GEN 
GEO 
fades. There are 53 species. The most 
remarkable are the following: 
1: The hitea, or common gentian of the 
shops. Tiiis is a native of the mountainous 
parts of Germany, whence the roots, the only 
part used in medicine, are brought to this 
country. They have a yellowish-brown co- 
lour, and a very bitter taste. The lower 
leaves' are of. an oblong oval shape, a little 
pointed at the end, stiff, of a yellowish green, 
and have five large veins on the back of each. 
The stalk rises four or live feet high, with 
leaves growing by pairs at each joint, almost 
embracing the stalk at their base. They are 
of the same form with the lower, but dimi- 
nish gradually in their size to the top. The 
flowers come out in whorls at the joints on 
the upper part of the stalks, standing on 
short footstalks, whose origin is in the wings 
ot the leaves. They are of a pale-yellow co- 
lour. The roots of this plant are very fre- 
quently used in medicine as stomachic bit- 
ters. In taste they are less exceptionable 
than most of the substances of this class’. In- 
fusions of gentian-root flavoured with orange- 
peel are sufficiently grateful. Some years 
ago a poisonous root was discovered among 
the gentian brought to London, the use of 
which occasioned violent disorders, and in some 
cases deafii. This root is easily distinguished 
from the gentian, by its being internally of a 
white colour, and void of bitterness. 
2. The centaureum, or lesser centaury of 
the shops, is a native of many parts of Britain. 
It grows on dry pastures, and its height is 
commonly proportioned to the goodness of 
the soil, as in rich soils it will grow to the 
height of a foot, but in poor ones not above 
three or four inches. It is an annual plant, 
with upright branching stalks, and small 
leaves, placed by pairs. The flowers grow in 
form of an umbel at the top of the stalk, and 
are of a bright purple colour. They come 
out in July, and the seed ripens in autumn. 
The plant cannot be cultivated in gardens. 
The tops are an useful aperient bitter, in 
which view they have been often used in the 
practice of medicine. 
3. The acaulis, a beautiful little plant for 
the flower garden, conspicuous for its fine 
changeable azure blue flowers. It is a native 
of the Alps. 
GENTILE, ge?itil'is, in the Roman law 
and history, a name which sometimes ex- 
presses what the Romans otherwise called 
barbarians, whether they were allies of Rome 
or not: but this word was used in a more 
particular sense for all strangers and foreigners 
not subject to the Roman empire, in contra- 
distinction to provincialis, or an inhabitant of 
a province of the empire. 
GENTLEMAN, according to sir Edward 
Coke, is one who bears coat-armour, the 
grant of which adds gentility to a man’s fa- 
mily. 2 Inst. 667. 
GENUS, among metaphysicians and logi- 
cians, denotes a number of beings, which 
agree in certain general properties, common 
to them all, so that a genus is nothing but an 
abstract idea, expressed by some general 
name or term. 
Genus, in natural history, a subdivision 
of any class or order of natural beings, whe- 
ther of the animal, vegetable, or mineral 
kingdoms, all agreeing in certain common 
characters.. 
V 
Genus, in music, by the antients called 
genus melodiaj, is, a certain manner of divid- 
ing and subdividing the principles of melody, 
that is, the consonant and dissonant intervals, 
into their coneinnous parts. 
GEOCENTRIC, in astronomy, is applied 
to a planet or its orbit to denote it concen- 
tric with the earth, or as having the earth for 
its centre, or the same centre with the earth. 
Geocentric latitude of a planet, is its 
distance from the ecliptic as it is seen from 
the earth, which even though the planet be 
in the same point of her orbit, is not con- 
stantly the same, but alters according to the 
position of the earth in respect to the planet. 
Geocentric place of a planet, the place 
in which it appears to us from the earth, sup- 
posing the eye there fixed : or it is a point in 
the ecliptic to which a planet seen from the 
earth is referred. 
GEOFFROV A, a genus of the decandria 
order, in the diadelphia class of plants, and in 
the natural method ranking under the 32d 
order, papilionaceae. The calyx is quinque- 
lid, the fruit an oval plum, tile kernel com- 
pressed. There are two species; the inter- 
mis, or cabbage-bark tree, is a native of Brasil 
and Jamaica. The wood of this tree is used 
in building; but it is chiefly valued for its 
bark, which is administered as an anthel- 
mintic medicine, from this medical pro- 
perty it is also called the worm -bark tree. 
