Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 1.djvu/89

 ALB

by the Dutch there, the wit-fjh. It is a fcaly fifii, much of the ihape of a fmall herring, with a large and thick head. Its back is brown, and its fides and belly of a blueifh yellow. It is caught, in great abundance, with nets, and is a very well tafted fifh. R a y^ Ichthyogr. Append, p. 3. Albula nobilis, the name of one of the truttaceous fifties, caught in great plenty in the lakes of Germany, and other places. It is ufually caught of about two feet long, and is in fhape very like the common falmon. Its back and fides are of a du/ky brownifli green colour, and its belly white. The mouth is large, but has no teeth ; and the upper jaw is fo much larger than the under, that its fides fall over it when the mouth is Glut. Its head is of a pale and faint blueifh colour, and is fpotted with a fomewhat deeper blue. It has two fins on the back ; one near the middle, the other but a finger's breadth from the tail. The tail is membrana- ceous, as in the reft of the nth of this kind, and is a little forked. It has alfo two pair of fins on the under part; one near the gills, the other under the belly, and another behind the anus. Theflefh is firm, and well flavoured. Scbonefeldt. de Pifc. J

Albula is alfo a name given, by fome naturalifts, to mineral waters of the aluminous kind ; hence endued with an aftrin- gent quality, and of ufe in wounds. Gal. Mat. Med. 1. 8. c. 2. ap. Cajl. Lex Med,

The word is Greek, A*/Sa*« where it fignifies the fame. ALBUM, in literary hiftory, is ufed to denote a kind of table, or pocket-book, wherein the men of letters with whom a perfon has converfed, inferibe their names, with fome fen- tence, or motto.

This is called by divers names and titles* as Album amuorum, repofitorium amicorum, &c. Scbott. ad Proverb. Vatican. App, 1. 80. Album, in antiquity, denotes a white table, or the like, whereon names, or other matters, were to be inferibed, or entered.

In which fenfe, the word is fynonymous with the Greek, Xetxiift*. Hence we meet with Album preetoris, Album de- curionum, Album judi aim, &c.

Album decurionum was the regifter wherein the names of the decuricnes were entered. This is otherwife called matricula- tio decurionum.

Album pratoris, that wherein the formula of all actions, and the names of fuch judges as the praetor had chofen to decide caufes, were written.

Album judicum, that wherein the names of the perfons of thofe decuria, who judged at certain times, were entered. Album fenatorum, the lift of fenators names, which was firft introduced by Auguftus, and renewed yearly. Vid. Pitifc. Lex. Antiq. T. 1. p, 69.

The high-prieft entered the chief tranfactions of each year into an Album, or table, which was hung up in his houfe for the public ufe. Album, in natural hiftory, is ufed for the white of an egg;

more properly called Albumen. Caji. Lex. Med. p. 28. Album, among chemifts, is ufed for white lead, properly called

cerufs. Cajl. Lex. in voc. Album is alfo ufed, among alchemifts, for a tincture pretended

to tranfmute metals. Cajl. Lex. Album is alfo applied, in pharmacy, as a title, or epithet of divers compound medicines. Thus we meet with unguentum album cum campbora, &c. V. Pharmacop. Londin. Album greecum, {Cycl.) is otherwife railed Album canis, "fend 1 Jlercus cams officinale.

Some fpeak of its ufe internally, in the angina, and other inflammations ; as alfo in the dyfentery, cholic, &c. — Divers preparations of it are given by pharmaceutical writers. Vid. Junck, Confpec. Therap. tab. 20. p. 518. Album nigrum is ufed, among medical writers, for mice dung, by fome alfo called mufcerda. Etmull. Colleg. ad Schrod. in App. T. 1. p. 795. Cajl. Lex. Med. p. 28. Blanc. Lex. Med. p. 23. Album_ oculi, among anatomifts, denotes the tunica adnata ; fometimes alfo called Albugo ; popularly the white of the eye. Cajlel Lex. Med. p. 28. ALBUMEN, {Cycl.) in natural hiftory and medicine, a white, clear, vifcid liquor, in an egg, which every where encom- paffes the vitellus, or yolk.

Albumen amounts to the fame with what the Greeks call KivKupct, and ^sfxo^ ; the Latins, album ovi, albor, fometimes ovi candidwn, albugo, and albumentum ; the French, glaire ; the Enghfh, popularly, white of an egg. Anaxagoras calls it of»6®- y«Aa, that is, bird's milk. Vid. Scribon. p. 24, 26. Rhod. Lex. Scriben. Cajl. Lex. Med. p. 29. There are properly two Albumens obfervable in an egg, each inclofed in its feparate membrane ; the one external, next the fhell, which being of a thin confiftence, upon breaking the the cortex, runs out ; the other internal, immediately fur- rounding the yolk, which being of a denfer fubftance, retains its place and figure, after the effufion of the former : to this end, it is guarded by a fine thin membrane, too fubtle to be perceived by the eye ; which being broken, this too falls out. The two ends of the egg are chiefly poffefled by the internal Albumen. In general it is obferved, Jhat there is moft Albu* Suppl. Vol. I.

