ALA 



ALA 



AI.ABASTRIT.E, nlnhnfers, \n N„t,n:il irjlory, tlio 

 name of a genus of fofiils allied to the marbles, and dcliiied 

 to be ftoiies compofed of large feparatc concretions, of gicut 

 hrightnefs, and an elegant, liut ftiatttiy itinfture, not very 

 hard, not giving fire with Heel, effervcfcing with and folublc in 

 acids, and calcining in a lligiit fire. See Alauaster. 



ALABASTRITES is often ufcd as fynonymous with 

 alabader. But Anfclmus Bottius dilHnguiilies between ala- 

 bafterand alabaftriies, in making the criterion of the former 

 to be fo foft, that it may be cut with a knife ; and of the 

 latter, that it is fo hard that it cannot be fo cut. 



Grew fpeaks of a fort of alabaftrites reprefenting the 

 tranfverfe feftion of the trunk of a tree. 



ALABASTRUM ihiiJro'ul;; a name given by authors 

 to a fpecies of alabafter, found in great abundance in the 

 province of Hohenilein, and famous tor the elegant delinea- 

 tions of trees and other figures defcribed in it. See Ala- 

 baster. 



Alabastrum, in yiiu'n-nt Geogrnphy, a town of the 

 Thebaid, in Egypt, where Pliny fays topazes were found. 



ALABASTlvUS, a river ol Troas, which flowed from 

 Mount Ida. 



ALABATER, a promontory of Carmania. 



ALABON, or Alabus, now Cntaro, a river of Sicily 

 between Myla and Megara, which Diodorus (lib. iv. c. 78. 

 torn. i. p. 321.) reprefents as a large river, which difcharged 

 itfelf into the neighbouring fea. Stephanus Byz. (vol. i. p. 

 58.) mentions alfo a city of this name. 



ALABOR.G, a town of the ancient Rufsland, fituatcin 

 the prcfcnt government of Olonetz. 



ALABUA, in Geography^ a fmall town of Arabia 

 PetitEa, where it is faid Abdalla, the father of Mahomet, 

 died, and which is a ftation of the pilgrims that vlfit 

 Mecca. 



ALABURIUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of Syria, 

 mentioned by Stcphan. Byz. 



ALACH, in Geography, a prccfetlurate belonging to the 

 territory of Erfurt, containing 13 pariihes. 



ALACHUAH Savannah, a level green plain in the 

 country of the Indians of that name in Eail Florida, fituatc 

 about 75 miles well from St. Auguftine. It is about 15 

 miles wide and 50 miles in circumference, and encircled with 

 high floping hills, covered with waving forells, and fragrarit 

 orange groves, which rife from a veiy fertile foil. The 

 ancient Alachuah town ilood on the borders of this Sa- 

 vannah, but the Indians removed to Cufcowilla, about two 

 miles dillant, on account of the infalubrity of the fituation. 

 The horned cattle and horfes bred in thtle meadows are large 

 and fat, but they are fubjetl to mortal difcafes, fuch as the 

 water rot or fcald, occafioned by the warm water of the 

 Savannah. 



ALACRANES, a range of rocks and fhoals on the 

 fouth fide of the gulf of Mexico, fituate over againll the 

 pcninfula of Yucatan ; eail from Stonebank, and well from 

 Cape St. Antonio, within the 23d degree of north lati- 

 tude, and between 89" and 9!" W. long. They are faid 

 to derive their name from the great number of fcoi-pions 

 that are found there. 



ALADA, an ifland in the Indian Ocean, near the coaft 

 cf Siam. N. lat. 9" 27'. E. long. 97" 52'. 



ALADAG, or Amadag, the highcll m.ountain of 

 Natolia, in Aha, north of Angora, and not far from the 

 Cape of Coromba. N. lat. 40" 10'. E. long. 52" 40'. 



AI^ADINISTS, a fcftvamong the Arabs, anfwcring to 

 free-thinkers among us. 



The Aladinifts multiplied greatly under the two learned 

 kings Almanfor and Miramolinus. 



