B I R 



light or azure blue, rufous at the apex of the wing-cafes ; 

 and the anteniis of the fame colour. It is an European in- 

 fedl, and inhabits the flowers of the chiyfanthemum. Gmehn 

 confiders it as Crytocephalm pod.r of Laichart. 



BiPL'STULATUs, a fpfcies of Dermestes, that is black 

 and gloffy, with the head, thorax, and fpot at the bafe of 

 the wing. cafes red. Thunberg. This is Ips hiimeral'is of 

 Fabriciu;. Country unknown. 



BiPUSTUL'.Tus, a fpecies of Dytiscus, defcribed by Fa- 

 bricius.. It is fmootii and black, with two red fpots on the 

 pofteriorpart of the head. This inhabits the north of Europe. 



BirusTi'tATCS.afpeciesof Dytiscl'S, that inhabits Ger- 

 many. This kind is black ; thorax yellow, vritli two black 

 fpots ; wing-cafes yellow, varied with brown. Fabricius. 



BiPUSTULATUS, a fmall fpecies of Elater, found in 

 woods in England and other parts of Europe; the colour is 

 black and fhining, with a red fpot at the bafe of each of the 

 wing-cafes. Linn. Marfh, &c. Obf. Bv miftake this infect 

 is thus defcribed by Gmelin, Niger nitidus, elytr'ts pnncia 

 bafios nlgro, with reference to the Fabrician Species Infcfto- 

 rum, in which the dot at the bafe of the wing-cafes is faid to 

 be red. This is Elater funclatus of Panzer; and Le Taupin 

 noir a tachc: rouges of Geoffroy. 



BirusTULATus, a fpecies of Gryllus, in the feftion 

 lonijla, of a pale brown colour; fv/ord at the extremity of 

 the abdomen, and two fpots on the thorax black ; wing-cafes 

 yellowifn, ttfTcllated with black, and fhorter than the 

 wings. Qmelin, &c. This infeft is rather iefs than an inch in 

 length according to SchaeiTer's figure, exclufive of the snten- 

 nje,which are rather longer than the body. Inhabits Europe. 



BiPUSTULATUS, a fpecies of Scarab-cus, of a black 

 colour, with a rufous fpot on each of the wing-cafes. A 

 native of Neiv Holland. Fabricius. 



BiPUSTULATUS, a fpecies of Staphvlinus, that inha- 

 bits the northern parts of Europe. Colour black, with a 

 fenuginous dot on each of the wing-cafes. Linn. 



BIQUADRATE, or. BicyjADRATic/oa;;';-, in Algebra, 

 and Arithmetic, is tlie next power above the cube, or the 

 fquare multiplied by itfclf. Thus i6 is the biquadrate, or 

 4th power of 2, or it is the fquare of 4, which is the fecond 

 power of 2 : for 2X2^=4, and 4X4=16. 



BIQUADRATIC Equation, an equation raifed to the 

 fourth power, or where the unknown quantity of one of the 

 terms has four dimenfions: thus x^-\-as~'-\-hx--\-cx-\-d^^o 

 is a biquadratic equation. See Et^uATios. 



Biquadratic parabola, in Geometry, a cur\'e hne of the 

 third order, having two infinite legs tending the fame way. 

 See Parabola. 



B I lit.- ad RATIO root of any number, is the fquare root of 

 the fquare root of that number : thus the biquadratic root 

 of 81 is 3 : for the fquare root of 8 i is 9, and the fquare root 

 of 9 is 3 : the biquadratic root of 16 is 2. 



BIQUALAR, in the Cvjhms cf the Algerir.es, a cook of 

 the divan. The janizaries, whom the Algerines call oldachi.', 

 after ferving a certain time as common foldiers, are preferred 

 to be biqualars, or cooks of the divan, wtiich is the fii ll Itep 

 towards arriving at higher preferments. Biqualars have the 

 care of furnifhing the officers and commanders of the Alge- 

 rine foldiciy with meat and drink in the camp, in gairifon, 

 &c. From biqualars they are made odobachis ; that is, cor- 

 porals of comp'mics, or comma;;ders of iquadrons. 



BKyUINTILE, an afpeft of the planets, when they are 

 144 degrees dillant from each other. It is thus called, bc- 

 caufe they are diftant from one another by twice the fifth 

 part of the 360 degrees. See -" spect. 



