Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Volume 1.djvu/876

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Light; and foon afterwards found herfelf with Child. The Aftrologers, at the fame time, perceiving that the Child wou'd be a great Prophet, and the Founder of a new Reli- gion; Neuhrout, the Prince then reigning, was advertis'd hereof; who gave immediate Orders for all the Women with Child to be put to death, throughout his Empire.

The Order was executed accordingly; but the Mother of the future Prophet, fhewing no Tokens of Pregnancy, ef- caped ; and was at length happily deliver'd of a Son, call'd JLbrahim Zer-Ateucht.

After his Birth, new Dangers arofe : The King, being inform'd thereof, had him brought before him ; and drawing his Sabre, would have flain him with his own Hand; but his Arm grew motion-lefs upon the Spot: Upon this, a huge Fire was lighted, and the Child cafi into the fame ; but he refled therein, as on a Bed of Rofes. He was af- terwards deliver'd from other kinds of Death, by a fort of Flics, which infefted the Kingdom; one whereof, entring the King's Ear, render'd him frantic, and at length killed him.

Cha Glochtes, his Succeffor, made the like Attempts oh the Child ; but was fo ftruck with the Miracles which he faw him work, that he began to adore him, as all the reft of the People already did.

At length, after a great Number of Miracles, the Pro- phet difappear'd.— Some held he was tranflated into Heaven, Body, and Soul : Others, that he found an iron Coffin near Sagdat, where /hutting himfelf up, he was carried away by the Angels.

After he was in Poffeffion of Paradife, God fent them, thro' his means, ieven Books ; which contain'd all the Mat- ters of Religion; and afterwards, feven more, of the Ex- plication of Dreams; and laftly, feven of Medicine. Alex- ander the Great burnt the firft feven, by reafon no body tinderftood the Language, and kept the other fourteen for Jiis own Ufe.

After his Death, fome of the Priefts and Doctors among the Ganres, retriev'd as much as their Memory would al- low them, of the loft Books ; and compofed a large Vo- lume, ftill extant among the modern Ganres ; tho' they un- derftand nothing, either of the Words, or the Character.

^ Throughout the whole, we fee the Marks, and Traces of Chriftianity; tho' grivoufly defaced : The Annunciation; the Magi ; the Maffacre of the Infants ; Our Saviour's Mi- racles ; his Terfecutions, Afcen/ton, &c.

GAWZE, in Commerce ; a very thin, flight, tranfparent kind of Stuff", wove fometimes of Silk, and fometimes only of Thread. See Stuff.

To warp the Silk for making ofGawze, they ufe a kind of Mill, upon which the Silk is wound: This Mill is a wooden Machine, about fix Fcot high ; having an Axis per- pendicularly placed in the Middle' thereof, with fix large Wings, on which the Silk is wound from off the Bobbins, by the Axis turning round.

When all the Silk is on the Mill, they ufe another Inftru- ment, to wind it off again on to two Beams : This done, the Silk is pafs'd thro' as many little Beads as there are Threads of Silk ; and thus rolled on another Beam, to fupply the Loom.

The Gawze Zoom is much like that of the common Weavers, tho' it has fcveral Appendages peculiar thereto. See Loom.

There are Figur'd Gawze' s ; fome with Flowers of Gold and Silver, on a Silk Ground : Thefe laft are chiefly brought from China.

GAY AC, Gayacum, orGAYAcAN, a Medicinal Wood, brought from the Indies ; much ufed in Venereal Diforders; called alfo Lignum SanBum 5 and by the Spaniards, Ligno Santo. See Wood.

Gayac grows equally in the Eaft and Weft Indies : That of the latter is brought in large Pieces, fome of them weighing four or five hundred Pound ; by which it is diftingui/h'd from the former.

The Gayac Tree, is the Heigth of our Walnut Tree; and is dillinguifh'd into two Kinds, Male and Female; only differing, as their L eaves are more or lefs round ; being all equally green, the Flowers blue, and of a ftarry Form ; having a little Orange-colour'd Fruit, about the Size of a fmall Nut, at the Tip thereof.

The Wood Gayac is extreamly hard and heavy, and on that account ufed as Ebony, in Mofaic Work, &c. as alfo for the making of Button Moulds. See Ebony.

But its principal Ufe is in Medicine, being found to warm, ratify, attenuate, attract and promote Sweats and Urine. The ufual way of applying it, is in Decoct-ion.

The beft is that in large Pieces, of a dufky Colour, frefh, gummy, heavy, of an agreeable Smell, and a brifk pun- gent Tafte; the Bark flicking clofe to the Wood.

The Bark of Gayac is held of as much Virtue, as the Wood it felf : The Rind is of no Efficacy; fo that to make a Sudorific Decoction or Ptifan of the Wood, they firft pare off all the white Part, which in Reality is the Rind 5 and

only chip of rafp the hard, folid Part, which is black, heavy and refinous. ,

The Chirurgeons frequently fubftimte Box-wood, initeatS oiGayac, and, 'tis faid, with equal Succefs.

