce pro Guilielmo Barclaio Parente
Vindicice, adversus Roberti S. R. E. Cardinalis Bellarmini
Tractatum de Potestate Summi Pontijicis in Rebus Tem-
poralibus. Parisiis, 1612, 4to. To this work the cardinal
did not himself reply, but an answer was speedily published
under the name of Andrece Eudcemon-Johannis Epistola
monitoria ad Joannem Barclaium de Libro ab eo pro Patre
suo contra Robertum Bellarminum S. R. E. Cardinalem
scripto. Col. Agrip. 1613, 8vo.
In 1614 Barclay published at London his Icon Animo-
rum, which forms the fourth part of his Satyricon. This
work is written with talent and vivacity, and may still be
perused with pleasure. It is, as Lord Hailes has correct¬
ly stated, a delineation of the genius and manners of the
European nations, with remarks, moral and philosophical,
on the various tempers of men. For the land of his fore¬
fathers the author has not failed to testify a sufficient de¬
gree of affection. He duly extols the antiquity of the
royal line, “ inclyto sceptro supra fidem et aetatem regno-
rum caeterorum.” Nor is the literary character of the
people left without its share of commendation. “ Animi
illis in quaecunque studia inclinant, mirifico successu in-
clyti, ut nullis major patientia castrorum, vel audacia pug-
nas, et Musae nunquam delicatius habeant quam cum in-
ciderunt in Scotos.”1 Some of his sketches of the national
character are happy and graphic.
After a residence of ten years in England, Barclay
found himself without any sufficient inducement to prolong
his stay. To some extent or other, he had experienced
the bounty of the earl of Salisbury ; and although it does
not appear that he obtained any regular provision from the
king, we may perhaps suppose that he at least received
occasional gratuities; but his resources continued to be
scanty, and his situation precarious. Towards the close
of the year 1615 he proceeded to Paris, where he had the
pleasure of meeting his friend M. de Peiresc, and the ho¬
nour of being introduced by him to the keeper of the
seals, Guillaume du Yair. Having been invited to Rome
by Pope Paul V., he there fixed his residence in the be¬
ginning of the ensuing year, and by the publication of his
next work he endeavoured to prove himself a worthy de¬
nizen of this pious city. The work to which we allude is
entitled Joannis Barclaii Parcenesis ad Sectaries, libri ii.
Ilomse, 1617, Bvo. “ It is probable,” says Lord Hailes,
“ that by this exhortation to the sectaries, he meant to
give evidence of his own orthodoxy, and to atone for the
liberties, almost heretical, which he had taken, as well
with the papal court, as with its most faithful adherents.
But that court, which had Cardinal Bellarmin for its
champion, required not the feeble and suspicious aid of
the author of Euphormion.—Although Barclay found
much civility at Rome, yet it does not appear that he ob¬
tained any emolument. Incumbered with a wife and fa¬
mily, and having a spirit above his fortune, he was left at
full leisure to pursue his literary studies. It was at that
time that he composed his Latin romance called Argenis.
He employed his vacant hours in the cultivating of a
flower-garden. Rossi (or Erythrams) relates, in the turgid
Italian style, that Barclay cared not for those bulbous
roots which produce flowers of a sweet scent; and that
he cultivated such as produced flowers void of smell, but
having variety of colours. Hence we may conclude that
he was amongst the first of those who were infected with
that strange disease, a passion for tulips, which soon after
overspread Europe, and is still remembered under the
name of the Tulipo-mania. Barclay had it to that excess,
that he placed two mastiffs as centinels on his garden;
and, rather than abandon his favourite fliwers, chose to
continue his residence in an ill-aired and unwholesome ha¬
bitation.” The preceding account of his success at Rome
is not reconcilable with that of Erythrseus, who avers that
from Cardinal Barberini he obtained riches as well as ci¬
vility ;2 but as these benefits are said to have been con¬
ferred after the cardinal’s elevation to the papal chair,
the narrative is liable to some degree of suspicion. The
election of Urban VIII. did not take place till the year
1623, and Barclay was then beyond the reach of prefer¬
ment. It is not however probable that a writer of high
reputation, who had been invited by the pope, and was
caressed by cardinals, was left without some substantial
mark of favour. Bellarmin, whom he had formerly under¬
taken to refute, was so far from cherishing any resent¬
ment, that he honoured him with various marks of kindness.
Barclay died at Rome on the twelfth of August 1621,
in the fortieth year of his age. The disease which prov¬
ed fatal to him was the stone; a disease for which, in his
Satyricon, he had pronounced the plant called golden rod
to be a specific remedy. His remains were interred in
the church of S. Onufrio ; and at the church of S. Lorenzo,
on the road to Tivoli, his widow erected for him a monu¬
ment, with his bust in marble ; but on learning that Car¬
dinal Francesco Barberini had there erected a similar mo¬
nument in honour of his preceptor, she indignantly caus¬
ed the bust to be removed. The inscription on Barclay’s
monument was soon erased; but by whom, or for what rea¬
son, is not very clearly ascertained. There is however
no improbability in the reason assigned by Freherus, who
imputes this act to the vindictive feelings of the Jesuits,
an order of men very frequently subjected to his satire.3
Barclay.
Joannis Barclaii Icon Animorum, p. D2. Lond. 1614, 8vo.
' “ Q,ui deinde, ad Deo proximuin, in terris, dignitatis locum evectus, Urban! VIII. nomine, non modicse illi utilitati et commodo
tuiU nam et divitias et opes ac gratiam contulit, filiumque ejus majorem natu et pingui sacerdotio locupletavit, et honorarii intimi
cubicularii titulo cohonestavit.” (Erythraei Pinacotheca, tom. iii. p. 79.) See likewise Imperialis Musoeum Historicum, p. 170.
Freheri Theatrum Virorum Eruditione clarorum, tom. ii. p. 1515 “ Inscriptionem ac statuam,” says an earlier writer, “ cautiore
paties consilio sublatam ac deletam voluerunt.” (Imperialis Musceum HUtoricum, p. 171. Venet. 1640-4to.)
376 BAR
Barclay. At the time of his death, the romance of Argenis was
printing under the superintendence of Peiresc,1 and was
soon afterwards given to the public. Paris. 1621, 8vo.
Besides a son and two daughters born in England, Barclay
had a son who was born at Rome. His elder son is re¬
presented by Erythrseus as having obtained a rich benefice
from Urban VIII. With one of his sons Menage was ac¬
quainted at Paris in the year 1652; and, in his opinion,
“ ce n’estoit pas un grand personnage.” Like his father,
he wasawriter of Latin verses, and at this period he there
printed an elegy. Wb are not aware that the descendants
of Barclay are at present to be traced either in France or
Italy.
This ingenious writer, who was thus arrested in the
middle of his literary career, left an unpublished history
of the conquest of Jerusalem by the Franks, and some
fragments of a general history of Europe. Erythrseus
informs us that he had himself transcribed a manuscript
tract of his, relating to the defection of M. Ant. de Do-
minis, archbishop of Spalato ; and that from his knowledge
of the national character, as well as of the disposition of
the king, the author foretold that he could not long re¬
main in England.
The ambition of Barclay was greater than his fortune;
nor did his propensity to satirize one class of individuals
prevent him from offering abject flatteries to another.
But at that period few men of letters knew how to blend
self-respect with a proper deference to their superiors in
the artificial scale of society. His personal character,
with an ample allowance for his vanity as an author, ap¬
pears to have been respectable. “ Some very indecent
descriptions in Euphormion,” as Lord Hailes has remark¬
ed, “ lead us to form an unfavourable conjecture as to
the manners of Barclay. There is however no proof that
he was a loose man; and indeed it is probable that he
wrote loosely because Petronius, whom he had chosen
for his model in satire, affected that style. Barclay en¬
tered into the married state at a very early period of life;
and he appears to have continued the fond husband of his
There is a presumption, at least, that he who was
a good son and a good husband, was also a virtuous man
in other respects; and if there had been any remarkable
blemish in the morals of Barclay, some of his numerous and
virulent adversaries would have pointed it out.” He ap¬
pears to have been subjected to considerable annoyance
in consequence of the jealousy of his wife; but in many
cases jealousy is a wayward passion, and proceeds from
the mere excess of affection, as well as from the know¬
ledge or suspicion of specific and painful facts.
Barclay was evidently a man of genius, and with a vi¬
gorous imagination he united a competent share of learn¬
ing. His literary efforts were sufficiently variegated;
quitting the regions of poetry and romance, he ventured
to discuss subjects of jurisprudence and theology. His
Latin poems exhibit marks of fancy and ingenuity, nor is
his skill as a versifier less conspicuous.2 The Satyricon
is formed on the model of Petronius, and includes occa¬
sional verses interspersed with the prose. The talent dis¬
played in this work would alone have been sufficient to
secure him a high reputation among the writers of the
age; but the fame of all his other productions has in a
great measure been eclipsed by that of his Argenis, which,
BAR
after the lapse of two centuries, still finds readers and ad- r
miners. “ Argenis," says Lord Hailes, “ is generally sup- ^ ~v
posed to be a history under feigned names, and not a ro¬
mance. Barclay himself contributed to establish this opi¬
nion, by introducing some real characters into the work.
But that was merely to compliment certain dignitaries of
the church, whose good offices he courted, or whose power
he dreaded. The key prefixed to Argenis has perpe¬
tuated the error. There are no doubt many incidents in
it that allude to the state of France during the civil wars
in the seventeenth century ; but it requires a strong ima¬
gination indeed to discover Queen Elizabeth in Hyanisbe,
or Henry III. of France in Meleander. On the whole
Argenis appears to be a poetical fable, replete with mo¬
ral and political reflections.” This is a sober and cor¬
rect account of the work ; but Cowper has expressed his
approbation in more glowing terms. “ The work I mean
is Barclay’s Argenis; and, if ever you allow yourself to
read for mere amusement, I can recommend it to you
(provided you have not already perused it) as the most
amusing romance that ever was written. It is the only
one indeed of an old date that I ever had the patience to
go through with. It is interesting in a high degree,
richer in incident than can be imagined, full of surprizes,
which the reader never forestalls, and yet free from all
entanglement and confusion. The stile too appears to me
to be such as w ould not dishonour Tacitus himself.” In
another letter he expresses himself thus:—“ I have also
read Barclay’s Argenis, a Latin romance, and the best ro¬
mance that wras ever written.”3 This romance was a spe¬
cial favourite with Cardinal Richelieu, and also with Leib¬
nitz, a much greater man than the cardinal.
Cowper appears to have been struck with the point and
vivacity of his style, which indeed are sufficiently distin¬
guishable ; but for the purity of his Latin diction Barclay
is not entitled to equal commendation. Being probably
impelled by the rapid current of his fancy, he adopts a va¬
riety of words and idioms which well express his meaning,
but which nevertheless do not belong to the best ages of
Latinity. The distich of Grotius, engraved under Bar¬
clay’s portrait, seems therefore to contain a compliment
which must not be too literally interpreted:
Gente Caledonius, Gallus natalibus, hie est
liomam Itomano qui docet ore loqui.
Joseph Scaliger, whose literary judgments were fre¬
quently severe, and not unfrequently capricious, mentions
Barclay’s Satyricon in terms of great disparagement; but
whether his censure is chiefly directed against the Lati¬
nity or against the general strain of the work, is not alto¬
gether certain.4 This book, whatever may be its demerits,
has passed through many editions, and has been translat¬
ed into the French and German languages.5 It has like¬
wise had the advantage of being illustrated with notes.
Lugd. Bat. 1674, 8vo. The fourth part, the Icon Ammo-
rum, has repeatedly been printed in a separate form. One
edition bears this inscription: “ Joannis Barclaii Icon
Animorum, celeberrimi viri Augusti Buchneri notis, ad-
jecto rerum indice, illustrata.” Dresdae, 1680, 8vo. The
book soon appeared in an English dress: “ The Mirror of
Minds, or Barclay’s Icon Animorum ; Englished by Tho.
May, Esq.” Lond. 1633, 12mo. Of this translation there
is another edition in the same form; but the only copy
^ Gassendi Vita Nicolai Claudii Fabricii de Peiresc, p. 176. Paris. 1641, 4to.
.A’:— Barclaii Poematum lilri duo. Lond. 1615, 4to. Oxon. 1636, 12mo.—His poems may likewise be found in the Demits
dnnnp no*’ ^ Sed quid Joanne Barclaio Scoto, etiam in hoc genere Musarum, exactius, numerosius, et quan-
aoque sublmuus. (Bomchu Dissertationes academicce de Poetis* p. 149. Francof. 1683 4to.}
Hayley’s Life of Cowper, vol. i. p. 243, 247. 4to edit. ’
r«t^/^T1rr7Eu?h0Ti?>n!m,^rC„lseisfaciam’ ex eo c°gnoscere P°tes> quod vix sex folia ejus legere potuerim.” (Jos. Scaligeri
v,’ P‘ ^7Vr Lu£d;,Eat- 16H?’ 8vo') See Colomesii Opuscula, p. 157, and Menage’s Remarques stir la Fie de Pierre Ayrault, p. 233.
Biographic Umverselle, tom. m. p. 360. Ebert’s Allgemeines UUiographisches Lexikon, Band i. S. 137.
BAR
BAR 377
y. to which we have access contains a mutilated title, and
we therefore cannot discover the date. Two French ver¬
sions had appeared in the course of one year. “ Le
Pourtrait des Esprits de Jean Barclai, mis en Fran¬
cois.” Paris, 1625, 12mo. “ Le Tableau des Esprits de
M. Jean Barclay: par lequel on cognoist les humeurs des
Nations, leurs advantages et defaux, les inclinations des
hommes, tant a cause de leurs propres naturels que des
conditions de leurs charges. Nouvellement traduict de
Latin en Francois.” Paris, 1625, 8vo. The dedication
of the duodecimo is subscribed Nantevil de Boham; and
he has taken such liberties with the original, that his work
can scarcely claim the name of a translation. There is a
German translation of a very recent date: “ Johann
Barklai’s Gemalde der menschlichen Charaktere nach Ver-
schiedenheit der Alter, Zeiten, Lander, Individuen und
Stande: aus dem Lateinischen iibersetzt, und mit An-
merkungen und geschichtlichen Nachweisungen begleitet,
von Anton Weddige, Pastor zu Lippborg.” Munster, 1821,
8vo. A continuation of the Satyricon had been publish¬
ed by Claude Morisot, under the title of Alitophili Veri-
tatis Lachrymce ; and Lord Hailes describes it as a master¬
piece of absurdity.
The editions and versions of the Argenis are much more
numerous. An edition with notes appeared under the
title of “ Joannis Barclaii Argenis, nunc primum illus-
trata.” Lugd. Bat. et Roter. 1664, 8vo. This was fol¬
lowed in 1669 by a uniform edition of the continuation:
“ Archombrotus et Theopompus, sive Argenidis secunda
et tertia pars, ubi de Institutione Principis.” The notes,
which are not held in much estimation, were written bv
Bugnot, a Benedictine who taught rhetoric in the abbey
of Tiron. Lord Hailes mentions a French translation
published at Paris, 1622, 8vo; and another with the sub¬
sequent title now lies before us: “ L’Argenis de Jean
Barclay: traduction nouvelle, enrichie de figures.” Paris,
1625,8vo. There are other two French versions of a more
recent date, one by the Abbe Josse, a canon of Chartres,
1732, 3 tom. 12mo; and another by M. Savin, Paris,
1776, 2 tom. 8vo. Barclay’s romance soon appeared in
Spanish; and a copy of this rare version belongs to the
Asto'rga collection in the Advocates Library: “ Argenis,
por Don Joseph Pellicer de Salas y Tobar. A Don Anto¬
nio de Negro, Noble de la Serenissima Republica de Ge-
noua.” Madrid, 1626, 4to. Don Joseph has somewhat
unfairly excluded Barclay’s name from the title-page. An
English version was speedily published by Sir Robert Le
Grys and Thomas May, Esq. Lond. 1628,4to. And another
was executed by Kingsmill Long, Esq. Lond. 1636, 4to.
After a long interval appeared “ The Phoenix, or, the His¬
tory ofPolyarchusand Argenis. By a Lady.” London, 1772,
4vols. 12mo. The preface of this publication states that
“ the editor has made use of both the former translations
occasionally, and, whenever a doubt arose, had recourse to
the original.” Lord Hailes has judiciously enough suggest¬
ed that “ the lady would have done as well had she made
use of the original, and only consulted the translations
"hen any doubt arose.” The Argenis was at an early
period translated into German : “ Joan. Barclai Argenis,
verdeutscht durch Martin Opitzen.” Amsterdam, 1644,
1-mo. In this country, the version of Opitz is extremely
•are; and the only copy that has fallen under our inspec¬
tion belongs to the writer of the present notice. Another
German translation was published by J. Ch. L. Haken.
erhn, 1794, 2 Bde. 8vo. An Italian version was exe¬
cuted by Francesco Pona; and this celebrated romance
has even been translated into the Polish, Swedish, and Barclay.
Islandic languages. Among the northern manuscripts
in the Advocates Library there is a Saga af Argenide,
translated in the year 1694 by a schoolmaster named Ei-
narson.1 (x.)
Barclay, Robert, one.of the most eminent among the
Quakers, the son of Colonel David Barclay, was born at
Edinburgh in 1648. He was educated under an uncle
at Paris, where the Papists used all their efforts to draw
him over to their religion. But he joined the Quakers in
1669, and distinguished himself by his zeal and abilities
in defence of their doctrines. In 1676 he published, in
Latin, at Amsterdam, his Apology for the Quakers, which
is the most celebrated of his works, and esteemed the
standard of the doctrine of the Quakers. The Theses
Theologicce, which were the foundation of this work, and
addressed to the clergy generally, were published before
the Apology, and printed in Latin, French, German, Dutch,
and English. The dedication of his Apology to king
Charles II., is very remarkable for the uncommon frank¬
ness and simplicity with which it is written. Amongst
many other extraordinary passages, we meet with the fol¬
lowing : “ There is no king in the world who can so ex¬
perimentally testify of God’s providence and goodness;
neither is there any who rules so many free people, so
many true Christians; which thing renders thy govern¬
ment more honourable, thyself more considerable, than the
accession of many nations filled with slavish and supersti¬
tious souls. Thou hast tasted of prosperity and adversity;
thou knowest what it is to be banished thy native coun¬
try, to be over-ruled as well as to rule and sit upon the
throne; and being oppressed, thou hast reason to know
how hateful the oppressor is both to God and man ; if,
after all those warnings and advertisements, thou dost not
turn unto the Lord with all thy heart, but forget him who
remembered thee in thy distress, and give thyself up to
follow lust and vanity, surely great will be thy condemna¬
tion.” He travelled with the famous William Penn through
the greater part of England, Holland, and Germany, and
was everywhere received with the highest respect; for
though both his conversation and behaviour were suitable
to his principles, yet there was such liveliness and spirit
in his discourse, and such serenity and cheerfulness in his
deportment, as rendered him extremely agreeable to all
sorts of people. When he returned to his native coun¬
try, he spent the remainder of his life in a quiet and re¬
tired manner. He died at his own house at Ury, on the
3d of October 1690, in the 42d year of his age.
BARCLAY, John, M. D. a distinguished anatomist, was
born in Perthshire in 1760, and died at Edinburgh in 1826.
After the usual routine of parochial education, Dr Barclay
was entered as a student at the United College of St An¬
drews, where he distinguished himself as a classical scholar.
He subsequently studied divinity in the same university,
and was licensed as a preacher by the presbytery of Dun-
keld. Having repaired to Edinburgh in 1789, as tutor to
the family of Sir James Campbell of Aberuchill, Dr Barclay
began to give his attention to the study of medicine, and
particularly to anatomy, both human and comparative.
He became assistant to the late Mr John Bell, and took
the degree of doctor of physic in the university of Edin-
bui’gh in 1796, after having defended an inaugural dis¬
sertation, Re Anima, seu Principio Vitali. This subject
seems very early to have engaged his attention ; and his
last work, on Life and Organization, in which his views
are more fully developed, affords a proof of the continued
deci ^ansGt°r of Barclay was “ Job. Emari, scholtc primum Skalholtinse hypodidascalus, deinde rector scholse Holensis
gnatus.” (Halfdani Einari Sciagraphia Historice Literariae Islandicce, p. 66. Havnise, 1777, 8vo ) He appears to have been a
"Hter of verse as well as prose.
V0L. IV. p 3 B
378
BAR
Barclay.
assiduity with which Dr Barclay prosecuted his inquiries
in this interesting field of research.
Immediately after his graduation, having determined,
it is believed somewhat suddenly, to come forward as a
teacher of anatomy, he repaired to London, and studied
for some time under the late Dr Marshall of Thavies Inn,
at that time a very distinguished teacher of anatomy in
the metropolis.
Soon after his return from London, Dr Barclay com¬
menced his lectures on anatomy in Edinburgh in Novem¬
ber 1797; and by his punctual attention to his engage¬
ments, and assiduous devotion to the instruction of his
pupils, he speedily attracted a respectable audience, which
continued gradually to increase in numbers until the pe¬
riod of his retirement, a short time before his death.
Of Dr Barclay’s professional writings, the earliest, we
believe, was the article Physiology, which he furnished
for the third edition of this work.
In 1803, six years after he commenced his career as a
teacher, Dr Barclay attempted a reform in the language
of anatomy, with a view to render it more accurate and
precise; a task for which his acquirements as a classical
scholar rendered him peculiarly fit. Although the Nomen¬
clature which he published upon that occasion has not
yet been generally adopted, we believe that the profes¬
sion, with one voice, acknowledges the importance of the
object which he had in view, and the talent and learning
with which it was executed. Some of his illustrations of
the defects in the existing language of anatomy, particu¬
larly in the terms expressive of position and aspect, were
peculiarly striking, and highly characteristic of his over¬
flowing humour. “ The terms above, below, behind, and
before” he used to observe, “ would be sufficiently defi¬
nite if the body were uniformly to preserve the same po¬
sition ; and so,” said he, “ would be the expression in
Hudibras, where the author makes Crowdero apply a
squeaking-engine to the north-east side of his neck: this
would be sufficiently definite if one could ascertain, by
compass, in what particular position the fiddler stood.”
His next work, published in 1808, was a Treatise on the
Muscular Motions of the Human Body, calculated to en¬
courage a more attentive study of the simple and com¬
bined actions of the muscles, with a view to a more sci¬
entific and successful treatment of fractures and luxa¬
tions ; a department of surgery which, even now, although
illustrated by his distinguished friend Sir Astley Cooper,
can scarcely be said to be rescued from those popular pre¬
judices under which it has so long laboured.
In 1812 Dr Barclay published the first edition of his
Description of the Arteries of the Human Body ; a work dis¬
playing much acute observation and laborious research,
and which may perhaps be considered the most practi¬
cally useful of all his writings. The labour which this
work must have cost him may be judged of by the fact,
that he wrote no description of any artery until he had
studied its delineation, as given by Haller, and every
other standard authority, and until he had actually exa¬
mined its course and distribution in every preparation
to which he had access; in some instances repairing to
Glasgow to examine the excellent collection of vascular
preparations then in the possession of his friend Mr Allan
Burns.
His last publication, completed only a few years before
his death, was An Inquiry into the Opinions, Ancient and
Modern, concerning Life and Organization ; a work replete
with learning and original criticism, and well calculated
to check the progress of those idle and dangerous specu¬
lations by which some of our modern philosophers have
been distinguished. This, like all his former publications,
is dedicated to Dr Thomas Thomson, professor of chemis-
BAR
try in the university of Glasgow, one of the earliest and Ik .jlf
most distinguished of his numerous friends.
These several works, which afford such remarkable
proofs of the inexhaustible energies of Dr Barclay’s mind, ,J ^
were undertaken and completed amidst the incessant and V
laborious toils which his courses of anatomical lectures
necessarily imposed upon him. Of these he gave two very
full ones every winter, commencing each of them early
in November, and terminating at the end of April. For
several years previous to his death he had also given a
course of comparative anatomy during the summer months.
To this branch of study Dr Barclay had always shown a
marked partiality, not only as an object of scientific re¬
search, but of great practical utility. He pressed upon
the Highland Society of Scotland, of which he was a dis¬
tinguished member, the propriety of giving encourage¬
ment to the study of veterinary medicine ; and to him, in
conjunction with his friend Mr Robert Johnston, the pub¬
lic is chiefly indebted for the establishment of the veteri¬
nary school, so successfully conducted by his pupil Mr
Dick, under the auspices of the liberal and patriotic body
above mentioned.
At the period of his death Dr Barclay was engaged in
revising and preparing for the press his introductory lec¬
tures, which have since been published, and contain a
valuable abridgement of the history of anatomy.
His successful progress as a teacher of anatomy Dr
Barclay always gratefully attributed, in a great measure,
to the patronage which, at an early period, he received
from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh; and to
that learned and public-spirited body he bequeathed his
anatomical collection, now known as the Barclayan Mu¬
seum, which contains many valuable specimens in com¬
parative anatomy, and some of the finest vascular prepa¬
rations which are anywhere to be found. (q. a.)
BARCOCHEBAS, or rather Barcochab, a Jewish
impostor, whose real name wTas Ahiba, but who took that
of Barcochab, which signifies the Son of a Star, in allu¬
sion to the prophecy of Balaam, “ There shall a star arise
out of Jacob.” He proclaimed himself the Messiah ; and
talking of nothing but wars, victories, and triumphs, made
his countrymen rise against the Romans, by which means
he became the author of innumerable disorders. He
ravaged many places, took a great number of fortresses,
and massacred an infinite multitude of people, particularly
Christians. The emperor sent troops to Rufus, governor
of Judaea, with orders to suppress the sedition; and Rufus,
in obedience, exercised a thousand cruelties, but could
not complete his task. The emperor was therefore obliged
to send Julius Severus, the greatest general of that time,
who attained his end without a direct battle ; for he fell on
the enemy separately, cutting off their provisions, and at
last the whole contest was reduced to the siege of Bitter,
in the eighteenth year of Hadrian. There the impostor
perished. This war cost the Romans a great deal of blood.
BARD, a word denoting a poet by profession, who, to
use the language of Ossian, “ sung of the battles of he¬
roes, or the heaving breasts of love.” .
Anciently bards were necessary persons at every festival
and at every solemnity. Their songs, which, by recording
the achievements of kings and heroes, animated the soul
of the hearer, must have been the entertainment of every
warlike nation. We have Hesiod’s authority, that in his
time bards were as common as potters or joiners, and as
liable to envy. Cicero reports, that anciently at Roman
festivals the virtues and exploits of their great men weie
celebrated in song. The same custom prevailed in Peru
and Mexico, as we learn from Garcilasso and other authors.
But in no part of the world did the profession of bard ap¬
pear with such lustre as in Gaul, in Britain, and in he-
BAR
land. Wherever the Celtae or Gauls are mentioned by
J ancient writers, we seldom fail to hear of their druids and
^ their bards, the institution of which two orders was the
capital distinction of their manners and policy. The
druids were their philosophers and priests, the bards their
poets and recorders of heroic actions ; and both these or¬
ders of men seem to have subsisted among them as chief
members of the state from time immemorial. The Celtae
possessed, from very remote ages, a regular system of dis¬
cipline and manners, which appears to have had a deep
and lasting influence. Ammianus Marcellinus expressly
declares, that there flourished amongst them the study of
the most laudable arts, introduced by the bards, whose
office it was to sing in heroic verse the gallant actions of
illustrious men; and by the druids, who lived together in
colleges or societies, after the Pythagorean manner, philo¬
sophizing upon the highest subjects, and asserting the im¬
mortality of the human soul. Though Julius Caesar, in
his account of Gaul, does not expressly mention the
bards, yet it is plain that, under the title of druids, he
comprehends that whole college or order, of which the
bards, who, it is probable, w^ere the disciples of the druids,
undoubtedly made a part. It deserves remark, that, ac¬
cording to his account, the druidical institution first took
its rise in Britain, and passed from thence into Gaul; so that
they who aspired to be thorough masters of that learning
were wont to resort to Britain. He adds, too, that such
as were to be initiated among the druids were obliged to
commit to memory a great number of verses, insomuch
that some employed twenty years in this course of educa¬
tion ; and that they did not think it lawful to record these
poems in writing, but handed them down by tradition
from race to race.
So strong was the attachment of the Celtic nations to
their poetry and their bards, that amidst all the changes
of their government and manners, even long after the or¬
der of the druids had been extinct, and the national religion
altered, the bards continued to flourish, not as a set of
strolling songsters, like the Greek mihoi or rhapsodists in
Homer’s time, but as an order of men highly respected in
the state, and supported by a public establishment. Ac¬
cording to the testimonies of Strabo and Diodorus, they
existed before the age of Augustus Caesar; and we find
them flourishing under that sovereign, and exercising the
same functions as of old, in Ireland and in the north of
Scotland, almost down to our own times. It is well known
that, in both these countries, every regulus or chief had
his own bard, who was considered an officer of rank and
consequence in his little court.
The bards, as well as the druids, were exempted from
taxes and military services, even in times of the greatest
danger; and when they attended their patrons in the
field to record and celebrate their great actions, they had
a guard assigned them for their protection. At all festi¬
vals and public assemblies they were seated near the per¬
son of the king or chieftain, and sometimes even above
the greatest nobility and chief officers of the court. Nor
was the profession of the bards less lucrative than it was
honourable. For, besides the valuable presents which
they occasionally received from their patrons when they
gave them uncommon pleasure by their performances,
they had estates in land allotted for their support. Nay,
so great was the veneration which the princes of these
times entertained for the persons of their poets, and so
highly were they charmed and delighted with their tune-
hu strains, that they sometimes pardoned even their capi¬
tal crimes for a song.
BARD AS, the brother of the empress Theodora, and
uncle of the famous Photius, is said to have had no good
quality besides that of loving the sciences and polite litera-
BAR 379
ture, which he established in the eastern empire ; for other- Bardesa-
wise he was treacherous, cruel, and ambitious. In the year nists
856 he assassinated Theoctistes, general of the emperor ^
Michael’s forces, and obtained his post. At length he
caused the disgrace of the empress Theodora ; and St Ig¬
natius, patriarch of Constantinople, reproaching him for
his vices, he had the prelate deposed, in 858, in order to
make room for Photius. Bardas was assassinated by Ba-
silius the Macedonian in 866.
BARDESANISTS, a sect of ancient heretics, thus
denominated from their leader Bardesanes, a Syrian of
Edessa, in Mesopotamia. Bardesanes, born in the middle
of the second century, became eminent, after his conver¬
sion to Christianity, for his zeal against heretics, and w rote
a multitude of books against them ; yet had he the mis¬
fortune to fall himself into the errors of Valentinus, to
which he added some others of his own. He taught that
the actions of men depend altogether on fate, and that
God himself is subject to necessity. His followers went
further, and denied the resurrection of the body, as well
as the incarnation and death of our Saviour, holding that
these were only apparent or fantastical.
BARDEW1CK, a town of Germany, in the circle of
Lower Saxony and duchy of Lunenburg, formerly a very
large place, but being ruined in 1189 by the duke of
Saxony, it never afterwards recovered its former conse¬
quence. It is seated on the river Ilmenau, in long. 10.
6. E. lat. 53. 40. N.
B ARDOE, the most northern inhabited place in Europe,
in the province of East Finmark, in Norway. It has a
small harbour, closed by ice during the greater part of
the year. It contains only 100 inhabitants, who have a
fort to defend their little storehouses. Long. 31. 1. 25. E.
Lat. 70. 22. 35. N.
BARDT, a strong and rich town of Germany, in the
duchy of Pomerania, with a castle and a spacious harbour.
It is subject to the Swedes ; and is situated near the Bal¬
tic Sea, in long. 13. 20. E. lat. 54. 23. N.
BAREILLY, a large and populous city of Hindostan,
in the province of Delhi, and capital of the district of
Bareilly, and of Rohilcund generally. It is situated at the
confluence of the Jooah and Sunkra, and formed the capi¬
tal of a Rohilla chief, who was slain at the battle of Cut-
terah, and who lies interred there. The travelling distance
from Delhi is 142 miles ; from Calcutta by Moorshedabad
910; from Lucknow 156 miles. Long. 70. 21. E. Lat. 28.
22. N. The district of Bareilly is bounded by the Ganges
on the west, and is well watered by many other smaller
rivers. The chief towns are Bareilly, Bissoneta, Anop-
sheher, Moradabad, Rampoor, and Budayon. In summer,
notwithstanding its northern latitude, the heat is intense ;
but in winter water sometimes freezes in the tents. After
the cruel devastation of Rohilcund in 1774 by Sujah ud
Dowlah, aided by the British troops, the country became
a complete waste. In 1802 it was ceded to the British,
and under their protection it was improved, and began to
recover from the state of desolation into which it had
fallen. The natives are a tall, handsome race of people,
and white, compared with the more southern inhabitants
of India. Rohilcund, Furruckabad, and the upper part of
the country between the Jumna and the Ganges, abound
with a warlike race of Mahommedans, the relics of that
disorderly banditti of Pindarees or Patans wdio were
crushed by the British armies in 1817. They are dis¬
affected to the British because they have been forced to
remain at peace, and to abandon their lawless habits of
rapine for those of industry. The Mahommedan inhabitants
of this district approach nearer to an equality of numbers
with the Hindoos than in any other part of Hindostan,
though even here they are still inferior.
380 BAR
Bareith BAREITH, a town of Germany, in Franconia, contain-
|| ing 10,000 inhabitants. It was formerly the chief town
Barkway. 0f a margravate of the same name. Long. 11. 50. E.
Lak 50. 0. N.
BARFLEUR, a town of France, in Normandy, now
the department of the Channel. It was ruined, and had
its harbour filled up by the English in 1346. Ihe cape
of that name is twelve miles east of Cherbourg, and near
it part of the French fleet was destroyed in 1692. Long.
1. 6. W. Lat. 49. 40. N.
BARGA, a city of the province of Saluzzo, in the
kingdom of Sardinia. It stands at the confluence of the
rivers Infernetto and Ghiadone, and has three churches,
two monasteries, and 7250 inhabitants, who are chiefly
employed in the manufacture of fire-arms.
BARGAIN and Sale, a species of conveyance in the
English law.
BARGE (Bargie, Dutch, from Barga, low Latin), a
boat of state or pleasure, sometimes furnished with elegant
canopies and cushions, equipped with a band of rowers,
and decorated with flags and streamers. There are like¬
wise barges of a smaller kind for the use of admirals and
captains of ships of war. These are of a lighter frame,
and may be easily hoisted into and out of the ships to
which they belong.
BARGHMOTE, or Bahmote, a court which takes
cognizance of causes and disputes between miners. By
the custom of the mines, no person is to sue any miner
for ore-debt, or for ore, or for any ground in variance, but
only in the court of barmote, on penalty of forfeiting the
debt, and paying the charges at law.
BARI, a maritime province of the kingdom of Naples,
bounded on the north by the Adriatic Sea, on the east
and south-east by Otranto, on the south-west by Basili¬
cata, and on the west by Capitanata. It extends over
1740 square miles, and contains a population of 324,600
persons. The capital, from which the province derives
its name, is situated on a tongue of land on the Mediter¬
ranean Sea, and is well fortified with a strong citadel. It
is ill built and somewhat filthy, and contains a cathedral,
several churches, and other public buildings. In 1817 a
lyceum was founded here, and there is also a college for
the nobility. The inhabitants are about 20,000, includ¬
ing the suburbs. There are considerable manufactures
of cotton goods, and much trade in soap, oil, almonds,
potash, and cotton wool, the last of which is cultivated to
a great extent near it. Long. 16. 52. E. Lat. 41. 15. N.
BARILLA, or Barilha, the name of a plant culti¬
vated in Spain for its ashes, from which the purest kinds
of vegetable alkali or soda are obtained.
BARK, in the anatomy of plants, the exterior part of
trees, corresponding to the skin of an animal. See Ana¬
tomy, Vegetable.
Bark, or Jesuit’s Bark, is a name given by way of emi¬
nence to the quinquina, or cinchona. See Cinchona.
Bark, in Navigation, a general name given to small
ships; it is, however, peculiarly appropriated by seamen
to those which carry three masts without a mizen top¬
sail. Our northern mariners who are trained in the coal-
trade apply this distinction to a broad-sterned ship which
carries no ornamental figure on the stern or prow.
BARKING, a market-town of the hundred of Beacon-
tree, in the county of Essex, seven miles from London,
on a creek which receives the river Rhoding, communi¬
cating with the Thames. It is in a rich marshy district,
and its situation is considered unhealthy. The parish
church is a large and handsome building. The inhabi¬
tants, of whom a large proportion are fishermen, amounted
in 1801 to 1585, in 1811 to 2421, and in 1821 to 2580.
BARKWAY, a town of Hertfordshire in England, on
BAR
the great road from London to York. Long. 0. 5. W Ba
Lat. 52. N.
BARLAEUS, Gaspar, professor of philosophy at Am-
sterdam, and one of the best Latin poets of the seven- ^
teenth century. There was scarcely any thing great that
happened in the world, while he lived, but he made a
pompous elegy upon it, when reasons of state opposed no
obstacle to it. He was a great defender of Arminius, and
showed his abilities in history by his relation of what pass¬
ed in Brazil during the government of Count Maurice of
Nassau, published in 1647. He died the year after.
BARLETTA, a city in the province of Bari, in the
kingdom of Naples. It is the seat of an archbishop, and
was formerly fortified, but its defences are now in a dila¬
pidated condition. It contains 17,950 inhabitants, who
export much salt, made by evaporation in a large lagoon,
and also considerable quantities of oil, wine, and almonds.
The harbour is shallow, and all the water of the springs
of rather a saline quality.
BARLEY. See Agriculture and Brewing.
Pearl Barley and French Barley, barley freed of the
husk by a mill; the distinction between the two being,
that the pearl barley is reduced to the size of small shot,
all but the very heart of the grain being ground away.
Barley- Water is a decoction of either of these, reput¬
ed soft and lubricating, and of frequent use in physic.
Barley-Corn is used to denote a measure, containing
in length the third part of an inch, and in breadth the
eighth. The French carpenters also use barley-corn,
grain d'orge, as equivalent to a line, or the twelfth part
of an inch.
BARLOW, William, bishop of Chichester, descended
of an ancient family in Wales, was born in the county of
Essex. In his youth he favoured the Reformation, and
travelled into Germany to be instructed by Luther and
other preachers of the new doctrine. How long he con¬
tinued a Protestant is uncertain; but from his letter to
king Henry VIII. quoted below, it appears that he wrote
several books against the church of Rome. However, he
was a regular canon in the Augustine monastery of St
Osith in the county of Essex, and studied some time at
Oxford with the brothers of that order, where he took the
degree of doctor in divinity. He was then made prior of
the convent at Bisham in Berkshire, and afterwards suc¬
ceeded to the several priories of Blackmore, Typtree, Lega,
Bromhole, and Haverford-West. On the dissolution of
abbeys, he not only resigned with a good grace, but per¬
suaded several other abbots to follow his example. King
Henry was so pleased with his ready obedience on this
occasion, that he sent him in 1535 on an embassy to Scot¬
land, in the same year made him bishop of St Asaph, m
two months after translated him to the see of St Davids,
and in 1547 to that of Bath and Wells. During this time
he was, or pretended to be, a stanch Papist; but when
Edward VI. came to the crown, he again became a Protes¬
tant ; and for that reason, on Queen Mary’s accession, was
deprived of his bishopric, and sent prisoner to the Fleet,
where he continued for some time. At length he found
means to escape, and immediately joined the other English
Protestants in Germany. When Queen Elizabeth ascend¬
ed the throne, our prelate was raised to the see of Chi¬
chester, and soon after made first prebendary of the col¬
legiate church of Westminster. He died in 1568, and
was buried in the cathedral of Chichester. He had five
daughters, each of whom married a bishop. He wrote,
1. The Buryal of the Masse ; 2. The Climbing up of Fry¬
ers and Religious Persons, portred with Figures ; 3. Chris¬
tian Homilies; 4. A book upon Cosmography; 5. I f
Godly and Pious Institution of a Christian Man, common.)
called the Bishop’s Book ; and several other works. He
BAR
is said to have translated the Apocrypha as far as the Book
J of Wisdom.
Barlow, William, a mathematician and divine, the
son of the bishop of Chichester, was born in Pembroke¬
shire, whilst his father was bishop of St David’s. In 1560
he was entered a commoner of Bailiol College, in Oxford ;
and in 1564 took a degree in arts, after which he left the
university and went to sea, but in what capacity is uncer¬
tain : however, he acquired considerable knowledge in the
art of navigation. About the year 1573 he entered into
orders, and became prebendary of Winchester, and rector
of Easton, near that city. In 1588 he was made preben¬
dary of Lichfield, which he exchanged for the place of
treasurer of that church. Some years after he was made
chaplain to Prince Henry, the son of King James I., and,
in 1614, archdeacon of Salisbury. He was the first writer
on the nature and properties of the magnet. Barlow died
in the year 1625, and was buried in the church at Easton.
His works are, 1. The Navigators Supply, containing
many things of principal importance belonging to naviga¬
tion, and use of diverse instruments framed chiefly for
that purpose. London, 1597, 4to. 2. Magnetical Adver¬
tisements, or diverse pertinent observations and approved
experiments concerning the nature and properties of the
loadstone. London, 1616, 4to. 3. A Brief Discovery of
the Idle Animadversions of Mark Ridley, M. D., upon a
Treatise entitled Magnetical Advertisements. London,
1618, 4to.
Barlow, Thomas, born in 1607, was appointed fellow
of Queen’s College, Oxford, in 1633, and two years after
chosen reader of metaphysics to the university. He was
keeper of the Bodleian library, and in 1657 was chosen
provost of Queen’s College. After the restoration of King
Charles II. he was nominated one of the commissioners
for restoring the members unjustly expelled in 1648. He
wrote at that time The Case of Toleration in Matters of
Religion, to Mr It. Boyle. In 1675 he was made bishop
of Lincoln. After the popish plot he published several
tracts against the Roman Catholic religion, in which he
showed an uncommon extent of learning, and skill in pole¬
mical divinity. Nevertheless, when the duke of York was
proclaimed king, he took all opportunities of expressing
his affection towards him; but after the Revolution he as
readily voted that the king had abdicated his kingdom,
and was very rigorous in excluding from their benefices
such of the clergy as refused the oaths.
Mr Granger observes that “ this learned prelate, whom
nature designed for a scholar, and who acted in confor¬
mity with the bent of nature, was perhaps as great a mas¬
ter of the learned languages, and of the works of the ce¬
lebrated authors who have written in those languages, as
any man in his age. The greatest part of his writings,
of which Mr Wood has given us a catalogue, are against
popery; and his conduct for some time, like that of other
Calvinists, appeared to be in direct opposition to the
church of Rome. But after James ascended the throne,
he seemed to approach much nearer to popery than he
had ever done before. He sent the king an address of
thanks for his declaration in favour of liberty of con¬
science, and is said to have written reasons for reading
that declaration. His compliances were much the same
after the Revolution. His moderation, to call it by the
softest name, was very great; indeed, so great as to bring
the firmness of his character into question. But casuistry
reconciles seeming contradictions. He was, abstracted
hom^ this laxity of principles, a very great and worthy
man. He died at Buckden, in Huntingdonshire, on the
»th of October 1691, in the 85th year of his age.
Barlow, Francis, an English painter, was born in Lin¬
colnshire. On his coming to London he was placed with
BAR 381
one Shephard, a limner; but his genius led him chiefly Barlow,
to the drawing of birds, fishes, and other animals. There
are six books of animals from his drawings; and he paint¬
ed some ceilings with birds for noblemen and gentlemen
in the country. His etchings are numerous, but his illus¬
tration of TEsop is his greatest work. He died in 1702.
There is something pleasing in the composition and man¬
ner of this master, though neither is excellent. His draw¬
ing too is very indifferent, nor does he characterize any
animal justly. His birds in general are better than his
beasts.
Barlow, Joel, an American literary and political cha¬
racter of considerable note, was born in the year 1756,
in the village of Reading, state of Connecticut, and ap¬
pears to have been the youngest of ten children. His
father died when he was yet a boy; but his friends, atten¬
tive to his instruction, employed his portion of the pater¬
nal inheritance for his education, at the College of New-
haven, in his native state. Here he commenced his stu¬
dies in 1774. In the course of the prescribed exercises
of composition he discovered a taste for poetry, and two
productions crept into public view, one entitled The Pro¬
spect of Peace ; the other An Elegy on the Death of Mr
Hosmer, member of the American congress. It appears
that Mr Barlow was destined for the clerical profession;
and that his friends solicited and obtained for him the
appointment of chaplain to a militia company of Massa¬
chusetts, the functions of which he performed till the
event of peace. One of his panegyrists has observed, in
reference to his subsequent change of profession, that,
“ amongst the Presbyterians of New England, the priest¬
hood is nothing else than a species of civil ordination.
He who receives it may pass to another employment; and
it is common enough to see young men preach the gospel
in order to have time to prepare themselves for another
profession.” This explanation, however, is hardly recon¬
cilable with the spirit of the New England theologians,
who even now require from the candidate for holy orders
a solemn declaration, that he is moved to this calling by a
certain species of inspiration or divine impulse, and not
by any carnal or interested motive.
In 1781, while he followed the army in quality of chap¬
lain, he contracted a marriage with Miss Baldwin of New-
haven; and it was during this period of his life that he
planned the edifice of his future fame in his poem des¬
tined to celebrate the discovery and prospects of America.
It was also during this period that the patriarchs of Con¬
necticut proposed to adopt a new metrical translation
of the psalms, which excited to emulation all the poetical
genius of the state. The version of Barlow carried the
prize, and is to this day sung in the churches of New
England.
At the conclusion of peace between the United States
and Great Britain, he abandoned the ecclesiastical life,
and settled at the village of Hartford, where, two years
afterwards, he published the poem alluded to, entitled
The Vision of Columbus, which he afterwards gave to the
world in a more expanded and imposing form.
After quitting the service of the church, he appears for
some time to have practised law; but in 1788 he likewise
abandoned that profession to become the agent of a mer¬
cantile company, who had purchased some millions of
acres of land situated on or near the river Ohio, which
they proposed to sell to foreigners at an enhanced price.
For this purpose Mr Barlow was sent to Europe ; and it
is said that he was fortunate in the execution of this
commission.
Having during this period become deeply interested by
the events of the French revolution, he published, in the
yearg 1791 and 1792, the following political pieces:—
382
BAR
BAR
Barlow.
1. Advice to the Privileged Orders. 2. The Conspiracy of
Kings. 3. Letter to the National Convention of France.
4. The Royal Recollections. Towards the end of the
year 1792, he, being then in London, was appointed by
the Constitutional Society of London one of a deputa¬
tion to present an address to the National Convention of
France; a circumstance which attracted the notice of
the British Parliament, it having been stated by a mem¬
ber that the Convention had received an address by means
of two fellows calling themselves the representatives of
Great Britain, viz. Frost and Barlow.
In 1793 Barlow, from motives of curiosity, accompanied
the four commissioners of the National Convention who
were sent to Mont Blanc to organize that department;
and this excursion gave rise to another production, en¬
titled A Letter to the People of Piedmont. About this
time, also, he translated Volney’s well-known work, en¬
titled Ruins of Empires.
Objects of a commercial nature at length drew him to
Hamburg, and afterwards to the coast of Africa, where
he received the commission of consul-general of the Unit¬
ed States, with instructions to enter into and conclude
treaties with the Barbary powers for the purpose of pro¬
curing the ransom of the Amei’ican citizens who were
detained as slaves in those countries. The execution of
this commission was prompt and fortunate ; and, after re¬
siding for some time in Paris, to which he returned from
Barbary, he, in 1805, proceeded to America, and pur¬
chased a neat habitation in the territory of Columbia, the
seat of the general government, to which he gave the
name of Kahrama. Here he formed an acquaintance with
certain considerable members of Congress, to whom he
greatly recommended himself by the publication of a short
sketch of a plan of national education, and an address to
the citizens of Washington upon occasion of one of the
anniversaries of American independence. He now also
published the superb quarto edition of his national poem,
to which he finally gave the name of The Columbiad.
Soon after his return from Europe, he was admitted to
the confidence of the first magistrate of the United States ;
and, in 1811, he received the valued appointment of mi¬
nister-plenipotentiary to the court of France. This nomi¬
nation met with powerful opposition in the senate, and
passed only by a small majority.
He sailed for his destination on board of the Consti¬
tution frigate, disembarked at Cherbourg in September
1812, and proceeded to the French capital, where he was
received, in the emperor’s absence, by the minister of fo¬
reign affairs, who “ was instructed to say the most flat¬
tering things relative to his appointment.” The great ob¬
ject of his mission was to obtain compensation for the
American property confiscated in virtue of the Berlin and
Milan decrees. This arrangement was to be regulated in
a manner the least onerous to the French treasury. Ame¬
rican ships and cargoes were, at the same time, to be
freed from unjust detention, and a new commercial treaty
to be formed on principles of national justice and reci¬
procity.
In pursuit of this object he followed the Emperor Na¬
poleon to Wilna in the memorable winter of 1812; but
this diplomatic journey was without advantage, and the
failure was the more mortifying, as it was undertaken
without the advice or instructions of the American go¬
vernment. Mr Barlow was returning to Paris, when he
was seized with a violent inflammatory disease, of which
he died on the 26th of December, in the fifty-eighth year
of his age. His nephew, a midshipman on board of the
Constitution frigate, whom he took from his studies to
accompany him in this journey, and a secretary of the
French Legation in the United States, were witnesses of
his last moments, and saw him interred at the place where ]
he closed his eyes, an obscure village of Poland.
BARM, the same with yest. See Baking and BnEw-Bai fa,
TNG. 's-’ V
BARMOUTH, a small market-town in the county of
Merioneth, in North Wales, 223 miles from London. It
is the only port in that division of the Welsh shore, and
is much frequented in the summer as a bathing place, to
which the picturesque scenery in the neighbourhood
largely contributes. It is included in the parish of Cor-
wen in the population returns, and thus the number of in¬
habitants cannot be ascertained, but they are estimated
at about 1000.
BARN, in Husbandnj. See Agriculture.
BARNABAS’S Day, St, a Christian festival, celebrat¬
ed on the 11th of June. St Barnabas was born in Cy¬
prus, and descended of the tribe of Levi, whose Jewish
ancestors are thought to have retired thither to secure
themselves from violence during the troublesome times in
Judaea. His proper name was Joses, to which, after his
conversion to Christianity, the apostles added that of Bar¬
nabas, signifying either “ the son of prophecy” or “ the son
of consolation;” the first respecting his eminent prophetic
gifts, the other his great charity in selling his estate for
the comfort and relief of the poor Christians. He was edu¬
cated at Jerusalem under the great Jewish doctor Gama¬
liel ; which probably laid the foundation of that intimate
friendship that afterwards subsisted between this apostle
and St Paul. The time of his conversion is uncertain; but
he is generally esteemed one of the seventy disciples cho¬
sen by our Saviour himself.
At Antioch Paul and Barnabas had a contest which
ended in their separation; but what followed it with re¬
spect to Barnabas is not related in the Acts of the Apostles.
Some say that he went into Italy and founded a church at
Milan. It is generally believed that he suffered martyr¬
dom at Salamis, where some Jews, having come out of
Syria, set upon him as he was disputing in the synagogue,
and stoned him to death. He was buried by his kins¬
man Mark, whom he had taken along with him, in a cave
near that city. The remains of his body are said to have
been discovered in the reign of the emperor Zeno, together
with a copy of St Matthew’s gospel, written with his own
hand, and lying on his breast.
St Barnabas’s Epistle, an apocryphal work ascribed to
Barnabas, and frequently cited by Clement of Alexandria
and by Origen. It was first published in Greek, from a copy
of Father Hugh Menard, a Benedictine monk. An an¬
cient version of it was found in a manuscript of the abbey
of Coebey, near a thousand years old. Yossius published
it, in the year 1656, together with the epistles of St Igna¬
tius.
St Barnabas’s Gospel, another apocryphal work, ascrib¬
ed to Barnabas the apostle, wherein the history of Je¬
sus Christ is related in a manner very different from the
account given us by the four evangelists. The Mahom-
medans possess this gospel in Arabic, and it corresponds
very well with those traditions which Mahommed follow¬
ed in his Koran. It was probably a forgery of some nomi¬
nal Christians, and afterwards altered and interpolated by
the Mahommedans, the better to serve their purpose.
BARNABITES, a religious order, founded in the six¬
teenth century by three Italian gentlemen, who had been
advised by a famous preacher of those days to read care¬
fully the epistles of St Paul. Hence they were called
clerks of St Paul, and also Barnabites, because they Per‘
formed their first exercise in a church of St Barnabas at
Milan. Their habit was black, and their office to instruct,
catechize, and serve in mission.
BARNACLES, in Farriery, an instrument composed o
BAR
BAR
383
1 two branches joined at one end with a hinge, to put upon
*(> " horses’ noses when they will not stand quietly to be shod,
bled, or dressed.
Barr y. baRNARD-Castle, a market-town in the parish of
^ J Gainsford and Darlington Ward, of the county of Dur¬
ham, 247 miles from London, on the banks of the Tees.
The market is held on Wednesday. A long and spacious
street forms the principal part of the town, and its chief
ornament is a handsome octagon market-house. The in¬
habitants amounted in 1801 to 2966 in 1811 to 2986,
and in 1821 to 3581.
BARNES, Joshua, professor of the Greek language at
Cambridge in the beginning of the eighteenth century. He
was chosen queen’s professor of Greek in 1695, a language
which he wrote and spoke with the utmost facility. His
first publication was a whimsical tract entitled Gerania, or
a new discovery of the little sort of people called Pygmies.
After this appeared his Life of Edward III., in which he
introduces his hero making long and elaborate speeches.
He wrote several other books, particularly Sacred Poems;
the Life of Oliver Cromivell the Tyrant; several dramatic
pieces; a poetical paraphrase on the history of Esther, in
Greek verse, with a Latin translation, Ac. He also pub¬
lished editions of Euripides, Anacreon, and Homer’s Iliad
and Odyssey, with notes and a Latin translation. He wrote
with greater ease in Greek than even in English, and yet
he is generally allowed not to have understood the deli¬
cacies of that language. His death took place on the 3d
of August 1712, in the fifty-eighth year of his age.
BARNET, or Chipping Barnet, a market-town in the
hundred of Caisho and county of Hertford, 11 miles from
London, on the great northern road. Near it, in 1471,
was fought the decisive battle between the houses of York
and Lancaster, in which the great Earl of Warwick fell.
The market, held on Monday, is large, as well as the
great cattle fairs. The inhabitants in 1801 amounted to
1258, in 1811 to 1579, and in 1821 to 1755.
BARNEVELDT, John d’Olden, the celebrated Dutch
statesman, and one of the founders of the civil liberty of
Holland. His patriotic zeal inducing him to limit the
authority of Maurice, prince of Orange, the second stadt-
holder of Holland, the partisans of that prince falsely ac¬
cused him of a design to deliver his country into the hands
of the Spanish monarch. On this absurd charge he was
tried by twenty-six commissaries deputed from the Seven
Provinces, condemned, and beheaded, in 1619. His sons
William and Rene, with a view of avenging their father’s
death, formed a conspiracy against the stadtholder, which
was discovered. William fled, but Rene was taken and
condemned to die ; which fatal circumstance has immor¬
talized the memory of his mother, of whom the following
anecdote is recorded. She solicited a pardon for Rene ;
upon which Maurice expressed his surprise that she should
do that for her son which she had neglected for her hus¬
band. To this remark she replied with indignation, “ I
would not ask a pardon for my husband, because he was
innocent; I solicit it for my son, because he is guilty.”
. BARNSLEY, or Black Barnsley, a town in the pa-
uf1 Silkstone, of the wapentake of Staincross, in the
vest Riding of Yorkshire, 171 miles from London. It was
orderly a place of considerable manufacture in iron, but
Baroco.
it has of late years become extensively engaged in making Barnstaple
linen and other cloth. The trade has been greatly in¬
creased in consequence of the extension of canal naviga¬
tion, which connects the town with Wakefield and the
other canals and navigable rivers which unite at that
place. There is a large market every Wednesday for
cattle and corn. The inhabitants in 1801 amounted to
3606, in 1811 to 5464, and in 1821 to 8284.
BARNSTAPLE, a market and borough-town and sea¬
port of the hundred of Braunton, in the county of Devon,
194 miles from London and 36 miles from Exeter. It
stands on the river Tawe, in a fertile district, and was
formerly a great manufacturing place, but of late years
has declined in that branch of industry. The market,
which is large, is held on Friday. Barnstaple returns two
members to parliament, chosen by the freemen, who are
very numerous, and scattered about in such various places
as to render the expenses of a contested election very
heavy; and it is said to be accompanied with much bri¬
bery. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 3748, in
1811 to 4298, and in 1821 to 5079.
BARO, or Baron, Peter, professor of divinity in the
university of Cambridge in the sixteenth century, was born
at Estampes, in France, and educated in the university of
Bourges, where he was admitted a licentiate in the law;
but being of the Protestant religion, he was obliged to leave
his native country in order to avoid persecution, and, with¬
drawing into England, was kindly entertained by Lord
Burleigh. He afterwards settled at Cambridge, and, by
the recommendation of his noble patron, was in 1574
chosen Lady Margaret’s professor there. For some years
he enjoyed quietly his professorship ; but a restless fac¬
tion was at last raised against him, by his opposing the
doctrine of absolute predestination; and this rendered
his situation so uncomfortable, that he chose to leave the
university and settle in London. He wrote, In Jonam
Prophetam Prcclectiones xxxix.; De Prcestantia et Digni-
tate Divince Legis ; and other pieces. He died in London
about the year 1600.
BAROCCI, Frederic, a celebrated painter, was born
at Urbino, where the genius of Raphael inspired him. In
his early youth he travelled to Rome, where he painted
several things in fresco. He then returned to Urbino,
and giving himself up to intense study, acquired a great
name in painting. Flis genius particularly led him to re¬
ligious subjects. At his leisure hours, he etched from his
own designs a few prints, which are highly finished, and
executed with great softness and delicacy. The Saluta¬
tion is his capital performance in that way; of which,
however, we seldom meet with any impressions but those
taken from the retouched plate, which are very harsh.
He died at Urbino in 1612, aged 84.
BAROCHE. See Broach.
BAROCO, in Logic, a term given to the fourth mode
of the second figure of syllogisms. A syllogism in baroco
has the first proposition a universal affirmative, but the
second and third particular negatives, and the middle term
is the predicate in the first two propositions. For example,
Nullus homo non est bipes:
Non omne animal est bipes :
Non omne animal est homo.
384
BAROMETER.
Barometer. Quit dictionaries contain such an account of the disco-
very and construction of this most valuable instrument, as
can be drawn from the popular treatises of natural philo¬
sophy in the English language. But, unfortunately, the
compilers of elementary works have seldom taken the
trouble to remount to the original sources of information,
and have frequently, by substituting their own fancies, or
servilely copying the mistakes of others, contrived to dis¬
figure egregiously the relation of facts, and the history of
the progress of invention. We purpose, therefore, as far
as our limits will admit, to discuss the subject with more
careful research ; but, passing rather lightly over the de¬
scription of the different kinds of barometers and other
practical details, to dwell more especially on the succes¬
sive steps which led to the fine discovery of atmospheric
pressure and its application to physical science.
Opinions The opinions entertained by the ancients concerning
of the physical subjects appear at best only splendid visions,
ancients; speculated boldly in cosmological theories, but were
easily satisfied with those conclusions which merely soothe
the fancy. Many of the philosophical notions adopted in
remote ages have, however, left a durable impression in
the structure of language, and still continue to exercise a
visible influence in moulding the current sentiments of
mankind. The early sages of Greece distinguished matter
into the four primary elements, of earth, water, air, and
fire, which, by their various combinations, were supposed
to produce the animated spectacle of the universe. With
these elements were associated corresponding qualities,
in a binary conjunction; hot and cold, dry and moist.
Earth and water were considered as ponderous and inert;
but air and fire, endued with elastic virtue, were imagin¬
ed. to possess lightness and activity. Fire, though extract¬
ed from all bodies by the operations of nature or of art,
was yet conceived to be derived, by invisible emanation,
from that diffuse lambent fluid which, under the name of
JEther, occupied the highest heavens, and furnished the
substance and nutriment of the celestial bodies. While
the earthy matter would, therefore, naturally settle to¬
wards the centre, and the aqueous fluids roll along the
surface of the solid globe, the air and fire soared aloft;
the former occupying the whole of the region below the
moon, and the latter streaming through the boundless ex¬
tent of space. This sublunary scene is exposed to inces¬
sant change, calamity, and decay; but above it was sup¬
posed to reign a perpetual calm, the seat of bliss, and of
divine and imperishable essence.
Aristotle and some other philosophers, viewing (ether as
altogether distinct from culinary fire, were disposed to
consider it as a fifth element, of a pure, divine, and incor¬
and of the ruptible nature; an opinion which afterwards gave occa-
schoolmen. si0n to the famous Quinta Essentia, or Quintessence of the
schoolmen. The alchemists, who sprung up nearly about
the same benighted period, in adopting these notions,
modified them to suit their own peculiar views. To the
elements commonly received, they joined the active aux¬
iliaries of mercury and sulphur. For quintessence they
substituted spirit and elixir ; the former, drawn off by the
application of fire, being conceived to represent the ani¬
mating principle of each body; while the latter, extract¬
ed by the combined action of heat and moisture, was sup-
posed to exhibit its concentrated and most select quali¬
ties. ,
Some of the ancient cosmologists imagined a vacuum
beyond the shining expanse of aether, destined to receive
the exhalations from this netherworld. Others denied E
the existence of a separate void, but admitted small va- C
cuities interspersed through bodies. Aristotle, however,P| ca| .
maintained the necessity of a plenum, asserting that our tei is of
idea of space or extension is inseparable from that ofAl >tle.
body. To this principle he ascribed the suspension of
water in a tube, when the finger is applied to shut the
upper end. Yet the very contempt in which that philo¬
sopher, from a consciousness of his own superiority, was
accustomed to hold the received opinions, might have led
him to take juster views. He rejected the notion that
air has levity inherent in its nature ; nor would he admit
the more plausible idea, that a fluid so easily moved must
possess the quality of perfect indifference, and be neither
light nor heavy. Aristotle not only maintained that air
is ponderous, but did not scruple to appeal to direct ex¬
periment in support of this assertion. A bladder, he says,
will be found to gain some weight, on being blown or
filled with air. But this was evidently a mere random
assertion, betraying his ignorance of the constitution of
fluids. A bag filled with air, and suspended in a like me¬
dium, it is obvious, from the laws of hydrostatics, must
weigh exactly the same as before. If it be alleged that,
in blowing up the bladder, a portion of air would be in¬
troduced immediately from the lungs, and containing
therefore a small admixture of carbonic acid gas, which is
specifically heavier than the common atmospheric fluid;
the additional weight, amounting scarcely perhaps to a
grain, would be too minute to be detected by any of the
jewellers’ balances constructed in ancient Greece.
The mutual opposition of the leading philosophical sects
of antiquity had, in general, most fatally discouraged the
application of mathematical reasoning to the system of
the material world. The Academicians, or the disciples
of Plato, who cultivated geometry with ardour and bril¬
liant success, were disposed to regard that science as a
pure intellectual contemplation ; and resigning themselves
to the illusion of their lofty dreams, they turned with dis¬
dain from the investigation of individual facts and all the
vulgar realities of life. The mind of Aristotle was of a
more sober and practical cast; acute, profound, and discri¬
minating, it ranged with incredible industry over an im¬
mense field of inquiry. That judicious philosopher re¬
commended a careful and constant appeal to external ob¬
servation, as the only sure ground on which to erect the
structure of physics; but unfortunately his scholars ne¬
glected too much the study of mathematics, the most
powerful instrument for conducting physical research.
The precepts of Aristotle, though excellent in some re¬
spects, were hence in the sequel unproductive of any ge¬
nuine fruit. On the contrary, the weight of his opinions,
during a long course of ages, repressed the efforts of hu¬
man genius.
It must be gratefully acknowledged, that the alche-J1
mists, styled also philosophers by fire, were the first among ^ 1 ^
the moderns who dared to explore new paths of science.
Their projects were, indeed, highly chimerical, but they
had the merit at least of setting the example of investi¬
gating the properties of matter by actual experiment.
They likewise formed associations among individuals for
the more effectual prosecution of such researches. Hence
the origin of that obscure sect known by the fanciful
title of Rosicrucians, who sprung up in Germany, and in¬
sensibly spread their influence over the Continent. Those
principles were afterwards transplanted into the matured
B A R O M E T E R,
385
i jr.soil of Italy, where philosophy, succeeding to the cultiva-
, / tion of letters, wore a more attractive garb. Baptista
Porta, a Neapolitan nobleman, who flourished about the
latter part of the sixteenth century, was particularly dis¬
tinguished by his zeal in promoting such pursuits. Play¬
ing spent many years in travelling over Europe to gain
information respecting natural objects, he invited a few
individuals of a congenial taste to assemble at stated times
in his house, and assist him in making new experiments.
These meetings, however, gave umbrage to the watchful
jealousy of the clergy, and they were soon suppressed by
a mandate from the court of Rome. But the example
was imitated in other parts of Italy, where the papal au¬
thority enjoyed less respect; and academies for the pro¬
motion of natural science were successfully instituted un¬
der the patronage of different princes, especially those of
the illustrious house of Medici.
In this ferment of inquiry, Galileo arose, a man fitted
alike by the gifts of nature and the lights of education to
be the founder of experimental science. His elegant
genius was invigorated by the study of the Greek geome¬
try ; and he conceived the happy and prolific idea of em¬
ploying that refined instrument to explore facts and com¬
bine the results. Archimedes, indeed, among the ancients,
had anticipated this road of discovery, having most suc¬
cessfully applied the powers of geometrical analysis to
the investigation of some parts of mechanics and hydro¬
statics. But his was a solitary instance, unheeded by
succeeding ages. The ingenuity of Galileo prepared a
complete revolution in science. By means of a few sim¬
ple but striking experiments performed on the lagoons of
Venice, he established the laws of motion, wdiich he now
transferred from the surface of our globe, to direct the
revolutions of the heavenly bodies. The publication of
his Dialogues, which unfold the right process of induction,
and are not less distinguished by fineness of conception
than beauty of diction, forms a new era in the annals of
philosophy. He was the first who attempted to ascertain
the weight of air by actual experiment; and considering
the nicety of the operation, and the rudeness of the in¬
struments constructed at that period, he made a very
tolerable approach to the truth. It had been known for
many ages that air is capable of being highly condensed ;
and Ctesebius of Alexandria had invented an engine,
which, by the force of the sudden expansion of this com¬
pressed fluid, hurled missile weapons. This was after¬
wards improved into the wind or air-gun, which seems to
have been not uncommon in Europe as early as the fif¬
teenth century, though soon afterwards generally super¬
seded in practice by the introduction of fire-arms. Gali¬
leo, being led by a different path from that pursued at
present, set himself to examine the wTeight which air ac¬
quires by condensation. Having fitted a large copper ball
with a valve, he injected air into its cavity by means of a
syringe, and then suspended it to a balance. The addi¬
tional increase of weight being thus found, he opened the
va ve under an inverted glass receiver full of water, and
measured, by the displacement of this liquid, the surplus
quantity of air which had been injected into the copper
vessel.1 He thence concluded that air is 400 times lighter
than water, being about the double of the true estimate ; Barometer,
an error probably arising from some imperfection of the 'w-y-'w'
valve that confined the air within the ball.
After he had, by such researches, acquired celebrity in
the scientific world, Galileo accepted an invitation, with a
very handsome appointment, from Cosmo de’ Medici; and
devoting himself intensely to astronomical observations,
aided by the telescope, which, from an obscure hint, he
had recently constructed, yet occasionally unbending his
mind with elegant recreation, he spent almost the whole
of the evening of his life at the villa of Arcetri, near
Florence, in a style of comfort and even splendour. But,
while occupied with those delightful pursuits, exploring
the planetary phases, and discovering new worlds, he was
for a moment recalled to his early studies by an incident
destined to form an epoch in the history of physical
science. Some artisans, in the service of the grand duke, Incidental
having been employed to construct a lifting or sucking failure of a
pump for a very deep well, found, with equal surprise and sucking
vexation, that, in spite of all the pains they had taken inPumP*
fitting the piston and valves, the water could by no effort
be made to rise higher in the barrel than eighteen palms,
or thirty-two feet. In this dilemma they applied to Gali¬
leo for an explication of the cause of a failure then so un¬
expected and perplexing. But the philosopher was not
yet prepared to encounter such a discordant fact. The
Aristotelian tenet of the impossibility of the existence of
a void, was, at this period, universally received as an un¬
questionable truth. It had become a favourite axiom of
the schoolmen, deceiving themselves, as Leibnitz did
afterwards in proposing his principle of sufficient reason,
by the glimmer of a metaphorical expression, the fuga
vacui, or natures horror of a void. To create a vacuum,
they gravely maintained, would require the hand of Om¬
nipotence, transcending the utmost power of men or even
devils. But Galileo, though borne along by the current
of opinion, saw the necessity of at least modifying the
general principle. Without questioning nature’s abhor-Timid and
rence of a vacuum, he supposed the influence of this hor- imperfect
ror to be confined within certain limits, not exceeding the eH’^c.a[lon
pressure of a column of water eighteen palms in height. eo'
This was evidently evading, rather than meeting, the
difficulty proposed for his solution. Yet, in the last of his
Dialogues, he actually mentions an experiment to ascer¬
tain this power, or virtu, as he calls it, of a vacuum. A
piston with a valve, exactly fitted into a smooth hollow
cylinder, was rammed quite to the end, and this carefully
shut up ; then placing the cylinder in an upright but in¬
verted position, successive weights were appended to the
rod, till it was drawn from the close end, and pulled down.
It may seem strange that the Tuscan philosopher, after
advancing so far, should have stopt on the verge of a great
discovery. He had already weighed the air, and it was
only another small step thence to infer the effect of its in¬
cumbent mass. But the atmosphere was still believed to
reach to the moon, and the pressure of columns of such
enormous altitude seemed to mock all calculation, and
overwhelm the imagination.2 Yet, on reconsidering the
subject, Galileo began to suspect the solidity of the ex¬
plication which he had given; but it was now too late for
his tu/0? tl*‘s remarkable experiment it is easy to perceive that Galileo was really the inventor of our pneumatic apparatus, though
ms wie has been so iong overlooked by chemists. ' S
advane ^ na,rratlve’ which marks so well the slow and timid steps whereby men, even of the highest intellectual endowments, usually
facts a l*1- t s?arcb after truth, is drawn from the writings of Galileo himself. The carelessness of some authors in mis-stating
of day'd lmPu*in8 unworthy motives to those patriarchs of science who could not open their eyes all at once to the bright effulgence
p!ulosonheSe™eVSeVere rePrekension- We may remark, in passing, that M. Biot, who ranks among the first mathematicians and
who aske nS,in , nce’ ^as l501 scrupled, in an elaborate compilation on physics, to allege that Galileo merely joked with the artisans
suffer it t p reason °f the failure of their pump; that he had an idea of the true explication, but chose to keep his secret, and
vol ° dl6 Wl^ Sucli conduct would certainly have been a reproach to Galileo’s acknowledged candour.
386 BAROMETER.
Barometer, him, in his advanced age, loaded with bodily infirmities,
and dispirited by clerical persecution, to attempt any fur¬
ther innovation in science. Kecommending it earnestly
to his friend and pupil Torricelli to resume the investiga¬
tion, this illustrious precursor of Newton expired in 1642,
the very year in which the English philosopher was born.
His uniform kindness and urbanity rendered him extreme¬
ly beloved; and his disciples, particularly Torricelli, Vi-
viani, and Ricci, venerating his memory, caught the same
taste, and followed similar pursuits.
Torricelli’s Torricelli now conceived the happy idea of exhibiting
famous ex-action of a pump on a contracted scale, by means of
periment. a co]umn 0f mercury, which is nearly fourteen times heavier
tlian water. This experiment he first communicated to
his friend Viviani, who performed it with success in 1643 ;
and he afterwards repeated and varied it himself. The
method which he adopted brought very neatly under one
view all the circumstances affecting the question. Hav¬
ing selected a tube about a quarter of an inch wide, and
four feet long, he sealed one of the ends hermetically, or
closed it under the flame of a lamp; he then filled the
cavity of the tube with mercury, and applying his finger
to the open end, he inverted it in a basin likewise con¬
taining mercury, though covered with a portion of water.
The mercury instantly sunk to nearly thirty inches above
the lower surface; but on raising the tube, till its orifice
communicated with the layer of water, the mercury ran
all out, and the water now sprung up to the top, and
occupied the whole of the cavity. It was thus proved,
that the water and mercury are each supported by the
same equipoise, which Torricelli, after some hesitation, at
last concluded to be the pressure of the external atmo¬
sphere. He next converted the mercurial column into a
form adapted for observation, by bending the lower end
of the tube, and constructing what has since received the
name of the syphon barometer. (See fig. 1. Plate CVI.)
Thus provided with a commodious instrument, he soon
detected the variation of atmospheric pressure, which de¬
pends on the change of weather. These important re¬
sults were published in the year 1845; but Torricelli did
not live to enjoy the fame of his great discovery, for this
most promising genius was snatched away by a putrid
fever in the flower of his age.
The report of Torricelli’s first experiments having been
carried to France befoi-e he had ventured to draw his ca¬
pital conclusion, set philosophers to speculate on the cause
of such an unexpected fact. Descartes, with his usual
rapidity and boldness of conception, did not hesitate, in
his correspondence with Mersenne, to refer the suspen¬
sion of the mercury in the tube at once to the pressure of
the external atmosphere. But this inference appears not
very consistent with his system, which assumed the ex¬
istence of an absolute plenum, and only supplied the place
of a void by the diffusion of subtile abraded particles of
matter. He suspected, besides, the accuracy of Galileo’s
estimate of the weight of the air, which he thought could
be scarcely appreciable by experiment.
Pascal’s But, in the same country, the subject was now pursued
experi- with deliberate caution, and through all its details, by ano-
ments. ther genius of the highest order; one of the finest and
most original that France has ever produced. Pascal had
shown premature and extraordinary talents, which were
encouraged by his father, a man of learning, who lived in
habits of intimacy with the literati of Paris. The young
philosopher happened to be residing at Rouen, in 1646,
when he was informed of the famous Italian experiment.
Flaving access, fortunately, to a glass-house, he resolved
immediately to repeat the observations on a large scale. Fie
had already suspected the justness of the principle, that
“ nature abhors a vacuum,” and thought that the condensa¬
tion and rarefaction of the air point to a different, or at leastBarc tet
a modified conclusion. With a view to clear up this subject,
Pascal performed a number of satisfactory experiments, of
which we shall cite a few of the more striking, nearly in his
own language, tinctured evidently with the prevailing opi¬
nions of the age:—1. Having fitted a piston to an open
glass tube, and rammed it quite down, he applied his finger
close to the lower end, and plunged the whole under wa¬
ter ; then drawing back the piston, which was done with
ease, the finger felt strongly and rather painfully attracted,
while an apparent vacuity was formed above it, and con¬
tinued to enlarge; but instantly on removing the finger,
the water, contrary to its nature, darted up and filled the
whole of the cavity. 2. A glass tube, about fifty feet
long, sealed hermetically at one end, and filled with wa¬
ter, or rather red wine, as a more visible fluid, was invert¬
ed perpendicularly in a basin of the same. The liquid
immediately subsided, leaving a vacant space of thirty-five
feet; but on gradually reclining the tube, the liquid rose
again, and continued to mount, till it struck a sharp blow
against the top of the glass. 3. A syphon, having one leg
fifty-five feet high, and the other only fifty, being filled
with water, and planted in two basins containing the
same, such that the shorter branch had a perpendicular
position, the water sunk in both to the same level, without
being attracted, as usual in syphons, to the longer branch;
but, on leaning the syphon back, the columns rose till
they united at the top, and then the water began to flow
towards the lower basin. The same experiment was also
performed with mercury, the syphon having one leg ten
feet, and the other only nine feet and a half in length,
the mercury being found to divide itself into two columns,
which continued suspended at an altitude of about thirty
inches. 4. Flaving nicely fitted a piston to a long glass
syringe, and pushed it down to the end, he immersed this
in a basin of mercury, and held the tube in a vertical posi¬
tion ; on gently drawing up the piston, the mercury closely ^
followed it to the height of twenty-nine inches, but •
then stopt, leaving the piston to form above it an appa- (
rent vacuity. In this state, also, the syringe weighed ex- i
actly the same, whatever tvas the magnitude of the vacant
space.
From these and other similar experiments, Pascal led Hi: u-
his inductive process, with a degree of caution that mighttw'n-
seem to border on timidity. He inferred that all bodies111(11
have a reluctance to a visible separation, or that nature
abhors an apparent void ; that this reluctance is exactly
the same for a small as for a great vacuity; and that the
force is limited, and exceeds not the pressure of a column
of water thirty-three feet in height. He next ventured
one step farther, and concluded, that this apparent vacuity
was not filled by air lodged in the pores of the glass, or
derived from external filtration ; that it contained no sub¬
tile matter secreted from the atmosphere, and was not
occupied by mercurial vapours or spiritous exhalations;
in short, that a real and absolute vacuum had been formed.
Pascal, then only twenty-four years of age, proposed to At bj
write a treatise on the subject of those inquiries; butb}
thought proper, in the mean time, to publish a short ab¬
stract of it, which appeared in 1647, and involved him in
a wretched controversy. Father Noel, rector of the Je¬
suits’ College at Paris, keenly attacked it, armed with all
the miserable sophisms of the schools, and the absurd
dogmas of the Romish church. Fie contended, that the
space above the mercurial column was corporeal, because
it was visible and admitted light; that a void being a
mere non-entity, cannot have different degrees of magni¬
tude ; that the separation produced in the experiments
was violent and unnatural; and he presupposed that the
atmosphere, like blood, containing a mixture of the seve-
BAROMETER.
387
er„ lT ter,rai elements, the fire and the finer part of the air were
J L’ S detached from it, and violently forced through the pores
of the glass, to occupy the deserted space. To enforce
these puerile arguments, the reverend prelate did not
scruple to employ the poisoned weapon which his order
has often wielded with deadly effect, namely, hinting an
oblique charge of heresy. This rude attack only roused
Pascal, and disposed him boldly to throw off the fetters
of inveterate opinion. He began to perceive that “
horrence” cannot, in strict logic, be applied to nature,
which is a mere personification, and incapable of passion ;
and was inclined, by degrees, to adopt the clear disem¬
barrassed explication of Torricelli, referring the suspen¬
sion of the mercurial column to the pressure of the exter¬
nal atmosphere. In stating this conclusion, he makes
some remarks which would deserve the serious attention
of philosophers in the present age. “ When the weakness
of men is unable to find out the true causes of phenomena,
they are apt to employ their subtilty in substituting ima¬
ginary ones, which they express by specious names that fill
the ear, without satisfying the judgment. It is thus that
the sympathy and antipathy of natural bodies are asserted
to be the efficient and unequivocal causes of several ef¬
fects, as if inanimate substances were really capable of
sympathy and antipathy. The same thing may be said
of the antiperistasis, and various other chimerical causes,
which afford only a vain relief to the avidity of men to
know hidden truths, and which, far from discovering them,
only serve to conceal the ignorance of those who invent
such explications, and nourish it in their followers.”
These remarks, equally judicious and profound, are the
more striking, since Lord Bacon, while he proposed to
reform and new-model the whole structure of human
learning, yet complied with the taste of his age in retain¬
ing much of the jargon and barbarous distinctions of the
schools.
p:V s But Pascal did not rest satisfied with mere reasoning,
dec e however strictly conducted.; and he soon devised an ex-
ex[ . periment which should palpably mark, under different cir-
mei cumstances, the varying effects of atmospheric pressure.
It occurred to him, that, if the mercury in the Torricellian
tube were really supported by the counterpoising weight
of the atmosphere, it would be affected by the mass of
superincumbent fluid, and must therefore partially subside
in the higher elevations. He was impatient to have his
conjecture tried in a favourable situation ; and, in Novem¬
ber 1647, he wrote a letter communicating those views to
his brother-in-law, Perier, who held an office of consider¬
able trust in the province, and commonly resided at Cler¬
mont in Auvergne, in the immediate vicinity of the Puy
de Dome, a lofty conical mountain, which rose, according
to estimation, above the altitude of 500 toises. Various
avocations, however, prevented that intelligent person
from complying with his instructions till the following
year. Early in the morning of the 19th September 1648,
a few curious friends joined him in the garden of a mo¬
nastery, situated near the lowest part of the city of Cler¬
mont, where he had brought a quantity of mercury, and
two glass tubes hermetically sealed at the top. These he
filled and inverted, as usual, and found the mercury to stand
m both at the same height, namely, 26 inches and 3^ lines,
or 28 English inches. Leaving one of the tubes behind,'
ln custody of the subprior, he proceeded with the
other to the summit of the mountain, and repeated the
experiment, when his party were surprised and delighted
to see the mercury sink more than three inches under the
oimer mark, and remain suspended at the height of 23
niches and 2 lines, or 24-7 English inches. In his descent
rom the mountain, he observed, at two several stations,
hat the mercury successively rose; and, on his return to
the monastery, he found it stood exactly at the same point Barometer,
as at first. Encouraged by the success of this memorable v—
experiment, Perier repeated it on the highest tower of
Clermont, and noted a difference of two lines at an eleva¬
tion of twenty toises. Pascal, on his part, as soon as the
intelligence reached him at Paris, where he then chanced
to be, made similar observations on the top of a high
house, and in the belfry of the church of St Jacques des
Boucheries, near the border of the Seine; and so much
was he satisfied with the results, that he proposed al¬
ready the application of the barometer for measuring the
relative altitudes of distant places on the surface of the
globe.
The investigation of the existence and effects of atmo¬
spheric pressure was now completed, and it threw a sud¬
den blaze over the whole contexture of physical science.
The fame of the experiments performed in Italy and in
France, quickly spread over Europe. Yet such is the Opposition
force of habit and early prejudice, that, after the first mo- which it
ments of surprise and confusion, few of the learned at this
period had the courage to open their eyes to the light enm ‘
which had so unexpectedly burst upon them ; but, secret¬
ly cherishing their inveterate notions, they sought to
comfort themselves by starting a variety of captious ob¬
jections. Father Mersenne, though a man of some abili¬
ties, conceived that suction was occasioned by certain
hooked particles dispersed through the atmosphere, which
laid hold of any fluid in contact with them, and drew it
towards the general mass. Father Linus, plunging still
deeper in mysticism and absurdity, gravely proposed the
funicular hypothesis, which attributes the suspension of the
mercurial column to the agency of certain small invisible
threads. But others of the clergy attacked Pascal with
envenomed bitterness. The Jesuits of the college of
Montsei'rand scrupled not, in their public theses, to per¬
vert his expressions, and even contest the originality of
his experiments. The philosopher was justly incensed
at their base conduct; and those repeated provocations
served, no doubt, to give a keener edge to his wit, when
he afterwards directed it with such overwhelming force
against that insidious and formidable order of priesthood.
He composed in 1653, though they were not published
till after his death, two short treatises, On the Equilibrium
of Liquors, and On the Weight of the Mass of Air, remark¬
able for their neatness, perspicuity, and lucid order. The
lawrs of the equilibrium of fluids are there beautifully de¬
duced from a single principle, which suggests a variety of
original views and admirable remarks. In those tracts
he likewise gives a description of the Hydraulic Press, a
most useful and powerful machine, which has lately been
revived in this country, and by some considered as a new
invention.
A similar discovery, wdiich was made about the same Discovery
time in Germany, came seasonably to support the triumph of the air-
of innovation. Otto Guricke, a wealthy magistrate of PTm.P V
Magdeburg, who amused his leisure by constructing Guricke.
pieces of mechanism, and instituting curious physical in¬
quiries, finding that the belief in the impossibility of a
vacuum, with other scholastic tenets, was on the gradual
decline, had the boldness to conceive that the forming of
a void was a task perhaps within the reach of human in¬
genuity. Fired with the idea of accomplishing what for
ages had been deemed unattainable, he directed all his
efforts to compass that end. In his first trials he failed,
as might be expected; but, by perseverance, he was
enabled to surmount every obstacle. Having filled a
wooden cask with water, he attempted to extract this
again, by means of a small sucking pump, introduced at
the bottom of the cask, and worked vigorously by three
stout men; a hissing noise w'as heard like that of boiling
388 B A R O M
Barometer, water, the air entered from above through the interstices
'w'-Y*'’*-'1 of the wood, and the water flowred out. Ihe more effec¬
tually to exclude the air, he next took, a smaller cask,
with a sucker attached to it, and placed it within a larger
one, having filled up the space between them with water.
On working the pump as before, the water was forced
through the pores of the wood into the inner cask, but
none was extracted by the action of the piston, boiled
in these attempts with wooden casks, he had recourse to
a copper ball, to the under part of which he screwed an
inclining sucker; and, with this apparatus, he at last suc¬
ceeded in extracting the air. He continued the operation,
till no further portion of air was perceived to issue from
the vent. On opening the cock again, the air rushed
into the cavity of the ball with violence; and the same
effect took place, with scarcely any diminution of power,^
after an interval of a day or two. .Ihe construction of
the machine was afterwards rendered more perfect, by
substituting a large inclined metal sucker, with its joints
secured by immersion in water.
Such was the origin of that most valuable addition to
philosophical apparatus, the air-pump, which long retain¬
ed its earliest rude and simple form on the Continent.
By help of this new and powerful instrument, Gviricke
was enabled to perform some interesting and very im¬
portant experiments. One ot these, which demonstrates
in a very striking way the pressure of the atmosphere,
has since been deservedly styled the Magdeburg Experi¬
ment. It was performed with twro hollow copper hemi¬
spheres, closely fitted together, and the air exhausted
from their cavity. This singular expeifiment Giiricke had
the honour of exhibiting, in the year 1654, before the
princes of the empire and the foreign ministers, assembled
at the diet of Ratisbon. The force of two teams, each
consisting of a dozen of horses, made to pull in opposite
directions, was found insufficient to separate the hemi¬
spheres. It was now that the burgomaster of Magdeburg
heard, for the first time, of Torricelli’s great discovery,
and the intelligence must have appeared quite delightful
to him, who, by a path so different, had yet arrived at a
similar conclusion.
After his return from this splendid assembly, Giiricke
pursued at home various pneumatical researches. He
showed the diminished pressure of the atmosphere at an
elevation above the surface, by means of a hollow ball
fitted with a stop-cock; having carried this to a height,
a portion of the contained air rushed out on turning the
cock; but'when it was brought down again and opened,
the same measure of air apparently flowed into its ca¬
vity. He actually weighed the air by ascertaining, with
the help of a nice balance, the loss which a large bottle
sustained on being exhausted, and found that the air is
970 times lighter than water; a very near approximation,
if allowance be made for the residuum of air still left in
Statical the bottle. He was the first who proposed the Statical
balance. Balance iox measuring the variations of atmospheric den¬
sity, consisting of a hollow glass ball about a foot in dia¬
meter, hermetically sealed, and freely suspended in the
air, to indicate by its different buox^ancy the changes which
take place in the gravity of the external fluid.
But Guricke took great pleasure in a huge water baro¬
meter erected in his house.1 It consisted of a tube above
thirty feet high, rising along the wall, and terminated by
a tall and rather wide tube hermetically sealed, contain-
[ E T E R.
ing a toy, of the shape of a man. The whole being filledBaron r
with water, and set in a basin in the ground, the column ^ i
of liquid settled to the proper altitude, and left the toy
floating on its surface ; but all the lower part of the tube
being concealed under the wainscoting, the little image,
or weather-mannikin, as he was called, made its appear¬
ance only when raised up into view in fine weather. This
whimsical contrivance, which received the name of ane-km
moscope, or semper vivum, excited among the populace vastscope,
admiration ; and the worthy magistrate was in consequence
shrewdly suspected by his townsmen of being too familiar
with the powers of darkness.
Before the taste for experimental science was imported Intro.
from the Continent into England, the great struggle fortionij*.
the security of public rights had called forth the national^™ al
energy, and its triumphant success had infused among?;1™1 lto
all classes of men a spirit of boldness and enterprise most^ '
favourable to the reception of the new philosophy. The
parliamentary commissioners, by removing the more vio¬
lent and bigoted members of the universities, contributed,
on the whole, to encourage a more liberal tone of think¬
ing in those opulent seminaries. Near the close of the
civil war, and during the vigorous administration of Crom¬
well, the philosophy by experiment found some proselytes
at last in the cloisters of Oxford, where the mass of anti¬
quated opinions had lain so long embalmed and protected
by religious awe. A small association was there formed,
for combining together the efforts of individuals in the
prosecution of such inquiries; and the fruits of this mu¬
tual compact were afterwards visible in the composition
of various philosophical works. But the Restoration, by
which the nation, in a burst of inconsiderate loyalty, sur¬
rendered the privileges which it had purchased with tor¬
rents of blood, threw the government of the universities
again into the hands of men decidedly hostile to the very
shadow of improvement. Experimental science withdrew
to a more congenial soil, and sought shelter and support
in the wider scope of the capital. The college, founded
by the munificence of Sir Thomas Gresham, for the be¬
nefit of the citizens of London, though now unfortunately
sunk in absolute neglect, had the merit of being the first
to extend its protection to the pursuits of inductive phi¬
losophy. It produced a succession of professors, eminent
in mathematical learning, which is so closely allied with
experimental research. A more extensive association was
accordingly formed in London, which regularly met at
the apartments within the Exchange, and was afterwards,
at the suggestion of Oldenburg, the resident from the
city of Hamburg, and in imitation of the foreign acade- ^
mies, constituted by charter into the Royal Society. 0
Such was the humble beginning of that illustrious body,®
and such all the countenance it received from a needy
and profligate government. The institution, however,
proved at first eminently useful, by its influence in direct¬
ing public opinion, and the shelter it afforded to experi¬
mental philosophy against the jealousy and declared hos¬
tility of the clerical and scholastic seminaries. The union
of rank, or wealth, or talent, though still very limited m
its range, bestowed a degree of lustre on the infant so¬
ciety, that was quite necessary for its defence against tie
attacks of ignorance and the undermining of bigotry.
One of the most active members of the Royal Society
was the honourable Mr Boyle, who having become ac^
quainted with experimental researches in the couise o
1 It deserves perhaps to be mentioned, that the theatre of the natural philosophy c ass, in the University of Edinburgh,
several years been furnished with a water barometer, constructed by Mr Adie. It consists of a fine drawn tube of tin, of halt aIh , f
bore, rising thirty feet from a copper basin inclosed under the benches of a class below, and cemented at the top to a glass cy
two inches wide and about six feet high, exposed to view, but terminating in a small basin containing water. Both ends ot11118 tll5
pound column are fitted with stop-cocks, which are opened or shut at pleasure by means of concealed wires. By this large app
the Torricellian experiment is likewise exhibited in a very striking manner.
BAROMETER.
389
uyj
?xpe]
ueut
Cist
rom
his travels, devoted, after his return home, his time and kers of the ordinary barometer. But the syphon barome-Barometer,
-'"'his fortune, to such calm but engaging pursuits. In this ter itself was afterwards materially improved by having
occupation be derived the most essential aid from Dr its lower branch blown into a wide bulb for holding the
Hooke whom he had the discernment to engage as his charge of mercury. (See fig. 2, Plate CVI.) This form
assistant, the most skilful mechanician, and one of the of the barometer is not quite accurate, owing to the small-
best practical philosophers, of the age. The same ingeni- ness and unequal shape of the round bulb; but being very
ous person was likewise employed as operator to the socie- convenient for carriage, it has grown into general use, at
tv and undertook to produce at each meeting some new least for the cheaper and more common sort of instru-
experiments for the instruction and entertainment of the ments.
members. One of the favourite subjects was to exhibit As soon as the barometer came to be regarded as a Barometer
the properties of the atmosphere. Hooke, at the instance weather-glass, ingenuity was set at work to devise theofBes-
of Boyle, had given a more convenient form to the air- means of enlarging its scale of variations. Descartes firstcartes*
pump, and had materially improved its construction, espe- proposed a simple method for effecting that object, by
daily by the application of oil to the joints and valves, combining a mercurial with a water barometer; which ar-
With this improved machine, a more perfect vacuum was rangement, though subject to imperfection, has led to
procured than Giiricke had obtained; and the English many of the subsequent improvements. (See fig. 4.) He
philosophers were thus enabled to perform a variety of directed twro short barometric tubes to be cemented, the
delicate and interesting experiments, which extended the one into the bottom, and the other to the neck of a phial;
influence of the original discovery. or, still better, that the tubes should be joined, by the
In those early meetings, too, of the Royal Society, the flame of a lamp, to the opposite ends of a wide and regu-
suspension of the mercury in the Torricellian tube had lar cylinder. The lower tube, and a portion of the cylin-
still the attraction of novelty. The famous Italian expe- der, were then to be filled with mercury, and above it
riment, as it was called, was frequently repeated and va- was to be introduced pure water, reaching to the top of
ried in the presence of a few of the more assiduous mem- the upper tube, and there sealed close. When this com¬
bers, who, though delighted with the exhibition, still con- pound tube was inverted in a basin of mercury, it is evi-
tinued to argue and to doubt concerning the cause of the dent that the columns both of mercury and of water would
s’s phenomenon. These doubts acquired new force from a sink, till their joint pressure became just equal to the su-
singular experiment which the celebrated Huygens some perincumbent weight of the external atmosphere. But
years afterwards communicated, during a visit he made to the variation of this weight would afterwards be indicated
London. Having filled a glass tube eighty inches long chiefly by the large motion of the water; since the mer-
with mercury, and carefully expelled whatever air was curial column, spreading out above into a broad surface,^
lurking about the sides, he gently inverted it, as usual, in must, in any case, experience a very slight difference of
a basin; when the mercury notwithstanding remained altitude. Thus, suppose the cylinder to have eight times
still hanging from the top of the tube, and did not sub- the diameter of the upper tube, or a section sixty-four
side to the proper height till it was struck with a slight times greater, mercury being 13-6 times denser than
blow. This anomalous fact appeared then extremely puz- ■water: for each inch of increase of altitude which the
zling. The experiment, indeed, requires great nicety and ordinary mercurial column gains, the top of tlm water
address on the part of the operator, and evidently depends would be raised in the tube 1T4> inches, its own rise be¬
en a concurrence of circumstances which have not yet ing 11T8 inches, and that of the wide mercurial cylinder
been sufficiently explained. There can, at present, exist only ’18 of an inch, yet equal in pressure to inches
no doubt that this extraordinary suspension of the mer- of water. But Descartes, generally satisfied with mere
cury is occasioned by its obstinate adhesion to the inside theory and speculation, did not live to see his construction
of the tube, which, in the pi'oeess of purging the air, be- of the barometer carried into effect; and Chanut, the
comes probably lined with a very thin film of mercurial French resident at Stockholm, to whom he had imparted
oxyd. But Huygens, who had embraced the leading his views, met v/ith such difficulty in the execution of the
principles of the Cartesian philosophy, was inclined to project, that, after some fruitless attempts, he abandoned
draw a very different conclusion. He thought that the it altogether.
fact proved the existence of another fluid besides the at- Huygens was more fortunate, and succeeded, by dint of Huygens’s
mosphere, and one possessed of such extreme subtilty perseverance and skill, in constructing the Cartesian ba-flouble l>a-
and power, as to be capable of permeating the grosser bo- rometer. But he had the mortification to find that, inlome er'
dies. In ordinary cases, this fine ethereal substance might spite of all the pains he could take, the water, after it was
be supposed to escape through the pores of the glass, and relieved from the pressure of the atmosphere by the seal-
leave the mercurial column to the pressure merely of the ing up of the tube, constantly discharged a portion of air,
atmosphere. Such was the unfortunate introduction of which collected at the top, and by its elasticity depressed
that ideal being—an aether—into experimental science, the compound column below its due altitude. Convinced
which it has continued to infest with mysticism, and to that this source of imperfection is irremediable, he sought
dazzle with a false glare. Similar notions are perpetually to rectify the construction of the instrument, and produc-
renewed by a certain class of superficial inquirers, and ed his Double Barometer; a form of combination frequent-
have exercised a visible and most pernicious influence in ly used, especially when the object is rather to make the
retarding the progress of sound philosophy. variations very sensible than to obtain delicate results,
ba- It was soon perceived that the syphon barometer of (See fig. 5.) He joined a barometric tube of the usual
r. Torricelli has a disadvantageous form. Both branches of length, by the flame of a blow-pipe, to two wide cylinders,
the tube being assumed to be of the same width, the mer- the one sealed at the top, and the other annexed likewise
cury must evidently sink as much in the one as it will rise hermetically to a tall and narrow tube, open at its extre-
in the other; so that the variations in the height of the mity; he then bent the thicker tube a little above the
column are thus reduced to half the true quantity. A lower cylindex-, and brought the two branches to be parallel,
small basin, or semicircular wooden box, to hold the sur- The instrument being thus formed, he filled the fii’st branch
plus mercury, was therefore attached to the frame of the with mercury, and introduced above, in the second branch,
instrument; and this construction, with very little change, some liquid of comparative lightness. ^ Alcohol would, in
was adopted, during the course of a century, by the ma- this respect, answer extremely well, if it were not so lia*
390
BAROMETER.
Its advan¬
tages and
detects.
Hooke’s
Barometer, ble to waste by evaporation. An alkaline lye, or the de-
liquiate salt of tartar, which also readily admits of being
coloured, was therefore, on the whole, preferred.
The principle of this constriction is evidently the same
as in that of Descartes ; but the vacuum lying contiguous
to the mercury itself, can have no admixture of disen¬
gaged air or of aqueous vapour. Since the cylinders are
made very much wider than the bore of the annexed tube,
the variation of pressure will be produced almost entirely
by the change of altitude which the alkaline liquor under¬
goes, the mercury suffering only a very minute alteration
of ascent or descent, the divisions of the ordinary scale
will be about tenfold enlarged, if a section of each cylin¬
der should exceed twenty times that of the tube in which
the liquor plays.
A bai’ometer of this construction has decided advan¬
tages with respect to the extent of its variations, but still
it is not exempt from considerable defects. The moisture
on. the inner surface of the cylindrical reservoir increases
the adhesion of the mercury, and retards its movements.
But a much greater source of error proceeds from the in¬
fluence of heat in extending the volume of liquor contain¬
ed in that reservoir, and rising into the narrow stem. This
instrument, therefore, to a certain extent, blends the in¬
dications of the barometer with those of the thermometer,
which are essentially different, and can seldom accord.
About the same period Dr Hooke likewise proposed a
rometer)a" d°u^e barometer, of a similar construction. He after-
* wards resumed the subject, and with a view to correct
the defect of the former arrangement, he produced, in
1685, an instrument of a more complex form, but very
ingeniously conceived. (See fig. 6.) To the upper end
of the open stem he joined a third cylinder of the same
dimensions as the two former, but tapering away to a
fine orifice at the top. The principal tube being filled as
usual with mercury, extending to occupy the bottoms of
both the connected cylinders, he introduced a liquor im¬
mediately over the mercury in the second cylinder, rising
partly into the stem; above this, again, he poured another
liquor specifically lighter and differently coloured, filling
up the rest of the stem, and mounting into the third
cylinder. By this artificial and delicate combination, the
mercury is left perfectly stationary, and all the move¬
ments corresponding to the atmospheric pressure are per¬
formed by the counterpoising liquors, and marked by their
line of mutual separation. Since the stem or narrow tube
remains constantly full, the variation of its pressure must
depend on the different proportions of its length occupied
by the two fluids. If the weight of external atmosphere
should, for instance, increase, the denser liquor will rise, and
consequently cause the lighter liquor to contract its column.
The action of this compound barometer, being thus pro¬
duced merely by the difference of the gravity of the two
fluids, might, therefore, be augmented indefinitely. Sup¬
pose the liquid resting on the mercury to be pure water,
and the superincumbent liquid to be olive oil, which is
about one twelfth part lighter; the scale would be enlarg¬
ed no less than 163 times, or an alteration of one tenth in
the altitude of the common mercurial column would be
marked by a motion through 12 X B36 inches, or 16*3
inches. But such a vast enlargement of the scale is far
greater than would ever be desirable in practice. It were
better, therefore, to introduce next the mercury some
fluid which is denser than water. If oil of sassafras were
combined with oil of oranges, the divisions of the scale
would be augmented only sixty-eight times, and conse¬
quently the whole range might not exceed ten or twelve
feet. Those oils, however, would move rather sluggishly,
especially in cold weather, and might, from their inces¬
sant shiftings, during a lengthened period, become insen¬
sibly mixed. On the other hand, fluids of distinct cha-Baron
racters are seldom free from chemical action • they ex--y / 1
pand differently with heat, ahd by coating with other
traces the inside of the tube, they are the more apt to re¬
tard the motion of the column. In general, the advantage
of any very great augmentation of the scale is counter¬
balanced, as the fluids then work by irregular starts; and
the instrument loses in delicacy whatever it has gained in
extent of action.
Another method of augmenting the variations of the Whet
barometer was invented by the same fertile genius, whichbaroir r,
has the advantage of uniting great simplicity with toler¬
able accuracy. (See fig. 7.) liesuming the syphon baro¬
meter, he made a small float of iron or glass to rest on the
exterior surface of the mercury, and suspended by a slender
thread passed round a small wheel or cylindrical axis that
carried an index. Though the varieties of the height
of the mercurial column are, in a tube of this form, re¬
duced to half the ordinary measure, yet, from the great
length of the index compared with the diameter of its
axis, the divisions on the circumference of the circle in
which it travels are much amplified. The little machi¬
nery being concealed within the frame of the instrument,
the index only is brought into view, protected by a cir¬
cular plate of glass. Thus fitted up, the whole forms ra¬
ther a handsome piece of furniture. The Wheel Baro¬
meter, as it is called, has long maintained its reputation
among ordinary observers.
A very simple method of enlarging the divisions of the Indin
barometer is commonly ascribed to Sir Samuel Moreland,l®011 r'
the same speculative adventurer who invented, or rather
introduced from abroad, the Speaking Trumpet. (See fig.
8.) It consisted in merely bending the upper part of the
tube into a very oblique position. By this deflexion,
however, the scale which depends on the perpendicular
altitude cannot be augmented beyond three or four times
without incurring evident risk of inaccuracy. The in¬
strument is called the Inclined or Diagonal Barometer.
The form has been sometimes varied by the fancy of art¬
ists, who, repeating the inclination of the tube, have oc¬
casionally given the upper part a zig-zag appearance.
The most ingenious barometer, filled with mercury only, Squai
and yet admitting a scale of any extent, was invented by^011 !
Cassini and by John Bernoulli, who first gave the descrip¬
tion of it in 1710. (See fig- 9.) A wide cylinder is an¬
nexed to the top of the main tube, at the bottom of which
there is joined at the right angles another long and nar¬
row tube. The mercury, in ascending or descending with¬
in the wide cylinder, must, therefore, run along this hori- s
zontal tube. If that cylinder have a diameter only four
times greater than the bore of the tube, the scale of va¬
riation will be augmented sixteen times. This instrument
is, from its shape, called the Square Barometer. It is not
found in practice to answer so well as the theory might
lead us to suppose. The mercury creeps along the hori¬
zontal tube with difficulty, and by desultory advances;
and these irregularities increase when, from its motion
and exposure, it becomes covered with dust and partial
oxidation. ,
The simplest of all the barometers with an enlarged6®^,
scale, and at the same time one of the most ingenious, is
the Conical or Pendant Barometer, invented and describ¬
ed in 1695 by Amontons, a French philosopher, who,
being afflicted with total deafness in consequence of a
fever in his infancy, had devoted himself to mechanical
contrivances. (See fig. 3, Plate CVI.) This instrument
consists merely of a tube, four feet or more in length,
with a bore narrower than ordinary, and tapering regu¬
larly to the top. The width at the bottom must hardly
exceed three twentieth parts of an inch, while near the
BAROMETER.
Bare
Secti
baroi ;er.
ter. top it may be contracted to about one tenth. A column
J of about thirty-one inches of mercury being introduced,
the tube is gently inverted and held perpendicular; the
cohesion of such a narrow column is sufficient to prevent
it from dividing and admitting air unless it be shaken;
but, overpowering the atmospheric pressure, it descends
till it has contracted into the equiponderant altitude, by
passing into a wider part of the tube. To obtain equal
divisions on the scale, it is necessary that the tube should
have a uniform taper. The most accurate construction
of a barometer of this kind is, therefore, attained by joining
together two tubes that have even but unequal bores, the
longer and narrower one being uppermost. If the width of
the upper tube were supposed to be to that of the under
one as two to three, the scale would be enlarged three
times, since, by descending three inches from the top,
and consequently two at the bottom, the column would
suffer a contraction of one inch in height.
This species of barometer is thus recommended by its
simplicity and its ample range. But the bore of the tube
being indispensably narrow, the mercury moves with dif¬
ficulty, and resists the impression of minute changes of
external action. When the conical-shaped tube is retain¬
ed, the instrument is liable to some inaccuracy from the
influence of the cohesion of the mercury, which varies
with the diameter of the column in different parts of the
tube.
Amontons likewise proposed another form of barometer,
in which the mercurial column is subdivided among seve¬
ral short connected branches. (See fig. 10.) Suppose
the instrument were to have only the third part of the
usual height, the first, third, and fifth branches, enlarged
above and below into very short cylinders, are filled with
mercury; and the second, fourth, and sixth branches,
which may have their bores narrower, are occupied with
some light fluid, or simply with air. If the external
pressure should suffer any diminution, the three mer¬
curial columns which produce the counterpoise will each
descend and push up the last fluid of the series by their
combined effects. It is evident that, by multiplying those
branches, the barometer will have its altitude proportion¬
ally reduced. But this construction, though specious in
theory, is found to have no practical advantages. The
instrument is, from its complication, very difficult to con¬
struct ; its motions are sluggish, owing to the multiplicity
of tubes and the conjunction of fluids, and they are sub¬
ject to derangements from the variable influence of tem¬
perature. It has therefore been generally abandoned.
These different forms of the instrument have been va¬
riously modified, and often brought forward with claims
of novelty. We may notice, however, the Sectoral Baro-
mter proposed by Magellan, in which the mercury is al¬
ways made to rise to the same high point of the tube, by
drawing this less or more aside from the vertical position.
Ihe arc thus described will indicate the deviation from
the perpendicular, and consequently the actual descent of
the mercury. But the difference between the vertical
and the oblique line is not measured by the inclination
merely, it is proportioned to the versed sine of this angle,
or nearly to the square of the arc. The advantage of this
mode of observing is, therefore, best perceived in small
variations of the mercurial column. In the hands of a
skilful observer, the best and most accurate barometer,
after all, is that of the original construction, with a tube
lather wide, and a broad cistern. To apply minute divi¬
sions is decidedly preferable to any enlargement of the
The measuring of such divisions has been since
391
scale.
rendered extremely easy by the adaptation of the differ-
otial scale; a most valuable contrivance, proposed by
ernier early in the seventeenth century, but strangely
neglected long afterwards. This delicate appendage being Barometer,
once adopted, it became the more desirable to improve
the sensibility and regulate the correctness of the indica¬
tions of the barometer.
The first object was carefully to cleanse the mercury, Effect of
and to expel any portions of air or moisture adhering to moisture
the inside of the tube. The influence of aqueous vapour within t!ie
in depressing the mercurial column had been observed bybarometnc
Huygens; but other more evaporable fluids were after-tube‘
wards found to occasion, by their presence, a still greater
derangement. Homberg having, about the year 1705,
washed a tube with alcohol to remove the impurities from
its internal surface, remarked that the mercury introdu¬
ced into it stood an inch and half lower than usual, a de¬
pression which this ingenious chemist was disposed to at¬
tribute to the elasticity of the spiritous exhalations col¬
lected above the mercurial column ; though other acade¬
micians, and Amontons among the rest, misled by their
Cartesian prejudices, sought to ascribe the effect to the
different sized pores of the glass. These anomalies were
removed by heating or rather boiling the mercury in the
tube till it was completely purged of air and moisture,
and brought into close contact with the inside of the tube.
But a new fact occurred which long puzzled the mecha¬
nical philosophers. The tube of a barometer, which had Luminous
been filled w ith more than usual care, was observed to barometer,
exhibit a luminous appearance when moved or slightly
agitated in the dark. This curious phenomenon gave oc¬
casion to multiplied and prolonged controversies; it was
attributed to the subtile matter of Descartes, or ascribed
to a native phosphorescence, or a latent fire inherent in
the mercury. Our countryman Hauksbee, in the year
1708, gave the first rational explanation of the fact, by
referring it to electricity, which he had just begun to cul¬
tivate as a distinct science. It resembles exactly, indeed,
the experiment of the exhausted flask, in which an elec¬
trical current flashes with a diffuse lambent flame, like the
aurora borealis or the northern streamers. The friction of
the mercury against the inside of the tube excites elec¬
tricity, while the vacuity, or rather the very attenuated
vapour in which the supposed fluid plays, facilitates its
expansion. When the vacuum is rendered very perfect
by the careful and accurate boiling of the mercury, the
lambent flashing ceases for want of a fine medium to con¬
duct and disperse the electrical influence.
The next point to which experimenters were led to Effect of
direct their attention, was the effect of the width of the tb,6 width
tube on the altitude of the mercurial column. Plantade,of the
a lawyer of Montpellier, appears to have been one of thetube’
first who remarked that the mercury stands always lower
in narrow tubes. This fact he communicated about the
year 1730 to Cassini, wdio was then occupied in the south
of France with carrying on the great trigonometrical sur¬
vey. But the discrepancies observed by Plantade, being
unfortunately confounded with other collateral circum¬
stances, were for a time overlooked. In tubes having a
narrow bore, the depression of the mercury, however, is
very considerable, as may be readily perceived in a small
glass syphon, of which the one branch is about half an inch
in diameter, and that of the other branch less than the
tenth of an inch. Thus, if the narrow tube had a width
of only the thirteenth part of an inch, the depression of
the mercury would amount to half an inch, which is about
the third part of the elevation to wdiich water in similar
circumstances wrould be raised by capillary action. This
effect has not been sufficiently examined, but it appears to
result from the attraction of the particles of the mercury
to each other exceeding their attraction to the surface of
the glass. Mercury, in contact with glass, therefore,
tends to a spherical form, and always assumes a convex
392
BAROMETER,
Pure mer¬
cury has
always a
convex
surface.
Barometer, surface within a clean tube. Water and other liquids,
again, manifest an opposite character, the mutual attrac¬
tion of their particles being less than their adhesion to
glass. Accordingly, they spread along a vitreous surface,
instead of collecting into drops ; and in narrow tubes they
mount above the level, and invariably have a concave ter¬
mination. If the bore be so small as to be reckoned ca¬
pillary, the depression of mercury is, like the elevation of
water, inversely as the diameter; but when the bore has
a considerable width, the quantity of depression, depend¬
ing on the curvature of the surface of the mercury, dimi¬
nishes proportionally faster, and follows nearly the inverse
duplicate ratio of the diameter. But on the subject of
capillary action we refer our readers with the utmost con¬
fidence to a valuable paper communicated to the Royal
Society of London, by Mr Ivory, late of the Military Col¬
lege at Sandhurst, one of the most original and profound
mathematicians that our island has had the honour to
produce.
The influence of the predominating attraction of the
particles of mercury to themselves, above their adhesion
to the sides of a glass tube, has not been considered with
so much attention as it demands. Nothing is more com¬
mon than to remark that the mercury in the barometer is
in the act of rising if it show a convex surface, but about
to fall if it should appear concave. Now, the top of the
mercurial column must always remain convex if the ba¬
rometer be properly constructed, the tube perfectly clean,
and the mercury purged of all impurities. But if the in¬
side of the tube be anywise soiled, whether covered with
humidity or stained with mercurial oxyd, the metallic
fluid will adhere so obstinately to the glass as to lose its
convexity, and to subside into a flat surface, or even sink
into a concavity, like water and other liquids. Hence
the danger of boiling the mercury too long in the tube, as
it becomes partially oxydated; and the thin crust so form¬
ed not only suspends the column higher, but obstructs the
freedom of its motion. The same effect is produced by
greasing the inside of the tube. Some respectable authors,
from not attending to these facts, have hastily inferred
that the convex appearance which mercury assumes in
the barometer was merely accidental, and consequently
removed by a more complete boiling and purification.
Quantity In the case of tubes having wide bores, the depression
ot depres- 0f the mercurial column maj", without any sensible error,
ffrenT ( disregarded. According to the accurate experiments
tubes. made by Lord Charles Cavendish, and published by his
son the celebrated Mr Cavendish, the quantity of depres¬
sion is only the 200th part of an inch in a tube of 6-10ths
of an inch in diameter, the 28th part of an inch in a tube
of 3-10ths diameter, and the 15th part of an inch in a tube
of 2-10ths diameter. Wide tubes ought, therefore, to be
preferred in the construction of barometers, both on ac¬
count of the facility with which the mercury moves in
them, and the smallness of its depression. The only cir¬
cumstance to overbaknce these advantages would be the
necessity and inconvenience of having a very large cistern.
A quarter of an inch may be reckoned a good width of
tube, and the corresponding depression is only the twen¬
tieth part of an inch.
In the syphon barometer, if both branches have the
same diameter, the action is exerted on opposite sides,
and therefore the effect of depression becomes entirely
lost. For accurate purposes, this original form of the in¬
strument has been resumed, and the inconvenience aris¬
ing from the large variation of the lower lever entirely
.. obviated by an ingenious contrivance introduced above
tionofa ^7 years ag°- This consists in the application of a
leathern leathern bag, instead of a wooden or ivory cistern, to hold
bag. the surplus mercury. Besides the barometric tube, there
is placed adjacent to it another short one of the same Bam cr
width, communicating with the mercury contained in the ^ J
bag, which being pressed by turning a screw below, is at
each observation brought exactly to the same mark. The
external atmosphere readily acts through the substance of
the leather ; but the mercury, from the powerful cohesion
of its own particles, cannot be squeezed through the pores
of that casing without violent compression. The addition
of a bag within a cylindrical box, omitting the lower tube,
likewise renders the barometer easily portable ; since, for
safe carriage, the mercury can be screwed up tight, to fill
the whole cavity of its tube, but, on turning the screw
again, the column will subside and rest on a broad base.
The last object which required nice observation, wasEffa f
to estimate the effect of heat in dilating the mercury, and heat the
consequently increasing the altitude of the equiponderant ^ er.
column. This correction could not be made with any
sort of accuracy previous to the application of the ther¬
mometer, which, though invented half a century earlier
than the barometer, was yet more than another half-cen¬
tury in arriving at perfection. Hero, a mechanical phi¬
losopher, who flourished at Alexandria about 130 years
before Christ, has described in his Spiritalia a sort of
huge weather-glass, in which water was made to rise and
fall by the vicissitudes of day and night, or rather the
changes of heat and cold. This machine had for ages been
overlooked, or merely considered in the light of a curious
contrivance. But Sanctorio, the inventor of the famous Inv< on
statical balance, a very learned and ingenious Italian phy-^ ier-
sician, who was long professor of medicine in the univer-mon r'
sity of Padua, and had laboured to improve his art by the
application of experimental science, reduced the hydraulic
machine of Hero into a more compendious form, and thus
constructed, about the close of the sixteenth century, the
instrument since known by the name of the air thermome¬
ter, which he employed with obvious advantage to examine
the heat of the human body in fevers. Some years after¬
wards a similar instrument was contrived, perhaps with¬
out any communication, by Drebbel, a very clever and
scheming Dutch artist, who visited London in the reign
of James L, and imported the knowledge of that instru¬
ment into England.
But this air thermometer was evidently of the same
nature with what has been since called the manometer; it
could measure only the dilatation or augmented elasticity
of the air confined within its bulb, whether occasioned
by heat or the diminution of external pressure. It was
therefore considered merely as a weather-glass, indicating
the state of the atmosphere; nor could its blended im¬
pressions, which might separately affect both the thermo¬
meter and barometer, be then distinguished. Had it been
more closely studied, it must have led, by another path,
to the discovery of the latter. But those irregularities to
which the air thermometer was hence subject appear to
have created such doubts respecting the accuracy of the
instrument, as occasioned its being neglected long after-
wards. _ ice
The same country, however, which had given birth to
the thermometer, began its improvement. After thes
principle of the barometer w’as established, the members
of the Academy del Cimento, founded at Florence m
1657, and supplied with liberal funds by the grand duke
of Tuscany, had, among other interesting physical re¬
searches, resumed the application of the thermometer,
and, instead of air, they substituted alcohol or spirit o
wine, another very expansible fluid not affected by atmo¬
spheric pressure, while they attached to the tube a scale
graduated on a regular plan, though directed by no very
precise measures. The instrument so constructed, but
somewhat varied in its form, being copied by Italian ai-
BAROMETER.
to ,01 2f. tists, was dispersed over Europe under the name of the
^ j pkrence Glass. From its careless execution, however, in
the hands of itinerant venders, this thermometer, or rather
thermoscope, appears never to have obtained an establish¬
ed reputation.
Atten j The great object proposed was to bring thermometers
toobt a (;0 an exact correspondence. It was expedient, therefore,
standi • not only to select a proper fluid, but to adopt a uniform
and'consistent scale. Alcohol, linseed oil, and mercury,
had been successively tried. The graduation was at first
derived from the temperature of cellars and deep caves,
which, indicating the natural heat of the globe, had long
been considered invariable ; but more enlarged experience
discovered the inaccuracy of that supposition, and showed
the mean temperature to be materially modified by the
latitude of the place, and its elevation above the level of
the sea. Congelation, or rather the inverted process, the
thawing of ice, or the melting of snow, was then found to
remain fixed; a most important fact, which had been first
noticed by Gtiricke, but overlooked till a considerable time
afterwards. A stationary point was hence obtained, from
which to commence the thermometric scale. But differ¬
ent modes were pursued for determining the divisions.
Amoi is. Amontons, reverting to the air thermometer in spite of
its acknowledged defects, found that the elasticity of
air compressed in the bulb, and able at the temperature
of melting snow to support a column of mercury fifty-four
inches high, was capable of raising this to seventy-eight
inches at the heat of boiling water; and he seemed con¬
tented with framing a rude standard, by merely dividing
the intermediate space into inches and half-inches.
Newt But about the same, or nearly at the beginning of the
eighteenth century, Newton himself cast a keen though
rapid glance on the subject of heat, and proposed a ther¬
mometer of a much simpler and more elegant construc¬
tion. Having adopted linseed oil as a fixed and uniform
substance, capable of great dilatation, he discovered by
experiment, that dividing the capacity of the bulb into
ten thousand equal parts, the liquid expanded 256 parts
from melting snow to blood-heat, and 725 parts to that of
boiling water. These numbers, however, being incon¬
veniently large, he reduced them somewhat more than
twenty times, adopting 12 and 34 as the proportional divi¬
sions on his scale. But oil, being so viscid a substance,
was found to trail and collect on the inside of the tube;
and this thermometer, though constructed on arightprin-
j, ^ C1l^e> never came into general use.
Roemer, the Danish astronomer who made the fine dis¬
covery of the progressive motion of light, was the first
who proposed mercury as the fittest fluid for thermome¬
ters; and Halley and Amontons remarked about the same
time, that h expands uniformly with heat, and remains
Delis .7 stationary at the point of boiling water. On this
fen e.PnnciP!e’ Tlelisle of St Petersburg constructed, in 1733, a
:er, mercurial thermometer with a descending scale, the dis¬
tance from freezing to boiling water occupying 153, or, in
round numbers, 150 divisions, of which the bulb itself
contains 10,000. A more ingenious method, but perhaps
*ena' i. ,00J:etatad> tor graduating thermometers, was proposed
IfiQl r dlni’- a tHstinguished Italian mathematician, in
• t consisted in adopting the scale, in the successive
emperatures produced by mixtures, in the different pro-
in* IOniS °Jtwelve. Parts of water at the moment of thaw-
g and of ebullition. This suggestion led to a very im-
p rtant inference since it proved that mercury expands
s J}rmv with equal additions of heat, while alcohol
■lut imnr* constantly in a rising progression. But the capital
Ht’s r. J? lament of the thermometer was effected by the skill
ed nSSeVeiai?ce °f Fahrenheit, whose name has remain-
vor ^ attaclled t0 t,le instrument. This ingenious per¬
393
son, originally a merchant at Dantzic, who had the mis- Barometer,
fortune to fail in business, was induced, by his taste for'
mechanics and chemistry, to have recourse to the manu¬
facture of thermometers, as the means of gaining a slen¬
der livelihood. But not meeting with sufficient encour¬
agement at home, he removed, about the year 1720, to
Holland, the great emporium of the arts, and fixed his
future residence at Amsterdam. He now preferred mer¬
cury to alcohol for filling his thermometers; and, adopt¬
ing the division of the bulb into 10,000 parts, he reckon¬
ed sixty-four of them as the expansion between freezing
and blood-heat, and thirty-two as the contraction from
the same point to what he considered as extreme cold,
or that produced by the mixture of one part of salt with
three parts of snow. These numbers were extremely con¬
venient, being found by a repeated bisection. With re¬
spect to the heat of boiling water, Fahrenheit discovered
the important fact, that it varies with the state of atmo¬
spheric pressure. Taking the mean, however, he reckon¬
ed 180 degrees from freezing to ebullition, and therefore
marked this point at 212 on his scale. The thermome-The Cel-
ter owes its improvement to Celsius, professor at Upsal, sjan or cen-
who in 1742 placed the commencement of the scale at tjgracle
congelation, and divided the interval thence to boiling ^rmome'
water into an hundred degrees, extending such a portion
downwards as might be wanted. This centesimal ther¬
mometer is exactly the same as what the French have
since called the centigrade, which, from its fitness and sim¬
plicity, deserves to be universally adopted.
The thermometer having been thus carried by succes- Correction
sive steps to perfection, it was found by delicate experi- of the ba-
ments, that, between the points of boiling and freezing, r^netevas
the expansion of mercury amounts to the fifty-fourth part
of its bulk, or that it acquires, for each degree of heat, an
increase of volume amounting to the 5412th part on the
centesimal scale, or the 9742d part on the scale of Fahren¬
heit. A correction, therefore, on the height of the mer¬
curial column in the barometer becomes necessary accord¬
ing to the changes of temperature which it undergoes.
In this climate, the extreme variation arising from that
cause will seldom exceed two tenths of an inch. But if
the barometer be suspended in a room kept at an agree¬
able temperature, the error occasioned by the expansion
of the mercury may, in ordinary cases, be disregarded,
since it will scarcely amount to the twentieth part of an
inch.
Since the barometer marks the condition of the distant
atmosphere, and intimates those internal alterations which
are generally connected with the change of the weather,
it is particularly valuable at sea, by forewarning the ma¬
riner of the approach of a storm. But an instrument of
the ordinary construction would not answer this purpose,
the agitation of a vessel on a tempestuous ocean being
such as would not only throw the ponderous mercurial co¬
lumn into violent oscillation, but communicate those sud¬
den shocks which must infallibly break the tube. Various Marine
attempts have accordingly been made to obtain a marme barometer.
barometer exempt from risk, and yet sufficiently sensible
to the variations of the atmosphere. The conical or
pendant barometer being, from the narrowness of its bore,
rather sluggish, was first recommended for that purpose,
though never adopted into practice. About the beginning
of the eighteenth century, Dr Hooke and Amontons seve¬
rally proposed to employ for a barometer on board ship,
the manometer or air thermometer. To obviate the de¬
rangement arising from the influence of heat, there was
to be placed beside it a spirit-of-wine thermometer, with
a ball so large as to give expansions equal to those of the
portion of air confined within the bulb. The difference
between the two adjacent columns of liquid would there-
3 D
394
BAROMETER.
Barometer, fore measure the variation of external pressure. But to
v—procure such a nice adaptation would prove so extremely
difficult in practice, that most probably this instrument
was seldom or never actually constructed. Besides, the
liquid column of the manometer, though light and narrow,
would yet be much shaken by the rolling and pitching at
sea. Notwithstanding these weighty objections, however,
this compound manometer was tried in England, mercury
being employed as the fluid both of expansion and pres¬
sure, and various adjustments applied by means of a com¬
plex machinery.
Blondeau’s An ingenious and very substantial kind of marine ba-
marine ba-rometer was, above twenty years ago, recommended by
rometer. Blondeau, one of the professors of the naval academy
at Brest. (See fig. 11, Plate CVI.) It consisted of an
iron tube, bent below into a syphon, and filled carefully
with mercury, which carried a float. For this purpose, a
musket-barrel, about three feet long, was chosen, having
a very smooth and even bore, and an iron breech closely
welded to it, instead of being soldered with brass, which
might become corroded by the action of the mercury.
The lower end of the tube had a collar of leather, to
which was screwed a piece of iron, perforated through its
whole length, and bent into an arch, having screwed
likewise, with a collar of leather at its other extremity, a
vertical cylinder of iron, four inches high, and of the
same bore exactly as the tube. The contracted aperture
at the end of the tube, not being exactly in the middle,
was not always opposite that of the arch ; and, therefore,
by turning it occasionally aside, the communication could
be contracted at pleasure, or even obstructed entirely.
The cylindrical appendix was tapered at the top to a nar¬
row orifice, through which an iron wire, attached to a
small ivory float, had been introduced. To prepare this
instrument for action, the mercury was first boiled in the
tube ; then the arch, filled with hot mercury, was screwed
to the end, the cock opened, and the surplus mercury al¬
lowed to flow over; next the vertical piece, with its float,
was screwed on, and a little mercury added, to give it
due play. The origin of the scale was to be determined
from the comparison with another good barometer of the
ordinary construction; but, owing to the equality of the
bores of the opposite tubes, the divisions were only half
the usual size, or the inches were exhibited by half-inches.
This species of barometer is certainly free from all sort
of risk, while the facility which, by means of turning the
arch, it affords in checking the ascent and descent of the
mercury, prevents in a great measure the oscillations of
that fluid. If the instrument were properly suspended,
therefore, its indications would be tolerably steady and
regular. The chief objection to it consists in the diminu¬
tive range of its scale.
In every marine barometer, the main object is to give
steadiness to the mercurial column, by retarding its mo¬
tion in the tube; in short, to imitate the equalizing effect
of the fly in mechanics. One form of construction was,
instead of the cistern below, to annex a spiral tube com¬
posed of a number of horizontal convolutions. Passemant,
an ingenious Parisian artist, about the year 1758 improved
on this idea. He twisted the barometer tube near the
middle, at least twice round, and joined to its upper end
a wide cylinder. But, more effectually to prevent all ir¬
regular oscillations, he took a tube with a very narrow or
capillary bore, and contracted it below, while he annexed
a wide cylindrical piece at its other extremity. The only
thing wanted now to the perfection of this instrument,
was to devise a mode of suspending it that should soften
the jerks, and allow it generally to maintain a vertical po¬
sition. Our English artists have, by repeated trials, at
Igst succeeded in surmounting all the difficulties. The
marine barometer, manufactured by Mr Cary of London Bare
(see fig. 12, Plate CVI.), is one of the most approved j
kind. It consists of a capillary tube, about twenty-seven
inches long, with a bore scarcely exceeding the thirtieth
part of an inch, but terminated by a cylinder four or five
inches high, and nearly three tenths of an inch in diame¬
ter. It is suspended by a spring and jimbols, near the
top, at a certain point, which in each case is discovered
by actual trial. By making the suspension lower, it is
found that the agitation of the barometer will cause the
mercury to rise a little; while, by placing the suspension
higher, the mercurial column suffers always some de¬
pression. The reason of this curious observation is not
well explained. It probably results from the different
centrifugal tendencies communicated to the opposite por¬
tions of the columns. The swinging of the instrument
would evidently augment the pressure of the upper por¬
tion of the column, while it diminished that of the under
portion. But this lower portion being longer than the
other, its tendency to descend would be proportionally so
much greater. About the point of suspension, however,
the opposite effects of the centrifugal tendencies are ba¬
lanced, since the superior force being employed to set in
motion a narrower column, the reflux and efflux of the
mercury in the upper cylinder must be preserved nearly
equal.
Marine barometers, thus improved, are now very gene¬
rally used, and with great benefit to the public service,
on board ships of war and Indiamen. To facilitate theHor
keeping of a register of barometrical observations, thebur£
meritorious and indefatigable Mr Horsburgh, hydrogra-P'atl
pher to the East India Company, published a set of en¬
graved ruled sheets, adapted for the convenience of na¬
vigators. In these plates the height of the mercury, from
twenty-seven to thirty-one inches, is represented in inch¬
es and tenth parts by horizontal lines, while each succes¬
sive day has a space apportioned to it by vertical bars.
The state of the barometer at every observation is mark¬
ed with a dot, and these dots being afterwards connected
together, exhibit an irregular waved line, stretching across
the sheet, and indicating the series of the changes of the
weather. At the lowest points, from which the curve
again returns, a gale generally follows. From the obser¬
vations made off the Cape of Good Hope during the
month of May 1815, by an ingenious and active officer,
Captain Basil Hall, then of his majesty’s sloop Victor, it
appears that whenever the mercury fell to 29,60 inches,
a storm ensued; the column always rose when the gale
abated, and when it reached near thirty inches, the wea¬
ther became fair. Those gales often came on suddenly,
without any visible change in the aspect of the sky, but
the marine barometer never failed to give warning of their
approach.
A very convenient substitute for the marine barometer
is the sympesometer constructed by Mr Adie, optician in
Edinburgh. It is merely an improved manometer, partly
filled with a fixed oil, and indicating the conjoined effect
of heat and atmospheric pressure on the inclosed air; but
the influence of temperature is corrected by means of a
sliding scale, regulated by an attached mercurial thermo¬
meter. The sympesometer occupies little room, is easily
rectified, and comparatively cheap. !tv
To explain the cause of the variations of the barometer,,^ ^
has long perplexed philosophers. Many hypotheses have ,ra.
at different times been advanced on the subject; but ^jjafsof
would be a mere waste of time to make any detailed re-ther0,
cital of such crude and unsatisfactory attempts. The va-met
rious and often imaginary effects of vapours, of heat, anu
of winds, have been employed in framing an explication ot
the changes of the atmosphere. The fact, that the mer-
BAROMETER.
ter. curial column generally falls before rain, seemed at com-
^ J plete variance with the intimation of the senses, a notion
having become universally prevalent, that the air is hea¬
vier when the sky appears lowering and overcast; another
proof, were it wanted, how fallacious are all current opi¬
nions in matters of science.
Leibnitz, fancying he had discovered a’ new principle
in hydrostatics, endeavoured, by a sort of metaphysical
argument, to demonstrate that, though a body adds its
own weight to the pressure of a fluid in which it is sus¬
pended, yet it will cease to be ponderous during the act
of falling. This alleged principle will not, in the actual
state of science, be thought to require any serious refuta¬
tion ; nor, were it even admitted, would it be found at all
adequate to the explication of the phenomenon, since the
weight of moisture precipitated from the whole body of
atmosphere could never, by the absence of its pressure,
occasion a diminution of the tenth part of an inch in the
altitude of the mercurial column.
Dr Halley and Mairan sought to account for the de¬
pression of the barometer before a storm, by the withdraw¬
ing of the vertical pressure of the atmosphere, when borne
swiftly along the surface of the globe by a horizontal mo¬
tion. This hypothesis at first sight appears very plausible,
and might seem further confirmed by a noted experiment
which most authors have admitted without due examina-
Hau tion. Hauksbee, a skilful and ingenious experimental
jee’s - philosopher, about the year 1704 placed two barometers,
jerir t. about three feet asunder, with their naked cisterns in two
close square wooden boxes, connected by a horizontal
brass pipe; one of these boxes had, inserted at right
angles, an open pipe on the one side, and a second pipe,
terminating in a screw, on the other side ; to this end he
adapted a strong globular receiver of about a foot in dia¬
meter, which had been charged, by injection from a
syringe, with three or four atmospheres; then suddenly
opening the stop-cock, and giving vent for the escape of
the air through the box and over the surface of the included
cistern, the mercury sunk equally more than two inches
in both the barometers.
This elegant experiment might be deemed entirely con¬
clusive, if a minute circumstance, on which the success
really depends, had not unfortunately been overlooked,
hs f cy.lt will be perceived from the inspection of the figure which
Hauksbee has given, that the exit pipe of the box was
considerably wider than the pipe which conveyed into it
the stream of air. This fluid, escaping from compression,
would therefore be carried by its elasticity as much be¬
yond the state of equilibrium ; while the width of the ori¬
fice, by facilitating its emission, would allow the portion
occupying the box and the connected reservoir to preserve
its acquired expansion. If the pipe cc discharge from the
box had been much narrower than the other, an opposite
effect must have taken place ; for the air accumulated over
the cistern, not finding a ready vent, would remain in a
state of condensation. This curious fact is another of the
uiany instances which might be cited to show the great
delicacy and circumspection required in performing philo¬
sophical experiments.
Similar results, however, can be exhibited by a very
simple apparatus. Let a small box, or rather a glass ball,
have a short narrow tube inserted in the one side, and
395
another wide tube opposite to this, with a cross slider ofBarometer.
brass, for contracting the orifice at pleasure ; and, to the
under part of the ball, join a long perpendicular tube, bent
back like a syphon to more than half its height, and con¬
taining a double column of water. Now, blow through the
narrow tube into the cavity of the ball, while the orifice
of emission is quite opened, and the liquid will rise seve¬
ral inches in the long stem ; but, still continuing the blast,
let the orifice be gradually contracted, and the column will
first descend to its ordinary level, and then sink consider¬
ably below it.
The fall and rise of the mercury in the barometer must Causes of
evidently be occasioned by some corresponding reduction tbe varia-
or accumulation of the atmosphere at the place of obser-tlon of Hie
vation. Whatever augments the elasticity of the air will barometer‘
cause part of the incumbent fluid to evade and leave for
the time a diminished vertical pressure. The efflux of
wind might also produce a temporary reduction of the at¬
mospheric column. But the real difficulty consists in ex¬
plaining why the variations of the barometer should be
greater in the high latitudes than between the tropics,
and why they so much exceed in all cases the quantities
which calculation might assign.
The influence of heat will account for the semi-amrnai
variations of the barometer which are observed, especially
within the torrid regions. From ten o’clock in the morn¬
ing till four in tfhe afternoon, the mercury generally falls ;
but, after that hour, it rises again, till ten o’clock at night,
when it drops till four in the morning, and then mounts
till ten o’clock in the forenoon. These regular changes,
which amount to about the five hundredth part of the
whole atmospheric pressure, depend on the prevalence of
the alternating land and sea breezes, occasioned by the
diversified action of the sun’s rays upon the earth and
water. The accumulation of air is greatest at four o’clock
in the morning and evening, and the mercury then attains
its highest point; but it sinks lowest at ten o’clock in the
morning and evening, when the incumbent mass has been
the most reduced.
A similar reason will explain the effects of the north¬
erly and easterly winds, in elevating the mercury of the
barometer in our climate. A chill air, with enfeebled
elasticity, is thus accumulated and exerts a predominant
pressure.
The augmented elasticity communicated to the air by
the action of heat or the presence of humidity, and the
reduction of the incumbent mass by the efflux of winds,
have each their distinct influence in disturbing the equi¬
librium of the atmospheric ocean. But the effects, particu¬
larly in the high latitudes, much surpass the regular opera¬
tion of those causes. The only mode, perhaps, of remov¬
ing the difficulty, is to take into consideration the compa¬
rative slowness with which any force is propagated through
the vast body of atmosphere. An inequality may con¬
tinue to accumulate in one spot, before the counterbalan¬
cing influence of the distant portions of the aerial fluid can
arrive to modify the result. In the higher latitudes, the
narrow circle of air may be considered as, in some mea¬
sure, insulated from the expanded ocean of atmosphere,
and hence, perhaps, the variations of the barometer are
concentrated there, and swelled beyond the due propor¬
tion. See the articles Climate and Meteorology, (b.)
306
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS.
Barome- IT was remarked in the preceding article, that the de-
trical cisive experiment by which Pascal established the re-
Measure- ality of atmospheric pressure, had likewise suggested to
ments. ingenious philosopher the method of determining the
elevations of distant points on the surface of the globe.
But the first attempts were very rude, proceeding on the
inaccurate supposition that the lower mass of air is a fluid
of uniform density. Different authors estimated variously
from eighty to ninety feet as the altitude, which corre¬
sponds to a variation of the tenth part of an inch in the
mercurial column. The 1 orricellian tube or cane, as it
was then called, was, on its first introduction to England,
carried accordingly to the tops of mountains, or conveyed
to the bottom of pits and mines, or even let down to great
depths in the sea.
Sinclair. Among those experimentalists who laboured most assi¬
duously in the study and application of the barometer in
this part of the island, we may mention George Sinclair.
This ingenious person had been professor of philosophy
in the university of Glasgow, but seems to have consci¬
entiously resigned his office soon after the Restoration,
rather than comply with that hated episcopacy which the
minions of Charles II. had forced upon the people of Scot¬
land. He then retired to the village of Tranent, not far
from Edinburgh, and was employed as a practical engineer,
in tracing the levels of coal-pits, in directing the machinery
employed in the mines at Leadhills, and afterwards in the
great undertaking of conducting water from the heights of
the Pentlands to supply the northern metropolis. Though
not a profound mathematician, he was skilled in mechanics
and hydrostatics, and possessed no small share of inven¬
tion. Sinclair is said to have been the first who applied
to the mercurial tube the name of baroscope, or indicator
of weight; the more definite appellation of barometer, or
measurer of weight, not having been appropriated till many
years afterwards. During his excursions in 1668 and 1670,
he employed that instrument to measure the heights of
Arthur’s Seat, Leadhills, and Tinto, above the adjacent
plains. He followed the original mode of using a tube
sealed at the top, with a paper scale pasted against the
side, which he carried to the top of the mountain, where
he filled it with mercury; and, inverting it in a basin, he
noted the altitude of the suspended column, and repeated
the same experiment below; a very rude method, cer¬
tainly, but no better was practised in England during the
succeeding thirty years.
In a small scarce tract, printed in 1688, and bearing
the quaint title of Proteus bound with Chains, Sinclair
gives some judicious remarks on the variations of the baro¬
meter, considered as a weather-glass, and delivers very
sound opinions, on the whole, respecting the causes of the 11\
chief meteorological phenomena. In a postscript to that M me.
piece, he proposes a most efficient and ingenious method r ts.
of weighing up wrecks from the bottom of the sea. It ^ ^
consisted in employing two large arks, or square wooden
boxes, fastened to the sides of the ship, and charged with
air carried down to them by a succession of inverted casks,
open at the lower end. An arc of a cubical shape, and
twenty feet in every dimension, the smallest which he
mentions, would, as he computes, have a buoyancy equi¬
valent to 448,000 pounds Troy. It is remarkable that the
celebrated Mr Watt always employed this very mode,
using a large gazometer, floating in a pond dug in the court
of his manufactory, and charged gradually by the action
of bellows, for raising the ponderous engines constructed
at Soho, and lifting them over his walls into the boats,
which were stationed to receive them in the adjacent canal.1
In all the computations hitherto made from different
altitudes of the barometer, the air was considered as a
uniform fluid; no regard being had to the gradual dimi¬
nution of density which must evidently take place in as¬
cending the atmosphere. To estimate the effect of thatj{e on
gradation, it became requisite previously to determine the of air’s
actual relation subsisting between the density of the fluiddei y
and its elasticity. This was first ascertained in England2!11 ast‘‘
by Townley, who inferred, from some experiments ofat
Boyle, that the elastic force which the air exerts is exact¬
ly proportional to its density. A similar conclusion was
about the same time drawn by Mariotte, a French philo¬
sopher, from a still better series of experiments. Follow¬
ing out this very simple law, he thought of computing
heights from barometrical observations, by the rules usu¬
ally employed in constructing tables of logarithms; and
had, therefore, obtained some glimpse, no doubt by a sort
of conjectural process, of the remarkable result, that the
density of the atmosphere decreases in a geometrical pro¬
gression, corresponding to the elevations taken after an
arithmetical one. But seemingly not aware of the import¬
ance of the principle at which he was pointing, Mariotte
immediately deserted it; and calculating from a repeated
bisection of the column of air between the two stations
into successive horizontal strata, he contented himself with
interpolating the densities according to a harmonic divi¬
sion, which he next abandoned for the simplicity of a se¬
ries with equal differences. This able experimenter hence
only sketched out a mode of investigating the problem of
barometrical measurements, without arriving at any very
definite or consistent rule of solution.
1 Sinclair was author of a well-known little hook entitled Satan's Invisible World Displayed, which, at a former period, was sold
at all the public fairs in the country, and devoured with eagerness and dismay by the Scottish peasantry. In a quarto volume, on
Hydrostatics, and the Working of Coal-mines, printed in Holland, and published by subscription in 1672, he digressed so widely from Ins
subject as to insert A True Relation of the Witches of Glenluce. But this was the folly of the age, from which several of the most
learned men had not been able to escape. It is painful to observe, that James Gregory, the inventor of the reflecting telescope,
who, although endowed with talents of the highest order, appears to have had a keen temper, and to have imbibed an hereditary
attachment to royalism and episcopacy, should have stooped to attack an unoffending and less fortunate rival. He wrote a little tract
against Sinclair’s Hydrostatics, with the title of the Art of Weighing Vanity, and under the thin disguise of Patrick Mather, arch-
beadle to the university of St Andrew’s. It is a piece full of low scurrility, and memorable only for a very short Latin paper ap¬
pended to it, containing the senes first given to represent the motion of a pendulum in a circular arc. In the British Museum,
there is a letter of Gregory to Collins, the secretary of the Royal Society, boasting of his project, and soliciting information with
which to overwhelm the poor author. But with all his eagerness to hunt down Sinclair, he never touches on the strange episode ot
the Witches of Glenluce. What a picture of times approaching so near to our own ! Sinclair was restored to his chair at the In¬
volution, and lived a few years longer. He answered Gregory’s attack in the same coarse style, charging him with total want o
skill in the use of astronomical instruments, though by help of subscriptions he had erected a sort of observatory at St Andrew’s. I*16
manuscript of this reply is preserved in the College Library of Glasgow.
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS.
397
Bar
tri
Jlea
me
Bela1
atrao
ric dt
ande
lion.
In 1686 that ingenious and active philosopher Dr Hal¬
ley resumed the subject, and discovered the law that con-
e. ngCts the elevation of the atmosphere with its density; of
• which he gave a clear demonstration, derived from the well¬
-known properties of the hyperbola referred to its asymp-
10 totes.1 Since the height of the mercury indicates the
tv pressure, and consequently the elasticity of the external
a. air it must be proportioned likewise to the density.
Wherefore the breadth of a given mass of air, or the thick¬
ness of a stratum which corresponds to a certain portion
of the mercurial column, will be inversely as this altitude.
Let 0 be the centre of a rectangular hyperbola, of which
OA and OP are the asymptotes; and conceive the dis¬
tances OA and OB to represent the heights of the mer¬
cury at two stations. The perpendiculars AC and BD,
which are reciprocally as O A and OB, must hence express
the relative thickness of strata corresponding to equal por¬
tions of the barometric scale. Divide AB into a multi¬
tude of equal segments, and erect the perpendiculars EM,
FL, GK, and HI. The intercluded spaces, from AC to
BD, will denote the successive thickness of the series of
strata into which the whole mass of air between the two
stations is subdivided. Consequently the aggregate or
mixtilineal space DBAC, which is proportional to the lo¬
garithm of the ratio of OB to O A, will express the differ¬
ence of atmospheric elevation when the mercurial column
mounts from B to A. Taking equal ascents, therefore, in
the atmosphere, the corresponding densities must, from
the property of the hyperbola, form a decreasing geome¬
trical series.
Rul e. To apply this elegant theorem, Dr Halley availed him-
duc self of the best experiments which had been performed to
determine the relative densities of air, water, and mer¬
cury. In different trials made near the earth’s surface,
it was found, when the barometer stood at 29f inches,
that the air is 840, 852, or even 860 times lighter than wa¬
ter. Employing round numbers, therefore, and assuming
the specific gravity of mercury to be 131, he reckoned
800 X 131 x 30 = 10,800 inches, or 90 feet, as the altitude
of an atmospheric column which, near the level of the sea,
would exert a pressure equivalent to that of an inch of
mercury. For the co-efficient, which answers to the actual
constitution of the atmosphere, Halley should have taken
the thirtieth part of *4342945, the modulus of the common
system of logarithms, or *0144748. But he proceeded
less directly, having satisfied himself with taking the
arithmetical mean between the differences of the loga- Barome-
rithms of 29 and 30, and of those of 30 and 31; a compen¬
sation of errors which gives *0144765, hardly deviating
from the former. Hence he gave this simple analogy for
computing the heights of mountains by' the barometer:
As the constant number *0144765 is to the difference between
the logarithms of the barometric columns at the two stations,
so is 900 to the elevation required. The result of this
operation is evidently the same as if the logarithmic dif¬
ference had been multiplied by the number 62170; a very
tolerable approximation at all seasons for a northern cli¬
mate, and quite accurate, indeed, if the mass of interven¬
ing air had a medium temperature of 46° by Fahrenheit’s
scale. Dr Halley supposed that the observations them¬
selves might, from the influence of heat, differ about a fif¬
teenth part between summer and winter. But the thermo¬
meter was still so imperfect an instrument, that it could not
be applied with confidence in correcting such variations.
The principle which Halley thus investigated might be Otherwise
derived from a simpler process. Conceive the atmosphere investigat-
to be divided into a multitude of equally thin horizontaled*
layers, it is evident that each successive stratum would,
to the pressure of the superincumbent stratum, add its
own weight, which being as its density or elasticity, is
therefore proportioned to the collective pressure; and,
consequently, those densities must continually increase in
going downwards, exactly in the same way, and after a
like progression, as money accumulates at compound in¬
terest, where a constant portion of the aggregate fund is
regularly joined to the capital.2 Such, in fact, is the dis¬
tinguishing character of a geometrical progression, that
the increase or decrease of each succeeding term is always
proportional to the term itself. The logarithmic curve is
hence the best adapted for exhibiting the relations which
connect the densities with the elevations in the atmo¬
sphere ; the axis of the curve expressing the elevation,
while each ordinate represents the corresponding density
of the stratum of air. It being a fundamental property of
the logarithmic curve, that every subtangent applied to it
has the same length, the exact determination of this in
the case of our atmosphere is the only thing wanted for
the final solution of the general problem.
Let AB, the absciss of a logarithmic curve, represent
a line descending perpendicular through the atmosphere ;
the ordinates AC and BD will in¬
dicate the elasticity of the strata
at A and B, and consequently,
abating the influence of tempera¬
ture, their densities. Draw the tan¬
gent DT, and form the elemental
triangle Dg?6 ; then BD : BT :: M
: cSD, or inversely BD : 8c?:: BT :
8D. But the thickness 8D of
each accrescent stratum being as¬
sumed to be the same, and the
subtangent being constant, from
the nature of the curve ; the ratio
of BT to 8D is given; therefore
the ratio of BD to hd is likewise given, or the increment
of the density in the successive strata is proportional to
1 It appears, however, that he was anticipated by Huygens, who had found, as early as the year 1662, that the altitudes of succes¬
sive strata of air being taken in arithmetical progression, the corresponding densities will form a geometrical series. Ibis beautiful
proposition he never published, indeed, but left it recorded upon one of the blank leaves of a Dutch almanac, containing various
other speculations, and now preserved in the library of the university of Leyden.
’ To illustrate still further this comparison ; if we reckon the mean altitude of a uniform atmosphere to be 26000 feet, it will follow
tjiat, for every descent of 26 feet, the density of the air will increase one thousandtEpart. This rate of progression corresponds pre¬
cisely with the weekly improvement of money invested at 5 per cent, per annum, supposing, for the sake of simplicity, the year to
contain only 50 weeks. Since money at the statute interest doubles in 14|- years, so the air has its dilatation doubled at the height
of 2Gx 50 x 14-2 or 18466 feet, answering to three miles and a half.
398
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS.
Barome- the density itself, the leading property of air. The
trical pressure of the thin stratum at B is represented by
Measure- which is equal to the rectangle under BT and bd. Hence,
^f'1—^ drawing the parallel DE, the collective area ABDC,
which represents the weight of the atmosphere between
the altitudes A and B, is equal to the rectangle under
the subtangent and EC. But AB expresses the difference
of the logarithms of the ordinates AC and BD, or the
densities at A and B; and consequently this difference
multiplied by the length of BT will indicate AB. In
relation to our atmosphere at the point of congelation,
the numerical value of the subtangent is about 26,000
feet, which is very nearly the product of 60,000 into the
modulus of the ordinary logarithms.
Eleven years after Dr Halley had given his rule for ba¬
rometrical measurements, this philosopher had an oppor¬
tunity of applying it to discover the height of Snowdon in
North Wales. He found that the barometer which stood
at 29*9 inches on the sea-shore near Caernarvon, fell a
few hours after, when planted on the summit of the moun¬
tain, to 26T inches, the altitude having been ascertained
previously, by a trigonometrical observation, to be 1240
yards.
Newton’s The year 1687 is memorable as being the date of the
general so- first publication of the Principia, which was drawn up
lution. chiefly at the urgent request of Halley, from disjointed
materials that had lain a considerable time in the author’s
closet. In that immortal work, Newton resumed the pro¬
blem of the gradation of atmospheric density, and solved
it in that general way which suited his penetrating genius.
He demonstrated that, supposing the particles of air, like
other bodies, to have their weight or gravitating tendency
diminished as the squares of their distances from the
centre of the earth, if those distances be taken in harmo¬
nic progression, the corresponding densities of the atmo¬
sphere will form a geometrical one. But since the dimi¬
nution of attraction at the greatest height we are able to
reach amounts only to the two thousandth part of the
whole, this difference is too minute to be adopted in prac¬
tice ; and the simpler law first established by the sagacity
of Halley may be deemed sufficiently accurate for every
real purpose.
Newton has given a sort of geometrical solution of the
problem. But a more precise, and, in this case, a clearer
investigation, is obtained by help of the symbols of the
integral calculus. Let x and xf express the altitudes of two
strata of atmosphere, y and y' the corresponding densities,
r the radius of the earth ; and suppose further, that e re¬
presents the altitude of the equiponderant column which
measures the elasticity of the air. Since the density of
the air depends on the incumbent pressure, its decrement
must evidently be proportional to the weight of each su-
peradded minute stratum, or to the density of this stratum
multiplied into its thickness and power of gravitation.
Whence — edy = ydx f—I—V, 0r - -J - ^
\r + xj ’ i
forty years yet elapsed before it came into current use iv,
Some of the continental philosophers likewise, biassed t T
perhaps, by a secret jealousy of the superiority which Me
England had acquired in science, began to throw out »■
doubts respecting the reality or accuracy of the law of'
of which the complete integral is e Hyp. Log.
(r +x)%
l/   r2
i2
x1 — x
y r + a;
If r be regarded as indefi-
r x r + aj'/’ + af*
nitely great in comparison of a?, the expression will pass
into e Hyp. Log. — x, which is only the common
formula.
Applica- . Little seemed wanting, therefore, to complete the prac-
tion of thetice of barometrical measurements, but the application of
thermome-the thermometer to correct the results. This instrument,
however, advanced slowly to perfection, and more than
ter.
geometrical progression in the atmosphere. Daniel Ber¬
noulli, a man of candour on the whole, as well as ingenuity
but who, with some proneness to speculative reasoning’
had unfortunately imbibed many of the prejudices of the
Cartesian and Leibnitzian schools, proposed in his capital
work, the Hydrodynamica, which appeared in 1736, some
vague hypotheses regarding the constitution of the atmo¬
sphere, as deduced from certain internal motions attribut¬
ed to its component strata. The specious results of those
calculations led him hastily to deviate from the principle
of the geometrical progression of density in the upper re¬
gions. In this departure from nice theory he was follow¬
ed by Cassini and Horrebow, who concluded, from some
partial observations they had made, that the barometer,
in its indications of atmospheric pressure, is subject to
irregularity; and that, near the surface of the earth, it
obeys a different law from that which obtains at great ele¬
vations. . A strong light, however, was thrown upon theBoiij r.
subject in 1753 by Bouguer, an able mathematician and
very skilful and ingenious observer, who, with other aca¬
demicians, had been employed for several years in mea¬
suring a degree of the meridian along the stupendous
ridge of the Andes. From the comparison of more than
thirty distinct observations, he deduced a simple and ele¬
gant rule for computing heights by means of the barome¬
ter. It is this, that the difference between the logarithms
of the mercurial columns at the two stations being dimi¬
nished by one thirtieth part, and the decimal point shifted
four places to the right, will express the required eleva¬
tion in toises. Since the English was to the French foot
nearly as fifteen to sixteen, the rule would be accommo¬
dated to our measures, and the result expressed in feet,
if the logarithmic difference were augmented by the thir¬
tieth part, then multiplied by six, and the decimal point
thrown back four places; or, which is the same thing, if
that logarithmic difference were multiplied at once by
62,000. But Bouguer imagined, that this rule would not
hold exactly in Europe, or in the lower regions of the
torrid zone ; and to explain the deviation, he had recourse
to the forced supposition that the particles of air possess
different degrees of elasticity. Lambert, a philosopher of
great originality and penetration, afterwards published
some excellent remarks on the comparison of barometrical
measurements. But no material progress was made till
1755, when M. de Luc of Geneva resumed the subject,peI,
and carefully combined experiment with observation. For
the space of fifteen years and upwards, he prosecuted his
inquiries with diligence and perseverance, aided by the
peculiar advantages of local situation, in a city abounding
with skilful artists, and seated in the neighbourhood of
lofty mountains. The discrepancies which had hitherto
created so much embarrassment proceeded mostly from
the inattention of observers to the-disturbing influence
of heat, and particularly its effect in expanding the air,
and consequently augmenting the elevation due to a
given difference of atmospheric pressure. De Luc’s
first object was to improve the thermometer of Reaumur,
which, though greatly inferior to that of Fahrenheit,
had been adopted in France and the adjacent parts ot
the Continent. Having ascertained that mercury has
the valuable property of expanding equably with equal
additions of heat, he substituted that metallic fluid for
spirit of wine, but retained its arbitrary and inconvenient
scale of eighty degrees between the points of freezing and
boiling water. He next examined the dilatation of air
Ban
tri
. Mea
me;
/
Sltuc
burg!
ami] '•
Bon a
Lap] .
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS. 399
at different temperatures, and corrected those results by
numerous observations made on the mountains of Savoy,
w an(j the mines of the Hartz, in which the barometer was
combined with the thermometer. 'Y\\e formula which he
/ thence deduced for the computation of barometrical mea¬
surements was, in 1772, published in his Recherches sur les
Modifications de lAtmosphere, and seemed to attract, espe¬
cially in England, a very considerable degree of notice.
Dr Maskelyne, the astronomer-royal, adapted it to our
system of measures, and De Horsley made annotations
and comments on it. But, what was of more importance,
other accurate observers, incited by De Luc’s example,
entered the same field of inquiry, provided with instru¬
ments of greater delicacy and much better construction.
In 1775 Sir George Shuckburgh Evelyn visited the Alps,
and combined trigonometrical operations with correspond¬
ing observations by barometers and thermometers from
the hands of Ramsden; and about this time likewise,
General Roy not only measured, with instruments made
by that excellent artist, some of the principal mountains
in Scotland and Wales, but instituted a series of mano-
metrical experiments. It resulted from all these re¬
searches that, for each degree on Fahrenheit’s scale, mer¬
cury expands the 9700th part, and air the 435th part of
their respective bulks. It further appeared that the at¬
mosphere has its temperature almost uniformly diminish¬
ed at equal ascents; and that the logarithmic difference,
reckoning as integers the first four digits, expresses in
English fathoms the height of an aerial column as cold
as the point of congelation. General Roy proposed like¬
wise another correction depending on the enfeebled gra¬
vity, and consequently the augmented altitude, of the
equiponderant column of atmosphere in the lower lati¬
tudes, occasioned by the influence of centrifugal force
arising from the earth’s rotation. Several years after¬
wards, Professor Playfair, in a learned paper, printed in
the first volume of the Transactions of the Royal Society
of Edinburgh, examined all the circumstances which can
affect barometrical measurements, and discussed each
question with the correctness and perspicuity that we
ofmight expect from his distinguished abilities. At nearly
an equal interval of time the celebrated Laplace resumed
the subject in his Mecanique Celeste, and brought all the
conditions together in a very complicated formula. Such
an appearance of extreme accuracy, however, is perhaps
to be regarded merely as a theoretical illusion, unsuited
and inapplicable to any real state of practice. Biot has
since attempted to arrive at a similar conclusion, by set¬
ting out a priori from some careful experiments on the
relative density of air and mercury, performed by him in
conjunction with Arago. He thence infers that, in the
latitude of Paris, and at the point of congelation, air, un¬
der a mercurial pressure of 76 metres, or 29,922 English
inches, is 10,463 times lighter than mercury at the tem¬
perature of water at its lowest contraction. This would
give 26,090 feet for the height of a column of homogene¬
ous fluid, whose pressure is equivalent to the elasticity of
the atmosphere. The co-efficient adapted to common
logarithms, and adjusted to the force of attraction at the
level of the sea, would therefore be 60,148 feet, or 18,334
Metres; scarcely differing sensibly from the quantity
which Ramond had deduced from a very numerous set
0 e^periments made by him on the Pyrenees. But Biot
piefers, as the co-efficient, the number 18,393, answering
or an elevation of 1200 metres, or about 4000 feet above
ie sea, which is not far from the general level of such
o servations. The formula is hence, in English feet,
60,346 (1 + -002837 cos. 2-4,) 6
A 2 (T + *)\ 7 H
l1 + “Tooo-) X;
where + denotes the latitude of the place, T and t the Barome-
temperatures of the air at the two stations, as indicated
by the centesimal thermometer, and H and h the heights
of mercurial columns corrected for the effects of heat.
This active writer has likewise given tables for expe¬
diting the calculation of barometrical measurements; in
which he was anticipated, however, by Oltmans of Berlin,
who published, in 1809, large Hypsometrical Tables, as
they are called, accommodated to the complex formula
of Laplace. Such tables might no doubt prove useful
where very frequent computations are wanted, as in the
case of the reduction of the numerous observations brought
home by Baron Humboldt, for which, indeed, they were
first designed. But still they contain a needless profusion
of figures, and hold forth a show of extreme accuracy
which the nature of the observations themselves can
never justify. The mere calculation of barometrical mea¬
surements is a secondary object. The great difficulty is
to procure good observations, and to combine tolerable
accuracy with expedition. For this purpose, a very port¬
able barometer is still wanted;—an instrument light and
commodious, exempt from injury or derangement, and yet
sensible to minute changes of atmospheric pressure.
These properties, indeed, are seldom conjoined, and one
advantage must generally be sacrificed to obtain another.
A modification of the conical barometer already suggest¬
ed would seem, on the whole, to be well adapted for the
geological traveller. The two unequal tubes are cement¬
ed into a small cylinder of steel, wflth a fine stop-cock of the
same metal confining the mercury. This renders the in¬
strument so portable that it may be inclosed in a walking-
stick ; on turning the steel-cock, and inverting the staff",
the height of the mercurial column is readily found.
A barometer of the most improved construction is re- Mountain
presented in fig. 19; a portion of the tube is shown in barometer,
fig. 20; and a section of its cistern in fig. 21. By help
of a screw pressing against the bottom of a leathern bag,
inclosed within a cylindrical ivory box, the mercury is
alwrays brought up through a tubular aperture to the same
precise level; or till its convex surface appears to touch
a very thin line of light, which is admitted through a slip
of ivory applied against the side of the chink or separation
of this tube from a wider one immediately over it. The
lower end of the mercurial column being thus adjusted,
the length is easily measured by drawing gradually down
a hollow brass tube, divided at intervals by wide slits,
covered on one side by thin bits of ivory, till by that
softened light a contact is observed with the edge of a
slit and the convex top of the column. The fine Vernier
which the movable tube carries gives the altitude of the
mercury in thousandth parts of an inch. A thermometer
is likewise constantly attached to the instrument, for the
purpose of indicating the temperature of the mercury,
which, from the heat of the hand in carrying, or the in¬
fluence of the solar beams, is commonly warmer than the
external air.
This mountain barometer is suspended for observation
by jimbols from a tripod, as exhibited in fig. 18; but its
several parts can be folded up together into a convenient
compass, tolerably well fitted for carriage, as represented
in fig. 19. The whole apparatus may not exceed the
weight of ten pounds ; yet even this, moderate as it might
seem, would be felt a serious encumbrance by a traveller
who is engaged, day after day, in the labour of climbing
mountains. The risk which the instrument incurs, be¬
sides, in transporting it perhaps over rough precipices,
imposes a perpetual constraint, while to make correct
observations with it must always require time and patient
attention. A lighter and more compact, though less ac¬
curate, barometer will generally be preferred by the geo-
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS.
400
Barome- logical traveller, whose object is rather to extend our ae-
trical quaintance with the altitudes of’ mountains, than to aim
Measure- at a superfluous and often illusory precision. The port-
a^e instrument, invented by Sir Henry Englefield, and
represented in fig. 14, will, on the whole, answer those
barometer views* I*-8 cistern is formed of box-wood, sufficiently
of sir h. tight to hold the mercury, without preventing the access
Englefieltl, and impression of the external air. When this barometer
is inverted, the mercury, therefore, subsides very slowly
in the tube, which must be firmly suspended in a vertical
position. For greater security, the mercury is now put
into a leathern bag introduced within the cistern,
and of Gay- A very simple and convenient sort of portable barome-
Lussac. ter was lately invented in France by that celebrated che¬
mical philosopher M., Gay-Lussac. (See fig. 15 and 16.)
It consists of rather a wide syphon tube, filled with mer¬
cury, and sealed hermetically at the inverted end, having
a very fine capillary hole formed about an inch under this,
by nicely directing the flame of a blow-pipe against the
side of the glass, and drawing a melted spot of it out to a
point. The lower portion of the principal branch has its
bore contracted to less than the tenth part of an inch, to
prevent the mercurial column from dividing in the act of
inverting it. The mercury is boiled as usual, and the
tube may be concealed in a walking-stick, or lodged, like
the complete mountain barometer, in a cylinder of brass,
with movable sliders bearing the divisions of a Vernier
at both ends. (See fig. 17.) For greater simplicity, how¬
ever, the larger divisions might be engraved on the tube
itself. This kind of barometer is of ready use, and very
little exposed to hazard in carriage. It is commonly held
in a reclined or inverted position; but, in making an ob¬
servation, it must be gently turned back, and kept per¬
pendicular till the mercury descends through the con¬
tracted bore, and slowly rises again in the opposite short
branch ; the scale is noticed at both ends of the incurved
column, and the difference of those indications gives its
correct altitude.
Modified A modification of the conical barometer, which, in tra-
conical ba.veiling, we have ourselves employed with great ease and
rometer. advantage, should likewise be mentioned. The principal
part of it consists of a small stop-cock made of steel, and
represented in fig. 13. A glass tube of 31 or 32 inches
long, with a bore of the tenth part of an inch hermeti¬
cally sealed at the top, and filled w'ith quicksilver, is ce¬
mented into the one end of the stop-cock; and into the
other end is cemented an open and wider tube, 16 inches
or more in length, and having its diameter above the
eighth part of an inch. This compound tube is lodged in
a walking-stick, divided into inches and tenths through
its whole extent, or only at the upper part, if uniform
tubes be selected. In making an observation, the cock
is turned, and the instrument inverted. The upper column
then descends partly into the lower tube, till it becomes
shortened to the proper altitude.
We have already stated the principles on which the cal¬
culation of barometrical measurements proceeds. But
there still are some points, either assumed or overlooked,
which may considerably modify the results. It is presum¬
ed, that, at equal successive heights, the temperature of
the atmosphere decreases uniformly. This property, how¬
ever, does not hold strictly, and it may be shown, from a
comparison of the best observations, that the decrements
of heat follow a quicker progression in the higher regions.
But we shall soon have another opportunity to examine
this subject, and trace out its various consequences.
Fhe humidity of the air also materially affects its elas¬
ticity, and the hygrometer should therefore be conjoined
with the thermometer in correcting barometrical observa¬
tions. But nothing satisfactory has yet been done in re¬
gard to that subject. The ordinary hygrometers, or rather j.,
hygroscopes, are mere toys, and their application to science t a0'
is altogether hypothetical. A most unphilosophical course Me ,re.
has lately been pursued, by multiplying calculations ground- “ «•'
ed on very loose data, instead of instituting a nice and ela- ^ ^
borate train of original experiments.
In the actual state of physical science, it is preposte¬
rous, therefore, to affect any high refinement in the formula
for computing barometrical measurements. The whole
operation may be reduced to a very short and easy pro¬
cess. But the simplicity of the calculation would be still
greater, if the centesimal thermometer were generally
adopted. It will be sufficiently accurate, till better data
are obtained, to assume the expansion of mercury by heat
as equal to the 5000th part of its bulk for every centesi¬
mal degree, while that of air is twenty times greater, be¬
ing an expansion for each degree of the 250th part of the
bulk of this fluid. 1. Correct the length of the mercurial^ :j,
column at the upper station, adding to it the product of itsm tini
midtiplication into twice the difference between the degrees on bar elri-
the attached thermometers, the decimal point being shifted^ a-
four places to the left. 2. Subtract the logarithm of thissuri !ilt?
corrected length from that of the loiver column, multiply by
six, and move the deciyial point four places to the right; the
result is the approximate elevation expressed in English feet.
3. Correct this approximate elevation by shifting the deci¬
mal point three places back to the right, and multiplying by
twice the sum of the degrees on the detached thermometers;
this product being now added, will give the true elevation.
If it were judged worth while to make any allowance
for the effect of centrifugal force, this will be easily done
before the last multiplication takes place, by adding to
twice the degrees on the detached thermometers the
fifth part of the mean temperature corresponding to the
latitude. The mean temperature itself is formed by mul¬
tiplying the square of the cosine of the latitude by twen¬
ty-nine.
In illustration of these rules, we shall subjoin some ex pies,
real examples. General Roy, in the month of August
1775, observed the barometer on Caernarvon Quay, at
30-091 inches, the attached centesimal thermometer in¬
dicating 150,7, and the detached 15°-6 ; while, on the peak
of Snowdon, the barometer fell to 26-409 inches, and the
attached and detached thermometers marked respectively
10°-0 and 8°-8. Here twice the difference of the attach¬
ed thermometers is 11°-4, and twice the sum of the de¬
tached thermometers is 480,8, which becomes 50-8 when
augmented by the fifth part of the mean temperature on
that parallel. Now, omitting the lower decimals, the
first correction is -00264 X 11*4 — *030, to be added to
26*409. Wherefore,
Log. 30-091 = 1-4784866
Log. 26-439 = 1-4223450
Difference = -0561416
Constant multiplier = 60000
Approximate height = 3368-496
And, for the true height, the correction is 3-37 X 50-8
= 17T2, which gives 3340 for the final result.
We shall take another example from the observations
made by Sir George Shuckburgh Evelyn, at the same pe¬
riod, among the mountains of Savoy. This accurate phi¬
losopher found the barometer, placed in a cabin near the
base of the Mole, and only 672 feet above the surface of
the lake of Geneva, to stand at 28-152 inches, while the
attached and detached thermometers indicated 160,3 and
and 17°-4; but, in another barometer carried to the sum¬
mit of that lofty insulated mountain, the mercury sunk to
24-176 inches, the attached and detached thermometeis
marking 14°-4 and 13°-4. Wherefore, twice the difference
BAROMETRICAL MEASUREMENTS.
liar e-
tr
lies -e-
me •
of the degrees on the attached was 3°*8, and twice the
sum of the degrees on the detached thermometers was
61°‘6. Consequently the correction to be applied to the
higher column was '6024 X
Now,
3'8 = *009, which makes it
Calc,
tion h.
outl .
rithn
Log
Log
Difference =
Constant multiplier =
28-152 = 1-4495092
24-185 = 1-3835461
•0659631
60000
Approximate elevation = 3957-786
To correct this approximate elevation, remove the deci¬
mal point three places back, and multiply it by 61°-6, in¬
creased by 2°-9, the fifth part of the mean temperature,
corresponding to the latitude; but 3-96 X 64-5 = 255-4,
and 3957-8 -f 255-4 = 4213. Hence the summit of the
Mole is 4885 feet above the lake of Geneva, or 6083 feet
above the level of the Mediterranean Sea,
The last example we shall give is drawn from the ob¬
servation which Baron Humboldt made among the Andes,
near the summit of Chimboraqo, the highest spot ever ap¬
proached by man. This celebrated traveller found there,
that the barometer fell to 14-850 English inches; the at¬
tached thermometer in the tent being at 10°, and the de¬
tached in open air being l°-6 under zero. But the same
barometer, carried down to the shore of the Pacific Ocean,
rose exactly to thirty inches, while both the attached and
detached thermometers stood at 25°-3. Consequently the
correction to be applied to the upper column is = -0015
X 30-6 = *045. Wherefore,
Log. 30-000 = 1-4771213
Log. 14-895 = 1-1730405
Difference = -3040808
Constant multiplier = 60000
Approximate elevation = 18244*848
h>ow, the difference of the detached thermometers, or
26°-9, being doubled and further increased by 5°-8, the
fifth part of the mean temperature at the equator, makes
59°-6; and the final correction to be applied is therefore
= 18,24 X 59°-6 = 1087, which gives 19,332 feet for
the true elevation observed, or 2140 feet below the sum¬
mit of Chimboraqo.
These calculations are performed by the help of loga¬
rithms. It is desirable, however, to approximate at least
to barometrical measurements without such aid. A very
simple rule for this object has been given by Professor
Leslie in his Elements of Geometry. Since log. ^ — 2 M
(a~b i 1 A* — 6\3 . I fa — b\b \ ,
Wi+sW+l] +5W+*l] &c.J,whereMde.
notes the modulus of the logarithmic system ; when a
approaches to b, the lower terms may be rejected without
sensible error, or log. = 2 M 0, very nearly.
Wherefore, in reference to our atmosphere, the modulus
nn^])1 ^ ^le ecluiponderant column of homogene-
OUS fliud, or 60,000 X -4342945 = 26,058 feet, or only
r®und numbers; whence, as the sum of the
nunhlliSt™8 is t0 their difference^ so is the constant
Rov’« ,52,000/ee* t0 the approximate height. Let General
nl/ 5)bservftl0n on Snowdon be resumed as an exam-
or 5fi!?LanoaL0fy is 30,091 + 26-439 : 30-091—26-439,
tion cliff •3 652 :: 62,000 : 3,359, the approximate eleva-
This efl^ very little from the logarithmic result,
accurafp^f 6 .i°^ ca^uJat^on may Le deemed sufficiently
5000 fppf 01t36et^rrn^n’n^ an^ altitu6e that exceeds *not
Vol. iv bUt 11 Wi^ exten(^ t0 greater elevations if the
401
second term of the series be likewise taken, which is done Barome-
by striking off three figures, and cubing the half of this trical
number. Thus, resuming the mensuration of Chimboraco Measure-
44-895 : 15-105 ;: 52,000 :17,496, and (8-75)3 = 670, mak- ments-
ing together 18,166 for a nearer approximation.
I he calculation of barometrical measurements, including p
the corrections required, is rendered most easy and expe-tricSe
ditious by means of a sliding rule made by Mr Cary, op¬
tician in London. This small instrument should always
go along with mountain barometers; and it will be found
a very agreeable companion to every geological traveller.
But portable barometers, in spite of every precaution,
are yet so liable to be broken or deranged, that other aux¬
iliary methods are desirable for ascertaining distant ele¬
vations. In this view, the variation of the boiling point
of water was proposed by Fahrenheit as far back as the
year 1724; the idea having occurred to him, as it had done
before to Amontons, while engaged with experiments to
perfect his thermometer. Little regard, however, seems
to have been paid to the suggestion till De Luc and Saus-
suie. made a series of observations on the heat of ebullition
at different elevations above the surface. About thirty
years since, Cavallo attempted to revive the scheme of
I ahrenheit, but experienced much difficulty in preventing
the irregular starts of the thermometer plunged in boiling
water. Ihe best and surest way of examining the heat
of ebullition, is to suspend the bulb of the thermometer ifi
the confined steam as it rises from the water.
The heat at which water boils, or passes into the form Temnera-
of steam, depends on the weight of the superincumbent ture of
atmosphere. By diminishing this pressure, the point ofLod^g wa-
ebullition is always lowered. It appears that, while theter aPPlie(1
boiling heat sinks by equal differences, the corresponding10 the
atmospheric pressure decreases exactly, or at least ex-“on oT*'
tremely nearly, in a geometrical progression, it being heights,
found that every time such pressure is reduced to one
half, the temperature of boiling water suffers a regular di¬
minution of about eighteen centesimal degrees. This
beautiful relation assimilates with the law which connects
the density and elevation of the successive strata of the
atmosphere. The interval noticed between the boiling
points at two distinct stations must be proportional to
their difference of altitude above the level of the sea. Wb
have, therefore, only to determine the co-efficient or con¬
stant multiplier, which may be discovered either from an
experiment under the rarefied receiver of an air-pump, or
from an actual observation performed at the bottom and
on the top of some lofty mountain. We shall prefer at
present the observation made by Saussure on the summit
of Mont Blanc. This diligent philosopher found, by means
of a very delicate thermometer constructed on purpose,
that water which boiled at 101°-62 in the plain below
when the barometer stood at 30-534 English inches, boil¬
ed at 86°-24 on the top of that mountain, while the baro¬
meter had sunk to 17-136. Wherefore the distance be¬
tween the points of ebullition, or 15-38 centesimal de¬
grees, must correspond to an approximate elevation of
15,050 feet, which gives 9781 feet of ascent for each de¬
gree, supposing the mean temperature of the atmospheric
column to be that of congelation. But it will be more
convenient to assume 1000 for the constant multiplier,
which corresponds to the temperature of 51°.
To reduce this very simple result into practice, it would
be requisite to have a thermometer with a fine capillary
bore, and nicely constructed, the stem six or eight inches
long, and bearing ten or a few more degrees from the
boiling point; these degrees to be divided into twenty or
perhaps fifty equal parts engraved on the tube, which
should be rather thick, and terminating in a bulb of about
half an inch diameter. This thermometer, being fitted
3 E
402
Barome¬
trical
Measure¬
ments
(i
Baron.
Mode of
tracing
vertical
sections.
BAR
with a brass ring two inches above the bulb, should screw
into the narrow neck of a small copper flask, wrhich holds
some water, but has a hole perforated near the top for al¬
lowing the steam to escape. The water may be made to
boil by the application of a lamp. The difference between
the indications of the thermometers at the two stations
being multiplied by a thousand feet, will give tne eleva¬
tion corresponding to a temperature of 5^°. The correc¬
tion for the actual mean temperature can easily be ap¬
plied. If a more correct co-efficient be afterwards deter¬
mined, the same thousand, retained as a multiplier, may
easily be adapted to another temperature.
This method of measuring elevations on the surface of
the globe is, therefore, capable of great improvement, and
might be employed with advantage in a variety of cases
where observations with the barometer are not easily ob¬
tained. Its application would be most important to phy¬
sical geography, in ascertaining the capital points for tia-
cing the outline of the profile or vertical section of any
country. The common maps, which exhibit mere super¬
ficial extension, are quite insufficient to represent the
great features of nature, since the climate and productions
of any place depend as much on its elevation above the
sea as its latitude. Scientific travellers have accordingly
turned their attention of late years to the framing of ver¬
tical sections. As a specimen, we give, in fig. 22, from
Humboldt’s Geography of Plants, a section across the
American continent, one of the best and most interesting
that has yet appeared. It consists, in fact, of four com¬
bined sections, traversing through an extent of 425 miles.
The line begins at Acapulco, on the shore of the Pacific
Ocean, and runs 195 miles, about a point of the compass
towards the east of north, to the city of Mexico; then
80 miles, a point to the south of east, to La Puebla de
los Angeles; again it holds a north-east direction of 70
miles, to the Cruz Blanca; and finally bends 80 miles
east by south, to Vera Cruz, on the coast of the Atlantic.
A scale of altitudes is annexed, which shows the vast ele¬
vation of the table-land of Mexico. An attempt is like¬
wise made in this profile to give some idea of the geologi¬
cal structure of the external crust. Limestone is repre¬
sented by straight lines slightly inclined from the hori¬
zontal position; Basalt, by straight lines slightly reclined
BAR
from the perpendicular; Porphyry, by waved lines some- Ba le.
what reclined ; Granite, by confused hatches; Amygda- t j'
loid, by confused points. Ms ire.
By this mode of distant levelling, a very interesting n 1*
discovery, in another quarter of our globe, was made by ^
Engelhardt and Parrot, two Prussian travellers. They ^ ^
proceeded,. on the 13th July 1814, from the mouth of The ^
the Kuban, at the island of Taman, on the Black Sea;piar iw
and, examining carefully every day the state of the ba-die el of
rometer, they advanced with fifty-one observations, thetlle an-
distance of 990 wersts, or 711 English miles, to the mouth
of the Terek, on the margin of the Caspian Sea. Similar
observations were repeated and multiplied on their return.
From a diligent comparison of the whole, it follows that
the Caspian is 334 English feet below the level of the
Black Sea. That the Caspian really occupies a lower level
than the Ocean, had been suspected before, from a com¬
parison of some registers of barometers kept at St Peters¬
burg, and on the borders of that inland sea; but the last
observation places the question beyond all doubt. It fur¬
ther appears, that within 250 wersts, or 189 miles, of the
Caspian, the country is already depressed to the level of
the Ocean, leaving, therefore, an immense basin, from
which the waters are supposed to have retired by a sub¬
terranean percolation.
If the same plan of barometrical measurements had
been followed by the adventurous explorers of the African
continent, and the altitudes of the central lakes ascer¬
tained, the question regarding the course of the Niger
would have been much sooner settled, and much vague and
unsatisfactory discussion avoided. Even thermometrical
observations of the temperature of springs, or of the ground
at moderate depths, would have furnished an approxima¬
tion to those elevations sufficiently near for solving that
great problem in geography on scientific principles alone.
The spirit of modern enterprise has more lately carried
barometers to the remotest and loftiest stations on the sur¬
face of our globe. It has been thus ascertained that some
of the mountains in the equatorial parts of America attain
the stupendous altitude of 25,000 feet, while the great
chain of Upper India seems to rear its vast summit about
2000 feet still higher. See Climate, Hygrometry, and
Meteorology. (b0
BARON, a person who holds a barony. The origin
and primary import of this term have been much contest¬
ed. Menage derives it from the Latin baro, a word which
we find used for vir, a “ stout” or “ valiant man whence
it was that those placed next the king in battles were,
according to him, called barones, as being the bravest men
in the army; and as princes frequently rewarded with
fees the bravery and fidelity of those about them, the word
came to signify any noble person who held a fee imme¬
diately of the king. Isidore, and after him Camden, sup¬
pose the word, in its original acceptation, to have meant
a“ mercenary soldier;” and Messieurs de Port Royal de¬
rive it from pagos, “ weight” or “ authority.” But Cicero
uses the word baro for a stupid brutal man; the old Ger¬
mans make mention of “ buffeting a baron,” meaning a
villain; and the Italians use the word barone to signify a
“ beggar.” M. de Marca thinks baron derived from the
German bar, “ man,” or “ freeman ;” others seek its origin
in the old Gaulish, Celtic, and Hebrew languages; and
some are of opinion that it comes from the Spanish varo,
a “ stout noble person;” whence wives used to call their
husbands, and princes their tenants, “ barons.” In the
Salic law, as well as in the laws of the Lombards, the
word baron signifies man in general; and, accordingly, the
old glossary of Philomenes renders baron awjg, “man.”
Baron is more particularly used amongst us for a lord
or peer of the lowest class, or a degree of nobility next
below that of viscount, and above that of knight or baro¬
net. In ancient records the word baron included all the
nobility of England, because all noblemen were barons
even although they occupied a higher rank in the peer¬
age. But anciently it sometimes happened, that, when
a baron had been raised to a new degree of peerage, the
two titles, in the course of a few generations, descended
differently, one perhaps to the male descendants, and the
other to the heirs-general, by which means the earldom
or other superior title subsisted without a barony; an
there are also modern instances where persons have been
created earls and viscounts without annexing a barony to
their other honours ; so that now the rule does not ho
universally, that all peers are barons.
The origin and comparative antiquity of barons have
been the subject of much research amongst English an
tiquaries. But the most probable opinion is, that t ey
were the same with our present lords of manors; to w ic
the appellation of court-baron, which is the lord s cour,
BAR
BAR
403
ns, and incident to every manor, seems to give countenance.
The original name of this dignity in England is said to
have been vavassour, which by the Saxons was changed
into thane, and by the Normans into baron. From Magna
Charta it appears that originally all lords of manors, or
barons, had seats in the great council or parliament; but
such is the defective state of the public records, that the
first precept to be found is not of older date than the 49th
of Henry III.; and this, though it had been issued out in
the king’s name, had neither his authority nor his sanc¬
tion, since not only the king himself, but his son Prince
Edward, and most of the nobility who remained faithful
to him, were then prisoners in the hands of the rebellious
barons; having been taken at the battle of Lewes, in the
month of May preceding, and detained in captivity until
the memorable battle of Evesham, which happened in
August the year following.
Before the 49th of Henry III., the ancient parliaments
consisted of archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and barons.
Of these barons there w'ere two sorts ; the greater barons,
or the king’s chief tenants, who held in capite of the crown ;
and the lesser barons, who held of the greater by the te¬
nure of military service. The former had a summons to
parliament by several writs; and the latter, if possessed
of thirteen knights fees and a quarter, had a general sum¬
mons from the sheriff in each county. Matters continued
in this state until the 49th of Henry HI., when, instead
of keeping to the old form, the prevailing powers thought
fit to summon only those of the greater barons who were
of their party, and, in room of the lesser barons who at¬
tended with large retinues, to issue their precepts to the
sheriffs of counties to cause two knights in every shire to
be chosen, and one or two burgesses for each borough, to
represent the people residing in those counties and bo¬
roughs;—an innovation which gave rise to the separation
into two houses of parliament. Hence the title came by
degrees to be confined to the greater barons, or lords of
parliament; and, among the peerage, no other barons were
admitted except such as had been summoned by writ, in
respect of the tenure of their lands or baronies, until
Richard II. converted it into a mere title of honour, by
conferring it on divers persons by his letters patent.
When a baron is called up to the house of peers by
writ of summons, the writ is in the king’s name, and he is
directed to repair to the parliament appointed to be holden
at a certain time and place, and there to treat and advise
with his majesty, the prelates, and nobility, about the
weighty affairs of the nation. The ceremony of the ad¬
mission of a baron into the house of peers is this; He is
brought into the house between two barons, who conduct
him up to the lord chancellor, his patent or writ of sum¬
mons being carried by a king-at-arms, and presented by
im kneeling to the lord chancellor, who reads it, then
congratulates him on his becoming a member of the house
o peers, and invests him with his parliamentary robe.
hereafter the patent is delivered to the clerk of parlia¬
ment, and the oaths are administered to the new peer, who
is then conducted to his seat on the barons’ bench. The
coronation robes of a baron are the same as those of an earl,
except that he has only two rows of spots on each shoul-
er, and, in like manner, his parliamentary robes have
u two guards of white fur, with rows of gold lace; but,
n ot*ler respects, they are the same as those of other
peers. King Charles II. granted a coronet to the barons,
aving six pearls set at equal distances on the chaplet. A
aron s cap is the same as a viscount’s. His style is Right
onourable ; and he is addressed by the king or queen,
Trusty and Well Beloved.
tpr anc^ent tenure were those who held certain
ri ones of the king, who still reserved the tenure in
chief to himself. There were also barons by temporal
tenure, who held their honours, castles, and manors, as
heads of their barony; that is, by grand serjeantry, by
which tenure they were anciently summoned to parlia¬
ment. But at present a baron by tenure is not a lord of
parliament till he be called thither by writ.
Barons of the Exchequer, four judges to whom the ad¬
ministration of justice is committed in causes betwixt the
king and his subjects relative to matters of revenue. Their
office is also to look into the accounts of the king, for
which reason they have auditors under them.
Barons of the Cinque-ports are members of the house
of commons, elected by the five ports, two for each port.
Baron and Feme, in the English Law, a term used for
husband and wife, in relation to each other, who are deem¬
ed but one person; so that a wife cannot be witness for or
against her husband, nor he for or against his wife, except
in cases of high treason.
Baron and Feme, in Heraldry, is when the coats of
arms of a man and his wife are borne per pale in the same
escutcheon; the man’s being always on the dexter side,
and the woman’s on the sinister. But in this case the
woman is supposed not to be an heiress, for then her coat
must be borne by the husband on an escutcheon of pre¬
tence.
BARON, Robert, a dramatic author, who lived during
the reign of Charles I. and the protectorship of Oliver
Cromwell. He received the earlier part of his education
at Cambridge, after which he became a member of Gray’s
Inn. During his residence at the university he wrote a
novel called the Cyprian Academy, in which he intro¬
duced the first two of the dramatic pieces mentioned be¬
low. The third of them is a much more regular and per¬
fect play, and was probably written when the author had
attained a riper age. The names of these productions
are, 1. Deorum Dona, a masque ; 2. Gripus and Hegio, a
pastoral; and 3. Mirza, a tragedy. Mr Baron had a great
intimacy with Howell the traveller, in whose collection
of Letters there is one addressed to this gentleman, who
was then resident at Paris.
BARONET, a dignity or degree of honour next below
that of baron, and above that of knight, with precedency
of all knights excepting those of the Garter, and the only
knighthood that is hereditary.
The dignity of baronet is generally conferred by patent,
and forms the lowest degree of honour that is hereditary.
The order was instituted by King James I. at the sugges¬
tion of Sir Robert Cotton in 1611, when two hundred ba¬
ronets were created at once, being the number to which
it was intended they should always be restricted; but it
is now enlarged at the king’s pleasure, without limitation.
Originally, the creation of this order seems to have been
merely an expedient to raise money in the name of fees,
which, in each case, amounted to about L.1200 sterling.
Baronets take precedence according to the dates of
their patents, conformably to the terms of which, no inter¬
mediate honour between barons and baronets can be es¬
tablished. The title or prefix of Sir is granted them by a
peculiar clause in their patents, though they be not dub¬
bed knights.
Baronets of Scotland, called also Baronets of Nova
Scotia. This order of knights baronets was instituted by
Charles I. in the year 1625, when the first person digni¬
fied with the title was Sir Robert Gordon of Gordonstone,
a younger son of the earl of Sutherland. The object of
the institution was to encourage the plantation and settle¬
ment of Nova Scotia in Nortli America: hence the king
granted to each of them a certain portion of land in this
province, which they were to hold of Sir William Alex¬
ander, afterwards earl of Stirling, with precedency to
Barons
II
Baronets.
404 BAR
Baronets them am] their heirs-male for ever, before all knights call-
I! ed equites aurati, all lesser barons called lairds, and all
ijaronius. 0ther gentlemen, except Sir William Alexander, his ma-
jesty’s lieutenant in Nova Scotia, his heirs, their wives
and children. It was further provided that the title of Sir
should be prefixed to their Christian name, and Baronet
added to their surname ; and that their own and their
eldest sons’ wives should enjoy the title of Lady, Madam,
or Dame.
Mr Malone has given the following curious note upon
this subject, in his very learned Life of Dryden, prefixed
to his edition of the prose works of that writer When
the order of baronets was first established in 1611, King
James engaged that they should not exceed two hundred.
However, towards the close of his reign, that number be¬
ing completed, and the creation of baronets being found a
useful engine of government (the courtier by whose influ¬
ence the title was obtained receiving usually L.1000 for
the grant), it was not lightly to be parted with. A scheme,
therefore, of creating Baronets of Scotland was devised,
which, it was conceived, would be no infraction of the ori¬
ginal compact, to confine the grants to a limited number;
and as the English baronets were created under the great
seal of England, for the reduction of Ulster in Ireland, so
the Scottish baronets were created under the great seal
of Scotland, for the reduction of Acadia, or Nova Scotia.
The scheme, however, was not carried into execution by
King James; but early in the reign of his successor seve¬
ral Scottish baronets were made. From this statement it
appears, that there is no more necessity for calling a baro¬
net created under the great seal of Scotland (whether he
be an Englishman or Scotchman), & Baronet of Nova Sco¬
tia, than there is to denominate one created under the
great seal of England a Baronet of Ulster? (Malone’s
Dryden, vol. i. p. 28-9.)
Baronets of Ireland. This order was likewise institut¬
ed by King James I. in the 18th year of his reign, for the
same purpose and with the same privileges within the king¬
dom of Ireland as had been conferred on the analogous
order in England; for which also the Irish baronets paid
the same fees into the treasury of Ireland.
BARONI, Leonora, a celebrated singer and composer,
was born at Naples, but spent the greater part of her life
at Rome. She was daughter of Adriana Baroni of Man¬
tua, baroness of Piancaretta, a lady also distinguished for
her musical talents, and, on account of her beauty, surnam-
ed the Fair. Leonora, like her mother, was celebrated by
the wits, who vied with one another in their eulogiums of
the fair cantatrice; and, in 1639, there was published, at
Bracciano, a collection of Latin, Greek, Italian, Spanish,
and French poems addressed to her, under the title of
Applausi Poetici alle Glorie della Signora Leonora Baroni.
Among the Latin poems of Milton are no fewer than three,
entitled Ad Leonoram Romce Canentem, in which this lady
is celebrated for her vocal powers, with an allusion to her
mother’s exquisite performance on the lute. A discourse
on the music of the Italians, printed with the life of Mal¬
herbe, and some other treatises, at Paris, 1672, in 12mo,
contains an elaborate and somewhat high-flown eulogium
on the musical talents of this accomplished lady. It
was composed by M. Maugars, prior of St Peter de Mac,
the king’s interpreter of the English language, and so
famous as a performer on the viol, that the king of Spain
and several other sovereign princes of Europe desired to
hear him.
BARONIUS, CiESAR, a pious and learned cardinal, was
born at Sore in 1538. He studied at Rome, and put
himself under the discipline of Philip de Neri. In 1593
he was made general of the congregation of the Oratory
by the resignation of the founder Philip de Neri. Pope
B A R
Clement VIII. made him his confessor, and raised him to Bai P
the rank of cardinal in 1596. He was afterwards made
librarian to the Vatican, and died in 1605, at the age of Bar“
sixty-eight. He wrote several works, the principal of
which is his Annales Ecclesiastici from a. d. 1 to 1198, J
in 12 vols. folio; a work which has been abridged by se¬
veral persons, particularly by Henry Spondaeus, Bzovius,
and Ludovico Aurelio.
BARONY, Baronia, or Baronagium, the lordship or fee
of a baron, either temporal or spiritual. Baronies, in their
first creation, proceeded from the king himself, the chief
lord of the whole realm, and could be holden immediately of
no other lord. For example, the king enfeoffed a man of a
great seigniory in land, to be held by the person enfeoffed
and his heirs, of the king and his heirs, by baronial ser¬
vice ; that is, by the service of twenty, forty, sixty, or
such other number of knights, either more or fewer, as the
king by his enfeoffment limited or appointed. In the ages
immediately succeeding the Conquest, when a great lord
was enfeoffed by the king of a large seigniory, such seign¬
iory was called a barony, but more commonly an honour;
as, the honour of Gloucestershire, the honour of Walling¬
ford, the honour of Lancaster, the honour of Richmond,
and the like. But there were in England certain honours
which were often called by Norman or other foreign desig¬
nations ; that is to say, sometimes by English and some¬
times by foreign names. This happened when the same
person was lord of an honour in Normandy, or some other
foreign country, and also of an honour in England. For
example, William de Forz, de Force, or de Fortibus, was
lord of the honour of Albemarle in Normandy, and also
of two honours in England, namely, the honour of Holder*
ness, and that of Skipton In Craven ; and these honours
in England were sometimes called by the Norman name,
as the honour of Albemarle, or the honour of the earl of
Albemarle.
BARRA, or Barray, island of. See Barray.
Barra, in Commerce, a long measure used in Portugal
and some parts of Spain, to measure woollen cloths, linen
cloths, and serges. There are three sorts of barras; that
of Valencia, thirteen of which make 12£ yards English
measure; that of Castile, seven of which make yards;
and that of Aragon, three of which make 2f yards Eng-
lish.
BARR ABA, Desert of, a tract of land in Siberia, ly¬
ing between the rivers Irtisch and Obi, in the province ot
Tobolsk. It is uninhabited, but not owing to any defect
of the soil, which is excellent for tillage, and part of it
might also be laid out in meadows and pastures. It is in¬
terspersed with a great number of lakes, abounding with
a species of carp called by the neighbouring people haraw-
schen; and the country produces great numbers of elks,
deer, foxes, ermines, and squirrels. Between the Irtisch
and Obi are some rich copper mines, particularly on a
mountain called Pictowa, from the picta or white firs that
grow upon it. Every hundredweight of the ore found
here yields twelve pounds of pure copper; and there is no
occasion for digging deep in order to come at it. Most
of these ores, besides being very rich in copper, yield a
considerable portion of silver; and this, again, affords as
much gold as makes a sufficient return for the trouble an
expense of extracting it.
BARRACAN, in Commerce, a sort of stuff, not diaper¬
ed, something like camlet, but of a coarser grain. R 18
used to make cloaks, surtouts, and such other garments.
The cities where barracans are chiefly made in France
are Valenciennes, Lisle, Abbeville, Amiens, and Rouen,
but those of Valenciennes are the most valued.
BARRACKPORE, a town of Hindostan, in the pro¬
vince of Bengal, about sixteen miles above Calcutta-
BAR
3 BARRACKS, called by the French Casernes, places for
^ ^soldiers to lodge in, especially in garrisons. Till the middle
V of the year 1792, when there was a prospect of war with re¬
volutionary France, and the British ministry became appre¬
hensive of disturbances in this country, barracks were not
numerous, norwere they under the control and management
of a separate and peculiar board. Previous to this they
were built under the authority and directions of the Board
of Ordnance, which also supplied them with bedding and
the necessary utensils ; and any extra articles that were
requisite were furnished by the secretary at war. In 1792
orders were issued by the ministry for building cavalry
barracks with the utmost dispatch, and the deputy-adju¬
tant-general was directed to superintend the building and
fitting them up. In January 1793 the same officer was
appointed superintendent-general of barracks ; and on the
first of May the king’s warrant was issued for their regu¬
lation. Greater powers were given to the superintendent-
general in the year 1794; but as these seemed to inter¬
fere with the duties and powers of the Board of Ordnance,
a new warrant was issued in the year 1795, defining and
limiting the respective duties and powers of the Board of
Ordnance, and the superintendent-general, or barrack-
master-general, as he was now called. In the year 1796
the barrack-office establishment consisted of a barrack-
master-general, with two clerks; a deputy-barrack-master-
general ; an assistant-barrack-master-general, with three
clerks; an accountant, with five clerks ; an assistant-bar-
rack-master-general for the general inspection of bar¬
racks, and six other assistant-barrack-masters-general for
the particular inspection of barracks in different districts ;
five clerks for general business; one assistant-barrack-
master-general for the building branch; one checking
clerk, and seven other clerks ; two architects and survey¬
ors; one assistant-barrack-master-general in North Bri¬
tain, with two assistants and clerks; one treasurer; and
three other assistant-barrack-masters-general for general
duties, and visiting barracks. The salaries and extra pay
of these officers amounted in 1796 to L.9524. 17s. 2d.
The establishment was afterwards considerably increased,
in proportion as the number of barracks throughout the
kingdom increased, and by the creation of some new offi¬
cers, among whom was a law clerk.
During the year 1800 the Commissioners of Military In¬
quiry began their duties; and their first reports were on
the subject of the barrack establishment. In the arrange:
ment of this establishment, and the mode in which its
duties were performed, the commissioners pointed out
many things that were highly objectionable ; and con¬
cluded their reports by recommending that the offices of
barrack-master-general and deputy-barrack-master-gene¬
ral should be totally abolished, and that the superinten¬
dence of the barrack establishment should be vested in
commissioners. This suggestion, and some others relative
to the mode of transacting the business of the department,
and preventing useless and extravagant expenditure, were
followed, and the barrack establishment was placed under
die direction of four commissioners, one of whom was ge¬
nerally a military man.
But as it frequently happened that barracks required to
be built on an emergency, when there was no time to sum¬
mon a jury to value the land before the commencement
ot the building, and as most persons were averse to have
barracks near their dwelling-houses, or even on their pro-
perty, government was consequently obliged, in all such
cases, to pay an extravagant price for the land which
was needed for their erection. In order to remedy this
c, , therefore, it was provided by the act usually called
16 defence act, 43 Geo. HI. cap. 55, that justices of the
peace might de piano put any general officer into the pos-
BAR 405
session of such ground as he might deem fit for the erec- Barracks,
tion of barracks, provided the immediate necessity for such
ground was certified by the lord lieutenant or two deputy-
lieutenants of the county; the value of the ground so ap¬
propriated to be afterwards fixed by a jury in the ordinary
way.
Barracks throughout the country are more immediately
under the management and care of the resident barrack-
masters, especially since the reduction of the barrack-
office establishment, and the further reduction of the
assistant-barrack-masters-general attached to districts.
The barrack districts in Great Britain are as follow:—
1. the northern, containing Northumberland, Cumberland,
Westmoreland, and Durham ; 2. York, containing York¬
shire ; 3. the eastern, containing Norfolk, Suffolk, Cam¬
bridge, Huntingdonshire, and all Essex, except Tilbury-
fort ; 4. the southern, containing Kent, Tilbury-fort, and
Sussex; 5. the south-western, containing Hampshire and
Dorsetshire ; 6. Isle of Wight; 7. the western, containing
Devonshire, Cornwall, and Somerset; 8. Severn, containing
Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, and South
Wales ; 9. the north-western, containing Cheshire, Shrop¬
shire, Lancashire, North Wales, and the Isle of Man;
10. London; 11. the home, containing Middlesex, Surrey,
Hertfordshire, and part of Kent; 12. the north-inland, con¬
taining Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, War¬
wickshire, Leicestershire, and Rutlandshire; 13. the south-
inland, containing Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Ox¬
fordshire, and Buckinghamshire; 14. Jersey, Guernsey,
and Alderney.
The Scottish districts are, 1. the northern, containing
Caithness, Sutherland, Ross-shire, Inverness-shire, Nairn¬
shire, Morayshire, and Banffshire; 2. the western, contain¬
ing Aberdeenshire, Argyleshire, Ayrshire, Bute, Kincar¬
dineshire, Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, and Wigtonshire ;
3. the central, containing Angusshire, Clackmannanshire,
Dumbartonshire, Fifeshire, Kinross-shire, Perthshire, and
Stirlingshire; and 4. the southern, containing the Lothians,
Berwickshire, Peeblesshire, Selkirkshire, Roxburghshire,
and Dumfriesshire.
On the 14th of July 1805 there were in Great Britain,
the Island of Jersey, &c. 84 established barracks of brick
and stone, 12 of wood, 75 temporary barracks, and 41
rented; in all 212. But the number was afterwards con¬
siderably increased. The annual rents at this time amount¬
ed to L.40,231. The whole of these barracks were cal¬
culated to accommodate nearly 100,000 infantry and
15,000 cavalry. In the cavalry barracks, field-officers
have two rooms each; captains one; subalterns, staff,
and quarter-masters, one; serjeants of each troop of dra¬
goons, and corporals of each troop of horse, one; eight
rank and file one among them; and two rooms are al¬
lowed for the officers’ mess. In infantry barracks, field-
officers are allowed two each ; captains one ; one is allot¬
ted to two subalterns; the staff has one; twelve non¬
commissioned officers and private men one among them ;
the serjeant-major and quarter-master-serjeant one ; and
two are allotted for the officers’ mess. The barracks are
supplied by the barrack-office with beds, bedding, sheets,
blankets, towels, house and stable utensils, coals, and
candles ; beer was formerly supplied, but now an allow¬
ance is made instead of it. Forage is supplied by the
commissariat.
The expense of erecting barracks must of course greatly
depend on the price of materials at the time, and, in some
measure, on the part of the kingdom where they are erect¬
ed. In the year 1805 permanent barracks for a battalion
of 800 men, in the south of England, cost L.37,000; and
barracks for 1200 infantry and 400 cavalry L.60,000.
The following statement exhibits the several particulars
406
BAR
BAR
Barra-
mahal
IJ
Barrator.
of the total expense incurred by the nation for barracks,
and the barrack-office, in Great Britain, between the 25th
of December 1792, and the 10th of November 1804:—
Buildings and purchases of land L.3,930,223 5 8
Forage  846,246 7 10
Beer  643,030 9 6
Coals, candles, furniture, rents, repairs,
supplied by barrack-masters, and sa¬
laries   1,685,487
Office-establishment 
Fees at war-office 
Insurance 
Additional rents 
Lodging-money to officers 
Engines...  
Bedding, furniture, &c. issued by the
barrack-office, and in store  1,357,215 7 3
Miscellaneous  35,498 4 8
256,129
80,346
1,519
36,860
139,582
11,866
8
10
3
2
13
16
0
L.9,024,005 8 9
During the last war the annual expense of the barrack
establishment in Great Britain varied from L.350,000 to
L.500,000. But in Ireland, where barracks are more nu¬
merous, the expense generally equalled, and often exceed¬
ed, that of Great Britain in this particular. Thus, in 1814,
the sum required for Great Britain was L.309,826, whilst
that necessary for Ireland was L.360,515; and a similar
excess appears in the peace estimate for 1816, which was
for Great Britain L.173,500, and for Ireland L.213,000.
Since this period the annual expense has of course varied,
though within limits so narrow that it seems unnecessary
to particularize the sums voted for the service of each
year. The barrack estimate of 1828 was, for Great Bri¬
tain and the colonies L.105,963, and for Ireland L.81,705 ;
that of 1829 amounted, for Great Britain and the colonies,
to L.l 17,636, and for Ireland, to L.102,721. The esti¬
mate for 1830 embraces the different heads of repairs;
barrack-masters’ expenditure ; allowances to barrack-mas¬
ters, serjeants, and miscellaneous charges for barrack ser¬
vice ; and colonial expenditure: under the first of which
the sums voted were, for Great Britain L.67,746, for Ire¬
land L.60,000; under the second, L.54,827; under the
third L.l 1,762; and under the fourth L.56,539: total,
L.250,874.
See first, second, third, and fourth Reports of the Com-
missioners of Military Inquiry, 1806 ; the Finance Reports
and Estimates laid before parliament for the years 1814
and 1816; and the Army Estimates for 1828, 1829, and
1830.
BARRAMAHAL, a district in the south of Hindostan,
situated between the twelfth and fourteenth degrees of
north latitude. This district was annexed by Hyder to
the dominions of Mysore; and in 1792 it was ceded to
the British government by the treaty of Seringapatam.
At the time it was ceded it was in a miserable state; but
it soon recovered under the superintendence of a just and
moderate government; and in the course of five years its
revenues were more than doubled. This district was not
subdued by the Mahommedans until about the middle of
the eighteenth century ; and hence the population consists
chiefly of Hindoos, who outnumber the Mahommedans in
the proportion of nineteen to one.
BARRAIOR, or Barretor, in the law of England, a
person guilty of barretry. See Barretry.
Lambert conceives the word harretor to have been
formed from the Latin balatro, a vile knave ; but the pro-
j (^^va^*on Rom the French barrateur, a deceiver;
and this agrees with the description of a common barre¬
tor given by Lord Coke, namely, that he is a common
mover and maintainer of suits in disturbance of the peace,
particularly by taking and detaining the possession of I
houses and lands or goods by false inventions or pretences. |ti7
Hence it is said that a common barretor is the most dan- ren
gerous oppressor in the law, for he oppresses the innocent »<1
under colour of law, which was made to protect them from !*■
oppression. ^
BARRATRY. See Barretry.
Barratry, in a shipmaster, consists in defrauding the
owners. If goods delivered on ship-board are embezzled
all the mariners are bound, by the maritime law, to con¬
tribute to the satisfaction of the party that has lost his
goods; and the cause is to be tried in the admiralty. In
a case where a ship had been insured against the barratry
of the master, and the jury found that the ship was lost
by the fraud and negligence of the master, the court
ruled that the fraud was barratry, though not named in
the covenant, but that negligence did not amount to that
offence.
BARRAUX, a fortress of Dauphine, belonging to
France, now in the department of Isere. It stands in the
valley of Gresivaudan, and was built by a duke of Savoy
in 1597. It is seated on the river Isere, in long. 5.10.
E. and. lat. 45. 0. N.
BARRAY, one of the Hebrides, about eight miles in
length, of unequal breadth, and of an irregular figure.
It produces oats, barley, and potatoes; and it contains
about 20,000 superficial acres of wood. The fishery is
prosecuted here with great activity, and about 30,000
ling and cod are annually caught and exported. A kind
of shark is also taken, from which the fishermen obtain oil
for sale or consumption. The rearing of cattle and the
burning of kelp afford the chief employment to the inha¬
bitants, who are mostly Roman Catholics. The population
amounts to 1969.
BARRE, Louis Francois Joseph de la, a French
historian and antiquary of some name, was born at Tournay
in 1688. Besides various learned papers contributed to
the Memoirs of the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles
Letters, of which he was a member, he published in 1729,
Memoirespour servir d VHistoire de France et de Bourgogne.
He also contributed many articles to the edition of Morori’s
Dictionary, published in 1725, and was concerned in va¬
rious other works. His death took place, whilst he was
preparing a Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities,
in May 1738.
BARREL, in Commerce, a round vessel made of wood,
in the form of a little tun.
Barrel, formerly, was also a measure of liquids. The
English barrel, wine measure, contained the eighth part
of a tun, the fourth part of a pipe, and one half of a hogs¬
head, or 311 gallons; a barrel, beer-measure, contained
36 gallons ; and a barrel, ale-measure, 32 gallons.
Barrel also denotes a certain weight of several kinds
of merchandise, and differs according to the nature of the
commodities. Thus a barrel of Essex butter weighs 106
pounds, and of Suffolk butter 256 pounds; a barrel of her¬
rings ought to contain 32 gallons wine-measure, and about
1000 herrings ; a barrel of salmon should contain 42 gal¬
lons, and a barrel of eels the same; a barrel of soap should
weigh 256 lbs.
Barrel, in Mechanics, a term given by watch-makers
to the cylinder about which the spring is coiled; and by
gunsmiths to the cylindrical tube of a gun, pistol, or blun¬
derbuss, through which the ball is discharged.
Barrel, in Anatomy. See Anatomy. '
Thundering Barrels, in the military art, are filled with
bombs, grenades, and other fire-works, to be rolled down
a breach.
BARREN Island Cape, an island in the South Pa¬
cific Ocean, lying in Bass’s Straits, between Great Island
BAR
n on the north and Clarke’s Island on the south. It is
Is d about twenty miles in length by ten in breadth, and chiefly
covered with low vegetation. Long. 148. 10. E. Lat. 40.
23. S.
t! j BARREN Island, an island in the Bay of Bengal,
^ about eighteen miles in circumference. It contains a vol¬
cano 1800 feet above the level of the sea, which is some¬
times in a state of activity, and discharges immense co¬
lumns of smoke and showers of red-hot stones. It is 45
miles east of the Lower Andaman Island. Long. 64.10. E.
Lat. 12. 15. N.
BARRETRY, in the Law of England, is the offence of
frequently exciting and stirring up suits and quarrels be¬
tween his majesty’s subjects, either at law or otherwise.
The punishment for this offence in a common person is by
fine and imprisonment; but if the offender, as is frequent¬
ly the case, belongs to the profession of the law, a barre-
torwho is thus able as well as willing to occasion mischief
ought for that reason to be disabled from practising for
the future. And hence it is enacted by statute 12 Geo.
I. c. 29, that if any one who has been convicted of forge¬
ry, perjury, subornation of perjury, or common barretry,
shall practise as an attorney, solicitor, or agent, in any
suit, the court, upon complaint, shall examine it in a sum¬
mary way, and, if proved, shall direct the offender to be
transported for seven years. To this head may also be
referred another offence of equal malignity and audacity,
that of suing a person in the name of a fictitious plaintiff,
in other words, in the name of one who is either not in
being at all, or is ignorant of the suit carried on in his name.
This’offence, if committed in any of the king’s superior
courts, is left, as a high contempt, to be punished at their
discretion; but in courts of a lower degree, where the
crime is equally pernicious, although the authority of the
judges is not equally extensive, it is directed by statute
8 Elizabeth, c. 2, to be punished by six months’ imprison¬
ment, and treble damages to the party injured.
BARRICADE, or Barricado, a military term for a
fence formed in haste with vessels, baskets of earth, trees,
palisades, or the like, to serve as a defence against the
shot or assault of the enemy. The most usual materials
for barricades consist of pales or stakes, crossed with ba-
toons, shod with iron at the feet, and usually set up in
passages or breaches.
Barricade, in Naval Architecture, a strong wooden
rail, supported by stanchions, extending across the fore¬
most part of the quarter-deck. In a ship-of-war the va¬
cant spaces between the stanchions are commonly filled
with rope-mats, cork, or pieces of old cable; and the
upper part, which contains a double rope-netting above
the rail, is stuffed with hammocks to intercept the flight,
and to prevent the execution, of small-shot in time of ac¬
tion.
BARRIER, in Fortification, a kind of fence erected at
a passage, retrenchment, or breach, to stop up the entry
there. It is composed of great stakes, about four or five
feet in height, placed at the distance of eight or ten feet
apart, with transoms or overthwart rafters to stop either
horse or foot that would enter or rush in with violence,
while in the middle there is a movable bar of wood that
opens or shuts at pleasure.
BARRINGTON, John Shute, Lord Viscount Bar-
fmgton, a nobleman distinguished for theological learn-
mg, was the youngest son of Benjamin Shute, merchant,
and was born in 1678. He received part of his education
at the university of Utrecht; and, after returning to Eng-
aud, studied law in the Inner Temple. In 1701 he com¬
menced author by writing in favour of the civil rights of
rotestant dissenters, to which body he belonged. On
e recommendation of Lord Somers, he was employed to
BAR 407
engage the Presbyterians in Scotland to favour the union Barring-
of the two kingdoms; and, in 1708, he was rewarded for ton/
this service, by being appointed to the office of commis-
sioner of the customs. From this, however, he was remov¬
ed by the Tory ministry of Queen Anne; but his fortune
had, in the meantime, been improved by the bequest of
two considerable estates, one of them left him by Francis
Barrington of Tofts, Esq. whose name he assumed by act
of parliament. Mr Barrington now stood at the head of
the dissenters. On the accession of George I. he was re¬
turned member of parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed;
and in 1720 the king raised him to the Irish peerage, by
the style and title of Viscount Barrington of Ardglass.
But having unfortunately engaged in one of the bubbles
of the time, the Harburg lottery, he incurred the dis¬
grace of expulsion from the House of Commons in 1723;
a punishment which was thought greatly too severe, in¬
deed altogether unmerited on his part. In 1725 he pub¬
lished his principal work, entitled Miscellanea Sacra, or a
New Method of considering so much of the History of the
Apostles as is contained in Scripture, in an Abstract of
their History, an Abstract of that Abstract, and four Criti¬
cal Essays, 2 vols. 8vo. This work, which traces the me¬
thods employed by the first preachers of the gospel in
propagating Christianity, and explains the several gifts of
the Spirit by which they were enabled to discharge their
office, has always been reckoned a valuable and judicious
defence of the Christian cause ; and it was reprinted with
additions and corrections, in 3 vols. 8vo, 1770, by his son,
afterwards bishop of Durham. In the same year (1725)
he published An Essay on the several Dispensations of
God to Mankind, in the order in which these are unfolded
in the Scriptures ; and he was the author of various other
tracts, chiefly on subjects relating to toleration in matters
of religion. He died in 1734, in the 56th year of his age,
leaving a number of children, of whom five sons had the
singular good fortune to rise to high stations in the church,
the law, the army, and the navy. Lord Barrington was a
friend and disciple of Locke, whose sentiments he adopted
as to the right and advantage of free inquiry, and the
value of civil and religious liberty; and he contributed
greatly to the rising spirit of liberal scriptural criticism
amongst those who wished to render religion a subject
of rational belief. He was a man of great moderation, and,
though chiefly connected with the dissenters, he occasion¬
ally frequented and communicated with the established
church.
Barrington, Daines, fourth son of Lord Viscount Bar¬
rington, distinguished as an antiquary and naturalist,
was educated for the profession of the law, and, after fill¬
ing various posts, was appointed a Welsh judge in 1757,
and afterwards second justice of Chester. He never rose
to much eminence at the bar, but he showed his knowledge
of the law as a subject of liberal study, by a valuable pub¬
lication entitled Observations on the Statutes, chiefly the
more ancient, from Magna Charta to 21 James I. c. 27,
with an Appendix, being a proposal for new-modelling the
Statutes, 1766, 4to; a work which has been quoted with
merited commendation by many of our historians and con¬
stitutional antiquaries. In 1773 he published an edition
of Orosius, with Alfred’s Saxon version, and an English
translation with notes of his own, which was severely ani¬
madverted on by the critics. His Tracts on the Probabi¬
lity of reaching the North Pole, 1775, 4to, were written in
consequence of the northern voyage of discovery under¬
taken by Captain Phipps, afterwards Lord Mulgrave. In
these he has accumulated a variety of evidence favourable
to his own opinion of the practicability of attaining the
object in which that voyage had failed; and it is not im¬
probable that his views and arguments had some effect in
408 BAR
Barrister, determining the government of our time to renew the at-
tempt, though with no better success. Mr Barrington’s
other writings are chiefly to be found in the publications
of the Royal and Antiquarian Societies, of both of which
he was long an assiduous member, and of the latter vice-
president. These relate to a variety of topics in natural
history and antiquities, and show great industry and re¬
search, though with an occasional leaning to singularity
and paradox. Many of his tracts were collected by him
in a quarto volume entitled Miscellanies on various Sub¬
jects, 1781. His Experiments and Observations on the
Singing of Birds, and his Essay on the Language of Birds,
are among the most curious and ingenious of his papers,
and, with other productions of his pen, prove that he was
not only deeply conversant with books, but an attentive
and sagacious observer of nature. In private life he was
a man of worth and integrity, unambitious, and devoted to
study and literary conversation. He resigned his office of
justice of Chester in 1785, and afterwards lived in retire¬
ment in his chambers in King’s-Bench Walks, Inner
Temple; associating chiefly with his brother benchers,
and amusing himself with superintending the improve¬
ments of the gardens. He died on the 14th March 1800,
and was buried in the Temple church.
BARRISTER, is a counsellor learned in the law, ad¬
mitted to plead at the bar, and there to take upon him
the protection and defence of clients. Barristers at law
are now termed jurisconsuiti; in other countries they are
called licentiati in jure; but anciently they were styled
apprentices of the law, in Latin apprenticii juris nobiliores.
In former times eight years elapsed before they could be
called to the bar; but the term was latterly reduced to
five. The exercises required of them, if not ex gratia,
were twelve grand moots performed in the inns of Chan¬
cery in the times of the grand readings, and twenty-four
petty moots in the term times, before the readers of the
respective inns; and a barrister newly called is required
to attend the six (or four) next long vacations, the exer¬
cise of the house, in Lent and summer, and is thereupon
for those three (or two) years styled a vacation barrister.
Persons thus serving their noviciate are also called utter
barristers, or pleaders ouster the bar, to distinguish them
from benchers, or thos*e that have been readers, who are
sometimes admitted to plead within the bar, in the same
manner as the king’s, queen’s, or prince’s counsel are.
No particular course of professional training is prescrib¬
ed to candidates for admission as advocates to the Scotch
bar. It is now understood, howrever, if not required, that,
besides passing through the ordinary course of academical
education, they shall have attended the classes of Scotch
Law in the university of Edinburgh ; and, in point of
fact, such attendance is almost indispensably necessary
to enable them to undergo the preliminary examinations.
These are two; one, on the civil or Roman law, when the
candidate is examined either on Heineccius ad Pandectas
or on the Institutions of Justinian; the other, on the
Scotch law, the text book for which is Erskine’s Prin¬
ciples of the Law of Scotland; and a year must inter-
- vene between them. The writing and impugnation of
a Latin thesis on a title of the Digest follow the ex¬
amination on Scotch law; but this has come to be so
much a matter of mere form, not to say mockery, and in
point of fact so few of the candidates write their own
theses (which, indeed, are for the most part very insigni¬
ficant productions) that it has been proposed to abolish it
altogether, and to appropriate the sum usually disbursed
on account of this superannuated ceremony to the use of
the Advocates Library. The fees paid on admission are
considerable, amounting, in consequence of a recent regu¬
lation, to nearly L.400.
BAR
BARRITUS, a word of German origin,' adopted by Be -u
the Romans to signify the general shout usually raised by ^
the soldiers of their armies on their first encounter, after ® w.
the classicum or alarm.
BARROS, John de, a celebrated Portuguese historian
born about 1496. He was educated at the court of King
Emanuel, among the princes of the blood, and made great
progress in Latin and Greek. The Infant John, to whom
he attached himself and became preceptor, having suc¬
ceeded the king his father in 1521, De Barros obtained
a place in this prince’s household; and, in 1522, he was
made governor of St George del Mina, on the coast of
Guinea. Three years after, the king having recalled him
to court, made him treasurer of the Indies; and this post
inspired him with the thought of writing the well-known
and valuable history entitled Azia Portuguesa, for which
purpose he retired to Pompas, where he died in 1571. His
work is divided into decades, the first of which he publish¬
ed in 1552, the second in 1553, and the third in 1563;
but the fourth decade was not published till the year 1615,
when it appeared by order of King Philip III., who caused
the manuscript to be purchased from the heirs of De
Barros. Several authors have continued the work, so that
it extends to twelve decades. A handsome edition of the
original work, and its continuations, was published at Lis¬
bon in 1774, in 11 vols. 8vo.
BARROW, Isaac, an eminent mathematician and di¬
vine, was the son of Mr Thomas Barrow, a linen-draper
in London, where he was born in 1630. He was at first
placed for two or three years at the Charter-house School.
There, however, his conduct gave but little hopes of suc¬
cess in the profession of scholar; for he was extremely
fond of fighting, and of promoting pugnacity among his
school-fellows. But being removed from this establishment,
his disposition took a happier turn ; and having soon made
considerable progress in learning, he was admitted a pen¬
sioner of Peter-house, in Cambridge, where he applied him¬
self with great diligence to the study of literature and
science, especially of natural philosophy. He afterwards
turned his thoughts to the profession of physic, and made
some progress in anatomy, botany, and chemistry; after
which he studied chronology, geometry, and astronomy.
He then travelled into France and Italy, and in a voyage
from Leghorn to Smyrna gave proofs of great personal
bravery; for the ship having been attacked by an Algerine
pirate, Mr Barrow remained upon deck, and fought with
the utmost intrepidity, until the pirate, unprepared for the
stout resistance made by the ship, sheered off and left her
to pursue her voyage unmolested.
At Smyrna he met with a most kind reception from Mr
Bretton, the English consul, upon whose death he after¬
wards wrote a Latin elegy. From this place he proceed¬
ed to Constantinople, where he received similar civilities
from Sir Thomas Bendish, the English ambassador, and Sir
Jonathan Dawes, with whom he afterwards contracted an
intimate friendship. While at Constantinople he read and
studied the works of Chrysostom, once bishop of that see,
whom he preferred to all the other fathers. He resided
in Turkey somewhat more than a year, after which he
proceeded to Venice, and thence returned home through
Germany and Holland in 1659. Immediately on his return
he received episcopal ordination from Bishop Brownrig,
and in 1660 he was appointed to the Greek professorship
at Cambridge. When he entered upon this office, he in¬
tended to have prelected upon the tragedies of Sophocles ;
but he altered his intention, and made choice of Aristotle s
rhetoric. His lectures on this subject, however, haying
been lent to a friend who never returned them, are irre¬
coverably lost. In July 1662 he was elected professor or
geometry in Gresham College, on the recommendation ot
I?a
BAR
BAR
409
«r. Dr Wilkins, master of Trinity College, and afterwards
bishop of Chester; and in May 1663 he was chosen a
fellow of the Royal Society, at the first election made by
the council after obtaining their charter. The same year
the executors of Mr Lucas, who, according to the will
of that individual, had founded a mathematical chair at
Cambridge, fixed upon Mr Barrow as the first professor;
and although his two professorships were not inconsistent
with each other, he chose to resign that of Gresham
College, which he did on the 20th May 1664. In 1669
he resigned his mathematical chair to his illustrious
friend Mr Isaac Newton, having now determined to re¬
nounce the study of mathematics for that of divinity.
Upon quitting his professorship, Mr Barrow was only a
fellow of Trinity College ; but his uncle gave him a small
sinecure in Wales, and Dr Seth Ward, bishop of Salisbury,
conferred upon him a prebend in that church. In the
year 1670 he was created doctor in divinity by mandate ;
and, upon the promotion of Dr Pearson, master of Trinity
College, to the see of Chester, he was appointed to succeed
him by the king’s patent, bearing date the 13th February
1672. When the king advanced Barrow to this dignity,
he was pleased to say, “ he had given it to the best scholar
in England.” His majesty did not speak from report, but
from his own knowledge; for the doctor being then his
chaplain, his majesty frequently conversed with him, and
in his humorous way used to call him an “unfair preacher,”
as he exhausted every subject he discussed, and left no room
for others to come after him. In 1675 Dr Barrow was chosen
vice-chancellor of the university. His works are very nume¬
rous, and such as do honour to the science and literature
of the English nation. They are, 1. Euclid’s Elements ;
2. Euclid’s Data; 3. Optical Lectures, read in the public
school of Cambridge ; 4. Thirteen Geometrical Lectures ;
5. The Works of Archimedes, the four Books of Apollo¬
nius’s Conic Sections, and Theodosius’s Spherics explain¬
ed in a new Method; 6. A Lecture, in which Archime¬
des s Theorems of the Sphere and Cylinder are investi¬
gated and briefly demonstrated; 7. Mathematical Lec¬
tures, read in the public schools of the university of Cam¬
bridge. The above were all written in Latin ; and as to his
English works, they have been collected, and printed to¬
gether in four volumes folio. “ The name of Dr Barrow,”
says Mr Granger, “ will ever be illustrious for a strength
of mind and a compass of knowledge that did honour to his
country. He was unrivalled in mathematical learning, and
especially in the sublime geometry ; in which he has been
excelled only by one man, and that man was his pupil, the
gieat Sir Isaac Newton. The same genius that seemed
to be born only to bring hidden truths to light, to rise to
the heights or descend to the depths of science, would
sometimes amuse itself in the flowery paths of poetry;
and he composed verses both in Greek and Latin. He at
length gave himself up entirely to divinity; and particu-
any to the most useful part of it, that which has a ten¬
dency to make men wiser and better. He has, in his ex¬
cellent sermons on the creed, solved every difficulty and
lemoved every obstacle that opposed itself to our faith,
and made divine revelation as clear as the demonstrations
jn Ins own Euclid. In his sermons he knew not how to
eave off writing till he had exhausted his subject; and
18 ac*nairhble discourse on the duty and reward of boun-
y to the poor took him up three hours and a half in
preaching. This excellent person, who was a bright ex-
< nip e of Christian virtue, as well as a prodigy of learning,
'V on ^le 4th of May 1677, in the forty-seventh year
18 age; and was interred in Westminster Abbey, where
surrnounted with his bust, was soon after
^ ed, by the contributions of his friends.
arrow, a river of Ireland, which rises in Queen’s
VOL. xv.
County, and being joined by the Nore and the Suir, falls
into the sea at Waterford Bay.
BARROWS, in ancient topography, artificial hillocks
or mounds, intended as repositories for the dead, and
formed either of stones heaped up, or of earth. The for¬
mer, more generally known by the name of cairns, are
almost exclusively confined to Scotland. Of the latter,
Dr Plott takes notice of two sorts in Oxfordshire; one
placed on the military ways, the other in the fields, mea¬
dows, or woods; the first sort being probably of Roman
origin, the other erected by the Britons or Danes. Mo¬
numents of this kind are also very frequent in Scotland.
On digging into the barrows, urns made of calcined earth,
and containing burnt bones and ashes, have been found
in some of them ; in others, stone chests, containing bones
entile; in others, again, bones neither lodged in chests
nor deposited in urns. These tumuli are round, not great¬
ly elevated, and generally at their bases surrounded by a
fosse. I hey are of different sizes, being in proportion, it
is supposed, to the rank and power of the deceased person.
Ol those found in the Orkneys, some are formed of earth
alone, whilst others consist of stone covered with earth.
In one of the former was discovered a coffin, made of six
fiat stones, but too short to receive a body at full length;
and this is the general characteristic of all these sarco¬
phagi : hence the skeletons found in them lie with the
knees pressed to the breast, and the legs doubled along
the thighs. In one of them were found multitudes of
small beetles ; and as similar insects have been’discovered
in the bag which inclosed the sacred ibis among the
Egyptians, we may suppose that the nation to whom these
tumuli belonged had the same superstition respecting
them as the subjects of the Pharaohs. Ancient Greece
and Latium concurred with the natives of this island in
the erection of funerary tumuli. Patroclus among the
Greeks, and Hector among the Trojans, received the
same funeral honours with our Caledonian heroes; and
tne ashes of Dercennus the Laurentine monarch could
boast of no prouder receptacle. The urn and pall of the
Trojan warrior might perhaps be more superb than those
of a British leader; but the monument of each was com¬
posed of the same materials, dug from the bosom of our
mother earth. The Grecian barrows, however, do not
seem to have been all equally simple. The barrow of
Alyattes, father of Croesus king of Lydia, is described by
Herodotus as a most superb monument, inferior only to
the works of the Egyptians and Babylonians. It was a
vast mound of earth, heaped on a basement of large stones,
by three classes of the people, one of which was composed
of girls devoted to prostitution. Alyattes died in the year
b. c. 562; but Herodotus informs us, that, in his time,
above a century afterwards, five stones, or stelae, on which
letters were engraved, remained on the top, recording
what each class had performed; and from the measure¬
ment it appeared that the greater portion of the work
had been done by the girls. It was customary among the
Greeks to place on barrows the image of some animal, or
stelae, round pillars, with inscriptions. The famous barrow
of the Athenians in the plain of Marathon, described by
Pausanias, is an instance of the latter usage. An ancient
monument in Italy near the Appian Way, vulgarly called
the sepulchre of the Curiatii, has the same number of
termini as the barrow of Alyattes; the basement, which
is square, supporting five round pyramids.
Barrows, and similar tumuli, are also found in great num¬
bers in America. These are of different sizes; some of
them being constructed of earth, and others of loose stones.
That they were repositories of the dead has been gene¬
rally believed; but on what particular occasions they were
constructed, is matter of conjecture. Some have thought
3 f
Barrows.
410
Barry.
.BAR
that they covered the bones of those who had fallen in
battle on the spot; others ascribe them to the custom said
to prevail among the Indians, of collecting at certain pe¬
riods the bones of all their dead, wheresoever deposited
at the time of death; whilst others, again, suppose them
the general sepulchre for towns conjectured to have ex¬
isted on or near the spots where they are met with. For
a minute and interesting account of one of these remai li¬
able tumuli, the reader may consult Mr Jefferson s Notes
on the State of Virginia, p. 156.
BARRY, Girald, commonly called Giraldus Cam-
brensis, or Girald of Wales, an historian and ecclesiastic
in the reigns of Henry II. and Richard I., was born at the
castle of Mainarper, near Pembroke, in 1146. By his mo¬
ther he was descended from the princes of South Wales ;
and his father, William Barry, was one of the chief men
of that principality. Being a younger brother, and in¬
tended for the church, he was sent to St David s, and
educated in the family of his uncle, the bishop of that see.
In a history of his own life and actions he acknowledges
that in his early youth he was too playful; but having
been severely reproached for it by his preceptors, he be¬
came a hard student, and greatly excelled all his^ school¬
fellows in learning. When about twenty years of age, he
was sent for his further improvement to the university of
Paris, where he continued for three years, and, according
to his own account, became an excellent rhetorician. On
his return to Britain he entered into holy orders, and ob¬
tained several benefices both in England and Wales. But
observing with much concern that his countrymen the
Welsh were very backward in paying tithes of wool and
cheese, probably from an inability to perceive any neces¬
sary connection between religion and strict regularity in
satisfying the secular demands of the church, he applied
to Richard, archbishop of Canterbury, and was appointed
his legate in Wales for rectifying this and other disorders.
Barry executed this commission with great spirit; excom¬
municating all, without distinction, who refused to com¬
pound matters with the church, and, in particular, de¬
livering over bodily to the Evil One those who withheld
the tithes of their cheese and wool. And not satisfied
with enriching, he also attempted to reform, the clergy.
He delated the archdeacon of Brecon to the archbishop,
for the unpardonable crime of matrimony; and the poor
man, refusing to put away his wife, was deprived of his
archdeaconry, which was bestowed upon the zealous
legate. In a word, in discharging the duties of this new
office, he acted with a vigour which involved him in many
quarrels; but, if we may believe himself, he was always
in the right, and always victorious. On the death of his
uncle, the bishop of St David’s, in 1176, he was elected
his successor by the chapter; but this choice having been
made without the permission, and contrary to the inclina¬
tion, of Henry II., Girald prudently declined to insist
upon it, and went again to Paris to prosecute his studies,
particularly in the civil and canon law, and in theology.
He speaks with exultation of the prodigious fame which
he acquired by his eloquent declamations in the schools,
and of the crowded audiences who attended them, and
were at a loss, he says, to know whether the sweetness of
his voice, the beauty of his language, or the irresistible
force of his arguments, was most to be admired. Hav¬
ing spent about four years at Paris, he returned to St
David’s, where he found every thing in confusion ; and on
the expulsion of the bishop by the people, which took
place soon after, he was appointed administrator by the
archbishop of Canterbury, and governed the diocese in
that capacity till 1184, when the bishop was restored.
About the same time he was called to court by Henry II.,
appointed one of his chaplains, and sent into Ireland
BAR
with Prince John, by whom he was offered the united Bai
bishoprics of Femes and Leighlin, but declined them, and ^
employed his time in collecting materials for his Topo¬
graphy of Ireland, and his history of the conquest of
that island, which was completed in three books in 1187.
In 1188 he attended Baldwin, archbishop of Canterbury,
in his progress through Wales, preaching a crusade for the
recovery of the Holy Land ; an employment in which he
tells us, with his usual modesty, that he was far more suc¬
cessful than the primate,—adding significantly, that the
people were most affected with the Latin sermons, which
they did not understand, melting into tears, and coming
in crowds to take the cross. Henry II., he assures us,
entertained the most favourable opinion of his virtues and
abilities ; yet somehow that monarch would never advance
him to any higher dignity in the church, on account, as
Barry opines, of his relation to the princes and great men
of Wales. But on the accession of Richard I. in 1189,
his prospects of preferment brightened; for he was sent
by that prince into Wales to preserve the peace of the
country, and was even joined in commission with William
Longchamp, bishop of Ely, as one of the regents of the
kingdom. He failed, however, to improve this favourable
opportunity; and having fixed his heart on the see of 8t
David’s, the bishop of which was very old and infirm, he
refused the bishopric of Bangor in 1190, and that of
Landaff the year following. But in 1192, the state of
public affairs, and the course of his interest at court, be¬
came so unfavourable to Barry’s views, that he determined
to retire. His first intention was to return to Paris with
the view of prosecuting his studies; but meeting with
some difficulties in this, he proceeded to Lincoln, where
William de Monte read lectures in theology with great
applause. Here he spent about six years in the study of
divinity, and in composing several works. At last the see
of St David’s, which had long been the object of his ambi¬
tion, became vacant, and brought him again upon the stage.
He was unanimously elected by the chapter, but met with
so powerful an adversary in Hubert, archbishop of Can¬
terbury, that it involved him in a litigation which lasted
five years, cost him three journeys to Rome at a great
expense, and ended in his defeat in the year 1203. Soon
after this he retired from the world, and spent the last
seventeen years of his life in a studious privacy, compos¬
ing many books, of which a catalogue is given in the Bio-
graphia Britannica. His manuscript pieces are preserv¬
ed in the British Museum, the library at Lambeth, and the
Bodleian Library. Of his published works, the best known
is his Itinerary through Wales^ of which a translation, il-
lustrated with annotations, and accompanied with a life of
the author, was published by Sir Richard Colt Hoare, m
two splendid quarto volumes, in 1806.
BARRY, James, an eminent painter, was born at Cork,
in Ireland, on the 11th October 1741. His father had been
a builder, and at one time of his life a coasting trader be¬
tween the two countries of England and Ireland. To tins
business of trader was James destined, and he actually
made, when a boy, several voyages; but these voyages being
forced upon him, he on one occasion ran away from the
ship, and on others discovered such an aversion to the be
and habits of a sailor, as to induce his father to relinquish
all hopes of him in this line, and to suffer him to Purs^, 18
inclinations, which led him to drawing and study. When
on board his father’s vessel, instead of handling sails ant
ropes, and climbing the mast, he was generally occupie
with a piece of black chalk, sketching the coast or draw
ing figures, as his fancy directed him. When his fatier
found that the idea of making a sailor of him must be grro11
up, he permitted him to acquire as much instruction as
the schools of Cork afforded, but long retained his avei-
■
BARRY.
411
v s;on to the chalk drawings, with which the floors and walls
^ V of the house were covered ; the boy being always engaged
in some attempt at large figures, and early catching at the
means of representing action, attitude, and passion. It
was at a very early period of his life that some bookseller
in Ireland, undertaking to reprint a set of fables or em¬
blems, young Barry offered to furnish the drawings, and,
as it is believed, helped to etch the engravings, such as
they were. At the schools in Cork, to which he was sent,
he was distinguished by his parts and industry above
his school-fellows; his habits differed from those of ordi¬
nary boys, as he seldom mixed in their games or amuse¬
ments, but at those times stole off to his own room, where
he worked at his pencil, or was studying some book that
he had borrowed or bought. He would spend whole nights
in this manner at his studies, to the alarm of his mother,
who dreaded his injuring his health or setting fire to the
house, and who often kept up his sister or the servant to
watch him. His allowance of money he spent in buying
books or candles to read by; he sometimes locked him¬
self up in his room for days, and seldom slept upon his
bed, or else made it so hard as to take away the tempta¬
tion or luxury of lying long in it. Perhaps the unsocial
and ascetic turn of his temper, which thus early manifest¬
ed itself, might be remarked as the source both of the
misfortunes of his life and of the defects of his genius.
Common humanity, a sense of pleasure, and a sympathy
with the feelings of those around us, are not more necessary
to success in life than they probably are to success in the
fine arts. Few things can be more fatal to the artist than this
sort of indifference to the common pleasures and pursuits
of life. If affected, it is bad; if real and constitutional,
it is even worse. It stuck to poor Barry to the last. It
is not to be understood that, at this period of his life, he
led the life of an absolute recluse, for he could and did
occasionally join in any feats going on in the neighbour¬
hood, and was not behind other boys in such pastimes and
mischief as boys are usually fond of. An adventure which
happened to him about this time, and which left a strong
impression on his mind, is worth mentioning here. In one
of his rambles in the neighbourhood, he entered, one win¬
ter’s evening, an old, and, as he thought, an uninhabited
house, situate in a narrow by-lane in the city of Cork.
The house was without doors or windows; but curiosity
impelled him to enter, and, after mounting a rotten stair¬
case, which conducted to empty rooms on different floors,
he arrived at the garret, where he could just discern, by
the glimmering light of a few embers, two old and ema¬
ciated figures, broken by age, disease, and want, sitting
beside each other, in the act, as far as their palsied efforts
would permit, of tearing each other’s faces; not a word
being uttered by either, but with the most horrible gri-
niaces that malice could invent. They took no notice of
his entrance, but went on with their deeds of mutual hate,
which made such an impression on the boy that he ran
down stairs, making his own reflections, which he after¬
wards found verified through life, that man and all ani¬
mals are malicious and cruel in proportion as they are im¬
potent; and that age and poverty, two of the worst evils
m human life, almost always add to the calamities inherent
in them by arts of their own creating. In general, his
great desire to improve his mind led him to seek the so¬
ciety of educated men, who were not averse to receive
nun, seeing his active and inquisitive disposition, and his
seriousness of manner, couched under a garb the plainest
^ coarsest; for he adopted this kind of attire from his
c nldhood, not from affectation, but from an indifference
o all dress. Having a retentive memory, he profited by
us own reading, and by the conversation of others, who
uected him also in the choice of books. As his finances
were too low to make many purchases, he borrowed
books from his friends; and was in the practice of making
large extracts from such as he particularly liked, and
sometimes even of copying out the whole book, of which
several specimens were found among his papers, written
in a stiff school-boy’s hand. As his industry was exces¬
sive, his advances in the acquisition of knowledge were
rapid, and he was regarded as a prodigy by his school¬
fellows. His mother being a zealous Catholic, the son
could not avoid mixing at times in the company of priests
resident at Cork, who pointed out to him books of pole¬
mical divinity, of which he became a great reader, and for
which he retained a strong bias during his lifetime He
was said at one time to have been destined for the priest¬
hood, but for this report there is no authority. He, how¬
ever, always continued a Catholic, and in the decline of
life manifested rather a bigoted attachment to the religion
of his early choice. For a short interval he had a little
wavering in his belief of revealed religion in general; but
a conversation with Mr Edmund Burke put an end to this
levity. A book which Mr Burke lent him, and which set¬
tled his mind on this subject, was Bishop Butler’s Analogy;
and, as a suitable reward, he has placed this prelate in the
group of divines in his pictui'e of Elysium.
About the age of seventeen he first attempted oil paint¬
ings, and between that and the age of twenty-two, when
he first went to Dublin, he produced several large ones,
which decorated his father’s house, and represented sub¬
jects not often handled by young men, such as iEneas
escaping with his family from the flames of Troy, Susan¬
na and the Elders, Daniel in the Lion’s Den, &c. At this
period he also produced the picture which first drew him
into public notice, launched him on an ampler theatre
than his native town of Cork afforded, and, above all,
gained him the acquaintance and patronage of Mr Burke.
This picture was founded on an old tradition of the land¬
ing of St Patrick on the sea-coast of Cashel, and of the
conversion and baptism of the king of that district by the
patron saint of Ireland. The priest, in the act of baptiz¬
ing his new convert, inadvertently strikes the spear of the
crosier in the foot of the monarch. The holy father, ab¬
sorbed in the duties of his office, does not perceive what
he has done ; and the king, without interrupting the cere¬
mony, bears the pain with immovable fortitude. This
incident, together with the gestures and expressions of
the attendants, certainly formed a good subject for an
historical picture; and Mr Barry’s manner of treating it
was such as to insure him the applause and admiration of
the connoisseurs of the metropolis of the sister kingdom,
where it was exhibited in 1762 or 1763. Mr Barry took
this picture with him to Dublin ; and afterwards going to
the exhibition room, being delighted with the encomiums
it received from the spectators, he could not refrain from
making himself known as the painter. His pretensions
were treated with great contempt by the company, and
Barry burst into tears of anger and vexation. But the
incredulity of his hearers was a compliment paid to the
real or supposed excellence of his painting. It appears
that a Dr Sleigh, a physician of Cork, and a sensible and
amiable man, was first instrumental in introducing young
Barry to the notice of Mr Burke. During their early ac¬
quaintance, having fallen into a dispute on the subject of
taste, Barry quoted a passage in support of his opinion
from the Essay on the Sublime and Beautiful, which had
been just then published anonymously, and which Barry,
in his youthful admiration of it, had, it seems, transcribed
entire. Burke affected to treat this work as a theoretical
romance of no authority whatever; which threw Barry in¬
to such a rage in its defence, that Mr Burke thought it
necessary to appease him by owning himself to be the au-
BARRY.
412
Barry, thor. The scene ended in Barry’s running to embrace
him, and showing him the copy of’ the work which he had
been at the pains to transcribe. He passed his time in
Dublin in reading, drawing, and society. While he re¬
sided here, an anecdote is preserved of him, which marks
the character of the man. He had been enticed by his
companions several times to carousings at a tavern, and
one night, as he wandered home by himself, a thought
struck him of the frivolity and viciousness of thus mis¬
spending his time: the fault, he imagined, la}r in his mo¬
ney, and, therefore, without more ado, in order to avoid
the morrow’s temptation, he threw the whole of his wealth,
which perhaps amounted to no great sum, into the Liffey,
and locked himself up at his favourite pursuits. After a
residence of seven or eight months in Dublin, an oppor¬
tunity offered of accompanying some part of Mr Burke’s
family to London, which he eagerly embraced. This took
place some time in the year 1764, when he was twenty-
three years of age, and with one of those advantages which
do not always fall to the lot of young artists on their ar¬
rival in the British capital, that of being recommended to
the acquaintance of the most eminent men in the profes¬
sion by the persuasive eloquence of a man who, to genius
in himself, added the rare and noble quality of encourag¬
ing it in others: this was Mr Burke, who lost no time,
not merely in making Barry known, but in procuring for
him the first of all objects to an inexperienced and desti¬
tute young artist, employment. This employment was
chiefly that of copying in oil drawings by Mr Stuart,
better known by the name of Athenian Stuart; and
whether it suited the ambition of Barry or not to be at
this kind of labour, yet there can be no doubt that he pro¬
fited by his connection with such a man as Stuart, and
had full leisure to cast his eye about, and to improve by
the general aspect of art and artists that occupied the
period.
Mr Burke and his other friends thinking it important
that he should be introduced to a wider and nobler school
of art than this country afforded, now came forward with
the means necessary to accomplish this object; and in
the latter end of 1765 Mr Barry proceeded to the Conti¬
nent, where he remained till the beginning of 1771, stu¬
dying his art with an enthusiasm which seemed to augur
the highest success, and making observations on the dif¬
ferent chefs d'ceuvre of Italy with equal independence of
judgment and nicety of discrimination. He was support¬
ed during this period by the friendly liberality of the
Burke family (Edmund, William, and Richard), who al¬
lowed him forty pounds a year for his necessary expendi¬
ture, besides occasional remittances for particular pur-
oses. He proceeded first to Paris, then to Rome, where
e remained upwards of three years, from thence to Flo¬
rence and Bologna, and home through Venice. His let¬
ters to the Burkes, giving an account of Michael Angelo,
Raphael, Titian, and Leonardo da Vinci, show a complete
insight into the characteristic merits of their works, and
would make us wonder (if the case were at all singular)
how he could enter with such force, delicacy, and feeling,
into excellencies of which he never transplanted an atom
into his own works. He saw, felt, and wrote; his im¬
pressions were profound and refined, but the expression
of them must be instantaneous, such as gave the results
of them with a stroke of the pen, as they were received
by a glance of the eye, and he could not wait for the slow
process of the pencil for embodying his conceptions in the
necessary details of his own art. It was his desire to
make the ideas and language of painting coinstantaneous,
to express abstract results by abstract mechanical means
(a thing impossible),—to stamp the idea in his mind at
once upon the canvass, without knowledge of its parts,
without labour, without patience, without a moment’s time ] rr
or thought intervening between what he wished to do and ^ -n
its being done, that was perhaps the principal obstacle to
his ever attaining a degree of excellence in his profession
at all proportioned either to his ambition or his genius.
It is probable that, as his hand had not the patience to
give the details of objects, his eye, from the same habit
of mind, had not the power to analyze them. It is pos¬
sible, however, to see the results without the same labo¬
rious process that is necessary to convey them; for the
eye sees faster than the hand can move.
We suspect Mr Barry did not succeed very well in
copying the pictures he so well describes ; because heap-
pears to have copied but few, only one of Raphael, as far
as we can find, and three from Titian, whom he justly
considered as the model of colouring, and as more perfect
in that department of the art than either Raphael or Mi¬
chael Angelo were in theirs, expression and form, the
highest excellence in which he conceives to have been
possessed only by the ancients. In copying from the an¬
tique, however, he manifested the same aversion to la¬
bour; or to that kind of labour which, by showing us our
defects, compels us to make exertions to remedy them.
He made all his drawings from the antique, by means of
a delineator, that is, a mechanical instrument, to save the
trouble of acquiring a knowledge both of form and propor¬
tion. In this manner, equally gratifying to his indolence
and his self-love, he is stated to have made numberless
sketches of the antique statues, of all sizes, and in all di¬
rections, carefully noting down on his sketch-paper their
several measurements and proportions.
The consequences are before us in his pictures; name¬
ly, that all those of his figures which he took from these
memorandums are deficient in every thing but form, and
that all the others are equally deficient in form and every
thing else. If he did not employ his pencil properly, or
enough, in copying from the models he saw, he employed
his thoughts and his pen about them with indefatigable
zeal and spirit. He talked well about them; he wrote
well about them ; he made researches into all the collateral
branches of art and knowledge, sculpture, architecture,
cameos, seals, and intaglios. There is a long letter ofhis
addressed to Mr Burke, on the origin of the Gothic style
of architecture, written, as it should seem, to convince his
friend and patron of his industry in neglecting his proper
business. Soon after his arrival at Rome, he became em¬
broiled with the whole tribe of connoisseurs, painters, and
patrons there, whether native or foreign, on subjects of
virtu; and he continued in this state of hostility with
those around him wdiile he staid there, and, indeed, to the
end of his life. One might be tempted to suppose that
Barry chiefly studied his art as a subject to employ his
dialectics upon. On this unfortunate disposition of his
to wrangling and controversy, as it was likely to affect his
progress in his art and his progress in life, he received
some most judicious advice from Sir Joshua Reynolds and
Mr Burke, his answers to which show an admirable self¬
ignorance. On his irritable denunciations of the practices
and tricks of the Italian picture-dealers, Mr Burke makes
a reflection well deserving of attention. “ In particular,
you may be assured that the traffic in antiquity, and all
the enthusiasm, folly, and fraud, which may be in it, wc«T
did, nor never can, hurt the merit of living artists. Quite
the contrary, in my opinion : for I have ever observed,
that, whatever it be that turns the minds of men to any¬
thing relative to the arts, even the most remotely so>
brings artists more and more into credit and repute; an<
though, now and then, the mere broker and dealer in sue
things runs away with a great deal of profit, yet, in the
end, ingenious men will find themselves gainers by t.m
BARRY.
Ba . dispositions which are nourished and diffused in the world
^ ^ by such pursuits.” Mr Barry painted two pictures while
abroad, his Adam and Eve and his Philoctetes. The first
of these he sent home as a specimen of his progress in the
art. It does not appear to have given much satisfaction.
His Philoctetes he brought home with him. It is a most
wretched, coarse, unclassical performance, the direct op¬
posite of all that he thought it to be. During his stay
at Rome, he made an excursion to Naples, and was high¬
ly delighted with the collections of art there. All the
time he was abroad, Mr Burke and his brothers not only
were punctual in their remittances to him, but kept up a
most friendly and cordial correspondence. On one occa¬
sion, owing to the delay of a letter, a bill which Barry had
presented to a banker was dishonoured. This detained
Barry for some time at the place where he was in very
awkward circumstances, and he had thoughts of getting
rid of his chagrin and of his prospects in life at once, by
running away and turning friar. For some time previous
to his return to England, Mr Hamilton (afterwards Sir
William) appears to have been almost the only person
with whom he kept up any intimacy. It was on his re¬
turn home through Milan that he witnessed, and has re¬
corded with due reprobation, the destruction of Leonar¬
do’s Last Supper, which two bungling artists were em¬
ployed to paint over by order of one Count de Firmian,
the secretary of state.
In the spring of 1771 Mr Barry arrived in England,
after an absence of five years. He soon after produced his
picture of Venus, which has been compared to the Galatea
of Raphael, the Venus of Titian, and the Venus de’ Medi¬
ci, without reason. Mr Barry flattered himself that he
had surpassed the famous statue of that name, by avoiding
the appearance of maternity in it. There is an engraving
of it by Mr Valentine Green. In 1773 he exhibited his
Jupiter and Juno on Mount Ida, which was much praised
by some critics of that flay. His Death of General Wolfe
was considered as a falling off from his great style of art,
which consisted in painting Greek subjects, and accord-
ingly it is said to “ have obtained no praise.” His fond¬
ness for Greek costume was assigned by his admirers as
the cause of his reluctance to paint portraits; as if the
coat was of more importance than the face. His fasti¬
diousness in this respect, and his frequent excuses, or
blunt refusals, to go on with a portrait of Mr Burke, which
he had begun, caused a misunderstanding with that gentle¬
man, which does not appear to have been ever entirely
made up. The difference between them is said to have
been widened by Burke’s growing intimacy with Sir
Joshua, and by Barry’s feeling some little jealousy of the
fame and fortune of his rival in an humbler ivalk of the
ari' He> about the same time, painted a pair of classical
subjects, Mercury inventing the Lyre, and Narcissus look-
1\r’ n *n ^le Water, the last suggested to him by
Hr Burke. He also painted an historical picture of Chi-
ion and Achilles, and another of the story of Stratonice,
or which last the duke of Richmond gave him a hundred
guineas. In 1773 there was a plan in contemplation for our
aitists to decorate the inside of St Paul’s with historical and
sacre subjects; but this plan fell to the ground, from its
not meeting with the concurrence of the bishop of London
an the archbishop of Canterbury, to the no small morti-
ca ion of Barry, who had fixed upon the subject he was
paint, the rejection of Christ by the Jews when Pi-
e proposes his release. In 1773 he published An In-
'i iry mto the real and imaginary Obstructions to the Ac-
7 m ion oj the Arts in England, vindicating the capacity
e Rughsh for the fine arts, and tracing their slow pro-
disJn • rt0 t0 the Reformation; to political and civil
sions; and, lastly, to the general turn of the public
413
mind to mechanics, manufactures, and commerce. In the Barry,
year 1774, shortly after the failure of the scheme of deco- v—
rating St Paul’s, a proposal was made, through Mr Valen¬
tine Green, to the same artists, Reynolds, West, Cipri¬
ani, Barry, &c. for ornamenting the great room of the So¬
ciety for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and
Commerce, in the Adelphi, with historical and allegorical
paintings. This proposal was at the time rejected by the
artists themselves; but, in 1777, Mr Barry made an offer
to paint the whole himself, on condition of being allowed
the choice of his subjects, and being paid the expense of
canvass, paints, and models, by the society. This offer
was accepted, and he finished the series of pictures at the
end of seven years, instead of two, which he had proposed
to himself, but with entire satisfaction to the members of
the society, for whom it was intended, and who conduct¬
ed themselves to him with liberality throughout. They
granted him two exhibitions, and at different periods voted
him 50 guineas, their gold medal, and again 200 guineas,
and a seat among them. Dr Johnson remarked, when he
saw the pictures, that, “ whatever the hand had done, the
head had done its part.” There was an excellent anony¬
mous criticism, supposed to be by Mr Burke, published
on them, in answer to some remarks put forth by Barry
in his descriptive catalogue on the ideal style of art, and
the necessity of size to grandeur. His notions on both
these subjects are very ably controverted, and, indeed,
they are the rock on which Barry’s genius split. It would
be curious if Mr Burke were the author of these strictures;
for it is not improbable that Barry was led into the last
error, here deprecated, by that author’s Essay on the Su¬
blime and Beautiful. The series consists of six pictures,
showing the progress of human culture. The first repre¬
sents Orpheus taming the savages by his lyre. The figure
of Orpheus himself is more like that of a drunken bacchanal
than an inspired poet or lawgiver. The only part of this
picture which is valuable is the background, in one part
of which a lion is seen ready to dart upon a family group
milking near a cave, and, in another, a tiger is pursuing
a horse. There is certainly a scope of thought and pic¬
turesque invention, in thus showing indirectly the protec¬
tion which civilization extends, as it were, over both man
and animals. The second picture is a Grecian harvest,
which has nothing Grecian in it. But we cannot apply
this censure to the third picture of the Olympic Games,
some of the figures in which, and the principal group, are
exceedingly graceful, classical, and finely conceived. This
picture is the only proof Mr Barry has left upon canvass
that he was not utterly insensible to the beauties of the
art. The figure of the young man on horseback really
reminds the spectator of some of the Elgin marbles; and
the outlines of the two youthful victors at the games,
supporting their father on their shoulders, are excellent.
The colouring is, however, as bald and wretched in this
picture as the rest, and there is a great want of expres¬
sion. The fourth picture is the triumph of commerce,
with Dr Burney swimming in the Thames, with his hair
powdered, among naked sea-nymphs. The fifth, the So¬
ciety of Arts distributing their annual prizes. And the
sixth represents Elysium. This last picture is a collection
of caricatured portraits of celebrated individuals of all
ages and nations, strangely jumbled together, with a huge
allegorical figure of Retribution driving Heresy, Vice, and
Atheism, into the infernal regions. The moral design of
all these pictures is much better explained in the catalogue
than on the canvass; and the artist has added none of the
graces of the pencil to it in any of them, with the excep¬
tion above made. Mr Barry appears, however, to have
rested his pretensions to fame as an artist on this work,
for he did little afterwards but paltry engravings from
414 BARRY.
Barry, himself, and the enormous and totally worthless picture of
Pandora in the assembly of the gods. His self-denial, fru¬
gality, and fortitude, in the prosecution of his work at the
Adeiphi, cannot be too much applauded. He has been
heard to say, that at the time of his undertaking it, he bad
only 16s. in his pocket; and that he had often been oblig¬
ed, after painting all day, to sit up at night to sketch or
engrave some design for the printsellers, which was to sup¬
ply him with his next day’s subsistence. In this manner
he did his prints of Job, dedicated to Mr Burke, of the
Birth of Venus, Polemon, Head of Chatham, King Lear
from the picture painted for the Shakspeare gallery, &c.
His prints are caricatures even of his pictures ; they seem
engraved on rotten wood.
Soon after Mr Barry’s return from the Continent, he
was chosen a member of the Royal Academy; and in
1782 he was appointed professor of painting, in the room
of Mr Penny, with a salary of L.30 a year. The lectures
which he delivered from the chair were full of strong
sense and strong advice, both to the students and acade¬
micians. Among other things, he insisted much on the
necessity of purchasing a collection of pictures by the
best masters as models for the students, and proposed se¬
veral of those in the Orleans collection. This recom¬
mendation was not relished by the academicians, who,
perhaps, thought their own pictures the best models for
their several pupils. Bickerings, jealousies, and quarrels
arose, and at length reached such a height, that, in 1799,
Mr Barry was expelled from the Academy, soon after the
appearance of his Letter to the Dilettanti Society ; a very
amusing but eccentric publication, full of the highest en¬
thusiasm for his art, and the lowest contempt for the liv¬
ing professors of it. In 1800 he undertook a design or
drawing to celebrate the union of the two kingdoms of
Great Britain and Ireland. The profits of the two exhi¬
bitions of the Adeiphi pictures are said to have amounted
to above L.500. Lord Romney presented him with 100
guineas for his portrait, which had been copied into one
of the pictures, and he had twenty guineas for a head of
Mr Hooper. He probably received other sums for por¬
traits introduced into the work. By extreme frugality, he
contrived, not only to live, but to save money. His house
was twice robbed of sums which he kept by him ; one of
the times (in 1794) of upwards of L.100, a loss which
was made up by the munificence of Lord Radnor, and by
that of his friends the Hollises. After the loss of his sa¬
lary, a subscription was set on foot by the earl of Buchan
to relieve him from his difficulties, and to settle him in a
larger house to finish his picture of Pandora. The sub¬
scription amounted to L.1000, with which an annuity was
bought, but of this he was prevented from enjoying the
benefit, for, on the 6th of February 1806, he was seized
with a pleuritic fever, and, as he neglected medical as¬
sistance at first, it was afterwards of no use. After lin¬
gering on for a fortnight in considerable pain, but with¬
out losing his fortitude of mind, he died on the 22d of
the same month. On the 13th of March the body was
taken to the great room of the Society of Arts, and was
thence attended the following day by a numerous and re¬
spectable train of his friends to the cathedral of St Paul’s,
where it was deposited.
Mr Barry, as an artist, a writer, and a man, was distin¬
guished by great inequality of powers and extreme con¬
tradictions in character. He was gross and refined at the
same time ; violent and urbane ; sociable and sullen; in¬
flammable and inert; ardent and phlegmatic; relapsing
from enthusiasm into indolence; irritable, headstrong,
impatient of restraint; captious in his intercourse with
his friends; wavering and desultory in his profession. In
his personal habits he was careless of appearances or de¬
cency ; penurious, slovenly, and squalid. He regarded no- ] rv
thing but his immediate impulses, confirmed into incorri¬
gible habits. His pencil was under no control. His eye i“tL
and his hand seemed to receive a first rude impulse, to ^ ^
which it gave itself up, and paid no regard to any thing
else. The strength of the original impetus only drove
him farther from his object. Llis genius constantly flew
off in tangents, and came in contact with nature only at
salient points. There are two drawings of his from sta¬
tues of a lion and a lioness at Rome ; the nose of the lioness
is two straight lines ; the ears of the lion two curves, which
might be mistaken for horns; as if, after it had taken its
first direction, he lost the use of his hand, and his tools
worked mechanically and monotonously without his will.
His enthusiasm and vigour were exhausted in the con¬
ception ; the execution was crude and abortive. His
writings are a greater acquisition to the art than his paint¬
ings. The powers of conversation were what he most ex¬
celled in; and the influence which he exercised in this
way over all companies where he came, in spite of the
coarseness of his dress, and the frequent rudeness of his
manner, was great. Take him for all in all, he was a man
of whose memory it is impossible to think without admira¬
tion as well as regret. (d. d.)
Barry, in Heraldry, is when an escutcheon is divided
bar-ways, that is, across from side to side, into an even
number of partitions, consisting of two or more tinctures,
interchangeably disposed. In the blazon the word harry
must be expressed, and the number of pieces specified;
but if the divisions be odd, the field must be first named,
and tbe number of bars expressed.
BARRY-Bendy is when an escutcheon is divided evenly,
bar and bend-ways, by transverse and diagonal lines, in¬
terchangeably varying the tinctures of which it consists.
Barry-PU]) is when a coat is divided by several lines
drawn obliquely from side to side, and forming acute angles
at the points of intersection.
BARSALLI. See Bur Salum.
BARSANTI, Francisco, an eminent musical performer
and composer, was born at Lucca about the year 1690.
He studied the civil law in the university of Padua; but,
after a short stay there, he chose music as a profession.
Accordingly, he put himself under the tuition of some of
the ablest masters in Italy ; and, having attained to a con¬
siderable degree of proficiency in practical composition,
he took a resolution to settle in England, and came thither
with Geminiani, who was also a Luccese, in the year 1714.
He was a good performer on the hautboy, and also on the
flute : in the former capacity he found employment in the
opera band, and in the latter derived considerable advan¬
tages by teaching. He published six solos for a flute with
a thorough-bass, and afterwards six solos for a German flute
and a bass. He also converted into sonatas, for two vio¬
lins and a bass, the first six solos of Geminiani. He con¬
tinued many years a performer at the opera-house; but
thinking that there was a prospect of advantage for one of
his profession in Scotland, he at length went thither, and
may be said, with greater truth than was alleged of David
Rizzio, to have improved the music of that country, by
collecting and making basses to a great number of the most
popular Scottish tunes. About the year 1750, Barsanti
returned to England; but being advanced in years, he
was glad to be taken into the opera band as a performei
on the tenor violin, and in the summer season into that of
Vauxhall. At this time he published twelve concertos
for violins ; and shortly after Sei Antifone, in which he
endeavoured to imitate the style of Palestrina and the ole
composers of motets ; but from these publications so hU e
profit resulted, that, towards the close of his life, the indus¬
try and economy of an excellent wife, whom he had mar-
BAR BAR 415
ried in Scotland, and the studies and labours of a daugh-
ter, whom he had qualified for the profession of a singer,
Bar ■ and who afterwards became an actress at Covent Garden,
len' , were his chief support.
^ ^ BARTAS, William de Salluste du, a French poet,
was born in the year 1544, and died in 1590. He was
employed by Henry IV. of France, in England, Denmark,
and Scotland; and he commanded a troop of horse in
Gascony, under the marshal de Martignan. He wrote a
number of poems, the principal of which, The Week, or the
Creation of the World, though it has long since fallen into
oblivion, enjoyed for a considerable period a very high
reputation, thirty editions of it having been printed within
a few years after its appearance. It was translated into
English by Joshua Sylvester, and published in 1605, in a
quarto volume, which has been several times reprinted.
BARTER, or Truck, is the exchanging of one com¬
modity for another. The word comes from the Spanish
baratar, to deceive or circumvent in bargaining, perhaps
because those who deal this way usually endeavour to
overreach one another. To transact properly, the price
of one of the commodities, and an equivalent quantity of
the other, must be found either by practice or by the
rule of three. The value or price of the goods received
and delivered in barter being always equal, it is obvious
that the product of the quantities received and delivered,
multiplied into their respective rates, will be equal. Hence
arises a rule which may be used with advantage in work¬
ing several questions; namely, multiply the given quan¬
tity and rate of the one commodity, and the product, divid¬
ed by the rate of the other commodity, quotes the quan¬
tity sought, or, divided by the quantity, quotes the rate.
BARTFELD, a city in the province of Hither Theis, in
Hungary, on the river Tapola, with some manufactories
for making cloth, shoes, and other goods. It contains 560
houses and 4480 inhabitants. Long. 21. 13. 6. E. Lat. 49.
16. 10. N.
BARTH, or Bart, John, a brave fisherman of Dun¬
kirk, who rose to the rank of admiral, and who is celebrated
for his signal valour and naval exploits in the annals of
France. He died in 1702, aged fifty-one.
BARTHELEMY, John James, a celebrated literary
character, born at Cassis, a little sea-port on the shores of
the Mediterranean, in January 1716. At twelve years of
age he was sent to school at Marseilles. Being admitted
into the college of the oratory, he was put under the care
of Father Renaud, a person of taste and wit, who soon
discovered similar qualities in his pupil, and became un¬
commonly attentive to his progress. M. de Visclede, a
man of letters, and friend to the former, also concurred
with him in his endeavours; and young Barthelemy’s ca¬
reer soon became equally rapid and brilliant.
He had resolved to dedicate himself to the church;
but, in order to qualify himself, it became necessary to
change his place pf residence, since M. de Belzunce,
bishop of Marseilles, being actuated by a narrow jealousy,
refused to admit to holy orders the students of the ora¬
tory. Barthelemy, therefore, quitting his old masters
with regret, found himself under the necessity of studying
philosophy and theology under the Jesuits.
As he had not at first the good fortune to fall into able
hands, he determined to follow a private plan of educa¬
tion, independently of the professors. He accordingly ap¬
plied himself to the ancient languages, and was indefa¬
tigable in acquiring a knowledge of the Greek, Hebrew,
Ghaldee, and Syriac. Flis passion for learning, however,
had nearly cost him his life; for he fell dangerously ill,
mm did not recover his strength until he had entered the
seminary where he received the tonsure.
In this retreat he dedicated his leisure hours to the
study of Arabic; and a young Maronite, who had been Barthe-
educated at Rome, having afforded him assistance, he was lemy.
soon able not only to read, but even to speak that lan-
guage. By way of return, his new friend proposed to him
to render all the services in his power to the Maronites,
Armenians, and other Catholic Arabians, who were but
slightly acquainted with the language of the country in
which they resided; in other words, he expressed a wish
that Barthelemy would announce the word of God to them
in their native tongue, and accordingly presented him
with some Arabic sermons composed by a Jesuit who had
belonged to the Propaganda. Accordingly, Barthelemy
got one or two of them by heart, and pronounced them
in a spacious hall belonging to the seminary, to the entire
satisfaction of his oriental auditors.
His reputation now rose high, and he began to be con¬
sidered a youth of uncommon promise, when a trifling in¬
cident occurred which tended not a little to increase his
fame. Ten or twelve of the principal merchants of Mar¬
seilles one day introduced to him a person who had im¬
plored their charity on the exchange. The stranger de¬
scribed himself as a Jew by birth, who, on account of his
great learning, had been raised to the dignity of rabbi,
but who, perceiving from his researches that the Christian
was the true religion, had become a convert to that faith ;
adding, at the same time, that he was profoundly instructed
in the oriental languages, and desired to be put to the proof
by being confronted with some learned man. Barthelemy,
not then twenty-one years of age, was immediately pitched
upon. It was in vain he assured his friends that although
he could read he was unable to speak the languages in
question. They pressed him to enter into conversation
with the native of the East; and the stranger himself en¬
treated that the conference might immediately commence.
The challenge was at length accepted, and the foreigner
began the contest, from which Barthelemy retired with
the character of a prodigy of oriental learning.
Barthelemy having now finished his education at the
seminary, retired to Aubagne, and spent some time in the
bosom of his family, by all the members of which he was
greatly beloved. He was accustomed, however, to repair
frequently to Marseilles, in order to visit the academicians
and other learned men residing there. Among those to
whom he attached himself in a particular manner was a
M. Cary, the possessor of a fine cabinet of medals, and a
valuable collection of books adapted to the favourite sub¬
ject of his pursuits and studies. They spent whole days
together in conversing on literary subjects; after which
Barthelemy, as if insatiable of knowledge, would retire to
the Minims, where Father Sigaloux, a correspondent of
the Academy of Sciences, was employed in making astro¬
nomical observations. In these labours the young abbe
became his associate, for he was ambitious of improving in
every kind of knowledge.
But he at length began to perceive, that, in order to ren¬
der his studies profitable, it would be necessary to circum¬
scribe them; as mediocrity of knowledge, the inevitable
result of diversity of application, was but little prefera¬
ble to ignorance itself. Impressed with these sentiments,
he repaired to Paris in 1744, with the view of devoting him¬
self entirely to literature. He was furnished with a letter
to M. de Boze, keeper of the medals, and perpetual secre¬
tary of inscriptions and belles lettres. This learned man,
so estimable in every point of view, received him with
great politeness, and introduced him to the acquaintance
of the most distinguished members of the three academies,
who dined twice a week at his apartments. Mixing with
society of this kind, Barthelemy became more deeply ena¬
moured of letters than ever, and of those who cultivated
them.
416
BARTHELEMY.
Barth*?- M. de Boze, having in the meanwhile carefully studied
lemX- the character and disposition of the young man, at length
favoured him with his friendship, and even with his con¬
fidence ; at least he conferred on him as much of these as
was possible for a man of so much circumspection and re¬
serve to bestow on any one. As the increasing age and
declining health of M. de Boze no longer admitted of his
applying with the intense devotion necessary for the com¬
pletion of the cabinet of medals, he entertained some
thoughts of associating M. de Bastie, a learned antiquary
belonging to the academy of inscriptions, as a partner in
his labours. But that gentleman lost the appointment, in
consequence of an unlucky expression; Barthelemy was
selected a few months afterwards; and the nomination
was approved of by M. Bignon the librarian, and Maure-
pas the minister of the department. From that moment
the abbe dedicated both his days and nights to the study
of those medals which his colleague had been prevented
by his infirmities from arranging.
Amidst his multiplied occupations, Barthelemy began
to enjoy a mode of life so conformable to his taste and his
talents, when he beheld with concern a new career pre¬
sent itself. In the course of his journey to the capital he
had seen M. de Bausset, then a canon at Aix. They were
friends and countrymen; for M. de Bausset was born at
Aubagne, where his family had long been established. As
he was a young man of considerable expectations, he had
promised that Barthelemy should become his vicar-general
the moment he himself was decorated with the mitre. Such
a flattering offer was not to be rejected; and as the canon
had just been nominated to the bishopric of Bezieres,
he did not fail to remind his old acquaintance of their
mutual engagement. The regret felt by the medallist on
this occasion was unaffected and real; but he was too
scrupulous an observer of his word to break his promise;
and the prelate, who saw and felt for the embarrassment
of Barthelemy, immediately desisted from his importuni¬
ties.
On the death of M. de Boze, keeper of the cabinet of
medals, in 1753, Barthelemy, who had been his colleague
during seven years, expected of course to succeed him in
that honourable situation. One person, however, appear¬
ed as a candidate ; and notwithstanding the abbe, relying
on the justice of his pretensions, took no step whatever to
obtain the appointment, the zeal of his friends, who were
both numerous and powerful, rendered all solicitations on
his part unnecessary. M. de Malesherbes, wdiose unfortu¬
nate and tragical death was universally deplored; M. de
Stainville, afterwards a duke and minister; and M. de
Gontaut, brother of the last marshal de Biron; supported
his pretensions, and he was accordingly nominated succes¬
sor to his friend in 1753.
M. de Stainville, afterwards better known during his
administration by the title of duke de Choiseul, being ap¬
pointed ambassador to Rome in 1754, Madame de Stain¬
ville, a lady both young and beautiful, as well as passion¬
ately attached to learning and learned men, conceived a
particular regard for the abbe; and it was proposed that
he should occupy a place in their carriage on this occa¬
sion, and make the tour of Italy along with them. Such
a proposition could not fail to be highly flattering; but he
was obliged, from principles of duty, to refrain for a time
from complying with their wishes. He set out soon after,
however, and in November arrived at Rome, where he and
his companion were received and treated in the kindest
manner by the French plenipotentiary, who lived in mag¬
nificent style. Pope Benedict XIV., who then wore the
tiara, and was a learned man himself, did not fail to dis¬
tinguish Barthelemy by the most courteous reception.
But his stay at Rome was not of long duration; for he was
desirous of visiting Naples, rendered particularly interest¬
ing to an antiquary, at that period, by the recent dis- ]
coveries made in its neighbourhood. During a whole ^
month he and his fellow-traveller were occupied in ad¬
miring the curiosities of that capital, and in studying an¬
cient literature ; after which they took a journey of thirty
leagues to examine the monuments of Grecian architec¬
ture still extant amidst the splendid ruins of the ancient
city of Paestum.
But the spacious apartments of the palace of Portici,
containing the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii,
were still more interesting, and excited a higher degree of
curiosity in the breasts of the French philosophers. There
they beheld an immense quantity of paintings, statues,
busts, vases, and utensils of every kind; objects peculiar¬
ly calculated to engage their attention and excite their
admiration. It was not, however, without a certain mix¬
ture of grief and surprise that they noticed the four or five
hundred manuscripts, saved from the ruins of Hercula¬
neum, lying in the same forlorn state in which they were
discovered. Two or three only had been unrolled, of
which the learned Mazocchi has given an explanation; but
as these contained nothing important, the operation was
abandoned. Barthelemy, however, was not so easily dis¬
couraged ; for he unceasingly solicited, nay, he almost con¬
descended to intrigue, with a view to engage the posses¬
sors of these treasures to turn them to the best advantage.
But, a few years afterwards, when his labours were about
to be crowned with success, he was finally disappointed
by the death of the Marquis Caraccioli, the minister of
Naples, who had entered most cordially into his views.
Another subject about this time also engaged the atten¬
tion of the abbe. He was exceedingly desirous of pre¬
senting the learned men of France with a specimen of the
ancient writing employed in the Greek manuscripts. He
accordingly addressed himself on this subject to his friend
Mazocchi, and also to M. Paderno, who superintended
the treasures of Portici; but both replied that they were
expressly enjoined not to make any communication on the
subject. On this he solicited permission to look, for a few
minutes only, on a page of a manuscript which had been cut
from top to bottom since its discovery. It contained twen-
ty-eight lines, and Barthelemy read it over six different
times with extreme attention, after which he retired to a
corner and transcribed the precious fragment on a piece of
paper, from memory. He then returned, and having made
a mental collation between the copy and the original, he
corrected two or three trifling errors that had escaped his
attention. And having thus rendered himself master of
a fac-simile of the manuscript, which related to the per¬
secution of the Greek philosophers during the time of
Pericles, he transmitted the literary plunder in the course
of that very day to the Academy of Belles Lettres; strict¬
ly enjoining secrecy, however, that Mazocchi and Pader¬
no might escape all manner of blame.
M. de Stainville having been appointed ambassador to
the court of Vienna in 1757, the abbe accompanied his
lady thither. On his arrival he found that his friend and
protector had made certain engagements with the French
ministry with the view of gratifying his passion for anti¬
quities ; and, in consequence, he received permission to
visit, at the king’s expense, Greece and the sea-ports of
the Mediterranean, where he was to collect new treasures,
and return with them to his native country by Marseilles.
But notwithstanding all the attractions which this project
presented, his scrupulous attachment to his duty prevail¬
ed over his passion for knowledge; and as he deemed it
highly improper that the cabinet of medals should remain
so long shut, he abandoned the scheme of visiting the
Levant.
BARTHELEM YJ
,e'. At length, towards the end of 1758, M. de Stainville,
now become duke de Choiseul, was nominated minister for
foreign affairs, in the room of the abbe de Bernis, who had
retired with a cardinal’s hat. No sooner had this event
taken place, than both the duke and his lady determined
to provide for their friend. They accordingly requested
Barthelemy to state the sum which would make him easy
for life; and he instantly mentioned 6000 livres a year,
blushing at the same time at the largeness of the demand.
As the national purse was now open to the minister,
he distributed his favours with a liberal hand; and it must
be owned that, on this occasion, an object worthy of re¬
muneration presented itself in the person of the learned
abbe. Accordingly, in 1759, the duke presented him with
a pension on the archbishopric of Alby; in 1765 he con¬
ferred on him the treasurership of St Martin de Tours;
and, in 1768, he made him secretary-general to the Swiss
guards. In addition to these the abbe also enjoyed a
pension of 5000 livres on the Mercure de France. By
these means his income was now very large; but he em¬
ployed it nobly; for he distributed the surplus, which was
considerable, among indigent men of letters.
In 1771 M. de Choiseul was disgraced, being succeeded
in his office by his enemy the duke d’Aiguillon, and exiled
to his estate at Chanteloupe. On this occasion he was
as usual forsaken by the courtiers who had basked in the
sunshine of his favour. But he was not deserted by the
grateful antiquary, who instantly repaired to Chanteloupe
to pay his respects to the fallen minister; and when the
king demanded the duke’s resignation of the post of colo¬
nel-general of the Swiss guards, the abbe, with a spirit
which does honour to his memory, insisted on sending in
his own resignation of the secretaryship. The ex-minister,
however, interfered, and prevailed upon him not to deliver
it up without an indemnification, sanctioned by the great
seal, and authorized by letters patent enregistered in the
parliament.
Barthelemy was now in possession of more than L.1200
sterling per annum, of which he distributed between L.300
and L.400 in the manner before related ; and the remainder
was not dissipated in pomp and ostentation, but employed in
such a manner as to enable him to enjoy philosophic ease.
He also educated and established in life three nephews,
one of whom was successively an ambassador and a di¬
rector ; at the same time supporting the rest of his family
in Provence, and collecting a noble library, which he dis¬
posed of some years before his death. But after having
thus possessed an ample income during more than twenty
years, the abbe Barthelemy found himself, towards the
close of his existence, reduced to live on a pittance barely
adequate to furnish the necessaries of life, in consequence
of the suppression of places and appointments occasioned
by the revolution. He was never heard to complain, how¬
ever, nor, indeed, did he seem to perceive the change;
and while age and infirmities permitted him to walk from
one end of Paris to the other, in order to pay his respects
t0 Madame de Choiseul, his happiness suffered no appa¬
rent diminution.
hi 1788 appeared his celebrated work, entitled Voyage
' ujeune Anacharsis en Grece, dans le milieu du quatrieme
week avant l'ere Chretienne. He had begun it in 1757,
and, during an uninterrupted succession of thirty years,
occupied his leisure hours in bringing it to maturity. His
ero, a young Scythian, descended from the famous phi-
osopher Anacharsis, whose name he bears, is supposed
o lepair to Greece for instruction in his early youth, and
a^ter making the tour of her republics, colonies, and
!S . > tp return to his native country and write this
wok m his old age, after the Macedonian hero had over-
urned the Persian empire. In the manner of modern tra-
vol, iv.
tellers, he gives an account of the customs, government, and
antiquities, of the country he is supposed to have visited ;
a copious introduction supplies whatever may be want¬
ing in respect to historical details; whilst various disser¬
tations on the music of the Greeks, on the literature of
the Athenians, and on the economy, pursuits, ruling
passions, manners, and customs, of the surrounding stated,
supply ample information on the subjects of which they
treat. The author, indeed, is not profound; and the
young Scythian seldom penetrates much below the sur¬
face. But his remarks are commonly judicious, and to re¬
spectable erudition he unites singular skill in the distri¬
bution of his materials, and a happy talent for presenting
his subject in the most agreeable and attractive form.
The assumed character is so admirably sustained through¬
out, that we can scarcely persuade ourselves we are not
perusing a book of real travels, and communing with an
actual personage, w'ho has recorded his observations and
experience for the instruction and improvement of his
countrymen.
In 1789 Barthelemy became a candidate for a chair in
the French Academy; and the reputation he had ob¬
tained by his labours was such, that this learned body
became anxious to enrol him among its members, which
vras accordingly done by acclamation. The speech deli¬
vered by the abbe on his inauguration has been equally
celebrated for its simplicity and modesty.
In 1790 M. de St Priest, minister of the department of
Paris, made him an offer of the situation of librarian to the
king, then vacant by the resignation of M. le Noir. But
this very flattering proposal was not accepted ; for the
abbe imagined that it might interfere vrith his literary
occupations, and therefore respectfully declined the in¬
tended favour.
But while Barthelemy was thus refusing one of the
most honourable offices which a man of letters could at that
time aspire to, he did not neglect the department which
had so long been confided to his charge. His ardour re¬
specting every thing that concerned the cabinet of me¬
dals remained unabated through life; and he now found
means to have his nephew, Barthelemy Courcy, associated
with him in his labours. This grand collection had re¬
ceived a considerable increase, and had been embellished
with a number of fine specimens since it was first confided
to his care. To enrich it still more, he carried on an exten¬
sive correspondence, not only with the various provinces
of France, but also with every part of Europe.
In the mean time the health of the learned medalist
declined daily, and in 1792 his sti’ength had so much
failed him that, towards the close of the year, he became
subject to fainting fits, which deprived him of the exer¬
cise of his faculties for several hours together. Being na¬
turally calm and courageous, he did not appear to be in
the least affected by these accidents ; his friends, however,
considered them as symptoms of approaching dissolution.
He was now seventy-eight years of age, sixty of which had
been spent in literary toils; and it might therefore have
been expected that, even at that agitated period, the ve¬
nerable veteran would have been suffered to die in peace.
But it was not so. On the 30th of August 1793 this feeble
old man was denounced as an aristocrat, and his nephew
and several other young men employed about the library
were included in the charge. The accusation proceeded
from a person of the name of Duby, a clerk in the library,
and it was conveyed in a letter written by him to a per¬
son of the name of Chretien, a pastry-cook (who hap¬
pened to be a member of the section before which it was
first read), and then transmitted to the municipality. It
was of no consequence that Duby did not know Chretien,
nor Chretien Duby, and that Barthelemy was not acqtiaint-
3 G
417
Barthe-
lemv.
418 BAR
Barthe- ed with either. A warrant was immediately issued against
lemy. the supposed culprits, and the fact was signified, by the
w'Y'w/ officers of justice, to the abbe, while at Madame de Choi-
seul’s, on the morning of the 2d of September. On re¬
ceiving the intimation, he instantly rose, without discover¬
ing any symptoms of perturbation, and taking his leave of
that lady, was conducted to the Magdelonettes, where he
found his nephew Courcy. Such, however, was the respect
paid to his virtue and his talents, even within the walls of
a prison, that, on entering the gate, he was received with
every expression of regard by the inhabitants of this
dreary mansion; and even the jailer, whose name was
Vanbertrand, paid him the most respectful attention. He
was accordingly lodged in a little apartment along with his
relation; and in the course of that evening he received a
visit from Madame de Choiseul, who had taken care to
notify the event to the government. No sooner was the
Committee of Public Safety informed that the Abbe Bar-
thelemy had been included in the order, which was meant
to extend only to some of the subalterns employed in the
library, than orders were instantly issued for his release;
and it is said that the clerks in the public offices display¬
ed the utmost zeal in forwarding the necessary papers for
his liberation ; in consequence of which he was awaked
from his sleep at eleven o’clock at night, and conducted
to the house of his fair friend. Nor did the attention of
the government stop here. In a few weeks afterwards,
the office of national librarian having become vacant by
the death of Carra and the resignation of Chamfort, who
had held it jointly, it was offered to the abbe, with the
most flattering marks of respect. But his advanced age
and increasing infirmities did not admit of his accepting
the offer.
In 1794 his approaching dissolution was apparent to
every one but himself, for his fainting fits became longer
and more frequent; but as he did not retain any remem¬
brance of them, he occupied his time as usual, and con¬
tinued to devote all his hours to friendship and literature.
He had now reached the eightieth year of a life which had
been entirely spent in laborious and incessant application
to study, and might even have attained a greater age.
But the rigour of the winter of 1795, against which he
had adopted no precautions, is supposed to have hastened
the catastrophe, which, however, did not occur until the
ensuing spring.
On the 25th of April he dined with Madame de Choiseul.
In the course of the night he became so wreak that he was
unable to ring his bell; and in the morning, when his ser¬
vant entered, he was found with his feet in the bed and
his head on the floor, entirely deprived of sensation. Af¬
ter being replaced, his recollection returned; but he be¬
came gradually worse, and at length died without a strug¬
gle on the 30th April 1795. He retained full possession
of his faculties until the very last moment. At one o’clock
he read Horace as if nothing extraordinary had occurred;
but his hands turning cold in consequence of the ap¬
proach of death, he became unable to support the book,
and it fell to the ground. Soon after his head was seen
to incline on one side ; he appeared to sleep, and it was
believed by his nephew and his attendants that he had
fallen into a slumber; but it was soon discovered that his
respiration had ceased, and that this learned man was no
more. Thus died John James Barthelemy, one of the
greatest ornaments of his age, a man whose life presented
an example, and an author whose works form a model, for
literary men. In his person Barthelemy was above the
middle size ; and, if we are to credit his admirers, his
countenance displayed an air of antiquity wonderfully cor¬
responding with his studies. His bust, sculptured by the
chisel of Houdon, is allowed to be a masterpiece of art;
BAR
and that able artist has contrived to infuse into the phy- Bart
siognomy a mixture of the mildness, simplicity, good-na-
ture, and elevation of soul, so visible in the original.
BARTHEZ, Paul Joseph, one of the most celebrated
physicians of the university of Montpellier, equally remark¬
able for the variety and extent of his erudition, and for the
vigour of mind displayed in his abstruse speculations. He
was born on the 11th of December 1734, at Montpellier,
and received his early education at Narbonne, where his
family resided, and afterwards at Toulouse. He soon gave
decisive indications of those talents with which nature had
endowed him, and which destined him to occupy a dis¬
tinguished station among the learned men of the age.
Ardent in his pursuit of knowledge, and uniting great
quickness of apprehension with a tenacious memory, his
progress in every study which he attempted was more
than ordinarily rapid; he had a remarkable facility in ac¬
quiring languages, and at an early age had made himself
master of the ancient and of several modern ones. He
seems to have been for some time uncertain what profes¬
sion he should follow; but having at length, at the insti¬
gation of his father, commenced the study of medicine at
Montpellier in 1750, he pursued it with eagerness, and
his success was proportionate to his exertions; for, in
1753, when he had only attained his 19th year, he receiv¬
ed his doctor’s degree. He afterwards occasionally visit¬
ed Paris, where he continued to pursue his studies with
indefatigable industry; and attracting the notice, not only
of those who were following the same pursuits, but of those
who could better appreciate the full extent of his attain¬
ments, he was admitted to the society, and acquired the
friendship, of the most distinguished literati of that period.
In 1756 he obtained the appointment of physician to the
military hospital in Normandy, attached to the army of
observation commanded by Marshal d’Estrees. The zeal
and assiduity with which he discharged the duties of his
new office were most exemplary. He seemed determined
to profit to the utmost by the extensive field of observa¬
tion which was thus opened td him, and in which he could
put to the test of experience the knowledge which he had
derived from other sources, and train himself in those habits
of nice discrimination of symptoms, and of prompt decision
in practice, without which learning is of little avail in the
actual exercise of the art. He spent his whole time at
the hospital, and often passed the night by the bed-side of
his patients. Though naturally of a good constitution, his
strength was not commensurate with the ardour ol his
mind; and the tasks in which he engaged were frequently
undertaken without duly appreciating the physical powers
necessary for accomplishing them. His health suffered
much from the intensity of his application, and he was
often very near falling a sacrifice to fevers and other dis¬
orders, which he caught from the patients in the hospital,
whom he was attending too closely ; and he thence became
liable ever after to attacks of dysentery and bilious fever.
Many of the observations and inquiries which he made
during this period were published in the Memoirs of the
Academy of Sciences; and two of his first productions were
crowned by the Academy of Inscriptions. In 1757 his
services were required in the medical staff of the army m
Westphalia, where he had the rank of consulting physi¬
cian. On his return to Paris he contributed several arti¬
cles to the Journal des Savans and to the Encyclopedic >
and was, indeed, considered for a time as one ol the
editors of the former of those works. In 1761 he became
a candidate for a medical professorship at Montpellier,
which he fortunately succeeded in obtaining, and in whic i
his abilities as a teacher soon shone forth with unrivallet
lustre. His success was the more honourable, inasmuc
as his colleagues, Lamure, Leroy, and Vend, were men o
B A R T H E Z.
419
7, distinguished reputation, and had raised the school to a
J high pitch of celebrity. But the singular perspicuity and
precision of method, and the peculiar grace and facility of
elocution, with which Barthez conveyed to his hearers the
ample stores of knowledge of which he was in possession,
soon attracted a crowd of auditors, who spread his fame
in all directions. He taught in succession all the branches
of the medical art; and pronounced, at the opening of
the session in 1772, a Latin oration on the Vital Principle
in man, which was published in the following year. About
the same time appeared his work entitled Nova Doctrina
de Functionibus Corporis Humani. These two works con¬
tain a sketch of his peculiar doctrines in physiology; doc¬
trines which he more fully explained in a subsequent
book, under the title of Nouveaux Elemens de la Science
de l'Homme-, Montpellier, 1778, 8vo, and of which we shall
presently give an account.
In 1774 he was created joint chancellor of the univer¬
sity, with the certainty of succeeding singly to the office
on the death of his colleague, which happened in 1786.
He afterwards took the degree of doctor in civil law, and
was appointed counsellor to the supreme court of Aids at
Montpellier. In 1780, he was induced to fix his resi¬
dence in Paris, having been nominated consulting physi¬
cian to the king, with a brevet of counsellor of state, and
a pension of a hundred louis. Honours now crowded up¬
on him; he was admitted free associate to the Academies
of Sciences and of Inscriptions, and appointed first phy¬
sician to the duke of Orleans, in the room of Tronchin.
His reputation increased in proportion as his merits could
be displayed on a wider theatre. He practised as a physi¬
cian at Paris for nearly ten years, and received the most
flattering testimonials of public approbation.
This brilliant career was suddenly interrupted by the
great political revolution which broke out at this period,
and by which the interests of every individual in France,
however tranquil his pursuits or obscure his station, were
more or less immediately affected.
It was the occasion of Barthez quitting Paris, and seek¬
ing in his native province that tranquillity and repose
which the stormy aspect of the times forbade him to hope
for in a more conspicuous station, holding, as he did, opi¬
nions so much at variance with the new order of things.
Though he had lost the greater part of his fortune, ac¬
quired by so much labour, and was deprived of the ho¬
nours to which he possessed so just a claim, he determin¬
ed, upon his retiring to Carcassone, to practise his profes¬
sion gratuitously, and devote all his leisure hours to the
speculative studies connected with it, which had been the
ruling passion of his life. It was in this retreat that he
gave to the world his Nouvelle Mecanique des Mouvemens
de lHomme et des Animaux, which appeared in 1798, in
quarto; and it was at this period, also, that he composed
jus work on Gout, a disease to which his attention had
been naturally directed, in consequence of his having fre¬
quently suffered under its attacks.
An occasion soon occurred which demanded his ser¬
vices, and he once more emerged from his retirement, and
Repaired to the head-quarters of the army of the Eastern
yrenees, where a contagious fever, originating from the
accumulation of sick in the military hospitals of Perpig¬
nan, was committing great ravages. The progress of this
contagion was effectually arrested by the adoption of the
measures which he advised.
On the re-establishment of the College of Medicine at
ontpellier, Barthez was naturally looked up to as the
a fpnfl)eSt; calculated to revive its former fame. But age
lah . rm^y operated to dissuade him from resuming the
orious office of teacher; and he was accordingly no-
mated honorary professor. It was in this capacity that
he pronounced, in 1801, his Discours sur le genie d!Hip- Barthez.
pocrate, on the solemn inauguration of the bust of the v—
father of medicine in that school. In the following year
he received several marks of favour from the new govern¬
ment under Buonaparte ; he was nominated titular physi¬
cian to the government, and afterwards consulting physi¬
cian to the emperor, and member of the legion of honour.
His Trade des Maladies Goutteuses, in two volumes
octavo, appeared in 1802; and he afterwards occupied
himself in preparing for the press a new edition of his
Elemens de la Science de VHomme, of which he just lived
to see the publication. His health had been declining
for some years before his death ; he was subject to at¬
tacks of melancholy, which obliged him to desist from
pursuits that required intense application, and at length
induced him to change the scene altogether, and seek
relief amidst the society and amusements of the capital,
where he was generally honoured and esteemed. Soon
after his removal to Paris, symptoms of the stone mani¬
fested themselves, and increased so much in severity, that
he was advised to submit to the operation of lithotomy, as
affording the only means of arresting a lingering and pain¬
ful death. But he constantly refused to undergo the pain
and risk to which it would have necessarily exposed him,
till, after long protracted suffering, during which he had in
vain exhausted all the resources of medicine, he was sud¬
denly relieved by a symptomatic spitting of blood; this
hemorrhage, however, was pregnant with new dangers, and,
by its continual recurrence, was the immediate occasion
of his death, on the 15th of October 1806, in the seventy-
second year of his age. As we have already stated, he had
published in the same year a second edition of his Nou¬
veaux Elemens de la Science de lHomme. He bequeathed
his books and manuscripts to M. Lordat, who, in conse¬
quence, published two volumes of Consultations deMedecine,
Paris, 1810,8vo, to which he prefixed a preface of his own.
Previous to the appearance of this work, however, a col¬
lection of consultations of Barthez, and of some other
physicians of Paris, was given to the world by Saint-Ursin;
but it appears to have been unauthorized by those to
whom he had confided his papers, and contains but few of
the consultations which were afterwards published by M.
Lordat. Another posthumous work of Barthez, the Trade
du Beau, preceded by some account of his life, was edited
in 1807 by his brother, M. Barthez de Marmorieres, who
is known as the author of agricultural essays, and projects
for improving the maritime coast of Languedoc, together
with some translations from the oriental languages; and
who has sometimes been mistaken for the subject of the
present article.
Barthez has enjoyed a much higher reputation on the
Continent than in this country, where, indeed, his writ¬
ings are but little known. The work which has chiefly
contributed to establish his fame, and which contains the
development of his peculiar opinions on physiology, is the
Nouveaux Elemens de la Science de VHomme. It is not
written, however, with the simplicity and clearness which
might have been expected from one who had been in the
constant habit of instructing others, and whose lectures
were generally admired as possessing those qualities in an
eminent degree. He appears to have been early im¬
pressed with the futility of all the theories that had been
hitherto advanced in explanation of the phenomena pre¬
sented by living beings, and to have been incited to the
bold attempt of raising a new system upon more rational
and solid foundations. In the preliminary discourse to
the work we have alluded to, he lays down, with great
correctness, the fundamental principles of the method of
philosophizing in the natural sciences. The common ob¬
ject of these sciences he states to be the research into
420
B A R T H E Z.
Barthez. the causes of natural phenomena, in as far as they can be
learned by experience; and shows that we have no di¬
rect knowledge of these causes, except as manifested by
such of their effects as we perceive. In the infancy of
philosophy, numerous causes are assigned to these appa¬
rently diversified effects ; during its advancement, and in
proportion as the similarity of effects which had been re¬
ferred to different causes is established, the number of
these assigned causes becomes more and more circum¬
scribed. Although the real nature of the agents produ¬
cing those general facts, to which we ultimately arrive
by following this method of induction, be absolutely un¬
known, yet, in reasoning concerning them, we find it con¬
venient to express them by a name, as if they were really
known to us; in the same way as, in prosecuting an alge¬
braical calculus, we must employ characters to express
the unknown as well as the given quantities. But the
distinction should ever be kept in view; and we _ should
err greatly were we to imagine that we could derive any
ultimate advantage by the substitution of other symbols,
which differed from them only in appearance, or which
involved the admission of some hypothetical principle.
Such are the rules by which he professes to be guided
in his own investigations ; and such the tests by which he
examines and passes judgment upon the doctrines of the
different sects of Animists, Mechanicians, and Chemists,
which had successively prevailed before him in the schools
of medicine, and also upon the more recent doctrine of
the Solidists, which was then becoming fashionable. In
the review which he gives of the opinions of the several
leaders of these sects, he displays an accurate acquaint¬
ance with the wide circle of medical literature. But, in
the prosecution of his plan, he shows, what the example
of others has so often proved, that it is more easy to over¬
throw than to build a system ; and he evidently violates the
strict principles of induction, and of cautious limitation to
the province of philosophical inquiry, which he had pre¬
scribed, when he engages in the task himself. He sets
out with endeavouring to establish a gradation among the
causes which operate in producing motion. The simplest
of these is the force of impulsion ; that of gravitation ap¬
pears to him less simple ; and still less so those of electri¬
city and magnetism. The principles which regulate che¬
mical affinities are more complicated, as well as those
which are concerned in the crystallization of bodies. But
the forces which produce the phenomena of living vege¬
tables and animals are of a more refined order, and are
all referable, according to Barthez, to a single cause,
which he denominates the vital principle, or principle of
life. Having established this dogma, he proceeds to dis¬
cuss a variety of abstruse questions that have been agitat¬
ed on the subject, such as, whether the vital principle has
an independent'existence, distinct from the organized
body which it animates ; and whether it be a modification
of the soul, or rational mind. He gives an elaborate his¬
torical sketch of the opinions of philosophers from the
earliest times respecting the nature of life; tracing the
different sentiments entertained by the followers of Aris¬
totle and Descartes, together with the Stahlians and Boer-
haavians, on the one hand; and those of Pythagoras, of
Plato, and the sect of Stoics, on the other: the former
not acknowledging any principle of lifo distinct from either
matter or mind, and the latter admitting such a principle
attached to the living body. A third class of philosophers
is noticed, at tile head of which he places Bacon, and
with which he associates Leibnitz, Cudworth, Van Hel-
mont, and Hoffmann, who have recognised the existence
of a vital power different from the ordinary physical pro¬
perties of matter, and at the same time totally distinct
from the soul. After expending much useless argument
in refutation of the Stahlian doctrine of the identity of Bar
the vital with the thinking principle, and devoting a long 'n—-■ j (
chapter to the consideration of doubts as to our means of
deciding the question, he shows himself strongly inclined
to the belief that the principle of life is something which
has a separate existence, distinct from any modification,
either of matter or of mind. There is little doubt, indeed,
that this was his firm persuasion, as he reasons from it in
many parts of his work, though he seems averse to declare
it without qualification, while he is discussing these ques¬
tions. Having thus personified, as he very aptly expresses
it, this new principle of life, he appeals to it for the solu¬
tion of every difficulty. It is the master-key which un¬
locks every secret, and renders all the operations of the
living animal body perfectly intelligible. Irritability and
sensibility are at once the direct effects of this universal
agent. All the modifications of these properties, and, in
a word, every phenomenon of life, which is not obviously
the result of physical laws, are but so many immediate,
operations of the vital principle. To this fertile source
he refers not only the ordinary muscular contractions,
but also the slower and less sensible motions which take
place in the iris, in the vascular system, and, in gene¬
ral, in those parts in which no muscular structure can be
discerned; effects which he attributes to the tonic power
of the vital principle. He contends for the existence of
another power in the fibres, still derived from the same
source, namely, the power of elongation after they have
been contracted; a power which he thinks quite distinct
from the other mechanical properties of the fibre, and of
which the operation is exemplified in the dilatation of the
pupil, the extension of the corpora cavernosa, and of the
nipples, and in the diastole of the heart itself. He plumes
himself more particularly upon his supposed discovery of
a new species of force distinct from the muscular power,
which he terms the force of fixed situation, and of which
he infers the existence from the circumstance of the tmdo
Achillis being ruptured, and of the patella and head of
the os calcis being fractured, on some occasions, by an ap¬
parently slight exertion. He avails himself of this prin¬
ciple, also, to explain the phenomena of tetanus and other
spasmodic affections.
In a subsequent part of the work he labours to establish
the identity of sensibility and irritability, or, at least, the
intimate connection which subsists between them, and the
dependence of both upon the immediate and direct ope¬
rations of the vital principle. He endeavours to prove
that both the sensitive and moving powers are exercised in
the circulating fluids of the body, and adduces, in support
of this opinion, many of the arguments brought forward
by Mr Hunter in proof of the vitality of the blood. On
the subject of secretion, implying processes which have
hitherto been enveloped in so much darkness, and of which
the explanation has in vain been sought for on mechani¬
cal and chemical principles, he is very brief, as it is the
peculiar advantage of his theory, like the sword of Alex¬
ander, to cut through every knot that bids defiance to or¬
dinary powers of unravelling. Secretion, being inexpli¬
cable by any of the hitherto known laws of nature, is,
course, simply the effect of the vital principle. The pheno¬
mena of animal heat were in danger of being at once con¬
signed to the same Proteus-like power which could ope¬
rate every possible diversity of effects. But chemistry
had, in this instance, interposed some plausible theories,
which must first be set aside; and Barthez is at great
pains to state the reasons of his dissent from the receive!
doctrines on this subject, and of his disbelief in the exist¬
ence of caloric. He prefers the hypothesis which sup¬
poses heat to be a mere quality, excited by motion, an
generated, accordingly, in living animals by the intestine
B A R T H E Z.
Bar, i. motions of their fluids, and the friction of the solids against
JL J each other; and the cause of these motions and frictions
being unknown, it followed, as a necessary consequence,
that they must arise from the operation of the vital prin¬
ciple. Respiration he considers as a cooling or moderat¬
ing process, and as useful, also, in exciting throughout
the system the tonic actions; but all these actions and
agitations of the fibres, and these intestine motions of the
fluids, are still regulated by the vital principle which
adapts them to variations of climate and other external
circumstances of temperature.
Amidst these vague and unprofitable speculations, his
work contains a great store of facts, which are often in¬
structive, though sometimes they expose the credulity of
the author. He has collected, for example, a number of
curious particulars relative to the operation of different
poisons on different animals; but intermingles with these
well-attested facts many idle tales respecting the bites of
rabid or enraged animals, in which the peculiar manners
of the animal were communicated to the human species.
Thus he quotes instances of men barking or attempting
to bite in hydrophobia; of some mewing like cats after
having been bitten by these animals; and of others, again,
who flapped their arms, and crowed like cocks, after re¬
ceiving the bite of one of these birds.
A large portion of the work is dedicated to the consi¬
deration of sympathies, which he distinguishes from what
he terms synergies, defining the latter to be the connec¬
tion, whether simultaneous or successive, of the vital
forces of different organs, so as to constitute a function or
a disease. He divides sympathies into three classes, ac¬
cording as they occur between organs having no visible
relation to each other, those which have similar structures
and functions, and those which are united by an interme¬
diate texture, or by receiving the same set of vessels or
nerves. His chapter on temperaments is ably drawn up;
and he discusses well the comparative influence of physi¬
cal and moral causes in modifying the human tempera¬
ment, and the changes produced by age and the approach
of death. He explains the operation of the more usual
causes of death; enters into a comparison of the muta¬
bility of different seasons and climates; and concludes,
from several facts and arguments, that the actual cessa¬
tion of life is, in general, not accompanied by any painful
sensation.
The merit of Barthez as a physiologist is more conspi¬
cuous on subjects which admitted less of his being led
astray by his proneness to indulge in abstract speculation,
and his predilection for metaphysical refinement. The
most favourable specimen of his talents is afforded by
us Nouvelle Mecanique des Mouvemens de V Homme et des
1 nmauxs in which, avoiding all discussion as to the
cause of muscular motion, he traces the mode in which
us force has been applied by nature, according to the
principles of mechanism, in effecting the different move-
ments of the animal machine. He examines the relative
isposition of the bones and muscles, the structure of the
ar mutations, and the general play and particular motions
tl g lm^S' B°relli (De Motu Animalium) had given
c m rst model of such a work ; but Barthez has investi-
e the subject with greater care, and has extended his
ews to a much wider range of phenomena. He enters
„n.u e 7 ln.to the consideration of a great variety of modes
option, both in man and the inferior animals, for
form-1 16 i S ama5Setl an immense number of facts;
. lnS> altogether, a work which will ever remain a
ment of his industry and superior abilities,
hi? n„C f11 . tmg W1’itings on the practical branches of
labwimf^c11’ We a£.a‘n ourselves bewildered in a
u t of speculations on the proximate causes of dig-
42]
ease, and the modus operandi of remedies. In his Trea- Barthez
^ on Gout, he adopts the principles of the humoral
pathology, in addition to his own physiological doctrines
concerning the force of fixed situation, or principle which
retains muscular parts in their appropriate places inde¬
pendently of irritability. He states the proximate cause
of this disease to be a specific gouty state of the habit,
which he infers from the supposed influence he has ob¬
served from specific remedies, and especially aconite, in
curing it. He defines the gouty state of the blood to
consist in “ an improper mixture of its component parts,
which prevents in different degrees the natural formation
of its excrementitious humours; so that these humours,
being more or less altered, undergo a spontaneous de¬
composition, which causes the earthy substance to pre¬
dominate in them.” This earthy substance, or, in other
words, gouty matter, is deposited upon the extremities,
and thus occasions the pai-oxysm. His practice, on the
whole, notwithstanding his adoption of theories now gene¬
rally exploded, is tolerably judicious; though he shows
but little discrimination in the analysis which he gives of
the works of practical authors on this disease; and he
seems to be strangely deficient in information as to the
practice of English physicians. In other respects his
knowledge is accurate and copious; and the history he
gives of several of the irregular forms of gout, and also
that of sciatica, in which, however, he chiefly follows Co-
tannius, are deserving of praise.
In the preface to his Nova Doctrina de Functionibus
Nature Humanoe, he has given an excellent arrangement
of the general principles of the objects to be kept in view,
in the medical treatment of diseases. He treats of this
subject more at large in his treatise De Methodo Medendi,
published at Montpellier in 1777, and also in the preface
to his Trade des Maladies Goutteuses. He considers all
the different methods and indications of cure as capable
of being comprehended under three heads, the natural,
the analytic, and the empiric. The natural methods have
for their object to promote the spontaneous operations of
nature tending to restore health, or, as they have been
usually termed, the vires medicatrices natures. The ana¬
lytic methods are those which proceed upon a previous
analysis of the disease into the several simpler diseases of
which it consists, or into their ultimate component symp¬
toms, which are separately and successively combated by
means respectively suited to each. These are the more
indicated, in proportion as the disease is more complex,
and admits of being resolved into a greater number of ele¬
ments. The empiric plan of treatment is directed to
change the whole nature of the disease, by means of
which experience has taught us the efficacy in analogous
cases. These means are of three kinds; having either a
perturbing, an imitative, or a specific operation: the first
being such as, by producing effects of a different kind
from those of the disease, tend to diminish or entirely
suppress the latter (as when the paroxysm of an ague is
prevented by the excitement of a strong sudorific or ca¬
thartic operation); the second, such as produce effects
analogous to those which nature herself employs for the
cure of the disease; and the third those whose salutary
operation is known in no other way than as the direct re¬
sult of experience.
The writings of Barthez appear to have had consider¬
able influence in overthrowing many of the crude and
preposterous theories which had prevailed in the schools
of medicine; and, however he may have been seduced
from the path of genuine philosophy by an excessive dis¬
position to generalize, and an overweening fondness for
abstruse speculation, he still deserves the praise of being
an original thinker, and of standing pre-eminent among
422
BAR
Barthius his contemporaries for the courage with which he shook
" off the trammels of authority, in a university where it had
ruled with despotic sway, and where the dogmas of anti¬
quity were held in peculiar reverence. ' (y.)
BARTHIUS, Gaspard, a learned and copious writer,
born at Custrin, in Brandenburg, the 22d of June 1587.
M. Baillet has inserted the name of Barthius among his
Enfans Celebres, upon the ground that at twelve years of
age he had translated David’s Psalms into Latin verse of
every measure, and published several Latin poems. Upon
the death of his father, who was professor of the civil law
at Frankfort, counsellor to the elector of Brandenburg, and
chancellor at Custrin, he was sent to Gotha, then to Eise¬
nach, and afterwards, according to custom, went through
all the different universities in Germany. When he had
finished his studies, he travelled into Italy, France, Spain,
and England. He studied the modern as well as ancient
languages, and his translations from the Spanish and
French show that he was not content with a superficial
knowledge. Upon his return to Germany he fixed his
residence at Leipsic, where he led a retired life, his passion
for study having made him renounce all sort of employ¬
ment. He wrote a great number of books, the principal
of which are, 1. His Adversaria, a large volume in folio,
the second and third volumes being left by him in manu¬
script ; 2. A Translation of iEneas Gazseus; 3. A large
volume of Notes upon Claudian, in 4to; 4. Three large
volumes upon Statius. He died at Leipsic in 1658,
BARTHOLINUS, Gaspard, a learned writer of the
seventeenth century, was born at Malmoe, a town in
the province of Schonen, which then belonged to Den¬
mark. At three years of age he had such a quick ca¬
pacity, that in fourteen days he learned to read; and in
his thirteenth year he composed Greek and Latin ora¬
tions, and delivered them in public. When he was about
eighteen he went to the university of Copenhagen, and
afterwards studied at Rostock and Wirtemberg. He next
set out upon his travels, during which he neglected no
opportunity of improving himself at the different univer¬
sities he visited, and everywhere received marks of re¬
spect. In 1613 he was chosen professor of physic in the
university of Copenhagen, and filled this office for eleven
years, when, falling into a dangerous illness, he made a
vow, that if it should please God to restore him, he would
apply himself solely to the study of divinity. He reco¬
vered, observed his vow, and soon after obtained the pro¬
fessorship of divinity, with the canonry of Roschild. He
died on the 13th of July 1630, after having written nearly
fifty works on different subjects.
Bartholinus, Thomas, a celebrated physician, son of
the former, was born at Copenhagen in 1619. After study¬
ing some time in his native country, he went, in 1637,
to Leyden, where he studied physic during three years.
He then travelled into France, and resided two years at
Paris and Montpellier, in order to improve himself under
the distinguished physicians of those universities; after
which he visited Italy, remained three years at Padua,
and at length went to Basel, where he obtained the de¬
gree of doctor in philosophy. Returning to Copenhagen,
he was appointed professor of the mathematics in 1647,
and next year was nominated to the chair of anatomy,
which suited better his genius and inclination, and which
he held for thirteen years, distinguishing himself by se¬
veral discoveries respecting the lacteal veins and lym¬
phatic vessels. His close application, however, having
rendered his constitution very infirm, he resigned his chair
in 1661; but the king of Denmark allowed him the title
of “ honorary professor.” He now retired to a little estate
he had at Hagested, near Copenhagen, where he hoped to
spend the remainder of his days in peace and tranquillity;
BAR
but his house having been burnt in 1670, his library, with St r.
all his books and manuscripts, was consumed. In consi-thdc w's
deration of this loss, the king appointed Bartholinus his 1
physician with a handsome salary, and exempted his land Ba
from all taxes ; the university of Copenhagen also chose w
him for their librarian ; and, in 1675, the king did him the
honour to give him a seat in the grand council of Den¬
mark. He wrote, 1. Anatomia Gaspardi Bartholini Paren¬
tis, novis Observationibus primum locupletata, 8vo; 2. De
Monstris in Natura et Medicina, 4to; 3. De Armillis Ve-
terum, praesertim Danorum, Schedion, 8vo; and several
other works. He died on the 4th of December 1680.
BARTHOLOMEW’S Day, St, a festival of the Chris¬
tian church, celebrated on the 24th of August. St Bartho¬
lomew was generally considered identical with Nathaniel,
one of the first disciples who came to Christ. It is thought
this apostle travelled as far as India, to propagate the gos¬
pel ; for Eusebius relates, that a famous philosopher and
Christian, named Pantaenus, desiring to imitate the apos¬
tolical zeal in propagating the faith, and travelling for
that purpose as far as India, found there, amongst those
who still retained the knowledge of Christ, the gospel of
St Matthew, written, as the tradition asserts, by St Bar¬
tholomew when he preached the gospel in that country.
From India he returned by the northern and western
parts of Asia, and preached to the people of Hierapolis,
then in Lycaonia, and lastly at Albania, a city upon the
Caspian Sea, where his endeavours to reclaim the people
from idolatry were crowned with martyrdom. According
to the received tradition, St Bartholomew was flayed alive,
and crucified with his head downwards.
BARTHOLOMITES, a religious order founded at Ge¬
noa in the year 1307, but suppressed by Pope Innocent X.
in 1650.
BARTOLOCCI, Julius, a learned monk, and professor
of Hebrew at Rome, was born at Celano in 1613, and
distinguished himself by writing a Hebrew and Latin ca¬
talogue, in four volumes folio, of the Hebrew writers and
writings; a work which was continued by Imbonati his
disciple. He died in 1687.
BARTOLOMEO, Francisco, a celebrated painter,
born at Savignano, near Florence, in the year 14)69, was
the disciple of Cosimo Rosselli, but was much more be¬
holden to the works of Leonardo da Vinci for his extra¬
ordinary skill in painting. He was so well versed in the
principles of design, that Raphael, after quitting the school
of Perugino, applied to this master, and studied under
him the rules of perspective, with the art of managing
and uniting his colours. He painted both portraits an
historical pieces ; but his scrupulous conscience would
hardly ever suffer him to draw naked figures, though no¬
body understood them better. He died in 1517, age
forty-eight. . -
BARTOLOMEO in Saldo, a city in the province ot
Capitanata, of the kingdom of Naples, containing 4852 in¬
habitants.
BARTON-on-Humber, a market-town in the hun¬
dred of Yarborough and county of Lincoln. It is
miles from London, and one mile from the Humber, over
which there is a ferry to Hull, greatly frequented. R 38
two parish churches, and a good market on oonie
inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 1709, in 1811 to ^ >
and in 1821 to 2498. , ,
BARUCH, the Prophecy of, one of the apocrypMi
books, subjoined to the canon of the Old lestamen -
Baruch was the son of Neriah, the disciple and a”ian.
ensis of the prophet Jeremiah; and his prophecy as X
some been reckoned part of that of Jeremiah. It is 41
cult to determine in what language this prophecy w
originally written. Three copies of it are still extan , o
BAS
in Greek, and the other two in Syriac; but which of these,
or whether any one of them, is the original, remains un¬
certain. , . . .
15 A RUTH, an ancient town of Turkey, in Syria, with
a Christian church of the Nestorian persuasion. It is
situated on a fertile spot, but is now inconsiderable com¬
pared with what it was formerly. Long. 34. 40. E. Lat.
33. 30. N.
BARYTONUM, in the Greek grammar, denotes a verb
with no accent marked on the last syllable, but neverthe¬
less understood to have the grave accent. In Italian mu¬
sic, barytmo answers to our common pitch of bass.
BAS-Relief. See Basso-Relievo.
Bas, James Philip, le, a modern French engraver, by
whom there are some admirable prints. His great excel¬
lence consisted in landscapes and small figures, which he
executed in a superior manner. -We have also a variety
of pretty vignettes by this artist. He flourished about
the middle of the seventeenth century, but we have no
account of the time of his birth or death.
BASALTES. See Geology.
BAS AN, or Bash an, in Ancient Geography, a territory
beyond Jordan, mentioned in Scripture, and called by Jo¬
sephus, Eusebius, and Jerome, Batancea. The whole of
the country beyond Jordan, from that of the Moabites,
or Arabia, as far as Mount Hermon and Lebanon, was
originally divided into two kingdoms, namely, that of Si-
hon king of the Amorites, and of Og king of Basan or
Bashan; the former being to the south, and the latter to
the north. Of these, however, Basan appears to have
been the larger; but after the Babylonish captivity it was
subdivided, one part being called Batanaea or Basan, ano¬
ther Trachonitis, a third Auranitis or Ituraea, and a
fourth Gaulonitis. To settle the limits of each of these
parts, however, is now impossible. Bashan was famous
for its pastures and large breed of cattle.
BASARHELY, a large town of the province of Farther
Theis, in the Austrian kingdom of Hungary. It is situ¬
ated on the lake of Hods, which is united by a canal with
the Theis. It is a place of considei’able internal traffic,
and contains 6300 inhabitants. Long. 30. 13. 10. E. Lat.
46. 25. 32. N.
BASARTSCHIK, a town of Romania, in Turkey in
Europe. It is pretty well built, with clean, broad streets;
it carries on some trade, and is situated on the river Me-
ritz, in Long. 24. 30. E. Lat. 41. 49. N.
BASEDOW, John Bernard, a celebrated German
writer, born at Hamburg, the 11th September 1723, was
the son of a hair-dresser. Ill treatment made him abandon
his father’s house. A physician in a neighbouring village
took him into his service, and shortly after persuaded him
to return home to his father. Being placed in one of the
lower classes of the college of St John, the severity of his
masters rendered him harsh and violent himself. Forced
to submit to a slow and rigorous method of study, he con¬
tracted a dislike to patience and regularity, which exer¬
cised a marked influence over the whole course of his life,
floor but intelligent, he often performed their tasks for
his school-fellows who could afford to pay for it; and
they, in return, invited him to their parties of pleasure,
j'hich contributed to those habits of irregularity by which
ms health and reputation often suffered. In 1744 Base¬
dow went to Leipsic to study theology. He gave himself
up entirely to the instructions of the professor, Crusius,
mid the study of philosophy. This at first made him
sceptical in theology; a more profound examination of the
sacred writings, and of all that relates to them, brought
mn back to the Christian faith; but, in his retirement, he
oimed his belief after his own ideas, and it was far from
orthodox. Having returned to Hamburg, he lived there
BAS
423
without any employment till 1749, wrhen M. de Quaalen, Basedow,
privy-counsellor of Holstein, appointed him preceptor to
his son. Basedow now began to apply himself to the sub¬
ject of education. At first he would not teach his pupil
Latin otherwise than by talking with him in Latin ; and he
wrote a dissertation on this subject, published at Kiel in
1751, Inusitata et optima honestioris Juventutis erudiendce
Methodo. In 1733 he was chosen professor of moral philo¬
sophy and belles lettres in the academy of Soroe in Den¬
mark. Here he published in 1758 his Practical Philoso¬
phy for all Conditions, in two volumes (Copenhagen and
Leipsic, second edition, in 1777), which contained many
good observations on education in general, and on that of
girls in particular; but he advanced in it opinions by no
means consistent with Lutheran orthodoxy, so that the
Count Danneskiold, superintendent of the academy, took
his place from him, and removed him to the school of
exercises at Altona. Basedow still continued to devote
himself to theological studies. In 1764 he published his
Philalethes, or New Considerations on the Truth of Religion
and Reason, within the Limits of Revelation, two volumes
in 8vo. The magistrates of Altona forbade the reading
of this work. He was not allowed any longer permission
to print his writings at Hamburg or Lubeck; the com¬
munion was prohibited to him and all his family, and the
common people were on the point of stoning him. Base¬
dow, however, was convinced of the truth of his opinions,
and displayed prodigious activity in defending them.
He wrote his Methodical Instruction in Religion, and the
Morality of Reason, Altona, 1764; his Theoretical System
of Sound Reason, 1765; his Essay on Free Dogmatism,
Berlin, 1766; his Extracts from the Old and New Testa¬
ment, and his Essay in Favour of the Truth of Christiani¬
ty, in the same year. The last of these works he particu¬
larly valued himself upon, because he there founds the
evidence of Christianity chiefly on its moral purity. In
these and other works, however, he maintained several
heterodox opinions, as the non-eternity of future punish¬
ments ; the inequality of the three persons of the Trinity ;
the insufficiency of the atonement for our sins by the
death of Jesus Christ, &c. Constantly persecuted in his
theological career, he would have fallen the victim of his
incautious zeal, if the count de Bernstoff, minister of
state, and J. A. Cramer, another officer of the court of
Copenhagen, had not taken him under their protection.
He left off giving lessons without losing his salary; and,
towards the end of 1767, he abandoned theology to devote
himself with the same ardour to education, of which he
conceived the project of a general reform in Germany.
He began by publishing An Address to the Friends of
Humanity, and to Persons in Power, on Schools, on Edu¬
cation, and its Influence on Public Happiness, with the
Plan of an Elementary Treatise on Human Knowledge.
Hamburg, 1768. He proposed the reform of schools, of
the common methods of instruction, the establishment of
an institute for qualifying teachers, and solicited subscrip¬
tions for the printing of his elementary work, where his
principles were to be explained at length, and accompa¬
nied with plates. For this object he required 5050 crowns.
The subscriptions presently amounted to 15,000 crowns:
the empress of Russia, Catherine II., sent a thousand
crowns, the king of Denmark nine hundred. In 1770
appeared at Altona the first volume of his Method for Fa¬
thers and Mothers of Families, and for the Chiefs of the
People ; and, six months after, the first three parts of his
Elementary Treatise, in 8vo, with 54 plates. This work,
which was praised in all the journals, was translated into
French by Huber, and into Latin by Mangelsdorf; but
Schlozer, in the German translation of the Essay on Na¬
tional Education by M. de la Chalotais, accused Basedow
BAS
of having omitted in his plan various branches of science,
and of having had in view only a pecuniary speculation.
Basedow, in despair, offered to return the price of his book
to those who were not satisfied with it. Only one man,
a Swiss, demanded his subscription. Encouraged by the
success of the Treatise, our author continued to write
other works on the same subject and on the same prin¬
ciples ; among others, his Treatise on Arithmetic, 1773, and
Elements of pure Mathematics, 1772. His Agathocrator,
or the Education of Teachers to come, 1771, procured him
a medal from the emperor Joseph II.; and the visits
which he made to Brunswick, to Leipsic, Dessau, Berlin,
and Halle, to inquire into the state of public instruction,
having enabled him to enlarge and correct his ideas, and
convinced him that his elementary work contained many
erroneous and hasty assertions, he published a new and
improved edition of this work in 1774. The same year he
published his Legacy for Consciences, or Manual of Natu¬
ral a7id Revealed Religion; a work which he composed
in order to make known the real state of his religious opi¬
nions, and to clear himself from the imputation of wishing
to found a new sect. In his travels he had been well re¬
ceived by the prince of Anhalt-Dessau, who promised him
his protection. From that time he had resolved to esta¬
blish an institute for education at Dessau, and to apply
his principles himself in forming disciples, who might
spread them over all Germany. Little calculated by na¬
ture or habit to succeed in an employment which requires
the greatest regularity, patience, and attention, he, how¬
ever, engaged in this new project with all his accustomed
ardour. The name of Philanthropinon appeared to him
the most expressive of his views; and he published at
Leipsic in 1774 a pamphlet, entitled The Philanthropi¬
non founded at Dessau, containing the details of his plan.
He immediately set about carrying it into execution; but
he had few scholars, and the success by no means answer¬
ed his hopes. The institution, badly managed, became
a theatre of quarrels between Basedow and the masters
who taught in it under his direction. The assistance of
the celebrated Campe, a journal which they both com¬
posed together, under the title of School Dialogues, from
1777 to 1779, and a public examination which went off
with eclat, gave a transient splendour to the Philanthro-
pinon; but in a short time Basedow quarrelled with Campe,
made complaints against his prince, quitted and returned
to the care of the institution, and exemplifying in his
conduct the effects of coarse manners and bad temper, was
at length drawn into the most scandalous scenes in his
disputes with Professor Wolke, his former coadjutor. This
institution was finally shut up in 1793. Basedow for some
time had given up all thoughts of education ; he returned
to his old theological inquiries, and residing sometimes at
Magdeburg, sometimes at Halle, sometimes at Leipsic,
he took part in the famous controversy excited in Germany
by the Fragments of Wolfenbiitel, an anonymous posthu¬
mous work of Reimarus, published by Lessing. Doctor
Semler having written a pretended refutation of the Frag¬
ments, Basedow, without difficulty, exposed the ill inten¬
tions of the author, who secretly attacked the cause he
affected to defend; and, with his usual vehemence and
frankness, called upon Semler to declare himself openly,
offering to indemnify him with his fortune if this public
declaration should prove prejudicial to him. Semler made
no reply, and Basedow wrote on. He published his work
entitled Jesus Christ, the Christian World, and the small
Number of the Elect, in 1784; and the year following, re¬
turning to the study which had divided his time and his
powers with theology, he gave the public his Neio Method
of Learning to Read, which he employed with success in
two schools of little girls at Magdeburg ; and in this oc-
B A S
cupation he passed four hours every day for some time If
previous to his death, which took place in that city, on ^ ■v
the 25th July 1790. He died with Christian firmness and
resignation, and desired that his body might be opened
wishing, to use his own words, to be still useful to his
fellow-citizens after his death. In 1797 a monument of
marble was erected on the spot where he was buried.
To manners unpolished and abrupt he joined gross ha¬
bits ; he was fond of wine, of which he drank to excess •
in short, with a character in itself unamiable, he seemed
by his conduct sometimes to take pains to render his ser¬
vices of no use, and his virtues of no account. Nothin®
can give a better idea of him than what he says of hinu
self: “ The sagacious reader will discover by my writings
that I have been especially called to serve the cause of
truth and humanity, in following a path hitherto unknown.
My opinions have succeeded one another, as has been seen.
I have been at different times Lutheran, sceptic, infidel,
a friend to natural religion, a convert to Christianity, a
Christian with paradoxical sentiments, and more and more
heterodox. In me has been seen a thinker tormented
within by his own reflections, and a writer tormented from
without because he has been at one time hated, at ano¬
ther misunderstood. Bold and enterprising in my actions,
I have always seen, with a faultering heart, the dangers
which threatened me, and from which Providence has
saved me in part. I have made little account of domestic
happiness, of friendship, or society. I have suffered the
penalty. Occupied in curing others, I have neglected the
health of my own mind. Esteem is due to the sincerity of
my opinions, rather than to my conduct. I desired ardent¬
ly to make it perfect, but this would have required more
perseverance and more attention than the meditation of
abstract truths ; accordingly, I have oftener been dissatis¬
fied with myself than with others, with whom, however,
for the same reason, I have been rarely satisfied. My
heart has had little enjoyment of the consolations of reli¬
gion, because every occasion led me into difficult researches,
and thus weakened the force of sentiment. I regard my¬
self as a man and a Christian, such as there are but few
in the world, and such as it is not desirable that there
should be many.” This frankness, without affectation and
without pride, induces us to honour the character of a man
who has rendered some services to his country and his
age. His work On the Education of Princes destined to the
Throne has been translated into French by Bourjoing. A
list of his writings may be seen in Meusel’s Lexicon of
German Writers from 1750 to 1800, and a further account
of his life in Schlichtegroll’s Necrology for 1790. Goethe
tells an anecdote of going a journey in company with him
and Lavater, who fell into a violent dispute about the
Trinity. Basedow consoled himself with the hope of get¬
ting some beer and a pipe of tobacco at an inn which he
saw before them on the road. When they came to it
Goethe made the coachman drive on, to the great chagrin
of Basedow, to whom he excused himself by saying, that
the sign of the inn was two triangles, and as he had such
an aversion to one triangle (the scholastic emblem of the
Trinity), he was afraid the sight of two might overcome
him. This conceit, according to Goethe, pacified our anti-
trinitarian divine.
Basedow, in his general writings, endeavoured to appl)
philosophy to practical purposes, and to give a more po¬
pular air to his reasonings than had been usual with his
countrymen before his time. He held truth to be of little
value without practice, and, indeed, he held its essence to
depend chiefly on its utility. He considered external or
speculative truth to be a very vague and doubtful thing,
and that it is principally the consequences of things to the
mind itself, that is, a moral necessity, which determines
B A S
#. b 1. it to believe strongly and consistently on any point, so
+ tiiat that is true to each individual which makes the most
lasting impression on his mind, and which he feels to be
necessary to his happiness. Thus he regarded practical
good as the test of speculative truth. He gave great
weight to the principle of analogy, and founded the doc¬
trine of a Providence on this principle. He considered
common sense as one ingredient in philosophical reasoning,
and rejected all systems which appeared to him to exclude
it; such as idealism, the doctrine of monads, and a pre-
established harmony. His favourite adage in his system
of education was to follow nature. Pie wished the mind to
be led to knowledge, virtue, and religion, by gentle means,
instead of those of constraint and terror. Indeed, his
principles on this subject are very nearly the same as
those of Locke and Rousseau; and he seems to have done
little else than to give currency in Germany to the same
reasonings which those philosophers had taught before
him in England and France. He insisted on the disuse
of the preposterous and unhealthy dresses used by children
and their parents, such as stays, swaddling-clothes, tight
bandages round the neck, the knees, &c. He recom¬
mended exercise and hardy sports as necessary to the
health and activity of the body. He proposed to exercise
the judgment by teaching a knowledge of things, and not
merely to load the memory with words. Pie preferred the
practical sciences to the speculative, the living to the dead
languages, modern to ancient history, things which are
more near to those which are more remote. In fine, most
of his principles were in themselves sound and good, and
have in fact exerted their influence on the actual progress
of civilization ; they were only erroneous from the excess
to which he sometimes appears to have carried them, part¬
ly from the natural vehemence of his mind, partly from
a natural tendency to paradox on the side of new opi¬
nions. Paradox, by exciting attention and enlisting the
passions, is perhaps necessary to contend against preju¬
dice ; common sense and reason are lost sight of by both
parties during the combat; but in the end they prevail, if
they have fair play allowed them. Thus, in the present
instance, it is now generally admitted that something be¬
sides the classics is necessary to a liberal education; nor
is it thought requisite to arrive at this conclusion through
the antithesis to the vulgar opinion of his day set up by
Basedow, viz. that the classics are of no use at all in a
rational system of education. (d. d.)
BASEL, one of the cantons of Switzerland, extend¬
ing over 266 square miles. It is bounded on the north¬
west by France, on the north by the Rhine, which sepa¬
rates it from Baden, on the east by the canton of Aar-
gau, and on the south and west by those of Solothurn
and Berne. It is a well-cultivated district, flat in the
centre, and surrounded by hills, none higher than about
3500 feet. The climate is mild, being protected from
severe cold by the range of the Jura Mountains. It is
productive in corn, and yields abundant fruits and good
wine. The Rhine is the chief river, and affords a large
quantity of fish. The inhabitants are about 50,000, in¬
dustriously employed in agriculture and various manufac¬
tures. The government is a kind of democracy, in which
each citizen has the right of voting in his particular guild;
and by the guilds both the legislative and executive powers
are cbosen. The armed contingent is 915 men ; but a
militia exists of all adult males. The established religion
is the Protestant of the Calvinistic profession. The can¬
ton is divided into six circles. The language is German,
but of a very barbarous description. The capital is a city of
the same name, on the banks of the Rhine, over which is a
bridge 600 feet long. It contains 12 churches, including
the ancient cathedral, an orphan-house, and several hos-
V0L. iv.
BAS 425
pitals, about 2250 houses, and 16,500 inhabitants, who find Basharians
occupation in making various silk, cotton, woollen, iron, il _
paper, and other goods. There is a university, but on the
decline, with several professors, and only about 40 students.
Long. 7. 41. 22. E. Lat. 47. 33. 34. N.
BASHARIANS, a sect of Mahommedans, being a
branch or subdivision of the Motazalites. The Basha¬
rians are those who maintain the tenets of Bashar Ebrt
Motamer, a principal man among the Motazalites, but
who varied in some points from the general tenets of the
sect, carrying man’s free agency to a great length, even
to the extent of making him independent.
BASHAW, more commonly written Pacha or Pasha,
a Turkish governor of a province or district. Nothing
more is necessary to raise an Osmanlee to the dignity of
pasha than the firman of the grand seignior; but some ce¬
remonies are usually observed at his investiture or instal¬
lation. The badge of a pasha’s authority, as well as the
emblem of his rank, is the horse-tail, and he takes prece¬
dence according to the number of these in his banner. The
highest rank usually conferred, however, is that of pasha
of three tails. The pashas are the grand seignior’s lieuten¬
ants, and exercise the supreme military and civil power in
their respective provinces. But many of them own little
more than a nominal subjection to the Porte, although
they submit to pay it an annual tribute; and some are al¬
most always in a state of open rebellion against its autho¬
rity. Religion, in fact, is the only connecting principle
which keeps the different parts of the Ottoman empire
together ; but, fanatical as the Moslemins almost universal¬
ly are, the case of Egypt shows how frail a tie this may
become, and how easily the bundle of rods may be dissolv¬
ed. In fiscal matters, the pasha ordinarily acts as a horse¬
leech to his more immediate subjects, and serves as a
sponge to the sultan, who generally manages to squeeze
out a portion of the blood with which he is gorged, and,
after a time, kindly presents him with a bow string, and
thus becomes ultimate heir to his private accumulations.
BASHEE Isles, a cluster of small islands in the Chi¬
nese Sea, due north of Luzon, the largest of the Philip¬
pines. They are five in number, with four rocky islets.
They were visited by Dampier the English navigator in
1687, and named by him Orange, Monmouth, Grafton,
Goats, and Bashee Island. These islands possess a fer¬
tile soil, and produce abundance of potatoes and yams;
as also sugar-canes, pine-apples, bananas, and plantains.
Orange Island is twenty-two miles long by six broad.
Grafton Island is about thirteen miles in circumference,
and has good anchorage on the western side, with abun¬
dance of very fine water close to the beach. The inhabit¬
ants are described by Dampier as short and squat in sta¬
ture, and of a dark copper colour. Iron was formerly a
favourite article of exchange with them, but the use of
money is now also understood. These islands were visited
by Dampier, and were afterwards seen by Byron and
Wallis. The Spaniards took possession of them in 1783,
being tempted by the gold which is washed down by the
mountain torrents, and manufactured by the inhabitants
into a thick wire, which they wear as an ornament. The
Spanish governor resides at Grafton Island, with about
100 soldiers. These islands are situated between the 20th
and 21st degrees of N. lat.
BASIGNANA, a city of the province of Alessandria,
in the kingdom of Sardinia, near the junction of the Po
with the Tanaro. It contains 3500 inhabitants, and is ce¬
lebrated for the treaty of peace concluded there in 1361,
between Duke Otto of Brunswick and Count Galeazzo.
BASIL the Great, one of the most learned and elo¬
quent doctors of the church, was born at Caesarea, in Cap¬
padocia, about the year 328, and went to finish his studies
3 H
42G BAS
Basil at Athens, where he contracted an intimate friendship with
II Gregory Nazianzen. He returned to his native country in
asi_‘^y 355, where he taught rhetoric for some time. He then tra-
r veiled into Syria, Egypt, and Libya, for the purpose of visit¬
ing the monasteries of these countries ; and finding the mo¬
nastic life suited to his disposition, he resolved, upon his re¬
turn, to follow it, and in fact became the first monk and the
original founder of monasteries in Pontus and Cappadocia.
Upon the death of Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea, in 370,
Basil was chosen his successor; but it was with difficulty
that he accepted of this dignity; and no sooner had he
been raised to it than the emperor Valens began to per¬
secute him because he refused to embrace the doctrine
of the Arians. As soon as this storm had blown over, the
new bishop used his utmost endeavours to bring about a
re-union between the eastern and western churches, which
were then much divided about some points of faith, and
also in regard to Meletius and Paulinus, two bishops of
Antioch; but all his efforts were ineffectual, and the dis¬
pute was not terminated until nine months after his death.
Basil had a share in all the controversies of his time re¬
garding the doctrine of the church. He died in the be¬
ginning of January 379. Several editions of his works in
Greek and Latin have been published. The best is that
of Father Gamier, printed in Greek and Latin, in three
volumes folio. Basil’s style is pure and elegant, his ex¬
pressions often reach the sublime, and his thoughts are
noble and full of majesty. Erasmus ranks him among the
greatest orators of antiquity.
Basil, in joinery, the sloping edge of a chisel, or of
the iron of a plane for working on soft wood. The basil is
usually made twelve degrees, and for hard wood eighteen.
The more acute it is, the better the instrument cuts; and
the more obtuse, the stronger and fitter it is for service.
BASILAN, an island lying amid a cluster of small
islands oft' the south-western extremity of Magindanao,
about 60 miles in circumference, with a range of moun¬
tains in the centre. The island is fertile, and abounds in
grain. Wild hogs and deer inhabit the interior, which is
watered by considerable streams, but is thinly peopled. It
is 18 miles from Magindanao. Long. 121. E. Lat. 5. 50. N.
BASILEUS, fiotffiXzvs, a title assumed by the emperors
of Constantinople, exclusive of all other princes, to whom
they gave the title rex, or king. The title basileus was sub¬
sequently assumed by other kings, particularly the kings
of England; as Ego Edgar totius Anglice basiltus conjir-
mavi. Hence also the queen of England was anciently
styled Basilea or Basilissa.
BASIL!AN Monks, a religious community of the or¬
der of St Basil. That saint, having retired into a desert
in the province of Pontus, founded a monastery for the
convenience of himself and his numerous followers; and,
for the better regulation of this society, he drew up in
writing the orders and rules which they were to observe.
This new order soon spread all over the East, and ere long
passed into the West; and it is even said that Basil, before
he died, saw himself the spiritual father of more than
ninety thousand monks in the East only. The historians
of the order state that it produced fourteen popes, seve¬
ral cardinals, and a great number of patriarchs and arch¬
bishops, 1805 bishops, 3010 abbots, 11,805 martyrs, with
an infinite number of confessors, virgins, &c. It was in¬
troduced into the West in 1057, and reformed in 1569
by Pope Gregory XIII., who united the religious of this
order in Italy, Spain, and Sicily, into one congregation.
BASILIC, or Basilica, in the ancient architecture, a
kind of public hall or court of judicature, where the princes
or magistrates sat to administer justice. This word is ori¬
ginally Greek, j3u<jiAr/.rh meaning royal house, or palace.
I he basilicas consisted of a great hall, with ailes, porti-
B A S
coes, tribunes, and tribunals. The bankers too had one b
part of the basilica allotted for their residence ; and scho- ^ ^ B
lars likewise went thither to pronounce their declamations.
In after-times the denomination of basilica was also given
to other buildings of public use, as town-houses, exchanges,
burses, and the like. The Roman basilicae were covered
by which they were distinguished from the fora, which
were public places in the open air. The first basilica at
Rome was built by Cato the elder, whence it wras called
Porcia; the second was called Opimia; the third was
that of Paulus, built at great expense, and with much
magnificence, whence it was called by some regia Pauli;
and Julius Caesar erected a fourth called basilica Julia,
of which Vitruvius tells us he had the direction. Besides
these there were others, to the number of eighteen or
twenty. The basilica Julia not only served for the hear¬
ing of causes, but likewise for the reception and audience
of foreign ambassadors. It was supported by a hundred
marble pillars in four rows, and enriched with decorations
of gold and precious stones; and in it were thirteen tri¬
bunals or judgment-seats, where the praetors sat for the
dispatch of judicial business.
BASILICA is also used by ecclesiastical writers for a
church ; in which sense the name frequently occurs in St
Ambrose, St Austin, St Jerome, Sidonius Apollinaris, and
other writers of the fourth and fifth centuries. The name
was probably thus applied from many of the ancient
churches having been formed out of the Roman halls or
basilicae above described.
Basilica is chiefly applied, in modern times, to churches
of royal foundation, as those of St John de Lateran and
St Peter of the Vatican at Rome, founded by the emperor
Constantine.
Basilics were also little chapels built by the ancient
Franks over the tombs of their great men, so called from
their resembling the figure of the sacred basilicse or
churches.
BASILICA, res Bad/X/za, in the history of jurisprudence,
a name given to a digest of laws, commenced by the em¬
peror Basilius, and completed by his son Leo the philoso¬
pher. This collection, according to some, received the
title of Basilica in honour of the emperor Basilius; while
others think that it was so denominated from the circum¬
stance of its containing (SaffiXixus diara^us or imperial con¬
stitutions. It was begun by Basilius in the year 867, and
completed by Leo in the year 880; the former having
carried the work as far as forty books, and the latter hav¬
ing added twenty more, in which state it was published.
In 911 Leo was succeeded by his son Constantinus Por-
phyrogennetus, from whom the Basilica received their
final revision, ttjv rsXsvraiav avaxafiagdiv; and the amended
edition is supposed by Heimbach to have appeared about
the year 945. Opinions, however, are divided as to whe¬
ther the work has descended to us in the state in which
it was first published by Leo, or according to the revised
and improved edition of Constantine. Brunquell thinks that
we possess the Basilica in the amended form; but Hoff¬
mann considers this opinion doubtful, and his suspicions have
been confirmed by the subsequent investigations of Heim¬
bach. In the West, the Basilica never obtained the force
of law; and the chief value of the collection therefore
consists in the illustration it furnishes of the Justinianean
body of law from which it was mostly compiled; but in this
respect its utility has long been understood and acknow¬
ledged. Four complete books of the Basilica, namely, the
forty-fifth, forty-sixth, forty-seventh, and forty-eighth, and
fragments of two others, the twenty-eighth andAwentj-
ninth, were published at Paris in 1557, accompanied wit i
a Latin version, by Gentianus Hervetus. In 1566, Cyja-
cius published, at Lyons, a Latin version of the sixtieth
BAS
ii;, i book, which is of great length. And the different portions
: which had thus been edited were collected by Dionysius
Basil Gothofredus, and printed at Hanau in 1598 and 1606.
Pur But the more extensive and complete edition of Fabrot,
which appeared at Paris in 1647, superseded these imper¬
fect publications, and proved of great service to the study
of ancient jurisprudence. It is contained in seven volumes
folio, and accompanied with a Latin version of the text
as well as of the Greek scholia subjoined. Of the sixty
books which composed this great work Fabrot supposes
that he has exhibited forty-one in an entire form; but
Meerrnan, Reitz, and others, think that this estimate ad¬
mits of some abatement. About a century after the date
of Fabrot’s edition, Reitz published four entire books of
the Basilica, namely, the forty-ninth, fiftieth, fifty-first,
and fifty-second, which were inserted in the fifth volume
of Meerman’s Thesaurus Juris Civilis et Canonici, and,
thirteen years afterwards, given to the world in a separate
form, accompanied with the commentaries (as edited by
Ruhnken) of Thalelaeus, Theodorus, Stephanus, Cyrillus,
Gobidas, and other Greek lawyers on the titles of the
Pandects and Code De Postulando sive de Advocatis, nec
non de Procuratoribus et Defensoribus. With regard to the
ancient Glossce, which are not without their value, they
were first published by Labbe, and afterwards illustrated
by Schulting and Rover.1
BASILICATA, a province of the kingdom of Naples.
It is bounded on the north by Capitanata, on the north¬
east by Bari and Otranto, on the east by the Bay of Ta¬
ranto, on the south by Calabria, on the south-west by the
Gulfof Policastro, and on the west by Principato-Ulteriore.
It extends 3481 square miles over a country including a
great part of the Appennines. The population amounts
to 378,160 persons, who speak the Calabrian dialect. The
capital of the province is Potenza.
BASIL1CI, a denomination given in the Greek empire
to those who carried the emperor’s orders and commands.
BASILIDIANS, ancient heretics, the followers of Ba-
silides, an Egyptian, who lived near the beginning of the
second century. He was educated in the Gnostic school,
over which Simon Magus presided, and agreed with his
master in holding that Christ was a man in appearance,
that his body was a phantom, and that he gave his form
to Simon the Cyrenian, who was crucified in his stead,
fins heresiarch, as we learn from Eusebius, wrote twenty-
four books upon the gospel, and forged several prophets,
to two of which he gave the names Barcaba and Barcoph.
A fragment of a Basilidian gospel is still extant. The
Basilidians held much the same opinion with the Valen-
tinians, another branch of the Gnostic family. They as¬
serted that all the actions of men are necessary; that
faith is a natural gift, to which men are forcibly^ determin¬
ed ; and that however irregular or vicious may be the lives
ot men, they are nevertheless sure to be saved. Irenaeus
and others assure us that they acted in perfect consistency
with their principles, committing all manner of villanies
and impurities, in confidence of their natural election,
they had a particular hierarchy of divine persons, or
Aons. Under the cabbalistical name Abraxas, they are
believed to have worshipped the supreme God, from whom,
as a principle, all other things proceeded. There are still
extant several gems inscribed with the word Abraxas,
and which were probably used by the Basilidians as amu-
ets against diseases and evil spirits.
. ILIPPUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of Bse-
llca ,n ^^in» now Cantillana in Andalusia.
BAS 427
BASILISK. See Reftilia, Index. Basilisk
Basilisk, in military affairs, a large piece of ordnance, II
so called from its supposed resemblance to the fabulous Basker-
serpent of that name. The basilisk threw an iron ball of t T1 f' y
200 pounds weight. It was much talked of in the time of
Sultan Solyman, particularly during the wars of Hungary,
but is now entirely out of use; unless, indeed, the name
may still be applied to those enormous pieces of ordnance
which the Turks have built into the ramparts of the cas¬
tles on the Dardanelles, and which carry stone balls of
from 200 to 300 pounds weight.
