AMU 
tions De Febribus; and the like is done by Dr. Wainwrigllj, 
Dr. Keill, See. 
AMU'LIUS, king of Alba, was fon of Procas, and 
younger brother to Numitor. He difpoflefted his brother 
of the crown, and even put to death his fon Laufus, and 
confecrated his daughter Ilia a veftal virgin, to prevent her 
ever becoming a mother. Notwithftanding thefe precau¬ 
tions, Ilia became pregnant by the god-Mars, and brought 
forth Romulus and Remus, Who afterwards put Aniulus to 
death, and reftored the crown to their grandfather. 
AM'URAT, or Am'urath 1 . the fourth emperor of 
the Turks, and one of tire greateft princes of the Ottoman 
empire, fucceeded Solyman in 1360. He took from the 
Greeks Gallipoli, Thrace, and Adrianople, which laft he 
chofe for the place of his refidence. He defeated the prince 
of Bulgaria, conquered Mifnia, chaflifed his rebellious 
balhaws, and is faid to have gained thirty-fix battles. This 
prince, in order to form a body of devoted troops that 
might ferve as the immediate guards of his perfon and 
dignity, appointed his officers to feize annually, as the im¬ 
perial property, the fifth part of the Chriftian youth taken 
in war. Thefe, after being inftrufted in the Mahometan 
religion, inured to obedience by fevere difeipline, and 
trained to warlike exercifes, were formed into a body di- 
ftidguifiled by the name of JaniJfaries, or “ new foldiers.” 
Every fentiment which enthiifiafm can infpire, every mark 
of diftinftion that the favour of the prince could confer, 
were employed in order to animate this body with martial 
ardour, and with a confcioufnefs of its own pre-eminence. 
The janifiaries loon became the chief firength and pride 
of the Ottoman armies, and were diftinguifhed above all 
the troops whofe duty it was to attend on the perfon of 
the fultan. At length the death of Lazarus,. defpot of 
Servia, who had endeavoured in vain to Hop the progrefs 
of Amurat’s arms, touched Milo, one of his fervants, in 
io fenlible a manner, that, in revenge, he ftabbed the ful¬ 
tan in the midft of his troops, and killed him upon the 
fpot, A. D. 1389, after he had reigned twenty-three years. 
Amurat II. the tenth emperor of the Turks, was the 
eldeft fon of Mahomet I. and fucceeded his father in 1421. 
He belieged Conftantinople and Belgrade without fuccefs; 
but he took Theflalonica from the Venetians, and com¬ 
pelled the prince of Bofnia and John Caftriot prince of 
Albany to pay him tribute. He obliged the latter to 
fend his three fons as hofiages; among whom was George, 
celebrated in hillory by the name of Scanderbeg. John 
Hunniades defeated Amurat’s troops, and obliged him to 
make peace with the Chriftian princes, in 1442. Thefe 
princes afterwards breaking the peace, Amurat defeated 
them in the famous battle of Varna, November 10, 1444, 
which proved fo fatal to the Chriftians, and in which La- 
diflaus king of Hungary was killed. He afterwards de¬ 
feated Hunniades, and killed above 20,000 of his men; 
but George Caftriot, better known by the name of Scan¬ 
derbeg, being re-eftablifhed in the eftates of his father, 
defeated the Turks feveral times, and obliged Amurat to 
raife the fiege of Croia, the capital of Albany. Amurat 
died, chagrined with his ill-fuccefs, and infirm with age, 
February 11, 1451, at Adrianople. It is obferved to this 
prince’s honour, that he always kept his treaties with the 
greateft fidelity. 
AMURCO'SITY,yi [_anturca, Lat.] The quality of lees, 
or mother pf any thing. 
To AMU'SE, v. a. [amufer , Fr.] To entertain with tran¬ 
quillity ; to fill with thoughts that engage the mind with¬ 
out didrafting it. To divert implies fomething more live¬ 
ly, and to pleafe fomething more important. It is therefore 
frequently taken in a lenfe bordering on contempt.'—I 
cannot think it natural for a man, who is much in love, 
to amufc himfelf with trifles. Waljh. —To draw on from 
time to time ; to keep in expectation; as, He amujed his fol¬ 
lowers with idle promifes, 
AMU'SEMENT,yi \_amufemcnt , Fr.] That which anni- 
fes; entertainment,—-Every intereft or pleafure of life, 
Voi. I. No. 31. 
even the molt trifling amvjement, is fuffered to poftpone the 
one tiling neceflary. Roger. t. 
