BRU 
Jussieu. Essential character : flowers ag- 
gregate ; filaments inserted into the claws 
of the petals ; stigma bifid ; seeds solitary, 
two-celled. There are three species. B. 
lanaginosa, heath-leaved Brunia, resembles 
Levisanus abrotaBoides, and has the necta- 
r,eous chink, as in that. The stem is about 
a foot high, and shrubby. The leaves 
linear-filiform, smooth, short, with black 
tips. The flowers, which are white, are 
borne in heads. B. ciliata, ciliate-leaved 
brunia, has the germ superior, and the style 
bifid. B. verticillata, whorled brunia, has 
small heads. They are all shrubs, and in- 
habitants of the Cape. 
BRUNNICHIA, in botany, a genus of 
the Decandria Trigynia class and order. 
Calyx swelling, five-cleft ; capsule three- 
sided, one-celled, many seeded. One spe- 
cies, B. cirrhosa, a native of Bahama. 
BRUSH, an instrument made of bristles, 
hair, wire, or small twigs, to clean cloaths, 
rooms, &c. and also to paint with. There 
are various sorts of them, distinguished by 
their shape or use. In the choice of pain- 
ter’s brushes, observe whether the bristles 
are fast bound in the stocks, and if the hair 
be strong and lie close together ; for if they 
sprawl abroad, such will never work well ; 
and if they are not fast bound in the stock, 
the bristles will come out when you are 
using them, and spoil your work, as may be 
seen where the loose hairs of the brush have 
lain up and down in the colours laid on, to 
the great detriment of the work. Brushes 
in which the hairs are fastened with silver 
wire are very superior to those in which iron 
wire is used, especially where they are 
used in or with water. Brushes are used 
lor medical purposes, in rheumatic affec- 
tions of the joints, paralysis, & c. Mr. Tho- 
mason, of Birmingham, has a patent for 
hearth brushes, so constructed as to conceal 
the hair, by means of rack- work, in a metal 
case. 
Brush, in electricity, denotes the lumi- 
nous appearance of the electric matter 
issuing in a parcel of diverging rays from a 
point. Beccaria ascribes this appearance 
to the force with which the electric fluid, 
going out of a point, divides the contiguous 
air, and passes through it to that which is 
more remote. 
BRUTA, in natural history, the second 
order of animals in the class Mammalia, the 
character of which consists in having no fore 
teeth in either jaw’; feet with strong hoof- 
like nails; motion slow; food mostly masti- 
cated vegetables. There are nine gene- 
BRU 
ra of this order, enumerated by Gmelin, 
viz. 
Bradypus Platypus 
Dasypus Rhinoceros 
Elephas Sukofyrp 
Manis Trichechus. 
Myrmecophaga 
BRUTE, or beast, a term generally ap- 
plied to quadrupeds, and also to other ani- 
mals, and implying inferiority of intellect. 
Among brutes the monkey kind, both 
in the external shape and internal structure, 
bear the nearest resemblance to man. In 
the monkey kind, the highest and the most 
nearly approaching the likeness of man is the 
orang-outang, or homo sylvestris. Philoso- 
phers are much divided about the essential 
characters of brutes. Some define brute as 
an animal not risible, or a living creature in- 
capable of laughter ; others, a mute animal, 
or a living thing destitute of speech ; the 
Peripatetics, an animal endowed with a sen- 
sitive power, but without a rational one. 
The Platonists allow reason and understand- 
ing, as well as sense, to brutes, though in a 
degree less pure and refined than that of 
men. Indeed, the generality of the ancient 
philosophers thought that brutes reasoned : 
this among the heathens, was the opinion of 
Anaxagoras, Porphyry, Celsus, Galen, Plu- 
tarch, as well as Plato and others. 
That brutes possess reflection and senti- 
ment, and are susceptible of the kind as 
well as the irascible passions, independently 
of sexual attachment and natural affection, 
is evident from the numerous instances of 
affection and gratitude daily observable in 
different animals, particularly the dog. 
Of these, and other sentiments, such as 
pride, and even a sense of glory, the ele- 
phant exhibits proofs equally surprising and 
unquestionable ; for which we refer to the 
article Elephas. 
The brute creation manifests also a won- 
derful spirit of' sociality, independent of 
sexual attachment. It is well-known that 
horses, which are perfectly quiet in company, 
cannot be kept by any fences in a field by 
themselves; oxen and cows wall not fat- 
ten by themselves, but neglect the finest 
pasture that is not recommended by society : 
sheep constantly flock together. " Nor is a 
propensity to associate restricted to animals 
of the same kind and size. Instances to 
this purpose are enumerated in “ White’s 
Natural History of Selborne,” to which we 
refer the reader. 
Mr. Locke maintains, that the souls of 
brutes are wholly material; that they do 
