ro8 C H A 
dered on the north by Turkeftan, on the eaft by Grand 
Bukharia, on the fouth by Chorafan, and on the weft by 
the Gafpian Sea; about 320 miles from north to fouth, 
and about as much from eaft to weft. The country is 
in general fertile, and is divided among feveral Tartarian 
princes, of whom one takes the title of Khan, with a 
degree of pre-eminence over the reft. Urgens is the ca¬ 
pital, and the ufual refidence of the khan in the winter, 
but during the lummer he generally encamps on the Tides 
of the river Amol; and, as his camp is called Khiva, the 
people have generally been called the Tartars of Khiva. 
The khan is laid to be able to raife an army of forty or 
fifty tlioufand hoiTemen. 
CHARATZAIS'KA, a fortrefs of Siberia, on the bor¬ 
ders of China, eighty-four miles fouth-weft of Selengific. 
CHARAVEND', a town of Perfia, in the province of 
Irak Agemi: izo miles fouth-eaft of Ifpahan. 
CHAR'SON, /. a little black fpot or mark which re¬ 
mains after a large fpot in the cavity of the corner teeth 
of a horfe : about the feventh or eighth year, when the 
cavity fails up, the tooth being fmooth and equal, the 
horle is faid to be aged. 
CHABUISOV'KA, a river of Kamtcliatka, which 
runs into the Penzinlkoi Gulf: feventy miles fouth-fouth- 
weft of TigiKkoi. 
CHAR'CAS (Los), a province of South America, in 
Peru, near thecoaft of the Pacific Ocean: one of the rich- 
eft provinces in the world for mines. La Plata is the capital. 
CH AR'COAL, f. [imagined by Skinner to be derived 
from char, bufinefs; but, by Mr. Lye, from to chark, 
to burn.] Coal produced by charring wood, an operation 
very fimilar to that of diftiilation. It conlifts in forming 
pyramids of wood, or cones truncated at their fummit. 
The whole is clofely covered with earth, well beaten, 
leaving a lower and upper aperture. The pile is then 
kindled, and the fire continued till the ftnoke has wholly 
Tub Tided, at which time the wood is thoroughly red hot. 
The external air is then totally excluded, by clofing the 
apertures through which it palled, and thus the fire is 
extinguifhed. By this means the water, the oil, and all 
the principles of the vegetable, are diftipated, except the 
fibre. The wood in this operation lofes three-fourths of 
its weight, and one-fourth of its bulk. The futurbrand 
of the Icelanders is faid by Von Troil to be nothing but 
wood converted into charcoal by the burning lava which 
has furrounded it. 
Charcoal, in the modern chemiftry, is known by the 
name of carbon. It confifts of the vegetable fibre very 
llightly changed j and moft commonly preferves its ori¬ 
ginal form. The primitive texture is not only dillin- 
guiftiable, but ferves likewife to indicate theftate and na¬ 
ture of the vegetable which has afforded it. It is black, 
hard, fonorous, and brittle j in fome cafes light, fpongy, 
and friable. The charcoal of oily or bituminous fub¬ 
ftances is of a light pulverulent form, and rifes in foot: 
this charcoal of oils is called lamp-black. Charcoal well 
made has neither tafte nor fmell; and it is one of the 
moft indecompofable fubftances hitherto known. All 
the metallic fubftances are more combuftible than char¬ 
coal, and conlequently are revived or reduced to the 
metallic ftate, by being heated with it. An important 
confequence Teems to follow from this circumftance, 
namely, that there may exilt many metallic fubftances 
whofe combuftibility may be greater than that of char¬ 
coal, and which confequentiy are unknown to us as fuch, 
becaufe we poffefs no means of reducing them. Thus the 
alkalis and earths may confift of peculiar combuftible or 
metallic fubftances, dephlogifticated or combined with 
vital air, by an union which the art of chemiftry has not 
yet found means to break. 
