G E R 



G E R 



— Alfo, a town of France, in the doiiaitmcnt uf the Oinr ; I'lJC 

 miles S. of BellefmL- — Alfo, a rivrr of America, which runs 

 iiiti) the Wabafli, N. hit. 39 20'. W. Umg. 87 58'. 



Gkrmaik d' Aicc, St. a town of France, in the department 

 of the Sailhe; fix miles ,S. E.of I.e Lnite. 



{'.EiiMAiiVc/cA-.'rt/r, St. atown of France, in the department 

 of the Lot, and chief place of a canton, in tlie diilrift of 

 Goni-don ; fix miles S of Clonrdon. The place contains 

 171 1, and the canton 7478 inhabitants, on a territory of 15 j 

 kiliometres, in i2comnumcs. 



GKR>iAiS-tcs-Bil/cs-Fi//fs, St. a town of France, in the 

 department of the Up crViennc, and chief place of a canton, 

 in the diitrict of St Yrinix ; 16 miles S. S. E. of Limoges. 

 The place contains 201 J, and the canton 12,541 inhabitants, 

 on .1 territory of 3 1 2 ' kiliometrcs, in 8 communes. 



GKiiMi\is-Jii-B'yis, St a town of France, in the department 

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

 dillrift ofLouhaas. The place contains 1684, and the canton 

 1 1,316 inhabitants, on a territory of 2 .27 J- kiliometres, in 13 

 communes. 



CrKR\tM'^-tfe-Cn!l/cr/t; St. a town of France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Lozcre, and chief place of a canton, in the dif- 

 tridl: of Florae ; I 2 miles S.E, of Florae. Tlie place contains 

 1730, and the canton I 2, 2 73, inhabitants, on a territory of 332 ^ 

 kiliometrcs, in 14 communes. 



Gi'iiMAik lies Fq/fa, St. atown of France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Allicr; iz miles N.E. ofGannat. 



• G ERM. MS-/' Hcrm, S.'. a town of France, in the department 

 of the Puy-de-Dome, and chief place of a canton, in the dif- 

 trift of Ambert ; 10 miles S.W. of Ambcrt. Theplnce con- 

 tains 1735', and the cunton 10,510 inhabitants, on a territory 

 of 232 kiliometrcs, in 10 communes. 



Gi-:KMAiN-Z.rt»/iroH, Si. a town of France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Puy-dc-D6mc,and chief place of a canton, in the 

 dillriftof IIToire ; fix miles S of Illoire. The place contains 

 1706, aiid the canton 8348 inhabitants, on ti territory of 130 

 kiliometres, in 16 communes. 



Germ .\ts-J.,avii/, St a town of France, in the department 

 of the Loire, «nd chief place of a canton, in the dillricl of 

 Roanne; 12 miles S. ofRoanne. The place contains 1 125, and 

 the canton 8443 inhabitants, on aterritory of 220 kiliometrcs, 

 in 16 communes. 



GiiRM ws-cn-Lnye, St. a town of France, in the department 

 of the Seine and Oife, and chief place of a canton, in the dif- 

 tridl of Verfailles, feated on the Seine. A palace was built 

 here bv Robert, king of France, which was deftroycd by 

 the Englilh in the year 1 346 ; and another palace was eretted 

 by Francis I., which has been enlarged by fevernlfucceeding 

 kings, and particularly by Louis XIV. ; 2^ polls W. of 

 Paris. The jilacecontainstjcco, and the canton 14,355 '"li^i- 

 bitants, on a territory of 107-^ kiliometres, in 1 1 communes. 

 N. lat. 48" 54'. E. h)ng. 2'^ 10'. 



Germain-^/«-/'/(7/h, Si. atown of France, in the depart- 

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

 the diftriftof Chalons-fur-Saone; fix miles S. E. of it. The 

 place contains 1229, and the canton 6676 inhabitants, on a 

 territory of 130 kiliometres, in 7 communes. 



Gr.RM \ls'Je- Prinj^iiy, St. a town of France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Vendee, 18 miles S.S.W. of Mortagne. 



Gv.RMAl'S-i/e-Tiiil, St. a town of France, in the department 

 of the Lozere ; 13 miles W. of Mende. 