I his bark is of a grey colour externally, but 
black and furrowed on the inside. Itdias a 
mucilaginous and sweetish taste, and a disa- 
greeable smell, it is given in cases of worms, 
in form of powder, decoction, syrup, and 
extract. The decoction is preferred, and is 
made by slowly boiling an ounce of the fresh- 
dried bark in a quart of water, till it assumes 
the colour of Madeira wine. This, sweeten- 
ed, is the syrup ; evaporated, it forms an ex- 
tract. It commonly produces some sickness 
and purging ; sometimes violent effects, as 
vomiting, delirium, and fever. These last 
are said to be owing to an over-dose, or to 
drinking cold water, and are relieved by the 
use of warm water, castor oil, or a vegetable 
acid. It should always be begun in small 
doses. But when properly and cautiously 
administered, it is said to operate as a very 
powerful anthelmintic, particularly for the 
expulsion of the lumbrici, which are a very 
common cause of disease in the West Indies. 
^ G EGG RAPHY is a word derived from the 
Greek language, and implies a description 
of the earth. It is sometimes contrasted with 
hydrography, which signifies a description of 
the water, that is, of seas, lakes, rivers, &c. 
including marine charts. Antiently both 
were considered in connection with astro- 
nomy, as parts of cosmography, which at- 
tempted to delineate the universe. Geo- 
graphy is more justly contrasted with choro- 
graphy, which illustrates a country or pro- 
vince; and still more with topography, which 
describes a particular place, or smaller dis- 
trict. 
What is called general geography em- 
braces a wide view of the subject; regarding 
the earth astronomically as a planet, the 
grand divisions of land and water’’ the winds, 
tides, meteorology, and may extend to what 
is called mechanical geography, including 
directions for the construction of globes, 
maps, and charts. 
GEO S3 1 
Among other divisions of this science may- 
be named sacred geography, solely employ- 
ed in the illustration ot the scriptures; eccle- 
siastical geography, which describes the go- 
vernment of the church as divided into patri- 
archates, archbishopricks, bishopficks, arch- 
deanries, &c. with their respective bounda- 
ries, which frequently vary much from those 
ot the secular provinces; and physical geo- 
graphy, or geology which investigates the in- 
terior ot the earth, so far only as real disco- 
veries can be made. See Geology. 
Geography, popularly considered, is occu- 
pied in the description of the various regions 
of this globe, chiefly as being divided among 
various nations, and improved bv human art 
and industry. 
Geography, history of, The study of 
geography being of so much practical im- 
portance in life, must have commenced in 
the early ages of the world. It was regarded 
as a science by the Babylonians and Egyp- 
tians, trom whom it passed to the Greeks, 
and from these to the Romans, the Arabians,, 
and the western nations of Europe Thales 
of Miletus, in the 6th century before Christ, 
first made observations on the apparent pro- 
gress ot the sun from tropic to tropic ; and is 
said to have written two treatises, the one on 
the tropic, and the other on the equinox, 
whence he was led to the discovery of the 
four seasons, which are determined by the 
equinoxes and solstices. We are assured, 
this knowledge was obtained by means of the 
gnomon. Thales, it is also said, constructed 
a globe, and represented the land and sea 
upon a table of brass. 
Meton and Enctemon observed the sum- 
mer solstice at Athens, on the 27th of J line, 
432 years before Christ, by watching nar- 
rowly the shadow of the gnomon, wall tint 
design of fixing the beginning of their cycle 
of 19 years. 
Timocharis and Aristillus, who began their 
observations about 295 B. C., first attempted 
to fix the latitudes and longitudes of the fixed 
stars, by considering their distances from the 
equator, &c. One of their observations gave 
rise to the discovery Of the precession ot the 
equinoxes, which was first remarked by Hip- 
parchus about 150 years after; who also made 
use of their method for delineating the pa- 
rallels of latitude and the meridians; on the 
surface of the earth ; thus laying the founda- 
tion of this science as it ndw appears. See 
Equinoxes, precession of. 
The latitudes and longitudes, thus intro- 
duced by Hipparchus, were not however 
much attended to till Ptolemy’s time. Stra- 
bo, Vitruvius, and Pliny, have all of them 
entered into a minute geographical descrip- 
tion of the situation of places, according to 
the length of the shadows of the gnomon, 
without noticing the longitudes and latitudes. 
Maps at first vVere little more than rude 
outlines, and topographical sketches of differ- 
ent countries. The earliest on record were 
those of Sesostris, mentioned by Eustathius, 
who says, that “ this Egyptian king, having 
traversed great part of the earth, recorded 
his march in. maps, and gave- copies of them, 
not only to the Egyptians, but to the Scy- 
thians, to their great astonishment,” Some 
hav.e imagined, with much probability', that 
the Jews made a. map of the Holy Land 
when they gave the different portions to 
the nine tribes at. Shiloh; lor Joshua tells u& 
