B A L 



Balance-/"//^, in Ichthyology, an Englifli name of tlie 

 fquahis zygienrt of Linnasus and Gmeliii. It is al'.'o called 

 by fome the hammer-Jijl, or hammer-headed Jl^ark, from the 

 very fingiilar form of the head ; and its fpecific charader is 

 taken exclufively from that particular ; head vei-y broad, 

 tranfverfely, and hammer-fhaped. Salvian calls it I'lbella 

 ciamhetla ; and Belon, I'lhella, bal'tfla, cagnolu, &c. See Zy- 



.CiENA SqUALUS. 



- BALANCERS, or Poizers, in Entomology, a term 

 fynonymous with the French word halanckn, and halltres of 

 Linnsus ; denoting thofe little filamentous bodies which 

 terminate in a round, truncated, or ovalcapituhim, or knob ; 

 and of which one is placed on each fide of all the dipterous, 

 or two-winged infe£ls, immediately under a fniall fcalc or 

 arch, below the wing. In different genera thefe vary a 

 little in refpeft of fituation, and are alfo of larger or fmaller 

 fize in proportion to the other parts of the infcA in different 

 feuids. 



The ufe of thcfe organs is by no means obvious. Some 

 imagine that they beat the little arch or fcale, beneath 

 which they are fituated, in the motion of flying, and thereby 

 octafion that humming or buzzing noife, which every one 

 mull have obferved the honfe-fly, fle(h-fly, and other very 

 common two-winged infefts to emit in flight. The deader, 

 ve well know, make a like noife by means of fomewhat 

 fimilar organs under the lamella, but whether the noife 

 which the dipterous infefls make is occafioned in this 

 manner or not, we ihall not prefume to fay. Olivier thinks 

 it is not, becaufc it appears from certain experiments, that 

 wl.en any of thele infeCls are deprived of the haltcrcs, and 

 are permitted to refume their flight, the fame buzzing found 

 is heard without the flightell variation. The more general 

 opinion is, that they are defigned to facilitate the motion 

 of the creature in the air, by equipoifing, or preferving the 

 true equilibrium, jufl: as a Hick, made heavy at each end, is 

 held by rope-dancers to preferve their balance, and hence 

 thcfe organs have been called the balancers. This is moll 

 probably the real ufe of the halteres, notwithftanding that 

 their diminutive lize is fome objeftion to fuch opinion, for 

 when thefe are accidentally injured, the motion of the 

 creature becomes very irregular, and it evidently appears 

 unable to direft its courfe with the fame facility as before ; 

 either fuffering great pain, or being deprived of the means 

 it previoudy poffeffed. 



BALANCIER, a machine ufed in the ftriking of coins, 

 medals, counters, and the like. See Coinagi. 



BALANEjE, in ylncunt Geography, a town feated on 

 the Goail of Syria, between the towns of Gabala and Anta- 

 radus ; convenient for commerce, and fnniifhed with 

 grain and fruits in abundance. Strabo, Pliny, and Ptolemy 

 place it in Syria, properly fo called ; to the north r,f the 

 river Elentherus, which feparated Syria from Phoenicia. 

 Under the reign of Theodofius the younger, this town was 

 compriftd in the province called Syria Iccmida : but after- 

 wards belonged to a new province which the emperor Julli- 

 iiian formed under the name of Theodoriade. 



B.^LANITES, in Natural Hi/lory, a name given by the 

 ancients to a ilonc, feeming to have been of the fcmipel- 

 lucid gems. They defcribe two fpecica of it ; the one of 

 which was yellow, and the other green, but each having 

 veins of a ilame colour. Their dcfcriptions are too ftiort 

 for us to be able to afcertain what Hones, among thoft 

 known at this time, they meant. 



Some think the balanites to have been the lafts JudaicHS, 

 on account of its acorn-like figure and fizc, Plin. Nat. 

 Hill. lib. Kxsiii. cap. lo. ed. Hardouin. 



