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ferves, Soc. Phil. 15." DeTheis478. Vauch. Conf. 25. 

 — Clafs and order, Cryptogamia Algx. Nat. Ord. Alg(t. 



Eff. Ch. Anther folitary, awl-(haped, incurved. Cap- 

 fules adjoining to the anther, ovate, fingle-feeded, in pairs or 

 folitary. 



i.V.fjJUis. Seffile-fruitedVaucheria. Engl. Bot.t. 1765. 

 (Eftofperma feffilis ; Vauch. Conf. 31. t. 2. f. 7. Conferva 

 veficata ; Dillw. Conf. t. 74, without the anther. Ceramium 

 cafpitofum ; Roth Catal. v. 3.1 20.) — Floating. Capfules 

 in pairs and folitary, feflile on each fide of the anther. — 

 Found floating on the furface of pools, in large green patches, 

 about February ; and confifting of capillary, branched, 

 fmooth, rather elaftic, tubular filaments, filled with a green 

 pulpy fubftance, which feparates in oblong portions, giving 

 the filament a jointed appearance. Capfules lateral, feffile, 

 pellucid, commonly in pairs, each containing one large green 

 feed, and having next to them an awl-lhaped body, afTerted 

 by Vaucher to be the anther. Yet fometimes this body 

 feems to fhoot out into a branch. Veficles are often found 

 on the branches, perhaps of the nature of galls, inhabited 

 by the aquatic animalcule called by Muller Cyclops Lupula, 

 in confiderable numbers, with one dark-coloured animal 

 befides. 



2. V. geminata. Twin-flalked Vaucheria. Engl. Bot. 

 t. 1766. (Eftofperma geminata; Vauch. Conf. 29. t. 2. 

 f. 5.) — Floating. Capfules in pairs and folitary, on oppofite 

 partial ftalks, growing out of one common ftalk with the 



anther Sent by Mr. W. Borrer, along with the preceding, 



from SufTex. The habit is the fame in both, but the f rue - 

 tijication, furnifhed with partial ftalks, and v,-ith a common 

 ftalk for both organs, appears to afford a good fpecific cha- 

 rafter. Some botanifts neverthek-fs, and among them, if we 

 miftake not, Mr. Dillwyn, confider thefe two plants as mere 

 varieties of each other. 



3. V . 'uelutina. Velvet Vaucheria. ( Conferva velutina ; 

 Engl. Bot. t. 1556. Dillw. Conf. t. 77. Byflus velutina; 

 Linn. Sp. PI. 1638. B. teneiTima viridis, velutumreferens ; 

 Dill, in Rail Syn. 56. Mufc. 7. t. I. f. 14. B. terreftris 

 viridis hcrbacea et molliilima, filamentis ramofis et non ra- 

 mofis ; Mich. Gen. 211. t. 89. f. 5.) — Ereft, tufted. Fila- 

 ments beaded, fomewhat rigid. Capfules feflile. — This 

 covers the earth, in moift fliady places, with a moft beauti- 

 ful fine green velvet carpet, fragrant like feveral of the 

 Jungdrmannis, even for a long time after it is dried. It ap- 

 pears to be perennial, occurring in fummer as well as winter, 

 hut has been thought more common than it really is, becaufe 

 Dillenius and others have confounded with this plant a much 

 more general one. Conferva muralis, Engl. Bot. t. 1554, 

 which is proftrate, refembling fatin rather than velvet, and 

 has no fweet fcent. M. Vaucher is our authority for re- 

 moving this fpecies hither. Micheli has but imperfeftly 

 figured the capfules, and in fuch a manner that they may 

 belong either to thofe Confer-vn which make Roth's genus 

 of Ceramium, or to Vaucheria. Of the anther we know 

 nothing. 



We have here limited ourfelves to the Britifh fpecies, 

 which may poflibly prove but a fmall part of the genus, 

 when the fubjeft has been fufBciently examined. 



VAUCLAIN, Le, in Geography, a town of the ifland of 

 Martinico, fituated in a bay on the N.E. coaft. N. lat. 

 14=36'. W. long. 60' 46'. 



VAUCLUSE, a town of France, in the department of 

 the Doubs ; 8 miles S.W. of St. Hypolite. 



