r E K 



nular parts ; but thefe differ greatly in their leuglli. Tliere 

 is an evident care in ihefe creatures, never to nijure one an- 

 other's habitations ; by this means each tubule or cafe is 

 prcferved entire, and in luch pieces of wood as have been 

 Lund eaten by them into a fort of honey-comb, there never 

 ii feen a paflage or communication between any two ot 

 the tubules, though the woody matter between them often 

 U not thicker than a piece of writing-paper. 



The vail iiicreafe of thefe anmials, and their flielly tubules, 

 naturally lead to a conlideration of the manner of their 

 generation ; and when we confider that each of thefe crea- 

 tures is, from the time when it is produced from the egg, 

 inmediately lodged in a cell, in which it lives without the 

 leaft pofllb'iity of getting into that of another animal of its 

 own kind, or receiving one of them into its own, it is not 

 eafy to account for the propagation of the fpecies in the 

 common way. This, however, is folved by an accurate 

 anatomical obfervation of the animals themfelves, fince in 

 every individual the parts of generation in both fexes, and 

 both the femeii and ovula are found. Each individual there- 

 fore evidently fei-ves by itfelf for the propagation of the 

 fpecies ; and this is probably very often the cafe in earth- 

 worms, and other of the hermaphrodite animals. All the 

 yet known kinds of thefe being foft-bodied ; and probably, 

 though they often meet one another, and copulate in pairs, 

 yet when they have not opportunity, the parts copulate in 

 the individual. 



Eggs are found in great plenty in the bodies of thefe ani- 

 mals in June, and are difcharged with the water into the 

 fea, where the far greater part of them, doubtlcfs, become 

 food for other fmall marine animals ; and the few that affix 

 themfelves to any piece of wood they are wafhcd againft, 

 hatch and get into its fubftance in the manner of their 

 parents. 



The kind of wood in which thefe worms are lodged, 

 makes a great difference in the appearance of their cells, as 

 they work much more fpeedily and fuccefsfuUy in fome kinds 

 than in others. The Er and alder are the two kinds they 

 feem to eat with the greateft eafe, and in which they grow 

 to the greateft. fize. Ii. the oak they feem to make but a 

 ■5?ry flow progrefs, and ufually appear very fmall, and 

 poorly nourilhed. The colour of their fhelly tubules is often 

 brown in this wood ; which feems plainly owing to the 

 effeft of its juices. 



Poifonous ointments are alfo found to be of fome ufe in 

 deftroying them, on rubbing over the wood : fome have 

 thought that burning the furface was an effeftual way of 

 preferving them, but this has been found to be otherwife. 

 The fureil method of avoiding them in particular works, 

 is the ufing of bitter or very folid woods ; the firft kind they 

 are found never to touch, and in the other they make but 

 flow progrefs. Mixtures of hme, fulphur, and colocynth, 

 with pitch, for covering over the furfaces of boards, &c. 

 have been found of fome ufe. 



It feems very evident, that boards and other pieces of 

 wood have been fubjeft to be eaten by thefe animals, from 

 all times that we have any knowledge of ; for the flone called 

 lapis fyringoides is evidently no other than wood thus eaten, 

 petrified by long lying in the earth, together with the tubules 

 of the worms. The mafles of this with the grain of wood 

 yet plain in them, are common in many places among fea- 

 ihells, and other marine remains at great depths, and have 

 evidently been brought thither in very diftant times, and 

 before thofe changes were made in the furface of the earth 

 of which we have no accounts in our earlieft hiftorieB. 

 Sellii Hift. Natur. Teredims. 



TEREDON, in Antieot Ceo^rafhy, a town of Afia> in 



T E R 



Babylonia, on an ifland which was formed by the Tigris ac 

 its mouth. (Ptol.) Dionyfius Periegetes places the town of 

 Teredon at the mouth of the Euphrates. 



TEREK, in Geography, a mountain of Alia, between 

 Great and Little Bucharia. 



