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it. was kept dry, and regularly supplied with clean sweet food, and a due regard to the cleanliness of the boxes or places of confinement.

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"Twelve or fifteen pair of these valuable animals taken to Upper Canada, and there enclosed within a small of ground suitable to their nature, but furnished with a few artificial burrows at the first by way of a nursery, spread over those now useless plains, islands, and peninsulas, so well calculated to their nature, would, I will make bold to say, the eighth year after their introduction, furnish the British market with a valuable raw material, amounting to a large sum, increasing every year with astonishing rapidity, so as to become, in a few years, one amongst the first of national objects.

"It may be supposed by some, that the above project is magnified beyond possibility, or even probability; but the serious attention I have paid to the subject, these many years past, as to all points for and against, leaves no room to accuse myself of being too sanguine; for, if properly managed a few years at the first, I cannot find a single thing likely to interrupt their progress.

"Some idea of the astonishing increase of the rabbit may be had from the following facts:

"An old doe rabbit will bring forth young nine times in one year, and from four to ten each time; but to allow for casualties, state the number at five each litter.

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"The third female race of the old dam, and the second of the first litter, seldom breed the first year, but are early breeders in the spring following, when we might expect an increase of the whole in proportion to the first pair, if properly attended to and protected.

"It is generally allowed that hares are not more than one-fourth as prolific as rabbits, notwithstanding, agreeable to an experiment tried by Lord Ribblesdale, who enclosed a pair of hares for one year, the offspring was (as I have been credibly informed) 68: these animals, could they be exported to Upper Canada with safety, and there protected within enclosures for a few years, would soon after spread over a large extent of country: the fur is nearly as valuable as that of the rabbit.

"In that part of Upper Canada within the 45 degrees of north latitude, and the southern and western boundaries, the climate is nearly the same as that of England, a little hotter a few days in summer, and a little colder a few days in winter, agreeable to Fahrenheit's thermometer, which I have paid great attention to for some years, comparing the same with the observations of the English

"The increase of most animals appears much greater in proportion in America than in England, mankind not excepted: that of sheep is very apparent to those that pay attention to their breeding stock, which gives

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me hopes, that in a few years we shall be able to pay Rabbit for our woollen cloths in wool. Finding the effect of soil and climate so salutary to sheep, &c. it may be reasonably supposed, that rabbits will answer the most sanguine expectations, as I understand the wool of the sheep retains all its nature the same as in England, particularly its strength, and felting qualities among the hatters, which assures me that rabbit wool from those bred in Upper Canada will do the same; and there are some millions of acres within the latitude and boundaries which I have before described, suited to the nature of the warren rabbit; nor do I apprehend that the wolves, foxes, &c. of Upper Canada will be half so destructive as the poachers in England.

"The guanaco, or camel sheep of South America, no doubt will be a national object at some future period. This is a tame, domestic animal, very hardy, and used with much cruelty by the natives in travelling over the mountains with their burdens; it shears a fleece of wool of from 2lb. to 3lb. which is of dusky red on the back; on the sides inclined to white, and under the belly quite white; its texture is very fine, yet strong; its felting qualities very powerful, and is worth, when ready for use, from five to fifteen shillings per pound. This animal would no doubt thrive, and do well in England, Upper Canada, and in particular I should suppose in New Holland.

"The beaver might be propagated to great advantage in Scotland, Ireland, and northern parts of England. It is an animal, when tamed, very familiar, and will eat bread and milk, willow-sticks, elm bark, &c. and no doubt might be imported with safety; but as these two last-mentioned animals are not likely to be attended to immediately, I shall say no more respecting them for the present*." * Trans. of RABIRIUS, C. a Roman knight, who lent an im- Soc for ea mense sum of money to Ptolemy Auletes king of Egypt, courageThe monarch afterwards not only refused to ment of him, repay Arts, &c. but even confined him, and endangered his life. Rabifor 1807. rius escaped from Egypt with difficulty; but at his return to Rome he was accused by the senate of having lent money to an African prince for unlawful purposes. He was ably defended by Cicero, and acquitted with difficulty. There was a Latin poet of the same name in the age of Augustus. He wrote a poem on the victory which the emperor had gained over Antony at Actium. Seneca has compared him to Virgil for elegance and majesty; but Quintilian is not so favourable to his poetry. And there was an architect in the reign of Domitian called Rabirius. He built a celebrated palace for the emperor, of which the ruins are still seen at Rome.

RACCOON. See URSUS, MAMMALIA Index. RACE, in general, signifies running with others in order to obtain a prize, either on foot, or by riding on horseback, in chariots, &c.

The race was one of the exercises among the ancient Grecian games, which was performed in a course containing 125 paces; and those who contended in these foot-races were frequently clothed in armour. Chariot and horse races also made a part of the ancient games.

Races were known in England in very early times, Fitz Stephen, who wrote in the days of Henry II. mentions the great delight that the citizens of London

took

Race,

took in the diversion. But by his words, it appears not Racine. to have been designed for the purposes of gaming, but merely to have sprung from a generous emulation of showing a superior skill in horsemanship.

