Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Volume 1.djvu/167

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ARJE

AQUILINE, Acvuilinus, fometliing belonging to an

Eagle —Hence, Aquiline Nofe, denotes a hooked Nofe,

like the Beak of an Eagle; a Hawk's Nofe.

AQU1LO, the North-Eafi Wind ; or that which blows from the North-Eaftern Point of the Horizon. See Wind, North and Point.

The Seamen call it, North North Baft, See Rhumb.

The Poets give the Name to all ftormy Winds dreaded by the Mariners.

ARA, the Altar, in Aftronomy, a Southern Conftella- tion ; coniifting ot eight Stars. See Star and Constella- tion.

ARAB, Arabian, Arabic, fomething that belongs to the People of Arabia, See Arabia.

The Arabian Horfe is faid to be nurfed with Camel's Milk : There are many ftrange Reports of this Beaft. The Duke of Newcafile allures us, that the ordinary Price of one is loco, 2.000, or 3000 Pounds ; and that the y/rabs are as diligent in keeping the Genealogies of their Horfes, as Princes of their Families. They ftrike Medals on every occaiion to keep up the Pedigree. The Fortune the Ara- bians give their Sons, when arrived at Manhood, is, two Suits of Arms, with two Scimeters, and a Horfc ■■, who al- ways lies in the next Room to him- Yet fuch of the

Breed as havebecn brought into England, never proved ve- ry extraordinary. See Hors*.

Arabian Tear. See Arabian Year.

ARABESQUE, or Arabesck, fomething done after the manner of the Arabians.

Arabefqtte, Grotefque, and Morefque, are Terms applied to fuch Paintings Ornaments of Freezes, £*Jc. wherein there are no human, or animal Figures, but which confift wholly of imaginary Foliages, Plants, Stalks, ££c. See Grotesque and Moresque.

The Words take their Rife from hence, that the Moors, Arabs, and other Mahometans, ufe thefe kinds of Orna- ments ; their Religion forbidding them to make any Ima- ges or Figures of Men, or other Animals. See Image.

ARABIC, Arabics, Arabicus, fomething that re- lates to Arabia, or the Arabs ■—-

Arabic, or Arabic Tongue, is a Branch or Diale£t of the Hebrew. See Language and Hebrew.

Father Angelo de St. Jofefh fpeaks much of the Beauty and Copioufhefs of the Arabic. He affures us it has no left than a thoufand Names for a Sword j five hundred for a Lion $ two hundred for a Serpent 5 and eighty for Honey. See Word, Alphabet, £S?c.

Arabic Figures, or Characters, are the Numeral Cha- racters commonly made ufe of in large Computations. See jFjgure, Numeral, &c.

The Arabic Characters ftand contradiftinguifhed to the Roman. See Character, &c.

The Learned are generally of opinion, that the Arabic Figures were firft taught us by the Saracens, who borrow'd

them from the Arabs, and they from the Indians ■

Scaliger was fo fatisfied of their Novelty, that he imme- diately pronounced a Silver Medallion he was confulted a- bout, Modern j upon his being told of the Numeral Fi- gures 234., 235, being on it. The common Opinion is, that 'Rlanudes, who lived towards the Clofe of the thirteenth Century, was the firft ChrHtian who made ufe of them. Father Mabillon even allures us, in his Work de ReT)iplo~ matica, that he has not found them any where earlier than the fourteenth Century.

Yet Dr. Wallis infifts on their being of a much older Standing ; and concludes they muft have been ufed in Eng- land at ieaft as long ago as the time of Hermannus Con- tractus, who lived about the Year 1050 ; if not in ordinary Affairs, yet at leaft in Mathematical ones, and particularly Agronomical Tables.

The fame Author gives usanlnftance of their Antiquity in England, from a Mantle-Tree of a Chimney, in the Par- fonage Houfe of Helmdon in Txorthamptonflrire, wherein is the following Infcription in % 'a (fo Relievo, M°i33, being the Date of the Year 1133. 'Philof.T'ranfatl. N° 154..

Mr. Lujfkin furnifhes a yet earlier Inftance of their Ufe, in the Window of a Houfe, part of which is a Roman Wall, near the Market-place in Colchefter $ where between two carved Lions ftands an Efcutcheon, containing the Figures 1090, *Pbihf. TranfaS, ^255.

M. Huet is even of opinion, that thefe Characters were not borrowed from the Arabs, but from the Greeks ; and that they were originally no other than the Greek Letters, which we all know that People made ufe of to exprefs their Numbers by. See Number, Numeral, &g.

Gum Arabick, is the Name of a Gum which diftils from a Species of Acacia, growing i* Egypt and Arabia. See Gum.

It is very common among us, but little is to be met with

which is genuine ; it is fufpected to be adulterated with

our common Plumb-tree Gums— —That is accounted beft,

which is in fmalleft Pieces, and almoft of a white Colour.

