346 M I D 
MIDNIGUN'GE, a town of Hindooftan, in Oude: 
twenty-five miles north of Allahabad. 
MID'NOI, or Copper Island, an ifland in the North 
Pacific Ocean, about thirty-fix miles in length from 
north to fouth, and from fix to twelve broad ; firlt vifited 
by the Ruffians, in the year 1755. On the north, the 
ffiores are for the moll part rocky and bold, with fome 
coniiderable bays; but on the fouth fide they are more 
gentle, and in part fandy; only towards the fouth-eaft 
cape the coaft is fronted by huge overhanging rocks and 
Ihoals, which at ebb tide form a level with the ffiore. 
The whole illand is perfedly deftitute of wood, and very 
mountainous ; the mountains are very lofty, and confilt 
of a brittle ftony ftratum, which frequently tumbles down 
in very large mafles. In the north-weftern promontory 
native copper is found, from which the ifland received its 
name. Lat. 54. 40. N. Ion. 165. 44. E. 
MID'NOON, f. The height of noon; the very point 
when the fun palfes the meridian. 
MIDNYPOU'R, a town of Hindooftan: thirty-^ive 
miles north-eall of Benares. 
MI'DON, a river of France, which runs into the Adour 
a little below Tartus. 
MIDORI'NO, a town of Japan, in the ifland of Ni- 
phon : eighty-five miles north-north-weft of Jedo, and 
220 eaft-north-eaft of Meaco. 
MID'RIFF, f. [Saxon.] The diaphragm.—The midriff' 
divides the trunk of the body into two cavities j the 
thorax and abdomen. Quincy. 
Whereat he inly rag’d, and as they talk’d 
Smote him into the midriff with a ftone 
That beat out life. Milton's Parudife Loft. 
MID'ROE, a river of Algiers, which runs into the ShelifF. 
MIDSA'MA, a town of Japan, in the ifland of Niphon : 
twelve miles north-eaft of Tomu. 
MID'SHIP, f. A term of diltindion, applied by fliip- 
wrights to feveral pieces of timber which lie in the broadeft 
part of the veffiel, called the mul/hips, although it is not in 
the middle of her length with regard to the breadth; it 
is a luppofed line from the Item to the fttrn-poft. 
MID'SHIPMAN, f. A fort of naval cadet, appointed 
by the captain of a lhip of war, to lecond the orders of 
the fuperior officers, and affift in the neceflary bufinefs of 
the veflel, either aboard or afliore. The number of mid- 
fhipmen, like that of feveral other officers, is always in 
proportion to the fize of the lhip to which they belong. 
Thus a firft-rate man of war has twenty-four, and the 
inferior rates a fuitable number in proportion. No per- 
fon can be appointed lieutenant without having previoufly 
ferved two years in the royal navy in this capacity, or in 
that of mate, befides having been at lead: four years in 
adual fervice at fea, either in merchant-lhips or in the 
royal navy.. 
