Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, first edition - Volume I, A-B.pdf/21



etablih a belief in its being actually revered: If his tetimony be confirmed by a few others of the ame character, we cannot with-hold our aent to the truth of it. Now, though the operations of nature are governed by uniform laws, and though we have not the tetimony of our enes in favour of any violation of them, till, if, in particular intances, we have the tetimony of thouands of our fellow-creatures, and thoe too men of trict integrity, wayed by no motives of ambition or interet, and governed by the principles of common ene, That they were actually eye-witnees of these violations, the contitution of our nature obliges us to believe them."

Thee two examples contain the ubtance of about 400 pages.—Making private abridgements of this kind has many advantages; it engages us to read with accuracy and attention; it fixes the ubject in our minds; and, if we hould happen to forget, intead of reading the books again, by glancing a few lines, we are not only in poeion of the chief arguments, but recall in a good meaure the author's method and manner.

Abridging is peculiarly ueful in taking the ubtance of what is delivered by Profeors, &c. It is impoible, even with the aitance of hort-hand, to take down, verbatim, what is aid by a public peaker. Besides, although it were practicable, uch a talent would be of little ue. Every public peaker has circumlocutions, redundancies, lumber, which deerve not to be copied. All that is really ueful may be comprehended in a hort compas. If the plan of the dicoure, and arguments employed in upport of the different branches be taken down, you have the whole. Thee you may afterwards extend in the form of a dicourse dreed in your own language. This would not only be a more rational employment, but would likewie be an excellent method of improving young men in compoition, an object too little attended to in all our univerities. Beides, it would be more for the honour of profeors; as it would prevent at leat uch immene loads of dijointed and unintelligible rubbih from being handed about by the name of uch a man's lectures.

, in law, ignifies the making a declaration or plaint horter by leaving out omething

, in arithmetic. See, Of vulgar fractions

, in algebra. See, Of equations.  ABROBANIA, a town and ditrict in Tranylvania.  ABROCHMENT, an old law term which ignifies foretalling. See.  ABROGATION, ignifies annulling, making void, or repealing a law.  ABROLKOS, the name of certain helves, or banks of and, about 20 leagues from the coat of Brazil.  ABRON, a river of France which falls into the Loire not far from Nevers.  ABRONO. See.  ABROTANOIDES, the name of a pecies of coral called porus. It is alo a ynonime of the artemiia. See. <section end="Abrotanoides" /> <section begin="Abrotanoides (Wine)" />ABROTANOIDES, a wine mentioned by Diocorides, impregnated with suthernwood. <section end="Abrotanoides (Wine)" /> <section begin="Abrotanum" />ABROTANUM, in botany, a ynonime of several lants. See, ,. <section end="Abrotanum" /> <section begin="Abruption" />ABRUPTION, in urgery. See. <section end="Abruption" /> <section begin="Abrus" />ABRUS, in botany, the trivial name of the glycine. See. <section end="Abrus" /> <section begin="Abruzzo" />ABRUZZO, in geography, the name of two provinces belonging to the K. of Naples, on the gulph of Venice, ditinguished by Nearer and Farther Abruzzo, from their poition with repect to Naples. <section end="Abruzzo" /> <section begin="Abscedentia" />ABSCEDENTIA, in urgery, a term applied to decayed parts of the body, which, in a morbid tate, are eparated from the ound, or loe that union which was preerved in a natural tate. <section end="Abscedentia" /> <section begin="Abscess" />ABSCESS, in medicine and urgery, an impothume, or any tumor or cavity containing purulent matter. See, title, Of tumours or abcees. <section end="Abscess" /> <section begin="Abscharon" />ABSCHARON, a town in Aia, situated on the wetern hore of the Capian sea. <section end="Abscharon" /> <section begin="Abscisse" />ABSCISSE, in mathematics. See. <section end="Abscisse" /> <section begin="Abscission" />ABSCISSION, a figure in rhetoric, whereby the peaker tops hort in the middle of his dicoure, leaving the audience to make the inference.

, in urgery, the ame with amputation. <section end="Abscission" /> <section begin="Absconsa" />ABSCONSA, a dark lanthorn ued by the monks at the ceremony of burying their dead. <section end="Absconsa" /> <section begin="Absence" />ABSENCE, in Scots law: When a peron cited before a court does not appear, and judgment is pronounced, that judgment is aid to be in abence No peron can be tried criminally in abence. See, title, Sentences and their execution. <section end="Absence" /> <section begin="Absinthiated" />ABSINTHIATED medicines, uch as are impregnated with abinthium or wormwood. <section end="Absinthiated" /> <section begin="Absinthium" />ABSINTHIUM, in botany, the trivial name of the common wormwood or artemiia. It is alo a ynonime of the tanacetum incanum, the enecio incanum, the anthemis montana, the achillæa egyptiaca, and of the parthenium hyterophorus. See, &c. <section end="Absinthium" /> <section begin="Absis" />ABSIS, in atronomy, the ame with, which ee. <section end="Absis" /> <section begin="Absolute" />ABSOLUTE, in a general ense, denotes a thing's being independent of, or unconnected with, any other; it is alo ued to expres freedom from all limitation.

government, is that wherein the prince, unlimited by the laws, is left olely to his own will. See.

gravity in phyics, is the whole force by which a body is urged downwards. See.

, in metaphysics, denotes a being that poees independent exitence. <section end="Absolute" /> <section begin="Absolution" />ABSOLUTION, in general, is the pardoning or forgiving a guilty person.

, in civil law, is a entence whereby the party accued is declared innocent of the crime laid to his charge.

, in the canon law, is a juridical act whereby the eccleiatical officers remit or forgive the penitent offender, or declare him retored to the privileges of innocence in conideration of his repentance.

<section end="Absolution" /> ABSORBENT