ALB

men iti tile obtufe end of an egg, Ids in the acute end* and leaft in the reft. V. Harv. de Gener. c. 11. p. 41. The Albumen is a thickifh, vifcous humour, mifcible with water, infipid and inodorous, affording no indications, either of an alcaline, or an acid nature ; fo that though applied to the moft fenfible part, as the eye, it excites not the leaft pain. When expofed to a gentle heat, as that of a healthy man's body, it grows continually more and more liquid, till at length lofing all its confiftence, it diffolves into a liquor refembling urine ; at the fame time, it waftes fen- fibly; and, at laft, leaves nothing but a thin pellicle, refem- bling paper. Bcerhaave, New Meth. Chem. P. 3. proc, 96. p. 206.

The Albumen, if applied to a degree of heat fometbing greater, infpifTates and hardens into a whirifh, concrete, flaky fubftance, with the lofs of fome of its finer fluid part, which efcapes in form of a fume.

In effect, if an egg be laid on coals not the moft intenfely hot, the fame finer fluid will be found fenfibly to tranfude the pores of the Ihell. Add, that if fpirit of wine be poured on the frefh Albumen of a new laid egg, a coagulation is imme- diately produced, as if by fire ; and this the more perfectly, as the fpirit and the Albumen are more intimately mixed, By this means, the white of an egg is defended from all putre- faction. Boervaave, loc. cit. proc. 98. p. 207. Diftilling the Albiunen by a retort in a fand heat, till it be brought to a drynefs, it yields an incredible quantity of wa- ter, which has moft of the properties of the whole mafs. Id. ibid. proc. gg. p. 208.

The white of an egg makes an extraordinary menftruum. Being boiled hard in the fhell, and afterwards fufpended in the air by a thread, it refolves and drops down into an in- fipid fccntlefs liquor, which appears to be that anomalous un- accountable menftruum, fo much ufed by Paracelfus ; and will, though it contain nothing iharp, oleaginous, or fapona- ceous, make a thorough folution of myrrh ; which is more than either water, oil, fpirits, or even fire itfelf, can effect. ' Boerbaave, loc. cit. P. 2. p. 358. feq. But fee the article Myrrh.

The origination of the Albumen is fomewhat obfeure. — 'Tis matter of common obfervation, that eggs, while in the ova- ries of their birds, e. gr. of hens, confift only of a yolk, without any Albumen ; and in eggs, when boiled, 'tis apparent there is only a contiguity, .10 connection between the two parts, fince they are eafily feparated, without a rupture of any thing, except in the places where the chalazs are found. The rcfult of the lateft obfervations on this fiibject is, that the vitellus being deicended into the ovary, the cavity of the ovary diftils the matter of the Albumen, and glues, or an- nexes it to the furface of the yolk. V. Harv. de Generat. Anim. exerc. 14. p. 57. Bellin. de Mot. Cord. p. 40.- Burggr. Lex. Med. in voc.

The office and ufe of the Albumen has occafioned much con- troverfy. The generality fuppofe it to ferve as nutriment to the chick, while in ovo a ; though others attribute this office to the yolk b. The truth feems chiefly to lye on the fide of the former : the Albumen is the matter whereof the chick is formed, and fuftained till within a few days before hatching; at which time it begins to feed on the yolk c ; — [ a V. Harv. ubi fupra. b Belling. Trail, de Feet. c. 8. Bibl. Angl. T. 2. p, 70. c V. Ephem. Germ. Dec. 2. an. 10. obf. 4.

A late author pretends to reduce the office of the Albumen^ to the ferving as a defence to the foetus againft accidents, and affording room for its members to ftretch and grow in. Belling, ubi fupra. c. 10. Bibl. Angl. T. 2. p. 73. Several have held the Albumen a mere inorganical mafs^ Malpighi rt, and others c , fhew a regular texture in it : at firft it confifts of a congeries of minute veflels, perfectly like thofe whereof the vitreous humour of the eye is compofed. This difpofition is changed by incubation : the brooding heat of the hen diflblves and liquifies the Albumen, and fits it to become a nutriment to the embryo.— ^[ rt De Format. Pull. It. de Ovo incub. Burggr. loc. cit. c Maitre Jan, Ob- ferv. fur le Format, du Poulet* Jour, des Scav. T. 74. p. 556, 560. feq.]

'Tis difputed, whether the whites of eggs be a wholfome food ? The generality of phyficians reject them, as indi- geftible. Others reftrain their prohibition to thofe which are much hardened by the fire, while in a fofter ftate they cannot but be at leaft innocent ; if they be the fuftenance of the tender embryo's, the chickens. Ephem. Germ, ubi fupra. Albumin a, or whites of eggs, are of fome ufe in medicine, tho* rather externally, in the preparation of collyriums for the eyes, and anacollemata, on account of their cooling, agglutinating, and aftringent quality, than internally ; yet Hippocrates pre- ferred them in feverifh cafes, by way of a refrigerative. In fuch eafes, they fhould feem to be peculiarly prohibited : it being a known experiment, that an egg will boil, (if we may fo call it) at leaft turn hard, by only being held in the hands of a perfon in a fever ; and the effects of fuch indu- ration, it naturally enough follows, from what has been above- faid, can by no means be ferviceable to fick perfons. Hipp, 1. 3. de Morb. c. 30. p. 12.

1 Y Albu-