TUN 



tliey ftill retain a kind of form or fliadow of both. Tlie 

 Porte hath a bafliaw refiding here, but in power and influence 

 he is a mere cypher, and ferves only to remind tJie Tunifians, 

 that they were once fubjeft to the Turkifli fultans. The 

 Douwan, being chiefly compofed of friends and creatures 

 of the beys, is rather aflembled to give a forced approbation 

 to their refolutions, than to confult them about the juftice 

 or expediency of them. At the firft fetthng of this new 

 form of government, the dey(hip was the fupreme dignity, 

 as it is ilill at Algiers ; as that of bey was the next in rank, 

 but wholly fubordinate to it. However, having fince built 

 their power upon the ruins of the deys, they have, by de- 

 grees, raifed the beylhip to be defpotic and independent ; 

 and by making it hereditary, have prevented, in a great 

 meafure, thofe frequent depofitions, rebellions, and maf- 

 facres, which are the almoft confl.ant concomitants of the 

 regal authority, wherever it is made eleftive. Yet far from 

 preventing jealoufies, cabals, and rebellions, in fpite of all 

 their precautions, the dignity oftener falls to the fhare of 

 that fon who has been able, by his addrefs, to form the 

 ftrongeft party, than to him who hath been appointed to it 

 by the father. Hence it is, that whenever the throne be- 

 comes vacant, whether in the courfe of nature, or by open 

 treafon and rebelhon, it is feldom filled up again without a 

 great deal of bloodflied, rapine, and violence, in proportion 

 to tlie number of competitors. In the fummer the bey of 

 Tunis refides in the northern part, and in the winter retires 

 to the fouth, where is a lake of confiderable extent, the 

 *' Palus Tritonis" of antiquity. The authority of the bey 

 extends over a large traft of country, of which he receives the 

 tribute, with a fmall army, which marches out annually for 

 that purpofe. Tunis, which had formerly a confiderable 

 commerce with France, exports thither corn, oil, beans, 

 lentils, wax, wool, hides, and Morocco Ikins ; and receives, 

 in exchange, Spanilh wool, Languedoc cloths, vermilion, 

 fugar, pepper, cloves, wine, brandy, paper, hardware, 

 iron, and fteel. The Italian trade is wliolly carried on by 

 the Jews, who fend the fame commodities to France, and 

 import from thence Spanilh cloths, damafks, feveral forts 

 of filk and woollen lluffs, gold and filver tiffue. The 

 French pay 3 per cent, for all the goods they bring from 

 France, and the Jews \o per cent, on their imports from 

 Italy. The Turks and Moors export to the Levant 

 woollen (luffs, lead, gold-duft, and chequins, and a vail 

 number of bales of caps ; and bring, in return, filks, cali- 

 coes, iron, alum, and vermilion. They fend much the 

 fame kind of commodities into Egypt ; but the oil that is 

 carried thither mull be put up in jars, and not in calks, 

 becaufe the greateft part of it is defigned for the lamps of 

 Mecca and Medina ; and the Arabians would think it pol- 

 luted, as the vefTels might formerly have contained wine. 

 They import, in exchange, from thence, linen, cotton, rice, 

 flax, and coff\;e. The number of French fhips freighted at 

 Tunis, by Turks, Moors, and Jews, has amounted yearly 

 to one hundred and fifty to the Levant, and fifty for France 

 and Italy : as for thofe of the Englilh, their number is un- 

 certain. All public conventions and inllruments are written 

 in the Arabic tongue, but the public commerce is com- 

 monly carried on by the medium of the Lingua Franca. 

 Gadames, or Galamrs (which fee), had formerly a flourifh- 

 ing commerce ; but it has ceafed fince the caravans pafling 

 from Tripoli to Tombuftoo do not Hop there, but at 

 Agadez. The caravans of Tombudoo bring Haves, oftrich 

 featlu-rs, ivory, and amber ; thofe of Sallee, gold, as well 

 as thofe of Gadames, which alfo bring Negro (laves. 