BASILIUS, surnamed the Macedonian, emperor of the
Greeks. Fie was originally a common soldier, and of an
obscure family in Macedonia; but having attracted the
attention of the emperor Michael by his address in the-
management of horses, he became first equerry, then great
chamberlain, and, having assassinated the famous Bardas,
was at length associated to the empire in 849. Basilius
held the eighth general council at Constantinople; de¬
posed the patriarch Photius, but in 858 restored him to
the patriarchate ; and declared against the popes, who
refused to admit him into their communion. He was
dreaded by his enemies the Saracens, whom he frequently
vanquished, and loved by his subjects on account of his
justice and clemency. He died in 886.
BASINGSTOKE, a market and borough-town of the
hundred of Basing, in the county of Hants, forty-five miles
from London, on the road to Exeter by Salisbury. The
canal from hence to the river Wye and the Thames has
contributed to increase the trade of the town. In 871 a
sanguinary battle was fought here between the Danes and
Saxons. The market is held on Wednesday. The inha¬
bitants amounted in 1801 to 2589, in 1811 to 2656, and
in 1821 to 3165.
BASKERVILLE, John, an eminent artist of the
eighteenth century, especially in letter-founding and in
printing. He was born in 1706, at Wolverley in Worces¬
tershire, and was heir to an estate of about L.60 a year,
the whole of which income he allowed to his parents du¬
ring their lives. In his early years he conceived a love
for caligraphy and cutting in stone; and being brought
up to no particular profession, he commenced writing-
master in Birmingham when about twenty years of age.
Here the improvements made in different manufactures
soon drew his attention, and he applied to the business of
japanning, which he carried on for a long time with dis¬
tinguished excellence and success. In 1750 he turned
his attention to letter-founding, which he brought to great
perfection at the cost of much labour and expense; and
in a few years proceeded to printing. His first work was
an edition of Virgil in royal quarto, which is now in great
request. Soon after this the university of Cambridge
granted him permission to print a Bible in royal folio, and
editions of the Common Fbayer in three sizes; a privilege
for which he paid a considerable sum to the university.
He afterwards printed Horace, Terence, Catullus, Lucre¬
tius, Juvenal, Sallust, and Florus, in royal quarto; Virgil
in octavo ; and several books in duodecimo. He likewise
published some of the English classics. The best testi¬
monies to the merit of these performances are to be found
in the books themselves, which are admirable specimens
of typography; and indeed Mr Baskerville is deservedly
ranked among those who, in modern times, have brought
the art of printing to its greatest perfection. Not having
met with that encouragement which he expected from
the booksellers, he set up his letter foundery for sale a
1 See a very learned and satisfactorv article on the Greek Texts of the Roman Law, in the Foreign Quarterly Review, No. xiv.
Apnl 1831.
BAS
little before his death, which took place in July 1775. He
left no issue.
BASKET, a utensil made of twigs interwoven toge¬
ther, in order to hold fruit, earth, or other substances.
The ancient Britons were noted for their ingenuity in
making baskets, which they exported in large quantities.
These baskets were of very elegant workmanship, and bore
a high price; and they are mentioned by Juvenal among
the extravagantly expensive furniture of the Roman ta¬
bles in his time.1
Basket-making. The earlier arts among mankind,
in an uncivilized condition, are restricted to operations on
materials which undergo slight and imperceptible changes;
and implements are fabricated from substances almost in
their natural state. The process of interweaving twigs,
reeds, or leaves, is seen among the rudest nations of the
world; and there is known even an inferior specimen of
art among the natives of Van Diemen’s Land, consisting
of a bunch of rushes tied together at either end, which,
spread out in the middle, forms a basket. But the sudden
alteration of shape obviously renders this construction less
convenient; whence the same and other tribes make a
basket of leaves interwoven, and that so skilfully executed,
that it retains either milk or water. A bundle of rushes
spread out may be compared to the warp of a web, and the
application of others across it to the woof, also an early
discovery; for basket-making is literally a web of the
coarsest materials. By experience these materials are
refined and ornamented ; and, in the most improved stages
of manufacture, neat and useful implements and utensils
are produced. Scarcely any nation has been entirely igno¬
rant of the art; and our ancestors in this island made bas¬
kets which, as we have already stated, were carried to
Rome either for use or ornament.
Basket-making, however, has by no means been con¬
fined to the fabrication of those simple and useful utensils
from which its name is derived. Of old, the shields of
soldiers were fashioned of wicker-work, either plain or
covered with hides ; and the like has been witnessed among
modern savages. In Britain, the wicker boats of the na¬
tives, covered with the skins of animals, attracted the
notice of the Romans; and Herodotus mentions boats of
this kind on the Tigris and Euphrates. But there was this
difference, that the former seem to have been of the ordi¬
nary figure of a boat, whereas the latter were round and
covered with bitumen. Boats of this shape, about seven
feet in diameter, are used at the present day on these
rivers ; and boats of analogous construction are employed
in crossing the rivers of India which have not a rapid
current. At Hurrial, a town on the western side of Hin-
dostan, the river Toombudra is not fordable from June to
October; during which interval, round basket-boats are
used to transport people, goods, and cattle, to the opposite
sides. They are of all sizes, from three to fifteen feet in
diameter, but shallow, not being above three feet in depth ;
yet some are capable of carrying thirty men. They are of
very simple construction : A number of pieces of split bam¬
boo, twenty for example, are laid on the ground, crossing
each other near the centre, and there fastened with thongs;
the ends of the bamboos are then elevated by several per¬
sons, and fixed asunder at due distance by means of stakes,
BAS
in which position they are bound by other long slips of E et
bamboo. The latter are introduced alternately over and » jJ
under the pieces first crossed, and tied at the intersections
to preserve the shape. This being completed, beginning
from the bottom to the centre, the parts above the intend¬
ed height or depth of the basket-boat are cut off, and it is
liberated from the stakes reversed, and covered with half-
dressed hides sewed together with thongs. Nothing can
be more expeditious or more simple than the fabrication
and materials of these vessels, if they merit that name.
One may be made by six men in as many hours. Only
two substances, almost always accessible, are used,—
hides and bamboo. They are navigated either by paddles
where the water is deep, or are pushed over a shallow
bottom with long poles; and the passengers within are
safely transported, being kept dry by planks and pieces of
wood at the bottom. The basket-boats on the river
Krishna, in the same country, are about twelve feet in dia¬
meter and four feet deep. Whole armies are thus enabled
to continue their march, and even heavy artillery has been
conveyed in this manner across rivers. Sometimes the
boats are towed by bullocks fastened to them, and goad¬
ed on in the proper direction. We may also observe, that
in different parts of the world, whole houses, cottages,
fences, and gates, are formed of basket or wicker work.
On the Continent, a two-horse carriage, called a Holstein
waggon, of very considerable size, and fit to carry several
persons, is composed solely of basket-work. The same is
done in Britain with regard to the bodies of gigs; and
an appendage of the stage-coaches is literally designed the
basket; besides a vast variety of works on a smaller scale.
In respect to the materials employed, besides those
specified as belonging to the ruder nations, there are many
which are equally the product of nature and art. Twigs,
branches, straw, and whalebone, are all of the number.
The natives of some parts of South America make baskets
simply of rushes, so closely interwoven as to hold water;
and thousands of them are annually sold in the Spanish
provinces. The Caffres and Hottentots are alike skilful
with the roots of plants. Thus it does not belong to Eu¬
ropeans to rival an uncivilized tribe in the exercise of a
simple art. But of all materials, osiers or willows are in
most general use.
Osiers employed for basket-making are either taken
entire, cut from the root, split asunder, or stripped of
their bark, according to the work to be produced; but in
tbe latter case they are previously soaked in water. The
stripping is performed by drawing the willows through an
iron-edged implement called brakes, which removes the
bark, and the willows are then cleaned, as far as neces¬
sary, by manual operation with a sharp knife. Next they
are exposed to the sun and air, and afterwards placed in a
dry situation. But it is not the less necessary to preserve
willows with their bark in the same manner; for nothing
can be more injurious than the humidity inherent in the
plant; and previous to use they must be soaked some
days in water also. The barked or white osier is then di¬
vided into bundles or faggots according to size; the larger
being reserved to form the strong work in the skeleton of
the basket, and the smaller for weaving the bottom and
sides. Should the latter be applied to ordinary work,
T^eJv?r.(!f °* Jllv'ena' are, Adde et bascaudas et mille escaria, “ Add baskets, and a thousand other dishes.” That these “ baskets”
weie ot British manufacture is evident from the following lines of Martial:
Barbara de piiiis veni bascauda Britannis,
Sed me jam mavult dicere lloma suam.
Barbaric basket I, by Britons made,
Painted, yet skilful in the basket trade ;
Borne claims me now, although a thing of twigs,
Well-pleased to tickle thus the imperial prigs.
5t-t
B A S K E T-M A K I N G.
, they are taken whole; but for implements of slight and
. finer texture, each osier is divided into splits and skains;
J which names denote the different degrees of size to which
they are reduced. Splits are osiers cleft into four parts,
by means of a particular implement employed for that
purpose, consisting of two edge tools placed at right angles,
whereby the rod is longitudinally divided down the pith.
These are next drawn through an implement resembling
the common spoke-shave, keeping the grain of the split
next the wood or stock of the shave, while the pith is
presented to the edge of the iron, which is set in an
oblique direction to the wood: and in order to bring the
split into a shape still more regular, it is passed through
another implement called an upright, consisting of a flat
piece of steel, each end of which is fashioned into a cut¬
ting edge, like that of an ordinary chisel. The flat is bent
round, so that the two edges approach bach other at a
greater or less interval by means of regulating screws,
and the whole is fixed into a handle. By passing the splits
between the two edges they are reduced to skains, the
thickness of which is determined by the interval between
the edges of the tool. All the implements required by a
basket-maker are few and simple: they consist, besides
the preceding, of knives, bodkins and drills for boring,
leads for keeping the work steady while in process, and,
where it is of small dimensions, a heavy piece of iron
called a beater, which is employed to beat the basket
close as it is augmented. Thus a basket-maker has this
great advantage over many other artificers, that he can
establish himself in his profession at the most inconsider¬
able expense either for tools or materials.
An ordinary basket is made by preparing the requisite
number of osiers, and preserving their length considerably
greater than that of the finished work. They are ranged
in pairs on the floor parallel to each other, at small inter¬
vals, in the direction of the longer diameter of the basket;
and this may be called the woof; for, as we have said,
basket work is literally a web. These parallel rods are
then crossed at right angles by two of the largest osiers,
with the thick ends towards the workman, who places his
foot upon them ; and weaving each alternately over and
under the parallel pieces first laid down, they are by that
means confined in their places. The whole now forms what
is technically called the slat or slate, which is the foundation
of the basket. Next, the long end of one of the two rods is
taken and woven under and over the pairs of short ends all
round the bottom, until the whole be woven in. The same
is done with the other rod, and then additional long osiers
are also woven in, until the bottom be of sufficient size,
and the woof be occupied by them. Thus the bottom or
toundation on which the superstructure is to be raised is
finished; and this latter part is accomplished by sharpen-
lr>g the large ends of as many long and stout osiers as
•nay be necessary to form the ribs or skeleton. These
are forced or plaited between the rods of the bottom from
the edge towards the centre, and are turned up in the di-
jeetion of the sides ; then other rods are woven in and out
etween each of them, until the basket is raised to the in-
ended height, or, more correctly speaking, the depth it
13 *° receive. The edge or brim is finished by turning
i --     v/*. yj a x x x j xo xxijxow^ct. yj y i, mx
eown the perpendicular ends of the ribs, now protruding
jlnc landing up over each other, whereby the whole is
rrny and compactly united. A handle is adapted to the
w°r by forcing two or three osiers, sharpened at the end,
n cut to the requisite length, down the weaving of the
in T’ t0Sether; anc^ they are pinned fast, about two
]C le® 'rom the brim, in order that the handle, when com-
j, e ’ may he retained in its proper position. The osiers
.e en either bound or plaited in such fashion as pleases
the taste of the artist.
This is the most simple kind of basket, from which
others differ only in finer materials and nicer execution;
but in these there is considerable scope for taste and fan¬
cy, and implements are produced of extreme neatness and
ingenuity in construction. Some are formed of twigs or
straw entire ; others of sections, split of various thickness,
coloured, plaited, or plain ; and baskets of endless variety
in size, figure, and texture, are fabricated, according to
the artist’s inclination. The skains are frequently smok¬
ed and dyed either of dull or brilliant colours, and, by in¬
termixing them judiciously, a very good effect is produced.
From the simplicity of this manufacture a great many
individuals, independent of professed basket-makers, are
occupied in it; and, fortunately, it affords employment to
the blind in the several asylums established for their re¬
ception. Not that persons suffering privation of sight are
incapable of more ingenious and delicate mechanical ex¬
ercises, but the facility of teaching and acquiring the
principles of basket-making being alike obvious, is one of
the strongest recommendations in its favour. At Liver¬
pool, where there is an asylum of this description, the art
is practised with success; and in the city of Edinburgh
a number of the blind find employment of the same kind
in the asjdum established there.
The best materials for basket-making have been prin¬
cipally imported into Great Britain from France and Hol¬
land ; but the duration of the late war induced the inha¬
bitants of this country to endeavour to obtain a supply at
home. Cultivation of the osier was imperfectly under¬
stood in England, and in Scotland it scarcely received any
attention whatever; whence, as a suitable encouragement,
that patriotic society, whose notice is specially directed
to the improvement of arts and manufactures, offered pre¬
miums to those cultivators who should raise the greatest
quantity, not being less than 6000 plants on an acre.
It became an object with such cultivators to ascertain,
not only the quantity that could be obtained, but the
quality of the produce, which was of the greater conse¬
quence, as many plants, passing under the general name
of osiers, and even possessing their external characters,
are ill adapted for the work intended. But considerable
light has been thrown on the subject by Mr Philipps of
Ely, who was early rewarded by a premium on account of
the utility of his observations. He remarks that the osier
is a species of salix, of which there are many varieties;
and that these may be comprehended under two classes,
the first containing nine or ten species. None, however,
excepting one, the gray or brindled osier, is of use. This,
in common with the others, has a light coloured leaf, but
is distinguished by the bark being streaked with red or
blood colour; and it is of late introduction into Britain,
having been first planted in the isle of Ely, where the
observer’s experiments seem to have been chiefly made.
It grows vigorously, is very hardy and tough, and bleaches
well. All the others of the same class prefer a wet soil,
where they grow quickly and large, flourishing even in the
most barren kind of peat; but they are coarse and spongy,
have a thick pith, and are extremely perishable. Neverthe¬
less they are sometimes used for coarser workmanship,
and are profitable to those who live in the vicinity of places
where there is a great demand for osiers, and cheap convey¬
ance. During the interruption of continental intercourse
they were much resorted to by basket-makers; but their
inferiority has brought the English baskets into disrepute
in foreign markets. The second class, according to Mr Phi¬
lipps, contains four or five different species. One of these,
the Welsh willow, is very tough and durable, but not of a
favourable colour. There are two varieties, red and white,
the former of which is preferred, and forms part of every
plantation, from its particular utility in tying up the bun-
429
Basket¬
making.
430
B A S K E T-M A K I N G.
Basket- dies of willows after they have been barked or whitened, moisture is favourable to the production of fine twigs, but Bai . F
making. The bitterness of this plant is such as to be a protec- water constantly stagnant is luinous. He proposes to mal
^y "^,i^ tion from the depredations of cattle. Besides these there make the cuts or shoots from fifteen to seventeen inches in ^
are the west country Spaniard, the new willow, the French, length, and to allow foui 01 fi\e inches to lemain above
and the red Kent willow. The first has been supersed- ground, to be cut down by the surface of the soil, when
ed by others of superior cjuahty; but experience proves the heads of the stocks shall, in a series of years, have
that an acre will carry 2000 plants more of them than become too bushy. By this operation, the vigour of the
of some which are in higher repute. But the best of all plant is renewed in the most decided manner. Mr She-
is esteemed the French willow, especially as being most riff forgets, however, that, in the time he mentions, a
adapted for smaller and finer work in baskets, fans, hats, much greater protrusion from the earth wall have taken
and other light articles. It is rather of slow growth, but place by the simple vegetation of the plant than is neces-
extremely taper, pliant, close-grained, tough, and durable, sary to leave room for cutting off the head. It is neces-
Great quantities of it are always imported from the Conti- sary, in his opinion, to trim and dress the stocks from de-
nent, its culture being more neglected here than that of cayed wood, and to retain only as many buds on each as
the others ; however, Tt must be distinguished from a spe- the plant may be expected to bring to perfection in length
cies resembling it, which is characterized by the brittle- and strength of shoot. Thus the superabundant stumps
ness of the leaves, which snap like glass when drawn of old wood are cut down, and the weakest shoots extir-
through the fingers. Plantations of the French willow pated, in November and December, or March and April;
have been strongly recommended as forming a useful and seldom more than two buds should be left on those
commodity, and being always in demand. Having at- selected to stand and produce the next summer’s growth,
tained the requisite maturity, all willows are cut down He considers the leading errors of those who have attempt-
and made up into bunches 'in iron hoops thirty-six or ed the cultivation of osiers to consist in employing itn-
forty inches in diameter, for the manufacturers, and are proper soil, peat-earth, perhaps, or poor bogs; and also in
sold either in this way or in loads, the price being subject defective preparation of the soil, though suitable in other
to fluctuation according to the scarcity or abundance of respects. Failure may, besides, arise from planting bad
the commodity. or useless species of osiers; putting too few' cuts in the
In regard to the cultivation of osiers very different opi- ground; neglecting their subsequent culture, particularly
nions prevail; originating, it is probable, from too limited during the first spring and summer after plantation; and al-
experiments, combined with the diversity of soil and cli- lowing the shoots to be cut down after Christmas, and be-
mate. Mr Philipps, whose opinions are entitled to atten- fore the middle of March, which renders the stocks liable
tion, conceives that autumn, and not spring, is the most to be much weakened by hard frosts succeeding heavy
proper season for planting willows ; the stagnation of the rains, immediately after the twigs have been cut, and be-
juices he considers the true criterion whereby to regulate fore the wounds from the knife have healed. By pursuing
the period, but not on account of the set so much as on a system analogous to what is here exposed, he calculates
account of the trunk ; for if the shoot be severed when the profits of an acre of osiers at about L.18. 10s.; and he
the sap is in circulation, the parent plant bleeds to death, mentions that he contracted to receive a sum between
The osiers which he planted in the first week of October L.220 and L.250 for the produce of twelve statute acres
he found to have struck roots about Christmas, though and a half. It does not appear, however, that this was
there was no external sign of vegetation. In prosecuting an annual crop, and it is rather to be inferred that willows
this subject, Mr Philipps observes, that he made a planta- of several years’ growth formed part of it. Mr Sheriff’s
tion in autumn, and filled up part of the ground which experiments and observations were rewarded with the gold
was vacant, in the following month of March, with addi- medal of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts and
tional sets. The latter were the further advanced in May, Manufactures. Another cultivator, Mr Wade, calculated
but in June the autumn plants had the advantage, and his profits on fourteen acres, which were planted with
continued growing well, while many of the others died. 12,000 sets each, at intervals of twenty-six inches by ten,
In summer, he remarks, “ when the fibres have been as amounting to L.10 per acre.
formed before the winter, or when a tendency to form Among the experiments on the quality of soil may be
them has been observed by the swelling of the bark, and instanced a plantation made in spring, of large cuttings,
particularly at the eye, the plant is enabled to charge eighteen inches long, thrust so far into the earth as to
itself with a sufficient portion of the juices to answer the leave four or five inches protruding. Part of the ground
demand of spring.” Therefore he concludes that the had been in wheat after summer fallow, and part, which
proper rule is to plant as eai’ly in autumn as the shoots was also planted, had been sown with grass seeds. The
may be cut, without injuring the parent stock. The cul- plants made a more vigorous shoot in spring than at any
tivator lays out the ground in beds or burrows eighteen subsequent period, and of the whole but few failed. Those
feet broad, digging ditches nine feet wide on each side, which succeeded the wheat produced the best osiers, and
The upper surface of the ditches, to the depth of fourteen those which were planted among the grass seeds the worst,
inches, is thrown on the beds, and the remainder of what Both stood on a strong clay soil; and from the difference
is excavated from them is used for turf or fuel. The beds, seen here, it has been concluded, that, as the cleanest
now consisting of about two feet and a half thick of solid ground produced the best crop, summer fallowing would
earth above the surface of the substratum of peat, are be advantageous. Another example is given, where, o
planted in the following autumn, and produce good crops. 350 sets planted in garden ground, the soil of which was
Experiments have been made by various cultivators re- clay, 341 succeeded, producing, in the first year appa-
specting the suitableness of different soils, after having rently, a bundle thirty-eight inches in circumference, and
borne different kinds of grain. Mr Sheriff has related a some of the osiers above ten feet long. They were planted
profitable mode of culture practised by him in Scotland, in the latter end of March, and arranged in rows, between
and also made some judicious observations on the subject which was sown a crop of beans. Both the interval sepa-
in general. He remarks, that the finest and most valuable rating the plants and their age are arbitrary, as's als0
twigs can be procured only from land cured of chilling, the extent of the plantation, and we may likewise add the
weeping springs; and if the soil is not of considerable quality of the soil; for experiments have not^ been made
thickness, it must be rendered so by manure. Moderate on a sufficient scale to determine the fact. The most su-
BAS
of perficial observer cannot fail to have remarked the com-
^Fa , narative slenderness of all plants crowded together, and
^ J the superior strength of those apart from each other. The
sets of osiers, for several reasons, should be inserted in
regular rows. Their age does not appear important, and
nowhere is a more vigorous crop produced than from the
root of the oldest tree deprived of its trunk. In general,
previous preparation of the ground is profitable; and
plantations may thence be formed, which are to be an¬
nually cut down for baskets and such light utensils; but
the shoot is allowed to grow two, or even four years, if
strong rods are required for larger and coarser workman¬
ship. The rapidity and certainty with which this plant
vegetates preserves it in a manner under absolute control,
and peculiarly adapts it for a variety of mechanical pur¬
poses. Many cultivators recommend deep insertion of the
shoot into the ground; but here there is a limitation; for
if it be too deeply inserted, the vegetation will be less vi¬
gorous. At the same time, the powerful tendency to vege¬
tation in a willow is rather an exception to ordinary rules ;
and although the lower part be injured, roots may spring
nearer the surface. But it is not to be overlooked, that
if a tree be transplanted into too deep a pit, the root, in¬
stead of striking out new fibres, remains inactive, and the
tree withers and decays ; or if seeds be deposited too deep¬
ly in the earth, no vegetation will ensue; whereas, even
those on the surface will put forth a radicle, and establish
themselves there. In the former case, they either lose
the germinative faculty, or are destroyed; but, if a tree be
transplanted into a shallow pit, the root wrill spread, and
the whole will exhibit a luxuriant vegetation. These are
facts which demand greater attention than they usually
receive; and the depth at which the shoots of osiers are
inserted should be carefully observed. Nevertheless w^e
must repeat, that it does appear that deep insertion is
not as noxious to them as to other plants.
It is commonly understood that willows flourish no¬
where but with abundance of wrater. Undoubtedly, ade¬
quate humidity is very essential; but this general position
is quite erroneous, as experiment and observation daily
testify. Willows growing in water have almost invariably
a sickly aspect; few strong cr healthy scions spring from
them; and their vegetation is never so vigorous as wrhen
they are at some distance from it. Every plant has a
predilection for a particular place, where the conditions of
its aliment and vegetation concur. The willow requires
a considerable degree of humidity, though it will also be
seen vigorous on drier soils; but the vicinity of water is
an essential quality in selecting a suitable spot for a plan¬
tation. The purposes to which the plants are to be ap¬
plied must be considered, and the circumstances of their
growth so regulated, that they may become suitable for the
object in view. There is little doubt that, with due notice
and consideration, this plant may receive great ameliora¬
tion by culture.
All plantations must be well fenced against cattle, as
the willow, both shoot and leaf, is with them a favourite
hind of food; and as some particular caterpillars infest
the plant at certain seasons of the year, stripping it totally
hare and injuring its vegetation, care should also be taken
to remove them as effectually as possible. (n. n.)
Baskets of Earth, called in French corheilles, are usu¬
ally placed on the parapet of a trench, to form a sort of
epaulement or breast-work, and, as the name indicates, are
tilled with earth. They are about a foot and a half in
leight, as much in diameter at the top, and eight or ten
’aches at bottom; so that when set together, the inter¬
vals left at the bottoms serve as embrasures through
^ nch the soldiers may fire without exposing themselves
w the shot of the enemy.
BAS
BASKET-Salt, that which is made from salt-springs, be¬
ing purer, whiter, and composed of finer grains than the
common brine-salt.
BASMAN, a village of Persia, in the province of Kho- ,
rassan and district of Kohistan, consisting of about 150
houses, and governed by a chief of the tribe of Beloches.
Here is a singular hot well, about twelve yards in circum¬
ference, in the centre of which the water boils up with vio¬
lence from a pipe of burnt clay. There is a tradition that
the city of the Guebres once stood here. Long. 59. 52. E.
Lat. 28. 36. N.
BASNAGE, James, a learned author, and pastor of
the Walloon church at the Hague, was born at Rouen in
Normandy on the 8th of August 1653. He was the son of
Henry Basnage, one of the ablest advocates in the par¬
liament of Normandy. At the age of seventeen, having
made himself master of the Greek and Latin authors, as
well as of the English, Spanish, and Italian languages, he
went to Geneva, where he began his theological studies
under Mestrezat, Turretin, and Tronchin; and completed
them at Sedan, under the professors Jurieu and Le Blanc
de Beaulieu. He then returned to Rouen, where he was
received as minister, in September 1676 ; and in this capa¬
city he remained till the year 1685, wdien the exercise of
the Protestant religion being suppressed at Rouen, he
obtained leave of the king to retire to Holland. He set¬
tled at Rotterdam, and continued a minister pensionary
there till 1691, when he was chosen pastor of the Walloon
church of that city. In 1709 Pensionary Heinsius got
hipa elected one of the pastors of the Walloon church at the
Hague, intending to employ him not only in religious, but
also in civil affairs. Accordingly he was engaged in a se¬
cret negociation with Marshal d’Uxelles, plenipotentiary
of France at the congress of Utrecht; a service which he
executed with so much success, that he was afterwards in¬
trusted with several important commissions, all of which
he discharged in such a manner as to establish a high cha¬
racter for ability and address. Indeed, a celebrated modem
writer has said of him, that he was fitter to be a minister
of state than a minister of a parish. The Abbe Dubois, who
was sent to the Hague in 1716, as ambassador plenipo¬
tentiary from his most Christian Majesty, in order to ne-
gociate a defensive alliance between France, England, and
the States General, received instructions from the duke of
Orleans, then regent of France, to address himself to M.
Basnage, and to follow his advice : they accordingly acted
in concert, and the alliance was concluded in January
1717. Basnage maintained an epistolary correspondence
with several princes, noblemen of high rank, and ministers
of state, both Catholic and Pi^otestant, and with a great
many learned men in France, Italy, Germany, and Eng¬
land. The Catholics esteemed him no less than the Pro¬
testants ; and the works he wrote, which are mostly in
French, spread his reputation over the greater part of
Europe. Among these are, The History of the Religion
of the Reformed Churches ; Jewish Antiquities; The His¬
tory of the Old and New Testament. He died on the 22d
September 1723.
Basnage, Henry, Sieur de Beauval, second son of
Henry Basnage, and brother of James mentioned in the
last article. He applied himself to the study of the law,
and was admitted an advocate in the parliament of Rouen
in the year 1679. He did not, however, devote himself to
the bar immediately on his admission, but went to Valen¬
cia, where he studied under M. de Marville. Upon his
return he practised with great reputation till the year
1687, when the revocation of the edict of Nantes obliged
him to fly to Holland, where he composed the greater
part of his works, and died on the 29th of March 1710..
His chief work is Histoire des Ouvrayes des Sfavans. Rot-
431
Basket-
Salt
li
Basnage.
432
BAS
BAS
Bason terdam, 24 vols. 12mo. When he arrived in Holland,
II Mr Bayle, through indisposition, had been obliged to drop
Lass. pjg Nouvelles de la Republique des Retires, which induced
M. Basnage to undertake a work of the same kind under
a different title.
BASON, or Basin, in Hydraulics, a reservoir of water,
used for various purposes.
Bason, in Jewish Antiquities, the laver of the taberna¬
cle, made of the brass looking-glasses belonging to those
devout women who watched and stood as sentinels at the
door of the tabernacle.
Bason, or Dish, among glass-grinders. These artificers
use basons of different materials, as copper, iron, &c. and
of various forms, some deeper, others shallower, according
to the focus of the glasses that are to be ground. In these
basons it is that convex glasses are formed, as concave
ones are formed on spheres or bowls. Glasses are work¬
ed in basons two ways. In the first, the bason is fitted to
the arbor or tree of a lathe, and the glass, fixed with ce¬
ment to a handle of wood, is presented and held fast in
the right hand within the bason, while the proper motion
is given by the foot to the bason. In the other, the bason
is fixed to a stand or block, and the glass with its wooden
handle is moved. The movable basons are very small,
seldom exceeding five or six inches in diameter; but the
others are larger, sometimes exceeding ten feet diameter.
After the glass has been ground in the bason, it is smooth¬
ed with grease and emery, then polished with tripoli, and
lastly, finished with paper cemented to the bottom of the
bason.
Bason, among hatters, a large round shell or case, ordi¬
narily of iron, in which the matter of the hat is moulded
into form over a furnace. The hatters have also basons
for the brims of hats, usually of lead, having an aperture
in the middle, of a diameter sufficient for the largest block
to go through.
BASS, the lowest of the four parts of music. The term
is derived either from the Greek word fiaffig, a foundation,
or from the Italian adjective basso, signifying low. Of all
the parts it is the most important, as upon it the chords
proper to constitute a particular harmony are determined;
and hence the maxim among musicians, that when the bass
is properly formed the harmony can scarcely be bad.
Basses are of different kinds. Thorough-Bass is the
harmony made by the bass-viols or theorbos, continuing
to play both while the voices sing and the other instru¬
ments perform their parts, and also filling up the intervals
when any of the other parts stop. Counter-Bass is a se¬
cond or double bass, where there are several in the same
concert.
Bass- Viol, a musical instrument, of a similar form with
that of a violin, but much larger. It is struck with a bow
as the violin is; it has the same number of strings; and it
has eight stops, which are subdivided into semistops. Its
sound is grave, and has a much nobler effect in a concert
than that of the violin.
Bass, Isle of, a rock, about a mile in circumference, si¬
tuated on the coast of East Lothian, near the entrance of
the Frith of Forth, and at a short distance from the town
of North Berwick. It is steep and inaccessible on all
sides, except to the south-west; and even there it is with
some difficulty that a single person can ascend. In an¬
cient times it belonged to a family of the name of Lauder;
and although long solicited by royalty, it was not acquired
till 1671, when Charles II. purchased it. Its insulated
situation and inaccessible nature soon suggested the idea
of a state prison, which was accordingly erected in the
reign of Charles, or in that of his brother James, together
with some trifling fortifications. It was here that some
of the Covenanters were confined, who had been found
in arms against their king. At the revolution a party of
King James’s adherents got possession of the rock, which a'ts
having a fountain sufficient to supply water on its sutih 111
mit, with pasturage for the maintenance of a few sheep sai!'
and a small rabbit-warren, they were enabled to retain ^ ^
and carried on their piratical operations by means of a
boat, which they hoisted upon the rock, out of the reach
of attack, and let down at pleasure. This party captured
a great many vessels, and held out for King James long
after the whole of Great Britain had submitted. Their
boat, however, was at last seized or lost, upon which they
were obliged to surrender for want of provisions. After
this the island was dismantled of its fortifications. It is
now the property of Sir Hew Dalrymple Hamilton of
North Berwick. There is a cavern which runs quite
through the rock, and is accessible at low water, affording
refuge for a multitude of wild pigeons. The sea-fowl
which resort to this spot during the breeding season near¬
ly cover its sides and a large portion of its surface. Of
these the gannet or solan goose is the principal; with
puffins, cormorants, and kittywakes. The island is farmed
at a considerable rent by a poulterer in Edinburgh, who
derives his returns from the young of the solan geese,
which are still brought to market, and the eggs of the
other birds. The rock consists of greenstone and trap
tuff. Long. 2. 15. W. Lat. 56. 3. N.
Bass’s Straits, the channel which separates New Holland
from Van Diemen’s Land. It is nearly fifty leagues in
length from east to west, and about the same breadth
from north to south. The navigation of this strait is
rendered dangerous in some parts by several groups of
islands, mostly barren and unproductive, which are scat¬
tered through it. Van Diemen’s Land was supposed by
all the earlier navigators to form a part of New Holland;
until Mr Bass, a surgeon of a man-of-war, thought that
there were indications of a channel. This conjecture was
found to be correct; and the channel has since received
his name.
BASSAN, Giacomo de Pont, or Le Bassan, a cele¬
brated Venetian painter, was born in 1510. His subjects
were generally peasants and villagers, busy at their differ¬
ent rural occupations, according to the various seasons of
the year, together with cattle, landscapes, and historical de¬
signs ; and in all these the figures are well designed, while
the animals and landscapes have an agreeable air of sim¬
ple nature. His compositions cannot boast of much ele¬
gance or grandeur of taste, not even those which are his¬
torical ; but they have abundance of force and truth. His
local colours are well observed, his carnations fresh and
brilliant, and his chiaroscuro and perspective unexcep¬
tionable. His touch is free and spirited; and the dis¬
tances in his landscapes are always true, if not sometimes
too dark in the nearer parts. As he lived to be very old,
he finished a great number of pictures; but notwithstand¬
ing his age and application, the real pictures of Giacomo
are not commonly met with; many of those which are called
originals by purchasers as well as dealers being at best no
more than copies by the sons of Bassan, who were far in¬
ferior to him, or perhaps by some painter of still meaner
abilities. The true pictures of Giacomo, however, al¬
ways bear a considerable price if they happen to be unda¬
maged. He died in 1592, aged eighty-two. Francis and
Leander, his sons, made some progress in the same art ;
but inheriting a species of lunacy from their mother, both
came to an untimely end.
BASSANI, Giovanni Battista, maestro di cappejla
of the cathedral church of Bologna about the middle of the
last century, was a very voluminous composer of
having given to the world no fewer than thirty-one du-
ferent works. He is equally celebrated as a composer
BAS
p 3110 for the church and for concerts; and was besides a cele¬
brated performer on the violin, having, it is said, taught
ft Corelli on that instrument. His compositions consist of
w ^ masses, psalms, motets with instrumental parts, and so¬
natas for violins. His fifth opera, in particular, contain¬
ing twelve sonatas for two violins and a bass, is most es¬
teemed ; being written in a style wonderfully grave and
pathetic, and abounding with evidences of great learning
and fine invention. The first and third operas of Corelli
are apparently formed after the model of this work. Bas-
sani was one of the first who composed motets for a single
voice, with accompaniments of violins; a practice which
is liable to objection, as it assimilates church-music too
nearly to that of the chamber; and of his sol-motets it
must be confessed that they differ in style but little from
opera airs and cantatas. Two of them, namely, the eighth
and thirteenth, were printed in London by Pearson, with
the title of Harmonia Festiva.
BASSANO, a city in the Austrian kingdom of Vene¬
tian Lombardy, in the delegation of Verona. It stands
on the river Brenta, over which there is a bridge 186 feet
in length. It is surrounded with walls, and has six gates,
one of which, built by Palladio, is very much admired.
It contains 30 churches with some fine paintings, seve¬
ral religious houses, and other public edifices, with 1600
houses, and about 11,000 inhabitants, who find employ¬
ment in various manufactures. Long. 11. 38. 45. E.
Lat. 45. 45. 34. N.
BASSANTIN, James, a Scotch astronomer, son of the
laird of Bassantin, in Merse, was born in the reign of
James IV. Educated at the university of Glasgow, he
travelled through Germany and Italy, and then fixed his
abode in the university of Paris, wTtere he taught mathe¬
matics with great applause. Having acquired some for¬
tune'in this occupation, he returned in 1562 to Scotland,
where he died in the year 1568. From his writings he
appears to have been no contemptible astronomer, consi¬
dering the times ; but, like most of the mathematicians of
that age, he wras not a little addicted to judicial astrology.
Sir James Melville, in his Memoirs, says that his brother
Sir Robert, when exerting his abilities to reconcile the
two queens, Elizabeth and Mary, met with one Bassantin, a
man learned in the high sciences, who told him “ that all his
travel would be in vain ; for, said he, they will never meet
together; and next, there will never be any thing but dis¬
sembling and secret hatred for a while, and at length cap¬
tivity and utter wreck to our queen from England.” He
added, “ that the kingdom of England at length shall fall
of right to the crown of Scotland; but it shall cost many
bloody battles, and the Spaniards shall be helpers, and take
a part to themselves for their labour.” Sir James Mel¬
ville is an author of credit, and therefore it is not impro¬
bable that Bassantin ventured to utter his prediction;
but, as it proved true only in part, he either misunder¬
stood the stars, or the stars deceived the astrologer. His
"orbs are, 1. Astronomia Jacobi Bassantini Scoti, opus
absoiutissimum, &c. ter editum Latine et Gallice. Genev.
io99, folio. This is the title given it by Tornaesius, who
t'anslated it into Latin from the French, in which lan¬
guage it was first published. 2. Paraphrase de 1’Astro-
abe, avec un amplification de 1’usage de 1’Astrolabe.
yens, 1555. Paris, 1617, 8vo. 3. Mathematica Geneth-
iaca. 4. Arithmetica. 5. Musica secundum Platonem.
• Be Mathesi in genere.
BASSE Terre, part of the island of St Christopher’s,
one of the Caribbee Islands.
ASfeEIN, or Persaim, a town of the Burman empire,
81 .ua^e(l about sixty miles from the sea, on the river Bas-
8Wlj’"bich is the westernmost branch of the great Irra-
'a y* It is a considerable mart of trade, through which
vol. iv. ®
BAS 433
are carried, from the sea-ports to the upper provinces, pro- Basset,
visions and other articles. Long. 95. E. Lat. 16. 50. N.
Population, according to Crawford, 3000.
BASSET, or Basette, a game with cards, said to have
been invented by a noble Venetian, who was banished
for his invention. It was first introduced into France by
Signior Justiniani, ambassador of Venice, in 1674. Severe
laws were made against it by Louis XIV., to elude which
they disguised basset under the name of pour et contre,
“ for and against,” which occasioned new arrets and pro¬
hibitions of parliament. The parties concerned in it are
a dealer or banker; his assistant, who supervises the los¬
ing cards; and the punter, or any one who plays against
the banker.
Besides these, there are other terms used in this game.
1. The fasse or face is the first card turned up by the tail-
leur belonging to the pack, by which he gains the value
of half the money laid down on every card of that sort by
the punters. 2. The couch is the first money which every
punter puts on each card; each person who plays having
a book of thirteen several cards before him, on which he
may lay his money, more or less, at discretion. 3. The
paroli is, when a punter having won the first stake, and
having a mind to pursue his good fortune, crooks the cor¬
ner of his card, and lets his prize lie, aiming at a sept et le
va. 4. The masse is, when having won the first stake, the
punter is willing to venture more money on the same card.
5. The pay is, when the punter, having won the first stake,
be it a shilling, half-crown, guinea, or whatever he laid
down on his card, and not caring to hazard the paroli,
leaves off, or goes the pay ; in which case, if the card turns
up wrong, he loses nothing, having won the couch before;
whereas if it turn right, he by this adventure wins double
the money staked. 6. The alpiew is much the same with
paroli, and used when a couch is won by turning up or
crooking the corner of the winning card. 7. Sept et le va
is the first great chance or prize, when the punter, having
won the couch, makes a paroli, and goes on to a second
chance, so that if his winning card turns up again, it comes
to sept et le va, which is seven times as much as he laid
down on his card. 8. Quinze et le va is the next higher
prize, when the punter having won the former, is resolved
to push his fortune, and lay his money a second time on
the same card, by crooking another corner; in which case,
if it comes up he wins fifteen times the money he laid
down. 9. Trent et leva is the next higher prize, when the
punter, crooking the fourth corner of his winning card, if
it turn up, wins thirty-three times the monej7 he first
staked. 10. Soixant et le va is the highest prize, and en¬
titles the winner to sixty-seven times his first money,
which, if it be considerable, may chance to break the
bank; but the bank has many chances of first breaking
the punter. This cannot be won but by the tailleur’s
dealing the cards over again.
The rules of the game of basset are as follows : 1. The
banker holds a pack of fifty-two cards, and having shuffled
them, he turns the whole pack at once, so as to discover
the last card; after which he lays down all the cards by
couples. 2. The punter has his book of thirteen cards in
his hand, from the king to the ace, and out of these he
takes one card or more at pleasure, upon which he lays a
stake. 3. The punter may, at his choice, either lay down
his stake before the pack is turned, or immediately after
it is turned, or after any number of couples are down.
4. Supposing the punter to lay down his stake after the
pack is turned, and calling 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, &c. the places of
those cards which follow the card in view, either imme¬
diately after the pack is turned or after any number of
couples are drawn; then, 5. If the card upon which the pun¬
ter has laid a stake comes out in any even place except the
3 i
434 BAS
Basset first, he wins a stake equal to his own. 6. If the card upon
II which the punter has laid a stake come out in any even
Bastard. p]ace except the second, he loses his stake. 7. If the
card of the punter comes out in the first place, he neither
wins nor loses, but takes his own stake again. 8. If the
card of the punter comes out in the second place, he does
not lose his whole stake, but only one half; and this is
the case in which the punter is said to be faced. 9. When
the punter chooses to come in after any number of couples
are down, if his card happens to be but once in the pack,
and is the last of all, there is an exception from the gene¬
ral rule ; for although it comes out in an odd place, which
should entitle him to win a stake equal to his own, yet he
neither wins nor loses from that circumstance, but takes
back his own stake.
This game has been the object of mathematical calcu¬
lation; and M. de Moivre solves this problem : To estimate
at basset the loss of the punter under any circumstance
of cards remaining in the stock when he lays his stake,
and of any number of times that his card is repeated in
the stock. And from the solution he has formed a table
showing the several losses of the punter in whatsoever
circumstances be may happen to be. From this table it
appears, 1. That the fewer the cards in the stock, the great¬
er is the loss of the punter: 2. That the least loss of the
punter, under the same circumstances of cards remaining
in the stock, is when his card is but twice in it; the next
greater when but three times; the next greater when
four times; and the greatest of all when but once. The
gain of the banker upon all the money adventured at bas¬
set is 15s. 3d. per cent.
Basset, Peter, a gentleman of good family, was chamber-
lain or gentleman of the privy chamber to King Henry V.,
a constant attendant on that brave prince, and an eye¬
witness of his most glorious actions both at home and
abroad.
B ASSETING, in the coal mines, denotes the rise of the
vein of coal towards the surface of the earth, till it come
within two or three feet of the surface itself. This is also
called by the workmen cropping ; and stands opposed to
dipping, which is the descent of the vein to such a depth
that it is rarely, if ever, followed to the end.
BASSO-relievo, or Bas-relief, a piece of sculpture,
where the figures or images do not protuberate or stand
out much above the plane on which they are formed. All
figures or representations which are cut, stamped, or
otherwise wrought, so that not the entire body, but only
part of it, is raised above the plane, are said to be done in
relief ox relievo ; and when the work is low, flat, and but
little raised, it is called loiv relief. If a piece of sculpture,
a coin, or a medal, has its figure raised so as to be well dis¬
tinguished, it is called bold, and we say its relief is strong.
BASSOON, a musical instrument of the wind sort,
blown with a reed, furnished with eleven holes, and used
as a bass in a concert of hautboys, flutes, &c.
BASSORA. See Bussorah.
BASTARD, bastardus (fancifully derived from the
Greek fiaMupg, meretrix, but with more reason from the
British bastcerd, nothus, spurius, or from the German bas-
tart, composed of has, low, and start, risen, Saxon steort, an
upstart, homo novus), one whose father and mother were
not lawfully married previous to his or her birth, or, as it
BAS
has sometimes been loosely expressed, one bom out of Bas d
lawful wedlock. 'w- J,
The civil and canon laws do not allow a child to remain
a bastard if the parents afterwards intermarry; and this
is also the law of Scotland, in which the principle of legi¬
timation by subsequent marriage has been often and so¬
lemnly recognised. But herein they differ most materially
from the English law; which, though not so strict as to
require that a child shall be begotten, yet makes it an in¬
dispensable condition that it shall be born after lawful
wedlock. Blackstone thinks that the reason of the Eng¬
lish law is in this respect much superior to that of the Ro¬
man or of the derivative systems, if the principal end and
design of establishing the contract of marriage, taken in
a civil light, be considered; but this opinion, however
natural in an English lawyer, does not seem to be borne
out by considerations either of principle or of expediency.
For although the learned commentator may be perfectly
correct in his estimate of the motives which actuated the
parliament of Merton when they refused to enact that
children born in bastardy should be legitimated by the
subsequent marriage of their parents; yet the question
still remains whether such an enactment would not have
been highly beneficial on grounds of public policy, as well
as for the protection of private morals, and whether the
experience since acquired has not decided in its favour;
points concerning which lawyers, in Scotland at least, have
long ceased to entertain any doubt.
But be this as it may, one thing is certain, that all
children born before matrimony are bastards by our law;
and so are all children born so long after the death of
the husband, that by the usual course of gestation, they
could not be begotten by him. But this being a matter
of some uncertainty, the law is not exact as to a few days;
and although the child is born some time after the usual
period of forty weeks, this only affords presumption, not
proof, of illegitimacy.1 But if a man dies, and his widow
soon after marries again, and a child is born within such
a time as that by the course of nature it might have been
the child of either husband; in this case he is said to
be more than ordinarily legitimate, for when he arrives
at years of discretion, he may choose which of the fathers
he pleases. To prevent this, among other inconveniences,
however, the civil law ordained that no widow should marry
intra annum luctus ; a rule which obtained as early as the
reign of Augustus, if not of father Romulus himself; and
the same constitution was probably handed down to our
early ancestors from the Romans, during their stay in this
island, since we find it established under both the Saxon
and the Danish governments.
But as bastards may be born before the coverture or
marriage state is begun, or after it is determined, so also
children born during wedlock may in some circumstances
be bastards; as if the husband be out of the kingdom of
England, or, as the law loosely phrases it, extra quatuor
maria, for above nine months, so that no access to his wife
can be presumed, her issue during that period is to be ac¬
counted bastard. But generally during the coverture, ac¬
cess of the husband is presumed, unless the contrary be
shown; which is such a negative as can only be proved by
showing him to be elsewhere; for the general rule is,prcesu-
mitur pro legitimatione. In a divorce a mensa et toro, if the
1 According to information furnished by the late celebrated anatomist Dr John Hunter, it appears, Is#, That the usual period o
gestation is nine calendar months, or from 270 to 280 days; but there is very commonly a difference of one, two, or three weeks.
2dly, That a child may be born alive at any time three months after conception, but none are born with powers of being reared or at¬
taining manhood before seven calendar months or thereby. %dly. That he, Dr Hunter, had known a woman bear a living child, in a
perfectly natural way, fourteen days beyond the completion of nine calendar months; and he believed that two women had each been
delivered of a living child, in a natural way, above ten calendar months from the hour of conception. It is owing to these natural ir¬
regularities that the law has been obliged to admit of considerable latitude in the application of the ordinary rule.
BAS
ml wife has children they are bastards, because the law pre-
sumes the husband and wife conformable to the sentence
of separation, unless access be proved; but in a voluntary
separation by agreement, the law supposes access, unless
the negative be shown. If a man or woman marry a se¬
cond wife or husband, the first being living, and have issue
by such second wife or husband, the issue is spurious.
Again, if a man has issue a son by a woman before mar¬
riage, and afterwards marries the same woman and has is¬
sue a second son born after the marriage; the first of these,
who would be legitimated per subsequent matrimonium
in Scotland, is termed in England a bastard eigne, and, by
the common law of that country, is as incapable of inhe¬
riting as if his father and mother had never married ; the
second, by a species of legal Hibernicism, is denominated
a midier or mulier puisne, and succeeds to the exclusion of
the bastard eigne. Again, if there be an apparent impossi¬
bility of procreation on the part of the husband, as if he be
only eight years old, or the like, then the issue of the wife
is bastard. Likewise, in case of divorce in the spiritual
court a vinculo matrimonii, all the issue born during the
coverture is bastard; because such divorce is always upon
some cause that rendered the marriage unlawful and null
from the beginning.
The duty of parents to their bastard children consists
principally in maintaining them. For although bastards
are not looked upon as children to any civil purpose, yet
the ties of nature, of which maintenance is one, are not so
easily dissolved; and these hold good even in other re¬
spects, as, for example, that a man shall not marry his
bastard sister or daughter. The provisions of the law of
England on this head are numerous; but those of most
importance may be very briefly enumerated. Two justices
of the peace may make an order on the mother or reputed
father of a bastard, to maintain the infant by weekly pay¬
ments or otherwise; and if the party on whom the order
is made disobey, he or she may be committed to jail until
they give security to perform it. The reputed father of
a bastard is chargeable with the expenses incident to the
birth, and of his own apprehension, and of the order of
filiation; and although no legal relationship subsists be¬
tween the putative father and the bastard, the former is
so far considered its natural guardian, as to be entitled to
the custody of it for its maintenance and education.
The rights of a bastard are very few, being only such
as he can acquire ; for civilly he can inherit nothing, be¬
ing looked upon as the son of nobody, and sometimes
called films nullius, sometimes Jilius populi. Yet he may
gain a surname by reputation though he has none by in¬
heritance, and may even be made legitimate and capable
of inheriting by the transcendent power of an act of par¬
liament. All other children have their primary settlement
in their father’s parish; but a bastard has his in the parish
where he was born, unless such birth has been procured
by fraud, or happened under an order of removal, in a
state of vagrancy, in the house of correction, or under
certificate; for in law he has no father. The incapacities
attaching to a bastard consist principally in this, that he
cannot be heir to any one ; for being nullius Jilius, he is
therefore of kin to nobody, and has no ancestor from whom
an inheritable blood can be derived. Therefore, if there
be no other claimant upon an inheritance than such illegi¬
timate child, it escheats to the lord. And as bastards can¬
not be heirs themselves, so neither can they have any heirs
but those of their own bodies. For as all collateral kin¬
dred consists in being derived from the same common an¬
cestor, and as a bastard has no legal ancestor, he can
have no collateral kindred, and consequently no legal heirs,
except such as claim by a lineal descent from himself.
And hence, if a bastard purchase land, and die seised
BAS 435
thereof without issue, and intestate, the land escheats to Bastard,
the lord of the fee. Originally a bastard was deemed in-
capable of holy orders, and disqualified by the fact of his
birth from holding any dignity in the church; but this
doctrine is now obsolete, and in all other respects there is
no distinction between a bastard and another man.
These are the principal incapacities attaching to bas¬
tardy in England. By the law of Scotland a bastard is
not only excluded from his father’s succession, because
the law knows no father who is not marked out by mar¬
riage; and from all heritable succession, whether by the
father or mother, because he cannot be pronounced law¬
ful heir by the inquest in terms of the brief; but also from
the movable succession of his mother, because he is not
her lawful child, and legitimacy is implied in all succes¬
sion deferred by the law. But a bastard, although he
cannot succeed jure sanguinis, may succeed by destina¬
tion, where he is specially called to the succession by en¬
tail or testament. In Scotland, as in England, a bastard
can have no legal heirs except those of his own body; and
hence, failing his lawful issue, the king succeeds to him
as last heir. In Scotland bastards may be legitimated in
two ways; either by the subsequent intermarriage of the
mother of the child with the father, as already mention¬
ed; or by letters of legitimation from the sovereign. With
respect to the last, however, it is to be observed, that
letters of legitimation, be their clauses ever so strong, can¬
not enable the bastard to succeed to his natural father;
for the king cannot, by any prerogative, cut off the pri¬
vate right of third parties. But, by a special clause in the
letters of legitimation, he may renounce his right to the
bastard’s succession, failing descendants, in favour of him
who would have been the bastard’s heir had he been born
in lawful wedlock, such renunciation encroaching upon no
right competent to any third party.
By the statute of 18 Elizabeth, c. 3, two justices may
take order for the punishment of the mother and reputed
father of a bastard; but what that punishment shall be is
not therein ascertained, although, according to the con¬
temporary exposition, a corporal punishment was intend¬
ed. By statute 7 Jac. I. c. 4, a specific punishment,
namely, commitment to the house of correction, was in¬
flicted on the woman only. But in neither case could the
penalty be inflicted, except the bastard became charge¬
able to the parish; for otherwise the maintenance of the
child was considered a sufficient punishment. By the last-
mentioned statute, however, the justices may commit the
mother to the house of correction, there to be punished
and set to work for one year, and, in case of a second of¬
fence, till she find sureties never to offend again ; a con¬
dition with which, in most cases, it would be no easy mat¬
ter for the offending party to comply.
By 43 Geo. III. c. 58, which repealed the statute 21 Jac.
I. c. 27, it was enacted that any person administering any
deadly poison or other noxious and destructive substance,
with intent to cause or procure the miscarriage of a wo¬
man quick with child, shall be guilty of felony without
benefit of clergy; that the causing or procuring of abor¬
tion in the case of women not quick with child, or at least
not proved to be so, shall be punishable with fine, im¬
prisonment, the pillory, whipping, or transportation for
fourteen years; that the trials of women charged with
the murder of their bastard children shall proceed and
be governed by the like rules of evidence and presump¬
tion as in other cases of murder; and that if the jury
acquit the woman of the murder, they may neverthe¬
less find that, by secret burying or otherwise, she had
endeavoured to conceal the birth of her child, in which
case she may be imprisoned for two years. It was fur¬
ther provided that this act should extend to Ireland. The
436 BAS BAS
Bastard Scottish act of William and Mary, session 2, parliament 1, by inspecting the registers of the Bastile, and setting p
II which provided that any woman concealing her pregnan- many prisoners at liberty. Amongst these was an oldP I
cy during the whole space, and not calling for help at the man, who, during forty-seven years, had groaned in con-
birth, the child being found dead or missing, should be finement between four thick and cold stone walls. Har-
held as the murderer of the child, was repealed by the dened by adversity, which strengthens both the mind
49 Geo. III. c. 14. But in the second section of the same and the constitution when they are not overpowered by
statute it was enacted, that any woman in Scotland con- it, he had resisted the horrors of his long imprisonment
cealing her pregnancy during the whole time, and not with an invincible and manly spirit. His locks, white
calling for help at the birth, if the child were found dead thin, and scattered, had almost acquired the rigidity of
or missing, should be imprisoned in the common jail for a iron; whilst his body, environed for so long a time by a
period not exceeding two years. If a man, however, pro- coffin of stone, had borrowed from it a firm and compact
cure a woman with child to destroy her infant wffien born, habit. At last the narrow door of his tomb, turning upon
and a child be born, and the woman, in consequence of such its grating hinges, opened not as usual by halves; an un¬
procurement, kill her infant, this is murder in the mother, known voice announced his liberty, and bade the aged
and the procurer is accessory, or art and part, in the com- prisoner depart. Believing this a dream, he hesitated, but
mission of the crime. at length rose up and walked forth with trembling steps,
Bastard, in artillery, is a term applied to such pieces amazed at the space he traversed; the stairs of the pri-
of ordnance as are of an unusual or illegitimate make or son, the halls, the court, seemed to him immense, and
proportion. almost without bounds. He stopped from time to time,
Bastards is also an appellation given to a kind of fac- and gazed around like one bewildered; his vision was with
tion or troop of banditti, who rose in Guienne about the difficulty reconciled to the clear light of day; hecontem-
beginning of the fourteenth century, and joining with some plated the heavens as a new object; his eyes remained
English parties, ravaged the country, and set fire to the fixed, and he could not even weep. Stupified with the
towns* newly-acquired power of changing his position, his limbs,
BASTARDY is a defect of birth objected to one born like his tongue, refused, in spite of his efforts, to perform
out of wedlock. In relation to its trial in law, bastardy is their office; but at length he got through the formidable
distinguished into general and special. General bastardy gate—that gate which, like the portal of hell in Dante,
is a certificate from the bishop of the diocese to the king’s bore to many the fatal inscription, Lasciate ogni speranza
justices, after inquiry made whether the party is a bastard voi ch'entrate. When he felt the motion of the carriage
or not, upon some question of inheritance. Bastardy spe- prepared to transport him to his former habitation, he
cial is a suit commenced in the king’s courts against a screamed out, and uttered some inarticulate sounds; and
person who calls another a bastard. as he could not bear this new movement, he was obliged to
Bastardy, Arms of, should be crossed with a bar, fillet, descend from the vehicle. Supported by a friendly arm, he
or traverse, from the right to the left. sought out the street where he had formerly resided: he
BASTARNiE, or Easterns, a people of German ori- found it, but no trace of his house remained ; one of the
gmal, manners, and language, who extended themselves public edifices occupied the spot where it had" stood. He
a great way to the east of the Vistula, among the Sarma- now saw nothing that brought to his recollection either that
toe, as far as the mouth of the Ister and the Euxine, and particular quarter, the city itself, or the objects with which
were divided into several nations. he had formerly been familiar. The houses of his nearest
BASTARNICiE Alpes, in Ancient Geography, moun- neighbours, which were fresh in his memory, had assumed
tains extending between Poland, Hungary, and Transyl- a new appearance. In vain were his looks directed to all the
vania; called also the Carpates, and now the Carpathian objects around him; he could discover nothing of which
Mountains. . he had even the smallest recollection. Terrified, he stop-
, BASTIA, a circle in the island and department of Cor- ped and fetched a deep sigh. WTiat did it signify to him
sica, now a part of France. The circle contains twenty that the city was peopled with living creatures ? None of
cantons, which are subdivided into eighty-two communes them w^as alive to him ; he was unknown to all the world,
or parishes, with a population of 53,104 persons. rlhe and he knew nobody; he wept and regretted his dungeon,
extent is 610 square miles. The city of the same name is At the name of the Bastile, which he often pronounced,
the capital of the department. It stands on the eastern claiming it as an asylum, and the fashion of his clothes,
coast of tlm island, on the side of a hill, in the form of which marked a former age, the crowd gathered round
an amphitheatre, and has a strong citadel to defend the him ; curiosity, blended with pity, excited their attention,
harbour. . It is the see of a bishop, and has a cathedral, Hie most aged asked him many questions, but had no
two hospitals, several churches, and 11,350 inhabitants, remembrance of the circumstances he recapitulated. At
Long. 9. 20. 40. E. Lat. 42. 41. 36. N. length accident brought in his way an ancient domestic,
BASTILE, or Bastille, denotes a small antique castle, now a superannuated porter, who, confined to his lodge
foi tilled with turrets. Such was the famous Bastile of for fifteen years, had barely sufficient strength to open the
I aiis, which seems to have been the last castle that retain- gate. But even he did not know the master he had serv¬
ed the name. It was commenced in 1369, by order of ed. From this man, however, the unfortunate victim of
Charles V., and finished in 1383, under the reign of his tyranny learned that grief and misfortune had brought his
successor. Its chief use was for the custody of state pri- wife to the grave thirty years before ; that his children
soners -, or, more properly speaking, for the clandestine had gone abroad to distant climes; and that of all his
atrocities of a corrupt and cold-blooded despotism. No- relations and friends none now remained. This recital
where else upon earth had human misery by human was made with the indifference which people discover for
means been rendered so lasting, so complete, and in many events long past and almost forgotten. The miserable man
cases so remediless, as in the Bastile of Paris. This the groaned aloud in his desolation. The crowd around of-
following case, the particulars of which are given by M. fering only unknown features to his view, made him feel
Mercier, will serve to evince in a very striking manner. the excess of his calamities even more than he would have
^ upon the accession of Louis XVI. to the throne, the mi- done in the dreadful solitude he had left. Overcome
msters then in office, anxious to obtain popularity by an with sorrow, he presented himself before the minister
act of clemency and justice, began their administration to whom he owed that liberty which was now a burden
BAS
_ t; ). to him, and bowing low, said, “ Restore me again to that
tj prison from which you have taken me; I cannot sur-
|| vive the loss of my nearest relations, of my friends, and,
Bast ■ jn one word, of a whole generation. Is it possible in the
'-'7 ' same moment to be informed of this universal destruction,
and not to wish for death ? This general mortality, which
to the rest of mankind comes slowly and by degrees, has
to me been instantaneous, the operation of a moment.
Whilst secluded from society, I lived with myself only;
but here I neither can live with myself nor with this new
race, to whom my anguish and despair appear only as a
dream. There is nothing terrible in dying; but it is
dreadful indeed to be the last.” The minister was melt¬
ed; he caused the old domestic to attend this unfortu¬
nate person, as he only could talk to him of his family.
This discourse was the sole consolation he received; for
he shunned all intercourse with a new race, born since he
had been exiled from the world ; and he passed his time
in the midst of Paris in the same solitude as he had done
whilst confined in a dungeon for nearly half a century.
But the chagrin and mortification of meeting no person
who could say to him, we were formerly known to each
other, soon put an end to his existence.
The reader may be curious to know the nature of the
offence which had been visited by so terrible a punish¬
ment. It consisted in some unguarded expressions re¬
specting Louis XV. These had been reported, very proba¬
bly exaggerated, by some informer or enemy ; alettre-de-
cachet had been issued; and the offender seized, commit¬
ted to the Bastile, and forgotten.
At the breaking out of the French revolution, the Bas¬
tile was attacked by the Parisians, and, after a vigorous
resistance, taken and razed to the ground. This memo¬
rable event occurred on the 14th July 1789. At the time
of its capture only seven prisoners were found in it.
BASTIMENTOS, the name of some small islands near
Terra Firma, in South America, at the mouth of the Bay
of Nombre de Dios.
BASTINADO, or Bastinade, the punishment of beat •
mg or drubbing a criminal with a stick. The wrord is
formed from the French baston, a stick, staff, or cudgel,
fhe bastinade was a punishment used among the ancient
Greeks, Romans, and Jews, and still obtains among the
uiks. The Romans called it fustigatio, fustium admoni-
tio, fustibus cadi; which differed from the flagellatio in
being done with a stick instead of a rod or scourge. Fus-
tigation was a lighter punishment, and inflicted on free¬
men ; flagellation a severer, and reserved for slaves. It
was also called tympanum, because the patient here was
eat with sticks like a drum. The punishment of the bas¬
tinado is much in use in the East at this day; and it is
erne y administered on the soles of the feet, which are
sometimes beaten almost to a jelly.
BASTION, in the modern fortification, a huge mass of
31 , usually faced with sods, sometimes with brick, and
are y with stone, standing out from a rampart of which it
JP-fP31 |)ar*:’ r^^‘s wBat, in the ancient fortification,
called a bulwark. Solid bastions are those which have
e voi space within them filled up entirely, and raised
o an equal height with the rampart. Hollow bastions
having surrounded only with a rampart and parapet,
g the Space within linnr'rnniprt wtioro ♦1,q la
■ , . . J “ ciin-i jjai cij-ft: i,
so In fi S^ace Wlth*n unoccupied, where the ground is
in thn that n p retrencBment can be made in the centre,
a ,wf •t'1G rairiPart being taken. Flat bastion is
loner in°K ^ £ ln tlle mi(ldle of the curtain, when it is too
fol- . e ^fended by the bastion at its extremes. Cut
booin'* 1 ii cAiiciuca.
and8 a'whlch’ instead of a point, has a re-enter-
intedorle’ l ComPosed bastion is when two sides of the
also uneonn}lg0nn’!’Very,U,nequa1’ wllich makes tllc gorges
quai. Deformed bastion is when the irregularity
BAT 437
of the lines and angles puts the bastion out of shape; as Bastogne
w hen it wants a demigorge, one side of the interior poly- II
gon being too short. Demi-bastion is composed of one Batafin.
face only, with but one flank, and a demigorge. Double
bastion is that which is raised on the plane of another
bastion. Regular bastion is that which has its true pro¬
portion of faces, flanks, and gorges. See Fortification.
BASTOGNE, a small town of the Netherlands, in the
duchy of Luxemburg. Long. 3. 42. E. Lat. 50. 6. N.
BASTON, Baton, or Batune, is a French word signify¬
ing a staff or cudgel; but is by many English writers cor-
ruptly spelt as above. It is borne in English coats of
arms, as a badge of illegitimacy.
Baston, Robert, a Carmelite monk, afterwards prior of
the convent of that order at Scarborough, and also poet
laureat and public orator at Oxford, flourished in the four¬
teenth century King Edward I. in his expedition into
Scotland in 1304, took Robert Baston with him in order
to celebrate the victories he was to gain over the Scots;
but the poet having been taken prisoner, was obliged to
change his note and sing to another tune, “ the Bruce of
Bannockburn.” He wrote several pieces in Latin, on the
V ars of Scotland, the Luxury of Priests, Synodical Ser¬
mons, &c.; and also a volume of tragedies and comedies,
in English. He died about the year 1310.
BASTWICK, Dr John, was born at Writtle, in Essex,
in 1593. He practised physic at Colchester, but, being a
man of warm imagination, and a good Latin scholar, ap¬
plied himself to writing books against popery. About the
year 1633 he printed in Holland a Latin treatise, entitled
Elenchus Religionis Papisticce, with Flagellum Pontifids
et Episcoporum Latialium ; in which the English prelates
thinking themselves also aimed at, he was fined L. 1000 in
the High Commission Court, excommunicated, prohibited
from practising physic, while his books were ordered to be
burnt, and the author himself consigned to prison until he
made a recantation. Instead of recanting, however, he wrote
in prison, Apologeticus adPrcesules Anglicanos, and another
book called The Litany, in which he exclaimed vehemently
against the proceedings of that arbitrary court, and taxed
the bishops with an inclination towards popery. Prynne and
Burton coming under the lash of the Star-chamber court
at the same time, they were all censured as scandalous and
seditious persons, condemned to pay a fine of L.5000 each,
to be set in the pillory, to lose their ears, and to undergo
perpetual imprisonment in three remote parts of the king¬
dom. The parliament in 1640 reversed these proceed¬
ings, and ordered Dr Bastwick a reparation of L.5000 out
of the estates of the commissioners and lords who had per¬
secuted him. The civil commotions which ensued prevent¬
ed his receiving this solatium for his sufferings; but, in
1644, his wife had an allowance ordered for her own and
her husband’s maintenance. What became of him after-
wTard is not known.
BAT. See Mammalia, Index.
Bat, Bate, or Batz, a small copper coin, mixed with
a little silver, current in several cities of Germany, and
worth four crutzers.
EATABLE, or Debatable Ground, that land which
lay between Scotland and England, when the kingdoms were
distinct, and to which both nations pretended right.
BATACOLO, a small fort and garrison on the east
coast of the island of Ceylon, situated on an island in an
arm of the sea. Here is a small square fort, mounting
twenty-four guns, and a village in the vicinity, chiefly in¬
habited by Mahommedans and Hindoos.
BATALIN, an island in the Eastern Seas, off the coast
of Celebes, between the first and second degree of south
latitude, and about the 124th degree of east longitude. It
is about 25 miles in length by 7 in average breadth.
438
BAT
BAT
Batang
II .
Batavia-
BATANG, an island in the Eastern Seas, separated
from the island of Bintang by a narrow strait. It lies off
the south-eastern extremity of the Malay peninsula, and
is surrounded by smaller rocky islets. It is estimated at
25 miles in length by 10 in average breadth.
Batang, or Batany, a town and sea-port on the east
coast of the island of Gilolo. On Batang hook or point is
situated a very strong and capacious natural fortress, ac¬
cessible only by ladders up the perpendicular face of the
rock. There is a plain at the top, about three miles in cir¬
cumference, on which are houses and gardens. Long. 128.
48. E. Lat. 0. 9. S.
BATANISTS, or Batenites. See Batenites.
BAT AY A (scil.CWra), a citadel of Vindelicia, so called
from the Cohors Batava, in garrison under the commander
in Rhaetia; now Passau, situated in Bavaria, at the conflu¬
ence of the Danube, Inn, and Ills.
BATAVIA, a large city and sea-port on the north coast
of the island of Java, and the capital of all the Dutch
settlements in the East. It is situated on the river Jacatra,
in a swampy plain, at the bottom of a bay, and has long
been noted for the insalubrity of its atmosphere. Ihis
bay is formed by an indentation in the northern shore of
Java; and it is protected from the swell of the sea by
fifteen or sixteen small islands, interspersed in every direc¬
tion across its mouth. It is of sufficient capacity to con¬
tain the whole navy of England, and is perfectly secure at
all seasons, the water being seldom disturbed in any violent
degree by the winds. The form of the city is an oblong
square, 4200 feet in length from north to south, and 3000
feet in breadth. The streets are quite straight and regu¬
lar, and cross each other at right angles. Each street is
from 114 to 204 feet broad, and has a canal in the mid¬
dle, cased with stone, with a low parapet on the two mar¬
gins. At the distance of six feet is planted a row of ever¬
green trees, under the shade of which are erected little
open pavilions of wood, surrounded with seats, on which
the Dutch inhabitants, in the cool of the evening, take
their favourite refreshment of smoking. Beyond the trees
is a gravelled road from thirty to sixty feet wide, for car¬
riages, horses, cattle, and slaves, and terminated on the
opposite side by a row of evergreens. Batavia contains
about twenty such streets, with canals in the middle,
over which there are about thirty stone bridges. 1 he
river Jacatra, which has its rise in the Blue Mountains
to the south, flows through the middle of the town, and
encircles it by several branches and canals connected with
the main stream. Numerous other streams, such as the
Ankee and the Tangerang, &c., besides artificial canals,
intersect the swampy plain of Batavia in all directions,
and connect the town with the surrounding country.
According to Sir Stamford Raffles, in his account of
Java, there are now scarcely any remains of the splendour
and magnificence which formerly procured for this capital
the proud title of the Queen of the East. “ Streets,
he adds, “ have been pulled down, canals half filled up,
forts demolished, and palaces levelled with the dust. The
public buildings consist of a Lutheran and a Portuguese
church, a Mahommedan mosque, a Chinese temple, the
stadthouse, where the supreme court of justice and magi¬
stracy still assemble, the infirmary, the chamber of orphans,
and other institutions of less consequence. The great
church of Batavia, which was finished in 1760, at an ex¬
pense of L.80,000, was taken down in consequence of its
foundation having given way, by order of General Daen-
dels, who was governor of Java after Holland was incor¬
porated with France. The market is convenient and ex¬
tensive, and is well supplied with provisions of all sorts.
The fortifications by which the city was formerly sur¬
rounded, consisting of a wall defended by bastions, were
all pulled down before Batavia was captured by the Bri- Bat
tish in 1811. General Daendels directed the demolition^
of the ramparts, with a view of improving the health of
the city by a freer circulation of air; and with the mate¬
rials he built the new cantonment of Weltevreeden, about
three miles inland, in a higher and more healthy situation.
The castle of Batavia, which is on the north side of the
town, next to the bay, is very spacious, and contains nu¬
merous buildings and extensive warehouses, constructed
with prodigious labour and expense ; but its situation is so
unhealthy, that the troops were withdrawn to another place,
and it was converted into a depot for naval and military
stores and other articles. The town of Batavia, owing to
its unhealthiness, has been deserted by all the most weal¬
thy inhabitants, who now live in the environs, principally
on two roads leading to Weltevreeden ; the one east, the
other west, through Molenvliet and Ryswick. These ele¬
gant roads, shaded with rows of trees, and having on each
side sumptuous houses surrounded with fine gardens and
plantations, form the fashionable resort at Batavia. Here
are situated some of the public buildings of the town,
namely, the grand assembly-room, used by government on
great occasions ; also a large building, which contains the
treasury and all the other public offices. Ihe environs
are adorned with the country residences of the opulent
merchants, which extend east and west, and on the south
are scattered over a distance of between forty and fifty
miles inland.
Batavia, being a great trading city, is resorted to by
many different nations in the East; and its population
consists of a mixture of all these, as well as of Euro¬
peans. The inhabitants may be divided into the follow¬
ing classes ; namely, the Dutch residents, who form but a
small class, and can hardly be termed European, so com¬
pletely are they intermixed with Portuguese and Malay
colonists ; the different Indian nations, originally slaves;
the Moors and Arabs, an active and intelligent race, prin¬
cipally engaged in navigation; the Javanese, who are cul¬
tivators ; the natives of Bali, of Celebes, Borneo, Macas¬
sar, Amboyna, and Madura. The Malays are numerous;
they are chiefly boatmen and navigators, and profess the
Mahommedan faith. The Chinese form the most nume¬
rous class in Batavia. They are here, as everywhere else,
ingenious, industrious, and mercantile in their habits.
Their sole object is to make money, in which they are in¬
defatigable. They have many of them acquired large ca¬
pitals ; and their industry embraces the whole system of
commerce, from the greatest wholesale speculations to
the most minute transactions in the retail trade. In their
hands are all the manufactories, distilleries, potteries, &c.;
they have large coffee and sugar plantations, and gardens
well stocked with all sorts of vegetables; and they are the
principal traders, smiths, carpenters, stone-masons, shoe¬
makers, shopkeepers, butchers, &c. in the country. IM
though they form so useful a class in Batavia, they have
always been severely oppressed by the tyrannical and arbu
trary exactions of the Dutch government. All their re¬
ligious festivals, every public ceremony and popular amuse¬
ment, as well as every branch of industry, were subjecte
to taxation. They were obliged to pay for a license to wear
their hair in a long plaited tail, according to the custom o
their country, as well as for permission to bring their greens
to market, and to sell their produce and manufactures m
the streets. A better system was introduced under t e
British administration of Sir Stamford Raffles; but t ie
island has since been restored to the Dutch, who hav
not abandoned their former narrow and severe P° '
The following is an estimate of the population made y
Barrow in 1792, from a register of the dwelling-houses i
the city.
<L
BAT
BAT
439
East India Company’s servants of every descrip-
Burghers or free citizens, with their families  5,660
Javanese and free Malays 68,000
Chinese 22,000
Slaves 17,000
115,960
From this period the population of Batavia, as of other
districts of the country, has fallen off under the tyrannical
administration of the Dutch; and the following account
of the population of Batavia and its environs is given from
authentic documents by Sir Stamford Raffles:—
City of Batavia—Europeans  1,928
Natives  6,486
Chinese 11,854
Malays, Bugis, and other eastern
nations   12,173
Arabs and Moors  403
Slaves 14,239
47,083
The environs of Batavia he estimates to contain 218,777.
Batavia is perhaps one of the most unhealthy spots in
the whole earth: and this is not owing altogether to the
climate, which is not so hot as in other tropical countries ;
the thermometer varying in the middle of the day from
84)° to 86°, though it sometimes rises to 96°, and sinking
during the night to 76°, and the breeze from the sea regu¬
larly setting in as the day advances. It is occasioned, 1st,
by the situation of the town, in a marshy plain, the exha¬
lations from which settle over it in calm weather, and de¬
scend with the dews at night, or are circulated through
it both by the sea and the land breeze ; 2dli/, by the stag¬
nant water in the canals or ditches, which intersect the
city in all directions. These canals are a receptacle for
filth of every description, and having no current to carry
it off, the action of a tropical sun on such a mass of putre¬
fying matter engenders the most pestilential vapours, the
sure source of disease. The other causes are the close
plantations of trees, that prevent a free circulation of air;
the stagnation of the rivers from the bars of mud or sand
which obstruct their passage into the sea; the bad water
used by the inhabitants; the narrowness of their houses ;*
the extreme filthiness of their habits ; and the luxury and
intemperance of the richer classes. The most common
and the most fatal maladies are dysenteries, and putrid and
inflammatory fevers, which frequently prove fatal in the
course of a few days, and sometimes in a few hours. At
Weltevreeden, not more than three miles distant, diseases
are not more frequent than in the healthiest parts of India.
Batavia is a great commercial depot, and is resorted to
by vessels from all the Asiatic islands, as well as from
China, the East Indies, and Europe. Its trade was in¬
deed heavily oppressed by the restrictions of the Dutch
East India Company, who claimed the monopoly or pre¬
emption of almost all the staple articles of commerce ; and
who further restricted by their regulations the freedom of
navigation. A greater latitude was allowed under the
French regulations of General Daendels, though it was
still sufficiently severe ; and when Batavia was captured
by the British in 1811, the trade was set free from the
shackles which had been imposed on it, and it accord-
ingly began to flourish. In 1812 the quantity of shipping
that cleared out from Batavia amounted to 52,375 tons;
m 1813 it had increased to 64,306 tons; and in 1814 to
72,718 tons.
The exports from Batavia to the other islands of the
archipelago, and to the ports in the Malayan peninsula,
are rice, salt, oil, tobacco, teak timber and planks, Java
cloths, brass ware, &c., and European, Indian, and Chi¬
nese goods. The produce of the eastern islands is also
collected at its ports for re-exportation to India, China,
and Europe ; namely, gold-dust, diamonds, camphor, ben¬
jamin, and other drugs; edible bird-nests, biche de mer,
rattans, bees’ wax, tortoise-shell, and dyeing woods from
Borneo and Sumatra; tin from Banca; spices from the
Moluccas ; fine cloths from Celebes and Bali; and pepper
from Borneo. From Bengal are imported opium, drugs,
and cloths; from China, teas, raw silk, silk piece-goods,
varnished umbrellas, coarse China ware, nankeen, paper,
and innumerable smaller articles for the Chinese settlers.
Of late, however, the Chinese have been superseded by
the introduction of British manufactures. A trade is also
carried on with Japan, to which a ship is annually sent
laden with cloths, spices, elephants’ teeth, wood, tin, tor¬
toise-shell, &c.; and the return is chiefly made in fine
copper, China ware, lackered ware, and silk goods.
Batavia owes its origin to the Dutch general John
Pieterson Coen, who, in 1619, took the town of Jacatra by
assault, destroyed it, and founded in its stead the present
city, w hich soon acquired a flourishing trade, and increas¬
ed in extent and importance. The Dutch enjoyed unmo¬
lested possession of this place until the year 1811, when
the states of Holland having been incorporated with
France, a British armament was sent against the Dutch
settlements in Java, and to this force the city of Batavia
surrendered on the 8th of August. Batavia was restored
to the Dutch by the treaty of 1814. Long. 106. 51. E.
Lat. 6. 10. S.
See Stavorinus’s Voyages to the East Indies; Barrow's
Voyage to Cochin China ; Sir George Staunton’s Embassy
to China ; Thorn’s Memoir of the Conquest of Java ; Sir
Stamford Raffles’s History of Java. (f.)
BATAVORUM Insula, the island of the Batavi, in
Ancient Geography. This island is described by Tacitus.
“ The Rhine flowing in one channel,” says he, “ or only
broken by small islands, is divided, at its entering Bata¬
via, as it were into two rivers. One continues its course
through Germany, retaining the same name and violent
current, till it falls into the ocean. The other, washing
the coast of Gaul, with a broader and more gentle stream,
is called by the inhabitants Vahalis ; which name it soon
changes for that of Mosa, by the immense mouth of which
river it discharges itself into the same ocean.” Accord¬
ing to Tacitus, therefore, the island of the Batavians was
bounded by the ocean, the Rhine, and the Vahalis, now
the Waal. Caesar extends it to the Mosa, or Meuse; but
Pliny’s description coincides with that of Tacitus. This
island was, however, of greater extent in the time of Ta¬
citus than in that of Caesar; for, by a new canal, Drusus,
the father of Germanicus, conveyed the waters of the
Rhine into the ocean, a considerable way north of the
former mouth of that river. The Batavi were a branch
of the Catti, who, having been expelled their country in
consequence of a domestic sedition, occupied the extre¬
mity of the coast of Gaul, at that time uninhabited, toge¬
ther with this island situated among shoals. The name
of Batavi they carried with them from Germany. The
modern name of this island is Betu or Betaw.
Batavomjm Oppidum, in Ancient Geography, a town in
the island of the Batavi, mentioned by Tacitus, without
any particular name.
BATE, George, an eminent physician, born at Maid’s
Batavo-
rum
Bate.
1 Sir Stamford Raffles’s History of Java, vol. ii. Appendix, p. 10.
440
BAT
BAT
Bate Isle Morton, near Buckingham, in the year 1608. In 1629 he
!i obtained a license, and for some years practised in and
about Oxford; but his practice was chiefly amongst the
Puritans, who at that time considered him as one of their
party. In 1637 he took his degree of doctor in physic,
and became very eminent in his profession ; so that when
King Charles kept his court at Oxford, Dr Bate was his
principal physician. When the king's affairs declined, he
removed to London, where he accommodated himself so
well to the times, that he became physician to the Charter-
house, fellow of the college of physicians, and afterwards
principal physician to Oliver Cromwell. Upon the Resto¬
ration, he got into favour with the royal party, and was
made principal physician to the king, and fellow of the
Royal Society ; all which preferment, it is said, was owing
to a report raised on purpose by his friends, that he had
given the Protector a dose which hastened his death. Dr
Bate wrote in Latin an account of the civil commotions in
England, and some other pieces. He died at his house in
Hatton-Garden,and was buried atKingston-upon-Thames,
in Surrey.
There was another George Bate, who wrote a work en¬
titled, “ The Lives, Actions, and Execution, of the prime
Actors and principal Contrivers of that horrid Murther of
our late pious and sacred King Charles I.”
Bate Isle, an island of Hindostan, belonging to the pro¬
vince of Gujerat, situated at the south-western extremity
of the Gulf of Cutch. This island has a good harbour, well
secured from the prevailing winds, but with a rocky anchor¬
age. The island of Bate is a great resort of Hindoo pil¬
grims ; and the town contains 2000 houses, chiefly inha¬
bited by Brahmins. The island does not produce sufficient
subsistence for the support of the inhabitants, who conse¬
quently import large quantities of ghee, sugar, grain, &c.
About 150 vessels of different sizes belong to the port,
and with these piracies were formerly carried on, until
they were checked by the British. The Bate Isle pirates
were the dread of all the traders on the western coasts of
India. The port has been improved, but is still an in¬
significant place. It was nevertheless attacked without
success, and with great loss, in 1803, by a British force.
But, in 1807, a treaty was entered into with the chiefs of
the island, by which it was agreed that a free and open
commerce should be permitted to all British vessels. Long.
69. 21. E. Lat. 22. 22. N.
BATENITES, a sect of apostates from Mahomme-
danism, dispersed throughout the East, who professed the
same abominable practices with the Ismaelians and Kar-
matians. The word properly signifies esoteric.
BATES, William, D. D. an eminent Presbyterian
divine, born in November 1625. He was admitted to
Emanuel College, Cambridge, and thence removed to
King’s College in 1644. He was one of the commis¬
sioners at the conference in the Savoy, for reviewing the
public liturgy, and was concerned in drawing up the ex¬
ceptions against the Common Prayer; notwithstanding
which, he was appointed chaplain to King Charles II.
soon after the Restoration, and became minister of St
Dunstan’s in the West; but he was afterwards deprived
of his benefice for nonconformity. Dr Bates bore a good
and amiable character ; and was honoured with the friend¬
ship of the lord keeper Bridgman, the lord chancellor
Finch, the earl of Nottingham, and Archbishop Tillotson.
He published Select Lives of Illustrious and Pious Per¬
sons, in Latin; and since his death, all his works, except
his Select Lives, have been printed in one volume in
folio. He died in July 1699, in the seventy-fourth year
of his age.
BATH, a city in the county of Somerset, and one of
the most beautiful places in this kingdom, or indeed in
Europe. It stands on the river Frome, 105 miles from
London. A great part of the city is but little above the
level of the stream, but the north part gradually rises in
rows of streets and crescents, one above the other, to the
height of near 300 feet. The whole is built of freestone
raised on the spot, which gives an appearance of ele¬
gance to the houses. The warm springs are of great ce¬
lebrity, and much frequented by visitors, both for health
and for pleasure. They are few in number, and differ but
little from each other in their medicinal properties. The
temperature of the coolest is 97°, of the warmest 117° 0f
Fahrenheit. The city is well supplied with those amuse¬
ments and relaxations which are requisite for the descrip,
tion of society that assembles here. There is a theatre, two
sets of public rooms for balls and concerts, a great number
of public libraries, and beautiful promenades. Besides the
cathedral, and several parish churches and chapels, there
are places of worship for every denomination of Christians.
The markets are well supplied with every necessary and
luxury, and at a very moderate rate. The houses, whether
for lodging, boarding, or both, are clean and admirably
conducted; and in no place can persons enjoy so much
comfort at the same expense. The police is well regulat¬
ed by the corporation, and the several hospitals are well
managed for the patients. The city returns two members
to parliament, who are chosen by the corporation. The
patronage has been commonly divided between the marquis
of Bath and the marquis of Camden. The abbey church
or cathedral is a fine specimen of ancient Gothic architec¬
ture. The diocese, combined with Wells, extends over the
county of Somerset, and contains 388 parishes. The river
Frome is navigable to Bristol; and the Thames and Severn
are united by a canal, called the Kennet and Avon, which
passes from Bath to Newbury. The population of Bath
amounted in 1801 to 32,200, in 1811 to 34,412, and in
1821 to 36,811.
_ Knights of the Bath, a military order in England, con¬
cerning the origin of which antiquaries differ in their ac¬
counts. The earliest intimation we have of the order is
in the reign of Henry IV., when we find a degree of
knighthood under the express denomination of the Bath.
On the day of his coronation in the tower of London, that
king conferred the insignia of the order upon forty-six
esquires, who had watched all the night before, and had
bathed themselves. And from his time it was customary
for our kings to confer this dignity on the occasion of their
own coronations or those of their queens; on the birth or
marriage of royal issue, and their first advancement to
honours; upon the eve of intended expeditions against
foreign enemies ; at the installations of knights of the gar¬
ter; and when some grand anniversary festivals were cele¬
brated. The last knights of the bath so made were in
1661, at the coronation of King Charles II.; after which the
order was neglected until the year 1725, when George I.
was pleased to revive it, and to command a book of sta¬
tutes to be framed for the government of the order. By
this code the number of knights was fixed at thirty-eight,
namely, the sovereign and thirty-seven knights-compa-
nions. But, in the reign of his late majesty, George IV.,
the statutes of the order were relaxed; and, under the
denominations of companions and grand crosses, a great
additional number of persons, chiefly military men, who
had distinguished themselves in actual service, have been
admitted within the pale of the order.
The apparel of a knight of the bath is a red surcoat,
lined and edged with white, and girt wdth a white girdle,
but without any ornament; the mantle, of the same colour
and lining, is fastened about the neck with a lace of white
silk, to which is attached a pair of white gloves, with tas¬
sels of silk and gold at the end; and on the left shoulder
BAT
Uat :i it is adorned with the ensign of the order, consisting of
three imperial crowns or, surrounded with the ancient
Ba motto, Tria juncta in uno, wrought upon a circle gules,
J with a glory or rays issuing from the centre, and under it
the lace of white silk worn by the knights of the bath.
Red breeches and stockings, and white hats, surmounted
with plumes of white feathers, complete the knightly ap¬
parel. The chapel of Henry VII. is the chapel of the or¬
der, and every knight’s banner, with plates of his arms and
style, is placed over his respective stall, in the same man¬
ner as those of the knights of the garter in St George’s
chapel, Windsor; and the knights are allowed supporters
to their arms.
BATHERI, a village of Northern Hindostan, situated
among the mountains of Serinagur. It has a sacred tem¬
ple, and is situated 300 feet above the bed of the Ganges.
On the opposite side of the river is an extraordinary cas¬
cade, which issues from the summit of the mountain.
Long. 78. 30. E. Eat. 30. 49. N.
BATHGATE, a town and parish of Scotland, in the
county of Linlithgow, on the great road between Edin¬
burgh and Glasgow. Lime-stone, coal, and iron-stone,
abound in the neighbourhood. It-is eighteen miles west
of Edinburgh. The population is 2919.
BATHS, Balnea, denote large ornamented buildings,
erected by the ancients for the sake of bathing. Baths
made a part of the ancient gymnasia, though they were
frequented more for the sake of pleasure than of health.
The most magnificent baths were those of Titus, Paulus
iEmilius, and Diocletian, of which some ruins still remain.
It is said that at Rome there were eight hundred and fifty-
six public baths. Fabricius justly observes, that the ex¬
cessive luxury of the Romans appeared in nothing more
visible than in their baths. Seneca complains that the
baths of plebeians were filled from silver pumps, and that
the freedmen trod on gems ; and Macrobius tells us of one
Sergius Oratus, a fantastical voluptuary, who had baths
suspended in the air.
According to Dion, Maecenas was the first who erected
a bath at Rome; but there were instances of public baths
prior to his time, although they were small, poorly deco¬
rated, and of cold water only. Agrippa, while sedile, built
a hundred and sixty places for bathing, where the citizens
might be accommodated either with hot or with cold water
gratis; and, following his example, Nero, Vespasian, Titus,
Domitian, Severus, Gordian, Aurelian, Maximian, Diocle¬
tian, and most of the emperors who studied to gain the
affections of the people, erected baths inlaid with the rich¬
est marble, and wrought according to the rules of the most
delicate architecture. The wealthy had baths, frequently
very magnificent ones, at their own residences, especially
after the practice of pillaging the provinces had com¬
menced; but these they only used on extraordinary occa¬
sions. The great men, and even the emperors them¬
selves, sometimes bathed in public with the rest of the
people. Alexander Severus was the first who allowed the
public baths to be opened in the night-time during the
heats of summer.
Hie Greek baths were usually annexed to the palestra
w gymnasia, of which they were considered a part; and
consisted of seven different apartments, usually separat¬
ed from one another, and intermixed with other build-
mgs belonging to different sorts of exercises. These were,
the cold bath, frigida lavatio; the elaothesium, or room
"here they were anointed with oil; the frigidarium, or
cooling room; the propnigeum, or entrance of the hypo-
caustum or stove; the vaulted room for sweating in, or
vapour-bath, called concamerata sudatio, or tepidarium;
/W , or dry stove; and the hot bath, called ca-
1 a lavatio. With respect to the baths disioined from the
von. iv.
BAT
441
palestrae, they appear to have been usually double; one Baths,
for men and another for women, but so near that the same
furnace heated both. The middle part was occupied by
a large basin, which received water by several pipes, and
was surrounded by a balustrade, behind which there was
an area for the reception of those who waited to use the
bath. These baths were vaulted over, and only received
light from the top.
In the Roman baths, the first part which appeared was a
large basin, called xoXyaSjj^a in Greek, and natatio or pis¬
cina in Latin. In the middle was the hypocaustum, which
had a row of four apartments on each side, called bal-
nearia ; these were the stove, hot bath, cold bath, and te¬
pidarium. The two stoves, called laconicum and tepida¬
rium, were circular, and joined together; and their floor
was hollow and suspended, in order to receive the heat
of a large furnace, which communicated with the stoves
through the vacuities of their floor. This furnace also
heated another room called vasarium, in which were three
large brazen vessels called milliaria, containing respec¬
tively hot, warm, and cold water, and so disposed that, by
means of siphons and pipes, the water might be made to
pass out of one or other of them into the bath, in order to
adjust its temperature. Such is the description given by
Vitruvius.
At three in the afternoon, which Pliny calls hora octava
et nona, the Romans repaired to the baths, public or pri¬
vate. This was called the hora balnei, or the “ bath hour.”
In summer the earliest hour of admission was eight, and
in winter nine ; whence the expression of Pliny applied to
the hour of general resort. The public baths were opened
at the sound of a bell, and always at the same hour.
Those who came too late stood a chance of obtaining only
cold water. The bathers commenced with hot water; but
when the pores had been thus opened, and a profuse per¬
spiration produced, they thought it prudent to close them
again, either with the cold bath, or at least with a sprink¬
ling of cold water. During the bath the body was scraped
with a kind of blunt knife or strigil, such as may still be
found in the cabinets of the curious. Bathing was suc¬
ceeded by unction and perfuming, after which they went
fresh to the ccenaculum.
The Romans, when they found their stomachs over¬
charged, proceeded to the bath. This we learn from Ju¬
venal, who inveighs against those who, having gorged
themselves with eating, were forced to go into the baths to
seek relief. They also repaired to a bath to refresh them¬
selves after any considerable fatigue or travel; and hence
Plautus says, on one occasion, that all the baths in this
world were not sufficient to remove the weariness he felt.
After Pompey’s time the humour of bathing was carried
to such excess that many wei’e ruined, and some had
brought themselves to such a state that they could not
take food without first bathing. The emperor Titus is
said to have lost his life in consequence of the artificial
habit thus induced. Hence Pliny inveighs against those
physicians who held that hot baths aided digestion; and
the emperor Hadrian laid a restraint on the immoderate
humour of bathing, by a public edict, prohibiting all per¬
sons from bathing before the eighth hour.
Baths of Agrippa, Thermae Agrippince, were built of
brick, but painted in enamel. Those of Nero, Thermae
Neronianae, were not only furnished with fresh water, but
had the sea brought into them; those of Caracalla were
adorned with two hundred marble columns, and furnished
with sixteen hunch ed marble seats, which, Lipsius assures
us, were so large, that eighteen hundred persons might
conveniently bathe in them at the same time. But the
baths of Diocletian, thermae Diocletiance, surpassed all the
rest in magnificence; one hundred and forty thousand
3 K
442 BAT
Bath-kol men having been employed many years in building them.
A considerable portion of this vast structure, as well as
1^£‘, of the baths of Caracalla, still remains; and, from the di-
mensions of the arches, the beauty of the pillars, the pro¬
fusion of foreign marble, the curious moulding of the roofs,
the multitude of spacious apartments, and a variety of
other circumstances, these ruins may be regarded as the
most remarkable relics of ancient taste and splendour.
Bath-KoI, “ the daughter of a voice.” So the Jews
denominate one of their oracles, which is frequently men¬
tioned in their books, especially the Talmud. The bath-
kol was a fantastic method of divination invented by the
Jews, though called by them a revelation of God’s will,
made to his chosen people after all verbal prophecies had
ceased in Israel, being, in fact, analogous to the Sortes
Virgilian(R among the Romans. For as, with the latter,
the first words they happened to turn to in the works of
the Mantuan bard were considered a kind of oracle prog¬
nostic of future events, so with the Jews, when they ap¬
pealed to Bath-kol, the first words they heard from any
man’s mouth were regarded as a voice from heaven, direct¬
ing them in the matter they inquired about. And- even
the Christians were not quite free from this superstition,
often making the same use of the Scriptures as the Ro¬
mans did of the works of Virgil; and it descended, through
them, to later times. In France it was the practice for
several ages to use this kind of divination at the consecra¬
tion of a bishop, in order to discover his life, manners, and
future behaviour; and the usage came into England with
the Norman conquest, for we are told, that, at the conse¬
cration of William, the second Norman bishop of the dio¬
cese of Norwich, the words which first occurred on dip¬
ping into the Bible were, “ Not this man, but Barabbas.”
William died soon after, and was succeeded by Herbert de
Lozinga, chief simony broker to King William Rufus, on
whose consecration the Bible opened at the w^ords in which
Jesus accosted Judas Iscariot; “ Friend, wherefore art
thou come ?” This circumstance so affected Herbert that
it brought him to a thorough repentance of his crime, in
expiation of which he built the cathedral church of Nor¬
wich, the first stone of which he laid in the year 1096.
BATHING, the act of using or applying a bath; that
is, of immersing the body, or part of it, in water or other
fluid.
Bathing is a practice of great antiquity. It prevailed
among the Greeks as early as the heroic age ; and we
even find mention made by Homer of hot baths in the
Trojan times, although these seem to have been rare; in¬
deed Athenseus speaks of hot baths as unusual even in
his age. Public baths were in fact discouraged, and even
prohibited, by the ancient Greeks, who were content to
perform their ablutions in private, and without either lux¬
ury or parade. The method of lavation among this people
consisted in heating water in a large three-footed vessel,
and thence pouring it on the head and shoulders of the
bather while seated in a tub, and he, on coming out, was
anointed with oil.
It was also long before the Romans came into the use of
baths; the very name of which, thermae, shows that the
practice had been borrowed from the Greeks. As the an¬
cient Romans were chiefly employed in agriculture, their
custom was, every evening after work, to wash their arms
and legs, that they might sit down to supper with more
decency ; for it is to be observed that the use of linen was
then unknown, and the people of that age went with their
arms and legs bare, and consequently exposed to dust and
filth. But this was not all. Every ninth day, when they
repaired to the city, either to the nundinse or to attend
at the assemblies of the people, they bathed in the Tiber,
or some other river which happened to be nearest them.
BAT
This seems to have been all the bathing known till the E£
time of Pompey, when the custom of bathing every day ^ v-
appears to have been introduced.
The Celtic nations were not unacquainted with bathing,
although it must be confessed that some of their descend¬
ants have evinced but little taste for scrupulous ablution.
The ancient Germans bathed every day in warm water
during winter, and in cold water during summer. In Eng¬
land, the famous bath in Somersetshire is said by some to
have been in use eight centuries before Christ. Of this,
however, it must be owned, we have but slender evidence;
although Dr Musgrave makes it probable that it was a
place of considerable resort in Geta’s time, the remains
of a statue erected to that general, in gratitude for some
benefactions he had conferred upon it, being still in ex¬
istence.
Although bathing, among the ancients, made, as it were,
a part of diet, and was used as familiarly as eating or
sleep; yet, as we learn from Strabo, Pliny, Hippocrates,
and Oribasius, it was in high esteem among their physicians
as a cure for certain diseases; and hence their frequent
exhortations to washing in the sea and plunging into cold
water. The first instance of cold bathing for medicinal
purposes is that of Melampus, who bathed the daughters
of the king of Argos ; and the first instance of warm bath¬
ing is that of Medea, who was said to boil people alive,
probably with some reason, since Pelias king of Thessaly
died in a hot bath under her hands. The cold bath was
used with success by Antonius Musa, physician to the
emperor Augustus, for the recovery of that prince; but
it fell into neglect after the death of Marcellus, who was
believed to have met his death from indulging in it to ex¬
cess. Towards the close of the reign of Nero, however,
it was again brought into vogue by a physician of Mar¬
seilles named Charmis; but the fashion proved short-liv¬
ed, and, during the succeeding ages, when the physical
condition of the people became as much deteriorated as
their intellectual and moral character, this cleanly prac¬
tice was altogether abandoned.
A methodical arrangement of the medical and physio-Me d
logical effects of the practice of bathing, referred to the and )•
respective divisions of therapeutic agencies, would be ^
great use in enabling us to attain a distinct idea of their ^,
nature ; but such an arrangement is, in fact, a matter of
extreme difficulty, for two reasons: first, because the tem¬
perature, the continuance, and the impregnation of the
bath, are capable of being so varied, as materially to vary
the nature of the remedy without any distinct limit be¬
tween its different forms; and, secondly, because the classes
of medical agents to which several of these effects belong
are by no means distinctly defined, to say nothing of the
additional complexity arising from the division of the ef¬
fects into immediate and remote, which is often extreme¬
ly important. The remote effects, however, being of a
more general nature, and relating chiefly to the improve¬
ment or deterioration of the actions of the whole system,
it is only the immediate effects that require to be accu¬
rately analyzed and distinguished, and these we must en¬
deavour to reduce to some methodical classification of
therapeutic powers.
Baths, as depending on water, have been naturally re¬
ferred to the class of dilvent remedies, in which water is
comprehended; and they have sometimes even been re¬
commended as nutrients : they may also act as excitants
of cutaneous sensation; as stimulants, or rather calefacients,
increasing the velocity of the circulation of the blood; as
sudorifics, as diuretics, as “ sorbentia” or sorbefacients, as
refrigerants or astringents, as tonics, and as retardants o
the pulse, a capacity in which some would call them re-
BATHING.
443
, laxants, while they seem in many cases to be useful as
S antispasmodics, or to relieve certain nervous affections,
by something like a narcotic or sedative power. We might
also refer the mechanical effect of ablution, in removing
the natural secretions of the skin, to the dietetic habits
conducive to the preservation of health; but this process,
though highly necessary for our comfort, is perhaps less
essentially important to health than has often been ima¬
gined ; and, in some particular cases, the practice of the
very frequent removal of the unctuous and volatile secre¬
tions of the skin has even appeared to be injurious, and to
occasion indolent tumours of the absorbent glands belong¬
ing to the parts concerned.
If we admit that baths are ever, strictly speaking, either
diluent or nutrient, we must suppose the cutaneous absor¬
bents to be the channels of these actions; and the majo¬
rity of authors, both ancient and modern, have certainly
considered the skin as imbibing, with great facility, not
only water, but also any kind of substance capable of being
dissolved in it; nor is there any doubt that, under some
circumstances, the cutaneous absorbents have been found
to possess such a power in a certain degree; but M.
S6guin and Dr Currie have shown that, in common cases,
very little or no effect is to be expected from this absorp¬
tion j1 that the strongest medical agents, when dissolved
in the water of a bath, exhibited no operation on the sys¬
tem while the skin wras entire; and that no perceptible
advantage was obtained from a continued immersion in a
bath of nutritive fluids, notwithstanding the extreme ex¬
haustion of the system in a case of completely obstructed
deglutition; and they suppose that where weight has
been gained during immersion in a bath, the absorption
occasioning its increase has been principally performed
by the lungs retaining the moisture, which they receive
in abundance with the air inhaled.
The other immediate effects of bathing must depend on
the contact of the fluid with the skin, either as simply
moistening and softening the cuticle, or as exciting a pe¬
culiar sensation in the cutaneous nerves, whether of touch
only, or of heat or cold, or, in some cases, of slight pain,
where the skin has been previously in a state of irritation,
especially if the water contains a saline impregnation ; or,
lastly, as altering the state of the circulation by any of
these means, especially by the change of temperature;
this effect being also often modified by the change of the
position of the body, and by the distribution of the pres¬
sure or resistance which supports its weight throughout
almost the whole surface, instead of its being confined, as
usual, to the parts on which we sit or stand. The excite¬
ment of the nerves of the skin appears to be salutary in
many cutaneous diseases, w'hich are benefited by warm
bathing, whether in fresh or in salt water, or in sulphure¬
ous or other mineral waters, as at Harrowgate, and at
Baden, and Pfeffer and Leuck in Switzerland, the bathers
sometirnes remaining whole days in the water for weeks
together, until a peculiar efflorescence has appeared on
the skin, and has again disappeared.2 The mud baths in
the north of Italy are of a nature somewhat similar, and
are said to be of considerable advantage in some paralytic
cases. But if we allow the truth of the opinion of Seguin
and Currie, we must infer that there are few instances in
which the effects of bathing on the system in general can
depend much on the impregnation of the water; and we
ought perhaps to attribute the acknowledged advantage
of sea-bathing, in a variety of diseases, in a great measure
to the mildness and equability of the temperature of the
sea. It is true, that persons accidentally wetted with salt Bathing,
water are but little liable to take cold; and this fact has
been supposed to indicate some stimulant property in the
contents of the fluid; but it may be explained with greater
simplicity from the slower evaporation of salt water, which
causes it to carry off heat much less rapidly than fresh,
the cooling process being also retarded by the greater
moisture of the sea air.
In order to determine how far any kind of bathing may
properly be called a stimulant or calefacient, we must con¬
sider what are the tests by which we judge of the increas¬
ed rapidity of the circulation of the blood. The term
calefacient is, indeed, somewhat objectionable, as imply¬
ing that animal heat depends solely or principally on the
motion of the blood, which is not, in the present state of
our knowledge, the most probable opinion; and besides
this etymological inaccuracy, the definition of the term,
as implying an accelerated circulation, involves a consi¬
derable difficulty, since we have no means of ascertaining
whether increased frequency of pulsation compensates or
not, in any particular instance, for diminished fulness and
strength. On the other hand, the operation of almost all
medical agents is such as to relieve us from this ambiguity
in the application of the definition; for we can scarcely
mention any remedy which materially accelerates the
pulse without at the same time increasing its strength.
There are, indeed, many medicines which are often de¬
signated by the vague denomination of stimulants, and
which have no effect whatever on the circulation, but either
simply awaken the nervous energies in general, or excite
local sensations of heat or pain; and this multiplicity of
significations is a sufficient reason for rejecting the term
from a correct classification. It happens, however, not
unfrequently, that astringent and febrifuge medicines will
reduce the frequency of the pulse, and increase its ful¬
ness ; and it becomes necessary, for an accurate analysis
of the operation of remedies which affect the circulation,
to distinguish the accelerants of the pulse from the auy~
me7itatives and the intensitives, all of which may possibly
be independent of the production of an increase of tem¬
perature ; and this increase may also in some cases be
produced, at least in the extremities and the superficial
parts, and apparently also in the whole system, without
any change in the circulation, by the operation of certain
remedies, which might be called thalptics, if it were ne¬
cessary to distinguish them as independent agents: and
to these four classes we might add four others of an ex¬
actly opposite nature, which might be called retardants,
diminutives, and remissives of the pulse, and psyctics, or
direct refrigerants; and the last four classes would be¬
long to a general division of remedies comprehending those
which lessen the force of animal actions; a division which
it has not commonly been found necessary to establish,
for any practical classification of the materia medica.
Now it appears that a hot bath, of a temperature ex¬
ceeding 98°, the usual heat of the human body, will com¬
monly act both as an accelerant and an augmentative of
the pulse, but probably not as an intensitive; it may, how¬
ever, very properly be classed as a calefacient, if such a
description of remedies be admitted. Dr Parr3 says, that
a bath of 100° rendered the pulse fuller and more fre¬
quent ; but that, after the bath, it was slower than usual;
at higher temperatures the effects were still more marked;
and in Marcard’s experiments, p. 71, the results were
nearly similar. Dr Hay garth observed (Marcard, p. 67),
that in a bath of 114° the pulse was considered more fre-
1 Currie’s Medical Reports on the Effects of Water, 8vo, Liverpool, 1798, p- 244.
2 Marcard uher die bdder, 8. Hanov. 1793. Traduit par Parant. 8. Par. 1801, p. 40-1.
3 De Balnea, Med. Comm. Ed. i. 297; or Marcard by Parant, p. 66.
444 BAT II I N G.
Bathing, quent, and the arteries were evidently dilated. In Fin-
land, according to Martin (Marcard, p. 223), the vapour
baths are usually heated to about 120°, and they often
increase the frequency of the pulse from 70 in a minute
to 110 or 120. Fourcroy mentions a bath of 66°, which
must have been of the centigrade scale, making 151° of
Fahrenheit, and not 181°, as Marcard supposes (p. 216),
which was followed, an hour afterwards, by a fatal apo¬
plexy. Whatever exaggeration there may be in this re¬
port, it may still serve to explain to us the excesses which
were frequently committed in the use of baths by the
Greeks and Romans, and the pernicious effects attributed
to them by the ancient physicians. Hippocrates observes
(Aph. v. 16), that the too frequent employment of hot
bathing causes a softness and debility of the muscles, a
want of firmness of the nerves, and a dulness of the fa¬
culties, with occasional hemorrhages and faintings, some¬
times even terminating in death ; and in the Clouds of
Aristophanes we have a mock defence of warm bathing
deduced from the usual dedication of hot springs to Her¬
cules, which implies a perfect confidence in the opinion of
the pernicious tendency of the practice, accompanied, or
followed, as it frequently was, by other indulgencies, to
which it has too often given occasion. This traditional
condemnation of hot bathing has been erroneously trans¬
ferred by some of the moderns to warm or tepid bathing;
and since it has been asserted by authors of high celebri¬
ty that air above 60° will generally occasion a sensation
of warmth, it seems to have been inferred that water above
60° must constitute a warm bath, and consequently pro¬
duce enervating and debilitating effects. The fact is, how¬
ever, that a bath below 100° is scarcely ever heating in
any material degree; and even at 100°, the pulse, though
somewhat accelerated, is often not at all augmented in ful¬
ness; nor are the subsequent effects materially different
from those which usually result from an equal acceleration
produced by any kind of moderate exercise. It is observ¬
ed by Galen, in his- Treatise on the Pulse (Opp. vol. iii.
p. 3, ed. Bas.), that “ baths, when moderately warm, cause
the pulse to be full, and strong, and frequent; when ex¬
cessively hot, small and obscure, but frequent and hard,
sometimes, however, after a time, becoming slow, though
still feeble.” Of this retardation of the pulse in a very hot
bath we have no experience in modern times: it is ob¬
vious, that what Galen calls moderately warm, we should
at present term a hot bath; and probably his excessively
hot baths somewhat resembled that which is mentioned
by Fourcroy. “ Cold baths,” he says, “ at first make the
pulse slow and weak; afterwards, if they disagree, and
produce torpor, the pulse remains weak; but if the bath
is likely to strengthen the system, producing a salutary
glow, then the pulse becomes full and strong, and natural
in point of frequency.”
It is, however, remarkable, that the cold bath not un¬
commonly renders the pulse considerably more frequent
at the first immersion; a circumstance which was par¬
ticularly observed by Athill,1 and which, notwithstand¬
ing Marcard’s doubts, has been since fully confirmed by
Dr Stock.2 This increased frequency seems principally
to depend on the painful sensation of cold occasioned by
the first immersion, especially while it is incomplete; it is
commonly very transitory, and is succeeded by a retarda¬
tion, while the fulness of the pulsations is diminished from
the first.
The sudorific effect of the hot bath seems to be, in a great
measure, the natural consequence of the acceleration of Bat L
the circulation, and to be nearly proportional to this acce- ^ J
leration, being also favoured by the softening of the cuticle
and perhaps by the dilatation of the cutaneous exhalants!
It is principally recommended in rheumatism, and it is
also considered as conducive to the cure of some cutane¬
ous affections ; and when this effect is thought particular¬
ly desirable, it is usual to take the bath late in the evening,
and to promote its operation by going into a warm bed
immediately after it.
In considering these and other changes produced in the
system by bathing, we must be careful to avoid the very
common error of applying inaccurately and indiscriminate¬
ly the laws of mechanical and physical agents to the effects
produced in the animal economy. Some of the latest and
best authors on therapeutics have talked of the expansion
of the fluids contained in the vessels, in consequence of
the elevation of temperature occasioned by the warm bath,
and of the contraction of the vessels themselves by the
cold bath, as if they were phenomena of the same kind,
and simply opposed to each other. The truth is, that the
mean temperature of all the fluids in the body is seldom
elevated more than a degree or two by the effect of a
bath of any kind ; and even if the elevation were 10°, the
expansion of all the circulating fluids would not exceed
the bulk of a single additional ounce of blood or of water.
The mechanical effect of cold, on the other hand, would
immediately tend to lessen the tension of the vessels, by
contracting the fluid contained within them more than the
vessels themselves; but this effect would be scarcely
more sensible than the former, even if we allowed that the
general temperature might be depressed 10° or 12°, as it
seemed to be in some of Dr Currie’s experiments; and the
actual contraction, which is really observable in the su¬
perficial parts during immersion in the cold bath, can only
be referable to the action of living powers, which fall de¬
cidedly under the description of involuntary muscularity.
Dr Parry’s late experiments have very clearly shown the
existence of such powers, and exhibited their temporary
and local action.3 He found, that when the carotid of a ewe
was laid bare, its circumference was 525 thousandths of
an inch ; “ but it almost immediately shrunk, through the
whole space which was exposed, so as to become in cir¬
cumference only -470 ; at the same time, a portion of the
artery, before the contracted part, and which had been
more recently exposed, was -635; the pulse in the dilated
part was very strong and full, that in the contracted part
very weak and soft.” Dr Parry has chosen to distinguish
these effects from those which are observed in other mus¬
cular parts by a peculiar denomination ; but the distinction
appears to be perfectly arbitrary; and Dr Young, whom
he quotes as denying the muscular powers of the arteries,
on account of the chemical nature of their coats, has ex¬
pressly asserted their muscularity, in contradiction to the
conclusions of Bichat and Berzelius. (Medical Literature,
8vo, Lond. 1813, p.'502.) But by whatever term we
choose to denote the effect, there is little doubt that an
unusual degree of cold has a tendency to produce such a
general contraction of the coats of all the superficial ca¬
pillary arteries; and the diminution of their diameter
must necessarily increase that part of the resistance to
the blood’s motion, which is derived from its friction
against the sides of the vessels, and must, therefore, tend
materially to lessen its velocity. Again, if the contrac¬
tions of the heart are at all proportional in magnitude or
1 On Cold Bathing, Marcard, p. 239 ; Med. Comm. Edinb. vi. 02.
~ Medical Collections on the Effects of Cold, 8vo. Lond. 1805, App.
3 Experimental Inquiry on the Arterial Pulse, 8vo, Bath, 1816, p. 41.
BATHING.
445
j) in frequency to the quantity of blood entering it, and act-
C> ^ ing as a stimulus to its motions, it is not unnatural to sup¬
pose that its pulsations will be rendered feebler by the
diminution of that quantity, occasioned by the increase of
the resistance, and that the primitive retardation will be
redoubled by the operation of this cause. At the same
time, however, that the cutaneous vessels are contracted,
those of the internal parts must necessarily b%.enlarged.
Hence arises the sensation of oppression on the chest,
with the sobbing or panting for breatb, which generally
occurs at the first immersion in cold water, from the ful¬
ness of the vessels of the lungs, and which is increased, in
some measure, when the immersion becomes total, by the
pressure of the water on the abdomen, and consequently
of the contents of the abdomen on the diaphragm. From
the same cause arises also the pulsation in the descend¬
ing aorta, which has been observed to be much more dis¬
tinguishable after swimming than at other times {Medi¬
cal Transactions, vol. v.) ; the internal vessels being dis¬
tended so as to exhibit the effects of the heart’s action
more violently, and the heart itself beating with more than
usual force in consequence of the exertion, while the con¬
tents of the abdomen are compressed, and are enabled,
by the presence of the surrounding fluid, to transmit the
pulsation very completely to the superficial parts, to which
the hand is applied. The diuretic effect of a cold bath
may be partly explained from a similar distension of the
renal vessels, which must be favourable to the secretion
of the kidneys; and if the same effect is sometimes pro¬
duced in a hot bath, when the superficial vessels are rather
dilated than contracted, it is in this case much less con¬
siderable than in the cold bath, and probably only takes
place in consequence of the increased rapidity of the cir¬
culation, which affects the whole sanguiferous system.
The glow which succeeds to the first sensation of cold
may be attributed in a great measure to the increased sen¬
sibility of the nerves after a partial torpor, rendering them
more susceptible of the sensation of heat, which is always
relative to the actual temperature of the skin; but it ap¬
pears, from Dr Currie’s experiments, that there is also
sometimes a real increase of heat as measured by the
thermometer; and it is probable that the causes concern¬
ed in the production of animal heat are called up into a
more vigorous exertion, in a strong constitution, whenever
they are required for the purposes of life ; so that they
first supply the superficial parts of the body, during the
immersion, with as much heat as is necessary to overcome
the painful sensation of cold, and afterwards, by a con¬
tinuation of the same action, occasion an actual elevation
of temperature above the natural standard. Dr Currie
found, that, during the affusion of a bucket of cold salt
water on the heads and whole bodies of two healthy per¬
sons, no depression of temperature was observable ; but in
aminute ortwo afterwards,although theyremainedwithout
motion, the mercury rose 2° ; in a third person of a feebler
constitution, although the temperature remained equally
unchanged during the affusion, it sunk, in a minute after,
half a degree. These effects seem to be almost entirely
independent of any change in the state of the circulation,
which must be rather retarded than accelerated, while the
generation of heat is increased. It is true, that the heart
might be called into more powerful action at the same
time that the pulsation at the wrist became feeble, from
the permanent contraction of the radial artery; but the
action of the heart would still be exhibited by the caro¬
tids, undisguised by this modification; and the carotids
have not been observed to beat more strongly in the cold
bath than at other times, although Dr Currie has remark¬
ed, that when “ the pulse could hardly be felt at the wrist,
the heart pulsated with great steadiness and due force
a fact precisely analogous to Dr Parry’s interesting ex- Bathing,
periment on the carotid of the ewe.
Warm baths may be classed with propriety among the
most useful sorbefacient remedies; but it is not easy to
decide whether they are much more active in promoting
absorption than other sudorifics, or than evacuants in ge¬
neral. When the weather deprives a valetudinarian of
his accustomed walk, the bath often affords him a valuable
substitute, increasing the appetite and promoting the di¬
gestion ; but too great an appetite without muscular ex¬
ercise is sometimes an evil, and this may have been one
of the causes of the inconveniences occasioned by an
abuse of bathing. A warm bath has often been of advan¬
tage in promoting the absorption of dropsical fluids, espe¬
cially when they are of limited extent, as in cases of par¬
tial anasarcous swellings; but the most important sorbe¬
facient effect of bathing is exhibited in the cure of glan¬
dular diseases, for which sea-water, whether in the form
of a warm or a cold bath, has long been considered as a
specific remedy; and there is no doubt that a residence
by the sea-side, with a judicious employment of bathing,
and the occasional internal use of sea-water, or of some
equivalent remedy, has been of the most essential service
to many constitutions which have exhibited these symp¬
toms of general debility and languid absorption, the tonic
and sorbefacient powers of the remedy being happily com¬
bined for invigorating and calling into activity the di¬
minished energies of the constitution.
The refrigerant or astringent powers, both of warm and
of cold bathing, have been abundantly elucidated by the
late Dr Currie, who has introduced the remedy into ge¬
neral practice as a febrifuge, especially in the form of
cold or tepid affusion, with the most salutary effects. It
is not easy to determine how far the contraction of the
superficial vessels by the astringent powers of cold, and
how far the retardation of the pulse, which may possibly
be dependent on that contraction, are concerned in the
advantage derived from bathing in fevers; but it is at
least obvious that the remedy does not operate simply by
the abstraction of heat, since the tepid affusion is often
more rapidly successful in abating fever than the cold.
We may also collect from the experiments of Marcard,
that a bath at about 90° is more efficacious in abating the
frequency of the pulse, than at any lower or higher tem¬
perature ; and these facts appear to afford a very strong
argument against the hypothesis, that the principal utility
of the cold affusion depends on the sudden shock which
is given to the nervous system. Dr Currie has frequently
found the pulse reduced by a single cold affusion from 120
or 130 to 80 or 90, and the heat from 104)° or 106° to the natu¬
ral standard. But he very properly limits the employment
of the remedy to those cases in which the temperature is
considerably elevated, and the arterial system is in strong
action, without local inflammation ; and where there is less
vigour in the system, he often employs the tepid instead
of the cold affusion, or even contents himself with mois¬
tening the face and the extremities; for instance, in hec¬
tic fever, the hands and feet only, which he finds actually
hotter than the rest of the body. A late writer on con¬
sumption has very justly remarked how much of Dr Cur¬
rie’s reasoning on the effects of cold bathing had been
anticipated by Galen, although, for want of a thermome¬
ter, he had not been able to employ the remedy in fever
with safety. “ Bathing,” says Dr Young ( On Consumptive
Diseases, Bvo, Lond. 1815, p. 135), “ is very strongly recom¬
mended in the Method of Healing, and the process is very
minutely described : first warm air is employed, next warm
water, and then cold water, and, lastly, the sweat is wiped
off. When we are fatigued or dried up by exercise, the
bath restores us to comfort, and defends us from fevers.
446 BATHING.
Bathing. A strong young man in the country will plunge into cold
'***~Y~*S water at once when heated, and be much refreshed by it.
Animals also wash themselves when they are hot, by a na¬
tural instinct, as they eat when they are hungry and seek
warmth when they are cold. In fevers, if we had suffi¬
cient powers of discrimination, we might probably some¬
times derive material advantage from the use of the cold
bath, without premising the hot; and some persons have
been actually benefited by this remedy. But without a
more intimate knowledge of diseases than we possess, we
cannot generally venture on the practice; and least of all
in hectic fever, where there is not strength enough to
bear the shock. A stout young man having a fever in
warm weather, without visceral inflammation, would bring
on a salutary perspiration by bathing in cold water; and
if he were in the habit of cold bathing, he might have re¬
course to it with the more confidence; but for the hectic
it is unsafe, especially when there is much emaciation :
thus, in a hot and a dry summer, those who have travelled
far, and are become thin and weak, have no need of being
cooled, nor would it be safe for them to use the cold bath
without first going into the warm. For we seem to be
hardened by the cold bath like iron, when heated first;
and if we previously warm ourselves by exercise, the
effect is the same.” Dr Currie’s relation of an adven¬
ture of his own might almost be supposed to have been
intended as a commentary on these remarks of Galen.
(Reports, p. 120.) “ On the 1st of September 1778, two
students of medicine at Edinburgh set out on foot on a
journey, a considerable part of which lay along one of the
rivers of Scotland. They started by sun-rise, and pro¬
ceeded with alacrity in the cool of the morning. At the
end of eight miles they breakfasted, rested for On hour,
and then resumed their journey. The day grew warm
as it advanced, and after a march of eight miles more,
they arrived heated, but not fatigued, on the banks of
the river above-mentioned, about eleven in the forenoon.
Urged by the fervour of the day, and tempted by the
beauty of the stream, they stripped instantly, and threw
themselves into the river. The utmost refreshment fol¬
lowed ; and when they retired to the neighbouring inn,
this was succeeded by a disposition to sleep, which they
indulged. In the afternoon they proceeded, and travel¬
ling sixteen miles further at a single stretch, arrived at
the inn where they were to sleep, a little after sunset.
The afternoon had been warm, and they perspired pro¬
fusely ; but the evening was temperate, and rather cool.
They had travelled for some miles slowly, and arrived at
the end of their journey stiffened and wearied with their
exercise. The refreshment which they had experienced
in the morning from bathing induced, however, one of
them to repeat the experiment, and he went perfectly
cool into the same river, expecting to relax his limbs in
the water, and afterwrards to enjoy profound sleep. The
consequences were very different. The Tweed, which
was so refreshing in the morning, now felt extremely cold ;
and he left the water hastily. No genial glow succeeded,
but a feverish chill remained for some time, with a small
frequent pulse, and flying pains over the body. Warm li¬
quids and frictions brought on at length considerable heat,
and towards morning perspiration and sleep followed.
Next day about noon they proceeded on foot, but the tra¬
veller who bathed was extremely feeble ; and though they
had to perform a journey of a single stage only, as some
part ot it was difficult and mountainous, he wras obliged
to take the assistance of a carriage which overtook them
on the road. It was several days before he recovered his
usual vigour.”
The experiments of the same judicious author, publish¬
ed in the Philosophical Transactions for 1792, afford some
striking illustrations of the effects of severe cold. He em- Bail
ployed baths at the temperature of 44° and 40°; thenatu-1^ i \
ral pulse of the person subjected to the experiment was
about 70 in a minute, and it was generally raised to 85 or
more by the preparation for immersion ; but in the water
it invariably sunk to about 65, becoming firm, regular,
and small. The change of temperature, as measured un¬
der the tongue, was still more remarkable, and greater
than could have been expected either from reasoning or
from former observations ; for the mercury fell, within a
minute or two after immersion, from 90° or 100° to 87°
or 88° ; it then rose gradually, but not regularly, in a
quarter of an hour, to about 96°. Upon a second expo¬
sure to the wind, it fell to about 90°, and was in one in¬
stance lowered 2° more at the first immersion in a bath of
97£°, in which the natural temperature was by degrees
recovered, although not much more rapidly than it had
risen during the former immersion in the very cold water;
but what raised it by far the most speedily was the appli¬
cation of very hot water to the region of the stomach.
When, however, Dr Currie himself went slowly into a
bath of 36°, in a light flannel dress, and remained in it for
two minutes, no observable alteration was produced in the
heat of his body ; and this circumstance might almost in¬
duce us to suspect that the other subjects of his experi¬
ments had incautiously allowed their mouths to be cooled
by the inhalation of the cold air. Dr Marcard’s experi¬
ments (p. 71) not only confirm the fact of the general re¬
tardation and diminution of the pulse by the cold bath;
but they show that the retardation commonly extends to
all temperatures below that of the human body, becoming,
indeed, much more remarkable in the tepid bath than in
a bath of the ordinary temperature of the atmosphere,
which does not appear to produce the effect with equal
uniformity. Thus, in a bath at 60° and at 63° the pulse
was rather accelerated than retarded. In six experiments
from 70° to 80° inclusive, taking the mean of all the quan¬
tities in order to obtain a result less liable to accidental
errors, and representing all the experiments in a compen¬
dious form, the temperature was 75°, and in 20 minutes
the pulse w^as reduced from 78° to 70° ; in four from 80°
to 90°, the mean temperature was 87°, and the pulsations
were reduced in 54 minutes from 91° to 75°; in three at
90°, the mean reduction in 36 minutes was from 97° to
75° ; and three experiments above 90° give for a mean
temperature 92°, and a reduction from 82° to 70°, effect¬
ed in 35 minutes. Martean found a slight reduction of
frequency at 93° ; but at 96°, according to Dr Parr, there
is commonly no observable change. (Marcard, p. 63, 66.)
From these experiments Dr Marcard very justly infers,
that in a great variety of cases, the warm bath affords the
only direct and certain mode of lowering the pulse with¬
out inconvenience (p. 88); and we must be contented
with the empirical knowledge of this fact, without at¬
tempting to explain why a temperature of 90° is more
favourable for the retardation of the pulse, than a much
lower temperature, at which the thermometrical heat
would certainly be more rapidly reduced. Dr Stock has
also made several observations on the effect of cold bath¬
ing on the pulse ; but, in his experiments, the retardation
was much less constantly observable than the diminution S
a variation which frequently occurs when the temperature
is very low.
The salutary effects of cold applications, in some cases
of gout, were well known to Hippscrates, and have been
more lately extolled by Homberg, Floyer, and Pietschen.
Marcard (p. 256) very properly states the objections to
their employment; and, notwithstanding all that Dr King-
lake has done to recommend them, they have not been
adopted by prudent practitioners, except in very recent
BATHING.
athi cases, and in young and unbroken constitutions. Are-
KV ' tseus prescribes the affusion of cold water for giddiness
and headache, and it has certainly been successful in some
obstinate cases of this kind (Marcard, p. 255)’; and has
even appeared to be a powerful palliative in some descrip¬
tions of mania. In fevers, Dr Currie found its effects
more permanent than those of the tepid affusion, although
not always so speedy.
We have ample experience of the tonic powers of bath¬
ing in more than one of its forms, although for a long
period the great majority of practitioners in Great Bri¬
tain were disposed to confine these powers within the
limits of the cold, or at most of the tepid bath. But tra¬
vellers in warmer countries had often informed us of the
invigorating effect of a warm bath taken after fatigue;
and Bruce, in particular, extolled its comforts and its
salubrity, from having used it in Egypt. The opinions of
Marcard on the same subject were partly made known
through Beddoes. Count Rumford, in his thirteenth es¬
say, has exhibited, in a popular point of view, the benefits
which he himself derived from taking the warm bath ha¬
bitually in the middle of the day rather than at night;
and Dr Alexander Buchan, in his work on sea-bathing,
has assisted in dissipating the remaining prejudices against
its employment as a mild tonic. For feeble or enervated
constitutions, and for persons who have suffered from
great fatigue, it is decidedly preferable to the cold bath;
but as the strength is gradually recovered, it may often
increase its efficacy to lower the temperature by degrees.
We may begin, for instance, with a warm bath at 96° or
98°, and lower it by degrees to 90° or a little less; and
hence the transition to the open sea in the middle of a
summer’s day will not be too abrupt, the water being often
heated to 70° or more on a coast well suited for bathing;
and if the constitution appears to acquire strength under
the experiment, the hour of bathing may be made earlier
and earlier, until the temperature is no higher than about
60°. The time of remaining in the water may also be modi¬
fied according to the powers of the constitution, a single
immersion being the most easily supported, and a longer
continuance in the water, till the sensation of cold has
subsided, calling forth the faculty of generating heat into
fuller action; observing always not only how the health
appears to be affected, but which mode is the most con¬
ducive to the pleasure or comfort of the individual, which
will often throw some light on the operation of the re¬
medy. In most cases it will be found, that where either
warm or cold bathing agrees with the constitution, it is
followed by a sense of youth and vigour, and self-compla¬
cency, which is equally agreeable and salubrious. We
must also make allowances for peculiarities of constitu¬
tion, which may require a deviation from the temperature
usually recommended. Thus there are some persons who
have so singular a sensibility as to feel a bath of 110° not
too warm, and to be absolutely chilled by a bath of 100° ;
and in such cases it is probable that at 105° the pulse
would not be materially accelerated. In other instances
the cold bath produces headache and dejection of spirits.
This inconvenience is sometimes obviated by proper eva¬
cuations, which should also always be premised to bath¬
ing, where there is any appearance of visceral disease, or
of congestion of any kind. The sea-water will answer
this purpose sufficiently well, either alone or mixed with
warm milk, or with some chamomile flowers infused in it;
but it has no material advantage over any other cathartic
which may be preferred by the patient. It is also recom¬
mended by all authors on cold bathing to plunge in head
foremost, and this precaution is highly proper where there
is any apprehension of headache; but in other cases it is
°f little moment. If, after all, the cold bath continues to
447
disagree, it will be generally advisable to exchange it for Bathing,
the warm; and after a time it may be proper to give the
cold a second trial.
It is unnecessary to enter into a minute detail of the
diseases in which bathing is useful as a tonic. It is, how¬
ever, particularly indicated in a variety of complaints
which are peculiar to females; and to weakly children,
especially such as are ricketty and scrofulous, sea bathing
is most essentially necessary. On the other hand, cold
bathing is almost universally to be avoided where there is
any consumptive disease, or any inflammatory affection of
any of the internal parts; an exception which is easily
understood, from the natural tendency of cold to cause a
congestion of blood in the vessels of those parts, in con¬
sequence of the contraction of the superficial vessels.
The sudorific effect of the warm bath, followed by the re¬
frigerant quality of the tepid, and the tonic powers of the
cold, exhibit a succession of remedies nearly analogous to
the mode of treatment which is usually found to be most
successful in fevers of various kinds ; in most of which we
begin with sudorific medicines, and proceed to astringents
and tonics. Hippocrates, in his book on the use of li¬
quids, observes that gout is one of the diseases in which
both hot and cold applications afford effectual relief; and
the remark is equally just with respect to some cases of
rheumatism ; but, more commonly, the best mode of using
baths in rheumatism is to begin with a bath raised, during
the immersion, to as high a temperature as the patient
can bear, so as to act as a powerful sudorific, and to con¬
tinue the course, when the pain has been relieved, at
lower and lower temperatures, ending it with cold bath¬
ing in the open sea.
Notwithstanding the acknowledged utility of warm
bathing in a variety of circumstances, there may possibly
have been some exaggeration in the marvellous opinions
which have been sometimes entertained of its utility for
the prolongation of life. Galen has indeed mentioned a
number of persons who had attained a great age, and who
were in the habit of making daily use of the bath, which
is enough to prove that such a habit cannot be extremely
pernicious; and if we supposed a constitution to retain all
its energies, but to have them concealed and obscured for
want of proper stimuli, the warm bath might tend to re¬
move the evil; but it is more natural to believe that the
approach of old age has a tendency to weaken the radical
powers of the constitution, which cannot afford to be
roused into disproportionate exertion; and to apprehend
that the temporary vivacity and activity superinduced by
any foreign agent, whether by warm bathing or by a re¬
moval to a warmer climate, would only tend still more to
exhaust the already diminished store of vitality.
The narcotic and sedative, or specifically antispasmodic,
effects of bathing are most effectually exhibited, in ordi¬
nary cases, by the warm or tepid bath, which is often em¬
ployed for the relief of pain, and for the removal of any
irregular or convulsive affection. Possibly also the effect
of the warm bath in retarding the pulse may be partly
derived from its sedative power as affecting the heart;
and if we take this connection for granted, we may infer
from it, that the antispasmodic effect will be most advan¬
tageously obtained from a bath at 90°, which has been
found to retard the pulse most effectually. But where
there is internal inflammation, it may be desirable to di¬
late the superficial vessels by a bath somewhat hotter
than this, so as to relieve the internal parts from a part
of the fluid which distends them, but without increasing
the velocity of the circulation by too high a temperature.
The cold affusion is also a powerful remedy in many cases
of tetanic disease. Hippocrates (Aph. v. 21) has re¬
marked, that it often creates a glow which overpowers
448 BAT BAT
Bathurst, the convulsive contraction, especially where the subject
is young and athletic, the weather hot, and the disease
independent of local injury; and the modern experience
of Dr Wright and Dr Currie has confirmed and extended
the observation. In another passage he tells us (Aph.
v. 25), that the abundant affusion of cold water generally
relieves and removes swellings and pains in the limbs, as
well as spasms, producing a moderate degree of torpor,
which supersedes the pain; but, in fact, the relief of in¬
flammatory affections by cold is rather to be referred to
its astringent than to its sedative powers. This is, indeed,
a point which has been much discussed by modern theo¬
rists ; but it must be confessed that all our theories are
of little importance in physic, any further than as they
assist us in clearly comprehending and distinctly remem¬
bering the facts, which we derive from immediate expe¬
rience in the treatment of diseases. (l. l.)
BATHURST, Ralph, M. D. an eminent physician,
poet, and divine, was born in the year 1620. He studied
divinity in Trinity College, Oxford; but the civil commo¬
tions ensuing, he changed, the course of his studies, and
applying himself to physic, took a doctor’s degree in that
faculty. By dint of assiduous application, he soon rose to
eminence in his profession, and in the time of the com¬
monwealth was appointed physician to the state. At the
restoration, however, he quitted the practice of physic;
was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, and president
of his college; and, having entered into holy orders, wras
made chaplain to the king, and afterwards dean of Wells.
Soon after, he filled the office of vice-chancellor of Oxford,
and was nominated by King William and Queen Mary to
the see of Bristol; but this honour he declined. His
learning and talents were various. To the accomplish¬
ments of an orator, philosopher, and poet, he added an in¬
exhaustible fund of wit, and was a facetious companion at
eighty years of age. Ridicule was the weapon with which
he used to correct the delinquents of his college; and he
was so absolute a master of it, that he had it always at
command. His poetical pieces in the Musce Anglicance are
excellent in their kind. He wrote several poems, both in
English and Latin, and died on the 14th June 1704, in
the eighty-fourth year of his age.
Bathurst, Allen, earl of Bathurst, one of the last lumi¬
naries of Queen Anne’s reign, was born in the year 1684.
His studies and education were equally conducive to the
brilliant figure he was destined to make in social life and
in the senate, as a polite scholar, patriot, and statesman.
These talents he had an opportunity of displaying as early
as the year 1705, when, at the request of his father Sir
Benjamin Bathurst, and the solicitation of the constituency
of Cirencester, he served in parliament for that borough,
his native place, with reputation and integrity. He dis¬
tinguished himself particularly in the struggles and de¬
bates relative to the union between the two kingdoms;
firmly supporting a measure which he thought calculated to
strengthen the government and add to the prosperity of the
country. Though he was contented to act a subordinate
part in the opposition plannedbyMrHarleyandMr St John,
his intimate friends, in order to sap the credit of the duke of
Marlborough and his adherents, nevertheless he did good
service to his party by arraigning, with more eloquence
than truth, the conduct of the general and of the earl of
Godolphin, whom he accused of lavishing the treasures of
the nation ^on conquests more splendid than serviceable.
J he loss of the battle of Almanza, which happened about
this time, seconded his efforts and those of his associates
in dispelling what they called the intoxication of former
successes, and disparaging achievements which reflect im¬
mortal honour on the British name. But his personal re¬
gard tor Lord Somers, president of the council, suffered
no abatement, although they were of different opinions in Ba1'
politics; and when that great man was deprived of office
Mr Bathurst acted with such tenderness and delicacy as ''
to preserve his esteem in a private station. In considera¬
tion of his zeal and services, the queen, in 1711, advanced
him to the peerage by the title of Baron Bathurst, of Bat-
tlesden, in Bedfordshire.
His lordship continued to speak his sentiments with
undaunted freedom in the upper house, and became a
vigorous opponent of the court measures in the reign of
George I. and during Sir Robert Walpole’s administration.
The acrimony of the prosecutions carried on against the
earl of Oxford, Lord Bolingbroke, and the duke of Or¬
mond, stimulated his indignation against such vindictive
proceedings ; and he observed, “ that the king of a faction
was but the sovereign of half his subjects.”
The South Sea Scheme having infected all classes with
a spirit of wild speculation, when the people awoke from
their delirium a vast number of families were involved in
ruin. Lord Bathurst publicly impeached the directors,
whose arts had enabled them to amass enormous fortunes
during the prevalence of the mania ; he represented that
the national honour was concerned in stripping them of
their ill-gotten wealth; and he moved for having all the
directors of the South Sea Company punished for their
sordid knavery, by the forfeiture of their estates.
When the bill was brought into the house of lords against
Dr Atterbury, bishop of Rochester, that learned prelate,
who to the graces of diction and style united the ac¬
complishment of a just delivery, made a conquest of Lord
Bathurst, who was one of the many friends whom the bi¬
shop’s eloquence, politeness, and ingenuity had procured
him. His lordship spoke against the bill with great vehe¬
mence and propriety, observing, “ that if such extraordinary
proceedings were countenanced, he saw nothing remaining
for him and others to do, but to retire to their country-
houses, and there, if possible, quietly to enjoy their estates
within their own families, since the least correspondence or
intercepted letter might be made criminal.” Then turning
to the bishops, he said, he “ could hardly account for the
inveterate hatred and malice some persons bore the inge¬
nious bishop of Rochester, unless it was that they were
infatuated like the wild Americans, who fondly believe
they inherit not only the spoils, but even the abilities, of
the man they destroy.” He was one of the lords who en¬
tered his protest against the bill.
Lord Bathurst concurred with all his might in the oppo¬
sition to Sir Robert Whilpole, who now tottered on the
brink of ruin. And when, after an obstinate struggle, this
minister was forced to resign all his employments, Lord
Bathurst was sworn of the privy council, and made cap¬
tain of the gentlemen pensioners, a post which he re¬
signed in 1744. In 1757 he was appointed treasurer to
George III. then prince of Wrales, and continued in the
list of privy counsellors at that monarch’s accession to the
throne; but, on account of his advanced age, he preferred
enjoying his otium cum dignitate, to embarking again in
political contentions.
Lord Bathurst’s integrity gained him the esteem even
of his opponents, while his humanity and benevolence
procured him the affection of all who knew him more in¬
timately ; and he added to his public virtues all the good
breeding, politeness, and elegance, of social intercourse.
Congreve, Vanbrugh, Swift, Prior, Rowe, Addison, Pope,
Arbuthnot, Gay, and most of the men of genius of his own
time, cultivated his friendship, and were proud of his cor¬
respondence. Pope’s Epistle on the Use of Riches is ad¬
dressed to Lord Bathurst, whom the bard of Twickenham
compliments in some highly chai’acteristic lines. Sterne,
too, in his letters to Eliza, speaks of him in terms of affec-
BAT
BAT
449
t tionate admiration. “ This nobleman,” says he, “ is an
old friend of mine: he was always the protector of men
of wit and genius, and has had those of the last century
{ ' always at his table. The manner in which his notice
began of me was as singular as it was polite. He came
up to me one day as I was at the princess of Wales’ court.
< X want to know you, Mr Sterne; but it is fit you should
know also who it is that wishes this pleasure : you have
heard,’ continued he, ‘ of an old Lord Bathurst, of whom
your Popes and Swifts have sung and spoken so much : I
have lived my life with geniuses of that cast, but have
survived them; and despairing ever to find their equals,
it is some years since I closed my accounts, and shut up
my books, with thoughts of never opening them again:
but you have kindled a desire in me of opening them once
more before I die, which I now do; so go home and dine
with me.’ This nobleman, I say, is a prodigy: for at
eighty-five he has all the wit and promptness of a man of
thirty; a disposition to be pleased, and a power to please
others, beyond what I ever knew ; added to which, a man
of learning, courtesy, and feeling.”
His lordship, in the latter part of his life, preserved his
natural cheerfulness and vivacity, remaining always acces¬
sible, hospitable, and beneficent. Latterly he delighted in
rural amusements, and enjoyed, with philosophical satis¬
faction, the shade of the lofty trees he had planted himself.
Till within a month of his death he regularly rode out on
horseback twro hours before dinner, and drank his bottle
of claret or Madeira after it. He used to observe jocu¬
larly that he could never think of adopting Dr Cadogan’s
method, although Dr Cheyne had assured him fiftyr years
before, that he would not live seven years longer unless
he abridged himself of his wine. This was not doctrine
at all suited to his lordship’s taste, or at least to his lord¬
ship’s practice. For, shortly before his death, having in¬
vited some friends to spend a few cheerful days with him
at his seat at Cirencester, and being one evening very
loth to part with them, his son, the late chancellor, who
was present, objected to their sitting up any longer, adding
that health and long life were best secured by regularity.
The father thought and acted otherwise. He suffered the
learned lord to retire, after delivering himself of the above
admonition; but,as soon as he was gone,exclaimed,“Come,
my good friends, since the old gentleman is gone to bed,
I think we may venture to crack another bottle.”
Lord Bathurst was advanced to the dignity of earl in
1772, and lived to see his eldest son promoted to the
peerage by the title of Baron Apsley, and several years
lord high chancellor of Great Britain. His lordship mar¬
ried Catharine, daughter of Sir Peter Apsley, by whom
he had two other sons, and five daughters. His death
happened, after a few days illness, at his seat near Ciren¬
cester, in the ninty-first year of his age, and on the 16th
of September 1775.
BA1HYLLUS and PYLADES, inventors of panto¬
mimic entertainments on the stage. Bathyllus succeeded
in representing comedy; Pylades in representing tragedy,
their art consisted in expressing the passions by gestures,
attitudes, and dumb show; not, as in modern times, in ma¬
chinery and the fooleries of Harlequin. They flourished
at Rome, under Augustus, about a. d. 10.
BAT1LLUS, a musical instrument made of metal, in
the form of a staff, furnished with metallic rings, which,
hemg struck, gave out harmonic sounds. It was used by
the Arminians in their church-service.
BATINDA, a district in Hindostan, situated partly in
tie north-western quarter of the province of Delhi, and
partly in the northern extremity of the province of Ajmeer.
his district is celebrated for the fertility of its pasture-
ands, and for an excellent breed of horses.
VOL. XV.
BATISTE, in Commerce, a fine white kind of linen Batiste
cloth, manufactured in Flanders and Picardy. II
BATMAN, in Commerce, a kind of weight used at ®atnears.
Smyrna, containing six okes of 400 drachms each.
BATMANSON, John, prior of the Carthusian monas¬
tery, or Charter-house, London. He was for some time a
student at Oxford, but it does not appear that he took any
degree in that university. He was intimately acquainted
with Edward Lee, archbishop of York, at whose request
he wrote against Erasmus and Luther. He died in the
year 1531, and was buried in the chapel belonging to the
Charter-house. According to Bale, he was a proud for¬
ward person; and Erasmus, in one of his letters to the
bishop of Winchester, calls him an ignorant fellow. Pits,
on the contrary, gives him the character of a man of sin¬
gular genius, zeal, piety, and learning. He wrote, 1. Ani-
madversiones in Annotationes Erasmi in Nov. Testamen-
tum ; 2. A Treatise against some of Luther’s works, which,
as well as the former production, he afterwards retracted ;
3. Commentaria in Proverbia Solomonis; 4. In Cantica
Canticorum; 5. De unica Magdalena; 6. Institutiones
Noviciorum ; 7. De Contemptu Mundi; 8. De Christo
duodeni; 9. On the words, Missus est, &c.
BATNEARS, or Batties, a people of the northern part
of Hindostan, inhabiting a country which extends about
200 miles in length and 100 in breadth, and of which the
capital is Batnear, situated, according to some authorities
170, and according to others 219 miles west-north-west,
of Delhi. This country comprehends part of the province
of Delhi, Lahore, and Ajmeer.
The Batties present many peculiarities in manners and
customs, distinguishing them from the other people of
Hindostan. They seem to consist of three different races ;
the chief are Rajpoot Mahommedans; the common people
Jauts, who have adopted the same religion; and the cul¬
tivators of the soil are called Ryots, a very peaceable and
inoffensive class. But in general they are characterized
as shepherds; and although principally restricted to the
territory whence their name is derived, various tribes of
them are to be found in the Punjab, and they are also scat¬
tered over the high grounds to the east of the Indus. But
great obscurity prevails in every thing regarding them.
The Batties are Mahommedans, and highly venerate the
memory of a certain saint, Scheik Fereed, who flourished
in the fifteenth century ; and it is said that, however ad¬
verse to their natural disposition, should any one, in in¬
voking his name, claim their protection, it is never with¬
held. Yet their customs, in other respects, are at variance
with those of the Mahommedans, particularly in the fe¬
males appearing, without any reserve, unveiled in pub¬
lic, and in their associating promiscuously with the men,
as in other countries. The wives of the Rajpoot chiefs
form an exception; and it is reported among these Rajpoots,
that their ancestors migrated some centuries ago from the
district of Jessulmere, and, after various vicissitudes, set¬
tled in the Batnear country. Most of the inhabitants
under their rule were originally Jauts, dwelling on the
western bank of the river Sutledge, in the twenty-ninth
degree of north latitude, and who have not been known
long in the portion of the peninsula now occupied by them.
Having embraced the Mahommedan faith, they were in¬
vited by an ancestor of the rajah of the Batties, about a
century ago, to cross the river and settle in his country,
where their posterity still reside. The Jauts constitute
the lower orders of the people, and are treated with great
moderation by their superiors.
The whole territory, extending as above described, is
apparently under the dominion of a supreme prince or
rajah, whose authority is acknowledged by inferior chiefs
or rajahs; for the term rajah, in strictness, applies to none
3 L
450
BAT
BAT
Batnears. but those invested with a paramount rule. This potentate
can bring 20,000 or 30,000 men into the field, but they are
quite undisciplined, and despise the necessary principle of
subordination. His revenue chiefly arises from the plun¬
dering of his troops, for their wars are directed more to
predatory purposes than to open contest; and the rajah,
instead of repressing the ravages of this immense banditti,
willingly participates in the spoils. When strangers ob¬
served to him that the soil and agriculture of his country
were sufficient to enable his subjects to enjoy plenty, he
replied, that the number of Rajpoots in his service was so
considerable, compared with the mass of the people, that,
should he attempt to restrain the depredations of the lat¬
ter, the subversion of his own authority might ensue, be¬
cause it would be interfering with old and established
customs. The rajah who made this remark was in every
respect a good and humane character.
But the people over whom he rules are by no means
entitled to the same repute; they are of a cruel, savage,
and ferocious disposition; they entertain an utter abhor¬
rence of the usages of civilized life ; they are thieves from
their earliest infancy, and, during their predatory incursions
into the neighbouring districts, do not scruple, though
unresisted, to add murder to robbery. This systematic
plundering produces a revenue of above L.120,000 per
annum to their princes ; at least that is the conjectural
amount, for there are no data whereon to found exact cal¬
culations.
Many of the Battles appear to be entirely nomadic,
changing their residence from place to place, as subsist¬
ence fails. Their exports are horses, camels, bullocks,
buffaloes, and ghee; and they sell some surplus grain
above what is necessary for their own consumption ; but
their traffic is very inconsiderable, and what they do carry
on is with the petty merchants of Behadra, Nohur, and
other towns, through the means of the disciples of the
Scheik Fereed, their favourite saint. A large portion of
the country is unproductive; but along the banks of the
river Cuggur, from Batnear to the town of Futtahbad, the
soil is uncommonly rich, and well adapted for cultivation.
The inundations of this river fertilize its banks, and the
subsidence of the waters leaves them to a great distance
prepared for plentiful crops of wheat, rice, and barley,
amply rewarding the labours of the husbandman. It is
the scarcity of water which occasions the barrenness of the
ground; nevertheless, more is raised than the inhabitants
can consume. Their horses are numerous ; but it is com¬
puted that they lose a fourth of them annually by the sting
or bite of a winged insect, the injured part degenerating
into an incurable cancerous sore.
We are unacquainted with any river of note in this dis¬
trict, excepting the Cuggur, which is lost in the sands to
the westward. According to the tradition of the natives,
it changed its course in consequence of its original bed
having been choked up by immense quantities of earth
forced down from the mountains.
The capital of the Batties is Batnear, which lies in a
situation almost inaccessible to an enemy; for no water
is to be procured within twelve miles, but what supplies
the inhabitants; however, it was taken in 1398 by Ti-
mour, and more recently by General Thomas. Their
other principal towns are Arroa, Futtahbad, Sirsa, and
Ramgah; and there are many forts, which, though de¬
fenceless against the skill of European troops, are im¬
pregnable to the irregular marauders of Hindostan. Num¬
bers of the Batties have latterly emigrated from their
native country, to establish themselves in the western parts
of the dominions of Oude; and several families of them
are to be met with in Rohilcund. They are practised
travellers, and well trained to emigration by the laborious
journeys undertaken in crossing the great desert to the Batm
west of their territories. These expeditions are frequent- 0-v
ly made in large parties, for the purpose of a predatory in¬
cursion on some peaceable country more remote; and they
exemplify both skill and determination in attaining their
object. Camels previously laden with provisions are dis¬
patched to different stations in the desert, which is about
130 miles in breadth, and their loads deposited there. The
most intelligent of the party about to follow are selected
as guides, and receive the most implicit obedience from
their companions during the journey, which closes at the
frontier of the hostile country, or rather that against which
their hostility is directed. The guides, by long experience,
become expert without compass or land-mark, and seldom
fail to conduct the party to the appointed station where the
provisions are deposited, and thence across the remainder
of the desert in safety. But should they accidentally miss
the points of rendezvous, or those where alone their neces¬
sities can be relieved, they are exposed to inevitable de¬
struction ; and any of their party heedlessly straying from
the rest become the victims of the accumulated evils of
hunger, thirst, and fatigue. The adventurers steer their
course by the sun in the day-time, and by the polar star at
night; and by similar aids they are enabled to retrace
the way they have travelled. Should provisions fail, a
bullock is killed, roasted, and partitioned on the spot, and,
after a hasty meal, the journey is resumed.
The history of the Batties has attracted the notice of
few European authors. They seem to carry on frequent
wars with neighbouring states, and are the most formidable
enemies that oppose the rajah of Beykaneer. The latter
invaded their territories in the beginning of the present
century, but without success, which is not surprising, con¬
sidering the comparative smallness of the force which he
can bring into the field, and the nature of the country.
Temporary advantages were, notwithstanding, obtained
over the Batties, and the Beykaneer rajah erected a fortress
in Batinda, which, if not within their territory, is on its im¬
mediate confines. This contributed to overawe them for a
time, and repressed their incursions into his own dominions;
as, independently of the garrison, he stationed a large body
of cavalry in the fort, whose frequent sallies and captures
of cattle annoyed the Batties so much that they contem¬
plated a total emigration from their own country. But a
military adventurer, George Thomas, an Irishman by birth,
who, endowed with singular talents and intrepidity, had
founded for himself an independent state in the north-west
of India, was then at war with the province of Beyka¬
neer. Having reached its frontiers, the Batties solicited
his alliance, and, to induce him to espouse their cause the
more readily, offered him 40,000 rupees, if he would re¬
duce the obnoxious fort. It appears that the Beykaneer
forces were now masters of Batnear, the capital, whither
General Thomas, who had accepted the proposals of the
Batties, marched to dislodge them. He found a nume¬
rous garrison, and, having brought up his artillery, began
to batter the place, preparatory to an assault. This, how¬
ever, the enemy avoided by capitulation, and they were al¬
lowed to evacuate the city with the honours of war, while
the Batties immediately took possession of it. In further
prosecution of the war, several actions ensued, and various
fortresses were taken ; but it would appear, that one of the
Battie chiefs, at variance with General Thomas, commenc¬
ed hostilities against him, about the period now alludec
to; and, in this new warfare with his late allies, his forces
wTere so much reduced by repeated encounters, that, be¬
ing scarcely able to stand an engagement, he fortified nis
camps. The Batties, after frequent attacks, withdrew
their troops by night, whereupon General Thomas tookan
burnt Futtahbad and other places, and might have occu-
BAT
BAT
451
Ba pied the whole country, but a neighbouring chief having
I concluded an alliance with the Batties, and sent 1000 ca-
lat valry to their aid, General Thomas retreated to Jyjur, a
^ ^ town within his own territory.
BATON, or Baston. See Baston.
BATRACHOMYOMACHIA, or “ battle of the frogs
and the mice,” the title of a burlesque poem generally
ascribed to Homer. The subject of the work is the death
of Psycharpax, a mouse, son of Toxartes, who having
mounted on the back of Physignathus, a frog, was being
conveyed to her palace, to which she had invited him,
when, seized with fear at seeing himself in the middle of
the pond, he tumbled off and was drowned. Physignathus
being suspected of having intentionally shaken off Psy¬
charpax, the mice demanded satisfaction, and unanimously
declared war against the frogs.
BATS, or BATSCH, a circle in the Austrian kingdom
of Hungary, consisting of an extensive plain between the
Danube and Theis, extending over 3638 square miles, or
3,328,320 acres, and comprehending three cities, nine
towns, and 189 villages, with 315,500 inhabitants, who con¬
sist of various eastern races of Sclavonian or Celtic origin,
with a few Germans and some Jews. It is subdivided
into four parts, distinguished by pure Hungarian names.
The productions are chiefly those of the soil; wheat, wine,
fruit, tobacco, and hemp. A city of the same name is the
capital of one of the four districts of the circle. It stands
near the Danube, is the seat of the judiciary of the dis¬
trict, and contains a Catholic and a Greek church, with 5200
inhabitants. Long. 18. 52. 21. E. Lat. 46. 10. 46. N.
BATTLE, in Ancient Geography, a people of Germany,
formerly inhabitants of the territory or district now call¬
ed Hesse. Dissatisfied with their situation there, they
settled on the island formed by the Vahalis and Rhine,
which from them took the name of Batavia, or Batavorum
Insub. See Batavorum Insula.
BATTALAH, a large open town of Hindostan, in the
province of Lahore. It stands in a fine open plain, and is
surrounded by groves of mango trees and tanks of water.
It is about 24 miles east from Amrutsir, and 75 east-south¬
east from the city of Lahore. Long.75. 3. E. Lat. 31.34. N.
BATTALIA, an army ranged in order of battle, or
ready for engagement.
BATTALION, the lowest integral denomination in an
army or national military force. Hence twro or more bat¬
talions constitute a regiment, two or more regiments a
brigade, two or more brigades a division, two or more di¬
visions a corps d’armee, and two or more corps d’armee a
grand army. A battalion therefore is the unit or integer
in all the combinations of an armed force. A battalion
usually contains from 500 to 800 men; but the number it
consists of is not determined. They are armed with fire¬
locks, swords, and bayonets ; and divided into eight or more
companies, one of which is grenadiers. Some regiments
consist of but one battalion, others are divided into four
or five.
BATTA NTA,a small island in the Eastern Seas, about
the 131st degree of east longitude, separated from the
island of Salawatty by Pitt’s Straits. It is thirty-five
miles in length by five in average breadth.
BATTAS, a fertile and populous country in the island
. Sumatra, which is divided into many small districts. It
is bounded on the north by that of Acheen, and on the
south by the district of Race. It extends along the west¬
ern coast, from the river Singkel to that of Tabuyong; in-
mid to that of Ayer Bangis, and across the island, which is
narrow in that part, to the eastern coast; but it is, neverthe-
ess, more or less encroacbed on by the Malayan and Ache-
nese establishments. The country is comparatively level,
except about the bay of Tapanooly, where the land is high
and wooded. 1 he Singkel river, which bounds it, and is the Battecoli h
largest on the west coast of Sumatra, has its rise in the II
mountains, about thirty miles from the sea. The Battas
country produces gold, benzoin, cassia, camphor, and other
articles, which the natives of the sea-coasts exchange for
iron, steel, brass-wire, and salt. These articles again are
exchanged with the natives of the interior, and, for the con¬
venience of this trade, fairs are established. The country is
extremely populous, especially in the central parts. The
natives seem to be rude and uncivilized in their manners,
and have adopted many barbarous customs. In particular,
polygamy is common, the men being allowed to marry as
many wives as they can afford to maintain; and the hus¬
band has the power of selling his wives and children.
The women appear generally to be in a very degraded
state, little above slavery. They are employed in do¬
mestic duties, and, besides, work in the rice plantations ;
whilst the men, except when they are engaged in war, lead
an inactive life, passing the day in playing the flute, and
in other idle amusements. They are greatly addicted to
gaming; and when they lose more than they are able to pay,
their persons are seized, and they are reduced to slavery.
But the most extraordinary trait of barbarity among the
Battas is the practice of cannibalism. This was long dis¬
believed ; but it is now well authenticated, being confirmed
by the concurring accounts of different travellers, and
placed beyond a doubt by the authority of Sir Stamford
Raffles, who was at pains to collect information respecting
the customs of this singular people. The feast on human
flesh, in which the Battas indulge, is as much, however, to
gratify revenge as to satisfy hunger; and it is according¬
ly the bodies of their enemies, either taken or killed in war,
that they devour, or offenders condemned for great crimes,
especially adultery. The offended party gratifies his ma¬
lignity by feasting on the body of the person by whom he
has been injured. The Battas country is ruled by nume¬
rous petty chieftains. But the sultan of Menancabau,
though he is not acknowledged as sovereign, is regarded
with a sort of superstitious veneration throughout the
whole country. The Battas are in their persons rather in¬
ferior in stature to the Malays, and are of fairer com¬
plexions. The different tribes are almost constantly at war
with each other. Their arms are matchlock guns, spears,
and swords; the former purchased from Menancabau tra¬
ders, and the latter made by themselves, as also their gun
powder. The religion of the country is Mahommedanism *
and the language is probably the most ancient in Sumatra,
and is said to be the root of the various dialects which
have overspread the island. (Marsden’s History of Su¬
matra ; Sir Stamford Raffles’s History of Java; Ander¬
son’s Mission to the East Coast of Sumatra.)
BATTECOLAH, a large open town of Hindostan, on
the sea-coast of North Canara. It is situated on the north
banks of the Sancadaholay, which flows through a beauti¬
ful valley, in a high state of cultivation. It contains 500
houses, and has two mosques, besides two Jain temples,
tbe only remains of sixty-eight which were formerly in the
place. Long. 74. 37. E. Lat. 13. 56. N.
BATTEL, or Trial by the Wager of Hattie, in English
law, a species of trial of great antiquity, but now abrogated
by positive statute. It seems to have owed its origin to the
military genius of our ancestors, joined to a superstitious
notion that Heaven would interpose, and give the victory
to him who had the right. The decision of suits, by an
appeal to the God of battles, is believed by some to have
been invented by the Burgundians, one of the northern or
German clans who established themselves in Gaul; and it
is certain that the earliest written injunction of judiciary
combats to be found is in the laws of Gundebal, which are
preserved in the Burgundian code. Yet it does not seem
B A T ‘
to have been merely a local custom peculiar to particular
tribes, but the common usage of all those warlike nations
from the earliest times. From a passage in Velleius Pa¬
terculus, it appears that the Germans, when they first be¬
came known to the Romans, were accustomed to decide
all contests of right by the sword; for when Quintilius
Varus endeavoured to introduce among them the Roman
laws and method of trial, it was looked upon, says the his¬
torian, as a novitas incognita disciplines, ut solita armis de-
cerni jure terminarentur: and among the ancient Goths in
Sweden we find the practice of judicial duels established
upon much the same footing as they formerly were in our
own country.
This species of trial was introduced into England, along
with other Norman customs, by William the Conqueror :
but it was only used in three cases ; first, in the court
martial, or court of chivalry and honour; secondly, in ap¬
peals of felony; and thirdly, upon issue joined in a writ
of right, the last and most solemn decision of real property.
In the two former cases this method of trial may seem
natural enough in a military and superstitious age, but
the reason or ground of its admission in the last is not so
obvious. That usually assigned is the difficulty, in writs
of right, of determining the jus proprietatis; but another
and more plausible pretext for allowing it, in such cases,
was for the sake of those claimants who might have the
true right, but yet by the death of witnesses or other de¬
fect of evidence might be unable to prove it to a jury.
The last trial of battel that was waged in the court of
common pleas at Westminster,—though there was after¬
wards one in the court of chivalry in 1631, and another in
the county palatine of Durham in 1638,—took place in the
thirteenth year of Queen Elizabeth, a. d. 1571, as report¬
ed by Sir James Dyer, and was held in Tothillfields, West¬
minster, non sine magna jurisconsultorum perturbatione,
says Sir Henry Spelman, who was himself a witness of the
ceremony. In this trial by battel, on a writ of right, the
battle was waged by champions, and not by the parties
themselves; because in civil actions, if any party to the
suit dies, the suit must abate, and be at an end for the
present; and therefore no judgment could be given for the
lands in question if either of the parties were slain. An¬
other reason was, that no person might claim an exemption
from this trial, as was allowed in criminal cases. An ac¬
count of the form and laws of the judicial combat, which
are now merely matters of history, may be found in any
of the institutional works on English law.
In appeal of felony, the trial by battel might be de¬
manded, at the election of the appellee, either in an appeal
or an approvement; and it was carried on with equal so¬
lemnity as that on a writ of right, but with this difference,
that in this case the parties fought in their proper persons.
Hence if the appellant or approver happened tobe a woman,
a priest, an infant, or of the age of sixty, or lame, or blind,
he or she might counterplead, refuse the wager of battel,
and compel the appellee to put himself upon the country.
A peer of the realm who brought an appeal was also
privileged to decline wager of battel, propter dignitatem
persona ; and the citizens of London had the same immu¬
nity conferred on them by special charter, doubtless be¬
cause fighting seemed foreign to their education and em¬
ployment. Again, if the crime was notorious, as if the
thief had been taken with the mainour, or the murderer
in the room with a bloody knife, the appellant might re¬
fuse the tender of battel from the appellee, because it was
deemed unreasonable that an innocent man should stake
his life against one who was already half-convicted. The
form and manner of waging battel upon appeals were much
the same as upon a writ of right; only the oaths of the two
combatants were incomparably more striking and solemn.
BAT
The last case of this kind which occurred was that of Abra- I
ham Thornton in 1819. This man having been tried upon 11
charge of murder, and acquitted, was appealed of felony®3 iiig. I
by a brother of the deceased, a young woman for whom, Mi
he had pretended an attachment. But after much grave .
consideration on the part of the judges, the appeal was
disallowed, in consequence, we believe, of the tender age
of the appellant, or, at all events, his evident physical
inability to contend with the appellee ; and shortly after
an act was passed abolishing this antiquated and barbarous
method of trial in all cases whatsoever. This, act which
is the 59th Geo. III. c. 46, is entitled, “ An act to abo¬
lish appeals of murder, treason, felony, or other offences,
and wager of battel, or joining issue and trial by battel in
writs of rightand it proceeds on the allegation, in the
preamble, that “ appeals of murder, treason, felony, and
other offences, and the manner of proceeding therein, have
been found oppressive,” and that “ the trial by battel in
any suit is a mode of trial unfit to be used, and that the
same should be wholly abolished.” This act was passed
on the 22d June 1819.
BATTEN, a name given by workmen to a scantling of
wood, from two to four inches broad, about one inch thick,
and of considerable though variable length. The term is
chiefly used in speaking of doors and windows of shops or
other places of the kind which are not framed of whole
deal, but are made to appear as if they were, by means of
these battens braided on the plain board, sometimes round
the edges, sometimes across them, and sometimes up and
down.
BATTERING, the attacking with heavy artillery a
fortification or strong post, possessed by an enemy, in
order to demolish the works.
JJ iTTERiNG-Ram, in Antiquity, a military engine used
before the invention of gunpowder, for beating down the
walls of besieged fortresses. Generally speaking, it con¬
sisted of a long heavy beam of timber, armed at the ex¬
tremity with iron fashioned something like the head of a
ram, which being violently propelled with constant suc¬
cessive blows against a rampart or tower, shook the fabric
of masonry, and in time caused it to tumble down.
Of this instrument there were several kinds. The first
and simplest was a beam such as we have described, which
the soldiers carried in their arms, and with one end of
which they assailed the walls by main force. The second
was composed of a vast beam, like the mast of a ship, shod
with iron at one end, and suspended by the middle from
another beam laid across two posts; and hanging thus
equally balanced, it was successively drawn backwards
and driven forwards with accumulated momentum against
the wall or rampart. This is the kind described by Jose¬
phus as having been used at the siege of Jerusalem. The
third description of battering-ram was covered over with
a roof, shell, or screen of boards, to protect the men em¬
ployed in working it from the stones, darts, and other
missiles discharged by the besieged from the walls; whence
it was called testudo arietaria. A fourth kind, mentioned
bjr Felibien, was provided with wheels, which greatly faci¬
litated its operations, and made it be considered the most
perfect and effectual of all.
Plutarch informs us that, in the Parthian war, Mark
Antony made use of a ram 80 feet in length ; and Vitru¬
vius states that this engine was sometimes 106, some¬
times even 120 feet, in length ; a circumstance to which
we are to ascribe its prodigious force when vigorously
worked. The battering-ram required a century of soldiers
at a time to manage it; and as the working parties were
regularly relieved as they became exhausted, it was kept
in continual action, and from incessant iteration produced
the most extraordinary effects. In fact, the momentum of
BAT
u!er . a battering-ram 180 feet in length, 28 inches in diameter,
Kan armed with a head of iron weighing a ton and a-half, and
fll moved by the united strength of a hundred men, must
t latte jiave been equal to the momentum of a thirty-six pound
"T shot discharged point blank from a modern piece of heavy
ordnance; and hence it is not difficult to conceive how
effective the constant reiteration of such impulses would
become in the work of demolition.
Battering-Rams, in Heraldry, a bearing or coat of
arms resembling the military engine of the same name.
BATTERY, in the military art, any place where cannon
or mortars are mounted, either to attack the forces of the
enemy or to batter a fortification; and hence batteries
have various names, according to the purposes which they
are designed to effect.
Gun-Battery is a defence constructed of earth faced
with green sods or fascines, sometimes of gabions filled
with earth. It consists of a breast-work, epaulement, or
parapet, about 8 feet in height, and 18 or 20 feet in thick¬
ness, with a ditch 12 feet broad at the bottom, 18 at the
top, and 7 feet in depth. The open spaces through which
the muzzles of the cannon are pointed are called embra¬
sures, and the solid masses between the embrasures, mer¬
lons. The distance from the centre of one embrasure to
that of another is 18 feet, and this is also the distance at
which the guns are placed from each other; consequent¬
ly the merlons are 16 feet within and 7 without. The
ejenouilleres, or those parts of the parapet wdiich cover the
carriage of the gun, are generally made 2|- feet in height
from the platform to the opening of the embrasures ; but
this height must be regulated by the semi-diameter of the
wheels of the carriage and the nature of the gun. The
platforms are plank floors made to prevent the cannon from
sinking into the ground, and they are generally 18 feet in
length, 15 feet in breadth behind, and 9 feet before, with a
rise of nine or ten inches from the parapet to check the
recoil of the guns, and to render it more easy to bring
them forward again when loaded.
Mortar-Batteries differ from gun-batteries in this, that
the parapets have no embrasures, and the platforms have
no slope, but are exactly horizontal; the shells being fired
quite over the parapet, commonly at an elevation of 45
degrees.
Open Battery is a number of cannon, commonly field
pieces, ranged in a row abreast, on some natural elevation
ol ground, or on an artificial bank raised for the purpose.
Covered or Masked Battery is when the cannon and
gunners are covered by a bank or breast-work, commonly
made of brushwood, faggots, and earth.
Sunk or Buried Battery is when the platform is sunk
or let down into the ground, so that trenches must be cut
in the earth opposite the muzzles of the guns, to serve as
embrasures to fire through.
Cross-Batteries are two batteries which play athwart
each other upon the same object, forming there an angle,
and battering with more effect, because what one battery
shakes, the other beats down.
Battery d Enfilade is one that sweeps or scours the
whole length ot a straight line, or the face or flank of any
work. J
Battery en Echarpe is that which plays obliquely.
Battery de Reverse is one which plays upon the rear of
ie troops appointed to defend a place.
Oamerade Battery is when several guns are discharged
upon one point at the same instant.
edan Batteries are such as flank each other at the sa-
mnt and re-entrant angles of a fortification.
icochet Battery, so called by its inventor M. Yauban,
.j‘a j rst used at the siege of Aeth in 1697. It is a me-
0 of discharging cannon with a very small charge of
BAT
powder, and with just elevation enough to fire over the
parapet. When properly managed, its effects are most
destructive ; for the shot, rolling along the opposite ram¬
part, dismounts the cannon and disperses or destroys the
troops. Ricochet practice is not confined to cannon alone :
small mortars and howitzers may be effectually employed
for the same purpose.
Fascine and Gabion Batteries are batteries constructed
of those machines where sods are scarce, and the earth
very loose or sandy.
Battery, in Law, is the unlawful beating of another.
The least touching of another’s person wilfully, or in anger,
is a battery, for the law cannot draw the line between
different degrees of violence, and therefore totally prohi¬
bits the first and lowest stage of it; every man’s person
being sacred, and no other having a right to meddle with
it, in any the slightest manner. Upon a similar principle,
the Cornelian law de irjuriis prohibited pidsafion as well
as verberation ; distinguishing verberation, which was ac¬
companied with pain, from pulsation, which wras attended
with none. But battery is in some cases justifiable or
lawful; as where one having authority, a parent or master,
bestows moderate correction on his child, his scholar, or
his apprentice. It is justifiable on the principle of self-
defence; for if one man strikes another, or only assaults
him, the latter may strike in his own defence, and if sued
for it, may plead that it was the plaintiff’s own original
assault which occasioned it. It is likewise justifiable in
defence of goods or possession, and in the exercise of an
office, as that of church-warden or beadle; but the per¬
son pleading such justification in a civil suit, or in a cri¬
minal prosecution, must be prepared to instruct that he
has observed the moderamen inculpatce tutelce. By reason
of these and other grounds of justification, battery is de¬
fined the unlawful beating of another; and the remedy
is, as for assault, by action of trespass or damages, in which
the jury will or ought to give adequate compensation.
BATTLE, or Batty. See Batnears.
BATTISTA, Franco, a celebrated painter, born at
Venice, was a disciple of Michael Angelo, whose manner
he followed so closely, that, in the correctness of his out¬
lines, he surpassed most of the masters of his time.
BATTLE, a market-town in the rape of Hastings and
county of Sussex, 56 miles from London. It was the
scene of the conflict in 1066 which insured to William the
Norman the crown of England. The abbey founded by
him forms a most magnificent pile of ruins, and the
ancient gatehouse is still in good preservation. The place
is now celebrated for its manufactories of the best gun¬
powder. There is a weekly market on Thursday, and a
monthly market on the first Tuesday of each month. The
inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 2040, in 1811 to 2531,
and in 1821 to 2852.
Battle, an action or engagement between the forces
of two armies. A battle is either general or partial; gene¬
ral, where the whole, or at least the greater part, of each
army is brought into action; and partial, where only bri¬
gades, divisions, or corps d’armee are engaged. But, how¬
ever the numbers may vary, the great principles to be ap¬
plied in delivering battle are in almost every case the
same.
It has indeed been said, by a high military authority,
that there is nothing invariable in the art of combats ; and,
looking to the endless diversity of circumstances under
which battles have been fought, as well as to the apparent
results, which are often at variance with the profoundest
calculations of science, the observation would seem to have
some foundation in truth. But a closer examination will
be sufficient to convince us that this is not the case, and
that the maxim in question, like many others which pass
454
Battle*
' ^
BAT
current in the world, involves a fallacy equally glaring and
dangerous. It is no doubt true that, in the circumstances
under which battles are fought, there is nothing invari¬
able ; on the contrary, it is scarcely possible to suppose
two cases, we do not say alike in every particular, but
resembling each other even in their great or leading fea¬
tures. From the very nature of things, the data of the
problem are variable ; but the grand principles by which
the solution is to be evolved continue immutably the same.
The elements which enter into the calculations of a gene¬
ral are constantly changing; and it is this circumstance
which affords scope for the exercise of his genius, his sa¬
gacity, and his military science. But it would be mani¬
festly absurd to maintain, that because the conditions are
incessantly diversified, the principles of the art experi¬
ence equal mutations. The issue of battle is always un¬
certain ; because the calculations of the general may be
defective, his combinations unscientific, his foresight li¬
mited, or his temperament rash and impetuous; and be¬
cause, even where none of these causes of failure exist,
events which no human sagacity could have divined may
occur to defeat the wisest plans and the ablest disposi¬
tions. But all this implies, that if every thing could
have been foreseen and provided for, the result would not
have been doubtful; and that the “ grand chances” are
always on the side of him who forms his plan with the
greatest sagacity, and executes it with corresponding vi¬
gour and ability. For, variable as the results of battles
appear, the most decisive success has generally crowned
the exertions of the greatest commanders; and victory in
the long-run has seldom failed to pay homage to science.
There is nothing, therefore, invariable in the art of com¬
bats, except those principles which science has establish¬
ed as, mutatis mutandis, universally applicable.
A battle is not only the most imposing, but also the
most important event in war. It is the consummation to
which all the previous combinations of commanders neces¬
sarily tend; it is that grand act of war which may decide
the fate of kingdoms and empires, as well as that of armies
and campaigns. The highest and dearest interests of na¬
tions, nay even of humanity itself, may be involved in its
issue; and the mighty cause of civilization may be acce¬
lerated or retarded according as the scales of the battle
turn. It cannot, therefore, we should think, be uninte¬
resting or uninstructive, if we endeavour, by recurring to
the works of the great masters, to exhibit a condensed
digest of those general principles, by tbe skilful application
of which the fate of battles, in all ages, has more or less
been determined.
All the combinations of a battle may be reduced to
three systems. The first, which is purely defensive, con¬
sists in waiting for the enemy in a strong position, without
any other object than that of maintaining it against him.
Such were the dispositions of Marshal Daun at Torgau,
and of the Comte de Marsin in the lines at Turin; dis¬
positions, we may add, which proved wholly unavailing
against Frederick and Eugene, and forcibly exemplify the
danger of receiving an attack even in the strongest posi¬
tion. The second system, on the other hand, is entirely
offensive. It consists in attacking the enemy wherever
he can be found, as Frederick did at Leuthen and at Tor¬
gau, Buonaparte at Jena and at Ratisbon, and the allied
armies at Leipsic. The third system is in some sort a
mean term between the first and second. It consists in
choosing a field of battle possessing certain advantages
both in a strategical and tactical point of view, in order
to wait there for the enemy, and, even in the day of bat¬
tle, to watch the favourable moment for assuming the
initiative, and falling upon the adversary with every chance
of success. The combinations of Buonaparte at Rivoli and
BAT
at Austerlitz, and those of Wellington at Waterloo, as well B c 1
as in the greater part of his defensive battles during the ^ v I
peninsular war, are examples of the mixed system, and ‘
must therefore be classed under this head.
It would be difficult, not to say impossible, to laydown
any fixed rules for determining when either of these two
last systems, which are the only suitable ones, ought to
be employed. Regard must be had to the moral condition
of the troops of each party; to the national character, con¬
sidered as more or less solid or impetuous; and, lastly, to
the obstacles presented by the ground. These are cir¬
cumstances which must always influence the decision of
a general; but allowing sufficient latitude for such con¬
siderations, the following principles will nevertheless be
found generally applicable : Is1#, That with veteran troops,
and in an open country, the absolute offensive or initiative
of attack is always most advantageous; 2c%, That in
ground which, by reason of its physical conformation or
other causes, is of difficult access, the better course is to
allow the enemy to arrive in a position which has been
previously reconnoitred, and to assume the initiative as
soon as his troops shall have been exhausted by their first
efforts; Sdfy, That the strategical situation of the two
parties may nevertheless sometimes require that the posi¬
tions of an adversary be attacked by main force, without
regard to any local consideration whatever; as, for exam¬
ple, when it is necessary to prevent the junction of two
hostile armies, or to fall upon a portion of an army de¬
tached, or upon a corps isolated beyond a river. In these
and in all similar cases a skilful general will direct an im¬
mediate and combined attack, without concerning himself
about any consideration extrinsic to the main object of
overwhelming the body opposed to him before it can be
reinforced.
Orders of battle, or the dispositions best suited for con¬
ducting troops to the combat, ought to have for their ob¬
ject to insure at once mobility and solidity; and hence
they ought neither to be too extended nor too profound.
An attenuated order is weak : and troops crowded together
in too dense an order are paralyzed; for as the head of the
mass only is engaged, disorder is easily introduced, and the
enemy’s artillery causes frightful ravages. To avoid this
double evil, and to fulfil both the conditions of a good order
of battle, troops which remain upon the defensive should be
partly deployed and partly in columns of battalions, like
the Russian army under Beningsen at the battle of Eylau.
But troops disposed for the attack of a decisive point
ought to be drawn up in two lines of battalions, each of
which, instead of being deployed, should be formed in co¬
lumns by divisions. This order presents infinitely more
solidity than a deployed line, the fluctuations of which
deprive it of the impulsion necessary for such an attack,
and render it impossible for the officers to exercise the
necessary control over the troops. Nevertheless, in order
to facilitate the march, to avoid too great depth in the
mass, and to extend the front without materially lessen¬
ing the consistence of an army, it may be advantageous
to draw up the infantry in two ranks. The battalions will
thus possess greater mobility; and, besides, they will have
all the force desirable, since the three divisions deployed
will possess six ranks in depth, which is more than sum-
cient; while the extended front w ill increase in a corre¬
sponding ratio the effect of the musketry. In grounds
of difficult access, as vineyards, inclosures, gardens, anc
wooded heights, the defensive order of battle should be
composed of battalions deployed, covered by numerous
platoons of sharpshooters. But the troops destined for
the attack, as well as the reserve, maybe advantageous}'
disposed in columns of attack by the centre. The reserve,
howrever, may be kept in part deployed until the momen
B A U
, of advance, in order, by its apparent extent, to impose on
the enemy. In a defensive battle upon open ground,
Bauc squares of battalions may be substituted for columns, by
’ f ' doubling the lines of two ranks so as to form four deep;
and each battalion will thus present a sufficient mass, with
a front varying from forty to fifty files. This order, which
was that employed by the duke of Wellington at Water¬
loo, appears advantageous when there is reason to appre¬
hend attacks of cavalry ; for it affords at once safety to the
infantry, and protection to the cannoneers and train of ar¬
tillery. But as it has both less mobility and less impulsion
than that in columns of attack, the latter has been judged
preferable; because, with well-disciplined troops, squares
may be easily formed in each battalion by a simple con¬
version to the right and left of the division of the centre.
The duke of Wellington, it is true, commonly fought de¬
ployed ; but, to say nothing of the incomparable military
qualities of his troops, his lines were generally formed four
deep; so that, after all, the exception is more apparent
than real.
See Jomini, Traite des Grandes Operations Militaires ;
Archduke Charles, Der Strategic ; Rogniat, Considerations
sur l'Art de la Guerre; Guibert, JSssai General de Tac-
tique; Billow’s Principles of War. translated by Ma-
lortie. (a.)
Battle-Axc, an ancient military weapon. Axes form¬
ed a principal part of the offensive arms of the Celtse. At
the siege of the Capitol by the Gauls under Brennus, one
of the most distinguished of their warriors was armed with
a battle-axe; and Ammianus Marcellinus, many centuries
afterwards, describing a body of Gauls, states that all of
them were armed with battle-axes and swords. Some of
these weapons have been found in the sepulchres of the
ancient Britons on the downs of Wiltshire and in the north
of Scotland. Four or five centuries ago the Irish went
constantly armed with axes. At the battle of Bannock¬
burn, King Robert Bruce cleft an English champion to the
chine with one blow of his battle-axe. The Lochaber axe
also remained long a formidable weapon in the hands of
the Scottish Highlanders ; and it constituted the principal
arm of the city guard of Edinburgh till the year 1817,
when that body of military conservators of the peace was
abolished.
BATTLEMENTS, in Architecture, are notches or in¬
dentures in the top of a wall or other building, in the form
of embrasures.
BATTON, in merchandise, a name given to certain
pieces of wood or deal for flooring or other purposes.
BATTORY, a name given by the Hans Towns to their
magazines or factories abroad.
BATTU, an island lying off the western coast of Su¬
matra, forty miles in length by ten in average breadth,
and entirely covered with wood. It is almost immediate¬
ly under the equinoctial line. Its exports are cocoa nuts,
oil, and sea-slug.
BATE A, Butua, Buthoe, or Buthoece, in Ancient Geo¬
graphy, a town of Dalmatia, situated on the Adriatic; now
Budoa.
BAUCIS, in fabulous history, an old woman who lived
with Philemon her husband in a cottage in Phrygia. Ju¬
piter and Mercury happening to travel in that country,
were well received by this venerable pair after having been
refused entertainment by every body else. To punish the
people for their inhumanity, the two gods laid the country
under water, but removed Baucis and Philemon to the top
or a mountain, where they saw the deluge, and their own
ittle hut above the waters turned into a temple. Here
the grateful gods promised to confer on their entertainers
whatever boon the latter might solicit; in consequence of
which they expressed a desire to officiate in this temple
B A u 455
as priest and priestess, and also to die together; both of Baudelot
which requests were granted.
BAUDELOT, Charles Caesar, a learned advocate Range-
in the parliament of Paris, distinguished by his skill in
ancient monuments, was received into the Academy of
Belles Lettres in 1705. He wrote a Treatise on the Ad¬
vantages of Travelling, Letters and Dissertations on Me¬
dals, &c.; and died in 1722, aged 74.
BAUDIER, Michael, a gentleman of Languedoc, who
lived in the reign of Louis XIII., and published several
books, which procured him the character of a copious and
laborious author. Among these were, 1. An Inventory of
the General History of the Turks; 2. The History of the
Seraglio ; 3. That of the Religion of the Turks ; 4. That
of the Court of the King of China; 5. The Life of Cardi¬
nal Ximenes.
BAUDIUS, Dominic, professor of history in the univer¬
sity of Leyden, was born at Lisle on the 8th of August 1561.
He began his studies at Aix-la-Chapelle, and continued
them at Leyden, whence he removed to Geneva, where
he studied divinity. After residing there some time he
returned to Ghent, and afterwards to Leyden, where he
applied himself to the study of the civil law, and was ad¬
mitted doctor of law in June 1585. Soon after his admis¬
sion he accompanied the ambassadors from the states to
England, and during his residence in this country became
acquainted with several persons of distinction, particularly
the famous Sir Philip Sidney. He \vras admitted advocate
at the Hague in January 1587 ; but getting soon tired of
the bar, he went to travel in France, where he remained
ten years. He was much esteemed in that kingdom, and
gained many friends there. Achilles de Harlai, first pre¬
sident of the parliament of Paris, got him admitted advo¬
cate of the parliament of Paris in the year 1592. In 1602
he went to England with Christopher de Harlai, the pre¬
sident’s son, who was sent ambassador to the court of Lon¬
don by Henry the Great. But having, in the course of the
same year, been named professor of eloquence at Leyden,
Baudius went and settled in that university, wTiere he read
lectures on history after the death of Merula, and was
also permitted to do the same on the civil law. In 1611
the states conferred upon him the office of historiogra¬
pher in conjunction with Meursius ; and in consequence of
this appointment he wrote The History of the Truce. Bau¬
dius was a good prose writer, as appears from his letters,
many of which were published after his death; and he
was also a respectable Latin poet. The first edition of
bis poems was printed in the year 1587; but he pub¬
lished separately a book of iambics in 1591, dedicated to
Cardinal Bourbon. Some of his poems, in the edition of
1607, he dedicated to the king of England, others to the
prince of Wales, and went over to England to present
them. He died at Leyden in 1613.
BAUDRAND, Michael Anthony, a geographer, born
at Paris on the 18th July 1633. He travelled into several
countries, and then applied himself to the revisal of Fer-
rarius’s Geographical Dictionary, which he enlarged to the
extent of one half. He wrote, 1. Notes to Papirius Masso’s
Description of the Rivers of France; 2. A Geographical
and Historical Dictionary; 3. Christian Geography, or
an Account of the Archbishoprics and Bishoprics of the
whole world; and constructed several maps. He died at
Paris on the 29th of May 1700.
BADGE, an arrondissement of the department of the
Mayenne and the Loire, in France, extending over 668
square miles, and comprehending six cantons and sixty-
one communes, with 75,793 inhabitants. The chief place,
of the same name, is on the river Souanon, and contains
3350 inhabitants, employed principally in making serges
and other woollen goods.
B A U
Bauge, a drugget manufactured in Burgundy with
thick spun thread and coarse wool.
BAUHIN, John, a distinguished botanist, was born at
Lyons in the year 1541. He was the son of an eminent
physician, who quitted France, his native country, on ac¬
count of religion, and settled at Basel. In early life he
travelled with Gesner, the celebrated naturalist, and col¬
lected plants in the Alps, in France, and in Italy, for the
purpose of the great botanical work which he afterwards
accomplished. He first practised medicine at Basel, where
he was also elected professor of rhetoric in 1566. He
then resided for some time at Yverdun, and was after¬
wards invited to be physician to the duke of Wirtemberg
at Montbelliard; a situation in which he spent the re¬
maining forty years of his life. He devoted his time
chiefly to botany, on which he bestowed great labour,
comparing authors, ancient and modern, with one ano¬
ther, and with nature, and collecting information from all
quarters. He likewise prosecuted other branches of na¬
tural history, and published an account of Medicinal Wa¬
ters throughout Europe, especially in the duchy of Wir¬
temberg ; together with a particular account of the mi¬
neral spring of Boll, and the natural history of the place.
His great work on plants was not completed at his death,
which happened in 1613. A society at Yverdun pub¬
lished in 1619 the Prodromus; but it was not till 1650
and 1651 that the work itself appeared, in three vols. folio,
entitled Historia Plantarum nova et absolutissima, cum
Auctorum consensu et dissensu circa eas. This perform¬
ance, with all its defects, has been pronounced by Haller
to be without an equal. The plants are numerous, gene¬
rally well described and discriminated; and many new
species are added. It is still considered a standard work;
and the names of John Bauhin and his brother rank
high among the founders and first promoters of botanical
science.
Bauhin, Gaspard, brother of the former, was born in
1560. He was early devoted to physic, and pursued his
studies at Padua, Montpellier, and some of the celebrated
schools in Germany. In his journeys he collected a num¬
ber of plants which had escaped his brother’s notice. Re¬
turning to Basel in 1580, he was admitted to the degree
of doctor, and gave private lectures in botany and ana¬
tomy. In 1582 he was appointed to the Greek professor¬
ship in that university, and in 1588 to the anatomical and
botanical chairs. He was at last made city physician,
professor of the practice of medicine, rector of the univer¬
sity, and dean of his faculty; and, thus distinguished and
honoured, he acquired great reputation. He became emi¬
nent as a botanist, and was aided in his researches by the
contributions of his disciples and friends in various parts
of Europe. Haller gives him the character of being assi¬
duous and laborious in collecting plants, by which means
he surpassed his brother in the number of them, as he
also did in the accuracy of his figures; but he possessed
less acuteness of judgment in distinguishing varieties, and
in detecting the same species under different names. He
published several works relative to botany, of which the
most valuable is his Pinax Theatri Botanici, seu index in
Theophrasti, Dioscoridis, Plinii, et botanicorum qui a se-
culo scripserunt opera, plantarum fere sex millium namina,
cum synonymiis et differentiis. Opus XIV. annorum, 4to.
The confusion that began to arise at this time from the
number of botanical writers who described the same plant
under different names, rendered such a task as this highly
necessary; and though there are many defects in the exe¬
cution, the Pinax of Bauhin is still a useful key to all the
writers before his time. Another great work which he
planned was a Theatrum Botanicum, meant to be com¬
prised in twelve parts folio, of which he finished three,
B A U
but only one was published. He also gave a very copious Ba
catalogue of the plants growing in the environs of Basel • 311
and he edited the works of Matthiolus with considerable ^ '«'•
additions. Gaspard likewise wrote some works on anatomy ^ ^
which he studied under Hieronymus ab Aquapendente
and pursued with vigour during his youth. His principal
work on this subject is Theatrum Anatomicum irifinitis lock
auctum, 4to, Frankf. 1621; which is a kind of pinax of ana¬
tomical facts and opinions. He also published a collec¬
tion of anatomical plates. He died in 1624.
BAUMAN Islands, a cluster of islands in the South
Pacific Ocean, discovered in 1722 by Bauman, who accom¬
panied the Dutch navigator Roggeweji round the world.
The inhabitants are said to be friendly to strangers. Long
173. W. Lat. 12. S.
BAUME, Anthony, a druggist in Paris, distinguished
by his knowledge of chemistry, and by his practical appli-
cation of that knowledge, was born at Senlis in 1728. He
was the son of an innkeeper, and was put as apprentice to
the eminent chemist Geoffroy. Fie had not received a
regular school education; a defect that occasioned him
many difficulties in prosecuting his scientific researches,
which he nevertheless did with much ardour. In 1752
he was admitted a member of the College of Pharmacy;
soon after he was appointed professor of chemistry at that
establishment; and in his lectures he displayed the excel¬
lent arrangement which is seen in his published works.
He carried to a great extent his commercial establish¬
ment in Paris for the preparation of drugs for medicine
and the arts, such as the acetate of lead, the muriate of
tin, mercurial salts, and antimonial mixtures. At the
same time he published papers on the crystallization of
salts, on the phenomena of congelation, on those of fer¬
mentation, on the combinations and preparations of sul¬
phur, opium, mercury, boracic acid, platina, and Peruvian
bark, on the metallic oxides, the acetates of the alkalis, on
emetic tartar, on vegetable fecula, and on vegetable ex¬
tracts. In consequence of these scientific works, Baume
was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences. He
wrote a great many articles in the Dictionnaire des Arts et
Metiers, and had previously published several technologi¬
cal papers; namely, on dyeing, on the gilding of clock¬
work, on a method for extinguishing fires, on the mode of
keeping corn, on buildings of plaster, on soap-making, on
clay, and on the nature of soils fitted for agriculture. He
made numerous experiments, along with Macquer, for the
purpose of fabricating in France a porcelain equal to the
Japanese. He established the first manufactory of sal-
ammoniac in France, a substance which before that time
had been obtained from Egypt. He was the first who de¬
vised and set on foot a process for bleaching raw silk. Hav¬
ing acquired a competency by the success of these different
undertakings, he retired from trade, and devoted his time
to the application of chemistry to the arts. He improved
the process for dyeing scarlet at the manufactory of the
Gobelins, and published a cheap process for purifying
saltpetre. He bestowed much time in forming an areo¬
meter intended for general use ; and published a process
for obtaining a mild fecula from the horse-chestnut. By
the revolution he lost his fortune, but was not thereby dis¬
heartened ; for this calamity led him to resume his trade.
He was chosen a correspondent of the Institute in 1796,
and died in 1804, at the age of seventy-six. He was tem¬
perate, regular in his habits, and active. Many of k‘s
papers are published in the Memoires de VAcademic des
Sciences. Of his separate publications, the following may
be mentioned here: Bissertation sur TEther, in 12mo,
Plan dun Cours de Chimie Experimentale, 1757, in 12m0 )
Opuscules de Chimie, 1798, in 8vo ; Elemens de Pharmacie
TJieorique et Pratique, 2 vols. 8vo ; Chimie Experimenta c
B A V .
j,alj; et Raisonnee, 3 vols. 8vo, 1773. This last is antiquated, on
‘‘j account of the many improvements which have been made
hj i. in the science of chemistry since its publication ; but his
W ^ Elements of Pharmacy are still useful as a good dispen¬
sary, being written with method and clearness, while" the
processes are well described, and the formulae properly
discussed. He did not adopi the Lavoisierian nomencla¬
ture. (b. b.)
Baume, an arrondissement of the department of the
Doubs, in France, comprehending seven cantons and 193
communes, extending over 633 square miles, and contain¬
ing 61,192 inhabitants. The capital is a market-town of
the same name, producing good wine, and containing 2350
inhabitants.
BAUMEN, or Bauman, a cave of Lower Saxony, in
Germany, about a mile from Wernigerode, and eighteen
miles from Goslar. The entrance is through a rock, and
so narrow, that not above one person can pass at a time.
There are several paths in it, which the peasants have
turned up in searching for the bones of animals, which
they sell for unicorns’ horns. Some think this cave reaches
R A V
457
as far as Goslar; but be this as it may, there have been Baur
found in it the skeletons of men, who are supposed to have II
been lost in the tunhngs and windings. Bavaria.
BAUR, John William, an eminent Flemish painter,
born at Strasburg, was a disciple of Brendel. He spent
some time at Rome, where his studies were wholly devoted
to architecture and landscapes, which prevented his study¬
ing the antique. He painted small figures in distemper
on vellum, and etched with great spirit. His largest
works are in the historical line. He died at Vienna in
1640.
BAUTZEN, the capital of the circle of Lausatia, in
the kingdom of Saxony. It is situated on the banks of
the Spree, on an elevation 580 feet above the level of
the sea, and celebrated as the scene of the last battle
which Buonaparte gained in his campaign in Germany
in 1813. Bautzen is a great manufacturing town for ho-
siery, gloves, linen, woollen, and cotton goods, as well as
for paper, leather, and other commodities. The number
of inhabitants is about 13,500. Long. 14. 19. 17. E.
Lat. 51. 10. 34. N
BA VARIA,
A country in the south-west of Germany, in former times
a margraviate and duchy, afterwards an electorate, and,
since 1806, a kingdom of considerable extent. It is si¬
tuated between the forty-seventh and fifty-first degrees
of north latitude, and is of an oblong form, its greatest
extent being from north to south. Its breadth is different
in different parts, but we may form a tolerably correct idea
of the whole by supposing a rectangular tract of country,
having 200 miles in length by 140 in breadth. Such a
tract would contain a surface equal to the Bavarian terri¬
tory, exclusive of the distant province on the Rhine: in¬
cluding that province, however, the extent of the kingdom
is above 30,000 square miles, or somewhat more than
either Scotland or Ireland.
Hist' The name in German, Baiern, is derived, like its old
Latin name Boiaria, from Boii, the name of a people of
Celtic origin, who were the inhabitants of this country
in the reign of Augustus. It then formed part of the
Rhaetia Vindelicia and Noricum of the Romans. After
the fall of the Roman power, the natives were governed
by military chieftains of their own till the era of Char¬
lemagne, who succeeded in subjugating this as well as
most other parts of Germany. After his death, Bavaria
was governed by one of his grandsons, whose successors
bore the title of Margrave, or Lord of the Marches; Bavaria
forming the frontier of the empire to the south and south¬
west, as Austria did to the east and south. In the year 920
me ruling margrave was raised to the rank of duke, which
continued the title of his successors for no less than seven
centuries. During this long period Bavaria was connected
vutn Germany, nationally by language, and politically as a
mntier province, but in civilization -was almost as back¬
ward as Austria, and greatly behind Saxony, Franconia,
'Til 16 ^an^s ^le IHnne- At last, in 1620, a formi-
Uole insurrection taking place in Bohemia against Aus-
tri^’ ^le, reigning duke of Bavaria sided with the latter,
. baving rendered great service to her cause, received
aj! ™P°rtant accession of territory, and was appointed one
a the nine electors of the empire. His successors con-
'f a mithful members of the Germanic body and allies
P Austria until the ambitious projects of Louis XIV. of
’n t^e year 1^02, t° a close connection between
ia m()narch and the elector; the object of which was to
VOL. IV.
threaten and even attack Austria, so as to prevent her
from co-operating efficiently with England and Holland in
their great contest with France. This hostile attitude of
Bavaria, joined to the insurrectionary movements in Hun¬
gary, bore so hard on the emperor as to induce the duke
of Marlborough, in the spring of 1704, to march his army
above 300 miles, from the banks of the Maese to those of
the Danube and Iser. Bavaria was now invaded, and the
elector put under the ban of the empire ; but he remained
firm to his alliance with Louis, and a French army under
Marshal Tallard advanced from the Rhine to his relief. It
was over this army, joined to a strong Bavarian force, that
Marlborough and Prince Eugene obtained the signal vic¬
tory of Blenheim, on the 13th August 1704. The result was
decisive of the fate of the electorate ; the French fled to the
Rhine; the elector fled with them, and Bavaria was go¬
verned by commissioners appointed by the emperor. This
state of things lasted ten years; the elector and his re¬
maining military force serving in the French armies, until
the peace of Utrecht, or more properly that of Baden, in
1714, reinstated him in his dominions.
The son and successor of this elector, untaught by the
disasters of his father, was induced to renew his connec¬
tion with France ; and, in 1740, on the death of the em¬
peror of Germany, he ventured to come forward as a can¬
didate for the imperial crown. In this he succeeded so
far as to be named to that high dignity by a majority of
the electors, and to overrun a considerable part of the
Austrian territory; but his triumph was of short dura¬
tion, for the armies of Maria Theresa, aided by English
subsidies, came forward in superior numbers, and not only
repulsed the Bavarians, but obtained, in 1744, possession
of the electorate. The elector died soon after, and his
son recovered his dominions only by renouncing the am¬
bitious pretensions of his father.
Bavaria now remained tranquil above thirty years, until
1778, when, by the death of the reigning elector, the
younger line of the house of Wittelshach, the line which
had long ruled in Bavaria, became extinct. The next
heir was the Elector Palatine, the representative of the
elder line of the family of Wittelsbach; but Austria un¬
expectedly laid claim to the succession, and took military
possession of part of the country. This called into the
3 m
458
BAVARIA.
Bavaria, field, on the side of Bavaria, Frederic II. of Prussia, then
advanced in years. The armies on each side were formi¬
dable and well commanded ; they made many threatening
marches and counter-marches, but happily no bloodshed
took place; and at last Austria desisted from her preten¬
sions, on obtaining from Bavaria the cession of the frontier
district called the Inn-viertel, or Quarter of the Inn.
Bavaria again remained at peace for many years, until
the great contest between Germany and France began
in 1793, when she was obliged to furnish her contingent
as a member of the empire. During three years her ter¬
ritory was untouched, the operations being carried on in
the Netherlands and on the Rhine; but in the summer of
1796, a powerful French army under Moreau advancing
and occupying her capital, the consequence was a sepa¬
rate treaty with France, and the withdrawing of her con¬
tingent from the army of the empire. The next war be¬
tween France and Austria, begun in 1799, was compara¬
tively short; but ending disastrously for the latter, the
influence of France in the empire was greatly strength¬
ened, so that in 1805, when the Austrians, subsidized by
England, once more took up arms, Bavaria was the firm
ally of France, and for the first time found advantage in
the connection. In the short space of three months, the
victories of Ulm and Austerlitz enabled Buonaparte to
prescribe the conditions of peace, and to confer on his
electoral ally the title of king, along with very consider¬
able additions of territory.
These substantial acquisitions rendered Bavaria the
willing assistant of France in the invasion of Prussia in
the subsequent autumn. The battle of Jena took place,
and a further increase of territory to Bavaria followed at
the peace of Tilsit. The consequence was, that in 1809,
when the absence in Spain of a great part of the French
military force encouraged Austria again to try the hazard
of war, the Bavarian troops were wholly at the disposal
of Buonaparte, and formed a main part of the great army
with which he defeated the Austrians at Eckmuhl and
Wagram. The peace that ensued gave a further aggran¬
dizement to Bavaria; but a few years more showed how
dearly it was purchased, when many thousands of her
best troops perished in the disastrous retreat from Rus¬
sia. This sacrifice of lives, and the horror of Buona¬
parte’s tyranny, excited in Bavaria, as in the rest of Ger¬
many, an ardent wish to throw off his yoke. Nor was
opportunity long wanting. In the following year (1813)
the allied sovereigns advanced into Saxony, and gave
assurance to the king of Bavaria, that, in the event of
his co-operating vigorously with them against France, he
should be maintained in all his late acquisitions. The
king received these assurances with satisfaction, but could
not in prudence join the allies for some months; at the
end of which the retreat of the French from Dresden,
and the probability of their falling back to the Rhine, in¬
duced him to make an open declaration of hostility against
his former allies, and to march 'an army to Hanau, on the
Maine, the line of their expected retreat. At Hanau,
accordingly, in the latter days of October, several obsti¬
nate conflicts took place between the Bavarians and the
French ; and although the latter forced their way, it was
with considerable loss. From that time forward Bavaria
took a decided part against Buonaparte, and was confirm¬
ed in her extended territory by the definitive treaties of
1814 and 1815. She ceded to Austria her ancient pos¬
session of the Tyrol, but received equivalents in Franco¬
nia and the vicinity of the Rhine.
We are thus enabled to trace, in the succession of
events, the progressive extension of this state from an
early age. The duchy of Bavaria, or the country which
was subject to the dukes during the middle ages, and be¬
fore they were raised to the rank of electors, was the Ikv
southern half of the present kingdom, and lay almost all;
to the south of the Danube. This is the Bavaria of our
old maps, nearly square in its form, extending about 100
miles from the Danube to the Tyrol, and somewhat more
from Suabia on the west to Austria on the east. To this
limited territory an important addition was made after
1620, at the expense of the elector palatine, who having
taken an active part in the great insurrection in Bohemia
against Austria, forfeited both his title and his dominions
to the duke of Bavaria. His dominions consisted of what
was called the Upper Palatinate, a province of full 3000
square miles, situated to the north of the Danube. This
country, joined to the duchy of Bavaria, constituted during
a century and a half (from 1623 to 1778) the dominions
of the elector; their territorial extent being about 15,000
square miles, and their population, in the beginning of
that period, less than 1,000,000, but towards its close about
1,500,000. During the seventeenth century this secon¬
dary state was in general the ally of Austria, a willing
assistant of the head of the empire ; but during the
eighteenth it ventured, as we have seen, with the aid of
France, to enter the lists against its powerful neighbour.
In 1778 the succession of the Rhenish branch of the
reigning family added to the former territory of Bavaria
the palatinate of the Rhine, a district of no great extent,
but fertile and populous. By this time the nation, hitherto
illiterate and backward, became fit for improved institu¬
tions, and was fortunate in the character of two successive
rulers. She was thus increasing gradually her productive
industry and political weight, when, in 1806, her progress
received a sudden impulse from political causes. Buona¬
parte had long laboured to weaken the ascendancy of the
greater over the lesser states of the empire; and in 1806
the overthrow, first of Austria, afterwards of Prussia, ena¬
bled him to make a very large addition to the territory of
his German allies, above all of Bavaria. This was obtain¬
ed chiefly in Franconia, a country which, being contiguous
to Bavaria, and similar to it in soil and climate, is, in ge¬
neral, more advanced both in agriculture and manufac¬
tures. The valuable districts, or circles as they are
termed by the Bavarian government, of the Lower Maine
and the Rezat, with part of those of the Upper Maine
and Upper Danube, were all obtained on this occasion;
not to mention the Tyrol, as it was afterwards restored to
Austria.
Present Divisions of the Kingdom, their Population, §c.
Circles or
Provinces.
Chief Towns.
Computed
Extent in
English
Square Miles.
Iser Munich 6,000
Regen Ratisbon... .4,000
Upper Danube... Augsburg...3,600
Lower Danube...Passau 4,000
Rezat Anspach 3,000
Upper Maine Baireuth 3,600
Lower Maine.....Wurzburg...3,600
The Rhine Spires 2,200
Population.
600,000
400,000
510,000
400,000
540,000
520,000
530,000
520,000
Inhabit¬
ants per
Square
Mile.
100
100
142
100
180
145
147
236
Totals 30 000 4,020,000 Avr. 134
The dense population of the circles of the Rezat and
Lower Maine puts in a striking light the value of the ter¬
ritory acquired in Franconia ; while the comparative thin¬
ness of inhabitants in the departments of the Regen ant
Iser proves the inferior soil of the Upper Palatinate, ant
of the southern or mountainous part of Bavaria. Sirndar
conclusions are suggested by the following sketch or t e
respective proportions of the soil which lie waste or aie
in a state of cultivation.
BAVARIA.
459
Fores
Proportions of 100.
Circles.
In Tillage
and Pasture.
Rezat 70
Upper Maine 60
Lower Maine 58
Rhine 57
Lower Danube 50
Upper Danube 50
Regen 47
Iser 35
Average of the kingdom...53
Forest
Land.
22
29
32
36
29
25
30
31
29
Waste.
8
11
10
7
21
25
23
34
18
The extent of forest land in Bavaria is double that of
the forest land of France, and more than six times that of
the land under wood in Great Britain. This is owing to
various causes; the great extent of hilly and mountainous
country, the insufficient population, and the necessity of
keeping a given extent of ground in wood for a supply of
fuel. There are, besides, many spots and even districts in
the forest lands which are under cultivation for flax, corn,
and potatoes. The forests are partly public, partly private
property; the former, being the portion under the ma¬
nagement of the government, is very considerable, yield¬
ing a revenue to the state, and enabling many thousand
persons to derive a livelihood from the care of them.
Hour The frontier of Bavaria on the north-east, towards Bo-
ains. hernia, consists of a long range of mountains ; and there
are also very extensive chains in the neighbouring part of
Franconia. These, however, seldom exceed the height of
3000 or 4000 feet; but the ridges in a very different part of
the kingdom,—we mean those on the south, which sepa¬
rate it from the Tyrol,—partake of all the grandeur of the
Alps, several of them being from 9000 to 10,000 feet in
height; an elevation approaching to that of iEtna, and
more than double that of the highest mountains in Scot¬
land.
Me! d There is a number of lakes in Bavaria, particularly in
wer5 the mountainous parts. In the low country there are se¬
veral extensive tracts of marshy ground, as in all half-cul¬
tivated countries. Of the rivers of Bavaria the most re¬
markable is the Danube, which, on entering the frontier
from Suabia, is of sufficient size to be navigable, and after¬
wards traverses the whole breadth of the kingdom, mak¬
ing with its windings a course of 200 miles. In this long
space it becomes increased by the successive junction of
the Iller, the Lech, the Iser, and the Inn, all flowing
northward from the Alps. On the north or Franconian
side, the Danube receives the Nab, the Altmuhl, and se¬
veral smaller streams. Though a considerable river even
in this the early part of its course, it is not large enough
to make the erection of bridges a work of so great labour
as after the influx of the Inn ; wherefore there are no less
than sixteen bridges across the Danube in the course of
its passage through Bavaria.
The Inn takes its rise in Switzerland, flows through the
lyrol, and being early swelled by the mountain streams to
the right and left of its course, is navigable before it enters
the Bavarian territory. It then holds a north and north¬
east course, and receives the Salsa, a large river flowing
rom Upper Austria; after which their united waters, be¬
tween 200 and 300 yards in breadth, fall into the Danube
at rassau. The Iser or Isar has its source in the Tyrolese
^•ps, flows in a curved direction nearly north-east, passes
unich, becomes navigable, and, after receiving several
nbutary streams, falls into the Danube half-way between
atisbon and Passau. The Lech has a similar course, but
® ess length. In the northern part of the kingdom the
aine is the only river of consequence, either for size or
for extent of navigation. It traverses Franconia with a Bavaria,
very winding course, and greatly facilitates the trade of'■V'"**'
that province.
The climate of Bavaria is in general healthy, although Q;mate-
the degree of heat, in this as in the neighbouring coun¬
try of Austria, is very different according to local differ¬
ences in the elevation of the soil. Hence the cold of Up¬
per Bavaria in the vicinity of the Tyrol, and the warmth
of the plains adjoining the Danube and the Maine. On the
whole, the temperature of Bavaria is considerably colder
than that of England in the winter months, and consider¬
ably hotter during the summer and autumn.
The extent of forest land in every province of Bavaria Products,
is such as to supply a great quantity of wood for sale ; but
the transport of it is in many parts difficult, from the bad¬
ness of the roads, and on account of the distance from na¬
vigable rivers. The forests are chiefly on the hills and
mountains; and the level country, as well Lower Bavaria
extending northwards to the Danube, as the western and
middle parts of Franconia, is very productive in wheat,
barley, rye, oats; also in hemp, flax, hops, madder, and,
in warm situations, in vines. The last are raised chiefly
in the vicinity of the lake of Constance, and on the banks
of the Maine in the lower part of its course. On the
whole, the best cultivated districts are those in which the
descent of streams from the high grounds gives facilities
to irrigation. Such is the case in the valley of the Danube
and in part of the plains of Franconia; but in most other
parts of the kingdom a third and upwards of the arable
land remains uncultivated. The quantity of potatoes
raised annually in the kingdom has been much increased
in the last and present age, particularly in the northern
provinces. The Spessart, an extensive tract of forest land
in Franconia, formerly neglected, is now rendered very
productive in that respect; and hence a great increase of
population during the last half-century. Yet, that much
remains to be done before justice is rendered to the soil, is
evident, since, with a climate fully as good as ours, and a
soil inferior only in the mountainous parts, the average
population of Bavaria is only half that of England. The
government has caused a few of the marshes to be drain¬
ed ; but these are merely incipient operations, a small part
of what ought to have been performed.
The proportion of land under pasture appears to be Pasture
nearly the same in one circle or province as another. A lands,
late return gives the number in the kingdom, of horses
at 330,000; of oxen, cows, calves, hogs, 2,000,000; and
of sheep, nearly 1,200,000. Little attention has as yet
been given to the improvement of the breed of horses or
oxen. But in sheep considerable progress has been made
in adopting that improved treatment which has added so
largely to the value of the wool of Saxony.
The quantity of salt prepared annually in Bavaria is very Mines and
considerable, being above 30,000 tons. It is obtained partly mjnerals;
from brine springs in the circle of the Iser, partly from salt-sa
mines at Halle and other parts; which, like most undertak¬
ings of magnitude on the Continent, are and must, from
want of capital on the part of individuals, be wrought on
account of the government.
In so mountainous a country the quantity of iron ore is Iron and
naturally very large. The mines are numerous, being 150 ™al-
in all; but they are on a small scale compared with those
of this country, the quantity of iron annually made hardly
exceeding 60,000 tons. These mines are found in vari¬
ous parts of the kingdom; in the mountains of Franconia,
as well as in those of the south of the kingdom. The coal¬
mines are in like manner numerous, but of small extent
compared with ours; the yearly produce of fifty mines in
the Bavarian dominions being only from 60,000 to 70,000
tons. The number of blast furnaces and forges in the
460
BAVARIA.
Bavaria, whole country is about fifty. Of quicksilver there are se-
veral mines, chiefly in the province of the Rhine.
Manufac- Manufactures are as yet very backward, even in arti-
tures. cles such as hardware, for which' the raw material is sup¬
plied on the spot. Woollens, linens, and in some towns
cottons, are made, but of a quality much coarser than
the corresponding manufactures of England, or even of
the Netherlands. There are a number of mills in Fran¬
conia for making paper, in consequence of two very dis¬
tinct causes, the frequency of water-falls and the cheap¬
ness of linen rags. The extent of the forests, and the
command of water power, have led to the erection of many
saw-mills ; there being no less than 2000 in the whole king¬
dom. Of glass also the quantity annually made is con¬
siderable. As to liquor, the climate of Bavaria being in
general too cold for the grape, beer is the general drink,
and the breweries are very numerous. They are not, as in
England, confined to the large towns; in a country where
the means of carriage by water are so limited, they are
necessarily established in almost every district. Leather,
tobacco, and earthenware, are the other chief articles of
manufacture.
Trade. The exports from Bavaria are such as may be expect¬
ed in a country chiefly agricultural; they consist of salt,
timbei’, cattle, pigs, corn, and madder. The imports con¬
sist of sugar, tobacco, cottons, silks, with some woollens,
and linen of the finest qualities. The yearly value of the
exports is between three and four millions sterling; that
of the imports nearly the same. The government, desi¬
rous of removing whatever is pernicious in established
usages, abolished, in 1827, the privileges of guilds and corr
porations; but it must do a great deal more before trade
can be raised to a flourishing condition. In the whole king¬
dom there is only one navigable canal, which extends from
the Rhine to the level country of Franconia. The old
project of joining the Danube and the Rhine by a canal
seems impracticable, from the nature of the ground. The
high roads in Bavaria extend in all over 5000 miles; and
the conveyance of the mails, though far slower than in
England, is not altogether so slow as in most parts of the
Continent. The government has also set the example of
fitting out boats with sails to navigate the Danube. The
same may be done on the Inn, the Iser, and the Maine;
and, as fuel is not scarce, steam navigation bids fair to be
introduced in all of them. But the greatest national be¬
nefit would arise from the opening of roads in remote dis¬
tricts, and improving those at present in use, but which
are good only in certain districts, such as the vicinity of
Munich, Ratisbon, and Nuremberg.
Increasing The increase of the population of Bavaria, though not
population.accurately ascertained, appears to have been regularly
and even rapidly progessive since the beginning of the
present century. The causes are probably the same as
in this country,—improved agriculture, an extended culti¬
vation of potatoes, vaccination, the more comfortable con¬
dition of the poor, and better medical treatment generally.
The average mortality in Bavaria is as yet imperfectly
ascertained, but it appears to be, as in France, about one
in forty of the population. In England it is only one in
forty-eight. The chief towns of Bavaria are,
Population.
The chief Munich 70,BOO
towns. Nuremberg 36,000
Augsburg 34,000
Ratisbon 26,000
Wurzburg 20,000
Bamberg 20,000
Population.
Anspach 17,000
Furth 16,000
Baireuth 14,000
Erlangen 12,000
Passau 11,000
Schwabach 10,000
Munich, the capital of the kingdom, though not built
with regularity, is on the whole one of the most interest¬
ing towns of Germany. The river Iser flows past it, and Bav
though not large, is of sufficient size to give animation to ''-’v
the town and its environs. The town contains several
squares and a number of public buildings, as well as va¬
luable collections of books, paintings, and medals. Here
are a university and a military school, a considerable de¬
mand for literary works, a manufactory of porcelain, and
other establishments, all indicative of much more atten¬
tion to objects of education and taste than used to pre¬
vail in this formerly unenlightened part of Germany.
Augsburg has only half the population of Munich, and,
being a very old place, has narrow and crooked streets
It is situated in an extensive plain at no great distance
from the Lech, which is here a considerable river. Like
Nuremberg, Augsburg has long been one of the chief
trading towns in the interior of Germany. It is the seat
of several manufactures, and of considerable transactions
in bills of exchange. For such business merchants fix on
a few places at a considerable distance from each other,
but centrally situated in regard to particular districts. In
the south and west of Germany, Vienna, Augsburg, and
Frankfort on the Maine, are the chief towns for such bush
ness, exactly as Hamburg and Berlin are in the north.
Nuremberg, situated in Franconia, was a place of note
as far back as the eleventh century, and, during the middle
ages, was the occasional residence of the emperors. The
Pegnitz, a considerable but not navigable stream, divides
it into two nearly equal parts. Its chief prosperity has
arisen from its manufactures, for which it was remarked
more than four centuries ago. Among these are toys of
all kinds, whether of hardware or wood, most of which
are made, not in the town, but in villages situated in the
hilly and woody tract between Franconia and Thuringia.
The stationary condition of this place and of Augsburg,
compared with the rapid growth of manufacturing towns
in England, exhibits, in a striking light, our advantages in
coal, fuel, and in communication by canals, railways, and
turnpike roads, to which there is no parallel in Germany.
Ratisbon, equally ancient with these towns, owed its in¬
crease to a different cause, namely, to the navigation of the
Danube, which it once possessed exclusively from Ulm as
far as Vienna. Timber, corn, salt, and marl, form the chief
articles of transport along the river; and the building of
large boats for such navigation, and for sale in the lower
part of the river, continues to be a considerable branch of
business in this place. The Danube expands here to a
width of more than 300 yards; its current is consequent¬
ly weakened, and, there being an island in its channel, the
inhabitants of Ratisbon erected a bridge across it several
centuries ago,—a time when the art of bridge-building was
very little understood. This facilitated the access to the
town, which was the place of assemblage for the Germa¬
nic diet during a century and a half previous to 1806; the
period when the constitution of the empire underwent a
great change, and Austria ceased to be at its head.
Wurzburg, in Franconia, situated on the Maine, is also
remarked for its bridge, but its river has only half the
width of the Danube. It is the seat of a university, and
has a considerable trade; part of which arises from the
sale of the wine raised in its neighbourhood. This town,
old as it is, must, along with all the places we have men¬
tioned, yield precedence in antiquity to Spires, the cathe¬
dral of which contains the ashes of eight of the earlier
emperors of Germany, and of as many empresses. Spires
was the see of a bishop as early as the fourth century ; a
time when civilization w^as unknown on the eastern side
of the Rhine, and had reached on the western side only
the few towns occupied by the Romans as military sta¬
tions.
The province or circle of the Rhine is wholly detached
avai
tail
ihPi
ice.
BAVARIA.
461
:vei:
dej i
lure
from the rest of the kingdom, being nearly 100 miles to
the westward, and having the Rhine on the east, Worms
on the north, Alsace on the south, and Lorraine on the
west. This province is an oblong of nearly fifty-five miles
by forty; its extent is somewhat above 2000 square miles,
and its population (see the foregoing table, p. 458) more
dense than that of any other part of the kingdom. Its sur¬
face is very uneven, for the Vosges Mountains extend over
a part of its territory. In these there are extensive pas¬
tures, and, in particular spots, mines of iron, coal, and quick¬
silver. In the low grounds the products are wheat, oats,
barley, and, in the warmer situations, vines. This pro¬
vince, equal in extent to two of our middle-sized counties,
is divided into four districts ; of which the chief towns are
Landau and Deux Fonts in the south, Frankenthal and
Kaiserslautern in the north. After the great successes
of the French in 1794 and 1795, this district, formerly
the palatinate of the Rhine, became, along with the whole
country to the left of the Rhine, subject to France, and
remained so nearly twenty years, until the overthrow of
Buonaparte in 1814. At that memorable juncture it was
assigned by the congress of Vienna to Austria, and made
over by the latter to Bavaria in the subsequent exchanges.
It may be proper to explain here what was meant by the
Circle of Bavaria, although, like the other circles of the
empire, it has now ceased to have a political existence. It
comprised the territories as well of the elector of Bavaria
as of a number of petty states contiguous to but indepen¬
dent of him, their respective princes being members of
the Germanic body. In addition to Bavaria Proper and
the Upper Palatinate, the circle comprised the arch¬
bishopric of Salzburg and a number of lesser principali¬
ties, which are now mediatized or blended with their
greater neighbours; but it contained no part of Franconia,
which was a circle by itself. The extent of the circle of
Bavaria was about 17,000 square miles, and its capital was
Ratisbon. That city was also the residence of the dukes
of Bavaria until the fourteenth century, when the acquisi¬
tion of the upper country towards the Tyrol induced them
to fix their residence at Munich.
The public revenue of Bavaria is about L.3,000,000
sterling, arising from almost as great a variety of imposts
as in this country.
Direct Taxes.
Land tax L.600,000
House tax  40,000
Licenses for professions and trades  75,000
Family tax  75,000
Indirect Taxes.
Customs 
Excise 
Stamps 
Miscellaneous taxes 
Interest on loans from the treasury.
Malt 
Salt 
Post-office  
Lottery 
Demesnes of the crown, rents, and fines 
1 he public forests, sale of wood, forest dues,)
game licenses, together j
ai'ious imposts and dues 
Expenditure.
Bavj
Interest of the public debt 
Civil list 
Privy counsellors  
Salaries of ambassadors, envoys, and other 1
charges of the foreign office j
Administration of justice 
The home department 
The treasury 
The army 
Public worship 
National education 
Roads, bridges, canals 
Public buildings 
Cadastre, or valuation of landed property 
Pensions, yearly reserve, &c 
800,000
300,000
8,000
50,000
170,000
120,000
100,000
800,000
120,000
85,000
120,000
80,000
25,000
222,000
200,000
450,000
100,000
200,000
35,000
40,000
200,000
35,000
120,000
500,000
240,000
90,000
Total revenue L.3,000,000
Total Expenditure L.3,000,000
The amount of the national debt is L.l 1,000,000
The military force of Bavaria consists of about 54,000 Army,
men, raised, as in Prussia and most other German states,
by conscription, each conscript being subject to five years’
service. They form sixteen regiments of infantry, each
of two battalions or twelve companies, with 190 men or
upwards in each company ; making, with four smaller bat¬
talions of chasseurs d pied, above 40,000 infantry. The
cavalry consists of two regiments of cuirassiers and six
regiments of light horse; in all 9000. The artillery and
engineers consist of four battalions, or twenty-four com¬
panies, in number 4000. The total army of Bavaria is
thus 53,000 or 54,000 men, but of these in time of peace
two thirds are on furlough, leaving for active duty a force
of 17,000 men; viz. 13,000 infantry, 2000 cavalry, and
2000 artillery.1
The military school at Munich has a high reputation.
Arms and ammunition are manufactured in different towns
in the kingdom.
Christianity appears to have been introduced into Bava-Religion,
ria in the sixth century. The present proportion of the
different religions is :—
Catholics 2,700,000
Lutherans 1,100,000
Calvinists  60,000
Jews  60,000
Moravians, Anabaptists, and lesser sects, 10,000
The exercise of religious worship in Bavaria is altoge¬
ther free. The Protestants have the same civil rights as
the Catholics, and the sovereign may be either catholic or
protestant. Civil immunities have not yet been extend¬
ed to Anabaptists, Moravians, or Jews, The latter follow
in this, as in other countries, neither agricultural nor me¬
chanical employments : they are all traffickers in one way
or other, the most respectable being merchants, the in¬
ferior class brokers and jobbers. Of the catholic church
the heads are two archbishops and six bishops; among
the protestants the highest authority is the general con¬
sistory of Munich.
Bavaria was formerly as backward in regard to educa-Education,
tion as Austria or any part of the south of German)^; but
in the course of the last and present age considerable ef¬
forts have been made to lessen the prevailing ignorance.
At Munich there are scientific and literary academies, as
well as a university, a lyceum, a gymnasium, and other
public schools. The university has a very numerous at-
...' The numbers here set down very nearly coincide with those given in the article Aemy, under the head “ Bavarian Army” (vol.
u' P.- 610), to which we beg to refer, as being at once more detailed and precise.
BAVARIA.
462
Bavaria, tendance of students, namely, about 1800; and there are
two provincial universities on a small scale, one catholic at
Wurzburg, the other protestant at Erlangen in Franconia.
In the kingdom at large there are seven lyceums, eighteen
gymnasia, twenty-one pro-gymnasia, and 5000 elemen¬
tary schools; at which it is computed that nearly half a
million of children or young people of both sexes receive
instruction in reading and writing. These certainly form
a great contrast to the indifference and neglect of former
times ; and the government continues to evince much soli¬
citude for the diffusion of instruction. But there is still un¬
fortunately a great want of schools above the rank of those
merely elementary ; they are confined to the larger towns,
for in the smaller the inhabitants are hardly able to de¬
fray the expense; and the funds appropriated to such a
purpose by government are necessarily limited. Much
therefore remains to be done before the lower orders in Ba¬
varia can be raised from their general state of ignorance
and superstition, or made to approach, in habits of order,
diligence, and cleanliness, to the inhabitants of the pro¬
testant states of Germany.
Yet the national character of the Bavarians is in gene¬
ral commendable. Like the majority of the population of
Austria, they are accustomed to be faithful to their en¬
gagements and loyal to their government; but they are
credulous, and even superstitious, in matters of religion.
In short, the will of their superiors is received by the
lower orders implicitly as a law in political as in ecclesi¬
astical affairs. A great deal was said thirty years ago
about the masonic and other secret societies said to have
been formed in this country at the time of the French
revolution, and to have aimed at combining their efforts
with similar societies in Prussia for the overthrow of the
established governments. Such assertions, if not abso¬
lutely false, must have rested on a very slender founda¬
tion, no people being less inclined than the Bavarians to
join in revolutionary projects, or less capable of conceiving
that any advantage could possibly result from them.
Govern- The government of Bavaria in the early ages of the
ment. German empire did not descend from father to son: it
involved an important military trust, and was conferred
by the emperor on princes of different families until the
thirteenth century. Towards the close of that century
Louis, of the house of Wittelsbach, duke of Lower Bava¬
ria, and count palatine of the Rhine, left two sons, Ro-
dolph and Louis, between whom, according to the usage
of the age, the father’s dominions were shared, the elder
receiving the palatinate of the Rhine, the latter the duchy
of Bavaria. Small as the Rhenish palatinate was, its com¬
parative civilization made it the more valuable of the two;
and its head had the important privileges of an elector of
the empire. From the two princes just mentioned de¬
scended the rulers of these respective states during five
centuries and upwards; until, in 1770, on the failure of
the Bavarian line, Charles Theodore, count of the palati¬
nate, obtained the succession, and removed to Munich,
since which the two countries have been governed as one
state. Charles Theodore ruled Bavaria above twenty
years. Fie evinced much anxiety for the improvement of
his new subjects, but, like his contemporary the emperor
Joseph II. of Austria, made no sufficient allowance for
their general backwardness, or for their unfitness to com¬
prehend the advantage of many of his proposed changes.
He died in 1799, and was succeeded by Maximilian L, a
prince of equal philanthropy and greater prudence, who
governed Bavaria twenty-six years, and was succeeded
in 1825 by his son Louis, the present king.
Bavaria, like other German states, has long had its
states or parliament, composed of nobility and prelates.
Its present form of government is founded partly on long
established usage, partly on a constitutional act of great Ba
length, passed in May 1818. The country is there declar-^
ed an integral part of the Germanic confederation, and
the monarchy hereditary, with a legislative body of two
houses, the Upper and Lower. The title of the sovereign
is simply king of Bavaria; that of his presumptive heir is
crown prince of Bavaria. The executive power is vested
altogether in the king, whose person is declared inviolable:
the responsibility rests with the ministers, whose functions
are nearly the same as those of ministers in England or
France ; and they have respectively offices for foreign af¬
fairs, for the home department, for the treasury, the army,
and the administration of justice. The upper house of the
Bavarian parliament comprises the princes of the blood-
royal, the two archbishops, the barons or heads of families
of landed property, and any other members whom the king
may nominate, either as hereditary peers or as counsellors
for life ; but the latter must not exceed a third of the he¬
reditary members. The lower house consists at present
(1831) of 115 deputies, elected on a plan a good deal dif¬
ferent from ours, for an eighth part must be of the class
of nobility, another eighth of the clergy, a fourth part
citizens or burghers, and the remaining half landed pro¬
prietors. Each of the three universities also names a re¬
presentative. A general election takes place once in six
years, and the number of members bids fair to increase; for
the elective law prescribes that there shall be a deputy or
member of the lower house for every 7000 families in the
kingdom. The king generally convenes the parliament
once a year, and by the constitution it is obligatory on him
to do so at least once in three years. The direct taxes
must be granted anew under the authority of the parlia¬
ment once in six years.
The adoption of this constitution was accompanied by
the abolition of all that remained of personal servitude
among the peasantry; for many Bavarians of the lower
class were until lately serfs, being paid for their labour, not
by wages, but by maintenance. They were consequently
very indolent, and the government have not yet thought
it advisable to exempt them from such punishments as
cudgelling and flogging, or from compulsory labour on the
public roads. The political improvements still wanting in
Bavaria are a more complete equalization of taxes ; publi¬
city in the proceedings of courts of justice ; a removal of
the restrictions on trade with the neighbouring states;
and an amendment of the penal code. The liberty of the
press is already complete.
The diplomatic establishment of Bavaria consists of am¬
bassadors, resident in Paris, London, Vienna, Berlin, and St
Petersburg; and of envoys in the smaller German capitals,
such as Weimar, Carlsruhe, and Darmstadt.
No part of Europe, if we except the Netherlands, has Fori n
been more exposed to invasion than Bavaria, and in nonep°l‘; »
has the painful interest arising from military conflicts
been given to a greater variety of places. As long as
two centuries ago, both Bavaria and Franconia were laid
waste in the Thirty Years’ War between the Catholics and
Protestants. It was near Augsburg, on the banks of the
Lech, that Gustavus Adolphus obtained, in 1632, a me¬
morable victory over the Austrians and other Catholic
allies, commanded by Count Tilly. At Nuremberg the
success of the Swedish sovereign was for a time arrested
by the talents of Wallenstein; but at Nordlingen, two
y^ears after, the death of the king and the injuries of the
Protestants were avenged in a dreadful conflict. The
French next took part in the war, and carried devastation
throughout this part of Germany. In the succeeding age
Bavaria was invaded by our countrymen and their allies;
and it was at Schellenberg, a strong position near the Da¬
nube, that the duke of Marlborough first worsted the Bava-
BAX
BAX
463
vians, in July 1704, above a month previous to the battle
■ of Blenheim. In the wars of the French revolution both
Ba) • Franconia and Bavaria were repeatedly overrun. It was
S' Amberg that the archduke Charles stopped the advance
of the French in 1796, and at Wurzburg that he finally
defeated them ; successes repeated with equal effect three
years after, when, in March 1799, he again met their ar¬
my on Bavarian ground, near the banks of the Lech. The
subsequent operations in this country were equally perni¬
cious to it, though very different in their political results.
The name of Hohenlinden recalls the triumph of Moreau
in 1800; that of Ulm the surrender of the Austrian army
under Mack in October 1805. Lastly, it was at Eckmuhl
and Ratisbon, in 1809, that Buonaparte obtained over the
Austrians victories which compelled them to retreat with
heavy loss, and opened to him the gates of Vienna.
Such has been the fate of Bavaria in times past; but Baxter,
the prospect is now happily very different, and the inha-
bitants may hope to cultivate their territory in peace.
The emperor of Austria having espoused a Bavarian prin¬
cess in 1816, there prevails the greatest cordiality between
the two governments; and a deliberate view of their re¬
spective interests will probably render it permanent. On
the one hand, France has no longer the power of convuls¬
ing the interior of Germany; and on the other, it is evi¬
dent that no country will profit more largely by continued
peace than Bavaria. If we consider its physical advan¬
tages in soil, climate, and geographical position, and com¬
pare its condition with that of improved countries, such as
England or the Netherlands, every impartial observer must
admit that its cultivation has not yet been carried to half
or nearly half the extent of which it is capable, (m. m.)
BAWTRY, a market-town in the parish of Blythe, in
the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, in the West Rid¬
ing of Yorkshire. It stands on the river Idle, w'hich
empties itself into the Trent, by which it carries on some
trade. It is 155 miles from London, on the great road
to Scotland, and has a good market on Saturday, and a
smaller one on Wednesday. The inhabitants, in 1801,
were 798; in 1811, 918; and in 1821, 1027.
BAXTER, Richard, an eminent nonconformist divine,
was born at Rowton in Shropshire, the 12th November
1615, and distinguished himself by his exemplary life, his
pacific and moderate principles, and his numerous writings.
He was remarkable for his piety even when he was very
young. Upon the opening of the Long Parliament he was
chosen vicar of Kidderminster. In the heat of the civil
wars he withdrew from that town to Coventry, and preach¬
ed to the garrison and inhabitants. When Oliver Crom¬
well was made protector, he declined complying with his
measures, though he once preached before him. He came
to London just before the deposition of Richard Cromwell,
and preached before the parliament the day previous to
that on which they voted the return of Charles II. The
king, on his restoration, appointed Baxter one of his chap¬
lains in ordinary. The latter assisted at the conference
in the Savoy, as one of the commissioners for stating the
fundamentals in religion, and afterwards drew up a re¬
formed liturgy. He was offered the bishopric of Here¬
ford, which he refused, affecting no higher preferment
than the liberty of continuing minister of Kidderminster;
but this was denied him, for he was not permitted to
preach there above twice or thrice after the Restoration ;
whereupon he returned to London and preached occasion¬
ally in or about the city till the act of uniformity passed.
In 1662 Mr Baxter married Margaret Charleton, daughter
to Francis Charleton, Esq. of the county of Salop. This
lady was a woman of great piety, and entered thoroughly
into her husband’s views concerning religion. During
the plague in 1665 he retired into Buckinghamshire; but
afterwards returned to Acton, where he staid till the act
against conventicles expired, and then his audience be¬
came so large that he wanted room. Upon this he was
committed to prison ; but having procured a habeas corpus,
he was discharged. After the indulgence in 1672, he re¬
turned to London; but in 1682 he was seized for coming
within five miles of a corporation. In 1684 he was again
seized; and in the reign of King James II. he was com¬
mitted prisoner to the King’s Bench, and tried before the
lord chief justice Jefferies for his Paraphrase on the New
lestament, which was called a “ scandalous” and “ sedi¬
tious book against the government. He continued in pri¬
son two years; but was at last discharged, and had his fine
remitted by the king. He died on the 8th of December
1691, and was buried in Christ Church.
Mr Sylvester says that Mr Baxter’s “ person was tall
and slender, and stooped much ; his countenance compos¬
ed and grave, somewhat inclining to a smile. He had a
piercing eye, a very articulate speech, and deportment
leather plain than complimental.” The same writer adds,
“ He had a great command over his thoughts. He had
that happy faculty, so as to answer the character that was
given of him by a learned man dissenting from him after
discourse with him, which was that he could say what he
would, and he could prove what he said. He was most in¬
tent upon the necessary things. Rational learning he
most valued, and was a very extraordinary master of. And
as to his expressive faculty, he spake properly, plainly,
pertinently, and pathetically. He could speak suitably,
both to men’s capacities and to the things insisted on.
He was a person wonderful at extemporary preaching.”
But his common practice appears to have been to preach
from notes, though he said that “ he thought it very
needful for a minister to have a body of divinity in his
head.” He was honoured with the friendship of some of
the greatest and the best men in the kingdom, as the earl
of Lauderdale, the earl of Balcarras, Lord Chief Justice
Hales, Dr Tillotson, &c.; and he carried on a correspond¬
ence with some of the most eminent foreign divines. He
wrote above a hundred and twenty books, and more than
sixty were written against him. The former, however,
it should seem, were greatly preferable to the latter, since
Dr Barrow, an excellent judge, says that “ his practical
writings were never mended, his controversial seldom
confuted.”
Mr Granger’s character of him is too striking to be
omitted. “ Richard Baxter was a man famous for weak¬
ness of body and strength of mind; for having the strongest
sense of religion himself, and exciting a sense of it in
the thoughtless and profligate; for preaching inore ser¬
mons, engaging in more controversies, and writing more
books, than any other nonconformist of his age. He spoke,
disputed, and wrote with ease; and discovered the same
intrepidity when he reproved Cromwell and expostu¬
lated with Charles II. as when he preached to a congre¬
gation of mechanics. His zeal for religion was extraordi¬
nary, but it seems never to have prompted him to faction,
or carried him to enthusiasm. This champion of the Pres¬
byterians was the common butt of men of every other re¬
ligion, and of those who were of no religion at all. But
this had very little effect upon him ; his presence and his
firmness of mind on no occasion forsook him. He was just
the same man before he went into a prison, while he was
in it, and when he came out of it; and he maintained an
464
BAX
BAY
Baxter, uniformity of character to the last gasp of his life. His
enemies have placed him in hell; but every man who has
not ten times the bigotry that Mr Baxter himself had,
must conclude that he is in a better place. This is a very
faint and imperfect sketch of Mr Baxter’s character: men
of his size are not to be drawn in miniature. His portrait,
in full proportion, is in his Narrative of his own Life and
Times; which, though a rhapsody, composed in the man¬
ner of a diary, contains a great variety of memorable
things, and is itself, as far as it goes, a history of noncon¬
formity.” Among his most celebrated works are, 1. The
Saints’ Everlasting Rest; 2. Call to the Unconverted, of
which 20,000 were sold in one year, and it was translated
not only into all the European languages, but into the
Indian tongue; 3. Poor Man’s Family Book; 4. Dying
Thoughts; and, 5. A Paraphrase on the New Testament.
His practical works have been printed in four volumes folio.
Baxter, William^ nephew and heir to the former, was an
eminent schoolmaster and critic. He was born at Lanlu-
gan, in Shropshire, in the year 1650; and it is remarkable,
that at the age of eighteen, when he first went to school, he
knew not one letter, nor understood one word of any lan¬
guage but Welsh ; but he improved his time so well that he
became a person of great and extensive knowledge. His
genius led him chiefly to the study of antiquities and phi¬
lology, in which he composed several books. The first he
published was a grammar, in 1679, entitled De Analogia
sen Arte Latinoe Linguae Commentariolus. He also pub¬
lished a new and correct edition of Anacreon, with notes ;
an edition of Horace ; a Dictionary of British Antiquities,
in Latin ; and several other works. He was a great mas¬
ter of the ancient British and Irish tongues, and particu¬
larly skilled in the Latin, Greek, northern, and oriental
languages. He died on the 31st May 1723, after being
above twenty years master of Mercer’s school in London.
Baxter, Andrew, a very ingenious metaphysical writer,
was born in 1686 or 1687, in Old Aberdeen, where his fa¬
ther was a merchant, and educated in King’s College
there. His principal employment was that of private tu¬
tor to young gentlemen; and among his pupils were Lord
Gray, Lord Blantyre, and Mr Hay of Drummelzier.
About 1724 he married the daughter of a clergyman in
Berwickshire. A few years afterwards, but without date, he
published, in 4to, An Inquiry into the Nature of the Human
Soul, wherein its immateriality is evinced from the prin¬
ciples of reason and philosophy. In 1741 he went abroad
with Mr Hay, and resided several years at U trecht, having
Lord Blantyre also under his care. From this place he
made excursions into Flanders, France, and Germany, his
wife and family residing, in the mean time, chiefly at Ber¬
wick-upon-Tweed. He returned to Scotland in 1747, and
resided till his death at Whittingham, in the county of
East Lothian. He drew up, for the use of his pupils and
his son, a piece, entitled Matho, sive Cosmotheoria puerilis,
Dialogus, in quo prima elementa de mundi ordine et ornatu
proponuntur, &c. This was afterwards greatly enlarged,
and published in English, in two volumes 8vo. In 1750
was published an appendix to his Inquiry into the Nature
of the Human Soul, in which he endeavours to remove
some difficulties which had been started against his no¬
tions of the vis inertia of matter, by Maclaurin, in his Ac¬
count of Sir Isaac Neivton s Philosophical Discoveries. To
this piece Mr Baxter prefixed a dedication to Mr John
A ilkes, with whom he had commenced an acquaintance
abroad. He died on the 23d April 1750, after suffering
for some months under a complication of severe disorders,
of winch the gout was the chief. He left a wife, three
daughteis, and one son, Mr Alexander Baxter, from whom
the authors of Biographici Britannicct, received sundry par¬
ticulars of his life.
Mr Baxter’s learning and abilities are sufficiently display-
ed in his writings. He was extremely studious, and some" p
times sat up whole nights reading and writing. At the var<
same time his temper was very cheerful, and he was a friend '
to innocent merriment. It is said of Mr Baxter that he
entered with much good humour into the conversation and
pleasures of young people, when they were of an innocent
nature; and that during the whole of his residence at
Utrecht he presided at the ordinary, which was frequent,
ed by all the young English gentlemen there, with much
gaiety and politeness, and in such a manner as to give
universal satisfaction. He also attended the most polite
assemblies in that city, and his company and conversation
were particularly acceptable to the ladies; so that Mr
Baxter appeared to have studied the graces, without ne¬
glecting more valuable acquisitions and accomplishments.
He was at once the scholar and the gentleman. In con¬
versation he was modest, and not apt to make much show
of the extensive knowledge he was possessed of; while
in the discharge of the several social and relative duties
of life his conduct was exemplary. He had the most re¬
verential sentiments of the deity, of whose presence and
immediate support he had always a strong impression upon
his mind ; and the general tenor of his life appears to have
been conformable to the rules of virtue. Mr Baxter paid
a strict attention to economy, though he dressed elegant¬
ly, and was not parsimonious in his other expenses. It is
known also that there were several occasions on which he
acted with remarkable disinterestedness; and so far was
he from courting preferment, that he repeatedly declined
considerable offers of that kind which were made him on
condition of his taking orders in the church of England.
The French, German, and Dutch languages he spoke with
much ease, and the Italian tolerably; and he wrote and
read all of them, together with the Spanish. His friends
and correspondents were both numerous and respectable;
amongst these was Dr Warburton, bishop of Gloucester.
He was also a man of great benevolence and candour; in¬
somuch, that although Mr Wilkes had made himself very
obnoxious to the Scottish nation in general, Mr Baxter
maintained an affectionate correspondence with himto the
last, even after he was unable to write with his own hand.
He left many manuscripts behind him, and would gladly
have finished his work upon the human soul. “ I own,”
says he, in a letter to Mr Wilkes, “ if it had been the will
of Heaven, I would gladly have lived till I had put in or¬
der the second part of the Inquiry, showing the immor¬
tality of the human soul; but infinite wisdom cannot be
mistaken in calling me sooner. Our blindness makes us
form wishes. ’ This, indeed, he considered his capital
work. A second edition of it was published in two vo¬
lumes 8vo in 1737, and a third in 1745.
BAY, an arm of the sea, shooting up into the land, and
terminating in a nook. It is a kind of lesser gulf, larger
than a creek, and wider within than at its entrance.
Bay Colour denotes a sort of red inclining to chesnut.
The term is chiefly used in speaking of horses.
Bay Window, a window which projects, either in the
form of a semicircle or otherwise, forming a space simi¬
lar in shape to a bay: hence its name.
BAYARD, Peter du Terrail de, esteemed by his
contemporaries the model of soldiers and men of honour,
and denominated “ the knight without fear and without
reproach,” was descended from an ancient and noble fa¬
mily in Dauphine. He accompanied Charles VIII. in his
expedition to Italy, and gave remarkable proofs of his
valour, especially at the battle of Fornone. He was dan¬
gerously wounded at the taking of the city of Brescia; and
there restored to the daughters of his host two thousand
pistoles, which their mother had directed them to give
BAY
BAY
IK
r>.i
id him in order to prevent the house from being plundered;
an action which has been celebrated by many historians.
On his return to France he was made lieutenant-general
^ of Dauphine. He fought by the side of Francis I. at the
battle of Marignan; and that prince afterwards insisted
on being knighted by his hand, after the manner of the
ancient knights. The Chevalier Bayard defended Me-
zieres during six weeks, against Charles the Fifth’s army.
In 1524, at the retreat of Rebeque, when General Bonivet
had been wounded and obliged to quit the field, the con¬
duct of the rear was committed to the Chevalier Bayard;
who, though so much a stranger to the arts of a court
that he never rose to the chief command, was always call¬
ed, in times of real danger, to the posts of greatest diffi¬
culty and importance. He put himself at the head of the
men-at-arms; and animating them by his presence and
example to sustain the shock of the enemy’s whole troops,
he gained time sufficient for the rest of his countrymen to
make good their retreat. But in this service he received
a wound which he immediately perceived to be mortal;
and being unable to continue longer on horseback, he or¬
dered one of his attendants to place him under a tree,
with his face towards the enemy; then fixing his eyes on
the guard of his sword, which he held up instead of a
cross, he addressed his prayers to God, and, in this pos¬
ture, which became his character both as a soldier and as a
Christian, he calmly awaited the approach of death. Bour¬
bon, who led the foremost of the enemy’s troops, found
him in this situation, and expressed pity and regret at the
sight. “ Pity not me,” cried the high-spirited chevalier;
“ I die, as a man of honour ought, in the discharge of my
duty. They indeed are objects of pity w'ho fight against
their king, their country, and their oath.” The marquis
de Pescara, passing soon after, manifested his admiration
of Bayards virtue, as well as his sorrow for his fate, with
the generosity of a gallant enemy; and finding that he
could not be removed with safety from that spot, he ordered
a tent to be pitched there, and appointed proper persons
to attend him. But notwithstanding all this care, Bayard
died, as his ancestors for several generations had done, in
the field of battle. Pescara ordered his body to be em¬
balmed, and sent to his relations; and such was the re¬
spect paid to military merit in that age, that the duke of
Savoy commanded it to be received with royal honours in
all the cities of his dominions. In Dauphine, Bayard’s na¬
tive province, the people of all ranks came out in a solemn
procession to meet it.
BAYAZID, or Bajazid, a city of Turkish Armenia,
m the pashalic of Erzeroum, situated on a mountain, the
summit of which is strongly fortified. It is surrounded
y a wall and ramparts: it has two churches and three
mosques; and the monastery of Karu Killeesea is famous
°r the beauty of its architecture, as well as for its anti¬
quity and grandeur. The inhabitants are esteemed through¬
out Armenia for their learning and their martial habits.
. ey ccns*st chiefly of Turks, with a proportion of Arme¬
nians, who speak the Turkish language, and enjoy the same
privileges as their masters. The climate is mild; and the
01 y, with the extensive territory annexed to it, is under
, government of a pasha of two tails. The population
es imated at 30,000. It is 50 miles south-south-west
Lat 6aSt ■^rzerourn* Long. 43. 45. E.
■^ETER’ a celebrated chemist, member of the
Marn euf ^rance’ was born in 1723’ at Chalons-sur-
sp . ,e' He showed a great inclination to study, and was
tln-r n 18 Parents t0 school at Troyes, where he went
, a coul'se of classical education with success,
wen/t ont.°*b‘s disP08^011 was to physical science. Fie
v ° Pans in 1749, and became the pupil and friend of
an eminent druggist. In this situation he acquired a com¬
plete knowledge of the profession; and, before the age of
thirty, he was appointed chief apothecary to the French
army m Germany, in the Seven Years’ War, a situation
which he filled with industry, intelligence, and integrity.
After the conclusion of peace, he returned to Paris.
The French government had employed Rouelle to name
chemists for the purpose of analyzing the mineral waters
which are found in different parts of France, and had al¬
lotted funds for this purpose. One of the chemists named
was Bayen, and he employed himself ardently in these
analyses for several years. His analysis of the waters of
Barege and of Bagneres de Luchon are published; and
besides the detail of accurate and well-contrived chemical
processes, they contain matter interesting to the medical
man, to the naturalist, and even to the general reader.
He resided at the above-named baths, in the Pyrenees,
whilst he was employed in analyzing the waters. The
project of the French government was not carried farther
than the analysis of these waters, so that the public em¬
ployment of Bayen now ceased.
He returned to Paris, and made the analysis of different
minerals which he had collected chiefly during his resi¬
dence in the Alpine region of the Pyrenees. Amongst
these is the marble of Campan, of which there are two
varieties, the red and the green. They are brought from
that country to Paris, where they make a distinguished
figure in ornamental architecture; as may be seen in the
columns of the palace of Great Trianon, in the interior of
the church of St Sulpice, and in other great buildings.
These analyses are published in the Memoires presents d
VAcademic par divers Savans, commonly called Memoires
des Savans Etrangers.
Fie made most accurate experiments on the oxides of
mercury, to show that oxidation arises from the absorp¬
tion of a portion of the atmospheric air, and that the ex¬
istence of the phlogiston of Stahl could not be proved. La¬
voisier was present when the account of these experiments
was read, and was employed at the same time in examin¬
ing the metallic oxides ; and it was Lavoisier that brought
the subject into a clearer light, and demonstrated the na¬
ture of oxygen, and the composition of the atmosphere.
Bayen published an analysis of tin and pewter. In con¬
sequence of the writings of some German chemists, fears
had arisen amongst the public, that the use of these me¬
tals in culinary vessels was pernicious. Bayen showed
that these fears were without any ground, if the pewter
be of the legal standard, and be not fraudulently mixed
with too great a portion of lead.
His mode of analyzing minerals required a long time ;
he exposed the mineral, without being reduced to pow'der,
to the action of sulphuric acid at the temperature of the
atmosphere; after this action had continued for a length
of time, he got by lixiviation the sulphates formed by the
combination of the acid, with the different component
elements of the stone. He did not make use of the tritu¬
ration of the stone to an impalpable powder, nor its fusion
with caustic potash, which facilitate the subsequent action
of acids, and which are used with so much advantage in
the processes of modern chemists. The account he has
published of his analysis will nevertheless be instructive
to the chemical student, although the excellent and ex¬
peditious methods of Klaproth and Vauquelin are those
that should be followed in practice.
He enjoyed good health till sixty, and died at the age
of seventy-six, in the year 1801. He was a man of sound
judgment, of strict integrity, and acquainted with several
other branches of knowledge besides that which he parti¬
cularly cultivated. There is a collection of his works, en¬
titled Opuscules Chimiques, 1798, 2 vols. 8vo. (b. b.)
3 N
465
Bayeux.
BAY
BAY
BAYEUX, an arrondissement of the department of
Calvados, in France, extending over 390 square mdes,
containing six cantons, 159 communes, and ,0 in ia
bitants. The capital, a city of the same name, is on the
river Eure, in a fruitful valley, about seven mdes from
the sea. It contains 10,419 inhabitants, who are chiefly
employed in making linen and cotton goods, and lace.
Long. 0. 48. W. Lat. 49. 16. N. ... .
BAYLA, or Bela, a town of Persia, in the province of
Mekran, and capital of the district of Lus. It is bullt on
the north-eastern bank of the river Pooralee. About one
third of the town in the western quarter is encompassed by
a tolerably good mud wall; the remainder is totally unpro¬
tected against any attack either of horse or foot. 1 he
streets are narrow ; but from the elevated situation of the
town, and its rocky site, they must be always dry, even in
the wettest weather. The bazar is very neat and clean.
Bavla is the residence of the chief of Lus, whose govei n-
ment is mild and equitable, and insures complete protec¬
tion to mercantile dealers. His durbar or hall of audience
is a large open apartment of very ordinary structure, and
he maintains no state nor order. The town contains 1500
houses and 6000 inhabitants. It is 293 miles N. of Kelat.
Long. 66. 40. E. Lat. 26. 10. N.
J3AYLE, Peter, author of the Historical and Critical
Dictionary, was born on the 18th of November 1647, at
Carla, a village in the county of Foix, in France, where his
father, John Bayle, was a Protestant minister. In 1666 he
went to the Protestant university at Puylaurens, where he
studied with the greatest application; and in 1669 he re¬
moved to the university of Toulouse, whither the Protest¬
ants at that time frequently sent their children to study
under the Jesuits; but here, to the inexpressible grief of
his father, he embraced the Romish religion. However,
being soon sensible of his error, he left that university and
went to study at Geneva, after which he was chosen pro¬
fessor of philosophy at Sedan; but this Protestant uni¬
versity having been suppressed by Louis XIV. m 1681,
he was obliged to leave the city, and was soon after chosen
professor of philosophy and history at Rotterdam. I he
year following he published his Letter concerning Comets.
And Father Maimbourg having about this time published
his History of Calvinism, in which he endeavoured to draw
upon the Protestants the contempt and resentment of the
Catholics, Mr Bayle wrote a piece to confute it. The re¬
putation which he had now acquired induced the states
of Friesland, in 1684, to offer him a professorship in their
university; but he wrote them a letter of thanks, and de¬
clined the offer. The same year he began to publish his
Nouvelles de la Republique des Retires.
In 1686 he was drawn into a dispute in relation to the
celebrated Christina, queen of Sweden. In his Journal for
April he took notice of a printed letter supposed to have
been written by her Swedish majesty to the chevalier de
Terlon, in which she condemns the persecution of the
Protestants in France. He inserted the letter itself m
his Journal for May; and in that of June following he
says, “ What we hinted at last month is confirmed to us
from day to day, that Christina is the real author of the
letter concerning the persecutions in France, which is
ascribed to her : it is a remainder of Protestantism. Mr
Bayle received an anonymous letter, complaining that,
in speaking of her majesty, he had called her simply
Christina, without any title; finding great fault with his
describing the letter as “ a remainder of Protestantism
and blaming him likewise for inserting the words “ I am,”
in the conclusion. “ These words,” says this anonymous
writer, “are not her majesty’s ; a queen, as she is, cannot
employ these words but with regard to a very few persons,
and M. de Terlon is not of that number.” The author of
this letter stated that he wrote of his own accord, being B e,
in duty bound to do so, “ as a servant of the queen.” Mr ^ «w
Bayle wrote a vindication of himself as to these particulars,
with which the author of the anonymous letter declared
himself satisfied, excepting what related to “ the remain¬
der of Protestantism.” He would not admit the validity
of the defence in regard to that expression, and in another
letter advised Mr Bayle to retract it. He adds in a post¬
script, “ You mention, in your Journal of August, a second
letter of the queen, which you scruple to publish. Her
majesty would be glad to see that letter; and you will do
a thing agreeable to her if you would send it to her. You
might take this opportunity of writing to her majesty.
This counsel may be of some use to you; do not neglect
it.” Mr Bayle took the hint, and wrote a letter to her
majesty, dated the 14th of November 1686, to which the
queen, on the 14th of December, returned the following
answer:—
“ Mr Bayle, I have received your excuses, and am
willing you should know by this letter that I am satisfied
with them. I am obliged to the zeal of the person who
gave you occasion of writing to me, for I am very glad to
know you. You express so much respect and affection
for me, that I pardon you sincerely; and I would have
you know, that nothing gave me offence but that remain¬
der of Protestantism, of which you accused me. I am very
delicate on that head, because nobody can suspect me
of it without lessening my glory, and injuring me in the
most sensible manner. YYm would do well if you should
even acquaint the public with the mistake you have made,
and with your regret for it. This is all that remains to
be done by you, in order to deserve my being entirely
satisfied with you. As to the letter which you have sent
me, it is mine without doubt; and since you tell me that
it is printed, you will do me a pleasure if you send me
some copies of it. As I fear nothing in h ranee, so neithei
do I fear anything at Rome. My fortune, my blood, and
even my life, are entirely devoted to the service of the
church; but I flatter nobody, and will never speak any¬
thing but the truth. I am obliged to those who have been
pleased to publish my letter, for I do not at all disguise
my sentiments. I thank God, they are too noble and too
honourable to be disowned. However, it is not true that
this letter was written to one of my ministers. As 1 have
everywhere enemies and persons who envy me, so m all
places I have friends and servants; and I have possibly
as many in France, notwithstanding the court, as any¬
where in the world. This is purely the truth, and you
may regulate yourself accordingly. But you shall not ge
off so cheaply as you imagine. I will enjoin you a penance,
which is, that you will henceforth take the trouble of sena-
ing me all curious books that shall be published in Latin,
French, Spanish, or Italian, on whatever subject orscience.
provided they are worthy of being looked into ; o n
even except romances or satires; and above all, 1 ^
are any books of chemistry, I desire you may send tnem
to me as soon as possible. Do not forget likewise 08
me your Journal. I shall order that you be pam .or Wrp, •
ever you lay out; do but send me an account 0 it-
will be the most agreeable and most important ser
that can be done me. May God prosper you.
On receiving this letter, which was signed 1, , 1
Alexandra,” it now only remained that Mr Bay e.s ,
acquaint the public with the mistake he had made, in ^
to merit that princess’s entire approbation; an^ 18 1
in the beginning of his Journal for January 168 .
The persecution which the Protestants at tns
suffered in France affected Mr Bayle extreme y.
made occasionally some reflections on their su _
his Journal; and he wrote a pamphlet also on 1
BAY
B A Z
467
iect. Some time afterwards he published his Commen-
Jtaire Philosophique upon these words, “ Compel them to
come in.” The great application he bestowed on this and
other works threw him into a fit of sickness, which obliged
him to discontinue his Literary Journal. Being advised
to try a change of air, he left Rotterdam on the 8th of
August, and went to Cleves; whence, after a time, he
removed to Aix-la-Chapelle, and thereafter returned to
Rotterdam on the 18th of October. In the year 1690,
the famous book entitled Avis aux Refugiez, &c. made
its appearance. Mr Jurieu, who took Mr Bayle for the
author of it, wrote a piece against it; and he prefixed an
advice to the public, in which he calls Mr Bayle a profane
person, and a traitor engaged in a conspiracy against the
state. As soon as Mr Bayle had read this libel against him,
he went to Rotterdam, and offered to go to prison, provided
his accuser would accompany him, and undergo the punish¬
ment he deserved if the accusation were found unjust. He
published also an answer to Mr Jurieu’s charge; and as his
reputation, nay his very life, was at stake in case the accu¬
sation of treason were proved, he therefore thought him¬
self not obliged to keep any terms with his accuser, and
attacked him with the utmost severity. Mr Jurieu lost
all patience, and applied to the magistrates of Amsterdam,
who advised him to a reconciliation with Mr Bayle, en¬
joining them not to publish any thing against each other
till it was examined by Mr Boyer, the pensioner of Rotter¬
dam. But notwithstanding this prohibition, Mr Jurieu
again attacked Mr Bayle with so much passion, that he
forced the latter to write a new vindication of himself.
In November 1690 M. de Beauval advertised in his Jour¬
nal A Scheme for a Critical Dictionary. This was the mag¬
num opus of Bayle. The articles of the first three letters
of the alphabet were already prepared; but a dispute which
happened between him and M. de Beauval obliged him for
some time to lay aside the work. Nor did he resume it till
the month of May 1692, when he published his scheme;
but the public not approving of his plan, he threw it into
a different form, and the first volume was published in
August 1695, and the second in October following. The
work in its new shape was extremely well received by
the public; but it engaged him in fresh disputes, particu¬
larly with Mr Jurieu and the abbe Renaudot. Mr Jurieu
published a piece, in which he endeavoured to engage the
ecclesiastical assemblies to condemn the Dictionary, and
presented it for that purpose to the synod sitting at Delft;
but they took no notice of the affair. The consistory of
Rotterdam granted Mr Bayle a hearing; and after having
considered his answers to their remarks on his Dictionary,
they declared themselves satisfied, and advised him to com¬
municate this to the public. Mr Jurieu made another at¬
tempt with the consistory in 1698, and so far prevailed
with them, that they exhorted Mr Bayle to be more cau¬
tious with regard to his principles in the second edition of
his Dictionary, which was published in 1702, with many
additions and improvements.
Bayle was a most laborious and indefatigable writer.
H one of his letters to Maizeaux, he says that since his
twentieth year he hardly remembers to have had any lei¬
sure. His intense application contributed perhaps to im¬
pair his constitution, for it soon began to decline. He
suffered from an affection of the lungs, which weakened
aim considerably; and as this was a distemper which had
cut off several of his family, he judged it mortal, and
would take no remedies. He died on the 28th of Decem¬
ber 1706, after he had been writing the greater part of the
^ He was the author of several pieces besides those
we have mentioned, many of which were written in his
own defence against attacks made upon him by the abbe
enaudot, Clarke, Jaquelot, and others. Among the pro¬
ductions which do honour to the age of Louis XIV. M. Vol- Bayly
taire has not omitted the Critical Dictionary of our author. II
“ It is the first work of the kind,” he says, “ in which a man Bayonne,
may learn to think.”...“In placing him,” continues the same
author, “ amongst the writers who do honour to the age of
Louis XIV., notwithstanding his being a refugee in Hol¬
land, I only conform to the decree of the parliament of
Toulouse, which, when it declared his will valid in France,
notwithstanding the rigour of the laws, expressly said, that
such a man could not he considered a foreigner?
BAYLY, Lewis, author of a wrell-known book entitled The
Practice of Piety. He was born at Caermarthen in Wales,
educated at Oxford, appointed minister of Evesham in
Worcestershire about 1611, made chaplain to King James,
and promoted to the see of Bangor in 1616. His book is
dedicated to the high and mighty prince, Charles prince
of Wales ; and the author tells his highness, “ that he had
endeavoured to extract out of the chaos of endless contro¬
versies the old practice of true piety, which flourished before
these controversies were hatched.” The design was good ;
and the reception this book has met with may be known
from the number of editions it has gone through, that in
8vo, 1734, being the fifty-ninth. This prelate died in 1632.
BAYONET, from the French Bdionnette, and so called
from the place where it is said to have been first made, a
kind of triangular dagger, made with a hollow handle and a
shoulder, to fix on the muzzle of a firelock or musket, so
that neither the charging nor firing is prevented by its being
attached to the piece. At first the bayonet was screwed in¬
to the muzzle of the barrel, and consequently could not be
used so long as a fusillade continued. The original inven¬
tion as well as the subsequent improvement of this weapon
is due to the French, who were also the first to employ it,
and, according to Folard, gained important advantages in
consequence, before the use of it became general. Its
great advantage consists in rendering the musket a pike,
and thus providing the soldier with a weapon which he
can at all times employ, either to resist an attack of ca¬
valry, or to charge the enemy’s infantry. Guibert, in his
Essai General de Tactique, has proposed a method of ex¬
ercising soldiers in a species of fencing or tilting with the
bayonet; and the French infantry, who are still disciplin¬
ed very much according to the system of this tactician,
receive some instruction of the kind he has recommended.
But we are inclined to agree in opinion with Mauvillon
(Essai sur VInfluence de la Poudre d Canon dans VArt de la
Guerre Moderne), that a soldier can never tilt or fence to
any purpose with an instrument so cumbrous and so dif¬
ficult to be handled as a firelock, since the utmost he
can do is to make one thrust, and even that cannot be
effected with any degree of ease or certainty. Steadi¬
ness and determination constitute all that is necessary to
render the bayonet effectual. This weapon was formerly
called dagger; and in some old English authors it is writ¬
ten bagonet, by which name it is still known among the
common soldiers.
BAYONNE, an arrondissement of the department of
the Lower Pyrenees in France, extending over 491 square
miles, and comprehending eight cantons and fifty-four
communes, with 69,498 inhabitants. The capital is the
city of the same name. It is situated at the junction of
the river Nive with the Adour, about three miles from the
sea, and is defended by a citadel and two castles. It is
tolerably well built, and is a manufacturing town, with ex¬
tensive trade in the export of cork, corn, wax, hams, and
other goods. It contains, besides the garrison, 14,000 in¬
habitants, of whom about 4000 are Jews. It has been the
theatre of several diplomatic negociations, and underwent
a siege which was terminated by the peace of 1814. Long.
1. 35. 8. W. Lat. 43. 29. 24. N.
468
BAZEEGURS.
Bazar BAZAR, or Bazaar, a denomination among the Turks
IJ and Persians, given to a kind of exchange, or place where
Bazeegurs. stuffs an(j 0t]ier wares are sold. The word bazar is of Ara-
bic origin, and literally denotes sale or exchange of goods.
Some of the eastern bazars are open, like the market-places
in Europe, and serve the same purposes, more particu¬
larly for the sale of the bulky and less valuable commodi¬
ties. Others, again, are covered with lofty ceilings, or even
domes, pierced to give light; and it is in these that the
jewellers, goldsmiths, and other dealers in the richer wares,
have their shops. The bazar or maidan of Ispahan is one of
the finest places in Persia, and greatly surpasses all the ex¬
changes in Europe; yet notwithstanding its magnificence,
it is excelled by the bazar of Tauris, which is the largest
known, having several times contained 30,000 men ranged
in order of battle. At Constantinople there are the old and
the new bazar, which are large square buildings, covered
with domes, and sustained by arches and pilasters. The
name of bazar has lately been given to various establish¬
ments, in London and other cities, where all sorts of goods
and wares are exhibited for sale.
BAZAS, an arrondissement in the department of the
Gironde in France, extending over 697 square miles, and
comprehending seven cantons and 68 communes, with a
population of 47,579 persons. The chief place is a market-
town of the same name, which contains 4215 inhabitants,
employed in various kinds of manufactures. Long. 0.40.
W. Lat. 42. 20. N.
BAZAT, or Baza, in Commerce, a long, fine-spun cot¬
ton, which comes from Jerusalem, whence it is also called
Jerusalem cotton.
BAZEEGURS, a tribe of Indians, inhabiting different
parts of the peninsula of Hindostan. The appearance and
manners of mankind are so much diversified in the various
countries where they dwell, that animated controversies
have been excited, whether all have had a common origin ;
or whether they have sprung from protoplasts whose con¬
formation, at the beginning of the world, was dissimilar.
Some maintain, that, in consequence of the changes pro¬
duced by situation, climate, and circumstances, the pre¬
sent generations may possibly exhibit figures and propor¬
tions altogether different from those that distinguished
their ancestors thousands of years ago ; while others hold
that no such differences could appear, unless they had
actually formed part of the original conformation of a
race. The partisans of either theory have appealed to
that uniformity of features and customs known to be con¬
tinued among tribes, who preserve their own descent pure
and unmixed with others, of which the Jews constitute a
striking example ; and a case something similar, though not
equally prominent, is that of the Bazeegurs. This class
of people is recognised by several appellations, as Bazee¬
gurs, Panchperee, Kunjura, or Nuts; they follow a mode
of life distinguishing them from the Hindoos, among whom
they dwell; they also abstain from intermixing their fami¬
lies with the Hindoos, and from any intercourse by which
they can be united. The name Bazeegur is said to signify a
juggler; and some etymologists find a probable derivation
of conjuror from Kunjura, which might certainly find a
corroboration from the similarity of professions. In India
they are dispersed throughout the whole country, partly
in wandering tribes, partly adhering to fixed residences,
but the greater proportion lead a nomadic life.
History. The Bazeegurs are divided into seven castes, Charee,
Athbhyeea, Bynsa, Purbuttee, Kalkoor, Dorkinee, and
Gurgwar; but all these are the same people, intermarry¬
ing as such, and avoiding alliances with other tribes. Accor¬
ding to their own traditions, they are descended from four
brothers, who, finding it difficult to provide for their nume¬
rous followers, resolved to separate, and to direct their
course respectively to each quarter of the world. In conse-Ba
quence of this one of them, named Sa, arrived in Bengal ^
from Gazeepour or Allahabad. He took up his abode at
Hoogly, and having governed his tribe peaceably during
many years, died at Uncourpoor, whither his posterity still
repair to offer up their prayers to his manes. Sa left three
sons who succeeded each other; and the succession having
afterwards regularly passed through several generations,
at length devolved to Munbhungee, many years ago. At
the same time some of the castes considered awoman called
Toota as the chief of the whole ; but the power ascribed to
the chief seems merely nominal, scarcely amounting to
restraint, and not at all to coercion. Munbhungee only
resisted the entrance of anyr of the people acknowledging
the superiority of Toota, to seek a livelihood in the terri¬
tory occupied by bis own sect; and the latter were under
the same prohibition with respect to the places frequented
by her and her dependents. Besides those who are united
into sets or castes, there are individuals who wander about
endeavouring to pick up a precarious livelihood.
It is not evident, although the Bazeegurs are certainly
distinguished by their manners and customs from the na¬
tives of Hindostan, that their features discriminate them
as a separate race. Some of their women are reputed
very beautiful, and are thence sought after in those tem¬
porary alliances common in the East. The manners of the
Panchperee are somewhat different from those of the Ba¬
zeegurs, and some of the sects are more civilized than
others. It has already been observed that they are not
in the exclusive occupation of anyr district in particular,
but their villages or respective quarters are found in the
same places as those of the Hindoos or British settlers.
The Panchperee form neat little encampments in the up¬
per provinces ; their huts are small and regular, and each
is surrounded by a small inclosure or court-yard, gene¬
rally disposed in such a manner that the whole hamlet,
formed of portable matting, obtains a kind of circumvalla-
tion by means of them.
The Bazeegurs, more especially distinguished by thatRt ion.
name, are the most civilized of the whole ; they are Ma-
hommedans in food, apparel, and religion. The Panch¬
peree profess no system of faith in preference, adopting
that of any village indifferently, whither their wanderings
may guide them. Some traverse the country as Mahom-
medan Fakeers, and live on the ill-directed bounty of de¬
votees ; and a particular association among them, of bad
repute or abject superstition, has been accused of sacri¬
ficing human victims. Notwithstanding their ignorance
of the established religions, they seem to venerate a female
deity, Kali, probably the sanguinary goddess of the Hin¬
doos, and many perhaps in this way seek to purchase her
protection. The Bazeegurs are circumcised, and have
priests to officiate at their marriages and funerals; but
their knowledge of the prophet Mahomet is very imper¬
fect, for they can give little account of him, except that
he was a saint. They seem to acknowledge an omnipo¬
tent Being, and conceive that all nature is animated by
one universal spirit, which the soul, as being part of it,
will rejoin after death. At the birth of their children,
some Brahmin, supposed an adept in astrology, is called in
to aid them in choosing a propitious name. _
Among the Panchperee, the marriage ceremony is com-Hn
menced by the bridegroom repairing to the hut of his
elect, and calling aloud for her to be delivered to him. A
near relation, guarding the door, resists his entrance, and
rudely pushes him away, while he is the object of taunts
and jocularity ; but when his patience is supposed to have
been sufficiently put to the test, the bride is brought out.
Both receive an exhortation from the priest to practise
mutual kindness; and the bridegroom, marking the brides
BAZEEGURS.
BaZ( irs.face with ochre, declares her his wedded wife; and she,
J on her part, does the same in return. The little fingers
of their hands are now joined, and a scene of merriment,
from which the bride alone is exempted, commences.
But this consists chiefly in the progress to intoxication,
4tf9
of red-hot iron. It thus appears that these tribes have aBazeegi
kind of civil government among themselves ; that each of
five sets, at Calcutta at least, has a sirdar or ruler, and
that the whole are subject to the Nardar Boutah. These
sirdars and the chief apparently constitute a court for the
for all these people are addicted to the most immoderate trial of any infringement of their regulations, which may
use of spirits; and after copious libations, a cavalcade, be followed by punishment. Thus if, on application of the
formed of the two parties, whose little fingers are again join- red-hot iron, the suspected manager be burnt, he is de¬
ed, and their parents and friends, departs for the hut of the clared guilty of a fraud, which is expiated by a fine, and,
bridegroom. Before the door there are some enigmatical if it be an aggravated offence, by the additional punish-
ceremonies performed ; the mother of the bridegroom ad¬
vances with a sieve containing rice, paint, and grass, with
which the foreheads of the couple are touched, after be¬
ing waved around them; and the bride is led into the
house, before which there stands a small fresh branch of
the mango tree in an earthen pot of water. The mean¬
ing of these ceremonies is not well understood; and it is
to be observed, that the origin of most of the customs of
ment of having- his nose rubbed on the ground. The
same penalty is attached to disclosures to strangers of
matters which it is the interest of the tribe to conceal.
The fine is generally converted into liquor ; but should the
offender be either unable or unwilling to discharge it im¬
mediately, he is banished from all society, or he is uni¬
versally execrated, and even his wife and children avoid
T . . him. He soon finds compliance indispensable, and al-
the modern races of mankind is lost in the darkness of though the Bazeegurs pique themselves on their honesty,
antiquity. Some of the peasantry in Britain have various it is conjectured that on such occasions they do not en-
ceremonies both at marriages and funerals, such as break- tertain many scruples in acquiring what is so essential to
ing a cake above the head of the bride, or strewing flow- avert the indignation of their fellows. The mulct being
ers on the bier of one deceased, which have descended paid, is converted to the general behoof, and affords
fiom remote ages, and arose fiom sources at this day un- a new opportunity for gratifying the strong propensities
known. When these ceremonies are completed among implanted in these people for ardent liquors. All differ-
the Bazeegurs, a new scene of mirth is resumed; and to- ences among this set are the subject of reference either
wards evening, for the whole day from the breaking of to a punchyat or a general assembly; but, before com-
dawn is thus occupied, the bride is conducted to her own mencing the business, both plantiff and defendant must
hut, when those who are able retire ; but the majority, provide a quantity of spirits proportioned to the import-
and in general the bridegroom among them, pass the ance of the case. The party non-suited ultimately bears
night in a state of insensibility on the neighbouring plain, the whole expense, and the assembly is regaled with the
from the earliest period they are accustomed to intoxi- beverage produced by the litigants,
eating draughts ; even infants of five or six months old Some of the Bazeegurs are owners of land, which they
are supplied with spirits, though their mothers suckle entertain a great desire to obtain ; but they are never cul-
them during five or six years; and it is not uncommon to tivators. They are collected, as already observed, into
observe several children of different ages hanging on their various associations in different parts of India. The
mother, and struggling to extract their scanty portion of dancing girls, however, have no regular and settled habi-
nourishment, which is gradually diminished by her own in- tations ; they dwell merely in temporary huts, erected
near the place of their exhibitions. The duration of their
lives is supposed to be much abridged by the course of
life which they lead, particularly from the violent exer¬
cises practised from early youth, and habitual indulgence
. , in intoxicating draughts. Both males and females under¬
authenticated, and if analogical reasoning may be admit- go such a regular progress of debauchery, that few live
ted here, we should be inclined to deny it, because there beyond forty, and many do not attain their thirtieth year,
is no proof that any tribe, however savage, is addicted to But from the pursuits of the females being productive to
their parents, their marriages are deferred to a later pe¬
riod than is usual in India. There prostitution is free
from that odium and contempt which it incurs in Europe,
   n ^   and those females who are considered so unfortunate and
former are extremely athletic, and the women are taught depraved by us are under the special protection of the
dancing, which, instead of the graceful motions seen in laws. The female Bazeegurs who are taught singing and
t ie north, consists there principally in a display of lasci- dancing only are under no greater personal restraint than
vious gestures. Most, if not all, the men are jugglers, the common dancing girls of Hindostan ; but the chastity
tumblers, and actors, in which they are very adroit. The of those whose particular department is tumbling is
people of each sect, or dramatis personae, are hired out by strictly enjoined until their place be supplied by others
a sirdar or manager of a company, for a definite period, more youthful. When this substitution comes they join
generally one year, after which they are at liberty to join the companies of dancers alone; and the men, though
any other party. But no person can establish a set of quite aware of their incontinence, do not scruple to select
actors without permission from the Nardar Boutah, a chief wives from among them. But after marriage a total
° j”e Bazeegurs, who receives a proportion of the profits, change of conduct is expected, and it is said that such
nt a tribute or tax from each female, somewhat analo- expectations are commonly realized. Nevertheless, among
§ous *° what was called milk-money, a revenue levied by the Panchperee, the fidelity of those employed in differ-
tidy See from licenses to prostitutes. On the return ent vocations in the towns becomes suspected if they
a party from an excursion, this money is paid to the have not returned to their homes when the cry of the
T ar Boutah, who convenes his people, and they con- jackal is heard, and their husbands are by no means dis-
oftl eaStin^ untB tBe wh°le is expended. Should any posed to overlook the offence. It does not appear, how-
of ip6 mana§ers be suspected of giving an unfair account ever, that they have either the power or the inclination of
18 P^°fits, a court is assembled, where the accused the Hindoos, who sometimes, in such cases, decoy their
undergo the ordeal of applying his tongue to a piece own daughters to a lonely place for the purpose of perpe-
satiable propensities to the same beverage. Many of the
sects are very indiscriminate in food; scarcely any thing
is rejected; dead horses, jackals, and bullocks, are alike
acceptable ; and it has been suspected that they can even
enjoy a repast of human flesh. However, this fact is not
anthropophagy, if dwelling among a more civilized people.
bhe chief occupation of the Bazeegurs seems to consist
in feats of address and agility to amuse the public, in
which both males and females are equally skilful. The
470 B A Z
Bazeegurs trating a barbarous murder on them, as tbe punishment of
II their indiscretion. The Bazeegur parents and husbands
Bazgend- are conten(; with slighter expiations; but if the paramour
l_i be not of their own particular caste, the incontinence of
the female is judged a much more grievous fault.
The females now alluded to are those who do not at¬
tend the juggling exhibitions of the men, or their feats of
activity; they practise physic and cupping, and perform
a kind of tattooing on the skin of the Hindoos of their own
sex, called Godna. As the men, besides their usual oc¬
cupations, collect medicinal herbs, and a certain bud, the
latter is dried, and the former prepared by their wives as
curatives, especially of the complaints of their own sex.
Thus they find employment in the towns, in such voca¬
tions, or by the sale of trinkets, though both afford but a
precarious subsistence. Some tribes also exhibit wild
beasts to the vulgar, or offer mats fabricated by them¬
selves for sale. Before the establishment of the British
government in Bengal, the Bazeegurs were subject to the
arbitrary exactions of a tax-gatherer, whom they greatly
, dreaded ; and the apprehension of the renewal of that offi¬
cer’s powers has proved a considerable impediment to in¬
vestigating their manners and customs.
A general coincidence in the mode of life, the voca¬
tions, manners, and language of all the different sects of
these people, determines them as belonging to the same
race. The distinctions seen among them are too trivial
to admit of their being considered of separate and inde¬
pendent origin. They are different from all the other
tribes dispersed throughout Hindostan, and have two dia¬
lects also peculiar to themselves, the one most probably a
jargon, which is spoken only among the public performers ;
the other in common use among the whole. The Bazee-'
gurs are supposed to present many features analogous to
the gipsies scattered over Europe and Asia, where they
subsist as a distinct race from all the other inhabitants
of the countries frequented by them. The Bazeegurs, as
well as gipsies, have a chief or king; each has a peculiar
language, bearing some reciprocal analogy, and different
from that of the people among whom they reside; and
this analogy is so decided, that it is difficult to deny that
in both cases it has had a common origin. In India and
in Europe they are equally an itinerant race; their pur¬
suits, excepting in as far as these are modified by the man¬
ners of countries distant from each other, are alike; for
the discrepancies they exhibit may reasonably enough be
ascribed to an insensible acquisition of the habits of those
near whom their various tribes happen to dwell. They are
totally indifferent as to the quality of the food serving for
their subsistence, and entirely ignorant of systematic re¬
ligious principles. All preserve the strictest adherence
to their own sect, and sedulously abstain from intermix-
’ tures or intermarriages with that of any other nation ; and
where infringements of these rules are seen, they are to
be ascribed more to necessity than inclination. Another
resemblance, which has probably been lost in the lapse of
time, is supposed to consist in the three-stringed viol, in¬
troduced into Europe by the jugglers of the thirteenth cen¬
tury, which is exactly similar to the instrument now used
in Hindostan. Separate and disjoined, these analogies may
not carry conviction of the identity of the European gipsies
with the Indian Bazeegurs ; but, on uniting and combining
the whole, it does not seem unlikely, that if Asia be their
original country, or if they have found their way from
Egypt to India, they may also have emigrated farther at
a period of remote antiquity, and reached the boundaries
of Europe. (n. n.)
BAZGENDGES, in Natural History, the name of a
substance used by the Turks and other eastern nations in
scarlet-dyeing.
B E A
BAZZANO, a city of Italy, in the papal delegation of Ba „
Bologna, on the canal of St Giovanni. It contains about
3450 inhabitants. Be ;i
BEACHY-Head, a promontory on the coast of Sussex, w '
between Hastings and Shoreham, where the French de¬
feated the English and Dutch fleet in 1690.
BEACON, a signal for the better securing the kingdom
against foreign invasions. On certain eminent places of
the country were placed long poles, whereon were fasten¬
ed pitch-barrels to be fired by night, and to produce smoke
by day, to give notice in a few hours to the whole kingdom
of an approaching invasion. These were beacons.
Beacons are also marks and signs erected on the coasts
for guiding and preserving vessels at sea by night as well
as by day. The erection of beacons, light-houses, and
sea-marks, is a branch of the royal prerogative. The king
has the exclusive power, by comnfission under his great
seal, to cause them to be erected in fit and convenient
places, as well upon the lands of the subject as upon the
demesnes of the crown, which power is usually vested by
letters-patent in the office of lord high admiral. And by
statute 8 Elizabeth, c. 13, the corporation of the Trinity-
house is empowered to set up any beacons or sea-marks
wherever they shall think such necessary; and the owner
of the land or any other person destroying these, or tak¬
ing down any steeple, tree, or other known sea-mark, is
declared liable to severe penalties.
BEACONAGE is money paid towards the maintenance
of a beacon.
BEACONSFIELD, a market-town of the hundred of
Burnham, in the county of Buckingham, twenty-four miles
from London, on the road to Oxford. The streets are
four in number, crossing each other at right angles. This
place is celebrated as the residence of the poet Waller and
of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke. The market
is held on Thursday. The inhabitants amounted in 1801
to 1149, in 1811 to 1461, and in 1821 to 1736.
BEAD, a small globule or ball used in necklaces, and
made of different materials, as pearl, steel, garnet, coral,
diamond, amber, crystal, pastes, glass. The Romanists
make great use of beads in rehearsing their Ave-Marias
and Pater-nosters; and a similar custom obtains among
tbe religious orders throughout the East, as well Mahom-
medan as heathen.
Glass beads were used by the Spaniards to barter with
the natives of South America for gold ; and to this day
they are a favourite article of traffic with all savage na¬
tions. Sir William Beechy made considerable use of them
during his visit to Behring’s Straits in 1828.
BsAD-Proof, a term used by our distillers to express
that sort of proof of the standard strength of spirituous
liquors which consists in their exhibiting, when shaken
in a phial or poured into a glass, a crown of bubbles on
the surface for some time thereafter. This, however, is a
fallacious rule as to the degree of strength, because any
thing that increases the tenacity of the spirit will give it
this proof, although it be under the due strength.
Bead-Roll, among Catholics, a list of those persons for
the rest of whose souls they are obliged to repeat a cer¬
tain number of prayers, which they count by means o
their beads.
BEADLE (from the Saxon bydel, a messenger), a crier
or messenger of a court, who cites persons to appear an
answer. He is also called a summoner or apparitor, jiea-
dle is likewise an officer of a university, whose chieiJW'
siness it is to walk before the masters with a mace at a
public processions. There are, besides, church beadles,
whose office is well known.
BEAGLES, a small sort of hounds or hunting d°Ss'
Beagles are of different kinds, as the southern beage,
B E A
something less and shorter, but thicker, than the deep-
l mouthed hound; the fleet northern or cat beagle, smaller
Bei anci 0fa finer shape than the southern, and a harder runner.
u-y J prom the two, by crossing the strains, is bred a third sort,
considered preferable to either. And to these may be
added a still smaller sort of beagles, scarcely bigger than
lap-dogs, which make pretty diversion in hunting the coney
or even the small hare in dry weather, but are otherwise
unserviceable by reason of their size.
Bum or Beak-head of a ship, that part without the
ship before the forecastle which is fastened to the stem,
and is supported by the main-knee. The beak, called by
the Greeks t^CoXos, by the Latins rostrum, was an import¬
ant part in the ancient ships of war, which were hence
denominated naves rostratce. The beak was made of wood,
but fortified with brass, and fastened to the prow, serving
to annoy the enemy’s vessels. Its invention is attributed
to Pisaeus, an Italian. The first beaks were made long
and high; but afterwards a Corinthian, named Aristo,
caused them to be made short and strong, and placed so low
as to pierce the enemy’s vessels under water. By means
of these great havock was made by the Syracusans in the
Athenian fleet.
BEAKED, in Heraldry, a term used to express the
beak or bill of a bird. When the beak and legs of a fowl
are of a different tincture from the body, the technical
expression is, beaked and membered of such a tincture.
BEALE, Mary, distinguished for her skill in painting,
was the daughter of Mr Cradock, minister of Walton-
upon-Thames, and learned the rudiments of her art from
Sir Petef Lely. She painted in oil, in water-colours, and
in crayons, and had much business. Her portraits were exe¬
cuted in the Italian style, which she acquired by copying
pictures and drawings from Sir Peter Lely’s and the royal
collections. Her master, says Mr Walpole, was supposed
to have had a tender attachment to her, but as he was
reserved in communicating to her all the resources of his
pencil, it was probably a gallant rather than a successful
one. Mrs Beale died in Pall Mall on the 28th of Decem¬
ber 1697, aged sixty-five. Her paintings have a good
deal of nature, but the colouring is stiff’ and heavy.
BEAM, among weavers, a long thick wooden cylinder,
placed lengthwise on the back part of the loom of those
who work with a shuttle. That cylinder on which the stuff
is rolled as it is weaved is also called the beam or roller,
and is placed on the fore-part of the loom.
Beams of a Ship are the great main cross-timbers which
hold the sides of the ship from falling together, and also
support the deck and the orlops. The main beam is next
the main-mast, and from it they are successively reckoned
as first, second, third, and so on. The greatest beam of
all is called the midship beam.
BvAM-Compass, an instrument consisting of a square
wooden or brass beam, having sliding sockets that carry
steel or pencil points. Beam-compasses are used for de¬
scribing large circles, where the common compasses are
useless.
BEAMINSTER, or Beminster, a market-town in the
hundred of Netherbury and county of Dorset. It is situ¬
ated in a fruitful district surrounded with orchards, and is
137 miles from London. It has some manufactures of sail¬
cloth and other flaxen goods, and of coarse woollens. The
market is held on Thursday. The inhabitants amounted
in 1801 to 2140, in 1811 to 2290, and in 1821 to 2806.
BEAN. The ancients made use of beans in gathering
the votes of the people, and for the election of magistrates.
A white bean signified “ absolution,” and a black one “ con¬
demnation.” Beans had a mysterious use in the lemuralia
and parentalia, where the master of the family, after wash-
,ng, was to throw black beans over his head, still repeat-
B E A 471
ing the words, “ I redeem myself and family by these Bean
beans.” Ovid gives a lively description in verse of the II
whole ceremony. Abstinence from beans was enjoined , **e‘*1^',
by Pythagoras, one of whose symbols is waiim antyiGbai, W’"Y''W
abstinere a fabis. The Egyptian priests held it a crime to
look at beans, judging the very sight unclean; and among
the Romans the jlamen dialis was not permitted even to
mention the name. The precept of Pythagoras has been
variously interpreted. Some understand it of forbearing
to meddle in trials and verdicts; others, resting on the
equivoque of the word which signifies equally a
bean and a human testicle, explain it by abstinence from
venery. Clemens Alexandrinus grounds the prohibition
against beans on their alleged quality of rendering women
barren ; and this is confirmed by Theophrastus, who asserts
that some other plants have the same property. Cicero
suggests another reason for this abstinence, namely, that
beans are great enemies to tranquillity of mind. Hence
Amphiaraus is said to have abstained from beans, even
before Pythagoras, that he might enjoy a clearer divina¬
tion by dreams.
Bean-Cod, a small fishing vessel, or pilot-boat, common
on the sea-coasts and in the rivers of Portugal. It is ex¬
tremely sharp forward, having its stem bent inward above
into a great curve, and plated on the fore-side with iron,
into which a number of bolts are driven, to fortify it, and
resist the stroke of another vessel, which may fall athwart-
hause. It is commonly navigated with a large lateen sail,
which extends over the whole length of the deck; and it
is accordingly well fitted to ply to windward.
BEAN-Flour, called by the Romans lomentum, was in
some repute amongst ladies in ancient times as a cosmetic.
Be an-Fly, in Natural History, the name given by au¬
thors to a very beautiful fly, of a pale purple colour, fre¬
quently found on bean-flowers.
BEAR. See Mammalia, Index.
Bear, in Astronomy. See Astronomy.
Order of the Bear was a military order in Switzerland,
instituted by the emperor Frederick II. in 1213, by w^ay of
acknowledgement for the service the Swiss had done him,
and in favour of the abbey of St Gal. To the collar ot
the order hung a medal, on which was represented a bear
raised on an eminence of earth.
Bears Skin makes a fur in great esteem, and forms a
considerable article of commerce, being used on housings,
on coach-boxes, &c. In some countries, clothes are made
of it, more especially bags, wherein to keep the feet warm
in severe colds. Of the skins of bears’ cubs are made
gloves, muffs, and the like.
Bear Island, an island on the south-west coast of Ire¬
land, in Bantry Bay, about six miles in length and one
and a half broad. It is of a hilly and rugged aspect.
Batteries have been erected here for the defence of the
bay. It is twelve miles from Bantry. Long. 9. 45. W. Lat.
51. 35. N.
BEARD, the hair growing on the chin and adjacent
parts of the face, chiefly of adults and males.
Various have been the ceremonies and customs of na¬
tions in regard to the beard. The Tartars, from a religi¬
ous principle, waged a long and bloody war with the Per¬
sians, declaring them infidels, merely because they would
not cut their whiskers after the fashion of Tartary; and we
find that a considerable branch of the religion of the an¬
cients consisted in the management of their beards. The
Greeks wore their beards till the time of Alexander the
Great; but that prince ordered the Macedonians to be
shaved, lest the beard should afford a handle to their ene¬
mies. According to Pliny, the Romans did not begin to
shave till the year of Rome 404, when P. Ticinius brought
over a colony of barbers from Sicily. Persons of quality
472
B E A
B E A
Beard.
had their children shaved for the first time by a person of thority as the Romans ; the bond-men were exm-es 1
the same or greater quality, who, by this means, became commanded to shave their chins; and this law continued ''»■
godfather or adoptive father of the children. force until the entire abolishment of servitude in Fran m *
As to ecclesiastics, the discipline has varied touching So, likewise, in the time of the first race of kings, a lono'
the article of beards; sometimes they have been enjoined to beard was the sign of nobility and freedom ; and the kine^
wear them, from a notion of there being too much effemi- as being the highest nobles in their kingdom,were emulous
nacy in shaving, and that a long beard was more suitable to likewise to have the largest beards. Eginard, secrehr •
the ecclesiastical gravity; and sometimes again they have to Charlemagne, speaking of the last kings of the first race
been forbidden to do so, from an idea that pride lurked be- says they came to the assemblies in the field of Mars i *
neath a venerable beard. The Greek and Roman churches a carriage drawn by oxen, and sat on the throne with their
have been long together by the ears about their beards, hair dishevelled, and a very long beard, crineprofuso, barba
Since the time of their separation, the Romanists seem to submissa, solio residerent, etspeciem dominantis effingerent
have given more into the practice of shaving, by way of op- To touch any one’s beard, or cut off a bit of it was
position to the Greeks; and have even made some express among the first French, the mostsacred pledge of protection
constitutions de radendis barbis. The Greeks, on the con- and confidence. For a long time all letters that came from
trary, espouse very zealously the cause of long beards, the sovereign had, for greater sanction, three hairs of his
and are extremely scandalized at the beardless images of beard in the seal; and there is still in being a charter of
saints in the Roman churches. By the statutes of some 1121, which concludes with the following wmrds: Quod
monasteries, it appears that the lay-monks were to let
their beards grow, and the priests among them to shave;
and that the beards of all who were received into the
monasteries were blessed with a great deal of ceremony.
There are still extant the prayers used in the solemnity
of consecrating the beard to God, when an ecclesiastic was
shaven.
Le Comte observes that the Chinese affect long beards
extravagantly; but nature has balked them, by only giv¬
ing them a scanty growth, which, however, they cultivate
with infinite care. Chrysostom observes that the kings
of Persia had their beards woven or matted together with
gold thread; and some of the first kings of France had
their beards knotted and buttoned with gold.
Among the Turks, it is more infamous for any one to
have his beard cut off, than among us to be publicly whipt
or bi'anded with a hot iron. The Arabs make the preser¬
vation of their beards a capital point of religion, because
Mahommed never cut his. Hence the razor is never drawn
over the grand signior’s face; and the Persians, who clip
their beards and shave above the jaw, are reputed down¬
right heretics. The slaves who serve in the seraglio have
their beards shaven as a sign of their servitude.
The most celebrated ancient writers, and several modern
ones, have spoken honourably of the fine beards of anti¬
quity. Homer commemorates the wdiite beard of Nestor,
and that of old King Priam. Virgil describes that of
Mezentius, which was so thick and long as to cover all his
breast; and Chrysippus praises the noble beard of Timo-
theus, a famous player on the flute. Pliny the younger tells
us of the white beard of Euphrates, a Syrian philosopher ;
and he takes pleasure in relating the respect mixed with
fear which it inspired the people withal. Plutarch speaks
of the long white beard of an old Laconian, who, being
asked why he let it grow to such length, replied, “ It is
that, seeing continually my white beard, I may do nothing
unworthy of its whiteness.” Strabo relates that the Indian
philosophers called gymnosophists were particularly atten¬
tive to have their beards of sufficient length to “ captivate”
the veneration of the people ;—Diodorus gives a very cir¬
cumstantial history of the beards of the Indians ;—Juvenal
does not forget that of Antilochus the son of Nestor;—
tendon, in describing a priest of Apollo in all his magni¬
ficence, tells us that he had a white beard down to his
giidle ;—-and Persius, convinced that a beard was the sym¬
bol of wisdom, thought he could not bestow a greater en¬
comium on Socrates, than by calling him the bearded
master, Magistrum barbatum.
W hilst the Gauls were under the sway of their native
soveieigns, none but the nobles and Christian priests were
permitted to wear long beards. But the Franks having
made themselves masters of Gaul, assumed the same au-
ut ratum et stabile perseveret in posterum, prcesenti scripto
sigilli mei robar apposui cum tribus pilis barbce mece.
Several great men received or adopted the surname of
Bearded, The emperor Constantine is distinguished by
the epithet of Pogoniates ;—in the time of the Crusades,
we find there was a Geoffrey the Bearded;—Baldwin IW
earl of Flanders, was surnamed Handsome Rmrrf;—and,
in the illustrious house of Montmorenci, there was a fa¬
mous Bouchard, who took a pride in the surname of
Bearded, and was always the declared enemy of the monks,
without doubt because of their being shavelings.
In the tenth centuiy, wx find that King Robert of
France, the rival of Charles the Simple, was not more
famous for his exploits than for his long white beard. In
order that it might be more conspicuous’to the soldierswhen
he was in the field, he used to let it hang down outside
his cuirass ; and this venerable sight encouraged the troops
in battle, nay served to rally them when defeated. A cele¬
brated painter in Germany, called John Mayo, had so
large a beard that he was nicknamed John the Bearded,
In fact it was so long that he wore it fastened to his girdle;
and though he was a very tall man, it hung upon the
ground when he stood upright. John took the greatest
care of this extraordinary beard, which he would some¬
times untie in the presence of the emperor Charles V.,
who took great pleasure in seeing the wind make it fly
against the faces of the lords of his court. In England,
the chancellor Sir Thomas More, one of the greatest men
of his time, being on the point of falling a victim to court
intrigues, was able, when on the fatal scaffold, to procure
respect for his beard, and saved it, by a pleasantry, from the
fatal stroke which he could not escape himself. When
he had laid his head on the block, he perceived that his
beard was likely to be hurt by the axe of the executioner;
on which he took it away, observing, “ My beard has not
been guilty of treason; it would be an injustice to punish it.”
Every one has admired on medallions and in portraits
the beard of the renowned Henry IV. of France, which
gave to the countenance of that prince a majestic dignity
and openness, and which ought to serve as a model for that
ol every great king, as the beard of his illustrious minister
should for that of every statesman. But'there is little
dependence on the stability of the things of this world.
By an event equally fatal and unforeseen, the beard,
which had arrived at its highest degree of glory, all of a
sudden lost its favour, and was at length entirely proscrib¬
ed. The unexpected death of Henry the Great, and the
youth of his successor, were the sole causes of this revo¬
lution.
Louis XIII. mounted the throne of his glorious ances¬
tors without a beard. Every one concluded immediately
that the courtiers, seeing their young king with a smooth
B E A
Beai chin, would look upon their own as too rough ; and the
A > conjecture proved correct. They presently reduced their
beards to whiskers, and a small tuft of hair under the
nether lip. But the people at first refused to follow this
dangerous example. The duke of Sully also persisted in
clinging to his beard. This man, great as a general and
a minister, was likewise so in his retirement, and had the
courage to keep his long beard, nay, to appear with it at
the court of Louis XIII., when called thither to give his
advice in an affair of importance. The young smooth-
shaven courtiers laughed outright at the grave look and
old-fashioned appearance of the venerable minister; on
which the latter, probably jealous of the honour of his
beard, observed to the king, “ Sir, when your father, of
glorious memory, did me the honour to consult me on his
great and important affairs, the first thing he did was to
send away all the buffoons and stage-dancers of his court.”
The czar Peter, who had so many claims to the surname
of Great, seems to have been but little worthy of it in the
matter of beards. He had the boldness to impose a tax on
the produce of his subjects’chins. He ordered that the
noblemen and gentlemen, tradesmen and artisans, should
pay a hundred rubles for the privilege of retaining their
beards, and that the lower class of people should pay a
copec for the same liberty; and he established clerks at
the gates of the different towns to collect these duties.
Such a new and singular impost troubled the vast empire
of Muscovy. Both religion and manners were thought in
imminent danger. Complaints were heard on all sides;
and some ill-natured persons even went so far as to write
libels against the sovereign. But Peter was inflexible, and
shaving began in good earnest; the Russians very gene¬
rally coming to the conclusion that it was better to cut
off their beards than to give serious offence to a man who
had the power of cutting off their heads.
Example, more powerful than authority, produced in
Spain what the Czar Peter had not accomplished in Russia
without great difficulty. Philip V. ascended the throne
with a shaven chin. The courtiers imitated the prince,
and the people in turn imitated the courtiers. However,
although this revolution was brought about without vio¬
lence and by degrees, it caused much lamentation and mur¬
muring; the gravity of the Spaniards lost by the change,
and they said, Desde que no hay barba, no hay mas alma ;
“ since we have lost our beards, we have lost our souls.” In
fact, among thoseEuropean nations which have been most
curious in beards and whiskers, we must distinguish Spain.
This grave romantic people has always regarded the beard
as an ornament which ought to be peculiarly prized, and
indeed has often made the loss of honour consist in that
of their whiskers. Nor have the Portuguese, whose na¬
tional character is much the same, been behind them in
this respect. In the reign of Catherine queen of Portu¬
gal, the brave John de Castro had taken the castle of Diu
m India. Victorious, but in want of every thing, he
found himself obliged to ask the inhabitants of Goa to lend
him a thousand pistoles for the maintenance of his fleet;
and, as a security for that sum, he sent them one of his
whiskers, telling them,—“ All the gold in the world cannot
equal the value of this natural ornament of my valour;
and I deposit it in your hands as a security for the money.”
Lie whole town was penetrated with his heroism, and
every one interested himself about this invaluable whis-
er: even the women were desirous to give marks of
ieir zeal for so brave a man ; several sold their bracelets
o increase the sum asked for ; and the inhabitants of Goa
sent him immediately both the money and his whisker.
n Louis XIII.’s reign, whiskers attained the highest de¬
gree of favour, at the expense of the expiring beards. In
iase days of gallantry, not yet empoisoned by wit, they
B E A
473
became the favourite occupation of lovers. A fine black Beards,
whisker, elegantly turned up, was a very powerful recom-
mendation to the favour of the fair sex. Whiskers were
still in fashion in the beginning of Louis the Fourteenth’s
reign ; and this king, with all the great men of his time,
took a pride in wearing them. They were consequently the
ornament of Turenne, Conde, Colbert, Corneille, Moliere,
&c. It was then no uncommon thing for a favourite lover
to have his whiskers turned up, combed, and dressed by
his mistress; and hence a man of fashion took care to be
always provided with every little necessary article, espe¬
cially whisker-wax. It was highly flattering to a lady to
have it in her power to praise the beauty of her lover’s
whiskers, which, far from being disgusting, gave his per¬
son an air of vivacity; and several even thought them an
incitement to love. But the levity of the French made
the whiskers undergo several changes both in form and
name ; there were Spanish, Turkish, guard-dagger whis¬
kers, nay even royal ones, which were the last worn; the
smallness of these proclaiming their approaching fall.
Consecration of the Beard was a ceremony among the
Roman youth, who, when they were shaved the first time,
kept a dayr of rejoicing, and were particularly careful to
put the hair of their beard into a silver or gold box, and
make an offering of it to some god, particularly to Jupiter
Capitolinus, as was done by Nero, according to Suetonius.
Kissing the Beard. The Turkish wives kiss their hus¬
bands’ beards, and children their fathers’, as often as they
come to salute them. The men kiss one another's beards
reciprocally on both sides, when they salute in the streets
or return from a journey.
The Fashion of the Beard has varied in different ages
and countries ; some cultivating and entertaining one part
of it, some another. Thus the Hebrews wear a beard on
the chin, but not on the upper lip or cheeks. Moses
forbids them to cut off entirely the angle or extremity of
their beard; that is, to manage it after the Egyptian
fashion, leaving only a little tuft of beard at the extremity
of the chin ; whereas the Jews to this day suffer a little
fillet of hair to grow from the lower end of their ears to
their chins, where, as well as on their lower lips, their
beards are in a pretty long bunch. The Jews, in time of
mourning, neglected to trim their beards or cut off the
superfluous growth on the upper lips and cheeks. In time
of grief and great affliction they also plucked off the hair
of their beards.
Anointing the Beard with unguents was an ancient
practice both among the Jews and Romans, and still, we
believe, continues in use among the Turks. One of the
principal ceremonies observed among the latter in serious
visits, is to throw sweet-scented water on the beard of the
visitant, and to perfume it afterwards with aloes-wood.
Beard of a Comet, the rays which the comet emits to¬
wards that part of the heavens to which its proper motion
seems directed; so that the beard of a comet is distin¬
guished from the tail, wrhich is understood of the rays
emitted towards that part from which its motion appears
to carry it.
Beard of a Horse, that part underneath the lower man¬
dible on the outside and above the chin, which bears the
curb. It is also called the chuck.
Beard of a Muscle, Oyster, or the like, denotes an as¬
semblage of threads or hairs, by which these animals fas¬
ten themselves to stones. The hairs of this beard termi¬
nate in a flat spongy substance, which being applied to
the surface of a stone, sticks thereto, like the wet leather
used by boys.
Beards, in the history of insects, are two small, ob¬
long, fleshy bodies, placedjust above the trunk, as in gnats,
moths, and butterflies.
3 o
474
Beards
II
Beat.
B E A
Bearded Women. Of these there have been several
remarkable instances. In the cabinet of curiosities of Stut-
gart in Germany, there is the portrait of a woman called
Bartel Graetje, whose chin is covered with a very large
beard. Her portrait was painted in 1587, at which time she
was only twenty-five years of age. It is said that the duke
of Saxony had the portrait taken of a poor Swiss woman,
remarkable for her long bushy beard ; and those who at¬
tended the carnival at Venice in 1726 saw a female dancer
astonish the spectators not more by her talents than by
her chin covered with a black bushy beard. Charles XII.
had in his army a female grenadier, who had both the beard
and courage of a man. She was taken prisoner at the
battle of Pultowa, and carried to Petersburg, where she
was presented to the Czar in 1724; her beard measured a
yard and a half. A woman was once seen at Paris, who
had not only a bushy beard on her face, but her body like¬
wise covered all over with hair- Amongst a number of
examples of this nature, that of Margaret, the governess of
the Netherlands, is very remarkable. She had a very long
stiff beard, which she prided herself in; and being per¬
suaded that it contributed to give her an air of majesty,
she took care not to lose a single hair of it. The Lombard
women, it is said, when they went to war, made themselves
beards with the hair of their heads, which they inge¬
niously arranged on their cheeks, in order that the enemy,
deceived by the likeness, might take them for men ; and
Suidas informs us, that in a similar case the Athenian
women did as much.
BEARING, in Navigation, an arch of the horizon in¬
tercepted between the nearest meridian and any distinct
object, either discovered by the eye or resulting from the
spherical proportion ; as, in the first case, at four p. m.
Cape Spado, in the isle of Candia, bore S. by W. by the
compass. In the second, the longitudes and latitudes of
any two places being given, and consequently the differ¬
ence of latitude and longitude between them, the bearing
of one from the other is discovered by the following
analogy: As the meridional difference of latitude is to the
difference of longitude, so is the radius to the tangent of
the bearing.
Bearing is also the situation of any distant object, es¬
timated from some part of the ship according to her posi¬
tion. In this sense, an object so discovered must be either
ahead, astern, abreast, on the bow, or on the quarter.
These bearings, therefore, which may be termed mechani¬
cal, are on the beam, before the beam, abaft the beam, on
the bow, on the quarter, ahead, or astern. If the ship
sails with a side wind, it alters in some measure the names
of such bearings, since a distant object on the beam is then
said to be to leeward or to windward; on the lee-quarter
or bow, and on the weather-quarter or bow.
Bearings, in Heraldry, a term used to express a coat
of arms.
BEAST, a general appellation given to all four-footed
animals, fit either for food, labour, or sport. Beasts of
Burden, in a commercial sense, are all four-footed animals
which serve to carry merchandises on their backs. The
beasts generally used for this purpose are elephants, dro¬
medaries, camels, horses, mules, asses, and the sheep of
Mexico and Peru. The Beasts of the Chase are five, viz.
the buck, the doe, the fox, the roe, and the marten. The
Beasts and Fowls of the Warren are the hare, the coney,
the pheasant, and partridge. The Beasts of the Forest are
the hart, hind, hare, boar, and wolf.
BEA1, in its most general acceptation, signifies to chas¬
tise, strike, knock, or vanquish. But it has several other
significations in the manufactures, and in the arts and
trades. Sometimes it signifies to forge and hammer; in
which sense smiths and farriers say, to heat iron; some-
B E A
times it means to pound, to reduce into powder; thus, to I
heat drugs, to heat pepper, to heat spices, that is, to pulver¬
ize them. Be, ^
Beat, in fencing, denotes a blow or stroke given with'"''' ^
the sword. There are two kinds of beats; the first per¬
formed with the foible of a man’s sword on the foible of
his adversary’s, which in the schools is commonly called
batterie, from the French hatlre, and is chiefly used in a
pursuit, to make an open upon the adversary. The se¬
cond and best kind of beat is performed with the forte of a
man’s sword upon the foible of his adversary’s, not with a
spring, as in binding, but with a jerk or dry beat; and is
therefore most proper for the parades without or within
the sword, because of the rebound a man’s sword thereby
has from his adversary’s, which procures him a better and
surer opportunity of risposting.
Beat, in the manege. A horse is said to heat the dust,
when at each stroke or motion he does not take in ground
or way enough with his fore-legs. He is more particularly
said to beat the dust at terra a terra when he does not
take in ground enough with his shoulders, making his
strokes or motions too short, as if he made them all in one •
place. He beats the dust at curvettes when he does them
too precipitately and too low. He beats upon a walk when
he walks too short, and thus clears but little ground, whe¬
ther it be in straight lines, rounds, or passings.
Beat of Drum, in the military art, is an alarm of sud¬
den danger, or a notice to repair immediately to arms or
quarters, or an order to obey a movement either in ad¬
vance or retreat given by means of the drum.
Beat, St, a town of France, in the department of Up¬
per Garonne, at the confluence of the Garonne and the
Pique. It is situated between two mountains, which are
close to the town on each side. The houses are chiefly
built of marble. Long. 0. 41. E. Lat. 42. 56. N.
BEATER, in manufactures, is applied to divers sorts
of workmen, whose business it is to hammer or flatten cer¬
tain materials, particularly metals.
Gold-Beaters are artizans, who, by beating with a
hammer, on a marble, gold and silver in moulds of vellum
and bullocks’ guts, reduce them to thin leaves fit for gild¬
ing or silvering copper, iron, steel, wood, and other ma¬
terials. Gold-beaters differ from flatteners of gold or sil¬
ver ; for the former bring their metal into leaves by the
hammer, whereas the latter only flatten it by pressing it
through a mill preparatory to beating.
There are also Tin-Beaters employed in the looking-
glass trade, whose business it is to beat tin on large blocks
of marble till it be reduced to thin leaves fit to be applied
with quicksilver in preparing looking-glasses.
BEATIFICATION, an act by which the pope declares
a person beatified or blessed after his death. It is the first
step towards canonization, or raising any one to the honour
and dignity of a saint. No person can be beatified till
half a century after his or her death. All certificates or
attestations of virtues and miracles, the necessary qualifi¬
cations for saintship, are examined by the congregation of
rites; and this examination often continues for several
years, after which his holiness decrees the beatification.
The corpse and relics of the future saint are henceforth
exposed to the veneration of all good Christians; his ima¬
ges are crowned with rays, and a particular office is set
apart for him, but his body and relics are not carried m
procession. Indulgences and remission of sins are like¬
wise granted on the day of his beatification, which, though
not so pompous as that of canonization, is however very
splendid.
BEATING, in book-binding. See Bookbinding.
Beating, in the paper-works, signifies the beating 0
paper on a stone with a heavy hammer, having a laige
B E A
. smooth head and short handle, in order to render it more
5 smooth and uniform, and fit for writing.
Beat Beating Flax or Hemp is a laborious, operation in the
y-v ■> dressing of these substances, intended to render them more
soft and pliant; hence beating hemp is a Bridewell punish¬
ment, inflicted on loose or disorderly persons.
Beating the Wind, was a practice in use in the ancient
method of trial by combat. If either of the combatants
did not appear in the field at the time appointed, the other
was to beat the wind, or make so many flourishes with his
weapon, by which he was entitled to all the advantages of
a conqueror.
Beating Time, in Music, a method of measuring and
marking the time for performers in concert, by a motion
of the hand and foot up or down successively and in equal
times. Knowing the true time of a crotchet, and suppos¬
ing the measure actually subdivided into four crotchets,
and the half-measure into two, the hand or foot being up,
if we put it down with the very beginning of the first note
or crotchet, and then raise it with the third, and then
down with the beginning of the next measure, this is
called beating the time; and by practice a habit is acquir¬
ed of making this motion very equal. Each down and up
is sometimes called a time or measure. Beating time is
denoted, in the Italian music, by the term a battuta, which
is usually put after what they call recitativo, where little
or no time is observed, to denote that here they are to be¬
gin again to mark or beat the time exactly. The Romans
aimed at somewhat of harmony in the strokes of their
oars, and had an officer called portisculus in each galley,
whose business it was to beat time to the rowers, sometimes
by a pole or mallet, and sometimes by his voice alone.
The ancients marked the rhythm in their musical compo¬
sitions ; but to make it more observable in practice, they
beat the measure or time, and this in different manners.
The most usual method consisted in a motion of the foot,
which was raised from and struck alternately against the
ground, according to the modern method. This was com¬
monly the province of the master of the music, called [lusq-
yj)Oog and xoavpaiog, because placed in the middle of the
choir of musicians, and in an elevated situation, in order
to be more easily seen and heard by the whole company.
These beaters of measure were also called by the Greeks
ndo^opoi, because of the noise of their feet; the Latins
denominated them pedarii, podarii, and pedicularii. To
make the beats or strokes more audible, their feet were
generally shod with a sort of sandals made of wood or
iron, called by the Greeks xgouTs^/a, xgoiwraXa, XjOtmjra,
and by the Latins pedicula, scabella, or scabilla, because re¬
sembling little stools or footstools. The ancients also beat
time or measure with shells, as oyster shells and bones of
animals, which they struck against one another, much as
the moderns now use castanets and similar instruments.
Other noisy instruments, as drums, cymbals, and citterns,
were also used on the same occasion. :•
Beating, in Navigation, the operation of making pro¬
gress at sea against the direction of the wind, in a zig-zag
line or traverse, like that in which we ascend a steep hill.
BEATITUDE imports the supreme good, or the high¬
est degree of happiness human nature is susceptible of;
in other words, the most perfect state of a rational being,
wherein the soul has attained to the utmost excellency
nnd dignity it is capable of. In this sense it is equiva-
ent to what we call “ blessedness” or “ sovereign felicity,”
the Greeks cuda/gona, and the Latins summum bonum,
eatitudo, and beatitas. Beatitude, among divines, denotes
t ie beatific vision, or the fruition of God in a future life
o all eternity. This term is also used in speaking of the
con^a'ne<^ Christ’s sermon on the mount.
BEATON, David, archbishop of St Andrews, and a
B E A 475
cardinal of Rome, in the early part of the sixteenth cen-Beatorum
tury, was born in 1494. Pope Paul III. raised him to the II
rank of cardinal in December 1538; and having been em- Beattie-
ployed by James V. in negociating his marriage at the
court of France, he was there consecrated bishop of Mire¬
poix. Soon after his instalment as archbishop of St An¬
drews, he promoted a furious persecution of the reform¬
ers in Scotland; but the king’s death put a stop for a
time to his arbitrary proceedings, and having been ex¬
cluded from the management of public affairs, he was
thrown into confinement. But he soon raised so strong a
party, that, upon the coronation of the young queen Mary,
he was admitted of the council, made chancellor, and pro¬
cured a legatine commission from the court of Rome. He
now began to renew his persecution of heretics, and,
amongst the rest, of the famous protestant preacher Mr
George Wishart, who suffered death at the stake in front
of the cardinal’s residence at St Andrews. It is alleged
that Wishart, in the midst of the flames, foretold that Bea¬
ton would die a violent death; a prediction which pro¬
bably proved the cause of its own fulfilment, as the per¬
secutor was assassinated in his chamber on the 29th May
1547. Beaton was a haughty bigoted churchman, and
thought severity the proper method of suppressing heresy.
BEATORUM Insula, in Ancient Geography, a dis¬
trict of the Nomos Oasites, in Egypt, seven days’ journey
to the west of Diospolis Magna, and called an island be¬
cause surrounded with sand, like an island in the sea, yet
abounding in all the necessaries of life, though encom¬
passed with vast sandy deserts.
BEATTIE, James, LL. D., a distinguished moralist
and poet, was born on the 25th of October 1735, at Lau¬
rencekirk, then an obscure hamlet, in the county of Kin¬
cardine in Scotland ; near which place his father rented a
small farm. He received his early education at the com¬
mon school of the parish, of which it is recorded that
Ruddiman had been teacher in it about forty years before.
His acquirements are said to have been interrupted at this
time by want of books ; a difficulty which has excited com¬
miseration in more instances than that of Beattie, but
which is so little able to control natural genius, that it
seems almost an incitement to its exertions; as “ all im¬
pediments in fancy’s course are motives to more fancy.”
He first became acquainted with English versification
through Ogilby’s translation of Virgil.
By his father’s death he had been thrown, while yet
of tender age, on the care of his elder brother, David
Beattie ; who, observing his natural endowments, afforded
him, notwithstanding his own limited means, every aid in
his power towards a liberal education, and, in the year
1749, placed him at Marischal College, Aberdeen, where
he soon afterwards obtained a bursary or exhibition.
Here he had the advantage of pursuing his studies under
Dr Thomas Blackwell, author of the Life of Homer, Dr
Gerard, and other eminent men. In addition to his aca¬
demical course, he began at this time to instruct himself
in the Italian language; and appears to have had a strong
predilection for Metastasio.
In 1753 he was appointed schoolmaster of Fordoun, a
small village at the foot of the Grampian Mountains, where
he likewise performed the duty of precentor, or parish
clerk, usually attached to that office in Scotland. Here
he indulged the propensities of the youthful poet, and fre¬
quently wandered during a whole night in the fields,
“ chewing the cud of sweet and bitter fancy;” and it was
from a height in this neighbourhood that his eye first caught
a glimpse of the ocean. From the scenery of this secluded
spot he appears to have derived, as might be expected,
many of those images which he afterwards transferred
into his poetical compositions; and, certainly, no exertion
BEATTIE.
476
Beattie, of the inventive powers can furnish representations equal
to these immediate copies from nature. Such is that pic¬
ture in the small poem which he calls Retirement.
Thy shades, thy silence, now be mine,
Thy charms my only theme;
My haunt the hollow cliff, whose pine
Waves o’er the gloomy stream ;
Whence the scared owl on pinions gray
Breaks from the rustling boughs,
And down the lone vale sails away
To more profound repose.
Such also, among many others in the Minstrel, are those
beautiful pictures contained in the 20th and 21st stanzas
of the first canto.
In this recluse place Beattie was discovered and noticed
by Mr Garden, afterwards Lord Gardenstown, then she¬
riff of the county, and by Lord Monboddo. In 1757 he
became a candidate for the situation of usher in the gram¬
mar-school of Aberdeen. He was at this time foiled in
the competition; but next year, on occasion of a new
vacancy, he was requested to accept the office. Lastly,
he was removed, in 1760, to the professorship of Moral
Philosophy and Logic in the Marischal College. Here he
passed the remainder of his life, occupied in the zealous
discharge of his professional' duties, and in literary pur¬
suits. Here, too, he possessed all the advantages of a
congenial society in the company of Dr George Campbell,
Dr Reid, Dr Gerard, and other men of genius and learn¬
ing, who then adorned the university of Aberdeen.
His first publication was a small collection, entitled
Original Poems and Translations, which was printed in
1760 or 1761. Of many of the pieces contained in this
little volume he was afterwards ashamed, and not only
omitted them in the subsequent selections which he pub¬
lished, but endeavoured, as far as possible, to obliterate
all traces and recollection of them. Of these lesser
pieces The Hermit is best known; and though it cannot
be considered as a finished composition, is full of pathos
and beauty. In The Battle of the Pigmies and Cranes,
translated from the Latin of Addison, he has displayed a
greater command of terse and happy expression than in
most of his original pieces.
Mr Beattie was married, in 1767, to Miss Mary Dun,
daughter of Dr James Dun, rector of the grammar-school
of Aberdeen. This connection, at first every way auspi¬
cious for his happiness, proved, in the sequel, a source of
the deepest distress; for, in the course of a few years,
Mrs Beattie, whose mother had laboured under a similar
malady, showed unequivocal symptoms of mental disorder,
which terminated in a state of confirmed insanity.
In the year 1770 Mr Beattie published his Essay on
the Nature and Immutability of Truth in opposition to So¬
phistry and Scepticism. His design was “ to prove the
universality and immutability of moral sentimentand
his motives for the undertaking are sufficiently evident
from the title which he has prefixed to the book. He
appears to have been particularly encouraged to the pro¬
secution of this task by the opinions of Dr John Gregory
and Dr Blacklock. A general outline of the work, which
appeared in most of the journals previously to its publica¬
tion, was prepared by the latter. His original intention,
as expressed by himself in one of his letters, was, “ first,
to have considered the permanency of truth in general
and, secondly, to have applied the principles which he
should have established “ to the illustration of certain
truths of morality and religion, to which the reasonings of
Helvetius, of Mr Hume in his Essays, and of some other
modern philosophers, seemed unfavourable.” Of this plan
the former part only was completed. It is well known
that, in the execution of it, the author did not spare the
opinions of those whom he considered the enemies of
religious and moral truth, and particularly treated the Be
writings of Mr Hume without reserve or qualification. ^ t
The friends of the latter took up arms in return, repre¬
senting the Essay as a piece of personal and unprovoked
hostility; and, some time after, the opinions which it con¬
tained were canvassed in a more public manner, and with
much severity, in an Examination by Dr Priestley. These
attacks or retaliations were met by Beattie with the same
firmness which he had displayed in the original publica¬
tion of his sentiments ; nor would he ever consent to abate
either the plainness or spirit with which he had express¬
ed them.
In proportion to the censure which this publication
called forth from a certain number of persons, was its fa¬
vourable reception with a different class. It was the
means of gaining for its author the unsolicited good offices
of George Lord Lyttelton, Dr Johnson, Hurd bishop of
Worcester, Percy bishop of Dromore, and many others.
From the great success of the work, a second edition of
it was called for in 1771. Mr Beattie visited London in
the same year, and again in 1773. On the last of these
occasions he received some flattering marks of public no¬
tice and distinction. Pie had the honour of being admit¬
ted to a private and long interview with their majesties;
received from the university of Oxford an honorary de¬
gree of doctor of laws at the same time with Sir Joshua
Reynolds ; and was afterwards requested by the latter to
sit for his portrait. The reputation of his Essay, and still
more, perhaps, the motives and general character of the
author, likewise procured for him about this time a yearly
pension of L.200 from the crown.
In the course of the same year, 1773, he published the
first part of his Minstrel, or the Progressof Genius; to which
he added a second part in 1774. His object, as described
by himself, was “ to trace the progress of a poetical ge¬
nius, born in a rude age, from the first dawning of fancy
and reason, till that period at which he may be supposed
capable of appearing in the world as a minstrel; that is,
as an itinerant poet and musician ; a character which,
according to the notion of our forefathers, was not only
respectable, but sacred.” It appears from his letters,
that he little anticipated the favourable reception which
this poem obtained from the public ; a doubt which was
probably founded on the want of incident and variety of
character in the composition. Its merit, however, was
quickly acknowledged; and by it the author’s reputation
as a poet and a man of genius was raised to its height.
On occasion of a vacancy which occurred soon after in
the chair of Natural and Experimental Philosophy at
Edinburgh, it w'as proposed that Dr Beattie should be¬
come a candidate ; to which step he was strongly urged
by some of his friends, particularly Lord Hailes. And,
about the same period, he received various offers of pre¬
ferment in the English church. These plans of promotion,
however, he successively declined, considering the situa¬
tion which he held as best adapted to his abilities, and af¬
fording him the greatest opportunities of usefulness. His
reluctance to accept a chair in the university of Edin¬
burgh arose partly, indeed, from the remaining effect ot
those heats which controversial metaphysics had produced.
“ I am so great a lover of peace,” he says in a letter to
one of his friends on this occasion, “ and so willing to
think well of my neighbours, that I do not wish to be con¬
nected with one person who dislikes me.”
Between the years 1780 and 1793 he published his
Elements of Moral Science, and various other works, moral
and critical, which are well known, and deservedly popu¬
lar. He enjoyed the acquaintance and friendship of many
distinguished characters, in different classes of society.
Among his literary correspondents in England were Bishop
BEATTIE.
477
Porteus, Mrs Montagu, Scott the poet of Amwell, and
^ J Mr Gray. He was intrusted by the latter, in 1768, with
' superintending an edition of his poems, printed by Foulis.
During the latter period of his life Dr Beattie expe¬
rienced a new train of domestic calamities, which, added
to the unfortunate situation of Mrs Beattie, gradually un¬
dermined his health and impaired his intellectual powers.
The first and severest of these trials was the loss of his
eldest son, James Hay Beattie, who died in 1790; in
whose society he had found one of his greatest enjoy¬
ments, and who had already been associated with him in
the professorship of Moral Philosophy, at the early age of
19.1 Some years after, his only remaining son, Montagu
Beattie, likewise died, after a short illness. This event he
intimated to one of his friends, by a letter written on the
same day, in the terms of calm and unaffected resignation.
But his mind had been violently shaken, even before this
blow; and, when he looked on the dead body of his son
for the last time, he gave way to the scene, and exclaim¬
ed, “ Now I have done with this world.” Its first effect
was the loss of memory respecting his deceased son. Yet
it was found that, by the mention of what the latter had
suffered during his sickness, his recollection could usually
be recalled. He continued to discharge his duty as pro¬
fessor ; but, notwithstanding some returns of a more vigo¬
rous intellect and fancy, he did not from this time resume
his studies, and seldom answered the letters which he re¬
ceived. He was attacked with palsy in 1799, and after¬
wards sustained repeated shocks, the last in 1802. He
lingered till the 18th of August 1803, when he expired at
the age of 68. A particular account of his life and writ¬
ings, by Sir William Forbes of Pitsligo, who had long
been his friend and confidant, was published in 1806, in
which are to be found some interesting selections from his
private correspondence.
The character of Dr Beattie is delineated in his writ¬
ings, of which the most prominent features are purity of
sentiment, and warm attachment to the principles of reli¬
gion and morality. His dispositions were gentle and mo¬
dest, and he possessed great tenderness of heart. He was
laborious in his literary pursuits, yet fond at all times of
conversation and society. Towards the latter period of
his life he was subject to an irritability of nerves, by which
his temper was sensibly affected; and though, to appear¬
ance, his bodily frame was robust, he had impaired his
strength by excess in study. He possessed considerable
talents both for music and drawing.
His abilities as a writer may be said to have already
undergone that ultimate test which is to be found in pub¬
lic opinion; and it has ranked him high as a moralist, a
critic, and a poet. His Essay on Truth became a very po¬
pular book, particularly in England, and has gone through
many editions. It must be confessed that this work is
not without considei’able faults as a philosophical compo¬
sition. Its leading doctrine has been thus stated by him¬
self: “ As we know nothing of the eternal relations of
things, t/u/t to us is and must be truth, which we feel that
we must believe; and that to us is falsehood, which we
feel that we must disbelieve. I have shown that all ge¬
nuine reasoning does ultimately terminate in certain prin¬
ciples, which it is impossible to disbelieve, and as impos¬
sible to prove; that, therefore, the ultimate standard of
truth to us is common sense, or that instinctive convic¬
tion into which all true reasoning does resolve itself.” It
is now generally admitted that, in the illustration of this
doctrine, which is conformable in substance to that of
weid, Dr Beattie has fallen into some errors, or at least
ambiguities, which the former has been enabled in a Beattie,
greater degree to avoid. What constitutes the chief de-
feet of the Essay is a want of that strictness and preci¬
sion which a discussion of the metaphysical parts of the
subject necessarily requires. He has used the term com¬
mon sense with more latitude, and in a greater variety of
significations, than is consistent with exact or conclusive
reasoning; and he has stated some propositions too ge¬
nerally, and without the limitations which they seem to
require. Notwithstanding this imperfection of the work,
when considered strictly as a logical treatise, it is certain
that many of the fundamental doctrines delivered in it carry
with them an irresistible weight, which subsequent inquiry
and discussion have tended, not to diminish, but increase.
It may justly be considered as an example, in probable
reasoning, of that indirect but conclusive mode of proof
which, in mathematical science, is usually termed reductio
ad absurdum ; a form which has been frequently and suc¬
cessfully employed by Dr Reid for similar purposes. A
reference to the sources of knowledge possessed by man¬
kind in general, and to their common or universal senti¬
ments, is an appeal regarding certain acknowledged facts,
as an ingredient and ground-work of science. Nor is it
to be supposed that, in these cases, philosophy surrenders
her judgment to the popular opinion; but-only, that the
conclusions of the soundest and the most improved reason
are conformable to the dictates of our faculties, as they
are exercised by the majority of mankind. The materials
of knowledge possessed by the philosopher and the vulgar
are the same; it is in the extent of the inferences which
are drawn from them, in their combination, and in the
uses to which they are applied, that the disproportion is
to be found. In their reasoning on mixed subjects, and in
the power of remote calculation, men differ infinitely; in
their immediate judgments they differ very little.
It is undeniable, also, with respect to the style of this
work, that Dr Beattie has fallen into an error, by using,
on various occasions, a greater keenness of expression
than is at all suited to the argumentative parts of his sub¬
ject. An author may, indeed, be moved by a commendable
feeling of indignation to commence the task of writing,
whatever be the subject of discussion. But he who at¬
tempts to conduct a train of reasoning while under the
immediate influence even of a just passion, engages in too
difficult a matter, and foregoes many advantages. The
truth is, that the metaphysical speculations of Berkeley
and Hume had proceeded so far in contradicting the ordi¬
nary apprehensions and feelings of mankind, as to prove,
in the clearest manner, even to men of science, the im¬
possibility of obtaining certain knowledge, by any exer¬
cise of the human intellect, altogether abstracted from
the information of matter and the employment of our
other faculties; and those consequences with regard to
morality, religion, and the social state, which appeared to
flow as a necessary result from the speculative principles,
particularly of Mr Hume, roused in a large class, both of
the learned and unlearned, a sense of repugnance and op¬
position proportionally strong. Dr Beattie was among the
first who endeavoured to resist the current of these opinions.
His book was polemical; and that warmth of language,
which he has not studied to repress, must be ascribed to
these circumstances, if it cannot be defended by them.
But the objections in question are not applicable to any
of his other works. It is impossible here to enter into a
further detail of these various publications. His Elements
of Moral Science, and his different critical and philologi¬
cal treatises, are compositions of a very pleasing charac-
^n, interesting account of his life and character, by Dr Beattie, with a small collection of his compositions in prose and verse,
was pubhshed in the year 1800. ^
478 B E A
Beaucaire ter; and it was chiefly by them that his reputation was
H established in other countries. Some of his books were
earl7 translated into the Dutch and other languages. A
French translation of his Essays on Poetry and Music
was printed at Paris in 1798. But it is chiefly as the
author of the Minstrel that Beattie is known, and will con¬
tinue to be admired. This poem, or rather poetical frag¬
ment, for the design was not completed, stands fully con¬
firmed in the public favour; and it is sufficient to say,
that, in beauty both of sentiment and imagery, it stands
in the first class of poetical compositions. It would be
difficult perhaps to select, from the body of English verse,
any single passage which excels this stanza in the first
part:—
O, how can’st thou renounce the boundless store
Of charms which Nature to her votary yields !
The warbling woodland, the resounding shore,
The pomp of groves, and garniture1 of fields ;
All that the genial ray of morning gilds,
And all that echoes to the song of even,
All that the mountain’s sheltering bosom shields,
And all the dread magnificence of heaven;
O, how can’st thou renounce, and hope to be forgiven !
It has been objected to the second part of the Minstrel
that it contains too much philosophy. But, though the
instruction conveyed in it be frequently addressed to the
understanding, it is never abstruse, and the lessons are
those of a poet not less than of a moralist. Like the
Castle of Indolence, it is in scope and design a didactic
piece. Both commence in the highest strain of descrip¬
tive and pathetic poetry ; and the subsequent depression
of tone in both is a necessary result of this lofty prepara¬
tion. But the criticism is more just when applied to the
work of Thomson than to the Minstrel.
Dr Beattie’s style is classical, and always perspicuous.
He was never weary of retouching what he wrote; the
chief secret of good composition, without which, at least,
no composition can be rendered complete. He deserves,
above all, that which is the greatest praise of an author,
that no one can read his works with a candid mind, and
rise from the perusal unimproved.
The following is a list of Dr Beattie’s writings : Poems,
first published in 1760; Essay on Truth, 1771 ; Minstrel,
1771, 1774); Essays, viz. On Poetry and Music—On
Laughter and Ludicrous Composition—On Classical Learn¬
ing, 1776 ; Dissertations, viz. On Memory and Imagina¬
tion—On Dreaming—On the Theory of Language—On
Fable and Romance—On the Attachments of Kindred—
and Illustrations of Sublimity, 1783 ; Evidences of Chris¬
tianity, 1786 ; and Elements of Moral Science, 1790, 1793.
He likewise published, in 1790, an edition of Mr Addi¬
son’s papers in the Tatler, Spectator, Guardian, and Free¬
holder, and of his Treatise on the Christian Religion, with
his Life of Tickell, and some original Notes, Edinburgh,
4) vols. 8vo. (o. o.)
BEAUCAIRE, a small but populous town of France,
in the department of Gard, on the Rhone, opposite Taras-
con, with which it has a communication by a bridge of
boats. It is chiefly remarkable for its great annual fair,
which in former times was famous over Europe, but has
now considerably declined. Long. 4). 43. E. Lat. 43.48. N.
BEAVER. See Mammalia, Index.
Beaver Skins, in commerce. Of these, merchants
distinguish three sorts; the new, the dry, and the fat.
Ihe new beaver, which is also called the white or Mus-
B E A
covy beaver, because it is commonly kept to be sent into Be-
Muscovy, is that which the savages catch in their winter
hunting. It is the best and the most proper for making ®ca ar.
fine furs, because it has lost none of its hair by shedding. ^ •
The dry beaver, sometimes called the lean beaver, comes ^ ^
from the summer hunting, which is the time when these
animals lose part of their hair. Though this sort of beaver
be much inferior to the former, yet it may also be employ,
ed in furs; but it is chiefly used in the manufacture of
hats. The fat beaver is that which has contracted a cer¬
tain gross and oily humour, from the sweat exhaled by
the bodies of the savages by whom it has been worn.
Though this sort be better than the dry beaver, yet it is
used only in the making of hats. When the hair has been
cut off from the beavers’ skins, to be used in the manu¬
facturing of hats, those skins are still employed by several
workmen: namely, by the trunk-makers, to cover trunks
and boxes; by the shoemakers, to put into slippers; and
by turners, to make sieves for sifting grain and seeds.
BEAUFORT, a town of France, in the department of
the Maine and Loire, with a castle, near the river Authion.
It contains two parishes and about 6000 inhabitants.
BEAULY, a village of Scotland, in the county of In¬
verness, situated on the north side of the river Beauly,
where it flows into the Moray Frith. There are here the
remains of a Cistertian abbey, founded in the year 1230.
The trade carried on in this place is inconsiderable, and
the port is frequented by vessels of ninety tons burden.
It is ten miles west of Inverness. Long. 4. 21. W. Lat.
57. 29. N. The river of this name flows into the Moray
Frith at the above village. On this river there is a fine
cascade called the Falls of Kilmorack.
BEAULIEU, Sebestian de Pontault de, a cele¬
brated French engineer and field marshal under Louis
XIV. He published plans of all the military expeditions
of his master, with military disquisitions annexed; and
died in 1674.
BEAUMARCHAIS, Pierre Augustin Caron de,
appears to have been one of those persons who, from rest¬
lessness of disposition and singularity of character, obtain,
in their own age, more celebrity than they are entitled to
from their merit or talents. Fie was born at Paris in
1732, and was the son of a clockmaker, who brought him
up to his own trade. From his earliest youth, however,
he discovered an inclination for literature, together with
a remarkable talent for music. His proficiency in this
art procured him an introduction to the French court,
where he was employed to teach the princesses, daughters
of Louis XV., to play on the guitar. At their concerts,
which he attended, he became acquainted with the banker
Duverney, by whom he was instructed in business, and
placed in a situation which was likely to lead to fortune.
Beaumarchais first attracted public attention by his drama
of Eugenie, which was published in 1767; but he was
chiefly indebted for the notoriety he obtained to the va¬
rious law-suits in which he became involved after the
death of his patron Duverney. Having commenced an
action against the Count de la Blache, the grand-nephew
of Duverney, for payment of a trifling balance of an ac¬
count which was due to him by his deceased patron, and
the suit having been removed from Aix to Paris, M. Goez-
man, one of the judges of the parliament of Maupeou, which
was then very unpopular in the capital, was appointed to
report and decide on its merits. Beaumarchais, suspect-
,, It is remarkable that tins word should have been objected to by Gray, in his Critique, communicated to the author previously to
the publication or the Minstrel. His reluctance to admit a term which could only be rendered objectionable bv being ranked with
none but those ot the highest and purest class in poetry, would of itself be a sufficient tribute to the diction of this beautiful passage-
But Gray does ample justice to the whole stanza: “ This,” he exclaims, “ is true poetry; this is inspiration.”
B E A
Beat ir* ing that he was excluded from the presence of Goezman
ch by the influence of the Count de la Blache, and thus pre-
^ J vented from explaining the merits of his case, bribed cer¬
tain dependents of the judge in order to be admitted to
an interview. The cause, however, was decided against
him before he could obtain an audience ; and the whole of
the bribe not having been returned, a long correspondence
took place, by which Goezman was at length so much
exasperated, that he instituted a prosecution against Beau¬
marchais for an attempt to corrupt him in his judicial ca¬
pacity. Beaumarchais was acquitted of the charge, while
Goezman was found liable to him in damages, and was fur¬
ther convicted of subornation and falsehood in his attempts
to substantiate the accusation. But the decision against
Goezman having been rescinded, and the principal cause
remitted to the parliament of Aix, where it had originally
depended, Beaumarchais became again involved with the
Count de la Blache in a litigation which originated in the
calumnies and undue influence by which the count at¬
tempted to overpower his adversary. In this dispute, how¬
ever, Beaumarchais also prevailed; but the chief advantage
which he acquired from these various processes was the
astonishing interest and admiration which were univer¬
sally excited in France by the Factions or Memoires which
he wrote in his defence; in which the most logical and
convincing argument is diversified with the bitterest sar¬
casm, the keenest raillery, and the relation of incidents as
strange and amusing as any which are met with in ro¬
mance. These able and lively productions, however, pro¬
cured him many enemies, as they discovered him to be a
man of a most resentful and calumnious disposition. He
also lost a good deal of the reputation he had acquired,
from being involved in a new process, in which he found
the advocate Bergasse a more formidable opponent than
Goezman or La Blache; and his new Memoires wanted
the spirit and gaiety to which his former ones were in¬
debted for their popularity. Though occupied with these
processes and various literary pursuits, Beaumarchais did
not neglect the improvement of his fortune. He engaged
in various speculations, of which the most profitable was
his project of supplying the Americans with arms and
ammunition during the war with this country. Having
thus gained a considerable fortune, he built a magnificent
villa in the Faubourg St Antoine, which he embellished
with much taste and at great expense. He afterwards
lost some part of the money he had acquired by an ex¬
pensive and ill-executed edition of the works of Voltaire ;
and neither the early support which he gave to the prin¬
ciples of the French revolution, nor his importation of
fire-arms for the use of the French forces, was sufficient
to preserve his property from confiscation, or his person
from proscription. The sufferings and dangers which he
experienced during this period have been detailed by him
in a work entitled Mes Six Epoques, which is written with
considerable force and interest. After he had endured
every species of accusation and persecution, and had pass¬
ed some time as an exile from his native country, he re¬
turned to France when the storms of the revolution had
subsided into a more settled tyranny; and having reco¬
vered possession of his villa in the Faubourg St Antoine,
fie remained there till his death, which happened sud¬
denly in the year 1799.
The moral character of Beaumarchais seems to have
been far from unexceptionable. He was remarkable for
extraordinary indiscretion, restlessness, and ambition, an
overweening conceit of his own talents, and an undisguised
contempt for others. With these defects, it is not won-
eiful that his conduct should have formed the subject of
some absurd calumnies. Laharpe mentions that these
Were propagated to such an extent, that it was at one
B E A 479
time reported that he had made away by poison with his Beaumar-
two wives, whom he had successively married for their chais.
fortunes; a report on which Voltaire is said to have re-
marked, “ Ce Beaumarchais nest point un empoisonneur,
il est trop droid’ Even the journey which he undertook
to Spain in order to vindicate the honour and secure the
happiness of a sister, and wdiich seems to have been the
most praiseworthy action of his life, was made the subject
of invidious misrepresentations, from which he has vindi¬
cated himself in one of his Memoires against La Blache
and Goezman.
Besides his Memoires, Beaumarchais is the author of
various dramatic productions, which made a great noise,
and gained him considerable reputation in Paris at the
time they appeared. His Eugenie, of which the plot is
founded on a story in the Diable Boiteux, and his Deux
Amis, which hinges on the embarrassment and perplexity
of a merchant on the verge of insolvency, are serious sen¬
timental comedies, written in imitation of Diderot’s Fere
de Famille. Eugenie, which was the most successful of
the two, is rather a romance carried on by dialogue than
a drama. It possesses little pathos or interest, and the
only emotion felt in its perusal is a certain degree of cu¬
riosity concerning the event of the story. The incidents
in Les Deux Amis are flat and insipid; and as it is not
sustained by the charms of versification, it fails almost
entirely in stage effect. Beaumarchais obtained more suc¬
cess in his dramatic career when he quitted the imitation
of Diderot, and, following the natural gaiety of his own
genius, represented the lively and entertaining character
of Figaro in two successive pieces, Lc Barbier de Seville,
and La Folle Journee, ou le Mariage de Figaro. The first
of these comedies merely turns on the assistance which
the Count Almaviva receives from Figaro, the Barbier de
Seville, in his stratagem to carry off Rosine by duping
an old guardian, by whom she was strictly watched, and
who intended to marry her himself. The Mariage de
Figaro principally hinges on the scheme devised by the
Count Almaviva for marrying a beautiful attendant of his
countess to Figaro, with designs which seem to have been
suggested by some scenes in the Casina of Plautus. Both
pieces are full of lively dialogue, dramatic movement, and
ingenious jeux de theatre. The author, however, had at
first great difficulty in getting the Mariage de Figaro
represented; and the curiosity and expectation of the
public were excited to the highest pitch previously to its
appearance. It continued to be acted twice a wreek for two
years, and produced immense profits both to the author
and the comedians. To a reader of the present day,
the chief interest of the Mariage de Figaro arises from
the distress experienced by the countess on finding her¬
self forsaken by her husband, and the engaging though
not very moral character of the page Cherubin; but in
France its popularity might be partly owing to the nume¬
rous sarcasms both on the political and judicial admi¬
nistration of the country. This was evidently one of
the author’s chief objects, as he boasts in his preface,
quil a forme son plan de fa;-on a y faire entrer la cri¬
tique d’une faide d’abus qui desolent la societe. Beaumar¬
chais has introduced Ifigaro a third time, in his last drama,
La Mere Coupable ; and it is generally supposed that by
this character, in all the three dramas, he intended to repre¬
sent himself. Figaro, it is true, is originally a barber, and
afterwards a valet; but he is also a poet, a musician, and a
great intriguer, whilst the freedom which he uses with his
master gives full scope for the development of the cha¬
racter. In La Mere Coupable, he has also introduced,
under the name of Begearss, his old opponent the advocate
Bergasse. Indeed he says in his preface, Ah ! je vous jure
queje Vai vu agir ; je naurais pas pu Vinventer.
480 B E A
Beaumaris Most of the plays of Beaumarchais are preceded by
II prefaces, in which he has vindicated them against objec-
Beaumont.t{onSj an(j p0int;e(j out their beauties; but, as he was not
possessed of much learning or taste, his literary pleadings
were not so happy as his judicial ones. Indeed the great
secret of Beaumarchais’s success was the perceiving and
availing himself of the tone and spirit of the times. The
vogue in which the jPere de Famille then was, secured
applause for his Comedies Larmoyantes. The unpopularity
of a parliament intrusted with the administration of jus¬
tice procured a favourable reception for his Memoires;
and the rising clamour against the government of the
country gave additional zest to the sarcasms of t\\eMariage
de Figaro. Of consequence, Beaumarchais, during his life,
was more celebrated than respectable, and the reputation
he enjoyed in his own age was greater than that which
he is likely to preserve with posterity. (q.)
BEAUMARIS, a market-town on the island of An¬
glesey, in North Wales, 249 miles from London. It has
a small harbour opposite Bangor, at the entrance of the
Straits of Menai. It is a borough, and returns one mem¬
ber to the House of Commons, who is chosen by the cor¬
poration, consisting of about twenty-four members. The
inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 1576, in 1811 to 1710,
and in 1821 to 2205.
BEAUMONT, Sir John, the elder brother of Mr
Francis Beaumont the famous dramatic poet, was born in
the year 1582, and in 1626 had the dignity of baronet
conferred upon him by King Charles I. In his youth he
applied himself to poetry with tolerable success, and wrote
The Crown of Thorns, a poem, in eight books; a miscel¬
lany, entitled Bosworth Field: Translations from the
Latin poets; and several poems on religious and political
subjects. He died in 1628. His poetic genius was cele¬
brated by Ben Johnson, Michael Drayton, and others.
