SOL 



ignorance of the fundamental rules of the language. How- 

 ever, when folecifms are not very glaring, where they do not 

 darken the fenfe, or fugged fome ridiculous idea, the rhe- 

 torician regards them as much more excufable than bar- 

 barifms ; becaufe the fermer is accounted folely the efFeft 

 of negligence, the latter of affedation. Negligence in ex- 

 preffion, often the confequence of a noble ardour in regard to 

 the fentiments, is, at the worlt, a venial trefpafs ; fometimes 

 it is not even witliout energy ; afteftation is always a deadly 

 fin againll the laws of rhetoric. It ought alfo to be ob- 

 ferved, that in the article of folecifms, much greater indul- 

 gence is given to the fpeaker than to the writer ; and to the 

 writer, who propofes to perfuade or move, greater allow- 

 ances are made, than to him who propofes barely to initruftor 

 pleafe. The more vehemence is required by the nature of 

 the fubjeft, the lefs correftnefs is exaAed in the manner of 

 treating it. Nay, a remarkable deficiency in this refpeft is 

 not nearly fo prejudicial to the fcope of the orator, as a fcru- 

 pulous accuracy, which bears in it the fymptoms of itudy 

 and art. jEfchines is faid to have remarked, that the ora- 

 tions of his rival and antagonift, Demofthcne'^, fmelled of 

 the lamp, thereby intimating that their ityle and compo- 

 fition were too elaborate. If this remark be jull, it con- 

 veys the greatelt ceiifure that was ever palled on that emi- 

 nent orator. But, as the intermediate degrees between the 

 two extremes are innumerable, both doubtlefs ought to be 

 avoided. Grammatical inaccuracies ought to be avoided 

 by a writer, for two reafons ; one is, that a reader will much 

 fooner difcover them than a hearer, however attentive he 

 may be ; the other is, as writing implies more leifure and 

 greater coolnefs than is implied in fpeaking, defeats of this 

 kind, when difcovered in the former, will be lefs excufcd 

 than they would be in the latter. To enumerate all the 

 kinds of folecifm to which writers and fpeakers are fubjeft, 

 would be both an ufelefs and endlefs talk. The tranfgref- 

 fion of any of the rules of fyntax is a folecifm ; and al- 

 moft every rule may be tranfgrefled in a variety of ways. 

 Some of the more flagrant folecifms are thofe which betray 

 an ignorance of the rudiments of ths tongue ; and others, 

 which are more the effefts of inattention, may be diliin- 

 guilhed by the fofter name of inaccuracies. For examples 

 of both kinds we refer to Lowth, Prieftley, Murray, and 

 other grammarians. See alfo Campbell's Philofophy of 

 Rhetoric, vol. t. b. 2. ch. 3. 



SOLEDA, in Geography, a town of the illand of Cuba ; 

 56 miles S.S.E. of Havanna. 



SOLEFTA, a town of Sweden, in Angermanland ; 40 

 miles N.N.W. of Hernnfiind. 



SOLEIL. Ombre de Soleil. See Ombre. 



SoLElL de Mer, in Ichthyology, a name given by the French 

 writers, and by Rondcletius, to a peculiar fpecies of Itar- 

 filh, of a fmall fize, the legs of which refemble very much the 

 tails of lizards, and are very brittle. 



Gefner defcribes alfo a fpecie« under the name of the fea- 

 moon, luna marina, which, he fays, is remarkably fragile, 

 and which, from what elfe he has faid of it in its defcription, 

 appears alfo to be the fame creature. The great cha- 

 raiter, however, of the creature's legs refembling, both 

 in colour and figure, the end of the common brown land- 

 newt's tail, is fo expreffive, that it cannot but be always 

 known by it. 



Thefe rays are fo extremely friable, that it is fcarcely 

 poflible to touch them without their breaking, and they are 

 not befet with points in the manner of the common rays of 

 the creatures of this kind. 



