9H 
B I B 
The calyx is double, the exterior one poly- 
phyllous, the capsule quinquelocular and po- 
iyspermous. Of this genus there are 45 
species ; the most remarkable of which are, 
1. The Syriacus, commonly called althaea 
frutex. 
2. The rosa sinensis, with an arborescent 
stem, and egg-pointed as wed leaves. It is ana- 
tive of the Last Indies, whence it has obtained 
the name of China rose ; but the seeds hav- 
ing been carried by the French to their West 
India settlements, it lias thence obtained the 
name of Martinico rose. Of this there are 
tin* double and single flowering kinds ; the 
seeds ot the first frequently produce plants 
that have only single flowers, but the latter 
seldom vary to the double kind. 
3. r I he inutabilis, or changeable rose, has 
a-sott spongy stem, which by age becomes- 
ligneous and pithy. It rises to the height of 
32 or 14 feet, with heart-shaped leaves. The 
flowers are produced from the wings of the 
leaves ; the single are composed of five pe- 
tals, which spread open, and are at first 
white, but afterwards change to a blush rose- 
colour, and as they decay turn purple. In 
the 4\ est Indies all these alterations happen 
on the same day, and the flowers themselves 
are of no longer duration ; but in Britain the 
changes are not so, sudden. 
4. The abelmoschus, or musk-seeded hi- 
biscus, is a native ot the West Indies, where 
the French cultivate great quantities of it. 
1 he stalks and leaves of this sort are very 
hairy. r l he flowers are large, of a sulphur 
colour, with purple bottoms ; and are suc- 
ceeded by pyramidical five-cornered cap- 
sules, which open in five cells, filled with 
large- kidney-shap.ed seeds of a very musky 
odour. 
5. The tiliaceus, or maho-tree, is a native 
of both the Indies. It rises with a woody, 
pithy stem, to the height of ten feet, with 
heart-shaped leaves ending in acute points. 
'The flowers are produced in loose spikes at 
the end of the branches, and are of a whitish- 
yellow colour. 
F>. The trionum, Venice mallow,, or flower 
of an hour, is a native of some parts of Italy, 
and lias long been cultivated in the gardens 
of this country under the name of bladder 
katmia.. 
7. The esculentus, or eatable hibiscus, rises 
to five of- six feet; has broad five-parted 
leaves, and large yellow flowers. The pod 
or okra is from two to six inches long, and 
one inch diameter. When ripe it opens lon- 
gitudinally in live different places, and dis- 
charges a number of heart-shaped seeds. 
S hese (Dr. Wright informs us) are gathered 
green, cut into pieces, dried, and sent home 
as presents, or are boiled in broths or soups 
for food. It is the chief ingredient in the ce- 
lebrated pepper-pot of the West Indies, which 
is no other than a rich olla : the other articles 
are either flesh meat, or dried fish and capsi- 
cum. This dish is very, palatable and nou- 
rishing. As a medicine, okra is employed in 
all cases where emollients and: lubricants are 
indicated.” 
IIICKUP, or hiccough. See Medicine. 
HIDE of land, was such a quantity of 
land as might be plowed with one plough 
within the compass of a year, or sb much as 
would maintain a family ; some call it 60, some 
80, aud some 100 acres. 
B I G 
HIERACITES, in church history, chris 
tian heretics in the third century, so called 
from their leader Hierax, a philosopher of 
Egypt; who taught that Melchisedec was 
the Holy Ghost, denied the resurrection, and 
condemned marriage, &c. 
HIERAC1UM, hawkxvecd a genus of the 
polygamia aequalis order, in the syngeneSia 
class of plants, and in the natural method 
ranking under the 49th order, composite. 
The receptacle is naked, the calyx imbri- 
cated and ovate ; the pappus simple and ses- 
sile. '1 tiere are 55 species, of which, the 
j most remarkable are, 
1 . 'I he aurantiacum, commonly called grim 
(he collier, with an upright, single, hairy, 
and almost leafless stalk, a foot high, termi- 
nated by reddish orange-coloured flowers in a 
corymbus. r \ hese flowers have dark oval 
ash-coloured calyces; whence the name of 
grim the collier. 
2. r l he pilosella, or mouse-ear, has blos- 
soms red on the outside, and pale-yellow 
within ; the cups set thick with black hairs. 
I he flowers ©pen at eight in the morning, 
and close about two in the afternoon. 
3. The umbellatum grows to the' height of 
three feet, with an erect and firm stalk, ter- 
minated with an umbel of yellow flowers. 
HIEROGLYPHICS, in antiquity, mysti- 
cal characters, or symbols,, in use among" the 
Egyptians, and that as well in their writings 
as inscriptions ; being the figures of various 
animals, the parts of human bodies, and me- 
chanical instruments. 
