BET 



BETHUNE, in Biography. See Svlly. 



Beth UN E, in G^ojni^^j;, a town of France, and principal 

 place of a diftrift, in the department of the ftraits of Calais, 

 feated on a rock in the little river Bietre. The number of 

 inhabitants in the town is eftimated at 5000, snd in the can- 

 ton at 15,956. Its territory contains 125 kiliometres, and 

 17 c.'mmunes. It formerly belonged to the counts of Flan- 

 ders, but being taken by Gallon, duke of Orleans, ni 1645, it 

 was united to France by the peace of the Pyrenees, and t'le 

 fortificati jns were repaired under the direction of M. V'auban. 

 In 1 7 10, it was captured by the allied army, under prince En- 

 gene and the duke of Marlborougjh, and rellorcd to France in. 

 1713, at the peace of Utrecht. This city and thecaftle are to- 

 gether of a triangular hgure; but the caftlc itfelf is an irregular 

 building. The houfes are mean, and the llreets are ill paved, 

 but it contains feveral churches and convents, and a lar 'e 

 handfome fquare. In the marfhy lands, near the city, ftve- 

 ral canals are cut for the convenience of whitening linen. 

 N. lat. 50° 32'. E. long. 2° 48'. 



Beth ONE, a river of France in Upper Normandy, in the 

 county of Caux. 



BETHURA, in indent Geography, a town of Afia in 

 AfTyrla. Ptolemy. 



BETIGOI-A, in Geography, a town of Poland, in Sa- 

 ir.ogitia, 10 miles S. S. E. of Rofienne. 



BETI(,^UA, a town of Africa, in the kingdom of 

 Congo. 



BETITLO, a town of European Turkey, in the Morea, 

 22 miles fouth of Miilllra. 



BETLIS, a town of Afia in Curdiftan, fituated between 

 two high mountains, at a caimon (hot's diltancc from each 

 other ; the refidence of a bey, who is fubjedl neither to the 

 king uf Perfia nor the Turkifh emperor, and who commands 

 an army of 20,oco or 25,000 horfemen, befides infantry. It 

 lies on the road from Tauris to Aleppo, and the paflage' is 

 fo narrow, that the prince can (lop caravans whenever he 

 pleafes. The caftle is on an eminence between the moun- 

 tains, rcfembling a fugar-loaf, and fo ftetp that it can only 

 be afcended by witidmg round it. The people in and near 

 the town are (hepherds, and are ready to take up arms at 

 the command of their prince. It is diftant about no miles 

 E. of Diarbekir, and 100 N. of Moful. N. lat. 37° 2c'. 

 E. lone. 42"' 4c'. 



BETOL.A, a town of Italy, 16 miles S. of Placenza. 



EETON, xr. Arcb'iteSure. See Cements, Calcareous. 



BETONICA, Betony, corrupted from Vettonica, which 

 is derived from the Vcttones, an ancient people of Spain, in 

 Botany. Lin. gen. 718. Reich. 776. Schreb. 973. Tour- 

 I'cf. 96. JufT. 114. Smith, Flor. Brit. 267. Clals and Or- 

 I'.er, didyr.amia gymnofpermia. Nat. Ord. Vcrlicillatj:, or L,a- 

 hiat£. Gen. Char. Calyx, perianth one-leafed, tubular, 

 cylindric, five-toothed, awned, permanent. Cor. monopeta- 

 I0U6, ringent ; tube bent in, cylindric ; upper lip roundifh, 

 entire, flat, eredl ; lower trifid ; middle divilion broader, 

 roundi'.li, emarginate. Stam. filaments four, fubulate, the 

 length of the throat ; two (horter, inclined to the upper lip ; 

 anthers roundilli. Pijl. germ four-parted ; llyle, form, fitn- 

 ation, and fizc of the Ilamens ; iligma bifid. Per. none ; 

 calyx foftenng the feeds in its bofom. Seeds four, ovate. 



Efi^. Char. Cal. awned. Cor. upper lip afcending, flat- 

 lifh ; tube cylindric. 



Species, I. B. officinalis, woodbetony. Lin. Spec. 8io. 

 Hudf. 258. With. 53c. Relh. 229. Sibth. 1S5. Curt. 

 Lond. fafc. 3. t.33. Fl. Dan. t. 726. Woodw. Suppl. 

 t. 241. Varieties,^. B. alba. Bauh. pin. 235. Hall. ;3. 

 Ger. 577. 2. y. B. minima alpina helvetica. Tourn. Hall. y. 

 Lightf. ^. Mor. f. 4. Park. 614. f. 3. Raii Hilt. 550. 

