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P I N 
■fnade on purpose, ancl conducted with accu- 
racy, it appears that neither sheep, cows, 
goats, horses, nor swine, will feed upon this 
plant. Wherever this plant, called also 
Yorkshire sanicle, is found, it is a certain in- 
dication of a boggy soil. From the idea that 
j the country-people have of its noxious opera- 
tion on sheep, this plant has been called the 
1 white rot; since, as they imagine, it gives 
them the rot whenever they eat it, which 
f they will not do but from great necessity. 
The Laplanders, like the Swedes with the 
milk of cows, receive that of the rein-deer 
■upon the fresh leaves of this plant, which 
they immediately strain off, and set it aside 
| till it becomes somewhat acescent ; and the 
whole acquires in a dav or two the consist- 
tmceof cream, without separating the serum, 
and thus becomes an agreeable food. When 
•thus prepared, a small quantity of the same 
has the property of rennet in producing the 
like change on fresh milk. 
PINGUIN, or Penguin, in ornithology, 
a genus of birds of the order of anseres, dis- 
tinguished by the following characters: The 
bill is strong, straight, more or less bending 
towards the point, and furrowed on the sides: 
the nostrils a. e linear, and placed in the fur- 
rows; the tongue is covered with strong 
spines, pointing backwards; the wings are 
small, very like fins, and covered with no 
longer feathers than tiie rest of the body, and 
are useless in flight; tiie body is clothed with 
thick short feathers, having broad shafts, and 
placed as compactly as the scales of fishes; 
the legs are short, thick, and placed very 
near the vent; the toes are four, and are all 
placed forwards ; the interior are loose, and 
the rest are webbed ; the tail is very stiff, 
■consisting of broad shafts scarcely webbed. 
It is agreed that pinguins are inhabitants of 
southern latitudes only ; being, as far as is 
yet known, found only on the coasts of South 
America, from Port Desire to the Straits of 
Magellan; ami Frezier says they are found 
on the western shore as high as Conception. 
Jn Africa they seem to be unknown, except 
on a small isle near the Cape of Good Hope, 
which takes its name from them. They are 
found in vast numbers on land during the 
breeding-season, for they seldom come on 
shore but at that time: they form burrows 
under ground like rabbits; and the isles they 
frequent are perfectly undermined by them. 
"Their attitude on land is quite erect, and 
on that account they have been compared by 
some to pigmies, by others to children with 
white bibs. They are very tame, and may 
he driven like a flock of sheep. In water 
they are remarkably active, and swim with 
vast strength, assisted by their wings, 
which serve instead of tins; their food in ge- 
neral is lish ; not but that they will eat grass 
like geese. . . 
Mr. Latham remarks, that this genus ap- 
pears to -hold the same place in the southern 
division of tiie earth th.t the awks do in the 
northern; and that, however authors may 
differ in opinion on this head, they ought not 
to be confounded with one another. The 
pinguin is never seen but in the temperate and 
| frigid zones south of the equator, while tiie 
awk only appears in tiie parallel latitudes 
north of the equator; for neither of these ge- 
nera has yet been observed within the tro- 
pics. 
The'wiings of the pinguin are scarcely any 
thing e'ste than mere tins, while the awk has 
real wings and gills, though they are but 
small. The former has four toes on each 
foot, tiie Hatter only three. While swimming, 
the pingiuin sinks wholly above the breast, 
the head and neck only appearing out of the 
water; while the awk, like most other birds, 
swims on the surface. There are several 
other peculiarities which serve to distinguish 
the two genera, but what we have mentioned 
are doubtless sulircient. 
The bodies of the pinguin tribe are com- 
monly so well and closely covered with fea- 
thers that no wet can penetrate; and as they 
are in general excessively fat, these circum- 
stances united secure them from cold. They 
have often been found above 700 leagues 
from land, and frequently on the mountains 
of ice, on which they seem to ascend without 
difficulty, as the soles of their feet are very 
rough, and suited 1o the purpose. Mr. La- 
tham enumerates nine different species of this 
genus, besides two varieties of the black- 
looted pinguin or diomedea. 
1. The first, which is a very beautiful spe- 
cies, our author calls the crested pinguin. 
'Die birds of this species are twenty- three 
inches long ; the bill is three inches long, 
and of a red colour; the head, neck, back, 
and sides, are black. Over each eye there is 
a stripe of pale yellow feathers, which length- 
ens into a crest behind, nearly four inches 
long. The female has a streak of pale yel- 
low over the eye, but it is not prolonged into 
a cre.it behind as in the male. 
