S E L 



Rome 350 : its ruins are ftill vifible. It took its name from 

 that of a fmall river, on the banks of which grew parfley, 

 called in Greek j-iXivov. 



Selixus, a river of Sicily, the mouth of which is placed 

 by Ptolemy on the fouthern coaft of the ifland, between the 

 promontory of Lilybsum and the mouth of the river Ma- 

 zara. — Alio, a river of the Trachjean Cilicia, the mouth of 

 which is placed by Strabo between a fortified place called 

 Laertes, and a rock named Cragus. — Alfo, a river of 

 Achaia, which commenced in mount Lampia, and ran from 

 fouth to north, and paded to the call of Egium. — Alfo, a 

 river of the Peloponnefus, in the Elide : it watered the ter- 

 rilory of Scillunte, according to Paufanias. — Alfo, a river 

 of Afia Minor, in Ionia: it ran near the temple of Diana, 

 according to Strabo. — Alfo, a river of Myfia, which tra- 

 verfed the town of Pergamus, and after having watered the 

 territory of Caicus, flowed into that river. — Alfo, a town 

 of Cilicia, where Trajan died in the year 117, after his re- 

 turn from the Parthian war. — Alfo, a port of Egypt, upon 

 the coalt, of the nome of Libya, between Zagylis-Villa 

 and Trifarchi-Villa, according to Ptolemy. 



SELION of Land, Selio Terrs, is derived from the 

 French, feillon, which fignifies a ridge of land, or ground 

 arifing between two furrows, and contains no certain quan- 

 tity, but fometimes more and fometimes lefs. Therefore 

 Crompton fays, that a felion of land cannot be in demand, 

 becaufe it is a thing uncertain. 



SELISIA, in Geography, a river of Friuli, which unites 

 with the Cobara, and forms the Meduna. 



SELIUM, in Ancient Geography, a town of Hif- 

 pania, in Lufitania, in the interior of the country. Pto- 

 fcmy. 



SELIVRA, or Selimbria, in Geography, a fea-port 

 town of European Turkey, in Romania, iituated on the 

 north fide of the fea of Marmora, and having an old caftle, 

 formerly very ftrong, and houfes near it, called the " Upper 

 Town." In the fuburbs is an imperial granary, where the 

 corn of the province is depofited. It is the refidence of a 

 Greek archbifliop ; 34 miles W. of Conftantinople. N. lat. 

 40° 52'. E. long. 28=^ 12'. 



SELKA, a town of Hindooilan, in the circar of Sur- 

 gooja; 5 miles S.S.W. of Surgooja. 



SELKAKARI, a fmall ifland on the eaft fide of the 

 gulf of Bothnia. N. lat. 65° 36'. E. long. 24° 54'. 



SELKIE; the name in Zetland for a feal. Many of 

 thefe are found in that illand. 



SELKIRK, Alexander, in Biography, whofe adven. 

 tures have given rife to a well-known and highly efteemed 

 romance, was born at Largo, in Fifefhire, in Scotland, 

 aboot the year 1676, and was brought up to the fea-fervice. 

 He left England in 1703, in the capacity of failing-mafter 

 of a fmall veflel, called the Cinquc-Ports-Galley, Charles 

 Pickering captain ; and in the month of September, the 

 fame year, he iailed from Cork, in company with another 

 ftiip of 26 guns and 120 men, called the St. George, com- 

 manded by captain William Dampikr (fee his article), 

 intended to cruife againll the Spaniards in the South fea. 

 On the coaft of Brafil, Pickering died, and was fiiccecded 

 in the command by lieutenant Stradling. Tliey proceeded 

 round Cape Horn to the ifland of .luan Fernandez, whence 

 they were driven by the appearance of two French fliips of 

 36 guns each, and left five of Stradling's men on fliore, who 

 were taken off by the French. Hence they failed to the 

 eoatt of America, where Dampier and Stradhng quarrelled, 

 and feparatcJ by agreement. This was in the month of 

 May 1704; and in the following September, Stradling 

 fame to the ifland of Juan Fernandez, where Selkirk and 



Vot. XXXII. 



