A L 17 
entire an afcendency over the king, that nothing could be 
done wifhout his exprefs orders 3 nay, it is related by Ma¬ 
riana, that the king could not change an officer or fervant, 
or even his clothes or diet, without the approbation of 
Alvares. In fhort, he wanted nothing to complete his 
grandeur but the name of king: he had all the places in 
the kingdom at his difpofal; he was matter of the treafury, 
and by bounties had fo gained the hearts of the fubjedts, 
that the king, though his eyes now were opened, and his 
aftedlions fufficiently turned againft him, durft not com¬ 
plain. But the day of reckoning was approaching, and at 
length he was feized ; yet not directly, openly, and vio¬ 
lently, but with fome of that management which upon a 
fimilar occafion was formerly employed by Tiberius againft 
Sejanus. During his confinement, he made feveral at¬ 
tempts to fpealc to the king in perfon ; but, not being able 
to effedt this, he fent the following letter, from which, as 
well as from the reft of Alvares’ hiftory, all court-favour¬ 
ites may draw abundant matter for edification and inftruc- 
tion. “ Sir, It is five-and-forty years fince I was admitted 
into your fervice. I do not complain of the rewards 1 have 
received: they were greater than my merits or expedta- 
tion, as I fhall not deny. There was but one thing want¬ 
ing to complete my happinefs ; and that was, to have fixed 
proper limits in time to this great fortune of mine. While, 
inftead of chooling retirement, after the example of the 
greateft men, I ftill continued in the employment, which 
I thought not only my duty, but neceflary for your intereft, 
I fell into this misfortune. It is very hard that I fhould 
be deprived of liberty, when I have rilked life and for¬ 
tune more than once to reftore it to you. Grief prevents 
me from faying more. I know that the Deity is provoked 
againft me by my fins; but it will be fufficient for me, if 
his anger is appeafed by the calamities I now fuffer. 1 
can no longer bear that prodigious mafs of riches, which 
it was wrong in me to have heaped together. I fhould 
willingly refign them, but that every thing I have is in 
your power; and I am denied the opportunity of fhewing 
mankind, that you have raifed a perfon to tire height of 
greatnefs, who can contemn wealth as well as procure it, 
and give it back to him from whom he received it. But 
I delire you in the ftrongeft terms, that, as I was obliged, 
by the l'ownefs of the treafury, to raife 10,000 or 12,000 
crowns by methods I ought not to have taken, you will 
reftore them to the perfons from whom they were extort¬ 
ed. If you will not grant this on account of the fervices 
I have done, yet I think it neceflary to be done from the 
reafon of the thing.” 
This letter, however, produced no effeT in his favour: 
Alvares was tried, and condemned to lofe his head. After 
condemnation, he was removed to Valladolid; and carried 
upon a mule to the market-place, in the middle of which 
a large fcaffold was eredted. Mounting the fcaffold, he 
gave his hat and fignet to his page, faying, “ Thefe are 
the laft gifts you will ever receive from me.” Me then 
fubmitted himfelf to the axe with the utmoft intrepidity. 
Dr. Geddcs relates, that he was executed on the 4th of 
June, others the 5th of July, 1453. 
A'HJDEL,y. [fromaand lutum ; that is, without lute.] 
Aludels are fubliming pots ufed in chemiftry, without bot¬ 
toms, and fitted into one another, as many as there is cc- 
cafion for, without luting. At the bottom of the furnace 
is a pot that holds the matter to be fublimed; and at the 
top is a head, to retain the flowers that rife up. 
The procefs of fublimation differs from diftillation in the 
nature of its produdt, which inftead of becoming conden- 
fed in the fluid affumes the folid ftate, and the form of the 
Receivers may of courfe be very different. The receivers 
for fublimates are of the nature of chimneys, in which 
the elaftic products are condenfed and adhere to their in¬ 
ternal fur face. It is evident that the head of an alembic 
will ferve very well to receive and conde.nfe fuch fublimates 
as are not very volatile. The earlier chemifts, whofe no¬ 
tions of fimplicity were not always the mod perfect, thought 
proper to ufe a number of fimilar heads, one above the 
other, communicating in fucceffion by means of a perfo¬ 
ration in the fuperior part of each, which received the 
neck of the capital immediately above it. Thefe heads 
differing in no refpeft from the ufual heads of alembics, 
excepting in their having no nofe or beak, and in the 
other circumftances here mentioned, were called aludels. 
