45 8 AST 
tempted by Satan, and fell, and, by bis fall, involved all 
other worlds in his guilt. And, fecondly, to what place 
in the vafl expanfe of heaven are the ftars to fall > or how 
come in contact with fo fmall an atom as the Earth, com¬ 
pared with the Sun, the fuperior planets, and the fixed 
Ears ? Thus it is, that by taking metaphorical expref- 
fions in the literal fenfe, inltead of confidering them what 
they really are, the drefs and ornament of language, have 
the greatell abfurdities crept into molt of our expofitions 
on the holy Scriptures; and hence a prohibition, for ma¬ 
ny centuries, was in a manner put to the progrefs and im¬ 
provement of aftronomy. See Bp. Newton, p. 281, 285. 
Bp. Warburton’s Julian, b. i. ch.i. p.21. Gerhard's 
DilTertations, p.200. Clarke’s Sermons, vol. v. ferm. 2. 
Pearce’s Dilfertation on the Deftruiftion of Jerufalem. Dr. 
Jackfon’s Credibilities of the Scriptures. 
Astronomy was painted by the ancients like a god- 
defs, with a lilver crefcent on her forehead, clothed in an 
azure mantle, and a watchet-fcarf, fpangled with golden 
Bars. She has been likewife painted in the fame manner 
as alfrology, only with a table of afironomical figures in 
her left hand, inftead of a celeftial globe. And fometimes 
as a lady in a Barry habit; her eyes looking up to heaven, 
in her right hand holding an afirolabe, and in her left a 
table of afironomical figures. Her garment denotes the 
night to be the molt proper time to lee the Bars; her eyes 
and thoughts always elevated, and intent upon celeltial 
bodies; the afirolabe meafures the difiance of them. 
AS'TR.OPE-'VVELLS, near Banbury in Ox ford fibre, 
are recommended as excellent in female obftruAions, the 
gravel, hypochondriac and fimilar diforders. The water 
is a brilk, Spirituous, pleafant-tafied, chalybeate, and is al- 
fo gently purgative. 
AS'TROSCOPE,yi A kind of afironomical infirumcnt, 
compofed of two cones, on whofe furface the confrella- 
tions, with their Bars, are delineated, by means whereof 
the (tars may be eafily known. The aftrofcope is the in¬ 
vention of William Shuckhard, formerly profellor of ma¬ 
thematics at Tubingen, who publillied a treatife exprefsly 
on it in 1698. 
ASTROSCO'Pl A,/. The art of obferving and exa¬ 
mining the Bars, by means of telefcopes, in order to dif- 
cqver their nature and properties. 
AS'TROSCOPY,yi a ftar, and moirtUy to view.] 
Obfervation of the liars. 
ASTROTHE'MATA,/ The places or pofitions of 
the Bars, in an aftrological fcheme of the heavens. 
ASTRO-THEO'LOGY,/. [from ajlrum, a ftar, and 
tkeologia, Lat. divinity.] Divinity founded on the obfer¬ 
vation of the celeltial bodies.—That the diurnal and an¬ 
nual revolutions are the motions of the terraqueous globe, 
not of the fun, I (hew in the preface of my Afro-Theology. 
Derham. 
ASTROTHE'SI A,y. is ufed by fome for a conftella- 
tion or colleftion of ftars in the heavens. 
AS'TRUC (John), a phyfician of France, was born at 
Sauvres, a town of Lower Languedoc, the 19th of March, 
1684, and died at Paris, the 5th of May, 1766. He was 
phyfician in ordinary to the king, profelfor in the college 
royal, dodtor regent of the faculty of phyfic in Paris, and 
ancient profelfor of the fame of Montpelier. He was the au¬ 
thor of feveral ufeful and curious works; and perhaps it 
is not too much to fay of his Libri fex de Morbis Vene- 
reis, that it is as well digefted and well written a book as 
can be found in any language. It was printed in quarto, 
at Paris, 1735 ; in two volumes quarto, 1740 ; and it has 
been tranflated into French and Englilh, and probably in¬ 
to mod of the European languages. His Traite desTu- 
meurs et des Ulceres, printed in 1759, in two vols. 12100. 
and that des Maladies des Femmes, 1766, in 7 vols. 12mo. 
are alfo very well known to the learned in the faculty. 