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It difiblves eaiily in any aqueous Liquor, and is good in all kinds of Fluxes.

Arabick, Arabicus, was alfo a Title or Denominas tion of Honour, given to the Emperor Sevcrusj on accoun- of his conquering Arabia, and reducing it into the form of a Roman Province. See Title, and Quality.

On the Reverie of foms Medals of that Emperor, we read PARTHIC. ARABIC. ADIAB. COS. II. PP. And fometimes PARTH. ARAB. PARTH. ADlAB. That is, c Parthicus, Arabicus, Adiabenicus, t$C Doubtlefs be- caufe he overcame the Parthians in Arabia and Adiabcna; and tcok from them thofe two Provinces.

Araeici were alfo a kind of Hereticks, who fprung up m Arabia, about the Year 207; whofe diftingui filing Te- net way, That the Soul died with the Body, and alfo rofe again with it. See Resurrection.

Evfebius, lib.vl c. 38. relates, that a Council was call'd to ftop the Progrefs of the riling Seel: j that Origen aflifted at it ; and convinced them fo thoroughly of their Error, that they abjured it.

ARABISM, Arabismus, an Idiom or Manner of fpeak- ing peculiar to the Arabs, or the Arabick Language. See Idiom and Arabick.

R. Martin maintains, that the 1 fometimes expreflfes an Oath, in the Hebrew, as well as the Arabick: Abenezra, a perfect. Mafter of the Arabick, and who makes great ufe thereof to explain the Hebrew 3 dees not rejecl the Senti- ment, nor yet much approve it; he contents himfelf bare- ly to rehearfe it, which, for fo zealous a Partifan 0? Ara- bifms, is enough to /hew that he had no great opinion of it — —Father Scuciet.

ARABLE-Z«*ft/, antiently call'd Aralia, is fuch as is fit for Tillage. See Land and Tillage.

It is thus call'd from the Latin arare, of aratrum, a Plough. See Plough and Ploughing.

ARACHNOIDES, in Anatomy, a fine, thin, tranfparent Membrane, which lying between the T)ura and c Pia Ma- ter, is fuppofed to imeft the whole Subftance of the Brain. See Men 1 hx and Brain.

Many Anatomifts deny the Exiftence of fuch third Membrane ; and contend that it ought rather to be looked on as the external Lamina of the <Pia Mater, which fends its internal Lamella between the Folds of the cortical part of the Brain. See Pia Mater.

Arachnoides, or Aranea T'unica, is likewife ufed for a fine, {lender Tunick, wherewith fome Anatomifts fup- pofe the cryftalline Humour incompafs'd. See Cry- stalline.

This, others call Cryflalloides, and Cryfallina ; but 0- thers,_ and with good" reafon, deny the reality thereof, with its vulgarly fuppofed ufe. See Ciliary and Tu- nick.

The Word is borrowed from the Greek xpc/.yvh, a Spider, Spider's Web ; and «^©-, Form : in regard of the Finenefs oi thefe Parts, which are fuppofed to referable that of a Spider's Web.

ARACK-, or Arrack, a fpiritu'ous Liquor, imported from the .Ea$ Indies j chiefly ufed byway of Dram, and in Punch. See Drink, Punch, &c.

The Nature and Composition of this celebrated Liquor

has been much controverted The Name Arack y Mr.

Lockyer affures us, is an Indian Word for ftrong Waters of all kinds ; for that they call our Spirits and Brandy, Englifh

Arack But, what we understand by the Name Arack t

is really no other than a Spirit procured by Diftillation! from a vegetable Juice call'd Toddy, which flows by Inci- fion out of the Cocoa-nut Tree, like the Birch Juice pro- cured among us. See Vegetable and Tapping.

The Toddy, Mr. lockyer adds, is a pleafant Drink of itfelf when new, and purges thofe not ufed to it j and' when ftalc, is heady, and makes good Vinegar. The Englip at Madrafs ufe it as Leven to raife their Bread with.

Goa and ffatavia are the chief Places for Arack—.

At 'Goa there are divers kinds ; Jingle, double, and treble dijiilled. The double diftilled, which is that commonly fent abroad, is but a weak Spirit in comparifon with $ata- vi a Arack; yet on account of its peculiar and agreeable Flavour, is preferred to all the other Aracks of India. This is attributed to the earthen Veffels, which alone they ufe at Goa to draw the Spirit; whereas at Satavia they ufe Copper Stills.

The Tarier Arack, made at Madrafs 5 and the Co- lumbo, and f^uilone Arack at other places, being fiery hot Spirits, are little valued by the Europeans, and there- fore rarely imported; tho highly prized among the Na- tives.

ARjEOMETERjArjeometrum, an Inftrament where- with to meafure the Denfity or Gravity of Fluids. See Fluid, Gravity, and Density.

The Word is form'd of the Greek aj«/ef, rams, tenuis, thin j and $}&r t Meafure.

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