M O Y 
conceived a diflike of that order, of which he gave oc- 
cafional tokens in his writings. He fat in parliament 
for the borough of Sal tafia in 1695 ; but, finding in him- 
feIf no difpoiition for public bulinefs, lie appears to have 
declined any attempts to renew his feat. Reluming 
his private ftudies, he tranflated, at the inftance of 
Dr. Charles Davenant, Xenophon’s Difcourfe upon im¬ 
proving the Revenues of Athens, which was prefixed 
to that writer's work upon the Trade and Revenues 
of England, publifhed in 1697. In this piece, he gave 
an example of his talents for hiftorical criticifm, by cor- 
refting the date of Xenophon’s death, given by Dio¬ 
genes Laertius. His intimacy with that eminent whig 
writer, Mr. Trenchard, led him to appear as his coadju¬ 
tor in “ An Argument againft a Standing Army,” the 
great obj eft at that time of the jealoully of the friends of 
liberty. In lupport of the fame caufe, Mr. Moyle pub- 
lilhed, in 1691,“ An Eli'ay on the Lacedemonian Govern¬ 
ment and, in 1699, “An Efi'ay upon the Conllitution 
of the Roman Government.” In both 'thefe he expofed 
the flavilh and intolerant tenets of the eftablilhed clergy, 
and argued in favour of univerfal toleration. His learn¬ 
ing and critical fagacity were afterwards exercifed in “ A 
Dilfertation upon the Age of Philopatris, commonly at¬ 
tributed to Lucian,” in which he introduced feventl cu¬ 
rious hiftorical and chronological refearches 5 and, find¬ 
ing occafion to advert to the life of the emperor Marcus 
Antoninus, he digrefl'ed to a confideration of the fup- 
pofed miracle of the thundering legion. In a mafterly 
dilcufllon of this fubjeft, he gave fitch a refutation of this 
legendary ftory as feems to have latisfied all unprejudiced 
enquirers. See Legion, vol. xii. p. 451. His ecclefiaf- 
tical ftudies alfo engaged him in a clofe examination of 
Dr. Prideaux’s Connedtion of the Old and New Telta- 
ment; and, foon after the appearance of that work, he en¬ 
tered into a correfpondence with the author, who was his 
relation, in which he correfted fome miftakes that he had 
obferved in it, and received the doftor’s thanks for his 
attention. 
Another literary correfpondence in which he engaged 
was with Dr. Mulgrave of Exeter, a learned phyfician 
4ind antiquary, relative to his treatife entitled “ Belgium 
Britannicum,” towards which he contributed feveral cu¬ 
rious particulars. He alfo extended his enquiries into 
the departments of natural hiftory, and collefted fome cu¬ 
rious birds for the cabinet of Dr. Tancred Robinfon, and 
fome rare plants for the herbarium of Dr. Sherard. But 
a delicate ftate of health prevented him froirrindulging 
his inclination in thefe purfuits, and confined him to in¬ 
door ftudies, in which he never remitted his afliduity. He 
died in 1721, in the fiftieth year of his age. His pofthu- 
ssous and unpublifhed works were given to the world in 
2 vols. 8vo. in 1726, by Thomas Serjeant, efq. They 
comprife the Effay on the Roman Conllitution, the Dil¬ 
fertation on Philopatris, Letters to Dr. Mufgrave, and to 
and from other perfons, Remarks on Prideaux’s Connec¬ 
tion, the Examination of the Miracle of the Thundering 
Legion, and other pieces. In order to render his works 
complete, his friend Anthony Hammond publifhed, in 
1727, a third volume, containing his writings printed 
during his lifetime. They rank him among the moll li¬ 
beral and learned fcholars of his age. Biog. Britan. Gen. 
Biog. 
MOY'NALTY, a fmalL poll-town of Ireland, in the 
county of Meath. It is fituated on the river Borora, and 
is thirty-five miles north by weft from Dublin, and four 
north from Kells. 
MOY'NE, a river of Ireland, which joins the river Clare 
fix miles fouth of Tuam. 
MOYOBAM'BA, a town of South America, on a river 
of the fame name, which runs into the Guallagua 300 
miles north of Lima. Lat. 7. S. Ion. 76. 56. W. 
