B I L 



villi flender leafy branches. Flowers in little axillary tufts, 

 or clufters. Lea-oes about an inch and a half long, fmooth, 

 entire. Br. 



2. ^. porulofa. Pierced Bigelovia. (Borya porulofa ; 

 Willd. n. 2. Pur(h n. I. Ait. ii. I. Adelia porulofa ; 

 Mich. Bor.-Amer. v. 2. 224.) — Leaves feffile, oblong-lan- 

 ceolate, obtiife, coriaceous, revolute ; dotted beneath. — On 

 the coalts of Georgia and Florida. The leaves are ruftv, 

 and as if pierced with little dots, beneath. Michaux. 



3. H. /igu/lrina. Privet-leaved Bigelovia. ( Borya liguf- 

 trina ; Willd. n. 3. Purfh n. 2. Ait. n. 2. Adelia 

 liguftrina ; Mich. Bor.-Amer. v. 2. 224.) — Leaves oblong- 

 lanceolate, fomewhat membranous, entire, on fiicrt ftalks. 

 Berry roundifli-ovate. — Native of thickets and woods about 

 rivers, in the countries of tlie Illinois, Tenneflee, Sic. flower- 

 ing in July and Auguft. This has the habit and foliage of 

 our Privet. Michaux. 



4. B. acuminata. Pciinted Bigelovia. (Borya acumi- 

 nata ; Willd. n. 4. Purfli n. 3. Ait. n. 3. Adelia 

 acuminata; Mich. Bor.-Amer. v. 2. 225. t. 48.) — Leaves 

 ovato-lanceolate, membranous, ilalked, (lightly ferrated, 

 acute at each end. Unripe berry oblong, taper-pointed. — 

 On the banks of rivers in Carolina and Georgia. The taper 

 lateral branches appear to form fomething like thorns. The 

 leaves are an inch and a half long. Male Jlowers feveral 

 together, in fmall fefiile tufts, encompaffed with feveral ovate 

 braBeas ; female ones ftalked, very fmall. Berries pendu- 

 lous, elliptic-oblong, near an inch in length. 



T;ie three latter fpecies are recorded by Mr. Alton, to 

 iiave been brought into England by Mr. John Lyon ; the 

 poriihfa in 1806, the two others in 18 12. They are hardy 

 fknihs, but do uot appear to luive yet flowered. 



BIGNONI^E, the 45th order in Juffieu's fyftem ; the 

 I2th of his 8th clafs, whofe charafters are given at Gen- 

 TIANJ,. The following is that author's definition of the 

 order before us. 



Calyx divided. Corolla moKly irregular, with four or five 

 lobes. Stamens ufually five, one of which is, for the moil 

 part, abortive, or imperfeift. Style one ; Jligma either fimple 

 or two-lobed. Fruit of two cells ; fometimes capfular, 

 with many feeds, and with two perfeftly feparate valves ; 

 the feed-bearing partition oppofite or parallel to the valves, 

 and feparable therefrom : fometimes coriaceous or woody, 

 burfting at the top only, with but few feeds, the feed-bear- 

 ing partition a continuation of the valves, not feparable, and 

 often fending out a fliglit wing, dividing each cell into two. 

 Corculum unattended by albumen. Stem herbaceous, ihrubby, 

 or arboreous. Leaves oppofite, rarely alternate. 



Seft. I. Fruit capfular, bivalve. Stem herbaceous. 



Chelone and Sfamum, with Juffieu's Incarvillea, Lamarck 

 lUullr. t. 527, compofe this icction. 



Sect. 2. Fruit capfular, bivalve. Stem arboreous or 



fSiruhby. 



Millin'^tonia of Linnxus ; Jacaranda, Catalpa, and 

 Tccoma of JufT. with Bignonia of Linnaeus. 



Sedl. 3. Fruit coriaceous, almofl woody, opening at the top. 

 Stem herbaceous. 



Tourretia of Dombey and JufF. ; Martynia, Craniolaria, 

 and Pedalium of Linnxus. 



