P I E 
they take their rife in the fame neighbourhood, and even 
within the fpace of a mile. The northern branch of St. 
Pierre flows from a number of lakes, near the Shining 
Mountains; and here alfo the river Bourbon, which dif- 
cliarges itfelf into Hudfon’s Bay, has its fource. The 
river St. Pierre, traverfing the country of the Naudo- 
weflies, pafles through a delightful country, abounding 
with the necefiaries of life, and capable of cultivation, 
fo as to afford its luxuries. Wild rice grows in abun¬ 
dance, and the trees are loaded with fruit, fuch as plums, 
grapes, and apples. The meadows are covered with hops, 
and many forts of vegetables ; whilff the foil produces 
many ufeful roots, angelica, fpikenard, and ground-nuts. 
PIERRE (St.), the chief town of Martinico. It was 
built in 1665, in order to overawe the mutineers of the 
ifland who rebelled againft its proprietors, the fecond 
Weft-India Company, who were at the fame time the 
proprietors of all the French Antilles. It is fituated on 
the w'eftern fide of the ifland. The town extends along 
the (hore, and a battery that commands the road is created 
on the weft fide, which is waffied by the river Royolan, 
or St. Peter. The town is divided into three wards ; 
the middle, which is properly St. Pierre, begins at the 
fort, and runs weftward to the battery of St. Nicholas. 
Under the walls of the fecond ward, fliips at anchor ride 
more fecurely than under the fort, on which account 
this ward is called the Anchorage. The third ward, 
called the Gallery, extends along the fea-fide from Fort 
St. Pierre to the Jefuits River, and is the molt populous 
part of the city. The houfes of St. Peter’s ward are 
neat, commodious, and elegant, particularly thofe of the 
governor of the ifland, the intendant, and the other offi¬ 
cers. The parifn-church of St. Pierre is a magnificent 
ftone building which belonged to the Jefuits, with a 
noble front of the Doric order. The church of the An r 
chorage, w'hich belongs to the Jacobine friars, is likewife 
of ftone. It is a place of confiderabie trade, and is built 
with tolerable regularity. The houfes are moftly con- 
ftrudted of a grey pumice-ftone, or lava, wdiich is found 
on the ftrand ; and the high ftreet is, according to Dr. 
Ifert, above an Engliffi mile in length. It is fuppofed to 
contain about 2000 houfes, and 30,000 inhabitants, inclu¬ 
ding negroes. See Martinico, vol.xiv. 
PIERRE (Cornelius de la), or, when Latinized, Cor¬ 
nelius a Lapide, a learned jefuit and celebrated Scrip¬ 
ture commentator, was born at a village in the diocefe of 
Liege, in the year 1566. He entered into the fociety of 
the jefuits at an early age ; and applied to his ftudies 
with fuch diligence and fuccefs, that he became diftin- 
guifned for the fuperiority of his accomplifliments as an 
orator, philofopher, divine, and hiftorian ; and more par¬ 
ticularly excelled in an acquaintance with the Greek and 
Hebrew languages. During twenty years he filled the 
chair of divinity and Hebrew profeffor at St. John’s 
college, in the univerfity of Louvain, with very high 
reputation; and he was then fent by his fuperiors to 
Rome, where he maintained his celebrity in the fame de¬ 
partments undiminifhed for twenty years longer. At 
length, the ftate of his health requiring a releafe from the 
fatigue of his public duties, he was permitted to with¬ 
draw into retirement. Here he entirely devoted himfelf 
to the ftudy of the Scriptures, and to the profecution of 
a defign on which he had been long occupied, at intervals, 
of writing Commentaries upon the facred books. This 
employment he diligently followed till his death in 1637, 
when he was about feventy-one years of age. He com¬ 
mented on the Old and New Teftamevt, excepting the 
Book of Job.and the Pfalms ; and his labours, though 
exceedingly diffufe, have undergone a prodigious num¬ 
ber of impreflions, at Antwerp, Paris, Lyons, Venice, and 
other places. Their contents, however, are not unfre- 
quently debafed by the intermixture of abfurd and trifling 
legendary tales, and other matter incongruous with the 
nature of fuch a work. The belt edition of thefe {< Com- 
R R E. 411 
menraries,” is that publiflied at Antwerp, in 1681, and 
following years, in 10 volumes folio. Gen. Biog. 
