AGE 
the world is also subdivided into certain pe- 
riods, called ages; of which they reckon 
three : the first, reaching from the creation 
to the deluge, which happened in Greece, 
during the reign of Ogyges, is called the 
obscure or uncertain age ; the history of 
mankind, during that period, being altoge- 
ther uncertain. The second, called the fa- 
bulous or heroic, terminates at the first 
olympiad; where the third, or historical 
age, commences. 
The ancient poets also divided the dura- 
tion of the world into four ages, or periods ; 
the first of which they called the golden age, 
the second the silver age, the third the bra- 
zen age, the fourth the iron age. Not un- 
like these are the four ages of the world as 
computed by the East Indians, who extend 
them to a monstrous length. 
Age, in law, signifies certain periods of 
life, when persons of botli sexes are en- 
abled to do certain acts, which for want of 
years and discretion they were incapable of 
before. Thus, a man at twelve years of 
age ought to take the oath of allegiance to 
the king, in a leet : at fourteen, winch is 
his age of discretion, he may consent to 
marriage, choose his guardian, and claim his 
lands held in socage. 
Twenty-one is called full age, a man or 
woman being then capable of acting for 
themselves, of managing their affairs, mak- 
ing contracts, disposing of their estates, and 
the like ; which before that age they could 
not do. A woman is dowable at nine years 
of age, may consent to marry at twelve, 
and at fourteen choose her guardian, and at 
twenty-one may alienate her lands. 
Age, in military affairs. A young man 
must be fourteen years of age, before he 
can become an officer in the line, or be en- 
tered as a cadet at Woolwich. Persons may 
be enlisted as soldiers from sixteen to forty- 
five; after the latter age every inhabitant 
is exempted from serving in the militia. 
AGENT, in law, a person appointed to 
transact the business of another. It is a 
principle of law, that whenever a man has 
a power, as owner, to do a thing, he may, 
as consistent with his right, do it by deputy, 
either as agent, factor, or servant. If a 
person be appointed a general agent, the 
principal is bound by all his acts. But an 
agent, specially appointed cannot bind his 
principal by an act whereby he exceeds his 
authority. 
AGERATUM, maudlin , in botany, a ge- 
nus of the Syngenesia Polygamia iEqualis 
class of plants, with a monopetalous perso- 
AGG 
nated flower; and an oblong membrana- 
ceous fruit, divided into two cells, which 
contain a number of minute seeds, affixed 
to a placenta. There are two species. 
AGGREGATE, in botany, is a term 
used to express those flowers which are 
composed of parts or florets, so united or 
incorporated by means either of the recep- 
tacle or calyx, that no one of them can be 
taken away without destroying the form of 
the whole. They are opposed to simple 
flowers, that have no such common part, 
which is either the receptacle or the calyx, 
and are usually divided info seven kinds, 
viz. the aggregate, properly so called, whose 
receptacle is dilated, and whose florets are 
supported by foot-stalks ; such are the blue 
daisy, thrift, or sea-pink, &c. : the com- 
pound, which consist of several florets, that 
are placed, without partial peduncles, on a 
common dilated receptacle, and within a 
common perianthium ; and where each floret 
hath its proper calyx ; it is also a perian- 
thium : umbellate, when the flower consists 
of many florets placed on fastigate pedun- 
cles, proceeding from the same stem or re- 
ceptacle ; and which, though of different 
lengths, rise to such a height as to form a 
regular head or umbel, fiat, convex, or con- 
cave : cymous, when several fastigate pe- 
duncles proceed from the same centre, like 
the umbel, and rise to nearly an even height ; 
but unlike the umbel, the secondary or par- 
tial peduncles proceed without any regular 
order, as in sambucus, viburnum^ &c. : 
amentaceous, which have a long common 
receptacle, along these are disposed squa- 
ma; or scales, which form that sort of calyx 
called the Amentum : glumose, which pro- 
ceed from a common husky calyx belonging 
to grasses, called Gluma, many of which 
flowers are placed on a common receptacle 
called Rachis, collecting the florets into the 
spike, as triticum, hordeum, bolium, &c.: 
and spadiceous, which have a common re- 
ceptacle, protruded from within a common 
calyx, called Spatha, along which are dis- 
posed several florets. Such a receptacle is 
called a Spadix, and is either branched, as 
in phoenix ; or simple, as in narcissus, &c. 
In this last case, the florets may be disposed 
all around it, as in calla, draconitum, &c. ; 
on the lower part of it, as in arum, &c. ; or 
on one side, as in zostera, &c. These flow- 
ers have generally no partial calyx. 
Aggregate, in the Linna;an system 
of botany, is one of the natural methods of 
classing plants, and comprehending those 
whicli have aggregate flowers. 
