B O I 



to which he had accuftomcd himfcif fiom his youth, by con- 

 fining himfclf to two meals a day, dinner and fupper, by 

 fitting or walking an hour after dinner before he went into 

 his ftudy, by occafional fading, fometimes twice in a week, 

 and fometimes once in three weeks, and by not ftudying 

 after flipper, particularly towards the clofe of life, but di- 

 verting himfelf with cheerful converfation for two hours 

 among his fiiendi. When he was a young ftudent at Cam- 

 bridge, he received from the learned Dr. Whitaker thefe 

 three rules for avoiding thofe dillempeis which ufually attend 

 a fedentary hfe, to which he adhered with equal conftancy 

 and fuccefs. The firlt was to lludy always Handing ; the 

 fecond never to lludy in a window ; and the third never to 

 go to bed with his feet cold. Accordingly he attained the 

 age of 84 years, and died in 1643. Biog. Brit. 



Bois, Di/, Lake, in Geography, lies in North America, 

 to the north-weft of lake Superior, and receives the river 

 dc la Pluie, in N. lat. 49°. It was formerly famous for the 

 richncfs of its banks and waters, which abounded with all 

 the ncceflarics of a favage life. The Frencli liad formerly 

 feveral fettlements in and about it ; but it has fince declined, 

 though it is now recovering its priftine ftate. The few In- 

 dians who inhabit it might live very comfortably, if they 

 were not fo immoderately fond of fpirituous liquors. This 

 lake is rendered remarkable by its having been named on 

 the part of the Americans, as the fpot from which a line of 

 boundary between them and Britilli America was to run 

 weft till it ftruck the MilTilfippi, wliicli, however, as Mr. 

 Mackenzie obfervcs, can never happen, becaufe the N. W. 

 part of the lake du Bois is in N. lat. 49° 37'. and W. long. 

 94° 31'. and the northernmoft branch of the fource of the 

 Miffiffippi is in N. lat. 47° j8'. and W. long. y5°6'. afcertained 

 by Mr. Thomfon, aftronomcr to the North-weft Company, 

 who was fcnt expiefsly for that purpofe in the fpring of 

 179S. He, in the fame year, determined the northern bend 

 of the Milfifoury to be in N. lat. 47° 32'. and W. long. 

 101° 25'. and acording to the Indian accounts, it runs to the 

 fouth of weft, fo that if the MifTifoury were even to be confi- 

 dered as the MifTiiTippi, no weftern line could ftrike it. It 

 does not appear, fays Mackenzie, to be clearly determined 

 what courfe the line is to take, or from what part of lake 

 Superior it ftrikes through the country to the lake du Bois ; 

 if it were to follow the principal waters to their fource, it 

 ought to keep through lake Superior to the river St. 

 Liouis, and follow that river to its fource; clofe to which 

 is the fource of the waters faUing into the river of lake la 

 Pluie, which is a common route of the Indians to the lake 

 du Bois ; the St. Louis pafl'ts within a ftiort diftance of a 

 branch of the Mifiiffippi, where it becomes navigable for 

 canoes ; and if the navigation of t!ie MilTiffippi is confidered 

 as of any confequence by this country, from that part of the 

 globe, fuch is the nearell way to get at it. The lake du 

 Bois is nearly round, and the eanoe courfe lies through the 

 centre of it among a cluftor of iflands, fome of which are fo 

 extenfive that they may be taken for the main land. The 

 reduced courfe would be nearly north and fouth. But, ac- 

 cording to the navigating courfe, the diftance is 75 miles, 

 though in a direft line it would not be fo long. At about 

 two-thirds of it there is a fmall carrying place where the 

 water is low. The carrying place out of the lake is on an 

 ifland, and named Portage du Rat, in N. lat. 49" 37'. and 

 W. long 94° 25', and is about 50 paces long. The lake 

 difcharges itfelf at both ends of this ifland, and forms the 

 river Winipic, which fee. Mackenzie's voyage, &c. through 

 the Continent of North America. Introd. p. 59. 



3ois-ie!/e, or Htnnchemont, a fmall fovercignty of France 

 before the revolution, fituate in Berry, between Bourges 

 8 



B O I 



and Sancerre, about 10 leagues in circuit, containing about 

 6,500 inhabitants ; its principal towns are Bois-belle and 

 Henrichemont, which fee. 