Tkrek, one of the rivers that fall into the Cafpian fea- 

 It originates in the Caucaiian mountains, runs at firll to- 

 wards the W. and S., but turns afterwards entirely to the E. 

 and in about N. lat. 44°, and E. long. 65°, difcharges itfelf 

 into the Cafpian. It takes up in its courfe the Bakfan, the 

 Malka, and the Soonflia, among many other mountain- 

 brooks and rivers. Its fource lies properly in the Snow- 

 mountains of Caucafus, on the higheft partition-ridges of 

 the frontiers of Georgia. It is rapid in its courfe ; and, in 

 the months of July and Auguft, when the fnow melts, 

 fwells to the height of eight or ten feet above its ufual 

 level in autumn, winter, and fpring ; overflowing its banks, 

 and inundating the adjacent cojintry, forming for itfelf new 

 beds, and choaking the old with fand. In its lower courfe,, 

 as far as Kitzliar, it is almofl; entirely unaccompanied by 

 woods ; farther up, to Starogladka, by a few ; and thence 

 upwards, its banks are richly garnifhed with forells, parti- 

 cularly of oaks, wild fruit-trees, and a variety of others. 

 It does not freeze over every year, though in winter it 

 abounds with driving ice. In this feafon its water is tole- 

 rably clear, which at other times, above Kitzliar, is turbid, 

 with earthy particles ; but when taken up, it foon becomes- 

 clear, and is then bright, well-taft^ed, and of good quality. 

 Below Kitzliar, the river has a lefs fall, and ieparates into 

 feveral arms, in which the parted ftream flows fo gently, 

 that it has time to depofit its earthy particles, which alter- 

 nately fill up thefe arms ; fo that one or the other occa- 

 fionally reprefents the main river. In the lower regions, on, 

 the fliores of the Terek, are feen vineyards, mulberry and 

 other fruit-trees, to which fucceed fait -lakes, and fprings of 

 the fame nature. Its bed is formed moftly of fand and 

 clay. With regard to fifli, the Terek, as well as all its 

 collateral rivers, is poor. Yet there are caught in it ft:ur- 

 geon (acipenfer fturio), beluga (acipenfer hufo), ferruga 

 (acipenfer ftellatus. Pall.), plenty of falmon, fat-fifh (cy- 

 prinus chalcoides), carp, barbel (cyprinus barbus), fllad> 

 pike, fudak (lucio perca), perch (perca fluviatilis), lefchtfe 

 (cyprinus barba, ) otters, beavers, tortoifes, &c. 

 Terek, in Ornithology. See Scolopax Cinerea. 

 TERELLA, in Geography, a town of Naples, in the 

 Mohfe ; 4 miles N. of MoUfe. 



TERENCE, PuBLlus Terentihs, in Biography, a 

 Latin writer of comedies, was born, as it is fuppofed, at 

 Carthage about the year pf Rome 560 (B.C. 194.) Being 

 brought to Rome as a flave, when young, he was in the 

 fervice of a perfon named Terentius, a fenator, from whom 

 he derived his name- The purity and politenefs of his lan- 

 guage evince his having enjoyed the benefit of a good- 

 Roman education. After his emancipation, he was ho- 

 noured with the friendftiip of feveral Romans of rank, fuck 

 as Scipio Africanus the younger, and the younger Lelius- 

 His comedies were founded upon the Greek model, and 

 tranflated, either wholly or in part, from the Greek. The 

 firft comedy which he is faid to have brought upon the ftage,. 

 was the- " Andrio," reprefented in the year B.C. 166- 

 But though this was the firft of his comedies that was afted,. 

 it appears that it was not the firft which he had written- 

 The fix comedies of Terence that are ftill extant were ex- 

 hibited at Rome from the year B.C. 166 to 160. They 

 were heard with great applaufe ; the " Eunuchus" was 

 repeated twice in the fame day, and he is faid to have 

 received for it 8000 fefterces (about 64/.) Scipio and 



Lclius» 



