2 1S BOR 
birds; and on the rocks arc found a great number of the 
eatable birds’ nefts, lb much elfecmed at the tables in the 
eaft. The illand is divided into l'everal Hates or kingdoms, 
which principally take their names from the towns where 
the chief refides. The Portuguefe, who firft dilcovered 
Eornco, found the coafts inhabited by Malayan Moors, 
who had certainly eftablilhcd themfelves there by conqueft ; 
but the original inhabitants remained in the mountains, 
and are ftyled Beajus, which, in the Malayan language, 
fignifies wild men. The molt authentic account of thele 
people is extracted from the papers of father Antonino 
Ventimiglia, an Italian miffionary. He was lent to Borneo 
from Macao, on-board a Portuguefe lltip, converted a great 
numbers to Chriftianity, and died on the ifland about the 
year 1691. The Beajus have no kings, but mafiy chiefs. 
Some are fubjeCt to the Moorillt kings, and pay them tri¬ 
bute ; but fuch as live far up the country, are altogether 
independent, and live according to their own cultoms. 
They are very luperftitious, and add idled to augury. They 
do not adore idols; but their facrifices of fweet wood and 
perfumes are offered to one God, who, they behove, re¬ 
wards the juft, and punilhes the wicked. They marry 
but one wife ; and conftder the breach of congugal faith, 
either in man or woman, as a capital offence. The Bca- 
jus are naturally honelt and induttrious, and have a notion 
of property, which yet does not render them covetous. 
They low and cultivate their lands; but in the time of 
harveft, each reaps as much only as will l'erve his family, 
and the reft belongs to the tribe in common ; by which 
means they prevent poverty or diiputes. With the Moors 
on the coaits, the Portuguele for fome time carried on a con- 
fiderable trade, and at their requeft fettled a factory there ; 
but it was afterwards furprifed and plundered by the Moors, 
who put moft of the people to the lword. Anderfon in¬ 
forms us, in his Origin ol Commerce, vol. ii. p. 281, that 
about the year 1629, the Dutch had poffeffed themfelves of 
the principal part of the trade of this productive illand. Lat. 
6. 45. N. to 3. 20. S. Ion. 109. to 119. E. Greenwich. 
BOR'NEO, a fea-port and capital of the above-named 
ifland, large, populous, and commercial, with a good har¬ 
bour : it is built'on piles, and fituated in a large bay, on 
the north-welt fide of the illand. Lat. 3. 40. N. Ion. 112. 
40. E. Greenwich. 
BOR'NEVELT, a town in Germany, in the circle of 
Weftphalia, and duchy of Berg : three miles W. Lennep. 
BORN'HEIM, a town in Germany, in the circle of the 
Upper Rhine, and territory of Francfort on theMayne : one 
mile north-eaft of Francfort. 
BORN'FIOLM, an ifland of Denmark, in the Baltic 
Sea, about feven leagues in circumference, nearly lur- 
rounded with rocks. The foil is ftony but fertile, with 
excellent paftures: oats, butter, and tilli, conftitute the 
principal riches of the inhabitants. There are mines of 
coal, and quarries of marble, in the illand. It has three 
conftderable towns, Rattum, Sandwick, and Nexia ; with 
a number of villages. It was conquered by the Swedes in 
1658 ; but the inhabitants, under the condnft of Jens Roe- 
fods, voluntarily furrendered it to the king of Denmark, 
on account of the bad ufage they received from the former. 
In 1678, a body of 5000 Swedifh troops, in their paffage from 
Pomerania to Sweden, being lhipwrecked on this illand, 
fuch of them as remained were made prifoners of war. 
The inhabitants defend the place by their own militia, 
without any expence to the crown. The commandant or 
governor refides at Rattum. Lat. 53. 15. N. Ion. 15. E. 
Greenwich. 
