M A L 
palmate; heads many-flowered ; flowers very fniall, and 
brafteated. The whole plant very hairy. Flowers about 
fourteen, ou the tip of the peduncle, which is folitary and 
axillary ; each flower is Ihortly pedicelled, and almoft al¬ 
ways ornamented with a leafy braiffe, which is roundifli, 
but acuminated ; corolla fcarcdy larger than the calyx, 
whitilh, marked in the bottom with red ftreaks. Native 
of America. 
4.. Malachra fafciata, or fafciated malachra s with fer¬ 
rate three-lobed leaves, the loweft five-lobed; the com¬ 
mon involucre three-lobed, and about five-flowered. This 
has a fingle upright Item of fix feet in height, and twice 
the thicknefs of the thumb: it emits branches from the 
bofoms of almoft all the leaves, and is thickly befet with 
pungent villi. From the right fide of the bofom of all the 
branches which proceed from the Item, a green fmooth up¬ 
right fafcia afcends towards the next branch, and is com¬ 
monly about two lines broad. The heads of the flowers 
are axillary; the flowers fmall, rofe-coloured outward, 
within whitifl), with purple ftreaks. Native of America. 
5. Malachra alcaeifolia, or holyhock-leaved malachra: 
with five-lobed leaves, cordate at the bafe ; the common 
involucre five-leaved, and about ten-flowered. Stem fin¬ 
gle, fix feet high, upright, an inch thick, green, branching 
from the axils of the leaves, and covered with gliftening 
nungent hairs. Flowers two or three together, rather 
fmall in proportion to the plant, and of a deep yellow : 
the flower is feated, as in Turnera ulmifolia, at the bafe of 
each leaflet of the common calyx. Native of Martinico. 
MALA'CIA,/ [from pccX/xnix, Gr. ficknefs.] The 
green ficknefs. The longing of a woman with child. A 
ficknefs at the ftomach. A calm at fea. A tendemefs 
of conlfitution. 
MALACODER'MATA, /. [from the Gr. f2xXay.o<;, 
foft, and (kin.] In natural hiltory, a term ufed to 
exprefs fuch animals as have only foft (kins for their co¬ 
vering ; in oppofition to the cflracodermata, which have 
hard (belly matters for their covering, fuch as crabs, lob- 
fters, Sec. 
MALACOI'DES. See Malope. 
M ALACOPTERY'GIOUS, adj. [from the Gr. paXcwot, 
foft, and "Trrifvyeov, a wing.] An appellation given to fifties 
having the rays of their.fins bony at the extremities, but 
not pointed, like thofe of acanthopterygeous fifties. 
MALACOS'TOMOUS, adj. [from the Gr. paXxy.o*;, 
foft, and rupot., a mouth.] Fifties deftitute of teeth in the 
jaws, called in England leather-mouthed, as the tench, carp, 
bream, See. 
MALACOT'TA, a town of Africa, in the country of 
Worada. The inhabitants ma nil failure foap from the oil 
of ground-nuts : forty-two miles eaft of Satadoo. Lat. 12. 
30. N. Ion. 9.15. W. 
MALAC'TICA, f. [from the Gr. pxXa.aau, to foften.] 
Softening medicaments. 
MALAD' (La Grande), a town of France, in the de¬ 
partment of the Sambre and Meufe: three miles eaft of 
Namur. 
MALADU'GNO, a town of Naples, in^he province of 
Otranto: nine miles north-weft of Otranto. 
MAL'ADY,/! \_maladie, Fr.] Adifeafe; adiftemper; 
a diforderof body; ficknefs.—Phyfieians firit require that 
the malady be known thoroughly, afterwards teach how to 
cure and redrefs it. Spenfer. 
Say, can you fall ? your ftomaclis are too young: 
And abftinence engenders maladies. Shakejpeare. 
MAL'AGA, a fmall but very ancient city of Spain, in 
the province of Granada. It was built by the Phoenicians 
feveral centuries before Chrift ; and was called Malacha, or 
Malaca, on account of the great quantities of fait fifh fold 
here. In procefs of time it pafled fucceflively under the 
dominion of the Carthaginians, Romans, Goths, and Moors. 
Strabo fays, that a great quantity of fait was manufaftured 
in its environs, which was difpofed of on the oppolite 
coal! of Africa. That it was a place of importance under 
Vol. XIV. No. 966. 