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his captain havinjr a quarrel, he determined to remain there 

 alone. But when the (hip was ready to fail, his refolution 

 was fhaken, and he defired to be taken on board ; but now 

 the captain refufed his requeft, and he was left with his 

 clothes, bedding, a gun, and a fmall quantity of powder 

 and ball, forae trifling implements, and a few books, with 

 certain mathematical and nautical inftruments. Tims left 

 fole monarch of the ifland, with plenty of the neceflaries of 

 life, he found himfelf at firft in a Ctuation fcarcely fup- 

 portable ; and fuch was his melancholy, that he frequently 

 determined to put an end to his exiitcnce. It was full 

 eighteen months, according to his own account, before he 

 could reconcile himfelf to his lot. At length his mind be- 

 came calm, and fully reconciled to his fituation : he grew 

 happy, employed his time in building and decorating his 

 huts, chafing the goats, whom he foon equalled in fpeed, 

 and fcarcely ever failed of catching them. He alfo tamed 

 young kids, and other animals, to be his companions. 

 When his garments were worn out, he made others from 

 the fltins of the goats, whofe flefti ferved him as food. His 

 only liquor was water. He computed that he had caught, 

 during his abode in the ifland, about 1000 goats, half of 

 which he had fuffered to go at large, having firit marked 

 them with a flit in the ear. Commodore Anfon, who 

 went there 30 years after, found the firil goat, which they 

 fhot, had been thus marked ; and hence they concluded 

 that it had been under the power of Selkirk. Though he 

 conftantly performed his devotions at ftated hours, and read 

 aloud, yet when he was taken from the ifland, his lan- 

 guage, from difufe of converfation, had become fcarceljr 

 intelligible. In this folitude he remained four years and 

 four months, during which only two incidents occurred 

 which he thought worthy of record. The firft was, that 

 purfuing a goat eagerly, he caught at the edge of a pre- 

 cipice, of which he was not aware, and he fell over to the 

 bottom, where he lay fome time fenfelefs ; but of the exaft 

 fpace of time in which he was bereaved of his aftive powers 

 he could not form an accurate eftimate. When, however, 

 he came to himfelf, he found tke goat lying under him dead. 

 It was with difficulty that he could crawl to his habitation, 

 and it was not till after a confiderable time that he entirely 

 recovered from his bruifes. The other event was the arrival 

 of a fliip, which he at firft fuppofed to be French, but 

 upon the crew's landing, lie found them to be Spaniards, 

 of whom he had too great a dread to truil himfelf in their 

 hands. They, however, had feen him, and he found it ex- 

 tremely difficult to make his efcape. In this folitude Sel- 

 kirk remained until the 2d of February 1709, when he fav» 

 two fliips come to the bay, and knew them to be Englifli, 

 He immediately lighted a fire as a fignal, and he found, 

 upon the landing of the men, that they wore two pri- 

 vateers from Briltol, commanded by captains Rogers and 

 Courtney. Thefe, after a fortnight's ftay at Juan Fer- 

 nandez, embarked, taking Selkirk with them, and returned 

 by way of the Eaft Indies to England, where they arrived 

 on the ift of Oftober 17 u ; Selkirk having been abfent 

 eight years. The public curiolity being much excited, he, 

 alter his return, drew up fome account of what had oc 

 curred during his folitary exile, which he put into the handt 

 of Defoe, who made it the foundation of his well-known 

 work, entitled Robinfon Crufoe. The time and place of 

 Selkirk's death are not on record. It is faid, tliat fo late 

 as the year 1798, the cheft and miWket, which Selkirk had 

 with him on the ifland, were in poflcflion of a grand nephew, 

 John Selkirk, a weaver in Largo, North Britain. The 

 circumftaiicea of Selkirk's feclufion from human fociety, 

 during his llay on the defolate ifland, hare given birth to a 

 Dd fine 