Vaucluse, formerly Venaifiin, and the principality of 

 Orange, on the left hand of the Rhone, in N. lat. 44°, 

 one of the twelve departmento of the S.E. region of France, 



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bounded on the N. by the departments of the DrArtie aii^. 

 Ardeche, on the E. by the department of the Lower Alp;, 

 on the S. by the department of the Mouths of the Rhont, 

 and on the W. by that of the Gard. It derives its appella- 

 tion from the fountain of Vaclufe, (fee Fontaine de Va- 

 clufe,) which is the fource of the river Sorgues, and made 

 memorable by the near refidence of Petrarch and Laura. 

 Its territorial extent is 3700 kiliometres, or 186 fquar^' 

 leagues, and its population confifts of 190,180 inhabitants. 

 It is divided into 4 circles or diftrifts, 22 cantons, and 

 150 communes. The circles are. Orange, incluciii^g 54,293 . 

 Avignon, 47,351 ; Carpentras, 39,714 ; and Apt, 48,822 in- 

 habitants. According to Haflenfratz, its length in Frencl" 

 leagues is 15, and its breadth 10 : its circles are 4, its can- 

 tons 52, and its population confifts of 200,500 perfon. 

 Its capital is Avignon. Its contributions, in the eleven;' 

 year of the French era, amounted to 1,367,701 franc ; 

 and its charges, adminiftrative, judiciary, and for pubhc in- 

 ftruftion, were 227,109 francs, 14 cents. This department 

 confifts of plains, marfhes, gentle eminences, and hills. 

 Mont-Ventoux is upwards of 6000 feet above the level of 

 the fea. The foil is various, and indifferently cultivated. 

 The produfts are grain, filk, fruits, and roots. In this de- 

 partment are coal impregnated with fulphur, a few metallic 

 fubftar.ces, potter's-earth, mineral fprings, &c. 



VAUCOULEURS, a town of France, and principal 

 place of a diftrift, in the department of the Meufe ; 8 miles 

 N.E. of Gondrecourt. N. lat. 48° 36'. E. long. 5° 44'. 



VAUD, Pays de, a country of Switzerland, of which 

 travellers and hiftorians fpeak with rapture, particularly of 

 that part which borders on the lake of Geneva. It is almoft 

 wholly a gradual afcent from the edge of the lake, richly 

 laid oui in vineyards, corn-fields, and luxuriant meadows, and 

 checquered with continued hamlets, villages, and towns : the 

 ftiores are generally of the cleareft gravel, and the water of 

 the fineft tranfparency. This country is one of the two 

 great divifions into which the canton of Berne is divided ; the 

 other being the German diftrift. The Pays de Vaud, after 

 the decline of the Roman empire, made a part of the king- 

 dom of Burgundy, from which it fell to the empire of Ger- 

 many, under which the dukes of Zaringen held it as a fief, 

 and at the extinction of that family, it became annexed to 

 the eftates of the counts of Savoy. It was conquered from 

 the houfe of Savoy by the canton of Berne in 1536, and in 

 this year the reformation was introduced. From that period 

 the whole Pays de Vaud, excepting the common bailHages 

 of Grenfon, Orbe, and a fmall portion of it which was ceded 

 to Friburgh, has been fubjeA to Berne, and forms a part of 

 that canton. The German diftrift was gained by conqueft 

 from the eftates of the empire. In each of thefe divifions 

 juftice is adminiftered and taxes regulated by peculiar laws 

 and cuftoms. Each divifion has its treafurer aod chamber 

 of appeal refident in the capital ; the chamber of appeal be- 

 longing to the Pays de Vaud judges in the laft reiort ; but 

 the inhabitants of the German diftrift may appeal to the 

 fovereign council. During the French revolution, the Pays 

 de Vaud was feparated from the canton of Berne, and formed 

 into an independent repubhc under the proteftion of France, 

 in .January 1798. In the new divifion of SwitzerKnd, it 

 forms the canton or department of Leman, of which Lau- 

 fanne is the capital. The Pays de Vaud is eftimated to be 

 about 60 miles long, and as many broad ; bounded on the 

 N. by the county of Neufchatcl, on the E. by the canton 

 of Friburgh, on the S. by the lake of Geneva and the river 

 Rhone, and on the W. by France. It includes the towns 

 and baiUwicks of Laufanne, Yverdun, Moudon, Avcnche, 

 Vevay, Merges, and feveral others. 



VAUDE- 