AMU'SER,y. \_amnjeur , Fr.] He that amufes, as with 
falfe promifes. The French word is always taken in an 
ill fenfe. 
AMU'S]VE, ad], [from amvfe .] That which lias the 
power of amufing : 
But amaz’d, 
Beholds th’ amujive arch before him fly, 
Then vanifli quite away. Tkcmfon-. 
AM'WELL, a village in Hertford (hire, a little to the 
fouth of the Ware, and twenty-one miles from London. 
One part is called Amwell-Magna, and the other Amwell- 
Parva ; the head or fource of the New River, which fup- 
plies London with water, is at the latter place. This canal 
>vas projefted by Hugh Middleton; he began it in 1606, 
and finithed it in 1612, by the afliftaiice of the city of 
London, and by aid of parliament; but with a contiderabla 
lofs of his own property, lie perfected the work. The 
extent of the canal is near thirty-nine miles; it has forty- 
three Unices, and there are 215 bridges over it. 
A'MY, \_amie, Fr. a ilie-friend.] A proper name of wo¬ 
men. 
Amy' Prochain, in law, the next friend who is to be 
entrufted for an infant or orphan. And infants may fue 
either by prochain amy, or guardian-, but muft anfwer by 
guardian. 3 Salk. 196. 
AMY'CHE, /! [from afj.vraa, Gr. to fcratch.] A fu- 
perficial exulceration, laceration, or fcarification, of the (kin. 
AMY'CLAs, a city of Laconia, djftant about eighteen 
miles from the metropolis, founded by Amyclus the fon 
of Lacedaemon, and famed afterwards for the birth of 
Caftor and Pollux the fons of Tydareus, eighth king of 
Sparta. It was afterwards famed, for lending a confide- 
rable colony of its own inhabitants into Upper Calabria, 
who built there a city which they called by the fame name. 
This laft city was fituated between Caieta and Terracina, 
and gave its name to the neighbouring fea. According to 
Pliny and Solinus, the territory of Amyclse was fo infefted 
with vipers and other ferpents, that the inhabitants were 
obliged to abandon their dwellings, and fettle elfewhere. 
AMY'CLUS, fon of Lacedaemon and Sparta, and.bro- 
ther to Eurydice the wife of Acrilius. He built the city 
of Amyclir, where Apollo had a temple and was furnamed 
Amyclaeus. 
AMY'CUS, fon of Neptune and Melia, king of the 
Bebrycians, famous for his (kill in the management of the 
ceftus. He challenged all ftrangers to a trial of ftrength, 
and was killed by Pollux when he attempted to overcome 
him by fraud. Alfo a companion of .Eneas, killed by 
Turnus, brother to Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons ; 
who opposing the paflage of Hercules, who came to wage 
war with his After, he was (lain by that hero. 
AMYG'DALATE, adj. [amygdaia, Lat.] Made of al¬ 
monds. 
AMYG'DAI.INE, adj. [ajhygdala, Lat.] Relating to 
almonds; refembling almonds. 
AMYG'DALIS S 1 MILIS,/. in botany. See Theo- 
broma. 
AMYG'DALUS,yi from the lines or fur¬ 
rows on the done, which the Greeks call ] In bo¬ 
tany, a genus of the icofandria monogynia clafs, ranking 
in the natural order of pomaceae. The generic characters 
are—Calyx.: perianthium one-leafcd, tubulous, inferior, 
quinquefid, deciduous; divifionsfpreading, obtufe. Co¬ 
rolla: of five petals, oblong-ovate, obtufe, concave, in¬ 
fected into the calyx. Stamina: filaments about thirty, 
filiform, ereft, (horter by half than the corolla, infected 
into the calyx ; antheras Ample. Piftillum : germ round- 
ifh, villofe; ftyle fimpie, length of the ftamens; ftigma 
headed. Pcricarpium :. a drupe, roundift), villofe, large, 
with a longitudinal furrow. Seed : a nut, ovate, com- 
prefled, acute, with prominent futures un each fide, reti- 
6 K culated 