Mr. Brown, Prodr. Nov. HoU. v. 1. 470, retains the 

 fecond feclion only, under the name of Bignoniacee, to which 

 he adds the genus Spathodea. See that article. 



BIGONCIA, in Commerce, a liquid meafure in Venice. 

 See Amphora. 



BILE, Chemical properties of. Bile has been lately denied by 

 Berzehus to contain a refinous or adipocirous matter, as had 

 been maintained by former chemids. The fubfl;ance pecu- 



B I L 



liar to bile, or, as it is denominated by him, the biliary princi- 

 ple, has an excefTively bitter tafte, foUowed by fome fweet- 

 nefs. Its fmell is peculiar, and the colour in mod animals 

 varies from green to greenifli-yellow. It is foluble in water, 

 and Its folubility is not in the leaft; promoted by the alkali of 

 tlie bile, fince when the alkali is neutralized by any acid, the 

 pecuHar matter does not feparate. It likewife diffolvts in 

 alcohol in all proportions. Like the albuminous materials 

 of the blood, of which this peculiar matter is compofed, it 

 wiU unite with acids producing two compounds of two 

 degrees of faturation, and hence of folubility. The dilute 

 acetic acid which gives foluble compounds with the albumen 

 of the blood, dots the fame with the peculiar matter of the 

 bile; and hence this matter is not precipitated on adding this 

 acid to bile, though it falls down on the addition of the ful- 

 phuric, nitric, or muriatic acids. It is this fparingly foluble 

 compound of bihaiy matter with a mineral acid which has 

 been miftaken by many chemifts for a refin, fines it poffcfles 

 the external charaders ofa refin, melts when ! eated, diffolves 

 in alcohol, and is again partly precipitated by water. Tlie 

 alkalies, alkaline earths, and alkaline acetates, decompofe and 

 difTolve it ; the former by depriving it of its combined acid, 

 the latter by furniniing it with acetic acid, which renders it 

 foluble in water. 



The peculiar matter of bile will alfo combine with many 

 of the metallic oxyds. The degree of the folubility poffelTed 

 by the compound of acid and biliary principle, varies accord- 

 ing to the length of time that the bile has been kept, and 

 alfo according to the fpecies of the animal. 



The biliary matter may be obtained in a (late of purity 

 by mixing frefh bile with fulphuric acid diluted with three 

 or four times its weight of water. A yellow precipitate 

 firft appears, which is to be allowed to fubfide, and then 

 removed : more acid is tlien to be added as long as any pre- 

 cipitate is formed ; heat the mixture gently for forae hours, 

 and afterwards decant the fluid pai't, and thoroughly wa/h 

 the green mafs left. This green refinous-like mafs reddens 

 litmus, and is partially and fparingly foluble in water. It 

 may be deprived of its acid either by the carbonate of barvtes, 

 or by the carbonate of potafh or lime, and thus obtained pure. 

 It is now foluble in water, and forms a green folution, 

 having all the properties of bile. It is infoluble in ether, 

 whicli converts it into an adipocirous mafs. When burnt 

 it yields no ammonia, and confequently contains no azote. 



The following are the refults of Berzelius's analyfis of 

 bile: 



Water 



Biliary principle defcribed above 



Mucus of the gall-bladder, &c. diflblved in |^ 



the bile j 



Alkahes and falts, common to all fecreted)^ 



fluids / 



907.4 

 80.0 



9.6 



1 000.0 



The bile of other animals has been but imperfeiflly 

 examined. It refembles in its general charafters the human 

 bile above-mentioned. 



BILLARDIERA, in Botany, fo named by the wTiter 

 of this, in honour of his friend James Julian la Billardiere, 

 (or, as it is now written, Labillardiere,) M.D. author of 

 Icones Plantarum Syria Rarionim, the fruits of his journey 

 to the Levant, in 1786 ; and fince mucii better known by 

 his valuable A^ovs Hollan.iit Plantarum Specimen, in two 

 volumes folio, with many plates. An account of his voyage 

 to New Holland, in fcarch of the unfortunate Lapeyroufe, 

 . 3 C 2 - contains 