BEAUMONT and FLETCHER, two celebrated Eng¬
lish dramatic writers, who flourished in the reign of James!.,
and were so closely connected both as authors and as
friends, that it has been judged not improper to give them
under one article.
Francis Beaumont was descended from an ancient fa¬
mily at Grace-Dieu, in Leicestershire, where he was born
about the year 1585 or 1586, in the reign of Queen
Elizabeth. His grandfather, John Beaumont, was Mas¬
ter of the Rolls, and his father, Francis Beaumont, one
of the judges of the Common Pleas. He was educated
at Cambridge, and afterwards admitted of the Inner
Temple. It does not, however, appear that he made any
great proficiency in the law, that being a study probably
too dry and unentertaining to be attended to by a man
of his fertile and sprightly genius. Indeed we should
scarcely be surprised to find that he had given no appli¬
cation to any study but poetry, nor attended on any court
but that of the Muses: our attention might rather fix
itself on the opposite extreme, and fill us with admiration
of the extreme assiduity of his genius and rapidity of his
pen, when we look back on the voluminousness of his
works, and then inquire into the time allowed him for
them; works, the execution of which might well have
occupied a long life. For although, out of fifty-three
plays which are collected together as the labours of these
authors, Beaumont was concerned in much the greater
part, yet he did not live to complete his thirtieth year;
death summoning him away in the beginning of March
1616, on the ninth day of which he was interred, in the
entrance of St Benedict’s Chapel, in Westminster Abbey.
There is no inscription on his tomb ; but there are two
epitaphs to his memory, one by his elder brother Sir
John Beaumont, and the other by Bishop Corbet. He left
a daughter, Frances Beaumont, who died in Leicester-
B E A
shire some time after the year 1700. She had in her Beau
possession several poems of her father’s writing; but these arnt
were lost at sea in a voyage from Ireland, where she had Flet|r,
lived for some time in the duke of Ormond’s family. ^ J
John Fletcher was not more meanly descended than
his poetical associate; his father, the Rev. Dr Fletcher
having first been made bishop of Bristol by Queen Eliza¬
beth, and afterwards by the same princess, in the year
1593, translated to the rich see of London. Our poet was
born in 1576; and, like his friend, was educated at Cam¬
bridge, where he made great proficiency in his studies,
and was accounted a very good scholar. A natural viva¬
city of wit, for which he was remarkable, soon rendered
him a devotee of the Muses; and his close attention to
their service, and fortunate connection with a genius equal
to his own, soon raised him to one of the highest places in
the temple of poetical fame. As he was born near ten
years before Beaumont, so he also survived him by an
equal period; the plague, which broke out in the year 1625,
having carried him off in the forty-ninth year of his age.
During the joint lives of these two great poets, it ap¬
pears that they wrote nothing separately, excepting one
little piece each, which seemed of too trivial a nature for
either to require assistance in, namely, The Faithful Shep¬
herd, a pastoral, by Fletcher; and The Masque of Grays-
Inn Gentlemen, by Beaumont. Yet what share each had
in the writing or designing of the pieces composed by
them jointly, there is no possibility of determining. It is
however generally allowed, that Fletcher’s peculiar talent
was wit, and Beaumont’s, though much the younger man,
judgment. Nay, so extraordinary was the latter property
in Beaumont, that it is recorded of Ben Johnson, who
seems moreover to have had a sufficient degree of self¬
opinion of his own abilities, that he constantly, as long as
this gentleman lived, submitted his own writings to his
censure, and, as is thought, availed himself of his judgment
at least in the correction, if not even in the contrivance
of all his plots. It is probable, therefore, that forming
the plots and contriving the conduct of the fable, as well
as writing the more serious and pathetic parts, and lop¬
ping off the redundant branches of Fletcher’s wit, whose
luxuriance, it is said, stood frequently in need of castiga¬
tion, might in general be Beaumont’s portion in the work;
whilst Fletcher—whose conversation with the fashionable
world, to which indeed both of them from their birth and
station in life had been ever accustomed, added to the
volatile and lively turn he possessed, rendered him per¬
fectly master of dialogue and polite language—might ex¬
ecute the designs formed by the other, and raise the su¬
perstructure of those lively and spirited scenes of which
Beaumont had only laid the foundation; and in this he
was so successful, that although his wit and raillery were
extremely keen and poignant, yet they were at the same
time so perfectly genteel, that they used rather to please
than disgust the very persons on whom they seemed to
reflect. Yet that Fletcher was not entirely excluded from
a share in the conduct of the drama, may be gathered
from a story related by Winstanley, that our two bards
having concerted the rough draught of a tragedy over
a bottle of wine at a tavern, Fletcher said he would un¬
dertake to “ kill the king which words being caught by
the waiter, who had not overheard the context of their
conversation, he lodged an information of treason against
them. But on their explanation that it only meant the
compassing the death of a theatrical monarch, and their
loyalty being moreover unquestioned, the affair ended in
a jest.
On the whole, the works of these authors, par noHk
fratrum, have undoubtedly great merit; and some of their
dramas deservedly stand on the list of the stock pieces ot
B E A
Be, e the theatre. The plots are ingenious, interesting, and well
managed; the characters are strongly marked ; and the
B« dialogue is sprightly and natural; yet there is in the latter
^ ^ a coarseness which is not suitable to the politeness of the
present age, and a fondness of repartee, which frequently
runs into obscenity, and which we may suppose to have
been the vice of the time, since even Shakspeare himself
is not entirely free from it. But as these authors have
more of that kind of wit than the “ Swan of Avon,” it is
not to be wondered if, in the licentious reign of Charles II.,
their works were preferred to his. Now, however, the
tables are entirely turned; and while Skakspeare’s immor¬
tal works form our constant and daily study, those of
Beaumont and Fletcher are only occasionally dipped into.
Some of their plays were printed in quarto during the
lives of the authors; and in the year 1645 there was pub¬
lished in folio a collection of such plays as had not been
printed before, amounting to between thirty and forty.
This collection was published by Mr Shirley, after the
shutting up of the theatres, and dedicated to the earl of
Pembroke by ten of the most famous actors. In 1679
there was an edition of all their plays published in folio;
and another appeared in 1711 by Mr Tonson, in seven
volumes 8vo. The last and best edition is that edited by
Mr H. Weber, in 14 vols. 8vo.
BEAUNE, an arrondissement of the department of
Cote d'Or, in France, extending over 199 square miles,
and comprehending 10 cantons and 203 communes, with a
population of 110,555 persons. The chief city, of the
same name, is situated on the river Bouzeoise, in a district
highly productive of the best Burgundy wine. It contains
B E A 48]
869 houses, and 9375 inhabitants. Long. 4. 45. E. Lat. Beaupreau
47.2. N. ° ||
BEAUPREAU, an arrondissement in the department Beauty-
of the Mayenne and Loire, in France, extending over 560
square miles, and containing 7 cantons and 73 communes,
with 77,755 inhabitants. The chief town, of the same
name, is situated on the river Evre, and contains 385
houses, with 1891 inhabitants.
BEAUSOBRE, Isaac de, a learned Protestant writer,
of French origin, was born at Niort in 1659. He was
forced into Holland to avoid the execution of a sentence,
which condemned him to make the amende honorable for
having broken the royal signet, which was put upon the
door of a church of the reformers to prevent the public pro¬
fession of their religion. He went to Berlin in 1694, and
was made chaplain to the king of Prussia, and counsellor
of the royal consistory. He died in 1738, aged seventy-
nine, after having published several works, among which
may be mentioned, 1. Defense de la Doctrine des Refor¬
mes. 2. A Translation of the New Testament, with Notes,
jointly with M. Lenfant; much esteemed by the reform¬
ed. 3. Dissertation sur les Adamites de Boheme ; a cu¬
rious work. 4. Histoire Critique de Manichtie et du Ma-
nicheisme, 2 tom. 4to. This is a very learned and valu¬
able work; discussing, as Mr Gibbon observes, “ many
deep questions of Pagan and Christian theology, and
forming a rich treasury of facts and opinions.” 5. Several
dissertations in the Bibliotheque Britannique. M. de
Beausobre had strong sense with profound erudition, and
was one of the best writers among the reformed; he also
preached as he wrote, with spirit and ability.
BEAUTY,
That property in objects by which they are recommend¬
ed to the power or faculty of taste—the reverse of ugliness
—the primary or more general object of love or admira¬
tion.
Nee uy These, we confess, are rather explanations of the word
2 h ^an ^e^n^^ons °f th0 thing it signifies ; and can be of no
defi 0/ va^ue’ even as explanations of the word, except only to
‘ those who understand, without explanation, all the other
words they contain. For, if the curious inquirer should
proceed to ask, “ And what is the faculty or power of
taste?” we do not see what other answer we could give,
than that it was that of which beauty was the object,
or by which we were enabled to discover and to relish
what was beautiful. It is material, however, to observe,
that if it could be made out, as some have alleged, that
our perception of beauty was a simple sensation, like
our perception of colour; and that taste was an original
and distinct sense, like that of seeing or hearing; this
would be truly the only definition that could be given,
either of the sense or of its object; and all that we could
do in investigating the nature of the latter, would be to
digest and enumerate the circumstances under which it
was found to present itself to its appropriate organ. All
that we can say of colour, if we consider it very strictly,
rs, that it is that property in objects by which they are
recommended to the faculty of sight; and the faculty of
S1ght can scarcely be defined in any other way than as
that by which we are enabled to discover the existence
of colour. When we attempt to proceed farther, and say
that green is the colour of grass, and red of roses or blood,
|t is plain that we do not in any respect explain the na-
ure of those colours, but only give instances of their oc¬
currence ; and that one who had never seen them could
earn nothing whatever from these pretended definitions.
vol. iv. r
Complex ideas, on the other hand, and compound emo¬
tions, may be always defined, and explained to a certain
extent, by enumerating the parts of which they are made
up, or resolving them into the elements of which they are
composed; and we may thus acquire not only a substan¬
tial knowledge of their nature, but a practical power in
their regulation or production.
It becomes of importance, therefore, in the very outset State of
of this inquiry, to consider whether our sense of beauty be the ques-
really a simple sensation, like some of those we have enu-tior1,
merated, or a compound or derivative feeling, the sources
or elements of which may be investigated and ascertained.
If it be the former, we have then only to refer it to the
peculiar sense or faculty of which it is the object, and to
determine, by repeated observation, under what circum¬
stances it occurs; but, if it be the latter, we have to pro¬
ceed, by a joint process of observation and reflection, to
ascertain what are the primary feelings to which it may
be referred, and by what peculiar modification of them it
is produced and distinguished. We are not quite pre¬
pared as yet to exhaust the whole of this important dis¬
cussion, to which we shall be obliged to return in the se¬
quel of our inquiry; but it is necessary, in order to ex¬
plain and to set forth, in their natural order, the difficul¬
ties with which the subject is surrounded, to state here, in
a very few words, one or two of the most obvious, and, as
we think, decisive objections against the notion of beauty
being a simple sensation, or the object of a separate and
peculiar faculty.
The first, and perhaps the most considerable, is the want
of agreement as to the presence and existence of beauty
in particular objects, among men whose organization is
perfect, and who are plainly possessed of the faculty,
whatever it may be, by which beauty is discerned. Now,
3 p
482 B E A
Beauty, no such thing happens, we imagine, or can be conceived to
happen, in the case of any other simple sensation, or the
First rea- exercise of any other distinct faculty. Where one man sees
the notimf rnen w^10 ^iave eyes see light also. All men allow
of beauty grass to be green, and sugar to be sweet, and ice to be cold;
being a pe-and the unavoidable inference from any apparent disagree-
culiar qua- ment in such matters necessarily is, that the party is insane,
lity, and or entirely destitute of the sense or organ concerned in the
the object perception. With regard to beauty, however, it is obvious
tinct senseat first siSht that the case is quite different. One man
or faculty. sees b perpetually, where to another it is quite invisible,
or even where its reverse seems to be conspicuous. Nor
is this owing to the insensibility of either of the parties;
for the same contrariety exists where both are keenly alive
to the influences of the beauty they respectively discern.
A Chinese or African lover would probably see nothing at
all attractive in a belle of London or Paris; and, undoubt¬
edly, an elegans formarum spectator from either of these
cities would discover nothing but deformity in the Venus
of the Hottentots. A little distance in time produces the
same effects as distance in place: the gardens, the furni¬
ture, the dress, which appeared beautiful in the eyes of
our grandfathers, are odious and ridiculous in ours. Nay,
the difference of rank, education, or employments, gives
rise to the same diversity of sensation. The little shop¬
keeper sees a beauty in his roadside box, and in the star¬
ing tile roof, wooden lions, and clipped boxwood, which
strike horror into the soul of the student of the picturesque;
whilst he is transported in surveying the fragments of
ancient sculpture, which are nothing but ugly masses of
mouldering stone in the judgment of the admirer of neat¬
ness. It is needless, however, to multiply instances, since
the fact admits of no contradiction. But how can we be¬
lieve that beauty is the object of a peculiar sense or fa¬
culty, when persons undoubtedly possessed of the faculty,
and even in an eminent degree, can discover nothing of it
in objects where it is distinctly felt and perceived by
others with the same use of the faculty ? This one con¬
sideration, we confess, appears to us conclusive against the
supposition of beauty being a real property of objects, ad¬
dressing itself to the power of taste as a separate sense
or faculty, and seems to point irresistibly to the conclu¬
sion, that our sense of it is the result of other more ele¬
mentary feelings, into which it may be analyzed or re¬
solved.
Second A second objection, however, if possible of still greater
reason. force, is suggested by considering the prodigious and al¬
most infinite variety of things to which this property of
beauty is ascribed, and the impossibility of imagining any
one inherent quality which can belong to them all, and
yet at the same time possess so much unity as to be the
peculiar object of a separate sense or faculty. All simple
qualities that are perceived in any one object ai'e imme¬
diately recognised to be the same when they are again per¬
ceived in another; and the objects in which they are thus
perceived are at once felt so far to resemble each other,
and to partake of the same nature. Thus snow is seen to
be white, and chalk is seen to be white; but this is no
sooner seen than the two substances, however unlike in
other respects, are felt at once to have this quality in
common, and to resemble each other in all that relates to
the quality of colour and the sense of seeing. Now, is
this felt, or could it even be intelligibly asserted, with re¬
gard to the quality of beauty? Take even a limited and
specific sort of beauty,—for instance the beauty of form.
The form of a fine tree is beautiful,—and the form of a
fine woman,—and the form of a column, and a vase, and
a chandelier. Yet how can it be said that the form of a
woman has any thing in common with that of a tree or
a temple ? or to which of the senses by which forms are
U T Y.
distinguished, does it appear they have any resemblance Bea
or affinity ? Wn ^
The matter, however, becomes still more inextricable
when we recollect that beauty does not belong merely to
forms or colours, but to sounds, and perhaps to the objects
of other senses; nay, that in all languages and in all na¬
tions, it is not supposed to reside exclusively in material
objects, but to belong also to sentiments and ideas, and
intellectual and moral existences. Not only is a tree beau¬
tiful, as well as a palace or a waterfall; but a poem is beau¬
tiful, and a theorem in mathematics, and a contrivance
in mechanics. But if things intellectual and totally segre¬
gated from matter may thus possess beauty, how can it
possibly be a quality of material objects? Or what sense
or faculty can that be, whose proper office it is to intimate
to us the existence of some property which is common to
a flower and a demonstration, a valley and an eloquent dis¬
course ?
The only answer which occurs to this is plainly enought.
a bad one ; but the statement of it, and of its inefficiency,®** he
will serve better, perhaps, than any thing else to develope ol)iec )f
the actual difficulties of the subject, and the true state 10t
the question with regard to them. It may be said, then, m()11 ?!'
in answer to the questions we have suggested above, that lity. i
all these objects, however various and dissimilar, agree at
least in being agreeable; and that this agreeableness, which
is the only quality they possess in common, may probably
be the beauty which is ascribed to them all. Now, to
those who are accustomed to such discussions, it would be
quite enough to reply, that though the agreeableness of
such objects depends plainly enough upon their beauty, it
by no means follows, but quite the contrary, that their
beauty depends upon their agreeableness; the latter be¬
ing the more comprehensive or generic term, under which
beauty must rank as one of the species. Its nature, there¬
fore, is no more explained, nor is less absurdity substan¬
tially committed, by saying that things are beautiful be¬
cause they are agreeable, than if we were to give the
same explanation of the sweetness of sugar; for no one,
we suppose, will dispute, that though it be very true that
sugar is agreeable because it is sweet, it would be mani¬
festly preposterous to say that it was sweet because it was
agreeable. For the benefit, however, of those who wish or
require to be more regularly initiated in these mysteries,
we beg leave to add a few observations.
In the first place, then, it seems evident that agree¬
ableness in general cannot be the same with beauty, be¬
cause there are very many things in the highest degree
agreeable that can in no sense be called beautiful. Mo¬
derate heat, and savoury food, and rest, and exercise, are
agreeable to the body; but none of these can be called
beautiful: and, among objects of a higher class, the love
and esteem of others, and fame, and a good conscience,
and health, and riches, and wisdom, are all eminently
agreeable ; but not at all beautiful, according to any in¬
telligible use of the word. It is plainly quite absurd,
therefore, to say that beauty consists in agreeableness,
without specifying in consequence of what it is agree¬
able ; or to hold that any thing whatever is taught as to
its nature, by merely classing it among our pleasurable
emotions.
In the second place, however, we may remark, that among
all the objects that are agreeable, whether they are also
beautiful or not, scarcely any two are agreeable on account
of the same qualities, or even suggest their agreeableness
to the same faculty or organ. Most certainly there is no
resemblance or affinity whatever between the qualities
which make a peach agreeable to the palate, and a beau¬
tiful statue to the eye; which soothe us in an easy chan1
by the fire, or delight us in a philosophical discovery.
BEAUTY.
483
Bea
'-n
Ini
the
cult
the
tml
sisti
The truth is, that agreeableness is not properly a quality
‘j 0f any object whatsoever, but the effect or result of cer¬
tain qualities, the nature of which w^e can generally define
pretty exactly, or of which we know at least with cer¬
tainty that they manifest themselves respectively to some
one particular sense or faculty, and to no other ; and
consequently it would be just as obviously ridiculous to
suppose a faculty or organ, whose office it was to perceive
agreeableness, as to suppose that agreeableness was a dis¬
tinct quality that could thus be perceived.
The class of agreeable objects, thanks to the bounty
of Providence, is exceedingly large. Certain things are
agreeable to the palate, and others to the smell and to the
touch. Some, again, are agreeable to our faculty of ima¬
gination, to our understanding, or to our moral feelings;
and none of all these we call beautiful. But there are
others which we do call beautiful; and those we say are
agreeable to our faculty of taste: yet when we come to
ask what is the faculty of taste, and what are the quali¬
ties which recommend them to that faculty, we find our¬
selves just where we were at the beginning of the discus¬
sion, and embarrassed with all the difficulties arising from
the prodigious diversity of objects which seem to possess
these qualities.
We know pretty well what is the faculty of seeing or
hearing; or, at least, we know that what is agreeable to
one of those faculties, has no effect whatever on the other.
We know that bright colours afford no delight to the ear,
nor sweet tones to the eye ; and are therefore perfectly
assured that the qualities which make the visible objects
agreeable, cannot be the same with those which give
pleasure to the ear. But it is by the eye and by the ear
that all material beauty is perceived ; and yet the beauty
which discloses itself to these two separate senses, and
plainly depends upon qualities which have no sort of affi¬
nity, is supposed to be one distinct quality, and to be per¬
ceived by a peculiar sense or faculty! The perplexity
becomes still greater when we think of the beauty of inherent resemblance, nor indeed any one quality in com-
poems or theorems, and endeavour to imagine what quali- mon, should yet be united in one common relation, and
ties they can possess in common with the agreeable mo- consequently acquire one common epithet,—just as all the
difications of light or of sound. things that belonged to a beloved individual may serve
t It is in these considerations undoubtedly that the diffi- to remind us of him, and thus to awake a kindred class of
culty of the subject consists. The faculty of taste, plain- emotions, though just as unlike each other as any of the
^ ly, is not a faculty, like any of the external senses, the objects that are classed under the general name of beau-
^ range of whose objects is limited and precise, as well as tiful. His poetry, for instance, or his slippers,—his acts of
the qualities by which they are gratified or offended; bounty, or his saddle-horse,—may lead to the same chain
and beauty, accordingly, is discovered in an infinite vari- of interesting remembrances, and thus agree in possessing
ety of objects, among which it seems at first sight im- a power of excitement, for the sources of which we should
possible to discover any other bond of connection. Yet look in vain through all the variety of their physical or
boundless as their diversity maj' appear, it is plain that metaphysical qualities.
they must resemble each other in something, and in some- By the help of the same consideration, we get rid of
thing more definite and definable than in merely being all the mystery of a peculiar sense or faculty, imagined
agreeable; since they are all classed together, in every for the express purpose of perceiving beauty; and dis-
tongue and nation, under the common appellation of beau- cover that the power of taste is nothing more than the
tiful, and are felt indeed to produce emotions in the mind habit of tracing those associations, by which almost all
that have some sort of kindred or affinity. The words objects may be connected with interesting emotions. It
beauty and beautiful, in short, must mean something, and is easy to understand, that the recollection of any scene
are universally felt to mean something, much more defi- of delight or emotion must produce a certain agreeable
aite than agreeableness or gratification in general; and sensation, and that the objects which introduce these re¬
while it is confessedly by no means easy to describe or collections should not appear altogether indifferent to us:
define what that something is, the force and clearness of nor is it, perhaps, very difficult to imagine, that recollec-
our perception of it is demonstrated by the readiness with tions thus strikingly suggested by some real and present
which we determine, in any particular instance, whether existence should present themselves under a different
the object of a given pleasurable emotion is or is not pro- aspect, and move the mind somewhat differently from
perly described as beauty. those which arise spontaneously in the ordinary course of
What we have already said, we confess, appears to us our reflections, and do not thus grow out of a direct and
conclusive against the idea of this beauty being any fixed peculiar impression.
or inherent property of the objects to which it is ascribed, The whole of this doctrine, however, we shall endea-
°r itself the object of any separate and independent facul- vour by and by to establish upon more direct evidence ;
ty; and we will no longer conceal from the reader what but having now explained, in a general way, both the
we take to be the true solution of the difficulty. In our Beaut}',
opinion, then, our sense of beauty depends entirely on our
previous experience of simpler pleasures or emotions, and Solution
consists in the suggestion of agreeable or interesting sen-l)roPose(*’
sations with which we had formerly been familiar by the
direct and intelligible agency of our common sensibilities ;
and that vast variety of objects, to which we give the
common name of beautiful, become entitled to that ap¬
pellation, merely because they all possess the power of
recalling or reflecting those sensations of which they have
been the accompaniments, or wdth which they have been
associated in our imagination by any other more casual
bond of connection. According to this view of the mat¬
ter, therefore, beauty is not an inherent property or qua¬
lity of objects at all, but the result of the accidental rela¬
tions in which they may stand to our experience of plea¬
sures or emotions,—and does not depend upon any parti¬
cular configuration of parts, proportions, or colours, in
external things, nor upon the unity, coherence, or simpli¬
city of intellectual creations, but merely upon the asso¬
ciations which, in the case of every individual, may enable
these inherent, and otherwise indifferent qualities, to sug¬
gest or recall to the mind emotions of a pleasurable or in¬
teresting description. It follows, therefore, that no object
is beautiful in itself, or could appear so, antecedently to
our experience of direct pleasures or emotions; and that,
as an infinite variety of objects may thus reflect interest¬
ing ideas, so all of them may acquire the title of beauti¬
ful, although utterly diverse and disparate in their nature,
and possessing nothing in common but this accidental
power of reminding us of other emotions.
This theory, which we believe is now very generally
adopted, though under many needless qualifications, shall
be further developed and illustrated in the sequel. But
at present we shall only remark, that it serves at least
to solve the great problem involved in the discussion, by
rendering it easily conceivable how objects which have no
484 B E A
Beauty, difficulties of the subject, and our suggestion as to their
true solution, it is proper that we should take a short re-
tlieories1^6 v*ew more considerable theories that have been
proposed ProPosed for the elucidation of this curious question;
on the sub-which is one of the most delicate, as well as the most
ject. popular, in the science of metaphysics,—was one of the
earliest which exercised the speculative ingenuity of phi¬
losophers,—and has at last, we think, been more success¬
fully treated than any other of a similar description.
In most of these speculations we shall find rather im¬
perfect truth than fundamental error,—or, at all events,
such errors only as arise naturally from that peculiar dif¬
ficulty which we have already endeavoured to explain, as
consisting in the prodigious multitude and diversity of the
objects in which the common quality of beauty was to be
accounted for. Those who have not been sufficiently
aware of the difficulty have generally dogmatized from a
small number of instances, and have rather given examples
of the occurrence of beauty in some few classes of objects,
than afforded any light as to that upon which it essenti¬
ally depended in all; whilst those who felt its full force
have very often found no other resource than to repre¬
sent beauty as consisting in properties so extremely vague
and general (such, for example, as the power of exciting
ideas of relation), as almost to elude our comprehension,
and, at the same time, of so abstract and metaphysical a
description, as not to be very intelligibly stated as the
radicals of a strong, familiar, and pleasurable emotion.
This last observation leads us to make one other remark
upon the general character of these theories; and this is,
that some of them seem necessarily to imply the existence
of a peculiar sense or faculty for the perception of beauty,
as they resolve it into properties that are not in any way
interesting or agreeable to any of our known faculties.
Such are all those which make it consist in proportion,—
or in variety, combined with regularity,—or in waving
lines,—or in unity,—or in the perception of relations,—
without explaining, or attempting to explain, how any of
these things should affect us with any delight or emotion.
Others, again, do not require the supposition of any such
separate faculty; because in them the sense of beauty is
considered as arising from other more simple and familiar
emotions, which are in themselves and beyond all dispute
agreeable. Such are those which teach that beauty de¬
pends on the perception of utility, or of design, or of fit¬
ness, or in tracing associations between its objects and
the common joys or emotions of our nature. Which of
these two classes of speculation (to one or other of which,
we believe, all theories of beauty may be reduced) is the
most philosophical in itself, we imagine can admit of no
question; and we hope, in the sequel, to leave it as little
doubtful, which is to be considered as most consistent
with the fact. In the meantime, we must give a short
account of some of the theories themselves.
Specula- The most ancient of which it seems necessary to take
Plato0* an^ not'ce’ which maybe traced in the Dialogues
of Plato,—though we are very far from pretending that it
is possible to give any intelligible or consistent account of
its tenor. It should never be forgotten, however, that it
is to this subtile and ingenious spirit that we owe the
suggestion that it is Mind alone that is beautiful; and
that, in perceiving beauty, it only contemplates the sha¬
dow of its own affections;—a doctrine which, however
mystically unfolded in his writings, or however combined
with extravagant or absurd speculations, unquestionably
carries in it the germ of all the truth that has since been
revealed on the subject. By far the largest dissertation,
however, that this great philosopher has left upon the na¬
ture of beauty, is to be found in the dialogue entitled The
Greater Hippias, which is entirely devoted to that inquiry.
U T Y.
We do not learn a great deal of the author’s own opinion, Be
indeed, from this performance; for it is one of the dia- ^ 1
logues which have been termed anatreptic or confuting,—
in which nothing is concluded in the affirmative, but a
series of sophistical suggestions or hypotheses are succes- r
sively exposed. The plan of it is to lead on Hippias, a
shallow and confident sophist, to make a variety of dog¬
matical assertions as to the nature of beauty, and then to
make him retract and abandon them upon the statement
of some obvious objections. Socrates and he agree at first
in the notable proposition, “ that beauty is that by which
all beautiful things are beautifuland then, after a great
number of suggestions, by far too childish and absurd to
be worthy of any notice, such as, that the beautiful may
peradventure be gold, or a fine woman, or a handsome
mare, they at last get to some suppositions, which show
that almost all the theories that have since been pro¬
pounded on this interesting subject, had occurred thus
early to the active and original mind of this keen and cu-
rious inquirer. Thus Socrates first suggests that beauty
may consist in the fitness or suitableness of any object
to the place it occupies; and afterwards more generally
and directly, that it may consist in utility; a notion which
is ultimately rejected, however, upon the subtile considera¬
tion that the useful is that which produces good, and that ,,
the producer and the product being necessarily different, it
would follow, upon that supposition, that beauty could not «
be good, nor good beautiful. Finally, he suggests, that
beauty may be the mere organic delight of the eye or the
ear,—to which, after stating very slightly the objection,
that it would be impossible to account upon this ground
for the beauty of poetry or eloquence, he proceeds to
rear up a more refined and elaborate refutation, upon such
grounds as these: If beauty be the proper name of that
which is naturally agreeable to the sight and hearing, it
is plain that the objects to which it is ascribed must pos¬
sess some common and distinguishable property besides
that of being agreeable, in consequence of which they are
separated and set apart from objects that are agreeable
to our other senses and faculties, and, at the same time,
classed together under the common appellation of beauti¬
ful. Now we are not only quite unable to discover what
this property is, but it is manifest that objects which
make themselves known to the ear can have no property
as such in common with objects that make themselves
known to the eye ; it being impossible that an object which
is beautiful by its colour, can be beautiful from the same
quality with another which is beautiful by its sound.
From all which it is inferred, that, as beauty is admitted
to be something real, it cannot be merely what is agree¬
able to the organs of sight or hearing.
There is no practical wisdom, we admit, in those fine¬
drawn speculations; nor any of that spirit of patient ob¬
servation by which alone any sound view of such objects
can ever be attained. There are also many marks of that
singular incapacity to distinguish between what is abso¬
lutely puerile and silly, and what is plausible, at least,
and ingenious, which mayr be reckoned among the cha¬
racteristics of “ the divine philosopher,” and in some de¬
gree of all the philosophers of antiquity: but they show
clearly enough the subtile and abstract character of Greek
speculation, and prove at how early a period, and to how
great an extent, the inherent difficulties of the subject
were felt, and produced their appropriate effects.
There are some hints on these subjects in the works of
Xenophon, and some scattered observations in those of
Cicero, who was .the first, we believe, to observe that the
sense of beauty is peculiar to man; but nothing else, we
believe, in classical antiquity which requires to be analyzed
or explained. It appears that St Augustin composed a
BEAUTY.
485
Beau large treatise on beauty, and it is to be lamented that the
' speculations of that acute and ardent genius on such a
tetrii 'fsubject have been lost. We discover, from incidental
t Aua notices in other parts of his writings, that he conceived
«■ the beauty of all objects to depend on their unity, or on the
perception of the principle or design which fixed the re¬
lations of their various parts, and presented them to the
intellect or imagination as one harmonious whole. It
would not be fair to deal very strictly with a theory with
which we are so imperfectly acquainted: but it may be
observed, that, while the author is so far in the right as
to make beauty consist in a relation to mind, and not in
any physical quality, he has taken far too narrow and cir¬
cumscribed a view of the matter, and one which seems
almost exclusively applicable to works of human art; it
being plain enough, we think, that a beautiful landscape,
ora beautiful horse, has no more unity, and no more traces
of design, than one which is not beautiful.
We do not pretend to know what the schoolmen taught
upon this subject during the dark ages, but the discussion
does not seem to have been resumed for long after the re¬
vival of letters. The followers of Leibnitz were pleased
to maintain that beauty consisted in perfection ; but what
constituted perfection they did not attempt to define. M.
ipinio Crouzas wrote a long essay to show that beauty depend-
FCroi s ed on these five elements, variety, unity, regularity, order,
1(1 Al and proportion; and the Pere Andre, a still longer one
re; to prove, that, admitting these to be the true foundations
of beauty, it was still most important to consider, that the
beauty which results from them is either essential, or na¬
tural, or artificial, and that it may be greater or less, ac¬
cording as the characteristics of each of these classes are
combined or set in opposition.
Lori Among ourselves we are not aware of any considerable
taite; publication on the subject till the appearance of Lord
Jr- ’ Shaftesbury’s Characteristics, in which a sort of rapturous
Platonic doctrine is delivered as to the existence of a pri¬
mitive and supreme good and beauty, and of a certain in¬
ternal sense, by which both beauty and moral merit were
Add distinguished. Addison published several ingenious pa¬
pers in The Spectator on the pleasures of the imagination,
and was the first, we believe, who referred them to the
specific sources of beauty, sublimity, and novelty. He
did not enter much, however, into the metaphysical dis-
n’sd ‘cuss'.on nature of beauty itself; and the first philo-
jne. sophical treatise of note that appeared on the subject may
be said to have been the Inquiry of Dr Hutcheson, first
published, we believe, in 1725.
In this work the notion of a peculiar internal sense, by
which we are made sensible of'the existence of beauty, is
very boldly promulgated, and maintained by many inge¬
nious arguments. Yet nothing, we conceive, can be more
extravagant than such a proposition ; and nothing but the
mdical faults of the other parts of the hypothesis could
possibly have driven the learned author to its adoption,
ven after the existence of this sixth sense was assumed,
ie felt that it was still necessary that he should explain
wnat were the qualities by which it was gratified, and
tiese, he was pleased to allege, were nothing but the
combinations of variety with uniformity; all objects, as he
, as .niself expressed it, which are equally uniform being
eautiful in proportion to their variety, and all objects
equally various being beautiful in proportion to their uni-
ormity. Now, not to insist upon the obvious and radical
0 'jection that this is not true in fact, as to flowers, land-
‘W'upcs, or indeed of any thing but architecture, if it be
tjue 0 that, it could not fail to strike the ingenious au-
u"t'r tlat these qualities of uniformity and variety were
or f° , .emse^ves agreeable to any of our known senses
acuities, except when considered as symbols of utility
or design, and therefore could not intelligibly account for Beauty,
the very lively emotions which we often experience from v—
the perception of beauty, where the notion of design or
utility was not at all suggested. He was constrained,
therefore, either to abandon this view of the nature of
beauty altogether, or to imagine a new sense or faculty,
whose characteristic and description it should be to re¬
ceive delight from the combinations of uniformity and
variety, without any consideration of their being signifi¬
cant of things agreeable to our faculties; and this being
accomplished by the mere force of the assumption and the
definition, there was no room for further dispute or diffi¬
culty in the matter.
Some of Hutcheson’s followers, such as Gerard and Attempts
others, who were a little startled at the notion of a sepa-to resolve
rate faculty, and yet wished to retain the doctrine of^utyinto
beauty depending on variety and uniformity, endeavoured, uni/orm.it-v
accordingly, to show that these qualities were naturally^ vane‘
agreeable to the mind, and were recommended by consi- '
derations arising from its most familiar properties. Uni¬
formity or simplicity, it is said, renders our conception of
objects easy, and saves the mind from all fatigue and dis¬
traction in the consideration of them; whilst variety, if
circumscribed and limited by an ultimate uniformity,
gives it a pleasing exercise and excitement, and keeps its
energies in a state of pleasurable activity. Now this ap¬
pears to us to be mere trifling. The varied and lively
emotions which we receive from the perception of beauty
obviously have no sort of resemblance to the pleasure of
moderate intellectual exertion; nor can any thing be con¬
ceived more utterly dissimilar than the gratification we
have in gazing on the form of a lovely woman, and the
satisfaction we receive from working an easy problem in
arithmetic or geometry. If a triangle is more beautiful
than a regular polygon, as those authors maintain, merely
because its figure is more easily comprehended, the num¬
ber four should be more beautiful than the number three
hundred and twenty-seven, and the form of a gibbet far
more agreeable than that of a branching oak. The radi¬
cal error, in short, consists in fixing upon properties that
are not interesting in themselves, and can never be con¬
ceived, therefore, to excite any emotion, as the fountain¬
spring of all our emotions of beauty; and it is an absur¬
dity that must infallibly lead to others,—whether these
take the shape of a violent attempt to disguise the truly
indifferent nature of the properties so selected, or of the
bolder expedient of creating a peculiar faculty, whose of¬
fice it is to find them interesting.
The next remarkable theory was that proposed by Ed- Theory of
mund Burke, in his Treatise of the Sublime and Beautiful. Burke!
But of this, in spite of the great name of the author, we
cannot persuade ourselves that it is necessary to say much.
His explanation is founded upon a species of materialism,
—not much to have been expected from the general cha¬
racter of his genius, or the strain of his other specula¬
tions,—for it resolves entirely into this, that all objects
appear beautiful which have the power of producing a pe¬
culiar relaxation of our nerves and fibres, and thus indu¬
cing a certain degree of bodily langour and sinking. Of
all the suppositions that have been at any time hazarded
to explain the phenomena of beauty, this, we think, is the
most unfortunate, and the most weakly supported. There
is no philosophy in the doctrine; and the fundamental
assumption is in every way contradicted by the most fa¬
miliar experience. There is no relaxation of the fibres in
the perception of beauty, and there is no pleasure in the
relaxation of the fibres. If there were, it would follow
that a warm bath would be by far the most beautiful thing
in the world, and that the brilliant lights and bracing
airs of a fine autumn morning would be the very reverse
436
BEAUTY.
Beauty, of beautiful. Accordingly, though the treatise alluded
to will always be valuable on account of the many fine
and just remarks it contains, we are not aware that there
is any accurate inquirer into the subject (with the excep¬
tion, perhaps, of Mr Price, in whose hands, however, the
doctrine assumes a new character), by whom the funda¬
mental principle of the theory has not been explicitly
abandoned.
Theory of A yet more extravagant doctrine was soon afterwards
Diderot, inculcated, and in a tone of great authority, in a long
article from the brilliant pen of Diderot, in the French
Encyclopedic, and one which exemplifies, in a very striking
manner, the nature of the difficulties with which the dis¬
cussion is embarrassed. This ingenious person, perceiv¬
ing at once that the beauty which we ascribe to a parti¬
cular class of objects could not be referred to any peculiar
and inherent quality in the objects themselves, but de¬
pended upon their power of exciting certain sentiments
in our minds,—and being, at the same time, at a loss to
discover what common power could belong to so vast a
variety of objects as pass under the general appellation of
beautiful, or’ by what tie all the various emotions which
are excited by the perception of beauty could be united,—
was at last driven, by bis sense of the necessity of keeping
his definition sufficiently wide and comprehensive, to ha¬
zard the strange assertion, that all objects were beautiful
which excite in us the idea of relation ; that our sense of
beauty consisted in tracing out the relations which the
object possessing it might have to other objects ; and that
its beauty was in proportion to the number and clearness
of the relations thus suggested and perceived. It is
scarcely necessary, we presume, to expose by any argu¬
ments the manifest fallacy, or rather the palpable absux--
dity, of such a theory as this. In the first place, we con¬
ceive it to be obvious, that all objects whatever have an
infinite, and consequently an equal number of relations,
and are equally likely to suggest them to those to whom
they are presented: at all events, it is certain that ugly
and disagreeable objects have just as many relations as
those that are agreeable, and ought, therefore, to be just
as beautiful, if the sense of beauty consists in the percep¬
tion of relations. In the next place, it seems to be suffi¬
ciently certain, from the experience and common feelings
of all men, that the perception of relations among objects
is not in itself accompanied by any pleasure whatever, and
in particular has no conceivable resemblance to the emo¬
tion we receive from the perception of beauty. When we
perceive one ugly old woman sitting exactly opposite to
two other ugly old women, and observe at the same mo¬
ment that the first is as big as the other two taken to¬
gether, we humbly conceive that this clear perception of
the relations in which these three graces stand to each
other cannot well be mistaken for a sense of beauty, and
that it does not in the least abate or interfere with our
sense of their ugliness. Finally, we may observe, that the
sense of beauty results instantaneously from the percep¬
tion of the object; whereas the discovery of its relations
to other objects must necessarily be a work of time and
reflection, in the course of which the beauty of the object,
so far from being created or brought into notice, must, in
fact, be lost sight of and forgotten.
Theory of Another more plausible and ingenious theory was sug-
Father gested by the Pere Buffier, and afterwards adopted and
Buffier and illustrated with great talent in the Discourses of Sir Jo-
^°f]uashua Reynolds. According to this doctrine, beauty con-
Keynolds. sis^s? as Aristotle held virtue to do, in mediocrity, or con¬
formity to that which was most usual. Thus a beautiful
nose, to make use of Dr Smith’s very apt illustration of
this doctrine, is one that is neither very long nor very
short, very straight nor very much bent, but of an or¬
dinary form and proportion compared with all the ex- Be
tremes. It is the form, in short, which nature seems to ^
have aimed at in all cases, though she has more frequent¬
ly deviated from it than hit it; but deviating from it in all
directions, all her deviations come nearer to it than they
ever do to each other. Thus the most beautiful in every
species of creatures bears the greatest resemblance to the
whole species, while monsters are so denominated because
they bear the least; and thus the beautiful, though in
one sense the rarest, as the exact medium is but seldom
hit, is invariably the most common, because it is the cen¬
tral point from which all the deviations are the least re¬
mote. This view of the matter is adopted by Sir Joshua
in its full extent, and is even carried so far by this great
artist, that he does not scruple to conclude, “ That if we
were more used to deformity than beauty, deformity
would then lose the idea that is now annexed to it, and
take that of beauty ;—just as we approve and admire fa¬
shions in dress, for no other reason than that we are used
to them.”
Now, not to dwell upon the very startling conclusion
to which these principles must lead, viz. that things are
beautiful in proportion as they are ordinary, and that it
is merely their familiarity which constitutes their beauty,
we would observe, in the first place, that the whole theory
seems to have been suggested by a consideration of ani¬
mal forms, or perhaps of the human figure exclusively.
In these forms, it is quite true that great and monstrous
deviations from the usual proportions are extremely dis¬
agreeable. But this, we have no doubt, arises entirely
from some idea of pain or disaster attached to their exist¬
ence, or from their obvious unfitness for the functions they
have to perform. In vegetable forms, accordingly, these
irregularities excite no such disgust; it being, in fact, the
great object of culture, in almost all the more beautiful
kinds, to produce what may be called monstrosities. And,
in mineral substances, where the idea of suffering is still
more completely excluded, it is notorious that, so far from
the more ordinary configurations being thought the most
beautiful, this epithet is scarcely ever employed but to
denote some rare and unusual combination of veins, co¬
lours, or dimensions. As to landscapes, again, and almost
all the works of art, without exception, the theory is
plainly altogether incapable of application. In what sense,
for example, can it be said that the beauty of natural
scenery consists in mediocrity; or that these landscapes
are the most beautiful that are the most common r or
what meaning can we attach to the proposition, that the
most beautiful building, or picture, or poem, is that which
bears the nearest resemblance to all the individuals oj
its class, and is, upon the whole, the most ordinary and
common ?
To a doctrine which is liable to these obvious and radi¬
cal objections, it is not perhaps necessary to make any
other; but we must remark further, Jii'st, That it neces¬
sarily supposes that our sense of beauty is, in all cases,
preceded by such a large comparison between various in¬
dividuals of the same species, as may enable us to ascer¬
tain that average or mean form in which beauty is suppos¬
ed to consist, and, consequently, that we could never dis¬
cover any object to be beautiful antecedently to such a
comparison ; and, secondly, That, even if we were to al ow
that this theory afforded some explanation of the superioi
beauty of any one object compared with others ol tie
same class, it plainly furnishes no explanation whatever o
the superior beauty of one class of objects compared
another. We-may believe, if we please, that one peacoe
is handsomer than another because it approaches m°r^
nearly to the average or mean form of peacocks in gene
ral; but this reason will avail us nothing whatever m e
1
if
■a
3
hi
I0
P'
it
in
BEAUTY.
487
plaining why any peacock is handsomer than any pelican
i |,r penguin. We may say, without manifest absurdity,
^ that the most beautiful pig is that which has least of the
extreme qualities that sometimes occur in the tribe ; but
it would be palpably absurd to give this reason, or any
thing like it, for the superior beauty of the tribe of ante¬
lopes or spaniels.
The notion, in short, seems to have been hastily adopt¬
ed by the ingenious persons who have maintained it, partly
upon the narrow ground of the disgust produced by
monsters in the animal creation, which has been already
sufficiently explained,—and partly in consequence of the
fallacy which lurks in the vague and general proposition
of those things being beautiful which are neither too big
nor too little, too massive nor too slender, &c.; from which
it was concluded that beauty must consist in mediocrity:—
not considering that the particle too merely denotes those
degrees which are exclusive of beauty, without in any way
fixing what those degrees are. For the plain meaning of
these phrases is, that the rejected objects are too massive or
too slender to be beautiful; and, therefore, to say that an ob¬
ject is beautiful which is neither too big nor too little, &c.
is really saying nothing more than that beautiful objects
are such as are not in any degree ugly or disagreeable.
The illustration as to the effects of use or custom in the
article of dress is singularly inaccurate and delusive ; the
fact being, that we never admire the dress which we are
most accustomed to see,—which is that of the common
people,—but the dress of the few who are distinguished
by rank or opulence ; and that we require no more custom
or habit to make us admire this dress, whatever it may
be, than is necessary to associate it in our thoughts with
the wealth and dignity of those who wear it.
)pini We need say nothing in this place of the opinions ex-
fDr '■ pressed on the subject of beauty by Dr Gerard, Dr Blair,
“ and a whole herd of rhetoricians, because none of them
air:"' pretend to have any new or original notions with regard
to it, and, in general, have been at no pains to reconcile
or render consistent the various accounts of the matter
which they have contented themselves with assembling
and laying before their readers altogether, as affording
among them the best explanation that could be offered of
the question. Thus they do not scruple to say, that the
sense of beauty is sometimes produced by the mere or¬
ganic affection of the senses of sight or hearing; at other
times by a perception of a kind of regular variety; and
in other instances by the association of interesting con¬
ceptions ;—thus abandoning altogether any attempt to
answer the radical question, how the feeling of beauty
should be excited by such opposite causes,—and con¬
founding together, without any attempt at discrimination,
those theories which imply the existence of a separate
sense or faculty, and those which resolve our sense of
beauty into other more simple or familiar emotions.
•atei d More recently, however, we have had three publications
e on the subject, of a far higher character,—we mean Mr
pecu ^‘son’s Essays on the Nature and Principles of Taste, Mr
ions, Payne Knight’s Analytical Inquiry into the same objects,
and Mr Dugald Stewart’s Dissertations on the Beautiful,
and on Taste, in his volume of Philosophical Essays. All
these works possess an infinite deal of merit, and have
among them disclosed almost all the truth that is to be
known on the subject; though, as it seems to us, with
some little admixture of error, from which it will not, how-
ev^r’ be difficult to separate it.
leor 11 ^Pson maintains, that all beauty, or at least that
ah the beauty of material objects, depends on the associa-
tions that may have connected them with the ordinary
attections or emotions of our nature; and in this, which
18 t“e fundamental point of his theory, we conceive him to
be no less clearly right, than he is convincing and judici- Beauty,
ous in the copious and beautiful illustration by which he
has sought to establish its truth. When he proceeds,
however, to assert that our sense of beauty consists not
merely in the suggestion of ideas of emotion, but in the
contemplation of a connected series of such ideas, and in¬
dicates a state of mind in which the faculties, half active
and half passive, are given up to a sort of reverie or mus¬
ing, in which they may wander, though among kindred
impressions, far enough from the immediate object of
perception, we will confess that he not only seems to us
to advance a very questionable proposition, but very es¬
sentially to endanger the evidence, as well as the consist¬
ency, of his general doctrine. We are far from denying,
that, in minds of sensibility and of reflecting habits, the
contemplation of beautiful objects will be apt, especially
in moments of leisure, and when the mind is vacant, to
give rise to such trains of thought, and to such protracted
meditations; but we cannot possibly admit that their ex¬
istence is necessary to the perception of beauty, or that
it is in this state of mind exclusively that the sense of
beauty exists. The perception of beauty, on the contrary,
we hold to be, in most cases, quite instantaneous, and al¬
together as immediate as the perception of the external
qualities of the object to which it is ascribed. Indeed, it
seems only necessary to recollect, that it is to a present
material object that we actually ascribe and refer this
beauty, and that the only thing to be explained is, how
this object comes to appear beautiful. In the long train
of interesting meditations, however, to vrhich Mr Alison
refers,—in the delightful reveries in which he would make
the sense of beauty consist,—it is obvious that we must
soon lose sight of the external object which gave the first
impulse to our thoughts; and though we may afterwards
reflect upon it, with increased interest and gratitude, as
the parent of so many charming images, it is impossible,
we conceive, that the perception of its beauty can ever
depend upon a long series of various and shifting emo¬
tions.
It likewise occurs to us to observe, that if every thing
were beautiful which was the occasion of a train of ideas
of emotion, it is not easy to see why objects that are called
ugly should not be entitled to that appellation. If they
are sufficiently ugly not to be viewed with indifference,
they too will give rise to ideas of emotion ; and those ideas
are just as likely to run into trains and series as those of
a more agreeable description. Nay, as contrast itself is
one of the principles of association, it is not at all unlike¬
ly that, in the train of impressive ideas which the sight
of ugly objects may excite, a transition maybe ultimately
made to such as are connected with pleasure ; and, there¬
fore, if the perception of the beauty of the object which
first suggested them depended upon its having produced
a series of ideas of emotion, or even of agreeable emotions,
there seems to be no good reason for doubting that ugly
objects may thus be as beautiful as any other, and that
beauty and ugliness may be one and the same thing. Such
is the danger, as it appears to us, of deserting the object
itself, or going beyond its immediate effect and impression,
in order to discover the sources of its beauty. Our view
of the matter is safer, we think, and far more simple. We
conceive the object to be associated, either in our past ex¬
perience, or by some universal analogy, with pleasures or
emotions that upon the whole are pleasant; and that these
associated pleasures are instantaneously suggested, as
soon as the object is presented, and by the first glimpse of
its physical properties, with which, indeed, they are con-
substantiated and confounded in our sensations.
The work of Mr Knight is more lively, various, and dis- Knight’s
cursive, than Mr Alison’s, but not so systematic or conclu- theory.
BEAUTY.
488
Beauty, sive. It is the cleverer book of the two, but not the
'w~Y'w/ most philosophical discussion of the subject. He agrees
with Mr Alison in holding the most important, and, in¬
deed, the only considerable part of beauty, to depend upon
association; and has illustrated this opinion with a great
variety of just and original observation. But he main¬
tains, and maintains stoutly, that there is a beauty inde¬
pendent of association—prior to it, and more original and
fundamental—the primitive and natural beauty of colours
and sounds. Now this we look upon to be a heresy, and
a heresy inconsistent with the very first principles of
catholic philosophy. We shall not stop at present to give
our reasons for this opinion, which we shall illustrate at
large before we bring this article to a close; but we beg
leave merely to suggest at present, that if our sense of
beauty be confessedly in most cases the mere image or
reflection of pleasures or emotions that have been associat¬
ed with objects in themselves indifferent, it cannot fail
to appear strange that it should also on some few oc¬
casions be a mere organic or sensual gratification of the
particular organs. Language, it is believed, affords no
other example of so whimsical a combination of differ¬
ent objects under one appellation, or of the confound¬
ing of a direct physical sensation with the suggestion of
a social or sympathetic moral feeling. We would ob¬
serve also, that while Mr Knight stickles so violently for
this alloy of the senses in the constitution of beauty, he
admits unequivocally, that sublimity is, in every instance
and in all cases, the effect of association alone. Yet sub¬
limity and beauty, in any just or large sense, and with
a view to the philosophy of either, are manifestly one
and the same; nor is it conceivable to us, that, if subli¬
mity be always the result of an association with ideas of
power or danger, beauty can possibly be, in any case, the
result of a mere pleasurable impulse on the nerves of the
eye or the ear. We shall return, however, to this discus¬
sion hereafter. Of Mr Knight we have only further to
observe, that we think he is not less heretical in maintain¬
ing that we have no pleasure in sympathizing with dis¬
tress or suffering, but only with mental energy ; and that,
in contemplating the sublime, we are moved only with a
sense of power and grandeur, and never with any feel¬
ing of terror or awe. These errors, however, are less in¬
timately connected with the subject of our present dis¬
cussion.
Stewart’s With Mr Stewart we have less occasion for quarrel;
hssay. chiefly, perhaps, because he has made fewer positive as¬
sertions, and entered less into the matter of controversy.
His Essay on the Beautiful is rather philological than me¬
taphysical. The object of it is to show by what gradual
and successive extensions of meaning the word, though at
first appropriated to denote the pleasing effect of colours
alone, might naturally come to signify all the other pleas¬
ing things to which it is now applied. In this investiga¬
tion he makes many admirable remarks, and touches, with
the hand of a master, upon many of the disputable parts
of the question; but he evades the particular point at
issue between us and Mr Knight, by stating that it is quite
immaterial to his purpose whether the beauty of colours
be supposed to depend on their organic effect on the eye,
or on some association between them and other agreeable
emotions; it being enough for his purpose that this was
probably the first sort of beauty that was observed, and
that to which the name was at first exclusively applied.
It is evident to us, however, that he leans to the opinion
of Mr Knight, as to this beauty being truly sensual or or¬
ganic. In observing, too, that beauty is not now the name B
of any one thing or quality, but of very many different
qualities, and that it is applied to them all merely because ion!
they are often united in the same objects, or perceived at11,1 oc-
the same time and by the same organs, it appears to us that1™
he carries his philology a little too far, and disregards
other principles of reasoning of far higher authority. To
give the name of beauty, for example, to every thing that
interests or pleases us through the channel of sight, in¬
cluding in this category the mere impulse of light that
is pleasant to the organ, and the presentment of objects
whose whole charm consists in awakening the memory of
social emotions, seems to us to be confounding things to¬
gether that must always be separate in our feelings, and
giving a far greater importance to the mere identity of the
organ of perception than is warranted either by the ordi¬
nary language or ordinary experience of men. Upon the
same principle, we should give this name of beautiful, and
no other, to all acts of kindness or magnanimity, and, in¬
deed, to every interesting occurrence which took place in
our sight, or came to our knowledge by means of the eye:
nay, as the ear is also allowed to be a channel for impres¬
sions of beauty, the same name should be given to any in¬
teresting or pleasant thing that we hear; and good news
read to us from the gazette should be denominated beau¬
tiful, just as much as a fine composition of music. These
things, however, are never called beautiful, and are felt,
indeed, to afford a gratification of quite a different nature.
It is no doubt true, as Mr Stewart has observed, that
beauty is not one thing, but many, and does not produce
one uniform emotion, but an infinite variety of emotions.
But this, we conceive, is not merely because many plea¬
sant things maybe intimated to us by the same sense, but
because the things that are called beautiful may be asso¬
ciated with an infinite variety of agreeable emotions, of
the specific character of which their beauty will conse¬
quently partake. Nor does it follow, from the fact of
this great variety, that there can be no other principle of
union among these agreeable emotions than that of a name,
extended to them all upon the very slight ground of their
coming through the same organ ; since, upon our theory,
and indeed upon Mr Stewart’s, in a vast majority of in¬
stances, there is the remarkable circumstance of their
being all suggested by association with some present sen¬
sation, and all modified and compounded to our feelings
by an actual and direct perception.
It is unnecessary, however, to pursue these criticisms,
or, indeed, this hasty review of the speculation of other
writers, any further. The few observations we have al¬
ready made will enable the intelligent reader both to un¬
derstand in a general way what has been already done on
the subject, and in some degree prepare him to appreciate
the merits of that theory, substantially the same with Mr
Alison’s, which we shall now proceed to illustrate some¬
what more in detail. ier
The basis of it is, that the beauty which we impute to 1 Ufl|
outward objects is nothing more than the reflection of Qf, the
our own inward emotions, and is made up entirely of cer-Jfasso
tain little portions of love, pity, and affection, which haveci£ms.
been connected with these objects, and still adhere as it
were to them, and move us anew whenever they are pre¬
sented to our observation. Before proceeding to bring
any proof of the truth of this proposition, there are two
things which it may be proper to explain a little more
distinctly ; first,1 What are the primary affections, by the
suggestion of which we think the sense of beauty is pm-
. 1 considerable part of the sequel of this article has already appeared in a critique (by the same author-) upon Mr Alison’s Essay,
m the Edinburgh Review for May 1811. '
BEAUTY.
489
jje. duced? and, secondly, What is the nature of the connec-
^ J tion by which we suppose that the objects we call beauti¬
ful are enabled to suggest these affections ?
f. With regard to the first of these points, it fortunately
fectli is not necessary either to enter into any tedious details,
way t!ieor to have recourse to any nice distinctions. All sensa-
t®'5 tions that are not absolutely indifferent, and are, at the
*)eau same time, either agreeable when experienced by our¬
selves, or attractive when contemplated in others, may
form the foundation of the emotions of sublimity or beau¬
ty. The love of sensation seems to be the ruling appe¬
tite of human nature ; and many sensations, in which the
painful seems to bear no little share, are consequently
sought for with avidity, and recollected with interest,
even in our own persons. In the persons of others, emo¬
tions still more painful are contemplated with eagerness
and delight; and therefore we must not be surprised to
find, that many of the pleasing sensations of beauty or
sublimity resolve themselves ultimately into recollections
of feelings that may appear to have a very opposite cha¬
racter. The sum of the whole is, that every'- feeling which
it is agreeable to experience, to recall, or to witness, may
become the source of beauty in external objects, when it
is so connected with them as that their appearance re¬
minds us of that feeling. Now, in real life, and from daily
experience and observation, we know that it is agreeable,
in the first place, to recollect our own pleasurable sensa¬
tions, or to be enabled to form a lively conception of the
pleasures of other men, or even of sentient beings of any
description. We know, likewise, from the same sure au¬
thority, that there is a certain delight in the remembrance
of our past, or the conception of our future emotions, even
though attended with great pain, provided they be not
forced too rudely on the mind, and be softened by the
accompaniment of any milder feeling. And, finally, we
know, in the same manner, that the spectacle or concep¬
tion of the emotions of others, even when in a high de¬
gree painful, is extremely interesting and attractive, and
draws us awray, not only from the consideration of indif¬
ferent objects, but even from the pursuit of light or frivo¬
lous enjoyments. All these are plain and familiar facts,
of the existence of which, however they may be explain¬
ed, no one can entertain the slightest doubt, and into
which, therefore, we shall have made no inconsiderable
progress, if we can resolve the more mysterious fact, of
the emotions we receive from the contemplation of subli¬
mity or beauty.
Our proposition then is, that these emotions are not
original emotions, nor produced directly by anyr qualities
m the objects which excite them ; but are reflections or
images of the more radical and familiar emotions to which
we have already alluded, and are occasioned, not by any
inherent virtue in the objects before us, but by the acci¬
dents, if we may so express ourselves, by which these may
have been enabled to suggest or recall to us our own past
sensations or sympathies. We might almost venture, in-
< eed, to lay it down as an axiom, that, except in the plain
and palpable case of bodily pain or pleasure, we can never
e interested in any thing but the fortunes of sentient
emgs; and that every thing partaking of the nature of
mental emotion must have for its object the feelings, past,
present, or possible, of something capable of sensation,
naependently, therefore, of all evidence, and without the
,e °‘ any explanation, we should have been apt to con-
c u e that the emotions of beauty and sublimity must
lave or their objects the sufferings or enjoyments of sen-
i'ent ,.^lnSs 5 and to reject as intrinsically absurd and
credible the supposition, that material objects, which
ex^tn n.e*t^er hurt nor delight the body, should yet
e, by their mere physical qualities, the very powerful
emotions which are sometimes excited by the spectacle Beauty,
of beauty. v—
Of the feelings, by their connection with which exter-Nature of
nal objects become beautiful, we do not think it neces-theassocia-
sary to speak more minutely; and therefore it only re- tio”s by
mains, under this preliminary view of the subject, to ex-^111011 ob*
plain the nature of that connection by which we conceive'1^ beaU
this effect to be produced. Here, also, there is but little tiful. ^
need for minuteness, or fulness of enumeration. Almost
every tie by which two objects can be bound together in
the imagination, in such a manner as that the present¬
ment of the one shall recall the memory of the other, or,
in other words, almost every possible relation which can
subsist between such objects, may serve to connect the
things we call sublime or beautiful, with feelings that are
interesting or delightful. It may be useful, however, to
class these bonds of association between mind and matter
in a rude and general way.
It appears to us, then, that objects are sublime or beau¬
tiful, first, When they are the natural signs and perpe¬
tual concomitants of pleasurable sensations, or, at any rate,
of some lively feeling or emotion in ourselves or in some
other sentient beings ; or, secondly, When they are the
arbitrary or accidental concomitants of such feelings; or,
thirdly, When they bear some analogy or fanciful resem¬
blance to things with which these emotions are necessarily
connected. In endeavouring to illustrate the nature of
these several relations, we shall be led to lay before our
readers some proofs that appear to us satisfactory of the
truth of the general theory.
The most obvious and the strongest association that First class
can be established between inward feelings and external of asso-
objects is, where the object is necessarily and universallyciations-
connected with the feeling by the law of nature, so that
it is always presented to the senses when the feeling is
impressed upon the mind,—as the sight or the sound of
laughter, with the feeling of gaiety,—of weeping, with dis¬
tress,—of the sound of thunder, with ideas of danger and
power. Let us dwell for a moment on the last instance.
—Nothing, perhaps, in the whole range, is more strikingly
and universally sublime than the sound we have just men¬
tioned ; yet it seems obvious that the sense of sublimity is
produced, not by any quality that is perceived by the ear,
but altogether by the impression of power and of danger
that is necessarily made upon the mind whenever that
sound is heard. That it is not produced by any peculi¬
arity in the sound itself, is certain, from the mistakes that
are frequently made with regard to it. The noise of a
cart rattling over the stones is often mistaken for thun¬
der ; and as long as the mistake lasts, this very vulgar
and insignificant noise is actually felt to be prodigiously
sublime. It is so felt, however, it is perfectly plain, mere¬
ly because it is then associated with ideas of prodigious
power and undefined danger; and the sublimity is de¬
stroyed the moment the association is dissolved, though
the sound itself, and its effect on the organ, continue ex¬
actly the same. This, therefore, is an instance in which
sublimity is distinctly proved to consist, not in any phjr-
sical quality of the object to which it is ascribed, but in
its necessary connection with that vast and uncontrolled
Power which is the natural object of awe and veneration.
We may now take an example a little less plain and Other ex¬
elementary. The most beautiful object in nature, perhaps, aniples.
is the countenance of a young and beautiful woman;—
and we are apt at first to imagine, that, independently of
all associations, the forms and colours which it displays
are in themselves lovely and engaging, and would appear
charming to all beholders, with whatever other qualities
or impressions they might happen to be connected. A
very little reflection, however, will probably be sufficient
3 Q
BEAUTY.
490
Beauty, to convince us of the fallacy of this impression, and to
satisfy us, that what we admire is not' a combination of
forms and colours, which could never excite any mental
emotion, but a collection of signs and tokens of certain
mental feelings and affections, which are universally re¬
cognised as the proper objects of love and sympathy.
Laying aside the emotions arising from difference of sex,
and supposing female beauty to be contemplated by the
pure and unenvying eye of a female, it seems quite obvious
that, amongst its ingredients, we should trace the signs of
two different sets of qualities, that are neither of them the
object of sight, but of a higher faculty;—in the first place,
of youth and health; and, in the second place, of inno¬
cence, gaiety, sensibility, intelligence, delicacy or vivacity.
Now, without enlarging upon the natural effect of these
suggestions, we shall just suppose that the appearances,
which must be admitted at all events to be actually signi¬
ficant of the qualities we have enumerated, had been by
the law of nature attached to the very opposite qualities;
—that the smooth forehead, the firm cheek, and the full
lip, which are now so distinctly expressive to us of the gay
and vigorous periods of youth,—and the clear and bloom¬
ing complexion, which indicates health and activity,—had
been in fact the forms and colours by which old age and
sickness were characterized; and that, instead of being
found united to those sources and seasons of enjoyment,
they had been the badges by which nature pointed out
that state of suffering and decay which is now signified to
us by the livid and emaciated face of sickness, or the
wrinkled front, the quivering lip, and hollow cheek of
age : if this were the familiar law of our nature, can it be
doubted that we should look upon these appearances, not
with rapture, but with aversion,—and consider it as abso¬
lutely ludicrous or disgusting to speak of the beauty of
what was interpreted by every one as the lamented sign
of pain and decrepitude ? Mr Knight himself, though a
firm believer in the intrinsic beauty of colours, is so much
of this opinion, that he thinks it entirely owing to those
associations that we prefer the tame smoothness and com¬
paratively poor colours of a youthful face, to the richly
fretted and variegated countenance of a pimpled drunkard.
Such, we conceive, would be the inevitable effect of
dissolving the subsisting connection between the animating
ideas of hope and enjoyment, and those visible appearances
which are now significant of these emotions, and derive
their whole beauty from this signification. But the effect
would be still stronger if we could suppose the moral ex¬
pression of these appearances to be reversed in the same
manner. If the smile which now enchants us as the ex¬
pression of innocence and affection, were the sign attach¬
ed by nature to guilt and malignity,—if the blush which
expresses delicacy, and the glance that speaks intelligence,
vivacity, and softness, had always been found united with
brutal passion or idiot moodiness,—is it not certain that the
whole of their beauty would be extinguished, and that our
emotions from the sight of them would be exactly the re¬
verse of what they now are ?
Beauty of That the beauty of a living and sentient creature should
inanimate depend, in a great degree, upon the qualities peculiar to
objects. such a creature, rather than upon the mere physical attri¬
butes which it may possess in common with the inert mat¬
ter around it, cannot indeed appear a very improbable
supposition to any one. But it may be more difficult for
some persons to understand how the beauty of mere dead
matter should be derived from the feelings and sympathies
of sentient beings. It is absolutely necessary, therefore,
that we should give an instance or two of this derivation.
Beauty of It is easy enough to understand how the sight of a pic-
landscapes. ture or statue should affect us nearly in the same way as
the sight of the original; nor is it much more difficult to
conceive, how the sight of a cottage should give us some- Be »
thing of the same feeling as the sight of a peasant’s fami- 'w ^
ly, and the aspect of a town raise many of the same ideas
as the appearance of a multitude of persons. We may
begin, therefore, with an example a little more complicat¬
ed. Take, for instance, the case of a common English
landscape—green meadows, with fat cattle—canals or na¬
vigable rivers—well-fenced, well-cultivated fields—neat,
clean, scattered cottages—humble antique church, with
church-yard elms, and crossing hedge-rows—all seen un¬
der bright skies, and in good weather: there is much
beauty, as every one will acknowledge, in such a scene.
But in what does the beauty consist ? Not certainly in
the mere mixture of colours and forms ; for colours more
pleasing, and lines more graceful (according to any theory
of grace that may be preferred), might be spread upon a
board, or a painter’s pallet, without engaging the eye to a
second glance, or raising the least emotion in the mind;
but in the picture of human happiness that is presented to
our imaginations and affections,—in the visible and une¬
quivocal signs of comfort, and cheerful and peaceful en¬
joyment,—and of that secure and successful industry that
insures its continuance,—and of the piety by which it is
exalted,—and of the simplicity by which it is contrasted
with the guilt and the fever of a city life,—in the images
of health and temperance and plenty which it exhibits to
every eye,—and in the glimpses which it affords to warm¬
er imaginations, of those primitive or fabulous times, when
man was uncorrupted by luxury and ambition, and of
those humble retreats in which we still delight to imagine
that love and philosophy may find an unpolluted asylum.
At all events, however, it is human feeling that excites
our sympathy, and forms the object of our emotions. It
is man, and man alone, that we see in the beauties of the
earth which he inhabits ;—or, if a more sensitive and ex¬
tended sympathy connect us with the lower families of
animated nature, and make us rejoice with the lambs that
bleat on the uplands, or the cattle that ruminate in the
valley, or even with the living plants that drink the bright
sun and the balmy air beside them, it is still the idea of
enjoyment—of feelings that animate the existence of sen¬
tient beings—that calls forth all our emotions, and is the
parent of all the beauty with which we proceed to invest
the inanimate creation around us.
Instead of this quiet and tame landscape, let us
now take a Welsh or a Highland scene, and see whether
its beauties will admit of being explained on the same
principle. Here we shall have lofty mountains, and rocky
and lonely recesses,—tufted woods hung over precipices,—
lakes intersected with castled promontories,—ample soli¬
tudes of unploughed and untrodden valleys,—nameless and
gigantic ruins,—and mountain echoes repeating the scream
of the eagle and the roar of the cataract. This, too, is
beautiful; and, to those who can interpret the language
it speaks, far more beautiful than the prosperous scene
with which we have contrasted it. Yet, lonely as it is, it
is to the recollection of man and of human feelings that its
beauty also is owing. The mere forms and colours that
compose its visible appearance, are no more capable of ex¬
citing any emotion in the mind, than the forms and colours
of a Turkey carpet. It is sympathy with the present or
the past, or the imaginary inhabitants of such a region,
that alone gives it either interest or beauty ; and the de¬
light of those who behold it will always be found to be m
exact proportion to the force of their imaginations, an
the warmth of their social affections. The leading impres¬
sions here are those of romantic seclusion and pruneva
simplicity; lovers sequestered in these blissful solitudes,
“ from towns and toils remote and rustic poets andp u
losophers communing with nature, at a distance from t m
BEAUTY.
491
low pursuits and selfish malignity of ordinary mortals ;—
; then there is the sublime impression of the Mighty Power
which piled the massive cliffs upon one another, and rent
the mountains asunder, and scattered their giant fragments
at their base,—and all the images connected with the mo¬
numents of ancient magnificence and extinguished hosti¬
lity the feuds, and the combats, and the triumphs of its
wild and primitive inhabitants, contrasted with the still¬
ness and desolation of the scenes where they lie interred,
—and the romantic ideas attached to their ancient tradi¬
tions and the peculiarities of their present life,—their
wild and enthusiastic poetry,—their gloomy superstitions,
—their attachment to their chiefs,—the dangers, and the
hardships, and enjoyments of their lonely huntings and
fishings,—their pastoral shielings on the mountains in
summer,—and the tales and the sports that amuse the
little groups that are frozen into their vast and trackless
valleys in the winter. Add to all this the traces of vast
and obscure antiquity that are impressed on the language
and the habits of the people, and on the cliffs, and caves,
and gulfy torrents of the land,—and the solemn and touch¬
ing reflection perpetually recurring, of the weakness and
insignificance of perishable man, whose generations thus
pass away into oblivion with all their toils and ambition,
while nature holds on her unvarying course, and pours
out her streams, and renews her forests, with undecaying
activity, regardless of the fate of her proud and perishable
sovereign.
Beau af We have said enough, we believe, to let our readers
•prin understand what we mean by external objects being the
natural signs or concomitants of human sympathies or
emotions. Yet we cannot refrain from adding one other
illustration, and asking on what other principle we can ac¬
count for the beauty of spring? Winter has shades as
deep, and colours as brilliant, and the great forms of nature
are substantially the same through all the revolutions of
the year. We shall seek in vain, therefore, in the acci¬
dents of mere organic matter, for the sources of that “ ver¬
nal delight and joy” which subject all finer spirits to an an¬
nual intoxication, and strike home the sense of beauty even
to hearts that seem proof against it under all other aspects.
And it is not among the dead, but among the living, that
this beauty originates. It is the renovation of life and of
joy to all animated beings that constitutes this great jubi¬
lee of nature,—the young of animals bursting into exist¬
ence,—the simple and universal pleasures which are dif¬
fused by the mere temperature of the air and the profu¬
sion of sustenance,—the pairing of birds,—the cheerful
resumption of rustic toils,—the great alleviation of all the
miseries of poverty and sickness,—our sympathy with the
young life, and the promise and the hazards of the vege¬
table creation,—the solemn yet cheering impression of the
constancy of nature to her great periods of renovation,—
and the hopes that dart spontaneously forward into the
new circle of exertions and enjoyments that is opened up
by her hand and her example. Such are some of the con¬
ceptions that are forced upon us by the appearances of re¬
turning spring, and that seem to account for the emotions
of delight with which these appearances are hailed by
every mind endowed with any degree of sensibility, some¬
what better than the brightness of the colours, or the
agreeableness of the smells, that are then presented to
^ our senses.
chi!- They are kindred conceptions that constitute all the
1 • beauty of childhood. The forms and colours that are pe¬
culiar to that age are not necessarily or absolutely beau-
utul m themselves ; for, in a grown person, the same forms
and colours would be either ludicrous or disgusting. It
!s their indestructible connection with the engaging ideas
ot innocence,—of careless gaiety,—of unsuspecting con¬
fidence, made still more tender and attractive by the re- Beauty,
collection of helplessness, and blameless and happy igno-
ranee,—of the anxious affection that watches over all their
ways,—and of the hopes and fears that seek to pierce
futurity, for those who have neither fears nor cares nor
anxieties for themselves.
These few illustrations will probably be sufficient to
give our readers a general conception of the character
and the grounds of that theory of beauty which, we think,
affords the only true or consistent account of its nature.
They are all examples, it will be observed, of the Jirsl
and most important connection which we think may be
established between external objects and the sentiments
or emotions of the mind, or cases, in which the visible phe¬
nomena are the natural and universal accompaniments of
the emotion, and are consequently capable of reviving that
emotion, in some degree, in the breast of every beholder.
If the tenor of those illustrations has been such as to Second
make any impression in favour of the general theory, class of as-
we conceive that it must be very greatly confirmed by sociatlons‘
the slightest consideration of the second class of cases,
or those in which the external object is not the natural
and necessary, but only the occasional or accidental, con¬
comitant of the emotion which it recalls. In the former
instances some conception of beauty seems to be insepa¬
rable from the appearance of the objects; and being im¬
pressed, in some degree, upon all persons to whom they
are presented, there is evidently room for insinuating that
it is an independent and intrinsic quality of their nature,
and does not arise from association with any thing else.
In the instances, however, to which we are now to allude,
this perception of beauty is not universal, but entirely de¬
pendent upon the opportunities which each individual has
had to associate ideas of emotion with the object to which
it is ascribed; the same thing appearing beautiful to
those who have been exposed to the influence of such as¬
sociations, and indifferent to those who have not. Such
instances, therefore, really afford an experimentum crucis as
to the truth of the theory in question; nor is it easy to
conceive any more complete evidence, both that there is
no such thing as absolute or intrinsic beauty, and that it
depends altogether on those associations with which it is
thus found to come and to disappear.
The accidental or arbitrary relations that may thus be Diversity
established between natural sympathies or emotions, and °f national
external objects, may be either such as occur to wholetastes-
classes of men, or are confined to particular individuals.
Among the former, those that apply to different nations
or races of men, are the most important and remark¬
able; and constitute the basis of those peculiarities by
which national tastes are distinguished. Take, again,
for example, the instance of female beauty, and think
what different and inconsistent standards would be fixed
for it in the different regions of the world; in Africa, in
Asia, and in Europe; in Tartary and in Greece; in Lap-
land, Patagonia, and Circassia. If there were any thing
absolutely or intrinsically beautiful in any of the forms
thus distinguished, it is inconceivable that men should
differ so outrageously in their conceptions of it. If beauty
were a real and independent quality, it seems impossible
that it should be distinctly and clearly felt by one set of
persons, where another set, altogether as sensitive, could
see nothing but its opposite ; and if it were actually and
inseparably attached to certain forms, colours, or propor¬
tions, it must appear utterly inexplicable that it should be
felt and perceived in the most opposite forms and propor¬
tions in objects of the same description. On the other
hand, if all beauty consist in reminding us of certain na¬
tural sympathies and objects of emotion, with which they
have been habitually connected, it is easy to perceive how
492
BEAUTY.
Beauty, the most different forms should be felt to be equally beau-
tiful. If female beauty, for instance, consist in the visible
signs and expressions of youth and health, and of gentle¬
ness, vivacity, and kindness; then it will necessarily hap¬
pen, that the forms, and colours, and proportions which
nature may have connected with these qualities, in the
different climates or regions of the world, will all appear
equally beautiful to those who have been accustomed to
recognise them as the signs of such qualities; while they
will be respectively indifferent to those who have not learn¬
ed to interpret them in this sense, and displeasing to those
whom experience has led to consider them as the signs of
opposite qualities. The case is the same, though perhaps
to a smaller degree, as to the peculiarity of national taste
in other particulars. The style of dress and architecture
in every nation, if not adopted from mere want of skill, or
penury of materials, always appears beautiful to the na¬
tives, and somewhat monstrous and absurd to foreigners;
and the general character and aspect of their landscape,
in like manner', if not associated with substantial evils and
inconveniences, always appears more beautiful and en¬
chanting than the scenery of any other region. The fact
is still more striking, perhaps, in the case of music; in
the effects of those national airs, with which even the
most uncultivated imaginations have connected so many
interesting recollections; and in the delight with which
all persons of sensibility catch the strains of their native
melodies in strange or in distant lands. It is owing
chiefly to the same sort of arbitrary and national associa¬
tion, that white is thought a gay colour in Europe, where it
is used at weddings,—and a dismal colour in China, where
it is used for mourning; that we think yew-trees gloomy,
because theyare planted in churchyards,—and large masses
of powdered horse hair majestic, because we see them on
the heads of judges and bishops.
Effect of Next to those curious instances of arbitrary or limited
education associations that are exemplified in the diversities of na-
on taste. t;onai taste, are those that are produced by the differences
of instruction or education. If external objects were sublime
or beautiful in themselves, it is plain that they would appear
equally so to those who were acquainted with their origin,
and to those to whom it was unknown. Yet it is not easy,
perhaps, to calculate the degree to which our notions of
beauty and sublimity are now influenced over all Europe
by the study of classical literature ; or the number of im¬
pressions of this sort which the well-educated consequent¬
ly receive, from objects that are utterly indifferent to un¬
instructed persons of the same natural sensibility. Upon
this subject we gladly avail ourselves of the beautiful
expressions of Mr Alison.
“ The delight which most men of education receive
from the consideration of antiquity, and the beauty that
they discover in every object which is connected with an¬
cient times, is in a great measure to be ascribed to the
same cause. The antiquarian, in his cabinet, surrounded
by the relics of former ages, seems to himself to be re¬
moved to periods that are long since past, and indulges
in the imagination of living in a world which, by a very
natural kind of prejudice, we are always willing to believe
was both wiser and better than the present. All that is
venerable or laudable in the history of these times pre¬
sents itself to his memory. The gallantry, the heroism,
the patriotism of antiquity, rise again before his view,
softened by the obscurity in which they are involved, and
rendered more seducing to the imagination by that ob¬
scurity itself, which, while it mingles a sentiment, of re¬
gret amid his pursuits, serves at the same time to stimu¬
late his fancy to fill up, by its own creation, those long
intervals of time of which history has preserved no record.
The relics he contemplates seem to approach him still
nearer to the ages of his regard. The dress, the furni- b<
ture, the arms of the times, are so many assistances to his w
imagination, in guiding or directing its exercise; and, offer¬
ing him a thousand sources of imagery, provide him with
an almost inexhaustible field in which his memory and his
fancy may expatiate. There are few men who have not
felt somewhat, at least, of the delight of such an employ¬
ment. There is no man in the least acquainted with the
history of antiquity, who does not love to let his imagina¬
tion loose on the prospect of its remains, and to whom
they are not in some measure sacred, from the innumera¬
ble images which they bring. Even the peasant, whose
knowledge of former times extends but to a few gene¬
rations, has yet in his village some monument of the
deeds or virtues of his forefathers, and cherishes with a
fond veneration the memorial of those good old times to
which his imagination returns with delight, and of which
he loves to recount the simple tales that tradition has
brought him.
“ And what is it that constitutes that emotion of sub¬
lime delight which every man of common sensibility feels
upon the first prospect of Rome ? It is not the scene of
destruction which is before him. It is not the Tiber, di¬
minished in his imagination to a paltry stream, flowing
amid the ruins of that magnificence which it once adorned.
It is not the triumph of superstition over the wreck of
human greatness, and its monuments erected upon the
very spot where the first honours of humanity have been
gained. It is ancient Rome which fills his imagination.
It is the country of Caesar, and Cicero, and Virgil, winch
is before him. It is the mistress of the world which he
sees, and who seems to him to rise again from her tomb,
to give laws to the universe. All that the labours of his
youth or the studies of his maturer age have acquired
with regard to the history of this great people, opens at
once before his imagination, and presents him with a field
of high and solemn imagery, which can never be exhaust¬
ed. Take from him these associations—conceal from him
that it is Rome that he sees, and how different would be
his emotion!”
The influences of the same studies may be traced, in¬
deed, through almost all our impressions of beauty; and
especially in the feelings which we receive from the con¬
templation of rural scenery, where the images and recol¬
lections which have been-associated with such objects, in
the enchanting strains of the poets, are perpetually re¬
called by their appearance, and give an interest and a
beauty to the prospect, of which the uninstructed cannot
have the slightest perception. Upon this subject, also,
Mr Alison has expressed himself with his usual warmth
and elegance. After observing that, in childhood, the
beauties of nature have scarcely any existence for those
who have as yet but little general sympathy with mankind,
he proceeds to state that they are usually first recom¬
mended to notice by the poets, to whom we are introduced
in the course of education; and who, in a manner, create
them for us, by the associations which they enable us to
form with their visible appearance.
“ How different from this period become the senti¬
ments with which the scenery of nature is contemplated
by those who have any imagination ! The beautiful forms
of ancient mythology with which the fancy of poets
peopled every element, are now ready to appear to their
minds upon the prospect of every scene. The descrip¬
tions of ancient authors, so long admired, and so deserv¬
ing of admiration, occur to them at every moment, and,
with them,-all those enthusiastic ideas of ancient genius
and glory which the study of so many years of youth so
naturally leads them to form. Or, if the study of modern
poetry has succeeded to that of the ancient, a thousanc
BEAUTY.
493
other beautiful associations are acquired, which, instead
j of destroying, serve easily to unite with the former, and
to afford a new source of delight. The awful forms of
Gothic superstition, the wild and romantic imagery which
the turbulence of the middle ages, the crusades, and the
institution of chivalry, have spread over every country of
Europe, arise to the imagination in every scene; accom¬
panied with all those pleasing recollections of prowess,
and adventure, and courteous manners, which distinguish¬
ed those memorable times. With such images in their
minds, it is not common nature that appears to surround
them. It is nature embellished and made sacred by the
memory of Theocritus and Virgil, and Milton and Tasso;
their genius appears still to linger among the scenes which
inspired it, and to irradiate every object where it dwells ;
and the creation of their fancy seems the fit inhabitants
of that nature which their descriptions have clothed with
beauty.”
It is needless, for the purpose of mere illustration, to
pursue this subject of arbitrary or accidental association
through all the divisions of which it is susceptible; and,
indeed, the task would be endless, since there is scarce¬
ly any class in society which could not be shown to have
peculiar associations of interest and emotion with objects
which are not so connected in the minds of any other class.
The young and the old—the rich and the poor—the artist
and the man of science—the inhabitant of the city and
the inhabitant of the country—the man of business and
the man of pleasure—the domestic and the dissipated—
nay, even the followers of almost every different study or
profession,—have perceptions of beauty, because they have
associations with external objects, that are peculiar to
themselves, and have no existence for any other persons.
But, though the detail of such instances could not fail to
show, in the clearest and most convincing manner, how
directly the notion of beauty is derived from some more
radical and familiar emotion, and how many and various
are the channels by which such emotions are transmitted,
enough, perhaps, has been already said to put our readers
in possession of the principles and general bearings of an
argument which we must not think of exhausting.
** Before entirely leaving this branch of the subject, how-
n' ever, let us pause for a moment on the familiar but very
striking and decisive instance of our varying and contra¬
dictory judgments as to the beauty of the successive
fashions of dress that have existed within our own remem¬
brance. All persons who still continue to find amusement
in society, and are not old enough to enjoy only the recol¬
lections of their youth, think the prevailing fashions be¬
coming and graceful, and the fashions of twenty or twenty-
five years old intolerably ugly and ridiculous. The younger
they are, and the more they mix in society, this impres¬
sion is the stronger; and the fact is worth noticing, be¬
cause there is really no one thing as to which persons
judging merely from their feelings, and therefore less like-
•y to be misled by any systems or theories, are so very
positive and decided, as that established fashions are beau-
titul in themselves ; and that exploded fashions are intrin¬
sically and beyond all question preposterous and ugly.
We have never yet met a young lady or gentleman, who
spoke from their hearts, and without reserve, who had the
east doubt on the subject, or could conceive how any per¬
son could be so stupid, as not to see the intrinsic elegance
°i the reigning mode, or not to be struck with the Judi¬
cious awkwardness of the habits in which their mothers
^ere disguised. Yet there can be no doubt, that if these
•ngemous critics had been born with the same natural
sensibility to beauty, but twenty years earlier, they would
‘ave joined in admiring what they now laugh at, as cer-
ainly as those who succeed them twenty years hereafter
will laugh at them. It is plain, then, and we think scarce- Beauty,
ly disputed out of the circles to which we have alluded,
that there is, in the general case, no intrinsic beauty or
deformity in any of those fashions; and that the forms,
and colours, and materials, that are, we may say, univer¬
sally and very strongly felt to be beautiful while they are
in fashion, are sure to lose all their beauty as soon as the
fashion has passed away. Now the forms, and colours, and
combinations, remain exactly as they were; and, there¬
fore, it seems perfectly obvious that the source of their
successive beauty and ugliness must be sought in some¬
thing extrinsic, and can only be found in the associations
which once recommended and ultimately degraded them
in our estimation. While they were in fashion, they were
the forms and colours which distinguished the rich and
the noble,—the eminent, the envied, the observed in so¬
ciety. They were the forms and the colours in which all
that was beautiful, and admired, and exalted, were habi¬
tually arrayed. They were associated, therefore, with
ideas of opulence, and elegance, and gaiety, and all that
is* captivating and bewitching in manners, fortune, and
situation,—and derived the whole of their beauty from
those associations. By and by, however, they were de¬
serted by the beautiful, the rich, and the elegant, and
descended to the vulgar and dependent, or were only
seen in combination with the antiquated airs of faded
beauties or obsolete beaux. They thus came to be asso¬
ciated with ideas of vulgarity and derision, and with the
images of old and decayed persons, whom it is difficult for
their juniors to believe ever to have been young or attrac¬
tive ;—and the associations being thus reversed, in which
all their beauty consisted, the beauty itself naturally dis¬
appears.
The operation of the same causes is distinctly visible
in all the other apparent irregularities of our judgments as
to this description of beauty. Old people have in general
but little toleration for the obsolete fashions of their later
or middle years, but will generally stickle for the intrin¬
sic elegance of those which were prevalent in the bright
days of their early youth,—as being still associated in
their recollections with the beauty with which they were
first enchanted, and the gay spirits with which they were
then inspired. In the same way, while we laugh at the
fashions of which fine ladies and gentlemen were proud
in the days of our childhood, because they are now asso¬
ciated only with images of decrepitude and decay, we
look with some feelings of veneration on the habits of
more remote generations, the individuals of which are
only known to us as historical persons ; and with unmin¬
gled respect and admiration on those still more ancient
habiliments which remind us either of the heroism of the
feudal chivalry, or the virtue and nobleness of classical
antiquity. The iron mail of the Gothic knight, or the
clumsy shield and naked arms of the Roman warrior,
strike us as majestic and graceful, merely because they
are associated with nothing but tales of romantic daring
or patriotic prowess ; while the full-bottomed periwigs that
were added to the soldier’s equipment in the days of
Louis XIV. and King William, and no doubt had a noble
effect in the eyes of that generation, now appear to us
equally ridiculous and unbecoming, merely because such
appendages are no longer to be seen but upon the heads
of sober and sedentary lawyers, or in the pictures of anti¬
quated esquires.
We cannot afford, however, to enlarge any further upon Associa-
these considerations, and are inclined indeed to think, tions pecu-
that what has been already said on the subject of associa-^to incii*
tions, which, though not universal, are common to wholeVK ua s*
classes of persons, will make it unnecessary to enlarge on
those that are peculiar to each individual. It is almost
494 B E A
Beauty, enough, indeed, to transcribe the following short passage
from Mr Alison.
“ There is no man who has not some interesting asso¬
ciations with particular scenes, or airs, or books, and who
does not feel their beauty or sublimity enhanced to him
by such connections. The view of the house where one
was born, of the school where one was educated, and
where the gay years of infancy were passed, is indifferent
to no man. They recall so many images of past hap¬
piness and past affections, they are connected with so
many strong or valued emotions, and lead altogether to
so long a train of feelings and recollections, that there is
hardly any scene which one ever beholds with so much
rapture. There are songs, also, that we have heard in
our infancy, which, when brought to our remembrance
in after years, raise emotions for which we cannot well
account; and which, though perhaps very indifferent in
themselves, still continue, from this association, and from
the variety of conceptions which they kindle in our minds,
to be our favourites through life. The scenes which have
been distinguished by the residence of any person whose
memory we admire produce a similar effect. Movemur
enim, nescio quo pacto, locis ipsis, in quibus eorum, quos
diligimus aut admiramur, adsunt vestigia. The scenes
themselves may be little beautiful; but the delight with
which we recollect the traces of their lives blends itself
insensibly with the emotions which the scenery excites;
and the admiration which these recollections afford seems
to give a kind of sanctity to the place where they dwelt,
and converts every thing into beauty which appears to
have been connected with them.”
There are similar impressions,—as to the sort of scene¬
ry to which we have long been accustomed,—as to the
style of personal beauty by which we were first enchant¬
ed,—and even as to the dialect, or the form of versifica¬
tion, which we first began to admire,—that bestow a secret
and adventitious charm upon all these objects, and enable
us to discover in them a beauty which is invisible, because
it is non-existent to every other eye.
Third, class In all the cases we have hitherto considered, the ex-
of associa- ternal object is supposed to have acquired its beauty by
tions. being actually connected with the causes of our natural
emotions, either as a sign of their existence, or as being
locally present to their ordinary occasions. There is a
relation, however, of another kind, to which it is necessary
to attend, both to elucidate the general grounds of the
theory, and to explain several appearances that might
otherwise expose it to objections. This is the relation
which external objects may bear to our internal feelings,
and the power they may consequently acquire of suggest¬
ing them, in consequence of a sort of resemblance or ana¬
logy which they seem to have to their natural and appro¬
priate objects. The language of poetry is founded in a
great degree upon this analogy; and all language, indeed,
is full of it, and attests, by its structure, both the extent
to which it is spontaneously pursued, and the effects that
are produced by its suggestion. We take a familiar in¬
stance from the elegant writer to whom we have already
referred.
“ What, for instance, is the impression we feel from
the scenery of spring ? The soft and gentle green with
which the earth is spread, the feeble texture of the plants
and flowers, and the remains of winter yet lingering among
the woods and hills,—all conspire to infuse into our minds
somewhat of that fearful tenderness with which infancy
is usually beheld. With such a sentiment, how innumer¬
able are the ideas which present themselves to our ima¬
gination ! ideas, it is apparent, by no means confined to
the scene before our eyes, or to the possible desolation
which may yet await its infant beauty, but which almost
U T Y.
involuntarily extend themselves to analogies with the life B. tv
of man, and bring before us all those images of hope or ^
fear which, according to our peculiar situations, have the
dominion of our hearts. The beauty of autumn is accom¬
panied with a similar exercise of thought: the leaves be¬
gin then to drop from the trees; the flowers and shrubs
with which the fields were adorned in the summer months
decay; the woods and groves are silent; the sun himself
seems gradually to withdraw his light, or to become en¬
feebled in his power. Who is there who at this season
does not feel his mind impressed with a sentiment of me¬
lancholy ? or who is able to resist that current of thought
which, from such appearances of decay, so naturally leads
him to the solemn imagination of that inevitable fate
which is to bring on alike the decay of life, of empire, and
of nature itself?” ~
A thousand such analogies, indeed, are suggested toFu: jr 11.
us by the most familiar aspects of nature. The morninglusl ions,
and the evening present the same ready picture of youth
and of closing life as the various vicissitudes of the year.
The withering of flowers images out to us the languor of
beauty or the sickness of childhood. The loud roar of
troubled waters seems to bear some resemblance to the
voice of lamentation or violence; and the softer murmur
of brighter streams, to be expressive of cheerfulness and
innocence. The purity and transparency of water or of
air, indeed, is itself felt to be expressive of mental purity
and gaiety; and their darkness or turbulence, of mental
gloom and dejection. The genial warmth of autumn sug¬
gests to us the feeling of mild benevolence;—the sunny
gleams and fitful showers of early spring remind us of the
waywardness of infancy;—flowers waving on their slender
stems impress us with the notion of flexibility and light¬
ness of temper. All fine and delicate forms are typical
of delicacy and gentleness of character; and almost all
forms bounded by waving or flowing lines suggest ideas
of ease, pliability, and elegance. Rapid and impetuous
motion seems to be emblematical of violence and pas¬
sion ;—slow and steady motion, of deliberation, dignity,
and resolution ;—fluttering motion, of inconstancy or ter¬
ror ;—and waving motion, according as it is slow or swift,
of sadness or playfulness. A lofty tower or a massive
building gives us the idea of firmness and elevation of
character;—a rock battered by the waves, of fortitude in
adversity. Stillness and calmness in the water or the
air seem to shadow out tenderness, indolence, and pla¬
cidity ;—moonlight we call pensive and gentle;—and the
unclouded sun gives us an impression of exulting vigour,
and domineering ambition and glory.
It is not difficult, with the assistance which language Ex ?nce
affords us, to trace the origin of all these and a thousand of c am
other associations. In many instances, the qualities whichaI^ j ^
thus suggest mental emotions do actually resemble their ,U(>
constant concomitants in human nature, as is obviouslyturi f
the case with the forms and motions which are sublime orianjtge.
beautiful; and, in some, their effects and relations bear
so obvious an analogy to those of human conduct or feel¬
ing, as to force itself upon the notice of the most careless
beholder. But, whatever may have been their original,
the very structure of language attests the vast extent to
which they have been carried, and the nature of the sug¬
gestions to which they are indebted for their interest or
beauty. If we speak familiarly of the sparkling of wit,
and the darkness of melancholy, can it be at all difficult
to conceive that bright light may be agreeable, because
it reminds us of gaiety, and darkness oppressive, because
it is felt to be emblematical of sorrow ? It is very remark¬
able, indeed, that, whilst almost all the words by which
the affections of the mind are expressed seem to have
been borrowed originally from the qualities of matter, the
BEAUTY.
epithets by which we learn afterwards to distinguish such
^ j material objects as are felt to be sublime or beautiful, are
all of them epithets that had been previously appropriated
to express some quality or emotion of mind. Colours are
said to be gay or grave—motions to be lively, or delibe¬
rate, or capricious—forms to be delicate or modest—
sounds to be animated or mournful—prospects to be cheer¬
ful or melancholy—rocks to be bold—waters to be tran¬
quil and a thousand other phrases of the same import;
all indicating most unequivocally the sources from which
our interest in matter is derived, and proving that it is
necessary in all cases to confer mind and feeling upon it,
before it can be conceived as either sublime or beautiful.
The great charm, indeed, and the great secret of poetical
diction, consists in thus lending life and emotion to all the
objects it embraces; and the enchanting beauty which we
sometimes recognise in descriptions of very ordinary phe¬
nomena, will be found to arise from the force of imagina¬
tion, by which the poet has connected with human emo¬
tions a variety of objects, to which common minds could
not discover their relation. What the poet does for his
readers, however, by his original similes and metaphors ih
these higher cases, even the dullest of these readers do in
some degree every day for themselves; and the beauty
which is perceived, when natural objects are unexpectedly
vivified by the glowing fancy of the former, is precisely of
the same kind that is felt when the closeness of the analogy
enables them to force human feelings upon the recollec¬
tion of all mankind. As the poet sees more of beauty in
nature than ordinary mortals, just because he perceives
more of these analogies and relations to social emotion,
in which all beauty consists ; so, other men see more or
less of this beauty, exactly as they happen to possess that
fancy, or those habits, which enable them readily to trace
out these relations.
From all these sources of evidence, then, we think it is
pretty well made out, that the beauty or sublimity of ex¬
ternal objects is nothing but the reflection of emotions
excited by the feelings or condition of sentient beings,
and is produced altogether by certain little portions, as it
were, of love, joy, pity, veneration, or terror, that adhere
to those objects which are present on occasion of such emo¬
tions. Nor, after what we have already said, does it seem
to be necessary to reply to more than one of the objec¬
tions to which we are aware that this theory is liable.
% ns If beauty be nothing more than a reflection of love,
” ^ pity, or veneration, how comes it, it may be asked, to be
distinguished from these sentiments ? They are never con¬
founded with each other either in our feelings or our lan¬
guage. Why, then, should they all be confounded under
the common name of beauty ? and why should beauty, in
all cases, affect us in a way so different from the love or
compassion of which it is said to be merely the reflection ?
Now, to these questions we are somewhat tempted to
answer, after the manner of Scotchmen, by asking, in our
turn, whether it be really true that beauty always affects
us in one and the same manner, and always in a different
manner from the simple and elementary affections which
•t is its office to recall to us ? In very many cases it ap¬
pears to us that the sensations which we receive from ob¬
jects that are felt to be beautiful, and that in the highest
degree, do not differ at all from the direct movements of
tenderness or pity towards sentient beings. If the epithet
°f beauty be correctly (as it is universally) applied to
many of the most admired and enchanting passages in
poetry, which consist entirely in the expression of affect-
mg sentiments, the question would be speedily decided;
and it is a fact, at all events, too remarkable to be omitted,
t iat some of the most powerful and delightful emotions
1 lat are uniformly classed under this name, arise altoge-
495
ther from the direct influence of these pathetic emotions, Beauty,
without the intervention of any material imagery. We do
not wish, however, to dwell upon an argument which cer¬
tainly is not applicable to all parts of the question; and,
admitting that, on many occasions, the feelings which we
experience from beauty are sensibly different from the
primary emotions in which we think they originate, we
shall endeavour, in a very few words, to give an explana¬
tion of this difference, which seems to be perfectly con¬
sistent with the theory we have undertaken to illustrate.
In the first place, it should make some difference on theExplana-
primary affections to which we have alluded, that, in thetions.
cases alluded to, they are reflected from material objects,
and not directly excited by their natural causes. The
light of the moon has a very different complexion from
that of the sun, though it is in substance the sun’s light;
and glimpses of interesting, or even of familiar objects,
caught unexpectedly from a mirror placed at a distance
from these objects, will affect us, like sudden allusions in
poetry, very differently from the natural perception of
those objects in their ordinary relations. In the next
place, the emotion, when suggested in the shape of beau¬
ty, comes upon us, for the most part, disencumbered of
all those accompaniments which frequently give it a pecu¬
liar and less satisfactory character, when it arises from di¬
rect intercourse with its living objects. The compassion,
for example, that is suggested by beauty of a gentle and
winning description, is not attended with any of that dis¬
gust and uneasiness which frequently accompany the spec¬
tacle of real distress, nor with that importunate sugges¬
tion of the duty of relieving it from which it is almost in¬
separable. Nor does the temporary delight which we re¬
ceive from beauty of a gay and animating character, call
upon us for any such expenditure of spirits, or active de¬
monstrations of sympathy, as are sometimes demanded by
the turbulence of real joy. In the third place, the emo¬
tion of beauty being partly founded upon illusion, is far
more transitory in its own nature, and is both more apt to
fluctuate and vary in its character, and more capable of
being dismissed at pleasure, than any of the primary af¬
fections, whose shadow and representative it is. In the
fourth place, the perception of beauty implies a certain
exercise of the imagination that is not required in the case
of direct emotion, and is sufficient of itself both to give a
new character to every emotion that is suggested by the
intervention of such an exercise, and to account for our
classing all the various emotions that are so suggested un¬
der the same denomination of beauty. When we are in¬
jured we feel indignation,—when we are wounded we feel
pain,—when we see suffering we feel compassion,—and
when we witness any splendid act of heroism or generosity
we feel admiration, without any effort of the imagination,
or the intervention of any picture or vision in the mind.
But when we feel indignation, or pity, or admiration, in
consequence of seeing some piece of inanimate matter
that merely suggests or recalls to us the ordinary causes
or proper objects of these emotions, it is evident that our
fancy is kindled by a sudden flash of recollection; and that
the effect is produced by means of a certain poetical crea¬
tion that is instantly conjured up in the mind. It is this
active and heated state of the imagination, and this divid¬
ed and busy occupation of the mind, that constitute the
great peculiarity of the emotions we experience from the
perception of beauty.
Finally, and this is perhaps the most important consi¬
deration of the whole, it should be recollected, that, along
with the shadow or suggestion of associated emotions,
there is always present a real and direct perception, which
not only gives a force and liveliness to all the images which
it suggests, but seems to impart to them some share of its
496
33eauty. own reality. That there is an illusion of this kind in the
case, is sufficiently demonstrated by the fact, that we in¬
variably ascribe the interest which we think has been
proved to arise wholly from these associations, to the ob¬
ject itself, as one of its actual and inherent qualities, and
consider its beauty as no less a property belonging to it
than any of its physical attributes. The associated inte¬
rest, therefore, is beyond all doubt confounded with the
present perception of the object itself; and a livelier and
more instant impression is accordingly made upon the
mind, than if the interesting conceptions had been merely
excited in the memory by the usual operation of reflec¬
tion or voluntary meditation. Something analogous to
this is familiarly known to occur in other cases. When
we merely think of an absent friend, our emotions are in¬
comparably less lively than when the recollection of him
is suddenly suggested by the unexpected sight of his pic¬
ture, of the house where he dwelt, or the spot on which
we last parted from him; and all these objects seem for
the moment to wear the colours of our own associated af¬
fections. When Captain Cook’s companions found, in the
remotest corner of the habitable globe, a broken spoon
with the word London stamped upon it, and burst into
tears at the sight, they proved how differently we are
moved by emotions thus connected with the real presence
of an actual perception, and by the mere recollection of
the objects on which those emotions depend. Every one
of them had probably thought of London every day since
he left it, and many of them might have been talking of
it with tranquillity but a little before this more effectual
appeal was made to their sensibility.
If we add to all this, that there is necessarily something
of vagueness and variableness in the emotions most gene¬
rally excited by the perception of beauty, and that the
mind wanders with the eye over the different objects
which may supply these emotions with a degree of un¬
steadiness and half voluntary half involuntary fluctuation,
we may come to understand how the effect not only should
be essentially different from that of the simple present¬
ment of any one interesting conception, but should acquire
a peculiarity which entitles it to a different denomination.
Most of the associations of which we have been last speak¬
ing, as being founded on the analogies or fanciful resem¬
blances that are felt to exist between physical objects and
qualities and the interesting affections of mind, are in¬
trinsically of this vague and wavering description; and
when we look at a fine landscape, or any other scene of
complicated beauty, a great variety of such images are
suddenly presented to the fancy, and as suddenly succeed¬
ed by others, as the eye ranges over the different features
of wliich it is composed, and feeds upon the charms which
it discloses. Now, the direct perception in all such cases
not only perpetually accompanies the associated emotions,
but is inextricably confounded with them in our feelings,
and is even recognised upon reflection as the cause, not
merely of their unusual strength, but of the several pecu¬
liarities by which we have shown that they are distin¬
guished. It is not wonderful, therefore, either that emo¬
tions so circumstanced should not be classed along with
similar affections, under circumstances extremely different,
or that the perception of present existence, thus mixed
up, and indissolubly confounded with interesting concep¬
tions, should between them produce a sensation of so dis¬
tinct a nature as naturally to be distinguished by a pecu¬
liar name, or that the beauty which results from this com¬
bination should, in ordinary language, be ascribed to the
objects themselves, the presence and perception of which
is a necessary condition of its existence.
What we have now said is enough, we believe, to give
an attentive reader that general conception of the theory
U T Y.
before us, which is all that we can hope to give in the B
limits to which this article is confined. It may be ob- ^
served, however, that we have spoken only of those sort's
of beauty which we think capable of being resolved into
some passion, or emotion, or pretty lively sentiment of
our nature ; and though these are undoubtedly the highest
and most decided kinds of beauty, it is certain that there
are many things called beautiful which cannot claim so
lofty a connection.
It is necessary, therefore, to observe, that, though every u
thing that excites any feeling worthy to be called an mo-tio: ^
tion by its beauty or sublimity, will be found to be re-i(krf
lated to the natural objects of human passions or affec-^fk
tions, there are many things which are pleasing or agree-
able enough to be called beautiful in consequence of their s,i ’or
relation merely to human convenience and comfort,—are 17’
many others that please by suggesting ideas of humansoi sof
skill and ingenuity,—and many that obtain the name ofbe! f-
beautiful by being associated with human fortune, vanity,
or splendour. After what has been already said, it will
not be necessary either to exemplify or explain these sub¬
ordinate phenomena. It is enough merely to suggest
that they all please upon the same great principle of sym¬
pathy with human feelings, and are explained by the sim¬
ple and indisputable fact, that we are pleased with the
direct contemplation of human comfort, ingenuity, and
fortune. All these, indeed, obviously resolve themselves
into the great object of sympathy—human enjoyment.
Convenience and comfort is but another name for a lower
but very' indispensable ingredient of that emotion. Skill
and ingenuity readily present themselves as means by
which enjoyment may be promoted; and high fortune,
and opulence, and splendour, pass, at least at a distance,
for its certain causes and attendants. The beauty of fit¬
ness and adaptation of parts, even in the works of nature,
is derived from the same fountain, partly by means of its
obvious analogy to works of human skill, and partly by
suggestions of that creative power and wisdom to which
human destiny is subjected. The feelings, therefore, as¬
sociated with all these qualities, though scarcely rising to
the height of emotion, are obviously in a certain degree
pleasing or interesting; and, when several of them happen
to be united in one object, may accumulate to a very great
degree of beauty. It is needless, we think, to pursue
these general propositions through all the details to which
they so obviously lead. We shall confine ourselves, there¬
fore, to a very few remarks upon the beauty of architec¬
ture,—and chiefly as an illustration of our general position.
There are few things about which men of virtu are
more apt to rave, than the merits of the Grecian architec¬
ture ; and most of those who affect an uncommon purity
and delicacy of taste talk of the intrinsic beauty of its
proportions as a thing not to be disputed, except by bar¬
barian ignorance and stupidity. Mr Alison, we think, was
the first who gave a full and convincing refutation of this
mysterious dogma ; and, while he admits, in the most ample
terms, the beauty of the objects in question, he has shown,
we think, in the clearest manner, that it arises entirely
from the combination of the following associations:—1$
The association of utility, convenience, or fitness for the
purposes of the building ; 2dly, Of security and stability,
with a view to the nature of the materials; Sdly, Of the
skill and power requisite to mould such materials into forms
so commodious; Stilly, Of magnificence, and splendour,
and expense ; bthly, Of antiquity ; and, Qthly, Of Roman
and Grecian greatness. His observations are summed up
in the following short sentence. , ,
“ The proportions,” he observes, “ of these orders, it is
to be remembered, are distinct subjects of beauty, fro111
the ornaments with which they are embellished, from the
E E A
BEAUTY.
497
Bea
■. magnificence with which they are executed, from the pur-
> poses of elegance they are intended to serve, or the scenes
of grandeur they are destined to adorn. It is in such
scenes, however, and with such additions, that we are ac¬
customed to observe them; and, while we feel the effect
of all these accidental associations, we are seldom willing
to examine what are the causes of the complex emotion
we feel, and readily attribute to the nature of the archi¬
tecture itself the whole pleasure which we enjoy. But,
besides these, there are other associations we have with
these forms, that still more powerfully serve to command
our admiration ; for they are the Grecian orders,—they
derive their origin from those times, and were the orna¬
ment of those countries, which are most hallowed in our
imaginations ; and it is difficult for us to see them, even in
their modern copies, without feeling them operate upon
our minds as relics of those polished nations where they
first arose, and of that greater people by whom they were
afterwards borrowed.”
This analysis is to us perfectly satisfactory. But, in¬
deed, we cannot conceive any more complete refutation
of the notion of an intrinsic and inherent beauty in the
proportions of the Grecian architecture, than the fact of
the admitted beauty of such very opposite proportions in
the Gothic. Opposite as they are, however, the great
elements of beauty are the same in this style as in the
other,—the impressions of religious awe and of chivalrous
recollections, coming here instead of the classical asso¬
ciations which constitute so great a share of the interest
of the former. It is well observed by Mr Alison, that the
great durability and costliness of the productions of this
art have had the effect, in almost all regions of the world,
of rendering their fashion permanent, after it had once
attained such a degree of perfection as to fulfil its sub¬
stantial purposes.
“ Buildings,” he observes, “ may last, and are intended
to last, for centuries. The life of man is very inadequate
to the duration of such productions; and the present pe¬
riod of the world, though old with respect to those arts
which are employed upon perishable subjects, is yet young
in relation to an art which is employed upon so durable
materials as those of architecture. Instead of a few years,
therefore, centuries must probably pass before such pro¬
ductions demand to be renewed; and, long before that
period is elapsed, the sacredness of antiquity is acquired
by the subject itself, and a new motive given for the pre¬
servation of similar forms. In every country, accordingly,
the same effect has taken place; and the same causes
which have thus served to produce among us, for so many
years, a uniformity of taste with regard to the style of
Grecian architecture, have produced also among the na¬
tions of the East, for a much longer course of time, a simi¬
lar uniformity of taste with regard to their ornamental
style of architecture ; and have perpetuated among them
the same forms which were in use among their forefathers
before the Grecian orders were invented.”
It is not necessary, we think, to carry these illustra¬
tions any farther, as the theory they are intended to ex¬
plain is now, we believe, universally adopted, though with
some limitations, which we see no reason to retain. Those
suggested by Mr Alison, we have already endeavoured
° dispose of in the few remarks we have made upon his
publication; and it only remains to say a word or two
More upon Mr Knight’s doctrine as to the primitive and
mdependent beauty of colours, upon which we have al-
ready hazarded some remarks.
is' §reeing as he does with Mr Alison, and all modern
acquirers, that the whole beauty of objects consists, in the
iJ :;-fater number of instances, in the associations to
‘ llc 1 We have alluded, he still maintains that some few
VOL. IV.
vniff
loctri
°be:
'fool
visible objects affect us with a sense of beauty in conse- Beauty,
quence of the pleasurable impression they make upon the
sense, and that our perception of beauty is, in these in¬
stances, a mere organic sensation. Now wre have already
stated that it would be something quite unexampled in
the history either of mind or of language, if certain phy¬
sical and bodily sensations should thus be confounded
with moral and social feelings with which they had no
connection, and pass familiarly under one and the same
name. Beauty consists confessedly, in almost all cases,
in t//e suggestion of moral or social emotions, mixed up and
modified by a present sensation or perception; and it is
this suggestion, and this identification with a present ob¬
ject, that constitutes its essence, and gives a common cha¬
racter to the whole class of feelings it produces, sufficient
to justify their being designated by a common appellation.
If the word beauty, in short, must mean something, and
if this be very clearly what it means in all remarkable in¬
stances, it is difficult to conceive that it should occasion¬
ally mean something quite different, and denote a mere
sensual or physical gratification, unaccompanied by the
suggestion of any moral emotion whatever. According
to Mr Knight, however, and, indeed, to most other wri¬
ters, this is the case with regard to the beauty of colours,
which depends altogether, they say, upon the delight
which the eye naturally takes in their contemplation ;
this delight being just as primitive and sensual as that
which the palate receives from the contact of agreeable
flavours.
It must be admitted, we think, in the first place, that Reasons
such an allegation is in itself extremely improbable, andfor disput-
contrary to all analogy, and all experience of the struc-*n£ Gds
ture of language, or of the laws of thought. It is further doctnne‘
to be considered, too, that if the pleasures of the senses
are ever to be considered as beautiful, those pleasures
which are the most lively and important would be the
most likely to usurp this denomination, and to take rank
with the higher gratifications that result from the percep¬
tion of beauty. Now, it admits of no dispute, that the
mere organic pleasures of the eye are far inferior to those
of the palate, the touch, and indeed almost all the other
senses,—none of which, however, are in any case con¬
founded with the sense of beauty. In the next place, it
should follow, that if what affords organic pleasure to the
eye be properly called beautiful, what offends or gives
pain to it should be called ugly. Now, excessive or daz¬
zling light is offensive to the eye, but, considered by it¬
self, it is never called ugly, but only painful or disagree¬
able. The moderate excitement of light, on the other
hand, or the soothing of certain bright but temperate
colours, when considered in this primary aspect, is scarce¬
ly called beautiful, but only agreeable or refreshing. So
far as the direct injury or comfort of the organ, in short,
is concerned, the language which we use refers merely to
physical or bodily sensation, and is not confounded with
that which relates to mental emotion; and we really see
no ground for supposing that there is any exception to
this rule.
It is very remarkable, indeed, that the sense whose or¬
ganic gratification is here supposed to constitute the feel¬
ing of beauty, should be one, in the first place, whose di¬
rect organic gratifications are of very little force or in¬
tensity ; and, in the next place, one whose office it is,
almost exclusively, to make us acquainted with the exist¬
ence and properties of those external objects which are
naturally interesting to our inward feelings and affections.
This peculiarity makes it extremely probable, that ideas
of emotion should be associated with the perceptions of
this sense, but extremely improbable that its naked and
unassociated sensations should in any case be classed with
3 R
498
BEAUTY.
Beauty, such emotions. If the name of beauty were given to what
directly gratifies any sense, such as that of tasting or
smelling, which does not make us acquainted with the
nature or relations of outward objects, there could be less
room for such an explanation. But when it is the busi¬
ness of a particular sense or organ to introduce to our
knowledge those objects which are naturally connected
with ideas of emotion, it is easy to understand how its
perceptions should be associated with these emotions, and
an interest and importance thus extended to them, that
belong to the intimations of no other bodily organ. But,
on those very accounts, we should be prepared to suspect,
that all the interest they possess is derived from this as¬
sociation ; and to distrust the accuracy of any observa¬
tions that may lead us to conclude that its mere organic
impulses ever produced any thing akin to these associated
emotions, or entitled to pass under their name. This cau¬
tion will appear still more reasonable, when it is consider¬
ed that all the other qualities of visible objects, except
only their colours, are now admitted to be perfectly in¬
different in themselves, and to possess no other beauty
than they may derive from their associations with our or¬
dinary affections. There are no forms, for example, even
in Mr Knight’s opinion, that have any intrinsic beauty, or
any power of pleasing or affecting us, except through
their associations, or affinities to mental affections, either
as expressive of fitness and utility, or as types and sym¬
bols of certain moral or intellectual qualities, in which the
sources of our interest are obvious. Yet the form of an
object is as conspicuous an ingredient of its beauty as its
colour, and a property, too, which seems at first view to
be as intrinsically and independently pleasing. Why,
then, should we persist in holding that colours, or com¬
binations of colours, please from being naturally agreeable
to the organ of sight, when it is admitted that other visi¬
ble qualities, which seem to possess the same power of
pleasing, are found, upon examination, to owe it entirely
to the principle of association ?
The only reason that can be assigned, or that actually
exists, for this distinction, is, that it has been supposed
more difficult to account for the beauty of colours, upon
the principles which have accounted for other beauties, or
to specify the particular associations by virtue of which
they could acquire this quality. Now it appears to us
that there is no such difficulty ; and that there is no rea¬
son whatever for holding that one colour, or combination
of colours, is more pleasing than another, except upon the
same grounds of association which, recommend particular
forms, motions, or proportions. It appears to us, that the
organic pleasures of the eye are extremely few and insig¬
nificant. It is hurt, no doubt, by an excessive glare of
light; and it is in some degree gratified, perhaps, by a
moderate degree of it. But it is only by the quantity or
intensity of the light, we think, that it is so affected. The
colour of it, we take it, is, in all cases, absolutely indiffe¬
rent. But it is the colour only that is called beautiful or
otherwise ; and these qualities, we think, it very plainly
derives from the common fountain of association.
Beauty of In the first place, we would ask, whether there is any
colours de- colour that is beautiful in all situations ? and, in the next
nved from place, whether there is any colour that is not beautiful in
ilone^1011 SOme situation? With regard to the first, take the colours
that are most commonly referred to as being intrinsically
beautiful—bright and soft green—clear blue—bright pink,
or vermilion. The first is unquestionably beautiful in ver¬
nal woods and summer meadows,—and, we humbly con¬
ceive, is beautiful because it is the natural sign and con¬
comitant of those scenes and seasons of enjoyment. Blue,
again, is beautiful in the vernal sky,—and, as we believe,
for the sake of the pleasures of which such skies are pro¬
lific ; and pink is beautiful on the cheeks of a young woman pJ(
or the leaves of a rose, for reasons too obvious to be stat-
ed. We have associations enough, therefore, to recom¬
mend all these colours, in the situations in which they are
beautiful; but, strong as these associations are, they are
unable to make them universally beautiful,—or beautiful,
indeed, in any other situations. Green would not be
beautiful in the sky, nor blue on the cheek, nor vermi¬
lion on the grass. It may be said, indeed, that, though they
are always recognised as beautiful in themselves, their
obvious unfitness in such situations counteracts the effect
of their beauty, and makes an opposite impression, as of
something monstrous and unnatural; and that,accordingly,
they are all beautiful in indifferent situations, where there
is no such antagonist principle—in furniture, dress, and
ornaments. Now the fact, in the first place, is not so;—
these bright colours being but seldom and sparingly ad¬
mitted in ornaments or works of art; and no man, for ex¬
ample, choosing to have a blue house, or a green ceiling,
or a pink coat. But, in the-second place, if the facts were
admitted, we think it obvious that the general beauty of
these colours would be sufficiently accounted for by the
very interesting and powerful associations under which all
of them are so frequently presented by the hand of nature.
The interest we take in female beauty,—in vernal de¬
lights,—in unclouded skies,—is far too lively and too con¬
stantly recurring, not to stamp a kindred interest upon the
colours that are naturally associated with such objects, and
to make us regard with some affection and delight those
hues that remind us of them, although we should only meet
them upon a fan or a dressing-box, the lining of a curtain
or the back of a screen. Finally, we beg leave to observe,
that all bright and clear colours are naturally typical of
cheerfulness and purity of mind, and are hailed as emblems
of moral qualities, to which no one can be indifferent.
With regard to ugly' colours, again, we really are not
aware of any to which that epithet can safely be applied.
Dull and dingy hues are usually mentioned as in them¬
selves the least pleasing; yet these are the prevailing
tints in many beautiful landscapes and many admired pic¬
tures. They are also the most common colours that are
chosen for dress, for building, for furniture, where the
consideration of beauty is the only motive for the choice.
In fact, the shaded parts of all coloured objects pass into
tints of this description; nor can we at present recollect
any one colour which we could specify as in itself disa¬
greeable, without running counter to the feelings and
the practice of the great mass of mankind. If the fact,
however, were otherwise, and if certain muddy and dull
colours were universally allowed to be disagreeable, we
should think there could be no difficulty in referring these,
too, to natural associations. Darkness, and all that ap¬
proaches it, is naturally associated with ideas of melan¬
choly, of helplessness, and danger; and the gloomy hues
that remind us of it, or seem to draw upon it, must share
in the same associations. Lurid skies, too, it should be
observed, and turbid waters, and unfruitful swamps, and
dreary morasses, are the natural and most common wear¬
ers of these dismal liveries. It is from these'that we first
become acquainted with them; and it is needless, there¬
fore, to say that such objects are necessarily associatec
with ideas of discomfort, and sadness, and danger; an
that the colours that remind us of them can scarcely lai
to recall some of the same disagreeable sensations.
Enough, however, and more than enough, has been sail
about the supposed primitive and independent beauty on
separate colours. It is chiefly upon the intrinsic beautyc
of their mixture or combinations that Mr Knight and ns
adherents have insisted; and it is no doubt quite true,
that, among painters and connoisseurs, we hear a grea
ty.
'v'
utyo
edor
bined
urs.
B E A
lie v. deal about the harmony and composition of tints, and the
^ J charms and difficulties of a judicious colouring. In all
this, however, we cannot help suspecting that there is no
little pedantry and no little jargon; and that these phrases,
when used without reference to the practical difficulties
of the art, which must go for nothing in the present ques¬
tion, really mean little more than the true and natural
appearance of coloured objects, seen through the same
tinted or partially obscure medium that commonly consti¬
tutes the atmosphere. In nature, we know of no discord¬
ant or offensive colouring, except what may be referred to
some accident or disaster that spoils the moral or senti¬
mental expression of the scene, and disturbs the associa¬
tions upon which all its beauty, whether of forms or of
hues, seems to us very plainly dependent. We are per¬
fectly aware, that ingenious persons have been disposed
to dogmatize and to speculate very confidently upon these
subjects; and have had the benefit of seeing various learn¬
ed treatises upon the natural gamut of colours, and the in¬
herent congruity of those that are called complementary,
with reference to the prismatic spectrum. But we con¬
fess we have no faith in any of those fancies; and believe,
that, if all these colours were fairly arranged on a plain
board, according to the most rigid rules of this supposed
harmony, nobody but the author of the theory would per¬
ceive the smallest beauty in the exhibition, or be the least
offended by reversing their collocation.
We do not mean, however, to dispute that the laws of
colouring, insisted on by learned artists, will produce a
more pleasing effect upon trained judges of the art, than a
neglect of these laws; because we have little doubt that
these combinations of colour are recommended by certain
associations, which render them generally pleasing to per¬
sons so trained and educated;—all that we maintain is,
that there are no combinations that are originally and uni¬
versally pleasing or displeasing to the eye, independent of
such associations; and it seems to us an irresistible proof
of this, that these laws of harmonious colouring are per¬
petually and deliberately violated by great multitudes of
persons, who not only have the perfect use of their sight,
but are actually bestowing great pains and expense in
providing for its gratification, in the very act of this viola¬
tion. The Dutch trader, who paints over the outside of
his country-house with as many bright colours as are to be
found in his tulip-bed, and garnishes his green shutters
with blue facings, and his purple roof with lilac ridges,
not only sees as well as the studied colourist, who shud¬
ders at the exhibition, but actually receives as much plea¬
sure, and as strong an impression of beauty, from the
finished lusthaus, as the artist does from one of his best
pictures. It is impossible, then, that these combinations
of colours can be naturally or intrinsically offensive to the
organ of sight; and their beauty or ugliness must depend
upon the associations which different individuals may have
happened to form with regard to them. We contend,
however, for nothing more; and are quite willing to allow
that the associations which recommend his staring tawd-
nness to the bmgomaster, are such as could not easily
have been formed in the mind of a diligent and extensive
observer of nature, and that they would probably be re¬
versed by habits of reflection and study. But the same
tumg, it is obvious, may be said of the notions of beauty
0 any other description that prevail among the rude,
the inexperienced, and uninstructed ; though, in all other
instances, we take it for granted that the beauty which
ls Perceived depends altogether upon association, and in
no degree on its power of giving a pleasurable impulse to
ie organ to which it addresses itself. If any consider-
* e nim^er of persons, with the perfect use of sight, ac-
ually take pleasure in certain combinations of colours,
U T Y. 499
that is complete proof that such combinations are not na- Beauty,
turally offensive to the organ of sight, and that the plea-
sure of such persons, exactly like that of those who dis¬
agree with them, is derived, not from the sense, but from
associations with its perceptions.
With regard, again, to the effect of broken masses ofEffects of
light and shadow, it is proper, in the first place, to remem-%ht and
ber, that by the eye we see colour only; and that lights ^dow.
and shadows, as far as the mere organ is concerned, mean
nothing but variations of tint. It is very true, no doubt,
that we soon learn to refer many of those variations to
light and shade, and that they thus become signs to us of
depth, and distance, and relief. But is not this of itself
sufficient to refute the idea of their affording any primi¬
tive or organic pleasure ? In so far as they are mere
variations of tints, they may be imitated by unmeaning
daubs of paint on a pallet;—in so far as they are signs, it
is to the mind that they address themselves, and not to the
organ. They are signs, too, it should be recollected, and
the only signs we have, by which we can receive any cor¬
rect knowledge of the existence and condition of all ex¬
ternal objects at a distance from us, whether interesting
or not interesting. Without the assistance of variety of
tint, and of lights and shadows, we could never distinguish
one object from another, except by the touch. These
appearances, therefore, are the perpetual vehicles of al¬
most all our interesting perceptions ; and are consequent¬
ly associated with all the emotions we receive from visi¬
ble objects. It is pleasant to see many things in one pro¬
spect, because some of them are probably agreeable; and
it is pleasant to know the relations of those things, be¬
cause the qualities or associations, by means of which they
interest us, depend generally upon that knowledge. The
mixture of colours and shades, however, is necessary to
this enjoyment, and consequently is a sign of it, and a
source of associated interest or beauty.
Mr Knight, however, goes much farther than this ; and Knight’s
maintains, that the beauty which is so distinctly felt in opinion as
many pictures of objects in themselves disagreeable, is to J-0 tlie
be ascribed entirely to the effect of the brilliant and bar- °
monious tints, and the masses of light and shadow, thatpjctures
maybe employed in the representation. The filthy and refuted,
tattered rags of a beggar, he observes, and the putrefying
contents of a dunghill, may form beautiful objects in a pic¬
ture ; because, considered as mere objects of sight, they
may often present beautiful effects of colouring and shadow;
and these are preserved or heightened in the imitation,
disjoined from all their offensive accompaniments. Now,
if the tints and shades were the exclusive sources of our
gratification, and if this gratification was diminished, in¬
stead of being heightened, by the suggestion which, how¬
ever transiently, must still intrude itself, that they appear¬
ed in an imitation of disgusting objects, it must certainly
follow, that the pleasure and the beauty would be much
enhanced if there was no imitation of any thing whatever,
and if the canvass merely presented the tints and shades,
unaccompanied with the representation, of any particular
object. It is perfectly obvious, however, that it would be
absurd to call such a collection of coloured spots a beau¬
tiful picture; and that a man would be laughed at who
should hang up such a piece of stained canvass among the
works of the great artists. Again, if it were really pos¬
sible for any one but a student of art to confine the at¬
tention to the mere colouring and shadowing of any pic¬
ture, there is nothing so disgusting but what might form
the subject of a beautiful imitation. A piece of putrid
veal, or a cancerous ulcer, or the rags that are taken from
it, may display the most brilliant tints and the finest dis¬
tribution of light and shadow. Does Mr Knight, however,
seriously think that either of these experiments would
500 B E A
Beauty, succeed? Or are there, in reality, no other qualities in
the pictures in question, to which their beauty can be
ascribed, but the organic effect of their colours? We
humbly conceive that there are, and that far less ingenuity
than his might have been able to detect them.
There is, in the first place, the pleasing association of
the skill and power of the artist,—a skill and power which,
we know, may be employed to produce unmingled delight,
whatever may be the character of the particular effort
before us. But, in the second place, we do humbly con¬
ceive that there are many interesting associations con¬
nected with the subjects which have been represented as
purely disgusting. The aspect of human wretchedness
and decay is not, at all events, an indifferent spectacle;
and, if presented to us without actual offence to our senses,
or any call on our active beneficence, may excite a sym¬
pathetic emotion, which is known to be far from unde-
lightful. Many an attractive poem has been written on
the miseries of beggars ; and why should painting be sup¬
posed more fastidious? Besides,.it will be observed that
the beggars of the painter are generally among the most
interesting of that interesting order;—either young and
lovely children, whose health, and gaiety, and sweet ex¬
pression, form an affecting contrast with their squalid
garments, and the neglect and misery to which they
-seem to be destined,—or old and venerable persons,
mingling something of the dignity and reverence of age
with the broken spirit of their condition, and seeming to
reproach mankind for exposing heads so old and white to
the pelting of the pitiless storm. While such pictures
suggest images so pathetic, it looks almost like a wilful
perversity to ascribe their beauty entirely to the mix¬
ture of colours which they display, and to the forgetful¬
ness of these images. Even for the dunghill we think it
is possible to say something, though we confess we have
never happened to see any picture of which that useful
compound formed the peculiar subject. There is the
display of the painter’s art and power here also; and the
dunghill is not only useful, but is associated with many
pleasing images of rustic toil and occupation, and of the
simplicity, and comfort, and innocence of agricultural
life. We do not know that a dunghill is at all a disagree¬
able object to look at, even in plain reality, provided it
be so far off as not to annoy us with its odour, or to soil
us with its effusions. In a picture, however, we are safe
from any of these disasters; and considering that it is
usually combined, in such delineations, with other more
pleasing and touching remembrancers of humble happi¬
ness and contentment, we really do not see that it wras at
all necessary to impute any mysterious or intrinsic beauty
to its complexion, in order to account for the satisfaction
with which we can then bear to behold it.
Beauty of Having said so much with a view to reduce to its just
sounds all value, as an ingredient of beauty, the mere organical de-
derived light which the eye is supposed to derive from colours, we
elation. really have not patience to apply the same considerations
to the alleged beauty of sounds that are supposed to be
insignificant. Beautiful sounds in general, we think, are
beautiful from association only,—from their resembling
the natural tones of various passions and affections, or
from their being originally and most frequently presented
to us in scenes or on occasions of natural interest or emo¬
tion. With regard, again, to successive or co-existent
sounds, we do not, of course, mean to dispute that there
are such things as melody and harmony, and that most
men are offended or gratified by the violation or obser¬
vance of those laws upon which they depend. This, how¬
ever, it should be observed, is a faculty quite unique, and
unlike any thing else in our constitution; by no means
universal, as the sense of beauty is, even in cultivated so¬
li T Y.
cieties, and apparently withheld from whole communities B« <•
of quick-eared savages and barbarians. Whether the ^ v
kind of gratification which results from the mere musical
arrangement of sounds would be referred to a sense of
beauty, or would pass under that name, if it could be pre¬
sented entirely detached from any associated emotions,
appears to us to be exceedingly doubtful. Even with the
benefit of these combinations, we do not find that every
arrangement which merely preserves inviolate the rules
of composition is considered beautiful; and we do not
think that it would be consonant, either to the common
feeling or common language of mankind, to bestow this
epithet upon pieces that had no other merit. At all
events, and whatever may be thought of the proper name
of this singular gratification of a musical ear, it seems to
be quite certain that all that rises to the dignity of an
emotion in the pleasure we receive from sounds, is as
clearly the gift of association as in the case of visible
beauty,—of association with the passionate tones and mo¬
dulations of the human voice,—with the scenes to which
the interesting sounds are native,—with the poetry to
which they have been married,—or even with the skill
and genius of the artist by whom they have been arranged.
Hitherto we have spoken of the beauty of external ob-Be vof
jects only. But the wrhole difficulty of the theory consistsimi ;erial
in its application to them. If that be once adjusted, the0^ sre-
beauty of immaterial objects can occasion no perplexity.^“
Poems, and other compositions in words, are beautiful in sw 7
proportion as they are conversant with beautiful objects,
or as they suggest to us, in a more direct way, the moral
and social emotions on which the beauty of all objects de¬
pends. Theorems and demonstrations are beautiful, ac¬
cording as they excite in us emotions of admiration for
the genius and intellectual power of their inventors, and
images of the magnificent and beneficial ends to which
such discoveries may be applied; and mechanical contri¬
vances are beautiful when they remind us of similar talents
and ingenuity, and at the same time impress us with a
more direct sense of their vast utility to mankind, and of
the great additional conveniences with which life is con¬
sequently adorned. In all cases, therefore, there is the
suggestion of some interesting conception or emotion as¬
sociated with a present perception, in which it is appa¬
rently confounded and embodied; and this, according to
the whole of the preceding deduction, is the distinguish¬
ing characteristic of beauty.
Having now explained, as fully as we think necessary, Co -
the grounds of that opinion as to the nature of beauty qw ^
which appears to be most conformable to the truth, we
have only to add a word or two as to the necessary con¬
sequences of its adoption upon several other controversies
of a kindred description.
In the first place, then, we conceive that it establishes
the substantial identity of the sublime, the beautiful, and
the picturesque, and consequently puts an end to all
controversy that is not purely verbal as to the difference
of those several qualities. Every material object that in¬
terests without actually hurting or gratifying our bodily
feelings, must do so, according to this theory, in one and
the same manner, that is, by suggesting or recalling some
emotion or affection of ourselves or some other sentient
being, and presenting, to our imagination at least, some
natural object of love, pity, admiration, or awe. The in¬
terest of material objects, therefore, is always the same,
and arises in every case, not from any physical qualities
they may possess, but from their association with some
idea of emotion. But, though material objects have but
one means of exciting emotion, the emotions they <m
excite are infinite. They are mirrors that may reflect a
shades and all colours, and, in point of fact, do seldom
BEAUTY.
501
Be f reflect the same hues twice. No two interesting objects,
/ ^ j perhaps, whether known by the name of beautiful, sub¬
lime, or picturesque, ever produced exactly the same
emotion in the beholder; and no one object, it is most pro¬
bable, ever moved any two persons to the very same con¬
ceptions. As they may be associated with all the feelings
and affections of which the human mind is susceptible, so
they may suggest those feelings in all their variety, and,
in fact, do daily excite all sorts of emotions, running
through every gradation, from extreme gaiety and eleva¬
tion, to the borders of horror and disgust.
Now, it is certainly true, that all the variety of emo¬
tions raised in this way, on the single basis of association,
may be classed in a rude way under the denominations of
sublime, beautiful, and picturesque, according as they par¬
take of awe, tenderness, or admiration; and we have no
other objection to this nomenclature except its extreme
imperfection, and the delusions to which we know that it
has given occasion. If objects that interest by their asso¬
ciation with ideas of power, and danger, and terror, are to
be distinguished by the peculiar name of sublime, why
should there not be a separate name also for objects that
interest by associations of mirth and gaiety,—another for
>f those that please by suggestions of softness and melan-
al choly,—another for such as are connected with impressions
of comfort and tranquillity,—and another for those that are
related to pity, and admiration, and love, and regret, and
all the other distinct emotions and affections of our nature?
These are not in reality less distinguishable from each
other than from the emotions of awe and veneration that
confer the title of sublime on their representatives ; and
while all the former are confounded under the comprehen¬
sive appellation of beauty, this partial attempt at distinc¬
tion is only apt to mislead us into an erroneous opinion of
our accuracy, and to make us believe both that there is a
greater conformity among the things that pass under the
same name, and a greater difference between those that
pass under different names, than is really the case. We
have seen already that the radical error of almost all pre¬
ceding inquirers, has lain in supposing that every thing
that passed under the name of beautiful must have some
real and inherent quality in common with every thing else
that obtained that name. And it is scarcely necessary for
us to observe, that it has been almost as general an opi¬
nion, that sublimity was not only something radically dif¬
ferent from beauty, but actually opposite to it; whereas
the fact is, that it is far more nearly related to some sorts of
v beauty than many sorts of beauty are to each other; and
that both are founded exactly upon the same principle of
suggesting some past or possible emotion of some sentient
being.
Upon this important point we are happy to find our opi¬
nions confirmed by the authority of Mr Stewart, who, in
his Essay on the Beautiful, already referred to, has ob¬
served, not only that there appears to him to be no incon¬
sistency or impropriety in such expressions as the Sublime
Beauties of nature, or of the sacred Scriptures; but has
added, in express terms, that, “ to oppose the beautiful to
the sublime, or to the picturesque, strikes him as some¬
thing analogous to a contrast between the beautiful and
the comic, the beautiful and the tragic, the beautiful and
the pathetic, or the beautiful and the romantic.”
The only other advantage which we shall specify as
likely to result from the general adoption of the theory
we have been endeavouring to illustrate, is, that it seems
calculated to put an end to all these perplexing and vexa¬
tious questions about the standard of taste, which have
given occasion to so much impertinent and so much ela¬
borate discussion. If things are not beautiful in them¬
selves, but only as they serve to suggest interesting con¬
ceptions to the mind, then every thing which does in point Beauty,
of fact suggest such a conception to any individual, is
beautiful to that individual; and it is not only quite true
that there is no room for disputing about tastes, but that
all tastes are equally just and correct, in as far as each
individual speaks only of his own emotions. When a man
calls a thing beautiful, however, he may indeed mean to
make two very different assertions ;—he may mean that
it gives him pleasure, by suggesting to him some interest¬
ing emotion; and, in this sense, there can be no doubt
that, if he merely speak truth, the thing is beautiful, and
that it pleases him precisely in the same way that all
other things please those to whom they appear beautiful.
But if he mean further to say that the thing possesses
some quality which should make it appear beautiful to
every other person, and that it is owing to some preju¬
dice or defect in them if it appear otherwise, then he is
as unreasonable and absurd as he would think those who
should attempt to convince him that he felt no emotion of
beauty.
All tastes, then, are equally just and true, in as far as
concerns the individual whose taste is in question; and
what a man feels distinctly to be beautiful, is beautiful to
him, whatever other people may think of it. All this fol¬
lows clearly from the theory now in question : but it does
not follow from it that all tastes are equally good or de¬
sirable, or that there is any difficulty in describing that
which is really the best, and the most to be envied. The
only use of the faculty of taste is to afford an innocent
delight, and to aid the cultivation of a finer morality; and
that man certainly will have the most delight from this
faculty who has the most numerous and the most power¬
ful perceptions of beauty. But if beauty consist in the
reflection of our affections and sympathies, it is plain that
he will always see the most beauty whose affections are
warmest and most exercised, whose imagination is the
most powerful, and who has most accustomed himself to
attend to the objects by which he is surrounded. In as
far as mere feeling and enjoyment are concerned, there¬
fore, it seems evident that the best taste must be that
which belongs to the best affections, the most active fancy,
and the most attentive habits of observation. It will fol¬
low pretty exactly, too, that all men’s perceptions of beau¬
ty will be nearly in proportion to the degree of their sen¬
sibility and social sympathies; and that those who have
no affections towards sentient beings, will be just as in¬
sensible to beauty in external objects, as he who cannot
hear the sound of his friend’s voice must be deaf to its
echo.
In so far as the sense of beauty is regarded as a mere
source of enjoyment, this seems to be the only distinction
that deserves to be attended to; and the only cultivation
that taste should ever receive, with a view to the gratifi¬
cation of the individual, should be through the indirect
channel of cultivating the affections and powers of obser¬
vation. If we aspire, however, to be creators as well as
observers of beauty, and place any part of our happiness
in ministering to the gratification of others—as artists, or
poets, or authors of any sort—then, indeed, a new dis¬
tinction of tastes, and a far more laborious system of cul¬
tivation, will be necessary. A man who pursues only his
own delight will be as much charmed with objects that
suggest powerful emotions in consequence of personal and
accidental associations, as with those that introduce simi¬
lar emotions by means of associations that are universal
and indestructible. To him, all objects of the former
class are really as beautiful as those of the latter—and,
for his own gratification, the creation of that sort of
beauty is just as important an occupation; but if he con¬
ceive the ambition of creating beauties for the admiration
502
EEC
BEG
Beauty of others, he must be cautious to employ only such objects
II . as are the natural signs, or the inseparable concomitants
ijeccaritu 0p ernoti0ns, of which the greater part of mankind are sus-
ceptible ; and his taste will then deserve to be called bad
and false, if he obtrude upon the public, as beautiful, ob¬
jects that are not likely to be associated in common minds
with any interesting impressions.
For a man himself, then, there is no taste that is either
bad or false ; and the only difference worthy of being at¬
tended to, is that between a great deal and a very little.
Some who have cold affections, sluggish imaginations, and
no habits of observation, can with difficulty discern beauty
in any thing; while others, who are full of kindness and
sensibility, and who have been accustomed to attend to
all the objects around them, feel it almost in every thing.
It is no matter what other people may think of the objects
of their admiration; nor ought it to be any concern of
theirs that the public would be astonished or offended if
they were called upon to join in that admiration. As long
as no such call is made, this anticipated discrepancy of
feeling need give them no uneasiness; and the suspicion
of it should produce no contempt in any other person. It
is a strange aberration indeed of vanity that makes us de¬
spise persons for being happy, for having sources of en¬
joyment in which we cannot share; and yet this is the
true account of the ridicule which is so generally poured
upon individuals who seek only to enjoy their peculiar
tastes unmolested; for, if there be any truth in the
theory we have been expounding, no taste is bad for any
other reason than because it is peculiar, as the objects in
which it delights must actually serve to suggest to the in¬
dividual those common emotions and universal affections
upon which the sense of beauty is everywhere founded n
The misfortune is, however, that we are apt to consider ty
all persons who make known their peculiar relishes, and & ria
especially all who create any objects for their gratification U
as in some measure dictating to the public, and setting up
an idol for general adoration ; and hence this intolerant
interference with almost all peculiar perceptions of beau¬
ty, and the unsparing derision that pursues all deviations
from acknowledged standards. This intolerance, we ad¬
mit, is often provoked by something of a spirit of prose-
lytism and arrogance, in those who mistake their own
casual associations for natural or universal relations; and
the consequence is, that mortified vanity dries up the
fountain of their peculiar enjoyment, and disenchants, by
a new association of general contempt or ridicule, the
scenes that had been consecrated by some innocent hnt
accidental emotion.
As all men must have some peculiar associations, all
men must have some peculiar notions of beauty, and, of
course, to a certain extent, a taste that the public would
be entitled to consider as false or vitiated. For those
who make no demands on public admiration, however, it
is hard to be obliged to sacrifice this source of enjoyment;
and, even for those who labour for applause, the wisest
course, perhaps, if it were only practicable, would be to
have two tastes,—one to enjoy, and one to work by; one
founded upon universal associations, according to which
they finished those performances for which they chal¬
lenged universal praise; and another guided by all casual
and individual associations, through which they looked
fondly upon nature, and upon the objects of their secret
admiration. f p. P \
BEAUVAIS, an arrondissement of the department of
the Oise, in France, extending over 694 square miles,
comprehending twelve cantons and 244 communes, and
containing 130,263 inhabitants. The chief city, of the
same name, is in a beautiful situation on the river Therain ;
it contains 2900 houses, and 12,791 inhabitants, employed in
making various articles in wool, flax, cotton, and earthen¬
ware, and elegant carpets. Long. 1. 51. 52. E. Lat. 49.
26. 2. N.
BEBRYCIA, in Ancient Geography, an ancient name of
Bithynia, so called from the Bebryces, a people by whom
it was originally inhabited.
BECAH, or Bekah, a Jewish coin, equivalent to half a
shekel. In Dr Arbuthnot’s table of reductions, the bekah
is stated as equal to 13-j-^d. and in Dr Prideaux’s computa¬
tion to Is. 6d. of our money. The Israelites paid an hun¬
dred bekahs a head annually for the support of the temple,
or L.5. 13s. 8d. according to Dr Arbuthnot’s computation.
BECALM, in a general sense, signifies to appease, to
allay.
Becalm, in the sea language. A ship is said to be be¬
calmed when there is not a breath of wind to fill the sails.
. BECANOR, a town of India, in Asia, seated on the
river Ganges, in long. 83. 5. E. lat. 27. 40. N.
BECCABUNGA, Brooklime, the trivial name of a
species of veronica.
BECCARIA, CAESAR Bonesana, Marquis of, au-
thoi of the well-known treatise on Crimes and Punish¬
ments, was born at Milan in the year 1735. Flis early
studies were carried on in the college of the Jesuits at
Parma. He possessed a quick apprehension ; but, being
naturally taciturn, and inclined to reflection, he seldom
communicated the progress of his ideas, and was with
difficulty prevailed upon to complete his exercises. It is
related, as another peculiarity of his disposition, that he
never received praise from his teachers without betraying
evident marks of pain and humiliation. These unusual
indications of a susceptible mind, which, outstripping the
course of his instructors, delighted in its own pursuits, and
derived little complacency from a sense of its actual at¬
tainments, gave him, to common observers, a certain air
of slowness, and even of stupidity, and characterized his
features and deportment during the whole of his life.
Having left college at the age of seventeen, he applied
himself, with unremitting diligence, to the study of ma¬
thematics, and the philosophjr of man.
His understanding appears to have been very early
capable of embracing the most general views, and his
breast to have been warmed by those benevolent wishes
for the enlargement of human happiness, the sincerity and
the strength of which are often so severely tried by the
events and passions of maturer life. His propensity to
the study of jurisprudence and political philosophy was
first excited or confirmed by the Lettres Persannes of
Montesquieu ; a production capable, indeed, of alluring a
less enthusiastic mind than that of Beccaria. But his
industry in the pursuit of knowledge appears to have
been chiefly stimulated by the patriotic and honourable
desire of diffusing instruction among his countrymen, par¬
ticularly the inhabitants of Milan, whom he represents, in
one of his letters, as abandoned to a state of lamentable
and universal ignorance. In the prosecution of these
laudable designs, he fortunately possessed the confidence,
and was encouraged by the protection, of Count Firmi-
ani, then governor of that part of the Austrian dominions;
—an accomplished nobleman, who, with comprehensive
views of policy, concurred in every plan which wras calcu¬
lated for improving the state of the provinces, and the
condition of their inhabitants.
Beccaria first appeared as an author in the year 1762,
BECCARIA.
when he published some observations on the Derange¬
ment of the Currency in the Milanese States, and a plan
for its amendment. Soon after this he established a small
literary society at Milan, in concert with some associates
of character and sentiment similar to his own; among
others, Alessandro and Pietro Verri, who at that time like¬
wise contributed, by their talents and public spirit, to
distinguish the reign of Maria Teresa in Lombardy.1 As¬
sisted by these friends, and countenanced by Firmiani,
he commenced a periodical publication under the name of
the Caffe ; a plan said to have been suggested to them by
the celebrity of Addison’s Spectator, and the general be¬
lief of its influence on the opinions and taste of the people
of England. Various papers, contributed by the members
of this society, on subjects of literature, ethics, and physi¬
cal science, were published during the years 1764 and 1765.
But by far the most remarkable production to which
this society gave rise, and that by which the reputation of
Beccaria has been chiefly perpetuated among other na¬
tions, was the treatise on Crimes and Punishments (Dei
Pelitti e delle Pene). This essay is said to have been
undertaken at the earnest solicitation of Count Alex¬
ander Verri, who then discharged the functions of Pro¬
tector of Prisoners (Protettore de Carcerati) at the court
of Milan. It was written at the house of his brother,
Peter Verri, where the meetings of the society were held ;
and in concert with him the author, every evening, re¬
vised and corrected what he had written during the day.
In this manner the work was completed within two months,
and was printed in the course of the year 1764, with the
mark of the Lucca press.2
In this small but noted work the author appears as the
advocate of reason and sound policy no less than of huma¬
nity. It was his purpose, by examining the foundation,
the objects, and consequently the boundaries, of penal
law, to expose the inefiicacy as well as injustice of many
provisions in the judicial code of his own country, and
in those of other European nations, which, derived from
remote times, and established under a different order of
society, had been perverted and debased during succes¬
sive ages of barbarism. The authority of positive institu¬
tions formed almost the only basis of law, even in coun¬
tries the furthest advanced in civilization; and that au¬
thority was in many of them drawn too servilely from the
Roman system. Montesquieu had already thrown many
penetrating glances at the foundation and structure of
these ancient fabrics; but it was still reserved for others
to scrutinize them more closely, and to draw forth, and
present to general view, those direct inferences which
that examination suggested. In no part were the exist¬
ing codes more defective and vicious than in the depart¬
ment of the criminal law ; and it was to this, accordingly,
that Beccaria’s attention was exclusively directed. Nor
does he offer the work as a general system or theory even
of penal law, in which light it would be found every way
imperfect, but only as an attempt to analyze parts of a
system which he found actually existing. Among the
most prominent of those points to which his reasoning is
applied, are, the due proportion between crime and pu¬
nishment, and the violations of that proportion, whether
503
by unnecessary severity of punishments, or the want of a Beccaria.
scale and distribution of them suited to the amount and
danger of particular offences; the inconsistency of certain
rules then established on the subject of legal evidence;
secret accusations, fictitious crimes, the use of torture as
an instrument for the discovery of truth; imprisonment
not authorized by law, or of uncertain duration, and the
sale of offices of justice ; along with other vices in the con¬
stitution of the courts. In treating these various topics,
he seldom deduces his argument from remote sources, or
pursues it to subtile refinements. That some propositions
are advanced in the course of the work which are of a
questionable nature, cannot be denied ; and there are par¬
ticular illustrations which have an exclusive reference to
certain forms of government then existing in the Italian
states. But, in general, the author reasons on few and
acknowledged principles, and makes his appeal to the
universal feelings of mankind. As one of the most im¬
portant conclusions which result from his reasoning, or
rather as concentrating a number of these conclusions, he
closes his book with the following proposition: “ In or¬
der that a punishment may not be an act of violence of
one, or of many, against an individual member of society',
it is essential that it should be public, prompt, and neces¬
sary, the least possible in the given case, and determined
by the law.”
His style in this work, with the exception of one or two
passages, where he intentionally addresses himself only to
the lesser number, is uniformly perspicuous, and, like that
of all his other writings, though often eloquent, is un¬
adorned. He employs, in some parts of it, that species
of ridicule which, on a similar occasion, had been used
with so great effect by Montesquieu. Thus, while treat¬
ing the subject of torture, he proposes, among others, the
following query in the form of a mathematical problem :
“ The force of the muscles and the sensibility of the
nerves of an innocent person being given, it is required
to find the degree of pain necessary to make him confess
himself guilty of a given crime ?” Peculiar traits of the
writer’s dispositions and train of sentiment are likewise to
be found in other passages. Thus having, in a later edi¬
tion, under that part which relates to fraudulent bankrupt-
cy, modified some sentiments which he had originally ex¬
pressed, but which, on reflection, appeared to himself too
severe, he adds, in a note, “ I am ashamed of what I for¬
merly wrote on this subject. I have been accused of ir-
religion without deserving it; I have been accused of dis¬
affection to the government, and deserved it as little; I
was guilty of a real attack upon the rights of humanity,
and I have been reproached by nobody.”
If many of the views exhibited in this work are now
divested of novelty, and if, through the general adoption
of them by the most cultivated nations, we are led to for¬
get that they were once hidden or excluded, such is the
fate of all improvement as well as of all discovery. Nor
does it detract from the true character of this interesting
performance, that in some enlightened countries, and in
the more propitious climates of political liberty, many of
the important doctrines which it inculcated were already
recognised in the systems of the law.3 Beccaria was
u A small publication which appeared about that time, under the title of Thoughts on Happiness, was written by the former. His
tterary pursuits were, soon after, suspended by his appointment to a public situation.
. ° These particulars, communicated in a letter of Count A. Verri to the Abbate Isidoro Bianchi, in 1802, are repeated by the latter
in his Elogio on Pietro Verri. . . . .
3 In the most favoured countries of liberty, however, the reception of some of these principles had been comparatively recent;
"'hile of others, the establishment seems even yet to be remote. That wrork which has tended most to diffuse a knowledge ot the
pi ogress and spirit of the English laws, viz. the Commentaries of Sir William Blackstone, was not published till the close of the year
1705, although his plan of delivering a public lecture on the judicial system ot his country was formed in 1733. I he professorship
‘it Oxford, which gave full effect to that plan, was instituted by Mr Tiner in 1758.
504
BECCARIA.
Beccaria. among the first by whom these principles were publicly
avowed, under a government in whose institutions they
had no place, and over whose judicial administration they
exercised no influence; and, when the age and country
in which he wrote are considered, the boldness of his
statements is not less to be admired than the justness of
his reasoning. It is his honourable distinction, likewise,
and that of the friends who shared his labours and his
views, to have preserved, in the prosecution of these ob¬
jects, an unblemished loyalty towards their prince, and,
while combating, with manly perseverance, the errors
which prevailed in the fundamental principles of legisla¬
tion, to have abstained from all attacks which might either
directly weaken the authority of the laws, or disturb the
administration of the government.
According to the just exposition given by the author
himself, the true tendency of such a work is not to lessen
the power of the law, but to increase its influence, inas¬
much as opinion has a greater command over the minds
of men than force. It has frequently been repeated, in¬
deed, that national manners must precede laws; and in
the only allowable sense of that maxim, the same might
be said, perhaps, with equal truth, of opinions. But the
authority of this dictum, and the extent to which it may
be followed, are not unfrequently mistaken. An import¬
ant distinction is apt to be overlooked, between those
general laws, which, as they are founded in permanent
principles of our nature, admit of being drawn from the
first springs, but which have been disturbed by ignorance,
or a barbarous policy, or the temporary dominion of some
prevailing passion—and those artificial or secondary ar¬
rangements, which the circumstances and stages of poli¬
tical society may equally render necessary in times of
knowledge, and tranquillity, and civilization. It is to the
latter class only that the maxim referred to can have any
just application. But it may well be questioned, whether,
in any case whatever, the popular feeling and opinion
should be allowed to precede, by any considerable inter¬
val, the act of the legislature. It seems, on the contrary,
to be a valuable secret in legislation, and one of its most
important ends, to seize the proper moment for accom¬
plishing that union. Above all, it is expedient, in those
branches of the law which are interwoven with and de¬
rive their support from the moral feelings, that a legisla¬
tor should seek to anticipate every better tendency of
public sentiment. Through want of a well-timed inter¬
ference in such cases, many advantages are relinquished,
as well in the concocting and framing of the laws them¬
selves, as in that silent influence which a well-directed
system of jurisprudence carries into the opinions and ha¬
bits of a community.
Of the prospects which Beccaria himself entertained
as to the probable influence of his work, a judgment may
be formed from the sentence of Lord Bacon, which he
prefixed to some of the editions. “ It is not to be ex¬
pected in any difficult undertaking, of whatever kind, that
the same person who sows the seed should also reap the
harvest; but there must, of necessity, be a preparation,
and gradual progress to maturity.”
The book was received in foreign countries with avidity,
and procured for its author an immediate and high repu¬
tation. “ Never,” says a writer in the Biographic Uni-
verselle, “ did so small a book produce so great an effect.”
'I he medal given by the Academy of Bern was instantly
bestowed upon Beccaria; and the empress Catherine II.
invited him to St Petersburg, with the offer of an honour¬
able station at her court; a proposal which was partly the
means of procuring him a similar distinction at home. Of
the reception which the work obtained in France, parti¬
cularly among the literary societies of Paris, evidence is
afforded by the correspondence of the Baron de Grimm. Bei •
“ This book,” he writes, in a letter dated 1st August 176s' ^
“ is by M. Beccaria, a Milanese gentleman, who is said by
some to be an abbe, by others a lawyer, but who, I answer
for it, is one of the best heads at this moment in Europe.”
“ You will not find in the Milanese philosopher,” he else¬
where observes, “ either the pitch or compass of genius
which characterize the writings of the President Montes¬
quieu ; but you will discover a mind that is luminous, pro¬
found, correct, and penetrating.” And he justly adds,
that his is one of the few precious books, gui font penser.
It was translated into French by the Abbe Morellet in
1766 ; and Voltaire soon after published a commentary
upon it, under the assumed title of Un Avocat de Besan-
pon. With respect to the former production, the trans¬
lator took some liberties with the method and distribu¬
tion of the work, which were not altogether warrantable.
Voltaire’s commentary is written in the light style pecu¬
liar to him; and was evidently intended as a vehicle for
certain opinions of his own, with which the spirit and ob¬
ject of the original publication are entirely unconnected.
But the circumstance itself sufficiently marks the im¬
pression which that publication had made, and the promi¬
nence of the views which it developed. It was rapidly
translated into various other languages; its maxims
became a species of current coin through a great part
of Europe; and the sanction of the author’s reasoning
was thought not unworthy of being resorted to in British
tribunals.
Although followed by many others, Beccaria’s was the
first work of note, in which the application of a milder
and more sound system of penal jurisprudence was ex¬
plicitly enforced. Nor would it be at all extravagant to
refer some of the great improvements which from this
era were successively introduced into the written laws of
different European monarchies, to the direct influence of
the opinions thus generally diffused. Many such enact¬
ments, at least, were from this time promulgated in a
tone more consonant than heretofore with the dictates of
humanity and equitable rule. Of this description were,
among others, not only the urbarium, or regulations con¬
cerning villanage, issued in 1764, by the empress Maria
Teresa, but also the more extended designs which took
effect, at a somewhat later period, in the various reformed
codes, published by the empress Catherine, the emperor
Joseph II., the grand duke of Tuscany, and the Danish
government under the administration of the late Count
Bernstorf.
At one period a storm seemed to be preparing against
the marquis in his own country, by those who probably
intended, in this form, a service to the government; but
it was soon dispersed by the authority of the government
itself. Beccaria had considered it his duty to communi¬
cate to Count Firmiani the offers which had been made
to him by the empress Catherine, and the intelligence
was transmitted by the viceroy to his own court. The
conduct of Prince Kaunitz-Ritzberg, on the occasion, is
highly honourable to that minister and to his sovereign.
Instead of treating the communication as a matter of no
account, he makes it the subject of a long dispatch, and
of repeated instructions. In one of these papers, dated
27th April 1767, after requiring particular information re¬
specting the personal character of Beccaria, he adds, “ Sup¬
posing his good qualities to preponderate, it would be de¬
sirable that the country should not lose a man whose fund
of knowledge is so considerable, and who, as appears from
his book, possesses a mind habituated to reflection, above
all in our present penury of thinking and philosophical
men; besides that it would do little honour to the whole
administration to be anticipated by foreigners in the due
Vs*
BECCARIA.
505
estimation of talents.'’1 Nor were these merely empty
professions ; they were almost immediately followed by an
imperial order for establishing, in the palatine college at
Milan, a professorship of public law and economics, under
the title of Scienze Camerali. To this chair, expressly
endowed for him by a distinction so honourable, the mar¬
quis was appointed on the 1st of November 1768, and
commenced the duties of it in the month of January fol¬
lowing. From the preliminary discourse (proluzione)
which he pronounced on this occasion, and in which he
briefly sets forth the objects of the institution, and some
of his own leading opinions regarding them, it appears
that the only instructions which he received from the re¬
gency on his appointment, consisted in an order to de¬
liver his discourses in the vulgar tongue; an injunction of
which the motives are honourable to that government, in
common wdth all the circumstances attending this trans¬
action. His lectures, which he received a special per¬
mission to deliver in his own house, attracted much no¬
tice. They were not published during his life ; but have
since appeared, under the title of Elementi di Economia
Pubblica, in the compilation of the Scrittori Classici Ita-
liani di Economia Politica, printed at Milan.2
As he had, in his former work, set out with stating the
object of municipal law to be “ the greatest happiness of
the greatest number,” so here the same universal principle
serves him for a guide; and he assumes it as the aim of
public economy “ to provide with peace and safety, things
necessary and convenient for the whole community.” He
classes the objects of political economy under five heads;
agriculture, manufactures, comm'erce, finance, and policy;
comprehending, under the latter, those laws and institu¬
tions which have a respect to the sciences, to education,
to police in the modern sense of that word, and to the
various means of public defence and security. The de¬
sign was not completed; no trace, at least, appears in the
work published under the above title relative to the sub¬
jects of finance or public policy.3 In estimating the value
of these speculations, it is no less necessary than in the case
of the former work, to consider them with a reference to
the state of science at the time, rather than to the present
extension of knowledge in this department. Under the first
three divisions he enters at considerable length into some
of the most interesting discussions which have arisen in
this wide field; particularly as to the principles of public
policy in regard to agriculture, to the commerce of grain,
and foreign commerce generally, and to money and ex¬
change.4 In perspicuity of language, and distinct and pa¬
tient illustration, the style of these discourses bears a con¬
siderable resemblance to that of the Wealth of Nations ;
but the coincidence between the two works, in some ge- Beccaria.
neral and fundamental doctrines, is still more remarkable
and interesting. Beccaria does not appear to have adopt¬
ed the particular theory of the French economists, which
was developed about that time; although his practical
doctrines on some of the most important points were con¬
formable to the conclusions deduced from that system.5
Among other inferences, to which the course of his rea¬
soning leads him, as it were, by many different roads, may
be noticed one, which he has himself ventured to state as
a general proposition, and which marks the caution as
well as enlargement of his mind in subjects of compli¬
cated inquiry. “ Every restriction on freedom,” he ob¬
serves, “ whether in the case of commerce or any other,
ought to be a result from the necessity of preventing an
actual disorder, not the effect of a purpose or aim at ame¬
lioration.” And he has repeated the same doctrine under
different views in various other passages.6 On all these
subjects he exercises, without ostentation, the privilege
of examining and judging for himself; and in doing so,
although he expresses himself with plainness and energy,7
he is never dogmatical. He observes this further dictate
of a sound philosophy,—to refrain as long as possible from
any very general conclusions; and, although he appears
to have disengaged his mind from the power of common
and hereditary notions respecting political economy, he
does not, by a transition too often made, substitute dan¬
gerous or extravagant positions in their place. He is
even more distinguished by the temperate use which he
makes of his liberty, than by the independence which se¬
cured him from the chain.
During the same period in which he pursued these la¬
bours, Beccaria undertook another literary task of a very
diffei’ent description, and commenced an Inquiry into the
Nature of Style? A first part of this Inquiry was pub¬
lished in 1770; but the author does not appear to have
prosecuted his intention, and only one detached portion
of the remainder was found among his papers.9 The apo¬
logy which he makes for this apparent deviation from his
usual objects of pursuit, drawn from a consideration of
the connection subsisting between the study of the fine
arts, and that of moral and political science, affords a
pleasing proof of the natural expansiveness of his mind.10
His scientific and literary studies were now to be inter¬
rupted, however, by new and more flattering marks of dis¬
tinction from his government. By an imperial order of
the 29th April 1771, he was appointed a member of the
Supreme Economic Council; on the suppression of which,
he was transferred to the magistracy of state; and, lastly,
by a dispatch of the 17th January 1791, he was named one
‘ The originals of these dispatches are among the state papers in the public archives of Milan.
2 The editor states that this publication was made from a copy of the discourses, transcribed for the author himself when he visit¬
ed Paris in 1776.
“ Some of the others, too, are treated rather briefly. He has himself defended this method of teaching by the following just and
striking observations, in that part of the work where he discourses of Interest: “ But woe to the teacher who would say all that is to
oe said, and leave nothing to the penetration of the learner. What is heard slips away and vanishes from the hearer’s mind, unless
he has an opportunity of opposing the re-action, as it were, of his own intellect, to the impressions of his instructor; and more
hght is thrown upon a science by one process of exact reasoning which we carry on for ourselves, and it is more deeply and firmly
rooted in us by that single operation, than by many and repeated trains of reasoning conducted by another.”
4 Under the head of Agriculture, he proposes the scheme of an experimental farm to be carried on at the public expense, as a
s00! of that science, and enters into some detail of its objects and regulations.
„ Mirabeau’s Tableau Economique had already appeared in the publication entitled La Philosophic Rurale ; as well as various papers
°i Quesnay.
® For example, “ The operations of Economics amount only to not permitting, and most frequently to letting alone.”
“ Con un non fanatico vigore,” as he has himself somewhere expressed it. But on occasions where he conceived that there might
be a danger of inflaming the passions, he has claimed the tribute due to him for employing a style “ beyond the reach of the unin-
ormed and impatient multitude.”
S9 lUc<:rche intorno alia Natura dello Stile.
io"r S a<^11'ona^ chapter is given in the edition printed at Milan in 1809.
0 .ln no part of his writings is the enlargement of his comprehension, as well as soundness of his judgment, more to be remarked,
ian in the Treatise on the State of Currency, which was his first publication, and written at the age of twenty-seven.
vOL. IV. 3 s
506
Beccaria. of the Board for Reform of the Judicial Code, civil and
criminal. His activity and usefulness in the discharge of
these great trusts are best proved by the circumstance,
that some of the most important matters in those different
departments were committed to his direction, and regu¬
lated by his counsels. The most remarkable of his state
papers were, various Ordinances relative to the grain; a
very important Dispatch transmitted to the Court in 1771,
which gave rise to the reform of the public money in
1778 ; a Plan proposed in 1780 for effecting a unifor¬
mity in the weights and measures ; and certain Proposals,
in 1786, founded on the tables of the population. His
writings of this description are characterized by method,
perspicuity, and precision. It deserves to be particular¬
ly noticed respecting his scheme for the equalization of
measures, that, of the different natural bases for exact
measurement, he explicitly recommends that which may
be obtained from the celestial bodies, and, in the Appli¬
cation of it, proposes to employ the decimal method of di¬
vision ; being the same system which was afterwards
adopted by the late government of France.1
In the year 1776 Beccaria made a journey to France,
in company with his friend Alessandro Verri. He re¬
mained at Paris for about three weeks, which he passed
chiefly in the society of D’Alembert and other eminent
men of letters; and, on his return, he visited Voltaire.
This journey seems to have been the only considerable in¬
cident which, during a period of twenty-five years, diver¬
sified his manner of life, or interrupted his official duties.
He died of apoplexy, in the year 1793. According to
the editor of his Elementi, in 1804, his death was unno¬
ticed by his country, and his tomb remained without a
name or an epitaph.
Beccaria was twice married. He was stedfast in his
friendships; modest, but tenacious of his opinions. He
took pleasure in the society of literary men, and avoided
that of the great. It is related of him, -that the king of
Naples, while at Milan, twice attempted to visit him at
his house ; but that the marquis found means, on both
occasions, to escape the honour intended for him by his
majesty. His exertions in the service of the public, and,
above all, his earnest endeavours to promote, by every
means, the cause of science, and a liberal system of edu¬
cation, formed the chief feature of his life. On the latter
topic he has made many forcible and eloquent appeals, in
the course of his different writings ; and some passages of
this description, which are interspersed in his discourses of
Political Economy, are not less to be admired for their in¬
trinsic excellence, than they are interesting from the cir¬
cumstances in which they were written, and the contrasts
which they indirectly exhibit.
One trait of his constitutional disposition or confirmed
habit has been recorded, as furnishing a remarkable ex¬
ception to the general vigour of his intellectual character,
—that, notwithstanding the force with which he combated
the prejudices and unreasonable apprehensions of other
men, he was himself subject, when left alone, to an un¬
conquerable timidity. We are not told whether this ten¬
dency was ascribed to early habits and a faulty education,
or supposed to be the consequence of some sudden and
fatal impression, which remained indissolubly associated
with certain outward circumstances, or in what other man¬
ner it was formed and perpetuated. On a superficial view,
it seems to denote a mind radically weak. But this is not
a necessary or a just inference. The fact is, indeed, sin¬
gular, and deeply impressive ; but, in truth, it only serves
ARIA.
as a new example to prove how mixed is the nature of Be<
our frame ; how imperfectly the understanding acts upon Z
the will, and the will upon the moral part; and how many
things appear to be within the jurisdiction of our reason
which, nevertheless, are superior to its control.
This is not the place to engage in a more particular ex¬
amination of the spirit and scope of Beccaria’s writings.
He is said to have expressed, at least during the early
part of his life, too unqualified an approbation of the works
of Helvetius, and others belonging to the same school of
philosophy. On this score some excuse may, perhaps, be
found for him in the attractions which the style of the
author now mentioned possesses for a youthful and ardent
mind. It is to be observed, likewise, that, when he ex¬
pressed this admiration of the productions alluded to, the
Systeme de la Nature had not yet made its appearance.
Nor is it to be supposed that he could be insensible to
the notice and the applause of such men as then held the
stations of greatest eminence in the scientific world. Yet
whatever temptations he may have been exposed to from
the influence of some of his literary associates, it is con¬
solatory to reflect, that, neither in the works which he
himself gave to the public, nor in those which have been
brought to light since his death, are sentiments to be
found which have a tendency to subvert any one founda¬
tion of private or of public good. His labours were bene¬
ficent, and their natural fruits the dissemination of useful
knowledge, the increase of industry, and the improvement
of social order. But he was not fated to witness the spec¬
tacle which ensued, or to be an observer of that moral crisis,
of the results of which it may be questioned, if, hitherto,
they have less disturbed the calculations of the friends of
humanity, than baffled the counsels of its foes.
Some further information with respect to Beccaria’s
publications will be found in the Notizie prefixed to his
Economia Pubblica (Scrittori Classici Italiani, tom. xi.);
in the fourth volume of the Biographie Universelle, print¬
ed at Paris in 1811; and in the fourth and fifth volumes of
the Correspondence par le Baron de Grimm. In the com¬
pilation first mentioned are contained (besides his i?fe-
menti) republications of his Belazione della Riduzione
delle Misure di lunghezza all' Uniformity, per lo state di
Milano ; of his Prolusione letta nelV apertura della nuova
cattedra de Scienze Camerali; and of his inquiry Del Dis¬
ordine e De' Rimedi delle Monete. In the same collection is
likewise to be found a paper written by him for the periodi¬
cal work called II Caffe ; viz. Tentativo Analitico su i Con-
trabbandi, being an attempt to apply the algebraical me¬
thod to certain subjects of political economy. A new
edition of MorelleAs French translation of the Treatise on
Crimes and Punishments was published by M. Roederer
in 1797 ; and a version of the same treatise in modern
Greek, by Coray, was published at Paris in 1802. (o. o.)
Beccaria, Giambattista, a very ingenious and industri¬
ous electrician and practical astronomer, was born at Mon-
dovi on the 2d of October 1716, and entered the religious
order of the Pious Schools in 1732. Fie became a profes¬
sor of experimental physics, first at Palermo, and then at
Rome, and was appointed to the same situation at Turin
in 1748: he was afterwards made tutor to the young
princes de Chablais and de Carignan, and continued to
reside principally at Turin during the remainder of his life.
In May 1755 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society
of London, to which he afterwards communicated several
papers relating to his favourite pursuits. He died on the
27th of May 1781.
B E C C
1 In the mathematical calculations connected with this subject, he was assisted, as he himself states, by Frisi, Professor of Mathe¬
matics at Pisa; and in the mechanical part by his brother Annibale.
B E C C
a ] '{'he most voluminous and most important of his
^ J works, entitled Dell' Elettrismo Artificiale e Naturali, ap¬
peared at Turin, 1753, 4to, and was reprinted in 1772.
It was translated into English, and published, with .the
original engravings, under the title of A Treatise upon Ar¬
tificial Electricity, and an Essay on the Mild and Slow
Electricity of the Atmosphere. Lond. 1771, 4to.
2. Risposta ad una Lettera intorno al suo Elettrismo.
Milan, 1753, 4to.
3. Lettere dell Elettrismo Atmosferico. 2da, Ed. 2. Turin,
1758, 4to.
4. Experimenta et Ohservationes quibus Electricitas vin-
dex late constituitur atque explicatur. Graz. 4to.
The accurate and elaborate experiments related in these
works obtained for their author the warm and repeated
encomiums of the scientific historian Dr Priestley, and
the approbation and friendship of other contemporary
philosophers; although it must be confessed that, amidst
the multitude of important facts recorded in them, we
sometimes observe a want of clearness of arrangement and
closeness of reasoning; nor must we attempt to claim for
Beccaria either the originality of a Franklin, the mathe¬
matical precision of an iEpinus, the enlarged views of a
Cavendish, or the neatness and inventive talent of a Volta.
The most remarkable novelties which deserve to be dis¬
tinguished among our author’s experiments and opinions
relate to the limited conducting power of water, to the
electrification of the air and smoke, to the velocity of
electricity, to the reduction of metals by its powers, to the
illumination of the solar phosphori by the sp^rk, to the
light excited by the motion of th6 air, and to a variety of
meteorological phenomena, especially lightning, storms,
rain, water-spouts,' and atmospherical magnetism. The
resistance exhibited by water to the passage of the elec¬
tric fluid is demonstrated by the luminous appearance of
its path, while it passes through more perfect conductors
without producing light, as well as by the explosion of
glass tubes containing water, through which the spark is
taken; and this experiment is extended to the construc¬
tion of an electrical water-gun, which is said to have car¬
ried a small bullet with considerable force.
Father Beccaria observed, about the same time with
Mr Canton, that the air surrounding an electrified body
was capable of becoming electric by slow degrees, and
that it also parted slowly with its electricity; and, by
means of some property of this kind, he produced the ap¬
pearance of a luminous atmosphere about an electrified
ball, to which another was presented, in a partial vacuum.
The smoke of colophony, surrounding an electrified body,
enabled it to give longer sparks; but this smoke was little
attracted by the body when the heated spoon containing
the colophony was insulated. Respecting the velocity of
electricity, he relates some experiments, which amply de¬
serve to be confirmed or confuted. He found the effect
of a spark occupy at least half a second in passing through
500 feet of wire, and six and a half through a hempen
cord of the same length, although when the cord wras
wetted, it passed through it in two or three seconds. It
is well known, that, in the earlier experiments of Watson,
a shock was transmitted through a much longer circuit of
wire, without occupying any perceptible interval of time
ln >ts passage. Many of the metals were revived from
their oxyds, and mercury was reproduced from cinnabar
by the powers of electricity ; and our author fancied that
he had discovered a common principle in the different
Petals, as several of them gave the same colour to the
surface of the glass to which they were attached. The
brilliancy of the electric light was demonstrated by the
permanency of its effect on the solar phosphori; and this
subject was afterwards pursued by various experiments
ARIA. 507
of Canton and others. The light often exhibited by the Beccaria.
air rushing into a vacuum is attributed by Beccaria to the
friction of the air against the sides of the glass. It may
be remarked that the phenomenon is, in all probability,
of the same kind as the appearance of light observed
long ago in the air-gun by its first inventor, Ctesibius
of Alexandria. With respect to atmospherical electri¬
city, Beccaria’s researches were most laborious and ex¬
tensive, and he made a great variety of experiments illus¬
trative of the nature of lightning, and of storms in general;
showing, for instance, the facility with which small bodies
are forced into the course of the electric current, as light
clouds are made to assist in conveying a stroke of lightning;
and proving that evaporation, and the deposition of vapour,
are always accompanied by electrical changes. Thunder¬
storms, in general, he attributes to terrestrial electricity,
and supposes the clouds to be merely the channels by which
the fluid is carried from one part of the earth’s surface to
another, the equilibrium having been first disturbed by
chemical changes within the earth; and it must be confess¬
ed that this opinion is in some measure countenanced by
the frequent connection which is observable between these
phenomena and those of earthquakes and volcanic erup¬
tions. Water-spouts, he assures us on the authority of
several eye-witnesses, may certainly be dispersed by point¬
ing swords and knives at them ; and, with respect to con¬
ductors erected for safety, though he appreciates their
utility very highly, he thinks that every large building
should be furnished with more than one or two. The
electricitas vindex, so often mentioned, is the electricity
made sensible in one body by the removal of another
which has been situated near it;—a property which after¬
wards led to the elegant inventions of the electrophorus
and the condenser of Wilke and Volta. Our author ap¬
pears to be somewhat disposed to exaggerate the import¬
ance of electrical changes as the causes of other atmo¬
spherical phenomena, and, in particular, to overrate the in¬
timacy of the connection of electricity with magnetism.
The appearance of the aurora borealis he attributes to the
circulation of electricity through the higher regions of
the atmosphere, and he was well aware of the magnetical
changes which usually accompany this remarkable occur¬
rence.
5. His papers in the Philosophical Transactions are all
in Latin. The first is entitled Experiments in Electricity,
in a Letter to Dr Franklin. (Phil. Trans. 1760, p. 514.)
These experiments relate principally to the subject of
electrical attractions and repulsions, which the author at¬
tempts to reduce to the effect of currents of air displaced
by the immediate action of the electric fluid. He sup¬
poses the air between two bodies, in dissimilar states, to
be rarefied by the interchange of their electricity, so as
to produce the appearance of attraction; and when the
bodies are in similar states, he imagines the air interposed
to be the immediate object of their apparently mutual re¬
pulsion. The paper is accompanied by a note of Dr Frank¬
lin, explanatory of the apparatus employed.
6. An Account of the Double Refractions in Crystals.
(Phil. Trans. 1762, p. 486.) The double refraction of
rock crystal had been observed by Huygens. Beccaria
seems to have imagined that it was not discoverable when
the surfaces concerned were parallel to each other ; but
later observations have shown that his observations were
defective in this respect, at the same time that they have
confirmed his conjecture respecting the existence of a si¬
milar property in almost all crystallized substances.
7. Novorum quorundam in re Electrica Experimentorum
Specimen. (Phil. Trans. 1766, p. 105.) In this paper our
author defends the simpler theory of Franklin against Mr
Symmer’s doctrine of the existence of two separate elec-
508 EEC EEC
Beccaria. trie fluids. He also enumerates a great variety of cases
of the excitement of positive or negative electricity by the
friction of different substances with glass, hare-skin, a silk
stocking, sealing-wax, and sulphur.
8. A second paper, with the same title, appeared in the
Philosophical Transactions for 1767, p. 297. It contains
an account of a repetition of experiments on the modifica¬
tion produced in the charge of two or more glass plates,
by separating them, and by removing and replacing their
coatings. These investigations were principally suggest¬
ed by the well-known observations of the Jesuits, made at
Pekin many years before, and by some subsequent expe¬
riments of Mr Symmer. The author calls the effect an
oscillation of electricity; it depends on the same causes
as the “ vindicating electricity,” which he has elsewhere
described.
9. I)e Atmosphcera Electrica libellus. {Phil. Trans.
1770, p. 277.) The phenomena of induced electricity are
here discussed, but not with great precision : the author
adverts, however, to the Newtonian demonstration of the
equilibrium of the force of a gravitating substance, distri¬
buted through the surface of a sphere, with respect to a
particle within it, and gives somewhat clearer views of
the theory of electricity than his former works had exhi¬
bited, but still falls far short of the perfection which iEpi-
nus had attained more than ten years before.
10. A short Letter to Mr John Canton, on his new phos¬
phorus receiving several colours, and only emitting the same,
is printed in the Philosophical Transactions for 1771, p.
212. Our author admitted the sun’s light through green,
red, and yellow glass, and found that the pieces of sulphu-
reted lime exposed to it emitted only a light similar to
that which had been thrown on them. A multiplicity of
later experiments have however shown, that the contrary
result is by far the most common; and Zanotti’s earlier
observations have been fully confirmed by Wilson, Grosser,
and Seebeck.
11. In 1759 Beccaria received orders from his sovereign,
in consequence of a suggestion of Boscovich, to measure
the length of a degree of the meridian in the immediate
neighbourhood of Turin : the measurement was completed
in 1768, and an account of it was published under the
title of Gradus Taurinensis, Turin, 1774, 4to; prefaced
by a proper compliment to the memory of the monarch
who patronized the undertaking, and to the virtues of his
successors, under whose auspices it was completed. The
result did not, however, exhibit the appearance of any
great accuracy or good fortune ; for there is not only a dif¬
ference of one seventieth of the whole in the lengths of
the degree computed from the northern and southern por¬
tions of the arc, of 27' and 4T respectively, but the length
deduced from the whole arc, which is 57468-59 French
toises, is 445 toises more than would be inferred from
other measurements in the neighbouring latitudes; hence
it appears to have been thought necessary by later astro¬
nomers to reject the northern portion altogether, and to
make some corrections in the calculation from the south¬
ern, by which the length of the degree has been reduced
to 57069 toises. The zenith sector employed for the ob¬
servations was made on Boscovich’s construction, the
length of the tangent being measured instead of that of
the arc, a method by no means calculated to lessen the
chances of error. A portable syphon barometer is also
described, by means ot which the elevations were ascer¬
tained; and a number of heights of places in the moun¬
tains of Piedmont are recorded.
12. This volume appears to have been the last of Bec¬
caria s publications ; An Essay on Storms and Tempests is
mentioned without approbation in the Dictionnaire His-
torique, but it was probably extracted from some of his
other works. In his private history and adventures there B
appears to have been little for a biographer to relate: his ”
ambition having been in a great measure limited, by the ^
religious profession which he had adopted, to the acquire- 'w ^
ment of literary celebrity, his taste was guided by his pre¬
vailing pursuits. His only luxuries consisted in his library
and instruments ; and on these he expended a considerable
part of the remuneration which he received for his ser¬
vices to the public and to his royal pupils. (l. l.)
BECHER, John Joachim, a celebrated chemist, born
at Spires in the year 1645. He was connected with the most
learned men in Europe; and the emperor, the electors of
Mentz and Bavaria, and other persons of high rank, fur¬
nished him with the means of making experiments in na¬
tural philosophy, medicine, and chemistry. As his thoughts
had been much directed to economical subjects, and par¬
ticularly to the means of increasing the revenues of a state,
he was invited to Vienna, where he contributed greatly to
the establishment of several manufactures, a chamber of
commerce, and an India company. But the jealousy of
some of the ministers eventually occasioned his disgrace
and ruin. Nor was he less unfortunate at Mentz, Munich,
and Wurzburg; which determined him to repair to Haer-
lem, where he invented a machine for working a great
quantity of silk in a little time, and with few hands. But
new misfortunes forced him to seek refuge in England,
and he died at London in 1685. He wrote many works,
the principal of which are, 1. Physica Subterranea, which
was reprinted at Leipsic in 1703 and 1739, in octavo, with
a small treatise, by E. Stahl, entitled Specimen Becheria-
num ; 2. Experimentum chymicum novum, 8vo; 3. Cha¬
racter pro Notitia Linguarum universali; 4. Institutioms
Chymicce, seu Manuductio ad Philosophiam Hermeticam,
4to; 5. Institutionis Chymicce prodromus, 12mo; 6. Ex¬
perimentum novum ac curiosum de Miniaria arenaria per-
petua, &c.
BECHIN, a town of Bohemia, in the circle of Tabor.
It was taken and burnt by General Bequoi in 1619. It
is seated on the river Lausnics, in long. 16. 19. E. lat. 49,
20. N.
BECK, or Beke, a word which imports a small stream
of water issuing from some rill or spring. Hence hell-
becks, little brooks in the rough and wild mountains about
Richmond near Lancashire, so called on account of their
ghastliness and depth.
Beck is also used amongst us in the composition of
names of places originally situated on rivulets ; hence Wal-
beck, Bournbeck, &c. The Germans use bech in the same
manner.
Beck, David, an eminent portrait-painter, was born at
Arnheim in Guelderland in 1621. He became a disciple
of Vandyck, from whom he acquired the fine manner ot
penciling and sweet style of colouring peculiar to that
great master and to all the disciples trained up under his
direction. Besides, he possessed that freedom of hand,
and readiness or rather rapidity of execution, for which
Vandyck was so remarkable; insomuch that when King
Charles I. observed the expeditious manner of Becks
painting, he was so exceedingly surprised that he told
Beck it was his opinion he could paint even if he w-as rid¬
ing post. He w-as appointed portrait-painter and chamber-
lain to Queen Christina of Sweden ; and by her recommen¬
dation, most of the illustrious persons in Europe sat to him
for their portraits. He was agreeable, handsome, and po¬
lite, and lived in the highest favour w ith his royal mistress;
but having an earnest desire to visit his friends in Holland,
he left the court of Sweden much against the inclination
of the queen, w-ho apprehended that he had no intention
of ever returning ; and as he died soon after, at the Hague,
it was shrewdly suspected that he had been poisoned.
B E C
BEG
509
]je t> This happened in 1656, when Beck had only attained his
^ ^ thirty-fifth year. A very singular adventure happened to
this artist as he travelled through Germany. He was
taken suddenly and violently ill at the inn where he lodg¬
ed, and, seeming to all appearance quite dead, was laid out
as a corpse. His valets expressed the strongest grief for
the loss of their master, and while they sat beside his
bed, drank very freely by way of consoling themselves.
At last one of them, getting much intoxicated, said to his
companions, “ Our master was fond of his glass while
alive, and out of gratitude let us give him a glass now he is
dead.” The rest of the servants assented to the proposal,
upon which he raised up the head of his master, and endea¬
voured to pour some of the liquor into his mouth. From the
fragrance of the wine, or probably from the circumstance
of a small quantity getting imperceptibly down his throat,
Beck opened his eyes ; and the drunken servant, forgetting
that his master was considered as dead, compelled him to
swallow what wine remained in the glass. The painter
gradually revived, and by proper care and management
recovered perfectly, and escaped a premature interment.
BECKET, Thomas, lord chancellor of England, and
archbishop of Canterbury, in the twelfth century. The
story of his birth is as extraordinary as that of his life. It
is related that his father Gilbert Becket, some time she¬
riff of London, went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where
being surprised and enslaved by a party of Saracens, his
master’s daughter fell in love with him, and, when he made
his escape, followed him to London. So singular an in¬
stance of heroic affection made a deep impression on his
mind; so, after consulting with some bishops, he had her
baptized by the name of Matilda, and then married her;
and from this marriage sprung the haughty Thomas Becket.
Raised to the primacy, the latter began the dispute between
the crown and the tiara, and sided with the pope in the
quarrel. At this King Henry II. was greatly offended;
and convoking an assembly of the bishops at Westminster,
offered six articles against papal encroachments, to which
he urged Becket to assent. Yielding to the importunities of
several lords, Becket signed the articles; but speedily re¬
lapsing into his former opinions he was ordered to be tried
as a traitor; upon which he fled into Flanders. The king
lost no time in banishing all his relations, and Becket re¬
taliated by excommunicating all his opponents. At last,
after seven years spent in unavailing hostility, he was, by
the intercession of the French king and the pope, allowed
to return; but he peremptorily refused to absolve the
bishops and others whom he had excommunicated; upon
which the king, enraged at his obstinacy, exclaimed, that
he was an unhappy prince, who maintained a great number
of lazy insignificant persons about him, none of whom had
gratitude or spirit enough to revenge him on a single in¬
solent prelate, who gave him so much disturbance.” The
deadly hint was understood ; and four gentlemen, or rather
ruffians, of the court, immediately formed a design against
the archbishop’s life; which they executed in the cathe¬
dral church of Canterbury, on the 29th of December 1171.
Superstitiously afraid of polluting the sanctuary with blood,
more especially with that of a mitred priest, they endea¬
voured to drag him out of the church; but finding they could
not effect this without difficulty, they killed him at the
altar. Afraid they had gone too far in violating the sanc¬
tity of the church, the assassins durst not return to the
kings court at Normandy, but retired to Knaresborough
m Yorkshire, where everybody avoided their company;
scarcely any one, however low, deigning to eat or drink
with them. Finding the curse of murder pursue them, they
at length took a voyage to Rome, and being admitted to
penance by Pope Alexander HI. set out for Jerusalem,
where, according to the pope’s orders, they spent the re¬
mainder of their lives in penitential austerities. They
died in the Black Mountain, and were buried at Jerusalem,
outside the door of the church belonging to the Templars.
King Henry affected to be much disturbed at the news of
Becket’s death, and dispatched an embassy to Rome to clear
himself from the imputation of having caused or suggested
it. The celebration of divine offices was discontinued in the
church of Canterbury for a year, deducting nine days ; at
the end of which period it was reconsecrated by order of
the pope. Two years after this Becket was canonized;
and Henry returning to England the ensuing year, went
to Canterbury, where he did penance in testimony of his
regret for the murder of Becket. When he came with¬
in sight of the church where the archbishop lay buried,
he alighted from his horse, and walked barefooted in
the habit of a pilgrim till he came to Becket’s tomb,
where, after he had prostrated himself and prayed for
a considerable time, he submitted to be scourged by the
monks, and passed all that day and night without any re¬
freshment, kneeling upon the bare stones. In 1221, fifty
years after the murder, Becket’s body was disinterred in
the presence of King Henry III., and a great concourse
of the nobility and others, and deposited in a rich shrine,
erected at the expense of Stephen Langton, archbishop of
Canterbury, which was soon visited from all parts, and en¬
riched with the most costly gifts and offerings; and the
miracles said to have been wrought at the tomb of the saint
were so numerous that Gervase of Canterbury tells us two
large volumes kept in the cathedral church were filled with
accounts of them. The monks used to raise his body every
year; and the day on which this annual resurrection was
performed, being called the “ day of his translation,” was
kept as a general holy day. Every fiftieth year a jubilee
was celebrated in his honour, which lasted fifteen days; ple¬
nary indulgences were then granted to all who visited his
tomb; and 100,000 pilgrims were registered at a time in
Canterbury. The worship of the saint in that city indeed
had quite effaced the adoration of the Deity, nay, even
that of the Virgin. At God’s altar, for instance, there
were offered in one year only L.3. 2s. 6d.; at the Virgin’s
L.63. 5s. 6d.; but at St Thomas’s, L.832. 12s. 3d. And
next year the disproportion was still greater; for at God’s
altar not a penny was offered; the Virgin’s obtained only
LA Is. 8d.; while St Thomas got for his share L.954.
6s. 3d.;—a large sum, if the value of money in those times
be considered, and a correspondingly strong proof of the
hold which superstition then possessed over men’s minds.
Even Louis VII. of France made a pilgrimage to this
miraculous tomb, and bestowed on the shrine a jewel
which was esteemed the richest in Christendom. But
Henry VIII., to whom a saint of so high character was
naturally very obnoxious, not only pillaged the rich shrine
dedicated to St Thomas, but caused the saint himself
to be cited to appear in court, and to be tried and con¬
demned as a traitor; at the same time ordering his name
to be struck out of the calendar, the office for his festival
to be expunged from all breviaries, and his bones to be
burnt, and the ashes thrown in the air. Becket was the
subject of poetical legends; and The Lives of the Saints
in verse, a manuscript which is supposed to belong to the
fourteenth century, contains an account of his martyrdom
and translation. We also learn from Peter de Blois that
the palace of Becket was perpetually filled with bishops
highly accomplished in literature, who passed their time
there in reading, disputing, and deciding important ques¬
tions relating to the state. “ These prelates, though men
of the world, were a society of scholars ; yet very different
from those who frequented the universities, in which no¬
thing was taught but words and syllables, unprofitable sub-
tilties, elementary speculations, and trifling distinctions.
Becket.
510 B E C
B E C
Becking- DeBlois was himself eminently learned, and one of the most
ham distinguished ornaments of Becket’s attendants. We know
„ that John of Salisbury, his intimate friend, the companion
Z^ZUof his exile, and the writer of his life, was scarcely ex-
’ ceeded by any man of his time for his knowledge in phi¬
lological and polite literature.”
BECKINGHAM, Charles, an English dramatic wri¬
ter, was the son of a linen-draper in London, and born in
1699. He was educated under the learned Dr Smith,
at Merchant Tailors’ School, where he made great profi¬
ciency in his studies, and gave the strongest proofs of
extraordinary abilities. In poetry, more particularly, he
early discovered an uncommon genius; and two dramatic
pieces of his writing were represented on the stage before
he had completed his twentieth year. The titles of these
plays, both tragedies, are, Henry IV. of France, and
Scipio Africanus. Besides these dramatic pieces he wrote
several other poems; but his genius was only allowed a
brief space to disport itself in, for he died on the 18th of
February 1730, in the thirty-second year of his age.
BECKMANN, John, during nearly forty-five years
professor at Gottingen, was born at Hoye, in the electo¬
rate of Hanover, in 1739. His father, who was receiver
of taxes, and postmaster in that town, occupied himself in
•the cultivation of a small piece of land, and appears to
have inspired his son with a taste for agriculture. How¬
ever, all the honour of his education belongs to his mo¬
ther, who, having become a widow when young Beckmann
was scarcely seven years old, sent him, in his fifteenth year,
to the school at Stade, placing him under the care of
Gehlen. Being intended for the clerical function, he re¬
paired in 1759 to Gottingen, to finish his studies there;
but, whether the advice of Hollmann, who testified much
kindness towards him, produced a change in his plans, or
that the instructions of the mathematicians, Kaestner and
Tobias Mayer, had greater attractions for him than theo¬
logy, he abandoned the career on which he Aad entered,
in order to devote himself entirely to the natural sciences,
and principally to the application of these sciences to eco¬
nomical purposes. His first studies were not without their
use to him; he derived from them a methodical habit of
mind, and a considerable knowledge of languages, which,
in the sequel, assisted him greatly in the pursuits to which
he owed his celebrity. In 1762, having lost his mother,
and with her his former means of subsistence, he accept¬
ed the offer of Busching, who invited him to come and fill
the situation of Professor of Natural Philosophy in the
Lutheran Academy at St Petersburg, of which this ce¬
lebrated geographer had' at that time the direction; but
Busching quitting the institution shortly after, and dis¬
sensions having arisen among the superintendents, Beck¬
mann gave up his place, and made a journey through
Sweden to acquire a detailed knowledge of the mines of
this country, and of the manner of working them. Lin¬
naeus having received him hospitably at Upsal, he pro¬
longed his stay there, and availed himself of the friend¬
ship as well as the instructions of this great naturalist.
In 1766, the governors of the university of Gottingen ap¬
pointed him, on the recommendation of Busching, profes¬
sor to this celebrated establishment, of which he became
one of the principal ornaments. His mind, entirely di¬
rected to the practical uses of human knowledge, had
early conceived the idea of an academical classification of
the arts and different branches of economy, both political
and domestic, which had hitherto been left to routine and
accident. Fie composed, to serve him as a guide in this
course of instruction, Treatises on Rural Economy, on
Policy, on Finance, on Commerce, and other depart¬
ments of practical knowledge; which, though since car¬
ried to a higher degree of perfection, owed to Beckmann
their primary elements and their first scientific form. His Bed
Lectures, which had at the time the recommendation of
novelty, were attended by the flower of the studious youth
whom the most civilized nations of Europe sent to the
university of Gottingen; and it may be added, that the
most distinguished statesmen and public functionaries of
Germany were among his auditors. He was in the habit
of accompanying them himself into the workshops, to give
them a knowledge of the different processes and handi¬
crafts of which he had explained to them the theory.
He never relinquished his public lectures ; but his private
studies took insensibly a direction altogether historical,
the motives for which it will not, perhaps, be uninterest¬
ing to point out.
It is considered at Gottingen, that a professor cannot
be excused from explaining the progress of the science
which he teaches, in all the civilized nations of Europe at
the same time. Any one who, two years after the ap¬
pearance of a work of importance in his department, pub¬
lished in any country of Europe whatsoever, should not
have read and analyzed it in order to refute or else enrich
his own observations from it, would not regard himself as
a worthy successor to the chair of Haller, of Mosheim, of
Gesner, and Michaelis. Beckmann, in particular, having
studied at Gottingen at a time when the example of these
great men dictated the law and gave the tone there, was
determined to advance in a line with his age, and not to
be ignorant of any of the steps which were making by the
numerous and extensive sciences which furnished the
foundation and the subjects of practical principles. But
these steps were the steps of a giant; and whatever
might be his ardour or his love of study, how could he
be supposed to read and judge of all the important works
which appeared from the year 1770, on chemistry theore¬
tical and practical, on physics, natural history, and mathe¬
matics ? His disappointment ended in chagrin, and excited
in him a degree of anger against the new ideas, methods
of reasoning, and materials, which changed the face, en¬
larged the limits, and facilitated the study of these sciences.
His course of lectures, turning only on practical matters,
suffered little from this circumstance ; but feeling that his
writings would be accused of remaining behind the pro¬
gress of the sciences which were the subject of them, he
directed the researches with which he wished to occupy
the attention of the public to the history of arts and
trades, and employed, in the illustration of this subject,
the materials to which he had access in the Gottingen li¬
brary, assisted by general information, a mind peculiarly
fitted for this kind of study, and indefatigable industry.
It is to these labours that we owe the Notices of Beck¬
mann on the history of discoveries in the most common
arts of life ; for instance, the history of watch-making, ot
distillation, of almanacs, of insurance, of the lighting of
streets, of the original country and migrations of the fruits
and flawers in our gardens, of the common materials for
dyeing, of bellows, of fire-arms, of mills, of grinding corn,
of carriages, of different parts of our dress, of different
household utensils, of a multitude of machines and me¬
chanical contrivances employed in common trades; and ot
most of the products of industry, such as the gathering
of saffron, the preparation of alum, the printing-press, of
fulling-mills, of book-keeping, of the digging of turf, of
gazettes and newspapers, of stamped paper, of the pearl
fishery, of pavings, of chimneys, of collections of natural
curiosities, of mile-stones, of pharmacy, of quarantine, of
painted paper, of ruffles, of milking, of pawn-brokers, of
looking-glasses and glass in general, of soap, of musical
glasses, of watchmen, of ices to be eaten, of the anatomy of
plants, of exchange, of pens for writing, of instruments of
husbandry, of fireworks, of the working of pewter, of the
inn.
B E C
i-kn n. procuring of amber, of indigo, of the gilding of weather-
\>rv ^ cocks, of furs, of steel, of gardening, of crayons, of knives
and forks, of corks, of sal-ammonic, of hops, of weaving, of
lotteries, ofhospitals for orphans and foundlings, of infirma¬
ries, of lazarettoes, of fighting-cocks, of saltpetre, of gun¬
powder, of aquafortis, &c. &c. We should form to our¬
selves a very false idea of these Notices if we expected to
find in them only some general account of these arts, and
of the different manner of practising them used in differ¬
ent times and places. Beckmann traces their first germ
from the most remcfte periods of antiquity; he follows
their development through the obscurity of the middle
ages, and exhibits their latest improvements amongst the
civilized nations of modern Europe, with a patience and a
depth of learning which can only be equalled by the sa¬
gacity and the variety of knowledge displayed in his re¬
searches. We have thought it would be interesting to the
reader to see a list of the most remarkable among these
notices, in the order in which they were published. They
make five volumes in octavo, published at Leipsic from
1783 to 1805, and furnish the most invaluable materials
to the individual, or society of men of letters, who may
hereafter venture to undertake the general history of the
origin and progress of the mechanical arts, which are so
important a branch in that of civilization. It is almost
needless to add, that the most exact references to original
authorities accompany each article, and give it a new value
in the eyes of those who are unwilling to take things upon
trust, or may be desirous to push still further the inquiries
of the author.
The same merits belong to his History of the earliest
Voyages made in modern times ; a highly interesting col¬
lection, which occupied the last years of his life, and
which he left at the eighth number. Another result of
the literary application and industry of Beckmann wras
a return to the studies of humanity, to which we are in¬
debted for editions of the work De Mirabilibus Ausculta-
tionibus, attributed to Aristotle (1786); of the Wonderful
Histories of Antigonus Carystius (1791); and of Marbo-
dius’s Treatise on Stones (1799) ;—editions which required
the rare union of physical knowledge and natural sagacity
with philological learning. The Royal Society of Gottingen
had, in the year 1772, admitted him one of its members;
and, from that period to 1783, Beckmann supplied their
proceedings with interesting memoirs, among wdiich are
the following: On the Reduction of Fossils to their Origi¬
nal Substances ; On the History of Alum ; On the Sap of
Madder; On the Froth of the Sea, from which the Heads
are formed for the Nicotian Fistulce ; On the History of
Sugar} But from this period he desisted all at once
from partaking the labours of this learned body, probably
hom the same motives that we have assigned above for
the change in the objects of his own particular studies.
He was, besides, modest to an extreme degree; and his
natural timidity did not find any thing to counteract it
•n the traditional jealousy of reputation, which the exam¬
ple of his predecessors, who had founded the glory of Gbt-
t'ngen, had transmitted to a generation more confident of
its powers, and more vain of its merit, but still restrained
by habits difficult to lay aside, when the respect for great
authorities had originally sanctioned them. His candour,
is sincerity, his fidelity in friendship, his affability to his
scholars, have been celebrated with one accord by his co-
a jutors and his auditors. Schlaetzer, whom he had known
rom his youth in Russia, was the one among his colleagues
with whom he maintained the most uninterrupted inti-
macy. jje was better qualified than almost any one else
BED 5U
to appreciate the researches of Beckmann, as he had him- Beck uni
self insisted with so much force on the necessity of intro- II
ducing into history a view of the influence exercised on Bed*
social institutions by the efforts of industry, and by the
birth or maturity of the most common arts. Beckmann died
on the 3d of February 1811, after having been admitted
into almost all the learned societies of Germany and the
north, and after having impressed a tendency to pursuits
of practical utility on the minds of a multitude of distin¬
guished young men who had attended his lectures, and
whom his celebrity drew to Gottingen during the forty-
five years of his professorship. A portrait of him will be
found at the head of the twelfth volume of the Economical
Encyclopaedia of Krunitz, and it has been engraved sepa¬
rately by Raid, Schwenterley, and Grape. Beckmann
married the daughter of Hollmann, his tutor and friend;
she survived him only a few weeks, and they left a son and
daughter grown up. His eulogium was pronounced by
his colleague, the illustrious Heyne, and was published at
Gottingen, with this title, Memoria Joan. Beckmann, Soc.
R. Sci. Gdtting. sodalis in concessu Soc. Publico I). 16
Febr. 1811, commendata. (n. d.)
BECKUM, a circle in the Prussian government of
Munster, and province of the Rhine. It extends over 258
square miles, or 165,120 acres. It contains four small
cities, nine villages, and forty-five hamlets, with 30,619
inhabitants. The chief place, of the same name, is situated
on the river Werse. It consists of a church, 333 houses,
and 1786 inhabitants.
BECTASSE, an order or sect of religionists among the
Turks, so called from their founder Bectash, preacher to
Sultan Amurath. The habit of the Bectasse is white;
and on their heads they wear white caps of several pieces,
with turbans of wool twisted ropewise. They observe
constantly the hour of prayer, which they perform in their
own assemblies, and make frequent declarations of the
unity of God.
BED, a convenience to stretch and compose the body
upon for ease, rest, or sleep, consisting generally of fea¬
thers, down, or other soft material, enclosed in a ticken
case. In the first ages it was universally the practice for
mankind to sleep upon skins of beasts. This was origi¬
nally the custom of the Greeks and Romans, as also of
the ancient Britons previous to the Roman invasion; and
the skins thus employed were spread on the floor of their
apartments. But they were afterwards changed for loose
rushes and heath ; and in process of time the Romans sug¬
gested to the central Britons the use, and the introduction
of agriculture supplied them with the means, of the greater
conveniency of straw beds. The beds of the Roman gentry
at this period were generally filled with feathers, and those
of the inns with the soft down of reeds. But for many
ages the beds of the Italians had been constantly compos¬
ed of straw; it still formed those of the officers and soldiers
present at the conquest of Lancashire; and from both, it is
probable, our countrymen learnt the use of it. It appears,
however, to have been used only by gentlemen, as the
common Welsh had their beds thinly stuffed with rushes
as late as the end of the twelfth century; and w ith the gen¬
tlemen it continued for many ages afterwards. Straw was
used in the royal chambers of England as late as the close
of the thirteenth century. Most of the peasants in differ¬
ent parts of the country sleep on chaff beds at present;
in the Highlands heath is also very generally employed as
bedding; and in France and Italy straw beds remain in
general use to this day.
Dining Bed, lectus tricliniaris or discubitorius, that on
1 See Novi Commentarii Soc. Sc. G. tom. ii—viii.; and Commentar. tom. L~v.
512 BED
Bed which the ancients reclined at meals. The dining or dis-
II cubitory beds were four or five feet in height. Three of
t Beda. tiiese beds were ordinarily ranged by a square table,
(whence both the table and the apartment where it stood
were called triclinium), in such a manner that one of the
sides of the table remained open and accessible to the
waiters. Each bed was fitted to receive three or four,
rarely five persons. These beds were unknown before
the second Punic war; for the Romans till then had sat
down to eat on plain wooden benches, in imitation of the
heroes of Homer, or, according to Varro, after the manner
of the Lacedaemonians and Cretans. But Scipio Africa-
nus first introduced a new mode, having brought from Car¬
thage some of the little beds called punicani or archaici,
which were constructed of a wood common enough, very
low, stuffed only with straw or hay, and covered with goats’
or sheeps’ skins, hccdinis pellibus strati. In point of luxu¬
ry, there was really no great difference between these new
beds and the ancient benches ; but the custom of frequent
bathing, which already began to be general, by softening
and relaxing the body, put men on trying to rest themselves
more commodiously than by sitting down in an upright
posture. As to the ladies, it did not seem consistent with
modesty for them to adopt the recumbent posture, and,
accordingly, they kept to the old custom during the con¬
tinuance of the commonwealth, and only began to use
triclinia in the times of the first Caesars. The youth,
again, who had not yet put on the toga virilis, were long
kept to the ancient discipline, and, when admitted to table,
only sat on the edge of the beds of their nearest relations.
Never, says Suetonius, did the young Caesars, Caius and
Lucius, eat at the table of Augustus; they were set
in ■ imo loco, or, as Tacitus expresses it, ad lecti fulcra.
But, from the greatest simplicity, the Romans by degrees
carried their dining beds to the most surprising magnifi¬
cence. Pliny assures us it was no uncommon thing to
see them covered over with plates of silver, and adorned
with the softest mats and richest counterpanes. Lampri-
dius, speaking of Heliogabalus, says, he had beds of solid
silver, solido argento habuit lectos et tricliniares, et cubicu-
lares. We may add, that Pompey, in his third triumph,
brought in beds of gold. The Romans had also beds
on which they studied, and beds on which the dead were
carried to the funeral pile.
Bed of Justice, in France, under the old regime, a throne
upon which the king sat when he went to the parliament.
The king never held a bed of justice unless for affairs
that concerned the state, and then all the officers of par¬
liament were clothed in scarlet robes.
Bed of the Carriage of a Great Gun, a thick plank that
lies under the piece, forming, as it were, the body of the
carriage.
Bed, in Masonry, a course or range of stones. The
joint of the bed is the mortar between two stones placed
the one over the other.
Bed, in Gardening, a square or oblong piece of ground
in a garden raised a little above the level of the adjoining
ground, and either sown or planted.
Lords of the Bed-Chamber, in the British court, are
twelve noblemen who attend in turn, a month each, dur¬
ing which time they sleep in the king’s bed-chamber, and
wait on him when he dines in private. Their salary is
considerable; and the situation, though apparently a me¬
nial one, is eagerly sought after, even by the high nobility,
from the access which it gives to the person of the sove¬
reign.
BEDA, commonly called Venerable Bede, one of our
most ancient historians, was born in the year 672, in the
neighbourhood of Wearmouth, in the bishopric of Durham.
He was educated by the abbot Benedict, in the monastery
BED
of St Peter, near the mouth of the river Wear. At theB&
age of nineteen he was ordained deacon, and priest in the °'
year 702. About this time he was invited to Rome by
Pope Sergius; but there is no good reason for believing
that he accepted the invitation. In the year 731 he pub¬
lished his Ecclesiastical History; a work of great value
notwithstanding the legendary tales with which it is de¬
formed. Bede died, in the year 735, of a lingering con¬
sumption, probably brought on by sedentary habits, and a
long uninterrupted application to study and literary com¬
position. He was buried in the church of his convent at
Jarrow; but his bones were afterwards removed to Dur¬
ham, and there deposited in the same coffin with those of
St Cuthbert. Bede was undoubtedly a singular pheno¬
menon in a rude and illiterate age. His learning, for the
times, was extensive ; his application incredible; his piety
exemplary; his modesty excessive. He was universally
admired, consulted, and esteemed, during his life; and
his writings are deservedly considered as the foundation
of our ecclesiastical history. His language is neither
elegant nor pure, but it is perspicuous and easy. All his
works are in Latin. The first general collection of them
appeared at Paris in 1544, in three volumes folio; and
they were printed again at the same place in 1554 in
eight volumes. They were also published in the same
size and number of volumes at Basel in 1563, reprinted at
Cologne in 1612, and at the same place in 1688. Besides
this general collection, there are several of his composi¬
tions which have been printed separately, or in collections
of the writings of ancient authors ; and some manuscripts
ascribed to him have been preserved in the different libra¬
ries of Oxford and Cambridge.
BEDDIZOLLE, a town in the Austrian kingdom of
Lombardy, in the delegation of Brescia, near the south¬
western part of the Lake of Guorda, containing about
4000 inhabitants.
BEDDOES, Thomas, a physician of equal eminence
for his talents and philanthropy, was born at Shiffnall, in
Shropshire, on the 13th of April 1760, and was originally
of Welsh extraction. He received the first rudiments of
his education at a school in his native town, and afterwards
at a seminary at Brood, in Staffordshire. The strength of
his intellectual powers was apparent at a very early period
of his life; and he was remarkable from his infancy for
his insatiable thirst for books and his indifference to
the common objects of amusement which usually capti¬
vate the attention of children. His rising abilities were
discerned and justly appreciated by his grandfather, a
man of great natural acuteness of mind, and who by his
industry and enterprise in trade had acquired a consider¬
able fortune. To this intelligent relation he was deeply
indebted for many of the advantages of his early educa¬
tion, and for prevailing on his father (who, wishing to re¬
tain his son beneath the paternal roof, and train him up
to business, was less anxious about his literary acquire¬
ments) to fix his destination for one of the learned profes¬
sions. When he was only nine years old, the circum¬
stance of an accident which befell his benefactor, anc
which, after being followed by some remarkable symptoms,
terminated fatally, was calculated to make a deep and
lasting impression on a mind like that of young Beddoes,
and was sufficient to give it a decided direction. By the
extraordinary acuteness and interest which he manifeste
on this occasion, he attracted the notice of Mr Yonge,
the surgeon who attended the sufferer; and a foundation
was thus laid for the friendship which ever after subsistec
between them, and which appears to have had a consider
able influence in his choice of that profession, m whic
he was destined to run so brilliant a career. Under 6
tuition of the Rev. Mr Harding, at the free grammar
r “
B E D D O E S.
513
i S. school in Bridgenorth, he made rapid progress in classical
J learning, and was distinguished by his great fondness for
reading, by his facility in acquiring knowledge, and by the
possession of a memory surprisingly retentive, a faculty
which he retained through life. When about thirteen
years of age, he was placed as a pupil with the Rev. Mr
Dickenson, rector of Plymhill in Staffordshire, with whom
he continued about two years, and who has given the fol¬
lowing report of the zeal with which he pursued his stu¬
dies. “ During the period that Dr Beddoes was under
my care,” observes Mr Dickenson, “ his mind was so in¬
tent upon literary pursuits, chiefly the attainment of clas¬
sical learning, that I do not recollect his having devoted
a single day, or even an hour, to diversions or frivolous
amusements of any kind. His vacant hours were gene¬
rally employed in reading reviews, of which he had access
to a very numerous collection.” It is singular, that, in
giving a sketch of his mental powers, though he describes
his judgment as solid, he represents his genius as not
“ enlivened by any remarkable brilliancy of fancy.” We
shall soon have occasion to observe how eminently he was
afterwards gifted with the very quality, in which a near
observer of his character pronounced him to have been at
that time deficient. His moral conduct was ever irre¬
proachable, and his docility and equanimity of temper
were in the highest degree exemplary.
He continued the same habits of sedulous application,
and retained the same independence and integrity of cha¬
racter, at the university, to which he was removed on
quitting Mr Dickenson. He entered at Pembroke Col¬
lege, Oxford, in Michaelmas term 1776. The simplicity
of his appearance, and the rusticity of his manners and
address, could not long conceal the superiority of his men¬
tal powers, which became more conspicuous by extended
competition, and soon met with the respect and applause
to which they had so high a claim. The themes and de¬
clamations of young Beddoes were remarkable for their
elegant Latinity ; and he soon acquired distinguished re¬
putation as a classical scholar. Success in one acquisi¬
tion was to him but an inducement to the possession of
another; and, already versed in the ancient, he resolved
to become master also of the modern languages. He was
found one morning by a friend, who casually entered his
apartment, very busily engaged with a French grammar
and dictionary before him. On inquiring what was the
nature of his studies, Beddoes told him that he was only
learning French. His friend expressed surprise that he
should attempt it without a master’. He replied that it
was unnecessary, and that he should conquer the diffi¬
culties of the language by himself in about two months.
His friend desisted from further interference ; but, noting
in his own mind the date of his visit, called upon him
again at the expiration of two months, and taking the op¬
portunity of turning the conversation to the subject, in¬
quired whether he had mastered the language. Beddoes
answered in the affirmative, and proved his assertion by
reading in English, with perfect fluency, and much to the
astonishment of the hearer, a French book which the lat¬
ter presented to him. From the French he proceeded to
the Italian, which, from its analogy with the former, he
acquired with greater ease. The German language pre¬
sented more serious difficulties ; but his perseverance tri¬
umphed oyer them without the aid of any master. Not
content with this, he afterwards added the Spanish lan¬
guage to his other acquisitions, as if determined to possess
every avenue by which useful or ornamental knowledge
^ possibly be attained.
whatever time he may have devoted to general literature
W.le ^tending the university, chemistry, and the other
sciences more closely connected with his future profes-
vol. iv.
sion, were always his favourite objects of pursuit. The Beddoes.
splendid discoveries of Black and Priestley, which had
opened a new field of discovery, and promised to lead to
the most important results, were powerfully calculated to
inflame the ardour of so inquisitive and sanguine a spirit
as that of Beddoes ; and he accordingly soon became per¬
fectly conversant with the new doctrines of pneumatic
chemistry, and used to exhibit with great delight the ex¬
periments which supported them, to a circle of literary
friends in Shropshire, during his vacations. He was also
much occupied with mineralogy and botany ; and for the
former of these sciences, especially, retained throughout
life a remarkable fondness.
Flaving taken his bachelor’s degree at one and twenty,
he repaired to London, in order to commence the study
of his profession, for which, as is well known, the English
universities do not provide the means. He became a pu¬
pil of the celebrated Sheldon, and devoted his time to the
details of practical anatomy, and the physiological inqui¬
ries connected with it. It was while he was engaged in
these studies that he gave to the world, in 1784, a trans¬
lation from the Italian of Spallanzani’s Dissertations on
Natural History; a work which, in the year 1790, went
through a second edition. In the year following, 1785, he
published a translation of Bergman’s Essays on Elective
Attractions^ the first work to which Beddoes affixed his
name, accompanied by numerous original notes, which dis¬
play an accurate acquaintance with all the modern improve¬
ments in the physical sciences. In 1786 he became again
known to the public as the editor of Scheele’s Chemical
Essays. Previous to this, in 1783, he took his degree of
master of arts; and, in the autumn of 1784, removed to
Edinburgh, where he remained during three successive
winters and one summer. Shortly after his arrival, he
became a member of the Medical Society and of the Na¬
tural History Society of that place, and took an active
part in the series of physiological experiments in which
some of the members of the former were at that period
engaged; to the latter he contributed two papers, one on
the Sexual System of Linnceus, the other on the Scale of
Being, both of which have been preserved at full length
in Dr Stock’s Memoirs of his Life. The high estimation
in which his talents were held at Edinburgh was shown,
not only by his receiving every mark of honourable dis¬
tinction from his fellow-students which it was in their
power to confer, but also by their choosing him as the or¬
gan of their remonstrances with the managers of the In¬
firmary, on the occasion of a misundei’standing which had
arisen between them as to the hours at which they should
be permitted to attend ; and they were eminently indebt¬
ed to him for the firmness with which he on that occa¬
sion maintained their privileges.
After taking his degree of doctor of medicine at Ox¬
ford, in December 1786, he made, in the ensuing summer,
an excursion into the Highlands, and also spent a short
time at Paris and Dijon, where he cultivated the acquaint¬
ance of Lavoisier and Guyton de Morveau. Soon after
his return he was appointed to succeed Dr Austin in the
chemical lectureship at Oxford, an office which he was
eminently qualified to fill. The success which attended
his exertions to inspire a taste for scientific researches
was soon apparent, in the full and generally overflowing
audience attracted by his lectures, and by Ins communi¬
cating to most of his hearers a large portion of that en¬
thusiasm for the pursuit of which he was himself possess¬
ed. Enjoying the reputation of distinguished talents, in
a place where so much deference is paid by all ranks to
the possessor of so noble a distinction, and surrounded by
men of learning and abilities, who courted his society,
his situation at the university appears to have been truly
3 x
514
B E D D O E S.
Beddoes. enviable; and it is difficult to understand the motives
which could have led him to relinquish all these advan¬
tages for the uncertain prospects afforded by his esta¬
blishing himself in any other town.. The decided part
which he took in the political discussions that were agi¬
tated at the beginning of the French revolution, seems to
have had a principal share in this determination. His
opinions, which it was no part of his character ever to
conceal within his own breast, were on this occasion ex¬
pressed with his usual freedom, and were of a nature to
give offence to many of his former admirers; and the cir¬
culation of a political article which he inserted in a Shrop¬
shire paper, in reply to some misrepresentations which
had previously been made, in an advertisement soliciting
relief for the French emigrant clergy, excited a clamour
against him, which accelerated his adoption of the step
he had previously determined upon, that of resigning his
lectureship, and quitting Oxford.
During his connection with the university, he published,
at the Clarendon press, in 1790, an analytical account of
the writings of Mayow, under the title of Chemical Ex¬
periments and Opinions, extracted from a ivork published in
the last century; in which he asserts the claims of that
extraordinary man to the discovery of the principal facts
on which the modern system of pneumatic chemistry is
founded; discoveries which Mayow had achieved at a
very early period of life, and which had failed, for upwards
of a century, to attract any notice from the philosophic
world. In the Philosophical Transactions for 1791 and
1792 we also find three papers by Dr Beddoes ; the one
containing Observations on the Affinity between Basaltes
and Granite, in which he rejects the common division of
mountains into primary and secondary, and states some
strong arguments in favour of the volcanic origin of both ;
the other giving An Account of some Appearances attend¬
ing the Conversion of Cast into Malleable Iron, which he
supposes to consist in its purification from oxygen, char¬
coal, and hydrogen, which escape, during the process, in
the form of carbonic acid and cai'buretted hydrogen gases;
and, in a paper which forms an appendix to the latter, he
relates a variety of experiments which he had made, con¬
firming this theory.
The uncertainty of his future destination on his retir¬
ing from Oxford does not appear to have interrupted his
literary labours ; for it was at this period that he publish¬
ed his Observations on the Nature of Demonstrative Evi¬
dence, with an Explanation of Certain Difficulties occur¬
ring in the Elements of Geometry, and Reflections on Lan¬
guage, 8vo, London, 1793. In this essay he contends,
in opposition to the doctrines of the ontologists, and par¬
ticularly to that of Mr Harris, the author of Hermes, that
geometry is essentially founded in experiment; and that
mathematical reasoning proceeds, at every step, upon the
evidence of the senses; or, in other words, that this
science is a science of experiment and observation, as much
founded solely upon the induction of particular facts, as
mechanics, astronomy, optics, or chemistry. He endea¬
vours to show that Euclid sets out from experiment,
and appeals constantly to what we have already learned,
or may immediately learn, from the exercise of our senses.
This paradox he attempts to support by a sophistical ana¬
lysis of one of the elementary theorems in the first book
of Euclid, and of the leading definitions and axioms pre¬
fixed to it. He is afterwards led to consider the origin of
abstract terms and the philosophy of language, and adopts
on these subjects the views which have been presented by
Mr Horne Tooke, in his Etfianngofvm, whose speculations,
together with those of Lord Monboddo, Schultens, Hems-
terhuis, and other Dutch etymologists, he severally re¬
views and criticises in an appendix of some length.
About the same period he published a work entitled Be
Observations on the Nature and Cure of Calculus, Sea- ^ v
Scurvy, Consumption, Catarrh, and Fever ; together with
Conjectures upon several other Objects of Physiology and
Pathology. He there recommends, as a cheap and com¬
modious remedy for calculus, the exsiccated carbonate of
soda made into pills with an equal weight of soap; in
proof of the efficacy of which, he adduces a number of in¬
teresting cases. He then proceeds to develope his fa¬
vourite pathological theories on the diseases which de¬
stroy so large a proportion of the human species ; theories
on which he afterwards built so many specious but un¬
fortunately abortive projects for their cure. Sea-scurvy
and pulmonary consumption he conceived to arise from
opposite chemical conditions of the body; the former con¬
sisting in a gradual abstraction, the latter in a gradual ac¬
cumulation, of oxygen in the system. He supports these
opinions by a variety of ingenious and plausible argu¬
ments, and proposes submitting them to the test of ex¬
periment, by administering to consumptive patients such
gases as may contain a smaller proportion of oxygen than
is contained in common atmospheric air. The new views
of pathology which these speculations presented, and the
hopes of valuable practical results which they raised, ex¬
cited great attention in the medical world, and contribut¬
ed much to increase the reputation of their author.
On leaving Oxford, he retired to the house of his friend
Mr Reynolds of Ketley, in Shropshire. It was here that
he published his admirable History of Isaac Jenkins, a
story intended to impress the most useful of moral lessons
on the labouring classes, by exhibiting the reformation of
a drunkard, and his return to habits of sobriety and in¬
dustry. The execution of this work is worthy of the de¬
sign. There is, probably, none of Dr Beddoes’s produc¬
tions which unites so many peculiar excellencies as this
inimitable fiction, or which displays at once, in so favour¬
able a light, the vigour of his genius, his deep knowledge
of the human heart, and the power with which he could
command the interest and sympathy of his reader. No
work of its kind has ever had the same success; repeated
editions, amounting to above forty thousand copies, were
rapidly sold ; and a large impression has since been issued
at the request of a society for promoting knowledge by
the distribution of useful popular books.
A prospect now opened to him of realizing a scheme to
which his wishes had for a long time been ardently direct¬
ed, that of establishing a pneumatic institution, where the
medical efficacy of the permanently elastic fluids, the fruits
of the modern improvements in chemistry, could be fairly
put to the test of experiment, by being administered on an
extensive scale. The metropolis first suggested itself as
an eligible spot for the formation of the projected esta¬
blishment ; but several obstacles having occurred in the
execution of this plan, the neighbourhood of Bristol was
at length fixed upon as the most proper place for the pur¬
pose. In making the various arrangements required in
the infancy of such an institution, and which presented
peculiar difficulties, he derived material assistance from
the cordial co-operation of Mr Edgeworth, the author o
Practical Education, with whose family he soon became
more closely connected, by marrying one of that
man’s daughters, an event which took place in April
The pneumatic institution continued to occupy bis atten¬
tion for many years, in the course of which a great number
of publications issued from his pen, illustrating the Prir*'
ciples on which he expected it to be useful, and detai mg
the experiments and the results to which it gave rise.
The principal of these are the following: A Letter o
Dr Darwin, on a new mode of treating Pulmonary ton
sumption, in 1793,—as a supplement to which appeare >
B E D D O E S. 515
, 3 in 1794, Letters from Dr Withering, Dr EAvart, Dr Thorn-
^ ) ton) &c. together Avith an analysis of a paper by Lavoisier,
on the state of the air in croAvded assemblies, and of ano¬
ther by Vauquelin, on the liver of the skate; Considera¬
tions on the Medical Use, and on the Production of Facti¬
tious Airs, in five parts, Avhich came out successively at
different periods, from the year 1794) to 1796 ; in 1795,
he published an Outline of a Plan for determining the
Medicinal PoAvers of Factitious Airs; in 1797, Sugges¬
tions tOAvards setting on foot the projected Establishment
for Pneumatic Medicine, and Reports relating to Nitrous
Acid, in confirmation of the efficacy of that remedy in sy¬
philitic affections ; in 1799, Contributions to Medical and
Physical KnoAvledge, collected principally from the West
of England; notice of some Observations made at the
Pneumatic Institution; a second, and afterAvards a third,
Collection of Reports relating to Nitrous Acid. Consider¬
able difficulty Avas at first experienced in the construction
and management of the apparatus required for carrying on
the objects of this institution ; these Avere, hoAvever, in no
long time entirely surmounted by the friendly assistance
of Mr Watt, Avhose exertions at this critical period Avere
eminently serviceable, and are acknovdedged in a dedica¬
tion prefixed to the first part of the Considerations. Mr
William Clayfield and Mr Read also contributed their as¬
sistance in the invention of different parts of the pneuma¬
tic apparatus. At the opening of the institution in 1798,
the sums subscribed Avere found to be very inadequate to
the purposes for Avhich it Avas designed; but every defi¬
ciency in this respect Avas amply supplied by the liberali¬
ty of Mr Thomas WedgeAvood, avIio offered Dr Beddoes
L.1000 to enable him to carry the plan into immediate
execution. All that was now wanted was to procure a
superintendent; and he had the good fortune to engage
in that capacity a young man who had already given
proofs of extraordinary talents, and to whose penetrating
genius chemistry has since been so deeply indebted.
There needs no other indication to suggest the name of
Davy,—a name that will descend to distant ages as as¬
sociated with so many important discoveries in philosophi¬
cal science. The history of the pneumatic institution
indeed derives considerable splendour from many of these
discoveries, Avhich were perfected in its laboratory, and
which were first announced to the world through the me¬
dium of the publications above mentioned; and in the
work entitled Researches Chemical and Philosophical,
chiefly concerning Nitrous Oxide, or Dephlogisticated
Nitrous Air, and its Respiration. By Humphry Davy,
Superintendent of the Medical Pneumatic Institution.
London, 1800. The discovery of the chemical properties
of this gas, and of its astonishing effects on the system
Avhen respired, were among the first, and must ever be
esteemed the most brilliant, of the results of this institu¬
tion : it raised the most sanguine anticipations in the mind
of Dr Beddoes, and called forth all his eloquence in the
description of what it already had and might be expected
to accomplish. These, like the other splendid visions in
which his ardent imagination was but too prone to indulge,
have never been realized ; and have even created, by their
signal failure, an unfortunate prejudice against future at¬
tempts to improve the art of medicine by novel methods
°f treatment founded on chemical or philosophical prin¬
ciples. The original objects of the institution being found
unattainable, Avere successively abandoned ; and it as¬
sumed, by insensible gradations, the form of the more
common establishments for the relief of the sick ; and the
prevention rather than the cure of diseases became the
principal aim of its conductors. In 1807 it Avas finally
relinquished by Dr Beddoes to the care of Mr King and
Dr Stock.
A great variety of medical topics in the mean time en- Beddoes.
gaged the active mind of Dr Beddoes, and gave employ-
ment to his pen. In the strictly practical branch of the
art we may enumerate, in addition to the works above
mentioned,—in 1793, A Letter to Dr Darwin on a new
mode of treating Pulmonary Consumption; in 1795, an
edition of BroAvn’s Elements of Medicine, with a preface
and notes ; translation from the Spanish, of Gimbernat’s
new Method of operating in Femoral Hernia; in 1799,
Popular Essay on Consumption ; in 1801, Essay on the
medical and domestic Management of the Consumptive,
on Digitalis, and on Scrofula ; in 1807, Researches Ana¬
tomical and Practical, concerning Fever as connected with
Inflammation. In this latter work he successfully combats
the theory of Dr Clutterbuck and of Ploucquet, in which
fever is supposed to consist essentially in topical inflam¬
mation or its membranes.
The object which Dr Beddoes had ever most at heart
was, to excite a lively and general attention to the means
of preserving health, and of repelling the first inroads of
disease, by the diffusion of medical knowledge throughout
all ranks of the community, as far as they were capable of
acquiring it. His attention was uniformly directed to this
favourite object, and he suffered no opportunity to escape
of enforcing those maxims which tend to prevent the ne¬
cessity of the interference of his art. His works on po¬
pular subjects, on the improvements of medical education,
and the exercise of the profession, and the popular lec¬
tures which he promoted, and in which he himself took
an active part, all tended to this object. To this head
may be referred the folloAving publications: in 1794, A
Guide for Self-preservation and Parental Affection; A
Proposal for the Improvement of Medicine; in 1797, A
Lecture introductory to a Popular Course of Anatomy;
in 1798, A suggestion towards an Essential Improvement
in the Bristol Infirmary ; but more especially his Hygeia,
or Essays Moral and Medical, on the causes affecting the
Personal State of the Middling and Affluent Classes, in
3 vols. 1801-2, in which he embraces a great variety of
topics, and describes, with a glowing pencil, and occasion¬
ally with extraordinary eloquence, the sufferings of pa¬
tients under different diseases. In 1806, there appeared
The Manual of Health, or the Invalid conducted safely
through the Seasons; in 1808, A Letter to Sir Joseph
Banks on the prevailing Discontents, Abuses, and Imper¬
fections in Medicine; and, in the same year, Good Advice
for the Husbandman in Harvest, and for all those who
labour hard in hot Births ; as also for others who will take
it in Warm Weather; which was the last production he
ever wrote, his death happening soon after, of dropsy and
enlargement of the pericardium, in December 1808.
Dr Beddoes has been very justly characterized as a
pioneer in the road to discovery. He was full of ardour
and enterprise in the pursuit of knowledge, and was easily
captivated by every new project that seemed to lead to¬
wards any practical improvement. He Avas more active,
hoAvever, in exciting the labours of others, than in labour¬
ing himself in the field of experiment. He had the ima¬
gination of a poet, and could paint in the most vivid
colours the sufferings entailed by disease, and enforce
with the most powerful eloquence whatever he wished to
impress on the minds of his readers. He has been accused
of versatility of opinion ; but if he was, perhaps, hasty in
publishing the first conceptions which he formed, he has
atoned for this fault by the remarkable candour with
which he retracted them the moment his confidence in
them was shaken. He took a decided line in politics, as
appears in the following political publications of his, which
appeared in 1795, 1796, and 1797; viz. A Word in De¬
fence of the Bill of Rights against Gagging Bills; Where
510
BED
BED
Bedell would be the Harm of a Speedy Peace? An Essay on
II the Public Merits of Mr Pitt; A Letter to Mr Pitt on
Bedford. tjie gcarcjty. Alternatives Compared, or What shall the
Rich do to be Safe? (See Dr Stock’s Memoirs of the
Life of Dr Beddoes. London, 1811.) (y.)
BEDELL, Dr William, a learned prelate, born in
Essex in 1570. He went as chaplain with Sir Henry
Wotton, the English ambassador to the republic of Venice,
in 1604, and continuing eight years in that city, contract¬
ed an intimate acquaintance with the celebrated Father
Paul. Of him Bedell learned enough of Italian to be able
to translate the English Common Prayer Book into that
language; and in return drew up an English grammar for
Father Paul, who declared that he had learned more from
Bedell in all parts of divinity than from any other person.
He was accordingly much concerned when Bedell left
Venice, and at his departure presented him with his pic¬
ture, the manuscript of his History of the Council of Trent,
and his Flistory of the Interdict and Inquisition, with
other literary donations. In 1629, he obtained the bishop¬
ric of Kilmore and Ardagh in Ireland, and, finding these
dioceses in great disorder, applied himself vigorously to
the reform of abuses. He was no persecutor of Papists,
but laboured with great success to convert the better sort
of the popish clergy. He procured an Irish translation
of the Common Prayer Book, which he caused to be read
in his cathedral every Sunday; and the New Testament
having been translated by Archbishop Daniel, he caused
a version of the Old Testament to be made, which was
afterwards printed at the expense of the Honourable
Robert Boyle. In 1624, he published a controversial book
against the Roman Catholics, which he dedicated to
Charles prince of Wales, and assisted the archbishop of
Spolatro in finishing his famous work De Republica Eccle-
siastica. When the rebellion broke out in Ireland in Oc¬
tober 1641, the bishop did not at first experience its vio¬
lence, as the rebels had conceived a great veneration for
him, and-declared he should be the last Englishman they
would drive out of Ireland. His was the only house in the
county of Cavan that remained inviolate, and it was filled
with the people who had fled to him for shelter. About
the middle of December, however, the rebels, pursuant to
orders received from their council of state at Kilkenny,
required him to dismiss the people who were with him;
but he peremptorily refused to do so, declaring he would
share the same fate with his guests- Upon this they
seized the bishop himself, his two sons, and Mr Clogy,
who had married his daughter-in-law, and carried them
prisoners to the castle of Cloughboughter, surrounded by
a deep fosse, where all except the bishop were put in
irons; but this severity was soon discontinued, and, after
a confinement of about three weeks, the bishop, his two
sons, and Mr Clogy, were exchanged for some of the
principal rebels. The bishop, however, died soon after,
on the 7th of February 1642; his death having been occa¬
sioned by his late imprisonment, and the weight of sorrows
which preyed on his mind. The Irish paid him unusual
honours at his burial, for the chiefs of the rebels collect¬
ed their forces, and, thus attended, accompanied his re¬
mains to the church-yard.
BEDFORD, the capital town of the county of that
name. It stands on the river Ouse, fifty miles from Lon¬
don. It has five parish churches and several separatist
chapels, a well-endowed and well-managed free school,
and a number of benevolent institutions for the indigent.
It is governed by a corporate body, and returns two mem¬
bers to the house of commons, who are elected by a nu¬
merous body of freemen, but so far influenced by the Duke
of Bedford and Mr Whitbread as to secure a majority
when their interests are united. The town is remarkably
clean and well paved. The markets are held on Saturday Be
for corn, and on Tuesday for cattle. The inhabitants s:
amounted in 1801 to 3948, in 1811 to 4605, and in 1821
to 5466.
BEDFORDSHIRE, an inland English county, situated
nearly in the centre of the island, but rather towards the
eastern side. It is bounded on the north by Huntingdon¬
shire and Northamptonshire, on the west by Bucking,
hamshire, on the south by that county and Hertfordshire
and on the east by the latter and Cambridgeshire. Its
greatest length is about thirty-six miles, and its greatest
breadth only twenty-two miles. Its extent is 463 square
miles, or 296,320 English statute acres.
The face of the country is in general level, but with
gentle undulations, scarcely deserving the name of hills,
except towards Buckinghamshire, from which county a
part of the Chiltern Hills enter, but only the lowest por¬
tion of that range. The chalk of these hills is found a
valuable manure on some of the other soils of the county.
From the south-east to the centre of the county is a valu¬
able district of dairy land. The western side is chiefly a
sandy soil, but, being well cultivated on the Norfolk sys¬
tem, is productive; near Woburn it is generally sandy, and
was sterile till the modern improvements in agriculture,
fostered by the late Duke of Bedford, had extended their
influence and productiveness. Near to Biggleswade is a
portion of land which yields the highest rent and most
valuable products. It is cultivated by a kind of market
gardeners, and onion and other seeds are grown there for
the supply of the shops of the seedsmen in London. Much
of the former barren sandy soils has been planted of late
years, and the inclosure of many of the largest common
fields has improved both the beauty and the fertility of the
county.
The land is drained by many brooks, which contribute
to increase the rivers, and, by rendering them navigable,
administer to the benefit of the inhabitants. No county
is better accommodated with good roads than Bedford¬
shire, chiefly owing to the exertions of the late Mr Whit¬
bread, before whose time they were in a very bad condi¬
tion. The river Ouse enters this county on its north¬
western side, collects the water from a considerable dis¬
trict during a winding course, and becomes navigable at
Bedford. In its progress towards Huntingdonshire it re¬
ceives the waters of the Ivel, which is also navigable S3
high up as Biggleswade, and the united stream runs to the
German Ocean at Lynn. A small portion of the western
side of the county is benefited by its water communica¬
tion with London, and with the coal districts of Stafford¬
shire, which it enjoys through the Grand Junction Canal.
As Bedfordshire is merely an agricultural county, and
as four fifths of the land are devoted to pasture or to the
dairy, and only one fifth to tillage, the increased number
of inhabitants has caused a scarcity of employment, and a
consequent great advance in the poor rates. The chief
occupation of the manufacturing kind consists in plaiting
straw and forming it into chip hats, making baskets and
other articles; and is confined almost exclusively to fe¬
males. Dunstable has long been celebrated for this trade,
and it is considerably extended over other parts of the
county. Besides this, till of late years, the trade of bone
lace, made both from silk and thread, afforded employ*
ment to the females, and still continues to do so in an in¬
ferior degree, though it has been much diminished by the
introduction and improvements in machine lace. Some
trade is carried on by the rivers and canal, by which corn
and butter are conveyed to distant markets, and the inha¬
bitants supplied with fuel. As the great north roads pass
through the county in two lines, the traffic on these gives
some activity to its commerce.
BED
The civil division of the county is into nine hundreds,
<hii which contain nine market-towns and 124 parishes. In an
W / ecclesiastical view it forms part of the diocese of Lin¬
coln and the archdeaconry of Bedford ; in its judicial re¬
lation it is in the Norfolk circuit.
The titles derived from the county are duke to the
house of Russell, and baron of Bletsoe to the family of
Lord St John. Two members to the house of commons
are returned by the county, and two by the town of Bed¬
ford, the only borough within it.
The most distinguished residences in this county are,
\st Woburn Abbey, near the town of that name. It was
formerly a Cistertian abbey, granted at the Reformation by
Henry VIII. to the family of Russell, the fourth duke of
which house erected the present edifice. It is situated
in an extensive park, is a very grand and capacious pile,
and is furnished with a large and valuable collection of
paintings and statues. 2dly, Luton Hoo, a mansion
which, though not built by John earl of Bute, was by him
brought to a regular design under the direction of Adam
the architect. A new library, 146 feet in length, furnish¬
ed with a valuable collection of books, and a large selec¬
tion of paintings of some of the first masters, chiefly of
the Italian school, are its distinguished ornaments. The
grounds have received every improvement that art can
produce in a situation not naturally picturesque. 3r%,
Ampthill Park, formerly the seat of the earls of Upper
Ossory, now of Lord Holland. It is a superb edifice, with
a good library, valuable collections of paintings, with a mu¬
seum of natural history, and is placed in a delightful park,
adorned with most beautiful spreading ancient oaks.
Besides these there are other mansions which are highly
deserving of notice and admiration, especially that of Mr
Whitbread at South-hill; Wrest Park, belonging to the
Countess de Grey; Ridgemount, to Mr Potter M'Queen;
Morgenhanger House, to Mr Thornton; Potton, to Sir John
Burgoyne; Oakley House, to the Marquis of Tavistock;
Colworth House, to Dr Lee; and, though not so distin¬
guished by its extent as many others, Cardington House,
the residence of Howard the philanthropist, now of Mr
S. C. Whitbread.
The population of the county stood at the three de¬
cennial numerations as follows:
Year. Males. Females. Total. Houses.
1801 30,523 32,870 63,393 14,165
1811 33,171 37,042 70,213 13,800
1821 40,385 43,331 83,716 15,417
In the year 1821 the families chiefly employed in trade
and manufactures were 4827; those employed in agricul¬
ture 10,754; and those not comprised in either of these
classes 1792. The towns and their population in 1821
were as follows :—Bedford, 5466 ; Biggleswade, 2778 ;
Dunstable, 1831; Ampthill, 1527; Luton, 2986 ; Leigh-
ton-Buzzard, 2749 ; Potton, 1498.
When the Romans landed in this kingdom Bedforashire
formed a portion of a district called Catieuchlana, whose
sovereign or chief, Cassibelenus or Cassibelaunus, com¬
manded the united forces which opposed Julius Caesar.
When, in the year 310, the emperor Constantine ruled the
whole island, and divided it into five provinces, Bedford¬
shire was included in the third division called Flavia
Casariemis, and remained in that location till the final
abandonment of Britain by the Romans. Under the Saxon
heptarchy it formed part of the kingdom of Mercia, until,
with the rest of the island, it was united with the king¬
dom of the West Saxons, which was divided by Alfred
mto counties, hundred's, and tythings; when this county
m’st received the name it has since retained.
There are many remains of Roman, Saxon, and Norman
antiquities. Traces of a Roman station are to be seen at
BED 517
Sandys, near Potton, and at Maiden-Bower, near Dun- Bedloe
stable. Leighton-Buzzard, or Beaudesart, is supposed to Jl
have been a Roman camp; and vestiges of an amphi-Bedriacum.
theatre of that people may be seen near Bradford Magna.
The ancient Icknield and Watling Street roads passed
through the county, and the remains of each may be defi¬
nitely traced, as well as of some others constructed by that
people. (g.)
BEDLOE, William, better known by his assumed
title of Captain, was an infamous adventurer of low birth,
who had travelled over a great part of Europe under dif¬
ferent names and disguises, and passed himself among se¬
veral ignorant persons for a man of rank and fortune. En¬
couraged by the success of Titus Oates, he turned general
evidence, gave an account of Godfrey’s murder, and added
many circumstances to the narrative of Oates. These vil¬
lains had the boldness even to accuse the queen of entering
into a conspiracy against the king’s life. A reward or L.500
was voted to Bedloe by the commons; and he is said to
have asserted the reality of the papist plot on his death¬
bed ; but the whole story is so overlaid with absurdity, con¬
tradiction, and perjury, that the only thing we can be certain
about respecting it is the incredible wickedness of those
who were concerned in getting it up, and the inconceivable
folly of those who credited their story. Bedloe died at Bris¬
tol on the 20th of August 1680. Giles Jacob informs us, that
he was author of a play called The Excommunicated Prince,
or the False Relict, 1679. The printer of it having, with¬
out the author’s knowledge, added a second title, and call¬
ed it The Popish Plot in a Play, greatly excited the cu¬
riosity of the public, who were, however, much disappoint¬
ed when they found that the plan of the piece was found¬
ed on a quite different story. Anthony Wood denies the
captain the merit, such as it is, of this play, and asserts
that it was written partly, if not entirely, by one Thomas
Walter, M. A. of Jesus College, Oxford.
BEDNORE, a town of Hindostan, in the territories of
the rajah of Mysore. This was once a place of great im¬
portance, containing, it is said, 20,000 houses, besides
huts. It was taken and plundered by Hyder in 1763,
who changed its name to Hydernagur, and at that time it
was estimated at eight miles in circumference. It was again
taken in 1786, and given up to be plundered, by a British
detachment, which was attacked in its turn, and destroy¬
ed or made prisoners, by Tippoo’s troops. At Tippoo’s
death it contained 1500 houses, besides huts. Long. 75. 6.
E. Lat. 13. 48. N.
The district of Bednore is situated on the summit of that
range of hills, the Western Ghauts, which overlooks the
provinces of Cinara and Malabar. In consequence of its
elevation above the sea, and the steepness of the moun¬
tain chain, which rises like a wall to the height of 4000 or
5000 feet, the clouds of the western monsoon are here in¬
tercepted, and are precipitated on the ground below in
deluges of rain, which continue for nine months in the
year, and are extremely favourable to vegetation. Its pro¬
ducts are pepper, betel-nut, cardamums, and sandal wood.
Cattle of small size are also bred in the district, and ex¬
ported to the sea-coast. The imports are salt, rice, cocoa
nuts, oil, turmeric, and cotton cloths.
BEDOUINS, or Bedouis, a modern name of the wild
Arabs, whether in Asia or Africa. See Arabia.
BEDRIACUM, in Ancient Geography, a village of Italy,
situated, according to Tacitus, between Verona and Cre¬
mona, but nearer the latter than the former. From the ac¬
count given by that historian, Cluverius conjectures that
the ancient Bedriacum stood in the place where the city
of Caneto now stands. This village was remarkable for
the defeat of the emperor Galba by Otho, and afterwards
of Otho by Vitellius.
BEE.
518
Bee. BEDWIN, Great, a borough, formerly also a market-
'***-'(-*~J town, of the hundred of Kinwardstone, in the county of
Wilts. It is seventy miles from London, on the Kennet
and Avon canal. It returns two members to the house of
commons, who are nominally chosen by the holders of
burgage tenures, but in reality by Lord Aylesbury. The W j *
number of inhabitants in 1801 amounted to 1632, in 1811
to 1851, and in 1821 to 1928.
BEE.
Progress The bee, from its singular instincts, its active industry,
of know- an(j tiie USeful products resulting from its labours, has,
Ardh^" ^rom t^e remotest times, attracted the attention, not only
this insect. naturalists, but of mankind in general. No nation upon
earth has had so many historians as this remarkable tribe
of insects. The patience and sagacity of the naturalist
have had an ample field for exercise in the study of their
structure, physiology, and domestic economy. Their pre¬
servation and increase have been objects of assiduous care
to the agriculturist; and their reputed perfection of po¬
licy and government have long been the theme of admi¬
ration, and have afforded copious materials for argument
and allusion to the poet and the moralist in every age. It
is a subject that has been celebrated and adorned by the
muse of Virgil, as well as illustrated by the philosophic
genius of Aristotle. Cicero and Pliny report that Aris-
tomachus devoted himself during sixty years to the study
of these insects ; and Philiscus is said to have retired into
a desert wood, that he might pursue his observations on
them without interruption. A prodigious number of au¬
thors have written express treatises on bees; periodical
works have been published relating exclusively to their
management and economy; and learned societies have
been established for the sole purpose of conducting re¬
searches on this subject. The most celebrated association
of this kind is the Societe des Abeilles, founded about fifty
years ago in Little Bautzen, a village in Upper Lausatia,
under the auspices of the elector of Saxony. Its labours,
as we shall presently find, have enriched the science with
a number of valuable discoveries.
In so complicated a branch of natural history, the ap¬
plication of the difficult art of observing correctly, and of
the cautious processes of induction, cannot be effected
without laborious and long-continued efforts. But, on the
subject of bees, the inquirer after truth had, besides, many
obstacles to encounter, from the very general diffusion of
errors, which had been transmitted without due examina¬
tion from one author to another. The history of the opi¬
nions of successive writers will sufficiently prove how gra¬
dual and how slow has been the advancement of real know¬
ledge in what concerns these insects, and will teach us to
estimate the value of that which we at length possess, as
being the result of the labour of ages, and as being ex¬
torted from nature by indefatigable and persevering ex¬
ertions. So great an accumulation of curious and inte¬
resting facts, indeed, has accrued to us from the re¬
searches of Swammerdam, Maraldi, Reaumur, Schirach,
and Huber, as to constitute almost a new science. Many
of these have been discovered subsequently to the time of
the compilation of the article Bee in the preceding edi¬
tion of this work. It will therefore be proper, in this
place, to give a connected and systematic account of the
natural history of this remarkable insect. For the details
of the external characters and distinctions of species, we
shall refer to the article Entomology. The principal
features of their internal conformation will be described
when treating of the particular functions to which they
are more immediately subservient; and our descriptions
will apply, more especially, to the common and best-known
species, the Apis mellijica, which is the one particularly
prized on account of the rich products it affords.
The economy of bees comprehends so wide a field Plan
of inquiry, the different parts of which are so connected this ai |e,
and dependent upon one another, that it is impossible to
treat of them distinctly, without supposing the reader to
possess some general acquaintance with the history of
these insects. We shall therefore premise a brief ac¬
count of the different sorts of bees inhabiting the hive,
and of the respective offices of each. We shall then pro¬
ceed to consider their comparative physiology; under
which head we shall state the leading particulars relating
to their nutrition, secretion, respiration, progressive mo¬
tion, external senses, and instincts. We shall next follow
them in their different labours, from the period when the
swarm has settled in a new habitation; we shall detail
the complex structure of their hives,—their curious pro¬
cesses of architecture,—the pains they bestow on rearing
their progeny, and in sending forth new swarms; and this
will lead us to the subject of the fecundation of the queens,
and the massacre of the drones. After having thus given
an account of their usual condition, we shall, in the last
place, describe the result of several experiments and ob¬
servations which have been made when tney were placed
in unusual circumstances; experiments which have exhi¬
bited many interesting features of their character, and
have thrown considerable light on the whole of their his¬
tory, as well as suggested various practical and economic
applications in the management of these insects.
The leading feature in their history, and one which Funds
distinguishes them from almost all insects, is their singu-ofthe
lar distribution into three different kinds, constituting, to ma!es' ^
all appearance, so many different modifications of sex.™ ^
The drone, which is characterized by a thicker body, a
round head, a more flattened shape, and more obtusely-
terminated abdomen, within which are contained the male
organs of generation, has been admitted as the male of
the species. It is distinguished also by the absence of a
sting, and by the humming noise that accompanies its
flight. The queen-bee, which is larger than any of the
others, has the abdomen of greater length, and is provided
with a sting, and with two ovaria of considerable size, is
unequivocally recognised as the female. The working
bees compose the third class, and are distinguished by the
smallness of their size, their lengthened proboscis, the pe¬
culiar structure of their legs and thighs, which are adapt¬
ed to the collection of certain materials obtained from
vegetables, and by the apparent absence of every trace of
generative organs,—we say apparent absence, because, as
will be hereafter stated, rudiments of ovaria have been
very lately discovered to exist, which, however, are not
perceptible without a very minute and careful dissection.
Till within a few years the working bees were regarded
as animals deprived of sex, and were accordingly termed
neuters or mules. It is these which perform all the labo¬
rious offices for the community,—which construct the in¬
terior of their habitation,—which explore the country in
search of nourishment and other materials,—which collect
and bring them to the hive, and apply them to different
purposes; it is this kind that assiduously attend upon the
queen, and supply all her wants,—that defend the hive
from the attacks of depredators, and carry on hostilities
against the various enemies of the tribe. The life of the
BEE.
Et( females is chiefly engrossed with the duties of laying
' e£gs> an(* conducting the colonies, which, at certain pe¬
riods, emigrate from the parent state. The drones, pro¬
ducing neither wax nor honey, and depending on the rest
for their Subsistence, are idle spectators of these labours.
They appear to be formed only for the momentary but
important duty of impregnation, since they perish when
this purpose is accomplished. There is commonly only one
perfect queen existing at a time within each hive; and
she appears to be treated by all the other bees with every
mark of affection and of deference. The number of la¬
bourers is very different in different hives; sometimes
there are only a few thousands; at other times from
twenty to forty, or even fifty thousand. The drones,
even in the spring, seldom compose more than one
thirtieth or one fortieth of the whole ; and, at other sea¬
sons, there are none to be found in the hive. In order to
form some estimate of the number of bees which can oc¬
cupy a certain space, Mr Hunter counted what number
of drowned bees could be contained in an alehouse pint,
and found it to be 2160; so that if a swarm were to fill
two quarts, their numbers would be nearly 9000. Reau¬
mur, with the same view of ascertaining their numbers,
employed the more accurate method of weighing them;
he found that a collection of them, weighing one ounce,
consisted of 336 bees; and, therefore, that 16 ounces, or
one pound, would consist of 5376 bees,
eali Notwithstanding these differences in conformation, in-
’t'ie stincts, and offices, between the queen-bee and the work-
OT"! ers, it is now established, upon the most incontrovertible
evidence, that they both originally proceed from the same
kind of larva, and that the queen-bee lays only twm kinds
of eggs, the one destined to produce the drone, the others
capable of being converted, according to circumstances,
either into a worker or a queen. It has been proved that
the former, although exhibiting no appearance of sexual
organs on a superficial examination, are in reality females,
and have the rudiments of these organs, which, from their
not being developed, are incapable of exercising their
proper functions. It may be remarked, that the idea of
the working bees being radically females, had been sug¬
gested long ago by Dr Warder, in his Monarchy of Bees,
in which he terms them “ True Amazonsbut no atten¬
tion had been paid to his opinion. The real merit of this
great discovery, which affords the key to a multitude of
hitherto inexplicable facts, unquestionably belongs to Mr
Schirach, vicar of Little Bautzen, the secretary of the
Lausatian Society, to which we formerly adverted. When
first announced to the world, it was received with suspi¬
cion by the greater number of naturalists, and with com¬
plete incredulity by others. It was, indeed, at variance
with the whole tenor of the observations of Swammerdam,
Maraldi, and Reaumur. Wilhelmi, the brother-in-law of
Schirach, though an eye-witness of the experiments from
which he had deduced this theory, for a long time refused
to admit the doctrine, but became at length one of its
most strenuous supporters. It is noticed in a vein of sar¬
castic ridicule by Mr John Hunter, in his otherwise ex¬
cellent paper on bees in the Philosophical Transactions.
Needham wrote a memoir for the Imperial Academy of
Brussels in 1777, for the express purpose of refuting it;
and he then inveighs in strong language against those na¬
turalists who had deigned to give it the least countenance,
mr Key, in the Bath Society Papers, declares that he
made experiments on this subject for eight years, without
obtaining a single result in conformity to Schirach’s views,
bonnet, after exercising a laudable scepticism, and making
a diligent inquiry, in which he displays a genuine spirit of
philosophy, yielded a reluctant assent. But the truth of
the doctrine has since been placed beyond the reach of
519
controversy by multiplied series of observations and ex- Bee.
periments in different parts of Europe; and more espe- v—
cially by the recent investigations of Mr Huber of Ge¬
neva. We shall not at present enter into the detail of
proofs, because their force will be better appreciated
when other particulars belonging to the history of the bee
have been explained.
In considering the physiology of the bee, the first func-Nutrition,
tion that claims our notice is that of nutrition. The food
of bees is principally of two kinds, namely, the fluid secre¬
tions of vegetables contained in the nectarea of the flowers,
and the dust of the antherae, which has been termed by
botanists the pollen, but which, when collected by the bees,
has received a variety of appellations, such as farina, bee-
bread, raw wax (cire brute), &c. Occasionally, however,
we find bees feeding upon other saccharine substances
besides honey, such as honey-dew, treacle, syrup, &c.
The organs by which they collect food are extremely Organs for
complex, for they comprise instruments adapted to the collecting
reception of liquid aliment as well as those fitted for the*out ‘
division of solid materials. Reaumur has given the most
elaborate description of these organs, in which he has
corrected some errors that Swammerdam had fallen into.
For the purpose of taking up fluids, they are provided, in
common with all hymenopterous insects, with a long and
flexible proboscis or trunk, which may be considered as a Proboscis,
lengthened tongue, though, strictly speaking, it is formed
by a prolongation of the under lip. It is not tubular, as
Swammerdam had supposed, but solid throughout; and
the minute depression at its extremity is not the aperture
of any canal through which liquids can be absorbed. Cu¬
vier, in his Lemons dAnatomic Comparee, has not marked
this distinguishing feature in the proboscis of the bee, but
speaks of it in common with the tubular trunks of the
other hymenoptera, and describes its aperture as being
situated in the lower part. But Reaumur has very satis¬
factorily shown that the trunk of the bee performs strict¬
ly the office of a tongue, and not that of a tube for suc¬
tion ; for when it takes up honey or other fluid aliment,
the under or the upper surfaces are more immediately
applied to it, and rolled from side to side, and the bee
thus licks up what adheres to it, while the extremity of
the trunk is frequently not applied at all to the substance
taken up. The trunk is supported on a pedicle, which ad¬
mits of being bent back or propelled forwards, and thus
can retract or stretch out the trunk to a considerable ex¬
tent. Protection is given to it by a double sheath; the
external, consisting of two scales furnished by the expan¬
sion of one of the portions of the labial palpi; and the in¬
ternal, formed by the prolongation of the two external
portions of the jaw. The whole member thus consists of
five principal parts, on which account Fabricius termed it
lingua quinquejida.
For the purpose of mechanically dividing solid mate-Mandibles,
rials, the mouth is furnished with two strong mandibles
and four palpi; they are but little employed in eating, but
are of great use in enabling the insect to seize and break
down hard substances for other purposes. In the work¬
ing bee all these parts are of larger dimensions than in
the other kinds. The teeth are two in number, and have
the form of concave scales with sharp edges; they are fixed
to the ends of the jaws, and play horizontally as in other
insects. Reaumur describes and delineates a large aper¬
ture above the root of the proboscis, which is so surround¬
ed with fleshy parts as not to be readily seen unless the
proboscis be extended and bent downwards. This he con¬
siders as the mouth or orifice of the gullet; on the upper
side of which, and of course opposite to the root of the
proboscis, a small fleshy and pointed organ is seen, which
he regards as the tongue, assisting in the deglutition of the
520
Bee.
' ^
Stomachs.
Collection
of pollen.
BEE.
food. Through this orifice, it is presumed, all the aliment,
whether liquid or solid, passes ; the former being convey¬
ed to it by the trunk, which, by its contractile power,
presses forward the fluids it has collected between itself
and the inner sheath, and the latter being received direct¬
ly after its comminution by the teeth, behind which it is
situated. Latreille, however, whose authority is great on
a point of this nature, thinks that Reaumur has deceived
himself with regard to such an aperture, and disbelieves
its existence. He conceives that the food simply passes
on by the sides of the tongue, finding its way from thence
into the oesophagus, and so on to the stomach.
The bee has two stomachs ; the first is a large transpa¬
rent membranous bag, pointed in front, and swelling out
into two pouches behind. It performs an office, in some
respects analogous to that of the crop in birds ; for it re¬
ceives and retains for a time the fluid of the nectarea,
which does not appear to differ in any respect from
honey. Mr Hunter observes, that, whatever time the
contents of this reservoir maybe retained, he never found
them altered, so as to give the idea of digestion having
taken place. The coats of this reservoir are muscular, by
which means it is capable of throwing up the honey into
the mouth, so that it is regurgitated into the honey cells,
or imparted to other bees. None of it ever passes out
from the extremity of the trunk, as Swammerdam had be¬
lieved. For the purpose of digestion, a second stomach is
provided, which takes its origin from the middle of the
two posterior lobes of the former, and is of a lengthened
cylindrical shape. Its communication with the intestine
is not direct, but takes place by a projecting or inverted
pylorus, thickest at its most prominent part, with a very
small opening in the centre, of a peculiar construction.
This inward projecting part is easily seen through the
coats of the reservoir, especially if full of honey. A simi¬
lar kind of structure takes place at the communication of
the first with the second stomach, and, having the pro¬
perties of a valve, must effectually prevent all regurgita¬
tion from the latter into the former.
The pollen of flowers, which is the other principal ar¬
ticle of food, was shown by Swammerdam to consist of an
infinite number of small particles, generally of a globular
shape, each of which is found to be a small capsule, in¬
closing the still finer dust or fecundating principle destin¬
ed to be shed on the pistils for the purpose of germina¬
tion. Geoffroy has given a memoir, published in the Col¬
lection Academique des Sciences, containing a minute de¬
scription of the shapes of these capsules, taken from dif¬
ferent flowers. The working bees, by means of the pencil
of hair which grows on the tarsi, first collect a certain
quantity of pollen, which they knead together into a ball,
and place it in the concave space which is situated at the
middle joint of the hinder feet, and has been termed the
basket. The surrounding rows of hairs keep the ball from
falling off. In order to gather larger quantities at once,
the bees are sometimes observed to roll their bodies on
the flower, and then, brushing oft the pollen which adheres
to them with their feet, form it into two masses, which
they dispose of as before mentioned ; and it is said that,
in moist weather, when the particles of pollen cannot be
readily made to cohere together, they return to their hive
dusted all over with pollen, which they then brush off
with their feet. They are often obliged to tear open the
capsules which contain the pollen, in order to procure a
supply of this substance, when it has not yet been shed
by the flowers.
Pollen is yielded by flowers during the spring in such
abundance that the bees of a single hive will often bring
back one pound, or even more, in a day. Some agricul¬
turists have accordingly imagined, that the vegetation of
some plants might be endangered from this great con-
sumption of the fecundating principle by insects in gene- 'w
ral; for other insects besides bees seek it with avidity. ^
But this fear has been proved to be totally without foun¬
dation, and the practice of destroying bees in order to
prevent this imaginary danger is therefore as useless as
it is barbarous. It would appear, indeed, that so far from
obstructing the fecundation of plants, the labours of the
bee have often tended materially to promote it, by the
agitation which they give to the flower, and by transport¬
ing the pollen from one flower to another. In this manner
may we account for the number of hybrid flowers that are
met with near the haunts of bees.
It has been shown very clearly by Huber, in a paper in
the Journal de Physique, that pollen is peculiarly the food
of the young bees, and is collected by the working bees
with this intention. Reaumur, however, asserts that he
has seen adult bees devour pollen. Swammerdam, who
conceived the trunk to be tubular, rejected the idea that
pollen could ever be the food of bees, as the globules of
which it consists are incapable of entering an orifice so
minute as that which appears at the extremity of the
trunk, and which, as he was unacquainted with the real
mouth, he thought was the only passage to the stomach.
Latreille, who does not admit the existence of the large
mouth described by Reaumur, states that the mandibles
lay hold of the pollen, and carry it to the base of the
trunk, from wdrence it finds its way into the oesophagus by
the sides of that organ.
Of honey-dew, which forms part of the food of bees,
we shall merely remark that it is an excrementitious mat¬
ter deposited on the leaves of plants by certain species of
aphides.
An abundant supply of water is essential to the healthy
condition of bees. They consume a large quantity, and
often stop to drink at the edge of stagnant pools, and seem
even to prefer putrid and urinous waters to purer streams,
as if their saline and pungent qualities were grateful to
them.
It has been long the opinion that wax was but a slightPn iction
modification of pollen, which required for this conversion of k
merely the application of a certain pressure, and a kind
of kneading by the feet of the bees. Many naturalists,
such as Bernard de Jussieu, had persuaded themselves
that the dust of the stamina of flowers contained wax
ready formed as one of its ingredients, and quoted the
following experiment in proof of this opinion : If the mi¬
nute grains of pollen be put into water, they gradually
swell, till they at length burst, at which moment a small
jet of an oily liquor will be perceived, which floats on the
water without mixing with it. But Reaumur had attempt¬
ed in vain to extract any thing like wax from dust of the
antherae; and, indeed, an attention to the chemical pro¬
perties of these two substances would have sufficiently
pointed out their essential differences. From the upper
surface of the leaves of many kinds of trees, a substance
has indeed been obtained, which possesses all the qualities
of bees’ wax; but nothing like it can be extracted from
pollen. Reaumur was persuaded that the pollen was ela¬
borated in the second stomach of the bee, and thrown up
into the mouth in the form of a white foam, which, by
exposure to the air, hardened, and became wax; and that
the bee took advantage of its soft state to apply it in t"6
building of the combs. So circumstantial an account,
given to us by a scrupulous observer of facts, appeared to
be perfectly satisfactory, and was acquiesced in by natu¬
ralists in general. But it has since been completely provei
by the researches of Duchet, of Hunter, and of Huber,
but principally by the latter, that wax is a secretion from
the abdomen of the bee; and that it depends not at a
B E E,
521
oh the pollen which the insect may consume, but on the
j quantity of honey or other saccharine substance which it
receives into the stomach. The first step in this disco¬
very was made by one of the members of the Lausatian
Society, whose name has not been preserved. It was
mentioned in a letter of Mr Wilhelmi to Bonnet, in Au¬
gust 1768, in which he says that wrax, instead of being
rejected by the mouth, exudes from the rings which in¬
close the posterior part of the body. Of this we may satisfy
ourselves by drawing out the bee from the cell in which
it is working with wax, by means of the point of a fine
needle; and we may perceive, in proportion as the body
is elongated, that the wax will make its appearance under
the rings, in the form of small scales. Mr Duchet, in his
Culture des Abeilles, gives a full statement of the princi¬
pal circumstances attending the production of wrax, which
he very justly ascribes to the conversion of honey into this
substance in the body of the bee. These facts appear to
have been entirely overlooked till the subject was again
brought forward by Mr John Hunter, in his paper in the
Philosophical Transactions for 1792. Wildman, however,
had cursorily remarked that portions of wax, in the form
of scales, and which he conceived must have been mould¬
ed on the body of the bee, are sometimes found at the
bottom of the hive. Mr Huber was engaged in prosecut¬
ing his inquiries on this subject at the same period with
Mr Hunter, and discovered, in 1793, the existence of re¬
gular receptacles or pouches, from the coats of which the
wax is secreted, and within which it accumulates till its
edges raise the scales, and become apparent externally.
These plates of wax are withdrawn by the bee itself, or
some of its fellow-labourers, and are applied in a 'manner
hereafter to be described.
Huber has shown, by a series of well-conducted expe¬
riments, that, in a natural state, the quantity of wax se¬
creted is in proportion to the consumption of honey ; but
that an equal or even greater quantity will be formed if
the bee be fed on a solution of sugar in water. Warmth
and rest promote this process of secretion ; for the bees,
after feeding plentifully on saccharine food, hang together
in a cluster without moving, for several hours, at the end
of which time large plates of wax are found under the
abdominal rings. This happened when bees were con¬
fined and restricted from any other sort of nourishment;
whilst those that were fed on pollen and fruits alone did
not produce any wax. It appears also from his researches
that the formation of wax is the office of a particular set
of bees, which may be distinguished from the rest, and
particularly from those that nurse the young larvae, by the
greater size and more cylindrical shape of their abdomen.
Dissection also shows that their stomachs are more capa¬
cious. In the second volume of Huber’s Nouvelles Obser¬
vations sur les Abeilles, he describes minutely the anatomy
of the pouches or receptacles for the wax, which are parts
peculiar to the working bees, being totally absent in the
males and queens. It is a structure that had escaped the
keen eyes of Swammerdam, and has not been noticed by
any subsequent anatomist. The cavities are lined with a
membrane, which presents a number of folds, forming an
hexagonal net-work, not unlike the appearance in the se¬
cond stomach of ruminant quadrupeds, and evidently des¬
tined to perform the office of secretion.
Among the secretions peculiar to the bee, the poison
which is poured into the wounds made by the sting de¬
serves to be noticed. It is said to owe its mischievous
efficacy to certain pungent salts. If a bee is provoked to
strike its sting against a plate of glass, a drop of poison
will be discharged; and if this is placed under a micro-
sc°Pe> the salts may be seen to concrete, as the liquor
dries, into clear, oblong, pointed crystals. The sting con¬
vex.. iv.
sists of bearded darts, which are protruded from the end Bee.
of a sheath; and the venomous juice is likewise injected
through the sheath, from a little bag at the root of the
sting.
As no organs for the circulation of blood have been as Function
yet demonstrated in insects, respiration is supposed to be 0_f respira.
effected by means totally different from those which aretl0ru
adopted in the higher classes of the animal kingdom. As
the blood, or fluid corresponding to the blood, cannot be
presented to the air in any separate organ, the air must
be conducted to the blood, wherever such a fluid is met
with. For this purpose, tracheae or air-tubes, having se¬
veral external openings or spiracles, are made to ramify
like arteries, and are distributed in an infinite number of
branches to every part of the body. The analogy of other
insects might perhaps be admitted as sufficient evidence
that bees respire atmospheric air, the constant renewal of
which is essentially necessary to the continuance of the
vital functions. It is, however, not always safe to trust
to analogical reasoning in subjects of natural history; and
direct evidence is, in all cases, to be preferred when it
can be obtained. We must therefore consider as valuable
the complete series of experiments on the respiration of
bees, that have been lately given to the world by Huber,
to whom we already owe so large a portion of the infor¬
mation we possess with regard to these insects. We
might indeed have anticipated, with the strongest proba¬
bility, many of the results to which these experiments
have led; but there are others which are quite unexpect¬
ed, and possess as much of interest as of novelty.
The condition of a hive of bees, in which many thou¬
sand individuals, full of animation and activity, are crowd¬
ed together in the very small space of one or two cubic
feet, having no communication with the external air but
by means of a small aperture in the lowest part, which
entrance is frequently obstructed by a throng of bees
that are passing in and out during sultry weather, is of all
possible conditions the one least favourable to the renewal
of heated air. The most crowded theatres or hospitals
are not to be compared with it in point of closeness. Di¬
rect experiment, indeed, shows that the combustion of a
taper could not be carried on in so limited a space; for
Mr Huber found that, in a glass ball of the same dimen¬
sions as the hive, and with a similar aperture, the taper
went out in a few minutes. So great was the difficulty
of explaining the respiration of bees under these circum¬
stances, that Mr Huber was led to examine into the truth
of the opinion, that respiration was equally necessary to Its neces-
bees as to other insects. The results were unequivocal, sity.
They perish speedily in the vacuum of the air-pump.
They are easily drowned by placing them so that the spi¬
racles on the corslet are under water; but revive readily
when they are dried. The action of the spiracles is, in
this experiment, rendered manifest by the escape of
bubbles of air from each of their orifices. When a num¬
ber of bees are confined in a bottle accurately closed, they
exhibit unequivocal symptoms of distress, and fall into com¬
plete asphyxia. These changes occur more rapidly when
they are placed in any gas which contains no admixture
of oxygen, such as carbonic acid, hydrogenous and azotic
gases. When they are rendered torpid by cold, and re¬
spiration is thereby suspended, these effects do not take
place. All these effects are more considerable in adult
bees than in the larvae, though they are also distinctly
exhibited in the latter. Suffocation is retarded if the pro¬
portion of oxygen be greater than in atmospheric air,
and it may be averted altogether by a continual renewal
of oxygen. It was ascertained by the eudiometer that
the same changes were produced on the air as in the
respiration of other animals; namely, the subtraction of
BEE.
522
Bee. oxygen and the addition of an equal volume of carbonic
acid gas.
Yet, on examining the air of the hive itself, it was found
scarcely to differ in purity from atmospheric air. It was
at one time conjectured that some of the contents of the
hive, such as the pollen, the honey, or the wax, might
have some power of evolving oxygen, so as to afford the
requisite supply of this gas. Experiments, however,
proved that they had no such power. Amidst so great
an uncertainty, it was thought worth while to ascertain
whether bees might not exert some unknown process by
which oxygen was generated in the hive itself. If this
were true, they could support life although all communi¬
cation with the external air were intercepted. A hive
was selected having glass sides, so as to allow of the ob¬
server’s seeing what was passing in the interior, and the
entrance was completely closed. In a quarter of an hour
the bees became sensible of their situation, and showed
great uneasiness; all business was suspended; an extra¬
ordinary agitation, accompanied by a remarkable noise,
prevailed in every quarter. All the bees were seen beat¬
ing their wings with the same rapidity as in flying. They
were thus incessantly occupied during ten minutes. Their
motions became then more languid, and, after being ut¬
terly exhausted, they fell in succession to the bottom of
the hive, till every one of them was in a state of complete
asphyxia. It is remarkable that, at this period, the tem¬
perature of the hive, which had been previously at 95° of
Fahrenheit, suddenly cooled down to that of the external
air. On opening the door and the top of the hive, and
establishing a current of air through it, the bees were
soon restored to animation.
Their It was proved by this experiment that the air is renew-
111 ode of e(j through the small opening which serves as a door to
the h!v^n^ the hive. By suspending light substances near the en-
live' trance, the existence of different currents of air was ren¬
dered manifest. After much reflection, it occurred that
the violent agitation of the wings might have some influ¬
ence in procuring this renewal of air. This conjecture
was confirmed by an experiment with a glass bell, to the
aperture of which an apparatus was fitted, consisting of a
small ventilator, which could be moved rapidly round by
machinery. When the ventilator was set in motion, the
air within could support the combustion of a candle for an
unlimited time. Observation further showed that some
bees are actually always employed in the office of venti¬
lating the hive ; they vibrate their wings with great vigour
and constancy, producing so rapid a movement of them,
that they cannot be seen except in the two extremities of
the arc of vibration, which is at least one of 90°. While
thus imitating the actions of flying, they fasten themselves
with their feet to the floor of the hive, so that the whole
effect of that impulse which, were they at liberty, would
carry them forwards with considerable velocity, is exert¬
ed on the air, which is therefore driven backwards in a
powerful current. Some bees occasionally perform these
ventilating motions on the outside of the hive, near the
entrance ; but a still greater number are employed in this
office within doors: sometimes twenty are thus occupied
at once, and each bee continues its motions for a certain
time, occasionally for nearly half an hour, and is then re¬
lieved by another, who takes its place. This is the occa¬
sion of that humming sound which is constantly heard
from the interior of the hive when the bees are not in a
state of torpidity. But it is often heard with even more
than usual loudness in the depth of winter. The warmth of
the sun’s rays, however, always occasions an increased
activity among the ventilating bees. The immediate
cause of these actions is probably some impression made
on their organs by the presence of vitiated air; for a bee
may be made to ventilate itself by placing near it sub- p,
stances which have to them an unpleasant odour, such as ^ J
spirit of wine or oil of turpentine.
The connection between an active respiration and aTemi
high temperature is remarkably exemplified in bees, among ture! he
which, in consequence of their collecting together in large ^vei
numbers, the heat is not so easily dissipated, and admits
also of being easily ascertained by the thermometer. Mr
Hunter found it to vary from 73° to 84° of Fahrenheit •
and Mr Huber observed it on some occasions to rise sud¬
denly from about 92° to above 104°.
Bees are well fitted, by their structure, for rapid flight Prog
throu gh the air. They possess great muscular strength sive .
in proportion to their size, and their indefatigable activity^011,
in the different labours of the hive is truly astonishing.
Aristotle and Pliny have pretended that, during high
winds, they endeavour to steady their flight by holding a
small stone with their feet, by way of ballast. This as¬
sertion has been shown, both by Swammerdam and Reau¬
mur, to be erroneous in as far as it applied to the com¬
mon bee ; but there are other species which build nests
with stones and other hard materials, and which, while
transporting them for this purpose, were probably mis¬
taken for the honey-bee.
The physiology of the external senses must necessarily Sens e
be very imperfectly understood in a class of animals of aP°"'<
nature so remote from our own species. The infinite di¬
versity of characters presented to us by the different tribes
of insects, as well as of other animals, naturally suggests
the idea that external objects produce on their sentient
organs impressions widely different from what they com¬
municate to ourselves. The notions we form of their
senses must not only be liable to great inaccuracy, but
must often be totally inadequate representations of the
truth. A finer organization, and more subtile percep¬
tions, would alone suffice to extend the sphere of their
ordinary senses to an inconceivable degree, as the tele¬
scope and the microscope have with us extended the
powers of vision. But they possess, in all probability,
other organs, appropriated to unknown kinds of impres¬
sions, and which must open to them avenues to knowledge
of various kinds, to which we must ever remain total
strangers. Art has with us supplied many elaborate
modes of bringing within our cognizance some of the 1
properties of matter which nature has not immediately
furnished us with the means of detecting. But who will
compare our thermometers, electroscopes, or hygrome¬
ters, however elaborately constructed, with those refined
instruments with which the lower classes, and particularly
insects, appear to be so liberally provided ? The antennae, Fun ons
which are so universally met with in this class of animals, of tl in-
are doubtless organs of the greatest importance in con-tem
veying impressions from without. Their continual mo¬
tion, the constant use which is made of them in examin¬
ing objects, the total derangement in the instincts of those
insects which have been deprived of them, point them out
as exquisite organs of more than one sense. To impres¬
sions of touch, arising from the immediate contact of
bodies, they are highly sensible; but their motions evi¬
dently show that they are affected by objects at some dis¬
tance. They are no doubt alive to all the tremulous mo¬
tions of the surrounding air, and probably communicate
perceptions of some of its other qualities. Composed of
a great number of articulations, they are exceedingly
flexible in every direction, and can readily embrace the
outline of any body that the bee wishes to examine, how¬
ever small its diameter, and are capable of following all its
movements. It is by means of these instruments that the
bee is enabled to execute so many works in the interior
of the hive, from which the light must be totally exclud-
BEE.
523
ed. Aided by these, it builds its combs, pours honey into
' its magazines, feeds the larvae, and ministers to every
want, which it discovers and judges of solely by this spe¬
cies of touch.
The antennae appear also to be the principal means em¬
ployed for mutual communication of impressions. The
different modes of contact constitute a sort of language,
which appears to be susceptible of a great variety of mo¬
difications, and to be capable of supplying at once every
species of information for which they have occasion. It
is in this way alone that they satisfy themselves of the
presence of their queen, or communicate to others the
alarming intelligence that she has disappeared.
The sense residing in the antennas appears to be, on
many occasions, supplementary to that of vision, which in
bees, as in other insects, is less perfect than in the larger
animals. During the night, therefore, they are chiefly
guided in their movements by the former of these senses.
This will sufficiently appear from observing by moon-light
the mode in which the bees guard the entrance of the
hive against the intrusion of moths which flutter in the
neighbourhood. They act as vigilant sentinels, perform¬
ing continual rounds near this important post, extending
their antennae to the utmost, and moving them alternate¬
ly to the right and to the left. Woe to the unfortunate
moth that comes within their reach. Aware of its danger,
and of the defective sight of the bees, the moths adroitly
avoid the slightest contact, and endeavour to insinuate
themselves between the bees, so as to get unperceived into
the hive, where they riot upon the honey which they find.
If bees require full day-light for the exercise of vision,
it must at the same time be acknowledged, that, when
they are so assisted, they appear to enjoy this sense in
great perfection. A bee will recognise its habitation from
great distances, and distinguish it at once from many others
in a numerous apiary. It passes through the air in a
straight line towards its object with extreme rapidity. On
quitting the hive, it flies towards the field which is most
in flower; and as soon as it has determined on its course,
it takes as direct a line as a ball issuing from a musket.
When it has collected sufficient provision, it rises in the air
to discover its hive, and then darts forward with the veloci¬
ty of an arrow, and with unerring precision in its aim.
Their perceptions of heat and cold, which are generally
referred to the sense of touch, appear to be extremely de¬
licate. In several experiments of Huber’s, the influence
of the rays of the sun excited them to a vigorous action
of the wings. It is well known that great cold reduces
them to a state of torpor, and inferior degrees of cold are
evidently unpleasant to them. They show by their con¬
duct that they are sensible of alterations in the state of
the weather for some time before we can perceive them.
Sometimes, when working with great assiduity, they will
suddenly desist from their labours; none will stir out of
the hive, while all the working-bees that are abroad hurry
home in crowds, and press forward so as to obstruct the
entrance of the hive. Often when they are thus warned
of the approach of bad weather, we can distinguish no al¬
teration in the state of the atmosphere. Gathering clouds
sometimes produce this effect on them; but perhaps they
possess some species of hygrometrical sense, unconnected
with any impression of vision. It is alleged that no bee
}s ever caught in a sudden shower, unless from some cause
Jt has wandered very far from the hive, or been disabled
by some accident from returning to it. There is reason for
thinking, however, that much exaggeration has prevailed
•o the statements of authors as to the extent of this kind
of foresight. Huber supposes that it is the rapid diminu¬
tion of light that alarms them ; for if the sky be uniformly
overcast, they proceed on their excursions, and even the
first drops of a soft shower do not make them return with Bee.
any great precipitation. vw—
Their taste is perhaps the most imperfect of their senses. Taste.
They exert hardly any discrimination in the collection of
honey from different flowers. They are not repelled by
the scent or flavour of such as are extremely offensive to
our organs, and scruple not to derive supplies from such
as are highly poisonous. In some districts in America, it
is well known that the honey acquires in this way very de¬
leterious properties. The qualities of honey are, indeed,
observed to vary much, according to the particular situa¬
tion from which it is obtained. The most stagnant and
putrid waters, as we have already noticed, are resorted to
by bees with the same avidity as the purest. In their
selection of flowers they are guided by the quantity of
honey they expect to meet with, and in no respect by its
quality. When the scythe has cut down all the flowers
which before yielded them a plentiful supply, they discon¬
tinue their excursions, although the weather be in all re¬
spects propitious. Their smell must, therefore, be suffi¬
ciently acute to enable them to discover the presence of
honey at great distances. Direct experiment has, indeed,
proved this to be the case. Mr Huber found that they
proceeded immediately towards boxes which contained
honey concealed from their view; and such in fact is the
situation of the fluid of the nectarea in flowers. Some
odours, especially the fumes of tobacco, and indeed all
kinds of smoke, are highly obnoxious to them ; this is the
case, also, with the smell of oil of turpentine, alcohol,
ammonia, the nitric and muriatic acids, and several other
volatile chemical agents, upon receiving the impressions
of which, they immediately set about ventilating them¬
selves in the manner above described. But nothing ex¬
cites their displeasure in a greater degree than the breath
of the spectator; as soon as they feel which, they show
signs of anger, and prepare to revenge it as an insult.
The odour of the poison of their sting produces similar
effects, exciting them to immediate rage and hostility.
Although it is sufficiently clear that many insects pos- Smell,
sess the power of smell, yet the particular organ of this
sense has never been accurately ascertained; and the
opinions of naturalists have been much divided on the
subject. These opinions have been supported more by
arguments drawn from the analogy of what happens in
other classes of animals, than by any direct experiments
on insects themselves. We know that, in all animals re¬
spiring by means of lungs, the organs of smell are placed
at the entrance of the passages of the air; and it has often
been concluded, that in like manner the stigmata, or the
orifices of the air-tubes, were the seat of this sense in in¬
sects. By others the antennae have been assigned as the
organs through which these impressions were conveyed
to the sensorium. The experiments of Huber have proved
that neither of these opinions is correct; and have satis¬
factorily shown that in the bee this sense resides in the
mouth itself, or in its immediate vicinity. Here, indeed,
would be its proper station, if this faculty be intended, as
we may reasonably suppose it to be, to apprize the indi¬
vidual of the qualities of the food prior to its being eaten.
When the mouth of the bee was plugged up with paste,
which was allowed to dry before the insect was set at
liberty, it remained quite insensible to the same odours
to which it had before manifested the strongest repug¬
nance.
It is generally supposed that bees possess the sense of Hearing,
hearing. The common practice of making a loud- noise by
drums and kettles in order to attract a swarm is founded
on this supposition. But the evidence is by no means
conclusive ; for we find that they are nowise disturbed by
a loud clap of thunder, or by the report of a gun, or any
BEE.
524
Bee. other noises that may happen to arise around them. It is,
however, certain that they are capable of emitting a va¬
riety of sounds, which appear expressive of anger, fear,
satisfaction, and other passions; and it would seem that
they were even capable of communicating certain emo¬
tions to one another in this manner. Huber observed
that the queens, during their captivity, sent forth a pecu¬
liar sound, which he supposes to be a note of lamentation.
A certain cry or humming noise from the queen will strike
with sudden consternation all the bees in the hive; and
they remain for a considerable time motionless and stupi-
fied. Hunter has noticed a number of modulations of
sound emitted by bees under different circumstances, and
has instituted an inquiry concerning the means employed
by them in producing these sounds; for an account of
which we shall refer the reader to his paper in the Phi¬
losophical Transactions.
Instincts If the function of sensation in insects be involved in
of bees. doubt and obscurity, the knowledge of those more interior
faculties which are the springs of voluntary action is hid
in still deeper mystery. Buffon refuses to allow bees any
portion of intelligence, and contends that the actions we
behold, however admirably they are directed to certain
ends, are in fact merely the results of their peculiar me¬
chanism. Other philosophers, such as Reaumur, have
gone into the opposite extreme, and have considered them
as endued with extraordinary wisdom and foresight, as
animated by a disinterested patriotism, and as uniting a
variet)' of moral and intellectual qualities of a higher order.
The truth, no doubt, lies between these overstrained opi¬
nions ; but it is nevertheless extremely difficult to decide
in what degree these respective principles operate in the
production of the effects we witness. We have been too
long in the habit of sheltering our ignorance of the causes
of this class of phenomena, by referring them indiscrimi¬
nately to what is called instinct, to submit to a cautious
and patient investigation of the hidden springs of action.
The term instinct should properly be regarded, not as de¬
noting a particular and definite principle of action, whose
operation we can anticipate in any new or untried combi¬
nation of circumstances, but as expressive of our inability
to refer the phenomena we contemplate to any previously
known principle. Thus the actions which an animal per¬
forms in obedience to the calls of appetite are not pro¬
perly said to be instinctive; nor can the term be applied
to actions which are the consequence of acquired know¬
ledge, and of which the object is with certainty foreseen
by the agent. But when an animal acts apparently under
a blind impulse, and produces effects useful to itself or to
the species, which effects it could not have previously
contemplated as resulting from those actions, it is then
customary to say that it is under the guidance of instinct,
that is, of some unknown principle of action. It will be
proper, therefore, to keep this distinction in view in judg¬
ing of the voluntary actions of the lower animals.
In no department of natural history is it more necessary
to be aware of the proper import of the term instinct, than
in studying the phenomena presented by the bee; for
nowhere is it more difficult to discriminate between the
regular operation of implanted motives, and the result of
acquired knowledge and habits. The most striking fea¬
ture of their history, and the one which apparently lays
the foundation for those extraordinary qualities which
raise them above the level of other insects, is the dispo¬
sition to social union. It may in general, indeed, be re¬
marked, that animals which associate together so as to
form large communities, display a higher degree of saga¬
city than those which lead a solitary life. This is especially
observable among insects. The spider and Formica leonis
may exhibit particular talents, or practise particular stra¬
tagems in the pursuit and capture of their prey; but their I
history is limited to a single generation, and embraces^
none of those interesting relations which obtain between
individuals composing the gregarious tribes, such as the
ant, the wasp, and the bee. Among these we trace a
community of wants and desires, and a mutual intelligence
and sympathy, which lead to the constant interchange of
good offices, and which, by introducing a systematic divi-
sion of labour, amidst a unity of design, leads to the exe¬
cution of public works on a scale of astonishing magni¬
tude. The attachment of bees to their hive, which they
defend with a courage and self-devotion truly admirable;
their jealousy of intruders ; their ready co-operation in all
the labours required for the welfare of the community;
their tender care of their young; the affection and ho¬
mage which they bestow on their queen, and which they
manifest on all occasions in the most unequivocal manner;
imply qualities such as we could hardly persuade our¬
selves could animate a mere insect, on which we are in the
habit of proudly looking down as placed in one of the low¬
est orders of created beings.
We shall content ourselves at present with these gene¬
ral observations, as the instances which serve to illustrate
their moral and intellectual character belong properly to
the history of the different processes they follow in the
construction of their combs, the hatching and rearing of
their progeny, and the mode of conducting their migra¬
tions. To these subjects, therefore, we shall now pro¬
ceed : and in order to present the most connected and
complete account of their economy, we shall begin the
history from the period when a new swarm has just oc¬
cupied a hive, and when all the arrangements for their
habitation, and the construction of the cells in which their
eggs and provisions are to be deposited, are yet to be
effected.
The first care of the labouring bees, on their settlementPn ra¬
in their new abode, is to clean it out thoroughly. Whiletioi Uhe
one set of bees is thus employed, another is distributed u
about the country, in order to procure the proper mate¬
rials for blocking up the small holes and chinks of the
hive, and for laying a firm foundation for the edifice which
is to be constructed within it. The substance which is prin¬
cipally employed in this preliminary stage is propolis, aNa e
species of glutinous resin of an agreeable aromatic odour,am
and reddish brown colour, in process of time becoming0'! F015
darker, and acquiring a firmer consistence. According to
the analysis of Vauquelin (Mem. Soc. Agricult. Departem.
Seine), it is composed chiefly of resin, with a small pro¬
portion of wax, and of acid and aromatic principles. It
is soluble in alcohol, ether, and oils, both fixed and vola¬
tile ; and tinges the solvent of a beautiful red colour.
Cadet has since ascertained in it the presence of benzoic
and gallic acids. Reaumur had not been able to discover
from what plants the bees collect this substance. Riem
asserts that it is chiefly from pines and other trees of the
fir kind. The recent observations of Huber have assisted
in the solution of this question. On placing branches ot
the wild poplar tree before the hive, he found that the
bees eagerly seized upon the varnish which exudes from
the buds; and examining the chemical properties of this
varnish, he identified it with the propolis with which the
inside of the hive is lined. r r. f
The propolis adheres so strongly to the legs and feet o M -0
the bee which has collected it, that it cannot be detacher i,s
without the assistance of its fellow-labourers. For this
purpose the bee that is loaded presents its legs to the
workers in the hive, which carry off with their jaws this
adhesive substance, and immediately apply it, while yet
ductile, all round the interior of the hive, and particulai )
over all the projecting parts ; hence its name, of Grec
/
BEE.
] derivation, signifying before the city. In like manner all
^ j foreign bodies that are introduced into the common
habitation, and are too heavy to be removed, are covered
over with this resinous substance. If a snail, for instance,
should happen to introduce itself into the hive, after dis¬
patching it with their stings, they encrust it over with
propolis. Mr Knight has observed that, besides propolis,
bees will occasional!}^ carry home, and employ as cement,
other substances, having the same glutinous properties.
He frequently covered the decorticated parts of trees, on
which he was making experiments, with a cement com¬
posed of bees’ wax and turpentine ; and in the autumn has
observed a great number of bees occupied in carrying off
this substance. They detached it from the tree with their
forceps, and the little portion thus obtained was then trans¬
ferred by the first to the second leg, by which it was de¬
posited on the thigh of the third, precisely in the same
manner as the pollen of flowers is collected and transfer¬
red. Whilst the bees were employed in the collection of
this substance, Mr Knight had many opportunities of
observing their peaceful and patient disposition as in¬
dividuals, which Mr Hunter had also in some measure
noticed. When one bee had collected its load, and was
just prepared to take flight, another often came behind it
and despoiled it of all it had collected. A second, and
even a third load was collected, and lost in the same man¬
ner; and still the patient insect pursued its labour, with¬
out betraying any symptoms of impatience or resentment.
When, however, the hive is approached, the bee appears
to be the most irritable of all animals, and is animated
with the most vindictive spirit against a public enemy,
without displaying any peculiar hostility in the revenge of
a private injury.
Co! uc- The next object of their labours is to prepare the combs,
tioi the which are to be the receptacles for the eggs with which
the queen is pregnant, and which are now about to be laid.
The material employed for this purpose is not propolis,
but wax, the production of which, by secretion from a
particular set of bees who feed largely upon honey, was for¬
merly explained. The bees are for this purpose actively
employed in collecting honey, and in imparting it to their
companions in the hive, who, when they have filled their
crops with it, hang together in a thick cluster from the
top of the hive, and thus remain in a state of inactivity
for a considerable period. During this time the secretion
of wax is proceeding, and may be seen collected in laminae
under the abdominal scales, whence it is removed by the
hind-legs of the bee, and transferred to the fore-legs, and
from thence taken up by the jaws. In this operation
they are often assisted by their companions, who even
directly seize upon the wax from under the abdomen of
those who are before them. When a sufficient quantity
of materials has thus been collected together, the process
of building is commenced. But, in order to understand
the subsequent operations, it is necessary to have a cor¬
rect idea of the form of the cells which compose the
combs. We shall, therefore, proceed to give some account
°f the structure when they have attained their perfect
state.
Si "l C0rri^s °f a bee-hive are formed into parallel and
11 s> vertical strata, each of which is about an inch in thick¬
ness, the distances between the surfaces of each being
about half an inch, an interval which serves for the pas¬
sage of the bees over both surfaces. They generally ex¬
tend the whole breadth of the hive, and often descend the
whole length, from the top to the bottom. They consist
altogether of thin partitions, which inclose hexagonal cells
about half an inch in depth and a quarter of an inch in
d'ameter, opening on both surfaces of the comb, and closed
7 a partition common to those on both sides, and which
525
occupies the middle distance between the two surfaces. Bee.
This partition is not, however, a plane, but is composed
of a collection of rhombs. Three, and sometimes four of
these rhombs, inclined to one another at a certain angle,
form the bottoms of each cell, which thus has the shape
of a flattened pyramid, of which the basis is towards the
mouth of the cell. The geometric form of each individual
cell is, therefore, an hexagonal prism, terminated by a tri¬
hedral pyramid, the three sides of which pyramid are
rhombs, which meet at the apex by their obtuse angles,
and, forming oblique angles with the sides of the prism,
truncate a portion of these, and convert them from rect¬
angles, which they would be in a regular prism, into tra¬
peziums. Of the two angles of these trapeziums adjoin¬
ing to the base of the pyramid, one must be acute and the
other obtuse, the acute angle of one trapezium being next
to the acute angle of the adjoining trapezium, and the ob¬
tuse angle being in like manner next to another obtuse
angle of the preceding trapezium, so that, in going round
the base, we meet with pairs of acute and of obtuse angles
alternately succeeding each other. The two adjoining
acute angles of the trapezia are adjoining to two of the
terminal rhombs, which here present their acute angles;
so that at these points a solid angle of four planes is form¬
ed, all the angles being acute. Each pair of obtuse angles
of the trapezia, on the other hand, are adjacent to the
obtuse angle of one of the rhombs only, thus composing a
solid angle of three planes, of which the angles are all
obtuse; and these two kinds of solid angles succeed one
another alternately all round the base of the pyramid,
there being three of each kind, and six in all. The axis
of each cell coincides, not with the axis of the cell on the
opposite surface, but with one of its angles, so that each
of the three obtuse angles at the base of the terminal py¬
ramid corresponds to the central parts of three of the
cells on the opposite side ; and each of the sides of the
pyramid, which closes a cell on one side, contributes in
part to the closing of three of the cells on the opposite
side. We may easily satisfy ourselves that this is the
case, by piercing the centres of each of the three planes
which close the bottom of a cell, with a pin, when, on
turning the comb, the three pins will be found to have
passed into three diffe-rent cells on the opposite side.
A structure of this kind is obviously the one of all Geometric
others calculated to afford the greatest space for each cell, properties
with the same expense of materials. It is easy to per-ofthecells-
ceive, in the first place, that, in a plane surface, vdien a
number of small spaces are to be divided by partitions,
the hexagonal form is the one which comprehends the
largest space compatible with the extent of the lines
which inclose them. For the equilateral triangle, the
square, and the regular hexagon, are the only regular
forms that admit of being joined together in the same
plane, without leaving interstices; and the proportion of
the area to the periphery in every polygon increases as the
figure consists of a greater number of sides, and is there¬
fore greater in the hexagon than in any of the other two.
The truth of this proposition was perceived by Pappus,
and even its application to the subject of the honeycomb
was made by that ancient geometrician. But the deter¬
mination of the form and inclination that should be given
to the partitions which close the bottoms of the cells, and
which may of course belong equally to those on both sides
of the comb, is a problem much more complicated and
difficult of solution. It has exercised the skill of several
modern mathematicians of great eminence, and has ge¬
nerally been resolved by the assistance of the infinitesi¬
mal calculus, or the methods of maxima and minima. A
mistake has sometimes been committed inr supposing that
the capacity of the cells would be affected by varying
•26
BEE.
Bee.
the inclination of the partitions, whereas, if abstraction
' be made of the thickness of these partitions, all the space
which is gained on the one side must be obtained at the
expense of the space on the other, and the sum total will
therefore remain the same. This error has been pointed
out by Le Sage of Geneva, and also by others. The
whole question, therefore, resolves itself into that of the
form producing the greatest saving of materials. Kcenig,
the pupil of the celebrated Bernoulli, calculated that the
angles of the rhombs, which should answer this condition,
must be 109° 26' and 70° 34'. Cramer, professor of ma¬
thematics in the university of Geneva, has given a very
elegant demonstration of this problem, from which it re¬
sults that the obtuse angle of the rhomb must be such,
that its half has for its tangent the square root of 2. This
is the case with the angle 54° 44' 8"; the two angles of
the rhomb are therefore 109° 28' 16" and 70° 31' 44". It
follows also that the two diagonals of this rhomb are to
one another in the same proportion as the side and dia¬
gonal of a square, that is, as 1 to 1*41421356237, &c. It
is also another consequence from the same data, that the
angles of the trapezia forming the sides of the hexagonal
prism adjacent to the rhombs are precisely equal to those
of the rhombs themselves, and that the solid angle formed
at the apex of the pyramid, and which is composed of
those equal obtuse angles, is precisely equal to each of
the three angles at the base, which are also formed of
three obtuse angles. It is also true that these are the
only angles which will give this perfect equality. Ma-
raldi had already made the same remark; and, assuming
the principle of the equality of the angles as the basis of
his reasoning, had calculated them on this hypothesis,
making them 109° 28' and 70° 32', which is nearly accu¬
rate. To the same author we are indebted for the com¬
parison of the results of theory with fact, by the admea¬
surement of the actual angles of the honeycomb; these
he states to be about 110° and 70°, which is as near an
agreement with theory as could well be expected.
Boscovich, who has also given a solution of the same
problem, conceives that the equality of inclination of the
planes gives greater facility to the construction of the
comb, and might, therefore, be a motive of preference,
independently of the greater economy of wax. Maclau-
rin has exercised his abilities in resolving this problem,
and has demonstrated by simple geometry, that the most
advantageous form is that which results from the sup¬
posed equality of the three plane angles forming the solid
angles at the base. He estimates the saving of wax by
partitions so constructed, above what would be required
for a flat partition, at one fourth of the wax which would
be wanted to complete the truncated sides of the cells,
so as to form them into rectangles. L’Huillier, in the
Memoirs of the Berlin Academy, has given a demonstration
which is remarkable for its simplicity, and for its involv¬
ing none but elementary propositions; he values the eco¬
nomy of wax at jy of the whole wax employed. Le Sage,
as appears from the life of that philosopher by Professor
Prevost, has shown that this celebrated problem reduces
itself to the finding of the angle at which two planes with
a given inclination (such as 120°) can be cut by a third
plane, so as to make all the angles resulting from the sec¬
tion equal to one anothex*.
But a more essential advantage than even the economy
of wax results from this structure, namely, that the whole
fabric has much greater strength than if it were composed
of planes at right angles to one another; and when we
consider the weight they have to support when stored
with honey, pollen, and the young brood, besides that of
the bees themselves, it is evident that strength is a ma¬
terial requisite in the work.
It has often been a subject of wonder how such dirainu- ft
tive insects, could have adopted and adhered to so regular ^ j
a plan of architecture, and what principles can actuate so
great a multitude to co-operate by the most effectual and
systematic mode in its completion. Buffon has endea-Buffi
voured to explain the hexagonal form by the uniform theoi if
pressure of a great number of bees all working at the same^e J na.
time, exerted equally in all directions in a limited space ;tion the
and illustrates his theory by supposing a number of similarcoml
cylinders compressed together, and taking the form of
hexagonal prisms by the uniform expansion of each. The
analogy of the forms produced by the law of crystalliza¬
tion,—of the figures assumed by various parts in the ani¬
mal and vegetable world, such as the skin of the bat, and
the inner coat of the second stomach of. ruminant quadru¬
peds,—is also adduced by this captivating but superficial
writer in support of his argument. But however plausible
this theory may at first sight appear, it will not stand the
test of a more serious examination. The explanation he
has attempted applies no further than to the inclination
of the sides of the cells; but he did not take into account,
perhaps from not having studied the subject mathemati¬
cally, the inclinations and forms of the planes which close
each cell, and so curiously conspire on both sides to serve
a similar office, while they at the same time accurately
fulfil a refined geometrical condition. But it is sufficient
confutation of the whole theory to show, that it is direct¬
ly at variance with the actual process employed by the
insects in the construction of their combs.
It might be supposed that bees had been provided by Mo of
nature with instruments for building of a form somewhat thei on.
analogous to the angles of the cells ; but in no part, eitherstru on'
of the teeth, antennae, or feet, can any such correspond¬
ence be traced. Their shape in no respect answers to that
of the rhombs, which are constructed by their means, any
more than the chisel of the sculptor resembles the statue
which it has carved. The shape of the head is indeed
triangular, but its three angles are acute, and different
from that of the planes of the cells. The form of the
plates of wax, as they are moulded in the pouches into
which this substance is secreted, is an irregular penta¬
gon, in no respect affording a model for any of the parts ,
which compose the honeycomb. Hunter, observing that
the thickness of the partition was nearly equal to that
of the scale of wax, thought that the bees apply these
scales immediately to the formation of the partition, by
merely cementing them together. Reaumur, notwith¬
standing the use of glass hives, had not been able to
discover the mystery of their process of architecture;
but inferred, from what he saw, that the wax was rejected
from the stomach in the form of a white frothy liquor.
No naturalist, indeed, prior to Huber, had been able to
follow these insects in their labours, on account of their
crowding together in a thick mass while they are build¬
ing ; but the expedients resorted to by that ingenious
philosopher have unfolded the whole process, which he
has given with great detail in the second volume of his
Observations sur les Abeilles. Huber witnessed the whole
of their actions, and saw that each bee drew out, with its
hind feet, one of the plates of wax from under the scales
where it was lodged, and, carrying it to the mouth in a
vertical position, turned it round, so that every part of its
edge was made to pass in succession under the cutting
edge of the jaws ; it was thus soon divided into very sma
fragments, while at the same time a frothy, liquor was
poured upon it from the tongue, so as to form it into a per¬
fectly plastic mass. This liquor gave the wTax a white¬
ness and opacity which it did not possess originally, an
rendered it at the same time tenacious and ductile,
quantity of wax thus prepared for use is accumulate ,
BEE.
527
Ti, and applied to further the work in the manner we are
JC > presently to describe.
But, in considering the process by which the comb is
formed, a circumstance should be pointed out, which
seems not to have been particularly noticed by any author
except Huber; and yet it is one of essential importance in
studying their process of architecture ;—namely, that the
first row of cells on either side are of a form very different
from that of the subsequent rows. As they take their
origin from a plane surface, two of the sides necessary to
complete the hexagon are cut off by this plane, so that the
general form of the orifice is pentagonal; and the bottom
of the cells on one side is composed of two equal rhombs
only, and on the other side of two trapezoidal planes, with
one rhomb. Such a modification of shape was necessary,
in order to prepare the way for the regularly-formed cells
which were to follow.
The foundations of the combs are laid by the bees rais¬
ing a solid block or plate of wax of a semicircular form.
In this they scoop out a small vertical channel, of the
size of an ordinary cell. The sides of this channel are
then strengthened by additions of wax. On the opposite
side two other channels are formed, one on each side of
the plane opposite to the former channel. The extremi¬
ties of these channels, which at first present a curved
outline, are then fashioned into straight walls, forming an
angle at each vertex. The bottom of each cell being
thus sketched out, the design is completed by raising
walls round the sides. Different bees generally work on
the opposite sides at the same time, and appear to have
some perception of the thickness of the partitions, and.of
the situation of the opposite walls, in which they are per¬
haps guided by slight prominences, occasioned by the de¬
pressions which correspond to them on the other side;
and they scrape off the wax in those places where its
thickness is greatest; that is, where the bees on the other
side had accumulated materials. In this way, then, in
constructing the successive rows, the axis of each cell
will be found to occupy the most retiring parts of the
partition, and will be opposite to the junction of three of
the opposite cells.
Soon after the bees have completed the foundations,
and constructed a few of the cells of the central comb,
they begin two others, one on each side, at the proper
distance, and in this manner continue to form others in
succession, in proportion as the former are advanced.
Their object at first seems to be to extend the surface of
the work, so as to admit of the greatest possible number
of workers being employed at one and the same time. In
this way, then, the work proceeds from all points at once,
new cells being begun before the former are completed,
so that the whole comb, while it is in progress of con¬
struction, has a semi-lenticular shape, broader at the top,
and tapering below and towards the sides. It extends
downwards, however, more rapidly than in any other di¬
rection, and its surfaces do not become parallel to each
other till the last stage of the building process. When
this is completed, the whole is further strengthened by an
additional coating of propolis round the margin of all the
cells; and the junctions of every plane, both of the sides
and bottoms of the cells, are also soldered together by a
lining of the same substance. The edges of the combs
are also secured in their situations by being glued to the
side of the hive, and supported by fresh abutments of pro-
P°hs. Sometimes a mixture of wax and propolis, manu-
actured by the bees themselves, is employed as the ce¬
menting material. The first coating of this compound
substance is denominated Commosis by Pliny, and de¬
scribed as having a bitter taste; the second, or the Pisso-
ccm the same author, is stated to be of a thinner con¬
sistence, and more adhesive than the former; while the Bee.
third substance or propolis is completely solid.
The cells recently constructed are perfectly white, but in
a short time they are found of a yellow tint, which becomes
gradually deeper, and, when very ancient, gives them a dark
brown cast. It is therefore easy to distinguish in a hive
the successive periods of formation of different portions
of the combs. From the researches of Huber, it appears
that these variations of colour are not owing to any changes
in the wax itself, but to additional coatings of a peculiar
varnish, consisting of propolis and a colouring matter.
The latter differs materially from propolis, being wholly
insoluble in alcohol. It loses its colour by the action of
nitric acid or the light of the sun. Its origin has not yet
been discovered; nor has the mode in which it is applied
been clearly made out; although Huber presumes, from
his observations, that they spread it by means of their
mandibles, which he has seen them rub against the sides
of the cells, while they acquired a yellow colour from the
operation.
Such is the general outline of the architectural labours Different
of the bee. A number of modifications are however met kinds of
with, adapting them to various purposes and to new cir-cehs-
cumstances. The cells are required to be of different
sizes for the reception of different sorts of eggs and larvae.
The smallest, which are also the most numerous, are ap¬
propriated to the eggs of the working bees; a larger sort
receive those of the males; and a small number of very
large cells are destined for the education of the young
queens, and are therefore called royal cells. The first
set are generally five and one third lines in depth, and
two and a half in diameter; the second are from seven
to seven and a half lines in depth, and three and three
fourths in diameter; while the royal cells are above one
inch deep, one third of an inch wide, and their walls are
about one eighth of an inch in thickness. Other cells,
again, are set apart as magazines of honey or of pollen;
they are made twice as deep as the common cells, and
their axes are inclined to the horizon, so that their mouths
are in the highest part, and their liquid contents may be
more easily retained. When these are filled, they are
closed up by the bees with a wall of wax, and opened
only when necessity requires.
The regularity of the cells is often disturbed in conse- Cells of
quence of the admixture of rows of larger cells with those transition,
of smaller dimensions; but the pyramidal partitions are
adapted by successive gradations to these changes; so
that in many rows of what may be called cells of transi¬
tion, the bottom presents four planes instead of three, two
being trapeziums, and the other two irregular hexagons.
These irregularities are met with chiefly in the combs
most distant from the central one. When an abundant
supply of honey induces them to lay up a large quantity
in store, they build up for this purpose the walls of com¬
mon cells, so as to give them a greater depth. The royal
cells are often raised from the ruins of a number of other
cells, which are destroyed to make room for them; they
are usually built on the edge of some of the shorter combs,
and often in the very centre of the hive. Sometimes there
are but three or four of them; at other times eleven, or
even fourteen, have been counted in the same hive. They
are formed of a mixture of propolis and wax; their form is
oblong, resembling that of a pear ; their position is alw ays
vertical, so that when they arise from amidst other cells,
they are placed against the mouths of those cells, and
project beyond the common surface of the comb. They
are perfectly smooth on the inner surface; while their
outer side is covered with a kind of hexagonal fret-work, as
if they were intended for the foundation of regular cells.
As soon as a sufficient number of cells have been con-
BEE.
528
Bee. structed, the queen begins to deposit her eggs. In those
that have been impregnated the preceding year, the ovi-
Deposition (Jucts begin to swell early in the spring, so that by the month
of the eggs. 0£ jyjarc]1 they are ready to come forth. The queen-bee is,
therefore, the earliest breeder of any insect we are acquaint¬
ed with. But the young queens are capable of laying eggs
thirty-six hours after impregnation. It appears to be now
well ascertained by the experiments of Huber, that she is
aware of the nature of the eggs she is laying, and deposits
each in the kind of cell adapted to receive it. She may be seen
examining attentively the capacity of the cell before laying
her egg. She passes thus from one cell to another, allowing
herself hardly any interval of repose. She commonly lays
two hundred eggs in a day; but if the weather be warm,
and vegetation luxuriant, she will lay a much greater num¬
ber. Tlie cold of autumn suspends this process. The
eggs first produced are those of labourers, and their depo¬
sition continues for ten or twelve days, during which in¬
terval the working bees are busily employed in construct¬
ing the larger cells. The queen next acquires a consider¬
able increase of size, so as to walk with difficulty. She
then lays male eggs in the large cells, during a period of
from sixteen to twenty-four days. They are less nume¬
rous than the former eggs, in the proportion of one to
thirty.
These industrious insects now set about constructing
royal cells; and the queen-bee, having finished her depo¬
sition of male eggs, begins again to lay those of the com¬
mon bees; and finding royal cells open for their reception,
deposits a single egg in each, but only at intervals of one
or two days; the common cells receiving those laid in the
mean time. When the hive is not sufficiently numerous,
or the season has been unproductive, no royal cells are
formed; and the education of a queen is not attempted.
Nourish- As soon as the eggs are deposited, the bees eagerly
mentoftheseek for that species of nourishment on which the larva is
larva;. t0 fecp rpj1js consists of pollen, with a proportion of
honey and of water, which is partly digested in the sto¬
machs of the nursing bees, and which is made to vary in
its qualities according to the age of the young. Pollen is
afforded by flowers in the spring in such abundance that the
bees of a single hive will often carry home above a pound
of this substance in one day. The eggs of bees are of a
lengthened oval shape, with a slight curvature, and of a
bluish white colour. They are hatched without requiring
any particular attention on the part of the bees, except
that of keeping up a proper temperature; in which case
three days are sufficient for the exclusion of the larva.
The larva has the appearance of a small white worm with¬
out feet, which remains generally coiled up at the bottom
of the cell. The nursing bees feed it with great assiduity,
with the kind of jelly above described, and in every
respect exhibit the greatest attachment for them. Mr
Hunter says that a young bee-maggot might easily be
brought up by any person who would be attentive to feed
it. It may be seen opening its two lateral pincers to
receive the food, and then swallowing it. As it grows
up it casts its cuticle, like the larvae of other insects. In
the course of five or six days it has attained its full size,
and nearly fills the cell in which it is lodged : it now
ceases to eat, and the bees close up its cell with a cover¬
ing of wax, or rather a mixture of wax and propolis, which
they possess the art of amalgamating together. During
the next thirty-six hours the larva is engaged in spinning
its cocoon, and in three days more it is converted into
the state of pupa or chrysalis. In this state it is perfectly
white, and every part of the future bee may be distin¬
guished through its transparent covering. In the course
of a week it tears asunder its investing membrane, makes
its way through the outer wall of its prison, and emerges
in its perfect form. Reckoning from the time that the j
egg is laid, it is only on the twentieth day of its existence
that this last metamorphosis is completed. No sooner
has it thus emancipated itself, than its guardians assemble
round it, caress it with their tongues, and supply it plen¬
tifully with food. They clean out the cell which it had
been occupying, leaving untouched, however, the greater
part of the web, which thus serves to bind together still
more firmly the sides of the comb. The colour of the
bee when it quits the cell is a light gray; it requires two
days before it can attain sufficient strength for flying.
The metamorphoses of the male bee follow the same pro¬
gress, but require a few days longer for their completion,
occupying about twenty-four days from the time of the
egg being laid to the attainment of the perfect state.
The eggs deposited in the royal cells are precisely si-Pn is of
milar to those of the working bees, and might be substi-rea Etfe
tuted the one for the other. The larva arises from it pre-‘l11'
cisely in the same manner, and does not differ from the
larva of the workers. But the attention of the nursing
bees is more incessantly bestowed on them; they are sup¬
plied with a peculiar kind of food, which appears to be
more stimulating than that of ordinary bees. It has not
the same mawkish taste, and is evidently acescent. It is
furnished to the royal larva in greater quantities than it
can consume, so that a portion always remains behind in
the cell after its transformation. The growth of the lar¬
va, and the development of all its organs, are very much
accelerated by this treatment; so that in five days it is
prepared to spin its web ; and the bees inclose it by build¬
ing up a wall at the mouth of its cell. The web is com¬
pleted in twenty-four hours; two days and a half are con¬
sumed in a state of inaction, and then the larva transforms
itself into a pupa. It remains between four and five days
in this state ; and thus, on the sixteenth day after the egg
has been laid, it has produced the perfect insect. When
this change is about to take place, the bees gnaw away
part of the wax covering of the cell, till at last it becomes
pellucid from its extreme thinness. This must not only
facilitate the exit of the fly, but may possibly be useful in
permitting the evaporation of the superabundant fluids.
But the queen-bee, although perfectly formed, js not R Iship
always at liberty to come out of her prison; for if the of -
queen-mother be still in the hive, waiting a favourable I1
state of the weather to conduct another swarm, the bees
do not suffer the young queens to stir out; they even
strengthen the covering of the cell by an additional coat¬
ing of wax, perforating it with a small hole, through which
the prisoner can thrust out its trunk in order to be fe
by those who guard it. The royal prisoners continual y
utter a kind of plaintive song, the modulations of which
are said to vary. One consequence of their detention is,
that they are capable of flying as soon as they are set at
liberty. But the motive of this proceeding on the part ot
the bees who guard them, is to be found in the implaca e
hatred which the old queen bears against all those of her
own sex, and which impels her to destroy without niercy
all the young queens that come within her reach. 16
working bees are, on this account, very solicitous to pre
vent her even approaching the royal cells while there is
any prospect of a swarm being about to take place. ie)
establish themselves as a guard around these cells, an,
forgetting their allegiance on this occasion, actually oea
her off as often as she endeavours to come near them. ^
on the other hand, the swarming season is over, or ci
cumstances prevent any further swarms from ^emg se^
off, the bees do not interpose any obstacle to the fu!7
the old queen, who immediately begins the work o
structicn, transfixing with her sting, one after the o ’
the whole of the royal brood while they are yet con
BEE
529
B[ jn their cells. It is observed by Huber, that the royal
J larvae construct only imperfect cocoons, open behind, and
enveloping only the head, thorax, and first ring of the ab¬
domen ; and he conceives that the intention of nature in
this apparent imperfection is, that they may be exposed to
the mortal sting of the queen, to whom they may be given
up as a sacrifice.
When the old queen has taken her departure along with
the first swarm, the young queens are liberated in suc¬
cession, at intervals of a few days, in order to prevent
their attacking and destroying one another, which would
be the infallible consequence of their meeting. This ex¬
terminating warfare is prevented by the vigilance of the
bees who guard them, so long as new swarms are expect¬
ed to take place. When a young queen is liberated, she
is, like others of her sex, anxious to get rid of her rivals,
and even at that early age seeks to destroy her sisters,
who are still confined in the other royal cells; but as
often as she approaches them she is bit, pulled, and
chased without ceremony by the sentinels. But when
the season is too far advanced for swrarming, or when the
hive is too much exhausted in its population by the swarms
that have already been sent off, they no longer interfere
in preserving peace, and the first that acquires her li¬
berty proceeds to massacre all her rivals. If two or more
queens should happen to issue out at the same moment,
they mutually seek each other, and fight till one is killed,
and the survivor is immediately received as the sovereign
of the hive. The bees, far from seeking to prevent these
battles, appear to excite the combatants against each
other, surrounding and bringing them back to the charge
when they are disposed to recede from each other ; but
when either of the queens shows a disposition to approach
her antagonist, all the bees forming the clusters instantly
give way to allow her full liberty for the attack. The first
use which the conquering queen makes of her victory is
to secure herself against fresh dangers by destroying all
her future rivals in the royal cells ; while the other bees,
who are spectators of the carnage, share in the spoil,
greedily devouring any food which may be found at the
bottom of the cells, and even sucking the fluid from the
abdomen of the pupae before they toss out the carcasses.
Impr a. The impregnation of the queen-bee was formerly in¬
volved in the deepest obscurity, and has given rise to a
multitude of very fanciful opinions. Some have denied
that any intercourse with the male was necessary for the
fecundation of the eggs. Swammerdam supposed that the
mere effluvia proceeding from the males, where they were
collected in clusters, was sufficiently active to produce this
effect, by penetrating the body of the female. Huber
proved, by a decisive experiment, that no such conse¬
quence resulted from these effluvia. Maraldi imagined
that the eggs were fecundated by the drones, after being
deposited in the cells, in the same way that the spawn of
fishes is rendered prolific by the milters. Mr Debraw of
Cambridge, in a paper published in the Philosophical
Transactions, fancied that he had seen the milt-like fluid
m the cells. But this appearance has been shown by
Buber to be a mere optical illusion, arising from the re¬
flection of light at the bottom of the cell. When the
wales are excluded from the hive, the queen is as fertile,
and the eggs as prolific, as when they are present. Hat-
ortt supposed that the queen is capable of impregnating
’ -an 0P^ni°n which was supported by Schirach and
Vuhelmi, and was even favourably received by Bonnet,
as it in some measure accorded with his discoveries re¬
specting the aphis, of which our readers will find an ac¬
count in the article Aphis. (See Entomology, Index.)
'unaeus was of opinion that an actual union between the
sexes took place, and Reaumur fancied that he had seen
VOL, IV.
this happen within the hive. There is, however, great Bee.
reason to think that he was mistaken. Huber has clearly
proved that the queen is never impregnated as long as
she remains in the interior of the hive; and, if confined
within it, continues barren, though surrounded by males.
It is only during her flight, at a considerable height in the
air, that the male has complete access to her so as to
effect the impregnation. In half an hour the queen-bee
returns to the hive with unequivocal proofs of the inter¬
course that has taken place, for she has in fact robbed the
drone of the organs concerned in this operation; and the
drone, thus mutilated, is left to perish on the ground.
From its being necessary that the queen should fly to a
distance in order to be impregnated, Huber infers the
necessity of a great number of drones being attached to
the hive, that there may be a sufficient chance of her
meeting one of them during her aerial excursion.
We are now to direct our attention to the migrations of Prepara-
bees, by which new colonies, similar to that which had tion for
originally peopled the parent hive, are founded. The final swarnnng.
causes of this phenomenon are sufficiently obvious ; but it
does not so clearly appear to what circumstances it is
immediately owing. The increasing population of a hive
probably occasions inconvenience from the want of room,
the increase of heat, and the greater vitiation of the air ;
inconveniences which become still more serious as the
summer advances. The spring is accordingly the com¬
mencement of the swarming season ; no swarm, indeed,
will ever take place while the weather is cold, nor until the
hive is well stocked with eggs of every kind. The queen-
bee, in consequence of the great number of eggs she has
been laying, is now reduced to a more slender shape, and
is well fitted for flight. Her aversion for the royal brood,
which she seems to foresee will in no long time become
able to dispute the throne with her, and the vain attempts
she makes to destroy them in the cradle, in which she is
invariably repelled by the'bees who guard them, produce
in her a constant restlessness and agitation, which, as Hu¬
ber represents it, rises to a degree of delirium. This frenzy,
from whatever cause it may originate, is communicated
to the workers; they may be seen hurrying to and fro
in the combs, with evident marks of impatience ; the heat
of the hive is increased by their tumultuous movements ;
it sometimes rises suddenly, on these occasions, from 92°
to above 104°. A general buzz is heard throughout the
hive. This state recurs from time to time, for some days
before the swarm is actually on. the wing; and the interval
is occupied in making preparations for the approaching ex¬
pedition. Provisions are collected in greater quantity by
the working bees. Mr Hunter killed several of those that
came away, and found their crops full, while those that
remained in the hive had their crops not near so full.
Scouts are sent out to look for a proper habitation. Mr
Knight, in the Philosophical Transactions, gives us a curi¬
ous account of his observations on their manoeuvres in
this respect. In the cavity of a hollow tree, which, by
the application of a board, had been fitted up for the
reception of the swarms, he constantly observed, “ that,
about fourteen days previous to their arrival, a small
number of bees, varying from twenty to fifty, were every
day employed in examining, and apparently in keeping
possession of, the cavity; for if molested, they showed
evident signs of displeasure, though they never em¬
ployed their stings in defending their proposed habita¬
tion. Their examination was not confined to the cavity,
but extended to the external parts of the tree above;
every dead knot particularly arrested their attention, as if
they had been apprehensive of being injured by moisture,
which this might admit into the cavity below; and they
apparently did not leave any part of the bark near the ca-
3 x
BEE.
530
Bee. vity unexamined. A part of the colony which purposed
to emigrate appeared in this case to have been delegated
to search for a proper habitation; and the individual who
succeeded must have apparently had some means of con¬
veying information of his success to others; for it cannot
be* supposed that fifty bees should each accidentally meet
at and fix upon the same cavity, at a mile distant from
their hive, which Mr Knight has frequently observed them
to do, in a wood where several trees were adapted for
their reception ; and indeed he observed that they almost
uniformly selected that cavity which he himself thought
was the best adapted to their use. It not unfrequently
happened that swarms of his own bees took possession of
these cavities, and such swarms were in several instances
followed from his garden to the trees; and they were ob¬
served to deviate very little from the direct line between
the one point and the other, which seems to indicate that
those bees who had formerly acted as purveyors now be¬
came guides.”
Departure On the day on which the swarm quits the hive, few of
of the t]ie workers roam to any distance, but several are seen
swarm. performing circles in the air round the hive. The noise is
on a sudden hushed, and all the bees enter the hive ; this
silence announces their immediate departure. A few
workers appear at the door, turn towards the hive, and
striking with their wings, give, as it were, the signal for
flight. All those who are to accompany the expedition
rush towards the door, and issue forth with wonderful ra¬
pidity, rising in the air and hovering for some time, as if
in order to wait for the assemblage of the whole troop;
then, following the motions of the queen, they settle
wherever she alights, forming a dense cluster around her.
Sometimes, from weakness, or some other cause, she returns
back to the hive, and is immediately attended thither by
the rest. But if the weather be fine, the expedition is only
deferred for one or two days, and they again take their
departure. If their return be owing to the loss of their
queen, they remain a fortnight or longer before the at¬
tempt to migrate is renewed, and then the swarm is much
larger than before, which renders it probable that they
have waited for the queen that was to go off with the next
swarm. Sometimes, when every thing indicates an ap¬
proaching emigration, the passage of a cloud across the
sun will suspend all their operations, and the previous
bustle gives place to a state of perfect calm. But, if the
day be not far advanced, the breaking out of sunshine will
renew the commotion, and determine the moment of ac¬
tual flight.
Succession The swarm having rested for some time on the first
of swarms, landing-place, and collected the whole of its numbers,
soars again in the air, keeping in a close phalanx, and di¬
recting its course with great velocity to the spot which
their guides had selected; giving out, at the same time, a
loud and acute-toned hum by the action of their wings.
The parent hive, thus deserted by its queen and a large
proportion of its inhabitants, is busily occupied in repair¬
ing its loss. The bees which remain quietly pursue their la¬
bours ; the young brood, soon arriving at maturity, quickly
fill up every deficiency; and young queens, being allowed
their liberty, one after the other, conduct in their turns
new swarms, in the same manner as the first. The second
swarm is not sent off till after the space of from five to ten
days after the first. The following swarms succeed quicker
to each other, but consist of smaller numbers than the
earlier ones. If it happen that two queens are found in a
swarm, either the swarm divides itself into two, and have
separate destinations, or a single combatbetween the queens
decides on which of them the empire is to devolve. Some¬
times, indeed, they appear not to perceive each other, and
the parties belonging to each construct separate combs
within the same hive; but no sooner do these combs come
in contact, and thus give occasion to the queens meeting j
each other, than the contest begins, and it does nottermi- *
nate but by the death of one of the rival queens. Succes¬
sive swarms are sent off as long as the increase of popula¬
tion admits of it, and the number thus produced in a sea¬
son depends on a variety of circumstances, such as the
abundance of flowers, and the warmth of the climate, and
the capacity of the hive. Bose, while he was French con¬
sul in Carolina, found a hive in the woods which had been
robbed of its wax and honey by the negroes: he contrived
to convey the bees in his hat to a hive in his garden; he
obtained from this hive eleven swarms before the end of
autumn; and these again afforded him the same number
of secondary sw^arms, so that, by the end of the year, he
had twenty-two hives stocked from the one he had thus
saved from destruction. In this country a hive commonly
sends off only two, and sometimes three swarms in the
course of the summer.
Very few drones accompany the new colonies, so that Mas re
almost all those produced in the spring remain in the hive.
But when the queens are impregnated, and no new swarmsdron
are about to take place, the workers, who had till then
suffered them to live unmolested in the hive, are on a sud¬
den seized with a deadly fury towards them, and a scene
of carnage ensues. This usually happens in July or Au¬
gust. They chase their unhappy victims in every quarter,
till they seek a refuge at the bottom of the hive, v/here
they collect in crow'ds, and are indiscriminately, and with¬
out a single exception, massacred by the working bees,
who, with implacable fury, transfix them with their stings,
and throw the dead bodies out of the hive. So great is
their antipathy to all the race of drones, that they destroy,
at the same time, the male eggs and larvae, and tear open
the cocoons of their pupae, in order to devote them to one
common destruction. This sacrifice of the males is not, ^
however, the effect of a blind and indiscriminating instinct;
for if a hive be deprived of its queen, the massacre does q
not take place, while the hottest persecution rages in all
the surrounding hives. In this case the males are allow¬
ed to survive one winter.
Having thus got rid of the useless mouths, which con-Pro ion
sumed, without any advantage to the public, a large Por‘°[r
tion of their provisions, the bees spend the remainder of'1
the summer in collecting stores of honey and of pollen for
the ensuing winter. Their gleanings are now less abundant
than in the spring, and require more labour in the search
and collection. But at this season the leaves of many
kinds of trees, which are covered in the morning with a
saccharine fluid that transudes through them, furnish
them with a species of nourishment, which, though of
very inferior quality to the fluid of the nectarea, still con¬
tributes to their support. Fruit is also attacked by bees,
after the cuticular covering has been broken through by
birds or snails. They also find nutriment in the honey-
dew, which, as already stated, is an excrementitious fluid
from the aphis. Often, however, these resources fad,
and the hive is threatened with famine. On these occa¬
sions the distressed bees frequently betake themselves to ^
plunder. Spies are sent out to examine the neighbouring 1 ^
hives ; allured by the smell of honey, they examine the^
appearance and strength of its possessors; and, selecting
the weakest hive as the object of attack, they begin a fu¬
rious onset, which costs great numbers their lives. If the
invaders should fail in their attempt to force the entrance,
they retreat, and are not pursued by those whom they
have assailed; but if they succeed in making good t e
assault, the war continues to rage in the interior of tie
hive, till one party is utterly exterminated; re|n*°/Ce"
ments are sent for by the invading army, and the bee
B E E.
531
from the neighbouring hives often join the assailants and
'et < sj)are in the plunder. In a short time the whole of the
enemy’s magazines are completely emptied. If, on the
other hand, the invaders should be defeated, the success¬
ful party is by no means safe from the attacks of the bees
from other hives, if any of them should chance to have
mingled in the fray, and especially if they have once pe¬
netrated as far as the magazines, for in that case they are
sure to return, accompanied with a large reinforcement,
and the unfortunate hive that has once been attacked ul¬
timately falls a sacrifice to these repeated invasions.
The close of autumn puts a period to their labours
abroad. They then live on the provisions they have amass¬
ed, till the cold of winter reduces them to a torpid state;
from which they awake on the return of vernal warmth,
and renew the same circle of labours. Sometimes the
strong light reflected from the snow during a clear sun¬
shine deceives them with the appearance of warmth, and
some bees are tempted to issue forth in order to collect
provisions. All who thus venture out perish by the cold
in a few minutes.
Durat Bees seldom die a natural death. They are at all times
■life exposed to a variety of accidents, which thin their num¬
bers; so that the average duration of their lives does not
exceed one year. We may conclude that the whole ge¬
neration is renewed in that space of time, from the results
of experiments which have been tried of marking all the
individuals of a hive in the spring, when it was found that
none were in existence the next season. They are the
natural prey of a number of quadrupeds, birds, and in¬
sects ; many are overtaken by stormy weather, or fly to
too great a distance, and never find their way back again
to the hive ; others are benumbed by cold ; and numbers
perish in battle with others of their own species, or lose
their lives by being unable to withdraw the stings which
Fecu :y they have employed against their enemies. The fecundi-
ty of the queen-bee is, however, adequate not only to re-
1l,eei e,pair these losses, but to multiply the population in a very
high progression. It is computed that in France a single
queen will lay from 30,000 to 60,000 eggs. This however
varies according to the climate; for in Carolina and the
West Indies they are known to produce at least three
times this number. A single intercourse with the male is
sufficient for the fecundation of all the eggs which the
queen lays for at least two years, as has been proved by
Huber; but its influence probably extends to all the eggs
which the queen may lay during the rest of her life. The
same queen has been observed to conduct swarms for two
successive years; but the natural period of their lives is
not known with any certainty. The ancients supposed it
to be seven years; but Feburier suspects that, like the
males, they are destroyed by the labourers when they
have fulfilled their destination; for he was witness to an
attack made by six labourers on a queen, whom he rescued
with difficulty. Mr Hunter observes, that, judging from
analogy, a bee’s natural life is limited to a certain number
of seasons; for he conceives that no individual insect of
any species lives one month longer than the others of
the same species. In the bee, one might suppose the
period of life to be equal to the time that a hive can last;
bur • °Ut ^'s not a necessary consequence, since they keep
oftt ^UP a succession of generations. The comb of the hive
cum] P'ay be said to be the furniture and storehouse of the
bees, which by use must wear out; but, independently of
this, it will in time become unfit for use, by the accumu¬
lation of cocoons, together with the excrements of the
faggots, which are never removed. The former, indeed,
mes the whole cell, top, sides, and bottom; and may be
, 'Anguished from the cocoons of former maggots that
lave been hatched in the same cell, by a portion of dried
Bee.
excrement, which is interposed between them at the
bottom of the cell. Mr Hunter counted above twenty
different linings in one cell, and found the cell about one
quarter or one third filled up. A piece of comb so cir¬
cumstanced, when boiled for the wax, will keep its form,
and the small quantity of wax is squeezed out at different
parts, as if squeezed out of a sponge, and runs together in
the crevices; while a piece of comb that never has been
bred in, even of the same hive, melts almost wholly down.
Hence the combs can only last a certain number of years.
However, to make them last longer, the bees often add a
little to the mouth of the cell, which is seldom done with
wax alone, but with some sort of mixture; and they
sometimes cover the silk lining of the last chrysalis; but
all this, observes Mr Hunter, makes such cells clumsy, in
comparison of the original ones.
We have thus given an account of the principal facts in
the history of bees, as far as they relate to the usual or
natural condition of these insects. We shall conclude
with the relation of several curious phenomena which
they exhibit under particular and unusual circumstances,
in which accident, or the designs of the experimenter,
may have placed them.
The loss of the queen is an event which has the most What hap-
marked influence on their conduct. Although the queen pens when
is constantly an object of attention and of strong affection lose
to the whole community, they are not immediately sen- *
sible of her absence when she is removed from the hive.
The ordinary labours are continued without interruption,
and it is not till a whole hour has elapsed that symptoms
of uneasiness are manifested, and it is even then only par¬
tially displayed. The inquietude begins in one part of
the hive, the workers become restless, abandon the young
which they were feeding, run to and fro, and, by striking
each other with their antennas, communicate the alarming
intelligence very quickly to their companions. The fer¬
ment soon extends to the whole community; the bees
rush precipitately out of the hive, and seek for their lost
queen in every direction. This state of confusion conti¬
nues for two or three, and sometimes for five hours, but
never longer. Tranquillity is again re-established ; they
return to their labours; and selecting one of the larvae
that is not more than three days old, they break down two
of the contiguous cells, sacrificing the larvae contained in
them, and proceed to build up one royal cell from their
ruins. They then supply the worm with the food neces¬
sary to promote its quick growth, and, leaving untouched
the rhomboidal bottom, they raise around it a cylindrical
inclosure. In three days the larva has grown to such a
size as to require an extension of its lodging, and must
inhabit a cell nearly of a pyramidal figure, and hanging
perpendicularly. A new pyramidal tube is therefore con¬
structed with the wax of the surrounding cells, which is
soldered at right angles to the first, and the bees, work¬
ing downwards, gradually contract its diameter from the
base, which is very wide, to the point. In proportion as
the worm grows the bees labour in extending the cell,
and bring food, which they place before its mouth and
round its body, forming a kind of coiled zone around it.
The worm, which can move only in a spiral direction,
turns incessantly to take its food before its head ; it insen¬
sibly descends, and at length arrives at the orifice of the
cell. It then transforms itself into a pupa, is inclosed
with a covering of wax, as before described, and, in the
space of ten days, the original loss is thus repaired by the
birth of a new queen. Schirach found, that if a number
of bees be confined with even a single larva, which, in the
natural course would have become a working bee, they
immediately set about giving it the royal education above
related, and thus raise it to the dignity of queen.
BEE.-
This discovery, which has since been amply confirmed
by recent experiment and observation, was at first chiefly
admired for its singularity in a physiological point of view.
But it is evidently capable of being very advantageously
applied towards the formation of artificial swarms, or new
colonies of bees, by which the produce in honey and wax
may be proportionally augmented. In the early months
of spring, and even during the succeeding months, so late
as November, M. Schirach cut off from an old hive a piece
of that part of the comb which contained the eggs of the
working bees, taking care, however, that it likewise in¬
cluded some worms hatched within the three preceding
days. He fixed this in an empty hive, or box, together
with a portion of honey-comb, &c.; or, in other words,
with a sufficiency of food and building materials, or wax,
for the use of the intended colony. He then put into,
and confined within the box, a sufficient number of com¬
mon working bees, taken from the same or any other
hive. As soon as the members of this small community
found themselves deprived of their liberty, and without a
queen, a dreadful uproar ensued, which continued gene¬
rally, with some short intervals of silence, for the space
of about 24 hours ; during which time it is to be supposed
they were alternately meditating and holding counsel on
the future support of the new republic. On the final ces¬
sation of this tumult, the general and almost constant re¬
sult was, that they betook themselves to work, first pro¬
ceeding to the construction of royal cells, and then tak¬
ing the proper measures for hatching and feeding such of
the brood as were placed within them. Sometimes even
on the second day the foundations of one or more royal
cells were perceptible. This operation has been hitherto
conducted within doors. The new colony may now be
safely trusted in the garden, if the weather be warm, and
have the liberty allowed them of passing out of the box;
of which they instantly avail themselves, and are seen in
a short time almost totally to desert their new habitation.
In about two hours, however, they begin to re-enter it.
We should not neglect to observe, that if they should be
placed near the old hive from which they were taken,
they will very often attempt to enter it, but are as con¬
stantly repulsed by their former companions and brethren.
It is prudent, therefore, to place them at a distance from
the mother state, in order to avoid the inconveniences of
a civil war. The final result of the experiment is, that
the colony of working bees thus shut up, with a morsel of
common brood, not only hatch it, but are found, at the end
of eighteen or twenty days, to have produced from thence
one or two queens, which have apparently proceeded from
worms of the common sort, pitched upon by them for that
purpose; and which, under other circumstances, that is,
if they had remained in the old hive, would, in the course
of their metamorphosis, have attained only to the condi¬
tion of working bees. In the present instance, the common
worm appears to be converted by them into a queen-bee
merely because the hive was in want of one. Hence we
may justly infer that the kingdom of the bees is not, if
the expression may be used, a jure divino, or hereditary
monarchy, but an elective kingdom; in which the choice
of their future ruler is made by the body of the people.
While the hive remains without a queen, swrarming can
never take place, however crowded the hive may be. The
young queens are suffered to come out of their cells with¬
out impediment, and, after a number of deadly combats,
the empire remains with the survivor. Huber has made
the singular observation, that two queens, however inve¬
terate may be their mutual hostility, never actually both
destroy each other; and thatwdien, in the course of their
contest, they are placed in such a relative position as that
each has it in her power to strike a mortal blow on the
other with its sting, they suddenly separate, and fly from B
each other with every appearance of being panic-struck, 'w- j
The final cause of the instinct that prompts this conduct
is sufficiently obvious, as, without it, the hive would be al¬
together deprived of a queen.
The bees recognise the individual person of their own
queen. If another be palmed upon them, they seize and
surround her, so that she is either suffocated or perishes
with hunger; for it is very remarkable that the workers
are never seen to attack a queen-bee with their stings. If,
however, more than eighteen hours have elapsed before
the stranger queen be introduced, she has some chance of
escape. The bees do, indeed, at first seize and confine
her, but less rigidly; and they soon begin to disperse, and
at length leave her to reign over a hive, in which she was
at first treated as a prisoner. If twenty-four hours have
elapsed, the stranger will be well received from the first,
and at once admitted to the sovereignty of the hive. If a
supernumerary queen be introduced into the hive, she is
laid hold of by the bees, and presented to the reigning
queen, while a ring is formed by the bees, who continue
to be spectators, and even promoters of the combat, in
which one or other of the queens is destined to perish.
Schirach and Reims had imagined that, in these circum¬
stances, the stranger met her death from the hands of the
working bees; but this mistake has been rectified by Hu¬
ber, who gives the account above stated.
If the impregnation of the queen be delayed beyond^613 i
the twenty-first day of her life, she begins soon after to*?™1'
lay the eggs of drones, and produces no other kind of11011,
eggs during the remainder of her life. This very curious
and unexpected fact was discovered by Huber, and has
been satisfactorily established by his very numerous and
varied experiments, although its explanation is perhaps
attended with insuperable difficulties. The body of a
queen whose impregnation has thus been retarded is
shorter than common, and the extremities remain slender,
while the first two rings of the abdomen, or those next
the thorax, are uncommonly swollen. On dissecting the
double ovary, both branches were found to be equally
expanded and equally sound, but the eggs were apparent¬
ly not placed so closely together as in common queens.
It was not correctly ascertained whether the queens
whose impregnation was retarded laid a number of drone
eggs corresponding to the whole number of eggs, both of
workers and drones, which they ought to have deposited;
but it is certain that they laid a greater number of drone
eggs than they ought naturally to have done. On these
occasions the instinct of the queen-bee appears to suffer,
for she then lays her eggs indiscriminately in large and
in small cells, those laid in large cells producing large
drones, those in small cells small drones; and she has
been known to lay the eggs of drones even in royal cells,
some of which are always constructed when the queen
begins to lay male eggs. It is curious that the workers
were, on these last occasions, deceived, and treated the
embryo drones as if they had been truly of the royal
brood.
One of the most remarkable facts concerning the ge?e'^™j g
ration of bees, is the existence occasionally of prolific^
workers, the discovery of which we owe to Reims. Al¬
though it was doubted by Bonnet, its reality has been
fully confirmed by the researches of Huber; and it ex¬
plains what was before unaccountable, the production of
eggs in hives absolutely destitute of a queen. It is also
remarkable, that the eggs thus produced are always those
of drones. The origin of these supplementary queens is
accounted for from their having passed the vermicular
state in cells contiguous to the royal ones, and from then
having, at an early period, devoured some portion of the
BEE.
533
P)t stimulating jelly which was destined for the nourishment
^ ^ of the royal brood; and from their ovaria thus receiving
a partial development, which renders them susceptible
of being impregnated. It is curious that these imperfect
queens are still objects of jealousy and animosity to the
queen-bee. How they become impregnated has not been
ascertained; but the fact of their being productive was
a strong confirmation of the truth of Schirach’s theory
concerning the sexes of bees. Needham, to whom the
fact was known, had eluded the force of the argument by
pretending that these bees did not belong to the working
class, but were real queens of an unusually small size.
The supposed absence of ovaria in the working bee was
still, indeed, a difficulty which tended to throw some de¬
gree of doubt on the correctness of Schirach’s doctrine.
No person, as Bonnet repeatedly alleges, could suppose
that these organs, however minute they might be, had es¬
caped the penetration of Swammerdam, who was unrival¬
led in his anatomical skill in all that related to insects,
and who had bestowed great labour in the examination of
the structure of the bee. What had eluded his scalpel
and microscope was reserved for the still finer hand and
more dexterous dissection of a lady. Miss Jurine, the
daughter of the celebrated naturalist of Geneva, has dis¬
covered, by adopting a particular method of preparing
the object to be viewed, the rudiments of ovaria in the
common working bee ; she examined a great number, and
never failed to find them. Cuvier, in his Lemons dAna¬
tomic Compares, mentions a suspicion that he had seen
some very small oviducts in the working bees, a suspicion
which we now find to be completely verified. t
Effec if We have next to relate the results of experiments of a
more cruel kind, but which illustrate several points in the
physiology of these insects. The amputation of the four
wings of the queen did not interfere with her laying of
the eggs, and the workers did not show her the less at¬
tention on account of her being thus mutilated. Of
course, if the operation be performed before she is im¬
pregnated, she remains barren, since it is necessary for
the sexual congress that she should fly out of the hive.
The amputation of a single antenna appeared to be pro¬
ductive of no bad consequence of any kind; but the re¬
moval of both the antennae was followed by singular ef¬
fects. The queen who had suffered this operation ran
about in apparent disorder, dropping her eggs at random,
and was incapable of directing her trunk with precision to
the food that was offered her. At times she appeared de¬
sirous of escaping from the hive, and when this was pre¬
vented, she returned in a state of delirium, was indiffer¬
ent to the caresses of the workers, and received another
similarly mutilated queen, that wras presented to her,
without the least symptom of dislike. The workers, on
the other hand, received the stranger queen with great
respect, although the first still remained in the hive. A
third queen, not mutilated, was next introduced; she was
very ill received, and immediately detained and kept close
prisoner. When the queen, deprived of her antennae, was
allowed to quit the hive, she was followed by none of the
Van ns Wor^ers> and was abandoned to her fate,
inth , ^ees aaturally build from above downwards, but may,
modi ay a particular artifice, devised by Huber, be induced to
builc , reverse this process. For this purpose a glass hive, with
slender laths fixed at the bottom of it, must be provided,
and the bees confined in it. They are unable to fasten
hemselves to the smooth surfaces, and, therefore, esta¬
blish the foundations of the combs on the wood, and are Bee.
forced to proceed in a direction opposite to the usual one;
in this way Huber was enabled to observe their proceed¬
ings. But the readiest mode of inducing them to build
in any particular direction is to supply them with portions
of ready-made combs, which should be fixed with wires
in the proper position; and they will always continue to
complete them upon the model presented to them. The
hive which Huber recommends is constructed on this
principle, consisting of upright frames of a square form,
fitted to each other, and of such a size as just to contain
each of them a single comb; by separating these, every
part of the hive can be laid open and examined with the
utmost ease. Feburier has improved upon this construc¬
tion by changing the shape of the frames from a square
to a trapezium, having an acute angle at the summit; a
form which allows the moisture that collects at the top to
run down the sides more easily than it would do from a
flat roof. In this way, any portion of the honey or wax
may be removed at pleasure, without hurting or incom¬
moding any one of the bees; and artificial swarms may,
at the proper season, be readily procured, by dividing the
hive into two portions, and adapting empty frames to each
portion.
The wasp and the hornet have long been known as the Enemies
determined enemies of the bee, committing great ravages of bees,
among these weaker insects : the)r attack them individual¬
ly, but oftener commit their aggressions in large armies,
on which occasions numbei’s perish on both sides. In
some parts of America, wasps have multiplied to so great
a degree, as to render it impossible to rear bees. Among
quadrupeds, the ant-eater occasionally devours them.
The bear and the badger overturn the hives, and plunder
their contents. Rats and mice are very formidable ene¬
mies, as they invade them at all seasons, and especially
during their torpid state, wrhen they are incapable of re¬
venging the aggression. The woodpecker may succeed in
breaking through the hive, and then speedily destroys all
its inhabitants ; the swallow, the sparrow, the titmouse, the
cuckoo, and the Merops apiaster, or bee-eater, and poultry
of evei'y kind, prey upon them separately. According to
Bose, they are also food for the shrikes, and for the Falco
apivorus. Lizards watch for them, and seize them as they
alight near the hive. Toads occasionally devour them.
