sou 



MEYER MICHAELIS. 



Peiisacola ore magnificent harbours. The principal 

 current in the gulf is the Gulf stream, which takes 

 its name from t hut circumstance ; it is produced by 

 the equatorial current from east to west, enters the 

 (rulf between the capes Antonio and Catorce, winds 

 round its shores, and flows out by the channel of 

 Florida, where Humboldt found its velocity to be five 

 feet a second, against a strong north wind. See Cur- 

 rent. 



MEYER, JONAS DANIEL, born at Arnheim, in 

 Guelderland, 1780, studied at Amsterdam and Ley- 

 den. He was at first an advocate in Amsterdam, in 

 1811 et seq., occupied several important judicial offi- 

 ces, and, in 1817, retired to private life. Doctor 

 Meyer is a distinguished writer on law, politics, and 

 legislation. His Esprit, Origine et Progres des In- 

 stitutions judiciaires , &c. (Hague, 1819 23, six 

 vols.) is a valuable work. He has recently publish- 

 ed a work On Codification, particularly in England. 



MEZZO ; an Italian adjective, which means half, 

 and is of ten used in musical language, as mezzo forte, 

 mezzo piano, mezzo voce, which imply nearly the same 

 thing, viz., a middle degree of piano or soft Mezzo 

 soprano ; a pitch of voice between the soprano or 

 treble and counter-tenor. 



MEZZOTINTO. See Engraving. 



Ml ; one of the six monosyllables adapted by 

 Guido to his hexachords, and which was applied to 

 the third and seventh notes of the natural diatonic 

 scale. 



MIAMI OF THE LAKES. See Maumee. 



MIAMI ; a river of Ohio, which rises in Hardin 

 county, and runs south-westerly into the Ohio river 

 <it the south-west corner of the state. Its length is 

 about 100 miles. Its navigation is not easy, but 

 it affords numerous sites for mills and manufac- 

 tories. 



MIAMI, LITTLE ; a river which rises in Madison 

 county, Ohio, and runs in a south-westerly direction 

 about 100 miles, and falls into the Ohio river seven 

 miles above Cincinnati. It is one, of the best mill- 

 streams in this state, but affords little navigation. 



MIASMA (from the Greek fiiae-pa, any thing pol- 

 luting) ; a term used in the doctrine of contagious 

 and epidemic diseases, with different meanings. 

 Some authors use it precisely like contagion ; with 

 others it signifies the contagious matter of chronic 

 diseases ; with others, that contagious matter which 

 collects in the atmosphere flying contagion. Some 

 understand by miasma, the vehicle of contagion ; for 

 instance, the pus of small-pox, which contains the pro- 

 per contagious matter. Miasma also signifies certain 

 matter, in the atmosphere, owing its origin to putre- 

 fied animal or vegetable bodies, or to the exhalation 

 of animal bodies, and producing specific diseases. It 

 would be well to contradistinguish miasma from con- 

 tagion, and designate by the former term all the 

 poisonous matter of diseases, which is not generated 

 in living animal bodies, but has, in some other way, 

 entered the atmospheric air. One of the most power- 

 ful correctors of miasmatic effluvia is chloride of 

 lime, which is getting much into use among naviga- 

 tors and other persons exposed to such effluvia. 



MIC AH, the sixth of the minor prophets, was a 

 Morasthite, of the tribe of Judah. He prophesied in 

 the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, from 749 

 to 679 B. C. Nothing is known of his life or death. 

 His prophecy is directed against Samaria and Jeru- 

 salem, whose sufferings, he declares, shall be greater 

 than those of Babylon and the other gentile cities. 

 The village of the Saviour's birth is designated by 

 him (v. 2)_ But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, little 

 among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall come 

 forth a ruler in Israel, whose generation is of old, 

 from everlasting." His style is pure and correct, his 



images bold, his denunciations full of strength and 

 bitterness. 



MICHAEL (Hebrew, he who is equal to God) is 

 spoken of in Daniel (x. 13 and 21. xii. 1) as one of 

 the "chief princes," and the "great prince." In 

 Jude (ver. 9), he is called the "arcliangel who dis- 

 puted with the devil about the body of Moses." In 

 the Revelation (xii. 7), it is said "there was war in 

 heaven : Michael and his angels fought against the 

 dragon." From this expression, it has been inferred 

 that he was the chief of the celestial hierarchy , and 

 it is in this character that the Catholic church pays 

 him religious honours. Milton (vi.) calls him "of 

 celestial armies prince," and " prince of angels," and 

 attributes to him the command of the heavenly forces 

 in the war with Satan. 



MICHAEL, ST (S. Miguel), the largest of the 

 Azores, was discovered in 1444, and taken possession 

 of by Cabral, in the name of Portugal, to which 

 power it now belongs ; lat. 37 50' N.; Ion. 30 3O 

 W.; twenty-five leagues S. E. from Terceira. In 

 the interior it is mountainous, some of the peaks ris- 

 ing to a height of more than 7000 feet, and evidently 

 of volcanic origin. Earthquakes are frequent, and 

 the soil is in many places composed of volcanic pro- 

 ducts. In the valleys it is fertile, and produces corn, 

 potatoes, oranges, grapes, peaches, and plums. The 

 coasts abound with fish, and there are many mineral 

 springs in the interior. The climate is mild and 

 agreeable. The commerce is considerable, princi- 

 pally with Britain, Portugal, and the United States. 

 The population is about 80,000 ; capital, Ponta Del- 

 gada. (See Azores, and Portugal. See also Web- 

 ster's Description of St Michael, 1821.) In August 

 (1831), the troops of donna Maria took possession of 

 St Michael. 



MICHAELIS, JOHN DAVID ; professor at Gottin- 

 gen, a celebrated theologian and Orientalist, born at 

 Halle, Feb. 27, 1717, where his father, Christian 

 Benedict, was a distinguished professor of the same 

 branches. John David received his first instruction 

 from his father, and afterwards studied in the orphan 

 house at Halle. After taking his degrees, he made 

 a journey to England and Holland, where he formed 

 connexions with several learned individuals in Lon- 

 don and Oxford, and in Leyden. After his return to 

 his native country, he prosecuted his studies with 

 ardour, and, in consequence of the death of professor 

 Ludwig, was intrusted with the preparation of a 

 catalogue raisonne of the Halle university library. 

 Through the influence of the baron von Munchhausen, 

 Michaelis, in 1745, was made professor of philosophy 

 at Gottingen, where in 1751, he was appointed, with 

 Haller, to draw up the constitution of the new royal 

 society of sciences, of which he was secretary and 

 director, until some differences with one of his col- 

 leagues induced him to resign his posts and leave the 

 society. From 1753 to 1770, he was one of the editors 

 of the Gottingen Literary Notices, and from 1761 to 

 1763, was librarian to the university. After the 

 death of Gesner (1761), he undertook the direction 

 of the philological seminary, from which so many 

 eminent philologians have proceeded. During the 

 troubles of the seven years' war, Michaelis was 

 employed in making preparations for an exploring 

 expedition into Arabia, which was afterwards under- 

 taken by Niebuhr, and which contributed many 

 important explanations to obscure passages of scrip- 

 ture. He died in 1791. His labours in biblical 

 criticism and history are of great value. His principal 

 works are Mosaisches Recht (6 vols.; second edition, 

 5 vols., 177680, translated into English, under the 

 title of Commentaries on the Laws of Moses) ; Intro- 

 ductions to the Study of the Old and New Testaments 

 (the latter has been translated by Marsh) ; Spicile- 