AS'TRUM, or As'tson,/ [ar^ov, Gr.J A constella¬ 
tion, or affemblage of Bars; in which fenfe it is diftin- 
^uilhed from afer, which denotes a fingle Bar. Borne ap- 
A S T 
ply the term, in a more particular fenfe, to the Great Dog, 
or rather to the large bright ftar in his mouth. In ofd 
records it was ufed to fignify an houfe or habitation. 
Astrum,/. [from Heb. fire.] A ftar: chemically 
it means that power which accrues to things from their 
preparation; thus, the ajlrum of fait is its refolution into 
a fluid Bate by which it can exert itfelf more. 
AS'TRUP, a town of Germany, in the circle of Weft- 
plialia, and bilhopric of Ofnabruck: fottr miles north of 
Ofnab ruck. 
ASTURAG AMICOSK', a lake of Lower Canada, 
eighty-one leagues north-eaft of Quebec. Lat. 30. 23. N. 
Ion. 67. 25. W. Greenwich. 
ASTU'RIA, an ancient kingdom of Spain, fubdued by 
Auguftus emperor of Rome. The inhabitants of this 
country, with thofe of Cantabria, afferted their liberty 
long alter the reft of Spain had received the Roman yoke. 
So great was their defire of liberty, that, after being clofe- 
ly (hut up by the Roman army, they endured the tnoft ter¬ 
rible calamities of famine, even to the devouring of one 
another, rather than fubmit to the enemy. At length, 
however, the Afturians were for furrendering: but the 
Cantabrians oppofed this meafure, maintaining that they 
ought all to die fword in hand like brave men. Upon 
this the two nations quarrelled, notwithftanding their def- 
perate fituation ; and, a battle enfuing, 10,000 of the Af¬ 
turians were driven to the intrenchments of the Romans, 
whom they begged in the moft moving manner to receive 
them on any terms they plyafed. But, Tiberius the em¬ 
peror’s fon-in-law refilling to admit them into the camp, 
fome of thefe unhappy people put an end to their lives by 
falling upon their own fwords; others lighting great fires 
threw themfelves into them, while fome poifoned them- 
felves by drinking the juice of a venomous herb. 
The campaign being put an end to by the winter, the 
next year the Afturians fammoned all their ftrength and 
refolution againft the Romans ; but, notwithftanding their 
utmoft efforts of valour and dcfpair, they were entirely 
defeated in a moft obftinate battle which lafted two days, 
and for that time entirely fubdued. A few years after¬ 
wards they rebelled, in conjunction with the Cantabrians ; 
but were loon reduced by the Romans, who maffacred 
moft of the young men that were capable of bearing arms. 
This did not prevent them from revolting again in a ftiort 
time afterwards; but without fuccefs, being obliged to 
fubmit to the Roman power, till the fubverlion of that 
empire by the Goths. 
ASTU'RIAS, anciently a kingdom of Afturia, is now 
a principality of modern Spain, bounded by Bifcay on the 
eaft, Galicia on the weft, Caftile and Old Leon on the 
fouth, and the fea on the north. Its greateft length is 
about 110 miles, and its breadth fifty-four. On the fouth 
it is feparated from Caftile and Old Leon by high moun¬ 
tains covered with woods. The face of the country is 
rugged, and towards f he fomh are the mountains which 
divide it from Leon and Old Caftile, branches of the Py¬ 
renees, covered with vaft forefts: yet the foil produces a 
fiifficiency of corn, great quantities of fruit, and excellent 
wine. There are alfo mines of gold and vermillion ; and 
the horfes of this country are in great efteem. The in¬ 
habitants value themfelves much on being defcended from 
the ancient Goths. Even the poor peafants, who are fain 
to go to feek work in other provinces, call themfelves- il- 
lujlrious Goths and Mountaineers, thinking it ignominious to 
marry even with great and rich families of another race. 
This pride is flattered by the refpect paid them by the reft 
of the nation, and the privileges beftowed upon them by 
the government. The hereditary prince of Spain is ftyled 
prince of the AJlurias. The moft remarkable places in this 
principality are Oviedo, Gyon, Santillana, and St. Amdero. 
ASTY'AGES, fon of Cyaxares, the laft king of the 
Medes. He dreamed that, from the womb of his daugh¬ 
ter Mandane, married to Cambyfes king of Perfia, there 
fprung a vine that fpread itfelf overall Afia. She being 
with child, he refolved to kill the infant as foon as born. 
Its 