They are in some danger from the larger kinds of spiders,
and of Libellulce, as also from the Philanthus apivorus of
Fabricius. But the most insidious and destructive enemy
of these insects is the moth ; various species of which, par¬
ticularly the Phalena mellolena, insinuate themselves into
the hive, and deposit their eggs unperceived between the
cells in such numbers, that the hive is soon overrun with
the larvae, where they are hatched, and the bees are forced
to abandon the hive. A new enemy of the same tribe has
been lately discovered by Huber, in the Sphinx atropos,
well known by the name of death’s head. Towards the end
of autumn, wdxen the bees have filled their xnagazines, a loud
hum is sometimes heard near their habitation, and a multi¬
tude of Jxees come out during the night, and fly about in the
utmost confusion. The tumult continues for several hours,
and the next morning a number of dead bees are strewed
before the hive. On examining the hive, it is found to have
been robbed of all its honey, and the bees do not return
to it.1 These effects result from the incursions of the
sphinx, which watches its opportunity to introduce itself
into the hive during the night, when the bees are depriv-
Iliere appears to be some exaggeration or misconception in this statement of the Genevese observer. The death’s head moth is
“I16 °i the largest of the lepidopterous insects of Europe, and could not possibly effect an entrance into any hive constructed with or-
Unary care. Nor is it probable that it could consume more than a very small portion of honey, even if it were to obtain admission.
BEE.
534
Bee. ed of the advantages of vision, which the sphinx enjoys
in greater perfection at this period. By rendering the
door-way extremely narrow, so as only to admit a single
bee at a time, this accident may be prevented; and it is
curious that the bees themselves frequently anticipate this
danger, and provide against it by employing, of their own
accord, the very same mode of defence. They construct
a thick wall, which barricades the entrance, and resembles
a regular fortification, with bastions, casemates, and mas¬
sive gateways. They often, indeed, have recourse to a simi¬
lar contrivance for protection against the pillaging bees,
enabling them to repel the assault with greater effect. At
other times, when the danger is less pressing, the incon¬
veniences of so narrow a gateway being strongly felt, they
enlarge it by removing the fortification they had built,
and do not again construct it unless the appearance of
the enemy in the ensuing season should inspire them with
fresh alarms. If, on the other hand, the precaution of
narrowing the gateway should already have been taken by
the cultivator, the bees, feeling themselves secure, spare
themselves the unnecessary labour of erecting these walls.
This single trait in their history is a sufficient refutation
of those theories which ascribe all their actions to the
operation of a blind indiscriminating instinct, and would
exclude every species of foresight and reflection, (y.)
In the article Apiary of this work we have already de¬
scribed the leaf and book hives of M. Huber, with the
proposed improvements of several other apiarians. The
chief objection to some of these is the expense and diffi¬
culty of their construction, and the greater degree of
attention which they exact on the part of the cultivator.
Those made of straw are generally preferred, as being less
liable to be overheated by the rays of the sun : theyare like¬
wise of easy purchase, from their cheapness ; and in winter
they exclude the cold better than hives made of other
materials. The following is Mr Wildman’s account of the
structure and general management of his hives:—“ My
hives are seven inches in height and ten in width. The
sides are upright, so that the top and bottom are of the same
diameter. A hive holds nearly a peck. In the upper row
of straw there is a hoop of about half an inch in breadth,
to which are nailed five bars of deal, full a quarter of an
inch in thickness and an inch and quarter wide, and
half an inch asunder from one another; a narrow short
bar is nailed at each side, half an inch distant from the
bars next them, in order to fill up the remaining parts of
the circle; so that there are in all seven bars of deal, to
which the bees fix their combs. The space of half an
inch between the bars allows a sufficient and easy passage
for the bees from one comb to another. In order to give
great steadiness to the combs, so that, upon moving the
hive, the combs may not fall off, or incline out of their
direction, a stick should be run through the middle of the
hive, in a direction directly across the bars, or at right
angles with them. When the hives are made, a piece of
wood should be worked into the lower row of straw, long
enough to allow a door for the bees, of four inches in
length, and half an inch in height.
I he proprietor of the bees should provide himself
with several flat covers of straw, worked of the same thick¬
ness as the hives, and a foot in diameter, that so it may
be of the same width as the outside of the hives. Before
the cover is applied to the hive, a piece of clean paper,
oi the size of the top of the hive, should be laid over it;
and a coat of cow-dung, which is the least apt to crack of
any cement easily to be obtained, should be laid all round
the circumference of the hive. Let the cover be laid upon
this, and made fast to the hive with a packing-needle and
pack-thread, so that neither cold nor vermin may enter.
“ Each hive should stand single on a piece of deal or Bi
other wood, somewhat larger than the bottom of the hive. ^
That part of the stand which is at the mouth of the hive
should project some inches for the bees to rest on when
they return from the field. This stand should be support¬
ed upon a single post, two and a half feet high, to which
it should be screwed very securely, that high winds or
other accidents may not blow down both stand and hive.
A quantity of soot mixed with barley chaff should be
strewed on the ground round the post, which will effec¬
tually prevent ants, slugs, and other vermin, from risirw
up to the hive. The soot and chaff should from time to
time be renewed as it is blown or washed away, though,
as it is sheltered by the stand, it remains a considerable
time, especially if care be taken that no weeds rise through
it. Weeds, indeed, should not be permitted to rise near
the hive, for they may give shelter to vermin which may
be hurtful to the bees.
“ The stands for bees should be four yards asunder, or,
if the apiary will not admit of so much, as far asunder as
may be, that the bees of one hive may not interfere with
those of another hive, as is sometimes the case when the
hives are near one another, or on the same stand; for the
bees, mistaking their own hives, light sometimes at the
wrong door, and a fray ensues, in which one or more may
lose their lives.”
He further directs, that whoever intends to construct
an apiary should purchase a proper number of hives at the
latter part of the year, when they are cheapest. These
should be full of combs, and well stored with bees. The
purchaser should also examine the combs, with a view to
ascertain the age of the hives. The combs of the season
are white ; those of the former year are of a darkish yel¬
low ; and where the combs are black, the hive should be
rejected, because when old they are more subject to the
attacks of vermin and other accidents. If the requisite
number of hives have not been purchased in the autumn,
it will be necessary to remedy this neglect as soon as the
severity of the cold has passed in spring. At this season,
according to Mr Wildman, bees which are in good condi¬
tion will go into the fields early in the morning, return well
laden, enter boldly, and will seldom leave their home in
bad weather. They are alert on the least disturbance;
and we may judge of their strength by the loudness of
their humming. The summer is not an advisable season
for purchasing bees, because the heat of the weather
softens the wax, and renders the combs liable to break
and give way, if they are not well secured in the interior.
The honey, too, being thinner than at other times, is
more apt to run from the cells, which not only occasions
a loss of the material, but daubs, and possibly destroys,
the bees.
Mr Wildman’s feats in the handling of these irritable
and pugnacious creatures have been the frequent subject
of surprise. As it is often of consequence to be able to
regulate the settling of a swarm, we shall here subjoin his
method in his own words. “ Long experience has taught
me, that as soon as I turn up a hive, and give it some taps
on the sides and bottom, the queen immediately appears to
know the cause of this alarm, but soon retires again among
her people. Being accustomed to see her so often, I rea¬
dily perceive her at first glance; and long practice has
enabled me to seize her instantly with a tenderness that
does not in the least endanger her person. This is of the
utmost importance, for the least injury done to her brings
immediate destruction to the hive, if you have not a spare
queen to put in her place, as I have too often experienced
in my first attempts. When possessed of her, I can with¬
out injury to her, or exciting that degree of resentment
that may tempt her to sting me, slip her into my other
B E E.
535
hand, and, returning the hive to its place, hold her there,
J! t tin the bees, missing her, are all on wing, and in the ut¬
most confusion. When the bees are thus distressed, I
place the queen wherever-1 would have the bees to settle.
The moment a few of them discover her, they give notice
to those near them, and those to the rest, the knowledge
of which soon becomes so general, that in a few minutes
they all collect themselves round her, and are so happy in
having recovered this sole support of their state, that they
will long remain quiet in their situation. Nay, the scent
of her body is so attractive of them, that the slightest
touch of her along any place or substance will attach the
bees to it, and induce them to pursue any path she takes.”
This was the only witchcraft used by Mr Wildman, and
is that alone which is practised by others who have since
made similar exhibitions.
In the management of bees a great deal must of course
depend on supplying them with an abundant pasture. A
rich corn country is well known to be to them as a barren
desert during a great portion of the year. Hence the ju¬
dicious practice of shifting them from place to place ac¬
cording to the circumstances of the season. It was the
advice of Celsus, that after the vernal pastures were con¬
sumed, bees should be transported to places abounding
with autumnal flowers; and it was in accordance with such
advice that they were annually carried in ancient times
from Achaia to Attica, and from Eubcea and the islands
of the Cyclades to Scyrus. In Sicily, also, they were
brought to Hybla from other parts of the island. So also
in our own country the people of the lowlands, as soon as
the “ bright consummate flowers” of summer are on the
wane, dispatch their hives in cart loads to the blooming
heather of the mountain pastures, where a never-ending
wilderness of sweets is spread before them. It is indeed
to be regretted that our moorlands, in this respect, are so
much more neglected than they ought to be. The very
air of the highland hills is often redolent with the rich
perfume, while here and there a solitary bee is seen or
heard labouring with wearied wing among the inexhaus¬
tible stores of nature, and scarcely able to regain its lonely
shieling in the distant vale. When we consider the po¬
verty of our mountaineers, and their frequent want of oc¬
cupation, it is the more to be lamented that so easy a
source of emolument should lie open to them in vain. It
has been calculated that the pastures of Scotland could
maintain as many bees as would produce 4,000,000 pints
ot honey and 1,000,000 pounds of wax; and were these
quantities tripled for England and Ireland, the produce of
the British empire would be 12,000,000 pints of honey,
and 3,000,000 pounds of wax per annum. If we allow five
shillings per pint for the honey and one shilling and six¬
pence per pound for the wax, we have an annual produce
in money of L.3,225,000. But, in consequence of the pre¬
sent neglect of this branch of rural economy, we pay every
year a large sum to foreign nations for articles which we
could raise ourselves, with scarcely any outlay either of
capital or time.
We learn from Pliny that the practice of removing bees
hom place to place was frequent in the Roman, territories.
‘ .^■s soon,” says he, “ as the spring food for bees has
Jailed in the valleys near our towns, the hives of bees are
put into boats, and carried up against the stream of the
uver in the night, in search of better pasture. The bees
go out in the morning in quest of provisions, and return
jcgularly to their hives in the boats, with the stores they
jave collected. This method is continued till the sink-
*og of the boats to a certain depth in the water shows that
hives are sufficiently full; and they are then carried
ock to their former homes, where their honey is taken out
0 them. And this is still the practice of the Italians who
live near the banks of the Po, the river which Pliny in¬
stanced particularly in the passage above quoted. '
M. Maillet relates, in his description of Egypt, that, in
“ spite of the ignorance and rusticity which have got pos¬
session of that country, there yet remain in it several foot¬
steps of the industry and skill of the ancient Egyptians.
One of their most admirable contrivances is, their send¬
ing their bees annually into distant countries, in order to
procure them sustenance there, at a time when they could
not find any at home ; and their afterwards bringing them
back, like shepherds who should travel with their flock,
and make them feed as they go. It was observed by the
ancient inhabitants of Lower Egypt, that all plants blos¬
somed, and the fruits of the earth ripened, above six
weeks earlier in Upper Egypt than with them. They ap¬
plied this remark to their bees ; and the means then made
use of by them to enable these usefully industrious in¬
sects to reap advantage from the more forward state of
nature there, were exactly the same as are now practised
for the like purpose in that country. About the end of
October, all such inhabitants of Lower Egypt as have
hives of bees, embark them on the Nile, and convey them
up that river quite into Upper Egypt; observing to time
it so that they arrive there just when the inundation is
withdrawn, the lands have been sown, and the flowers be¬
gin to bud. The hives thus sent are marked and num¬
bered by their respective owners, and placed pyramidi-
cally in boats prepared for the purpose. After they have
remained some days at their farthest station, and are sup¬
posed to have, gathered all the wax and honey they could
find in the fields within two or three leagues around,
their conductors convey them in the same boats two or
three leagues lower down, and there leave the laborious
insects as long time as is necessary for them to collect all
the riches of this spot. Thus the nearer they come to
the place of their more permanent abode, they find the
productions of the earth, and the plants which afford them
food, forward in proportion. In fine, about the beginning
of February, after having travelled through the whole
length of Egypt, gathering all the rich produce of the de¬
lightful banks of the Nile, they arrive at the mouth of
that river, towards the ocean, from whence they set out,
and from whence they are now returned to their several
homes ; for care is taken to keep an exact register of every
district from whence the hives were sent in the beginning
of the season, of their numbers, of the names of the per¬
sons who sent them, and likewise of the mark or number
of the boat in which they were placed.”
In many parts of France floating bee-houses are very
common. They have on board one barge three score or
a hundred bee-hives, well defended from the inclemency
of an accidental storm. With these the owners suffer
themselves to float gently down the river, the bees conti¬
nually choosing their flowery pasture along the banks of
the stream; and thus a single floating bee-house yields
the proprietor a considerable income.
They have also a method of transporting their bees by
land, well worth our imitation in many parts of this king¬
dom. Their first care is to examine those hives, some of
whose honeycombs might be broken or separated by the
jolting of the vehicle; they are then made fast one to
the other, and against the sides of the hive, by means
of small sticks, which may be disposed differently as oc¬
casion points out. This being done, every hive is set
upon a packing-cloth, or something like it, the threads of
which are very wide; the sides of this cloth are then
turned up and laid on the outside of each hive, in which
state they are tied together with a piece of small pack¬
thread wound several times round the hive. As many
hives as a cart built for the purpose will hold are after-
Bee.
BEE.
536
Bee wards placed in the vehicle. The hives are set two and
II two, the whole length of the cart. Over these are placed
Beeder. others, which make as it were a second story or bed of
hives. Care is taken in this stowage not to let one hive
stop up another, it being essentially necessary for the bees
to have air; and it is for this reason they are wrapped up in
a coarse cloth, the threads of which have been wove very
wide, in order that the air may have a free passage, and
lessen the heat which these insects raise in their hives,
especially when they move about very tumultuously, as
often happens in these carts, dhose used for this purpose
in Yevre hold from thirty to forty-eight hives. As soon as
all are thus stowed, the caravan sets out. If the season is
sultry, they travel only in the night; but a proper advantage
is taken of cool days, dhese caravans do not travel fast.
The horses must not be permitted even to trot: they are
led slowly, and along the smoothest roads. When there are
not combs in the hives sufficient to support the bees during
their journey, the owner takes the earliest opportunity of
resting them wherever they can collect the materials for
wax. The hives are taken out of the cart, then set upon the
ground, and after removing the cloth from over them, the
bees go forth in search of food. The first field they come
to serves them as an inn. In the evening, as soon as they
are all returned, the hives are shut up; and being placed
again in the cart, they proceed on their journey. When
the caravan has arrived at the journey’s end, the hives are
distributed in the gardens, or in the fields adjacent to the
houses of different peasants, who, for a very small reward,
undertake to look after them. Thus it is that, in such
spots as do not abound in flowers at all seasons, means are
found to supply the bees with food during the whole year.
These instances of the great advantages which attend
the shifting of bees in search of pasture afford an excellent
lesson to many places in this kingdom : they direct parti¬
cularly the inhabitants of the rich vales, where the har¬
vest for bees ends early, to remove their stocks to places
which abound in heath; this plant continuing in bloom
during a considerable part of autumn, and yielding great
abundance of food to bees. Persons in the neighbourhood
of hills and mountains will save the bees a great deal of
labour, by also taking the advantage of shifting their places
of abode.
The degree of cold which bees can endure has not been
ascertained, though it is no doubt considerable. They
survive the winter in many cold parts of Russia, in hollow
trees, without any attention being paid to them ; and their
hives are frequently made of the bark of trees, which does
not afford a very complete protection from the effects of
frost. Many hives which are thought to die of cold in
winter die in reality of famine, when a rainy summer and
cold autumn have prevented their laying in a sufficient
store of provisions. The hives should therefore be care¬
fully examined in the after-part of the season, and the
amount of food ascertained. Mr White judiciously ob¬
serves, that bees which stand oh the north side of a build- ]
ing whose height intercepts the sun’s beams all the win¬
ter will waste less of their provisions than others which sr.
stand in the sun ; for, coming forth seldom, they eat little, ^
and yet are as forward in the spring to work and swarm
as those which had twice as much honey left with them
the preceding autumn. The owner ought, however, to
examine their condition in the course of the winter, ami
if he finds that, instead of being clustered between the
combs, numbers have fallen to the bottom of the hive, it
should immediately be shifted to a warmer place.
In regard to the destruction of bees, it has been observ¬
ed that no true lover of these industrious insects ever
lighted the fatal match without concern. One of the
easiest and most simple methods of obtaining possession
of a portion of their store is the following : Uncover the
hole in the upper centre of a flat-topped straw hive or
box, and.place a glass vessel over it in such a way that
no bee can get either in or out except by the ordinary
opening of the lower hive. The glass hive must be cover¬
ed with an empty hive or with a cloth, that too much light
may not prevent the bees from working. As soon as they
have filled the straw hive or box, they will begin to work
up into the glass hive. Mr Thorley, junior, informs us,
that he himself has had one of these glass hives filled by
the bees in thirty days in a fine season; and that it contain¬
ed 38 pounds of fine honey. When the glass is complete¬
ly filled, slide a tin plate between it and the hive or box,
so as to cover the passage, and in half an hour the glass
may be taken off with safety. What few bees remain in
it will readily go to their companions. He has added a
glass window to his straw hives, in order to see what pro¬
gress bees make ; which is of some importance, especially
if one hive is to be taken away whilst the season still con¬
tinues favourable for their collecting honey ; for when the
combs are filled with honey, the cells are sealed up, and
the bees forsake them and reside mostly in the hive in
which their works are chiefly carried on. Observing also
that the bees were apt to extend their combs through the
passage of communication in the upper hive, whether glass
or other, which rendered it necessary to divide the comb
when the upper hive was taken away, he now puts in that
passage a wire screen or netting, the meshes of which are
large enough for a loaded bee to go easily through them.
This prevents the joining of the combs from one box to
the other, and consequently obviates the necessity of cut¬
ting them, and of spilling some of the honey, which run¬
ning down among a crowd of bees, used before to incom¬
mode them much, it being difficult for them to disencum¬
ber their wings.
We shall conclude by observing, that the honey-bee
(apis mellificd) is supposed to be of Asiatic origin. They
were imported from Europe to America, where they are
now found wild in great numbers, and at a vast distance
from human habitations. (T0
BEE-Eater. See Ornithology, Index.
BEECH-Mast, the fruit of the beech-tree, said to be
good for fattening hogs, deer, and other animals. It has
sometimes proved a useful substitute for bread. Chios is
said to have endured a memorable siege by means of it.
Beech-Oil, an oil drawn by expression from the mast
of the beech-tree, after it has been shelled and pounded.
This oil is very common in Picardy, and is used there and
in other parts of France instead of butter; but most of
those who take a great deal of it complain of pains and a
heaviness in the stomach.
BEEDER, a province of Hindostan, in the Deccan, si¬
tuated principally between the 16th and 18th degrees of
N. lat. It is bounded on the north by Aurungabad and
Berar, on the south by the province of Hyderabad, on
the east by Hyderabad and Gundwana, and on the west
by Aurungabad and Bejapoor. This country is compre¬
hended in the dominions subject to the Nizam, and is
governed by his officers. It is of an uneven and hilly sur¬
face, but not mountainous, and is watered by many sma
rivers, which flow into the larger streams of the Beema,
Krishna, and Godavery. The country is in general pr°'
ductive, and was flourishing and populous under the o
Hindoo government; but it is now thinly inhabited, com
BEE
pared with the British provinces. Although this province
H has long been ruled by princes of the Mahommedan per-
Bee suasion, the Hindoos form the great bulk of the population,
Ke« , exceeding the Mahommedans in the proportion of ten to
W 0ne. The largest rivers are the Godavery and Manjera,
and the chief towns Beeder, Calberga, Nundere, and Cal-
liany. After the Mahommedan conquest this province
was the seat of a dynasty of Deccan sovereigns, who be¬
gan to reign in a. n. 1347. Along with the other Deccan
provinces, the country fell under the Mogul dominion to¬
wards the conclusion of the seventeenth century, during
the reign of Aurungzebe, from whose successors it was
separated in 1717 by Nizam ul Muluck, and has ever since
remained in the possession of his posterity.
Beeder, the capital of the above province, is situated
in an open plain, except on the east side, where the
ground rises to the height of about 100 yards. This place is
fortified with a stone wall about six miles in circumference,
a dry ditch, and many round towers. The town is much
decayed, but the remains of many old buildings are still
visible. Befoi'e the Mahommedan invasion it was the seat
of a Hindoo sovereignty. The travelling distance from
Hyderabad is 78 miles, from Delhi 857, from Madras 430,
and from Calcutta 980 miles.
BEEF, the flesh of black-cattle prepared for food. Ac¬
cording to Dr Cullen, beef, though of a more firm texture
and less soluble than mutton, is equally alkalescent, per¬
spirable, and nutritious.
Beef-Eater. See Ornithology, Index.
BEELE, a kind of pick-axe, used by the miners for
separating the ores from the rocks in which they are em¬
bedded. This instrument is called a tubber by the miners
of Cornwall.
BEEMAH, a idver of Hindostan, which has its rise in
the mountains to the north of Poonah, not many miles
from the source of the Godavery. It passes within thirty
miles of the town of Poonah, where it is called Bewrah, and
is esteemed by the Hindoos a sacred river. It is one of the
principal tributaries of the Krishna, which it joins near the
town of Firozegur, in the province of Beeder. The length
of its course, including its windings, may be 400 miles.
BEER, or Bir, a town of Asiatic Turkey, in the go¬
vernment of Orfa. It occupies an elevated situation on
the left bank of the Euphrates, which is here about 130
yards broad, deep and rapid, and is crossed by a bridge
of boats, where a pontage is exacted of passengers. The
town consists of 500 houses, mostly in a decaying state,
and is protected by a citadel, which stands on a precipi¬
tous eminence, and by a wall in a dilapidated condition.
Beer is a considerable thoroughfare from Aleppo to Orfa,
Diarbekir, and Persia, and a considerable trade was for-
fflerly carried on to Bagdad by vessels descending the
wer. It is 144 miles north-east of Aleppo, and 115 south¬
west of Diarbekir. Long. 38. 6. E. Lat. 36. 48. N.
Beer. See Brewing.
BEERALSTON, a borough-town in the parish of Beer-
feris and hundred of Roborough, in the county of Devon,
*to miles from London, and near the navigable river Tamar.
It returns two members to parliament, who are chosen by
t ie holders of ancient burgages, the majority of which are
| ie property of the earl of Beverley. As there are few
•ouses, the elections of magistrates as well as of members
are held under a large tree.
. BEER REGIS, a market-town in the hundred of Beer,
w the county of Dorset, 112 miles from London. Near it
a hill, which was formerly a Roman encampment, and
Vpre 18 annually held one of the largest fairs in the west
ngland, during two weeks in September. The inha¬
bitants amounted in 1801 to 936, in 1811 to 953, and in
1821 to 1080.
VOL. IV.
BEE 537
BEERING & or Behring’s Island, an island in the Beering’s
Northern Pacific Ocean, which some geographers place Island
in the Aleutian chain. It extends 104 miles in length by II
fifteen in breadth, and is mountainous and sterile. XhisBeethoven'
island is mostly frequented by vessels engaged in the fur
trade, and is of dangerous access, having only two bays,
which are shallow, and exposed to the north winds. The
surrounding seas formerly abounded in whales, phocae, and
multitudes of sea-otters and other animals. But most of
these animals have been greatly diminished, owing to the
avidity with which they have been pursued. This island was
first discovered in 1740 or 1741 by Beering, a commodore
in the Russian service. It is distant 192 miles north-east
of the harbour of St Peter and St Paul in Kamtschatka.
Beering’s or Behring’s Straits, the narrow sea be¬
tween the west coast of North America and the east coast
of Asia, so named from Captain Beering, who, with Tshiri-
kow sailed from Kamtschatka, on a voyage of discovery
to the New World. They both discovered land near the
north-west coast of America; and more recently the near
approach of the American and Asiatic shores, the general
bearing of which has since been ascertained by Captain
Cook and other navigators. These straits, in lat. 66. N.,
are 13 leagues wide, beyond which they diverge to the
north-east by east and west-north-west; and in lat. 69. N.
they are about 100 leagues across. The depth of w'ater in
the middle varies from 20 to 30 fathoms.
BEEROO, a considerable kingdom of central Africa,
lying to the north of Bambarra, and west of Timbuctoo.
It is very little known, having never been visited by any
European. The people are Mahommedans, and its capital
is Walet, a large towm, enriched by being the chief em¬
porium of the trade in salt, which is conveyed from the
tracts in the great desert where it abounds, to those along
the Niger, where it is entirely wanting. That city has
ever been stated to be equal in magnitude to Timbuctoo.
BEEROTH, a village of Judaea, situated at the foot of
Mount Gabaon, seven miles from iElia or Jerusalem, on
the road to Nicopolis.
BEERSHEBA, or Bersabe, a city to the south of the
tribe of Judah, adjoining to Idumaea.
BEESTINGS, or Breastings, a term used by country
people for the first milk taken from a cow after calving.
The beestings are of a thick consistence and yellow co¬
lour, seemingly impregnated with sulphur. D Morgan
imagines them peculiarly fitted and intended by nature
to cleanse the young animal from the recrements gathered
in its stomach and intestines during its long habitation
in utero. He supposes w-omen’s first milk after delivery
to possess a similar virtue ; and hence he infers the neces¬
sity of the mother’s suckling her owm child, rather than
committing it to a nurse whose first milk is gone.
BEETHOVEN, Ludwig Von, one of the greatest piano¬
forte players and musical composers of modern times, w^as
born in the year 1772, at Bonn, in Prussian Germany.
Some foreign waiters allege that he was a natural son of
Frederick William II. king of Prussia.
His musical genius, like Mozart’s, seems to have been
very early developed. He is said to have been at once a
performer and a composer when only eleven years old.
His first master was C. G. Neefe, chapel-master and orga¬
nist at Bonn. His next was the celebrated teacher, theo¬
retical writer, and composer, Albrechtsberger, then chapel-
master at Vienna. His exercises in composition, written
under the superintendence of Albrechtsberger, have been
advertised for publication in Germany. Some of his musi¬
cal instruction was derived from the celebrated Italian com¬
poser Salieri, at Vienna.
It appears that during a great part of his life he suffer¬
ed from deafness, which had become almost total in his
3 Y
538
BEE
Beethoven. 28th year. In his will, dated 1802, his expressions of
wretchedness under this infliction are very strong. He
says that his deafness occasioned him such anguish of mind
that he was often tempted to commit suicide ; but that his
art restrained him. There is something very affecting in
all this, which reminds one of Milton s bitter and frequent
allusions to the miseries of blindness.
Beethoven tells us that his unhappy deafness, occasion¬
ed by the ignorance and mismanagement of a surgeon,
was the cause of his withdrawing himself from society,
and leading a solitary and miserable life. He speaks, in
terms of the deepest grief, of the many privations to which
the loss of his hearing subjected him;—his incapacity of
enjoying audible music, and his inability to maintain social
intercourse by means of speech. The feeling of his irre¬
parable loss seems to have haunted him perpetually like
some hideous phantom. Doubtless he often felt most
deeply what Dante has so well expressed in the bitterness
of his recollections:
 Nessun maggior dolore
Che ricordarsi del tempo felice
Nella miseria.
The spirited sketch given by Mr Russell,1 from his own
observation, of Beethoven’s appearance, and manners, and
musical performance, is quite consistent with what the
writer of this article has heard from other persons. Mr
Russell tells us ( Tour in Germany, vol. i. p. 277), “ though
not an old man, he (Beethoven) is lost to society in conse¬
quence of his extreme deafness, which has rendered him
almost unsocial. The neglect of his person which he ex¬
hibits gives him a somewhat wild appearance. His fea¬
tures are strong and prominent; his eye is full of rude
energy; his hair, which neither comb nor scissors seem
to have visited for years, overshadows his broad brow, in
a quantity and confusion to which only the snakes round
a Gorgon’s head offer a parallel. His general behaviour
does not ill accord with this unpromising exterior. Ex¬
cept when he is among his chosen friends, kindliness or
affability are not his characteristics. The total loss of
hearing has deprived him of all the pleasure which society
can give, and perhaps soured his temper.”
“ He has always a small paper book with him, and what
conversation takes place is carried on in writing. In this,
too, although it is not lined, he instantly jots down any
musical idea which strikes him.” Mr Russell heard him
play, and says that, from his deafness, “ when playing
\ery piano, he often does not bring out a single note, yet
he hears it himself in the ‘ mind’s ear.’ While his eye,
and the almost imperceptible motion of his fingers, show
that he is following out the strain in his own soul through
all its dying gradations, the instrument itself is actually as
dumb as the musician is deaf.”2 (vol. i. p. 299.)
Beethoven died of dropsy, at Vienna, on the evening of
the 26th March 1827, in the fifty-sixth year of his age. His
funeral took place on the 29th, and was attended by a
great number of poets, literary men, and musicians, who
attended as mourners, besides a vast concourse of the
people of Vienna. His body was interred in the church¬
yard of Friedhofe, a village about two English miles from
Vienna, which is said to have been a favourite resort of
his, where he passed many solitary hours in meditation
and composition. The church-yard rises gradually from
the road, and Beethoven’s grave is situated about half¬
way up, close to the wall, on the left-hand side. Against
the wall was placed a marble slab, of which a print has
been published, having merely the word Beethoven, in
carved gilt letters, but surmounted by the image of a lyre
BEG
and a head crowned with rays, and at the top a butterfly b( e
with expanded wings, the symbol of resurrection and im¬
mortality. In 1828 subscriptions were collected at Vienna, ®
in order to construct a splendid monument to this illus- ^ ^
trious composer.
With regard to Beethoven’s abilities as a piano-forte
player, the opinion of Mr J. B. Cramer, one of the greatest
masters of that instrument, may be sufficient. Mr Cramer
described him as “ by no means & finished or very delicate
player; but a giant in respect of command of ideas and
energy of style.” “ His extemporaneous playing,” Mr
Cramer adds, “ is the most magnificent I ever heard.”
Signor Dragonetti concurs in this opinion.
As a composer Beethoven ranks very high. He pos¬
sessed a powerful, inventive, and original mind. In re¬
spect of regularity of design, purity of harmonic combi¬
nation, sustained melody, and skilful management of his
materials, he is, generally speaking, greatly inferior to
Haydn and Mozart. But still, throughout all his best
compositions there is an enthusiastic spirit of inspiration,
a wild and masculine energy, relieved by occasional touches
of tender beauty and melancholy, which makes us feel
deeply the genius of the man, and which may, perhaps, be
said to render his music analogous in character to the
poetry of Dante.
His earlier works are his best, and are strongly tinc¬
tured with the style of Mozart. His deafness may in a
great measure account for the dry, crude, and unmelodious
style of many of his later works. In vocal composition
he was not in general greatly successful. However, his
scena ed aria, “ Ah perfido ! spergiuro !” and his canzonet
“ Adelaide,” are both charming compositions. The latter
is modelled upon Haydn’s fine canzonet “ 0 tuneful
voice.” For a detailed criticism on and list of Beethoven’s
works, the readers may consult the German “ Catalogue
Thematique,” and “ Handbuch der Musikalischen Lite-
ratur,” published at Leipsic by C. F. Whistling.
Several porti’aits of Beethoven have been published.
The one drawn by Decker, engraved by Steinmiiller,and
published by Artaria, at Vienna, is considered the best
likeness. C11*
BEETLE, a term applied to most insects belonging to
the order Coleoptera. See Entomology.
Beetle also denotes a wooden instrument for driving
piles, and for other purposes. It is likewise called a stamp¬
er, and by pavers a rammer.
BEEVES, a general name for oxen.
BEFORT, an arrondissement of the department of the
Upper Rhine in France, extending over 341 square miles,
and comprehending nine cantons and 191 communes, wit i
90,769 inhabitants. The chief place is the city of the
same name, on the Savoureuse. It is strongly fortified by
Vauban, and has a population of 4400 persons, employed m
various manufactures. Long. 6.46.40. E. Lat.4/.38.18. •
BEG A, Cornelius, a painter of landscapes, cattle, and
conversations, was born at Haerlem in 1620, and became
the disciple of Adrian Ostade. Falling into a dissipate
way of life, he was disinherited by his father, for wine i
reason he changed his paternal name, which was Begejn,
and took that of Bega; hence his early pictures are marK-
ed with the former, and his subsequent works with tie
latter. Bega caught the plague from a woman of whom
he was deeply enamoured; but he showed so much sin
cerity of affection, that notwithstanding the expostua
tions of his friends and physicians, he attended her till
last moment of her life, and died a few days aftei, age
forty-four years.
Vide vol. i. pp* 277? 278) S99.
1 Russell’s Tour in Germany, &c. in 1820-21-22. 2 vols. 8vo. Edinb. 1824.
BEG
]; BEGGAR. See Mendicity.
'ij BEGHERME, an extensive country in the interior of
Begu !• Africa, to the south of the Lake Tchad, and the south-
; east of Bornou. It has never been reached by any Euro¬
pean ; but the country appears to be fertile, and the na¬
tion warlike. The latter, engaged in almost continual
contests with Bornou, have a 'well-trained light cavalry,
in which both the riders and horses are completely cased
in mail; but though the former display great skill in
horsemanship, and in the performance of rapid manoeuvres,
they exhibit no courage when attacked in close combat.
Hence the Bornou spearmen, with a few Arab musketeers,
are accustomed to put to flight large hosts of Begherme
cavalry. The sultan of Bornou has thus been enabled re¬
peatedly to overrun the country; but the Beghermis
then retreat beyond a large river which falls into the
Tchad, where they are received by a friendly nation, and,
as soon as the Bornou army has retired, return, and take
possession of their territory. The Beghermis individu¬
ally are strong and muscular men; and their slaves in
Bornou distinguish themselves as skilful and powerful
wrestlers. The general state of population and society in
this country is nearly the same as that which will be de¬
scribed as existing in Bornou.
BEGLERBEG, or Beglierbey, the head of one of the
principal governments of the Turkish empire, and next
in dignity to the grand vizier. To every beglierbey the
grand signior gives three ensigns or staves, trimmed with
a horsetail, to distinguish them from those pashas who have
but two, and from simple beys, or sangiac beys, who have
but one.
BEGUARDS, or Beghards, religionists of the third
order of St Francis in Flanders. They were established
at Antwerp in the year 1228, and took St Begghe for
their patroness, from whom they derived their name. On
their first institution they employed themselves in mak¬
ing linen cloth, each supporting himself by his own labour,
and were united only by the bonds of charity, without
having any particular rule. But when Pope Nicholas
IV. had confirmed that of the third order of St Francis
in 1289, they embraced it the year following, and were
greatly favoured by the dukes of Brabant, particularly
John II. and John III. who exempted them from all con¬
tributions and taxes. In the year 1425 they began to
live in common, and in 1467 made solemn vows, after hav¬
ing taken the habit of the Terciaries of Liege, religionists
of the third order of St Francis; and, in 1472, they be¬
came subject to the general of the congregation of Zep-
peren in the diocese of Liege, to which they were united
by Pope Sixtus IV. But Pope Innocent X. having, in 1650,
suppressed the general of the congregation of Zepperen,
all the convents of the third order of St Francis, in the
dioceses of Liege, Malines, and Antwerp, were submitted
to the visitation, jurisdiction, and correction, of the gene¬
ral of Italy, and erected into a province, under the title of
“ the province of Flanders.”
BEGUINES, a congregation of female religionists or
nuns, founded either by St Begghe or by Lambert le
Begue, who died about the end of the twelfth century,
ihey were originally established at Liege, and afterwards
at Neville ; and from this last settlement sprang the great
number of Beguines, which spread over all Flanders, and
thence passed into Germany, where some of these re-
'g'omsts fell into extravagant errors; persuading them¬
selves that it was possible, in the present life, to arrive at
the highest perfection, even at impeccability and a clear
view of God. The council of Vienna condemned these
errors, and abolished the order of Beguines, permitting
such of them, however, as continued in the true faith to
ve ln chastity, either with or without vows; under cover
B E H 539
of which permission the decree of the council was evaded, Behaban
and communities of Beguines spread throughout all Flan- II
ders. Behn.
BEHABAN, a town of Persia, and capital of a moun-
tainous district. It is pleasantly situated in the middle of
an extensive valley, which is of considerable extent, high¬
ly cultivated, and watered by the rivers Zab and Jerahi,
The walls are about three miles in circumference. It is
the seat of a governor, whose palace is at the north-west
corner of the town; and contains, according to the best
information, 10,000 inhabitants. It is 153 miles from Shi¬
raz, from which it is separated by a mountainous country,
entirely uninhabited, and infested by banditti.
BEHEADING, a capital punishment, in which the head
is severed from the body by the stroke of an axe, a sword,
or some other instrument.
Beheading was a military punishment among the Ro¬
mans, and known by the name of decollatio. The head of
the culprit was laid on a cippus or block, placed in a pit
dug for the purpose, beyond the vallum, and near the por¬
ta decumana ; and preparatory to the stroke, he was tied
to a stake, and whipped with cords. In the early ages the
blow was given with an axe, but in aftertimes with a sword,
which was thought the more reputable manner of execu¬
tion. In England, decapitation is a punishment reserved
for the nobility, as was formerly the case in France ; being
reputed less derogatory to their rank than hanging, which
is the punishment inflicted on plebeian criminals.
In Scotland beheading was anciently performed by an
edge dinstrument called the maiden, introduced into this
country by the regent Morton, who was the first that suf¬
fered by it. This instrument has been preserved, and may
still be seen in the apartments of the Society of Scottish
Antiquaries. The guillotine, so called from the name of
its inventor, M. Guillotin a physician, who is also said to
have lost his head by his own contrivance, is an instru¬
ment somewhat analogous to the maiden ; with this excep¬
tion, that the knife descends angularly, and, cutting saw-
wise, is more instantaneously and decisively effective. In
France beheading is an ordinary capital punishment for
great crimes, and the guillotine, notwithstanding all the
revolutionary horrors associated with it, is still the instru¬
ment by which decollation is performed.
BEHEMOTH, from the Hebrew Drrn, behem, and rrnm,
behemak (bestia, pecus, jumentum), the plural of which,
rqnm, behemoth, is used with a singular effect, says Bux-
torf, to signify the elephant, on account of its great size,
qua instar plurium est. Bochart, followed by Scheuscher,
Shaw, and others, contends that the “ behemoth” of Scrip¬
ture is the hippopotamus or river-horse; but this notion could
scarcely have been entertained if due attention had been
paid to the words of Job, xl. 15, “ Behold now behemoth,
which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox a de¬
scription that can scarcely apply to river-horses, which
are not understood to be graminivorous. Hence Schul-
tens, Buxtorf, and all the more recent lexicographers and
commentators, render “ behemoth” elephant. The term
“ mammoth,” which has been applied indiscriminately to
all the largest species of fossil animals, appears also to be
a corruption of the Hebrew word “ behemoth.” Professor
Buckland, it is true, states that mammoth is a word of
Tartar origin, meaning simply “ animal of the earth.” But
we very much doubt the correctness of this etymology,
and are somewhat confirmed in this suspicion by a collo¬
cation which occurs in Isaiah, xviii. 6, where we meet with
the very words, yixrr nans, bestia terra, “ animal of the
earth,” applied to the “ behemoth,” by which the learned
professor explains the supposed Tartar term “ mammoth.”
BEHMEN. See Boehmen.
BEHN, Aphara, a celebrated authoress, descended
B E H
B E J
Behn. from a good family in the city of Canterbury, was born
in the reign of Charles I., but in what year is uncertain.
Her fathei’’s name was Johnson; and he having through
the interest of Lord Willoughby, to whom he was relat¬
ed, received the appointment of lieutenant-general of Suri¬
nam, proceeded to the West Indies, taking with him his
whole family, including our poetess, at that time very
young. Mr Johnson died on the voyage; but his family
reached Surinam, and settled there for some years. Here
it was that she learned the history, and acquired a personal
knowledge, of the American prince Oroonoco and his be¬
loved Imoinda, whose adventures she has related in her
novel of that name, and which Mr Southerne afterwards
made use of, adopting them as the groundwork of one ol
his tragedies.
On her return to London she became the wife of one
Mr Behn, a merchant residing in that city, but of Dutch
extraction. How long the husband lived after this mar¬
riage is not known, nor indeed is it material to inquire.
The wit and abilities of the lady, however, having brought
her into high estimation at court, King Charles II. fixed
on her as a proper person to transact some affairs of im¬
portance abroad during the Dutch war. For this pur¬
pose she went over to Antwerp, where, by her intrigues
and gallantries, she so far penetrated into the secrets of
state, as to accomplish the objects proposed by her mis¬
sion ; and in the latter end of 1666, by means of the influ¬
ence she had gained over one Vander Albert, a Dutch¬
man of eminence, she wormed out of him the design form¬
ed by De Ruyter, in conjunction with the family of the
De Wits, of sailing up the Thames and burning the Eng¬
lish ships in their harbours; which they afterwards put in
execution at Rochester. This she immediately communi¬
cated to the English court; but although the event proved
her intelligence to have been well founded, it was at this
time only laughed at;—a circumstance which, with the dis¬
inclination shown to reward her for her services, determin¬
ed the lady to drop all further thoughts of political affairs,
and, during the remainder of her stay at Antwerp, to give
herself up entirely to the gaiety and gallantries of the
place. Vander Albert, however, continued his addresses,
and after making several unsuccessful attempts to obtain
the possession of her person on easier terms than matri¬
mony, at length consented to make her his wife ; but whilst
he was preparing for a journey to England with the inten¬
tion of fulfilling his promise, a fever carried him off, and
left the lady free to pursue her inclinations. In her voy¬
age home to England she was very near being lost, the
vessel on board of which she had taken her passage having
been driven on the coast by a storm; but happening to
founder within sight of land, the passengers were fortu¬
nately preserved by the timely assistance of boats from the
shore.
From this period she devoted her life entirely to plea¬
sure and the muses. Her works are extremely numerous,
and all of them have a livety, licentious, amatory turn. In
fact, her wit gained her the esteem of Dryden, Southerne,
and other men of genius, as her beauty, of which in her
younger days she had a great share, had done the love of the
men of gallantry. She published three volumes of miscel¬
laneous poems, and two volumes of histories and novels;
translated Fontenelle’s Plurality of Worlds, with a criti¬
cism annexed; and gave to the world four volumes of
plays. In the dramatic line the bent of her genius was
chiefly to comedy. Her plots are full of business and in¬
genuity, and her dialogue sparkles with wit. But her co¬
medies are interlarded with the most indecent scenes, and
she gives indulgence to her wit in the most licentious ex¬
pressions. This, however, was as much the fault of the
age as of the individual. She wrote for a livelihood, and
was obliged to comply with the corrupt taste of the times. Be!
This singular woman, after a life of disappointment, died 1
on the 16th of April 1689, and was interred in the clois- Bej; ur.
ters of Westminster Abbey. ^
BEHRENDT, a circle in the Prussian government of
Dantzic and province of West Prussia. It extends over
500 square miles, or 320,000 acres, and contains two towns
and sixty-four villages. It is filled with extensive woods
and large fresh-water lakes, and scarcely yields food suffi-
cient for its thin population. The capital is of the same
name, with 155 houses and 1146 inhabitants. Long. 17
53. 50. E. Lat. 54. 7. 12. N.
BEINASCHI, Giovanni Battista, called Cavalier
Beinaschi, an historical painter, and a Piedmontese, was
born in 1634. He studied at Rome under the direction
of Pietro del Po; and some authors affirm that he was
afterwards the disciple of Lanfranc. He was a good de¬
signer ; and as a public acknowledgement of his merit, the
honour of knighthood was conferred upon him.
BEIT el Fakih, an unwalled town of Arabia, situated
on a barren sandy plain, protected by a castle, in which
the governor resides, against the predatory incursions of
the Arabs. It carries on an extensive trade in coffee,
which grows in the hills, distant thirty-six miles, and
is carried to Mocha, the shipping port, and thence export¬
ed to Egypt, the East Indies, and to Europe. European
houses have had residents in this place, and merchants
resort to it from all quarters of the East. The Persians
have a caravan which travels to Bussorah; the Turkish
and Russian caravans join those of Smyrna ; and the Bar¬
bary and African caravans join that of Cairo. The trade
of Beit el Fakih is carried on solely by the caravans; and
the coffee is either sold for specie or for such goods as
are required for the use of the inhabitants. It is twenty-
four miles E.S.E. of Loheia and Hodeida. Long. 43.23. E.
Lat. 14. 32. N.
BEITH, a town and parish of Scotland, in the county
of Ayr, and partly also in Renfrewshire. It carries on to
a considerable extent the manufacture of bleached and
coloured thread, and has also cotton manufactories. The
population is 4050, of which the town contains 2560. It
is eight miles north of Irvine.
BEIZA, or Beizath, in Hebrew antiquity, a word sig¬
nifying an egg, and also a certain measure in use among
the Jews. The beiza among the Persians was a gold coin,
weighing forty drachmas. Lienee they pretended that
Philip of Macedon owed their king Darius a thousandbei-
zaths or golden eggs as tribute-money; and that Alexan¬
der the Great refused to pay them, saying, the bird which
laid these eggs had flown into the other world.
BEJA, a city of the province of Alentejo, in Portugal. It
is surrounded with walls, is the see of a bishop, and con¬
tains about 9000 inhabitants, who are for the most part
occupied in cultivation, and especially in breeding cattle.
Long. 8. 1. W. Lat. 37. 55. N.
BEJAPOUR, or Visiapour, a large province of Hin-
dostan, in the Deccan, extending from the 15th to the
18th degree of north latitude. It has the province of
Aurungabad on the north; Toombudra, Wurda, and the
district of Canara, on the south ; Aurungabad and Hyde¬
rabad along the course of the Beema river, on the east;
and the Indian Ocean on the west. It is estimated at
320 miles in length by 200 in average breadth.
Tow ards the west, where the country approaches the
great mountain chain of the Ghauts, it is hilly and un¬
equal ; but its eastern districts are more level, and they
are well watered by many fine rivers, the chief of which
are the Krishna, the Toombudra, the Beema, and the
Gutpurba. Rice is the great staple of agriculture, an
the other productions are the same as in all the provinces
B E J
15 ^ ir. of the Deccan and in Hindostan generally. It has been
JL J long noted for a peculiar breed of horses, which are rear¬
ed on the banks of the Beema, and serve to mount the best
cavalry in the Mahratta armies, in which they are highly
prized. The Mahrattas, who at an early period conquer¬
ed the Deccan, possessed until recently the whole sea-
coast; and being averse to maritime intercourse, all tbeir
trade, which was considerable, was carried on by land.
The principal towns are Bejapour, Satarah, Goa, Warree,
Colapoor, Darwar, Shahnoor, Hoobly, and Merritch. The
population of this province may be estimated at 7,000,000,
of whom not above one twentieth part are Mahommedans,
the remainder being Hindoos, with a few Portuguese
Christians. This district of country was long the scene
of such anarchy, that agriculture was neglected, and po¬
pulation received a check; but now that it is under Bri¬
tish rule, commerce and cultivation, being adequately pro¬
tected, will again flourish. In Bejapour the Krishna di¬
vides the Mahratta tongue on the north from that of Ca-
nara on the south; and on the southern side also of this
river the houses of the lower classes are distinguished by
being flat-roofed, and covered with mud and clay, from
those on the northern side, where the roofs are pitched and
thatched.
After the dissolution of the great Bhamenee dynasty
of the Deccan, a new race of independent sovereigns arose
in 1489, who ruled over the country from the river Beema
to Bejapour. About 1689 the city of Bejapour was be¬
sieged and taken by Aurungzebe ; while the Mahratta em¬
pire was at the same time growing into importance. Sub¬
sequently to the death of Aurungzebe, the Mahrattas sub¬
dued Bejapour, and have ever since retained possession
of it. After the conclusion of the war with Dowlut Rao
Scindia in 1804, this country, along with all the rest of the
Mahratta territories, became a prey to anarchy, from the
contending claims and insubordination of different chiefs.
Some settlement of these disputes, however, was effected
by the interference of the British under Sir Arthur Welles¬
ley; and in 1818 almost the whole of this province was
conquered by the British ; while the Peishwa Bajerow, the
last head of the Mahrattas, was expelled from his throne.
Bejapour, the ancient capital of the above province,
and once an extensive, splendid, and opulent city, which
now exhibits to the view only heaps of ruins, the remains
of its ancient greatness while it was the flourishing capi¬
tal of an independent sovereignty. It is situated in a fer¬
tile plain, and is a place of very great extent, consisting of
three towns within one another, the innermost of which is
the citadel; the next is the fort, not less than eight miles
in compass; and the exterior is environed by a wall many
miles in circumference. The fort now contains several
distinct towns; and although a great part of the area
which it incloses is covered with ruins, there is still room
for corn fields and extensive inclosures. The inner fort,
although a mile in circumference, appears but a speck
in the larger one; and they are both in a manner lost in
the larger circumference of the outer wall. The citadel
or inner fort is a place of very great strength, well built,
of the most massy materials, and encompassed by a ditch
100 yards wide, which was formerly well supplied with
water, but is now nearly filled up with rubbish, so that
its original depth cannot be discovered. The fort consists
m a strong curtain, numerous towers of a large size, a
ausse-tray, ditch, and covered way. The interior presents
a leap of ruins, all the buildings having fallen into disre-
Pair except a handsome mosque built by Ali Adil Shah.
’thin this fort was situated the king’s palace, also the
ouses of the nobility, and large magazines, besides many
extensive gardens. Beyond the walls were extensive
suburbs and noble palaces; and it is asserted by the na-
B E K 5J1
lives that Bejapour contained, according to authentic re- Bekes
cords, 984,456 houses and 1600 mosques. The number II
of houses is probably overrated; that of the mosques, in Bekker.
the opinion of recent travellers, is no exaggeration. The
outer wall of the city pn the western side runs nearly
south and north, and is of great extent. It is built of stone,
and is of prodigious thickness, and about twenty feet in
height, with a ditch and rampart; and at intervals of a hun¬
dred yards are capacious towers, built of large hewn stones.
The whole is now in a ruinous condition ; the wall and the
towers having in many places fallen into the ditch, and in
other parts being covered with rubbish. Several mosques
and mausoleums, adorned with all the embellishments of
eastern architecture, are to be seen in Bejapour. The
fort in the interior is adorned with many of these edifices,
in rather better preservation than the works. Amongst
these is the great mosque, which is ninety-seven yards
long by fifty-five broad. The wings, which are fifteen
yards broad, project seventy-three yards from the north
and south ends, inclosing on three sides, with the body of
tbe mosque, a large reservoir of water and a fountain.
The mausoleum of Sultan Mahmood Shah is a plain build¬
ing 153 feet square, over which is reared a dome 117 feet
in diameter at its greatest concavity, and called by the
natives the grand cupola. The mosque and mausoleum
of Ibrahim Adil Shah, king of Bejapour, which was proba¬
bly completed about the year 1620, is said to have cost
L.700,000, and to have occupied 6533 workmen for the
space of thirty-six years. It is built on a basement 130
yards in length by 52 in breadth, and raised 15 feet. In¬
side is a plain building 115 feet by 76, covered by an
immense dome raised on arches. The mausoleum is a
room 57 feet square, inclosed by two verandas, 13 feet
in breadth and 22 feet in height. There are, besides,
many other public buildings, more or less injured by time
and the violence of the Mahrattas. Almost all the build¬
ings, the palaces in the fort excepted, are of massive stone,
and in the most durable style; and at the same time the
workmanship is minutely elegant. There are here some
cannon of an enormous calibre : one brass gun, fixed in the
centre, would require an iron bullet weighing 2646 pounds.
The city is well watered, having, besides numerous wells,
several rivulets running through it. It is but thinly in¬
habited, and has been long comprehended in that part of
the Bejapour province belonging to the Mahrattas. This
city is said at one time to have been immensely rich; and
large sums of money and valuables are still found secret¬
ed among the ruins. It was besieged and taken by Au¬
rungzebe in person a. d. 1689, after which it fell into de¬
cay. Long. 75. 47. E. Lat. 16. 46. N.
BEKES, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Hungary.
It extends over 1330 square miles, or 852,350 acres, and
contains four towns, sixteen villages, and seventy-one feu¬
dal estates, with 94,600 inhabitants, chiefly Lutherans
and Calvinists; there being only about 12,000 Catholics
and 7100 Greeks. The soil is marshy and the climate
moist, but rich and productive, especially in horned cattle.
The manufactures are such as peasantry require, and are
prepared by themselves. The chief place, which bears
the same name, is at the junction of the White with the
Black Koros. It contains a Catholic, Greek, and Reform¬
ed church, with 1600 houses and 12,500 inhabitants. Long.
20. 41. 37. E. Lat. 46. 46. 16. N.
BEKKER, Balthasar, a distinguished Dutch divine,
born at Metselawier, in Friesland, in the year 1634, was
the author of a work entitled Die Betooverde Wereld, or
The World Bewitched, in which he attacked with equal
boldness and ingenuity the received opinions in demonolo¬
gy, and exposed with irresistible force of reason the errors,
absurdities, and impostures, which had been propagated
542 BEL BEL
Bel respecting spiritual agency. Bekker’s work raised a ter-
II rible clamour against the author, who was at length de-
Belenyes. p0se(j fr0m the office of the ministry for the freedom and
boldness of his attacks on the supposed prerogatives of
the powers of darkness. He died in 1698. For an ac¬
count of this remarkable man, who so far outstripped the
age, see the article Apparitions.
BEL, Matthias, was born in Hungary, and became a
Lutheran minister at Presburg, and historiographer to the
Emperor Charles VI. Among his works is a History of
Hungary, which was so much admired that the emperor
gave him letters of nobility; and notwithstanding his
being a Lutheran, the pope, in 1736, sent him his picture
and several large gold medals. He was a member of the
Royal Society of London, and of the academies of Berlin
and Petersburg ; and died in 1749, in the sixty-sixth year
of his age.
Bel, or Belus, the supreme god of the ancient Chal-
dseans or Babylonians. He was the reputed founder of
the Babylonian empire, and is supposed to be the Nim¬
rod of Scripture, as well as identical with the Phoenician
Baal. He had a temple erected to him in the city of Baby¬
lon, on the uppermost range of the famous tower of Babel,
in which there were many statues of the god, including
one of massive gold forty feet in height. This temple,
with its riches, was in existence till the time of Xerxes;
but the Persian monarch, on his return from his unfortu¬
nate expedition into Greece, demolished it, and carried off
the immense wealth which it contained. It was the statue
of this god which Nebuchadnezzar set up and dedicated in
the plain of Dura, on his return from the Jewish war.
Bel and the Dragon, the history of, an apocryphal book
of Scripture. This book has always been rejected by the
Jewish church, and it is not extant either in the Hebrew
or in the Chaldaic language, nor indeed is there any proof
that it ever was; and hence St Jerome calls it the Fable
of Bel and the Dragon.
BELAY, a naval term signifying to fasten, by coiling
or winding round a kevel or belay-pin.
BELBEIS, a considerable town of Egypt, on the fron¬
tier towards Syria. It was formerly considered the bul¬
wark of the kingdom on that side, and was defended by
very strong fortifications; but these were suffered to fall
into decay till 1798, when Bonaparte ordered them to be
put in repair. The population is not now supposed to
exceed 5000. Belbeis is thirty-five miles north-east of
Cairo.
BELEMNITE, a marine fossil, of frequent occurrence
in the chalk of the south of England and the flint of the
north of Ireland. It is generally of a cylindrical or coni¬
cal form, one end terminating in a point; the other, when
perfect, in a conical cavity. It varies in size from that of
a goose-quill to twelve or fourteen inches in length, and
one to two in breadth. Its composition, whether inclosed
in limestone, flint, clay, or sandstone, is uniformly crys¬
tallized carbonate of lime, striated, and radiating to the
circumference from a line which passes perpendicularly
through the fossil. Though distinguished by naturalists
into several species, its nature and functions are compa¬
ratively little known. By some it has been considered
a portion of an animal; but to what species it belonged
no conjecture can now be formed. The appellation of
thunder-holt has been vulgarly applied to it, probably from
some fanciful analogy in point of form.
BELENYES, a town in the province of Farther Theis,
in the Austrian kingdom of Hungary. It is the chief
place of a small circle of the same name, and contains
two churches for Greeks, one for Catholics, and one for
Calvinists, with 5600 inhabitants. Long. 22. 13. 25. E.
Lat. 46. 40. 11. N.
BELERIUM, in Ancient Geography, a promontory of Bele n
the Dumnonii or Damnonii, the West Britons; now called ||f
the Lands End. Bet .
BELESIS, or Nanybrus, is said to have been the'^'/
founder of the ancient Babylonish empire, and, in conjunc¬
tion with Arbaces the Mede, to have put an end to the
empire of the Assyrians by the defeat and death of Sar-
danapalus. This prince is variously represented as a crafty,
mean-spirited knave, and as a hero of enterprise and re¬
nown. Arbaces, his colleague and friend, he is said to
have circumvented in the most shameful manner. Hav¬
ing been privately informed by a eunuch that immense
treasure had been buried in the conflagration at Nineveh,
and being aware that Arbaces knew nothing of the cir¬
cumstance, his avarice suggested to him the following
artifice for obtaining possession of all that the flames had
left Undestroyed. He alleged that, during the war, he
had vowed to Belus that, in the event of success, and the
palace of the Assyrian monarch being consumed by fire,
he would collect the ashes, remove them to Babylon, and
there heap them up in a mound near the temple of the
god, as a perpetual monument of the subversion of the
Assyrian empire; and he now craved permission of his
colleague to perform his pretended vow. The trick suc¬
ceeded to his wish. Arbaces not only granted his request,
but appointed him king of Babylon, with an exemption
from all tribute ; and Belesis carried a prodigious treasure
with him to Babylon. But the secret having been dis¬
covered, he was called to an account for it, tried by the
other chiefs who had assisted in the war, and, on con¬
fessing the crime, was condemned to lose his head. Ar¬
baces, however, being a munificent and generous prince,
freely forgave him, left him in possession of the treasure,
and also confirmed him in the government of Babylon,
saying, that the good he had done ought to serve as a veil
to cover his crime; and thus he became at once a prince
of great wealth and dominion.
But fortune begot folly, and under the successor of Ar¬
baces, Nanybrus, as he was now called, sunk into a degree
of effeminacy altogether unworthy of the conqueror of Sar-
danapalus ; and this again, by a natural enough transition,
led him to the commission of cruelty. Understanding that
a certain robust Mede, called Parsondas, held him in the
utmost contempt, and had solicited the king of the Medes
to divest him of his dominions, he offered a great reward
to the man who should take Parsondas and bring him cap¬
tive to Babylon. This was effected by stratagem. Par¬
sondas was seized while asleep, bound, and carried before
Nanybrus, who bitterly reproached the captive for en¬
deavouring to estrange the king of the Medes from him,
and by that means place himself on the throne of Babylon.
Parsondas did not deny the charge, but with great intre¬
pidity owned that he thought himself more worthy of a
crown than such an indolent and effeminate prince as that
before whom he stood. Nanybrus, highly provoked at
the liberty taken by the prisoner, swore by the god Belus
that Parsondas himself should in a short time reproach
none with effeminacy. Accordingly, he ordered the eu¬
nuch who had the charge of his music women to shave,
paint, and dress him after the manner of those females,
and, in short, by all possible means to transform him into
a woman. His orders were obeyed to the letter.
In the mean time, the king of the Medes having in vain
sought after his favourite servant, and offered great re¬
wards for information concerning him, concluded that he
had been destroyed by some wild beast in the chase.
But at the end of seven years the Mede was informed o
his state and condition by a eunuch, who, having been
cruelly scourged by order of Nanybrus, fled into Media a
the instigation of Parsondas, and there disclosed the who e
BEL
j,.j r0 truth to the king. Upon this, the latter immediately dis¬
patched an officer to demand Parsondas. But Nanybrus
Be t" pretended to know nothing of any such person ; upon which
^ ^ another officer was sent by the Mede, with a peremptory
order to seize on Nanybrus himself if he persisted in the de¬
nial, to bind him with his girdle, and lead him to immediate
execution. This order had the desired effect. The Baby¬
lonian owned what he had before denied ; and Parsondas
was at length set at liberty. But so great a change had
taken place in his appearance, that on presenting himself
before the king of the Medes the latter could scarcely re¬
cognise his old servant. The only favour which Parsondas
now begged of the king for all his past services, was, that
he would avenge on the Babylonian the base and highly
injurious treatment of his servant and petitioner. The
Mede accordingly marched to Babylon ; and notwith¬
standing the remonstrances of Nanybrus, who urged that
Parsondas had endeavoured to deprive him both of his
kingdom and his life, the monarch declared that in ten days
time would be passed on him the sentence which he deserv¬
ed, for presuming to act as judge in his own cause, instead
of appealing to his sovereign. But Nanybrus having in
the mean time gained Mitraphernes, the Mede’s favourite
eunuch, the king was by him prevailed on only to sentence
the Babylonian to pay a pecuniary fine; which made
Parsondas curse the man who first found out gold, for the
sake of which he was doomed to live the sport and derision
of an effeminate Babylonian, and to die unavenged.
BELEZERO, a town of Russia, and capital of a province
of the same name. It is situated on the south-eastern
shore of the White Sea. Long. 36. 10. E. Lat. 61. 50. N.
BELFAST, a sea-port town of Ireland, in the county of
Antrim, situated at the efflux of the river Lagan into Car-
rickfergus Bay, which is a spacious estuary, containing a
superficial area of twenty-four square miles. Although at
present conspicuous for commercial and political impor¬
tance, it is generally supposed to be of very modern origin ;
and this is so far correct, that there is no town in the
kingdom which has advanced to eminence with equal ra¬
pidity, or which has been so little distinguished in the
ancient, and so much in the modern history of Ireland.
At present Belfast must certainly rank as the third town in
Ireland for the extent of its commerce, as well as for the
wealth of its inhabitants. It is well built, chiefly of brick ;
and the streets are broad, straight, and well paved and
lighted. It has various public buildings deserving notice;
among which are two episcopalian churches, both very ele¬
gant structures, six churches for Presbyterians, two for
Seceders, one for Evangelicals, one for Covenanters, one
for Quakers, three for Methodists, and two for Roman Ca¬
tholics, who are in number about 4000. The other public
buildings are, a linen-hall; an exchange, near which is a
good assembly-room; a theatre, commercial buildings, and
barracks for 800 men. A house of correction was built in
1817. The charitable institutions are, two hospitals, a
house of industry for the blind, and one for the abolition
of mendicity, established in 1809. The Belfast incorpo¬
rated charitable society has a poor-house and infirmary, and
a large and commodious building in which aged poor are
maintained, as also poor children, who are clothed and
educated. The funds for the support of these institutions
are derived from bequests and annual contributions. Be¬
sides these, there is a public dispensary, a school of indus¬
try for the blind, and a number of charity schools. There
are also several commercial institutions, such as insurance
offices, banks, &c.; and among the literary institutions
may be mentioned the seminary called the New College,
w . was founded in 1810 on an extensive scale, and
contains endowments for professors in natural philosophy,
moral philosophy, logic and belles lettres, Hebrew, Greek,
BEL 543
Latin, and mathematics, and also schools for the more Belford
elementary branches of education. The funds were derived II
in the first instance from liberal private contributions ; but ®el^!ca
subsequently aid was obtained from government. This
town is conveniently situated for commerce. The river ’
Lagan, in entering Carrickfergus Bay, forms, as already
stated, a spacious estuary, in which there is safe an¬
chorage. The trade of the port is also connected with
the extensive lake called Lough Neagh, by means of a
canal which is navigable for lighters. Great part of the
productions of the neighbouring counties is here con¬
sumed or shipped, Belfast being considered the chief em¬
porium of the north of Ireland for every article both of
foreign and domestic produce; and in some branches of
manufacture it is considered equal, if not superior, both
to Cork and Dublin. A considerable trade is carried on
with the West Indies, America, and other parts of the
world. The chief exports are linen and cotton manufac¬
tures, butter, beef, pork, grain, and oatmeal. The vessels
belonging to the port amount to 201, and their tonnage to
23,193. Two convenient docks have been constructed
for repairing them; and vessels drawing thirteen feet of
water can approach the wharfs at flood tide. The trade
of this place has rapidly improved, as is shown by the
amount of the custom-house duties, which in 1800 were
only L.62,668, but in the course of . sixteen years in¬
creased to L.349,417; and their amount has since been
progressively advancing. Belfast has manufactories of
flax-spinning, cotton, and linen, though cotton seems to
be gaining the ascendency over linen. There are also
manufactories of glass, vitriol, and pottery, and of cast-
iron and paper. Two bridges are built over the river, one
at the east end of the town, an old bridge 2500 feet long,
and consisting of twenty-one arches ; and another built in
1814, about half a mile up the river, on the south of the
town, which connects the counties of Antrim and Down.
Belfast sends one member to the imperial parliament.
The government of the town is vested by charter in the
Marquis of Donegal, who is lord of the castle, in the con¬
stable of the castle, the sovereign or mayor, and twelve
burgesses. The population of Belfast amounted in 1758
to 8549, in 1782 to 13,105, and in 1798 to 18,320. By the
population return of 1821 it was 45,000, and by that of
1831,53,287. It is eighty Irish miles north of Dublin.
Long. 5. 54. W. Lat. 54. 35. N.
BELFORD, a market-town in the ward of Bamborough
and county of Durham, 325 miles from London, on the
great road to Edinburgh. There is a well-frequented corn-
market on Tuesday. The inhabitants in 1801 were 902;
in 1811, 931; and in 1821, 1208.
BELFRY, Belfredus, is a term used by military writ¬
ers of the middle ages to signify a sort of tower erected
by besiegers to overlook and command the place besieged.
Belfry originally denoted a high tower, on which sentinels
were placed to watch the avenues of a place, in order to
prevent surprise, or to give notice of fires, by ringing a
bell. The word belfry is compounded of the Teutonic
bell, andfreid, “ peace.” Belfry is also used for that part
of a steeple wherein the bells are hung. This is sometimes
called by old writers campanile, clocaria, and tristegum.
BELGARD, a circle in the Prussian province of Pome¬
rania, extending over 386 square miles, and comprehend¬
ing four towns and 105 villages, with 18,808 inhabitants.
It is in a sandy district, containing many fresh-water lakes.
The chief town, of the same name, stands on one of those
lakes, near the rivers Persante and Leitznitz, and contains
2460 inhabitants.
BELGIC A, a town of the Ubii, in Gallia Belgica, mid-way
between the rivers Rhine and Roer; now called Balchasen.
Belgica Gallia, one of the three divisions of Gaul men-
544 BEL BEL
Belginum tioned by Caesar, and bounded by the ocean on the north,
I! the rivers Seine and Marne on the west, and the Rhine on
Belidor. east> rj'iie southern boundary differed at different times.
Augustus added to Gallia Belgica the Sequani and Hel-
vetii, who till then had formed part of Celtic Gaul. The
Belgee are described by Caesar as the bravest of the Gauls,
because untainted by the importation of foreign luxui ies.
BELGINUM, a town of the Treviri, in Gallia Belgica;
now called Baldenau.
BELGIUM is distinguished from Belgica as a part
from the whole. Caesar makes Belgium the country of the
Bellovaci, and Hirtius adds the Atrebates. But as the
Arabian! lay between the Bellovaci and Atrebates, they
must also be added; and these three people constituted the
proper and genuine Belgae, all the rest being adventitious 01
foreigners. Ancient Belgium included Beauvais, Amiens,
and Artois, For modern Belgium see Netherlands.
BELGOROD, a circle in the Russian government of
Kursk, which contains a population of 32,300 persons. The
chief place is the city of the same name, on the river Do-
nez. It is the seat of an archbishop, and has considerable
linen and other manufactures, five churches, 1695 houses,
and about 9000 inhabitants. Long. 35.56. E. Lat. 50. 55. N.
BELGRADE, a famous town and fortress of European
Turkey, in Servia, situated near the conflux of the Save
and Danube. It is divided into four parts. First, the for¬
tress, which stands on a steep eminence in the centre, and
commands the Danube. It is inclosed with high walls,
and possesses strong towers and a triple ditch, and is pro¬
vided with mines and bomb-proof casemates. The princi¬
pal mosque and the residence of the pasha of Servia are
situated in this part of the town. Secondly, the water-side
division, lying near to the junction of the two rivers, on
the north side, likewise well defended by walls and ditches.
Thirdly, the Rascian town (so called from its inhabitants),
towards the west, and in the direction of the Save. And,
fourthly, the Palanka, which encircles the fortress on the
south and east. This important town has sustained many
sieges, and repeatedly passed from the hands of the Aus¬
trians to those of the Turks. It was taken by Solyman
the Turkish emperor in 1522, and retaken by the Austrians
in 1688, but again lost in 1690. It remained in the hands
of the Turks until 1717, when it was surrendered to Prince
Eugene. The imperialists retained it until 1739, when
the Turks invested and reduced it. Austria again took it
in 1789, but it was restored at the peace of 1791. And,
lastly, in the year 1806, the Servian insurgents succeeded
in carrying it. The strength and importance of this place
may be inferred from the above details. It is in many parts
well built, and contains fourteen mosques. The inhabit¬
ants are about 20,000 in number, being for the most part
composed of the families of Turkish Janissaries. Long.
20. 10. E. Lat. 44.43. N.
BELIAL, bjpbn, a Hebrew word, which signifies a
wicked worthless man, one who is resolved to endure no
subjection. Thus the inhabitants of Gibeah, who abused
the Levite’s wife, have the name of Belial given them ;
and Hophni and Phineas, the sons of the high priest Eli,
are likewise called sons of Belial, on account of the crimes
they had committed, and the unbecoming manner in
which they had behaved themselves in the temple of the
Lord. Sometimes the name Belial is used to denote the
devil. Thus St Paul says, “ What concord hath Christ
with Belial ?” From which it appears that, in the apostle’s
time, the Jews, by this epithet, commonly understood the
devil. Milton also speaks of “ the sons of Belial,” mean¬
ing thereby the children of the devil.
BEiLIDOR, Bernard Forest de, a Catalonian engi¬
neer in the service of France, and member of the Acade¬
mies of Sciences at Paris and Berlin, and of the Royal
Society at London, was a celebrated mathematician, and Be'
author of a number of tracts, in which the science of j
mathematics is applied to military purposes. Pie died in Be'‘s jus.
1765, aged seventy. ^
BELIEF, in a general sense, denotes a persuasion or
assent of the mind to the truth of a proposition. In this
sense, belief has no necessary relation to any particular kind
of evidence. Thus we are said to believe our senses, to
believe our reason, to believe a witness. But, in its more re¬
stricted and technical sense, belief, according to the school¬
men, denotes that kind of assent which is grounded on the
authority or testimony of some person or persons assert¬
ing or attesting the truth of any matter whatsoever. In
this sense, it stands opposed to knowledge and science.
We do not say we believe that snow is white, or that ice
is cold ; but that we see and feel them to be so. That the
three angles of a triangle are equal to two right angles, or
that all motion is naturally rectilinear, are not said to be
things credible, but certain ; and the comprehension of
such truths is not belief in the ordinary sense in which it is
used, but science. But when a thing propounded is neither
apparent to the sense nor evident to the understanding;
neither certainly to be collected from any obvious or ne¬
cessary connection with the cause whence it proceeds, nor
with the effects which it naturally produces, and yet ap¬
pears true, not by manifestation, but by an attestation of
the truth, moving us to assent, in virtue of testimony given
to its reality; this is properly said to be credible, and as¬
sent to it is the proper notion of belief or faith.
BELIEVERS, an appellation given, towards the close
of the first century, to those Christians who had been ad¬
mitted into the church by baptism, and instructed in all
the mysteries of religion. They were thus called in con¬
tradistinction to the catechumens, who had not been bap¬
tized, and were consequently debarred from the privileges
of believers.
BELIN, a town in the circle of Leutmeritz, in the Aus¬
trian kingdom of Bohemia, on the river Biela. It is cele¬
brated for its mineral springs, the water of which resem¬
bles that of Selzer, and for its preparations from it of Ep¬
som salts and magnesia. The vicinity is most abundantly
furnished with fossil coal. The resident inhabitants are
about 1700, besides numerous occasional visitors.
BELIO, in Ancient Geography, a river of Lusitania;
otherwise called Limceas, Lirneas, Limias, and Lethe, or
the river of oblivion; now El Lima, in Portugal.
BELISARIUS, general of the emperor Justinian’s army,
who overthrew the Persians in the East, the Vandals in
Africa, the Goths in Italy, and, in a degenerate age, re¬
newed the victories and triumphs which had immortalized
the glorious times of the republic. But notwithstanding all
his exploits, this great commander was falsely accused of a
conspiracy against the emperor’s life. The real conspirators
had been detected and seized, with daggers hidden under
their garments; and one of them diet! by his own hand,
while the other was dragged from the sanctuary, to which
he had fled for refuge. Pressed by remorse, or tempted by
the hopes of safety, the latter accused two officers of tie
household of Belisarius ; and torture forced them to declare
that they had acted according to the secret instructions o
their patron. But posterity will not hastily believe that a
hero who in the vigour of life had disdained the fairest oners
of ambition and revenge, should stoop to the murder of is
prince, whom he could not expect long to survive. His o
lowers were impatient to fly; but flight must have been sup
ported by rebellion, and he had lived enough for na ure
and for glory. Belisarius appeared before the council wi
less of fear than of indignation ; after forty years service,
the emperor prejudged his case ; and injustice was sat^.
fied by the presence and authority of the patriarch.
BELL.
545
life of the venerable veteran was indeed spared; but his
Jrt 1 fortunes were sequestrated, and for upwards of six months
^ he was kept a close prisoner in his own palace. At length
his innocence was acknowledged, and his freedom and ho¬
nours were restored; but death, which might have been
hastened by grief and resentment, removed him from the
world about eight months after his deliverance. That he
was deprived of his sight, and reduced to beg charity in
the streets, uttering the doleful solicitation of Date obolum
Belisario, “ give a penny to Belisarius,” is a fiction of later
times, which has obtained credit as a supposed instance
of extreme vicissitude of fortune. This idle fable seems
to have been derived from a work of the twelfth century,
entitled the Chiliads, by John Tzetzes, a monk, who re¬
lates the blindness and beggary of Belisarius in ten dog¬
gerel verses (iii. No. 88, 339-348, in Corp. Poet.
Grcec. tom. ii. p. 311), which are unworthy of quotation.
The tale seems to have been imported into Italy with the
language and manuscripts of Greece ; repeated before the
end of the fifteenth century by Crinitus, Pontanus, and
Volaterranus; attacked by Alciatus for the honour of the
law, and defended by Baronius for the honour of the church.
Yet Tzetzes, the father of the fabrication, had confessedly
read in the chronicles, that Belisarius did not lose his sight,
and that he recovered his fortune and his fame.
BELL, a well-known instrument, ranked by musicians
among the musical instruments of percussion.
The constituent parts of a bell are the body or barrel,
the clapper on the inside, and the ear or camion by which
it is attached to a large beam of wood. The matter of
which it is formed is a composition called bell-metal. The
thickness of a bell’s edge is usually l-15th of the diameter,
and its height is twelve times its thickness. The bell-
founders have a diapason, or scale, wherewith they mea¬
sure the size, thickness, weight, and tone of their bells.
The sound of a bell is conjectured to consist in a vibra¬
tory motion of its parts, somewhat like that of a musical
chord. The stroke of the clapper must necessarily change
the figure of the bell, and from a circle convert it into an
oval or ellipse; but the metal having a great degree of
elasticity, that part impinged on by the clapper, and
driven farthest from the centre, will return, and even in¬
cline nearer the centre than before; so that the two parts
which were extremes of the longest diameter become in
turn those of the shortest; and thus the external surface
of the bell undergoes alternate changes of figure, and by
this means gives that tremulous motion to the air in which
the sound consists. M. Perrault maintains that the sound
of the same bell or chord is a compound of the sounds of
the several parts thereof; so that where the parts are ho¬
mogeneous, and the dimensions of the figure uniform, there
is such a perfect mixture of all these sounds as constitutes
one uniform, smooth, even sound; and the contrary cir¬
cumstances produce harshness. This he proves from bells
differing in tone according to the part impinged on, although
there is a motion of all the parts wherever the blow hap¬
pens to be given. He therefore considers bells as a com¬
pound of an infinite number of rings, which, according to
their different dimensions, have different tones, as chords
of different lengths have ; and when struck, the vibrations
of the parts immediately impinged determine the tone,
being supported by a sufficient number of consonant tones
m the other parts.
Bells are heard at a greater distance when placed on
plains than on hills, and still farther in valleys than on
piains; the reason of which seems to be, that the higher
the sonorous body the rarer is the medium, and, conse¬
quently, the less impulse it receives, and the less proper a
vehicle it is to convey sound to a distance.
Reaumur, speaking of the shape most proper for
VOL. IV.
bells, in order to give them the loudest and clearest sound, BeB-
remarks, “ that as pots and other vessels more immediate-
ly necessary to the service of life were doubtless made
before bells, it probably happened that the observing these
vessels to have a sound when struck, gave occasion to
making bells, intended only for sound, in that form; but
that it does not appear that this is the most eligible figure ;
for lead, a metal which is in its common state not at all
sonorous, yet becomes greatly so on its being cast into a
particular form, and that very different from the common
shape of bells. In melting lead for the common occasions
of casting in small quantities, it is usually done in an iron
ladle ; and as the whole is seldom poured out, the remain¬
der which falls to the bottom of the ladle cools into a mass
of the shape of that bottom. This is consequently a seg¬
ment of a sphere, thickest in the middle, and thinner to¬
wards the edges; nor is the ladle any necessary part of
the operation, since, if a mass of lead be cast in that form
in a mould of earth or sand, in any of these cases it is
found to be very sonorous. Now if this shape alone can
give sound to a metal which in other forms is perfectly
mute, how much more must it necessarily give it to other
metals naturally sonorous, in whatever form ? It should
seem that bells would much better perform their office in
this than in any other form; and that it must particularly
be a thing of great advantage to the small bells of com¬
mon house-clocks, which are required to have a shrill note,
and yet are not allowed any great size.”
The use of bells was very ancient, as well as extensive.
We find them among Jews, Greeks, Romans, Christians,
and Heathens, variously applied, as on the necks of men,
beasts, birds, horses, sheep; but they were chiefly suspend¬
ed in buildings, either religious, as in churches, temples,
and monasteries ; or civil, as in houses, markets, baths; or
military, as in camps and frontier towns.
Among the Jews it was ordained that the lower part
of the blue tunic which the high priest wore when he
performed religious ceremonies should be adorned with
pomegranates and gold bells, intermixed alternately and at
equaf distances. As to the number of the bells worn by
the high priest, the Scriptures are silent, and authors are
not very well agreed; but the sacred historian has let us
into the use and intent of them, which was to give inti¬
mation both when he entered and came out of the holy
place. The shahs of Persia are said to have the hem of
their robes adorned, like the Jewish high priests, with
pomegranates and gold bells.
Among the Greeks, those who went the nightly rounds
in camps or garrisons, carried with them little bells, which
they rung at each sentry-box, to see that the soldiers on
watch were awake. A codonophorus or bellman also
walked, in funeral processions, some space in advance of
the corpse, not only to keep off the crowd, but to advertise
theflamen dialis to keep out of the way, for fear of being
polluted by the sight, or by the funerary music. The
priest of Proserpine at Athens, called hierophantus, rung
a bell to call the people to sacrifice. There were also
bells in the houses of great men, to call up the servants in
the morning. Zonaras assures us that bells were suspended
along with whips on the triumphal chariots of victorious
generals, in order to put them in mind that they were
still liable to public justice. We are also informed that
bells were put on the necks of criminals going to execu¬
tion, that persons might be warned by the noise to get out
of the way of so ill an omen as the sight of the hangman
or the condemned criminal, who was devoted and on the
point of being sacrificed to the dii manes.
Of bells on the necks of brutes, express mention is made
in Phaedrus; and taking them away was construed theft
by the civil law.
J 3 z
546 B E
Bell. With respect to the origin of church-bells, Mr Whitaker
observes, that bells being used, among other purposes, by
the Homans, to signify the times of bathing, they were natu¬
rally applied by the Christians of Italy to denote the hours
of devotion, and summon the people to church. The first
application of them to this purpose is ascribed by Poly-
dore Virgil and othei’s to Paulinus, bishop of Nola, a city
of Campania, about A. d. 400. Hence, it is said, the names
nolce and campance were given them ; the one referring to
the city, the other to the country. In Britain, bells were
applied to church purposes before the conclusion of the
seventh century, in the monastic societies of Northum¬
bria, and, as early as the sixth, even in those of Caledonia.
They were therefore used from the first erection of pa¬
rish churches. Those of France and England appear to
have been furnished with several bells. These were some¬
times composed of iron in France; and in England, as
formerly at Rome, they were frequently made of brass.
As early as the ninth century, many were cast of a large
size and deep note.
Ingulphus mentions that Turketulus, abbot of Croyland,
who died about a. d. 870, gave a great bell to the church
of that abbey, which he named Guthlac, and afterwards
six others, two of which he called Bartholomew and Bette-
lin, two Turketul and Tatwin, and two he named Pega and
Bega. All of them rang together; and the same author
says, Non erat tunc tanta consonantia campanarum in tota
Anglia. Not long after, Kinseus, archbishop of York, gave
two great bells to the church of St John at Beverley, and
at the same time provided that other churches in his dio¬
cese should be furnished with bells. Mention is also
made by St Aldhem, and William of Malmesbury, of bells
given by St Dunstan to the churches in the West. The
number of bells in every church gave occasion to the cu¬
rious and singular architecture which is often found in the
campanile or bell-tower; an addition which is more sus¬
ceptible of the grander beauties of architecture than any
other part of the edifice. It was the constant appendage
of every parish church belonging to the Saxons, and is
distinctly mentioned as such in the laws of Athelstane.
The Greek Christians are usually said to have been
unacquainted with bells till the ninth century, when the
construction of these instruments was first taught them by
a Venetian ; but it is not true that the use of bells was en¬
tirely unknown in the ancient eastern churches, and that
they called the people to church with wooden mallets. In
some learned dissertations on the Greek temples, Leo
Allatius proves the contrary from several ancient writers.
In his opinion bells first began to be disused after the
taking of Constantinople by the Turks ; the latter, it seems,
having prohibited them lest their sound should disturb
the repose of souls wandering in the air. Father Simon,
however, thinks that the Turks prohibited the Christians
the use of bells from political rather than religious mo¬
tives ; inasmuch as the ringing of bells might serve as a
signal for the execution of revolts, insurrections, or popu¬
lar commotions.
In the ancient monasteries we. find six kinds of bells
enumerated by Durandus, namely, squilla, rung in the re¬
fectory ; cymbalum, in the cloister; 7iola, in the choir;
nolula or dupki, in the clock; campana, in the steeple ;
and signum, in the tower. Belethus very nearly agrees
with Durandus, only for squilla he puts tintinnabulum,
and places the campana in the tower, and campanella in
the cloister. Others place the tintinnabulum or tinniolum
m the refectory or dormitory; and add another bell, called
corrigiuncula, rung at the time of giving discipline, to call
the monks to be flogged. I he cymbalum also is sometimes
said to have been rung in the cloister, to call the monks
to meals.
L L.
From the researches of a writer who has paid particular I
attention to this subject, we learn that bells frequently v
bore such inscriptions as the following : ^
Funera plango, Fulgura frango, Sabatta pango,
Excito lentos, Dissipo ventos, Paco cruentos.
In the little sanctuary at Westminster, King Edward
III. erected a clocher, and placed in it bells for the use of
St Stephen’s chapel, round the largest of which were cast
in the metal these words:
King Edward made mee thirtie thousand weight and three.
Take me down and wey mee, and more you shall fynd mee.
But these bells having been ordered to be taken down
in the reign of King Henry VIII., some one wrote under-
neath with a coal:
But Henry the eight
Will bait me of my weight.
This last distich alludes to a fact mentioned by Stowe in
his survey of London, that near to St Paul’s school stood
a clocher, in which were four bells called Jesus's Bells,
the greatest in all England, against which Sir Miles Par¬
tridge staked a hundred pounds, and won them of King
Henry VIII. at a cast of dice. Nevertheless, in foreign
countries there were bells of greater magnitude. In the
steeple of the great church at Rouen, in Normandy, was a
bell with this inscription :
Je suis George d’Ambois,
Qui trente cinque mille pois.
Mais lui qui me pesera
Trente six mille me trouvera.
But it was probably destroyed when the greater part of
the magnificent edifice containing it was consumed by fire,
several years ago. It is a common tradition that the bells
of King’s College Chapel, in the university of Cambridge,
were brought by Henry V. from some church in France
soon after the battle of Agincourt. They were taken
down many years ago, and sold to a bell-founder in White¬
chapel, who melted them down.
The various uses of bells were cleverly summed up in
the following distich:
Eaudo Deum verum, plebem voco, conjugo clerum,
Defunctos ploro, pestem fugo, festa decoro.
Matthew Pars observes, that anciently the use of bells was
prohibited in time of mourning; at present, however, the
tolling of them makes one of the principal ceremonies of in¬
terment. Mabillon adds, that it was an ancient custom to
ring bells for persons about to expire, to advertise the people
to pray for them. The passing bell, indeed, was anciently
rung for two purposes; one, to bespeak the prayers of all
good Christians for a soul just departing; the other, to drive
away the evil spirits who were supposed to stand near the
bed of the dying, or about the house, ready to seize their
prey, or at least to molest and terrify the soul in its passage.
By the ringing of the bell,—for Durandus informs us that
evil spirits are desperately afraid of bells,—they were kept
aloof; and the soul, like a hunted hare, gained the start, or
had what is by sportsmen called larv. This dislike of spirits
to bells is mentioned in the Golden Legend by Wynkyn
de Worde. “ It is said, the evil spirytes that ben in the
regyon of thayre, doubte moche when they here the belles
rongen : and this is the cause why the belles ben rongen
when it thondreth, and whan grete tempeste and outrages
of wether happen, to the ende that the feinds and wycked
spirytes shold be abashed and flee, and cease of the mov-
ynge of tempeste.” Lobineau observes, that the custom
of ringing bells at the approach of thunder is of some an¬
tiquity ; but that the design was not so much to shake
the air, and so dissipate the thunder, as to call the people
to church to pray that the parish might be preserved from
that terrible meteor.
In Roman Catholic times bells were baptized and anoint-
BEL
t , e(l oleo chrismatis ; they were also exorcised and blessed
^ ^ by the bishop, from a belief that, when these ceremonies
were performed, they had power to drive the devil out of
the air, to calm tempests, to extinguish fires, and to recre¬
ate even the dead. The ritual for these ceremonies is
contained in the Roman pontifical; and it was usual in
such baptisms to give to bells the name of some saint.
In Chauncy’s History of Hertfordshire there is a relation
of the baptism of a set of bells in Italy, which was per¬
formed with great ceremony a short time before that book
was written. And the bells of the parish church of Win-
nington, in Bedfordshire, had their names cast about the
verge of every one in particular, with these rhyming hexa¬
meters :
Nomina Campanis hsec indita sunt quoque nostris.
1. Hoc signum Petri pulsatur nomine Christi.
2. Nomen Magdalene campana sonat melode.
3. Sit nomen Domini benedictum semper in eum.
4. Musa Itaphaelis sonat auribus Immanuelis.
5. Sum Rosa pulsata mundique Maria vocata.
By an old chartulary, it appears that the bells of the
priory of Little Dunmow, in Essex, were, in the year 1501,
new-cast, and baptized by the following names:
Prima in honore Sancti Michaelis Archangel!.
Secunda in honore S. Johannis Evangelist!.
Tertia in honore S. Johannis Baptisti.
Quarta in honore Assumptionis beatae Marise.
Quinta in honore sanctae Trinitatis, et omnium sanctorum.
The bells of Osney Abbey, near Oxford, which were
very famous, had the respective names of Douce, Clement,
Austin, Hautecter, or rather Hautcleri, Gabriel, and John.
Nankin, in China, was anciently celebrated for the large¬
ness of its bells. But their enormous v/eight brought down
the tower which contained them, the whole building fell to
ruin, and the bells have ever since lain on the ground. One
of these bells is near twelve English feet in height, seven
and a half in diameter, and twenty-three in circumference ;
its figure is almost cylindric, except for a swelling in the
middle; and the thickness of the metal about the edges is
seven inches. From the dimensions of this bell, its weight
is computed at 50,000 pounds, which is more than double
the weight of that of Erfurt, said by Father Kircher to be
the greatest bell in the world. These bells were cast by
the first emperor of the preceding dynasty, upwards of 300
years ago. They have each their name, the hanger (tchoni),
the eater (che), the sleeper (choui), the will (Ji). Father
le Comte adds, that there are seven other bells in Pekin
cast in the reign of Youlo, each of which weighs 120,000
pounds. But the sound of even the largest Chinese bell
is very poor, owing to the circumstance of being struck
with a wooden instead of an iron clapper.
The practice of ringing bells in change, or regular peals,
is said to be peculiar to England. The custom seems to
have commenced in the time of the Saxons, and to have
been common before the conquest. The ringing of bells,
though a recreation chiefly of the lower sort, is in itself not
incurious. The tolling of a bell is nothing more than the
producing a sound by a stroke of the clapper against the
side of the bell, the bell itself being in a pendant position
and at rest. But in ringing, the bell is elevated to a hori¬
zontal position, so that, by means of a wheel and a rope,
the clapper strikes forcibly on one side as it ascends, and
on the other side in its return downwards, producing at
each stroke a sound. In England, ringing of Fells is re¬
duced to a science, and peals have been composed which
bear the names of the inventors.
The music of bells is altogether melody; but the plea¬
sure arising from it consists In the variety of interchange,
aud the various succession and general predominance of
16 Consonances in the sounds produced. Musical authors
seem to have treated but little of this subject.
BEL 547
Electrical Bells are used in a variety of entertaining Bella
experiments by electricians. The apparatus, which is II
originally of German invention, consists of three small Bellai-
bells suspended from a narrow plate of metal, the two
outermost by chains, and that in the middle, from which
a chain passes to the floor, by a silken string. Two small
knobs of brass are also suspended by silken strings, one on
each side of the bell in the middle, which serve for clappers.
When this apparatus is connected with an electrified con¬
ductor, the outermost bells suspended by the chains will
be charged, attract the clappers, and be struck by them.
The clappers, becoming electrified, will likewise be repel¬
led by these bells, and attracted by the middle bell, and
discharge themselves upon it by means of the chain extend¬
ing to the floor. After this they will be again attracted by
the outermost bells, and thus, by striking the bells alter¬
nately, occasion a ringing, which may be continued at
pleasure. Flashes of light will be seen in the dark be¬
tween the bells and clappers, and if the electrification be
strong, the discharge will be made without actual contact,
and the ringing will cease. An apparatus of this kind,
connected with one of those conductors which are erected
for securing buildings from lightning, will serve to give
notice of the approach and passage of an electrical cloud.
BELLA, Stefano de la, an eminent engraver, was
born at Florence a. d. 1610. His father was a goldsmith,
and he himself began to work at his father’s business.
But whilst he was learning to draw, in order to perfect
himself in that profession, there fell by accident into his
hands some of the prints of Callot, with which he was so
delighted, that he prevailed upon his father to permit him
to apply himself to engraving; and he became the disci¬
ple of Canta Gallina, who had also been the instructor of
Callot. De la Bella at first imitated the manner of Cal¬
lot. But his abilities soon began to manifest themselves;
and as he acquired by degrees a facility in the handling
of the burin, he quitted the style in which he only shone
as an imitator, and adopted one entirely his own, which in
freedom and spirit is said even to have surpassed that of
his fellow-disciple. In 1642 he went to Paris, where
Cardinal Richelieu engaged him to go to Arras, and make
drawings of the siege and taking of that town by the royal
army. He also went to Holland, where, it is reported, he saw
some of the prints of Rembrandt Gerretsz, and attempted
to imitate them ; but finding he did not succeed to his ex¬
pectation, he dropped that design, and continued to pur¬
sue his own manner, as more suitable to his genius. After
residing a considerable time at Paris, his family affairs
obliged him to return to Florence, where he obtained a
pension from the grand duke, and was appointed to in¬
struct the prince Cosmo his son in the art of design. But
being subject to violent pains in the head, his life was ren¬
dered miserable, and at last terminated, by this cruel dis¬
order, which carried him off in the year 1664, at the age
of fifty-four.
BELLAC, an arrondissement in the department of the
Upper Vienne, in France, extending over 780 square miles,
and comprehending nine cantons and seventy-nine com¬
munes, with 76,150 inhabitants. The chief place, of the
same name, is situated on the river Vincou, and inhabited
by 3291 persons.
BELLAGIO, a town of the Austrian kingdom of Lom¬
bardy, in the delegation of Como, at the point where the
lake of Como is separated from the lake of Lecco. It is
well built, and surrounded by most picturesque scenery.
BELLAI, William du, lord of Langey, a French
general, who signalized himself in the service of Francis I.
He was also an able negociator, so that the emperor
Charles V. used to observe, that “ Langey’s pen had fought
more against him than all the lances in France.” He was
548 BEL
Bellano gent to Piedmont in quality of viceroy, where he took
several towns from the imperialists. His address in pene-
Bdaspoor.bating into the enemy’s designs was surprising. In this
he spared no expense, and often obtained intelligence of
the most secret counsels of the emperor and his generals.
He was extremely active in influencing some of the uni¬
versities of France to give a judgment agreeable to the
desires of Henry VIII. king of England, when this prince
wished to divorce his queen in order to marry AnneBoleyn.
It was then the interest of France to favour the king of
England in this particular, it being an affront to the em¬
peror, and a gratification to Henry, which might serve to
form a strict alliance between him and hrancis I. Langey
was also a man of learning, and composed several works,
the most remarkable of which was, the History of his Own
Times, in Latin, divided into ogdoades, or parts, each
consisting of eight books. While Langey was in Pied¬
mont in 1542 he received some remarkable intelligence
which he was desirous to communicate personally to the
king, and being very infirm, he ordered a litter for his
conveyance; but after passing the Rhone, near Lyons, he
became so extremely ill, that he was obliged to stop at a
small town, where he died on the 9th of January 1543, Fie
was buried in the church of Mans, and a noble monument
was erected to his memory.
BELLANO, a town of the Austrian kingdom of Lom¬
bardy, in the delegation of Como. It is situated at the end
of the vale where the Poverna forms a most magnificent
cataract, on the eastern side of the lake of Como, and is a
place of considerable trade, with many country seats in the
vicinity
BELLARMIN, Robert, an Italian Jesuit, one of the
most expert polemical writers of his time. In 1576 he read
lectures at Rome on controversies, with such applause, that
Sixtus V. sending a legate into France in 1590, appointed
him divine to the legation, in case any dispute in religion
should happen to be discussed. Bellarmin returned to
Rome, and was raised successively to different offices, till
at last, in 1599, he was honoured with a cardinal’s hat; to
force him to accept of which dignity, it is said, they were
obliged to have recourse to the threat of an anathema. It
is certain that no Jesuit ever did greater honour to his
order, and that no author ever defended the cause of the
Romish church in general, and that of the pope in parti¬
cular, with greater ingenuity and skill. The Protestants
have owned this sufficiently; for, during the space of fifty
years, there was scarcely any considerable divine among
them who did not fix upon Bellarmin as the subject of his
books of controversy. But notwithstanding the zeal with
which this Jesuit maintained the power of the pope over
the temporality of kings, he displeased Sixtus V. in his
work De Romano Pontifice, by not insisting that the power
which Jesus Christ gave to his vicegerent was direct, in¬
stead of indirect; and he had the mortification to see it
put into the index of the inquisition, though it was after¬
wards removed. At his death he left to the Virgin Mary
one half of his soul, and to Jesus Christ the other. Bel¬
larmin is said to have been a man of great chastity and
temperance, and remarkable for his patience. His stature
was low, and his mien very indifferent; but the excellence
of his genius might be discovered from the traces of his
countenance. He expressed himself with great perspicui¬
ty ; and the words which he first made use of to explain
his thoughts were generally so proper, that there appear¬
ed no erasure in his writings.
BELLASPOOR, a town of Hindostan, in the province
of Delhi, situated on the east bank of the Sutlege river,
BEL
which is here 100 yards broad when the water is lowest. Be
The houses are well and regularly built, of stone and
mortar; and the streets are all paved, though roughly. Bell, |ei])
It is the residence of the rany or female ruler of the Cor-. J( ■ '
lour territory. Long. 76. 21. E. Lat. 31. 35. N. ^ ^
BELLEAU, Remi, a French poet, born at Nogent le
Rotrou, in the territory of Perche, and province of Orlean-
nois. He lived in the family of Renatus of Lorraine, mar¬
quis of Elbeuf, general of the French galleys, and attend¬
ed him in his expedition into Italy in 1557. This prince
highly esteemed Belleau for his courage ; and having also
a high opinion of his genius and abilities, intrusted him
with the education of his son Charles of Lorraine. Belleau
was one of the seven poets of his time who were denomi¬
nated the French Pleiades. Fie wrote several pieces, and
translated the odes of Anacreon into the French language;
but in this he is thought not to have preserved the natural
beauties of the original. Belleau died at Paris, in the
family of the duke d’Elbeuf, on the 6th of March 1577,
and was interred in the church Des Peres Augustines,
near the Pont-neuf.
BELLEFOREST, Francis de, a French author, born
in the province of Guienne in 1530. He was only seven
years of age when he lost his father; and his mother was left
in poor circumstances, but she contributed all in her power
to his education. He was supported for several years by
the queen of Navarre, sister to Francis I. Some time after,
he went to study at Bordeaux, whence he removed to
Toulouse, and afterwards to Paris, where he got acquaint¬
ed with several men of learning, and was honoured with
the friendship of many persons of quality. He wrote,
1. A History of the Nine Charleses of France; 2. Anno¬
tations on the books of St Augustin; 3. An universal
History of the World; 4. The Chronicles of Nicholas
Gillet, augmented ; 5. A universal Cosmography ; 6. An¬
nals, or a General History of France; and many other
works. He died in 1583.
BELLEGARDE, a barrier fortress of France, in the
department of the Eastern Pyrenees. It stands on one of
the Pyrennean mountains, very near a Spanish fort. Long.
2. 50. E. Lat. 42. 20. N.
BELLE-ISLE, an island on the coast of France, in the
arrondissement of L’Orient and department of Morbihan.
Its extent is about 75 square miles; and it contains three
towns and thirteen villages, with 5650 inhabitants.
Belle-isle, an island of North America, lying at the
mouth of the strait between the country of the Esquimaux,
or New Britain, and the north end of Newfoundland;
whence the straits also take the name of Belleisle. Long.
58. 5. W. Lat. 51. 50. N.
BELLENDEN, John, archdeacon of Moray, occupies
a conspicuous place in the literary annals of Scotland, but
his personal history is still involved in some degree of
obscurity. It is evident that several writers have con¬
founded him with Sir John Bellenden of Auchinoul. Their
names are indeed the same, but this is the only circum¬
stance to support their identity; and the judge appears
to have survived the archdeacon for so long a period as
twenty-seven years. Dr Bellenden was probably edu¬
cated in the university of St Andrews: a student of the
same name, and described as belonging to the Lothian
nation, was matriculated in 1508 J and this date agrees
with the known chronology of his life. As Bale r^e^s
hia birth to the eastern part of the kingdom, he may have
been born in the county of Haddington or Berwick. H1S
education is represented as uncommonly liberal; and as
he took the degree of D. D. in the university of Pans, is
Maitland’s Biographical Introduction, p. xxxvi.
BEL
n course of academical study must have been very complete.1
Jol ’ Dr Campbell has remarked that his phraseology occasion-
/ ally savours of a French education :2 it must however be
recollected, that the poets of this age were too generally
disposed to adopt terms of a French as well as Latin ori¬
gin ; and that the practice cannot be considered as pecu¬
liar to those who had been educated in France. Sir David
Lindsay, in a poem supposed to have been written in the
year 1530, mentions him in the following terms:
Bot now of late is starte up hastelie,
Ane cunnyng dark quhilk wrytith craftelie,
Ane plant of poetis callit Ballendyne,
Quhose ornat warkis my wit can nocht defyne :
Get he into the courte auctoritie,
He will precell Quintyn and Kenedie.3
The literary merit of Bellenden does not seem to have
been disregarded by the court; but he experienced the
precarious fortune which so frequently attends courtiers.
For this information we are partly indebted to his poem
entitled the Proheme of the Cosmographe:
And fyrst occurrit to my remembring.
How that I wes in seruice with the kyng.
Put to his grace in zeris tenderest,
Clerk of his comptis, thoucht I wes inding,
With hart and hand, and euery othir thing
That mycht hym pleis in ony maner best,
Quhill hie inuy me from his seruice test,
Be thaym that had the court in gouerning,
As bird but plumes heryit of the nest.
In the epistle subjoined to his translation of Boyce’s his¬
tory, he likewise states that he had been in the service of
the king from his majesty’s early infancy. It has been
conjectured that he was employed in superintending the
young monarch’s education : but he makes no allusion to
such an appointment, of which it would have been very
natural to remind the king, if they had ever stood in the
relation of tutor and pupil; and he very clearly informs
us that his place in the royal household was that of clerk
of accompts. James’s preceptor was Gavin Dunbar, after¬
wards promoted to the archbishopric of Glasgow. Being
dismissed from the king’s service, as he states in the verses
last quoted, Bellenden is supposed to have entered into
that of Archibald earl of Angus, because a person of the
same name was the earl’s secretary in the year 1528. In
the course of that year, Angus and some of his relations
were accused of treason: John Ballentyne, who is de¬
scribed as his secretary, presented himself at the bar of
the parliament on the 4th of September, and delivered a
BEL 549
written protest in the name of the earl of Angus, his bro-Bellenden,
ther George Douglas, and his uncle Archibald Douglas of J°hn*
Kilspindie, stating the reasons why they ought not "to be
compelled to answer to the charge of treason which had
been preferred against them; and in the afternoon of the
same day, the secretary again made his appearance, pro¬
bably because they found such a protest altogether una¬
vailing, and explained the conditions on which the earl
was willing to surrender to his trial.* But in a transaction
of this nature we should expect to find him employing a
lawyer rather than a clergyman; and accordingly we are
informed by Hume that the individual who thus appeared
for the Douglases was “ Sir John Ballandine, who was
then one of their dependers, and afterward justice clerk.”5
Whatever may have been Bellenden’s employment at
this period, it is certain that he was soon afterwards an
attendant at court; and that at the request of the king
he undertook a translation of the Roman history of Livy,
and the Scotish history of Boyce.6 In this formidable
task he appears to have been engaged in 1530 and the
three ensuing years. The treasurer’s accounts contain va¬
rious entries respecting the remuneration of his labours:
the sum total which he is there stated to have received
amounts to L.114; namely, L.78 for the translation of
Boyce, and L.36 for that of Livy. But this was not the
only reward which he obtained. The archdeaconry of
Moray had become vacant during the vacancy of the see ;
and two clergymen, Duncan and Harvey, having solicited
the pope in favour of James Douglas, were convicted of
treason, and their property escheated to the crown. The
annual emoluments arising from the pensions and benefices
of John Duncan, who was parson of Glasgow, and from all
the property belonging to Alexander Harvey for the two
successive years 1536 and 1537, were bestowed upon Bel¬
lenden. For the first grant he paid a composition of 350
marks, and for the second, of L.300J It must have been
upon the present occasion that he was promoted to the
archdeaconry, which had lapsed to the crown in conse¬
quence of the vacancy in the bishopric: it was perhaps
about the same period that he was appointed a canon of
Ross ; and this appears to have been the full extent of his
preferment in the church, while many worthless and illi¬
terate men were enjoying its highest dignities and emolu¬
ments.
His translation of Hector Boyce’s history of Scotland is
said to have been printed in the year 1536.8 Neither the
title-page nor the colophon exhibits the year of the im-
“ Interea Musarum memoriae foeliciter litabat Joannes Balantyn, archidiaconus Moraviensis, accuratissima sedulitate in literis a
puero usque educatus.” (Gray, Oratio de illustribus Scotice Script or ibusy p. xxx.)
Biographia Britannica, vol. i. p. 572, 2d edit. 3 Lindsay’s Works, vol. i. p. 287.
s -Art* the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 322-4.
5 Dame’s History of the Houses of Douglas and Angus, p. 258. Edinb. 1644, fol.
th 11 18 ^ t0 k0 suPPose(l that the king was able to read Latin authors with much facility. Lindsay, vol. i. p. 259, mentions
. a 1G.,'v.as taken from school at the age of twelve; and the metrical paraphrast of Boyce’s history has more particularly described the
siate ol his knowledge :
The kingis grace I knaw is nocht perfyte
yy In Latyn toung.
o? cannot however suppose that the king was entirely ignorant of the Latin language. It may perhaps be considered as a proof
acr'11S. ow . ge, that he urged Buchanan to write against the Franciscan friars, and to render his satire more poignant. “ Igitur
Shi) ln 1e(jsjUSSU8 scribere, earn silvam, quae nunc sub titulo Franciscani est edita, inchoatam regi tradidit.” (Buchanani Vita, p. 3.)
his' if- I1 poem composed about this period, exhorts James to study the chronicles of Scotland ; and it might possibly be
intention to refer his grace to Bellenden’s translation. ( Works, vol. i. p. 302.)
The cronikillis to knaw I the exhort,
Quhilk may be mirrour to thy majestic;
Thare sail thou find baith gude and evill report,
Of everilk prince efter his qualitie :
Thocht thay be deid, thair deidis sail nocht dee.
Traist weill how salt be stylit in that storie
As thow deservis, put in memorie.
Maitland’s Biographical Introduction, p. xl. 8
Mackenzie’s Lives of Scots Writers, vol. ii. p. 596.
550 BEL
BEL
Bellenden, pression; so that the date here assigned, if it is not mere-
John. ]y conjectural, must have been ascertained from some
s—other document. The book was printed by Thomas Da¬
vidson, who styles himself printer to the king.1 On the
26th of July 1533, a sum of money was paid to Bellenden
“ for ane Cronikle gevin to the kingis grace,” but this
must have been in manuscript. The printed book de¬
scribes the-translator as archdeacon of Moray and canon
of Ross : the bishopric did not become vacant till the
year 1534,2 and, as we have already seen, the archdea¬
conry was vacated at a later period. Under the date of
April 1538, when he obtained a grant of the two clergy¬
men’s emoluments for the preceding year, he was not de¬
scribed as a dignitary. • It has likewise been stated that
the work was reprinted in 1541,3 but such copies as we
have had an opportunity of inspecting seem all to belong
to the same edition. It was Bellenden’s intention to execute
a complete version of Livy, but he did not advance beyond
the first five books, nor was his translation printed till the
year 1822. From a manuscript in the Advocates Library,
it was then published by Mr Maitland, to whose antiqua¬
rian zeal we are likewise indebted for a new edition of his
other translation, as well as for some curious and interest¬
ing notices of Boyce and Bellenden.4 The archdeacon is
reported to have continued the history of Scotland for
one hundred years subsequent to the period at which the
printed narrative closes ;5 and a passage in his Proheme
of the History seems to imply that he had at least formed
such a project.
Bring nobyll dedis of mony yeris gone
Als fresche and recent to our memorie
As thay war bot in-to our dayis done.
That nobyll men may haue baith laud and glorie
For thair excellent brut of victorie.
And yit becaus my tyme hes bene so schort,
I thynk, quhen I haue oportunite,
To ring thair bell in-to ane othir sort.6
These two works exhibit the most ample specimen of
ancient Scotish prose that has descended to our times,
and are distinguished beyond most others by their fluency
and neatness of style. Bellenden frequently surprises a
modern reader by the happy vivacity of his expressions ;
1 Heir beginnis the Hystory and Croniklis of Scotland. Fol—It was “ imprentit in Edinburgh be me Thomas Dauidson, prenter
to the kyngis nobyl grace.” On the reverse of the title Davidson has inserted an address, consisting of five stanzas, and entitled
“ The Excusation of the Prentar.” In the library of the university of Edinburgh, and in that of the duke of Hamilton, there are
splendid copies of this work printed on vellum.
3 Keith s Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops, p. 150. 3 Herbert’s Typographical Antiquities, vol. iii. p. 1474.
4 1 he History and Chronicles of Scotland: written in Latin by Hector Boece ; and translated by John Bellenden, archdean of
Moray, and canon of Ross. Edinb. 1821,2 vols. 4to. The first five books of the Roman History: translated from the Latin of Titus
Livius by John Bellenden, &c. Edinb. 1822, 4to. The two works are uniformly and elegantly printed.
5 Balei Scriptores Britannice, cent. xiv. p. 223.
8 This metaphor, which is not peculiarly elegant, seems to have been a favourite with the Scotish poets, and particularly with the
bishop of Dunkeld.
Ane nothir wyse that bell sail now be roung
Than euer was to fore herd in our toung. (Douglas’s Virgil, p. 38.)
For quhy the bell of rethorick bene roung
Be Chawcer, Gower, and Lidgate laureat. (Lindsay’s Works, vol. i. p. 284.)
In the Proheme of the History, Bellenden takes occasion to suggest that it is impossible for a king to possess at once the hearts
and the goods of his barons. s ^
Schaw mony reasonis how na king micht haif
His baronis hartis and thair geir atanis.
clergy h°WeVer aPPears from the following stanza of the same Proheme, that he was not insensible to the profligate lives of the
Schaw how of kirkis the superflew rent
Is ennime to gud religion,
And makis preistis more sleuthfull than fervent
In pietuus werkis and devotion,
And not allanerly perdition
Of commoun iveill be bullis sumptuus,
Bot to evill prelatis gret occasion
To rage in lust and life maist vicius.
nor can we peruse these translations without beino- con-Bel > fe
vinced that his learning and talents had qualified Um for J ^ 1
original composition. In his version of the Scotish histo- ^ ■v' ^
rian, he does not adhere very scrupulously to his author-
he has assumed the liberty of adding, as well as of re¬
trenching, and may therefore'be considered as having ex¬
ceeded the proper limits of a translation. He has at all
events produced a very curious, and, to those who have a
competent knowledge of the language, a very entertaining
work. To his version of Boyce’s history he has subjoined
an epistle, addressed to James the Fifth, and written in a
strain of manly freedom: of the distinction between a
king and a tyrant, and of the miseries to which wicked
princes have generally been exposed, he speaks in bold and
unequivocal terms, which may excite some degree of sur¬
prise, but which cannot fail of exciting a high degree of
respect for his character.? Bellenden was then a digni¬
tary of the church, and might still hope for preferment;
and in all ages ambitious churchmen have been sufficient¬
ly disposed to encourage sovereigns in their most flagrant
attempts to encroach on the liberties of their subjects;
but the conduct of the worthy archdeacon, and of some
other beneficed clergymen of the ancient Scotish church,
must completely exempt them from this censure. John
Mair, who was provost of St Salvator’s College, and trea¬
surer of the chapel royal, and Hector Boyce, who was prin¬
cipal of King’s College, canon of Aberdeen, and rector of
Tyrie, have each written the history of their native coun¬
try, and have each evinced a laudable zeal in vindicating
the unalienable rights of the people. If such sentiments
were cherished by some of the catholic clergy, it is not
surprising that they should animate the breast of Bu¬
chanan, who had never been accustomed to pace in the
trammels of the church, and who had more completely
imbibed the spirit of classical antiquity.
Whatever might be the liberality of his political senti¬
ments, Bellenden seems to have been unprepared for any
change in the national religion.8 Stern and unbending vir¬
tue is not on all occasions to be expected among mankind:
truths which threaten the extinction of dignity and emo¬
lument cannot so easily be embraced; nor must we forget
the invincible force of prejudices, admitted in early youth,
BEL
BEL
551
, anc| cherished through a lengthened life. The archdeacon
; Willi; ' of Moray is represented as a strenuous opponent of the
; reformation, which he did not live to see completed.1 He
is said to have; visited Rome, and there to have terminat¬
ed his career in 1550.2 The particular object of his jour¬
ney has not been recorded: nor are we better informed
with respect to his age; but if he was entered at the uni¬
versity in 1508 and died in 1550, we may conjecture that
he had scarcely exceeded his sixtieth year. In this aca¬
demical record however we are only guided by the iden¬
tity of names, without the aid of any additional evidence.
Bellenden has been extolled as a master of every branch
of divine and human learning,3 and his attainments have
even extorted applause from the zealous bishop of Ossory,
John Bale, who has so frequently treated the papists with
unrelenting severity. In his poetical remains, which are
not numerous, he frequently displays an excursive fancy,
with considerable taste and skill as a versifier; and it is
therefore to be regretted that so few of his compositions
have been preserved. The most poetical of his works is
the Proheme of the Cosmographe : the principal incidents
are borrowed from the ancient fiction of the choice of
Hercules,4 but he has imparted to his copy the character¬
istic air of an original. Nor is his Proheme of the History
destitute of poetical merit. These two poems, as well as
the metrical prologue to his translation of Livy, bear in¬
ternal evidence of having been composed for the instruc¬
tion of the young king. Two copies of his unpublished
prolusion on the conception of Christ are to be found in
Bannatyne’s MS.
Beside the works already enumerated, Bellenden is said
to have composed a tract on the Pythagorean letter, De
Litem Pythagorce ; nor is there any necessity to adopt Dr
Mackenzie’s emendation, and substitute Vita for Litera:
the letter of Pythagoras was upsilon, which he had select¬
ed as his favourite in consequence of certain emblemati¬
cal properties indicated by its form. Vossius has men¬
tioned Bellenden as the author of a work on cosmography,5
but this is evidently his translation of Boyce’s preliminary
description of Scotland. It was stated by Dr Campbell
that many of his writings were then in the possession of
persons of distinction in Scotland; and he particularly
mentions that several of his poems were in the possession
of Laurence Dundas, apparently the professor of humani¬
ty at Edinburgh.6 It is not however improbable that all
these were merely the works wdth which we are still ac¬
quainted, and that the poems to which he alludes were
modem transcripts. * (x.)
Bellenden, William, is a Scotish name familiarly
known to those who have explored the recesses of modern
literature, but with respect to the history of the individual
himself very few particulars have hitherto been disco- Bellenden,
vered. Whether he belonged to any family of distinction, William,
we are not informed; nor is the gentility of his birth attest- "Y'—'
ed by Dempster, who supplies the only biographical notices
with which we are acquainted. According to this con¬
temporary authority, he was a professor in the university,
and an advocate in the parliament of Paris. We must ap¬
parently conclude that he relinquished the functions of a
professor, and betook himself to the practice of the bar.
The same writer has stated that both Queen Mary and
King James employed him in some diplomatic services,
and that the latter nominated him master of requests.7
That he bore such a title, is sufficiently ascertained from
his own publications, in all of which he is described as
“ Magister supplicum Libellorum Augusti Regis Magnae
Britannise but there are obvious reasons for suspecting
that his office, if not unconnected with emolument, was
altogether unconnected with official duty; for he appears
to have spent the greater part of his life in France. Ma¬
gister Libellorum was an officer in the court of the Roman
emperors,8 and it was his duty to receive and examine pe¬
titions addressed to the prince. A similar office was esta¬
blished in several modern kingdoms; and Maitre des Re¬
quites being an honourable title in France, Bellenden
might solicit and obtain such a title from a sovereign who
could not so easily bestow an ample salary. The terms
employed by Dempster in describing his appointment,
seem rather to indicate honour than emolument. It is
supposed that he must have belonged to the Scotish esta¬
blishment, for, in England, a person who bore this title was
a judge of a particular court: of the court of requests,
which professed to distribute justice gratuitously, the lord
privy seal was chief judge, and was assisted by two judges
called masters of requests, the one for the common, and
the other for the civil law.9 In a list of the officers
of state in Scotland, “William Ballenden, viagist. supplic.
libellor.” is said to have succeeded Mark Ker as master of
requests in 1608, and to have been succeeded in 1624 by
Sir James Galloway, afterwards Lord Dunkeld.10 il But the
date of his appointment seems to have been borrowed from
that of his earliest publication; and Bellenden continued
to describe himself as master of requests in the year 1625.
If he practised at the bar in Paris, his early education
must in all probability have been French ; and if he was
a regent or professor in one of the colleges, he may be
supposed to have adhered to the popish religion. Since
the massacre of St Bartholomew, which had proved fatal
to Ramus and other men of learning, there probably had
been no p^otestant professor in any college of Paris. His
nephew, William Bellenden, was a catholic and a priest.
Bellenden’s earliest publication bears the subsequent
' “ Jacobus Balandenu*, Moraviensis ecclesise archidiaconus, in celebri Sorbome schola magistri laurea donatus, summo studio po-
pulanum suorum animos heresi laborantes, cum scribendo turn disputando, conatus est liberare.” (Conseus de duplici Statu Religionit
‘‘pud Scotos, p. 167. Romae, 1628, 4to.) Both Conn and Dempster have inaccui’ately given him the name of James.
“ Itomae tandem obiise dicitur.” (Bale, cent. xiv. p. 223.) “ Obiit Itomae, anno, ut puto, 1560.” (Dempster, p. 107.) The former
wr‘te^ speaks with some degree of hesitation respecting the place, and the latter respecting the date.
^ ‘ Laboriosa cura et incredibili studio artes omnes humanas atque etiam divinas percepit.” (Dempster. Hist. Ecdesiast. Gent,
4 Xenophontis Memorabilia, lib. ii. § 21. 5 Yossius de Scientiis Mathematicis, p. 252.
’ Biographia Britannica, vol. i. p. 573.
' Guiliehnus Bellendenus, sive Ballantinus, honestissimo bonarum artium studio Parisiis inclaruit professor in academia, patro-
nus causarum in supremo Galliarum senatu; turn demum oratoris munere honestatus principibus suis, Reginse Marias, filioque Jaco-
i0> ndelem operam navavit, a quo posteriore magistri libellorum supplicum elogio honorifico est donatus. Ejus sunt: Princeps Ci-
eeionig, lib. i. Orator Ciceronis, lib. i. Senator Ciceronis, lib. i. In omnia Ciceronis Opera Observationes, lib. i. Yivit adhuc Lu-
alie’e4 plura molitur.” (Dempsteri Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Scotorum, p. 119. Bononise, 1627, 4to.)
9 l5rissonius de Verborum quae ad Jus Civile pertinent Signijtcatione, tom. ii. p. 769. edit. Heineccii.
see Sir Thomas Smith’s Common-wealth of England, p. 245. edit. Lond. 1633, 12mo—“ Therein, for the most part,” says Sir
lomas Ridley, “ are handled poore miserable persons causes, as widows and orphans, and other distressed people, whose cases wholly
16 011 Piehe and conscience.” (View of the Civile and Ecclesiasticall Law, p. 276, 2d edit. Oxford, 1634, 4to ) The court of re-
il ScWas, inshtuted about the ninth of Henry VII., and was dissolved by statute, 16 Car. I. c. 10.
bcots Staggering State of the Scots Statesmen, p. 189. Edinb. 1764, 12mo.
552 BEL
Bellenden, title : “ Ciceronis Princeps, Rationes et Consilia bene ge-
William. i-endi firmandique Impei’ii: ex iis repetita qua? ex Cicero-
nianis defluxere fontibus in libros xvi. de Statu Rerum
Romanarum, qui nondum lucem acceperunt.” Paris. 1608,
8vo. This was followed by1 “ Ciceronis Consul, Senator,
Senatusque Romanus: illustratus public!observatione juris,
gravissimi usus disciplina, administrandi temperata ratione;
notatis inclinationibus temporum in Rep. et actis rerum in
Senatq : quae a Ciceroniana nondum edita profluxere me-
moria annorum dccx. congesta in libros xvi. de Statu Rerum
Romanarum: unde jam manavit Ciceronis Princeps, dignus
habitus summorum lectione principum. Editio prima. Ad
inclytumserenissimumque Principem HenricumPrincipem
Scotiae et Walliae.” Paris. 1612, 8vo. This mode of not¬
ing a first edition is somewhat pleasant ;2 nor must we
overlook the important intelligence that his former publi¬
cation had been thought worthy of the attention of mighty
princes. Both these works partake of the nature of a
cento. In the first of them, the author has collected from
the writings of Cicero the various precepts and remarks
which relate to the origin and principles of regal govern¬
ment, and with no small labour has combined the whole
in a regular and systematic form. Adopting a similar
plan in the other work, he has compiled a treatise on the
dignity and authority of the consuls, and on the constitu¬
tion of the Roman senate. Although this may seem an
effort of mere diligence, it required both learning and abi¬
lity to present such materials in such a shape.
His next publication is entitled “ De Statu prisci Orbis
in Religione, Re politica, et Literis, liber unus. Ad sere-
nissimum Principem Carolum Principem Scotiae et Wal¬
lis.” Paris. 1615, 8vo. This is a work of more origi¬
nality, and affords a very favourable specimen of the au¬
thor’s talents and erudition.3 It exhibits, in a very con¬
densed form, a sketch of the history of philosophy and
civil polity, tracing its progress among the Hebrews,
Greeks, and Romans. Of this work very few copies ap¬
pear to have been separately published; for the author
speedily combined all the three tracts in a volume which
bears the following title: “ De Statu libri tres. I. De
Statu prisci Orbis in Religione, Re politica, et Literis.
II. Ciceronis Princeps, sive de Statu Principis et Imperii.
HI. Ciceronis Consul, Senator, Senatusque Romanus, sive
de Statu Reip. et Urbis imperantis Orbi. Primus, nunc
primum editus : caeteri, cum tractatu de Processu et Scrip-
toribus Rei Politicae, ab autore aucti et illustrati.” Paris.
1615, 8vo. Notwithstanding this notice on the title-page,
we suspect that the second and third treatises were not
actually reprinted. Each treatise has a distinct series of
pages, and it was therefore easy to combine the whole.
In its separate form and in this volume, Ciceronis Consul
exhibits the very same list of typographical errors. Dr Parr
remarks, that in all the copies which he had seen, the date
seems to have been changed from m.dc.xv. to m.dc.xvi.
by the printer adding the letter i after the impression had
been finished : but in a copy belonging to the Advocates
Library, the additional letter is apparently printed, not
with a type, but with a pen ; and in a copy belonging to
the writer of this notice, the original date remains unal¬
tered. Another minute variation may likewise be men-
B E L
tioned; in the latter copy, the plate in the second treatise Bel &
is not impressed on the reverse of a printed page of the W am
dedication. In a paper written by Dr Bennet, the late'''' ‘V
bishop of Cloyne, we find the subsequent statement re¬
specting the books De Statu. “ The great work being now
completed, Bellenden looked forward with a pretty well-
grounded expectation for that applause which his labour
and his ingenuity deserved. But his views were disap¬
pointed, by one of those events which no art of man could
foresee or remedy. The vessel in which the whole im¬
pression was embarked was overtaken by a storm before
she could reach the English coast, and foundered with all
her cargo. A very few copies only, which the learned
author either kept for his own use, or had sent as presents
by private hands, seem to have been preserved from the
destruction which awaited the others.”4 We are not aware
of any early authority for such a statement; and the learned
prelate, misled by an imperfect recollection, seems to have
misapplied Dr Warton’s account of Bellenden’s larger
work, which is likewise an account that requires confir¬
mation. There is a manifest fallacy in supposing that
almost all the impression of such a book must have been
destined for England. After a long interval, the fame ot
the author was greatly extended by Dr Parr’s publication
of “ Gulielmi Bellendeni, Magistri supplicum Libellorum
Augusti Regis Magnae Britanniae, &c. de Statu libri tres.
Editio secunda longe emendatior.” Lond. 1787,8vo. The
preface, extending to seventy-six pages, is written in a
style of elegant and powerful Latinity, but is too much
replenished with modern politics, and, in the opinion of
some readers, is not free from a considerable mixture
of pedantry. It is however such a composition as no
other Englishman of that period could perhaps have pro¬
duced.
The last work which Bellenden himself published is of
very small extent, consisting merely of two short poems:
“ Caroli Primi et Henricae Mariae, Regis et Reginae Mag¬
nae Britanniae, &c. Epithalamium; et in ipsas augustissi-
mas Nuptias, celeberrimamque Legationem earum causa
obitam, &c. panegyricum Carmen, et Elogia.” Paris. 1625,
4to. This little work has likewise been republished by
Dr Parr.
But the greatest labour of his life was a posthumous
production, which made its appearance under the title of
“ Guilielmi Bellendeni Scoti, Magistri supplicum Libel-
lorum Augusti Regis Magnae Britanniae, de tribus Lumi-
nibus Romanorum libri sex-decim.” Paris. 1633, fol.
With respect to the date of this publication, one biblio¬
grapher frequently contradicts another, and some minute
particulars require explanation. In the Advocates Library,
that great repository of Scotish literature, there are two
copies of the book, which exhibit considei’able variations.
In both of them we find the same extract of the royal pri¬
vilege, dated on the third of September 1631. The one
bears, “ Acheve d’imprimer pour la premiere fois, le
vingtseptiesme jour d’Aoust 1633.” Of this copy the
dedication, “ Henrico Borbonio, Sacro-sancti Imp. Rom.
Principi, illustriss. Metens. Praesuli,” is subscribed by the
author’s nephew, “ Guilielmus Bellendenus, Presbyter
Scotus.” It consists of nearly four pages, but is not fo -
1 This work of Bellenden did not escape the notice of the learned and indefatigable Fabricius, Biblioirranhia Antiquaria, p. 490.
edit. Hamb. et Lips. 1716, 4to.
Another learned philologer had recently set him the example: “ Julii Caesaris Bulengeri Juliodunensis de Theatro Ludisque
Scenicis libri duo. Editio prima.” Tricassibus, 1603, 8vo.
. * Br Parr, in his famous preface to Bellenden, p. v. mentions this work with much commendation. “ Stylus est Bellendeni pel
hbrum huncce, dilucidus in primis, neque exquisitus nimis. Sententiae hie illic occurrunt reconditae, quibus adhibita, tanquam obrussa,
est ratio. Operis porro totius ita sunt aptae inter se colligataeque partes, nihil ut sit asperum, vel hiulcum, vel dissolutuni, nihn m
alienum irruerit locum, nihil non positum sit suo.”
* See Dr Johnstone’s Memoirs of Farr, p. 182.
BEL
flowed by a preface. The other copy has a similar title-
Will i-'p30,6* '3Ut ^ie ^ate anc^ t^e note su^j°ined
J to the privilege bears, “ Acheve d’imprimer pour la pre¬
miere fois, le vingtroisiesme jour de Mars 1634.” It con¬
tains a different and a shorter dedication, “ Potentissimo
et invictissimo Principi Carolo Magnse Britanniae Ilegi,
&c.” subscribed by the publisher, Toussaint du Bray.
This dedication is followed by a brief preface, “ Lectori
benevolo.” In other respects the two copies present a
complete resemblance ; and it appears sufficiently evident
that one set of copies must have been intended for the
French, and another for the British market.
Of this elaborate work, which consists of no fewer than
824 pages, printed on a small type, the subject is very
faintly indicated l?y the title. It is the author’s object to
combine, in an historical form, all the statements and re¬
flections of Cicero which relate to the civil and religious
affairs of Rome ; and his plan is executed in such a man¬
ner as to display the essence of the Roman history, from
the foundation of the city to the extinction of the repub¬
lic.1 In the text he adheres to his former method of ex¬
pressing himself in no other words than those of Cicero;
but he has interspersed occasional observations, drawn
from various sources of information. The latter part of
the work, relating to the times of his great prototype, is
very ample and satisfactory; and here it is evident that
the materials must be chiefly derived from the epistles.
The reader cannot fail to perceive that this is precisely
such a digest as would be necessary for an historian of
the life and times of Cicero; it is such a digest as Dr
Middleton professes to have formed by his own unaided
industry. “ My first business therefore,” as he is pleas¬
ed to state, “ after I had undertaken this task, was, to
read over Cicero’s works, with no other view than to ex¬
tract from them all the passages that seemed to have any
relation to my design ; where the tediousness of collect¬
ing an infinite number of testimonies scattered through
many different volumes ; of sorting them into their classes,
and ranging them in proper order; the necessity of over¬
looking many in the first search, and the trouble of re¬
trieving them in a second or third; and the final omission
of several through forgetfulness or inadvertency; have
helped to abate that wonder which had often occurred to
me, why no man had ever attempted the same work before
me, or at least in this enlarged and comprehensive form, in
which it is nowr offered to the public.”2 If previously ac¬
quainted with the work of Bellenden, he must have been
fully aware that this labour of collecting and digesting was
altogether superfluous ; nor is it probable that such a book
was unknown to Dr Middleton, a man of extensive learn¬
ing, and the keeper of a great public library, that of the
university of Cambridge. He has therefore been repeat¬
edly accused of plagiarism ; and it must be confessed that
the accusation does not appear to be destitute of founda-
tmn. “ It may be worth observing,” says Dr Warton,
“ that he is much indebted, without acknowledging it, to
a curious book little known, entitled G. Bellendeni Scoti
BEL 553
de tribus Lumiuibus Romanorum, &c. It comprehends a Bellero-
history of Rome, from the foundation of the city to the phon.
time of Augustus, drawn up in the very words of Cicero,
without any alteration of any expression. In this book
Middleton found every part of Cicero’s own history, in
his own words, and his works arranged in chronological
order, without further trouble. The impression of this
work being shipped for England, was lost in the vessel,
which was cast away, and only a few copies remained that
Iiad been left in France.”3 The same opinion respecting
the biographer’s plagiarism is adopted, and strongly ex¬
pressed by Dr Parr.4 *
M. Morabin, the French biographer of Cicero, who soon
followed Dr Middleton, has, in the dedication of his work,
acknowledged his acquaintance with Bellenden, but has
not mentioned him in the most appropriate terms. “ Si
Bellenden, dans son traite De tribus Luminibus Romano¬
rum, a evite cet ecueil, en rassemblant tout ce qu’il y a
d’historique dans Ciceron, et en n’employant que les ex¬
pressions de cet orateur, il a donne dans un autre; et sa
compilation, de quelque utilite qu’elle puisse etre a un
auteur qui embrasseroit une histoire generale, ne sauroit
guere servir dans la composition d’une histoire particuliere,
qu’a fournir la matiere d’un gros livre qui ne seroit lu.”6
But certainly an ample collection of materials was in
either case desirable; and for a person who undertook to
write the history of Cicero in two volumes quarto, it
might have been thought necessary to inspect all the ma¬
terials which Cicero had himself furnished.
Bellenden has bestowed upon his book a title which to
many readers must require explanation. It appears to
have been his original intention to compose, on a similar
plan, three different works illustrative of the civil and li¬
terary history of Rome. The first of his three luminaries
is Cicero, who has supplied him with the materials of civil
history. According to Lenglet du Fresnoy, the other two
whom he had in his contemplation were Seneca and the
elder Pliny ;6 and we may conclude that, by means of the
same laborious arrangement and digest of their respective
writings, he intended to exhibit a comprehensive view of
the moral and physical science of the Romans. (x.)
BELLEROPHON, in fabulous history, the son of Glau-
cus, king of Epirus. Happening accidentally to kill his
brother, he fled to Prcetus, king of Argos, who gave him a
hospitable reception ; but Sthenoboea, his queen, falling in
love with the beautiful stranger, and finding that nothing
could induce the latter to injure his benefactor, accused him
to her husband of an attempt to violate her honour. Prcetus,
however, being unwilling to act contrary to the laws of
hospitality, sent him to lobates, king of Lysia, the father
of Sthenobcea, with letters desiring him to be put to death;
whence the proverb Bellerophontis literas affert, equivalent
to Literce Urice. On the receipt of these letters, the Lysian
prince was celebrating a festival of nine days, which pre¬
vented Bellerophon’s destruction. In the meanwhile,
however, lobates sent him to subdue the Solymi, the
Amazons, and Lysians; thinking doubtless to get rid of
1 Clement has described this work in terms of too extensive import: “ Guillaume Bellenden, grand admirateur de Cicdron, s est
donne torture pour ecrire I’Histoire des Empereurs et des Consuls Remains, avec les propres termes de cet ancien orateur, dont il a
cite constamment les ouvrages a la marge : et comme il n’osoit pas s’etendre a son gre, en ecrivant d une maniere si bornee, il a ajoute
des notes k la fin de chaque livre, dans lesquelles il explique plus amplement ses idees.” (BIWoth'equc curkuso historique et critique, ou
Catalogue raisonne, de Livres difficile* d trouver, tom. iii. p. 72.)
2 Middleton’s Hist, of the Life of M. T. Cicero, vol. i. p. xx.
3 Warton’s Essay on the Genius and Writings of Pope, vol. ii. p. 324.
.' “ Permoleste autem fero,” says Dr Parr, “ potuisse ilium, qui ingenii tarn acris elegantisque esset, laudibus Bellendenum me¬
nds ac debitis private. Fidentissime enim confirmamus, Middletonum non modo ex Bellendeni qpere supellectilem sibi sublegisse
satis lautam atque amplam, sed libri ipsius prope formam, qua res ferret, adumbrasse.” {Prof. p. iii.)
c Morabin, Histoire de Ciceron, avec des Remarques historiques et critiques. Paris, 1745, 2 tom. 4to.
L’auteur avoit dessein de faire la meme chose sur Pline Pancien, et sur Senequey mais il n’y a eu d’imprime que ce qui regarde
Ciceron, et 1’ouvrage meme n’est pas commun.” (Lenglet du Fresnoy, Methode pour ttudier CHistoire, tom. xi. p. 72, edit. 1772.)
VOL. IV. 4 a
554
BEL
BEL
Belles
Lettres
Bellini.
him by exposure to the greatest dangers, without incur¬
ring the odium of direct murder: but the prudence and
courage of Bellerophon disappointed this calculation, and
he came off victorious. lobates next employed him to de¬
stroy the Chimsera; when, in consideration of his inno¬
cence, Minerva, or,according toothers, Neptune, furnished
him with the horse Pegasus, by the assistance of which
he killed this monster. On his return, lobates, convinced
of his truth and integrity, and charmed with his heroic vir¬
tues, gave Bellerophon his daughter Philonoe in marriage,
and declared him his successor in the kingdom; intelligence
which drove Sthenobcea to despair and suicide. But Bel¬
lerophon grew vain of his prosperity, and resolving by the
assistance of Pegasus to ascend the skies, Jupiter checked
his presumption by striking him blind in his flight; on
which he fell down to the earth, and wandered about till
his death in contempt and misery, while Pegasus mount¬
ing into heaven, was placed by Jupiter among the constel¬
lations.
BELLES Lettres. Neither the voluminous diction¬
aries of the French language, nor those treatises which
profess to point out the method of studying and teaching
the belles lettres, have thought proper to give a pre¬
cise definition, or an intelligible explanation, of the mean¬
ing they attach to the words, nor any summary of those
sciences which are comprehended under this general de¬
nomination. The terms, indeed, appear to be so vague,
that any one may include under them whatever he thinks
proper. Sometimes we are told that, by the belles let¬
tres, is meant a knowledge of the arts of oratory and
poetry; sometimes that the true belles lettres include
natural philosophy, geometry, and other essential parts of
learning; sometimes that they comprehend the art of war,
in its various branches, together with all that we know,
and whatever we please ; and one author, in treating of
the belles lettres, introduces a discourse on the seven sa¬
craments of the Roman Catholic church. Others, again,
comprehend under the term all those instructive and
pleasing sciences which chiefly occupy the memory and
the understanding, and do not form part either of the su¬
perior sciences, of the fine arts, or of the mechanical pro¬
fessions ; considering history, chronology, geography, ge¬
nealogy, blazonry, philology, and such like subjects, as con¬
stituting the belles lettres. But it were endless to attempt
to enumerate all the parts of literature and science which
different learned men have comprehended under this title ;
nor would it be of any use to pretend to fix the true im¬
port of a term which is rapidly passing into desuetude.
BELLEVOIS was a pointer of sea-pieces, and known
as such, though no particulars of his life have been handed
down. He died in 1684.
BELLE Y, anarrondissementof the department of Ain, in
France, 540 square miles in extent, and comprehending
nine cantons and 118 communes, with a population of
75,230 persons. The capital is a city of the same name,
containing an episcopal palace, and 3770 inhabitants.
Long. 5. 35. 14. E. Lat. 45. 45. 29. N.
BELLINI, Gentile, a Venetian painter, born in the
year 1421. He was employed by the republic of Venice ;
and to him and his brother that state is indebted for the
noble works which are to be found in its council-hall. Ma¬
homed II. having seen some of his performances, was so
struck with them that he wrote to the republic, entreat¬
ing that the artist might be sent to him. Bellini accord-
ingly proceeded to Constantinople, where he painted a
number of pieces, among which was the decollation of St
John the Baptist, whom the Turks revere as a great pro¬
phet. Mahomed admired the proportion and shading of
the work; but remarking a defect in regard to the skin of
the neck, from which the head was separated, the sultan,
to prove the truth of his observation, sent for a slave B :
and ordered his head to be struck off. The painter by
no means relished this capital style of instruction, and 'ad
anxious to place his own head beyond the reach of expe- ^ ^
riment, earnestly solicited his dismission, which the grand
seignior granted, at the same time making him a present
of a gold chain. The republic settled a pension upon him
at his return, and made him a knight of St Mark. He
died in 1501, in the eightieth year of his age. John Bel¬
lini, his brother, who died in 1512, aged ninety, painted
with more art and sweetness than Gentile.
Bellini, Laurence, an eminent physician, born at Flo¬
rence in the year 1643. After having finished his studies
in general literature, he went to Pisa, where, assisted by
the generosity of the grand duke Ferdinand II., he studied
under two of the most learned men of that age, Oliva and
Borelli, the former of whom instructed him in natural phi¬
losophy, and the latter taught him mathematics. At the
early age of twenty he was chosen professor of philosophy
at Pisa, but did not long continue in this office ; for he had
acquired such a reputation for skill in anatomy, that the
grand duke procured him a professorship in that science.
This prince often attended his lectures, and expressed him¬
self highly satisfied with his abilities and performances.
Bellini wrote the following books in Latin: 1. An Anato¬
mical Discourse on the Structure and Use of the Kidneys;
2. A Speech by way of Thanks to the serene Duke of Tus¬
cany ; 3. Some Anatomical Observations, and a Proposition
in Mechanics; 4. Of the Urine and Pulse, of Blood-letting,
Fevers, and Diseases of the Head and Breasts; 5. Seve¬
ral Tracts concerning Urine, the motion of the Heart, and
Bile, &c. He died in January 1703, in the sixtieth year
of his age. The works of Bellini were read and explained
publicly during his life, by our countryman Dr Pitcairn,
professor of physic in Leyden.
BELLON, a distemper common among persons employ¬
ed in smelting lead-ore. It is attended with langour, in¬
tolerable pains and sensations of gripings in the belly, and
generally with costiveness.
BELLON A, in Pagan Mythology, the goddess of war,
is generally reckoned the sister of Mars, but some repre¬
sent her as both his sister and wife. This goddess is
described as of a cruel and savage disposition, delighting
in bloodshed and slaughter; as not only the attendant of
Mars, but as taking a pleasure in sharing his dangers.
Hence she is commonly represented in an attitude expres¬
sive of fury and distraction, with her hair composed of
snakes clotted with gore, and her garments stained with
blood; sometimes she is depictured driving the chariot of
Mars, with a bloody whip in her hand, sometimes with a
lighted torch or brand, and a trumpet. Bellona had a
temple at Rome, near the Circus Flaminius.
BELLONARII, in Antiquity, priests of Bellona, the
goddess of wars and battles. The bellonarii pretended to
cut and mangle their bodies with knives and daggers in
order to pacify the deity; offering their own blood, not
that of other creatures, in sacrifice. In the fury and en¬
thusiasm with which they were seized on these occasions,
they ran about raving, uttering prophecies, and foretelling
blood and slaughter, devastations of cities and revolutions
of states; whence Martial calls them turbaentheataBellonce.
But Lampridius tells us that the emperor Commodus
turned the farce into a tragedy, by obliging these priests
to cut and mangle their bodies in good earnest.
BELLORI, John Peter, of Rome, a celebrated anti¬
quary and connoisseur, as well as author of the lives ot
the modern painters, architects, and sculptors, and ot
other works on antiquities and medals. He died in low.
BELLO VACI, in Ancient Geography, a people of Gal¬
lia Belgica, reckoned the bravest of the Belgse.
BEL
rei 3 BELLOWS, a machine so contrived as to inspire and
'e\ expire the air by turns, by enlarging and contracting its
Be capacity. This machine is used in chambers and kitchens,
^ in forges, furnaces, and founderies, to fan or blow up the
fire; and it serves also for organs and other pneumatic
instruments, to give them a proper degree of air. It is of
various construction, according to the different purposes
to which it is applied; but in general it is composed of
two flat boards, sometimes of an oval, sometimes of a tri¬
angular figure. Two or more hoops, bent according to the
figure of the boards, are placed between them; a piece of
leather, broad in the middle and narrow at both ends, is
nailed on the edges of the boards, which it thus unites
together, and also on the hoops which separate the boards,
that the leather may easily open and fold again ; and a
tube of iron, brass, or copper, is fastened to the undermost
board, while there is a valve within, which covers the holes
in the under board to keep in the air.
Anacharsis the Scythian is reputed the inventor of bel¬
lows. The action of bellows bears a near affinity to that
of the lungs; and what we call blowing in the former, af¬
fords a good illustration of what is called respiring in the
latter. Even animal life itself may on some occasions be
supported by blowing into the lungs with a pair of bel¬
lows. This is shown by Dr Hooke’s well-known experi¬
ment. Having laid the thorax of a dog bare, by cutting
away the ribs and diaphragm, pericardium, &c. and having
cut off the aspera arteria below the epiglottis, and bound
it on the nose of a bellows, this ingenious person found,
that as he blowed the dog recovered, and as he ceased it
fell into convulsions ; and thus the animal was kept alter¬
nately alive and dead for more than an hour.
Smiths’ and founders’ bellows, whether single or double,
are wrought by means of a rocker, with a string or chain
fastened to it, which the workman pulls. The bellows
pipe is fitted into that of the tewel. One of the boards is
fixed so as not to play at all. By drawing down the handle
of the rocker, the movable board rises; and, by means of
a weight on the top of the upper board, it sinks again. The
bellows of forges and furnaces of mines usually receive
their motion from the wheels of a water-mill or steam-en¬
gine. Others, as the bellows of enamellers, are wrought
by means of one or more steps or treddles under the work¬
man's feet. Lastly, the bellows of organs are wrought
by a man called the blower; and in small organs by the
hand or foot of the player. See Blowing Machinery.
Hessian Bellows is a contrivance for driving air into a
mine to facilitate the respiration of the miners.
BELLUNO, one of the delegations into which the
Austrian kingdom of Venetian Lombardy is divided. It
is bounded on the west and north by the Tyrol, on the
east by Friuli, on the south-east by Treviso, and on the
south-west by Vicenza; and its extent is 1210 square
miles, or 774,400 acres. It is generally a hilly and moun¬
tainous country. The widest valley is that through which
runs the river Piave, and which, with a few other much nar¬
rower ones, are tolerably fertile in rye, barley, oats, and
buckwheat; while some parts yield a little wheat, much
maize, and some flax and hemp. The mountains contain
veins of iron, lead, copper, and vitriol; but the mines are
all worked upon a very contracted scale. The inhabitants
amounted in 1817 to 114,772, of whom 58,820 were males
and55,952 females. The capital is of the same name, and
stands on the Piave, where the Ardo forms a junction with
d- Besides the cathedral, there are 13 churches, and se¬
veral religious houses both for males and females. The
inhabitants amount to 8440, some of whom are employed
m the spinning of silk. It is situated in long. 12. 8. 46. E.
lat. 46. 7. 46. N.
BELOI, a circle in the Russian government of Smolen-
B E L 555
sko, the chief town of which is of the same name, on the Belomancy
Obscha, and contains 2274 inhabitants. Long. 33. 7. E.
Lat. 55. 34. N. Beloochis-
BELOMANCY, Belomantia, a kind of divination by
means of arrows, practised in the East, but chiefly among
the Arabians. The word is of Greek origin, being com¬
pounded of faXog, arrow, and /Lavrua, divination.
BELON, Peter, of Le Mans, the capital of Le Maine, a
province of France, flourished about the middle of the six¬
teenth century. He published several works in Latin and
in French, 'including a book of travels, or observations of
many singularities and memorable things found in Greece,
Asia, Judasa, Egypt, and other foreign countries. He
was murdered near Paris, by one of his enemies, in 1564.
BELOOCHISTAN, a country of Asia, situated on the
north-western coast of the Indian peninsula. It is bounded
on the north by Afghanistan and Seistan ; on the west
by the Persian provinces of Kirman and Laristan; on the
south by the Indian Ocean ; and on the east by a part of
Sinde and Shikarpoor. In general, it maybe said to com¬
prehend all that space included within the 25th and 30th
degrees of north latitude, and the 58th and 68th degrees
of east longitude ; and its whole superficial extent may be
computed at 550 geographical miles in length, and 300 in
breadth.
Of the early history of this portion of the Asiatic con¬
tinent little or nothing is known. The poverty and na¬
tural strength of the country, combined with the fero¬
cious habits of the natives, seem to have equally repelled
the friendly visits of inquisitive strangers and the hostile
incursions of invading armies. The Greeks, from whom
we derive the earliest information relative to the western
frontiers of India, are almost entirely silent with respect
to this mountainous and inhospitable tract; and scarcely
any notice of it occurs for many centuries posterior to the
Macedonian invasion. Hence it is impossible to trace the
first settlement of this country; and the descent of its in¬
habitants can only be imperfectly ascertained by analogy
and conjecture. As the natives have no written language,
their historical annals are merely traditional, and therefore
entitled to little credit. The Belooches ascribe their own
origin to the earliest Mahommedan invaders of Persia,
and are very desirous of being supposed to be of Arabian
extraction ; but the latter part of this supposition derives
no confirmation from their features, their manners, or their
language, which bear not the slightest similitude to those
of the Arabs. There can be little doubt, however, that
they originally came from the westward ; of which indeed
there is strong evidence in the affinity between the Be-
loochekee and Persian languages ; and their institutions,
habits, and religion, seem to indicate that they are of
Toorkoman lineage. It seems highly probable, indeed,
that, during the frequent sanguinary revolutions to which
the monarchy of the Seljukide Tartars was subject, some
of these barbarians had been forced to wander over the
country in quest of new settlements; and that a portion
of them had found refuge in the mountainous districts of
Beloochistan. But, besides the Belooches, there are in
Beloochistan other distinct tribes of inhabitants, whose
peculiar habits and shades of character we shall afterwards
take an opportunity of describing. These are, the Bra-
hooes, apparently a race of Tartar mountaineers, who set¬
tled at an early period in the southern parts of Asia, but
whose history is extremely obscure and uninteresting;
the Dehwars, a Persian colony, whose original settle¬
ment cannot be traced; and the Hindoos, who appear to
have been the first settlers in the upper part of the Bra-
hooick Mountains, on their being expelled from Sinde,
Lus, and Mekran, by the armies of the caliphs of Bagdad.
This last tribe appears to have constituted the governing
556
BELOOCHISTAN.
Beloochis- party at the earliest period of which any thing approach-
tan. ing to authentic information has been obtained. The Bra-
hooes and Belooches, however, gradually spread over the
country ; and the Hindoo power was at length subverted
by a revolution, which placed the ancestors of the present
khan of Kelat upon the throne.
The precise period at which this revolution took place
cannot be accurately ascertained; but it is probable that
two centuries have not elapsed since that event. I he
last rajah of the Hindoo dynasty found himself compelled
to call for the assistance of the mountain shepherds, with
their leader, Kumbur, in order to check the encroach¬
ments of a horde of depredators, headed by an Afghan
chief, who infested the country, and even thi'eatened to
attack the seat of government. Kumbur successfully per¬
formed the service for which he had been engaged: but
having in a few years quelled the robbers against whom
he had been called in, and finding himself at the head of
the only military tribe in the country, he formally de¬
posed the rajah, and assumed the reins of government.
The history of this country subsequently to the acces¬
sion of Kumbur is involved in the same obscurity as dur¬
ing the Hindoo dynasty. It would appear, however, that
the sceptre was quietly transmitted to the descendants of
that chief, who seems to have persevered in a peaceable
system of government, until the time of Abdoolla Khan,
the fourth in descent from Kumbur ; who, being an intre¬
pid and ambitious soldier, turned his thoughts towards the
conquest of Kutch-Gundava, then held by different petty
chiefs, under the authority of the Navvabs of Sinde.
After various success, the Kumburanees at length pos¬
sessed themselves of the sovereignty of a considerable
portion of that fruitful plain, including the chief town,
Gundava. It was during this contest that the famous
conqueror Nadir Shah, commonly called Thamas Koolee
Khan, advanced from Persia to the invasion of Hindostan ;
and while at Kandahar, he dispatched several detach¬
ments into Beloochistan, and established his authority in
that province. Abdoolla Khan, however, was continued in
the government of the country by Nadir’s orders; but he
was soon after killed in a battle with the forces of the
Nawabs of Sinde. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
Hajee Mohummud Khan, who abandoned himself to the
most tyrannical and licentious way of life, and completely
alienated his subjects by his arbitrary and oppressive sys¬
tem of taxation. In these circumstances, Nusseer Khan,
the second son of Abdoolla Khan, who had accompanied
the victorious Nadir to Delhi, and acquired the favour and
confidence of that monarch, returned to Kelat, and was
hailed by the whole population as their deliverer. Find¬
ing that expostulation had no effect upon his brother, he
one day entered his apartment, when the prince was alone,
and stabbed him to the heart. As soon as the tyrant was
dead, Nusseer Khan mounted the musnud, amidst the uni¬
versal joy of his subjects, and immediately transmitted a
report of the events which had taken place to Nadir Shah,
who was then encamped near Kandahar. The shah re¬
ceived the intelligence with satisfaction, and dispatched
a firman, by return of the messenger, appointing Nusseer
Khan beglierbey of all Beloochistan. This event took
place in the year 1739.
Nusseer Khan proved an active, politic, and warlike
prince. He took great pains to re-establish the internal
government of all the provinces in his dominions, and im¬
proved and fortified the city of Kelat. On the death of
Nadir Shah, in 1747, he acknowledged the title of the king
of Cabul, Ahmed Shah Abdalla. In 1758 he declared
himself entirely independent; upon which Ahmed Shah
dispatched a force against him, under one of his ministers.
The khan, however, levied his troops and totally routed
the Afghan army. On receiving intelligence of this dis- Bel i •
comfiture, the king himself marched with strong reinforce- t S'
ments, and a pitched battle was fought, in which, Nusseer ^ v.1
Khan was worsted. He retired in good order to Kelat,
whither he was followed by the victor, who invested the
place with his whole army. The khan made a vigorous
defence ; and, after the royal troops had been foiled in
their attempts to take the city by storm or surprise, a ne-
gociation was proposed by the king, which terminated in
a treaty of peace. By this treaty it was stipulated that
the king was to receive the cousin of Nusseer Khan in
marriage ; and that the khan was to pay no tribute, but
only, when called upon, to furnish troops to assist the
royal armies, for which he was to receive an allowance in
cash equal to half their pay.
Subsequently to this period the khan frequently distin¬
guished himself by his gallantry and judgment in the wars
carried on by the monarch of Cabul; and, as a reward for
his eminent services, the king bestowed upon him several
districts to hold in perpetual and entire sovereignty. Hav¬
ing succeeded in quelling a dangerous rebellion, headed
by his cousin Beheram Khan, this able prince at length
died at an extreme old .age, after a happy and prosperous
reign, in the month of June 1795, leaving three sons and
five daughters. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
Muhmood Khan, then a boy about fourteen years of age.
During the reign of this prince, who is described as a very
humane and indolent man, the country has been distracted
by sanguinary intestine broils; the governors of several
provinces and districts have withdrawn their allegiance;
and the dominions of the khans of Kelat have so gradually
diminished, that they now comprehend only a small por¬
tion of the provinces which were formerly subject to Nus¬
seer Khan.
The territories of the last-mentioned prince are com-Prijpal
prised under the following divisions:—1. The provincesdivpns
of Jhalawan and Sarawan, and the district of Kelat. 2,°|,•u0*
The provinces of Mekran and Lus. 3. The province ot‘■1
Kutch-Gundava and district of Hurrund Dajel. 4. Ko-
histan, or the Belooche country west of the Desert. 5.
The Desert. 6. The province of Sinde.
The features of this extensive tract of country varyM(-
considerably; but, in general, it may be described as ex-tai
tremely mountainous. A stupendous range, to which the
appellation of the Brahooick Mountains has been assigned,
and which seems to be the primitive root of all the others,
springs abruptly to a conspicuous height out of the sea, at
Cape Mowaree, or Monze, in east longitude 66° 58', north
latitude 25°, whence it takes a north-easterly direction for
about ninety miles. There it projects a ridge, east by north,
the base of which is washed by the river Indus, at the
fort of Sehwan. From the separation of this arm, in lati¬
tude 25° 45' to that of 30°, the primitive body runs due
north, marking the western limits of Sinde, Kutch-Gun¬
dava, and a part of Seeweestan; and from thence it once
more regains its original inclination to the north-east, and
decreases in magnitude and elevation so rapidly, tnat, n*
the course of forty miles, it sinks to a level with the hills
inhabited by the Kaukers and other Afghan tribes, with
which it becomes incorporated. To the westward the
Brahooick Mountains send forth many collateral chains,
some of which extend the whole length of Beloochistan,
and join the mountains of Persia; others elongate sout -
erly till they touch the sea, or come within a few miles o
it, and then either take the inclination of the coast, or
subside in the low and barren plains in its vicinity; win e
the main body, or rather its western face, stretches away
north-west by north, to the twenty-eighth degree °f n°r 1
latitude, where it meets the south-eastern corner or e
sandy desert, about the sixty-fourth degree of east longi
BELOOCHISTAN.
557
tude; and from thence it inclines with a northern aspect
" Belo ^'jjg^een the north-east and north points of the compass
/ ^ ^ to Nooshky, in latitude 30° north ; from which place it
runs more easterly, till at length it gradually sinks, like
the eastern front, to an equality of size with the Afghan
hills. Besides the Brahooick chain, there are several
other ranges of mountains, extending in various directions
and ramifications throughout Beloochistan, but all of them
inferior to the former in magnitude and height. This
stupendous chain is believed to have attained its greatest
altitude at Kelat; from which city, according to the na¬
tives, a traveller, whatever route he may pursue, must de¬
scend ; but the descent is so very trifling for a long way
on either side of that capital that it is not perceptible by
the eye.
Throughout the whole of this country there are no
P’6! flyers of such size or importance as to merit particular
notice. In general they have a broad and deep channel
from the coast, until they reach the mountains or stony
hills, where they become contracted into narrow and in¬
tricate water-courses, that are quite dry during the greater
part of the fair season ; and in the rainy one swell to ter¬
rific torrents, which run off in the course of a few hours
after the rain that has filled them ceases.
The principal city of this country is Kelat, the capital
^ of the whole of Beloochistan. This city stands on an ele¬
vated site on the western side of a well-cultivated plain or
valley, about eight miles long and two or three broad; a
great part of which is laid out in gardens and other inclo¬
sures. The town is built in the form of an oblong square,
three sides of which are encompassed by a mud wall,
eighteen or twenty feet high, flanked, at intervals of 250
yards, by bastions, which, as well as the wall itself, are
pierced with numberless loop-holes for matchlock-men.
The defence of the fourth side of the city is formed by
the western face of the hill, on which it is partly built,
being cut away perpendicularly. On the summit of this
eminence stands the palace of Muhmood Khan, chief of
Kelat, and nominal beglierbey of Beloochistan, command¬
ing a distinct view of the town and adjacent country.
That quarter of the hill on which the khan’s residence is
erected has been inclosed by a mud wall, with bastions;
the entrance to it is on the south-western side ; and here,
as well as at the city gates, which are three in number,
there is constantly a guard of matchlock-men. Within
the walls there are upwards of 2500 houses, and the num¬
ber of these in the suburbs probably exceeds one half
of that amount. The houses are mostly built of half-burnt
brick, or wooden frames, and plastered over with mud or
mortar. In general the streets are broader than those of
native towns, and most of them have a raised pathway on
either side for foot-passengers, and an uncovered kennel in
the centre ; the latter of which is a great nuisance, from
the quantity of filth thrown into it, and the stagnant rain¬
water that lodges there. The upper stories of the houses
frequently project across the streets, and thereby render
the part beneath them gloomy and damp. This seems a
very rude attempt to imitate the bazars of Persia and Ca-
bul. The bazar of Kelat is extensive, and well furnish¬
ed with every kind of goods; all the necessaries of life
may be procured daily at a moderate price. The town is
supplied with delicious water from a spring in the face of
a hill on the opposite side of the plain, whence it mean¬
ders nearly through the centre of it, having the town and
suburbs on one side, and on the other the gardens. It is
a r^markable property of this spring, that the waters, at
their immediate issue from the smaller channels, possess
a considerable degree of tepidity, until after sunrise, when
they suddenly become exceedingly cold, and remain so
during the day.
We have no data from which we can form an accurate Beloochis-
computation of the total amount of the population of Be- t£m.
loochistan. The inhabitants are divided into two great
classes, distinguished by the appellations of Belooche and^sat)lt*
Brahooe; and these two are again subdivided into an in¬
finite number of tribes, which it were tedious and unne¬
cessary to enumerate. The most remarkable distinctions
between these two classes consists in their language and
appearance. The Belooche or Beloochekee language
partakes considerably of the idiom of the modern Per¬
sian, although greatly disguised under a singularly cor¬
rupt pronunciation. The Brahooekee, on the other hand,
has nothing analogous to the Persian idiom. It appears
to contain a great number of ancient Hinduwee words;
and, as it strikes the ear, bears a strong resemblance to
the dialect spoken in that part of India called the Pun¬
jab. With regard to external appearance, the contour
of these two classes seems to differ, in most instances, as
much as their language. The Beloocaes in general have
tall figures, long visages, and raised features; the Bra-
hooes, on the contrary, have short thick bones, with
round faces and flat lineaments.
The Belooches are a handsome active race of men, not jjelooches.
possessing great physical strength, but inured to changes
of climate and season, and capable of enduring every spe¬
cies of fatigue. In their habits they are a pastoral people,
and much addicted to predatory warfare, in the course of
which they do not hesitate to commit every kind of out-
rage and cruelty. The lawless excursions in which they
frequently engage are called chupaos, and are almost
always conducted under the immediate orders of their
chiefs. The depredators are usually mounted on camels,
and furnished with food and water, according to the dis¬
tance they have to travel. When every thing is prepared,
they set off, and march incessantly till within a few miles
of the point where the chupao is to commence; then they
halt in a jungle, or some unfrequented spot, to rest their
camels. On the approach of night they mount again;
and as soon as the inhabitants have retired to repose, they
begin their attack by burning, destroying, and carrying
off whatever comes in their way. They never rest for
one moment during the chupao, but ride on, at the rate of
eighty or ninety miles a day, until they have loaded their
camels with as much pillage as they can possibly remove;
If practicable, they make a circuit, which enables them to
return by a different route from the one by which they
came. This plan affords them a double prospect of plun¬
der, and also tends to mislead those who go in pursuit of
the robbers.
Notwithstanding their predatory habits, the Belooches
are proverbial for their hospitality. Among them pilfer-tionSi ami
ing is considered a most despicable act; and when they reception
once promise to afford protection to any person who may of visitors,
solicit or require it, they will die before they fail in their
trust. Their usual habitations are ghedam or tents, made
of black felt or coarse blanket, stretched over a frame of
wicker-work, formed from the branches of the tamarisk.
An assemblage of these ghedans constitutes a toomun or
village, and the inhabitants of it a kkeil or society, of
which there may be an unlimited number in one tribe.
These kheils are commonly discriminated by some appro¬
priate title, such as the umeeree kheil, the noble society,
Daodee kheil, David’s society, &c. These titles, however,
they frequently change with their places of residence.
Some of the Belooches, particularly the Nharooe clans,
prefer mud-houses to tents, and even live in forts; nor is
it uncommon in the western parts of Beloochistan, to find
one half of the kheil residing in ghedans, and the other in
huts. When a visitor arrives at a toomun, a carpet is
spread in front of the door of the miham khanu, or house
558
BELOOCHISTAN.
Food.
Womeii.
Dress.
Warlike
weapons.
Amuse¬
ments.
Keligion.
Brahoo^s.
for guests, of which every village has one; the sirdar or
head of the kheil immediately appears, and he and the
stranger having embraced, and mutually kissed hands, the
followers of the latter successively approach, and the sir¬
dar gives them his hand, which they press to their fore¬
heads and lips. The parties then sit down, on which the
chief addresses the stranger, and asks him, four several
times, how he does, to which the other answers in the
usual complimentary terms ; he then inquires, in the same
manner, for his family and friends, and even for the health
of his followers who are present, to whom the visitor turns,
as if to appeal for information; they all nod assent to
being in good health ; and the ceremony concludes by
the new-comer making an equal number of inquiries for
the welfare of the family, kheil or society, followers and
friends of the sirdar.
The food of the Belooches consists of wheaten and bar¬
ley cakes, rice, dates, cheese, and milk, which last they
prefer in a sour state ; soup made from dholl or peas, and
seasoned with red pepper and other heating herbs, and
meat whenever they can procure it. The vegetables most
esteemed by them are onions, garlic, and the leaves and
stalk of the assafcetida plant, which they roast or stew in
butter. They usually limit themselves to one or two
wives, and their chiefs to four; but this depends altoge¬
ther upon choice. They treat their women with atten¬
tion and respect, and are not so scrupulous about their
being seen by strangers as most other Mussulmans. They
keep a great number of slaves of both sexes, captured dur¬
ing their chupaos, who are treated with liberality and kind¬
ness. The common dress of the Belooches is a coarse
white or blue calico shirt, buttoned round the neck, and
reaching below the knee; their trousers are made of the
same cloth, or of a kind of striped stuff called Soosee, and
puckered round the ancles. On their heads they wear a
small silk or cotton quilted cap, fitted to the shape of the
skull, over which, when in full dress, they place a tur¬
ban, either checked or blue, and a kummurbund or sash,
of the same colour, round their waists. In winter the
chiefs and their relatives appear in a tunic of chintz, lined
and stuffed with cotton; and the poorer classes, when out
of doors, wrap themselves up in a surtout made of cloth,
manufactured from a mixture of goats’ hair and sheeps’
wool. The women’s dress is very similar to that of the
men; their trousers are preposterously wide, and made of
silk, or a mixture of silk and cotton. A Belooche soldier
carries a matchlock, sword, spear, dagger, and shield, be¬
sides a multiplicity of powder-flasks, priming-horns, and
pouches. They are all capital marksmen, and in battle
avoid, as much as possible, coming to close combat. Their
best warlike weapons are of foreign manufacture. At
Kelat there is an armoury for the manufacture of match¬
locks, swords, and spears; but the workmanship is very
indifferent.
The principal amusements of the Belooches are shoot¬
ing, hunting, and coursing; for which latter purpose they
bestow a vast deal of attention in the training of their
greyhounds. Firing at marks, cudgelling, wrestling, and
throwing the spear, are likewise favourite diversions among
them, and neighbouring kheils frequently cope with each
other at these exercises. Their funeral and marriage ce¬
remonies, being in a great measure such as are prescribed
and regulated by the Koran, are similar to those of all
other Mussulmans, and therefore merit no particular no¬
tice. With regard to religion the Belooches are, with a
very few exceptions to the westward, Soonee Mussulmans.
The Brahooes, or second great class of the natives of
Beloochistan, are a still more unsettled and wandering
nation than the Belooches. They reside in one part of
the country during the summer, and emigrate to another
for the winter season ; and even change their immediate Ef
places of abode many times in the year, for the sake of , ^
pasturage for their flocks. The Brahooes are distinguish-s- ->*.
ed for activity, strength, and hardiness; inured alike to 1
the cold of the mountainous regions of Beloochistan, and
the heat of the low plain of Kutch-Gundava. They are
very laborious in husbandry and other domestic occupa¬
tions ; and those who reside in the vicinity of the plains
to the southward of Kelat, cultivate large tracts of land
and dispose of the produce for exportation to the Hindoos
of Kelat, Bela, and Khozdar. This, and the sale of the
cheese and ghee made from the flocks, with a few coarse
blankets, carpets, and felts, constitute their only traffic.
They are famous for having voracious appetites, and de¬
vour a great quantity of flesh in a half-dressed state, with¬
out bread, salt, or vegetables. The Brahooes are as faith¬
ful in adherence to their promises, and as hospitable, as
the Belooches: they are more quiet and industrious, and A
although they are esteemed superior to the other inha¬
bitants of Beloochistan in personal bravery, and the en¬
durance of privations and hardships, yet their habits are
decidedly averse to that system of rapine and violence
pursued by their neighbours. A Brahooe always dresses
in the same style; whether it be summer or winter, his
whole clothing consists of a loose white shirt, a pair of 15
trousers of the same texture, and a felt cap. The shep¬
herds sometimes wear a covering of white felt, made so as
to wrap round the body, and terminate in a peak above the
crown of the head ; and this habit is used as a defence
against rain or snow. The domestic life of the Brahooes is
extremely simple. The men employ themselves in field la- ^
hour, in which, if necessary, they are assisted by the wo¬
men ; but in general the latter are. engaged in attending
to the household affairs. The dress of the women consists
of a long shift and pair of trousers, both of cotton cloth;
and after they arrive at the age of puberty they wear
over the former a kind of stays, made to lace behind, and a
decorated in front with ridiculous devices of birds or ani¬
mals, worked in coloured worsted. In religion, the Bra¬
hooes are all Soonnee Mussulmans. All their tribes in¬
termarry with each other, except the Kumburanees; but
these are distinguished by a peculiarity which does not at¬
tach to any of the other tribes ; that of being divided into
three distinct gradations of rank,—the Ahmedzgees, Kha-
nees, and Kumburanees. The first consists of the family
of the prince; the Khanees are of the secondary rank,
which embraces between twenty and thirty; and the
Kumburanees include the remainder of the tribe, although, ]
in general, the term is applied to the whole body.
Besides the Belooches and Brahooes, there is aconsi-Hloos
derable number of Hindoos resident at Kelat, who are^ var5
principally engaged in mercantile speculations, and are
much respected both by the government and the people.
Their religion is tolerated; and they have a pagoda at
Kelat. The Dehwars or Dehkans constitute the only re¬
maining class of the population which seems worthy of
particular notice. They may be recognised under va¬
rious names in different districts of the country; and they
are quiet and harmless in their disposition, and addicted
to agricultural pursuits. Their colloquial language is Per¬
sian ; from which fact their origin may be deduced, al¬
though no traces of their original settlement have been
discovered.
The fluctuation of power renders it difficult to define G ^
precisely the nature of the government of Kelat. During jn 1
the reign of Nusseer Khan, the whole kingdom might be
said to have been governed by a complete despotism; yet
that ruler so tempered the supreme authority by the pri¬
vileges granted to the feudal chiefs within their own
tribes, that, to a casual observer, it bore the appearance
BEL
. . 0f a military confederation. The tribes all exercise the
ttr right of selecting their own sirdar, or head ; and the khan
i^Y ‘ j^s the power of confirming or disapproving of their no¬
mination ; but this power is never exercised, and appears
to be merely nominal. The khan of Kelat has the power
of declaring war and making treaties connected with the
whole of Beloochistan, and can order the sirdar of each
tribe to attend in person with his quota of troops. Agree¬
ably to a code of regulations framed by one of the earliest
princes of the Kumburanee dynasty, the entire adminis¬
tration of justice was vested in the person at the head of
the government. The sirdar, however, has the power of ad¬
justing petty quarrels, thefts, and disputed points of every
description, among the inhabitants of a kheil or society ;
but in all cases of importance, an appeal lies in the last in¬
stance to the khan at Kelat.
Arniy A register of the Belooche army, drawn up during the
reign of Nusseer Khan, exhibits an aggregate of 250,000
men; but this number was probably exaggerated. At
present the same documents comprise a list of 120,000
troops, excluding all the revolted provinces and districts ;
but it is believed that Muhmood Khan could not, on the
greatest emergency, muster more than half that number
Eevei s. of fighting men. His total revenues, in their actual re¬
duced state, may be estimated at about 350,000 rupees an¬
nually, a large portion of which is paid in produce. In
Nusseer Khan’s time the revenue exceeded thirty lacks
of rupees. The duties levied at Kelat are extremely mode¬
rate. Horses or cattle pay nothing whatever throughout
the Belooche territories ; but there is a species of land-tax,
bno: payable from all cultivated grounds. The exports from
Kelat are very trifling; its imports are iron, tin, lead,
1‘t'' steel, copper, indigo, betel-nut, cochineal, sugar, spices,
silks, keemkhab, gold-cloth, chintz, and coarse woollens
from India.
Clim; The climate of Beloochistan is extremely various in the
‘l"l! different provinces. The soil in general is exceedingly
stony. Of the province of Kutch-Gundava, however, the
soil is rich and loamy, and so very productive that, it is
said, were it all properly cultivated, the crops would be
more than sufficient for the consumption of the whole of
mine' Gold, silver, lead, iron, tin, antimony, brim¬
stone, alum, sal-ammoniac, and- many kinds of mineral
salts, and saltpetre, are found in various parts of the coun¬
try. The precious metals have only been discovered in
working for iron and lead, in mines near the town of Nal,
j.r ahout 150 miles south-south-west of Kelat. The different
other minerals above enumerated are very' plentiful. The
gardens of Kelat produce many sorts of fruit, which are
sold at a very moderate rate, such as apricots, peaches,
grapes, almonds, pistachio nuts, apples, pears, plums, cur-
Gra: lan*'S’ ,c^erries) quinces, figs, pomegranates, mulberries,
other , P‘antains, melons, guavas, &c. All kinds of grain known
ducti m .^n(iia are cultivated in the different provinces of Beloo¬
chistan, and there is abundance of vegetables. Madder,
cotton, and indigo, are also produced; and the latter is
considered superior to that of Bengal. The culture of
D ],. ule fruit is conducted with great attention in the
andi Province of Mekran. The domestic animals of Beloochis-
ani® ^ are horses, mules, asses, camels, dromedaries, buffaloes,
)iack-cattle, sheep, goats, dogs, and cats, besides fowls
and pigeons; but there are neither geese, turkeys, nor
oucks. The wild animals are lions, tigers, leopards, hye-
nas> w°lves, jackals, tiger-cats, wild dogs, foxes, hares, man-
gooses, mountain goats, antelopes, elks, red and moose-
(cer, wild asses, &c. Of birds they have almost every
Species to be met with either in Europe or India.
1 - a ^le iuformation contained in this article we are
P le% indebted to the Travels of Colonel Pottinger, whose
journey, undertaken by authority of the East India Com-
B E L 559
pany, must be regarded as furnishing a valuable addition Belosersk
to our geographical and statistical knowledge of the Asia- II
tic continent. (K ) Belvedere.
BELOSERSK, a circle of the Russian government of
Novogorod, extending over 28,722 square miles, and com¬
prehending one city, one market-town, and 126 parishes,
with 54,700 inhabitants. The chief place, a city of the
same name, on the river Scheksna, has some commerce,
and contains about 4000 inhabitants. Long. 37. 46. E.
Lat. 59. 50. N.
BEEPER, a market-town in the hundred of Appletree,
in the county of Derby, 134 miles from London. The
whole is the property of the family of Strut, who have
erected most extensive cotton works, which have caused a
great increase of dwellings and population. A new church,
and several dissenting places of worship, have been built
within the last ten years. The inhabitants amounted in
1801 to 4500, in 1811 to 5778, and in 1821 to 7235, but
they have rapidly increased since the last census.
BELSHAZZAR, the last king of Babylon, generally
supposed to be the son of Evilmerodach, and grandson to
Nebuchadnezzar. The memorable story of this king’s
death, with the marvellous event by which it was fore¬
shown, may be read in the book of the prophet Daniel.
BELT, Great and Little, the name of two straits
which connect the Baltic with the Cattegat. The former
lies between the islands of Zealand and Funen. Its great¬
est width is about twenty miles, and its depth varies from
five to twenty fathoms. The navigation of the Great Belt
is dangerous, from the number of sand-banks and small
islands which it contains. The shores in general are nei-
tlier bold nor lofty, but they afford convenient liarbours and
anchorage. Vessels passing this strait pay toll at Nyborg,
where a guard-ship is stationed to enforce compliance. The
Little Belt separates the island of Funen from Jutland.
Its greatest breadth is not more than the half of that of
the Great Belt, and at the fortress of Fredericia, where
the tolls are levied, it does not exceed a mile. The depth
is from four to twenty fathoms. It contains several sand¬
banks, and the current from the Baltic to the Cattegat
is of great strength. The passage of both Belts is at¬
tended with risk for large vessels, and on that account
the Sound is more generally frequented.
Belt, Balteus, properly denotes a kind of military gir¬
dle or cincture, usually of leather, by which the sword or
any other weapon is sustained. The belt was an essential
piece of the ancient armour; insomuch that we sometimes
find it used to denote the whole armour. In later ages
the belt was given to a person when he was raised to
knighthood; and hence it has also been used as a badge
or mark of the knightly order.
Belts, in Astronomy. See Astronomy.
BEL-Tein, a superstitious custom observed in the High¬
lands of Scotland. It was a kind of rural sacrifice, per¬
formed by the herdsmen of every village on the first of
May, and seems to be a remnant of some oriental super¬
stition. Some account of this festival may be found in
Pennant’s Tour, General Stewart’s Sketches, and in almost
every work which treats of the Highlands.
BELTURBET, a town of Ireland, in the county of
Cavan, on the river Erne. Distilling and brewing are car¬
ried on here, and there is also a weekly market. The po¬
pulation is 2010; and it is seventy-seven miles N. W. of
Dublin.
BELVEDERE, in Italian Architecture, denotes either
a pavilion on the top of a building, or an artificial emi¬
nence in a garden. The word literally signifies a fine
prospect.
Belvedere, a considerable town of Greece, and capital
of a province of the same name in the Morea. The pro-
560
BEN
Belunum vince is situated on the western coast. It is the richest
II and most fertile in all the Morea; and from it the raisins
Benares. ca|ie(j Belvederes take their name. I he town is situated
jn iQng, 21. 30. E. lat. 37. 59. N.
BELUNUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of Ilhaetia,
above Feltria, in the territory of the Veneti; now Belluno,
capital of the Bellunese.
BELUS, in Ancient Geography, a small river of Galilee,
at the distance of two stadia from Ptolemais, running out
of the lake Cendevia, at the foot of Mount Carmel.
BEMBEA. See Bamba.
BEMBO, Peter, a noble Venetian, secretary to Leo X.,
afterwards cardinal, and one of the best writers ot the
sixteenth century. He was a good poet, both in Italian
and Latin ; but he is justly censured for the licentiousness
and immodesty of some of his poems. Besides these, he
published A History of Venice; Letters ; and a book in
praise of the duke and duchess of Urbino. He died in
1547, in the seventy-second year of his age.
BENARES, a large and valuable district of Hindostan,
in the province of Allahabad, situated on both sides ot the
river Ganges, between the 23d and 27th degrees of N. la¬
titude. It contains 1200 square miles of fertile soil, which
produces grain, chiefly barley, wheat, several species of
the pea, and some rice; besides sugar, indigo, and opium.
The air is so cold during the winter as to render fires ne¬
cessary ; but for three months after March it becomes so
heated, by the setting in of the hot winds, as to destroy
all verdure. It is exceedingly populous and well culti¬
vated, its inhabitants being Hindoos, and well versed in
the arts. The country from Patna to Buxar, Gazypoor,
Benares, and Mirzapoor, is rich and highly cultivated;
while the numerous clumps of mango trees give the dis¬
trict the appearance of a forest, and afford shelter to the
cattle. The country is well watered. The principal rivers
are the Ganges, the Goomty, the Caramnassa, and the
Soane, the two latter being the boundary rivers. Tis¬
sues, brocades, and ornamented gauzes, are manufactured
throughout the province, and in the northern parts plain
and flowered muslins, adapted to common uses ; baftas are
also fabricated in the western, and sanaes in the eastern
part of the province. The district furnishes a proportion
of the company’s opium. The chief towns are Benares,
Mirzapoor, Jionpoor, Chunar, and Gazypoor. In answer
to some queries circulated by the Marquis Wellesley in
1801, the population was returned at 3,000,000, and the
proportion ofHindoos to Mahommedans was as five to one.
The Bengal code of regulations has been extended, with
little alteration, to the district of Benares. The Brahmins,
however, in consideration of their high character, have
received some special indulgence in the mode of proceed¬
ing against them on criminal charges ; and, when they are
convicted of a capital offence, the punishment of death
is commutable into transportation at the discretion of the
government. Many of their criminal practices, however,
such as holding out a threat of avenging themselves on
their adversaries by suicide, or by the murder of one of
their own children, have been subjected to the usual
course of punishment by law. Another tribe of Hindoos,
among whom it was customary to destroy their female in¬
fants, are also subjected to trial and punishment for mur¬
der. Cheit Sing, who ruled over this zemindary in 1770,
was expelled in 1781 by the British, who since this period
have had possession of the country.
Benares, an extensive and opulent city of Hindostan,
in the province of Allahabad, is the capital of the Benares
district. It has long been celebrated among the Hindoos
as a seat of piety and learning, as well as a noted empo¬
rium of trade. The Ganges here forms a fine sweep of
about four miles in length, and the city is situated on the
BEN
northern bank of the river, and on the outward side of B( res.
the curve, which is the most elevated. It is about four ^ ^
miles in length by two in breadth, and it rises from the
river in an amphitheatrical form, thickly studded with
domes and minarets. The bank of the river is entirely
lined with stone, in which are many very fine ghats or
landing places, built by pious devotees, of large stones, to
the height of thirty feet before they reach the level of
the street, and highly ornamented. These are generally
crowded with bathers and worshippers. "‘Shrines and
temples, even within the limits of the river’s rise, almost
line its banks. The streets of this great city are so wind¬
ing and narrow that there is not room for a wheel car¬
riage to pass; and it is difficult to penetrate them even
on horseback. The streets are considerably lower than
the ground-floors of the houses, which have mostly arched
rows in front, with little shops behind them; and above
these they are richly embellished with verandas, galle¬
ries, projecting oriel windows, and very broad overhanging
eaves supported by carved brackets. The houses are built
of a very good stone from Chunar, and are mostly lofty,
none being less than two storeys in height, most of them
three, and several of five or six storeys, close to each
other, with terraces on the summit, and extremely small
windows, for the sake of coolness and to prevent inspec¬
tion. The Hindoos are fond of painting the outside of
their houses of a deep red colour, and of covering the
most conspicuous parts with paintings in gaudy colours
of flower-pots, men, women, bulls, elephants, gods and
goddesses, in all the forms of Hindoo mythology. The
number of temples is very great, mostly small, and stuck
like shrines in the angles of the streets, and under the
shadow of the lofty houses. Their forms are not ungrace¬
ful, and they are many of them covered over with beau¬
tiful and elaborate carvings of flowers, animals, and palm-
branches, rivalling in richness and minuteness the finest
specimens of Gothic or of Grecian architecture.
The mosque, which was built by Aurungzebe on the site
of a Hindoo temple, and in order to mortify the Hindoos,
is a handsome building, placed on the highest and most
conspicuous point of land, and close to the river. Its
minarets are very lofty, and command an extensive view
of the town and adjacent country, and of the numerous
Hindoo temples scattered over the city and the surround¬
ing plains. The Hindoo college at Benares is a large
building, divided into two courts, with galleries above and
below. There are 200 scholars in this college, who learn
reading, writing, arithmetic, Persian, Hindoo law, and
sacred literature; Sanscrit; astronomy according to the
Ptolemaic system, by which the sun is supposed to re¬
volve round the earth ; and astrology.
Benares having from time immemorial been a holy city,
contains about 8000 houses of Brahmins, who subsist by
charitable contributions, although they have property ol
their own. These houses are adorned with idols, and
send out an unceasing sound from all sorts of discordant in¬
struments ; while religious mendicants from the numerous
Hindoo sects, with every conceivable deformity “ which
chalk, cow-dung, disease, matted locks, distorted limbs, ant
disgusting and hideous attitudes of penance, can show,
literally line the principal streets on both sides.” Some
are seen with their legs or arms distorted by long conti¬
nuance in one position ; others with their hands clenche
until the nails have grown through at the back. A stran¬
ger, as he passes through the streets, is saluted with tie
most pitiful exclamations from those swarms of begga^'
But besides this immense resort to Benares of pool pi
grims from every part of India, as well as from Thibet am
the Burman empire, numerous rich individuals in t*16 .e
cline of life, and almost all the great men who are 18
BEN
BEN .501
us graced or banished from home by the political revolutions
11 which have been of late years so frequent among the Hin-
Be • doo states, repair to this holy city to wash away their sins
v- jn the sacred waters of the Ganges, or to fill up their time
with the gaudy ceremonies of their religion. All these
devotees give away large sums in indiscriminate charity,
some of them to the annual amount of L.8000 or L.9000;
and it is the hope of sharing in those pious distributions
that brings together from all quarters such a concourse of
religious mendicants. Bulls are reckoned sacred by the
Hindoo, and being tame and familiar, they walk lazily up
and down the streets, or are seen lying across them, inter¬
rupting the passage, and are hardly to be roused, as, in
compliance with the prejudices of the fanatic population,
they must be treated in the gentlest manner. Monkeys,
also held sacred, are seen clinging to all the roofs and
projections of the temple.
But, amid all this wretchedness and fanaticism, Benares
is a splendid, wealthy, and commercial city; the bazars
are filled with the richest goods, and there is a constant
bustle of business in all the principal streets. It is a
great commercial emporium for the shawls of the north,
the diamonds of the south, and the muslins of Dacca and
the eastern provinces ; and it has very considerable ma¬
nufactures of silk, cotton, and fine wool, as well as of
gold and silver lace ; while English hardware, swords,
shields, and spears from Lucknow and Monghyr, and the
finer manufactures of Europe, are exported to Bundel-
cund, Gorruckpoor, Nepaul, and other tracts removed
from the main channel of communication by the Ganges.
The inhabitants, according to a census made in 1803,
amounted to above 582,000; and during religious festi¬
vals, the concourse of people from all parts is immense.
Yet the city, notwithstanding its crowded population and
narrow streets (the new market-place, constructed by
the present government, being the only square or open
part in it), is not unhealthy; which is probably owing
to its dry situation on a high rocky bank, sloping towards
the river, and to the frequent ablutions and temperate
habits of the people. There are but few Europeans in
Benares; a judge, collector, and register, with a few other
civil servants, constitute the whole of the company’s esta¬
blishment; to which may be added a few private mer¬
chants and planters. The residence of the English judge
and civil establishment is at Secrole, a pleasant village
about two miles from the city, where there is a military
cantonment for a battalion of sepoys. The Benares divi¬
sion of the court of circuit includes Mirzapoor, Allahabad,
Bundelcund, Jionpoor, Gorruckpoor, and the city of Be¬
nares. From Benares to Calcutta by Birbhoom the tra¬
velling distance is 460 miles, by Moorshedabad 565, from
Allahabad 83, Buzar 70, Bareilly 345, Calpy 239, Kanoge
259 miles. Long. 83. 0. E. Eat. 25. 30. N. (s.)
benavidius, or Bona vidus, Marcus Mantua, a ce¬
lebrated civilian, who taught civil law with reputation,
during sixty years, at Padua, the place of his birth, and
died in 1582, aged ninety-three. His principal works are,
h Collectanea super Jus Caesareum ; 2. Consilia, tom. ii.;
3. Problemata Legalia; 4. De illustribus Jurisconsultis.
BENBECULA, a \ow, sandy, and unproductive island
°f the Hebrides, eight miles in length and as ijiuch in
breadth. It is situated between the islands of North and
South Uist, from the latter of which it is separated by a
narrow channel. It is annexed to the county of Inverness.
BENCH, or Banc, in Law, has various significations.
Free-BENcn signifies that estate in copyhold-lands
j ch the wife, being espoused a virgin, has, after the
(ecease of her husband, for her dower, according to the
custom of the manor. With respect to this free-bench,
different manors have different customs.
VOL. iv.
King's Bench, a court in which the king was formerly Bench
accustomed to sit in person, and which on that account II
was moved with the king’s household. This was origi- Bencoolen.
nally the only court in Westminster Hall, and from it the
courts of Common Pleas and Exchequer are supposed to
have been derived. As the king in person is still pre¬
sumed in law to sit in this court, though only represented
by his judges, it is said to have supreme authority; and
the proceedings in it are supposed to be coram nobis, that
is, before the king. This court consists of a lord chief
justice and three other justices or judges, who are invest¬
ed with a sovereign jurisdiction over all matters, whether
of a criminal or public nature. The chief justice has a
salary of L.10,000, and the other judges of L.5500 each.
All crimes against the public good, though they do not
injure any particular person, are under the cognizance of
this court; nor can any private subject suffer unlawful vio¬
lence or injury against his person, liberty, or possessions,
without a proper remedy being afforded him here, not only
for satisfaction of damages sustained, but for the punish¬
ment of the offender ; and wherever this court meets with
an offence contrary to the first principles of justice, it may
punish it by its own authority. It frequently proceeds on
indictments found before other courts, and removed by
certiorari into this. Persons illegally committed to prison,
though by the king and council, or by either house of
parliament, may be bailed in it, and in some cases even
upon legal commitments. Writs of mandamus are issued
by this court, for the restoring of officers in corporations
unjustly turned out, freemen wrongfully disfranchised, and
in a variety of other cases.
The court of king’s bench is now divided into a crown
side and plea side; the one determining criminal, and the
other civil causes. On the crown side, or crown office, it
takes cognizance of all criminal causes, from high treason
down to the most trivial misdemeanour or breach of the
peace. Into this court also indictments from all inferior
courts may be removed by writ of certiorari, and tried
either at bar or at nisi prius by a jury of the county out
of which the indictment is brought. The judges of this
court are the supreme coroners of the kingdom ; and the
court itself is the principal court of criminal jurisdiction
known to the laws of England. On the plea side, this
court determines all personal actions commenced by bill
or writ; as actions of debt, upon the case, detinue, trover,
ejectment, trespass, waste, &c. against any person in the
custody of the marshal of the court, as every person sued
here is supposed to be sued by law. The officers on the
crown side are the clerk and secondary of the crown ; and
on the side of the pleas there are two chief clerks or pro-
thonotaries, and their secondary and deputy, the custos
brevium, two clerks of the papers, the clerk of the decla¬
rations, the signer and sealer of bills, the clerk of the rules,
the clerk of the errors, and the clerk of the bails ; to
which may be added, the filazers, the marshal of the court,
and the crier.
BENCHERS, in the inns of court, the senior members
of the society, who are invested with the government of
the body to which they belong.
BENCOOLEN, the chief establishment possessed by
the East India Company, in the island of Sumatra, on the
south-western coast. It was for a few years a distinct pre¬
sidency, but has been since placed under a resident, with
four assistants, subject to the immediate direction of the
government of Bengal. Under the East India Company’s
government there is a number of districts, the lands of
which were taken possession of in 1685, in virtue of an
agreement with the neighbouring chiefs. In 1698 the
settlement had cost the company L.200,000, and at the
same time proved remarkably unhealthy. The foundation
562
BEN
BEN
Bend of Fort Marlborough was laid in 1714; and in 1719 the
>! settlers were expelled by the natives, but were soon per-
Benedict. mitted to re-establish themselves. In 1760 all the English
settlements on the coast of Sumatra were destroyed by a
French fleet under Comte d’Estaign; but they were af¬
terwards secured to the British by the treaty of 1763.
The settlement thus established by the East India
Company was the seat of every species of mal-administra-
tion. The people were oppressed by being forced to cul¬
tivate pepper, the professed and only object of the settle¬
ment; but of this, however, the quantity produced had
dwindled away to one solitary cargo yearly, of the value
of L.15,000. The revenues arising from this settlement
had diminished in 1824 from L.12,891, their amount in
1809, to L.6811, while the charges during the same pe¬
riod were increased from L.70,986 to L.101,528. In 1817
Sir Stamford Raffles arrived here as lieutenant-governor;
and he gives a deplorable account of the wretchedness,
desolation, and misgovernment which prevailed. He in¬
stantly began, with all his characteristic zeal, the work of
reformation, by emancipating the government slaves, free¬
ing the people from the compulsory cultivation of pepper,
and introducing various other changes. Under his bene¬
ficent administration a great improvement was effected.
Cultivation was extended, and trade would soon have fur¬
nished ample products. But, while these ameliorations
were in progress, Sir Stamford left the settlement, in
1824, and it was soon after transferred to the government
of the Netherlands. Long. 102. 3. E. Lat. 3. 50. S.
BEND, in Heraldry, one of the nine honourable ordi¬
naries, containing a third part of the field when charged,
and a fifth when plain.
BENDER, a town of Bessarabia in European Russia,
seated on the river Dniester. It is remarkable for being
the place of retreat of Charles XII. after he was defeated
by the Russians at the battle of Pultowa in 1709. Long.
29. 36. E. Lat. 46. 50. 32. N.
BENDIDA, in Antiquity, a festival, not unlike the
Bacchanalia, celebrated by the Athenians in honour of
Diana.
BENDING, in a general sense, the reducing of a straight
body into a curve, or giving it a crooked form.
Bending, in the sea language, the tying of two ropes or
cables together ; thus, to bend the cable, is to make it fast
to the ring of the anchor; to bend the sail, to make it fast
to the yard.
BENDS, in a ship, the same with what seamen call
wails or wales, are the outmost timbers of a ship’s side,
on which men set their feet when climbing up. They
form the chief strength of a ship’s sides, and have the
beams, knees, and foot-hooks, bolted to them.
BENDY, in Heraldry, is the field divided into four, six,
or more parts, diagonally, and varying in metal and co¬
lour.
BENC APED, among sailors. A ship is said to be ben-
caped when the water does not flow high enough to bring
her off the ground, out of the dock, or over the bar.
BENE, a city of the province of Mondovi, in the king¬
dom of Sardinia. It stands on a hill between the rivers
Sturo and Tanaro, and contains several churches and other
religious houses, with 5180 inhabitants.
BENEDICITE, among ecclesiastical writers, an appel¬
lation given to the song of the three children in the fiery
furnace, on account of its beginning with the word bene-
dicite. The use of this song in Christian worship is very
ancient, having been sung in all the churches as early as
the time of St Chrysostom.
BENEDICT XIV. Pope (Prosper Lambertini of Bo¬
logna), celebrated for his learning and moderation, which
gained him the esteem of all Protestants. He was the
patron of learned men and celebrated artists, and an ela- Bei
borate writer on theological subjects. His works fill 12 1
vols. in folio. He died in 1758. Be: ic.
Benedict, St, the founder of the order of the Bene- !-
dictine monks, was born in Italy about a. d. 480. He ^ ^
was sent to Rome when he was very young, and there re¬
ceived the first part of his education. At fourteen years
of age he was removed from this to Sublaco, about forty
miles distant. Here he lived a most ascetic life, having
shut himself up in a cavern, where nobody knew any thing
of him except St Romanus, who used to descend to him
by a rope, and to supply him with provisions. But being
afterwards discovered by the monks of a neighbouring
monastery, they chose him for their abbot. Their manners,
however, not agreeing with those of Benedict, he return¬
ed to his solitude, whither many persons followed him,
and put themselves under his direction; so that in a short
time he was enabled to build twelve monasteries. In the
year 528 or 529 he retired to Mount Cassino, where ido¬
latry was still prevalent, a temple of Apollo having been
erected there. He instructed the people in the adjacent
country, and, having converted them, broke in pieces the
image of Apollo, and built two chapels on the mountain.
Here he also founded a monastery, and instituted the order
of his name, which in time became so famous, and extended
itself all over Europe. In this place, too, he composed his
Regula Monachorum, which Gregory the Great speaks of
as the most sensible and best written piece of the kind
ever published. The period of his death is uncertain. He
was looked upon as the Elisha of his time, and is reported
to have wrought a great number of miracles, which are re¬
corded in the second book of the Dialogues of St Gregory
the Great.
Benedict, abbot of Peterborough, was educated at Ox¬
ford, became a monk in the monastery of Christ Church in
Canterbury, and was some time afterwards chosen prior
by the members of that society. Although he had been
a great admirer of Archbishop Becket, and wrote a life of
that prelate, he was so much esteemed by Henry II., that,
by the influence of that prince, he was elected abbot of
Peterborough a. d. 1177. He assisted at the coronation
of Richard I. in 1189, and was appointed keeper of the
great seal in 1191. But he did not long enjoy this high
dignity, as he died on Michaelmas day 1193. Besides his
life of Archbishop Becket, he composed a History of Henry
II. and Richard I., from 1170 to 1192. A beautiful edition
of this work was published at Oxford, in two volumes, by
Mr Hearne, a. d. 1735.
BENEDICTINES, in Ecclesiastical History, an order
of monks who profess to follow the rules of St Benedict
The Benedictines, who of all the regular clergy are alone
entitled to the appellation of monks, wear a loose black
gown with large wide sleeves, and a capuche or cowl on
their heads, ending in a point behind. In the canon law
they are styled black friars, from the colour of their habit
The rules of St Benedict, as observed by the English
monks before the dissolution of the monasteries, were as fol¬
lows : The monks of this order were obliged to perform,
seven times in twenty-four hours, their devotions, the whole
circle of which had reference to the passion and death oi
Christ; they always went two and two together; every day
in Lent they fasted till six in the evening, and abated oi
their usual time of sleeping and eating, but they were not
allowed to practise any voluntary austerity without leave o
their superior; they never conversed in their refectory at
meals, but were obliged to attend to the reading of the
Scriptures; and they all slept in the same dormitory, bu
not two in a bed, and they lay in their clothes. For sma.
faults they were shut out from meals, for greater they
were debarred religious commerce and excluded from t ie
BEN
■. cbapel; and, as to incorrigible offenders, they were exclud-
^ ti ed from the monasteries. Every monk had two coats,
I two cowls, a table-book, a knife, a needle, and a handker-
Ceni ’• ^ief; and the furniture of their cells was a mat, a blanket,
^ ^ a rug, and a pillow.
The time when this order came into England is well
known; for to it the English owe their conversion from
idolatry. In the year 596 Pope Gregory sent hither Au¬
gustin, prior of the monastery of St Andrew at Rome,
with several other Benedictine monks. Augustin be¬
came archbishop of Canterbury, and the Benedictines
founded several monasteries in England, as also the me¬
tropolitan church of Canterbury, and all the cathedrals
that were afterwards erected.
Pope John XXII., who died in 1334, found, after an
exact inquiry, that, since the first rise of the order, it had
produced 24 popes, near 200 cardinals, 7000 archbishops,
15,000 bishops, 15,000 abbots, above 4000 saints, and up¬
wards of 37,000 monasteries. There have been likewise
of this order 20 emperors and 10 empresses, 47 kings
and above 50 queens, 20 sons of emperors and 48 sons of
kings, above 100 princesses, daughters of kings and em¬
perors, besides dukes, marquises, earls, countesses, &c.
innumerable. The order has produced a vast number of
eminent writers and other learned men. Rabanus set up
the school of Germany; Alcuinus founded the university
of Paris; Dionysius Exiguus perfected the ecclesiastical
computation; Guido invented the scale of music, Sylves¬
ter the organ; and they boast of having produced Ansel-
mus, Ildephonsus, Venerable Bede, and many others of
equal or superior name. There are nuns likewise who
follow the rule of St Benedict.
BENEDICTION, in a general sense, the act of bless¬
ing, or giving praise to God, or returning thanks for his
favours. Neither the ancient Jews nor the early Christians
ever ate without a short prayer. The Jews are obliged to
rehearse a hundred benedictions a day; of which eighty
are to be spoken in the morning. The first treatise of the
first order in the Talmud, entitled Seraim, contains the
form and order of the daily benedictions. Benedictions
were likewise given among the ancient Jews, as well as
Christians, by the imposition of hands. And when at length
the primitive simplicity of the Christian worship began to
give way to ceremony, they added the sign of the cross,
which was made with the same hand as before, only ele¬
vated or extended. Hence benediction, in the modern
Romish church, is used, in a more particular manner, to
denote the sign of the cross made by a bishop or prelate,
as conferring some grace on the people. The custom of
receiving benediction, by bowing the head before the
bishops, is very ancient; and it was so universal, that em¬
perors themselves did not decline this mark of submission.
Nuptial Benediction, the external ceremony perform¬
ed by the priest in the office of matrimony. The nuptial
benediction is not essential to, but the confirmation of, a
marriage in the civil law.
Beatic Benediction, Benedictio beatica, is the viaticum
given to dying persons.
Benediction is also used for an ecclesiastical ceremony,
whereby a thing is rendered sacred or venerable. In this
sense benediction differs from consecration, as in the lat¬
ter unction is applied, but not in the former. Thus the
chalice is consecrated, and the pix blessed, as the for¬
mer, not the latter, is anointed; but, in common usage,
these two words are applied promiscuously.
BENEFICE, Benejicium, is used for a fee, which is
sometimes denominated more peculiarly beneficium mili-
tare. In this sense benefice was an estate in land, at first
granted for life only, and so called because it was held ex
mero beneficio of the donor; and the tenants were bound to
BEN 583
swear fealty to the lord, and to serve him in the wars. In Benefice
aftertimes, as these tenures became perpetual and here- li
ditary, they transferred their name of beneficia to the liv- Benefi-
ings of the clergy, and retained that offeus. ^ciani.
Benefice, in an ecclesiastical sense, a church endow-
ed with a revenue for the performance of divine service ;
or the revenue itself assigned to an ecclesiastical person,
by way of stipend, for the service he is to do that church.
All church-preferments, except bishoprics, are called
benefices, and all benefices are, by the canonists, sometimes
styled dignities; but we now ordinarily distinguish be¬
tween benefice and dignity, applying dignity to bishoprics,
deaneries, archdeaconries, and prebendaries, and bene¬
fice to parsonages, vicarages, and donatives.
Benefices are divided by the canonists into simple and
sacerdotal. In the first there is no obligation but to read
prayers, sing, or chant, such as canonries, chaplainships,
chantries, and the like; the second are charged with the
cure of souls, or the direction and guidance of consciences,
such as vicarages, rectories, and the like.
The Romanists again distinguish benefices into regular
and secular. Regular or titular benefices are those held
by a religionist or a regular who has made profession of
some religious order, such as abbeys, priories, conventuals,
&c.; or rather, a regular benefice is that which cannot be
conferred on any but a religionist, either by its foundation,
by the institution of some superior, or by prescription;
and forty years possession by a religionist makes the be¬
nefice regular by prescription. Secular benefices are those
which are conferred on secular priests, that is, on such
as live in the world, and are not engaged in any monastic
order. All benefices are reputed secular till the contrary
is made to appear; and they are called secular benefices from
being held by seculars; of which kind are almost all cures.
The canonists distinguish three modes of vacating a be¬
nefice, 1. Be jure, when the person enjoying it is guilty of
certain crimes expressed in those laws, as heresy, simony,
and the like: 2. De facto as well as de jure, by the na¬
tural death or the resignation of the incumbent; which re¬
signation may be either express or tacit, as when he en¬
gages in a state inconsistent with it, as, among the Roma¬
nists, by marrying, entering into a religious order, or the
like : 3. By the sentence of a judge, by way of punishment
for certain crimes, as concubinage, perjury, and the like.
Benefices began about a. d. 500. Of those in England,
according to Dr Burn, there are 1071 livings not exceeding
L.10 per annum ; 1467 livings above L.10 and not exceed¬
ing L.20 per annum; 1126 livings above L.20 and not
exceeding L.30 per annum; 1049 livings above L.30 and
not exceeding L.40 per annum ; 884 livings above LAO and
not exceeding L.50 per annum : in all 5597 livings under
L.50 per annum. And on the whole, there are above
11,000 church preferments in England; exclusive of bishop¬
rics, deaneries, canonries, prebendaries, priest-vicars, lay-
’ vicars, secondaries, &c. belonging to cathedrals, or choris¬
ters, or even curates to well-beneficed clergymen.
Benefice in commendam is that, the direction and ma¬
nagement of which, upon a vacancy, is given or com¬
mended to an ecclesiastic, for a certain time, until he can
be conveniently provided for.
BENEFICIARII, in Roman Antiquity, denote soldiers
who attended the chief officers of the army, being exempt¬
ed from other duty. Beneficiarii were also soldiers dis¬
charged from the military service, and provided with be¬
neficia or pensions to subsist on. The latter were probably
the same with the former, and both might therefore be
comprised in the same definition. They were old experien¬
ced soldiers, who, having servedduring thelegal period, or
received a discharge as a particular mark of honour, were
invited again to the service, in which they were held in
564
BEN
BEN
Benefi- great esteem, exempted from all military drudgery, and
euirii appointed to guard the standard, or some such honourable
duty. When thus recalled to service, they were denomi-
nated evocati; before their recall they were styled emeriti.
Beneficiarii was also a term applied to those who had
been raised to a higher rank by the favour of the tribunes
or other magistrates. The word benejiciarius frequently
occurs in the Roman inscriptions found in Britain, where
consulis is always joined with it; but besides benejiciarius
consulis, we find in Gruter benejiciarius tribuni, pr&torii,
legati, prcefecti, proconsulis, and such like expressions.
BENEFICIARY, Benejiciarius, is more particularly
used for a beneficed person, or him who receives and enjoys
one or more benefices. A beneficiary is not the proprie¬
tor of the revenues of his church ; he has only the admini¬
stration of them, though not accountable for his conduct
therein to any but God and his superior.
Beneficiary is also used, by the writers of the middle
ages, for a feudatory or vassal. The denomination was
however applied to the clerks or officers who kept the ac¬
counts of the benejicia, and made the writings necessary
thereto.
BENEFICIUM, in Roman military matters, denoted a
promotion to a higher rank by the favour of some person
in authority.
BENEFIELD, Sebastian, an eminent divine of the
seventeenth century, was born in 1559, at Prestonbury in
Gloucestershire, and educated at Corpus Christi College,
Oxford. In 1608 he took the degree of doctor in divinity,
and five years afterwards was chosen Margaret professor
in that university. Several years before, he had been pre-lH
seated to the rectory of Meysey-Hampton, in Gloucester- ntC
shire. He published commentaries upon the first, second &
and third chapters of Amos; a considerable number of'w-,*-/
sermons; and some Latin treatises. He died in 1630.
BENEFIT Societies. See Friendly Societies.
BENEVENTE, a town of the province of Alentejo, in
Portugal, on the river Corraya, which here empties itself
into the Tagus. The inhabitants are about 2500, and de¬
pend on the trade of its small harbour, which is only ac¬
cessible to vessels drawing little water.
BENEVENTO, a small province or delegation of the
papal dominion, according to the settlement made by the
treaty of Vienna in 1815. Naples, however, having at
that date claims and possession, which she relinquished in
some measure, still exercises authority over the schools,
roads, posts, and the sale of salt, tobacco, and iron. It
contains about 85 square miles, and 24,000 inhabitants.
The capital city, from which the name is derived, stands
at the junction of the rivers Sabato and Galore, has seve¬
ral ancient monuments of celebrity, and contains about
14,000 inhabitants, who are employed in gold and silver
works. Long. 14. 52. E. Lat. 41. 6. N.
BENEVENTUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of the
Samnites, formerly called Maleventum from the unwhole¬
someness of the wind, an appellation under which it is
mentioned by Livy ; but after a Roman colony had been
led thither in the- 485th year of the city, the name Bene-
ventum, as a more auspicious denomination, was applied to
it. It is mentioned by Horace as an ancient city.
BENGAL,
A large and important province of Hindostan, situated,
towards its eastern extremity, between the 21st and 27th
degrees of north latitude. It is bounded on the north by
the kingdom of Nepaul, the territories of the Sikkim Raja,
and by the high country of Bootan ; it has the bay of Ben¬
gal on the south; Assam, and Ava the country of the Bur¬
mese, on the east; Bahar on the west, for the greater part
of its frontier ; and towards the south-west the provinces
of Gundwana and Orissa. Its length, including Midnapoor,
maybe estimated at 350 miles, and its average breadth at
300.
Aspect of Bengal, especially as it approaches the sea, may be de-
toe coun- signateci a ievei country. Even in its northern parts it
is scarcely reached by any of the branches that diverge
from the great Himalaya range; and such elevated tracts
as it does contain can only be considered as exceptions
to the uniformity of level which prevails throughout the
province. The hills that occasionally occur are besides
of no elevation; and it is only from the contrast of the
adjacent ground that they have acquired this appella¬
tion. These hilly parts are mostly situated in the dis-
, tricts of Birboom, Silhet, Chittagong, and the eastern
boundaries of Tiperah, and form but an inconsiderable
proportion of the whole area. The Ganges, which enters
on the western frontier, and runs diagonally across Ben¬
gal, gives to the country its peculiar character and aspect.
About 200 miles from its mouth it spreads out into nu¬
merous branches, forming a large delta, composed, where
it borders on the sea, of a labyrinth of creeks and rivers,
named the Sunderbunds, about 200 miles broad, and ex¬
hibiting, during the annual inundation, the appearance of
an immense sea. At this time the rice fields to the ex¬
tent of some hundreds of miles are submerged, and are
navigated by boats of various sizes and shapes, many of
them handsome, and fitted both for commerce and for
state. The scene presents to a European eye many ob¬
jects of singular novelty and interest; namely, the fields
covered with water to a great depth, with ears of rice
floating on the surface; the stupendous dikes, which re¬
strain, without altogether preventing, the excesses of
the inundations; and peasants in all quarters repairing to
the markets, and even to the fields, on embarkations pre¬
pared for themselves, their families, and their domestic
animals, from a fear of the swelling waters sweeping away
their habitations, with all that they contain, in the absence
of their boats. The many navigable streams which fall
into the Ganges intersect the country in every direction,
and afford a wonderful facility of internal communication.
In most parts boats can approach by means of lakes, rivu¬
lets, and water-courses, to the door of almost every cot¬
tage ; and even in the driest season there is scarcely any
spot 20 miles distant from a navigable river. Those parts
of Bengal which in general lie beyond the annual inunda¬
tion are, however, reached by extraordinary floods, which
frequently cause the most extensive damage, carrying
away the cattle, grain, and habitations of the peasants. In
this general devastation, houses and fields are seen raised
above the level of the surrounding flood, and exhibiting
the triumph of art and industry over every natural disad¬
vantage. The lower region of the Ganges is the richest
and most productive portion of Bengal, abounding invalu¬
able produce and manufactures. The elevated tract occu¬
pying the south-west angle of the country is of less value,
and also inferior in extent. The Brahmaputra is another
great river, of which the sources are unknown, but sup¬
posed to be at no great distance from those of the Ganges;
and these two streams taking opposite courses until they
are more than 1200 miles asunder, and again approaching
each other, intermix their waters before they reach the
ocean. The other principal rivers of Bengal are the Hoop-
BEN
narrain, the Dummooda, Teesta, Kooram, Korotaya, Ma-
J nas, Cosi, Conki, &c. In a level country such as Bengal,
where the soil is composed of yielding and loose materials,
the courses of the rivers are continually shifting, from the
wearing down of their different banks, and also from the
water being turned off, by obstacles in its course, into a
different channel. As this channel is gradually widened,
the old bed of the river is left dry, or, ceasing to have a
current, it is converted into a stagnant marsh. These
changes in the courses of the rivers lead to other import¬
ant changes in the existing arrangements of society, and
affect in a most serious manner the condition of landed
property. A river is the basis of population and improve¬
ment. Land is cultivated, manufactures are established,
and towns are built in its vicinity, because it affords the
easy means of transporting the produce, whether of land
or labour, to the most distant market; and hence a change
in its coarse is necessarily attended with the most inju¬
rious consequences. The new channel into which the river
flows is of course so much land lost, while the old one is
a lake or marsh; and the adjacent lands are overflowed,
while the lands lying on the former bank lose their fertility
from the want of water, as well as the means of transport¬
ing their produce. Thus one man’s property is diminished,
while that of another is enlarged or improved ; and in the
mean time the land-tax on both continues the same.
Owing to these frequent aberrations of rivers, towns dis¬
appear, and the inhabitants are deterred, by the uncer¬
tainty of retaining for any length of time their places of
abode, from rearing comfortable or substantial dwellings.
The rich will not lay out their wealth on magnificent vil¬
las which the capricious flood may sweep away ; and hence
they have little comfort in their houses, and the country is
destitute of ornament. The dwellings of the poorer classes
are composed of such slight materials that they seldom
last for more than three years; and villages are removed
to a distance of four or five miles with little inconvenience,
a change of the site being considered an ordinary casu¬
alty, frequently occasioned by an unseasonable shower.
Clin . The position of Bengal places it within the range of the
tropical heats; and the year is distinguished into three
seasons, the cold, the hot, and the rainy. The cold sea¬
son begins in October, when the rains cease. During the
succeeding four months the temperature is mild and
agreeable; Fahrenheit’s thermometer falling frequently to
70°. The spring and the dry season then succeed, and
continue for four months, during which the heat continues
progressively to increase, until it becomes almost intoler¬
able to the natives themselves; the thermometer in the
shade rising to 100°. In the beginning of April occasional
thunder storms, in the middle and in the south-eastern
parts of Bengal, with rain or hail driven by sudden tem¬
pests of north-west wind, temper the immoderate heat. In
the eastern districts mild and refreshing showers of rain
are still more frequent; but towards the west, in the
country contiguous to Bahar, a parching west wind pre-
vads in the day-time during the greater part of the hot sea¬
son, and at night a cool breeze from the opposite quarter.
Ihese west winds sometimes give place to easterly gales,
which continue for days and weeks. The southerly and
northerly winds, which alternately prevail in the bay of
Bengal during the summer and the winter, extend their
mfluence over that part of the flat country which faces
the bay, until they are diverted in their progress up the
country by mountains corresponding with the course of
the Ganges. About the beginning of June the south-west
rnonsoon, with thunder and lightning that seems to rend
the sky, ushers in the periodical rains, which refresh the
atmosphere and the parched earth. The rains continue
or four months, when all the rivers are in flood; and in
565
the latter part of this season, in September, if the rains Bengal,
break up early, the weather is extremely close and sul- 'w-v-w'
try, and the inhabitants, especially the Europeans, become
sickly. Fogs are frequent during the dry months ; and
dews continue copious and refreshing, and greatly assist
vegetation, as they afford nearly as large a supply of
moisture as the loose soil of the country appears to re¬
quire. These heavy dews are supposed to be no more
than sufficient to compensate the daily evaporation by the
sun during the dry season, and so far to contribute to sa¬
lubrity. The damp of the climate is ascribed to the want
of any general system of drainage in a level country; to
the luxuriant vegetation; and to the denseness of the woods,
which obstruct the free circulation of the air, and retain an
undue quantity of moisture, amid decayed leaves and other
putrid vegetable substances. This is found in all countries
to be a fertile source of disease ; and there is little doubt
that the clearing of the forests and a judicious system of
drainage would be followed in Bengal, as in all other parts,
by a decided improvement in the climate.
The soil of this province is generally composed of clay Soil and
mixed with a considerable proportion of siliceous sand, produce,
fertilized by various salts, and by decayed substances,
animal and vegetable. In the flat country the soil is ge¬
nerally alluvial; the basis is sand, on which, in the inun¬
dated tracts, are annually deposited, by the retiring wa¬
ters, clay, calcareous matter, and other fertilizing sub¬
stances. In the tracts which lie beyond the reach of the
inundation a period of thirty years is scarcely sufficient to
cover the barren sand with soil sufficient to fit it for the
labours of the husbandman ; and in the lapse of half a cen¬
tury the superincumbent soil is not half a span in depth.
Bengal, refreshed by the periodical rains, followed by a
mild and dry winter, and afterwards by great heat, yields
in the proper seasons all the productions both of the
tropical and the temperate climates. Of the grains which
contribute to the subsistence of man, rice is of the first
importance ; it is the great staple of Bengal agriculture, is
particularly luxuriant within the tract of inundation, and
thrives in all the southern districts. It is sown at all
seasons, and vegetates in low situations, where it ripens
during the rains earlier or later, according as the field is
overflowed to a greater or less depth. The general seasons
of cultivation, joined to the influence of soil and climate,
have produced an endless diversity in the different species
of rice. The other grains are limited in their varieties.
In ascending the Ganges, wheat and barley occupy the
first place in husbandry; they are sown at the commence¬
ment of the winter, and reaped in the spring. The differ¬
ent species of pulse, such as peas, chiches, pigeon-peas,
kidney-beans, &c. are cultivated throughout Bengal, and
no season is without its appropriate species; they are
mostly sown or reaped in winter, and thriving on poor soils,
and requiring little culture, are highly prized as an article
of husbandry. Millet and other small grains, though they
constitute the food of the poorest classes, and bear a very
low price, are still of importance, because they are restrict¬
ed to no particular season, and, vegetating rapidly, they fill
up an interval after a tardy harvest, which does not per¬
mit the usual course of husbandry. Maize is less cultivat¬
ed in Bengal than in those countries where the climate is
suitable, having no preference above millet to compensate
the greater labour of its culture. Potatoes have lately
been introduced into Bengal, and have succeeded well.
They are suited to the climate, and the small potato is
little inferior to those raised in England. Esculent plants
are found in Bengal in great abundance and variety. The
different species of the cucumber are much more nume¬
rous than in Europe, and whole fields are covered with
them. The water-melon is of incredible size, and its stalk}
GAL.
566 • BEN
Bengal, leaves, and blossoms form a finely variegated matting,
with which most of the cottages in the village are entire¬
ly covered.1 Asparagus, cauliflower, and other esculent
plants are raised ; but they are entirely tasteless; and
fields, after they are sown, must be watched for several
days, to defend them against the depredations of nume¬
rous flocks of birds by day and of large bats by night.
In some fields which are infested by wild boars, elephants,
buffaloes, or deer, a stage is erected, on which a watchman
is placed to scare away the wild animals.
The universal and vast consumption of vegetable oils
which takes place in Bengal is supplied by the extensive
cultivation of mustard, linseed, sesamum, and palma-christi;
besides what is supplied from the cocoa-nut. The sesa¬
mum comes to maturity during the rains, or soon after
them; the others during the cold season. Among the
most important and valuable productions of Bengal are
tobacco, sugar, indigo, cotton, and silk, most of which
require land solely appropriated to their peculiar culture ;
and of late years coffee has been successfully cultivated.
Tobacco, which was unknown in India before the dis¬
covery of America, is now produced everywhere. The
sugar-cane has flourished in Bengal from the remotest
times; there is now scarcely a district in which it is not
successfully cultivated, and there seems to be no limit to
its production in Bengal, except the demand for it. It is
cheaply and frugally manufactured, and, if it were allow¬
ed to come into the British market on equal terms with
West India sugar, would form an important article of ex¬
port. The manufacture of indigo appears to have been
• known and practised in Bengal from the earliest times;
and from the East, Europe was supplied with this dye,
until the superior produce of America engrossed the mar¬
ket. But a few Europeans, by their skilful manufacture of
indigo, renewed this branch of trade in Bengal, where the
natural quality of the commodity is superior to that pro¬
duced in North America. Cotton is raised in great abun¬
dance. The produce was formerly equal to the consump¬
tion ; but a large quantity is now imported from the banks
of the Jumna and the Deccan, where it is raised more
cheaply than in Bengal. A fine sort of cotton is still grown
in the eastern districts, for the most delicate manufactures.
The great supply of cotton required by the flourishing
manufactures of Great Britain has gradually given rise to
a demand for the cotton of India; and cotton wool is now
one of the staple exports of Bengal. Silk is an ancient
product of India, originally introduced, it is said, from
China. It was brought from India to Greece and Italy,
from which Europe was chiefly supplied. Bengal has now
recovered its share in supplying this valuable article, al¬
though the raw silk which it produces is scarcely equal
to the finest Italian silk. A coarse species of silk is pro¬
cured from the wild silkworm, which is found in the coun¬
tries bordering on Bengal, and in several districts includ¬
ed within it. It is found useful in the fabrication of inferior
silks; though it is far inferior to the produce of the do¬
mesticated insect. There are many other articles pro¬
duced, or which might be produced, in Bengal, that a more
extended commerce would bring into notice ; various drugs
used in dyeing, gum-arabic, and many other sorts of gums
and resins for manufactures, which are the produce of trees
that grow spontaneously in Bengal. Of hemp and flax
in all their varieties, with various substitutes for these
articles, Bengal produces a greater abundance than al¬
most any other country ; but the true hemp, though it is
found in many places, is little used by the natives, except
for the seed oil as a medicine, or for an intoxicating in-
G A L.
gredient, which is often mixed with the tobacco of tho n
hookah. C,fl
The orchard is a great object of cultivation with the ^
peasant in Bengal; and it attaches him to his native soil
from the superstitious predilection which he feels for the
trees planted by his ancestor. The seasons, however
from the long continuance of the rains, which occupy the
greater part of the summer, are not particularly favourable
for bringing fruit to maturity. Orchards of mango-trees,
the fruit of which affords a wholesome variety in the diet
of the Indian, diversify the plains. The cocoa nut flourishes
in all those parts of Bengal which are not remote from the
tropic; and plantations of oreca are common in the cen¬
tral parts. The bassia thrives on the poorest soils, especi¬
ally in the hilly districts ; its produce is esculent and nu¬
tritious, and it yields an intoxicating spirit. From its
seeds is expressed an oil, which in mountainous countries
is used instead of butter. There are many other sorts of
useful trees, which either grow wild in Bengal, or thrive
with little care, a particular enumeration of which is un¬
necessary. The bamboo, however, may be mentioned on
account of its usefulness in supplying the peasant with
materials for his buildings, and also in yielding him profit.
Clumps of these continue to flourish so long as they are
not too abruptly thinned.
The agriculture of Bengal is in rather a backward state.
The plough, which is drawn by a single yoke of oxen, is an
awkward implement, and the branch of a tree is a wretched
substitute for the harrow. The corn is not threshed, cattle
being employed to tread it out from the ear. There are
neither barns nor inclosures; and the practice of stacking
corn is very unusual. Rice is completely preserved by
the husk in which it is inclosed, and requires no further
care ; and the other grain is thrown aside in the same
manner, without being threshed, and having no defence
against the inclemencies of the weather. The grain is
winnowed in the wind, and is stored either in jars of un¬
baked earth, or in baskets made of twigs or of grass. The
practice of storing grain under ground, which is frequent
in Benares and the western provinces, is not suitable to
the damp climate and soil of Bengal.
In many parts cultivation depends on the artificial aid
of irrigation; and the great object of the Bengal farmer
is to procure an equable supply of water. Owing to the
inequalities of the country, the lower parts are frequently
inundated by sudden rains, while the higher grounds are
scorched by the long continuance of dry weather; and, to
secure a supply of water, various expedients are resorted
to. In the management of forced rice, dams retain the
water on extensive plains, or preserve it in tanks to irrigate
the lower lands. In some places a supply of water is se¬
cured by ridges surrounding the field, or by dams advan¬
tageously constructed. In other provinces water is raised
from wells by cattle or by the hand, where the supply from
the rains is deficient. Each of these methods is resorted to
by the peasants themselves ; but some considerable works,
which require greater contrivance and expense, such as
reservoirs or ponds, which are easily formed in hilly coun¬
tries by constructing dams across the gorges of valleys, as
well as water-courses and dikes, are more generally in a
progress of decay than of improvement. Many tanks have
also been dug, not only for supplying the inhabitants with
water for domestic purposes, but also for irrigation. But
these excavations have in some parts been increased to a
destructive extent from ostentation; and as no one is in¬
terested in their repair, which does not, as their original
construction, give any reputation for piety, they are soon
1 Tennant’s Indian Recreations, vol. ii. p. 154.
BENGAL.
Pen, choked up with aquatic plants, which produce putrid
1 smells, bad water, and distempers. The rotation of crops,
which is so much attended to in every well-regulated
system of husbandry, does not enter into the plans of the
Bengal farmer. He never thinks of extending the course of
his crops beyond the year, nor of choosing articles for cul¬
tivation adapted to restore the fertility of his land, impo¬
verished by a previous crop. The want of capital is a
great obstacle to the improvement of agriculture as well as
of manufactures. The peasantry, among whom the land is
divided in small lots, are too poor and too prejudiced to
introduce improved modes of cultivation. They go on in
the ordinary routine of their employments handed down
from father to son. Capital has not accumulated in the
country; the division of labour has not been introduced;
and every man is alternately husbandman and artisan, the
latter personally conducting the whole process of his art
even from the formation of his tools to the sale of his pro¬
ductions. In the intervals of his employment he gene¬
rally betakes himself to agriculture as a resource ; and in
this manner the same person always follows a variety of
employments. Such farmers are ill qualified to prosecute
any improved system of husbandry, or to supply the place
of opulent and intelligent proprietors, who would intro¬
duce large farms and a better system of cultivation. Other
obstacles to the improvement of husbandry consist in the
assemblage of peasants in the villages, and in the want of
inclosures; yet it is difficult to adopt a different arrange¬
ment in a country infested by tigers and gang-robbers or
river pirates, and where solitary dwellings and unattended
cattle would be dangerous.
Land The lands in Bengal, prior to the entrance of the Bri-
tenm fish, were occupied by the rajahs and zemindars, by whom
M1(*1 they were let out to tenants of various descriptions. The
u titles of these different classes of proprietors or occupiers
were not very exactly defined; and in the anarchy which
prevailed in the country, rights of every description were
often violated. When the British obtained possession of
Bengal, along with the privileges of collecting the land
revenues, great differences of opinion arose among them
respecting the character of the zemindars and the rights
of the tenantry; some asserting that they were not pro¬
prietors of the soil, but merely collectors of the revenue
for the behoof of the sovereign, who, according to the
eastern maxims of policy, was the proprietor of all the
lands in the country. Without entering, however, into
this controversy, which appears rather of an abstract than
a practical nature, it seems certain, and is indeed admitted
on all hands, that the lands were assessed in a certain
rate tor the public tax; and that as long as this tax was
regularly paid, the proprietors or occupiers of land were
secured in the possession of their properties, which they
mortgaged for debts, and quietly transmitted to their heirs
through a series of generations. It was to them that go¬
vernment looked for the immediate payment of the tax,
"Inch they again collected from the under-tenants, called
the ryots or cultivators. Whether we admit the zemin¬
dars to be proprietors, or merely government stewards, it
seems clear that the tax was a sort of quit-rent, and that
its regular payment was the tenure by which they held
“eir properties.
In 1765 the right of collecting the revenues of Bengal
"as acquired by Lord Clive from the emperor Shah Allum;
and he proceeded to levy this tax, aided by the native
collectors of the Mogul sovereigns. From 1767 to 1769
t m superintendence of the revenue was entirely commit¬
ted to Mahommed Reza Khan. In 1769 supervisors were
sent into several districts, with native officers to assist
em.. In 1770 this system was changed, and the admi¬
nistration of the land revenues was committed to two
567
boards, one to sit at Moorshedabad, the other at Patna. Bengal.
In 1772 the lands were farmed out for five years, and
Mahommed Reza Khan was deprived of all power by Mr
Hastings, who constituted Calcutta the seat of the fiscal
government, and employed collectors to receive the land
revenues. In 1773 another change took place, these col¬
lectors being withdrawn, and six provincial councils ap¬
pointed ; but in 1781 the councils were withdrawn, the
former system of collectors was again organized, and a
supreme board of revenue, which still continues, was esta¬
blished at Calcutta. It appeared, however, that the great
error of the company’s agents consisted in overtaxing the
country; and in consequence, the agriculture of Bengal
was rapidly declining when Lord Cornwallis, in 1789, took
means for a permanent settlement of the land revenues.
Accordingly, in 1793, he concluded an agreement for a
ten years’ tax with the landholders, which was afterwards
made perpetual. The land-tax was, however, still too
high, and the lands of many of the most ancient zemindars
of the country were brought to sale for arrears of taxes;
nor does it appear that the settlement so much boasted
of has tended in any degree to promote the prosperity
of agriculture. But these details, which relate to the re¬
venue and policy of the East India Company, will be more
properly considered under the article Hindostan.
Cotton piece goods form the staple manufacture ofManufac-
India. The district of Dacca, in the eastern quarter ofturesami
Bengal, has long been famed for the manufacture of plain commerce*
muslins, distinguished by various names according to the
fineness and the closeness of their texture, as well as
for flowered, striped, or chequered muslins, of the most
beautiful and exquisite fabrics. Several kinds, woven
more closely, are manufactured on the western side of the
delta of the Ganges; but those of a more rigid texture do
not seem to be limited to particular districts. Coarse tur¬
bans and handkerchiefs are also made in almost every pro¬
vince. Under the general appellation of calicoes are in¬
cluded various species of cloth, which are still distinguish¬
ed by their Indian designations. Khasahs are manufac¬
tured to the north and east of the Ganges, in that part of
Bengal which is situated between the Mahanuddy and
Issamutty rivers, from Maulda to Berbazie. Cloths of a
similar quality are made near Tanda, in the nabob of
Oude’s dominions, and baftas in the south-east corner of
Bengal, near Luckipoor; as also on the western frontier of
Benares, near Allahabad, and in some other districts.
Other sorts of cloth less familiar to the English reader,
and which it would be superfluous to enumerate, are fabri¬
cated in various districts. Sackcloth is made from pack¬
thread in many places, and especially on the northern fron- *
tier of Bengal Proper ; and it is there employed as clothing
by the mountaineers. Cotton is manufactured into canvass
in the neighbourhood of Patna and Chatgaon, flannel is
wrought at Patna and other places, and blankets are every¬
where made. A coarse cotton cloth, dyed red with cheap
materials, is generally used, and is chiefly manufactured in
the middle of the tract between the Jumna and the Ganges.
Other sorts, chiefly dyed blue, as well as fine and coarse
calicoes, dyed with permanent or fugitive colours, are pre¬
pared for inland commerce or for exportation. The seats
of this manufacture in Bengal are the city of Patna and
the neighbourhood of Calcutta; and it appears to have
been in ancient times brought to so great perfection in In¬
dia, that the ingenuity of the European manufacturers has
added little improvement except in the superior elegance
of the patterns. Dimities of various kinds and patterns, and
cloths resembling diaper and damask linens, are made at
Dacca, Patna, Tanda, and many other places. Moorshe¬
dabad and its neighbourhood is the chief seat of the ma¬
nufacture of woven silk and taffeta, both plain and flower-
568 BENGAL.
Bengal, ed; and the western and southern corner of Bengal, of banks of the Goggra or Dewa river to the Brahmaputra, Be i
plain gauzes for home consumption. At Mai da, and in formed, for a length of 400 miles, a sale and convenient sj
some towns of the province of Burdwan, mixed goods of communication at all seasons through the countries sub¬
silk and cotton are manufactured. jecf t° ^le annual inundations; but of this road the re-
The internal trade of Bengal consists chiefly in the ex- mains can only now be traced. A road from Calcutta to
portation from the grain districts of corn and rice, in ex- Benares has been constructed by government to facilitate
change for salt. This article is monopolized by the grasp- the movement of troops, and has proved of very gene-
ing policy of the government; and its manufacture is a ral utility. In general, however, the traveller is directed
source of severe oppression to the natives. A great pro- through Bengal merely by a beaten pathway; but no
portion of the salt used in Bengal is manufactured in de- artificial road, nor any other accommodation, alleviates
serts overflowed at every tide by the sea, and the air of his fatigue; and in the rainy season the intercourse by
which is extremely noxious, from the combined effect of land is entirely stopt. Colebrooke, in his account of the
heat and moisture. These deserts are besides infested by husbandry of Bengal, ascribes the total decay of these
tigers and alligators, by which many of the unfortunate magnificent roads, with the ruin of all the public inns or
salt-workers annually perish ; and to recruit their working serais built on them, to the want of durable materials for
numbers fresh supplies are procured by the most unjusti- their construction, which would require to be brought
liable artifices, the labourers being either decoyed or com- from hilly countries, at an enormous expense, or bricks
pelled to engage in this unhealthy employment. The would have to be burned for the purpose. As there
price of salt being artificially raised by the company’s are no roads, so neither is there throughout the pro¬
monopoly, the poor are obliged to use it more sparingly, vince, except in large towns, any inn or place of accom-
though it is necessary to give a relish to the naturally in- modation for the traveller; all that can be procured in
sipid provisions of the Hindoo. It is still a great article of the small towns is an empty house or hut, where he may
internal trade, in exchange for grain, for the supply of the have shelter from the weather. The route from one
cities and for exportation. Cotton, which is imported town to another is often extremely tedious, the towns
from the western provinces, and tobacco, which is ex- being scattered in various directions, and at great dis-
changed for betel-nut, together with some sugar, make tances ; and although the making of roads, the digging of
up the principal articles for home comsumption. Piece tanks, and the planting of trees, are among the religious
goods, silk, saltpetre, opium, sugar, and indigo, were for- duties of the Hindoos, yet they are seldom exercised with
merly engrossed by the Company; but trade has been any view to utility; so that the trees soon become a jungle,
now laid open to individual enterprise, and these articles the haunt of wild beasts, which devour travellers; the
are bought and sold by every description of merchants. tank becomes a dirty puddle ; and the road generally leads,
The internal trade of Bengal is greatly aided by the not from one mai'ket-town to another, but to some river
navigable communications which intersect the country in where he performs his ablutions. Such being the state ot
every direction, and, during the rainy season, afford the the roads, they are not adapted for wheel-carriages; and
only practicable means of conveyance. The boats used merchandise is accordingly transported on the backs ot
in this navigation vary in their form and construction, oxen, sometimes on horses of the tattoo breed, and more
being each adapted to the nature of the rivers which rarely on buffaloes; the latter, though more docile, travel-
they generally traverse. The flat vessels, which make ling at a slower rate than the ox, and not bearing a much
their way in the upper parts of the river, and in its tri- larger burden. The owners of the cattle also act more
butary streams, would be ill adapted for the wide and frequently in the capacity of merchants than of carriers,
stormy navigation of the lower Ganges ; while, on the other Bengal carries on an extensive commerce with Britain,
hand, the lofty boats used in the Ganges, from Patna to The exports consist chiefly of all the staple articles of the
Calcutta, would be equally ill suited to the shallow rivers country, such as cotton, silk, cotton piece-goods, &c. The
of the western districts, or to the creeks that occur in the imports are metals of all sorts, wrought and unwrought ;
eastern navigation. The windings, and the various breadth woollen and cotton manufactures of various kinds, which
and velocity of the stream, must be considered in the con- can be sent from Britain, and sold cheaper than the home
struction of the craft which are to ply on it. In some manufactures of the same description; naval and military
parts it is found most convenient to descend with the stores; gold and silver bullion; and almost every article or
stream and return with the track rope; in other parts the British manufacture. To Madras and the coast of Coro-
oar is the chief dependence; and, owing to the windings mandel are exported grain, pulse, sugar, saltpetre, mo-
of the river, no reliance can be placed on the sail; so that, lasses, ginger, long pepper, clarified butter, oil, silk
in all these cases, a different construction of boats must be wrought and unwrought, muslins, spirits, and provisions,
employed. The introduction of steam navigation generally The returns consist of salt, red wood, some fine long cloth,
on the Ganges would be a most important improvement; izanees and chintzes, and remittances of specie. An ex-
and, where the depth of the river is sufficient to admit tensive trade is carried on to China and the countries an
steam-vessels, they will of course supersede every other islands to the east. The exports are opium, for whic ,
craft. It is on rivers such as the Ganges, which descend though it is a contraband article of trade, the deman is
with a rapid current to the ocean, that navigation by increasing in China; saltpetre, gunpowder, iron, re
steam is so peculiarly advantageous ; the vessel being pro- arms, cotton, silk, and cotton piece-goods. From
pelled with a given velocity, which can be at all times com- eastern islands and the Malay coast Bengal receives pep
manded against the force, and through all the windings, per, tin, wax, dammer, brimstone, gold-dust, specie, bete
of the stream. The number of boatmen that plied on the nut, spices, benzoin, &c.; from China, tutenague, sugar
river Ganges, about fifty years ago, was estimated by Major candy, tea, alum, dammer, porcelain, lacquered ware,
Rennell at 30,000. They are now supposed to exceed ten and a variety of manufactured goods; from Manilla, m
times that number. Besides plying on the river, most of go of a very fine quality, sugar, and sapan wood an
them are husbandmen on a small scale; and occasionally specie. To Bombay and the Malabar coast the exP°rt|)
join the bands of robbers and river pirates who plunder are mostly the same as to the Coromandel coast an
the unwary traveller. The highways throughout Bengal, Madras. The returns are teak timber, elephants tee ^
which were formerly in good order, have been allowed to lac, &c.; sandal wood, coir-rope, pepper, and car^mU .
fall into complete disrepair. A magnificent road from the from Malabar. To Arabia and Persia are exported tnroug
BENGAL.
569
the Persian Gulf grain, sugar, silk and cotton piece-goods,
1 hardware, small articles of Indian manufacture, &c.; to
Ava and the Burman empire, silk and cotton goods, fire¬
arms, iron nails, naval and military stores, and a variety
of European goods, the demand for which is daily in¬
creasing all over the East.
The wild animals ai’e such as are commonly found in
Alli 1 Hindostan, namely, the tiger, the leopard, the wild boar,
the jackal, the buffalo, and the elephant, with apes, mon¬
kies, &c. which swarm in all the woods, and sometimes
plunder the fruit shops of a village ; for, being considered
sacred animals; they are never disturbed by the natives.
The elephant is tamed for domestic uses, as also the camel
and the buffalo, and they are extremely useful in the mili¬
tary service, and as beasts of burden. The buffalo is natu¬
rally a fierce animal; it is black, while the common cows
and oxen are most of them -white, and are so small, that
when seen at a distance by Europeans, they are commonly
mistaken for flocks of sheep. The breed of the buffalo cross¬
ed with the common breed of cattle produces a pleasing
variety in the herd of the farmer. The native Bengal horse
is a thin, ill-shaped, and poor-looking animal, and is never
used in the team. The sheep are naturally of a diminutive
breed, thin and lank, and of a dark gray colour; though,
when fattened for the table, the mutton equals that of
Europe. All the towns of Bengal are infested by Pariah
dogs, and by jackals, which, with the approach of evening,
begin their bowlings in the woods and jungles, when they
quit their retreat to prowl for garbage in the streets. The
bull being a sacred animal, rambles about the country, and
is caressed and fondled by the people ; to feed him being
deemed a meritorious act of religion. The crow, the kite,
mayana, and sparrow, hop about the dwellings of the Ben¬
galese with a familiarity unknown in Europe. Storks are
seen in great numbers, and feed on the toads, snakes, frogs,
lizards, and insects, which abound in the country. The
Ganges and its numerous tributary streams abound in a
variety of excellent fish, which are at times so cheap that
they become the food of the poorest classes. The small¬
est kinds are acceptable in a curry, the standing dish of
the Bengalese; which, with their pilau, comprehends the
whole art of Indian cookery. The bickty or cockup, the
sable-fish, and the mangoe, are all excellent and rich, par¬
ticularly the last, which forms a favourite dish at every
European table, especially during the two months when
they are in roe. Mullet abound in all the rivers, and may
be killed with small shot as they swim against the stream
with their heads out of the water. Oysters, not so large,
but of fully as good a flavour as those in Europe, are pro¬
cured from the coast of Chittagong. Alligators and por-
puses abound in all the Bengal rivers, which contain in¬
credible quantities of small turtle, but of a bad quality,
and only used by the inferior castes among the natives.
ti°]" If is extremely difficult to obtain any accurate estimate
of the population of Bengal; and the most contradictory
accounts have been published on this subject. The heavy
assessment imposed on the land by the British on obtain¬
ing possession of Bengal, and the various modes of-extor-
tion resorted to in collecting it, had the effect of discou-
raging agriculture, and of causing a decrease in the popu¬
lation. But since the decennial settlement of 1793 the
country has enjoyed comparative tranquillity, having been
entirely exempted from the calamity of war, although it
has been infested by gang-robbers, or dacoits, who in for-
nndable bands plunder and frequently murder the farmers
and cultivators. By the vigilance of the government, this
evd has been greatly diminished ; the agriculture of Ben¬
gal has flourished under the protection which it has enjoy-
ed; andthe population has consequently increased. Vari¬
ous estimates have been made of the inhabitants at differ-
VOL. IV.
ent times, on rather imperfect data. But until the admi- Bengal,
nistration of the Marquis Wellesley in 1801, no actual in-
vestigation was ever attempted'. In 1772 Lord Clive com¬
puted the population of the British provinces of Bengal and
Bahar at 20,000,000; Sir W. Jones at 24,000,000; Mr Cole-
brooke at 27,000,000; and in 1790 another estimate was
made which carried the number to 32,987,000. In 1807
Dr Francis Buchanan was selected by the government to
make a survey of the different districts of llungpoor,
Dinagepoor, and Purneah. This survey was executed with
the most laborious accuracy, and it is remarkable that it
carried the amount of the population far beyond any other
estimate. This census, however, high as it may be thought,
was completely confirmed by the subsequent survey of
Burdwan by Mr Bayley in 1814. The following estimate
of the population of the province is founded on the returns
of the magistrates and collectors in 1801, on Dr Buchanan’s
survey of the three districts above mentioned, and on Mr
Bayley’s survey of Burdwan.
Papulation of the Province of Bengal. Inhabitants.
The twenty-four pergunnahs, including Calcutta, 1,625,000
Midnapoor district in 1801  1,500,000
Hooghly district in 1801  1,000,000
Burdwan district in 1814  1,450,000
Jessore district in 1801  1,200,000
Nuddea district in 1801    800,000
Dacca Jelalpoor district and the city in 1801... 1,140,000
Backergunge district in 1801  926,000
Chittagong district in 1801   1,200,000
Tiperah district in 1801    750,000
Mymunsingh district in 1801  1,360,000
Silhet district in 1801  500,000
Moorshedabad district and city in 1801  1,020,000
Birboom district in 1801   700,000
Rajshahy district in 1801  1,500,000
Rungpoor district in 1809  2,735,000
Dinagepoor in 1808 '.. 3,000,000
Purneah district in 1810  2,900,000
Total population of Bengal 25,306,000
The principal city of Bengal is Calcutta. Besides the
large cities of Dacca and Moorshedabad, it also contains
many prosperous inland trading towns, such as Hooghly,
Serajegunge, Bogwangola, Cossimbazar, each containing a
large population, of which no authentic return has yet been
received. The population of the following towns is sub¬
joined, and, though not founded on actual enumeration, it
proceeds on the best probable data that could be procured.
Calcutta 500,000
Dacca 200,000
Moorshedabad 150,000
Burdwan  53,900
Chandernagore  41,377
Purneah  33,000
Rajamahal 30,000
Dinagepoor 28,000
Narraingunge 20,000
Maulda 18,000
Gour 18,000
Chandercona 18,145
Small villages, containing from 100 to 500 inhabitants,
are very numerous ; forming, in many parts of the country,
a continuous town for many miles along the banks of the
rivers, and presenting to the inland navigator as he passes
along, the cheerful bustle of a crowded population. The
genuine Bengalese towns are not arranged into streets,
but into divisions of east, west, north, south, and centre.
The Hindoos, Mahommedans, and Portuguese, reside
each in their own quarter; and the Hindoo portion is fur¬
ther subdivided into quarters for the Brahmins, scribes,
weavers, oil-makers, washermen, barbers, cultivators, pot¬
ters, &c. A Bengal hut has a pent roof, constructed of
two sloping sides, which meet in a ridge forming the seg¬
ment of a circle, so that they have the appearance of a
boat turned upside down. The genuine Bengalese has
one hut for himself and another for his cattle; and the
4 c
570 BEN
Benguela. rich increase the number of apartments without altering
the plan of the building. The frame of the house in ge¬
neral consists entirely of bamboos; in the houses of the
wealthy wooden posts or beams are used, which are nei¬
ther polished nor painted, and are seldom fastened with
nails. The door is the only opening in the hut.
The elevated tracts in Bengal are inhabited by a race
of a different origin from the inhabitants of the plains. In
the northern mountains, beyond the limits of the province,
the natives appear to be of a Tartar origin, by which race
also the northern parts of Bengal are peopled. The high
country which Bengal includes on the west is peopled by
several races of mountaineers, who are supposed to be the
aborigines of the country, being distinguished by religion,
character, language, and manners, as well as by features,
from the Hindoo natives. The vast mountainous tract
which occupies the centre of India is inhabited by various
tribes, some of whom have scarcely emerged from a state
of barbarity. In the mixed population of Bengal the Hin¬
doos and Mahommedans are easily seen to be a distinct
class, as, among the latter, the Mogul, the Afghan, and
their immediate descendants, may be distinguished from
the naturalized Mussulman. The Bengalese character
has never been held in high esteem throughout Hindus¬
tan ; and those who are of a foreign descent in Bengal are
fond of dwelling on their ancient origin and the countries
of their ancestors. The native Bengalese are generally
considered of a pusillanimous character, and seldom avenge
their injuries by open combat; yet many of them have
acquired high distinction in the British service as brave
and active soldiers. They are in general a lively, hand¬
some race of men, of a brown colour, middling stature,
thin, but well made; of an oval countenance, with black
eyes and hair, and many with aquiline noses. Like all
the Asiatics, they rank very low in the scale of morality,
lying, cheating, pilfering, and tricking in all their deal¬
ings, without the least scruple or any appearance of
shame; so that in Bengal a man of real veracity is a won¬
derful phenomenon. Forgery is often resorted to, and
perjury is so common as frequently to perplex the course
of justice, two sets of witnesses swearing to facts directly
in the teeth of each other. They are also addicted to
robberies, thefts, burglaries, river-piracies, and all sorts
of depredations where darkness, secrecy, or surprise, can
give them the advantage. They are obsequious to their
superiors, but insolent and contumelious to their infe¬
riors. Domestic slaves are numerous both among the
Hindoos and Mahommedans ; and it is from this class that
concubines are selected by the richer classes, all of whom
are provided with household slaves. Reading, writing,
and arithmetic, comprise the whole course of school in¬
struction in Bengal, which generally lasts about eighteen
months. But the influence of the British has now begun
to take root, and is rapidly extending itself throughout
Bengal. British schools have been established in Cal¬
cutta and other parts, where the English language is
taught; the Bengalese females are initiated in reading,
BEN
writing, sewing, knitting, and the other domestic employ- Ben<f
ments of European women ; and a great revolution is evi- ^
dently about to take place in the habits, opinions, and
manners of the people.1
Of Bengal prior to the Mahommedan conquest in 1303
our knowledge is very imperfect. It was ruled by the
sovereigns of Delhi until 1340, when it was erected into an
independent monarchy. But the line of independent mo-
narchs ended in 1538, with its conquest by the Afghans.
In 1576 it was subdued by the generals of the emperor
Acbar; and in 1580 it was formed into a soubah or vice¬
royalty of the Mogul empire by Raja Tooder Mull. Ben¬
gal continued to be ruled by' governors under the Mogul
dynasty, and its revenues to be remitted to the imperial
treasury, to the amount of about one and a half million,
until the year 1740, when the Mogul empire began to fell
to pieces. In 1765 Lord Clive procured the right of col¬
lecting the revenues; and from this period it has been
under the dominion of the East India Company.
Bengal, Bay of, a portion of the Indian Ocean, of the
figure of a triangle, having on its western side the coast
of Bengal, and on the east the coast of Arracan, Pegu,
and the Malayan peninsula. Its two sides, from Bengal
to Ceylon on the west, and to Junkseylon on the east,
may be estimated at 1120 miles in length, and the whole
is comprehended within the latitudes of 8° and 20° N.
At the bottom of the bay the breadth from Chittagong to
Balasore is not above 250 miles; and at its mouth, from
Cape Comorin to the Malayan peninsula, the breadth may
be estimated at 1200 miles. The western and eastern
coasts of the Bay of Bengal form a singular contrast in
all the points most essential to a navigator. On the
western coast there are no harbours for large ships, while
on the eastern coast there are many excellent harbours,
such as Arracan, Cheduba, Negrais, and Syriam, in Pegu;
a harbour near Martaban, Tavay River, and King’s Island;
and several harbours in the Mergui Archipelago, besides
Junkseylon, Telebone, and Pula Lada. Off the west coast
of Coromandel there are no soundings about 30 miles
from the shore, while the east coast has soundings two
degrees from it. Coromandel presents an open country:
it is often parched with drought from winds blowing over
sultry sands; the mouths of its rivers are shallow from
bars of sand, and it is often visited by dangerous gales.
The east coast, on the other hand, is covered with wood.
The climate is always temperate; the rivers are deep and
muddy; and the weather is generally calm. The mon¬
soons blow over the Bay of Bengal, though it is remark¬
able that here, as in many parts of India, strong winds are
found blowing directly from the sea, while at some dis¬
tance from the land it is a dead calm. Thus in Bengal
there are strong northerly winds, while at sea calms pre¬
vail until May and June ; and on the Malabar coast the
south-west monsoon does not commence blowing till the
beginning of the rainy season, but on shore there are
strong westerly winds about and after the time of the ver¬
nal equinox. (f.)
BENGUELA, a considerable country on the western
coast of Africa, between Congo and Angola. Being oc¬
cupied by the Portuguese, to the exclusion of all other
European nations, the knowledge of it is withheld from
the latter with the most jealous care. The general obser¬
vations made upon the coast of Angola will in a great
measure apply to it. The air is said to be unwholesome
and the water bad, while the natives are extremely rude
and uncivilized. The mountains contain mines of copper,
which is extracted only in very small quantities. Ihe
Portuguese have formed the port of St Philipe de Ben¬
guela on the Bahia das Valias or Cone’s Bay, and have
1 Bishop Heber mentions that there are now in Calcutta and the surrounding villages twenty boys’ schools, containing from sixty
to a hundred and twenty each, and twenty-three girls’ schools, with twenty-five or thirty pupils each.
BEN
made it the centre of their trade upon this coast, which is
Be', carried on chiefly with the view of procuring slaves. The
articles almost exclusively in demand among the natives
are coral and beads, which are not only used as ornaments,
^ ^ but circulate as money. The few ships also which now
aSs to and from the East Indies touch here for refresh¬
ment. Long. 13. 30. E. Eat. 12. 28. S.
BENHINNOM, in Ancient Geography, a valley in the
suburbs and to the east of Jerusalem, forming part of that
of Kidron, infamous for the sacrifice of children, or pass¬
ing them through the fire. The place in the valley where
the idol stood to which the sacrifice was made was called
Tophet, from the beating of drums or tabours in order to
drown the shrieks of the children; and it had also the
name Geenon, or the Valley of Ennom, whence some de¬
rive Gehenna, the place of future punishment.
BENI Arax or Beni Rashid, a tribe of Arabs in the
southern district of Algiers, possessed formerly of consi¬
derable power, but who, even in Shaw’s time, were so
much reduced, that their principal fortress consisted only
of a poor village.
BENICARLO, a city of Spain, in the province of Va¬
lencia, on the coast of the Mediterranean. It is celebrat¬
ed for its red wine, of which more than 220,000 casks are
annually exported from the harbour. The population
amounts to 5850 persons.
BENIGANIM, a town of the province of Valencia, in
Spain, containing 3800 inhabitants, who cultivate vine¬
yards producing excellent wine.
BENIN, an important country of Western Africa, situ¬
ated on a bay or bight of the same name, in the most in¬
terior part of the great Gulf of Guinea. It forms the
eastern limit of that long line of coast to which the name
of Guinea is usually applied; and here commences that
long chain of estuaries which, as there is now reason to
believe, forms the termination of the Niger.
The first discovery of Benin was made by the Portu¬
guese about the year 1485. It escaped the observation
of Diego Cam when he sailed from El Mina to the mouth
of the Congo ; but tidings of it having been there obtained,
Alfonso de Aveiro sailed thither, and brought the first
specimen of the plant called long or Guinea pepper. He
came accompanied also by an ambassador from the king of
Benin, requesting, it is said, that missionaries should be
sent to instruct the people in the Christian religion. The
king of Portugal, accordingly, dispatched an expedition
under Fernando Po, who discovered and gave his name
to a fine island near the mouth of the gulf; and having
ascended the river, established a settlement at Gatton.
A church was built, and upwards of a thousand people
received baptism. Much interest was excited by the ac¬
count of a regular embassy sent at the accession of every
new prince to the court of a powerful sovereign named
Ogane, whose capital lay about seven hundred miles to
the eastward. He was held almost in religious venera¬
tion, and his sanction was considered necessary to render
valid the title of any new monarch. This mysterious
prince maintained himself in retired pomp, and at every
audience a silk curtain concealed him from view. At
the parting interview, however, his foot was put forth
from behind the curtain, and was venerated as a sacred
object. He delivered to the ambassador a staff, a hel¬
met, and a cross, all of brass, to be presented to his so¬
vereign. From these circumstances the Portuguese in¬
ferred that this was the Prester John or Christian prince
whom they expected to find in the interior of Africa; but
Major Rennell has more reasonably concluded that it was
tlie king of Ghana or Cano, who then held extensive sway
over that continent.
The Portuguese carried on for some time a brisk trade
BEN 571
in slaves, who were carried to El Mina and sold to the Benin,
natives of the Gold Coast. John III., however, prohibited
this nefarious traffic; and as the situation was found very
unhealthy, while the conversions were professed only with
the view of obtaining military aid against their neighbours,
the settlement was ordered to be withdrawn. The Dutch
afterwards established factories, and maintained them for
a considerable time, chiefly with a view to the slave trade.
The English and French have also formed occasional set¬
tlements. But all these are at present abandoned, and
trading vessels come merely to the mouth of the river.
On the whole, the river of Benin has always been, and now
is, much less frequented for commercial purposes than that
of Bonny and the towns situated at the opening of more
southern estuaries.
The coast of Benin presents a succession of river
branches, all probably diverging from one great trunk,
connected and interlaced with numerous creeks and chan¬
nels, which always afford an easy navigation for boats from
one to the other. The whole of this territory consists of
an immense swamp, either covered with water or com¬
posed of mud, in which the foot sinks to a great depth,
and out of which rises a dark and impenetrable forest.
The waters are so muddy that no fish except eels can
subsist in them. The river, called by the Portuguese
Formosa, is about two miles wide at its mouth; but it is
crossed by a bar of mud, on which there is only twelve
feet of water at spring tides, so that vessels drawing more
than nine or ten feet cannot conveniently enter. Eigh¬
teen miles up is New Town, where vessels can anchor in
three and a half fathoms water. It is a mere trading
station, consisting of hovels built on a foundation of mud,
so soft as to render it necessary to place old canoes, with
their bottoms upwards, that the inhabitants may pass over
them from house to house.
At New Town, two branches strike off on each side,
and are followed by traders in preference to the main
trunk. The left or northern branch leads first to Gatton,
the port of Benin, to which barks of sixty tons can ascend,
and near which dry land first appears emerging out of the
morass. A land journey of forty miles from Gatton leads
the traveller to Benin, the capital.
From information obtained on the Gold Coast, M. Du¬
puis considers Benin as ranking even above Ashantee and
Dahomey among the great states of Western Africa; pos¬
sessing an extensive and highly cultivated territory, and
capable of sending 200,000 men into the field, although
only 10,000 are armed with muskets. But Captain Adams,
who appears to be the last that actually penetrated to
Benin, leads us to believe this description exaggerated.
The city was indeed found to cover a great extent of
ground; but the houses were built in so scattered a style
that the population did not appear to exceed 15,000. The
country around was also fruitful, but by no means very
highly cultivated. Sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry, were
plentiful; but the vegetable food consisted almost entirely
of yams. No information, however, is given respecting
the districts in the interior. The king is absolute, being
revered by his subjects as a species of divinity. It is a
crime to believe that he either eats or sleeps, and all of¬
fences against him are punished with the utmost severity,
as a species of impiety. At his death, or that of any of his
great men, numerous human victims are devoted to attend
them in the other world; and every year, at the mouth
of the river, three or four are presented as votive offerings,
to attract ships and commerce. Yet the practice of hu¬
man sacrifice does not appear to exist on the same dread¬
ful scale as in Ashantee and Dahomey.
The large channel which branches off to the right
from New Town communicates with the Rio de Forcados,
572 BEN
Benish- and then with another river whose branches inclose the
h>ays beautiful island of Waree, about five miles in circumfer-
Bennet ence’ seems almost like a spot fallen from the clouds
in the midst of a desert. Being somewhat elevated above
the surrounding swamps, it is dry, verdant, and cultivated.
The soil consists of a tenacious red clay, fitted for the
manufacture of earthen jars, which form an article of trade.
The island contains two towns, the joint population of
which is estimated at 5000. The government is monarchi¬
cal, but mild; and the natives seem to enjoy a considerable
degree of freedom and equality. The houses are neatly
built of clay, and some of them ornamented with wooden
pillars. Waree carries on a communication with the sea
by New Town, which is at present dependent upon it.
The main stream of the Formosa extends upwards in an
east-north-easterly direction, but is not navigable for ships
of fifty tons burden for more than fifty miles. Europeans
have never ascended it, nor received accounts of any town
situated on its banks.
Since the abolition of the slave trade, the chief commo¬
dities to be obtained in the river of Benin are palm oil
and ivory, both at tolerably cheap rates. The imports
consist of salt, silk and cotton stuffs, guns and gunpow¬
der, coral, beads, iron, brass, brandy, tobacco, &c. The
king must be immediately waited upon and presented with
a large piece of fine red damask. Captain Adams advises
that the trade be carried on by vessels of about 250 tons,
lying off the mouth of the river, outside the bar. They
should have two large boats, one communicating with a
factory at Lagoa, whilst the other plies up and clown the
river. Precautions must however be employed against a
band of desperadoes, inhabiting what is called the lo Creek,
by whom the boats are often attacked and plundered, and
even the crews put to death. (e.)
BENISH-Days, among the Egyptians, a term applied
to three days of the week, which are days of less cere¬
mony in religion than the other four, and are so called from
the benish, a garment of common use, not of ceremony.
In Cairo, on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, they go
to the pasha’s divan; and these are the general days of
business. On Friday they stay at home, and go to their
mosques at noon; but although this is their day of devotion,
they never abstain from business. The three other days
of the week are the benish-days, in which they throw off
all business and ceremony, and go to their little summer¬
houses in the country.
BENNET, Henry, earl of Arlington, was born of an
ancient family in Middlesex. In the beginning of the
civil war he was appointed under-secretary to George Lord
Digby, secretary of state ; he afterwards entered himself as
a volunteer for the royal cause, and did his majesty good
service, especially at Andover, in Hampshire, where he re¬
ceived several wounds. Fie left not the king when success
abandoned his standards, but attended to his interest in fo¬
reign parts. He was made secretary to the duke of York,
received the honour of knighthood from Charles II. at
Bruges in 1658, and was sent as envoy to the court of
Spain. His majesty, upon his return to England, called
him home, made him keeper of his privy purse, and prin¬
cipal secretary of state. He had always a peculiar hatred
of the lord chancellor Ffyde, who, on the other hand,
considered him a concealed Papist. In 1670 he was of
the council distinguished by the title of the Cabal, and
one of those who advised the shutting up of the exche-
quei. In 1672 he was made earl of Arlington and viscount
j-hetford, and soon after knight of the garter. In 1673
he was appointed one of the three plenipotentiaries from
the court of Great Britain to Cologne, to mediate a peace
between the emperor and the king of France. The house
of commons this year drew up articles of impeachment
BEN
against him. In 1674 he was made chamberlain of his a
majesty’s household, in recompense of his long and faith- '
ful service, and particularly for having filled the officeBens* !e
of principal secretary of state during the space of twelve ^ l'
years, to his majesty’s great satisfaction. But afterwards
his interest began to decline, while that of the earl 0f
Danby increased; for upon his return from his unsuc¬
cessful journey to Holland in 1675, his credit had so much
sunk that several persons at court diverted the king with
mimicking his person and behaviour; yet he held his of¬
fice of chamberlain till the day of his death, which took
place in 1685. Plis Letters to Sir William Temple were
published after his death.
Bennet, Dr Thomas, an eminent divine, born at Salis¬
bury on the 7th of May 1673, and educated at St John’s
College, Cambridge. In 1700 he was made rector of St
James’s in Colchester; he afterwards became lecturer of
St Olave’s, Southwark, and morning-preacher at St Law¬
rence, Jewry; and at last he was presented to the vicar¬
age of St Giles’s, Cripplegate, worth L.500 a year. While
he held this station, he engaged in several expensive law¬
suits in defence of the rights of the church, to which he
recovered L.150 a year. He wrote, L An Answer to the
Dissenter’s Plea for Separation; 2. A Confutation of Po¬
pery ; 3. A Discourse of Schism; 4. An Answer to a
book entitled Thomas against Bennet; 5. A Confutation
of Quakerism ; 6. A brief History of the joint Use of pre¬
conceived Forms of Prayer; 7. An Answer to Dr Clarke’s
Scripture doctrine of the Trinity; 8. A Paraphrase, with
Annotations on the Book of Common Prayer; 9. A He¬
brew Grammar; and other pieces. He died on the 9th
October 1728, in the fifty-sixth year of his age.
BENOIT, Renatus, a famous doctor of the Sorbonne,
and curate of Eustathius at Paris, in the sixteenth cen¬
tury. He was a secret favourer of the Protestant reli¬
gion ; and that his countrymen might be able to read the
Bible in their own tongue, he published at Paris the French
translation which had been made by the reformed minis¬
ters at Geneva. This translation was approved of by se¬
veral doctors of the Sorbonne before it went to the press,
and King Charles IX. had granted a privilege for the
printing of it; yet when it was published it wras imme¬
diately condemned. He had, before that time, been con¬
fessor to Mary queen of Scotland during her stay in
France, and attended her when she returned into Scot¬
land. Some time previous to the death of Henry III. Dr
Benoit, or some of his friends with his assistance, pub¬
lished a book entitled Apologie Catholique; in which it
was shown that the Protestant religion which Henry king
of Navarre professed was not a sufficient reason to de¬
prive him of his right of succeeding to the crown of
France. W hen Henry IV. had resolved to embrace the
Catholic religion, Dr Benoit assisted at the assembly
in which the king abjured the reformed religion. In
1597 Henry promoted him to the bishopric of Troyes in
Champagne, but he could never obtain the pope’s bulls to
be installed. However, he enjoyed the temporalities of
that bishopric till he resigned it. He died in 1608.
BENOWM, the capital of the Moorish kingdom of
Ludamar, in Central Africa, on the southern border of the
Great Desert. It consists of a large collection of dirty
huts resembling tents, and has more the appearance of a
large encampment of shepherds than of a metropolis.
Mr Park was detained here in long and cruel captivity,
exposed to every outrage which bigotry and barbarism
could devise or execute. Long. 7. 10. Wr. Lat. 15. 5. N-
BENSERADE, Isaac de, an ingenious FFench poet of
the seventeenth century, was born at Lyons. He made
himself known at court by his verses and his wit, and had
the good fortune to please the cardinals Richelieu and Ma-
BEN
BEN
573
a zarin. After the death of Richelieu, he got into favour
: with the duke de Breze, whom he accompanied in most of
B®5 his expeditions; and when this nobleman died, he returned
STY ; t0 court, where his poetry became highly esteemed. He
wrote, 1. A Paraphrase upon Job; 2. Verses for Inter¬
ludes ; 3. Rondeaux upon Ovid; 4. Several Tragedies.
A sonnet which he sent to a young lady with his para¬
phrase on Job, being put in competition with the Urania
of Voiture, caused him to be much spoken of; for those
who gave the preference to Benserade’s performance were
styled the Jobists, and their antagonists were called the
Uranists; and the dispute long divided the whole court
and the wits. Some years before 'his death he applied
himself to works of piety, and translated almost all the
Psalms. According to the Abbe Olivet, Benserade with¬
drew from court towards the close of his life, and made
Gentilly the place of his retirement. The abbe further
says, that when he himself was a youth, it was the cus¬
tom to visit the remains of the ornaments with which Ben¬
serade had embellished his house and gardens, where every
thing savoured of his poetical genius; and that the trees
were covered with inscriptions carved in the bark, which
Voltaire thinks the best of his productions. Benserade
died on the 19th October 1691, in the eighty-second year
of his age.
BENSHEIM, a city of the province of Storkenburg, in
the duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt. It is situated on the river
Lauterbach, near the Rhine, and contains 3146 inhabitants,
mostly manufacturers or cultivators of vineyards.
BENSON, George, a learned dissenting minister, born
at Great Salkeld, in Cumberland, in 1699. His progress
in learning was so precocious, that at eleven years of age
he was able to read the Greek Testament. He after¬
wards studied at Dr Dixon’s academy at Whitehaven,
from which he removed to the university of Glasgow. In
1721 he was chosen pastor of a congregation of dissent¬
ers at Abingdon, in Berkshire ; in 1729 he received a call
from a society of dissenters in Southwark, with whom he
continued eleven years; and in 1740 he was chosen by
the congregation of Crutched Friars, colleague to the
learned and judicious Dr Lardner. From the time of his
engaging in the ministry, he proposed to himself the criti¬
cal study of the Scriptures, particularly of the New Tes¬
tament, as a principal part of his business. The first
fruits of these studies which he presented to the public
was “ A Defence of the reasonableness of Prayer, with a
Translation of a Discourse of Maximus Tyrius, containing
some popular Objections against Prayer, and an Answer
to these.” The light which Mr Locke had thrown on the
obscurest parts of St Paul’s Epistles, by making him his
own expositor, encouraged and determined Mr Benson to
attempt to illustrate the remaining epistles in the same
manner. Accordingly, in 1731, he published, as a spe¬
cimen, a Paraphrase and Notes on the Epistle to Phile¬
mon. This was well received, and the author, encou¬
raged to proceed in his design, proceeded with great dili¬
gence to publish paraphrases and notes on the two Epistles
to the Thessalonians, the first and second to Timothy, and
the Epistle to Titus; adding dissertations on several im¬
portant subjects, particularly on inspiration. In the year
1735 he published his History of the First Planting of
Christianity, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, and
their Epistles, in 2 vols. 4to. In this work, besides illus¬
trating throughout the history of the Acts and most of
the. epistles, by a view of the history of the times, the oc¬
casion of the several epistles, and the state of the churches
to which they were addressed, he established the truth
°f the Christian religion on a number of facts, the most
public, important, and incontestible. Fie also wrote, the
reasonableness of the Christian Religion, the History of
the Life of Jesus Christ, a Paraphrase and Notes on the Bentham
seven Catholic Epistles, and several other works, which li,
procured him great reputation. One of the universities pentmck.
in Scotland sent him a diploma conferring a doctor’s de-
gree; and many of high rank in the church of England,
as Herring, Hoadley, Butler, Benson, and Conybeare,
showed him great marks of favour and regard. He died
in the year 1763, in the sixty-fourth year of his age.
BENTHAM, Thomas, bishop of Lichfield and Co¬
ventry, was born at Sherbourn, in Yorkshire, in the year
1513, and educated in Magdalen College, Oxford. He
took the degree of bachelor of arts in 1543; in 1546 was
admitted perpetual fellow, and proceeded master of arts
the following year, which was that of Edward VI.’s ac¬
cession to the ci’own. He now threw off the mask of po¬
pery, which, during the equivocal reign of Henry VIII.,
he had worn with reluctance. On the accession of Mary
he was deprived of his fellowship by her visitors, and pru¬
dently retired to Basel in Switzerland, where for some
time he expounded the Scriptures to the English exiles
in that city; but, having been solicited by some Protest¬
ants in London, he returned before the death of the
queen, and was appointed superintendent of a private
congregation in the city. Immediately on the accession
of Elizabeth, Bentham was preferred in the church; and,
in the second year of her reign, was consecrated bishop
of Lichfield and Coventry. He died at Eccleshall in
Staffordshire in 1578, aged sixty-five, and was buried in
the chancel of the church there. Bishop Bentham had
the character of a pious and zealous reformer, and was
particularly celebrated for his knowledge of the Hebrew
language. His works are, 1. Exposition of the Acts of
the Apostles, manuscript; 2. A Sermon on Christ’s Temp¬
tation, London, 8vo ; 3. Epistle to M. Parker, manuscript;
4. The Psalms, Ezekiel, and Daniel, translated into Eng¬
lish in Queen Elizabeth’s Bible.
BENTHEIM, a province of the kingdom of Hanover.
Till the year 1806 it was an independent state, and now,
though mediatized, confers the title of count, and affords a
yearly income of about L.2000 to the former sovereign.
It extends over 406 square miles, or 259,840 acres. The
capital, of the same name, contains about 1500 inhabitants.
The population of the province in 1812 was 24,364, but
it afterwards increased so as to amount in 1826 to 26,800.
BENTINCK, William Henry Cavendish, third duke
of Portland, was born on the 14th of April 1738. Having
finished his education at Christ Church, Oxford, he went
on his travels. Soon after his return he was elected for
the borough of Weobly, in the first parliament of the king’s
reign. For this borough, however, he did not sit long ;
for, on the death of his father, on the 1st of May 1762, he
was called up to the house of peers. He immediately
joined the opposition; and, in 1763, his name is found
among the minority against the cider bill, and along with
that of the duke of Grafton in a pro’test against it. The
next session he also signed a protest on the motion to vote
away the privilege claimed by members of parliament in
matters of libel. In 1765, when his friend the marquis
of Rockingham came into power, he was appointed lord
chamberlain, and he retired when the marquis went out of
office. In 1768 there was a violent contest for the coun¬
ty of Cumberland; and as the duke warmly supported the
two opposition candidates, the ministry, in order to weaken
his influence, and at the same time to increase that of Sir
James Lowther, who was one of the ministerial candidates,
granted to the latter Inglewood forest, an extensive and
valuable estate, which had been granted by King William
HI. to the first duke of Portland, and had remained in
possession of that family ever since. The new grant was
made in consequence of a report from the surveyor-gene-
574
B E , N
BEN
Bentinek. ral of crown lands, that the premises were not comprised
in the original grant from King William to the duke of
Portland, but were still vested in the crown. A letter w'as
written from the treasury, directing the duke to prepare
his title, and assuring him that nothing should be decided
concerning the grant till such title had been stated and
maturely considered: but while his grace’s agents were
busily employed in their researches and inquiries, he re¬
ceived a second letter, informing him that the grants were
passed and the leases signed. A caveat had been enter¬
ed at the exchequer to stop the progress of the grant; but
when Lord North was prayed to withhold affixing the ex¬
chequer seal, he replied that, as chancellor of the exche¬
quer, he was bound to obey the orders of the treasury.
On the 19th of November 1771 this great cause was tried
before the barons of the exchequer in Westminster Hall.
The court recited all the records and prerogatives of the
crown, from Edward I. to the lease made to Sir James
Lowther ; when, after a full and impartial examination of
the said lease, it was found invalid, agreeably to the
statute of the 1st of Anne, which expressly requires that,
upon every grant from the crown, there shall be a reserv¬
ed rent, not under the third part of the clear yearly value
of the manors, lands, &c. as shall be contained in the grant.
Sir James Lowther’s grant from the crown, being only a
quit-rent of 13s. 4d. for the whole of Inglewood forest, was
immediately determined by the court an inadequate third
proportion, and he was nonsuited accordingly. The. nul¬
lum tempus bill, or the act for quieting the possessions of
the subject against all pretences of concealment whatso¬
ever, which was brought into parliament in 1768, and
passed in the following year, owed its rise to this grant of
the Portland property to Sir James Lowther.
In 1766 the duke of Portland had been bound more
closely than ever to the Rockingham party, in consequence
of his marriage with Lady Dorothy Cavendish, sister to
the duke of Devonshire. On the resignation of Lord
North he was appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland; and
during his government the parliament of that country was
declared independent of the British parliament. After an
administration of somewhat more than three months he
was recalled, when Lord Shelburne came into power. On
the death of the marquis of Rockingham he was recom¬
mended by the privy council to the king as his succes¬
sor at the Treasury; but Lord Shelburne was preferred.
When the coalition came into power, however, he ob¬
tained the situation of prime minister, and went out of
office with them. During Mr Pitt’s difficulties, when he
first came into administration, in consequence of the house
of commons being against him, an attempt was made to
form a coalition between him and the duke of Portland;
but his grace objected to the conditions on which Mr
Pitt came into power, and refused his support unless he
would resign his place and come in again on equal terms
with himself and his friends.
In 1792 he was elected chancellor of the university of
Oxford; and soon afterwards he, as well as several other
friends of Mr Fox, who differed from that statesman respect¬
ing the French revolution, left the opposition and joined
the ministry. Upon this he was appointed lord-lieutenant
of the county of Nottingham, and, in 1794, secretary of
state for the home department. The scarcity and high price
of provisions, and the state-trials, which occurred soon after
he became secretary of state, rendered his office arduous
and unpleasant. He discharged his duty, however, under
these circumstances, with moderation, and with acknow¬
ledged good intentions, though not always perhaps with
vigour and judgment. He continued secretary of state
till Mr Addington became prime minister in 1801, when
he exchanged this situation for the more easy duty of pre¬
sident of the council. On the death of Mr Pitt, and the Ben
appointment of Lord Grenville and Mr Fox to the minis- i
try, in the spring of 1806, he was removed from the presi¬
dentship of the council; but he was again called into pub- Bei
lie life, and placed at the head of the treasury, in March
1807, when Lord Grenville’s administration closed. His
Grace, however, though nominally the prime minister, was
too infirm to take an active part in the high and arduous
duties of this situation, which were discharged almost en¬
tirely by Mr Perceval, the chancellor df the exchequer.
He continued nominally the first lord of the treasury till
a very short time before his death, which happened on the
30th of October 1809.
The abilities of his grace were certainly but moderate,
and very far inferior to those which he must have pos¬
sessed had he been, as latterly there has been an attempt
to prove, the author of Junius s Letters; but his under¬
standing was good, and he was by no means unwilling or
unable to give regular attention to official business. His
political integrity was never questioned, even by the party
he abandoned.
BENTIVOGLIO, Guido, cardinal, born at Ferrara in
the year 1579. He went to study at Padua, where he
made considerable proficiency in what is sometimes called
polite literature. Upon his leaving the university, he
went to reside at Rome, where he became universally es¬
teemed. He was sent as nuncio, first to Flanders, and
then to France ; and in both employments he acted in such
a manner as to give great satisfaction to Paul V., who
made him a cardinal a little before his own death, which
happened on the 28th of January 1621. Bentivoglio was
at this time in France, where Louis XIII. and all the
French court congratulated him on his new dignity; and
when he returned to Rome, his Most Christian Majesty
intrusted him with the management of the French affairs
at that court. Pope Urban VIII. had a high regard for
him on account of his fidelity, disinterestedness, and con¬
summate knowledge of business ; he was beloved by the
people, and esteemed by the cardinals; and his qualities
were such, that he had a fair prospect of being raised to
the pontificate on the death of Urban, which happened on
the 29th of July 1644. But having gone to the conclave
during the time of the greatest heat at Rome, it affected
his health to such a degree that he could not sleep for
eleven nights afterwards ; and this want of rest threw him
into a fever, of which he died on the 7th of September
1644, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. He has left seve¬
ral works, the most remarkable of which are, A History
of the Civil Wars of Flanders ; An Account of Flanders;
with Letters and Memoirs.
Bentivogdio, a small town of Italy, in the territory of
Bologna, with a castle, situated in Long. 11. 34. E. Lat.
44. 47. N.
BENTLEY, Richard, one of the greatest critics of
modern times, was a native of Oulton in the parish of
Rothwell and the West Riding of Yorkshire, and was born
on the 27th of January 1662. His ancestors belonged to
the higher class of English yeomen. During the civil
wars, his grandfather, James Bentley, had been a captain
in the royal army, and having fallen into the hands of the
enemy, he ended his life as a prisoner in Pontefract Castle.
His father, Thomas Bentley, who was the possessor of a
small estate at Woodlesford, married, as his second wife,
Sarah the daughter of Richard Willie, a stone-mason at
Oulton ; and their first child was the individual who after¬
wards rendered the family illustrious. For the first ele¬
ments even of classical learning he is said to have been
indebted to his mother, who is described as a woman of an
excellent understanding. After having been a day-scholar
at the neighbouring hamlet of Methley, he was sent to the
og.
r
BENTLEY.
. grammar school of Wakefield, where John Potter, after-
✓Y wards archbishop of Canterbury, likewise received his
early education. On the 24th of May 1676, he was en¬
tered as a subsizar of St John’s College, which was then
the largest in the university of Cambridge : his tutor was
Joseph Johnston, and the master of the college Dr Francis
Turner, afterwards bishop of Ely. Of the peculiar direc¬
tion of his academical studies no record has been pre¬
served: that he cultivated classical learning with great
energy and perseverance, cannot well be doubted ; and
we are led to infer that he was far from neglecting the
mathematical sciences. Having continued at college for
upwards of two years, he became a scholar on the foun¬
dation of Dr Dowman ; and at the expiration of the third
year, he succeeded to one of the Yorkshire scholarships
founded by Sir Marmaduke Constable. At the regular
period he took the degree of A. B. From a fellowship of
his college he was excluded by a provision in the statutes,
which prohibited more than two fellows from being chosen
from the same county. He was however appointed head¬
master of the grammar school of Spalding in Lincolnshire,
the nomination to this office having lapsed to the college.
On attaining the age of majority, he disposed of his inte¬
rest in the Oulton property to his brother James, the issue
of his father’s first marriage; and the money thus pro¬
cured he devoted to the purchase of books, which are
not less necessary to a scholar than tools to a carpenter.
Bentley did not long retain the functions of a schoolmas¬
ter; for, after an interval of about twelve months, he be¬
came domestic tutor to the son of Dr Stillingfleet, dean
of St Paul’s, who had formerly been a fellow of St John’s
College. In the month of July 1683 he took the degree
of A. M. Soon after the Revolution, the eminent merits
of Stillingfleet were rewarded with the bishopric of Wor¬
cester; and about the same period he sent his son James
to the university of Oxford, where both he and his tutor
became members of Wadham College. Bentley was in¬
corporated A. M. on the 4th of July 1689.
He now projected editions of Greek grammarians and
of Latin poets; he indeed pursued an arduous course of
study, which gradually prepared him for any department
of classical enterprise. The plan which he contemplated
as the foundation of his fame was a complete collection
of the fragments of the Greek poets. This plan he never
executed; but of his competency for such a task he has
left sufficient evidence in his collection of the fragments
of Callimachus, afterwards communicated to Gnevius.
At the suggestion, as is supposed, of the very learned
Bishop Lloyd, he undertook the stupendous task of pub¬
lishing a complete edition of the Greek lexicographers:
but the general design, which was too vast to be properly
executed by one individual, appears to have been aban¬
doned after a short interval; and it is much to be regret¬
ted that he did not at least publish an edition of Hesy-
chius, an author in whom he professes to have made up¬
wards of five thousand corrections. Of his familiarity with
this lexicographer he exhibited a sufficient specimen in
his earliest publication, his Epistola ad. cl. v. Joannem
Milium, S. T. P. subjoined to Dr Hody’s edition of the
chronicle of Joannes Malela Antiochenus, which was
pi'inted at Oxford in the year 1691. By the publication
of this little work, at the age of twenty-nine, he laid the
foundation of a high reputation among men of learning.
His next appearance before the public was in the cha¬
racter of a divine. He had received deacon’s orders from
Compton, bishop of London, in the year 1690, and soon
afterwards had been appointed one of the bishop of Wor¬
cesters chaplains. In 1692 the four trustees, one of
"horn was Evelyn, honoured him with the first nomination
t0 Boyle’s lectureship. The eight discourses which he
preached in consequence of this appointment, embrace a
confutation of atheism : they are in a great degree direct¬
ed against the principles of Hobbes and Spinoza, which
have too certain a tendency to atheism, although they are
not professedly atheistical; and Bentley claims the merit
of having been the first to display the discoveries of New¬
ton in a popular form, and to explain their irresistible
force in the proof of a Deity. His reputation was great¬
ly augmented by the publication of his lectures ; of which
the sixth edition, including other three discourses, was
printed at Cambridge in the year 1735. The lectures were
translated into Latin by Jablonski, who was himself a
writer of distinguished learning. Nor did the merit of the
author remain without its reward: in 1692, soon after he
had taken priest’s orders, he obtained a prebend in the
cathedral of Worcester; and in the course of the follow¬
ing year, he succeeded Henry de Justel as keeper of the
king’s library. In 1694 he was again appointed to preach
the Boyle lectures, and he then selected as their subject
the defence of Christianity against infidels ; but this series
of discourses his friends could not prevail upon him to
publish, nor has it been ascertained that the manuscript
is still preserved. In the following year, his patron the
bishop of Worcester gave him the rectory of Hartlebury,
to be held till his old pupil should arrive at the canonical
age. The interest of the same worthy prelate had, about
this period, procured him the nomination of chaplain in
ordinary to the king. It must be recorded as an instance
of scandalous ingratitude, that, when the bishop’s grand¬
son Benjamin Stillingfleet was left an orphan, and was
sent in the humble capacity of a sizar to Trinity College,
Bentley refused to give him a fellowship, and preferred
several competitors of inferior attainments. At the be¬
ginning of the year 1696, he ceased to reside in the
bishop’s house in Park-street, Westminster, and took pos¬
session of the librarian’s apartments in St James’s Palace ;
and in the month of July he took the degree of D. D. at
Cambridge.
Dr Bentley was now making a rapid approach to the
full height of his literary fame ; and his principal ef¬
forts were more the result of accidental excitements than
of his own deliberate plans. In the year 1692 Sir Wil¬
liam Temple, one of the most fashionable writers of the
age, had published an Essay upon the Ancient and Modern
Learning, in which he strenuously opposed the opinions of
Fontenelle and Perrault, who had given a very decided
preference to the moderns. But his own learning was in¬
adequate to so serious an undertaking, and his commenda¬
tion of the ancients is therefore of very doubtful value.
Of his mode of estimating the merit of modern writers, it
has been justly mentioned as a curious specimen, that the
names of Shakspeare, Milton, Bacon, and Newton, have
not found a place in his essay. In confirmation of his
position, that the oldest books extant are still the best of
their kind, he produces the Fables of iEsop and the Epis¬
tles of Phalaris, which he believed to be the most ancient
pieces of prose written by profane authors. And in re¬
ference to the work which bears the name of the ancient
tyrant, he is pleased to remark, “ I think he must have
little skill in painting, that cannot find out this to be an
original.” The attention thus directed to Phalaris seems
to have suggested the expediency of a new edition; and
the dean of Christ Church, Dr Aldrich, committed the
task of editing his epistles to the Honourable Charles
Boyle, brother to the earl of Orrery; a young gentleman
of pleasing manners, and of a relish for learning creditable
to his age and station. On his admission at Christ Church,
he was placed under the tuition of Atterbury, who, if not
a profound, was at least an elegant scholar. In his edito¬
rial labours he was aided by his private tutor John Freind,
575
Bentley.
BENTLEY.
then one of the junior students, and afterwards a physi¬
cian of no small celebrity. The editor of Phalaris wished
to procure a collation of a manuscript belonging to the
royal library ; but, instead of making any direct applica¬
tion to the librarian, he had recourse to the agency of
Thomas Bennet, a bookseller in St Paul’s Churchyard,
who appears to have executed his commission with no ex¬
traordinary degree of zeal or dispatch. In order to con¬
ceal his own negligence, he is supposed to have misrepre¬
sented the entire transaction to his employers at Oxford;
and the preface to Mr Boyle’s edition of Phalaris, pub¬
lished in the year 1695, contains a sarcastic reflection on
Bentley for his want of civility. To the editor he im¬
mediately addressed a letter, explaining the real circum¬
stances of the case ; but instead of receiving an answer in
the spirit of conciliation, he was given to understand that
he might seek redress in any way he pleased. It is how¬
ever dangerous to take a lion by the beard.
Dr Wotton, his friend and fellow-collegian, had recent¬
ly engaged in the controversy respecting the comparative
excellence of the ancients and moderns ; and after he had
sent to the press his Reflections upon Ancient and Modern
Learning, Bentley happened to state, in the course of
their conversation, and in reference to the extravagant
commendation bestowed by Sir William Temple, “ that
the Epistles of Phalaris are spurious, and that we have
nothing now extant of iEsop’s own composition.” This
casual remark was converted into a promise that he would
furnish a written statement of his opinion, to be added to
the second edition of the Reflections. To the second
edition, which appeared in 1697, was accordingly subjoin¬
ed Dr Bentley’s “ Dissertation upon the Epistles of Phala-
ris, Themistocles, Socrates, Euripides, and others, and
the Fables of TEsop.” Of the spuriousness of all the pro¬
ductions thus enumerated, his demonstration is by every
competent judge admitted to be very complete ; but his
most vigorous efforts are directed against the Epistles of
Phalaris. After having produced the chronological proofs
of their spurious origin, he considers the language, and
next the matter, of the Epistles, and concludes with an
argument drawn from what he calls their late appearance
in the world. This work certainly betrays some symp¬
toms of hasty composition ; but the number of mistakes
or oversights which his adversaries were capable of de¬
tecting was surprisingly small. The entire disputation is
managed with great learning, and with sagacity not infe¬
rior to his learning. The contemptuous strain of Bent¬
ley’s animadversion excited great indignation in the mem¬
bers of Christ Church ; and an answer was speedily pre¬
pared by a confederacy, which, however deficient in criti¬
cal learning, was by no means deficient in self-esteem.
The leaders were Francis Atterbury and George Smal-
ridge, both of whom were afterwards elevated to the
episcopal bench : Robert Freind, afterwards head-master
of Westminster school, his brother John Freind, and An¬
thony Alsop, all students of Christ Church, are generally
understood to have lent their aid. The share of Atter¬
bury is sufficient!)^ ascertained from a passage in one of
his letters to Boyle, in which he reminds him that, “ in
writing more than half the book, in reviewing a good part
of the rest, and in transcribing the whole, half a year of
his life had passed away.”1
The motley production, bearing the title of “Dr Bentley’s
Dissertations on the Epistles of Phalaris and the Fables
°f ^Esop, examined by the Honourable Charles Boyle,
Esq.’ was published in the year 1698 ; and in the follow¬
ing year Bentley published “ A Dissertation upon the
Epistles of Phalaris, with an Answer to the Objections of Be¬
th e Honourable Charles Boyle, Esquire.” They are both j
in the octavo form ; the former extending to about 300
pages, and the latter to 655. The wits of Christ Church
were overwhelmed with an immense mass of learning, and
that so well digested, and animated with so much spirit,
that it would be difficult to mention many critical works
worthy of being compared with Bentley’s Dissertation.
His learning was superior, immeasurably superior, to that
of the Oxford combination ; nor did they find him infe¬
rior in the use of their now weapons of wit and sarcasm.
Bentley’s wit is not without a certain tinge of rusticity, but
it is nevertheless full of poignancy. He everywhere main¬
tains an air of undaunted confidence, and he doubtless
felt for his adversaries that contempt which he so strongly
expressed. As he has incidentally discussed many diffe¬
rent topics of classical erudition, his work is interesting
and valuable even to those who may not deem the prin¬
cipal question of much importance. The extent of his
learning, and the dexterity with which he applies it to
every subject that presents itself, are not more conspicu¬
ous than the intuitive sagacity of his conjectural emenda¬
tions.
This controversy produced an ample number of tracts,
which are chiefly anonymous, and have little intrinsic
merit. On the side of Bentley’s nominal antagonist, pre¬
judice, as well as fashion, was strongly arrayed. It is not
a little curious to read the following couplet in Garth’s
Dispensary, and to compare the partial estimate of con¬
temporaries with the mature decision of posterity.
So diamonds take a lustre from their foil
And to a Bentley ’tis we owe a Boyle.
But it is only by himself that an author can be written
down. A confederacy of wit and fashion may for a cer¬
tain time succeed in exalting one writer above, and in
depressing another below, his proper standard ; but as no
large community of men is without a latent sense of jus¬
tice, no attempt of this nature can be attended with ulti¬
mate success; nor is it more certain that heavy or light
bodies will sink or float according to their specific gravity,
than that the reputation of good and bad writers will
finally maintain some perceptible relation to their actual
desert.
When Bentley produced this singular work, he was in
the thirty-eighth year of his age. His literary merit,
though not duly appreciated by the public, was well
known to the most competent judges; and on the pro¬
motion of Dr Montague to the deanery of Durham, he
was recommended to the vacant office of master of Tri¬
nity College, Cambridge. To this office he was admitted
on the first of February 1700, and was thus placed in a
situation of dignity and emolument; but his appointment
was unpopular from the beginning, and his administra¬
tion was marked by a series of the most flagrant acts of
rapacity, injustice, and oppression. On the 4th of Jan¬
uary 1701, he married Joanna the daughter of Sir John
Bernard, Bart, of Brampton in the county of Huntingdon.
In the course of the same year, Bishop Patrick bestowed
upon him the archdeaconry of Ely, which, being endow¬
ed with the two livings of Haddenham and Wilburton,
was an office of emolument as well as dignity. The resi¬
due of his ecclesiastical history we shall compress within
the compass of a few sentences. His stall at Worcester
he had resigned in 1700. In 1709 he was an unsuccessful
candidate for the bishopric of Chichester. In 1717 he was
elected regius professor of divinity. In 1724 he refused
the bishopric of Bristol, and in 1730 the deanery of Lin-
1 Atterbury’s Epistolary Correspondence, vol. ii. p. 21.
BENTLEY.
fcr f. coin. If he had not disgraced himself by the indecent
J violence of his conduct, he would in all probability have
attained to one of the highest stations in the church; but
the history of his proceedings at Cambridge presents a
sickening detail, which is happily unparalleled in the aca¬
demical annals of the united kingdom. His great prospe¬
rity, operating upon the native arrogance of his disposi¬
tion, and unattended by the salutary restraint of religious
feeling, seems to have produced a total disregard of every
consideration except those of his own power and interest.
His government of Trinity College was that of an unprin¬
cipled despot. In the course of three years, he had no
fewer than six lawsuits before the court of king’s bench ;
and these animosities and contentions, injurious to the
university, and scandalous to the church, commenced in
the vigour of his manhood, and were only terminated with
his long life.
Some of the fellows of the college made repeated and
strenuous attempts to procure his removal from the office
of master. Their first petition, dated in February 1709-
10, was addressed to Dr Moore, bishop of Ely, as visitor
of Trinity College; and among the thirty fellows who
subscribed it was the celebrated Conyers Middleton, who
afterwards proved the most formidable of his literary an¬
tagonists. After many proceedings of a preliminary na¬
ture, the cause at length obtained a hearing at Ely House
in the year 1714, and was before the court for the period
of six weeks. The visitor came to the conclusion that
the charges of wasting the goods and violating the sta¬
tutes of the college had been sufficiently established ;
and he accordingly directed a sentence of ejectment from
the mastership to be prepared in due form; but having
caught cold in consequence of his long sittings in the hall,
he was seized with an illness which terminated fatally be¬
fore judgment could be pronounced. To his successor in
the see of Ely, Dr Fleetwood, fresh articles of accusation
were speedily presented by one of the fellows, Edmond
Miller, serjeant at law, subscribed by him “ in the name and
behalf of many of the fellows but the bishop declined to
take cognizance of the cause, and a petition, subscribed by
nineteen fellows, was in 1716 presented to the king. This
attempt likewise proved ineffectual; and Dr Greene having
succeeded to the bishopric of Ely, a petition was present¬
ed to him in the year 1729. The promoter in this suit
was Robert Johnson, B. D., one of the fellows; and the
articles of accusation, which are sixty-four in number, em¬
brace almost all the material events in the history of the
college for the space of eighteen years.1 The final deci¬
sion of the visitor was preceded by much litigation in the
king s bench and house of lords; but at length, on the
~7th of April 1734, he pronounced sentence of depriva¬
tion against the master, for dilapidating the goods and
'lolating the statutes of the college. Bentley’s usual in¬
trepidity and address did not forsake him on so critical
ainfocc.as*on ; and he placed his chief reliance on the very
defective provision of the fortieth statute, according to
winch a master, convicted before the visitor of any of the
greater offences there specified, is immediately to be de¬
prived by the vice-master of the college. Soon after the
sentence had been pronounced, his devoted adherent
r Walker was appointed to this office. Notwithstanding
various applications to the court of king’s bench, the
sentence was never carried into execution; and Bishop
^ene dying in the year 1738, the course of nature, and
not of law, put a period to the contest. In this protract-
e and complicated suit the master’s share of the ex¬
penses amounted to no less than four thousand pounds ;
and this sum he had no scruple in drawing from the funds'
of the college.
In addition to these disgraceful contentions with his own
college, he engaged in a violent contention with the uni¬
versity. During the royal visit of 1717, several doctors
of divinity were created by mandate; and on the perform¬
ance of the ceremony by Dr Bentley as regius professor,
he made an unauthorized demand of four guineas from
each candidate. One of these was Dr Middleton, who
paid the fee, and .afterwards brought an action for its re¬
covery in the vice-chancellor’s court. The professor was
convicted of contempt, and was deprived of all his de¬
grees, which were only restored in consequence of a man¬
damus from the king’s bench.
Soon after the first petition against him had been pre¬
sented to the bishop of Ely, he had sufficient energy of
mind to compose one of his most remarkable works, his
Emendationes in Menandri et Philemonis Reliquias, in
which Le Clerc is treated with the most caustic severity.
Under the borrowed name of Phileleutherus Lipsiensis,
they were committed to the press by Burman,2 who was
a willing agent on such an occasion. His next literary
enterprise was his famous edition of Horace, which was
printed at Cambridge, and was completed in the year
1711. In 1713, Anthony Collins published his Discourse
of Free-thinking; and his work was followed by several
answers, but the most effective of these was Dr Bentley’s
“ Remarks upon a late Discourse of Free-thinking, in a
Letter to F. H. D. D., by Phileleutherus Lipsiensis.”
The friend thus designated in the title-page was Francis
Hare, D. D., who was then dean of Worcester, and was
afterwards successively bishop of St Asaph and Chiches¬
ter. Collins’s superficial learning was exposed with un¬
relenting severity, and his arrogance was repelled by the
most arrogant of mankind. Even the most pious may
sometimes do well to be angry; but when a religion,
breathing peace and gentleness, is defended in the worst
spirit of its enemies, the cause of truth is but imperfectly
promoted. Bentley’s remarks were however written with
much ability, and were received with much applause;
nor did he leave his adversary the same power of im¬
posing on the ignorant and unwary. In 1720 he issued
proposals for publishing a critical edition of the Greek
Testament, which were attacked by Dr Middleton with
much ability, and perhaps with virulence not inferior to
his ability. There is little or no reason to believe that
his scheme was defeated by this angry exposure : he long
afterwards reverted to the plan of such an edition; nor
were his nerves so infirm, or his mind so unaccustomed
to the utmost bitterness of invective, as to render it pro¬
bable that he could be deterred by any literary opposi¬
tion, however formidable. His edition of Terence and of
Phsedrus was published at Cambridge in 1726. At the
suggestion of Queen Caroline, he afterwards undertook to
prepare an edition of Milton’s Paradise Lost ;3 a task for
which he was neither qualified by the elegance of his
taste nor by the course of his previous studies; and, of
ail his literary enterprises, this was the most injudicious
and most unsuccessful. It greatly contributed to impair
his general reputation as a critic; for many readers, un¬
prepared to judge of his violent distortions in the text of
Horace, were sufficiently prepared to judge of his violent
distortions in the text of Milton ; and certainly those who
were left to form an opinion of his literary merits from the
mere inspection of his lucubrations on the English poet,
, _ . . * See Bishop Monk’s Life of Richard Bentley, D. D. Lond. 1830, 4to.
Lrajecii ad Rhenum, 1710, 8vo.
VOL. iv.
3 Lond. 1732, 4to.
4 D
577
Bentley.
v 
578 B E R
Berar. could not but be astonished at his former renown. He
resorts to the extraordinary device of introducing an ima¬
ginary editor, whom he chooses to represent as having not
merely committed many unintentional errors, but even as
having made various additions according to his own judg¬
ment or caprice. Another labour of his declining jeais
was a projected edition of Homer; and it is deeply to e
regretted that he did not relinquish more unprofitable
pursuits, and devote himself to an undertaking so worthy
of his name and reputation ; but his literary projects were
numerous, and his thoughts must often have been dis¬
tracted by the perpetual succession of his quarrels and
contentions. One object to which he directed much o
his attention was the poet’s versification, of which he pro¬
posed to effect a general restoration, derived from ancient
manuscripts, the examination of the numerous quotations
dispersed in ancient writers, and, beyond all other sources,
the systematic insertion of the iEolic digamma. His
edition of Manilius, which he had prepared about forty-
five years before, was published in 1 /39, undei the super-
• intendence of his nephew, Richard Bentley, D.I3.
The death of Bishop Greene, in 1738, had relieved him
from the hazard of deposition ; aud he continued to enjoy
his offices till 1742, when he died on the 14th of July,
after having completed the eightieth year of his age. His
wife had died two years before. His only surviving son,
who bore the same name, was educated to no profession:
it was one of the many scandalous acts of the father’s admi¬
nistration, that the son was elected a fellow of Trinity
College at the age of fifteen. The younger Bentley, who
was considered as a man of excellent talents, was the au¬
thor of several works, but is best remembered as the
friend of Gray. When his father once found him reading
a novel, “ Why,” said he, “ read a book which you cannot
quote?” The doctor’s two daughters, Elizabeth and
Joanna, were both married: the latter was the wife of
Denison Cumberland, who was grandson to the learned
bishop of Peterborough, and who himself became bishop
of Kilmore, and the father of Richard Cumberland, one
of the most eminent of the recent English dramatists.
The principal works published during the author’s life¬
time have already been enumerated; but we must not
neglect to mention the posthumous collection entitled
“ Richardi Bentleii et doctorum Virorum Epistolae partim
mutuae. Accedit Richardi Dawesii ad Joannem Taylorum
Epistola singularis.” Lond. 1807, 4to. Of this splendid
volume two hundred copies were printed at the expense
of the late Dr Burney, not with any view to publication,
but as presents from the munificent editor. An enlarged
edition of the same collection has very recently been
printed in a more accessible form: “ Richardi Bentleii et
doctorum Virorum Epistolae partim mutuae: ex editione
Londinensi Caroli Burneii repetiit, novisque additamentis,
et Godofredi Hermanni Dissertatione de Bentleio ejusque
Ed. Terentii, auxit Frid. Traug. Friedemann.” Lipsiae,
1825, 8vo. (x.)
BERAR, a large province of Hindostan, in the Deccan,
situated between the 19th and 21st degrees of north lati¬
tude. Its boundaries to the north are the provinces of
Khandesh and Allahabad; to the south Aurungabad and
the Godavery; to the east the province of Gundwana; and
to the west Khandesh and Aurungabad. Its limits are
not very accurately defined; but including the small pro¬
vince of Nandere, which properly belongs to it, its length
may be estimated at 230 miles, and its average breadth at
120. This province is centrally situated, being nearly at
an equal distance from the bay of Bengal and the western
coast of India. Berar Proper is an elevated table land,
surrounded by a chain of mountains, with here and there
a small peak visible above the rest of the country, and with
B E R
deep breaks and ravines leading into the valley; indeed the Et m
whole country is hilly and abounds in strongholds. The
surface of the hills in many parts is covered with loose ^ ce-
stones and low jungle; and but little cultivation is seen. W ^
A great part of this province was subject to the inroads of
bands of freebooters, known by the names of Naicks and
Bheels, with whom it was found expedient to compound,
and to protect the people from their rapacity by the pay¬
ment of a regular tax. The incursions of the Pindarees
also desolated many parts of the province. The grain
mostly cultivated in Berar is wheat, with Indian corn,
Bengal grain, peas, and vetches. The Nagpoor wheat
raised in Berar is reckoned the most nutritive and produc¬
tive in India, and it also yields an excellent spirit when
distilled. Indian corn, along with wheat, forms the
principal subsistence of the inhabitants. The largest
rivers are the Tuptee; two streams, both named the Poor-
na, one flowing east and the other west; the Wurda, and
the Pain Gunga. The chief towns are Ellichpoor, Mulca-
poor, Baulapoor, Akoat, Akolah, Nernallah, and Gawelghur,
deemed impregnable by the natives until it was taken by
General Wellesley. A great proportion of the inhabitants
are Hindoos. Owing to the continued rapine to which it
has been exposed, the country has never attained to any
great prosperity, nor possessed a numerous population.
All the commerce which is carried on is managed by iti¬
nerant inland carriers, who are numerous all over the
Deccan. Towards the end of the seventeenth century,
Berar, which had been formerly ruled by independent so¬
vereigns, was added to the Mogul empire. On the de¬
cline of that empire it was overrun by rapacious hordes of
Mahrattas; and for some time it was nearly equally divided
between the Peishwa and the rajah of Nagpoor. The lat¬
ter having taken part with Scindia in the year 1804, his
share of the province was transferred to the Peishwa. In
the wars undertaken against the Pindarees in 1817, the
Peishwa, Bajee Rao, joined the combination against the
British ; and, being defeated and pursued, he was forced
to surrender himself a prisoner. He was deposed from his
throne, and since this period Berar has fallen under the
dominion of the British.
BERAUN, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Bohe¬
mia. It extends over 1066 square miles, or 682,240 acres,
and comprehends ten cities, twenty-two towns, and seven¬
ty-two villages, with 22,880 houses. The inhabitants
amount to 158,500. The capital bears the same name.
It stands at the junction of the river Letawka with the
Beraunka, contains a college and cathedral, and has about
2000 inhabitants.
BERBICE is a colony belonging to the British, situ¬
ated on the banks of the river of the same name,in fj16
province of Guiana, in South America. The latitude m* |e
mouth of the river Berbice is 6. 20. N. and its longitude
57. 11. W. from London. The plantations are situated
on each side of the river, and extend nearly 300 mi es
from its entrance. Previously to the year 1799 this co¬
lony was bounded on the east by the Devils Creek, an
on the west by Abarry Creek, which separated it iom
Demerary, its breadth being then 30 miles; but w ien
Surinam surrendered to the British in that year, a nego
ciation was entered into between the governors of t ese
two colonies, by which Surinam conceded to Berbice c
tract of country between the Devil’s Creek and the rne
Courantine, thus increasing its breadth to about 60 mi es.
The sea-coast and the west bank of the Courantine wer
immediately surveyed and laid out into regular allotmen •
The extent of this colony was further enlarged by
British, who cleared and embanked from the sea the w _o
line of coast between the Demerary and the Couran n^
forming upon it a carriage-road sixty feet broad, witi^
B E R
e. feet parapets on each side for the convenience of travel-
J ling.
Previously to this improvement the face of the country
resembled that of the rest of Guiana. On the shores
there was a border of low ground, between high and low-
water marks, covered with mangroves. When the tide
flowed, this border had several feet of water over it; and
when it ebbed it presented an inaccessible mud-bank.
This is now rendered dry and productive. Behind this
border of mangroves, at the distance of 400 or 500 paces,
commence low, level, swampy savannahs, formed by the
rains, which are prolonged in the direction of the coast,
with a depth more or less considerable, according to the
distance of the mountains. This part of the colony was
almost entirely neglected by the Dutch, who fixed their
principal plantations in the more elevated and interior
part of the country.
The year is here divided into twro dry and two wet sea¬
sons ; light showers begin to refresh the land about the
middle of April; the rain increases till the middle of
June, when it falls in torrents; at the beginning of July
these heavy rains begin to decrease; and in August the
long dry season begins, and continues till November.
December and January constitute the short rainy season,
and February and March the short dry season. The
land winds prevail during the two wet seasons, and are un¬
healthy ; in the dry season the air is refreshed by regular
diurnal sea-breezes. The temperature of this colony is
not so great as might be expected from its latitude; the
thermometer very seldom rises to 91° ; during May, June,
and July, it generally varies between 83° and 84° ; and the
lowest degree is about 75°. The weather always changes
very gradually.
There are two rivers in this colony, the Berbice and
the Canje. The former runs from south to north, and dis¬
charges itself into the Atlantic Ocean. The coast on each
side of it forms a bay at its entrance, which is nearly a
mile in width, having a small island in the middle, called
Crab Island, from the number of land-crabs on it; and the
entrance itself is protected by three forts, but they are of
little use, as Berbice must, from its situation, always follow
the fate of Demerary. Without the entrance of the river
is a bar of sand, over which at high tide there is seldom
more than eighteen feet of water; but within, the water
is of sufficient depth, and the river is navigable for ships
of burden 200 miles from its mouth. On account of the
bar, however, few vessels rendezvous here, but anchor off
the port of Demerary. The river Canje is narrow, but
deep, running at first nearly from south to north, but after¬
wards diverging to the west, till it falls into the Berbice
about a mile from the sea. It is navigable for colony
schooners thirty miles up. At its head are immense falls,
and about forty miles below there is a creek which con¬
nects it with the Courantine. In this route, and by means
of this creek, dispatches are brought from Surinam to Ber¬
bice by the Indians. All the water on the coast of Ber¬
bice is brackish. The rain-water, which lodges in the low
parts of the forests, called bush-water, is collected by the
Indians for the purposes of drinking and cooking. The
forests are extensive, and contain many very large trees.
Dr Pinckard describes an enormous tree of the Tonquin
bean, the body of which rose perpendicularly to the height
of between seventy and eighty feet before it threw out a
single branch.
B E R 579
The only towns in this colony are Old Amsterdam, and Berbice.
Fort Nassau or New Amsterdam. The former is said by
Bolingbroke to be fifty miles up the river Berbice, but
Dr Bancroft places it at 100 miles from the mouth. The
inconveniences attendant on this situation of Old Amster¬
dam were so numerous and obvious, arising chiefly from
the uncertain and intricate navigation of the river, that,
in the year 1766, when Dr Bancroft visited Guiana, it
was resolved to remove the seat of government to a point
of land on the eastern shore of the Berbice, about a mile
from its entrance, formed between that river and the
Canje. So slow, however, were the Dutch in their ope¬
rations, that New Amsterdam, for so this town was called,
was scarcely begun in the year 1796, when Berbice capi¬
tulated to the English. Under the greater activity of the
conquerors, New Amsterdam soon assumed the size and
appearance of the capital of the colony. It is situated on
the south side of the Canje ; and the houses extend up the
banks of the Berbice about a mile and a half, facing the
water. The Dutch, in laying out the town, paid particu¬
lar attention to health and convenience. Round each
allotment there are trenches, which fill and empty them¬
selves every tide, so that all the filth is carried off’ before
it stagnates and becomes unwholesome. Each lot contains
a quarter of an acre of land ; and a free circulation of air,
as well as ground for a kitchen-garden, is thus secured to
the inhabitants. The houses are very long and narrow,
and not more than a storey and a half high, with galleries
on each side to protect them from the sun. Those inha¬
bited by the Dutch are thatched with troolie1 and plan¬
tain leaves, winch they prefer to shingles on account of
coolness; but the English shingle their houses, from their
dislike of the insects and vermin which the troolie and
plantain leaves harbour. The government-house and co¬
lonial offices are built of brick, in the European style, and
with considerable pretensions to architectural taste and
magnificence.
Before Berbice surrendered to the British, in 1796, al¬
most all the plantations were at a distance from the coast,
considerably up the banks of the Berbice and the Canje;
but within a very short time after the colony came into
our possession, the plantations were greatly extended. The
west coast was first cultivated; and, in the year 1799, that
to the eastward of the river Berbice, as far as the Devil’s
Creek, was cleared and cultivated. This part was survey¬
ed and cut into two parallel lines of estates, with a navi¬
gable canal between them for the convenience of water-
carriage. Behind the second row of estates runs the
river Canje, both the banks of which are cultivated with
sugar, coffee, and plantains. The estates are distinguish¬
ed as follows: those on the line facing the sea are the
coast estates ; the second line consists of the canal estates ;
and the remainder are called the Canje estates. Besides
these there are valuable and extensive plantations on
each side of the Berbice, stretching, as has been already
mentioned, nearly 300 miles from its mouth. The prin¬
cipal and most valuable productions of the colony are sugar,
coffee, cocoa, tobacco, cotton, and the arnotta or roucou
shrub. This last was, for a considerable time after the
settlement of the colony, cultivated almost exclusively by
the Indians; they macerated its seed in the juice of le¬
mons, in which the gum of the manna-tree had been dis¬
solved, and thus obtained the celebrated Indian pigment,
or crimson paint, with which they adorned their bodies.
1 The troolies are perhaps the largest leaves that have been hitherto discovered in any part of the world. Each leaf is supported
. & single stem, which arises immediately from the root, and becomes the middle rib to the leaf. Rhese stems are hard and strong,
‘?nd about three inches in circumference near the root. Each leaf is from twenty to thirty feet in length, and from two to three feet
in breadth. They will effectually exclude the most violent rains, and last for many years.
580 B E R
Berbice. The roucou is now cultivated by the Dutch and English
planters as a dye-stufF. Cotton thrives best on the coast
estates, and it is on these therefore that it is principally
cultivated. The sugar plantations are esteemed the most
valuable.
Agriculture, and all other labour in Berbice, is almost
wholly performed by negroes. It is estimated that, on an
average, there are about 200 slaves, calculated at the value
of from L.50 to L.I00 each, employed in producing an¬
nually 140,000 cwts. of colfee, and 10,000 cwts. of cocoa.
The Indians who inhabit this part of the South American
coast consist of four tribes; and from these, particularly
the tribe of the Arrowaucs, the inhabitants derive some as¬
sistance, as a few of them reside on almost every planta¬
tion, and are employed in various services, particularly in
hunting and fishing. They have no animals domesticated,
nor any grain or roots, except the cassada, brought into
cultivation. A small species of deer, which somewhat re¬
sembles the hare, and the armadillo, are their favourite
food. They scald off the fur of the deer, cut the body in
pieces, and stew it in cassada juice, seasoning it very highly
with capsicum. The weapons they employ are the common
bow and arrow, and the poisoned arrow, which they blow
from a tube. Their accuracy and skill in using both these
is surprising. With the common arrow, which is formed
of a reed nearly six feet long, they can hit a chicken with
tolerable certainty at nearly 100 yards distance. The poi¬
soned arrow they can shoot from a tube of about seven feet
in length, to the distance of eight or ten yards, with great
accuracy; and, at twelve or fourteen feet distance, they
seldom fail in striking the edge of a penknife stuck on the
back of a chair. The plants from which this poison is ex¬
tracted are not known.
Mr Bolingbroke states that the negro population of
Berbice was doubled within ten years after it came into the
possession of the English; and that, in 1805, it amounted
to about 40,000, besides 1000 free people of colour and
2500 whites. From the papers relative to the British
West Indies, ordered by the house of commons to be
printed in 1815, it appears that, in October 1811, the po¬
pulation of Berbice must have decreased very considerably,
if Mr Bolingbroke’s estimate be correct, since at that time
it consisted of,
Whites  550
Coloured  24q
Blacks .”25,169
^ TotaI 25,959
From 1811 to 1828 a further decrease took place. At
the latter period, the population, as returned from the
colony, stood as follows :—.
Whites  K92
Coloured  ggQ
Blacks 20,588
Total... 22,070
A capitation-tax on the white and black inhabitants, an
exase on every fifty pounds of sugar made, a weightage-
toll ot about two per cent, on all imports and exports, and
a tonnage-duty of three florins per last on the burden of
ships, are the principal sources of the revenue of the
colony. In October 1811 there was only one private dwell¬
ing hired as a church for the use of the Dutch. The
salary of the curate was 7000 stivers, that of the clerk and
ex on o each, and that of the churchwarden 375.
Ihese sums were raised by a tax of one stiver per acre,
with the exception of the Courantine coast of the colony,,
which, in the return to parliament, is represented as con¬
sisting of eighty estates, at 500 acres each.
B E R
The imports and exports were,— ^
1809  iJoS liS
1810   191,566  51,785
In the years ending the 5th of January there ’were im-
ported into Great Britain from Berbice, of rum
1810. 1811. 1812. 1813. ’ 1828
Gallons, 20,355.... 61931.... 1866... 23,139..„] 10,469
And, in the year ending 5th January 1813, there were im¬
ported of sugar 9084 cwts.; and in 1828, 87,971 cwts!
In 1809 the exportation of cocoa from the colony amounted
to 17,665 cwts., and in 1810 to 22,582 cwts. In the former
year the exportation of cotton was 1,874,195 lbs., and in
the latter year 2,656,057 lbs.
The colony of Berbice was founded in the year 1626
by a minister of Flushing, to whose family, in 1678, it was
granted as an hereditary fief. Three fourths of it, how¬
ever, were, not long afterwards, given to Van Hoorn and
Company, in consequence of their discharging a heavy
contribution levied on the colony by some French priva¬
teers. The new proprietors, being allowed by the Dutch
East India Company to import a certain number of ne¬
groes annually from Africa, and obtaining other privileges,
greatly extended the cultivation of sugar, cocoa, and in¬
digo ; but they were restricted from exporting the pro¬
duce of their plantations to any port not within the pro¬
vince of Holland. In 1763 an insurrection happened
among the slaves of Berbice, which was quelled chiefly by
the assistance of the Indians and the English from Barba-
does. In 1796 the colony capitulated to the British, but
it was restored to the Dutch by the peace of Amiens. In
1803 it was again reduced, and its possession was confirm¬
ed to Britain by the peace of Paris. In consequence of
the lords of the treasury learning that the loss of slaves
on the crown estates from the year 1803 to 1810 had
been at the rate of 26 per cent., they appointed, in 1811,
commissioners for the management of these estates, who
were especially directed and empowered to maintain and
protect the negroes, and to reward and encourage indus¬
try among them.
By an act of the British parliament, passed in the 56th
of George III. (1816), cap. 91, Berbice is placed on the
same footing in relation to the regulations of trade as the
British West India Islands. The subjects of the king of
the Netherlands, who are proprietors in Berbice, may im¬
port into it from the Netherlands the usual articles of
supply for their estates, but not for trade; but wine import¬
ed for the use of their estates pays a duty of 10s. per tun.
ihe Dutch proprietors may export their produce, but not
to Britain ; both exports and imports must be made in ships
belonging to the Netherlands; the duties are the same as
those payable by7 British proprietors.
See Pinckard’s Notes on the West Indies, 2d edition,
vols. i. and ii.; Bancroft’s Essay on the Natural History of
Guiana; Bolingbroke’s Voyage to Demerary; Tuckey’s
Maritime Geography, vol. iv.; Baron Sack’s Account of
Surinam.
BERCHEM, or Berghem, Nicholas, a painter, was
a native of Haerlem, and born in 1624. He received in¬
structions from several very eminent masters; and it was
no small addition to their fame that Berchem was their
scholar. The pictures of cattle and figures by this master
are held in high estimation; and he has been singularly
happy in having many of them finely engraved by John
Visscher, an eminent artist in his own line. The distin¬
guishing characters of the pictures of Berchem are, the
breadth and just distribution of the lights, the grandeur
of his masses of shadow7, natural ease and simplicity in the
attitudes of his figures, the just gradation of his distances,
the brilliancy and transparency of his colouring, the cor-
B E R
!. jjel tt rectness and true perspective of his design, and the ele-
; gance of his composition.
Bei ce. BERCHETT, Peter, an eminent historical painter, was
^ ^ born in France in 1659, and at the age of eighteen was
employed in the royal palaces. He came to England in
1681, to work under Rambour, a French painter of archi¬
tecture ; but after staying a year, he returned to Marli.
He revisited this country, however, and was sent by King
William to the palace then building at Loo, where he was
employed fifteen months; after which he came a third
time to England, where he had sufficient business, and
painted the ceiling of the chapel of Trinity College, Oxford,
the staircase at the Duke of Schomberg’s in Pall-mall, and
the summer-house at Ranelagh. Towards the close of his
life he retired to Marybone, where he painted only small
pieces of fabulous history, and died there in January 1720.
BERCHTESGADEN, or Berchtolsgaden, a small
town, most beautifully situated on the eastern confines of
Bavaria, to which kingdom it was united in 1809. It has
been long celebrated for its extensive mines of rock-salt,
which were commenced working in the year 1628, and
are the source whence all Bavaria is supplied with that
necessary article of life. As the salt occurs in an impure
state, it is most easily obtained by dissolving it in its na¬
tural depository. Fresh water is brought in from the up¬
per part of the mine, which, after acting a certain time
upon the salt-rock, becomes brine, and in that state is run
off in pipes, either to the evaporating houses or to a re¬
servoir in the vicinity; whence, by the aid of two cele¬
brated w ater column engines, constructed by Reichenbach
of Munich, it is raised 1500 feet, and thereafter con¬
ducted to Traunstein and Rosenheim, about forty miles
farther into the country. The town contains two large
churches, and some good houses. Its inhabitants, amount¬
ing to about 1000, are principally employed in the mines
and the manufacture of salt. Some few also are engag¬
ed in making toys and small articles from the stag and
chamois horns. Its vicinity comprehends the most pic¬
turesque portion of Bavaria; the snow caped peaks of the
Watzman towering over it to the height of 7000 feet,
while the Konigsee at its foot, one of the wildest lakes
among the Alps, is not exceeded by any either in beauty
or sublimity. The small red trout of the Kdnigsee, called
by the common people schwartzreitic, are highly prized ;
and no portion of the Alpine range is better supplied with
game, particularly the stag, the chamois, and the steinbok
or ibex, an animal elsewhere almost extinct.
BERDASH, in Antiquity, was a name formerly used in
England for a certain kind of neck-dress ; and hence a
person who made or sold such neckcloths was called a ber-
dasher, from which is derived our word haberdasher.
BERECYNTHIA, in Pagan Mythology, the mother of
the gods.
BERENGARIANISM, a name appliedby ecclesiastical
wnters to the doctrine of those who deny the actual pre-
fp.nce the body and blood of Christ in the eucharist.
ie denomination took its rise from Berengarius, arch-
ln^°n i°^ the.eht!rch St Mary at Anjou about the year
<*5, who maintained that the bi’ead and wine, even after
consecration, do not become the true body and blood of
Pa butonly a%ure and sign thereof, and who thus
aiRPn ^0^n(blti°n of the Protestant doctrine.
ERENICE, daughter of Ptolemy Auletes, king of
.fjpE succeeded her father before his death. This ba-
18 lec^ prince having implored the assistance of the Ro-
w^s restored by Pompey. Berenice, to support her-
on the throne, allured a prince named Seleucus, who
to S.aescen^e(l from the kings of Syria, and admitted him
s aie her nuptial bed and her power. But she soon
atne weary of Seleucus, and put him to death ; after
B E R 58i
which she cast her eye on Archelaus, who was induced Berenice
to marry her, and put himself at the head of her troops. II
But these were repulsed by the Romans; Archelaus was Berezov-
killed m battle; and Ptolemy, returning to Alexandria skoi*
put his rebellious daughter to death. ’
Berenice, wife of Ptolemy Evergetes, king of Egypt,
cut off her hair in pursuance of a vow, and consecrated' it
in the temple of Venus. But this deposit having been
afterwards lost, Conon the mathematician, in compliment
to the queen, declared that her locks had been conveyed
to heaven, and composed the seven stars near the tail of
the bull, called to this day Coma Berenices.
Berenice, daughter of Costobarus, and of Salome, sister
of Herod the Great, was first married to Aristobulus, son
of the same Herod and Mariamne. But the cruel father
having put his son to death, his niece married a second
time ; became again a widow, whether or not by similar
means it is not said; and having repaired to Rome, she
got into favour with Augustus, at the same time insinu¬
ating herself into the good graces of Antonia, the wife
of L)i usus, which in the end proved of great service to
Agrippa.
Berenice, grand-daughter of the preceding, and daugh¬
ter of Agrippa I. king of Judaea, acquired an unchaste ce¬
lebrity on accoun t of her amours. She was betrothed to one
Marcus, but he died before the marriage was consummated.
Soon after she married his uncle Herod, who, at the desire
of Agrippa, his brother and father-in-law, was created king
of Chalcis by the emperor Claudius. She lost her husband
in the eighth year of the emperor Claudius; and in her
widowhood it was rumoured that she committed incest
wdth her brother Agrippa. To put a stop to this report,
she offered herself in marriage to Polemon, king of Cilicia,
provided he would change his religion. He accepted her
offer, was circumcised, and married her. But Berenice
soon left him to follow her own ways; and he abandoned
Judaism to return to his former religion. She stood al¬
ways well with her brother Agrippa, and seconded him in
his design of preventing the desolation of Judaea. This art¬
ful intriguante got Titus into her snares ; but the murmurs
of the Roman people opposing an obstacle to the marriage
she had contemplated, there remained nothing for her but
the title of mistress or concubine of the emperor. During
the seventeenth century the French stage resounded with
the amours of Titus and Berenice.
Berenice, in Ancient Geography, the name of several
cities, particularly of a celebrated seaport in the Sinus
Arabicus; now Suez.
BEREWICHA, or Berewica, in our old writers, de¬
notes a village or hamlet belonging to a town or manor,
situated at some distance therefrom. The word frequent¬
ly occurs in Doomsday-book: Istce sunt berewichce ejusdem
manerii.
BEREZOV, a Russian town of Siberia, on the river
Soswa, 18 miles from its confluence with the Obi. It con¬
tains three churches and a chapel. Its northern situation
forbids all kind of agricultural industry; hence the inha¬
bitants subsist on rein-deer, as also by hunting and fish¬
ing ; and the furs which they procure are exchanged with
the Russian merchants for such articles as they require.
They also supply Tobolsk and other places on the Irtisch
with dried fish in summer, and with frozen fish during
winter. The inhabitants are chiefly Cossacks, and much
addicted to drinking. Berezov is 598 miles N. N. W. of
Tobolsk. Lat. 64. N.
BEREZOVSKOI, a town and fortress of Asiatic Rus¬
sia, in the government of Orenburg, situated on the river
Oural. It lias near it four gold mines from five to twenty
fathoms deep, from which are extracted annually 10*0
pounds of gold dust. It is 140 miles E. N. E. of Orenburg.
582 B E R
Berg BERG, a duchy of Germany, in the circle of Westpha-
|| Ha. It is bounded on the north by the duchy ot Cleves,
Bergamot. on t}ie west by the county of Mark and the duchy of
Westphalia, on the south by Wetteravia, and on the east
by the diocese of Cologne, from which it is separated by
the Rhine. It contains about 1188 square miles, with
295,000 inhabitants. It is very fruitful along the Rhine,
but mountainous and woody towards the county of Maik.
It was formerly subject to the elector palatine, but since
1815 has been included in the grand duchy of the Lower
Rhine, which belongs to Prussia. The duchy of Berg
was taken Rom Bavaria in 1806, and bestowed upon Mu¬
rat, afterwards king of Naples, who derived from it the
title of Grand Duke of Berg. It is a populous and flourish¬
ing district. The principal rivers, besides the Rhine, ai e
the Wipper, Agger, ahd Sieg.
Berg, St Winox, a town of the Low Countries, in the
country of Flanders, fortified by Vauban, and subject to
France. It is seated on the river Colme, six miles from
Dunkirk and twenty-one from Ypres. Long. 2. 25. E.
Lat. 50. 57. N.
BERGAMO, a province, or, as it is usually termed, a
delegation, of the Austrian kingdom of Lombardy. It is
bounded on the north by the delegation of Sondrio, on the
east by those of Tyrol and Brescia, on the south by Lodi,
and on the west by Milan and Como. The extent is about
1615 square miles, or 1,033,600 acres. It is divided into
18 districts, and these into 372 communes or parishes,
and comprehends one city, 22 market-towns, and 333 vil¬
lages, with 44,860 houses. By the last precise census in
1816 and 1817, the number of inhabitants was 307,815 ;
but by subsequent accounts, the particulars of which have
not yet been published, the population appears to have in¬
creased at a prodigious rate.
The whole northern part of the delegation, which com¬
prehends more than half, is filled with the Alpine moun¬
tains, whose spurs extend to the capital; but the south¬
ern division forms part of the plain of Lombardy. I he
country is deficient in corn; but the surplus of cattle,
with iron from the mines in the northern part, and the silk
produced in the southern, are exchanged for what grain is
required by the inhabitants. Besides those of silk, there
are manufactures of woollen goods. There are some
quarries of marble, and of other kinds of stone from which
many grindstones and whetstones are cut out and prepar¬
ed for exportation.
The capital of the province is the city of the same
name, laid out on several elevations in an amphitheatri-
cal form, surrounded with walls and ditches, and defend¬
ed by two insignificant forts. It is the see of a bishop,
and of the provincial courts of law; and comprehends, be¬
sides the cathedral, fourteen churches, four hospitals, six
orphan-houses, a lombard, and several other good edifices.
It contains, including the suburbs, about 40,000 inhabit¬
ants, a great proportion of whom are occupied in the va¬
rious branches of the silk manufacture, and some in mak¬
ing cloth and iron wares. The annual fair contributes
much to the trade of the city. Bergamo gave birth to
Tasso the poet, who died in 1569. Long. 9. 34. 21. E. Lat.
45. 41. 15. N.
BERGAMO, James Philip de, an Augustin monk,
born at Bergamo in 1434, wrote in Latin a Chronicle from
the Creation of the World to the year 1503, and a Trea¬
tise of Illustrious Women. He died in 1518.
BERGAMOT, a species of citron, produced at first
casually by an Italian’s grafting a citron on the stock of a
bergamot pear-tree, whence the fruit produced by this
union participated both of the citron-tree and the pear-
tree. The fruit has a fine taste and smell, and its essen¬
tial oil is in high esteem as a perfume. The essence of
B E R
bergamot is also called essentia de cedro. It is extracted Ben L
from the yellow rind of the fruit by first cutting it in
small pieces, then immediately squeezing out the oil into Ber 'a'''
a glass vessel. ^ ^
Bergamot is also the denomination of a coarse tapestry,
manufactured with flocks of silk, wool, cotton, hemp, ox,
cow, or goats’ hair, and supposed to have been invented
by the people of Bergamo, in Italy.
BERGARA, a city of the province of Guipuscoa, in
Spain, on the river Deva. It is the seat of a school for
mineralogy, and of a college for the nobles only. The po¬
pulation is 4200. Long. 2. 53. W. Lat. 43. 5. 27. N.
BERGEN, a city in Norway, the capital of the pro¬
vince of the same name. It is situated on the shore of
the gulf or bay of Baag, has a fine harbour with two good
entrances, and is surrounded by hills, some of which attain
the height of 1800 feet. It contains seven churches, four
of stone and three of wood, and about 2000 houses, of
which all excepting 140 are of wood. From this cause it
has suffered often and severely from fire. The inhabi¬
tants, amounting to 18,080, are employed, many in the
fishery and navigation, and some in various manufactures,
all upon a small scale, and chiefly for home consumption.
There are about 120 ships belonging to the port, whose chief
business consists in conveying timber to the different ports
of Europe. Long. 4. 25. 33. E. Lat. 63. 23. 40. N.
Bergen, a circle in the Prussian province of Stral-
sund, comprehending the Island of Rugen, in the Baltic
Sea, and the other small islands near it. It extends over
about 365 square miles. There are some very ancient re¬
mains of antiquity on the principal island. It is very fer¬
tile, except on the northern part, where it is covered with
wood. The inhabitants in 1817 were 27,089, living in
four towns and sixty-seven villages. The capital, of the
same name, contains 340 houses, and 2750 inhabitants.
Long. 13. 29. E. Lat. 54. 50. N.
BERGEN-OP-ZOOM, a maritime town of the Nether¬
lands, in North Brabant, situated on the river Zoom, near
its confluence with the Scheldt. It contains 1150 houses,
and 5600 inhabitants. The houses are well built, the
market-places and squares handsome and spacious. It
is so strongly fortified, both by nature and art, as to be
deemed almost impregnable. The fortifications are reck¬
oned the masterpiece of the celebrated Ccehorn, the rival
and contemporary of Vauban. In 1586 it was unsuccess¬
fully besieged by the famous Duke of Parma; and after¬
wards, in 1622, it defied the utmost attempts of Spinola,
who was forced to abandon the enterprize, after a siege o
ten weeks, with the loss of 12,000 men. In 1747, how¬
ever, it was taken by stratagem by the French under
Count Lowendahl, and in 1814 was again rendered famous
by an unsuccessful attempt of the British troops under
Lord Lyndoch, then Sir Thomas Graham, to take it by
a coup de main on the night of the 8th of March. 1 !e
troops destined for this attack amounted to 3950, and were
divided into four columns, two of which, after most es
perate efforts, succeeded in establishing themselves on it
ramparts; but the other two were completely unsuccess¬
ful, and driven back with prodigious loss. Above w0
thirds of the whole assailing force were killed, wounde ,
or taken in this attempt. A marble tablet, recording -
names of the brave men who fell on the occasion, has e
erected in the church by the British officers. The P *jc >
however, was given up at the treaty of peace in May
Bergen-op-Zoom is fifteen miles north of Antwerp, ai
twenty-two south-west of Breda. r
BERGERAC, an arrondissement in the department «
Dordogne, in France, extending over 926 square nlj’
and comprehending thirteen cantons and 167 c(?m1m.u.j„
with a population of 108,905 persons. The capita is
V ?
B E R
B E R
583'
m city of the same name, on the Dordogne, which divides
^ jt jnt0 two parts. It contains 8665 inhabitants, who are
employed in manufactures of woollens, leather, paper,
fire-arms, copper-ware, and in distillery. Long. 0. 22. E.
Lat. 45. 0. N.
BERGHEIM, a circle in the Prussian government of
Cologne. It extends over ninety-eight square miles, or
62,700 acres, contains one town, which gives name to
the district, seventy-five villages, and 29,188 inhabitants.
It is on the high road from the Netherlands to Germany,
between Aix-la-Chapelle and Cologne, a poor tract, but
populous.
BERGHEM. See Berchem.
BERGHMONT, an assembly or court held upon a hill
in Derbyshire for deciding controversies among the miners.
BERGMAN, Sir Torbern, a celebrated chemist and
natural philosopher, was born in the year 1735, at Catha-
rineberg, in West Gothland. His father was receiver-gene¬
ral of the finances, and had destined him to the same em¬
ployment ; but nature had designed him for the sciences.
To them he felt an irresistible inclination from his earliest
years, and nature proved more powerful than the will of
bis friends. His first studies wrere confined to the mathe¬
matics and physics; and the efforts that were made to
divert him from science having proved ineffectual, he was
sent to Upsal, with permission to follow the bent of his
inclination. Linnaeus at that time filled the whole king¬
dom with his fame. Instigated by his example, the Swe¬
dish youth flocked around him ; and accomplished disci¬
ples leaving his school, carried the name and the system
of their master to the most distant parts of the globe.
Bergman, struck with the splendour of his renown, at¬
tached himself to the man whose merit had procured it,
and by whom he was very soon distinguished. He ap¬
plied himself at first to the study of insects, and made
several ingenious researches into their history, particular¬
ly into that of the genus of tenthredo, so often and so cru¬
elly preyed on by the larvae of the ichneumons, that nestle
in their bowels and devour them. He discovered that the
leech was oviparous ; and that the coccus aquaticus is the
egg of this animal, from which issue ten or twelve young.
Linnaeus, who had at first denied this fact, was struck
with astonishment when he saw it proved. Vidi et obstu-
pui, were the words he pronounced, and which he wrote
at the foot of the memoir when he gave it his sanction.
Mr Bergman soon distinguished himself as an astronomer,
naturalist, and geometrician ; but these are not the titles
by which he acquired his fame. The chair of chemistry
and mineralogy, which had been filled by the celebrated
Wallerius, becoming vacant by his resignation, Mr Berg¬
man appeared among the number of the competitors ; and
without having before this period discovered any particu¬
lar attention to chemistry, he published a memoir on the
preparation of alum that astonished his friends as well as
his adversaries. Nobody was able to conceive how in so
short a time he could have made a course of experiments
so complete on a subject so new to him. His dissertation
was warmly attacked in the periodical publications, and
Wallerius himself criticised without reserve. But in the
midst of so many enemies he possessed a firm friend. The
prince Gustavus, afterwards king of Sweden, and then
chancellor of the university, took cognizance of the affair.
After having consulted two persons most competent to give
him advice, and whose testimony went in favourof Bergman,
he addressed a memorial, written with his own hand, in an¬
swer to all the grievances alleged against the candidate, to
the consistory of the university and to the senate, who in
consequence confirmed the wishes of his royal highness.
Mr Bergman had now a hard duty to fulfil. He had to
satisfy the hopes which had been conceived of him, to fill
the place of Wallerius, and to put envy to silence. He Bergommn
did not follow the common track in the study of chemis- H
try. As he had received the lessons of no master, he BerS00-
was tainted with the prejudices of no school. Accustom-
ed to precision, and having no time to lose, he applied
himself to experiments without paying any attention to
theories ; repeating frequently those which he considered
as the most important and instructive, and reducing them
to method,—an improvement till then unknown. He first
introduced into chemistry the process by analysis, which
ought to be applied to every science ; for there should be
but one method of teaching and learning, as there is but
one of judging accurately. These views have been laid
down by Mr Bergman in an excellent discourse, which con¬
tains his profession of faith in what relates to the sciences.
It is here that he displays himself without disguise to his
reader; and it is here that it is of most importance to
study him with attention.
The productions of volcanoes had never been properly
analyzed when Messrs Berber and Troil brought a rich
collection of these into Sweden. At the sight of them
Mr Bergman conceived the design of investigating their
nature. He examined first of all the matters least altered
by the fire, and the forms of which were still to be dis¬
cerned : he followed them in their changes progressively ;
he determined, nay even imitated, their more complicated
appearances ; and he knew the effects which would result
from the mixture and decomposition of the saline sub¬
stances which are found abundantly in these productions.
He discovered such as were formed in the humid way,
and then in his laboratory observed the process of na¬
ture—that combat of flames and explosions, that chaos in
which the elements seem to clash and to confound one ano¬
ther, unveiled itself to his eyes. He saw the fire of vol¬
canoes kindled in the midst of pyritical combinations, and
sea-salt decomposed by clays; he saw fixed air, as it was
then called, disengaged from calcined calcareous stones,
spreading upon the surface of the earth, and filling caverns
in which flame and animal life are equally extinguished; he
saw the sulphurous acid thrown out in waves, convert itself
into the sulphuric by mere contact with the air, and, dis¬
tilling through the rocks, form the alum veins of the Sol-
faterra. He saw the bitumens as they melted; the in¬
flammable and sulphurous airs exhaling; and the waters
become mineral, and impregnated with the fire and vapours
of these stupendous furnaces, preparing for the beings
that move and dispute on the crust of the abyss, a remedy
for pain and a balsam for disease.
The continual application which Mr Bergman bestowed
on his studies having affected his health, he was advised
to suspend them if he wished to prolong his life ; but he
found happiness to consist only in study, and wished not
to forfeit his title to reputation by a few years more of
inactivity and langour. He exhausted his strength, and
died in the month of June 1784. The university of Upsal
paid the most distinguished honours to his memory; and
the academy of Stockholm consecrated to him a medal to
perpetuate the regret of all the learned of Europe for his
loss. His Physical and Chemical Essays have been col¬
lected and translated by Dr Edmund Cullen, and pub¬
lished in 2 vols. 8vo.
BERGOMUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of the
Transpadana, built by the Gauls on their incursions into
Italy; now called Bergamo, in one of the Austrian dele¬
gations of Lombardy. Long. 10. E. Lat. 45. 40. N.
BERGOO, an extensive country of interior Africa, be¬
tween Darfur and Begherme. It is traversed by a large-
rivqr, which appears to be the Misselad of Browne. A
considerable part of the territory is described as moun¬
tainous, inhabited by warlike tribes, who sometimes swell
584 B E R
B E R
Bergza- the armies of the state, sometimes make war against it.
bern The people of Bergoo are rigid Mahommedans, but are
II surrounded by fierce pagan tribes, into whose territory
Berkeley, they make frequent incursions, probably with the view of
procuring slaves. They often, however, meet a formidable
resistance, being encountered with poisoned arrows, and
spears heated red-hot. The only grains raised in the coun¬
try are dhourra and millet; but it produces a considerable
quantity of natron and salgem, which are exported by the
caravans to Cairo. The capital is Wara or Kara, situated
on the great river which passes through Bergoo.
BERGZABERN, a canton in the circle of the Rhine,
and kingdom of Bavaria, whose chief city, of the same
name, contains about 1600 inhabitants. It comprehends
two market-towns and twenty-nine villages, with about
6500 inhabitants.
BERIA, Berie, Berry, signifies a large open field; and
hence those cities and towns in England, the names of
which end with that word, are built on plain and open
places, and do not derive their names from boroughs, as
Sir Henry Spelman imagines. Most of our glossographers,
in the names of places, have confounded the word berie
with that of bury and borough, as if it had been the appel¬
lative of ancient towns; whereas the true sense of the
word berie is a flat wide champaign, as is proved from suf¬
ficient authorities by Dufresne, who observes that Beria
Sancti Edmundi, mentioned by Matthew Paris, 1174, is
not to be taken for the town, but for the adjoining plain.
BERING, Sinus, of Copenhagen, a Latin lyric poet,
who flourished about 1560.
BERKELEY, George, the celebrated bishop of Cloyne,
was the eldest son of William Berkeley, Esq. of Thomas-
town, in the county of Kilkenny, a cadet of the family
of Earl Berkeley of Berkeley Castle. At eight years of
age he was sent to the school of the Ormond foundation
at Kilkenny, from which Swift had a few years before
been removed to the university. Before Berkeley had
attained his fourteenth year he was admitted a pensioner
in Trinity College, Dublin, in which, whilst bachelor of arts,
he obtained a fellowship. Some of his first essays as a
writer were published in the Spectator and Guardian,
which entertaining works he adorned with many pieces in
favour of virtue and religion. His learning and his virtues,
his wit and agreeable conversation, made his friendship
sought and his acquaintance cultivated by many great and
learned men; and amongst others by the Earl of Peter¬
borough, Dr Swift, Dr Arbuthnot, Mr Pope, and Mr Ad¬
dison. The earl took him as chaplain and secretary of
legation into Italy; and during his absence on that occa¬
sion he became senior fellow of his college, and was in
1717 created D. D. by diploma.
Upon his return, his acquaintance among the great was
consideiably extended; and Lord Burlington, who at
Rome had conceived a high esteem for him on account
of his skill in architecture, obtained for him, through the
Duke of Grafton, then (1721) lord-lieutenant of Ireland,
the king’s grant of the deanery of Down, worth L.2000 per
annum. Such, however, was the narrow system of politics
at that time prevalent in the Irish cabinet, that though
his majesty had actually signed the grant, the lords jus¬
tices recommended back for this preferment Swift’s Dean
amel, celebrated for having in a state sermon styled
Pompey “ an unfortunate gentleman and such was Dr
Berkeley s humility and mildness of temper, that he could
not be prevailed upon to dispute the matter, or even to ex¬
postulate on the subject. His patron Lord Burlington pro-
cured for him afterwards (1724) the deanery of Derry,
the next best in Ireland to that of Down; and upon this
preferment the doctor resigned his fellowship.
the year 1722 llis fortune received a considerable
increase from an event by him very unexpected. Unnn n
his first going to London (1717), he sent one morning a ^ S
note to Swift, desiring that they might dine together that
day at a tavern. The dean of St Patrick’s returned for
answer, that they might enjoy each other’s company at
their ease where he was himself engaged to dine, with the
family of Mrs Esther Vanhomrigh, the celebrated Vanessa-
and thither accordingly he took Mr Berkeley. Some years
before her death this lady removed to Ireland, and fixed
her residence at Cell-bridge, a pleasant village in the neigh¬
bourhood of Dublin, most probably with the view of fre¬
quently enjoying the company of a man for whom she had
conceived a very singular attachment. But finding herself
totally disappointed in that expectation, she altered her
intention of making the dean of St Patrick’s her heir, and
left the whole of her fortune, about L.8000, to be divided
equally between her near relation Judge Marshal of the
Common Pleas in Ireland, and Dr Berkeley, whom she
had never seen but once in her life, and that at the dis¬
tance of nine years.
In the interval between Dr Berkeley’s return from
abroad and his preferment to the deanery of Derry, his
mind had been employed in conceiving a noble and bene¬
volent plan for the better supplying of the churches in
our foreign plantations, and for converting the savage
Americans to Christianity, by erecting a college in the
Bermudas. To this proposal the address and abilities of
its author procured, after a tedious attendance on the
great, an apparently successful reception; for he obtained
a charter for its foundation, together with a parliamentary
grant of L.20,000 for carrying it into execution, to which
were added several large subscriptions from individuals,
to be paid as soon as the public bounty should be received.
Upon the faith of this our philosopher embarked for Ame¬
rica ; where he became so generally and so justly venerated
by all descriptions of men, that they vied with one another
who should most honour him. The queen, with whom
he was a favourite, had endeavoured to dissuade him from
this enterprise, by offering him her interest for an English
bishopric; but he replied, that he should prefer the head¬
ship of St Paul’s College at Bermudas to the primacy of
all England. From that headship he was to enjoy a re¬
venue of L.100 per annum, and was bound by his charter
to resign his deanery, then worth L.1100 per annum,
within a year and a half after the L.20,000 should be paid
by government. But that sum was never paid ; and after
two years’ residence on Rhode Island and its neighbour¬
ing continent, during which time every interest of piety
and virtue was near his heart and cultivated by his labours,
the dean was obliged to return to Europe, and abandon
one of the noblest designs that had ever entered into the
human heart to form.
In August 1728, immediately before his departure for
America, he entered into marriage with Anne, the eldest
daughter of the Right Honourable John Forster, speaker
of the Irish house of commons; this lady died in 1785.
In May 1734 he was consecrated bishop of Cloyne, and
vacated his deanery. On that occasion he said to his few
intimates, “ I will never accept of a translation.” At
Cloyne he distinguished himself by pastoral vigilance,
prelatical hospitality, and constant residence. Throughout
the whole of his clerical life he was, while his health per¬
mitted, a constant and an extemporaneous preacher; nor
is it known that he ever reduced a single sermon to writ¬
ing, except one preached before the society for propa¬
gating the gospel in foreign parts, which at their request
was published. He endeared himself to the people of
his diocese by promoting at once their temporal and their
spiritual happiness. He endeavoured by all means to
raise a spirit of industry, and to encourage the improve*
B E R
^ >y. raent of agriculture in that neglected country; and it may
^ be truly said, that never man laboured more earnestly to
amass a fortune or to aggrandize a family, than he did to
promote the best interests of mankind, considered either
as citizens of earth or as candidates for heaven.
The earl of Chesterfield, who had never seen him but
once, and that when they were both young men, on being
made lord-lieutenant of Ireland, sent to him a most respect¬
ful offer of the then vacant see of Clogher, which was more
than double the value of that of Cloyne ; promising at the
same time his recommendation to any other richer see that
might be vacated during his administration. But the good
bishop declined the generous offer, requesting the lord-
lieutenant not to think of him on any other vacancy, as he
was resolved never to quit his first bishopric for any other.
In 1751, finding the infirmities of age come upon him, and
wishing to retire from the care of his diocese to superin¬
tend the education of his son, then nominated a student
of Christ Church, that the revenues of the church might
not be misapplied, nor the interests of religion suffer by
the absence of the pastor from his flock, he made great
interest for leave to resign his bishopric, of which the in¬
come was then not less than L.1700 per annum. Failing
of success in this application, he let the lands of his de¬
mesne at Cloyne on very easy terms, at the rent of L.200,
which he directed to be distributed annually among the
poor house-keepers of Cloyne, Youghall, and Aghadda,
until his return.
At Oxford he lived highly respected by the learned
members of that great university, till the hand of Provi¬
dence unexpectedly deprived them of the pleasure and
advantage derived from his residence among them. On
Sunday evening, the 14th January 1753, as he was sitting
in the midst of his family, and just after he had concluded
an extemporaneous comment on the 15th chapter of first
Corinthians, he was instantly translated, without a groan,
from earth to heaven. A polypus in the heart was the
cause of his dissolution. About a minute before his death
he had seated himself on a couch and turned his face to¬
wards the wall; and had he not ceased speaking in the
middle of a sentence, his lady and his son would not im¬
mediately have discovered their loss. His remains were
with much funeral solemnity interred at Christ Church,
his friend Bishop Conybeare, then dean of that cathedral,
performing the last service. An elegant marble monu¬
ment, with a spirited inscription by the archbishop of
York, marks the spot where his ashes rest. As to his
person, he was of the tall middle size; his countenance
was very handsome, and full of meaning and benignity ;
and his bodily strength was uncommonly great, even to the
last year of his life ; but he was subject to grievous nerv¬
ous colics, in which he thought tar-water gave him more
efficacious relief than any other medicine. Mr Pope sums
up his character in one line. After mentioning some par¬
ticular virtues which characterized other prelates then liv¬
ing, he ascribes “ to Berkeley every virtue under heaven.”
Ihe following anecdote will serve to convey an impres¬
sion both of his talents and character. Bishop Atterbury,
having heard much of Mr Berkeley, wished to see him.
