248 
NOS 
NOSS'A SENHO'RA da ENCARNACA'ON, a town 
of Portugal, in Algarve, fituated near Cape Carvoeiro, 
on the ibutli coaft : four railed fouth of Villa Nova de 
Porti mao. 
NOSSA'NO, a town of the republic of Lucca: fix miles 
weft of Lucca. 
NOS'SEN, a town of Saxony, in the circle of Erzge- 
burg, on the Muldau : twelve miles fouth-weft of Meiflen, 
and eighteen weft of Drefden. Lat. 51.3.N. Ion. 13.11.E. 
NOSS'I I'BRAHIM. See Mary, vol. xiv. p. 459. 
NOSSONCOU'RT, a town of France, in the depart¬ 
ment of the Vofges : three miles north-eaft of Ramber- 
viller, and thirteen north-weft of St. Diey. 
NOSTAL GIA, J\ [from the Gr. voo-tsiv, to return, and 
aXyo;, pain or grief.] A fpecies of melancholy, the lead¬ 
ing circumstance of which is a vehement and unceafing 
defire to return home, and which of courle occurs only 
in perfons who are abfent from their friends and native 
country. This affeftion is called by the French malatlie 
(hipays; and by the German-Swifs heim-weh, or “ home- 
grief.” Zwingerus, who wrote a diflertation upon the 
tubjeft, denominated it noftomania, and pothopatridalgia. 
Sauvages, and, after him, Dr. Cullen, have, by a lingu¬ 
lar drained .analogy, placed this difeafe among the mor¬ 
bid appetites, in the clafs of local difeafes, in their ref- 
pedtive fyftems of nofology ; as if there were a particular 
organ in the body in which the amor patricc isfeated, like 
hunger and thirft in the ftomach. 
This difeafe has been faid to be particularly frequent 
in the inhabitants of mountainous countries ; at leaft, the 
Swifs have always been remarkable for their tendency to 
fall into this fpecies of melancholy; and great numbers 
have been induced to defert from the armies of foreign 
Hates, in which they have been inrolled as mercenaries. 
The Swifs guards, employed by the kings of France, have 
been particularly remarkable from this circumftance; 
and they have been obferved to be feized with this ma¬ 
lady more efpecially cn hearing a national air, Ranz des 
vac/ies, which is fung. to a ballad containing allufions to 
their home, relations, and domeftic animals; an air, how¬ 
ever, which has nothing peculiarly pleafing in its melody 
to thofe w'ho cor,ne£t with it no particular affociation of. 
ideas. 
The difeafe, however, is by no means peculiar to the 
Swifs, or other mountaineers ; but occurs among a much- 
injured people, who have been fuppofed incapable of en¬ 
joying happinefs in their own way, or of feeling attach¬ 
ment to their country. “ Noftalgia, maladie du pays, or 
an ardent defire to revifit one’s native home,” Dr. Win- 
t.erbottom obfierves, “is a difeafe which aftefts the na¬ 
tives of Africa as ftrongly as it does thofe of Swifierland : 
it is even more violent in its effects on the Africans, and 
often impels them to dreadful acfts of filicide. Sometimes 
it plunges them into a deep and incurable melancholy, 
which induces the unhappy fufferers to end a miferable 
exiftence by a more tedious, though equally certain, me¬ 
thod, that of dirt-eating. No reader of fenfibility can 
perufe, without emotion, Haller’s impaflioned regret for 
the calm retreat of Kafel; but, even Haller’s glowing 
language appears cold and lifelefs, if compared with the 
agonizing expreflions of diftrefs poured out by the poor 
African, when, waking from the fleep in which delufive 
fancy had wafted him back to his friends and much-loved 
home, he finds only the cruel mockery of a dream.” 
Account of the Native Africans of Sierra Leone, vol. ii. 
p. 174. 
From our own feelings we may be convinced that the 
love of home is planted, for wife purpofes, in the breaft 
of almoft every human being, however uninviting that 
home may appear to others. We have given a very par¬ 
ticular inftance under the article North Polt, p. 172 of 
this volume. 