They are feldom now to be feen in chemical laboratories, 
becaufe the operations of this art may be performed with 
greater fimplicity of inftruments, provided attention be 
paid to the heat and other circumftances. 
ALVEA'RIUM,yi in anatomy, the bottom of the con¬ 
cha, or hollow of the outer ear. 
Alvearium alfo lignifies a bee-hive. The word is 
formed of alveus, “ a channel or cavity;” in allufion to 
the alveoli or cells in bee-hives. Some ancients ufe alfo 
the word alvearium for a bee-houfe, more ufually called 
among us apiary. 
Ai.vearium is fometimes alfo ufed figuratively, to de¬ 
note a collection; in which fenfe alvearium amounts to 
much the fame with what we otherwife call thejaurus, cor¬ 
nucopia , or the like. Vine. Borens has publilhed an alve- 
arium of law. 
ALVE'OLUS,yi in natural hiftory, the name of the 
waxen cells in bee-hives. Alfo the name of a fea-foffil 
of a conic figure, compofed of a number of cells like bee¬ 
hives, joined into each other with a pipe of communication. 
Alveolus, in anatomy, the fockets in the jaws wherein 
the teeth are fixed. Some writers fpeak of teeth growing 
without alveoli. Pliny mentions a perfon who had a tooth 
in his palate. Euftachius relates, that he law a man who 
at fixty had a tooth growing out of the middle of his fau¬ 
ces. Haller gives an inftance of a perfon whofe teeth, were 
of a piece with his.jaws, without any infection into alveoli. 
ALVE'US,y. Medicinally, is applied to many tubes or 
canals, through which fome. fluid tlows, particularly to 
dufts which convey the chyle from the receptacle thereof 
to the fubclavian vein. 
AI,VIDU'CA,yi [of aims, the paunch, and duco, Lat, 
to lead.] Loofening medicines. 
A'LUM, f. [alumen, Lat. ] A cryftallizable fait compo¬ 
fed of vitriolic acid united with argillaceous earth. It 
has an auftere, fweetifh, and ffrongly-aftringent, tafte, 
which feems to proceed chiefly from a portion of the vi¬ 
triolic acid which is neceflary to its folubility in water and 
cryftalline form, though it be more than requifite fo pro¬ 
duce neutralization, as judged by the teft of turnfole and 
blue paper, which it reddens. A confiderable number of 
inftances may be exhibited in chemiftry where a fupera- 
bundance of one of the two principles in compound falts 
is neceffary to produce thefineft cryftals, and the moft per¬ 
manent combination. If the excefs of acid in alum be 
taken away, all the tafte, the folubility, and the original 
properties, of the fait, are left. 
One hundred parts of cryftailized alum require, in a 
mean heat, about fourteen times its weight of water to 
dilfolve it; but boiling water dilfolves one third more than 
its own weight of this fait, moft of which confequently fe- 
parates by cooling. If cryftailized alum be expofed to a 
gradual heat, it firft becomes fluid by a kind of aqueous 
fufion, in which its own water of cryftallization is the 
principal agent; the remaining mafs, after moft of the wa¬ 
ter has been expelled, grows epake, fvvells, foams, and^at 
length remains quiet, fpungy, and friable. Ignition drives 
off’ fome of its fuperabtindant acid. The quantity of 
earthy bafis in alum may be determined by precipitation 
with fixed or volatile alkali. In this way, however, there 
is a fource of inaccuracy arifmg from the infallibility of 
the alum, which takes place as fioon as its fuperabundant 
acid has combined with the alkali. At this period, a por¬ 
tion of'the neutral combination of clay and vitriolic acid 
falls down without further decompofition. Long-conti¬ 
nued digeftion in an alkaline lixivium is neceflary to fepa- 
rate the whole of the acid. The volatile alkali is prefe¬ 
rable in clearing the bafe of alum, becaufe it would unite 
to fixed alkalies. The moft commodious method of ob¬ 
taining 