Accordingly he was one day introduced to that prelate
by the Earl of Berkeley. After some time, Mr Berkeley
quitted the room; on which Lord Berkeley said to the
bishop, “ Does my cousin answer your lordship’s expecta¬
tions?’ The bishop, lifting up his hands in astonishment,
implied, “ So much understanding, so much knowledge, so
much innocence, and such humility, I did not think had
been,the portion of any but angels, till I saw this gentle-
man. His knowledge is said to have extended even to
the minutest objects, and included the arts and business
0 conimon life. Thus Dr Blackwell, in his Memoirs of
vol. iv.
B E R
585
stead.
Great.
the Court of Augustus, having made an observation, “ that Berkeley
the ingenious mechanics, the workers in stone and metal, II
and improvers in trade, agriculture, and navigation, ought Berkham-
to be searched out and conversed w ith no less than the
professors of speculative science,” adds the following eulo-
gium on our prelate : “ In this respect I would with plea¬
sure do justice to the memory of a very great though sin¬
gular sort of a man, Dr Berkeley, better known as a phi¬
losopher and intended founder of an university in the
Bermudas or Summer Islands, than as bishop of Cloyne in
Ireland. An inclination to carry me out on that expedi¬
tion, as one of the young professors on his new foundation,
having brought us often together, I scarce remember to
have conversed with him on that art, liberal or mechanic,
of which he knew not more than the ordinary practition¬
ers. With the widest views, he descended into a minute
detail, and grudged neither pains nor expense for the
means of information. He travelled through a great part
of Sicily on foot; clambered over the mountains and crept
into the caverns, to investigate its natural history, and
discover the cause of its volcanoes: and I have known
him sit for hours in forgeries and founderies to inspect
their successive operations. I enter not into his peculi¬
arities, either religious or personal; but admire the exten¬
sive genius of the man, and think it a loss to the western
world that his noble and exalted plan of an American
university was not carried into execution. Many such
spirits in our country would quickly make learning wear
another face.”
He published many ingenious works, particularly An
Essay towards a new Theory of Vision ; The Principles of
Human Knowledge, the singular notions in which gave
rise to much controversy; Alciphron, or the Minute Phi¬
losopher, one of the most elegant and learned defences of
that religion which he was born to vindicate both by his
virtues and his ingenuity; The Analyst, in which he en¬
deavours to show that Sir Isaac Newton’s doctrine of
fluxions is more incomprehensible than any mystery in the
Christian religion; The Querist, in which the true inte¬
rests of Ireland are pointed out in a very striking light;
and Siris, or a Treatise on Tar-Water, which, under his
sanction, became for a while a very popular medicine. In
the Gentleman’s Magazine for January 1777, it is said
that the Adventures of Signior Gaudentio di Lucca have
been generally attributed to Bishop Berkeley; but it is
now understood that they were not the offspring of his
pen. The bishop never saw the work till it was put into
his hands by his son; and when he read it, he expressed
no small contempt for the style of a writer who describes
his hero as a “ tall, clean-made gentleman;” though he
owned his fancy to be often brilliant. The adventures of
Gaudentio di Lucca are believed to have been written by
a Romish priest, for his amusement, when a prisoner in
the Tower of London.
Of Berkeley’s metaphysical notions, or of that idealism
which he propounded with the view of rooting out infide¬
lity, and which Mr Hume afterwards employed to destroy
all belief, it is unnecessary to say thing in this place, as
the subject has been treated with surpassing ability, elo¬
quence, and ingenuity, in the first Dissertation prefixed to
this work, to which, accordingly, the reader is referred.
Berkeley, a market-town of the hundred of Berkeley,
in the county of Gloucester, 113 miles from London, on
the river Little Avon, in one of the richest dairy districts
of England. It gives title to the ancient family of this
name, whose magnificent castle here has been long cele¬
brated in English history. The inhabitants amounted in
1801 to 658, in 1811 to 716, and in 1821 to 836.
BERKHAMSTEAD, Great, a market-town of the
hundred of Dacorum, in the county of Hertford, twenty-
4 e
586 B E R B E R
Berkofd- seven miles from London. It is situated in a valley
scha through which the Grand Junction Canal is carried, and
.p II the river Colne passes. The chief employment is making
straw plait, and some thread lace. The inhabitants amount-
^ ed in 1801 to 1690, in 1811 to 1963, and in 1821 to 2310.
BERKOFDSCHA or Bergovacs, a city of the govern¬
ment of Sofia, in Turkey in Europe. It is situated on the
south side of the Balkan Mountains, near to the celebrat¬
ed mine of Kerus, and has 2300 inhabitants.
BERKSHIRE, an English inland county, bounded on
the north by Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, from
which it is separated by the Thames; on the east by
Surrey; on the south by Hampshire; and on the west by
Wiltshire. At the north-eastern corner this county comes
slightly in contact with Gloucestershire. It is of a very
irregular figure, its whole northern side being bounded
by the sinuosities of the river Thames, which, taking a
southern course from Oxford, almost cuts this county
asunder at Reading. From east to west it extends about
forty-two miles; from north to south, in its widest part, it
is about twenty-eight miles; but in its narrowest it is not
more than seven. Its extent is about 756 square miles,
or 483,840 statute acres.
The face of the country is generally level, but undulat¬
ing, though on some parts, and those near the Thames,
the hills rise rather abruptly, and give diversity and beauty
to the scenery. This is especially the case near Earring-
don, and on the opposite corner of the county near Wind¬
sor. A ridge of chalk hills runs from Oxfordshire west¬
ward, and bounds the vale of White-horse. It is need¬
less to advert to the beauties of Windsor forest, since they
have been immortalized in song by Pope, at a time when
they were far inferior to their present appearance. The
south and east sides of the county are well wooded, but
the trees are not generally of great size nor of the most
valuable or picturesque kind.
The agriculture of the county varies much from its lo¬
cality. On the gravelly soils, though good barley is raised
after turnips, it is liable to suffer in dry seasons. Wheat
and beans are well cultivated, and the facilities of water-
carriage contribute to bring much manure from London
and other distant parts; whilst a species of peat found on
the banks of the Kennet yields ashes that are of great
value to the soils near that river. More than one half of
the land is calculated to be under tillage, about one quar¬
ter is pasturage, and the remainder consists of woodlands
or uncultivated heaths, affording only scanty food for
sheep.
Few parts of England are better supplied with the fa¬
cilities of water communication than the county of Berks.
It is connected by means of the Thames, which runs
round or through it, on one hand with London and the sea,
and on the other with the Severn at two separate points
on that river; one through the Thames and Severn canal,
with Gloucester; the other through the river Kennet and
the Kennet and Avon Canal, with Bath and Bristol. Be¬
sides the navigable rivers, it enjoys the benefit of the
M ilts and Berks Canal, which connects the Thames at
Abingdon with the Avon at Trowbridge, in Wiltshire, and
communicates with the Kennet and Aron Canal. The
other rivers, which all finally fall into the Thames, are the
Ock, the Loddon, the Auburn, and the Lambourn.
The woollen manufacture was introduced into this
county under the Tudors ; and the story of the celebrated
clothier, Jack of Newbury, has been handed down to the
peiiod when the establishments founded by him have
passed to the northern parts of the kingdom. At Abing¬
don some linen manufactures still linger. The copper
smelted in Wales is conveyed to some large mills near
Marlow, where it is rolled into sheets for coppering ves¬
sels. There are some few paper-mills near Newbury, TheBer •
chief commerce of the county consists in the sale of its "w ^
agricultural produce, and some transit trade, from being
in the way of inland navigation between the two greatest
English rivers, the Thames and the Severn.
The civil division of the county is into twenty hundreds
containing ten market-towns and 148 parishes. In the
clerical division it is in the diocese of Salisbury and the
archdeaconry of Berks. It is on the Oxford judicial cir-
cuit, and the assizes are held alternately at Reading and
Abingdon. Under the actual system of representation,
two members are returned to the house of commons for
the county, two for each of the boroughs of Reading, Wal¬
lingford, and Windsor, and one for Abingdon.
At the three decennial enumerations the population of
the county and the number of inhabited houses appeared
as follows:—
Years. Males. Females. Total. Houses.
1801 52,821 56,394 109,215 21,195
1811 57,360 60,917 118,277 22,573
1821 ..65,546 66,431 131,977 24,700
The families chiefly employed in agriculture in 1821
were 14,769; those employed in trade and manufactures
were 8773 ; and those not comprised in either of the pre¬
ceding classes were 4158.
From the vicinity to the metropolis, the salubrity of the
climate, and the general beauty of the country, few counties
have more numerous, magnificent, and convenient seats of
the nobility and gentry than are to be found in Berkshire.
Among these stands pre-eminent the royal castle of Wind¬
sor, the favourite residence of our monarchs during many
centuries ; for although it was chiefly rebuilt in the reign of
Edward III., it was originally constructed by William the
Conqueror, soon after he had attained the sovereign power
in England. It is built on the summit of a hill whose base
is washed by the Thames, and is a prominent object of ad¬
miration from an extensive surrounding district. But as a
description of this castle, of St George’s chapel, the bury-
ing-place of our kings, and of the great and small parks,
will be much more appropriate under the head of Wind¬
sor, the reader is accordingly referred to that article.
The other more distinguished residences are Caversham,
near Reading, belonging to Mr Marsac, formerly to Lord
Cadogan. It is an elegant structure, on an eminence over¬
looking the Thames. Benham House, the seat of Lord
Craven, is a simple and beautiful building, ornamented
with woods, forming a pleasing contrast with the subja¬
cent valley. Park Place, near Henley, built by the late
General Conway, possesses high attractions from the beau¬
ty and variety of the grounds, and the prospects command¬
ed by them. Basildon House, on the banks of the Thames,
between Reading and Wallingford, is a most superb man¬
sion, erected by the late Sir Francis Sykes. The other
seats deserving of mention are, Hare Hatch, Sir M.
Ximenes ; Sunning, R. Palmer, Esq.; Coley Park, Mr
Monck; Englefield Flouse, Mr Benyon; Dornington Cas¬
tle, Colonel Stead; Ramsbury House, Sir Francis Bur-
dett; Barton Court, Mr Dundas, Chilton Lodge, Mr
Pearce; Pusey House, Mr Pusey; Buscot Park, Mr
Loveden Loveden; and Buckland, Sir G. Throckmorton.
Antiquities, both Roman and Saxon, are numerous in
various parts of this county. The Watling Street road ot
the former people enters Berkshire from Bedfordshire at
the village of Streatley, and leaves it at Newbury. Another
Roman road passes from Reading to Newbury, where it
divides into two branches, one passing to Marlborough
in Wiltshire, and the other to Cirencester in Glouces¬
tershire. A branch of the Icknield Street road passes
from Wallingford to Wantage. Near Wantage is a Roman
camp, of a quadrangular form; and there are other re-
B E R
Berk «
mains of encampments at East Hampstead, near Woking¬
ham, near White-horse Hill, near Pusey, and at Sinodun
Hill, near Wallingford. At Lawrence Waltham there is a
Roman fort, and near Denchworth a fortress said to have
been built by Canute the Dane, called Cherbury Castle.
Dragon Hill is supposed to have been the burying-place
of a British prince called Uter Pendragon, and near to it
is Uffington Castle, supposed to be of Danish construc¬
tion. On White-horse Hill, in the same vicinity, is the
rude figure of what is called a horse, although it bears a
greater resemblance to a greyhound. It has been formed
by cutting away the turf and leaving the chalk bare. It is
said to occupy near an acre of land, and to have been
executed by Alfred to celebrate a victory over the Danes
in the reign of his brother Ethelred, in the year 872.
Berkshire comprehended the principality inhabited by
the Atrebates, a tribe of people who originally migrated
from Gaul before the island was divided into Roman pro¬
vinces. Under that nation it formed part of Britannia
Prima, and during the Saxon heptarchy was included in
the kingdom of West Saxony. When Alfred divided the
county into shires, hundreds, and parishes, it obtained the
name of Berocscire, which subsequently changed to that
which it now bears. It was frequently the scene of mili¬
tary operations from the time of Offa down to the troubles
in the reign of Charles I. During the civil war two
battles were fought at Newbury. In 1643, after a siege,
Reading was taken by the parliament forces, and the roy¬
alist party expelled from the whole of the county except
Wallingford.
Mineral springs are found at Cumner and Sunninghill,
and at the latter are establishments for the reception of
visitants. There is a strong chalybeate called Gorrick
Well, near Luckley House, and some springs near Wind¬
sor of the nature of the Epsom waters.
The following are the principal towns in this county,
with their population in 1821:—Reading, 12,867; Newbury,
5347; Thatcham, 3677 ; Wokingham, 2490 ; Wallingford,
2093; Windsor, 5698; Abingdon, 5137; Wantage, 2560;
Farringdon, 2271.
BERLIN, the capital of the Prussian dominions, as well
as of the province of Brandenburg. It is built on both
sides of the navigable river Spree, which is divided in
its course into several branches, over which are bridges
connecting together the several parts of the city. It is
divided into eight different quarters, and surrounded with
a wall, but too weak to be useful for defensive purposes,
and only adapted to the purposes of civic revenue. It is
a beautifully built city, with broad streets, though as bad¬
ly paved as in other continental places; and most of the
houses are magnificent. The public buildings, such as
the university, the schloss or royal palace, the opera-house,
the guard-house, the mint, and the palace of Monbijoux,
are quite equal to those in other capitals. The gates are
very elegant, especially that leading to the park, called the
Brandenburg gate, which is an exact copy of the propy-
laeum at Athens, and in the centre of which is again placed
the chariot and horses which the French carried to Paris
in 1807. The public walks, especially the Linden, are
laid out with great taste; and the environs, in spite of a
naturally poor soil, are cultivated so as to produce a very
pleasing effect. Berlin is the chief seat of the science
and learning of Prussia, and indeed of Germany. These
are fostered by the university, by the valuable public li¬
braries, and collections of the various objects of natural
history and antiquities, by the several learned societies,
and by the protection of the monarch and of the royal
family. Tlie hospitals and other charitable institutions
are very numerous and well regulated, and afford excel-
ent means of furnishing instruction to medical pupils.
B E It 587
Berlin is an industrious manufacturing place, and pro- Berlin
duces silk, woollen, and cotton goods, of good quality. ||
Paper, glass, porcelain, chemical preparations, musical Bermudas:-
and mathematical instruments, and other commodities,
forming a large mass, are also made within the city. The
number of inhabitants in 1817 was 182,387, of whom
174,428 were Protestants. They have since increased,
and at the end of 1826 amounted to 231,650. Long. 13.
15. 25. E. Lat. 52. 31. 30. N.
Berlin, a sort of vehicle, of the chariot kind, taking
its name from the city of Berlin, in Germany; though
some attribute the invention of it to the Italians, and de¬
rive the word from berlina, a name given by them to a sort
of stage, on which persons are exposed to public shame.
The berlin is a very convenient machine to travel in, being
lighter, and less apt to be overturned, than a chariot. The
body of it is hung high, on shafts, by leathern braces;
and there is a kind of stirrup or footstool for the conveni¬
ence of getting into it. Instead of side-windows, some
have screens to let down in bad and draw up in good
weather.
BERME, in Fortification, a space of ground left at the
foot of the rampart, on the side next the country, designed
to receive the ruins of the rampart, and prevent their fill¬
ing up the fosse. It is sometimes palisadoed for the great¬
er security, and in Holland it is generally planted with a
quickset hedge. It is also called liziere, relais, foreland,
retrait, pays de souris, &c.
BERMUDAS, or Somers’s Islands, a cluster of small
islands in the Atlantic Ocean, about four hundred in num¬
ber, but for the greater part so small and barren that they
possess neither inhabitants nor name. The discovery of
these islands, like that of many others of greater note, re¬
sulted from shipwreck. Juan Bermudas, a Spaniard, whose
name they now bear, when on a voyage from Old Spain to
Cuba with a cargo of hogs, was here wrecked about the
year 1522. Henry May, an Englishman, suffered the same
fate in 1593 ; and lastly, Sir George Somers shared the des¬
tiny of the two preceding navigators in 1609. Sir George
was the first who established a settlement upon them, and,
from his indefatigable labours in furtherance of this ob¬
ject, it is due to his memory that his name should be for
ever identified with them. Sir George, however, died
before he had fully accomplished his design of coloniza¬
tion ; but a company of one hundred and twenty persons
was formed in Virginia, sixty of whom, under the com¬
mand of Mr Henry More, proceeded to the island. Eng¬
land also, during his government, sent out supplies both
of provisions and men; and the work of cultivation was
prosecuted with vigour and success.
An accession of inhabitants was gained during the civil
wars, many having sought a refuge from the tyranny of
the ruling party in this distant sanctuary; and at this time
also the population was at the highest. The aixhives of
the colony present nothing worthy of notice after the
period here referred to; tradition only handing down a suc¬
cession of quarrels between the governors and the people.
Of the vast number of islands composing this archi¬
pelago, not above twelve are inhabited. The names of
the principal of these are St George, Hamilton, St David,
Cooper, Ireland, Somerset, Nonsuch, and Long and Bird
Islands. These are closely connected, and in their cha¬
racteristic features so similar, that they may be consider¬
ed and described as one island. The coast is of the most
dangerous description, being thickly studded with rocks,
which appear and disappear with the ebb and flow of the
tide; and a landing is never attempted without a pilot.
The extreme length of the colony, from St Catherine’s
Point on St George’s, to the western extremity of Bermu¬
das, is not more than twenty miles; but the road continues
588 B E R
Bermudas, round the Great Sound to the north-east point of Somer-
set, making the distance twenty-four miles. The greatest
breadth from north to south by land is about one mile
and a half, and the whole contains a superficies of 12,161
acres, of which not so much as one tenth is ever disturb¬
ed by spade or plough. The appearance of Bermudas at
first sight is highly romantic, and apparently a fitting
place for the scene of such a drama as the Tempest.
But a closer inspection does not justify the first impres¬
sion, and the prospect becomes very monotonous. Broad
fields of barren rock, and tracts of evergreen cedar, are
scattered over the whole island, which is also traversed
by numerous sheets of salt water. There are a great
number of caves, some of which pierce far into the land,
and beautiful varieties of stalactites and stalagmites fret
these subterranean halls. Bermudas is miserably behind
in agriculture, although capable of producing all varie¬
ties of vegetables. In 1827 there was only one plough
in the whole colony, the spade being in more general re¬
quest. This neglect of internal resources may be ascrib¬
ed to the facility with which supplies are received from
America, and also to the great varieties of excellent fish
with which the shores abound, withdrawing the attention
of numbers of the lower orders from the cultivation of the
soil. The whale is an annual visitor of the coast; the fishing
of which being a lucrative employment, is another induce¬
ment to neglect the spade. The soil is very fertile in the
growth of esculent plants and roots, such as potatoes,
onions, cabbages, carrots, turnips, peas, French beans, &c.
Pumpkins and melons also grow luxuriantly, but they are
easily destroyed by the blighting winds of the climate.
The citron, sour orange, lemon, and lime, grow spontane¬
ously in great luxuriance; but the apple and the peach
arrive at no perfection. The climate is well adapted for
the grape, but the inhabitants appear to be bad horticul¬
turists, and pay no attention to the cultivation of this
fruit. Medicinal plants, such as castor, aloe, and jalap,
grow to great perfection without culture ; and coffee, in¬
digo, cotton, and tobacco, are also spontaneous products.
A great quantity of arrow-root is raised, which is consi¬
dered of first-rate quality. Almost all the occupiers of
land sow a small quantity of barley; but the novel man¬
ner of reaping gives it rather an unfavourable idea of the
state of agriculture in that quarter. An old woman fur¬
nished with a basket and a pair of scissors cuts off the
heads of the grain, leaving the stalk erect, which is after¬
wards converted into bonnets. Few oxen or sheep are
reared in the colony, these being supplied from our North
American dominions. Every species of domestic poultry
excepting geese is extensively propagated. Bermudas
possesses no fresh-water streams, and only a few wells,
the water of which is brackish; but there are a great
many tanks, which fill during the rainy season, and afford
the principal supply of water. Vegetation is very rapid
on these islands, there being but little variety of tempe¬
rature in the different seasons. Spring may be said never
to forsake them, and accordingly the fields and forests
are clad with a mantle of perpetual green. The climate,
however, is by no means healthy, and only a short resi¬
dence is necessary to cause the germs of constitutional
disease to appear. The yellow fever also visits them, and
typhus has lately made its appearance. Storms of thun¬
der and lightning are not unfrequent, and hurricanes more
or less violent generally pay an autumnal visit. The in¬
habitants foretell the approach of these by the appear-
a halo round the moon which precedes them.
I here are only two small towns in Bermudas, St George’s
and Hamilton, each of which has a mayor and other civic
officers. I he former was the capital until Sir James
Lockburn removed the senate and courts of justice to
B E R
Hamilton, which being centrally situated, is much more Bei
convenient. There is little display of architectural taste ' ^
in these places, the buildings being both disproportioned
and irregularly huddled together. They are built of sand¬
stone, veins of which are everywhere found. Limestone
is also abundant. There are three signal stations, one at
St George’s, another at Mount Langton, and a third at
Gibb’s Hill, at each of which a small party of soldiers is
stationed. A detachment of engineers and two companies
of the line are stationed on Ireland Island. A dock-yard
and several other public works have been lately built, for
the erection of which 700 convicts were sent out. A su¬
perb mansion for the naval commissioner has also lately
been erected. The church establishment at Bermudas is
composed of one archdeacon, four rectors, and a curate,
exclusive of the chaplain of the dock-yard. Schoolmasters
from England are in general request, and handsome emo¬
luments are held out to them. The laws of Bermudas are
enacted by the governor and council, and the house of
assembly, subject to the approval and confirmation of the
government at home ; the constitution in this, as in other
respects, being similar to that of our other colonies in the
western hemisphere.
The population of Bermudas amounts to about 10,000,
of which nearly the one half are slaves. The imports
amount to about L.l 1,000, and the exports to L.35,000
annually. It is 1200 leagues distant from the Madeiras,
400 from Hispaniola, and 200 from Cape Hatteras in Ca¬
rolina, which is the nearest land. The north point of
these islands is situated in long. 63. 28. W. lat. 32. 34. N.
BERNARD, St, the first abbot of Clairvaux, was born
in the year 1091, in the village of Fontaine, in Burgundy.
He acquired so great a reputation by his zeal and abili¬
ties, that all the affairs of the church appeared to rest upon
his shoulders, and kings and princes seemed to have cho¬
sen him as general arbitrator of their differences. It was
owing to him that Innocent II. was acknowledged sove¬
reign pontiff, and that, after the death of Peter Louis
anti-pope, Victor, who had been named successor, made
a voluntary abdication of his dignity. He convicted Abe¬
lard at the council of Sens, in the year 1140; he opposed
the monk Raoul; he persecuted the followers of Arnaud
de Bresse; and, in 1148, he caused Gilbert de la Por-
vice, bishop of Poitiers, and Eonde 1’Etoile, to be con¬
demned in the council of Rheims. By such zealous be¬
haviour he verified, according to Mr Bayle, the interpre¬
tation of his mother’s dream. She had dreamed, when
with child of him, that she should bring forth a white
dog, whose barking should be very loud. Astonished at
this dream, which she was unable to unriddle, she con¬
sulted a monk, who said to her, “ Be of good courage;
you shall have a son who shall guard the house of God,
and bark loudly against the enemies of the faith.” But
St Bernard went far beyond the prediction; for he barked
sometimes against chimerical enemies, and was more
successful in exterminating the heterodox than in putting
down infidels, although he attacked the latter, not only
with the ordinary arms of his eloquence, but also with the
extraordinary weapon of prophecy. He preached up the
crusade under Louis the Younger, and added greatly to
the troops of the crusaders. But all the fine hopes with
which he had flattered the people were disappointed by
the event; and when it was alleged that he had hurried
a vast number of Christians to slaughter, without sharing
the dangers winch he had induced so many to brave, the
saint defended himself by alleging that the sins of the
crusaders had destroyed the efficacy of his prophecies.
He is said, however, to have founded 160 monasteries,
and to have wrought a prodigious number of miracles. He
died on the 20th of August 1153, at the age of sixty-three.
B E R
B E R
589
Ben
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Ben
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I The best edition of his works is that of 1690 by Father Bibliotheque Universelle in 1691, Mr Bernard wrote the Bernard,
l’ yfabillon. greater part of the twentieth volume, and carried on the St-
Bernard, Dr Edward, a learned astronomer, linguist, five following volumes to the year 1693. In 1698 he col- !l,
lj anci critic, was born at Perry St Paul, on the 2d of May lected and published Actes et Negotiations de la Paix de
j 1638, and educated at Merchant-Tailor’s school, and St Eyswic, in four volumes 12mo. In 1699 he began the
John’s College, Oxford. During his stay at school he had Nouvelles de la Republiqne des Lettres, which continued
laid in such a fund of classical learning, that, on entering till December 1710. Mr Bernard having acquired great
the university, he was master of all the elegancies of the reputation by his works, as well as by his sermons at
Greek and Latin tongues, and not unacquainted with the Gauda and the Hague, the congregation of the Walloon
Hebrew. On his settling in the university, he applied church at Leyden became extremely desirous to have
himself to the study of history, philology, and philosophy, him as one of their ministers; and a vacancy happening
and made himself master of the Hebrew, Syriac, Arabic, in 1705, he was unanimously elected to that office. About
and Coptic languages; after which he turned his attention the same time Mr de Valder, professor of philosophy and
to the study of the mathematics under Dr Wallis. Hav- mathematics at Leyden, having resigned his situation,
ing successively taken the degrees of bachelor and master Mr Bernard was appointed his successor ; and the univer-
of arts, and afterwards that of bachelor of divinity, he sity presented him with the degrees of doctor in philoso-
went to Leyden to consult several oriental manuscripts phy and master of arts. His public and private lectures
left to the university there by Joseph Scaliger and Levi- occupied the greater part of his time; yet he did not
nus Warnerus. At his return to Oxford he collated and neglect his pastoral function, but composed his sermons
examined the most valuable manuscripts in the Bodleian with great care, and also wrote two excellent treatises,
library; and being of a communicative disposition, he in one on a late repentance, the other on the excellency of
consequence became engaged in a very extensive corre- religion. In 1716 he published a supplement to Moreri’s
spondence with the learned of most countries. In the year Dictionary, in two volumes folio. The same year he re-
1669 the celebrated Christopher Wren, Savilian professor sumed his Nouvelles de la Republique des Lettres, and con-
of astronomy at Oxford, having been appointed surveyor tinued it till his death, which happened on the 27th of
general of his majesty’s works, and obliged by this em- April 1718, in the sixtieth year of his age.
ployment to spend much of his time in London, obtained Bernard, St, the Great, a mountain in Savoy and
leave to name a deputy at Oxford, and immediately pitch- Switzerland, between Valais and the valley of Aoste, at
ed upon Mr Bernard; which engaged the latter in a more the source of the rivers Drance and Doria, and forming
particular application to the study of astronomy. In 1676 part of the Pennine Alps. The top is always covered
he was sent by the earl of Arlington to France as tutor with snow, and there is a monastery situated there, where
to the dukes of Grafton and Northumberland, sons of the monks entertain travellers hospitably without regard
Charles II. by the duchess of Cleveland, and then living to difference -of religion.
with their mother at Paris ; but the simplicity of his man- BERNARDINE, St, was born at Massa, in Tuscany,
ners not suiting the gaiety of the duchess’s family, he re- in 1380. In 1404 he entered into a Franciscan monas-
turned about a year after to Oxford, and resumed his tery near Sienna, where he became an eminent preacher,
studies, in which he made great proficiency, as his astro- and was afterwards sent to Jerusalem as commissary of
nomical and critical works abundantly testify. He com- the Holy Land. On his return to Italy he visited seve-
posed tables of the longitudes, latitudes, right ascensions, ral cities, where he preached with such applause that Fer-
and declinations of the fixed stars; Observations in Latin rara, Sienna, and Urbino, applied to Pope Eugenius IV.
on the Obliquity of the Ecliptic ; and several other pieces to appoint him their bishop ; but Bernardine refused the
inserted in the Philosophical Transactions. He also wrote, honour, accepting only the office of vicar-general of the
1. A Treatise on the Ancient Weights and Measures; 2. Friars of the Observance for all Italy. He repaired and
Chronologice Samaritance Synopsis, in two tables ; 3. Tes- founded above three hundred monasteries in that country,
timonies of the Ancients concerning the Greek Version of died in 1444, and was canonized by Pope Nicholas in 14o0.
the Old Testament by the Seventy; and several other His works were published at Venice in 1591, in 4 vols. 4to.
learned works. He was a person of great piety, virtue, BERNARDINES, an order of monks founded by Ro-
and humanity, and died on the 12th January 1696, in the bert, abbot of Moleme, and reformed by St Bernard,
fifty-ninth year of his age, leaving behind him a number They wear a white robe with a black scapulary, and when
of manuscripts which were considered valuable. they officiate are clothed with a large gowrn, which is all
Bernard, James, professor of philosophy and mathe- white, and has large sleeves, with a hood of the same co-
matics, and minister of the Walloon church at Leyden, lour. 'Ihe Bernardines difter very little from the Cister-
was born on the 1st September 1658, at Nions, in Dau- cians, and trace their origin to about the beginning of the
phine. Having studied at Geneva, he returned to France twelfth century.
in 1679, and was chosen minister of Venterol, a village BERNAY, an arrondissement of the department of the
in Dauphine, whence he was removed some time after- Eure, in France, extending over 450 square miles, corn-
wards to the church of Vinsobres, in the same province, prehending six cantons and 144 communes, with 79,813
But the persecution raised against the Protestants in inhabitants. The capital is a city of the same name on
France having obliged him to abandon his native coun- the river Charenton, with 6569 inhabitants, chiefly manu-
try, he retired to Holland, where he was received with facturers of linen and woollen goods. Long. 1. 17. E.
great civility, and appointed one of the pensionary minis- Lat. 49. 6. N. _
ters of Gauda. In July 1688 he began a political publi- BERNBURG, a city, the capital of the duchy of Anhalt-
eation entitled Histoire Abregee de VEurope, which he Bernburg. It is situated on the river Saale, by which it is.
continued monthly till December 1688. In 1692 he be- divided into two parts. It is the seat of the ducal courts of
gan his Lettres Historiques, containing an account of the judicature, revenue, and other branches of administration,
roost important transactions in Europe, with suitable re- The sovereign residence or castle is on an elevation, sur-
flections; and he carried on this work, which wras also rounded with deep ditches, below which are the guldens
Published monthly, till the end of the year 1698. It was and a fine orangery. It is a neat well-built capital in
afterwards continued by other hands, and consists of a miniature, with a college, a mint, a gymnasium, orphan-
great number of volumes. Mr le Clerc having left off his house, and other public buildings. It has some trade m
590
BEE
BEE
Berncastel brewing, in making snufF, earthenware, and ironmongery.
I! It contains 5130 inhabitants. Long. 11. 39. 23. E. Lat.
Bernenu 51. 47. 55. N.
BERNCASTEL, a circle in the Prussian government
of Treves, extending over 211 square miles, or 135,040
acres. It contains one town and sixty-six communes,
with 32,726 inhabitants. The northern part is moun¬
tainous and woody; the southern, on the banks of the
Moselle, is fruitful in corn, wine, and fruit. The town,
which confers a name on the circle, stands on the Moselle,
and contains 1571 inhabitants.
BERNE, one of the largest cantons of the Swiss confe¬
deration. It extends over 3690 square miles, a great part
of which surface is too mountainous to be habitable. Some
of the most lofty elevations of the Alps are within the
canton, among which are the Finsterahorn, 13,234 feet;
the Jungfrau, 12,872 feet; the Monk, 12,606 feet; the
Schreckhorn, 12,560 feet; the Eiger, 12,268 feet; the
Wetterhorn, 11,453 feet; the Altels, 11,430 feet; and the
Doldenhorn, 11,287 feet. The summits of these mountains
are covered with snow throughout the whole year. There
are numerous other mountains, varying in height from 4000
to 8000 feet, free from snow during only the short space
of the few hottest months of the year. There are also se¬
veral internal lakes, some of them at the height of from
1200 to 1800 feet above the level of the sea. The chief
river is the Aar, which receives the water from the other
streams, as well as the melted snows. It is navigable,
but, owing to its rapidity, the navigation is dangerous and
uncertain. In the northern part of the canton the culti¬
vation is good, and enough of corn and wine is produced
to satisfy the wants of the inhabitants. The mountainous
districts feed cows and sheep, and the produce of the
dairies is abundant. There are some manufactures of linen,
and in one district some watch-making; there is also some
little pillow-lace still made, but no other manufacture.
The chief imports from other countries are salt and colo¬
nial articles. The government is conducted by two coun¬
cils, which are chiefly influenced by the aristocracy of the
capital. The number of the inhabitants is about 330,000,
of whom three fourths adhere to the reformed or Calvi-
nistic confession; there are near 40,000 Catholics, with
several Lutherans, Anabaptists, and other Christian sects,
together with some Jews. The armed contingent of the
canton is 5824, but the adult male population form also
a militia force. It is subdivided into four bailiwicks, of
which the capital forms one, the six largest towns another,
the five smaller towns a third, and the ancient bailiwicks
a fourth.
Berne, the capital of the canton of the same name, in
Switzerland. It stands on a peninsula formed by the
river Aar. It is well built, and, from being on a declivity,
has a pleasing appearance, which is increased by the
country houses in its vicinity being surrounded by verdant
lawns. It contains about 14,000 inhabitants, including
the suburbs. There are some manufactures carried on
in linen and cotton, and some smaller establishments for
providing articles for local and domestic use. The cli¬
mate is severely cold in winter, the city being elevated
near 1800 feet above the level of the sea. It is in long.
7. 20. 25. E. lat. 46. 56. 55. N.
BEli'se-Machine, the name of an engine for rooting up
tiees, invented by Peter Sommer, a native of Berne, in
Switzerland.
BERN E HA, Berner ay, or Barnera, an island with¬
in the island of Lewis, on its western side. Loch Ber-
nera, Loch Burglow, and Loch Roag, inlets of the sea, in-
close a piece ot beautiful fertile land, of about twelve
miles m length by four in breadth; and this is called the
island of Bernera. The above arms of the sea are. crowd¬
ed with small islands, one of which is called Little Ber- B
nera, and indents the main-land of Lewis with long salt- 1
water lochs. On the Great Bernera there exists a toler- llw.
ably entire circle of large upright stones, similar to those of ^
Stonehenge, and supposed to be of druidical origin. There
are also two other islands of the same name; one in the
Sound of Harris, about five miles in circumference, which
is fertile, and contains the ruins of two chapels, severally
dedicated to St Asaph and St Columbus; the other is
the most southerly of the Hebrides, and is small and
rocky.
BERNICLE Shell. See Conchology, Index.
Bernicle. See Ornithology, Index.
BERNIER, Nicholas, an eminent musician and com¬
poser, was born at Mante on the Seine, in the year 1664.
Owing to his merit in his profession he was appointed con¬
ductor of the music in the chapel of St Stephen, and after¬
wards in that of the king. The regent duke of Orleans
admired his works, and patronized their author. Bernier
died at Paris in 1734. His five books of cantatas and songs
for one and two voices, the words of which were written
by Rousseau and Fuselier, have procured him great repu¬
tation. There are, besides, of his composition, Les Nuits de
Sceaux, and many motets, which musicians still consider
masterly productions.
Bernier, Francis, surnamed the Mogul on account of
his travels and residence in that country, was born at
Angers in France. After he had taken his degree of doc¬
tor of physic at Montpellier, he left his country in 1654,
and visited Egypt, the Holy Land, and the kingdom of the
Mogul, where he became physician to the sovereign, at¬
tended him in his journeys, and remained twelve years.
Upon his return to France, he published the history of the
countries he had visited, and spent the remainder of his
life in composing various other works, particularly an
abridgment of the philosophy of Gassendi, in 8 vols. 12mo.
BERNIER’S Island, a small island near the mouth of
Shark’s Bay, on the western coast of New Holland. The
island consists of regular horizontal beds of sand and lime¬
stone, containing shells which sometimes appear at the
height of 150 feet above the level of the sea. Vegetation
is languid ; the chief production being a species of Cyprus,
the long roots of which spread over the soil like net-wrork.
Cormorants and sea eagles in small numbers are found in
the island ; and there are three species of lizards, one of
which measures between four and five feet in length. A
beautiful kangaroo is peculiar to this and two neighbour¬
ing islands, which, though timid, makes a vigorous resist¬
ance in defence of its young, few animals being more con¬
spicuous for maternal affection. Lat. 24. 50. S.
BERNINI, John Laurence, commonly called Cavalier
Bernin, a Neapolitan, remarkable for his skill in painting,
sculpture, architecture, and mechanics. He first began
to be known under the pontificate of Paul V., and Rome
is indebted to this artist for some of its greatest ornaments.
He died at Rome in 1680.
BERNO, abbot of Richenou, in the diocese of Con¬
stance, flourished about the year 1008, and is celebrated
as a poet, rhetorician, musician, philosopher, and divine.
He was the author of several treatises on music, particular¬
ly of one Be Instrumentis Musicalibus, which he dedicat¬
ed to Arrabon, archbishop of Mentz ; and he also wrote
Be Mensura Monochordce. But the most celebrated of his
works is a treatise Be Musica sen Tonis, which he wrote
and dedicated to Pelegrin, archbishop of Cologne. This
latter tract is part of the Baliol manuscript, and follows
the Enchiridion of Odo ; containing a summary of the doc¬
trines delivered by Boethius, an explanation of the eccle¬
siastical tones, intermixed with frequent exhortations to
piety, and the application of music to religious purposes.
BERNOULLI.
Per, E. He was highly favoured by the Emperor Henry II. for his
^ J great learning and piety, and succeeded so well in his
endeavours to promote learning, that his abbey of Riche-
nou was as famous in his time as those of St Gal and
Cluni, then the most celebrated in France. He died in
1048, and was interred in the church of the monastery,
which, but a short time before,he had dedicated to St Mark.
BERNOULLI, a name illustrious in the annals of the
exact sciences, and belonging to a family of respectability,
originally of Antwerp. During the oppressive and bigot¬
ed government of Spain, when the Flemings, like the ex¬
patriated Greeks with their stores of ancient learning, car¬
ried their arts, industry, and genius, to the less enlight¬
ened portions of Europe, this exiled family, driven from
their liberties and soil for their attachment to the reform¬
ed religion, sought first an asylum at Frankfort in 1583,
and afterwards at Basel, where they ultimately obtained
the highest professional and civic distinctions. In the
course of a single century not less than eight of its mem¬
bers successfully cultivated different branches of the ma¬
thematics, and by their personal labours contributed much
to the extension of science and to the diffusion of correct
knowledge over a great portion of Europe. The most
celebrated of these distinguished men were James, John,
and Daniel; but, for the sake of perspicuity, it may be
proper to consider them nearly in the order of family suc¬
cession.
I. Bernoulli, James, was born at Basel on the 27th
December 1654. He was educated at the public school of
Basel, and, preparatory to his philosophical course in the
university of the same city, he received private instruction
from the learned lexicographer Hoffman, then professor
of Greek. At the conclusion of his philosophical studies,
some geometrical figures, which fell in his way, excited in
him so ardent a passion for mathematical pursuits, that
it was not to be checked even by the opposition and en¬
treaties of his father, who wished him to be a clergyman.
Like Pascal, whom he also resembled in intensity of reli¬
gious feeling, he applied himself in secret to his favourite
science, and by his unaided exertions became one of the
most distinguished mathematicians of his time. In these
forbidden labours he chiefly cultivated astronomy; while,
with classic propriety, he chose for his device Phaethon
driving the chariot of the sun, with the motto, Invito
patre sidera verso.
In the spring of 1676 he visited Geneva on his way to
the south of France, and subsequently extended his tra¬
vels to England and Holland, without however relinquish¬
ing the studies of his choice. While at Geneva he taught
a blind young lady several branches of science, and also
how to communicate her ideas in writing; and he after¬
wards gave to the public, under the title of A Method of
teaching Mathematics to the Blind, an account of the plan
he had followed, which consisted in having recourse to
the sense of touch, instead of that of sight.1 At Bordeaux
ms Universal Tables on Dialling were constructed; and at
London he had the happiness and advantage of being in-
troduced into the philosophical meetings of Boyle, Hooke,
otnhngfleet, and other learned and scientific men worthy
°f the age of Newton.
On his final return to Basel in 1682, he devoted himself
to physical and mathematical investigations; and, in order
o make the knowledge which he had acquired in travelling
available, he opened a public seminary for experimental
j91
physics or mechanical philosophy,9 which, from the interest Bernoulli,
of the experiments and the eloquence of the lecturer, be-
came a source of attraction to his fellow-citizens. In the
same year he published his essay on comets, Conamen novi
systematis Cometarum, occasioned by the appearance of the
comet of 1680, which had excited the attention of all the
astronomers of Europe. This essay, and his next publica¬
tion, entitled Be Gravitate JEtheris, though both deeply
tinged with the philosophy of Descartes, contain some
truths not unworthy of the more correct philosophy of the
Principia. But these, and several interesting papers in
the Journcd des Savans and Acta Eruditorum of that pe¬
riod, were only the preludes to greater labours and higher
achievements.
The pleasure which Pythagoras and Archimedes de¬
rived from their respective discoveries, was perhaps as
vividly felt by the discoverers of the differential calculus.
Newton and Leibnitz being independent discoverers, may
be allowed to have had an equal share in that refined
pleasure, as well as an equal claim to the merit of an
invention which forms an epoch in mathematical science.
But James Bernoulli, having had both the aid of his younger
brother John, and the perusal of Leibnitz’s new method
of tangents and of maxima and minima, previously pub¬
lished in the Leipsic Transactions,3 cannot be strictly called
an independent discoverer; but, from his extensive and
successful application of the calculus, he is well deserving
of a place by the side of Newton and Leibnitz. As an ad¬
ditional claim of merit, he was the first to solve Leibnitz’s
problem of the isochronous curve, and to determine a curve
mistaken by Galileo for a parabola—the catenarian (la
chainette) or the curve formed by a chain suspended by
its two extremities, and which he also showed to be the
same as the curvature of a sail filled with wind. This
curve, though proposed at first as a trial of Leibnitz’s skill,
is of much practical utility in regard to the nature of arches,
and particularly of those of suspension.
These inquiries, like step following step, led to another
interesting and useful curve, which, from being formed by
an elastic plate or rod fixed at one end and bent by a
weight applied to the other, he called the elastic curve,
and which he also showed to be the same as the curvature
of an impervious sail filled with a fluid such as water. In
his investigations respecting cycloidal lines and different
spiral curves, his attention was particularly directed to the
loxodromic and logarithmic spirals; and his discoveries
regarding the last, which possesses the remarkable pro¬
perty of reproducing itself under a great variety of condi¬
tions, induced him afterwards to make it the monument of
his labours and the emblem of his hopes.
Whether in the frailty of envying the scientific honours
of his younger brother, or in the better spirit of noble emu¬
lation, which then urged the torch of truth into brighter
animation, he proposed to geometers in general, and to
his brother in particular, the famous problem of isoperi-
metrical figures, with a promised reward for its solution.
This problem engaged the attention of the British as well
as continental mathematicians ; and however little we may
be prepared to expect such a result in the calm researches
of abstract truth, it gave rise to a most unfortunate family
quarrel. His brother John’s solution being too hasty,
and not quite satisfactory, a discussion arose, which, after
much altercation, became a lasting feud, to be ended only
by death.
s ^.es Sivcms, 1685. Jacobi Bernoulli Opera.
, Lalegium Experimentale Physico-Mechanicum publice aperuit.” Vita Jac. Bern, a Bat.
in ova Methodus pro Maximis et Minimis, itemque Tangentibus, quae nec fractas nec irrationales quantitates moratur, et singu-
e Pro 11113 calculi genus ; per G. G. L. Act. Erud. 1G84.
592 BERNOULLI.
Bernoulli. As the reward of merit, the mathematical chair of the
university of Basel, vacant by the death of the learned
Megerlin, had been conferred upon James not long after
his return from his travels; and, in the discharge of the
duties of his office he was so successful as to attract stu¬
dents from foreign parts, and to have pupils who became
afterwards professors in some of the most celebrated uni¬
versities of Germany. He was once made rector of the
distinguished university of which he was a member, and he
had other honourable distinctions bestowed on him. He
and his brother John were the first two foreign associates
of the academy of sciences at Paris ; and, at the earnest re¬
quest of the discriminating Leibnitz, they were both made
members of the academy of Berlin. His fame, too, was
increased by his posthumous work De Arte Conjectandi,
which embraces the application of the doctrine of proba¬
bilities to moral, political, and economical subjects.
Three years previous to his official appointment at Ba¬
sel, he had been offered a professorship at Heidelberg;
but his union with an accomplished lady of his native city
led him to decline the invitation. In this marriage he was
happy; but his family, consisting of a son and daughter,
though highly respectable in life, possessed little of the
characteristic genius of their father. Intense application
brought on infirmities, and a slow fever, of which he died
on the 16th of August 1705, with all the resignation of a
Christian, and all the firmness of a philosopher. Like
another Archimedes he requested, previous to his death,
that the logarithmic spiral should be engraven on his
tombstone, with these words, Eadem mutata resurgo ; ele¬
gantly alluding, by the properties of the curve, to the
Christian’s hope of the resurrection of the body.
In James Bernoulli were united many of the highest
powers of the understanding with some of the best quali¬
ties of the heart. From a regard to truth he chose rather
to be silent than eloquently wrong; and in religion he
was equally removed from superstition and from free-
thinking. With a bilious temperament, inducing that
“ philosophic melancholy” which is so often the attend¬
ant of true genius, his mind was peculiarly marked by
elegance and simplicity, and by retentiveness rather than
quickness. Like Plato, he combined the elegant exer¬
cises of the imagination with the more severe labours of
the understanding; poetry with mathematics, and elo¬
quence with philosophy.1 He wrote elegant verses in La¬
tin, in German, and in French; but although these were
held in high estimation in his own time, it is on his mathe¬
matical works that his fame now rests. These are, 1. Ja¬
cobi Bernoulli Basiliensis Opera, Genevas, 1744, 2 tom.
4to; 2. Jacobi Bernoulli Ars Conjectandi, opus posthu-
mum : accedunt tractatus de Seriebus Infinitis, et epistola
(Gallice scripta) de Ludo Pilae Reticularis, Basiliae, 1713,
1 tom. 4to. (See also Memoires de 1’Acad. de Paris, from
1702 to 1705; Journal des Savans ; Acta Eruditorum ;
Eloges de Fontenelle; and Biographie Universelle.)
II. Bernoulli, John, was born at Basel on the 7th Au¬
gust 1667. His education was begun at six years of age;
and his progress was such as to give a fair promise of fu¬
ture greatness. Having finished his literary studies, he
was sent to Neufchatel to learn commerce and acquire
the French language. But at the end of a year, re¬
nouncing the enriching pursuits of the merchant for the
less lucrative investigations of the philosopher, he returned
to the university of Basel, where he was admitted to the
degree of bachelor in philosophy. In a year after, at the Be ,uiij.
age of eighteen, he obtained that of master of arts. His -w
thesis on the one occasion was De Igne lambente, writ¬
ten in Latin verse; and, on the other, Que le Prince est
pour les Stijets, written in Greek verse.
In his mathematical education, it was his good fortune
to have the able instruction of his elder brother James,
whom he ultimately equalled in this congenial department
of science. Chemistry, however, as well as mathematics,
seems to have been the object of his early attention. In
the year 1690 he published a chemical dissertation on ef¬
fervescence and fermentation,2 in which he endeavours to
explain the phenomena of chemical action by the differ¬
ent figures of what he calls active and passive particles.
But to have made a juvenile failure where so many have
erred, and where some uncertainty yet remains, can scarce¬
ly infer any disgrace.
In the same year he went to Geneva, where he gave
some instructions in the differential calculus to Fatio de
Duiller, and afterwards proceeded to Paris, where he en¬
joyed the society of Malebranche, Cassini, De la Hire, and
Yarignon. With the Marquis de I’Hopital he spent four
months at his country residence in the study of the higher
geometry, and the resources of the new calculus, of which
he was an ardent promoter, and which he had the honour
of imparting to his distinguished host. But his indepen¬
dent discoveries in mathematics are numerous and impor¬
tant. Of these it may be proper to mention the expo¬
nential calculus, and the curve called by him the lima
brachystochrona, or line of swiftest descent, which he was
not only the first to determine, but at the same time to
point out the beautiful relation which this curve bears to
the path described by a ray or particle of light passing
through strata of variable density, such as our atmosphere.
On his return to his native city he studied medicine, a
pursuit in some degree allied to his now favourite study
of mathematics; and in 1694 he took the degree ofM. D.
On this occasion he maintained an ingenious thesis on
muscular motion,3 in which, however questionable may be
the theory which he adopts respecting the contraction
of the muscles, he displays a happy application of ma¬
thematical principles to the investigation of their motive
power.
At this period he formed a connection by marriage with
one of the oldest and most respectable families in Basel;
and although he had already declined a professorship in
Germany, he now accepted an invitation to be professor of
mathematics4 * at Groningen. By his learned instructions
he endeavoured to re-animate the then decayed state of ma¬
thematical science in that university; and in order to excite
a taste for such pursuits, he gave a course of experimental
physics to the public of that city.6 During a residence of
ten years in Groningen, his controversies were almost as
numerous as his discoveries. An incidental expression
regarding the resurrection, founded on the anatomical
doctrine of a constant change in the particles of the body
during life, brought on him a charge of heresy, which was
preferred by a theologian of more zeal than wisdom.
Both his voice and pen, however, were exerted against
his opponents in vindication of “ his reputation, his reli¬
gion, and his honour;” and in a medical dissertation De
Nutritione, published at the time, he fully states his sen¬
timents on this subject, and triumphs over his enemies
with the resolution of living down such accusations.
2 n^0eta ?uav4S et ingeniosus, orator copiosus et elegans.” Vita Jac. Bern, a Bat.
Dissertatio de Effervescentia et Fermentafwne nova hypothesi fundata. Basil. 1690 ; iterum, Yenetiis, 1721; tertium, Neapoli, 1/31.
Disserted10 Inauguralis Physico-Anatomica de Motu Musculorum. Basil. 1694.
6 rL^TmZC'Tm Pl“losoPhicunh epist. xi. and xii. * Hist, de VAcad. des Sciences, an 1748.
i ner. Ehil. ep. 73; and Disputatio Medico-Physica de Nutritione. Groningoe, 1699.
BERNOULLI.
593
declined till the 1st of January 1748, when he fell asleep, Bernoulli,
and thus expired without agony, or even a discomposing
pang ;6 a death not unlike that of the illustrious chemist
Black, who died with his usual meal of milk balanced in
his hand, as if to show by an experiment how easy his
exit from life had been.
He was a member of almost every learned society in
Europe, and one of the first mathematicians of a mathe¬
matical age. With great warmth of temperament, he was
as keen in his resentments as ardent in his friendships:
a tender husband, though a severe brother; fondly at¬
tached to his family, yet disliking a deserving son ; giving
full praise to Leibnitz and Euler, yet blind to the sur¬
passing excellence of Newton; sincere in his religion,
though attacked by‘a theologian, and eulogised by a free¬
thinker. The graphic if not faultless pencil of Voltaire
has thus drawn his character :
,111 An electrical appearance of the barometer first observ-
L' ed by Picard, and considered by John Bernoulli under the
name of mercurial phosphorus, or mercury shining in va¬
cuo,1 procured for him the notice of royalty, and engaged
him in controversy. Through Leibnitz he received from the
king of Prussia a gold medal for his supposed discoveries ;
while Hartsoeker and some of the French academicians
disputed the fact. If we could suppose the calm breast of
his brother James to have been in any respect ruffled by
this mark of royal favour, it might perhaps be considered
as the remote cause of the family quarrel about the pro¬
blem of isoperimetrical figures above mentioned. But be
this as it may, the problem was prepared on this occasion ;
and we have no desire to use any softening when truth for¬
bids it. Indeed his most ardent admirers must allow that,
in his dispute with his brother, in his controversies with the
English and Scottish mathematicians, and in his harsh and
jealous bearing to his son Daniel, he showed a temper no
less unfortunate for its possessor than calculated to impair
the lustre of his character, and detract from the respect
otherwise due to it. Having declined, during his resi¬
dence at Groningen, an invitation to Utrecht, he however
accepted, in 1705, the mathematical chair in the univer¬
sity of his native city, vacant by the death of his brother
James; and here he remained till death, though flatter¬
ingly invited to higher emoluments in other distinguished
universities.2 His inaugural discourse was De Fatis Nova
Analyseos et Geometric^ Sublimis, which he himself so
successfully applied in investigating the solid of least re¬
sistance, the problem of orthogonal trajectories, and va¬
rious others both in pure and mixed mathematics. Suc¬
cessful in his official labours, at the request of the magis¬
tracy of Basel he applied himself to correct the relaxed
discipline of the university, which was not indeed the
least difficult task which he achieved.
He was several times a competitor for the prizes given
by the academy of sciences of Paris; and his essays
crowned with success were, on the law’s of motion,3 on
the elliptical orbits of the planets, and on the inclination
of the planetary orbits.4 This last honour his son Daniel,
the pupil of a better philosophy than the Cartesian, had
the merit to divide with him ; though the ambitious sen¬
sibility of the old man seems to have been hurt with what
in other circumstances would have afforded him pleasure.
Some years after his return to Basel he published a
valuable essay, entitled Nouvelle Theorie de la Manoeuvre
des Vaisseaux, which was occasioned by the questionable
principles advanced by Renau on the same subject. But
his works in pure mathematics are the permanent monu¬
ments of his fame, and must be studied to be fully ap¬
preciated. D’Alembert indeed acknowledges in grati¬
tude, that “ whatever he knew of mathematics he ow’ed to
the works of John Bernoulli.” If his Hydraulica, one of
the latest of his productions, was written, as has been
supposed, in rivalry of the more original work of his son
Baniel, it can only be considered as a proof of that infir¬
mity from which great minds are not always free.
His health had at one period suffered much, as he says,5
bom those midnight hours of mental labour stolen from
sleep; yet such was the vigour of his constitution, that he
continued to pursue his usual mathematical studies till the
age of eighty. He was then attacked by a complaint at
t'st apparently trifling ; but his strength daily and rapidly
Son esprit vit la verite,
Et son cceur connut la justice.
II a fait I’honneur de la Suisse,
Et celui de I’humanite.
His various writings w7ere collected under his own eye
by Cramer, professor of mathematics at Geneva, and pub¬
lished under the title of Johannis Bernoulli Opera Omnia,
Lausan. et Genev. 4 tom. 4to ; and his interesting corre¬
spondence with Leibnitz under the title of Gul. Leibnitii
et Johannis Bernoulli Commercium Philosophicum et Ma-
thematicum, Lausan. et Genev. 1745, 2 tom. 4to.
III. Bernoulli, Nicholas, the eldest of the three distin¬
guished sons of John Bernoulli, was only a few months
old when his father wrent to Groningen in the autumn of
1695.7 His early indications of genius were cherished
with all the fond attention usually bestowed on a first¬
born. At the age of eight he could speak German, Dutch,
French, and Latin. When his father returned to Basel
he went to the university of that city, where, at the age
of sixteen, he took the degree of doctor in philosophy, and
four years after the highest degree in law.
During these pursuits the study of mathematics had
not been neglected, as appears not only from his giving
instructions in geometry to his younger brother Daniel,
but from his writings on the differential, integral, and
exponential calculus, and from his father considering him,
at the age of twenty-one, worthy of receiving the torch of
science from his own hands.8
Gladly embracing his father’s permission to travel, he
visited Italy and France. In the one he formed a friend¬
ship with Varignon, and in the other with Riccati, one of
the first mathematicians of Italy, and the father of a fa¬
mily in some degree talented like the Bernoullis them¬
selves ; but ill health precluding him from reaping the ad¬
vantages of more extended travelling, he returned to his
native city.
The invitation of a Venetian nobleman, however, in¬
duced him again to visit Italy, where he resided two years,
till his return to be a candidate for the chair of jurispru¬
dence in the university of Basel. Disappointed in this
object by the rather singular mode of election by lot, he
was soon afterwards honourably appointed to a similar of¬
fice in the university of Berne. Here he resided three
years, respected and beloved, and with no other regret
than what he felt on account of his separation from his
brother Daniel; an attachment of kindred minds united
a ^>lss- Physica de Mercurio lucente in vacuo. Basil. 1719.
4 C°nimer. Phil. ep. 214. 3 Dircours sur les Loix de la Communication du Monvemcnt. A Paris, 1727-
* Essai d'une Nouvelle Physique Celeste. A Paris, 1735. i Commcr. Phil. ep. 14.
a Hist, de l'Acad. 1748. 7 Commer. Phil. ep. 17.
(Com pja“Pa(*a nunc tradam filio meo natu maximo, juveni xxi. annorum, ingenio mathematico aliisque dotibus satis instructo.”
VOL. IV. P ^ 4 F
594
BERNOULLI.
Bernoulli, in sentiment and pursuit, and deserving, in truth, the ap-
pellation of “ par nobile fratrum.” Both seemed fortu¬
nate in being appointed at the same time professors of
mathematics in the academy of Petersburg; but this im¬
portant office Nicholas enjoyed for little more than eight
months. In the end of July 1726 he was cut off by a lin¬
gering fever, in the prime of life, and in the opening ca¬
reer of useful labour.
Sensible of the loss which the nation had sustained by
the death of Nicholas Bernoulli, the Empress Catherine
ordered him a funeral at the public expense; and, wait¬
ing at the academy, she presented her condolence in per¬
son to his surviving brother.1
Some of his papers are published in his father’s works,
and the others in the Acta Eruditorum, and the Comment.
Acad. Petropol.
IV. Bernoulli, Daniel, second son of John Bernoulli,
was born 9th February 1700, during his father’s residence
in Groningen. Like his father, Daniel was intended for
a mercantile life; but, preferring a learned profession, he
studied medicine, became a physician, and, following with
hereditary ability and ardour his paternal steps, he rose to
an eminence and fame worthy of his first and favourite
appellation, “ Son of John Bernoulli.”
Taught by his father to regard mathematical learning
as the sure foundation of all science and all practical art,
his attention was early directed to geometrical studies,
though the severity of his father’s manner was ill calcu¬
lated to encourage the first efforts of one of so sensitive a
disposition; but fortunately, at the age of eleven, he be¬
came the pupil of his affectionate brother Nicholas.2 Ma¬
thematics and medicine were equally the studies of his
youth, and these he had the means of cultivating with
particular advantage in Italy under Michelotti and Mor¬
gagni ; the former being an able geometer, and the latter
well skilled in several branches of physical science, as
well as in anatomy. In such society he breathed a kindred
element; and when he left Italy, he returned to his na¬
tive country with well-won literary and scientific honours.
About this time, though only twenty-four years of age,
he was invited to become president of an academy then
projected at Genoa; but, declining this honour, he was, in
the following year, appointed professor of mathematics at
Petersburg. In this situation, although he enjoyed a com¬
petent salary, he still looked back with fond regard to the
humble but equal lot of his native country. And on his re¬
solving to leave Russia, the court of Petersburg not only
augmented his salary, but granted him the half as a re¬
tiring pension, with the liberty of returning if he chose.
This truly generous conduct made him for a time forego
the gratification of a desire so peculiarly strong in a native
of Switzerland. His health, however, allowing him only
to remain three years longer, he returned to Basel, where
in a short time he was appointed professor of anatomy and
botany, and afterwards of experimental and speculative
philosophy. In the useful and honourable labours of this
office he spent the remaining years of his life, which are
scarcely marked by any other events than the calm con¬
quests of intellect, and the communication of valuable
knowledge and good deeds to mankind.
He had previously published some medical and botani¬
cal dissertations, besides his Exercitationes qncedam Ma-
thematicce, containing a solution of the differential equa¬
tion proposed by Riccati, and which now bears the name
of that celebrated geometer. In 1738 his Hydrodynamica
appeared; and whatever may be its defects, it must be
allowed to be at once an original and useful work. The
equilibrium, the pressure, the re-action and varied velo- Ber
cities of fluids, are considered, not merely theoretically, ^
but practically, with reference to the conveyance of water
in pipes and canals, to machines for raising water, and
also as a moving power in different mechanical operations.
Some of his experiments on this subject were performed
in the presence of Maupertuis and Clairaut, whom the
fame of the Bernoullis had attracted to Basel; which, fa¬
mous not only for mathematical, classical, and oriental
learning, but hallowed by the residence of Erasmus, the
pencil of Holbein, and the labours of the Buxtorfs, had
then, as D’Alembert remarks, become to the philosophers
of France what Egypt had been to the philosophers of
ancient Greece.
With a success equalled only by Euler, his fellow-citi¬
zen, his friend, and successor at Petersburg, Daniel Ber¬
noulli gained or shared no less than ten prizes of the Aca¬
demy of Sciences of Paris. The first, on the construc¬
tion of a clepsydra for measuring time exactly at sea, he
gained at the age of twenty-four; the second, on the phy¬
sical cause of the inclination of the planetary orbits, he
divided with his father; and the third, on the tides, he
shared with Euler, Maclaurin, and another competitor,
whose only merit consisted in making a last effort to sup¬
port the system of Descartes.
The problem of vibrating cords, which had been some
time before resolved by Taylor and D’Alembert, became
the subject of a long dispute between Daniel Bernoulli
and his illustrious friend Euler. This discussion, however,
was conducted with that generous spirit which soars above
personalities, and with almost equal claims to praise; the
one, in support of D’Alembert, displaying all the force of
analysis; and the other, in defence of Taylor, using all
the address of a mind fertile in resources.
In one of his early investigations on mechanics, he has
given an ingenious though indirect demonstration of the
problem of the parallelogram of forces; and in other papers,
contained also in the Petersburg Memoirs, he has published
researches of a higher character and of equal utility. His
labours in the decline of life were chiefly directed to the
doctrine of probabilities in reference to practical purposes,
and in particular to economical subjects; to inoculation
as an object of national interest, and to the duration of
married life in the different sexes, and the relative propor¬
tion of male and female births. But in such speculations
the premises often do not embrace all the existing circum¬
stances ; so that we need not be much surprised to find the
results sometimes at variance with nature. His great ob¬
ject however was, in the spirit of true philosophy, to em¬
ploy theory only as a means to investigate the secrets ot
nature, and to apply mathematics to explain with accuracy
and certainty the phenomena of the universe.
By a regular and calm tenor of life, though of a delicate
constitution, he retained his usual vigour of understand¬
ing till near the age of eighty, when his nephew James
relieved him of his public duties. Being afflicted with a
troublesome asthma, his retirement was confined to the so¬
ciety of a few chosen friends. In the spring of 1782 all
his complaints were increased, and, after some days illness,
this excellent man and true philosopher died like his ra¬
ther, in the repose of sleep.3
He was never married, owing, it is said, to a misplaceu
affection in youth. His manners were unaffected, and his
society agreeable. His house, his table, and his dress, had
nothing inconsistent with simplicity. Frugal without par*
simony, and benevolent without ostentation, the wealt
which might have been expended in selfish pleasure or
1 See Vita N. Bernoulli, Com. Acad. Petrojp. vol. ii.
1 Vita Nie. Bern.
See Mtm. de VAcad. an
BERNOULLI.
595
Bern
li. idle show was judiciously employed in forming an endow-
j ment for poor students at Basel. Excluded by his pro¬
fessional character from the councils of the republic, he
however received all the deference and honour of a first
magistrate. He indeed enjoyed an esteem and respect
seldom accorded to living worth. One of the first lessons
which a parent taught his child was to bow to Daniel
Bernoulli. Gratified as he must have been by this flat¬
tering regard of his fellow-citizens, he was yet wont to
mention two incidents in his life as having afforded him
the greatest pleasure; the accidental meeting and indirect
approbation of Newton, and the solving of Koenig’s difficult
problem, while he did the honours of the table for him.
Like his father, he was a member of almost every learned
society of Europe, and he succeeded him as foreign asso¬
ciate of the academy of Paris. Several of his interesting
investigations are contained in the earlier volumes of the
Petersburg Memoirs; and his separately published works
are, 1. Dan. Bernoulli Dissertatio Inaugur. Phys. Med. de
Rekpiratione. Basil. 1721, 4to. 2. Positiones Anatomico-
Botanicce. Basil. 1721, 4to. 3. Exercitationes qucedam
Mathematicce. Venetiis, 1724,4to. 4. Dan. Bernoulli Hy-
drodynamica. Argentorati, 1738, 4to.
V. Bernoulli, John, the youngest of the three distin¬
guished sons of John Bernoulli, was born at Basel on the
ISthMay 1710. Hestudiedlawandmathematics,and,after
travelling in France, was appointed professor of eloquence
in the university of his native city. In this office he conti¬
nued five years, till the death of his father, whom he suc¬
ceeded as professor of mathematics. He was thrice a suc¬
cessful competitor for the prizes of the academy of sciences
of Paris. His prize subjects were, on the capstan, on the
propagation of light, and on the magnet. The friendship
of Maupertuis, who died under his roof while on his way
to Berlin, was esteemed by him not the least of his honours.
He himself died in 1790, at the age of eighty. His two
sons, John and James, are the last noted mathematicians of
the Bernoulli family.
VI. Bernoulli, Nicholas, cousin of the three preceding,
and son of Nicholas Bernoulli, one of the senators of Basel,
was born in that city on the 10th October 1687. He is
frequently mentioned with approbation both by his uncle
and Leibnitz in their epistolary correspondence. He vi¬
sited England, where he was kindly received by Newton
and Halley,1 previously to his appointment at Padua to the
mathematical chair which Galileo had once filled. But
neither the classical recollections, nor the superior wealth
of Padua, were sufficient to prevent his return to the free¬
dom and happy mediocrity of his native city. At Basel
he was successively professor of logic and of law, where
he died on the 29th of November 1759. He was editor of
the Ars Conjectandi of his uncle James. His own works
are not published separately, but are contained in the Acta
Eruditorum, the Giornale de Letterati d’Italia, and the
Commercium Philosophicum.
VII. Bernoulli, John, grandson of the celebrated John
Bernoulli, and son of the second of that name, was born
at Basel on the 4th December 1744. He studied at Basel
and at Neufchatel, *and when thirteen years of age he
took the degree of doctor in philosophy. His Thesis, De
Variolarum Insitione, is still preserved in Haller’s Let-
ters. It gives a short history of inoculation, as well as
the method of operation and manner of treatment which
had recently and successfully been practised on himself.
The kindred studies of mathematics and astronomy were
his early pursuits. When only nineteen years of age he was
appointed astronomer royal of Berlin. Some years after,
obtaining leave to travel, he visited Germany, France, and Bernoulli.
England ; and subsequently Italy, Russia, and Poland. On w-y-w'
his return to Berlin he was appointed director of the mathe¬
matical department of the academy of that city. Here he
died on the 10th July 1807, being, at the time of his death,
a member of several of the learned academies of Europe.
He is a very voluminous and varied writer. His writ¬
ings consist of several volumes of travels, besides astrono¬
mical, geographical, and mathematical works. In 1774 he
published a French translation of Euler’s Elements of Al¬
gebra at Lyons, in 2 vols. 8vo. He was a conductor of
some of the periodical works of Berlin, and in the acade¬
mical memoirs of that city are several of his papers on
astronomical subjects. Those for the years 1803 and 1804
contain his observations and experiments on the cultiva¬
tion of tea mays or Indian corn in Switzerland and Ger¬
many, and on its advantageous application to various eco¬
nomical purposes.
VIII. Bernoulli, James, younger brother of the pre¬
ceding, and the second of this name, was born at Basel on
the 17th October 1759. He displayed early talents, which
were cultivated with the greatest care. Having finished
his literary studies, he was, according to custom, sent to
Neufchatel to acquire the French language. On his return
to his native city he studied law and took a degree.
The study of law, however, had neither alienated nor
checked his hereditary taste for geometrical pursuits. The
early mathematical lessons which he had received from
his father were continued by his uncle Daniel, so as to give
new vigour to his native predilection for the exact sciences.
Such, indeed, was his progress in these studies, that at
the age of twenty-one the directors of the university of
Basel committed to him the duties of the chair of experi¬
mental physics, which his uncle’s advanced years rendered
him unable to discharge. But although he filled this impor¬
tant office with satisfaction, both to the directors and to
his auditors, he did not succeed on his relative’s death.
The lot -was capricious, and the voice of public opinion (by
which almost all the important appointments at Basel were
then decided) unfavourable. He had been formerly, too, an
unsuccessful candidate for the chair of eloquence; so that,
with perhaps a conscious feeling of unmerited neglect, he
published on the present occasion a thesis De Sublimi.
This repeated disappointment, combined with the de¬
sire of travelling, so natural and so powerful in youth, in¬
duced him to accept the situation of secretary to Count
de Brenner, which afforded him an opportunity of seeing
a great part of Germany and Italy. In Italy he formed
a friendship with Lorgna, professor of mathematics at Ve¬
rona, and one of the founders of the Italian society for the
encouragement of the sciences. He was also made cor¬
responding member of the Royal Society of Turin; and,
while residing at Venice, he was, through the friendly re¬
presentation of Fuss, admitted into the academy of Peters¬
burg, with the promise of promotion in the course of a
year. In 1788 he was accordingly made one of the ma¬
thematical professors of that flourishing seminary, and in
the following year he married a daughter of Albert Euler,
son of the illustrious Euler. This marriage, which united
names equally dear to science, and, from congeniality of sen¬
timent, promised much happiness, was almost tragically dis¬
solved in the space of two short months. Residence in the
country, and the opportunity of bathing in the Neva, had
given him a taste for that healthful but sometimes fatal ex¬
ercise. Beingan excellent swimmer,he was fearlessly enjoy¬
ing this recreation, when at once he sunk without any ap¬
pearance of danger or expression of pain. He was instantly
1 Com. Phil. ep. 199.
596 B E It
Beroea taken out by his brother-in-law, and every means of re-
il suscitation applied, but without success. The opinion of
Berriman. tjie phySicians was that his death had been occasioned by a
shock of apoplexy. His constitution indeed was naturally
delicate, and two years before he had suffered much from
a nervous fever. His premature death at the age of twenty-
nine was a source of deep regret, not only to his relatives,
but to many whom he had attached to him by a character
open, obliging, gentle, and modest.
Several of his papers are contained in the first six vo¬
lumes of Nova Acta Acad. Scien. Iviper. Petropol. in the
Acta Helvetica, in the Memoirs of the Academies of Berlin
and Turin, and in his brother John’s publications. He
also published separately some juridical and physical theses,
and a German translation of Memoires du Philosophe de
Merian. (s. s.)
BERCEA, in Ancient Geography, a city of Macedonia,
to the south of Edessa or A£ga2, and south-east of Cyrtus.
The people are commended in Scripture for their recep¬
tion of the Gospel. There was another Beroea in Syria,
called also Peroe, and by the inhabitants Beroea. It is
supposed to be identical with the modern Aleppo, which
appears to have been so called from Chalep, the name
given to Beroea by Nicetas, Nicephorus, and Zonaras.
BEROLA, Nuova, a market-town in the Austrian king¬
dom of Lombardy, in the delegation of Brescia. It is si¬
tuated on the river Strone, and contains two churches, an
orphan-house, and 4450 inhabitants.
BEROOT. See Bairout.
BEROOZE, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Hun¬
gary. It extends over 1680 square miles, or 1,075,840
acres, and comprehends nine towns and 237 villages, with
139,750 inhabitants. It is mostly a marshy plain, and
suffers from the heat and moisture of the climate. The soil
is productive in wheat, maize, flax, hemp, and tobacco.
It has none but domestic manufactures, and no mineral
wealth. The chief place has the same name, and was
formerly fortified. Long. 17. 20. 24. E. Lat. 45. 51. 14. N.
BEROSUS, priest of the temple of Belus at Babvlon
in the time of Ptolemy Philadelphus, and author of the
History of Chaldaea, a work often cited by the ancients,
and of which Josephus gives some curious fragments.
BERRE, a town of France, in the department of the
Mouths of the Rhone, seated on a lake of the same name.
It contains 1800 inhabitants, and is remarkable for the
quantity and excellence of the salt that is made there.
Long. 5. 9. E. Lat. 43. 22. N.
BERRE I INI da Crotona, Pietro, historical and
landscape painter, was born at Crotona in 1596, and, ac¬
cording to some writers, was a disciple of Andrea Corn-
modi, though others affirm that he was the disciple of
Baccio Ciarpi. Pie is allowed to have been of as great and
enlarged a genius as most of his profession, and to have
painted more agreeably than many of the artists who were
his contemporaries. He went to Rome when young, and
applied himself diligently to study the antiques and the
m orks of Raphael, Buonarotti, and Polidoro, by which he
improved both his taste and his hand, and distinguished
himself above most artists of his time. He died in 1669.
Some of his best works are in the Barberini palace at Rome,
and the Palazzo Pitti at Florence.
BERRE I ONI, Nicolo, historical painter, was born
at i laceiata in 1617, and became a disciple of Carlo Ma-
xatti, under whom he studied design and colouring for
several years, and attained such excellence that he ex¬
cited the jealousy and envy of his master, who seemed to
: e apprehensive of finding a powerful competitor and rival
in his pupil. He died in 1682.
BERRIMAN, Dr William, was the son of Mr John
Berriman, apothecary in Bishopsgate Street, London, where
B E R
he was born in 1688. He studied at Oriel College, Ox- B
ford, where he took his several degrees, and became cu- ^
rate and lecturer of All-Hallows in Thames Street, andBe oud.
lecturer of St Michael’s Queenhithe. In 1720 he was ^ ^
appointed domestic chaplain to Dr Robinson, bishop of
London, who soon after collated him to the living of St
Andrew’s Undershaft; in 1727 he was elected fellow of
Eton College; and he died in 1750 in the sixty-second
year of his age. He wrote, 1. A seasonable Review of
Mr Whiston’s Account of Primitive Doxologies; 2. An
Historical Account of the Trinitarian Controversy, in eight
sermons, at Lady Moyer’s lecture; 3. Brief Remarks on
Mr Chandler’s Introduction to the History of the Inquisi¬
tion ; 4. Sermons at Boyle’s lectures, 2 vols. 8vo ; 5. Chris¬
tian Doctrines and Duties explained and recommended,
in 2 vols. 8vo ; and other works.
BERSABE, in Ancient Geography, a town in the tribe
of Simeon, and the southern boundary not only of this
tribe, but of the whole land of Israel, as appears by the
common expression “ from Dan to Bersabe,” or, as it is in
our translation, Beersheba. It was the residence of the
patriarchs Abraham and Isaac, and received from the for¬
mer its name, which signifies the well or fountain of the
oath. Eusebius and Jerome say that there was a citadel
and large village of this name in their time. In the lower
age it was called Castrum Versabini.
BERSARII, in writers of the middle ages, means a kind
of hunters or sportsmen, who pursued wild beasts in forests
and chases. The word is either derived from the barbar¬
ous Latin bersare, to shoot with a bow, or from bersa, the
fence or pales of a park.
BERTHOUD, Ferdinand, chronometer-maker to the
French admiralty, member of the Institute of France
and of the Legion of Honour, was born in the county of
Neufchatel in 1727. His father’s profession was that of
architect, and the son was intended to be bred to the
church ; but, having shown a taste for clock-work, an ex¬
perienced workman in the art was got to instruct him in
its principles, and young Berthoud was afterwards sent to
Paris to improve in the knowledge and practice of the art
he had thus commenced. He settled in Paris in 1745,
and applied himself to the making of chronometers, an art
which was then in its infancy. A chronometer is an ac¬
curately made watch, whose chief peculiarity consists in
a piece of mechanism intended to render the number of
vibrations of the balance equal in equal times, at all the
degrees, of temperature to which the instrument is expos¬
ed ; and the chronometer being a portable instrument,
which can be used on ship-board, is by this mechanism
made to move at a constant rate—say at the rate of
mean solar time—so that it shows what hour it is at the
meridian of Greenwich, if the chronometer, at the com¬
mencement of the voyage, was set to Greenwich time;
whilst the observation of the height of the sun or of a
star gives the hour angle and the hour at the place where
the ship is ; and the difference between these two times is
the longitude of the ship. Fleurieu and Borda, by order of
the French government, made a voyage from La Rochelle
to the West Indies and Newfoundlarid, for the purpose of
trying the chronometers of Ferdinand Berthoud, and
found that they gave the longitude with only a quarter of
a degree of longitude of error, after a cruize of six weeks.
Satisfactory results were also obtained from his chrono¬
meters in the expedition of Verdun, Borda, and Pingrc,
which was appointed to try them, together with those of
Le Roy. An account of this expedition is published.
Sully, an English watch-maker established in Paris,
was the first who in that city attempted the construction
of chronometers for finding the longitude ; and this he did
in 1724. In 1736 the chronometers of the English artist,
B E R
B E R
597
r0 Harrison, were tried at sea. In France there were no
e chronometer-makers of note, from the first attempts of
Ben m Sully, till Pierre le Roy and Ferdinand Berthoud, between
! hul f‘, whom there was some discussion about the priority of
^ ” their discoveries and improvements. Ferdinand Ber-
thoud’s chronometers were long the most esteemed of any
in France. Louis Berthoud, the nephew and successor of
Ferdinand, improved upon the machines of his uncle, and
made them generally of a smaller size, so as to become
more portable. And many further improvements have been
made by the English chronometer-makers.
Ferdinand Berthoud was regular in his habits of life ;
he retained the use of his faculties to the last, and died
of hydrothorax, at his country house, in the Valley of
Montmorency, in 1807, having attained the age of eighty.
The principal published works of Ferdinand Berthoud are,
Essai sur I’Horlogerie, 1786, 2 vols. 4to; two Tracts on
Chronometers, 1773; De la Mesure du Temps, 1787, 4to ;
Les Longitudes par la Mesure du Temps, 1775, 4to ; a
Tract on Chronometers, 1782, 4to ; Histoire de la Mesure
du Temps par les Horloges, 1802, 2 vols. 4to ; 1’Art de
conduire et de regler les Pendules et les Montres, 1760,
12mo. In this tract directions are given for regulating
clocks and watches suited to general readers : it has gone
through several editions. (b. b.)
BERTINORO, a city in the delegation of Forli, in the
papal dominions in Italy, the seat of the bishop of the
united dioceses of Forlempopoli and Bertinora. It stands
on a hill, below which the river Ronca flows, and is cele¬
brated for the excellence of its wine. It contains about
4000 inhabitants. Long. 12. 2. 30. E. Lat. 44. 8. 34. N.
BERWICK, the Duke of, was natural son of James
II. by Mrs Arabella Churchill, sister to the great Duke of
Marlborough. He followed the fate of his father, and, af¬
ter the revolution of 1688, went to France, where he was
recommended to the court by his superior merit. He was
created marshal of France, knight of the Holy Ghost,
duke and peer of France, grandee of Spain, and commander
in chief of the French armies ; nor were these honours
and employments greater than his services merited. He
lived in an age when the prince of Orange and many other
great generals commanded against him; yet his reputation
as a warrior of the highest class suffered no abatement
from this rivalry, while the victory of Almanza, which se¬
cured Spain to the Bourbon dynasty, stamped his charac¬
ter as a great and successful commander. His courage
was cool, steady, and equal; and he was eminently re¬
markable for entire self-possession in all circumstances,
even the most critical;—watchful, cautious, and persever¬
ing ; ever ready to take advantage of a fault or an oversight
committed by an antagonist, yet, throughout his whole ca¬
reer, frugal of the blood of his soldiers, and anxious that
it should not, on any occasion, be wantonly or unneces¬
sarily shed. The system of discipline he maintained was
rigid; and although the wants of the soldier wrere scrupu¬
lously attended to, no commander ever punished with
greater severity his excesses.
The Duke of Berwick was much blamed by the more
zealous and violent adherents of the Stuart family, for not
being sufficiently attached to the Jacobite party, which was
that of his own family. But on a cool examination of his
actions, it will appear that his behaviour in this particular
was, like the rest of his conduct, equally sensible and just.
Vlien he accepted of employments, received honours and
dignities, and became a naturalized Frenchman, he thought
it his duty, as an honest man, to become a Frenchman in
reality, and a true subject of the monarch who gave him
bread; and to be or not to be in the interest of the Stu¬
art family, according to the will and pleasure of the sove¬
reign whom he served, and the interest of France, his
adopted country. But when commanded by his king to Berwick,
promote the views of that family, he acted with the great- v—
est sincerity, and took the most sensible and effectual
methods to serve his unhappy house. This the following
anecdote, if true,—and it has some appearance of proba¬
bility on its side,—clearly evinces. After the signing of
the treaty of Utrecht, the Duke of Marlborough, having
been censured by the British parliament on account of
some army contracts for bread and forage, retired into
France; and it has been asserted that his grace was
then brought over to the interest of the Stuart fami¬
ly ; for it is now certain that Queen Anne had at one time
serious intentions of taking measures for settling the suc¬
cession on her brother after her own death ; and several
circumstances made people connect the known wfishes of
the queen with the fact above mentioned. And if the
Duke of Berwick had been, directly or indirectly, instru¬
mental in gaining over his uncle to that interest, he would
have more effectually served it than that body of rash and
unhappy gentlemen who were taken prisoners at Preston in
1715, had it in their power to do. In a word, the Duke of
Berwick w7as, without being a bigot, a moral and religious
man; and he showed by his life and actions that morality
and religion are very compatible and consistent with the
life of a statesman and a great general, and that if they
were oftener united in these two professions, it would be
much happier for the rest of mankind. He was killed by
a cannon-ball at the siege of Philipsburg in 1738.
BERWICK, a county situated at the south-eastern
extremity of Scotland, is bounded by the German Ocean
on the east; by East Lothian on the north; by a part of
Mid Lothian, but chiefly by Roxburgbshire, on the west;
by the river Tweed, and that part of Roxburghshire which
lies to the north of the same river, on the south; and by
the township of Berwick on the south-east. On the south,
the Tweed, in a winding course of about thirty-five miles,
divides it, first, from the part of Roxburghshire which lies
south of the river; secondly, from Northumberland ; and
thirdly, from North Durham. Its northern extremity is si¬
tuated in north latitude 55. 58. 30., and its southern point
upon the Tweed is in 55. 36. 30. Dunse, its principal
town, and situated nearly in the centre of the count}7, is
2° 20' west of Greenwich. Its extreme length is thirty-
one miles and a quarter, and its extreme breadth nineteen
and a half miles. Its superficies is 446 square miles, or
285,440 acres, of which more than one half is supposed to
be arable, the remainder consisting of upland pasture and
unreclaimed moor.
The county consists of two divisions, greatly distin¬
guished from each other by their natural characters. The
first is the mountainous range of the Lammermoors, ex¬
tending inland from the promontory of St Ebb’s, common¬
ly called St Abb’s, Flead on the east, to the confines of
the county on the west; the second is the lower country,
extending from the foot of the Lammermoor Hills on the
north, to the Tweed and the boundaries of the county on
the south. This is termed the Merse, from its ancient
name, the March or Border. The Lammermoor compre¬
hends within it the valley of the Leader, termed Lauder¬
dale, and generally regarded as a distinct division of the
county.
Of the elevated tract of the Lammermoors, the north¬
ern part is in East Lothian, where it is more rugged and
precipitous than towards its southern slope. The whole
range is bleak and unfertile. The summit-level may be
held to be upwards of 1000 feet above the sea, rising at
one point, Criblaw, on the north-west, to the height of
1615 feet. On the south the mountains generally sink
into the lower grounds of the Merse, by an easy declivity.
Here they are cultivated, and interspersed tracts of ara-
598 B E R
Berwick, ble land extend throughout the range. But, generally
speaking, the tract is barren, and productive, for the most
part, only of heath and the coarser herbage. Its soil and
climate are unpropitious to vegetation in a greater degree
than its elevation alone would lead one to expect. In
this respect it differs from the hills around Cheviot on the
southern side of the Tweed, which, at the same or a
higher altitude, are greatly more rich and verdant. This
arises from the different nature of the mountain rocks of
these two chains, but may be partially produced by the
difference of their aspect and exposure. In Lammermoor
the gradual rise of the mountains, and their continuity,
afford little natural shelter. In the Cheviots, the moun¬
tains, springing separately from their bases in a conical
form, protect each other in every direction. The sheep
pastured in this extensive district are partly the Cheviot,
but chiefly the black-faced mountain sheep, common in the
other highlands of Scotland.
The Merse, the other great division of the county,
rises gradually from the valley of the Tweed to the foot
of these mountains. Though presenting from an eminence
the appearance of an unbroken plane inclining towards
the south and east, and surrounded on other sides by the
high grounds, it yet possesses much diversity of surface,
forming in some places considerable swells, and in others
valleys through which the rivers and streamlets of the
country find their way to a lower level. At some parts
the elevations are considerable, as at Dunse Law, conti¬
guous to the Lammermoor range, and at Home-Castle,
situated on an elevation of trap-rock, at the western part
of the plain of the Merse, 898 feet above the level of the
sea. This castle, which forms a beautiful object to the
surrounding country, is merely a slight modern structure,
built upon the ruins of the ancient edifice, which, on the
refusal of the governor to surrender, was destroyed by a
detachment of the army of Oliver Cromwell. The whole
of the tract, from this point eastward to the sea, as well
as the low land to the westward, is admirably cultivated,
subdivided by innumerable hedges, and everywhere orna¬
mented by plantations, pleasure-grounds, and country
seats, and, above all, by excellent farm-houses; presenting
an appearance of industry and rural prosperity nowhere
surpassed, and forming a striking contrast to the wretch¬
edness and habits of plunder by which, till the union of
the British crown, the inhabitants of this, as of all the
border districts, had never ceased to be distinguished.
The rivers of the county are, the Tweed, which skirts
it for about 27 miles, and falls into the sea at Berwick; the
Whitadder and the Blackadder, both taking their rise in
different parts of the Lammermoor Hills, and, after uniting,
falling into the Iweed; the Eye, running into the sea at
Eyemouth; the Leader, which gives its name to Lauder¬
dale ; of smaller note the Dye, the Leet, and, for a short
part of its course, before it enters Roxburghshire, the Eden.
The salmon-fishery of the river Tweed is very valuable,
and has been the subject of many royal grants. Within the
limits of the township of Berwick, it becomes mostly the
property of that corporation. The fish, which are caught
m vast numbers, chiefly near the mouth, are taken to
Berwick, where they are packed in ice and shipped for
the London market.
The geological state of the county, with relation to its
minerals, does not present peculiar interest. Thin seams
of coal have been found traversing the sandstone of the
lower country; but none of a thickness to be worked has yet
been discovered, except in the parish of Mordington, near
the sea, where it is said seams of workable thickness exist,
.is valuable mineral is brought by a distant land-car-
riage fiom the mines south of the Tweed, and from the
Lothians. Limestone is found in various places, but can-
B E R
not be worked with advantage, owing to the want of coal; Be
and the immense quantity of it used for the purposes of ^ v
agriculture is therefore brought by a costly land-carriage
from the adjoining counties. Clay-marl, found chiefly
along the banks of the Whitadder and Blackadder, was
once extensively employed as a manure; but it has for
many years given place to lime. Gypsum exists in small
quantities on the banks of the Whitadder. Shell-marl is
found in different places, and is worked to a considerable
extent in the parish of Merton. Sandstone of different
kinds occurs throughout the greater part of the county.
That at Dryburgh, on the Tweed, is of fine grain, and is
supposed to have furnished the stone of that beautiful
structure, Melrose Abbey. Slate, but not of good qua¬
lity, has been found and worked near Lauder. A species
of breccia, or coarse pudding-stone, occurs in some places.
The outer pier of the harbour of Eyemouth is built, with¬
out cement, of stone of this kind, taken from an adjoin¬
ing promontory, and has withstood for a long period the
storms of the German Ocean, without apparent waste.
Copper has been found in some places. At Ordwell, on
the Whitadder, attempts were made to work the ore many
years ago. Other attempts have been recently made in
different places, but they have been unsuccessful.
Berwickshire has been long noted for the excellence of
its agriculture. This is chiefly distinguished by the judi¬
cious combination of pasturage with tillage, usually term¬
ed the convertible husbandry, under which system a con¬
siderable portion of each farm is kept in grass, and the land
is changed from tillage to pasturage in regular succession.
Great attention has been paid to the breeding of stock.
The short-horned breed of cattle is introduced into all the
lower district, and in many cases into the higher. The
sheep of the lower countiy are the new Leicester breed,
and have been brought to great perfection by the ex¬
ample of many eminent breeders. Farms are generally
large, a common size being from 400 to 500 acres. The
farm-houses and out-buildings are generally substantial
and convenient.
The towns are few and inconsiderable. Berwick, from
which the county takes its name, forms no part of it,
though it is from it that the principal exports of the coun¬
ty take place. The chief town with respect to population
is Dunse. The other towns are Eyemouth, Coldstream,
Greenlaw, Lauder, and some others of no note. Eyemouth
is the only shipping port. The county town, though
otherwise inconsiderable, is Greenlaw.
The valued rent of Berwickshire is L.178,366. 8s. 6||d.
Scots; and the real rent, as assessed to the property-
tax for the year ending April 1811, was, for the lands
L.231,973. 2s. 7d., and for the houses L.8152. 17s. 6d.
sterling. About a third part of the valued rent is held un¬
der entail. In 1795 the rental was estimated at L.l 12,000,
so that it had more than doubled in sixteen years. It is
universally paid in money, and the farms are held on
leases for a term of years; here, as in every other part of
Scotland, nineteen years being the most common period.
The manufactures of the district are inconsiderable, the
principal being that of paper. There are, indeed, bleach-
fields, breweries, corn-mills, and similar small establish¬
ments, but these are chiefly for the home supply. The
principal export of the county is raw produce; and the
imports are coal, lime, timber, iron, and other commodi¬
ties for the consumption of the inhabitants. The grain is
chiefly exported to the London market from Berwick. The
cattle and sheep are driven partly to Edinburgh, but
chiefly to Morpeth and other markets of the south. Be¬
sides the salmon-fishery before referred to, there is a sea-
fishery, of which the principal stations are Eyemouth and
Coldingham.
B E R
Ber, Cl The antiquities of Berwickshire consist in the remains
J of rude military works, tumuli, and cairns; in the traces of
military stations of a later age, distinguished from those of
the early inhabitants by the square instead of the circular
form; and in the ruins of many towns and castles, erected
during ages of unhappy feuds,—all of which time and the
progress of cultivation are fast obliterating. Of the reli¬
gious houses, once so numerous, few remain. One of the
most famous of these, the priory of Coldingham, was burnt
by the earl of Hertford, in his barbarous inroad into Scot¬
land in the year 1545. The abbey of Dryburgh shared the
same fate, and by the same hands, though its ruins yet re¬
main to delight the eye of the traveller. The deep glen
called the Pease, in the north-east angle of the county, on
the road from Edinburgh to Berwick, has been celebrated in
Berwick, North, a town and parish of Scotland,' in
the county of Haddington, situated on the coast of the
Frith of Forth, with a small harbour, but little or no trade.
The town was constituted a royal burgh by James VI.
The population of the parish is 1727, of which about 700
reside in the town. It is distant from Haddington nine
miles, and from Edinburgh twenty-two east.
Berwick-upon-Tweed is situated on the north side of
the river Tweed, about half a mile from its mouth. It is
a borough possessing, with its liberties, which extend about
three miles, many of the characteristics of a “ town and
county,” but it is not, as is often erroneously stated, a
town and county of itself, neither is it within any county.
Berwick being the threshold of the Scottish kingdom in
enteringfrom England, it repeatedly suffered in the wars be¬
tween the two hostile nations, particularly at that disastrous
era when Edward I. trampled upon Scottish liberty. It
was in the castle of this town that that ambitious monarch,
as lord paramount, put Baliol in possession of the crown of
Scotland. Previously to its conquest by King Edward I. it
was the chief or county town of Berwickshire, but it is now
part of the kingdom of England. By a charter granted by
King James I. the town and its liberties, which are incor¬
porated, enjoy many valuable privileges of a peculiar na¬
ture. The justices of the peace are elected by the corpo¬
ration, not by the crown. They hold courts for the trial
of all manner of offenders, and have the power of inflicting
capital punishment; and the English judges of assize have
no jurisdiction there. The civil courts, for the recovery
of debts, damages, and such like, are also unlimited and
supreme, subject however to the revision of the courts of
Westminster Hall. The corporation, consisting of above
1000 freemen, of whom about a half reside in the borough,
are the owners of a considerable proportion of the lands
and tenements within the liberties, which produce an an¬
nual revenue of about L. 12,000, part of which is expended
}n supporting the public institutions of the town, includ¬
ing several excellent schools, and the remainder divided
amongst the burgesses. The town is surrounded by walls.
Hie town-hall is an elegant structure, with a stately spire
B E R 599
history as one of the natural defences of Scotland. .The Berwick
bridge thrown over it consists of four arches; and its roman- II
tic situation, and the great height above the stream below, BerJl*
used to be an object of some curiosity. But the modern
road now conducts the traveller at a little distance from it.
Berwickshire is divided into thirty-three parishes, two
of which, however, are annexed to parishes in the adjoin¬
ing counties; these are Home, annexed to Stitchel in
Roxburghshire, and a part of the parish of Oldhamstocks
in East Lothian. Regular assessments for the poor have
long been established, and in some of the districts have
become very heavy.
By the returns made to Dr Webster in 1755, the popu¬
lation was 24,946. The following table exhibits the re¬
turns for 1811, 1821, and 1831.
150 feet high, in which there are eight bells. The parish
church is a spacious and commodious building. It has no
steeple, having been built in the time of the puritans.
The bridge over the Tweed contains fifteen arches, and
measures 1164 feet in length, but it is only seventeen feet
in width. The barracks, for infantry, form a handsome
quadrangle, and are capable of accommodating upwards of
600 men. The town cannot boast of any manufactories of
the least importance, and it has recently lost one of its main
sources of income, an immense exportation of pork and eggs
to London, which is now supplied by Ireland and the conti¬
nent. The trade of Berwick is at present principally con¬
fined to the exportation of corn and salmon. The Tweed
is a navigable river as high as the bridge, but the entrance
is narrowed by sand banks, to obviate which a stone pier,
about half a mile in length, terminated by a light-house,
has been recently constructed. The quays and warehouses
are commodious. There are two weekly markets on Wed¬
nesday and Saturday; and an annual fair on the Friday
in Trinity week, for horses, cattle, and sheep. The castle,
which once gave dignity and afforded protection to the
town, is a mass of ruins. Berwick sends two members
to parliament. It contains 463 houses. The population,
according to the census of 1831, consists of 3937 males,
4983 females; total 8920. It is 336 miles N. W. from
London, and 56 S. E. from Edinburgh. Long. 2. 3. W. Lat.
55. 46. 40. N.
BERY, or Bury, the villa or seat of habitation of a
nobleman, a dwelling or mansion-house, being the chief of a
manor. It is derived from the Saxon beorg, which signifies
a hill or castle.
Bery. See Beria.
BERYL; aqua-marine; emeraude limpide; beril. This
mineral, as was originally conjectured by Pliny, is a va¬
riety of the emerald, being distinguished from the lat¬
ter only by its colour. The term emerald is consequently
confined to that variety which presents its own peculiar
colour, namely, the rich deep emerald green ; while that of
beryl is given to all the other varieties, as the sea-green,
pale-blue, golden-yellow, and colourless.
YEAR.
1811
1821
HOUSES.
5730
5803
By how
many Fa¬
milies oc¬
cupied.
6867
7165
308
276
OCCUPATIONS.
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Agricul¬
ture.
3124
3334
Families
chiefly em¬
ployed in
Trade, Ma¬
nufactures,
or Handi¬
craft.
2013
1923
All other
Families
not com¬
prised in
the two
preceding
classes.
1730
1908
Males.
PERSONS.
14,466
15,976
Females.
16,313
17,409
Total of
Persons.
30,779
33,385
Total population for 1831, 34,000.
600 B E R B E S
Beryl- Of-the emerald we shall treat under the proper head ; The largest mass of precious beryl known to mineralo- Be ie
for although it be identically the same mineral, it some- gists is an aqua-marine belonging to Don Pedro; it is
times leads to confusion to treat beryl and emerald under nearly as large as the head of a calf, and weighs 225 ounces^
the same denomination. For instance, Haiiy, speaking of Troy, or eighteen pounds nine ounces. On one side there ^
emerald in the first edition of his Traite, says that the are slight indications of the plane of a crystal; but it is
largest crystal he ever saw measured six inches in length otherwise entirely water worn. Its surface is consequent-
and two in thickness, and that it came from Peru. In ly dull; but beneath it the mass is perfectly clear and
his second edition he mentions, as the largest he had ever transparent, and, large as it is, without a flaw. It pre-
met with, a crystal of the same dimensions, which came sents a beautiful pale bottle-green colour, fhe largest
from Santa Fe ; and immediately passes on to a description crystals known are those from Limoges in France, and
of the Siberian emeralds. Now, as Siberia only produces Brodbo in Sweden. At the former place they occur in a
beryl, this circumstance may occasion a doubt whether vein of quartz in granite, sometimes very perfect, and a
the first crystal he alludes to was not a crystal of beryl; foot in diameter; and there is a crystal from the latter
for although Peru and Santa Fe are localities of emerald, place in the museum of Stockholm, which weighs upwards
the dimensions he quotes so far exceed the usual size of of eighty pounds. These large crystalline masses are ge-
that mineral, that it appears evident he must have allud- nerally very coarse in their texture, and present an earthy
ed only to a beryl. This points out the propriety of con- aspect, somewhat like decomposed felspar,
fining the name of emerald to the beautiful dark green BERYTUS, in Ancie7it Geography. See Beirout.
gem, while that of beryl may be bestowed on all the other BESAILE, in Law, a writ that lies where the great-
varieties. These are by no means uncommon. They occur grandfather was seised in fee of any lands, tenements, or
in veins and drusy cavities in granite, and are found in messuages, at the time of his death, and after his decease
France, at Nantes and at Limoges ; in Ireland, in the a stranger enters thereon, and excludes the lawful heir,
mountains of Wicklow and the county of Down ; in Scot- BESANCON, an arrondissement of the department of
land, in the district of Cairngorum; at Schlaggenwald in the Doubs, in France, extending over 560 square miles,
Bohemia; at Swezel in Bavaria; at Brodbo in Sweden; comprehending eight cantons and 201 communes, with
and in the Altai and Oural Mountains in Siberia, where 90,154 inhabitants. The chief city, of the same name, is
they seem to exist in greater abundance and in larger situated on the river Doubs, which flows round it on three
groups and crystals than in any other quarter of the world, sides. It is strongly fortified, being protected by a fort
always excepting the varieties from Limoges. In Ame- and citadel; and is a well-built city, containing many Ro-
rica, Peru and Brazil, there are localities well known to man antiquities, and, partly from its various manufac-
mineralogists. In the northern states a variety of these tures, partly from its canal, which is intended to unite the
have been indicated by the American mineralogists. From Saone with the Rhine, is at present in a flourishing con-
Hindostan some very fine pale green-coloured beryls have dition. It contains, besides the cathedral, eight churches,
lately been imported ; they were found in the district of eight hospitals, and 3293 houses, with 28,436 inhabitants.
Ghellan, 300 miles south-west of Madras. Beryl, there- Long. 5. 56. 26. E. Lat. 47. 14. 12. N.
fore, is a mineral which is not unsparingly distributed BES ANT, or Bezant, a coin of pure gold, of uncertain
over the globe; and it affords one of the greatest embel- value, which was struck at Byzantium in the time of the
lishments to the cabinet of the mineralogist, while it yields Christian emperors; and hence the gold offered by the
an abundant supply to the jeweller for the exercise of his king at the altar is called besant or bisant.
taste in producing some highly prized ornaments. BESHESK, a circle in the Russian government of Twer,
Although Pliny was the first who suggested the identi- containing 16,457 square miles, with two cities and 171
ty of the emerald and the beryl, it was left to Rome de parishes, and a population of 169,500 persons. The chief
Lisle to put this conjecture to the proof. Pallas, who first place, of the same name, is on the river Mologa, and con-
discovered the beryl in Siberia, sent some specimens for tains about 4000 inhabitants, employed chiefly in the linen
examination to that crystallographer, who immediately manufacture. Long. 36. 45. E. Lat. 57. 55. N.
observed the perfect similarity of form between some of BESINGHEIM, a bailiwick, taking its name from the
these and certain crystals of emerald then in his posses- city, which is on the Neckar, where it receives the waters
sion ; which circumstance, joined to the hardness and spe- of the Ens. It contains 2310 inhabitants, and is situated
cific gravity of the two objects, soon satisfied him that in the circle of the Neckar, and kingdom of Wirtemburg. It
they were of the same species. This was one of the first extends over fifty-seven square miles, contains four cities,
triumphs of crystallography; and it was soon after confirm- five market-towns, and thirteen villages, with 27,286 in-
ed by the labours of the chemist. The analysis of this habitants.
mineral is peculiarly interesting, as will be seen by the BESISTAN, or Berstein. In Constantinople, Adna-
following comparative table :— nople, and some other towns in Turkey, they call those
places where the merchants have their shops, and expose
their merchandises to sale, besistans, which are common¬
ly large galleries, vaulted over, and having gates, which
are shut every night.
BESOUL, an arrondissement of the department of the
Upper Saone, in France, containing ten cantons, 239 com¬
munes, with 106,670 inhabitants, and extending over 90o
square miles. The chief city, of the same name, is situ¬
ated near the river Drugeon, and contains 915 houses,
with 5376 inhabitants. Long. 5. 4. E. Lat. 47. 37. N.
BESOZZI, or Bezutius, Ambrogio, a painter of some
eminence, was born at Milan in 1648. He worked for a
time under Gioseffo Danedi, called Montalti, and after¬
wards went to Rome, where he studied from the antiques
and the pictures of the greatest masters. He died at
Milan in 1706, aged fifty-eight.
8ilex 
Alumina..
Glucine...
Lime 
Ox. Chrom..
Iron 
Loss 
Emerald.
>
64-50
16-00
13-00
1-60
3-25
1-15
68-50
15-75
12-50
0-25
0-30
1-0
Beryl.
Silex...
Alumina
Glucine.
Lime ...„
Chrom v.
Iron 
£ S
66-45
16-75
15-50
0-6
.25
rO T3
M O
£ m
68-35
17-60
13-13
0-72
2-S
CD 5
66-5
16-75
15-00
1-0
0-75
BET
BET
Iks:
on BESSARABIA. See Russia.
BESSARION, titular patriarch of Constantinople, arch-
• bishop of Nice, and one of those illustrious persons who
J contributed to the revival of letters in the fifteenth cen¬
tury, was born at Trebizond. He was very zealous to re¬
unite the Greek with the Latin church, and induced the
Emperor John Palaeologus to interest himself in bringing
about this great work. He passed into Italy, appeared
at the council of Florence, harangued the fathers, and
made himself admired as well by his modesty as by his
uncommon abilities. The Greek schismatics conceived
so great an aversion to him, that he was obliged to remain
in Italy, where Pope Eugenius IV. honoured him with the
purple in 1439. He fixed his abode at Rome, and would
have been raised to the papal chair if Cardinal Alain had
not represented it as injurious to the Latin church to
choose a Greek, however illustrious. He was employed in
several embassies; but that to France proved fatal to him.
When legate at this court, he happened to visit the Duke
of Burgundy before he saw Louis XL, which so displeas¬
ed the capricious and tyrannical monarch, that he gave the
cardinal a very ungracious reception, and even took him
by bis magnificent beard, saying, in his Latin patois, Bar¬
bara Grceca genus retinent quod habere solebant; an affront
which so chagrined the cardinal, as, according to Matthieu,
to occasion his death at Ravenna upon his return, in 1472.
Bessarion loved literary men and protected them. Argy-
ropilus, Theodore Gaza, Poggius, Laurentius Valla, and
others, formed in his house a kind of academy, and pur¬
sued their studies in some measure under his direction.
His library was large and curious ; and he left some works,
as Defensio Doctrince Platonicce, translations of some pieces
of Aristotle, orations, epistles, &c., which materially con¬
tributed to the revival of letters.
BESSICA, in Ancient Geography, a district of Thrace,
towards Mount Haemus, to the south of the Hebrus. It
was inhabited by a fierce and barbarous people, noted for
their robberies. Their chief city, Uscudama, is now known
by the name of Adrianople. They lived under their own
kings till the consulate of M. Licinius Lucullus and C.
Cassius Varus, when the consul Lucullus invaded their
country, and, having gained a great victory over them,
took their metropolis, and subjected the whole nation to
the power of Rome.
BESTAIL, or Bestial, in ancient statutes, all kinds of
beasts or cattle, especially those purveyed for the king's
provision.
BESTIARII, in Homan Antiquity, those who fought
against beasts, or were exposed to them by a sentence of
the law. J
BESZPRIM, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Hun-
gary, near the great lake of Flatten, the south-east part
of which is included within it. It comprehends 1517
square miles, or 970,880 acres, and contains one city, nine
towns, and 253 villages, and about 151,868 inhabitants,
chiefly of Sclavonian origin. The Catholics are six ninths,
the reformed two ninths, and the Lutherans one ninth of
the people. The soil is rich, and yields good corn, wine,
tobacco, flax, and fruits. More than one third of the
and is under wood, which provides fuel, and much of it
ts also converted into potash. The chief place, a city of
e same name, is the seat of the departments of the local
a ministration, and contains about 4850 inhabitants. Long.
17. 47. 48. E. Lat. 47. 5. 8. N.
BETANZOS, a city of Spain, in the province of Gali-
*jons*sl!n& of one l°ng street, on the banks of the
andoe, about eight miles south-east of Corunna, and con-
aining two churches, two monasteries, and 2700 inhabi-
BFTL0ng’ 8* 14* 58' W* Lat- 43> 19- 30* N’
vol a su^stance compounded of different ingre¬
dients, which is chewed in the East in the same way as
tobacco is used in other parts of the world, but to much
greater extent. All individuals, without exception of age
or sex, begin at an early age to accustom themselves to
betel, and it gradually becomes an article of such neces¬
sity, that those acquainted with the usages of the eastern
nations affirm they would more readily dispense with their
ordinary quantity of food than with it. Europeans also,
who have resided long in Ceylon or India, contract the
same habit, and enjoy chewing of betel equally with the
natives. Betel, or pawn as it is denominated in Bengal,
consists of part of the fruit of the areca palm, wrapped in
the leaves of a kind of pepper plant called betel, smeared
with a little shell lime; and its name betel-nut is thence
derived. The areca palm is a tree growing to forty or fifty
feet in height, with a straight round stem six or eight
inches in diameter, covered with a smooth ash-coloured
bark, marked with parallel rings. All the leaves, which are
only six or seven in number, spring from the top, and are
six feet in length, declining downwards from a stalk of con¬
siderable length. The fruit or nut is covered with a green
shell or skin, thin, brittle, and of the consistence of paper;
it is of an oval shape, about the size of a small egg, and re¬
sembles a nutmeg despoiled of its husk. When ripe, it ap¬
pears in clusters of a reddish colour, forming a beautiful
contrast with the vivid green of its leaves, and then falls
off to sow itself in the ground. The betel plant is a spe¬
cies of vine, bearing a leaf somewhat resembling ivy. It
is called piper betel by botanists, and is of the same genus
as the piper nigrum of Linnaeus. Its culture, which is
carefully attended to, is managed in the same manner.
Poles are planted in the earth, around which the betel
twines itself, and as it runs up, the poles acquire greater
height also. It is a creeping plant, seeking support from
stronger vegetables, but it is said not to be destructive of
them, like some other plants of a similar nature. Parti¬
cular regard is paid to the cultivation of areca and betel
throughout the countries of which they are natives. Seve¬
ral years ago it was found, on enumeration, that the num¬
ber of trees, probably meaning the areca only, in Prince of
Wales’s Island, amounted to 342,110. The lime used with
the nut is called chunam, and is obtained from the calcina¬
tion of shells, which produces the finest kind. But the
fresh nut must be avoided; it then contains a white viscous
matter, insipid to the taste, and occasioning delirium, like
ebriety from wine, but losing this property when dried;
and it is employed either boiled or raw. The latter under¬
goes no change; the former is cut in slices, boiled with a
small quantity of terra japonica, and then dried. Betel is
compounded, therefore, of these three substances, with
some additions or variations, according to the customs of
the place where consumed; such as cardamums, and coarse
pounded tobacco, by persons of more depraved taste. The
union of the three ingredients is supposed to correct the
effects which each would produce singly; the nut im¬
proves the bitterness of the leaf, and the lime prevents any
injury to the stomach. W'hen combined, the first conse¬
quences are, reddening the saliva, giving a bright hue to
the lips, and, in progress of time, rendering the teeth quite
black. The saliva, however, will not be tinged if the
chunam be omitted; and its pernicious operation on the
enamel of the teeth may be averted by rubbing them
with a preparation whereby they are coated with a black
substance that does not readily yield to any dentifrice,
and preserves them from corrosion. Its medicinal effects
are the dispelling of nausea, exciting an appetite, and
strengthening the stomach. It possesses nutritious and
enlivening qualities, which render it particularly accept¬
able to its consumers. The terra japonica, above alluded
to, is not a universal ingredient; it is used only in certain
4 G
601
Betel.
BET
countries, and is generally supposed to be a preparation
from the areca nut itself. It consists of two varieties, the
one very astringent, the other less so, and rather sweet,
which is preferred by the betel-eaters. To obtain the
former, the nuts are taken from the tree, and boiled some
hours in an iron vessel; they are then removed, and the
water remaining is inspissated by continual boiling. The
nuts being dried, undergo a second boiling, and, having
been taken out, the water is also inspissated, whereby the
best terra japonica is obtained. The nuts are then dried,
cut in two equal parts, and sold. Or it is obtained by inspis¬
sated decoctions of the wood of the keira tree, or mimosa
catechu. A great quantity of this substance is made in
the Mysore, and some of inferior quality in Bengal. Pro¬
bably it is something of this same kind that is prepared
in Sumatra, under the name of caiacamber, and chewed
along with betel to give it an additional flavour.
Betel is not only used as an article of luxury, but as a
kind of ceremonial which regulates the intercourse of the
more polished classes of the East. When any person of
consideration waits on another, after the first salutations,
betel is presented as a token of politeness: to omit it, on
the one part, would be considered neglect, and its rejec¬
tion would be judged an affront on the other. No one
of inferior rank addresses a dignified individual without
the previous precaution of chewing betel; two people
seldom meet without exchanging it; and it is always of¬
fered on the ceremonious interviews of public missionaries.
In some countries it is not uncommon for the guest
who receives the betel from his host, to pass it between
his thumb and fore-finger, and apply his own chunam,
which never gives offence, and is thought to have origi¬
nated in guarding a stranger against the insidious convey¬
ance of poison, formerly too frequently practised in de¬
stroying persons who were obnoxious. Philtres or ama¬
tory charms are still conveyed along with the chunam,
and are conceived to consist of some powerful stimulants.
Mahommedans abstain from this indulgence during the
fast of Ramadan, though possibly not in every country,
as it would be too great a privation; and the use of it
is so interwoven with the existence of the natives of the
warmer climates, that females of the higher ranks are
said to pass their lives in doing little else than chewing
betel. When the Cingalese retire to rest at night, they
fill their mouths with it, and retain it there until they
awake. According to Knox, who passed many years in
captivity on the island of Ceylon, most people going
abroad carry a small box of gold or silver, containing the
ingredients for compounding betel; and the poor keep a
constant, supply about them in purses of coloured straw,
securely lodged in a fold of their garments. The stand
or box containing it is often the subject of elegant work¬
manship ; it consists of silver, gold, or tortoise-shell, and
forms a piece of ornamental furniture in the houses of the
wealthy. It is sufficiently valuable to constitute a present
between sovereigns.
Extensive gardens for cultivating betel are formed in
different parts of India. The soil most favourable for the
palm is a black mould on a substratum of limestone, or
intermixed with calcareous nodules. Here it is planted
in rows, and carefully manured and watered during seve¬
ral years. It begins to bear from the eighth or tenth to
the fifteenth year, and remains in perfection for thirty
years, soon after which it either dies or is cut down.
Some, however, continue producing fruit from the fiftieth to
the seventieth, or even the hundredth year; but the pro¬
duce gradually declines both in quantity and quality. It
appears that a very fertile tree produces at an average 857
nuts, and an ordinary one 600; but this does not hold every¬
where, as there are trees affording no more than 200. The
BET
betel-leaf is either cultivated in separate gardens, where aBete mi
red stony soil on the side of a rising ground is preferred, and ’
plantains or bamboos planted along with the vines, which k
are arranged in trenches to support them as they grow;
or when an areca plantation is formed, and the palms are
fifteen years old, cuttings of the vine are planted near the
roots, and trained up to the trees. In twelve or eighteen
months the leaves of the vine are fit for sale, and in three
years they are full-sized; but in another year they die,
when all must be removed, and young plants immediate¬
ly substituted for them. W'e do not know whether their
duration is ever longer; but in the southern parts of
Canara in India, the gardens require renewal every four
years, and in eighteen or twenty the soil is considered td
be exhausted. These gardens are always surrounded by
a hedge ; sometimes the cultivators are annoyed with the
depredations of squirrels and elephants. The crop of the
areca is produced during three months ; and the nuts being
pulled, are cut into seven or eight pieces each, and piled
up in a heap; then equal quantities of it and terra ja¬
ponica, with a hundred leaves of betel-leaf, are beat to¬
gether with water, and the juice strained,into a pot. This
is mixed writh a decoction of the bark of the mimosa indica
and water, and the nuts from the whole heap are succes¬
sively boiled in it. They are then exposed to be dried in
the sun.
Betel is a very considerable article of traffic in India
and China, and, indeed, throughout Asia. In the British
settlements of Bombay, Madras, and Bengal, the value of
the imports amounted in a single year to L.138,836; and
if the quantities consumed throughout the East are taken
into view, it will appear surprising how they can be ob¬
tained. But, owing to the constant and extensive de¬
mand, the plants affording the necessary ingredients are
carefully cultivated; and multitudes are employed and
subsisted in the production of this eastern luxury, (n. n.)
BETELFAGUI, a town of Asia, in Arabia Felix, famous
for the vast quantity of coffee bought and sold there;
being the mart to which the country people bring their
coffee to sell, and where the Europeans come or send their
factors or brokers to purchase it. Long. 57. 20. E. Lat.
15. 40. N.
BETHABARA, in Ancient Geography, a term denoting
“ a passage,” and therefore by many referred to the pas¬
sage of the Israelites at Jericho.
BETHAGLA, or Beth-hagla, in Ancient Geography,
a town of the tribe of Benjamin. In Jerome’s time there
was a village called Agla, ten miles from Eleutheropolis,
towards Gaza, and supposed to be Bethagla.
BETHANY, in Ancient Geography, a village at the
foot of Mount Olivet, about two miles to the east of Jeru¬
salem.
BETH ARAMPHTHA, in Ancient Geography, a town
of Galilee, in the Persea, which, being walled round by
Herod Antipas, was called Julias, after Julia, the daugh¬
ter of Augustus, and consort of Tiberius. It stood to the
north of the lake of Genesareth, at the influx of the Jor¬
dan into that lake.
BETHARAN, in Ancient Geography, a town of the
Persea, or on the other side Jordan. It is said to have
been called Livias or Libias, in the Greek manner, by
Herod, in honour of Livia (Eusebius, Jerome) ; it was oi
the same latitude with Jerusalem (Ptolemy)and it is
called Julias by Josephus, who always denominates the
Livia of Augustus Julia.
BETHAVEN, in Ancient Geography, a town in the
tribe of Ephraim, and a name given to Bethel by Hosea
after the establishment of the idolatry of Jeroboam there,
but Bethaven was a distinct town to the south-east o
Bethel.
BET
jje i BETHEL, in Ancient Geography, a city of Samaria, on
the borders of the tribe of Benjamin, anciently called Luz.
Beth n. Bethel was properly the place of Jacob’s vision ; and Luz,
^ or Lus, an adjoining town, afterwards called Bethel, the
former name being lost in that of Bethel. It was twelve
miles to the north-east of Jerusalem.
BETHESDA, called in the Greek vgoCa-
nxt], and thence in the Vulgate piscina, probatica, was
the Hebrew name for a pool or public bath, which had
five porticos, piazzas, or covered walks, around it. This
bath, on account of its singular usefulness, was called
Bethesda, rnon n'2, or Beth-Chesda, or the “ House of
Mercy,” probably because the erection of baths was an
act of great kindness to the common people, the preserva¬
tion of whose health, in hot countries, required frequent
bathing. Some, however, will have the word Bethesda to
be fmx rvo, Beth-asda, the “ sink-house,” or “ drain,” be¬
cause the waters which came from the temple, and the
place where the victims were washed, flowed thither.
From the Greek word being used by Josephus
to denote the baths at Jericho, Dr Macknight, in his Har¬
mony of the Gospels, concludes against the opinion of those
who affirm that this pool served for washing the sheep
designed for sacrifice before they were driven into the
temple, and for cleansing the entrails of the beasts sacri¬
ficed there; and, besides, he thinks it inconsistent with
the situation of Bethesda, near the sheep-gate or market in
the south-east wall of the city. With regard to the pre¬
cise nature of the miracle performed here, there has been
considerable diversity of opinion. Dr Mill contends that the
text of the evangelist has been interpolated, and proposes
to omit a verse not to be found in the Cambridge manu¬
script, which originally belonged to Beza. Dr Macknight
strenuously opposes this unceremonious method of inter¬
pretation ; and while he maintains the integrity of the
text, shows that Dr Mill’s expedient leaves the difficulty
which had staggered him exactly where it was. Grotius
thinks that the angel is said to have descended, not be¬
cause he was ever seen to do so, but because the Jews
were persuaded that God brought such things to pass by
the ministration of angels. And Dr Hammond supposes
that the waters became medicinal by being impregnated
with a healing warmth from the blood and entrails of the
beasts offered in sacrifice that were washed there ; and
that the ayyiKot, “ angel,” or “ messenger,” mentioned in
the text, is not to be understood of those celestial beings
who are usually distinguished by that name, but only of a
common messenger or servant of the priest, who at a pro¬
per season was sent by him to trouble the pool.
BETHLEHEM, a town of Palestine, famous as the
birth-place of our Saviour. It was once a flourishing place,
but is now only a paltry village. It is situated on an emi¬
nence two leagues south-east of Jerusalem, in a country
full of hills and valleys, and might be rendered very agree¬
able, as the soil is fertile, and fruits, vines, and olives are
produced in abundance. Several antique remains are
found at this place ; but most of them have been built by
the Turks into their mosques.
BETHLEHEMITES, or Bethlemites, in Ecclesiasti¬
cal History, a sort of monks introduced into England in
me year 1257, habited like the Dominicans, except that
on their breast they wore a star with five rays, in memory
or the star or comet which appeared over Bethlehem at
the nativity of our Saviour. They were celled at Cam¬
bridge, and had only one house in England.
BETHORON, Upper and Nether, in Ancient Geogra-
a town of Samaria, in the tribe of Ephraim, built by
bhera, grand-daughter of Ephraim, and restored by Solo-
nion. We know more of the nether than of the upper town ;
‘t was situated on a mountain, and stood on the public road
BET 603
to Lydda and Caesarea, distant an hundred stadia, or twelve Beth-peor
miles, from Jerusalem. j|
BETH-PEOR, in Ancient Geography, a town of the Betterton-
Reubenites, on the other side Jordan, at Mount Fogor,
over against Jericho, six miles above Livias. It had a
temple sacred to the idol Baal-Peor, called Beel-Phegor
by the Vulgate, and interpreted Priapus by Jerome.
BETHPHAGE, in Ancient Geography, a place on the
western declivity of Mount Olivet.
BETHSAIDA is supposed to be identical with Beth-
aramphtha, to which the reader is accordingly refer¬
red.
BETHS AN, or Bethsean, in Ancient Geography, a
town of Samaria, in the half-tribe of Manasseh, on the
borders of Galilee, about half a league from Jordan, and
having a considerable part of its territory in the Peraea.
It was afterwards called Scythopolis ; and was distant
from Tiberias, on the lake Genesareth, 120 stadia, or fifteen
miles; and from Jerusalem 600 stadia, or seventy-five
miles. It was the largest city of the Decapolis.
BETHUNE, Maximilian de, Duke of Sully. See
SULLY, Maximilian de Bethune, Duke of.
Bethune, an arrondissement of the department of the
Pas de Calais, in France, extending over 346 square miles,
comprehending eight cantons and 144 communes, and
containing 119,850 inhabitants. The capital city, of the
same name, is on the Brette, and is strongly fortified. It
contains 1042 houses, and 6046 inhabitants, who trade in
oil, linen, and cheese. Long. 1. 50. E. Lat. 50. 51. N.
BETIS, governor of Gaza under Darius, celebrated for
his valour and loyalty. He defended a place of conse¬
quence with a few men against Alexander, who was there
wounded in the shoulder. Betis thinking the Macedonian
slain, returned triumphantly to the city ; but in a second
assault he was wounded and brought before Alexander,
who cruelly ordered him to be put to death.
BETLIS, a town of Armenia, in Kurdistan, situated in
a fine and highly-cultivated valley, producing fruit, grain,
and honey. Here the Armenians have four churches
and as many monasteries, and they enjoy more courteous
treatment than usually falls to their lot in Mahommedan
countries. The houses are scattered over the valley,
through which runs an extremely narrow road. The
castle is situated on an eminence, so steep on all sides
that it is only accessible by a road winding round it. Bet¬
hs is an ancient city, founded, according to the Armenians,
by Alexander the Great. The population of the town
and neighbourhood is computed at 26,000 Kurds, Turks,
Armenians, and Syrians. Long. 42. 31. E. Lat. 37. 45. N.
BETROTHMENT, a mutual promise or compact be¬
tween two parties for a future marriage. Betrothment
amounts to what is called by civilians and canonists spon-
salia, or espousals.
BETTERTON, Thomas, a celebrated actor, was the
son of Mr Betterton, under-cook to King Charles I., and
was born in Tothill-street, Westminster, in the year 1635.
Having received the rudiments of a genteel education, his
fondness for reading induced him to request his parents
to bind him apprentice to a bookseller; which was readily
complied with, and one Mr Rhodes, near Charing-cross,
fixed on for his master. This gentleman, who had been
wardrobe-keeper to the theatre in Blackfriars before the
troubles, obtained in 1659, from the powers then in being,
a license to set up a company of players in the Cockpit in
Drury-Lane, in which company Mr Betterton entered
himself, and, though not much above twenty years of age,
immediately gave proofs of genius and merit in the his¬
trionic line.
Soon after the Restoration, two different theatres were
established by royal authority; the one in Drury-Lane in
604 BET
Betterton, consequence of a patent granted to Henry Killigrew, Esq.
v'—which was called the “ King’s Companyand the other in
Lincoln’s-Inn-Fields, who styled themselves the “ Duke of
York’s Servants,” the patentee of which was Sir William
Davenant. This gentleman having long had a close inti¬
macy with and warm friendship for Mr Rhodes, engaged
Mr Betterton, and all who had acted under Mr Rhodes,
into his company, and opened in 1662 with a new play
of his own, in two parts, called the Siege of Rhodes. In
this piece, as well as in the subsequent characters which
Mr Betterton performed, he increased his reputation with
the public, and became so great a favourite with the king,
that by his majesty’s special command he went over to
Paris to examine the French stage with a view to the im¬
provement of our own ; and it was after his return, as is
generally supposed, that moving scenes were first intro¬
duced upon the English theatre, which previously had
been only hung with tapestry.
In the year 1670 he married Mrs Sanderson, a female
performer on the same stage, who, both as an actress and
a woman, was every thing he could desire, and with whom,
throughout the whole course of his after-life, he possessed
every degree of happiness that a perfect union of hearts
could bestow.
When the duke’s company removed to Dorset-Gardens,
Betterton still continued with them ; and, on the coali¬
tion of the two companies in 1684, he acceded to the
treaty, and remained among them, Mrs Betterton main¬
taining the same rank among the female that her husband
supported among the male performers. And so great was
the estimation in which they were both held, that, in the
year 1675, when a pastoral called Calista, or the Chaste
Nymph, written by Mr Crown, at the desire of Queen
Catharine, consort to Charles II., was to be performed at
court by persons of the greatest distinction, Mr Better-
ton was employed to instruct the gentlemen, and Mrs
Betterton to tutor the ladies, amongst whom wrere the
two princesses, Mary and Anne, daughters of the Duke of
York. In grateful remembrance of this tuition, the latter,
when queen, settled a pension of L.100 per annum on her
old instructress.
In 1693 Mr Betterton having sounded the inclinations
of a select number of the actors whom he found ready to
join him, obtained, through the influence of the Earl of
Dorset, the royal license for acting in a separate theatre;
and was very soon enabled, by the voluntary subscriptions
of many persons of quality, to erect a new playhouse
within the walls of the Tennis Court in Lincoln’s-Inn-
Fields. To this step Mr Betterton is said to have been
induced, partly by ill treatment from the managers, and
partly with a view to repair, by the more enlarged profits
of a manager, the loss of his whole fortune, upwards of
L.2000, which he had sustained in the year 1692, by risk¬
ing it in a commercial adventure to the East Indies. Be
this, however, as it will, the new theatre opened in 1695
with Mr Congreve’s Love for Love, the success of which
was very great. Yet, in a few years, it appeared that the
profits arising from this theatre, opposed as it was by all
the strength of Cibber’s and Vanbrugh’s writings at the
other house, were very insignificant; and Mr Betterton
growing infirm through age, and labouring under violent
attacks of the gout, gladly quitted at once the fatigues of
management and the hurry of the stage.
The public, however, who retained a grateful sense of
the pleasure they had frequently received from this thea-
tucal veteran, and sensible of the narrowness of his cir¬
cumstances, resolved to continue the marks of their es-
teen? 5° him by Siving him a benefit. On the 7th of
April 1709, the comedy of Love for Love was performed
for this purpose, and Betterton himself, though then up-
B E T
wards of seventy years of age, acted the youthful part ofBetti
Valentine; as in the September following he did that of n
Hamlet, his performance of which the author of the Tatler Betl “Hi.
has particularly noticed. On the former occasion Mrs ^ ^
Barry, Mrs Bracegirdle, and Mr Dogget, who had all
quitted the stage some years before, in gratitude to one
to whom they were under so many obligations, enacted
the parts of Angelica, Mrs Frail, and Ben ; and Mr Rowe
wrote an epilogue for that night, which was spoken by the
two ladies, supporting between them this once powerful
supporter of the English stage. The profits of the night
are said to have amounted to upwards of L.500, the prices
having been raised on the occasion; and when the curtain
drew up, almost as large an audience appeared behind as
before it.
The next winter Mr Betterton was prevailed on by Mr
Owen M‘Swinney, then manager of the opera-house in
the Hay-market, at which plays were acted four times a
week, to continue performing, though but seldom. In
consequence of this arrangement, in the ensuing spring,
being that of 1710, another play was given out for his bene¬
fit, namely, The Maid’s Tragedy of Beaumont and Fletcher,
in which he performed his celebrated part of Melanthus.
This, however, was his last appearance on the stage; for
having been suddenly seized with the gout, and being
impatient at the thought of disappointing his friends, he
made use of outward applications to reduce the swellings
of his feet, and succeeded so far in accomplishing his ob¬
ject. But although he acted that day with unusual spirit
and briskness, and met with universal applause, he paid
dear for this tribute of public applause; for the fomenta¬
tions he had made use of occasioning a revulsion of the
gouty humour, threw the distemper into his head, and
terminated his life on the 28th of April. On the 2d of
May his body was interred with much ceremony in the
cloister of Westminster, and great honour was paid to his
memory by his friend the Tatler, who has related in a pa¬
thetic, and at the same time dignified manner, the pro¬
cess of the ceremonial. As an author, Mr Betterton had
a considerable degree of merit. His dramatic works are,
1. Amorous Widow, a comedy; 2. Diocletian, a drama¬
tic opera; 3. Masque in the Opera of the Prophetess;
4. Revenge, a comedy; 5. Unjust Judge, a tragedy;
and, 6. Woman made a Justice, a comedy. As an actor,
he possessed uncommon merit; and those who are desi¬
rous of ascertaining the opinion formed of him by his con¬
temporaries may refer to the description given of him
by his friend and rival Colley Cibber, in the Apology for
his oivn Life. The picture is unquestionably painted en
beau ; but the lineaments are nevertheless true to nature,
and the likeness seems on the whole a just one.
BETTIAH, a district of Hindostan, in the province of
Bahar, situated between the 27 th and 28 th degrees of north
latitude. It contains an area of 2546 square miles, and is
bounded on the north by the Terriani, on the east by Moc-
wanny and Tirhoot, and on the west by the river Gun-
duck. The chief towns are Bettiah and Boggah, and the
principal river the Gunduck, the banks of which, and the
district generally, are covered with large timber trees for
ship-building and for masts. A considerable portion of
the country is uncultivated, and still remains covered with
wood. The town of Bettiah is 90 miles N. N. W. from
Patna. Long. 84. 40. E. Lat. 26. 47. N.
BETTINELLI, Xavier, one of the most celebrated
Italian literati of the eighteenth century, was born at
Mantua on the 18th of July 1718. After studying under
the Jesuits in his native city and at Bologna, he entered
in 1736 upon the noviciate of this society. He then under¬
took a new course of study; and afterwards taught the
belles lettres, from the year 1739 to 1744, at Brescia,
BET
BET
60
Bettii
i. where the Cardinal Quirini, Count Mazzuchelli, Count
' Duranti, and other scholars, formed an illustrious academy.
He there began to distinguish himself by some pieces of
poetry, composed as scholastic exercises. Being sent to
Bologna to pursue his divinity, he continued, at the same
time, to cultivate his poetical talent, and wrote also, for the
theatre of the college, his tragedy of Jonathan. The num¬
ber of learned and literary persons collected in this city
exceeded by far what he had met with at Brescia. The
Institute, recently founded by the Count Marsigli, the Cle¬
mentine Academy of Design, the school of the astronomical
poet Manfredi, the growing reputation of his ingenious
and learned pupils Zanotti, Algarotti, and others, at this
time fixed the attention of the literary world on Bologna.
It was in the midst of this society, to which he was admit¬
ted, that Bettinelli completed his education, and attained
the age of thirty. He went in 1748 to Venice, where
he became professor of rhetoric. He left it for various
missions, and returned to it often. We may see by his
epistles in free verse, or sciolti, that he was connected on
friendly terms with all that this city and state could boast
as most illustrious. He was destined by the superiors of
his order for the oratorical department; but the weakness of
his chest compelled him to relinquish it. The superintend¬
ence of the college of nobles at Parma was intrusted to him
in 1751; and he principally directed the studies of poetry
and history, and the entertainments of the theatre. He
remained here eight years, but not without visiting, at in¬
tervals, different cities of Italy, either on the affairs of his
order, or for pleasure, or for health. In 1755 he under¬
took a longer journey, traversed part of Germany, pro¬
ceeded as far as Strasburg and Nancy, and returned by
way of Germany into Italy, taking with him two young
princes, sons or nephews of the prince of Hohenlohe, who
had requested him to take charge of their education. He
made, the year following, another journey into France, along
with the eldest of these two young princes, and lodged,
while at Paris, at the College of Louis le Grand. It was
during this excursion that he wrote the famous Letters of
Virgil, which were published at Venice with his sciolti
verses, and those of Frugoni and Algarotti. The opinions,
and we may add without much hesitation, the literary
heresies, maintained in these letters against the two great
luminaries of Italian poetry, and particularly against Dante,
created him many enemies, and, what was still more un¬
pleasant to him, embroiled him with Algarotti. Willing
to know something more of France than Paris, he made
several excursions into Normandy and other provinces ;
he went also into Lorraine, to the court of King Stanis¬
laus, and thence proceeded to Lyons, and afterwards to
Geneva. Soon after his arrival he went to visit Voltaire,
fhis celebrated writer sent to his inn an edition of his
works, upon which he inscribed this stanza, in allusion to
bettinelli's Letters of Virgil;
Compatriote de Virgile,
Et son secretaire aujourd’hui,
C’est a vous d’ecrire sous lui;
Vous avez son ame et son style.
From Geneva, where he consulted Tronchin the physician,
ettinelli proceeded to Marseilles, from thence to Nismes,
and returned by Genoa to Italy and Parma, where he
arrived in 1759. The same year he took a journey to Ve¬
nice, and afterwards to Verona, where he meant to settle,
e resided here till 1767. Having resumed the occupa-
ions of preaching and teaching, he, according to the Che-
va ier Pindemonti, in his Poesie Campestri, converted the
youth to God in the church, and to good taste in his own
louse. He afterwards lived for some years at Modena,
‘n he had just been appointed professor of rhetoric there,
w len, m 1773, the order of Jesuits was abolished in Italy.
He then returned into his ow,n country, where he re¬
sumed his literary labours with new ardour. He there
published several works, and regretting, as it appears, that
he had wiitten so much in his life without having been
able, till then, to write any thing to please the women,
perhaps in consequence of the habit which he wore, he
determined to make up for lost time by publishing, one
after the other, his Correspondence between two Ladies,
his Letters to Lesbia on Epigrams, his Letters on the Fine
Arts, and, lastly, his Twenty-four Letters on Love. These
he published in 1796, when the war raged in all parts of
Italy, and when the siege laid by the French to Mantua
had compelled him to leave it. He retired to Verona, and
there formed the most intimate friendship with the Che¬
valier Hippolito Pindemonti, notwithstanding the dispro¬
portion of their age. In 1797, after Mantua had surren¬
dered, he returned thither. Though nearly eighty years
old, he resumed his labours and his customary manner of
life. He began in 1799 a complete edition of his works,
which was finished at Venice in twenty-four volumes duo¬
decimo. Arrived at the age of ninety years, he still re¬
tained the gaiety and vivacity of his mind, and died on the
13th of-September 1808, after fifteen days of illness, with
the firmness of a philosopher and the sentiments of a be¬
liever. Without giving a list of all his works, or specify¬
ing the separate editions, it will be sufficient to refer to
them in the order in which they are placed in this last
edition.
1. Ragionamenti Filosqfici, con Annotazioni. These
philosophical discourses, which occupy the first two vo¬
lumes, form a system of religious morality, in which the
author endeavours to exhibit man under all his relations,
and in all states, following the order of the sacred writ¬
ings, and treating, first, of man as created, as reasonable,
as lord of the other creatures, and in all the different
states of solitude, society, innocence, error, repentance,
&c. He only finished ten of these discourses. The notes
are themselves little philosophical treatises on beauty in
general, on beauty of expression, on physiognomy, &c.
2. Dell Entusiasmo delle Belle Arti, two volumes, in
three parts, of which the last is an appendix to the two
others, and treats of the history of enthusiasm in different
nations, and the influence which climates, governments,
and all the modifications of society, have had on enthu¬
siasm. In the first two parts the author, who was not very
subject to enthusiasm, sometimes writes a little obscurely
on it, becomes turgid when he endeavours to be sublime,
and remains a stranger to the warmth which he affects.
3. Dialoghi d'Amore, 2 vols. The object of the author is
to point out the influence which the imagination, vanity,
friendship, marriage, honour, the love of glory, the study
of the sciences, and fashion, have on the passion of love;
and afterwards to trace the influence which it exercises
on the productions of the arts of genius, and of the dra¬
matic arts in particular. The last dialogue, which is en¬
titled On Love and on Petrarch, is followed by the Eu¬
logy of Petrarch, one of the author’s best pieces.
4. Risorgimento negli Studj, nelle Arti e ne Costumi
dopo il Mille, 3 vols.; a work regarded in Italy as super¬
ficial, but which, nevertheless, contains some enlightened
sentiments, and in which facts are often presented under
a philosophical point of view, which is not destitute either
of novelty or justness.
5. Delle Lettere e delle Arti Mantouane : Lettere ed Arti
Modenesi, 1 vol.; almost entirely filled with anecdotes of
literary history, tending to the glory of Mantua, the coun¬
try of the author.
6. Lettere died di Virgilio agli Arcadi, 1 vol. These
letters, which have been translated into French by M. de
Pommereul, Paris, 1778, are, of all the works of Bettinelli,
Bettinel
P Ox
60G BET
Bettinelli that which has attracted most notice. They are followed
II in this volume by Letters from an Englishman to a Vene-
Betuleius. which treat somewhat vaguely on different topics ot
literature.
7. Italian Letters from a Lady toher Friend on the Fine
Arts, and Letters from a Friend, copied from the Originals,
3 volumes, of which the letters on the fine arts occupy only
the first.
8. Poetry, 3 vols., containing seven small poems, sixteen
epistles in easy verse, sonnets, canzonets, &c. Without
ever showing himself a great poet, the author is always
elegant and ingenious. These three volumes are preced¬
ed by a well-written discourse on Italian poetry. Several
of the epistles and smaller poems are seasoned with Attic
salt. Such is the poem in four cantos entitled Le Rac-
colte, in which Bettinelli very happily turns into ridicule
those insipid collections of verses which in his time ap¬
peared on every occasion in Italy.
9. Tragedies, 2 vols. These tragedies are Xerxes,
Jonathan, Demetrius Poliorcetes, and Rome Delivered, a
translation from Voltaire. Prefixed to them are some
letters written in French, and a discourse in Italian on
the Italian tragedy. Some letters on tragedy, among
others one on the tragedies of Alfieri, follow; and the
second of these two volumes concludes with a eulogy on
Father Granelli, a Jesuit, a preacher, and a poet, author of
some tragedies, which are in much esteem, particularly for
the elegance and beauty of the style.
10. Lettere a Lesbia Cidonia sopragli Epigrammi, 2 vols.
consisting of twenty-five letters, intermixed with epigrams,
madrigals, and other light pieces, translated and original.
11. Lastly, an Essay on Eloquence, to which are added,
some letters, discourses, and other miscellanies. It would
be hazardous to pronounce a judgment on so great a diver¬
sity of productions. It should seem, in general, that the
author is distinguished more for wit and talent than for
warmth and genius ; that his writings contain literary opi¬
nions dictated by a taste not always correct, and which, hav¬
ing been publicly declared early in life, have often reduced
the author to the unpleasant dilemma, either of retract¬
ing, or of persisting, in spite of his better judgment, in what
he must have perceived to be the errors of his youth ; that
his philosophy, of which the morality is pure, wants, when
it aspires to metaphysical questions, both determinate
principles and just conclusions, and is too often verbose
and declamatory; but that, though his ideas are not al¬
ways entitled to praise, his style is so almost always ; that
having been to blame, according to the Italian critics, in
paying too little respect to the great writers of the four¬
teenth century, he has the merit of having remained con¬
stantly attached to those of the sixteenth, and to the
authors who were his contemporaries, and who have taken
him for their guide ; and also of having defended to the
last, both by his opinions and his example, the finest of
the modern languages against the corruption which threa¬
tens, or rather which overwhelms, it on all sides. See Bio¬
graphic Universelle, tome iv. (d. d.)
BETTOORIAH, a district in the province of Bengal,
situated principally between the 24th and 25th degrees of
north latitude, now comprehended, with its capital Nat-
tore, in the larger division of Raujeshy. It is fertile, and
well adapted for the cultivation of rice ; being watered by
the Ganges, which is the principal river, and being be¬
sides intersected in all directions by smaller rivers, water-
couises, and internal lakes, which in the height of the rains
join and form one sheet of water.
BETULEIUS, Sixtus, a grammarian, Latin poet, and
philosopher, born at Memmingen in the year 1500. His
leal name was Birck. He taught the belles lettres and
philosophy with reputation, and became principal of the
B E V
college of Augsburg, where he died on the 16th of June B ah
1554. He published several works in prose; and drama¬
tic pieces entitled Joseph, Susannah, and Judith.
BETWAH, a river of Flindostan, in the province of
Malwah, which, from its source south of Bopal to its con¬
fluence with the Jumna, runs a course of 340 miles in a
north-easterly direction.
BEUTELSPACH, a town in the circle of Jaxt, of the
kingdom of Wirtemburg. It stands on the river Beute!,
and is remarkable as containing the ancient monastery
and church, in which are buried the old family of Wirtem¬
burg. It contains 1789 inhabitants, whose labour is chiefly
applied to produce wine, which is highly esteemed.
BEUTHEN, a circle in the Prussian government of
Oppeln, in Silesia, extending over 306 square miles, or
195,840 acres, containing two cities, one market-town,
and sixty-eight villages, with 4851 houses, and36,439 inha¬
bitants. Though hilly, it is a fertile district, with the ex¬
ception of some sandy portions. The capital of the dis¬
trict, of the same name, is on a small river that runs into
the Oder, and has considerable fabrics of linen and woollen
cloth, and some earthenware. It contains three churches
for Catholics, 349 dwelling-houses, and 2426 inhabitants.
BEVEL, among masons, carpenters, &c. a kind of square,
one leg whereof is frequently crooked, according to the
sweep of an arch or vault. It is movable on a centre,
and so may be set to any angle.
Bevel-Angle, any angle excepting those of 45° or 90°.
BEVELAND, North and South, the name of two
Zealand islands, formed by the divided branches of the
Scheldt. North Beveland is about six miles in length by
four in breadth. It lies to the east of the island of Wal-
cheren, and is separated from South Beveland by the island
Wolfersdyke. The inundation of 1532 completely ruined
it. For many years it remained immersed in water, and
was only again formed into an island by the gradual depo¬
sits of the sea. South Beveland is twenty-four miles long
by from five to eight broad. It contains the town of Goes,
and several forts and villages. An active trade in corn is
carried on here, and the place is considered one of the
most agreeable of the Zealand islands.
BEVELLING, in ship-building, the art of hewing a
timber with a proper and regular curve, according to a
mould which is laid on one side of its surface. In order
to hew any piece of timber to its proper bevel, says a
writer on ship-building, it will be necessary, first, to
make one side and out of winding; a term used to
signify that the side of a timber should be a plane. If
this side be uppermost, and placed horizontally, or upon
a level, it is plain, if the timber is to be hewed square, it
may be done by a plummet and line ; but if the timber is
not hewed square, the line will not touch both the upper
and lower edge of the piece ; or if a square be applied to
it, there will be wood wanting either at the upper or
lower side. This is called within or without a square.
When the wood is deficient at the under side, it is called
under-bevelling; and when it is deficient on the upper
side, it is called standing-bevelling; and this deficiency
will be more or less according to the depth of the piece.
so that, before the proper bevellings of the timbers are
found, it will be sometimes very convenient to assign the
breadth of the timbers; nay, in most cases it will be ab¬
solutely necessary, especially afore and abaft; though the
breadth of two timbers, or the timber and room, whic
includes the two timbers and the space between them,
may be taken without any sensible error, as far as t e
square body goes. For as one line represents the mou
ing side of two timbers, the foreside of the one being sup
posed to unite with the aft-side of the other, the two may
be considered as one entire piece of timber.
B E V BEY 607
, BEVERAGE, in a general sense, signifies a drink; and
1 hence nectar is said to be the beverage of the gods. In
Beverl writers of the middle ages, beverage, beveragium, or bibe-
Irv* ragium, denotes money given to an artificer or other per¬
son, to drink, over and above his hire or wages.
BEVERIDGE, William, a learned English bishop
in the beginning of the eighteenth century, was born in
the year 1638, and educated in St John’s College, Cam¬
bridge, where he distinguished himself very early by his
extensive learning, and particularly by his knowledge of
the oriental languages. Upon the deprivation of Dr Tho¬
mas Ken, bishop of Bath and Wells, for not taking the
oaths to the government in 1691, he refused the offer of
that see, although he was then chaplain to King William
and Queen Mary. In 1704 he was consecrated to the
bishopric of St Asaph, and in his high function he dis¬
charged his duty in so exemplary a manner, that he ap¬
proved himself a truly primitive prelate. He died at his
lodgings in the Cloisters in Westminster Abbey in 1707,
aged sixty-nine. As his whole life was spent in acts of
piety and charity, so he gave remarkable instances of both
at his death, leaving the bulk of his estate for the propa¬
gation of the gospel and the promotion of Christian know¬
ledge, at home as well as abroad. His Private Thoughts
upon a Christian Life is a very popular, though in some
points a very exceptionable, book. He wrote several
other works on various subjects, particularly on the ori¬
ental tongues.
BEVERLAND, Hadrian, a man of considerable ge¬
nius, who flourished in the end of the seventeenth cen¬
tury, but prostituted his powers in the study and compo¬
sition of books of a very obnoxious kind. He was a per¬
fect master of Ovid, Catullus, Petronius, and authors of
that stamp. In his infamous book on original sin, he
maintained that Adam’s sin consisted in his commerce
with his wife, and that original sin is nothing more than
the inclination of the sexes to each other. This insane
abomination was justly condemned to undergo cremation
under the auspices of the hangman. Beverland led a scan¬
dalous life, but seems to have repented of his evil manners
and lewd writings ; for towards the end of his life he pub¬
lished a treatise De Fornicatione Cavenda, in which there
are some indications of a better spirit. He is said to have
died mad; a natural catastrophe of such opinions and such
conduct.
BEVERLEY, a market and borough-town in the east
riding of the county of York, 182 miles from London, on
the river Hull. It has a considerable trade in malt and
corn at its markets, which are held on Wednesday and
Saturday. It has two churches; that of St John, or the
Minster, founded by King Athelstane, being of a collegiate
kind, and a fine building. It returns two members to the
House of Commons, who are chosen by a numerous body
of resident and non-resident freemen, from which cause
much money is usually expended at the elections. The
number of inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 6100, in 1811
to 6235, and in 1821 to 7503.
Beverley, a sea-port of Massachusetts in North Ame-
dca, separated from Salem by a bridge. It is twenty miles
north-east of Boston. Long. 70. 50. W. Lat. 42. 31. N.
Beverley, John of, in Latin Joannes Beverlacius, arch¬
bishop of York in the eighth century, was descended of a
noble family at Harpham, in Northumberland, and was
justly esteemed one of the best scholars of his time. He
was first a monk, and afterwards abbot of the monastery
of St Hilda; when his merit recommended him to the fa¬
vour of Alfred, king of Northumberland, who, in the year
6S5, advanced him to the see of Hagustald or Hexham,
and, in 687, translated him to the archbishopric of York.
Ibis prelate was tutor to the famous Bede, and lived in
the strictest friendship with Acca and other Anglo-Saxon Beverun-
doctors, several of whom he engaged to write comments gen
on the Holy Scriptures. In 704 he founded a college at il
Beverley for secular priests; and after he had governed Beyka-
the see of York thirty-four years, being wearied with the
tumults and confusions which then prevailed in the church,
he divested himself of his episcopal character, and retired
to Beverley, where he died four years after, on the 7th of
May 721. Bede and other monkish writers ascribe seve¬
ral miracles to him. This prelate wrote some pieces,
which are mentioned by Bale and Pitts, namely, 1. Pro
Luce exponenda ; 2. Homilice in Evangelica ; 3. Epistolce
ad Hildam Abbatissam ; Epistolcc ad Herebaldum, Ande-
num, et Bertinum.
BEVERUNGEN, a town of Germany, in the diocese
of Paderborn, seated at the confluence of the rivers Beve
and Weser, in long. 9. 30. E. lat. 51. 40. N.
BEVILE, in Heraldry, a thing broken, or opening like
a carpenter’s rule.
BEVIN, Elway, a musician eminently skilled in the
knowledge of practical composition, who flourished to¬
wards the end of Queen Elizabeth’s reign. He was of
Welsh extraction, and had been educated under Tallis,
upon whose recommendation he was in 1589 sworn in
gentleman extraordinary of the chapel; but from this si¬
tuation he was expelled in 1637, it being discovered that
he adhered to the Romish communion. He was also or¬
ganist of Bristol cathedral, but forfeited that employment
at the same time with his place in the chapel. He com¬
posed several services, and a few anthems.
BEWDLEY, a market and borough-town in the parish
of Ribbesford and hundred of Doddingtree, in the county
of Worcester, 132 miles from London, and situated on the
river Severn. It is a trading town of some consideration,
and has a good market on Saturday. In the centre of the
bridge is a wooden erection, which serves the double pur¬
pose of a toll-house and a corporation prison. It is governed
by a mayor and twelve aldermen, and returns one member
to parliament, chosen by the corporation under the influ-
of Mr Roberts. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to
3671, in 1811 to 3454, and in 1821 to 3725.
BEWITS, in falconry, pieces of leather, to which a
hawk’s bells are fastened, and buttoned to his legs.
BEY, among the Turks, signifies a governor of a coun¬
try or town.
BEYAH, a river of Hindostan, which rises in the pro¬
vince of Lahore, near the mountains of Cashmere, and
not far from the source of the Sutledge, which it afterwards
joins. It pursues for the first 200 miles of its course a
southerly direction, after which it turns to the west. The
whole length of its course may be estimated at 350 miles.
This is the fourth river of the Punjab, and is the Hyphasis
of Alexander.
BEYHAR, a town of Bengal, and capital of Cooch Be-
har, on the Toresha river. It was taken in 1661 by the
Mahommedans, who destroyed a number of the Hindoo
temples, and changed its name. Long. 89. 22. E. Lat.
26. 18. N.
BEYRAMICH, a city of Asia Minor, the capital of the
district called Troas, which belongs to the pasha of the
Dardanelles. It is an extensive place, and the houses are
better built and more regularly disposed than in Constan¬
tinople. Many antiquities are to be seen in this place
and the vicinity; amongst which are several sarcophagi,
consisting of entire blocks of granite, converted to ordi¬
nary purposes in the street. It is distant about sixty
miles from the Dardanelles.
BEYKANEER, or Bicanere, a principality of Asia,
situated in the north-west of Hindostan, but the precise
dimensions and limits of which are scarcely ascertained by
608 BEY
BEY
Beyka- modern geographers. It extends from about 72. 10. to
neer. 75. 15. east longitude, and from 27. 40. to 29. 45. north
latitude; and its superficial area probably amounts to not
less than 17,000 square miles. It is bounded on the north
by a country occupied by the Batties or people of Bat-
neer; on the east by the territories of Hurriana or Shek-
hawuttee, in the province of Delhi; on the south-east by
Jeypour; on the south-west by Jesselmere; and on the
west by Bahawulpoor. But these may be deemed obscure
limits, for the countries named in them are scarcely better
known than the subject of this article.
A vast proportion of the soil of Beykaneer is a barren
sandy desert, or a hard flat clay, sounding like a board
under horses’ feet, and entirely destitute of inhabitants,
water, and vegetation. Many miles are occupied in
hills and valleys of lobse heavy sand; the former, from
twenty to a hundred feet in height, shifting their position
and altering their shape according to the influence of the
wind; and, during the heats of summer, clouds of moving
sand threaten to overwhelm the traveller. Sometimes
the phenomenon called mirage is exhibited in this de¬
sert, being that species of optical illusion, by which a spec¬
tator is induced to believe that he beholds a lake or a wide
river well defined before him, reflecting surrounding ob¬
jects, while there is nothing in view but a level uninter¬
rupted surface.
Vegetation is exceedingly scanty throughout, except
in a few patches, which are skilfully and industriously
cultivated; and the whole country seems to depend on
external supplies of grain. Nevertheless, in the midst of
arid tracts, the water-melon, a juicy fruit, grows in pro¬
fusion, attaining the remarkable size of three or four feet
in circumference, from a stalk no larger than that of the
common melon. The seeds are sown by the natives, and
also grow wild; but it is difficult to account for such an
enlargement of size with so little moisture. Water seems
to be obtained only at an immense depth. The wells at
Beykaneer are often from 300 to 345 feet in depth, yet not
above three in diameter; they are all lined with masonry ;
and one of the most curious objects in the city of Beykaneer
is considered to be a well 300 feet deep, and fifteen or
twenty in diameter, worked by four pair of oxen drawing
as many buckets of water. The water is always brackish,
scanty, and insalubrious; and this, combined with the na¬
ture of the soil, principally occasions the prevalent ste¬
rility of the country.
The wild ass, remarkable for its speed and its shyness,
is found here, sometimes solitary, but oftener in herds.
At a kind of shuffling trot, peculiar to itself, it will leave
the best horses behind. Antelopes are seen in some parts;
also foxes, but smaller than those of Britain; and the de¬
sert rat is found in great numbers, occasioning serious in¬
convenience to equestrians, from the holes it makes where
the ground is sufficiently solid. Of domesticated animals,
horses, bullocks, and camels, are in abundance; the last
being kept in great herds for various purposes. The horses
brought from the vicinity of the Lacky Jungle, an adjoin¬
ing district, where they are reared on excellent pasture,
and with the strictest attention, are much prized. But
the original breed was greatly improved by the introduc¬
tion of fine Pei*sian horses, brought hither during the
successive invasions of Hindostan by Nadir Shah and
other eastern potentates. At present they bear very high
prices, some of them bringing even L.250 sterling, a large
sum in a poor country. But some decrease in the extent
and quality of the breed has lately resulted from the im¬
politic conduct of the officers of the rajah of Beykaneer,
by whom the owners are compelled to sell them at an
under value. When purchased thus, the horses are sent
on speculation to different parts of the Indian peninsula.
We are little acquainted with the manners and customs b
of the inhabitants of this country, otherwise than by their r r^
correspondence with those of the same tribes disseminat- ^
ed elsewhere in India. The natives are divided into two
principal classes, Rajpoots and Jauts; the former the
rulers, the latter the mass of the people. The Jauts are
of small stature, black, ill-looking, and bear strong indica¬
tions of poverty and wretchedness; the Rajpoots are stout
and handsome, with Jewish features, of haughty manners
an indolent disposition, and greatly addicted to intoxica¬
tion with opium. It is doubtful whether the Rajpoots of
Beykaneer entertain those elevated and magnanimous sen¬
timents so peculiar to their tribe, whether they are ani¬
mated by that high sense of honour and impatience of in¬
dignity which, united to the violence of their passions,
lead to the most terrible catastrophes. When a man of
rank finds himself beset by an enemy, from whom he has
no chance of escape, he inquires whether, by surrender,
he can preserve the honour of his family; should the an¬
swer be equivocal or unfavourable, he clothes himself in
yellow, the symbol of despair, and repairing along with
his nearest relatives to the apartments of the females, the
whole are involved in promiscuous destruction; nor is it
uncommon, on such occasions, for the women themselves
to commit suicide. The Rajpoot then rushes furiously
against his enemies, and though he should be successful
and prevail over them, rather than survive his dire cala¬
mity he plunges his sword in his own breast. The same
sense of dishonour induces females of rank to deem them¬
selves contaminated by the gaze of any man but their
most intimate relatives; and it also leads them to ascend
the funeral pile of their husbands, lest, by survivance,
they should lose the consideration of the world. The
people of the East, while more placid and resigned to fate,
are, at the same time, agitated by more acute and ungo¬
vernable passions than the inhabitants of the Western
World. A Mahommedan officer of high rank, who was
hard pressed by a victorious enemy, approaching the place
where his wife and daughter had sought refuge on the
banks of a river, gave the following account of his con¬
duct : “ I leapt from my horse, and seizing each by a
hand, rushed with them into the water up to their waists,
and covered the rest of their persons with a cloth : I drew
my sword to defend them with my life from further insult,
and, happily for my honour, their faces were not seen by
the eyes of a stranger.” Of late the Rajpoots of Beyka¬
neer have been accused of being cruel and treacherous.
The population of this territory is altogether uncertain;
but, from the scarcity of water, it is probably very much
restricted. The inhabitants are dispersed in towns and
villages, of which Beykaneer, near the southern frontier,
in about 27° 55' north latitude, the capital, and Churoo,
on the eastern frontier, are the principal. Beykaneer, sur¬
rounded by lofty white walls, strengthened with numerous
round towers crowned by battlements, presents the im¬
posing picture of a great and magnificent city in the midst
of a wilderness. But on entering the gates the illusion va¬
nishes ; and it is found to consist, for the most part, of huts
built of mud, and painted red. Nevertheless, there are
some high houses, several temples, and at one corner a
lofty and fine-looking fortress, a quarter of a mile square,
environed by a wall thirty feet high, and a good dry ditch.
The interior is a confused assemblage of towers and bat¬
tlements, overtopped by houses; and it contains the royal
palace, a curious old edifice. Churoo, independent of the
suburbs, is above a mile and a half in circuit, and, although
situate among sand hills, has a handsome appearance. A
the houses have terraces, and are built of a pure white
limestone, like those of Beykaneer. Villages are occasion¬
ally seen in the most dismal situations, to which their mi-
BEY
jjevl serable aspect corresponds. They consist of a few round
nee huts of straw, with low walls, and conical roofs like little
) w-y ' stacks of corn, and surrounded by hedges of thorny
branches stuck in the sand. A modern traveller, de¬
scribing the town of Pooggul, observes, “ If I could pre¬
sent to my reader the foreground of high sand hills, the
village of straw huts, the clay walls of the little fort going
to ruins, as the soil which supported them was blown away
by the winds, and the sea of sand which formed the rest
of the prospect, he would probably feel, as I did, a sort of
wonder at the people who could reside in so dismal a wil¬
derness, and of horror at the life to which they seemed
to be condemned.” The city of Beykaneer is said to stand
219 miles north-west of Delhi, but its real position is south¬
west, and we conceive the distance to be not less than 260
or 280 miles. Fortresses are not so common in this terri¬
tory as in a large portion of Hindostan, owing to the equa¬
lity of the surface.
Scarcely any thing definite can be said regarding the
occupation and pursuits of the people in their trade and
manufactures. Cattle of an inferior breed, and horses, are
the only exports; rice, sugar, opium, and indigo, are ob¬
tained from the Punjab; salt from Samber; wheat from
Jeypour; and spices, copper, and coarse cloth, are import¬
ed from Jesselmere.
Beykaneer is governed by a rajah, who is a sovereign
and independent prince, though he seems formerly to have
been tributary to the monarch of Delhi, and even ac¬
knowledged the supremacy of Britain when Delhi had
fallen under a foreign power. He enjoys an absolute sway
over the lives and property of his subjects, and maintains
considerable state in his reception of strangers. His re¬
venues do not exceed L.50,000 per annum, though occa¬
sionally augmented to nearly double that sum by vexatious
imposts on merchandise in transitu. The consequence is,
that those caravans which were accustomed to take the
route of this province from Surat to Tatta, a town on the In¬
dus, follow another course, in order to avoid such exactions.
The resources of Beykaneer are thus very small, which is
not surprising, considering they are derived from a country
that becomes an absolute desert even within a few yards
of the capital. The forces amount to about 10,000 men, of
whom 2000 are cavalry, and these troops are paid by assign¬
ments of land. The rajah Soorut Sing having profusely dis¬
sipated the treasure accumulated by his predecessors, be¬
came cruel and tyrannical. Oppressive exactions to relieve
pressing necessities alienated the regard of his subjects,
and an army of mercenaries became necessary to preserve
his authority. He was suspected of poisoning an elder
brother, and undoubtedly murdered the envoy of another
prince passing through his dominions. Yet, being strict
m his external devotions, and religiously abstaining from
prohibited food, his people have admitted him to the cha¬
racter of sanctity. The sovereign of Beykaneer has to
contend with many enemies, who, in their turn, are oppos¬
ed by the most powerful obstacles. Water must be ear¬
ned by an invading army; for the natives either poison
the wells, fill them up, or cover them over in such a man¬
ner that they cannot possibly be found ; and, besides, they
wix arsenic with bread, which is insidiously disposed of in
the hostile camp. A number of years ago, George Thomas,
a celebrated adventurer, who raised himself to the go¬
vernment of a neighbouring territory, invaded Beykaneer,
and compelled the rajah to purchase peace with L.25,000.
Be also aided the Batties in expelling him, on occasion of
an incursion he had made into their country. More re¬
cently, a war having commenced between the rajahs of
Joudpour and Jeypour contending for the hand of an east¬
ern princess, the interference of Soorut Sing excited the
ft rath of some of the competitors against himself. Five
b e z eoa
different armies invaded Beykaneer in 1808, when the Eeyra
rajah filled up all the wells within ten miles of the walls II
of his capital. The contest was protracted for a consider- Beza.
able time, but the rajah succeeded in maintaining himself
as an independent prince. His existence as such was
further secured to him by his being admitted, in 1818,
within the line of British protection.
See Franklin’s Memoirs of General Thomas; Scott’s
Memoirs of Eradut Khan; Franklin’s Tracts; Elphin-
stone’s Account of Cabul.
BEYRA or Beira, a province of the kingdom of Por¬
tugal, bounded on the north by Tras os Montes, on the
east by the Spanish province of Estremadura, on the south
by Alentejo and Portuguese Estremadura, and on the
west by the Atlantic Ocean. It extends over 7710 square
miles, and contains 1,129,200 inhabitants. It is chiefly a
mountainous district, some of its highest points reaching
to 7000 or 8000 feet. The Duero is the main river, which
receives the waters of the smaller streams in their way to
the ocean. Agriculture is in a neglected state, and, be¬
fore the general introduction of potatoes, required an an¬
nual importation of foreign corn. The chief employment
is the cultivation of vines, oranges, and chestnuts.
BEYS, Giles, a celebrated printer at Paris, in the
sixteenth century, who first introduced the consonants
j and v.
BEZA, Theodore, one of the principal pillars of the
reformed church, was born at Vezelai in Burgundy on the
24th June 1519. He was brought up by his uncle Nicho¬
las Beza, counsellor of the parliament of Paris, till the
month of December 1528, when he was sent to study at
Orleans, and afterwards at Bourges, where, under the care
of Melchior Wolmar, he made extraordinary progress in
learning, and imbibed the principles of Calvinism. His
uncle intended him for the bar; but the law not suiting
his disposition, he spent most of his time in reading the
Greek and Latin authors, and in composing verses. In
1539 he took his licentiate’s degree, and went to Paris,
where he fell into snares in his youth, and wrote some li¬
centious things. But sickness awakened him to a sense
of his folly, and he determined to perform a vow he
had -formerly made of entering into the reformed church.
With this resolution he went to Geneva and made a public
profession of the reformed religion. In 1549 he accepted
of the Greek professorship at Lausanne, where he also
read lectures in French on the New Testament to the re¬
fugees of both sexes who dwelt in that city. Having
settled at Geneva, he adhered to Calvin in the strictest
manner, and became in a little time his colleague in the
church and in the university. At the solicitation of some
great men of the kingdom he was sent to Nerac to convert
the king of Navarre, and to confer with him upon affairs of
importance. This was when the Guises had got the au¬
thority, under the reign of Francis II., to the prejudice of
the princes of the blood. The king of Navarre having
testified, both by letters and deputies, that he desired
Beza might assist at the conference of Poissi, the senate
of Geneva consented. The assembly hearkened atten¬
tively to his harangue, till, speaking of the real presence,
he said, that the body of Jesus Christ was as distant from
the bread and wine, as the highest heaven is from the
earth. This produced a murmur: some cried out, “ Blas-
phemavitand others got up to go away. Cardinal de
Tournon, who sat in the first place, desired the king and
queen either to silence Beza, or to permit him and his com¬
pany to withdraw. The king did not stir, nor did any of the
princes ; and leave was given him to proceed. Through¬
out the whole conference he acquitted himself with great
ability. He often preached before the queen of Navarre,
the prince of Conde, and in the suburbs of Paris. After
610 B H A
Bezoar the massacre of Vassi, he was deputed to the king to com¬
il plain of this violence. The civil war followed soon after,
Bhadri- cjuring which the prince of Conde kept Beza with him;
,_na_ and while the prince was imprisoned, he lived with Ad¬
miral de Coligni, and did not return to Geneva till after
the peace of 1563. In 1571 he was chosen moderator of
the national synod of Rochelle, and in the year after as¬
sisted at that of Nismes; after which he was present at the
conferences of Montheliard, and at those of Berne. The
infirmities of age beginning to fall heavy upon him, he
seldom spoke in public, and at last left it off entirely in
the beginning of the year 1600. However, in 1597, he
wrote some animated verses against the Jesuits, on the
occasion of a report that was circulated of his death, and
of his having before he died made profession of the Ro¬
mish faith. He lived till the 13th of October 1605, on
which day he expired. Beza was a man of extraordinary
merit, and one who did great service to the Protestant
cause. This, however, exposed him to innumerable slan¬
ders and calumnies; but he showed, both to the Catholics
and Lutherans, that he understood how to defend him¬
self. He wrote, 1. A Translation of the New Testament;
2. A Version of the Psalms into Latin verse; 3. A Trea¬
tise on the Sacraments ; 4. Some Sermons on the Passion
of Jesus Christ and on Solomon’s Song; 5. A Version of
the Canticles, in lyric verse ; 6. A French tragi-comedy, en¬
titled The Sacrifice of Abraham; and many other pieces.
BEZIERS, an arrondissement in the department of
Herault, in France. It extends over 260 square miles,
and contains twelve cantons, ninety-seven communes, and
107,804 inhabitants. The capital, a city of the same name,
considered one of the most beautiful spots in the king¬
dom, is elevated along the banks of the Orke. It contains
a population of 14,360 persons, employed chiefly in the
silk trade, and in cultivating vines, almonds, olives, and
the other fruits of a southern climate. Long. 3. 6. 45. E.
Lat. 43. 20. 41. N.
BEZOAR. This name, which is derived from a Persian
word implying an antidote to poison, was given to a com
cretion found in the stomach of an animal of the goat kind,
and once very highly valued for this imaginary quality;
and hence it has been extended to all concretions found
in the intestines of animals. Of these there are several
kinds; first, superphosphate of lime, which forms concre¬
tions in the intestines of many mammalia ; secondly, phos¬
phate of ammonia and magnesia, a concretion of a gray or
brown colour, composed of radiations from a centre, and
found in the intestines of herbivorous animals, such as the
elephant, the horse, &c.; thirdly, biliary concretions, of a
reddish brown colour, and frequently met with in the in¬
testines and gall bladders of oxen. This kind is composed
of inspissated bile, and is used by painters as an orange-
yellow pigment. Besides the above, they also occur hairy,
resinous, and ligniform.
BEZOARDIC, an appellation given to whatever par¬
takes of the nature of bezoar; also compound medicines
of which bezoar forms an ingredient.
BHADRINATH, a town and celebrated temple in
Hindostan, in the province of Serinaghur, situated on the
west bank of the Alcanunda river, in the middle of a valley
nearly four miles in length and one in breadth. The town
is small, containing only twenty or thirty huts, in which
reside the Brahmins and the attendants on the temple,
which is considered a place of high sanctity. The build¬
ing, however, by no means corresponds to its great cele-
brity. It is about forty or fifty feet in height, built in the
foim of a cone, with a small cupola, on the top of which is
a gilt ball and spire. I he image is of the human form, of
black stone, and about three feet in height. It is called
Bhadruath{ the Lord of Purity, and is resorted to by pil-
B H U
grims from all parts of India. The concourse of persons
is said to be 50,000 annually, all of whom make their
offerings at the shrine ; besides which it is said to possess
700 villages. The temple has been shattered by an earth-orei
quake, which has left it in a ruinous condition. This ^ ^
place is situated among mountains elevated 22,000 feet
above the level of the sea, and in May 1808 the road to
it was still encumbered by masses of snow. Long. 79
38. E. Lat. 30. 43. N.
BHAGMUTTY, a river of Hindostan, which rises in a
mountain near Catmandoo, and enters the valley of Nepaul.
At a short distance below Catmandoo it is joined by the
Bishenutty, and loses its name. It falls into the Ganges
a few miles below Monghir, after a course of 400 miles.
BHATGAN, or Bhatgong, a town of Northern Hin¬
dostan, in the valley of Nepaul, and a celebrated place of
Hindoo superstition. It is the favourite residence of the
Brahmins of Nepaul, and contains many more families of
that order than either Catmandoo or Patu. It contains
12,000 houses, and its palace and the buildings in general
are of a more striking appearance than those in the other
Nepaulese towns, owing chiefly to the excellent quality
of the bricks. The town is said to contain many valuable
Sanscrit libraries. Long. 85. 45. E. Lat. 27. 32. N.
BHATTIA, a town of Hindostan, in the western ex¬
tremity of Gujerat, near Oaka. It contains 500 houses,
chiefly inhabited by Aheens, an industrious and useful
class of peasantry, who, from being shepherds, have of
late years applied themselves to the cultivation of land.
BHEELS. This savage tribe of plunderers are supposed
to have been the aborigines of Gujerat and the adjacent
quarters of Hindostan, in common with the Coolies, and
to have been driven to their present fastnesses and their
miserable way of life by the invasion of those tribes, from
whatever quarter they may have come, who profess the
religion of Brahma ; and though they were unquestionably
thieves and savages, many British officers who are acquaint¬
ed with them esteem them a better race than their con¬
querors. They are of a franker and livelier character;
they treat their women better; and though they have
little scruple at shedding blood in a fray or in any of their
deadly quarrels, they are not inhospitable nor vindictive
under other circumstances; and many British officers
have gone into their country with perfect safety on hunt¬
ing or fishing expeditions. Sir John Malcolm, always
guided in his administration of India by the most enlight¬
ened policy, raised a corps of these Bheels, and subjected
them to such discipline as their wild nature would bear.
He also gave them lands, and to encourage them in in¬
dustrious habits, freed them for a time from all taxes.
By this mild and statesman-like policy he improved their
character, and laid the foundation of their future civiliza¬
tion. In the north of India they have been treated under
the British administration with unmingled severity; and
they complain that they are punished for robbery, while
no other means are afforded them of making a livelihood.
They are now scattered over Hindostan Proper and^ the
north of the Deccan, particularly along the course ot the
Nerbuddah river, where they live on what they can pro¬
cure by hunting or thieving.
BHURTPORE, a fortified town of Hindostan, in the
province of Agra, and formerly the capital of an indepen¬
dent state. The rajah, who was one of the principal chief-
tains of the tribe of Jauts, possessed a considerable territory
and several forts on the south-western bank of the Jumna.
In 1818 the total area of this state was rather less than
5000 square miles. Bhurtpore is a place of great extent,
the circumference of the town and fort is above eight
miles, and it is everywhere strongly fortified, being sui-
rounded by a mud wall of great height and thickness, nit
P5 S
B I A
'•a very wide and deep ditch. The fort stands at the east-
“rL. ' ern extremity of the town ; its situation is more elevated,
its walls are higher, and its ditch is of greater width and
depth. It is of a square figure; one side overlooking the
country, while the other three are within the town. The
ditch, from the nature of the ground, may be easily filled
with water, and then it presents a formidable obstacle to a
besieging army. It was in 1700 that the tribe of Jauts first
attracted notice in Hindostan. They migrated from the
Indus into the province of Mooltan, and were allowed to
settle in several parts of the country between the Ganges
and the Jumna. They are, according to Bishop Heber, the
finest people in point of bodily advantages and martial spirit
that he had seen in India ; and their country is one of the
most fertile and best cultivated. The fortress of Bhurt-
pore was erected by one of their chiefs out of the plunder
which he had carried off from Aurungzebe’s army during
its last march towards the Deccan. He transmitted this
stronghold to his successors, and it was held by Runjeet
Sing at the time the British advanced into central In¬
dia. In 1803 a treaty of perpetual friendship was conclud¬
ed between him and General Lake; but, notwithstand¬
ing this, he espoused the declining cause of Holkar in
1805, and admitted his routed army into the fortress of
Bhurtpore. Lord Lake arrived before the place on the
3d of January 1805, and commenced a series of opera¬
tions against it, more sanguinary than any that had ever
occurred in the annals of Indian warfare. The British
army, from its limited numbers compared with the extent
of the place, acted under every disadvantage. Their ope¬
rations were confined to one point, and the besieged con¬
sequently could easily procure supplies to any amount
from the surrounding country. Undismayed by these ob¬
stacles, Lord Lake made four successive attempts to storm
the fortress, in all of which he was repulsed with great
slaughter; his loss amounting, in killed and wounded, to
about 3000. The rajah, notwithstanding his success, fear¬
ing that British courage and skill would ultimately prevail,
sent his son to Lord Lake’s camp with the keys of the for¬
tress, and agreed to compel Holkar to quit Bhurtpore. A
second treaty was then concluded with the rajah, and seve¬
ral additional precautions adopted to secure his fidelity.
This signal overthrow of the British by the Jauts, the defen¬
ders of Bhurtpore, was celebrated all over India, and was
by many regarded as the forerunner of their expulsion from
Hindostan. But in the lapse of twenty years an oppor¬
tunity occurred for a new trial of strength, which termi¬
nated in the complete triumph of the British arms. A
dispute occurred in the family of the rajah respecting the
succession; the cousin having usurped the inheritance of
the son, Bulwunt Sing, the rightful heir. Sir David Och-
terlony prepared to expel the usurper, but was restrained
by orders from the governor-general. Afterwards, how¬
ever, it was determined to attack this great stronghold ;
and on the 10th December 1825 Lord Combermere as¬
sumed the command of the British army before Bhurt¬
pore. As it was vain to batter in breach, on account of
the extraordinary thickness of the wall, the besiegers pro¬
ceeded by mining ; and by the 17th of January a practi¬
cable breach was made. On the 18th, at eight o’clock in
the morning, the signal was given for the assault; and in
the course of two hours every gateway and bastion, and
the whole rampart surrounding the town, with the gates of
the citadel, were in possession of the besiegers, and thus
lor ever effaced the transient stain which the former failure
at Bhurtpore had cast on the glory of the British arms.
.n the Tth February the former rajah was reinstated in
ms inheritance. It was at the same time determined to
dismantle the fortress; and the principal bastions, and
parts of several curtains, were accordingly blown up, and
B I A
left in a state of ruin. Bhurtpore is twenty-eight miles
N. N. W. from Agra. Long. 77. 28. E. Lat. 27. 13. N.
BIA, in Commerce, a name given by the Siamese to x
those small shells which are called cowries throughout al¬
most all the other parts of the East Indies.
BliEUM, fiiaiov, in Rhetoric, denotes a kind of counter¬
argument, by which something alleged for the adversary
is retorted against him, and made to conclude a different
way : for instance, Occidisti, quia adstitisti interfecto. Biawv,
Immo quia adstiti interfecto, non occidi; nam si id esset, in
fugam me conjecissem. “ You killed the person, because
you were found standing by his body. Biceum, Rather, I
did not kill him because I was found standing by his body ;
because, in that case, I should have fled.”
Bx^um, in the Grecian laws, was an action brought
against those who had committed rape or used violence to
the person of any one.
BIAFORA, in the customs of the middle ages, a form
of cry or alarm, on the hearing of which the inhabitants
of towns or villages were to issue forth armed, and attend
their prince.
BIAFRA, a tract of country on the coast of Western
Africa, on a bay or bight of the same name, situated at the
easternmost extremity of the Gulf of Guinea. It has long
been known that a number of broad estuaries open into
this bight from the north; but, owing to a strange want
of enterprise, or some other cause, European vessels trad¬
ing on this coast have not hitherto ascended any of these
beyond fifty or sixty miles from its embouchure. Recently,
however, Lander, the traveller, in descending the Niger,
arrived by one of these channels in the bight of Biafra;
thus solving the great problem of African geography, and
leaving no doubt that the system of inter-ramified river-
channels, extending from Benin to Biafra, constitutes the
delta of the Niger, through which, by a number of outlets,
it discharges itself into the sea. For the details of this im¬
portant and interesting discovery, see the article Niger.
BIALA, a town, the capital of the circle of the same
name, in the province of Podlachia, in Poland. It is si¬
tuated on the banks of the Krzna, and contains 3000
inhabitants. There is a fine castle here, belonging to Prince
Radzivill. Long. 29. 50. E. Lat. 52. 1. N.
BIALYSTOCK, a city, the capital of the circle of the
same name, in the province of Grodno, in European Russia.
It is on the river Bialy, and is an open town, regularly
built, with four churches, two monastic institutions, and
about 7000 inhabitants, of whom, as in all the Polish trad¬
ing towns, a great proportion are Jews. There is here a
fine castle belonging to the family of Potochi. Long. 24.
12. E. Lat. 53. 7. N.
BIANCHI, Francesco, called II Frate, an eminent
painter, was born at Modena, and had the honour of being
master to one of the greatest painters that ever appeared,
Antonio Correggio
BIANCHINI, Francis, one of the most learned men
of his time, was born at Verona in 1662, of a noble and
ancient family. His taste for natural philosophy and ma¬
thematics induced him to establish the academy of Aleto-
fili, at Verona. He went to Rome in 1684, and was
made librarian to Cardinal Ottoboni, who was afterwards
pope under the name of Alexander \ III. He also became
canon of St Mary de la Rotonda, and at length of St Law¬
rence in Damaso. He was esteemed by the learned, was
a member of many academies, and published several inge¬
nious dissertations. He died in 1729, aged sixty-seven.
BIAR, a town of the province of Valencia, in Spain,
containing about 3000 inhabitants, who are employed in
making woollen goods. The vicinity is celebrated for its
honey, which has a peculiar flavour, extracted from the
rosemary, which grows wild there in great abundance*
611
Bia
11
Biar.
6J2 B I A
Biarchus BIARCHUS, an officer in the court of the emperors of
II ^ Constantinople, intrusted with the care and inspection of
t Bible. ^ tiie provisions of the soldiery.
BIAS, one of the seven sages of Greece, who flourished
about 608 before Christ. He was accustomed to say, that
it was a sickness of the mind to wish for impossible things.
During the siege of Priene, his native city, being asked
why he alone had retired from the place without carrying
any thing with him, he replied, that he carried his all with
him ; meaning, that knowledge and virtue were the only
blessings peculiarly his own, since they could not be taken
from him. He expired while in the act of pleading for one
of his friends.
Bias, in a general sense, the inclination or bent of a
person’s mind to one thing more than another. It also
signifies the lead or weight put into a bowl, that draws
or turns the course of it any way to which the bias in¬
clines.
BIBER ACH, a bailiwick in the circle of the Danube, in
the kingdom of Wirtemburg. It extends over 140 square
miles, comprehends one city, three market-towns, and
eighty-four villages, with 25,940 inhabitants. It is a rich
productive district, well watered by the rivers Riess, Um-
lach, and Iller. The city which gives name to the baili¬
wick stands on the Riess, is surrounded with walls, is
well built, contains four churches and other public build¬
ings, and 4980 inhabitants, of whom 3190 are Protestants,
and 1770 Catholics. Biberach and its vicinity were the
scenes of sanguinary but indecisive combats between the
French and Austrian armies, in 1796 and in 1800; al¬
though, on both occasions, the former claimed the victory.
Long. 9. 41. 50. E. Lat. 48. 5. 55. N.
BIBIENA, Ferdinand Galli, a painter and architect,
was born at Bologna in 1657, and surnamed Bibiena from
a territory of that name in Tuscany, in which his father
was born. He acquired such reputation by his skill in
architecture, that he was invited to court by the Duke of
Parma, and made his first painter and architect. Bibiena
afterwards went to the emperor’s court, where he had the
same honours and advantages conferred on him. He
wrote two books of architecture; and died at Bologna, at
about eighty years of age.
BIBLE (in Greek fiifiXog, or 6 [3ij3}.og, the book), a name
applied by Christians, by way of eminence, to the collec¬
tion of books contained in the Old and New Testaments,
known also by various other appellations, as the Sacred
Books, Holy Writ, Inspired Writings, Scriptures, &c. The
Jews styled their Bible, that is, the Old Testament, mikra,
which signifies lesson, lecture, or reading. The same title
(jj avaymsn, the reading), is repeatedly applied by St Paul
to the Old Testament, as 2 Cor. iii. 14. 1 Tim. iv. 13, but
more generally he prefers the more common designation,
i] ygupn, the writing.
Ihe Jews acknowledged only the Scriptures of the Old
Testament, the collecting and publishing of which is una¬
nimously ascribed, both by Jews and Christians, to Ezra.
Some ot the ancient fathers, on no other foundation than
that of the fabulous and apocryphal book of Esdras, pre¬
tend that the Scriptures were entirely lost and destroyed
at the Babylonish captivity, and that Ezra restored them
all by divine revelation. What is certain is, that in the
reign of Josiah there was no book of the law extant except¬
ing that found in the temple by Hilkiah, from which ori¬
ginal, by order of that pious king, copies were immediately
written out, and search made lor all the other parts of the
Scriptures ; by which means copies of the whole became
multiplied among the people, and were carried with them
into their captivity. After the return of the Jews from
t le Babylonish captivity, Ezra got together as many co¬
pies as he could ol the sacred writings, and out of them
BIB
all prepared a correct edition, disposing the several books n
in their proper order, and settling the canon of Scripture ^ L
for his time. These books he is said to have divided into ^
three parts. 1. The Law; 2. The Prophets ; 3. The Chetu-
bim or Hagiographa, that is, The Holy Writings.
I. The Law contains, 1. Genesis; 2. Exodus; 3. Levi-
ticus; 4. Numbers; 5. Deuteronomy.
II. The writings of the prophets are, 1. The former
prophets, including Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings.
2. The latter prophets, viz. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel,
Daniel, and the twelve minor prophets.
III. The Hagiographa consist of the Psalms, the Pro¬
verbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Solomon, Job, Ruth, La¬
mentations, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah.
The five books of the law are divided into fifty-four
sections. This division many of the Jews hold to have
been appointed by Moses himself; but others, with more
probability, ascribe it to Ezra. The design of this divi¬
sion was, that one of these sections might be read in their
synagogues every sabbath-day. The number was fifty-
four, because in their intercalated years a month being
then added, there were fifty-four sabbaths. In other
years they reduced them to fifty-two, by twice joining to¬
gether two short sections. Till the persecution of Antio-
chus Epiphanes they read only the law; but the reading
of it being then prohibited, they substituted fifty-four sec¬
tions out of the prophets; and when the reading of the
law was restored by the Maccabees, the section which
was read every sabbath out of the law served for their
first lesson, and the section out of the prophets for their
second. These sections were divided into verses, which di¬
vision, if Ezra was not the author of it, was introduced not
long after him, and seems to have been designed for the
use of the Targumists or Chaldee interpreters ; for after
the return of the Jews from the Babylonish captivity,
when the Hebrew language ceased to be their vernacular
tongue, and the Chaldee came into use instead of it, the
custom was that the law should be first read in the origi¬
nal Hebrew, and then interpreted to the people in the
Chaldee dialect; for which purpose these shorter sections
or periods were very convenient.
The division of the Scriptures into chapters, as we at
present have them, is of much later date. Some attribute
it to Stephen Langton, archbishop of Canterbury, in the
reigns of John and Henry III.; others to Hugo de Sancto
Caro, commonly called Hugo Cardinalis, who flourished
about the year 1240, and who projected the first concor¬
dance, which is that of the vulgar Latin Bible. The aim
of this work being to facilitate the finding of any word
or passage in the Scriptures, it became necessary to di¬
vide the book into sections, and the sections into subsec¬
tions ; for till that time it is generally supposed, though
not correctly, that the vulgar Latin Bibles were without
any division at all. These sections are the chapters into
which the Bible has ever since been divided. But the
subdivision of the chapters was not then into verses, as it
is now. Hugo’s method of subdividing theta was by the
letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, placed in the margin, at an
equal distance from each other, according to the length
of the chapters. The subdivision of the chapters into
verses, as they now stand in our Bibles, is said to have
been originated by a famous Jewish rabbi, named Mor-
decai Nathan, about the year 1445. This rabbi, in imita¬
tion of Hugo Cardinalis, drew up a concordance to the
Hebrew Bible for the use of the Jews. But although he
followed Hugo in his division of the books into chapters,
he refined upon his invention as to the subdivision, and
contrived the one by verses, a much more convenient me¬
thod, which has been followed ever since. And thus, as
the Jews borrowed the division of the books of the Hoiy
BIBLE.
Bibl Scriptures into chapters from the Christians, the Chris-
^ ' tians in like manner borrowed that of the chapters into
verses from the Jews.
The following is the order and division of the books of,
the Bible, as well of the Old as of the New Testament,
according to the disposition made by the council of Trent
by decree i. session iv.; and the reader will observe, that
those books to which the asterisms are prefixed have been
rejected by the Protestants as apocryphal.
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy,
Joshua, Judges and Ruth, 1 Samuel or 1 Kings, 2 Samuel
or 2 Kings, 1 Kings, otherwise called 3 Kings, 2 Kings,
otherwise called 4 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles,
1 Esdras (as the LXX. and Vulgate call it) or the book of
Ezra, 2 Esdras or (as we have it) the book of Nehemiah,
* Tobit, * Judith, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesi¬
astes, Song of Solomon, * The book of Wisdom, * Eccle-
siasticus, Isaiah, Jeremiah and * Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel,
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Ha-
bakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, * 1 Mac¬
cabees, * 2 Maccabees. The books of the New Testament
are, The Gospel of St Matthew, of St Mark, of St Luke,
and of St John ; The Acts of the Apostles ; The Epistles
of St Paul to the Romans, to the Corinthians I., to the
Corinthians II., to the Galatians, to the Ephesians, to the
Philippians, to the Colossians, to the Thessalonians L, to
the Thessalonians II., to Timothy I., to Timothy II., to
Titus, to Philemon, to the Hebrews ; The general Epistles
of St James, of St Peter I., of St Peter II., of St John I.,
of St John II., of St John III., of St Jude; The Revela¬
tion of St John.
The apocryphal books of the Old Testament, according
to the Romanists, are, the book of Enoch (see Jude 14),
the third and fourth books of Esdras, the third and fourth
books of Maccabees, the Prayer of Manasseh, the Testa¬
ment of the twelve Patriarchs, the Psalter of Solomon, and
some other pieces of this nature. The apocryphal books
of the New Testament are, the Epistle of St Barnabas,
the pretended Epistle of St Paul to the Laodiceans, se¬
veral spurious gospels, Acts of the Apostles, and Revela¬
tions ; the book of Hermas, entitled, The Shepherd, Jesus
Christ’s Letter to Abgarus, the Epistles of St Paul to Se¬
neca, and several other pieces of the like nature, as may
be seen in the collection of the apocryphal writings of
the New Testament made by Fabricius.
The books which are cited in the Old Testament, but
now lost, are these: The book of the Righteous, or of
Jasher, as our version of the Bible has it (Josh. x. 13, and
2 Sam. i. 18) ; the book of the Wars of the Lord (Numb,
xxi. 14); and the Annals of the Kings of Israel, so often
cited in the books of the Kings and Chronicles. The authors
of these Annals were the prophets who lived in the king¬
doms of Judah and Israel. We have likewise but a part
of Solomon’s 3000 proverbs and his 1005 songs (1 Kings
iv. 32); and we have entirely lost what he wrote upon
plants, animals, birds, fishes, and reptiles.
In the opinion of most learned men, Ezra published the
Scriptures in the Chaldee character; for that language
having come into general use among the Jews, he thought
proper to exchange the old Hebrew character for the Chal-
daic, which since that time has been retained only by the Sa¬
maritans. Prideaux is of opinion that Ezra made additions
ln several parts of the Bible, where any thing appeared
necessary for illustrating, connecting, or completing the
work; in which he may have been assisted by the same in¬
spiration by which they were first written. Among such ad-
citions are to be reckoned the last chapter of Deuterono-
iny, in which Moses seems to give an account of his own
eath and burial, and the succession of Joshua after him.
0 the same cause our learned author thinks are to be
613
attributed many other interpolations in the Bible, which Bible,
created difficulties and objections to the authenticity of the
sacred text, nowise to be solved without allowing them.
Ezra changed the names of several places which were
grown obsolete, and instead of them inserted the new names
by which they were then called in the text. Thus it is
that Abraham is said to have pursued the kings who car¬
ried Lot away captive, as far as Dan; whereas that place
in Moses’s time was called Laish, the name Dan being
unknown till the Danites, long after the death of Moses,
possessed themselves of it.
The Jewish canon of Scripture was then settled by Ezra,
yet not so but that several variations have been made in
it. Malachi, for instance, could not be put in the Bible by
him, since that prophet is allowed to have lived after Ezra;
nor could Nehemiah be there, since mention is made, in
that book, of Jaddus as high-priest, and of Darius Codo-
mannus as king of Persia, who were at least a century
later than Ezra. It may also be added, that in the first
book of Chronicles, the genealogy of the sons of Zerub-
babel is carried down for as many generations as to bring
it down to the time of Alexander; and consequently this
book could not be included in the canon in Ezra’s days.
It is probable that the two books of Chronicles, Ezra,
Nehemiah, Esther, and Malachi, were admitted into the
Bible in the time of Simon the Just, the last of the men of
the great synagogue.
The Jews, at first, were very reserved in communicating
their Scripture to strangers. Despising and shunning the
Gentiles, they would not disclose to them any of the trea¬
sures concealed in the sacred books. We may add, that the
people bordering on Judaea, as the Egyptians, Phoenicians,
Arabs, and others, were not very curious to know the laws
or history of a people whom in their turn they hated or
despised. Their first acquaintance with these books was
not till after the several captivities of the Jews, when the
singularity of the Hebrew laws and ceremonies induced
several to desire a more particular knowledge of them.
Josephus seems surprised to find such slight traces of the
Scripture history interspersed in the Egyptian, Chaldaean,
Phoenician, and Grecian history; and he accounts for it
from the circumstance of the sacred books not having as
yet been translated into Greek or other languages, and
consequently not being known to the writers of those na¬
tions.
The first Greek version of the Bible was that of the
Septuagint, in the time of Ptolemy Philadelphus ; though
some maintain that the whole was not then translated,
but only the Pentateuch, between which and the other
books in the version called that of the Seventy, critics pro¬
fess to find a great diversity in point of style and expres¬
sion, as well as of accuracy.
Hebrew Bibles are either manuscript or printed. The
best manuscript Bibles, in the estimation of the Jews, are
the Spanish. The German manuscripts are less esteemed
by the Jews, but far more valued by biblical critics. The
two kinds are easily distinguished from each other; the
former being in beautiful characters, like the Hebrew
Bibles of Bomberg, Stephens, and Plantin, and the latter
in characters like those of Munster and Gryphius.
Dr Kennicott, in his Dissertatio Generaiis prefixed to
his Hebrew Bible, observes, that the most ancient manu¬
scripts were written between the years 900 and 1100;
but that although those which are the most ancient are not
more than 800 or 900 years old, they were transcribed
from others of a still more ancient date. One manu¬
script preserved in the Bodleian library is not less than
800 years old. Another manuscript, equally ancient, is
preserved in the imperial library at Vienna.
The most ancient printed Hebrew Bibles are those pub-
BIBLE.
lished by the Jews of Italy. The Jews of Portugal also
printed some parts of the Bible at Lisbon, before their ex¬
pulsion. And in general it may be observed, that the best
Hebrew Bibles are those printed under the inspection of
the Jews; there being so many minutiae to be observed,
that it is scarcely possible for others to succeed in it.
In the beginning of the sixteenth century Daniel Bom-
berg printed several Hebrew Bibles in folio and quarto at
Venice, most of which are esteemed both by the Jews and
Christians. The first, which was printed in 1518, is the least
exact, and generally goes by the name of Felix Pratensis,
the person who revised it. This edition contains the He¬
brew text, the targum, and the commentaries of several
rabbin. In 1526 the same Bomberg printed the folio Bible
of Rabbi Benchajim, with his preface, the masoretical di¬
visions, a preface of Aben Ezra, a double masora, and se¬
veral various readings. The third edition was printed in
1549 ; it is the same with the second, but much more cor¬
rect. From these editions it was that Buxtorf, the father,
printed his rabbinical Hebrew Bible at Basel in 1618;
which, although there are many faults in it, is more correct
than any of the former. In 1623 appeared at Venice a
new edition of the rabbinical Bible by Leo of Modena, a
rabbin of that city, who pretended to have corrected a
great number of faults in the former edition; but, besides
that it is much inferior to the other Hebrew Bibles of Ve¬
nice, in regard to paper and print, it has passed through
the hands of the inquisitors, who have altered many pas¬
sages in the commentaries of the rabbin.
As to Hebrew Bibles, that of R. Stephens is esteem¬
ed for the beauty of the characters; but it is very incor¬
rect. Plantin also printed several beautiful Llebrew Bi¬
bles at Antwerp ; particularly one in eight columns, with a
preface by Arias Montanus, in 1572, which far exceeds
the Complutensian Bible, in paper and print, and contents,
and is called the Royal Bible, because it was printed at
the expense of Philip II. of Spain ; and another at Geneva
in 1619; besides many more of different sizes, with and
without points. Manasseh Ben Israel, a learned Portu¬
guese Jew, published two editions of the Hebrew Bible at
Amsterdam, the one in quarto in 1635, the other in octavo,
in 1639; the first has two columns, and for that reason is
commodious for the reader. In 1639 R. Jac. Lombroso
published a new edition in quarto at Venice, with small
literal notes at the bottom of each page, where he explains
the Hebrew words by Spanish ones. This Bible was much
esteemed by the Jews at Constantinople : in the text they
have distinguished between words where the point kamets
is to be read with a kamets-katuph, that is, by o, instead of a.
Of all the editions of the Hebrew Bible in octavo,
among the most beautiful are the two of Jo. Athias, a Jew
of Amsterdam. The first, of 1661, is on the best paper,
but that of 1667 is the more exact: that, however, pub¬
lished since at Amsterdam by Van der Hooght in 1705 is
preferable to either of them.
After Athias, three Hebraizing Protestants engaged in
revising and publishing the Hebrew Bible, namely, Clodius,
Jablonski, and Opitius. Clodius’s edition was published
at Frankfort in 1677, in 4to. At the bottom of the page
it has the various readings of the former editions; but the
author does not appear sufficiently versed in the accent¬
ing, especially in the poetical books; besides, as it was
not published under his eye, many errors have crept into it.
That of Jablonski, in 1699, in 4to, at Berlin, is very beau¬
tiful in letter and in print; but although the editor pre¬
tends to have made use of the editions of Athias and
Clodius, some critics find it scarcely in any respect dif¬
ferent from the quarto edition of Bomberg. That of
Opitius is also in quarto, at Keil in 1709. The character
is large and good, but the paper is bad. It was executed
with a great deal of care; but the editor made use of no Bi
manuscripts excepting those of the German libraries, ne- ^ j «
glectingthe French ones ; which indeed is an omission com¬
mon to all the three. They have this advantage, however,
that besides the divisions used by the Jews, both general
and particular, into paraskes and pesukim, they have also
those of the Christians, or of the Latin Bibles, into chapters
and verses, the keri and ketib, or various readings, Latin
summaries, &c., which render them of considerable use with
reference to the Latin edition and the concordances.
The little Bible of R. Stephens, in sexto-decimo, is
very much prized for the beauty of the character. Care,
however, must be taken to distinguish it, as there is an¬
other edition of Geneva exceedingly like it, excepting that
the print is worse, and the text less correct. To these
may be added some other Hebrew Bibles without points,
in octavo and vigesimo-quarto, which are much coveted
by the Jews, not that they are more exact, but more por¬
table than the rest, and are used in their synagogues and
schools: of these there are two beautiful editions, the one
of Flantin, in octavo, with two columns, and the other
in twenty-fours, reprinted by Raphelengius at Leyden in
1610. There is also an edition of them by Laurence at
Amsterdam in 1631, in a large character; and another
in duodecimo, at Frankfort, in 1694, full of errors, with
a preface of M. Leusden at the head of it.
Houbigant published an elegant edition of the Hebrew
Bible at Paris in 1753, contained in four vols. folio. The
text is that of Van der Hooght, without points, to which
he has added marginal notes, supplying the variations of
the Samaritan copy. Dr Kennicott, after almost twenty
years’ laborious collation of nearly 700 copies, manuscript
and printed, either of the whole or of particular parts
of the Bible, published, in 1776, the first volume of the
Hebrew Bible in folio. The text is that of Van der
Hooght, already mentioned, differing from it only in the
disposition of the poetical parts, which Dr Kennicott has
printed in hemistichs, into which they naturally divide
themselves ; however, the words follow one another in the
same order as they do in the edition of Van der .Hooght.
This edition is printed on an excellent type ; and the Sama¬
ritan text, according to the copy in the London Polyglot,
is exhibited in a column parallel with the Hebrew text,
those parts of it only being introduced in which it differs
from the Hebrew. The numerous variations, both of the
Samaritan manuscripts from the printed copy of the Sa¬
maritan text, and of the Hebrew manuscripts from the
printed text of Van der Hooght, are placed separately at
the bottom of the page, and marked with numbers refer¬
ring to the copies from which they are taken. The second
volume was published in 1780, with a Dissertatio Generalis
annexed, containing an account of manuscripts collated
for this edition.
Greek Bibles. There is a great number of editions of
the Bible in Greek ; but they may be all reduced to three
or four principal ones, viz. that of Complutum or Alcala,
that of Venice, that of Rome, and that of Oxford. The
first was published in 1515, by Cardinal Ximenes, and in¬
serted in the Polyglot Bible, usually called the Complu¬
tensian Bible; but this edition is not correct, the Greek
of the Seventy being altered in many places according to
the Hebrew text. It has, howqyer, been reprinted in the
Polyglot Bible of Antwerp, in that of Paris, and in the
quarto Bible commonly called Vatabluss Bible.
The second Greek Bible is that of Venice, printed by
Aldus in 1518. Here the Greek text .of the Septuagin
is reprinted just as it stood in the manuscript, full t l.e
errors of the copyists, but capable of being easily amende •
This edition was reprinted at Strasburg in 1526, at Base
in 1545, at Frankfort in 1597, and at other places, witi
BIBLE.
jjjjl, gome alterations to bring it nearer the Hebrew. The
raost commodious is that of Frankfort, there being added
to this, little scholia, which show the different interpreta¬
tions of the old Greek translators. The author of this col¬
lection has not added his name, but it is commonly as¬
cribed to Junius.
The third Greek Bible is that of Rome, or the Vatican,
in 1587, with Greek scholia collected from the manuscripts
in the Roman libraries by Pet. Morin. It was first set on
foot by Cardinal Montalbo, afterwards Pope Sixtus V.
This fine edition was reprinted at Paris in 1628 by J.
Morin, priest of the oratory, who added the Latin trans¬
lation, which in the Roman edition had been printed
separately, with scholia. The Greek edition of Rome has
been printed in the Polyglot Bible of London; to which
are added, at the bottom of each page, the various readings
of the Alexandrian manuscript, which has also been re¬
printed in England in quarto and duodecimo, with some
alterations. It was again published at Franeker in 1709
by Bos, who added all the various readings he could find.
The fourth Greek Bible is that printed from the Alexan¬
drian manuscript, and begun at Oxford by Dr Grabe in
1707. In this the Alexandrian manuscript is not printed
such as it is, but such as it was thought it should be ; that
is, it is altered wherever there appeared any fault of the
copyists, or any word inserted from any particular dialect.
This some think an excellence, but others a fault, urging,
that the manuscript should have been given absolutely
and entirely of itself, and that all conjectures as to the
readings should have been thrown into the notes.
Latin Bibles, how numerous soever, may be all reduced
to three classes; the ancient Vulgate, called also Italica,
translated from the Greek Septuagint; the modern Vul¬
gate, the greater part of which is done from the Hebrew
text; and the new Latin translations, also executed from
the Hebrew text, in the sixteenth century. We have no¬
thing remaining of the ancient Vulgate used in the primitive
times in the western churches, except the Psalms, Wisdom,
and Ecclesiastes. Nobilius has endeavoured to retrieve
it from the works of the ancient Latin fathers; but it was
impossible to do so exactly, because most of the fathers
did not keep close to it in their citations.
As to the modern Vulgate, there is a vast number of edi¬
tions very different from one another. Cardinal Ximenes
has inserted one in the Bible of Complutum, corrected
and altered in many places. R. Stephens and the doctors
of Louvain have taken great pains in correcting the modern
Vulgate.
The best edition of Stephens’s Latin Bible is that of
1540, reprinted in 1545, in which are added on the mar¬
gin the various readings of several Latin manuscripts
which he had consulted. The doctors of Louvain revis¬
ed the modern Vulgate after R. Stephens, and added the
various readings of several Latin manuscripts. The best
of the Louvain editions are those at the end of which are
added the critical notes of Francis Lucas of Bruges, and
which have the dates 1573 and 1586.
All these reformations of the Latin Bible were made
before the time of Pope Sixtus V. and Clement VIII. since
which people have not dared to make any alterations, ex¬
cepting in comments and separate notes. The correction
of Clement VIII. in 1592, is now the standard throughout
all the Romish churches : that pontiff made two reforma¬
tions, but it is the first of them only that is followed.
1‘rom this the Bibles of Plantin were printed, and from
these of Plantin all the rest; so that the common Bibles
have none of the after-corrections of Clement.
There are a great number of Latin Bibles of the third
class, comprehending the versions from the originals of
the sacred books made within the last two centuries. The
615
first is that of Santes Pagninus, a Dominican under the Bible,
patronage of Pope Leo X. printed at Lyons, in 4to, in
1528, and much esteemed by the Jews. This the author
improved in a second edition. In 1542 there was a beauti¬
ful edition of the same at Lyons, in folio, with scholia,
published under the name of Michael Villanovanus, or
Michael Servetus, author of the scholia. Those of Zurich
have likewise published an edition of Pagninus’s Bible in
quarto ; and R. Stephens reprinted it in folio, with the Vul¬
gate, in 1557, pretending to give it more correctly than
in the former editions. There is also another edition of
1568, in four columns, under the name of Vatablus ; and
we find it again in the Hamburg edition of the Bible in
four languages.
In the number of Latin Bibles is also usually ranked the
version of the same Pagninus, corrected, or rather render¬
ed literal, by Arias Montanus; which correction having
been approved of by the doctors of Louvain, was inserted
in the Polyglot Bible of Philip II. and since in that of
London. There have been various editions of this in
folio, quarto, and octavo, to which have been added the
Hebrew text of the Old Testament, and the Greek of the
New. The best of them all is the first, which is in folio,
1571.
Since the Reformation there have been several Latin
versions of the Bible from the originals by Protestants.
The most esteemed are those of Munster, Leo Juda,
Castalio, Junius, Tremellius, Schmidt, Dathe, Schott, and
Winzer. Munster published his version at Basel in 1534,
which he afterwards revised; he also published a correct
edition in 1546. Castalio’s fine Latin pleases most people,
but some think it too affected; the best edition is that in
1573. Leo Juda’s version, altered a little by the divines
of Salamanca, was added to the ancient Latin edition, as
published by R. Stephens, with notes, under the name of
Vatablus's Bible, in 1545. It was condemned by the Pa¬
risian divines, but printed with some alterations by the
Spanish divines of Salamanca. That of Junius and Tre¬
mellius is preferred, especially by the Calvinists, and has
undergone a great number of editions. Schmidt’s version
is very literal, and Dathe’s is considered both faithful and
elegant.
We may add a fourth class of Latin Bibles, compre¬
hending the Vulgate edition corrected from the originals.
The Bible of Isidores Clarus is of this number. That au¬
thor, not being contented with restoring the ancient Latin
copy, has corrected the translation in a great number of
places which he thought ill rendered. Some Protestants
have followed the same method; and among others, An¬
drew and Luke Osiander, who have each published a new
edition of the Vulgate, corrected from the originals.
Oriental Bibles. At the head of the oriental versions
of the Bible must be placed the Samaritan, as being the
most ancient of all, though neither its age nor author has
been yet ascertained, and admitting no more as Holy
Scripture than the Pentateuch or five books of Moses.
This translation is made from the Samaritan Hebrew text,
which is a little different from the Hebrew text of the
Jews. It has never been printed alone, nor anywhere
excepting in the Polyglots of London and Paris.
Chaldee Bibles are only the glosses or expositions made
by the Jews in the time when they spake the Chaldee
tongue. These they call by the name of targumim or
paraphrases, as not being strict versions of the Scrip¬
ture. They have been inserted entire in the large He¬
brew Bibles of Venice and Basel, but are read more com-
modiously in the Polyglots, being there attended with a
Latin translation.
Syriac Bibles. There are extant two versions of the
Old Testament in the Syriac language; the least ancient
616
BIBLE.
Bible.
from the Septuagint, which was made probably in the
sixth century; the bthef, called antiqua et simplex, from
the Hebrew, and made, as some suppose, about the time
of the apostles. This version is printed in the Polyglots
of London and Paris.
In the year 1555, Widmanstadius printed the whole New
Testament in Syriac, at Vienna, in a beautiful character.
After this there were several other editions, and it was
inserted in the Bible of Philip II. with a Latin translation.
Gabriel Sionita also published a beautiful Syriac edition
of the Psalms, at Paris, in 1525, with a Latin interpreta¬
tion.
Arabic Bibles. In the year 1516 Aug. Justinian,
bishop of Nebio, printed at Genoa an Arabic version of the
Psalter, with the Hebrew text and Chaldee paraphrase,
adding Latin interpretations. There are also Arabic ver¬
sions of the whole Scriptures in the Polyglots of London
and Paris; and we have an edition of the Old Testament
entire, printed at Rome in 1671, by order of the congre¬
gation de propaganda fide; but it is in little estimation,
from having been altered agreeably to the vulgate edition.
The Arabic Bibles among us are not the same with those
used by the Christians of the East. Some learned men
take the Arabic version of the Old Testament printed in
the Polyglots to be that of Saadias, who lived about the
year 900, or at least principally so. Their reason is, that
Aben Ezra, a great antagonist of Saadias, quotes some
passages of his version, which are the same with those in
the Arabic version of the Polyglots ; but others are of opi¬
nion that Saadias’s version is not extant. In 1622, Erpe-
nius printed an Arabic Pentateuch, called also the Penta¬
teuch of Mauritania, from having been made by the Jews
of Barbary, for their own use. This version is quite literal,
and esteemed very exact. The four Evangelists were also
published in Arabic, with a Latin version, at Rome, in the
year 1591, folio. These have since been reprinted in the
Polyglots of London and Paris, with some small alterations
of Gabriel Sionita. Erpenius published an Arabic New
Testament entire, as he found it in his manuscript copy,
at Leyden, in 1616.
There are some other Arabic versions of recent date
mentioned by Walton in his Prolegomena; particularly a
version of the Psalms preserved in Sion College, London,
and another of the Prophets at Oxford ; neither of which
has been published.
Coptic Bibles. There are several manuscript copies of
the Coptic Bible in some of the great libraries, especially
in that of the French king. Dr Wilkins published the
Coptic New Testament in quarto in the year 1716, and
the Pentateuch, also in quarto, in 1731, with Latin trans¬
lations. He is of opinion that these versions were made
in the end of the second, or the beginning of the third
century.
Ethiopic Bibles. The Ethiopians have also translated
the Bible into their language. There have been printed
separately, the Psalms, Canticles, some chapters of Genesis,
Ruth, Joel, Jonah, Zephaniah, Malachi, and the New Tes¬
tament ; all which have been since reprinted in the Poly¬
glot of London. As to the Ethiopic New Testament, which
was first printed at Rome in 1548, it is a very inaccurate
work, and is reprinted in the English Polyglot with all its
faults.
Armenian Bibles. There is a very ancient Armenian
version of the whole Bible, done from the Greek of the
Seventy, by some Armenian doctors, about the time of
Chrysostom. This was first printed entire in 1666, by one
of their bishops, at Amsterdam, in quarto; with the New
Testament in octavo.
Persian Bibles. Some of the fathers seem to say that
all the Scripture was formerly translated into the language
of the Persians; but we have nothing now remaining of B
the ancient version, which was certainly made from the 'sj
Septuagint. The Persian Pentateuch printed in the Lon¬
don Polyglot is without doubt the work of Rabbi Jacob a
Persian Jew. It was published by the Jews at Constan¬
tinople in the year 1551. In the same Polyglot we have
likewise the four Evangelists in Persian, with a Latin trans¬
lation ; but this appears very modern, incorrect, and of
little use. Walton says this version was written above
four hundred years ago. Another version of the Gospels
was published at Cambridge by Wheloc in the year 1657;
and there are also two Persian versions of the Psalms made
in the seventeenth century from the Latin of the Vulgate.
Gothic Bibles. It is generally said that Ulphilas, a
Gothic bishop, who lived in the fourth century, made, for
the use of his countrymen, a version of the whole Bible ex¬
cepting the book of Kings, which he omitted because of
the frequent mention therein of wars, being averse to in¬
spire too much of the military genius into that people.
We have nothing remaining of this version but the four
Evangelists, printed in- quarto at Dort in 1665, and far
more accurately at Weissenfels in 1805.
Whilst the Roman empire subsisted in Europe, the
reading of the Scriptures in the Latin tongue, which was
the universal language of that empire, prevailed every¬
where. But since the face of affairs in Europe was
changed, and so many different monarchies were erected
upon the ruins of the Roman empire, the Latin tongue
has gradually fallen into disuse ; a necessity of translating
the Bible into the respective languages of each people has
consequently arisen ; and this has produced as many ver¬
sions of the Scriptures in the modern languages, as there
are nations professing the Christian religion. Hence we
meet with French, Italian, Spanish, German, Flemish,
Danish, Sclavonian, Polish, Bohemian, and Russian or
Muscovite Bibles ; besides the Anglo-Saxon, and modern
English and Irish Bibles.
French Bibles. The oldest French Bible we are ac¬
quainted with is the version of Peter de Vaux, chief of
the Waldenses, who lived about the year 1160. Raoul de
Presle also translated the Bible into French in the reign
of Charles V. king of France, about the year 1380. And,
besides these, there are several old French translations of
particular parts of the Scripture. The doctors of Louvain
published the Bible in French at Louvain by order of the
emperor Charles V. in 1550. There is also a version by
Isaac le Maitre de Sacy, published in 1692, with expla¬
nations of the literal and spiritual meaning of the text,
which was received with wonderful applause, and has of¬
ten been reprinted. As to the New Testaments in French
which have been printed separately, one of the most re¬
markable is that of F. Amelotte of the oratory, executed
by the direction of some French prelates, and printed with
annotations in the years 1666,1667, and 1670. The author
pretends he had been at the pains to search all the libra¬
ries in Europe, and collate the oldest manuscripts; but,
on examining his work, it appears that he has produced
very few various readings which had not been previous¬
ly taken notice of either in the London Polyglot or else¬
where. The New Testament of Mons, printed in the
year 1665, with the archbishop of Cambray’s permission)
and the king of Spain’s license, made a great noise in the
world. It was condemned by Pope Clement IX. in 1668,
and by Pope Innocent XL in 1679, and in several bishop¬
rics of France at different times. The New Testament
published at Trevoux, in 1702, by M. Simon, with htera
and critical annotations upon difficult passages, was con¬
demned by the bishops of Paris and Meaux in
Bouhours, a Jesuit, with the assistance of Michael Tpniej
and Peter Bernier, who were likewise Jesuits, pubhsne
BIBLE.
617
£.| a translation of the New Testament in 1697; but this
^ J translation is for the most part harsh and obscure, owing
to the author’s keeping too strictly to the Latin text from
which he translated. The most approved translations are
those of Descarrieres and De Vence.
There are likewise French translations published by
Protestant authors ; particularly one by Robert Peter Oli-
vetan, printed at Neufchatel in 1535, and since often re¬
printed with the corrections of John Calvin and others ;
and another by Sebastian Castalio, remarkable for parti¬
cular modes of expression never used by good judges of
the language. John Diodati likewise published a French
Bible at Geneva in 1644; but some find fault with his me¬
thod, in that he rather paraphrases the text than translates
it. J. Faber Stapulensis translated the New Testament
into French, which was revised and accommodated to the
use of the reformed churches in Piedmont, and printed in
1534. Lastly, M. le Clerc published a New Testament in
French at Amsterdam in 1703, with annotations taken
chiefly from Grotius and Hammond ; but the use of this
version was prohibited in Holland by order of the States-
General, as tending to revive the errors of Sabellius and
Socinus.
Italian Bibles. The first Italian Bible published by
the Catholics is that of Nicholas Malermi, a Benedictine
monk, printed at Venice in 1471. It was translated from
the Vulgate. The version of Anthony Bruccioli, publish¬
ed at Venice in 1532, was prohibited by the Council of
Trent. Martini’s translation is now commonly used in
Italy. The Calvinists likewise have their Italian Bibles.
There is one of Maximus Theophilus in 1551, dedicated
to Francis de’ Medici, duke of Tuscany, and another of
John Diodati in 1607 and 1641. The .Jews of Italy have
no entire version of the Bible in Italian, the inquisition
constantly refusing to allow them the liberty of printing
one.
Spanish Bibles. The earliest Spanish Bible of which
we have any account is one printed at Valencia in 1478.
The Epistles and Gospels were published in that language
by Ambrose de Montesin in 1512; the whole Bible by
Cassiodore de Reyna, a Calvinist, in 1569; and the New
Testament, dedicated to the emperor Charles V. by Fran¬
cis Enzinas, otherwise called Driander, in 1543. The first
Bible which was published in Spanish for the use of the
Jews was that printed at Ferrara in 1553, in Gothic cha¬
racters, and dedicated to Hercules d’Este, duke of Fer¬
rara. This version is very ancient, and was probably in
use among the Jews of Spain before Ferdinand and Isa¬
bella expelled the unfortunate Israelites in 1492.
German Bibles. The first and most ancient transla¬
tion of the Bible in the German language is that of Ul-
philas, bishop of the Goths, about the year 360. This
bishop left out the book of Kings, which treats chiefly of
war, lest it should too much encourage the martial hu¬
mour of the Goths. An imperfect manuscript of this ver¬
sion was found in the abbey of Verden, near Cologne, writ¬
ten in letters of silver, for which reason it is called Codex
Argenteus; and it was published by Francis Junius in
1665. The oldest German printed Bible extant is that
of Nuremberg, 1466, translated from the Vulgate by an un¬
known author. Emzer, chaplain to George duke of Sax¬
ony, published a version of the New Testament in oppo¬
sition to Luther. There is a German Bible of John Eckius
in 1537, with Emzer’s New Testament added to it; and
one by Ulembergius of Westphalia, procured by Ferdi¬
nand duke of Bavaria, and printed in 1630. Martin Lu¬
ther having employed eleven years in translating the Old
and New Testament, published the Pentateuch in 1523,
the historical books and the Psalms in 1524, the books
of Solomon in 1527, Isaiah in 1529, the Prophets in 1531,
VOL. iv.
and the other books in 1530: he had published the New
Testament in 1522. The learned agree that his language
is pure, and the version clear and free from intricacies : it
Bible.
was revised by several persons of judgment and learning,
complete proficients in the German language. The Ger¬
man Bibles which have been printed in Saxony, Switzer¬
land, and elsewhere, are for the most part the same as
that of Luther, with very little variation. In 1604 John
Piscator published a version of the Bible in German, taken
from that of Junius and Tremellius ; but his turn of ex¬
pression is purely Latin, and not at all agreeable to the
genius of the German language. The Anabaptists have a
German Bible printed at Worms in 1529. John Crellius
published his version of the New Testament at Racovia
in 1630; and Felbinger his at Amsterdam in 1660.
Belgian or Flemish Bibles. The Flemish Bibles of the
Catholics are very numerous, and for the most part have
no author’s name prefixed to them, till that of Nicolas
Vinck, which was printed at Louvain in 1548. The Flemish
versions made use of by the Calvinists till the year 1637
were copied principally from that of Luther. But the
synod of Dort having in 1618 appointed a new transla¬
tion of the Bible into Flemish, deputies were named for
the work, which was not finished till the year 1637.
Danish Bibles. The first Danish Bible was published
by Peter Palladius, Olaus Chrysostom, John Syningius,
and John Maccabaeus, in 1550. In this they followed
Luther’s first German version. There are two other ver¬
sions, the one by John Paul Resenius, bishop of Zealand,
in 1605 ; the other, being the New Testament only, by
John Michel, in 1524.
Swedish Bible. In 1534 Olaus and Laurence publish¬
ed a Swedish Bible from the German version of Martin
Luther. It was revised in 1617, by order of King Gus-
tavus Adolphus, and was afterwards almost universally
adopted.
Bohemian, Polish, Russian, and Sclavonian Bibles. The
Bohemians had a Bible printed at Prague in 1488, and
another translated by eight of their doctors, whom they
had sent to the schools of Wirtemburg and Basel, on pur¬
pose to study the original languages. It was printed in
Moravia in the year 1539. The first Polish version of the
Bible, it is said, was that composed by Hadewich, wife of
Jagellon, duke of Lithuania, who embraced Christianity
in the year 1390. In 1561 a Polish translation of the Bible
was published at Cracow. It was the work of several Ca¬
tholic divines, and James Wieck, a Jesuit, had a principal
share in it. The Protestants, in 1596, published a Polish
Bible from Luther’s German version, and dedicated it to
Uladislaus IV. king of Poland. The Russians published
the Bible in their own language in 1581. It was translat¬
ed from the Greek by St Cyril, the apostle of the Scla-
vonians ; but this old version being too obscure, Ernest
Glvick, who had been carried prisoner to Moscow after
the taking of Narva, undertook a new translation of the
Bible into modern Russian, which was printed at Amster¬
dam in 1698.
English-Saxon Bibles. If we inquire into the versions
of the Bible of our own country, we shall find that Adelm,
bishop of Sherbourn, who lived in 709, made an English-
Saxon version of the Psalms; and that Eadfrid or Egbert,
bishop of Lindisferne, who lived about the year 720, trans¬
lated several of the books of Scripture into the same lan¬
guage. It is said, likewise, that Venerable Bede, who died
in 785, translated the whole Bible into Saxon ; but Cuth-
bert, Bede’s disciple, in the enumeration of his master’s
works, speaks only of his translation of the Gospels, and
says nothing of the rest of the Bible. Some pretend that
King Alfred, who died in 901, translated a great part of
the Scriptures. We find an old version in the Anglo-
618
BIBLE.
Bible.
Saxon, of several books of the Bible, made by Elfric, abbot
of Malmesbury; it was published at Oxford in the year
1699. There is also an old Anglo-Saxon version of the
four Gospels, published by Matthew Parker, archbishop
of Canterbury, in 1571, but the author of it is unknown.
Dr Mill observes that this version was made from a Latin
copy of the old Vulgate.
Indian Bibles. A translation of the New Testament
into the North American Indian language by Elliot was
published in quarto at Cambridge, New England, in 1661,
and one of the whole Bible in 1685. Since that period
portions of Scripture, particularly of the New Testament,
have been translated into the dialects of several of the
Indian tribes; but as the latter are fast disappearing be¬
fore the advancing tide of colonization, these labours have
recently been in a great measure discontinued.
English Bibles. The first English Bible we read of
is that mentioned by Usher as having been translated
in 1290. The next is that which was translated by J.
Wickliffe about the year 1360, the original manuscript of
which is still extant. J. de Trevisa, who died about the
year 1398, is also said to have translated the whole Bible.
Tindal's Bible. The first printed Bible in our lan¬
guage was that translated by Will. Tindal, assisted by
Miles Coverdale: it was printed abroad in 1526; but most
of the copies were bought up and burnt by Bishop Tun-
stal and Sir Thomas More. It contained only the New
Testament, and was revised and republished by the same
person in 1530. The prologues and prefaces added to it
reflect on the bishops and clergy; but this edition was also
suppressed, and the copies burnt. In 1532 Tindal and
his associates finished the whole Bible except the Apo¬
crypha, and printed it abroad; but afterwards, whilst he
was preparing for a second edition, he was taken up and
burnt for heresy in Flanders.
Matthews's Bible. On Tindal’s death, his work was
carried on by Coverdale, and John Rogers, superintendent
of an English church in Germany, and the first martyr in
the reign of Queen Mary, who translated the Apocrypha,
and revised Tindal’s translation, comparing it with the
Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and German, and adding prefaces
and notes from Luther’s Bible. He dedicated the whole
to Henry VIII., in 1537, under the borrowed name of
Ihomas Matthews; whence this has usually been called
Matthews's Bible. It was printed at Hamburg, and license
obtained for publishing it in England by the favour of
Archbishop Cranraer, and the bishops Latimer and Shax-
ton.
Cranmer s Bible. The first Bible printed by authority
in England, and publicly set up in churches, was the same
lindal’s version, revised, compared with the Hebrew, and
in many places amended, by Miles Coverdale, afterwards
bishop of Exeter. It was subsequently examined by Arch¬
bishop Cranmer, who added a preface to it; and hence it
has been called Cranmer's Bible. It was printed by Graf¬
ton, of the largest size, and published in 1539; and, by a
royal proclamation, every parish was obliged to set one of
the copies in their church, under the penalty of 40s. a
month ; yet, two years after, the Popish bishops obtained
its suppression by authority of the king. It was restored
under Edward VI. suppressed again under Queen Mary,
and restored again in the first year of Queen Elizabeth,
and a new edition of it issued in 1562.
Geneva Bible. Some English exiles at Geneva in
Queen Mary s reign—Coverdale, Goodman, Gilbie, Samp¬
son, Cole, \V hittingham, and Knox—made a new transla-
iou, punted there in 1560, the New Testament having
been printed in 1557, and hence called the Geneva Bible :
containing the variations of readings, marginal annotations,
cVc., on account of which it was much valued by the puri¬
tan party in that and the following reigns. In the reign B;
of Queen Elizabeth and her successor James, it was re- ^ j
printed in England more than fifty times ; and there were
also numerous impressions in Holland, Scotland, and else¬
where.
Bishops' Bible. Archbishop Parker resolved on a new
translation for the public use of the church, and engaged
the bishops and other learned men to take each a share
or portion. These being afterwards joined together, and
printed with short annotations in 1568, in a large folio,
composed what was afterwards called the Bishops Bible.
The following year it was also published in octavo, in a
small but fine black letter; and here the chapters were
divided into verses, but without any breaks for them, in
which the method of the Geneva Bible was followed,
which was the first English Bible where any distinction
of verses was made. It Avas afterwards printed in large
folio, with corrections and several prolegomena, in 1572.
This was called Matthew Parker s Bible. The initial letters
of each translator’s name were put at the end of his part;
as, for example, at the end of the Pentateuch, W. E. for
William Exon, or William bishop of Exeter, whose allot¬
ment ended there ; at the end of Samuel, R. M. for Rich¬
ard Menevensis, or bishop of St David’s, to whom the se¬
cond allotment fell; and so of the rest. The archbishop su¬
perintended, directed, examined, and completed the whole.
This translation was used in the churches for forty years,
though the Geneva Bible was more read in private houses,
having been printed above thirty times in as many years.
King James bore it an inveterate hatred on account of the
notes, which at the Hampton Court conference he charged
as partial, untrue, seditious, and so forth. The Bishops’
Bible too had its faults. The king frankly owned he had
yet seen no good translation of the Bible in English; but
he thought that of Geneva the worst of all.
Douay Bible. After the translation of the Bible by
the bishops, two other private versions had been made
of the New Testament; the first by Laur. Tomson, from
Beza’s Latin edition, together Avith the notes of Beza,
published in 1582 in 4to, and afterwards in 1589, vary¬
ing very little from the Geneva Bible; the second by
the Catholics at Rheims in 1582, with notes, called the
Rheimish Testament. These finding it impossible to keep
the people from reading the Scriptures in the vulgar
tongue, resolved to give a version of their own, and as
favourable to their cause as circumstances Avould permit.
It was printed on a large paper, with a fair letter and
margin. One complaint against it was its retaining a mul¬
titude of Hebrew and Greek words untranslated, for want,
as the editors express it, of proper and adequate terms
in the English to render them by; as the words azymes,
tunihe, paraclete, holocaust, prepuce, pasche, and such like.
Howrever, many of the copies Avere seized by the queen’s
searchers, and confiscated, and Thomas Cartwright was
solicited by Secretary Walsingham to refute it; but, after
some progress had been made in the work, Archbishop
Whitgift prohibited his further proceeding, judging it im¬
proper that the doctrine of the Church of England should
be committed to the defence of a puritan, and appointed Dr
Fulke in his place, who refuted the Rheimists with great
spirit and learning. Cartwright’s refutation was also after¬
wards published in 1618 under Archbishop Abbot. About
thirty years after their Ncav Testament, the Roman Ca¬
tholics published a translation of the Old Testament at
Douay, in 1609 and 1610, from the Vulgate, with annota¬
tions ; so that the English Roman Catholics have now the
whole Bible in their mother tongue. It is proper to men¬
tion here that the notes of the Rheimish and Douay trans¬
lators have been generally discountenanced by the Roman
Catholic clergy.
BIB
Bit King James's Bible. The last English Bible was that
^ which proceeded from the Hampton Court conference in
1603, where many exceptions being made to the Bishops’
Bible, King James gave orders for a new one; not, as the
preface expresses it, for a translation altogether new, nor
yet to make a bad one good, but to make a good one
better, or of many that were good, one best. Fifty-four
learned persons were appointed for this office by the king,
as appears by his letter to the archbishop, dated in 1604,
three years before the translation was entered upon. It is
probable, therefore, that seven of them had either died
or declined the task, since Fuller’s list of the translators
gives but forty-seven; who, being ranged under six divi¬
sions, commenced their task in 1607. Their translation was
published in 1611, with a dedication to King James, and
a learned preface, and is commonly called King James's
Bible. After this all the other versions dropped and fell
into disuse; except the Epistles and Gospels in the Com¬
mon Prayer Book, which were still continued according to
the bishops’ translation till the alteration of the liturgy in
1661; and the Psalms and Hymns, which are to this day
continued as in the old version.
Speaking of this translation in his Table Talk, Sel-
den observes, “ The English translation of the Bible is
the best translation in the world, and renders the sense
of the original best, taking in for the English translation
the Bishops’ Bible, as well as King James’s. The trans¬
lators in King James’s time took an excellent way. That
part of the Bible was given to him who was most excellent
in such a tongue (as the Apocrypha to Andrew Downs);
and then they met together, and one read the translation,
the rest holding in their hands some Bible either of the
learned tongues, or French, Spanish, Italian, &c. If they
found any fault, they spoke; if not, he read on,”
King James’s Bible is that now read in all the Protest¬
ant churches in Britain. One of its greatest faults is, that
the translation of the same original word is often capri¬
ciously and improperly varied, at the expense of perspi¬
cuity; while, on the other hand, ambiguity is sometimes
occasioned by the rendering of two original words in the
same sentence by only one English word, which, however,
is used in different meanings. An example of the one im¬
propriety occurs, Acts xxiv. 14, “ After the way which they
call heresy'.' This would have been more intelligible if, in
the fifth verse, the former words cc/g£<j7$ rwv Na£«ga/wi> had
been rendered heresy of the Nazarenes, instead of sect of the
Nazarenes. An example of the other fault occurs, John
xvi. 23, where both t^urri<Sirt and airridrire are translated
ask, in senses really different, but not obviously so, nor
indeed capable of being discovered to be different by an
unlearned reader, who scarcely ever guesses that the first
signifies to ask a question, and the second to ask a favour.
Welsh Bibles. There was a Welsh translation of the
Jible made from the original in the time of Queen Eliza¬
beth, in consequence of a bill brought into the house of
commons for this purpose in 1563. It was printed in folio
in 1588. Another version, which is the standard transla-
p0n *n,that ^anguage> was printed in 1620. It is called
Barry s Bible. An impression of this was printed in 1690,
billed Bishop Lloyd's Bible. These were in folio. The
hrst octavo impression of the Welsh Bible was made in 1630.
Irish Bibles. Towards the middle of the seventeenth
century, Bedell, bishop of Kilmore, set on foot a trans¬
ition of the Old Testament into the Irish language; the
ew Testament and the liturgy having before been trans-
ated into that language. The bishop appointed one King
to execute this work, who, not understanding the oriental
anguages, was obliged to translate it from the English.
us work was revised by Bedell, who, after having com¬
pared the Irish translation with the English, compared
BIB
the latter with the Hebrew, the LXX. and the Italian
version of Diodati. When this work was finished, the
bishop would have himself been at the charge of the im¬
pression, but his design was stopped upon advice given
to the lord-lieutenant and the archbishop of Canterbury,
that it would be a shameful thing for a nation to publish
a Bible translated by such a despicable hand as King.
However, the manuscript was not lost, for it went to press
in the year 1685. An edition of it was printed in 1690,
at the expense of the Honourable Robert Boyle, for the
use of the Highlanders. This edition was superintended
by the Rev. R. Kirk.
Gaelic Bible. There is also a version of the Bible in
the Gaelic or Erse language, of which several large impres¬
sions have been published both in Edinburgh and London.
BIBLE SOCIETIES, associations for extending the
knowledge of the Scriptures. For a long period this ob¬
ject has been pursued to a considerable extent by several
religious institutions, such as the Society for promoting
Christian Knowledge, Bartlett’s Buildings, founded in
1699; Baron Cansteen’s Institution at Halle, founded in
1712; and the Danish Society for promoting the Gos¬
pel, founded in 1714. But the first British association
which professed to have this single purpose in view wras
the Naval and Military Bible Society, established in the
year 1780. The sphere to which this society original¬
ly limited its operations, namely, the sailors and soldiers
in the service of Great Britain, was not by any means
inconsiderable; but it can scarcely be compared in mag¬
nitude to that which has been embraced by the British
and Foreign Bible Society, founded in the year 1804.
The exclusive object of the latter is to promote the cir¬
culation of the Scriptures, without note or comment, both
at home and abroad. The copies circulated in the lan¬
guages of the united kingdom are to be those of the au¬
thorized version only ;—a condition more vague than the
projectors of the society seem to have been aware of. The
constitution of the society has hitherto admitted the co¬
operation of all persons disposed to concur in its support.
The proceedings are conducted by a committee of thirty-
six laymen ; six of them being foreigners resident in Lon¬
don or its vicinity,—half the remainder being members of
the Church of England,—and the other half members of
other denominations of Christians. Of late there has been
an attempt to exclude Arians and Socinians from the di¬
rection of the affairs of the society; but a great majority
at the annual meeting in May 1831 voted against any
change in the original regulation. Every clergyman or
dissenting minister who is a member of the society is en¬
titled to attend and vote at all meetings of the committee.
In the year 1826 it was resolved that the fundamental
law of the society, which limits its operation to the cir¬
culation of the Scriptures, be fully and distinctly recog¬
nised as excluding the circulation of the Apocrypha.
But as the society had for a series of years published va¬
rious editions in different languages which included the
Apocrypha, and as it had formed connections with per¬
sons of questionable principles on the Continent, whose
alliance it manifested no disposition to renounce, many of
its former supporters, particularly in Scotland, have form¬
ed themselves into independent societies. The British
and Foreign Bible Society, however, has still in Great
Britain and the colonies 318 auxiliaries, 438 Branch So¬
cieties as they are called, and 1827 Bible Associations, of
which about 730 are conducted by ladies. It is connected
with fifty-four societies on the continent of Europe, four
in India, and one national society in America, which has
645 auxiliaries. The money which has been expended
by the British and Foreign Bible Society in the twenty-
seven years which have elapsed since its original institu-
619
Bible
II
Bible
Societies.
620 BIB
Bible tion amounts to L.1,779,973. 5s. 5d. The greatest sum
Societies expended in any one year was L.123,547. 12s. 3d. in 1820.
IJ The expenditure of the year last accounted for, in May
ph ^ was L.83,002. 10s. 9d. The number of copies of the
whole Bible in various languages issued since the com¬
mencement of the society has been 2,757,256, and of the
New Testament 4,267,471; in all 7,024,727. Of these
books forty-four are represented as reprints, five as re¬
translations, and seventy-two as versions into languages
and dialects in which the Scriptures had never been print¬
ed before the institution of the society. Of new transla¬
tions thirty-two are said to have been commenced, though
there is no immediate prospect of their completion or pub¬
lication. Of the Bibles and Testaments issued in twenty-
seven years, about five millions have been printed in the
languages spoken in the united kingdom, viz. English
4,568,314, Welsh 300,416, Gaelic 115,343, Irish 64,188,
and Manx 7250. About 2,000,000 have been issued
in foreign parts. Some of the societies on the Continent
have also circulated great numbers, particularly the Rus¬
sian Society at St Petersburg, instituted in 1813, which,
before its suspension by an imperial ukase in 1826, had
289 auxiliaries and branches, and had printed 861,105
Bibles and Testaments in various languages and dialects.
Of the other societies on the Continent, the most active
have been those of Berlin, Basel, Paris, Wirtemburg,
Dresden, Sweden, and the Netherlands. The American
National Society, and the Society of Philadelphia, have
printed above 1,256,000 Bibles and Testaments.
The proceedings of the British and Foreign Bible So¬
ciety have given rise to several controversies, one of which
related to the neglecting to give the Prayer Book with the
Bible; a neglect against which strong remonstrances were
published by several divines of the church of England, and
especially by Bishop Marsh, who also published in 1812
“ A History of the Translations which have been made of
the Scriptures, from the earliest to the present age,
throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and America; composed
chiefly with the view of ascertaining in how many new
languages the British and Foreign Bible Society has been
the means of preaching the gospel.” This pamphlet was
intended as an answer to a statement of Mr Vansittart,
that the society, besides reprinting many translations, had
published the Scriptures in twenty-five languages, into
which they were not known to have been before translat¬
ed. Dr Marsh maintained that the society had not trans¬
lated so much as even the four gospels into any one lan¬
guage into which they had not been previously translated,
and that, though they had translated a single gospel into
two languages (the Rugis and the Macassar), into which
no part of Scripture had been previously translated, they
had not then printed even one entire gospel in any one
language into which translations of portions of the Scrip¬
ture had not been executed either before the existence
of the society, or independently of its assistance. Another
controversy in which the supporters of the society have
been involved related to the circulation of the Apocrypha
along with the canonical books. Their most distinguish¬
ed antagonist in this question was the late Dr Andrew
Thomson, one of the ministers of Edinburgh. A third
serious controversy has been occasioned by the alleged
B I B
inaccuracy of some of the translations executed under theBiblia. r
authority of the society, such as the Turkish New Testa- n * '
ment, printed at Paris in 1819; and a fourth, not less i. ,
serious, appears to be impending over the society, on the pl1'
admissibility of anti-trinitarians to the privilege of mem- ^ J
bership.
The Edinburgh Bible Society consists of all who are
disposed to promote the circulation of the Scriptures, be¬
ing Protestants, and professing their belief in the doctrine
of the holy trinity. Its funds arise from subscriptions,
collections, and the contributions of nearly 100 associa¬
tions in different parts of Scotland. In the course of last
year it expended about L.4000. In that time it issued
above 10,000 Bibles and Testaments in English, and 3000
in Gaelic, in which language it has recently printed 15,000
copies in different sizes, and has in the press a second
edition of 10,000 copies of a pocket Bible. It has sent
above 3000 Bibles and Testaments to Ireland in the course
of the year, and has given L.200 to the Hibernian Bible
Society, and L.200 to the Society in Dublin for Education
through the medium of the Irish Language. It has in the
same period issued 4174 Bibles and 1108 Testaments in
foreign languages, including French, German, Spanish,
Portuguese, and Italian. It has within the last three
years contributed largely to the publication of correct edi¬
tions of the Bible in the German and French languages.
An edition of 10,000 copies of Luther’s Bible, printed at
the expense of the society, will soon be exhausted; and a
new edition of 10,000 copies of Luther’s New* Testament
will soon be finished. The Edinburgh Society has also
engaged to assist the Glasgow Bible Society in moderniz¬
ing and republishing the Spanish Protestant Bible of Cy-
priano at Valero, originally printed at Amsterdam in 1602.
It has also given L.400 in aid of the translation of the
Scriptures into the oriental languages.
This society, with some others in Scotland, has within
the last few years been engaged in a law-suit with his
majesty’s printers for Scotland, who insisted on prevent¬
ing the importation of Bibles printed beyond the bounds
of Scotland. Though the patentees have succeeded in
obtaining an interdict against importation, the results of
the action has upon the whole been favourable to the
public. In a Memorial on the Case of the Bible Socie¬
ties, printed in 1824, many inaccuracies in the common
editions of the Bible were complained of, and in several
other respects the Bibles printed in Scotland were alleged
to be inferior to some of the English editions. It cannot
be denied that a manifest improvement in the appearance
of the Edinburgh editions has since taken place; and the
printers are fully aware, that if they were to incur the
charge of printing carelessly, or imposing unreasonable
prices, there are persons alive who would not be slack in
complaining of these grievances, and endeavouring to pro¬
cure redress.
BIBLIANDER, Theodore, professor of divinity at Zu¬
rich in the sixteenth century. As he understood the orien¬
tal languages, he undertook a new edition of the Koran,
the text of which he corrected, by collating the Arabic
and Latin copies ; and to this edition he subjoined the life
of Mahommed and his successors, prefixing an apology by
way of preface, which has been vehemently censured.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
That branch of knowledge to which the term Biblio- ancient manuscripts ; but it is now appropriated to the
graphy is generally applied would be more correctly de- knowledge of books with reference to their constituent
signaled by the word Bibliology. It was originally em- parts, their different editions and degrees of rareness,
ployed to denote skill in the perusing and judging of their subjects, and classes.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
621
This species of knowledge has been most successfully
ph£ cultivated in France, Germany, and Italy; for though it will
be seen in the sequel, that Britain has produced some
valuable works in this department, it will also appear that
our bibliographical labours have been greatly surpassed
by the continental nations. It is to France, in particular,
that we are indebted for the most popular and useful
treatises in bibliography; but whilst we make this ac¬
knowledgement, in which all who have had any experience
of their utility will concur, we must add, that some of her
bibliographers have spoken in very extravagant terms of
the nature and rank of this branch of learning. They re¬
present it as a universal science, in whose ample range all
other sciences, and all other kinds of knowledge, are com¬
prehended. “ La bibliographic etant la plus etendue de
toutes les sciences, semble devoir les renfermer toutes,”
is the language of one j1 “ la bibliographie est la plus vaste
et la plus universelle de toutes les connoissances humaines,”
is the language of another.2 Nothing surely can be more
preposterous than to view it in this light, merely because
it is conversant about books, and because books are the
vehicles of all sorts of knowledge. Yet this is the only
foundation that we can discover for these extravagant
representations; which tend, as in all other cases of ex¬
aggerated pretension, to bring ridicule upon a subject
which, were its nature and objects simply and correctly
defined, could not fail to appear both useful and important.
We have already stated generally what kind of knowledge
it is to which the appellation of bibliographical knowledge
is applied ; but, in order more fully to illustrate its nature,
and to point out its limits and utility, we shall endeavour
to detail somewhat more particularly the chief objects of
inquiry which it embraces.
It is the business of the bibliographer, then, to trace
the history of books in regard to their forms and all other
constituents, and, consequently, to trace the beginnings
and progress of typography. It belongs to him, in a par¬
ticular manner, to mark the differences of editions, and to
point out that edition of every book which is esteemed
the most correct and valuable. In the case of books pub¬
lished anonymously, or under feigned names, it is his bu¬
siness to indicate the names of their real authors, in as
far as the discoveries of literary history may furnish the
means of doing so. All remarkable facts attaching to the
history of books, such as the number of their editions,
their rareness, their having been condemned to the flames,
or suppressed, belong to the province of bibliographical
inquiry. Further, every one who engages in any parti-
cular line of study must of course wish to know what
books have been published in regard to it, or in regard to
any particular point that interests his curiosity; and it is
the business of the bibliographer to furnish this most use¬
ful species of information; in other words, the compila¬
tion of catalogues of those books which have appeared in
the various branches of knowledge constitutes another
department of bibliography. It is by means of such cata¬
logues that “ the student comes to know what has been
written on every part of learning; that he avoids the ha¬
zards of encountering difficulties which have already been
cleared; of discussing questions which have already been
decided ; and of digging in mines of literature which have
already been exhausted.” (Dr Johnson’s Preface to the
Catalogus Bibliothecce Harleiance?)
Such are the principal objects and pursuits of the biblio¬
grapher ; and while it must appear abundantly evident
that his science has no pretensions to those lofty epithets
upon which we have animadverted, it must, we think, be
allowed by every one that it comprises many curious as Bibliogra-
well as interesting subjects of inquiry; and that it is cal- phy*
culated to afford very useful aids- to every other species
of intellectual occupation. This view of it will be fully
confirmed by the details which we are to offer in the
course of this article; in which we propose to point out
the progress and best sources of information, in all those
departments of knowledge to which we have alluded. In
doing so, we shall divide the subject into such heads as
shall appear best suited to the purposes intended.
I. Of the Constituent Parts of Boohs, and the Differences
of Editions.
The history of the materials employed in the formation
of books, of the art of writing and printing upon these
materials, and of the forms and sizes in which they have
appeared, all belong to this head of inquiry. Almost the
whole of these particulars have furnished topics for much
elaborate research, and some of them for speculations and
disputes not yet brought to any satisfactory conclusion;
but as our main object at present is to indicate the inqui¬
ries which belong to the different departments of biblio¬
graphy, together with the best guides to information in
each, our notices of the subjects in question must be li¬
mited to what is necessary for that purpose. Most of
them, indeed, necessarily form the subjects of separate
articles in an Encyclopaedia.
Much curious learning has been exercised in describing
the various substances used for writings, previously to the
important discovery of the art of making paper from linen
rags. The precise era of this discovery is not known, nor
are authors agreed as to the country in which it was
made; but it seems to be ascertained that this kind of
paper was in general use in Europe before the end of the
fourteenth century. Cotton paper had been in general
use more than a century before; and though of greatly
inferior quality, its introduction was one of the most for¬
tunate circumstances in the history of the arts; for parch¬
ment had become so scarce, that old writings were often
erased, in order to apply the parchment to modern pur¬
poses; and thus, by a metamorphosis of a singular and
fatal kind, a classic was sometimes transformed into a
vapid homily or monkish legend. In this way it is sup¬
posed that many valuable works of antiquity have pe¬
rished; and, indeed, there can be little doubt of this,
when we consider the number of manuscripts that have
been discovered, evidently written upon erased parch¬
ments. Parchments of this kind have been called palimp¬
sests, from a Greek word signifying twice rubbed ; that is,
prepared for writing. (^EdinburghReview, No.xcvi. p. 367.)
Dr Barret of Trinity College, Dublin, discovered a palimp¬
sest, while examining some books in the library of that col¬
lege. “ When thus employed, he accidentally met with a
very ancient Greek manuscript, on certain leaves of which
he observed a twofold writing, one ancient, and the other,
comparatively recent, transcribed over the former. The
original writing had been greatly defaced; but, on close
examination, he found that it consisted of the three fol¬
lowing fragments:—The Prophet Isaiah, the Evangelist
St Matthew, and certain Orations of Gregory Nazianzen.
The fragment containing St Matthew’s Gospel Dr Barret
carefully transcribed, and it has been accurately engraved
in fac-simile, and published by the order and at the ex¬
pense of the university. The original writing, or Codex
Vetus, Dr Barret, with great probability, assigns to the
sixth century; the Codex Recens, or later writing, he at¬
tributes to the thirteenth.” (Horne’s Introduction to Bib-
1 Court Eltmentaire de Bibliographic, par Achard.
* Dictionnaire de Bibliologie, par Peignot.
622
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Bibliogra- liography, i. p. 115.) But the most interesting discove-
pky* ries in this line are those of Angelo Maio, librarian of the
Vatican library, to whom we are indebted for a consider*
able fragment of Cicero de Republica, and fragments of
three of his lost orations. The reader will find a curious
account of these discoveries, and of the history of palimp¬
sests, in the above-cited article of the Edinburgh Review.
That part of the history of books which regards the va¬
rious substances upon which they have been written, is
compendiously but learnedly treated in the first volume
of that very valuable work, the Nouveau Traite de Diplo¬
matique, compiled by two Benedictines of the celebrated
society of St Maur. This work was published at Paris in
1750, in six volumes quarto. M. Peignot gives a com¬
plete list of separate works on this subject in the intro¬
duction to his Essai sur VHistoire du Parchemin et du
Velin, published at Paris in 1812.
The inquiry as to the origin of writing is a purely
philosophical speculation; but the knowledge of the dif¬
ferent kinds of writing peculiar to different ages is a
branch of the history of books which belongs to the pro¬
vince of bibliography, and upon which much information
will be found in the above-mentioned work of the Bene¬
dictines of St Maur. One of the best books on this sub¬
ject is Mr Astle’s Origin and Progress of Writing, the
first edition of which was published in 1784*, and the se¬
cond, with some additions, in 1803, each in one volume
quarto. The chapters on transcribers and illuminators,
and the instruments, inks, and other matters which they
made use of in their operations, will be found peculiarly
interesting to the bibliogi’apher.
We are now so familiar with the wonders and glorious
results of printing, that it is only when we look back into
the history of the darker ages that we are made fully sen¬
sible of all the various advantages which it has conferred
upon mankind. The mention of the transcribers, that is,
the class employed to copy books before the discovery of
printing, naturally gives rise to reflections of this kind.
Their ignorance and carelessness occasioned much trouble
and mortification to living authors, and irreparable errors
in the works of the dead. Petrarch, who flourished in
the fourteenth century, has expressed himself in very
moving terms in regard to this evil. “ How shall we find
out a remedy,” says he, “ for those mischiefs which the
ignorance and inattention of the copyists inflict upon us ?
It is wholly owing to these causes that many men of ge¬
nius keep their most valuable pieces unpublished, so that
they never see the light. Were Cicero, Livy, or Pliny,
to rise from the dead, they would scarcely be able to
recognise their own writings. In every page they would
have occasion to exclaim against the ignorance and the
corruptions of those barbarous transcribers.”1 Upon the
invention of printing, the class of copyists immediately
took alarm, and exerted every means to extinguish an
art which, whatever benefits it promised the rest of man¬
kind, held out nothing but prospects of loss to them.
They endeavoured, and their example is still steadily fol¬
lowed by other crafts, to set up their own petty interests
in opposition to the general good, and called loudly upon
the different governments to invest them with exclusive
privileges, which all the great interests of society requir-
ed to be abolished. Thus, when printing was introduced
at Pans, the copyists complained of the innovation to the
parliament, and that body forthwith caused the books be-
onging to the printers to be seized and confiscated; but
.Louis Al. had the good sense to restore their property to
?ra.
these ingenious artists, and to authorize them to proceed B l
in their laudable vocation. 1
The question as to the origin of printing is of a com- ^ v
plexion wholly different from that regarding the origin of
writing, as it turns entirely upon matters of fact; but it
is not the less true, that it is a subject upon which opi¬
nions widely opposite are still entertained; for though
this art, we mean the art of printing with movable types,
was spread all over Europe within twenty years of the
first discovery, it has unfortunately failed to record, in de¬
cisive terms, the name of the individual to whom the ho¬
nour of the invention is due. The place where the dis¬
covery was made remains also a subject of doubt and con¬
tention. In Mallinkrot’s work, De Ortu etProgressu Artis
Typographies, published in 1640, he enumerates a hun¬
dred and nine testimonies in favour of Mentz as the birth¬
place of the art, and since that time the number has been
greatly augmented; yet one of the latest of those who
have engaged in this controversy declares decidedly in fa¬
vour of Haerlem, which, in Mallinkrot’s day, ranked only
thirteen advocates; and further, assigns the wreath which
the supporters of Mentz had variously placed on the brow
of Guttenberg, of Faust, and of Schoiffer, to Lawrence
Coster, as its rightful owner.2 All that we can do in this
place is to point out some of the works which have been
published upon the origin and history of printing, and
which it may be necessary for the bibliographer to exa¬
mine, in order to enable him to judge of early editions;
recommending those who wish to see a clear and compen¬
dious view of the various opinions which have been ad¬
vanced upon this subject, to peruse M. Daunou’s analy¬
sis of these opinions, published in the fourth volume of the
Memoirs of the Moral and Political Class of the French
Institute.
The Monumenta Typographica of Wolfius, published
in two octavo volumes, at Hamburg, in 1740, contains a
valuable and curious collection of treatises by various au¬
thors, and also of extracts illustrative of the origin and
early history of the art. Some of these pieces are in
verse. Among several other elaborate tables, it contains
one of all the authors who, up to that time, had either
directly or indirectly treated of the history or of the me¬
chanical part of printing. Meerman’s Origines Typogra¬
phies is one of the most instructive works as to the pro¬
gress of the art. It is illustrated with various specimens
of early printing, and fac-similes of the books called
Block-Books, printed by means of wooden blocks. Meer-
man, who was a lawyer, and author of many elaborate
treatises in the civil and canon law, was born at Leyden
in 1722, and died in 1771, six years after the publication
of his Origines ; in which he supports, with great ardour
and learning, the pretensions of Haerlem as the birth¬
place of the art, and of Lawrence Coster as its inventor.
Another work of curious research on the origin and first
progress of printing is that of Prosper Marchand, origi¬
nally a bookseller at Paris, but whom the repeal of the
edict of Nantz drove to Holland, where he employed him¬
self till his death in 1756, in composing various works in
literary history and bibliography. He makes Guttenberg
the inventor of the art, and Mentz the place where he
completed the invention; the first idea of it, however,
having been formed whilst he resided in Strasburg. This
work, entitled Histoire de 1’Origine et despremiers Progres
de ITmprimerie, was published in 1740. A valuable sup¬
plement, in which some errors of Marchand are corrected,
was published by M. Mercier, abbe de Saint Leger, in
^ Lambinet, Origine de VImprimerie, tome i. p. 38, 39.
bee Ottley’s Inquiry into the Origin and early History of Engraving, chap. iii.
Bibliof
phy
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
623
1773, and republished in 1775. The author of the origi- but M. Peignot instances many editions in the smallest Bibliogra-
nal work was not at all pleased with this supplement, and forms, of an earlier date; as may be seen in the article Pfav.
he accordingly criticised it with great severity in a long Format of the Supplement to his Dictionnaire de Biblio- "Y*'-'
letter addressed to, and published by the editors of the logie. An accurate knowledge of the different forms of
Journal des Savans. The opinion that Guttenberg con- books is necessary to the bibliographer, as without it no
ceived the nrst idea of the invention at Strasburg, and book can be correctly described; and however easy of ac-
afterwards completed it at Mentz, is also supported by quisition this knowledge may appear, it is yet certain that
Lambinet, in his Recherches historiques, litteraires, et cri- errors in this respect are sometimes committed even by
experienced bibliographers; and that doubts have been
entertained as to the existence of editions, owing to their
forms having been inaccurately described.1 These mis¬
takes generally proceed from this, that there are different
sizes of paper comprehended under the same name. But
tiquessur l'Origine de VImprimerie, first published at Brus¬
sels in 1799, and republished in two volumes octavo at
Paris in 1810, with the addition of M. D. Daunou’s treatise
already mentioned. Besides the main subject of inquiry,
M. Lambinet’s work includes various other topics,—such
as the histoiy of the substances employed for books, of the water-lines in the sheets afford a test; as they are uni¬
inks, of engraving in relief, of block-printing, and of ste- formly perpendicular in the folio and octavo, and horizon-
reotype printing. Upon the history of printing, we shall tal in the quarto and duodecimo sizes,
only mention further, M. de la Serna Santander s Essay When books have gone through more than one edition,
prefixed to his Dictionnaire Bibliographique, and the Initia various minute inquiries must often be made, in order to
Typographica of Professor Lichtenberger, published at determine the respective merits of those editions. It is a
Strasburg m 1811, in both of which the claims set up for principal object of the bibliographical dictionaries, to be af-
Coster are treated as fabulous,—Guttenberg being repre
sented as the inventor of the art, and Mentz the place
where it was perfected; and in both of which, also, there
are ample details as to its progress in other cities and
countries.
Besides the information afforded by these general his¬
tories as to the diffusion of printing throughout Europe,
there are various treatises on its establishment in particu¬
lar countries and places, which it will often be necessary
for the bibliographer to consult. One of the most valu¬
able, particularly to the English bibliographer, is Ames’s
terwards mentioned, to point out those editions of impor¬
tant works which such inquiries have ascertained to be the
best. There are many particulars in which one edition
may differ from, or excel another. There may be differ¬
ences and grounds of preference in size, in paper, and in
printing. The text of one edition may be more correct
than that either of a preceding or a subsequent one. An
author sometimes corrects errors, makes alterations, or
introduces new matter when his work comes to be re¬
printed, thereby giving the edition so altered a decided
superiority over its predecessor. One edition may differ
Typographical Antiquities, which contains memoirs of from another by having notes, an index, or table of contents,
our ear y printers, and a register of their publications, which that other wants; or these accompaniments may
from 1171 to 1600. The first edition, published in 1749, themselves furnish grounds of preference by being supe-
consisted of one volume quarto. Another edition, en- rior in their kind in particular editions. Plates make great
arged by Mr Herbert to three volumes quarto, was com- differences in the value of editions, and even in the value
peted in 1/90; and a third, illustrated with many em- of copies of the same edition. In the beautifully engraved
belhshments, and containing some valuable additions, has edition of Horace by Pine, there is, in the copies first
been published by the Rev. Dr Dibdin. The French,
Germans, and Italians, particularly the latter, are rich in
typographical histories of this description; but for ac¬
counts of them we must refer our readers to Peignot’s
lUpertoire Bibliographique Universel, where they are enu¬
merated and described.
A knowledge of the different classes and forms of the
letters used in printing is necessary to the accurate de¬
scription of books, and discrimination of editions. The bib-
thrown off, a small error, which serves as a test by which
bibliographers immediately judge whether any copy has
the best impressions of those elegant vignettes which il¬
lustrate that edition. The medal of Augustus, on page
108 of the second volume, has, in the copies first thrown
off, the incorrect reading Post Est for Potest; this was rec¬
tified in the after impressions; but as the plates had pre¬
viously sustained some injury, the copies which show the
incorrect reading are, of course, esteemed the best. Dr
!• _ ' AXVy KJ X KJ J J J V-7 V.-'1 1 V-'1/ A Cl 1 , KJ A V/WCAAOV/, V_-0 l.l Lilt- 1/10 Co
lographer must also be acquainted with the correspond- Dibdin, in his work on the Bibliomania, points out this as
mg appellations assigned to the different forms by foreign instance of preference founded on a defect; whereas the
printers.^ Tims the^ form named pica by English print- ground of preference is the superiority of the impressions,
is called Cicero by those of France and Germany, be
cause Cicero’s Epistles were printed in that type. The
town caiie(j paragon is the only one which retains the
same name among the printers of all countries. Upon
a these points, Stower s Printers’ Grammar, and Four¬
niers Manuel Typographique, may be consulted with
advantage. The latter is rich in specimens very neatly
executed. j j
ascertained, without the necessity of any comparison, by
the presence of this trifling defect. There are sometimes
differences between copies of the same edition of a work ?
and which, therefore, stand to each other in the same rela¬
tion as if there had been another edition with some varia¬
tions. Walton’s Polyglot Bible is a celebrated instance.
The printing of that great work, for which Cromwell libe-
rp, rally allowed paper to be imported free of duty, was begun
0f< y kooks of the ancients were generally in the form in 1653, and completed in 1657; and the preface to it, in
.. oyhnders, made by rolling the joined sheets upon a some copies, contains a respectful acknowledgement of
j.j1?’ t° the ends of which nobs or balls were affixed, often this piece of patronage on the part of the protector; but
^ J ornamented. In the infancy of printing the sizes were in other copies the compliment is expunged, and replaced
bCnerally folio and quarto; and some have supposed that by some invectives against the republicans; Dr Walton
0 ooks were printed in the smaller forms till after 1480; having, on the restoration, printed another preface to the
j inf ^ou'ar<h Traite Elementaire de Bibliographic, p. 38, 39.
know,, p V°y“ge to Cadiz is sometimes wanting in Hakluyt’s Collection. A reprint is often inserted to supply this want, which mav be
eruh m, ,t[ie ,nnginal by this mark, that it has only seven paragraphs in p. 007, vol, i,.whereas the original has eight. The original
011 P* 019, the reprint on p. 620.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
624
Bibliogra- copies which had not by that time been disposed of.1
phy. copies with the original preface are much rarer, and ot
course more prized, than those with the loyal one, which
latter seems to have helped the author to the bishopric he
afterwards obtained.
II. Of Early Printed Books.
The productions of the press, in the different countries
of Europe, during the century in which printing was in¬
vented, have engaged much of the attention of bibliogra¬
phers, and have been described in various works compil¬
ed for that purpose. The first of those productions to
which the name of Books has been applied, were printed,
not with movable types, but with solid wooden blocks ;
and consisted of a few leaves only, on which were impress¬
ed images of saints, and other historical pictures, with ap¬
propriate texts or descriptions. These leaves were print¬
ed only on one side, and the blank sides were generally,
though not always, pasted together, so as to look like
single leaves. The ink used was of a brownish hue, and
glutinous quality, to prevent it from spreading. These
curious specimens of the infant art are called Image Books
or Block Books. They have often been largely described,
every particular concerning them having been fondly can¬
vassed by bibliographers. Their number is fixed by some
at seven, by others carried to ten ; but there have been
numerous editions of most of them ; for they maintained
their popularity long after the invention of the art of print¬
ing properly so called. One of the most celebrated is the
Biblia Pauperum, consisting of forty leaves printed on
one side, so as to make twenty when pasted together; upon
which, certain historical passages of the Old and New
Testament are represented by means of figures, with in¬
scriptions. It was originally intended, as its name imports,
for the use of those poor persons who could not afford to
purchase complete copies of the Bible. There is a copi¬
ous account of all the Block Books, in Baron Heinecken’s
learned work, Idee generale d'une Collection complette d’Es-
tampes, published in 1771, in one volume octavo. Dr
Dibdin’s Bibliotheca Spenceriana contains fac-similes of
the figures in several of them, as does Mr Ottley’s His¬
tory of Engraving.
The first book of any considerable magnitude printed
with movable metallic types was the celebrated editio
princeps of the Bible, printed at Mentz, between the years
1450 and 1455. It is printed in large but handsome
Gothic characters, to resemble manuscript, having two
columns in the page, and consisting in whole of 637 leaves,
divided into two, three, or four volumes, according to the
taste of the binder. The advance from the rude Block
Books, of a few leaves, to this noble monument of early
typography, is great indeed; and it is impossible not to
regret that there should be still so much uncertainty as
to the person whose ingenuity furnished the means of at
once raising almost to perfection an art destined ever after
to exercise so vast and so beneficial an influence on the
affairs of the world. The Psalter, printed at Mentz by
Faust and Schoiffer, in 1457, is the first book which bears
the printer’s name, with the date and place of printing.
In general, in the very early printed books, the name
of the printer, the date,2 and the place of printing, are
either wholly omitted, or placed at the end of the book,
with some quaint ejaculation or doxology. The pages
have no running title, or number, or catch-word, or signa¬
ture letters,3 to mark the order of the sheets. The clia- B iogl
racter is uniformly Gothic till 1467, when the Roman hy.
type was first introduced. There were no capitals to be- ^
gin sentences; the only points used were the colon and
full stop ; and in almost every sentence there were abbre¬
viations or contractions. In regard to these and other pe¬
culiarities of early printed books, the reader may consult
the following works: The General History of Printing,
by Palmer (supposed, however, to have been chiefly writ¬
ten by the celebrated George Psalmanazar); Jungendres,
Be Notis characteristicis Librorum a Typographice incunabu-
lis ad an. 1500 impressorum ; and, Recherches sur l’Origins
des Signatures, et des Chiffres de Page, par Marolles.
Many of the early printers had peculiar marks or vig¬
nettes, which they sometimes placed on the title-page,
sometimes at the end of the books printed by them; and
most of them also made use of monograms or ciphers,
compounded of the initial or other letters of their names.
These furnish a clue to the discovery of the printer, where
they occur on books without any printer’s name. An ac¬
quaintance with them, therefore, is necessary to the bib¬
liographer, because questions occur as to early editions
which can only be decided by ascertaining the printer’s
name. For explanations of these marks, the following
works may be consulted : Orlandi’s Origine e Progressi
della Stampa, published at Bologna in one volume 4to, in
1722; and Scholtzius’s Thesaurus Symbolorum ac Emble-
matum, in one volume folio, published at Nuremberg in
1730. The monograms of the early English printers are
explained in Ames’S Typographical Antiquities.
The following works may be mentioned as among the
best of those that have been devoted to the description of
early printed books: 1. Index Librorum ab inventa Typo-
graphia ad annum 1500, cum notis; 2 vols. 8vo, 1791.
This work, by Laire, is one of the most useful of its kind.
The descriptions are clear, the notes brief and instructive;
and there are four indexes, which furnish the means of
ready reference to all the names, titles, places, and biblio¬
graphical notices contained in the work. 2. Dictionmire
Bibliographique choisi du quinzieme siecle ; par M. de la
Serna Santander; 3 vols. 8vo, 1805. This is a very learned
and exact work; and, like the preceding one, embraces only
the rarest and most interesting publications of the fifteenth
century. 3. Bibliotheca Spenceriana, or a descriptive ca¬
talogue of the books published in the fifteenth century, in
the library of Earl Spencer; by the Rev. T. F. Dibdin;
4 vols. 8vo, 1814. The abundance and beauty of the fac¬
similes and other embellishments, as well as the fineness
of the paper and printing, render this one of the most
splendid bibliographical works ever published in any coun¬
try. It contains some curious information, enveloped,
however, in a much greater proportion of tasteless and
irrelevant matter. 4. Annales Typographici ab artis in-
ventce origine, by Michael Maittaire, published in 4to, as
follows : In 1719, volume first, which embraces the period
from the origin of printing to 1500; volume second, pub¬
lished in 1722, extends the annals to 1536; and volume
third, published in 1726, brings them down, according to
the title-page, to 1557; but there is an appendix wmc
affords a partial continuation to 1664. In 1733 the nrs
volume was republished, with corrections and large adi-
tions, and is commonly called the fourth volume. ‘j
fifth and last volume, containing indexes, was pubbs e
in 1741. As four of the volumes consist each of w0
See v°l. i. of Dr Clarke’s Bibliographical Dictionary, for some curious details on this point.
, , ariy printed books are often found with erroneous or falsified dates. (Middleton, vol. iii. p. 236.) Dates are sometimes c
puted by Olympiads. {Ibid. p. 241.)
Signatures are letters of the alphabet placed at the bottom of the page, to show the order of the sheets and leaves. “ ^he,v 'vere
use at Cologne an. 1475 ; at Paris 1476; by Caxton, not before 1480.” (Middleton’s Works, voL iii. p. 238.)
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
625
ta. parts, the work is sometimes bound in five, sometimes in
I ! nine volumes. Several supplements to this elaborate
J -J Work have been published; the most valuable of them,
that by Denis, in two volumes 4to, was published at Vi¬
enna in 1789, and contains 6311 articles omitted by Mait-
taire. The latter has enriched his annals with many
learned dissertations; and the work is allowed to be the
most important that has yet been compiled in England, in
any department of bibliography; but though written in
this country, the last was the only volume published in it,
the others having been given to the world in Holland.
5. Annales Typographici ab artis inventce origine, ad an¬
num 1500, post Maittairu, Denisii, aliorumque doctissi-
morum virorum curas in ordinem redacti, emendati, et aucti,
opera S. W. Panzer ; 11 volumes 4to, published at Nu¬
remberg, the first in 1793, the last in 1803. This work,
though very defective in point of arrangement, is un¬
questionably the most complete of its kind that has yet
appeared. It comes down to the year 1536, though the
title-page of the first volume limits it to the fifteenth
century.
The works just described are quite indispensable to
every bibliographical collection; but they have a value,
we think, independent of the assistance which they afford
the bibliographer in his examination of the early produc¬
tions of the press: they are also calculated to interest
the philosopher as curious registers of the extent and
objects of intellectual industry, during a period when the
human mind began to be acted upon by many new im¬
pulses, and to receive the seeds of revolutions destined
to change the whole aspect of the intellectual world.
III. Of Rare Books.
Rareness is a circumstance which must, generally speak¬
ing, confer some degree of value upon books; and it is
therefore one of the objects of bibliography to indicate
those books which, in a greater or less degree, come under
this category. A passion for collecting books, merely be¬
cause they are rare, without inquiry as to any literary
purpose they may be calculated to serve, is no doubt a
very foolish habitude; but it is just as foolish, on the other
hand, to ridicule all solicitude about books of this descrip¬
tion ; for this implies that every valuable book is com¬
mon,—a notion which no one can entertain who ever has
had occasion to follow out any particular line of literary
research, to decide upon any fact involved in doubt or
controversy, or to speculate upon the progress of know¬
ledge either in the sciences or the arts. With regard to
the bibliographical compilations appropriated to the de¬
scription of books of this class, it may be observed of
most, if not. all of them, that they have applied the epi¬
thet rare much too vaguely and lavishly. It must, indeed,
in a multitude of cases, be exceedingly difficult to speak
with precision on this point; so difficult as to render it
impossible, we apprehend, to compile a work of this kind
which shall not frequently mislead those who consult it.
David Clement, the author of a very learned work of
this class, which we shall immediately notice, assigns the
following as the different degrees in which books may be
said to be rare. A book which it is difficult to find in the
country where it is sought, ought to be called, simply,
rare; a book which it is difficult to find in any country,
may be called very rare ; a book of which there are only
fifty or sixty copies existing, or which appears as seldom
as if there never had been more at any time than that
number of copies, ranks as extremely rare; and when the
whole number of copies does not exceed ten, this consti¬
tutes excessive rarity, or rarity in the highest degree. This Bibliogra-
classification of the degrees of rareness is copied from Cle- phy.
ment by all subsequent bibliographical writers in this de-
partment. It is abundantly obvious, that the justness of
the application of these terms to particular books must en¬
tirely depend on the accuracy and precision of the know¬
ledge with which they are used.
We cannot in this department, any more than in others,
indicate any but the most prominent and useful books be¬
longing to it. The following, in this view, are particularly
worthy of attention :—1. Beyeri Memorial historico-criticce
Librorum variorum, 1734,8vo. 2. Vogt, Catalogus historico-
criticus Librorum variorum, 1732, 8vo. The last and best
edition was published in 1793. In this work the epithet
rare is applied with more judgment and knowledge than
in most others of the same class. 3. Gerdesii Florilegium
historico-criticum Librorum variorum; first published in
1740, and again in 1763, in 8vo. It was partly intended
as a supplement to the above work by Vogt, and there¬
fore notices only those books which are not included in
his catalogue. 4. Bibliotheque curieuse, ou Catalogue rai-
sonne des Livres rares, par D. Clement, 1750-60. This
work, to which we have just alluded, is compiled upon
a more extensive plan than any of the preceding; for,
though consisting of nine volumes quarto, it comes down
no farther than to the letter H in the alphabetical arrange¬
ment of names; terminating here in consequence of the
death of the author. Clement is generally blamed, and
with justice, for a very profuse and inaccurate application
of his own nomenclature ; his notes, too, are crammed with
citations, and tediously minute; but, on the other hand,
it must be allowed that they contain many curious morsels
of literary history; and it has, upon the whole, been mat¬
ter of regret to bibliographers, that the work, voluminous
as it must have proved, was not completed. 5. Bibliotheca
Librorum variorum universalis. Auctore Jo. Jac. Bauer,
7 vols. 8vo, 1770-91. This is one of the latest publications
of its class. It contains only the titles of books, without
any further notices; and it must, therefore, be evident,
that seven volumes could not be occupied with the titles
only of books justly called rare.
IV. Of the Classics.
It is remarked by Mr Roscoe, “ that the coincidence of
the discovery of the art of printing with the spirit of the
times in which it had birth was highly fortunate. Had it
been made known at a much earlier period, it would have
been disregarded or forgotten, from the mere want of ma¬
terials on which to exercise it; and had it been farther
postponed, it is probable that many works would have been
totally lost which are now justly regarded as the noblest
monuments of the human intellect.” (Lorenzo de Medici,
chap, i.) The rapid diffusion of the art, and the speedy
appearance of the Classics in an imperishable form, afford
sufficient proofs of the bent of the age, and the opportune¬
ness of this great discovery. Gabriel Naud§ observes,
that almost all the good as well as bad books then in Eu¬
rope had passed through the press before the year 1474 J
that is, within twenty years of the earliest date to which
the use of movable types can be carried. Within this
period editions had been printed of nearly all the Latin
classics. The whole works of some of them, of Cicero,
for example, had not yet appeared in one uniform edition ;
but several of his treatises, the whole of Pliny the elder,
of Livy, Sallust, Caesar, Tacitus, Suetonius, Justin, Lucan,
Virgil, and Horace, had been published before the end
of 1470. Most of the early editions of the classics were
4 K
VOL. IV.
1 Addition d VHirtoire de Louis XI. Par G. Naude.
626
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Bibliogra- published in Italy. England remained greatly behind her
continental neighbours in the naturalization of these pre-
cious remains of ancient learning. Of all the classics,
only Terence, and Cicero’s Offices, had, in 1540, been
published in this country in their original tongue. Caxton
and others made use only of French translations in the
early versions and abridgements published in England.
Gawin Douglas, bishop of Dunkeld, so well known for his
poetical version of Virgil, has, in his preface to that work,
commemorated his indignation at the injustice done to
“ the divine poet” by Caxton’s second-hand translation, in
the following curious and emphatic lines:
Thoch Wylliame Caxtoun had no compatioun
Of Virgill in that buk he preyt in prois,
Clepand it Virgill in Eneados,
Quhilk that he sayis of Frensche he did translait,
It has nathing ado therwith, God wate,
Nor na mare like than the Deuil and sanct Austin.
Haue he na thank tharfore, bot lois his pyne ;
So schamefully the storie did peruerte,
I reid his work with harmes at my hert.
That sic ane buk, but sentence or ingyne,
Suld be intitulit eftir the poete diuine.
His ornate goldin versis mare than gylt;
I spitte for disspite to se thame spylt
With sic ane wicht, quhilk treuly be myne entent
Knew nevir thre wordis at all quhat Virgill ment.
Almost all the Latin classics had appeared in print be¬
fore the art was employed upon any Greek author. But
the desire to possess printed editions of the latter became
general and urgent towards the end of the fifteenth cen¬
tury ; and Aldus had the glory of ministering to that de¬
sire, by publishing in rapid succession, and with singular
beauty and correctness, almost all the principal authors
in that tongue. Beginning in 1494 with Musceus’s Hero
and Leander, he printed before 1515, the year of his death,
upwards of sixty considerable works in Grecian literature^
frequently superadding the learning and cares of the edi¬
tor to those of the printer. “ Yet his glory,” to use the
words of Mr Gibbon, “ must not tempt us to forget that
the first Greek book, the Grammar of Constantine Las-
caris, was printed at Milan in 1476; and that the Flor¬
ence Homer of 1488 displays all the luxury of the typo-
giaphical art. (History, chap. 66.) Besides these works,
there had been published before 1494, some Greek Psal¬
ters, the Batrachomyomachia of Homer, and the Orations
of Isocrates; during that year, the Anthologia Grceca was
published at Florence; and the works of Callimachus, of
Apollonius Rhodius, and of Lucian, were published at the
same place within two years after the first essays of Aldus
in Gieek printing. Ihus, though we have no sort of wish
to detract from the just fame of this learned and beautiful
printer, we cannot admit the propriety of those eulogies
of his biographer M. Renouard, in which he is represent¬
ed as having given an entirely new direction to the art of
printing, and indeed to the literary taste of Europe.1 It
is as incorrect in point of fact, as it is unphilosophical, to
ascribe to Aldus the production of that taste for Grecian
literature which he himself imbibed from the spirit of his
af r' i u SaiW tJlat there was a great and growing want
o Greek books; and his peculiar praise lies in this, that
he applied himself to supply it, with much more constancy
and skill and with much more learning, than any other
printer of that period. All that we have said on tins point
is fully corroborated by the account which he has himself Bi
given, in his preface to Aristotle’s Organon, published in iy
1495, of the circumstances which induced him to under-^
take the publication of the Greek classics. The passage
is thus translated by Mr Roscoe (Life of Leo the Tenth
vol. i. p. 110) : “ The necessity of Greek literature is now
universally acknowledged; insomuch that not only our
youth endeavour to acquire it, but it is studied even by
those advanced in years. We read but of one Catoamon'o-
the Romans who studied Greek in his old age, but in our
times we have many Catos; and the number of our youth
who apply themselves to the study of Greek is almost as
great as of those who study the Latin tongue; so that
Greek books, of which there are but few in existence, are
now eagerly sought after. But by the assistance of Jesus
Christ I hope ere long to supply this deficiency, although
it can only be accomplished by great labour, inconveni¬
ence, and loss of time. Those who cultivate letters must
be supplied with books necessary for their purpose, and
till this supply be obtained I shall not be at rest.”
The Editiones Principes of the classics have always
formed capital objects in bibliography, and are sometimes
spoken of with a degree of rapture in bibliographical works,
which is apt to appear inappropriate and unreasonable to
those who value books solely as they are calculated to
afford delight or information. The lover of first editions
has, however, some plausible reasons to assign in justifica¬
tion of this expensive, and, as some think, factitious pas¬
sion. These editions are valuable, in the first place, as
curious monuments of early typography, and, in the next
place, as more faithful representatives of the best ancient
manuscripts than any other editions. Earum editionum
authoritatem, says Maittaire, aliis omnibus essepraferendam,
quippe qucB sola MSS. fide nitatur. This ground of pre¬
ference, however, has some learned oppugners. Schelhorn,
in his Amcenitates Literacies, speaks of those to whom we
are indebted for the first editions of the classics, as, in
general, very ignorant men; quite incapable to collate
manuscripts themselves, and seldom taking assistance from
those who were. The first manuscript that could be pro¬
cured, it has been said by others, and not that which,
after a careful collation, appeared entitled to a preference,
was hastily committed to the press, in order to take ad¬
vantage of the recent discovery. Thus Graevius, in the
preface to his edition of Cicero De Officiis, states, that
the celebrated editio princeps of that work, by Faust, was
printed from a very inaccurate manuscript.2 On the other
hand, there are many who view those editions in the same
light with Maittaire. M. La Grange assures us, in the
preface to his French translation of Seneca’s works, that
he never, in any case of difficulty, consulted the editio
princeps of 1475, without finding there a solution of his
doubts; adding generally, que ceux qui studient les an*
tears anciens, soit pour en donner des editions correctes, soit
pour les traduire dans une autre langue, doivent avoir sans
cesse sous les yeux les premiers editions de ces auteurs. To
the same purpose, M. Santander observes, that the editin
princeps of Pliny the elder, printed at Venice by Spira
in 1469, is in many places more accurate than the cele¬
brated edition of Father. Hardouin. The truth seems to
be, that though many first editions have a real literary
value, for such purposes as are specified by M. La Grange,
there are others which have no value save what their ex¬
edition,
3 to:^7ivo? ltrL^7;i2-T' ^ ^ ALDE’ °U Hlstoire des trois Manuce, et de leurs Editions. Par A. G. Renouard. Seconde
one hundred guineas had been^iakl fofaran^of ^ VImPrimeric- He mentions, as a piece of extreme folly, that
shall we bestow on the purchase of a copy at'the InormfurLm?)? 10 5 bUt lf ^ ^ deserved Sllch a CenSUre’ what ^
Bit
B IBLIOGRAPHY.
627
pra. treme rareness gives them ; that, therefore, they who scoff
. at, and they who laud indiscriminately, these literary rari-
w' ties, are equally in the wrong: in a word, that we must
apply a different rule of estimation to the first editions of
an Aldus, and those of such printers as Sweynheim and
Pannartz.1
The classics have often been published in sets more or
less complete, and more or less estimable for beauty, cor¬
rectness, commentaries, and so forth. Lists of all these
sets, with remarks on their relative extent and merits, will
be found in the bibliographical works to be immediately
mentioned. As the origin of the Delphin collection forms
an interesting piece of literary history, it may not be im¬
proper to notice it more particularly. This celebrated
body of Latin classics was originally destined for the use
of the Dauphin, son of Louis XIV.; and was projected by
his governor the Duke of Montansier. This nobleman,
who, though a courtier and soldier, was both a philosopher
and a scholar, had been in the habit of carrying some of
the classics along with him in all his campaigns ; and had
often experienced impediments to their satisfactory peru¬
sal, from the recurrence of difficulties and allusions which
could not be removed or explained without books of re¬
ference too bulky for transport on such occasions. It was
in these circumstances that the idea first occurred to him
of the great utility of a uniform edition of the principal
classics, in which the text of each should be accompanied
with explanatory notes and illustrative comments; and
when he became governor to the dauphin, he thought that
a fit opportunity to set on foot an undertaking calculated
to prove so useful to the studies of the young prince.
Huet, bishop of Avranches, then one of the dauphin’s
preceptors, was accordingly commissioned to employ a
sufficient number of learned men for this purpose, and to
direct and animate the undertaking. Once every fortnight
they came to him on a stated day, each with the portion
of his work which he had finished in the interval, to un¬
dergo his inspection and judgment. The copious verbal
indexes, which constitute so valuable a portion of these
editions, were added at his suggestion ; but not without
considerable opposition on the part of his assistants, who
were appalled by the prospect of so much irksome labour
as would be necessary to do justice to this part of the plan.
{Memoirs of Huet's Life, book v.) The collection, includ¬
ing Danet’s Dictionary of Antiquities, extended to sixty-
four volumes quarto. “ It is remarkable,” says Dr Aikin,
in one of the notes to his excellent translation of Huet's
Memoirs, “ that Lucan is not among the number. He
was too much the poet of liberty to suit the age of Louis
The following may be noticed as among the most use¬
ful bibliographical accounts of the classics: 1. A View of
the various Editions of the Greek and Homan Classics,
with Remarks, by Dr Harwood. This work, first publish¬
ed in 1775, has gone through several editions; the larger
works of the same kind, to which it gave rise, not having
superseded it as a convenient manual in this department
of bibliography. 2. Deyli Autori Classici, sacri e profani,
Lrec? e Latini, Biblioteca portatile; 2 vols. 12mo, Venice,
793. Ibis work wras compiled by the Abbe Boni and
Bartholomew Gamba, and contains a translation of the
preceding, with corrections and large additions, besides
criticisms on the works of bibliographers, and a view of
t e origin and history of printing. 3. An Introduction
to the Knowledge of Rare and Valuable Editions of the BibWra-
Classics, by T. f. Dibdin, D. D. The first edition was phy.
published in 12mo in 1803; but it has since been greatly '-l" y 1
enlarged in the subsequent editions, the last of which ap¬
peared in 2 vols. in 1827. The utility of this work is con¬
siderably enhanced by the full account which it contains of
Polyglot Bibles, of the Greek and Latin editions of the
Septuagint and New Testament, and of lexicons and gram¬
mars. 4. A Manual of Classical Bibliography, by J. W.
Moss, B. A. in 2 vols. 8vo, published in 1825. This useful
work contains a full account of the translations of the clas¬
sics, published in the different languages of Europe, with
notices of critical and illustrative comments on the various
classical authors. The prices obtained for the rarer edi¬
tions at public sales are also specified.
The improved editions, by Harles and Ernesti, of the
Bibliotheca Grwca and Bibliotheca Latina of Fabricius,
are well known to the learned as immense magazines of
information in regard to the classics and classical litera¬
ture ; but as they extend over a much wider field of in¬
quiry than is embraced by bibliography, it does not belong
to our present subject to give a more particular account of
them.
V. Of Anonymous and Pseudonymous Books.
The great number of books published anonymously, as
well as under false or feigned names, early directed the
attention of the learned to this branch of bibliographical
inquiry. In 1669 Frederic Geisler, professor of public
law at Leipsic, published a dissertation De Nominum Mu-
tatione, which he reprinted in 1671, with a short catalogue
of anonymous and pseudonymous authors. About the
same period a similar but more extensive work had been
undertaken by Vincent Placcius, professor of morals and
eloquence at Hamburg, and which was published in 4to in
1674, with this title, De Scriptis et Scriptoribus, anonymis
atque pseudonymis, Syntagma. Four years thereafter,
John Decker, a learned German lawyer, published Con-
jecturce de Scriptis adespotis, pseudepigraphis, et supposi-
titiis, which was republished in 1686, with the addition of
two letters upon the same subjects, one by Paul Vindin-
gius, a professor at Copenhagen, and the other by the
celebrated Peter Bayle. In 1689 John Mayer, a clergy¬
man of Hamburg, published a letter to Placcius under
this title, Dissertatio Epistolica ad Placcium, qua anony-
morum et pseudonymorum farrago exhibitur. Placcius,
meanwhile, had continued his inquiries; and after his
death the fruits both of his first researches and addi¬
tional discoveries were embodied in one work, and publish¬
ed in a folio volume, at Hamburg, in 1708, by Mathew
Dreyer, a lawyer of that city. The work was now entitled
Theatrum Anonymorum et Pseudonymorum ; and, besides
an Introduction by Dreyer, and a Life of Placcius by
John Albert Fabricius, it contains, in an appendix, the
before-noticed treatises of Geisler and Decker, with the
relative Letters of Vindingius and Bayle, as well as Mayer’s
Dissertatio Epistolica addressed to Placcius. This very
elaborate work contains notices of six thousand books or
authors; but it is ill arranged, often inaccurate, and three
fourths of it are made up of citations and extracts, equally
useless and fatiguing.2
A part of this subject, that relating to books published
under false or fanciful names, had been undertaken in
France by Adrian Baillet, nearly about the same period
and n 'en tells us, Introduction to the Classics, v. Aulus Gejlt.ius, “ that all the first editions printed by Sweynheym
,l ■ annartz ?re considered as particularly valuable by the curious in bibliography,” he should have added, chiefly on account of
r great rarity, not on account of their accuracy.
bee the copious article on Placcius, in Chaufepid’s Nouveau Dictionnaire Historique et Critique, tom. iii.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
628
Bibliogra- that Placcius commenced his inquiries. In 1690 this au-
PhJ- thor published his Auteurs Deguises; but this is little
more than the introduction to an intended catalogue of
such authors, which Baillet never completed; being de¬
terred, as Niceron says, by the apprehension that the ex¬
posing of concealed authors might some way or other in¬
volve him in trouble. In this piece, which was reprinted
in the sixth volume of De la Monnoye’s edition of Bail-
let’s Jugemens des Savans, there are some curious literary
anecdotes, particularly those illustrative of the rage which
prevailed after the revival of letters for the assumption of
classical names. In Italy these names were so generally
introduced into families, that the names of the saints,
hitherto the common appellatives, almost disappeared from
that country.
The taste for this species of research, which the work
of Placcius had diffused in Germany, produced several
supplements to it in that country. In one published at
Jena in 1711, under the name of Christopher Augustus
Neumann, there is, besides the list of authors, a disserta¬
tion upon the question, Whether it is lawful for an author
either to withhold or disguise his name ? which question
he decides in the affirmative. This work is entitled De
Libris anonymis et pseudonymis Schediasma, complectens
observationes generales, et Spicilegium ad Placcii Thea-
trum. But the most considerable of these supplements
was that published by John Christopher Mylius, at Ham¬
burg, in 1740. It contains a reprint of the Schediasma of
Neumann, with remarks, and a list of three thousand two
hundred authors, in addition to those noticed by Placcius.
The notices of Mylius, however, are limited to books in
the Latin, German, and French languages.
About the middle of the last century the Abbe Bo-
nardi, librarian to the Sorbonne, undertook a dictionary
of anonymous and pseudonymous works; but he died with¬
out publishing it. The manuscript is said to have been
carried to Lyons, and, it is supposed, was destroyed there
during the disorders that followed the revolution. In the
third volume of Cailleau’s Dictionnaire Bibliographique,
published in 1790, there is a separate alphabet for anony¬
mous books, which occupies about half the volume. It
comprises books in all languages, but those only which the
compiler thought rare or curious. The last, and by far
the best work in this department, is the Dictionnaire des
Ouvrages Anonymes et Pseudonymes, by M. Barbier, libra¬
rian to the late emperor of France. A second edition,
greatly enlarged, was published in four vols.Svo in 1822-27.
It comprises a vast number of articles; but the plan does
not extend to any English, German, or Italian works, ex¬
cept those which have been translated into the French
language. Works of this class are more particularly use¬
ful in regard to the literary productions of periods and
countries which have been greatly restricted in the liber¬
ty of the press.
VI. Of Condemned and Prohibited Boohs.
Books supposed hurtful to the interests of government,
religion, or morality, have sometimes been condemned to
the flames, sometimes censured by particular tribunals,
and sometimes suppressed. Such methods of destruction
have been followed in various countries, both with respect
to their own productions and those of their neighbours.
In some countries, lists of the books prohibited within them
have from time to time been published; and in these lists
are often found the most highly-prized productions of the
literature of other nations. This constitutes, indeed, a
melancholy portion of the history of books; for though
the facts which it collects sometimes amuse by their folly B l0gn
they oftener excite indignation and pity at the oppressions jiy!
of power, and the sufferings of learning. ^ y-l
The practice of condemning obnoxious books to the
flames is of very ancient date. The works of Protagoras
of Abdera, a disciple of Democritus, were prohibited at
Athens, and all the copies that could be collected were
ordered to be burnt by the public crier. Livy mentions,
that the writings of Numa, found in his grave, were con¬
demned to the flames, as being contrary to the religion
which he had himself established. Augustus caused two
thousand books of an astrological cast to be burnt at one
time; and he subjected to the same doom some satirical
pieces of Labienus. Tacitus mentions a work which the
senate, under Tiberius, condemned to the fire for having
designated Cassius as the last of the Romans.1 This prac¬
tice was early introduced in the Christian world. “ After
the spreading of the Christian religion,” says Professor
Beckmann, “ the clergy exercised against books that were
either unfavourable or disagreeable to them the same
severity which they had censured in the heathens as fool¬
ish and prejudicial to their own cause. Thus were the
writings of Arius condemned to the flames at the council
of Nice; and Constantine threatened with the punishment
of death those who should conceal them. The clergy as¬
sembled at the council of Ephesus requested Theodosius
II. to cause the works of Nestorius to be burnt, and this
desire was complied with. The writings of Eutyches
shared the like fate at the council of Chalcedon; and it
would not be difficult to collect examples of the same kind
from each of the following centuries.”
When the Popes prevailed upon the nations of Christen¬
dom to acknowledge their infallibility in all matters ap¬
pertaining to religion, they also took upon themselves the
care and the right of pointing out what books should or
should not be read; and hence originated those famous
Expurgatory Indexes which furnish such ample materials
for the bibliography of prohibited books. There is a co¬
pious list of these Indexes in the work of Peignot, to be
immediately noticed. The next step in the progress of
usurpation was the licensing of books. By the council of
Lateran, held at Rome in 1515, it was ordered that all
books should, previously to publication, be submitted to the
judgment of clerical censors. “ To fill up the measure ot
encroachment,” says Milton, “ their last invention was to
ordain that no book should be printed, as if St Peter had
bequeathed them the keys of the press also as well as of
paradise, unless it were approved and licensed under the
hands of two or three gluttonous friars. Till then books
were ever as freely admitted into the world as any other
birth ; the issue of the brain was no more stifled than the
issue of the womb ; no envious Juno sat cross-legged over
the nativity of any man’s intellectual offspring.” {Liberty
of unlicensed Printing.)
The following works contain accounts of condemned
and prohibited books, and of the Indices Expurgatoni
1. Dissertatio historico-literaria de Libris Combustis, in the
seventh volume of SchAhovris Amcenitates Literaria. The
same subject is resumed in the eighth and ninth volumes.
2. Index generalis Librorum prohibitorum a Pontijicis auc-
toritate; in usum Dibliothecce Bodleiance; by Tho. James,
1627. 3. Francus De Papistarum Indicibus Librorum
prohibitorum, published at Leipsic in 1684. 4. Thesaurus
Bibliographicus ex Indicibus Librorum prohibitorum conges-
tus, published at Dresden in 1743. 5. Dictionnaire Cri¬
tique et Bibliographique des principaux Livres condam-
nes au feu, supprimes ou censures, par G. Peignot, 2 vols.
1 See the chapter on Book Censors in Professor Beckmann’s History of Inventions.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
pl a- 8vo, Paris, 1806. This book is amusing, and gives a co-
pl pious list of Indices Expur gator ii, as well as of authors
^ ^ who have treated of the subject of condemned books in
general; but it cannot be allowed that it contains any
thing approaching to a complete enumeration of theprin-
cipal works which come within the scope of the title-page.
There are very few English books noticed, either those
condemned in this country or those prohibited in others;
though in this latter class the most valuable of our philo¬
sophical and literary works would be found. One of the
most preposterous sentences of prohibition incurred by an
English author is that mentioned in a letter from Sir John
Macpherson, while in Spain, to Mr Gibbon; namely, that
Smith’s Wealth of Nations was prohibited there, “ on ac¬
count of the lowness of its style and the looseness of its
morals.” (Gibbon’s Posthumous Works, vol. iii.)
We should like to see an accurate account of works
which have been condemned to the flames, or suppressed,
in Britain. In former times we should find some as abo¬
minable instances of oppression in this particular as ever
disgraced the worst governments of continental Europe.
The proceedings against Prynne, on account of his His-
trxmastix or Player s Scourge, furnish a noted example.
We wish we could add, that these proceedings have al¬
ways been mentioned by our historians in the terms which
their singular atrocity is calculated to call forth from
every heart that has one chord in unison with the rights
of humanity. Prynne, who was by profession a lawyer, is
characterized by Mr Hume as being “ a great hero among
the puritans.” He was in truth a very fanatical person ;
but his learning was immense, his courage unconquerable,
and his honesty certainly as great as that of any of his
opponents or oppressors. His Histriomastix, a quarto of
upwards of a thousand closely printed pages, with all its
margins studded with authorities, came out in 1633, and
was intended to decry all dramatic amusements and all
jovial recreations, and to censure the lax discipline and
the popish ceremonies of prelacy. In the alphabetical
table at the end of the volume there is a reference in
these words—“ Women actors, notorious whores;" and as
the queen sometimes took a part in the dramas played at
court, it was alleged that Prynne pointed at her majesty
in this reference, and that the book was in fact intended
as a satire upon the government. He was accordingly
prosecuted in the star-chamber for a libel. The book
(which the judges described as a huge misshapen monster,
m the begetting of which the devil must have assisted)
was condemned to be burned; and, after the example of
foreign countries, this was ordered to be done, for the
first time in England, by the hands of the hangman. It
was ordered that Mr Prynne should be expelled from Ox¬
ford, he being a graduate of that university; and also from
the bar. He was further sentenced to pay a fine of L.5000,
and to endure perpetual imprisonment: but this was not
oh; he was condemned to stand in the pillory on two suc¬
cessive days, in Westminster and Cheapside, there, on
each day, to have an ear cut off. One of the judges, who
represented the queen’s virtues as such that neither ora-
toiy nor poetry could do any thing like justice to them,
was for making the fine L. 10,000; stating that he knew it
was much more than Mr Prynne was worth, yet far less than
16 Reserved to pay; and expressed a further wish, that his
riose should be slit, and his forehead burned, in addition to
e loss of his ears, because he might buy himself a periwig,
so hide that loss.1 The book, which involved its au-
°r in such unprecedented calamities, had actually been
629
licensed, according to the regulations which then obtain- Bibliogra-
ed ; but it was stated that the licenser had not read the lJh.v-
whole of it. Well might Sir Simonds D’Ewes speak of '
this as a terrifying trial. “ Most men,” says he, “ were
affrighted to see that neither Mr Prynne’s academical nor
barrister’s gown could free him from the infamous loss of
his ears ; and all good men conceived this would have been
remitted; many asserted it was, till the sad execution of
it. I went to see him a while after,” continues Sir Simonds,
in the Fleet, to comfort him ; and found in him the rare
effects of an upright heart, by his serenity of spirit and
chearful patience. ^ The account which MV Hume gives
of this nefarious trial and sentence, dwelling chiefly on
the acrimonious and ridiculous parts of Prynne’s cha¬
racter and book, wholly passing over the sycophancy of
his judges, and but gently censuring their appalling and
ruthless cruelty, is characteristic enough of his general
principles and manners ; and well calculated to show that,
with all his penetration and philosophic spirit, and charms
of style, he was still deficient in some qualities of an histo¬
rian, without which, history cannot be rendered profitable
either to rulers or their subjects.
VII. Of Bibliographical Dictionaries and Catalogues.
The works which fall to be considered under this sec¬
tion, sometimes called Dictionaries, sometimes Catalogues,
and sometimes Bibliotheca!, constitute the most generally
useful and interesting class of bibliographical publications.
By showing what has been written in all the various
branches of human knowledge in every age and country,
they act as useful guides to the inquiries of every class of
the learned; while, by pointing out the differences of edi¬
tions, they constitute manuals of ready information to the
professed bibliographer.
Works of this class are called general or particular, ac¬
cording as their object is to indicate books in all, or in one
only, of the departments of science and literature. The
former only aspire to point out rare or remarkable books;
foi no attempt has yet been made, or probably ever will
be made, to compile a universal Bibliographical Dictio-
naiy. fin the other hand, it is the object particular dic¬
tionaries to notice all, or the greater part, of those books
which have been published on the subjects which they
embrace; and hence their superior utility to such as are
engaged in the study of any particular science or subject.
The works of the former class which chiefly demand
our notice are the following:—1. Bibliographic Instruc¬
tive, ou Traite de la Connoissance des Livres rares des sin-
guliers, par G. T. de Bure ; in seven volumes octavo, pub¬
lished at Paris between 1763 and 1768. The books de¬
scribed in this work are arranged, in appropriate subdivi¬
sions, under the five grand classes of Theology, Jurispru¬
dence, Sciences and Arts, Belles Lettres, and History ; and
the classification which it exemplifies is that generally
followed by foreign bibliographers. The names of the
authors in all these classes are arranged alphabetically in
the last volume ; but it has no index to anonymous works,
a want, however, which was afterwards supplied by an¬
other hand, in a thin octavo volume published in 1782,
entitled Bibliographic Instructive, tome dixieme. This is
called the tenth volume, because De Bure had himself
published a supplement of two volumes in 1769. Its title
is, Supplement a la Bibliographic Instructive, ou Catalogue
des Livres de Louis Jean Gaignat. De Bure was a book¬
seller at Paris, of great eminence in his profession, but
still more distinguished for extensive information in all
, ?ee IT)'nne’s Trial, in the Collection of State Trials.
•Extracts from a manuscript Journal of D’E wes’s Life, published in Nichols’s Bibliotheca Topographica Britannica, No. XV.
G30 BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Bibliogra- matters appertaining to bibliography and literary history;
phy- and, accordingly, his work is still the delight of bibliogra-
phers, though it has been followed by others which indicate
a much greater number of books, and which also in some
particulars excel it in accuracy. 2. Dictionnaire Typo-
graphique, Historique, et Critique, des Livres rares, estimes
et recherches en tons genres, par J. B. L. Osmont; 2 vols.
8vo, Paris, 1768. This work is more ample in notices of
Italian books than that of De Bure. 3. Dictionnaire Bib-
liographique, 3 vols. 8vo, Paris, 1790. This work, gene¬
rally known under the name of Cailleau’s Dictionary, was
compiled, according to M. Barbier and others, by the
Abbe du Clos. It was republished in 1800, with a sup¬
plementary volume, by M. Brunet. It has been already
mentioned that the third volume has a separate alpha¬
bet for anonymous books. 4. Manuel du Libraire et de
lAmateur de Livres; contenant, lo, Un nouveaux Dic¬
tionnaire Bibliographique; 2o, Une Table en forme de
Catalogue Raisonne ; par J. C. Brunet. This work was
first published in three volumes octavo in 1810. A third
edition, much enlarged, appeared in 1820, in 4 vols. 8vo.
It contains a much greater proportion, both of English and
of German books, than any of the preceding compilations;
and its plan is such as to afford all the advantages both
of a dictionary and a classed catalogue; three of the vo¬
lumes being employed to indicate books under their names
in alphabetical order, and the fourth to class them, di¬
vested of all bibliographical details, according to the sys¬
tem generally followed. The prices of the rarer editions
are given from the principal sales that have taken place in
France and other countries; so that, upon the whole, this
work, though it has less literary interest than that of De
Bure, is probably the best bibliographical dictionary extant
for the purposes of the professed bibliographer.
In the class of general bibliographical dictionaries we
must also place the following work, though its limitation
to books in the learned and eastern languages renders it
much less general in its plan than those we have describ¬
ed. It is entitled A Bibliographical Dictionary, contain¬
ing a Chronological Account, alphabetically arranged, of
the most curious and useful Books in all departments of
Learning, published in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and
other eastern Languages. It was published in 1803, by Dr
Adam Clarke, in six volumes duodecimo. To the princi¬
pal works noticed in this dictionary, there are added bio¬
graphical notices and criticisms; but the author would
have judged more wisely had he included books in the
modern languages, instead of deviating so largely, and with
but small pretensions to novelty, into the provinces of
biography and general criticism. The supplement, which
he published in two duodecimo volumes in 1806, under
the title of The Bibliographical Miscellany, contains, among
other matters, an account of English translations of the
classics, and theological writers; a list of the cities and
towns where printing was established in the fifteenth cen¬
tury ; and a list of authors on literary history and biblio¬
graphy.
Some writers have complained, particularly M. Camus,
that these bibliographical dictionaries have been too ex¬
clusively devoted to the indication of rare and curious
books; and that they notice but few comparatively of
those whose value consists only in their utility. “ Je
voudrois, says he, “ qu’on suppleat a ce defaut; et que,
dans une bibliographic formee sur un non nouveau plan,
on indiquat quels sont, relativement a chaque genre de
connoissance, les livres les plus instructifs.”1 The Manuel Bit
of M. Brunet, we may observe, which was published sub- 1
sequently to the period of this remark, contains the titles ^
of a much greater number of useful books than are to be
found noticed in any of the other general bibliographical
dictionaries; but it certainly does not, and indeed was
not intended, to realize the idea of such a dictionary as
was wished for by M. Camus.
It has sometimes also been alleged that these dictio¬
naries, by pointing out so many curious books and rare edi¬
tions, have contributed greatly to the diffusion of the bib¬
liomania. We do not doubt that they may have helped
to do so; but the truth is, that this disease has a much
deeper root in the vanities of human nature, and is of
much more ancient date, than some persons seem to ima¬
gine. It gave great offence to Socrates and to Lucian ;2
and its prevalence among his countrymen had called forth
the animadversions of Bruyere, long before the popular
work of De Bure gave such an acknowledged zest and
pungency to the taste for amassing literary curiosities.
The number of dictionaries and catalogues applicable
to particular departments or provinces of learning, is much
too great to permit us to do any thing more than to point
out a few of them. Lipenius, a learned German divine
and professor, born in 1630, and who died in 1692, worn
out, as Niceron says, by labour and chagrin, compiled a
Bibliotheca Theologica, a Bibliotheca Juridica, a Bibliothe¬
ca Philosophica, and a Bibliotheca Medica, making in all
six volumes folio. The Bibliotheca Juridica has been
several times reprinted, and two supplements have been
added to it; one by Schott, published at Leipsic in 1775,
and the other by Senkenberg, also published there in
1789, making in all four volumes folio. An immense num¬
ber of books are indicated in each of these Bibliotheca of
Lipenius; of all of which the plan is to arrange the books
alphabetically according to their subjects; each Bibliothe-
ca having also an alphabetical table of the names of the
authors whose works are arranged under the alphabet of
subjects. The Bibliotheca Juridica, owing to the correc¬
tions and additions which it has received, forms by much
the most valuable part of this series. In regard to juris¬
prudence, we may further mention Bridgman’s Legal Bib¬
liography ; and the valuable work of M. Camus, entitled
Lettres sur la profession dAvocat, et Bibliotheque choisi des
Livres de Droit. There are some truly excellent cata¬
logues of works in the sciences and in natural history.
Such are Dr Young’s Catalogue of Works relating to Na¬
tural Philosophy and the Mechanical Arts, annexed to
his Lectures on Natural Philosophy; the Bibliotheca
Mathematica of Murhard; the Bibliographie Astrono-
mique of La Lande ; and the Catalogus Bibliotheca His-
torice Naturalis Joseph: Banks, by Dr Dryander, which,
though the title seems to promise only the catalogue of a
private library, is allowed to furnish the most complete
and best-arranged view of books in natural history ever
published in any country. In the great department of
history there have been published various Bibliotheca,
some of them embracing the historical works of all ages
and nations; others, those only which relate to particular
countries. The Bibliotheca Historica of Meusel, an im¬
mense work, is of the former class. It includes voyages
and travels; but of books of this class there is an ex¬
cellent separate catalogue in six volumes octavo, by M.
Boucher de la Richarderie, published at Paris in 1808.
We must observe, however, that this work would have
\ Mlmoires de Thutitut National; Classe, Litt. et Beaux Art,, tom. ii.
upon “couSrtfal" *“• WNto i» perhaps the bittereet satire ever printed
 ai_
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
gil; n- been better suited to the legitimate ends of such a com-
] ■ pilation had the author confined himself to bibliogra-
^ ^ phical notices, and wholly refrained from those long ex¬
tracts by which his book has been so much enlarged. Of
the class of Bibliothecae, applicable to the history of parti¬
cular countries, the Bibliotheque Historique de la France,
originally published in 1719, in one volume folio, but in
the last edition, published between 1768 and 1778, extend¬
ed to five volumes, is by far the most splendid and per¬
fect example. It contains nearly fifty thousand articles,
as well manuscript as printed, methodically arranged un¬
der the different heads of French history to which they
relate, and accompanied with a complete set of indexes to
authors and subjects.
We must refer such of our readers as are desirous of
seeing a fuller list of catalogues of books in the different
branches of knowledge, to the Repertoire Bibliographique
Universel of M. Peignot, a useful but ill-arranged work.
VIII. Of the Classification of Books.
The classing of books in a catalogue, so as to furnish a
systematic view of the contents of an extensive library, is
a task of much difficulty and importance. In order to this,
it is necessary to refer every book to its proper place in
the general system of human knowledge; and to do so
with precision, it is necessary to have clear and exact
ideas of the scope and objects of all the departments and
branches of which that system consists. The utility of
catalogues so classed is very great, and consists obviously
in this, that the books upon any subject are found at once
by referring to the proper head, whereas in alphabetical
catalogues the whole must be perused before we can as¬
certain what books they contain upon the subject which
immediately interests us. All who duly consider the mat¬
ter, therefore, must concur in Dr Middleton’s brief and
emphatic description of such an undertaking, as res sane
magni momenti, multique sudoris.1
_ Whether classed catalogues were in use among the an¬
cients, is a piece of information which has not descended
to us. The first who is known to have written upon the
subject was a German, named Florian Treffer, who, in
1560, published, at Augsburg, a method of classing books.
Cardona in 1587, and Scholt in 1608, published treatises
upon this subject; and, in 1627, Gabriel Naude, a writer
of no small celebrity in his day, published his Avis pour
dresser une Bibliotheque, in which he treats of the prin¬
ciples of classification. The catalogue which he compiled
of the library of the Canon de Cordes, afterwards pur¬
chased by Mazarin, was published in 164(3, and is esteem¬
ed a curiosity among bibliographers. In the early part of
the eighteenth century, Gabriel Martin, a learned Parisian
bookseller, who seems to have been much employed in
compiling catalogues, chalked out a system of arrange¬
ment, which, in a great degree, superseded all others, and,
in its leading divisions, is still generally followed on the
Continent. Various other systems have, however, been
proposed by the bibliographers of France and Germany;
out, before proceeding to any particular notice, either of
the system of Martin or of those which differ from it, we
must observe, that all who have written upon the subject
seem to have confounded two things, as we think, per-
cctly distinct,—the arrangement to be followed in the
catalogue of a library, and that to be followed in placing
lts oooks. They all suppose the same nicety and exact-
uess of classification to be equally necessary and equally
631
practicable in both. Now, we must remark, that where Bibliogra-
there is a classed catalogue, the grand objects of a syste- -phy*
matic arrangement are sufficiently provided for, indepen-
dently of the location of the books ; and if there should
not be a classed catalogue, it seems very clear that the
bulk of those who frequent a public library could de¬
rive little if any benefit from an accurate classification of
books on the shelves, even supposing it practicable to ef¬
fect and maintain it. The chief end of any arrangement
to be effected on the shelves ought to be to aid the me¬
mories and abridge the labour of the librarians; and all
that is useful in this respect may be accomplished by
means of a much ruder plan than could be tolerated in
any catalogue pretending to classification.
The system generally followed, as we have already
mentioned, is that of Martin, which divides books into the
five great classes of theology, jurisprudence, sciences and
arts, belles lettres, and history. Each of these classes has
divisions and subdivisions more or less numerous, accord¬
ing to the number of the branches to be distinguished;
and it is in the distribution of these that the chief differ¬
ences are found in foreign catalogues; though the divisions
and subdivisions of De Bure, as exemplified in his Biblio¬
graphic Instructive, are those commonly followed. Some
bibliographers, however, have proposed to alter the order,
others to diminish, and some to increase the number of
the primitive classes ; whilst a few have proposed systems
altogether different, and greatly more refined in their
principles of classification. M. Ameilhon, in a paper pub¬
lished in the Memoirs of the French Institute, proposes
the following leading divisions: grammar, logic, morals,
jurisprudence, metaphysics, physics, arts, belles lettres,
and history.2 In this arrangement theology, to which he
has great objections as a separate class, is transferred,
with evident impropriety, to the class of metaphysics. M.
Camus has also investigated the principles according to
which books ought to be classed, in another paper in these
Memoirs, already quoted; but as he has not reduced his
method, which proceeds on views much too fanciful for the
purpose, to specific heads, we can only refer our readers
to his paper. Equally remote from the proper objects of a
classed catalogue are the systems proposed by M. Peignot
and by M. Thiebaut.3 The former takes the well-known
speculations of Bacon and D’Alembert, as to the genealogy
of knowledge, for the basis of his system, and thus fixes
upon three principal heads or classes, under the names of
history, philosophy, and imagination, with the addition of
bibliography as an introductory class. In the system of
the latter, there are, in like manner, only three principal
heads, founded upon a division of knowledge, into instru¬
mental, essential, and suitable.
Germany also has produced a variety of bibliographical
systems, some of them as absurdly refined as those just
mentioned; whilst others, as, for example,that of Leibnitz,
are better adapted to practical purposes. The classes
proposed by this eminent philosopher are as follows:
theology, jurisprudence, medicine, intellectual philosophy,
mathematics, natural philosophy, philology, history, and
miscellanies.4 Another system, not very remote from
this, is that of M. Denis, formerly keeper of the Imperial
Library at Vienna, in which books are divided into the
classes of theology, jurisprudence, philosophy, medicine,
mathematics, history, and philology. This system is de¬
veloped in his Introduction to the Knowledge of Books, to
be afterwards described.
a !1.s very judicious tract, entitled Bibliothecas Cantabrigienm ordinandee Methodus, in the fourth volume of his works.
3 Mtmoires de Vlnstitut National; Classe, Litt. et Beaux Arts, tom. h.
^ See Dictionnaire de Bibliologie, par G. Peignot, art. Systeme.
Idea Leibnitiana Bibliotheca; Publioa secundum Classes Scientiarum ordinanda, fusior' et contractior. Works, vol. v.
632
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Bibliogra* Dr Middleton is the only British author of name who
phy. has written any separate tract on the classification of
books. The classes proposed by him are these: theology,
history, jurisprudence, philosophy, mathematics, natural
history, medicine, belles lettres (litera, humaniores), and
miscellanies. His object in the tract referred to was to
recommend the adoption of this arrangement for a cata¬
logue of the university library of Cambridge ; and, what¬
ever may be its defects, it cannot be questioned that a
printed catalogue of an extensive collection, so classed,
would have proved of eminent utility.
Naude mentions a writer who proposed to class all sorts
of books under the three heads of morals, sciences, and
devotion; and who assigned, as the grounds of this ar¬
rangement, these words of the psalmist, Disciplinam,Boni-
tatem, et Scientiam doce me. All such systems as those of
M. Peignot and M. Thiebaut, when applied to the forma¬
tion of catalogues, appear to us quite as absurd as this sys¬
tem deduced from the psalmist. The remark which Naude
applied to it, that it seemed intended “ to crucify and
torture the memory by its subtilties,” is just as applicable
to the former. That system, he adds, “ is the best which
is most facile, the least intricate, and the most practised;
and which follows the faculties of theology, physic, ju¬
risprudence, mathematics, humanity, and others.’1 M.
Ameilhon also objects strongly to all over-refined biblio¬
graphical systems, and particularly to those which aspire
to follow the genesis and remote affinities of the different
branches of knowledge. “ L’executiort,” says he, “ en se-
roit impossible; ou si elle ne 1’etoit pas au moins entrai-
neroit-elle des difficultes, qui ne pourroient etre surmon-
tees que par des homines profondement refleches et exer-
ces aux meditations metaphysiques.”2 The truth is, that
when bibliographers speculate in this field with a view
to catalogue-making, they entirely forget their proper
province and objects. They have nothing whatever to do
with genealogical trees of knowledge, or with any mode of
classing books which is founded upon remote and subtile
abstractions. The whole use and end of a classed cata¬
logue is to furnish a ready index to books, arranged ac¬
cording to their subjects; and that arrangement is there¬
fore to be preferred which is founded upon the most ob¬
viously marked and generally recognised divisions of those
subjects. We may add, that to compile a good catalogue
of an extensive library, even on this humbler plan, would
require more learning and more correctness of knowledge
and thinking, than are likely to be often employed in such
an undertaking.
Though we are not altogether satisfied with the division
and order of the classes in the system commonly followed,
we have no doubt that, by means of an additional class,
and a correct arrangement of the subdivisions, a catalogue
might be formed perfectly adequate to every useful pur¬
pose. We allude to a class, such as is partly indicated in
the schemes both of Leibnitz and Middleton, for the recep¬
tion of works and collections which cannot with propriety
be limited to any one division of knowledge. M. Camus
thinks that works of this kind may be properly enough en¬
tered in the class in which their authors most excelled;
those of Cicero, for example, among the Orators :3 but, not
to mention the evident incongruity of placing a collection
so multifarious as Cicero’s works under Oratory, there may
sometimes be room for uncertainty as to the division under
which, according to this rule, an author’s works ought to be
sought. These incongruities and inconveniences, together
with those which must arise from placing Encyclopaedias Bib!
and general collections under any of the common divisions, pj
can only be remedied by a Miscellaneous Class; and, while 's“"
this class ought to indicate, in one of its divisions, the col¬
lective editions of an author’s works, his separate treatises
ought to be entered under the subjects to which they be¬
long ; as without this, the classed catalogue will not fully
answer its purpose,—that of showing what has been writ¬
ten by the authors specified in it, on the different branches
of knowledge. Thus, a catalogue compiled upon this plan
would not only be rendered more consistent in its ar¬
rangement, but much more complete as an index to the
materials of study.
IX. Of Bibliography in general.
It was our object in this article to institute such a di¬
vision of the subject as should enable us to point out the
best sources of information in regard to all its branches;
and in order to complete our view, we have still to notice
some of those works which treat generally of all matters
appertaining to bibliography. We do not know any book
that presents a well-written, judicious, and comprehensive
digest of these matters; but there are several which contain
much curious and useful information in regard to them.
1. The Introduction to the Knowledge of Books (FArdeitung
in Bucherkunde), by M. Denis, whose supplement to Mait-
taire, and bibliographical system, we have already men¬
tioned, is of this description. The last edition, published
at Vienna in 1796, consists of two volumes quarto. It
has never been translated from the original German; and
it is to be observed, that though it treats of the substances,
forms, and classification of books, it cannot be considered
as a merely bibliographical work, a large portion of it
being devoted to the general history of learning. The
author, who w^as long principal librarian of the Imperial
Library at Vienna, died in 1808. 2. Manuel Bibliogra-
plaque, ou Essai sur la connoissance des livres, des formats,
des editions, de la maniere de composer une Bibliotheque,
etc.; par G. Peignot. Published in 1800. 3. Bictionnaire
raisonne de Bibliologie, contenant 1’explication des princi-
paux termes relatifs a la Bibliographie ; des notices sur les
plus celebres Bibliographes; et 1’exposition des differens
Systemes Bibliographiques ; 3 vols. 8vo ; by the. same
author. Bibliography is certainly indebted to this indus¬
trious compiler ; but his vague notions of its objects and
rank have too often led him into confusion and extrava¬
gance. 4. Cours de Bibliographie, ou la science du Bib-
Uothecaire, par C. F. Achard; 3 vols. 8vo; published at
Marseilles in 1807. The chief value of this compilation
consists in its details of the different systems which have
been proposed for classifying books. We learn from the
introduction, that M. Francois de Neufchateau, when mi¬
nister of the interior, orders the librarians of all the de¬
partments to deliver lectures on bibliography; but that
the plan, which indeed savours somewhat of bibliomania,
entirely failed, these librarians having been found quite
incapable of prelecting upon their vocation. 5. Intro¬
duction to the Study of Bibliography ; to which is pre¬
fixed a Memoir on the public Libraries of the Ancients, by
Thomas Hartwell Horne; 2 volumes 8vo, published at
London in 1814. This is chiefly translated and compileu
from the French bibliographical works, and will be foun
useful to those who have not access to them. It contains
fidl lists of writers on bibliography and literary history,
and the fullest account we have seen of catalogues of hbra-
1 Evelyn’s Translation of Naude’s Avis pour dresser une Bibliotheque.
Mtmoires de Vlnstitut; Classe, Litterat. et Beaux Arts, tom. i. p. 483.
* Ibid. tom. i*
B I C
BIG
633
BiUi
^ p!
Bic'
j. ries both British and foreign. The specimens of early
typography, and of the vignettes and monograms of the
early printers, are neatly executed.
Bibliography certainly presents a pretty wide field of in-
J quiry, and in which there is yet room for useful works ; but
it must appear evident, from the details contained in the Bibliogra-
present article, that this field has in almost every part been phy
long cultivated ; if not always with perfect taste and judg- lj A
ment, yet with great industry, and so as to yield very , 'c la|t^,
profitable returns to the commonwealth of learning.
BIBLIOMANCY, a kind of divination performed by
means of the Bible, otherwise called sortes hiblicoi or sor~
tes sanctorum. It consisted in taking passages of Scrip¬
ture at hazard, and thence drawing indications concern¬
ing the future ; as in Augustin’s tolle et lege. It was much
used at the consecration of bishops.
BIBLIOTHECA, in its original and proper sense, de¬
notes a library or place for containing books.
Bibliotheca, in matters of literature, denotes a trea¬
tise giving an account of all the writers on a certain sub¬
ject. Thus we have bibliothecae of theology, law, philo¬
sophy, and other branches.
BIBLISTS. So the Roman Catholics denominate those
Christians who make Scripture the sole rule of faith; in
which sense all Protestants either are or ought to be
biblists.
BICANERE. See Beykaneeu.
BICCARINO, a city in the province of Capitanata, of
the kingdom of Naples, the seat of a bishop, now joined
with Troja. It stands on the river Volgano, and contains
about 4000 inhabitants.
BICE, or Bise, among painters, a blue colour prepared
from the lapis Armenus. Bice bears the best body of all
bright blues used in common work, but it is the palest in
colour. It works indifferently well, but inclines a little to
sandy, and therefore requires good grinding.
BICESTER or Bisseter, a market-town in the hun¬
dred of Ploughley, in the county of Oxford, fifty-nine
miles from London, and twelve from Oxford. A small
stream here runs into the Charwell at Islip. The market
is held on Friday. It has no other trade than the supply
of the agricultural district which surrounds it. The inha¬
bitants amounted in 1801 to 1945, in 1811 to 1921, and
in 1821 to 2544.
BICHAT, Marie Francois Xavier, celebrated as
an anatomist and physiologist, was born in France, at a
village called Thoirette, on the 11th of November 1771.
Great attention was paid to his education by his father,
who was himself a physician, and who initiated him at an
early age in those studies which were to prepare him
more particularly for the profession to which he had des¬
tined him. He studied first at the college of Nantua, and
afterwards at a seminary at Lyons; and was early distin¬
guished for that activity of mind and facility in acquiring
knowledge, which are the sure presage of great attain¬
ments at a mature age. In mathematics, and the physical
sciences more especially dependent on abstract reasoning,
for which he showed a remarkable predilection, he made
rapid progress. He afterwards became passionately fond
of natural history, and devoted all his time to this new
study. He had already made considerable advances in
this branch of science, as he had before done in natural
philosophy and mathematics, when his ardour was sud¬
denly checked by the reflection that he was engaged in
pursuits that were boundless in their object, and that were
in danger of leading him too far from his future profes¬
sion, through which alone he aspired to celebrity. Bid¬
ding adieu, therefore, with a singular effort of resolution,
to his favourite occupations, he applied himself at once
with great diligence to the study of anatomy and surgery,
under the guidance of Petit, who was chief surgeon to
the Hotel Dieu at Lyons. It is also curious that, some
VOL. IV.
time after he had fully engaged in this course of instruc¬
tion, he experienced a relapse of his passion for mathema¬
tics to such a degree, that, yielding to the fascination, he
resumed his early studies, in which, however, he had suf¬
ficient discretion to restrict himself within such limits as
did not interfere with his medical pursuits. Petit soon dis¬
cerned the superior talents of his pupil; and, although the
latter had scarcely attained the age of twenty, employed
him constantly as his assistant in his professional labours.
The revolutionary disturbances, which raged with so much
fury at Lyons, unfortunately interrupted his progress, in
the midst of the flattering prospects which were opening
to him; and flying from the horrors of the siege which
that devoted city was about to sustain, he took refuge in
Paris about the end of the year 1793. He there resumed
the course of his professional studies, and became the assi¬
duous attendant upon the lectures of the celebrated Des-
sault; and in this, as in the former instance, became in no
long time the companion and friend of his instructor. His
merit was brought to the notice of Dessault by an acci¬
dental circumstance. It had been an established custom in
the school, that the substance of the lecture of the preced¬
ing day should be recapitulated, as an exercise, before the
whole class, by one of the pupils selected for this purpose.
It happened one day that the pupil on whom this task de¬
volved was absent at the time when he was expected to
perform it, and the professor asked if anyone among his au¬
ditory would offer himself as a substitute. Bichat boldly
came forward to volunteer his services, and acquitted him¬
self to the admiration of all his hearers. The subject he
had to explain was the theory and treatment of fractures
of the clavicle. The exact analysis which he made of the
instructions contained in the lecture, the copiousness and
novelty of his illustrations, and the spirit of order and of
method which characterized the whole of his exposition,
joined to the modesty with which he stated some doubts,
as well as some original views which he had taken of the
subject, revealed at once the extent and vigour of his
genius, and the expectations which might justly be enter¬
tained of his future eminence in his profession. Dessault,
in particular, was strongly impressed with the superiority
he had manifested over all his other pupils; and from that
day he became an inmate in his house, and was treated
in all respects as an adopted son. The opportunities
which fortune thus placed within his reach were eagerly
employed ; and the favoured pupil showed himself worthy
of the protection and confidence which he received. We
find him, between the years 1793 and 1795, actively par¬
ticipating in all the labours of Dessault, visiting his pa¬
tients both at the hospital and in private, accompanying
him everywhere as his assistant in his operations, and
writing the greater part of his letters in answer to those
who consulted him from a distance. His exertions by no
means closed with the day ; and he passed a great portion
of the night in assisting to conduct the experimental
researches on the diseases of bones, in which that able
surgeon was engaged, and in consulting, previously to each
lecture, the works of the ancient authors on the subjects to
which they related. Whatever Dessault expressed a de¬
sire to have done, and he often required more than an or¬
dinary person would have supposed it possible to perform,
was sure to be accomplished within the requisite time by
4 L
634 B I C
Bichat, his indefatigable pupil. Notwithstanding these multiplied
occupations, Bichat found means to prosecute his own
researches in anatomy and physiology, to which he devot¬
ed every interval of leisure he could seize. The sudden
death of Dessault, who was snatched from the world in the
meridian of his fame, was a severe stroke of adversity to
Bichat; but the event, though it deeply afflicted, did not
discourage him ; and though it might interrupt for a time,
did not eventually relax, his efforts at advancement. His
first care seems to have been to acquit himself of the ob¬
ligations he owed his benefactor, by contributing to the
support of his widow and her son ; and by conducting to
a close the fourth volume of Dessault’s Journal de Chi-
tmrgie. To this volume he subjoined a biographical me¬
moir of its author, in which he pays a just tribute to his
merit. His next object was to re-unite and digest in one
body the different surgical doctrines which Dessault had
advanced in fugitive papers, published in various periodi¬
cal works. Of these he, in 1797, composed a work, in two
volumes octavo, entitled CEuvres Chirurgicales de Des¬
sault, ou Tableau de sa Doctrine, et de sa Pratique dans le
Traitement des Maladies Externes ; a work in which, al¬
though he professes only to explain the ideas of another,
he developes them with the clearness and copiousness of
one who is in perfect possession of the subject which he
treats. He was now at liberty to pursue the full bent of
his genius, and soon arrived at those comprehensive and
masterly views of physiology which, when afterwards de¬
veloped in his writings, gained him so much applause.
Undisturbed by the storms which agitated the political
world, he pursued with steadiness the course he had me¬
ditated, and directed his more immediate attention to sur¬
gery, which it was then his design to practise. We meet
with many proofs of his industry and success at this period
in the Recueil de la Societe Medicale dEmulation, an asso¬
ciation of which Bichat was one of the most zealous and
active members. Three memoirs which he communicat¬
ed were published by the society in 1796 ; the first de¬
scribing an improvement in the instrument for trepanning;
the second detailing a new process which he devised for
the ligature of polypi; and the third, in the distinction to
be observed in fractures of the clavicle, between those
cases requiring the assistance of art, and those in which
its interference would be of no avail. In 1797 we find
him undertaking the arduous task of instructing others,
wdiich he commenced by a course of anatomical demon¬
strations. Not expecting any great number of pupils, he
had hired a small room for the purpose ; but his merit as
a teacher soon attracting a crowd of auditors, he was ob¬
liged to enlarge his theatre, and was also encouraged to
extend the plan of his lectures, and to announce what had
never hitherto been attempted by one so young and inex¬
perienced, a course of operative surgery. If the boldness
ot the enterprise was calculated to excite surprise, his
success in the execution of it was still more astonishing.
His reputation was now fully established, and he was ever
after the favourite teacher with the students who resort¬
ed to the capital. In the following year, 1798, he gave,
in addition to his course on anatomy and operative sur-
geiy, a separate course of physiology. But the exertion
cf speaking which these numerous courses of lectures, all
of which he conducted at the same time, required, was
moie than his frame could bear; and a dangerous hsemop-
tysis, with which he was seized in the midst of his labours,
obliged him to interrupt them for a time, and warned him
that there are limits to human strength. But the danger
was no sooner passed than the lesson seems to have been
(tisiegarcled; for we find him plunging into new engage-
ments with the same ardour as before. He had now scope
in his physiological lectures for a fuller exposition of his
BIG
original views in the animal economy, which were no ] i .>
sooner made known to his pupils, than they excited ^ ^
much attention in the medical schools at Paris; and he ^
was induced to publish them in a more authentic form.
Sketches of these doctrines were given by him in three
papers contained in the Memoirs of the Societe Medi¬
cale dEmulation. The first is on the synovial mem¬
branes ; in which he gives a more clear description of the
organ that secretes synovia, a fluid, the origin of which
had been a matter of much controversy. The next con¬
tains an account of the membranes of the human body
in general, which he considers apart from the organs they
invest and support, and which they serve to supply with
vessels ; and regards as performing offices in the economy
distinct from those of the organs with which they are so
connected. His last memoir relates to the symmetry,
which is so remarkable a feature in all those parts of the
body that are the instruments of the animal functions, and
which establishes so exact a similarity between the limbs
and organs of sense on each side of the body; while, on
the other hand, no such regularity can be traced in the
forms and dispositions of the viscera, which, like the heart,
the stomach, liver, and other organs of assimilation, are
subservient to the vital functions. He even assumes this
difference as the foundation of a marked distinction be¬
tween these two classes of functions; the one, being com¬
mon to all organized beings, he denominates organic; the
other, as exclusively pertaining to animality, he denotes
by the name of animal functions. The doctrines contain¬
ed in these memoirs were afterwards more fully develop¬
ed in his Traite sur les Membranes, which appeared in 1800,
and which immediately drew the attention of the medical
world both at home and abroad. Some time previous to
this he gave to the public a small work, in which he en¬
deavoured to bring together, in a condensed form, the
lessons of Dessaul t relative to the diseases of the urinary
passages: in the notes to this volume we may perceive
the germ of many of those views which were peculiar to
Bichat.
His next publication was the Recherches Physiologiques
sur la Vie et sur la Mart, in 1800, which consists of two
distinct dissertations. In the first, he explains, at still
greater length than he had previously done, his classifica¬
tion of functions, and is at pains to trace the distinction
between the animal and organic functions in all its bear¬
ings. In the second, he investigates the connection be¬
tween life and the actions of the three central organs, the
heart, lungs, and brain, on which its continuance so essen¬
tially depends. But the work on which he bestowed the
most attention, and which contained the fruits of his most
profound and original researches, is the Anatomic Gene-
rale, which was published in four volumes octavo in 1801.
It is founded on his classification of the parts of the body,
according to their intimate structure ; in order to establish
which, he decomposes the animal machine, not merely
into the larger pieces of which it is formed, but into the
organic elements that constitute them. Of these ele¬
mentary parts or textures, as he terms them, into which
every organ may be ultimately analyzed, he enumerates
twenty-one different species. He conceives each of these
textures to possess a peculiar modification of vitality, from
which it derives those properties that distinguish it from
dead matter, and that give rise to all the phenomena
of the animal economy, both in a healthy and a diseased
state.
Before Bichat had attained the age of eight-and-twenty,
he was appointed physician to the Hotel Dieu, a situation
which opened an immense field to his ardent spirit of in¬
quiry. In the investigation of diseases, he pursued the
same method of diligent observation and scrupulous ex-
B I C
t- |jv periment which had characterized his researches in phy-
« ^ ^sioiogy. He learned their history, not from books, but by
studying them at the bedside of his patients, and by accu¬
rate dissection of their bodies after death. He engaged
in a long series of examinations, with a view to ascertain
the exact changes induced in the various organs by dis¬
eases, which he conceived, in every instance, primarily to
affect some one of their constituent textures, while the
rest did not suffer any change, unless by the supervention
of some other disease. In the prosecution of these in¬
quiries he had, in less than six months, opened above six
hundred bodies. As intimately connected with the prac¬
tical exercise of the healing art, he was anxious also to
determine, with more precision than had hitherto been at¬
tempted, the effects of remedies on the body. It must be
confessed, that our knowledge of the operation of remedies
is, for the most part, extremely vague and conjectural;
and it appeared to him an object of great importance to res¬
cue this branch of science from the uncertainty in which
a multitude of points relating to it were still involved, by
applying to it the same methods of inductive reasoning
which in other sciences have been attended with so much
success. The basis of the inquiry was to be laid by col¬
lecting a sufficient number of facts to admit of their being
compared and generalized. A large hospital could alone
furnish the means of conducting such an investigation;
and Bichat eagerly availed himself of the opportunities
which his appointment at the Hotel Dieu now afforded
him, of instituting on these subjects a series of direct ex¬
periments on a very extensive scale. He began by giving
singly different medicinal substances, and then watching
attentively the phenomena that ensued. He then united
them in various ways, first joining two together, then three,
and so proceeding to more complicated combinations ; and
observed the particular changes in their mode of operat¬
ing which resulted from their being thus combined. So
wide a range of experiments, it is evident, could not have
been conducted without assistance ; and he selected forty
of his young pupils to aid him in collecting the requisite
observations. He had already, in this way, procured a
vast store of valuable materials for his course of lectures
on the Materia Medica, the completion of which was un¬
fortunately prevented by his untimely death ; but a great
part of the facts were subsequently published in the in¬
augural dissertations of his pupils. Latterly, he had also
occupied himself with framing a new classification of dis¬
eases.
During these arduous vocations, he never lost sight of
his anatomical pursuits, and had commenced a new work
on the subject, in which the organs were arranged accord¬
ing to his peculiar classification of their functions, under
the title of Anatomie Descriptive. He lived only to pub¬
lish the first two volumes of this work. It was, however,
continued on the same plan, and completed in three vo¬
lumes more, by Messrs Buisson and Roux, who had been
his most active assistants, and who appear to have been
perfect masters of his ideas on the subject. His death
was brought on by a fall from a staircase at the Hotel
Dieu; and although the accident did not at first appear
to be serious, it excited so great a degree of fever, that
his frame, already exhausted by excessive labour, and en-
leebled by constantly respiring the tainted air of the dis¬
secting-room, in which he had latterly passed the greater
part of his time, sunk under the attack. He died on the
“Ld Ju]y 1802, universally regretted by his pupils, and at¬
tended to the last by the widow of his benefactor, from
Miom he had never been separated. Every tribute of re¬
spect was paid to his memory"; his funeral was attended by
above six hundred of his pupils, and by a number of the
Physicians in Paris. His bust, together with that of Des-
BID 635
sault, was placed at the Hotel Dieu by order of the first Biclinium
consul, in joint commemoration of the man under whose li
fostering protection so bright a genius was first brought Bidle-
before the public, and of the pupil who nobly emulated
the fame of so great a master. We cannot, indeed, re¬
frain from admiration, when we contemplate all that Bichat
has done in his profession in so short a period of time, nor
sufficiently lament that a career so auspiciously begun
should at the age of thirty have been so suddenly and pre¬
maturely terminated. (y)
BICLINIUM, in Roman Antiquity, a chamber with two
beds or couches in it, or with only two round a table.
BIDAL, or Bidale, in our ancient customs, denotes
the invitation of friends to drink ale at the house of some
poor man, who, in consideration of the beverage, expected
some contribution for his relief.
BIDDENDEN, a town of the hundred of Barclay, and
Lathe of Soray, in the county of Kent, fifty-four miles from
London, and fifteen from Maidstone. It was formerly one
of the first places for the manufacture of woollen cloths, a
trade introduced into this part of the kingdom by a colony
of Flemings in the reign of Edward III. The inhabitants
amounted in 1801 to 1151, in 1811 to 1295, and in 1821
to 1544.
BIDDING, or Offering, denotes the raising the price
of an article or commodity at a sale or auction. The
French call this encherir; and it answers to wdiat was
called licitari by the Romans, who used to bid by holding
up the hand or finger.
Bidding is also used for proclaiming or notifying; in
which sense we meet with “ bidding of the banns,” the
same with what is otherwise called “ asking.”
Bidding Prayer. It was one part of the office of the
deacons in the primitive Christian church to act as moni¬
tors and directors of the people in the exercise of their
public devotions in the church; to which end they made
use of certain known forms of words, to give notice when
each part of the service began. This was called by the
Greeks xrjgurrs/v, and by the Latins prmdicare, which there¬
fore does not ordinarily signify to “ preach,” as some mis¬
take it, but to perform the office of crier (x»!gv£, or prceco')
in the assembly; and hence Synesius and others call the
deacons hgoxrjguxeg, the “ holy criers” of the church, appoint¬
ed to bid or exhort the congregation to pray and join in
the several parts of the service of the church. Agreeably
to this ancient practice is the form “ Let us pray,” repeat¬
ed before several of the prayers in the English liturgy, and
used as a sort of proem in the simpler invocations of the
Presbyterian church.
BIDDLE, John, one of the most eminent English
writers among the Socinians, was born at Wotton-under-
Edge, in Gloucestershire, and educated in the free-school
of that place. Being a hopeful youth, he was noticed,
particularly by Lord George Berkeley, who allowed him
an exhibition of L.10 a year. This caused him to apply
himself vigorously to his studies ; and, while at school, he
translated Virgil’s Bucolics, and the first two satires of
Juvenal. He continued at school till he was thirteen
years of age; and having manifested, even at that early
period, a singular piety, and contempt of secular affairs, he
was sent to the university of Oxford, and entered a student
in Magdalen hall. In 1641 the magistrates of Gloucester
chose him master of the free-school of that city; an office
in which he conducted himself very much to the satisfac¬
tion of his patrons and employers. But having formed
some opinions concerning the Trinity different from those
commonly received, and expressed his thoughts with too
much freedom, he suffered various persecutions and impri¬
sonments in the time of the commonwealth. During one
of these confinements, which lasted for several years, being
636
BID
B I E
Biddoo- reduced to great indigence, he was employed by Roger
raalis Daniel of London to correct the impression of the Septua-
Rideritales which that printer was about to publish, and
wished to render as accurate as possible. In 1651 the
parliament published a general act of oblivion, which re¬
stored him to liberty ; but he was afterwards imprisoned
on account of his tenets ; and, at last, the protector banish¬
ed him for life to St Mary’s Castle in the isle of Scilly,
whither he was sent in October 1655. He was allowed a
hundred crowns a year for his subsistence. In 1658 he
was again set at liberty. But after the restoration of King
Charles II. he was fined in L.100, each of his hearers being
amerced in L.20, and further condemned to lie in prison till
the fine was paid ; and this cruel sentence having been put
in execution, the want of fresh air and exercise caused him
to contract a disease, of which he died on the 22d of Sep¬
tember 1662, in the forty-seventh year of his age. Biddle’s
life was published in Latin in 1682, by Mr Farrington of
the Inner Temple, who represents him as possessed of ex¬
traordinary piety, charity, and humility. He would not
discourse of those points in which he differed from others,
with persons who did not appear religious according to
their knowledge; and he was strict in observing himself,
as well as severe in exacting from others, reverence in
speaking of God and Christ. He had so happy a memory,
that he retained word for word the whole New Testa¬
ment, not only in English, but in Greek, as far as the fourth
chapter of the Revelation of St John.
BIDDOOMAHS, a fierce and piratical tribe who inha¬
bit a cluster of large rugged islands in the eastern part of
the great African lake or inland sea called the Tchad.
They neither sow, plant, nor rear cattle, but maintain the
creed, that providence, while withholding from them these
goods, has bestowed strength and courage to wrest them
from the nations in whose possession they may be found;
and they exert themselves with the utmost activity to ful¬
fil this assumed destination. They own nearly a thousand
barks of some magnitude, with which they have made
themselves complete masters of this water, and extend
their ravages round the whole circuit of its shores. Bor-
nou and others of the more powerful states have ceased
to dispute with them the command of its waves. Some
of these men, whom Major Denham saw at Bornou, ap¬
peared to him about the wildest and rudest human beings
he had ever beheld.
BIDEFORD, or Biddeford, a market-town and sea¬
port of the hundred of Shebbear, in the county of Devon,
202 miles from London. The town is on the river Tawe,
which runs into the Bristol Channel at Barnstaple Bay. It
is built partly on the bank of the river, and partly on the
declivity of a very steep hill. It is accessible to ships of
considerable burden, several of which are employed in the
Newfoundland fishery. It is a corporate town, and an¬
ciently returned two members to parliament, but in the
reign of Edward I. was excused from doing so on the
plea of poverty. It has a very good market on Tuesday.
The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 2987, in 1811 to
3244, and in 1821 to 4053.
BIDENTAL, in Roman Antiquity, a place blasted with
lightning, which was immediately consecrated by an harus-
pex, with the sacrifice of a bidens. This place was after¬
wards accounted sacred, and it was unlawful to enter it or to
tread upon i t; for which reason it was commonly surround¬
ed with a ditch, wall, hedge, ropes, or other kind of fence.
BIDEN TALES, in Roman Antiquity, priests instituted
to perform certain ceremonies and expiations when light¬
ning struck on any place. Their principal office was the
sacrificing a sheep of two years old, which in Latin is call¬
ed bidens; and hence the place struck with thunder got
the name of Udental.
BIDENTES, in middle-age writers, denotes two-year- I ,rit
lings, or sheep of the second year. The wool of these bi- &
dentes, or two-year-old sheep, being the first shearing, lla.
was sometimes claimed as a heriot to the king on the ^ r*
death of an abbot. Among the ancient Romans the word
was extended further to any sorts of beasts used for vic¬
tims, especially those of that age; and hence we meet
with sues bidentes.
BIDET, a nag or little horse, formerly allowed to each
trooper and dragoon, for his baggage and other occasions.
BIDLOO, Godfrey, author of several treatises on ana¬
tomy, was born at Amsterdam on the 12th March 1649.
In 1688 he was chosen professor of anatomy at the Hague,
and in 1694 at Leyden, when King William III. of Eng¬
land appointed him his physician ; an office which he ac¬
cepted only on condition of holding his professorship,
which was readily conceded to him. He published in
Latin, 1. The Anatomy of the Human Body, demon¬
strated in 105 cuts, explained by the discoveries of the
ancient and modern writers; 2. An Oration upon the
Antiquity of Anatomy; 3. A Letter to Anthony Leeu-
wenhoeck on the animalcules sometimes found in the liver
of sheep and other animals ; 4. Two Decades of Disserta¬
tions in Anatomy and Chirurgery; and other pieces. He
died at Leyden in April 1713.
BIDSCHOW, a circle in the Austrian kingdom of Bo¬
hemia. It extends over 902 square miles, or 577,280 acres,
and comprehends nine cities, nineteen market-towns, and
610 villages, with 33,680 houses. The inhabitants amount
to 234,600. The Elbe has its source in this circle. The
chief place, New Bidschow, is a city containing a church,
a Jews’ synagogue, and 3460 inhabitants, a great portion
of whom are of the Hebrew nation.
BIEDENKOPF, a city, the chief of a canton of the
same name, containing 7550 inhabitants, on the river Lahn.
It is a town of much industry, containing 2800 inhabitants,
employed in making cloth, baize, blankets, and various
other kinds of goods.
BIELFELD, a circle in the Prussian government of
Minden, and province of Westphalia. It extends over
110 square miles, or 70,400 acres; contains one city, one
market-town, five parishes, and sixteen hamlets; and is
peopled by 31,840 persons. It is mostly of a poor soil, and
chiefly produces hemp and flax, with but little corn. It
is, however, the chief seat of the weaving and bleaching of
Ravensburg linens. The principal place is the city of the
same name, on the river Luther. It was fortified, but the
walls have been converted into a pleasing promenade. It
contains one Catholic, one Calvinist, and two Lutheran
churches, an orphan-house and an hospital, 782 dwellings,
and 7254 inhabitants, who are chiefly employed in various
branches of the linen trade. More than 2,000,000 ells
are sold in the place yearly. Long. 18. 23. 8. E. Lat. 52.
1. 9. N.
BIELITZ, a duchy in the Austrian government of Mo¬
ravia and Silesia. It stands on the frontiers of the former
kingdom of Poland, between the Vistula and the Bella.
It contains one city, and fifteen small towns and villages,
with 10,300 inhabitants, mostly of the Sclavonic race. The
city, of the same name, is a great manufacturing place for
fine cloths and cassimeres. The ducal palace and park ad¬
joining are very magnificent. There are two churches for
Catholics, and one for Lutherans. The inhabitants are
about 5500.
BIELLA, a province of the kingdom of Sardinia. It is
a mountainous district, bounded on the north by Sesia,
on the east and south-east by Vercelli, on the south-wdst
and west by Ivrea, and on the north-west by Aoste. It ex¬
tends over 264 square miles, and contains a population or
102^714 inhabitants. The capital, from which the pro-
BIG
BIG - 637
vince derives its name, is on the banks of the rivers Cervo
and Aurena, and contains 8350 inhabitants, employed
'• chiefly in the manufacture of silk and linen goods, and in
J the cultivation of vines. Long. 7. 50. E. Lat. 45. 55. N.
BIER, a wooden machine for carrying the bodies of the
dead to the place of interment. The word comes from the
French biere, which signifies the same thing. It is called
in Latin feretrum, from ferendo. Among the Romans the
common bier, on which the poorer sort were carried, was
called sandapila ; that used for the richer sort lectica, lec-
tica funebris, and sometimes lectus. The former was only
a wooden chest, vilis area, which was burnt with the body ;
the latter was enriched with gilding and other ornaments.
It was carried bare or uncovered when the person died a
fiatural and easy death ; when he was much disfigured or
distorted it was veiled or covered over.
BIFRONS, a person double-fronted, or two-faced. Bi-
frons is more peculiarly an appellation of Janus, who was
represented by the ancients with two faces, because he
was supposed to look both backwards and forwards ; though
other reasons for this mode of delineation are mentioned
by Plutarch. Sometimes he was painted with four faces,
qmdrifrons, as regarding the four seasons.
BIGA, in Antiquity, a chariot drawn by two horses
abreast. Races of chariots with two horses were intro¬
duced into the Olympic games in the 93d Olympiad ; but
the invention was much more ancient, as we learn that
the heroes in the Iliad fought in chariots of that kind.
The moon, the night, and the morning, are by mytholo-
gists supposed to be carried in bigee, but the sun in qua-
drigee. Statues in bigee were at first only allowed to the
gods, but were afterwards conceded to conquerors in the
Grecian games. Under the Roman emperors, however,
statues in bigee were decreed and granted to great and
well-deserving men, as a kind of half triumph, and erect¬
ed in most public places of the city; and figures of bigee
were also struck on their coins. The drivers of bigee were
called bigarii; and a marble bust of one Florus, a bigarius,
is still seen at Rome.
BIGAMY literally signifies being twice married, but
with us the term is used as nearly synonymous with poly¬
gamy, or having a plurality of wives at once. A second
marriage, while the former husband or wife is still living,
is simply void, and a mere nullity, by the ecclesiastical law
of England; yet the legislature has thought it just to make
it felony, by reason of its being so great a violation of
the public economy and decency of a well-ordered state.
Hence it was enacted by statute I Jac. I. c. 12, that if any
person being married, do afterwards marry again, the for¬
mer husband or wife being alive, it is felony, but within
the benefit of clergy. The first wife in this case cannot be
admitted as an evidence against her husband, because she
is the true wife; but the second may, for she indeed is
no wife at all; and so, vice versa, of a second husband.
This act makes an exception to five cases, in which such
second marriage, though in the first three it is void, is yet
no felony, 1. Where either party has been continually
abroad for seven years, whether the party in England has
notice of the other’s being alive or not. 2. Where either
of the parties has been absent from the other seven years
within this kingdom, and the remaining party has had
no knowledge of the other’s being alive within that time.
