M U S 
M U S 
405 
ftenda: leaves ovate, acute 5 flowers terminal, in denfe 
round heads; corolla flightly downy at the outfide. Ga¬ 
thered by M. Richard at Guiana. 
The feven laft fpecies are from Lamarck; but it will be 
evident to the botanical reader, that they have not the 
genuine charadter of Muffaenda. 
12. Muflaenda formofa. 7 c „ 
13. Muflaenda fpinofa. i See Garden * a ’ 
MUSSALE'E, a town of Hindooftan, in the Carnatic : 
iixteen miles weft-north-weft of Tritchinopoli. 
MUSSA'ON, a town of Hindooftan, in Baglana : thir¬ 
ty-three miles fouth of Damaun. 
MUSSA'RA, a town of Bengal: fifty miles north-weft 
of Midnapour. 
MUSSA'TO (Albertino), an early Italian poet and 
hiftorian, was born of poor parents at Padua in 1261. 
He fupported himfelf in his younger days by copying 
books for fcholars ; and afterwards became notary and 
pleader of caufes, in which employments he obtained fo 
much reputation, that about his thirty-fifth year he was 
made a knight, and was admitted into the public council. 
When the emperor Henry VII. received the iron crown 
at Milan in 1311, Muflato was one of the Paduans de¬ 
puted to aflift at the folemnity. He was afterwards fent 
to treat with the fame emperor concerning the liberty of 
his countrymen ; and, although the conditions he, with 
his fellow-deputy, fir ft brought back, gave fo much 
diffatisfadtion, that the Paduans determined to vindicate 
their rights by arms, yet, upon cooler confideration, they 
again had recourfe to negotiation by means of Muflato 
and other ambafladors. Their efforts were fo fuccefsful, 
that the emperor granted peace to Padua on moderate 
terms ; and the ambafladors on their return were received 
as faviours of their country. In 1312 he was again de¬ 
puted to Henry on public bufinefs, which he brought to 
the defired iffue. The appointment of Can Grande, who 
was much hated by the Paduans, to the vicariate of the 
empire in Italy, occafioned fuch a flame, that the peace 
was foon broken.; and Muflato, though he had endea¬ 
voured to prevent this breach, took up arms in the caufe 
of his country. The emperor died in 1313, but the war 
with Can Grande continued ; and in the mean time a 
fedition broke out in Padua, in which the populace were 
incited to attack the houfe of Muflato, who was obliged 
to fly in order to fave himfelf. The fedition was how¬ 
ever appeafed by the death of its author, and Muflato 
was honourably recalled. In 1321, be went into Ger¬ 
many on an embaffy to Frederic duke of Auftria, whom 
the Paduans eledted as their lord, in order to induce him 
to defend them againft the continued affaults of Can 
Grande. He again vifited Germany in 1.324; but, in the 
mean time party-tumults revived in Padua, fo that he 
was afraid to return, and remained at Vicenza. Whilft 
he continued there he was involved in a charge of fedi¬ 
tion brought againft his brother, his fon, and others of 
his party, and was fentenced to be baniflied to Chiozza. 
'There he refided till death, in June 1329, at the age of 
feventy, doled the varied feries of his fortunes. His re¬ 
mains were foine time after removed to Padua; 
Muflato, before he had become of confequence as a 
public character, had diftinguifhed himfelf among the 
poets of the age; and in 1314 Jie received the honour 
then occafionally conferred upon poetical eminence, that 
of the laurel crown, which was placed upon his head in 
great ceremony at Padua, in prefence of the whole uni- 
verfity, and a vaft crowd of fpedtators. The fenate fur¬ 
ther decreed, that on every anniverfary of this folemnity 
the univerfity fhould go in a body to the houfe of Muflato 
with prefents, and that fome of his compofitions fhould 
be publicly recited. 
The profe-works of Muflato confift of fixteen books 
De Geftis Henrici VII. Imperatoris ; twelve Books De 
Geftis Italicorum poll: Henricum VII. (of thefe laft, how¬ 
ever, three are in hexameter verfe;) and De Ludovici 
Bavari Geftis Liber. He wrote aJfo, De Natura et For- 
Vo*L. XVI. No. 1122. 
tuna, De Cafibus Fortunas, De Vita et Morilms fuis Li- 
brum Singulum ; but this laft remains inedited. Of his 
poetry we have two Latin tragedies : 1. Ecerinis, on the 
fate of Ecerinus, a tyrant of Verona ; 2. Achilleis; both 
written on the plan of the Greek drama, and in imita¬ 
tion of Seneca, and the earlieft fpecimens in this kind 
of compofition in the interefting period of the revival of 
letters. Alfo Epiftles, Elegies, Eclogues, Hymns, &e. 
