'28© A L F 
inches length, and oF as many ounces weight; on the can¬ 
dles the inches were regularly marked, and, having found 
that one of them burnt juft four hours, he committed 
them to the care of the keepers of his chapel, who from 
time to time gave him notice how the hours went: but, as 
in windy weather the candles were wafted by the impreflion 
of the air on the flame, to remedy this-inconvenience, he 
invented lanthorns, there being then no glafs in his domi¬ 
nions. 
A jewel, richly wrought, was dug up in the ifland of 
iEthelingey, which was fome time the king’s retreat when 
he fled from the Danes. This curious relic is ftill pre¬ 
ferred in the Afhmolean collection of curiofities; and, 
betides its excellent workmanfhip, hath a Saxon infcrip- 
tion to this purpofe : .CElfredus me jussit fabrjca- 
ri—“ Alfred directed this to be made.” In his kingdom 
the induftrious foreigner found a generous welcome; in¬ 
ventors, artifts, mechanics, were all courted to repair to 
it, and none departed unrewarded. 
This prince, we are told, was twelve years of age be¬ 
fore a mailer could be procured in the weftern kingdom to 
teach him the alphabet; fuch was the ftate of learning 
when Alfred began to reign. He had felt the mifery of 
ignorance, and determined even to rival his cotemporary 
Charlemagne in the encouragement of literature. He is 
itippofed to have appointed perfons to read leCtures at Ox¬ 
ford, and is thence confidered as the founder of that uni- 
verfity. By other pi'oper eftablifhments, and by a gene¬ 
ral encouragement to men of abilities, he did every thing 
in his power to diffufe knowledge throughout his domi¬ 
nions. Nor was this end promoted more by his counte¬ 
nance and encouragement than by his own example and 
his writings. For, notwithftanding the latenefs of his ini¬ 
tiation, he had acquired extraordinary erudition; and, 
had he not been illuftrious as a king, he would have been 
famous as an author. His works are, i. Breviarum quod- 
dam colleElwn ex Lcgibus Trojanorum, &c. lib. I. A- Breviary 
collected out of the Laws of the Trojans, Greeks, Bri¬ 
tons, Saxons, and Danes, in one book. Leland faw this 
book in the Saxon tongue, at Chriftchurch in Hampfhire. 
2. Vifi-Saxonum Leges, lib. I. The laws of the Weft-Sax- 
ons, in one book. Pitts tells us, that it is in Bennet-col- 
lege library, at Cambridge. 3. lnjliluta queedam, lib. 1 . 
Certain Inftitutes, in one book. This is mentioned by 
Pitts, and feems to be the fecond capitulation with Guth- 
rum. 4. Contra Judices iuiquos, lib. I. An InveCtive againft 
unjuft Judges, in one book. 5. AEla Magiflratvumfuorum, 
lib. 1 . ACts of his Magiftrates, in one book. This is fup- 
pofed to be the book of judgments mentioned by Horne; 
and was, in all probability, a kind of reports, intended for 
the ufe of fucceeding ageL 6 . Regum Fortunes varies, lib. 
I. The various Fortunes of Kings, in one book. 7 Dic¬ 
ta Sapientum, lib. I. The Sayings of Wife Men, in one 
book. 8. Parobolae et Sales, lib. I. Parables and Pleafant 
Sayings, in one book. 9. CollcB.ion.es Chronicorum : Collec¬ 
tion of Chronicles. 10. Epiflolce ad Wulfsigium Epifcopnm, 
lib. I. Epiftles to Bifhop Wulfsig, in one book. n. Ma- 
nuale Meditationum : A Manual of Meditations. 
Betides thefe original works, he tranflated many authors 
from the Latin, See. into the Saxon language, viz. 1. Bede’s 
Hiftory of England. 2. Paul'inus Orofinus’s Hiftoryofthe 
Pagans. 3. St., Gregory’s Paftoral, &c. The firlt of thefe,' 
with his prefaces to the others, together with his laws, 
were printed at Cambridge, 1644. His laws are likewife 
inferted in, Speiman’s Councils. 4. Boethius de Confolatione, 
lib.V. Boetius’s Confolations of Philofophy, in five books. 