The meaning of a few of these hierogly- 
phics has been preserved byantient writers. 
4 1ms we are told they represented the su- 
preme Deity by a serpent with the head of a 
hawk. 'Fhe hawk itself was the hieroglyphic 
of Osiris ; the river-horse, of Typhon"; the 
dog, of Mercury ; the cat, of the moon, or 
Diana; the beetle, of a courageous warrior ; 
a new-born child, of the rising sun ; and the. 
like. 
II IERO GR AMM ATI STS, .holy registers, 
were an order of priests among the antient 
Egyptians, who presided over- learning and 
religion. 
HIGH, in music, an. epithet given to any 
tone or note considerably acute in respect of 
some other., A word arbitrarily used, and 
of various meanings, as applied to bass, te- 
nor,^ or treble voices, or instruments. 
HIGHWAY,, a. public passage for the 
king’s people, whence it is called the king’s 
highway. It soems that antieutly there were 
but four highways in England, which were 
free and common to all the king’s subjects, 
and through which they might pass without 
any toll, unless there were a particular consi- 
deration for it; all others which we have at 
this day are supposed to have been made 
through the grounds of private persons, on 
writs of ad quod dannnum, & c. which being 
an injury to the owner of the soil, it is said 
they may prescribe for toll, without any spe- 
cial consideration.. 3 Bac. Abr. 54. 
There are three kinds of ways, afoot-wav, 
a pack and, prime way, which is both a horse 
and foot-way, and a cart-way,. which contains 
the other- two. 1 Inst. 56< " 
But notwithstanding these distinctions, it 
seems that any of the said ways, which is 
common to all the king’s subjects, whether it 
leads directly to a market-town, or only from 
tows to town, may properly be called an 
H I G 
highway ; and that any such cart-w-ay may be 
cailed the king’s highway; that a river com- 
mou to all men may also be called an high- 
way; and that nuisances in any of the said 
ways are punishable by indictment ; other- 
wise they would not be punished at all : for, 
they are not actionable, unless they cause a 
special damage to some particular person; 
because it such action would lie a multiplicity 
of suits would ensue. 2 Durnf. and East 
But it seems that a way to a parish-church 
or to the common field of a town, or to a vib 
lage which terminates there, may be called a 
pnvate way, because it belongs not to all (he 
king s subjects, but only to the particular in- 
habitants of such parish, house, or village,; 
each of which, as i( seems, may have an ac- 
tion for a nuisance therein. 1 Haw. 20 ! 
Ii passengers have used timeout of mind 
where the roads are bad,. to go by outlets oil 
tne land adjoining to an highway in the open 
field such outlets are parcel of the highway • 
and therefore if they are sown w ith corn, and 
tiie track foundrous, the king’s subjects may 
go upon the corn. 1 Boll. Ab. 300. X 
It away which a. man lias becomes impass- 
able or very bad, by the owner of the land 
tearing it up with his carts, by which means it 
is filled with water ; yet he who has the wav 
cannot dig the ground to let out the water 
or lie has no interest in the soil. But lie may 
bring his action against the owner of the land 
tor spoiling the way. Godb. 52. 
When a private way is spoiled by those 
., ° bf v ® il nghtto pass thereon, and not 
through the default of the owner of the land 
it seems that they who have the use and bene- 
fit of the way ought to repair it, and not the 
owner of the soil, unless he is bound thereto 
by custom or special government. 2 Burn 
483. - 
Repairing highways. It seems agreed that 
by the common law the general charge of re- 
pairing all highways lies on the occupiers of 
tiie lands m the parish w herein they are. But 
it is said that the tenants of the lands adjoin- 
ing are bound, to scour their ditches. 1 Roil. 
Abr. 39. 
Particular persons may be burdened with 
the general charge of repairing an highway 
in two cases : in respect of an inclosure, or 
by prescription. As where the owner of 
anc.s not inclosed, next adjoining to the 
higiiway, incloses his lands on both sides 
thereof ; in which case he is bound to make a 
perfect good way, and shall not be excused 
tor making it as good as it was at the time of 
the inclosure, if it u r as then any way defec- 
tive; because before the inclosure, when the 
w*ay was bad, the people for their better pas- 
sage, went over the fields adjoining, out of 
the common track, a liberty which the inclo— 
sure has deprived them of. 
And particular persons may be bound to. 
repair an highway by prescription ; and it is 
said that a corporation aggregate may be 
compelled to do it by force ot a general pre- 
scription, that it ought and lias used to do it 
without shewing that it used to do so in re- 
spect of the tenure of certain lands, or for 
other consideration ; because such a corpora— 
tion, in judgment of law, never dies, and 
therefore if it was ever bound to such duty 
it must continue to be always so: neither is "it 
any plea that such a corporation has always 
done it out of charity ; for what it has al- 
ways done, it shall be presumed to have been 
