P I N 
461 
P I N' 
PINE CREE'K, a townftiip of America, in Lycoming- 
county, containing 397 inhabitants. 
PINE I'SLAND, a fmall ifland in the gulf of Mexico, 
near the fouth coaft of Weft Florida. Lat. 30. 18. N. 
Ion. 88. 18. W. 
PINE RIV'ER, a river of America, which runs into 
lake Huron in lat. 4.5. 42. N. Ion. 84. 25. W.—Another, 
•which runs into the fame lake in lat. 44. 44. N. Ion. 80. 
26. W. ' 
PINE RIV'ER, a river of America, which runs into 
the Wabalhin lat. 40. 15. N. Ion. 87. 18. W. 
PI'NE-TREE. See Pinus. 
PI'NE-TREE, in geography. See Camden. 
PINE'A, f in botany. See Pinus. 
PINE'A, or Pig'ne, /. A term ufed in Peru and Chili, 
for a kind of light porous maffes, or lumps, formed of a 
mixture of mercury and filver-duft from the mines. _ The 
ore, or mineral, of filver, when dug put of the veins of 
the mine, is fir ft broken, and then ground in mills for the 
purpofe, driven by water, with iron peftles each of 200 
pounds weight. The mineral, when thus pulverized, is 
next fifted, and then worked up with water into a pafte; 
which, when half dry, is cut into pieces, called cuerpos, 
a foot long, weighing each about 2500 lbs. Each piece 
or cuerpo is again kneaded up with fea-falt, which, dif- 
fol.ving, incorporates with it. They then add mercury, 
from ten to twenty pounds for each cuerpo, kneading the 
pafte afrelh until the mercury be incorporated therewith. 
This office, which is exceedingly dangerous on account 
of the noxious qualities of the mercury, is always made 
the lot of the poor Indians. This amalgamation is con¬ 
tinued for eight or nine days; and fome add lime, lead, 
or tin ore, &c. to forward it 5 and, in fome mines, they are 
obliged to life fire. To try whether or not the mixture 
and amalgamation be fufficient, they wafli a piece in wa¬ 
ter; and, if the mercury be white, it is a proof that it 
has had its effeCt; if black, it muft be ftill farther worked. 
When finifhed, itisfentto thq lavatories, which are large 
bafons that empty fucceffively into one another. The 
pafte, Sec. being laid in the uppermoft of thefe, the earth 
is then wafiied from it into the reft by a rivulet turned 
upon it 5 an Indian, all the while, ftirring it with his 
feet, and two other Indians doing the like in the other 
bafons. When the water runs quite clear out of the ba¬ 
fons, the mercury and filver are found at bottom incorpo¬ 
rated. This matter they cell pella, and of this they form 
the pineas, by expreffing as much of the mercury as they 
can; firft, by putting it in woollen bags, and preffing and 
beating it ftrongly 5 then, by ftamping it in a kind of 
wooden mould, of an odiagonal form, at bottom whereof 
is a brafs plate pierced full of little holes. The matter, 
when taken out of the mould, is laid on a trivet, under 
which is a large veffel full of water; and, the whole being 
covered with an earthen head, a fire is made round it. 
The mercury ftill remains in the mafs, and is thus re¬ 
duced into fumes, and, at length condenfing, it is preci¬ 
pitated into the water, leaving behind it a mafs of filver 
grains of different figures, which, only joining or touch¬ 
ing at the extremes, render the matter very porous and 
light. This, therefore, is the pinea, or pigne, which the 
workmen endeavour to fell fecretly to veffels trading to 
the South Sea § and from which thofe, who have ven¬ 
tured to engage in fo dangerous a commerce, have made 
fucb vaft gains. Indeed the traders herein muft be very 
careful; for the Spaniffi miners are arrant knaves, and fo 
make the pignes weigh the more, they often fill the mid¬ 
dle with fand or iron. Chambers. 
PI'NEAL, adj. [pineale , Fr.] Refembling a pine-ap~ 
pie. An epithet given by Des Cartes, from the form, to 
that gland in the brain which he imagined the feat of the 
foul.—Courtiers and fpaniels exaCtly referable one ano¬ 
ther in the pineal gland. Arbuthnot and Pope. 