M A L 18 * 
the Romans, we may infer from the wrecks of monuments 
that have been difcovered in its vicinity. Some of thele 
remains, which have been found on the eminences where 
the light-houfe is placed, and where the caftle called by 
the Moors Gibr alfaro (lands, have been thought to have 
belonged to a magnificent pharos, or perhaps to a temple 
built on this fpot by the Romans. It was not till the 
year 1487, that Ferdinand and Ifabella recovered Malaga, 
after an obftinate refiftance, from the dominion of the 
Moors. Malaga is fituated on the coaft of the Mediter¬ 
ranean, at the bottom of a deep bay, on a foil of (late ami 
iiineftone. To the fouth it has the fea; to the weft it 
opens into a fertile plain, watered by two rivers; and to 
the eaft and north, it is protefled by lofty mountains, the 
tops of which are fometimes covered with (now, and the 
fides with olive, almond, orange, and lemon, trees, and 
vineyard-grounds. The town cannot be called handfotne, 
though the houfes are high ; the directs are narrow, ill 
paved, and dirty; and it has not one good fquare. It 
has, however, a marble fountain, very finely executed, 
which was a prefent from the (Jate) republic of Genoa to 
Charles I. It has alfo a fine walk, called the Alameda; 
and the furrounding country is delightful. The town has 
three fauxbourgs. It is the fee of a bifhop, fufrragan to the 
archbiftiop of Seville; and the biftiopric is worth 150,000 
ducats, or 16,439k 9s. iod. but one-third of this revenue 
is difpofed of by the king. The w hole chapter confifts of 
the bifhop, with eight dignitaries, twelve canons, twelve 
minor canons, and the fame number of prebendaries. 
The dean receives 600k a-year ; the other dignitaries 450k 
each. The town has four parifti-churches, two chapels 
of eafe, twelve monafteries, ten nunneries, four beaterios, 
fix hofpitals, and feveral chapels and oratories. Of the 
friars, the Francifcans take the lead, and are held in greatelt 
veneration by the common people ; and among thefe the 
Capuchins are the molt ufeful members of fociety, de¬ 
voting themfelves to the fervice of the poor. Malaga has 
a civil and military governor, a king’s lieutenant, a ma¬ 
jor, aid-major, and a fixed regiment of infantry of three 
battalions, bearing its name, and attached to the place; 
an alcade-major, tor the adminiftration of j u ft ice ; a mu¬ 
nicipality, compofed of a certain number of regidors, a 
poft-captain, a minifter and an auditor of the maiine, and 
a board of public economy, (which, if it anfwers to its 
name, is an eftablifhment very much wanted among us.) 
Here is alfo a college for the inftruction of youth; and • 
another college, under the title of St. Elmo, for the ir.- 
ftrudtion of mariners. The population of Malaga under 
the Moors was reckoned at 80,000 inhabitants; and in 
1747 it was reduced to 32,000: it is now eftimated at 
50,000, according to the ttateinent of Laborde; but Mr. 
Townlend, in his Travels, mentions the number at 41,592, 
of whom the greatelt proportion confifts of females. 
Of the buildings, public or private, the only one, par¬ 
ticularly worthy of notice, is the cathedral, begun in the 
year 1528, and, fays Mr. Townfend, not yet completed. 
It is 360 feet by 180, and 135 in height. The choir in 
this edifice is admirable on account of its carved work, 
which reprefents, in very bold relief, the twelve apoltles, 
and the molt diltinguiftied (aints. The duana, orcuftom- 
lioufe, was erefted on a magnificent plan, in 1792. The 
confulate at Malaga have founded a very beneficial efta- 
bliftiment, viz. a Mont de piete, defigned for lending mo¬ 
ney without interelt to farmers, in order to prevent their 
felling their commodities, particularly wines, at a great 
lofs. The funds of this inftitution arife from vacant 
benefices. 
The port of this town is large and fecure : it has water 
for firft-rate (hips, and will contain 400 merchant-men, 
and 19 men-of-war. Ships may fail in and out with every 
wind, and are well (heltered in the harbour, particularly 
from the north and eaft winds, which are here the molt 
violent; and for greater fafety two piers have been lately 
conftruited. Malaga has a confiderable trade, particularly 
with England. Its imports conlilt of broad-cloths and 
3 B iron- 