B A L 



BALANOIDES, in Conchology, a fpeci«B of LE?>.t, 

 with a conic truncated fmooth (hell, and obtufe operculum. 

 Linn. Fn. Suec. — Donov. &c. This is balamis parvus 

 vulgaris of Petiver; and a variety of it with a long tubular 

 ftalk is defcribed by Da Colla, Pennant, and Doner. 

 Brit. Shells. 



BALANTE, in Geography, a town of the ifland of Cele- 

 bes, in the country of Bancala. 



BALANUS, in Conchology, the name of a genus of 

 multivalve flicUs, in the works of feveral writer; on the 

 tejlacea, as Pctiver, Gcfncr, Da Cofta, &c. The (hells of 

 this kind are comprehended by Linnasus and Gmelia in the 

 genus Lepas, which fee. 



Balanus, a fpecics of Lhpas, with a conic fulcatcd 

 (hell, and (harp-pointed opcrculu.T. Found sdhering to 

 rocks, Hones, (hells, &c. in the greatcft plenty in all th; 

 European feas. Linn. Fn. Suec. — Donov. Brit. Shells, 

 &c. 



Balanus, /Sx^.xjof, or Glans, is fometimes ufed by /ina- 

 tomijls for the nut of the yard. Sometimes alfo the clitor;i 

 is lo called. 



Balanus is alfo fometimes ufed for a fuppofitory. 



Balanus Myrepsica, in Pharmacy, the BtN-Ku/, 

 which fee. 



Bala?)us, in Geography, the name of a port of Italy, in 

 Lucania. 



BALA R A, in /Indent Geograpliy, a commercial city 

 feated on the coaR of the Indian ocean, between the mouth 

 of the Indus and that of the Euphrates. Philoftratu!. 



B ALARUC, in Geography, a town of France, celcbi-aie 1 

 for its mineral fprings, in the department of the Heiault, 

 four leagues from Montpellier. 



Balaruc, Waters of. Thefe are hot fprings of foir.e 

 celebrity, employed both internally, and efpccially as bathj. 

 From the dcfcription andanalyfis ofLe Roy (in the Mcmoircs 

 de I'Academie des Sciences for 1772), they appear to con- 

 tain a fmall portion of fea fait, fome fixed air, and fome 

 deliquefcent falls, but no iron nor fulphnr. They are 

 limpid, and f;dti(h ta the tafte. Their temperature when 

 frefli is about 128° Fahr. ; but they arc cooled down ta 

 about [ 15° before they are uftd. 



BALASCHEV. See Balakkf. 



BALASORE, a fca-port town of Hindoftan, in the 

 countiy of Oriffa, and a place of confiderable trade, feated 

 on the river Gongahar, about twenty miles from its mouth 

 in the bay of Bengal. Ships generally take pilots here to 

 conduft them up the Ganges. It is about loi gcographi- 

 cal miles S. W. from Calcutta. N.lat. 21^ 2C'. E.long. 

 87° 1' 30". 



BALASS, Ballas, or Balais, in Mineralogy. See 

 Ruby. 



BALATAM, in Geography, a volcanic mountain in the 

 idand of Sumatra. 



Balatiti, in Ornithology, a name given by the people 

 of the Philippine illands to a kind of bird, by tl^e flight of 

 which they divine the event of things. What bird this is 

 has not been afcertained. 



BALAUSTINA, in Conshohgy, a fpecies of Tei.hna, 

 having the fliell dilated, orbicular, and one valve furnifhtj 

 with lateral tectli. Inhabits the Mediterranean fea. Colour 

 whilifh, with obfolete rrfous rays. Size of a lupine feed. 



BALAUvSTIUM Flores, Balaujlines, the flowers of 

 punsca granatuni, or pomegranate tree. Thefe are large rofe- 

 like fiowers of a deep red colour, fet in long, biU-lliaped 

 cups, and are brought from the fouthcrn parts of Europe. 

 Tlu V are mildly alliingent, as indeed is the whole of the 

 3 R 2 por.ie- 