 Ruins of ancient monuments are found near Zovvan, Spltola, 

 Calfa, Phradrfa, Hamniamel, and Chafpa. Dcsfontaincs 



TUN 



mentions in particular with admiration a large and beau- 

 tiful amphitheatre near Elgem. Some veftiges arc alfo 

 found here and there of an ancient Carthaginian aquedud, 

 which ferved to draw water from the fprings of mount 

 Zowan ; but there fcarcely exid any other remains of Car- 

 thage. Near the river Mcjerda are ftill feen fome ruins of 

 Utica, which are, at prefent, at the diftance of about 

 4000 fathoms from the (hore ; though this city was for- 

 merly a fea-port. 



At Tunis, accounts are kept in piaftres of 52 afpers, each 

 afper being divided into 12 burbes. The coins confift of 

 gold fultanins, valued at 100 afpers; of filver nafaras (a 

 fquare or (hapelefs coin), valued at 52 afpers; and of 

 doublas, valued at 24 afpers. The buibes are a fmall cop- 

 per coin. Gold, filver, and pearls, are weighed by the 

 ounce of 8 termini ; and 80 ounces of Tunis = 81 ounces 

 Englilh troy. The cantaro, which is a weight for mer- 

 chandize, contains 100 rottoli, weighing about 11 1 pounds 

 avoirdupois. The cafhfo, a corn meafure, contains 18 

 weabs, or 216 faws ; 53 caffifi := 6-1 Enghfh quarters. 

 The mattaro, an oil mealure, is = 32 rottoli, = 35^ pounds 

 avoirdupois, and is about 5 Enghfii galhms. The mattaro, 

 wine meafure, is only lialf that for oil meafure. The pic, 

 long meafure, is for woollen 298.3 French lines, or 26,- 

 Englidi inches, for filk 24;- Englifh inches, and for linen 

 1 8 1- Englifii inches. 

 TUNKAT. SeeToNCAT. 

 TUNKERSTOWN. Sec Ephrata. 

 TUNKHANOCK, a townlhip of Pennfylvania, in the 

 county of Lucerne, containing 884 inhabitants. 



TuNKiiANOCK Creei, a river of Pennfylvania, which 

 runs into the eaft branch of the Sufquehanna, N. lat. 41° 31'. 

 W. long. 75° 57'. 



TUNNA, in Commerce, a meafure of grain in Sweden, 

 equal to four bulhels five quarts Winchcfter meafure. 



TUNNAGE, or TonmattE, a duty or cuftom due for 

 merchandize brought or carried in tons, and fuch like veffels, 

 from or to other nations ; thus called, becaufe rated at fo 

 much per tun. 



Tunnage is properly a duty impofed on liquids according 

 to their meafures ; as poundage is that impofed on other 

 commodities according to their weight. See Pol'Nd.^oe 

 and Customs. 



Tunnage is alfo ufed for a certain duty paid the ma- 

 riners, by the merchants, for ur.loading their (hips arrived 

 in any haven, after the rate of fo much per tun. 



TUNNEL, or Funnei,, an inftrument through which 

 any liquor is poured into a vefTel. 



Part of a draught of a chimney, above the mantle-piece, 

 is alfo called by tlie fame name. 



Tunnel is a large fubterraneous arch, driven through a 

 fummit or hill, for the paffage of boats upon a canal con- 

 tinued through the fame : alfo, fmaller drains or culverts 

 are called tunnels ; and the execution of making and drinng 

 them is called tunnelling. 



Tva^EL-Pit, a well or (l\aft funk to the line of an in- 

 tended tunnel, through which the (luff" exc:.vated from it h 

 drawn up to the furface. 



Tvs'SKL-Kiln, in Agriculiure, a term applied to a lime- 

 kiln in which coal is burned, in eontradiftindtion to tliat in 

 which wood, peat, and otlter fuch matters arc ufed, termed 

 the flame-kiln. See Limk-A'/7h. 



There is much lefs wafte of heat in the former forts than 

 in thofe of the latter, and they have much advantage in the 

 quick difpatch in drawing the lime ; as, in the flame-kili:s, 

 after the matters are burnt, much time is loft by waitnig 

 until the lime be cold, and by emptying it at the mouth 

 3 F 2 ?^'^ 



