BED 



BEE 



t'nemfclves, t^cy live on flcdi and milk, and common and 

 ordinary fruits. They liavc in their fields tlie tre? which 

 bears pt'pper j and a jjreat dtal of wild honey, wliich they 

 drink with watt-r. There are other Arabs who cultivate 

 the earth. Thfv arc trilnUary, like the Syrians, and refera- 

 ble them in other refpcft", except that they do not dwell 

 in houfes. Siuh arc prett)- nearly the manners of this 

 people." Volney's Travels in Egypt and Syria, vol. i. 

 Niebuhr's Travels through Arabia, &c. vol. ii. p. 158 — 

 183. Sonnini's Travj.ls in Upper and Lower Egypt, 

 p. 303. 317 — 322. 390. Savary'a Letters in Egypt, vol.ii. 

 p. 274, &c. See AR.'tniA. 



BEDR, or Bediifr Hot'NKiNE, in Ginp-iihy, a place 

 of Arabia, io miles from Medina, and 40 from Mecca, 

 lying in the higli road of the caravan of Egypt. The fer- 

 tile vale of Bedr is rendered famous by ihe battle fought 

 between Mahomet and the Kortiih of Mecca, in the fccond 

 year of the Hegira, A. D. 623. In tiiis vale Mahomet 

 was infomied by his fcouts of the caravan- that approached 

 on one fide, and of the Koreifh, confiiling of 100 liorfe, 

 and 8jo foot, who advanced on the otlier. After a fliort 

 debate, the holy prophet facrificed the profpeA of wealth 

 to the purfuit of glory and revenge ; and a flight intrench- 

 ment was formed to cover his troops, and a ftrcam of 

 frcfh water that glided through the valley. " O Gnd," 

 he exclaimed, as the Koreifh defcended from the hills, 

 " O God, if tlv:fe are deflroyed, by whom wilt thou be 

 worihipped on the earth ? Courage, my cliildrcn, clofe your 

 ranks; difcharge your arrows, and the day is your own." 

 At thefe words he placed himfelf, vs'ith Abubcker, on a 

 throne or pulpit, and inilantly demanded the fuccour of 

 Gabriel and 50so angels. His eye was fixed on the field 

 ef battle ; the Mu'Tulmans fainted and were prefled : in 

 that decifive moment the prophet ftarted from his throne, 

 mounted his horfe, and cait a handful of fand into the air : 

 " Let their faces be covered with confufion." Both armies 

 heard the thunder of his voice ; their fancy beheld t!ie 

 angelic warriors ; the Korcifa trembled and fled ; fcventy 

 of the braved were flain ; and fcventy ciiptivcs adorned the 

 firft viftory of the faithful. The dead bodies of the Ko- 

 reifli were dcfpoiled and infultcd ; tv.'o of the moil ob- 

 r.oxious prifoners were puniflied with death ; and the ran- 

 fom of the others, 4000 drams of filver, compenfated in 

 fome degree the efcape of the caravan. Hcrbelot. Bib. 

 Orient, p. 180. Gibbon's Hill, vol.ix. p. 300. 



BEDRIACUM, in ylndent Gci^mJ>/jy, a village of Ifdy, 

 fituate, according to Tacitus, between Verona and Cre- 

 mona, or about 16 miles from the cor.iluence of the Adda 

 and Po. Chivier places it between Cremona and Mantua, 

 and fuppofcs it to have been the prefent Caneto, a large 

 village on the left of the Oglio. M. d'Anville thinks that 

 it was the place now called Cividale on the right fide of 

 that river. It is famous for two battles fought within a 

 mouth by Romans againft Romans, A. D. 69 ; in the firfl 

 of which the emperor Galba was defeated by Otho, and 

 in the fecond Otho was defeated by ViteUius. 



BEDRIEGER, Groote Bedrieger, in IchihyrAogy, 

 a name given by fome to the fparui injidiator of Pallas and 

 Gmelin. Vide Ruy'ch, thcatr. isjc. 



BEDRIP, or Bedrepf, or Bederape, the cuflomary 

 fervice whicii inferior tenants anciently paid their lord, by 

 cutting down his corn, or doing other work in the field. 

 The word is formed from the Saxon b'uidon, to pray, and 

 repe, to reap, or cut corn. 



