S P I 
of the fault, but of the repulse, she did thirst for a revenge. 
Sidney. 
Begone, ye critics, and restrain your spite, 
Codrus writes on, and will for ever write. Pope. 
SPITE of, or In Spite of. Notwithstanding; in defiance 
of. It is often used without any malignity of meaning. 
I’ll guard thee free, 
And save thee in her spite. Chapman. 
In spite of me I love, and see too late 
My mother’s pride must find my mother’s fate. Dry den. 
To SPITE, v. a. To mischief; to treat maliciously; to 
vex; to thwart malignantly. 
I’ll sacrifice the lamb that I do love, 
To spite a raven’s heart within a dove. Skakspeare. 
To fill with spite ; to offend.—Darius spited at the magi, 
endeavoured to abolish not only their learning but their 
language. Temple. 
SPITEFUL, ad/. Malicious; malignant.—Contempt is 
a thing made up of an undervaluing of a man, upon a belief 
of his utter uselessness, and a spiteful endeavour to engage 
the rest of the world in the same slight esteem of him. 
South. 
SPITEFULLY, adv. Maliciously; malignantly. 
At last she spitefully was bent 
To try their wisdom’s full extent. Swift. 
SPITEFULNESS, s. Malice; malignity ; desire of vex¬ 
ing.—It looks more like spitefulness and ill-nature, than a 
diligent search after truth. Keil. • 
SPITHEAD, a noted roadstead for shipping in the 
English Channel, situated between Portsmouth and the Isle 
of Wight, directly facing Portsmouth harbour. It is about 
20 miles in extent, and is said to be capable of holding 
1000 vessels in great security. It is the usual rendezvous of 
the British navy in time of war. The depth of water at low 
tide is from 10 to 16' fathoms. It was here that took place 
the unfortunate shipwreck of the Royal George, which 
suddenly went to the bottom, with 600 persons on board, 
including the Admiral Kempenfelt. 
SPITHEAD CREEK, a river of the western territory of 
America, which runs into the Ohio. Lat. 39. 56. N. long. 
80. 46. W. 
SPITTED, adj. Shot out into length.—Whether the 
head of a deer, that by age is more spitted, may be brought 
again to be more branched. Bacon. 
SPI'TTER, s. One who puts meat on a spit; one who 
spits with his mouth. Huloet. —A young deer. Barret. 
SPITTLE, j, [corrupted from hospital, says Johnson.— 
Mr. Gifford denies that spittle means generally an hospital 
or almshouse; and says that, with our ancestors, it had an 
appropriate signification, viz.: a lazar-house, a receptacle for 
wretches in the leprosy, and other loathsome diseases, the 
consequences of debauchery and vice.] It is still retained in 
Scotland. 
To the spittle go. 
And from the powdering-tub of infamy 
Fetch forth the lazar kite of Cressid’s kind. Shakspeane. 
SPITTLE, s. [rpacl, Saxon.] Moisture of the mouth. 
The saliva or spittle is an humour of eminent use. Ray .— 
The spittle is an active liquor, immediately derived from the 
arterial blood : it is saponaceous. Arbuthnot. 
SPITTLE, a hamlet of England, in Cheshire; 5 miles 
north-east of Great Neston. 
SPITTLEGATE, a hamlet of England, in Lincolnshire, 
adjacent to Grantham. Population 538. 
SPI'TTLY, adj. Slimy; full of spittle. Unused. 
SPI'TVENOM, s. Poison ejected frpm the mouth.—The 
spitvenom of their poisoned hearts breaketh out to the annoy¬ 
ance of others. Hooker. 
SPITZ, a small, town of Austria, on the Danube; 10 
miles above Krems. It is built round a hill, the top of 
which is planted with vines. Population 900. 
