ADA 



ADAMBEA, in Bctany, a geinis of tlic pohamtiHi 

 monotrynia elafs and order ; the charailers of vvliidi are, 

 that the corolla has from five to fevtn petals, the calyx is 

 hemilpheric, and parted into five or le\-en divifioiis; the 

 capfula is flefhy, covered by the calyx, containing five or 

 fevcn cells, and polyfpcnnous, Gmclin mentions one 

 fpecies ; but La Maick (Eneycl. vol. i. p. 39.) defcribcs 

 two, viz. A.gbbra, which grows on the coall of Malabar, 

 in ia.ndy and llony !>laces, rifes to about fevcn feet, and fends 

 forth branches which arc ttniiinated by panicles of fine 

 purple flowers, large, and refembling rofes ; and /I. hlrfutii, 

 which grows on the mountains of Sinlabar to tlie height cf 

 about nine feet ; its branches of flowers refemble thofe of 

 the former fpecies. 



ADAMl, in Geography, a town of Jndah, in the tribe of 

 Nephthali. Jofhua xix. 33. 



ADAMI, I'oinum, in Anatomy, a protuberance in the 

 fore -part of the throat. Some fancy, that it is thus called 

 upon a ftrange conceit, tliat a piece of the forbidden apple, 

 which Adam eat, Ihick by the way, and was the occafion 

 of it. In reality it is only the convex part of the firil car- 

 tilage of the lai-ynx, called fcutiformis and thyroides. This 

 is ufually larger in the male than in the female fij;)^ieft. 



The name, Adam's apple, is alio given to a kind of fruit 

 frequent in Italy, refembling a lemon, faid to be a good re- 

 medy^ againfl the itch. See Citrus. 



ADAMIC Earth, is a name which fome have given 

 fo common clay, called alfo tena zoica, rubella, and lutum. 

 Woodw. Method. Fod". p. 4. The occafion of the name 

 is fuppofed to be, that this is taken for the adam:ih, or 

 ruddy earth, of which the firil man was formed. This ap- 

 phcation is likewife given to the mud depofited bvfea-water, 

 which is a fediment of the mofl flimy and unttuous parts 

 contained in it. 



ADAMITES, or Adamiaxf, in Ecckfwfical H'ipry,. 

 a feft of perfons who took upon ti.em to imitate the naked- 

 nefs of Adam ; as if man had been reinftated in his origi- 

 nal innocence. They are fuppofed to have been a branch 

 of the Carpocratians and Basilidians. Prodicus was 

 their author, according to the account given byTheodoret; 

 though, according to Tertullian and Clement of Alexan- 

 dria, the followers of Prodicus were never called by this 

 name. Epiphanius is the firft writer who fpeaks of the 

 Adainites, and he places them towards the end of the fecond 

 eentury. 



He profefles to have no certain account of thefe people ; 

 but he lays, that they met together, both men and wom.en, 

 naked as they were born ; and fo performed their readings 

 and prayers and other aSs of religious worfhip. They are 

 a kind of monks, who rejcft marriage, and they call their 

 church a paradife. When they approached tl'.eir places 

 of worfliip, which were made warm for their accommodation, 

 thev took off their clothes ; and when they left them, they 

 clothed themfclves again. Dr. Lafdner is of opinion that 

 there never were any fuch people ; and to this purpofe lie 

 alledsTcs, that they are not mentioned by anv aneient v.riter 

 before Epiphanius, and that lie had no certain account of 

 them ; nor does he give the leaft intimation of the counti-y 

 or period in which this feft appeared. He does indeed lav, 

 that the Gnollics prayed naked ; but they were a v>'icked 

 people, and praftifed lewdnefs in their afferablies ; whereas 

 he reprefents the Adanxi'es as endeavouring to imitate Adam 

 and Eve, not only in their nakednefs, but likewife in the in- 

 noccr.ce of their original ftate. But Dr. Lardncr thinks 

 that Epiplianius's charge againft the Gnoftics is not true. 