This species inhabits Falkland Islands, and 
was likew ise met with in Kerguelen’s Land, 
or Isle of Desolation, as well as at Van Die- 
men’s Land, and New Holland, particularly 
in Adventure-bay. They are called hopping 
pinguins, and jumping Jacks, from their ac- 
tion of leaping quite out of the water, on 
meeting with the least obstacle, for three or 
four feet at least; and indeed, withoTit any 
seeming cause, they often do the same, ap- 
pearing chiefly to advance by that means. 
This species seems to have a greater air of 
liveliness in its countenance than others, yet 
is in fact a very stupid bird, so much so as to 
suffer itself to be knocked on the head with a 
stick when on land. Forster says he found 
them difficult to kill; and when provoked, he 
adds, they ran at the sailors in flocks, and 
pecked their legs, and spoiled their clothes. 
When angered too, they erect their crests in 
a beautiful manner. These birds make their 
nests among those of the pelican tribe, living 
in tolerable harmony with them ; and lay sel- 
dom more than one egg, which is white, and 
larger than that of a duck. They are mostly 
seen by themselves, seldom mixing with other 
pinguins, and often met with in great num- 
bers on the outer shores, where they have 
been bred. 
2. The second species mentioned by La- 
tham is the Patagonian. It is distinguished 
by this name not only because it is found on 
that coast, but also because it exceeds in 
bulk the common pinguins as much as the na- 
tives are said to do the common race of men. 
It was first discovered by captain Macbride, 
who brought one of them from Falkland 
islands, off the Straits of Magellan. The 
length of tiie stuffed skin of this particular 
bird measured four feet three inches, and the 
3 I 2 
P I N 435 
bulk of the body seemed to exceed that of a 
swan. 
Phis species, which was, as we have seen, 
first met with in Falkland Islands, has since 
been seen in Kerguelen’s Land, New Geor- 
gia, and New Guinea. M. Bougainville caught 
one, which soon became so tame as to follow 
and know the person who hacj the care of it ; it 
fed on flesh, fish, and bread; but alter a time 
grew lean, pined away,, and died. Their 
chief food, when at large, is thought to be 
fish ; the remains of which, as well as crabs, 
shell-fish, and molluscae, were found In the 
stomach. 'Phis species is the fattest of the 
tribe ; and therefore most so in January, 
when they moult. They are supposed to lay 
and sit in October. They are met with in 
the most deserted places. Their flesh is 
black, though not very unpalatable. 'I bis 
has been considered as a solitary species, but 
has now and then been met with in consider- 
able flocks. 
3. The Magellanic species is about two 
feet, and sometimes two feet and a half, long, 
and weighs eleven pounds. The bill is black, 
having a transverse band across near its tip ; 
the head and neck are black, except a few 
markings here and there ; t lie upper parts of 
the body and wings are of the same colour‘d 
tiie under parts of hot ii are white from tho 
breast. This species, which is very nume- 
rous, inhabits the Straits of Magellan, Staten 
Land, Terra del Fuego, and Falkland Islands. 
Far from being timid, these birds will often 
attack a man, and peck his legs. As food 
they are not at all unpalatable. They often 
mix with sea-wolves among the rushes, bur- 
rowing in holes like a fox. They swim with 
prodigious swiftness. They lay their eggs in 
collective bodies, resorting in incredible- 
numbers to certain spots, which their long re- 
sidence has freed from grass, and to which 
were given the names of towns. Penrose ob- 
serve^, that they composed their nests of 
mud, a foot in height, and placed as near one 
another as may be. It is possible that fhey 
may have different ways of nestihg, accord- 
ing to the places they inhabit; or perhaps the 
manners of this may be blended with those 
of another. “ Here, (says he, i. e. in the 
places they frequent) during th-e breeding- 
season, we were presented with a sight which 
conveyed a most dreary, and I may sav aw- 
ful, idea of the desertion of these islands by 
the ’human species: a general stillness pre- 
vailed in these towns ; and whenever we tqpk 
our walks among them, in order to provide 
ourselves with eggs, we were regarded indeed 
with side-long glances, but we carried no teri 
ror with us. The eggs are rather larger than, 
those of a goose, and laid in pairs. When 
we took them once, and sometimes twice in a 
season, they were as often replaced by the 
birds ; but prudence would not permit us to 
plunder too far, lest a future supply in the 
next year’s brood might be prevented.” They 
lay some time in November, driving away 
the albatrosses, which have hatched their 
young in turn before them. The eggs were 
thought palatable food, and were preserved 
good for three or four months.” 
PINION, in mechanics, an arbor, pr 
spindle, in the body whereof are several 
notches, which catch the teeth of a wheel 
that serves to turn it round : or it is a lesser 
wheel which plays in the teeth of a larger. 
