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fociety, of the belles-lettres, of pliilofopliy, nnd of theo- 

 logy. He likewife exercifed the duties of a preacher, and 

 was at length rcftor of the Jefuits' college of Tarragona, 

 where he died in the year 1658. He was a much efteemed 

 author, and moil of his works have been tranflated into 

 French and other foreign languages. The principal of 

 thefe are " The Hero ;" " Refleftions on the political 

 Conduft of Ferdinand the Catholic ;" "A Treatife on the 

 different Kinds of witty Conceptions.'' A work treating 

 of tlio errors to which man is liable, and a colleftion of 

 meditations on taking the holy communion. Moreri. 



GRACIAS a' Dio.s, in Geogrnpl?y, a town of Mexico, 

 in the province of Honduras, and audience of Guatimala, 

 fituated at the mouth of a river, which communicates witli 

 the bay of Honduras. It has fome gold mines in its neigli- 

 bourhood. N. lat. 14° 30'. W. long. 90" 6' — Alfo, a 

 cape on the N. coail difcovercd by Columbus. N. lat. 15'^. 

 £. long. 132^ 50'. — Alfo, a cape, called " Falfe Cape 

 Gracias a' Dios,'' on the coaft of Nicaragua, 63 miles from 

 the other. N. lat. 13^ 36'. 



GRACILIS, in Anatomy, a niufcle of the leg, thus 

 called from its flender fliape. 



It arifes partly tendinous, and partly flefhy, from the os 

 pubis internally, between the firft and fecond heads of the 

 triceps ; and in its defceut on the infide of the thigh, grows 

 narrow, and becomes tendinous, a little below tlie lartorius, 

 and is thus inferted into the tibia. It affills in bringing the 

 tliigh and leg inwards. 



. Gk.\cilis Rethis, a name given by Riolan to one of 

 the mufcles of tlie leg, called by Window the reftus cruris 

 anterior, and by Cowper the rectus femoris. Albinus calls 

 it the redus cruris. 



GRACULA, in Ornithology, a genus of the order Picx, 

 having the bill convex and acute at the edges, the bafc 

 rather naked : tongue entire, fharpifh, and fleihy ; and the 

 feet formed for walking. The genus gracula correfponds 

 with the mainate of BrilTon, fi'om whom it appears to have 

 been adopted by Linnxus under the former term. Some of 

 the fpecies of this natural tribe were known to Ray, who 

 refers them to the crows ; and alfo to Willughby, who 

 fonfiders them as of the Hare or ilarling kind. The Ipecies 

 of gracula, defcribed in the Gmehnian Syftema Naturae, 

 amount to twelve ; and this number is increafed to foin-teen 

 in the work entitled " Index Ornithologicus" of Dr. La- 

 tham, by the addition of tiie new fpecies illcrops, and tiie 

 introduction of the Linnsan Paradifta Iriflis, which latter 

 the laft mentioned writer has deemed it requifite to remove 

 to this place. As a fecondary to the ciTential or generic 

 charatter above defcribed, it may be proper to obierve that 

 the birds of this kind have the bill thick, and comprcfTed at 

 the fides ; the noftrds I'mall, at the bafe of the bill and 

 fometimes fituated near the edge ; the toes three forward 

 and one behind, the middle toe conneftcd at the bafe to the 

 outer one, and the claws hooked and iharp. Their priu- 

 .cipal food confiils of fruits and infeits. 



Species. 



Religio.sa. Violet-black ; fpot on the wing white ; 

 band on the hind head naked and yellow. Gmel. I..inn. 

 Mmmitus, Briir. Sturnus imUcus Bontii, Ray. Bonlius't 

 InJiaii J/ure, Will. Le Mainate; Buff. Minor graik, 

 Albin. 



The length of this bird is ten inches and a half, its bulk 

 equal to that of the black-bird : the bill an inch and a half 

 long, of an orange colour tipped with yellow ; the legs 

 tawny or orange ; feathers of the head, except the middle 



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ones, very fhort and filky ; and the naked band reselling 

 nearly to the nape. This fpecies is found in many farts of 

 India, and not unfrequently in a tame or domellicatcd (late, 

 being naturally of a familiar difpofition, and capable of 

 being taught to wliiftle, fing, and imitate the articulations 

 of the human voice with greater precifion than any of the 

 parrot tribe. In the iflands of Sumatra and .lava it is called 

 by the natives hill-mnynoa, and in China, whither it is im- 

 ported from the latter place, its common name is Teeong. 