BIR, or BiRAiDScHtK, in Giography, a town of Afiatic 

 Turkey in Mefopotamia, feated on a mountain near the tall 



B I R 



eoaft of the Euphrates, in a very fertile country, the re- 

 fidence of a bey ; 100 miles S. W. of Diarbeek. 



BIRABETANE, in the Botanltal Writings of the An- 

 cunts, a name given to 'verbena, or vervain, and to other 

 herbs ufed in facrifices. It is only the word hieroholane, as 

 altered by the yEolic manner of writing and fpeaking it. 

 Hierobotane is the common Greek name of vervain, and 

 other facrifical herbs, and it is probable that the Latin name 

 verbena came from the iEolic manner of fpeaking this word. 

 All thofe herbs, which were laid upon the altars on foleirn 

 occafions, fuch as making of peace, ard other folemn con- 

 tracts, and were to be taken up bv the contrailirg parties 

 as part of the ceremony, were called bv the Greeks hirrot»- 

 taiid, that is, facred plants, and vcrbcnz ; but as the plant 

 we now particularly know by the name verbena was more 

 frequent in ufe than any other on this occafion, it was after- 

 wards dirtinguifhed by that nam.e. See Verbena. 



BIR-AL-CADHI, in Geography, a town of Perfia, in 

 the province of Segeftan, 80 mil- s well of Z.ireng. 



BIRBOOM, a town of Hindoftan in Bengal, 56 miles 

 W. S. W. of Moorfhedabad, 100 N. N. W. cf Calcutta. 

 N.Iat. 24°. E. long. 87° 4C'. 



BIRBUSC^. See Birviesca. 



BIRCH, Thomas, in Biography, an Englifh hiftorical 

 and biographical writer of extenfive and indutlrious refearch, 

 was born in London, Novi'mber 23, 1705. His parents 

 were Qiiakers ; and he was intended for his father's trade, 

 which was that of a coffee mill maker; but fo ftrong was 

 his inchnation to literature, that he requefted leave to in- 

 dulge it on the condition of providing for himfclf. Accord- 

 ingly he became afliilant to the matter of a fchool belonging 

 to the Qiiakers at HemelHenipfled; and after a fimilar 

 employment in other fituations, he at length deferted the 

 profeffion of his parents, and though he had not enjoyed the 

 advantage of an univerfity education, took orders in the 

 church of England. In 1732, having been ordained deacon in 

 1730, and pricll in 1731, he was preferred under the pa- 

 tronage of lord chancellor Hardwicke, who was then attor- 

 ney-general, to the living of Ulting, in the county of Effex. 

 Some time before he took orders, he married the daughter of 

 a clergyman ; but fhe died within 12 months after their mar- 

 riage. In 1735, he was admitted into the royal fociety, 

 and alfo into the fociety of antiquaries ; and of the formci 

 fociety he became fecretary in 1752, which ofSce his de- 

 clining health obliged him to refign in 1765. In 1753, the 

 degree of doftor in divinity was conferred upon him by the 

 Marifchal college of Aberdeen, and in the fame year he 

 received the fame honour from Dr. Herring, archbiihop of 

 Canterbury. He was alfo a director of the fociety of anti- 

 quaries, and a trullee of the Britifh mufcum. His church 

 preferments were various, and rapid in their fuccefiion ; but 

 the laft of thefe was the rtclorv of Depden in ElTex, which 

 he held, together with the united refxorics of St. Margaret 

 Pattens and St. Gabriel, Fenehurch-ftrect, till Iiis death. 

 This melancholy event happcnt d in confequence of a fall from 

 his horfe betwixt London and Hamptiead, January the 19th 

 1766. Having, in the courfc of his hfr, gcncrouCy aflilted 

 his relatiors, he bequeathed his library of books and MSS. 

 to the Britilh mufcum, and the rcfiduc of h'S property, 

 amounting to little more than 5cch for the purpoie of aug- 

 meating the fabrics of the affiitant librarians. 



Dr. Birch was diftiiigiiiihed by the fjmplicity of his man- 

 ners, and the friendlinefs and benevolence of his dilpohtion. 

 He was eminently active and zealous in promoting literarj- 

 and laudable undertakings of various kinds; and though he 

 devoted much of his time and attention to j)urfuits cf litera- 

 ture, he gained Itifurc by early rifing for in4u!ging himltlf 



3 D 2 ik 