Among his inedited poems are mentioned his Priapeia, 
fupprelfed by the prudence of the editors of his works. 
The Latinity of Muflato is refpedtable, confidering 
the age in which he wrote; that his ftyle is fometimes 
harfli and obfcure, or his poetry occafionally defedtive in 
quantity, is not furpriiing. To cenfure him for wanting 
the purity and precifion of the Auguftan age, or that of 
Leo X. were as abfurd as to expedt the earlieft dawn to 
beam with meridian fplendour. He certainly made one 
of the earlieft and moft vigorous efforts to recal the Latin 
Mufes from their long exile, and his works deferve more 
attention than they have hitherto met with. Warton ob- 
ferves, in his Hiftory of Englilh Poetry, vol. ii. p. 409. that; 
the name and writings of Muflato were hardly known 
until they were brought forward to the public notice in 
the Effay on Pope. As an hiftoriographer, his character, 
for fidelity and veracity, ftands very high ; and his liifto- 
rical books are valuable as furnifhing the beft account of 
the times and tranfadtions of which they treat. He .was 
eminently qualified, by the high ftations which he filled, 
for an hiftorian, being prefent, and frequently prefiding, 
in the affairs which he relates. To his diligence Petrarch 
bears teftimony, who ftyles him “ Rerum fatis anxius 
perquifitor.” He has recorded with freedom and impar¬ 
tiality, events disfigured or fupprefled by other hiftorians; 
and the jealoufy of the Italians has led them to caftrate 
his works, by tearing out often five pages, fo that it is rare 
to meet with a perfedt copy of them. The only edition 
of the works of Muflato, was printed at Venice, 1636, 
in folio, with notes by Ofius and Pignorius ; who, how¬ 
ever, both died, being infedted with the plague, fome 
time before it was publifhed : hence their notes are in¬ 
complete. His hiftorical works, with fome additions 
from manufcripts, with his Latin tragedies, may be found 
in Muratori’s Rerum Italicarum Scriptores. Monthly 
Mug. Dec. 1810. 
MUSSAX'O CO'SA, a town of Afiatic Turkey, in the 
province of Diarbekir : forty miles fouth-weft of Tecrit. 
MUSSCH'ENBROECK. See Muschenbroeck, p. 258. 
MUS'SEL, f. MuJ'vle, the fliell-fifti, is fometimes fo 
written. Todd. 
MUSS'ELBURGH, a fea-port town and borough, 
fituated on the louthern coaft of the Frith of Forth,"iq 
the county of Midlothian, Scotland, derived its name 
from an extenfive mufcle-bank, which lies in the fea be¬ 
low the town, and was probably the caufe of its early 
population. This place may be faid to confift of three 
villages. On the eaft fide of the river Elk, and near to 
the ill ore, ftands Mujfelburgh , properly fo called, con lift¬ 
ing of a broad well-paved ftreet, with fome adjoining lanes. 
The houfes here are moftly two or three ftories high, and 
are all built of ftone, and covered with dates or tiles. 
Above Muflelburgh, more inland, but connedted with is 
by detached houfes, is the village and church of Inverejh, 
which gives name to the parifti; and along the ihore, on 
the weftern bank of the Elk, is the village of Fijherrow. 
This laft is upwards of half a mile in length; and here 
the only port or harbour belonging to the town is fituated. 
Muflelburgh is a very ancient borough of .regality, and 
was once named Muffelbwghjhire. Before the reforma¬ 
tion it belonged to the abbacy of Dunfermline, but was 
taken from it by king James VI. who gave the fuperiority 
of it to the earl, afterwards duke, of Lauderdale. In 
this family it remained till 1709, when it was purchafed 
by the ducliefs of Monmouth and Buccleugh. It is now 
held by the duke of Buccleugh as lord fuperior of the 
regality j and pays annually to that nobleman certain 
5 ^ fonts. 