3. Where there is a divorce, or separation a mensd et toro,
by sentence in the ecclesiastical court. 4. Where the
first marriage is declared absolutely void by any such sen-
tence, and the parties are loosed a vhiculo matrimonii.
Where either of the parties was under the age of con¬
sent at the time of the first marriage; in which case the
first marriage was voidable by the disagreement of either
party; and this the second marriage deafly amounts to.
But if at the age of consent the parties had agreed to the
marriage, which completes the contract, and indeed con¬
stitutes the real marriage, and if one of them should af¬
terwards marry again, the other being still alive, Black-
stone apprehends that such second marriage would be
within the reason and penalties of the act.
In Scotland this offence has been viewed in a light some¬
what different. At the date of our only statute respect¬
ing bigamy, that of 1551, c. 19, the offence seems to have
been chiefly considered in a religious point of view, as
a sort of perjury, or violation of the solemn vow or oath
which was then used in contracting marriage ; and, ac¬
cordingly, it was ordained to be punished with the proper
pains of perjury. But this injunction has not in every
instance been complied with ; and, from considerations of
policy or expediency, the court has long been in use to
inflict an arbitrary punishment, suited, as nearly as may
be, to the degree and measure of guilt brought home to
the prisoner. The most important point concerning the
description of bigamy which is the contracting of a se¬
cond marriage during the subsistence of the first, relates
to the quality of the two marriages, and involves the nice
and delicate inquiry whether both must be marriages by
formal celebration, or whether the charge will lie although
both or one of them be contracted in that loose and un¬
ceremonious fashion which is sustained, in single cases,
by the law and custom of Scotland. And here it may be
observed, in the first place, that from the general strain
and language of the statute above referred to, which pass¬
ed at a time when there was no marriage without formal
celebration, the presumption appears to be in favour of
the more lenient opinion; and this is further confirmed by
the circumstance that the application of the pains of per¬
jury to this offence seems plainly to presuppose the con¬
tempt of a solemn oath or vow, and a gross abuse of the
service of the church. The most favourable case for the
offender, therefore, is that where both connections are of
this loose and ambiguous character, as by promise and
copula, courtship and acknowledgements, or the like: for
here it may be urged that there has been no solemn
entry into the holy state of matrimony, and no prostitu¬
tion of religious ceremonies or ecclesiastical ministrations ;
and that circumstances which may be held relevant in a
civil question of status, if consisting merely of probabilities
and presumptions of law, cannot afford that full and de¬
cisive proof of dole, or of a settled purpose to marry and
betray, without which there ought to be no conviction of
the crime of bigamy. Secondly, although this argument
does not fully apply to the case of one who, after having
duly, solemnized a marriage, betakes himself to some clan¬
destine and irregular connection; yet it may still be ar¬
gued, that, as he knew himself to be already married, and
consequently for the time incapable of contracting a second
marriage, so it ought to be presumed in his favour as long
as it reasonably can, and until he take the decisive step
of again undergoing the ceremony, that he had no abusive
or deceitful purpose in view, but merely intended an in¬
tercourse of a different sort, highly immoral in itself, but
by no means tantamount to the celebration of a second
marriage. Thirdly, a more unfavourable case than either
of the former is that of a regular marriage subsequently
to some clandestine connection; yet even here it is doubt¬
ful whether we have got the proper materials of the crime
of bigamy. For, in those anomalous situations where the
female has not been in possession of the repute and status
of a married woman, but is merely a claimant or pretender
to that character, it may be exceedingly doubtful whe¬
ther, after all, the man intended to marry, notwithstand¬
ing what the civil court may have found; and, while such
a doubt exists, it may deserve consideration whether the
Bigamy.
Bighorn
River.
BIG
party can be reasonably and consistently held to have
committed the particular crime contemplated by the law.
But this will scarcely apply to the case where, instead of
j a secret and ambiguous intercourse, the woman has been
supposed and held to have been in the full and continued
enjoyment, not only of that degree of repute which a civil
court might possibly sustain as sufficient to entitle her to
the legal character and privileges of a wife, but of that
public and invariable character which prevents any doubt
being raised as to the understood relation of the parties.
So much for the form of the two marriages. The other
qualities which must unite in the first marriage to bring it
under the safeguard of the law are, 1. That it must be
a lawful marriage, such as has not been contracted in con¬
tempt of any injunctions of law relative to proximity of
kindred or previous conviction of adultery; and, 2. That it
be not only a lawful, but a subsisting marriage, the parties
living together lawfully married and undivorced. In every
case the second marriage is null from being contracted dur¬
ing the subsistence of a previous one ; and if it be also an
incestuous, adulterous, or otherwise forbidden marriage,
this additional aggravation cannot alter the character or
shelter from the pains of the crime of bigamy. Further,
it is obvious that, according to the circumstances of the
case, the guilt of this offence may either be chargeable
exclusively against one of the parties, in whose person
there is a double marriage; or it may be the common
guilt of both the parties to the second marriage, although
to one of them it may be a first marriage. (Hume’s Com¬
mentaries, vol. i. p. 455 et seqq.)
BIGAN, an arrondissement of the department of the
Gard, in France, 550 square miles in extent, and contain¬
ing ten cantons and eighty-seven communes, with 60,349
inhabitants. The capital, a market-town of the same
name, stands on the river Acre, and contains a population
of 3980 persons.
BIGGAR, a town and parish of Scotland, in the coun¬
ty of Lanark. The town is small, but the main street,
though irregular, is broad and spacious. The only build¬
ing worthy of notice is the church, which was collegiate,
and founded by Malcolm Lord Fleming in 1545, who libe¬
rally endowed it. In the parish are to be seen the ves¬
tiges of three Roman camps and a large tumulus. The
remains of Biggar castle are situated in a bog about a
quarter of a mile south of the town. It is distant from
Edinburgh twenty-seven miles south-west.
BIGGLESWADE, a market-town of the hundred of
Biggleswade, in the county of Bedford, forty-five miles
from London, and five from Bedford. It is on the river
Ivel, which is navigable to Lynn by the Ouse. The land
near it is remarkably prolific, and is let at a higher rent
than in any other part of England. It is chiefly cultivat¬
ed as gardens, and yields abundant crops of culinary ve¬
getables, and a large supply of seeds for the London seeds¬
men. The market is held on Wednesday, and is much
frequented. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 1790,
in 1811 to 1895, and in 1821 to 2778; including the two
hamlets of Holme and Stratton, which form part of the
parish.
BIGHORN River, a river of North America, which
is said to rise in the Rocky Mountains, near the Yellow
Stone River and the sources of the Platte, and then to
find its way through the eastern range of the Rocky Moun¬
tains. Taking a northerly direction, it falls into the Yel¬
low Stone River in about the 47th degree of north latitude.
In its long course it receives two considerable rivers, one
from the west and the other from the south, called Little
Bighorn river; and being unobstructed by falls, it is na¬
vigable to a great distance in canoes through a fine, rich,
open country, well supplied with timber. There are no
B I L
permanent settlers near it; but the whole country which ] \
it waters is occasionally visited by roving bands of Indian '
hunters. jL
BIGHT, among seamen, denotes one roll or round of ^ ^
a cable or rope when coiled up.
BIGNON, Jerome, a French writer, was born at Paris
in 1590. Under the care of his father he early acquired
uncommon knowledge in philosophy, mathematics, his¬
tory, civil law, and divinity; and had almost completed
his studies at an age when it is usual to send children to
school. At ten years of age he gave the public a spe¬
cimen of his learning in a Description of the Holy Land;
and two years after he published a Discourse concerning
the principal antiquities and curiosities of Rome, and a
summary Treatise concerning the election of popes. Hen¬
ry IV. desired to see him, and appointed him page to the
dauphin, who was afterwards Louis XIIL At this time
he wrote a treatise on the precedency of the kings of
France, which he dedicated to Henry IV., by whom he
was ordered to continue his researches on the subject;
but the death of that prince interrupted his design. In
1613 he published the Formulae of Marculphus. In 1620
he was made advocate-general in the grand council, and
discharged that post with such reputation, that the king
nominated him some time afterwards counsellor of state,
and at last advocate-general in the parliament. He re¬
signed his offices in 1641, and the year following was ap¬
pointed principal keeper of the king’s library; but he
was obliged to resume his office of advocate-general,
which he held till his death, which happened in 1656.
Lie was a man of the most exemplary devotion, and had
been employed in the most important affairs of state.
BIGOT, a person obstinately and perversely wedded to
some opinion or practice, particularly of a religious nature.
Camden has probably hit upon the true origin of the
word. He relates, that when Rollo, Duke of Normandy,
received Gisla, the daughter of Charles the Foolish, in
marriage, together with the investiture of that dukedom,
he would not submit to kiss Charles’s foot; and when his
friends urged him by all means to comply with that cere-
mony, he made answer in the English tongue, “ Ne se,
by God ; ’ upon which the king and his courtiers, deriding
him, and corruptly repeating his answer, called him bigot;
and hence the Normans were called bigods, or bigots.
BIJANAGUR, an ancient city in the south of India,
in the Balaghaut ceded territories, once the capital of a
great Hindoo empire, though now in ruins. It is situated
on the south bank of the Toombuddra river, directly op¬
posite to Annagoondy. The city has been inclosed with
strong stone walls on the east side, and is bounded by
the river on the west, the circumference of the whole ap¬
pearing to be about eight miles. The streets of this
city, from thirty to forty yards wide, can be traced be¬
tween the immense piles of rocks crowned with pagodas;
and one street yet remains perfect. The building of
this metropolis was begun in a. d. 1336. Between the
sovereigns of the principality of which it was the ca¬
pital, and the Mahommedan sovereigns of the Deccan,
constant hostility was maintained ; and in 1564, Ram Ra¬
jah, the sovereign of Bijanagur, was totally overthrown, by
a combination of four Mahommedan sovereigns of the Dec-
can, on the plains of Tellicotta, who immediately marched
to the metropolis, which they abandoned to pillage; and
since this period it has lain in ruins. The travelling dis¬
tance from Calcutta is 1120 miles.
BILBO A, a city, the capital of the province of Biscay,
in Spain. It is situated in a very contracted valley, through
which the river Ibaicabal runs, from the occasional over¬
flowing of which the city is subject to inundations. It is an
old-built place, with narrow and crooked streets, and, for
B I L
A ?s the most part, with large but tasteless houses. The inhabi¬
tants amount to 15,000, and are generally the most indus-
Biller- trious of the Spaniards ; and as there is no other place near
^ ^ it so good, it enjoys the greater part of the foreign com¬
merce of the north of Spain. The harbour, if it can be
called one, is very bad, and most of the vessels load and
are discharged at Portugalete. The only fresh water is
brought to the town by an aqueduct, or is saved in rainy
weather. Bilboa was formerly the chief place from which
merino wool was exported; but that trade has of late years
been much diminished by the success of the breeders of
sheep in Germany, who produce fleeces of a superior qua¬
lity to the Spanish. Long. 3. 47. 7. W. Lat. 43. 16. 13. N.
BILBOES, a punishment at sea, answering to the stocks
at land. The offender is laid in irons or stocks, which are
more or less ponderous according to the quality of the of¬
fence of which he is guilty.
BILEDULGERID. See Bled-el-Jeheede.
BILFINGER, George Bernard, was born on the 23d
of January 1693, at Canstadt in Wirtemburg, and acquir¬
ed considerable celebrity as a philosopher and statesman.
His father was a Lutheran minister. By a singularity
of constitution, hereditary in his family, Bilfinger came
into the world with twelve fingers and twelve toes. An
amputation happily corrected this deformity. Bilfinger,
from his earliest years, discovered the greatest inclina¬
tion to learning, and made himself remarkable by his
fondness for meditation. He studied in the schools of
Blanbeuern and Bobenhausen, and afterwards entered
into the theological seminary of Tubingen. The works
ot Wolf, which he studied in order to learn mathematics,
soon inspired him with a taste for the Wolfian philosophy
and that of Leibnitz; a passion which made him neglect
for some time his other studies. Returning to theology,
he wished, at least, to try to connect it with his favourite
science of philosophy, and in this spirit composed a tract
entitled De Deo, Anima, et Mundo. This work, filled
with new ideas, met with great success, and contributed
to the advancement of the author, who was appointed
soon after to the office of preacher at the castle of Tu¬
bingen, and of reader in the school of theology; but Tu¬
bingen was now become too small a theatre for him. He
obtained from his friends in 1719 a supply of money, which
enabled him to spend some time at Halle, in order to pur¬
sue the lessons of Wolf; and, after two years of study, he
returned to Tubingen, where the Wolfian philosophy was
not yet in favour. He found his protectors there cooled, saw
his lectures deserted, and perceived himself shunned, from
the dislike of his new doctrines: his ecclesiastical views also
suffered from the same cause. This unpleasant situation
lasted almost four years, when he received, by the inter¬
vention of Wolf, an invitation to go to Petersburg, where
Peter I. wished to appoint him professor of logic and me¬
taphysics, and member of his new academy. He was re¬
ceived in this city, where he arrived in 1725, with the con¬
sideration due to his abilities. The Academy of Sciences
oi Paris having proposed about this time the famous pro¬
blem on the cause of gravity, Bilfinger gained the prize,
which was a thousand crowns. The reputation of this
success was spread abroad among the learned of Europe.
All the journals repeated it; and the Duke Charles
Edward of Wirtemburg, finding that the author of this
admired memoir was one of his subjects, hastened to re¬
call him into his dominions. The court of Russia, after
laving made some useless attempts to detain him, grant¬
ed him a pension of four hundred florins, and a present of
two thousand, in reward of an invention relative to the
art of fortification. He quitted Petersburg in 1731. Re-
arned to Tubingen, Bilfinger soon excited considerable
attention in that quarter, both by his own lectures, and
B I L 639
by the changes which he introduced into the school of Bilfinger.
theology. The whole university prospered under his care;
and this establishment is conducted to the present day ac¬
cording to his excellent regulations. Without overturning
any thing in the foundation of theology, he succeeded in
applying his system of philosophy to this science ; exhibit¬
ing, it is said, in his deductions, and in his proofs, a me¬
thod, a justness, and a clearness, which bespoke a mind
long exercised in deep and rigorous investigations. The
Duke Charles Alexander, who succeeded Edward, had
already had occasion to appreciate his talents, and to put
them to use. At the time when he carried on the war in
Servia, he maintained a regular correspondence with Bil¬
finger, who had long been known as an able engineer, and
had, indeed, made some improvements of value in the
received system of fortification. After his return to Tu¬
bingen, he had frequent conversations with the professor
on different subjects of administration, and, in 1735, ap¬
pointed him privy counsellor. This nomination was not
a simple honorary title. Bilfinger saw himself raised at
once to a power almost unlimited. He resisted some time
a promotion which he did not think himself qualified to
sustain. In accepting office his first care was to acquire
the knowledge necessary to the discharge of its duties.
He employed almost two years in assiduous labour to in¬
struct himself thoroughly in the statistics of the country,
—in considering its political situation, its constitution, its
interests ; and became, at the end of all this study, one of
the most enlightened ministers that his country had yet
produced. _ Bilfinger was placed in a situation too elevated
not to excite jealousy and hatred. He felt it, and wished
to quit the ministry; but the court refused to receive his
resignation, soon after the tender of which the duke died.
Bilfinger experienced from his successor all the considera¬
tion and all the friendship which he had experienced in
the beginning of his career. Received into a confidence
without bounds, he had the power to realize, without ob¬
stacle, those plans of administration with which the most
enlightened patriotism had inspired him ; and Wirtemburg
still feels the happy influence of his ministry. Commerce,
public instruction, and agriculture, were protected and
ameliorated under his care. The culture of the vine, of so
much importance in this country, was one of the principal
objects of his attention. We ought not to forget that he
was the original author of that strict union which has long
united Wirtemburg and Prussia, and of the importance
to which the hereditary prince of Wirtemburg was raised
at the court of Berlin. In 1737 the duke nominated him
president of his consistory, and secretary of the grand or¬
der of the chace. He was also curator of the university
of Tubingen, and member of the Royal Academy of Ber¬
lin. All his time was consecrated to some serious occu¬
pation, with the exception of one hour in the evening,
which he employed in making and receiving visits. His
greatest enjoyment was in cultivating his garden. A
warm and strong friend, he gave many proofs of grati¬
tude to those protectors who had generously assisted
him in his studies. He has been reproached with being
irascible; but, in spite of some slight blemishes, the me¬
mory of Bilfinger will be always dear to his countrymen,
and honoured by all Germans. Wirtemburg reckons him
among the greatest men which she has produced, and
proposes him as a model to her statesmen and her men of
letters. He was never married, and left no issue. He
died at Stuttgardt on the 18th of February 1750. His
works, besides various papers published in the Memoirs of
the St Petersburg and Paris Academies of Science, are,
1. Disputatio de Harmonia praestabilita, Tubingae, 1721,
in 4to. 2. De Harmonia Animi et Corporis Humani
maxime prasstabilita Commentatio Hypothetica, Francfort
640 B I L
Bilge on the Maine, 1723, in 8vo. This work was inserted in
II the Expurgatory Index at Rome in 1734. 3. De Origine
et Permissione Mali, praecipue Moralis, Commentatio Phi-
losophica, ibid. 1724, in 8vo. 4. Specimen Doctrinae Ve-
terum Sinarum Moralis et Politicae, Francof. 1724, in 4to.
5. Dissertatio Historico-catoptrica de Speculo Archimedis,
Tubingae, 1725, in 4to. 6. Dilucidationes Philosophicae
de Deo, Anima Humana, Mundo, et Generalibus Rerum
AfFectionibus, ibid. 1725, in 4to. 7. Bilfingeri et Hol-
manni Epistolae de Harmonia praestabilita, 1728, in 4to.
8. Disputatio de Natura et Legibus Studii in Theologia
Thetici, ibid. 1731, in 4to. 9. Disputatio de Cultu Dei
Rational!, ibid. 1731. 10. Notae Breves in Ben. Spinosae
Methodum explicandi Scripturas, Tubingae, 1732, in 4to.
11. De Mysteriis Christianae Fidei generatim spectatis
Sermo, recitatus 1732, Tubingae, 1732, in 4to. 12. Ele-
menta Physices, Lipsiae, 1742, in 8vo. 13. La Citadelle
Couple, Leipzig, 1756, in 4to. (SeeBiographic Universelle,
tom. iv.) (d. d.)
BILGE of a ship, the bottom of her floor, or the breadth
of the place the ship rests on when she is a-ground.
Therefore bilge-water is that which lies on her floor and
cannot go to the well of the pump; and bilge-pumps, or
burr-pumps, are those that carry off the bilge-water. They
likewise say the ship is bilged when she has some of her
timber struck off on a rock or anchor, and springs a leak.
BILINGUIS, in a general sense, signifies one that
speaks two languages ; but in law is applied to a jury that
passes in any case between an Englishman and a foreigner,
of which part ought to be English and part foreigners.
BILIOUS, in general, denotes something belonging to
or partaking of the nature of bile. Hence bilious fevers
are those occasioned by the redundancy or bad qualities
of the bile.
BILL, in Mechanics, an instrument made of iron, edged
in the form of a crescent, and adapted to a handle. It is
used by plumbers to perform several parts of their work,
by basket-makers to cut the largest pieces of chestnut-
trees and other wood, and by gardeners to prune trees.
When short, it is called a hand-bill; and when long, a
hedge-bill.
Bill, in English Law, a declaration in writing, express¬
ing either some wrong the complainant has suffered from
the defendant, or a fault committed by the person com¬
plained of against some law or statute. In Scottish law,
every summary application, by way of petition to the Court
of Session, is called a bill.
Bill signifies also a paper, either written or printed, in
very large characters, which is posted up in some public
place, to give notice of the sale of any merchandise or
commodity, or of any event, as the sailing of a vessel to
foreign parts.
Bill, in trade, both wholesale and retail, as also among
workmen, signifies an account of merchandise or goods
delivered to a person, or of work done for any one.
Bill, in commerce, has been usually defined a writing
in which one man is bound to another to pay a sum of
money, on a day that is future, or presently on demand,
according to the agreement of the parties at the time when
it is drawn; and on which, in the event of failure, execu¬
tion may be summarily done to enforce payment.
Bill of Entry, an account of the goods entered at the
custom-house, both inwards and outwards. In this bill
must be expressed the name of the merchant exporting
or importing, the quantity and species of merchandise,
and whither transported, or from whence.
Bill of Exchange is an open letter of request from one
man to another, desiring him to pay a sum named therein
to a third person on his account; by which means a person
in the most distant part of the world may have money re-
B I L
mitted to him from any trading country. For instance if
A lives in Jamaica, and owes B, who lives in England ^
L.1000, and if C be going from England to Jamaica, he
may pay B this L.1000, and take a bill of exchange drawn
by B in England upon A in Jamaica, and receive it when
he arrives there. B therefore receives his debt by trans¬
ferring it to C, who carries over his money in paper cre¬
dit, without danger of loss or robbery. The person, how¬
ever, who writes this letter, is called, in law, the drawer •
he to whom it is written, the drawee; and the third
person or negociator to whom it is payable, whether spe¬
cially named or described generally as the bearer, is call¬
ed the payee.
These bills are either foreign or inland; foreign, when
drawn by a merchant residing abroad upon his correspond¬
ent in England, or vice versa; and inland, when both the
drawer and the drawee reside within the kingdom. For¬
merly foreign bills of exchange were much more regarded
in the eye of the law than inland ones, as being thought
of more public concern in the advancement of trade and
commerce ; but now, by several statutes, inland bills of
exchange are put upon the same footing as foreign ones,
so that in law there is no manner of difference between
them. In drawing foreign bills of exchange, it is custom¬
ary to frame two or three of the same tenor and date, to
be sent by different conveyances, that in case of accident
the person to whom they are transmitted may not be dis¬
appointed ; in which case it is mentioned in the body of
the bill, that it is the first, second, or third bill of ex¬
change, and when one is paid it discharges all the rest.
Bill of Lading is an acknowledgement signed by the
master of a ship, and given to a merchant or other person,
containing an account of the goods which the master has
received on board from that individual, with a promise to
deliver them at an intended place for a certain remunera¬
tion or freightage.
Bills of Mortality are accounts of the numbers of
births and burials within a certain district, in every week,
month, quarter, or year. Hence there are weekly bills,
monthly bills, quarterly bills, and yearly bills. See Mor¬
tality, Bills of.
Bill in Parliament, a draft of a proposed act or sta¬
tute, public or private, containing the heads or substance
of a measure submitted to parliament, and subject before
passing to modifications in the way and manner to be af¬
terwards described, or to rejection ex toto.
To bring a bill into the house, if the relief sought by it
be of a private nature, it is first necessary to present a
petition setting forth the grievance desired to be reme¬
died. This petition, when founded on facts that may be
or actually are disputed, is referred to a committee of
members, who examine the matter alleged, and report
thereon to the house; and then (or otherwise upon the
mere petition) leave is given to bring in the bill. In pub¬
lic matters, the bill is brought in upon motion made to the
house, without any petition at all. Formerly all bills were
drawn in the form of petitions, which were entered upon
the rolls ofparliament, with the king’s answer subjoined,not
in any settled form of words, but as the circumstances ot
the case required ; and at the end of each parliament the
judges drew them in the form of a statute, which was en¬
tered on the statute-books. To prevent mistakes and abuses,
the statutes were in the reign of Henry V. drawn up by
the judges before the end of the parliament; and in the
reign of Henry VI. bills in the form of acts according to
the modern custom were first introduced.
The persons directed to bring in the bill present it in
a competent time to the house, drawn out on paper, with
a multitude of blanks, or void spaces, where any thing oc¬
curs that is dubious, or necessary to be settled by the pa1'"
B I L
liament itself, such especially as the precise dates, the na-
J turp and quantity of penalties, or the sums of money to
be raised. In the house of lords, if the bill originates
there, and is of a private nature, it is referred to two of
the judges, who examine and report on the state of the
facts alleged, and settle all points of technical propriety.
This is read a first time, and at a convenient distance a
second time; and after each reading, the speaker opens
to the house the substance of the bill, and puts the ques¬
tion, whether it shall proceed any further. The intro¬
duction of the bill may be originally opposed, as the bill
itself may also be at any of the readings; and, if the
opposition succeed, either at the commencement or at any
of the subsequent stages, the bill must be dropped for that
session.
After the second reading, it is committed, or, in other
words, referred to a committee ; and*this is either select¬
ed by the house, as happens in matters of minor import¬
ance, or else, upon a bill of consequence, the house re¬
solves itself into a committee of the whole. A com¬
mittee of the whole house is composed of every member ;
and, to form it, the speaker quits the chair, another mem¬
ber being appointed chairman, and may sit and debate as
a private member. In these committees the bill is debat¬
ed clause by clause, amendments are made, the blanks are
filled up, and sometimes the bill is entirely new-modelled.
After it has gone through the committee, the chairman
reports it to the house, with such amendments as the com¬
mittee may have made ; and then the house considers the
whole bill again, and the question is repeatedly put upon
every clause and amendment. When the house has agreed
to the amendments of the committee, and sometimes add¬
ed new amendments of its own, the bill is then ordered
to be engrossed, or written in a strong gross hand on one
or more rolls of parchment fastened together ; after which
it is read a third time, when amendments are sometimes
made on it; and if a new clause be added, it is done by
tacking a separate piece of parchment to the bill, which is
called a rider. The speaker then states the contents ge¬
nerally ; and, in holding it up in his hands, puts the ques¬
tion, whether the bill shall pass. If the decision be in
the affirmative, the title is then settled; and this used to
be a general one for all the acts passed in the session, till
the fifth year of Henry VIII., when distinct titles were
introduced for each chapter. One of the members is then
directed to carry it to the lords and desire their concur¬
rence ; and he, attended by several more, carries it accord¬
ingly to the bar of the house of peers, and there delivers
it to their speaker, who comes down from his woolsack to
receive it.
In the house of peers, it passes through the same forms
as in the other house, except engrossing, which is already
done ; and if it be rejected, no more notice is taken of it,
and it is allowed to drop sub dlentio, to prevent unbecom¬
ing altercations. But if it be agreed to, the lords send a
message by two masters in chancery, or sometimes by two
of the judges, that they have agreed to the same; and the
bill remains with them if they have made no amendments
on it. But if any amendments be made, such amendments
are sent down with the bill to receive the concurrence of
the commons; and if the commons disapprove of theamend-
oients, a conference usually follows between members de¬
puted from each house, who for the most part settle and
adjust the difference ; but if both houses remain inflexible,
the bill is dropped. If the commons agree to amendments,
the bill is sent back to the lords by one of the members,
Wlth a message to inform them of this concurrence. The
same forms are observed, mutatis mutandis, when the bill
originates in the house of lords. But when an act of grace
or pardon is passed, it is first signed by his majesty, and
vol. iv.
B I L
then read once only in each of the houses, without any new
engrossing or amendment. And when a bill has passed
through its various stages in both houses, it is deposited in
the house of peers, to await the royal assent; except in the
case of a bill of supply, which, after receiving the concur¬
rence of the lords, is sent back to the house of commons.
The royal assent may be given two ways;—First, in
person, when the king comes to the house of peers, in
his crown and royal robes, and, summoning the commons
to the bar, the titles of all the bills that have passed
both houses are read; and the king’s answer is declared
by the clerk of the parliament in Norman-French. If
the king consents to a public bill, the clerk usually de¬
clares, L,e roy le veut, “ the king wills it so to beif to a
private bill, Soit fait comme il est desire, “ be it as it is de¬
sired.” If the king refuses his assent, it is in the quali¬
fied terms of Le roy s'avisera, “ the king will advise upon
it.” When a bill of supply is passed, it is carried up and
presented to the king by the speaker of the house of com¬
mons, and the royal assent is thus expressed: Le roy
remercie ses loyal subjects, accepte leur benevolence, et aussi
le veut; “ the king thanks his loyal subjects, accepts their
benevolence, and wills it so to be.” In case of an act of
grace, which originally proceeds from the crown and has
the royal assent in the first stage of it, the clerk of the
parliament thus pronounces the gratitude of the subject:
Les prelats, seigneurs, et commons, en ce present parliament
assembles, au nom de touts vos autres subjects, retoercient
tres humblement votre majeste, et prient d Dieu votes donner
en sante bonne vie et longue ; “ the prelates, lords, and
commons in this present parliament assembled, in the
name of all your other subjects, most humbly thank your
majesty, and pray to God to grant you in health and wealth
long to live.”
Secondly, the king may give his assent by letters pa¬
tent under his great seal, signed with his hand, and noti¬
fied in his absence to both houses assembled together in
the high house ; or he may appoint a commission under
the great seal, consisting of peers of parliament, and in¬
cluding the lord high chancellor for the time being, who
are empowered and authorized to adhibit the royal assent
to such bills as are then in a state to receive the sanction
of the third estate of the realm. And when the bill has re¬
ceived the royal assent in either of these ways, it is then,
and not before, a statute or act of parliament.
The new statute or act is then placed among the records
of the kingdom, no formal promulgation being requisite
to give it the force of a law, as was the case by the civil law
with regard to the imperial constitutions, because every man
in Britain is, in the presumption of law, a party to the mak¬
ing of a statute or act of parliament, being held to be pre¬
sent thereat by his representatives. The act, however,
is usually printed at the king’s press for the information
of the lieges : and formerly, before the invention of print¬
ing, it used to be published by the sheriff of every county ;
the king’s writ being sent to him at the end of every ses¬
sion, together with a transcript of all the acts made at that
session, commanding him, ut statuta ilia, et omnes articulos
in eisdem contentos, in singulis locis ubi expedire viderit,
publice proclamari, et frrmiter teneri et observari faciat. The
usage then was to proclaim them at the county court, and
there to keep them, that whosoever chose might read or
take copies of them ; which custom continued till the reign
of Henry VII.
An act of parliament thus made is the exercise of the
highest authority which this kingdom acknowledges upon
earth. It has power to bind every subject in the united
kingdom, and the dominions thereunto belonging,—nay,
even the king himself, if particularly named therein; and
it cannot be altered, amended, dispensed with, suspended,
4 M
642 B I L B I L
Billach or repealed, but in the same forms and by the same au-
II thority of parliament; for it is an inviolable maxim in law,
Billiards. tjiat reqUires tile same strength to dissolve as to create
an obligation.
BILLACH, a circle in the Austrian province of Lay-
bach and Trieste. It is a woody district, extending over
2091 square miles, or 1,338,240 acres. It is rich in mines,
producing some gold, much lead, quicksilver, alum, anti¬
mony, iron, and copper. The inhabitants in 1817 were
111,850, of whom 17,000 were Lutherans, and the re¬
mainder Catholics. The capital of the circle is a city of
the same name on the river Drave. It contains about 5000
inhabitants, is a manufacturing town, and enjoys much
trade from being on the high road to Italy. It is in long.
13. 47. E. lat. 46. 35. N.
BILLERECAY, a market-town within the parish of
Bursted, in the hundred of Barnstaple and the county of
Essex, twenty-four miles from London. It is situated on
an elevated plain, and commands a fine view of the rich vale
through which the Thames flows. There is a good corn
market on the Thursdays. The inhabitants amounted in
1801 to 1472, in 1811 to 1599, and in 1821 to 1861, in¬
cluding the whole parish of Bursted.
BILLET, in Heraldry, a bearing in the form of a long
square. Billete signifies that the escutcheon is strewed
all over.
BILLETING, in military affairs, is the quartering of
soldiers in the houses of a town or village.
BILLETON, an island in the Eastern Seas, of a circu¬
lar form, about fifty miles in length by forty-five in breadth,
situated between Sumatra and Borneo. Long. 108. E.
Lat. 2. S.
BILLIARDS, a well-known game, played on a rectan¬
gular table with ivory balls, which are driven into hazards
or holes, according to certain rules. This game was in¬
vented by the French, and was originally played in a man¬
ner different from that which is at present practised, by
having a pass or iron fixed on the table, through which
the balls at particular periods of the game used to be
played; but this method is now quite disused.
The table on which the game is played is generally
about twelve feet long and six feet wide, in the exact form
of an oblong; it is covered with fine green cloth, and sur¬
rounded with cushions to prevent the balls running off,
and to cause them to rebound. There are six holes, nets,
or pockets, fixed at the four corners, and in the middle, op¬
posite to each other, to receive the balls, which when driven
into them are called hazards. The making of a hazard,
that is, putting the adversary’s ball in, at the usual game
reckons for two in favour of the player. The game is
played either with maces or with cues. The first is a
long straight stick, with a head at the end, and is the most
powerful instrument of the two ; the second is a thick
stick, diminishing gradually to a point of about half an inch
diameter or less; and this instrument is played over the
left hand, and supported by the fore-finger and thumb.
The rules generally observed at the common game are
these :—1. For the lead, the balls must be put at one end,
and the player must strike them against the farthermost
cushion, in order to see which will be nearest the cushion
that is next to them. 2. The nearest to the cushion is to
lead and choose the ball if he pleases. 3. The leader is
to place his ball at the nail, and not to pass the middle
pocket; and if he holes himself in leading he loses the
lead. 4. He who follows the leader must stand within the
corner of the table, and not place his ball beyond the nail.
5. He who plays upon the running ball loses one. 6. He
who touches the ball twice and moves it loses one. But
these two rules are seldom or never enforced, especially in
England. 7. He who does not hit his adversary’s ball
loses one. 8. He who touches both balls at the same
time makes a foul stroke, in which case, if he should fiole
his adversary, nothing is gained by the stroke; but if
he put himself in he loses two. 9. He who holes both
balls loses two. 10. He who strikes upon his adversary’s
ball and holes himself loses two. 11. He who plays at
the ball without striking it, and holes himself, loses three.
12. He who strikes both balls over the table loses two.
13. He who strikes his ball over the table, and does not
hit his adversary’s ball, loses three. 14. He who retains
the end of his adversary’s stick when playing, or endea¬
vours to baulk his stroke, loses one. 15. He who plays
another’s ball or stroke, without leave, loses one. 16. He
who takes up his own ball, or his adversary’s, without leave,
loses one. 17. He who stops either ball, when running,
loses one ; and, if it be near the hole, loses two. 18. He
who blows upon thh ball, when running, loses one; and,
if near the hole, loses two. 19. He who shakes the table
when the ball is running loses one. 20. He who strikes
the table with the stick, or plays before his turn, loses
one. 21. He who strikes his stick upon the table, and hits
the ball, loses one. 22. If the ball stands upon the edge
of the hole, and after being challenged it falls in, it is no¬
thing, but must be put up where it was before. 23. If any
person, not being one of the players, stops a ball, the ball
must stand in the place where it was stopped. 24. He
who plays without a foot upon the floor, and holes his ad¬
versary’s ball, gets nothing for it, but loses the lead. 25.
He who leaves the game before it is ended loses it. 26.
Any person may change his stick in play. 27. If any dif¬
ference arise between players, he who marks the game, or
the majority of the company, must decide it. 28. Those
who do not play must stand from the table, and make
room for the players. 29. If any person lays any wager,
and does not play, he shall not give advice to the players
upon the game.
Besides the common winning game, which is twelve up,
there are several other kinds of games, viz. the losing
game, the winning and losing, choice of balls, bricole, ca-
rambole, Russian carambole, the bar-hole, the one-hole,
the four-game, and hazards.
The losing-game is the common game nearly reversed;
that is to say, except hitting the balls, which is absolutely
necessary, the player gains by losing. By putting himself
in he wins two; by putting his adversary in he loses two;
but if he pockets both balls he gets four. The winning
and losing game is a combination of both games; that is
to say, all balls that are put in by striking first the adver¬
sary’s ball, reckon towards game ; and holing both balls
reckons four. Choice of the balls is choosing each time
which ball the player pleases. Bricole is being obliged to
hit the cushion, and cause the ball to rebound, or return
to hit the adversary’s ball, otherwise the player loses a
point. Carambole is a game introduced from France.
It is played with three balls, one being red, which is
neutral, and is placed upon a spot on a line with the
stringing nail, or that part of the table from which the
player strikes his ball at first setting off, and which is
generally marked with two brass nails. Each antagonist,
at the first stroke of a hazard, plays from a mark which
is upon a line with it at the other end of the table. The
chief object at this game is, for the player to hit with
his own ball the two other balls, which is called a caram¬
bole, and by which the player wins two. If he puts in
the red ball he gets three, and when he holes his adver¬
sary’s ball he gets two ; so that seven may be made at one
stroke, by caramboling and putting in both balls. Rus'
sian carambole is played in the following manner : The reu
ball is placed as usual on the spot made for that purpose;
but the player, when he begins, or after having been holed,
« J
B I L
r l en never places his ball on any particular place or spot, being
at liberty to put it where he pleases. When he begins to
Bib ;I1, play, instead of striking at the red ball, he leads his own
^ ^ gently behind it, and his antagonist is to play at which he
thinks proper. If he plays at the red ball and holes it, he
scores three as usual towards the game, which is twenty-
four instead of sixteen points ; and the red ball is put upon
the spot again, at which he may strike a second time, or
take his choice which of the two balls to push at, always fol¬
lowing his stroke till both balls are off the table. He is en¬
titled to two points each time that he caramboles, the same
as at the other game ; but if he caramboles, and puts his own
ball into any hole, he loses as many as he might have got
had he not holed himself. In other respects it is played
like the common carambole game. The bar-hole is so
called from the hole being barred which the ball should
be played for, and the player striking for another hole.
The player at the one-hole, though it seems to those who
are not judges of the game to be a great disadvantage, has
in fact the best of it; for as all balls that go into the one
hole reckon, the player endeavours to lay his ball constant¬
ly before the hole, and his antagonist frequently finds it
very difficult to keep one or other ball out, particularly on
the leads, when the one-hole player lays his ball on the
brink of the hole. The four-game consists of two part¬
ners on each side, at the common winning game, who
play by succession after each hazard, or two points lost.
Hazards are so called because they depend entirely upon
the making of hazards, there being no account kept of any
game. The only general rule here is not to lay any ball a
hazard for the next player.
BILLINGEN, a city, the chief of a bailiwick, in the cir¬
cle of the Lake of Constance and duchy of Baden. It
stands on the Brigach, is fortified, and contains 3500 in¬
habitants, who are chiefly employed in manufacturing iron
goods and other hardware. The bailiwick contains 12,300
inhabitants.
BILLON, in the history of coins, a composition of pre¬
cious and base metals, where the latter predominates.
BILMA, a town situated in the heart of the African
desert, being the capital of the wandering tribe called the
Tibboos. The place is mean and poor, surrounded with a
mud wall. In its vicinity are a number of lakes, the waters
of which, on evaporation by the heat of the sun, yield a
quantity of very pure and fine salt.' The largest of these
lakes is at Agram, situated aboutfourmiles to the westward.
This salt is the object of a very extensive and important
trade, which consists in conveying the commodity to the
countries in Central Africa. The Tibboos, however, an un¬
warlike race, are unable to secure to themselves the enjoy¬
ment of these natural treasures, but have the chagrin of
seeing the Tuaricks, their neighbours, come and load their
camels with this valuable article, which they then convey
to the countries in the south. Near Bilma is a small cir¬
cular spot, in which several springs bubble up, and main¬
tain a brilliant verdure; but immediately to the south
begins the most dreary part of the African desert, over
which the caravans travel for fifteen days without dis¬
covering the slightest trace of vegetable life. *
BILSAH, a town of Hindostan, in the province of Mal-
wah, situated on the Betwah river. It is inclosed with a
stone wall, defended by square towers and a ditch. The
suburbs without the walls are not very extensive ; but the
streets are spacious, and contain some good houses. The
town and the surrounding country are celebrated all over
India for the excellent quality of the tobacco, which is
bought up with great eagerness and exported. The tra¬
velling distance from Calcutta is 867 miles. Long. 77. 50.
E. Lat. 23. 33. N.
BILSHOFEN, a magistracy in the circle of the Lower
B I N 643
Danube, in the kingdom of Bavaria, comprehending 258 Bilson
square miles, and containing 22,200 inhabitants. The ca- . II
pital of the district is a small city of the same name at v Binary. ^
the entrance of the river Bils into the Danube, and con- y
tains 270 houses, with about 2000 inhabitants. Long. 13.
6. 40. E. Lat. 48. 28. 30. N.
BILSON, Thomas, bishop of Winchester, in which
city he was born and educated. In 1565 he was admit¬
ted perpetual fellow of New College, and in 1570 com¬
pleted his degrees in arts. He was made bachelor of
divinity in 1579, and doctor the year following. His first
preferment was that of master of Winchester school; he
was next made prebendary, and afterwards warden, of
Winchester College. In 1596 he was consecrated bishop
of Worcester, and about a year afterwards translated to
the see of Winchester, and sworn of Queen Elizabeth’s
privy council. He was one of the principal managers of
the Hampton Court conference in 1604; and the English
translation of the Bible in the reign of King James I. was
finally corrected by this prelate, and Dr Miles Smith,
bishop of Gloucester. He died in the year 1616, and was
buried in Westminster abbey, near the entrance of St
Edmund’s chapel, on the south side of the monument of
Richard II. The several authors who have mentioned
Bishop Bilson agree in giving him the character of a
learned divine, an able civilian, and an upright man. His
style is in general much more easy and harmonious than
that of contemporary ecclesiastics. His works are, 1. Se¬
veral Latin poems and orations, in manuscript; 2. The
true difference between Christian Subjection and Un¬
christian Rebellion, Oxf. 1585, 4to, Lond. 1586, 8vo ;
3. The Perpetual Government of Christ’s Church, Lond.
1593, 4to, black letter ; 4. The effect of certain sermons
touching the full redemption of mankind by the death
and blood of Christ, &c. Lond. 1599, 4to; 5. The sur¬
vey of Christ’s suffering for man’s redemption, and of
his descent to Hades or Hell, Lond. 1604, fob; 6. A ser¬
mon preached before King James I. and his queen at
their coronation, Lond. 1603, 8vo.
BILSTON, a town in the parish of Wolverhampton and
hundred of Seisdon, in the county of Stafford, 128 miles from
London. It is celebrated for its mines of coal, the operations
of which are fostered by the canals which convey them
in all directions at a cheap rate. It is also a great manu¬
facturing place for all kinds of heavy iron articles. There
are many forges, flatting and slitting mills, and blast fur¬
naces. The sand found here is highly esteemed for fram¬
ing moulds for casting iron; and the mines of iron are
very productive. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to
6914, in 1811 to 9646, and in 1821 to 12,003.
BIMLIPATAM, a town of Hindostan, in the Northern
Circars, situated on the bay of Bengal. The Dutch had
formerly a fort here; and in the adjacent country piece
goods of various sorts are manufactured. It is twelve
miles north from Yizagapatam. Long. 83. 35. E. Lat. 17.
50. N.
BINACLE, a wooden case or box, which contains the
compasses, log-glasses, watch-glasses, and lights to show
the compass at night. As this is called bittacle in all the
sea-books, even by mariners, it appears evidently to be
derived from the French term habitacle, a small habita¬
tion, which is now used for the same purpose by the sea¬
men of that nation.
BINARY Arithmetic, that kind of notation in which
unity or 1 and 0 are only used. This was the invention of
M. Leibnitz, who shows it to be very expeditious in discover¬
ing the properties of numbers, and in constructing tables ;
and M. Dangecourt, in the history of the Royal Academy
of Sciences, gives a specimen of it concerning arithmeti¬
cal progressionals, where he shows, that because in binary
644 JB I N
Binary arithmetic only two characters are used, therefore the
II laws of progression may be more easily discovered by it
^ian by common arithmetic. All the characters used in
binary arithmetic are 0 and 1 ; and the cipher multiplies
every thing by two, as in the common arithmetic by 10.
Thus 1 is one ; 10, two ; 11, three; 100, four ; 101, five ;
110, six ; 111, seven ; 1000, eight; 1001, nine ; 1010, ten ;
which is founded on the same principles with common
arithmetic. Hence appears the reason of the celebrated
property of the duplicate geometrical proportion in whole
numbers, namely, that one number of each degree being
taken, we may thence compose all the other whole numbers
above the double of the highest degree. For example, 111
being the sum of 4, 2, and 1, or, analytically, of 100 4,
10 = 2, and 1 = 1, or 7 in all, this property may serve as-
sayers to weigh all kinds of masses with a little weight;
and may be used in coins, to give several values with small
pieces. The binary method of expressing numbers once
established, all the operations will be easy; in multiplica¬
tion, particularly, there will be no need for a table, or
getting any thing by heart. But the inventor does not re¬
commend it for common use, because of the great number
of figures required to express a number; adding, that if
the common progression were from 12 to 12, or from 16
to 16, it would be still more expeditious; and that its use
consists chiefly in discovering the properties of numbers,
in constructing tables, and the like. What makes the
binary arithmetic the more remarkable is, that it appears
to have been the same with that used four thousand years
ago among the Chinese, and left as an enigma by Fohi,
the founder of their empire as well as of their sciences.
Binary Measure, in Music, is a measure which is beaten
equally, or where the time of rising is equal to that of
falling. This is usually called common time.
Binary Number, that composed of two units.
BING, in the alum-works, denotes a heap of alum thrown
together in order to drain.
BINGAZI. See Cyrenaica.
BINGEN, a city, the chief of a canton of the same
name, of 8496 inhabitants, on the Rhine, where the Nahe
falls into that stream, in the duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt.
It is situated in a most magnificent valley, with picturesque
scenery around it. It contains 491 houses, and 3246 in¬
habitants, mostly occupied in the trade in wine. Long. 7.
44. E. Lat. 49. 55. N.
BINGHAM, Joseph, a learned divine, born at Wake¬
field, in Yorkshire, in September 1668; educated at Uni¬
versity College, Oxford; and afterwards presented by John
Radcliffe, M. D. to the rectory of Headbournwortby, near
Winchester. In this country retirement he began his la¬
borious work entitled Origines Ecclesiasticce, or The An¬
tiquities of the Christian Church, the first volume of which
was published in 1708; and it was afterwards completed
in nine volumes more. But notwithstanding his learning
and merit, he had no other preferment than that of Head¬
bournworthy till the year 1712, when he was collated to
the rectory of Havant, near Portsmouth, by Sir Jonathan
Irelawney, bishop of Winchester, to whom he dedicated
several of his books. He died on the 17th August 1723,
in the fifty-fifth year of his age.
Bingham, a market-town in the hundred of that name,
of the county of Nottingham, 123 miles from London, and
eight and a halt from Nottingham. It is situated in the
fertile valb of Belvoir, with a fine Gothic church, and a
good market-place, in which a market is held on Thurs¬
day. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 1082, in 1811
to 1326, and in 1821 to 1574.
BINGLEY, a town and parish in the west riding of
Yorkshire, situated on the river Aire. The population is
6176, including Micklethwaite ; and it is distant thirty-
B I Q
eight miles south-west of York, and 202 north-west of
London.
BINN, binna, a sort of chest or cupboard, wherein to
lock up bread, meat, or other provisions. The word is also c'
used for a place boarded up to put corn in. ^
BINOMIAL, in Algebra, a root consisting of two factors
connected by the sign plus or minus. Thus a + 6 and
8—3 are binomials, consisting of the sums and differences
of these quantities. See Algebra.
BINTANG, an island lying off the south-eastern extre¬
mity of the Malay peninsula, about the first degree of N.
latitude, and near thirty-five miles in length by eighteen
in average breadth. It is surrounded by numerous small
rocky isles and islets, which render the navigation dan¬
gerous.
BIOGRAPHY, that branch of history which treats of
the lives, actions, and works of eminent or remarkable
persons. See History.
BION, a bucolic poet and native of Smyrna, who lived
at the same time with Ptolemy Philadelphus, whose reign
reached from the fourth year of the 123d Olympiad to the
second year of the 133d. He was an incomparable poet,
if we may believe the lamentations of his disciple Moschus;
and the few pieces of his which have descended to us are
indeed creditable to his muse.
Bion, surnamed Borysihenites, because he was of Borys-
thenes, was a philosopher possessed of much wit, but of
little religion. He flourished about the 120th Olympiad.
Like other profane persons, he became superstitious as often
as he felt sick, and thus verified the maxim which ascribes
a similar tendency to a much greater personage.
BIOTHANATI, from f3ia, violence, and dava-roj, death,
in some medical writers, denotes those who die a violent
death. The word is also written, and with more proprie¬
ty, biathanati. In a more particular sense, it denotes
those who kill themselves, and are properly called autotha-
nati. In this sense it is that the word is used both by
Greek and Latin writers.
Biothanati, supposed by some to be derived from /3/oj,
life, and Oavurog, death, was also a name of reproach given
by the Heathens to the primitive Christians, on account of
their constancy and forwardness to lay down their lives
in martyrdom.
BIOTHANATOS is also used, in some writers of the
barbarous age, for wicked, damnable, or accursed.
BIOUAC, Bihouac, Biouvac, or Bivouac, from the
German weywacht, a double watch or guard, originally
meant a night guard or a detachment of the whole army,
which, during a siege, or in the presence of an enemy,
marched out every night in squadrons or battalions to line
the circumvallations,or to take post in thefrontof the camp,
for the purpose of securing their quarters, preventing sur¬
prises, and obstructing supplies. When an army does not
encamp, but lies under arms all night, or when, from being
unprovided with tents, the soldiers either pass the night
around the watch-fires in the open air, or seek such shel¬
ter as they can find or construct upon the spot, it is said
to bivouac ; and this is now the only sense in which the
term is employed.
BIQUADRATE, or Biquadratic, is the next power
above the cube, or the square multiplied by itself.
BIQUADRATIC Equation, in Algebra, an equation
raised to the fourth power, or where the unknown quan¬
tity of one of the terms has four dimensions. Thus
xi-sraxi-\-baP-\~cx-\-d=Q is a biquadratic equation. See
Algebra.
Biouadratic Parabola, in Geometry, a curve line of
the third order, having two infinite legs tending the same
way.
Biquadratic Power of any number, is the fourth power
B I R
B I R
645
j. or squared square of that number. Thus 16 is the biqua-
ti dratic power of 2; for 2 X 2—4, and 4 X 4 = 1G.
Biquadratic Root of any number is the square root of
B« the square root of that number. Thus the biquadratic
^ J root of 81 is 3; for the square root of 81 is 9, and the
square root of 9 is 3.
BIRBHOOM, a district of Hindostan, in the province
of Bengal, situated about the 24th degree of north latitude,
being eighty-five miles in length by thirty in breadth. It
is the largest Mahommedan zemindary in Bengal, and
is held by a Mahommedan family of the Afghan nation,
said to have been fixed there by Shere Shah about the
year 1541, for the purpose of defending the frontiers against
the barbarous tribes of the mountains. The present in¬
habitants are chiefly Hindoos. The chief towns are Su-
rool, Sooro, and Nagore. In 1801 the population of this
district was returned, to the queries of Marquis Wellesley,
at 700,000, in the proportion of one Mahommedan to thirty
Hindoos.
BIRCH, Thomas, an eminent historical and biogra¬
phical writer, was born in London in 1705. His parents
were both of them quakers ; and his father, Joseph Birch,
was a coffee-mill maker by trade. Thomas, having been
put to school, proved indefatigable in his application, and
stole many hours from sleep to increase his stock of know¬
ledge. By this unremitting diligence, though he had not
the happiness of a university education, he soon, to the
surprise of his acquaintance, became qualified to take holy
orders in the church of England. In 1728 he married the
daughter of the Reverend Mr Cox, to whom he was cu¬
rate ; but his happiness was of short duration, Mrs Birch
dying of puerperal fever in less than twelve months after
their marriage,—an event which he deplores in a very ele¬
gant and pathetic poem, preserved in Nichols’s Collection.
In 1732 he was recommended to the friendship and fa¬
vour of the Lord Chancellor Hardwicke, then attorney-
general, to whom, and to the succeeding Earl of Hard¬
wicke, he was indebted for all his preferments. The first
proof he experienced of his patron’s regard was the living
of Ulting in the county of Essex, in the gift of the crown,
to which he was presented in 1732. In 1734 he was ap¬
pointed one of the domestic chaplains to the unfortunate
Earl of Kilmarnock, who was beheaded in 1746. Mr
Birch was chosen a member of the Royal Society in Fe¬
bruary 1734-5, and of the Society of Antiquaries in De¬
cember 1735; and he afterwards became director of the
latter, an office which he held till his death. Before this,
the Marischal College of Aberdeen had conferred on him,
by diploma, the degree of master of arts. In 1743,
through the interest of Lord Hardwicke, he was present¬
ed by the crown to the sinecure rectory of Landewy Wel-
frey, in the county of Pembroke; and in 1743-4 he was
preferred, in the same manner, to the rectory of Siding-
ton in St Peter’s, in the county and diocese of Gloucester.
There is no evidence of his having taken possession of
this living; and indeed it is probable that he quitted it
immediately for one more suitable to his inclinations and
to his literary engagements, which required his almost
constant residence in town; for, on the 24th of February
1743-4, he was instituted to the united rectories of St
Michael Woodstreet and St Mary Staining, and in 1745-6
to the united rectories of St Margaret Pattens and St
Gabriel, Fenchurch-street, by Lord Chancellor Hardwicke,
to whose turn it had fallen to present to these livings. In
January 1752 he was elected one of the secretaries of the
Royal Society, in the room of Dr Cromwell Mortimer, de¬
ceased. In January 1753 the Marischal College of Aberdeen
created him doctor of divinity; and in that year the same
degree was conferred on him by Archbishop Herring. He
was one of the trustees of the British Museum, for which
honour he was probably indebted to the Earl of Hardwicke, Birch,
as he also was for his last preferment, the rectory of Dep-
den in Essex, to which he was inducted in February 1761.
In the latter part of his life he was chaplain to the Prin¬
cess Amelia. In 1765 he resigned his office of secre¬
tary to the Royal Society, and was succeeded by Dr Mor¬
ton. Flis health declining about this time, he was order¬
ed to ride for the recovery of it; but being a bad horse¬
man, and going out in January 1766, he was unfortunate¬
ly thrown from his saddle on the road between London
and Hampstead, and died on the spot, in the sixty-first year
of his age, and to the great regret of his numerous literary
friends. He was buried in St Margaret Pattens. Dr
Birch had in his lifetime been very generous to his rela¬
tions ; and none that were nearly allied to him being liv¬
ing at the period of his decease, he bequeathed his libra¬
ry of books and manuscripts, with his picture, painted in
1735, and all his other pictures and prints not otherwise
disposed of by his will, to the British Museum. He like¬
wise left the remainder of his fortune, which amounted to
not much more than L.500, to be laid out in government
securities, for the purpose of applying the interest to in¬
crease the stipend of the three assistant librarians; thus
manifesting at his death, as he had done during his whole
life, his respect for literature, and his desire to promote
useful knowledge. His principal publications were, 1. The
General Dictionary, Flistorical and Critical, including a
new translation of Mr Bayle, and interspersed with seve¬
ral thousand new lives. Dr Birch’s associates in this un¬
dertaking were the Reverend John Peter Bernard, Mr
John Lockman, and Mr George Sale ; and the whole was
completed in ten volumes folio. 2. Dr Cudworth’s Intel¬
lectual System, improved from the Latin edition of Mos-
heim ; his Discourse on the true Notion of the Lord’s Sup¬
per ; and two Sermons, with an account of his Life and
Writings, 2 vols. 4to, 1743. 3. The Life of the Honour¬
able Robert Boyle, 1744, prefixed to an edition of that
excellent philosopher’s works, revised by Dr Birch. 4. The
Lives of Illustrious Persons of Great Britain, annexed to
the engravings of Houbraken and Vertue, 1747-1752.
5. An Inquiry into the Share which King Charles I. had
in the Transactions of the Earl of Glamorgan, 1747, 8vo.
6. An edition of Spenser’s Faery Queen, 1751, 3 vols. 4to,
with prints from designs by Kent. 7. The Miscellaneous
Works of Sir Walter Raleigh, to which was prefixed the
Life of that great, unfortunate, and injured man, 1751,
2 vols. 8vo. 8. The Theological, Moral, Dramatic, and
Poetical Works of Mrs Catharine Cockburn, with an Ac¬
count of the Life of that very ingenious Lady, 1751, 2 vols.
8vo. 9. The Life of the Most Reverend Dr John Tillot-
son, Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, compiled chiefly
from his original Papers and Letters ; 1762, 8vo. 10. Mil-
ton’s Prose Works, 1753, 2 vols. 4to, with a new life of that
great poet and writer. 11. Memoirs of the Reign of Queen
Elizabeth, from the year 1581 till her death, in which the
secret intrigues of her court, and the conduct of her fa¬
vourite Robert Earl of Essex, both at home and abroad,
are particularly illustrated; from the original papers of
his intimate friend Anthony Bacon, Esq., and other ma¬
nuscripts never before published; 1754, 2 vols. 4to. 12.
The History of the Royal Society of London for improv¬
ing natural knowledge, from its first rise; in which the
most considerable of those papers communicated to the
Society, and not hitherto published, are inserted in their
proper order as a supplement to the Philosophical Trans¬
actions, 1756 and 1757, 4 vols. 4to. 13. The Life of Hen¬
ry Prince of Wales, eldest son of King James I., compiled
chiefly from his own papers and other manuscripts never
before published, 1760, 8vo. His numerous communica¬
tions to the Royal Society may be seen in the Philosophical
646
B I R
B I R
Bird,
William
Bird-
catching.
Transactions; and his poetical talents may be judged of
from the verses already mentioned.
BIRD, William, an eminent musician and composer,
was one of the children of the chapel in the reign of Ed¬
ward VI., and, as is asserted by Wood in the Ashmolean
MS., was bred up under Tallis. It appears that in 1575
Tallis and Bird were both gentlemen and also organists
of the royal chapel; but the time of their appointment to
this latter office cannot now be ascertained. The com¬
positions of Bird are many and various : those of his
younger years were mostly for the service of the church.
He composed a work entitled Sacra Cantiones, quinque
vocum, printed in 1589; among which is that noble com¬
position, Civitas sancti tui, which is occasionally sung as
an anthem, to the words “ Bow thine ear, O Lord.” He
was also the author of a work entitled Gradualia, ac
Cantiones sacra, quinis, quaternis, trinisque vocibus con-
cinnata, lib. primus. Of this there are two editions, the
latter published in 1610. Although it appears by these
works that Bird was in the strictest sense a church mu¬
sician, he occasionally gave to the world compositions
of a secular kind; and he seems to have been the first
among English musicians who made an essay in the com¬
position of that elegant species of vocal harmony, the
madrigal. The Verginella of Ariosto, which he set in that
form for five voices, is the most ancient musical compo¬
sition of the kind to be met with in the works of Eng¬
lish authors. Of his compositions for private entertain¬
ment, there are extant, Songs of sundry natures, some of
Gravitie, and others of Myrth, fit for all companies and
voyces, printed in 1589; and two other collections of the
same kind, the last of them printed in 1611. But the
most permanent memorials of Bird’s excellencies are his
motetts and anthems : to which may be added, a fine ser¬
vice in the key of D with the minor third, the first com¬
position in Dr Boyce’s Cathedral Music, vol. iii.; and that
wrell-known canon of his, Non nobis Domine.
BIRD. See Ornithology. For the method of pre¬
serving birds see Taxidermy.
Bird-Call, a little stick, cleft at one end, in which is
put a leaf of some plant, wherewith to counterfeit the
cry or call of several birds, and bring them to the net, or
snare, or lime-twig, to be taken. A laurel leaf fitted on
the bird-call counterfeits the voice of lapwings: a leek
that of nightingales, &c.
Bird-Catching, the art of taking birds or wild-fowl,
whether for food, for the pleasure of their song, or for their
destruction as pernicious to the husbandman and horticul¬
turist.
Song-birds, in a state of nature, fly, as the bird-catchers
term it, chiefly during the month of October, and part of
September and November; as the flight in March is much
less considerable than that of Michaelmas. It is to be
noted, also, that the several species of birds of flight do
not make their appearance precisely at the same time,
during the months of September, October, and November.
The pippet-lark, for example, begins to fly about Michael-
mas, and is succeeded by the wood-lark, linnet, goldfinch,
chaffinch, greenfinch, and other kinds. These birds, dur¬
ing the Michaelmas and March flights, are chiefly on the
wing from day-break to noon, though there is afterwards
a small flight from two till night; but this is so inconsi-
dei able that the bird-catchers usually take up their nets
at noon. x
It may also be observed that they always fly against the
w ind; and hence there is great contention amongst the
bird-catchers who shall gain the leeward point. A gentle
wind to the south-west produces the best sport. The
bird-catcher generally carries with him five or six linnets
(of which more are caught than of any other singing bird)
two goldfinches, two greenfinches, one wood-lark, one red¬
poll, a yellow-hammer, titlark, and aberdavine or siskin,
and perhaps a bullfinch; these are placed at small dis¬
tances from the nets, in little cages. He is moreover pro¬
vided with what are called flur-birds, which are placed
within the nets, and are raised upon the flur, or gently
lowered, as the wild birds are seen to approach them. The
flur is a movable perch, to which the tame bird is secured
and which, by means of a long cord, the bird-catcher can
raise or depress at pleasure. The flur-birds generally con¬
sist of the linnet, the goldfinch, and the greenfinch, which
are secured to the flur by what is called a brace.1
_ It having been found that there is a difference between
bird and bird, from the one being more in song than the
other, the bird-catchers contrive that their°call-birds
should moult before the usual time. They therefore, in
June or July, put them into a close box under two or
three folds of blankets, in which state they continue about
a month. The birds frequently die under this operation;
and for this reason the value of a stopped bird rises greatly.
When the bird has thus prematurely moulted, he is in
song whilst the wild birds are out of song, and his note is
louder and more piercing than theirs; his plumage also is
said to be equally improved. The black and yellow in the
wings of the goldfinch, for example, become deeper and
more vivid, and exhibit a beautiful gloss. In short, ac¬
cording to the bird-fanciers, there is as much difference
between a wild and a stopped bird, as there is between a
horse which is kept in body-clothes and one at grass.
. When the bird-catcher has laid his nets, he disposes of
his call-birds at proper intervals. Their sight and hearing
infinitely excel that of the bird-catcher; and the instant
that the wild birds are perceived, notice is given by one
of the call-birds, which seem to anticipate with pleasure
the expected capture of their fellows. The call-birds, while
the wild ones are at a distance, do not sing as birds do in a
chamber; they invite them by what the bird-catchers call
short jerks, which, when the birds are good, maybe heard
at a great distance. The power of this inviting call is so
great, that the wild bird is stopped in its course of flight;
and, if not already acquainted with the nets,2 lights boldly
within twenty yards of perhaps three or four bird-catch¬
ers, on a spot which otherwise it would not have taken
the least notice of. Nay, it frequently happens, that if
half a flock only are caught, the remaining half will im¬
mediately afterwards light in the nets and share the same
fate 5 and should only one bird escape, that bird will suf¬
fer itself to be pulled at till it is caught, such a fascinat¬
ing power have the call-birds.
Bird-catchers frequently lay considerable wagers on the
jerking capacities of their call-birds. They place them op¬
posite to each other, by an inch of candle; and the bird
who jerks the oftenest before the candle is burnt out wins
the wager. We have been informed that there have been
instances of a bird’s giving 170 jerks in a quarter of an
hour; and we have known a linnet, in such a trial, perse¬
vere in its emulation till it swooned from the perch ; thus,
as Pliny says of the nightingale, victa morte find scepe vi-
tam, spiritu prius deficiente quam cantu.
The females of the different species are usually killed,
as incapable of song, and inferior in the beauty of their
plumage. They are sold for threepence or fourpence a
,ca ling
5 A bird acquainted with the°netfiTbv"tb®triI?8 thal 13 fastened round the bird’s body, and under the wings,
have no sport whilst it continues near them ^ ut"catciers termed a sharper; and this they endeavour to drive away, as they can
B I R
jjj dozen. These small birds are so good, that we are sur-
s cate! '• prised the luxury of the age neglects so delicate an acqui-
^ L- V sition to the table. The modern Italians are fond of small
birds, which they eat under the common name q\'beccqficos ;
and the extravagant price paid by a Roman tragedian for
one dish of singing birds is well known.1 Another particular
we learned, in conversation with a London bird-catcher, was
the vast price that is sometimes given even for song-birds
which have not learned to whistle tunes. The greatest
sum we heard of was five guineas for a chaffinch that had
a particular and uncommon note, under which it was in¬
tended to train others; and we also heard of five pounds
ten shillings being given for a call-bird linnet. The male
birds usually fly by themselves, and in that case their
flight precedes that of the female. When the titlarks are
caught in the beginning of the season, it frequently hap¬
pens that forty are taken and not one female among them;
and probably the same would be observed with regard to
other birds (as has been done with relation to the wheat-
ear), if they were attended to. An experienced and in¬
telligent bird-catcher informed us, that such birds as breed
twice a year generally have in their first brood a majority
of males, and in their second of females, which may in
part account for the circumstance above mentioned. It
has been observed with regard to the bullfinch, that the
female answers the purpose of a call-bird as well as the
male.
The nightingale is not a bird of flight, in the sense in
which the bird-catchers use this term. Like the red-breast,
wren, and many other singing birds, it only moves from
hedge to hedge, and does not take the periodical flights in
October and March. The persons who catch these birds
make use of small trap-nets, without call-birds ; and they
are considered as inferior in dignity to other bird-catchers,
who will not rank with them. The arrival of the night¬
ingale is expected by the trappers in the neighbourhood
of London during the first week of April: at the beginning,
none but cocks are taken ; but in a few days the hens make
their appearance, generally by themselves, though some¬
times a few males come along with them. The latter
are distinguished from the females not only by their supe¬
rior size, but by a great swelling of their vent, which com¬
mences on the first arrival of the hens. They are caught
in a net-trap, the bottom of which is surrounded with an
iron ring; the net itself is rather larger than a cabbage
net. When the trappers hear or see them, they strew
some fresh mould under the place, and bait the trap with
a mealworm from the baker’s shop. Ten or a dozen night¬
ingales have been thus caught in a day.
The common way of taking larks, of which so man}r are
used at our'tables, is in the night, with nets called tram¬
mels. These are usually made of thirty-six yards in length,
and about six yards over, with six ribs of pack-thread,
which at the ends are put upon two poles of about sixteen
feet long, and made lesser at each end. The net is to
be drawn over the ground by two men, and every five
or six steps it is made to touch the ground, otherwise it
will pass over the birds without touching them, and they
will escape. When they are felt to fly up against the net,
Jt is clapped down, and then all are safe that are under it.
Hie darkest nights are most proper for this sport; and the
uet will not only take larks, but all other birds that roost
on the ground; among which are woodcocks, snipes, par¬
tridges, quails, and several others. In the depth of winter
people sometimes take great numbers of larks by nooses
of horse-hair. The method is this : Take 100 or 200 yards
01 pack-thread; fasten at every six inches a noose, made
B I R
647
of double horse-hair; at every twenty yards the line is Rird-
to be pegged down to the ground, and so left ready to catching,
take them. The time to use this is when the ground
is covered with snow, and the larks are to be allured to
it by some white oats scattered all the way among the
nooses. They must be taken away as soon as three or
four are hung, otherwise the rest will be frightened; but
though the others are scared away just where the sports¬
man comes, they will be feeding at the other end of the
line, and the sport may be thus continued for a long time.
Those caught in the day are taken in clap-nets, of fifteen
yards in length and two and a half in breadth; and are
enticed within the reach by means of bits of looking-glass,
fixed in a piece of wood, and placed in the middle of the
nets, which are put in a quick whirling motion by a string
which the larker commands; he also makes use of a decoy
lark. These nets are used only till the 14th November;
for the larks will not dare to frolic in the air, except in fine
sunny weather, and of course cannot be inveigled into the
snare. When the weather grows gloomy, the larker changes
his engine, and makes use of a trammel-net, twenty-seven
or twenty-eight feet long, and five broad, which is put on
two poles, eighteen feet long, and carried by men under
each arm, who pass over the fields and quarter the ground
as a setting dog. When they hear or feel a lark hit the
net, they drop it down, and so the birds are taken.
A singular species of bird-catching is practised on the
holm of Noss, a vast rock severed from the Isle of Noss
by some unknown convulsion, and only about sixteen fa¬
thoms distant. It is of the same stupendous height as the
opposite precipice, with a raging sea between. An ad¬
venturous climber reaches the rock in a boat, gains the
height, and fastens several stakes on the small portion
of earth which is to be found on the top; corresponding
stakes are also placed on the edge of the opposite cliffs.
A rope is fixed to the stakes on both sides, along which
a machine, called a cradle, is contrived to slide; and, by
the help of a small parallel cord fastened in like manner,
the adventurer pulls himself over, and returns with his
booty.
The manner of bird-catching in the Feroe Islands is
also extremely hazardous. The cliffs which contain the
objects of their search are often two hundred fathoms in
height, and are attempted both from above and below.
In the first case, the fowlers provide themselves with a
rope eighty or a hundred fathoms in length. The fowler
fastens one end about his'waist and between his legs,
recommends himself to the protection of the Almighty,
and is lowered down by six others, who place a piece of
timber on the margin of the rock, to preserve the rope
from wearing against the sharp edge. They have, besides,
a small line fastened to the body of the adventurer, by
which he gives signals that they may lower or raise him,
or shift him from place to place. The last operation is
attended with great danger, by the loosening of the stones,
which often fall on his head, and would infallibly destroy
him, were he not protected by a strong thick cap; but
even that is found unequal to save him against the weight
of the larger fragments of rock. The dexterity of the
fowlers is amazing; they will place their feet against the
front of the precipice, and dart themselves some fathoms
from it, with a cool eye survey the places where the birds
nestle, and again shoot into their haunts. In some places
the birds lodge in deep recesses. The fowler will alight
there, disengage himself from the rope, fix it to a stone,
and at his leisure collect the booty, fasten it to his girdle,
and resume his pendulous seat. At times he will again
1 y£sop, the actor, is said to have expended a sum equal to L.800 sterling on a single dish of singing birds.
(548 BIR
Bird- spring from the rock, and in that attitude, with a fowling-
catching. net placed at the end of a staff, catch the old birds which
are flying to and from their retreats. When he has finish¬
ed his dreadful employ, he gives a signal to his friends
above, who pull him up, and share the hard-earned spoils.
The feathers are preserved for exportation: the flesh is
partly eaten fresh, but the greater portion is dried for win¬
ter’s provision.
The fowling from below has its share of danger. The
party goes on the expedition in a boat; and when it has
attained the base of the precipice, one of the most daring,
having fastened a rope about his waist, and furnished
himself with a long pole with an iron hook at one end,
either climbs, or is thrust up by his companions, who
place a.pole under his breech, to the first station. He, by
means of the rope, brings up one of the boat’s crew; the
rest are drawn up in the same manner, and each is fur¬
nished with his rope and fowling staff. They then con¬
tinue their progress upwards in the same manner, till they
arrive at the region of birds ; and wander about the face
of the cliff in search of them. They then act in pairs;
one fastens himself to the end of his associate’s rope, and
in places where birds have nestled beneath his footing, he
permits himself to be lowered down, depending for his
security on the strength of his companion, who has to haul
him up again ; but it sometimes happens that the person
above is overpowered by the weight, and both inevitably
perish. They fling the fowl into the boat, which attends
their motions, and receives the booty. They often pass
seven or eight days in this tremendous employ, and lodge
in the crannies which they find in the face of the precipice.
In some remote parts of Russia there is practised a sin¬
gular invention for taking great quantities of gelinottes,
which are a species of grouse. They choose the most
open places in the birch woods ; and there they plant long
forks in the earth, opposite to the larger trees. On these
forks is laid a horizontal stick, gallows-wise, to which are
tied small bundles of ears of corn. At a short distance
from this part of the contrivance is a kind of large funnel
or inverted cone, made with long birch-twigs, thin and
flexible, the lower extremities of which are stuck in the
earth, very near to one another, but, by spreading to¬
wards the top, form there an opening of above a yard in
diameter. In this opening is placed a wheel made of two
circles that intersect each other, and are surrounded with
straw and ears of corn. This wheel turns on an axis fas¬
tened to the side of the funnel in such a manner that there
is room enough between the sticks of the cone and the
circles to admit of the wheel’s turning freely about. The
birds first perch upon the transverse stick near the tree;
and when they have a mind to fall upon the corn tied to
the wheel, they must necessarily stand upon one of the
projecting parts of the circles of which it is composed.
At that instant the wheel turns, and the gelinotte falls,
head foremost, to the bottom of the trap, which is there
so contracted that he cannot get out. By these means
the fowler sometimes finds the machine half-full of geli¬
nottes.
The following method of netting or catching wild pigeons
is eagerly pursued as a diversion in different parts of Italy,
particularly by the inhabitants of Cava, and is thus de¬
scribed by Mr Swinburne. The people “ assemble in
parties ; and if any stranger chances to stray to their ren¬
dezvous, they give him a most cordial welcome. I am
not in the least surprised,” says Mr Swinburne, “ at their
passionate fondness for this sport, as° I found it extremely
bewitching, keeping the attention constantly alive, and
the springs of the mind pleasingly agitated by expecta¬
tion ; the situations where the toils are spread are incom¬
parably beautiful, the air is pure and balsamic, and every
BIR
thing around breathes health and satisfaction. When the Bi i;
periodical flights of stock-doves return from the northern ^
and western parts of Europe to gain warmer regions for
their winter abode, the fowler repairs to the mountain,
and spreads his nets across the intermediate hollows, the
passes through which the birds direct their course, to
avoid unnecessary elevation in their flight. These nets
are hung upon a row of large trees planted for the pur¬
pose. The branches being very thick and close at top,
and the pole lofty and bare, a great opening is left below
for the toils, which reach to the ground, and, by means
of pulleys, fall in a heap with the least effort. Sometimes
they are extended upon poles that exceed the height of
the trees. At a small distance is a lofty circular turret,
like a column with a little capital or cap, upon which a
man is stationed to watch the approach of the game. As
he commands a free view over all the country, and prac¬
tice has made his sight as acute as that of the lynx, he
descries the birds at a wonderful distance. The doves ad¬
vance with great velocity; but the alert watchman is pre¬
pared for them ; and just as they approach his post, hurls
a stone above them with a sling. Upon this the whole
flock, whose fears have birds of prey for their great object,
supposing the stone to be an enemy of that kind ready to
pounce them, dart down like lightning to avoid the blow
by passing under the trees ; but there they rush into the
jaws of death, by dashing against the net, which instantly
drops, and so entangles them that not one of them can escape
the active hands of the fowler. These birds are some¬
times taken by dozens at one fall, and are accounted fine
eating. The dexterity with which the slingers manage
their weapon is very remarkable ; they throw the stone to
a great height without any violent effort, and even with¬
out whirling the sling round before they discharge the
pellet. In the Pyrennean mountains, where the same
diversion is followed, the watchmen use a bow and arrow,
trimmed with the feathers of a hawk.”
The methods employed for the capture of water-fowl
will be found described under the word Decoy.
BiRD-Lime, a viscid substance, prepared in different
ways. The most common bird-lime is made from holly-
bark, boiled ten or twelve hours; when the green coat
being separated from the other, it is covered up for a fort¬
night in a moist place; then pounded into a tough paste,
so that no fibres of the wood are discernible, and washed
in a running stream till no motes appear. It is next put
up to ferment for four or five days, and skimmed as often
as any thing rises to the surface. To prepare it for use,
a third part of nut-oil, or thin grease, must be incorporated
with it over the fire.
The juice of holly-bark is a very peculiar substance.
But if trials were made, it seems probable that many other
juices would be found to have the same clammy nature. The
misletoe affords a juice even superior to that of the holly ;
and if a young shoot of the common alder be cut through
there will issue a stringy juice capable of being drawn out
into threads, and which will follow the knife like bird-hme
or the juice of the holly. In this tree it seems to be
lodged, not in the bark, but in certain vessels just within
the circle of the wood. The roots of all the hyacinths
also afford a tough and stringy juice of the same hind ,
and so does the asphodel, the narcissus, and the blac
bryony root, in a surprising quantity".
When twigs, smeared with bird-lime, are to be put
in places subject to wet, the common bird-lime is apt to
have its force soon taken away. It is necessary, there¬
fore, to have recourse to a particular sort, which, from is
property of bearing water unhurt, is called water bird- ane,
and is prepared thus: Take a pound of strong an(l §00
bird-lime; wash it thoroughly in spring-water, till
bir
n Bil hardness is all removed; and then beat it well, that the
, Xe water may be separated. When it is dry put it into an
^ ^ earthen pot, and add to it as much capon’s grease as will
make it run. Then add two spoonfuls of strong vinegar,
one spoonful of oil, and a small quantity of Venice tur¬
pentine. Let the whole boil for some minutes over a
moderate fire, stirring it all the time. Whenever it is re¬
quired for use it ought to be warmed again. This is the
best sort of bird-lime for snipes and other birds that love
wet places.
The most successful method of using the common bird¬
lime is this: Cut down the main branch or bough of any
bushy tree whose twigs are thick, straight, long, and
smooth, and have neither knots nor prickles. The willow
and the birch-tree afford the best of this kind. Let all
the superfluous shoots be trimmed off, and the twigs all
made neat and clean ; they must all be well covered with
the bird-lime, within four inches of the bottom; but the
main bough from which they grow must not be touched
with the lime. No part of the bark where the lime should
come must be left bare; but it is a nice matter to lay it
on properly; for if it be too thick it will give the birds a
distaste, and they will not come near it; and if there be
too little of it, it will not hold them when they are there.
When the bush is thus prepared, it may be set up wherever
birds have been observed to congregate. If it be used in
summer, it may be placed in the midst of a quickset hedge,
or in groves, bushes, or white thorn trees, near fields of
corn, hemp, flax, and the like; and in the winter the pro¬
per places are about stacks of corn, cottages, barns, and
such situations. When the lime-bush is thus planted,
the sportsman must stand as near it as he can without
being discovered; and if he can imitate the natural calls
of different species, his chances of success will be so much
the greater. When one bird is thus enticed to the bush,
and hung fast, the business of the sportsman is not to run
up to take it, but to be patient; for it will hang itself
more fast by its struggling to get away ; and its fluttering
will bring more to the bush, so that several may be taken
together. The best time of the day for this sport is from
sunrise to ten o’clock, and from one to sunset. Another
very good method of bringing the birds together is by a
stale: a bat makes a very good stale; but it must be fas¬
tened so as to be in sight at a distance. An owl is a still
better stale; for this bird never goes abroad but it is fol¬
lowed by all the small birds in the neighbourhood. They
will gather together in great numbers about it; and hav¬
ing no convenient place to sit on but the lime-bush, will
be taken in great numbers. If a living owl or bat is not
to be had, a stuffed or preserved skin will serve the pur¬
pose. Some have even used the image of an owl carved
m wood, and painted in the natural colours.
Birds, in Heraldry, according to their several kinds,
represent either the contemplative or active life. They
are the emblems of liberty, expedition, readiness, swift-
pess, and the like, and are therefore more honourable bear¬
ings than fishes. Birds must be borne in coat-armour, as is
est fitting the propriety of their natural actions. Such as
are either whole-footed, or have their feet divided, and
yet have no talons, are said to be membered; but the
c°ck, and all birds of prey with sharp and hooked beaks
and talons for encounter or defence, are said to be armed.
n the blazoning of birds, if their wings be not displayed,
ney are said to be borne close.
-BiRM-Nests, in Commerce, the nests of a small Indian swal-
nw, of delicate taste, and frequently mixed among soups,
n the sea-coasts of China, at certain seasons of the year,
er.e are seen vast numbers of these birds. They leave
i ef/n an(^ country at their breeding time, come to build
n e rocks, and fashion their nests out of a matter which
VOL. iv.
BIR (549
they find on the shore, washed thither by the waves. The Eire
nature of this substance is scarcely yet ascertained. Ac- II
cording to Kempfer, it is molluscae or sea-worms ; accord- Liken¬
ing to M. le Poivre, fish-spawn; according to Dalrymple,
sea-weeds; and according to Linnmus, it is the animal
substance frequently found on the beach, which fishermen
call blubbers or jellies. The nests are of a hemispherical
figure, and of the size of a goose’s egg, and in substance
much resemble ichthyocolla or isinyiass. The Chinese
gather these nests, and sell them to all parts of the world ;
they dissolve in broths, and make a kind of jelly of a very
agreeable flavour.
These nests, Mr Marsden informs us, are found in great
abundance in the island of Sumatra, particularly about
Croe, near the south end of the island. Four miles up the
river of that name is a large cave, where the birds build
in vast numbers. The nests are distinguished into white
and black ; but of these the former are more scarce and va¬
luable, being found in the proportion of only one to twenty-
five. “ The white sort,” says Mr Marsden, “ sells in China
at the rate of 1000 to 1500 Spanish dollars the pecul; the
black is usually disposed of at Batavia for about twenty
dollars the same weight, where it is chiefly converted into
glue, of which it makes a very superior kind. The differ¬
ence between the two has by some been supposed to be
owing to the mixture of the feathers of the birds with
the viscous substance of which the nests are formed ; and
this they deduce from the experiment of steeping the
black nests for a short time in hot water, when they are
said to become in a great degree white. Among the na¬
tives I have heard a few assert that they are the work of
a different species of bird. It was suggested to me that
the white might probably be the recent nests in which
they were taken; and the black, such as have been used
for a number of years successively. This opinion appear¬
ing plausible, I was particular in my inquiries as to that
point, and learned what seemed much to corroborate it.
When the natives prepare to take the nests, they enter
the caves with torches, and forming ladders, according to
the usual mode, of a single bamboo notched, they ascend
and pull down the nests, which adhere in numbers toge¬
ther, from the side and top of the rock. They informed
me that the more frequently and regularly the cave is
stripped, the greater proportion of white nests they are
sure to find, and that on this experience they often make
a practice of beating down and destroying the old nests
in larger quantities than they trouble themselves to carry
away, in order that they may find white nests the next
season in their room. The birds during the building time
are seen in large flocks on the beach, collecting in their
bills the foam which is thrown up by the surf, of which
there is little doubt but they construct their nests, after it
has undergone perhaps a preparation, from a commixture
with their saliva, or other secretion with which nature has
provided them for that purpose.”
BIRE, an arrondissement of the department of Calva¬
dos, in France, near 364 square miles in extent, and com¬
prehending six cantons, 97 communes, and 86,745 inha¬
bitants. The chief city, of the same name, on the river
Eire, contains 8131 inhabitants, employed chiefly in the
manufacture of woollen goods. Long. 1.1. W. Lat. 48.
50. N.
BIREMIS, in Homan Antiquity, a vessel with two rows
or banks of oars.
BIRKENHEAD, or Berkenhead, Sir John, a poli¬
tical author of note, was born about the year 1615. Being
recommended to Dr William Laud, archbishop of Canter¬
bury, he became his secretary ; in which office he showed
such capacity and diligence, that the archbishop, by his
diploma, created him master of arts in 1639; and in the
4 N
650 B I R
Birming- year following, by letter commendatory from the same
ham. prelate, he was chosen probationer fellow of All-Souls
v"*,'’Vw/ College. This obliged him to reside constantly at Oxford;
and on King Charles I. making that city his head-quarters
during the civil war, our author was selected to write a
kind of journal in defence of the royal cause, by which he
gained great reputation. By his majesty’s recommenda¬
tion, he was chosen reader in moral philosophy ; and this
employment he held till 1048, when he was expelled by
the parliament visitors. He afterwards retired to London,
where he wrote several poetical pieces; and having ad¬
hered steadily to his principles, he acquired the title of
the “ loyal poet,” and suffered several imprisonments.
While he lived thus in obscurity he published some very
satirical compositions, mostly levelled against the republi¬
can grandees, and written with great poignancy. Upon
the restoration of King Charles II. our author, in reward
of his loyalty, was created, on the king’s letters sent for
that purpose, doctor of the civil law by the university of
Oxford; and in that quality, as an eminent civilian, he
was consulted by the convocation on the question, Whe¬
ther bishops ought to be present in capital cases ? He was
about the same time elected to serve in parliament for
Wilton in the county of Wilts. He was knighted in No¬
vember 1662; and upon Sir Richard Fanshaw’s going in
a public character to the court of Madrid, he was appoint¬
ed to succeed him as master of requests. He lived after¬
wards in credit and esteem, and received various favours
froiTKhe court; which, however, drew upon him some very
severe attacks from those who opposed the court. Mr
Wood has treated him with great severity; but his me¬
mory has been vindicated by others, particularly by Dry-
den, Langbaine, and Winstanly. He died in Westminster,
on the 4th December 1679, and was interred in St Mar¬
tin’s in the Fields.
BIRMINGHAM, a large town of the hundred of Hem-
lingford, in the county of Warwick, 109 miles from Lon¬
don. It stands on the verge of the two counties of Wor¬
cester and Salop, so that some of the villages, which may
be fairly considered as suburbs to Birmingham, are in rea¬
lity in those counties. It consists of two parishes, has no
corporation, but is governed by two officers called bailiffs,
because their predecessors were such to the lords of the
manor of Birmingham before any town was built upon it.
The appearance of Birmingham is by no means prepossess¬
ing ; most of the streets are narrow and crooked, and the
houses, though respectable, are in general upon a small
scale. There are no public buildings deserving of notice ;
and from the nature of the extended manufactories, mostly
carried on by machinery kept in motion by steam, the whole
has rather a gloomy and cloudy look. It is by the rapid pro¬
gress that the town has made in the arts, by its extension,
by the increased opulence of the inhabitants, and by the
vast augmentation of its population, that Birmingham is
to be estimated. These have risen with the improvements
of the navigable canals, and of the roads, by which fuel
and the metals are brought at a cheap rate to the work¬
shops of the manufacturers, and the heavy goods made
are conveyed at similar low rates to the distant places of
consumption. It would be more difficult to say what is
not, than what is made here, in articles of iron, silver, gold,
copper, brass, steel, mixed metals, glass, wood, horn, ivory,
and stone. It has been called the toyshop of Europe;
but although the smallest trinkets are prepared, it never¬
theless produces the heaviest articles, even anchors, can¬
non, and chain-cables. In spite of the smoke and steam
of the engines, this town is remarkably healthy ; and the
deaths in proportion to the number of inhabitants are
fewer than in the other large places, London, Liverpool,
and Manchester. The places of worship are numerous ;
B I R
those of diversion or amusement few. The town is well Bir 1
and cheaply supplied with provisions and with corn, chiefly J'
through the means of the canals. The inhabitants at dit- B li¬
ferent periods have been as follows, viz. in 1801, 73,670 • 5 '•
in 1811, 85,753 ; and in 1821, 106,722. ’ ^ ^
BIRNBAUM, a circle in the Prussian government of
Posen, formerly a part of Poland. It is extended over
543 square miles, or 347,520 acres, and comprehends five
cities or towns, and 150 villages, with 26,923 inhabitants.
The northern part is sandy and woody, but the southern is
moderately fertile. The chief place, which gives its name
to the circle, stands on the river Warthe, near a lake, and
contains 2010 inhabitants, of whom one fourth are of the
Jewish nation.
BIRON, Armand de Gontault, Lord of, marshal
of France, and a celebrated general in the sixteenth cen¬
tury, who signalized himself by his valour and conduct in
several sieges and battles. He was made grand-master of
the artillery in 1569; and so much was he respected, or
rather feared, on account of his ’well-known bravery, that
nobody dared to assault him at the massacre of St Bar¬
tholomew. He was the first who declared for Henry IV.,
brought a part of Normandy under his subjection, and dis¬
suaded him from retiring to England or Rochelle. He
was killed by a cannon-ball, at the siege of Epernay, on
the 26th of July 1592. Biron was a sort of universal scho¬
lar ; and used to carry a pocket-book, in which he wrote
down every thing that appeared remarkable. This gave
rise to a proverb very much used at court: when a per¬
son happened to say any thing uncommon, they told him,
“ You have found that in Biron’s pocket-book.”
BIROTA, or Birotum, in Roman Antiquity, a kind of
vehicle, so denominated from its moving upon two wheels.
It carried about 200 pounds weight, and was drawn by
three mules.
BIRR, or Parsons Town, a market-town of Ireland,
situated upon the Little Brosna river. It is the capital of
King’s County, and few inland towns of Ireland are equal¬
ly thriving. The streets are well built; and in the centre
of an extensive square is a pedestrian statue of Willianrv
Duke of Cumberland, son of George II., erected in 1747.
Here are capacious barracks, two breweries, twro distil¬
leries, two tanneries, and several flour-mills. The popula¬
tion amounts to 5406. It is distant from Dublin 86 miles
west-south-west.
BIRRUS, in Roman Antiquity, a cloak made of woollen
cloth, and worn by the soldiers. Also a robe anciently
worn by the priests or bishops.
BIRTH, in Midwifery, signifies the same with delivery.
Birth is also used for a person’s descent; and he is
said to be high or low according to the circumstances of
his ancestry.
Birth, or Berth, the station in which a ship rides at
anchor, either alone or in a fleet, or the distance between
the ship and any adjacent object, comprehending the ex¬
tent of the space in which she ranges at the length of her
cables. It also signifies the room, apartment, or place al¬
lotted to one or more of a ship’s company.
Birth-Day, the anniversary return of the day on which
a person was born. The ancients were religious in tne
celebration of birth-days, and thence drew omens of l R
felicity of the coming year. The manner of celebrating
birth-days was by wearing a splendid dress ; displaying a
sort of rings peculiar to that day; offering sacrifices o
wine and frankincense, the men to their genius, the women
to Juno; giving suppers, and treating their friends an^
clients, who in return made them presents, wrote ant sim„
their panegyrics, and offered vows and good wishes or m
frequent happy returns of the same day. The birth- a)
of emperors were also celebrated with public sports, eaB ^
BIS
Bis:
Bisc
a vows, and medals struck on the occasion. But the an¬
cients, it is to be observed, had other sorts of birth-days
’• besides the days on which they were literally born. The
J day of their adoption was always reputed as a birth-day,
and celebrated accordingly. The emperor Hadrian, we
are told, observed three birth-days; the day of his nati¬
vity, that of his adoption, and that of his inauguration.
In those times it was held, that men were not born only
on those days when they first came into the world, but also
on those when they arrived at the chief honours and com¬
mands in the commonwealth, particularly the consulship.
Hence Cicero, in his oration Ad Quirites, after his return
from exile, says, A parentibus, id quod necesse erat, parvus
sum procreatus ; a vobis natus sum co?isularis. Birth-days
with us are commonly occasions of feasting, jollity, and
congratulation.
BISACCIA, a city in the Principato-Ulteriore of the
kingdom of Naples. It is a bishopric in conjunction with
St Angelo, and contains 5340 inhabitants.
BISACUTA, in the middle-age writers, an axe with
two edges, which cuts either way; or a missile weapon
pointed at both ends. Walsingham represents the securis
bisacuta as peculiar to the Scottish nation.
BISCARA, a town in the territory of Algiers, capital
of the southern province of Zaab. The district is inhabit¬
ed by a rude, stout race, who repair to Algiers, and seek
the meanest and hardest employments, as sweeping chim¬
neys, cleaning the streets, &c., and having gained a little
money, return to their native territory. Biscara contains
a castle, on which a few guns are mounted. The place is
situated 150 miles S. S. E. of Algiers.
BISCAY, a province of the north of Spain. It is bound¬
ed on the north by the sea, on the east by Guipuscoa, on
the south by Alava, and on the west by Burgos; and it
extends over 1272 square miles. By the last authentic
census the population was found to amount to 112,371;
but it is said to have increased in the thirty years that
have^since elapsed, in spite of the suffering during the
war from 1808 to 1814. The province of Biscay enjoyed
a degree of freedom not extended to the other parts of
Spain, and its inhabitants seem to be inspired with more
of the spirit of industry and adventure than is common in
that country. The Biscayans are evidently of a distinct
nee, as both their features, manners, and language de¬
monstrate ; and are probably of Celtic origin. Biscay is
a very mountainous district, the air is pure, and both the
winters and summers are temperate. The agriculture is
confined to a few fertile spots, and is mostly conducted
by small proprietors, who have little or no assistance in
their work from cattle, but dig instead of ploughing the
soil; yet the province yields corn sufficient, with the aid
of chestnuts, to supply its inhabitants. The fisheries do,
however, largely contribute to their sustenance. The chief
manufacturing industry is applied to iron, which is made
of an excellent quality, and converted into the various ob¬
jects of agricultural and domestic use. The rural inha-
mtants live much more in lone and scattered houses than
m villages or hamlets, and it contains but few towns. The
capital is Bilboa.
BISCEGLIA, a city and bishopric in the province of
an, and kingdom of Naples. It is situated on the sea-
smie, and has no water but that collected during rains,
and preserved in cisterns. It contains 10,590 inhabitants.
me k0Ur is frequented only" by small vessels.
_ BISCHOFSHEIM, a city, the chief of a bailiwick of
ie same name, in the duchy of Baden, on the river Tau-
eb containing 2000 inhabitants. The bailiwick compre-
ends three cities or towns, eighteen villages and hamlets,
and 16,200 inhabitants.
BISCHOP, or Biskop, John de, an artist, born at the
BIS 651
Hague in 1646. He is spoken of with commendation Biscuit
as a painter, and his drawings from the great masters are 1|
held in estimation by the curious. In these he had sue- Bishop,
ceeded so happily as to preserve with the greatest exactness r
the style of the painter whose pictures he copied. But he
is most generally known as an engraver; and his works
in this line are numerous. They are chiefly etchings, har¬
monized with the graver; and though slight, yet free,
spirited, and pleasing. He worked chiefly at Amsterdam,
where he died in 1686, at the age of forty".
BISCUIT, or Biskuit, a kind of bread prepared by the
confectioners, of fine flour, eggs, and sugar, and rose or
orange water; or of flour, eggs, and sugar, with aniseeds
and citron peel, baked again and again in the oven, in tin
or paper moulds. There are divers sorts of biscuit, as
seed-biscuit, fruit-biscuit, long-biscuit, round-biscuit, Na-
ples-biscuit, sponge-biscuit, &c.
Sea-Biscuix is a sort of bread much dried by passing
the oven twice, to make it keep for sea service. For long
voyages they bake it four times, and prepare it six months
before the embarkation. It will keep good a whole year.
To preserve sea-biscuit from insects, Mr Hales advises to
make the fumes of burning brimstone pass through the
casks full of bread. Biscuit may be likewise preserved a
long time by keeping it in casks well caulked, and lined
with tin.
The ancients had their biscuit prepared after the like
manner and for the like use as the moderns. The Greeks
called it cc^roj ditfugog, or bread put twice to the fire. The
Romans gave it the name of panis nauticus. Pliny de¬
nominates it vetus aut nauticus panis tusus atque iterum
cactus; by which it appears that, after the first baking,
they ground or pounded it down again for a second. By
writers of the middle ages it is called paxhnas, paximus,
and panis paximatus. Among the Romans we also meet
with a kind of land-biscuit for the camp service, called
buccellatum, sometimes expeditionalis annona, which was
baked much; but to make it lighter for carriage, and less
liable to corrupt, the coction was continued till the bread
was reduced one fourth of its former weight.
BISHOP, a prelate or person consecrated for the spi¬
ritual government and direction of a diocese. The word
comes from the Saxon bisebop, which again is derived from
the Greek iKnfoomg, an overseer, inspector, or superinten¬
dent, a title given by the Athenians to those whom they
sent into the provinces subject to them, to see whether
every thing was kept in order. The Romans applied the
same designation to those who were appointed inspectors
and visitors of the bread and provision.
A bishop discharges the same relative functions as an
archbishop, though of course in a lower sphere. An arch¬
bishop with bishops consecrates a bishop, a bishop with
priests ordains a priest; the archbishop visits a province,
the bishop a diocese ; the archbishop convocates a provin¬
cial synod, the bishop a diocesan one; and the archbishop
has canonical authority over all the bishops of his province,
the bishop over the priests in his diocese.
The election of bishops was anciently placed in the
clergy, and the people of the parish, province, or diocese;
but afterwards, princes and magistrates, patriarchs and
popes, usurped the power. The election was required to
be within three months after the vacancy of the see; and
the bishop to be chosen from among the clergy of that
church. Formerly the bishop claimed a share in the elec¬
tion of an archbishop; but this was set aside by the popes.
In England, during the Saxon times, all ecclesiastical
dignities were conferred by the king in parliament. At
length, however, after several contests, especially betw"een
Archbishop Anselm and Henry I. in consequence of a
grant of King John, recognised in Magna Charta, and
652
B I S
Bishop, established by the 25 Edw. III. stat. 6, § 3, bishops were
elected by the chapters of monks or canons, some shadow
of which still remains in the present method oi disposing
of bishoprics; but by the 25 Henry VIII. c. 20, the right
of nomination was restored to the crown.
Ordinarily, three bishops at least are required in the
ceremony of consecrating a bishop; but in some cases a
single one will suffice. The English succession of Pro¬
testant bishops stands on this last ground. In England,
the king being certified of the death of a bishop by the
dean and chapter, and his leave requested to elect another,
the conge d’elire is sent to them, with a letter missive, no¬
minating the person whom he would have chosen. The
election is to be within twelve days after the receipt of it,
otherwise the king by letters patent appoints whom he
pleases; and the chapter, in case of refusing the person
named by the king, incurs a prccmumre. After election,
and its being accepted by the bishop, the king grants a
mandate under the great seal for confirmation, which the
bishop consigns to his vicar-general, consisting mostly of
a solemn citation of such as have any objections to the
bishop elect, a declaration of their contumacy in not ap¬
pearing, and an administration of the oaths of allegiance
and supremacy, of simony, and canonical obedience.
Sentence being read by the vicar-general, the bishop is
installed in the province of Canterbury by the archdeacon;
the fact is recorded by a public notary; and the bishop is
invested with full powers to exercise all spiritual jurisdic¬
tions, though he cannot sue for his temporalities till after
consecration. Then follows the consecration by the arch¬
bishop or some other bishop appointed by lawful commis¬
sions, and two assistant bishops. The ceremony is much
the same as in the Roman Catholic church, save that hav¬
ing put on the episcopal robes, the archbishop and bishops
lay their hands on the new prelate’s head, and consecrate
him with a certain form of words. The process of the
translation of a bishop to another bishopric differs only in
this, that there is no consecration. The age of a bishop is
to be at least thirty years; and, by the ancient discipline,
none were to be chosen but those who had passed through
all the inferior orders; but in some cases of necessity this
was dispensed with, and deacons, nay laymen, were raised
at once to the episcopal dignity.
The form of consecrating a bishop is different in differ¬
ent churches. In the Greek church, the bishop elect
being by the assistant bishops presented for consecration,
and the instrument of election put in his hand, after se¬
veral prayers, the first of which is called diaconicum, he
demands consecration, and makes profession of his faith,
after which he receives a benediction. He is then inter¬
rogated as to his belief of the Trinity; to which he an¬
swers by a long profession of faith, and receives a second
benediction. Lastly, he is asked what he thinks of the in¬
carnation ; to which he answers in a third profession of
faith, which is followed by a third benediction ; after which
the consecrator gives him the pastoral staff. He is then
led up to the altar, where, after certain prayers, and three
crosses on his head, he receives the -pallium, if he be an
archbishop or patriarch; then the kiss of peace from his
consecrator and two assistants; and sitting down, reads,
prays, and gives the communion to his consecrator and
others.
In the Roman Catholic church, the bishop elect being
presented by the elder assistant to the consecrator, takes
the oath; he is then examined as to his faith; and after
several prayers, the New Testament is drawn over his
head, and he receives the chrism or unction on his head.
The pastoral staff, ring, and gospel, are then given him,
and after communion the mitre is put on his head; each
ceremony being accompanied with suitable prayers. The
B 1 S
consecration ends with Te Deum. These last-mentioned Bis
ceremonies are laid aside in the consecration of English
bishops. Nevertheless, the book of consecration set forth Bi4’>
? I
in the time of Edward VI. and confirmed by act of par- 40r P
liament, in which some of them are enjoined, is declared ^
to be the standard for this purpose by the thirty-sixth
article.
The function of a bishop in England may be considered
as twofold, namely, what belongs to his order, and what
belongs to his jurisdiction. To the episcopal order belong
the ceremonies of dedication, confirmation, and ordina¬
tion ; to the episcopal jurisdiction, by the statute law, be¬
long the licensing of physicians, chirurgeons, and school¬
masters, the uniting of small parishes (though this last pri¬
vilege is now peculiar to the Bishop of Norwich), assisting
the civil magistrate in the execution of statutes relating
to ecclesiastical matters, and compelling the payment of
tenths and subsidies due from the clergy. By the com¬
mon law, the bishop is to certify the judges touching le¬
gitimate and illegitimate births and marriages; and by
that and the ecclesiastical law, he is to take care of the
probate of wills and granting administrations, to collate to
benefices, grant institutions on the presentation of other
patrons, command induction, order the collecting and pre¬
serving the profits of vacant benefices for the use of the
successors, defend the liberties of the church, and visit
his diocese once in three years. To the bishop also be¬
long suspension, deprivation, deposition, degradation, and
excommunication.
All bishops of England are peers of the realm, except
the Bishop of Sodor and Man, and, as such, sit and vote in
the House of Lords. They are barons in a threefold
manner; feudal, in regard to the temporalities annexed to
their bishoprics; by writ, as being summoned by writ to
parliament; and, lastly, by patent and creation. Accord¬
ingly, they have the precedence of all other barons, vote
as barons and bishops, and claim all the privileges enjoy¬
ed by the temporal lords; excepting that they cannot be
tried by their peers, because, in cases of blood, they them¬
selves cannot pass upon the trial, for they are prohibited
by the canons of the church from being judges of life and
death. They have the title of Lords and Right Reverend
Fathers in God. Besides two archbishops, there are
twenty-four bishops in England, exclusive of the Bishop of
Sodor and Man, who has no seat in the House of Peers.
The Bishops of London, Durham, and Winchester, take
precedence of other bishops, who are to rank after them
according to their seniority of consecration. There is
also a bishop in our settlement of Nova Scotia, and re¬
cently one in Barbadoes. In Ireland there are four arch¬
bishops and eighteen bishops. #In Scotland, before the
Presbyterian establishment, there were two archbishop¬
rics and twelve bishoprics.
Bishop’s Court, an ecclesiastical court, held in the ca¬
thedral of each diocese, the judge in which)s the bishops
chancellor, who decides according to the civil and canon
law; and if the diocese be large, he has his commissaries
in remote parts, who hold what are called consistory courts,
for matters limited to them by their commission. _
Bishop’s Castle, a market and borough-town in tie
hundred of Purslow and county of Salop, 160 miles from
London. It is on the river Clun, which runs to the Se¬
vern. Being on the main road between England an
Wales, it has some trade, especially at its market, w nc i
is held every Friday. It returns two members to the
Blouse of Commons, who are chosen by the burgesses re
sident and non-resident, and supposed to be infiuencec )
Lord Powis. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to ‘ ’
in 1811 to 1313, and in 1821 to 1616. , ,
Bishop’s Stortford, a market-town of the hundre
BIS
Braughing, in the county of Hertford, thirty miles from
iVaiili London. It is situated on the banks of a canal joining
|| the river Lea, and by that means brought into water com-
BisfflU munication with the metropolis, to which it sends much
corn, and other goods. The market is held on
Thursday. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 2305,
in 1811 to 2630, and in 1821 to 3358.
Bishop’s Waltham, a market-town in the same hundred,
and county of Southampton, sixty-eight miles from Lon¬
don. Near it was formerly a forest of the same name,
which has been brought into cultivation. The market is
held on Friday. The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to
1773, in 1811 to 1830, and in 1821 to 2126.
Bishop’s Wearmouth, a large parish adjoining to the
town of Sunderland, in the county of Durham, 272 miles
from London. It stands on the Wear, and has several
manufactories of different kinds. There is a magnificent
iron bridge of one arch, 236 feet in length. The inhabi¬
tants amounted in 1801 to 6126, in 1811 to 7002, and in
1821 to 11,542.
BISHOPING, a term among horse-dealers, to denote
the sophistications used to make an old horse appear
young, or a bad one seem good.
BISHOPRIC, the district over which a bishop’s juris¬
diction extends, otherwise called a diocese.
BISIGNANO, a city and the see of a bishop, in the
province of Calabria Citeriore, in the kingdom of Naples,
containing 9100 inhabitants.
BISLEY, a market-town in the hundred of the same
name, in the county of Gloucester, 103 miles from Lon¬
don. It is situated in the vale of Chalford, where the
manufacture of broad cloth is extensively conducted. The
Stroud Canal, which unites the Thames and Severn, passes
through the parish. The market has gone to decay. The
inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 4227, in 1811 to 4757,
and in 1821 to 5421.
BISMILLAH, a solemn form used by Mahommedans
at the beginning of all their books and other writings, sig¬
nifying, “ In the name of the most merciful God.”
BISMUTH, in Mineralogy, one of the semi-metals, is
of a silver white colour, much inclined to red, and liable
to tarnish; generally occurs massive or lamellated, some¬
times, though rarely, crystallized; is brittle when cold,
but, on being heated, may be hammered into plates; at
the comparatively low temperature of 476° it melts, and
on cooling crystallizes. In close vessels, at a tempera¬
ture of about 30° Wedgewood, it sublimes, emits copious
fumes of the oxide of bismuth, burns with a bluish white
flame, and, in the end, by increasing the heat, runs into a
greenish coloured glass. Native bismuth is found in con¬
siderable quantity in some of the silver and cobalt mines
of Bohemia and Saxony, also at Wheal Sparnon, near
Redruth, in Cornwall, and at Carrockfell in Cumberland.
In a native state its specific gravity is 9‘737, but after
fusion considerably lower. It is attacked with difficulty
by muriatic or sulphuric acid, but is readily soluble in
nitric. Its great fusibility renders it a useful compound
in the formation of several metallic alloys, as in the fabri¬
cation of printers’ types, and the composition of pewter.
Eight parts of bismuth, five of lead, and three of tin, con¬
stitute what is called Newton’s metal, from its discoverer,
which melts at the heat of boiling water, and may be fused
over a candle in a piece of stiff paper without burning the
paper. Plumbers’ solder consists of one part of bismuth
with five of lead and three of tin. With an equal weight
of lead, it forms a brilliant white alloy, much harder than
load, and more malleable than bismuth, though ductile;
aod if the proportion of lead be increased, it is rendered
still more malleable.
BISNAGAR. See Bijanagur.
BIS 653
BISOMUM, or Disomum, in Homan Antiquity, a tomb Bisomum
for two dead bodies, or the ashes of two. The ancients . II
frequently buried two, three, or four bodies in the same ^issagos.^
sepulchre, disposed side by side ; and hence the sepulchres r
of the primitive Christians had the words bisomi, trisomi,
quadrisomi, &c. inscribed on them, to indicate the number
of bodies deposited in them.
BISON. See Ornithology, Index.
BISSAGOS, a group of small, low, fertile islands, situ¬
ated at or near the mouth of the Rio Grande, in Western
Africa. The entire number of these islands is very great,
but there are only sixteen of any considerable magnitude.
These are,Bissao, Bulama, Tale, Bussi, Manterre,Canabac,
Galpineis, Areas, Formosa, Carache, Corbelle, Genthera,
Cavallo, Mel, Casegu, and Cove. The first five are mere
alluvial islands, separated by river-branches from the con¬
tinent, of which they properly form part. The others lie
twenty or thirty miles out at sea, extending in a north¬
westerly direction towards the Gambia. Among the many
smaller islands may be mentioned Bourbon, Sarcieri, Poe-
lon, Papaygo, and Los Poarcos. Along the exterior side of
these islands, where they face the ocean, extend numerous
banks, which render the navigation very dangerous, and
require vessels to make constant and careful soundings.
The Bissagos islands are generally level and fertile, par¬
ticularly those closely adjoining the continent; as Bissao,
the largest, and Bulama, immediately at the mouth of the
Rio Grande. They produce abundantly millet, rice, and
fruits, and are well stocked with a peculiar breed of oxen,
having a hump on the back, and remarkable for size and
strength. The inhabitants are tall and robust, yet fierce,
turbulent, and warlike. This character applies to the Papels,
who occupy Bissao and the adjoining continent, and still
more to the Bissagos or Bijugas, who possess most of the
remaining islands. They have almost entirely driven out
the Biafaras, a mild and industrious race, who have been
obliged to seek refuge on the continent along the banks of
the Rio Grande. In 1792 some mercantile adventurers in
England formed the Bulama association, with the view of
forming a settlement on the island of that name. The
fertility, and happy situation at the mouth of a great river,
appeared to offer flattering prospects ; a considerable sum
of money was quickly subscribed, and on the 11th April
three vessels with 275 colonists sailed for Africa, under
the command of Mr Dalrymple. They sailed to Bulama,
which happened then to be wholly uninhabited; the Bis¬
sagos having driven out the Biafaras, its former popula¬
tion, without themselves forming any permanent settle¬
ment. The expedition was quietly taking possession of
the island, when the Bissagos from Canabac, considering
this occupation as much too unceremonious, attacked the
party, and killed and carried off several of their number.
Mr Dalrymple then retired to Bissao, where he met a
hospitable reception, and then opened a communication
with the king of Canabac, who was induced for a very
moderate consideration to cede to the king of Great Bri¬
tain, in perpetuity, the dominion of the island of Bulama.
A settlement was then effected without delay; but the
colonists, hastily assembled, and consisting in a great mea¬
sure of loose and desperate characters, were found very
unfit to encounter the hardships and difficulties of a new
establishment. Finding that, instead of being placed in
a situation of ease and luxury, they were obliged to begin
by clearing, sowing, and planting a soil, fertile indeed, but
nearly uncultivated, they lost courage, and mostly return¬
ed home in the vessel which brought them to Bulama.
Captain Beaver was left with little more than twenty men,
when he made the most extraordinary and meritorious
efforts to maintain his ground amid multiplied disadvan¬
tages. His little party were reduced by sickness to only
054 B I T
Bissat ten effectives, when the king of Canabac declared “ they
II were his chickens,” and resolved to resume by force pos-
Bitonfo. session of Bulama. He was gallantly beaten off; but the
difficulties and distresses of the colony continuing to in¬
crease, without any prospect of a successful issue, Beaver
took the first opportunity of conveying the remnant of his
colony to Sierra Leone. An expenditure of L.10,000 was
thus incurred to no purpose ; nor has any subsequent at¬
tempt been made to colonize either these islands or any
part of the adjoining coast.
BISSAO. See Bissagos.
BISSAT, Peter, professor of canon law in the univer¬
sity of Bologna, in Italy, was descended from the earls of
Fife in Scotland, and born in that county in the reign of
James V. He was educated at St Andrews, from which
he removed to Paris; and, having spent some time in that
university, proceeded to Bologna, where he commenced
doctor of laws, and was afterwards appointed professor of
canon law. He continued in that honourable employment
several years with great reputation, and died in the year
1568. He is said to have been not only a learned civilian,
but an excellent poet, orator, and philosopher. Patricii
Bissatti Opera omnia, including/wmata, orationes, lectiones
females, fyc. Lib. de Irregularitate, fyc. were published at
Venice in 1565, 4to.
BISSEXTILE, in Chronology, a year consisting of 366
days, being the same with our leap-year.
BISSOLEE, a district of Hindostan, in the province of
Lahore, belonging to the scheiks, extending along the west
side of the Ravey river, and situated between the thirty-
second and thirty-third degrees of N. latitude. The coun¬
try is covered with high hills, which extend with little
variation to Cashmere. The chief town is Bissolee, which
is situated on the north-west side of the Ravey river. It
is fortified, and commands the entrance into the northern
hills. It is seventy-three miles north-east from Lahore.
Long, 74. 52. E. Lat. 32. 22. N. Bissolee is also the name
of a ruined town in the province of Delhi.
BISTOURY, in Surgery, an instrument for making in¬
cisions, of which there are different kinds; some being of
the form of a lancet, others straight and fixed in the handle
like a knife, and others crooked, with the sharp edge on
the inside.
BISTRE, among painters, signifies the burnt oil extract¬
ed from the soot of wood. It is of a brown transparent
colour, having much the same effect in water-painting,
where alone it is used, as brown pink in oil.
BISZTRITZ, a district or circle in the Hungarian pro¬
vince of the Seven Mountains. It extends over 1025
square miles, or 656,000 acres, and contains one city and
fifty-five villages. It is an elevated tract of land, forming
a part of the range of the Carpathian Mountains, through
which is the pass of Rodna into Buckovina. The climate
is generally severe, and the summers late; but it produces
corn, flax, and fuel, and industry is applied to the rearing
of black-cattle. It is thinly inhabited. The capital, the
only town, bears the same name. It contains several
churches for the different sects, a provincial Latin school
or gymnasium, 765 houses, and 4850 inhabitants. Long.
24. 26. 13. E. Lat. 47. 5. 46. N.
BITHYNIA, an ancient kingdom of Asia, formerly
known by the names of Mysia, Mygdonia, Bebrycia, Mari-
andynia, and Bithynia. It was bounded on the west by
the Bosphorus Thracius and part of the Propontis, on the
south by the river Rhyndacus and Mount Olympus, on
the north by the Euxine Sea, and on the east by the river
Parthenius. The chief cities were Myrlea, Nicomedia,
Chalcedon, Heraclea, and Prusa.-
BITONTO, a city, the see of a bishop, in the province
of Bari, in the kingdom of Naples, on the great road from
BIZ
Foggia to Bari. It contains, besides the cathedral, twenty- i c.
four churches, and 14,200 inhabitants, who export the ex-
cellent wine known by the name of Zagarello.
BITTER, an epithet given to all bodies of an opposite
taste to sweetness.
Bitter, a sea-term, signifying any turn of the cable
about the bits, so that it may be let out by little and little.
When the ship is stopped by a cable, she is said to be
brought up by a bitter ; and that end of the cable which is
wound about the bits is called the bitter end of the cable.
BITTERFELD, a circle in the Prussian government
of Merseburg, in the province of Saxony, extending over
213 square miles, or 136,320 acres. It is a level and ra¬
ther sandy district, watered by the Mulda and its tribu¬
tary streams, producing no surplus production except wood,
and an insufficient supply of corn for food. It contains
five towns and eighty-four villages, with 5172 houses, and
30,445 inhabitants. The chief place, of the same name, is
a fortified city on the river Leber, with one Lutheran
church, and 2403 inhabitants.
BITTERN. See Ornithology, Index.
BITUMEN, in Mineralogy (Mineral Pitch, Asphaltum,
Erdpech), the most perfectly inflammable mineral known.
Of this there are three varieties, elastic, earthy, and slag-
gy; the first is distinguished by its softness and elasticity,
which, however, it partly loses on exposure to the air;
the second, by its dull earthy appearance, and softness
sufficient to take an impression from the nail; and the
third, from its more or less conchoidal fracture, corre¬
sponding to the degrees of lustre it possesses. The com¬
ponent parts of these, however, are the same; and except
in appearance and consistency, they do not differ from
the naphtha, petroleum, or mineral-oil, a fine colourless
fluid, which is first inspissated, becomes brown, and is
then changed into mineral pitch by exposure to the air.
Bitumen is usually of a black or brownish hue, is easily
inflammable, and burns with a bituminous smell, much
smoke, and a clear flame ; some varieties even melt at a
higher temperature. In specific gravity it varies consider¬
ably, from 0-828 to 1-160, according to its density; and in
composition it is principally made up of bituminous oil,
hydrogen gas, and charcoal. The elastic variety has been
found principally in the Odin mine at Castleton, in Der¬
byshire ; and from its property of taking up the traces of
a pencil in the same manner as Indian rubber, it has ob¬
tained the appellation of mineral caoutchouc. The earthy
species abounds in Trinidad, where it forms a lake said
to be three miles in circumference, and where, when mix¬
ed with grease or common pitch, it is used for paying the
bottoms of ships. It has also been met with in Persia, in
Dalmatia, and in the Hartz. The slaggy variety, again,
occurs, forming nodules in the lead mines of Matlock in
Derbyshire, at Hurlet near Paisley, imbedded in sand¬
stone in Albania, and in many parts of the continent. The
more liquid varieties of this mineral admit of considerable
application for illuminating, for fuel, in the manufacture
of varnish, &c.; and some of the harder kinds may be cut
into ornaments, in the same way as jet.
BIVALVES, a term sometimes used for such shells as
consist of two pieces. It is also an appellation given by
botanists to such pods or capsules as consist of two valves
inrlrKino* flip sppns.
BIUMBRES, in Geography, an appellation given to the
inhabitants of the torrid zone, by reason of their shadow s
being projected different ways at different seasons of t ie
year. The biumbres are the same with those otherwise
denominated amphiscii.
BIZARRE, denoting capricious, a term used among
florists for a particular kind of carnation, which has its
flowers striped or variegated with three or four colours.
Y td
B L A
B L A
655
BIZERTA, or Beuzert, a sea-port in the kingdom of
Tunis, on a gulf of the same name, which communicates
with a lake in the interior. It occupies the site of the
^ ancient Hippo, whose harbour, by means of a spacious pier
J protecting it from the north-east wind, was rendered one
of the safest and finest on this coast. This important work,
however, has been entirely neglected by the Turks, whence
the port has been choked up, and now receives only small
vessels. The place, however, is still about a mile in cir¬
cuit, defended by several strong castles and batteries. The
principal employment of the inhabitants consists in taking
fish, which are found in great abundance in. the adjoining
lake, particularly mullets, whose roes, dried and formed
into the substance called botargo, form a considerable ar¬
ticle of Mediterranean commerce. It is situated 30 miles
north of Tunis. Long. 9. 48. E. Lat. 37. 10. N.
BLAARDINGEN, a town in the province of South
Holland, in the Netherlands, on one of the branches of
the Maas, the chief seat of the herring fishery, w ith 6700
inhabitants.
BLACK, Dr Joseph, distinguished for his discoveries
in chemistry, was born in France, on the banks of the Ga¬
ronne, in the year 1728. His father was a native of Bel¬
fast, but descended from a Scottish family which had been
some time settled there. Mr Black, the father, was en¬
gaged in the wine trade; and for the purpose of carrying
it on, he resided chiefly at Bordeaux.
He is represented as a man of extensive information,
of candid and liberal sentiments, and of amiable manners ;
but particularly distinguished by the strength of his at¬
tachments, and the warmth of his heart. These amiable
and estimable qualities in the character of Mr Black
attracted the attention, and procured the friendship and
intimacy, of the discerning and benevolent Montesquieu,
who was one of the presidents of the court of justice in
the province while Mr Black resided at Bordeaux. Let¬
ters and fragments of correspondence between the presi¬
dent and Mr Black are still preserved in the family, as
precious relics and memorials of the intercourse, honour¬
able to both, which subsisted between that great man and
their ancestor.
Some time before Mr Black retired from business, he
sent his son Joseph, then in his twelfth year, to Belfast,
on account of his education ; and having completed the
usual course of instruction in a grammar school, he was
sent to the university of Glasgow in the year 1746. Dur¬
ing the time he studied at that seminary, his attention
seems to have been principally directed to physical science;
and he became a favourite pupil of Dr Dick, then profes¬
sor of natural philosophy. When Dr Black had finished
the ordinary course of general study at the university, he
made choice of the profession of medicine ; and he direct¬
ed his views to those pursuits and studies which were ne¬
cessary to qualify him for that profession.
About this time Dr Cullen was appointed to the
lectureship of chemistry in the university of Glasgow.
Hitherto the science had only been treated as a curious,
and in some respects a useful art. This great man, con¬
scious of his own strength, and taking a wide and com¬
prehensive view, saw the unoccupied field of philosophical
chemistry expanded before him. He was satisfied that
the science was susceptible of very great improvement by
means of liberal inquiry and rational investigation. He
was therefore determined to enter the unbeaten path,
and to conduct his followers to those unexplored regions
which are included in the wide range of this comprehen-
S1ve and attractive science. While these views were
opening in his mind, Black became the pupil of Dr Cul-
'en; and it was perhaps to this fortunate circumstance
that he was indebted for the foundation of his future
reputation as a philosopher and a chemist. The liberal Black,
and extensive views of Cullen happily accorded with theBr Joseph,
enlarged habits of thought which the young philosopher
had previously acquired. Dr Cullen took a deep interest
in the progress of his students. He delighted in encou¬
raging and aiding their efforts; and, therefore, perceiving
the bias of Black’s pursuits, soon attached him to himself.
By the intercourse and intimacy which followed, Black was
led into the same train of thought, and conducted into the
same course of studies ; he was received into a closer con¬
nection, and became a most valuable assistant in all Dr
Cullen’s chemical operations. The experiments of Black
were frequently adduced to prove facts which were stated
in the lecture, and they were considered as unexception¬
able authority. Thus commenced a mutual confidence
and friendship, which w as highly honourable to both, and
was never afterwards mentioned by Dr Black but with
gratitude and respect.
In the year 1751, Dr Black w'ent to Edinburgh to com¬
plete the course of his medical studies. There he resid¬
ed in the house of his cousin-german, Mr Russell, professor
of natural philosophy in that university, a gentleman of
enlarged views and liberal sentiments, whose conversation
and studies must have been both agreeable and profitable
to his young friend.
At this time the mode of action of lithontriptic medi¬
cines, but particularly lime-water, in alleviating the pains
of stone and gravel, divided the opinions of professors and
practitioners. This subject became extremely interesting
both to the physician and chemist. And as it is usual for
the students to enter warmly into those discussions which
give rise to much difference of opinion among their teach¬
ers, this subject, being quite suited to his taste, particular¬
ly attracted and interested the attention of Dr Black, who
was then one of Dr Cullen’s most zealous and intelligent
pupils. It appears from some of his memorandums, that
he at first held the opinion that the causticity of alkalies
was owing to the igneous matter which they derived from
quicklime. But having prosecuted his experiments on
magnesia, this grand secret of nature was laid open to his
view, and he was led to conclude that the acrimony of
these substances was not owing to their combination with
igneous particles ; that it formed their peculiar property ;
and that they lost this property and became mild by com¬
bining with a certain portion of air, to which he gave the
name offixed air, because it was fixed or became solid in
the substances into the composition of which it entered.
This grand discovery, which marks one of the most im¬
portant eras of chemical science, formed the subject of his
inaugural dissertation, published at the time when he was
admitted to his medical degree in the university of Edin¬
burgh. He had not availed himself of the time he had
studied at Glasgow, but took the whole course prescribed
by the rules of the university. This delay, it has been
supposed, may have been owing to the investigation of the
subject in which he had engaged not having been com¬
pleted ; which determined him to proceed with caution
till he had established his doctrine by a train of decisive
experiments.
About the time that Dr Black took his medical degree,
Dr Cullen was removed to Edinburgh, which created a
vacancy in the chemical chair at Glasgow. While he
remained at that university, Dr Black had been a diligent
and attentive student; and the discovery published in his
inaugural essay had added much to his reputation. He
was therefore looked up to as a person amply qualified to
fill the vacant chair; and accordingly, in the year 1756,
he was appointed professor of anatomy and lecturer on
chemistry in the university of Glasgow. And it was per¬
haps fortunate for himself, fortunate for the public and
BLACK.
656
Black, for science, that a situation so favourable presented itself;
Dr Joseph. a situation which allowed him full time to dedicate his ta-
lents to the cultivation of chemistry, which had now be¬
come his favourite science.
Along with the lectureship on chemistry, Dr Black’s first
appointment in the university of Glasgow was to the pro¬
fessorship of anatomy. But the latter branch of medical
study was either not so suitable to his taste, or he did not
consider himself so well qualified to be useful in it; for,
soon after, arrangements were made with the professor of
medicine, by which the professors exchanged departments,
Dr Black undertaking that of the institutes and practice
of medicine.
At this time his lectures on medicine formed his chief
occupation ; while the perspicuity and simplicity, the cau¬
tion and moderation, which he discovered in the doctrines
which he delivered, gave great satisfaction. The time
and attention which were occupied in these lectures, and
in the medical practice in some measure necessarily con¬
nected with his situation, are supposed by some to have
been the principal cause of Dr Black’s having suddenly
stopped short in that brilliant career on which he had at
first so successfully entered. It is more probable, how¬
ever, that the calm and unambitious temper which seems
to have formed a striking feature of his character, and
which a less friendly hand than his learned biographer
might have set down as nearly allied to indolence, checked
the ardour and perseverance which were necessary to
excite and carry him forward in the path of research
and discovery. Whatever may have been the cause, it is
to be regretted that Dr Black, so conspicuous for his pa¬
tient, judicious, and elegant mode of investigation, and so
distinguished for the simplicity, perspicuity, and precision
of his reasonings and deductions, should have contributed
so little in rearing the noble superstructure of chemical
science, the foundation of which he had been the means
of establishing on a firm and solid basis.
The theory of the nature of quicklime, and the cause of
its causticity, soon became known to the German chemists,
and from them it met with strong opposition. Various
mysterious doctrines at this time prevailed in the German
schools concerning the peculiar nature of fire ; and as the
notions there entertained of the causticity of alkaline sub¬
stances involved some of these doctrines, a great many ob¬
jections were started to a theory which threatened to over¬
throw long established and favourite opinions. The most for¬
midable opponent of the new theory was Professor Meyer
of Osnaburg. All the phenomena of the causticity and
mildness of lime and alkali were, according to his expla¬
nation, to be accounted for by the action of a substance
of a peculiar nature, to which he gave the name of acidum
pingue. This substance, which was supposed to be formed
in the lime during calcination, consisted of an igneous
matter in a certain state of combination with other sub¬
stances. It is a matter of some surprise that Dr Black
should have experienced any uneasiness on account of the
opposition made to this discovery on mere hypothesis un¬
supported by facts or even by plausible arguments, when
his own doctrine had been fully and irrefragably esta¬
blished by the test of decisive experiment. Nor is it less
surprising that, in the course of his lectures for several
years, he should have taken great pains in refuting the
arguments and in combating the objections of Meyer.
Dr Black’s reception at the university of Glasgow was
highly flattering and encouraging. As a student he had
not only done himself much credit by his successful pro¬
gress in the different pursuits in which he was engaged,
but he had also during his residence there conciliated, in
a high degree, the attachment and affection of the pro¬
fessors. When he returned as a professor, he immediate¬
ly became connected in the strictest friendship with Dr Bl
Adam Smith, then professor of moral philosophy in that Dr J ph
university; and the friendship thus commenced grew ^ ^ ®
stronger and stronger, and was never interrupted through¬
out the whole of their lives. A simplicity and sensibility,
an incorruptible integrity, the strictest delicacy, and sin¬
gular correctness of manners, marked the character of each
of these philosophers, and firmly bound them together in
the closest union.
At Glasgow Dr Black soon acquired great reputation as
a professor, and became a favourite physician in that large
and active city. His engaging countenance, his agree¬
able and attractive manners, free from all studied endea¬
vours to please, and the kind concern he took in the cases
intrusted to his care, made him a most welcome visitor in
every family.
It was between the years 1759 and 1763 that he brought
to maturity his speculations concerning heat, which had
occupied his attention at intervals, from the very first
dawn of his philosophical investigations. His discoveries
in this department of science were by far the most im¬
portant of all that he made, and perhaps indeed among
the most valuable which appeared during the busy period
of the eighteenth century. To enter fully into the na¬
ture of his investigations would be improper in this place ;
but the sum of them all was usually expressed by him in
the following propositions.
When a solid body is converted into a fluid, there en¬
ters into it and unites with it a quantity of heat, the pre¬
sence of which is not indicated by the thermometer; and
this combination is the cause of the fluidity which the
body assumes. On the other hand, when a fluid body is
converted into a solid, a quantity of heat separates from
it, the presence of which was not formerly indicated by
the thermometer; and this separation is the cause of the
solid form which the fluid assumes.
When a liquid body is raised to the boiling tempera¬
ture, by the continued and copious application of heat, its
particles suddenly attract to themselves a great quantity
of heat; and by this combination their mutual relation is
so changed that they no longer attract each other, but
are converted into an elastic fluid like air. On the other
hand, when these elastic fluids, either by condensation or
by the application of cold bodies, are reconverted into
liquids, they give out a vast quantity of heat, the pre¬
sence of which was not formerly indicated by the ther¬
mometer.
Thus water, when converted into ice, gives out 140° of
heat; ice, when converted into water, absorbs 140° of
heat; and water, when converted into steam, absorbs about
1000° of heat, without becoming sensibly hotter than 212°.
Philosophers had long been accustomed to consider the
thermometer as the surest method of detecting heat m
bodies; yet this instrument gives no indication of the 140°
of heat which enter into air when it is converted into
water, nor of the 1000° which combine with water when
it is converted into steam. Dr Black, therefore, said that
the heat is concealed (Jatet) in the water and steam; and
he briefly expressed this fact by calling the heat in that
case latent heat.
Dr Black having established this discovery by simple
and decisive experiments, drew up an account of the whole
investigation, and read it to a literary society which met
every Friday in the faculty-room of the college, consist¬
ing of the members of the university, and several gentle¬
men of the city who had a relish for philosophy and lite¬
rature. This was done on the 23d of April 1762, as ap¬
pears by the registers. The doctrine in question was im¬
mediately applied by its author to the explanation o a
vast number of natural phenomena; and in his experi-
BLACK.
657
pj a, mental investigations he was greatly assisted by his two
Pfjo:; celebrated pupils, Mr Watt and Dr Irvine.
' As Dr Black never published an account of his doctrine
of latent heat, although he detailed it every year subse¬
quent to 1762 in his lectures, which were frequented by
men of science from all parts of Europe, it became known
only through that channel; and this gave an opportunity
to others to pilfer it from him piece-meal. Dr Crawford’s
ideas respecting the capacity of bodies for heat were ori¬
ginally derived from Dr Black, who first pointed out the
method of investigating that subject.
The investigations of Lavoisier and Laplace concerning
heat, published many years after, were obviously borrow¬
ed from Dr Black, and indeed consisted in the repetition
of the very experiments which he had suggested. Yet
these philosophers never mention Dr Black at all; every
thing in their dissertation assumes the air of entire origi¬
nality ; and indeed they appear to have been at great pains
to prevent the opinions and discoveries of Dr Black from
being known among their countrymen. But perhaps the
most extraordinary proceeding was that of M. Deluc. This
philosopher had expressed his admiration of Dr Black’s
theory of latent heat, and had offered to become his edi¬
tor. Dr Black, after much entreaty, at last consented,
and the proper information was in consequence communi¬
cated to M. Deluc. At last the Idee sur la Meteorologie
of that philosopher appeared, in 1788. But great was the
astonishment of Dr Black and his friends when they found
the doctrine claimed by Deluc as his own, and an expres¬
sion of satisfaction at the knowledge which he had acquir¬
ed of Dr Black’s coincidence with him in opinion. M.
Deluc has, in his own vindication, published an answer to
this charge. See Edinburgh Review, No. 12, 1805.
Dr Black continued in the university of Glasgow from
1756 to 1766. In 1766 Dr Cullen was appointed profes¬
sor of medicine in the university of Edinburgh, and thus
a vacancy was produced in the chemical chair of that uni¬
versity. Dr Black was with universal consent appointed
his successor; and in the new scene on which he entered
his talents became more conspicuously and more exten¬
sively useful. But whilst he could not fail to be highly
gratified by the great concourse of pupils which the high
reputation of the medical school of Edinburgh attracted
to'his lectures, his mind was forcibly impressed with the
importance of his duties as a teacher. This had an effect
which, perhaps, was on the whole rather unfortunate. He
directed his attention exclusively to his lectures, and his
object was to make them so plain as to be on a level with
the capacity of the most illiterate of his hearers. The im¬
provement of the science seems to have been altogether
abandoned by him. And never did any man succeed more
completely. His pupils were not only instructed, but de¬
lighted. Many became his pupils merely in order to be
pleased; and this contributed greatly to extend the know¬
ledge of chemistry. It became in Edinburgh a fashion¬
able part of the accomplishment of a gentleman.
Perhaps also the delicacy of his constitution precluded
him from exertion; the slightest cold, the most trifling
approach to repletion, immediately affected his chest, oc¬
casioned feverishness, and, if continued for two or three
days, brought on a spitting of blood. Nothing restored
um but relaxation of thought, and gentle exercise. The
sedentary life to which study confined him was manifest-
J hurtful, and he never allowed himself to indulge in in¬
tense thinking, without finding these complaints sensibly
increased.
So completely trammelled was he in this respect, that
a .nugh his friends saw others disingenuous enough to
avail themselves of the novelties announced by Dr Black
m ns lectures, and therefore repeatedly urged him to
publish an account of what he had done, this remained Black,
unaccomplished to the last. Dr Black often began the Dr Joseph,
task, but was so nice in his notions of the manner in which
it should be executed, that the pains he took in forming
a plan of the work never failed to affect his health, and
oblige him to desist. Indeed he peculiarly disliked ap¬
pearing as an author. His inaugural dissertation was the
work of duty. His Experiments on Magnesia, Quicklime,
and other Alkaline Substances, was necessary to put what
he had indicated in his inaugural dissertations on a proper
foundation. His Observations on the more ready Freezing of
Water that has been Boiled, published in the Philosophical
Transactions for 1774, was also called for; and his Ana¬
lysis of the Waters of some Boiling Springs in Iceland,
made at the request of his friend T. I. Stanley, Esq. was
read to the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and published
by the council. And these are the only works of his
which appeared in print during his lifetime.
The aspect of Dr Black was comely and interesting.
His countenance exhibited that pleasing expression of in¬
ward satisfaction, which, by putting the beholder at his ease,
almost never fails to please. His manner was wholly un¬
affected and graceful. He was affable, and readily entered
into conversation, whether serious or trivial. He was a
stranger to none of the elegant accomplishments of life.
He had a fine musical ear, with a voice which obeyed it
in the most perfect manner; for he sung, and performed
on the flute, with great taste and feeling, and could execute
a plain air at sight, which many instrumental performers
cannot do. Without having studied drawing, he had ac¬
quired considerable power of expression with his pencil,
and seemed in this respect to have the talents of an histo¬
rical painter. Figure indeed of every kind attracted his
attention ; even a retort, or a crucible, was to his eye an
example of beauty or deformity.
He had the strongest claim to the appellation of a man
of propriety and correctness. He did every thing in its
proper season, and he always seemed to have leisure in
store. He loved society, and felt himself beloved in it;
and, throughout his whole life, he never lost a friend, ex¬
cept by the stroke of death.
The only apprehension he entertained was that of long-
continued sickness, less, perhaps, from any selfish feeling,
than from the consideration of the trouble and distress which
it would occasion to attending friends ; and never was this
generous wish more completely gratified. On the 26th of
November 1799, and in the seventy-first year of his age,
he expired without any convulsion, shock, or stupor, to an¬
nounce or retard the approach of death. Being at table
with his usual fare, some bread, a few prunes, and a mea¬
sured quantity of milk diluted with water, and having the
cup in his hand when the last stroke of the pulse was given,
he set it down on his knees, which were joined together,
and kept it steady with his hand in the manner of a per¬
son perfectly at his ease; and in this attitude he expired
without a drop being spilt, or a feature in his countenance
changed, as if an experiment had been required to show
to his friends the facility with which he departed. His ser¬
vant opened the door to tell him that some one had left
his name ; but getting no answer, stepped about half-way
towards him, and seeing him sitting in so easy a posture,
supporting his basin of milk with one hand, he thought
that he had dropt asleep, which sometimes happened after
his meals. He went back and shut the door; but before
he went down stairs, some anxiety which he could not ac¬
count for made him return and look again at his master.
Even then he was satisfied after coming pretty near, and
turned to go away; but returning a second time, and go¬
ing close up, he found his master a corpse. Sleep, says
the poet, is the kinsman of death. Dr Black found the
4 o
658
B L A
B L A
Black
Black.
Mail.
relationship very close indeed, and slept (we had almost
said slipt) away from time to eternity, by a transition so
easy as to be imperceptible even to the eye of affection.
Black, a well-known colour, supposed to result from
the absence of light, most of the rays falling upon black
substances being not reflected, but absorbed, by them.
Black-BooU of the Exchequer. See Exchequer.
BlacK-Books, a name given to those which treat of ne¬
cromancy, or, as some call it, negromancy. I he black-
book of the English monasteries was a detail of the scan¬
dalous enormities practised in religious houses, compiled
by order of the visitors under King Henry VIII. to blacken
these establishments, and thus hasten their dissolution.
BLACK-Forest, a forest of Germany, in Suabia, running
from north to south between Ortnau, Brisgau, part of Wir-
temburg, and the principality of Furstenburg, towards the
source of the Danube, as far as the Rhine above Basel.
It is part of the ancient Hercynian forest.
BLACK-Friars, a name given to the Dominican order,
who were called also predicants or preaching friars, in
France, jacobins.
BLACK-Lead, a name vulgarly applied to plumbago,
and improperly so, as being liable to cause mistakes; the
mineral used in the formation of pencils having no rela¬
tion whatever to any ore of lead.
Black-MoU, a certain rate of money, corn, cattle, or
other valuable, anciently paid by the inhabitants of towns
in Westmoreland, Cumberland, Northumberland, and Dur¬
ham, to divers persons on or near the borders, being men
of name, and allied with others in those parts, known to
be great robbers and plunderers, in order to be by them
freed and protected from pillage. This composition with
thieves, or rather the protectors and supporters of thieves,
was strictly prohibited by the 43 Elizabeth, c. 13, and in
point of fact seems to have been early checked in the
English border counties. But, in the Highlands of Scot¬
land, which were brought under the dominion of the law
at a much later period, the exaction of black-mail from the
lowland borderers continued in spite of every effort that
could be made to put it down, till after the quelling of the
insurrection in 1745.
Black-mail is defined by Dr Jamieson “ a tax or contri¬
bution paid by heritors or tenants, for the security of their
property, to those freebooters who were wont to make in¬
roads on estates, destroying the corns, or driving away the
cattleand such was the power of these freebooters, and
so feeble was the arm of the law, that this illegal contri¬
bution received, at one time, a kind of judicial sanction.
At all events, where the government could afford no pro¬
tection against the liftings or herschips practised by the
cearnachs and caterans, it would have been absurd to at¬
tempt, and impossible to enforce, any prohibition against
the prospective composition of such felonies, which were
of constant occurrence in the Highlands or on the borders.
Rob Roy Macgregor, one of the most noted of these free¬
booters, overawed the country as late as the year 1744,
and frequently robbed the Duke of Montrose’s factor of
the rents after they had been collected from the tenants,
and before they could be conveyed to his grace’s coffers.
With regard to the meaning of the word, Spelman thinks
that this illegal imposition received the name of black¬
mail from the poverty of those who were thus assessed,
and as being paid in black money, not in silver ; and Du
Cange adopts this idea with little variation, stating that
while brass money is called blanque or blanche maille, or
white money, by the French, the Saxons and English deno¬
minate it black, in opposition to silver, which they account
white money. But the more probable opinion is, that the
epithet black is here used in a moral sense, to indicate the
illegality or iniquity of the exaction. Wachter, however,
defines “ black-mail,” tributum pro redimenda vexa, deriv- B -
ing it from the German “ placken,” vexare, exagitare, M ks '
whence “ baurenplacker,” rusticorum exagitator; and
Schilter says that “ black-en” signifies jorarfan.
BLACK-Monks, a denomination given to the Benedictines, ^
who are called in Latin nigri monachi, and sometimes ordo
nigrorum, “ the order of blacks.”
BLACK SEA, or Euxine Sea, Pontus Euxinus of the Boi. I
ancients, is a large inland sea, bounded on the west byarie
Rumelia, Bulgaria, and Bessarabia; on the north by Rus¬
sian Tartary; on the east by Mingrelia, Circassia, and
Georgia; and on the south by Anatolia. It is entered
from the Mediterranean through the channel of the Dar¬
danelles, anciently the Hellespont, the Sea of Marmora or
Propontis, and the channel of Constantinople or Thracian
Bosphorus; and it is connected with the Sea of Azof,
or Palus Mceotis, by the strait between the Crimea and
the isle of Taman, anciently the Cimmerian Bosphorus,
and known by the various modern names of the Strait of
Caffa, of Yenikale, and of Taman.
Till within less than half a century, the extent of the Pre s. *
Black Sea, and the position of several of its principal capes, sm :o.
gulfs, and ports, were very imperfectly ascertained. But§ra
soon after the commencement of the French Revolution,
the National Institute sent M. Beauchamp to examine this
sea, and especially its southern shores. In this enterprise
he was much impeded by the jealousy of the Turks: ne¬
vertheless, he ascertained that Cape Kerempe, Carambis,
was placed in the charts too far to the south; that the
Gulf of Sansoun, Amisenus Sinus, was deeper than it is
commonly represented; and that Trebizond, the Tarabagan
of the Turks, anciently Trapezus, was five or six leagues
farther to the west than it appeared in the charts. But
recent travellers have discovered that even the Parisian
charts are inaccurate. According to Dr Clarke, the Isle
of Serpents, the Ulan-Adassi of the Turks, the Fidonisi
of the modern Greeks, and anciently Leuce, lies fifteen
minutes, and the port of Odessa twenty-seven minutes,
too far towards the north (Clarke’s Travels, i. 653); and
Mr Macgill ascertained, from two observations of his own,
compared with those of some captains who had navigated
this sea, that, in the French charts, even Cape Kerempe
is set down fifteen miles too far north, whilst Cape Aria,
or Careza, Kriu-Metopon, in the Crimea, is placed twenty-
two miles too far south. This, of course, makes a differ-
ence in the width of the sea at this place of thirty-seven
miles. (Macgill’s Travels, i. 195.)
According to the best authorities, which Mr Arrow- Ex it.
smith has followed in his maps of this sea, it lies between
41 and 46^- degrees of north latitude (the bottom of the
Bay of Sansoun penetrating nearly to the 40th degree,
and Cape Kerempe stretching out nearly to the 42d), and
between 28 and 41^ degrees of east longitude from Green¬
wich. This will give for its extreme breadth, from Cape
Baba in Anatolia to Odessa, about 380 miles, and for its
extreme length, from the coast of Rumelia to the mouti
of the Phasis, 932 miles. The Black Sea, however, may
be considered as divided into two parts, by Cape Aria
on the south of the Crimea, and Cape Kerempe on the
coast of Paphlagonia; the former lying in about 44L and
the latter in about 42 degrees of north latitude. Bot
these capes being high land, vessels sailing between them
can discover the coast on either side. The circumference
of the Black Sea is about 3800 miles. t . , |
The first navigators of Greece who ventured into t us - *
sea having been repulsed or massacred by some or t e
fierce tribes inhabiting its coasts, their countrymen gave
it the name of Pontus Axenos, or “ sea unfriendly °
strangers.” But when the repeated visits of the Gree s
had rendered these tribes more familiar with strangeis,
BLACK SEA.
659
»a, and commercial intercourse had softened down the origi-
J nal ferocity of their character, Grecian colonies were esta¬
blished at different points on the shores of this sea, and
the epithet Axenus was changed into Euxinus, which has
a direct contrary import, and means “friendly to strangers.”
It derives its modern name either from the dense fogs
which frequently cover it, or from the dangers of its navi¬
gation arising from these fogs; from the sudden and vio¬
lent storms to which it is exposed; and from the shallows
hitherto unnoticed in any chart.
The opinion of the ancients, that the Black Sea was for¬
merly much more extensive than it is at present, and that
it did not originally communicate with the Mediterranean,
is adopted by many modern authors of note, particularly
by Tournefort, Buffon, Pallas, and Dr Clarke, and seems to
be confirmed by several circumstances. Immense strata
of limestone, consisting almost entirely of mineralized
sea-shells, may be traced from the Black Sea to the north¬
ward as far as the 48th degree of latitude, or about a de¬
gree and a half beyond the most northerly point of its
northern shore; and Pallas, in the third and seventh vo¬
lumes of his Travels, has pointed out traces of its hav¬
ing formerly extended over the whole desert of Astracan
and Jaik. The evidences derived from the appearance of
the present coast of this sea are still less equivocal in sup¬
port of the diminution of its waters. Pliny expressly states
that Taurida or the Crimea was not only once surrounded
by the sea, but that the sea covered all that portion of it
which is at present champaign country. Now, from the
mouths of the Dnieper to those of the Don there are found
continuous layers of marine shells ; and if we suppose the
waters of the Black Sea to be restored only to the level of
these layers, the Crimea will again appear as an island. The
alluvial nature of more than three fourths of the soil of
Crimea Proper to the north, the numerous salt lakes and
marshes, and the remains of marine productions of vari¬
ous kinds which are found there, sufficiently confirm the
latter part of Pliny’s statement.
1 The ancients also believed that the communication be¬
tween the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, and the conse-
j^quent diminution of the waters of the former, was effected
by the bursting of the Thracian Bosphorus, at the period
of the great deluge which inundated Greece; and this tra¬
dition seems to be confirmed by a reference to existing na¬
tural phenomena. The cliffs and hills at the mouth of the
Bosphorus are composed of enormous pebbles, which ap¬
pear to have undergone the action of fire, and afterwards
to have been rounded by long attrition in water. On
the point of the European light-house there are immense
masses of hard and compact lava; and the rock of which
the Cyanean Isles consist appears to have been more or
less modified by fire, and to have been cemented during
the boiling of a volcano. On the Asiatic side of the strait, a
little to the eastward of the Anatolian light-house, there is
also a range of basaltic pillars, exhibiting very regular pris¬
matic forms. From the consideration of all these circum¬
stances, and from comparing events recorded in history
with the phenomena of nature, Dr Clarke considers it more
ffian a conjectural position, “ that the bursting of the
Thracian Bosphorus, the deluge mentioned by Diodorus
^iculus, and the draining of the waters which once united
the Black Sea to the Caspian, and covered the great oriental
plain of Tartary, were all the consequences of earthquakes
caused by subterranean fires, described as still burning at
die time of the passage of the Argonauts, and the effects
of which are visible even at this hour.” (Vol. i. p. 680.)
It is proper to mention, that Olivier does not coincide
with other naturalists respecting the former extent of the
Black Sea, or the bursting of the Thracian Bosphorus.
The northern and western coasts of this sea have under¬
gone, and are still undergoing, considerable changes ; but Black Sea.
the southern coast, consisting chiefly of calcareous rocks, is
nearly in the same state in which it was in the time of the Changes in
ancients. According to Valerius Flaccus, the gulfs and bayslts coasts'
in the northern and western coasts were extremely deep;
most of these, however, are now all either entirely filled up
or very much contracted. In proof that the Black Sea and
the Sea of Azof are still sustaining a diminution of their
waters, it may be stated that ships which formerly sailed
to Taganrog and the mouths of the Don, are now unable
to approach either the one or the other; that the Sea of
Azof has become so shallow, that, during certain winds,
a passage may be effected by land from Taganrog to
Azof, through the bed of the sea; and that the isthmus
connecting the Cyanean Isles with the Continent, which
does not appear to have existed in the time of Strabo,
appears to be increasing. On the southern coast of the
Black Sea there is, as far as we know, only one instance
of a recession of the waters : the channel which formerly
divided the village of Amasrah, Amastris, is now entirely
filled up, and forms a low isthmus.
A rapid current, which generally flows at the rate of a Currents,
league an hour, the influence of which is felt at the dis-winds, and
tance of ten miles from land, where it begins to take an-0^111316,
other direction, sets from the Black Sea into the Bos¬
phorus. Sometimes, however, the long continuance of a
strong south-westerly wind effectually counteracts this cur¬
rent. The Black Sea, from its particular form, being like
a basin, into which many large rivers pour their streams,
is full of currents, particularly in summer, when the rivers
are increased by the melting of the snows; and when strong
winds act against these currents, a high sea is produced.
North-east winds prevail from June to August inclusive;
but the most prevalent winds at other seasons of the year
are from the south and south-west. The general climate of
the Black Sea is cold and humid; the winters are long,
and frequently very severe; but the navigation is free of
impediment from ice till the beginning of November, and
often much later. The quantity of fresh water conveyed
into this sea renders it brackish, and liable to freeze
with a moderate degree of cold. It is calculated by some
authors, particularly Tournefort (ii. 404), and the abbe
Barthelemy ( Voyage dAnacharse, tome i. c. 1), that the
volume of water it receives is much greater than that which
it discharges into the Mediterranean. Dr Clarke, how¬
ever, is of opinion that the rivers which fall into the Black
Sea and the Sea of Azof do not communicate more water
than flows through the canal of Constantinople ; and hence
he concludes, that, admitting the effect of evaporation, the
level of the Black Sea is insensibly falling.
The Black Sea receives a considerable portion of the Rivers,
fresh waters of Europe, as well as of Asia Minor. The
Danube collects the waters of a great part of Germany,
Hungary, Bosnia, Servia, Transylvania, Moldavia, Wal-
lachia, and Bulgaria. The Dniester, Bog, Don, and
Dnieper, discharge into it those of a part of Russia and
Poland. The Phasis collects those of Mingrelia; and
the Sangaris, and Kisil-Irmak, or Halys, part of those of
Anatolia.
In the Black Sea are found the tunny fish, which enters Fishes,
it to spawn; sturgeon, sterlet, porpoise, mackarel, sole,
turbot of two kinds, whiting, and roach. Some writers
also speak of herrings entering this sea in shoals, but it is
probable that they are only large sprats. Their appear¬
ance, however, is considered symptomatic of a good stur¬
geon season. It abounds with a species of sea-worm, four
or five inches long, with a head like an arrow, and a body
consisting of a whitish mucilage. These worms are very
destructive to ships.
We shall begin our survey of the coasts and ports of this
060
black sea.
ports of
Rumelia.
Coast and
ports of
Bulgaria.
Black Sea. sea, at its entrance from the Bosphorus, and proceed along
w-v-'w' its western shores. Off each point of the entrance of the
Coasts jmd Bosphorus from the Black Sea is a group of rocky islets,
which retain their ancient name of Cyanean Islands.
These have been already described. From the Bosphorus
to Kara-Kerman, which lies within a few miles of the south¬
ernmost branch of the Danube, the coast is lined by the
mountainous ridge of the Balkan or Hcemus., which termi¬
nates at Cape Emeniah, Hcemi extrema. The valleys between
these mountains form little coves, where vessels are laden
with the timber of theBalkan for Constantinople, dhe fo¬
rest of Belgrade, which takes its name from a village near
Constantinople, extends along the south-western side of
the Black Sea for about 100 miles. Incada, Thenias, lies
on this coast in 41° 52' north latitude. On the northern
side of the harbour there is good anchorage ; it is only ex¬
posed to winds from the east and south-east, and is suffi¬
ciently spacious to contain a fleet; but a heavy sea enters
it when those winds blow to which it is exposed. Its
chief export is charcoal to Constantinople. At the head
of the Gulf of Foros, which is bounded on the south by
Cape Emeniah, and runs into the land nearly the same
distance, is Bourgas, which exports a considerable quan¬
tity of wool, iron, corn, butter, cheese, and wine, to Con¬
stantinople. The Gulf of Foros, which is four or five leagues
wide, contains several roads fit for the largest ships.
On the coast of Bulgaria is Varna, or Barna, anciently
Odessus, or, as some think, Dionysiopolis, situated at the
mouth of a river, which forms a large lake called Dewina,
and extensive marshes. This town, which derives its mo¬
dern name from the small river that discharges itself into
the sea below its ramparts, anciently Ziras, is celebrated
for the siege it sustained, and the long and gallant defence
it made, during the late war between Russia and Turkey.
The possession of the place was indispensable to the Rus¬
sians, in order to insure their communications by sea; but,
had it not been for the treason of Jussuf Pasha, the second
in command, there is no reason to believe they would
ever have succeeded in making themselves masters of it.
Varna formerly exported provisions to Constantinople.
Kara-Kerman, Istropolis, is a large village on the beach,
off which lie several shoals that oblige vessels to anchor
about a league to the south. Its principal export is corn.
From Kara-Kerman to Actiar, in the Crimea, the coast
is very low, and the shoals formed by the rivers run off to a
considerable distance. The Danube discharges itself into
the Black Sea between Bulgaria and Bessarabia, by seven
mouths, among swampy islands and shifting banks. The
most frequented mouth is about a hundred fathoms wide and
three fathoms deep ; its stream runs out at the rate of three
miles an hour. So great is the extent over which the
waters of this river diffuse themselves, from the shallow¬
ness of the sea, that at the distance of three leagues from
its mouth the water is almost fresh, and within one league
it is perfectly fit for use. A very singular appearance-
takes place near the mouths of the Danube : The porpoise,
which everywhere else exhibits a dark colour, is there per¬
fectly white ; and hence, as soon as the Greek mariners
descry the white porpoise, they have no doubt that they
are in the current of the Danube, although in thirty fa¬
thoms water, and many leagues distant from its mouth.
Opposite the mouths of this river is Serpents Island, al¬
ready noticed. Kilia-nova is a port of small consequence,
at one of the mouths: it might, however, be rendered
highly important for exporting the productions of Hun¬
gary, if the navigation of the river were not obstructed by
the jealousy of the Turks.
Coasts and The Russian province of Cherson is divided from Bess-
ports of arabia by the Dniester, anciently Tyros. A bank before it
forms two channels; that on the west being called the
Mouths of
the Da¬
nube,
Cherson.
channel of Constantinople, and that on the east the El;
channel of Ockzakoff. The one is 150 fathoms broad, ^
and the other eighty fathoms ; but neither has more than
eight feet water. Akennan, on the south bank of this river,
has some export trade in corn, wool, wine, wood, hides,
andbutter. Between the Dniester and Dnieper stands
Odessa, the most flourishing port in the Black Sea. It
owes its prosperity, not so much to any natural advan¬
tages, as to the wise administration of the Duke of Riche¬
lieu while he was governor of this province. It is situated
close to the coast, which is here very lofty, and much ex¬
posed to the winds, especially from the east. In order to
render it a safe and commodious port, the duke caused a
harbour to be formed, in which ships of no small burden
might ride secure from every storm. He also built a large
mole, extending half a werst into the sea; with several small
ones, and a handsome quay, a werst and a half in length.
The roads without the port are safe in summer, and the
anchorage is good. Odessa labours under the want of a
navigable river, and a great scarcity of fresh water. In the
year 1805 the number of vessels entered at this port was
595, of which twenty-seven were under the English flag,
and 264 Austrian, owned by the merchants of Trieste, but
employed as the carriers of Spain and Portugal. In the
year 1816, up to the 28th of June, 498 ships had entered
Odessa, bringing merchandise to the value of one and a
half million of rubles, besides a very large quantity of
specie. During the same period, there sailed 246 ships
laden with Russian produce, to the amount of 15,220,000
rubles, including above 324,000 quarters of wheat. The
principal imports are wine, chiefly French, some rum, raw
silk, coffee, sugar, oil, soap, sulphur, fruit, linen cloth,&C
but all in rather limited quantities. The great article of
export is wheat, which, however, in the opinion of Mr
Macgill, is very far inferior to that of Taganrog, being
soft, and apt to heat; besides this, grain, rye, barley, oats,
tallow, and tallow candles, bees-wax, iron, hemp, &c. are
exported.
The Dnieper, Borysthenes, which separates the Russian
provinces of Cherson and Taurida, forms, near its mouth,
a shallow and marshy lake, two and a half miles broad
abreast of Ockzakoff, but more at the confluence of the
Bog. The entrance is almost closed by shifting sand
banks, between which there are seldom more than five feet
water. The river continues frozen from the middle of De¬
cember till the middle of February; and in the month of May
it overflows its banks, leaving stagnant lagoons in all the low
country. The Bog, Hypanis, falls into the Gulf of Leman,
or estuary of the Dnieper. There is a very small island
opposite the mouth of the latter river, almost inaccessible
on account of its perpendicular cliffs of rock and clay.
Ockzakoff is an inconsidei'able port, lying at the junction of
these rivers ; its harbour is perfectly secure, but the little
trade it formerly possessed has been drawn away to Odessa.
Opposite to Ockzakoff is Kinburn, which, before the build¬
ing of Cherson, was intended by the Russians as their prin¬
cipal depot for the merchandise sent from the provinces
bordering on the Dnieper. The extension of the Russian
dominions in the west has caused even Cherson, on the
right bank of the Dnieper, to be superseded by Odessa.
Yet corn, hemp, and other articles of exportation, are so
much cheaper and more plentiful here, that many foreign
vessels still prefer this port, though they are obliged fust
to perform quarantine, and unload their cargoes at Odessa.
The Dnieper is five miles wide at Cherson, but only ves¬
sels drawing six feet can ascend to it. The Russians,
however, have a large arsenal here, and build line-of-ba -
tie ships, which are floated down the river on machines,
and afterwards conveyed to Ockzakoff to be equipped
Nicolaief, on the Bog, a fine river, without bar or catarac ,
ac lea.
w
B L A C K S E A. - 661
Soutl)
(coast1
'Criro
a. and with deep, still water, is the station for vessels when
rTj j ]3Uiit; and here they are laid up to be repaired. It has
extensive marine arsenals, and, next to Sevastopol, is one
of the most important naval stations on the Black Sea.
The southern coast of the Crimea is lofty and precipi-
ie tons ; the mountains beginning at Balacklava, Portus Sym-
bolorum, and extending to Caffa, Theodosia. Some of these
are celebrated in antiquity, and are no less remarkable for
their formation and appearance. The mountain Tchedir-
dagh, Trapezus, rises abruptly from the coast about Alusta
to the height of 1200 or 1300 feet; it exhibits a mass of
limestone very compact, of a gray colour, and, according
to Pallas, yielding a slightly fetid odour on being rubbed.
The most remarkable headland of the Crimea is Cape Tar-
chanskoi, called by the Tartars Aya Burun, or the Sacred
Promontory, probably the Parthenium of Strabo; one of
the loftiest mountains in the Crimea, terminating abruptly
in the sea, and forming the western point of the peninsula.
It consists entirely of marble. On the southern point is
Cape Aria, Kriu-Metopoyi, formerly noticed.
yesl The first port of note on the western coast of the Crimea
coast he is Kosloff, or Eupatoria, from which, in 1793, 176 vessels
Criri were freighted with corn, salt, and leather; but at present
its commerce is nearly annihilated. Sebastopol, formerly
Actiar, Ctenus, is the chief station of the Russian Black
Sea fleet, to which indeed it is exclusively appropriated,
no merchant ship being allowed to enter it except in dis¬
tress. The natural advantages of this harbour are very
great. The largest vessels may lie within a cable’s length
of the shore. The harbour is divided into three coves,
something resembling that of Malta. The principal branch
runs eastward, and is terminated by the valley and little
river of Inkerman. Here the fleets of the world might
ride in security, and have convenient anchorage; and in
any of the ports, vessels find from 21 to 70 feet depth
of water, and good anchorage. On a tongue of high land
between the two southern creeks stands the admiralty
and store-houses. The great bay of Actiar also bears the
name of the roads, and here the Russian fleet is frequently
at anchor. The port of Balacklava is separated from that
of Actiar by a narrow peninsula. It is one of the most re¬
markable in the Crimea, appearing from the town land¬
locked by high precipitous mountains. Its entrance is so
extremely narrow, that only one ship can pass at a time ;
but within the port it is three quarters of a mile long
and 400 yards broad. It is secure from storms in all wea¬
ther, and ships of war of any size or rate may find in it suf¬
ficient depth of water. The mountains which surround it
are of red and white marble, and the shore in some parts
is covered with gold-coloured mica, in a state of extreme
division. This port is closed against the vessels of all
nations, not excepting Russians, to prevent smuggling.
Caffa lies on a bay capable of containing several hundred
merchant vessels, but is exposed towards the east and
south-west. It formerly carried on an extensive trade in the
Black Sea, but it is now of very little consequence. Kert-
che, Ponticapeum, on a peninsula, Chersonesus Cimmeria,
stretching into the strait of Taman, and Yenikale at the
extremity of the same peninsula, are small ports, chiefly
mhabited by fishermen.
Ana i c°ast of Anatolia, on the Black Sea, extends to the
Kasd-Irmak, which falls into the sea a little to the west of
the Gulf of Sansoun. It is lined by high mountains, termi¬
nating in lofty promontories, and forming a steep and clean
coast, with numerous little coves, into most of which small
rivulets fall. The most remarkable headlands are Cape
P 'Mili, east of Erekli; Cape Kerempe, the north point
0 Asia Minor, very high land, with breakers off it; and
ape Indji, a low point to the west of Sinope. The prin-
C1pal rivers on this coast, besides the Eisil-Innak, Halys,
and the Sakaria, Sangarius, already noticed, are the Falios, Black Sea.
Billceus, and the Barthin, Parthenius. The only port of con-
sequence is Sinope or Sinoub, strongly situated on the nar¬
row and low isthmus of a rocky peninsula. The mole which
formed its port is nearly in ruins. The depth of water is
twelve feet. There is, however, a good road for the lar¬
gest ships, and Turkish vessels of war were formerly built
here. Sinope is the nearest port on the Black Sea to An¬
gora, the only place hitherto known that supplies the fine
goats’ hair of commerce.
From the Kisil-Irmak to Yona the coast is named Roum Coast of
by the Turks. The chief places are Sansoun, Amisus, on^vm
the Jekyl Irmak, which falls into the deep Gulf of San¬
soun ; Fatsa, Polemonium, at the mouth of the Sidemus;
Budjiah and Vona, Poona, on the cape of the same name.
From Vona the coast takes the name of the tribes that of the La-
inhabit it. The Laziens, Lazi, occupy the coast from Vona ziens.
to the Batouni. The principal port on this coast is Trebi-
zond, which, although it can admit only small vessels, has
nevertheless a considerable trade. One hundred and fifty or
two hundred small craft annually sail to Taganrog, with
nardek, a marmalade of grapes, and beckmiss, a syrup made
for the use of the distilleries there. Next to the Laziens, Coast of
the Gurions occupy the coast as far as the Rioni or Phasis. the Gu-
At its mouth this river is sixty fathoms deep and half ar^ons*
league broad, but there is a small island in the midst of its
channel. The only port in the country of the Gurions is
Poti, to which the merchants of Georgia resort. The Coast of
Mingrelians occupy the country of the ancient Colchians. Mingrelia.
In this tract there is no port of consequence. The Abasses
occupy the coast from Isgarur to the Strait of Yenikale, as
far as AnafFa or Anapa. This coast is very elevated, the
Caucassian mountains approaching close to the sea. Near
Soudjuk is a very lofty promontory called Varda. From
Anapa to the straits the coast is low. Some small ves¬
sels were built at Anapa by the Turks. The Kuban, ify-xhe Ku-
panis, receives most of the waters of the western side of ban.
Caucasus. Near its mouth it divides into two branches,
one of which falls into the sea of Azof, and the other
into the Black Sea. The marshy isle of Taman is formed
by it; and on this island is Fana Jona, a place of some trade.
The commerce of the Black Sea, in ancient times, was Commerce
successively in the possession, of the Phoenicians, Egyp-ofthe
tians, Greeks, and Romans. From the last it passed to the Black Sea.
Greeks of the Lower Empire; and from them to the Vene¬
tians and the Genoese. CafFa was the principal entrepot of
the commerce of the Genoese with the East, and the port
at which was deposited all the merchandise which had
been transported to the Black Sea. By the capture of
Constantinople in 1454, this commerce was nearly destroy¬
ed; and by the capture of CafFa in 1476 it was complete¬
ly annihilated. One of the favourite objects of Peter the
Great was to obtain a share in the commerce of this sea,
which the subjects of the Porte were alone permitted to
navigate. In 1699 he succeeded in subduing Azof and the
country round it; but by the unfortunate battle of Pruth,
in 1711, he was compelled to relinquish his conquests.
His successors, however, especially Catherine II., aimed at
the same object. This enterprising sovereignly the treaty
of Ka'inardgy in 1774, and afterwards by the treaty of
Jassy in 1791, completely accomplished her object; the
Turks being obliged to surrender a part of Lesser Tartary
and the Crimea, to allow the Russians to establish a navy
in the Black Sea, and to permit their flag a free passage
through the Dardanelles. In 1784 the Porte granted the
privilege of navigating the Black Sea to the Austrians.
But no other European nation obtained this privilege,
although the French carried on a considerable trade under
the Russian and Imperial flags, till after the conquest of
Egypt by the French, when a treaty was concluded be-
BLACK SEA.
662
Black Sea. tween the French government and the Porte, by which
the latter granted to the former the free navigation of this
sea. At the peace of Amiens the navigation was opened
to the Prussian, Spanish, Neapolitan, Dutch, Ragusan,
and English merchant flags; and all these nations were
allowed to have resident consuls in the Turkish ports of
this sea. The English, however, by secret treaties with
the Turks, in the reign of James I. and Charles I., had
been allowed to navigate this sea; and in 1799 this privi¬
lege was renewed.
Soon after the peace of Amiens, the commerce of this
sea increased considerably, and in 1803 no less than 815
vessels entered the Russian ports from the Mediterranean,
most of them coming in ballast and returning with corn.
Of these 815 vessels, 421 were Austrians, 329 Russians,
18 Ragusans, 16 Ionian Islanders, 15 French, 7 English,
6 Hydriots, and 3 Spaniards ; while 552 loaded at Odessa,
210 at Taganrog, 23 at Caffa, 19 at Kosloff, 7 at Sebas¬
topol, and 4 at Cherson ; and there were destined, 186 for
Trieste, 144 for Messina, 103 for Cephalonia, 72 for Genoa,
57 for Leghorn, 26 for Corfu, 24 for Barcelona, 19 for
Marseilles, 10 for Naples, 8 for Malta, 7 for Tchesme, 4
for Zante, and 155 sailed without declaring their destina¬
tion, on account of the war. But in order to give a strict¬
ly accurate view of the commerce of the Black Sea at this
period, the 210 vessels which loaded at Taganrog ought
to be deducted from the total number of 815 above men¬
tioned.
The Russian exports from and imports to the different
places on this sea were, in
Exports. Imports.
1802 3,000,000 rubles 2,055,000
1804  5,000,000 4,200,000
1805  7,400,000 5,356,000
In the year 1802, thirty-six vessels, and 266 small craft,
were employed by Russia in the coasting trade of this
sea. There is also a considerable trade between the Rus¬
sian ports and Constantinople and Smyrna, carried on en¬
tirely by Greek vessels under Russian colours.
We have not been able to procure accurate returns of the
total amount of exports and imports since the year 1805,
owing to the loose and inaccurate manner in which the dif¬
ferent writers on the commerce of the Black Sea, subse¬
quently to that period, treat of the subject; but all the par¬
ticulars we have been able to. collect appear to warrant the
inference, that it has latterly been greatly extended. This
is clearly demonstrable in regard to the trade with Odessa;
and although that with the other commercial ports may
not have received a corresponding extension, it neverthe¬
less seems reasonable to conclude that a considerable im¬
provement has also taken place. In the year 1817 there
entered the harbour of Odessa no less than 1925 vessels
of all descriptions. Of these 480 w ere Russian, 188 Aus¬
trian, 154 English, 43 French, 18 Spanish, 7 Danish, 31
Sardinian, 7 Neapolitan, 49 Swedish, 2 Sicilian, and 65
Turkish vessels, or 1044 in all, most of which arrived in
ballast; besides 881 Russian vessels employed in the
coasting trade: thus making a total of 1925, as already
mentioned. Those wdiich cleared out wrere 420 Russian,
182 Austrian, 147 English, 43 French, 18 Spanish, 7 Da¬
nish, 31 Sardinian, 6 Neapolitan, 48 Swedish, 1 Sicilian,
and 30 Turkish vessels, or 933 in all, besides 852 Russian
vessels engaged in the coasting trade, which sailed for
the different ports on the shores of this sea; whilst 140
wintered at Odessa. From this statement it appears, that,
taking the increase in the number of ships which entered
and cleared out as a rough measure of the extension of
traffic, the commerce of Odessa alone, in the year 1817,
more than doubled the entire commerce of the Black Sea
in the year 1803;—a rapid advancement, certainly, in the
short space of fourteen or fifteen years. In the course ofBlac »e
the late war. between Turkey and Russia, however, this^ \j
improvement, which, up to the declaration of hostilities,
had continued steadily progressing, received a severe
check, and a great number of mercantile houses were in
consequence completely ruined. But since the re-esta¬
blishment of peace at Adrianople in 1829, trade and com¬
merce have begun to revive, and will probably soon resume
their former activity. The resources of the countries along
the shores of this sea are, in fact, incalculable, and re¬
quire only the security of peace and the stimulus of com¬
mercial enterprise fully to develope them.
The principal articles of commerce afforded by the Prii
countries on the Black Sea are wheat, rice, tobacco, hides, artii iof
tallow, hare-skins, honey, wax, iron, and yellow grains forCOffl to.
dyeing, from Rumelia and Bulgaria, by the ports of Varna
and Bourgas. The same articles, with the addition of wool,
butter, hemp, masts, ship-timber, and pitch, are exported
from Moldavia and Wallachia, by Rutschuk and Galatzon
the Danube. From Bessarabia by Ovidopol, and from the
province of Cherson by Odessa, Akermann, and Cherson,
come corn, oak-timber, hides, tallow, tar, shagreen, wax,
honey, hemp, sail-cloth, and wool;—from the Crimea by the
ports of Actiar, Kosloff, and Caffa, corn, wool, wax, honey,
dried and salted hides, deer-skins, morocco leather, sheep¬
skins, salted and dried fish, potash, felt, caviar, wine, silk,
and saltpetre;—from the countries on the Sea of Azof by
the port of Taganrog and Mariapol, iron, of which Con¬
stantinople and Smyrna require about 60,000 quintals each,
dried fish, caviar, butter, hides, tallow, wheat, timber,
furs, sail-cloth, cordage, hemp, linens, wax, and wool;—
from Anatolia by the ports of Erekli, Amasreh, Ineboli,
Sinope, and Uniah, hides, dried fruits, linens, linen
thread, wax, honey, hemp, copper, and ship-timber;—from
the countries of the Laziens and Gurions, principally by
Trebizond, all the above articles, except ship-timber;—
and from Mingrelia, and the country of the Abasses, prin¬
cipally by Soudjuk and Anapa, slaves, timber, box-wood,
wool, silk, furs, butter, hides, wax, and honey. The trade
to those coasts is entirely carried on by a few Greeks
of Constantinople, and is very insignificant.
In 1807 the Russian Black Sea fleet consisted of twelveEu; m
sail of the line, four frigates, seven brigs and cutters, andflee1^*
eighteen small craft, besides a flotilla composed of fortyBla"
gun-boats and eighty falconets. In 1829 it was composed
of eleven sail of the line, of which two (the Paris and the
Emperor of France) were of 110 guns each, being built
after the model of the Royal Sovereign, Lord Colling-
wood’s vessel; of three sixty gun ships; five forty-four gun
frigates, a twenty-eight gun sloop, four corvettes of twen¬
ty-four guns each, eight brigs of from sixteen to twenty
guns, two brigantines of ten guns, twTo bomb-vessels, two
schooners and four cutters of twelve guns each, four yachts,
four steam-vessels, and twenty-one armed transports;
making a total of seventy-one sail. Every ship of this
fleet was built at Nicolaief, under the direction of Admiral
Grieg. The vessels were manned in the same way as the
Russian Baltic fleet; that is, an equipage or crew of a
thousand men was allotted for a ship of the line, a frigate,
and a brig. The officers consisted of Russians, Germans,
French, Greeks, and Italians; the admiral being the only
officer of British extraction on board. This force per¬
formed essential services during the late contest between
Russia and Turkey; and as the fleet of the latter had
been destroyed at Navarin, it enjoyed a complete and un¬
disputed ascendency in the Black Sea. (
See Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 169 ; Clarke s Tra¬
vels, vol. i. 4to edition; Macgill’s Travels in Turkey, &c.
vol. i.; Coxe’s Travels, vol. iii. 8vo edition ; Tuckey s Ma¬
ritime Statistics, vol. ii.; Essai Historique sur le Commerce
B L A
L jjlac n et la Navigation de la Mer Noire, par le Baron de Saint
j | Joseph, Paris, 1820; Rottier, Itineraire de Tiflis d Con-
llacj?- stantinople, 1829; and Alexander’s Travels to the Seat of
^ J War in the. East through Russia and the Crimea in 1829.
Black- Tin, a denomination given by the miners to the
tin-ore when dressed, stamped, washed, and ready for
being smelted. It is prepared by means of beating and
washing; and when it has passed through several buddies
or washing-troughs, it is taken up in the form of a black
powder, like fine sand, called black-tin.
Black- Wad, an ore of manganese, of which, according
to Klaproth, it contains sixty-eight per cent. It is of a
brown or black colour, opake, very sectile, and soils the
fingers on being touched. Though its specific gravity is
>. as high as 3-706, it appears very light when lifted in "the
hand, but imbibes water with violence, and is no sooner
immersed in it than it sinks. Mixed with linseed oil it
undergoes a spontaneous combustion. The localities of
black-wad are particularly Devonshire and Cornwall, where
it occurs accompanying other ores of manganese. The
dentritic delineations, often so beautiful upon limestone,
steatite, and other substances, are supposed to derive their
colouring matter from this mineral.
Black- Whytlof, in our old writers, bread of a middle
fineness, between white and brown, called in some parts
“ ravel-bread.” In religious houses it was the bread made
for ordinary guests, and distinguished from their house¬
hold loaf, or panis conventualis, which was pure manchet,
or white bread.
Black- Work, iron wrought by the blacksmiths, and so
called in contradistinction to that wrought by white¬
smiths.
BLACK ALL, Offspring, bishop of Exeter in the be¬
ginning of the eighteenth century, was born at London in
the year 1654, and educated at Catharine-Hall, Cambridge.
For two years he refused to take the oath of allegiance to
William and Mary, but at last submitted to the govern¬
ment, though he seemed to condemn the revolution, and
all that had been done in pursuance of it. He was a man
of great piety, with much primitive simplicity and inte¬
grity, and a constant evenness of mind. In a sermon
preached by him before the House of Commons 30th
January 1699, he animadverted on Toland’s assertion, in
his life of Milton, that Charles I. was not the writer of the
Icon Basilike ; and also on some insinuations against the
authenticity of the Holy Scriptures; which produced a
controversy between him and that author. In 1700 he
preached in St Paul’s, at Boyle’s lecture, a course of ser¬
mons, which were afterwards published; and he was con¬
secrated bishop of Exeter in 1707. He died at Exeter in
1716, and was interred in the cathedral there.
BLACKBURN, a large market-town in the hundred of
the same name, in the county of Lancaster, 204 miles
from London, on the river Derwent, over which there are
four stone bridges. The town has taken its name from the
colour of the river. It owes a great portion of its pro¬
sperity to the extension of canals, which give a facility of
intercourse with all the northern and middle parts of the
kingdom. The rapid increase of the cotton trade has pro¬
duced the greatest local effect in Blackburn, in the increase
of houses and inhabitants, and in the ornaments and con¬
veniences of the place. The parish of Blackburn contains
fifteen townships and eight chapelries, and in 1821 num¬
bered 53,350 inhabitants. The population of the town of
Blackburn has increased considerably, amounting in 1801
to 11,980, in 1811 to 15,083, and in 1821 to 21,940.
BLACKING is a term generally used to signify a fac¬
titious black, as lamp-black, shoe-black, and the like. A
mixture of ivory or lamp-black with linseed-oil makes the
common oil blacking. For a shining blacking, small-beer
B L A 663
or water is used instead of oil, in the proportion of about a Blacklock.
pint to an ounce of the ivory-black, with the addition of v——
half an ounce of brown sugar, and as much gum-arabic.
The white of an egg substituted for the gum makes the
black more shining, but is supposed to hurt the leather,
and make it apt to crack. Another kind of blacking is
prepared by mixing, in certain proportions, ivory-black,
sour beer or porter, Florence oil, molasses, and a small
quantity of the sulphate of iron ; which ingredients, when
properly apportioned, form as good and safe an article as
need be desired.
BLACKLOCK, Thomas, a clergyman, was born at
Annan, in the south of Scotland, in the year 1721. His
father was a bricklayer; but, though in this humble sphere
of life, he was of a respectable character, and not deficient
in knowledge and urbanity. The son was not quite six
months old when he lost his eye-sight by the small-pox.
This misfortune rendered him incapable of learning any
of the mechanical arts; wherefore his father kept him at
home, and, with the assistance of some friends, fostered
that inclination which, at a very early period, he showed
for books. This was done by reading to him, first the
simple sort of publications which are commonly put into
the hands of children, and then several of our best authors,
as Milton, Spenser, Prior, Pope, and Addison. His com¬
panions, whom his early gentleness and kindness of dis¬
position, as well as their compassion for his misfortune,
strongly attached to him, were also very assiduous in their
good offices, particularly in reading to instruct and amuse
him. By their assistance he acquired some knowledge of
the Latin tongue ; but he did not attend a grammar-school
till a more advanced period of life. Poetry was even then
his favourite reading; and he found an enthusiastic de¬
light in the works of the best English poets, as well as in
those of his countryman Allan Ramsay. Even at so eariy
an age as twelve he began to write poems, one of which is
preserved in the collection which was published after his
death; and it is not perhaps inferior to any of the prema¬
ture compositions of boys assisted by the best education,
which, in most cases, are only recalled into notice by the
subsequent fame of their authors.
Blacklock had attained the age of nineteen when his
father was killed by the accidental falling of a malt-kiln
belonging to his son-in-law. This loss, heavy to any one at
that early age, would have nevertheless been comparative¬
ly light to a young man possessing the ordinary means of
support, and the ordinary advantages of education ; but to
him, thus suddenly deprived of that support on which his
youth had leaned, destitute of almost every resource
which industry affords to those who have the blessing of
sight, with a body feeble and delicate from nature, and
with a mind peculiarly susceptible, this bereavement was
doubly severe, and threw over his spirits that desponding
gloom to which he gave expression in the following pa¬
thetic lines:—
Dejecting prospect! soon the hapless hour
May come, perhaps this moment it impends,
AVhich drives me forth to penury and cold.
Naked, and beat by all the storms of heav’n.
Friendless and guideless to explore my way;
Till, on cold earth this poor unsheltered head
Reclining, vainly from the ruthless blast
Respite I beg, and in the shock expire.
He lived with his mother for about a year after his fa¬
ther’s death, and began to be distinguished as a young man
of uncommon parts and genius. At this time, however,
his efforts were unassisted by learning; the circumstances
of his family affording him no better education than the
smattering of Latin which his companions had taught
him, and the recollection of the few English authors
664 ]3 L A
Blacklock. which they, or his father in the intervals of his profes-
sional labours, had read to him. But poetry, although it
attains its highest perfection in a cultivated soil, grows
perhaps as luxuriantly in a wild one. To it he was de¬
voted from his earliest days; and about this time several
of his poetical productions began to be handed about,
which considerably enlarged the circle of his friends and
acquaintance. Some of his compositions having been
shown to Dr Stevenson, an eminent physician ot Edin¬
burgh, when accidentally at Dumfries on a professional
visit, that gentleman formed the benevolent design of
carrying him to the Scottish metropolis, and giving to his
natural endowments the assistance of a classical education.
Blacklock, in consequence, came to Edinburgh in the year
1741, and was enrolled a student of divinity in the univer¬
sity there, though without any particular view of enter¬
ing into the church. In this university he continued his
studies under the patronage of Dr Stevenson till the year
1745, when he retired to Dumfries, and resided in the
house of Mr M‘Murdo, who had married his sister, during
the whole time of the civil war, which then raged in the
country, and particularly disturbed the tranquillity of the
metropolis. When peace had been restored to the nation,
he returned to the university, and pursued his studies for
six years longer. During this residence in Edinburgh, he
made the acquaintance of several literary men, particularly
that of Mr Hume, who attached himself warmly to Mr
Blacklock’s interests, and was afterwards particularly use¬
ful to him in the publication of the quarto edition of his
poems, which was published by subscription in London in
the year 1756. Previously to this, two editions in octavo
had been published at Edinburgh, the first in 1746, and
the second in 1754.
In the course of his education at Edinburgh he acquired
a proficiency in the learned languages, and became more
a master of the French tongue than was then common in
that city. For this last acquisition he was chiefly indebt¬
ed to the social intercourse to which he had the good for¬
tune to be admitted in the house of Provost Alexander,
who had married a native of France. At the university
he attained a knowledge of the various branches of philo¬
sophy and theology, to which his course of study naturally
led, and acquired at the same time a considerable fund of
learning and information in those various departments of
science and literature, from which his want of sight did
not absolutely exclude him.
In 1757 he began a course of study, with a view to give
lectures in oratory to young gentlemen intended for the
bar or the pulpit. On this occasion he wrote to Mr Hume,
informed him of his plan, and requested his assistance in
the prosecution of it. But Mr Hume doubting the probabi¬
lity of its succeeding, he abandoned the project; and then,
for the first time, adopted the decided intention of going
into the church of Scotland. After applying closely for
a considerable time to the study of theology, he passed
the usual trials in the presbytery of Dumfries, and was by
that presbytery licensed as a preacher of the gospel in the
year 1759. In this capacity he obtained high reputation,
and was fond of composing sermons, of which he has left
some volumes in manuscript, as also a treatise on morals.
In 1762 he married Miss Sarah Johnston, daughter of
Mr Joseph Johnston, surgeon in Dumfries; a connection
which formed the great solace and blessing of his future
life, and gave him, with the tenderness of a wife, all the
care and attention of a guardian and a friend. This event
took place a few days before he was ordained as minister
of the town and parish of Kirkcudbright, in consequence
of a presentation from the crown, obtained for him by the
Earl of Selkirk. But the inhabitants of the parish,—whe¬
ther from that violent aversion to patronage, which was then
B L A
so universal in the southern parts of Scotland, from some Bin ^
political disputes which at that time subsisted between ^ 'w
them and the patron, or from those prejudices which many
of them might naturally enough entertain against a pas¬
tor deprived of sight, or perhaps from all these causes
united,—were so extremely disinclined to receive him as
their minister, that after a legal dispute of nearly two
years, it was thought expedient by his friends, as it had
always been wished by himself, to compromise the mat¬
ter, by resigning his right to the living, and accepting a
moderate annuity in its stead. With this slender provi¬
sion he removed to Edinburgh in 1764; and to make up by
his industry a more comfortable and decent subsistence,
he adopted the plan of receiving into his house as boarders
a certain number of young gentlemen, whose studies in
languages and philosophy he might, if necessary, assist.
In this situation he continued till the year 1787, when he
found that his time of life and state of health required a
degree of quiet and repose which induced him to discon¬
tinue receiving boarders. In 1767 the degree of doctor
in divinity was conferred on him by the University and
Marischal College of Aberdeen.
In the occupation which he had thus exercised for so
many years of his life, no teacher was ever perhaps more
agreeable to his pupils, nor any master of a family more be¬
loved by its inmates, than Dr Blacklock. The gentleness
of his manners, the benignity of his disposition, and that
warm interest in the happiness of others which led him so
constantly to promote it, were qualities that could not fail
to procure him the love and regard of the young people
committed to his charge ; whilst the society which respect
for his character and his genius often assembled at his
house, afforded them advantages rarely to be obtained in
establishments of a similar kind.
In this mixed society he appeared to forget the priva¬
tion of sight, and the melancholy which at other times it
produced in his mind. He entered, with all the cheerful
playfulness of a young man, into the sprightly narratives,
sportful fancies, and humorous jests of those around him.
Next to conversation, music was perhaps the source of
his greatest delight; for he not only relished it highly,
but was himself a tolerable performer on several instru¬
ments, particularly the flute. He generally carried in his
pocket a small flageolet, on which he played his favourite
tunes ; and he was not displeased when asked in company
to play or to sing them,—a natural feeling for a blind man,
who thus adds a scene to the little and confined drama ol
his society.
Of the happiness of others, however, we are incompe¬
tent judges. Companionship and sympathy bring forth
those gay colours of mirth and cheerfulness which per¬
haps serve to cover the sadness we have no opportunity
of witnessing. Of a blind man’s condition we are parti¬
cularly liable to form a mistaken estimate; we give him
credit for all those gleams of delight which society affords
him, without placing to their full account those dreary
moments of darksome solitude to which the suspension ot
that society necessarily condemns him. Dr Blacklock had
from nature a constitution delicate and nervous; and his
mind, as is almost always the case, was in a great degree
affected by the indisposition of his body. He frequently
complained of a lowness and depression of spirits, whicu
neither the attention of his friends, nor the unceasing caie
of a most affectionate wife, was able entirely to remove.
The imagination, which we are so apt to envy and admne,
serves but to irritate this disorder of the mind; and that
fancy, in whose creations we so much delight, can draw,
from sources unknown to common men, subjects or dis¬
gust, disquietude, and affliction. Some of his latter poems
express a chagrin, though not of an ungentle sort, at t m
B L A
i k re. supposed failure of his imaginative powers, or at the fasti-
/diousness of modern times, which he despaired to please.
Such were his efforts, such his cold reward,
Whom once thy partial tongue pronounced a bard ;
Excursive, on the gentle gales of spring,
He roved, whilst favour imped his timid wing;
Exhausted genius now no more inspires,
But mourns abortive hopes and faded fires;
The short-lived wreath, which once his temple graced.
Fades at the sickly breath of squeamish taste;
Whilst darker days his fainting flames immure
In cheerless gloom, and winter premature.
These lines are, however, no proof of “ exhausted ge¬
nius” or “ faded fires.” “ Abortive hopes,” indeed, must
be the lot of all who, like Dr Blacklock, reach the period
of old age. In early youth the heart of every one is
poetical; it creates a scene of imaginary happiness and
delusive hopes; it clothes the world in the brightest co¬
lours of fancy; it refines what is coarse, it exalts what is
mean ; it sees nothing but disinterestedness in friendship ;
it promises eternal fidelity in love. Even on the distresses
of its situation it can throw a certain romantic shade of
melancholy, that leaves a man sad, but does not make
him unhappy. But at a more advanced age “ the fairy
visions fade,” and he suffers most deeply who has indulg¬
ed them the most.
About the period when the above verses were written,
Dr Blacklock was, for the first time, afflicted with what
to him must have been peculiarly distressful. He had
become occasionally subject to deafness, which, though
he seldom felt it in any great degree, was sufficient, in
his situation, when the sense of hearing was almost his
only channel of communication with the external world,
to cause very lively uneasiness. But amidst these indis¬
positions of body and disquietudes of mind, the gentleness
of his temper never forsook him ; and he felt all that re¬
signation and confidence in the Supreme Being which
from his earliest days till his last moments he equally ac¬
knowledged. In the summer of 1791 he was seized with a
feverish disorder, which at first seemed slight, and never
rose to any great violence; but a frame so little robust
as his proved unable to resist it; and after about a week’s
illness, it carried him off on the 7th July of that year.
Dr Blacklock’s writings consist chiefly of poems, of
which an edition in quarto was publishecl in 1793. To
that edition was added an Essay on the Education of
the Blind, translated from the French of M. Haiiy.
BLACKMORE, Sir Richard, a physician, and vo¬
luminous writer of theological, poetical, and physical
works,^ Having early declared in favour of the Revolu¬
tion, King William, in 1697, chose him one of his physi¬
cians in ordinary, and conferred on him the honour of
knighthood. On Queen Anne’s accession, Sir Richard was
also appointed one of her physicians, and continued so for
some time. But Dryden and Pope treated the poetical
performances of Blackmore with great contempt; and in a
note to the mention made of him in the Dunciad, we are
informed that his “ indefatigable muse produced no less
than six epic poems : Prince and King Arthur, in twenty
books; Eliza, in ten; Alfred, in twelve; The Redeemer,
in stx ; besides Job, in folio; the whole book of Psalms ;
the Creation, in seven books; the Nature of Man, in
three books ; and many more.” But notwithstanding that
jackmore was greatly ridiculed by the wits, he is not
without merit; and Addison, in the Spectator, has be¬
stowed some liberal commendations on his poem on the
Creation. It must be mentioned, too, in honour of Sir
ichard, that he was a chaste writer, and a warm advo¬
cate for virtue, at a time when an almost universal dege-
neracy prevailed. He had been very free in his censures
0 the libertine writers of his age ; and it was owing to
B L A 665
some liberty he had taken of this kind, that he drew upon Blackness
himself the resentment of Mr Dryden. He had likewise II
given offence to Mr Pope; for having been informed by Black-
Mr Curl that the “ bard of Twickenham” was the author
of a travestie of the first Psalm, he took occasion to re-
prehend him for it in his Essay on Polite Learning. Be¬
sides the works above mentioned, Sir Richard wrote some
theological tracts, and several treatises on the plague,
small-pox, consumptions, the spleen, gout, dropsy, and a
variety of small poetical pieces. He died on the 9th of
October 1729.
BLACKNESS, the quality of a black body, or a colour
arising from such a texture and situation of the superficial
parts of a body as deadens or rather absorbs the light fall¬
ing upon it, without reflecting any, or very little of it, to
the eye. In this sense blackness stands directly opposed
to whiteness, which consists in such a texture of parts as
indifferently reflects all the rays thrown upon it, of what¬
ever colour they may be. Descartes, says Dr Priestley,
though mistaken with respect to the nature of light and
colours, yet distinguishes justly between black and white ;
observing, that black suffocates and extinguishes the light
that falls upon it, but that white reflects it.
BLACKSTONE, Sir William, an eminent English
lawyer, was born at London in July 1723. His father,
Mr Charles Blackstone, a silk-man, citizen, and bowyer of
London, died some months before the birth of our author,
who was the youngest of four children; and his mother
also died before he was twelve years old. Even from his
birth, the care both of his education and fortune was kindly
undertaken by his maternal uncle Mr Thomas Bigg, an emi¬
nent surgeon in London, and afterwards, on the death of his
elder brothers, owner of the Chilton estate, which is still
enjoyed by his family. In 1730, being then about seven
years old, he was put to school at the Charter-house; and
in 1735 he was admitted upon the foundation there by the
nomination of Sir Robert Walpole, on the recommenda¬
tion of Charles Wither, of Hall in Hampshire, Esq. his
cousin by the mother’s side. In this excellent seminary
he applied himself to every branch of youthful education,
with the same assiduity which distinguished him through¬
out life. His talents and industry rendered him the favou¬
rite of his masters, who encouraged and assisted him to the
utmost of their power; so that at the age of fifteen he was
at the head of the school, and, although very young, was
thought well qualified to be removed to the university.
He was accordingly entered a commoner at Pembroke
College, Oxford, on the 30th of November 1738, and ma¬
triculated the next day. At this time he was elected to
one of the Charter-house exhibitions by the governors of
that foundation, to commence from the Michaelmas pre¬
ceding, but was permitted to continue a scholar there till
after the 12th of December, being the anniversary com¬
memoration of the founder, to give him an opportunity of
speaking the customary oration, which he had prepared,
and which did him much credit. About this time also
he obtained Mr Benson’s gold prize-medal of Milton, for
verses on that poet. In the February following, the so¬
ciety of Pembroke College unanimously elected him to
one of Lady Holford’s exhibitions for Charter-house scho¬
lars in that house. Here he prosecuted his studies with
unremitting ardour; and although the classics, and parti¬
cularly the Greek and Roman poets, W re his favourites,
they did not entirely engross his attention ; for logic, ma¬
thematics, and the other sciences, were not neglected. At
the early age of twenty, he compiled a treatise entitled
Elements of Architecture, intended for his own use only,
and not for publication, but esteemed by those who have
perused it as in no respect unworthy of his maturer judg¬
ment and more practised pen.
4 p
B L A
Having determined on his future plan of life, and made
choice of the law for his profession, he was entered in the
Middle Temple on the 20th of November 1741. He now
found it necessary to quit the more amusing pursuits of
his youth for the severer studies to which he had dedicat¬
ed himself, and betook himself seriously to reading law.
He expressed his disagreeable sensations on this occasion
in a copy of verses, since published by Dodsley in the
fourth volume of his miscellanies, entitled The Lawyer s
Farewell to his Muse; in which the struggle of his mind
is expressed so strongly, so naturally, and with such ele¬
gance of language and harmony of versification, as must
convince every reader that his passion for the muses was
too deeply rooted to be laid aside without much reluc¬
tance, and that, if he had pursued that flowery path, he
might perhaps have proved inferior to but few of our
English poets. Besides this, several fugitive pieces were
at times communicated by him to his friends; and he left,
but not with a view of publication, a small collection of
juvenile pieces, consisting of both originals and translations.
Some notes on Shakspeare, which just before his death he
communicated to Mr Steevens, and which were inserted
by him in his last edition of that author, show how well
he understood the meaning as well as relished the beau¬
ties of his favourite among the English poets.
In November 1743 he was elected into the society of
All-Souls College; while in the November following he
spoke the anniversary speech in commemoration of Arch¬
bishop Chichelay, the founder, and the other benefactors to
that house of learning, and was at the same time admitted
actual fellow. From this period he divided his time be¬
tween the university and the Temple, where he took cham¬
bers in order to attend the courts. In the former he pur¬
sued his academical studies, and on the 12th of June 1745
commenced bachelor of civil law; in the latter he applied
himself closely to his profession, both in the hall and in
his private studies, and on the 28th of November 1746 he
was called to the bar. Though but little known or dis¬
tinguished in Westminster Flail, he was actively employ¬
ed, during his occasional residences at the university, in
attending to its interests, and in mingling with and improv¬
ing its interior concerns. In May 1749, as a small reward
for his services, and to give him further opportunities
of advancing the interests of the college, Mr Blackstone
was appointed steward of its manors. And in the same
year, on the resignation of his uncle Seymour Richmond,
Esq., he was elected recorder of the borough of Walling¬
ford in Berkshire, and received the king’s approbation on
the 30th of May. On the 26th of April 1750 he com¬
menced doctor of civil law, and thereby became a member
of the convocation, which enabled him to extend his views
beyond the narrow circle of his own society, to the benefit
of the university at large. In the summer of 1753 he took
the resolution of wholly retiring to his fellowship and an
academical life, still continuing the practice of his profes¬
sion as a provincial counsel.
His lectures on the laws of England appear to have
been an early and favourite idea; for in the Michaelmas
term, immediately after he quitted Westminster Hall, he
entered on the province of reading them at Oxford; and
we are told by the author of his life, that even at their
commencement, such were the expectations formed from
the acknowledged abilities of the lecturer, that they were
attended by a very crowded class of young men of the
first families, characters, and hopes. But it was not till the
year 1758 that the lectures, in the form they now bear, were
read in the university. Mr Viner having by his will left
not only the copyright of his abridgment, but other pro¬
perty to a considerable amount, to the university of Oxford,
in order to found a professorship, fellowships, and scholar-
B L A
ships of common law, he was on the 20th of October 1758 I ^
unanimously elected Yinerian professor ; and on the 25th
of the same month he read his first introductory lecture, ^
which he published at the request of the vice-chancellor
and heads of houses, and afterwards prefixed to the first
volume of his Commentaries. His lectures had now gain¬
ed such universal applause, that he was requested by a
noble personage who superintended the education of
George III., then prince of Wales, to read them to his
royal highness; but as he was at that time engaged with
a numerous class of pupils in the university, he thought
he could not, consistently with that engagement, comply
with this request, and therefore declined it. But he
transmitted copies of many of them for the perusal of his
royal highness ; who, far from being offended at an excuse
grounded on so honourable a motive, was pleased to order
a handsome gratuity to be presented to him. It is doubt¬
ful whether the Commentaries were originally intended
for the press; but many imperfect and incorrect copies
having got abroad, and a pirated edition of them being
either published or preparing for publication in Ireland, the
learned lecturer thought proper to print a correct edition
himself, and in November 1765 published the first volume,
under the title of Commentaries on the Laxvs of England.
The remaining parts of this admirable work were given to
the world in the course of the four succeeding years. It
ought to be remarked, that before this period the reputation
which his lectures had deservedly acquired for him had
induced him to resume his practice in Westminster Hall;
and, contrary to the general order of the profession, he
who had quitted the bar for an academic life, was sent
back from the college to the bar with a considerable in¬
crease of business. He was likewise elected into parlia¬
ment, first for Hindon, and afterwards for Westbury in
Wilts; but in neither of these departments did he equal
the expectations which his writings had raised. The part
he took in the Middlesex election drew upon him the at¬
tacks of some persons of ability in the senate, and likewise
a severe animadversion by one of the keenest polemical
writers of that day, we mean Junius. This circumstance
probably strengthened the aversion he professed to parlia¬
mentary attendance; “ where,” he said, “ amidst the rage
of contending parties, a man of moderation must expect
to meet with no quarter from any side.” When, on the
resignation of Mr Dunning in 1770, he was offered the
place of solicitor-general, he refused that office; but short¬
ly afterwards, on the promotion of Sir Joseph Yates to a
seat in the court of Common Pleas, he accepted a seat on
the bench, and by the death of Sir Joseph succeeded him
there also. This eminent and valuable man died on the
14th of February 1780, in the fifty-seventh year of his age.
BLACKWALL, Anthony, A. M. a learned author, who,
after completing his academical education at Emanuel
College, Cambridge, was appointed head-master of the
free school at Derby, and lecturer of All-Hallows there.
He first distinguished himself in the literary world by an
edition of Theognis, printed at London in 1706, and was
afterwards chosen head-master of the free school at Mar-
ket-Bosworth in Leicestershire. The grammar, by means
of which he initiated the youth under his care into Latin,
was of his own composition, and so happily fitted for the
purpose, that he was prevailed on to make it public, al¬
though his modesty would not permit him to prefix his
name to it, because he would not be thought to prescribe
to other instructors of youth. It is entitled A New Latin
Grammar ; being a short, clear, and easy Introduction oj
Young Scholars to the Knowledge of the Latin Tongue >
containing an exact Account of the two first Parts of
mar. In his Introduction to the Classics, first publisne m
1718, he displayed, with equal conciseness and perspicuif)>
B L A
Blacl 11. the beauties of the great writers of antiquity, to the under-
J standing and imitation even of common capacities. But
his most celebrated work was, The Sacred Classics de¬
fended and illustrated; or, An Essay humbly offered to¬
wards preserving the Purity, Propriety, and True Elo¬
quence of the Writers of the New Testament, in two vols.
Mr Blackwall had the happiness to educate many excel¬
lent scholars in his seminaries at Derby and Bosworth;
and amongst others the celebrated Richard Dawes, author
of the Miscellanea Critica. A gentleman who had been
his scholar, being patron of the church of Clapham in
Surrey, presented him to that living as a mark of his gra¬
titude and esteem. This happening late in life, and Black-
wall having occasion to wait upon the bishop of the dio¬
cese, he was somewhat pertly questioned by a young chap¬
lain as to the extent of his learning. “ Boy,” replied the in¬
dignant veteran, “ I have forgot more than ever you knew.”
He died at Market-Bosworth, on the 8th of April 1730.
BLACKWELL, Thomas, an eminent Scottish writer,
was the son of a minister at Aberdeen, and born there in
1701. He received his grammatical education at a school
in Aberdeen, studied Greek and philosophy in the Maris-
chal College there, and took the degree of A. M. in 1718.
Being distinguished for uncommon- parts, and an early
proficiency in letters, he was, in December 1723, made
Greek professor in the college where he had been educat¬
ed ; and continued to teach that language with applause
till his death. In 1735 was published at London, but
without his name, An Inquiry into the Life and Writings
of Homer, 8vo, a second edition of which appeared in
1736 ; and not long after, he gave to the world Proofs of
the Inquiry into Homer s Life and Writings, being a trans¬
lation of the Greek, Latin, Spanish, Italian, and French
notes, subjoined to the original work. In 1748 he pub¬
lished Letters concerning Mythology, 8vo, but without his
name. The same year he was made principal of Maris-
chal College in Aberdeen ; being the only layman who had
been appointed to that office since the patronage came to
the crown, by the forfeiture of the Marischal family in
1716, all the other principals having been ministers of the
church of Scotland. In March 1752 he took the degree
of doctor of laws ; and the year following published the
first volume of his Memoirs of the Court of Augustus, 4to.
The second volume appeared in 1755; and the third,
which was posthumous, and left incomplete by the author,
was prepared for the press by John Mills, Esq. and pub¬
lished in 1764. At the same time a third edition of the
two former volumes appeared; which is a proof of the
good reception the work met with from the public, al¬
though it must be acknowledged that the parade with
which it is written, and the peculiarity of its language,
exposed it to some severity of censure.
, ^00n after he became principal of his college, he mar¬
ried the daughter of a merchant in Aberdeen, by whom
he had no children. Several years before his death, his
health had begun to decline. His disorder was of the con¬
sumptive kind, and was probably accelerated by the exces¬
sive abstemiousness which he had imposed upon himself.
His disease increasing, however, he was advised to travel,
and accordingly set out in February 1757; but he was
not able to proceed farther than Edinburgh, in which city
ie died on the 8th of March following, in his fifty-sixth
}ear. Blackwell was both an ingenious and a learned
man. He had an equable flow of temper and a truly
P nlosophic spirit, and maintained to the last that serenity
and composure of mind which, whether they be the re-
su t of a happily-constituted temperament, or of a long
course of self-discipline, may well be accounted the great¬
est of earthly blessings.
Blackwell, Alexander, son of a dealer in knit-hose at
B L A 667
Aberdeen, where he received a liberal education. He Blade
afterwards studied physic under Boerhaave at Leyden, II
took the degree of doctor of physic, and acquired a pro- Bladen.
ficiency in the modern languages. Happening to stay
some time at the Hague on his return home, he contracted
an intimacy with a Swedish nobleman. Having married
a gentleman’s daughter in the neighbourhood of Aberdeen,
he proposed practising professionally in that part of the
kingdom; but finding his expectations disappointed, he
went to London, where he met with still less encourage¬
ment as a physician, and commenced corrector of the press
for Mr Wilkins, a printer. After some years spent in this
employment he set up as a printer himself, and carried on
several large works till 1734, when he became bankrupt.
In what manner he subsisted for a considerable time after
this event we are not informed, though it was probably
by the ingenuity of his wife, who published “ A curious
Herbal, containing 500 Cuts of the most useful Plants
which are now used in the Practice of Physic, engraved
on folio Copperplates, after Drawings taken from the
Life, by Elizabeth Blackwell; to which is added a short
Description of the Plants, and their common Uses in
Physic, 1739,” 2 vols. folio. About the year 1740 he
went to Sweden, and renewing his intimacy with the
nobleman whom he had met at the Hague, again as¬
sumed the medical profession, in which he was tolerably
successful; but turning projector, he laid before his Swe¬
dish majesty a scheme for draining the fens and marshes,
which was well received, and many thousands employed
in prosecuting it under the doctor’s direction, while some
small allowance was made to him by the king. This
scheme succeeded so well, that he turned his thoughts to
others of greater importance, which in the end proved
fatal to him. Suspected of being concerned in a plot with
Count Tessin, he was put to the torture; and this not
producing the desired confession, he was beheaded on the
9th of August 1748. Soon afterwards appeared “ A Ge¬
nuine Copy of a Letter from a merchant in Stockholm
to his correspondent in London, containing an Impartial
Account of Doctor Alexander Blackwell, his Plot, Trial,
Character, and Behaviour, both under Examination and
at the Place of Execution; together with a Copy of a
Paper delivered to a Friend upon the Scaffold.” Black-
well possessed good natural genius, but was somewhat
flighty, and not a little conceited. His conversation, how¬
ever, was facetious and agreeable; and although an indis¬
creet man, he was allowed to have been a well-bred and
accomplished gentleman.
BLADE, in commerce, a thin slender piece of metal,
either forged by the hammer, or run and cast in moulds,
to be afterwards sharpened to a point, edge, or the like.
Sword-blades are made by armourers, while knife-blades
are fabricated by cutlers. The English and Damascus
blades are most esteemed; among the French, those of
Vienne in Dauphine obtain a preference. The conditions
of a good blade of a small sword are, that it be light, tough,
and apter to bend than break. When it stands in the bend,
it is called “ a poor man’s blade.”
BLADEN, Martin, a translator and dramatic author,
was originally an officer in the army, and bore the com¬
mission of lieutenant-colonel in Queen Anne’s reign, un¬
der John duke of Marlborough, to whom he dedicated
a translation of Caesar’s Commentaries. In 1714 he was
made one of the lords commissioners of trade and plan¬
tations; and in 1717 he was named envoy extraordinary
to the court of Spain, but declined the appointment, ra¬
ther choosing to keep the post he already had, which was
worth L.1000 a year, and which he never parted with till
his death, in May 1746. He was also many years mem¬
ber of parliament for the town of Portsmouth. He wrote
668
Bladum
II
Blair,
Dr Hugh.
B L A
two dramatic pieces, both of which were printed in the
year 1705, without the author’s consent. The names of
these are, 1. Orpheus and Eurydice, a masque; 2. Solon,
a tragi-comedy.
BLADUM, in writers of the middle ages, is a name
applied to all sorts of standing corn in the blade and ear.
The word is also written blatum, blava, and blavium. In
old charters the word bladum included the whole product
of the ground, as fruit, corn, flax, grass; and it was some¬
times also applied to all sorts of grain or corn thieshed on
the floor. But the word was more particularly appro¬
priated to bread-corn, or wheat, called in French ble.
Thus the knights templars are said to have granted to Sir
Wide de Meriton’s wife duas summas bladi.
BLAEU, William, a famous printer of Amsterdam, as
well as a disciple and friend of Tycho Brahe. His Atlas,
his Treatises of the Globes, Astronomical Institutions,
and other works, together with his fine impressions, have
secured his name from oblivion. He died in 1638.
BLAGRAVE, John, the second son of John Blagrave
of Bulmarsh-court, near Sunning in Berkshire, was de¬
scended of an ancient family in that county. From a
grammar-school at Reading he was sent to St John s Col¬
lege, Oxford, where he applied himself chiefly to the
study of mathematics; and without taking any degree,
afterwards retired to his patrimonial seat of Southcole-
lodge, near Reading, where he spent the remainder of his
life. In this mansion he died in the year 1611, and was
buried in the church of St Lawrence, where a monument
was erected to his memory. Fie is said to have been not
more remarkable for his mathematical knowledge than for
his candour and generosity to his acquaintance. His
works are, 1. A Mathematical Jewel, Lond. 1585, folio;
2. Of the Making and Use of the Familiar Staff, Lond.
1590, 4to; 3. Astrolabium Uranicum Generale, Lond.
1596, 4to; 4. The Art of Dialling, Lond. 1609, 4to.
BLAIN, among farriers, a distemper incident to beasts,
being a sort of bladder growing on the root of the tongue
against the windpipe, and swelling to such a degree as to
stop the breath. It comes by great chafing and heating
of the stomach, and its diagnostics are, the animal gaping,
holding out his tongue, and foaming at the mouth. To
cure it, the bladder must be slit and washed gently with
vinegar and a little salt.
BLAIR, Dr Hugh, a distinguished clergyman of the
church of Scotland, was born at Edinburgh in 1718. His
father, John Blair, was a merchant in that city, and
grandson of the famous Mr Robert Blair, minister of St
Andrews, chaplain to King Charles I., and one of the
most distinguished clergymen of the period in which he
lived. The views of Dr Blair, from his earliest youth,
were turned toward the church, and his education received
a suitable direction. After the usual grammatical course
at school, he entered the humanity class in the university
of Edinburgh in October 1730, and spent eleven years
at that celebrated seminary, assiduously employed in the
literary and scientific studies prescribed by the church of
Scotland to all who are to become candidates for her li¬
cense to preach the gospel. During this important period
he was distinguished among his companions both for dili¬
gence and proficiency, and obtained from the professors
under whom he studied repeated testimonies of approba¬
tion. One of them deserves to be particularly mentioned,
because in his own opinion it determined the bent of his
genius toward polite literature. An essay, IBg/ rev xaXou,
On the Beairtiful, written by him when a student of logic
in the usual course of academical exercises, had the good
fortune to attract the notice of Professor Stevenson; and,
with circumstances honourable to the author, was appoint¬
ed to be read in public at the conclusion of the session.
B L A
This mark of distinction made a deep impression on his I r
mind; and the essay which merited it he ever afterwards hr ^
recollected with partial affection, and preserved to the ^ v
day of his death, as the first earnest of his fame.
At this time Dr Blair commenced a method of study
which contributed much to the accuracy and extent of
his knowledge, and which he continued to practise occa¬
sionally even after his reputation was fully established.
It consisted in making abstracts of the most important
works which he had read, and in digesting them according
to the train of his own thoughts. History, in particular, he
resolved to study in this manner; and, in concert with
some of his youthful associates, he constructed a very
comprehensive scheme of chronological tables for receiv¬
ing into its proper place every important fact that should
occur. The scheme devised by this young student for
his own private use was afterwards improved, filled up,
and given to the public, by his learned friend Dr John
Blair, prebendary of Westminster, in his valuable work,
entitled The Chronology and History of the World.
In the year 1739 Dr Blair took his degree of A. M.
On that occasion he printed and defended a thesis, De
Fundamentis et Obligatione Legis Naturae,, which contains
a short but masterly discussion of this important subject,
and exhibits, in respectable Latin, an outline of the moral
principles which were afterwards more fully unfolded and
illustrated in his Sermons.
The university of Edinburgh, about this period, num¬
bered amongst her pupils many young men who were
destined to make a distinguished figure in the civil, the
ecclesiastical, and the literary history of their country.
With most of these Dr Blair formed habits of intimacy,
which no future competition or jealousy occurred to in¬
terrupt,—which held them united throughout life in their
views of public good,—and which had the most beneficial
influence on their own improvement, on the progress of
taste among their contemporaries, and on the general in¬
terests of the community to which they belonged.
On the completion of his academical course, he under¬
went the customary trials before the presbytery of Edin-
bui'gh, and received from that reverend body, on the 21st
of October 1741, a license to preach the gospel. His
public life now commenced with very favourable pro¬
spects. The reputation which he brought from the uni¬
versity was fully justified by his first appearance in the
pulpit; and, in a few months, the fame of his eloquence
procured for him a presentation to the parish of Golessie
in Fife, where he was ordained to the office of the minis¬
try on the 23d of September 1742. But he was not per¬
mitted to remain long in this rural retreat. A vacancy
in the second charge of the Canongate of Edinburgh af¬
forded his friends an opportunity of recalling him to a
station more suited to his talents; and, although one of
the most popular and eloquent clergymen in the church was
placed in competition with him, a great majority of the elec¬
tors decided in favour of the young orator, and restore!
him, in July 1743, to the bounds of his native city.
In this station Dr Blair continued for eleven years, dis¬
charging with great fidelity and success the various duties
of the pastoral office. His discourses from the pulpit, m
particular, attracted universal admiration. They were
composed with uncommon care; and occupying a mid e
place between the dry metaphysical discussion of one
class of preachers, and the loose incoherent declamation
of another, they blended together, in the happiest man
ner, the light of argument with the warmth of e^nor a
tion, and exhibited captivating specimens of what ha i
therto been rarely heard in Scotland, the polished, we
compacted, and regular didactic oration.
In consequence of a call from the town-council an g
B L A
neral session of Edinburgh, he was translated from the
nv h. Canongate to Lady Tester’s, one of the city churches, on
^ j {jjg nth of October 1754; and on the 15th of June 1758
he was promoted to the High Church of Edinburgh, the
most important ecclesiastical charge in the kingdom. To
this charge he was raised at the request of the Lords of
Council and Session, and of the other distinguished offi¬
cial characters who usually attend in that church. And
the uniform prudence, ability, and success, which, for a
period of more than forty years, accompanied all his minis¬
terial labours in that conspicuous and difficult station, suf¬
ficiently evince the wisdom of their choice.
Hitherto his attention seems to have been devoted al¬
most exclusively to the attainment of professional excel¬
lence, and to the regular discharge of his parochial duties.
No production of his pen had yet been given to the world
by himself, except two sermons preached on particular
occasions; some translations in verse of passages of Scrip¬
ture, for the psalmody of the church; and a few articles
in the Edinburgh Review, a publication begun in 1755,
and conducted for a short time by some of the ablest men
in the kingdom. But, standing as he now did at the head
of his profession, and released by the labour of former
years from the drudgery of weekly preparation for the
pulpit, he began to think seriously on a plan for teaching
to others that art which had contributed so much to the
establishment of his own fame. With this view he com¬
municated to his friends a scheme of lectures on compo¬
sition ; and having obtained the approbation of the uni¬
versity, he began to read them in the college on the 11th
of December 1759. To this undertaking he brought all
the qualifications requisite for executing it well, and along
with them a weight of reputation which could not fail to
give effect to the lessons he delivered. For, besides the tes¬
timony given to his talents by his successive promotions in
the church, the university of St Andrews, moved chiefly
by the merit of his eloquence, had, in June 1757, conferred
on him the degree of doctor in divinity, a literary ho¬
nour which at that time was very rare in Scotland. Ac¬
cordingly, his first course of lectures was well attended,
and received with great applause. The patrons of the
university, convinced that they would form a valuable ad¬
dition to the system of education, agreed in the following
summer to institute a rhetorical class, under his direction,
as a permanent part of their academical establishment;
and on the 7th of April 1762, his majesty was graciously
pleased “ to erect and endow a professorship of rhetoric
and belles lettres in the university of Edinburgh, and to
appoint Dr Blair, in consideration of his approved qualifi¬
cations, regius professor thereof, with a salary of LAO.”
These lectures he published in 1783, when he retired
from the labours of the office; and the general voice of
the public has pronounced them to be a judicious and
B L A 669
respectable, if not very profound, system of rules for form- Blair,
ing the style and cultivating the taste of youth. Dr Hugh.
About the time when he was occupied in laying the
foundations of this useful institution, he had an opportu¬
nity of conferring (as he doubtless believed) another im¬
portant obligation on the literary world, by contributing
to rescue from oblivion the poems of Ossian. It was by
the joint solicitation of Dr Blair and Mr John Home that
Mr Macpherson was induced to publish his Fragments of
Ancient Poetry ; and their patronage was of essential ser¬
vice in procuring the subscription which enabled him
to undertake his tour through the Highlands, for collect¬
ing the materials out of which he afterwards composed
“ Fingal,” and the other productions which bear the name
of Ossian. To these Dr Blair applied the test of a criti¬
cism, not very subtile or profound; and soon after their
publication gave an estimate of their merits in a “ Dis¬
sertation,” which was prodigiously over-rated at the time
when it first appeared, and has since, by a natural enough
re-action in public opinion, been treated with unmerited
neglect. It was printed in 1763; and being regarded as a
masterpiece of critical acuteness, as well as of elegant com¬
position, it spread the reputation of its author throughout
all Europe, and, for a time, silenced the sceptical doubts
which had been raised as to the honesty of Macpherson
and the genuineness of Ossian. But the triumph of the
believers and of their champion was destined to be com¬
paratively short-lived; and it can scarcely now be said
that even a remnant of the faith, which once seemed built
upon a rock, has survived the rude and unsparing onset of
Mr Laing.1
The great objects of Blair’s literary ambition being now
attained, his talents were for many years consecrated
solely to the important and peculiar employments of his
station. It was not till the year 1777 that he could be
induced to favour the world with the first volume of those
sermons, which had so long furnished instruction and de¬
light to his own congregation. But this volume having
been well received, the public approbation encouraged
him to proceed; three other volumes followed at different
intervals; and all of them experienced a degree of suc¬
cess of which few publications can boast. They circulated
rapidly and widely, wherever the English tongue extends;
they were soon translated into almost all the languages of
Europe ; and his Majesty George HI., with that attention
to the interests of religion and literature which distin¬
guished his reign, was graciously pleased to judge them
worthy of a public reward. By a royal mandate to the
Exchequer of Scotland, dated the 25th of July 1780, a
pension of L.200 a year was conferred upon their author,
and continued till the period of his death.
The motives which gave rise to the fifth volume are
sufficiently explained by himself in his address to the
1 The question as to the genuineness of Ossian, or rather of the poems which Macpherson chose to attribute to that traditionary
personage, has been placed in its true light by Sir James Mackintosh. u The Celtic tribes,” says he, u were celebrated for the love or
poetry. The old songs of every people, which bear the impress of their character, and of which the beauties, whether few or many,
niust be genuine, because they arise only from feeling, have always been valued by men of masculine and comprehensive taste. Some
fragments of the songs of the Scottish Highlanders, of very uncertain antiquity, appear to have fallen into the hands or Macpherson, a
young man of no mean genius, unacquainted with the higher criticism applied to the genuineness of ancient writings, and who was
too much a stranger to the studious world to have learnt those refinements which extend probity to literature as well as to property.
Elated by the praise not unjustly bestowed on some of these fragments, instead of insuring a general assent to them by a publication
in their natural state, he unhappily applied his talents for skilful imitation to complete poetical works in a style similar to the trag-
ments, and to work them into the unsuitable shape of epic and dramatic poems. He was not aware of the impossibility of poems, Pre*
served only bv tradition, being intelligible, after thirteen centuries, to readers who knew only the language of their own times; and
he did not perceive the extravagance of peopling the Caledonian mountains in the fourth century with a race of men so generous
and merciful, so gallant, so mild, and so magnanimous, that the most ingenious romances of the age of chivalry could not have ven¬
tured to represent a single hero as on a level with their common virtues. He did not consider the prodigious absurdity of inserting
as it were a people thus advanced in moral civilization, between the Britons, ignorant and savage as they are painted by Caesar, and
the Highlanders, fierce and rude as they are presented by the first accounts of the chroniclers of the twelfth and fourteenth cen“
turies. Even the better part of the Scots were, in the latter period, thus spoken of:—c In Scotland ye shall find no man hg itly o
honour or gentleness : they be like wyld and savage people.’ The great historian who made the annals of Scotland a part of Euro-
670 B L A
Blair, reader. The sermons which it contains were composed
Dr Hugh. at; very different periods of his life; but they were all
written out anew in his own hand, and in many parts re¬
composed, during the course of the summer 1800, after
he had completed his eighty-second year. They were
delivered t& the publishers about six weeks before his
death, in the form and order in which they now appear;
and it may gratify his readers to know, that the last of
them which he composed, though not the last in the or¬
der adopted for publication, was the sermon On A Life of
Dissipation and Pleasure; a sermon written with great
dignity and eloquence, and which may be regarded as his
solemn parting admonition to a class of men whose con¬
duct is highly important to the community, and whose re¬
formation and virtue he had long laboured most zealously
to promote.
The sermons which he has given to the world are uni¬
versally admitted to be models in their kind; and they
will long remain durable monuments of the piety, genius,
and sound judgment of their author. But they formed
only a small part of the discourses he prepared for the
pulpit. The remainder modesty led him to think unfit
for the press; and, influenced by an excusable solicitude
for his reputation, he left behind him an explicit injunc¬
tion that his numerous manuscripts should be destroyed.
The greatness of their number was creditable to his pro¬
fessional character, and exhibited a convincing proof
that his fame as a public teacher had been honourably
purchased by the most unwearied application to the pri¬
vate and unseen labours of his office. It rested on the
uniform excellence of his discoui'ses in point of matter
and composition, rather than on extrinsic attractions; for
his delivery, though distinct, serious, and impressive, was
not remarkably distinguished by that charm of voice and
action which captivates the senses and imagination, and
which, in the estimation of superficial hearers, constitutes
the chief merit of a preacher.
In that department of his professional duty which re¬
garded the government of the church, Dr Blair was stea¬
dily attached to what is usually styled the moderate party.
From diffidence, and perhaps from a certain degree of in¬
aptitude for extemporary speaking, he took a less public
part in the contests of ecclesiastical politics than some of
his contemporaries; and, from the same causes, he never
would consent to become moderator of the general assem¬
bly of the church of Scotland. But his influence among
his brethren was extensive; while his opinion, which had
always been held in high respect by the friends with whom
he acted, was, during many of the last years of his life,
received by them almost as a law. The great leading
principle in which they cordially concurred with him, and
which directed all their measures, was to preserve the
church, on the one hand, from a slavish or corrupt de-
B L A
pendence on the civil power, and, on the other, from a B
greater infusion of democratical influence than is compa- Dr' \
tible with good order and the established constitution of ^ s)
the country.
The reputation which he acquired in the discharge of
his public duties was well sustained by the great respec¬
tability of his private character. Deriving from family as¬
sociations a strong sense of clerical decorum, feeling in his
heart deep impressions of religious and moral obligation,
and guided in his intercourse in the world by the same
correct taste which appeared in his writings, he was emi¬
nently distinguished through life, by the prudence, purity,
and dignified propriety of his conduct. His mind, by con*
stitution and culture, was admirably formed for enjoying
happiness. Well balanced in itself by the nice proportion
hnd adjustment of its faculties, it did not incline him to
any of those eccentricities, either of opinion or of action,
which too often distinguish men of talent, not to say
genius : free from all tincture of envy, it delighted cordi¬
ally in the prosperity and fame of his companions; sensi¬
ble of the estimation in which he was himself held, it dis¬
posed him to dwell at times on the thought of his success
with a satisfaction which he did not affect to conceal; in¬
accessible alike to gloomy and to peevish impressions, it
was always master of its own movements, and ready, in an
uncommon degree, to take an active and pleasing interest
in every thing, whether important or trifling, that happen¬
ed to become for the moment the object of his attention.
This habit of mind, tempered with the most unsuspecting
simplicity, and united to eminent talents and inflexible
integrity, while it secured to the last his own relish of
life, was wonderfully calculated to endear him to his friends,
and to render him an invaluable member of the society to
which he belonged. Few men, indeed, have been more
universally respected by those who knew him, more sin¬
cerely esteemed in the circle of his acquaintance, or more
tenderly beloved by those who enjoyed the happiness of
being connected with him in private and domestic life.
In April 1748, he married his cousin Catharine Ban-
natyne, daughter of the Rev. James Bannatyne, one of the
ministers of Edinburgh. By her he had a son who died
in infancy, and a daughter who lived to her twenty-first
year, the pride of her parents, and adorned with all the
accomplishments that became her age and sex. Mrs Blair
herself, a woman of great good sense and spirit, was also
taken from him a few years before his death, after she had
shared with the tenderest affection in all his fortunes, and
contributed for near half a century to his happiness and
comfort.
Dr Blair had been naturally of a feeble constitution;
but as he grew up it acquired greater firmness and vi¬
gour. Though liable to occasional attacks from some of
the sharpest and most painful diseases that afflict the human
pean literature had sufficiently warned his countrymen against such faults, by the decisive observation that their forefathers were un¬
acquainted with the art of writing, which alone preserves language from total change, and great events from oblivion. Macpherson
was encouraged to overleap these and many other improbabilities by youth, talent, and applause : perhaps he did not at first distinct-
y presen o ns mind, the permanence of the deception. It is more probable, and it is a supposition countenanced by many circum-
stances, tnat, atter enjoying the pleasure of duping so many critics, he intended one day to claim the poems as his own ; but if he had
ue i a esign, consideiable obstacles to its execution arose around him. He was loaded with so much praise, that he seemed bound in
i°- 118 a- not to desert them. The support of his own country appeared to render adherence to those poems which
m-irt ^nt lnC°nS1Uerate^ sancti°ned a sort of national obligation. Exasperated, on the other hand, by the perhaps unduly vehement
,ome im.es ve1/. coarso attacks made on him, he was unwilling to surrender to such opponents. He involved himself at last so
decent retreat. Since the keen and searching publication of Mr Laing, these poems have fallen in reputation,
list inpictcnf ilfii er °f £enmneness. They had been admired by all the nations and by all the men of genius in Europe. Thy
i. • H s 13 Perhaps the most remarkable. In an Italian version, which softened their defects, and rendered their
of him ^ * ieS(. f°rmed almost the whole poetical library of Napoleon,—a man who, whatever may be finally thought
minde Nn nt h esPec s’ must. be owned to be, by the transcendent vigour of his powers, entitled to a place in the first class of human
colour nffr^n a ^ lltefaiT history approaches them in the splendour of their course. They have, however, thrown a
ertions for Hio roo 6 If.which is not likely to be effaced ; for the Irish and Scotch are not even yet likely to join their ex-
are still evtnnt >» 1 ^ transiati01b and impartial illustration, of such fragments of the ancient songs of both these nations as
are still extant. (History of England, vol. i. p. 86, 87, 88. London, 1830.)
JB L A
Blai frame, he enjoyed a general state of good health; and,
job through habitual cheerfulness, temperance, and care, surviv-
w-Y ' ed the usual term of human life. For some years he had felt
himself unequal to the fatigue of instructing his large con¬
gregation from the pulpit; and, under the impression which
this feeling produced, he was heard at times to say, with a
sigh, “ that he had been left almost the last of his contem¬
poraries.” Yet he continued to the end in the regular dis¬
charge of all his other official duties, and particularly in
giving advice to the afflicted, who, from different quarters
of the kingdom, solicited his correspondence. His last
summer was devoted to the preparation of his fifth volume
of sermons; and in the course of it he exhibited a vigour
of understanding and capacity of exertion equal to that of
his best days.
He began the winter pleased with himself on account
of the completion of this work; and his friends were flat¬
tered with the hope that he might live to enjoy the acces¬
sion of emolument and fame which he expected it would
bring. But the seeds of a mortal disease were lurking
within him. On the 24th of December 1800, he com¬
plained of a pain in his bowels, which, during that and the
following day, gave him but little uneasiness; and he re¬
ceived as usual the visits of his friends. But on the after¬
noon of the 26th, the symptoms became violent and alarm¬
ing. He felt that he was approaching the end of his ap¬
pointed course; and retaining to the last moment the full
possession of his mental faculties, he expired on the morn¬
ing of the 27th, with the composure and hope which be¬
came a Christian pastor.
Blair, James, an eminent divine, was born and bred in
Scotland, where he had at length a benefice in the epis¬
copal church; but meeting with some discouragements,
he went to England in the latter end of the reign of King
Charles II., was sent by Dr Compton as a missionary to Vir¬
ginia, and afterwards by the same bishop made commissary
for that colony, which was the highest office in the church
there. He distinguished himself by his exemplary con¬
duct and unwearied labours in the work of the ministry;
and finding that the want of proper seminaries for the ad¬
vancement of religion and learning proved a great ob¬
stacle to all attempts for the propagation of the gospel, he
formed a design of erecting and endowing a college at
Williamsburg, in Virginia, for professors and students in
academical learning. He therefore not only set on foot a
voluntary subscription, but, in 1693, came to England to
solicit the affair at court; when Queen Mary was so well
pleased with the noble design, that she espoused it with
particular zeal; and King William readily concurring with
her majesty, a patent was passed for erecting and endow¬
ing a college by the name of the William and Mary Col¬
lege, of which Mr Blair was appointed president, and en¬
joyed that office near fifty years. He was also rector of
Williamsburg, and president of the council in that colony.
He wrote Our Saviour’s divine Sermon on the Mount ex¬
plained, in several sermons, 4 vols. octavo. He died in
1743.
Blair, John, a Scottish author, contemporary with, and
the companion, some say the chaplain, of Sir William Wal¬
lace. He attended that illustrious hero in almost all his
exploits; and, after his death, which left so great a stain
on the character of Edward I., he wrote Memoirs of the
Scottish Champion, in Latin. But time has destroyed
this work, which might have thrown great light on the
history of a very troubled and remarkable period. An in¬
accurate fragment of it only has descended to us. It was
published, with a commentary, by Sir Robert Sibbald;
out little, unfortunately, can be learned from it.
Blair, John, an eminent chronologist, was educated at
dmburgh, whence he afterwards proceeded to London,
B L A 671
and was for some time usher of a school in Hedge-Lane. Blair,
In 1754 he presented to the world his valuable work, Robert.
The Chronology &nd History of the World, from the
Creation to the year of Christ 1753. This volume, which
is dedicated to Lord Chancellor Hardwicke, was publish¬
ed by subscription, on account of the great expense of the
plates. For this the author apologized in his preface,
where he acknowledged great obligations to the Earl of
Bath, and announced some chronological dissertations, in
which he proposed to illustrate the disputed points, to ex¬
plain the prevailing systems of chronology, and to esta¬
blish the authorities upon which some of the particular
eras depend. In January 1755 he was elected a fellow
of the Royal Society, and in 1761 of the Society of Anti¬
quaries. In 1756 he published a second edition of his
Chronological Tables. In September 1757 he was appoint¬
ed chaplain to the princess dowager of Wales, and mathe¬
matical tutor to the Duke of York; and on Dr Townshend’s
promotion to the deanery of Norwich, in 1761, the services
of Dr Blair were rewarded with a prebend’s stall in West¬
minster. The vicarage of Hinckley happening to fall
vacant six days after, by the death of Dr Morris, Dr Blair
was presented to it by the dean and chapter of West¬
minster ; and in the August of that year he obtained a dis¬
pensation to hold with it the rectory of Burton Goggles in
Lincolnshire. In September 1763 he attended his royal
pupil the Duke of York in a tour to the Continent, when he
had the satisfaction of visiting Lisbon, Gibraltar, Minorca,
most of the principal cities in Italy, and several parts of
France ; after which he returned with the duke in August
1764. In 1768 he published an improved edition of his
Chronological Tables, which he dedicated to the Prin¬
cess of Wales, who had early expressed her approbation
of the former edition. To the new edition were annexed
fourteen maps of ancient and modern geography, for il¬
lustrating the tables of chronology and history; together
with a Dissertation on the Progress of Geography. In
March 1771 he was presented by the dean and chap¬
ter of Westminster to the vicarage of St Bride’s in the
city of London; which made it necessary for him to re¬
sign Hinckley, where he had never resided for any length
of time. On the death of Mr Sims, in April 1776, he
resigned St Bride’s, and was presented to the rectory
of St John the Evangelist in Westminster; and in June of
the same year he obtained a dispensation to hold the rec¬
tory of St John, together with that of Horton, near Cole-
brook, Bucks. The fate of his brother Captain Blair, who
fell gloriously in the service of his country in the memor¬
able battle of the 12th April 1782, is believed to have ac¬
celerated his own death. Being at the time affected with
an influenza, the disease continued to gain ground till it
put a period to his life on the 24th of June 1782.
Blair, Robert, author of the well-known poem entitled
“ The Grave,” was the eldest son of the Reverend Robert
Blair, one of the ministers of Edinburgh, and the grandson
of that Robert Blair who figured so conspicuously among the
Scottish clergy in the civil wars. Of his personal history
very few particulars are known. He seems to have been
born at Edinburgh about the beginning of the last century,
and to have received the elements of a classical education
at the university of his native city; after which he was
sent abroad for improvement, and spent some time on the
Continent. Upon his return he took orders, and on the
5th of January 1731 was ordained minister of Athelstane-
ford, in East Lothian, where he spent the remainder of
his life. He died of a fever on the 4th of February 1746, in
the forty-seventh year of his age; and was succeeded in
his living of Athelstaneford by another poet, Mr John
Home, the author of “ Douglas.” By his lady, who sur¬
vived him several years, he had five sons and one daugh-
672
B L A
B L A
Blair-
Athole.
ter; the late Robert Blair of Avington, Lord President
of the Court of Session, being his fourth son. Being in
easy circumstances, Mr Blair lived very much in the style
of a gentleman of fortune, and was greatly respected by
all who knew him. He was a man of learning and accom¬
plishments as well as a poet, and evinced a peculiar pre¬
dilection for the natural sciences, particularly botany, in
which he was considered as a great proficient. He carried
on a correspondence with some ot the learned men of
England, and numbered among his friends Mr Henry
Baker of the Royal Society, Dr Watts, Dr Doddridge, and
other eminent persons of his time. He appears ^ to have
written several other pieces besides “ The Grave,” and we
may particularly mention “ A Poem dedicated to the Me¬
mory of Mr William Law, Professor of Philosophy in the
University of Edinburgh,” which was first published in Dr
Anderson’s collection; but the former constitutes his best
and indeed only title to rank as a poet. It consists of a
succession of descriptions and reflections which have no
other connection or dependence except what they may
be supposed to derive from their relation to a common
subject; but these are interspersed with striking allusions,
picturesque imagery, touches of a rude though effective
pathos, and a vein of sentiment at once so natural and so just
that it is almost certain to find its way to the heart through
the medium of the understanding. The rhythm is often
harsh, and the versification frequently devoid of correct¬
ness, harmony, and grace; but it has nevertheless a mascu¬
line vigour and freshness about it, which more than atone
for these defects in the finishing ; while, in certain moods
of the mind, the air of deep and almost misanthropical
melancholy diffused over the whole, proves highly touch¬
ing and impressive. Accordingly there are few poems in¬
deed which have become so thoroughly infixed in the ge¬
neral memory; none, perhaps, except the “ Cottar’s Satur¬
day Night,” which is so universal a favourite with the people
of this country. Mr Campbell, in his “ Pleasures of Hope,”
has borrowed, with a slight variation, which seems scarcely
an improvement, a well-known line of this poem. His “ like
angel visits, few and far between,” is an almost tautological
substitution for the more correct and precise comparison
of Blair,
 its visits,
Like those of angels, short and far between.
BLAIR-ATHOLE, or Blair in Athole, a village and
parish in the county of Perth and district of Athole, con¬
taining a population of about 3000, and distant eighteen
miles from Dunkeld, thirty-three from Perth, and seventy-
six from Edinburgh. The village has almost completely
decayed out; but the parish is nevertheless remarkable
for its interesting localities, striking scenery, and mineral
products, particularly marble, which is found in consider¬
able abundance, and of almost every variety of colour,
though somewhat coarsely grained, in the valley of the
Tilt. One of the most conspicuous objects to the eye of
the tourist is Blair Castle, a seat belonging to the Duke of
Atholl, and formerly a baronial fortress, though now de¬
spoiled of its battlements and other castellated honours.
It was occupied by the Marquis of Montrose in 1644;
stormed by a party under the command of one of Crom¬
well’s officers in 1653; and gallantly defended by Sir
Andrew Agnew, in 1746, when besieged by a portion of
the Highland army, until he was relieved by the Hessians
under the Earl of Crawford. The falls of Bruar, celebrat¬
ed by Burns, are two miles to the westward,—and the pass
of Killiekrankie, famous for the battle which was there
fought in 1689, between the Highlanders under Viscount
Dundee, and King William’s troops under General Mac-
kay, is about an equal distance to the eastward, of Blair
Castle. The old church of Blair, now in ruins, is said to
contain the ashes of Dundee, who fell early in the ac- I •
tion, and for whose memory the few lingering remnants 86
of the ancient race of Highlanders still cherish a sort of ^ e.
traditional veneration ; for the “ bloody Clavers” of the ^ ^
southern and western counties appeared in a totally dif¬
ferent light to the men who shared his loyalty, and will¬
ingly drew their swords in the cause around the expiring
effort of which he shed the momentary and meteoric bril¬
liancy of a bootless victory.
BLAISE, a military order instituted by the kings of
Armenia, in honour of St Blaise, anciently bishop of Se-
basta in that country, the patron saint of that nation. Jus¬
tinian calls them knights of St Blaise and St Mary, and
places them not only in Armenia, but in Palestine. They
made a particular vow to defend the religion of the church
of Rome, and followed the rule of St Basil. The precise
year of the institution of the knights of St Blaise is not
known; but they appear to have commenced about the
same time with the knights-templars and hospitallers, to
the former of which they bore a near affinity.
BLAKE, Robert, a famous English admiral born in
August 1589, at Bridgewater, in Somersetshire, where he
was educated at the grammar-school. In 1615 he went
from thence to Oxford, where he was entered at St Alban’s
Hall; he subsequently removed to Wadham College; and,
on the 10th of February 1617, he took the degree of bache¬
lor of arts. In 1623 he wrote a copy of verses on the death
of Mr Camden, and soon after left the university. He
was pretty early tinctured with republican principles, and
disliking that severity with which Laud, then bishop of
Bath and Wells, pressed uniformity in his diocese, he
began to fall into the puritanical opinions. His natural
bluntness causing his principles to be well known, the
puritan party returned him member for Bridgewater in
1640 ; and he served in the parliament army with great
courage during the civil war. But when the king was
brought to trial, he highly disapproved the measure as
illegal, and was frequently heard to say that “ he would
as freely venture his life to save the king, as ever he did
to serve the parliament.” But this is thought to have been
chiefly owing to the humanity of his temper, since after
the death of the king he fell in wholly with the republi¬
can party, and, next to Cromwell, was the ablest officer
of whom the parliament could boast.
In 1648-9 he was appointed, in conjunction with Co¬
lonel Dean and Colonel Popham, to command the fleet;
and soon after blockaded Prince Maurice and Prince Ru¬
pert in K insale harbour. But the latter getting out, Blake
followed them from port to port, and at last attacked them
in that of Malaga, where he burnt and destroyed their
whole fleet excepting two ships; the Reformation, in which
Prince Rupert himself was, and the Sivallow, command¬
ed by his brother Prince Maurice. In 1652 he was con¬
stituted sole admiral, and defeated the Dutch fleet com¬
manded by Van Tromp, Ruyter, and de Witt in three
several engagements, in which the Dutch lost eleven men
of war, thirty merchant ships, and, according to their own
account, had 1500 men slain. Soon after, Blake and his
colleagues, with a fleet of a hundred sail, stood over to the
Dutch coast, and forced the enemy’s fleet to fly for shel¬
ter into the Texel, where they were blockaded for some
time by Monk and Dean, while Blake sailed northw-ar .
At last, however, Van Tromp got out, and drew together
a fleet of a hundred and twenty men of war. On the 3d o
June the generals Dean and Monk came to an engagemen
with the enemy off the North Foreland, with indifferen
success ; but the next day Blake coming to their assistance
with eighteen ships, gained so complete a victory, that i
the Dutch had not saved themselves on Calais sands, their
whole fleet would have been taken or destroyed.
B L A
B L A
673
In April 1653 Cromwell turned the long parliament out
i 0f doors, and shortly afterwards assumed the supreme
power. The states hoped great advantages from this,
but they were disappointed. Blake observed to his officers
on the occasion, “ It is not for us to mind state affairs, but
to keep foreigners from fooling us.” In November 1654,
Cromwell sent him with a strong fleet into the Mediter¬
ranean, with orders to support the honour of the English
flag, and to obtain satisfaction for certain injuries which
had been done to our merchants. In the beginning of
December, Blake entered the road of Cadiz, where he
was treated with all imaginable respect; the Dutch admiral
durst not hoist his flag while he was there ; and his name
had now become so formidable, that a French squadron
having stopped one of his tenders, which had separated in
a storm, the admiral, as soon as he knew to whom it be¬
longed, sent for the captain on board, and drank Blake’s
health with great ceremony, under a discharge of five
guns, and then dismissed him. The Algerines were so
much afraid of him, that, stopping the Sallee rovers, they
obliged the latter to deliver up such English prisoners as
they had on board, and then sent them freely to Blake,
in order to purchase his favour. This, however, did not
prevent his appearing on the 10th of March before Al¬
giers, and sending an officer on shore to the dey to de¬
mand satisfaction for the piracies committed on the Eng¬
lish, and the release of all the English captives. The dey,
in his answer, alleged that the ships and captives belong¬
ed to private persons, and therefore he could not restore
them without offending all his subjects, but that the Eng¬
lish admiral might easily redeem them ; and if he thought
it proper, they would conclude a peace with him, and for
the future commit no acts of hostility against the English.
This answer was accompanied with a large present of
fresh provisions; on receiving which Blake left Algiers,
and sailed on the same errand to Tunis. The dey of the
latter place, however, not only refused to comply with
his request, but denied him the liberty of taking in fresh
water. “ Here,” said he, “ are our castles of Goletto and
Porto Ferino; do your worst.” On hearing this, Blake
began, as his custom was when highly excited, to curl his
whiskers; and, after a short consultation with his officers,
resolved to bear into the bay of Porto Ferino with his
great ships and their seconds. On coming within musket-
shot of the castle and the line, he fired on both so warm¬
ly, that in two hours the castle was rendered defence¬
less, and the guns on the works along the shore were dis¬
mounted, although sixty of them played at once on the
English. Observing nine ships in the road, Blake ordered
every captain to man his long boat with choice men, to
enter the harbour and fire the Tunisians ; a service which
they happily effected, with the loss of only 25 men killed
and 48 wounded, while the admiral covered the operation
and took off the fire of the castle by playing continually on
it with his great guns. This daring action spread the terror
of his name throughout all Africa. From Tunis he sailed
to Tripoli; caused the English slaves to be set at liberty ;
and concluded a peace with that government. He then re¬
turned to Tunis, upon which the Tunisians implored mercy,
and begged him to grant them peace, which he did on
terms highly advantageous to England. He next sailed to
Malta, and obliged the knights to restore the effects taken
by their privateers from the English. And by these, as
well as other great exploits, he raised the glory of the
English name to such a pitch, that most of the princes
and states in Italy thought fit to pay their compliments to
the protector, by sending solemn embassies to him.
Blake passed the next winter either lying before Cadiz
or cruizing up and down the straits. He was at his old
station, at the mouth of the harbour, when he received
VOL. IV.
information that the Spanish plate fleet had put into the Blake,
bay of Santa Cruz, in the island of Teneriffe. Upon this
he weighed anchor, with twenty-five men of war, on the
13th of April 1657; and on the 20th came to anchor
with his ships off the bay of Santa Cruz, where he saw
sixteen Spanish ships moored in the form of a half-moon.
Near the mouth of the harbour stood a castle furnished
with heavy ordnance; besides which there were seven
forts round the bay, with six, four, and three guns on each,
and connected by a line of communication manned with
musketeers. To make all safe, the commander of the
Spanish fleet caused all the smaller ships to be moored
close in shore; while the six large galleons stood far¬
ther out at anchor, with their broadsides towards the sea.
Blake having prepared for the fight, a squadron of ships
was drawn out to make the first onset, commanded by
Captain Stayner in the Speaker frigate; who, on receiv¬
ing orders, sailed into the bay and fell upon the Spanish
fleet, without the least regard to the forts, which kept up
a heavy cannonade. As soon as these had entered the
bay, Blake followed, and stationed several ships to pour
their broadsides into the castle and forts; and these kept
up so heavy and well-directed a fire, that, after some time,
the Spaniards found their forts too hot to hold them. In
the meanwhile Blake joined Stayner, and bravely fought
the Spanish ships, out of which the crews were beaten by
two o’clock in the afternoon ; when Blake, finding it impos¬
sible to carry them away, ordered his men to set them on
fire; and this was done so effectually, that they were all
reduced to ashes except two, which sunk downright, no¬
thing remaining above the water but part of the masts.
The English having now obtained a complete victory,
were reduced to another difficulty by the wind, which
blew so strong into the bay that they despaired of getting
out, and for a time lay under the fire of the castle and of
all the forts, which must soon have torn them to pieces.
But the wind suddenly shifting, they were enabled to
work out of the bay, and left the Spaniards in astonish¬
ment at the fortunate temerity of their assailants. This
action does honour to Blake ; and although fortune favour¬
ed him in the opportune shifting of the wind, and his si¬
tuation was, upon the whole, less trying than that of the
gallant men under Lord Nelson, who, in our time, made
an attempt on this place, his conduct throughout appears
to have been distinguished for the most adventurous dar¬
ing, and the most consummate nautical skill. “ It was so
miraculous,” says the Earl of Clarendon, “ that all men
who knew the place wondered that any sober man, with
what courage soever endowed, would ever have undertaken
it; and they could hardly persuade themselves to believe
what they had done; whilst the Spaniards comforted them¬
selves with the belief that they were devils, and not men,
who had destroyed them in such a manner.”
This was the last and greatest action of the gallant
Blake. Consuming with dropsy and scurvy, he hastened
home that he might yield up his last breath in the coun¬
try which he had so much adorned by his valour; and
just as he came within sight of land, he expired. Never
man, zealous for the interest of a party, was so much re¬
spected and esteemed by his opponents. Disinterested,
generous, liberal; ambitious of nothing but true glory, and
dreadful only to his avowed enemies ; he formed one of the
prominent characters of an age fertile in great men, and
remained untainted with those errors and violences which
were then so predominant. The protector ordered him
a pompous funeral at the public charge; but the tears of
his countrymen were the most honourable panegyric on
his memory. Lord Clarendon observes, “ that he was
the first man who brought ships to contemn castles on
shore, which had ever been thought very formidable, and
4 Q
G74 B L A
Blanc were discovered by him to make a noise only, and to fright
II those who could be rarely hurt by them. He was the first
I>lan ford. that infused that degree of courage into seamen, by mak-
ing them see by experience what mighty things they could
do if they were resolved; and the first that taught them
to fight in fire as well as in water.”
BLANC, Mont, a stupendous mountain in Savoy. See
Alps.
BLANCARDS, a name given to certain linen cloths,
so called from the thread used in weaving them being
half blanched or bleached before it is used.
BLANCHE-Ferme, or Blank farm, means a farm, the
rent of which is paid in silver, not in cattle. In ancient
times the crown rents were often reserved to be paid in
libris albis, called blanch firmes ; in which case the buyer
was holden dealbare finnam, that is, his base money, or
coin below the standard, was melted down in the exche¬
quer, and reduced to the fineness of standard silver, or, in¬
stead of this, he paid the king twelve pence in the pound
by way of addition.
Blanch-Holding, in Law, is a tenure by which the vas¬
sal is only bound to pay an elusoiy yearly duty to his su¬
perior merely as an acknowledgment of his right.
BLANCHARD, James, a painter. He was born at
Paris, and learnt the rudiments of his profession under
Nicholas Bolleri, his uncle ; but left him at twenty years
of age, and travelled into Italy. He staid two years at
Rome, and thence proceeded to Venice, where he was so
charmed with the works of Titian, Tintoret, and Paul Ve¬
ronese, that he resolved to follow their manner; and in
this he succeeded so well, that at his return to Paris he
soon became generally esteemed. He painted two gal¬
leries at Paris, one belonging to Perault, the first pre¬
sident, and the other to Bullion, superintendent of the
finances; but his best piece is a picture of the descent of
the Holy Ghost, in the church of Notre Dame. He was
seized, in the flower of his age, with a fever and impos-
thume in the lungs, and died in 1683.
BLANCHING, the art or method of making any thing
white. See Bleaching.
Blanching, in coinage, the operation performed on
the planchets, or pieces of silver, to give them the requi¬
site lustre and brightness.
Blanching, among gardeners, an operation by which
certain salads and roots are rendered whiter than they
would otherwise be. See Horticulture.
BLANCO, the name of a cape on the western coast of
Africa, in a barren and dreary region, near the southern
termination of the Great Desert. It forms the boundary
of the bay of Arguin ; and, with the exception of Cape
Verd, it forms the most westerly point of the continent.
The Portuguese discovered it in 1441; but the approach
is not unattended with danger. It is in lat. 20. 47. N.
There is another cape of the same name, near Mazagan,
on the western coast of Morocco ; lat. 33. 10. N. Also an¬
other in the territory of Tunis, not far from Bizesta; lat.
37. 15. N.
BLANDFORD, a market and borough town in the
hundred of Pimperne and county of Dorset, 103 miles
from London. It is a clean well-built place, on the river
Stour, overlooking which, at the end of the town, Is the
fine seat and ornamented grounds of Mr Portman. This
town has frequently been destroyed by fire, but has always
risen with increased beauty. The principal employment
is that of making shirt-buttons, which, though a minute
article, yet, being all fabricated within a narrow circle, has
been the source of prosperity to the place. There is a well-
supplied market on Saturday. Though a borough, it now
icturns no member to parliament. The inhabitants amount¬
ed in 1801 to 2328, in 1811 to 2425, and in 1821 to 2643.
B L A
BLANES, a city of the province of Catalonia in Spain, £
at the mouth of the river Tordera, defended by a castle* ^
It contains 3800 inhabitants, employed in the fisheries s-
and navigation. Long. 2. 18. E. Lat. 41. 42. N. plL
BLANK, or Blanc, in a general sense, signifies white - ^
and Blancas, or Blanca, is used to denote a kind of white
or silver money, of base alloy, coined by Henry V. in
those parts of France which were then subject to England
and valued at 8d. sterling.
Blank also denotes a small copper coin, formerly cur¬
rent in France, at the rate of five derniers Tournois.
Blank- Verse, in modern poetry, is a species of verse
composed of a certain number of syllables, generally ten,
and possessing rhythm, but without the assistance of
rhyme.
BLANKENBURG, a principality forming part of the
duchy of Brunswick, extending over 140 square miles
comprehending a part of the Hartz Forest, and containing
14,400 inhabitants. The chief city, which bears the same
name, is at the foot of the Blankenstein mountain, on
whose top, 1130 feet above the city, is situated the sum¬
mer palace of Louisenburg, with its pavilions and preserves
for game, from which is an enchanting prospect over a
most romantic district. The city contains about 3000 in¬
habitants, who are occupied in various branches of trade.
Long. 10. 52. E. Lat 51. 47. N.
BLANKET, in Commerce, a warm woollen stuff, light
and loosely woven, chiefly used in bedding.
Tossing in a Blanket, a ludicrous kind of punishment,
of which mention is made by the ancients under the deno¬
mination sagatio. Martial describes it graphically enough:
Ibis ab excussa, missus ad astra, sago. A later writer re¬
presents it as one of Otho’s imperial delights; but it is
to be observed that the emperor’s diversion, as described
by Suetonius, consisted in his being the agent in, not
the subject of, this amusement; for his practice seems to
have been to stroll out in dark nights, and wdiere he met
with a helpless or drunken man, to give him the discipline
of the blanket. Every body recollects Sancho Panza's
misfortune in this way, and the sorrowful sport it proved
to the worthy squire of the knight of La Mancha.
BJvANKOF, John Teunisz, a painter, was born at Aik-
maer in 1628, and received his earliest instruction from
Arent Tierling; but afterwards was successively the dis¬
ciple of Peter Scheyenburg and Caesar Van Everdingen.
When he had spent some years with these masters, he
went to Rome, where he occupied himself in copying the
works of the best masters, and was admitted into the so¬
ciety of Flemish painters called Bentvogels, who gave him
the name of Jan Maat, or John the Mate, by which he is
most generally known. His subjects were landscapes,
with views of rivers, sea-shores, havens, or ports, which
he executed with a light and free pencil. His best per¬
formance is a view of the sea-shore, with the waves retir¬
ing at ebb tide ; and it is described by Houbraken as being
wonderfully beautiful and natural. He died in 1670.
BLASE, a bishop of Sebasta in Cappadocia in the se¬
cond and third centuries, who suffered death by decapita¬
tion under Diocletian, after undergoing flagellation, and
having his flesh torn off with iron combs. He is a person
of great note among the vulgar, who, in their processions
connected with the woollen trade, generally carry a re¬
presentation of him as the inventor or patron of the art of
wool combing, though that art must have been known
long before his time. This popular observance probably
had its origin in the circumstance of the saint having been
tortured by instruments resembling those used in combing
wool.
BLASPHEMY (derived from fiXuaprigia, compounded
of a verbal derivative of [S/m-tog, Icedo, and ^co)
B L A
jjjgpi y means literally, injurious or evil speaking. By the writers
I of the middle ages, it is used to denote simply blaming or
Bla condemning any person or thing. But among the Greeks,
^ ; to blaspheme was to use words of evil omen, or portend¬
ing something ill, which the ancients were careful to
avoid ; substituting instead of them other words of softer
and gentler import, sometimes the very reverse of the
proper ones.
Blasphemy is more peculiarly restricted to evil or re¬
proachful words spoken of the Deity. Hence Augustin
says, Jam vulgo blasphemia non accipitur nisi mala verba
de Deo dicere. According to Lindwood, blasphemy is an in¬
jury offered to God, by denying that which is due and be¬
longs to him, or by attributing to him what is not agreeable
to his nature. According to the Mosaic law, blasphemy
was punished with death; and the same punishment was
also awarded by the civil law. By the canon law, blasphe¬
my was only visited by a solemn penance; and introduced
the commutation of corporal punishment into a pecuniary
fine. According to the English laws, blaspheming God,
as denying his being or providence, and all contumelious
reproaches of Jesus Christ, are offences at common law,
and punishable by fine, imprisonment, and the pillory.
And, by the statute law, he who denies one of the persons
in the Trinity, or asserts that there ai*e more than one
God, or denies Christianity to be true, is for the first of¬
fence rendered incapable of any office, and for the second
adjudged incapable of suing, being executor or guardian,
receiving any gift or legacy, and ordered to be imprisoned
for three years.
By the law of Scotland, as it originally stood, the punish¬
ment of blasphemy was death. The first species of blas¬
phemy consists in railing at or cursing God; and here the
single act constitutes tlie crime. The second consists
in denying the existence of the Supreme Being, or any
of the persons of the Trinity, and in obstinately perse¬
vering in this denial to the last. For reiterated denial
does not fully constitute the crime, because the statute
of Charles II. 1661 admits of repentance before convic¬
tion as a compete expiation. And this statute of 1661 is
ratified by an act of King William, by which the calling
in question the existence of God, or of any of the persons
of the Trinity, or the authority of the Scripture, or the
Divine Providence, is made penal; the punishment for the
first offence being imprisonment till satisfaction be given
by public repentance in sackcloth, and for the second a
fine of a year’s valued rent of the real estate of the cul¬
prit, and the twentieth part of his personal estate; and
the trial in both these cases being competent to inferior
judges. The punishment of the third offence is death,
and hence it can only be tried by the court of justiciary.
Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. Divines are not
agreed with respect to the nature of the crime thus deno-
niinated, and the grounds of the extreme guilt ascribed to
it. Dr Tillotson maintains that it consists in maliciously
attributing to the devil the miraculous operations which
bhrist performed by the power of the Holy Ghost. But
Dr Whitby refers it to the dispensation of the Holy Ghost,
which commenced after our Lord’s resurrection and ascen¬
sion; and contends that those were guilty of the crime
who persisted in their unbelief, and blasphemed the Holy
Dhost, representing him as an evil spirit. The crime was
unpardonable, because it implied a wilful opposition to the
last and most powerful evidence which God had vouch¬
safed to mankind, and precluded the possibility of a return
to faith and repentance.
BLAST,y?a£ws, in the military art, a sudden compres¬
sion of the air, caused by the discharge of the bullet out
°t a great gun.
Dlast is also applied in a more general sense to any
B L A 675
forcible stream of wind or air, produced by the mouth, bel- Blasting,
lows, or the air. w
BLASTING is a term used by the engineer and miner
to denote the application of the explosive force of gun¬
powder in opening or rending rocks, indurated clay, con*
solidated earth, and the walls of old buildings. In quar¬
rying sandstone, consisting of regular layers, the work is
performed chiefly by means of the pick, the wedge, the
hammer, and the pinch or lever; recourse being seldom
had to the more violent and irregular effects of gunpowder.
But for many kinds of limestone, and for greenstone and
basalt, blasting is always resorted to; and some of the
rocks called primitive, such as granite, gneiss, and sienite,
could scarcely be torn asunder by any other means.
At what period blasting with gunpowder was first re¬
sorted to as a power in mechanics, is uncertain. Gunpow¬
der was applied to military engines in 1330, but there is
reason to believe that its application to the peaceful arts
is of a much later date. It may seem strange at this day
to propose the expansive or explosive force of gunpowder as
a new mechanical power ; but when the lever and the wedge
become ineffectual to the purposes of the artificer, he
must naturally attach a high value, and be disposed to
give an elevated term, to that instrument or means by
which he is enabled, in a very simple manner, to effect his
purpose, and overcome the greatest obstructions to his
operations. One could almost, therefore, wish it dignified
with such a title as the explosive power.
This agent is no less simple in its application than it
is powerful in its effects. It is considered as the result
of the sudden extrication of a permanently elastic fluid by
the ignition of the gunpowder, the extricated gas occupy¬
ing about 472 times more space than the grains of the
powder. Some authors are of opinion that the powder
contains only atmospheric air in a state of great conden¬
sation, and that, when this fluid is set at liberty, being at
the same time highly rarefied by the heat, from the inflam¬
mation of the powder, it produces the wonderful effects
already mentioned. By others, it is supposed that the air
contained in the nitre of the gunpowder is about 236
times denser than atmospheric air, and that, when explod¬
ed, it produces an effect proportioned to its condensation;
the elastic fluid expanding with a velocity which has been
calculated at the rate of about 10,000 feet per second;
and its pressure or force, when thus expanding, having
been estimated as equal to a thousand atmospheres, or as
a thousand times greater than the atmospheric pressure
upon a base of the same extent. If we apply this product
to the pressure of the atmosphere, or at the rate of 14f
pounds to the square inch, we shall find that the elastic
fluid of gunpowder, at the moment of explosion, exerts a
force equivalent to 6^ tons upon the square inch of sur¬
face exposed to its force, and that with a velocity which
even the imagination can hardly follow. Count Rumford,
indeed, estimated this force at 10,000 atmospheres; but
we have rather followed the calculations of Hutton, whose
opportunities of experiment, connected with the military
college of Woolwich, have been unquestionably great.
The progress of quarrying and blasting rocks has of
late years made great advancement in this country. In
Europe, the art of mining was long chiefly confined to
Sweden and Germany; but since the disappearance of
our thickly wooded forests, and the universal introduction
of pit-coal for fuel, and of cast-iron in the arts, Great Bri¬
tain has made rapid strides to improvement in the art of
mining, and now rivals her continental neighbours. Here
we may allude to the coalworks of Northumberland and
Durham, of Cumberland and the western counties of Eng¬
land and Wales. We may also notice the great extent of
the like works in the south-eastern and south-western dis-
676 B L A S
Blasting, tricts of Scotland. Much of this kind of work is done
'w-y'w' with the pick and shovel; but, without the aid of the ex¬
pansive force of gunpowder, these operations must have
been of a very limited extent. Other works of no less
magnitude than those of coal-mines have been executed
in Great Britain, almost wholly by the force of gunpowder,
particularly in canal and road-works. To illustrate more
fully the use of gunpowder in mining operations, we may
mention the extensive works in tunnelling, for preserving
the level of canals through mountainous districts of coun¬
try, instead of forming locks, or following a circuitous line
of navigation. The bold attempt of blasting rocks under
such circumstances was, in this country, reserved for Mr
Brindley, engineer upon the Duke of Bridgewater’s canals.
In 1776 this celebrated engineer completed the first navi¬
gable tunnel, at Harecastle in Staffordshire, which is up¬
wards of one mile in length. Since that period, many
other works of a similar nature, and even of much greater
extent, have been executed in various parts of Europe.
By the art of blasting, immense excavations have been
made upon the great canal in Sweden. In France a tun¬
nel of about seven miles in length has lately been com¬
pleted ; and in our own country, at Sapperton, on the canal
joining the rivers Severn and Thames, and at Marsden-
hill, there is a tunnel upwards of three miles in length, for¬
ced entirely through rock by means of gunpowder. We
may also instance the great national work of the Cale¬
donian Canal. In all of these works, in road-making, and
many others intimately connected with the prosperity of
commerce, the extension of the arts, our domestic com¬
fort, and national importance, it is most evident that, but
for the simple process of applying the expansive force of
gunpowder, we must have been deprived of innumerable
advantages and accommodation.
Method of When a perforation or hole is to be made in a rock for
blasting t]ie purp0se of blasting with gunpowder, the prudent quar-
rocks. rjer considers the nature of the rock, and the inclination
or dip of the strata, and from these determines the calibre,
and the depth and direction of the bore or recipient for
the gunpowder. According to circumstances, the diame¬
ter of the hole varies from half an inch to two and a half
inches, the depth from a few inches to many feet; and the
direction varies to all the angles from the perpendicular
to the horizontal. The implements for the performance
of this operation are rude, and so extremely simple and
familiar as hardly to require description; and the whole
operation of boring and blasting rocks is so easily perform¬
ed, that, in the space of a few weeks, an intelligent la¬
bourer may become an expert quarrier. The tools are few
in number, and, as we have just said, simple in their con¬
struction. The chisel, ov jumper as it is technically call¬
ed, varies in its length and other dimensions according to
the work to be performed, and its edge is more or less
pointed to suit the hardness or tenacity of the rock to be
bored. If the cylindrical hole to be drilled is of small
diameter and of no great depth, or the work fixed to a con¬
fined position, as often happens, the operation of boring is
performed by a single person ; with one hand he manages
the chisel or jumper, which he keeps continually turning,
and with the other he strikes the jumper with a hammer
of six or eight pounds weight. But when the hole is of
larger dimensions, and of a depth exceeding a foot, it ge¬
nerally becomes the business of one man, in a sitting pos¬
ture, to hold and direct the jumper, to keep it constantly
turning, to supply the whole with water, and occasionally
to clean it out, while two, and even three men, with ham¬
mers of ten or twelve pounds weight, strike successive
blows upon the jumper, until the rock is perforated to the
desired depth. To prevent annoyance to the quarriers
from the squirting up of the water, a small rope of straw
TING.
or hemp is simply twisted round the jumper, and kept Bla,
resting on the orifice of the hole. When the perforations ^
are to be made to a greater depth than about thirty inches,
it is now common to use a chisel or jumper, varying in
length from six to eight feet, pointed at both ends, having
a bulbous part in the middle for the convenience of hold¬
ing it; it thus becomes a kind of double jumper, and is
used without a hammer, with either end put into the hole
at pleasure. When a bore of considerable depth is to be
made after the hole has been perforated a few inches with
the common jumper, the quarriers lay it and their ham¬
mers aside, and collect round the long jumper, in a stand¬
ing posture, and lay hold of it by the bulbous part, lifting
and letting it drop into the hole by its own gravity; in
this manner, by the successive strokes or falling of the
long jumper, a hole to the depth of five feet and upwards
is perforated, with much ease to the workmen, and with
wonderful expedition. When the boring of the hole is
completed, the debris and moisture are then carefully
cleaned out, and a proper charge of powder is put into it.
In practice, there is no very precise rule for the charge or
quantity of gunpowder, this being regulated at the dis¬
cretion of the quarrier, according to the tenacity and mass
of the rock to be removed ; and these circumstances hav¬
ing been previously considered in the dimensions of the
bore, it is customary to fill it in the proportion of about
one half with gunpowder.
The charge being introduced into the cylindrical hole
bored or drilled in the rock, a long iron, called the pricker,
is inserted amongst the powder, to be afterwards with¬
drawn when the priming powder is introduced. While
this rod remains, the process of ramming or stemming the
hole is performed by forcing burnt clay, fragments of
pounded brick, stone, or any other substance less liable
than another to produce sparks of fire on being struck
with iron. After a layer or stratum of such matter has
been pressed down upon the powder, the remaining depth
of the hole is filled with pounded stone or earthy matters
of any kind, forced down with an iron punch or rammer of
such dimensions that it nearly fills the hole, but having a
groove in it to receive the pricker; the rammer being flat at
the end which enters the hole, the fragments of stone are
pounded by it round the pricker, which must be occasion¬
ally turned to prevent it from being too firmly fixed, and
thereby prevented from being drawn. This wadding or
matter, laid immediately over the powder, is gently forced
down at first, to prevent, as much as possible, the danger
of premature explosion ; but as the hole is more and more
filled up, the quarrier strikes down the stemmer with more
violence and less care, and consolidates the wadding as
much as possible, with a view to produce a greater effect
by the shot. In this operation consists the chief danger
attending the process of blasting with gunpowder; for it
must be obvious, that unless the utmost care be taken in
forcing down the first portions of the wadding above the
powder, there is great danger of such a collision taking
place between the stemmer and the pricker, or between
either of these and the rock or sides of the hole, as may
elicit a spark of fire, and produce an unintentional explo¬
sion. From this cause, indeed, the most unfortunate am
distressing accidents have sometimes happened to.quar¬
riers. A case occurred under the notice of the writer ot
this article, from which an experienced workman lost the
sight of both his eyes, and had his legs and arms much
shattered. It is necessary, as before noticed, frequently
to turn the pricker during the process of stemming the
shot, in order to prevent its being so bound by the wa -
ding as to prevent its being withdrawn; and it has been
known that, by the friction produced in the mere act o
turning it unguardedly, the shot has been fired off. 0
B L A S
R] . prevent accident in this way, copper prickers, or, to save
expense, prickers composed partly of copper and partly of
iron, have been introduced, instead of those formed wholly
of iron. The copper pricker is certainly much less liable
to accident; but notwithstanding that this fact is self-evi¬
dent, and has been clearly established in quarries where
copper and iron prickers have been used at the same time,
yet, from the greater expense of the copper, and its being
more liable to twist and break, it has by no means come
into general use.
The hole being now fully charged with the powder and
wadding, the pricker is drawn out; and the small tubular
space which it leaves is sometimes wholly filled with
powder. But with a view to save that expensive article, it
is now common to insert wheaten or oaten straws filled with
powder. These straw tubes may be joined so as to reach
any necessary depth, the lower straw always terminating
in the root part, where a natural obstruction occurs, or it
is artificially stopped with clay, to prevent the powder
from being lost. The lower part of the priming straw is
pared quite thin, so as to insure the inflammation of the
charge of powder in the hole. This being done, a slow
match, consisting generally of a bit of soft paper, prepared
by dipping it into a solution of saltpetre, is carefully ap¬
plied to the priming powder. When this match is touched
with fire, the quarriers give the alarm to all around to re¬
tire to a sufficient distance, so as to avoid accident from
the expected explosion. This commonly takes place in
about a minute. The priming first explodes, attended
only with flame; a short interval of suspense commonly
ensues; the eyes of the byestanders being anxiously di¬
rected towards the spot; the rock is instantly seen to
open, when a sharp report, or a detonating noise, takes
place, and numerous fragments of stone are observed to
spring into the air, and fly about in all directions, from
amidst a cloud of smoke. The quarrier then returns with
alacrity to the scene of his operations. When blasting
with gunpowder is carried on in coal-pits or in sinking
wells, where the workmen cannot get speedily out of the
reach of the shot, or in any situation where adjoining
houses, &c. may be in danger of being injured, it is com¬
mon to load or cover up part of the rock to be blasted
with a quantity of furze or brushwood, to prevent the frag¬
ments of blasted rock from being driven to a distance.
^ The simplicity of this operation, so important to our
l',, means of quarrying or prying into the bowels of the earth,
is perhaps one cause of so little attention having been
paid to it by persons of science; while the personal risk
attending it may have also operated in some measure to
prevent particular inquiries regarding it. It was an ex¬
tremely natural conclusion for the quarrier to suppose,
that the more firmly the shot was rammed home, the
more powerful would be the effect of the explosion. This,
we know, was long the conviction of military engineers,
and was also a principle invariably adopted by miners, to
the great personal hazard of the artificer. In many places
this notion still prevails, and we cannot enough lament the
force and stubbornness of custom in this instance, as it has
been fully established that a wadding of loose sand, or of
any earthy matter in a dry state, answers all the purposes
of the firmest ramming or wadding. Now, as it is in the
operation of ramming that accidents most commonly be¬
fall the quarrier, and which the use of the copper pricker
cannot altogether prevent, it is not a little surprising that
the use of sand does not become universal.
To the common-labourer, indeed, it naturally seems
somewhat paradoxical to say, that particles of loose sand
can produce an effect equal to stemming a shot with
an iron punch and hammer ; but those who are better in¬
formed should insist on the use of sand, whereby the per-
T I N G. 677
son of the quarrier would be much less exposed, and Blasting,
much time and trouble would be saved. It may be no-
ticed, that in several works this is observed, particularly at
Lord Elgin’s extensive mining operations at Charlestown
in Scotland, where much attention is paid to the security
and comfort of the artificer, as well as to every thing in¬
teresting to science. The practice of using loose sand in¬
stead of pounded stone rammed with force, has been in
use at these works for several years,—it is believed since
about the year 1810. The writer of this article has also
had considerable opportunities of trying the accuracy of
these statements, as to the efficiency of sand, at the ex¬
tensive quarrying operations which became necessary in
cutting down a part of the Caltonhill, to form the new
approach to the city of Edinburgh, where upwards of
100,000 cubic yards of rocky matters were removed, and
gunpowder to the value of nearly L.1000 sterling was
expended, chiefly in blasting rock, consisting of whin-
stone or greenstone, much traversed by calcareous spar.
The holes at this work were bored of various dimensions,
both as to calibre and depth, and also at all the angles of
inclination, from the perpendicular to the horizontal.
Trials were here made with holes from three to seven or
eight feet in depth, and from an inch to two and a half
inches in diameter; and it wras invariably found, that
when the powder -was wadded with sand, the effect in
tearing or blasting the rock was as great as when the
more commonly followed method of ramming with pound¬
ed stone was adopted. In the judgment of the contrac¬
tors, the fragments of rock had a greater tendency to fly
to a distance when sand only was employed; but there
was as great a bulk of the rock raised by the shot wadded
with sand as by that which was rammed in the usual way;
and in practice it was found that the shots with sand were
not more liable to fail, or blow without doing execution,
than those which were rammed. It is a fact perhaps as
curious and interesting as any connected with the subject,
that in both ways the shots fail, and at times blow out,
without producing any effect, or being occasioned by any
apparent cause. Reasoning from the simultaneous effects
of the sudden extrication of the elastic fluid of gun¬
powder, whether a wadding of loose sand or of firmly
pounded stone be employed, trial was made of gunpowder
without any wadding; but the effect produced by this
method was rather to shake or rend the upper part, near
the orifice of the hole or surface of the rock, than at the
bottom of the hole. This fact, however, favours the con¬
clusion that the explosive force of gunpowder is in propor¬
tion to the surface upon which it acts ; and that the effect
is so instantaneous, that it seems a matter not essentially
connected with the operation, in what manner the wadding
is effected, provided that the atmospheric air is not in im¬
mediate contact with the powder ; as otherwise the fluid
appears to divide, and its effects to be lost in space, with¬
out being applied chiefly at the bottom of the hole, where
the greatest execution is wished to be done.
It may be noticed, that although the use of sand for
blasting in mining operations is by no means general, yet
so much of this practice has obtained, that the quarrier is
now only at pains to ram an inch or two of the lower
wadding firmly home; the upper parts are done loosely,
with little attention either to the stuff employed, or to the
ramming of it; and he merely consolidates it in such a
manner that the broken particles shall not fall into the
charge amongst the powder when he withdraws the pricker.
This is, to a certain extent, a saving of time ; but unfortu¬
nately the quarrier still undergoes much personal risk, the
chief danger being in ramming at first, or in the turning
or withdrawing of the pricker, where the wadding is firm.
When sand is used immediately above the powder, both
078 B L E
Blasting the pricker and the rammer are wholly unnecessary; the
, II . primed straw being inserted into the powder, the sand is
^eac.juig. poured into the hole, and the shot is ready for the match.
But a difficulty occurs in the use of sand, which, though
easily surmounted, it may be proper to notice in this place.
When the hole or perforation in the rock happens to be
horizontal, or at more than an angle of 45° from the per¬
pendicular, the priming straw is apt to be injured in filling
the hole with sand, an evil to which the pricker is not
liable; but this is easily got over by inserting the priming
straw into a small cylindrical tube of sheet-iron or copper,
while the sand is gently pressed into the hole; and the
small tube, which is open at both ends, is afterwards with¬
drawn. By this means the operation of the horizontal shot
is rendered not less sure, and is attended with no greater
expense, and little more trouble, than when the bore is
perpendicular.
Inflam- It has been supposed by some, that a more complete
ination of inflammation of the powder would take place if it were
P°W" ignited at the bottom of the hole ; but it has been found
by experience that this is not essential. It even appears
from experiment, that gunpowder is more fully inflamed
by applying the fire near the top, for, in firing ordnance,
considerable quantities of the uninflamed grains of the
powder have been collected, by placing a piece of cloth
at a distance from the gun, and allowing the shot to pass
through it.
* s.e,0*,'. Quick-hme, suddenly slacked, has been suggested as a
quick-lime. m0(ie 0f rending rocks ; but this process would in practice
be found very defective. In some situations where the
explosive effects of gunpowder could not be applied with
safety, as in the interior of a building, or for such like
purposes, this mode may be resorted to with good effect.
Blasting Blasting with gunpowder under water is necessarily per-
under wa- formed in various operations of the engineer, particularly
in the excavation of the foundations of piers, and in deep¬
ening the entrances of harbours. This is performed by
inserting the charge of powder into the perforated rock
by means of a case or cartridge made of tin-plate. The
lower part is made to fit the bore in the rock, as nearly
as may be ; from this a small pipe of the same metal is
carried to the surface of the water, with the priming pow¬
der. Here wadding is unnecessary, the pressure of the
water upon the tin case superseding the necessity of any;
and the explosive effects are generally greater, in propor¬
tion to the charge, than those in the open air. It may
here be observed, that explosions under water have, in
some instances, been proposed as a mode of attack in ma¬
rine warfare; and it is presumed that explosions at con-
B L E
siderable depths might occasion such an ifhpression on Bl-
the water, and so disturb the equilibrium of the atmo- eU’11
spheric pressure, as to be capable of sinking large ships *
or floating batteries. ^ Bl« jng
It may also be mentioned, that a new instrument, called ^ ^
the Blasting Screw, has been lately applied with consi-^P
derable success to the rending or splitting of large trees^
and logs of timber. It consists of a screw which is
wrought into an auger-hole, bored in the centre of the
timber; here the charge of powder is inserted, and the
orifice of the hole in the log is then shut up or closed
with the screw, when a match or piece of cord prepared
with saltpetre is introduced into a small hole left in the
screw for this purpose, by which the powder is ignited.
The application of this screw to the purposes of blasting
is not very obviously necessary, because, from what we
have seen, it would appear that the auger-hole being
charged with powder and sand, would answer every pur¬
pose. One great objection to the process of blasting ap¬
plied to the rending of timber is, the irregular and uncer¬
tain direction of the fracture, by which great waste is some¬
times occasioned. It may, however, be necessary to resort
to this mode of breaking up large trees, when cut down and
left in inaccessible situations, where a great force of men
and of implements cannot easily be procured or applied.
See Treatise of Artillery, by John Muller; Hutton’s Ma¬
thematical Dictionary ; Robins’s New Principles of Gun¬
nery, corrected and enlarged by Dr Hutton; and Nichol¬
son’s Journal, vols. xii. and xiii.
BLAUBEUERN, a bailiwick in the circle of the Da¬
nube and kingdom of Wirtemburg, extending over 132
square miles, and comprehending one city, of the same
name, with 1860 inhabitants, one market-town, and fifty-
six villages, with a population of 15,646 persons. The
climate is cold, and the soil rather unproductive.
BLAYE, an arrondissement in the department of the
Gironde, in France, extending over 732 square miles, and
comprehending four cantons and thirty-seven communes,
with a population of 31,794 persons. The chief place is
Lesparre.
BLAZONING, or Blazonry, in Heraldry, the decy¬
phering the arms of noble families. The word originally
signified the blowing or winding of a horn, and was intro¬
duced into heraldry as a term denoting the description of
things borne in arms, with their proper significations and
intendments, from an ancient custom observed by the he¬
ralds, who were the judges, of winding a horn at jousts
and tournaments, when they explained and recorded the
achievements of knights.
BLEACHING
Is the art of depriving cotton, linen, silk, wool, wax, &c.,
of their colouring matter, and rendering them as white as
possible. The word is probably derived from the French
term blanchiment, which signifies the process of renderinq
white.
History. 1. The ancients, especially in Egypt, wffiere white linen
or cotton was a common article of clothing, must at an
early period have been acquainted with the method of
.eaching that substance; but none of their writers have
left us any details on the subject. We know, however,
iiom Puny, that different plants, and likewise the ashes of
p ants, which no doubt contained alkali, were employed as
detergents. Pliny mentions particularly the struthium as
much used for bleaching in Greece. This plant has been
considered by some as the gypsophUa struthium. But as
it does not appear from Sibthorp’s Flora Grceca, publish¬
ed by Sir James Smith, that this species is a native of
Greece, Dr Sibthorp’s conjecture, that the struthium of
the ancients was the saponaria officinalis, a plant com¬
mon in Greece, is certainly more probable. Mr Parkes, in
his Essay on Bleaching (Chemical Essays, vol. iv. p. 7),
says, that Theophrastus states that lime was used by the
ancients in bleaching; and that a ship, partly loaded with
linen, and partly with lime for bleaching it, was destroyed
by the water having accidentally found access to the lime.
We endeavoured, with some pains, to verify this quotation;
and, accordingly, turned over all the writings of Theo¬
phrastus with which we are acquainted, but without being
able to find any thing bearing the least allusion to it.
Till about eighty years ago, the art of bleaching was
scarcely known in Great Britain. It was customary to send
all the brown linen manufactured in Spotland to Holland to
• (leaclii
BLEACHING.
679
be bleached. It was sent away in the month of March, and
not returned till the end of October, being thus out of the
hands of the merchant more than half a year. The prin¬
cipal Dutch bleaching-grounds were in the neighbourhood
of Haerlem; and the great success of their bleaching was
ascribed to the superior efficacy of their water, which,
according to the fashionable theory of the time, was sea¬
water filtered and rendered sweet by passing through
their sand-downs. Indeed, it was long a prejudice on the
Continent, that no water was efficacious for bleaching but
sea-water.
The Dutch mode of bleaching was to steep the linen
for about a week in a potash ley poured over it boiling hot.
The cloth being taken out of this ley, and washed, was
next put into wooden vessels containing butter-milk, in
which it lay under a pressure for five or six days. After
this it was spread upon the grass, and kept wet for several
months, exposed to the sunshine of summer.
In the year 1749, as we are informed by Mr Parkes
[Chemical Essays, vol. iv. p. 26), an Irishman, who had
learned something of the art of bleaching, settled in the
north of Scotland, and established a bleaching manufac¬
tory. On applying to the principal Scotch makers of linen,
they readily furnished him with a quantity of goods ; but
after keeping them a whole year, he failed in all his endea¬
vours to bleach them, and the proprietors were obliged to
send them to Holland to get the process completed. Next
summer his efforts were not more successful; the linen
was considerably injured, and even rendered tender by his
management, but it was not whitened. Nevertheless,*^ this
man by perseverance became in a few years an excellent
practical bleacher. He had the merit of introducing the
art into Great Britain, and his descendants at this day
figure among the higher ranks in the metropolis.
The bleaching process, as at that time performed, was
very tedious, occupying a complete summer. It consist¬
ed in steeping the cloth in alkaline leys for several days,
washing it clean, and spreading it upon the grass for some
weeks. The steeping in alkaline leys, called bucking, and
the bleaching on the grass, called crofting, were repeated
alternately for five or six times. The cloth was then
steeped for some days in sour milk, washed clean, and
crofted. These processes were repeated, diminishing every
time the strength of the alkaline ley, till the linen had
acquired the requisite whiteness.
For the first improvement in this tedious process, which
was faithfully copied from the Dutch bleachfields, manufac¬
turers were indebted to Dr Francis Home of Edinburgh,
who proposed to substitute water acidulated with sulphuric
acid, for the sour milk previously employed. This sug¬
gestion was in consequence of the new mode of making
sulphuric acid, contrived some time before by Dr Roe¬
buck, which reduced the price of that acid to less than
one third of what it had formerly been. It is curious,
that when this change was first adopted by the bleachers,
there was the same outcry against its corrosive effects as
we have seen some years ago, when chlorine was substi¬
tuted for crofting. No allegation, however, could be worse
founded, and it was completely destroyed by the publica¬
tion of Dr Home (Essay on Bleaching'), who demonstrat-
od the perfect innocence and the superior efficacy and
cneapness of sulphuric acid, when properly applied, as com¬
pared with sour milk. Another advantage resulted from
tne use of sulphuric acid, which was of the greatest im¬
portance to the merchant. A souring with sulphuric acid
required at the longest only twenty-four hours, and often
not more than twelve; whereas, when sour milk was em-
Pmyed, six weeks, or even two months, were requisite,
according to the state of the weather. In consequence of
ns improvement, the process of bleaching was shortened
from eight months to four, which enabled the merchant Bleaching,
to dispose of his goods so much the sooner, and conse- n-—y-w
quently to trade with less capital.
The bleaching art remained in this state, or nearly so,
till the year 1787, when a most important change began
to take place in it, in consequence of a discovery which
originated in Sweden about thirteen years before. In the
year 1774 there appeared in the Memoirs of the Royal Aca¬
demy of Stockholm a paper on manganese, by Mr Scheele.
Among other experiments to which he subjected this mi¬
neral, he mixed it with muriatic acid, put the mixture in a
retort, and applied heat. He perceived a smell similar to
that of aqua regia. This induced him to collect what
came over in a receiver, and he found it to be muriatic
acid, altered in a remarkable manner by the action of the
manganese on it. Its smell was greatly heightened, it
was become less soluble in water, and it possessed the
property of destroying those vegetable colours on which
it was allowed to act. M. Berthollet repeated the expe¬
riments of Scheele on this new acid in 1785, and added
considerably to the facts already known. He showed that
this new substance (called by Scheele dephlogisticated
muriatic acid) is a gas soluble in water, to which it gives
a yellowish green colour, an astringent taste, and the pe¬
culiar smell by which the body is distinguished. When
water impregnated with this gas is exposed to sunshine,
it gradually loses its colour, while at the same time a
quantity of oxygen gas is disengaged from the water. If
the liquid be now examined, it will be found to contain,
not the new acid, but common muriatic acid. This expe¬
riment Berthollet considered as exhibiting an analysis of
the new acid, and as demonstrating that it is a compound
of muriatic acid and oxygen. On that account he gave it
the name of oxygenated muriatic acid, which was after¬
wards shortened into oxymuriatic acid, an appellation by
which it was long known among bleachers.
The property which this gas possesses of destroying
vegetable colours led Berthollet to suspect that it might
be introduced with advantage into the art of bleaching,
and that it would enable practical bleachers greatly to
shorten their processes. At what time these ideas first
struck his mind we do not exactly know; but at the end
of a paper on dephlogisticated muriatic acid, read before
the Academy of Sciences at Paris in April 1785, and pub¬
lished in the Journal de Physique for May of the same
year (vol. xxvi. p. 325), he mentions that he had tried the
effect of the gas in bleaching cloth, and found that it an¬
swered perfectly. This idea is still further developed in
a paper on the same substance, published in the Journal
de Physique for 1786. In 1786 he exhibited the experi¬
ment to Mr Watt, who, immediately upon his return to
England, commenced a practical examination of the sub¬
ject, and was accordingly the person who first introduced
the new method of bleaching into Great Britain.
Mr Parkes, in his Chemical Essays, published in 1815,
has mentioned some facts upon this subject, which it will
be proper to state. In the early part of the year 1787,
Professor Copland of Aberdeen accompanied the Duke of
Gordon to Geneva, and was there shown the discolouring
property of chlorine gas by M. de Saussure. Mr Copland
was much struck with the importance of the experiment;
and on his return to Aberdeen in July 1787, he mentioned
the circumstance, and repeated the experiment before
some eminent bleachers in his own neighbourhood. These
gentlemen were Messrs Milnes of the house of Gordon,
Barron, and Company, Aberdeen. They immediately be¬
gan the application of the process to the bleaching of
linen on a great scale; and Mr Parkes assures us that
they were the first persons who applied the new px-ocess
to practical bleaching in Great Britain.
680
Bleaching.
New pro¬
cess intro¬
duced into
Britain by
Mr Watt.
BLEACHING.
But this statement, though it may appear plausible at
first sight, is quite incorrect. The writer of this article
took the liberty of applying to Mr Watt himself for in¬
formation on the subject. Mr Watt has preserved copies
of all his letters since the year 1782, taken by means of
his copying machine ; and he allowed the writer of this
article to peruse such of them as bore any reference to
this subject. Now, two letters were found which entirely
set the matter at rest. The first of these is to his father-in-
law, Mr Macgregor, dated Birmingham, 19th March, 1787.
In this letter he gives a particular detail of the new bleach¬
ing process, states its advantages, and says that he had
sent Mr Macgregor a quantity of the whitening liquor.
The second letter is to Berthollet, and is dated Birming¬
ham, May 9, 1787. The following is a part of that letter,
which we have transcribed verbatim : “ Je ne sais pas si
j’ai encore fait la liqueur acide si fort que vous avez fait,
mais je vous donnerois les moyens de juger. Je trouve que
4 onces de mon acide mele avec la quantite necessaire
d’alkali de pearl-ash peut blanchir un gros de toile brune,
telle comme j’ai vu chez vous. II est vrai quil ne la fait
tout-a-fait blanc ; mais il le fait aussi blanc, que je puis le
faire, meme en ajoutant une second dose d’acide. Je
bouille la toile par avance dans une solution d’alkali faible ;
et, a mi blanc, je la bouille une second fois. Je trouve que
le savon est meilleur que 1’alkali pur pour la second bouil¬
lon. J’ai blanchi tout-a-fait le coton, mais je ne suis en¬
core parvenu a blanchir parfaitement la toile de lin.” The
reader will observe that the date of both of these letters
is some months before Mr Copland’s return from the Con¬
tinent. M. Berthollet had published his process in 1785,
and as Watt had brought it to England in the end of 1786,
and had put it in practice, and introduced it into Mr Mac-
gregor’s bleachfield, near Glasgow, in the month of March
1787, it is clear that Saussure has no claim to the original
discovery, nor Mr Copland to the first introduction of the
new process into Great Britain.1
Dr Henry quotes a letter of Mr Watt, dated February
23, 1788, in which he says, “ I have for more than a
twelvemonth been in possession and practice of a method
of preparing a liquor from common salt, which possesses
bleaching qualities in an eminent degree; but not being
the inventor, I have not attempted to get a patent or ex¬
clusive privilege for it.” {Annals of Philosophy, vi. 423.)
This letter alone is sufficient to show that Mr Watt’s ex¬
periments were of an earlier date than those of Messrs
Milnes. He says further, that “ at that very time 1500
yards of linen were bleaching by the new process, under his
directions.” This great experiment was conducted in the
bleachfield of his father-in-law, Mr Macgregor, near Glas¬
gow ; where, as he wrote to M. Berthollet, soon after, 500
pieces were bleached by the new method, and Mr Mac¬
gregor was so satisfied of the importance of the new pro¬
cess, that he had resolved to continue it. Mr Watt made
several improvements in the method of M. Berthollet.
Instead of employing muriatic acid and manganese, as had
been done by Scheele and Berthollet, he had recourse to
the cheaper mode of a mixture of common salt, black oxide
of manganese, and sulphuric acid. He made use of
wooden vessels to hold the water which was to be impreg¬
nated with the chlorine, coating them within with a mixture
of wax and pitch, which rendered them air tight, and pre¬
vented the gas from acting on the wood. Mr Watt like¬
wise contrived a test to indicate the strength of the wa¬
ter impregnated with chlorine, as far as its bleaching Blei in*
effects were concerned. He took a determinate quantity ^ J 8
of the infusion of cochineal, and ascertained how much
of the bleaching liquor was necessary to destroy the
colour. The strength of the bleaching liquor was obvi¬
ously inversely as the quantity necessary to destroy the
colour. But M. Welter hit upon another method about
the same time, which has been considered as preferable,
and has in consequence come into general use. He em¬
ployed a solution of indigo in sulphuric acid, instead of the
infusion of cochineal. In other respects the two methods
were the same.
Mr Thomas Henry of Manchester began his experi¬
ments on bleaching by means of chlorine nearly as early
as Mr Watt, and without any previous knowledge of what
he had done. He was very assiduous, and very success¬
ful in his trials. At a meeting of the bleachers held at
Manchester early in 1788, he exhibited half a yard of
calico, bleached by the new method, which was considered
as superior in whiteness to half a piece of calico bleached
by the same process by Messrs Cooper, Baker, and Charles
Taylor. In consequence of this exhibition he was applied
to by Mr Riclgway of Horwich, to be instructed in the new
process : and the instructions which the latter accordingly
received were the first step of a series of improvements
carried on by Mr Ridgway and his son, with an ability and
spirit of enterprise which have raised their establishment
to its present extent and importance. (See Anncds of Phi¬
losophy, vi. 423.) These two gentlemen, Messrs Watt and
Henry, had the chief merit of introducing the new mode
of bleaching into Lancashire, and the neighbourhood of
Glasgow.
In the year 1789 M. Berthollet published a memoir on
the subject, in the second volume of the Annales de Chi-
mie, p. 151. In this memoir* which constituted the first
publication on the mode of bleaching by means of chlorine,
Berthollet gives a detail of the progress of his experiments,
and states the attempts that had been made to introduce
the new mode of bleaching into France. M. Bonjour,
who had assisted him in his experiments, associated him¬
self with M. Constant, a manufacturer of cloth at Valen¬
ciennes, to form a bleaching establishment in that city
upon the new plan. But their project was prevented by
the prejudices of the inhabitants and by the jealousy ot
the bleachers, who were afraid of being injured by the
introduction of any new improvements. M. le Comte de
Bellaing, however, who approved of the project, granted
a piece of ground possessed of all the requisite conveni¬
ences, but at rather too great a distance from Valen¬
ciennes. Mr Bonjour applied to the board of commerce
for the exclusive privilege of bleaching for some years,
according to the new method in Valenciennes and Cam-
bray, and for two leagues around these places, offering at
the same time to explain the new process in all its detai s
to those who wished to make themselves acquainted wit
it. But the request was refused.
It does not appear from Berthollet’s account that t ie
new mode of bleaching had been successfully estabhshe
in any manufactory in France before the publication of is
Memoir. One of the great difficulties in the way of ap¬
plying chlorine to bleaching, was the very disagreea e
and noxious odour which characterized it, and which ren¬
dered it not only very offensive, but highly injurious to ie
health of the workmen. Berthollet describes, at consi er
1 The writer of this article, when he drew up the preceding historical detail for the Supplement to the Fourth Edition o ^
cyclopaedia Britannica in the year 1816, thought it right to write to Professor Copland, stating the facts given m the, eX ’ yered,
questing him to say whether they were accurate. Mr Copland returned no answer to the letter. This silence may be c
we think, as an admission of the accuracy of the statements.
BLEACHING.
681
h able length, a vessel contrived for impregnating water with
1 it, by M. Welter, and likewise the mode of preparing the gas
from common salt, black oxide of manganese, and sulphuric
acid. But his improvements, though considerable, were far
from obviating the inconveniences complained of. Some
method was wanted which should deprive water impreg¬
nated with this gas of its smell, without depriving it of
its bleaching qualities. The first attempt to accomplish
this object originated with M. Berthollet himself.
When he first began to bleach by means of water im¬
pregnated with chlorine, he employed that liquid as con¬
centrated as possible; but he found that the texture of
the cloth steeped in it was considerably injured. To pre¬
vent this effect, he at first added a little alkali to the liquid,
in order to saturate a portion of the acid. But he found
afterwards that it was better to dilute the liquid with wa¬
ter. Before this last method occurred to him, however,
he was requested to go to Javelle, to show the bleachers
there the method of preparing the chlorine and making the
bleaching liquor. He went twice in consequence, prepar¬
ed the liquor before the bleachers, and added some pot¬
ash to prevent the acid from injuring the texture of the
cloth. Some time afterwards the manufacturers of Javelle
announced in the different journals that they had disco¬
vered a peculiar liquid which they called Lessive de Ja¬
velle, and which possessed the property of bleaching cloth
immersed in it for a few hours. This liquid they pre¬
pared by dissolving potash in the water which they were
going to impregnate with chlorine. The consequence
was, that the liquid absorbed a much greater quantity of
gas, and might be diluted with a considerable proportion
of water, without losing its bleaching quality.
Being disappointed in their attempts to introduce this
liquor among the French bleachers, they came over to
England, and applied to parliament for the exclusive pri¬
vilege of supplying the British bleachers with this liquid.
The patent was to be given to MM. Bourbollon de Bon-
neuil and Company. In consequence of this application,
a meeting of the bleachers of Lancashire was advertised
in the beginning of the year 1788. It was at this meet¬
ing that Mr Henry exhibited the half yard of calico
bleached according to the new method. Mr Watt had
written a letter to Dr Percival on the subject, which was
communicated to the meeting. He stated in it that he
had been in possession of a new method of bleaching, by
means of chlorine, for above a year; that he had learned
it from Berthollet, and that he had every reason to be¬
lieve that the liquor of MM. Bourbollon de Bonnueil and
Company consisted of chlorine, or of some preparation of
it. In consequence of this meeting, the county members
of parliament were requested to oppose the intended mo¬
nopoly. Mr Watt also exerted all his influence ; and Mr
Parkes informs us likewise, that one of the Messrs Milne*
of Aberdeen, who had been informed of the use of chlo¬
rine by Mr Copland, happened to be in the gallery of the
House of Commons when the application in favour of the
french gentlemen was made. He took immediate mea¬
sures to inform the principal members that thi^ was not
a new process; that he himself had long ago prepared an
article equally advantageous; and that he was ready to
substantiate the truth of his statement when required.
(Parkes s Chemical Essays, iv. 62.) In consequence of
the united exertions of all these different gentlemen, the
hill was thrown out, and the monopoly prevented.
It seems to have been partly in consequence of this
application of the French gentlemen that Mr Henry of
1 lanchester was induced to attempt bleaching upon a large
scale with chlorine. His attention had been first drawn
o the subject by the papers of Berthollet, published in
tle Journal de Physique, during the years 1785 and 1786.
VOL. iv.
He was at that time engaged in a course of lectures on Bleaching,
dyeing, printing, and bleaching. An acquaintance with
the properties of chlorine, which he had repeatedly had
occasion to exhibit in his course of lectures, and the ge¬
neral hints previously thrown out by Berthollet, led him
to conclude that the liquor of Bourbollon and Company
could be nothing else than chlorine, or some compound of
it. His first operations on the large scale consisted in
exposing the goods, in a moist state, in air-tight cham¬
bers, to the action of chlorine gas. He likewise began to
prepare for sale a bleaching liquor, in which the gas was
condensed in a very weak solution of potash; which, as
we learn from Berthollet, was the very same with the
Lessive de Javelle. This liquid possessed two advantages
over water simply impregnated with chlorine gas. Its
smell was less noxious, and it might be employed to whiten
printed calicoes without destroying the colours which had
been dyed upon the cloth. But these advantages were
much more than counterbalanced by equivalent disad¬
vantages. It was found not to go nearly so far as water
impregnated with chlorine gas, and when kept for some
time it lost its bleaching properties altogether. The rea¬
son of this last alteration is now sufficiently understood:
the chlorine in the liquid was gradually converted into
common muriatic acid and chloric acid; the water con¬
taining merely common muriate of potash and chlorate of
potash. In consequence of these disadvantages, the ad¬
dition of potash to the bleaching liquid was soon laid
aside. The next attempt to destroy the noxious smell of
the liquid, without destroying its bleaching property, was
the addition of lime to the liquid. Mr Henry of Man¬
chester was one of the first persons who thought of this
addition. On the floor of his air-tight chambers rested
a stratum of thin cream of lime, through which the goods
were passed by means of a wince; and were afterwards
exposed, on quitting the liquor, to chlorine acid gas.
Hence the chloride of lime was formed upon the cloth.
But this method was objectionable in the case of some
coloured goods, the colours of which were injured or de¬
stroyed by that earth. It admitted, therefore, of only a
partial application.
Other persons made similar attempts, none of which
appear to have been attended with success. But Mr
Tennant of Glasgow, after a great deal of most laborious
and acute investigation, hit upon a method of making a
saturated liquid of chloride of lime, which was found to
answrer perfectly all the purposes of the bleacher. This
was certainly a most important improvement. Without
it, the prodigious extent of business carried on by some
of our bleachers could not possibly have been transacted.
To give some idea of the rapidity with which bleaching
is conducted according to the new process, we may men¬
tion the following fact, which we state on what we consi¬
der as very good authority. A bleacher in Lancashire
received 1400 pieces of gray muslin on a Tuesday, which
on the Thursday immediately following were returned
bleached to the manufacturers, at the distance of sixteen
miles, and they were packed up and sent off on that very
day to a foreign market. The quick return of capital
which is thus made is a benefit entirely to be ascribed to
the new mode of bleaching.
In the year 1798 Mr Tennant took out a patent for his
new invention, and offered the use of it to practical bleach¬
ers, for a fair and reasonable portion of the savings made
by its substitution for potash, then in general use. Many
of the bleachers, however, used it without paying him, and
a combination was formed to resist the right of the pa¬
tentees. • In December 1802, Mr Tennant and Company
brought an action for damages against Messrs Slater and
Varley, nominally the defendants, but who, in fact, were
4 R
682
BLEACHING.
Bleaching.
backed and supported by a combination of almost all the
bleachers in Lancashire. In consequence of this action,
the patent right was set aside by the verdict of a jury and
the decision of Lord Ellenborough, who used very strong
language against the patentees. The grounds of this de¬
cision were, that the patent included a mode of bucking
with quicklime and water, which was not a new invention.
It was decided that, because one part of the patent was
not new, therefore the whole must be set aside. Had the
writer of this article constituted the jury, the veidict
would have been very different. Lime was indeed used
previous to the patent of Mr Tennant; but it was em¬
ployed in a quite different manner from his, and he would
have allowed all of them to continue their peculiar me¬
thod without any objection, because it would have been
productive of no injury to his emolument. If the very
same process as that of Mr Tennant was employed before
he took out his patent, there could be no doubt that the
process originated with him, and that those who used it
had been induced to do so from the information which
they derived from him. In the opinion of the writer of
this article, Mr Tennant was hardly used, and the words
employed by Lord Ellenborough were quite inapplicable
to him. But when a very powerful combination is formed
against any individual, the sentiments with which they
are actuated propagate themselves with rapidity; and it
is difficult for the most upright jury to avoid being sway¬
ed by prejudices, which are the more formidable, that
their existence is not perceived.
In consequence of this decision, the use of liquid chlo¬
ride of lime in bleaching was thrown open to all, and ap¬
pears now to be universally employed by the bleachers in
Britain. Mr Tennant, thus deprived of the fruits of se¬
veral years of anxious and laborious investigation, advan¬
ced a step farther, to what may be considered as the com¬
pletion of the new method. This consisted in impregnat¬
ing quicklime in a dry state with chlorine.1 He had
taken out a patent for this on the 13th of April 1799, and
his right fortunately was not contested. He began his
manufactory of solid chloride of lime at first upon a small
scale, which has been ever since gradually extending, and
his manufactory is now the largest of the kind in Great Bri¬
tain. During the whole period of the duration of his patent
he laboured under great disadvantages. The chlorine gas
with which the lime was impregnated was obtained from
common salt. Now, his patent did not extend to Ireland,
in consequence of which manufactures of dry chloride of
lime were established in that kingdom. In Ireland the
manufacturer obtained his salt duty free, while Mr Ten¬
nant was obliged to pay a duty of 7s. 6d. per bushel.
Such, however, was the superiority of the methods em¬
ployed by Mr Tennant, that he was able to compete with
the Irish manufacturers in their own country.
In the year 1815, in consequence of the joint applica¬
tion of the bleachers, the duty on common salt, former¬
ly charged upon all bleachers and others who employed
that article in the preparation of a bleaching liquid, was
taken off, and they were henceforth allowed to use it duty
free. But this act, while it affords great advantages to
bleachers on a large scale, precludes those who only work
on a small scale from making their own chloride of lime;
the consumption of the powder, therefore, is likely to in¬
crease very much among the little bleachers and calico
printers. Its use is also considerable in partially discharg¬
ing the colour of Turkey red cloth. The method was ori¬
ginally a French invention; but a patent was granted to
Mr Thomson, a Lancashire calico-printer, for the process, Blea
which, we believe, he imported from Jouy. The method
is this: An acid paste, consisting of tartaric acid, or any
other acid thickened with gum, is first printed on the
Turkey red cloth, which is then passed through liquid
chloride of lime. It becomes white only where the acid
was applied. On this bleached part any other colour may
be applied, and the combinations produced are exceed¬
ingly beautiful and striking.
Such, as far as we are acquainted with the subject, is
the history of the progress of the new method of bleach¬
ing in Great Britain. We have said nothing of the Irish
bleachers, because we are not particularly acquainted with
the progress of the new method in that country, though
we believe that chlorine was tried by the Irish bleachers
almost as early as it was in Great Britain. Mr Parkes
supposes that Mr Kirwan might have proposed the trial
of the new re-agent, in consequence of some suggestion
from Scheele or Saussure. (Parkes’s Chemical Essay, iv.
43.) But we have no evidence that this was the case.
Indeed, it would be quite unreasonable to attempt, by
such vague suspicions, to detract from the merit due to
Berthollet for his original suggestion of the application of
chlorine to bleaching, a merit which he has enjoyed with¬
out a competitor for thirty years. Scheele was dead be¬
fore any one attempted to introduce the new gas into
bleaching, either in Great Britain or Ireland; and there
is every reason for believing that Saussure’s knowledge of
the bleaching qualities of chlorine originated from Ber-
thollet’s publications on the subject in 1785 and 1786.
1.—Bleaching of Cotton.
Cotton is a kind of down which fills the seed-pods of
various species of plants, particularly the Gossypium her-
baceum, hirsutum, and arboreum, from all of which it is
extracted in considerable quantity for the purposes of
manufacturers. This substance was known to the ancients,
and made by them into thread and cloth. Cotton cloth
appears to have been generally worn in Egypt and the
neighbouring countries at a very early period; and no
doubt the plant was cultivated in India and China for
similar purposes before the time at which the history oi
these nations, as far as we are acquainted with it, com¬
mences. Pliny gives a short description of the gossypium
which grew in Upper Egypt, which is sufficient to show
us that it was the same with our cotton plant. “ Superior
pars iEgypti in Arabiam vergens gignit fruticem, quern
aliqui gossipion vocant, plures xylon, et ideo lina inde
facta xylina. Parvus est, similemque barbatse nucis defert
fructum, cujus ex interiore bombyce lanugo netur. Nec
ulla sunt eis in candore mollitiave praeferenda.’ (Phnii,
Natur. Hist. lib. xix. c. 2.) The byssus mentioned in the
same chapter was probably likewise a species of cotton;
though the account of it given by Pliny-is not sufficiently
precise to enable us to make out the point with certainty.
Since the discovery and colonization of America and
the West Indies, and our great connection with the East
Indies, cptton has become a very common article of cloth¬
ing in Europe. The manufacture of cotton cloth in con¬
sequence has increased prodigiously, and in Great Britain
constitutes one of the great branches of manufacturing in¬
dustry. The quantity of colouring matter in cotton is
much less than in linen, and it is more easily removed.
Hence the bleaching of cotton is much easier, and occu¬
pies less time, than that of linen. On that account it wi
answer best to give the reader a clear idea of the pm-
1 The idea of saturating slacked lime with chlorine wras first suggested by Charles MTntosh, Esq. of Cross-Basket, who was at that
time a partner of Messrs Tennant and Knox.
BLEACHING.
084
Bleaching, up the pipe CC, carrying with it a quantity of the ley,
which is thrown back by the small cover D, spreads it¬
self over the surface of the goods, and filters through them
into the space below the false bottom, where it is again
heated by the steam, re-ascends the pipe CC, and so on
in constant succession, till the alkali is exhausted. FF is
a wooden cover which prevents the cooling of the mate¬
rials below a boiling heat.
The quantity of lime used in this process is 1 lb. of
lime for every 35 lbs. of the cloth. This lime, previously
slacked, is mixed with water in a separate vessel, till it
has acquired the consistency of cream. A layer of pieces
of cloth is deposited in the boiler, and over it is spread
equally a portion of this cream of lime. Then another
layer of goods is introduced over the former, which is
covered with cream of lime as before. In this way the
goods and cream of lime are introduced in alternate layers,
till the whole has been put into the boiler; then the re¬
quisite quantity of water is introduced, and the process of
boiling begun.
The cloth as it comes from the hands of the weaver is
impregnated with the dressing, which consists of flour
boiled with water into a paste. It contracts also unavoid¬
ably many greasy stains, which become visible to the eye
when the piece is put into water, by remaining dry, while
the remainder of the cloth is wetted. These two impuri¬
ties are removed by the lime-boiling more effectually, it
appears, than they would be if a potash or soda ley were
used for the purpose.
The colouring matter of the cotton, which it is the ob¬
ject of bleaching to remove, is also acted upon by the
lime, but certainly not removed; for the colour of the
cloth after it has undergone the lime-boiling is darker than
it was before it was wetted at all. Yet it cannot be doubt¬
ed that this colouring matter has been acted on by the
lime, and that it is rendered more easily removable by the
future processes to which the goods are subjected.
After the lime-boiling, the cloth is carefully washed in
the wash-wheel, in order to remove the lime, loaded as
it is with impurities, as completely as possible from the
cloth.
5. The cloth is now subjected to the action of the bleach¬
ing powder.
The bleaching powder, or chloride of lime as it is usually
called, is made by exposing slacked lime to an atmosphere
of chlorine gas till it refuse to absorb any more. Unslack¬
ed lime is incapable of absorbing this gas; but slacked
lime, or hydrate of lime, absorbs it readily. Mr Tennant
of Glasgow, who was the original contriver of the process,
and is still by far the greatest maker in Great Britain, pre¬
pares it by covering the floor of a stone chamber with a
layer of slacked lime to the height of a few inches. The
stone of which the chamber is built is the Glasgow coal
sandstone, which is rendered impervious to the chlorine
by being coated externally with a layer of cement, made
by melting together wax and rosin in the requisite pro¬
portions to make a stiff but very ductile cement. The
wooden door of the apartment is then closed and made
air-tight. There is an aperture above, which can be oc¬
casionally opened; the use of which seems to be to allow
the common air of the chamber to make its escape. A mix¬
ture of native black oxide of manganese, ground to a fine
powder, of common salt, and of sulphuric acid diluted with
water, is put into a large leaden vessel, nearly spherical,
and furnished at the top with a lid, which fits so as to be
air-tight. From this lid a leaden tube passes into the lime
chamber, to convey the chlorine gas as it is formed. This
leaden vessel is cased on the outside with an iron vessel,
between which and the leaden vessel there is an interval.
At first the chlorine gas is extricated without any heat
being applied; but after the process has continued forfilea,
some time, a current of steam is made to pass into the ,v—^ 5 li
inside of the iron case, which heats the leaden still suffici- *
ently high to continue the process till the whole common
salt is decomposed, and of course the disengagement of
chlorine gas is at an end.
The black oxide of manganese (supposing it pure) is a
compound of
1 atom manganese = 3\5
2 atoms oxygen... = 2
5-5
By the mutual action of the sulphuric acid and the acid
of the common salt it is converted into protoxide of man¬
ganese, composed of
1 atom manganese = 3*5
1 atom oxygen — 1
4-5
It therefore loses an atom of oxygen. This atom unites
with the hydrogen of the muratic acid evolved, forming
water, and thus converting the muriatic acid into chlorine.
It is obvious from this, that if the black oxide of manga¬
nese were pure, every 5*5 parts of it would be sufficient
to generate 4-5 parts of chlorine, which is the quantity con¬
tained in 7‘5 parts of common salt. Hence the proportions
of black oxide and common salt which ought to be used
are 5^ of the former to 7^ of the latter. But the black
oxide of manganese employed in this country is never pure.
It is always contaminated with a quantity of peroxide of
iron, seldom less than one fourth of the w-eight of the ore,
and often amounting to one third of that weight. It con¬
tains also not unfrequently barytes or lime, which seem to
be in chemical combination with a portion of the oxide.
On this account it is always necessary to use more than
5|- of manganese for every 7|- of salt. We believe that the
quantity of black oxide for every 7 J parts of common salt
ought not to be less than 8 parts, to make sure of obtain¬
ing the whole chlorine from the common salt.
The black oxide of manganese having a specific gravity
of 4'97, and being insoluble in water, speedily falls to
the bottom of the leaden still, and would soon cease to
convert the muriatic acid into chlorine. To prevent this,
there is an agitator in every leaden vessel, which is very
frequently moved by the workmen whose province it is to
take charge of these stills. By this means the manganese,
which is in very fine powder, is mixed with the whole li¬
quid, and thus brought into contact wdth the nascent mu¬
riatic acid, which it deprives of its hydrogen, and thus con¬
verts into chlorine.
To decompose 7^ parts of common salt completely, 12^
parts of sulphuric acid of the specific gravity of 1*843 are
requisite. This acid should be previously diluted with at
least its own bulk of water ; or it is better (when the ma¬
nufacturer of bleaching pow7der makes his own acid, which
is generally* the case) to employ the sulphuric acid in the
state in which it comes from the leaden chambers, with¬
out any artificial concentrations. This, if the acid maker
conducts his process properly, may be as high as Nm
Mr Tennant finds it better to employ a still greater quan¬
tity of acid than 12^ for every 7^ of salt; because the de¬
composition goes on with the application of less heat, and
the leaden stills are much less corroded than when a small¬
er quantity of acid and a stronger heat are employed.
What remains in the still after the evolution of the chlo¬
rine gas is at an end, is a mixture of sulphate of manga¬
nese, bisulphate of soda, and free sulphuric acid. It worn,
not do to lose the free sulphuric acid. The residue is
therefore mixed with as much common salt as the snip U"
ric acid is able to decompose, and the whole is gradua y
BLEACHING.
, j fused in a furnace. By this fusion the sulphate of man-
l f ganese is decomposed as well as the common salt, and
there remains sulphate of soda mixed with oxide of man¬
ganese and peroxide of iron. Lixiviation gets rid of these
two oxides, and leaves a solution of sulphate of soda,
which is evaporated to dryness, mixed with pounded coal,
and ignited in a reverberatory furnace. By this simple
process the Glauber salt is converted into sulphuret of so¬
dium, from which carbonate of soda is extricated by sim¬
ple and well-known processes.
The bleaching powder, when first prepared, was a di¬
chloride of lime, or a compound of one atom of chlorine
and two atoms of lime. But of late years Mr Tennant has
improved his process so much, that it is now a chloride of
lime, or a compound of one atom chlorine and one atom
lime; that is to say, it contains twice the quantity of
chlorine which it originally did, and goes twice as far
when employed in bleaching; and other manufacturers
have been obliged to follow his example. Hence the
value of the bleaching powder all over Great Britain is
about doubled, while its price is reduced to less than one
half of what it was originally ; being sold at present at
the rate of threepence per pound, containing nearly half
its weight of chlorine.
With respect to the nature of bleaching powder, no ex¬
periments have been made sufficiently decisive to remove
all doubts. The most commonly received opinion is, that
it is a compound of chlorine and lime, or a chloride of
lime. The objection to this opinion is, what happens when
carbonate of soda is saturated with chlorine to form the
disinfecting liquor used by Labaracque. If the solution
be evaporated, a peculiar salt is obtained, which possesses
bleaching properties. No chlorine gas is given off during
the evaporation. The same phenomena take place when
carbonate of potash is saturated with chlorine. From this
it has been conjectured, that when chlorine acts upon
slacked lime, a certain portion of the lime is converted
into calcium, while a portion of the chlorine is converted
into chlorous acid, or a compound of one atom of chlorine
and three atoms of oxygen. On this supposition it is evi¬
dent that three fourths of the lime are converted into cal¬
cium. The three atoms of oxygen thus evolved convert
one atom of chlorine into chlorous acid. This chlorous
acid unites with the one fourth of lime remaining, and
converts it into chlorite of lime ; while the three atoms
of calcium evolved, uniting each with an atom of chlorine,
constitute chloride of calcium. According to this view of
the subject, the strongest bleaching powder will be a mix¬
ture of
3 atoms chloride of calcium = 21
I atom chlorite of lime  = 11
32
So that about one third of the weight is chlorite of lime,
to which alone the bleaching powers of the substance is
owing.
It is rather inconsistent with this opinion, that bleach¬
ing powder does not attract moisture from the atmo¬
sphere with nearly so much rapidity as might be expected
from a mixture containing two thirds of its weight of so
deliquescent a salt as chloride of calcium ; unless, in¬
deed, this be prevented by the chloride and chlorite being
united into a double salt. When sulphuric acid or muria¬
tic acid, however diluted, are poured into a solution of
bleaching powder, chlorine gas is given out in abundance.
Ihis seems rather inconsistent with the notion of its being
a mixture of chloride of calcium and chlorite of lime ; at
least no such evolution takes place when these acids are
mixed with solutions of chloride of calcium or chlorate of
potash.
The bleaching powder, in order to be applied to the Bleaching,
cloth, must be dissolved in water; and the quantity em-
ployed for the first process consists of a solution of 24 lbs.
of bleaching powder in 60 gallons of water.
In general, a solution of one pound of bleaching powder
in one gallon of water has a specific gravity of 1-05. But
the specific gravity of the bleaching powder solution into
which the cloth is put is only 1-02. The quantity of li¬
quor of this specific gravity necessary for 700 lbs. of cloth
is 971 gallons. Hence it is obvious that the quantity of
bleaching powder required for 700 lbs. of cloth will be
3881 lbs.
But the specific gravity of the solution is not sufficient
to determine its qualities as a whitening substance. The
longer bleaching powder is kept, especially if it be not
well shut up from the action of the atmosphere, the less
bleaching power does it possess. We have purchased it
from apothecaries in London a great many years ago al¬
most totally inert; yet this inactive substance was solu¬
ble in water, and was capable of augmenting the specific
gravity of the liquid as much or nearly as much as the
best bleaching powder whatever; but the liquid was
merely a solution of chloride of calcium. Some other
method, accordingly, of judging of the goodness of bleach¬
ing powder is necessary for the bleachers. The method
commonly employed by the bleachers is the indigo test,
first brought into use by M. Welter.
The mode of applying the indigo test fol¬
lowed in this country is by means of the
graduated glass tube, figured in the margin,
which is known by the name of the Test-tube.
The method is as follows: One part of the
best indigo is dissolved in nine parts of
strong sulphuric acid, and the solution is
mixed with 990 parts of water, making a so¬
lution, yoVo^ Part which is indigo. Of
this liquid a quantity is to be poured into
the test-tube, so as to fill it up to 0, or the
commencement of the scale. The bleach¬
ing liquor whose power is to be tried is
then to be dropt gradually in, and mixed
with the blue liquor by shaking the tube
from time to time till the blue is changed
into a clear brown. As soon as this takes
place, the degree of the scale to which the
mixture reaches is observed, and the figure
marked at that degree indicates the strength
of the steep-liquor. The lowest on the scale
is, of course, the strongest in bleaching ^ ^
power, being capable of destroying most colour. The li¬
quor whose strength is thus ascertained is denominated
steep-liquor, of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 degrees, the last of
which is the weakest ever used for any kind of goods. By
adding stock-liquor when the steep-liquor is too weak,
and water when too strong, this liquor may be obtained of
any strength which is required.
This mode of testing is obviously defective, because we
have no good method of determining the goodness of the
indigo itself employed as the test; and yet it is well
known that different indigoes vary considerably in the
quantity of colouring matter which they contain. Various
attempts have been made to improve it; but at best it can
only be considered as enabling us to compare between the
relative values of the different varieties of bleaching pow¬
der. It can never give us the absolute quantity of oxy¬
gen which the bleaching powder is capable of disengag¬
ing, upon which its bleaching powers must entirely de¬
pend.
But Mr Dalton, in his paper On Oxymuriate of Lime,
in the Annals of Philosophy, vol. i. p. 15, has pointed out a
686
BLEACHING.
Bleaching, process, which, when a little modified, as it has been by
Mr Walter Crum, one of the most extensive bleachers in
the neighbourhood of Glasgow, answers exceedingly well,
and enables us to determine the true quantity of oxygen
which the solution of the bleaching powder is capable of
yielding to the cloth. Mr Crum’s method is this. He
dissolves four ounces of green sulphate of iron in hot wa¬
ter, and then adds solution of bleaching powder by small
quantities at a time till the smell of chlorine begins to be
perceptible. This is a proof that the whole of the protox¬
ide of iron in the four ounces of green vitriol has been con¬
verted into peroxide. The strength of the bleaching pow¬
der liquid employed by Mr Crum, when the object is to
test its value as a bleaching ingredient, is one pound of
bleaching powder dissolved in one gallon of water. Of
this he adds quantities by ^th of a gallon at a time to the
solutions of green vitriol, till the smell begins to become
sensible. Six of these measures may be added at once
without any risk of evolving any smell; but on the addi¬
tion of the seventh measure it is necessary to proceed with
caution, adding only a little at a time, lest the point of
saturation be exceeded. Let us suppose that 7-| mea¬
sures were necessary to evolve the smell of chlorine ; as
64 measures contain one pound of bleaching powder, it is
obvious that 7^ measures will contain 820*3 grains. We
learn from the experiment, that in the case in question
820*3 grains of bleaching powder, when placed in contact
with protoxide of iron, are capable of converting all the
protoxide of iron contained in four ounces of green vitriol
into peroxide. Now, crystallized sulphate of iron is com¬
posed of
1 atom sulphuric acid 5
1 atom protoxide of iron 4*5
7 atoms water 7*875
17*375
Consequently four ounces of the salt must contain 396*2
grains of protoxide of iron, to convert which into peroxide
will require 44 grains of oxygen. This, of course, is the
quantity of oxygen contained in 820*3 grains of the bleach¬
ing powder tried. If six measures had been sufficient in¬
stead of 71, then 656£ grains of bleaching would yield 44
grains of oxygen. In general, the bleaching powder em¬
ployed by the bleachers is of about this strength. Hence
it is obvious (admitting bleaching powder to be a mixture
of one atom chlorite of lime and three atoms chloride of
calcium) that 656|- grains of bleaching powder, in the
strongest state in which it is usually employed by bleach¬
ers, is composed of
Chlorite of lime 177*8
Chloride of calcium 339*4
Loss,
517*2
.139
Total 656*2
ihis loss must be partly water, and partly perhaps ow¬
ing to the presence of a greater quantity of chloride of
calcium than ought to be present. If we suppose the
whole of the loss to be water, then the best bleaching
powder would be a compound of
1 atom chlorite of lime 11
3 atpms chloride of calcium 21
8 atoms water  9
4!
But in general the whole lime is not accurately saturated
with chlorine. Accordingly, when the bleaching powder
is dissolved in water, a small residue almost always re¬
mains undissolved. Unless the powder be fresh made, a
portion of chlorite is always converted into chloride ot’Bl
calcium. It is probable, therefore, that the best bleach- ^
ing powder, as it comes into the hands of the bleachers
consists of
1 atom chlorite of lime 11
3 atoms chloride of calcium 21
6 atoms water  6*75
Impurity  2*25
41
If we consider the bleaching powder as a compound of
chlorine and lime, our mode of calculating will not be al¬
tered. Instead of 1 atom chlorite of lime and 3 atoms
chloride of calcium, we shall have 4 atoms chloride of lime,
6 atoms water, and 2*25 of impurity as before.
Sulphate of manganese might be substituted for sul¬
phate of iron. The result would be the same, excepting
that the protoxide of manganese is converted into the
native black oxide, by uniting with an additional atom of
oxygen. And as crystallized sulphate of manganese is
composed of
1 atom sulphuric acid 5
1 atom protoxide of manganese 4*5
4 atoms water 4*5
14
it is obvious that 14 of sulphate of manganese will go
twice as far, as a test of bleaching powder, as 17*375 of
sulphate of iron. Thence If oz. of crystals of sulphate of
manganese will go just as far, as a test for bleaching pow¬
der, as 4 oz. of sulphate of iron. The manganese is thrown
down in the state of native black oxide; not however
pure, but every six atoms of it are combined with one
atom of lime, constituting a compound which may be call¬
ed sex-manganite of lime, composed thus :
6 atoms black oxide 33
1 atom lime  3*5
36*5
Prussian blue might also be employed as a test for
bleaching powder. A solution of bleaching powder dis¬
solves prussiate of iron, and the solution, when just neu¬
tral, is green ; when there is an excess of bleaching powder,
the liquid becomes brownish yellow. But prussiate of
iron can only be employed as a comparative test in the
same way as indigo; although it is preferable to indigo,
because it can always be obtained of the same relative
strength or purity.
The cloth is left in the cold solution of bleaching pow¬
der about six hours. It is then taken out and washed
with water. It has now assumed a kind of light grey co¬
lour. It is not yet white, but much whiter than when it
came into the hands of the bleacher.
6. The next process to which it is subjected is called
souring. Eight gallons of the sulphuric acid of commerce
are mixed with 200 gallons of water. This constitutes a
liquid having a decidedly sour taste, but too dilute to be
in the least corrosive. In this liquid it remains cold for
about four hours. It is then taken out and carefully wash¬
ed in cold water, to remove the acid as completely as pos¬
sible. By the souring the cloth is rendered much whiter
than it was before. The sulphuric acid dissolves and re¬
moves the oxide of iron with which the cloth is always
more or less contaminated. It removes also the lime
which the cloth had imbibed partly from the lime-boiling
and partly from the bleaching liquor in which it was so
long immersed. The colouring matter of the cloth would
seem to combine with the sulphuric acid, and to form a
compound much whiter than the uncombined colouring
matter itself. That it is not removed is obvious from this,
BLEACHING.
Buacl r.that if the cloth be steeped in an alkaline solution, the
^ ' dark colour is again in some measure restored.
7. The cloth, after being well washed in cold water, is
immersed in an alkaline ley, in which it is boiled for eight
hours, precisely in the same way as was described when giv¬
ing an account of the lime-boiling. Thirt}r-two pounds of
potash made caustic by quicklime are used for every 2100
lbs. of the unbleached cloth. Of late years, in conse¬
quence of the reduced price of carbonate of soda, and its
much greater purity, it has been substituted for potash by
the bleachers. When the carbonate of soda is in crystals,
18 lbs. of it are equivalent to 9 or 10 lbs. of potash.
After this boiling the cloth is again carefully washed
in cold water.
8. A solution of bleaching powder is now prepared, two
thirds of the strength of the first bleaching powder li¬
quid, in which the cloth is immersed, and left for five or
six hours; but by this exposure the bleaching powers of
the liquid are not exhausted, so that by an additional
supply of strong liquor it may be rendered fit for another
process.
If the cloth to be bleached has red ends, which is some¬
times the case, it is carefully washed after this exposure
to the action of the bleaching liquor before it is subjected
to souring; but if there be no red ends this washing is
dispensed with.
9. The next process is a souring. The mixture of sul¬
phuric acid and water is nearly of the same strength as
before, and the cloth is left immersed in it about four
hours, or sometimes not so long. By this process the
bleaching of the cloth is completed, for it comes out of
the acid steep quite white.
It is a very material thing to remove all trace of the
sulphuric acid from the cloth as completely as possible;
because any portion of it remaining would corrode and
destroy the cloth, especially when it was exposed to the
action of heat. To accomplish this necessary result,
the cloth is subjected to very careful washing; and this
washing process is repeated two several times.
10. Such are the processes of bleaching cotton cloth
when of the best quality, and carried to the greatest ex¬
tent. In many cases several of the processes are omitted;
but we thought it right to give a detail of them all as
they are applied to cotton shirting, and to the better cot¬
ton fabrics that are to undergo the subsequent processes
of calico printing. But after the bleaching is finished,
the cloth is put through a variety of subsequent processes
by the bleacher, in order that it may please the eye of the
purchaser, and be in the best possible state for command¬
ing a ready sale. Of the most important of these pro¬
cesses it will be requisite to give a short account.
The cloth is squeezed after washing, in order to remove
a considerable portion of the water which it had imbibed
in the washing. This is done by making it pass between
two rollers, which by their pressure force out the water,
dhere is something ingenious in this process, simple as it
is, that deserves to be noticed. The pieces of cloth, as
they come out of the washing wheel, are crumpled together,
and frequently entangled in irregular knots. If these knots
were allowed to enter between the rollers, they would, from
their too great size, be apt to derange them, and might
even stop the motion of the machinery altogether. To
prevent this from happening, a water cistern, the top of
which is on a level with the floor of the room, and which
is constantly kept full of water, is placed immediately be¬
fore the rollers. Over this water the cloth is made to
pass on its way to the rollers. By the force necessary to
drag it through this water, the piece is stretched, and any
VVIln‘des or knots into which it may have been cast are
ohectually removed. Thus the cistern of water is made
687
to answer the purpose of one or rather of two workmen. Bleaching.
For as two pieces of cloth pass through the rollers at once,
were it not for the water, two persons would be required
to unfold the cloth, one to each piece.
Plate CVII. fig. 1, exhibits a view of the machine
called squeezers, employed to press as much water as pos¬
sible from the piece after being bleached. It consists of
a cast-iron framing, with two wooden rollers, which are
pressed together by a double lever, and made to revolve
by means of wheels connected with a shaft from a steam-
engine or water-wheel. The wet piece is laid down at
one side of the machine, and after passing between the
rollers, is folded by a workman stationed at the opposite
side.
11. The cloth after the squeezing process is still wet,
and is crumpled together like a rope. The next process
is to pull out each piece to its breadth. This is done by
women, a number of whom are constantly employed in
this simple but necessary process. But the edges of the
piece still continue folded in. To make them straight, a
workman knocks them against a smooth beating stock,
first one edge and then the other. By this process the
pieces are spread out to their full breadth, and all the
folds and wrinkles removed as before the bleaching pro¬
cesses commenced. The pieces are then stitched end to
end by women with a sailor’s needle, to prepare them for
the mangle.
12. The next step is mangling the cloth while still wet,
by passing it successively between cylinders, forced to¬
wards each other by levers, to which a considerable weight
is attached. These cylinders require all to be turned
quite true, so as to be perfectly round. One of them is
of brass, and two are of wood. By this mangling process
the water is equalized throughout the whole piece, the
threads are flattened, and the cloth stretched, smoothed,
and wound upon a roller, and thus rendered fit for receiv¬
ing the starch.
13. Starching is the next process; and though it be
well understood, yet it may not be superfluous to give a
short sketch of the processes which the bleacher follows,
the great object being to unite economy with exactness.
Wheat starch would be two expensive; the bleacher there¬
fore satisfies himself with flour. But the gluten of wheat
flour renders it unfit for starching. The first step, there¬
fore, is to get rid of that ingredient. Flour is mixed with
water in the proportion of one pound of flour to the gallon
of water, and allowed to remain for twenty-four hours. A
brisk fermentation takes place, an acid, lactic, is generat¬
ed, the texture of the gluten is destroyed, and the water
acquires a specific gx*avity of T015. After twenty-four
hours, the whole liquid is passed through a sieve. The
starch passes along with the liquid, but the bran is retained
upon the sieve. The starch is then boiled, a little indigo
being added, and water also, so as to proportion the thick¬
ness of the liquid to the degree of stiffness which the
goods are to acquire.
In many cases the starch is mixed with porcelain clay,
about equal bulks of flour and porcelain clay being most
commonly employed ; though the proportion varies accord¬
ing to circumstances. The starch is applied in the state
of a pretty thick paste, while the goods are passed between
a pair of rollers.
In other cases equal quantities of porcelain clay and
calcined sulphate of lime are mixed with the starch.
These substances are applied only on one side ; but by the
rollers they are forced into the cloth, intermix themselves
with its internal structure, and add greatly to its apparent
strength and thickness. This method of thickening was
undoubtedly intended at first as a fraudulent method of
making the purchaser believe that the cloth was much
688
BLEACHING.
Bleaching, stouter and thicker than it really was. But it has been
so long practised, and is now so universally known, that
all purchasers must be aware of it, and of course not in
any danger of being deceived. But it certainly serves
the purpose of making the goods appear much more beau¬
tiful, and of a stouter fabric to the eye; and as long as
they continue unwashed, they are really stronger than
they would be without this artificial dressing. So far it is
beneficial; and as it does not enhance the price, the pur¬
chasers have no reason to complain of imposition.
Plate CVII. fig. 2, represents the starching machine or
stiffening mangle; the middle roller being of brass and
the other two of wood. They are pressed together by
means of levers, which are loaded less or more, so as to
leave the requisite quantity of starch in the cloth that
passes through the rollers. A is the roll of pieces as they
come from the water mangle, B a box containing the
starch. It is furnished with a roller fixed near the bot¬
tom. The piece, in passing under this roller, gets filled
with starch, the superfluous part of which is pressed out
again by the rollers of the mangle. The piece is then
rolled up as before at the back of the machine.
14. The next process is to dry the goods after starching.
This is done by hanging them on rails in an apartment
heated by a flue passing round the room and down the
centre, where it passes into the chimney. There are us¬
ually two furnaces, one at each corner of one of the sides
of the apartment. The flues from these furnaces pass
round the apart- Eiue.  «
ment in the way
Middle Flue.
represented
the margin, and
uniting in the
centre of the side
of the room far¬
thest from the
furnaces, pass
down in one com¬
mon flue through the centre of the room to the chimney,
which is situated midway between the two furnaces. The
side flues are usually covered by thin brickwork, but the
middle common flue is covered with plates of cast-iron.
When the cloth is hung up in this apartment the tempe¬
rature is at first low, but it gradually rises as the goods
get dry. The workmen, while employed in hanging up the
goods on the rails, &c. which occupies a considerable
time, find themselves obliged to throw off part of their
clothes, and even sometimes to work naked, with the excep¬
tion of a pair of drawers or a cloth wrapt round their loins.
15. Nothing now remains but the process of calendering,
which gives the goods their final gloss and texture. For
this purpose they require in the first place to be damped.
This is done by passing them leisurely over a machine,
which scatters upon them, as they pass, an infinity of ex¬
ceedingly small drops. When these drops are first applied,
if we hold up the cloth between the eye and the light,
we see a great number of small round wet spots, while
the greatest part of the cloth is dry. But when the pieces
are left for some time standing together in a heap, these
spots gradually disappear, and the cloth acquires a uni¬
form dampness, which fits it for assuming the gloss which
it acquires by the calendering.
Plate CVllI. fig. 3, represents the damping machine.
A is a box containing a circular brush B, which is made
to revolve rapidly, its points just touching a surface of
water which is kept of a uniform height. The goods, dry
from the stove, are laid down at C ; they are pulled in
single folds over the surface of the box A, by the pair of
rollers D, which are turned round by machinery. A
shower of minute drops of water is thus thrown up upon
the cloth as it moves over the surface of the box, andtheBlea
piece, folded up by a workman, is left in a heap till the ^
drops have all disappeared, and the cloth acquired a uni¬
form degree of dampness.
Calendering is making the cloth to pass between a
pair of rollers forced against each other by the applica¬
tion of a considerable pressure. During this process the
texture of the cloth is made to vary at pleasure. When
the goods pass simply between the smooth rollers, the
threads are flattened, and the whole piece assumes a soft
and silky lustre. When two folds of the cloth are made
to pass together through the rollers, the threads make
an impression on each other, and assume a wiry appear¬
ance, with an intermediate hollow between each. Va¬
rious degrees of this wiry appearance may be given at
pleasure.
Plate C VIII. fig. 4, represents the calender. It consists es¬
sentially of a frame-work, arranged so as to retain a num¬
ber of rollers parallel, one above another, with levers and
pullies to press them together, and wheels and shafts to
make them revolve. Two of these rollers are of cast-iron,
nicely turned and polished, and three (the largest) of
wood with iron centres. The piece of cloth, after being
damped, is laid down in front of the calender, and made to
pass in various ways between these rollers, after which it
is rolled round a cylinder behind, and taken away to be
folded.
The goods, after being thus calendered, are folded, and
various devices are stamped in red or in blue upon the end
of the piece, according to the different markets in which
they are to be exposed; for different stamps are requisite
for different markets, South America, the West Indies,
India, North America, the Mediterranean, &c. requiring
each its own device; and, what is very curious, the sale
of the goods in a great measure depends upon these stamps;
so that if they were absent, the goods, however well pre¬
pared, and however excellent in every other respect,
would not meet with a ready sale. Everywhere appear¬
ances are more attended to than realities. Man is essen¬
tially a gullible animal, and quackery is a most important
principle in human nature in general. After the goods
have been regularly folded, they are placed piece by piece
into a Bramah’s press, with a sheet of pasteboard between
each; and after a certain interval an iron plate is sub¬
stituted for the pasteboard, to prevent any inequality in
the pile. After sufficient pressure in this machine, they
are packed up between boards, to prevent any injury du¬
ring the carriage, and sent to the merchant or manufac¬
turer to whom they belong.
Such is a sketch of the processes at present followed
in the most extensive bleaching establishments in Great
Britain for bleaching cotton. The processes altogether
amount to about twenty-five, and the whole expense of
bleaching and finishing a piece of twenty-four yards in
length is tenpence, which is somewhat less than one half¬
penny per yard.
The loss of weight sustained during the bleaching of
fine cotton cloth in the bleaching houses round Glasgoi*
amounts very nearly to ten per cent. Of this one half
may be considered as weaver’s dressing; so that the real
loss sustained during the bleaching is not more than five
per cent. But when some coarse cotton goods are bleach¬
ed, we are informed, by a gentleman who tried the expe¬
riment, that the loss of weight, independently of the wea¬
ver’s dressing, amounts to ten per cent.
2.—Bleaching of Linen.
16. From the experiments of Mr Lee, who took out a
patent about the year 1810, it appears that the colouring
matter of flax is not chemically combined with the fibrous
mg.
BLEACHING.
C89
jj^l i. threads constituting the bark of the stalk; but that a che-
^1, j mical combination takes place while the plant is steeped
in water. The object of this steeping is to rot the plant,
and enable the fibres to separate readily from the stalk.
It is a putrefaction, which goes on to a considerable ex¬
tent, and generates so much noxious matter as to de¬
stroy the fish, if the flax be steeped in water containing
them. This fermentation weakens very considerably the
strength of the flax fibres, and even destroys many of
them. Mr Lee’s process, therefore, if it be practicable
on a large scale, would be a prodigious improvement. It
would render the flax fibres much stronger, it would in¬
crease their quantity, and it would save the expense of
the materials employed in bleaching the linen. The wri¬
ter of this article has been informed that Mr Lee’s pro¬
cess has uniformly failed of success when tried in Ire¬
land. If this account be true, it is extremely difficult to
explain it. We have seen it performed by workmen un¬
der his own direction at Old Bow, near London, with the
most complete success ; not merely upon handfuls of flax,
but upon whole fields of it. Indeed the whole is so ex¬
tremely simple, that we cannot well see how it should fail,
if properly conducted. We cannot, therefore, help sus¬
pecting that the prejudices of the Irish, with which it
would have to contend, have been too powerful for it;
but that, as soon as it shall meet with fair play, it will be
found just as practicable, and certainly much cheaper and
better than the methods at present in use.
That Mr Lee’s process has hitherto failed, and that it
has been abandoned by the patentee himself, is an un¬
doubted fact; but we cannot avoid suspecting that this
was in some measure the fault of the patentee himself.
If, instead of attempting the process at Old Bow, at a
distance from the linen manufactory, and where no person
qualified to appreciate its importance was likely to be near,
he had tried it in a place where the linen manufactory Bleaching,
existed, Dundee, for example, or Belfast,—and had he as-
sociated with himself some person who was conversant
with machinery, and who could have applied a mechani¬
cal process more convenient and expeditious than the me¬
thod of Mr Lee, which was simply beating off the woody
fibre by means of wooden mallets,—we cannot but think
that the process would have been attended with success.
The object of Mr Lee was to save the expense of bleach¬
ing linen. For when the flax is separated from the plant
without the putrefactive process induced by steeping it
in water, nothing more is necessary in order to make it
white than simply to wash it in water.
As steeping is uniformly practised, the colouring matter
becomes chemically combined with the fibres of the flax,
and the process of bleaching must be had recourse to in
order to render it white. But we conceive it to be unne¬
cessary to enter into any minute details about the method
of bleaching linen, because it is similar to the processes
for bleaching cotton. It is much more difficult indeed to
bleach linen than cotton; hence the boiling with an alka¬
line ley, and the steeping in the solution of chloride of
lime, must be repeated three or four times. In general,
the linen is exposed upon the grass to the sun for some
weeks, though this part of the process is not essential.
The loss of weight which linen sustains during bleaching
amounts to about one third part of the whole weight of
the goods. Cotton scarcely sustains a loss of one tenth
part. This shows at once the difference in the difficulty
between bleaching linen and cotton.
The following experiments, made by Charles Tennant,
Esq. of St Rollox, near Glasgow, in July and August 1831,
point out the parts of the process in which the loss is sus¬
tained, and are so valuable that we cannot avoid inserting
them here:—
uperl Experiment 1st—On bleaching 12 cuts of linen yarn, of the quality of 3 lbs. per spindle, weight 4720Wyf^c
tions. grains from bundle,..     after drying, 4550
1. Steeped 36 hours in a solution of 4 gr. caustic soda, at 100° temp., washed, dried, and weighed, 4290
2. 1st boil, 6 hours in a solution of 50 gr. caustic soda, at 212° temp., washed, dried, and weighed, 4260
3. 1st steep, 12 hours in a solution of chloride of lime of LOOS specific gravity, exhausted, 3840
4. 1st steep, 3 hours in a solution of sulphuric acid of 1-005 specific gravity, 3805
5. 2d boil, 3 hours in a solution of 24 gr. caustic soda, 3690
6. 2d steep, 12 hours in a solution of chloride of lime of 1-005 specific gravity, exhausted £th, 3570
7- 2d steep, 4 hours in a solution of sulphuric acid of 1-005 specific gravity, 3560
8. 3d boil, 3 hours in a solution of 24 gr. caustic soda, 3510
9. 3d steep, 14 hours in a solution of chloride of lime of 1-005 specific gravity, exhausted §ths, 3432
10. 3d steep, 14 hours in a solution of sulphuric acid of 1-005 specific gravity, 3410
11. 4th boil, 3 hours in a solution of 16 gr. caustic soda, 3344
12. 4th steep, 16 hours in a solution of chloride of lime of 1-004 specific gravity, exhausted |th, washed, not
dried.
13. 4th steep, 18 hours in a solution of sulphuric acid of 1 005 specific gravity, washed, dried, and
weighed,      3280
> Weight
Lost.
170 =
260 =
30 =
420 =
35 =
115 =
120 =
10 =
50 =
68 =
22 =
66 =
3-60 per cent.
5-71
0-70
9-85
0-90
302
3 22
0-28
1-40
1-93
0-64
1-93
64= 2-03
.35-21
Total loss in bleaching to a full white,  
Recapitulation of the above.
Lost in drying from the bundle of 4720 gr., when dry, 4550 170 = 3-60 per cent.
Lost in 4 boils 15 hours in solution of 114 gr. caustic soda,  261 = 7-05
Lost in 4 steeps 54 hours in solution of chloride of lime 1-005 specific gravity,  076 = 17-03
Lost in 4 steeps 39 hours in solution of sulphuric acid of 1-005 specific gravity,   
Lost in fermenting steep 36 hours in solution of 4 gr. caustic soda, 100° temp   
67
260
1-82
5-71
1434 = 35-21
VOL. IV.
Experiment 2d—On bleaching 12 cuts of linen yarn, of the quality denominated 2 lbs. per spindle,
weighing 3460 grains from bundle, and when dried, 3350 110= 3-18
T Steeped 18 hours in solution of 4 gr. of caustic soda at 100° temp., and washed, not dried.
2. 1st boil, 6 hours in solution of 38 gr. of caustic soda at 212° temperature.
3. 1st steep, 15 hours in solution of chloride of lime of 1-005 specific gravity, exhausted.
4. 1st steep, 6 hours in solution of sulphuric acid of 1-010 specific gravity.
5. 2d boil, 4 hours in solution of 19 gr. caustic soda.
6. 2d steep, 14 hours in solution of chloride of lime of 1-005 specific gravity, exhausted Jth.
2d steep, 10 hours in solution of sulphuric acid of 1-010 specific gravity, washed, dried, and weighed, 2360.
Having lost in all the operations 1100 gr. = 31-79 per cent., including 3-18 of moisture previous to drying.
4 s
BLEACHING.
690
Bleaching. In this experiment the white was fully equal to the for-
mer; the materials used were in the same proportion to
the weight of yarn, although the time and operations were
reduced one half; and this may account also for the saving
of the weight of the yarn, 31-79, instead of 35'21, as in
the first experiment.
3.— Of Bleaching Wool.
17. Wool, like hair, of which it is a variety, is composed
of filaments or tubes filled with a substance of an oily na¬
ture. The surrounding surface of these tubes is pierced
with an infinite number of small holes which communicate
with the internal cavity. It is very little altered by ex¬
posure to the air, and undergoes no change from the ac¬
tion of boiling water. It is of great consequence that the
bleacher should attend to this circumstance, as will ap¬
pear immediately.
18. A solution of caustic alkali or caustic ley destroys
it altogether, and forms with it a kind of soap.
19. The wool, as it comes into the hands of the manu¬
facturer, usually contains a large portion of the natural
greasy matter, from which it must be purified before it
can undergo the process of bleaching. Sometimes the
farmer cleans it from most of its oil, so as to diminish its
weight by fifty or sixty per cent., in order to enhance the
value of the article; but care is taken to leave some por¬
tion, as the natural fat is found to be the best preservative
against the attacks of moths and other insects.
20. The first object then is to carry off the whole of the
oily matter, which is called the operation of scouring, and is
performed by means of an ammoniacal ley, which is thus
prepared. Five parts of river or other soft water are to
be mixed with one part of stale purified urine, which is
found to contain a large quantity of ammonia.1 This mix¬
ture is to be boiled for a short time; and into this, at
about the heat of fifty-six degrees, or so that the hand of
the workman can be easily held in it for a considerable
time, the wool is to be thrown. Four or five pailfuls will
generally be sufficient for twenty pounds of wool. After
steeping for a short time, the wool is to be stirred about
in the mixture continually for about a quarter of an hour
or twenty minutes, according to the quantity of greasy
matter. It is then to be taken out and drained into a
basket, so that the drainings may drop into the vessel in
which it was steeped, that nothing may be lost. It must
now be completely rinsed by exposing it in baskets to a
continued stream of clear water, while a workman is per¬
petually employed in stirring it with a pole, till the water
passes off perfectly clear. The wool is then removed, and
a fresh quantity put into the basket, which is to be treated
in the same manner. The steeping and rinsing are to be
repeated till the wool has attained as great a degree of
whiteness as it is capable of receiving from this operation.
It is necessary, in order to conduct this process to the
greatest advantage, that the workman should attend to
the following circumstances.
21. ls£, A quantity of fresh ley must be from time to
time added to the bath, as the immersion of the wool is
found to weaken its power; but it is better not entirely
to renew the bath, as the grease abstracted from the wool
during its immersion forms with the ammonia of the urine
a kind of soap, which much increases the cleansing qua¬
lity of the bath.