' S P I 483 
SPITZBERGEN, or East Greenland, a group of 
islands in the Northern Ocean, formerly supposed to make 
part of the continent, and distinguished by the name of 
East Greenland. They are situated between 76. 46. and 
80. 30. N. lat. and between 9. and 20. E. long. This land 
was discovered by Sir Hugh Willoughby, in the year 1553, 
who called it Greenland; supposing it to be a part of the 
western continent. In 1595, it was again visited by Wil¬ 
liam Barentz and John Cornelius, two Dutchmen, who 
pretended to be the original discoverers, and called the 
country Spitzbergen, or Sharp Mountains, from the many 
sharp pointed and rocky mountains with which it abounds. 
They alleged that the coast discovered by Sir Hugh Wil¬ 
loughby was some other country; which accordingly the 
Hollanders delineated on their maps and charts by the name 
of Willoughby Land; whereas in fact no such land ever 
existed; and long before the voyage of these Dutchmen, 
Stephen Barrows, an English shipmaster, had coasted along 
a desolate country from Lat. 78. to 80. 11. N. which was 
undoubtedly Spitzbergen. The sea in the neighbourhood 
of Spitzbergen abounding in whales, this country has been 
long the common resort of the whale fishing ships from 
different countries. But, till the voyage of Captain Phipps 
in 1773, the situation of the country was erroneously laid 
down. It was imagined that the land stretched to the north¬ 
ward as far as Lat. 82. N.; but Captain Phipps found the 
most northerly point of land, called Seven Islands, not to 
exceed 80. 30. N. lat. Towards the east he saw other lands 
lying at a distance, so that Spitzbergen plainly appeared to 
be surrounded by water on that side, and not joined to the 
continent of Asia, as former navigators had supposed. The 
north and west coasts also he explored, but was prevented 
by the ice from sailing so far to the northward as he wished. 
The coast appeared neither habitable nor accessible. It is 
formed of high, barren, black rocks, without the least marks 
of vegetation ; in many places bare and pointed ; in others 
covered with snow, appearing even above the clouds. The 
valleys between the high cliffs were filled with snow and ice. 
“ This prospect,” says Captain Phipps, “ would have sug¬ 
gested the idea of perpetual winter, had not the mildness of 
the weather, the smooth water, bright sunshine, and constant 
daylight, given a cheerfulness and novelty to the whole of 
this romantic scene.” The current ran along this coast half 
a knot an hour north. There is good anchorage in Schmee- 
renburgh harbour, lying in Lat. 74. 44. N. Long. 9. 50. 
45. E. in 13 fathoms, sandy bottom, not far from the shore, 
and well sheltered from all winds. Close to this harbour is 
an island called Amsterdam island, where the Dutch used 
formerly to boil their whale-oil; and the remains of some 
conveniency erected by them for that purpose are still visible. 
The Dutch ships, excepting in time of war, still resort to 
this place for the later season of the whale fishery. The 
rocks about this place are chiefly a kind of marble or lime, 
stone. No appearances of metals were observed, nor any 
signs of ancient or modern volcanoes. No insects, or any 
species of reptiles, were seen, not even the common earth¬ 
worm. There were no springs or rivers; but great plenty 
of water was produced from the snow which melted on the 
mountains. In the valleys are found some plants, and some 
curious birds. The foxes are like those of Greenland ; the 
bears are of a different species. On the coasts are found 
whales, sea-dogs, sea-cows, and sea-lions, with other marine 
and amphibious animals. These islands are totally uninha¬ 
bited, though it doth not appear but that human creatures 
could subsist on them, notwithstanding their vicinity to the 
pole. Eight English sailors, who were accidentally left 
here by a whale-fishing ship, survived the winter, and were 
brought home next season. The Dutch; next attempted to 
settle a colony on Amsterdam island above-mentioned; but 
this attempt proved unsuccessful; all the people who were 
settled in this desolate region having perished. 
SPIXWORTH, a parish of England, in Norfolk ; 4 \ 
miles north-by-east of Norwich. 
SPIZLIBERG, a very high mountain of the Alps, in the 
Swiss 