The hypothecs of Des Cartes, which affigns to the 
foul for its principal feat the pineal gland, or conation , is 
Vol.XX. No. 1382. 
known to every one who has perufed the Alma of Prior. 
It is not, perhaps, equally known, that the circumftance 
which determined him to fix on this particular fpot, was 
the very plaufible confideration, that, among the differ¬ 
ent parts of the brain, this was the only one he could 
find, which, being fingle and central, was fitted to the ha¬ 
bitation of a being of which he conceived unity and indi- 
vifibility to beeffential and obvious attributes. In what 
manner the animalfpirits, by their motions forwards and 
backwards in the nervous tubes, keep up the communi¬ 
cation between this gland and the different parts of the 
body, fo as to produce the phenomena of perception, me¬ 
mory, imagination, and mufcular motion, he has at¬ 
tempted particularly to explain; deferibing the proceffes 
by which thefe various effeCls are accomplilhed, with as 
decifive a tone of authority, as if he had been demonftra- 
ting experimentally the circulation of the blood. How 
curious to meet with fuch fpeculations in the works of 
the fame philofopher, who had fo clearly perceived the 
necelfity, in ftudying the laws of Mind, of abllraCling 
entirely from the analogies of Matter 5 and who, at the 
outfet of his inquiries, had carried his fcepticifm fo far, as 
to require a proof even of the exiftence of his own body ! 
To thofe, however, who reflect with attention on the 
method adopted by Des Cartes, this inconfiftency will not 
appear fo inexplicable as at firft fight may be imagined; 
inafmuch as the fame fcepticifm which led him to fufpend 
his faith in his intellectual faculties till he had once 
proved to his fatisfaClion, from the neceffary veracity of 
God, that thefe faculties were to be regarded as the di¬ 
vine oracles, prepared him, in all the fubfequent fteps of 
his progrefs, to liften to the fuggeftions of his own falli¬ 
ble judgment, with more than common credulity and 
confidence. See Defcartes De PaJJionibus, art. 31, 32. and 
the word Nullibism, in this work, vol. xvii. p. 290. 
PINEAU' (Severin), in Latin Pinceus, a furgeon and 
anatomift, born at Chartres in Beauce, fettled at Paris, 
where he became eminent in practice, particularly for 
lithotomy, which he performed by the high apparatus, 
after the inftru&ions of Colot. He had the title of Sur¬ 
geon to the King; and gave leClures in anatomy, which 
were attended by the men of letters, being delivered in 
Latin. He died in 1619. Pineau wrote a work on li¬ 
thotomy, entitled “ Difcours touchant l’Invention et In¬ 
struction pour l’Operation et Extraction du Calcul de la 
Veffie; Paris, 1610.” He was however more famous for 
his treatife on the marks of virginity, which, he compofed 
firft in French, and afterwards tranflated into Latin, as a 
language more proper for his fubjeCt. Its title is “ Opus 
phyfiologicum et anatomicum de Notis Virginitatis et 
corruptionis Virginum, et de Partu naturali; Paris, 1598, 
8vo.” frequently reprinted. Halleri Bill. Anat. et C/ii- 
rurg\ Eloi/. Di£l. Hijl. Med. 
PINEAU' (Gabriel du), a celebrated French lawyer, 
was the fon of an eminent advocate at Angers, where he 
was born in 1573. He praClifed firft at his native place, 
then at Paris, and afterwards was created by Mary de 
Medicis her mailer of requefts. In her differences with 
the court, fhe fought to fupport herfelf by his counfels; 
but, faithful to his fovereign, he continually advifed her 
to an accommodation, which was at length effected. 
By Louis XIII. he was nominated mayor and captain- 
general of Angers in 1632. The integrity and impartia¬ 
lity with which he performed the duties of his ftation, 
caufed him to be called the father of the people. His 
houfe was, at length, made a kind of academy, in which 
conferences were held on points of law for the inftruCtion 
of members of the profeffion, and others. He was exaCt 
in the performance of his religious duties, and exemplary 
in his conduCt. He died at the age of 71, in the year 
1644. His writings are, 1. Latin Notes on the Canon Law, 
in oppofition to thofe of Du Moulin. 2. A Latin Com¬ 
mentary on the Cuftom of Anjou. 3. Confultations on 
feveral important Queftions relative to the Cuftom of 
6 B Anjou, 
t 