Midlhipman is accordingly the ftation in which a young 
volunteer is trained in the feveral exercifes neceflary to at¬ 
tain a lufficient knowledge of the machinery, movements, 
and martial operations, of a lhip, to qualify him for a lea- 
officer. As he is on many occafions obliged to mix with 
the common failors, particularly in the exercifes of ex¬ 
tending or reducing the lails in the tops, he ought refo- 
lutely to guard againft the contagion with which the 
morals of his inferiors may be infeded. He Ihould, how¬ 
ever, avail himfelf of their knowledge, and acquire their 
expertnels in managing and fixing the fails and rigging, 
and never fuller himfelf to be excelled by an inferior. He 
will probably find a virtue in altnoft every private failor, 
which is entirely unknown to many of his officers: that 
virtue is emulation, which is not indeed mentioned amongft 
their qualities by the gentlemen of terra ftnna, by whom 
their charaders are often copioufly deferibed with very 
little judgment. There is hardly a common tar who is not 
envious of fuperior lkill in his fellows, and jealous on all 
sccalions to be outdone in what he conliders as a branch 
MID 
of his duty: nor is he more afraid of the dreadful confe- 
quences of whiftling in a ftorm, than of being ftigmatized 
with the opprobrious epithet of lubber. Fortified againft 
this fcandal by a thorough knowledge of his buimefs, 
the failor will Sometimes fneerin private at the execution 
of orders which to him appear awkward, improper, or 
unlike a feaman. Nay, he will perhaps be malicious 
enough to fupprefs his own judgment, and, by a punctual 
obedience to command, execute whatever is to be per¬ 
formed in a manner which he knows to be improper, in 
order to expole the perfon commanding to difgrace and 
ridicule. Little flailed in the method of the fchools, he 
confiders the officer who cons his lefl'011 by rote as very 
ill qualified for his ftation, becaufe particular fituations 
might render it neceflary for the faid officer to aflift at 
putting his own orders in pradice. An ignorance in this 
practical knowledge will therefore neceflarily be thought 
an unpardonable deficiency by thofe who are to followed s 
directions. Hence the midlhipman who aflbeiates with 
thele failors in the tops, till he has acquired a competent 
lkill in the fervice of extending or reducing the fails, &c. 
will be often entertained with a number of fcurrilous 
jefts at the expenle of his fuperiors. Hence alfo he will 
learn, that a timely application to thofe exercifes can only 
prevent him from appearing in the fame defpicable point 
of view, which mull certainly be a cruel mortification to 
a man of the lmalleft fenlibility. 
If the midlhipman is not employed in tliefe fervices, 
which are undoubtedly neceflary to give him a clearer idea 
of the different parts of his occupation, a variety of other 
objefts prelent themfelves to his attention. Without pre- 
liiming to dictate the ftudies which are molt eilential to 
his improvement, we could wilh to recommend luch as 
are molt fuitable to the bent of his inclination. Aftro- 
nomy, geometry, and mechanics, which are in the firlt 
rank of lcience, are the materials which form the fkilful 
pilot and the fuperior mariner. The theory of navigation 
is entirely derived from the two former, and all the ma¬ 
chinery and movements of a lhip are founded upon the 
latter. The aCtion of the w'ind upon the fails, and the 
refiltance of the water at the Item, naturally dictate a» 
inquiry into the property of folids and fluids; and the 
ftate of the lhip, floating on the water, feems to dired his 
application to the ftudy of hydroftatics, and the etfeds 
of gravity. A proficiency in thefe branches of lcience 
will equally enlarge his views, with regard to the opera¬ 
tions of naval war, as directed by the efforts of powder 
and the knowledge of projectiles. The moll effectual me¬ 
thod to excite his application to thofe ftudies, is, perhaps, 
by looking round the navy, to obferve the characters of 
individuals. By this inquiry he will probably difeover, 
that the officer who is eminently flailed in the l'ciences, 
will command univerfal refped and approbation; and 
that whoever is latisfied with the defpicable ambition of 
fliining the hero of an afiembly, will at length become 
the objeCt of univerfal contempt. The attention of the 
former will be engaged in thofe ftudies which are highly 
ufeful to himfelf in particular, and to the fervice in ge¬ 
neral : the employment of the latter is to acquire thofe 
fuperficial accomplilhments that unbend the mind from 
every ufeful lcience, emafculate the judgment, and ren¬ 
der the hero infinitely more dexterous at falling into his 
ftation in the dance than in the line of battle. 
Unlefs the midlhipman has an unconquerable averfion 
to the acquilition of thofe qualifications which are fo ef- 
fential to his improvement, he will very rarely want op¬ 
portunities of making a progrefs in them. Every ftep he 
advances in thofe meritorious employments will facilitate 
his acceffion to the next in order. If the dunces, who 
are his officers or meflmates, are rattling the dice, roaring 
bad verfes, biffing on the flute, or feraping difeord from 
the fiddle, his attention to more noble ftudies will Iweeten 
the hours of relaxation. He Ihould recoiled, that no ex¬ 
ample from fools ought to influence his condud, or le. 
duce 
