338 
O C H 
Ochota, whofe mouth is to the eaftward, or at the ex¬ 
tremity of a neck of land on which the town is built, and 
which wddens towards the weft. The buildings make but 
an indifferent appearance. Behind, clofe to the river, is a 
ftreet inhabited by merchants, whofe fliops are regularly 
diipofed on each-fide. The port fcarcely deferves the 
name. M. de Leffeps, when he vifited this place, counted 
feven or eight fmall veflels or galiots, fome belonging to 
the crown, and others to merchants trading in furs to 
America. As Ochotfk was the feat of government, and 
the principal mart for Ruffian commerce, this inquifitive 
traveller endeavoured to acquaint himfelfwith the caufes 
which firft gave rife to the enterprifes of the Ruffian co¬ 
lonies in that country, and which ferved to fix them in it. 
He found, that by the conqueft of the eaftern part of Si¬ 
beria the Ruffians got pofleffion of the mines, with which 
they enriched t'nemfelves, and which w»ere held in little 
eftimation by the inhabitants. To the extradtion of iron, 
the conquerors added that of filver, of gold, and of other 
precious metals. The difcoveryof thefe'fources of wealth 
inflamed the courage of the adventurers, till the defire of 
extending their dominions carried them to Irkutfk. At 
their firft incurfions into the neighbouring countries, 
they perceived with regret that the fame advantages w'ere 
not to be expected. However, contemplating the cloth¬ 
ing of the people, they were furnifhed with a new incen¬ 
tive to avarice, and determined to rob them of it; and, on 
advancing further to theeaft of Afia, it was perceived that 
the furs became more beautiful; and hence the Ruffians 
very eafily perfuaded themfelves, that it would conduce to 
their intereft to fubject every part of this vaft territory to 
their laws. Accordingly, they made themfelves mafters of 
the country as far as Ochotfk, and puflied their conquefts 
in the north to the river Anadyr. Forts were conftrudled, 
and towns built. The Ruffian merchants lent their fac¬ 
tors to Ochotfk, which, from the advantages of its fitna- 
tion, became the metropolis. The navigation, however, 
was little more than cruifing, and the veflels from Kamtf- 
chatka were chiefly galiots. The cargoes they brought 
back, that is, the precious ftones taken from the inhabi¬ 
tants, either in barter or as impcfts, were fent to the centre 
of the empire, and fold under the direction of govern¬ 
ment, but without much profit, which was confumed by 
the immenfe duties that were impofed. In the mean time 
Ochotfk flourifned, and the number of veflels that entered 
its port daily increafed, as frefh connections opened frefh 
objefts of traffic. The following is the mode of traffic 
adopted at Ochotfk, whence feveral veflels every year fail 
for America. When a merchant wifhes to make this voy¬ 
age, he obtains permiffion of the governor. The cargo 
is divided into (hares, which are bought by tbofe who 
choofe to becomepurchafers. The price of the fnares de¬ 
frays theexpenfe of fitting, and of the different articles of 
merchandife, which conlift of (luffs, iron utenfils, glafs 
trinkets, handkerchiefs, brandy, tobacco, and other com¬ 
modities efleemed by favages. The officers and failors 
have a part of the cargo inltead of wages. Upon their re¬ 
turn from a voyage, which lafts from three to fix years, 
the owners pay duties to the treafury, and the remainder 
is valued, and equally divided among the owners. A part 
of the merchandife is then fent to Ochotfk, and part to 
Yakutfk, thence to Irkutfk, and laft of all to Kiachta, 
where the Chinefe become the purchafers. PeronJ'e's Voy¬ 
age, vol. ii. Appendix. 
' OCHOT'SK MOUNTAINS, a great chain, known 
under the name of Stanovoi-Krebei, which borders upon 
the Nertfhinlkoi, or upon the Yablonoi-Krebet, near the 
region of the fources of the Aldan and Oldekon, runs 
thence on one fide northward on the Lena down to Ya- 
kutlk, and on the other fide wePcward to the Oudinfkoi 
Gulf of the Ochotfkoe Sea, which fwarms with iflands ; 
proceeds round this to the Upper Ochotfk, and rtrikes 
out feveral branches in the parts between the Lena and 
the Indighirka, between this and the Kolyma, and be¬ 
tween this and the Anadyr, wherea part of the mountain 
O C II 
runs out upon the Tfhutfkoi Promontory, while the other 
continues its courfe into the peninfula of Kamtfchatka. 
All thefe extenfive mountains arealmoft entirely unknown. 