22. 2</, Increasing the temperature of the bath will
augment its deterging powers, and may sometimes supply
the want of an addition of stale urine; but both these cir- Blea
cumstances require caution, as too great a degree of heat W 3
hardens the greasy matter, and renders it more difficult of
solution ; and again, too much urine makes the wool harsh.
23. 3c?, After being much used the bath becomes too
foul, and must be entirely renewed.
24. The wool which has properly undergone the pro¬
cess of scouring should be white, soft, elastic, and open;
whereas before it was hard, stiff, and greasy. By this
operation the wool loses much more of its weight, so that
100 pounds of raw wool, when completely scoured, will
not yield more than 30 or 40 fit for the manufacture of
cloth.
25. After scouring, the wool is sometimes carried to
the fulling mill, in which it acquires an additional degree
of whiteness. The above is chiefly employed for the
coarser wools, and wool that has yet to be carded for the
making of broad cloth; but for the finer kind it is better
to employ a bath in which soap has been dissolved. This
method is more expensive, but the expense is compensat¬
ed by the superior quality of the wool which is thus treat¬
ed. * This operation is performed by the comber, and is
thus conducted. The wool is divided into parcels contain¬
ing each about six pounds and a half. A bath is prepared
with twro pounds and a half of green or black soap dis¬
solved in a sufficient quantity of boiling water; and in
this bath a parcel of the wool is to be washed for a longer
or shorter time according to its foulness. It is then wrung
by means of a hook, and hung in the sunshine or air to
dry. Before it is combed it must undergo a second scour¬
ing, which clears it of all the natural oily matter.
26. This quantity of wool is not to be washed all at
once, but in successive portions; and fresh hot water is to
be added from time to time, in order to. free the wool more
easily from the grease. For wringing it there is a hook
fixed at each end of the washing-tub, on which the wool
is fastened and turned round by means of a handle or
winch, fixed to one of the hooks. As economy should be
consulted in every manufacture, a method of scouring
wool without soap would be of considerable advantage.
Fullers have long been in the habit of employing a species
of clayey earth, called from them fullers' earth, which has
the property of combining with the greasy matter, and ren¬
dering it more soluble in water. Before the wool is quite
dry it is combed, as this operation is found to succeed best
when it is a little moist, it being then easier to form it
into proper lengths of three or four feet. Considerable
nicety is requisite in the conducting of these first processes,
as much of the success of the succeeding operations de¬
pends on their proper management.
27. After combing, the wool sometimes undergoes two
or three further washings, especially when it is required
of a very delicate white.
28. It is known that the wool has been properly scour¬
ed by its filaments being smooth, long, and slender, white,
and perfectly free from foreign substances, and not having
lost their natural tenacity. The Dutch wool is general y
the purest: the English is next in quality, but is muc i
harsher and fouler. The German wool is still harsher
than the English, and the French is inferior to them a .
29. The loss sustained by the wools in scouring j8 Pr0*
portional to their impurity. Thus the French and Ber¬
man lose about a third of their weight, while the Dutc i
and English do not lose above a fourth.
30. But this scouring, whether it be performed wi
1 The detergent property of urine has been long known, and it is frequently employed in washing to save soap. At sea, ^
fresh water cannot lie spared for the purpose of washing, the sailors are accustomed to scour their foul linens in stale urine, " 1
far cleanses them that a subsequent rinsing in salt water renders them tolerably pure and sweet.
BLEACHING.
, uvine, soap, or earth, is seldom sufficient to bring the wool
• ^e8CI to that brilliant whiteness which is desirable for some ma-
^ nufactures. This is given it by means of the vapour of
sulphur, or by steeping it in sulphurous acid, which is
called by the manufacturers sulphuring.
31. The usual method of sulphuring goods is to expose
them in a very close apartment to the vapour of burning
sulphur. The goods are hung on poles so disposed that
the vapour can readily pass between the pieces, and when
the chamber is filled, a quantity of sulphur placed in very
flat and broad dishes is set fire to, and allowed to burn
away gradually in the chamber, while every aperture by
which the vapour could escape is carefully closed. The
acid vapour generated by the combination of the sulphur
with the oxygen of the air of the chamber penetrates to
every part of the cloth to which it can get access, destroys
the colouring matter, and thus completes the bleaching.
Every thing is allowed to remain quiet till it is supposed
that the effect of the sulphurous vapour has fully taken
place, which requires from 6 to 24 hours.
32. The action of the sulphurous vapour leaves a
roughness and harshness on the cloth, which are removed
by passing it through a bath slightly impregnated with
soap.
4. Bleaching of Silk.
33. Silk is a substance possessing some degree of trans¬
parency, and is spun by a caterpillar from a matter con¬
tained within its body, which has the property of harden¬
ing when exposed to the air. The silk-worm is an inha¬
bitant of the southern climates, being originally brought
from Asia, and naturalized in the south of Europe about
the period of the decline of the Roman empire.
34. The filaments of silk, as left by the silk-worm, are
rolled together into a kind of ball or clew, and in their na¬
tural, or what is called the raw state, are covered with a
yellow varnish or gum, which obscures their lustre, and
gives them an unpleasant roughness.
35. Water has no effect on silk at the boiling tempera¬
ture, and no change is produced on it by alcohol; but al¬
kaline leys, when tolerably strong, attack, and are capable
of dissolving it. The yellow varnish is soluble also in al¬
kaline leys, and it may even be separated by long-continu¬
ed boiling of the silk. When the varnish is thus carried
off, the silk is found to have lost about a fourth of its ori¬
ginal weight.
36. Two methods are in practice for bleaching silk; the
first, in which it is ungummed or deprived of the natural
varnish ; the second, in which this is retained, in order to
give them that stiffness which is required for gauzes,
blonds, &c.
37. In the first process, the silk is to undergo a scour¬
ing similar to what we have described as necessary for
depriving wool of the natural oil. For this purpose a
quantity of water is put into a boiler over a fire, and for
every hundred pounds of silk to be scoured, thirty pounds
of very fine soap are dissolved. The solution is generally
boiled, but before the silk is put into it, the heat must be
lowered to about 90 degrees of Fahrenheit, and at this
temperature it must be kept during the process. The
silks are to be hung in the liquor in rods or frames, and
left till the gum is sufficiently destroyed; care being taken
to alter their position now and then, so that every part
may be exposed to the action of the bath. When perfectly
ungummed, they are flexible and of a dull whiteness; in
this state they are to be wrung with the pin to clear them
of the soapy water, then well shaken, and put into coarse
linen bags, in parcels of from twenty to thirty pounds each.
38. These bags are now to be steeped in a fresh bath,
or> as the workmen say, are to be baked. The bath is
691
prepared in a manner and proportion much as before, ex- Bleaching,
cept that the quantity of soap may be somewhat diminish- ''-'-vO
ed as the heat is to be increased; for the silk is now to
be boiled for two or three hours, taking care to keep the
bags from sticking to the bottom of the boiler, by frequent¬
ly stirring them with a stick.
39. For silk that is intended to be dyed, the former
steeping in the lukewarm bath is unnecessary, and the pre¬
sent boiling only is employed, using a greater quantity of
soap in proportion to the fineness of the colour. Thus
for the ordinary colours, the proportion above laid down,
or even less, will suffice; but for the saffranum colours, and
the poppy and cherry red, even 50 pounds are sometimes
employed to the 100 pounds of silk.
40. After boiling, the silk is wrung as before, and then
washed thoroughly in a stream of water; they are then
examined, and if it appears they are not sufficiently or not
uniformly scoured, they must be submitted to a fresh bath.
41. The white silk usually sold has a bluish shade. This
is given it by a bath impregnated with litmus or indigo.
This is prepared by dissolving a pound and a half of fine
soap in about ninety gallons of water, in which a small
quantity of litmus or indigo has been diffused. The bath
is heated to about 90 degrees, and the silk is passed
through it over rods or reels till it has acquired the re¬
quisite shade. Being taken out, it is wrung and dried.
42. From these processes the silk acquires a tolerably
clear white, but the highest degree is given to it by the
action of the sulphurous acid, either in the state of va¬
pour, as is usually practised, or by immersing it in the li¬
quid acid, according to the method of Mr O’Reilly.
5.—Bleaching of Rags for the Papermaher.
43. The rags to be whitened should be well washed in the
engine, and when reduced to what is called half-stuff, the
water should be run off, leaving just enough to allow them
to be easily turned. While the rags are thus preparing,
a solution of the bleaching-powder is to be got ready, by
putting the powder into a pitcher or other convenient
vessel, and pouring upon it two or three gallons of water,
stirring and bruising it well, till every thing soluble is
taken up. After it has stood some time to allow the in¬
soluble sediment to fall down, it is fit for use, and the
pure solution should be poured into the engine. The se¬
diment may be repeatedly washed with fresh portions of
water to exhaust any remains of soluble mattei*, which
alone is useful in the whitening process. While this last
operation is going on, the engine is to be kept moving,
and to continue so for about an hour, which will generally
be sufficient to produce the requisite degree of whiteness.
The water may now be returned upon the engine, and the
washing continued as usual till the process be completed.
The quantity of powder usually allowed is from two pounds
to four pounds for every hundredweight of rags, in pro¬
portion to the whiteness required and the difficulty of
whitening the stuff.
Rags containing dyed colours to be discharged, should
be well washed, and reduced to half-stuff. They are then
removed from the engine and put into a puncheon made
water tight, but having a sufficient opening in the side to
admit with ease the putting in and taking out of the stuff,
and capable of being shut up so as to retain the water.
Having put the stuff into this puncheon, take for every
hundredweight of the rags a solution containing from five
to eight pounds of bleaching powder, according to the
strength and fixedness of the colours to be discharged.
Pour the solution into the puncheon among the stuff, al¬
lowing liquid enough to let the stuff float easily, and for
each pound of powder used add half a pound of sulphuric
acid. Then shut up and secure the opening so as to make
692
B L E
B L E
Bleaching the puncheon air-tight; then turn the puncheon round
upon its axis, by means of a crank fixed at one end of it.
Moving it in this manner gives facility and uniformity to
the discharging process.
Bledel-
Jereede.
6.—Bleaching of Yellow Wax.
44. Before the discovery of chlorine and its application
to bleaching, this was effected by exposing the yellow wax,
formed into thin cakes, to the free action of the air, sun,
and dews. The chlorine, however, as being far more ex¬
peditious, is to be preferred.
In the bleaching of wax it is proper to employ the sim¬
ple gas, and its action would be the most effectual if used
in the gaseous form. For this purpose a pneumatic tub,
with a cover secured in the manner recommended by
Rupp, is the most proper. This should be filled with wa¬
ter, and the wax, shred very fine, must be introduced, and
the gas made to pass through the water, while the agita¬
tor is kept in constant motion. In the course of an hour
or two the wax will be bleached, may be separated from
the water, melted and formed into cakes.
7.— Of Whitening and Cleaning Prints, Maps, Boohs, and
other Articles of Paper.
45. The chlorine was first applied to this purpose by
Chaptal, and the method has been employed with the
greatest success by Vialard and Heudier.
Gas might be used for this purpose, but it is safer and
equally efficacious to employ it in the liquid form.
46. Simple immersion in chlorine, letting the article
remain in it a longer or shorter space of time, according
to the strength of the liquid, will be sufficient to whiten
an engraving. If it be required to whiten the paper of a
bound book, as it is necessary that all the leaves should be
moistened by the liquid, care must be taken to open the book
well, and to make the boards rest on the edge of the ves¬
sel, in such a manner that the paper alone be dipped in
the liquid; the leaves must be separated from each other,
in order that they be equally moistened on both sides.
The liquor assumes a yellow tint, and the paper be¬
comes white in the same proportion. At the end of two
or three hours the book may be taken from the acid li¬
quor and plunged into pure water, with the same care and
precaution as recommended in regard to the acid liquor,
that the water may exactly touch the two surfaces of each
leaf. The water must be renewed every hour, to extract
the acid remaining in the paper, and to dissipate the dis¬
agreeable smell.
47. By following this process there is some danger
that the pages will not be all equally whitened, either be¬
cause the leaves have not been sufficiently separated, or
because the liquid has had more action on the front mar¬
gins than on those near the binding. On this account the
practice followed by book-binders, when they wish to
whiten printed paper, is to be preferred. They destroy Blea
the binding entirely, that they may give to each leaf an ^
equal and perfect immersion ; and this is the second pro- Ble L
cess recommended by M. Chaptal. JerX
“ They begin,” says he, “ by unsewing the book and se- ^ J
parating it into leaves, which they place in cases formed
in a leaden tub, with very thin slips of wood or glass, so
that the leaves when laid flat are separated from each
other by intervals scarcely sensible. The acid is then
poured in, making it fall on the sides of the tub, in order
that the leaves may not be deranged by its motion. When
the workman judges, by the whiteness of the paper, that
it has been sufficiently acted upon by the acid, it is drawn
off by a cock at the bottom of the tub, and its place is
supplied by clear fresh water, which weakens and carries
off the remains of the acid, as well as its strong smell.
The leaves are then to be dried, and, after being pressed,
may be again bound up.
“ The leaves may be placed also vertically in the tub;
and this position seems to possess some advantage, as they
will then be less liable to be torn. With this view I con¬
structed a wooden frame, which I adjusted to the proper
height, according to the size of the leaves which I wished
to whiten. This frame supported very thin slips of wood,
leaving only the space of half a line between them. I
placed two leaves in each of these intervals, and kept
them fixed in their place by two small wooden wedges,
which I pushed in between the slips. Wffien the paper
was whitened I lifted up the frame with the leaves, and
plunged them into cold water, to remove the remains of
the acid, as well as the smell. This process I prefer to
the other.
48. “ By this operation books are not only cleaned,
but the paper acquires a degree of whiteness superior to
what it possessed when first made. The use of this acid
is attended also with the valuable advantage of destroy¬
ing ink spots. This liquor has no action upon spots of oil,
or animal grease ; but it has been long known, that a weak
solution of potash will effectually remove stains of that
kind. .
49. “ When I had to repair prints so torn that they
exhibited only scraps pasted upon other paper, I was afraid
of losing these fragments in the liquid, because the paste
became dissolved. In such cases I inclosed the prints in
a cylindrical glass vessel, which I inverted on the water
in which I had put the mixture proper for extricating the
oxygenated muriatic acid gas. This vapour, by filling the
whole inside of the jar, acted upon the print, extracted
the grease as well as ink spots, and the fragments remain¬
ed pasted to the paper.”
50. Vialard and Heudier by this process restored se¬
veral of the most valuable books of the French national
library, and we believe they were the first who carried
Chaptal’s process into actual execution. (t-)
BLED-el-Jeheede, a territory in Africa, of consider¬
able extent, immediately to the south of the kingdoms of
Algiers and Tunis, from which it is separated by the range
of the Atlas. On the southern side it passes gradually into
the great desert of the Sahara, the character of which it in
some degree partakes. The northern districts indeed are
tolerably watered by streams descending from the Atlas,
some of which spread even into considerable rivers, that
never reach any receptacle, but are either absorbed by
the sands or diffused into shallow and extensive lakes.
Some of the districts thus irrigated possess a considerable
share of fertility; but the greater number labour under
severe drought, which always increases till the country
assumes the arid character of the great desert. It is only
in a few spots that the grains and fruits which are carried
to such perfection in Barbary can be raised with advan¬
tage. The date, peculiarly adapted to dry soil, is almost
the exclusive product, and forests of the tree producing it
cover a great extent of the territory. It forms the food
of the people, and their chief article of export, by which
they obtain the few foreign luxuries in which they
dulge. They likewise rear sheep and goats, and employ
themselves in the chace of the ostrich for the sake ot its
valuable feathers, which form another article ot trade.
B L I
u-j' The name of the country is commonly supposed to be de¬
ll rived from jerid, a date ; but Dr Shaw conceives that je-
Blind ridde, dry, is the true etymology.
-phe people of this district, exposed to the direct rays
of a burning sun, are lean and swarthy, with a shrivelled
appearance, and their eyes are frequently subject to inflam¬
mation, in consequence of the reflection of the rays from a
white hard soil; yet the plague, which commits such ha¬
voc in the cities of Barbary, never attacks the Bled-el-Je-
reede, notwithstanding the constant intercourse between
the two places. The inhabitants in general reach a good
old age, of which they often exhibit the appearance, with¬
out any decay in the faculties of body or mind. They are
composed of a mixture of Arabs and native Africans, partly
living in rude villages, partly wandering in tents. In some
places, where rain scarcely ever falls, the people construct
their dwellings of the salt with which the territory
abounds; but a casual shower often melts these frail habi¬
tations. Another characteristic feature is the occurrence
of water, which is almost uniformly found on digging to a
certain depth beneath the arid surface, and to which the
natives give the appellation of the sea under ground. When
the soil is dug into, it rushes forth, sometimes in such
quantities as to drown the workmen employed. By bring¬
ing up this subterranean store, fertility is communicated
to the most barren soils; but the labour of the operation
is such that it can be practised only to a limited extent.
BLEEDING. See Surgery.
Bleeding of a Corpse, a phenomenon superstitiously
believed to have been occasionally exhibited by the bodies
of persons murdered, which, on the touch, or even the ap¬
proach of the murderer, began, it was said, to bleed at the
nose, ears, and other parts. This circumstance was for¬
merly admitted in England and other parts as a sort of de¬
tection of the criminal, and proof of the fact.
BLEKEDE, a bailiwick in the province of Luneburg
and kingdom of Hanover, taking the name from its capital,
a town of 1510 inhabitants on the river Elbe. It extends
over 76,420 acres, and contains two towns, 54 villages,
with 7460 inhabitants, mostly agriculturists.
BLEMYES, or Blemmyes, a fabulous people of Ethiopia,
said to have had no heads, their eyes and mouths having
been situated in their breasts.
BLENCH or Blanch. See Blanch.
BLENDE, in Mineralogy, the sulphuret of zinc, and by
much the most common ore of that metal. In its crys¬
talline form, its colour and appearance, this mineral varies
extremely. The most common varieties, certainly, are
brown or black, but a fine, oil-green, transparent species
occurs at Schemnitz in Hungary; another of a rich hya¬
cinth red colour is met with at Klapruck in Transylvania ;
and a third in botrioidal concretions, having a white fibrous
structure, is found near Fowey in Cornwall. The fibrous
blende of Prziham in Bohemia possesses, after a fresh
fracture, a lustre almost metallic, and is peculiar, from
the portion of cadmium with which it is associated. The
crystalline form of blende is tessellar, and often presents
the faces of the dodecahedron, to which figure the larger
deavable varieties are easily reducible by mechanical
B L I
division. The surfaces of the crystals are extremely re¬
splendent, and have at times a strong adamantine lustre.
They yield to the knife, are rather brittle, and possess a
specific gravity equal to 4,07. Blende, according to Thom¬
son and Berthier, is composed of
Zinc 59-09 70-4
Iron  12-05  4-0
Sulphur 28-86 35-6
When strongly heated in the oxidating flame of the
blow-pipe, it gives off vapours of zinc, which form a coat¬
ing on the charcoal; but it does not melt. It is soluble in
nitric acid, during which process sulphuretted hydrogen is
disengaged. Some varieties are phosphorescent in the dark
when rubbed, and present that phenomenon even although
the experiment be repeated under water. The sulphuret
of zinc occurs both in primitive and secondary rocks, and
is an almost constant accompaniment in the veins of lead,
iron, and copper, associated with quartz, calcareous spar,
or barytes. Great quantities of blende are found in Derby¬
shire and Cornwall, at Alston Moor and Lead Hills, at
Klapruck in Transylvania, and Freyberg in Saxony; in
Hungary, Bohemia, Silesia, and the Hartz. It is used in
some places for obtaining the zinc in combination with it,
but is otherwise an unimportant ore.
BLENHEIM, a village of Germany, in the kingdom of
Bavaria, situated in long. 2. 30. E. lat. 48. 40. N. This
village is remarkable for the defeat of the French and Ba¬
varians in 1704, by the English and their confederates un¬
der Prince Eugene and the Duke of Marlborough. See
Britain.
Blenheim House, a princely mansion erected for the
Duke of Marlborough at Woodstock, near Oxford, as a
testimony of national gratitude, and, with the manor of
Woodstock, settled on the duke and his heirs, in consider¬
ation of the eminent services performed by him, and more
especially of the decisive victory he had gained at Blen¬
heim over the French forces under Marshal Tallard. The
sum of L.500,000 was voted by parliament for the pur¬
chase of the manor of Woodstock, and the erection of this
edifice, which has generally been considered a very heavy
monument of public gratitude.
BLENNY. See Ichthyology, Index.
BLETCHINGLEY', a parish and borough in the hun¬
dred of Tandridge, in the county of Surrey, twenty miles
from London. It is situated on a rising ground at the
foot of a range of chalk hills. It has no market. The
inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 1344, in 1811 to 1243,
and in 1821 to 1187.
BLETONISM, a supposed faculty of perceiving and
indicating subterraneous springs and currents by means
of sensation. The term is derived from a M. Bleton, who
for some years excited attention by his being supposed to
possess the faculty in question. But the faculty and its
possessor are now alike forgotten.
BLIGHT, a disease incident to plants, and affecting
them variously, the whole plant sometimes perishing by
it, and sometimes only the leaves and blossoms, which are
scorched and shrivelled up, whilst the rest remains green
and flourishing. See Plants, Diseases of.
BLIND,
An epithet applied to a person deprived of the use of there any loss that can be sustained productive of so many
sight; or to one from whom light, colours, and all the disadvantages and evils as the want of that faculty. By no
variety of the visible creation, are intercepted by some avenue of perception is knowledge so accessible, by none,
Gen natural deprivation or accidental disease. in fact, does it flow so abundantly, as through the channel
N ! There is no external sense or faculty which affords such of this sense, which not only reveals external things in all
!l0^ an endless variety of perceptions as that of vision; nor is their beauty, in all their changes, and in all their varie-
694 BLIND.
Blind, ties, but supplies those materials out of which the ima-
gination creates new forms still more glorious; whilst the
understanding traces the varied relations existing among
the ideas thus received, and gives birth to a secondary and
reflex class still more subtile and refined. To the blind
man, however, the visible universe is totally annihilated;
he is perfectly conscious of no space excepting that in
which he stands, or to which his extremities can reach.
Sound, indeed, gives him some ideas of distant objects;
but these ideas are often obscure and indistinct; and al¬
though by them the notion of distance in general, or even
of some particular distances, may be obtained, yet they
never fill the mind with those vast and exalting conceptions
of extension which are inspired by ocular perception. For
although a clap of thunder or an explosion of ordnance
may be distinctly heard after they have traversed an im¬
mense region of space, yet when the distance is uncom¬
monly great it ceases to be indicated by sound; and hence
the ideas of extension acquired by hearing are extreme¬
ly confused and inadequate. But the living and compre¬
hensive eye darts its instantaneous glance over expanded
valleys, lofty mountains, sweeping rivers, and vast tracts
of land or of ocean. It measures in an instant of time the
mighty space from earth to heaven, or from one star to an¬
other. By the assistance of telescopes its horizon is almost
indefinitely extended, its objects are greatly multiplied,
and the sphere of its observation is prodigiously enlarged.
By these means the imagination, habituated to vast im¬
pressions of distance, can not only recall them in their ut¬
most extent with as much rapidity as they were at first
imbibed, but can multiply them, and add one to another,
till all boundaries, distances, and measures, are swallowed
up in immensity. By profusely irradiating the face of
things, and clothing objects in a robe of diversified splen¬
dour, nature at once invites the understanding to expa¬
tiate on that extensive and gorgeous theatre which she
thus opens up, and gratifies the imagination with every
possible exhibition of the sublime and the beautiful. The
man of sight enjoys these unspeakable advantages, and be¬
holds from afar the objects of his attention and curiosity.
Taught by experience, he measures their relative distances;
distinguishes their qualities; determines their situations,
positions, and attitudes; traverses in security the space
which divides them from him; stops at the point where
they are placed; and either obtains them with ease, or
immediately perceives the means by which the obstacles
that intercept his passage to them may be surmounted.
The blind, on the contrary, not only may be, but in reality
are, during a considerable period, apprehensive of danger
from every motion they make towards any object or place,
because their contracted power of perception can give
them no certain intelligence of the obstacles or hazards
which may intervene.
Nor is this the worst of their case. All the various
modes of delicate proportion, all the beautiful varieties of
light and colours, whether exhibited in the works of na¬
ture or of art, are to them irretrievably lost. Dependent
for every thing on the good offices of others, and from
every object obnoxious to injury, which they are neither
capacitated to perceive nor qualified to resist, they are,
during the present state of being, rather to be consider¬
ed as prisoners at large than citizens of nature. The
sedentary life to which they are doomed relaxes the frame,
and subjects them to all the disagreeable sensations which
arise from dejection of spirits. Hence the most feeble
exertions create lassitude and uneasiness, and the natu¬
ral tone of the nervous system, destroyed by inactivity b
exasperates and embitters every disagreeable impress- ^ t/
sion. But even from their loss, however oppressive and '
irretrievable, they derive some advantages; not indeed
adequate to recompense, but sufficient to alleviate, their
misery. The attention of the mind, confined to those
avenues of perception which it can command, is neither
dissipated nor confounded by the multiplicity or rapid
succession of surrounding objects. Its contemplations are
more uniformly fixed upon itself and its own operations •
and hence its perceptions of such external things as are
contiguous and obvious to observation become more lively
and exquisite, whilst even the instruments of corporeal
sensation are more assiduously cultivated and improved;
so that from them are derived notices and presages of
approaching pleasure or impending danger, which entire¬
ly escape the attention of those who depend for security
on the information of sight. A blind man, when walk¬
ing swiftly, or running, is kindly and effectually checked
by nature from rudely encountering such hard and ex¬
tended objects as might hurt or bruise him. When he
approaches bodies of this kind, he feels the atmosphere
more sensibly resist his progress ; and in proportion as his
motion is accelerated, or his distance from the object di¬
minished, the resistance is increased. He distinguishes
the approach of his friend from afar by the sound of his
steps, by his manner of breathing, and almost by every
audible token which he can exhibit. Prepared for the
dangers which he may encounter from the surface of the
ground upon which he walks, his step is habitually firm
and cautious. Hence he not only avoids those falls which
might be occasioned by its less formidable inequalities,
but from its general bias he collects some ideas how far
his safety is immediately concerned ; and although these
conjectures may sometimes prove fallacious, yet they are
generally so true as to preserve him from accidents not
incurred by his own temerity. The rapid torrent and the
deep cascade not only warn him to keep a proper distance,
but inform him of the direction in which he is moving, and
form a kind of audible beacons to regulate his course. In
places to which he has been accustomed, he as it were
recognises his latitude and longitude from every breath of
varied fragrance wafted by the breeze, from every ascent
or declivity in the road, from every natural or artificial
sound that strikes his ear. Regulated by these and other
analogous signs, the blind have not only been known to
perform long and difficult journeys themselves, but even
to conduct others through dark, tortuous, and dangerous
paths, with the utmost security and exactness.
It were endless to recapitulate the various mechanical
operations of which they are capable, from the nicety and
accuracy of their touch. In some the tactile powers are
said to have been so highly improved, as to perceive that
texture and disposition of coloured surfaces by which some
rays of light are reflected and others absorbed, and in this
manner to distinguish colours.1 But the testimonies to
this fact still appear too vague and general to deserve im¬
plicit credit. We have known a person who had lost the
use of his sight at an early period of infancy, and in the
vivacity and delicacy of his sensations was not perhaps in¬
ferior to any one: this individual having often heard that
others in his situation were capable of distinguishing
colours by touch with the utmost exactness and prompti¬
tude ; and being stimulated partly by curiosity to acquire
a new train of ideas, if that acquisition were possible, but
still more by incredulity respecting the fact alleged; tried
1 De comite Mansfeldico cceco refert Keckermanus, solo tactu album a nigro disccrnere; de equo fusco vel albo, item de columba
nigra vel eaerulea, judicium ferre potuisse. (S>/st. Physic, lib. iii. c. 16.)
BLIND.
repeated experiments, by touching the surfaces of different
I bodies, and examining whether any such diversities could
be detected in them as might enable him to distinguish co-
lours 5 but nothing of the kind was he ever able to ascer¬
tain. Sometimes, indeed, he imagined that objects which
had no colour, or, in other words, were black, had something
different and peculiar in their surfaces; but this experi¬
ment did not universally hold; and his scepticism there¬
fore still continued to prevail. That the acoustic percep¬
tions of the blind are distinct and accurate, we may fairly
conclude from the rapidity with which they ascertain the
acuteness or gravity of different tones, as relative one to
another, and from their exact discernment of the various
kinds and modifications of sound and of sonorous objects,
if the sounds themselves be in any degree significant of
their causes.
It is owing to this vivacity and accuracy of the other
senses, and the assiduous application of a comprehensive
and attentive mind, that we are enabled to account for
the rapid and astonishing progress which some of them
have made, not only in those departments of literature
which were most accessible to their understandings, but
even in the most abstract, and, if we may be allowed
the expression, occult sciences. What, for instance, can
apparently be more remote from the conceptions of a
blind man than the abstract relations and properties of
space and quantity ? Yet the attainments of Dr Saun-
derson in all the branches of mathematics are wrell known
to the literary world since the publication of his works;
and we have the testimony of Dr Guillie to the fact that
the blind in general have a remarkable aptitude for the
study of the exact sciences.1
When we reflect on the numberless advantages derived
from the use of sight, and the immense importance of the
information it conveys, both for the well-being of the body
and the improvement of the mind, we are almost tempted
to doubt the fidelity of the reports which have been pub¬
lished concerning such persons as, without the assistance
of sight, have arrived at high degrees of eminence even in
those sciences which would appear absolutely unattainable
without the aid of this sense. It has, however, been de¬
monstrated by Dr Reid, that blind men, by proper in¬
struction, are capable of forming almost every idea, and
attaining almost every truth, which can be impressed on
the mind through the medium of light and colour, except
the sensations of light and colour themselves. (Inquiry
into the Human Mind, chap. vi. § 1, 2.) Yet there is one
phenomenon of this kind which seems to have escaped
the attention of that great' philosopher, and of which no
author either of this or any former period has been able
to offer any satisfactory explanation, although it seems to
merit the attention of philosophers. For, admitting that
the blind can understand all the phenomena of light and
colours, and that on these subjects they may extend their
speculations even beyond the sphere of their instructions,
and by the mere force of genius and application investi¬
gate the mechanical principles of optics from the data
which they had previously obtained ; yet it will be difficult
to assign any reason why these objects should prove more
interesting to a blind man than any other abstract truths
whatsoever. By means of a retentive memory, it is pos-
695
sible for a blind man to tell that the sky is azure, that Blind,
the sun, moon, and stars are bright, that the rose is red,
the lily white or yellow, and the tulip variegated; by con¬
tinually hearing these substantives and adjectives joined,
he may be mechanically taught to join them in the same
manner; but as he never had any sensation of colour,
however accurately he may speak of coloured objects, his
language must be like that of a parrot, without meaning
and without ideas. Homer and Milton had been long
acquainted with the visible world before they were af¬
flicted with the calamity of blindness. They might, there¬
fore, still retain the warm and pleasing impressions of
what they had seen ; their descriptions might be animated
with all the enthusiasm which had originally fired their bo¬
soms when the grand or delightful objects which they de¬
lineated wrere immediately beheld; and that enthusiasm
might even be heightened by a bitter sense of their loss,
and by the regret which a situation so dismal naturally
inspired. But how shall we account for the same ener¬
gy, the same transport of description, exhibited by those
on whose minds visible objects were either never impress¬
ed, or must have been entirely obliterated ?
Yet certain it is, however extraordinary the fact may ap¬
pear, that the latter class of the blind experience such emo¬
tions, and depict them with astonishing accuracy and truth;
that they seem to have a kind of imaginative feeling of ex¬
ternal beauty, and to enter into accounts of natural scenery
with a keener relish than those who enjoy the blessing of
sight. To them light, and shadow, and colour in all its va¬
riegated modifications, are merely voces et prceterea nihil ;
yet by the force of imagination, aided by the information
supplied by the other senses, and by certain suggestions and
relations of language, they are enabled, as it were, to ap¬
proximate to ideas which it is impossible they should ever
fully attain, and to form for themselves a set of notions
adjusted in such a wonderful manner as to serve as links
in the chain of association, and to guide them to the use
of accurate expressions, in speaking or writing of things
which to them are as if they were not. But the specula¬
tions into which these considerations would lead us are of
too refined and subtile a nature to be prosecuted further
in such an article as the present. Whoever thinks the
subject of sufficient consequence to merit a nicer scrutiny,
may consult the preface to Blacklock's Poems printed at
Edinburgh 1754; or the account of his life and writings
by the Rev. Mr Spence, prefixed to a quarto edition of his
poems published at London in the year 1756; or the Es-
sai sur VInstruction des Aveugles, by Dr Guillie, a work
which, from the opportunities of observation enjoyed by
the author, is naturally of high authority on the subject of
which it treats.
It has already been hinted that the blind are objects of
compassion, because their sphere of action and observation
is abridged; and this is certainly true. For what is human
existence in its present state, when deprived of action,
and to a certain extent of contemplation ? Thus limited, all
that remains is the information derived from form, or from
sensitive and locomotive powers. But for these, unless
directed to happier ends by superior faculties, few rational
beings would, in our opinion, be grateful. The most im¬
portant view, therefore, which can be entertained in the
1 Si la privation de la vue pent, dans quelques circonstances, devenir un avantage, c’est dans I’dtude des mathematiques. Les aveugles
ont des dispositions naturelles pour cette science, a laquelle ils se livrent avec un gout decide. Tres-jeunes, ils apprennent facile-
ment les operations les plus compliquees de 1’arithmetique, et, sans employer aucun des moyens dont les clair-voyans font usage pour
la geometrie, ils ont une idee exacte et precise des figures; ce qui est prouve par leur succes dans I’algebre, la trigonometrie, et les
autres branches subsdquentes des mathe'matiques. Leur intelligence pour cette e'tude est tellement deVeloppe'e, que non seulement
ils sont en etat de suivre parfaitement les demonstrations faites sur le tableau, et de profiler des lemons publiques denudes par les
maitres les plus distingue's (M. Biot, M. Francocur), mais meme remporter, dans les Lycees, les premiers prix sur les clair-voyans.
(£«a»,ur l'Instruct, des Aveugles, p. 159,160.)
696
BLIND.
Blind, education of a person deprived of sight, is to redress as
effectually as possible the natural disadvantages under
which he lies ; or, in other words, to enlarge as far as may
be the sphere of his knowledge and activity. But this
can only be done by the improvement of his intellectual,
imaginative, or mechanical powers; and which of these
ought to be most assiduously trained and cultivated, the
genius of every individual can alone determine. Were
men to judge of things by their intrinsic nature, less would
be expected from the blind than from others. But, by some
pernicious and unaccountable prejudice, people generally
hope to find them either possessed of preternatural talents,
or more attentive than others to those which they actually
do possess: for it was not Rochester’s opinion alone,
That if one sense should be suppress’d,
It but retires into the rest.
Hence it unluckily happens that blind men, when they do
not gratify the extravagant expectations of the spectators,
too frequently sink in the general estimation, and appear to
be much less considerable and meritorious than they really
are. This general diffidence of their powers at once deprives
them both of the opportunity and the spirit to exert them¬
selves ; and they descend at last to that degree of insig¬
nificance in which the public estimate has fixed them.
From the original dawning of reason and spirit, therefore,
the parents and tutors of the blind ought to inculcate this
maxim,—that it is their indispensable duty to excel, and
that it is absolutely in their power to attain a high de¬
gree of eminence. To impress this notion on their minds,
the first objects presented to their observation, and the
first methods of improvement applied to their understand¬
ing, ought to be capable of being comprehended without
difficulty by those internal powers and external senses
which they possess. Not that improvement should be
rendered quite easy to them, if such a plan were possible ;
for all difficulties which are not really or apparently in¬
superable heighten the charms and enhance the value of
those acquisitions which they seem to retard. But care
should be taken that these difficulties be not magnified or
exaggerated by imagination; since the blind have natu¬
rally a painful sense of their own incapacity, and conse¬
quently a strong propensity to despondency continually
working in their minds.
For this reason, parents and relations ought never to
be too ready in offering their assistance to the blind in
any office which they can perform, or in any acquisition
which they can make for themselves, whether they are
prompted by amusement or necessity. Let a blind boy
be permitted to walk through the neighbourhood without
a guide, not only though he should run some hazard,
but even though he should suffer some pain. If he have a
mechanical turn, let him not be denied the use of edge-
tools ; for it is better that he should lose a little blood,
or even break a bone, than be perpetually confined to the
same place, and thus debilitated in his frame, and de¬
pressed in his mind. Such a being can have no employ¬
ment but that of feeling his own weakness, and becoming
his own tormenter ; or perhaps transferring to others a por¬
tion of the malignity and peevishness engendered by the
natural, adventitious, or imaginary evils which he feels.
Scars, fractures, and dislocations in his body, are trivial
misfortunes compared with imbecility, timidity, or fretful¬
ness of mind. Besides the pernicious effects of inactivity
in relaxing the nerves, and consequently in depressing the
spirits, nothing can be more productive of discontent, envy,
jealousy, and every mean and malignant passion, than a
painful impression of dependence on others, and of our in¬
sufficiency for our own happiness. This impression, which
even in his most improved state will be but too deeply felt
by every blind man, is redoubled by that utter incapacity
of action superinduced by the officious humanity of those T>
who would anticipate or supply all his wants, prevent allW *■
his motions, and do or procure every thing for him with,
out his own interposition. It is the course of nature that
blind people, as well as others, should survive their m.
rents; and it may likewise happen to them to survive
those who, by the ties of blood and nature, are more im¬
mediately interested in their happiness. But when they
come to be dependent on the world, such exigencies as
they themselves cannot meet will be but coldly and Ian-
guidly supplied by strangers. If their expectations be high"
their disappointments will be the more sensible; their de¬
sires will often be resisted, seldom fully gratified; and, even
when their requests are granted, the concession will some¬
times be so ungraceful as to deprive it of the character of
kindness. For these reasons, we repeat, that, in the training
of a blind man, it is infinitely better to direct than to su¬
persede his own exertions. From the time he can move and
feel, let him be taught to supply his own wants; to dress
and to feed himself; to run from place to place, either
for exercise or in pursuit of his own amusements or avo¬
cations.
In these excursions, however, it will be proper for the
parent or tutor to superintend his motions at a distance,
without seeming to watch over him. A vigilance too ap¬
parent may defeat its own object, and create, in a mind
naturally jealous, a suspicion of its originating in some in¬
terested motive. But, on the other hand, when dangers
are obvious and great, those who are intrusted with the
care of the blind will find it neither necessary nor expe¬
dient to make their vigilance a secret. They ought then to
acquaint their pupil that they are present with him, and
to interpose for his preservation whenever his temerity
renders it necessary. But objects of a nature less noxious,
which may give him some pain without any permanent
injury or mutilation, may with design be thrown in this
way, provided, however, that the design be industriously
concealed; for his own experience of their bad effects will
prove a much more eloquent and sensible caution than the
abstract and frigid counsels of any monitor whatever.
When the season of childish amusement has expired,
and the impetuosity of animal spirits has abated, the tutor
will probably observe, in the whole demeanour of his pupil,
a more sensible degree of timidity and precaution, and his
activity will then require to be stimulated rather than re¬
strained. In this crisis, exercise will be found requisite
to preserve health and facilitate the vital functions, as
well as for the mere purpose of recreation; and, of all
kinds of exercise, riding on horseback will be found by far
the most eligible and advantageous. On such occasions,
however, care must be taken that the horses employed be
neither capricious nor unmanageable; for on the docility
of the animal which he rides, not only the safety, but the
confidence, of the blind will entirely depend. In these ex¬
peditions, whether long or short, his companion or atten¬
dant ought to be constantly with him; and the horse
should either be taught to follow its guide, or be conduct¬
ed by a leading rein. Next to this mode of exercise is
walking. If the constitution of the blind boy be toler¬
ably robust, let him be taught to encounter every vicis¬
situde of weather which the human constitution can en¬
dure with impunity. And when the cold is so intense,
or the elements so tempestuous, as to render air and exer¬
cise abroad impracticable, there are methods of exercise
within doors, which, though not equally salutary, are still
highly eligible. The dumb-bells, the bath-chair or spring
board, and the common swing, have been particularly re¬
commended for this purpose ; and as each affords an agree¬
able exercitation, any of them may be had recourse to at
pleasure.
BLIND.
jjli But without dilating further in general observations and
^ ^ recommendations, we shall now proceed to give some ac-
Eddcij m count of the practical methods employed in developing
ofthe the physical and intellectual faculties of the blind, and
blind' particularly in communicating to them elementary instruc¬
tion in the ordinary branches of education ; and, with this
view, we shall endeavour to describe as briefly as possible
the system practised in the Asylum for the Industrious
Blind in Edinburgh,—an institution which has long been
managed with equal judgment and success, and which,
although in some respects inferior to that of Paris, is
nevertheless upon the whole well calculated to serve as a
model for others of a similar description.
This asylum was for many years the only one of the
kind in Scotland; but latterly an institution of the same
description has been formed at Glasgow, and is now con¬
ducted upon nearly the same plan. It was originally in¬
tended for men ; and, during a period of twenty-eight years
from its formation, no provision whatever was made for the
employment or instruction of the blind of the other sex,
who, from their greater helplessness, have still stronger
claims to the charitable and humane consideration of the
public. But about the year 1820 a female asylum was
instituted under the care of the same directors, though in
a separate house; and both branches of this interesting
establishment are now conducted upon the same general
plan, and with nearly equal success.
The leading feature of this plan is to combine industry
with instruction, and alternately to find occupation for the
hands and heads of those who are admitted into the asy¬
lum. Accordingly, the men and boys are employed in
making baskets of all descriptions; in weaving cloth of
cotton, linen, and hair; in rope-making in all its branches ;
in forming matrasses of straw, sea-grass, and hair, and in
stuffing beds; in working door-mats, hearth-rugs, and
other articles of this description; and, in general, in any
occupation for which they have a taste, or in which they are
likely to excel. The females, on the other hand, are em¬
ployed in sewing, knitting, spinning, and other occupations
peculiar or suited to their sex, especially in the different
kinds of “ plain and white seam,” as it is called, which
they execute with singular neatness. Stockings, shoes,
snow-boots, table-mats, table-covers, shawls of all descrip¬
tions and colours, spensers, tippets, dresses for ladies and
gentlemen, hair-mits, and such like articles, are also ma¬
nufactured in the asylum. A great part of the knitted
fancy work has, we understand, been invented by the
mistress of the house; and such is the perfection to which
this elegant branch of industry has been carried, that its
697
products are said to have found their way to all parts of Blind,
the world. ^ -u_.
France has done much towards the education of the
blind, which indeed has engrossed a large share of atten¬
tion in that country; but although the methods employ¬
ed are in some respects superior in point of scientific
adaptation, it may, nevertheless, be doubted whether any
institution in the neighbouring kingdom be upon a more
efficient footing than that in Edinburgh, which owes not
only its existence, but the success which has attended its
endeavours, to the spontaneous and benevolent zeal of en¬
lightened individuals. Various opinions have been expres¬
sed respecting the French method of teaching the blind to
read by means of letters in relief,—a very ingenious though
by no means a recent invention.1 It has been said, for exam¬
ple, that angular letters are preferable to circular ones, as
being more easily felt; and Mr Gall of Edinburgh has con¬
structed an alphabet of this kind on the French plan, whilst
others havebeen making trial of a variety of shapes and forms
with a view to the same object. But no device of this kind
has hitherto been patronised by the directors of the Edin¬
burgh institution ; nor, as far as we know, has any one yet
been proposed which is in all respects calculated to answer
the end proposed. From what has been done, however,
for enabling the blind to feel a written language, it seems
practicable, by some analogous method, to teach them both
to read and write ; and we are inclined to hope that such a
method, combining distinctness with simplicity and cheap¬
ness, will in time be discovered.
In the Edinburgh institution the men and women are
taught to read and write by means of what is called the
“ string alphabet.” This is formed by so knotting a cord,
ribbon, or the like, that the protuberances thus made upon
it may, by their shape, size, and situation, denote the ele¬
ments of language. The letters of this alphabet are dis¬
tributed into seven classes, which are distinguished by
certain knots or marks; and each class comprehends four
letters, excepting the last, which includes only two. The
first or A class is distinguished by a large round knot;
the second or E class, by a knot projecting from the line;
the third or I class, by a series of links, vulgarly called the
“ drummer’s plait;” the fourth or M class, by a single
noose; the fifth or Q class, by a noose with a line drawn
through it; the sixth or U class, by a noose with a net-
knot cast on it; the seventh or Y class, by a twisted noose.
The first letter of each class is denoted by the simple cha¬
racteristic of its respective class; the second by the cha¬
racteristic and a common knot close to it; the third by
the characteristic and a common knot half an inch from it;
^ first attempt of this kind appears to have consisted in a modification of the Illyrian or Sclavonian alphabet, which was doubt-
ess preterred on account of the square form of the letters ; but on trial it was found to possess no advantage over the common cha¬
racters, and to have disadvantages peculiar to itself. (Fournier, Manuel Typographique, tome ii. p. 226/No. 68, 1766.) Movable
e™rs™ small tablets of wood were next tried; but after a time this expedient was also abandoned, as not suited for the instruction
ot the blind, though singularly well adapted for teaching children who see to read. In fact, it was by means of similar letters that
sher, afterwards archbishop of Armagh, was taught to read by his two aunts, who were both blind. (Iliographia Britannica, voce Usher;
'rex’ tble sixfeentfi century letters were engraved in wood for the instruction of the blind;—these, however, were not in
re let, but cut ou t in the ordinary way of engraving;—the fingers could with difficulty be employed in ascertaining their configuration ; 
w len used in printing, the letters remained white, whilst the rest of the space was blackened;—and hence they had none of the advan-
!f - kebon£ t° letters in relief, and which are essential in the instruction of the blind. (Francesco Lucas, Arte de Escrivir, Ma-
na, 1580, 4to./ This method was reproduced with some modifications in 1575, by Rampazzetto, an Italian; but with no better success.
\ wmplarc di piu sorti dx Lettere di M. Gio Francesco Cresci, Milanese, Scrittore en Venetia; 1575, 4to.) In 1640 a writing-master of
ans, called Pierre Moreau, caused movable characters to be cast in lead for the use of the blind: but, discouraged by the difficulties
e met with, or not choosing to incur the expense to which the prosecution of the scheme would have subjected him, he abandoned it,
and applied himself to the formation of matrices for a new variety of letter, which still bears his name in French t3rpography. A
simpler and more ingenious method than any of these consisted in forming letters by means of pins stuck into large pincushions, leav¬
ing out only the heads, which of course were easily felt, and rendered the shape of the letters quite distinct as well as palpable,'while
e arrangement could be altered at pleasure, and with extreme facility. By this natural and easy plan the celebrated Mademoiselle
aradis learned to read. Various other modes were also tried ; letters in wood were again had recourse to, and again dropped; and
o method secured general approbation till 1783, when letters in relief, that is, letters raised, or as it were embossed on paper, were
lnventfd, and, being gradually improved, were afterwards employed in the instruction of the blind in France. Nor has this inven-
as yet been superseded by^any thing that seems better adapted to the purpose.
VOL. IV. 4t
698
BLIND.
Blind.
and the fourth by the characteristic and a common knot
an inch from it. Thus, A is expressed by a large round
knot; B by a large round knot, with a common knot close
to it; C by a large round knot, and a common knot half
an inch from it; and D by a large round knot, and a com¬
mon knot an inch from it; and so in the case of the other
classes. This alphabet was invented by Robert Milne
and David Macbeath, both at one time inmates of the
asylum, and it is found by experience to answer the pur¬
pose for which it was intended, as by means ol it the
blind can communicate with their friends and with one
another.
Robert Milne, one of the persons above named, also
improved the arithmetical board. An instrument of this
kind had been invented by Dr Saunderson, and afterwards
modified by Dr Moyes ; but the board used in the asylum
is considered as superior to it in several respects, and has
lately undergone a further improvement by the substitu¬
tion of metal for wood; in consequence of which it has
been rendered both cheaper and more correct than before.
By means of this instrument both men and women are
taught figuring, and may be carried to any extent in arith¬
metical acquirement. Two small square pins with knobs
represent the ten digits.1
The blind are taught geography, both ancient and mo¬
dern, by means of globes and boards constructed solely for
their use ; astronomy, by means of an orrery and celestial
maps similarly adapted; and mathematics, on a board of
analogous construction. In all these branches of science the
progress they make is considerable, and, with reference to
their peculiar situation, astonishing. As the plan of the
globes and boards is exceedingly simple, a few words on
each will suffice. From a plan submitted to him, the present
master constructed two globes, one thirty and the other
thirty-six inches in diameter. Having described the me¬
ridians and parallels of latitude, and drawn the boundary
lines of countries, and divisions of all kinds, he glued on
twine or cord on such lines as are continuous, employing
shorter pieces to indicate rivers, and pins to denote towns :
the portions representing land are covered with fine sand ;
the rivers and seas are left smooth; the meridian circle,
which is of iron, is so deeply marked as to render the
divisions easily felt; and the equator is indicated by small
pins. The globes, thus prepared and adapted, have been
found by experience completely to answer the purposes
of instruction. With regard to the maps, again, they are
pasted on square boards, and have cord glued on the
boundary lines, in precisely the same manner as the globes.2
The orrery has brass hoops or rings to represent the or¬
bits of the planets, which are indicated by balls or spheres
of proper relative dimensions, and slide at pleasure along
the rings or orbits; the ecliptic, or the outer edge of the
circular board, is marked with the degrees of the circle
and the days of the month in such a manner as to be felt;
and the signs of the zodiac are raised figures, also placed
on the edge. The celestial maps consist of square and ob¬
long boards, on which is glued Bristol paper, cut into the
figure of the sign or constellation which it is intended to
represent, after which steel knobs of different sizes are
driven in to indicate the different magnitudes of the stars,
while small knobs on the sides of the board denote the
degrees. The mathematical board is a square of fourteen
inches, full of small holes, with a few pins fitted to them,
so as to represent certain letters of the alphabet; while Bib
with fine cord or twine extended from the angular points
are formed the lines of the figure or diagram, whatever
it may be. The globes and boards for geography, as well
as the orrery, celestial maps, and mathematical board,
were invented in 1824, and are used in no other institution
excepting that of Glasgow, and that of Boston in North
America, to each of which a set of these instruments was
transmitted by order of the directors of the Edinburgh
Asylum. In as far as we are able to judge, these latter
instruments seem superior to those employed in the Pari¬
sian institution ; at all events they are simpler, which is a
great advantage; and with regard to the mathematical
board, the method of representing the diagrams appears
to be by far the best that has yet been employed.
The inmates of this establishment are also taught to
play on the violin and piano-forte. They read the music
from boards constx-ucted for their use, but by whom invent¬
ed we have not learned. The game of draughts is a favour¬
ite amusement with them. It is played on a board of the
common kind, but the alternate squares are covered with
sand, and in each there is a small hole fitted to receive a
pin, attached to the piece, which is thus retained in the
position in which it is placed.
The greater part of the inmates of this institution con¬
sists of persons who originally lost their sight by disease or
accident; and there are but few who have been blind from
their birth. At the same time, it has been remarked that
when one child in a family is born blind, those that follow
it are also generally born blind. There are two or three
instances of this in the asylum; and. we know several
others without the walls of the institution. Phis succes¬
sion of blindness is probably to be referred to the force
of imagination ; and, in fact, the mother of two blind chil¬
dren being questioned on the subject, stated her belief
that the second instance was occasioned by her continual¬
ly looking on and thinking of her sightless child.
The experience acquired in the institution confirms Resii
the general observation which we made at the outset,
that the loss of one faculty, especially sight, is almost al¬
ways accompanied by a compensatory and counteroalan-
cing improvement in the other senses and faculties. This
undoubtedly arises, not from any original superiority in
the senses or faculties which remain, but from a closer
attention to their indications, and above all from inces¬
sant application. The sense of touch, in particular, is
signally improved, and, as it were, quickened in blind
persons, who have no other means of discovering the size
and figure of the bodies presented to them. With regard
to the statement, however, which has sometimes been
made, that they can distinguish colours by touch, we may
mention that no instance of such extreme delicacy of toucli
has occurred in the experience of the Edinburgh institu¬
tion. Memory, like touch, is also improved by constant
use and application; and this holds equally true in all cases,
though it is more signally exemplified in the case of tie
blind, who depend so much on this faculty. It nas been
thought that the memories of the blind are greatly assistei
by the exclusion of external objects, which from t eir
multiplicity tend to distract the attention; but as dar
ness magnifies dangers, which consequently engross tic
thoughts and excite continual apprehensions, it may rea
sonably be doubted whether the attention of the blin 13
1 For an account of the ij*ethod employed in the Royal Institution of Paris, see Dr Guillie’s JSssai sur VInstruction es. wt* 1
p. 159. In Paris, as in Edinburgh, Saunderson’s table has been abandoned as operose and inconvenient. g is
2 In the Parisian institution improvement has been carried a step further ; fine iron wire covered after the fashion ot mi 1 ^
used instead of cord for the divisions, as well as the meridians and parallels of latitude ; whilst towns and islands are represe ^
hemispherical! v-headed nails of different sizes; and over the whole blank paper is pasted, so as in fact to form a skeleton mai.
lief. {GuilM, p. 147, 149.)
BLIND.
not at times as liable to be disturbed as that of those who
^ possess the blessing of sight, and receive impressions from
the external world ; and hence it is to application chiefly
that the improvement of this faculty in the case of the
blind ought to be ascribed.
The same observation holds true in regard to those
signs and indications which persons who see neglect be¬
cause they are not necessary to be attended to, but which
are of great importance to the blind, and are consequently
carefully attended to by them. Hence they can discover
by the voice whether a person be tall or short, agreeable or
disagreeable, and also form some judgment of the passions
and affections of the mind. They have even in some
cases attempted, from such indications, to describe the
external form and beauty of a person. They know the
steps of their friends and companions even at a distance.
Breathing and smell also afford indications. In hearing a
sermon they can tell by the sound of the preacher’s voice
whether he uses notes; and currents of air, or different
modifications of atmospherical pressure, enable them to
discover when they approach any object or building.
Their curiosity is so intense that at any risk it must be
gratified; and as they are often not aware of the danger
to which they expose themselves, they generally attain
their object. It is a remarkable fact, that a person born
blind never dreams that he sees the object of his dreams.
The blind have been made to communicate with the
deaf and dumb by means of the finger alphabet; the for¬
mer, of course, appealing to the sight of the latter, and
the latter forming the alphabetical characters palpably
on the fingers of the former. An attempt was also made
by the deaf and dumb to discover what was said by the
blind from the varying configuration of their lips in speak¬
ing ; but it did not succeed to any extent, and was aban¬
doned, more especially as it could be employed by only
one of the parties. In France the means of communica¬
tion between these two classes of unfortunates have been
improved by the invention of a set of pantomimic signs,
representing not letters, but words or ideas. These are
formed by means of the arms, which being extended some¬
what in the manner of a telegraph, are made, by each
change of position, to represent a word or idea; and when
the blind communicate in this way with the deaf and dumb,
their arms are placed in contact, and they go through the
strange but ingenious pantomime together in a manner
equally grotesque and amusing.
Pari i The experience acquired in the Parisian institution is
msti on. substantially in accordance with what has been stated as
the results of continued observation in the Edinburgh
asylum. Dr Guillie is decidedly of opinion that the blind
have no natural superiority in any sense or faculty over those
who possess all their faculties in an ordinary state of perfec¬
tion. “ L’adresse qu’on remarque dans les aveugles pour le
toucher,” says he, “ et 1’aptitude des sourds-muets a saisir
tous les traits de la physionomie, resultent de la necessity
ou ils sont, les uns, de se servir presque continuellement
du tact pour suppleer a la vue qui leur manque, et les
autres, d’employer la vue pour remplacer I’ou'ie et la pa¬
role : 1’organe n’en est pas moins en tout semblable a ce-
lui des clair-voyans; et si l’aveugle-ne opere par Chesel-
den ne reconnaissait plus par le toucher, apres 1’extraction
de la cataracte, les objets comme il le faisait auparavant,
ce n’est pas qu’il eut perdu, en recevant la vue, la facultfi
de toucher, mais seulement, parce qu’il ne I’employait plus
que comme sens auxiliaire et correctif de la vue.” P. 32,
33. In this opinion the Abbe Sicard, Dr Guillie’s distin¬
guished colleague, completely coincides.
“ The memory of the blind is prodigious” This fact
has been exemplified in Paris as well as in Edinburgh and
everywhere else; how to account for it is another ques-
699
tion. In man there is a memory of sensation and a memory Blind,
of intelligence : the one recalling his merely physical per-
ceptions; and the other his reflections, judgments, rea¬
sonings, speculations, and moral sentiments. Now it is
principally with the latter description of memory that the
blind are eminently provided ; and although they are de¬
prived of the means which persons having the use of sight
possess for forming an artificial kind of mnemonics, it is
probable that they construct an internal scheme for their
own use, and of still superior efficacy. Such at least is the
opinion of Dr Guillid ; and it appears to be well founded.
Helvetius has remarked {De lEsprit, chap. iii. disc. 3),
that a great memory is a phenomenon of order; that it is
almost entirely factitious ; and that among men well orga¬
nised, the great inequality of memory is less the effect of
unequal perfection in the organ or faculty which produces
it, than of unequal attention in cultivating it. But the
blind are in general eminently distinguished for the spirit
of order, referred to by the French philosopher'as the ba¬
sis of a great memory; and as the faculty in question de¬
pends mainly on association, of which natural arrange¬
ment or classification is the very essence, it must of course
be greatly strengthened in minds which are animated by
the spirit of order, and have a tendency to ai'range their
ideas in a strictly logical sequence.
Another peculiarity of the blind is great fecundity of
imagination; united in some with a facility in analyzing
and recombining their ideas, to which their extraordinary
progress in the exact sciences is to be ascribed. Of the
former quality, Homer, Milton, Delille, and many others
might be cited as examples; of the latter we shall give tv/o
instances in the words of Dr Guillie. “ Le premier est
Paingeon, qui, par 1’esprit de 1’ordre dont il est doue, a
acquis des connaissances transcendantes en mathema-
tiques, et apres avoir remporte, en 1806, tous les premiers
prix au concours general des quatre Lycees de Paris, fut
nomme, par le Grand Maitre de 1’Universite, professeur
de mathematiques au Lycee d’Angers: 1’autre est J. De¬
lille, aujourd’hui pensionnaire des Quinze-Vingts, qui a
porte tres-loin la metaphysique de la langage Francaise;
un aplomb parfait, une precision admirable dans ses de¬
finitions, caracterisent surtout ce sujet que nous nous
enorgueillissons d’avoir forme.” Both were educated un¬
der Dr Guillie, at the Royal Institution for the instruction
of the blind.
On the subject of the moral condition of the blind Dr
Guillie has stated many curious and interesting particu¬
lars. They are generally deficient in modesty or shame. “La
pudeur, qui est une des graces de la jeunesse, est presque
pour eux un etre imaginaire, quoiqu’ils aient une sorte de ti-
midite qui tient peut-etre plus, il est vrai, de crainte que
de la honte, mais qui augmente beaucoup leur embarras
dans certaines circonstances.” They are, it is said, for the
most part without sensibility and without gratitude ; irri¬
table, suspicious, vindictive, implacable. Their situation
obliges them to be on their guard against all the world; the
consciousness of their own deficiency, and the disadvan¬
tages under which it places them, render them suspicious
as well as selfish ; and, by an easy, and we had almost said
natural transition, they come to arrange in the same cate¬
gory their benefactors and their enemies. “ Commes de
toutes les demonstrations exterieures, qui reveillent en
nous la commiseration et les idees de la douleur, les
aveugles ne sontaffectes que par laplainte,” says Diderot,
“ je les soupqonne, en general, d’inhumanite. Quelle dif¬
ference y a-t-il, pour un aveugle, entre un homme qui
urine et un homme qui, sans se plaindre, verse son sang ?
Nous-memes, ne cessons-nous pas de compatir, lorsque la
distance, ou la petitesse des objets, produit sur nous le
meme effet que la privation de la vue chez les aveugles.”
700 B L I
Blind. {Lettres sur les Aveugles.') This is too strongly stated;
but the principle in human nature, on which the striking
observation of Diderot is founded, would lead us to anti¬
cipate, at least in part, the moral results to which we have
alluded. It has been alleged that the blind have a ten¬
dency towards atheism; but this is denied by Dr Guillie,
who, however, qualifies his contradiction by a very lament¬
able admission : “ Neanmoins, je ne les justifierai pas en-
tierement du reproche d’impiete qu’on leur a fait avec quel-
que fondementand he adds, “ la conscience enfin n’a
pas sur leurs actions I’influence qu’elle a sur nous.” But
as these observations are grounded on a partial experi¬
ence, we hope they have no application to the blind of this
country, amongst whom sounder principles and better feel¬
ings will always, we trust, prevail; nor will they ever lose
a sense of dependence on that Being, whose existence
they have only to stretch forth their hands to discover,
and who has opened the eye of humanity to compassion¬
ate, and the hand of charity to relieve, their wants.
Remark- History has preserved sundry particulars of blind per-
able blind S0nSj who, of themselves, acquired great knowledge before
persons. tbere existed any regular method of instruction applicable
to their case. The number of these is considerable; so
much so, indeed, that any accurate enumeration would
not only be a task of great difficulty in itself, but would
also far exceed the limits prescribed to this article. It
may not be uninteresting, however, to signalize a few of
those who have made the greatest figure in science and
in art.
The number of blind appears to have been very consi¬
derable in Asia and Italy in the time of the Romans.
This is proved by the great number of physicians who at
the epoch in question wrote on ocular diseases ; but what
mode of instruction, or whether any at all, was employed in
those times, we have not learned. Diogenes Laertius and
Thrasylus relate (Diog. Laert. lib. ix., Vossius, De Philo-
sophia) that several philosophers voluntarily deprived
themselves of sight in order to pursue their contempla¬
tions with less interruption ; and, amongst those who in¬
flicted on themselves this deprivation, is cited Democritus
of Abdera. But it is scarcely probable that this philoso¬
pher, the companion of the gymnosophists of India, a man
who laughed at every thing, and whom his countrymen
wished Hippocrates to cure of madness, because he believed
that all things were as they ought to be, depending on
chance and the fortuitous aggregations of atoms, should
have put out his eyes in order to scoff philosophically, when
he might have indulged his humour to so much better pur¬
pose with the use of his sight. Besides, putting out the eyes
was next to crucifixion, one of the most ignominious punish¬
ments inflicted by the laws of ancient times, and as such
was reserved only for great criminals. It may therefore
be doubted whether the laughing philosopher of Abdera
would, on a mere hypothesis, treat himself like a felon:
and the words of Cicero, “ Democritus impediri etiam animi
aciem aspectu oculorum arbitrabatur( TWm/. Disp. v. 39),
which have been often quoted, seem rather to express
a general opinion than to state a particular fact, or warrant
the inference that the philosopher had deprived himself of
sight because he thought that the penetration of the
mental was impeded by the vision of the natural eye.
Diodatus, Cicero’s master in philosophy, applied him¬
self to study with more assiduity than ever, after he had
lost his sight; and, what is still more remarkable, he
taught geometry with so much precision, that his dis¬
ciples found no difficulty in comprehending how to trace
the most complicated figures from his instructions. (Ci¬
cero, ubi supra ; Zahn, Specul. Physico-Math. Hist, tome
iii. c. 6.) Cornelius Aufidius, a Roman citizen, who had
N D.
lost his sight in his youth, distinguished himself in the BI
study of elegant literature, and wrote a Greek history. J
(Zahn, Sens. Ext. Mirab. § 2.) Eusebius the Asiatic
became blind at five years of age. He acquired vast
knowledge and profound erudition, and taught with the
utmost facility as well as success. (Cassiodorus De Inst.
Div. Litter, c. 5.) St Jerome has left an account of Dydi-
mus of Alexandria, his master, of whom he sneaks with
great respect. This blind man, who had lost his sight at
the same age with Eusebius, flourished in the fourth cen¬
tury. Ruffin us, Paladus, Isidorus, and several other cele¬
brated men, were his disciples. He acquired great know¬
ledge by having the sacred and profane authors read to
him ; he was one of the ablest mathematicians of his time;
and he applied himself especially to theology, for which
he had a decided taste. He composed several works, the
principal of which is A Treatise on the Holy Spirit, trans¬
lated into Latin by St Jerome. Dydimus was pious as
well as learned : nevertheless, his attachment to the opi¬
nions of Origen, on whose books he had commented,
caused his works to be condemned after his death by the
council of Lateran. St Athanasius and St Antony had
the greatest esteem for him. Dydimus died a. d. 398, at
the age of eighty-five. (Hieronymus De Viris Illustr.
c. 109; Socrates, lib. iv. c. 25; Ruffinus, lib. ii. c. 7.)
Nicaise of Malignes flourished in the fifteenth century,
and enjoyed great reputation for the extent of his learning.
Blind from the age of three years, he nevertheless made
great advances in science, and taught publicly, in the uni¬
versity of Cologne, both the civil and canon law, citing
from memory long passages which he had never seen,
guos nunquam viderat. Having been elected doctor of
Louvain, the pope granted a dispensation for his admission
to priests’ orders ; after which he employed the rest of his
life in preaching, and died at Cologne in 1492. (Uritheme
et Valere, Bibliotheque des Ecrivains des Pays-Bas.)
James Shegkius, born at Shorndorf, in the duchy of Wir-
temburg, taught philosophy and medicine with great suc¬
cess at Tubingen for about thirteen years. Having early
become blind, he was so little sensible of the loss of sight
that he refused to allow himself to be couched by an ocu¬
list, who offered to restore vision—in order, as he said, not
to be obliged to see many things which appeared odious or
ridiculous. He died at Tubingen in 1587, leaving several
treatises on different points of philosophy, medicine, and
controversy. (Zahn, Visas Im. Dep. et Ccecit. Ex. Mir. p.
114.) John Fernand, born in Belgium, was the son of a
Spaniard, and blind from his birth. His father was very
poor; but he surmounted the obstacles both of poverty
and blindness, and became a poet, logician, philosopher,
and musician. He composed from memory several pieces,
which are considered excellent of their kind. (Zahn, ubi
supra.) Ascanius Pedianus the historian lived several
years after the loss of his sight, and wrote treatises on
grammar, which exhibit no trace either of his age or in¬
firmity. (Fulgosus, lib. viii. c. 7.)
Uldaric Schomberg, born in Germany towards the com¬
mencement of the seventeenth century, lost his sight by
the small-pox at the age of three; but as he grew up he
applied himself to the study of the belles-lettres, which
he afterwards professed with credit at Altorf, at Leipsic,
and at Hamburg. (C. Harknocks, Alt und Neu Preussen,
1684.) Bourchenu de Valbonais, born at Grenoble in 1651,
became blind when very young, soon after the naval com¬
bat at Solbaye, where he had been present. But this acci¬
dent did not prevent him from publishing the History oj
Dauphine, in two volumes folio. He had made profound
researches into the history of his province, and, besides the
work just mentioned, published a Nobiliaire of Dauphine.
{Feller, vol. ii.) Of Dr Nicolas Saunderson, Lucasian
BLIND.
701
Professor of Mathematics in the University of Cambridge,
A, 1 and one of the most remarkable men of his time, some ac-
irT count will be found under the proper head. He was born
in 1682, at a small town in the county of York, and died
at Cambridge in 1739, at the age of fifty-six. He invent¬
ed a table, which has since been greatly improved, for
teaching arithmetic palpably to the blind. A notice of
]> Blacklock will be found under the biography of that
individual. Dr Henry Moyes professed the Newtonian
philosophy, which he taught with considerable success as
an itinerant lecturer. He was also a good chemist, a re¬
spectable mathematician, and a tolerable musician.
M. Phefel of Colmar, who lost his sight when very
young, in consequence of a violent ophthalmia, composed
a great deal of poetry (6 vols. 8vo, Colmar, 1791), consist¬
ing chiefly of fables, some of which have been translated
into French by M. Degerando. He was privy counsellor to
the margrave of Baden; and established at Colmar a mili¬
tary school or academy, where children of the best families
were sent to be educated. Among the pupils of this learn¬
ed blind man may be mentioned Prince Schwartzemberg,
Prince Eisemburg, and M. Heilman, lately pensionary of
the Quinze-Vingts. He died at Colmar in 1809. Weis-
semburg of Manheim became blind at the age of seven.
He wrote perfectly, and read with characters which he
had imagined for his own use. He was an excellent geo¬
grapher, and composed maps and globes, which he em¬
ployed both in studying and teaching this science. He
was the inventor of an arithmetical table, differing but little
from that of Saunderson. (Journal de Paris, April, 1784.)
The blind man of Puiseaux must be known to all who
have read Diderot’s celebrated Lettres sur les Aveugles.
He was the son of a professor of philosophy in the univer¬
sity of Paris, and he had attended with advantage courses of
chemistry and botany at the Jardin du Roi. After having
dissipated a part of his fortune he retired to Puiseaux,
where he established a distillery, the products of which he
came regularly once ayear to Paris to dispose of. There was
originality in every thing that he did. His custom was to
sleep during the day, and to rise in the evening; he worked
all night, “ because,” as he himself said, “ he was not then
disturbed by anybody.” His wife, when she rose in the
morning, used to find every thing perfectly arranged. Fie
spoke very sensibly of the qualities and defects of the organ
in which he was deficient, and answered questions put to him
with much justness and discrimination. Being interrogated
as to the idea he formed of a mirror, he replied, “ C’est une
machine qui met les choses en relief loin d’elles-memes,
si dies se trouvent placees convenablement par rapport a
die. C’est comme ma main qu’il ne faut pas que je pose
a cote d’un objet pour le sentir.” To Diderot, who visit¬
ed him at Puiseaux, he put some very singular questions
on the transparence of glass, colours, and such like mat¬
ters. He asked if naturalists were the only persons who
saw with the microscope, and if astronomers were the only
persons who saw with the telescope ; if the machine which
magnified objects was greater than that which diminished
them; if that which brought them near was shorter than
that which removed them to a distance. He believed
that astronomers had eyes of different conformation from
those of other men, and that a man could not devote him¬
self to the study of a particular science without having
eyes specially adapted for the purpose. “ The eye,” said
'le, “ is an organ upon which the air ought to produce
the same effect as my cane does upon my hand.” He
possessed the memory of sounds to a surprising degree,
and recognised by the voice those whom he had only heard
speak once. He could tell if he was in a thoroughfare or
■o a cul-de-sac, in a large or in a small place. He esti¬
mated the proximity of fire by the degree of heat; the
comparative fulness of vessels by the sound of the liquor in Blind,
falling; and the neighbourhood of bodies by the action of
the air on his face. Being asked on one occasion if he
would not be very well pleased to have eyes, he replied,
“ Si la curiosite ne me dominait pas, j’aimerais bien autant
avoir de longs bras: il me semble que mes mains m’in-
struiraient mieux de ce qui se passe dans la lune que vos
yeux ou vos telescopes; et puis les yeux cessent plutot
de voir que les mains de toucher. II vaudrait done bien
autant qu’on perfectionnat en moi 1’organe que j’ai, que de
m’aecorder celui qui me manque.” He employed charac¬
ters in relief in order to teach his son to read, and the
latter never had any other master than his father.
M. Huber of Geneva, an excellent naturalist, and author
of the best treatise extant on bees and ants, was blind from
his earliest infancy. In reading the descriptions of these
insects, we can scarcely persuade ourselves that they are
not the production of a singularly clear-sighted man, well
versed in this branch of natural history. In executing
his great work, however, M. Huber had no other assis¬
tance than what he derived from his domestic, who men¬
tioned to him the colour of the insects; and then he ascer¬
tained their form and size by touch, with the same facility
as he would have recognised them by their humming when
flying in the air. This laborious writer has also publish¬
ed a valuable work on education.
Francis Lesueur, born of very poor parents, at Lyons, on
the 5th of August 1766, lost his sight when only six weeks
old. He went to Paris in 1778, and was begging at the
gate of a church, when M. Haiiy, discovering in the young
mendicant some inclination to study, received him, and
undertook the task of instructing him, at the same time
promising him a sum equal to that which he had collected
in alms. Lesueur began to study in October 1784. Six
months after, he was able to read, to compose with charac¬
ters in relief, to print; and in less than two years he had
learned the French language, geography, and music, which
he understood very well. His intelligence and penetra¬
tion were indeed surprising, and he was among the blind
what Massieu has since been among the deaf and dumb.
He was successively repeater to his comrades, head of the
printing and economy of the institution for the blind, and
pensionary of the Quinze-Yingts. It is painful to add, that
he proved unthankful to his benefactor and master, to whom
he owed every thing; and that by his conduct he merited
the reproach of ingratitude, a vice which, with some rea¬
son, has been charged against the blind generally.
Avisse, born at Paris, was one of the most distinguish¬
ed eleves of the institution. His father, who kept furnish¬
ed lodgings in the Rue Guenegaud, intended him for
the sea; and he embarked when very young on board a
vessel fitted out for the slave-trade, in the capacity of se¬
cretary or clerk to the captain; but he was struck by a
coup de vent on the coast of Africa, and lost his sight from
the violent inflammation which ensued. On his return his
parents procured his admission into the institution for
the blind, where, in a few years, he became professor of
grammar and logic. He produced a comedy in verse, in
one act, entitled, La Ruse d'Aveugle, which was perform¬
ed on the 2d Nivose, year 5; a scene, also in verse, en¬
titled L'Atelier des Aveugles-travailleurs; and several
other pieces, which were all printed in one volume 12mo.
in the year 1803. He died before he had completed his
thirty-first year, at the very time when the high hopes en¬
tertained of him were on the point of being realized.
Nor have the blind been less distinguished in the prac¬
tice of the arts than in science and literature. Many in¬
stances of their eminence in this respect may be mention¬
ed. Indeed, the want of sight seems little or no impedi¬
ment to manual dexterity. Stengel mentions a young
702 B L I
Blind cabinet-maker of Ingolstadt, who, having lost his sight by
11 an explosion of gun-powder, amused himself by construct-
Blinding. jng pepper-mills, which he made without the use of any
pther instrument than a common knife, and executed with
so much exactness and elegance that they were thought
deserving of a place in the gallery of curiosities at Munich,
where they may still be seen. (Laurentius Stengelius De
Monstris, c. 16.) Sir Kenelm Digby has stated several
extraordinary particulars of a preceptor of his son, who
was so completely blind that he could not distinguish the
light of noonday from midnight. He surpassed in skill
the ablest players at chess ; at long distances he shot ar¬
rows with such precision as almost never to miss the
mark; he constantly went abroad without a guide, and
frequented most of the public promenades; he regularly
took his place at table, and ate with such dexterity that it
was impossible to perceive he was blind; when any one
spoke to him for the first time, he was able to tell with
certainty his stature and the form of his body; and when
his pupils recited in his presence, he knew in what situa¬
tion and attitude they were. (Digbseus De Nai. Corpor.
c. 28.) Aldovrandus mentions {Hist. Monstr.) a butcher
of Boulogne, who estimated by touch the weight of the
animal he was about to kill. M. de Piles saw in Italy a
blind man, a native of Cambassy in Tuscany, who was a
very good designer. M. de Piles met him in the Justiniani
Palace, where he was modelling in wax a statue of Miner¬
va. By means of touch, he had seized with precision the
form and proportions of the original. The duke of Brac-
ciano, who had seen him working, doubted whether he
was completely blind; and, in order to put the matter to
the test, he caused the artist to take his portrait in a dark
cave. It proved a striking likeness. Some, however, ob¬
jecting that the duke’s beard, which was of patriarchal
amplitude, had helped the artist to recognise him, the latter
offered to execute a portrait of one of the duke’s daugh¬
ters, which he accordingly did, and it also proved an ex¬
cellent likeness. “ J’ai vu,” says M. de Piles, “ sortis
des mains de cet illustre aveugle les portraits du feu roi
d’Angleterre, Charles I., celui du pape Urbain VIIL, et
en France, le portrait de M. Hesselin, tous parfaitement
executes.” {Cours de Peinture, p 260, 1766.) “ Nous
avons vu, des nos jours,” says Dr Guillie, to whom we are
indebted for the particulars of the more distinguished
blind, “ M. Buret, 1’un des plus habiles sculpteurs de f-
academie, devenu aveugle, a lage de vingt-cinq ans, par
suite de la petite verole, ne pas cesser pour cela de tra-
vailler, comme le faisait 1’aveugle de Cambassy.” (Essai
sur VInstruction des Aveugles, p. 94, Paris, 1817.)
Giovanni Gambasio of Volterra lost his sight at the age
of twenty, and remained ten years in this state, ignorant
of even the elements of sculpture. All of a sudden, how¬
ever, “ the desire of making a statue came upon himand
B L I
having handled in every way a marble figure representing K
Cosmo de’ Medici, he formed one of clay, so extremely *
like that it astonished all who saw it. His talent for sta- hliniLc
tuary now developed itself to such a degree, that Prince ^
Ferdinand, grand duke of Tuscany, sent him to Rome to
model the statue of pope Urban VIII. which he also ren¬
dered a striking likeness of the original. He afterwards
executed many others with equal success. (Aldovran¬
dus, Hist. Monstr.) A Dutch organist, blind from his early
youth, became very skilful in his profession ; he also ac¬
quired the habit of distinguishing by touch the different
kinds of money, and even, it is said, the primary colours.
He was a first-i*ate card-player ; for in dealing he knew'
the cards which he gave to others as well as those which
he kept for himself. (Lecat, Traites des Sens, p. 11.)
Chauvet, born blind, was for several years organist of
Notre-Dame-de-Bonne-Nouvelle at Paris. Mademoiselle
Paradis of Vienna, who had lost her sight when two years
old, formed the delight of the spiritual concerts at Paris in
theyear 1784.. This lady, who had great talents for musical
composition, invented a method of writing whatever she
composed, by figuring the concords. She began at first
by tracing them on cards pricked with needles; but this
first essay proving unsatisfactory, she fell upon another
method, which, however, has not been explained,—a cir¬
cumstance we regret the more, since it has been describ¬
ed as at once certain and of easy execution. Holman,
the blind traveller, being still alive, can scarcely with pro¬
priety be made the subject of a notice in this place.
This catalogue might easily be extended; but enough
has been said, and a sufficient number of facts accumulat¬
ed, to show what the blind are really capable of. There
seems, in truth, to be a sort of compensating power, alike
subtile in its resources, and refined in its operation, by
which a multitude of latent faculties and unheeded per¬
ceptions are called into activity to supply the want of one
great inlet of knowledge, and which, taken in the aggre¬
gate, and fully developed, appear almost sufficient to fill
up the blank which has been left by nature or produced
by disease in the catalogue of human organs. Hence there
are few things practicable by persons possessed of sight
which have not been done by those who want it; whilst
in regard to several the balance of advantage is clearly
in favour of the blind. This is at once a wise and bene¬
ficent provision of nature; in perfect harmony with the
whole economy of providence in the structure of the body
as well as of the mind of man ; and singularly illustrative
of that foresight which has provided, with such benevo¬
lent care, for the casualties as well as the wants to which
we are exposed in the present state of existence. Had
the case been otherwise every loss would have been irre¬
parable, and the smallest deprivation would have driven
us to despair. (a.)
Blind Coal, or Anthracite, corresponds to the
glance coal of England, and the stone coal of Wales. It
is very common in Scotland, and is sufficiently abundant
in Ireland. Being less frequent, and of more difficult in¬
flammability, than the common coal, it is both of minor
value an4 .of less utility. It is, however, employed in
burning lime, in iron founderies, and in smelting works.
See Coal.
i sPecies °fi corporal punishment ancient¬
ly inflicted on thieves, adulterers, perjurers, and others,
and from which the ancient Christians were not exempt.
Sometimes a mixture of lime and vinegar, or merely scald¬
ing vinegar, was poured into the eyes till their balls were
consumed; sometimes a rope was twisted round the head
till the eyes started out. In the middle ages, the punish¬
ment of destroying or putting out the eyes was exchang¬
ed for that of irretrievably injuring or impairing the sight;
which was effected by holding a red-hot iron dish or
bason before the eyes till their humours were dried up
and their coats shrivelled.
BLINDNESS, a privation of the sense of sight, arising
from a want of the organs of vision, or an involuntary ob¬
struction of their functions. See Blind.
Total Blindness is that state in which all sight or per¬
ception even of light is wanting, as in the case of those
who are said to be stone-blind.
B L O
Ulind s Partial Blindness is that state in which some faint
II glimmering of sight is left, as is the case with those who
s. Bia have ripe cataracts, and who are never so blind but they
' can discover day from night.
Perpetual Blindness is that which remains alike under
all the diversity of seasons, times, and ages.
Transient Blindness is that which in due time gives
way of itself; as that of whelps, which continues for seve¬
ral days, sometimes nine, rarely twelve, after they are
littered. The Nogais Tartars, according to Father Duban
the Jesuit, who lived amongst them, are born blind, and
open not their eyes till several days after birth.
Periodical Blindness is that which comes and goes by
turns, according to the season of the moon, the time of
day, and the like.
Diurnal Blindness is called hemeralopia.
Nocturnal Blindness, called also nyctalopia,, is that
which ensues on the setting of the sun in persons who see
perfectly in the day, but become quite blind as night
approaches. (See Phil. Trans. No. 159, p. 560; and a
singular case related by Dr Samuel Pye in the Medical
Observ. and Inquir. vol. i. p. 111.)
Blindness in horses. See Farriery.
BLINDS, or Blindes, in the art of war, a sort of de¬
fence commonly made of oziers, or branches interwoven,
and laid across between two rows of stakes, about the
height of a man, and four or five feet asunder. They are
used particularly at the heads of trenches when these ex¬
tend in front towards the glacis, and serve to shelter the
workmen, and to prevent their being overlooked by the
enemy.
BLINKS, among ancient sportsmen, denoted boughs
broken down from trees, and thrown in the way where
deer were likely to pass, to hinder their running, or ra¬
ther to mark which way a deer ran, and thus to guide the
hunter in pursuit.
BLISSINGEN, a fortified city on the south side of the
island of Walcheren, in the province of Friesland. It is
defended by the forts Ilamnekins, Montebello, and St
Hillary, and contains a dock-yard and naval storehouses.
The civil inhabitants are 4800. Long. 3. 28. 16. E. Lat.
51. 26. 37. N.
BLOATING, a puffing up or inflation of the exterior
habit of the body, arising from an increase of the adipose
substance. It is the same with what physicians call an
emphysema.
BLOCH, Mark Eleazar, an ichthyologist and hel¬
minthologist, born at Anspach about the year 1730. He
was of the Jewish nation, and his parents being indigent,
his early education was much neglected; but having en¬
tered into the employment of a surgeon at Hamburg, he
supplied the deficiency by his own exertions, and made
great progress in the study of anatomy, as well as in the
other departments of the medical sciences. He establish¬
ed himself as a physician at Berlin, and found means to
collect there a valuable museum of the subjects of all the
three kingdoms of nature, as well as an extensive library;
and these objects often attracted to his house an assem¬
blage of the most accomplished naturalists of his age and
country.
He applied himself, however, more particularly to those
parts of natural history which are the most connected
with the practice of physic; and, on occasion of a prize
question of the academy of Copenhagen, he entered into
a very elaborate examination of the different species of
worms which are found in the bodies of other animals.
In his essay on this subject, to which the prize was ad¬
judged, he maintains that the parasitical species are only
found within the animal body; and since they often oc¬
cur in the foetus, and in cavities which are completely in-
B L O
closed, he infers that they must be generated in some
unknown way, and not taken in with the food in the form
of eggs. For the general remedy in cases of worms in
the intestinal canal, he recommends large draughts of
cold water, followed by cathartics. He has added to his
Essay a complete classification and description of all the
species of intestinal worms, accompanied by figures.
M. Bloch also published a variety of papers on different
subjects of natural history, and of comparative anatomy
and physiology, in the collections of the various acade¬
mies of Germany, Holland, and Russia, particularly in
that of the Friendly Society of Naturalists at Berlin. But
his great work was his Ichthyology, which occupied the
labour of a considerable portion of his life. His attention
was first directed to the subject by receiving a present of
a species of salmon, which he could not find described in
the Linnaean System of Nature; and he discovered a
number of similar omissions in Artedi, and in all former
ichthyologists. He accordingly undertook to collect into
one work everything that was known respecting the natural
history of fishes, and to give figures of all the species;
and he passed several summers by the sea side, and among
fishermen and their nets, comparing the descriptions of
authors with nature, and taking bold sketches of the most
interesting subjects, not uncommonly on board of the very
boats which furnished them. His publication was encou¬
raged by a large subscription, and it passed rapidly through
five editions in German and in French. He made little
or no alteration in the systematical arrangement of Artedi
and Linne, although he was disposed to introduce some
modifications into the classification, depending on the
structure of the gills, especially on the presence or ab¬
sence of a fifth gill, without a bony arch; a character
which affords some useful subdivisions of several genera.
To the number of genera before established, he found it
necessary to add nineteen new ones; and he described
176 new species, many of them inhabitants of the remot¬
est parts of the ocean; and by the brilliancy of their co¬
lours, or the singularity of their forms, as much objects of
popular admiration as of scientific curiosity.
In 1797 he paid a visit to Paris, where he was secure of
finding a variety of collections of such subjects of natural
history as had been inaccessible to him on the shores of
the Baltic; and he returned to Berlin by way of Holland.
Flis health, which had hitherto been unimpaired, began
now to decline. He went to Carlsbad for its recovery,
but his constitution was exhausted, and he died there on
the 6th of August 1799. (Coquebert in Rapport de la So-
ciete Philpmathique, vol. iv. 8vo, Par. 1800.) (l. l.)
BLOCK, an instrument or machine of wood, chiefly em¬
ployed in the rigging and other parts of a ship, by means
of which a facility is given to the hoisting up or lowering
down of the masts, yards, and sails, or to the moving of any
great weight, as guns, anchors, bales, casks, and the like.
It is, in fact, a modification of the pulley, and the names
may almost be considered as synonymous.
There is nothing in the appearance of a block which, to
an unpractised eye, would seem to require any stretch of
mental ingenuity or of manual dexterity to manufacture.
It is a machine apparently so rude in its structure, and so
simple in its contrivance, that the name was probably given
to it from its general resemblance to a log of wood, as is
obviously the case with a butcher’s block, a barber’s block,
the block of the executioner, &c. Of the two constituent
parts of a ship’s block, the external shell and the internal
sheave, every carpenter might make the one, and every
turner the other; and yet, when blocks were made by the
hand, it seldom happened that the several parts were ad¬
justed to each other with sufficient accuracy, or that a
strict uniformity was observed in the various sorts and
704 B L O
Block sizes, without which they cannot be expected to work with
II that degree of ease and truth which is so desirable, and
even necessary, in the important office they are designed
macjnery-to jn j-]ie rigging and other parts of a ship.
Block, in the mechanical arts, a large piece of solid
wood, on which to fasten work, or to fashion it; strength
and stability being the requisite properties. In this sense,
we say a chopping block, a sugar-finer’s block, a smith s
block, and the like.
Block, among cutters in wood, is a form made of pear-
tree, box, or other hard and close-grained wood, free from
knots, on which they cut their figures in relief, with
knives, chisels, and other implements.
Block is applied to a piece of marble as it comes out
of the quarry, and before it assumes any form from the
hand of a workman.
Block, in Falconry, denotes the perch on which a bird
of prey is kept. This must be covered with cloth.
BLOCK-MACHINERY. To acquire a greater degree
of accuracy and uniformity, as well as celerity, in the mak¬
ing of blocks, Mr Walter Taylor of Southampton took out
a patent in the year 1781, to secure to himself the benefit
of some improvement he had made in the construction of
the sheaves; he also shaped the shells, cut the timber, &c.
by machinery, which was put in motion by water on the
river Itchin, near Southampton, where he carried on so
extensive a manufactory of blocks, as to be able to contract
with the commissioners of the navy for nearly the whole
supply of blocks and blockmakers’ wares required for the
use of the royal navy.
Mr Dunsterville of Plymouth had also a set of machines
for making the principal parts of blocks, which was wrought
by horses; his manufacture, however, of this article was
not carried to any great extent; but the blocks made by
this machinery, as well as those by Mr Taylor’s, were said
to be of a superior quality to those constructed by the
hand, though still deficient in many respects.
No objection, however, would probably have been made
to the quality of the blocks furnished by Mr Taylor, and
used in the navy. It would rather appear that the enor¬
mous quantity consumed in the course of a long protract¬
ed war first called the attention of the admiralty or navy
board to the possibility of some reduction being made in
the expense of so indispensable and important an article
in the naval service ; and that it was not prudent to depend
entirely on a single contractor, whom accident or misfor¬
tune might disable from fulfilling his contract. A fire
might destroy his wood-mills, in which case it would have
been difficult to procure, in all England, an adequate sup¬
ply of blocks for the navy.
On these considerations, it seems to have been the in¬
tention of government to introduce, among other improve¬
ments then carrying on in Portsmouth dock-yard, a set
of machines for making blocks, at the new wood-mills
erected in that yard in 1801. About this time the im¬
provements which had been introduced into private con¬
cerns were gradually finding their way into the great pub¬
lic establishments of the country. Still, however, an old
maxim seemed to prevail, that government ought not to be
its own manufacturer. This maxim, though perhaps gene¬
rally just in political economy, is, we conceive, neither just
nor wise when applied to those articles which are of the
first necessity in the king’s navy. Indeed, where the
safety of so many thousand lives depends wholly, as is some¬
times the case, on the strength of materials and goodness
of w orkmanship, it is most desirable that the whole ship,
and every part of it, from the pin of a sheave to the
sheet anchor, should be manufactured under the immedi¬
ate superintendence of respectable officers in the king’s
service.
B L O
About this time, too, Mr Brunell, an ingenious media- ], i.
nist from America, had completed a working model ofma
certain machines for constructing, by an improved method ^
the shells and sheaves of blocks. This model was submit¬
ted to the inspection of the lords commissioners of the
admiralty, and by them referred to General Bentham
the inspector-general of naval works, who represented
that, as the making of blocks was one of the purposes for
which a part of the force of the steam-engine erecting at
the wood-mills was intended to be applied, he did not
hesitate to recommend the new machine, as an invention
which would enable the government to construct its own
blocks with a greater degree of celerity and exactness
than those which were then in use ; and'that it appeared
to be well suited for manufacturing blocks of every de¬
scription and size, with a degree of accuracy, uniformity,
and cheapness, far beyond any of the methods hitherto
practised. The adoption of Mr Brunell’s machinery was
the consequence of this opinion.
The advantages to be expected from blocks so made
were stated by Mr Brunell to consist,—first, in bringing the
shape of the outside of the shell to certain determined di¬
mensions, so that those of the same size should actually
be so, and not differ from one another, either in the pro¬
portion of the mortises, or in the shape and dimensions of
the outside; secondly, in adding strength where it was
wanted, by making the head and bottom more substantial,
and less liable to split; and, thirdly, in leaving the wood
between the two mortises thicker, so as to admit a suffici¬
ent bearing for the pins,—all of which would be accomplish¬
ed without requiring any dexterity on the part of the
workmen, but entirely by the operation of the machinery.
The uniformity and exactness with which they were to be
made would be attended with another important advan¬
tage to the public; the difficulty of counterfeiting them
would act as a precaution against embezzlement. Another
very considerable advantage would be derived from the
employment of much waste wood in the dock-yard, usually
sold for little or nothing, for firewood and other purposes.
The sheaves or shivers would, by this new machinery,
be made so mathematically true, and so exact to each
other in their thickness and diameters, that every sheave
of any particular size would equally fit any shell of the
size for which it was intended; and the inconvenience to
which ordinary blocks are liable from the friction of the
ropes against one or alternately both of the sides of the
mortises, was intended to be removed by placing a sheet
of metal on the upper part of the mortise, bent to the pro¬
per shape by an engine adapted for the purpose. Brunell
also proposed a new form for the clue-line and clue-garrwt
blocks, so as to secure the sails from splitting, by prevent¬
ing the points of the sails getting into the blocks ; which
has since been adopted and greatly approved of in the
navy.
In the sheaves, instead of the double coak or cogue in¬
serted in two halves, he substituted a mixed metal coak
of a new and particular form, which will be described
hereafter, of increased strength and durability. This coak
was to be cast with precision in moulds, and fitted by an
engine with the greatest nicety ; and the pins or axes ol
the sheaves were to be of wrought iron, case-hardened
and coated with tin, which would preserve the iron from
rust in the parts which are not kept free from it by fric¬
tion ; as it has been found by experience that, however
tight the pin be forced into the shells, the water will in¬
sinuate itself and corrode the pin; and when this is the
case, the rust soon extends itself to the parts on which
the sheave turns, and renders it unfit for use.
From the machines that were already completed for
manufacturing blocks of certain dimensions, Mr Brunell
BLOC K-M ACHINERY.
k- was enabled to make a calculation of the saving as to the
iery. first cost, compared with the contract prices, which would
be effected by the adoption of his invention. It was as
under:
Blocks of
8 inches. 12 inches. 1C inches. 21 inches.
s- d. s. d. s. d. s. d.
Single blocks from 5 to 26 inches 
Double ditto from 7 to 26 ditto "
Various other blocks, generally large, and several
of them treble 
For each of the 74 guns, 6 blocks 
705
No. Block-
622 machinery.
130
74
444
Brunell’s prices 1 8J 4 5 8 111 18 If
Contract prices 2 31 6 11| 13 6" 27 Of
Saving in first cost...0 6f 2 61 4 61 8 lOf
These savings, if realized to the full extent, were pro¬
bably not more important than the increased strength,
durability, and facility of working, which have been gain¬
ed by the adoption of the block-machinery.
Those parts of the machinery which Brunell had com¬
pleted in London under his patent were transferred to
Portsmouth, and, in the course of the year 1804, were in
operation; but the increased number of machines, the
improvements that suggested themselves to the ingenious
inventor, the application of .other machines for making
dead-eyes, trucks, and all manner of block-maker’s wares,
besides circular and upright saws, lathes, engines for turn¬
ing pins, rivetting, polishing, &c. exercised his skill and
ingenuity till the year 1808, when he considered the
whole system to be complete in every part, and incapable,
as far as he could judge, of further improvement. From
that time to the present, the block-machinery has been in
full and constant employment, without requiring the least
alteration, and very little repair, beyond the unavoidable
wear and tear of engines that are kept in almost constant
motion; and, which is still more extraordinary, without
requiring the aid of the inventor, though attended only
by a few common workmen or labourers; but they are
. superintended by Mr Burr, the master of the wood-mills,
who is considered as an able and ingenious machinist.
The quantity of blocks of every description, manufactured
by the machinery in Portsmouth wood-mills, is more than
sufficient for the consumption of the whole navy and the
board of ordnance, and if pushed to the utmost extent of the
works, would also have been sufficient to supply the greater
part of the shipping employed in the transport service.
It may be a matter of some curiosity to know the re¬
sults of this system of machinery. It is put in motion by
a steam-engine of thirty-two horses’ power, which, how¬
ever, is applied to a great variety of other purposes at the
same time, wholly independent of the block-machinery.
It has been found by calculation, that four men with the
machinery, as it now stands, can complete the shells of as
many blocks as fifty men could do by the old method;
and that six men will furnish as many sheaves as before
required sixty; and that these ten men, in displacing the
labour of one hundred and ten men, can with ease finish
in one year from 130,000 to 140,000 blocks of different
sorts and sizes, the total value of which cannot be less
than L.50,000; and this is stated to be the average num¬
ber which has annually been made from the year 1808 to
the conclusion of the war. This number is found to be
fully sufficient for supplying the wear and tear of blocks,
not only in the naval, but also in the ordnance depart¬
ment. The consumption, however, must depend on other
circumstances besides the number of ships in commission,
and will be greater or less according as ships have been
employed on severe or easy service, in a good or bad cli¬
mate, in fine or rough weather, &c. Nor will the number
here stated appear to be enormous, when it is considered
what a multitude of blocks are required for a thousand
sad of ships, which at one period of the war were in com¬
mission at the same time. A ship of 74 guns, for instance,
requires the following blocks for her equipment:
VOL. iv.
Total.
Besides dead-eyes, hearts, parrels, and puttock-
plates, all manufactured at the mills 
1270
160
Of all kinds in a 74 gun ship, 1430
The average number of ships of the line in commission
appears to have been about 100 ; these would require
143,000 blocks; and allowing the remaining 900 ships and
vessels to require only twice this number, there would be
w'anted for the first equipment of the 1000 ships of war
429,000 blocks, which, at the ordinary rate of makino-
them at the mills, would require three years in com¬
pleting.
The different sorts and sizes of blocks used in the navy
exceed two hundred, and they vary from four to twenty-
eight inches in length. Those above eighteen inches are
more sparingly used, and the shells of the largest kinds
are made in parts, and fitted together by hand.
To the completion of this ingenious machinery, Brunell
gave his whole attention from the month of September
1802 to June 1808, during which time he received no
other compensation beyond the daily allowance of one
guinea; but as it was now in full operation, and ascer¬
tained to be capable of making a sufficient number of
blocks for the whole naval and ordnance departments, it
became a question in what manner the author of the in¬
vention should be rewarded. It was suggested by General
Bentham, and agreed to by Brunell, that the savings of
one year, as compared with the contract prices, would be
a fair and not an unreasonable remuneration for the time,
labour, and ingenuity bestowed on these extraordinary ma¬
chines. It was no easy matter, however, to ascertain with
precision what the actual savings amounted to.
Mr Brunell, by estimate, made them amount
to L.21,174 0 0
Mr Rogers, clerk to General Bentham, by
estimate 12,742 0 0
General Bentham, after going into every possible de¬
tail of expense with the utmost minuteness that could be
expected in a private manufacturing concern, calculated
them at L.16,621 0 0
Add six years’ allowance at a guinea a-day,
about  2,400 0 0
For the working-model  1,000 0 0
Total amount received by Brunell, about L.20,000 0 0
Supposing, therefore, the whole coast of the buildings,
steam-engine, machinery, interest of money, &c. to amount
(which we understand to be about the mark) to L.53,000,
and the net compensation for profits to about L.18,000,
the whole expense of the concern was completely cleared
in four years. The savings of L.18,000 on one year’s ma¬
nufactured articles of the value of L.50,000 amounts to
something more than Brunell had originally made it by
computation.
It would occupy too much space to enter into a minute
description, and require more time than we can spare to
prepare engravings in detail, of the various complicated
systems of machinery that are employed for the comple¬
tion of a block ; and, after all, they would afford but little
use or instruction, excepting perhaps to a professed ma¬
chinist; and perspective views of the several systems
would tend rather to mislead or confuse than to inform the
4 u
706 BLOCK-MA
Block- general reader. But as everybody who happens to in-
machinery. Spect Portsmouth dock-yard makes a point of visiting the
block-machinery, we think it may be of some use, in con¬
veying a general idea of the most striking parts of the
machinery, by following the process of making a block
from the rough unsided tree, till the last finish is given
to it. ... • /« i u m i
We have stated that the original intention of the build¬
ing was that of a wood-mill, in which all manner of sawing,
turning, boring, rabbetting, and the like, was tobe performed,
and that the block-machinery was superadded to the first
design, with which, however, it has interfered so little,
that, in addition to the immense number of blocks manu¬
factured at the mill, upwards of a hundred different ar¬
ticles of wood-work are made by other machinery, put in
motion by the same steam-engine, from the boring of a
pump of forty feet in length, to the turning of a button
for the knob or handle of a drawer. (See Dock-yard,
Portsmouth.) Lest, however, the engine, with such a
variety of work, might be overloaded, a second engine has
been added, to assist, if found necessary, or to be substitut¬
ed in the event of accident happening to the other. Among
the many ingenious machines belonging to the wood-mills,
exclusive of those for making blocks, one of very great ef¬
fect, and at the same time great simplicity, is a circular
saw for cutting rabbets in the edges of deal planks, in¬
vented by Mr Burr, the superintending master of the
wood-mills.
The whole of the machinery in these mills is put in
motion by straps passing over drum-heads, by which the
several movements, numerous as they are, are carried on
without the least noise; and all the engine-work, and
every part of the machinery, are so truly made, and so
firmly put together, and work with such accuracy in all
their motions, that though the spectator is surrounded on
all sides with movements in every possible direction, and
some most rapid and violent, the only noise that disturbs
him arises from the cutting, boring, turning, polishing, and
other instruments which are actually in contact with the
work that is under execution, and none of it from the
working of the machinery. All the iron work, of which
it is chiefly composed, was made by Mawdsley; and there
is but another workman, perhaps, in the united kingdom,
who could have finished the engines in a manner so wor¬
thy of the invention.
The first wing of the building is chiefly occupied by
upright and circular saws, used for a variety of purposes
not immediately connected with the making of blocks.
The only operation for this department is that of convert¬
ing the rough timber, which is generally elm or ash, most
commonly the former, into its proper scantling; that is to
say, squaring it by the upright or straight-cutting saw,
and then, by a circular saw, cross-cutting it into a certain
number of parallelopipedons, whose lengths may bear the
required proportion to the thickness of the log. Some of
these pieces are again cut longitudinally, according to the
thickness that may be required for the shell of the block,
especially those for single and double blocks, which of
course are thinner than three and four-fold blocks. This
operation is performed by what is called a ripping-saw.
The logs thus cut out are then taken into the second wing
of the wood-mills, where the machinery peculiar for the
construction of blocks is erected and here the first pro¬
cess may be said to commence in making the Shell.
This operation is performed by the Boring Machine,
which, by means of a centre bit applied to the middle of
the shell, bores a hole for the centre pin of the sheave,
while another bores one, two, or three holes, at right an¬
gles to the direction of the first, to admit the first stroke
of the chisel, and, at the same time, to serve for the head
C HIN E R Y.
of the mortise or mortises, according as the intended block B] c.
is to contain one, two, or three sheaves. When thus bored, macl erj
the log is carried from hence to the ^
Mortising Machine, which is an ingenious and striking
piece of mechanism. The block being firmly fixed on a
movable carriage, the latter is so contrived as to be made
to advance to the cutting chisels, which are set fast in a
movable frame. Every time the frame with the chisels
ascends, the block in its carriage advances a little, so as to
present to the chisels a fresh surface of wood to be acted
upon at each stroke of their descent; and this up and
down motion is continued with such rapidity, that the
chisels make from one hundred to one hundred and thirty
strokes in a minute, until the prescribed length has been
mortised out; when, by raising a handle, which is done
by a boy, the machine is stopped precisely when the chisels
stand at their greatest elevation ; and are thus left in the
proper position, ready to commence a second operation.
No harm, however, would happen, either to the block or
the machinery, should the attending boy neglect to stop
the work at the proper time, or even to fall asleep, not¬
withstanding the force and rapidity of the stroke; for, by
a particular contrivance, the farther advance of the block
is stopped, and the chisels, therefore, act in full space,
and cut only the air. It is, indeed, a general characteristic
of Brunell’s machinery, to be so constructed as to carry
with it a defence or protection against its own operations,
and to counteract all ill effects that might otherwise arise
from any neglect or inattention of the workmen.
The chips cut by the chisels are thrust out of the mor¬
tise by small pieces of steel attached to and projecting
from the back of each chisel. They are each of them,
besides, armed with two cutters placed at right angles to
the edge, called scribers, which mark out the width of the
chip to be cut by the chisel at each stroke. These scri¬
bers answer another purpose ; their cutting is so true as
to leave the two sides of the mortise so perfectly smooth
as to require no further trimming or polishing.
The next process is to remove the block from the mor¬
tising machine to a circular saw, in order to have the four
corners taken off, by which operation it is reduced to an
octagonal shape. This saw being fixed into a table or
bench, the workman has nothing more to do than to slide
each log along the surface of the table, in the direction of
the line marked out for the saw to cut it.
The next operation is to place the block upon the
Shaping Machine. This is perhaps one of the most inge¬
nious and most effective contrivances in the whole ma¬
chinery of the wood-mills. It consists principally of two
equal and parallel circular wheels moving on the same
axis, to which one of them is firmly fixed, but on which
the other is made to slide ; so that these two wheels may be
placed at any given distance from each other, and blocks
of any size admitted between their two rims or periphe¬
ries. For this purpose, both rims are divided into ten
equal parts, for the reception of ten blocks, which are
firmly and immovably fixed between the two wheels.
When the double wheel with its ten attached blocks is
put in motion, the outer surfaces of the blocks, or those
which are farthest from the centre, strike with great vio¬
lence against the edge of a chisel or gouge fixed in a
movable frame, which, being made to slide in a curved
direction in the line of the axis, cuts those outward faces
of the blocks to their proper curvature, which can be al¬
tered in any way the workman pleases, by a contrivance
attached to the cutting tool. As soon as the tool has tra¬
versed the whole length of the block, or over the space
contained between the two peripheries of the wheels,
the machine is thrown out of the gear, and its prodigious
velocity checked by a particular contrivance. The ten
BLOC K-M ACHINERY.
707
blocks are then, by a single operation, and without re-
?ry-moving them, each turned one fourth part round, and
another fourth part of their surface brought outwards,
which, being exposed to the cutting instrument traversing
in the same direction as before, have the same curvature
given to these new surfaces. A third side is then turned
outwards, and, after that, the fourth and last side, when
the whole ten blocks are completely shaped, and ten other
octagonal logs applied to the peripheries to undergo the
same operation.
The immense velocity with which the wheels revolve,
and the great weight with which their peripheries are
loaded, would make it dangerous to the workmen or bye-
standers, if, by the violence of the centrifugal force, any
of the blocks should happen to be thrown off from the rim
of the wheels ; to prevent the possibility of such an acci¬
dent, an iron cage or guard is placed between the work¬
man and the machine.
The shell of the block being now mortised and com¬
pletely shapen, the last operation is performed by the
Scoring Machine, which, by means of cutters, scoops out
a groove round the longer diameter of the block, deepest
at the ends, and vanishing to the central hole for the pin
on which the sheave turns. The intention of this groove
or channel is to receive the hempen or iron strap which
surrounds the block. The only thing that now remains
for completing the shell, is the removal of the little rough¬
nesses from the surface, and giving to it a kind of polish,
which is done by the hand.
The Sheaves. The wood generally used for making
sheaves is lignumvitae, but iron or belbmetal have occa¬
sionally been substituted for this wood. An attempt was
made to introduce sheaves of a kind of porcelain, which
answered well enough for some particular purposes, but
were not to be trusted in situations where they were lia¬
ble to sudden jerks and irregular motions. In the navy
they are almost invariably of lignumvitae, a few perhaps
of ebony. The machinery employed for making this part
of the block consists of a Circular Saw, by which the log is
cut into plates of the thickness required for the sheaves,
according to their several diameters. These plates are
next carried to a Croton Saw, which bores the central hole,
and at the same time reduces them to a perfect circle of
the assigned diameter. The sheave, thus shaped, is next
brought to the Cooking Machine, a piece of mechanism not
inferior in ingenuity to the Shaping Machine for the shells.
It would be useless to attempt to describe by words the
movements of this engine, but the effect of the operation
is singularly curious. A small cutter, in traversing round
the central hole of the sheave, forms a groove for the in¬
sertion of the coak or bush, the shape of which is that
of three semicircles, not concentric with each other, nor
with the sheave, but each having a centre equally distant
from that of the sheave. The manner in which the cut¬
ter traverses from the first to the second, and from this to
the third semicircle, after finishing each of them, is ex¬
ceedingly curious, and never fails to attract the particular
notice of visitors. So very exact and accurate is this
groove cut for the reception of the metal coak, and so
uniform in their shape and size are the latter cast in
moulds, that they are invariably found to fit each other so
nicely and without preparation, that the tap of a hammer
is sufficient to fix the coak in its place. The coaks are
cast with small grooves or channels in the inside of their
tubes, which serve to retain the oil or grease, without
which it would soon ooze out, and the pin become dry.
The sheave, with its coak thus fitted in, is now taken to
the Drilling Machine, which is kept in constant motion,
hi casting the coaks a mark is left in the centre of each of
the three semicircles. This mark is applied by a boy to
the point of the moving drill, which speedily goes through Blockade,
the two coaks and the intermediate wood of the sheave,
A copper pin, cut from wire, of the proper length and
thickness, is inserted into the holes thus drilled. And
the sheave is then taken to the Rivetting Hammer, which is
something like a small tilt hammer, and can easily be made
to strike on the pin with greater or less velocity, accord¬
ing as the workman presses with more or less force on the
treadle. The rivetting being performed, the next opera¬
tion is that of broaching the central hole on which the
sheave turns, by means of a steel drill or cutter.
The last process is that of turning a groove for the rope
to run in round the periphery of the sheave, and this ope¬
ration is performed by a lathe, which is so constructed,
that while this groove is cutting round the rim of the
sheave, another part of the engine is turning smooth the
two surfaces or faces of the sheave; and this lathe can
be made to adapt itself to sheaves of different diameters.
The shell and the sheave being now completed, there
remains only the iron pin, which, passing through the two
sides of the former, serves as the axis on which the latter
turns within the mortise. These pins are also made,
turned, and polished by engines for the purpose, so that,
with the exception of strapping by rope or iron, the whole
block is completed at the wood-mills. It may here be re¬
marked, that the French, in the dock-yard of Brest, have
long been in the practice of making blocks by machinery,
but they have not attempted anything like a shaping ma¬
chine, nor any substitute for it, the external shape of the
shell being made entirely by hand; nor have they such a
coaking machine as that invented by Brunei!. The ma¬
chinery at Brest is put in motion by horses. (See Dock-
Yard.)
BLOCKADE, in war, the shutting up of any place or
port by a naval or military force, so as to cut off all com¬
munication with those who are without the hostile line.
There is, perhaps, no part of the law of nations which,
in practice, presents so many perplexing questions as that
which concerns the respective rights of neutral and belli¬
gerent states. No definite line of distinction has yet been
drawn between the privileges of war and peace; and the
consequence has been, that, in all the wars which have
been waged in Europe, the general tranquillity of the
world has been endangered by the jarring of these two
different interests. It has commonly happened, too, that
all these important questions have been agitated during a
season of war; when the passions of the contending parties
were keenly engaged in the dispute; when principles were
already subverted; and when the minds of men, exasperat¬
ed by the glaring infraction of acknowledged rights, were
not in a state to agree on any system of general equity by
which to regulate and reform the erring policy of states.
In these circumstances, many points of international law,
which appear to rest on the most obvious principles, and
which are very clearly settled in the writings of civilians,
have, nevertheless, been the occasion in practice of no
small controversy, and have frequently involved nations
in all the miseries of protracted war. This has been in
some measure manifested in the case of the Rights of
Blockade, respecting which, though no difference of opi¬
nion has ever prevailed amongst speculative writers, a con¬
troversy arose during the late contests in Europe, which,
along with other points, ultimately involved Great Britain
in a war with the neutral powers. We propose, in the
course of the subsequent observations, to state, ls<, The
general principles from which the most approved writers
have deduced the rights of blockade; and, 2d, To give a
short account of the differences which took place between
the neutral and the belligerent states, respecting the ex¬
tent of those rights.
708 B L O
Blockade. In regulating the respective privileges of the neutral
and the belligerent, it has generally been held as a fun¬
damental principle, by writers on the law of nations, that
those rights, from the exercise of which less benefit would
accrue to the one party than detriment to the other,
should be abandoned; and in all cases where the rights of
peace and the rights of war happen to come into collision,
the application of this rule will decide which of the two
parties must yield to the convenience of the other. Urns
the neutral state is debarred from carrying on any trade
with either of the belligerents in warlike stores. The ge¬
neral right to a free trade is modified, in this particular
instance, by the paramount rights of the belligerent. To
refrain for a time from trading with an individual state in
warlike stores, can at most only impose a trifling incon¬
venience on the neutral power, whilst the continuance of
such a trade might terminate in the destruction of the
belligerent. The detriment occasioned to the one party,
by the existence of such a trade, is, in this manner, infi¬
nitely greater than the loss suffered by the other from its
abandonment. Warlike stores, and whatever else bears
a direct reference to war, are accordingly proscribed as
unlawful articles of trade, and made liable to seizure by
either of the belligerents. To this inconvenience the
neutral is exposed, to avoid the greater inconvenience and
damage which might fall on the belligerent by the licens¬
ing of such a trade. On the other hand, the neutral state
enjoys the most unlimited freedom of trade in all other
articles with either of the powers at war; and though, by
means of this beneficial intercourse, they may be both
furnished with the means of carrying on a protracted con¬
test, this is a contingent and incidental consequence of
the trade, which, in its character, is substantially pacific,
and which is attended with such great and immediate ad¬
vantages, that they could not, with any regard to equity,
be sacrificed to the remote convenience of the belligerent.
Applying these principles to a siege or to a blockade,
it is evident that the belligerent who had an expensive
scheme of hostile operations of either kind in dependence
would be far more seriously injured by its interruption
than the neutral would be benefited by a free intercourse
with the blockaded place. On this ground, therefore, a
belligerent who has formed a siege or a blockade, has an
indisputable right to debar the neutral from all intercourse
with those who are included within his lines ; and any at¬
tempt to penetrate the blockade for the purposes of trade,
subjects those who attempt it to destruction, and their
properties to confiscation. The very existence, indeed,
of a siege or a blockade, as a lawful act of hostility, im¬
plies the right of enforcing it by an indiscriminate exclu¬
sion of all who seek access to the besieged.
But although this view of the nature of a blockade, and
of the rights attaching to it, is clearly laid down by all
writers on the law of nations, and although it has been ac¬
knowledged in practice by all civilized states, a question
was agitated in the late wars of Europe, between the
neutral and the belligerent powers, as to the degree of re¬
straint necessary to constitute a blockade, and, of course,
to entitle the blockading party to all the rights conse¬
quent upon this scheme of operations; and it is this dis¬
pute which was, in a great measure, the occasion of a
general war with the neutral powers.
The unexampled success which attended the naval ope¬
rations of Great Britain, during the war with France, na¬
turally suggested to her rulers the possibility of extend¬
ing this species of annoyance, and of converting the all-
powerful navy which they possessed into an instrument
of active hostility. .With this view, instead of confining
its efforts to the mere watching of the enemy’s already
luined trade, it was resolved to give greater scope to such
B L O
an immense engine of maritime power, by placing under El
blockade the enemy’s ports, the mouths of navigable
rivers, and even extensive tracts of his coast. Procla¬
mations to this effect were accordingly issued; and the
neutral trader was duly warned off, and prohibited, un¬
der the peril of detention, from all intercourse with the
interdicted coast. But the legality of these blockades
by proclamation being disputed, both by the neutral
powers and by the enemy, their execution was resist¬
ed by a counter-decree, which, on the plea of retaliation,
placed under blockade the whole island of Great Bri¬
tain, and subjected all neutral vessels to detention and
capture which should have been found touching at any
of its ports. On the same plea of retaliation, several
decrees, or orders in council, were issued by Britain,
ordaining, that no neutral vessel should have any inter¬
course with France and her dependencies, except such
vessel should first touch at a British port, where, in some
cases, the cargo was to be landed, and was to pay certain
duties to the British government. From this period the
maxims of equity, and the rules of international law, were
set aside, and the ocean became a scene of proscription
and pillage. All this anarchy having originated in a dis¬
agreement respecting the nature and extent of a blockade,
it becomes of importance to bring back the question to its
true elements, and to fix the principles by which alone it
should be settled.
The object of a blockade is to reduce the inhabitants
of the blockaded town to such straits that they shall be
forced to surrender to the discretion of their enemies in
order to preserve their lives; and hence the legality of every
blockade, except with a view to capture, has been ques¬
tioned. But without entering into this question, it seems
obvious that, in order to constitute the blockade of a
town, either with a view to capture or to temporary an¬
noyance, the line by which it is surrounded should be so
complete as entirely to obstruct all access into the place.
When a place is blockaded with a view to capture, the
task of maintaining a real blockade may safely be left to
the blockading party. But when a port is blockaded
with a view to mere maritime annoyance, the case is
widely different; because, in these circumstances, the
belligerent will equally attain his end by maintaining the
mere show of a blockade, while he is in possession of all
its substantial rights. He may, to save himself expense
and trouble, relax the blockade of his enemy’s ports, while
he enforces the exclusion of all neutrals as rigorously as
if he were maintaining an effectual blockade; and, in this
case, his proclamations, while they are issued ostensibly
for the blockade of the enemy’s ports, would, in reality,
amount to edicts for the suppression of the neutral trade.
The urgent, immediate, and obvious interests of the neu¬
tral would here be sacrificed to the remote, and in many
cases imaginary, convenience of the belligerent. An edict
might be issued for the blockade of the enemy’s ports, or
of extensive tracts of his coast, round which no hostile line
could ever be drawn so as to constitute a real blockade; and
the whole trade of the neutral, with those interdicted parts
of the enemy’s territory, would be immediately annihilated
at the arbitrary mandate of one of the belligerents. Instead
of being carried on as a matter of right, instead of being
regarded as a common benefit to the civilized world, and
on this account as proper to be cherished and encouraged,
the neutral trade would, under such a system, be looked
upon in the light of a tolerated evil, existing only by the
sufferance of those who imagined they had an interest in
obstructing and in crushing it. The law of nations is not
a partial system, modelled to suit the convenience of one
party. It is a system of general equity, and its edicts are
founded on a comprehensive view of what is for the com-
B L O
kj de. mon welfare and protection. In this view, then, the conse-
^ quences to the neutral of those extensive and nominal
blockades are sufficient to constitute them illegal. The
damage to the neutral is infinitely greater than the benefit
to the belligerent. The rights of blockade, and the limi¬
tation of those rights, must stand upon the same principle
of justice and of public law; and their extension beyond
this equitable principle must terminate in universal con¬
fusion and anarchy.
In opposition to these arguments in favour of the neu¬
tral powers, it has been urged, that the new system of
naval annoyance, introduced by Great Britain in 1806,
was legal according to the strictest construction of the
law of blockade, because the proclamations for interrupting
all intercourse between the different parts of the French
coast were not issued until it was ascertained, by the
most particular inquiries, that Great Britain possessed an
effectual naval force to blockade the enemy’s coast from
Brest harbour to the mouth of the Elbe. It is solely upon
this principle that the ministers of our country maintained
the legality of those blockades, and any breach in the line
of blockade, they admitted, would be sufficient to consti¬
tute them illegal. Such, then, is the state of this import¬
ant controversy, which seems to resolve itself into a mere
question of fact, namely, whether the blockading power
has actually carried into effect the blockade, of which
notice by proclamation has been given to the neutral
powers.
At the conclusion of the last treaty between Great Bri¬
tain and America, no settlement of these disputed ques¬
tions took place. The main war between the European
belligerents, out of which the American dispute had in¬
cidentally sprung, being at an end, the controversy re¬
specting rights which could only be exercised in a state
of war had lost all practical importance. It had become
a mere question of abstract right, the decision of which
was wisely adjourned by the powers at war, and not suf¬
fered to clog the work of a general peace. It is likely,
however, that on the breaking out of any new war, this
and other questions of a like nature would recur; and on
this account it might be of importance to the future peace
of the world, if, in the present interval of universal peace,
while men’s passions are at rest, these questions could be
settled according to some acknowledged rule of equity or
policy, and not left, in the event of another war, to the rude
arbitration of force. (f.)
BLOCKZIEL, a fortress of Overyssel, in the Nether¬
lands, seated on the river Aa, at its junction with the
Zuyder Zee. It has a port sufficient to contain 200 ves¬
sels, and serves to defend those ships that cross the sea.
Its fortifications, which were considerable, have been al¬
lowed to fall to decay. The trade of the town is exten¬
sive. Long. 5. 52. E. Lat. 52. 4-5. N.
BLOIS, an arrondissement in the department of the
Loire and the Cher, in France, extending over 718 square
miles, and comprehending ten cantons and 140 communes,
with 103,051 inhabitants. The chief city, of the same
name, is on the right bank of the Loire, raised in the form
of an amphitheatre above the stream, over which is a
most magnificent bridge of 950 feet in length. There is
an ancient palace, the residence of the former monarchs
of France, a Roman aqueduct, and several other public
buildings of various dates. It contains 15,450 inhabitants,
who chiefly trade in wine, brandy, and fire-wood. Long.
L 14. 11. E. Lat. 47. 35. 20. N.
BLOND, Christopher ee, a painter of portraits in
miniature, and all kinds of subjects, on paper, was born in
1670. Very few circumstances relative to his education
or life are mentioned by any writers till he became known
at Rome in the year 1716, being at that time painter to the
b l o 709
Count Martinetz, ambassador at the court of Rome. By Blondel
the solicitation of Overbeke he was induced to go to II
Amsterdam, and in that city he was employed in paint- Blood,
ing small portraits for bracelets, rings, and snuff-boxes, of WY^-/
all which, although done in water-colours, the colouring
was as lively and natural as if they had been painted in
oil. But as he found his sight much impaired by the
minuteness of his work, he discontinued water-colour
painting, and attempted the use of oil with a reasonable
degree of success. After he had resided for some years
in the Low Countries he came to England, and set up a
new method of printing mezzotinto plates in colours, so as
to imitate the pictures of which they were copies. In
this manner he executed in England several large plates,
from pictures of the greatest masters, and disposed of the
prints by lottery. But those who obtained the prizes,
Mr Strutt says, appear not to have held them in any very
great estimation. His method consisted in having several
mezzotinto plates for one piece, each expressing different
shades and parts of the piece in different colours. He was
not, however, the original inventor of that manner of ma-
naging colours, but borrowed it from Eastman and others,
who, with much greater regularity of morals, equal capa-
city, and more discreet conduct, had before undertaken
it without success. Le Blond, whose head was continually
full of schemes, next set on foot a project for copying the
cartoons of Raphael in tapestry, and made drawings from
the pictures for that purpose. Houses were built and
looms erected at the Mulberry Ground at Chelsea; but
the expenses proving too great, or the contributions not
being equal to the first expectations, the scheme was sud¬
denly defeated, and Le Blond disappeared, to the no small
dissatisfaction of those who were engaged with him. He
proceeded to Paris, where Basan informs us he resided in
the year 1737, and where he died in 1740, in an hospital.
Le Blond was also author of a treatise in French on ideal
beauty. It was published in 1732, and has since been
translated into English.
BLONDEL, David, a Protestant minister, distinguish¬
ed by his skill in ecclesiastical and civil history, was born
at Chalons-sur-Marne, and was admitted minister at a
synod of the Isle of France in 1614. He wrote, 1. A De¬
fence of the Reformed Churches of France; 2. A work
against the Decretal Epistles; 3. De Episcopis et Pres-
byteris; and other pieces. Bayle informs us that he had
a very singular way of studying. He lay on the ground,
and had around him the books which he wanted for the
work he was composing. He died in 1665, aged sixty-four.
Blondel, Francis, regius professor of mathematics and
architecture, was employed in several negociations ; arriv¬
ed at the dignity of marechal-de-camp and counsellor of
state ; and had the honour of being chosen to teach the
dauphin of France mathematics. He was also made mem¬
ber of the Academy of Sciences at Paris, and director of
the Academy of Architecture. He died at Paris in 1688,
aged sixty-eight. His principal productions were, 1. Notes
on the Architecture of Savot; 2. A Course of Architecture
and Mathematics; 3. The Art of Throwing Bombs ; 4. A
new Manner of Fortifying Places; 5. A Comparison be¬
tween Pindar and Horace; and other w orks.
BLONDUS, Flavius, a historian born at Forli, in
Italy, in 1388, was secretary to Eugenius IV. and other
popes. He composed a great many books, and, amongst
others, a History extending from the year 400 to 1440.
He died in 1463.
BLOOD. See Anatomy and Physiology, Animal.
Religious uses of Blood. Amongst the ancients blood
was used for the sealing and ratifying of covenants and
alliances, which was done by the contracting parties drink¬
ing a little of each other’s blood; and also for appeasing
B L O
the manes of the dead, in order to which blood was offer¬
ed on their tombs as part of the funeral ceremony.
The blood of victims was anciently the portion of the
gods; and accordingly it was poured or sprinkled on the
altars in oblation to them. But the priests made another
use of blood, namely, for divination; the streaming of
blood being held a prodigy or omen of evil.
The Roman priests were not unacquainted with the use
of blood in miracles; and they had their fluxes of blood from
images, ready to serve a turn, as, for instance, that said to
have streamed from the statue of Minerva at Modena be¬
fore the battle at that place. But we know not whether,
in this species of legerdemain, their successors have not
gone beyond them. How many are the relations, in eccle¬
siastical writers, of madonnas, crucifixes, and wafers, bleed¬
ing? The liquefaction of the blood of St Januarius at Na¬
ples, repeated annually for so many ages, seems to trans¬
cend all the frauds of the Grecian or Roman priesthood.
But the chemists at last got into the secret; and M. Neu¬
mann of Berlin performed the miracle of the liquefaction
of dried blood, with all the circumstances of the Neapoli¬
tan experiment.
Amongst the schoolmen we find a famous dispute, under
Pope Pius II. whether the blood of Christ, which fell from
him in the three days passion, retained or lost the hypo¬
static union ; and consequently whether it was the proper
object of adoration. The Dominicans maintained the for¬
mer, the Franciscans the latter. But the Dominican doc¬
trine gained the ascendency, as being fitted to favour the
profits of the monks, who becoming somehow possessed,
as they said, of a few drops of this precious liquor, were
certain of receiving ample offerings from the deluded laity,
who flocked to pay their homage to the sacred relic.
Joseph of Arimathea is said to have first brought into
Britain two silver vessels filled with the blood of Christ,
which by his order was buried in his tomb. King Henry
III. had a crystal, containing a portion of the same blood,
sent him by the master of the temple of Jerusalem, at¬
tested with the seals of the patriarch; which treasure the
king committed to the church of St Peter’s, Westminster,
and obtained from the bishops an indulgence of six years
and a hundred and sixteen days to all who should visit it.
And Matthew Paris assures us, that the object of the king
in summoning his nobles and prelates to celebrate the
feast of St Edward in St Peter’s Church was chiefly joro
veneratione sancti sanguinis Christi nuper adepti, in ve¬
neration of the holy blood of Christ lately acquired.
Divers others of our monasteries were possessed of this
profitable relic; as the college of Bons-Hommes at Ash-
ridge, and the abbey of Hales, to which it was given by
Henry, son of Richard, duke of Cornwall and king of the
Romans. This supposititious blood was resorted to by a
great concourse of people for devotion and adoration; till, in
1583, when the Reformation commenced, it was perceived
to be only honey clarified and coloured with saffron, as was
shown at St Paul’s cross by the bishop of Rochester. The
like discovery was made of the blood of Christ found among
the relics intheabbey of Feschamp in Normandy, pretended
to have been preserved by Nicodemus when he took the
body from the cross, and given to that abbey by William
duke of Normandy. It was buried by his son Richard, and
again discovered in 1171, and attended with different mi¬
racles ; but the cheat, which had long been winked at, was
at length exposed, and a relation of it is given by Speed.
Avenger of Blood, among the Jews, was the next of kin
to the person murdered, who was authorized to pursue
the murderer, and, unless he found shelter in one of the
cities of refuge or sanctuaries, to take life for life.
Ecclesiastical judges retire when judgmentistobe given
in case^of blood, by reason of the maxim, Ecclesia non
B L O
novit sanguinem. The church condemns no person to ] oj
death ; and its members become disabled from their func- ^ ->
tions by the effusion of blood.
Field of Blood, in Syriac Aceldama, was a field purchas¬
ed by the Jews with the thirty pieces of silver which had
been given to Judas for betraying his master, and which
he had restored. It still serves for a burial-ground, in
which all pilgrims who die in their pilgrimage at Jerusa¬
lem are interred.
BLOOD-Hound, in Zoology, the canis sagax of Linnaeus,
le chien courant of Buffon, the sleuihounde of the Scots, a
hound or dog, with long, smooth, and pendulous ears. It
was a dog of great use, and in high esteem with our an¬
cestors, being employed to recover any game that had
escaped wounded from the hunter, or been killed and
stolen out of the forest. It was remarkable for the acute¬
ness of its smell, tracing the lost beast by the blood it had
spilt, from which the name is derived. This species could,
with the utmost certainty, discover the thief by following
his footsteps, let his flight be ever so rapid, and through
the most secret and thickest coverts; nor would it cease
its pursuit till it had taken the felon. They were likewise
used by Wallace and Bruce during the civil wars. The
poetical historians of the two heroes frequently relate very
curious passages on this subject, of the service which these
dogs rendered to their masters, and the escapes they had
from those of the enemy. The blood-hound was in great
request on the confines of England and Scotland, where the
borderers were continually preying on the flocks and herds
of their neighbours. The true blood-hound was large,
strong, muscular, broad breasted, of a stern countenance,
of a deep tan colour, and generally marked with a black
spot above each eye. Animals of this species have been
used in our own time in the West Indies, for hunting down
the Caribbs, and other equally humane purposes.
Whole and Half Blood. A kinsman of the ivhole blood
is he who is derived from the same pair of ancestors; but
a person of half blood descends from either of them singly
by a second marriage.
Blood of Christ, the name of a military order instituted
at Mantua in 1608. The number of knights was restrict¬
ed to twenty, besides the grand-master. Their device was,
Domine, probasti me ; or, Nihil hoc triste recepto.
Precious Blood, a denomination given to a reformed
congregation of Bernardine nuns at Paris, first establish¬
ed under that name in 1661.
Blood- Whyte, or Blood-wyte, in ancient law writers,
signifies a customary amercement paid as a composition
for the shedding or drawing of blood. The word is also
written blodwhite, blodwita, blodwyta, bloodwit, blodwit,
bloudwit, and bluidweit. It is formed from the ancient
Saxon bind, blood, and vite or wite, a fine or penalty.
The word also denotes an exemption from this penalty,
granted by the king to certain persons and communities
as a special favour. King Henry II. granted to all ten¬
ants within the honour of Wallingford, Ut quieti sintde
hidagio et blodivite et bredwite.
Blood, Thomas, generally known by the appellation of
Colonel Blood, was a disbanded officer of Oliver Crom¬
well’s, famous for his daring crimes and his good fortune.
He was first distinguished by engaging in a conspiracy to
surprise the castle of Dublin ; which was defeated by the
vigilance of the duke of Ormond, and some of his accom¬
plices were executed. Escaping to England, he meditat¬
ed revenge against Ormond, and actually seized him one
night in his coach in St James’s Street, where he might
have finished his purpose if he had not studied refinements
in his vengeance. He bound his captive on horseback be¬
hind one of his associates, resolving to hang him at Tyburn,
with a paper pinned to his breast; but when they had got
B L O B L O 711
l m into the fields, the duke, in his efforts for liberty, threw
himself and the assassin to whom he was fastened to the
B! ground; and, while they were struggling in the mire, his
^ grace was rescued by his servants. But the authors of this
attempt were not then discovered. A little after, in 1671,
Blood formed a design of carrying off the crown and re¬
galia from the Tower ; a design to which he was prompted,
as well by the desperate nature of the enterprise, as by
views of profit. And he was very near succeeding. He
had bound and wounded Edwards, the keeper of the jewel-
office, and had got out of the Tower with his prey ; but he
was overtaken and seized, together with some of his as¬
sociates. One of these was known to have been concerned
in the attempt upon Ormond, and Blood was immediately
concluded to be the ringleader. When questioned, he
frankly avowed the enterprise, but refused to discover his
accomplices. The fear of death, he said, should never en¬
gage him either to deny a crime or betray a friend. All
these extraordinary circumstances made him the general
subject of conversation ; and the king was moved with an
idle curiosity to see and speak with a person so noted for
his courage and his crimes. Blood might now esteem
himself secure of pardon; and he wanted not address to
improve the opportunity. He told Charles that he had
been engaged, with others, in a design to kill him with a
carabine above Battersea, where his majesty often went
to bathe; that the cause of this resolution was the severity
exercised over the consciences of the godly, in restraining
the liberty of their religious assemblies ; that when he had
taken his stand among the reeds, full of these bloody re¬
solutions, he found his heart checked with an awe of ma¬
jesty; that he not only relented himself, but diverted his
associates from their purpose ; that he had long ago brought
himself to an entire indifference about life, which he now
gave up for lost, yet could he not forbear warning the king
of the danger which might attend his execution ; that his
associates had bound themselves by the strictest oaths to
revenge the death of any of their confederacy; and that
no precaution or power could secure any one from the effect
of their desperate resolutions. Whether these consider¬
ations excited fear or admiration in the king, they con¬
firmed his resolution of granting a pardon to Blood; but
he thought it a requisite point of decency first to obtain
the duke of Ormond’s consent. Arlington came to Or¬
mond in the king’s name, and desired that he would not
prosecute Blood, for reasons which he was commanded to
give him. The duke replied, that his majesty’s commands
were the only reason that could be given; and these being
sufficient, he might therefore spare the rest. Charles
carried his kindness to Blood still further, granting him
an estate of L.500 a year in Ireland, encouraging his at¬
tendance about his person, and showing him great coun¬
tenance; in consequence of which many applied to him
for promoting their pretensions at court. Whilst old Ed¬
wards, who had bravely ventured his life, and had been
wounded, in defending the crown and regalia, was for¬
gotten and neglected, this man, who deserved only to be
stared at and detested as a monster, became a kind of
royal favourite. Blood enjoyed his pension about ten
years, till being charged with fixing an imputation of a
scandalous nature on the duke of Buckingham, he was
thrown into prison, where he died on the 24th of August
1680.
BLOODSTONE, or Heliotrope, in Mineralogy, a
chalcedony or agate of a deep green colour, with blood-red
spots interspersed through it. Tartary and Siberia are its
best known localities.
BLOSSOM, in a general sense, denotes the flower of
any plant.
Blossom, in a more proper sense, is restricted to the
flowers of trees which they put forth in the spring, as Blossom
the forerunners of their fruit, and otherwise called their fi
bloom. The office of the blossom is partly to protect, Blount-
and partly to draw nourishment to, the embryo fruit or
seed.
Blossom, or Peach-Coloured, in the manege, a term
applied to a horse that has his hair white, but intermixed
all over with sorrel and bay hairs. Such horses are so in¬
sensible and hard, both in the mouth and the flanks, that
they are little valued; and, besides, they are apt to turn
blind.
BLOSSOMING of Plants, the act of blowing, or
putting forth flowers or blossoms, called also flowering.
The pious blossoming of the Glastonbury thorn on Christ-
mas-day morning, is a vulgar error, originating in this,
that the plant, besides the usual blossoming in the spring,
sometimes puts forth a few white transient blossoms in the
middle of winter. With respect to the blossoming of the
rose of Jericho on the same day, as it is commonly held
in England, or in the time of midnight mass, as it is held
in France, it is somewhat more than an error, being in
reality a fraud on one side, and a superstition on the other.
This rose, the leaves of which are only closed and shrivel¬
led up in winter, will, at any time, upon its pedicle being set
in water, expand and blossom a-new; because the pedicle
being spongy, imbibes the fluid apace, and thus fills and
swells out the shrivelled leaves.
BLOUNT, Thomas, a learned English writer of the
seventeenth century, born at Bordesley in Worcestershire.
He had not the advantage of a university education ; but,
by strength of genius and great application, he made a con¬
siderable progress in literature. Upon the breaking out
of the Popish plot in the reign of King Charles II. he was
much alarmed on account of his reputation as a zealous
Catholic ; and being seized wnth a palsy, he died in De¬
cember, 1679, aged sixty-one. He wrote, 1. The Academy
of Eloquence, containing a complete English rhetoric;
2. Glossographia, or a Dictionary interpreting such hard
words, whether Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Italian, &c. as are
now used in our refined English tongue; 3. Boscobel, or
the History of his Majesty’s Escape after the Battle of
Worcester; 4. A Law Dictionary; 5. Animadversions
upon Sir Richard Baker’s Chronicle; 6. Fragmenta An-
tiquitatis ; and other works.
Blount, Sir Henry, an English writer, born at his
father’s seat in Hertfordshire in 1602. After a regu¬
lar education, he set out on his travels in 1634, and
becoming acquainted with a janissary at Venice, accom¬
panied him into the Turkish dominions. Having been
abroad two years, he returned and published a relation of
his travels in the Levant, which went through several
editions. He was knighted by Charles I. and was at the
battle of Edge-Hill, at which time he is supposed to have
had the charge of the young princes ; but after the king’s
death he was employed by the parliament and by Crom-
well. Nevertheless, on the restoration of the royal family
be was appointed high sheriff of the county of Hertford, and
lived as a private gentleman for above twenty years. He
published, 1. An Account of his Travels ; 2. Six Comedies
written by John Lilly, under the title of Court Comedies ;
3. The Exchange Walk, a satire; and, 4. An Epistle in
praise of Tobacco. He died on the 9th of October 1682.
Blount, Sir Thomas Pope, baronet, an eminent writer,
and the eldest son of the former, was born at Upper Hol¬
loway, in the county of Middlesex, on the 12th of Septem¬
ber 1649. He was educated under the eye of his father,
and always distinguished himself as a lover of liberty, a
sincere friend to his country, and a true patron of learning.
He was advanced to the degree of baronet by King Charles
II. in whose reign he was elected burgess for St Alban’s
712 B L O
Blount in two parliaments, and was knight of the shire in three
II parliaments after the Revolution. He wrote in Latin,
Blow, Dr. ^ Critique on the most celebrated Writers; 2. Essays
on several subjects ; 3. A Natural History, extracted out
of the best modern writers ; and, 'L Remai'ks upon Poetry,
with characters and censures of the most considerable
poets, whether ancient or modern. He died on the 30th
of June 1697.
Blount, Charles, younger brother of Sir Thomas Pope
Blount, had also an excellent capacity, and was an eminent
writer. His “ Anima Mundi, or An Historical Narration of
the Opinions of the Ancients concerning Man’s Soul after
this Life, according to Unenlightened Nature,” gave great
offence, and was complained of to the Bishop of Lofidon.
But the work which rendered him best known, was his
translation of Philostratus’s Life of Apollonius Tyanaeus,
published in 1680; which was soon suppressed, as an at¬
tack on revealed religion. Another work of a similar com¬
plexion he published the same year, called “ Great is
Diana of the Ephesians;” in which, under colour of exposing
superstition, he struck at revelation. In 1684 he printed
a kind of introduction to polite literature. In the warmth
of his zeal for the Revolution, he wrote a pamphlet to
prove King William and Queen Mary conquerors ; but was
condemned to be burnt by both houses of parliament. The
close of his life was singularly unhappy; for, after the
death of his wife, he became enamoured of her sister, who
was only scrupulous about their union on account of their
prior connection by marriage. On this subject he wrote a
letter, as the case of a third person, with great learning
and address. But the archbishop of Canterbury and other
divines deciding against him, and the lady on this grow¬
ing inflexible, these circumstances threw him into a fren¬
zy, during which he shot himself, in 1693. After his
death his miscellaneous pieces were collected and pub¬
lished.
BLOW, Dr John, a famous musician and composer,
was born in 1648, at North Collingham, in the county of
Nottingham, and was one of the first set of children after
the Restoration, bred up under Captain Henry Cook. He
was also a pupil of Hingeston, organist to Oliver Crom¬
well, and after that of Dr Christopher Gibbons. On the
16th day of March 1673, he was sworn one of the gentle¬
men of the chapel, in the room of Roger Hill; and in July
1674, upon the decease of Mr Pelham Humphrey, he was
appointed master of the children of the chapel. In 1685 he
was made one of his majesty’s private band; and in 1687
he was appointed almoner and master of the choristers
of the cathedral church of St Paul. Blow was not a gra¬
duate of either university; but Archbishop Sancroft, in
virtue of his own authority in that respect, conferred on
him the degree of doctor in music. Upon the decease of
Purcell in 1665, he became organist of Westminster Ab¬
bey. In the year 1699 he was appointed composer to his
majesty, with a salary. Blow was a composer of anthems
while a chapel-boy, and on the score of his merit was dis¬
tinguished by Charles II. The king admired very much
a little duet of Carissimi to the words Dite o deli, and
asked Blow if he could imitate it. Blow modestly answer¬
ed he would try ; and composed in the same measure, and
on the same key of D with a minor third, that fine song,
“ Go, perjured man.” The Orpheus Britannicus of Pur¬
cell had been published by his widow soon after his de¬
cease, and contained in it some of that author’s finest
songs. The favourable reception it met with induced
Blow to publish, in the year 1700, a work of the same
kind, entitled Amphion Anglicus, containing composi-
tions for one, two, three, and four voices, with accom¬
paniments of instrumental music, and a thorough bass
figured for the organ, harpsicord, or theorbolute. In 1684
B L O
Dr Blow set to music an ode for St Cecilia’s day, the words Bio •
by Mr Oldham, He also composed and published a col-^ ^
lection of lessons for the harpsichord or spinet; and an ode
on the death of Purcell, written by Mr Dryden. There
are likewise extant of his composition sundry hymns
printed in the Harmonia Sacra, and a great number of
catches in the latter editions of the Musical Companion.
He died in the year 1708, and lies buried in the north
aisle of Westminster Abbey.
BLOW-PIPE, an instrument for directing the flame of
a lamp or candle horizontally, so as to communicate an
intense heat to small bodies placed in the flame. This is
effected by impelling with velocity through a small aper¬
ture, against the flame, a stream of air, by means of the
muscles of respiration and the mouth, or by a bellows.
The blow-pipe is used in soldering, by the jeweller and
goldsmith, and other artists, who fabricate small objects
of metal; by the glass-blower, in making thermometers
and barometers, and other instruments formed from the
tubes which are obtained from the glass-house; by the ena-
meller; and also in glass-pinching, which is the art of form¬
ing glass in a mould fixed on a pair of pincers, into the orna¬
mental pendants for glass lustres. This is one of the many
ingenious processes carried on at Birmingham. The glass-
blower, the enameller, and the glass-pincher, work their
blow-pipe with the blast of a pair of bellows. As the pro¬
cess of soldering requires a shorter continuance of the blast,
the blow-pipe for this purpose is blown by the mouth.
By the mineralogist and chemist, the blow-pipe is used as
an instrument for extemporaneous analysis in the dry way.
Fig. 1, Plate CIX. is the common blow-pipe used inDifent
soldering; it is of brass. Fig. 2 is Dr Wollaston’s blow-fon of
pipe, which is composed of three tubes of brass, of an*510' “Pe
elongated conical form, which are made to fit stiff" and
air-tight into each other when in use, and the two smaller
pack into the largest; so that the instrument, when not
in use, occupies a very small space, and may be carried in
the pencil-case of a common pocket-book. This, with a
piece of platina-foil, two or three inches long, to hold the
object of experiment to the flame, constitutes a commodi¬
ous dokimastic apparatus for the travelling mineralogist.
The three parts of the tube are represented, packed the
one within the other, at A, separate at B, and put toge¬
ther ready for use at C, fig. 2.
A second division of blow-pipes consists of those which Bu d |
have a cavity for the purpose of retaining the humidity ofblo
the breath, which, without this precaution, collects into
drops when the blowing is continued long, and is at last
driven upon the matter under operation so as to cool it.
They are of various forms; see figures 3, 4, 5, 6, 7; and
have been contrived for the purposes of the chemist and
mineralogist. Fig. 3 is of glass or of metal. Fig. 4 is
of brass or of silver, containing no alloy of copper, so that
it may not be subject to green rust. This is the form re¬
commended by Bergman in his treatise on the application
of the blow'-pipe to the purposes of the mineralogist, which
is contained in the collection of his works. (See Berg-
mani Opuscula, vol. ii.) For the facility of cleaning, it is
in three pieces, which fit in stiff" at A and B. Fig. 5 is
of tin, that is to say, tinned iron; the small pipe A is of
brass, and has two or three caps that fit on stiff"; each cap
is pierced with a hole of a different diameter; and as the
blast issues through this hole, the force of the blast may
be varied by changing the cap. This is called Dr Black’s
blow-pipe. Fig. 6 is of silver; the adjutage, which is of
platina, turns on an axis at right angles to the main tube
at A, so that it may be made to form different angles with
the main tube ; the prolongation B serves to receive the
condensed vapour of the breath. Fig. 7 is of brass; A is
cylindrical, the axis of the cylinder being at right angles
B L O W-P I P E.
j 0 ipe. to the axis of the blow-pipe. A consists of two pieces,
v ^ one of which fits air-tight into the other, and may be
turned on its axis, so that the pipe of issue may be made
to form different angles with the axis of the blow-pipe, as
the position of the matter under experiment may require.
L Flame consists of vapour in a state of incandescence.
Many substances, both of the vegetable, animal, and mine¬
ral kingdoms, have the quality of giving out this incan¬
descent vapour. For domestic uses, and for the arts, or¬
ganized bodies of the vegetable and animal kingdom alone
are employed to produce it; such as oils, some of which
are solid, others fluid, at the usual temperature of the air,
alcohol, ether, wood, and pit-coal. This latter, though
found amongst minerals, is composed of organized matter
changed and rendered bituminous by a particular process
of decomposition. The blow-pipe, by directing the in¬
candescent particles of which the flame consists so as to
strike against and surround a small body, produces the
effect of heating the body considerably. The flame used
with the blow-pipe may either be the flame of an oil or
spirit lamp, or of a candle; the flame of the carbonated
hydrogen gas proceeding from the distillation of the pit-
coal, is also found advantageous for this purpose.
)I( )f In order to use the blow-pipe, the breath impelled
tlo i- through it is to be directed across the flame of a lamp or
candle, applying the orifice from which the air issues a
little above the upper end of the wick ; and a jet of flame is
thus formed, as represented at fig. 8. This jet is made
to fall on the body to be heated. The operation may be
continued for a considerable length of time; an uninter¬
rupted blast is kept up by the muscular action of the
cheeks, whilst the ordinary respiration goes on through the
nose; and a little practice is sufficient to enable the ope¬
rator to succeed. The jet of flame is conoidal, internally
blue, and externally yellow. By more or less immersion
in this jet of flame the subject of operation receives a
greater or less degree of heat, and becomes oxidated in a
greater or less degree. If a bead of borax, containing
oxide of manganese, be kept fused for some time in the
inner flame, the bead becomes colourless; when it is af¬
terwards kept fused in the outer flame, the manganese ac¬
quires more oxygen, and the bead becomes of a violet
colour. Ihis violet colour may be made to appear more
speedily by adding a particle of nitre.
It; in The first who applied the blow-pipe to the analysis of
l®* ■ minerals was Swab, counsellor of the college of mines in
Sweden in 1738. Its application to the science of mine-
ralogy was afterwards further improved by Cronsted, Bin-
man, Gahn, Scheele, and Bergman, and by other men of
science since their time.
The blow-pipe is useful to the mineralogist and chemist,
as affording a ready method of knowing what the com¬
ponent parts of bodies are. Trials with the blow-pipe are
generally made by the chemist in order to know the na¬
ture of the constituent parts, before he proceeds to the
other steps of dry or humid analysis, which are requisite
for ascertaining the quantities of the constituent parts.
Then recourse is had to other means than the blow-pipe;
for, in order to come at a knowledge of the proportions of
the constituent parts, it is necessary that the quantity of
each constituent part be large enough to be weighed in a
balance, and, for this purpose, the quantity of the sub¬
stance employed must be larger than what can be manag¬
ed with the blow-pipe.
^ tof In experimental mineralogy with the blow-pipe, the
srnall fragment of the body subjected to trial should not
exceed the size of half a peppercorn ; if larger, it cannot
be sufficiently heated. It is placed in a lenticular cavity,
made with a knife, in a piece of well-burnt charcoal of
wood, free from cracks, and not too porous, and of the
VOL. iv.
length of four or five inches, so as to be held conveniently Blow-pipe,
in the left hand. Some blow-pipes have been made with ^m1**1
a stand, to which they are connected by a ball and socket
joint, the stand being fixed to the table by a clamp ; and
this construction leaves the right hand at liberty. In re¬
ducing fragments of metallic ores by the blow-pipe, charcoal
should be used as a support, for the charcoal attracts the
oxygen from the metallic oxide, and reduces it to a me¬
tallic form ; and when thus reduced, the metal may be
kept fused on the charcoal, which prevents or retards its
again attracting oxygen. The charcoal support has like¬
wise the advantage of increasing the heat by its incan¬
descence. For both these reasons, to prevent oxidation,
and to increase and reverberate the heat proceeding from
the jet of flame, the goldsmith who solders his small work
by the blow-pipe attaches his work to a piece of charcoal,
by means of wires, in the process of soldering.
When it is required that the fragment of a mineral Support of
should be heated without the contact of charcoal, theplatina.
fragment is exposed to the flame in a small spoon of pla-
tina, with a wooden handle, the cavity of the spoon being
a hemisphere of three tenths of an inch in diameter; or on
a thin lamina of platina two or three inches long and half
an inch broad, and of the thickness of common writing
paper; or it is held by a forceps, three inches long, made
of thin platina. Bergman, who published his treatise on
the blow-pipe in 1780, before the working of platina had
come into use, employed a small gold spoon, as that
metal has the quality of remaining pure and uncontami¬
nated, whilst in contact with many of the chemical agents;
but platina is preferable; for, besides possessing the quali¬
ty of resisting the action of many chemical agents, it has
likewise the advantage of difficult fusibility. It has now
for a good many years been wrought into various instru¬
ments both in London and Paris ; and when wrought it is
sold at the price of about a guinea the ounce, which is one
quarter the price of gold. Some platina workers, as Jean-
etti of Paris, who was one of the first, form the crude gra¬
nular platina into masses, by melting it with arsenic, and
subsequent heating and forging ; others dissolve the crude
platina in nitro-muriatic acid, and reduce the nitro-muriate
of platina to a metallic state by heat. Platina, however,
although infusible alone by the heat of the common blow¬
pipe, will be dissolved and melted if heated along with
some of the metals. Platina supports, therefore, should
not be used where they are liable to be in contact with a
fused metal. These effects are notable in the case of tin ;
for when tin is melted in contact with a vessel of platina,
the tin enters into a combination with the platina, corroding
and rendering it brittle, so that pieces of the platina vessel
come off on the application of a small force, and the ves¬
sel is thus rendered useless. Platina vessels also become
unserviceable by frequent and continued exposure to great
heat. Platina crucibles which are much used become brit¬
tle, and crack at the edges; and care should be taken to
cool these vessels gradually, that they may last as long as
possible. A platina vessel, in which sulphuric acid was
boiled for a long time, at last became perforated and un¬
serviceable.
Borax (borate of soda) is used along with the fragment Fluxes,
of mineral in many cases. When exposed to the flame it
becomes opaque, swells and ramifies much, in consequence
of parting with its water of crystallization; afterwards it
fuses into a colourless and transparent bead. It is con¬
venient to use calcined borax, which is borax deprived of
its water of crystallization by heat in a crucible: this
melts into a bead on the charcoal at once. The solubility
of a mineral in borax, with effervescence or without effer¬
vescence, and the colour which the mineral communicates
to the borax, are the chief distinctive characters obtained
4 x
/
714
B L O W-P I P E
Blow-pipe- by treating a mineral with that substance. Phosphate of
ammonia is also sometimes used as a flux in the same
manner as borax, and carbonate of soda; but both these,
especially the latter, have the inconvenience of sinking
into the charcoal, which borax is free from.
Characte- Mention must be made here of a few of the most pro-
ristic phe- minent phenomena, characteristic of different mineral sub-
nomena of stances when treated by the blow-pipe. Some minerals
minerals are fusible alone, such as garnet and felspar; the last, how-
^7 ever, is rather difficult to fuse. Some are infusible, and
nhie5 change colour; bituminous shale loses its black colour, and
becomes white; green and dark coloured steatite become
white. Some dissolve in borax without effervescence, as
agate, quartz, felspar, amiantus, garnet. Some dissolve in
borax with effervescence. This is the case with carbonate
of lime; it forms with borax a globule transparent whilst
in fusion, but in cooling the globule becomes opaque,
the lime being no longer held in solution by the borax,
in like manner as the watery solutions of cei’tain salts, sa¬
turated when hot, deposit a part of the salt on cooling.
Some of the metals communicate peculiar colours to bo¬
rax. Copper, in certain proportions, and at a certain de¬
gree of oxidation, gives a brown colour to borax when
heated by the blow-pipe ; cobalt gives a deep blue tinge ;
manganese communicates a violet colour ; iron tinges borax
brown, and, if in greater quantity, black. These colours are
produced by the metals , in a state of oxide. The smell
emitted by some minerals when heated by the blow-pipe is
another character serving to distinguish them. That of
minerals containing sulphur is the peculiar suffocating
smell of sulphureous gas; minerals that contain arsenic
emit, when heated, a smell like that of garlic. The na¬
ture of some minerals is recognised by the particular form
of crystallization which they assume in cooling. This is
the case with phosphate of lead, which, after being fused,
cools on the charcoal into an opaque white spheroidal po¬
lyhedron. Some ores are reduced to a metallic globule
with great ease on the charcoal; thus the native sulphu-
ret of lead, called galaena, being heated by the blow-pipe,
the sulphur is driven off, and the lead remains in its me¬
tallic state. A small particle of silver may be melted by
the blow-pipe; likewise gold, copper, and, Bergman says,
cast-iron. Metallic zinc, when exposed to the flame of
the blow-pipe on the charcoal, melts and burns with a
bluish-green flame, and becomes covered with oxide,
which flies off and floats in the air in light w'hite flocks.
Metallic antimony becomes red hot, and melts on the
charcoal; and if the operator ceases to blow, a white fume
rises, and oxide of antimony forms upon the globule, in
whitish crystalline spiculae; but if the globule, in a state
of fusion, be thrown upon a brick floor, it runs along for a
considerable way, rebounding several times, and leaving a
trace of white oxide of antimony.
Some substances communicate colour to the flame of
the blow-pipe. Muriate of copper, whose crystals are
green, communicate a vivid green to the flame; sulphate
and nitrate of copper, whose crystals are blue, likewise
impart a green colour to the flame when they are exposed
to its action. Some of the salts of strontian give a purple
tinge to the flame.
Glass- ^ The preceding observations relate to the blow-pipe work-
£k?wei;s ed by the breath. When it is required to continue the use
e °" ” °f the blow-pipe so long that it would be fatiguing if the
breath merely were employed, the glass-blower’s table,
fig. 9, is used. It consists of a double bellows, so fixed
as to be worked by the foot, and to impel a current of
air through a tin blow-pipe against the flame of a lamp
fixed on the table. For the sake of durability, the blow¬
pipe is sometimes of brass, on which is screwed a nozzle of
platina. The blow-pipe may have a stop-cock, as in fig. 9,
serving to regulate the blast. The lamp has a cotton BloviM
wick of nearly an inch in thickness; the wick is kept to-
gether by a tin wick-holder, which is soldered to the
lamp ; and melted tallow fills the lamp, and feeds the wick
with fuel. In order to get rid of the smoke, which is in
considerable quantity, there may be placed at a conve¬
nient distance above the flame a tin funnel ending in a
tube, which conveys the smoke out of the room. A con¬
venient method of carrying away the smoke from the
glass-blowers’ lamp is represented in fig. 13. It consists
of a cover of thin sheet copper, which is placed on the
table, covering the lamp and nozzle. The fore-part of this
cover is open, so as to allow the jet of flame to pass freely.
From the upper part of the cover two tubes run upwards
for the exit of the smoke ; and between these the glass-
blower has a view of the object he is at work upon, whilst
his eyes are screened from the light of the flame. The
two tubes join above in one short tube; and over the
open end of this short tube, at a small distance above, is a
tube suspended from the ceiling by wires, which conveys
the smoke into the chimney of the room. By a handle
attached to the cover, the cover with its tubes is removed
when it is necessary to trim the wick. The flame of gas
from pit-coal may be used instead of a lamp, with a bel¬
lows of this kind.
The regularity of the blast in the double bellows is ef-Wat
fected by means of a weight pressing on the air contained pres; e ,:
in the second compartment of the bellows ; just in the sameaPPa us>
way as a stream of air is made to issue regularly from a
tube fixed in the mouth of an inflated bladder, when a
weight is placed on the bladder. A regular stream of air
may also be obtained, by subjecting inclosed air to the
pressure of a column of water, mercury, or some other
liquid. If a vessel containing air, and open at the mouth,
be plunged into the water with the mouth downwards,
and if the water on the outside of the vessel rise higher
than the surface of the water within the vessel, then the
column of water, whose height is the difference of level,
exercising its pressure, as all liquids do, in every direction,
will act upwards on the inclosed air; the inclosed air,
pressed and more condensed than the external air, will
escape in a current, by a stop-cock opened on the top of
the vessel for its issue; and this issue will continue till
the surface of the exterior and interior water come to a
level, when the air in the vessel will have the same den¬
sity as the external air. The force with which the in¬
closed air is pressed is equal to the weight of a column
of water whose height is the difference of levels, and whose
base is the surface of water exposed to the inclosed air.
The gasometers used by Lavoisier, to afford a stream of
oxygen gas and a stream of hydrogen gas, for effecting
the composition of water, are constructed upon this prin¬
ciple. An apparatus of the same nature has for many
years been employed upon a great scale in different parts
of Britain, to regulate the most powerful blast used in the
arts,—that for reducing ironstone to the state of cast-iron.
In blast-furnaces upon this construction, the blast is raised
by means of a large cast-iron cylinder, which acts as a bel¬
lows, having a valve in the bottom that opens inwards, and
that admits the air during the ascent of the piston; when
the piston descends, the valve shuts, and the air is driven
into a large parallelopipedal vessel, less in height than m
the other dimensions, immersed in water, and having its
under surface closed only by the water. In this vessel
the air is pressed by the column of water, whose height is
the distance between the surfaces of the exterior and in¬
terior water; and a pipe of issue, terminating in a nose-
pipe, conducts the blast to the furnace. Me' n'
The blow-pipe of the Abbe Melograni of Naples, for theni’sD,v*.
use of the mineralogist, operates by the pressure of water. i»i1(
B L O W-P I P E.
iljjipe. It is composed of two hollow globes, the upper filled with
u ^ water, which, by running into the lower, forces the air
contained in the lower to issue through a nozzle. This ap¬
paratus is described by Mr Greenough, in Nicholson's
Journal, vol. ix. p. 25 and 143. It has some inconve¬
niences, and does not appear ever to have come into much
use.
\r - The water-pressure apparatus, applied to the blow-pipe,
pn re 0f which a section is given at fig. 10, was contrived by Mr
bk >Pe Tilley, an ingenious fancy glass-blower. It consists of a
^ tin box with a partition in it, reaching within half an inch
of the bottom; water is poured in, equal in bulk to three
fourths of the capacity of the box. The water in the ca¬
vity DE is open, and subject to no other pressure but that
of the atmosphere, being only covered by the lid of the
vessel; the apartment F is closed at top, so as to be air¬
tight, and the water in it is pressed by the elasticity of
the air confined in its upper part. The tube C has its
lower extremity always plunged in water, so that when
air is blown in through it, the return of the air by that
tube is prevented. Before the apparatus is set to work,
the surface of the water in both compartments is at the
same height, both being pressed by air of the density of
the surrounding air; but when air is blown in through C,
the air rises through the water to the top of the compart¬
ment F; and as the only issue for the air is through the
small aperture of the blow-pipe, by which it cannot es¬
cape nearly so fast as it is blown in, the air consequently
becomes condensed in the upper part of the compartment
F; and this condensed air pressing on the water in F
more strongly than the atmosphere does on the water in
DE, depresses the surface of the water in F, and causes
it to rise in DE, which is effected by a portion of the wa¬
ter passing under the partition into the open compartment
DE. Thus the pressure exerted by the column of water
whose height is the difference of level of the water in DE,
and of the water in F, forces the air from the compartment
F through the blow-pipe a, which is directed against the
flame of a lamp; and this pressure keeps up a constant
blast till the water in the two compartments comes nearly
to the same height. The degree of condensation of the
inclosed air, and the height of the column of water press¬
ing on the condensed air, are measures of each other, when
much air is blown in, so as to occasion a considerable de¬
gree of condensation. The difference of level resulting is
considerable; and the column of water, which is always
re-acting with an equal and contrary pressure on the con¬
densed air, causes it to issue with greater velocity from
the blow-pipe. When the condensation diminishes, so
does the column of water, and the velocity of the issuing
stream of air. More air is to be blown in with the mouth
through the tube C from time to time, so as to keep the
blast regular. Mr Tilley is of opinion that this apparatus
produces a more regular stream of air than a double bel¬
lows, and it has likewise the advantage that the operator
is free from the trouble of moving a pedal. The dimen¬
sions of the vessel AA, which is either of tinned iron or
of tinned copper, are seventeen inches in height, five
inches in width, and nine in breadth; the lid of the ves¬
sel opens and shuts on hinges, and supports the tallow
lamp B. The bent glass tube a, which terminates in a
small hole, is fitted air-tight into a tin tube, which is made
conical, and which forms the issue from the top of the com¬
partment F; for this purpose paper is wrapped round the
glass tube, and then cotton wick yarn, in a conical form,
so that the glass tube thus clothed may fit tight into the
socket, and may nevertheless be moved round, that the
blast may act propexdy on the flame. The bent metal
tube C is also fixed into its socket in the same manner:
its junction with the socket is seen in fig. 10. There is a
715
screen formed of a tin plate sliding vertically in grooves Blow-pipe,
between two upright pieces of tin; the edge of this is
seen at S, in fig. 10. It is intended to protect the eyes
of the operator from the light of the lamp, whilst, at the
same time, he can see the subject of his operation over the
top of the screen. This screen is not soldered to the ves¬
sel, but is held fast by its foot being placed between the
lid of the vessel and the top of the close chamber F. Two
rests for supporting the operator’s arms project, one from
each side of the vessel; upon these the arms are placed
when any substance is held to the flame. These rests are
wrapped round with woollen list or leather, so as to be
more convenient for leaning upon. The whole of the ap¬
paratus, including the lamp and case, weighs only three
pounds and a half. When it is to be used, the vessel is
fixed to a table or bench by means of a leather strap
buckled to two loops, which are on the sides of the vessel
opposite to each other; and the strap is passed under the
table or bench. The long flat cotton wick is preferred by
some glass-blowers to the usual round cotton wick. The
lamp is filled with tallow, which melts after the lamp has
been lighted for some time, and then it burns as freely as
oil, and with a less offensive smell. When not in use the
tallow becomes solid, and is more conveniently carried
about than oil. Hogs’ lard also does well for burning in
this lamp. Some glass-blowers mix cocoa-nut oil, which
is solid at the temperature of the climate of Britain, with
hogs’ lard, and find it to answer well in the lamp. The
lamp is placed within another vessel, marked K, which
supports it at a proper height, leaving a space between
them, to receive any tallow that may run over the edge
of the lamp. A wire bent at the end is convenient for
trimming the wick, and forming it into a channel through
which the stream of air is to be directed. It is conve¬
nient to have several lamps with wicks of different thick¬
nesses, namely, one to hold two flat cottons of about one
inch and a quarter broad, another to hold four, a third to
hold six, or as much common wick-yarn as is equal to
those wicks in bulk, and glass adjutages of different sized
apertures to suit the different sized wicks. (See Transac¬
tions of the Society for Encouraging Arts, vol. xxxi.)
The eolipile, fig. 11, has been applied to act as a blow-Eolipile.
pipe. It is a hollow vessel of brass, sometimes made in
form of a small kettle, sometimes in form of a ball of two
inches in diameter, with a tube of brass that screws into
it. The tube is to be screwed off in order to pour in al¬
cohol by a small funnel, and then the tube being replac¬
ed, and heat applied to the bulb, the vapour of the alco¬
hol issues from the small aperture of the tube, and be¬
ing directed against the flame of a lamp, the flame is
driven in a horizontal stream, such as the blow-pipe pro¬
duces. The instrument has a safety valve, S, to prevent
the danger of explosion, which might happen if the nozzle
were stopped. The same wick that heats the bulb may
serve to furnish the jet of flame, as is the case in the eolipile
represented in fig. 11. This instrument has been proposed
to be applied to the purposes of the mineralogist; but it
does not appear to be either so readily put in action or so
efficacious as the common blow-pipe, which is also simpler
in its construction, less bulky, and more easily carried
about.
Mr Newman, philosophical instrument-maker, of Lisle Newman’s
Street, London, having observed that air condensed in a blow-pipe;
cavity required a considerable time to escape through a
small aperture made to give it issue, contrived the appa¬
ratus represented at fig. 12, which acts as a blow-pipe.
This apparatus consists of a strong plate-copper box, per¬
fectly air-tight, three inches in width and height, and four
in length ; a condensing syringe to force air into the box ;
and an adjutage with a stop-cock at one end of the box,
716 B Jj ()
Blow-pipe, by which the issue of the air is regulated. The piston rod
of the condensing syringe works through collars of leather
in the cap, which has an aperture in the side, and a screw
N connected with a stop-cock, which may be made to
communicate with a jar, bladder, or gasometer, containing
oxygen, hydrogen, or other gases. When this communi¬
cation is made, and the condenser worked, the gas con¬
tained in the jar or bladder is thrown into the box, and
issues through the adjutage upon the flame of a lamp
placed near it. When the apparatus is worked with com¬
mon air, a few strokes of the piston fills the chamber with
compressed air. When the cock of the adjutage is open¬
ed, the air issues with great velocity in a small stream, and,
when directed on the flame of a lamp, produces a jet of
flame as the common blow-pipe does, but with more pre¬
cision and regularity. The force of the stream of air is
easily adjusted by opening more or less the stop-cock of
the adjutage; and, when the box has been moderately
charged, the stream will continue to issue uniformly for
twenty minutes ; when the strength of the blast begins to
decline, it will be restored by working the syringe. The
apparatus is very portable, and not liable to injury. It is
made by Mr Newman, the inventor, with a lamp adapted
to it, so as to pack up in a box not more than six inches
in length and four inches in width and height, enough of
space being left for other small articles; others he makes
in boxes somewhat larger, so as to contain also a selection
of chemical tests. (See Journal of Science, edited by the
Royal Institution, No. 1.)
with a Sir Humphry Davy having discovered that the explo-
mixture ofsi0n from oxygen and hydrogen gases would not commu-
oxygen nicate through very small apertures, Mr Children propos-
and hydro- to t0 emp]0y Newman’s blow-pipe for effecting a
combustion of a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen gas is¬
suing from a small aperture. This Sir Humphry did,
and found that the flame produced an intense heat, which
instantly fused bodies of a very refractory nature. Dr
Clarke, professor of mineralogy at Cambridge, having con¬
sulted Sir Humphry on the subject, proceeded to ex¬
pose a great variety of mineral substances to the flame,
for the purpose of observing its effects upon each of them.
The tube of glass through which the mixture of the two
gases issues, is cemented on the pipe of issue of New¬
man’s blow-pipe. The tube at first used by Dr Clarke was
three inches in length, and the diameter of its cavity
y^th of an inch. The end of the tube was constantly
breaking during the experiments, owing to the sudden
changes of temperature, until at last he usually worked
with a tube only one inch and three-eighths in length.
When the current of gas is feeble, from the gas in the re¬
servoir having come nearly to the same degree of density
as the surrounding air, or from the current being suppress¬
ed in the beginning of an experiment, then the flame has
a retrograde movement, passing up the capillary cavity of
the tube about half an inch, and, after splitting the end
of the glass tube, the flame goes out of itself; so that, even
in this case, there is no danger of explosion. In order to
try the effects of an explosion, four pints of a mixture of
the two gases were condensed into the chest, which was
all that the syringe could force into it. The glass tube
was taken off, so that the diameter of the nose-pipe, by
which the gas was to issue, was about one eighth of an
inch. A burning spirit-lamp was placed at this aperture,
and the stop-cock being opened by means of a long string
attached to it, the whole gas exploded with a report like
that of a cannon; the chest was burst, the stop-cock
driven out, and one end of the chest was torn off and
thrown against the wall of the room. This shows the dan¬
ger of using the apparatus with too large an aperture, and
the necessity of employing a capillary tube.
B L O
When the mixture of the two gases is to be employed Blon i,>»
in Newman’s blow-pipe, the chest is first exhausted of air,
and then the gaseous mixture in a bladder, screwed on at ®0'[g|
N, is to be forced into the chest by the condensing sy-.^^ i
ringe. The proportions of the two gases which Dr Clarke ! L ^s
found to produce the greatest heat are, two volumes of men' ]
hydrogen and one of oxygen gas. The intensity of the
heat is much greater when the gases are pure ; the oxygen
procured from manganese does not produce nearly so
great a heat as that got from the hyper-oxymuriate of pot¬
ass. The intensity of the heat may be regulated by al¬
lowing the gas to issue in a more or less copious stream,
which is done by turning the stop-cock. The heat, Dr
Clarke thinks, is greater than that produced by the largest
galvanic batteries. Most substances hitherto tried are
fused by it, so that it is difficult to find supports for hold¬
ing the subject of experiment to the flame. The supports
employed by Dr Clarke were, charcoal, platina, a piece of
tobacco-pipe, black lead. Lime, strontian, and alumine,
were fused. The metal of strontian was got, and retained
its lustre for some hours. The alkalies were fused and
volatilized almost the instant they came in contact with
the flame. Rock-crystal fused into a transparent glass
full of bubbles. Quartz gave the same result. Opal fused
into a pearly white enamel. Flint fused rapidly into a
white frothy enamel. Blue sapphire melted into greenish
glass balloons, ramified singularly. Foliated talc fused in¬
to a greenish glass. Peruvian emerald melted into a trans¬
parent and colourless glass, without bubbles. Lapis la¬
zuli fused into transparent glass, with a slight tinge of
green. Pure foliated native magnesia, from America, is
the substance the most difficult of fusion; it is, however,
at last reduced to a white opaque enamel. Agalmatolite
of China fuses into a limpid colourless glass. Iceland spar
is next in difficulty of fusion to the native magnesia; but
it does at last melt into a limpid glass, and, during the pro¬
cess, gives an amethyst-coloured flame, as strontian does;
the fusion of pure lime and of all its compounds is at¬
tended with a flame of the same colour. Diamond first
became opaque, and then was gradually volatilized. Gold,
fused along with borax, on a piece of tobacco pipe, was
nearly all volatilized. Platina wire, ^th of an inch in
diameter, melted the instant it was brought into contact
with the flame of the gas ; the melted platina ran down in
drops, and the wire burnt as iron wire does in oxygen gas.
Brass wire burnt with a green flame, differing from the
green flame that salts of copper give. Copper wire melt¬
ed rapidly without burning. Iron wire burnt with bril
liant scintillation. Plumbago melted into a bead which
was attractable by the magnet. Blende or native sulphuret
of zinc melted, and metallic zinc appeared in the centre
of the melted mass. And metalloid oxide of manganese,
crystallized in prisms, was reduced to a metallic state.
(See Dr Clarke’s Account of his Experiments, in the
Journal of Science, edited at the Royal Institution, Octo¬
ber 1816.) (b. b.)
Blow-Pipe, in a straight hollow tube of brass,
of an elongated conical form, six inches in length, and
open at both ends. The aperture of the large end is
three-tenths of an inch in diameter, that of the smaller
end is of the size of a needle’s point. It is used for blow¬
ing air into the collapsed vessels of the dead subject, m
order to know the course of these vessels.
BLOWING, in a general sense, denotes an agitation ol
the air, whether performed with a pair of bellows, the
mouth, a tube, or the like.
Blowing, among gardeners, denotes the action of flow¬
ers, in opening and displaying their leaves. In this sense,
blowing is the same with flowering or blossoming.
The regular blowing season is in the spring, although
B L O
B L O
ng some plants have other extraordinary times and manners
ies- of blowing, as the Glastonbury thorn. Different flowers,
717
ed by the lower board of the single bellows, which now Blowing
becomes the middle board of the double bellows. The Machines.
also, as the tulip, close every evening, and blow again in the third board we shall now call the lower board. This lat-
m or rung. mma plants blow sooner or later according ter has a valve in it exactly similar to the first, which still
as then- seeds are put in the ground; and hence the curi- retains its place in the new construction
pus in gardening sow some every month in summer, to The middle board is now fixed in a horizontal position.
The blowing of the pipe being placed to the fire to be blown. The lower
Co m
have a constant succession of flowers,
roses may be retarded by shearing off the buds as theyare
put forth.
Blowing of Glass, one of the methods of forming the
various kinds of work in the glass manufacture. It is per¬
formed by dipping the point of an iron blow-pipe in the
melted glass, and blowing through it with the mouth, ac¬
cording to the dimensions of the glass to be blown.
Glass.
Blowing of Tin denotes the melting its ore, after be¬
ing first burnt to destroy the mundic.
BLOWINGr Machines, in the arts and manufactures,
board is held down by a weight, which keeps the lower
cavity constantly full of air. The top board has a weight
laid upon it, which presses all the air out of the upper
cavity through the pipe.
The machinal action by which the blowing is perform¬
ed is, first, to lift up the lower board. This forces the air
See from the lower into the upper cavity, the valve in the
middle board preventing its return. The weight on the
upper board now presses the air with a uniform blast
through the pipe. During this time the lower board de-
. „ . scends, which fills the lower cavity with air from the at-
and in domestic economy, are instruments for producing a mosphere; and this again rises and gives its contents to the
continued current of air, principally for the purpose of fa- upper cavity, and thence passes through the nose-pine,
cilitating the combustion of fuel. Ihe first idea of such Hence we see that that irregular puffing blast which belongs
a machine was doubtless derived from the lungs, which to the single bellows is here confined" to the lower board,
we are constantly in the habit of using for the purpose of which supplies air to the upper cavity, while the upper
blowing, but moie especially in the simple and useful ap- board is constantly pressing uniformly upon the air in it.
Although this is a considerable improvement upon the
single bellows, it does not completely obviate the irregu¬
larity of the blast. So long as the lower board is not in
action, the pressure on the upper board being uniform, the
blast is the same. Every time, however, the bottom board
rises to force the air into the upper cavity, an extra pres¬
sure is given to the air in the upper cavity, and a tempo¬
rary puff is produced. In the application of bellows to the
ap¬
plication of the blow-pipe.
Of these different machines, the common bellows bears
the greatest resemblance to the lungs, and was in all pro¬
bability the first contrivance for artificial blowing. In the
first instance, this instrument might be a simple bag, ca¬
pable of distension by a mechanical force, the air being
drawn in and pressed out of the same aperture in the man¬
ner of breathing. The first improvement upon this sim¬
ple form would be to admit the air by a valve opening in¬
wards when the bellows were distended, the blast outwards
being from another aperture. This improvement consists
in the air being admitted at a wider aperture, which fills
the bellows in less time than would be required by the
small pipe through which the air is allowed to escape. The
blast, in this state of the machine, is not continuous, but
in puffs, at intervals of time required for the air to enter
the bellows through the valve; the blowing interval being
to the filling interval as the areas of the apertures. This
irregular blast was for some time remedied by employing
two bellows which blew alternately, the blowing on one
taking place while the other was filling. The inconve¬
nience, however, was but partially remedied by this con¬
trivance. The invention of wdiat are called double bellows
must have been considered a valuable acquisition in the
art of blowing. But previous to describing these, it will
be necessary to give a description of single bellows above
mentioned.
It will be needless, however, to say more than refer the
reader to common domestic bellows, which are in every
respect the same as the single bellows first used. The
leather nailed to the upper and lower boards is prevented
from collapsing, when the boards are separated, by a hoop
of wood contained within, performing the office of the ribs
m the sternum of animals, without which the breathing
would not be performed. The lower board contains the
valve which admits the air. When the two boards are se¬
parated, the air lifts the valve in entering the cavity.
A hen full of air, the closing of the boards causes the air
within to close the valve, thus preventing its return in that
direction, and compels it to escape at the pipe, the mouth
of which is called the nozle or nose-pipe.
In order to conceive the construction of the double bel¬
lows, we have only to take a third board of exactly the
same shape as the other two, and connect it with the lower
board by a piece of leather similar to that of the single
bellows, making two cavities exactly similar, and separat-
smith’s forge, the continued blast was of less importance
than in the blast-furnaces applied to the smelting or re¬
fining of ores. The single bellows are at present almost
exclusively employed by anchor-smiths and cutlers; while
the blacksmith and most others use double bellows, which
are doubtless better for all purposes.
In France and other parts of the Continent, bellows Wooden
have been formed entirely of wood, instead of the flexible bellows,
sides of leather, which serves to increase and diminish the
capacity. The wooden bellows consist of two boxes, each
open on one side, the one being just capable of containing
the other; the outer box being placed with the mouth up¬
wards, the other is made to descend into it with the mouth
downwards, the latter being capable of moving up and
down, while the other remains fixed. In the bottom of
the fixed box is a valve like the common bellows, and a
pipe on the same level to let out the blast. The change
of capacity, by the motion of this box, causes the blast,
and with less waste of power than that occasioned by the
bending of the leather in the common bellows. This ad¬
vantage is, however, probably more than compensated by
the loss of air from the box not fitting on the sides. See
a description of this and some other blowing-machines
under Pneumatics.
The common smith’s bellows have lately been construct- Circular
ed of a circular form. The boards of these bellows are bellows,
round, and the movable boards parallel to the horizon and
to each other. We have given a view of this construction
in Plate CX, figures 4 and 5. A is the blast-pipe, B the
movable lower board, C the fixed board, into which the
pipe is inserted, and D the upper movable board, on which
is placed a weight to regulate the strength of the blast.
Motion is given to the lower board by the lever L, and the
chain H working on the roller R.
The form of these bellows being cylindrical, the weight
required to produce a certain pressure and strength of blast
will be easily determined. If the diameter be one foot, the
area will be 113T9 inches. The most convenient and pro-
718 BLOWING MACHINES.
Blowing per blast for smiths’ bellows is about ^ lb. upon the inch, will be established, one inwards and the other outwards. BL ing
Machines. or from tiiat to b lb. The upper board, in this case, would On the returning stroke both these valves will shut, and Ma nes
re ujre a weigi12t 0f 56-5 to give a blast equal to half a the other two sides will be put in the same situation with ^
pound upon an inch. This pressure would give a velocity the first cavities. If, now, two similar valves to the last
equal to about 207 feet in a second. If the diameter of the be introduced, two similar currents will be produced. If
nose-pipe be changed, the number or length of the strokes, the two valves at which the air escapes from the machine,
or both, must be changed, in order that the pressure and one on each side of the septum, be made to communicate
the corresponding density of the blast may remain the with one cavity from which a nose-pipe proceeds, while
same. If the number and length of the strokes be kept the other two valves communicate with the atmosphere,
up, and the aperture diminished, at the same time that every stroke will discharge a quantity of air through the
the capacity of the bellows admits not of enlargement, nose-pipe from one cavity, and introduce the same volume
the pressure and density of blast will be increased, al- of air from the atmosphere into the other cavity. These
though no additional weight be laid on. This frequently strokes are produced by the oscillating motion of the ma-
happens in the smith’s bellows when he makes an in- chine, the limit of its vibrations being about a quarter of
creased effort to blow after the upper cavity is full. It is the circle, or 90°.
much better, however, not to exert the bellows in this These alternate puffs of air are first propelled into a ves-
way when a stronger blast is required, but to produce the sel containing water to regulate the blast. This vessel is
effect by an additional weight. A very strong blast is divided into two portions by a septum, which passes from
found to be injurious to the iron when welding heats the close cover at the top nearly to the bottom. When
are required, and still more so in working steel. It is the air is forced into the cavity, which is close at the top,
much better that an increase of air, which is frequently it expels the water under the septum at the bottom
wanted, should be furnished by increasing the aperture, into the open cavity, so as to keep a constant head in the
supposing the power to be at the time adequate to keep latter, compressing the air in the former. From this air-
up the increased supply. Bellows should therefore be so chest a nose-pipe proceeds to the fire, and the air escapes
constructed that the pressure may be uniform, and not from it with a uniform velocity so long as the same co-
immediately under the control of the workman. When he lumn of water in the chest is preserved. This descrip-
wishes to quicken his heat, he should have the means of tion answers to the first machine of the inventor; he has
increasing the aperture by a circular plate turning on an since taken out a second patent, the specification of which
axis at right angles to the length of the pipe, as seen in is given in the Repository of Arts, vol. xxviii. p. 193,
fig. 9. When in the position ab, the whole area is filled; We shall here give a description of this machine, with
when in that of cd, the air passes in its full quantity, the patentee’s improvements. See Plate CX. figs. 1, 2,
The index being placed at any intermediate points ef, will and 3.
let in any proportionate quantity required. Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of this machine. AB is
The aperture might be made to change, by the increase the cylinder resting upon the axis ab and cd, which are
of power upon the machine, and thus caused to regulate supported on the uprights gg. The oscillating motion is
itself. Several simple contrivances of this kind may be given to it by a rod working upon the pivot p, the other
applied by any one skilled in machinery. end of which is connected with a crank of such a length
New blow- These improvements would render the common leather as to cause the cylinder to move through an arch of 90
ing ma- bellows, of the form above given, very useful for smiths, degrees. The vessel is filled with water to the height ws.
chines. 'pjie irregU]ar blast occasioned by their present construe- The part CBD (fig. 2) is cutoff from the rest of the cy-
tion is found to be very injurious to the iron, both as to linder by two planes meeting ate, and continuing down to
its quality and economy. This is abundantly shown in the the axis x, so as to work upon its convex surface. These
use of some blowing machines lately invented, which have planes extend the whole length of the cylinder, and are
the advantage of a blast that is uniform, and at the same then divided transversely into three cavities GHI, as seen
time much softer, being produced by a small pressure. in fig. 1. The cavity G is for the reception of the exter-
These blowing machines are also found to answer very nal air, and is called by the patentee a receiving box.
well for melting cast iron, the soft blast having less ten- The cavity H is open to the atmosphere, the periphery
dency to destroy the carbon, and the quantity of air be- of the cylinder being removed in that part. The cavity I
ing compensated by increasing the aperture. is appropriated to the air which is driven out of the ma-
One of these machines is the invention of Mr Street, chine, through the valves tt and qq (fig. 3), which open
for which he took out a patent. It consists of a barrel- alternately on each side. The cavity G is divided longi-
shaped vessel, from four to five feet in diameter, and of tudinally in the middle, forming two cavities, m and n,
a length more or less proportionate to the work it has to fig. 2; two valves, e and f, fig. 1, open into each, one from
perform. the end of the cylinder, and the other from the cavity H.
This cylinder is supported on two bearers by the two Each of the cavities m and n communicate with the body
ends of its axis, like a barrel churn. The cylinder is di- of the cylinder by the holes hh in the dividing planes,
yided into two equal parts by a plane in the direction of The cavity I has no division, as it receives the air from
its length, fitting the two ends and the upper side, water- both sets of exit valves, which escapes at the pipe P.
tight, and extending downward to a small distance from the The axis ov works within the axis ab and cd, and is
opposite side. This septum is in a perpendicular position rendered air-tight by a stuffing-box within the latter,
when the cylinder is at rest. When this vessel is partly This axis will have the effect of remaining at rest while
filled with water, and is made to pass through a certain the cylinder is in motion, there being no other force ex¬
space on its axis, the air which occupies the upper part erted to turn it than the friction of the stuffing-box. The
of the vessel will be compressed on one side by thg water, use of this axis is to support and turn a swing valve MV,
which flows from one side of the septum to the other, which is made of rolled iron, strengthened by ribs con-
and will become in the same degree rarefied on the nected with the axis. This valve is a plane, which would
other, from a contrary cause. If, however, in this situ- exactly sweep the interior surface of the cylinder without
ation, a valve be made to open inwards from the atmo- touching it. If the axis vx be held fast, the valve will re¬
sphere on the rarefied side, and another to open outwards tain its perpendicular position, while the cylinder performs
on the condensed side, two equal and contrary currents its vibrating motion. The water wrould also remain at
5 ing rest, with the exception of the motion which its friction
Mlines-and the compression of the air occasions. When the ma-
w ^ chine moves from D (fig. 3) till the plane DC comes very
near to the surface of the water zos, the valves qg open,
and a volume of air equal to the space DCS will be ex¬
pelled through the cavity I (fig. 1), along the pipe P, du¬
ring the time the valves in the cavity m (fig. 2) have
opened to admit the same volume of atmospheric air on
the returning stroke. The point B is carried the contrary
way, by which another portion of air opens the valves tt
to pass through the pipe P, while the same volume of
air from the atmosphere enters the cavity n, which in its
turn is forced through the exit valves tt.
The use of the swing valve MV will now be obvious.
If it did not exist, every time the air was compressed on
one side the water would be depressed on that side, and
the compression of the air would be limited by the in¬
creased column of water on the other side. This valve,
however, prevents the water from immediately changing
its situation, no more escaping from one side of the valve
to the other than what can pass between the edges of the
valve and the cylinder, which,-in the short space of one
stroke, can be only a very small quantity. This may be
considered as a great improvement upon the first machine,
which we have before described. The patentee further
intends occasionally to give to this swing valve a contrary
motion to that of the cylinder, and thus still more to in¬
crease the blast. Or, in the use of a very small blast, the
valve may be left at liberty, and used merely to prevent
the too great agitation of the water, which in the original
machine was considered as an objection. Two of those
machines are frequently used together, and worked by
cranks, forming an angle of 45° with each other, to make
the strong part of the blast of the one to concur with the
weak part of the blast of the other.
The part I of the exit pipe PL, must be precisely to
the centre of motion. The part L works in a stuffing
part, or a ground socket connected with the pipe LN.
The latter should communicate with a regulator, which
the patentee does not describe, but recommends one of
water. This may be a vessel at least of the capacity of
the cylinder, inverted in a reservoir of water, and may
stand near to the bottom. The pipe N is inserted into
the bottom, which is now uppermost. The height of the
water in the reservoir must be such as to give the re¬
quired pressure to the air.
When the air is forced into the inverted vessel by the
machinery, the water descends in this, and rises in the re¬
servoir, which now gives a pressure to the contained air
equal to the difference of the height of the water in the
inverted vessel and the reservoir. The surface of the re¬
servoir should be the greatest possible, in order that it
niay be raised in the least degree by the water coming
10m the inverted vessel, which will have the effect of keep¬
ing the blast more uniform.
The water regulator is certainly the best for smiths’
ellows, for refineries, forges, and perhaps the common
melting furnace, but they have been found very objec¬
tionable in the blowing of large blast-furnaces. The air
m the common blowing engine undergoes a great in¬
crease of temperature during its passage through the ma¬
chine, often as much as 40 or 50 degrees. The heated
air has the effect of carrying a greater quantity of water
a ong with it into the furnace, which destroys a larger
quantity of carbon than the same bulk of common air,
without producing an adequate portion of heat. A great
part of the heat of the air is doubtless produced by the
notion of the piston of the blowing cylinder, which, in
•118 construction, has a very tight wading. In the blow-
mg machine above described, the water would doubtless
BLOWING MACHINES.
719
be an objection in blast-furnaces, but, as its little friction Blowing
would not heat the air like the common blowing cylinder Machines,
used in blast furnaces, the objection would be less formi-
dable. Air must doubtless give out some heat by its de¬
crease of volume, just as it will absorb the heat by rare¬
faction, as is experienced in exhausting the receiver of an
air-pump. The converse of this is equally shown in the
little instrument employed to kindle tinder by condensing
the air within it.
The heat by the friction of this piston is probably
much more than by the condensation of the air; the latter
is obviated in the machine above described, and in another
blowing machine lately introduced, of which we shall give
a description.
I his machine, in its general appearance, does not seem
to have any advantage over the common blowing cylinder,
but in practice it is found superior.
It lesembles in some degree the common smith’s bel¬
lows of the Chinese, which consists of a square wooden
trunk, in the form of a parallelopipedon. A board is made
to fit pretty nearly its cross section, to which is attached
a long rod, by which the board is pushed backwards and
forwaids like a piston. At one end of the trunk is a valve
opening inwards to admit air, and at the same end is a
pipe with a valve opening outwards.
The machine above alluded to as having some resem¬
blance to this, is the invention of a Mr Vaughan, who has
fitted up several of them for founderies, and they are
much approved. The writer of this article took a drawing
from one of these machines employed to melt cast-iron a^
the Phoenix Foundery in Sheffield.
Figs. 6 and 7 are two views of the machine. ABCD
is a square box formed of pieces of cast-metal, screwed
together by hinges. Two of these are placed side by side,
as may be seen in the end view, fig. 7. MQ is a piston
fitting the square box, which is drawn backward and for¬
ward by the rod EF, which works horizontally on the
wheels ivx by the spear G, which communicates with the
crank of a wheel at a distance.
The piston MQ, which is the most ingenious part of
this machine, is enlarged in fig. 8, to render it clearer.
The body of the piston is a cast-iron plate about half an
inch thick, with a socket in the middle to receive the rod.
The diameter of this plate is about one fourth of an inch
less than that of the box. Two pieces of wood, v n, are
cut diagonally, in order to place the pieces of leather, 11,
between them. These leathers, with the wood, are firm¬
ly fastened to the plate by bolts, such as gh.
The leathers extend about two inches beyond the
wood; and their slight elasticity keeps them in contact
with the metallic surface, which is not required to be
very smooth. When the piston moves towards the end of
the box, to which the leather projects, the leather claps
close to the surface, rendering it air-tight, while the lea¬
ther on the other side of the piston becomes loose, and
has no friction. These leathers will be contrarily acted
upon when the piston acts the contrary way. The pro¬
jecting curved pipes HI form a communication between
the box where the piston works and the air-chest N.
When the piston moves from B to D, the valves F and V
open, while L and S are shut. The air contained in the
box is now forced through the valve It into the chest N,
and from thence along the blast-pipe P.
In the returning stroke, which is the whole length of
the box, the valves It, V, and K, are shut, while L and S
open. The air is forced through H to N, and then
through P.
Iwo of these work at the same time by two cranks,
which cause one to be in full blast at the time the other
is returning the stroke; so that, with due management,
B L U
the fom* puffs produced by two double strokes may be
made to succeed each other at equal intervals, which al¬
most amounts to a steady blast. The inventor recom¬
mends four of these boxes all to work together, which
would produce eight puffs in the time of one double stroke,
which, if divided into equal intervals, would produce a
sufficiently uniform blast for any purpose.
When the leathers of the piston are rubbed with black
lead, the friction almost amounts to nothing. I he leather
acts so easy to the surface, and is so flexible, that it may
be very easily raised with the fingers. I his could not be
the case if it were applied in the same way in a cylinder ;
and this is a sufficient reason for using the square box in¬
stead of the cylinder.
This machine makes 70 strokes in one minute ; the nose-
pipe, where the blast enters the furnace, is 2| inches in
diameter. When the length of stroke is the greatest, at
the above speed, it furnishes about 1200 cubic feet per
minute.
This machine steers clear of the objection of the water,
and, from its small friction, will have less tendency to heat
the air. Its original cost is also less than any other ma¬
chine yet constructed. In the situations where it has been
adopted it gives the highest satisfaction. The first con¬
struction of Street’s bellows, above described, was only
fitted for some smiths’ fires, where a very soft blast was
required. In their improved state they may be employed
for most purposes.
• All the calculations relative to bellows will be easily
made, by the following rules and formula:
First, get the space or capacity formed by one stroke
of the machine ; call this c, cubic feet.
Then get the number of strokes per minute, which call n.
The area of the nose-pipe, in feet, call a.
The pressure on the air to be discharged, whether by
a column of water or by a weight, call p.
v — the velocity with which the air escapes.
r — the resistance, in pounds, which the blast will give.
Then cn — q, the quantity discharged in one minute ;
C71/ CTt
and v z=——in one minute, or — —— for one second.
a 60 a
Then, since the resistance is equal to a column of the
fluid of the area a, and twice the height to give the velo-
'ifi'CL • • •
city, ^ ^ — p ; the weight of 14 cubic feet of air be¬
ing equal to one pound.
The energy of air in blowing fires is as the quantity,
and inversely as the space it occupies. For if the same
quantity of air be consumed in half the space, the inten¬
sity of the heat, or the temperature of that particular place,
will be double. Flence it is found that the same quantity
of air, by weight, in winter will produce a greater effect
on a blast-furnace than in summer, merely from the dif¬
ference of density. The great difference in produce of
iron in the cold and hot seasons of the year is a fact no¬
torious to iron masters.
BLUBBER denotes the fat of whales and other large
sea-animals, of which train-oil is made. It is properly the
adeps of the animal, and lies immediately under the skin,
and over the muscular flesh. In the porpoise it is firm
and full of fibres, and invests the body about an inch thick.
In the whale its thickness is ordinarily six inches, but about
the under lip it is found two or three feet thick. The
whole quantity yielded by one of these animals ordinarily
amounts to forty or fifty, sometimes to eighty or more,
hundredweights.
BLUDENZ, a small city in the Austrian province of
Tyrol, on the river 111, containing about 1500 inhabitants.
BLUE, one of the seven colours into which the rays of
BOA
light divide themselves when refracted through a glassBlu
prism. See the article Chromatics.
BLUE John, a name applied by the Derbyshire miners 1
to the nodular variety of fluorspar from the Odin mine ^
near Castleton, which in that part of England is turned
into vases, and polished for various ornamental purposes.
Blue Vitriol, the sulphate of copper ; a salt of a fine
blue or bluish-green colour, containing 32T3 per cent, of
copper, 3U57 of sulphuric acid, and 36*30 of water. By
surgeons it is employed as an escharotic and astringent,
and in the arts it is turned to account in dyeing, printing
of cotton, and the like. It owes its existence in nature to
the decomposition of other minerals, particularly copper
pyrites, and, after having undergone the process of purifi¬
cation, forms regular crystals of a blue colour. It reddens
litmus paper, and is soluble in about four parts of cold and
two of boiling water. Its chief localities are the Ram-
melsberg near Goslar, in the Hartz; Anglesea in Eng¬
land ; and Fahlun in Sweden.
BLUING, the act or art of communicating a blue co¬
lour to bodies.
Bluing of Metals is peijformed by heating them in the
fire till they assume a blue colour. It is particularly prac¬
tised by gilders, who blue their metals before they apply
the gold and silver leaf.
Bluing of Iron, a method of beautifying that metal,
sometimes practised for mourning buckles, swords, watch-
springs, and the like. It is done thus: Take a piece of
grindstone or whetstone, and rub hard on the work to
take off the black scurf; then heat it in the fire, and as
it grows hot the colour will change by degrees, becoming
first of a light, then of a darker gold colour, and lastly blue.
Sometimes also indigo and salad-oil are ground together,
and the mixture rubbed on the work with a woollen rag
while it is heating, after which it is left to cool of itself.
Among sculptors we find mention made of bluing a figure
of bronze, by which is meant the heating of it, to prepare it
for the application of gold leaf; and it is so called because
of the bluish cast the metal acquires in the operation.
BLUFF-Head, a term used among sailors. A ship is
said to be bluff-headed that has an upright stern.
BLUNDERBUSS, a short fire-arm of a large calibre,
widening towards the muzzle, and capable of containing a
number of bullets at once.
BLUSHING, a suffusion or redness of the cheeks, ex¬
cited by a sense of shame, or the consciousness of some
failing or imperfection.
Blushing is supposed to be produced by a kind of sym¬
pathy between several parts of the body, occasioned by
the same nerve being extended to them all. Thus the
fifth pair of nerves being branched from the brain to the
eye, ear, muscles of the lips, cheeks, palate, tongue, and
nose, a thing seen or heard that is shameful covers the
cheeks with blushes, driving the blood into the minute
vessels there dispersed, and also affecting the eye and ear
in a similar manner. For the same reason it is, that a sa¬
voury thing seen or smelled affects the glands and parts or
the mouth; that if any thing pleasing be heard, it affects
the muscles of the face with laughter; and that if it be
melancholy, it affects the glands of the eyes, and occa¬
sions weeping.
BO, a cluster of six or seven islands in the Eastern Seas,
lying east-south-east of the southern extremity of Uilol0,
They are inhabited, and supply navigators with cocoa-
nuts. Long. 126. 25. E. Lat. 1. 27. S.
BOA. See Reptilia, Index. .
BOAD, a town of Hindostan, in the province of Orissa,
on the south side of the river Mahanuddy. It is possess¬
ed by an independent zemindar; and, like all the neig i-
bouring towns and villages, it is fenced with bamboos,
fob
d
BOA
j icea to protect the inhabitants and their cattle from the wild
beasts. It is 55 miles south-south-east of Sumbulpoor.
ar- Long. 81. 18. E. Lat. 20. 50. N.
^ ^ BOADICEA, a valiant British queen in the time of
Nero the emperor. She was the wife of Prasutagus, king of
the Iceni, a people inhabiting the eastern part of Britain.
On his death-bed Prasutagus named the emperor heir to
his accumulated treasures conjunctly with his own daugh¬
ters, in expectation of procuring by that means Nero’s
protection for his family and people ; but he was no sooner
dead than the emperor’s officers seized all. Boadicea op¬
posed these unjust proceedings ; which was resented to
such a pitch of cruelty, that they ordered the lady to be
publicly whipped, and her daughters to be exposed to the
brutality of the soldiers. The Britons took arms, with
Boadicea at their head, to shake off the Roman yoke ; and
with a force of 100,000 men, she took the colony of Cama-
lodunum orColchester, andmassacredthe Romans wherever
they could be found. In a word, the whole province of
Britain would have been lost, if Suetonius Paulinus had
not hastened from the Isle of Mona or Man to London,
and at the head of 10,000 men engaged the Britons. The
battle was fought with great obstinacy, and for a time with
doubtful success, but at last victory inclined to the side of
the Romans. This conflict took place a. d. 61. Boadicea,
who had behaved with all the bravery imaginable, soon after
dispatched herself by poison.
BOAR, a term in the manege. A horse is said to boar
when he shoots out his nose as high as his ears, and tosses
his nose in the wind.
Boau, a male swine. See Mammalia.
The wild boar, among huntsmen, has several names,
according to his different ages. The first year he is called
a pig of the saunder ; the second, a hog ; the third, a hog-
steer ; and the fourth, a hoar. When leaving the saunder,
he is called a singler or sangler. The boar generally lives
to the age of twenty-five or thirty years, if he escapes ac¬
cidents. The time of rutting is in December, and lasts
about three weeks. Wild boars feed on all sorts of fruits,
and on the roots of many plants; the root of fern in par¬
ticular seems a favourite with them; and when they fre¬
quent places near the sea-coast, they descend to the
shores, and demolish the tenderer shell-fish in very great
numbers. Their general places of rest are among the
thickest bushes that can be found; and they are not easi¬
ly induced to break cover, but will stand at bay a long
time. In April and May they sleep more soundly than
at any other time of the year; and this is therefore the
successful time for taking them in the toils. When a boar
is roused out of the thicket, he always goes from it, if
possible, the same way by which he entered it; and when
he is once up, he will never stop till he reach some place
of greater security. If a saunder of them be found to¬
gether, when any one breaks away, the rest follow in the
same track. When the boar is hunted in the wood where
he has been bred, he can scarcely ever be brought to
quit it; sometimes indeed he makes towards the sides
to listen to the noise of the dogs, but he retires into the
middle again, and usually dies or escapes there. When
a boar happens to run a-head, he will not be stopped or
put out of his way by man or beast, as long as he has any
strength left. He makes no doubles or crossings when
chased; and, if old, utters no sound when killed, though
the sows and pigs will squeak when wounded. At his
lull strength he is one of the most resolute and courageous
of animals. His prevailing impulse is to close with his an¬
tagonist. When fairly at bay he never shrinks from any
contest, however unequal; and, although mortally wound¬
ed, he will nevertheless maintain the combat with the most
unflinching bravery to the last.
VOL. IV.
BOA
The season for hunting the wild boar begins in Sep¬
tember, and ends in December, when they go to rut. If
he be large, and have lain long at rest, he must be hunted
with a great number of dogs, and these such as will keep
close to him; and the huntsman, with his spear, should
always be riding in among them, and charging the boar
as often as he can, to discourage him; for such a boar as
this, with five or six couple of dogs, will make to the first
convenient place of shelter, and there stand at bay and
attack them as they attempt to come up with him. There
ought also to be relays of the best and staunchest hounds
in the kennel; for if they are young eager dogs, they
will be apt to seize him, and be killed or spoiled before
the rest come up. The putting collars with bells about
the dogs’ necks is a great security for them; for the boar
will not readily strike at them when so provided, but will
rather avoid them. The huntsmen generally kill the boar
with their swords or spears ; but great caution is necessary
in making the blows; for he is very apt to catch them on
his snout or with his tusks, and if wounded and not
killed, he will attack the huntsman in the most furious
manner. The wound with the spear should, if possible,
be given between the eyes in the middle of the forehead,
or in the shoulder; in either place a wound is almost cer¬
tain to prove mortal.
When this creature makes at the hunter there is no¬
thing for it but courage and address. If the boar comes
straight up, he is to be received at the point of the spear;
but if he makes doubles and windings, he is to be watched
very cautiously; for he will attempt getting hold of the
spear in his mouth; and if he does so, nothing can save
the huntsman but another person attacking him behind.
In this case he will attack the second person; upon which
the first, being disengaged, must renew the onset. Two
persons will thus have enough to do with him; and were
it not for the forks of the boar-spears that make it impos¬
sible to press forward upon them, the huntsman who gives
the creature his death-wound would seldom escape falling
a sacrifice to his revenge. The modern way of boar¬
hunting is generally to dispatch the creature by all the
huntsmen striking him at once; but the ancient Roman
method was, for a person on foot, armed with a spear, to
keep the creature at bay, in which case the boar would run
of himself upon the spear to come at the huntsman, and
push forward till the weapon pierced him through.
The hinder claws of a boar are called guards. In the
corn he is said to feed; in the meadows or fallow-fields, to
rout, worm, or fern; in a close, to graze. The boar is
farrowed with his full complement of teeth, which after¬
wards increase in size, but not in number. Amongst these
there are four called tushes or tusks, the two largest of
which do not hurt when he strikes, but serve only to whet
the other two, with which the beast defends himself, and
frequently kills his assailant.
BOARD, a long piece of timber sawed thin for build¬
ing and several other purposes.
Board is also used for a kind of table or bench, on
which several artificers perform their work. In this sense
we say a work-board, shop-board, tra\or s-board, and the
like.
Board is likewise used for a flat machine or frame
used in certain games, and the like. In this sense we
say a draught-ioarr?, a chess-board, a shovel-board, and
the like.
Board, Bureau, is also used for an office where ac¬
counts are taken, payments ordered, or some particular
business transacted. In this sense we say the board of
works, board of ordnance, board of treasury, and the like.
BOAT, a small open vessel, propelled on the water by
oars or sails. The construction, machinery, and even
4 Y
722 BOA
Boating the names of boats, are very different, according to the
II various purposes for which they are calculated, and the
Boatswain, services on which they are to be employed. Thus they
are occasionally slight or strong, sharp or flat-bottomed,
open or decked, plain or ornamented; as they may be
designed for swiftness or burden, for deep or shallow wa¬
ter, for sailing in a harbour or at sea, and for convenience
or pleasure. The largest boat that usually accompanies
a ship is the long-boat, which is generally furnished with
a mast and sails. Long-boats fitted for men of war are
occasionally decked, armed, and equipped, for cruising
short distances against merchant ships of the enemy, or
smugglers, for impressing seamen, and other services.
The barges, which are next in order, are longer, slighter,
and narrower. They are employed to carry the principal
sea-officers, as admirals and captains of ships of war, and
are unfit for the open sea. Pinnaces exactly resemble
barges, only that they are somewhat smaller, and have
never more than eight oars; whereas a barge properly never
rows less than ten. The cutters of a ship are broader,
deeper, and shorter, than the barges and pinnaces; they
are fitter for sailing, and are commonly employed in car¬
rying stores, provisions, passengers, and the like, to and
from the ship. In the structure of this sort of boats the
lower edge of every plank in the side overlays the upper
edge of the plank below, which is called by ship-wrights
clink-work. Yawls are something less than cutters, near¬
ly of the same form, and used for similar services. They
are generally rowed with six oars. The above boats more
particularly belong to men of war, as merchant-ships have
seldom more than two, a long-boat and yawl; when they
have a third, it is generally calculated for the countries to
which they trade, and varies in its construction accordingly.
Merchant-ships employed in the Mediterranean find it more
convenient to use a launch, which is longer, flatter in the
bottom, and better adapted every way to the harbours of
that sea, than a long-boat. A wherry is a light, sharp
boat, used in a river or harbour for carrying passengers
from place to place. Punts are a sort of oblong flat-
bottomed boats, nearly resembling floating stages. They
are used by ship-wrights and caulkers, for breaming,
caulking, or repairing a ship’s bottom. A moses is a very
flat, broad boat, used by merchant-ships among the Ca-
ribbee Islands, to bring hogsheads of sugar off from the
sea beach to the shipping which are anchored in the roads.
K felucca is a strong passage-boat used in the Mediterra¬
nean, and propelled with oars like sweeps. The natives of
Barbary often employ boats of this sort as cruisers.
Boat-Bill. See Ornithology, Index.
BOATING, a kind of punishment in use among the
ancient Persians for capital offenders. The manner of
boating was this: The person condemned to it being
laid on his back in a boat, with his hands stretched out,
and tied fast on each side of it, another boat was put over
him, his head being left out through a space fitted to admit
it. In this posture he was fed until the worms bred in the
excrements he voided, ate out his bowels, and so caused
his death, which usually occurred in about twenty days,
the criminal lying all the while in most excruciating tor¬
ments.
BOATSWAIN, the officer who has the boats, sails,
rigging, colours, anchors, and cables, committed to his
charge. It is also the duty of this officer to summon the
crew to their duty ; to assist with his mates in the neces¬
sary business of the ship; and to relieve the watch when
it expires. He ought frequently to examine the condition
of the masts, sails, and rigging, and remove whatever may
be judged unfit for service, or supply whatever is deficient;
and he is ordered by his instructions to perform this duty
with as little noise as possible.
B O C
Boatswain's Mate has the peculiar command of the
long-boat, for the setting forth of anchors, weighing or ,'J
fetching home an anchor, warping, towing, or mooring; ^ e '
and he is bound to give an account of his store.
BOBBIN, a small piece of wood turned in the form of ^ c’0'
a cylinder, with a little border jutting out at each end, ^
bored through to receive a small iron pivot. It serves to
spin with the spinning wheel, or to wind thread, worsted,
hair, cotton, silk, gold, and silver.
BOBBING, among fishermen, a particular manner of
catching eels, different from sniggling. Bobbing for eels
is thus performed. Some large lobs are scoured well, and
a twisted silk thread run through them from end to end with
a needle, so many being taken that they may warp about a
board a dozen times at least; then they are tied fast with
the two ends of the silk thread, that they may hang in so many
hanks; which being done, they are all fastened to a strong
cord, and about a handful and a half above the worms a
plummet three quarters of a pound weight is fixed, and the
cord made fast to a strong pole. This apparatus is thrown
into muddy water ; the eels tug lustily at the bait; and
when they have swallowed it sufficiently, the rope is
drawn gently to the top, and the eels are brought ashore.
BOBLINGEN, a bailiwick in the circle of the Neckar
and kingdom of Wirtemburg, taking its name from the
city, which is on the declivity of a hill, and contains 2450
inhabitants, who are celebrated for making several che¬
mical preparations and wax-lights. It extends over 88
square miles, and comprehends 3 towns and 17 villages,
with 24,150 inhabitants.
BOBILEE, a town of Hindostan, in the northern cir-
cars. The Kangaroo of Bobilee Avas in 1757 one of the
polygars of the first rank in this country ; but being en¬
gaged in deadly enmity with a neighbouring polygar, who
prevailed on the French commander M. Bussy to espouse
his cause, he was attacked in his fort, the last retreat of
every polygar when he is hard pressed; and seeing no
hope of successful resistance, he put to death his whole
family, and, along with his remaining troops, perished in
defence of the fort. Long. 83. 28. E. Lat. 18. 27. N.
BOCA-Chica, the strait or entrance into the harbour
of Carthagena in South America. It is defended by se¬
veral forts belonging to the Spaniards, all of which were
taken by the English in 1741; but they were nevertheless
obliged to raise the siege of Carthagena in a short time after.
BocA-del-Drago, a strait so called, between the island
of Trinidad and Andalusia, in the province of Terra Fir-
ma in South America.
BOCAYRENT, a town of the province of Valencia, in
Spain. It contains 5850 inhabitants, who are remarkable
for their industry in the manufacture of linen and woollens,
of cordage, soap, paper, and brandy.
BOCCACIO, or Boccace, John, one of the most gift¬
ed and learned writers of his age, whose name alone, ac¬
cording to Mazzuchelli, is worth a thousand eulogiums,
was born in 1313. His father was a merchant at Florence,
where the pursuits of commerce were held in the highest
estimation ; and his family came originally from Certaldo,
a village situated about twenty miles from the capital of
Tuscany; for which reason he generally subjoined to his
name the words da Certaldo. Boccacio was not, there¬
fore, the son of a peasant, as has been asserted in the
Dictionnaire Historique. He appears to have been the il¬
legitimate offspring of a connection which his father had
formed while at Paris, having been called thither by some
commercial affairs; and it was also in the French capital
that the illustrious author of the Decameron first saw the
light. Conveyed at an early period to Florence, he com¬
menced his studies, and, from his tenderest years, evinced
a decided taste for poetry; but he had scarcely attained
B O C C
n^cio. the age of ten when his father placed him in the house of
* w' another merchant, with the view of training him up to
commerce. Several years afterwards this merchant took
him to Paris, and kept him in all six years in his house;
but failing to inspire his charge with a taste for the mer¬
cantile profession, to which the latter gave only a reluc¬
tant and compulsory attention, he sent the youth back to
his father. At Florence, as at Paris, Boccacio was divided
between occupations for which he felt nothing but repug¬
nance, and a taste for letters which went on increasing
daily. And this taste received a fresh stimulus at Naples,
to which he had been sent with the view of withdrawing
him from such pursuits, and attaching him definitively to
the mercantile profession. He remained there eight years,
and instead of associating only with merchants, he esta¬
blished an intimacy with several learned men, Florentine
as well as Neapolitan, whom the favour of King Robert,
the friend and patron of letters, had drawn to his capital.
There is no evidence whatever of Boccacio having per¬
sonally experienced the kindness of Robert; but he ap¬
pears to have excited a tender interest in the bosom of
the king’s natural daughter, for whom he composed seve¬
ral works both in prose and verse, and whom he often de¬
signates by the name of Fiammetta. Endowed with all
exterior advantages, of a lively and joyous disposition,
possessing an amiable and yielding character, and the fa¬
voured lover of the daughter of a king, it is not surprising
that he should have then felt less inclination than ever for
mercantile occupations and pursuits. The sprightly taste
of the princess, the intimate companionship of men of let¬
ters, the impression made upon him in a walk near Naples
by the tomb of Virgil, the presence of Petrarch, who was
treated with the most marked distinction by the court,
being then about to proceed to Rome, there to receive the
laurel crown, and probably, also, his first intercourse with
this celebrated man, whose intimate friend and associate he
was afterwards to become,—all contributed to strengthen
his natural inclination, and to decide his vocation as a
literary man and a poet.
After a residence of two years with his father at Flo¬
rence, he returned to Naples, and was favourably received
by the queen, Jane; and it is believed that it was as
much to gratify the young queen as his dear Fiammetta,
that he began the Decameron, or collection of a hundred
tales, which places him, without a rival, in the first rank
of Italian prose-writers. Having lost his father, and being
thus at liberty to follow his own inclination, he went to
settle at Florence, where his studies suffered no interrup¬
tion except what was occasioned by pleasure, and some
honourable missions with which he was charged by his
fellow-citizens. Among other offices of this kind, he was
the person selected to go to Padua, and carry to Petrarch
the intelligence of his recall, and of the restitution that
had been made of the property of his father, who, formerly
banished from Florence, had since died in exile; and it
was in the execution of this mission that he formed with
his illustrious contemporary that close and intimate friend¬
ship which only ceased with their lives. Some years
afterwards, having involved himself in embarrassments by
his expenditure in the purchase of books and his taste for
pleasure, he was generously relieved by Petrarch, who not
only afforded him pecuniary aid, but gave him good coun¬
sel both as to his works and his conduct, and was mainly
instrumental in bringing about the change which subse¬
quently took place in his habits and character. A course
of pleasure or dissipation is sure, sooner or later, to ter¬
minate in satiety, ennui, heart-sickness, and remorse ; and
when this crisis actually comes on, the presence and coun¬
sels of a tender and judicious friend may not only serve
to check the moral re-action before it proceeds too far,
AGIO, 723
but may also give a new and salutary direction to the Boccacio.
mind and feelings of the penitent. Petrarch performed
this important office to his friend. The exhortations of
a Carthusian monk had at first inspired the latter with an
extravagant scheme of reform, being nothing less than an
entire renunciation of the world, and of those studies which
are denominated profane ; but Petrarch brought him back
to better views, and kept him steadily in that just medium
which is the position recommended by true wisdom.
Some new troubles having about this time broken out
in Florence, Boccacio withdrew to Certaldo, where he
possessed a small territory, in order to continue his pur¬
suits in tranquillity. Hitherto he had only written in the
vulgar tongue, and produced works of mere amusement;
but now he composed several, which he wrote in Latin, on
subjects of erudition and history; and one of these trea¬
tises is the first modern work in which a collection was
made of all the mythological notions which are scattered
throughout the writings of the ancients. Fie knew Greek
very well, having brought, at his own expense, from
Venice to Florence, Leontius Pilatus of Thessalonica, and
entertained him for three years, in order to learn of him
that language, to read with the learned refugee the Iliad
and the Odyssey, and to translate both from beginning to
end into Latin. He had also the glory of procuring from
Greece, at his own expense, copies of these immortal works;
nor did his zeal in the cause of classical learning stop here;
for he spared neither pains nor expense in order to obtain
good Greek and Latin manuscripts, and employed all his
influence to induce his contemporaries to learn Greek,
and to substitute the study of antiquity for that of the
scholastic sciences, which alone had hitherto been encou¬
raged. Auspicious for the cause of true learning, these
efforts added to the reputation and authority of Boccacio.
He was twice charged with important embassies from the
republic of Florence to Pope Urban V., and executed
them in a manner creditable to himself and satisfactory to
his countrymen. He then returned to Certaldo, and re¬
sumed his favourite studies; but a long and grievous ma¬
lady, with which he was now attacked, reduced him to a
state of languor and depression more painful than even
the disease itself. On recovering somewhat, he under¬
took a difficult, but to him most agreeable, task. He had
always been an ardent admirer of Dante; he knew by
heart nearly the whole of his poem, and had copied it
several times with his own hand. The Florentines, who
had persecuted and exiled this great poet, wishing now
to honour and vindicate his memory, instituted, by a de¬
cree of the senate, a public chair for the explication of
this poem, which, although it contained many sublime
things, was nevertheless filled with obscurities and diffi¬
culties, certain to increase with the progress of time, and
in proportion as we are removed from the period in which
the author wrote; and it was on Boccacio that they con¬
ferred the new professorship. But the efforts which he
made to fulfil the expectations of his countrymen retard¬
ed his convalescence ; the death of Petrarch, bis master
and friend, which took place at this time, and was sud¬
denly communicated to him, proved a stunning blow; he
became daily weaker and weaker; and in little more than
a year he died at Certaldo, on the 21st December 1375,
in the sixty-second year of his age.
Boccacio was indeed born a poet; he was so in all his
works of imagination, at least in invention if not in style.
All that he has written in verse is mediocre; several of
his Italian works in prose are also poor enough. He is
only superior and inimitable in his novels, of which never¬
theless he made small account. Like his master Petrarch,
he believed that his serious works, written in Latin, form¬
ed his best title to fame; yet his reputation rests exclu-
724 B O C C
Boccado. sively on a simple collection of tales, as that of Petrarch
w-v~w' dogs on his amatory verses. Every thing he has written
in Latin bears a character of crude precipitation, which,
however, is less the effect of negligence in the author,
than of those difficulties and obstacles which were then
opposed to the composition of such works. In his youth
he had flattered himself with the idea of obtaining the
second place in poetry by his verses; his admiration of
Dante did not allow him to aspire to the first; and the
Italian poems of Petrarch were as yet unknown to him.
But as soon as he became acquainted with the latter, he
threw into the fire the greater part of his lyric verses,
sonnets, canzoni, and other amatory poems; and those
which' have since been published are merely such as, in
spite of himself, escaped this act of severity. But the
fortunate result of his disgust with his poetical productions
was to induce Boccacio to write with greater care in prose,
and to give to his language a perfection, rhythm, harmony,
and elegance in the tournure of expression, which it had
hitherto wanted, and which Italian, with all its capabili¬
ties, has never attained to the same degree in the hands
of any other writer. His style may be characterized in two
words; it is simplex munditiis; grace, elegance, and sim¬
plicity combined are its peculiar attributes; and so skil¬
fully is the art of the writer concealed in the very perfec¬
tion of his work, that while the charm diffused over it proves
irresistible to readers of every class, it seems a spontaneous
emanation of his mind, the result of mere volition, without
labour, without effort, and without premeditation. The
following is a tolerably correct list of Boccacio’s different
works:
1. De Genealogia Deomm libri xv. De Montium, Syl-
varum, Lacuum, Fluviorum, et Marium nominibus, liber.
The first edition of these two works united is in folio,
without date, but it is supposed to have been printed at
Venice prior to 1472, which is the date of the second edi¬
tion. A third was printed the following year, and there
have since been several at Venice, Paris, and Basel. The
treatise on the Genealogy of the Gods was the fruit of im¬
mense reading; and as there existed at that time no simi¬
lar work in which information might be obtained respect¬
ing the mythology of the ancients, its success was prodi¬
gious. In this production Boccacio cites several authors
no longer extant, and derives from them particulars which
are only to be found in his book. This work, translated
into Italian by Joseph Betusi, has gone through twelve or
thirteen editions, the first being that of Venice, 1574, in
4to. There are also two French translations; the first at
Paris in 1498, in folio, reprinted in 1531, also in folio, and
the second at Paris in 1578, in 8vo. The little Treatise
on Mountains, Forests, Lakes, Fivers, and Seas, has also
been translated into Italian; it is in quarto, but without date
or name of place.
2. De Casibus Virorum et Fceminarum Illustrium, libri
ix. The Paris edition of this treatise is in folio, and
dated 1535, 1544. It was translated into Italian by Be¬
tusi, Venice, 1545, 8vo; into English by John Ludgate,
London, 1494, folio, reprinted in the same form in 1527;
into Spanish by D. Pedro Lopez de Ayala, and D. Juan
de Zamora, Seville, 1495, Toledo, 1511, folio; into Ger¬
man by Jerome Ziegler, Augsburg, 1545, folio; and seve¬
ral times into French, first by an anonymous translator,
Bruges, 1476, folio; next by Laurens du Premier-fait,
Paris, 1483, folio, and at Lyons the same year; and, lastly,
by Claude Witard, Paris, 1578, 8vo.
3. De Claris Mulieribus. The first edition is without
date or name of place; the second was published at Ulm in
1473, and, like the first, is in folio. The work was translated
into Italian by Vincent Bagli, a Florentine, Venice, 1506,
4to, and by Joseph Betusi, who made several additions,
AGIO.
and prefixed a life of Boccacio, Venice, 1545 and 1547,8vo. Bf
There are also Spanish, French, and German versions. ^
4. Eclogce. These eclogues, sixteen in number, were
printed, along with those of Virgil, Calphurnius, Neme-
sianus, Petrarch, and Gauricus, at Florence in 1504, and
again at Basel in 1546, in the Bucolicorum Autores.
5. La Teseide, the first Italian poem which presents a
specimen of the epopee. It is written in the ottava rima,
of which Boccacio is usually considered as the inventor,
Ferrara, 1475, folio; Venice, 1528, 4to; Paris, 1597, 12mo,
a French translation.
6. Amorosa Visione, Milan 1520 and 1521, in 4to, with
grammatical observations, and a defence of Boccacio by
Claricio d’lmola, Venice, 1531, 8vo.
7. II Filostrato, a romantic poem in ottava rima, the
hero of which is the young Troilus, son of Priam, and the
subject his amours with Chryseis, whom the poet makes
the daughter of Chalcas, Bologna, 1498, 4to; Milan, 1499,
4to; Venice, 1501 and 1528, 4to.
8. Nimfale Fiesolano, a poem also in the ottava rima,
in which, under the veil of pastoral fiction, Boccacio is
supposed to give an account of a gallant adventure which
occurred at Florence in his time. Venice, 1477, 4to;
Paris, Molini, 1778, 8vo.
9. Rime, or poems on various subjects, being such as
escaped the flames when the author resolved to burn all
his verses. They have been several times collected; but
Baldelli’s edition, printed at Leghorn in 1802, is the best.
10. II Filocopo, ovvero Amorosa Fatica, &c. a romance,
written by the author when very young, and wholly de¬
void of interest. It is unconscionably long, and despe¬
rately tedious; and the style, which is sometimes flat and
at other times bombastical, gives no promise of that purity
of diction which Boccacio afterwards attained. Venice,
1472, folio; Milan, 1476 and 1478, folio; Venice, 1514,
4to; Paris, 1542, folio, and 1555, 8vo.
11. L'Amorosa Fiammetta, another romance, in no de¬
gree superior to II Filostrato. Padua, 1472, 4to; Venice,
1481, 4to; Paris, 1585, 1609, 12mo.
12. L'Urbano, Florence, 1598, 8vo; translated into
French under the title of Urbain le Mescogneu, Lyons,
without date.
13. Ameto or Nimfale d'Ameto, a work written in prose,
intermixed with verse, and the earliest specimen of this
kind of composition. Rome and Venice, 1478, 4to ; Tre¬
viso, 1479, 4to; Venice, 1503, folio; Florence, 1521, 8vo.
14. II Corbaccio, o sia Laberinto d'Amore, a bitter and
coarse invective against some female who had displeased
him after his return to Florence. The indecency of this
production is abominable, but the purity and beauty of the
style have caused it to be sought after. Florence, 1487,
4to; Venice, 1516, 24to, and 1528, 8vo; Paris, 1569, 8vo.
15. Origine, Vita et Costumi di Dante Alighieri, Rome,
1544, 8vo ; Florence, 1576, 8vo. In this life of Dante
Boccacio shows himself more of a romancer than a bio¬
grapher ; but it is nevertheless interesting on account of
several curious anecdotes it contains, and also by reason
of the style, which is every way worthy of Boccacio.
16. Commento sopra la Commedia di Dante Alighieri, no
invaluable work, containing a great number of explications
of difficult passages in Dante, although almost suffocated
by a multitude of details foreign to the intelligence of the
text. This commentary, which embodies the lessons de¬
livered publicly by Boccacio at Florence, when he was at¬
tacked with the malady of which he died, was not printed
till the eighteenth century. It extends only to the 17th
chapter of the Inferno, and occupies the two last volumes
of the collection of Boccacio’s works in Italian prose, pub¬
lished at Naples, with the false imprint of Florence, in 6
vols. 8vo, 1724.
BOG
.jcio 17* Lastly, U Decamerone, Boccacio’s principal title to
[I . immortality, and of all works extant, that, perhaps, of
d®* which it is the most difficult to convey a tolerably accu¬
rate idea in few words. To regard it merely as a collec¬
tion of gallant and licentious tales, is to entertain a very
false notion indeed of this extraordinary work. The
greater part of the poets, it is true, who have borrowed
from this source, have indeed taken little else from it than
licentiousness ; but it is their fault more than that of the
author, if their draughts have been so confined. In the De¬
cameron, Boccacio has painted, as on an immense canvass,
men of all conditions, of all characters, of all ages; and
described events of every kind, from the freest and the
gayest to the most touching and the most tragical. He has
also given models of all sorts of eloquence, and carried his
language to a pitch of perfection unknown before his time,
and unrivalled since. For three centuries after it appear¬
ed it was constantly reprinted, and more than a hundred
different editions might be enumerated ; to say nothing of
translations into every language of Europe which is con¬
nected with an independent literature. At the same time
it has experienced singular vicissitudes. From the date
of the first edition in 1470, liberties of every kind were
taken with the text, particularly in the more licentious
parts, which led to its prohibition by two popes, Paul IV.
and Pius IV.; some academicians also undertook to re¬
form the Decameron; important corrections as well as
suppressions were made ; and several editions, thus amend¬
ed, appeared. But in order to judge of the work as it pro¬
ceeded from the hand of Boccacio, we must revert to the
older editions, or to those which have followed them. The
rarestand dearest is that of Florence, 1527, in 4to. Of this,
however, an exact copy was printed at Venice in 1729, but
bearing at the end the name of Florence and the date of
1527. It is nevertheless easily distinguishable by those
marks which are known to bibliographers. The curious
ought to have, also, for comparison, the edition amended
by the Florentine academicians, conformably to the orders
of the grand duke of Tuscany, and approved by Gregory
XIII. It will show, on the one hand, to what a state the
master-piece of Boccacio had been reduced; and, on the
other, excite surprise at the remnants of the old interpo¬
lations which are preserved, and invested with the ponti¬
fical sanction. I his edition was printed at Florence in
1573, in 4to. The edition of Salviati, who undertook a
new reform, appeared at Venice in 1584, in 4to. In both
these reformed editions the portion of the text respected
and left untouched is of extreme purity. It would be
endless to attempt an enumeration of other editions, or of
the translations which have been made into different lan¬
guages. (Biographic Universelle, Crescembeni.') (a.)
BOCCALE, or Bocal, a liquid measure used at Rome,
answering to what among us is called a bottle, and equiva¬
lent to about an English quart. Seven boccales and a half
make a rubia.
BOCCALINI, Trajan, a celebrated satirical writer,
born at Loretto in 1556, who obtained the admiration of
all Italy by his refined and delicate criticisms. Sovereign
princes themselves did not escape the lash of his satire.
The cardinals Borghese and Gaetan having declared them¬
selves his protectors, he published his Ragguagli di Par-
nassc, and La Segretaria d'Apollo, which is the continua¬
tion of the former. These two works were received by
the public with uncommon applause. He there feigns, that
Apollo, holding his court at Parnassus, heard the complaints
of the whole world, and did justice according as the cases
required. He at length printed his Pietra del Paragone, in
which he attacks the court and government of Spain, set¬
ting forth their designs against the liberty of Italy, and
inveighing particularly against them for the tyranny they
BOG
exercised in the kingdom of Naples. The Spaniards com-
plained or him in form, and were determined at any rate
to be revenged. Boccalini became frightened, and retired
to Venice; but he was there assassinated in a very ex¬
traordinary manner. Lodging with one of his friends,
the latter happened, on one occasion, to get up early of a
morning, leaving Boccalini in bed. A minute after, some
ai med men entered his chamber, and gave him so many
blows with bags full of sand, that they left him for
dead ; so that his friend, returning in a short time, found
him speechless. Great search was made at Venice for
the authors of this murder; but although they were
never discovered, it was universally believed that they
had been employed by the court of Spain, which he
had lashed with great severity. This story, however,
is questioned by Mazzuchelli in his Scrittori dItalia. The
works which Boccalini has left are, 1. Ragguagli di Par-
nasso, in two centuries, Venice, 1612 and 1613, 4to; 2.
Pietra del Paragone Politico, Cosmopoli (Amsterdam)
1615, 4to; 3. Commentarj sopra Cornelia Tacito, Gene-
va, 1669, and Amsterdam 1677, 4to; 4. La Segretaria
dApollo, Amsterdam, 1653, 24to.
BOCGARELLA, in the glass manufacture, a small hole
or aperture of the furnace, placed on the side of the bocca,
and almost horizontal with it. Out of this and another
similar aperture the servitors take coloured or finer metal
from the piling pot.
BOCCONE, Paolo Sylvio, a celebrated natural his¬
torian, born at Palermo in Sicily in 1633. After he had
gone through the usual course of study, he applied him¬
self chiefly to natural history, in which he made great
progress. He was afterwards ordained priest, and enter¬
ed into the Cistertian order; but this new way of life did
not in the least divert him from his favourite study; for
he pursued it with greater vigour than ever, and travelled
not only over Sicily, but likewise visited the isle of Malta,
Italy, the Low Countries, England, France, Germany, Po¬
land, anti several other nations; and, in 1696, was ad¬
mitted a member of the academy of the virtuosi in Ger¬
many. Upon his return to Sicily, he retired to a convent
of his own order near Palermo, where he died in 1704,
being then seventy-one years of age. He left many cu¬
rious works, amongst which may be mentioned, 1. Be-
cherches et Observations Naturelles touchant le Corail, la
Pierre EtoiUe, et VEmbrdsement du Mont Etna, Paris, 1671
and 1674; 2. Museo di Fisica e di Esperienze, Venice,
1697; 3. Osservazioni NaturaU, Bologna, 1684; 4. Della
Pietra Belzuar minerale Siciliana, Monteleone, 1669; 5.
Appendix ad Museum de Plantis Siculis, without date or
place.
BOCHAIIT, Samuel, one of the most learned men of
the seventeenth century, was born at Rouen in Normandy
in the year 1599. He early made great progress in learn¬
ing, and became a proficient in the oriental languages.
He was many years pastor of a Protestant church at
Caen, and became tutor to Wentworth Dillon, earl of
Roscommon, and author of the Essay on Translated Verse.
Wliile at Caen, he particularly distinguished himself by
his public disputations with Father Veron, a Jesuit, and
celebrated as a polemic. The dispute was held in the
castle of Caen, in the presence of a great number of Ca¬
tholics and Protestants, including among the former the
duke of Longueville. Bochart came off with great honour ;
and his reputation was not a little increased, in the year
1646, by the publication of his Phaleg and Chanaan, which
are the titles of the two parts of his Geographia Sacra.
He also acquired great fame by his Hierozoicon, printed
in London in 1675, which treats of the sacred animals of
Scripture. _ The great learning he displayed in his works
rendered him esteemed not only among those of his own
725
Boccarella
II
Bochart.
726 B O C BOD
Bochius profession, but amongst all lovers of knowledge, of whatso-
II ever denomination. In 1652, Christina, queen of Sweden,
Bock- jnvited him to Stockholm: he repaired thither accom-
_)_an- / panied by Huet, and was very well received. On his re-
jurn to Caen he resumed the functions of the ministry,
married, and was received into the academy of that city.
Bochart was a man of profound erudition ; he possessed a
thorough knowledge of the principal oriental languages,
including the Hebrew, Syriac, Chaldaic, and Arabic; and
such was his zeal for extending his acquirements, that at
an advanced age he wished to learn Ethiopic. He was
also remarkable for modesty and candour ; but, like all
scholars who have become deeply imbued with the lan¬
guage which has formed the favourite object of their
studies, he saw Phoenician, and nothing but Phoenician,
in every thing, even in the words of the Celtic ; and hence
the prodigious number of chimerical etymologies which
swarm in his works. He died on the 16th of May 1667,
in the sixty-eighth year of his age. A complete edition
of his works was published at Leyden, under the title of
Sam. Bochart Opera Omnia: hoc est; Phaleg, Chanaan,
sen Geographia Sacra, et Hierozoicon, sen de Animalibus
sacris Sacrce Scripturcc, et Dissertationes Varice, 1675, 2
vols. folio ; 1692, 1712, 3 vols. folio.
BOCHIUS, or Bocqui, John, a Latin poet, born at
Brussels in 1555. He travelled into Italy, Germany, Po¬
land, and Muscovy, and at his return became secretary to
the duke of Parma. He died on the 13th of January 1609.
The critics in the Netherlands set so great a value on his
poetry, that they gave him the name of the Belgic Virgil.
He wrote, 1. De Belgii Principatu ; 2. Parodia Heroica
Psalmorum Davidicorum ; 3. Observationes Physicee, Ethi-
cce, Politicce, et BListoricce, in Psalmos ; 4. Vita Davidis ;
5. Orationes ; 6. Poemata.
BOCHNIA, a circle in the Austrian province of Gali¬
cia. It extends over 860 square miles, or 550,400 acres, and
comprehends five cities, nine towns, and 377 villages, and
about 200,000 inhabitants. It is a fine tract of country,
at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains. Some parts are
very woody, and the others better adapted for breeding
and feeding cattle than for arable husbandry. The most
important object is the vast salt mine of Wieliczka. There
are also mines of iron. The capital of the circle is a city
of the same name, about one mile from the Raba, con¬
taining 3540 inhabitants. It is in longitude 20. 20. E. and
latitude 49. 57. 15. N.
BOCHTHEIM, a town, the chief of a canton on the
Rhine, in the duchy of Hesse Darmstadt, celebrated for
its good wine. It stands on the Wedelgraben, and con¬
tains about 2000 inhabitants. The canton has 16,480 in¬
habitants.
BOCHUM, a circle in the Prussian government of Arns-
berg, and province of Westphalia. It extends over 136
square miles, or 86,040 acres, and contains four cities and
several villages and hamlets, with 28,801 inhabitants. It is
a good corn-growing district, and not very woody or hilly.
The chief place, of the same name as the circle, contains a
church for each of the three religious professions, a free
school under the direction of the Lutherans, 314 houses,
and 2122 inhabitants, who are occupied in making cloth
and hardwares. Long. 7. 5. 54. E. Lat. 51. 29. 50. N.
BOCKING, a town in the hundred of Hinckford, in the
county of Essex, 40 miles from London. It is celebrated
for the manufacture of a particular description of baize,
which found a ready vent in the markets of Spain ; but of
late years the trade has declined, from the superior advan¬
tages enjoyed by the rival fabrics in the north of England.
The inhabitants amounted in 1801 to 2680, in 1811 to
2544, and in 1821 to 2786.
BOCK-Land, in the Saxon time, is what we now call
freehold lands, held by the better sort of persons by char- Bo •;*.
ter or deed in writing; by which name it was distinguish¬
ed from folk-land or copyhold land, holden by the com- Be 'jj ,
mon people without writing. sj-.
BODERIA, or Bodotria, the ancient name for the
Frith of Forth in Scotland.
BODIN, John, a native of Anglers, where he was bom
about the year 1530, was one of the ablest men in France
in the sixteenth century, and famous for his Methodus ad
facilem Historiarum cognitionem, his Republic, and other
works. He was in great favour with Henry III. who im¬
prisoned Michel de La Serre for writing an injm*ious piece
against Bodin ; but this favour was not of long continuance.
The duke of Alen^on, however, gave him several employ¬
ments, and carried him to England as one of his coun¬
sellors, where he had the pleasure and glory of seeing his
books on the Commonwealth read publicly in the univer¬
sity of Cambridge, having been translated from the French
into Latin. In the Ragguaglia of Boccalini he is con¬
demned to the fire as an atheist, for having said in his books
that liberty of conscience ought to be granted to sectaries.
He declared himself with much freedom against those
who asserted that the authority of monarchs is unli¬
mited ; and yet he displeased the republicans. Upon the
death of the duke of Alencon, Bodin retired to Laon,
where he married; and in the time of Charles IX. he was the
king’s solicitor, with a commission for the forests of Nor¬
mandy. He died of the plague, at Laon, in 1596. Besides
his Methodus, and Six Livres de la Republique which La-
harpe justly describes as containing the germ of the Spirit of
Laws, Bodin wrote Commentaire surles Livres de la Chasse
d'Oppien, Paris, 1555, in 4to; Demonomanie, Paris, 1581,
in 4to; Fleau des Demons et Sorciers, 1616, in 8vo ; Uni-
versce Naturce Theatrum, Lyons, 1596, in 8vo ; Paradoxes,
doctes et excellents Discours de la Vertu touchant la Fin et
Souverain Bien de lHomme, Paris, 1604; and Colloquium
Heptaplomeron de abditis Rerum sublimium Arcanis, which
has never been printed.
BODKIN, a small instrument made of steel, bone,
ivory, or the like, used for making holes.
BODLEY, Sir Thomas, founder of the Bodleian li¬
brary at Oxford, was born at Exeter in Devonshire in
1544. When he was about twelve years of age, his father,
Mr John Bodley, being a Protestant, was obliged to leave
the kingdom. He settled at Geneva with his family, and
continued there till the death of Queen Mary. In that
university, then in its infancy, young Bodley studied the
learned languages, and other branches, under several emi¬
nent professors. On the accession of Queen Elizabeth, he
returned with his father to England, and was soon after
entered of Magdalen College, Oxford. In 1563 he took
the degree of bachelor of arts, and the year following was
admitted a fellow of Merton College. In 1565 he read a
Greek lecture in the hall of that college. He took the
degree of master of arts the year after, and read natu¬
ral philosophy in the public schools. In 1569 he was one
of the proctors of the university, and for some time af¬
ter officiated as public orator. In the year 1576 he quit¬
ted Oxford, and made the tour of Europe. On returning
to his college after four years absence, he became gentle¬
man-usher to Queen Elizabeth ; and in 1585 he married
the widow of Mr Bell, daughter of Mr Carew of Bristol,
a lady of considerable fortune. Mr Bodley was soon after
sent as ambassador to the king of Denmark, and other
German princes. He was next charged with an important
commission to Henry IV. of France ; and in 1588 he went
as ambassador to the United Provinces, where he con¬
tinued till the year 1597. On his return to England, find¬
ing his preferment obstructed by the jarring interests of
Burleigh and Essex, he retired from court, and could never
BOD
] min afterwards be prevailed on to accept of any public employ¬
ment. He now began the foundation of the Bodleian li-
! brary, which was completed in 1599. Soon after the ac-
^ ^ cession of King James I. he received the honour of knight¬
hood. He died on the 28th of January 1612, and was bu¬
ried in the choir of Merton College. His monument is of
black and white marble, on which stands his effigy in a
scholar’s gown, surrounded with books. At the four cor¬
ners are the emblematical figures of Grammar, Rhetoric,
Music, and Arithmetic, with a short inscription, signify¬
ing his age and the time of his death. Sir Thomas Bodley
was a polite scholar, an able statesman, and a worthy man.
Mr Granger observes, that he merited much as a man of
letters, but incomparably more in the ample provision he
made for literature, in which he stands unrivalled; and
that his library is a mausoleum which will perpetuate his
memory as long as books themselves endure. Sir Thomas
wrote his own life to the year 1609 ; which, together with
the first draught of the Statutes, and his Letters, have
been published from the originals in the Bodleian library,
by Mr Thomas Hearn, under the title of “ Reliquice Bod-
leiance, or Authentic Remains of Sir Thomas Bodley;”
London, 1703, in 8vo.
BODMIN, a borough-town of the hundred of Trigg,
in the county of Corawmll, 234 miles from London. It is
one of the county towns ; the assizes and quarter-sessions
being held here alternately with Launceston. The county
jail and house of correction are handsome buildings of
modern erection. The little trade in serges has nearly
become extinct. The corporation consists of a mayor
and eleven burgesses, who return two members to the
House of Commons, and are now under the influence of
the Marquis of Hertford. The inhabitants amounted in
1801 to 1951, in 1811 to 2050, and in 1821 to 2902. The
market is held on Saturday.
BODONI, Giambatista, superintendent of the royal
press at Parma, chief printer to his catholic majesty, mem¬
ber of various academies in Italy, and knight of several
orders, was born in 1740, at Saluzzo in Piedmont, where
his father owned a printing establishment. While yet a
boy, he began to employ himself in engraving on wood;
and his labours meeting with success, he at length went
to Rome, where he was admitted as a compositor for the
press of the Propaganda. By the advice of the superin¬
tendent, he made himself acquainted with the oriental
languages, in order to qualify himself for the kind of print¬
ing required in them ; and he was thus enabled to render
essential service to the Propaganda press, by restoring
and accurately distributing the types of several oriental
alphabets which had fallen into disorder. About the year
1760, the Infanta Don Ferdinand having established in
Parma a printing-house on the model of those in Paris,
Madrid, and Turin, Bodoni was placed at the head of
this establishment, which he soon rendered the first of the
kind in Europe, and gained the reputation of having sur¬
passed the most splendid productions of his predecessors.
The beauty of his typography, indeed, as well as the
whole management of the technical part of the work, leaves
nothing further to be desired; but the intrinsic value of
his editions is seldom equal to their outward splendour.
His Homer, however, is a truly magnificent work; and,
indeed, his Greek letters are the most perfect imitations
that have been executed in modern times of the best
Creek manuscript. His editions of the Greek, Latin,
Italian, and French classics, are all highly prized for their
typographical splendour, and some of them are not less
remarkable for their accuracy. Bodoni died at Padua on
the 29th of November 1813, aged seventy-three. Some
years after his death appeared a magnificent work in two
volumes quarto, entitled Manuale Tipogrqfico, containing
B (E O
specimens of the vast collection of types which had be¬
longed to this celebrated typographer, together with his
portrait.
BOECE, or Boethius, Hector. See Boyce, Hector.
BOEDROMIA, in Antiquity, solemn feasts held at
Athens in memory of the succour brought by Ion to the
Athenians, when invaded by Eumolpus, son of Neptune, in
the reign of Erectheus. Plutarch gives another account
of the Boedromia, which, according to him, were cele¬
brated in commemoration of the victory obtained by The¬
seus over the Amazons, in the month of Boedromion.
BOEDROMION, in Chronology, the third month of
the Athenian year, answering to the latter part of our
August and beginning of September.
BOEHMEN, Jacob, called by his disciples the Teu¬
tonic Theosophist, and founder of the sect of Boehmists,
was born in 1575, at a village near Goerlitz in Upper Lau-
satia. He was bred a shoemaker, and marrying, support¬
ed a large family by this occupation ; until, after amusing
himself with chemistry, a visionary turn of mind, heated
by sermons and German divinity, got the better of his
common sense, and produced raptures, mystical ecstacies,
and notions of divine illumination. These he first gave
vent to in 1612, by means of a treatise entitled Aurora,
or the Rising of the Sun ; being a mixture or jumble of
astrological, philosophical, chemical, and theological ex¬
travagances, written in a quaint obscure style. This was
censured by the magistrates of Goerlitz, who at the in¬
stigation of the clergy caused it to be seized and prohi¬
bited ; but Boehmen, nevertheless, continued to dream
and to scribble, and in 1619 published his treatise Be
Tribus Principiis, inculcating a species of Spinozism,
namely, that the operations of grace are subjected to laws
analogous to those which nature has imposed in the puri¬
fication of metals, and that God is to be regarded as the
matter of the universe, which has produced every thing by
way of emanation. After this he went to Dresden, where
he was examined by some theologians more indulgent
than those of Goeriitz, and found irreproachable. Soon
after his return, in 1624, he died at Goerlitz, leaving a
great number of treatises On the Celestial and Terrestrial
Mystery, and on the Intellectual Life. “ It is not possible.,”
says Mosheim, “to find greater obscurity than there is in
these pitiable writings, which exhibit an incongruous mix¬
ture of chemical terms,mystical jargon,andabsurd visions.”
Nevertheless, in the last century, Boehmen found a zeal¬
ous apologist in William Law, author of Christian Perfec¬
tion, who published an English translation of his work, in
two vols. 4to. He had a great many disciples, some of
whom, like Kuhlmann, who was burned at Moscow in 1684,
were wild and dangerous fanatics. All his works were
collected and reprinted at Amsterdam in 1730, under the
title of Theosophia Revelata.
BGiOTIA, the name of two ancient kingdoms, one of
which was founded, or rather restored, by Cadmus, and
named by him Bceotia, from the ox which is said to have
directed him to the place where he built the capital of his
new kingdom, better known afterwards by the name of
Thebes. The other Boeotia was in Thessaly, and is said to
have been founded by Bceotus, the son of Neptune by Arne
the daughter of iEolus king of fEolis. According to the
fable or tradition, the king sent his daughter to Metapon-
tum, a city of Italy, where she was delivered of two sons,
the elder of whom she called iEolus, after her father, and
the younger Bceotus. iEolus possessed himself of the
islands in the Tyrrhenian, now the Tuscan, Sea, and built
the city of Lipara. Bceotus, the younger son, went to his
grandfather, and succeeding him in his kingdom, called it
after his own name, and the capital city Arne, from his
mother. All that we know of these Boeotians is, that they
728 B O E
Boerhaave.held this settlement upwards of two centuries, and that
the Thessalians expelled them from it; upon which they
came and took possession of the country till then called
Cadmeis, and gave it the name of Bceotia. Diodorus and
Homer tell us that these Boeotians signalized themselves
in the Trojan war ; and the latter adds, that five of Bceo-
tus’s grandsons, Peneleus, Leitus, Prothcenor, Arcesilaus,
and Clonius, were the chiefs who led the Boeotian troops
thither.
BOERHAAVE, Herman, the most celebrated physi¬
cian of the eighteenth century, and one who without im¬
propriety may be opposed to the Galen of antiquity, if not
in extent of genius, at least for the number and variety of
his acquirements, the exclusive empire which his medical
system obtained, and the immense celebrity which he en¬
joyed during his life. He was born in 1668, at Worhout, a
village near Leyden. At the age of sixteen he found him¬
self without parents, protection, advice, or fortune. He had
already studied theology and the other ecclesiastical sci¬
ences, with the view of devoting himself to a clerical life ;
but the science of nature, which had equally occupied his
mind, soon engrossed his whole attention. This illustrious
person, whose name afterwards spread throughout the
world, and who left at his death above L.200,000, could at
that time barely live by his labours, and was compelled to
teach mathematics in order to obtain the means of sub¬
sistence. But in 1693 he was received as doctor of physic,
and began practice ; and his merit having been discover¬
ed, many powerful friends patronized him, and procured
him three valuable appointments; first, that of professor
of medicine in the university of Leyden ; secondly, that of
professor of chemistry; and thirdly, that of professor of
botany. The Academy of Sciences of Paris, and the Royal
Society of London, each invited him to become one of their
members ; and he communicated to both his discoveries
in chemistry. In Boerhaave’s time the city of Leyden be¬
came the school of Europe for this science, as well as for
medicine and botany. All the princes of Europe sent him
disciples, who found in this skilful professor not only an
indefatigable teacher, but an affectionate guardian, who en¬
couraged them to pursue their labours, consoled them in
their afflictions, and solaced them in their wants. When
Peter the Great went to Holland in 1715, to instruct him¬
self in maritime affairs, he also attended Boerhaave in
order to receive lessons. The reputation of the latter ex¬
tended as far as China : a mandarin wrote to him a letter
superscribed with this direction, “ To the illustrious Boer¬
haave, physician in Europeand it reached him in due
course. The city of Leyden has raised a monument in
the church of St Peter, to the salutary genius of Boer¬
haave, Salutifero Boerhaavii genio sacrum.
From the time of Hippocrates, no physician had more
justly merited the esteem of his contemporaries, and the
thanks of posterity, than Boerhaave. To an uncommon
genius and extraordinary talents he united those quali¬
ties of the heart which give them so great a value to so¬
ciety. His appearance was decent, simple, venerable, and,
latterly, almost patriarchal. He was an eloquent orator, and
discoursed with dignity and grace. He taught very metho¬
dically, and with great precision ; he never tired his audi¬
tors, who always regretted when his discourses were finish¬
ed. He would sometimes also give them a lively turn ; but
his raillery was refined and ingenious, and it enlivened the
subject he treated of, without carrying with it any thing
severe or satirical. A declared foe to all excess, he con¬
sidered decent mirth as the salt of life. It was the daily
practice of this eminent person, throughout his life, as
soon as he rose in the morning, which was generally very
early, to retire for an hour to private prayer, and medita¬
tion on some part of the Scriptures. He often told his
B O E
friends, when they asked him how it was possible forhimBoi aat
to go through so much fatigue, that it was this practice ^
which gave him spirit and vigour in the business of the
day. He therefore recommended it as the best rule he
could give ; for nothing, said he, can tend more to the
health of the body than the tranquillity of the mind.
Of his sagacity, and the wonderful penetration with
which he often discovered and described, at first sight,
such distempers as betray themselves by no symptoms to
common eyes, very surprising accounts have been trans¬
mitted to us. Yet this great master of medical knowledge
was so far from having presumptuous confidence in his
own abilities, or from being puffed up by riches, that he
was condescending to all, and remarkably diligent in his
profession ; and he used often to observe that the life of a
patient, if trifled with or neglected, would one day be re¬
quired at the hand of the physician. The activity of his
mind sparkled visibly in his eyes. He was always cheerful,
and desirous of promoting every valuable end of conversa¬
tion, of which the excellency of the Christian religion was
frequently the subject; for he asserted, on all proper occa¬
sions, the divine authority and sacred efficacy of the Scrip¬
tures. He never regarded calumny nor detraction,—for
even Boerhaave himself had enemies,—nor in any instance
thought it necessary to confute them. “ They are sparks,”
said he, “ which, if you do not blow them, will go out of
themselves. The surest remedy against scandal, is to live
it down by a perseverance in well-doing ; and by praying to
God that he would cure the distempered minds of those
who traduce and injure us.” Being once asked by a friend,
who had often admired his patience under great provoca¬
tions, whether he knew what it was to be angry, and by
what means he had so entirely suppressed that impetuous
and ungovernable passion, he answered, with the utmost
frankness and sincerity, that he wTas naturally quick of re¬
sentment; but that, by daily prayer and meditation, he
had at length attained to this mastery over himself.
About the middle of the year 1737 he felt the first ap¬
proaches of that fatal illness which brought him to the
grave ; namely, a disorder in the chest, which was at times
very painful, often threatening him with immediate suffo¬
cation, and which terminated in an universal dropsy. But
during this afflictive and lingering illness, his constancy and
firmness did not forsake him; he neither intermitted the
necessary cares of life, nor forgot the proper preparations
for death. About three weeks before his dissolution, when
the Rev. Mr Schultens, one of the most learned and ex¬
emplary divines of the age, attended him at his country-
house, the doctor desired his prayers, and afterwards en¬
tered into a most remarkably judicious discourse with him
on the spiritual and immaterial nature of the soul; and
this he illustrated to Mr Schultens with wonderful per¬
spicuity, by a description of the effects which the infirmi¬
ties of his body had upon his faculties ; which, however,
they did not so oppress or vanquish as to deprive his mind
of the mastery over itself. As death approached nearer,
he was so far from terror or confusion, that he seemed less
sensible of pain, and more cheerful under his sufferings,
which continued till the 23d day of September 1738,
when he died, between four and five in the morning, in
the seventieth year of his age ; often recommending to the
byestanders a careful observation of St John’s precepts
concerning the love of God and the love of man, as fre¬
quently inculcated in his first epistle, particularly in the
fifth chapter. His funeral oration was spoken in Latin
before the university of Leyden, to a very numerous audi¬
ence, by Mr Schultens, and afterwards published at their
particular desire.
When Boerhaave first directed his attention to medi¬
cine, the new philosophy of Bacon, and the creation oi
B O E
]t aave. the cxpsumcnttil a,it5 held ctiusGd the physiccil sciences
^ to make great advancement; and these, accordingly, oc¬
cupied all minds, whilst the healing art had but little
profited in consequence. It was overlooked or forgotten,
that, from its very origin, Hippocrates had applied to it
the very philosophy with which the learned were now
everywhere so enthusiastically occupied. His theory, how¬
ever, still continued to fluctuate between several doo-mas
equally remote from the truth. The chemists who, at the
revival of learning in Europe, had overturned the authority
of Galen, had to defend themselves against the sects of
the mechanicians, and of Bellini, which divided the do¬
minion of medicine between them. In a small portion of
Germany alone Stahl brought back men’s minds to the
judicious doctrine of Hippocrates, attributing all the move¬
ments in the animal economy to a force inherent in itself,
and different from the general forces of matter; but in
adopting a word, the meaning of which was by no means
precise, he rendered less general and less salutary the
influence which he would otherwise have produced. The
first perusal of Hippocrates appeared to have carried away
Boerhaave ; but this physician, endowed by nature with a
mind fitted for analysis, comparison, and combination, rather
than with a creative and inventive genius, was unable to
resist the influence of his age, and, above all, the effect of
his early studies. Having been a mathematician and na¬
tural philosopher before he became physician, he was con¬
stantly carried away by the first objects of his labour and
research ; and being more capable than any one else of
detecting the accessory affinities between these sciences
and that of man, he ran greater risk of being seduced by
them. But as every system, however vicious, has always,
along with the facts which it arranges and offers to ex¬
plain, a point of accordance more or less remote, he thought
that the best medical system would be that which should
unite and combine all opinions. Forgetting that living bodies
are free, during their life, from those movements to which
other bodies are imperiously constrained, or at least coun¬
terbalance them, and that all the acts which they perform
are the result of an activity which is peculiar to them;
overlooking, also, that those of the movements of the liv¬
ing economy which most easily admit an application of the
laws of physics and mechanics, have, nevertheless, as a
■primum mobile, the force of life, and only receive from the
forces of dead matter an accessory impulse; Boerhaave
wished to combine in one and the same theory the vital
philosophy of Hippocrates, the chemical principles of Syl¬
vius, the mechanism of Bellini, and many other incongrui¬
ties besides; attributing more, however, to the mechani¬
cal and chemical forces, which can never be but accessory,
t lan to the more profound and secret powers of life, which
are the principal. Thus the calibre of the vessels adjust¬
ed to the dimensions of the globules composing the li¬
quids of the body, formed, according to him, the hydrau-
hc relation on which depended the circulation of the hu¬
mours, their separation from the blood in the different
secretory organs, the morbific congestion of the blood in
various fluxions, in humours, inflammations, and such like;
and hence he concluded that all the efforts of the physi¬
cian should be directed to establish this relation, or rather
mecianical equilibrium. Nor did he stop even here. To the
mechanical hypotheses just mentioned he added others
ounded on chemical principles, when, in attempting to
explain the causes and the phenomena of diseases, he ad-
n ^le formation of pretended acrimonies in the blood,
F ich the physician ought, according to him, to have con-
s antly in view in order to neutralize them; acrimonies
nich were long famous in the language of the schools,
and which are still found in that of ordinary life. The
w iole phenomena of diseases, with the spontaneous evacua-
vol. iv. ‘ ‘
b o E
729
,wIy„WfliC!l theyJare ‘e1minated’ ani> constitute Boethiu
the. crises, find a ready explanation on this vicious system
which seems to offer a reason, when it only mystifies with
a word, involving a gratuitous hypothesis. In practice
however, theory receives many modifications; and there
can be little doubt, that in prescribing for patients, Boer¬
haave was more guided by experience and good sense
than by the strangely eclectic doctrine to which we have
here cursorily alluded.
The principal works of this illustrious physician are
1. Institvtiones Medicce, Leyden, 1708; 2. Aphorismi de
cognoscendis et curandis Morbis, Leyden, 1709 ; 3. Insti-
tutiones et Experimenta Chemice, Paris, 1724; l! Libellus
de Materia Medica, et Remediorum Formulis quee serviunt
Aphorismus. Van Swieten published Commentaries upon
his Aphorisms, in five vols. 4to; and several other works
all greatly esteemed.
BOETHIUS, or Boetius, Flavius Anicius Manlius
Iorquat-us Severinus, a prose as well as poetical writer
of the sixth century, was descended of one of the noblest
families of the city of Rome. The time of his birth is
stated to have been about that period in the Roman history
when Augustulus, whose fears had induced him to resign
the empire, was banished, and Odoacer, king of the Heru-
hans, began to reign in Italy; that is, in the year of Christ
476, or somewhat later. The father of Boethius dying
while he was yet an infant, his relations undertook the
care of his education and the direction of his studies.
His excellent parts were soon discovered; and, in order
to enrich his mind with the study of philosophy, and at
the same time to perfect him in the Greek language, he
was sent to Athens. Returning young to Rome, he was
soon distinguished for his learning and virtue, promoted
to the principal dignities in the state, and at length raised
to the consulate. Living in great affluence and splendour,
he addicted himself to the study of theology, mathema¬
tics, ethics, and logic ; and how great a master he became
in each of these branches of learning, appears from such
of his works as are now extant. The great offices which he
held in the state, and his consummate wisdom and inflexi¬
ble integrity, procured him a share in the public coun¬
cils, which in the end proved his destruction ; for as he em¬
ployed his interest with the emperor for the protection
and encouragement of deserving men, so he exerted his
utmost efforts in the detection of fraud, the repression of
violence, and the defence of the state against invaders.
At this time Theodoric the Goth had attempted to ravage
Campania; and it was owing to the vigilance and resolu¬
tion of Boethius that this country was preserved from de¬
struction. At length, having murdered Odoacer, Theo¬
doric became king ofltaly, where he governed thirty-three
years with prudence and moderation; during which time
Boethius possessed a large share of his esteem and confi¬
dence. It happened about this time that Justin, the em¬
peror of the East, on his succeeding Anastasius, published
an edict condemning all the Arians, except the Goths, to
perpetual banishment from the Eastern empire; and in
this edict Hormisda, bishop of Rome, and also the senate,
concm red. But Iheodoric, a Goth and an Arian, was
extremely troubled at it; and conceived an aversion against
the senate for the share they had had in the measure of
prosci iption. Of this disposition in the king, three men
of profligate lives and desperate fortunes, Gaudentius,
Opilio, and Basilius, took advantage. Entertaining a se¬
cret desire of revenge against Boethius, for having been in¬
strumental in the dismission of the latter from a lucrative
employment under the king, they accused him of several
crimes, such as stifling a charge, the object of which was
to involve the whole senate in the guilt of treason, and an
attempt, by dethroning the king, to restore the liberty of
4 z
730 BOG
Bog Italy; and, lastly, they suggested that, in order to acquire
H the honours he was in possession of, Boethius had had re-
Bogalcund. CQUrse magic. Boethius was at this time at a great dis-
tance from Rome ; but Theodoric nevertheless transmitted
the complaint to the senate, enforcing it with a suggestion
that the safety of the people, as well as that of the prince,
was rendered precarious by this supposed design for ex¬
terminating the Goths. The senate, perhaps fearing the
resentment of the king, and having nothing to hope from
the success of an enterprise which, supposing it ever to
have been meditated, was now rendered abortive, con¬
demned Boethius to death without summoning him to his
defence. The king, however, apprehending some bad
consequence from the execution of a sentence so flagrant¬
ly unjust, mitigated it to banishment.^ The place of Boe¬
thius’s exile was Ticinum, now Pavia, in Italy. Being thus
separated from his relations, wrho had not been permit¬
ted to follow him into his retirement, he endeavoured to
derive from philosophy those comforts which it alone was
capable of affording to one in his forlorn situation, se¬
questered from his friends, in the power of his enemies,
and at the mercy of a capricious tyrant; and accordingly
he there composed that invaluable discourse entitled De
Consolations Philosophice. About two years after his ba¬
nishment Boethius was beheaded in prison by the command
of Theodoric. His tomb is still to be seen in the church of
St Augustin at Pavia, near the steps of the chancel.
The extensive learning and great eloquence of this man
are conspicuous in his works, which seem to have been
collected with great care, as an edition of them was print¬
ed at Venice, in one volume folio, in 1499. In 1570, Glare-
anus of Basel collated this with several manuscripts, and
published it, with a few various readings in the margin.
His chief performance is that above mentioned, De Con¬
solations Philosophies; a work well known in the learned
world, and to which the afflicted have frequently had re¬
course in their sorrow. In particular, King Alfred, whose
reign, though happy upon the whole, was attended with
great vicissitudes of fortune, had recourse to it at a time
when his distresses compelled him to seek retirement; and
that he might the better impress upon his mind the noble
sentiments which it inculcated, he made a complete trans¬
lation of it into the Saxon language, a work which, many
years ago, was given to the world in its proper character.
And Camden relates, that Queen Elizabeth, during the
time of her confinement by her sister Mary, sought to miti¬
gate her grief by reading and afterwards translating it into
English. It also deserves particular notice, that he is the
most considerable of all the Latin writers on music; and
that his treatise Ds Musica supplied for some centuries
the want of those Greek manuscripts which were suppos¬
ed to have been lost.
BOG properly signifies a quagmire, covered with grass,
but not solid enough to support the weight of the body;
in which sense it differs only from marshes or fens, as a
part differs from the whole. But some restrict the term
bog to quagmires pent up between two hills ; whereas fens
lie in champaign and low countries, where the descent is
very small.
Bog, or Bog of Gight, a small town of Scotland, seated
near the mouth of the river Spey, in long. 2. 23. W. lat.
57. 48. N.
BOGALCUND, a district of the province of Gundwa-
na in Hindostan, in the 25th degree of north latitude, and
82d of east longitude ; bounded on the west by the British
possessions in Bundelcund, on the east by the small ter¬
ritory of Manwas, and watered by the rivers Soane,
Bichanuddy, and Behennuddy.
The exact dimensions of this country, as far as we know,
are not ascertained; but they appear to be considerable.
. BOG
Part of it is fertile and well cultivated; the chief crops Bog u„(
are wheat, barley, and different kinds of pease, all in toler- ^ ^
able quantity; nevertheless, very little grain exceeding
their own necessities is raised by the natives. They have
also numerous herds of black cattle, and large flocks of
sheep. The whole surface is traversed by good roads. The
access from Allahabad, to which it was annexed by Au-
rungzebe, is by a pass called Sohagee Ghaut, long, steep,
and difficult, having at its extremity a redoubt in a strong
position. From this point Bogalcund appears like a great
table land without any descent, and the traveller is con¬
ducted by a good road to the capital.
Gundwana is inhabited by various tribes, who have re¬
ceived the generic name of Goands. Their manners and
civilization are different, and in various stages of advance¬
ment ; some, particularly the mountaineers, being rude and
savage. They go almost naked, if not entirely so; prac¬
tise gross superstitions ; and dwell in villages consisting of
a few huts in places almost inaccessible. But those in
the lower and fertile parts of the country are more culti¬
vated, and sufficiently courteous to strangers. The in¬
habitants of Bogalcund are called Bogals, Bogheleis, or
Boghels, synonymes used indifferently; but it is not evi¬
dent whether they should be considered as a distinct race
from the Goands of Gundwana. They are reported to have
migrated hither from Guzzerat many centuries ago, and,
gradually enlarging their confines by an encroachment on
those of their neighbours, to have expelled a tribe of moun¬
taineers from Shewah, which their chief was induced, by
the excellence of its situation, to select for his own resi¬
dence. It is not unlikely that they are of Tartar origin. As
this is one of the northern countries of India, the history
and statistics of which are extremely obscure, very little can
be said of the manners, customs, and condition of its in¬
habitants. They consist of five different tribes, acknow¬
ledging the same government, but without admitting an
equal control, or paying the like obedience to it. Part, or
the whole, profess the Mahommedan religion, and many
temples are to be seen in the territory. Three of the
tribes follow a practice, too general in the East, of destroy¬
ing their infant daughters, which must inevitably restrict
the population. The Bogals are skilful in agriculture; and
they have many fine tanks, or artificial ponds, convenien-
cies of greater importance in India, and of infinitely larger
size, than Europeans are wont to conceive. These are
generally situated on a declivity, three sides being built up
with much art and labour, and the fourth serving as a na¬
tural embankment. The agricultural skill of the inhabi¬
tants results, in a great measure, from the nature of the
government. Here the feudal system prevails, and many
of the lands are held by military tenure. The forces have
no pay, but, instead of it, certain lands are assigned for
their subsistence. Their influence is thence very great,
and there is not an officer among them without one or
two villages for his support. The country is thus parti¬
tioned among innumerable feudatories, who find it their
interest to promote agriculture in order to provide more
amply for their own subsistence. It is common with the
peasantry to change their abode at intervals of three or
four years, for the purpose of tilling the ground whereon
their cottages stood. The traces of villages recently
abandoned are, therefore, frequently to be seen, and would
indicate declining prosperity, did not their renewal in other
places, as often presented to view, prove the reverse.
The chief town of Bogalcund is Rewah, which is large
and populous. It is situated on the small river Bichanuddy,
rising twenty miles to the east, and joined by the Behen¬
nuddy just above the town. The united stream runs im¬
mediately under a large fort in the capital, which inclu es
the houses of the most wealthy and respectable inhabi-
BOG
» cund.tants, and where the rajah resides. In the neighbourhood
. are some memorials of the slain, who fell in a great battle,
wherein the Bogals were victorious against an invading
enemy. Rew'ah stands in latitude 24. 37. N. and 81. 25.
E. longitude; and is distant 126 miles north-east of Be¬
nares.
This district is under the government of an independent
rajah, who is said to be the maha-rajah or sovereign of
several neighbouring territories; and although the rajah
of Bundelcund is himself quite independent, and infinitely
the more powerful of the two, it is necessary for him to
be invested by the rajah of Bogalcund; which exhibits
another analogy to feudal principles. His revenues are
very small, principally owing to the subdivisions of the
district; for it has sometimes excited astonishment that
the sovereign of so fertile a territory should be so poor.
He receives an inconsiderable tribute from the rajahs ac¬
knowledging his superiority, land-rents, and customs on
merchandise passing through the capital.
Ali Bahauder, a Mahratta chief who held a powerful
command in the army of the Peishwa, or head of the na¬
tion, threatened Bogalcund with invasion about the year
1794 or 1795, in order to levy contributions from the rajah,
which he was little able to afford. But he was beloved by
his subjects ; and Ali Bahauder having put his menaces in
execution, he raised an army of about 3000 men to oppose
him. The enemy advanced with 6000 men, overthrowing
every thing in his course, until he arrived within two miles
of the capital. There he was encountered and totally de¬
feated by the rajah, with the loss of his general and his
cannon. The invader vowed to revenge the destruction
of this army and the death of his general. He again col¬
lected a powerful force, and invaded Bogalcund a second
time, in the year 1795; but the rajah, then aged and inca¬
pable of the exertion necessary to resist so active an ene¬
my, purchased peace by concessions. Either at this time,
or previously, he engaged to pay Ali Bahauder L.14,500
sterling; a stipulation which he found himself totally
unable to perform ; and a neighbouring rajah, who had be¬
come security for the payment, and required hostages for
his indemnification, afterwards obtained the cession of a
valuable district in Bogalcund, probably from having been
obliged to fulfil his part of the engagement. But this was
not the only calamity; for a supervening scarcity in the
succeeding season followed the depredations of Ali Bahau-
der’s troops. The natural fertility of the soil, however,
and importation of various commodities from Misapour,
contributed to relieve the inhabitants, and the country
began to recover speedily from the disasters to which it had
been exposed. Nevertheless its dismemberment, at no dis¬
tant period, was anticipated, from the increasing poverty
and declining power of the rajah, though the nature of
the soil and the state of agriculture were both sufficient
to support a numerous population. Formerly, the influ¬
ence of the rajahs of Bogalcund was very considerable in
Indian affairs; and they have been known to afford an asy¬
lum to powerful princes, whom temporary adversity exiled
from their own dominions. Here the illustrious emperor
of the Moguls, Ackbar, was born, in the year 1542. On
occasion of a usurpation of the empire, his father, Huma-
yoon, retired from Delhi; and his mother, when pregnant,
was, for greater security, sent to a strong fortress, where,
tradition reports, she was almost immediately taken in la¬
bour. But the astrologers of the day having previously de¬
termined that future felicity would attend the child who
should be born at a certain moment, she was suspended
during two hours by the legs, in order to retard the period
of delivery, and then being taken down, the great Ackbar
saw the light. More recently, when his descendant, Shah
Aulum, was dispossessed of the throne of Delhi, in the
BOG 731
course of last century, by the invasion of another potentate, Boghera
he sought refuge with Ajut Sing, the rajah of whom we II
have already spoken; and here, also, between the years Bog°ta-
1750 and 1760, one of his wives was delivered of a prince, 's-^Tw/
whom she called Ackbar, in commemoration of his ances-
tor. (F.)
BOGARMITiE. See Bogomili.
BOGHERA, a province of the kingdom of Sardinia,
bounded on the north by the Po, which divides it from
Mortara and the Austrian government of Milan, on the
east by Parma, on the south by Genoa, and on the west
by Tortona. It extends over 504 square miles, and con¬
tains two cities, 139 towns and large villages, and 58 ham¬
lets, peopled by 105,937 inhabitants. The capital of the
province is a city of the same name, on the river Stoffora,
which contains 10,235 inhabitants. Long. 8. 39. E. Lat.
45. 1. N.
BOGLIPOOR, a town of Hindostan, in the province
of Bahar, and chief town of the district of the same name,
about two miles from the main branch of the Ganges. It
has a Mahommedan college, and two very singular round
towers, about a mile north-west of the town, which are
considered sacred. The inhabitants of this district, which
is mountainous, were in a state of barbarism till about the
year 1780, when Mr Cleveland, the British judge and col¬
lector, introduced civilization among them; he raised a
batallion of these highlanders, consisting of 300 men, who
now protect the territory which they formerly used to de¬
solate.
BOGODUCHOW, a circle in the European-Russian
government of Slobodsk-Ukraine, extending over 1192
square miles. It comprehends four cities, 104 towns and
villages, with 135,500 inhabitants. The soil is good, and
produces abundance of fruit, corn, and cattle. The chief
place is the city of the same name on the river Merla,
which contains four churches, 1048 houses, and about 7000
inhabitants. Long. 35. 35. E. Lat. 50. 10. N.
BOGOMILI, or Bogarmit^e, in Ecclesiastical History,
a sect of heretics which sprung up about the year 1179.
They held that the use of churches, of the sacrament of
the Lord’s Supper, and of all prayer except the Lord’s
prayer, ought to be abolished; that the baptism of Ca¬
tholics is imperfect; that the persons of the Trinity are
unequal; and that they oftentimes made themselves vi¬
sible to persons of this sect. They said that devils dwelt
in the churches, and that Satan had resided in the temple
of Solomon from the destruction of Jerusalem to their
own time.
BOGORADSK, a circle in the Russian government of
Moscow, extending over 1324 square miles, comprehend¬
ing one city, one market-town, and 553 villages, with
95,000 inhabitants. The chief place is Bogordsk, on the
Kliasma. Long. 38. 15. E. Lat. 54. 45. N.
BOGORODIZK, a circle of the Russian government of
Tula, comprehending one city, two market-towns, and 166
villages, with 125,000 inhabitants. The chief place, a city
of the same name, on the river Lesnaja, has about 2800
inhabitants. Long. 37. 5. E. Lat. 53. 45. N.
BOGOTA, or Santa Fe de Bogota, the capital of the
republic of Colombia, in South America, is situated in the
department of Cundinamarca, in west longitude 78° 30'
and north latitude 4° 6', on an elevated plain or table¬
land, forming part of the eastern ridge of the cordillera
of the Andes, which separates the extensive valley tra¬
versed by the river Magdalena from those boundless and
fertile plains that are watered by the Meta, the Casanare,
and the numerous other large rivers which flow to the
eastward to augment the waters of the majestic Orinoco.
The plain of Bogota has been estimated at about sixty
miles in length from north to south, and thirty miles
732
BOGOTA.
Bogota.
Physical
aspect of
the coun¬
try.
in breadth from east to west. It is surrounded on all
J sides by lofty mountains, but more especially to the east¬
ward, where the summits of Chingaso and the Paramo
de la Suma Paz are conspicuous for their, elevation. No
part of this chain, however, has been found to exceed in
height 14,000 feet above the level of the sea, and conse¬
quently in these latitudes it does not reach the limits
of perpetual snow. The mountains which bound it in
other directions are much less elevated; and over those
to the westward may be seen, in the distance, the snowy
summits of the more elevated mountains which consti¬
tute the central ridge of the cordillera.
Throughout its whole extent this plain exhibits evident
marks, in the perfect level of its surface, the alluvial nature
of the soil, and the appearance of the insulated rocks
which rise up in some parts of its extent, of having for¬
merly been the site of an extensive lake. It is traversed
by the river Funzha or Bogota, which, collecting into one
channel the numerous mountain-streams that water the
valley, bends its course to the south-western extremity
of the plain, and enters a narrow channel, from which it
is precipitated over a perpendicular precipice of 600 feet
in height, into the valley of the Magdalena, forming the
magnificent fall of Tequendama. This splendid cataract
is an object of wonder and admiration to all beholders.
The fall forms one continued sheet of water, interrupted
only a little at its upper part by a projecting ledge of
rocks. So great is the diffusion of water in the surround¬
ing atmosphere, in the form of rain or haze, that a perpe¬
tual humidity prevails; and the vegetation in the imme¬
diate vicinity exhibits an uncommon degree of vigour and
luxuriance. The contrast of the vegetation at the summit,
where oaks, and elms, and other trees of temperate climes
are found, and that at the bottom, where the graceful
palms abound, is very remarkable, and cannot be alto¬
gether accounted for solely by the difference of level. The
evaporation at the fall must be very great, as the volume
of water which issues from the bottom of the valley towards
the Magdalena is much smaller than at the summit, where
the river leaves the plain of Bogota. In various parts of the
plain, from the great equality of its surface, the banks of
the river are to a considerable extent inundated, and so
marshy, that, especially in the rainy season, they cannot be
passed without difficulty. These situations have become
favourite habitations to great numbers of ducks and other
water-fowl, which afford excellent amusement to the sports¬
man, and even exercise the ingenuity of the Indians. The
latter have a novel mode of catching them: they enter
these grounds wearing caps made of rushes, which con¬
ceal their heads, the only part of their bodies above the
water; they then move slowly and with caution to the places
occupied by the ducks, which,being accustomed to witness
similar caps floating about, are wholly unconscious of the
near approach of their insidious enemies, and allow them¬
selves to be seized by the feet, and secured to a girdle
worn by the Indian.
Could the opening at Tequendama, through which
the river Bogota now escapes, be closed up by artificial
means, the whole extent of the plain would be converted
into one continuous lake, as appears to have been the
case in former times; for the change which has been pro¬
duced, and which has rendered so great an extent of soil
useful to man, has without doubt been occasioned by the
agency of the river, whose waters, by constant attrition
dm mg a series of ages, have eventually been able to over¬
come the rocky barrier opposed to their progress, and have
ho lowed out the deep channel through which the river now
precipitates itself into the abyss beneath; and, from our
knowledge of the laws which regulate the economy of
natuie, we may anticipate that the same causes will in
time to come still more effectually drain the plain of Bo- E0d:
gota. The traditions of the aborigines tend to confirm the ^ -T
view which is now taken of the ancient condition of this
plain; but, ignorant of the extensive operation of those
natural causes which are known to us, they ascribed the
whole to supernatural agency, and have handed down a
legend, setting forth, that an aged man of great power
and wisdom, named Bochica, broke down, by means of
his powerful arm, a passage through the rocks which in¬
close the valley at Tequendama, and formed the outlet
by which he drained the adjacent plain ; and that having
accomplished this, he taught the inhabitants of the country
to build cities and villages, and introduced among them
those habits of industry, civilization, and religion, which
wei’e found to exist at the time when the country was
discovered by Europeans.
This extensive plain is exceedingly fertile, and suscep¬
tible of the highest cultivation. It produces abundant
crops of wheat, barley, and the leguminous plants culti¬
vated in Europe. Of the former the average produce is
five quarters per acre; and of all these, owing to the re¬
gular succession of the rainy and dry seasons, two crops
may be obtained from the same field in one year; a prac¬
tice, however, which is not usually followed with the ce-
realia, as these require the alternation of green crops, to
prevent the fertility of the soil becoming too much ex¬
hausted. Lucerne is also cultivated to a great extent,
and affords ample sustenance to numerous flocks of sheep
and herds of cattle and horses, which are reared and main¬
tained on this plain for the supply of the capital. Before
the conquest of the Spaniards, the plain of Bogota main¬
tained a numerous population, but the inhabitants who
at present reside on it, and are occupied in agricultural
pursuits, are few in number compared with those who are
requisite to give full development to its fertility and re¬
sources. Its immediate vicinity to a populous city, where
there is a ready market for all its produce, presents very
powerful inducements to the establishment of industrious
and intelligent agriculturists; and, doubtless, many such,
from Europe and elsewhere, will ere long find their way
to so inviting a situation.
The plain of Bogota, according to the observations ofClii;e.
Humboldt, has an elevation of 8694 feet above the level
of the sea ; and consequently, although so near the equa¬
tor, it. enjoys a mild and equable climate, the inhabitants
experiencing a kind of perpetual spring, and the extremes
of heat and cold being seldom felt. In consequence of
the sun being twice perpendicular at nearly equidistant
periods during the year, there are two winter or rainy
seasons, and two summer or dry seasons every year,
each being of about three months continuance ; the rainy
season commencing about the equinoxes, and continuing
during the months of March, April, and May, and again
during September, October, and November; and the dry
seasons beginning with the solstices, and continuing during
the intermediate months. Even during the winter months
the rains are not continuous, but generally the mornings
are cool and exceedingly agreeable, the rain usually com¬
mencing towards the afternoon. The range of the thermo¬
meter averages at this season from fifty-eight to sixty-three
degrees, but sometimes descends as low as forty-seven de¬
grees, of Fahrenheit. During the summer months, how¬
ever, there is almost constantly a serene and unclouded
sky, with so little dew during the night that it scarcely
incommodes the inhabitants who venture out during that
period. At this season the average height of the thermo¬
meter is from sixty-eight to seventy degrees in the shade.
A climate so delicious is found very conducive to the
enjoyment of health, and few places within the tropics
present so desirable a place of residence. Here those
i:
' Cil
BOG
)ta. insects and venomous reptiles which occasion so much
^ annoyance in the neighbouring districts of less elevation
are altogether unknown; and the females who inhabit
this plain possess a freshness of complexion unknown to
those who dwell in less favoured parts of the country.
Yet, with all these advantages, the period of human exist¬
ence does not appear to be in general so long protracted
in this country as in more rigorous climates; old a^e
comes on at a less advanced period of life ; and females,
who reach maturity at an early age, exhibit the symptoms
of decay at a period when women in England are in the
full enjoyment of all their physical and intellectual facul¬
ties.
Owing to its great elevation, the rarefaction of the at¬
mosphere is so considerable, that strangers, on their first
arrival at Bogota, are generally affected with a degree of
oppression and difficulty of breathing; but this, in most
instances, gradually disappears on their becoming longer
residents. Here, epidemic diseases are altogether un¬
known. Travellers, however, who proceed to "Bogota by
the Magdalena are not unfrequently attacked, on their
arrival, with intermittent fevers ; but there is every reason
to believe that the causes which give rise to this com¬
plaint have been in operation during the period of their
navigating that river.
■als. The mountains encircling the table-land of Bogota are
replete with many valuable mineral productions, which
must tend greatly to augment the wealth and prosperity
of its inhabitants whenever circumstances shall favour the
more complete development of these and the other na¬
tural resources of the country. Coal in considerable
quantities has been discovered near Guatavita, the fall of
Tequendama, and other places in these mountains; but
hitherto this valuable mineral has been extracted in small
quantities for the use of the blacksmith alone ; yet the coal,
and the iron, which is also found in these mountains, seem,
by their abundance, calculated to produce a powerful in¬
fluence over the habits and destinies of this favoured region;
though they cannot prove of much value until the forma¬
tion of good roads, and the introduction of improved me¬
thods of working them, shall lay open these hidden trea¬
sures to the use of man.
Abundance of excellent salt is obtained from the mines
of Zipaquira, fauza, and Enemocon, and the saline springs
at Yousa, which have hitherto supplied the inhabitants
of all the mountainous parts of Colombia with this im¬
portant and necessary article. The quantities, however,
which have hitherto been produced have proved quite
inadequate to the demand, and, in consequence of the
operose and expensive mode by which it is obtained, the
profits of the undertaking have been inconsiderable; the
same methods having been followed, until within these
few years, as were originally practised by the Indians. A
proposal was made some years ago, by an English gentle-
roan named Ihomson, to place these establishments on an
improved and more productive footing, and his scheme
received the sanction of the government of Colombia; but,
owing to some mismanagement on the part of those con¬
cerned, it would appear that the undertaking has been
abandoned. The salt of these mines has been found to
be precisely similar to the rock-salt of Cheshire and other
parts of Europe, and it is purified by the same method.
Amongst the mineral productions of the mountains sur-
rminding Bogota might be mentioned the celebrated eme-
iald mines of Mozo, and various others of gold, silver, and
copper; but these will more properly come under consi¬
deration when treating of the productions of Colombia.
The city of Santa Fe de Bogota was founded in 1538,
y Gonzalez Ximenes de Quesada, at the base of two
mountains, which are known by the names of La Guada-
O T A.
lupe and Monteserrato. At first it consisted of only twelve
houses, in honour of the twelve apostles, and contained
only sixty inhabitants ; but, from its favourable situation
it increased rapidly, and became a place of considerable
extent; and in two years afterwards it was raised to the
rank of a city, and eventually became the seat of o-0-
vernment for the kingdom of New Grenada. Its popu¬
lation in 1800 consisted of 21,464, exclusive of strangers
and temporary residenters ; and in that year the number
of births exceeded that of deaths by 247. Its population
was estimated at 30,000 in 1821, when, on the union of
New Grenada and Venezuela, to form the republic of Co¬
lombia, it became the capital and the seat of government.
By this event it has acquired much additional importance,'
and so great has been the influx of natives and foreigners,
that the latest accounts estimate the numbers at upwards
of 40,000 souls. The rapid increase of the population has
already greatly enhanced the value of houses and other
property in the city and its vicinity. Nature indeed seems
to have pointed out the plain of Bogota as the most eli¬
gible situation which can well be imagined for the forma¬
tion of a great and opulent city, the seat of government
of a powerful nation. It enjoys a genial and salubrious
climate, in the midst of a fertile and abundant district;
and it forms the centre from which diverge to the north
and to the east the two most extensive lines of internal
navigation to be found in Colombia.
Bogota is only distant about twenty-two leagues from
Honda, on the Magdalena ; and a good road was lately in
progress between the capital and the Penon de Conejo, on
the banks of that river. Steam-vessels are also constantly
passing to and from Carthagena and Santa Martha, near
the mouth of the Magdalena, by which means the ex¬
pense of carriage and of travelling has been greatly di¬
minished, and passengers suffer much less than hereto¬
fore from exposure to the noxious influence of the climate ;
the time occupied in ascending that river being shortened'
from about forty days to less than a fourth part of that
time. The distance from the sea to the point of disem¬
barkation is about 540 miles. To the eastward, by the
Paso de la Cabulla, situated between the lofty mountains
of Chingaso and the Paramo de la Suma Paz, Bogota is
distant only about fifteen leagues from the Hio Negro,
which is navigable to its junction with the Meta, a river
affording uninterrupted communication with the Orinoco;
while the latter opens up numerous channels of internal
navigation, besides a free transit for vessels of consider¬
able size, to Angostura and to the Atlantic, being a line of
navigation from the point of embarkation near Bogota to
the sea, of not less than 1500 miles. Fully aware of the
immense importance of opening up to commerce so exten¬
sive a line of internal communication, the government of
Colombia, some years ago, took measures to place it on a
permanent footing, and accordingly granted to Colonel
James Hamilton of the Colombian service the exclusive
privilege for ten years, under certain conditions, of navi¬
gating these rivers by means of steam-vessels. This ar¬
rangement, however, was not finally acted upon, as the
steam-boats did not reach the country within the specified
time, by which means the privilege was forfeited, and the
project suspended for a time. But on reviewing the nu¬
merous important channels of internal navigation which
communicate with the Orinoco, little doubt can be enter¬
tained that this will ere long become of even more import¬
ance than that line of communication which is now es¬
tablished on the Magdalena. As the road from Bogota to
the Rio Negro has hitherto been of less immediate im¬
portance than that to the Magdalena, we understand that
little attention has as yet been paid by the authorities of
the country towards rendering it available for commercial
733
Bogota.
34
BOGOTA.
Bogota, purposes. Notwithstanding all the disadvantages of the
w-y'w' bad roads which prevail throughout the whole country,
Bogota continues to be the best and most expeditious
line of communication between Europe and Quito, as well
as the other southern provinces of the republic.
On approaching Bogota from the Magdalena, the city
is seen at a considerable distance, the cathedral and the
convents of Guadalupe and Monteserrato being the most
conspicuous objects in view. T-he latter are built on the
summits of two mountains having an elevation of about
2500, or, according to Hamilton, 2420, feet above the city,
which is built at their base. These mountains are ascend¬
ed by a very steep and difficult road; but the labour of
the ascent is amply repaid by the magnificent view which
is presented to the eye of the spectator, of the city, its con¬
vents and gardens, and the whole extent of the plain,
with its villages, its hamlets, and cultivated fields. The
city itself is somewhat in the form of an amphitheatre, and
occupies a larger space than might seem requisite for the
number of its inhabitants. The convents, however, which
are numerous, together with their extensive gardens, com¬
prise a considerable portion of it; and the houses, on ac¬
count of the earthquakes, are generally of but one story.
The cathedral, which was built in 1814, after the design of
a Colombian architect, possesses in its exterior very little
architectural beauty : but its interior is nevertheless fitted
up with considerable taste and elegance ; its ornaments are
rich and valuable ; and the statue of the virgin, who is the
patron saint, is covered with a profusion of diamonds and
other precious stones. The convents, which were for¬
merly numerous (about 33), and many of them richly
endowed, have of late years fallen into decay, and been
devoted to the service of government, and to other pur¬
poses very different from those for which they were origi¬
nally intended. According to the latest accounts, how¬
ever, there are still about nine convents and three nun¬
neries occupied by religious persons, of which the most
wealthy and prosperous are those of Santo Domingo and
San Juan de Dios, to which latter there is attached an
hospital for the reception of the sick and wounded. This
institution seems to have fallen somewhat into decay
about the period when Bogota became the seat of the
republican government, for it was then described as be¬
ing conducted in a very inefficient and slovenly manner ;
but later accounts inform us that it is now a very well
regulated and useful establishment, affording accommo¬
dation to several hundred inmates, who are carefully at¬
tended by the friars, and plentifully supplied with every
thing requisite; besides which, food is here daily distri¬
buted to the poor. The convent of San Francisco, al¬
though by the rule of that order possessed of compara¬
tively little wealth, is yet of great extent, and under good
management; and it contains many valuable paintings, the
productions of Basquez, a native artist of considerable
merit, one of which, in particular, a Madonna with an in¬
fant Jesus, has been mentioned in terms of high com¬
mendation.
Education. The university of Bogota was founded in 1610, since
which time two colleges have been endowed with large
revenues for the purposes of education. The colleges are
now three in number, and in them are educated nearly all
the youth of these countries. The students wear caps and
gowns, which, for the purposes of distinction, are white in
one college and red in the other. Before the revolution,
one of these colleges was appropriated solely for the edu¬
cation of the young nobility, and the other for the sons
of the middling classes; but since that period all such
distinctions have been abolished. Formerly the course of
study was confined to Latin, mathematics, natural and
moral philosophy, and theology; and even then the uni¬
versity produced some men of great eminence for their Bo ta.
attainments in the natural sciences, among whom Mutis,
Caldas, and Zea, hold a distinguished place. Of late years
great improvements have taken place in the course of
study, which has been regulated more in unison with the
advanced state of science and philosophy. Professors of
eminence have been brought from Europe; and a school
of mineralogy has been established under the able auspices
of Dr Ribero, who, although a native of Peru, has enjoyed
the advantage of being educated at the best schools in
Europe. Under his direction has also been formed a na¬
tional museum, which, in consequence of the zeal and acti¬
vity of those connected with it, has already made great pro¬
gress. There has likewise been formed in one of the col¬
leges a public library, which was under the able direction
of Dr Jose Maria Esteves, and contained 12,000 volumes.
Lancasterian schools have been established in Bogota, in
consequence of the judicious regulations of the govern¬
ment of Colombia, which has provided for the formation of
such schools, not only in all the cities, but in every village
and district throughout the republic. Neither has the
education of the female children been neglected, as in for¬
mer times; efficient means having been adopted for rescuing
this interesting portion of the community from that state
of moral and intellectual debasement in which they have
so long been held. But still this department is too much
under the guidance of the nuns and the clergy, whose
limited acquirements and secluded habits render them
by no means the most eligible instructors for preparing
youth for the active duties of life. The revenues of the
greater part of the monastic establishments, which were
falling into decay in consequence of the diminished num¬
ber of their inmates, or the increased intelligence of the
people, have been devoted to the purposes of education;
and if administered with judgment and integrity, will form
a permanent fund, which may be productive of incalculable
advantages in promoting the future welfare of the country
and its inhabitants.
The mint is a large and handsome building, with ample Mb
accommodation for the various officers employed in the
establishment. The coining machinery is of great strength
and solidity, and all the departments are regulated with
much precision and minuteness. This is the only mint in
the kingdom of New Grenada, with the exception of that
of Popayan ; and we are informed by Humboldt, that from
1789 to 1795, 8,161,862 dollars were coined at Santa Fe
de Bogota, and from 1788 to 1794, 6,502,542 dollars in
Popayan. At the commencement of the present century,
the following was the amount of coinage in New Grenada
during four years.
Bogota. Popayan.
1801  1,506,356 962,748 Dollars.
1802  1,240,476 962,748
1803  1,192,791 965,686
1804  1,274,576 663,696
5,214,199 .....3,554,878
After this period the coinage seems to have increased in
amount, since in Santa Fe de Bogota alone no less than
3,499,489 dollars were issued in 1806 and 1807. We are
not in possession of any details of the amount of coinage
since the country came under the management of the re¬
publican government. .
The palace where the viceroy of New Grenada tor-la
merly resided is a plain building with a flat roof, having
attached to it on each side other buildings, in which are
contained the public offices and the prison. The centra
building, which is the residence of the vice-president o
the republic, is devoid of ornament, and possesses few o
those conveniences that are considered essential m sue i
BOGOTA.
I ta. an establishment. The apartments, however, are spacious,
W and the hall of audience is about thirty-six feet in length
by sixteen in breadth, and provided with sofas and a throne,
covered with crimson damask ; but the lamps are suspend¬
ed from the beams, as it is destitute of ceiling, which gives
the whole an unfinished appearance. The places in which
the senate and the house of representatives assemble
have little to recommend them besides their utility, being
merely temporary places of accommodation ; a portion of
the convent of Santo Domingo having been fitted up for the
former, and part of a private house for the latter. The pri¬
vate houses are generally good, and for the most part of
only one story, the rooms communicating with each other,
and likewise with an inner court or patio, in which are some¬
times contained fountains and orange trees. But of late
years an improved and more convenient style of building
has been introduced, in consequence of the great influx of
foreigners since the establishment of their independence.
Sii . The streets, as in almost all cities built by the Spaniards
in South America, are formed at right angles to each
other; and all those extending from east to west have a
small stream of water flowing along them, a convenience
which might tend greatly to increase the comfort and
cleanliness of the inhabitants, under an improved system
of police. Only a few of the principal streets are pro¬
vided with side pavements, such as the Calle Real and
the Calle de San Juan de Dios, which are the most fre¬
quented. The former, which extends from the great
square or plaza to the bridge of San Francisco, contains
handsome shops and arcades, which are much frequented
in rainy weather. There are four public squares or plazas
provided with fountains, and five handsome bridges over
two small rivulets which traverse the city, enter the
Funzha, and are named San Francisco and San Augustin,
from passing near the two convents so named.
H t. A public market is held every Friday in the great square,
where abundant supplies of all kinds of provisions are ex¬
posed for sale, and where may be seen an assemblage of all
the varied classes which inhabit this country, the Creole,
the Mulatto, the Mestizo, the Indian, and the Negro. A con¬
siderable proportion of the last are slaves ; but the number
in this degraded condition is gradually diminishing, from
the operation of those wise and beneficent laws which have
been enacted by the republican government for the gradual
extinction ot slavery. The supplies of beef, mutton, and
pork, are abundant and at moderate prices, but of an in¬
ferior quality to that usually met with in England; which
is attributed to the defective method they follow in fat¬
tening their cattle for the market, and in killing and cut¬
ting them up. Poultry and game are in great abundance,
and are moderate in price. Vegetables and fruit are also
abundant, and in the utmost variety; the vegetable pro¬
ductions of the tropical, the temperate, and even cold
regions, being all easily attainable, in consequence of the
diversified elevation of the surrounding country. Thus
we find in one place quantities of wheat, barley, and corn ;
in another maize, cocoa, and sugar; in a third, quantities
of cabbages, carrots, potatoes, and arracachas, intermin¬
gled with tomatas, yuccas, and bananas; while apples,
strawberries, peaches, pomegranates, melons, ananas, agua-
cates, pine-apples, chirimoyas, zapotas, mangoes, and
many other kinds of fruit, are found in equal profusion,
and are moderate in price. One part of the market-place
is appropriated to the sale of articles of native manufac¬
ture, which consist principally of coarse cotton and woollen
fabrics.
The police of Bogota, and the lighting of the streets,
are in a very neglected state, and many disagreeable and
msgusting sights may in consequence be witnessed in the
market-place, and most of the streets; while the office of
/35
scavenger seems to be principally intrusted to the gal- Bogota.
hnazos, a species of small black vulture (vultur aura'), -,-^w1
which may often be seen in great numbers, and are very
tame. In the vicinity of the river Funzha or Bogota,
which is here an inconsiderable stream, and runs close
to the city, is situated the alameda or public promenade,
which is inclosed on each side by gardens, and shaded by
rows of stately poplars. This forms the favourite resort
of the inhabitants during the delightful evenings of sum¬
mer ; and the surrounding gardens afford a place of resort
to such parties as desire to solace themselves with the
sweet notes of their favourite guitar.
The society of Bogota is very agreeable, the inhabitants Inhabit¬
being mild, polite, and cheerful. They are naturally fondants,
of gaiety and amusements, as is evinced by the frequency
of their tertulias, or evening parties, their balls and con¬
certs. The ladies are remarkably lively and pleasing in
their manners, and are for the most part short in stature,
but delicately formed, their feet and ancles being particu¬
larly small and handsome, which they set off to great ad¬
vantage by the neatness of their shoes and silk stockings.
The morning dress, in which they usually attend their
devotions, consists of the saga and mantilla, surmounted
by a sombrero or broad-brimmed black beaver hat. The
saya or skirt of black kerseymere or silk, variously orna¬
mented, fits closely to the body, and is well calculated to
show off a fine figure; the mantilla covers the neck and
shoulders, and sometimes the head, and is kept close to
the body by the folded arms. The dress of the beatas or
female devotees is somewhat remarkable, and merits notice.
Those devoted to Nuestra Senora del Carmen “aregene¬
rally,” says a late writer, “ young ladies, who on some occa¬
sion of sickness or peril, either of their own or of some near
relation, have vowed, in case of their deliverance, to assume
the habit of the Carmelite nuns for a year or a longer pe¬
riod, as the case may be. The Carmelite habit, as w orn at
Bogota, consists of a saya of fine cloth or stuff of a reddish
brown or fawn colour, used by the nuns of that order, with
a white hat, mantilla, and shoes. Round the waist is bound
a cord of twisted silk, in imitation of the scourges carried
by the nuns, but having tassels instead of knots hanging
from it. This dress is very becoming, for the fair ladies
who assume it do not think themselves obliged by their
vow to imitate the nuns so closely as to cut off their hair.
This may perhaps account for the number of youthful and
generally pretty females wdio are to be seen wearing it,
while the dark-coloured habits of the other orders of San
Francisco and La Senora de Dolores are usually worn only
by elderly devotees, and those whose admirers would
not be quite inconsolable were they to take the veil in
earnest.” The evening promenade dresses of the ladies
are much more showy and diversified, both in form and
texture, than those which are worn in the early part of
the day, partaking a good deal of the fashions of Europe,
which daily become more prevalent; and at their balls
and tertulias they frequently display the additional orna¬
ments of a profusion of rich and valuable jewels. They
dance with much grace and elegance ; and tbe favourite
dances of the country, among which may be noticed the
Spanish contra-danza, by its slow and graceful movements,
is peculiarly well calculated to exhibit to advantage the
fine figures which they possess, in common with most other
women of Spanish origin. The females of the inferior
classes usually go without shoes or stockings, a practice
which often forms a striking contrast with the rest of their
attire, which in many such cases is both showy and ex¬
pensive.
The moral condition of the inhabitants of Bogota has Moral con-
been variously estimated, and perhaps in most instances dition of
incorrectly. The political state of the country before die people.
736
B O H
BOH
Boguslaw the revolution was such as to afford little scope for the Sjeddad. He was born at Mossul in the year 539 of the Bo m;,
' II exercise of the higher faculties ; and consequently they Hejira (1145 a. d.) He early became eminent in the study w
Bohaddin. were neither remarkable for instances of atrocious crime of the Koran, and of the traditions and controversies found-
'-‘J on j-j^g QjQg Band, nor of extraordinary virtue on the other, ed on it, as well as in that of jurisprudence. At the age
But the eventful and exciting scenes of the revolution of twenty-seven he obtained the place of repeater or lec-
have given rise to a development of character which turer at Bagdad, and, soon after, a professor’s chair in a
shows that they possess in a high degree those qualities college founded at Mossul. In 1187 he made the pil-
which are calculated to raise them in the scale of civiliza- grimage to Mecca, and then proceeded to visit Jerusalem
tion. They are by no means deficient in natural abilities, and Hebron. In passing through Damascus he was sent
and they only require the advantage of an improved sys- for by Saladin, who was then employed in the siege of
tem of education, and favourable circumstances, to acquire Kancab. The sultan seems to have been pleased with
a hhdi degree of cultivation. the interview ; and his secretary, Omad-Eddyn-Isfahamy,
Previous to the revolution, the men, besides their ordi- a man of great learning and eloquence, advised him, after
nary occupations or religious duties, had scarcely any other completing his pilgrimage, to present himself again before
means of employing their leisure time than by devoting Saladin. Our author had observed, as he himself mentions
themselves to gambling, cock-fighting, and bull-baiting. ( Vita Saladini, ch. v.), that the whole soul of the mo-
The women, brought up in the most profound ignorance, narch was engrossed by the war which he was then wag-
and deeply imbued with all the unmeaning superstitions ing against the enemies of the faith ; and that the only
which accompany a religion that only appeals to the mode of acquiring his favour was by urging him to its
senses, devoted much of their time to their religious du- vigorous prosecution. He, therefore, composed a treatise
ties, and in attendance on the numerous festivals and pro- on the Laws and Discipline of Sacred War, and made a
cessions which the clergy kept so constantly before them, collection of all the passages in the Koran and the books
well aware of the influence of pomp and circumstance of traditions in which the extermination of infidels was
over the ignorant and the uneducated. Some have affirm- recommended and enforced. This work, on his return, he
ed that the females are rather lax in their morals, espe- presented to Saladin, who received both it and the author
cially after marriage ; and perhaps, if judged by the stand- with peculiar favour. Bohaddin, from this time, remained
ard of female morality in the more highly educated nations constantly attached to the person of the sultan, and was
of the world, they might lose by the comparison ; yet this employed in various important embassies and departments
difference may with great justice be attributed to the pe- of civil government. That prince seems also to have
culiar circumstances in which they have been placed, sought, by the friendship of so eminent a doctor, to exalt
The want of a good and efficient education, the demo- the reputation for sanctity, of which he was extremely
ralizing influence of some of the religious practices there ambitious. Often, while riding through the ranks, Bohad-
prevalent, and the comparatively little estimation in which din rode by his side, and read to him passages out of the
virtuous conduct in females has hitherto been held, have Koran or its interpreters, to which Saladin lent more ap-
tended materially to lower the tone of morals in the parent attention than to the arrangements of the army,
country. But a new epoch has at length dawned upon Our author was now appointed to two important posts;
them ; efficient means have been adopted to promote edu- those of judge of the army, and judge of Jerusalem. In
cation and intelligence among all classes; and a purer this latter capacity an incident occurred which he ad-
system of ethics seems to be gradually introducing itself duces to prove the impartial justice exercised by the sul-
into the country, as has been shown, among other things, tan. A merchant presented himself at the tribunal of
by the establishment of a Bible Society in Bogota, under Bohaddin, and complained that he had been unjustly de-
the able auspices of some of the most influential men prived of a large sum of money. On being asked to name
of the country, and even aided by the Catholic clergy the author of the injury, he replied “ the sultan himself.”
themselves. (Humboldt, Essai Politique; Humboldt, Here the judge deemed it expedient to suspend proceed-
Vue des Cordilleres ; Relation historique des Voyages de ings until the case was laid before the royal defendant.
MM. Humboldt et Bonpland; Hall’s Present State of Co- Saladin, on learning the circumstances, denied the truth
hmbia; Mollien’s Travels in. Colombia, translated from of the charge ; but said that the man should have justice,
the French; Present State of Colombia; Hamilton’s Tra- Accordingly he was introduced into his presence ; and the
vels in Colombia ; Campaigns and Cruises in Venezuela, sultan, descending from his throne, placed himself in the
New Grenada, and the Pacific.') posture of a defendant, and each pleaded his own cause
BOGUSLAW, a circle in the Russian government of before Bohaddin. The latter decided, on just grounds as
Kiew, and a fruitful but neglected district. The chief place, he alleges, in favour of Saladin, and even hinted that the
a town of the same name, on the river Ross, contains 297 temerity of the plaintiff merited some portion of chastise-
houses and 1650 inhabitants. Long. 30. 49. E. Lat. 49. ment. The sultan, however, dismissed the person not only
32. N. unpunished, but with the present of a handsome robe and
BOGUTSCHAT, a circle in the Russian government a large sum of money,
of Woronesh, and a district productive of corn and cattle. Bohaddin continued in favour with Saladin during the
The chief place, of the same name, stands at the junction whole of that monarch’s life ; and he boasts that he often
of the Boguschara with the Don, and contains less than obtained ready admission, while the principal officers and
1000 inhabitants. Long. 40. 35. E. Lat. 50. 5. N. generals were waiting in vain for an audience. After the
BOGVV ANGOLA, a large inland trading town of Hin- sultan’s death, he was active in securing the throne to his
dostan, in the province of Bengal. It is a great mart for son Melik-al-Dhaker. That prince created him cadhi ot
grain, from which the town of Moorshedabad is principal- his capital, Aleppo, which gave Bohaddin an opportunity
ly supplied. . It is chiefly built of bamboos, mats, and of founding in that city a college, of which he himself was
thatch; and it has been frequently removed on account of the principal professor. Under his auspices, the sciences,
the encroachments of the Ganges. It is eight miles north- which had greatly declined in Aleppo, soon rose to more
east from Moorshedabad. Long. 88. 29. E. Lat. 24. 21. N. than their former lustre. But Melik-al-Dhaker dying, left
BOFIADDIN, or, more properly, Boh-a-Eddyn, an his son Melik-al-Aziz a minor, and Bohaddin obtained the
eminent Arabian writer and statesman, better known in principal sway in the regency. This gave him an oppor-
the East under the appellation of Ibn-Sjeddad, or /Sow of tunity of introducing learned men at court, and loading
BOH
ea them with honours. As the prince, however, approached
to manhood, he attached himself to more youthful coun-
ol' sellers; and Bohaddin, though he still retained his of-
^ fices, found it expedient to retire from court, and devote
himself entirely to the pursuits of learning. Even after
he was unable to go to college, he continued to give lec¬
tures in his own house ; and he persevered in these learn¬
ed labours till the age of ninety, when he died on the
29th of October 1235. (Plejira *633.)
Bohaddin wrote several works on jurisprudence and
Moslem divinity; but the only one that can be interest¬
ing to us is his Life and Actions of Saladin ; which, with
several other pieces connected with the same subject, was
published by Albert Schultens, at Leyden, in 1732, ac¬
companied by a somewhat inelegant Latin translation,
also by notes and a geographical index. This work af¬
fords a favourable specimen of the historical compositions
of the Arabs. Neither Bohaddin, however, nor any of his
contemporaries, can enter into competition with those
great historians who have adorned the better ages of Eu¬
ropean literature. They display no philosophical views nor
accurate discrimination of character; but confine them¬
selves chiefly to a mere chronological record of events.
The work of Bohaddin is written with some spirit, and, at
the same time, is free from that verbose and empty infla¬
tion which deforms the compositions of some of his con¬
temporaries. Whatever relates to Saladin, breathes, of
course, the highest tone of panegyric; yet the enthusi¬
asm with which every thing about him is narrated, and
the anecdotes which the author, from his own personal
knowledge, is able to communicate respecting that ex¬
traordinary character, give his work a great degree of in¬
terest. ' (E.)
BOHEA, in commerce, one of the coarsest kinds of tea
imported from China. See Tea.
BOHEMIA, a kingdom of Europe, subject to the house
of Austria. See Austria.
BOHEMIAN Brethren, a Christian sect which sprung
up in Bohemia in the year 1467. They treated the pope
and cardinals as antichrist, and the church of Rome as
the harlot spoken of in the Revelation. They rejected
the sacraments of the Catholic church, and chose laymen
for their ministers. They held the Scriptures to be the
only rule of faith, and rejected the Catholic ceremonies in
the celebration of the mass, nor did they make use of any
other prayer than the Lord’s Prayer. They consecrated
leavened bread; they allowed no adoration but that of
Jesus Christ in the communion ; they rebaptized all such
as joined themselves to their congregation ; they abhorred
the worship of saints and images, prayers for the dead,
celibacy, vows, and fasts; and they kept none of the fes¬
tivals except Christmas, Easter, and Whitsuntide.
In 1504 they were delated by the Catholics to King
Ladislaus II. who published an edict against them, for¬
bidding them to hold any meeting either privately or pub¬
licly. When Luther declared himself against the church
ot Rome, the Bohemian Brethren endeavoured to join his
party. At first, however, that reformer showed a great
aversion to them ; but the Bohemians sending deputies to
him in 1523, with a full account of their doctrines, he ac¬
knowledged that they were a society of Christians whose
doctrines came nearest to the purity of the gospel. The
sect published another confession of faith in the year 1535,
renouncing anabaptism, which they had at first practised ;
upon which a union was concluded with the Lutherans,
and afterwards with the Zuinglians, whose opinions from
thenceforth they continued to follow.
BOHOL, or Bool, one of the most southern of the
Ihilippine Islands, discovered by Magellan in the year
1621. It is about 32 miles in length and 20 in breadth,
VOL. IV.
BOX 737
and produces gold. It is 20 miles north of Mindanao. Boiardo.
Long. 124. 15. E. Lat. 10. N.
BOIARDO, Count Matteo Maria, of a noble and
illustrious house established at Ferrai’a, but originally from
Reggio, was born at Scandiano, one of the seignorial estates
of his family, near Reggio di Modena, about the year 1434
according to Tiraboschi, or 1420 according to Mazzuehelli.
At an early age he entered the university of Ferrara, where
he applied to his studies as regularly as if he had not
been a person of quality, nor belonged to the privileged
class. He acquired the Greek and Latin, and even the
oriental languages, and ivas in due time admitted doctor
in philosophy and in law. At the court of Ferrara, where
he enjoyed the favour of duke Borso d’Este and his suc¬
cessor Hercules, he was invested with several honourable
employments, and in particular named governor of Reggio,
an appointment which he held in the year 1478. Three
years afterwards he was elected captain of Modena, and
re-appointed governor of the town and citadel of Reggio,
where he died in the year 1494, though in what month is
uncertain. Almost all his works, and especially his great
poem of the Orlando Inamorato, were composed for the
amusement of duke Hercules and his court, though not
written within its precincts. His practice, it is said, was
to retire to Scandiano or some other of his estates, and
there to devote himself to composition; and Castelvetro,
Vallisnieri, Mazzuchelli, and Tiraboschi, all unite in stat¬
ing, that he took care to insert in the descriptions of his
poem those of the agreeable environs of his chateau, and
that the greater part of the names of his heroes, as Man-
dricar, Gradasse, Sacripant, Agramant, and others, were
merely the names of some of his peasants, which, from their
uncouthness, appeared to him proper to be given to Sar-
razen warriors. But be this as it may, the Orlando Ina¬
morato deserves to be considered as one of the most im¬
portant poems in Italian literature, since it forms the first
example of the romantic epic worthy to serve as a model,
and, as such, undoubtedly produced the Orlando Furioso.
Gravina and Mazzuchelli have said, and succeeding writers
have repeated on their authority, that Boiardo proposed
to himself as his model the Iliad of Homer ; that Paris is
besieged like the city of Troy, that Angelica holds the
place of Helen, and that, in short, the one poem is a sort
of reflex image of the other. In point of fact, however,
the subject-matter of the poem is derived from the Fabu¬
lous Chronicle of Turpin ; and, with the exception of the
names of Charlemagne, Roland, Olivier, and some other
principal warriors, who necessarily figure as important
characters in the scene, there is not the least resemblance
or analogy between the fable of the one and that of the
other. This poem, which Boiardo did not live to finish, was
printed at Scandiano the year after his death, under the
superintendence of his son Count Camille. The title of
the book is without date ; but a Latin letter from Antonio
Caraffa di Reggio, prefixed to the poem, is dated the ka¬
lends of June 1495. A second edition, also without date,
but which must have been printed before the year 1500,
appeared at Venice; and the poem was there twice reprint¬
ed during the first twenty years of the sixteenth century.
These editions are the more curious and valuable, that they
contain nothing but the text of the author, which is com¬
prised in three books, divided into cantos, the third book
being incomplete. But Niccolo degli Agostini, a mediocre
poet, had the courage to continue the work commenced by
Boiardo, adding to it three books, which were printed at
Venice in 1526, 1531, in 4to ; and since this time no edition
of the Orlando has been printed without the continuation
of Agostini, wretched as it unquestionably is. Nor is this
all. Successive rifacciamenti were executed by Domenichi
and Berni, who took prodigious liberties, especially with
5 a
738
B O I
Boigtsbergthe style, which they chose to consider as feeble, and ill
II suited to the high qualities of the poem in other respects ;
Boileau. ancj j.]ie consequence has been, that the original composi-
tion has been nearly overlaid by these innovations, and that
the romantic epic invented by Boiardo is now almost uni¬
versally read as remodelled by Berni. The other works
of Boiardo are, 1. II Timone, a comedy, Scandiano, 1500,
4to ; 2. Sonnetti e Canzoni, Reggio, 1499, 4to ; 3. Carmen
Bucolicon, Reggio, 1500, 4to ; 4. Cinque Capitoli in terza
rima, Venice, 1523 or 1533; 5. Apulejo dell Asinodoro,
Venice, 1516, 1518; 6. Asino d'oro de Luciano, tradotto
in volgare, Venice, 1523, 8vo ; 7. Erodoto Alicarnasseo
istorico, tradotto di Greco in Lingua Italiana, Venice, 1533
and 1538, 8vo ; 8. Rerum Italicarum Scriptores. {Bio¬
graphic Universelle ; Tiraboschi, Storia della Letterat. Ital.
lib. iii. c. 3. sect. 26, 33; Crescimbeni, tom. i. and iii.) (a.)
BOIGTSBERG, a bailiwick in the circle of Voigtland,
of the kingdom of Saxony. It contains four towns, 112
villages, and about 30,000 inhabitants, who are mostly em¬
ployed in various manufactures. The town, of the same
name, has near it some mines of iron, copper, and alum.
BOILEAU, Despreaux Nicolas, a celebrated French
poet, was born at Paris in the year 1636. After having gone
through a course of literature and philosophy, his relations
induced him to study the law, and he was admitted advo¬
cate at the age of twenty-one. But though he had all the
talents necessary for the bar, yet he could not adapt him¬
self to a science which turns upon continual equivocations,
and often obliges those who follow it to clothe falsehood
in the garb of truth ; and, besides, the books of Accursius
and of Alciat were little likely to please the disciple of
Horace and of Juvenal. He therefore deserted what his
biographers call “ 1’antre de la chicane,” and determin¬
ed to study theology; but he soon found that scholastic
divinity had its tricks and quirks as well as law. He
imagined, that in order to allure him more cunningly,
chicanery, which he thought to avoid, had only changed
her habit; and so renouncing the Sorbonne, he applied
himself entirely to the study of the belles lettres, and
soon occupied one of the most distinguished places on
Parnassus. The public gave his works the reception
they deserved; and Louis XIV. who loved to encourage
the sciences and polite literature, was not only pleased to
have M. Boileau’s works read to him as they were com¬
posed, but settled a yearly pension of 2000 livres upon
him, and gave him the privilege of printing all his works.
He was afterwards chosen a member of the French aca¬
demy, and also of the academy of inscriptions. This great
man, who was as remarkable for his integrity, his inno¬
cence, and diffusive benevolence, as for the keenness of
his satire, died of a dropsy in the chest on the 13th of
March 1711, in the seventy-fifth year of his age. The
Lutrin of Boileau, still considered by some French critics
as one of the best poems to which France has given birth,
was first published in 1674. But it is with great reason
and justice that Voltaire confesses it inferior to the Rape
of the Loch. Few poets, however, can so properly be
compared as Pope and Boileau ; and, wherever their writ¬
ings admit of a parallel being drawn, we may, without any
national partiality, adjudge the superiority to the Eng¬
lish bard. These two great authors resembled each other
as much in the integrity of their lives, as in the subjects
and execution of their compositions. There are two ac¬
tions recorded of Boileau, which sufficiently prove that
the inexorable satirist had a most generous and friendly
heart. When Patru, the celebrated advocate, who was
ruined by his passion for literature, found himself under
the painful necessity of selling his extensive library, and
had almost agreed to part with it for a moderate sum,
Boileau tendered him a higher price, and, after paying the
B O I
money, added this condition to the purchase, that Patru BoiJJ
should retain, during his life, the possession of the books.
Another instance of the poet’s generosity is of a yet nobler le-
character. WThen it was rumoured at court that the king ^
intended to retrench the pension of Corneille, Boileau ^
hastened to Madame de Montespan, and represented that
his sovereign, equitable as he was, could not, without in¬
justice, grant a pension to an author like himself, just
ascending Parnassus, and withdraw it from Corneille, who
had so long been seated on the summit; he entreated her,
for the honour of the king, to prevail on his majesty rather
to strike off his pension, than to withdraw that of a man
whose title to that which he enjoyed was incomparably
greater ; and he declared that he could more easily con¬
sole himself under the loss of that distinction, than under
the affliction of seeing a just reward taken away from such
a poet as Corneille. This magnanimous application had
the success which it deserved; and it appears the more
noble, that the rival of Corneille was the intimate friend
of Boileau. The long and unreserved intercourse which
subsisted between Boileau and Racine was highly benefi¬
cial and honourable to both. The dying farewell of the
latter is the most expressive eulogy on the private cha¬
racter of Boileau : “ Je regarde comme un honheur pour
moi de mourir avant vousf said the tender Racine, in tak¬
ing a final leave of his faithful and generous friend. As a
satirist Boileau is inferior to Horace; but in his Epistles
he almost equals his illustrious model; whilst, in regu¬
larity of plan, felicity of transition, and a firm, sustained
elegance of style, his Art Poetique will stand a comparison
with the celebrated Epistle to the Pisos. His works con¬
sist of his Satires; his Epistles; his Art of Poetry, in¬
cluding his Epigrams, and some other pieces of French
and Latin poetry ; his Dialogue on Poetry and Music; a
Dialogue on the Heroes of Romance, a Translation of Lon¬
ginus's Treatise on the Sublime, with Critical Reflections
on that author ; and the best edition of them, perhaps, is
that with the notes and commentaries of M. Daunou,
printed at Paris in 1809, in 3 vols. 8vo; but the edition of
1747 by Lefevre de Saint-Marc, in 5 vols. 8vo, with cuts,
and accompanied with the remarks of Brossette, is the
most recherchee.
BOILING, or Ebullition, the bubbling up of any
fluid. The term is most commonly applied to that bub¬
bling which is produced by the application of fire; though
that which ensues when the particles of bodies rapidly
combine, such as on the mixing of an acid with an alkali,
is sometimes also distinguished by the same name.
Boiling, in trade and manufactures, is a preparation
given to different sorts of bodies by making them pass
over the fire, chiefly in water, though sometimes in other
liquors. In this sense we speak of the boiling of salt,
of sugar, of copperas, and the like.
Boiling, in the culinary art, is a method of dressing
meats by coction in hot water, intended to soften them,
and dispose them for easier digestion.
Boiling is also a method of trying or essaying the
goodness or badness of a colour or dye. The stuff is to
be boiled in water with certain drugs, different according
to the kind or quality of the colour, to try whether or not
it will discharge, and give a tincture to the water.
Boiling to Death {caldariis decoquere), in the middle
ages, a kind of punishment inflicted on thieves, false coin¬
ers, and some other criminals.
BOINITZ, a town of Upper Hungary, in the county of
Zell, remarkable for its baths and the quantity of saffron
that grows about it. Long. 19. 10. E. Lat. 48. 42. N.
BOIS-le-Duc, or Herzogensbosch, a city of the pro¬
vince of North Brabant, in the Netherlands. It stands at
the confluence of the Dommel and the Aa, and is strong-
B O L
J jrd ly fortified, being defended by two citadels. The city is
divided by canals into nine quarters. It contains fifteen
[ j2, churches, two hospitals, a house of industry, an arsenal,
^ ^ and barracks for 3000 troops. It is a great manufacturing
place, especially for linen cloth. The inhabitants are
14,500. Long. 5. 12. 37. E. Lat. 51. 41. 34. N.
Bois de Soignies, the forest of Soignies, in the Austrian
Netherlands and province of Brabant, several miles south¬
east of Brussels.
BOISSARD, John James, an antiquarian and Latin
poet, born at Besan^on in 1528. He studied at first under
Hugues Babel, his uncle, professor of Greek at Louvain,
and afterwards had other able masters ; but their severity
having disgusted him with study, he fled secretly from
Louvain, traversed a great part of Germany, and reached
Italy, where he remained for several years, and was often
reduced to great straits. His residence in Italy develop¬
ed in his mind a taste for antiquities ; he learned to design,
and soon formed a collection of the most curious monu¬
ments of Rome and its vicinity ; he then visited the islands
of the Archipelago, with the intention of travelling through
Greece, but a severe malady with which he was attacked
obliged him to return to Rome. Here he resumed his
favourite pursuits with great ardour and enthusiasm; and
having completed his collection, returned to his native
country. But not being permitted to profess publicly the
Protestant religion, which he had embraced some time be¬
fore, he withdrew to Metz, where he died on the 30th of
October 1602, at the age of seventy four. His works are,
1. Poemata Epigrammatum libri tres, Elegies libri ires,
Epistolarum libri tres, Basel, 1574; 2. Emblemata, Latin
and French, Metz, 1584 ; 3. Emblemata, Latin, Franc-
fort, 1595; 4. Vita; et leones Sultanorum Turcicorum,
&c. Francfort, 1596; 5. Theatrum Vita; Humana, Metz,
1596; 6. Romance Urbis Topographice et Antiquitatum,
quibus succincte et breviter describuntur omnia quee turn pub-
lice quam privatim videntur animadversione digna, partes
vi., Francfort, 1597, 1598, 1600, and 1602, folio, six tomes
in three, with plates, and now very rare; 7. leones et Vitce
Virorum Hlustrium, Francfort, 1592 to 1599; 8. Parnas¬
sus Biceps, Francfort, 1601; 9. De Divinatione et Magicis
preestigiis, Oppenheim and Hanau, rare and curious; and,
10. Habitus Variarum Gentium, Metz, 1581, ornamented
with seventy illuminated figures.
BOJADOR, a cape of Western Africa, which projects
considerably into the sea, and presents a very rugged and
tempestuous aspect. The Portuguese were for many
years deterred by it from prosecuting their career of dis¬
covery in this direction. At length it was passed by
Gellaney, and vessels navigating the Atlantic now stand
too far out to sea to be exposed to any danger.
BOKHARA. See Bukharia.
BOLABOLA, or Borabora, one of the Society Islands,
in the South Pacific Ocean. It is about twenty-four miles
in circumference, and is surrounded by a reef of rocks
and islets. A very lofty double-peaked mountain rises in
the centre. There is a border of low land along the coast,
which is very fertile, and covered with cocoa-nut and
bread-fruit trees. The island is populous, and the inha¬
bitants are of a more warlike disposition than their neigh¬
bours, some of whom they have subdued. Long. 151.
52. W. Lat. 16. 32. N.
BOLANDUS, John, a famous Jesuit, born at Tille-
mont in the Netherlands, in 1696. He distinguished
himself by writing the lives of the saints, under the title
of Acta Sanctorum, of which he published five volumes in
folio, but died while he was labouring at the sixth, in the
seventieth year of his age. The continuators of that work
are called Bolandists.
BOLE, an opake, earthy mineral, occurring in solid
B O L
739
amorphous masses, of a yellow, red, or brownish colour.
It yields to the nail, and cuts easily, but has a conchoidal
fracture, with a shining streak, and adheres to the tongue.
Its specific gravity is between 1-60 and 2*00, and when
thrown into water it emits a crackling noise, and falls to
pieces. It occurs in wacke and basalt at Striegau in Sile¬
sia, at Habichtswald in Hessia, near Sienna in Tuscany,
and among the cliffs of the Giant’s Causeway, Ireland.
BOLEYN, Ann, queen of Henry VIII. of England, and
memorable in the English history as being the primary
cause of the reformation, as the mother of Queen Eliza¬
beth under whom it was completely established, and also
on account of her own sufferings. She was the daughter of
Sir Thomas Boleyn, and was born in 1505. At the age of
eight she attended the Princess Mary, Henry’s sister,
into France, as maid of honour, and continued in this ca¬
pacity during that lady’s short-lived union with Louis XII.
On the death of the French monarch, she was taken into
the household of Claude, queen of France, on account of
her girlish attractions; but on the approach of the rup¬
ture between the two countries in 1522, Henry required
her being returned to England, because, being a lady of the
royal household, she could not with propriety quit France
without the king’s permission. She appears to have en¬
tered into a pre-contract, or given some promise of mar¬
riage to one of the sons of the Earl of Northumberland,
but whether serious or frivolous is not known. This much
is certain, that on her return she was appointed maid of
honour to Queen Catherine of Spain, Henry VIII.’s first
wife; and that the king himself soon became greatly ena¬
moured of her. It has been asserted that her eldest sis¬
ter, and even her mother, preceded her in Henry’s favour.
But be this as it may, she behaved herself with so much
virtue or address, by refusing to satisfy the king’s passion
in an illicit manner, that she brought him to think of mar¬
rying her; and Henry, persuaded that he should never
enjoy her unless he made her his wife, was thus induced
to set on foot the affair of his divorce from Catherine,
which at last was executed with great form and solemnity.
It has been observed, that “ that which would have been
very praiseworthy on another occasion, was Ann Boleyn’s
chief crime; since her refusing to comply with an amo¬
rous king, unless he would divorce his wife, was a much
more enormous crime than to have been his concubine.
A concubine,” it has been added, “ would not have de¬
throned a queen, nor taken her crown or her husband
from her; whereas the crafty Ann Boleyn, by pretending
to be chaste and scrupulous, aimed only at the usurpation
of the throne, and the exclusion of Catherine of Aragon
and her daughters from all the honours due to them.” But
this doctrine is evidently pitched a great deal too high;
for it does by no means follow that, in refusing to gratify
the king’s passion, except in a lawful and recognized rela¬
tion, Anne contemplated an immediate marriage, which
must have been preceded by a divorce. This would seem
to have been the result of the king’s boiling and intem¬
perate haste to obtain possession of a young wife. In the
meanwhile, Henry failed in procuring a divorce from the
pope; which so exasperated him that he at length re¬
solved to throw off the authority of the holy see, and to
attack the established church. The divorce was, however,
compassed in a certain way, and Henry married Ann Boleyn
privately in January 1533 ; and as soon as he perceived that
his new wife was with child, he made his marriage public.
He caused Ann Boleyn to be declared queen of England
on Easter-eve 1533, and to be crowned on the 1st of June
following. On the 7th of September she was delivered
of a daughter, who was afterwards Queen Elizabeth; and
she continued to be much beloved by the king, till 1536,
when the youthful charms of Jane Seymour fired the
Boleyn.
740 BO L
Boleyn blood of this inconstant despot. Then his love for his
J! . wife was changed into violent hatred; he fancied her to
have been unchaste, and caused her to be imprisoned and
tried. “ She was indicted of high treason, for that she
had procured her brother and other four to lie with her,
which they had done often; that she had said to them,
that the king never had her heart; and had said to every
one of them by themselves, that she loved him better
than any person whatever; which was to the slander of
the issue that was begotten between the king and her.”
And this was treason according to the statute made in
the 26th year of this reign ; so that the law which had been
made for her and the issue of her marriage, w-as now em¬
ployed to destroy her. She was condemned to be either
burned or beheaded; and she underwent decollation on
the 19th of May 1536. Some very remarkable things
are related of her during the time of her imprisonment,
and a little before her execution. She is said to have
acted very different parts; sometimes seeming devout,
and shedding abundance of tears, then all of a sudden
breaking out into loud laughter. A few hours before her
death, she remarked that the executioner was very handy,
and besides, that she had a very small neck; at the same
time feeling it with her hands, and laughing heartily.
However, it is agreed that she died with great resolution;
taking care to spread her gown about her feet, that she
might fall with decency, as the poets have related of Po-
lyxena, and the historians of Julius Caesar. Some Roman
Catholic writers have dealt out a hard measure of justice
to this unhappy woman, against whom much has been al¬
leged, and but little, comparatively, proved. But to the
criminations of party-writers may be opposed the delibe¬
rate judgment of a candid and philosophical historian.
“ In surveying this case,” says Sir James Mackintosh,
“ it may be concluded that her (Anne’s) departure from
honour, even on the eve of marriage, is not proved; and
that the general profligacy of her youth is the mere asser¬
tion of her enemies, inconsistent with probability and un¬
supported by proof. Whether in her last year she touched
or overpassed the boundaries which separate female ho¬
nour from the delicacy and decorum which are its bul¬
warks, is a question which, though it give rise to more
doubtful inquiries, can never be considered as answered
in the affirmative by the frantic language uttered in the
agony of her mind and body during the first eight days’
imprisonment; nor by the testimony of Smeaton, contra¬
dicted by all whom he called his accomplices; still less
by the brief statements of such originally inadequate evi¬
dence in historians unacquainted with legal proceedings;
and least of all by the verdicts and judgments of such a
reign as that of Henry VIII., in which, though guilt
afforded no security, virtue was the surest path to destruc¬
tion.” (History of England, vol. ii. p. 203, 204.) The
character of the monster to wdiose fierce passions she fell a
victim, would afford a sufficient solution of greater anoma¬
lies than any that are involved in the case of this unfortu¬
nate woman; to say nothing of that frightful attribute of
all tyranny, by which, in homage to opinion which it can
never conciliate, and in cowardly justification of its own
wrongs, it seeks to blast the fame and attaint the memo¬
ries of those whose lives it has wantonly sacrificed.
BOLI, a large town of Asiatic Turkey, in Natolia,
slightly defended by a palisade. It is the capital of a dis¬
trict, and the residence of a governor, and contains nume¬
rous public edifices, though nowise remarkable in their
structure. In the vicinity abundance of ancient ruins are
to be seen, and many marble fragments with Greek in¬
scriptions. The country around is fertile; and in the
neighbourhood is an extensive forest, which supplies Con¬
stantinople with a great quantity of wood. Boli is 140
B O L
miles east of Constantinople. Long. 31. 20. E. Lat. 41 n,
30. N. ' b|
BOLINGBROKE, Henry St John, lord viscount, a ^
great statesman, an indifferent philosopher, and an admi¬
rable writer, was descended from an ancient and noble
family, and born about the year 1672. He had a regular
and liberal education, and, by the time he left the univer¬
sity, was considered as a person of uncommon qualifica¬
tions; but with great parts, he had,” as usually happens,
strong passions, and these hurried him into many indis¬
cretions and follies. Contrary to the inclinations of his
family, he cultivated tory connections, and gained such
an influence in the house of commons, that, in 1704, he
was appointed secretary of war and of the marines. He
wtis so closely united in all political measures with Mr
Harley, that when the latter was removed from the seals
in 1707, Mr St John resigned his employment; and in
1710, when Mr Harley was made chancellor of the ex¬
chequer, the post of secretary of state was given to Mr
St John. In 1712 he was created Baron St John of
Lediard-Tregoze in Wiltshire, and Viscount Bolingbroke.
But being overlooked in the bestowal of vacant ribbons of
the order of the garter, he resented the affront, renounced
the friendship of Harley then earl of Oxford, and made
his court to the whigs. Nevertheless on the accession of
George I. the seals were taken from him; and being in¬
formed that a resolution was taken to pursue him to the
scaffold, for his conduct regarding the treaty of Utrecht,
he withdrew into France. Here he accepted an invitation
to enter into the Pretender’s service, and received the
seals as his secretary; but he was as unfortunate in his
new connections as in those which he had renounced; for
the year 1715 had scarcely expired, when, at the same time
that he was attainted of high treason at home, the seals
and papers of his foreign secretary’s office were taken
from him; and this was followed by an accusation from
the Pretender and his party, of neglect, incapacity, and
treachery. Such a complication of distressful events
threw him into a state of reflection that produced a
consolatio philosophica, in the manner of Seneca and
of Boethius, which he wrote the same year under the
title of Reflections upon Exile; and the following year
he drew up a vindication of his conduct with respect
to the tories, in the form of A Letter to Sir William
Wyndham. About this time he espoused as his second
wife a niece of the famous Madame Maintenon, and wi¬
dow of the Marquis de Villette, with whom he received a
very large fortune. In 1723, the king was prevailed on
to grant him a free pardon, and lie returned in conse¬
quence to England ; but he was by no means satisfied with
being a mere titular lord, and remaining excluded from
the house of peers. This stigma operated to fix his ha¬
tred of Sir Robert Walpole, to whose secret enmity he
attributed his not receiving the full extent of the kings
clemency. Hence he distinguished himself by a multi¬
tude of political writings, chiefly directed against that
minister, till the year 1735; when, being thoroughly con¬
vinced that the door was finally shut against him, he re¬
turned once more to France. In this foreign retreat he
began his Letters on the Study and Use of History, for the
use of the grandson of the celebrated Lord Clarendon, to
whom they are addressed. Upon the death of his father,
who lived to be extremely old, he settled at Battersea,
the ancient seat of his family, where he passed the re¬
mainder of his life in philosophical retirement, uniting, as
we are told by his admirers, the wit of Florace with the
dignity of Pliny and the wisdom of Socrates. Pope and
Swift, the one the greatest poet, the other the greatest wit
of the time, were completely devoted to him; and it is well
known that the former received from him the materials
B O L I
livar. for his Essay on Man. He died in 1751, and left the
care and benefit of his MSS. to Mr Mallet, who publish¬
ed them, together with his formerly printed works, in 5
vols. 4to. They are also printed in 9 vols. 8vo.
BOLIVAR, Simon, the hero of South American inde^
pendence, was born in the city of Caraccas, on the 24th
July 1783. His father was Don Juan Vicente Bolivar y
Ponte, and his mother Dona Maria Concepcion Palacios
y Sojo, both descended of noble families in Venezuela.
After acquiring the elements of a liberal education at
home, Bolivar was sent to Europe to prosecute his studies,
and with this view repaired to Madrid, where he appears
to have resided for several years. Having completed his
education, he spent some time in travelling, chiefly in the
south of Europe, and visited the French capital, where he
was an eye-witness of some of the last scenes of the revo¬
lution. Returning to Madrid, he married the daughter
of Don N. Toro, uncle of the marquis of Toro in Carac¬
cas, and embarked with her for America, intending, it is
said, to dedicate himself to domestic life and the improve¬
ment of his large estate. But this.plan was frustrated by
the premature death of his lady, who fell a victim to yel¬
low fever; and Bolivar again visited Europe, in order, by
change of scene, to alleviate the sorrow occasioned by this
bereavement.
On his return home he passed through the United
States, where, for the first time, he had an opportunity of
observing the working of free institutions; and soon after
his arrival in Venezuela he appears to have embarked in
the schemes of the patriots, and pledged himself to the
cause of independence. Being one of the promoters of
the movement at Caraccas in April 1810, he received a
colonel’s commission from the supreme junta then esta¬
blished, and was associated with Don Luis Lopez Men¬
dez in a mission for communicating intelligence of the
change of government to Great Britain. He took part in
the first military operations of the Venezuelan patriots,
after the declaration of independence on the 5th of July
1811; and in 1812, when the war commenced in earnest,
by the advance of Monteverde with the Spanish troops,
he was intrusted with the command of the important post
of Puerto Cabello. But the castle of San Felipe, which
commanded the town, having been treacherously surren¬
dered to the Spaniards, Bolivar was compelled to evacu¬
ate the place ; and Miranda having soon afterwards made
his peace with the government, Venezuela submitted to
Monteverde, while those who had been most deeply com¬
mitted in the revolution consulted their safety by quitting
the country. On this occasion Bolivar succeeded in ob¬
taining a passport under a fictitious name, and made his
escape to Cura^oa.
But as important events were passing on the continent,
he repaired to Carthagena in September 1812, and, with
other refugees from Caraccas, joined the patriots of New
Grenada, who gave him a command in the small town of
Baranca, under the orders of Labatut, the republican go¬
vernor of Santa Martha. Not content, however, with the
obscure part of a subaltern at Baranca, Bolivar undertook
an expedition against Teneriffe, a town higher up on the
Magdalena; and having made himself master of the place,
proceeded to Mompox, driving the Spaniards before him
from all their posts on the Upper Magdalena, and finally
entering Ocana in triumph amidst the acclamations of the
inhabitants. He then marched upon Cucuta; defeated a
Spanish division commanded by Correa; and, emboldened
by success, conceived the design of invading Venezuela,
and expelling Monteverde. The congress of New Grena¬
da approved of the project, and gave him a commission as
brigadier ; but from the jealousy of some, the lukewarm¬
ness of others, and the procrastination of all, many dis-
VAR.
741
heartening obstacles were thrown in his way. By zeal and
perseverance, however, he at length surmounted every dif¬
ficulty, and commenced his march for Venezuela with little
more than 500 men. At the head of this handful of troops
he boldly entered the province of Merida; made himself
master of the provincial capital, where, on learning the
new s of his approach, the inhabitants rose upon the^Spa-
niards; re-established the republican authorities there; then
pushed his vanguard under Jirardot upon Trujillo, where
a corps of royalists under Cams w'as defeated ; and finally
expelled the Spaniards from the provinces of Merida and
Trujillo. While he was thus carrying every thing before
him, Bolivar obtained intelligence of the cruelty and op¬
pression exercised by Monteverde and his subordinate
officers in Venezuela ; and, exasperated at their barbarity,
as well as desirous to give a check to their excesses, he
issued the famous decree o^guerra a muerte, condemning to
death all Spanish prisoners wdio might fall into his hands.
Bolivar’s army increasing daily, he now' formed it into
two divisions, one of which he committed to the charge
of Rivas, and advanced rapidly on Caraccas through the
provinces of Trujillo and Varinas. After a variety of en¬
counters, which generally terminated in favour of the pa¬
triots, a decisive battle was fought at Lastoguanes, where
the flower of Monteverde’s troops sustained a total defeat,
and the road to Caraccas was in consequence left uncover¬
ed. Monteverde threw himself into Puerto Cabello, and
Bolivar lost no time in marching on the capital, which
being evacuated by the Spaniards, he entered in triumph
on the 4th of August 1813. While this operation was in
progress, Marino effected the liberation of the eastern
provinces of Venezuela, of which, excepting the fortress
of Puerto Cabello, the patriots regained entire possession.
At this period the whole authority in Venezuela centred
in Bolivar as commander of the liberating army; and a
convention of the principal civil and military officers, held
at Caraccas on the 2d of January 1814, confirmed the
dictatorial power which circumstances had placed in his
hands. Misfortune, however, was at hand.
The contest, which had hitherto been confined to a spe¬
cies of partisan warfare, now assumed a more serious cha¬
racter. The royalists, effectually roused by the reverses
they had sustained, concentrated all their means; and a
number of sanguinary encounters ensued. At length,
after various vicissitudes of fortune, Bolivar was defeated
by Boves near Cura, in the plains of La Puerta, and com¬
pelled to embark for Cumana with the shattered remains
of his forces. Caraccas was also retaken by the Spaniards
in July ; and before the end of the year 1814 the royalists
were again the undisputed masters of Venezuela. From
Cumana Bolivar repaired to Carthagena, where he once
more appeared as a fugitive, and thence proceeded to
Tunja, where the congress of New Grenada was sitting,
in order to render an account of his operations. Fie had
been unfortunate, which generally exposes a commander
to misconstruction and obloquy ; and his expedition, as
brilliant in its outset as it proved disastrous in the issue,
was severely criticised. But notwithstanding his misfor¬
tunes, and the efforts of his personal enemies, he was re¬
ceived and treated with great consideration; and as the
congress were then organizing an expedition against Bo¬
gota, for the purpose of compelling Cundinamarca to ac¬
cede to the general coalition of the provinces, Bolivar was
intrusted with the command of the forces of the union on
this occasion. Accordingly, in December 1814 he march¬
ed against Santa Fe at the head of 2000 troops. All at¬
tempts at negociation having failed, he invested the city,
drove in the out-posts, carried the suburbs by storm, and
was preparing to assault the grand plaza or square, where
Alvarez and the troops of Cundinamarca were posted,
Bolivar.
742 B O L I
Bolirar. when the latter capitulated and acknowledged the gene-
''—-V'*-'' ral government of New Grenada, which was now transfer¬
red to Bogota. For this important service Bolivar receiv¬
ed the thanks of the congress ; and even the inhabitants
of the city against which he had been sent expressed their
approbation of his conduct.
In the meanwhile Santa Martha had fallen into the
hands of the royalists, through the incapacity of Labatut;
and as the general government appreciated the importance
of recovering possession of that place, Bolivar was employ¬
ed on this service, with orders to receive the necessary
supplies and munitions of war from the citadel of Cartha-
gena. But the preposterous jealousy of Castillo, the mili¬
tary commandant, defeated all his plans. The season for
action was wasted in disgraceful altercations and ruinous
delays; and while Bolivar was investing Carthagena, in
the hope of intimidating Castillo into submission, Morillo
landed on the island of Margarita at the head of an over¬
whelming force of Spaniards, and put an end to dispute.
Finding a check thus effectually given to any movement
against Santa Martha, and satisfied that he could not be
usefully employed at Carthagena, Bolivar resigned his
command, and embarked for Jamaica in May 1815. He
remained at Kingston during the greater part of the year,
whilst Morillo was reducing Carthagena and overrunning
New Grenada almost without opposition; and in the interim
narrowly escaped assassination by a Spaniard who had been
hired to make an attempt on his life.
From Kingston Bolivar repaired to Aux Cayes in Hayti,
where, assisted by private individuals, and furnished with a
small force by Petion, he organized an expedition, in order
to join Arismendi, who had raised anew the standard of in¬
dependence in the island of Margarita. In May 1816 he
reached Margarita, and sailing thence, landed on the con¬
tinent near Cumana; but being attacked at Ocumare by
the Spaniards under Morales, he was compelled to re¬
embark. Nothing disheartened by this failure, he obtain¬
ed fresh reinforcements at Aux Cayes, and in December
landed again in Margarita, where he issued a proclamation
convoking the representatives of Venezuela in a general
congress. He then proceeded to Barcelona, where he
organized a provisional government, and assembled troops
to resist Morillo, who was then advancing at the head of
a strong division. The hostile forces encountered each
other on the 16th of February 1817, when a desperate con¬
flict ensued, which lasted during that and the two fol¬
lowing days, and ended in the defeat of the royalists.
Morillo retired in disorder, and being met on his re¬
treat by Paez with his llaneros, experienced a new and
more complete overthrow. Being now recognised as
commander-in-chief, Bolivar proceeded in his career of
victory, and before the close of the year had fixed his
head-quarters at Angostura. But as the military opera¬
tions of this and the following year belong rather to the
history of Colombia than to the biography of Bolivar, the
reader is referred to that head for an account of them.
He presided at the opening of the congress of Angostura
on the 15th of February 1819, when he submitted an ela¬
borate exposition of his views on government, and also
surrendered his authority into the hands of congress.
Being, however, required to resume his power, and retain
it until the independence of the country should be com¬
pletely established, he re-organized his troops, and set out
from Angostura, in order to cross the Cordilleras, ef¬
fect a junction with General Santander, commanding the
republican forces in New Grenada, and bring their united
means into action against the common enemy. This bold
and original design was crowned with complete success.
In July 1819 he reached funja, which he entered, after
a sharp action on the adjoining heights; and on the 7th of
V A R.
August he gained the victory of Bojaca, which gave him Bo ir j
immediate possession of Santa Fe and all New Grenada. ^
Nor was this all. By the resources of men, money, and
munitions of war, which he found at Bogota, he was en¬
abled to augment the effective strength of his army, and
to return to Venezuela with a force sufficient to insure the
expulsion of the Spaniards.
The campaign of New Grenada is unquestionably Bo¬
livar’s most brilliant achievement, and deserves much of
the praise which has been lavished on it. Flis return to
Angostura was a sort of national festival. He was hailed
as the deliverer and father of his country, and all manner
of distinctions and congratulations were heaped upon him.
He availed himself of this favourable moment to obtain
the enactment of the fundamental law of the 17th De¬
cember 1819, by which the republics of Venezuela and
New Grenada were henceforth united in a single state,
under his presidency, by the title of the republic of Co¬
lombia. The seat of government was also transferred
provisionally to Rosario de Cucuta, and Bolivar again took
the field. Being now at the head of the most numerous
and best appointed army the patriots had yet assembled,
he gained important advantages over the Spaniards un¬
der Morillo, and on the 25th November 1820 concluded
at Trujillo an armistice of six months, probably in the
hope that the Spaniards would now come to terms, and
that the further effusion of blood might be spared. If
such were his views, however, they were disappointed.
