T I N 



469 



T I N 



Persia and Jagatai his descendants reigned for a century; 

 and for three centuries they ruled over Northern India 

 under the name of the Great Moguls. 



Timur has been compared with Alexander, but he is far 

 below him. It is true, that except in India, Alexander 

 found only effeminate nations on his way, while Timur 

 fought with the most warlike nations of the world; but 

 the enemies of Alexander formed great political bodies 

 which were governed by one absolute master, while the 

 warlike nations which were subdued by Timur were divided 

 into a multitude of tribes and governed by numerous 

 princes, each of whom was jealous of his neighbour. Timur 

 overran the territory of two mighty nations, the Turks- 

 Osinanlis, and the latars of Kiptshak, but he was not able 

 to subdue them. Both Alexander and Timur protected 

 Hie arts and sciences, but Timur could only transplant 

 them by force from one place to another, while poets and 

 scholars flocked to Alexander because he could appreciate 

 their talents. Timur's cruelty was the consequence of his 

 savage and barbarous temper ; Alexander only forgot the 

 laws of humanity when he was overpowered by wine or by 

 .'in. Timur was a man of extraordinary talents, who ac- 

 complished great things after long experience and severe 

 struggles : Alexander, a true genius, came, saw, and van- 

 quished. The greatness of Timur inspires awe, and we 

 shrink from it with terror ; the greatness of Alexander 

 attracts us because it is adorned with the amiable qualities 

 of his character. 



The life of Timur is the subject of many valuable works. 

 Sheref-ed-din-'Ali wrote the history of Timur in Persian, 

 which has been translated into French by Petis de la Croix, 

 under the title ' Histoire de Timur-Bec, connu sous le nom 

 du Grand Tamerlan,' &c., Paris, 1722. This is the best. 

 work concerning Timur, although the author often flatters. 

 Arabshah, a Syrian, on the contrary, depreciates the cha- 

 rt'-tei- of Timur; his history, or rather his epic, has 

 hern translated under the title ' Ahmedis Arabsiadae 

 Vita ct Rerum Gestarum Timuri qui vulgo Tamerlanes 

 dicitur, Historia,' Lugduni-Batavorum, 1636. Longdit, 

 Arirote de Molina, Petrus Perundinus Pratensis, Boekler, 

 Kicherius, &c., have also written the life of Timur. 

 Among the Byzantines, Ducas, Chalcondylas, and Phran- 

 iintain many valuable accounts, though Phranzes 

 critical than the others. A very interesting book is 

 ' Schildtbererer, eine Wunderbarliche und Kurzweilige His- 

 toric,' &c.,4to. The same book was translated into modern 

 German by Penzel, Miinchen, 1813. Schildtberger, a 

 German soldier, was made prisoner by the Turks in 

 the battle of Nicopolis (139G), when he was only sixteen 

 years old. In the battle of Angora he was taken by 

 the Tatars, and became a kind of secretary to Shahrokh 

 and Miran-Shah, the sons of Timur. He finally returned 

 to Gei many in 1427, after a captivity of thirty years, and 

 then wrote the history of his adventures. 



Gibbon gives a splendid view of Timur's conquests in 

 the 'Decline and Fall,' chap. Ixv. Another most valuable 

 work is Clavijo, ' Historia del gran Tamerlan, e Itineiario," 

 &c. Clavijo, ambassador of king Henry III. of Castile at 

 the court of Timur, was present at the battle of Angora. 

 ' I, ll'mtniri" <lx llunx, vol. ii.) Timur may be 

 ( -onsidered as the author of the ' Tufukat, or the Code of 

 Laws.' This work was originally written in the East- 

 Turkish language, and was translated into Persian. The 

 Persian version, with an English translation and a most 

 valuable index, was published by Major Davy and Professor 

 White, Oxford, 1783, 4to. ; and Langles has translated the 

 ,n version into French, under the title, 'Instituts 

 Politiques et Militaires de Tamerlan,' Paris, 1787. This 

 work is of great importance for the history of Timur ; we 

 at this Tatarian conqueror was provided with maps 

 and works concerning geography, which were composed 

 by his order. 



TIN. This metal is one of those which were earliest 



known, though it occurs in comparatively few countries : 



mtance of the antients with this metal, though 



' occur in the native state, is accounted for by 



iiTiunstdtices that the ore is found frequently near the, 



i''e, and is easily reduced by charcoal and a moderate 



degree of heat to the state of meial. 