BORNOU', a city of Africa, and capital of a confide- 
rable country of the fame name, fituated to the fouth-eaft 
of Fezzan, and to the weft of Nubia. The country is of 
vaft extent, from the fixteenth to the twentieth degree of 
north latitude. The climate is very hot, but not uniformly 
fo ; two feafons divide the year, one beginning about the 
middle of April, the other the middle of October ; the 
firft commences with violent tempefts of wind, thunder, 
and lightning, and a deluge of rain, continual for lev oral 
BOR 
days without intermiffion ; during which time the inha¬ 
bitants confine themfelves to their houfes : the reft of the 
fcafon, though lultry, and occafionally rainy, is fuch, 
however, as not to hinder the labours of the huffiandman 
and lhepherd. In the other ieafon, the heat is lefs intenie, 
the air is pure and mild, and the weather ferene. The 
inhabitants are numerous, and confift of various nations; 
and it is reported, that thirty different languages are fpoken 
in the empire. They are uniformly black, but not of 
the negro caft. The drefs of the greater part is compofed 
of Hurts, made of blue cotton, manufactured in the coun¬ 
try, a red cap brought from Tripoli, and a white muffin 
turban : gold rings are worn in the nofes by the principal 
people, as a mark of diftintfion. Wheat and barley are 
feldom railed in Bornou ; but the European horle-bean 
and common kidney-bean are cultivated, with fome grain 
peculiar to the country ; and, near the city of Bornou,. 
rice and Indian corn. Among the fruits are grapes, apri¬ 
cots, lemons, limes, melons, a fruit like olives, &c. among 
the animals are iheep, cows, goats, horfes, buffaloes, an¬ 
telopes, lions, leopards, civet-cats, wolves, dogs, ele¬ 
phants, oftriches, partridges, &c. The reptiles of diffe¬ 
rent kinds are numerous, elpcciallv lerpents, fnakes, fcor- 
pions, centipedes, and toads. Part of the inhabitants are 
Mahometans, and part Pagans. On the death of the king, 
the lucceffor is elected by the peopie. The king’s palace 
in this place is furrounded with a wall like a citadel, 
and the whole city has a wall round it, fourteen feet in 
height, with a ditch cncompafling the whole: the other 
towns of the kingdom are open. The military force con- 
fifts chiefly in horfemen, and is laid to be greater than that 
of Morocco. The fabre, lance, pike, and bow, arc the chief 
weapons; fire-arms are not uled. The principal commerce 
confifts in gold-duft, Haves, horfes, oftrich-feathcrs, lalt, 
and civet, which they fell or give in exchange for copper, 
brafs, dollars, red woollen caps, cheque linens, light coarfe 
woollen cloth, baize, barakans, and carpets : 600 miles 
fouth-eaft of Mourzouk, and 420 weft of Sennaar. Lat. 
19. 40. N. Ion. 40. 15. E. Ferro. 
BORN'STETT, a town and bailiwic of Germany, in 
the circle of Upper Saxony : four miles fouth-weft of 
Eifleben. 
BORNY', a town of France, in the department of the 
Mofelle, and chief place of a canton, in the diftriCt of Metz : 
two miles eaft of Metz. 
BOROCZA'NE, a town of Poland, in the palatinate of 
Red Rullia: twenty-eight miles S. S. W. of Halicz. 
BORONOV', a town of Rulfia, in the government of 
Archangel: eighty miles fouth of Archangel. 
BO'ROS JE'NO, a town of Hungary: twenty-eight 
miles fouth of Gros Warden. 
BO'ROUGH, f. [bourg, Fr. lurgus, Lat. borhoe, Sax.] 
Signifies a corporate town, which is not a city ; and alio 
luch a town or place as fends burgeffes to parliament. An¬ 
ciently it fignified a pledge, or furety. Verftegan lays, 
that burg, or burgh , whereof we make our borough , me¬ 
taphorically fignifies a town having a wall, or fome kind 
of inclolure about it : and all places that in old time had 
among our anceftors the name of borough , were either 
fenced or fortified. Lit. fe£t. 164. But fometimes it is 
uled for •villa infignior, or a country town of more than 
ordinary note, not walled. A borough is a place of fafety, 
protection, and privilege, according to Somner; and in 
the reign of Henry II. burghs had lb great privileges, that, 
if a bondman or lervant remained in a borough a year and 
a day, he was by that refidence made a freeman. Glanuille . 
And why thele were called free burghs, and the tradel- 
men in them free burgeffes, was from a freedom to buy 
and fell, without difturbance, exempt from toll, &c. 
granted by charter. It is conjectured that borhoe, or bo¬ 
rough, was formerly taken for thole companies confiding 
of ten families, which were to be pledges for one another, 
whence it came to fignify furety : and we are told by fome 
writers that it means a ftreet, or row of houfes clofe to one 
another. Brad. iii. 10. Trading boroughs were firft form¬ 
ed 