Morillo was recalled; Torre assumed the command; and
the armistice was allowed to expire without any pacific
overture being made. As a renewal of the contest was
therefore inevitable, Bolivar resolved, if possible, to strike
a decisive blow; and this accordingly he did at Cara-
bolo, where he vanquished Torre, and so completely de¬
stroyed the Spaniards, that the shattered remains of their
army were forced to take refuge in Puerto Cabello, where
two years after they surrendered to Paez.
The battle of Carabolo may be considered as having put
an end to the war in Venezuela. On the 29th June 1820
Bolivar entered Caraccas, and by the close of the year the
Spaniards were driven from every part of the country ex¬
cept Puerto Cabello and Quito. The next step was to se¬
cure, by permanent political institutions, the independence
which had now been conquered; and accordingly, on the
30th of August 1821, the present constitution of Colom¬
bia was adopted with general approbation, Bolivar himself
being president, and Santander vice-president.
Having thus achieved the independence of his own
country, Bolivar next placed himself at the head of the
army destined to act against the Spaniards in Quito and
Peru. The fate of Quito was decided by the battle of
Pichincha, which was fought in June 1822, and gained by
the conduct and prowess of Sucre. Bolivar then march¬
ed upon Lima, which the royalists evacuated at his ap¬
proach ; and entering the capital in triumph, he was in¬
vested with absolute power as dictator, and authorized
to call into action all the resources of the country. But
being violently opposed by some of the factions which
then distracted Peru, and unable to make head against
their intrigues, he was obliged to withdraw to Trujillo,
leaving the capital to the mercy of the Spaniards under
Canterac, by whom it was immediately occupied. This
success, however, proved only temporary. By June 1824i
the liberating army was completely organized; and taking
the field soon after, it routed the vanguard of the ene¬
my. Improving his advantage, Bolivar pressed forward,
and on the 6th of August defeated Canterac on the
plains of Junin ; after which he returned to Lima, leaving
Sucre to follow the royalists in their retreat to Upper
Peru; an exploit which the latter executed with equal abi-
BOLIVAR.
iivar. lity and success, gaining a decisive victory at Ayacucho,
and thus completing the dispersion of the Spanish force.
The possessions of the Spaniards in Peru were now con¬
fined to the castles of Callao, which Rodil maintained for
upwards of a year, in spite of all the means that could be
employed for their reduction. In June 1825 Bolivar vi¬
sited Upper Peru, which having detached itself from the
government of Buenos Ayres, was formed into a separate
state, called Bolivia, in honour of the liberator. The first
congress of the new republic assembled in August 1825,
when Bolivar was declared perpetual protector, and re¬
quested to prepare for it a constitution of government.
We now come to what may be considered as the se¬
cond part in the biography of Bolivar. Hitherto we have
been almost exclusively occupied in tracing his military
career; at first uncertain, and marked by great reverses,
but afterwards illustrated by a series of victories which,
although fortune frequently favoured his enterprises, were
principally owing to his own courage and constancy, aided
by very considerable military genius. But from the pe¬
riod at which we have arrived,. he appears before us in
the capacity of a lawgiver; and imputations on the purity
of his political views, whether well founded or the reverse,
seem to have been contemporaneous with his attempts to
consolidate the governments which owed their existence
to his military prowess. Our present business, however,
is with facts. In December 1824 he convoked a consti¬
tuent congress for the February ensuing, and this body
assembled accordingly; but, owing to the unsettled state
of the country, the dictatorial power was vested in Bolivar
for another year, and a grant of a million of dollars was
offered him, which, however, he declined. The congress
soon adjourned, and the dictator remained absolute go¬
vernor of Peru. There is no evidence that he abused the
power thus intrusted to him. Residing partly at Lima
and partly at Magdalena, he directed the acts of the go¬
vernment, and also proposed the celebrated congress at
Panama for establishing an alliance between all the inde¬
pendent states of America. His project of a constitution
for Bolivia was presented to the congress of that state on
the 25th May 1826, accompanied with an address, in w hich
he embodied his opinions respecting the form of govern¬
ment which he conceived most expedient for the newly-
established republics. Of this code some account will be
found in the article Bolivia ; but its most extraordinary
feature consisted in the provision for lodging the executive
authority in the hands of a president for life, without re¬
sponsibility, and with power to nominate his successor.
This alarmed the friends of liberty, and excited lively ap¬
prehensions amongst the republicans of Buenos Ayres and
Chili; whilst, in Peru, Bolivar wras accused of a design to
unite into one state Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia, and to
render himself perpetual dictator of the confederacy.
And it must be confessed that the conduct of the libe¬
rator gave some colour to these imputations. By the sur¬
render of the castles of Callao, Peru was completely freed
from the Spaniards, and the object which Bolivar professed
to have had in view was accomplished. Yet he manifested
no intention of resigning his authority, and departing from
the country. On the contrary, when the deputies for the
constituent congress of 1826 assembled, they were induced
to decline acting in their legislative capacity; whilst a
majority of their number published an address, urging
Bolivar to continue at the head of affairs for another year,
and, in the meanwhile, requesting him to consult the pro¬
vinces individually respecting the form of government
which they would prefer, and the person who should be
placed at its head. He complied with this request, which
he had probably suggested; circular letters were address¬
ed to the prefects of departments, commanding them to
743
assemble the electoral colleges, and to submit for the sane- Bolivar,
tion of these bodies a constitution similar in all respects ^ y’"^^ 1
to the Bolivian code; and this constitution was adopted
by the colleges, which, with an unanimity perfectly extra¬
ordinary, nominated Bolivar president for life. We are
too distant from the scene of these events, and too near
the time of their occurrence, to be able to judge accurately
»as to the means by which this unanimity was produced in
a country which, above all others, was distracted by fac¬
tions, and a prey to intestine commotions.
In the meanwhile the affairs of Colombia had taken a
turn which demanded the presence of Bolivar in his own
country. During his absence Santander had administered
the government ably and uprightly; its independence had
been recognised by other countries; and its territory had
been subdivided into departments, defined by geographi¬
cal boundaries analogously to that of France. But Paez,
who commanded in Venezuela, having been accused of
arbitrary conduct in the enrolment of the citizens of Ca-
raccas in the militia, refused obedience to the summons of
the senate, and placed himself in a state of open rebellion
against the general government; whilst the disaffected
party, taking advantage of this collision, united with the
refractory commander, and encouraged him in his opposi¬
tion, by which means the northern departments became
virtually separated from the rest of the republic. All,
however, professed a willingness to submit their grievances
to the decision of Bolivar, and equally required his return
to Colombia. But the factious jarrings to which we have
adverted did not rest here. Whilst these movements were
taking place in Venezuela, various municipalities of the
southern departments, which had originally constituted
the presidency of Quito, held public meetings, at which
the Bolivian code was adopted, and the supreme authority
lodged in Bolivar as dictator. Whether these proceedings
were in accordance with the wishes of Bolivar or not, it is
impossible to affirm with any degree of certainty. It has
been generally believed, indeed, that the meetings in
question were summoned, and the resolutions suggested,
by Leocadio Guzman, an emissary of Bolivar’s ; and some
have even alleged that Paez was incited and encouraged
by hints from the same quarter. But be this as it may,
the actual state of affairs, however produced, was such as
demanded the presence of Bolivar.
Accordingly, having intrusted the government to a
council nominated by himself, with General Santa-Cruz
at its head, he set out from Lima in September 1826, and
hastened to Bogota, where he arrived on the 14th Novem¬
ber, and immediately assumed the extraordinary powers
which by the constitution the president was authorized to
exercise in case of rebellion. He remained only a few days
in the capital, and then pressed forward to stop the effusion
of blood in Venezuela, where matters had gone on much far¬
ther than he could ever have contemplated, even supposing
him to have been the main-spring of the intrigues to which
we have already adverted. On the 31st December he reach¬
ed Puerto Cabello, and the following day issued a decree
offering a general amnesty. He had then a friendly meet¬
ing with Paez, and soon afterwards entered Caraccas,
where he fixed his head-quarters, in order to check the
northern departments, which had been the principal thea¬
tre of the disturbances. In the meanwhile Bolivar and
Santander were re-elected to the respective offices of pre¬
sident and vice-president, and by law should have qua¬
lified as such in January 1827. In February, however,
Bolivar formally resigned the presidency of the republic,
at the same time expressing a determination to refute the
imputations of ambition which had been so freely cast
upon him, by retiring to private life, and spending the re¬
mainder of his days on his patrimonial estate. Santander
744 B O L X
Bolivar, combated this resolution, urging him to resume his station
as constitutional president, and declaring his own convic¬
tion, that the troubles and agitations of the country could
only be appeased by the authority and personal influence of
the liberator himself. But distrust and suspicion .of Boli¬
var’s conduct and intentions now filled all the friends of
republican institutions. The anti-republican code of Bo¬
livia was considered as a record of his political faith, and
he was believed to be anxious for its introduction into
Colombia. He was also accused of being in concert with
Paez, and of having secretly fomented discord in the na¬
tion, in order to create an impression of the necessity of
appointing him dictator. What truth there may be in
these charges, or whether there be any at all, we shall not
at present take it upon us to say. That they were generally
believed at the time is unquestionable; nor is it easy,
upon any other supposition, to account for the private in¬
timacy which subsisted betwixt Bolivar and Paez, whilst
publicly they were at open war, and fiercely denouncing
each other. Another proof of the belief which then pre¬
vailed is the large minority in congress who voted for ac¬
cepting his resignation of the presidency. But as a majo¬
rity were of a contrary opinion, and insisted on his retain¬
ing the presidency, he repaired to Bogota to take the oaths
and resume his functions. Before his arrival, however,
he issued simultaneously three separate decrees; one grant¬
ing a general amnesty of all past offences; another, con¬
voking a national convention at Ocaha; and a third for
establishing constitutional order throughout Colombia.
Plis arrival was accelerated by the occurrence of events
in Peru and the southern departments, which struck at
the very foundation of his power. Not long after his de¬
parture from Lima, the Bolivian code had been adopted
as the constitution of Peru, and Bolivar had been declar¬
ed president for life. This took place on the 9th of Decem¬
ber 1826, the anniversary of the battle of Ayacucho ; at
which time the Colombian auxiliary army was cantoned
in three divisions, one in Upper, and two in Lower Peru,
at Arequipa and Lima. The third division, stationed at
Lima, consisted of veteran troops, commanded by gene¬
rals Lara and Sands, personal friends of the liberator.
But notwithstanding their known attachment to Bolivar
personally, his recent conduct in Colombia had rendered
them distrustful of his designs; and although they had
originally no disposition to thwart his views on Peru, had
his ambition been confined to that state alone, they re¬
solved to strike a blow against his power when they con¬
ceived it employed for the subjugation of their own coun¬
try. Accordingly, in about six weeks after the adoption
of the new constitution, a counter-revolution in the go¬
vernment of Peru was effected by this body of dissatisfied
veterans. They had taken their measures so well that
they arrested their general officers without opposition ;
placed them under the orders of Bustamente, one of their
colonels; and announced to the inhabitants of Lima that
their sole object was to relieve the Peruvians from op¬
pression, and to return home to protect their own country
against any attack on its liberties. Availing themselves
of the opportunity thus unexpectedly afforded them, the
Peruvians abjured the Bolivian code, deposed the council
of ministers appointed by the liberator, and proceeded to
organize a provisional government for themselves. After
this bloodless revolution, the third division embarked at
Callao on the 17th March 1827, and landed in the south¬
ern department of Colombia in April; part proceeding to
Guayaquil, and part to Cuenca and Quito, but ail declar¬
ing that their only object in the step they had taken was
the restoration of constitutional order, the preservation of
republican institutions, and opposition to the designs en¬
tertained by Bolivar against the general liberty.
V A R.
Intelligence of these events reached Bolivar while in Bo ar
the north of Colombia. He had long remained in a state of ^ ^
comparative inactivity ; but the news of the counter-revo¬
lution in Peru, effected by the very troops in whom he
had most implicitly confided, called forth all his energy,
and he lost no time in preparing to march to the south, in
order to reduce the refractory division. But he was spared
the necessity of coming to blows with these troops, who,
finding the government in the hands of the national exe¬
cutive, had peaceably submitted to General Ovando. In
the meanwhile Bolivar had accepted the presidency, and
resumed the functions belonging to his official station.
But although Colombia was, to all external appearance,
restored to tranquillity, the nation was divided into two
parties, and agitated by their opposite views and incessant
collisions. Bolivar had regained the personal confidence
of the officers and soldiers of the third division; but the
republican party, with Santander at their head, continued
to regard with undisguised apprehension his ascendency
over the army, and the political movements in which he
wyas continually engaged, accusing or suspecting him of a
desire to imitate the career of Napoleon. In the mean¬
while all parties looked anxiously to the convention of
Ocaha, which was to assemble in March 1828, for a decid¬
ed expression of the national will. The republicans hoped
that the issue of its deliberations would be favourable to
their views; whilst the military, on the other hand, did
not conceal their conviction that a stronger and more
permanent form of government was essential to the
public welfare, that the people were unprepared for re¬
publican institutions, and that Bolivar should be intrust¬
ed with discretionary power to administer the affairs of
Colombia.
And the latter view seems to have prevailed. In virtue
of a decree, dated Bogota, the 27th August 1828, Bolivar
assumed the supreme power in Colombia, and continued
to exercise it until his death, which took place at San
Pedro, near Santa Martha, on the 17th December 1830.
By this decree he was authorized to maintain peace at
home, and to defend the country against foreign invasion,
to command the forces of the state by land and sea, to
negociate with foreign powers, to make peace and declare
war, to enter into treaties, to appoint all civil and military
officers, to issue decrees and ordinances of every descrip¬
tion, to regulate the administration of justice, and in short
to exercise all the functions and prerogatives of sovereign,
not to say absolute power. The decree, indeed, provided
that he was to be assisted in tbe exercise of the executive
power by the council of ministers ; but it is obvious, from
the terms of this document, and above all, from the na¬
ture of the powers it conferred on the president, that, al¬
though the council might advise, it could never control
him ; and that, with the army at his back, he was sovereign
of Colombia under a new denomination. Still his position
was, in many respects, far from being an enviable one.
Suspicion and distrust were excited by all his actions, and
his life seems to have been embittered, if not shortened,
by the incessant attacks made on his character and con¬
duct. This seems evident from an address to the Colom¬
bian nation, which he dictated only a few days before Ins
death; and in which, after alluding to his efforts in the
cause of liberty, and asserting his disinterestedness, he
complains that his enemies had abused the credulity ol
the people, and violated what to him was most sacred, his
reputation ; that he was the victim of his persecutors,
who had brought him to the brink of the grave ; that he
had aspired to no other glory than the consolidation of
Colombia ; and that if his death should contribute to paci¬
fy all factions, and to strengthen the union, he would de¬
scend with tranquillity to the tomb.
B O L
j ?ia. The time has not yet arrived when it would be either
„ -J safe or just to attempt an estimate of Bolivar’s real views
and character. But there are some facts in his history
which, as they seem to be well established, it is due to
his memory to bring prominently forward. He expend¬
ed nine-tenths of a splendid patrimony in the service
of his country; and although he had for a considerable
period unlimited control over the revenues of three coun¬
tries, Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia, he died without a
shilling of the public money in his possession. The value
of his military services can best be estimated by their re-
B O L
suits. He conquered the independence of three states,
which he also organized ; and he called forth a spirit in the
southern portion of the New World, which can never be
extinguished. He purified the administration of justice •
he encouraged the arts and sciences ; he fostered national
interests ; and he induced other countries to recognise that
independence which was in a great measure the fruit of
his own exertions. (Restrepo’s Colombia, vol. iii.; Ame¬
rican Annual Register, vols. i. and ii.; Encyclop. Americ.
v. Bolivar ; Memoirs of General Miller, vol. ii.; Ducoudray
Holstein’s Memoirs of Simon Bolivar.') (a.)
745
Bolivia.
BOLIVIA.
This name has been recently given to a new state or
republic in South America, formed from the provinces
of Upper Peru, which formerly constituted part of the
viceroyalty of Buenos Ayres, and were well known by the
names of Charcas, Potosi, La Paz, Cochabamba, and Santa
Cruz de la Sierra. These provinces, on securing their in¬
dependence, soon after the battle of Ayacucho, 9th Decem¬
ber 1824, found it necessary to come to a determination as
to their future political state and institutions; and therefore
it became a question with the inhabitants of Upper Peru,
whether they should continue their former connection with
the Buenos Ayrean or Argentine provinces, attach them¬
selves to the republic of Peru, or form their country into a
separate and independent republic. But the existing go¬
vernment of Buenos Ayres having with equal judgment and
generosity divested itself of the claim which it had on the
provinces of Upper Peru, the inhabitants of the latter
were left at perfect liberty to decide on the future political
government of their country. Deputies from all the pro¬
vinces were in consequence nominated ; and having assem¬
bled in Chuquisaca, the capital of the republic, in August
1825, the result of their deliberations was, that the pro¬
vinces of Upper Peru should in future constitute a sepa¬
rate and independent nation. This assembly, continuing
its sessions, issued a declaration of national independence ;
and in the exuberance of their gratitude to General Boli¬
var for the important influence he had exercised in accom¬
plishing the liberation of their country, they determined
on giving the name of Bolivia to the whole country.
B la. ^ Bolivia extends from 12° to 23° of south latitude, and from
1 57° to 71° of west longitude from London, and it is bounded
n3‘ °o the north by Peru and Brazil, on the east by Brazil, on
the south by the Argentine or Buenos Ayrean provinces
and Chili, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean and Peru.
It has been divided by the constituent congress of Bolivia
into six departments, viz. Potosi, Chuquisaca, La Paz, Santa
Cmz, Cochabamba, and Oruro ; and these have been sub¬
divided into provinces and cantons. Thus each department
includes in its jurisdiction certain provinces of the an¬
cient regime. The department of Potosi contains Ata¬
cama, Lipez, Potosi, Porco, Chayanta, andChichas; Chuqui¬
saca contains Charcas or Chuquisaca, Cinti, Yamparaes, and
fomina; La Paz, the provinces of La Paz, Pacajes, Sica-
sica, Chulumani, Omasuyos, Larecaja, and Apolobamba;
Santa Cruz, the provinces of Santa Cruz, Mojos, Chiquitos,
Vallegrande, Pampas, and Baures ; Cochabamba contains
Cochabamba, Sacaba, Tapacari, Arque, Palca, Clissa, and
Risque; and the department of Oruro, the provinces of
Paria, Oruro, and Carangas.
as of . ^le Province of Atacama, which belongs geographically
i 'li in ei^er to Chili or Peru, forms the only part of Bolivia
in which comes into contact with the Pacific Ocean, and is
situated between the Andes and the ocean. It is almost
entirely desert and destitute of population. At its north-
VOL. IV.
ern extremity is situated the small port of Cobija, which
has been recently denominated Puerto la Mar, and has ac¬
quired additional importance from its being now the only
avenue by which foreign articles of commerce can enter
the Bolivian republic without the payment of transit du¬
ties; having obtained peculiar and valuable privileges, as
an encouragement to the introduction of merchandise by
this route, in preference to the more convenient routes by
the Puertos Intermedios, belonging to the republic of Peru.
But the arid nature of the surrounding country, and the
great scarcity of water, must greatly retard its advance¬
ment, as the inhabitants are not only scantily supplied
with this very essential necessary of life, but the mules em¬
ployed in the transportation of goods into the interior are
exposed to great privations and hardships from the want
of water and pasture.
The provinces of Lipez, Porco, Potosi, Chichas, Oruro,
Paria, Carangas, and some others, are very elevated districts,
and principally valuable on account of their mineral riches.
I he climate is so cold that scarcely any vegetable produc¬
tions present themselves, except a species of coarse grass,
which serves as pasture to the numerous herds of llamas,
guanacos, alpacas, and vicunas, which abound in these ele¬
vated situations. Cinti, Yamparaes, Tomina, some parts of
Chichas, and other places, enjoy a milder climate, and the
vegetation is more abundant and varied; while from these
the mining districts are principally supplied with provisions
and other necessaries. In the provinces of Chayanta,
Larecaja, Sicasica, Chuquisaca, and other places in the de¬
partment of La Paz, there are also numerous and valuable
mines of gold and silver; but the nature of the country being
more diversified and less elevated in many places, the in¬
habitants are less dependent on the neighbouring provin¬
ces for their supplies. The greater number of the eastern
provinces, which belong to the departments of Cochabamba
and Santa Cruz, are of less elevation, and consequently
possess many of the productions peculiar to tropical regions.
The province of Tarija, which is situated at the south¬
eastern extremity of the department of Chuquisaca, and
which belongs politically to the Argentine republic, forms
geographically a part of the Bolivian republic, and was at
one period claimed and taken possession of by them as
such. This quarter has always been described as possess¬
ing a delightful climate, with a rich and fertile soil.
The greater part of the republic of Bolivia is situated Moun-
in a mountainous and elevated country, more particularly tains,
at its western and central parts; but towards the east
it becomes much less so, and at length terminates in ex¬
tensive plains, which are bounded on the east by the
Brazils. That part of the Andes which is situated in
Bolivia is divided into two separate chains, of great eleva¬
tion, running in a northerly direction, and nearly parallel
to each other. Their separation commences near Potosi,
in the province of Porco, between 19° and 20° of south
5 B
BOLIVIA.
746
Bolivia, latitude, and they continue apart from each other, form-
ing the eastern and western Cordilleras of Bolivia, and
terminate by their union, between 14° and 15° of south
latitude, to the south of the city of Cusco. Ihese lofty
ranges inclose an extensive valley or table-land, which
has no visible outlet for the discharge of its waters; in this
respect resembling the valley of Mexico before the for¬
mation of the artificial outlet denominated the Desagua
de Huehuetoca. The former, however, greatly exceeds
the latter in extent, as well as in elevation, from Carangas
at its southern extremity, in 19° 45', to Lampa, in 15° S.,
its extent has been estimated at about 3500 square leagues;
and the barometrical observations of Mr Pentland give it
an elevation above the level of the sea, at Oruro, the lowest
point of observation, of no less than 12,441 feet. 1 he moun¬
tains of the western Cordillera vary in elevation from 13,605
feet, which has been observed at El Paso del Alto de los
Huesos, to that of 18,898 feet, which is attained by the
Cerro de Tacora or Chipicani. In this chain are found
several active volcanoes, amongst which may be enume¬
rated those of Shama and of Arequipa, the latter of which
presents to the observer the most perfect natural cone
which has yet been observed in any country. The eastern
Cordillera, which is entirely confined to Bolivia, has been
ascertained, by the trigonometrical observations of the
same gentleman, to possess an elevation greatly exceed¬
ing that of Chimborazo, or of any other mountain in the
New World. Thus he has found that the summit of the
Cerro Nevado de Sorata has an elevation of 25,250 feet,
' and that of the Cerro Nevado de Illimani, situated to the
eastward of the city of La Paz, an elevation of 24,350
feet above the level of the sea.
From that part of the eastern Cordillera which is situated
between Oruro and La Paz, in about 18° of south latitude,
there branches off a chain, which proceeds from west to east,
constitutes the mountains of Cochabamba and Santa Cruz
de la Sierra, and is called, in the different parts of its course,
the Cordillera de Chiriguanaes, de los Sauces, and de Yura-
carees, each rising to the region of perpetual snow. Their
eastern declivity is very rapid, and their loftiest summits
are situated, not in the centre, but in the northern part
of the group. This lateral ridge, where it terminates,
forms the point of partition between the basin of the Ama¬
zons and that of the Rio de la Plata. The Cachimayo and
the Pilcomayo, which rise between Potosi, Talavera de
la Puna, and Chuquisaca, flow to the south-east to unite
with the Parana; while the Parapiti and the Guapey or
Rio de Misque pour their waters into the Mamori towards
the north-east, and thence into the Amazons. But the
ridge of partition being placed near Chayanta, between
19° and 20°.south latitude, and south of Misque, Tomina,
and Pomabamba, the river Guapey, which flows-through
these provinces, is forced to sweep round the whole group
or chain of Cochabamba in order to reach the plains of the
Amazons. From that part where this chain of mountains
closes the ridge of partition of Cochabamba, it proceeds
towards the north-east to 16° of south latitude, and forms,
by the intersection of two plains slightly inclined, a kind
of wall in the midst of the savannahs, which separates the
waters of the Guapore, flowing into the Madeira, from those
of the Aguapehy and Jauru, tributary streams of the Rio
Paraguay, and thus forms a line of junction between the
lateral Cordillera or counterfort of Cochabamba and the
mountains of Brazil. This level strait, which divides the
sources of the Mamori and the Pilcomayo, and crosses the
provinces of Mojos and Chiquitos, displays bare and grassy
steppes, like the plains of Casanare and Buenos Ayres.
Lakes. Ihe valley or table-land which is occupied by the lake
of Titicaca and the' Rio Desaguadero forms the most
elevated table-land in the globe, with the exception of
that of Thibet, which presents only mountain pastures, Bo i;u
covered with sheep; while this table-land of the New ^ .
World presents towns and populous cities,—affords support
to numerous herds of cattle, llamas, guanacos, and sheep,—
and is covered with harvests of maize, rye, barley, and
wheat, at an elevation which has nothing to equal it in
any other part of the world. The lake of Titicaca or Chu-
quito, which occupies its northern extremity, is 12,703
feet above the level of the sea, and its extent is equal
to twenty times that of the lake of Geneva, or 448 square
marine leagues. It is surrounded by numerous tovnis and
villages, with a rich and fertile country, and contains seve¬
ral islands, the largest of which is called Titicaca, and
was long held in great veneration by the Peruvian Indians,
in consequence of its having been the place from whence
Manco Capac and his consort Manco Oello Huaco, the
great founders of the empire of the Incas, issued, to spread
civilization, industry, and good government among the
surrounding nations ; in memory of whom, and as a testi¬
mony of gratitude for so many benefits conferred upon
the country, the Incas afterwards erected in this island
a magnificent temple to the sun, in which were accumu¬
lated great riches in silver and gold, being offerings of the
Peruvians, all of which were afterwards thrown into the
lake, to prevent their falling into the hands of the Spaniards.
This island has in latter times fallen sadly from its former
high destinies; since, during the revolutionary war, it served
the purpose of a secure prison, in which were confined the
patriot prisoners who had had the misfortune to fall into the
hands of the royalists. The lake of Titicaca is very irre¬
gular in its form, but it has been estimated at about 240
miles in circumference ; in many places it has a depth of
seventy or eighty fathoms, and admits of extensive navi¬
gation for ships and smaller vessels, though not unattend¬
ed with danger, as it is subject to sudden storms and vio¬
lent gusts of wind from the neighbouring mountains. This
forms the-most elevated scene of navigation perhaps in the
universe. This lake communicates with the smaller lake
of Paria, situated at the southern extremity of the valley,
by means of the Rio Desaguadero, which flows out of the
lake of Titicaca, and has a breadth of from eighty to a
hundred yards. This river and lake form part of the
western boundaries between the republics of Bolivia and
Peru. Over this river was formed, in the time of the
Incas, a suspension bridge, composed of cables and cords
made of the grass and rushes which grow on its borders;
and the work was constantly renewed from time to time, to
obviate the eftects of decay, as it constituted the only line
of communication between the opposite sides of the valley.
These lakes, with the Desaguadero, form the only reci¬
pients for the water of those rivers and streams which
arise from the surrounding mountains and enter into this
extensive plain, which has no visible outlet, by which any
portion of its contents can escape, otherwise than by means
of evaporation.
Those rivers which take their rise from the western Eiv •
declivity of the western Cordillera, and flow into the Pa¬
cific, are so inconsiderable in magnitude, and so short m
their course, as scarcely to merit observation, and are
only useful in supplying the means of a partial irrigation
to the arid plains which separate these mountains from the
Pacific. But those numerous rivers taking their origin
on the eastern declivity of the more elevated or east¬
ern Cordillera, which is distinguished in the different parts
of its extent, as the Cordillera of La Paz, of Palca, of
Ancuma, and of Pelechuco, present a very different aspect,
and are of much greater importance, since they communi¬
cate with large navigable rivers, which terminate in the
Atlantic Ocean.
The river Paro or Beni, which takes its origin in the
BOLIVIA.
ivia. neighbourhood of the city of La Paz,—and the Guapey,
' which arises near Cochabamba, and, sweeping round tlm
southern and eastern bases of the Cordillera of Cochabam¬
ba, unites itself to the Mamori,—flow to the north-east to
mingle with the waters of the mighty Marahon or Ama¬
zons; while the Pilcomayo, which arises near Potosi and
Chuquisaca, and the Vermejo, which has its origin in the
valley of Tarija, bend their courses, at a considerable dis¬
tance from each other, to the south-east, until they mingle
their contents with those of the Paraguay, which termi¬
nates in the Rio de la Plata. All these rivers are navigable
throughout their whole extent, until within a very incon¬
siderable distance of the important cities above mentioned ;
and not only afford the most convenient and extensive lines
of river communication with the nations of Europe and all
the countries which border on the Atlantic, but will like¬
wise, in time, by means of steam navigation, open up the
vegetable wealth of the intermediate districts,
i als. The animals w-hich distinguish the more elevated parts
of Bolivia are theguanaco, the llama, the alpaca, and the
vicuna, which are found in great abundance in such si¬
tuations. These animals, in their structure and habits, are
all closely allied to the camel of Africa. Thus, an exami¬
nation of the structure of the stomach shows that they are
capable of existing during a considerable time without any
supply of water, and in fact they are seldom seen to drink
from the streams of their native mountains. The camel
seems peculiarly well calculated to live in the arid and
burning deserts of the Old World, and the form of its feet
is singularly adapted for traversing rapidly these exten¬
sive plains; whilst, on the other hand, the guanaco and
the llama have their feet so constructed as to enable them
with facility to ascend and descend the abrupt declivities,
and to traverse the rugged and uneven passes, which
abound in these mountains. They seem likewise to fre¬
quent particularly those parts of the Cordillera of the An¬
des which are the most dry and arid, and which are least
clothed with dense forests and shrubbery. Thus, in the
Cordillera which separates the Argentine republic from
Chili, the guanacos are found in great numbers on the
summits and eastern declivities, which are exceedingly
arid and bare, when compared with the western or Chili
side, where the Andes in their whole extent are clothed
to a certain elevation with a broad belt of forest trees and
evergreens, and where, at certain seasons of the year, there
are heavy and continued rains. On this side the guanaco
is of comparatively rare occurrence.
There has existed considerable diversity of opinion
among naturalists whether the guanaco, llama, alpaca, and
vicuna, are different, or only the same species: but it is
now the prevailing opinion that they comprise twm distinct
species, the three former constituting one, the Camelus
Llama of Linnaeus, or Auchenia Glama of Illiger; and that
the differences which have been observed are only the
results of domestication,—the being the animal in
its wild or native state, the llama the same animal after it
has been modified by a long period of domestication, and the
alpaca only differing from the llama in being covered with
a more abundant fleece, and kept in flocks for the sake of
the wool. Ihe subject, however, of the identity of these
animals requires some further investigation, as it has been
asserted that the distinctive types of the different kinds may
yet be discovered in a wild state. In their natural state, the
guanacos are found in numerous herds on the more elevated
parts of the Andes, Peru, and Bolivia, and of the Cordillera
which separates Chili from the Argentine provinces, and
e^t^nc^ fven a great way along that chain as it approaches
the Strait of Magalhaens, having been met with in consider¬
able numbers, according to the testimony of Captain King,
ln various parts of the islands composing Tierra del Fuego,
at a distance of only fifty miles from Cape Horn. They
are likewise found in the Andes of Colombia or New Gre¬
nada, but aie there much less numerous. In the summer
they usually frequent the most elevated parts of the moun¬
tains ; but on the approach of winter, the snow and the in¬
clemency of the season obliges them to seek shelter in the
valleys and plains below. They are then in high condi¬
tion, and at this season are most prized by the hunters.
The young of the guanaco are easily tamed, and soon be¬
come remarkably gentle and attached to their keepers.
These were the only ruminating animals found in South
America on its discovery by the Spaniards ; and the llamas
were then extensively employed as beasts of burthen by
the Peruvian Indians;—a custom which is still continued
to a considerable extent, in consequence of the greater
facility and economy in feeding them. But, in many in¬
stances, the introduction of horses and mules has entirely
superseded the use of them. They are capable of carry¬
ing a load of from 100 to 150 lbs., which they convey, at
the rate of fifteen, and sometimes even of twenty, miles a
day, over rocks and precipices where their attendants can
sometimes with difficulty follow them; and they require
very little care to direct them in their course. The larger
species are capable of carrying afull-grown man, and will trot
or run under him with great swiftness for several miles. The
chief merit of the ^cwraa,next to its being sure-footed, seems
to be its extreme docility, and the trifling expense of its
maintenance. “ They want neither bit, bridle, nor saddle,”
says Feuillee; “there is no need of oats tofeedthem; itisonly
necessary to unload them in the evening at the place where
they are to rest for the night; they go abroad into the
country to seek their own food, and in the morning they
return to the same place ; their baggage is replaced, and
they continue their route.” Their defects are, their com¬
parative weakness, their slow rate of travelling, and their
obstinacy. If their load is too heavy, if they are fatigued,
or are urged forward too fast, they lie down and refuse to
proceed. It is therefore requisite to have a number of
spare llamas in readiness to supply the places of such as
are fatigued or give in; for after four or five days’ travelling
they generally require to rest.
The guanaco, and the llama, which is considered as of the
same species, but only in a domestic state, are exceedingly
graceful and handsome animals; and their whole physiogno¬
my indicates vivacity and intelligence. They usually march
two and two when in troops, in a stately manner, with their
heads erect; and it is a remarkable circumstance, that the
llamas, in passing underneath an archway to which they
are unaccustomed, always bow their heads, however high
the arch may be. In their wild state, when disturbed by
the approach of strangers, these animals seem to possess
a considerable degree of curiosity, placing themselves on
the summits of the neighbouring mountains, and gazing
upon the intruders beneath, occasionally uttering a pecu¬
liar interrupted cry, after which they scamper oft' to a dis¬
tance. They are remarkably gregarious, and may some¬
times be seen in herds of from 300 to 500; and when dis¬
turbed, or when travelling in the mountains, they constant¬
ly follow a leader—a circumstance of which the hunters
who lie in wait for them frequently take advantage. The
llamas are so exceedingly tame and gentle in their man¬
ners, that in passing along the streets or roads they oc¬
casionally approach their heads towards the bystanders,
as if requesting corn or some other article of food : when
irritated, however, the guanaco, in its tame state, as well
as the llama, squirts on the aggressor some saliva from a
cleft in the upper lip; but our own experience has proved
to us that this saliva is quite destitute of that acrid quality
which some have attributed to it. On the arrival of the
Spaniards in Peru these animals were killed in vast num-
747
Bolivia.
748
Bolivia.
Vegeta¬
tion.
B O L I
bers for their flesh and skins. Gregorio de Bolivar esti¬
mates, that in his time 4,000,000 were annually killed to
be eaten, and no less than 300,000 llamas were employed
in the transport of the ores from the mines of Potosi alone.
Even at the present day the guanaco or wild species ex¬
ists in great numbers in those parts of the Andes which
are least frequented; yet many are still annually destroyed
and eaten by the Indians, and also by the puma or Ameri¬
can lion, which is found in many parts of these mountains.
Their flesh is savoury when young, but not very palat¬
able when full grown; their wool, however, is very valu¬
able to the Indians, who manufacture it into hats and
various kinds of woollen stuffs; and their skins, when
tanned, are useful in making shoes and harness.
The vicuna ( Camelus Vicugna) is a smaller animal than
the guanaco or llama, and only useful for its fleece. The
wool is long and fine, and forms a valuable article of com¬
merce ; it is of a brownish colour, somewhat resembling
that of a dried rose leaf; it has a soft, silky, and close
texture, and is well calculated for the manufacture of hats
and warm clothing. The vicuna very much resembles the
llama and guanaco in its habits and dispositions, but can¬
not be usefully employed as a beast of burthen. It usually
frequents the highest parts of the mountains, even where
frost and snow prevail. It is extremely timid, but grega¬
rious, and runs very swiftly. The chinchilla ( Chinchilla
lanigera) is also an inhabitant of the mountainous parts of
Bolivia. The skins, however, are of an inferior quality, al¬
though larger than those obtained from the northern parts
of Chili; but still they form a very valuable article of com¬
merce, on account of the great fineness and delicacy of
their furs. The eastern or more thickly wooded parts of
Bolivia are inhabited by a variety of wild animals, which
are more or less common in Brazil, and the other parts of
intertropical America of inconsiderable elevation.
The vegetation of Bolivia is exceedingly various, de¬
pending principally upon the elevation of the district above
the level of the sea. In many situations the mountains
are covered with perennial snows, below which level we
find those extensive plains or paramos, on the less ele¬
vated parts of which are situated the cities of Potosi,
Oruro, and other towns in the district of Charcas. On
these vegetation is very slight and scanty, consisting prin¬
cipally of a coarse wiry grass called ichu, and rushes,
which only serve the purpose of food for the llamas, gua-
nacos, alpacas, and vicunas, which abound there; and du¬
ring long journeys, as from Oruro to La Paz, scarcely a
tree is to be seen. In the more sheltered spots may be
found some stunted bushes of the carob tree, and another
shrub called tola. Several species of the cactus tribe are
also found in these elevated regions, and especially the
Cactus Peruvianus, so general an inhabitant of South
America, where it sometimes grows to the height of from
twenty to thirty, or even forty feet, and is either in sin¬
gle stems or variously branched. It is used in many
parts of Bolivia as a fence for inclosures; and the stems,
when divested of their spines, are employed in the forma¬
tion of rafters and door-posts for houses. Descending in
level, as on the margins of the lake of Titicaca and at La
Paz, the vegetation becomes more vigorous and varied, and
the plains may be seen covered with abundant crops of
grain ; while in the neighbourhood of La Paz is cultivated
to a great extent the coca plant (Erythroxylum Coca), in
such general use, and so essential an article with the In¬
dians, that its culture in the province of La Paz is pro¬
ductive of great wealth to the inhabitants of that part of
the country. It is used by them as a masticatory in com¬
bination with a particular alkaline substance, called llipta,
and on long and painful journeys serves the Indian in lieu
of all other nourishment. In the neighbourhood of Chu-
VIA.
quisaca and Cochabamba, which have respectively an ele- Bo
vation of 9331 and 8448 feet above the level of the sea,
and in numerous other valleys, the vegetation is so rich
and luxuriant, that they are considered as the gardens of
Bolivia, and supply the more elevated mining districts
with a great part of those necessaries and luxuries of life
which their more rigorous climate denies them. As the
country descends towards the east, the sides of the moun¬
tains become clothed with dense forests, and at length
present all the exuberant richness and variety which cha¬
racterize the vegetation of level districts within the tropics.
The geological structure of the colossal mountains situ-Geo:
ated in Bolivia has hitherto been very imperfectly exa¬
mined. We learn from Humboldt, however, that the me¬
talliferous mountains near Potosi are principally composed
of trachytic porphyries; and Mr Pentland likewise disco¬
vered trachyte in the mountain of Pichu, one of the most
elevated of the western Cordillera. In the same chain
there likewise exist various volcanic mountains, some of
which are in an active state. There is perhaps no part of
the world which affords a more interesting field for the in¬
vestigations of industrious and intelligent geologists than
Bolivia, not only on account of the great elevation which
it attains, but also from the exhibitions of internal struc¬
ture presented by volcanic agency and otherwise; while
powerful aid might be afforded by such inquiries in search¬
ing for mines, and in the prosecution of mining enterprises,
and also in discovering beds of coal and other important
auxiliaries, tending to lessen the difficulty and expense ot
such undertakings.
The great variety, extent, and value, of the mineral Mir
productions of the mountainous districts of Bolivia have
given to this part of America an importance and celebrity
which it would not otherwise have obtained, and caused
large and populous cities and towns to be built at eleva¬
tions where the rigours of the climate and the deficient ve¬
getation would otherwise have afforded very few induce¬
ments for fixing the abodes of industry.
Gold is found in considerable quantities in the moun-Gok
tainous parts of Bolivia; but, owing to the expense ot ex¬
tracting the metal from the ore, the mines which produce
it have not been worked to the extent of which they are
susceptible. In these it is usually found in the form ot
grains or nodules, or intermixed with antimony, silver, and
other substances, and is separated by reducing the whole
to a fine powder, and by amalgamation with quicksilver.
The colossal mountain of Illimani is believed to contain
great quantities of gold, in consequence of that metal having
been found in a native state in considerable quantities in
the lake of Illimani, situated at its base, and at an eleva¬
tion of 15,780 feet above the level of the sea. In the seven¬
teenth century, likewise, an Indian found near its base,
at a short distance from the city of La Paz, a mass of native
gold, which was said to have been detached from the moun¬
tain by the agency of lightning, and which, having been
purchased for the sum of 11,269 dollars, was afterwards
deposited in the cabinet of natural history at Madrid.
But by far the greater part of the gold procured in Bo¬
livia is obtained by means of the lavaderos or gold wash¬
ings, in the beds of rivulets, where it is found in the form
of grains. The most productive of these are the cele¬
brated lavaderos of Tipuani, consisting of streams de¬
scending from the snow-capped summits of the Cordillera
of Ancuma, situated about sixty leagues to the north-east
of the city of La Paz, in the province of Larecaja. The
town of Zorata, which is the great resort of the mineis
and all others w ho are attracted by these gold washings,
is at a considerable distance, and is reached by a roa
full of difficulties and dangers. The eastern sides of t ie
mountains, when contrasted with the western declivities,
a.
V.
ils.
BOLIVIA.
749
11 ivia. looking towards the lake of Titicaca, present a rich and vi-
gorous vegetation, and the climate becomes sensibly milder
as we descend. The waters rush with impetuosity from
these lofty mountains, and, accumulating greatly in their
progress, at the distance of fifteen miles from the summit
called Amicarpa, form the river Tipuani, which runs with
great rapidity, and, passing between two lofty mountains,
emerges, after a course of about forty miles, near the vil¬
lage of Tipuani, where it loses its former rapidity, the
country now consisting of only gentle undulations. This
river terminates in the Beni, one of the tributaries of the
Amazons; but before reaching the Beni its channel ceases
to be productive of gold. From its inconsiderable eleva¬
tion, the country where these lavaderos are situated is
hot and moist, and subject to intermittents. The sur¬
rounding country is covered with a very luxuriant vegeta¬
tion, and teems with all the animal and vegetable produc¬
tions of tropical America.
The gold is found in the form of grains or pepitas, at
the depth of ten or twelve yards below the surface, im¬
bedded in a stratum of clay of several feet in thickness,
and has the purity of 231 quilates. All the operations are
performed by manual labour, and the excavations are kept
free from water by means of buckets, at an expense of
labour which might easily be saved by the employment
of pumps and other mechanical contrivances. An idea may
be formed of the disadvantages of pursuing such a course
by stating, that at the works of Isola alone, in the years
1819, 1820, and 1821, no less than from 300 to 400 la¬
bourers were constantly employed in emptying the water
by means of hide buckets; yet the gold-washings were
so productive as not only to cover the heavy expense thus
incurred, but greatly to benefit the proprietor. The gold-
washings at Tipuani were worked in the time of the Pe¬
ruvian Incas, as is evinced by their tools, which are occa¬
sionally found imbedded in the alluvial soil, and almost in¬
variably in such situations as prove the most productive.
Silver, however, has hitherto been the staple metallic
production of Bolivia, and has given to it that celebrity
which it has long possessed. In the rich mountain of
Potosi alone, according to the records kept at Potosi of the
quintas or royal duties from the year 1545 to the year 1800,
no less than 823,950,509 dollars were coined during that
period ; and if to this be added the amount of the preced¬
ing years, not included, and that obtained in a clandestine
manner, without the payment of the customary dues, not
less than 1,647,901,018 dollars have been obtained from
this source alone in the space of 255 years.
The Cerro de Potosi, or argentiferous mountain of
Potosi, has somewhat of a conical form, resembling a
colossal sugar-loaf; its base being about three leagues in
circumference, and its summit 16,037 feet above the level
of the sea, and 2723 above the level of the great square
or plaza of the city of Potosi, which is situated at its
base. At the foot of the cerro is a smaller mountain
called Huayna Potosi, or the Younger Potosi, likewise
containing silver, but in less abundance than the other,
and less accessible, from the numerous springs which there
impede the operations of mining. The principal moun¬
tain has been worked as high up as within 125 feet of
its summit. The labours of the miners have hitherto
been principally confined to the upper half of the moun¬
tain, which has been perforated by numerous excavations,
with at least 5000 bacas minas, or opening of mines. This
number, however, does not indicate the existence of so
many mines, since each mine has often two or more open¬
ings. These operations have not been conducted with
any regard to order or convenience. The upper part of
the mountain is exhausted to a considerable extent of
its valuable contents; but the lower part is still in a great
measure untouched, as the springs are there more nume- Bolivia,
rous, and the water accumulates in such quantities as
materially to interrupt the further progress of the miners.
Various works have been commenced and prosecuted, for
carrying off these waters from the lower part of the moun¬
tain, but none of them have ever been carried to such an
extent as fully to answer the purpose of their formation.
The most extensive of these has been the Socabon or adit
of San Juan Nepomuceno, in the formation of which the
Spanish government expended no less a sum than 560,243
dollars. It is 2200 varas or yards in extent, six feet in
height, and six in breadth at the base, and it is arched
and lined with rough stones without cement. In various
parts of the country near the mountain are numerous lakes
or pools formed from the water of these springs and other
sources in the mountains, which, being economized, give
motion to the machinery employed in reducing the ore.
The mines of Potosi, according to Humboldt, rank next
in importance to those of Guanaxuato in Mexico. The
existence of silver in this place was first accidentally
discovered by an Indian in the year 1545, and ever since
that time its mines have been worked. A few years
prior to the commencement of the revolution it was
worked to a considerable extent, and no less than 40
ingenios or mills for grinding ore were in full operation;
but the events which followed proved most destructive,
not only to the machinery employed, but likewise to
the capital embarked in mining operations. From fifty
to sixty bocas minas were worked in 1825, when General
Miller became prefect of the department; but Temple,
when he visited it soon afterwards, found only about fif¬
teen ingenios at work, affording on an average 1500 merks
of silver weekly, or about L.125,000 sterling per annum.
Pazo, in his Letters on South America, on visiting the
mountain of Potosi, thus expresses himself: “ The subli¬
mity of the surrounding scenery did not so much inte¬
rest my feelings as the celebrated mountain which has
poured forth its lavas of silver upon the world, to ani¬
mate enterprise and reward industry; to pamper the
luxurious, and minister to the comforts of the sober and
virtuous; to disseminate knowledge and religion, and to
spread the desolations of war, marshalling armies in the
field, and pointing the thunder of navies on the ocean;
filling cities with monuments of taste and art, and over¬
whelming them with ruin ; founding mighty empires, and
levelling them with the dust; inciting, in short, to virtue
and to crime, and being the source of much good, and the
root of great evil, in the world.”
The silver mines of Portugalete, in the province of Chi-
chas, have acquired considerable celebrity on account of
the richness as well as quantity of their ores, which yield
from 60 to 80 merks of silver to the caxon, while those of Po¬
tosi only afford about 10 merks from the same quantity of ore.
The silver mines of Choromo, near Tupiza, in the pro¬
vince of Chichas, were worked, until lately, on account of
General Olaneta, the proprietor, and were considered
as productive. Besides these there are various other sil¬
ver mines in the province of Chichas, but their value is
much diminished by the scarcity of water, and their being
situated in an almost desert and unproductive country. At
La Plata, Porco, and Lipes, there exist silver mines, espe¬
cially one in the latter province, celebrated for the purity of
its ores, which were formerly in great repute, but since
eclipsed by the more important ones of Potosi and of other
places. In Carangas there are rich mines, where the silver
is found in its metallic state, disseminated in the rock, a
kind of ore which is Considered as very productive. At
Oruro the silver mines were formerly very rich and pro¬
ductive, as the opulence of its inhabitants, of which there
are some remarkable instances on record, sufficiently
BOLIVIA.
evinced ; but these, as well as the celebrated tin mines of
the same place, have fallen into decay, principally in con¬
sequence of the disastrous events which attended the insur¬
rection of Tupac Amaru. They are now filled with water,
and the inhabitants being deficient in the requisite ma¬
chinery, have no means of emptying them. Besides those
already enumerated, many other gold and silver mines
were worked to advantage; but in consequence of the di¬
minished confidence and capital resulting from the long
and disastrous war of independence, they have latterly
been neglected.
Timber or coal for smelting is a great desideratum in
Potosi and others mining districts, as, from the nature
of the ores, in which the silver is principally associated
with copper and lead, they are unsuited for the process of
amalgamation, and can only be properly extracted by fu¬
sion, by which means the copper and lead are also pre¬
served. The loss of mercury, in extracting the silver by
the process of amalgamation from the ores produced in
the mines of Bolivia and Peru, is from 15 to 25 per cent,
on the value of the silver produced; while, by the process
of smelting, all the silver might be obtained at an eighth
part of the expense, in a tenth part of the time, and with
infinitely less labour, and great quantities of lead and
copper at the same time preserved.
The methods hitherto employed for the reduction of the
silver ores of this country are exceedingly imperfect and
inefficient; the manipulations are tedious, operose, and
expensive; and a considerable proportion of the silver is
entirely lost in its extraction by means of amalgamation,
while much of the mercury is also unnecessarily wasted.
But great advantages may be expected to arise from the
introduction of improved methods of mining and metal¬
lurgy. These mines can never be worked to advantage
in the manner which has of late been so generally fol¬
lowed. More skill and capital are requisite to render
them productive and remunerating.
The roads which form the means of communication
between Bolivia and the surrounding countries, and be¬
tween the various provinces of the same republic, are in
no respect commensurate to the important purposes which
they are destined to serve. By inattention to the for¬
mation and preservation pf roads, the Spaniards and their
descendants have fallen greatly behind the Peruvians,
whose industry and civilization they affected to despise,
and laboured hard to depreciate. We have the testimony
of a late observer, that the most distinct traces of an
ancient Peruvian road may be observed at the present
day as far south as the valley of Uspallata, in 32 degrees
of south latitude; and there is little doubt that it was
continuous with that formed between Potosi and Cuzco,
since the inhabitants of the provinces of Mendoza, San
Juan, and La Rioja, which are situated along the eastern,
base of the Cordillera of the Andes, separating Chili from
the Argentine provinces, are in the constant practice of
conveying to the upper provinces of Peru their wines,
brandies, dried fruits, and mules, by this mountain route,
which is distinguished by the name of El Despoblado.
Those persons who are in the habit of travelling by this
route describe it as by no means difficult, since, with
only occasional interruptions, it proceeds along longi¬
tudinal valleys, running north and south in a direction
parallel with the Cordillera; and it has been remarked
by Andrews, a recent traveller in Bolivia, that there is
another road distinct from that by Jujuy, which might
easily be made passable for carriages, from Salta to Tu-
piza and Potosi, and even to Cuzco,’and which is only dis¬
tant twelve leagues from the one presently in use between
Potosi and Jujuy,—a miserable tract, incapable of being
passed except on mules and horses, and in many places
not only difficult, but dangerous. The present route, for Bof,.
it can scarcely be designated by the name of road, from j ,
Potosi to Jujuy, the first city belonging to the Argentine
republic, is about 310 miles in length ; and this place forms
the point where a road commences for carriages and wag¬
gons as far as Buenos Ayres, an additional extent of land
carriage of about 1617 geographical miles. The various
routes from Bolivia to the coast of the Pacific, by the way
of Cobija or Puerto Lamar, Tarapaca, by Oruro to Tacna
and Arequipa, can only be passed on mules or horseback;
and travellers are sometimes exposed to great perils and
hardships from exposure to those storms which occasion¬
ally prevail at such great elevations. The difficulties
which at present embarrass the transport of all articles of
commerce proceeding to Bolivia greatly enhance their
prices to the inhabitants, and consequently lessen their
consumption ; but it is to be hoped that one of the earliest
and most important duties of their new government will
be to remedy these evils by every means in its power.
The climate of Bolivia is exceedingly various, being Clim
principally dependent upon the proportional elevation of
the district above the level of the sea. In some parts the
mountains are covered with eternal snows, below which
are extensive plains or paramos destitute of vegetation,
where the climate is cold and rigorous. Here travellers are
frequently exposed to great danger and hardship, owing to
the storms that occasionally prevail, especially snow storms,
which, besides other inconveniences, frequently produce the
surumpi or snow blindness, an affection which has proved
fatal to some travellers, and to many of the brave and ener¬
getic men employed in the late eventful struggle for inde¬
pendence. On the less elevated of these plains are situated
the cities of Potosi, Oruro, and others. The climate of Po¬
tosi, at an elevation of from 13,314 to 13,668 feet, is dis¬
agreeable, and so various that in one day it frequently ex¬
hibits the vicissitudes of the four seasons of the year. Thus,
during the night and the early part of the morning it is
piercingly cold ; in the forenoon it resembles our fine wea¬
ther in March ; in the afternoon the rays of the sun, in so
pure and attenuated an atmosphere, are very powerful, and
scorchingly hot; while towards evening the air usually
becomes mild and serene. Europeans and the Creoles
therefore require to be well clothed ; but the Indians, who
are inured to the climate from early infancy, seem less
susceptible of its effects, and enjoy good health with in¬
ferior clothing. Strangers, on first arriving in this coun¬
try, are usually affected with difficulty of breathing, owing
to the extreme rarity of the atmosphere; they are like¬
wise frequent sufferers from dysentery, which, however, for
the most part soon disappears, and then they enjoy tole¬
rably good health. Here no inconvenience is experienced
from troublesome insects. The climate of Oruro, which
has an elevation of 12,441 feet above the level of the sea,
is likewise cold, but by no means unhealthy. From its
sheltered situation, the city of La Paz, at an elevation of
12,195 feet, enjoys a mild and pleasant climate ; but that of
Chuquisaca, with 9331, and Cochabamba, with 8448 feet
of elevation, are universally admitted to be the most de¬
licious and agreeable places in Bolivia. In descending
through the eastern provinces, towards the plains of Mojos
and Chiquitos, are experienced all the gradations of cli¬
mate, from the mildness of Chuquisaca to the temperature
which characterizes the equinoctial regions of America,
where intermittent fevers, dysenteries, and other diseases
peculiar to warm climates, are found to prevail.
The only productions hitherto furnished by Bolivia asComr c*
articles of commerce have been the precious metals, which
were exchanged for various articles of luxury and neces¬
sity. The rude and simple fabrics manufactured by the
Peruvian Indians are usually appropriated to their own
BOLIVIA.
domestic uses ; while the valuable vegetable productions,
1 and the herds of cattle and mules, which are reared in the
eastern parts of the republic, have hitherto scarcely been
sufficient for the supply of the inhabitants of those po¬
pulous mining districts, that are principally dependent
on them for subsistence. Coca to the value of 200,000
dollars is annually exported from La Paz to other parts of
Bolivia and Peru.
Before the revolution a very extensive traffic was main¬
tained between the upper provinces of Peru and the pro¬
vinces of the Rio de la Plata, for supplies of cattle and
mules. These were reared in great numbers in all the in¬
terior Argentine provinces, expressly for the use of those
countries, and were first sent by easy journeys to the
luxuriant pastures of Salta and Jujuy, where they were
carefully fed and tended during the winter, previous to their
being conveyed to their final destination in Bolivia and Peru.
Some idea may be formed of the extent of this traffic by
stating, that besides all those furnished by the other Ar¬
gentine provinces, the province of Salta alone supplied an-
presents great obstacles to the success of the undertak-
mg, winch is certainly a most praiseworthy one; while
all the rest of the coast, in which are situated the Puertos
Intermedios, forms part of the republic of Peru, to which
therefore, they must necessarily pay transit duties. A
new and very, important channel of communication for
commerce will be opened between Bolivia and the At¬
lantic, vvhenever commercial enterprise and increasing ci¬
vilization shall have established steam navigation on the
Rio de la Plata and its tributary streams, the Vermejo and
I ilcomayo, and from the mouth of the Amazons to its dis¬
tant tributaries the Beni and the Mamori.
By a decree of the republican government of Peru,
dated 22d l ebruary 1831, the following judicious regu¬
lations have been established for settling the commercial
relations of that state with the republic of Bolivia
1. The productions of the territory of the Bolivian re¬
public, introduced into Peru for its consumption, shall be
subject to an import duty of four per cent, on their valu¬
ation. 2. Those productions of Bolivia which only pass
through the territory of Peru for embarkation from its
751
Bolivia.
nually to Upper and Lower Peru from 60,000 to 80,000      Ior emoarKat.on from m
mules, on all of winch they real.aed considerable profits, the ports, shall only be subjected to a transit duty of two per
prices bein^proportioned to the distance to which they were cent. 3. Silver and gold, either coined or otherwise,
conveyed. Ihewarof independence, which has so ereatlv trnrln^u p.„i; ’
conveyed. The war of independence, which has so greatly
desolated the northern provinces of the Rio de la Plata, and
the diminished working of the mines of Bolivia, have al¬
most annihilated this lucrative traffic; but it maybe expect¬
ed to revive with increasing vigour on their again resuming
their former habits of tranquillity, and becoming stimu¬
lated to increased exertion, by the accession of laborious
and intelligent Europeans, and by the spread of education
and intelligence.
By the route of Cordova, Tucuman, and Salta, the pro¬
vinces of Upper Peru or Bolivia formerly received their
supplies of articles of commerce from Europe, which were
landed at Buenos Ayres; and by the same channel they
likewise obtained large supplies of Yerba or Paraguay tea,
to the great amount, it is affirmed, of 100,000 arrobas,
or about 2,500,000 pounds annually, which had been pre¬
viously conveyed by water from Paraguay to Buenos
Ayres, and from thence by waggons and mules to Jujuy
and Bolivia; thus enhancing its value by a circuitous and
expensive land-carriage of from 2000 to 3000 miles, while
by a more improved system of conveyance it might be sent
by the rivers Vermejo and Pilcomayo into the heart of
Bolivia, at a vast saving of trouble and expense. The
large amount of goods sent from Buenos Ayres by wag¬
gons to Jujuy tended greatly to enrich the various pro¬
vinces through which they passed, giving employment to
numbers of the inhabitants ; and Jujuy, which formed the
most distant point that could be reached by waggons or
carriages, became a place of considerable importance, form-
ingthe entrepot of the commerce of Peru and the Argentine
provinces. From this place the various articles of commerce
were conveyed on mules to their ulterior destination.
The new order of affairs consequent on the revolution
has necessarily produced important changes in this branch
of commerce, and Bolivia has in a great measure ceased to
receive her supplies of foreign commodities by this ex¬
pensive route. Commerce, where unrestricted, always
finds out the shortest and least expensive channels for
the introduction of its commodities. The trade is now
in a great degree diverted to the ports of the Pacific,
called the Puertos Intermedios. Tacna and Arequipa,
with their respective ports, have now become the princi¬
pal channels through which Bolivia receives the produce
and manufactures of other countries. How far the Bolivian
government has succeeded in making Cobija or Puerto
la Mar of that exclusive commercial importance which
it contemplated, remains yet to be ascertained. Nature
tioduced fi’om Bolivia into Peru, shall be exempted from
any duties. 4. All foreign articles of commerce passing
through the territory of Peru, and destined for Bolivia,
shall only be subjected to the payment of two per cent.
ad valorem ; and the decree of 22d January 1830, which
imposed transit duties of from fifteen to forty-five per
cent, on such commodities, has been repealed. 5. All
articles of foreign commerce which are exempted from
the payment of duties on their introduction into Peru,
such as books, quicksilver, iron, machinery. &c., shall like¬
wise be exempted from the payment of any transit du¬
ties on passing into Bolivia; and the decree of 5th March
1830, imposing a transit duty on such articles of fifteen
per cent, has been repealed.
Very imperfect materials are accessible for obtaining p0pula-
correct estimates of the population of Bolivia. Bullion,
an idea may be formed of that of some of the principal
cities, from the statements given on the authority of Mil¬
ler, Temple, Pentland, and others. Chuquisaca, the ca¬
pital and seat of government, is stated to contain only
18,000; Cinti, 12,000; the city of La Paz, 40,000; Zorata,
12,000; and Cochabamba, 30,000. Potosi, in 1825, during
the five months’ equitable and judicious administration
of our countryman General Miller, increased in popu¬
lation from 8000 to 10,000; while in 1611, according to
the census of Bejerano, it amounted to 150,000. Oruro
was formerly populous, but in consequence of the insur¬
rection of Tupac Amaru, which proved so fatal to the abo¬
riginal population of the neighbouring districts, the num¬
bers have greatly diminished, and now only amount to
about 5000 souls.
In estimating the amount of the population of Bolivia,
the following approximation may be offered, although de¬
rived from sources which are evidently incorrect and un¬
satisfactory ; yet, in the absence of others more precise,
they may be found deserving of some attention.
I.—Department of Potosi.
Creoles. Indians. Total.
'Potosi  14,000  21,000  35,000
Atacama  8,000  22,000  30,000
Provinces <1 LiPes  8>000  12,000  20,000
ces<j porco  15,000 115,000 130,000
Chayanta....
Chichas.
40,000  60,000 100,000
85,000 230,000 315,000
752
Bolivia.
 '
Indians.
BOLIVIA.
II.—Department of Chuquisaca.
Creoles. Indians. Total.
f Chuquisaca... 16,000  16,000
„ . Cinti  25,000  35,000  60,000
Provinces-^ aes.. 12,000  28,000  40,000
t Tomina  12,000  28,000  40,000
65,000  91,000 156,000
III. —Department of Oruro.
f Paria  13,000  37,000  50,000
Provinces -< Oruro  6,000  9,000  15,000
^Carangas .... 8,000  17,000  25,000
27,000  63,000  90,000
IV. —Department of La Paz.
La Paz  14,000  26,000  40,000
Pacajes  60,000  30,000  90,000
Sicasica  20,000  40,000  60,000
Provinces Chulumani... 15,000  35,000  50,000
Omasuyos... 30,000  30,000  60,000
Larecaja  25,000  40,000  65,000
.Apolobamba 5,000  30,000  35,000
V.
169,000 231,000 400,000
Department of Cochabamba.
Cochabamba... 30,000 70,000,....100,000
Sacaba  15,000 45,000  60,000
Tapacari  30,000 70,000 100,000
Provinces Arque  10,000 25,000  35,000
Palca,   6,000 14,000  20,000
Clissa  35,000 65,000 100,000
Misque  8,000 12,000  20,000
134,000 301,000 435,000
VI.—Department of Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz'!
Moxos V 50,000 170,000 220,000
Chiquitos....)
Valle Grande 30,000  70,000 100,000
Pampas.
Baures.
80,000 240,000 320,000
Total of Departments.
Potosi  85,000 230,000 315,000
Chuquisaca... 65,000  91,000 156,000
Oruro  27,000  63,000  90,000
La Paz 169,000 231,000 400,000
Cochabamba...l34,000 301,000 435,000
Santa Cruz.... 80,000 240,000 320,000
Total of population 560,000 1,156,000...1,716,000
The civilized Indians inhabiting Bolivia, and descen¬
dants of the Peruvians under the empire of the Incas, are
still numerous, notwithstanding the many causes which
have so much tended to diminish their numbers, and form
a distinct and peculiar race, preserving the language, the
manners, and even the dress of their ancestors ; their habits
having been only somewhat modified by the peculiar cir¬
cumstances and situation in which they have been placed
since they came under the dominion of the Spaniards.
They are naturally mild and passive, and seemingly a
subdued and apathetic race; but these qualities are the
natural result ot that state of subjection and debasement
in which they have so long been held by their merciless
conquerors; and, under every disadvantage, they still
possess a latent energy, which was fearfully exemplified Bi
in the insurrection under Tupac Amaru, during which ^
great numbers of them perished, the victims of their pa¬
triotism. Their defects originate from extraneous causes ;
their virtues are their own; and, with the exception already
mentioned, they are generally unstained by those great
moral crimes which prevail in more civilized countries, and
require the strong arm of the law to repress them. The
plaintive ditties, or yaravis, in their sweet and melancholy
tones, evince the prevailing feelings which animate them,
and are highly characteristic of the race. They possess
considerable intellectual talents and capabilities, and are
exceedingly sensible of kindness and justice; to which,
however, they have long been strangers. Any attempt at
dictation, or an imperious behaviour, on the part of their su¬
periors or strangers, always produces an opposite effect
to that desired, and they become stubborn and reserved;
but when treated with mildness, they usually relax from
their accustomed apathy, and often evince to strangers,
when in sickness or distress, proofs of the most genuine
humanity and hospitality. This was experienced, in a
remarkable manner, by General Miller, during his ad¬
ministration of the department of Potosi, where, by his
just and benevolent demeanour towards them, he so
completely won their confidence and good-will, that his
name is still a sufficient passport with the whole nation.
With their great numbers, the union of purpose they
still exhibit, and the energy of which they are capable,
it will require much tact and discernment on the part of
the new republican government to prevent their eventually
obtaining a powerful, perhaps injurious, ascendency in
the country. By the judicious and excellent regulations
established by the distinguished individuals into whose
hands the charge of first organising the Bolivian admi¬
nistration devolved, all those odious and oppressive distinc¬
tions which had so long depressed the native energies of
the Peruvian Indians have been for ever abolished, and
in point of legal rights they have been placed on the most
perfect equality with the other portions of the community.
But new laws are often very inefficient when opposed by
long-continued customs and inveterate prejudices; and the
Indians of Bolivia are still in too many instances subjected
to acts of oppression and injustice on the part of their more
fortunate fellow-citizens. These occurrences, however,
may be expected to diminish in frequency and extent, as
education prevails and intelligence extends its beneficial
influence over the country.
The Bolivian Indians are very industrious. The men at¬
tend their flocks and herds, and cultivate the land accord¬
ing to their rude and primitive modes of husbandry; while
the women are usually employed in spinning, knitting, and
weaving coarse fabrics, in the laborious occupation of
pounding maize in a rude mortar, and in other domestic
occupations. They live principally on vegetable food, espe¬
cially maize and potatoes; but indulge freely in their fa¬
vourite chicha, an intoxicating liquor, which they prepare
from maize. They are apparently contented and happy
mild and submissive in their manners, and particularly
amenable to those placed in authority over them, especially
when caciques of their own nation, who in fact commonly
hold the situation of alcalde in the Indian villages, and
carry a gold-headed cane as their badge of office. By ap¬
pealing to the people through these alcaldes, travellers will
generally have their wants supplied in a manner which, un¬
der different circumstances, money could not provide for
them. The Indians are very superstitious, and scrupulously
devout in the performance of their religious duties.
They are generally of small stature, and resemble Ma¬
lays in their physiognomy. They are robust and muscular,
and are capable of undergoing great fatigue when travelling
BOLIVIA.
ivia. on foot. "1 hus the postilions who usually accompany per-
sons travelling on mules are frequently in advance, although
they proceed on foot; and they perform long and toilsome
pedestrian journeys of from twenty to thirty leagues a-day,
with scarcely any other sustenance than a portion of the
leaves of the coca plant, which they masticate in combina¬
tion with the llipta, an alkaline substance prepared for the
express purpose, and with a little roasted maize. From this
custom of habitually travelling on foot, they are equal to
undertakings which no other persons in South America can
accomplish. They travel at a trot, take short steps, and
keep their feet close to the ground. To this cause may in
a great measure be ascribed the circumstance of the Spa¬
niards having been able, during so long a period, to main¬
tain their political superiority in the mountainous parts of
Peru, and the success which usually attended their military
operations in that country. Their infantry force being
principally composed of native Indians, compelled to serve
as soldiers, they were thus enabled to move with that deci¬
sive celerity which characterized most of their evolutions
during the war of independence. As striking instances
of this fact may be cited the feats of General Valdez and
others previous to the dispersion of the patriot army of
General Santa Cruz in 1823. Valdez, with his division of
infantry, marched during fifty-seven successive days at the
rate of seven leagues a day; at another time the royalist
army marched eight leagues a-day for eight consecutive
days; and on one occasion, previous to coming into action,
they had actually accomplished a march of thirty-nine
leagues, or 117 miles, in three days.
In all parts of South America, even in the most distant
parts of Chili, the Argentine provinces, Colombia, and
Brazil, may occasionally be met with, parties or groups
of certain tribes of Peruvian Indians, who are denominat¬
ed Callavayas. They always travel on foot, and carry on
an extensive traffic in a variety of gums, resins, barks, and
other medicinal productions, collected in the Yungas and
other parts of the mountains, which are plentifully cover¬
ed with vegetation, and in other parts of the provinces of
La Paz and Larecaja, near which they principally reside.
They also carry on an extensive and profitable practice as
itinerant physicians, employing only their native remedies.
They always travel along the remains of the ancient Peru¬
vian roads, where such exist, these being uniformly the
most direct; and they generally return to their own dis¬
tricts, sometimes after an absence of several years. They
are very loquacious, and employ considerable artifice in
extolling the virtues of their remedies and the extent of
their own skill. Besides the Spanish language, which is
that in general use in Bolivia, they employ the Quichua or
language of the Incas; but the Aimaru is the language in
common use in the department of La Paz.
10n> Religion, as it has been practised in Bolivia and most
other parts of South America, has long been in a very
degraded state, consisting almost entirely in the repetition
of a certain number of prayers, imperfectly understood by
the greater part of the people, and the performance of a
number of ceremonies, the object of which seems to be, to
occupy the attention, and to serve as a pretext for extort¬
ing money from the community. It truly exhibited the form
of sanctity without the substance; for the spirit of true
religion was entirely lost sight of, and the higher faculties
of reason and reflection were never called into exercise.
With some few honourable exceptions, the clergy were
profoundly ignorant of every thing appertaining to their
sacred profession, and were only adepts in deception and
immorality. They were notoriously licentious in their con¬
duct, and although bound by their vow of celibacy to a life
of chastity and virtue, they were the great promoters of
vice and immorality, especially amongst the weaker sex,
VOL. iv.
fiom the opportunities they enjoyed at the confessional, and Bolivia.
the influence they possessed in virtue of the sacredness   
of their office. In South America, particularly in Bolivia
and Pei u, it has been quite customary for many of the
curates to live in a state of concubinage with females, by
whom they have numerous illegitimate children, who are
generally designated as cousins, nephews, nieces, and the
like, although every one is fully aware of the nature of the
connection subsisting betwixt them.
The evil consequences resulting from this condition of
the ministers of religion may easily be conceived. They
fell as heavily upon the Creoles or Spanish South Ameri¬
cans as upon the Peruvian Indians; but the extortions
which, under the semblance of religion, were exercised
upon the ignorant, indigent, and inoffensive aborigines, al¬
most exceed belief. Not contented with the salaries allow¬
ed them by the Spanish government, they weekly exacted
contributions in various forms from the Indians on the ad¬
ministration of the communion and the other ordinances
of religion, such as baptisms, marriages, and funerals; and
the amount of these was graduated according to the dis¬
cretion of the curate, and the knowledge he possessed of
the ability of the devotee to defray them. By these, and
other devices still more nefarious, the clergy generally con¬
trived to amass large incomes, frequently seven or eight
times the amount to which they were legally entitled ; and
many of the curacies in Peru thus afforded incomes of from
5000 to 15,000 dollars per annum.
Under the guidance of such spiritual leaders, and breath¬
ing a moral atmosphere so tainted, it could hardly be ex¬
pected that pure and undefiled religion and morality could
prosper and advance. The elements requisite to produce
such effects were awanting, since neither precept nor ex¬
ample was given to the people; and it is rather matter
of surprise that, in countries thus circumstanced, so many
remarkable instances should be met with of individuals dis¬
tinguished by a virtuous and amiable deportment. Such
occurrences, however, speak volumes in favour of the na¬
turally good disposition which characterizes them, and
warrant the most pleasing anticipations of their future
improved coedition, when in the full enjoyment of the fa¬
cilities and advantages presented by the extension of edu¬
cation and the diffusion of knowledge.
Free and unrestricted religious toleration does not yet
exist in any part of South America, excepting in Buenos
Ayres and Bolivia. Still, the bad consequences which have
in some instances resulted from premature attempts to
establish toleration in South America, where the public
mind was not prepared for the reception of such a measure,
induce us to deprecate the repetition of such attempts as
exceedingly dangerous and injudicious, until some prepa¬
ration has been made. At the same time, it would be an
act of great injustice not to mention, that before and since
the commencement of the revolution, there have appeared
amongst the catholic clergy of South America, men whose
just and benevolent demeanour, and whose enlightened
patriotism and devotion to the cause of humanity, would
do honour to any age or country. And of late years, when
circumstances more fully favoured the development of the
nobler faculties, many of them have taken a prominent
part in promoting education, intelligence, and every insti¬
tution calculated to improve the religious, moral, and in¬
tellectual condition of their countrymen.
Since the commencement of the republican government, Education,
a considerable part of the revenues of the minor convents
and monastic establishments in Bolivia has been diverted
from their original purposes, to form a fund for the esta¬
blishment and support of seminaries of education. Col¬
leges on improved modern principles are forming in each
of the departments, and Lancasterian schools are in course
5 c
BOLIVIA.
754
Bolivia, of being established in all parts of the republic. A uni-
versity having long existed at Chuquisaca for the educa¬
tion of the youth of Upper Peru, the utility of the establish¬
ment was greatly augmented, during the administration of
General Sucre, by an improvement in the modes of in¬
struction, and an increase in the number of the depart¬
ments of education, analogous to the advanced state of
knowledge in other parts of the world. In Potosi, likewise,
efficient means were adopted by General Miller, while pre¬
fect of that department, to establish there a college for the
study of mineralogy; a branch of education of great im¬
portance in a place wholly dependent on mining.
Society. The society in Bolivia is exceedingly agreeable, the in¬
habitants being kind, hospitable, and courteous to strangers.
The ladies are particularly affable and pleasing in their
manners, exhibiting a happy mixture between the reserve
of the English and the vivacity of the French. Their coun¬
tenances are handsome, they have small feet and ancles,
and possess fine figures, with a most graceful carriage, es¬
pecially in promenading, and when walking abroad. They
dress with much taste, using at the church, and on occa¬
sions of ceremony, their former costume of the basquina
and mantilla ; but on other occasions they assume the more
modern fashions of Europe. The fan, which they use with
much dexterity, is a constant accompaniment on all such
occasions. They have frequent tertulias or evening par¬
ties and balls, and dance with considerable gracefulness.
Their conversation is agreeable, and even superior to what
might be expected in a country which has enjoyed so little
of the advantages of education and moral training.
History. The early history of that part of the empire of the
Incas which now forms the republic of Bolivia is so inti¬
mately connected with that of Peru, that the consideration
of it may with propriety be deferred until we come to treat
of that country, in which Cuzco, the capital of the Incas,
is situated. Attention will therefore at present be direct¬
ed only to that period of its history which is more recent,
and which has so materially influenced its present condi¬
tion,—the unsuccessful insurrection of the Peruvians or ab¬
original population under Tupac Amaru, and subsequently
the more fortunate war of independence. But before pro¬
ceeding to the consideration of these, it seems requisite to
point out the principal causes which gave rise to events
so memorable in South American history.
Political The Peruvians, ever since the conquest of their coun¬
state of the try by the Spaniards in the sixteenth century, have been
Indians, subjected to a system of tyranny and oppression which
has few parallels in the history of the universe. They
were treated little better than beasts of burthen. By their
toil the gold and silver were obtained from the mines, the
lands were cultivated, the flocks and herds were attended
to, and all the domestic and menial offices performed. Yet
the fruits of their labour, especially that of mining, which
was attended with numerous privations, and too often with
great loss of life, were altogether devoted to enriching their
cruel oppressors. While so employed they were denied all
the comforts and many of the necessaries of life; they were
treated as minors, and considered as incapable of attending
to their own affairs and interests, nay even deprived of the
means of information and improvement; while the clergy
powerfully contributed to the general degradation, by keep¬
ing them in the most profound ignorance of their moral
and religious duties, and substituting instead of these a few
unmeaning and useless ceremonies, by means of which they
plundered the Indians, without ceremony or remorse, of the
scanty pittance which they were able to save from tbe ra¬
pacity of their civil rulers. These heart-rending occur¬
rences are fully detailed in the secret report of Don Jorge
Juan and Don Antonio de Ulloa; which important docu¬
ment, after the lapse of nearly a century, was procured
from the archives of Madrid, by our countryman Barry, BolL
and by bim given to the public. j;
One of their principal grievances was tbe mita, a com¬
pulsory kind of personal labour either in the working of the
mines or in the cultivation of the fields, exacted from the
Indians generally for the space of one year. The proprie¬
tors of mines and land to be worked or cultivated, were
privileged to claim as their undoubted right, the personal
services of the Indian population of the district surround¬
ing that in which their property was situated. By the re¬
gulations of the mita a proportional number of the In¬
dians of the district were annually chosen by lot for the
purposes required; and some idea may be formed of the
effects of such a regulation, by stating, that 1400 mines
were registered in Peru alone, and that every mine which
remained unworked a year and a day became the property
of the first claimant.
So much was the labour of the mines dreaded hy those
persons on whom the lot fell, that they considered it as equi¬
valent to a sentence of death, and made all their arrange¬
ments accordingly, carrying with them their wives and
families to their new and dreaded place of abode. While
thus employed, each person was nominally paid an allowance
of four rials or two shillings daily, out of which he had to
provide himself and family with food, clothing, and habi¬
tation, which were furnished to him at an exorbitant rate:
the one third was retained for the purpose of paying the
expense of returning his wife and family to their homes
in the event of his death or at the expiry of his period of
service; and besides, at the end of every year a tribute of
eight dollars was exacted, which being in arrear, or any
other debt contracted with his employer, was too often
used as a pretext for retaining him in this odious service,
generally till death put a period to his misery. An estimate
may be formed of the extent of this evil, by stating that
12,000 Indians were annually required by the mita of Po¬
tosi alone; and it is calculated that, in the mines of Peru, no
less than 8,285,000 Indians have perished in this manner.
Besides the mita for the service of the mines, the In¬
dians were also compelled to labour for their superiors on
their cultivated estates, their estancias or grazing farms,
and also in their obrages or manufactories. In these latter
establishments, according to Ulloa, they were obliged to
work all day, and only received a pittance for their labour;
the half of which was in many instances stopped to pay
their arrears of tribute, and the other half was generally
insufficient to pay for their necessary sustenance. The In¬
dians were besides liable to serve as pongos or menial ser¬
vants to the governors, and other functionaries, as likewise
to the caciques and the curates; but for this service they
received no recompense, excepting their food and clothing.
The numbers employed in these domestic occupations in
Peru and Bolivia have been estimated at 60,000.
The tribute exacted by the government from every
Indian between the age of eighteen and fifty-five was a
capitation tax of eight dollars. This was levied with the
greatest rigour, and the official persons charged with its
collection too frequently committed great injustice in do¬
ing so ; obliging the Indians to commence these payments
at fifteen, and continue them until seventy years of age,
and putting the amount of tribute for the years before and
after the legal period into their own pockets. In proof ol
the extent to which this evil was carried, and of the ra¬
pacity of the Spanish government, it may be stated that a
law was enacted for the express purpose of augmenting the
number of the people liable to pay tribute. By it the In¬
dians were obliged to marry, the men at the age of fifteen,
the women at thirteen. The governor of each province was
responsible to the government for the amount of the tribute,
which was regulated by a census of the tributary Indians,
BOLIVIA.
via. taken every seven years; and in this many frauds were
, practised, the actual number being often much underrated.
The governor of the province of Porco, in the department
of Potosi, according to the testimony of Miller, was be¬
lieved to have collected annually a surplus of 10,000 dol¬
lars by these fraudulent means. This tribute continued to
be exacted until the year 1825, when it was finally abolished
by General Bolivar on his arrival in the country; and all
the Indians now enjoy the same rights and privileges as
the other inhabitants of the country.
Besides all these, the Peruvian Indians were long sub¬
jected to another system of extortion no less grievous and
unjust,—the law of repariamiento. This was originally
established with the best intentions ; the governors or cor-
regidors of the districts being intrusted with the charge of
supplying the inhabitants under their care with such articles
as they might require at a fair and equitable price. But
the law, which had so plausible an origin, was shamefully
abused; and it was made compulsory on the Indian popu¬
lation to purchase articles of the most worthless description,
both in kind and quality, whether they required them or
not, and at a price double or treble that for which the same
article of the best possible quality might have been pur¬
chased. Thus razors were forced at an exorbitant price on
Indians who had no beards to shave; and those who had
never gone otherwise than barefooted were compelled to
purchase velvets and silk stockings, of the use of which they
were even ignorant. On one occasion a large assortment
of spectacles was forwarded to a merchant at Lima, who,
finding them unsaleable in a country where the natives pro¬
verbially retain their vision unimpaired till an advanced
period of life, got them disposed of at an exorbitant profit
by consigning them to a corregidor, who issued a decree to
the Indians of his district, ordaining that no Indian should
be permitted to attend divine service on certain occasions
without having on a pair of spectacles. Arepartamiento took
place in 1743, at about forty leagues from Lima, where the
corregidor exacted the sum of 300,000 dollars for goods
which he had purchased at 70,000 dollars. The Indians
of this district, according to Ulloa, “ finding themselves
tyrannized over with greater cruelty than they had expe¬
rienced from the predecessors of the corregidor, determin¬
ed to complain to the viceroy, and produced before him the
goods, together with the proofs of the exorbitant prices
which they had been obliged to pay for them. We do not
state this fact from report, as we happened to be present
when the Indians came to make known their grievances.
The viceroy heard them, and referred them to the audien-
cia; and the result was that the Indians were seized and
punished as insurgents.”
These accumulated grievances at length exceeded even
the powers of endurance possessed by these pacific Indians,
and gave rise to the memorable insurrection of Tupac
Amaru in 1780, in which torrents of native as well as Spa¬
nish blood were shed before it was finally suppressed. This
event, however, gave a death-blow to the law of reparta-
miento, which was then finally abolished.
fhe constant and extensive operation of these demora-
^thelizing practices, although more immediately affecting the
aboriginal population, could not fail to produce the most
pernicious and injurious effects on the Creoles or descen¬
dants of the Spaniards; but, in addition to these causes of
debasement, the latter were subjected to numerous unjust
and oppressive laws, all tending to paralyze their advance¬
ment in industry, intelligence, and civilization.
The raising of those vegetable productions which form
the principal objects of culture in Spain, as articles of
commerce, was strictly prohibited to the South Americans,
however favourable the soil and climate of their native
country might be for the production of them. The pro-
755
sperity and happiness of the transatlantic population were Bolivia.
of no value or importance when put in competition with ' r '
the interested views and wishes of the mother country.
Thus the cultivation of the vine and the olive was either pro¬
hibited, or the plants were rooted out where they had been
introduced. Prohibitory decrees were issued against the
manufacture of wines, brandies, vinegar, olive oil, &c.; and
even the culture of almonds and raisins was interdicted.
No kind of manufacture of cloth or articles of clothing was
permitted which could interfere with the commerce of
Old Spain, excepting only the coarse fabrics manufactured
and worn by the Indians. Even the valuable mines of mer¬
cury and iron found in South America were, in a great
measure, hermetically sealed by prohibitory decrees, lest
they might interfere with the traffic carried on by Spain
in these articles. And, not contented with confining the
commerce of South America entirely to Spain, and prohi¬
biting it under the severest penalties with other nations,
these colonies were not permitted to have any intercourse
or commerce with each other.
The South Americans were generally excluded from
all offices of honour or emolument in their own country;
and when any deviation from this law took place, it was’
too frequently in consequence of enormous bribes receiv¬
ed, or a reward to some unnatural Creole for acts of cruelty
and oppression committed on his own countrymen. They
were also systematically deprived of the means of obtain¬
ing a suitable education for their children; nothing being
taught at their seminaries excepting Latin, philosophy, the
civil and canon law, and theology, while every attempt at
improvement on the part of the natives was resisted by the
government.
I he upper provinces of Boliviaand Peru were those which Insurrec-
formed the principal scenes of the memorable insurrection ti°n of Tu-
of Tupac Amaru, so just in its origin, so energetic in itsPacAmaru-
prosecution, and so unfortunate in its results to the Peru¬
vian nation. From the details which have appeared of
this eventful period, it is evident that a deep-rooted feel¬
ing of the oppressive and degrading servitude to which they
had so long been subjected by the Spaniards, united with
a lively recollection of the happiness and glory of their
more fortunate ancestors, conspired to rouse the latent
energies of the whole nation to accomplish their liberation
from the cruel yoke under which they had groaned. And
they found an able and a willing leader in Jose Gabriel Con-
dorcanqui, cacique of Tungasuya, a lineal descendant of the
Inca Tupac Amaru, whose name and title he afterwards
assumed. But although an excellent and intrepid man,
and possessing the entire confidence of his countrymen,
he was deficient in that knowledge, foresight, and energy,
so requisite for conducting to a happy termination so diffi¬
cult and hazardous an enterprise. He experienced various
successes and reverses, but was eventually taken prisoner,
and put to death in the most barbarous manner by the
Spaniards. He was succeeded in the direction of the en¬
terprise by his nephew Andres, who, with the aid of Ca-
tari and other caciques, continued the contest with great
and indiscriminate carnage on both sides ; but having to
contend against the superior skill, discipline, and arms of
the Spaniards, aided by treachery, they were finally over¬
come, and the insurrection was put down in 1782.
Having thus failed in their arduous undertaking, after
the destruction of great numbers of their nation—for nei¬
ther the lives of men, women, nor children, were spared on
either side during this sanguinary contest—their chains
were rivetted with double force; and the sorrow and de¬
spondency which followed these disastrous events were so
great that they never again recovered their wonted ener¬
gies. Yet there is every reason to believe that, had they
possessed better arms and discipline, more knowledge and
756 B O L ]
Bolivia, experience, and leaders better adapted for such an enter-
prise, they would, from their number, union, and devotion
to the cause, have finally accomplished their deliverance.
These circumstances will account in a great measure for
the apathy and comparative indifference with which they
viewed the rise and progress of the war of independence,
the objects of which they did not rightly understand, and
found difficult to reconcile with their knowledge of the ac¬
tive part taken by the Creoles in the suppression of their
own previous endeavours to throw off the Spanish yoke.
War of in- From the causes already stated, the war of indepen-
depend- dence was principally carried on, as regards Bolivia, by
ence- the resources of, and in concert with, the neighbouring
provinces of the Rio de la Plata and Peru, all of which
had equal cause to avenge themselves on their oppressors,
but were placed in circumstances somewhat more fortunate
for accomplishing their purpose. When the patriots of
Buenos Ayres had succeeded in liberating, from the do¬
minion of Spain, the interior provinces of the Rio de la
Plata, they turned their arms against their enemies in
possession of Upper Peru. General Antonio Balcarce
was therefore sent with the forces of Buenos Ayres into
that country, and succeeded in defeating the royalist
general Nieto, at Cotagaita, on the 27th October 1810 ;
and on the 7th November following, a similar fate overtook
Colonel Cordova at Tupiza. These successes gave him
possession of the country as far as the bridge of the Incas,
which crosses the river Desaguadero; at which time his
army had been increased by recruits to about 4000 men.
Castelli was sent from Buenos Ayres as governor of Upper
Peru, and to act as the commissioner of the Argentine
government, with the army of Balcarce. He was a man
distinguished for his great and versatile talents, but was
of a restless and fiery temper. By the violence of his pro¬
ceedings, and numerous acts of unjustifiable cruelty, he so
far succeeded in inspiring the Spaniards with terror and dis¬
may, that the army of Buenos Ayres was enabled, on the
25th of May 1811, to celebrate the first anniversary of their
independence among the ruins of the palace of the Incas at
Tiaguanaco, on the shores of the lake of Titicaca, 690 leagues
distant from Buenos Ayres. The dissolute conduct of Cas¬
telli, however, and the irregularities of the Buenos-Ayre-
ans who accompanied him, tended greatly to alienate
the affections of the inhabitants of Upper Peru from their
deliverers, and considerably aided the efforts of Abascal,
viceroy of Peru, who, after some unsuccessful attempts to
conclude an armistice with Castelli, in which little cour¬
tesy seems to have been observed on either side, collected
all his disposable forces under his best generals. The
f civil administration of the provinces was neglected by the
patriots ; and the army became disorganized, from the
dissolute conduct and negligence of Castelli and his fol¬
lowers. General Goyeneche was intrusted with the com¬
mand of the Spanish army, which, to the amount of 4000
men, took up a position on the north side of the Desa¬
guadero, two days’ march from their opponents. In the
interim an armistice had been concluded between the
two contending armies ; but, regardless of the inviolability
of such a transaction, Goyeneche attacked and defeated
the patriot army under Balcarce and Castelli at Huaqui,
on the 20th June 1811, six days before the expiry of the
truce. Balcarce retired from Bolivia with the remains of
his army, and took up a position at Jujuy, distant 236
leagues from the scene of action. After his success Goy¬
eneche committed great cruelties in Bolivia, particularly
at Chuquisaca and La Paz; but he met with considerable
opposition from the patriots, who had retired to the moun¬
tains of Cochabamba, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, and Chayanta.
General Belgrano, who succeeded to the command of
the army of Balcarce, had the good fortune, at Tucuman,
VIA.
to defeat the royalist army, 3000 strong, under General Boi a.
Pio Tristan, on the 30th September 1812, while his own ^ ^
force did not amount to half that number. And, again, on
the 20th February following, he obtained another victory
over the same general, who had entrenched himself in Salta
with 2000 men, all of whom were either killed or taken
prisoners. Belgrano generously permitted the vanquish¬
ed Tristan, with his officers and men, to return to Peru,
on their giving solemn pledges not again to bear arms
against the republic of the Rio de la Plata. But all
of them, influenced by the example of their general, and
regardless of their obligation, violated their parole, and
joined the army of Pezuela, which, by such dishonourable
means, was augmented to 4000 men. With these he at¬
tacked Belgrano, who, with his army, had advanced into
Upper Peru, and defeated him at Vilcapugio, between
Oruro and Potosi, on 1st October 1813; and again at
Ayoma, in the department of Cochabamba, on the 14th
November of same year. Belgrano escaped with the re¬
mains of his army to Tucuman.
Notwithstanding these disasters, the cause of indepen¬
dence did not slumber in Upper Peru, since numerous
bands of patriots maintained themselves in Cochabamba,
Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Chayanta, and Yamparaes, and
obtained many advantages over the royalists, under tbe
able command of Warnes, Camargo, and Padilla, who car¬
ried on a guerilla warfare. On 25th May 1814, Colonel
Arenales obtained some advantages over his opponents
in the provinces of Cochabamba, and Warnes was equally
fortunate on the 9th October following, in the Quebrada
of Santa Barbara. Guemes, with the irregular troops of the
province of Salta, cut off the supplies of the royalists in
front; whilst the guerilla parties under Warnes, Padilla,
and Munecas, in the rear, so distressed them, that Pezuela
with his army was obliged to retire upon Cotagaita. The
patriot army at Tucuman under the command of General
San Martin never came into collision with the royalists
until after his removal to the command of Cuyo, when
General Rondeau succeeded him in the direction of that
armv, amounting to 3500. With these he marched again
into Upper Peru against the royalists, whom, in nearly
equal numbers under Pezuela, he encountered at Sipe-
sipe, between Potosi and Oruro, on 28th November 1815,
and was totally defeated ; and this was followed soon after
by another defeat at Yiluma, which again placed Upper
Peru under the control of the royalists. General Belgrano
was a second time appointed to command the army sta¬
tioned at Tucuman, composed of the remains of the army
which had been vanquished at Sipe-sipe and Viluma; and,
by unwearied exertions, he soon collected a force of about
4000, well equipped. But a spirit of disaffection and an¬
archy had crept into his army, which, incited by the prin¬
cipal officers, revolted against their general. He was depos¬
ed and made prisoner; and the officers, with such soldiers
as chose to follow them, dispersed over the provinces,
where, in many instances, they usurped the civil and
military administration, which in some cases they retain¬
ed until a late period.
To these events succeeded, under Pumacagua, an in¬
surrection of the Indians of the neighbouring provinces of
Arequipa, Cuzco, and Huamanga, in Peru ; and the object
being the independence of the whole country, it was join¬
ed by numerous Creoles from Bolivia and Peru. But this
attempt was speedily put down by the activity of the
royalist general, Ramirez, who inflicted a severe retalia¬
tion on Pumacagua and his followers. After this period
Upper Peru remained tranquil for a considerable time,
unless when disturbed by the enterprises of Lanza and
his followers, who maintained themselves in the ^ ungas.
On the viceroy Abascal being superseded in that office
i
B O L
rja. by Pezuela, General Laserna was appointed commander
in chief in Upper Peru, where he arrived in September
1816, with 2000 fresh troops. He introduced many inno¬
vations, and very humanely prohibited the infliction of the
punishment of death for political offences, without his
previous permission. He made an attempt, with an army
of from 4000 to 5000 men, to penetrate into the Argentine
provinces, intending to march to Buenos Ayres; but he
was completely foiled by the activity and intrepidity of
the Gauchos, or irregular troops of the provinces of Salta
and Jujuy, and was compelled to retire with the remainder
of his army to Cotagaita.
The expedition of General Santa Cruz, prepared with
great zeal and activity at Lima, landed in June 1823, in
the Puertos Intermedios, and marched in two divisions
to Upper Peru : the one under Santa Cruz by the Cordil¬
lera of Iscuchaca, obtained possession of the bridge of the
Incas on the Desaguadero on 29th July, and occupied La
Paz on the 7th August; the other division, under General
Gamarra, marched by the route of Tacora and San Andres
de Machaca, and reached Calamarca on the 10th August,
where it had a sharp rencontre with a division of the army
of General Olaneta, and then marched to Oruro, where it
was joined by Lanza with 600 men. During six years the
latter had maintained himself in the Yungas with great
valour against all the efforts of the Spaniards. At this
period General Urdininea, with 1000 men, occupied the
quebrada or defile of Humaguaca, near Jujuy, ready to
approach Potosi on the first favourable occasion.
At this time the royalist force in Upper Peru, under
Olaheta, did not exceed from 2000 to 3000 men, besides
about 1500 men in garrison at Puno and La Paz. But
Canterac, then near Lima, hearing of the large army which
had gone to Upper Peru under Santa Cruz, dispatched
General Valdez with three batallions of infantry, 400 ca¬
valry, and two cannon, to unite with the forces under the
viceroy Lasema, and Generals Carratala and Olaneta. On
the other hand, General Sucre also sent from Lima 3000
troops, either to co-operate with Santa Cruz, or to act se¬
parately, as occasion might require; and he soon afterwards
proceeded in person to command them, with authority
from the congress, if necessary, to assume also the com¬
mand of the army under Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz remained in quiet possession of Upper Peru,
occupying the country from Oruro to the bridge of the Incas,
his head-quarters being at La Paz. Valdez proceeded by
Andaguaylas and Sicuani towards Puno, having completed
a march of about 400 leagues in fifty-seven successive days.
On the approach of the royalists, Santa Cruz took up a po¬
sition near the bridge of the Incas; and at Zepita, on the
25th August, fought an indecisive action with Valdez, who
commanded 1800 men, his own force being only 1600. The
royalists immediately concentrated their forces at Sicuani,
amounting to 4500 men, whilst those of Santa Cruz were
about 7000 men. Various movements now took place on
both sides, which evinced much skill and activity on the
part of the royalists, and great indecision and want of judg¬
ment on the part of Santa Cruz. The royalists being
at length joined by the forces of Olaheta, amounting to
2500 men, and considering themselves equal in number
to the patriots, began to act on the offensive, and came
in contact with the army of Santa Cruz at Sicasica. But
this general showed no disposition to come into collision
with the royalists, and retreated towards Aya-aya, losing
some of his baggage, and many deserters. He appears
to have resisted all the endeavours and entreaties of his
officers, as well as the declared wishes of his army, to rally
and engage the enemy. A severe storm, which overtook
them here, served to increase their disasters, and convert¬
ed the retreat of the army into a precipitate flight. The
[VIA.
fugitives retired by Santa Rosa and Moquegua towards Ilo,
where about 1300 embarked in the transports; but of an
army of 7000 men only 1000 returned to Lima. About
1000 retired from Sicasica with Lanza, but were afterwards
defeated, by Olaneta, and their leader and a few followers
only escaped to the mountains. It is difficult to account
for the strange infatuation which led to the destruction of
this fine army, as Santa Cruz on other occasions had shown
himself an able commander; but these events will always
remain as a cloud upon his military character.
In May 1824, Generals Valdez and Olaheta occupied
Upper Peru, each with about 5000 men under his com¬
mand, but opposed to each other on political points; the
former having withdrawn his allegiance from the viceroy
Laserna, in consequence of advocating the constitutional
cause of Spain, while Olaheta adhered to the principles of
absolute monarchy. This dispute was useful to the cause
of the patriots, as it prevented Olaheta from uniting his
forces with the viceroy during the campaign which ter¬
minated in the battle of Ayacucho, so glorious to the cause
of freedom. General Sucre, whose abilities and valour so
much contributed to the success of that day, improved the
advantages he had obtained, by his clemency and genero¬
sity to the vanquished, and by the rapidity with which
he followed up his successes; so that none of the fugitives
could unite with the army of Olaneta, now the only royalist
general in arms in Upper or Lower Peru. A part of the
army, therefore, proceeded towards Upper Peru, and in
their march experienced in some instances great hardships;
the division of General Cordova having lost many men near
Santa Rosa, from surumpi or snow blindness.
On hearing of the victory of Ayacucho, the patriot
prisoners of war confined in the island of Chuquito, in the
lake of Titicaca, rose on their guards, whom they over¬
came ; and placing themselves under the command of Ge¬
neral Alvarado, likewise a prisoner, they took possession
of the country as far as the bridge of the Incas ; a division
of 1500 patriots under the command of General Urdininea
still occupying the quebrada of Humaguaca, on the south¬
ern frontier of the department of Potosi. General Olaneta,
however, still retained his position in Upper Peru, at the
head of about 4000 men, having refused to accede to the
liberal and even generous terms of accommodation pro¬
posed to him by General Sucre. The latter, therefore,
on recruiting his army after the fatigues they had under¬
gone, and supplying them with clothing and other neces¬
saries, advanced to Oruro, and afterwards to Puno, which
he reached on the 1st February 1825, and there obtained
information that the royalist garrisons of Cochabamba,
Chuquisaca, and Santa Cruz de la Sierra, had declared for
the patriots, and that the city of La Paz was in possession
of the gallant and indefatigable Lanza. Olaneta, with his
army, diminished to 2000, was confined to the department
of Potosi, but still persisted in his determined opposition,
notwithstanding the entreaties and remonstrances of Colo¬
nel Medina Celi, his second in command, who at length,
with a considerable portion of his army, rose against him.
Olaneta, with a few resolute followers, resisted to the last;
until, in an action with some of his own revolted troops at
Tumusla, sixteen leagues south of Potosi, he was mortally
wounded, on the 30th of March 1825.
General Sucre was now invested with the supreme com¬
mand in Upper Peru, until the requisite measures could be
taken to establish in that country a regular and constitu¬
tional government. Deputies from the various provinces to
the number of fifty-four were assembled at Chuquisaca, the
capital, to decide upon the question proposed to them on
the part of the government of the Argentine provinces,
respecting their separation oY otherwise from that country.
In August 1825 they decided this question, and declared
758 1> O L I \ I A.
Bolivia, it to be the national will that Upper Peru should in future those for the senate for eight years, and renewed hy moie- Bo a j
constitute a distinct and independent nation. This assem- ties every four years; and those for the chamber of censors ^ J
bly continued their session, although the primary object being nominated for life. The electors also exercise the
of their meeting had thus been accomplished, and after- privilege of proposing in ternaries, 1st, To the executive
wards gave the name of Bolivia to the country -} issuing power, all candidates for the prefectures of departments,
at the same time a formal declaration of independence, for the government of provinces, and for corregidors of
They also voted one million of dollars to General Bolivar, cantons and towns, and also curates and vicars for the va¬
ns a reward for his past services; and an equal sum to cancies in their provinces; 2dly, To the senate, the mem-
those belonging to the army who had served in the cam- hers of the courts of the judicial district to which they be-
paign of 1824. The former grant, however, was only ac- long, and the judges in the first instance ; and, 'idly, To the
ceptedby Bolivar on the express condition that it should prefect of the department, the alcaldes and justices of the
be wholly appropriated to purchasing the freedom of about peace, who are to be appointed in their respective provinces,
a thousand slaves still existing in Bolivia. The functions of the chamber of tribunes are, to origi-
The first general assembly of deputies of Bolivia dis- nate all laws respecting the revenue, peace and war, and to
solved themselves on the 6th of October 1825, and a new exercise an immediate inspection of those branches which
congress was summoned, and formally installed, at Chu- are administered by the executive, with the least interven-
quisaca, on the 25th May 1826, to take into consideration tion of the legislature. This chamber also possesses the
the constitution prepared by Bolivar for the new republic, initiative in the settlement of the territorial division of the
A favourable report was made to that body by a commit- republic ; the coinage, weights and measures ; the sea-
tee appointed to examine it, on which it was approved by ports, roads, bridges, and public buildings ; the police, &c.
the congress, and declared to be the constitution of the The attributes and functions of the chamber of senators
republic ; and as such, it was sworn to by the people. Ge- are, to form the civil, criminal, and ecclesiastical regulations
neral Sucre was chosen president for life, according to and codes, and watch over the tribunals of justice and re-
the constitution; but only accepted the appointment for ligion; to choose, from the ternaries presented to them by
the space of two years, and on the express condition that the executive and by the electoral body, the prefects, go-
2000 Colombian troops should be permitted to remain with vernors, corregidors, judges of districts, and all others in
him, which request was agreed to by the congress. the department of justice; to propose to the chamber of
Bolivian The Bolivian constitution is founded on the strictest censors those who are to be members of the supreme tribu-
code. principles of justice, in as fin- as regards the civil rights nal of justice, the archbishops, the bishops, dignitaries of
and privileges of the community; but in other respects, and the church, canons, and prebends; and to examine the deci-
particularly in reference to the supreme executive autho- sion of ecclesiastical courts, bulls, rescripts, and pontifical
rity, its provisions savour strongly of a monarchical spirit, briefs, with a view to their approval or disapproval.
The supreme authority is vested in a, presidente vitalicio, The chamber of censors exercise a political and moral
or president for life, with the power of naming his sue- power. It is their duty to watch that the constitution, the
cessor. It guai’antees to the Bolivians civil liberty, secu- laws, and treaties, are strictly adhered to and executed;.and
rity of persons and property, and equality of rights ; the to express the national judgment, when such is rendered
free exercise and communication of thoughts and opinions, necessary by the good or bad administration of the execu-
either by the press or otherwise ; liberty to remain or leave tive government. The censors are also charged with the
the territory of the republic with their property, at their protection of morality, the arts and sciences, education, and
pleasure, but without prejudice to others ; equality in the the press. They exercise the important functions of con-
imposition of taxes and contributions, from the payment demning those who usurp sovereign power, or are guilty
of which none can be exempted ; and the abolition of all of high crimes and malversation ; and they bestow public
hereditary employments, privileges, and entails. No pro- honours and rewards on the services and virtues of illus-
fession, trade, or employment, can be prohibited, unless trious citizens. This chamber also exercises the functions
repugnant to public feeling, or injurious to the health and of choosing, from the ternaries presented to them by the
security of the community; and every inventor is secured senate, those who are to form the supreme courts of justice,
in the benefits of his discovery. No one can be arrested to become archbishops, bishops, canons, and prebends,
without previous information of the alleged fact of delin- The general or collective duties and attributes of the
quency, unless when taken in flagranti delicto. All trials three chambers, when united, are, to nominate the presi-
and judgments are public; and in criminal cases none can dent of the republic for the first time, and to confirm his
be imprisoned more than forty-eight hours without having successor ; to approve of the vice-president proposed by
presented to him the charges preferred against him, and the president; to determine on the seat of government;
being delivered over to the proper tribunal or judge. No to decide on any charge against members of the cham-
demand for redress in civil or criminal cases can be brought bers, the vice-president, or secretaries of state ; to invest
judicially before the justices of peace, until they have first the president with extraordinaxy powers in cases of gi'eat
endeavoured to promote reconciliation, by hearing the re- emergency or danger; to select from the candidates pre-
pi’esentations of the parties, explaining to them their respec- sented in tei’naries by the electoral bodies, those mem-
tive rights, and pi'oposing some means of accommodation, bers who ai’e to fill up the vacancies of the chambers; and
By this constitution, all legitimate power emanates di- to regulate and judge the department of police. All the
rectly from the people, and is in the first instance exer- sessions must be public, excepting in such state cases as
exsed by all who can justly claim the privilege of citizens, require secrecy. No pxxblic functionaries are capable of
Of these, every ten nominate an electox*, who exercises his being members of the chambers ; and the latter enjoy in-
delegated authority for a period of four years. At the com- violability in their persons for opinions expressed, and are
mencement of each year all the electors assemble in the ca- not subject to ari’est.
pitals of their respective provinces, and regulate their pro- The executive government consists of a president, vice-
ceedings and the exercise of their various functions by a president, and three secretaires of state. The president
plurality of votes. I hey elect the members of the three of the republic is named for the first time by a ma-
legislative chambers, the number for each amounting to jority of the collective legislature, and retains the dignity
thirty ; those for the chamber of tribunes being nominated during life, with the power of naming his successor. He
for four years, and renewed by moieties every two years; is the chief of the administration of the state, and is not
BOLIVIA.
I ria. responsible for the acts of his administration. On his
^ ^ death, resignation, or infirmity, the vice-president is vir¬
tually his successor. In the absence or non-existence of
both of these functionaries, the three secretaries of state
take charge, ad interim, of the administration of the go¬
vernment, the oldest in office acting as president until
the assembling of the legislature. The constitutional
privileges of the president are the most limited that have
been intrusted to tbe supreme chief of any nation. They
extend only to the nomination of the officers of the reve¬
nue, of peace and of war, and the command of the army.
He proposes to the chambers the vice-president, and he
nominates the three secretaries of state, and can remove
any of these functionaries when he judges it necessary.
He appoints all diplomatic functionaries ; receives foreign
ambassadors and agents; directs all negociations; and, with
the previous sanction of the legislature, concludes treaties
of peace, alliance, commerce, &c. He presents to the se¬
nate, for its sanction, one of the three candidates proposed
by the electoral body for each of the situations of prefect,
governor, and corregidor; and to the ecclesiastical govern¬
ment, one of the three candidates proposed by the electoral
body for each of the offices of curate and vicar in the pro¬
vinces. He authorizes the regulations for the proper ful¬
filment of the constitution, laws, and treaties; he forwards
and causes to be executed the sentences of the tribunals ;
and he has the power of commuting capital punishments
awarded by them.
The president cannot deprive any Bolivian of his liber¬
ty, or inflict punishment on him, of his own accord; nor can
he imprison any one longer than forty-eight hours without
delivering him over to the proper judge or tribunal; nor
deprive any individual of his property, unless such a pro¬
ceeding be urgently demanded by the public interests;
nor impede the elections or any other public functions au¬
thorized by the laws ; nor absent himself from the republic
or the capital without permission of the legislature. He is
nominated for life, and made irresponsible as a security for
his permanency; but his hands are nevertheless tied, so that
he cannot do injury to any one. He does not nominate the
magistrates and the judges, nor does he appoint to any
ecclesiastical dignity, however subordinate; and hence he
is, at least nominally, deprived of the powerful influence
over society which is exercised by other supreme rulers.
The administration belongs wholly to the ministry, which
is responsible to the senate, and is subject to the zealous
vigilance of the legislators, magistrates, j udges, and citizens.
The vice-president is proposed by the president, and ap¬
proved of by the legislature. He is at the head of the mi¬
nistry, and, with the secretaries of state, is responsible for
allthe acts of the administration; while, in the name of the
presidentand the republic, he signs all the public documents,
along with these secretaries, in order to legalize the orders
of the executive. Of all the magistrates intrusted with
command, the vice-president is that one whose hands are
most shackled ; for he has to obey both the executive and
the legislature. He receives laws from the latter, and or¬
ders from the former; and between the two has often a dif¬
ficult course to steer. His nomination as the successor of
the president insures the services of an individual whose
previous experience in the difficult art of government, and
knowledge of those in subordinate situations, render him
the most eligible of any for such an office; and by this means
are avoided those elections for the supreme ruler so produc¬
tive of mischief in other republics. As the expectant of the
supreme command, the vice-president has the most power¬
ful motives for the zealous and conscientious discharge of
his functions, in order to secure, on the one hand, the con¬
fidence and support of the president, and, on the other, that
of the legislature and the people. The three secretaries
of state are for the home and foreign departments, for the
finance, and for war and marine ; and each is required to
give in accounts of the expenses incurred in his respective
department, and the estimates for each ensuing year.
The judicial power enjoys the most perfect indepen¬
dence, the members composing it being proposed by the
people, and chosen by the legislature; a condition which
insures the strict and impartial administration of the laws.
Tortures and confessions are altogether abolished, as re¬
pugnant to humanity. The territory of the republic is
governed by prefects, governors, corregidors, justices of
the peace, and alcaldes ; and the proportion of these is re¬
gulated by the population : the details to be defined by the
congress ; and every one in the enjoyment of office is made
responsible for his actions. The armed force is composed
of the regular army to garrison and defend the frontiers,
of the national militia to preserve internal order, of the
preventive service to protect the revenue, and of the navy,
when circumstances may require the formation of such.
Slavery in every form was abolished, as inconsistent with
the just rights of mankind, and at variance with the whole
spirit of the constitution. The exercise of religion was
freed from all restraints; it being considered incompetent
to legislate in matters affecting the conciences of others.
Such are the principal features of the Bolivian consti¬
tution, the merits of which will be variously estimated,
according to the particular political bias of each individual.
It contains in theory much that seems calculated to insure
the liberty, the prosperity, and the happiness of the com¬
munity. The legislative portion has been objected to as
being too complicated for practical purposes ; but this re¬
quires to be put to the test of experience. No part of it,
however, has excited more criticism, or given rise to
more sinister suspicions, than that which provides for the
election of a president or supreme ruler for life, with the
power of nominating his successor. With such a provi¬
sion, the Bolivian constitution is, in fact, nothing more nor
less than a limited monarchy, somewhat incuriously dis¬
guised under republican forms. This seems undeniably its
political character; and although it may have worked
tolerably well in Bolivia, the country for which it was os¬
tensibly intended, and where, according to the latest ac¬
counts, it still subsists, yet there seems to be little doubt
that it was conceived in a spirit more friendly to indivi¬
dual aggrandizement than to the liberty of the people or
the ultimate consolidation of republican institutions.
Had Bolivar, the lawgiver of this republic, ceased to exist,
or had he retired altogether from public life, on the pro¬
mulgation of the Bolivian code, his reputation as a patriot
and a statesman would have been handed down to poste¬
rity as one of the brightest in the annals of History. But,
unfortunately, the formation and establishment of this con¬
stitution gave rise to events in Peru, Colombia, and other
parts of South America, which incontrovertibly prove
that it was not dictated by that pure spirit of patriotism
which his friends and admirers have attributed to Bolivar;
but that under it lurked a gigantic scheme of ambition
and aggrandizement, in fruitless endeavours to accomplish
which much crime and misery were occasioned, whilst the
glory which its author had previously earned contracted a
stain which, it is to be feared, no length of time will ever
efface. The project which emanated from the promulga¬
tion and establishment of this code in Bolivia, and in the
prosecution of which Bolivar principally employed his ac¬
tive energies during the latter years of his life, was, the
establishment of the same constitution in Peru and Co¬
lombia as well as in Bolivia, and the union of these three
republics, either federally, or as one state, of which he was
to be the president for life. The celebrated congress at
Panama, which took place in June 1826, was originally pro-
759
Bolivia.
BOLIVIA.
jected by him for this express object; and many other ex¬
pedients, which it is foreign to our present purpose to enu¬
merate, v/ere also resorted to for the accomplishment of
his design. But all his schemes proved abortive, and he
died without effecting any of the objects, personal to him¬
self, for which he had compromised his fame, and incurred
the suspicion and dread of all who were friendly to repub¬
lican institutions.
The congress which sanctioned the adoption of the Bo¬
livian code, and elected General Sucre as the president of
the republic, continued its sessions, to legislate more in
detail. The republic was peculiarly fortunate in its first
choice of a president in the person of the conqueror of
Ayacucho, whose mildness, urbanity, integrity, love of
justice, and devotedness in the discharge of the important
duties confided to him, endeared him to every one capable
of being influenced by generous feelings. He had few per¬
sonal enemies; and those who opposed him were princi¬
pally influenced by the impression of his intimate connec¬
tion with Bolivar, and of his favouring the political principles
advocated by the latter; for all viewed Sucre as the firm¬
est and most energetic supporter which Bolivar possessed.
Under the upright administration of this officer much pro¬
gress was made in organizing the various departments of
the administration; the resources of the country were called
forth; and effectual means were adopted for promoting
the extension of education and intelligence throughout the
community.
Amidst these powerful inducements to tranquillity, much
discontent was excited by the presence of a body of Colom¬
bian troops in the country, which, in a period of profound
peace, was considered by many as derogatory to the dig¬
nity, and inconsistent with the liberty, of the republic. The
number influenced by such feelings was greatly aug¬
mented by the accession of those aspirants to place and
power, who considered their respective claims as having
been neglected or ill requited; and strength and consis¬
tency were given to these malcontents, by a belief, which
subsequent events proved to be well founded, that the
government of Peru favoured their views, and that they
would be supported by a numerous and well-appointed
Peruvian army, stationed in the department of Puno.
Meanwhile they succeeded in gaining over to their party
the Colombian battalion of voltigeros stationed at La Paz,
among whom a mutiny took place on the 23d December
1827; but this was speedily suppressed by the Colombian
cavalry under Colonel Brown, and the armed peasantry of
La Paz, after a desperate resistance on the part of the
mutineers, of whom eighty were killed. The battalion was
consequently disbanded. This revolt was hailed with loud
demonstrations of joy by the government and people of
Peru, who viewed it as the first step towards the down¬
fall of the policy of Bolivar.
General Sucre, convinced that removing the principal
source of discontent was essential to the stability of the
constitution and the welfare of the country, applied to the
government of Peru for permission to the Colombian troops
to march through the territory of that state, and embark
at Arica. But the Peruvian administration denied to these
brave men the privilege of returning to their native coun¬
ty hy the route by which they had formerly advanced to
establish the freedom of Peru, unless they submitted to
the humiliating condition of suffering themselves to be dis¬
armed; a condition which was spurned at by Sucre and the
Colombians. On the 5th March an interview took place
near the Desaguadero, between Generals Sucre and Ga-
marra, the latter commanding the Peruvians. On this
occasion each disclaimed any intention of interfering in
the internal affairs of the republic to which the other be¬
longed ; a pledge which subsequent events proved to have
been insincere on the part of Gamarra. General Sucre sue- B uji
ceeded, however, in obtaining the sanction of Gamarra to 'w >J>
the embarkation at Arica of all the Colombian troops in
Bolivia, excepting about 500 men; and thiswas accordingly
carried into effect without any further opposition on the
part of the Peruvians.
While Sucre was occupied with these transactions, the
spirit of discord had extended itself to Chuquisaca the
capital, and spread amongst the garrison. With the view
of repressing this disorder, Sucre rode in amongst the mu¬
tinous soldiers, accompanied by his staff and a few other
officers; but he was unsuccessful in his attempt to quell
the mutiny; Colonels Lanza and Escalona were mortally
wounded, and the general himself was so severely wound¬
ed as to be made prisoner. This revolt, however, was ul¬
timately suppressed by General Lopez with some troops
from Potosi, aided by the well-disposed inhabitants of
Chuquisaca; and Sucre was set at liberty. But he inti¬
mated his fixed determination not to resume the office of
president, except for the purpose of resigning it into the
hands of congress, at its first meeting.
On hearing of the affair at Chuquisaca, Gamarra called
a council of war, the members of which, with only one dis¬
sentient voice, agreed as to the propriety of his march¬
ing into the Bolivian territory, with the ostensible object
of preventing anarchy, and protecting Sucre from further
personal violence ; and this resolution was soon afterwards
sanctioned by orders to the same effect from the Peruvian
government. Accordingly, Gamarra and his army crossed
the Desaguadero on the 1st of May; but they were coolly
received by the Bolivians, whose forces being too few for
resistance, retired from La Paz, and concentrated them¬
selves towards Oruro and Potosi, under the command of
General Urdininea. But the latter, instead of advancing
with his whole forces to encounter Gamarra, weakened his
army by detaching a large division, in order to reduce a
mutinous regiment of cavalry under Colonel Blanco, in the
province of Chichas. Ineffectual endeavours at negociation
were followed by some indecisive affairs between the two
armies in the province of Paria. Meanwhile Blanco, elud¬
ing the vigilance of the party sent against him, placed him¬
self in communication with the Peruvian forces, and with
a party of them proceeded to Chuquisaca, where he seiz¬
ed General Sucre, hurried him by forced marches to the
head-quarters of Gamarra, and during the whole journey
treated him with the greatest inhumanity and indignity.
A treaty of peace was now entered into between Gene¬
rals Gamarra and Urdininea at Piquisa (6th July), by
which the independence of Bolivia was guaranteed, and
the object of the Peruvian invasion accomplished by the
retirement of General Sucre, and the removal of the re¬
maining Colombian troops from the territory of the re¬
public. Accordingly the latter embarked at Arica for
Colombia on the 28th of July, under the command of
Colonel Brown. Sucre was then set at liberty, and for¬
mally resigned the presidency of Bolivia on the 18th of
August 1828; on which occasion General Santa Cruz was
elected as his successor.
General Sucre descended from his high station in a
manner which accorded well with his elevated character.
His message to the congress of Bolivia, dated the 4th of
August, will serve as a lasting monument of his merits
in organizing Bolivia, and of his impartiality in pointing
out that part of the Bolivian code which he considered as
most imperfect. During the two years of his administra¬
tion, colleges and Lancasterian schools were established
in the capitals of each of the departments, and schools of
the same description for females were instituted in three
of them ; besides which, other schools were multiplied
throughout the country under improved regulations, and
B O L
via well provided with funds. Important ecclesiastical re¬
forms were effected, and the number of friars so diminish-
^ ed that only six convents remained of the thirty-six in
^ existence when he came into office, the funds of those
suppressed having been devoted to the purposes of edu¬
cation and other useful public institutions. Some progress
was also made in the improvement of the police, prisons,
&c.; and the army was left in a very efficient state. Agri¬
culture had been improved in all its branches, and no
forced loan or contribution of any kind was made. Mining-
had increased so much, that during the preceding year
one third more of the precious metals had been extracted
than on any former year. Commerce had also been pro¬
moted, and efforts were made to establish the free port
of Cobiza or La Mar. Although the amount of the re¬
venue received had diminished in consequence of the
changes in the imposts, yet, such had been the economy
observed by the administration, that the revenue was not
only sufficient to defray all necessary expenses, but a sur¬
plus had been accumulated to meet extraordinary charges.
General Velasco was chosen vice-president, and intrust¬
ed with the presidency of the republic until the arrival of
General Santa Cruz, who was then in Chili; but, in the
absence of Santa Cruz, Colonel Blanco usurped the su¬
preme authority, which, however, he retained but for a
short time ; for in the course of a few months he perished
by assassination. Meanwhile General Gamarra, having
accomplished the principal object of his enterprise, re¬
crossed the Desaguadero with his army on the 30th of
September 1828. This invasion of Bolivia was stated as
one of the grounds of offence against the Peruvian govern¬
ment by General Bolivar in his proclamation from Colom¬
bia, which afterwards brought on the war between that
state and Peru.
In 1829 and the early part of 1830 there arose between
B O L
GJ
Peru and Bolivia various disputes, in which both parties Bolivia
complained of injustice. The heavy transit duties im- li
posed on the commerce of Bolivia through the Puertos In- B°lster-
termedios, was a grievance severely felt by the inhabitants
of Bolivia; and, on the other hand, Peru complained of
the intrigues of Santa Cruz and his partizans to gain the
ascendency in Peru as well as Bolivia. These caused much
angry discussion on both sides, but at length ended in an
arrangement, one of the first results of which was the de¬
cree of the Peruvian government already mentioned, re¬
gulating the transit of Bolivian commerce through the
Peruvian territory. The latest intelligence confirms the
suspicions entertained of the ambitious views of Santa
Cruz, who has succeeded in ejecting General Gamarra
from the presidency, and in placing himself at the head of
the Peruvian government. What influence this event may
have upon the future destinies of these republics it is dif¬
ficult to foresee. It is perhaps desirable that it should bring
about a close union between them, which would at once
remove every source of contention, and unite in one firm
political compact all the territory formerly governed by
the Incas. The republic of Bolivia, with those of Chili
and Guatemala, are the only new states of South America,
the independence of which has not yet been acknowledged
by Great Britain. Yet the former has during seven years
been free from foreign domination, and in a state of inter¬
nal tranquillity ; and possesses, besides, such great natural
sources of wealth as to form an important market for the
manufactures of Great Britain. (Secret Report of D. Jorge
Juan and J). Antonio de Ulloa, by Barry; Relation Histo-
rique des Voyages de Humboldt et Bonpland; Bracken-
ridge’s Voyage to South America; Andrews’ Travels in
South America; Temple’s Travels in South America;
Edinburgh New. Phil. Jour. Oct. 1829 to April 1830;
Memoirs of General Miller}} (u. u.)
BOLKENHAIN, a circle in the Prussian government
ofLiegnitz, in Silesia, extending over 107 square miles,
or 65,480 acres, and containing two towns and thirty-eight
villages, with 3991 houses and 26,131 inhabitants. The
chief place, of the same name, on the river Neisse, con¬
tains a Catholic and a Lutheran church, a hospital, and
1288 inhabitants.
BOLLARDS, large posts set into the ground on each
side of a dock. On docking or undocking ships, large blocks
are lashed to them; and through these blocks are reeved
the transporting hawsers to be brought to the capstans.
BOLOGNA, one of the provinces called delegations,
into which the papal dominions are divided. It is bound¬
ed on the north by Ferrara, on the east by Ravenna, on
the south by Tuscany, and on the west by Modena. It ex¬
tends over 1450 square miles, and comprehends two cities,
twenty-one towns, and 371 villages, with a population of
297,510 inhabitants. It is a district of great natural fer¬
tility, and, though but indifferently cultivated, produces
abundant crops of rice, barley, wheat, and pulse, besides
hemp, flax, silk, oil, wine, figs, almonds, chestnuts, and
other fruits. The capital, from which the delegation takes
its name, is situated between the rivers Savena and Reno,
and is an ancient though not regularly built place, but
clean and well paved. It is said to contain near 150
churches and chapels, many of which have celebrated
paintings of the peculiar school to which the city has
given its name. It contains about 70,000 souls, including
the numerous students of the university; and is a place
of manufacturing industry, chiefly for making silk goods.
Long. 11. 15. 17. E. Lat. 44. 29. 30. N.
BOLOGNIAN Stone. At Monte Paterno, about four
miles from Bologna, a radiating columnar variety of ba¬
rytes is found imbedded in marl, which, when heated to
ignition, finely powdered, converted into a paste, and then
dried in pieces about a quarter of an inch thick, affords a
pyrophorus, which, after a few minutes’ exposure to the
sun’s rays, gives light enough in the dark to render the
figures on the dial plate of a watch visible. This, from
its locality, is called Bolognian stone.
BOLSCHAIA Reka, or the Great River, a river of
Kamtschatka, which rises in a lake about 120 miles from
its mouth. It flows into the sea of Okhotzk, in lat. 54.
52. N. It is navigable from its source to its mouth, and
there is a lighthouse south of the entrance into the river.
BOLSCHERETSK, a town and fortress of Kamtschat¬
ka, formerly the capital of that peninsula, and the seat of
the government. It is situated on the river Bolschaia Re¬
ka, 20 miles from its mouth, in an extensive plain stretch¬
ing along the sea-shore. It was built in 1701, and was
designed as a depot of Russian commerce; but, from the
difficulty of navigating the river, and the insecurity of the
harbour, the seat of government was transferred to Nis-
chery Kamtschatka, at a considerable distance; and the
town has since fallen to decay. Long. 157. E. Lat. 53. N.
BOLSTER, among surgeons, a soft yielding substance,
* ,?'^e principal facts connected with the more recent history of Bolivia have been obtained from some valuable manuscripts and
public documents with which we were favoured by the author of the Memoirs of General Miller, and which, with much additional and
important matter, will appear in a third edition of that excellent work.
VOL. iv. 5 D
762 B O L
Bolswert laid either under the head or under a broken limb. In this
II sense, bolsters are contrived for crooked, bunched, and
Bolton. 0tiierwise distorted backs, shoulders, or limbs.
BOLSWERT, or Bolsuerd, Scheltius a, an excellent
engraver. The time of his birth and death, and the name
of the master he studied under, are equally unknown.
Bolswert worked entirely with the graver, and never call¬
ed in the assistance of the point. Among the variety of
engravings by this artist, the few following may be here
mentioned : 1. The Brazen Serpent, a lai'ge plate, length¬
wise, from Rubens ; 2. Abraham offering his son Isaac, a
large plate, nearly square, from Theodore Rombout; 3. The
Education of the Virgin by Saint Anne, a middling-sized
upright plate, from Rubens ; 4. The Marriage of the Virgin,
a middling-sized upright plate, from the same painter ; 5.
The Feast of Herod, a large plate lengthwise, from the
same ; 6. The Miraculous Draught of Fishes, a large print
lengthwise, on three plates, from the same ; 7. Christ
crowned with Thorns, from Vandyck, an admirable print;
8. A Crucifixion, from Vandyck, also admirable ; 9. The
god Pan playing upon his Flute, from Jordaens ; 10. Mer¬
cury and Argus, a large plate lengthwise ; 11. A drunken
Silenus supported by a Satyr, from Rubens ; 12. a Chase
of Lions ; 13. A variety of Landscapes.
BOLT, among builders, an iron fastening fixed to doors
and windows. Bolts are generally distinguished into three
kinds ; plate, round, and spring bolts.
BoLT-Rope, in naval affairs, a rope passing round the
sail, to which the edges are sewed, to prevent the sail
from tearing.
BOLTER, or Boulter, a kind of sieves for meal, hav¬
ing the bottoms made of woollen, hair, or wire. The bakers
use bolters which are worked by the hand ; millers have a
larger sort, wrought by the motion of the mill.
BOLTING, a term of art used in our inns of court, by
which is meant a private arguing of cases.
Bolting, or Boulting, the act of separating the flour
from the bran by means of a sieve or bolter.
Boltivg-Cloth, or Bolster-cloth, sometimes also called
Boulting-cloth, denotes a linen or hair-cloth for sifting
meal or flour.
Bolting-MM, a versatile engine for sifting with more
ease and expedition. The cloth around it is called the
bolter.
BOLTON, or Boulton, Edmund, an ingenious English
antiquarian, who lived in the beginning of the seventeenth
century. His most considerable work is that entitled Nero
Caesar, or Monarchic Depraved, dedicated to the Duke of
Buckingham, lord high admiral, printed at London 1624,
folio, and adorned with several curious and valuable me¬
dals. It is divided into fifty-five chapters, in some of which
are introduced curious remarks and observations. In the
twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chapters the author gives
an account of the revolt in Britain against the Romans,
under the conduct of Boadicea, which he introduces with
a recapitulation of the affairs in Britain, from the entrance
of the Romans into this island under Julius Caesar, until
the revolt in the reign of Nero. In chapter thirty-six
he treats of the East India trade in Nero’s time, which
was then carried on by the river Nile, and from thence by
caravans over land to the Red Sea, and by it to the Indian
Ocean ; the ready coin carried yearly from Rome upon this
account amounting, according to Pliny’s computation, to
above L,300,000 sterling, and the usual returns in De¬
cember and January yielding in clear gain a hundred for
one. Besides this he wrote, 1. An English translation of
Lucius Florus’s Roman History; 2. Hypercritica, or a rule
of judgment for reading or writing our histories ; 3. The
Elements of Armories ; and some other works. The time
of his death is unknown.
BOM
BOLTON le Moor, a town of the hundred of Salford, Bolide
in the county of Lancaster, 197 miles from London. It is M(
divided by a small stream into Great and Little Bolton. 11
It is one of the many towns which, within the last forty homjv.
years, have risen to wealth and beauty from the great in- ’ J
crease of the cotton trade in the coal district, since the
introduction of steam engines and spinning machinery.
It manufactures vast quantities of calicoes, muslins, and
almost every description of cotton goods. There is a good
market on Mondays. The number of inhabitants amounted
in 1801 to 17,416, in 1811 to 24,149, and in 1821 to 50,197.
BOMB, in military affairs, a large shell of cast-iron,
having a considerable vent to receive the fuse, which is
made of wood. The shell being filled with gunpowder, the
fuse is driven into the vent or aperture within an inch of
the head, and fastened with a cement made of quicklime,
ashes, brick-dust, and steel filings, worked together in a
glutinous water; or of four parts of pitch, two of colophony,
one of turpentine, and one of wax. This tube is filled
with a combustible matter, made of two ounces of nitre,
one of sulphur, and three of gunpowder-dust, well ram¬
med. To preserve the fuse, they pitch it over, but uncase
it when the bomb is put into the mortar, and cover it with
gunpowder-dust, which taking fire by the flash of the pow¬
der in the chamber of the mortar, burns all the time the
bomb is in the air; and when the composition in the fuse
is spent, it fires the powder in the bomb, which bursts
with great force, blowing up whatever is about it.
Bombs may be used without mortars, as was done by
the Venetians at Candia, when the Turks had possessed
themselves of the ditch, rolling down bombs upon them
along a plank set sloping towards their works, with ledges
on the sides to keep the bomb right forward. Bombs
came not into common use before the year 1634, and then
only in the Dutch and Spanish armies. One Malthus, an
English engineer, is said to have first carried them into
France, where they were used at the siege of Colliouse.
The art of throwing bombs makes a branch of gunnery,
founded on the theory of projectiles, and the laws and
qualities of gunpowder. See Gunnery.
Bomb- Vessels, or small ships formed for throwing bombs
into a fortress, are said to have been the invention of M.
Reyneau, and were first used at the bombardment of Al¬
giers. Till then it had been judged impracticable to bom¬
bard a place from the sea.
BOMBARDIER, a person employed about a mortar.
His business is to drive the fuse, fix the shell, and load
and fire the mortar.
BOMBARDO, a musical instrument of the wind kind,
similar to the bassoon, and used as a bass to the hautboy.
BOMBASINE, a name given to two sorts of stuffs, the
one of silk, and the other crossed of cotton.
BOMBAST, in composition, is a serious endeavour, by
strained description, to elevate a low or familiar subject;
which, instead of being sublime, never fails to be ridi¬
culous. The mind, in some animating passions, is indeed
apt to magnify its objects beyond natural bounds; but
such hyperbolical description has its limits, and when car¬
ried beyond these it degenerates into burlesque. A writer
who has not natural elevation of genius is extremely apt
to glide into bombast. He strains above his pitch, and the
violent effort he makes carries him generally beyond the
bounds of propriety.
BOMBAY. This island, which is the seat of government Elan
for the western part of India, is situated in lat. 18. 56. N.
and long. 72. 56. E. Its length from north to south is
six and a half miles, and its breadth, near the fort, is about
a mile. It is separated from the mainland by an arm or
the sea, and it forms, in conjunction with the adjacent
islands of Colabah, Salsette, Butcher’s Island, Elephanta,
BOM
? )av and Caranjah, a large, commodious, and well-sheltered
^ harbour. The north side of the harbour is partly formed
by the island of Colabah, which is separated from Bombay
by a small creek, fordable at low water, and is about two
and a half miles long. Near its southern extremity stands
the light-house, a building of a circular form, rising from
the sea to the height of 150 feet, and showing its light at
the distance of twenty-one miles. The island of Salsette,
which is about twenty miles long and fifteen broad, is
separated from Bombay by a narrow arm of the sea. Over
this strait a causeway was constructed in 1805, which, by
improving the communication with the mainland, is of in¬
finite service to the surrounding country, with the produce
of which Bombay is supplied; but it is said to have had
a prejudicial effect on the harbour. Butcher’s Island is
nearly opposite to Bombay Castle, at the distance of three
miles; and about two miles from this, and still fronting
the fort, is the inconsiderable but celebrated island of
Elephanta. The two small islands of Henery and Kenery
lie at the entrance of the harbour.
I of The town of Bombay is nearly a mile in length, from
B av. the Apollo Gate to that of the Bazar, and about a quarter
of a mile broad in the widest part, from the custom-house
across the Green to Church Gate, which is nearly in the
centre between the Apollo and the Bazar Gates. There
are likewise two gates towards the sea, having commo¬
dious wharfs and cranes built out from each, with a land¬
ing-place for passengers. Between these gates is Bombay
Castle, a regular quadrangle, built of hard and durable
stone, and having the advantage, in one of the bastions,
of a large reservoir of water. The fortifications are nu¬
merous, and they have been improved in proportion as
the place has risen into greater importance from its in¬
creasing trade. They have lately received a considerable
accession of strength from Dunganee Hill, which com¬
manded the town, having been included within the fort;
and towards the sea they are extremely strong, the har¬
bour being completely commanded by ranges of batteries
placed one above another. But on the land side its means
of resistance are not so formidable; nor is this of much
moment, as an enemy, once landed, would find no difficulty
in possessing himself of the place. A bombardment would
in a few hours lay the town in ashes; and were the
houses, which are lofty and made of combustible mate¬
rials, once on fire, the troops could no longer preserve
their station on the ramparts. Indeed it is probable that
the destruction of the magazines would be the consequence
of the conflagration of the adjacent buildings.
D (and In the centre of the town is a large open space called
luild-the Green, around which are many large, well-built, and
handsome houses. Here is also the church, which has an
extremely neat and light appearance ; and on the left of
the Church Gate is the government-house, which is a
showy edifice, but liable to the inconvenience of having
the largest apartments in both floors a passage-room to the
others. On the right of the Church Gate is the Bazar,
which is crowded and populous. Here the native mer¬
chants reside; and at the entrance to the street stands
the theatre, which is a handsome building. In the year
1803 this part of the town was greatly injured by a de¬
structive fire, which destroyed nearly three fourths of
the Bazar, together with the barracks, custom-house, and
many other public buildings, besides property of immense
value belonging to native merchants. The flames spread
with such rapidity that the magazine was endangered ;
and, in order to preserve the town from total destruction,
many houses in the neighbourhood of the castle were bat¬
tered down with artillery. Since this period the towm
has been rebuilt on an improved plan, at the expense of
the company.
BOM 763
Bombay is the only principal settlement in India where Bombay,
the rise of the tides is sufficient to admit the construction
of docks on a great scale. The highest spring tides rise
to the height of seventeen feet, and the height of the or¬
dinary tides is fourteen feet. In consequence of these
natural advantages, the dry dock of Bombay has scarcely
its equal for size and convenience ; having three divi¬
sions, with a pair of strong gates to each, so that it is ca¬
pable of receiving three ships of the line at a time. Near
this dock is a convenient place to heave down several
ships at once ; and this operation is well executed, and with
great expedition, by the Persees, who are generally ac¬
counted excellent ship-carpenters. Here is a rope-walk,
equal to any in England, with the single exception of the
king’s yard at Portsmouth, where cables and all sorts of
lesser cordage are manufactured. It has also a covering
to protect the workmen from the heat or inclemency of
the weather. The dock-yard is large and well contrived,
having ample supplies of naval stores deposited in the
warehouses, together with large quantities of timber, for
repairing and building ships, and forges for all kinds of
smith’s work. With these advantages, Bombay claims a
distinguished rank as a naval arsenal; while, within these
few years, many merchant ships of from 600 to 1300
tons, partly for the country trade and partly for the ser¬
vice of the company, have been built in its docks, and, in
beauty of construction, good workmanship, and durability,
are superior to any other class of merchant ships in the
world. Bombay is the only port in any of the British
possessions out of Europe at which a ship of the line was
ever built; and it deserves to be recorded that the Min-
den, a seventy-four gun ship, was launched from its dock¬
yards in 1810. It has also added several frigates to the
British navy. All these vessels are built of Malabar teak,
which is esteemed superior to any in India. The teak
forests, from which supplies of wood are derived, lie along
the western side of the Ghaut Mountains, and other con-
tinguous ridges to the north and east of Basseen; the
numerous streams which descend from them affording
water-carriage for the timber. The docks belong to the
company, and the king’s ships pay a monthly rent for re¬
pairs. They are entirely occupied by Persees, who are
esteemed remarkably skilful and assiduous. Bombay,
thus possessing, in the skill of its workmen, the excellence
of its timber, and the superiority of its docks, all that is
necessary for a naval arsenal, may be considered as a
station of the first importance to the British power in
India.
From its position, Bombay commands an extensive com-Commerce.
merce with the countries situated in the Persian and Ara¬
bian Gulfs, and with the western coast of India. It also
carries on a valuable trade with the eastern parts of
India, the islands in the- Eastern Ocean, and with China.
Of the trade with China the staple commodity is cotton¬
wool. The other articles consist of sandal-wood and pep¬
per, the produce of Malabar and other adjacent countries;
gums, drugs, and pearls, from Arabia, Abyssinia, and Per¬
sia ; elephants’ teeth, cornelians, and other produce of
Cambay; sharks’ fins, birds’ nests, and other articles from
the Maidive and Laccadive islands. The ships gene¬
rally arrive at Canton in June or July, and lie there until
December or January. In 1808 the quantity of cotton
brought to Bombay for re-exportation amounted to
85,000 bales, of 375 pounds each, which were partly pro¬
cured from the country on the Nerbuddah, and from Gu-
jerat and Cutch. The quantity, however, is not usually so
large; and in this trade Bombay has been lately rivalled
by the competition of the merchants of Bengal and Ma¬
dras, who, having adopted a different method of cleaning
their cotton, have sold it to greater advantage in the mar-
764 B O M
Bombay, ket of Canton than the merchants of Bombay; and unless
the latter adopt the same method of preparing their
commodity, it is probable that this lucrative branch of
trade will decline. It is about fifty or sixty years since
the cotton trade from Bombay to China was first esta¬
blished. At that period a great scarcity of provisions
having occurred in China, the cultivation of cotton was
restricted by an edict of the government, and grain was
ordered to be raised in its stead. Hence a great demand
arose in the Chinese market for cotton, which has conti¬
nued ever since to increase. But the general inattention
of the Bombay merchants to the quality of the commo¬
dity, and the many frauds which have been practised
upon the Chinese, have induced them to resume the cul¬
tivation of cotton, for the purpose of having within them-
B A Y.
selves the necessary supply of this useful article. On this Botr
account the demand from China may be rather consider- 'w-
ed as precarious. In stowing and packing the cotton,
great dexterity is displayed. It is pressed down by means
of a screw, worked by a capstan, to each bar of which
there are thirty men, amounting on the whole to 240 to
each screw. Hemp is packed in the same manner, but it
requires to be carefully laid in the press, its fibres being
liable to be broken if they are bent.
Bombay carries on a considerable trade with Europe,
and with different parts of America. The imports from
Europe are principally articles for the use of the natives
and Europeans, consisting mostly of the finer articles of
European manufacture, the produce of other countries
for re-exportation, piece goods, and treasure.
The following is a Table of the estimated Value in Rupees1 of the Exports and Imports to and from other places:
Imports. Sicca Rupees.
From Madeira  70,360
From Brazils (of which there was treasure to
the amount of 13,57,650)  15,18,400
From the Isle of France, of which cloves com¬
posed two thirds)  5,34,183
From China, consisting of articles for the use
of the natives and Europeans, manufactures,
piece-goods, treasure   40,64,654
From Manilla, half of which consisted of sugar 2,29,350
From Prince of Wales Island, and the islands
to the eastward  4,99,886
From Bengal, consisting of raw silk, piece-
goods, sugar, groceries, grain  27,70,051
From the coast of Coromandel  80,771
From Ceylon  1,14,331
From Malabar and Canara, grain, manufac¬
tures, piece-goods  30,01,139
From Goa and the Concan, grain, manufac¬
tures, piece-goods  20,40,364
From Bassein and adjacent villages  3,63,682
From Cutch and Sinde  3,26,668
From Persian Gulf, grain, manufactures, piece-
goods, treasure, horses  21,40,740
From Arabian Gulf, merchandise, treasure>
horses    9,44,292
From east coast of Africa  1,37,386
From Surat, grain, manufactures, piece-goods,
treasure  10,30,336
From Gujerat, &c. piece-goods, treasure  51,11,636
Exports. Sicca Rupees.
To Brasils  43,334
To the Isle of France  2,63,403
To China  37,17,522
To Manilla  78,837
To Pegu   6,458
To Prince of Wales Island  7,54,560
To Bengal  4,25,615
To coast of Coromandel  1,87,464
To Ceylon  67,048
To Malabar  17,66,193
To Goa and Concan, consisting generally of the
produce imported from other countries  51,29,222
To Bassein, &c  2,96,179
To Cutch and Sinde, consisting chiefly of Chi¬
nese goods  11,11,227
To the Persian Gulf, merchandise imported
from other countries  19,48,205
To the Arabian Gulf, merchandise and Euro¬
pean goods  3,64,731
To the East coast of Africa  46,449
To Surat, manufactures of other countries,
treasure  19,07,032
To Gujerat  39,53,572
The whole value of the imports for 1811-12 amounted
to  169,70,626
Treasure    37,37,084
Horses  2,39,875
The whole value of exports, for 1811-12,
Merchandise  145,50,642
Treasure  30,27,963
Horses  2,29,473
Rupees  209,47,585
In pounds sterling these imports amount to...L.2,356,603
Bombay is estimated to contain 220,000 inhabitants, of
whom nearly three fourths are Hindoos. The other
fourth is composed of persons from almost every Asiatic
nation. The number of Persees is estimated at 8000;
there is nearly the same number of Mahometans, and
there are 4000 Jews. The Portuguese are also to be
found in considerable numbers. The Persees rank next
Rupees  178,08,100
In pounds sterling these exports amount to...L.2,003,411
to the Europeans, and carry on, many of them, extensive
commercial transactions. They are the brokers and fac¬
tors of Europeans, and have a concern in most of the
foreign speculations of European mercantile houses. They
are a rich, industrious, and active body of men, who con¬
tribute greatly to the prosperity of the settlement, and
are treated by the government with much favour and in-
A lack is 100,000, which, at 2s. 3d. per rupee, is L.l 1,250 sterling. When any sum amounts to more than 100,000 rupees, the
usual mode of numeration is to divide the lacks from the remaining part of the sum, thus, 15,18,400, which is 15 lacks, eighteen
thousand tour hundred rupees.
BOM
U }ay. diligence. For the protection which they enjoy they are
w ^ exceedingly grateful, and openly express their conviction
that they could not obtain the same advantages in any
other part of the East. They are the descendants of the
ancient Persians who fled from the persecution of Shah
Abbas in the sixteenth century, when he expelled the
worshippers of fire from his dominions, and compelled
them to seek an asylum in other countries. The Persees
at Bombay appear to be quite domesticated in their new
residence, in which they have purchased valuable proper¬
ties. Besides the Persees, many considerable Portuguese,
American, and Hindoo merchants reside at Bombay, who
have acquired valuable property, and have the reputation
of great integrity. There are likewise some Bonah mer¬
chants, or Mahommedan Jews, who carry on a great trade
with Gujerat, and other places to the northward. All
these different classes of inhabitants live happily together,
and enjoy great prosperity under the mild and equitable
rule of the British government.
Co iny’s The company’s naval force at Bombay in 1827 consisted
na' of twenty fighting vessels, besides armed boats, advice-
F boats, and other craft; and to man this navy a regular esta¬
blishment of officers and seamen is maintained. The west¬
ern coast of India, from the shores of the Persian Gulf to
Goa, is infested by swarms of pirates, who are distinguish¬
ed, particularly those in the northerly tracts, by courage,
address, and habits of extreme ferocity. It is to protect
the country trade against the depredations of these ban¬
ditti, who have haunted those seas since the time of Alex¬
ander the Great, that the company finds it necessary to
maintain this naval force. Out of 104 marine covenanted
servants of the company, Bombay employs ninety-three.
Ar The annual expense of the Bombay army is, for king’s
troops L.161,317 ; native troops L.1,050,646 ; local corps,
garrisons, &c. L.827,535 ; total L.2,039;498. In 1827 the
civil servants of the company on the Bombay establish¬
ment amounted to 128; the judicial, ecclesiastical, &c. to
109; and their pay and allowances to L.376,995, being
an increase since 1817 of L.190,796.
h ’• The island of Bombay scarcely produces any articles
|j ithe0f food; these have to be imported from various parts
of India, and are consequently much dearer here than in
the other presidencies. Considerable quantities of rice
and other grain are annually imported. The prices are
continually fluctuating, from the state of the market,
which is under the superintendence of the police. Pota¬
toes, which, though recently introduced, are now pro¬
duced in the greatest abundance in this quarter of India,
are brought to the Bombay market from Gujerat, which
also supplies cheese, but of a kind hard and ill flavoured.
The only vegetable Bombay is celebrated for is the onion,
which is esteemed excellent. All other vegetables are
scarce and dear.
The bazar mutton, when well fed, is thought to be as
good as the English. Kid is always good; and there is
abundance of poultry, which is not good, however, un¬
less when fed on purpose. The fish are excellent, but
those of a large size are not plentiful. The prawns are
uncommonly fine; and though the island is too small to
furnish great abundance of game, the red-legged partridge
is not uncommon, and snipes are sometimes seen. The
frogs here are large, and are sometimes eaten by the
Chinese and Portuguese.
On the 1st January 1827 a supreme court of judicature
was established in Bombay, by a regulation of the gover¬
nor in council. It consists of a chief justice, and of three
or more puisne judges, appointed by the king; and its
jurisdiction extends over all the territories subordinate
to the presidency of Bombay. In 1828 a collision of
jurisdiction took place between this court and the govern-
i !c« of
iUl ture.
B A Y.
765
ment of the presidency. One of the judges, Mr Justice Bombay.
Giant, having issued a writ of habeas corpus to produce
in court the body of a native of high rank, confined against
his will by an uncle, the governor and council interfered,
and opposed the execution of the writ, on the ground that
the court had no jurisdiction except over British sub¬
jects or the servants of the company; and an appeal having
been made to the privy council, it was decided that the
supreme court had no authority to issue a writ of habeas
corpiis, except in the case of persons either residing
within the island of Bombay, in which it has a general
jurisdiction, or of those who are personally subject to its
civil and criminal jurisdiction.
The same passion for country-houses prevails at Bom-Buildings,
bay as at Madras. Ihese houses are generally comfort¬
able and elegant; and if they have not the splendid Gre¬
cian porticoes of Calcutta and Madras, they seem to be
better adapted to the climate, and have the advantage of
the most beautiful and picturesque views; the island of
Bombay being broken by several beautiful hills, either
covered with cocoa-nut tree groves, or villas of the inha¬
bitants. Ihe only English church in Bombay is in the
fort. There are numbers of Portuguese and Arminian
churches both within and without the walls, and there
are also three or four synagogues, with many temples and
mosques.
Bombay, from its situation, might be supposed to be Climate,
healthy; but this is said not to be the case, the liver
complaint being more fatal and frequent here than in any
part of India. A land breeze sets in every evening, which
is described as being peculiarly noxious, and is frequently
followed by fever, and by loss of the use of the limbs.
I his breeze is stated by Lord Valentia to have been
chillingly cold at the time he visited Bombay; but he
attributes its deleterious effects not merely to this cause,
but to the noxious vapours with which it is tainted in its
passage over the rank vegetation that springs up in the
marshy parts of the bay immediately after the rains. Mo¬
derate living affords the best security for health; the
extremes of intemperance and over abstemiousness being
equally injurious.
Bombay was first settled by the Portuguese, to whom History
it was ceded in 1530; having been before dependent on and settle-
one of the native chiefs. In 1661 it was ceded by thement-
crown of Portugal in full sovereignty to Charles II., by
the treaty of marriage concluded with that power when
he espoused the infanta. In order to take advantage of
this acquisition, and to make it a profitable dependence
on the crown, a fleet was dispatched under the command
of the Earl of Marlborough in 1662, to receive formal pos¬
session of the island and its dependencies. Some doubts
arising, however, as to the construction of the treaty, the
viceroy refused to surrender the island, on which the Earl
of Marlborough returned to Europe, after having left the
troops, amounting to 500 men, in the island, where most
of them died. In 1664 a treaty was concluded by this
nobleman’s successor with the viceroy of Goa, in which
the former renounced all pretensions to the dependencies
of Bombay, and accepted of the cession of the island alone,
which the English accordingly received in 1665, the
troops who had survived the ravages of disease only mus¬
tering 119 rank and file.
It was soon discovered that the revenues of the island
were not equal to the expense of retaining it, and that
the East India Company were much injured by a contra¬
band trade carried on by persons in the king’s service.
In consequence of these and other reasons, the sovereignty
of the island was, in 1668, transferred to the East India
Company. The company’s servants made every exer¬
tion to place this new acquisition in a respectable state
;b o m
of defence, and to encourage settlers; and, in 1673, the
island of Bombay, from being almost a desert, had become
the centre of the company’s trade, protected by fortifi¬
cations with 100 pieces of cannon mounted, and a suitable
garrison. In 1676 letters-patent were obtained from the
king to establish a mint at Bombay, at which they were
empowered to coin rupees and other smaller pieces. At
this period Bombay continued to be of very little impor¬
tance, which partly proceeded from the vigorous govern¬
ment of Aurengzebe, and the rising power of the Mah-
rattas. These two powers contended for the possession of
the island of Kenery, which was seized on by the troops
of both, the Bombay government not daring to oppose
either party, but trembling for its own safety amid these
formidable contentions. Bombay was soon afterwards, in
consequence of the capture of Bantam by the Dutch, con¬
stituted an independent English settlement, and the seat
of the English power in the East Indies.
In 1678, the company, finding it necessary to retrench
the expenses of the establishment, proceeded to reduce
the salaries and to lower the rank of their military officers,
which produced general discontent, and finally, a serious
revolt, which threatened the most alarming consequences
to the company’s affairs. This insurrection was headed
by Captain Richard Reigwin, commander of the garrison,
who seized the governor, and such members of the coun¬
cil as still adhered to him ; and having assembled the troops
and militia, annulled the authority of the company by pro¬
clamation, requiring the inhabitants to renounce obedi¬
ence to their authority, and to take the oaths of allegiance
to the king. The whole inhabitants and all the troops
immediately complied with the terms of this proclamation;
and all the exertions of the governor of Surat to persuade
the revolters to return to their duty were in vain. The
mutiny was at length quelled by the prudence of Sir
Thomas Grantham, who arrived from Surat with a com¬
mission from the king, and had a conference with Reig¬
win, in the course of which the latter agreed to deliver up
the fort, on condition of receiving a free pardon for him¬
self and his associates.
Since this period, the settlement of the English East
India Company at Bombay has been frequently in a very
precarious condition, sometimes from the unhealthiness of
the climate, and at other times from the jealousy of the
native powers. But, after the power of the company be¬
came more firmly rooted in India, it has continued gra¬
dually increasing in wealth and consequence, and may
now be accounted *one of the most important and durable
possessions of the British in India.
The government of Bombay and its dependencies is by
law vested in a governor and three counsellors, who are
placed under the control of the supreme government of
Bengal, and are in all cases to obey such orders as they
may receive, provided they have no different instructions
in their possession from the court of directors, of which
they are bound to send immediate notice to the Bengal
government. The court of directors appoint the governor
and members of the council, and likewise the commander
in chief of the forces, who is not officially a member of the
council, but may receive such an appointment from the
directors, and in that case he takes precedence of all the
other members.
It is difficult to fix with precision the extent of the ter-
ritories included within the presidency of Bombay, as some
districts belonging to the native powers are intermingled
with them. On a general estimate, however, they may
be calculated to comprehend 10,000 square miles, and to
contain a population exceeding altogether two millions and
a half, which maybe supposed to consist of one Mahomme-
uan to fifteen Hindoos. Of the Persees no exact estimate
BON
has ever been made. The travelling distance from Bom- ft,,
bay to Calcutta is 1300 miles ; to Delhi 965; to Hydera- b ,
bad 480; to Madras 770 ; to Poonah 98; to Seringapatam
620; and to Surat 177 miles. (See Milburn’s Oriental ®or|'o
Commerce ; Voyages and Travels of Lord Valentia ; Ha- ^ ia'
milton’s East India Gazetteer?) (f.) ^
BOMB-ketch, a small vessel built and strengthened
with large beams, and mounting mortars only.
BOMBUS, in Music, an artificial motion with the hands,
imitating in cadence and harmony the buzzing of bees.
The word is originally Greek, and signifies the buzz, boom,
or noise of bees, gnats, and the like. In this sense the word
is applied to describe a species of applause murmured or
buzzed by ancient auditories.
BOMONICI, in Grecian Antiquity, young men of La¬
cedaemon, who contended at the sacrifices of Diana which
of them was able to endure most lashes, being scourged
before the altar of this goddess.
BOMST, a circle in the Prussian government of Posen,
and formerly a part of Poland. It extends over 408 square
miles, or 261,120 acres, and contains seven towns and 158
villages, with 33,530 inhabitants. The soil is sandy, bear¬
ing little corn, except rye and oats. The chief place, a
city of the same name, stands on the Obra, and contains
1867 inhabitants, of whom about one fourth are Jews.
BONA, a considerable sea-port of the territory of Al¬
giers, in the province of Constantina, called by the Arabs
Bleid-el-Anet. It appears to be about a mile distant from
the ancient Hippo, the ruins of which, consisting of broken
walls and cisterns, cover a considerable extent of ground.
It has two good harbours, though from neglect they are be¬
coming less commodious. The French African Company
once carried on a considerable trade here, exporting in
one year wool, wax, hides, and grain, to the value of
L.28,500. Britain, during the last war, by her naval su¬
periority, compelled that company to give up their settle¬
ment, and obtained to herself the cession of Bona, with
some other towns ; but she never formed any establishment
here, and the claim seems now to have become obsolete.
In the vicinity of Bona are extensive coral banks, the seat
of an important fishery, chiefly carried on by vessels from
Naples, Genoa, and other parts of Italy, who have gene¬
rally been allowed to prosecute it without molestation.
In 1816, however, the Algerines, irritated by the inter¬
position of the English against the capture of slaves, sud¬
denly attacked a number of crews employed in this fishery,
and committed a most barbarous massacre of them. This
outrage, however, immediately called forth the expedition
under Lord Exmouth, the triumphant issue of which pre¬
vented for a time the repetition of any similar violence.
Bona is sixty-six miles north-north-east of Constantina,
in long. 7. 45. E. lat. 36. 52. N.
Bona Dea, in Pagan Mythology, one of the names of
Cybele. According to some, she was a Roman lady, the
wife of one Faunus, and so famous for her chastity that
after her death she was deified. Her sacrifices were per¬
formed only by matrons, and in so secret a manner that
it was death for any man to intrude himself into the as¬
sembly. Cicero reproaches Clodius with having entered
this temple disguised as a singing woman, and by his
presence polluted the mysteries of the Bona Dea. What
kind of mysteries these were, we learn incidentally from
Juvenal, sat. vi. 313, where the horrid abominations prac¬
tised in them are very significantly pointed at.
Bona Fides, in Law. When a person performs any
action which he believes at the time to be just and law¬
ful, he is said to have acted in hona fide.
Bona Mohilia, the same with movable effects or goods.
Bona Notahilia are such goods as a person dying has
in another diocese than that in which he dies, amounting
Bo Va
| (
ih-
BON
to the value of five pounds at least; in which case the
will of the deceased must be proved, or administration
granted, in the court of the archbishop of the province,
j unless, by composition or custom, any dioceses are autho-
^ rized to do it, when rated at a greater sum.
Box a Vacantia, goods, such as royal-fish, shipwrecks,
treasure-trove, waifs, and estrays, in which no one can
claim a property.
BONAA, an island in the Eastern Seas, about twenty-
five miles in circuit, lying off the north-western extremity
of Ceram. Long. 128. 5. E. Lat. 33. S.
BONAPARTE, or Buonaparte. See Napoleon.
BONARELLI, della Rovere, Count Guid’ Ubal-
do, an Italian poet, born at Urbino on the 25th Decem¬
ber 1563, was the son of Count Pietro Bonarelli, minister
of the duke of Urbino. He was intrusted with several im¬
portant negociations, and was esteemed an able politician
and learned philosopher. He was the author of a favola
'pastorale, entitled Filli di Sciro, printed for the first time
at Ferrara in 1607, with cuts, 4to ; and of an amatory pro¬
duction entitled Discorsi in difesa del doppio Amor della
sua Celia, first printed at Ancona in 1612, 4to. He died
at Fano in 1608, aged forty-five.
BONASSUS. See Mammalia, Index.
BON ATI, a city, the capital of a district of the same
name, in thePrincipato-Citeriore,of the kingdom of Naples,
containing 3480 inhabitants.
BONAVENTURE, a celebrated cardinal, called, from
his works, the Seraphic Doctor. He was born at Bagna-
rea, a small town of Tuscany, in 1221. His original name
was Giovanni Fidenza ; but from a particular circumstance
he got that of Bonaventure, by which alone he is now
generally known. He took the habit of a monk of the
order of St Francis in 1243, was received doctor at Paris
in 1255, and the year following became general of his or¬
der. After the death of Clement IV. the cardinals dis¬
agreeing about the election of a new pope, engaged them¬
selves by a solemn promise to elect the person Avho should
be named by Bonaventure, even although it should be him¬
self; but he nominated Theobald, archdeacon of Liege,
who was then in the Holy Land, and who, on his election,
assumed the name of Gregory X. This pope, in return,
made Bonaventure a cardinal and bishop of Alba in 1273,
and ordered him to assist at the second general council of
Lyons, where he died in 1274. His works were printed
at Rome in 7 vols. folio. Bonaventure was canonized by
Sixtus IV.; proclaimed doctor of the church, with the
surname of Seraphic Doctor, by Sixtus V.; eulogised by
Luther as an excellent man (Bonaventura, prcestantissimus
vir); and characterized by Bellarmin as a doctor alike
beloved by God and man.
BONAVISTA, an island near the western coast of
Africa, forming part of the group called Cape de Verd
from their vicinity to that remarkable promontory. It
was the first of the number discovered by the Portuguese
in 1450. Captain Porter describes the island as consist¬
ing of a level plain, rising in the centre into rugged and
rocky eminences. A great part is capable of cultivation,
and might yield in abundance cotton and indigo, were
these properly attended to by the indolent natives. There
are two good roads for shipping. The northern side, ac¬
cording to Captain Cook, is in long. 22. 59. E. and lat. 16.
17. N. ’ &
BONAWASI, a small and decayed town of Hindostan,
in the province of North Canara, district of Soonda, on the
confines of the Bednore district. It contained in Hyder’s
time 500 houses, but is now in a ruinous condition. Long.
75. 12. E. Lat. 14. 27. N.
BOND, John, a commentator on Horace and Persius,
was born in Somersetshire in the year 1550, and educated
BON
at Winchester school. In 1569 he was entered a student
of the university of Oxford, probably in the New College,
of which he became either one of the clerks or chaplains.
He took his degree as bachelor of arts in 1573, and that
of master m 1579 ; soon after which he was appointed bv
his college, master of the free school at Taunton in Somer¬
setshire. In this situation he continued many years with
considerable reputation; but being at length weary of
the laborious occupation of teacher, he commenced physi¬
cian, and, it is said, became eminent in that capacity. He
died in the year 1612, possessed of several lands and
tenements in his neighbourhood; but whether acquired
by the practice of physic or otherwise, does not appear.
He wrote, 1. Commentarii in Poemata Q. Horatii, London,
1606, 8vo ; and, 2. Commentarii in sex Satyras Persii,
London, 1614, 8vo. His short marginal annotations upon
Horace and Persius are generally feeble, and without
erudition ; notwithstanding which his edition of the former
poet has often been reprinted. Saxius describes him as
mmorum gentium philologus.
BONDAGE properly signifies the same with slavery,
but in old law books is used for villenage. Tenants in
bondage paid kenots, did fealty, and were prohibited from
felling trees in their own garden, without license of the
lord. The widow of a tenant in bondage held her hus¬
band s estate guam diu vixerit sine marilo, as Iona- as she
lived single. °
Bondage by the Forelock, or Bondagium per anteriores
crines capitis, was when a freeman renounced his liberty,
and became a slave to some great man, which was done
by the ceremony of cutting off a lock of hair from the
forehead, and delivering it to his lord; denoting that he
was to be maintained by him for the future. Such a bond-
man, if he reclaimed his liberty, or became fugitive from
his master, might be drawn again to his servitude by the
nose, whence the origin of the popular menace to pull a
man by the nose.
BONDMAN, in the English law, is a term used for a vil¬
lain, or tenant in villenage. The Romans had two kinds of
bondmen ; one, called servi, who were those either bought
for money, taken in war, left by succession, or acquired
by some other lawful title; the other, born of their bond-
women, and called vernce. We may add a third kind of
bondmen mentioned by Justinian, called adscriptitii glebce,
or agricensiti, who were a species of serfs or boors, not
bound to the person, but to the ground or place, and who
followed him who had the land. These in our law are call¬
ed vilains regardants, as belonging to the manor or place.
BONDOU, a kingdom of Western Africa, between the
upper courses of the Senegal and Gambia, bordering on
Bambouk, Foota Torra, Tenda, Dentila, and other small
kingdoms. The country is elevated, and the mountains
are generally unproductive, and covered with stunted
wood. The intervening valleys, however, are fertile, and
finely clothed with the baobab, the tamarind, and other
valuable fruit trees. They are traversed by beds of tor¬
rents, which flow rapidly during the rains, but are empty
in the dry season. Cultivation, though it extends over
only a comparatively small proportion of the whole sur¬
face, is carried on with considerable activity. The pro¬
ducts consist of four species of grain, rice, cotton, indigo,
and fruits. The workmen in the different parts display
considerable dexterity, though they employ very rude and
defective tools. The people consist chiefly of Foulahs,
though the country is much frequented by Mandingoes
and Serawoollies for purposes of trade. The exports con¬
sist of provisions and cotton cloth manufactured in the
country, in exchange for salt and slaves. The caravans,
bringing this last commodity from the interior to the
coast, pass usually through Bondou.
BON
The religion and laws of this country are Mahommedan,
though the precepts of that faith are not observed with
the same rigour as in more northern countries. There are
schools, however, in every town, where the Koran and the
reading and writing of Arabic are taught; but the scholar
stands in a very humble situation, being considered the ser¬
vant of the teacher, for whom he is obliged to perform
the most menial offices. The king is nearly absolute, and
commands a disposable force of from 500 to 600 horse,
and 2000 to 3000 infantry. These are much employed
in predatory expeditions into the neighbouring countries,
chiefly for the purpose of collecting slaves. His revenues
are derived from a tenth part of the produce of the land,
and of the salt imported, as also from duties on goods pass¬
ing through his territories, with numerous presents expect¬
ed or extorted. Mr Park experienced to his cost the rapa¬
city of the reigning prince, being obliged to give up even
the coat which he wore. He was introduced to the king’s
twelve wives, who had never before seen a European, and
thought that the white skin had been produced by his
having been bathed in milk by his mother, who had also
artificially pinched up his nose into its unnatural eleva¬
tion. The royal residence was then at Fatteconda; but
when Major Gray visited Bondou, it had been removed to
Boolibani, a small town of 1500 or 1800 inhabitants. It is
surrounded with a strong clay wall; but the streets are
narrow and irregular, and the habitations cannot rank above
huts. The palaces of the king and his sons consist merely
of inclosures about an acre in extent, containing a num¬
ber of cottages, somewhat larger, but not more commo¬
dious, than those of his subjects. Near Boolibani are the
ruins of another town nearly as large, which was entirely
destroyed in a late war with Kaarta ; and Major Gray saw
the bones of the slain lying unburied and spread over its
site.
BONES. See Anatomy.
Bones in Funeral Solemnities. Different usages and
ceremonies relating to the bones of the dead have obtain¬
ed in different ages; as gathering them from the funeral
pile, washing, anointing, and depositing them in urns, and
then into tombs; and translating them, which was not to
be done without the authority of the pontiffs. Among
the ancients, the bones of travellers and soldiers dying in
foreign countries were brought home to be buried ; till, by
an express senatus-consult, made during the Italic war, it
was prohibited, and the bodies of soldiers ordered to be
buried where they died.
The Romans had a peculiar deity, under the denomina¬
tion of Ossilago, to whom the care of the induration and
knitting of the human bones was committed, and who on
that account was an object of worship by all women in a
certain situation.
Fossil or Petrified Bones. See Geology.
BONET, or Bonnet, Theophilus, an eminent physi¬
cian, born at Geneva on the 5th of March 1620. He took
his degree in physic in 1643, after having studied with
distinction in the schools of his own country, and in the
most celebrated foreign universities; and then applied him¬
self to the practice of his profession, in which he acquir¬
ed great reputation. But being seized with deafness, he
found it necessary to retire from business; which gave him
leisure to collect all the observations he had made during
a practice of forty years. But his principal title to dis¬
tinction is rather as a medical writer than a practitioner,
and as haying in some measure created pathological ana-
tomy, which Morgagni afterwards illustrated. His works
are, 1. Mercurius Compitalilius, Geneva, 1682, folio; 2.
Zodiacus Medico-Gallicus, without date; 3. Medicina
Septentrionalis Collatitia, Geneva, 1684 and 1686, 2 vols.
folio; 4. Polyanthes, sive Thesaurus Medico-Fractious,
BON
Geneva, 1690, 1691, 1693, 3 vols. folio; 5. Theodori Tur- Boni
queti de Mayerne Tractatus de Arthritide, Geneva, 1671
1674, 12mo, translated from the French; 6. Jacobi Ro- BoRfi
haultii Tractatus Physicus, Geneva, 1674, 8vo, also a 1
translation; and, 7. Bibliotheque de Medecineetde Chirur-
gie, Geneva, 1670, 4 vols., printed separately, and being a
compilation of surgical observations.
BONFADIO, James, a celebrated Italian writer, was
born about the commencement of the sixteenth century,
at Gazano near Salo, in the diocese of Brescia. He was
secretary to cardinal Merinos, archbishop of Bari, and
after his death to cardinal Ghinucci. He afterwards read
public lectures on Aristotle’s politics, and on rhetoric, and
was appointed professor of philosophy and historiographer
to the republic of Genpa. He applied himself to compose
the annals of that state, and soon completed five books,
which were to have been followred by several others. But
having spoken too freely of some noble families, this created
him enemies, who, havingu'esolved to ruin the historian, ac¬
cused him of an unnatural crime; and, as witnesses were
found to convict him, he was condemned to the flames; but
the sentence appears to have been commuted, as an act of
special grace, into beheading. This was in the year 1550.
Authors have varied in their opinions as to Bonfadio’s al¬
leged guilt of the crime for which he suffered; some af¬
firming that he was arrested and condemned on a false
pretext, and that he died innocent; while others, includ¬
ing Tiraboschi, maintain that the accusation was but too
well founded, and that his addiction to the infamous crime
charged against him was the real cause which led to his
destruction. His works are, 1. Annalium Genuensium ab
anno 1528, Becuperatce Libertatis usque ad annum 1550,
libri quinque, Pavia, 1586, 4to; and, 2. Lettere Famigliari
di Jacopo Bonfadio, con altri suoi Componimenti in prosa
ed in verso, with a life of the author by Mazzuchelli,
Brescia, 1746, 8vo.
BONFINI, Anthony, a Latin historian of the fifteenth
century, was born at Ascoli, in Marches of Ancona, in De¬
cember 1427, and attached himself to the study of history
and the belles lettres. Matthias Corvin, king of Hungary,
having heard of his learning, sent for him, retained him,
and settled upon him a pension. He died in 1202, at the
age of seventy-five. His wrorks are, 1. Rerum Ungarica-
rum decadestres, Basil. 1545, folio; 2. Flavii Philostrati
Lemnii Libri II. de Vitiis Sopistarum, 1516, 4to; 3. Her-
mogenis Libri de Arte Rhetorica et Apthonii Sophistce Pro-
gymnastica, Lyons, 1538 ; 4. In Horatium Flaccum Com-
mentarii, Rome, without date, 4to; and, 5. Symposia'll
Beatricis, Basil. 1572 and 1621, 8vo.
BONFRERE, James, in Latin Bonfrerius, a learned
Jesuit, born at Dinand-sur-Meuse in 1573. He wrote a
commentary on the Pentateuch, and learned notes on the
Onomasticon, or description of the places and towns men¬
tioned in the Scripture. He died at Tournay in 1643,
aged seventy.
BONGARS, James, in Latin Bongarsius, counsellor
and maitre d’hotel to Henri IV., and one of the ablest
critics of his time, was born at Orleans in 1546. He
studied the belles lettres at Strasburg under an anabap¬
tist professor, and law at Bourges under Cujas. He was
for near thirty years employed in the most important ne-
gociations of Henri IV. at the courts of the princes of
Germany, in the capacity, first of resident, and afterwards
of ambassador. Bongars was of the Protestant religion ;
and, happening to be at Rome when Sixtus V. fulminated
his famous bull of excommunication against Henri IV. he
wrote a spirited answer, which he had the boldness to
post up in a conspicuous place, and which was afterwards
published with his name in the Memoires de laLigue. He
died at Paris on the 29th July 1612, at the age of fifty*
^ 3
BON
Bi ace eight. His printed works are, 1. A Collection of the His-
torians of the Crusades, under the title of Gesta Dei per
, ^ Francos, sive Orientalium Expeditionum et Regni Franco-
nm Hierosolym Hard Scriptores varii cooetanei, in unum
editi, Hanau, 1611, folio; 2. Jacobi Bongarsii Epistolee,
Leyden, 1641; 3. ( ollectio Hungaricarum Rerwn Scrip-
torum, Francfort, 1600, folio ; 4. An edition of Justin, with
learned notes; besides notes on Petronius, and various
readings of Paulus Diaconus.
BONIFACE, the name of several eminent men, parti¬
cularly of nine popes. To the first of these, who was
chosen pope in December 418, St Augustin dedicated his
four books in answer to the two epistles of the Pelagians.
Boniface II. was elected pope in October 530, and suc¬
ceeded Felix IV., who had been nominated by a part of
the clergy, the senate, and the people assembled in the
basilica of Constantine, and whose memory he caused to
be condemned. Flis pontificate was distinguished only
for its turbulence. Boniface III. prevailed upon the em¬
peror Phocas to consent that the title of Universal Bishop
should be conferred on no other but the bishop of Rome,
and that the Holy See should have the supremacy over
that of Constantinople. Boniface IV. obtained from the
same emperor, the Pantheon, or temple of all the gods,
built by Agrippa, and converted it int6 a church, which he
consecrated to all the martyrs and the virgin, under the
name of Santa Maria della Rotonda. Boniface V. was
elected pope in December 617, and died in October 625.
Boniface VI. was elected pope in April 896, but died of
the gout fifteen days thereafter. Boniface VII., called
Franconi, has the title of antipope. He was suspected of
having caused Benedict VI. to be strangled in prison in
974; and after the election of Benedict VII. he removed
the treasures of the church to Constantinople. But he
returned on the death of Benedict, and his successor John
XIV. was disposed of in the same way as Benedict VI.
This intruder died in 985. Boniface VIII., elected pope in
1294, canonized St Louis in 1297, and in 1300 appointed
the jubilee to be solemnized every hundred years thereafter.
Boniface IX. was elected pope on the 2d November 1389,
after the death of Urban VI. and during the schism of the
west. He supported Ladislaus of Hungary in his preten¬
sions to the kingdom of Hungary, against Louis of Anjou,
protected by the Avignon pope, Clement VII. Some
writers have praised his chastity; the greater number
have accused him of simony, of cupidity in order to en¬
rich his family, and of exactions for the support of his
government. He died on the 1st October 1404.
Boniface is also the name of a saint, the apostle of
Germany, who, before he took that name, was called Wini-
frid. He was born at Kirton in Devonshire. Boniface
chose to go and preach the gospel among the barbarous
nations of Germany; and although created archbishop of
Mayence, he soon after resigned his office, in order to go
and preach in East Friesland, where he was murdered by
the Pagans on the 5th of June 755. With him perished
Eoban a bishop, three priests, three deacons, four monks,
and forty-eight laics. Boniface, at the time of his death,
was considerably above seventy years of age. The Bol-
landists collected the Acta Eonifaciana, containing an ac¬
count of the miracles of the Saint, in the form of annals;
and a collection of his Letters, in number one hundred and
fifty-two, was published by Serrarius in 1605, 4to. In the
Specilegium of D’Achery may be found the canons which
he promulgated for regulating the conduct of his clergy;
and one of his sermons has been preserved in the Thesau-
rus Anecdotorum Novissimus, tom. iii. part 2, published by
D. Bernard Pez, at Augsburg, 1729.
BONIFAGI, a town in the Austrian kingdom of Vene¬
tian Lombardy, and in the delegation of Verona. It is the
VOL. IV.
BON
769
chief place of a district of the same name, on the Alpon, Bonifacio
containing 3640 inhabitants. \\
BONIFACIO, a town in the island of Corsica, beyond Bonner-
the mountains, near the strait called Dacca di Bonifacio. V ^
It is well fortified, and contains about 3000 inhabitants
Long. 9. 9. 16. E. Lat. 41. 23. 10. N.
BONN, a circle in the Prussian government of Colomie
extending over 75 square miles, or 48,000 acres, including’
besides the city, three villages on the left bank of the
Rhine, with 24,118 inhabitants. It w^as the estate of the
archbishop of Cologne before the sequestration which ac¬
companied the French revolution. The city, which gives
name to the circle, is close to the Rhine, in a most beauti¬
ful country. Some of the public buildings, especially the
palace and the cathedral, are in very good taste. There
is a fine market-place and tolerable good streets. It con¬
tains 1109 houses and 10,565 inhabitants. It has gained
much celebrity since its transfer to Prussia, by the liberal
establishment of a university, to the use of which the
archiepiscopal palace has been appropriated. A library,
apparatus, and botanical garden have been founded, and
endowments fixed for professors, among which are to be
found some of the most celebrated names in Germany.
Long. 9. 38. 40. E. Lat. 50. 24. N.
BONNEE River. This river is formed by the stream
of the Soank, which rises in Hindostan, in the district of
Chuta Nagpoor and the Burkee river, which it joins in
long. 84. 50. E. and lat. 21. 43. N. The united streams
pursue a course of about 110 miles, when they take the
name of the Bonnee river. Its course afterwards is
nearly due east, until it is joined by the Coyle or By-
lurnee river, when they flow together into the bay of Ben¬
gal, ten miles north from point Palnuras. The whole
course from the rise of the Soank may be estimated at 360
miles.
BONNEFONS, or Bonnefonius, John, a Latin poet,
was born at Clermont in Auvergne in 1554. He studied
law under Cujasat Bourges; became an advocate in the
parliament of Paris; was appointed lieutenant-general of
Bar-sur-Seine ; and acquired great reputation by his Pan-
charis and other poems. He died in 1612, in the sixtieth
year of his age. He must not be confounded with John
Bonnefons, his son, another Latin poet, or with Dom Elia
Benedict Bonnefons, a benedictine of the congregation of
St Maur. The most complete edition of his works is that
of Amsterdam, 1767, 12mo, entitled Joannis Bonnefonii,
patris, Arverni Opera Omnia.
BONNER, Edmund, bishop of London, was born at
Hanley in Worcestershire about the end of the fifteenth
or beginning of the sixteenth century, and generally sup¬
posed to be the natural son of one Savage, a priest, who
was the natural son of Sir John Savage of Clifton in the
same county. Strype, however, says he was positively
assured that Bonner was the legitimate offspring of a poor
man, who lived in a cottage long afterwards known by the
name of Bonner’s Place. About the year 1512 he enter¬
ed as a student of Broadgate Flail in Oxford; and in 1519
was admitted as bachelor of the canon and the civil law.
About the same time he took orders, and obtained some
preferment in the diocese of Worcester. In 1525 he was
created doctor of the canon law. Having now acquired
the reputation of a shrewd politician and civilian, he was
soon distinguished by Cardinal Wolsey, who appointed
him commissary for the faculties, and heaped upon him a
variety of church preferments. He possessed at the same
time the livings of Blaydon and Cherry-Burton in York¬
shire, Ripple in Worcestershire, East Dereham in Nor¬
folk, a prebend of St Paul’s, and the archdeaconry of Lei¬
cester. Bonner was with the cardinal at Caw-wood when
he was arrested on a charge of high treason. After the
5 E
770 BON
Bonner, death of that minister, he soon found means to insinuate
himself into the favour of Henry VIII., who made him one
of his chaplains, and employed him in several embassies
abroad, particularly to the pope. In 1532 he was sent to
Rome with Sir Edward Kame, to answer for the king,
whom his holiness had cited to appear in person or by
proxy. In 1533 he was again dispatched to Pope Cle-
ment VII. then at Marseilles, to intimate King Henry’s
appeal to a future general council, from the sentence which
had been pronounced against his divorce. On this occa¬
sion he threatened the pope with so much resolution, that
his holiness talked of having him burnt alive or thrown
into a cauldron of melted lead; mtimations which Bonner
judged it prudent not to contemn, and, accordingly, he
suddenly decamped without the ceremony of taking leave.
His holiness did not foresee that the man whom, in his
anger, he had thus menaced with the flames, was destined
to burn heretics in England, and to operate by fire in sup¬
port of the very faith which, under Henry, he had lent his
aid to overthrow. In 1538, being then ambassador at the
court of France, he was nominated bishop of Hereford;
but, before consecration, he was translated to the see of
London, and enthroned in April 1540. Plenry VIII. died
in 1547, at which time Bonner was ambassador at the
court of the emperor Charles V. During this reign he
was constantly zealous in his opposition to the pope; and,
in compliance with the king, he favoured the Reformation.
Henry VIII. was not a man to be trifled with, and exact¬
ed a rigid compliance with all his whims and caprices ;
but on the accession of young Edward, Bonner refused to
take the oath of supremacy, and was committed to the
Fleet, where he remained until he thought fit to promise
obedience to the laws. After his release he continued to
comply with the Reformation, but with such manifest ne¬
glect and reluctance, that he was tw ice reprimanded by the
privy council, and in 1549 was, after a long trial, commit¬
ted to the Marshalsea, and deprived of his bishopric. The
succeeding reign, however, gave him ample opportunity of
revenge. Mary was scarcely seated on the throne when
Bonner was restored to his bishopric, and soon afterwards
appointed vicegerent and president of the convocation.
From this time he became the chief instrument of perse¬
cuting cruelty, and is said to have condemned no less than
two hundred Protestants to the flames in the space of
three years. Nor was this vindictive and persecuting
priest less remarkable for his impudence than his cruelty.
On the accession of Elizabeth he appeared with the rest
of the bishops, at Highgate, to congratulate her on the
occasion. But having, in the second year of her reign, re¬
fused to take the oath of allegiance and supremacy, he was
again deprived, and committed to the Marshalsea, where
he died in 1569, after a confinement of ten years’ duration.
There cannot be a stronger instance of the comparative
lenity of the Protestant church, than its suffering a man
like this, devoid of mercy or compassion, and who had pro¬
nounced so many cruel and odious sentences, to die a na¬
tural death. The character of Bonner was remarkable for
obstinacy and inflexibility in every thing save principle ;
yet, even in this respect, it exhibits some striking con¬
trasts. In the early part of his career he took care to ac¬
commodate his principles to his convenience and ambition ;
in the latter, after his return to Catholicism, he remained
stedfast in his adherence to the ancient faith, and, Avhen
disgraced, bore his deprivation and imprisonment with
calmness and resignation. He was constitutionally merci¬
less and austere ; fitted by nature for a persecutor of all
opinions adverse to his own; and equally capable of em¬
ploying in favour of Protestantism the same burning zeal
which he displayed against it. But he was a determined
enemy to all laxity of conduct in the ministers of religion,
BON
and took the most energetic measures for reforming the Boi t.
manners of his clergy, over whom he exercised the most ^ j
rigorous superintendence. The pieces ascribed to him
are, 1. Letters to Lord Cromwell; 2. JRespo?isum et Ex-
hortatio in laudem Sacerdotii, 1553; 3. The Thirty-seven
Articles of his Visits; 4. An Exposition of the Symbol,
and of the Seven Sacraments, in thirteen homilies, 1554,
4to ; and some other writings on passing subjects.
BONNET, Charles, an eminent naturalist, was born
at Geneva on the 13th March 1720, of a French family
who had been forced on account of religious principles to
leave their native country. As he was an only son, his
father paid great attention to his education ; and finding
that he made little progress at the public schools, both from
a dislike to the dry study of grammar, and from deafness,
with which he was very early afflicted, employed a domes¬
tic tutor, under whom his progress was rapid and satisfac¬
tory. At the early age of sixteen his attention was so
deeply engaged by the perusal and study of Le Spectacle
de la Nature of Pluche, that it seems to have given a bias
and direction to his future studies. The history and the
habits of the ant-lion, formica leo, particularly attracted
his attention, and led him to make his first observations
on natural history. He discovered the haunts of this cu¬
rious insect, watched and studied its manners and habits,
and added many observations to those of Pluche and Reau¬
mur. Reaumur’s memoir on insects happening to fall ac¬
cidentally in his way, he perused it with great eagerness ;
and this perusal probably decided his taste for natural his¬
tory. To the observations and experiments of that na¬
turalist, Bonnet added many new facts which he had dis¬
covered, the detail of which he communicated to Reau¬
mur ; who was not less surprised than pleased to find so
much sagacity and acuteness of research exhibited in the
investigations of a young man of eighteen.
Bonnet had been destined by his father for the profes¬
sion of the law ; but it was with no small reluctance that
he entered on the studies necessary to qualify himself for
that profession. The bias of his mind leaned too strongly
to natural history, to permit him to occupy his attention
with other pursuits. The study of some of the elementary
books on law was therefore submitted to merely as a task.
In the years 1738 and 1739 he sent to Reaumur many
interesting observations on different species of caterpillars;
and in 1740 he communicated a paper to the Academy
of Sciences respecting the propagation or multiplication
of aphides, or tree-lice, without actual conjunction. This
question had been left unsettled by Reaumur. It wras now
determined by decisive experiments ; and his paper on the
subject obtained for him the honour of being admitted a
corresponding member of the Academy. His experiments
on the generation of these insects were conducted with
such closeness of attention, and such minuteness of re¬
search, as to injure his eyesight to such a degree that he
never afterwards wholly recovered it. In the year 1741
he instituted a set of experiments on the effects that fol¬
low the division of worms; and he found that many species
possessed in some degree the same reproductive power as
the polypus. In the following year his investigations and
experiments were directed to the peculiarities in the mode
of respiration of caterpillars and butterflies; and he prov¬
ed that this function was performed by means of pores, to
which the name of stigmata has been given. It was about
the same time that he made some curious discoveries re¬
specting the tcenia, or tape-worm. In the year 1743, when
he was raised to the rank of doctor of laws, he procured a
ready dispensation from the further prosecution of studies
which had never been agreeable to him, and which being
no longer absolutely necessary, he relinquished for ever.
In consequence of a memoir on insects which he commu-
BON
fl iet. nicated to the Royal Society of London, the same year,
u he was admitted a member of that body. Next year he
published, in one work, his observations on aphides and
worms, under the title of Insectology. To this work he
prefixed a preface, in which he exhibits a philosophical
sketch of his ideas concerning the system of the develop¬
ment of germs, and the scale of organized beings. This
work was in general well received by the public, but by
some of the journals it was taxed with a want of delicacy,
which, it was alleged, appeared in his descriptions of the
mode of propagation of tree-lice.
The constant labours to which Bonnet had subjected
himself in all his inquiries began to produce very serious
consequences to his health. His eyes particularly began
to be affected with severe pains, and his general health
visibly declined. This not only obliged him to lay aside
the use of the microscope, but also to forego for a time all
reading and writing. But like a true philosopher, he bore
his afflictions with patience. He was not idle; for although
he was interdicted from all observation, his mind was fully
occupied in reflection. After some time of relaxation from
his usual pursuits, he was at last restored to tolerable
health ; but he never could employ his eyes w ith the same
freedom as formerly. About the year 1746 he undertook
a course of experiments on the vegetation of plants in
moss and other substances; and in the following year his
researches were directed to the functions of the leaves of
plants, with the view of ascertaining the different action
of the different sides of the leaves. Another question in
vegetation offered itself to his consideration. This was
the ascent of the sap ;—and to determine whether it rose
by the bark or wood, he employed coloured injections.
This investigation, with some observations which he made
on vegetable monsters, was the foundation of one of his
most interesting and original works, entitled “ Inquiries
into the use of the Leaves of Plants,” which was first pub¬
lished at Leyden in 1754, 4to. A supplement was added
to it in the year 1779.
Observation and experiment had been the first passion
of Bonnet; yet these now began to give way to specula¬
tion ; and his inquiries in natural history, in the course of
which he had so much studied the nature and generation
of the lowest part of the scale of beings, led him to con¬
sider the faculties and destination of the highest. Male-
branche and Leibnitz had laid the foundation of his meta¬
physical ideas. He engaged deeply in all the discussions
connected with the history of the human mind ; and the
first fruit of his meditations was a kind of abridgment of
the materials he had collected, under the title of an
“ Essay on Pschylogy,” published in London in 1754, but
without his name, nor did he acknowledge it till nearly
thirty years afterwards. This work contains, in a concise
form, the fundamental principles of his philosophy. It
traces the origin and progress of the human mind, from
the first germ of life to the development of all its facul¬
ties, the mutual dependence of which it points out, as de¬
duced from actual observation. It enters into the diffi¬
cult subject of human liberty, and endeavours to reconcile
it with the divine prescience, and the philosophical prin¬
ciple, that every effect must have an adequate cause.
From the essential properties of the activity of the soul,
and the effects of habit upon it, the whole art of edu¬
cation and government is deduced; and a system of the
former is laid down, materially different from the me¬
thods generally established. The freedom with which
he discussed some of these delicate points, and the fear
of being involved in personal controversy, were the mo¬
tives which induced the author to remain so long con¬
cealed. The work met with some censure, yet its success
was brilliant.
BON 771
The next work of Bonnet was a development of part Bonnet,
of the subject of the preceding, namely, the origin and
progress of the mental faculties. After a labour of five
years on the subject, he produced his “ Analytical Essay
on the Faculties of the Soul,” which was first printed at
Copenhagen in 1760, in quarto, at the expense of the king
of Denmark. In this work, like that of the Abbe Condil¬
lac, he supposes a statue organized like the human body,
which he by degrees animates, and shows how its ideas
would arise from impressions on the organs of sense. The
Analytical Essay was well received by philosophers, though
among some it subjected him to a charge of materialism.
To these he made no reply, but contented himself with
proceeding in those efforts for the service of religion and
morals, to which the best part of his life had been devot¬
ed. His retired and studious habits, together with his
deafness and other bodily infirmities, prevented him from
joining in the assemblies of the young and gay, at the
same time that they rendered domestic comforts more es¬
sential to him. In 1756, he married a lady of the respect¬
able family of De la Rive, and with her he passed thirty-
seven years in that perfect union which results from mutual
tenderness directed by good sense and virtue. The ce¬
lebrated Saussure was the nephew of Madame Bonnet;
and it was no small pleasure to her husband to witness the
early display of genius and knowledge in that extraordi¬
nary young man.
The next work of our author was properly the physical
part of his great system. It appeared at Amsterdam in
1762, under the title of “ Considerations on Organized
Bodies,” in 2 vols. 8vo. Its principal objects were, to give
in an abridged form all the most interesting and well-as¬
certained facts respecting the origin, development, and
reproduction of organized bodies; to refute the different
systems founded upon epigenesis ; and to explain and de¬
fend the system of germs. This publication, though well
received by philosophers in general, was, from some sus¬
picion of its principles, prohibited in France ; but a re¬
monstrance from the author to M. de Malesherbes, then
licenser of the press, caused the interdict to be removed,
after a new examination. His “ Contemplation of Na¬
ture,” which appeared at Amsterdam in 1764 and 1765,
in 2 vols. 8vo, was a work rather meant for popular use, in
which the principal facts relative to the different orders
of created beings are displayed in a manner both instruc¬
tive and entertaining, and set off by the charms of an elo¬
quent style; with a continual reference to final causes,
and proofs of wisdom and benevolence in the Creator. It
has been translated into most of the European languages,
and enriched with notes by several hands, as well as by
the author himself in a new edition.
The concluding work of Bonnet was his Palingenesie
Philosophique, printed at Geneva in 1769 and 1770, in 2
vols. 8vo. In this he treats on the past and future state
of living beings, and supports the idea of the survival of
all animals, and the perfecting of their faculties in a fu¬
ture state. Attached to this work is “ An Inquiry into
the Evidences of the Christian Revelation, and the Doc¬
trines of Christianity,” which, with a treatise “ On the
Existence of God,” was published separately at Geneva in
1770 and 1771. It was likewise translated into German,
and dedicated by the translator to a celebrated Jew, with
a challenge to him either to refute it or to acknowledge
his conviction of the truth. Bonnet, who had an invin¬
cible repugnance for controversy, no sooner heard of this
step than he wrote to the Jew, assuring him that he had
no share in it; and the two philosophers mutually agreed
to forbear any discussion of a topic in regard to which
their opinions were totally different, and likely never to
coincide. The temper of Bonnet was, indeed, the reverse
772
BON
BON
Bonnet, of that which disposes to contention ; and tranquillity was
the great object of his life. He readily corrected his own
errors; and never but once entei’ed into a defence of him¬
self. This was on occasion of a charge of plagiarism
brought against him as having borrowed from Leibnitz
his hypothesis on the resurrection. He had, in the earlier
part of life, made an ainonymous attack, in the Mercure de
France, upon Rousseau’s discourse on the origin of inequa¬
lity among men, to which that writer made a reply; but
the controversy proceeded no further.
After having in some measure relinquished speculative
philosophy, he resumed his attention to natural history,
and, in 1773, published, in Rozier’s Journal, a memoir on
the method of preserving insects and fishes in cabinets. In
1774 he communicated to the same journal a memoir on
the loves of plants, originating in the discovery of a kind
of cleft or mouth in the pistil of a lily. Some experiments
on the reproduction of the heads of snails, and of the limbs
and organs of the water salamander, furnished matter for
other memoirs. He also made observations on the Suri¬
nam toad, on bees, on the blue colour acquired by mush¬
rooms from exposure to the air, and on various other sub¬
jects in natural history, which agreeably and usefully
occupied his leisure. His reputation was now fully esta¬
blished. There was scarcely an eminent learned society
in Europe which did not associate him as a member; and
these honours were crowned in 1783 by his election into
the small and very select number of foreign associates of
the Academy of Sciences at Paris. His literary correspon¬
dents were numerous. Amongst these were the distinguish¬
ed names of Reaumur, Du Hamel, De Geer, Haller, Van
Swieten, Spallanzani, andMerian. Although attached by
inclination to scientific pursuits in retirement, he did not
on that account enth’ely withdraw from public duties. He
entered into the great council of the republic in 1752, and
kept his seat in it till 1768 ; having frequently distinguish¬
ed himself by the manly eloquence with which he sup¬
ported wise and moderate measures, and his constant zeal
in the cause of morals and religion, on which he thought
the prosperity of the state essentially founded. The last
twenty-five years of his life he passed entirely in the
country, in a simple and uniform mode of life, happy in an
easy competence, and in a small circle of friends. It ap¬
pears that he was for some time engaged in the educa¬
tion of youth, an employment for which he was peculiar¬
ly fitted, and in which he secured the warmest attach¬
ment on the part of his pupils. The publication of his
works, corrected and revised, in a general collection, oc¬
cupied nearly eight years of his life, which greatly injur¬
ed his health, from the intense application which he be¬
stowed upon it. This appeared at Neufchatel in 1797, in
8 vols. 4to, and 18 vols. 8vo; and, besides the works already
mentioned, it contains a number of smaller pieces, both in
natural history and metaphysics. They are all written in
French. It was not till about 1788 that his constitution,
feeble as it was, visibly gave way. The symptoms of a
dropsy in the chest then began to make their appearance ;
and these, with some intervals, gradually increased upon
him, occasioning a variety of suffering, which he bore with
exemplary patience and serenity. He died on the 20th May
1793, at the age of seventy-three. Public honours were
I’endered to his remains by his fellow-citizens, and his
funeral oration was pronounced by his learned friend and
kinsman M. de Saussure.
BONNE f, in a general sense, denotes a cover for the
head, in common use before the introduction of hats.
Bonnet, in Fortification, a small work consisting of two
faces, having only a parapet with two rows of palisades, at
about ten or twelve feet distance. It is generally raised
before the salient angle of the counterscarp, and has a
communication with the covered way, by a trench cut Eon
through the glacis, and palisades on each side. ||
Bonnet d Pretre, or Priest's Bonnet, in Fortification, is hono.
an out-work, having at the head three salient and two J
rentrant angles. It differs from the double tenaille only
in this, that its sides, instead of being parallel, are like the
queue d'aronde, or swallow’s tail, that is, narrowing or
converging at the gorge, and opening at the head.
Bonnet, in sea-language, denotes an addition to a sail.
BONNEVAL, Claude Alexander, Count de, known
in the latter part of his life by the name of AchmetPasha,
descended from an illustrious family of Limousin, wTas
born on the 14th July 1675, entered himself at the age
of sixteen in the service of the crown, and married the
daughter of Marshal de Biron. He distinguished him¬
self at the combats of Dieppe, La Hogue, and Cadiz,
where Marshal de Tourville commanded the French fleet;
and he made the campaign of Flanders in 1690. But he
soon after left the French army, and, entering into the
imperial service under Prince Eugene, signalized himself
greatly on several occasions, particularly at the battle of
Peterwaradin, where the victory was due in a great
measure to his intrepidity, and to the resistance which his
regiment opposed to a numerous corps of Janissaries. The
intrigues of the Marquis de Prie, however, ruined his
credit at the court of Vienna, and caused him to be banish¬
ed the empire. He then offered his services to the repub¬
lic of Venice and to Russia; and these being declined in
both instances, his next tender was to the Grand Signior,
wrho gladly received him. It wms stipulated that he
should have a body of 30,000 men at his disposal; that a
government should be conferred on him, with the rank
of pasha of three tails, and a salary of 10,000 aspers a-
day; and that, in the event of war, he should be com¬
mander-in-chief. The first expedition he engaged in after
his arrival at Constantinople, wras to quell an insurrection
in Arabia Petraea, which he happily effected; and on his
return he had large offers made him by Kouli Khan, but he
did not choose to accept them. Some time after, he com¬
manded the Turkish army against the emperor, over whose
forces he gained a victory on the banks of the Danube.
But success does not always protect a commander from dis¬
grace; forBonneval, notwithstanding his services, was first
imprisoned, and then banished to the island of Chio. The
sultan, however, continued his friend; and, the evening
before his departure, made him pasha of the Archipelago,
which, with his former appointment of beglierbey of Ara¬
bia, rendered him one of the most powerful persons in the
Ottoman empire. In this island he found a retirement
quite agreeable to his wishes, but did not long enjoy it,
being sent for back, and made topidgee or master of the
ordnance, a post of great honour and profit. He died in
1747, at the age of seventy-four. Some doubts have been
expressed as to the authenticity of the Memoires du Comte
de Bonneval, which bear to be the production of this singu¬
lar man, and are unquestionably in many respects highly
interesting. The best edition is that of London (Lausanne)
1740-55, in 5 vols. 12mo.
BONONCINI, Giovanni Maria, of Modena, an emi¬
nent musical composer, who for some time divided the
opinions of the conoscenti in this kingdom, respecting his
merits as compared with Handel. An Italian opera, en¬
titled Pharnaces, has the name of Bononcini prefixed to it;
but whether the words, or only the music, be his composi¬
tion, is uncertain. Bononcini is, however, the undisputed
author of a w ork entitled II Musico Pratico, or the Prac¬
tical Musician, which he published in 1673, and dedicated
to the emperor Leopold.
BONONIA, in Ancient Geography, a town of Gallia
Belgica, supposed to be the Portus Iccius of Caesar, and
BON
ionia the Gcssovictcuffi of IMels, cincl to have had three different
names. In Peutinger’s map it is called Gessoriacum Bo-
rny‘ , nonia. This Bononia corresponds to the modern Bouloane
Long. 1. 30. E. Lat. 50. 40. N. '
Bononia, a town of Italy, in Gallia Cispadana, and pro-
bably so called by the Gauls, as there was a Bononia in
Gallia Belgica. Its ancient name, when in the hands of
the Tuscans, whom the Gauls expelled, was Falsina. In
the 563d year of the city the Romans led thither a colony,
which, about the beginning of the Actian war, was in¬
creased by Augustus. It is the Colonia Bononiensis of
Tacitus, and now Bologna.
Bononia was also the name of a town in Pannonia In¬
ferior, between IVIeursa to the north-west and Taunnum
to the east ^ and there was another Bononia in JVIcesia
Superior, on the Danube, now Bodon in Bulgaria.
BONVINCINO, Alessandro, called Le Moretto,
an historical and portrait painter, was born at Rovate in
1514. He was originally a disciple of Titian, under whose
direction he studied diligently for some years; but hav¬
ing accidentally seen the designs of Raphael, he gave
himself up entirely to the study of those masterpieces of
art and genius, and soon became an excellent painter.
His works were eagerly bought up, being admired for the
tenderness of the penciling, the correctness and expres¬
sion of the figures, the neatness of the finishing, and the
rich variety of his draperies. He was also excellent in
portrait, and by many w^as placed in competition even
with Titian himself. He died in 1564.
BONY, a kingdom in the island of Celebes, extending
from the river Chinrana to the river Salenico, a length of
about twenty leagues, along the western shore of the bay
or gulf of Bony, which indents the northern shore of the
island of Celebes to the depth of nearly 200 miles. This
kingdom is of very ancient origin, and was formerly power¬
ful and independent. On the banks of the Chinrana are
numerous towns. The country produces gold, rice, sago,
cassia, tortoise-shell, pearls, &c. in which a consider¬
able trade is carried on. In advancing farther into the
gulf there are several other well-inhabited towns. Near
the river Loo the inhabitants are skilful in boat-building;
and farther on they have gold, abundance of sago, and also
cassia and seed pearl. At the bottom of the bay the sago
tree abounds; and there are here spots of foul ground
on which they fish for the sea-slug or biche de mer, which
they carry to Macassar, and sell to the Chinese who come
thither in their junks to trade.
This, according to the accounts of travellers, is the ori¬
ginal country of the Buggis, or Buggesses, who were for¬
merly a very powerful people, and are still remarkably in¬
genious, excelling in all kinds of curious filagree work in
gold and silver; in weaving the striped and checked cot¬
ton cloths which are worn in all the Malay islands; in
making matchlocks, firelocks, and all kinds of arms and ac¬
coutrements; and in building large prows and other vessels.
This nation is placed at the head of all the eastern na¬
tions for courage, fidelity, and fair dealing in commerce.
Their language is reckoned the root of all the various
dialects and tongues which have overspread the Asiatic
Archipelago. They became known to Europeans only
when their empire began to decline.
The sovereigns of Bony are descended from an ancient
lineage of kings, whose origin is unknown, and is believed
by the Buggis to have been from heaven. In the begin¬
ning of the seventeenth century they were compelled to
adopt the Mahommedan religion by the Macassars, whose
enemies they were also bound to adopt. The country
continued to be ruled by its native sovereigns, and was
frequently the scene of bloodshed and civil war, until it
was subdued by the Dutch early in the eighteenth cen-
bon
tury. On the decline of the Dutch power in the East, the
state of Bony again attained its independence, which it
still retains.
BONZES, Indian priests. See Hindostan.
BOODROOM, or Baudrun, a small town of Asia
Minor, in Caramania, situated at the bottom of a deep
bay- It is supposed to occupy the site of the ancient
Hahcarniissus, and the vicinity abounds with many relics
of antiquity. The houses are irregularly built along the
shore, and are interspersed, as is usual in Asiatic cities,
with gardens, burying grounds, and cultivated fields; and
throughout the streets, and in different parts of the bazar,
are scattered fragments of columns and mutilated sculp¬
tures. The castle stands on a broad square rock, which
projects into the bay, and has a small harbour on the
western side, which, though it has fallen into decay, is
still convenient and safe, and is frequented by Turkish
ciuisers. This castle is adorned with the most exquisite
sculptures in different parts of the walls, and is said to
have been built by the knights of Rhodes in 1402. All
access to the interior is forbidden to Europeans; but, ac¬
cording to the information obtained, the decorations with¬
in aie fully equal to those on the outside. There are still
some tiaces of the ancient walls, and above the town are
the remains of a theatre, about 280 feet in diameter, which
appears to have had thirty-six rows of marble seats. Near
the harbour is the palace, with some small mosques. The
inhabitants consist chiefly of Greeks and Turks, who dis¬
play the most violent antipathy to each other. Lons. 27.
20. E. Lat. 37. N. 8
BOOGEBOOGE, a town of Hindostan, in the province
of Cutch, situated about ten miles inland from the Gulf
of Cutch, and possessed by independent chiefs. The port
of this district, which is named Muddi, stands at the
mouth of a small river, about twenty miles below Booge-
booge, and is a place of considerable trade. Lons. 69.
45. E. Lat. 23. 15. N.
BOOK, the general name of almost every literary com¬
position, but, in a more limited sense, applied only to such
compositions as are large enough to make a volume.
Several sorts of materials were formerly used in making
books. Plates of lead and copper, the bark of trees, bricks,
stone, and wood, were the substances anciently employed
to engrave such things upon as men were willing to have
transmitted to posterity. Josephus speaks of two columns,
the one of stone and the other of brick, on which the children
of Seth wrote their inventions and astronomical discoveries;
and Porphyry mentions some pillars preserved in Crete, on
which the ceremonies observed by the Corybantes in their
sacrifices were recorded. Hesiod’s works were originally
written upon tablets of lead, and deposited in the temple
of the Muses, in Bceotia; the ten commandments deliver¬
ed to Moses were written upon stone ; and the laws of So¬
lon were inscribed upon wooden planks. Tables of wood,
box, and ivory, were common among the ancients; but
when of wood, they were latterly covered with wax, and
the letters traced in the soft matter of the coating by
means of a pointed style, so that writing in this fashion
might be exactly executed, and as easily obliterated. The
leaves of the palm-tree w'ere afterwards used instead of
wooden planks; and also the finest and thinnest part of
the bark of such trees as the lime, the ash, the maple,
and the elm ; whence comes the word liber, which literally
signifies the inner bark of a tree. And as these barks
were rolled up, in order to be removed with greater ease,
the rolls were called volumen, a volume; a name after¬
wards given to the like rolls of paper or parchment.
Thus we find books were first written on stones, as the
decalogue of Moses ; then on the parts of plants, as leaves,
chiefly of the palm-tree, the rind and barks, especially of
774 BOO BOO
Book, the tilia, or phillyrea, and the Egyptian papyrus. By de-
grees wax came to be used; then leather, especially the
skins of goats and sheep, of which at length parchment
was prepared; then lead was employed; then linen, silk,
and horn ; and lastly paper itself.
The first books were in the form of blocks and tablets;
but when flexible matter came into use it was found more
convenient to make books in the form of rolls, which were
composed of several sheets fastened to each other, and
rolled upon a stick, or umbilicus; the whole forming a
kind of column or cylinder, which was managed by the
umbilicus as a handle. The outside of the volume was
called/tyms, and the ends of the umbilicus cornua ; which
were usually carved, and adorned with silver, ivory, or
even gold and precious stones. The title, o'uXXaSog, was
struck on the outside; and the whole volume, when extend¬
ed, might be about a yard or more in width, and fifty in
length. The form which obtains among us is the square,
composed of separate leaves; and it was also known,
though little used, by the ancients.
To the form of books belongs also the internal economy,
embracing the order and arrangement of points and letters
into lines and pages, with margins and other accessories.
This has undergone many varieties. At first the letters
were divided only into lines; then into separate words;
and these, by degrees, were noted with accents, and dis¬
tributed, by points and stops, into periods, paragraphs,
chapters, and other divisions. In some countries, as
among the orientals, the direction of the lines was from
right to left; in others, as among the northern and west¬
ern nations, from left to right; while the early Greeks
followed both directions, writing alternately from right to
left and from left to right, which was called boustrophedon,
from its analogy to the path of oxen in ploughing. In
most countries the lines run from one side to the other;
in some, particularly among the Chinese, their direction is
from top to bottom. The Egyptian monumental writing,
or hieroglyphics, is arranged in all these directions, and
in several peculiar to itself. Sometimes we find it pro¬
ceeding from right to left; sometimes from left to right;
very frequently from top to bottom, in regular parallel
columns ; in a few instances, and but a few, boustrophedon ;
occasionally arranged in groups or clusters, as in ana¬
glyphs ; and, where the space was irregular, as on the
sides of obelisks, disposed in an arbitrary manner, varying
according to the circumstances. But this total want of
system, or rather this mode of arranging the characters
upon all systems and in all ways, can never be productive
of any difficulty or ambiguity, as the disposition and true
sequence of the writing is in every case clearly and almost
intuitively indicated by the direction given to the princi¬
pal figures, more especially to those which represent ani¬
mals, or the human form. With regard to the other modes
of writing practised by the ancient Egyptians, that called
the hieratic follows to a certain extent the varieties of the
hieroglyphic; but the demotic, enchorial, or civil form, is
generally disposed from right to left, in the ordinary man¬
ner of oriental writing.
Of the scarcity and value of books during the seventh
and subsequent centuries, the following curious account
is given by Mr Warton :—
“ Towards the close of the seventh century,” says this
writer, “ even in the papal library at Rome, the number
of books was so inconsiderable, that Pope Saint Martin
requested Sanctamund, bishop of Maestricht, if possible,
to supply this defect from the remotest parts of Germany.
In the year 855 Lupus, abbot of Ferrieres, in France, sent
two of his monks to Pope Benedict III. to beg a copy of
Cicero de Oratore, and Quintilian’s Institutes, and some
other books: ‘ for,’ says the abbot, ‘ although we have
part of these books, yet there is no whole or complete Bool
copy of them in all France.’ Albert, abbot of Gemblours,
who with incredible labour and immense expense had
collected a hundred volumes on theological, and fifty on
profane subjects, imagined he had formed a splendid li¬
brary. About the year 790 Charlemagne granted an un¬
limited right of hunting to the abbot and monks of Sithin,
for making their gloves and girdles of the skins of the
deer they killed, and covers for their books. We may
imagine that these religious were more fond of hunting
than reading. It is certain that they were obliged to
hunt before they could read; and at least it is probable
that, under these circumstances, and of such materials,
they did not manufacture many volumes. At the begin¬
ning of the tenth century books were so scarce in Spain,
that one and the same copy of the bible, Saint Jerome’s
Epistles, and some volumes of ecclesiastical offices and
martyrologies, often served several different monasteries.
Among the constitutions given to the monks of England
by Archbishop Lanfranc, in the year 1072, the following
injunction occurs. At the beginning of Lent the librarian
is ordered to deliver a book to each of the religious: a
whole year was allowed for the perusal of this book, and
at the returning Lent those monks who had neglected to
read the books they had respectively received are com¬
manded to prostrate themselves before the abbot, and to
supplicate his indulgence. This regulation was partly oc¬
casioned by the low state of literature which Lanfranc
found in the English monasteries. But at the same time
it was a matter of necessity, and is in a great measure to
be referred to the scarcity of copies of useful and suitable
authors. In an inventory of the goods of John de Pon-
tissara, bishop of Winchester, contained in his capital pa¬
lace of Wulvesey, all the books which appear are nothing
more than Septendecim species librorum de diversis scientiis.
This was in the year 1294. The same prelate, in the
year 1299, borrows of his cathedral convent of St Swithin
at Winchester, Bibliam bene glossatam ; that is, the bible
with marginal annotations, in two large folio volumes; but
gives a bond for due return of the loan, drawn up with
great solemnity. This bible had been bequeathed to the
convent the same year by Pontissara’s predecessor, Bi¬
shop Nicholas de Ely; and in consideration of so impor¬
tant a bequest, that is, pro bona Biblia died episcopi bene
glossata, and one hundred merks in money, the monks
founded a daily mass for the soul of the donor. When a
single book was bequeathed to a friend or relation, it was
seldom without many restrictions and stipulations. If any
person gave a book to a religious house, he believed that
so valuable a donation merited eternal salvation; and
he offered it on the altar with great ceremony. The
most formidable anathemas were peremptorily denounced
against those who should dare to alienate a book present¬
ed to the cloister or library of a religious house. The
prior and convent of Rochester declare that they will
every year pronounce the irrevocable sentence of damna¬
tion on him who shall purloin or conceal a Latin transla¬
tion of Aristotle’s Physics, or even obliterate the title.
Sometimes a book was given to a monastery on condition
that the donor should have the use of it during his life;
and sometimes to a private person, with the reservation
that he who receives it should pray for the soul of his
benefactor. The gift of a book to Lincoln Cathedral by
Bishop Repingdon, in the year 1422, occurs in this form,
and under these curious circumstances. The memorial
is written in Latin with the bishop’s own hand, which I
will give in English, at the beginning of Peter’s Breviary
of the Bible. ‘ I Philip of Repyndon, late bishop of Lin¬
coln, give this book, called Peter de Areolis, to the new
library to be built within the church of Lincoln; reserr-
BOO
iok ing the use and possession of it to Ilichard Trysely, clerk,
canon, and prebendary, of Miltoun, in fee, and to the
J^' term of his life; and afterwards to be given up and re-
^ stored to the said library, or the keepers of the same, for
the time being, faithfully, and without delay. Written
with my own hand, a. d. 1422.’ When a book was bought,
the affair was of so much importance, that it was custo¬
mary to assemble persons of consequence and character,
and to make a formal record that they were present on
this occasion. Among the royal manuscripts in the book
of the Sentences of Peter Lombard, an archdeacon of
Lincoln has left this entry: ‘ This book of the Sentences
belongs to master Robert archdeacon of Lincoln, which
he bought of Geoffrey the chaplain, brother of Henry
vicar of Northelkington, in the presence of master Robert
de Lee, master John of Lirling, Richard of Luda clerk,
Richard the almoner, the said Henry the vicar, and his
clerk, and others; and the said archdeacon gave the said
book to God and St Oswald, and to Peter abbot of Bar¬
ton, and the convent of Barden.’ The disputed property
of a book often occasioned the most violent altercations.
Many claims appear to have been made to a manuscript
of Matthew Paris, belonging to the last-mentioned library ;
in which John Russel, bishop of Lincoln, thus condi¬
tionally defends or explains his right of possession. ‘ If
this book can be proved to be or to have been the pro¬
perty of the exempt monastery of St Alban, in the diocese
of Lincoln, I declare this to be my mind, that in that case
I use it at present as a loan under favour of those monks
who belong to the said monastery. Otherwise, according
to the condition under which this book came into my pos¬
session, I will that it shall belong to the college of the
blessed Winchester Mary at Oxford, of the foundation of
William Wykham. Written with my own hand at Buck-
dane, 1st Jan. a. d. 1488. Jo. Lincoln. Whoever shall
obliterate or destroy this writing, let him be anathema.’
About the year 1225, Roger de Insula, dean of York,
gave several Latin bibles to the university of Oxford, with
a condition that the students who perused them should
deposit a cautionary pledge. The library of that univer¬
sity, before the year 1300, consisted only of a few tracts,
chained or kept in chests in the choir of St Mary’s church.
In the year 1327 the scholars and citizens of Oxford as¬
saulted and entirely pillaged the opulent Benedictine ab¬
bey of the neighbouring town of Abingdon. Among the
books they found there were one hundred psalters, as
many grayles, and forty missals, which undoubtedly be¬
longed to the choir of the church ; but besides these there
were only twenty-two codices, which I interpret books on
common subjects. And although the invention of paper
at the close of the eleventh century contributed to multi¬
ply manuscripts, and consequently to facilitate knowledge,
yet, even so late as the reign of our Henry VI. I have dis¬
covered the following remarkable instance of the inconve¬
niences and impediments to study, which must have been
produced by a scarcity of books. It is in the statutes of
St Mary’s College at Oxford, founded as a seminary to
Oseney Abbey in the year 1446: ‘ Let no scholar occupy
BOO
//»
a book in the library above one hour, or two hours at Book
most,, so that others be hindered from the use of the II
same.’ The famous library established in the university :Bo<?k‘
of Oxford by that munificent patron of literature Hum-
phrey duke of Gloucester, contained only 600 volumes.
About the commencement of the fourteenth century there
were only four classics in the royal library of Paris. These
were one copy of Cicero, Ovid, Lucan, and Boethius.
The rest were chiefly books of devotion, which included
but few of the fathers; many treatises of astrology, geo-
mancy, chiromancy, and medicine, originally written in
Arabic, and translated into Latin or French; pandects,
chronicles, and romances. This collection was principally
made by Charles V., who began his reign in 1365. This
monarch was passionately fond of reading; and it wras the
fashion to send him presents of books from every part of
the kingdom of France. These he ordered to be elegant¬
ly transcribed and richly illuminated; and he placed them
in a tower of the Louvre, from thence called La Tour de
la Libraire. The whole consisted of 900 volumes. They
were deposited in three chambers, which on this occa¬
sion were wainscotted with Irish oak, and ceiled with cy¬
press curiously carved. The windows were of painted
glass, fenced with iron bars and copper wire. The Eng¬
lish became masters of Paris in the year 1425, on which
event the duke of Bedford, regent of France, sent the
whole library, then consisting of only 853 volumes, and
valued at 2223 livres, into England, where perhaps they
became the ground-work of Duke Humphrey’s library
just mentioned. Even so late as the year 1471, when
Louis XL of France borrowed the works of the Arabian
physician Rhasis from the faculty of medicine at Paris, he
not only deposited, by way of pledge, a quantity of valu¬
able plate, but was obliged to procure a nobleman to join
with him as surety in a deed, by which he bound himself
to return it under a considerable forfeiture. Of the exces¬
sive prices of books in the middle ages there are numerous
and curious proofs. I will mention a few only. In the
year 1174 Walter, prior of St Swithin’s at Winchester, af¬
terwards elected abbot of Westminster, a writer in Latin
of the lives of the bishops who were his patrons, purchased
of the monks of Dorchester in Oxfordshire, Bede’s PIo-
milies and St Austin’s Psalter, for twelve measures of
barley, and a pall, on which wras embroidered in silver the
history of St Birinus converting a Saxon king. Among
the royal manuscripts in the British Museum there is
Comestor’s Scholastic History in French, wdiich, as it is
recorded in a blank page at the beginning, was taken from
the king of France at the battle of Poictiers; and being
purchased by William Montague, earl of Salisbury, for 100
marcs, was ordered to be sold by the last will of his
Countess Elizabeth for forty livres. About the year 1400
a copy of John of Meun’s Roman de la Roze, was sold at
Paris for forty crowns, or L.33. 6s. 6d.” (Warton’s His¬
tory of English Poetry, vol. i. For further information re¬
garding books, see Bibliography.
Book-binding, the art of gathering together and sew¬
ing the sheets of a book, and covering it.
BOOK-KEEPING.
Book-keeping is the art of keeping books of account, of Venice, Genoa, Pisa, and other trading towns in Mo-
whether in public offices, manufacturing establishments, dern Italy, that book-keeping was first reduced to a sys-
or mercantile counting-houses; but the name is generally tem, and that the remarkable refinement of double entry
applied to the books of merchants, on account of the com- was adopted. This, like the discoveries of the Italians
plexity of their transactions, and the care consequently in manufactures, the fine arts, navigation, and commerce,
required to prevent obscurity or confusion. It was ac- was owing, not, as some imagine, to any peculiarity of dis-
cordingly among merchants, and in particular among those position, or power of invention, inherent in that people, but
776 BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Book- to their country being the part of Europe in which, in
keeping.^ modem times, town-population first became considerable,
and men derived advantage from living together in large
communities. It is in populous towns that employment is
divided and subdivided; that discoveries and inventions
take place; and that the education of youth exchanges
its antiquated and scholastic form for one of direct utility,
adapted to the progress and the wants of the existing
generation.
The first printed work on book-keeping was the pro¬
duction of an Italian teacher, who, without knowing much
of trade by his own experience, observed the manner in
which the intelligent merchants of his country kept their
accounts. It was published as early as 1495, and was fol¬
lowed in the succeeding century by several works on book¬
keeping in French, composed with evident care and soli¬
citude to explain the art, but affording by their complexity
a remarkable contrast to the short and clear system after¬
wards adopted by merchants. English publications on
book-keeping came forth somewhat later, but all resembled
the foreign treatises in being the composition, not of mer¬
chants, but of teachers and accountants. In 1652 Collins,
a well-known London accountant, published a long work en¬
titled An Introduction to Merchants Accounts, which, like
the work of one of his contemporaries on a very different to¬
pic (Rich On Short Hand), continued during a century the
best, or, to speak more correctly, the least imperfect pub¬
lication on the subject of which it treated. About a hun¬
dred years later, Mair, a well-known writer of books on
education, published his Book-Keeping Modernized, a work
containing a correct statement of the principles of double
entry, but in other respects much less clear and concise
than it might have been had the author adopted the me¬
thod of our principal merchants, who had now greatly
simplified their plan of keeping accounts.
A number of lesser publications on book-keeping ap¬
peared in succeeding years, each possessing, in the view
of its author, a superior claim to public favour; but all, or
almost all, were composed by teachers and accountants.
At last, in 1789, appeared the work of a practical merchant,
under the title of A Complete System of Book-Keeping, by
Benjamin Booth, London, 4to. Mr Booth had been long in
business, first at New York, and afterwards in London, hav¬
ing at one time managed extensive transactions, and at
another kept complete sets of books. “ What I now offer to
the public,” he observes in his introduction, “ has long ap¬
peared to be much wanted among our traders. Many are
the bankruptcies which happen in trade from irregular
accounts only : persons are employed as book-keepers who
have got little more than the theory of their art from
some obsolete treatise. The desideratum is a system of
book-keeping drawn up with sufficient ability and expe¬
rience, that might be considered as a standard, and re¬
ceived into every counting-house as a decisive authority.
How surprising that, in a commercial country like this,
there should not be one treatise which, when applied to a
large scale of business, can be reduced to practice. Those
I have seen appear generally to have been written by per¬
sons who never had an opportunity of bringing their theo¬
ries to the test of experience. On a large scale of busi¬
ness it is almost impossible to prevent the books from
getting behind hand when every transaction is entered
singly by itself. The system I have laid down possesses
the facility of single entry, with the advantages of the
double. All extraneous matter is lopt off from the jour¬
nal, and the ledger is prevented from swelling to ^m enor¬
mous size.”
The favourable expectation excited by Mr Booth’s ex¬
perience in business was fully confirmed by his book,
which contained a great deal of information in short com¬
pass, unembarrassed either by minute detail or fanciful Hot
theory. The plan which he recommended and exempli- keep,
fied was the Italian method of double entry, in conformity ;
with the practice of the first merchants in this country
and the Continent, for more than a century. Practical
men could no longer complain of the non-existence of a
correct summary of the principles and practice of book¬
keeping ; and the Italian method seemed likely to be as
firmly fixed in the admiration of cur young merchants, as
it had long been in that of their predecessors, when its
title to clearness and accuracy was strongly called in ques¬
tion by a writer at that time unknown to the mercantile
public.
Mr Edward Thomas Jones, educated in Bristol to the
business of accountant, had occasion, like Mr Booth, to
see a series of perplexities and losses arising from books
being badly kept, namely, disputed accounts, actions at law,
and occasionally even bankruptcies. In the case of many
merchants the books submitted to him had remained for
years unbalanced; in others the balancing had been in¬
correct, and deception had been practised either on a part¬
ner or the creditors. Such irregularities, ascribed by Mr
Booth wholly to the misconduct of book-keepers, is charged
by Mr Jones on the system itself, which (the Italian me¬
thod) he does not scruple to describe as “ insufficient to
prevent or detect error, rendering the process of balancing
very difficult, and not necessarily correct when the ba¬
lance is completed.” To find a safeguard against such
errors, to devise a method by which accuracy in book¬
keeping might be insured, and the perplexity in balancing
removed, was, said Mr Jones, a work of great time and
difficulty. He began to give his plan to the public in
1796, and improved on it in the succeeding years. For a
time he was indefatigable in bringing it, both by explana¬
tory statements and personal application, under the no¬
tice of merchants, the result of which was a very long list
of subscribers to his first work, and the receipt of what
authors so seldom either obtain or acknowledge, a fair re¬
muneration for his labour. This, however, was accompa¬
nied by a good deal of jealousy and opposition on the part of
rival accountants, and Mr Jones was induced to do what
is often done by ardent, inventive, but impatient minds,
namely, turn aside from his professional employment, and
give a very different direction to his labours. This change
of occupation continued during many years, in which the
circulation and adoption of his system of book-keeping by
merchants was in a great measure suspended. Taught,
however, at last, that the obstacles to success in one line
of business were as great as, or greater than in the other, il
revint sur son erreur, resumed business as an accountant,
and fixed his thoughts anew on the means of improving
his system of book-keeping. He published on this sub¬
ject in 1821, but in a much more extended form so lately
as last year (1831). The latter work is in 4to., and bears
the title of The Science of Book-Keeping Exemplified.
It treats first of single entry, and contains formulas evi¬
dently superior to most of those which are now in use by
the persons who are contented to use this primitive me¬
thod. Next comes the more difficult department of double
entry, exhibiting Mr Jones’ method in contrast with the
Italian system, and claiming for it a decided superiority
in clearness and accuracy. Of this we shall treat more
fully in the subsequent part of the present article, after ex¬
plaining to our readers the nature of the system in ques¬
tion. The other part of Mr Jones’ volume contains in¬
structions to bankers, manufacturers, public accountants,
and retailers, in regard to the mode of keeping their re¬
spective accounts, all appropriate and useful to a degree
which leaves very little to be complained of except that the
volume should be so high priced (L.4. 4s.); an objection
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
jc- which might be easily lessened by the author dividing the
jr# work, and selling the single entry part separate from that
of the double entry.
In the earlier stages of commerce, such as the fifteenth
and sixteenth centuries were for the north of Italy, and
the seventeenth for England, the transactions of mer¬
chants, though varied in their nature, were on a small
scale as regarded any particular department. The same
individual did business in a number of articles, but in
none to an extent to require separate books of account.
Hence the practice of recording all transactions, whether
purchases, sales, receipts, or payments, in a diary, which,
from the rough manner in which it was kept, was com¬
monly called a waste-book. The practice in those days
was for a merchant or his chief clerk, as soon as any trans¬
action was made or agreed on, to insert a memorandum
of it in this book, minuting the particulars correctly, but
taking little trouble as to the form of the entry: for that
they relied on the book-keeper, who was not then a part¬
ner, or even clerk in the house, but generally gave his aid
by intervals in different counting-houses, passing one or
two days in the week at each, and bringing the rude en¬
tries in their waste-books into regular form in the jour¬
nal. At present, and for a great length of time, each
mercantile house has its own book-keeper; the art being
simplified so as to be within the attainment of most clerks
of ability, instead of being, as in remote times, a mystery
to all except men of long standing and more than usual
instruction. But in process of time, as mercantile con¬
cerns have acquired extension, the art of book-keeping has
been simplified, because particular departments of business
have required separate books. Thus money receipts and
payments, instead of being mixed, in the waste-book, with
the amount of invoices, account sales, and other entries
quite different in their nature, are all registered in the
cash-book, or book for that special purpose. The same
principle of division holds in regard to bills; also as to
invoices, account sales, and, in short, every department
of business.
We shall now give a practical illustration of book-keep-
ing, by exhibiting the course followed by a mercantile
establishment. Let the example to be given be a London
house under the supposed firm of Baring, Hall, & Co.,
established during several years, and engaged in the West
India and North American trade. Their journal ought to
contain, at the beginning of each year, a summary of the
monies owing by and to them; in other words, of their
debts and assets, in the following form.
777
Book¬
keeping.
Folio of
Ledger.
3
4
5
8
7
62
9
10
12
14
16
18
20
21
January 1, 1831.
SUNDRIES Das. to STOCK.
For the following Assets and Balances due to the blouse.
Cash ; amount at the Bankers’ this day  L.3,730 0 0
Petty cash in the house  45 10 0
Exchequer Bills; amount in hand   
Three per Cent. Consols; L.15,000, valued at L.82 per L.100 Stock 
Debenture Account; sundry drawbacks on articles exported, payable at the Custom-house
Bills Receivable ; in hand as follows :—
(Here give a list taken from the Book of Bills Receivable) 
Ship Hector ; our three-eighths of that vessel  
Adventure in St Domingo Coffee ; cost price of 100 tierces purchased on speculation..
Adventure in Lint Osnaburghs ; cost price of 20 bales do. bought on speculation...
James Anderson, Dublin; balance due by him 
Thomas Story & Co. Liverpool; do   
George Fox, Kingston, Jamaica ; do 
James Annand & Co. New York; balance due by them 
Allan Dewar & Co. do. do    
LIenry Stephens, Kingston, Jamaica; do 
David Reynolds, Philadelphia; do   
—ii iinMJJBCaij
L.3,775 10 O'
10,750 0 0
12,300 0 0
1,473 10 0 i
14,715 10
4.500 0
2.500 0
540 0
1,561 0
1,382 10
3,350 0
3,138
2,890
2,243
2,673
L.67,792 0 0
Folio of
Ledger.
26
28
30
32
33
35
37
39
STOCK Dr. to SUNDRIES.
For the following Sums due by the House.
To Bills Payable; amount of acceptances at this date, as per Book of Bills Payable.
(Here recapitulate the Bills.) 
To Insurance Account ; premiums due to various underwriters; amount in all 
To Gregg and Lindsay, Liverpool; balance due to them 
To Thomas Hughes, Jamaica ; do. to him 
To John Ravenshaw, New York; do. to him 
To John Campbell, senior, & Co. Glasgow; do. to them  
To Henry Tritton & Co. London ; do. to them 
To Robert Dimsdale & Co. London ; do. to them  
Balance, being the capital of the House.
L.5,785 10
2,915 10
713 10
1,236
831
2,351
3,153
2,673
5
10
15
0
0
L. 19,660 0 0
48,132 0 0
L.67,792 0 0
5 F
VOL. IV.
778
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Book¬
keeping-
Such is the form of the inventory of the debts and
assets of a mercantile house; and the foregoing is, it
must be admitted, much more satisfactory than balance
sheets in general; because, from the nature of foreign
business, the funds of almost every house become un¬
avoidably much more scattered than is stated in this out¬
line. .All countries recently settled, such as North Ame¬
rica and the West Indies, are bare of capital, and have an
interest in drawing money from Europe. This they have
found it practicable to do to a great extent from England
and Holland, where money is in general abundant, and
the rate of interest low. In recently settled countries
there generally prevails a spirit of adventure, a strong de¬
sire to extend their undertakings; hence a high interest
for money, and sometimes little scruple as to the means
of obtaining it. To apply to a merchant in London or
Amsterdam for a loan of L.2000, for a year, at five per
cent, interest, would in general be fruitless ; but the case B<
is different when the correspondent abroad holds out the kee;L
tempting prospect of selling manufactures to the amount of ^ J
L.2000, and remitting for them in cotton, tobacco, or su¬
gar. Such a transaction offers a double commission, viz.
5 per cent, on the amount exported, and 2^ per cent, on
the amount received in return; advantages which incline
a merchant, in particular a young merchant, to take a
favourable view of the chances of the proposition. Th$
usual result, however, is, that the balance sheet of a house
in such a line of business generally exhibits a long list of
debts on the part of correspondents abroad, the recover)'
of which is more or less doubtful according to the pru¬
dence, integrity, or health of the debtor, or according to
the degree of prosperity in the country of his residence;
for, being obliged to sell on credit, his means are gene¬
rally dependent on those of his customers.
The Cash-Book.—Of the entries for the various receipts and payments which daily occur in a counting-house, the
following is a specimen :—
Dr.
Cash.
1831.
Jan. 1
2
12
18
19
To balance in hand 
To Bills Receivable, received
payment of No. 320, James
Jacobs  
To Ship Hector, received of
James Williamson & Co. for
freight 
To Thomas Story & Co., re¬
ceived from James Hender¬
son per their account 
ToDebenture Account, received
drawback on tobacco export¬
ed by the Three Friends 
To Bills Receivable, discounted
by Smith, Payne, & Smiths,
No. 321, on Baring, Brothers,
& Co., due 26th February 
To Profit and Loss, received 21
per cent, discount on paying
the accounts per contra, not
due for four months—
John Wilson L.3 16 0
James Henderson....2 8 9
John Jackson 3 5 9
Charles Norton 2 3 6
To Bills Receivable, discounted
by Smith, Payne, & Smiths,
No. 330, Williams & Co.,
20th March 
To Ship Hector, received for
freight, of J. Johnson  
To Debenture Account,received
drawback on paper and print¬
ed books, exported by the
Fingal 
To Profit and Loss, 1 per cent,
commission on a year’s divi¬
dends received on L.1200, 3
per cent, consols, of Jacob
^ Van Neck of Amsterdam  
To Thomas Story & Co., re¬
ceived from John Maxwell
on their account 
Z. 5.
2,510 0
351 10
179 10
210 3
16 10 0
1,567 0 0
11 14 0
513 10
215 7
12 16 0
3 0 0
143 16 0
L.5,734 16 0
Contra.
Cr.
1831.
Jan. 1
10
12
19
23
By James Davis & Son, paid
them for linen per bill of
parcels 
By Bills Payable, paid No. 250
to J. Anderson  
By James Anderson, paid J.
Thomas & Co. for him 
By Charges paid packet postage
of letters received this day....
By Interest paid discount to
Smith, Payne, & Smiths, at
5 per cent 
By John Wilson, paid his bill
of parcels 
By James Henderson do 
By John Jackson do 
By Charles Norton do 
By Bills Payable, paid No. 221,
James Morrison 
By Interest, paid discount to
Smith, Payne, & Smiths,
e contra 
By James Anderson, paid J.
Johnson for his account 
By Charges, paid postage and
petty disburse this week 
By Bills payable, paid No. 227,
J. Simpson, 
By James Davis & Son, paid
them farther for linen 
By balance to next month 
L. s. d.
157 10 0
1,251 5 0
131 10 0
3 13 0
10 6 0
152 0 0
97 10 0
131 10 0
87 5 0
135 10 0
4 12 7
145 3 0
4 7 0
146 10 0
164 15 0
3,111 9 5
L.5,734 16 0
13 -
kef '.?•
Folio in
Ledger.
12
40
Date.
1831.
Jan. 2
5
12
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
These entries, when transferred to the Journal, are arranged as follows
18
CASH Dn. to SUNDRIES.
■t. „ „ Received during this Month,
lo Dills Receivable.
Received payment of No. 320, James Jacobs L.351 10 0
Discounted by Smith, Payne, & Smiths, No. 321, on Baring &
Co* 26th February     j 507 q q
•Do' by do. No. 330, on Williams & Co. 20th March... 513 10 0
To Ship Hector.
Received for freight from James Williamson L.179 10 0
D0, do. from J. Johnson    215 7 q
To Thomas Story & Co.
Received from James Henderson    T 910 s n
^ from John Maxwell  ]4,3 jq q
Do.
To Debenture Account.
Received drawback on Tobacco by the Two Friends  L.16 10 0
Do- do. on Paper and Printed Books by the Fingal..’ 12 16 0
To Profit and Loss.
Received discount from—
John Wilson     jq q
James Henderson  2 8 9
John Jackson  3 5 9
Charles Norton  2 3 6
Commission J per cent, on L.60, a year’s dividend on L.1200,
3 per cent, consols, of Jacob Van Neck, Amsterdam.. 
L.ll 14 0
3 0 0
L.2,432 0 0
394 17 0
353 19 0
29 6 0
14 14
L.3,224 16
Folio in
Ledger
42
26
10
44
46
47
48
49
50
Date-
1831.
Jan. 1
23
2
9
19
SUNDRIES Das. to CASH.
Paid during this Month.
James Davis & Co.
Paid them for linen per bill of parcels  L.157 10
Paid them further for do. per do    164 15
Bills Payable.
Paid No. 250 to J. Anderson L.1,251 5 0
Paid No. 221 to J. Morrison  135 10 0
Paid No. 227 to J. Simpson  146 10 0
James Anderson.
Paid J. Thomas & Co. for their account    L.131 10 0
Paid J. Johnson for his ditto  145 3 0
Charges.
Paid packet postage of letters received this day  L.3 13 0
Paid postage and petty disburse this week  4 7 0
Interest.
Paid discount to Smith, Payne, & Smiths...,  L.10 6
~ do    4 12
Do.
to
John Wilson, 9th, paid his bill of parcels.
James Henderson,  do 
John Jackson, ^ do 
Charles Norton,   do 
L.322 5 0
1,533 5 0
276 13 0
8 0 0
14 18
152 0
97 10
131 10
87 5
L.2,623 6 7
77!)
Book.
keeping.
780
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Book¬
keeping.
These entries, few as they are in number, suffice to con¬
vey an idea of the advantage of putting them in the jour¬
nal form. There are, in most of the preceding, two trans¬
actions belonging to each account, and these two are
merged in the journal in one entry, which abridges and
simplifies the posting in the ledger. But in houses of ex¬
tensive business the cash transactions for a month aie as
ten, or rather as twenty to one compared to the preceding
specimen, and the number of entries collected under one
title, such as bills receivable or bills payable for the month,
is consequently large. The result is to facilitate gieatly
the posting in the ledger, and of course the balancing of
the books at the end of six or twelve months.
What, it may be asked, is the rule for making cash debtor in Bo
some cases and creditor mothers? The rule is clear and uni- keej
form. For all monies received cash is made deb tor, or account- ^ ^
able, as these sums are to be accounted for under the head
of cash; while for all monies paid, cash is made creditor, the
parties who have to account for the sum being made debtors.
Bill Books.—Next in importance to the cash are the
bill transactions of a mercantile house, whether bills re¬
ceivable or drafts on other merchants, or bills payable,
meaning by the latter the acceptances or bills which the
house are bound to pay. For each is appropriated a sepa¬
rate book, in which the respective bills are entered, with a
minute notice of particulars, thus :
BILLS RECEIVABLE. Form of Entry.
N o- Received.
151
5 Feb.
152 12 do.
153 15 do.
From whom.
Jas. Anderson
T. Story & Co.
Geo. Fox
Drawn by
J. Thomson
Jas. Wilson
Thos. Smith
Dublin, 20 Jan.
Liverpool, 2 Feb.
Jamaica, 8 Feb.
Term.
2months’date
1 do.
60 days’ sight.
Drawn on
J. Greig
T. Gray
J. Allan
To order of
Wm. Dick
John Smith
J. Jackson
Due.
23 March
5 do.
14 May
Sum.
L.173 10 0
232 0 0
197 10 0
How disposed of.
Smith, Payne, & Smiths
Overend & Co.
Kept till due
The preceding bills are to be entered in the Journal as follows:
BILLS RECEIVABLE Dn. to SUNDRIES.
For the following bills remitted.
To James Anderson.
No. 151, on J. Greig, due 23d March 
To T. Story & Co.
No. 152, on T. Gray, due 5th March 
To George Fox.
No. 153, on J. Allan, due 14th May 
L. s. d,
173 10 0
232 0 0
197 10 0
L.603 0 0
Biles Payable are acceptances of the house payable to other parties, and may be termed the revelse of Bills Re
ceivable. The following is an example of the mode of entering them in the bill book.
To order of
Jas. Shaw
His own order
J. Knowles
No.
270
271
272
Drawn by
J. Robertson
T. Hughes
J. Williams
Liverpool, 2 Mar.
Jamaica, 20 Jan.
St. Kitts, 30 Jan.
On account of
Gregg & Lindsay
Thos. Hughes
Jas. Anderson
1 month’s date
90 days’ sight
60 days’ sight
When accepted-
5 March
7 do.
10 do.
Due.
8 April
8 June
12 Mav
Sum.
L.215
320
185
Held by
Atkins & Co.
J. Miller & Co.
T.Watson&Co.
When brought into the Journal, these bills stand thus:
Ledger
Folio.
30
10
32
SUNDRIES Drs. to BILLS PAYABLE.
For the following Bills drawn and accepted.
Gregg & Lindsay.
No. 170, J. Robertson’s draft on their account, due 8th April 
James Anderson.
No. 272, J. Williams’ draft on their account, due 12th May 
Thomas Hughes.
No. 271, his draft at 90 days’ sight, to his own order, due 8th June.
L. s. d,
215 0 0
185 0 0
320 0 0
L.720 0 0_
Bills of Exchange were introduced several centuries
ago to enable merchants to make payments to each other
without the risk and delay attendant on transmitting the
precious metals to a distance. A, a merchant in Liver¬
pool, Dublin, or in Jamaica, having a payment to make in
London, instead of collecting and forwarding specie, looks
out on his own exchange until he find another merchant,
B, who having money to receive in London, is inclined to
give him an order to obtain it in his stead. They discuss
the terms or rate of exchange ; and when these are agreed
on, the bill is drawn by B and delivered to A, who then,
or soon after, pays the amount to B. The result is, that
the one acquits his debt in London, and the other draws
his funds from it, without quitting their place of residence
or incurring any expense of consequence. ;
Bills of Exchange first became general in the middle ages,
and were used chiefly by Jews. In the case of this, as 0
many other discoveries, the time and manner of their in¬
troduction is uncertain; but the accommodation from
them must have been so great, and the mode of obtaining
it so obvious, that we may safely take it for granted t a
they were adopted as soon as merchants accounted eac.i
other trust-worthy, or the transactions of towns at a dis¬
tance from each other became such as to supply sums Oi
any considerable amount to be drawn for. ,
Town Notes are bills drawn by persons residing in
BOO K-K E E P 1 N G.
781
I same town with the acceptors, generally by the seller of
U goods on the purchaser, who, instead of paying for them
^ ^ in cash, gives his acceptance, payable in two, three, or more
months after date. Take, for example, the draft of a West
India merchant in London on a sugar refiner, for sugar
sold by the former to the latter ; or by a wholesale ware¬
houseman on a West India merchant for linen or cottons
supplied to the merchant. It is evident that bills between
parties residing in the same town are not strictly en regie,
as in their case there can be no expense or risk in for¬
warding money. Still they can hardly be objected to in
transactions like the preceding, which are evidently bona
fide from the respective lines of business of the parties.
The Bank of England sanctions town notes as regards the
metropolis, by appropriating a day in each week (Wed¬
nesday) for discounting them, and by often carrying such
discounts to a very large amount.. During the war, when
monied capital was comparatively scarce, town notes were
extremely common. They are still very frequent, but
not in so great a degree, first-rate houses being unwilling
to give their acceptances where a payment in cash is the
regular mode of settling an account. This feeling differs
according to the line of business of the parties. Thus,
London houses in the East India trade being generally
large establishments, confine their acceptances to bills
from abroad, and decline giving them to persons in Lon¬
don, such as the wholesale dealers in cloth or hardware,
from whom they purchase goods for shipment. They pre¬
fer paying such persons in cash, even when not altogether
convenient, to the animadversions that might attend theit
affixing their acceptance to a town note. On the other
hand, London booksellers, though often possessed of con¬
siderable capital, are obliged, by the nature of their busi¬
ness, to give such long credits, that the postponement of
a payment during several months, obtained by giving their
acceptance, is an accommodation they readily embrace.
Besides, the custom of the trade, in this as in various
other lines of business, prevents such acceptances from
being an object of much animadversion.
The Invoice Book. A mercantile house connected,
as we have supposed, with North America and the West
Indies, receives from time to time requisitions, or, as they
are commonly termed, orders, from their correspondents
abroad for manufactured goods, whether woollens, linens,
cottons, or hardware. An order of only moderate amount
is generally of the length of several pages, embracing both
a number of different articles and various qualities of each Book-
particular article. I he first step on the part of the Lon- keeping,
don merchant is to analyse this order, and to share or dis-
tribute its various parts among a number of wholesale
dealers, whether in London, Manchester, Birmingham, or
Sheffield, that each may supply the articles in his line of
business. A few wmeks suffice for their getting ready the
goods, when they send in their several accounts, or bills
of parcels, as they are termed, thus:
A. D.
& Co.
No. 1.
London, m February 1831
Messrs Baring, Hall, & Co.
Bought of Alexander Balmanno.
10 Pieces best Lint Osnaburghs, 152
yards each, at 6d. per yard 
Inside Wrappers, 14 yards, at 3d 
Cord, bale, and press packing 
Z.
38 0
0 3
0 10
JL.38 13 6
A. D.
& Co.
No. 2.
3.
{From another dealer.')
Messrs Baring, Hall, & Co.
Bought of John Oakey & Co.
1 Case containing 2 dozen
Youth’s Hats and Bands, Z. s. d.
at 14s. each 16 16 0
Case  0 6 0
1 Case 6 dozen Felt
(coarse) Hats for Ne¬
groes, at 24s. each  7 4
Case..    0 12
Z. s. d.
17 2 0
7 16 0
L.24 18 0
These are specimens of the simplest class of accounts—
of those accounts which form the groundwork of the “ In¬
voice,” or general statement of the shipment. The form
of that statement is as follows :
Invoice of goods shipped by Baring, Hall, & Co. in the
Hector, James Robertson, from London to New York, on
account and risk of Messrs Archibald Dixon & Co. there.
A. D.
and Co.
No. 1.
2, 3.
4, 5.
6, 7.
8, 9.
10, 11.
1 Bale Best Lint Osnaburghs, by A. Balmanno’s bill of parcels.
2 Cases Hats, by J. Oakey & Co. do 
1 Case White Platillas, Spitta & Co 
2 Cases Linen Tick, J. Jobson & Co 
2 Trunks French Calf-Skin Shoes, J. Jackson & Co 
2 Puncheons strong do. W. Skipwith  
Z.
Entry, Bond, and Debenture  2
Duty on part of the amount, per cent  
Cartage, Wharfage, and Shipping Charges 
Freight and Primage (paid in London) 
Bills of Lading 
Insurance on L.500, at L.30 per L.100 
Policy Duty   
Commission 5 per cent, on L.451 L.22 11 0
DittOj, ^ per cent, on L.500 insured  2 10 0
Errors excepted.
At nine months’ credit; due 10th December 1831.
London, \0th February 1831.  
Baring, Hall, & Co.
38 13
24 18
78 10
69 10
49 12
160 5
d.
6
0
0
0
0
0
L.421 8 6
29 18 0
25 1 0
L.476 7 6
?S2
Book-
keeping.
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Invoices are in general much longer and larger in amount
than the preceding, but they are almost always drawn in
the same form, containing many particulars in short com¬
pass ; viz. the mark, numbers, and value of each pack¬
age, also the nature of the goods contained in it, as far
as can be expressed by a short general notice. It was
formerly the practice to make invoices very long, and
to copy into them each bill of parcels literally; but the
usage is now to assign only one or two lines in the in¬
voice to the articles supplied by each dealer, and to send b0(
out duplicate bills of parcels by the vessel. The house Keep
abroad has thus the satisfaction of seeing the different ^, /
bills of parcels exactly as furnished by the dealer or
tradesman.
The sum insured is somewhat more than the amount of
the Invoice, that, in the event of a loss, there may be enough
to pay two per cent, commission for recovering it from the
underwriters.
Journal Entries from the preceding Invoice.
Ledger
Folio.
51
53
54,
55
56
57
58
59
28
44
40
Archibald Dixon & Co. Drs. to Sundries.
For Goods shipped to them per Hector, Robertson, as per invoice.
To Alexander Balmanno ; Lint Osnaburghs, per account 
To John Oakey & Co.; Hats, do 
To Spitta & Co.; Platillas, do 
To James Jobson & Co.; Linen Tick, do 
To Thomas Jackson & Co.; Shoes, do 
To W. Skipwith ; Shoes, do 
To Freight Account, Freight Primage, and Bills of Lading 
To Insurance, Premium, and Policy 
To Charges, Entry, outward Duty, and Shipping Charges 
To Profit and Loss for Commissions 
Z. 5.
38 13
24 18
78 10
69 10
49 12
160 5
14 7
8 15
6 16
25 1
L.476 7 6
Account of Sales.—Having seen in the invoice a
specimen of the mode of conducting our exports, we are
now to show the manner of disposing of our imports.
While our exports are generally in manufactures, our im¬
ports are commonly in raw produce, because, except in
silks, and a few petty articles of manufacture, foreigners
are quite unequal to a competition with the capital and
machinery of this country. Cotton, sugar, coffee, rice,
indigo, form the main articles of import to England from
tropical latitudes; while wine, brandy, olives, drugs, are
sent to us from temperate climates; and corn, timber,
hemp, flax, tallow, hides, reach us in large quantities from
the Baltic. We shall take, as an example, an account sale
of the staple article of our West India colonies.
Account Sale of 20 Hogsheads Sugar by the Andromeda, James Wilson, from Antigua to London, per account
of James Robertson, Esq. merchant there.
Insurance on L.700 at 60s.
per L.100 L.21 0 0
Policy  1 15 0
per cwt.
Freight of 234 cwt. 1 qr. at 5s.
Primage, Pierage, and Trade...
Duty on 234 cwt. 1 qr. at 24s. per cwt.
Entry 
Dock Dues 
Landwaiters and Entry 
Warehouse Rent, 14 weeks 
Sampling 
Insurance from Fire 
Brokerage, 1 per cent 
Commission on Sale, 2 per cent 
Do. per cent, on L.700 insured 
Net Proceeds, due 2d November 1831.
22 15 0
58 11 3
1 3 3
281 2 0
0 6 0
5 10 0
0 19 0
2 19 0
0 6 0
0 9 6
6 15 1
13 10 2
3 10 0
L.397 16
281 10
L.679 6 6
J. R.
1 to 10.
Cwt. qrs. lbs.
20 hhds. weighing....261 2 14
Deduct draft 2 lb.
per hogshead  0 1 12
Deduct tare of the
casks   
261 1 2
27 0 2
Net 234 1 0
at 58s. per cwt.
L. e. d.
679 6 6
London, 2d October 1831.
Errors excepted.
Baring, Hall, & Co.
tvW frffmer *0[m a” Recount sale was some- were subjoined; but the plan of putting the goods on one
,L5nnt , "?5e 0V,e- 11 be8“n'Aha statement side, and the charges on another, on the principle of
ot the contents of the packages sold, and the charges debtor and creditor, is evidently an improvement. Seve-
B( • ral other entries in this account are entitled to the atten-
kee; ?• tion of a commercial student. The freight is charged, not,
^ J as might naturally be expected, on the total weight brought
home, but on the weight of the goods exclusive of the
packages. Of the allowances for weight, the larger, tare,
is the exact weight of the cask; the lesser, draft, is a de¬
duction made by the seller to the buyer, its rate being
BOO K-K EE P I N G.
783
fixed by custom, and bearing no reference to the weight Book-
°fS.lPaCcagre' keeping.
It there be found a deficiency in the original weight, from
sea damage, from waste, or any other cause, the amount of
such deficiency, and the manner of its occurring, must be
explicitly stated in the account sale. The same holds in re¬
gard to coffee, of which we shall now exhibitan account sale.
Account of Sale of 40 lierces Coffee, by Hector, Robertson, from Jamaica to London, per account of
kimon Taylor, Esq. Jamaica.
Charges.
Insurance on 40 Tierces at L.20
Tierce, L.800, at 50s....L.20 0
Policy  2 0
Freight on 167 cwt. 0 qr. 20 lb. at 9s
per cwt 
Primage, Pierage, and Trade 
Landwaiters, Entry, and Bond  
Dock Dues  
Insurance from Fire 
Public Sale Charges 
Brokerage, 1 per cent, on L.660....
Commission on Sale 2-L per cent, on
L.660 
Ditto % per cent, on L.700 insured....
Net Proceeds, due 2d November 
Z.
22 O 0
75
1
2
11
0
1
6
4
11
1
3
15
10
12
16 10
3 10
S. T.
1 to 40
L.140 17 0
520 0 0
L.660 17 0
Gross Weight.
Cwt. qr. lb.
190
(Here specify
the gross
weight and
tare of each
tierce.)
Deduct 23
1 12
Tare.
Cwt. qr. lb.
21 1 4
Trett 1 3 16
0 20
Together 23 0 20
Net..
167
0 20 at 76s. per cwt...
Trett.
Cwt. qr. lb.
1 overtaker 6 12
1 ditto  5 2 4
Cwt. qr. lb.
0 3 12
0 3 4
Deduct.
11
. 1
6
26
Trett
2 16
0 10
1 2 26
10 0 8 at 64s. per cwt....
Discount 1 per cent.
Gross Proceeds  L.660 17 0
L.
d.
635 5 6
32 4 7
L.667 10 1
6 13 1
London, 2d October 1831.
Errors excepted.
Baring, Hall, & Co.
Journal Entries resulting from the preceding Account Sales.
Folio
Ledger.
60
61
61
61
59
28
62
44
60
40
63
61
28
59
44
60
40
64
October 1831.
Trueman & Cook, Drs. to Sundries.
To Sugar per Andromeda.
Proceeds of 20 Hhds., J. R. Nos. 1 to 20, sold by them at one month from 2d inst.
To Coffee per Hector, Robertson.
40 Tierces, S. T. Nos. 1 to 40, at one month from 2d instant 
Z. s. d.
679 6 6
660 17 0
Sugar per Andromeda, Dr. to Sundries.
To Freight Account; for Freight, Primage, and Pierage 
To Insurance Account; Premium and Policy 
To Customs Inward ; Duty and Entry....     
To Charges; Dock Dues, Landwaiters, Fire Insurance, Warehouse Rent, Sampling.
To Trueman & Cook; Brokerage, 1 per cent   
To Profit and Loss; for Commissions   
To James Robertson; Proceeds due 2d November 1831   
1340 3 6
59 14 6
22 15 0
281 8 0
10 3 6
6 15 1
17 0 2
281 10
Coffee per Hector, Dr. to Sundries.
To Insurance; for Premium and Policy  
To Freight Account ; Freight, Primage, and Pierage 
To Charges; Dock Dues, Landwaiters, Fire Insurance  
To Trueman & Cook ; for Brokerage 
To Profit and Loss; Commissions 
To Simon Taylor ; Net Proceeds due 2d November 
L.679 6 6
22 0 0
76 16 0
15 9 0
6 12 0
20 0 0
520 0 0
L.660 17 0
784
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Book- We have now given examples of journal entries from
keeping. t}ie principal books in a counting-house ; from the cash-
book, the invoice and account sales book, as well as from
the bills payable and receivable. After these comes the
petty journal or record of such occasional entries as do
not belong to the preceding, or any other subsidiary books.
Such entries are in general very few, because, in every re¬
gular counting-house, the subsidiary books contain almost
every transaction that takes place.
Insurances.—It is customary to have an insurance policy
book, a folio book of the length and breadth of a printed
policy, and containing a quantity of such policies bound
up, unstamped. In these are filled in, by a clerk, literal
copies of the insurances effected by the house, with the
names of the underwriters, and the amount of their respec¬
tive subscriptions. From this is posted the insurance
ledger, containing the accounts of the underwriters for
premiums and returns.
Bought Booh, or Book of Bills of Parcels.—In former
times, when mercantile transactions were on a limited
scale, the practice of a merchant, as of private indivi¬
duals at present, was merely to fold up the bills of par¬
cels, or accounts delivered to him by dealers, in a uni¬
form size, and, after writing on the back the names of
the parties, to put them away in bundles. But the pre- Boot
ferable plan, wherever such accounts are numerous, is, keepi]
after arranging them alphabetically, to have them pasted
in a large quarto or folio volume of blue or sugar-loaf
paper. A surprising number of accounts may be con¬
tained in one of these books; and its pages being num¬
bered, any account may, by the aid of an alphabetical in¬
dex, be referred to with the same ease as an entry in a
ledger.
Drawbacks payable at the custom-house on goods ex¬
ported, and for which the merchant holds a debenture or
acknowledgment of debt on the part of the custom-house.
Of these a list or register should be kept, either in a small
separate book, called the debenture book, or in a specific
part of one of the larger books.
The petty cash-book contains the disburse for postages
and other small matters; the amount is entered weekly
or monthly in the regular cash-books.
We have now recapitulated the various subsidiary books
which form the groundwork or authorities for the journal.
The ledger comes next, and by way of affording a speci¬
men of this, the finale of book-keeping labour, we shall
exhibit the preceding journal entries, carried to their re¬
spective heads in the ledger.
Dr.
LEDGER.
Stock.
Cr.
1831.
Jan. 1.
Folio
Journal.
To Sundries,
L. s. d.
19,660 0 0
1831.
Jan. 1.
Folio
Journal.
By Sundries.
L. s. d.
67,792 0 0
Dr.
Cash.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
 31.
To Stock 
To Sundries.
3,775 10 0
3,224 16 0
Jan. 31.
By Sundries.
2,623 6 7
Dr.
Exchequer Bills.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
To Stock,
10,750 0 0
Dr.
Three per Cent. Consols.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
To Stock.
12,300 0 0
Dr.
Debenture Account.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
To Stock
Jan. 1.
By Cash.
29 6 0
Dr.
Bills Receivable.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
— 31.
To Stock 
To Sundries.
14,715 10 0
603 0 0
Jan. 9.
By Cash,
2,432 0 0
Dr.
Ship Hector.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
To Stock,
4,500 0 0
Jan. 9.
By Cash,
394 17 0
Dr.
Adventure in St Domingo Coffee.
Cr.
Jan. 1. 1 To Stock  2,500 0 0
B >
tei ig-
Dr.
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Adventure in Lint Osnaburghs.
1831.
Jan. 1.
Folio
Journal.
1 To Stock
L. s. d.
540 0 0
1831.
Folio
Journal.
Dr.
James Anderson, Dublin.
Jan. 1.
 12.
 31.
To Stock 
To Cash 
To Bills Payable.
1,561 0 0
276 13 0
185 0 0
Jan. 31.
By Bills Receivable.
Drs.
J homas Story & Co. Liverpool.
Jan. 1.
To Stock  1,382 10 0
Jan. 19.
 31.
By Cash 
By Bills Receivable.
Dr.
George Fox, Kingston, Jamaica.
Jan. 1.
To Stock.
3,350 0 0
Jan. 31.
By Bills Receivable 
Drs.
James Annand & Co. New York.
Jan. 1.
To Stock.
3,138 0 0
Drs.
Allan, Dewar, & Co. New York.
Jan. 1.
To Stock
2,890 0 0
Dr.
Henry Stephens, Kingston, Jamaica.
Jan. 1. 1 To Stock [ 2,243 0 0
Dr.
David Reynolds, Philadelphia.
Jan. 1.
To Stock.
2,673 0 0
Dr.
Bills Payable.
Jan. 19. 4 To Cash
1,533 5 0
Jan. 1.
 31.
By Stock 
By Sundries.
Cr.
785
Book¬
keeping.
L. s. d.
Cr.
173 10 0
Crs.
353 19 0
232 0 0
Cr.
197 10 0
Crs.
Crs.
Cr.
Cr.
Cr.
5,785 10 0
720 0 0
Dr.
Insurance Account.
Cr.
Jan. 1.
Feb. 10.
Oct.
By Stock 
By A. Dixon & Co...
By Sugar per Andromeda
By Coffee per Hector.
2,915 10 0
8 15 0
22 15 0
22 6 0
Drs.
Gregg Lindsay, Liverpool.
Crs.
Jan. 31. 3 To Bills Payable.
215 0 0 Jan. 1. 2 By Stock
713 10 0
Dr.
Thomas Hughes, Jamaica.
Cr.
Jan. 31.
To Bills Payable.
320 0 0 Jan. 1. 2 By Stock
1,236 5 0
VOL. IV.
5 G
786
Book-
keeping.
Dr.
1831.
Folio
Journal.
Drs.
Drs.
Drs.
Dro
Dr.
Jan. 12.
To Cash.
Dr.
Jan. 12.
To Cash.
Dr.
Jan. 9.
To Cash.
Dr,
Jan. 9.
To Cash.
Dr.
Jan. 9.
To Cash
Dr.
Jan. 9. 4 To Cash
Drs.
Jan. 23.
To Cash
Drs.
Feb. 10. 5 To Sundries
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
John Ravenshaw, New York.
Cr.
Book¬
leeping
L. s. d.
1831.
Jan. 1.
Folio
Journal.
By Stock.
L. s. d.
831 10 0
John Campbell, Senior, & Co. Glasgow.
Crs,
Jan. 1.
By Stock.
2,351 15 0
Henry Tritton & Co. London.
Crs.
Jan. 1. | By Stock
3,153 0 0
Robert Dimsdale, & Co. London.
Crs.
Jan. 1. ' 2
By Stock.
2,673 0 0
Profit and Loss.
Jan. 19.
Feb. 10.
Oct.
By Cash 
By A. Dixon & Co 
By Sugar per Andromeda
By Coffee per Hector 
Charges.
8 0 0
Feb. 10.
Oct.
By A. Dixon & Co 
By Sugar per Andromeda
By Coffee per Hector 
Interest.
14 8 7
John Wilson, London.
152 0 0
James Henderson, London.
97 10 0
John Jackson, London.
131 10 0
Charles Norton, London.
87 5 0
James Davis & Co. London.
322 5 0
Archibald Dixon & Co.
476 7 6
Cr.
14 14 0
6 16 0
17 0 0
20 0 0
Cr.
25 1 0
10 3 6
15 9 0
Cr.
Cr.
Cr.
Cr.
Cr.
Crs.
Crs.
B -
ke< 1n-
Dr.
1831.
Folio
Journal.
Drs.
Drs.
Drs.
Drs.
Dr.
Dr.
Drs.
Oct.
To Sundries.
Dr.
Oct. 31.
To Sundries,
Dr.
Oct.
To Sundries.
Dr.
Dr.
Dr.
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
Alexander Balmanno.
787
Cr.
Book¬
keeping.
L. s. d.
1831.
Feb. 1.
Folio
Journal.
B}' A. Dixon & Co.
L. s. d.
38 13 6
John Oakey & Co.
Crs.
Feb. 1.
5 t By A. Dixon & Co.
24 18 0
Spitta & Co.
Crs.
Feb. 1.
By A. Dixon & Co.
78 10 0
Jas. Jobson & Co.
Crs.
Feb. 1.
By A. Dixon & Co.
69 10 0
Thos. Jackson & Co.
Crs.
Feb. 1.
By A. Dixon & Co.
49 12 0
Wm. Skipwith.
Cr.
Feb. 1.
By A. Dixon & Co.
160 5 0
Freight Account.
Cr.
Feb. 10.
Oct.
By A. Dixon & Co 
By Sugar per Andromeda
By Coffee per Hector 
14 7 0
59 14 6
76 16 0
Trueman & Cook.
Crs.
1,340 3 6
Oct.
By Sugars per Andro¬
meda  
By Coffee per Hector..
6 15 1
6 12 0
Sugar per Andromeda.
Cr.
679 6 6
Oct.
By Trueman & Cook.
281 10 3
Coffee per Hector.
Cr.
660 17 0
Oct.
By Sundries.
520 0 0
Customs Inward.
Cr.
Oct.
By Sugar per Andromeda.
281 8 0
James Robertson, St Vincent.
Cr.
Oct.
By Sugar per Andromeda.
281 10 3
Simon Taylor, Jamaica.
Cr.
Oct.
7 By Coffee per Hector  520 0 0
788
BOO K-K E E P I N G
Book¬
keeping.
The entries in the ledger are very concise, containing
generally nothing more than the head or title of the entry
in the journal to which they refer. It was formerly the
practice of book-keepers to insert some explanatory words
in almost every line : thus under profit and loss, instead of
such short notices as
January. By Cash L.14 14 0
February. By A. Dixon & Co 6 16 0
October. By Sugar per-4^rome^«...17 0 0
a book-keeper in a former age would have thought it ne¬
cessary to write
Jan. By Cash received for sundry discounts...L.14 14 0
Feb. By A. Dixon & Co. commission on goods
shipped per Hector   6 16 0
Oct. By Sugar per Andromeda, commission
on insurance and sale 17 0 0
Such explanations are not without their use, as by means
of them a person looking over the account is quickly in¬
formed of the nature of the different entries. They may
therefore be inserted wherever the business is on a small
scale, because in such a case they do not add much to the
labour of the kook-keeper; but wherever the business is
extensive, all detail in the ledger ought to be avoided, and
the entries made in the most concise form possible, for
the following reasons.
1. The explanations never can be so full and circumstan¬
tial as to supersede the necessity of an account-current
book.
2. Nor can they supersede a reference to the journal in
what may be called collective entries, such, we mean, as
the bills payable discharged, or the bills receivable en¬
cashed, in a particular month; entries in which a number
of particulars are collected in the journal, and carried to
the ledger in one sum. And,
3. It is desirable to have as many of such collective en¬
tries as possible, limiting thereby the number of postings
in the ledger, and lessening the difficulty of balancing it
at the end of the year. Such was the recommendation
of Mr Benjamin Booth, in his printed work, nearly half a
century ago ; and such had long before been the practice
of our best merchants.
It follows therefore that the ledger ought to be merely
an index to the journal, exactly as the journal is an index
to the various subsidiary books of the house. To aim at
more, and to repeat in any one of these books statements
or particulars already contained in the other, would be
quite a work of supererogation.
Balancing the Ledger.—At the end of each year, and,
in some houses, of each half year, the ledger is balanced;
that is, the debtor and creditor side of each account in
the ledger is added up, and the balance or difference en¬
tered in a general list or balance-sheet. Thus a few ac¬
counts taken from the preceding fragment of a ledger ex¬
hibit the following balances :—
Creditors.
0 Bills Payable L.4972 5 0
0 Cregg & Lindsay 498 10 0
The balance-sheet is generally very long, comprising
on one side or the other every open or unclosed account
in the ledger. The rule in all regular counting houses is
to make the sum of the debtors in the balance-sheet cor¬
respond with the sum of the creditors, and to spare no
pains to accomplish such agreement, because until it be
done there must evidently be an error in some part or
other of the journal or ledger. Unluckily, the amount of
the difference gives almost no clue towards tracing either
how it has taken place, or the part of the journal or ledger
where it is to be looked for: it may be in any day of the
year, or in any of the entries (1000, 2000, or perhaps
3000) which the ledger for the year contains. The dif¬
Debtors.
J. Anderson & Co. L. 1849 3
Thos. Story & Co. 796 11
ference is sometimes very small; a few pounds, a few shil¬
lings, or a few pence; but the fractional errors are often as
difficult to detect as a large sum ; and in fact it is not unfre¬
quent, in the process of examining, to discover new errors,
which, instead of diminishing, add to the amount of the
existing difference, carrying it from L.10 to L.100, or even
to L.1000. Hence the necessity of experience and habitual
accuracy in a book-keeper. To one deficient in these re¬
spects balancing a ledger of length is generally a most
laborious and tedious task, requiring week after week to be
passed in the dry labour of collating, adding, and subtract¬
ing. Mr Jones’ method will, it is to be hoped, be the
means of preventing the continuance of these unprofitable
searches; for we are satisfied that the labour given to the
precautionary arrangements recommended by him will be
saved, and doubly saved, in the final winding up of the books.
We have already adverted to Mr Jones’s first publica¬
tion on book-keeping; his second, in 1821, was intended
to counteract the inconvenience attendant on the form of
his ledger, which required that the accounts should be
opened anew each year. His third work, published so
lately as last year (1831), is of a much more comprehen¬
sive character, and may be said to exhibit the result of
more than thirty years’ experience as a public accountant.
It is printed in the quarto form, and consists of a number
of distinct parts; first, explanatory statements of his mode
of book-keeping by single as well as double entry, with a
number of formulae, in which the same transactions are
exhibited by the Italian and by his method, so as to bring
into view the various advantages of the latter. These are
followed by a series of instruction to persons in different
branches of business, viz. bankers, manufacturers, brokers,
wholesale and retail dealers, in regard to the books of ac¬
count best fitted to their respective occupations; the whole
followed by a treatise in the form best adapted to the
government offices. Such are the contents of the first or
printed half of Mr Jones’s book; the other half is litho¬
graphed, and exhibits two sets of books, each for a year,
one kept by single, the other by double entry. Along
with these are given a balance-book and an abstract-book,
devised for the purpose of leading promptly to the detec¬
tion of errors or false entries. This they will fully accom¬
plish if the plan laid down by Mr Jones is carried into ef¬
fect ; and they seem to us also well calculated to save the
perplexity and loss of time at present so often incurred
in efforts to find the general balance. The Italian method,
ingenious as it was, and a surprising improvement at the
time on the primitive system of single entry, is not an ef¬
fectual preventive of erroneous or fraudulent insertions in
the books; nor does it present any ready method to faci¬
litate the laborious task of balancing the ledger. It is
consequently the practice of Messrs Barings, and several
mercantile houses of the first rank, to keep two sets of
books as a check on each other; but the object of Mr
Jones is to attain correctness in the first instance, by sub¬
mitting to some extra trouble as the posting of the books
proceed. Thus, his abstract-book is a classed epitome of
his journal, and forms the first check against posting en¬
tries to wrong accounts; while his balance-book is an epi¬
tome of the ledger, and forms another check, both against
carrying entries to a wrong head, and making a mistake in
the figures so carried. In many counting-houses the un¬
certainty of the Italian method is counteracted by habitual
accuracy in the book-keeper; but Mr Jones’s auxiliary
books are devised with the view of enabling even a me¬
diocre book-keeper to avoid mistakes, or to detect them
soon after they are made. By means of these books he
may prove his ledger not only in any month, but in any
week, or even in any day, of the year.
Nothing is more desirable than frequent balancing of
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
u, - the books of a merchant, and frequent transmission of ac-
kee g- counts to his connections. A year is evidently too long
^ ^ for accounts-current to remain open; six months are a
more suitable period; and if the improvements we have
described have the effect of lessening the difficulty of ge¬
neral balances, an important service will thereby be ren¬
dered to persons in trade.1 J
An index is indispensable to a ledger, but it ought to be
very short and plain, containing merely the titles of the
accounts; thus,—
789
Index to the preceding portion of a Ledger.
Anderson, James, 
Annand & Co. James..
Allan, Dewar, & Co...
Balmanno, Alexander.
Bills receivable 
Bills payable 
Campbell, Senior, & Co. John,
Cash 
Charges 
Coffee, adventure in 
Coffee per Hector 
Customs, inward 
Davis & Co. James 
Debenture account 
Dimsdale & Co., Robert.
Dixon & Co., Archibald.
Exchequer Bills 
Fox, George, 
Freight account 
Gregg & Lindsay 
Henderson, James 
Hector, ship 
Hughes, Thomas 
10
16
18
53
6
26
35
2
44
52
61
62
42
5
39
51
14
59
30
48
8
32
Jackson, John 
Jackson & Co., Thomas 
Insurance account 
Interest do 
Jobson & Co., James 
Lint Osnaburghs, adventure in.
Norton, Charles 
Oakey & Co., John 
Profit and loss 
49
57
28
46
59
9
50
54
40
33
21
63
58
55
1
12
20
61
64
4
37
60
Wilson & Co., John  47
Ravenshaw, John 
Reynolds, David 
Robertson, James 
Skipworth, William 
Spitta & Co 
Stock 
Story, Thomas, & Co 
Stephens, Henry 
Sugar per Andromeda 
Taylor, Simon 
Three per cent. Consols.
Tritton and Co., Henry.
Trueman and Cook 
Folio.
Size of the Ledger.—In some houses of very extensive
business the rule is to have a new ledger for every year;
but three or four years are the more usual time of a ledger
remaining in use. The latter has the advantage of show¬
ing the transactions of a long period in succession, as well
as of saving the repeated opening of the same accounts.
The stock account has no entries during the currency
of the year, but at its close (on 31st December) the ba¬
lances of profit and loss, bad and doubtful debts, and a few
such accounts, are carried, as the case may be, to its debit
or credit.
Collective Entries in the Journal.—It may be proper to
explain what is meant by such entries in the journal.
While in the bill-books every bill is entered the day it
comes to hand, and in the cash-book every payment or
receipt is entered on the day it takes place, the journal
entries are made to comprise in one amount a number of
transactions occurring at different dates in the course of
the month. Thus the entry of “ Sundries Drs. to Bills
Payable” exhibit in succession all the bills accepted during
the month; they are then added in one sum, which sum
alone is carried to the ledger. In like manner, in the en¬
try of “ Bills Receivable Drs. to Sundries,” the aggregate
alone is posted in the ledger; and the same in a variety of
cases, the effect of which is to lessen greatly the difficulty
of agreeing the books at the end of the year. We cannot,
therefore, approve of the practice of those book-keepers
who, to save themselves the trouble of re-writing the cash¬
book in the journal form, are content to post each separate
sum directly from the cash-book to the ledger. They thus
avoid, it is true, the copying of eight or ten folio pages a
month ; but by giving up the advantage of joining in one
sum the different payments made under such heads as
bills payable, charges, house expenses, they have to carry
to the ledger during the month above 100 entries instead
of perhaps only thirty or forty.
The Waste-Hook.—This book has long been disused by
regular merchants, and the name itself would have been
forgotten, had it not been reprinted from one work on book¬
keeping to another, the authors of which, being generally
teachers, were unacquainted with the improvements in¬
troduced into the practice of merchants. The waste-
book of former times consisted of a series of memoranda,
so miscellaneous as to comprehend every transaction of
the house, whether a sale, a purchase, a payment, or a re¬
ceipt. From this general receptacle the book-keeper com¬
posed the journal, which was then, as at present, a narra¬
tive or record, in regular form, of the transactions of the
house. As mercantile establishments acquired extension,
separate books became necessary, as well for the cash and
bills as for goods exported and imported. These books
were found the fittest authorities for the journal, and the
waste-book or diary fell altogether into disuse.
Single Entry.—A wholesale dealer occupying a ware¬
house, and whose business consists in supplying such ar¬
ticles as woollen, cotton, linen, or hardware, to exporting
1 The title of Mr Jones’s publication is the Science of Book-keeping Exemplified, 4to, London, 1831, L.4. 4s.
BOO K-K E E P I N G.
790
Book- merchants, is generally satisfied with few books. He is
keeping, accustomed to enter each delivery of goods in his day-
book, and to get copied into his invoice-book the bills of
parcels made out for his customers, of which examples
have been given above in the names of Balmanno and
Oakey & Company. He seldom keeps a journal, but a
ledger is indispensable, though not kept by double entry.
It consists on one part of the names ot his customers (the
exporting merchants), and, on the other, of those of the
manufacturers from whom he makes his purchases. From
the latter he receives credit, and to the former he gives
it; hence the necessity of opening accounts for both. At
the end of the year, a person in such aline of business is
accustomed to form an estimate of the state of his affairs
by adding up on one side the sums due by him to the
manufacturers, and on the other those due to him by the
merchants. He takes, moreover, an account of his stock,
or goods in hand, which being valued, and the amount
added to the sums due to him, the difference between
their conjunct amount and the total of his debts affords
a tolerably correct idea of the state of his property. It
would, however, be much more clear and satisfactory
were his books kept by double entry, that is, were every
debtor to have a creditor, or, in other words, were every
entry to have its counterpart. Suppose him, for example,
to make a purchase from Messrs Greenup of Halifax, for
L.1250 of the coarse woollens called penistones, he mere¬
ly enters in his ledger that sum to the credit of Messrs
Greenup ; but the proper course would be to find a debtor
for the same amount by such an entry as “ Penistones
Dr. to Messrs Greenup, L1250.” Subsequently, on ef¬
fecting sales of the article to exporting merchants, the
proper course would be to make entries such as “ Baring,
Hall, & Co. Drs. to Penistones for L.225 and by con¬
tinuing such entries, that is, by crediting the account of
Penistones for the sales as successively made, until the
whole was disposed of, the ultimate result would be that
the creditor side would exhibit a total equal to the L.1250
paid to Messrs Greenup, and' to the profit accruing from
the transaction.
Double Entry has farther and more important advan¬
tages to a merchant than to a tradesman, because his deal¬
ings are much more varied and complicated. It forms the
connecting link of his accounts, and shows in what manner
his funds have been successively invested. As every debtor
in his books has a creditor, no part of his property is unac¬
counted for; and when in doubt as to any specific portion,
he will find a solution of the difficulty in his own journal.
Those who know how soon money becomes absorbed,
or at least appropriated in business, and in how few years
a large sum may be vested in machinery, shipping, or u00j.
other fixed capital, are aware that merchants would often keepm
consider themselves deceived, if they had not in double
entry an unfailing clue to the appropriation of their j
capital. .
Next, as to the degree of intricacy in double entry. In
the case of a shipment of goods, the merchant abroad who
receives the goods is made debtor to the several dealers
at home who have supplied them; e. g. A. Dixon & Co.
of New York are Drs. to Spitta & Co., Jobson & Co., &c.
In like manner, in the case of produce imported, the brok¬
ers, Trueman & Cook, who sell it and receive the amount,
are made debtors to Simon Fraser, for whose account the
produce was shipped. All this is clear and free from in¬
tricacy, as also such farther entries as Cash Dr. to True¬
man & Cook, on their paying over the proceeds of the
sale, or Bills Receivable Drs. to A. Dixon & Co., on their
remitting or sending home a bill for the amount of the
goods forwarded to them. It is true that a young mer¬
chant beginning to study book-keeping will not all at once
comprehend such an account as Bills Receivable, nor its
counterpart Bills Payable, nor a few other accounts, such ,
as Charges and Merchandise; but practice will convey
a distinct conception of them, and render them in time as
clear as personal accounts. ,
The advantages of double entry may fortunately be im¬
parted to almost any account-books, without sacrificing
much time and labour. Persons engaged in such busi¬
ness as that of wholesale warehousemen, manufacturers,
or retailers, may keep the chief part of their books by ,
single entry, making use of double entry to the extent of
a few pages at the end of the month or quarter, to obtain
a clear and summary view of their transactions.
As to the money or currency in which the books of a {
merchant should be kept, it is evident, first, that it can be
money of one kind only; and, next, that it must be the
money of the country in which the merchant resides.
Thus, an English house in Bordeaux must keep its ac¬
counts in French money, although its chief business may
be the export of wines to London and Dublin.
We come, in the last place, to Accounts-current, which,
though a most important portion of the accounts of a mer¬
chant, are rather the result than a constituent part of his
system of book-keeping, being in general written out from
the ledger and journal, with very slight variation or addi¬
tion. Accounts-current are prepared for transmission to
the correspondents whose names they respectively bear,
and contain the various receipts, payments, and other
transactions on their account during the proceeding six or
twelve months ; thus—• ,
Messrs Archibald Dixon & Co. of New York, in Account-current with Baring, Hall, & Co. London.
1830.
Jan. 1.
Mar. 1.
June 2.
Sept. 3.
Dec. 31.
Drs.
To Balance from last Account.
Invoice of Goods per Commerce.
Your Draft to Edward Jones..
Paid J. Jones on your account
Postage and Petty Charges du¬
ring the year 
Commission ^ per cent, on
L.325, paid for your account
Do. on L.330 received 
Balance of Interest 4765, di¬
vided by 73 
Days
to 31 st
Dec.
L. !. d.
950 10 0
762 0 0
0 9
0 0
152
173
7 18 0
1 12 6
1 13 0
65
L.2U3 19 0
365
306
202
119
Inte¬
rest
3469
2332
307
206
1830.
Feb. 28.
Apr. 30.
July 10.
Dec. 31.
London, 31j£ December 1830.
6314
Errors excepted.
Crs.
By your Remittance on J
Schneider, due 30th June...
Proceeds of 20 hhds. Sugar,per
Hector, due 31st May 
Cash received on your account
from J. Bransby 
Balance of Interest carried to
Dr 
Balance of Account carried to
your Dr. in new Account.
L. s. d.
150 0 0
473 0 0
180 0 0
1310 19 0
Days
to 31st
Dec-
184
214
174
Inte¬
rest
276
1012
261
4765
L.2113 19 0 |6314
Barinq, Hall, & Co.
, Bo
keel
II
Bo<
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r
I
I
l
t
t
o
t
t
a
o
a
a
E
n
it
is
tl
BOO
It is a rule in the best managed counting-houses to
? dispatch the accounts-current to the different correspon¬
dents as soon as possible after the day to which they are
made up. To effect that, they ought to be copied out, in
j part at least, before the 31st December or 30th June,
the dates at which they generally close, particularly as
the interest and commission cannot be calculated until
they are written out; and the whole has then to be copied
into the account-current book.
3Iode of computing Interest.—To do this correctly on the
different sums in an account-current, it is requisite to take
the number of days between each transaction, and the
state at which the account-current is closed. Take, for
example, a sum of L.531 paid on 5th October, and bear¬
ing interest consequently during eighty-seven days, until
31st December. On ascertaining the number of days,
compute the interest, either by referring to a book of in¬
terest tables, or by the following operation.
Multiply the pounds, 531, by 87, the number of days,
and the product will be 46,197 ; divide that sum bjr 7300,
and the quotient, L.6. 6s. 7d., will be the interest required.
The reasons for this process are as follows: interest at 5
per cent, for one year forms a twentieth part of the prin¬
cipal, there being a shilling of interest for every pound of
principal. On multiplying the number of pounds by the
number of days, the product 46,197, is so many 365th
parts of a shilling; divide it by 365, and the quotient,
L.126. 7d., will be the interest. But as it is desirable to
have the quotient in pounds, alter your divisor so as to ob¬
tain it in that form ; that is, multiply 365 by 20, and make
the product 7300 your divisor, or, preferably, 73 by striking
off two figures from it, and the same from the dividend;
the quotient is the interest in pounds, shillings, and pence.
As to the comparative ease of the two processes, where
the entries are few the interest tables may be used with
advantage; but whenever they are numerous, as they very
often are in accounts-current, it will save time to multiply
and divide as above.
The product by that process gives the rate of interest
at 5 per cent., making on L.400 for a year... L.20 0 0
But if 4 per cent, be the agreed rate of inte¬
rest, deduct one fifth, viz     4 0 0
And the remainder is the interest at 4 per
cent., viz  L.16 0 0
A compounding subtraction will give the interest at other
rates, such as 3|, 3, or 2£ per cent.; so that the plan of
multiplying the pounds by the days, and dividing by 73,
is applicable to any of the different rates of interest.
When accounts-current are made out, as in general
they ought to be, every six months, the 30th June is the
BOO 791
concluding date for the earlier half year. West India Book-
houses aie accustomed to balance their books and close keeping
their accounts-current once a year, viz. on 30th April. 11
There are two modes of preparing accounts-current in Book-
a counting-house. The more usual course is to write
them out from the ledger and journal, and afterwards to
copy them into the account-current book. The other
plan is to make no reference, in the first instance, to the
ledger or journal, but to post the account-current book
from the cash-book, bill-books, account-sales, invoices,
and other authorities in the counting-house, so as to ren¬
der it (the account-current book) a check on the ledger.
This, however, is of less importance than may at first be
thought, because, from the plan of the journal and ledger,
omissions are not so likely to occur in them as in the ac¬
count-current book; and the chief advantage of a sepa¬
rately posted account-current book consists in having it
brought up to a day, as it may easily be at a time that the
journal and ledger are in arrear.
Books of Account required by a Merchant.—Journal;
ledger; cash-book; bills payable, or book of his accept¬
ances ; bills receivable, or book of bills on other merchants,
to be paid to his order; order-book, with copies of all or¬
ders received; bought-book, or book for bills of parcels
delivered in; letter-book, having copies of all letters to
the correspondents of the house ; invoice-book, or account
of goods shipped or sold; account of sales-book; insurance
policy-book; petty journal, or book for such occasional
entries as are not inserted in the other books; petty cash¬
book, or book of petty disburse.
Cronhelms Book-Keeping.—It remains that we notice a
recent work on book-keeping, which has attracted atten¬
tion in Germany; we mean that of Mr F. W. Cronhelm,
published at Hamburg in 1818. The author makes use
of terms that are new and somewhat strange to an Eng¬
lish book-keeper, giving the name of “ additive property”
to the assets of a mercantile house, viz. goods, cash, or
bills receivable ; while the debts, such as bills payable, are
termed “ subtractive property.” Still his work is the re¬
sult, not of theory, but of a series of improvements on the
books of an extensive mercantile house. A clear and cir¬
cumstantial publication it certainly is, yet not materially
different from the systems of book-keeping adopted during
many years in respectable counting-houses in England and
Holland. Mr Cronhelm’s cash-book, bill-books, and his
ledger-accounts of merchandise, profit and loss, stock,
commission, interest, are all on a plan similar to those of
our regularly managed counting-houses; and had the au¬
thor resided in London or Amsterdam, he would probably
have been aware that many of his improvements had been
anticipated under a different name. (m. m.)
BOOKSELLER, one who trades in books. Booksel¬
lers, amongst us, are the same with the bibliopolcc of the
ancients, whose office was distinct from that of the libra-
rii. Petty dealers, or venders of small wares, were dis¬
tinguished by the diminutive appellation of libelliones. In
Rome, the Argiletum was the mart for books, as Paul’s
Churchyard, Fleet Street, and Paternoster Row, have been
in London.
Booksellers are in many places ranked among the mem¬
bers of universities, and entitled to the privileges of stu¬
dents; as at Tubingen, Saltzburg, and Paris, where they
have always been distinguished from the vulgar and me¬
chanical traders, and exempted from various taxes and
impositions laid on other companies. An acquaintance
with booksellers’ marks or signs, as expressed on the title-
pages of their books, is of some use, because many books,
especially in the last century, have no other designation.
The anchor is the mark of Ifaphelengius at Leyden ; and
the anchor, with a dolphin twisted round it, is that of the
Manutii at Venice and Rome. The Arion denotes a book
printed by Oporinus at Basel; the Caduceus or Pegasus,
one printed by the Wecheliuses at Paris and Frankfort;
the cranes, by Cramoisy; the compass, by Plantin at Ant¬
werp ; the fountain, by Vascosan at Paris; the sphere in
a balance, by Janson or Blaew at Amsterdam; the lily,
by the juntas at Venice, Florence, Lyons, and Rome; the
mulberry tree, by Morel at Paris; the olive-tree, by the
Stephens at Paris and Geneva, and the Elzevirs at Am¬
sterdam and Leyden; the bird between two serpents, by
the Frobeniuses at Basel; the Truth, by the Commelins
792 BOO
Boom at Heidelberg and Paris ; the Saturn, by Colinaeus ; the
!i printing-press, by Badius Ascenius; and so of the lest.
Booro. gee Bibliography. ,
The traffic in books was anciently very inconsiderable,
insomuch that the book merchants of England, France,
Spain, and other countries, were distinguished by the ap¬
pellation of stationers, as having no shops, but only stal.s
or “ stands’’ in the streets. During this state the civil
magistrates took little notice of the booksellers, leaving
the control of them to the universities, of which they
were supposed to be the more immediate letaineis, and
which accordingly gave them laws and regulations, fixed
the prices of their books, examined the correctness of
these, and punished them at discretion. But when, by
the invention of printing, books and booksellers began to
multiply, it became a matter of more consequence to re¬
gulate their proceedings; and hence sovereigns took the
direction of the bibliopoles into their own hands.
BOOM, in naval language, a long piece of timber with
which the clew of the studding-sail is spread out; but
sometimes the boom is used to spread or boom out the
clew of the main-sail.
Boom denotes also a cable stretched across the mouth of
a river or harbour, with yards, top-masts, battling, or spars
of wood, lashed to it, to prevent an enemy’s coming in.
BOOMING, among sailors, denotes the application of
a boom to the sails. A ship is said to come booming for¬
wards when she comes with all the sail she can make.
BOONDEE, a town of Hindostan, in the province of
Ajmeer, situated on the southern declivity of a long range
of hills, which run nearly from east to west. It is the resi¬
dence of a rajah, and is tributary to the Mahrattas. The
palace of the rajah is fortified, and is a massive building
of stone, situated on the brow of a hill Long. 75. 35. E.
Lat. 25. 26. N.
BOORHANPOOR, a city of Hindostan, ana the an¬
cient capital of the Khandesh province in the Mahratta
territories, situated on the north-west bank of the Tuptee.
This was formerly a large city, and when it was in a flou¬
rishing condition it extended about ten miles, as is evi¬
dent from the heaps of ruins that are now scattered about
in every direction. Boorhanpoor is the head-quarters of a
singular sect of Mahommedans, and the residence of their
high-priest. This city was at an early period conquered
by the Mahrattas, and has ever since been in a gradual
state of decay. During the war with Scindia in 1803 it
was taken possession of by Colonel Stevenson’s army with¬
out opposition, but restored at the conclusion of the peace
in the December following. The travelling distance from
Oojein is 154 miles, from Nagpoor 256, from Poonah 288,
from Bombay 340, from Agra 508, and from Calcutta by
Nagpoor 978. Long. 76. 18. E. Lat. 21. 19. N.
BOORO, an island in the Eastern Seas, situated be¬
tween the third and fourth degrees of south latitude, and
the 126th and 127th of east longitude. It may be esti¬
mated at seventy-five miles in length by thirty-eight in
average breadth. The island is of an oval shape. The
Dutch had a small fortress in the bay of Cajelli, which
was destroyed in 1689, since which period they have only
had an inclosure of palisadoes, the island not being very
profitable to them, as it yielded no spiceries. The island
is fruitful, producing large quantities of rice, sago, oranges,
lemons, citrons, cocoa-nuts, bananas, and pine-apples ; also
the cajeput tree, from the leaves of which the cajeput
oil is procured. Fine timber grows on this island, and
many kinds of beautiful wood, fit for inlaying; besides
black and white ebony, and the palm and the teak trees.
Ships may be supplied here with rice, cattle, and other
refreshments; and the woods abound with wild boars,
goats, and deer, and, among the latter, the babirusa, or
BOO
true hog-deer, as its name implies. The inhabitants ofBooroi ■<].
Booro consist of two races besides the Dutch settlers; ||! j
first, the aborigines or Alfonese, who live in the interior
of the island among inaccessible mountains, and of whom ^ a
little is known ; and secondly, of the Moors or Mahomme¬
dans, who inhabit the northern coast, and acknowledge
the authority of the Dutch. The southern coast is now
deserted, having been much infested by the Papuas from
New Guinea. The Chinese trade here for cabinet woods
and different species of dye-woods.
BOOROOJIRD, a flourishing city of Persia, in the pro¬
vince of Irak, situated at the foot of a mountain. It is the
chief town of a district peopled by a tribe called Lack, who
seldom wander far from the spots to which they are partial,
but settle in villages, and employ themselves in the im>
provement of their estates. The population is 12,000.
BOO SHATTER, formerly the city of Utica, famous
for the retreat and death of Cato, lies about seven miles
inland from Porto Farina, in the bay of Tunis.
BOOT, a leathern cover or defence for the leg, used
to keep that part of the body more firm, and to defend it
from the injuries of the weather. Boots seem to have
taken their name from the resemblance they bear to a
sort of jacks or leathern bottles formerly in use, called
bottce in Latin, and in the old French bouts. The Chinese
have a kind of boots made of silk or fine stuff, lined with
cotton, about an inch thick, which they commonly wear at
home. This people, in fact, never stir out of doors without
their boots ; and their scrupulousness in this respect is the
more remarkable, since they are always carried in chairs
The boot was much used by the ancient soldiery, foot as
well as horse. By the ancient Romans it was called
ocrea ; by the writers of the middle ages greva, gamberia,
bainberga, bembarga or benbarga. It was at first made of
leather, and afterwards of brass or iron, and was proof
against both cuts and thrusts. Hence the Greeks are de*
nominated brazen-booted and well-booted by Homer.
Boot was likewise a kind of torture for criminals, to ex-
tort a confession, by means of a boot, made to squeeze the
leg violently, and occasion intolerable pain. (See Wod-
row’s History of the Sufferings of the Church of Scotland.}
BOOTAN. This extensive region is situated between
Bengal and Thibet, and principally between the twenty-
sixth and twenty-eighth degrees of north latitude, though
its limits are far from being exactly defined. It is sup¬
posed to be 200 miles from east to west, and 90 from
north to south. To the north it is separated from Thi¬
bet by the eastern ridges of the Himalaya range, to the
south by the province of Bengal, to the east by an unex¬
plored region north of Assam, and to the west by a country
subject to the Nepaulese.
Bootan is a very mountainous and rugged country. Its Aspe of j
mountains form part of the great Himalaya chain, and the c
they abound in the most picturesque and sublime scenery.^’
“ The prospects,” says Turner, “ between abrupt and
lofty prominences were inconceivably grand; hills clothed
to their very summits with trees, dark and deep glens,
and the high tops of mountains lost in the clouds, consti¬
tuted altogether a scene of extraordinary magnificence
and sublimity.” In many parts the road, winding round
the hills, becomes a narrow ledge, and hangs over depths
which no eye can reach; and were not the horror of the
scene in some degree softened by the trees and climbing
plants which line the precipices, it would be impossible
to advance on such a perilous path. The rivers that find
a passage between mountains which hide their heads in
the clouds are frequently precipitated in tremendous ca¬
taracts over frightful precipices, or into dark and unfa¬
thomable glens, where their imprisoned waters roar and
foam like the surges of a tempestuous sea, until they
s£ \
BOO
m. issue out into the plains. Turner mentions one stream
which issues from the high grounds in a collected body;
but descends from so great a height, that before it reaches
the thick shade below, it is nearly dissipated, and appears
like the steam arising from boiling water. In so moun¬
tainous a country, abounding in torrents, bridges are fre¬
quent, and a traveller has to pass one or more in every
day’s journey. They are of various construction, gene¬
rally of timber, at other times of iron chains, on the same
plan as the chain bridges in this country. Bamboos fre¬
quently afford the material of their construction. Turner
mentions one consisting of two ropes made of twisted
creepers, stretched parallel to each other across the river,
and encircled with a hoop, on which the traveller sits
down, and seizing one rope in each hand, he slides him¬
self along, and crosses an abyss on which it is impossible
to look without shuddering. The same traveller crossed
another bridge made entirely of fir, without one particle
of iron about it. When the width of the river admits,
the timber is laid horizontally from rock to rock. Over
broader streams, a triple or quadruple row of timbers,
one row projecting over the other, and inserted into the
rock, sustains two sloping sides, which are united by a
horizontal platform of nearly equal length. The centre
is in this manner raised very much above the current, and
the whole bridge forms the figure of nearly three sides of
an octagon. Piers are seldom used, on account of the
extreme rapidity of the rivers, and the unequal height of
the opposite shores. Turner mentions that the widest
river in Bootan has an iron bridge, consisting of a number
of chains, which support a matted platform; and two
chains are stretched above, parallel with the sides, to al¬
low of a matted border, which is absolutely necessary to
the safety of the passenger, who is never quite at his ease
till he has landed from this swinging unsteady footing.
Only one horse is permitted to go over this bridge at a
time. Bridges for foot passengers are frequently formed
of two parallel chains, round which creepers are loosely
twisted, sinking very much in the middle, where suitable
planks are placed, and form a very good footing.
At the foot of the mountains between Bootan and
Bengal a plain extends for about thirty miles, covered
with the most luxuriant vegetation, but of the most noxi¬
ous atmosphere, occasioned by the exhalations from the
multitude of springs that descend from the mountains,
and which are collected and confined by these almost im¬
pervious woods. No traveller ever passed through this
unhealthy atmosphere with impunity. A British force
was sent on an expedition in 1772 against the country of
Bootan, when the greater part of the troops perished in
crossing this unhealthy tract. The jungles of high grass
or of wood by which it is covered abound in tigers, wild
buffaloes, elephants, rhinoceroses, and bears.
\ The climate, from the inequality of the ground, affords
every degree of variation from summer heat to the freez¬
ing point. At the time the inhabitants of Punakha (the
winter residence of the rajah), are afraid of exposing
themselves to an almost vertical sun, those of Ghassa ex¬
perience all the rigour of winter, and are chilled by per¬
petual snows; and both these places are within sight of
each other. On the elevated mountain heights it is cold
and moist, and here the clouds are intercepted and de¬
scend in rains. The rains, however, in the vicinity of Tas-
sisudon, the capital, are moderate. There are frequent
showers, but nothing that can be compared to the tropical
rains of Bengal. Owing to the great elevation and steep¬
ness of the mountains, dreadful tempests of winds arise
among the hollows, which are often attended with fatal
effects. A considerable village, situated on the brow of
a lofty hill, was nearly destroyed by one of these tem-
VOL. IV.
TAN. 79
pests. In one night a hurricane swept nine houses down Bootan.
the steep, with their unfortunate inmates; and though 'w»~y~w
search was afterwards made, not the slightest traces °of
them were ever found. Three houses still remain, and
their tenants, unawed by the dismal fate of their neigh¬
bours, still retain their situations. At Wandipore, a town
still farther in the interior, a perpetual hurricane prevails;
and, as a proof of the violence and steadiness of the wind,
the trees have their branches all pointed towards the
east, on which side the branches grow with vigour, and
are full of luxuriant foliage, while on the other side they
are perfectly denuded and bare. This singular effect re¬
sults from the peculiar conformation of the hills, which
throws a constant current of wind with great fury across
the corner where the trees have been planted.
The people are industrious, and devote themselves to
agriculture. In the vicinity of the cottages, which are
interspersed throughout the mountains, the land is cleared
for cultivation, and produces thriving crops of barley and
wheat, and a small grain from which they make a fer¬
mented liquor to drink. It is the practice of the hus¬
bandmen to level the ground which they cultivate on the
sides of the hills, by cutting it in shelves, and forming
beds of such a size as the slope will admit; and these
beds being bordered with a low mound of earth, the water
may be retained on them or let off at will. In irrigating
their fields the farmers of Bootan make use of the hollow
trunks of trees, by which they conduct water across the
chasms of the mountains. They are generally good hus¬
bandmen, and display much industry in the management
of their grounds. Their corn fields are neatly dressed;
though the credit of this is due more to the women than
the men, as by far the greatest share of the labour falls
upon them. They plant, they weed, and they reap and
thresh out the corn. They are exposed, in a variety of
laborious offices, to the inclemency of the weather; while
the men, living in idleness, enjoy the fruits of their toils.
Fruits are very abundant, namely, lemons, limes, citrons, Produce,
oranges, and walnuts, which are exquisite; excellent pome¬
granates, peaches, and apricots; apples, pears, &c. which
are harsh, and of a disagreeable flavour. Strawberries,
raspberries, and blackberries are found growing wild in the
woods. Large turnips of an excellent quality are also pro¬
duced. They are free from fibres, and remarkably sweet.
The climate is generally well adapted to the production
both of European and Asiatic fruits and vegetables. Po¬
tatoes have been introduced; but, either from ignorance
or idleness, the inhabitants have failed in the cultivation
of this valuable root. The forests abound with a variety
of stately trees, and the fir is often found eight or ten feet
in circumference. The other trees seen in the woods are
the beech, the ash, birch, maple, cypress, yew, and pine.
There are no oak trees. Among these mountains, in the
vicinity of Murichom, grows the cinnamon tree. Some of
the roots and branches were examined by Mr Turner in
the course of his journey to Thibet; but the plant being
neither in blossom nor bearing fruit, it was impossible to
decide whether it was the true cinnamon or an inferior kind
of cassia. The leaf, however, corresponded with the de¬
scription given of the true cinnamon by Linnaeus. In
approaching the summits of the highest mountains, the
stately trees of the forest disappear, and are succeeded
by that hardy and dwrarfish species of vegetation which is
peculiar to mountainous tracts.
Wild animals are extremely rare in Bootan ; and Turner Animals,
mentions, as an extraordinary circumstance, that he one
day saw a multitude of monkeys playing their gambols
by the road side. They are of a large and handsome kind,
with black faces surrounded by a streak of white hair, and
having very long slender limbs. They are held sacred by
794 BOO
Bootan. the Booteans as well as by the Hindoos. The horse, a cer-
tain species of which is indigenous to Bootan, and is used
as a domestic animal, is called tangun, from Tangustan,
the general appellation of that assemblage of mountains
which constitutes the territory of Bootan. It is peculiar
to this tract, not being found in any of the neighbouring
countries of Assam, Nepaul, Thibet, or Bengal, and unites
in an eminent degree the two qualities of strength and
beauty, being remarkable for symmetry and just propor¬
tions. The Tangun horse is usually about thirteen hands
high, short-bodied, clean-limbed, and deep in the chest, yet
extremely active. Being constantly accustomed to struggle
against acclivities, there is a surprising energy and vigour
in all his movements; and this indomitable spirit is sup¬
posed by Europeans to proceed from a headstrong and
ungovernable temper, while in reality it is only an excess
of eagerness in the performance of any allotted task. The
colour of this horse usually inclines to pyebald, and those of
one colour are rarely to be found. Though the larger ani¬
mals are scarce, the country is in some parts infested by
insects. A venomous fly annoys the inhabitants of Muri-
chom and its vicinity. It differs from the mosquito both
in form and size, but fixes itself in the same manner, and
draws blood with its proboscis. It leaves behind a small
blister, full of black contaminated blood, which enlarges
and inflames, and becomes extremely troublesome. Most
of the inhabitants are so marked by wounds from this fly,
that such parts as are exposed to the air ai’e covered with
scurf; and being sometimes attended with tumours, ac¬
quire a very diseased appearance.
Inhabi- The inhabitants of this elevated tract are of active ha-
tants. bits and of a Herculean make, many of them being six
feet' high, and are entirely different from the feeble and
timid natives of Bengal. A general resemblance of fea¬
tures pervades the whole race of these hardy mountaineers.
They are fairer than their Bengal neighbours, and have
generally broader faces, with high cheek-bones. They
have invariably black hair, which it is their fashion to cut
close to the head. The eye, which is a remarkable feature
in their face, is small and black, with long pointed cor¬
ners, as if stretched and extended by artificial means.
Their eye-lashes are so thin as to be scarcely perceptible.
Their face is rather flat, narrowing from the cheek-bones
to the chin, and broadest below the eyes,—a physiognomy
which somewhat resembles that of the Tartars, though it is
far more strongly marked among the Chinese. They have
very small beards, and they generally reach an advanced
age before they have the appearance of any; and in this
also they resemble the Tartars. They are greatly affected
with those glandular swellings in the throat to which the
inhabitants of mountain districts are frequently liable, and
which prevail among the natives of the Alps, and in Styria,
Carinthia, the Ukraine, and the Tyrol. These swellings
extend below the chin from ear to ear, and sometimes grow
to such an enormous size as to hang from the throat down
upon the breast.
The Booteans are not a warlike people, and in the brief
contest which took place in 1772 with the British, though
they displayed great personal courage, they were unable
to withstand the effects of musketry and cannon. Their
military accoutrements are extremely cumbrous. As a
defence against the weapons of- their opponents, they
cover their bodies with a prodigious deal of clothing,
wearing under the common mantle a blanket or thick
quilted jacket. On the arm is carried a large corner
shield of painted cane, and a long straight sword is worn
across the body. To these is added a bow, six feet long,
made of bamboo, remarkable for its elasticity and strength.
The arrow is headed by a flattened barb of pointed iron,
the sides of which are sometimes grooved to admit the
T A N.
lodgment of poison, with which deadly substance it is Boc |iJ t
frequently charged. The plant which affords this poison Jv»
is described as growing to the height of three-or four feet,
with a hollow stalk. The juice is inspissated, and laid as
a paste on their arrows; but it has not all the effect in¬
tended, as the wound thus inflicted seldom proves fatal.
Some of them are armed with matchlocks, which are in
general badly made, and in wretched order. In the ma¬
nagement of the sword and shield they are very dexte¬
rous, and are excellent archers. They have no cannon.
The Booteans have made no great advances in the arts
and improvements of life, though in the construction of
public works, such as bridges, aqueducts, &c. they dis- T
play both perseverance and ingenuity. The nature of
the bridges which they construct has been already de¬
scribed. The aqueducts which they contrive are for the
purpose of diffusing the water that issues from the moun¬
tain springs over the valleys, which are thus irrigated and
rendered fit for agriculture. These conduits, although com¬
posed of the hollowed trunks of large trees, forced in the
soil which covers the rock, or sustained by beams inserted | e
in it, convey the waters across deep dells and along the
sides of precipices, and exhibit in a very favourable view
the ingenuity and industry of the people, especially when
it is considered that, being surrounded and shut up on
every side by impervious mountains, they are left to their
own resources, and cannot borrow aid from the inventions
of more improved nations. Their houses are in general of
one story, and not commodious. They have no fire¬
places ; and when the cold forces them to have recourse
to a fire, one is kindled in the middle of the room on a large
flat stone; and the inmates, ranging themselves round it,
are enveloped in volumes of pure smoke, which has no
other exit but the windows, and never fails by its pun¬
gency to annoy all who are present.
The Booteans are social and cheerful in their manners.
The women and the men mix freely together; and they
are frequently seen sitting under the cavities of the rocks
or other sheltered places, chatting together in great good
humour, and occasionally indulging in obstreperous laugh¬
ter. They generally exhibit a picture of rosy health ; the
women in particular, with their jet black hair, and clear,
brisk, black eyes, possess a ruddiness which, according to
Turner, the most florid English rustic would in vain at¬
tempt to rival. Yet they are far from being cleanly in their i,
habits ; nor are their manners and amusements of a refined
cast. A bull fight is a favourite exhibition, for which pur¬
pose they train the largest and fiercest animals of the species
that can be procured. They are led to the ground well
secured with strong ropes fastened to them, struggling
violently as if impatient of restraint, and rolling their pro¬
minent eyes with fury as if instructed in the fierce purpose
for which they are brought together. Being released for
the conflict, they do not rush instantly together, but ad¬
vance cautiously, eyeing each other askance, until being
within a short distance, they rush together with a dread¬
ful concussion; and the contest continues until one or
other is overpowered by the superior strength of his an¬
tagonist, when they are separated.
The temperature, from the elevation of the country, is
so cold that the inhabitants require warm covering; and
hence their clothing consists of thick woollen cloths. Their
mode of living is simple ; their food consisting of fruits,
vegetables, and roots. Tea is as comrrion a refreshment
as in China, but the mode of preparation is extremely
different. It is not merely an infusion which is here used.
The tea itself is beat up with water, flour, butter, salt, and
other ingredients, which are all mixed together. This is a
regale not much suited to a European palate, yet it is said
by those who have visited the country to become more
BOO
'l join- acceptable by habit, and by a little practice even to be
^^ esteemed a luxury. Having finished the cup, they lick it in
order to make it clean, when it is wrapt up, to be preserved,
in a piece of scarlet silk. They extract a spirit from rice,
wheat, barley, or other kinds of grain, which they call
chong, and which is prepared by the infusion of a mass of
grain when in a state of fermentation. It is a slightly acid
and spirituous liquor, and is a most grateful beverage,
especially when warm, and when fatigue and heat induce
intemperate thirst. From this preparation of fermented
grain an ardent spirit is obtained by distillation, here
termed arra, which is fiery and powerfully inebriating.
' [ai ic- The Booteans have scarcely any manufactures. They
re have a class of workmen who are employed in forgingbrazen
gods, and various other ornaments disposed about religious
buildings. They also manufacture paper from the bark of
a tree which grows on the mountains in the interior, and
which is of so strong a texture that it is capable of being
woven, when cut by way of ornament, into the texture of
silks and satins.
;e' ion rce. We know little of the commerce of Bootan. The ge¬
neral policy of the people seems to resemble that of the
Chinese in excluding strangers from their dominions. It
is certain that a decided aversion to all intercourse with
the natives of Hindostan has always prevailed among the
natives on its northern frontier. The district of Ring-
pore in Bengal is no doubt annually visited by a caravan
from Bootan, which brings with it oranges, walnuts, and
the coarse woollen manufactures of the country, with the
horses which carry them, for sale; and it returns after a
month’s stay with the cotton cloths, salt, and other arti¬
cles, the produce of Bengal. But the inhabitants of the
latter country have never been allowed the same privilege
of free access to Bootan. The people evince an extreme
jealousy of strangers, from a dread that, if once admitted
into the country, and knowing all its paths, they might
attempt its conquest. The presents sent by the ruler of
Bootan to the Bengal presidency in 1772 consisted of
sheets of gilt leather stamped with the black eagle of the
Russian armorial, talents of gold and silver, bulses of gold
dust, bags of genuine musk, narrow woollen cloths of Thi¬
bet manufacture, and Chinese silk. The chests which
contained them were of good workmanship, and joined
together by dove-tail work.
lo i- The supreme ruler of Bootan is called the Deb Raja. He
le resides at Tassisudon, and possesses unlimited sway over
his subjects, who show him unbounded veneration, prostrat¬
ing themselves nine times in his presence, after the eastern
fashion. He appears, however, to exercise his authority
with mildness and moderation ; and the conversation which
he had with the British embassy was replete with moral
and religious maxims, and with sentiments of enlightened
humanity. The people follow the religion of Buddha ; and
the priests form a distinct class, who are called gylongs, and
are bound by the most rigid vows of celibacy. They are
dispersed throughout the country in monasteries, and other
buildings appropriated to their use. About 1500 of them
inhabit the palace at Tassisudon. They are entirely ex¬
empted from labour, and their sole occupation consists in
performing the duties of their faith ; and, along with chas¬
tity, they are enjoined to observe temperance and so¬
briety. This establishment is recruited by voluntary
members; yet a custom prevails, by which every family
which has more than four boys is bound to contribute one
of them to the priestly order. At the age of ten they
commence their noviciate, which continues until twenty.
They enjoy great distinction, and from them are selected
the public functionaries of the state. It is their practice
to assemble at day-break in their chapels for the perform¬
ance of their orisons, which are chanted to the clamorous
BOO
795
noise of numerous instruments; and the same thing takes Bootan.
place at noon, and also in the evening, when the day is
closed with prayer. They are then inclosed within the
gates of their residence, as well for the sake of tranquillity
and safety, as to prevent a violation of their rigid rules of
chastity.
The principal towns of Bootan are Tassisudon the capi-Towns,
tal, Poonakha, Wandipore, Ghassa, and Murichom. Our
knowledge of the country is very imperfect, and reaches
very little beyond the line traversed by Europeans. We
have no data for forming any estimate of the population,
which, from the remotely-scattered towns and villages,
we may conjecture to be very scanty.
The Deb Raja has always manifested the strongest in¬
clination to extend his territories by encroaching on those
of his neighbours; and as they are not divided by any
distinctly marked boundary line from those of the East
India Company, the respective dominions of the two pow¬
ers being, on the contrary, intermixed in the most irre¬
gular manner, it is extremely difficult to detect encroach¬
ments. In 1772, as already mentioned, he suddenly in¬
vaded the principality of Cooch Bahar, and, meeting with
little opposition, took possession of the country. But the
vigorous advance of Captain Jones with two battalions
of native infantry, and the capture by storm of the for¬
tress of Delamcotta, struck terror into the Raja, and com¬
pelled him to sue for peace. Since this period the same
persevering desire has always been displayed by the
Booteans to encroach on the British possessions along the
whole frontier line from the Sutledge to the Brahmaputra;
and though in many instances their crafty policy has been
thwarted, it has frequently proved successful. The Bidy-
agong zemindary, which was bound to furnish 400 ele¬
phants annually to the British government, was taken pos¬
session of by the troops of the Deb Raja while the atten¬
tion of the British presidency was directed to other ob¬
jects ; and it was finally determined afterwards, when the
circumstance was brought under the consideration of the
British authorities in India, to relinquish all claim to these
lands, which were judged to be of trivial importance. In
1815 a native agent was deputed to Lassa by the Bengal
government to fix some questions concerning the boun¬
daries ; but his progress was stopt at Bootan, where he
remained above a year; and on his return he gave in a
report of his journey, which, however, contained no satis¬
factory information on the state of the country which he
visited. In 1816 the advance of the Chinese forces to¬
wards Nepaul occasioned great alarm to the temporal ruler
of Bootan, between whom and the spiritual ruler on the
Dharma there existed a serious difference, which, it was
supposed, would terminate in the deposition of the former.
In the event of a civil war between the two claimants of
the supreme power, one of them would probably seek the
friendship of the British, and the other of the Chinese,
who will probably succeed in establishing their authority
in Bootan, as they have already done in Thibet. (f.)
BOOTES, a constellation of the northern hemisphere.
Arcturus, a star of the first magnitude, is in this constel¬
lation.
BOOTH, Barton, a celebrated English actor, born in
Lancashire in 1681, and educated in Westminster school
under the celebrated Dr Bushby, where his success in the
Latin plays customarily performed by the scholars gave
him an inclination for the stage. He was intended for
the church; but having run away from school to Dublin,
he there commenced actor. His first appearance was in
the part of Oroonoko, in which he obtained the most
flattering testimonials of approbation from the audience.
From this time he continued daily improving; and after
two successful campaigns in Ireland, conceived thoughts
796 BOO
Booth, of returning to his native country, and making a trial of
w'Y"'w/ his abilities on the English stage. To this end he first
reconciled himself to his friends ; and then, as a further
step towards insuring success, he obtained from Lord
Fitzharding, one of the lords of the bed-chamber to Prince
George of Denmark, a recommendation to Mr Better-
ton, who, with great candour and good nature, took him
under his care, and gave him all the assistance in his
power. The first part Mr Booth appeared in at London
was that of Maximus in Lord Rochester’s Valentinian,
his reception in which exceeded even his most sanguine
expectations; and soon afterwards his performance of
Artaban, in Rowe’s Ambitious Stepmother, a new tragedy,
established his reputation as only second to his great in¬
structor. Pyrrhus, in the Distressed Mother, was another
part in which he shone without a rival. But he was in¬
debted to a happy coincidence of merit and chance for
that height of fame which he at length attained in the
character of Cato, as drawn by Mr Addison. For this
play being considered as a party one, the Whigs, in favour
of whose principles it was apparently written, thought it
their duty to support it strongly; while at the same time
the Tories, who had too much sense to appear to consider
it as a reflection on their administration, were still more
vehement in their approbation, which they carried to such
a height as even to make a collection of fifty guineas in
the boxes during the performance, and present it to Mr
Booth, with this compliment, “ that it was a slight ac¬
knowledgment for his honest opposition to a perpetual
dictator, and his dying so bravely in the cause of liberty.”
Besides this, he had a present of an equal sum from the
managers, in consideration of the extraordinary success of
the play, which they attributed in a great measure to his
merit in the performance ; and it is certain that no one
since that time has ever equalled, or even approached,
his excellence in this character. But these were not the
only advantages which accrued to Mr Booth from his suc¬
cess in this part; for Lord Bolingbroke, then one of the
principal secretaries of state, soon after procured a spe¬
cial license from Queen Anne, recalling all the former
ones, and nominating Mr Booth joint manager with Wilkes,
Cibber, and Dogget. None of these persons, however,
was satisfied with the arrangement; and the last especi¬
ally took such disgust as to withdraw himself from any
further share in the management. In 1704; Mr Booth
married a daughter of Sir William Barkham, Bart, who
died in 1710, without issue. But being fully established
in the management, he once more turned his thoughts
towards matrimony, and, in the year 1719, united him¬
self to the celebrated Miss Hester Santlow, a woman of a
most amiable disposition, whose great merit as an actress,
added to the utmost discretion and prudential economy,
had enabled her to save a considerable fortune. Dur¬
ing the twenty years in which Mr Booth continued a
manager, the theatre was in the greatest credit; and his
illness and death, which happened on the 10th of May
1733, contributed not a little to its decline.
Mr Booth wrote a dramatic entertainment called Dido
and JEneas ; but his masterpiece was a Latin inscription
to the memory of Mr William Smith, a promising actor,
who died while young. As an actor, his excellency lay
wholly in tragedy; nor was he able to endure any parts
but those which had strong passion to inspire him; and
even in this walk, dignity rather than ease, rage rather
than tenderness, seemed to be his forte. Some idea of his
abilities may be formed from the description Mr Cibber
has given ot Booth in his Apology, and from the charac¬
ter drawn of him by Aaron Hill, in a political paper called
the Prompter, which may be seen at length in Cibber’s
Lives of the Poets, and Chetwood’s History of the Stage,
BOR
• ' - - 4 t Lb
His character as a man was adorned with many amiable Booti
qualities, among which goodness of heart, the basis of || 1 i
almost every virtue, was remarkably conspicuous. Aouu v,
BOOTON, an island in the Eastern Seas, situated off the ,^CK
south-eastern extremity of Celebes, about the 5th degree 1
of south latitude. It is estimated at eighty-five miles
in length by twenty miles in average breadth. It is se¬
parated from the island of Pangansane by a narrow strait;
and is productive, yielding rice, maize, yams, and a variety
of tropical fruits. The inhabitants are of a short stature,
and tawny complexion. They speak the Malay language,
and are Mahommedans. The Dutch had formerly a settle¬
ment here, in the bay of Booton.
BOOTY, whatever is taken from an enemy in time of
war. Amongst the Greeks, the booty was the common
property of the army, of which the general only claim¬
ed a larger share. According to the military discipline
of the Romans, spoils taken from the enemy belonged to
the republic, particular persons having no right to them.
The generals who piqued themselves on their probity car¬
ried it wholly to the public treasury. Amongst the Jews
the booty was divided equally between the army and the
people, although under the kings a different kind of dis¬
tribution obtained. Amongst the Mahommedans two
thirds of the spoils are allowed to the army, and the re¬
maining third to God, to Mahommed and his relations, and
to the orphans, the poor, and the pilgrims.
BOPAL, an extensive town of Hindostan, in the pro¬
vince of Malwah, surrounded with a stone wall, on the
outside of which is a large gunge or mart, with wide and
straight streets. On a rising ground to the south-west of
the town is a fort called Futtehgur, built on a solid rock,
and surrounded with square towers. Under the walls of
the fort is a tank or pond, six miles in length. The town
and territory of Bopal are occupied by a colony of Patans.
Long. 71. 21. E. Lat. 23. 10. N.
BOQUINIANS, in Ecclesiastical History, a sect of he¬
retics, so called from Boquinus their founder, who taught
that Christ did not die for all mankind, but only for the
faithful, and consequently was only a particular Saviour.
BORACIC ACID (Sassoline or native boracic acid;
boraxsaure), in Mineralogy, the only known compound of
boron and oxygen, occurs in white pearly scales, which
are soft and greasy to the touch, and have an acidulous
taste. It fuses easily in the flame of a candle, and yields
a glossy globule, which on cooling becomes opake if
any gypsum be in combination. When dissolved in al¬
cohol it communicates to the flame a fine green tinge; a
test which affords the best possible indication of the pre¬
sence of boracic acid. Its specific gravity is equal to P48;
and, according to Berzelius, it consists of boron 25*83,
and oxygen 74T7. The most celebrated deposit of this
substance is the Solfatara, within the ancient crater of
Volcano, one of the Lipari isles, where it is sublimated in
the form of a thin filament or cake on the surface of the
sulphur, and around the fumaroles, whence it arises.
These incrustations are composed of small flaky particles,
of a delicate silky white colour, very soft, and so greasy to
the touch, that a portion invariably sticks to the finger.
They are usually not more than an inch in thickness, have
sometimes a fibrous structure, and are always more or
less tinged with sulphur. It occurs both massive and
pulverulent; in which last case the particles form merely
a filament or loose covering on the surface of the sulphur,
without any attachment or adhesion to each other. Bo¬
racic acid is likewise deposited by several of the lagune
in Tuscany, and at the hot springs of Sasso, a locality
which has procured it the trivial name of Sassoline. The
mineral from these deposits, however, differs materially
in appearance from that of Volcano. It is grayer in the
BOR
Be ite colour, considerably harder, and shows traces of indistinct
crystalization. Moreover, according to an analysis by
B ^ Klaproth, the Tuscan variety contains eleven per cent, sul-
^ phate of magnesia, an ingredient totally foreign to that
from Volcano.
BORACITE, or Borate of Magnesia, in Mineralogy,
occurs only in tessellar crystals, remarkably well de¬
fined. These are sometimes translucent, but generally
opake, and of a gray or a yellowish-white colour. Their
specific gravity is equal to 2‘974, and their contents, ac¬
cording to PfafF, are, boracic acid 54*55, magnesia 30*68,
oxide of iron 0*57, and silica 2*27. Boracite, before the
blow-pipe upon charcoal, intumesces and melts into a
glassy globule, which on cooling becomes white and opake.
It has hitherto been found only at Luneburg in Bruns¬
wick, and at Segeberg in Holstein, imbedded in com¬
pound varieties of gypsum and anhydrite.
BORACK, among Mahommedans, a fabulous animal,
of the middle kind between an ass and a mule, on which
their prophet was supposed to have been carried in his
nocturnal flight from Jerusalem to the heavens. This
animal the Arabians call Al Borak, that is, shining. The
night on which the journey was performed is called Lailat
alMeeraga, or the night of ascension; and the flight itself Al
Mesra, or Hejira, concerning which there is a multitude
of traditions.
BORAX, in Mineralogy; borate of soda, tinkal, soude
boratee. This salt is usually of a white or gray colour,
translucent, feebly alkaline to the taste, soluble in water,
and consists, according to Klaproth, of soda 14*5, boracic
acid 37*0, and water 47*0. It intumesces before the
blow-pipe, and then melts into a transparent globule;
when in solution it changes the blue colour of litmus into
green. Its chief locality is Thibet, where it is found on
the surface of the soil, in the vicinity and at the bottom
of certain lakes. It is there collected and sent to Europe
in the form of a brownish-gray, impure salt, from which the
artificial borax is obtained by the addition of a greater
quantity of soda. It is made use of as a flux, in forming imi¬
tation gems, and in the process of soldering. It is also of
great utility in analysis by the blow-pipe, and in some cases
in glass manufactories. See Chemistry and Mineralogy.
BORBORITES, in Ecclesiastical History, a sect of gnos¬
tics, in the second century, who, besides embracing the
errors of these heretics, denied the last judgment. They
were so called from the Greek word fiogfiogog, filth; on ac¬
count of a custom they had of bedaubing their faces and
bodies with ordure.
BORDA, John Charles, a mathematician and nau¬
tical astronomer, celebrated for his improvements in the
theory of hydraulics and pneumatics, and in the construc¬
tion of instruments for observation. He was born at Drax,
on the 4th of May 1733, and was originally destined for the
bar; but abandoned the pursuit of the law in favour of a
military life, which he considered as better calculated to
afford him opportunities for the cultivation of his mathe¬
matical talents, and for the application of the results of
his studies to practice. His acquirements in science had
very early attracted the attention of D’Alembert, who
redicted his future eminence, and warmly recommended
is turning his thoughts to the occupation of a place in
the academy. He obtained a commission in the light ca¬
valry, and was appointed teacher of mathematics to the
corps; and, in 1756, he presented to the Academy of Sci¬
ences (A) A Memoir on the Paths of Bombs, which was or¬
dered to be printed in the collection of the Savans Etran-
gers, but which has not excited much attention. He was
elected in the same year a member of the academy; and
in the next he was present at the battle of Hastinbeck,
in the capacity of aid-de-camp to the celebrated General
b o r 797
Maillebois, to whom he looked up as a great master in the Borda.
art of war.
He was afterwards admitted into the corps of engineers,
without the usual form of examination into his qualifica¬
tions ; and being stationed at a sea-port, the occurrences
of the place naturally directed his attention anew to the
phenomena of the resistance of fluids. He published, in
1763, a detailed memoir on this subject (B. Mem. Ac. Par.
1763, p. 358), in which he relates a variety of experi¬
ments, showing that the resistance of the air is actually
proportional to the square of the velocity, as had com¬
monly been supposed from theoretical considerations. He
also determines, by other experiments, the magnitude of
the resistance to the motion of a sphere, and proves that
nothing can be more erroneous than the supposition that
the resistance to an oblique surface decreases as the
square of the sine of the angle of incidence. He also finds,
that the resistance to the motioq of a cube, in the direc¬
tions of the diagonal of its base and of one of the sides, are
as 21 to 16, while the calculations of former theorists had
made the resistance greatest in the direction of the side.
In 1766 he published an Essay on the discharge of
fluids through the orifices of vessels (C. Mem. Ac. Par.
1766, p. 579), in which he first states the objections to
considering the different strata of a fluid as descending in
all cases very nearly in parallel directions ; he examines
the contraction of the jet after its escape from the orifice,
and determines some of the effects of abrupt changes in
the velocity of the fluid passing through pipes or apertures
of different forms.
He contributed, in 1767, to the publications of the aca¬
demy, an important Memoir on Water Wheels (D. p. 270),
which has escaped the notice of his able biographer M.
Lacroix. He observes, in this paper, that the simple hy¬
pothesis of a resistance varying as the square of the velo¬
city, which is so near the truth in common cases, where a
number of particles, proportional to the velocity, strikes, in
a given time, upon a small exposed surface with a force also
proportional to the velocity, is totally inapplicable to the
action of a confined stream upon the floatboards of a wheel,
since in this instance the number of particles concerned
cannotvary materially with the velocity, the whole stream
being supposed to operate in all cases upon the successive
floatboards; so that the analogy would require us to sup¬
pose the force in this case nearly proportional to the sim¬
ple relative velocity; a conclusion which agrees remark¬
ably well with the experiments of some practical authors.
The same volume contains a continuation of M. Borda’s
researches relating to the resistance of oblique surfaces
(E. Mem. Ac. Par. 1767, p. 495), with a statement of ex¬
periments still more conclusively confuting the received
hypothesis respecting oblique impulse than his former
investigations had done. We also find in it an Essay on
isoperimetrical problems (F. p. 551), in which it is shown
that Euler’s method of treating them, which had been in
great measure abandoned by its equally profound and
candid author, in favour of the more general and more
elegant calculations of Lagrange, was still capable of af¬
fording all the results that had been derived from the me¬
thod of variations ; and he even pointed out some deficien¬
cies in the first memoir of Lagrange, which contained the
detail of his ingenious invention. These investigations of
M. Borda afford collateral evidence of the strict truth
of the demonstrations of both his great predecessors ; and
though they have been little employed by later mathema¬
ticians, yet it must be admitted to be of some importance,
in enabling us to appreciate the value of a new mode of
calculation, to determine whether its results are or are not
such as might be obtained with almost equal convenience
by methods before in use.
798 BOR
Borda. His memoir, inserted in the collection of the Academy
for 1768 (G. Mem. Ac. Par. 1768, p. 18), is devoted ex¬
clusively to the theory of pumps; and he considers espe¬
cially the effect of the passage of the fluid through valves
and other contracted parts in diminishing the quantity of
the discharge. His results are derived from the principle
of the preservation of the living force or energy of a sys¬
tem of bodies, throughout all the vicissitudes of its mo¬
tions, which had before been employed with success by
Daniel Bernoulli in problems of a similar nature ; but it
was not until the experiments of Buat had afforded suf¬
ficient grounds for the determination of the friction of
fluids, that cases of this kind could be submitted to exact
calculation.
In his Essay on the curve described by cannon-balls,
• published among the Memoirs for 1769 (H. Mem. Ac. Par.
1769, p. 247), he has greatly simplified the practical theory
of projectiles, which had been treated in a satisfactory
though very general manner by John Bernoulli, and had
been reduced into a much more convenient form by Euler.
M. Borda has substituted some approximate expressions
for the true value of the density of the air, and has thus
been enabled to integrate equations which, in their more
strictly correct form, had resisted the powers of Euler
himself; and he has justified the adoption of the formulas
thus obtained by a comparison with experiment.
In the mean time his talents were very actively em¬
ployed in the naval service of his country, which he en¬
tered in 1767, by the nomination of M. Praslin. The
time-keepers of Le Roy and Berthoud were beginning to
rival those of the English artists, and the French govern¬
ment ordered several vessels to be fitted out for cruises,
in order to examine the accuracy of these time-keepers.
M. Borda was appointed a lieutenant on board of the
Flore, and acted jointly with M. Pingre as a delegate of
the Academy of Sciences for the purposes of the expedi¬
tion. The voyage occupied about a year, and extended
to the Canaries, the West Indies, Newfoundland, Iceland,
and Denmark. M. Borda had a considerable share in the
account which was published of the observations ; and the
formula which he has here given for the correction of the
effects of refraction and parallax is considered as equally
elegant and convenient. He also presented to the aca¬
demy a separate memoir on the results of the expedition.
(I. Voyage pour eprouver les Montres de Le Roy. 4. Paris.
K. Mem. Ac. Par. 1773, p. 258.) After an interval of
six weeks, these watches were found capable of determin¬
ing the longitude within about fifteen minutes of the truth.
In order to supply some deficiencies in the observations
made at the Canaries, Borda was sent out a second time,
with the Boussole and the Espiegle; and he published,
after his return (L.), a very correct and highly finished
map of these islands. He was soon afterwards promoted
to the rank of captain, and served under the Count d’Es-
taing as a major-general, an appointment nearly similar
to that of our captains of the fleet. In this capacity he
observed the inconvenience of too great a variety in the
sizes of the vessels constituting a fleet, and proposed to
abolish the class of fifty and of sixty-four gun ships, as too
small for the line of battle, and to build ships of three
rates only, the lowest carrying seventy-four guns, so that
a smaller quantity of stores should require to be kept
ready for use in the dock-yards, than when ships of more
various dimensions were to be refitted. In 1780 he bad
the command of the Guerrier, and in 1781 of the Solitaire,
which was taken after a gallant resistance by an English
squadron. He was thus compelled to pay a visit to Great
Britain, but was immediately set at liberty upon his parole.
He proposed to the academy in this year (M. Mem. Ac.
Par. 1781), a mode of regulating elections, which was
BOR
adopted by that body. Its peculiarity consisted in hav- Bon
ing the names of the candidates arranged by each voter /
in a certain order, and collecting the numbers expressing
the degrees of preference into separate results, so that the
simple majority of voters did not necessarily establish the
claim of any individual, if he was placed very low in the
list by any considerable number of those who voted
against him. But it must be allowed that this mode of
election is by no means wholly unobjectionable.
M. Borda appears to have rendered an essential service
to the cultivators oT practical astronomy by the introduc¬
tion and improvement of the repeating circle, although
this instrument has probably been less employed in Great
Britain than elsewhere, on account of the greater perfec¬
tion of those which were previously in common use. It
had been suggested by Mayer in 1767, that a circle with
two movable sights would enable us to observe a given
angle a great number of times in succession, and to add
together the results, without any error in reading them
off, and thus to obtain a degree of precision equal to that
of much larger and better instruments of a different con¬
struction ; but the proposal had been little noticed until
ten years afterwards, when Borda pursued the path point¬
ed out by Mayer, and trained Lenoir, then a young and
unlicensed artist, to the execution of the improved instru¬
ment, notwithstanding the opposition of the rival opticians,
and the want of encouragement from the opulent public.
He published in 1787 (N.) his Description and Use of the
Reflecting Circle, with different Methods for Calculating
the Principal Observations of Nautical Astronomy; but
the officers of the French navy, for whom this work was
intended, appear to have profited but little by his instruc¬
tions. His instrument was, however, much employed in
the operations for determining the length of the terrestrial
meridian; and he himself took charge of the experiments
required for ascertaining the length of the pendulum, and
for the comparison of the different standards with each
other. He invented some very ingenious methods of over¬
coming the difficulties which present themselves in the
pursuit of these objects ; but he was interrupted in his re¬
searches by the horrors of the Revolution, nor did he live
to see the whole of the operations completed. He en¬
deavoured, also, to promote the introduction of the new
mode of subdividing the circle, by the laborious computa¬
tion of Tables of Logarithms (O. 4to, Par. 1801) adapted
to decimal parts of the quadrant; a work in which he
was assisted by M. Delambre. From the increasing indis¬
position of M. Callet, who had undertaken to correct the
proofs of these tables, some very material errors had been
committed in the first half of the tables, and M. Borda
thought it necessary to cancel a great number of the
pages ; and in order to meet the expense thus entailed on
him, he was obliged to dispose of an estate which he had
lately acquired in his native place. He was also engaged,
towards the close of his life, in the measurement of the
force of magnetism, and in the calculations of astronomi¬
cal refraction. His health had been threatened for several
successive winters, and he died the 10th of March 1799.
In his manners he was animated and unaffected. Fie
avoided those who sought his acquaintance merely from
the vanity of being intimate with a man of talents, what¬
ever pretensions to importance they might derive from
their casual relations to general society. He never mar¬
ried ; and he was too much absorbed in the pursuit of
science to associate with a very extensive circle even of
private friends. Though not a man of learning, he was
not deficient in literary taste ; and he was, in particular, a
passionate admirer of Homer. Fie seems to have posses¬
sed a considerable share of that natural tact and sagacity
which was so remarkable in Newton, and which we also
BOR
irde. discover in the works of Daniel Bernoulli; enabling them,
- V'-' like a sort of instinct, to elude the insurmountable diffi¬
culties with which direct investigations are often encum¬
bered ; while Euler, on the contrary, as M. Lacroix most
truly observes, seems to have taken pleasure in searching
for matter which would give scope to his analytical inge¬
nuity, although wholly foreign to the physical investiga¬
tions which had first led him to the difficulties in ques¬
tion. It would have been fortunate for the progress of
science, if some of the most celebrated of M. Borda’s
countrymen had profited by his example, in studying to
attain that unostentatious simplicity which is the last re¬
sult of the highest cultivation. (Lacroixfin Rapport dcs
Travaux de la Societe Philomathique, vol. iv. 8. Par.
1800). (l. l.)
BORDE, Andrew, a physician, jocularly surnamed
Perforatus, was born at Pevensey in Sussex early in the
sixteenth century, and supposed to have been educated
at Westminster school. In his Introduction to Knowledge,
he says he was a student of Oxford, but omits mentioning
in what college. He left the university without a degree,
and entered himself as a brother in a Carthusian convent
near London; but not liking the severe discipline of the
order, he returned to Oxford, and applied himself to the
study of physic. Some time after he embarked for the
continent, and, as he himself expresses it, “ travelled
through and round about Christendom, and out of Chris¬
tendom into some parts of Africa.” In the years 1541
and 1542 he resided at Montpelier in France, where he
was received as doctor of physic; and after his return
to England he was admitted to the same degree at Ox¬
ford. From the preface to his Introduction above men¬
tioned, it appears that he had been in Scotland, probably
soon after his return from France. Having now satisfied
his inclination for travelling, he settled first at Pevensey,
afterwards at Winchester, and finally in London, whei'e
he is said to have become a fellow of the college of phy¬
sicians, and first physician to Henry VIII. But notwith¬
standing his eminence in his profession, he had the mis¬
fortune to spend the latter part of his life in the Fleet
prison, where he died in the year 1549, about the age of
forty-nine. Wood says that “ he was esteemed a noted
poet, a witty and ingenious person, and an excellent phy¬
sician Pits calls him a man of sufficient learning, but
too volatile and inconstant, while Bale and some others,
on the contrary, abuse him grossly. His writings are, 1.
A book of the Introduction of Knowledge, the whych doth
teach man to speak part of all manner of languages, Lon¬
don, 1542, 4to, dedicated to the Lady Mary daughter to
Henry VIII., and written partly in verse and partly in
prose; 2. The Breviary of Health, wherein are remedies
for all manner of sicknesses and diseases, London, 1547,
4to; 3. Dietary of Health, London, 1576, 8vo; 4. The
Merry Tales of the Madmen of Gotham, printed in the
time of Henry VIII., in whose reign, and afterwards, it
was accounted a book full of wit and mirth, but it is now
only sold on the stalls of ballad-singers ; 5. A right plea¬
sant and merry History of the Mylner of Abington, with
his wife and his fair daughter, and of two poor scholars of
Cambridge, London, printed by Richard Jones, 4to ; 6. A
Book of every Region, Country, and Province-, which
shows the miles and leagues distant from city to city and
from town to town, with the noted things in the said
cities and towns. Wood states that the author lent the
manuscript of this book to his friend Thomas Cromwell,
by whom it was lost, to the inexpressible grief of the
author, who would otherwise have published it. But*the
antiquary was misinformed in this particular; for it has
since been published by Hearne at the end of Penedictus
Abbas Petersb. de Vita Henrici II. Oxford, 1735, 8vo. His
bob
only other production was entitled The Principles of As¬
tronomy, the whych diligently persecuted is in a manner
a prognostication to the world ; London, printed by Re¬
bel t Copland, 12mo. The author says that he wrote this
little book in four days, with one old pen without mend¬
ing ; a piece of information not calculated to raise our ex¬
pectations of the performance.
BOREAS, a Greek name for the north wind. The
Greeks erected an altar to Boreas; and he is represented
on the temple at Athens with his robe at his mouth, as if
he felt the cold of the climate over which he presides,
agreeably to the description of Ovid, who calls him gelidus
tyrannus, the shivering tyrant. But he is usually describ¬
ed by the Roman poets as violent and impetuous; and
in painting he is represented as an old man with a hor¬
rible look, having his hair and beard covered with snow
or hoar frost, while the feet and tail of a dragon terminate
the figure.
BOREL, Peter, a learned physician, was the son of
James Borel who published several poems, and was born
at Castres about 1620. He applied himself to the study
of physic, ot which he was created doctor, and practised
with great success in the town of Castres. Towards the
end ot the year 1653 he went to Paris, where he was soon
after named counsellor and physician in ordinary to the
king. In 1674 he was received into the Academy of
Sciences, and distinguished himself by writing a great
number of works. Ihe principal are, 1. Historiarum et
Observationum medico-physicarum Centuries quinque, Cas¬
tres, 1653, 12mo; 2. Ribliotheca Chimica, Paris, 1654,
12mo ; 3. De vero Telescopii inventore, cum brevi omnium
conspiscillorum historia, Hague, 1655, 4to ; 4. Hortus, seu
Armamentarum Simplicium, plantarum, et animalium ad
Artem medicam spectantium, Castres, 1666, 8vo; 5. Ob¬
servationum Microscopicarum Centuria; Hague, 1656,
4to. He was also the author of several works in French,
particularly two treatises on Antiquities, and a discourse
on the Plurality of Worlds.
BORELLI, John Alphonso, the head of what has
been called the iatro-mathematical sect,—or that which,
misled by the great progress that the application of the ma¬
thematics had produced in the physical sciences, attempt¬
ed to secure the same advantage for medicine, by sub¬
jecting to calculation the phenomena of the living eco¬
nomy,—was born at Naples on the 28th of January 1608.
He professed his system of iatro-mathematical philosophy
in some of the most celebrated universities of Italy, parti¬
cularly at Florence and Pisa, where he rose into high fa¬
vour with the princes of the house of Medicis; but hav¬
ing been engaged in the revolt of Messina, he was obliged
to retire to Rome, where he spent the remainder of his
life under the protection of Christina queen of Sweden,
who honoured him with her friendship, and by her libera¬
lity softened the rigour of his fortune. He died of a
pleurisy on the 31st of December 1679, in the seventy-
second year of his age. Borelli, more judicious than
Bellini, restricted the application of his system chief¬
ly to muscular motions, or to those phenomena of the
animal economy which are in certain points subject to
the laws of mechanics; and it cannot be denied that it
conducted him to the discovery of some principles new in
themselves, and directly opposed to the received belief of
his time. But his followers, less cautious, wished to ge¬
neralize the application he had made; and in framing hy¬
potheses, on which time and the return to a sound medi¬
cal philosophy have done justice, they greatly retarded
the restoration of the science. The works of Borelli are,
1. Della Causa delle Febri maligne, Pisa, 1658, 4to ; 2. De
Renum usu judicium, Strasburg, 1664, 8vo ; 3. Euclides
Restitutus, 1628,4to ; 4. Apollonii Pergcei Conicorum libri
800 BOR
Borga v. vi. et vii. Florence, 1661; 5. Theorice Mediceorum Plci-
II netarum ex caasis Physicis deductce, Florence, 1666, 4to ;
Borgia. Tractatus di vi Percussionis, Bologna, 1667, 4to ; 7.
Historia et Meteorologia incendii JEthnei, Reggio, 1669,
4to ; 8. De Motionibus naturalibus a gravitate pendentibus,
Bologna, 1670, 4to; and, 9. De Motu Animalium, opuspost-
humum, Rome, 1680, 1681, 4to.
BORGA, a circle in Russian Finland, taking its name
from a city which is its capital. It is the seat of a bishop,
contains 2138 inhabitants, and carries on trade in linen
and in timber. The circle extends over 4284 square miles,
and comprehends three cities and 1354 hamlets, with
124,600 inhabitants.
BORGEN, a town in the bailiwick of Rombals, in JSor-
way, with a considerable fishery, and, including the island
of the same name, containing 4864 inhabitants.
BORGIA, CiESAR, Duke of Valentino, second natural son
of Pope Alexander VI. by a Roman lady named Vannozia,
was a brave general, but a most cruel and profligate man.
It is incredible what numbers he caused to be taken off
by poison or by the sword ; and swarms of assassins were
constantly kept in pay by him at Rome, for the sake of
removing all who were either obnoxious or inconvenient
to him. lie experienced various turns of fortune ; and
was sometimes prosperous, sometimes the reverse. On
one occasion he very narrowly escaped dying by poison;
for having concerted with the pope a design of poison¬
ing nine newly-created cardinals at once, for the sake of
getting possession of their effects, the wine, drugged for
the purpose, was by mistake brought to and drank by
themselves ; even-handed justice thus returning the in¬
gredients of the poisoned chalice to their own lips. The
pope died of what he had drank; Caesar, by the vigour
of his constitution, and the force of antidotes, recovered.
But this illness caused his ruin, and when he recovered,
it was only to find that he had outlived his fortune and
grandeur, to see himself depressed, and his enemies ex¬
alted; for he was soon after divested of all his acquisi¬
tions, and sent as a prisoner to Spain, in order to free Italy
from an incendiary, and the Italian princes from those
dangers which his turbulent and restless spirit made them
fear, even although he was unarmed. He managed, how¬
ever, to escape from confinement; and flying for refuge
to John d’Albret, king of Navarre, his brother-in-law, who
was then at war with his subjects, he served as a volun¬
teer, and was killed by a ball fired from the castle of
Viano, on the 12th March 1507.
Borgia may be regarded as an almost literal incarnation
of whatever is most odious and infamous amongst mankind.
Educated in an age when every petty court was a school of
immorality, falsehood, and perfidy; when the frequency of
political iniquities had utterly effaced all shame; when
treaties afforded no guarantee, and oaths inspired no con¬
fidence ; he may be said to have systematized crime, and
to have carried impudence, bad faith, and utter disregard
of all ties, human and divine, to an extent previously un¬
known. Many princes have shed more blood than Caesar
.Borgia, many have exacted more cruel vengeance, some
have inflicted more atrocious punishments. But his name
is nevertheless attainted with a surpassing infamy ; history
BOR
has branded him with a peculiar stigma; the public voice Bordl:
has been just towards him. Other monsters have beenC->~vJ ^
hurried on by their passions. Borgia calculated every
thing, even to ferocity; judged every thing with reference
to his own particular objects ; sacrificed every thing to his
own immediate interest; and regarded religion, morality,
and humanity as tools or engines which might occasionally
be serviceable, but which, when no longer useful or con¬
venient, were to be broken and cast aside. Nor were the
habits of the man unworthy of the principles of the politi¬
cian. His manners were excessively corrupt. He was sober,
however, because his situation imposed upon him the ne¬
cessity of temperance ; but in this is included every thing
that can be said in his favour; unless we give him credit
for the smooth and seductive eloquence of which he was
an undoubted master, and which he employed with but too
great success in inveigling his intended victims into the
toils. It is not without reason, therefore, that Machiavel,
in his book of the Prince, has taken Ceesar Borgia as a
model; he could not have chosen a hero among men bet¬
ter qualified to inspire unmitigated horror and detestation.
The Duke of Valentino is a solitary figure in history; per¬
fect in all its proportions, and alike diabolical in every fea¬
ture and lineament; an apparent anomaly in the course
of providence, but, doubtless, permitted for wise though
inscrutable purposes.
If plagues and earthquakes break not Heaven’s design,
Why, then, a Borgia or a Catiline ?
BORGOO, a large kingdom in the interior of Africa,
bounded on the east by the Niger, on the south by Eyeo
or Yarriba, on the west by Dahomey, and on the south by
Gourma. It is about thirty days’ journey in length and
eleven in breadth. It has generally a level surface, though
crossed by a considerable range of mountains. The soil is
mostly fertile, and tolerably cultivated, producing in abun¬
dance corn, yams, plantains, and limes. The cattle are not
numerous, but there is a copious supply of all the species
of game that prevail in Africa. A considerable inland trade
between Houssa and the coast passes through this terri¬
tory. When Clapperton entered it from Eyeo, he was
warned to be on his guard, as the people were the great¬
est robbers and plunderers in all Africa, and he would run
the risk of being stripped of every thing he possessed. He
found this bad report altogether unjust, and declares, on
quitting it, that the people had always behaved honestly,
and never robbed him of the slightest article. They were
cheerful, obliging, good-humoured, and communicative.
The acts of robbery, too frequent in this country, were
perpetrated by slaves of the chiefs and governors, who
were natives, not of Borgoo, but of Houssa. These per¬
sons, in virtue of the service in which they are employed,
think themselves entitled to pilfer whatever comes within
their reach. The kingdom of Borgoo is divided into the
four states of Boussa, Wawa, Kiama, and Niki, the three
last of which were visited by Clapperton in his journey
through interior Africa. Boussa, remarkable as the scene
of the disastrous fate of Mr Park, holds the first rank, and
all the others are considered as in a degree of dependence
upon it.
END OF VOLUME FOURTH.
Printed by Thomas Allan, Jun. & Co.
B O E
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