FOR 



FOR 



the form of an oath, declaration, attesta- 

 tion, adjuration, &c. to be made on cer- 

 tain occasions. 



FORNICATION, the act of inconti- 

 nency in single persons; for if either 

 party be married, it is adultery ; the spi- 

 ritual court hath the proper cognizance 

 of this offence ; but formerly the courts'- 

 leet had power to inquire of and punish 

 fornication and adultery ; in which courts 

 the king had a fine assessed on the offen- 

 ders, as appears by the book of domes- 

 day. 



FORSKOHLEA, in botany, so named 

 in honour of Peter Forskahl, a Swede, a 

 genus of the Octandria Tetragynia class 

 and order. Natural order of Urticae, Jus- 

 sieu. Essential character : calyx four or 

 five-leaved, longer than the corolla; pe- 

 tals eight or ten, spatulate ; pericarpium 

 none ; seeds five, connected by wool. 

 There are three species. 



FORSTER (JOHN REINHOLD,) in bio- 

 braphy, an eminent naturalist and philo- 

 logist, was born on the 22d of October, 

 1729, at Derschaw, in Polish Prussia, 

 where his father was a burgomaster. He 

 received very little education, except 

 what he acquired himself by the natural 

 strength of his own genius, till the year 

 1743, at which period he was placed for a 

 year at the public school of Marienwer- 

 der ; and when about fifteen he was sent 

 to Berlin, where he was admitted into the 

 gymnasium of Joachimsthal. Having a 

 decided attachment to the learned lan- 

 guages, he made great progress under 

 Mezelius and Heinsius ; and even while 

 at school, applied to the study of the Cop- 

 tic. He applied also to several of the 

 modern languages, and particularly the 

 Polish, which he had an opportunity of 

 speaking with his school-fellows, many of 

 whom were Poles, and among whom, at 

 that time, was a very extraordinary ge- 

 nius, Stanislaus vonSiestrzencewitz,who, 

 through ambitious views, afterwards em- 

 braced the Catholic religion, and, on ac- 

 count of his eloquence, was raised to the 

 dignity of a bishop. Among his school- 

 fellows also at this time were, Cochius, 

 Resewitz, Irving, and the celebrated 

 Pallas, now professor at Petersburg!!. 



In the year 1748, he was entered at the 

 university of Halle ; his inclination led 

 him to the study of medicine ; but his 

 father was desirous that he should apply 

 to jurisprudence ; he, however, studied 

 theology, and indulged his taste for the 

 learned languages, among which he in- 

 cluded the Oriental. 



In the year 1751, he left the university, 

 and repaired to Dantzic, where he soon 



distinguished himself by his sermons, in 

 which he imitated the French rather than 

 the Dutch manner, at that time the most 



Srevalent. After being two years a can- 

 idate, he obtained a settlement, in 1753, 

 at Nassenhuben, and in the month of Fe- 

 bruary, next year, married his own cou- 

 sin, Elizabeth Nikolai. While in this 

 situation, he devoted great part of his 

 leisure hours to philosophy, geography, 

 and the mathematics, which were now 

 his favourite pursuits ; and he improved 

 himself still farther in the knowledge of 

 ancient and modern languages ; but his 

 income being small, and his family in- 

 creasing, he had to struggle with diffi- 

 culties, which induced him to accept an 

 offer made to him by the Russian resident 

 at Dantzic, of going to Russia, to superin- 

 tend the new colonies at Saratow. At 

 Petersburg!! he gave so much satisfaction 

 to the members of government, that 

 count Orloflf, who at that time enjoyed 

 unlimited power, wrote to the resident at 

 Dantzic, to thank him for having engaged 

 a man of such great talents, and so agree- 

 able to his wishes. But, whether Forster 

 had shewn himself too warm a friend of 

 the colonists, had expressed his senti- 

 ments with too much freedom, or given 

 offence to Orloff in some other manner, 

 he soon returned to Petersburgh without 

 completing his engagement. On his re- 

 turn to the capital, he had advantageous 

 offers made to him by the Academy of 

 Sciences, and by that of Moscow, but he 

 declined both. In the mean time, the 

 congregation of Nassenhuben, whom he 

 had left, insisted cither on his returning 

 or giving up the place. As he had still 

 hopes that the Russian government would 

 fulfil its promise, and make some provi- 

 sion for him, he preferred the latter ; but 

 his patience having been exhausted, his 

 friends at Berlin, who had reason to ex- 

 pect hearing of his being on the banks of 

 the Wolga, received letters from London, 

 in the month of July, 1766, in which he 

 stated, that he had left Russia in disgust, 

 and had proceeded to England, with very 

 little money, but with strong recommen- 

 dations. After his arrival in London, he 

 received from the Russian government a 

 present of a hundred guineas; and by 

 translating Kalm's travels, and Osbeck's 

 voyage, he procured some additional 

 funds towards the support of his family. 

 He had an offer from lord Baltimore of 

 being superintendant of his extensive 

 property in America, but this he declin- 

 ed, and accepted the place of teacher of 

 the French, German, and natural history, 

 in the academy of Warrington. This 



