ACT 



ACT 



45 species distributed into different class- 

 es. Few of the species have been intro- 

 duced into gardens. Those of Europe 

 may be preserved in pots, rilled with gra- 

 vel and lime rubbish, or planted on walls 

 and artificial rocks; but most of them, 

 being natives of very hot climates, must 

 be planted in pots, and plunged into the 

 bark pit. 



ACTJEA, in botany, a genus of plants 

 of the Polyandria Monogynia class and 

 order. Gen. character : calyx perianth, 

 four-leaved ; leaflets roundish, obtuse, 

 concave, caducous; cor. petals four, acu- 

 minate at both ends, larger than the ca- 

 lyx ; filaments about 30 ; germ superi- 

 or ovate ; no style ; stigma thickish, ob- 

 liquely depressed ; pericarp a berry, oval- 

 globose, smooth, one furrowed, one-cell- 

 ed; seeds very many, semi-orbicular, lying 

 over each other in two rows. There are 

 four species, viz. the spicata ; racemosa ; 

 japonica; and aspera. Of the first there 

 are varieties, of the black-berried herb 

 Christopher, or bane-berry, found in the 

 northern parts of England ; the Christo- 

 pher, with white berries, a native of Ame- 

 rica ; and that with red berries. The 

 racemosa, or black snake-root, found also 

 in America, of which the root is much 

 used in many disorders, and is supposed 

 to be an antidote against the bite of the 

 rattle-snake. This species is now more 

 properly referred to the genus Cimifuga, 

 and is called by Pursh Cimifuga Serpen- 

 taria. See CIMIFURA. The leaves of the 

 A. aspera being extremely rough, the Chi- 

 nese use them in polishing their tin ware. 



ACTINIA, in natural history, a genus 

 of the Mollusca order of worms; the cha- 

 racters of which are, body oblong, cylin- 

 drical, fleshy, contractile, fixed by the 

 base; mouth terminal, expansile, sur- 

 rounded with numerous cirri, and without 

 any aperture. There are 36 species. These 

 marine animals are viviparous, and have 

 no aperture but the mouth. They feed 

 on shell-fish and other marine animals, 

 which they draw in with their feelers, in a 

 short time rejecting through the same 

 aperture the shells and indigestible parts. 

 They assume various forms, and where 

 the tentacula or feelers are all expanded, 

 have the appearance of full-blown flow- 

 ers. Many of them are eatable, and some 

 of them very sfipid. 



ACTINOLITE, in mineralogy, a family, 

 comprehending six species, viz. the acti- 

 nolite, smaragdite, tremolite, cyanite, sya- 

 lite, and schalstone. The actinolite oc- 

 curs chiefly in beds in primitive moun- 

 tains, and is divided into three sub-species, 



viz. the asbestos, common and glassy. 

 The abestos colours greenish grey, moun- 

 tain green, smelt blue, olive green, yel- 

 lowish, and liver-brown. Massive, and in 

 capillary crystals. Soft; brittle; specific 

 gravity 2.5 to 2.9. Melts before the blow- 

 pipe. The usual colour of the common 

 is leek green, but its specific gravity is 

 between 3.0 and 3.3. The principal co- 

 lour of the glassy is mountain green, pass- 

 ing to the emerald green. Specific gra- 

 vity 2.9 to 3.9. 



ACTION, in mechanics and physics, is 

 the influence of one body upon another, 

 in generating or destroying its motion. 



It is one of the laws of nature, that ac- 

 tion and re-action are equal, that is, the 

 resistance of the body moved is always 

 equal to the force communicated to it ; or, 

 which is the same thing, the moving body 

 loses as much of its force as it communi- 

 cates to the body moved. 



If a body be urged by equal and con- 

 trary actions or pressures, if will remain 

 at rest. But if one of these pressures be 

 greater than its opposite, motion will en- 

 sue toward the parts least pressed. 



It is to be observed, that the actions of 

 bodies on each other, in a space that is 

 carried uniformly forward, are the same 

 as if the space were at rest; and any 

 powers or motions that act upon all bodies, 

 so as to produce equal velocities in them 

 in the same, or in parallel right lines, have 

 no effect on their mutual actions, or rela- 

 tive motions. Thus, the motion of bodies 

 aboard a ship, that is carried steadily and 

 uniformly forward, are performed in the 

 same manner as if the ship was at rest. 

 The motion of the earth round its axis 

 has no effect on the actions of bodies and 

 agents at its surface, but so far as it is not 

 uniform and rectilineal. In general, the 

 actions of bodies upon each other depend 

 not on their absolute, but relative motion. 



ACTION, in law, denotes either the right 

 of demanding, in a legal manner, what is 

 any man's due, or the process brought for 

 the recovering the same. 



Actions are either criminal or civil. 



Criminal actions are to have judgment 

 of death, as appeals of death, robbery, &c. 

 or only judgment for damage to the in- 

 jured party, fine to the king, and impri- 

 sonment. 



Under the head of criminal actions may 

 likewise be ranked penal actions, which 

 lie for some penalty or punishment on the 

 party sued, whether it be corporal or pe- 

 cuniary. 



Also actions upon the statute, brought 

 on breach of any statute, or act of parlia- 



