USEDOM USURY. 



765 



Shaibani Khan, became, in 1498, tbe founder of the 

 power of the Usbecks on the Oxus (Jihon or Amu). 

 He deprived the descendants of Timour of the last 

 shadow of their power. After a long series of wars 

 with the Persians, Buchanans, Turcomans and 

 Chorasmians, after bloody civil contentions and 

 changes of dynasties, Mahmed Rahim Khan at last 

 obtained absolute powers, in 1802 (see Turkestan}, 

 over Khiwa and the neighbouring countries. He 

 organized the present empire, established a divan, 

 coined gold and silver, &c. With all the other 

 qualities of a despot, he united cunning and uncom- 

 mon understanding. The Usbecks are more honest 

 than the other tribes under the khan. Justice is 

 one of their chief traits. They hate lying and ava- 

 rice and every thing groveling. War and pillage 

 they consider the only honourable employments. 

 They still continue their struggles with the Persians 

 and Turcomans, invade the territories of their 

 neighbours, and carry away slaves. There are said 

 to be at present about 3000 Russian and 30,000 

 Persian slaves among them. The Usbecks now 

 generally live in towns, possess the highest offices, 

 and own many small castles, which they lease to 

 the Turcomans and Sartes. They are divided into 

 four chief tribes. The number of their warriors 

 may amount to 30,000. The khan has, in the 

 whole, 3,000,000 of subjects. Khiwa, the residence 

 of Mahmed Rahim, is inferior in size to Newurgenz, 

 an ancient city, which flourished during the times 

 of the Arabians, but is now depopulated. The arts, 

 sciences, music and poetry were cultivated there. 

 Until the fourteenth century, it was the point of 

 meeting of all the caravans on the Jihon. Perhaps 

 the influence of the Russians may introduce some 

 civilization among these rude tribes. 



USEDOM ; a Prussian island in the Baltic, sepa- 

 rated from the coast of Pomerania partly by the 

 river Peene, and partly by the Frische Haff, about 

 thirty miles in length, of a very irregular form, and 

 in no part above three miles from the sea. It is 

 intersected by several ranges of downs and sand 

 hills, and has large woods, but not much land fit for 

 agriculture. The inhabitants are chiefly employed 

 in navigation and fishing. Population, from 11,000 

 to 12,000; square miles, 150; chief towns, Swine- 

 munde and Usedom; Ion. 13 11' to 13 58' E. ; 

 lat. 54 15' to 54 45' N. 



USHER, JAMES ; archbishop of Armagh, in Ire- 

 land, born at Dublin, in 1580. After the death of 

 his father, who was one of the six clerks in chan- 

 cery, he gave up the paternal estate to his younger 

 brother, and devoted himself to the church ; entered 

 Trinity college, and studied the writings of the 

 fathers and the schoolmen, whence he compiled a 

 systematic body of extracts; and, in 1601, took 

 holy orders, and was appointed afternoon preacher 

 at Christ-church, Dublin. Soon after, he visited 

 England, to purchase books for Trinity college lib- 

 rary, and became acquainted with many learned men. 

 His talents, and the favour of his sovereign, James 

 I., successively procured him the professorship of 

 divinity at Trinity college ; in 1607, the office of 

 chancellor of St Patrick's ; the bishopric of Meath, 

 in 1620 ; the post of privy counsellor, in 1623 ; and 

 the following year, the primacy of Ireland. In this 

 station he displayed the same zeal against the Catho- 

 lics for which he had been distinguished in the early 

 part of bis career, and wrote several controversial 

 works on the theological points of interest at the 

 time. His notions of church government verging 

 towards Presby terianism, his enemies took advantage 



of this to destroy his credit with James I. ; but his 

 undeviating support of the royal supremacy saved 

 him from suffering by their machinations, and he 

 enjoyed, to the last, the esteem of king James. He 

 endeavoured to prevent Charles I. from sacrificing 

 Lord Strafford, whom Usher attended in prison and 

 at his execution. He adhered to the king's interest 

 during the civil war, and witnessed the execution 

 of his master. The scene had such an effect on 

 him, that he fainted ; and he commemorated the 

 event by an anniversary celebration of funeral rites. 

 After that event, he experienced civility and flat- 

 tering promises from Cromwell ; but the latter were 

 not fulfilled. He died in 1656, and the protector 

 ordered that he should be interred in Westminster 

 abbey. Archbishop Usher carried on an extensive 

 correspondence with the learned in various parts of 

 Europe, and collected, at considerable expense, 

 valuable books and manuscripts. Among the latter 

 were the Samaritan Pentateuch and a Syriac version 

 of the Old Testament. Such was the general esteem 

 excited by bis character and literary reputation, 

 that, on his quitting Ireland, in consequence of the 

 rebellion, he was offered a professorship at Leyden ; 

 and cardinal Richelieu invited him to settle in 

 France, promising him his patronage, with perfect 

 freedom as to religion. But he thought proper to 

 decline both these proposals. His principal works 

 are the Annals of the Old and New Testament 

 (folio), a treatise of the highest authority in chrono- 

 logy and sacred history ; Britannicarum Ecclesiarum 

 Antiquitates (folio) ; and a Body of Divinity (folio), 

 compiled surreptitiously from his sermons and notes. 

 See Aikin's Lives of Selden and Usher (1812). 



USHER (Awzsszer) ; an officer who has the care 



of the door of a court, hall, chamber, or the like 



The gentleman usher of the black rod is the chief 

 gentleman usher in Britain. During the sessions 

 of parliament, he attends the house of peers. His 

 badge is a black rod, with a lion, in gold, at the top. 

 This rod has the authority of a mace ; and to the 

 custody of this officer all peers subjected to ques- 

 tion for any crime are first committed. 



USQUEBAUGH. See Whiskey. 



USUFRUCT (usus fructus) ; hi the civil law, 

 the temporary use or enjoyment of any lands or 

 tenements, or the right of receiving the fruits and 

 profits of an inheritance, or other thing, without a 

 power of alienating the thing or changing the pro- 

 perty thereof. The relations between the proprie- 

 tor and the usufructuary are settled by the agree- 

 ment made between them. 



USURPER ; in politics, one who unlawfully 

 puts himself at the head of a government. See 

 Legitimacy, and De Facto ; also Sovereignty. 



USURY, in a very general sense, means a com- 

 pensation or reward for money lent. In this sense, 

 it is equivalent to interest. But in the common 

 business of life, it rarely has this signification, but 

 is chiefly used in an odious sense, to express an ex- 

 orbitant or illegal compensation for money lent, in 

 contradistinction to the common compensation al- 

 lowed by law, which is called interest. Thus a 

 man is commonly called a usurer, who lets money 

 for more than legal interest, and who is therefore 

 deemed a hard, oppressive and avaricious creditor. 

 It is singular to what a great extent the prejudice 

 against the receipt of interest upon money lent has 

 prevailed in all ages. That a man should receive a 

 compensation for a thing which he lends to another 

 for a use which is beneficial to the latter, and in- 

 convenient to himself, seems to stand upon the first 