 Theodoret's account of this feet was boiTOv/ed from Epi- 

 phanius, as he l:ad no knowledge of Prodicus, the vepuicd 



ADA 



founder of it, liut wliat he received from Clement of Alex- 

 andria, who does not fay any fuch thing of him. Befidcs, 

 it is faid that Prodicus was againll praying at all ; and 

 therefore the Adamite cuftom of praying naked could not 

 be derived from him. Lardner's Works, vol. ix. 337— 



340- 



A fimilar fefl :.ppcared in the twelfth century, under the 

 direiSion of one 'I'andamus, known by the name of Tan- 

 chelin, who propagated his errors at Antwerp in the reign 

 of the emperor Henry V. This was followed by the 



TuRLllPlNS. 



In the fifteenth century Picard pretended to rc-cftablini 

 the law of nature, wliich, according to him, confiftcd in two 

 things, viz. connnunity of women and nakednefs. His fol- 

 lowers are faid to have walked naked in the public places ; 

 whereas the onginal Adamites only put off their clotiies in 

 their alfemblics. See 13eghards, liRtTHREN o/" /Zif yVc-f- 

 /■/:rit, and Pi cards. 



An ingenious writer, viz. Beaufobre, has fliewn that the 

 A(liuni:':j'm, i. c. the nakednefs of thefe people, is a mere 

 calumny, forged by their adverlaries, the Cahxtines and 

 Papirts, at the time when the Vaudois firil appeared in that 

 country. See Beaufiibre's DiiTertation at the end of L'En- 

 fant's Hiftoiy of the Warof tlie Huflites, and Bayle'sDidl. 

 Art. Adamitfs, PicARDS and Prodicus. 



Jovet and Morcri fpeak of Adamites in England ; and 

 indeed the Romilh and reformed mutually reproach each 

 other with having Adamites among them. 



Adamites, a name alfo given by fome writers to the 

 firil patriarchs, the fons or delcendants of Adam by Seth ; 

 in which fenfc Adamites a e the famd with Sethitcs, and 

 Hand diftinguiflicd from Cainites. There are various 

 traditions concerning the quaiTcls, wars, &c. between the 

 Adamites and Cainites. 



Adamites, Pre. See Prf.-Adamites. 

 ADAMS, in Ciogrcphy, a towrifiiip of Berkfiiirc county in 

 theMafiTachufetSjGontaining 2040 inhabitants, about i4omik3 

 north-weil of Bollon. In the northern part of this dillridl, the 

 mill-ftream, called Hudfon's Brook, which rifes in Ver- 

 mont, and falls into the north branch of Hoofuck river, 

 has formed a deep channel, about 30 or 40 rods in length, 

 and in fome places 60 feet deep, through a quarry of white 

 marble ; and over this channel the rocks form a natural 

 bridge, about 1 2 or 15 feet long, 10 broad, and 62 feet 

 above the water. 



ADAMSDORF, a town in Germany, in the Circle of 

 Upper Saxony ; one league eafl of Eippehne. 



ADAMSON, Patrick, in Biography, a Scots prelate, ■ 

 who was born March 15, 1536, at Perth, of mean but 

 honeft parents, and had his collegiate education at the uni- 

 verfity of St. Andrew's, where he obtained the degree of 

 Mafler of Arts. In 1566, he fet out for Pans as tutor to 

 a young gentleman ; and here he wrote a Latin poem on 

 occafion of t .1.' i-irth of the prince, who was afterwards James 

 VI. of Scotb.nd, and firfi; of England. In this poem lie 

 gave the titles of France and England to his own prince, which 

 cffended the French court, and occafioned his arreft and con- 

 finem.cnt. As foon as he was relcaf d, he retired with his pu[>il 

 to Bcurges, the c:ip:tal of the duchy of Beny. During the 

 mafTEcrc at Paris, he was concealed in tiiis place, and veiy 

 mu-rowiy efcaptd fuffering martyrdom for the protcftant re- 

 ligion. In his fepulchre,' as he called it, he wrote two ex- 

 cellent La!;n poems, which are Hill extan.t, t/c. a poetical 

 \CTfion of the ht^ck of Job, and the tragedy of Herod, 

 who was fmitten by an angel. In 1 573, he returned to Scot- 

 land and entered into holy orders, and officiated as minilter 

 of PaiHey. In 1575) he was appointed one of the com- 



iiiillionei'S 