 Several fuppofed varieties of this bird are defcribed by writers, 

 the moll remarkable of which is tliat call.-d the greater 

 minor grakle, Ic grand main;ite of Briffon ; this entin-ly 

 correfponds with the ordinary kind, except in fi/.e, which 

 it materially exceeds, being in this refpett not inferior to 

 the jackdaw ; it inhabits the ifland of Hainan, in Afia, 

 C.VLV.\. — Sub-cinereous, with the head naked each. fide. 

 Linn. Meritla calva Philippinenfis, BrifT. MiiU ckauve des 

 Pbilippincs, Buff. Goulin, il). Ititi:;, Tabaduru, vJ Cuiui, 

 &c. Pliil. Tranf. BaU grail,; Latli. 



Size of the black-bird, witii the head and cheeks bare of 

 feathers and flefh-colonred, except a narrow lid of (lu)rt 

 brown feathers, extending from the bafe of the bill to thi> 

 back of the head ; the naked part becoming of a deep r«i 

 when the bird is irritated : the general colour above is 

 fdvery-afli, beneath grey-brown, bill and legs brown. Tlufc 

 birds build their ncil in the hollows of trees, efpecially pre- 

 ferring thofe of the cocoa-nut ; it is reprefented as a noify 

 chattering bird, of voracious appetite, and as living prin- 

 cipally on fruit. Found in the Philippine iflands. 



Fa:TiD.\. Black ; exterior part of the quill-feathers 

 blueilh ; band round the neck naked, I^inn. 



Native of America, in five rcfembling the magpie : the 

 head with ereCl, fhort, filky feathers ; noltrils oval and 

 naked ; tongue Iharp ; and tail even at the tip. 



BiVUiTA. Somewhat grey ; fliovilders blue ; quill-feathers 

 at the outer edge green. Linn. Monedula tola nigra, Ray. 

 Boat-tailed graLli; Lath. 



Size of the cuckow : the bill fhortifli, rather black, paler 

 beneath and naked at the bafe ; the plumage black, inclining 

 to grev, and gUiffed with purple ; tail rounded, concave 

 when folded, and becoming flat on being expanded ; legs 

 and claws black. The fpecies inliabits the Antilly illands 

 and North America. It feeds on infects and fruits. 



CiuT.\TELJ,.v. Black, tlie lirll quill-featliers at the bafe, 

 and tail-feathers at the tip white ; bill yellow. Gmel. 

 Menda fmcnfis trijlala. Brill". Merle hupps dc la Chine, Buff. 

 Chine feJltirUng or l/la-ri-lird, Edwards. 



A fpecies rather larger than the black-bird ; the plumage 

 inclining to blue, witli a crcll of feathers on the head v.hicii 

 it can raife and deprefs at pleafuie ; greater quill-feathers 

 from the bafe to the middle wliite, the remaining part diep 

 blue; tail-feathers, except the two in the middle, tipped with 

 white ; legs dull yellow. The crelled grakle lings and 

 talks like the fpecies rchgiofa, but with inferior dilliiictncfs; 

 and is frequently kept in cages in China, which country it 

 inhabits in a wild Hate ; its principal food is rice, worms, 

 and infefts. 



S.ML.vnis. Blueifh-black ; belly, fpot on the wings 

 and lateral tail-feathers white. Gmel. I.anius imgnlnt/Ix 

 tiiger, Briif. Pie griefehe noir dr Bengalt, Bufi". Bengal 

 niiigpie or dia'-bird, Albin. Dial grakle. 



Native of Bengid. Size of the Miffel thrulli, with the 

 head, neck, breall, back, rump and upper tail-coverts 

 black ; belly, fides, thighs, and under tail-coverts white ; 

 tail even at the end, black above, and white beneath. The 

 female differs in being black inllead of brown on the fore- 



7 r-^^ 