The other rays of ftar-fifhes being furnifhed with many 

 hundred legs, and thef« wanting theai entirely, it follows. 



SOL 



that in this fpeeies the rays themfelves muft fupply the place 

 of legs, and affilt the creature in walking ; and thence its 

 manner of walking muft neceflarily be different from that of 

 any other kind. Thefe rays are five in number, and are in- 

 ferted very near the mouth of the creature, which is always 

 placed in the centre of the ftar : the part where this aper- 

 ture is fituated, and which may be called the body of the 

 animal, is of a roundifh figure ; the diameter of it is about 

 a thn-d part of the length of the rays ; its under furface 

 is flat, and its upper convex ; and it is covered, both above 

 and below, with fcales, but they are arranged in different 

 manners. 



The common habitations of the fea-ftars, on the rough 

 Ihores of the fea, is no place for thefe tender creatures, every 

 dafh of a wave againll a ftone, if they were in the way, would 

 break off their limbs ; they have the caution, therefore, to 

 fix their refidence only in calm places, and where the (hore 

 is covered entirely with a deep fmooth fand. When the 

 water has forfiken them, they are often feen walking flowly 

 on the fhore ; and in this cafe they ufe their rays as To many 

 legs. As they divide the body of the fi(h into two equal 

 parts, there is no ray before or behind any where, fo that 

 the creature goes with equal eafe to any fide that it likes. 

 The beft motion they are able to make is, however, very 

 flow, and the ground on which they march ought to be 

 very even ; for if they attempt to haften their pace, or if 

 they find any thing uneven iu their pafTage, one or more of 

 their legs ufually breaks ; and this is the reafon why this 

 fpecies is feldom found with its rays perfeft. They never 

 bury themfelves deep in the fand, but juft get under it, fo 

 as to be covered ; and this they d'l by advancing two of the 

 rays together, and burrowmg carefully with them, and then 

 following them with the reft of the rays and the body. 

 Mem. Acad. Par. 17 12. 



SOLEISSEL, Jamfs de, in Biography, a celebrated 

 mailer of horfemanfhip, was born in 161 7, in the province 

 of Forez. He was educated among the Jefuits, but fol- 

 lowed, during his ftudies, a propenfity which he had felt 

 when very young, of attending to the manege, with which, 

 when he arrived at man's eftate, he joined the lludy of the 

 difeafes of horfes. When he had made himfelf tolerably per- 

 fei£l in both branches of the fcience, he commenced teacher of 

 horfemanfhip to the young noblelTe of his province. The 

 reputation which he foon acquired caufed him to be invited 

 to aflill in the academy for the manege in Paris, where he 

 pubhihed a work, entitled " Le Parfait Marechal," which 

 became very popular, and was tranflated into feveral lan- 

 guages. He was likewife author of a treatife entitled " Le 

 Marechal methodique," and of a Diftionary of the terms of 

 horfemanfhip. He was a man of a very refpeflable private 

 charafter, and pofTeffed all the accomplifhments that were 

 neceffary to his profeflion. He died in 1680. 



SOLEK, in Geography, a town of Auftrian Poland, in 

 the palatinate of Sandomirs ; 30 miles N. of Sandomirs. 



SOLEMCO, a town of Hungary ; 13 miles E.N.E. of 

 Gros Wardein. 



SOLEMN, SoLENNis, fomething performed with much 

 pomp, ceremony, and expence. Thus we fay, folemn feafts, 

 folemn funerals, folemn games, &c. 



Solemn, in Laiu, fignifies fomething authentic, or that 

 is clothed in all its formalities. 



Solemn Acceptance. See Acceptance. 



Solemn Tejlament, in the Cmil Laiu, is to be attefted by 

 feven perfons, and fealed with their feals. 



Solemn Marriage, is that performed in one's own parifh- 

 church, after publication of the banns, and in prefence of 

 witneli'es. 



o SOLEN, 



