elie GIL 
state of Gibraltar, the writer of this article is indebted 
to the liberality of Colonel Wrreur, Commandant of 
the Artillery at Leith Fort, whose professional talents, 
and opportunities of observation, during a long resi- 
dence in the garrison, render his communications on 
- this rycen culiarly valuable. (z) 
GIL ERT, or Ginserp, WittiaM, an eminent phi- 
losopher and physician, was born at Colchester, in the 
year 1540, and was the son of the recorder of that 
town. After having attended the two English univer- 
sities, he set out upon his travels, and graduated at 
some of the foreign universities. Upon his return to 
England, he settled in London in 1573, was admitted 
a member of the College of Physicians, and practised 
medicine with great success and reputation. His fame 
became so great, that he was appointed first physician 
to Queen Elizabeth, who generously allowed him a 
pension for the pu of carrying on his philosophi- 
cal experiments. He retained his pension and his of- 
fice after the accession of James I. but he did not long 
enjoy the patronage of the new sovereign. He died 
on the 20th! November 1603, in the 63d year of his 
age, and was interred at Colchester, where a handsome 
monument was erected to his memory by his brothers. 
His library, minerals, globes, and ‘mathematical in- 
struments, were left to the College of Physicians. His 
icture is placed in the gallery over the schools at Ox- 
Ford. He ap to have been a man of tall stature, 
and cheerful di ition, 
The reputation of Gilbert is founded on his work 
entitled, Magnete, magneticisque corporibus, et de 
‘Magno Magnete Tellure, Physiologia novo, plurimis et 
argumentis et experimentis demonstrata. It appeared 
in London in 1600, in folio, and was afterwards re- 
printed in Germany. The following analysis of this 
admirable work has been given by our countryman, Dr 
Robison, and is too valuable to admit of abridgment. 
«« In the introduction, he recounts all the knowledge 
of the ancients on the subject, and their supine inat- 
tention to what was so entirely in their hands, and the 
impossibility of ever adding to the stock of useful know- 
belle; ‘60 long as men imagined themselves to be phi- 
losophising, while they were only repeating a few cant 
‘words, and the unmeaning phrases of the Aristotelian 
school. It is curious to remark the almost perfect 
sameness of Dr Gilbert’s sentiments and language with 
those of Lord Bacon. They both charge, in a peremp- 
tory manner, all those who pretend to inform others, to 
give over their dialectic labours, which are nothing but 
“ringing changes on a few trite truths, and many un- 
_ founded conjectures, and immediately to betake them- 
‘selves to experiment. He has pursued this method on 
‘the subject of magnetism, with wonderful ardour, and 
-with equal genius and success ; for Dr Gilbert was pos- 
‘sessed both of great ingenuity, and a mind fitted for 
general views of things. The work contains a prodi- 
gious number and variety of observations and experi- 
ments, collected with ry rane from the writings of 
others, and instituted by himself with considerable ex- 
eo and labour. It would indeed be a miracle if all 
r Gilbert's general inferences were just, or all his ex- 
periments accurate. It was untrodden ground. But, 
on the whole, this performance contains more real in- 
formation, than any writing of the age in which he 
«lived, and is sca’ Perens 
ed since. We may hold it wi justice 
275 
GIL 
loadstone, and what we call. magnets ; that is, pieces of Gilbert, 
steel which have acquired properties similar to those of Gilding. 
the loadstone. But he extends the term magnetism, and 
the epithet magnetic, to.all bodies which are affected by 
loadstones and m s, in a manner similar to that in 
which they affect each other. In the course of his in- 
vestigation, indeed, he finds that these bodies are only 
such as contain iron in some state or other ; and in 
proving this limitation, he mentions a great variety of 
phenomena which have a considerable resemblance to 
those which he allows to be magnetical, namely, those 
which he called electrical, because they were produced 
in the same way that amber is made to attract and x 
light bodies. He marks, with care, the distinctions 
between these and the characteristic phenomena of 
magnets. He seems to have known, that all bodies may 
be rendered electrical, while ferrugineous substances 
alone can be made magnetical. It is not saying too 
much of this work of Dr Gilbert’s,-to affirm, that it 
contains almost every thing that we know about mag- 
netism. His unwearied diligence in searching every 
writing on the subject, and in getting information from 
navigators, and his incessant occupation in experiments, 
have left very few facts unknown to him, We meet 
with many things in the writings of posterior enquirers, 
some of them of high reputation, and of the present 
day, which are published and received as notable dis- 
coveries, but are contained in the rich collection of Dr 
Gilbert. "We by no means ascribe all this to mean pla- 
giarism, although we know traders in experimental 
knowledge who are not free from this charge. We 
ascribe it to the general indolence of mankind, who 
do not take the trouble of consulting originals, where 
things are mixed with others which they do not want, 
or treated in a way, and with a painful minuteness, 
which are no longer in fashion. 
Dr Gilbert's book, although one of those: which 
does the highest honour to eur country, is less known 
in Britain than on the continent. Indeed, we know 
but of two British editions of it, which are both in La- 
tin ; and we have seen five editions published in Ger- 
many and Holland, before 1628. i 
We earnestly recommend it to the perusal of the 
curious reader. He will, (besides the philosophy), find 
more facts in it than in the two large folios of Sca- 
rella.” * 
Besides this work, there appeared a posthumous pub- 
lication of Gilbert’s, entitled, De Mundo nostro sub. 
lunari Philosophia nova, Amst. 1651, 4to. It was print- 
ed from two MSS. in the library of Sir William Bos- 
well, and consists of an attempt to establish a new sys- 
_tem of natural philosophy upon the ruins of the Aris- 
totelian system. It was edited by the learned Gruter. 
Dr Gilbert invented two very ingenious instruments 
for ascertaining the latitudes of places without the aid 
of celestial observations. See MAGNETISM. 
GILDING, is the art of ornamenting various articles, 
by covering them with a superficial coat of , to 
obtainrthe brilliant appearance of that valuable metal. 
For some purposes the appearance is not the only 
object ; for, in situations where Wood or metal work is 
much exposed to. the weather, gilding forms a more 
durable protection from. decay than any kind of paint 
or varnish, as the gold, if well put on, is equally im- 
penetrable to the sun, rain, wind, or frost. 
_—\— 
Gilding is an art with which the ancients were ac- Ancient 
guainted, nee they had not discovered the means gilding. 
of extending the leaves of gold to such a surprising de- 
* See Robison’s System of Mechanical Philosophy, vol. iv. Art. MacNetis, 