Races appears to have been in vogue in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and to have been carried to such excess as to injure the fortunes of the nobility. The famous George earl of Cumberland is recorded to have wasted more of his estate than any of his ancestors, and chiefly by his extreme love to horse-races, tiltings, and other expensive diversions. It is probable that the It is probable that the parsimonious queen did not approve of it; for races are not among the diversions exhibited at Kennelworth by her favourite Leicester. In the following reign, places were allotted for the sport. Croyden in the south, and Garterly in Yorkshire, were celebrated courses. Camden also says, that in 1607 there were races near York, and the prize was a little golden bell. See RACING. RACE, in genealogy, a lineage or extraction continued from father to son. See DESCENT.

RACINE, JOHN, a celebrated French poet, member of the French academy, treasurer of France in the generality of Moulins, and a secretary to his majesty, was born at Ferre Milon in 1639. He had a fine genius for the belles lettres, and became one of the first poets of the age. He produced his Thebaide when but very young, and afterward other pieces, which met with great success, though they appeared when Corneille was in his highest reputation. In his career, however, he did not fail to meet with all that opposition which envy and cabal are ever ready to set up against a superior genius. It was partly owing to chagrin from this circumstance that he took a resolution to quit the theatre for ever; although his genius was still in full vigour, being not more than 38 years of age. But he had also imbibed in his infancy a deep sense of religion; and this, though it had been smothered for a while by his connections with the theatre, and particularly with the famous actress Champmelle, whom he greatly loved, and by whom he had a son, now at length broke out, and bore down all before it. In the first place, he resolved not only to write no more plays, but to do a rigorous penance for those he had written; and he actually formed a design of becoming a Carthusian friar. His religious director, however, a good deal wiser than he, advised him to think more moderately, and to take measures more suit. ably to his character. He put him upon marrying, and settling in the world: with which proposal this humble and tractible penitent complied; and immediately took to wife the daughter of a treasurer of France for Amiens, by whom he had seven children.

as many have asserted, has not been published. Too Racine,
great sensibility, say his friends, but more properly an Racing
impotence of spirit, shortened the days of this poet.—
Though he had conversed much with the court, he had
not learned the wisdom, which is usually learned there,
of disguising his real sentiments. Having drawn up a
well-reasoned and well-written memorial upon the mise-
ries of the people, and the means of relieving them, he
one day lent it to Madame de Maintenon to read; when
the king coming in, and demanding what and whose it
was, commended the zeal of Racine, but disapproved
of his meddling with things that did not concern him,
and said with an angry tone, "Because he knows how
to make good verses, does he think he knows every
thing? And would he be a minister of state, because
he is a great poet?" These words hurt Racine greatly:
he conceived dreadful ideas of the king's displeasure;
and his chagrin and fears brought on a fever, of which
he died the 22d of April 1699.

The king, who was sensible of his great merit, and always loved him, sent often to him in his illness; and finding after his death that he had more glory than riches, settled a handsome pension upon his family.-There is nothing in the French language written with more wit and elegance than his pieces in prose. Besides his plays, several of his letters have been published; he also wrote spiritual songs, epigrams, &c. Racine's works were printed at Amsterdam in 1722, in 2 vols 1 2mo, and the next year a pompous edition was printed in 2 vols quarto.

RACING, the riding beats for a plate, or other pre-
mium. See PLATE. The amusement of horse-racing,
which is now so common, was not unknown among the
great nations of antiquity, nor wholly unpractised by our
ancestors in Britain, as we have already mentioned in
the article RACE. In 1599, private matches between
gentlemen, who were their own jockies and riders, were
very common; and in the reign of James I. public races
were established at various places, when the discipline,
and mode of preparing the horses for running, &c. were
much the same as they are now. The most celebrated
races of that time were called bell-courses, the prize of
the conqueror being a bell: hence, perhaps, the phrase
bearing the bell, when applied to excellence, is derived.
In the latter end of Charles I.'s reign, races were per-
formed in Hyde Park. Newmarket was also a place for
the same purpose, though it was first used for hunting.
Racing was revived soon after the Restoration, and
much encouraged by Charles II. who appointed races
for his own amusement at Dachet Mead, when he resided
at Windsor. Newmarket, however, now became the
principal place. The king attended in person, establish-
ed a house for his own accommodation, and kept and
entered horses in his own name.
OC-
Instead of bells, he
gave a silver bowl or cup value 100 guineas; on which
prize the exploits and pedigree of the successful horse
were generally engraved. Instead of the cup or bowl,
the royal gift is now a hundred guineas. William III.
not only added to the plates, but even founded an aca-
demy for riding; and Queen Anne continued the bound-
ty of her ancestors, adding several plates herself. George
I. towards the end of his reign, discontinued the plates,
and gave in their room a hundred guineas. An act
was passed in the 13th year of the reign of George II.
for suppressing races by poneys and other small and weak

He had been admitted a member of the French academy in 1673, in the room of La Mothe le Vayer deceased; but spoiled the speech he made upon that casion by pronouncing it with too much timidity. In 1677, he was nominated with Boileau, with whom he was ever in strict friendship, to write the history of Louis XIV.; and the public expected great things from two writers of their distinction, but were disappointed.. Boileau and Racine, after having for some time laboured at this work, perceived that it was entirely opposite to their genius.