Dr. Plot tells us, king Alfred tranflated i,t at Woodftock, 
as he found in a MS. in the Cotton Library. 5. ALfop'i 
Pabular, /EfopL Fables: which he is laid to have tranflated 
from the Greek both into Latin-and Saxon. f>. PJdltcrium 
Davidicum , lib. I. David’s Plalter, in one book. This 
was the lail work the king attempted, death fUrprifing 
A L G 
him before he had finiflied it; it was, however, completed 
by another hand, and publifhed at- London in 1640, in 
quarto, by Sir John Spelman. Several others are men¬ 
tioned by Malmfbury; and the old Hiftory of Ely aflerts, 
that he tranflated the Old and New Teftaments. 
The life of this great king was firft written by Aflerius 
Menevenfis ; and firft publifhed by archbifhop Parker, in 
the old Saxon charaCfer, at the end of his edition of Haf- 
fingham’s hiftory, printed in 1674, fol. 
The annexed Portrait of Alfred the Great, is taken from the 
only original painting of that monarchy preferved in the Bod¬ 
leian Library, in the \jniverfity of Oxford. 
ALFRETON, Derbyshire, is iituated in a very plenti¬ 
ful coal-country, and is fuppofed to take its name from 
king Alfred, who refided here; there being ftill fome re¬ 
mains of the palace. It is a eonliderable market for corn, 
particularly oats: market-day chartered for Monday, but 
held on Friday. There are three fairs; one at Eafter, 
one at Yfhitfuntide, and the other dn the laft day of July. 
Alfreton, according to hiftory, is famous for nappy ale. 
It is fituated from Nottingham flxteen miles, Derby fix- 
teen, Chefterfield ten, Mansfield nine, Workfworth ten,.' 
Bakevvell feventeen, Matlock-bath eight, and London 141. 
Adjacent towns are, Southv/infield, Afhover, Shirland, 
Tibflielf, and Hardwick. It lias two free-fchools, one at 
Swanwick, another at Hallfield-gate; alfo a manufactory 
of dockings, and brown earthenware : its annual return 
amounts to 50,0001. Here is one church, and one diftent-> 
ing meeting-houfe; and there is a canal about two miles 
off, which goes from Cronford into the Erewafh canal. 
About two or three miles from this place begin thofe 
moors which extend a great way into the country, and arc 
very dangerous to travellers, by reafon of the rocks and 
bogs. 
ALGA,yi in botany, the trivial name of the lichen,, 
fucus, and feveral other plants of the cryptogamia clafs. 
ALGHi,/! in botany. See Cryptogamia. 
ALGACtIOLA, a fmall fea-port town in the ifland or 
Corfica, fortified with walls and baftions. It was almoft 
deftroyed by the malcontents in 1731, but has lince been 
repaired. Lat.42.20. N. Ion. 9. 45. E. 
ALGAROT,yi in chemiftry, an Arabic term for an 
emetic ppwder, prepared from regulus of antimony, dif- 
folved in acids, and feparated by repeated lotions in warm 
water. 
ALGAROTI, commonly called Count Algaroti, a ce¬ 
lebrated Italian of the prefent century, well Ikilled in ar¬ 
chitecture and the Newtonian philofophy, &c. Algaroti 
was born at Padua, but in what year has not been .men¬ 
tioned. Led by curiolity, as well as a deiire of improve¬ 
ment, he travelled early into foreign countries;' and was 
very young when he arrived in France in 1736. It was 
here that he compofed his Newtonian Philofophy for the 
Ladies, as Fontenelle had done his Cartefian Aftronomy, 
in the work intitled The Plurality of Worlds. He was 
much noticed by the king of Pruffia, who conferred on 
him many marks of his efteem. He died at Pifa the 23d 
of May, 1764, and gave orders for his own maufoieum, 
witli this infeription upon it; Hie jacet Algarotus, fed non 
oinnis. He was efteemed to be well (killed in painting, 
fculpture, and architecture. His works, which are nu¬ 
merous, and upon a variety of fubjeCJs, abound with vi¬ 
vacity, elegance, and wit; a collection of them has lately 
been made and^printed at Leghorn. 
ALGARVi?, a province in the kingdom of Portugal, 
fixty-feven miles in length and twenty in breadth ; bound¬ 
ed on the weft and fouth by the fea, on the eaft by the ri¬ 
ver Guadiana, and on the north by Alenfejo. It is very 
fertile in figs, almonds, dates, olives, and excellent wines ; 
befides, the fhhery brings in large films. The capital town 
is Pharo. It contains four cities, twelve towns, lixty-fc- 
ven pariflies, and 61,000 inhabitants. 
ALGEBRA, 