Geumais-ch- f^^try, St. a town of France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Nicvre ; 15 miles S. S. E. of Ncvers. 



GERMAm-fiir-Ficmi!', St. a town of F'rance, in the depart- 

 ment of the Charente ; four miles N. of Confolens. 



GERMAINMONT.St., atown ofFrance, in the depart- 

 ment of the Ardennes ; five miles S. W. of Rethel. 



GERMAN, in Matters 0/ Genealogy, R'^niCicswhdlc, entire", 

 Qt own. 



" Gcrmani, qnafi eadem (lirpc gcniti.'' Fell. Hence, 



Geii.\i.\n, Brother, denotes a brother both by the father's 

 and mother's fide, in contradiftinftion to uterine brothers,' 

 &c. who are only fo by the mother's fide. 



Gekman", Coiijiiis, are thofc in the firft or ncareft degree,' 

 being the children of brothers or fillers. 



Among the Romans we have no inllance of marriage be- 

 tween coufins german before the time of the emperor Clau- 

 dius, when they were very frequent. 



Theodofins prohibited them under very fevere penalties,, 

 even fine and profcription. Sec Consanguinity. 



GiiK.M AN acacia, Ivzoar, bible, black, coins, compajfcs, empernr, 

 empire, Jliite, language, meafures, monies. See the feveral fub- 

 llantives. 



Gehmax School of Engraving. Germany was probably 

 the birth-place, and Italy the cradle, of that art of engraving 

 which is performed with a view to its being afterward, 

 printed on paper. Engraving itfelf, as performed on me- 

 tals, and with the inllrument which is ftiU in ufe for that_ 

 purpofe, which in the Englilh language is termed a graver,. 

 and in French la burin, is of very remote anli([uity ; the 

 Greeks of the early ages having employed it in the decora- 

 tions of their fliields, pateras, and other implements of war 

 and facrifice ; and the Hebrews, and perhaps the Chaldeans 

 and Egyptians, at a ftill earlier period ; but nnlefs we fup. 

 pofe (wliich is by no means improbable) that the art of en- 

 graving and printing from tablets of wood travelled from 

 China to Europe, it was referved for the artills ofGern-.any 

 or Italy, and moll probably the former, firll to perceive that 

 ink might be delivered, and impreflions thus multiplied to 

 an undefineable amount, both from the incifions and fur- 

 faces, of engraved plates of metal, and blocks of wood. 



The prccifc time of the difcovei-y has not been afcertain- 

 ed. The baron Heinnekin, who had excellent opportunities 

 of acquiring information, and purftied his enquiries with 

 zeal and accuracy, has clearly Ihewn that the fabrication of . 

 cards for games of chance was firll praftifed in Germany, 

 by means of the art of engraving, and was in ufe fo early as ' 

 the year 1376. Not long afterward, the fame art that had 

 been fnbfervient to amufement, was employed to gratify 

 and dilTeminate fuperftition, and extremely rude outlines of 

 faints and legendary tales, which were cut on tablets of wood, 

 and were printed in the cities of Ment/, Straftourg, and 

 Haerlem, toward the clofe of the fourteenth, and begin- 

 ning of the fifteenth, centuries, are not uncommon in 

 the port-folios and bibliographical coUcftions of the- 

 curious. 



Of thefe engravings, the earlieft that is known, whofe in- 

 fcription contains a tlate, and which may therefore be elleemed 

 a o-reat curiofity, is now in the library of earl Spencer. It 

 was difcovered by Heinnekin in the library of a cwnvent at 

 Buxheim, near Menimingen : its fiibjedl is the legendary 

 tale of St. Clu-illopher carrying the infant .Tefus acrofs the 

 fea ; it bears the date of 1423, and is infcribed " Chrillo- 

 feri faciara, die quacunque tneris. Ilia ncmpe die morte 

 mala non morieris.'' This rude but curious engraving is of 

 the folio fi/e, and was found carefidly palled witliinfide the 

 cover of an old book, with a view, no doubt, to its prefer- 

 vation. 



The fame magnificent colleftion of earl Spencer con- 

 tains alfo one of the original engraved blocks which were 

 ufed in the very infancy of printing, before moveable types 

 were invented. It appears to be oi the wood of the pear 

 tree, and in the courfe of the three centuries and a half linee 



it 