PIERRE (Jacques-Henri Bernardin de St.), an emi¬ 
nent French writer, was born in 1737 at Havre de Grace, 
where his parents, who w’ere in ealy circumftances, gave 
him a good education ; but he embarked, at the age of 
twelve years, for Martinique, under the protection of one 
of his uncles, who commanded a merchant-veflel. He 
foon returned, as he fays in one of his letters, “diflatis- 
fied with his relative, with the fea, and with that ifland.” 
He then refumed his ftudies, and continued them fuccef- 
fively at Gifors and at Rouen, under the jefuits. 
His parents fent him to Paris to the fchool of civil en¬ 
gineers, where he learned to draw plans, and became ac¬ 
quainted with mathematics. He then entered into a 
corps of military engineers, and in the following year 
went to Malta. He next offered his fervices to Peter III. 
but received intelligence of the revolutionwhich precipita¬ 
ted that unfortunate monarch from the throne. He never- 
thelefs purfued his journey, under the idea of finding the 
emprefs Catharine at Peterfburgh; but on his arrival in 
that city he learned that fbe was at Mofcow. He accor¬ 
dingly flew thither, and obtained a commiffion as lieu¬ 
tenant in the corps of engineers, pvhich he relinquiflied 
at the expiration of eighteen months. He then fet out 
for France by w'ay of Poland, which was then convulfed 
by civil wars. He joined the party protected by France, 
and was taken prifoner by the Ruffian party. Being re¬ 
leafed in a few days, he relided for forne time at Warfau'; 
then vifited Drefden, Berlin, and Vienna, with the inten¬ 
tion of entering into the fervice of fome foreign power ; 
but, being unable to make up his mind on the fubjeCt, 
he returned to Paris, and failed for the Ifle of France. 
There he remained twoyears; but the ordinary engineers, 
confidering him as an intruder, rendered his fituation 
extremely difagreeable; and St. Pierre, having quarrelled 
with them, folicited and obtained permiffion to return to 
France. 
Thus terminated his fruitlefs peregrinations and his 
military career, in which he invariably difplayed the dig¬ 
nity of character befitting an officer, and a courage fupe- 
rior to all events. At this period commenced his literary 
career. In 1773 he publiflied his “Voyage to the Ifle of 
France,” but without his name; the epoch of his fame 
had not yet arrived. Though he had attained the age of 
thirty-fix, his whole fortune confifted of a fmall penfion 
of a thoufand francs, given to him on his retirement from 
the army. Out of this fum, fcarcely adequate to fupply 
him with necefiaries, he allowed an annuity of 300 francs 
to his filler, and 100 to an old female fervant. Obliged 
to fubfift on 600 francs per annum, he meditated in 
filence, folitude, negleCt, and poverty, the admirable 
works which were deftined to eni’ure his reputation, and 
the materials for which his inquifitive mind had collected 
in the courfe of his various travels. 
The “ Studies of Nature” appeared at the end of 1784, 
when their author had attained the age of 47 years. Lil<e 
Rouffeau, his talents had no dawn, but fuddenly built 
forth in the full blaze of meridian fplendour; his book 
was univerfally read, notwithftanding the well-founded 
cenfures of fome natural philofophers, whole hoftility 
was roufed by his fyftems, and in fpite of the condemna¬ 
tion of a party exafperated by his doCtrines. The ge¬ 
neral voice of the public, and the applaule of perfons of 
tafte, drowned their murmurs ; new editions followed 
in rapid fucceffion ; the name of St. Pierre was enrolled 
among thofe of the belt writers of France, and thence¬ 
forward pinching poverty gave place to the comforts of 
honourable independence. Penfions and rewards now 
fought the man whom they had formerly (hunned. Louis 
XVI. fpontaneoufly appointed him intendant of the bota¬ 
nical garden, and mufeum of natural hiftory, with thefe 
words : “ I have read your book; it is the production of 
an honeft man, and in you I have provided a worthy fucr 
cefl’oir 