 «• Spike interrupted ; helmet of the corolla entire ; middle 



BET 



diviCon of the lower b'p emarginate ; calyxes fmoothifh." 

 The common wood betony has an upright Hem, a foot high 

 or more, not branched, or very httle in its wild ftate, hairy, 

 channelled, the corners rounded ; root-leaves on long pe- 

 tioles, oblong-heart- fhaped, obtufe, wrinkled, crenate, with 

 few hairs, but dotted with fmall hollow points, the edge 

 cihate ; ftcm-leaves fubfefGle, lanceolate, ferrate ; braftes 

 numerous, lanceolate, ciliate, fhorter than the calyx ; flowers 

 in fpikes, compofed of feveral whorls ; calyx coloured, fcffile, 

 almoll upright, villofe within, having long hairs between 

 the five long-pointed fegments ; the two upper teeth re- 

 curved ; corollas purple, varying to flefll and rarely white ; 

 tube downy, longer than the calyx, upper lip-commonly en- 

 tu-e, fometimes cloven at the end, lower fcalloped or cre- 

 nulate ; filaments villofe ; anthers blackifh. A native of 

 woods, heaths, and paftures, among bufhes ; perennial, 

 floweriiig in July and Auguft. The dried leave?, by their 

 rough hairs, excite fneezing ; and it has accordingly been 

 made an ingredient in the itemutatory powders. But Dr- 

 CuUen obferves, that this, as well as.marjoram, feems to be- 

 only ufcful, by diffufing and giving an agreeable odour to • 

 the other errhines. Sheep eat it, but goats refufe it. This 

 plant dyes wool of a very fine dark yellow colour. The 

 leaves and tops of the betony have an agreeable bat weak 

 fmell ; to the talle they difcover a flight warmth, accom. 

 pained with fome degree of allringency and bittemcf?. They • 

 yield very little eflential oil. This, like many other plants 

 formerly in great medical eftimation, is at this time almoft 

 entirely difregarded. Antonius Mufa, phyfician to the em- 

 peror Auguftus, filled a whole volume with an enumeratioa 

 of its virtues, ftating it as a remedy for no lefs than 47 dif- 

 orders ; and hence in Italy arofe the proverbial compliments,, 

 "tu hai piu di vertii che non ha betonica," i. e. you have 

 more virtues than betony ; and " vende la tunica e't compra 

 la bctomca," i. e. fell your coat and buy betony. Simon 

 PauUi alfo afcribes to it powers, which may be confidercd 

 as rather miraculous than natural, and which did not feem 

 to require contradiflion, from the experiments of Alllon. 

 Modern writers, however, do not allow the betony to pof- 

 fefs any confidcrable efficacy, and it is omitted in the cata- 

 logues of the Britiih difpenfatories. Scopoli indeed fays, 

 that he experienced its cephalic and corroborant efFefts; 

 but its fenfible qualities fhew it to be more inert than mod of 

 the other verticiUats. The roots and leaves are laid to be 

 very different in quality from the other parts of the plant ; 

 ar.d to be naufeous, bitter, purgative, and emetic. Both 

 this plant and eytbright enter into the compofition of Row- 

 ley's Britifli herb tobacco and fnuft. The variety |S. is not 

 uncommon with a white flower, in fubalpine paftures. Ge- 

 rard remarked it near Hampftead ; and Mr. Miller fays, that 

 he often found it in Kent. The fmall mountainous variety 

 -/ is not unfrequent with a fpike, nearly globular ; the leaves 

 and flowers are fmaller ; but all thefe differences are owing 

 to Ctuation. 



2. B. o/^(Vffl/j///, oriental betony. " Spike entire, middle di- 

 vlfion of the lip of the corolla quite entire." The flowers are 

 larger, and of a lighter purple than thofe of the common fort. 

 It was firft difeovered by Tournefort in the Levant, and was 

 cultivated in Kew garden by Mr, Miller in 1739. 3. B. ah- 

 ^fcuroj, fox-tail betony. Sideritis alopecuros. Scop. Carn. 

 n. 711. t. 28. Horminum alpinum luteum, bctonicae fpica. 

 Raii hill. 547. — minus album, &c. Bauh. pin. 239. 

 prodr. II, |.. " Spike kafy at the bafe, helmet of the 

 corolla bifid." The leaves are altogether heart-fhaped, hir- 

 fute, and ferrate ; the flowers fmell like elder ; the corollas 

 are pale yellow ; the filaments lanuginous ; and the germs 

 fmooth and fliining. A native of the mountains of Savoy, 

 Piedmont, Auilria, Carniola, SileCa, and Provence ; culti- 

 vated . 



