Ill 



ALIMONY ALL HANDS HO AY. 



to a certain extent, in England, Fnmrr, the 1'niied 

 Stairs of America, ami in furl, in every civilized 

 country. Tlir kind ut A. used influences the he.ilth 

 nud even the cliurarler of man. He is fitted to 

 derive nourishment both from animal and vegetable 

 A., but can 'ivp exclusively on either. F.xpcricnce 

 proves that animal food most readily augments the 

 .ol ill {torts of the blood, the fibrin, ami, therefore, 

 the strength of the muscular system, but disposes 

 i In- body, ut the same time, to inflammatory, putrid, 

 and scorlititic diseases, and the cliaracter to violence 

 and CO,H-M iiex-. On the contrary, vegetable food 

 renders the blood lighter and more liquid, but forms 

 weak fibres, disposes the system to the diseases 

 which spring from feebleness, and tends to produce 

 a gentle diameter. Something 1 of the same dilfer- 

 rnrc of moral effect results from the use of strong 

 or light wines. Hut the reader must not infer that 

 meat is indispensable for the support of the bodily 

 strength. The peasants of some parts of Switzer- 

 land, who hardly ever taste any thing but bread, 

 cheese, and butter, are vigorous people. The nations 

 of the north incline generally more to animal A. ; 

 those of the south, and the Orientals, more to vege- 

 table. These latter are generally simpler in their 

 diet than the former, when their taste has not been 

 corrupted by luxurious indulgence. Some tribes in 

 the East, and the caste of Brahmins in India, live 

 entirely on vegetable food. The inhabitants of the 

 most northern regions live almost entirely upon 

 animal food, scarcely ever partaking of any vege- 

 table substance, at least during the greater part of 

 the year. Some nations feed chiefly on terrestrial 

 animals, others on aquatic ones. 



ALIMONY, in law; the allowance to which a wo- 

 man is entitled on a legal separation from her husband, 

 not occasioned by adultery or elopement on her part. 



ALIQUANT PART, in arithmetic ; a part of a given 

 quantity which will not divide it exactly, or without 

 remainder. 



ALIQUOT PART is such part of a numl3er as will 

 divide and measure it exactly, without any remain- 

 der. For instance, 2 is an aliquot part of 4, 3 of 9, 

 and 4 of 16. To find all the aliquot parts of a num- 

 ber, divide it by its least divisor, and the quotient by 

 its least divisor, until you get a quotient not further 

 divisible, and you will have all the prime divisors or 

 aliquot parts of that number. By multiplying any 

 2 or 3 of these together, you will find the compound 

 aliquot parts. Aliquot parts must not be confounded 

 with commensurable ones ; for though the former are 

 all commensurable, yet the latter are not always ali- 

 quot parts : thus 4 is commensurable with 6, but not 

 an aliquot part of it. 



ALKALI, in chemistry ; from the Arabian kali, the 

 name of a plant from the ashes of which one species 

 of alkali can be extracted. The substances that are 

 met with under the denomination of alkaline are 

 possessed of certain peculiar properties ; they are 

 mainly characterized, however, by a power of com- 

 bining with acids in such a manner as to impair the 

 activity of the latter, so that alkalies, as chemical 

 agents, are distinguished by properties the reverse of 

 acids; acids ana alkalies are, therefore, generally 

 considered as antagonist substances. Besides the 

 power of neutralizing acids, and thereby forming 

 certain saline substances, the alkalies are further 

 distinguished by the following properties : 1 , they 

 have an acrid taste and corrosive power when applied 

 to some substances, thus proving caustic to the skin 

 and tongue ; 2, they change vegetable-blue to green, 

 red to purple, and yellow to a reddish-brown (if the 

 purple be reddened by an abid, an alkali will restore 

 the original colour) ; 3, they are almost indefinitely 

 soluble in water ; that is, they combine with it in 



every proportion ; 4, they unite with oils and fats, 

 and toriii by this union the well-known compound 

 called XIHIJI. There is another class of substances 

 \\hirh have a sirong analogy with alkalies especially 

 in the particular of opposition lo acids, \ i/.. the earths. 

 Some ol these, indeed, have been classed by I'our- 

 croy among the alkalies, but they have been kept 

 separate by others, on the round that the analogy 

 between them is far from amounting to an identity of 

 properties. The true alkalies have been arraii-c.i 

 by a modem chemist in three classes:--!, tln^e 

 which consist of a metallic lasis, combined with o\y 

 gen; these are three in number- -potash, soda, and 

 lithia ; <>, that which contains no o\y^en, \ i/.. am- 

 monia; ',i, those containing oxygen, hydrogen, ami 

 carbon; in this class are placed aronita, ' atropiii, 

 bnicia, cicuta, datura, delphia, hyosc>;,iina. morphia, 

 strychina. And it is supposed that. the. vegetable 

 alkalies may be found to be as numerous as the 

 vegetable acids. The original distribution of alka- 

 line substances was into volatile and fixed, the sola- 

 tile alkali being knoVn under the name of (niniiniiin , 

 while of the two fixed kinds, one was called potax/i. 

 or vegetable, because procured from the ashes of 

 vegetables generally ; the other soifa or inim-nil, on 

 account of its having been principally obtained from 

 the incineration of marine plants. 



ALKANET is a dyeing drug, the bark of a root which 

 produces a rough plant (anchtem thicfuriii), with 

 downy and spear-shaped leaves, and clusters of small, 

 purple, or reddish flowers, the stamens of which are 

 shorter than the corolla. This plant is sometimes 

 cidtivated in Britain, but by far the greater portion 

 of the A. here used is imported either from the 

 Levant, or from the neighbourhood of Montpellier 

 in France. A. imparts a fine deep-red colour to all 

 unctuous substances and to spirit of wine ; but it 

 tinges water with a dull, brownish hue. Its chief 

 use is for the colouring of oils, plasters, lip-salve, 

 and other similar articles. It is likewise employed 

 in compositions for rubbing and giving colour to 

 mahogany furniture, Wax, tinged with A., and 

 applied to the surface of warm marble, stains it flesh- 

 colour, and sinks deep into the stone. 



ALKMAAR, Henry von. See Reynard the Fox. 



ALKORAN. See Koran. 



ALL-FOURS ; a game played by two persons with 

 an entire pack of cards. The name is derived from 

 the four cliances of which it consists, viz. High, Low, 

 Jack, and Game. Laws of the game. 1. If, in 

 dealing, the dealer discovers any of the adversary'* 

 cards, a new deal may be demanded. 2. If the 

 dealer, in dealing, discovers any of his own cards, he 

 must abide by the same. If it is discovered, pre- 

 vious to playing, that the dealer has given his adver- 

 sary too many cards, there must be a new deal ; or, 

 if both parties agree, the extra cards may be drawn 

 by the dealer from his opponent's hand ; and the 

 same if the dealer gives himself too many curds. 

 But, in either case, if a single card has been played, 

 then there must be another deal. 4. No person am 

 beg more than once in a hand, unless both panics 

 aiL'ree. 5. In playing, you must either follow suit 

 or trump, on penalty of your adversary's adding one 

 point to his game. 6. If either player sets up his 

 game erroneously, it must not only be taken down, 

 but the antagonist is entitled to score four points 01 

 one, as slum have been agreed upon. 7. It is 

 allowable for the person who lays down a high or a 

 low trump to inquire whether the same be high or 

 low. 



ALL HANDS HOAY, in sea language ; the order l.y 

 which the ship's company is summoned on deck by 

 the boatswain. All hands to quarters hwty, is the 

 order to the crew for preparation for battle. This 