AI-. !ius, tin is found in England, Saxony, 



Bohemia, Hungary, the isle of Banca, the peninsula of 

 Malacca, in chili" M-J\ .Mexico: Malacca furnishes the 

 purest tin, and Cornwall the largest quantity. 



Tin occurs in two states of combination, the peroxide 

 and double sulphuret of tin and copper: this last is rath IT 

 a rare substance, and it is from the former that the metal 

 is almost entirely obtained. 



The peroxide of tin is found in Cornwall in two forms : 

 1. In veins in primitive countries, where it is intimately 

 mixed with several other metals, as arsenic, copper, zinc-, 

 and tungsten : this is common tinstone. 2. In loose 

 rounded masses, grains, or sand in alluvial soil, in which 

 state it is called stream-tin. The former, when reduced to 

 the metallic state, yields block-tin ; while the latter yields 

 grain-tin, which is the purer of the two. 



Oxide of Tin Tinstone Occurs in attached and im- 

 bedded crystals, and massive. Primary form a square 

 prism, which is commonly terminated by four-sided pyra- 

 mids. Cleavage parallel to the lateral planes and both 

 diagonals. Fracture uneven or imperfectly, conchoidal. 

 Hardness 6 to 7 : gives sparks with steel, and is brittle. 

 Colour white, yellow of various shades, red, brown, and 

 black. Streak paler. Lustre adamantine, vitreous. Trans- 

 parent, translucent, opaque. Specific gravity 6-96. In- 

 soluble in acids. Before the blow-pipe, in powder on 

 charcoal, it is reduced to the metallic state. Fine crystals 

 of this substance occur, more especially in Cornwall and 

 Saxony. 



Analysis of the oxide of tin of Cornwall by Klaproth : 

 Tin ... 77-5 



Oxygen 



Iron 



Silica 



21-5 

 0-25 



100-0 



The Masiii'i' Varieties of (aide of tin are called stream- 

 tin. What is termed wood-tin is found in reniform and 

 botryoidal masses, or in wedge-shaped pieces, which have 

 arisen from their partial destruction : the surfaces are gene- 

 rally water-worn. Wood-tin exhibits various shades of 

 brown, which sometimes appear in concentric bands, 

 giving it a ligneous appearance, whence its name. 



Stream-tin has evidently been derived from the de- 

 struction of tin veins or "lodes, the lighter portions of 

 stony matter having been carried away by the water, 

 which has rounded the fragments of the ore. 



At Finbo in Sweden oxide of tin has been met with 

 containing nearly 2' 5 per cent, of oxide of columbium. 



Tin Pyrites. Stilphuret of Tin, a double Sulphuret of 

 Tin and Copper, is a rare substance, having been found 

 only in Cornwall at Huel Rock, in the parish of St. 

 Agnes. 



Occurs crystallized and massive. Primary form of the 

 crystal a cube. Cleavage parallel to the faces of the pri- 

 mary form. Fracture uneven, with a metallic lustre. 

 Hardness : readily scratched and reduced to powder ; 

 brittle. Colour steel-grey, mixed with yellow. Specific 

 gravity 4-3."). 



Massive Variety. Fracture granular and uneven, with 

 a metallic lustre. Hardness 4. Brittle. Opaque. Spe- 

 cific gravity 4'35 to 4'76. 



Analysis by Klaproth : 



Tin .... 34 

 Copper . . 36 



Iron .... 2 



Sulphur ... 25 



97 



Having now described the ores, we proceed to state the 

 Properties of Tin. This metal is of a silver-white 

 colour, very soft, and so malleable that, it may be re- 

 duced into leaves l-1000th of an inch thick, called tin- 

 foil : it suffers but little change by exposure to the air, 

 and that which does occur arises rather from impure sul- 

 phurous vapours than from oxidation ; for it is not oxidized 

 even by the combined action of air and moisture. Its 

 tenacity is but slight, so that a wire l-15th of an inch in 

 diameter is capable of supporting only about 31 pounds : 

 a bar a quarter of an inch in diameter was broken by 296 

 pounds weight. Tin is inelastic, but very flexible, and 

 when bent it produces a peculiar crackling noise. When 

 rubbed it imparts to the fingers a peculiar smell, which 

 remains for a considerable time. Its specific gravity is 

 about 7-29; at 442" Fahr. it fuses, and if exposed at 

 the same time to the air, its surface is tarnished by oxi- 

 dizement, and eventually a grey powder is formed. When 