MOYOM'BO, a town of Africa, in Congo: ten miles 
fouth-weft of Bombi. 
MOYOW'LA, a river of Ireland, which runs into 
M O 2 151 
Lough Neagh two miles eaft from Magherafelt, in the 
county of Londonderry. 
MOY'RANS, a town of France, in the department of 
the Jura : fix miles north-weft of St. Claude. 
MOYRA'ZES, a town of France, in the department of 
the Aveiron : nine miles weft of Rhodez. 
MOYS, a river of Aullria, which runs into the Danube 
two miles above Korn Neuburg. , 
MOYSICIEWIC'ZE, a town of Lithuania, in the pala¬ 
tine of Minik: iixty miles north-eaft of Minlk. 
MOZAI'SK, a town of Ruflia, in the government of 
Mofcow : fifty-fix miles weft of Mofcow. Lat. 56. 36. N. 
Ion. 35. 44. E. 
MOZAMBI'QUE, orMosAMEico, a kingdom of Africa, 
on the eaft coaft, and in that part of the Indian Sea which 
paffes between the continent and the illand of Madagafcar. 
It takes its name from the capital, fituated on an illand, 
chief of three iilands which form a part of the kingdom. 
The celebrated Vafco de Gama was the firft European we 
know of who dilcovered and came to an anchor near it, 
after doubling the Cape of Good Hope : here it was, that 
he informed himfelf about the main defign of his voyage, 
the finding out a way into India by fea, and concerning 
the people who lived on this coaft ; and here he was 
appriled of the vaft commerce carried on by them from 
one kingdom and feaport to another. Among other par¬ 
ticulars, he learned that this illand, lubjeft to the king of 
Quiloa, was one of the moll confiderable marts on all the 
eallern coaft ; that it lent fhips to Arabia, and many other 
parts of the world, and was reforted to by merchants from 
thence, who imported a variety of the richeft commodities 
in great quantities. The illand of Mofambico, though the 
largeft of the three, is neverthelefs very finall, not being 
above a quarter of a mile in breadth, and about two miles 
and a half in length. The bay is about three miles in 
circuit, lb that the points of land on each fide advance 
into the fea. The other two, of St. George and St. James, 
lie on each fide of it, facing the continent, in a direft line 
with it. Over againft that of St. George, and about a 
mile from it, is the cape called by the Portuguefe Cabo 
Ceiro, which is a peninfula, joined to the continent by a 
finall neck of land, covered with the fea at high, but 
fordable at low, water. 
The foil of the illand is nothing but a white barren 
fand; yet have the richer fort found means to procure an 
artificial mould on feveral parts of the illand, on which 
grow very fine citrons, oranges, ananas, figs, and other 
fruits, notwithllanding the great fcarcity of water; but 
the far greater part of their pulfe, roots, and other efcu- 
lents, are brought hither from the continent. It is far 
otherwife at land, where the ground is fat, and fertile in 
rice, millet, variety of roots, pulfe, fruits, and plants. 
They likewife breed vaft quantities of cattle, large and 
finall, particularly fheep with large tails. They fiwarm 
with wild beafts of various kinds, as Hags and wild boars, 
but efpecialiy elephants, which are fo fierce and deltrudtive, 
that the inhabitants are obliged to kindle large fires round 
their fovvn fields, to prevent their being devoured by them. 
Neither dare they ftir far from their homes without lighted 
torches or fire-brands in their hands to frighten them 
away ; and even with thefe they have much ado to lave 
themfelves from being deltroyed, efpecialiy by thofe of 
the females which have young. The country hath like- 
wife rich mines of gold, which is walked down by the 
rivers in great quantities, and makes a chief part of its 
commerce. Ivory, ebony, Haves, and cattle, are likewile 
exchanged for European goods, fuchas little bells,knives, 
fciflars, and razors. Thefe lalt were fo valued among 
them, that they would give fifteen cows for one of them. 
The Portuguefe, of whom they Hand in awe, are the only 
Europeans admitted into fome of their fea-ports, whence 
fhey export, befides the commodities already mentioned, 
lilver, copper, wax, rice, and other provifions; but to all 
other Europeans they refule every kind of accefs on any 
pretence. Lat. 15. 5. S. Ion. 41. 8. E. 
2 
Mr. 
