L E S 
prife, however, terminated in the ruin and difperfion of 
the rebels, and led to thofe negociations between the 
courts of France and England, by which the pretender 
was compelled to quit the French dominions. In this 
emergency he retired to Italy, whither he was attended 
by Mr. Leftie, who continued in that country till the 
year 1721. During this interval he underwent fo many 
difficulties, and met with fuch repeated difappointments 
and mortifications, that he could no longer fuftain the 
preffure; and he refolved, at all hazards, to return and 
die in his native country. Some of his friends, acquaint¬ 
ing lord Sunderland with his purpofe, implored his pro¬ 
tection for him ; which his lordfhip readily and generoufly 
promifed. No fooner had Mr. Lellie arrived in London, 
than he proceeded to Ireland, where he died in April 
1722, at his own houfe at Glaflough, in the county of 
Monaghan. 
I.ESMAHA'GOE, a town of Scotland, in the county 
of Lanerk. Near it are the ruins of Craignethan, or 
Draffin Caltle, anciently a feat of the Hamiltons, where 
the beautiful queen Mary found a fhort afylum after her 
efcape from Loch Leven : fix miles fouth-welt of Lanerk, 
and twelve fouth of Hamilton. 
LES'MONT, a town of France, in the department of 
the Aube: fifteen miles north-ea(t of Troyes, and feven- 
teen north-weft of Bar fur Aube. 
LESNEV'EN, a town of France, and principal place of 
a diftrift, in the department of the Finifterre: eight miles 
north of Landernau, and thirteen north-eaft of Breft. 
Lat. 48. 34. N. Ion. 4. 14. W. 
LES'NEY, a town of France, in the department of 
the Jura: fix miles north of Arbois, and five north-weft 
of Salins. 
LES'NICA, a town of Lithuania, in the palatinate of 
Minfk: forty-eight miles norfh-eaft of Minlk. 
LESNIC'ZY-PIERAW'OZ, a town of Lithuania, in 
the palatinate of Minlk : fifty-fix miles eaft of Minlk. 
LES'NIOW, a town of Poland, in Volhynia, where 
John Calimir king of Poland, in the year 1651, defeated 
an army of Cofacs and Tartars: eighteen miles fouth of 
Lucko. 
LES'NO, a town of the duchy of Warfaw: thirty-five 
miles fouth of Pofen. 
LESOAN'DELOR, a town of Afiatic Turkey, in Ca- 
ramania: forty miles fouth-fouth-weft of Cogni. 
LE'SON, a river of France, which runs into the Meufe 
oppofite Wifeppe. 
LESPAR'RE, a town of France, and principal place of 
a diftrift, in the department of the Gironde : eleven miles 
north-north-weft of Bourdeaux, and five north-weft of 
Blaye. Lat. 45.19. N. Ion. o. 50. W. 
LESPAU'D, a town of France, in the department of 
the Creufe : fix miles north-weft of Evaux. 
LESPEDE'ZA, /. [fo named by Michaux, in compli¬ 
ment to his friend and patron Lefpedez, governor of Flo¬ 
rida, who was very favourable to his botanical expedition 
through that country, though it does not appear that the 
governor himfelf was a botanift.] In botany, a genus infti- 
tuted by Michaux (Boreali-Amer. ii. 70.) It differs from 
Hedyfarum in its legume, which is elliptical and turgid, 
fmooth, of one cell, with a folitary feed. The ftigma 
moreover is faid to be capitate and fomewhat conical. 
The leaves are moftly ternate, rarely fimple. Among the 
fpecies we find the Hedysarum hirtum and the Medi- 
cago Virginica. See thofe articles. 
LESPINE'TA, a town of Naples, in the county of Mo- 
life : five miles fouth of Molife. 
LESS, a negative or privative termination : [lea]", Sax. 
loos, Dut.] Joined to a fubftantive, it implies the abfence 
or privation of the thing expreffed by that fubftantive: 
as, a wit/e/s man, a man without wit; childlefs, without 
children; fatkerlefs, deprived of a father; pennylefs, want¬ 
ing money. Johnfon. 