The va'pours that a rife from charcoal are extremely per¬ 
nicious, producing a fpecies of apoplexy in thole perfons 
who are expofed to them. They produce at firft\a fenfe 
of uneafmefs, then a chilinefs, lickiflmefs, and kind of 
head-ach, which ufher in a lofs of fenfe, a fixednCfs of 
j 
C H A 
the eyes, a rigidity of the whole body, a ghaftly counte- 
nance, a fmall, frequent, and irregular, pulfe, feverilhnefs, 
See. In this cafe the noxious vapours aft on the brain and 
nerves, and not, as has been generally faid, on the lungs; 
thefe vapours, and thofe from fermenting vegetables, pu¬ 
trefying animal fubftances, or from caverns, operate in 
the fame manner; and, as accumulated and confined, 
their effeft is more or lefs inftantaneous. They attack 
the vital principle, and extinguifh it if they are copious; 
and a lefs quantity produces the fymptoms of a debility 
in the nervous fyltem. To prevent fuftering from this 
caufe, ayoid clofe rooms where thefe fubftances are burn¬ 
ing, and never enter their repofitories but when a candle 
wiil continue to burn there. In order to the cure, ex- 
pofe the patient to the open air ; if the patient can fwal- 
low, give him acidulated liquors j if he is infenfible, 
throw cold water on liis fa e ; ftrong vinegar may be 
rubbed about his noftrils, and held under them; blood 
may betaken from the arm ; as loon as pollible make him 
fwallow cold water with vinegar in it; ftimulating clyf- 
ters are ufeful : to remove the fpafms, the fps. aetheris 
vitriolicus compofitus, with fmall doles of opium, will 
be proper. If thefe fail, let a ftrong healthy perfon 
breathe forcibly into the mouth of the patient, fo as to 
diftend his lungs For the chemical properties of char¬ 
coal, fee the article Chemistry. 
CHARCUO'N, a town of Perfia, in the province of 
Fariiftan: leventy miles louth-eaft of Schiras. 
CHARD, f [ charde, French ] Chards of artichokes, 
are the leaves of artichoke plants, tied and wrapped up 
all over but the top, in ftraw, during the autumn and 
winter; this makes them grow white, and lofe fome of 
their bitternefs .—Chards of beet, are plants of white beet 
tranfplanted, producing great tops, which, in the midft, 
have a large, white, thick, downy, and cotton-like, main 
fh jot, which is the true chard. Mortimer. 
CHARD, a market-town in Somerfetlhire, pleafantly 
fituated on the fouthern verge of the county, a few miles 
only from the counties of Dorfet and Devon. It ftands 
on the lower road from London to Exeter, between 
Crewkherne and Axminfter, feven miles from each ; dif- 
tant alfo from Taunton fifteen miles, from Honiton four¬ 
teen miles, and 141 from London. The ftreets are fpa- 
cious, clean, and commodious ; the buildings good. In 
the reign of Henry III. Chard was made a free borough, 
and Tent members to parliament; but has fince loft that 
privilege : the aflizes were alfo held here formerly. Se¬ 
veral ftreams run through the town, which keep it clean. 
A manufacture of linen cloth is carried on here ; but the 
principal fupport of the place is the clothing trade. At 
the entrance from the fouth-eaft, is a large building, 
ufed as a fchool, which was anciently a palace of Cer- 
dic, king of the Weft Saxons. The town being with¬ 
in a moderate diftance of the fruitful corn-fields of II- 
minfter, South Petherton, Martock, &c. is well fupplied 
with wheat, barley, oats, beans, See. Market-day is on 
Mondays. Fairs for cattle and pedlary-wares on 4th of 
May, .3d of Auguft, and 2d of November. 
CHARDIN (Sir John), a famous voyager, the fon of 
a proteftant jeweller at Paris, w’as born there in 1643; 
but quitted his native country, and removed to London, 
upon the revocation of the edift of Nantz in 1685. He 
went to Perfia and the Eaft-Indies to traffic in jewels. 
Charles II. king of England, conferred upon him the 
honour of knighthood. He died at London in 1713. His 
Voyages, tranflated into Englith, Flemifh, and German, 
have always been much efteemed. He gives a very good 
idea of Perfia, its religion, cuftoms, and manners; and 
his defeription of the other oriental countries, which he 
vilited, is no lefs exaft. 
CHARDO'GNE, a town of France, in the department 
of the Meufe, and chief place of a canton, in the diftrift 
of Bar-le-Duc : four miles north of Bar-le-Duc. 
CHA'RE CULfLOQ, a town of Afia, in the province 
of Cabul; forty-two miles iouth-weft of Cabul, 
CHARE'NTB, 
I 