The Refin drawn from Gayac, is held much more effec- tual in Venereal Cafes, than either the Wood, or Bark. 'Tis brought us in large Pieces, not unlike common Rozin 3 but very different in refpefl of Smell : The former, when caft on the Coals, yielding a very agreeable balfamick Fume. ■

GAZETTE, a News Taper, or printed Account of ths Tranfacfions of divers Countries, in a loofe Sheet.

Thus we fay, the London Gazette, Taris Gazette, Ga- zette a la main, Sic. ...

Gazettes, which moft People look on as Triffles, are really the moft difficult kind of Competitions that have appear d. They require a very extenitve Acquaintance with the Languages, and all the Terms thereof; a great Eafinels and Command of writing, and relating, Things cleanly, and in a few Words. .-

To write a Gazette, a Man mould be able to fpeak of War both by Land and Sea ; be thoroughly acquainted with every thing relating to Geography, the Hillory of the Time, and that of the Noble Families ; with the fcveral In- terefts of Princes, the Secrets of Courts, and the Manners and Cuftoms of all Nations.

Vigneitl de Marville recommends a Set of Gazettes well wrote, as the fitted Books for the Inftruaion of young Per- fons, coming into the World.

The Word is form'd ofGazctta, a kind of Coin, formerly currant at Venice; which was the ordinary Price of the firft News Papers printed there : Tho' others derive it by cor- ruption from the Hebrew Izgad, which fignifies Nuntius, a Meffenger ; but this Etymology is too much forced, and the former ought to be preferred.

The firft Gazette publifiVd in thefe Parts, is faid to be that of 'Paris, begun in the Tear 1^31 by 1'heophrafl Re- nandot, a Phyfician of Montpelier, in his Office of Intelli- gence. See Intelligence.

GAZONS, in Fortification, Pieces of freifi Earth cover'd with Grafs, cut in form of a Wedge, about a Foot long, and half a Foot thick ; to line Parapets, and the Traverfes ef Galleries. See Parapet, Gallery,^.

GEERS, a general Term for Trappings, Harnefs, and all other Things, that belong to Draught-horfes or Oxen.

GEHENNA, a Scripture Term, which has given fome pain to the Criticks. It occurs in St. Matthew v. 22, 29, 30; x. 28. xviii. 9. xxiii. 14. 33. Mark ix. 42. 44. 46. Luke xii 5. James iii. 6.

The Authors of the Lovain, and Geneva Verfions, retain the Word Gehenna, as it ftands in x\i-iGreek; the like does Monf. Simon: The Englijh Tranftators render it by Hell, and Hell-Fire ; and the like do. the Tranflators of Mens, and Father Souhours.

The Word is form'd from the Hebrew Gehinnom, i. e< Valley of Hinnom. In that Valley, which was near Jcrn- falem, there was a Place named Topheth, where fome Jews facrificed their Children to Moloch, by making them pals through the Fire. King jfofias, to render this Place for ever abominable, made a Cloaca, or common Shore there- of, where all the Filth, and Carcaffes in the City were caft. The Jews obferve further, that there was a continual Fire kept up, to burn and confume thofe Carcaffes; for which reafon, as they had no proper Term in their Language, to fignify HeV, they made ufe of that of Gehenna, or Gehin- nom, to denote a Fire unextinguifliable.—

GELATINOUS, among Phyficians, is applied to any thing approaching the glutinous Confiftence of a Jelly.

GELD, in our anticnt Cuftoms, a Mulct, or Compenfa- tion for a Crime, or Delinquency. See Mulct.

Hence, Wergild was antiently ufed for the Value or Pried of a Man flain ; and Ortgild of a Beaft.

Et fint quieti de Geldis, £f 'Hanegeldis, Homgeldis, ig Fortgeldis, & de Slodwita & Flitwita, i$ Lcirwita, £5? Heingwita, & Freminefeuda, iS Werdpeni, J? Averpeni, £i< Hundredpeni, g? Tolwgpeni. Charta Ric. 2. priorat. de Hatland in Devon.

GELDABLE, fee Gildable.

GELDING, the Operation of Caftrating, and particularly Horfes. See Castration.

The fame Term is alfo applied to a Horfe thus caflrated; or whofe Tefticles are cut out ; to difable him from being 2 Stallion.

In gelding of Horfes, regard is had to their Age, the Seafon of the Year, and the State of the Moon.

For the Pirft, If it be a Colt, the Operation may be per- form'd at nine, or fifteen Days old, if the Tedides be come down ; in regard the fooncr he is gelt, rhc better it Will be for his Growth, Shape, and Courage ; tho' a Hoife may be gelded at any Age, if care be taken in the Cure.

As for the Second, The beft Time is about April, of May ; or elfe about the latter End of September.


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