BEDROLA, in Geography, a town of Spain, iu Arra- 

 goBj 8 leagues from Sangueia. 



BEDSTRAW, in 5o/,7ny. See Galium. 



BEDUSTA, in ylncieiit G.v^rsph, the ancient Hindoo 

 name of the river Hydafpts, or the modern Be hut. 



BEDWIN, Great, in Geography, is an ancient borough 

 town fituated on the eaftern fide of the county of Wilts, in 

 England ; at the dillance of 70 miles weft of I>ondon, 

 and 17 miles north fi'om Salifhui-y. It is an ancient bo- 

 rough by prefcriplion, and fcnt members to all the parlia- 

 ments of Ed\s'ard the fiill. During fome parts of tiie fub- 

 fcqucnt reigns, it intermitted fciidlng ; but from the 9th 

 of Henry V., two members have conllantly rcprefented 

 the borough. Thefe are eledted by about eighty perfons 

 who poffefs freeholds, or inhabit ancient burgage houfcf. 

 The town is governed by a port-reve, afiillcd by a bailiff, 

 and fome inferior officers, all of whom arc chofen by the 

 former. Bedwin had formerly a market on Tuefday, but 

 this has been dileonlinucd for fome years, iu coufcquence 

 of its proximity to the larger market town cf Miirlbonnigh. 



Dr. Stukely and fome other antiquaries have given tu 

 this place the htmours of a Roman llation, and a Saxon 

 city; but there is little proof or probability, th.at it was ever 

 the former. There are fome enlrenchmente remaining on a 

 hill foulh of the town, where it is faid Ciffa ereited a caillc, 

 and where he feated liimftlf as viceroy of Wiltlhire and 

 Berkfliire. Towards the end of the feventh century, a 

 fevere and dcftrurtive battle was fought near this town, l)e- 

 tween Wulfhere, king of Mercia, and ^.fcuin, a powerful 

 Saxon nobleman, when, as Mr. Turner in his Anglo-Saxon 

 Hiftory, charafterilllcally obferves, " mutual dellrucliou 

 was more confpiciunis, than the decifion" of the battle. 



The church of Bedwin is a large ancient ilrudfure, 

 built moflly with flints, and fliaped iu the form of a crofs. 

 Among the monuments it contains, is one to fir John Sey- 

 mour, who was father of the proteftor, and of the unfor- 

 tunate lady Jane Seymour. According to the tradition of 

 the neighbourhood, this lady was married to the tyrannic 

 monarch at a place called Wolf-hall near Bedwin, where fir 

 John Seymour then refided. 



Here are two annual fairs. The parifli contains 3iC> 

 lioufes, and 1632 inhabitants, moll of whom are employed 

 in agriculture. The famous Oxonian phyfician. Dr. Thomas 

 Willis, was born here. 



About two miles wefl of the town is Tottenham park, a 

 feat of the earl of Aylcfhury. The houfe was built by the 

 celebrated eail of Burlington, on the lite of an ancient pa- 

 lace belonging to the marquis of Hertford, who was after- 

 wards created duke of Somerfet. Tottenham-park is part 

 of the foreft of Savernake, which is the only private forefl 

 in England independently belonging to a fubjeft. It is a 

 large traft of wild ground, prsfufely wooded, and containing 

 much fine old oak timber. 



BEE, Apis, in Natural Hi/lory., a genus of the Hyme- 

 nopterous order, in the Linnxan claflification of infefts ; 

 in Phyfioh^t, and in Hufcandry, more commonly exprcfTive 

 of the common honey-bee {jpis miU'ificri), although likewife 

 applicable to the various other fpccies of honey-bees ; and 

 in a ilill more general fenfe to thofc which do not, as 

 well as thofe which do, produce honey ; thofe which live in 

 focicties, as well as thofe which lead a life of folitude, or in- 

 dependence from their kindred kinds ; all which have a cer- 

 tain appearance and call of charaiter, which, in the common 

 acceptation of the woid, claim the dillinclivc epithet of bee, 

 or honty-hee, humble bee, ludd bee, iSfc, 



The bee, or apis tribe, is charaflerifed in the Linnsean 

 fyftem as having, in common with other hymenopterous in- 

 fecls, four membranaceous wings, and the female being 



armed 



