- 
t 
OPA 
large and forked; the eves of this fith = large, the irides 
{carlet, encompaffed with a circle of a gold colour, verged 
with {earlet ; ; its noftrils are placed above its eyes; the upper 
part of the body is of a dark blue, or violet colour; this, 
and the fides which are of a bright green, are fpeckled with 
oblong white fpots; the chaps of a pale ee the nofe, gills, 
and belly of a filver colour; and all the fins of a bright 
{carlet; the mouth is fmall, the tongue thick, and refembling 
a human tongue, but thick-fet with prickles, which are 
pointed backwards, and which feem to ferve inftead of teeth 
rom which this de- 
. Pp. 
PALUS, in Natural Hiftory, a precious ftone, 
of various gele ours ; changeable according to the different 
pofition of the ftone to the lig 
It is generally claffed among the filiceous earths, or finer 
fiints, although fome fpecimens are fo foft as to be capable 
M. Chaptal confiders the 
red, and green tinge. 
has a kind of greyifh clay for i i gangre. "The moft beau- 
tiful opal is the oriental; fometimes called the itkabeted 
names, according to the colours they refle&. e cha- 
to the 
ties of the opal; fuch are the girafol, cca, and fith’s- 
ye. The reflected rays of the girafol weak, blueifh, 
and mixed ange yell ftone has been 
found in lead mines of Chatelaudren in Britanny. Th 
the 
moft obvious character of the girafol is, that it exhibits in 
a luminous point ; and refleéts the rays of 
when it is cut 
Gems. 
opa nee are four fub- {pecies, wiz. the noble opal, 
infufible before oe blowpipe, fp. grav. 2.114, an 
pofed of go filex 2 of water; common opal infufible 
without addition pein the Pee ak {p. ee 9 had 2. se 
one {pecimen compofed of 98.75 filex, o.1 alumin 
oxyd of iron, o water ; and Pe confiting of 93. - ‘ies, 
o alumine xyd of iron, an ater ; {femi-opal, in- 
fufible in the furnace, fp. apued n two fpe 
eimens of 43.5, or ine Oo. 
ox 5 er; and 
wood opal, fp. gr. 2 6, appearing to be eo penetrated with 
To imitate this gem in natural cryftal ufe the fol! oe 
method: take yellow orpiment, and white arfenic, of each 
two ounces; crude antimony, and fal ammoniac, of each 
one ounce: powder all thefe, and mix them well together ; 
put this powder into a large crucible, and lay upon it {mall 
fragments of cryftal, and, upon thefe, other larger pieces 
of cryftal; fill up the crucible with thefe, and lute on to it 
another crucible inverted, with a hole at the bottom as big 
OPA 
the crucibles ; the greateft al of the ibe will be found 
tinged to the colours of various gems ; nly the opal, 
which will be very fair at beaut cae the topaz and 
tuby colour will be feen in other 
A compofition of femi- cau white glafs and esa 
refembling the opal, may be formed by taking of the 
bs hard Grass, or Paste, defcribed under thofe 
tit is to them we owe the 
nd fruits: for which reafon, the spams was 
at held till ne Saeed and fruit-time were entirely 
The fame author obferves, that the vows offered a0 “the 
goddefs were made fitting on the eames to fhew, that fhe 
was earth, the mother of all thin 
. See MAGNESIA Opa 
OPALINKA, in Geography, a a of the duchy of 
Warfaw; 2 miles WwW. of Pofen. 
OPARO, an ifland in the Pacific ocean, dilcovered by 
u d of the 
falling into the fe res were fo {mooth, that land- 
ing might have been effeed without difficulty. Ro Oo 
the N. of that point is a {mall bay, i 
may be very 
S. extremity of the 
Gints of view, to form a right 
angle, without the — interruption in its fides ; about half 
a mile to the S.E. is a {mall detached iflet; the fhores are 
inter{perfed ae fy beaches ; its greateft extent, in a 
N. 18° W. and S. 18° E. ‘direGtion, is about 6% miles, and 
it may poflibly be about 18 in circumference. Its principal 
charaGter is a clufter of high craggy mountains, forming, in 
feveral places, moft romantic pinnacles, with perpendicular 
cliffs, nearly from their fummits to the fea; in the inter- 
mediate chafms there was no appearance of fertility or cul- 
oe 3 they were chiefly clothed with fhrubs and dwarf 
trees. The tops of fix of the higheft hills appeared like 
fortified api refembling redoubts, having a fort of block- 
houfe, hk afs-houfe, in the centre of each, 
abl w 
works, ¢ 
of defending the citadel by a few 
On all of them people were obferved, coune about as if on 
duty. Thefe buildings were large enough to contain a 
confiderable number of perfons, and they were the only 
habitations that were obferved. Capt. Vancouver faw about 
30 a and fingle canoes, neatly conftructed, though 
very narrow. The ifland did not appear to afford any large 
ee the broadeft planks of which the canoes were made 
not exceeding 12 inches. The total number . same 
d was eftimated at not lefs than The 
natives appeared, notwithftanding the cnc flate of 
the ifland, ie exceedingly well fed, of middling ftature, 
i Ny P and in- 
hair was cut fhort, and they 
were 
° 
ha 
very well m: 
aiecae hefpitalit y: Their 
