Z I N 



this vifit gave him an opportunity of publiftiing an account 

 of his " Convcrfations" with that celebrated prince. He 

 was induced alfo, by the notice that was taken of him, to 

 undertake a defence of the charafter of Frederick againft the 

 cenfures of count de Mirabeau. The fevere criticifms to 

 which thefe writings expofed him, and the part he took in 

 the controverlles that agitated the continent with regard 

 to the principles that produced the French revolution, 

 irritated his feelings and difquieted a mind like his pecu- 

 liarly fufceptible of contumely and reproach. His political 

 and religious principles led him to view with jealoufy and 

 deteftation thofe focietics which, in his jndgment, and in 

 that of others of fimilar fentiments, aimed at the fubverfion 

 of eftablifhed forms and aiitliorities, and to declare war 

 ao-ainll tlicm. Such were his abhorrence and dread of 

 them, that he addreffed a memoir to the emperor Leopold, 

 recommending the fupprcffion of them by force ; and he 

 fubjefted himfelf to a profecution for a libel by a charge 

 brought againft a perfon by name for an unavowed pub- 

 lication. His mind had arrived to fucli a ftate of irritation, 

 that the approach of the French towards Hanover in 1794 

 almoft fubverted his reafon. Dreading the confequences of 

 their arrival, he abftained from food, wafted to a flceleton, 

 ami died abfolutely worn out in 1795, at the age of 66. 

 " Such," fays his biographer, " was the melancholy end of 

 a man whofe moral and intellcftual qualities rendered him 

 in a high degree the objcft of private friendftiip and public 

 efteem." Tiftot's Life of Zimmerman. Gen. Biog. 



ZIMOVE, in Geography, a village of Ruffia, in the 

 government of Irkutflc, where is a cuftom-houfe ; 52 

 miles S.E. of Barguziiiflc. 



ZiMOVE Tchijioi, a town of RufTia, in the government of 

 Irkutfk ; 16 miles S.W. of Vitimflcoi. 



ZiMOVE Yafafchnoe, a winter habitation of RufTia, on 

 the N. coaft of Baikal lake, in the government of Irkut(l<. 

 The word Zimovc, in Ruffian, means a houfe or inn, built 

 at a diftance from a town, for the accommodation of tra- 

 vellers, where are generally found a warm room, frefh 

 bread, and a kind of liquor called quajs. N. lat. 55° 20'. 

 E. long. 109° 14'. 



ZiMOVE Zaminjiot, a town of Ruffia, in the government 

 of Irkatllc, near lake Baikal ; 76 miles S.E. of Ver- 

 cholenflc. 



ZIMOVSKAIA, a town of Ruffia, in the country of 

 the Coffacks, on the Choper ; 48 miles W. of Arka- 

 dindcaia. 



ZIN, Sin, or Senna, in Ancient Geography, a city S. 

 of the land of promife. (Numb, xxxiv. 4.) See Sin. 



ZINARI, in Geography, an ifland in the Grecian Archi- 

 pelago. N. lat. 36° 59'. E. long. 26° 10'. 



ZINARIA, a word ufed by the Arabians for a kind of 

 vitiated bile, called seruginous bile. 



ZINC, in Chemijlry, the name of a metal, in Latin 

 zincum. The ancients do not appear to have been ac- 

 quainted with this metal. Cadmia was the name by which 

 they feem to have known one of its ores, which was Co called 

 from Cadmus, who, it is faid, taught the Greeks how to 

 form brafs by its means. It is firft mentioned by 'Albertus 

 Magnus, but it is doubtful if he had ever feen it. The 

 word zinc firft occurs in the writings of Paracelfus. This 

 metal has been alfo cHA'i&fpeher. 