ALADULIA, a confidcrable province of Turkey in 



Afia, between Amafia and the Mediterranean, toward* 

 Mount Taurus. Some have reprefcntcd it a.s the third d;- 

 vifion of Afia Minor, and made it to comprehend Cspp:!- 

 docia and I^efler Armenia. It joins on the fouth to Tre- 

 bi/.ond, and is called by the Turks the beglerbegate o* 

 Marafch, and fometimes Dulgadir. The full is unfit for 

 tillage, but aft'ords abundance oi paftine, which breeds a 

 great n\imber of cattle, efpeeially horfes and camels, and 

 uirge herds of flieep and goats. Cappadocia, befides its 

 pailure grounds, produces wines and fruits in great plenty; 

 and its mountains, particularly tlic chain called Antitaurus, 

 have mines of filver, copper, iron and alum. Marafch and 

 Cxfarea are well built and populous cities. Armenia the 

 lelTer, fo called by v.ay of dilHnCtion from the greater Ar- 

 menia, has this country which bi longs to Perfia on iheeafl, 

 Syria on the fouth, the Euxine on the well, and Cappadocii 

 on the north. The people are addicled to war and plunder. 



AIv/liNUS, in Ancient Geography, a river of Britain, 

 according to Ptolemy, fuppofed to be the river Ax, and its 

 mouth Ax-mouth. It was fo called perhaps from the Brilidi 

 A latin ill, the full river. 



AL7ESA. SccAlesa. 



ALAFOENS, in Geography, a diilricl of the pro\ino: 

 of Beira, in Portugal, containing 37 pariflies, and creiied 

 into a duchy in 1718, by John V. 



ALAGNON, a rapid river of France, in the late pro- 

 vince of Auvergne, wliofe fourcc is at Cantal, and which 

 falls into the Allicr. 



ALAGOA, a town of Africa, in Upper Guinea, where 

 the Portugucfe have an cftablifliment. 

 ^Alagoa bay lies on the eaftern coaft of Africa, in the 

 Indian Ocean. S. lat. 25° 30'. E. long. 33° 28'. 



Alagoa is alfo the name of a town of South America, i» 

 the country of Brafil, and government of Fernambuc. 



ALAGON, a river of Spain, which rifes in the mountain 

 of Leon, and runs into the Tagus, a little above Alcantara. 

 It is alfo the name of a fmall town of Aragon, Handing on 

 a peninfula formed by the rivers Ebro and Xalon, about tour 

 leagues from SaragofTa. 



a'VLAGTAGA, in Zoology, the Tartarian name of the 

 Siberian Jkrboa, fignifies an animal which cannot walk. 

 Bafl'on (i\a:. Hill, by .SincUle, vol. vii. p. 202.) characlcrifei 

 it as having legs like thofe of the Jerboa, but with five toea 

 on the fore feet, and three on the hind, with a fpur, that may 

 pafs for a thumb or fourth toe, much fiiorter than the others. 



ALAIGNE, a town of France, in the department of the 

 Aude, and dillrift of Linioux, two leagues north-well of 

 Linnuix. 



ALAIN, Chartier, in Biography, fccrelai-y to Chai-les 

 VII. king of France, was bom in 1 386. He was ihs 

 author of feveral works in profe and verfe ; but his confidcr- 

 able work was the " Chronicle of king Charles VII." It 

 is faid that Margaret, daughter to the king of Scotland^ 

 and wife of the dauphin, finding him alleep fainted hinj 

 before all who were prclent : and when they exprefied their 

 furprife at hereondefcenfion to a perfon who pollelfed fo few 

 charms, flie replied, " I did not kifs the man, but the 

 mouth, from which proceed fo many excellent fayings, fo 

 many wife difcourfes, and fo many elegant expreflions." 

 On this incident Fontenelle lias founded one of his Dialogue* 

 of the dead. Pafquier extols the characler of Alain, and 

 compares him to Seneca, on account of the infinite nmnber 

 of beautiful fentences, that are interfperfed in his writings. 

 Gen. Dia. 



Alain, John, a Danidi writer, was born in 1563, and 



died in 1630. He publilhed a treatife " On the Origin of 



the Cimbri, and their various Eliabliflimcnts ;'' another 



" On Logic, natural and artificial^' and a third " On the 



3 S 2 Pro- 