'Bois-ie/le, a town of France, in the department of the 

 Cher, 15 miles N. E. of Bourges. 



Bois-commuii, a town of France, and principal place of a 

 diftrift in the department of the Loiret, containing about 

 1600 inhabitants ; 7 leagues N. E. of Orleans, and j W. of 

 Montargis. 



Bois, Glacier des, one of the lower Glaciers of the Al- 

 pine mountains adjoining to Mont Blanc, and the valley of 

 Chamouny in SwifTerland, from the thawed ice of which 

 flows the river Arveron. This glacier is more than 15 miles 

 long, and above three in its greateft breadth. The general 

 thicknefs of the ice was found by M. Sauffuie to be from 

 80 to too feet. 



Bois-Zf-c/uc, or the Diil-e's luood, a city of Dutch Brabant, 

 feattd ou the river Dommel, where it receives the waters of 

 the Aa ; fo called from its fituation in a woody country, to 

 which the dukes of Brabant were accuftomed to refort for the 

 purpofe of hunting. The woods were cut down by order of 

 Godfrey III. duke of Brabant; and he laid the foundation of 

 a city in 1 1 84, which was finiflied in I 196, by his fon duke 

 Henry I. and much enlarged in 1352, I4';3, and 1559. 

 The city is enconipafted by the Dommel and Aa, by the 

 waters of which it may be eafily inundated ; and it is fome- 

 times inaccefTible except by boats. The principal forts that 

 defend it are thofe of Crcvecoeur, near the Meufe ; another 

 called IlabcUa; and a fmall fort called St. Antoine, towards 

 Brabant. It has alfo a caftle, built by order of the States 

 General, in the 17th centu:7, as a check on the Roman ca- 

 tholics then more numerous than the reformed. It has four 

 gates ; and its walls are flanked with baftions ; the approach 

 to it by land is on caufeways, and by v\'ater at three gates 

 or avenues. The cathedral, erefted in ij66, and dedicated 

 to St. John the Evangelill, is one of the moft beautiful 

 ftruftures in the Low Countries. Its wooden tower which 

 was very lofty and fupported by four ftone pillars, was de- 

 ftroyed by lightning in 1584. It has had feveral other 

 churches and monafteries. This city lulfered very much in 

 the i6tii century, during the religious wars; but at length 

 the Dutch made themfelves mafters of it in 1629. Pope 

 Paul IV. founded a bilhopric at Bois-le-duc in 1559, having 

 jurifdifiion over ten cities and 189 villages ; the chief re- 

 venue of which arofe from the abbey of Tongerlo. The dif- 

 tri£t of Bois-le-duc, called " Maycrcy," is fltuated between 

 Holland and Guelderland, having Holland to the N., Upper 

 Gucldciland and the duchy of Cleves to the E., the quarter 

 of Antwerp to the W.,and the bifliopric of Liege to the S. 

 It is divided into five fmall diftridls, and comprehends 102 

 villages, and three cities, Bois-le-duc, Helmont, and Eynd- 

 hoven. Ou the 14th of September 1794, an engagement 

 took place near this town between the Britilh army and the 

 French, in which the latter were viftorious; and on the 9th 

 of Oftober, in the fame year, the town was taken by the 

 French. It is jS miles E. N. E. of Breday-and 42 S. S. E. 

 of Amfterdam. N. lat. 51° 42'. E. long. 4° 59'. 



Bois, St. Marie, le, a town of France, in the department 

 of the Saone and Loire, and chief place of a canton, in the 

 diftria of CharoUes, 7 miles.S. E.of Charolles. 



Bois d'Oignt, a town of France, in the department of the 

 Rhone, and chief place of a canton, in the diftridl of Ville- 

 franche, J^\ leagues N. W. of Lyons. The place contains 

 900, and the canton 13,501 inhabitants ; the territory com- 

 prehends I92i kiliometres, and i3 communes. 



BOISEAU, in Commerce, a meafure of two bufliels and 

 half of a peck at Bourdeaux in France. 



BOISMONT, 