Zinc has never been found in Europe in a ftate of purity, 

 and chemifts were late in difcovering a method of extraifling 

 it from its ores. Henkel feems to have been one of the firft 

 who effected this about the year 1720, and he was foon fol- 

 lowed by others. Zinc is of a briUiant white colour, with a 

 fiiade of blue, and feems to be compofed of a number of 



Z I N 



thin plates adliering together. It imparts a perceptible 

 fmell and colour to the Ildn when rubbed by it for fome 

 time ; hence it is rather foft. Its fpecific gravity is faid 

 to vary from 6.86 to 7.1, the lighteft being efteemed the 

 pureft. When hammered, its fpecific gravity becomes as 

 high as 7.19. 



This metal is by no means fo malleable as copper, lead, 

 or tin ; it is not however brittle. It yields, and becomes 

 fomewhat flatter, when ftruck with a hammer. Whea 

 heated a little above 2 1 2°, it has the remarkable property 

 of becoming very malleable, and in this ftate may be re- 

 duced into very thin plates, either by hammering or rolling. 

 When heated to about 400°, it becomes fo brittle that it 

 may be reduced to powder in a mortar. 



Zinc may be drawn into wire. According to Mufchen- 

 broeck its tenacity is fuch, that a wire of -r'^th of an inch 

 in diameter is capable of fupporting a weight of about 

 26 lbs. 



Zinc melts at a temperature of about 680°, according to 

 Dr. Black. If the heat be increafed it evaporates, and 

 may be eafily diftilled over in clofe veffels : upon this pro- 

 perty of zinc, Von Swab's method of extrafting it from its 

 ore was founded. When allowed to cool ilowly, this 

 metal cryftallizes beautifully in fmall bundles of quadran- 

 gular prifms difpofed in all diredlions, which, if expofed to 

 the air while hot, aftumes a blue changeable colour. 



When expofed to the air, zinc foon tariiifhes, but it 

 fcarcely undergoes any other change. When kept under 

 water, its furface becomes black, the water is decom- 

 pofed, hydrogen is emitted, and the oxygen combines with 

 the metal. If heat be applied, thefe changes go on more 

 rapidly ; and if the fteam of water be made to pafs over 

 zinc at a high temperature, it is very rapidly dccom- 

 pofed. 



When this metal is kept melted in open vcflels, it foon 

 becomes covered with a grey pellicle of oxyd. If the heat 

 be very ftrong it takes fire, and burns with a brilliant white 

 flame, and at the fame time emits a great quantity of very 

 light white flakes. This is merely the oxyd of zinc. It 

 was well known to the ancients, and received from them 

 many whimfical names, fuch as pompholyx, &c. Among the 

 alchymifts it was known by the names of nihil album, lana 

 philofophtca, Jlowers of zinc, &c. 



Zinc appears to combine with only one proportion of 

 oxygen, which has been ftated by different chemifts to vary 

 from 24.16 to 25 of oxygen to 100 of the metal. Ac- 

 cording to the firft of thefe determinations, the weight of 

 the atom of zinc will be 41.39 ; according to the fecond 40. 

 Dr. Thomfon has decided upon 41.25 as the moft probable 

 weight of the atom. 



Zinc combines readily with chlorine, and forms a chloride 

 of zinc. It may be prepared by dilTolving zinc in muriatic 

 acid, or by expofing the metal to the gas, when the two 

 combine by a fpecies of combuftion. The chloride may be 

 alfo obtained by diftilling zinc-filings with the oxy-muriate 

 of mercury, or corrojive fublimate ; and thus obtained, it was 

 formerly denominated the butter of zinc. When thus pre- 

 pared, it fublimes on the application of heat, and cryftal- 

 lizes in needles ; but according to Dr. Davy, when the com- 

 mon muriate is heated in a glafs tube, it does not fublime 

 even at a red heat, but remains in a ftate of fufion. Ex- 

 pofed to the air, it foon deliquefces. According to Dr. 

 J. Davy's analyfis, it is compofed of 



Chlorine 

 Zinc 



100 

 100 



But if we fuppofe it to be compofed of an atom of zinc 



and 



