MUR 4 



Egyptian mummy was highly esteemed 

 for its medicinal virtues by the Arabian 

 physicians, and subsequently a perfect 

 rage for mummy prevailed in Europe. 

 This induced the Jews to prepare ail the 

 dead bodies they could get, in such a 

 manner as to resemble the ancient mum- 

 mies, which they did by filling the cra- 

 nium with asphaltum, pouring the same 

 substance into incisions made in the 

 limbs, and binding them up, and lastly 

 exposing the bodies to the heat of the sun. 

 This fictitious mummy was sold for the 

 real , the Jews realised immense sums of 

 money, and mummy retained its efficacy, 

 till, unfortunately, towards the latter end 

 of the Kith century, the slave of a Jew at 

 Damietta, who carried on a great traffic 

 in mummies, having been ill-used by his 

 master, disclosed the mystery of the mum- 

 mies to the pasha. This was the signal 

 for a universal demand upon the coffers 

 of Jewish manufacturers, and the traffic 

 consequently ceased. The doctors found 

 that they had been outwitted, and 

 mummy went out of fashion. 



MUMPS. A popular name of that sort 

 of quinsy which is accompanied by in- 

 flammation and swelling of the parotid 

 glands. Technical name Parotitis. 



MCN'DIC. A variety of marcasite found 

 chiefly in tin mines, and so named from 

 its shining appearance. 



MuNicii-'iuM. In Roman antiquity, a 

 corporation, borough, or enfranchised 

 city, where the inhabitants enjoyed their 

 own laws and the privileges of Roman 

 citizens (but some with and some with- 

 out the votive suffrage). Hence our epi- 

 thet municipal as applied to the laws, &c. 

 of any particular city. The root is muni- 

 cept (from mtmus, office, and capio, to 

 take), a free citizen. 



MCN'JEET (Indian). A species of Rubia 

 tinctorum or madder, produced in various 

 districts in India. It is xised for the same 

 purposes as the European madder, but is 

 reckoned inferior. 



MU'NIMEXTS. In law, all manner ol 

 writings, as charters, feoffments, releases, 

 &C-, relating to a person's estate or inhe- 

 ritance ; a university, cathedral, &c. 



MUR.B'NA. The eel. A genus of apo- 

 dal fishes. This genus, according to Lin- 

 na?us, has been successively divided into 

 five or six genera: the principal are the 

 Ani/nilla, CUT. (eels proper; ; the Conger, 

 Ctiv. (conger eels) ; the 3fureenn. Thun- 

 berg. The last comprises the Mura?nae 

 properly so called, which have no vestige 

 of pectorals ; but have their branehia? open 

 on each side by a small hole. These are 

 common in the Mediterranean. Name 

 fM/^aiva., from u.vu, to flow. 



ML- ait. Appertaining to a wall ; from 

 wutw. $ vail. A mural arch i n arched 

 wtU pit red fxs'itly Itv the j^iuc of the 



6 MUS 



meridian for fixing a large quadrant, sox- 

 tant, or other instrument, to observe the 

 meridian altitude, &c. of the heavenly 

 bodies. 



MC'RAL CROWN. A crown siven, as a 

 mark of distinction, among the Romans, 

 to him who first scaled the walls of a be- 

 sieged city, and there planted a standard. 



MU'REX. A genus of univalvular, spi- 

 ral shells: animal a Umax ; inhabits the 

 ocean, and has been held in high esteem 

 from the earliest ages, on account of the 

 dye which some of the species yield. 

 Name murex, " the shell-fish of the liquor 

 whereof purple colour is made : the purple 

 colour itself." This genus, according to 

 Linnaeus, comprises all those shells of the 

 order Pectiribranchiata, in which there 

 is a salient and stringent canal, but the 

 Murex of Brugueir includes only those 

 which in addition to this character have 

 varices across the whorls. The other sub- 

 genera are the Ranella, Lam., the Fusus, 

 Brug., and the Turbinella, Lam. 



MU'RIATE. A salt formed by the union 

 of the muriatic (hydrochloric) acid with 

 a salifiable base. Those saline substances 

 called muriates are in reality chlorides 

 when dry, and hydrochlorates when in so- 

 lution. 



MURIAT'IC. Pertaining to sea-salt (mu- 

 rt),as muriatic acid, called also marine 

 acid and spirit of salt ; its correct name is 

 hydrochloric acid(q. v.)- Chlorine was also 

 formerly called oxygenated muriatic acid, 

 being regarded as a compound of the mu- 

 riatic acid with an equivalent of oxygen. 



MCR'RAIN. An infectious and fatal dis- 

 ease among cattle, which particularly 

 prevails in hot and dry seasons. Origin 

 of the term is not well ascertained. The 

 Spanish word morrina, and the Portu- 

 guese morrinha are synonymous. 



MUR'REY or SANGUINE. In heraldry, dark 

 red. 



t MUR'RHINE, Lat. mwrhinus, from fjt,yp- 

 P'v?. An epithet for a description of 

 delicate ware brought from the east : 

 Pliny says from Carmania, now Kerman, 

 in Persia. The nature of the substance 

 of which the vasa murrhina were com- 

 posed is still doubtful, but the description 

 seems to denote fluor spar. 



M'-n'7AS. The hereditary nobility of 

 the Tartars. 



Mus. A genus of mammiferous quadru- 

 peds: order Rodentia. The common mouse 

 (M. ninsculus, Lin.), the black rat (M. rat- 

 tus. Lin.), the Norway or brown rat :'M. 

 decuntanus, Pall.), are well known species. 

 The two large species appear to be na- 

 tives of the East. The black rat found its 

 way into Europe in the 10th century ; 

 the brown rat in the 18th century. This 

 last belongs to Persia, where it lives in 

 furrows. The mouse is known everywhere. 

 Name m*u. from /MS;, from u.ua, to hsd. 



