NIC 
alone ; and the only difficulty experienced 
is the intensity of tlie heat required to fuse 
the metal. 
Nickel is oxydized and dissolved by a 
number of acids ; its solutions being gene- 
rally of a green colour and crystallizable. 
The salts of nickel are decomposed by 
the alkalies, and tlie oxide, more or less free 
from the acid, is thrown down. If the 
alkalies are added in excess, they re-dissolve 
it ; and witli ammonia in particular, soluble 
triple salts are formed. Potash and soda 
dissolve even a small quantity of its pure 
oxide ; ammonia dissolves it in a much 
larger quantity. 
Nickel combines with sulphur by fusion. 
The compound has a yellow colour with 
some brilliancy. It is brittle and hard, 
and burns when strongly heated in contact 
with the air. Nickel is also dissolved by the 
alkaline sulphurets. 
With phosphorus, nickel unites, either by 
projecting the phosphorus on the nickel at 
a high temperature, or by heating together 
phosphoric acid and nickel with a little 
charcoal. The nickel increases in weight 
one-fifth. The compound is of a white co- 
lour with metallic lustre, and appears com- 
posed of a congeries of prisms. 
Nickel forms alloys with a number of the 
metals ; but our knowledge of these combi- 
nations is very imperfect. 
NICOTIAN A, in botany, tobacco, a 
genus of the Pentandria Monogynia class 
and order. Natural order of Luridas. So- 
lane®, Jussieu. Essential character : co- 
rolla funnel form, with a plaited border ; 
stamina inclined ; capsule two valved, two- 
celled. There are seven species, of which 
N. rustica, English tobacco, seldom rises 
more than three feet in height, having 
smooth alternate leaves upon short foot 
stalks ; flowers in small loose bunches on 
the top of the stalks, of a yellow colour, ap- 
pearing in July, which are succeeded by 
roundish capsules, ripening in the autumn. 
Sir Walter Raleigh, on his return from 
America, is said to have first introduced the 
smoking of tobacco into England. In the 
house in which he lived at Islington, ai e his 
arms, with a tobacco plant on the top of the 
shield. It is remarkable' that tobacco has 
prevailed over the original name, petum, in 
all the European languages with very little 
variation, and even in Tartary and Japan. 
Tobacco is derived from the island Tobago. 
Petum is tile Tirasilian name. 
NICTITATING meinirane, in compara- 
tive anatomy, a thin membrane, chiefly 
NIE 
found in the bird and fish-kind, which covers 
tire eyes of these animals, sheltering them 
from the dust or from too much light ; yet 
is so thin and pellucid, that they can see 
pretty well through it. 
NIDUS, among naturalists, signifies a 
nest, or proper repository for the eggs of 
birds, insects, &c. wherein the young of 
these animats are hatched and nursed. 
NIEUVYENTYT (Bernard), in bio- 
graphy, a celebrated Dutch philosopher 
and mathematician, in the seventeenth and 
early part of the eighteenth century, was 
the son of a minister of Westgraafdyk, in 
North Holland, where he was born in the 
year 1654. He afforded early indications 
of a good genius, and a love of learning, 
which his father took care to encourage, by 
giving him the advantages of an excellent 
education. He was desirous of becoming 
acquainted with all the branches of know- 
ledge ; but he had the prudence and sa- 
gacity to proceed gradually in his acquire- 
ments, and to make himself master of one 
science, before he directed his attention to 
another. It was his father’s wish that he 
should be educated to his own profession ; 
but when he found that his son was disin- 
clined to such a destination, he very pro- 
perly suffered him to follow the bent of his 
own genius. The first science to which ' 
young Nieuwentyt particularly directed his 
study, w'as logic, in order to fix his imagina- 
tion, to form his judgment, and to acquire a 
habit of right reasoning ; and in this science 
he grounded himself upon the principles of 
Des Cartes, with whose philosophy he was 
greatly delighted. In the next place, he 
engaged in the study of the mathematics, 
with the various departments of which he 
became intimately conversant. 
He then entered upon the study of me- 
dicine, and the branches of knowledge 
more immediately connected with that sci- 
ence ; and he afterward w'ent through a 
course of reading on jurisprudence. In the 
study of all these sciences he succeeded so 
well, as deservedly to acquire the character 
of a good philosopher, a good mathemati- 
cian, and an able just magistrate. From 
his writings it also appears, that he did not 
permit his various subjects of inquiry to di- 
vert his thoughts from a due attention to the 
great and fundamental principles of natu- 
ral and revealed religion. He was natu- 
rally of a grave and serious disposition ; 
but at the same time a very affable and 
agreeable companion. So engaging w'ere 
his manners, that they conciliated the 
B 2 