LESS, adj. [lea]", Sax.] The comparative of little: op- 
pofed to greater, or to fo great 5 not fo much; not equal.— 
L E S 531 
Mary, the mother of James the lefs. Mark xv. 40.—He 
that thinks he has a poiitive idea of infinite fpace will 
find, that he can no more have a pofitive idea of the great- 
eft than he has of the lealt ipace ; for in this latter we 
are capable only of a comparative idea of fmallnels, which 
will always be lefs than any one whereof we have the po¬ 
fitive idea. Locke. 
’Tis lefs to conquer than to make wars ceafe, 
And, without fighting, awe the world to'peace. Halifax. 
LESS, f. Not fo much ; oppofed to more, or to as muck, 
—They gathered fome more, fome lefs. Exod. xvi. 17.— 
Thy fervant knew nothing of this, lefs or more. 1 Sam. 
Yet could he not his doling eyes withdraw. 
Though lefs and lefs of Emily he faw. Dryden. 
LESS, adv. In a fmaller degree; in a lower degree.— 
The lefs fpace there is betwixt us and the objeft, and the 
more pure the air is, by fo much the more the fpecies are 
preferved and diftinguifhed ; and, on the contrary, the 
more fpace of air there is, and the lefs it is pure, fo much 
the more the objeft is confufedand embroiled. Dryden. — 
The lefs they themfelves want from others, they will be lefs 
careful to fupply the neceffities of the indigent. Smalridge. 
Happy, and happy (till, (he might have prov’d. 
Were Ihe lefs beautiful, or lefs belov’d. Pope. 
LES'SA, a fortrefs of Portugal, on the fea coaft: fix 
miles north-weft of Oporto. 
LESSAN'. See Lassan, p. 259. 
LESSANI'TZ, a town of Bohemia, in the circle of 
Kaurzim : eight miles fouth-eaft of Prague. 
LESSAR'D, a town of France, in the department of the 
Saone: nine miles eaft of Chalons fur Saone, and feveu 
north-weft of Louhans. 
LESSAY', a town of France, in the department of the 
Channel: twelve miles weft-fouth-weft of Carentan, and 
eleven north of Coutances. 
LESSAU', a town of Germany, in the principality of 
Bayreuth : fix miles eaft-fouth-ealt of Bayreuth. 
LESSE'E,_/i The perfon to whom a leafe is given. 
LES'SEL, f. With hunters, the dung of a wolf, bear, 
or wild boar; a bufli; a hovel. Chaucer. 
To LESS'EN, v. a. To make lefs ; to diminifh in bulk. 
To diminifti the degree of any ftate or quality ; to make 
lefs intenfe.—Nor are the pleafures which the brutal part 
of the creation enjoy, fubjeft to be leffened by the uneafi- 
nefs which arifes from fancy. Atterbury, 
Kings may give r . 
To beggars, and not leffen their own greatnefs. Denham. 
To degrade; to deprive of power or dignity.—St. Paul 
chofe to magnify his office, when ill men confpired to 
leffen it. Atterbury's Sermons. 
Who feeks 
To leffen thee, againft his purpofe ferves 
To manifeft the more thy might. Milton. 
To LESS'EN, v. n. To grow lefs ; to flirink ; to be di- 
minilhed.—All government may be elteemed to grow 
lirong or weak, as the general opinion in thofe that go¬ 
vern is feen to leffen or increafe. Temple. 
LESS'EN, or Laschen, a town of Pruffia, in the terri¬ 
tory of Culm : twenty-fix miles north-eaft of Culm. 
LESSENING,/, [from the verb.] The aft of making 
lefs ; the ftate of growing lei's; a degradation. 
LESS'ER, adj. A barbarous corruption of lefs, formed 
by the vulgar from the habit of terminating comparatives 
in er-, afterwards adopted by poets, and then by writers 
of profe, till it has all the authority which a mode origi¬ 
nally erroneous can derive from cuftom. Johnfon. —The 
mountains, and higher parts of the earth, grow leffer and 
lejfer from age to age : fometimes the roots of them are 
weakened by fubterraneous fires, and fometimes tumbled 
by earthquakes into caverns that are under them. Burnett. 
—Any heat promotes the afeent of mineral matter, but 
more 