From the diftridt of Ochotfk have been brought jafper, 
porphyry, and beautiful chalcedonies and carneoles, ful- 
phur-pyrites, native alum, agaricus aluminaris, moun- 
tain-cryftal, coals, &c. and here are likewife warm fprings. 
The mountain is, for the molt part, not very abundant in 
woods. Its principal rivers, on the Ruffian or northern 
fide, are the Amga, the Aldan, the Uda, the Maia, the 
Yana, the Indighirka, the Kolyma, and the Anadyr. 
OCHOT'SKOE SE'A, a large bay of the North Pacific 
Ocean, on the eaft coalt of the Ruffian dominions ; fo 
called from the feaport of Ochotfk. Lat. 54. to 59. N. 
Ion. 137. to 147. E. 
O'CHRE, f. Gr. perhaps from pale.]— 
The earths diftinguifhed by the name of oc/tres are tbofe 
which have rough or naturally-dufty furfaces, are but 
(lightly coherent in their texture, and are compofed of 
fine and foft argillaceous particles, and are readily diffu- 
fible in water. They are of various colours ; fuch as red, 
yellow, blue, green, black. Hill's Mat. Med. —See the ar¬ 
ticle Mineralogy, vol. xv. p. 454. 
O'CHREOUS, adj. Confiding of ochre.—In the inter¬ 
faces of the flakes is a grey, chalky, or ochreous, matter. 
Woodward on FofJUs. 
O'CKREY, adj. Partaking of ochre.—This is convey¬ 
ed about by the water ; as we find in earthy, ochrey, and 
other loofe, matter. Woodward. 
OCHRO'MA, f. [fo named by Swartz, from the Gr. 
P a ^ e > in allufion to the pallid hue of its flowers, 
leaves, and wool of its feeds.] In botany, a genus of the 
clafs monadelphia, order pentandria, natural order of co- 
lumniferse, (malvaceas, Juff.) Generic charadters—Calyx: 
perianthium double ; outer three-leaved ; leaflets lanceo¬ 
late, caducous ; inner one-leafed, funnel-form, five-cleft 
Corolla : petals five, wedge-form, coriaceous. Stamina : 
filament one, cylindric ; antherse five, large, linear, con¬ 
nate, creeping up and down. Piftillum : germen fupe- 
rior, oblong; ftyle filiform, covered with the cylinder of 
ftamens; ftigmas five, awl-lhaped, wide, contorted. Pe- 
ricarpium : capfule coriaceous, fubcylindric, five-grooved, 
commonly ten-cornered, five-celled, five-valved ; valves 
woolly within, rolled back at the edge ; partitions kid- 
ney-form. Seeds: very many, oblong.— Ejfential Character. 
Calyx double; outer three-leaved ; antherse connate, an- 
fradluofe; capfule five-celled, many-feeded. 
Ochroma lagopus, the down-tree, a Angle fpecies: the 
trunk is from twenty to forty feet in height, about twelve 
inches in diameter, eredt, with a pale afh-coloured brittle 
bark. Leaves more than a foot in length, terminal, nearly 
vertical, fcattered, heart-fliaped or roundifh, angulated, 
fmooth and dark-green above, pale underneath, with ru- 
fefcent hairs. Stalks horizontal, as long again as the 
leaves, round, rufty-coloured. Flower-ftaiks terminal, 
folitary, round, fmooth, fiugle-flowered; flowers eredt, 
three orfour inches long, pale red oryellowiih, fomewhat 
fucculent and fleftiy. Seeds inclofed in a fine rufty down. 
Found in wafte places on the hills of Jamaica and Hifpa- 
niola, where its beautiful flowers expand in February.and 
its capfules ripen in May. It flowered in great perfection, 
a few years fince, in the (love of A. B. Lambert, elq. 
V. P L.S. at Boyton in Wiltfhire. 
The growth of this tree is laid to be very rapid, and its 
wood fo light as to become a fubftitute for cork. The 
vroollinefs of its feeds is particularly fine and filky, and i-s 
much ufed in the manufacture of fine hats. 
OCHRO'SIA, f. in botany; [fo called by Juffieu, from 
the Gr. pale.] A fhrub found by Comnieribn in 
the Ifle of Bourbon, where it is known by the name of 
boisjaiine , or yellow-wood. The leaves are three or four 
in a whorl ; flowers in axillary or terminal forked co¬ 
rymbs"; calyx minute, five-toothed ; corolla tubular, 
funnel-fhape-d ; its limb in five deep fpreading fegments ; 
ftyle one; ftigma tumid; follicles divaricated, drupa¬ 
ceous, 