The fevere and confuming influence of this mental af- 
feition on the body, and the train of fymptoms, tending 
to fatal maralinus, which itinduces, if no.t interrupted, as 
NOS 
well as the fpeedy and not lefs remarkable corporeal 
amendment which the removal of the mental depreflton 
occafions, will be belt illuftrated by the relation of a cafe 
which occurred in this country. 
“In the year 1781,” fays Dr. Hamilton of Ipfwicb, 
“ while I lay in barracks at Tynemouth, in the north of 
England, a recruit, who had lately joined the regiment, 
(named Edwards,) was returned in the fick-lift, with a 
melfage from his captain, requelting I would take him 
into the hofpital. He had only been a few months a fol- 
dier, was young, handfome, and well-made for the fer- 
vice; but a melancholy hung over his countenance, and 
wannefs preyed on his cheeks. He complained of uni- 
verfal weaknefs, but no fixed pain ; a noife in his ears, 
and giddinefs in his head;.pulfe ratherflow than frequent, 
but fmall, and eafily compreffihle. His appetite was 
much impaired ; his tongue was fufficiently moift, and' 
his belly regular; yet he llept ill, and ftarted fuddenly- 
out of it, with uneafy dreams. He had little or no thirft. 
As there were little obvious fymptoms of fever, I did 
not well know what to make of the cafe. I fufpefted he 
might be under an incipient typhus, and ordered what L 
judged neceflary to obviate it. Some weeks pafled with 
little alteration either for better or worfe, excepting that 
he was evidently become more meagre. He fcarcely took 
any nourifhment, yet had hitherto fat up out of bed fome- 
hours every day. At length he became indolent, feldora 
fiat up at all, was conftantly dozing, yet his fieep never fo 
found but he could anfwer when fpoken to: he fighed 
deeply and frequently ; nor could his attention be directed- 
to any external objeft. Something, it would feem, hung 
heavy on his mind. He never had any cough ; yet, fince- 
he came into the houfe, he had wafted away confiderably. 
Exercife was recommended, and ufedas far as he could bo 
roufed to take it, which was never without reluctance. 
He was put on a courfeof ftrengthening-medicines, and 
wine was allowed him. All proved ineffectual. His pulfe 
had changed with his appearance, and was now' fmall and 
quick: an evident fever, of the heCljc kind, withan even¬ 
ing exacerbation, took place. He had now been in the- 
hofpital near three months, and was quite emaciated, and 
like one irt the laft ftage of a confumption. His eyes were 
grown hollow', cheeks prominent, nails incurvated, ad¬ 
nata pellucid ; and he was fo weak in his limbs, that he. 
could neither get in nor out of bed wdthout help. Of 
late, alfo, he had night-fweats. In fhort, I looked on him 
as loft. 
“On making my morning-vifit, and inquiring, as 
ufual, refpeCting his reft, of the nurfe, (he happened to 
mention the Itrong notions he had got in his head, (lie 
faid, of home, and of his friends. What he was able to 
fpeak was conftantly on this topic. This I had never 
heard before. The reafon fhe gave for not mentioning it 
w'as, that it appeared to her to be the common ravings of 
ficknefs and delirium. He had talked in the fame ftyle, 
it feems, more or lefs, ever fince he came into the hofpi¬ 
tal. I went immediately up to him, and introduced the 
fubjeft; and, from the alacrity with which he refumed it, 
(yet with a deep ligh, when he mentioned his never more- 
being able to fee his friends,) I found it a theme which 
much affefted him. He afked me, with earneftnefs, if I 
would let him go home. I pointed out to him how unfit 
he was, from his w'eaknefs, to undertake fuch a journey, 
(he was a Welfliman,) till once he was better; but pro- 
mifed him affuredly, that, as foon as he was able, he 
fliould have fix weeks to go home. He revived at the 
very thoughts of it. It feems, he had requefted leave to 
vifit his native place, foon after he joined ; but, being 
only a recruit, and but a few' months from thence, he was 
refufed. This had hung on his lpirits ever fince; and- 
from thence I now dated the origin of his illnefs. I en¬ 
treated him to take food,' to ftrengthen him for his jour-' 
ney; and, as foon as he was able, to go out into the open 
air a little every afternoon, when the weather would per¬ 
mit, that lie.might be the fooner able to go home. He 
liftened 