He spent the latter years of his life in composing a history of the house of Port-Royal, the place of his education, which, however, though finely drawn up,

horses,

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Racing horses, &c. by which all matches for any prize under the value of 50l. are prohibited, under a penalty of 200l. to be paid by the owner of each horse running, and 100l. by such as advertise the plate; and by which each horse entered to run, if five years old, is obliged to carry ten stones; if six, eleven; and if seven, twelve. It is also ordained, that no person shall run any horse at a course unless it be his own, nor enter more than one horse for the same plate, upon pain of forfeiting the horses; and also every horse-race must be begun and ended in the same day. Horses may run for the value of 50l. with any weight, and at any place, 13 Geo. II. cap. 19. 18 Geo. II. cap. 34. Pennant's British Zoology, vol. i. p. 6. &c. Berrenger's History and art of Horsemanship, vol. i. p. 185, &c. At Newmarket there are two courses, the long and the round: the first is exactly four miles and about 380 yards, i. e. 7420 yards. The second is 6640 yards. Childers, the swiftest horse ever known, has run the first course in seven minutes and a half, and the second in six minutes forty seconds; which is at the rate of more than forty-nine feet in a second. But all other horses take up at least seven minutes and fifty seconds in completing the first and longest course, and seven minutes only in the shortest, which is at the rate of more than forty-seven feet in a second. And it is commonly supposed that these coursers cover, at every bound, a space of ground in length about twenty-four English feet. Race-horses have for some time been an object of taxation.

RACHITIS, the RICKETS. See MEDICINE In

der.

RACK, EDMUND, a person well known in the literary world by his attachment to, and promotion of, agricultural knowledge: he was a native of Norfolk, a Quaker. His education was common, and he was apprenticed originally to a shopkeeper: his society was select in this situation, and by improving himself in learning, his conversation was enjoyed by a respectable acquaintance. He wrote many essays, poems, and letters, and some few controversial tracts. At length he settled, about his 40th year, at Bath in 1775, and was soon introduced to the most eminent literati of that place, among whom Dr Wilson and Mrs Macaulay highly esteemed him for his integrity and abilities. In 1777 he published Mentor's Letters, a moral work, which has run through many editions. But this year he gained great celebrity by his plan of an agricultural society, which was soon adopted by four counties. He still further advanced his fame by his papers in the Farmer's Magazine, and his communications in the Bath Society's papers; a work remarkable for its ingenuity and spirit. His last engagement was in the History of Somersetshire, where the topographical parochial surveys were his. This work, in 3 vols 4to, was published in 1791, by his colleague the Reverend Mr Collinson. Mr Rack died of an asthma in February 1787, aged 52.

RACK, an engine of torture, furnished with pulleys, cords, &c. for extorting confession from criminals. The trial by rack is utterly unknown to the law of England: though once, when the dukes of Exeter and Suffolk, and other ministers of Henry VI. had laid a design to introduce the civil law into this kingdom as the rule of government; for a beginning thereof they erected a rack for torture, which was called in derision VOL. XVII. Part II.

Rack A

the duke of Exeter's daughter, and still remains in the Tower of London, where it was occasionally used as an engine of state, not of law, more than once in the Radcliffe. reign of Queen Elizabeth. But when, upon the assassination of Villiers duke of Buckingham, by Felton, it was proposed in the privy council to put the assassin to the rack in order to discover his accomplices; the judges, being consulted, declared unanimously, to their own honour and the honour of the English law, that no such proceeding was allowable by the laws of England. It seems astonishing that this usage of administering the torture should be said to arise from a tenderness to the lives of men; and yet this is the reason given for its introduction in the civil law, and its subsequent adoption by the French and other foreign nations, viz. because the laws cannot endure that any man should die upon the evidence of a false or even a single witness, and therefore contrived this method that innocence should manifest itself by a stout denial, or guilt by a plain confession; thus rating a man's virtue by the hardiness of his constitution, and his guilt by the sensibility of his nerves. The marquis Beccaria, in an exquisite piece of raillery, has proposed this problem, with a gravity and precision that are truly mathematical: "The force of the muscles and the sensibility of the nerves of an innocent person being given; it is required to find the degree of pain necessary to make him confess himself guilty of a given crime." See ACT of Faith, INQUISITION, and TORTure.

RACK, a spirituous liquor made by the Tartars of Tongusla. This kind of rack is made of mare's milk, which is left to be sour, and afterwards distilled twice or thrice between two earthen pots closely stopped; whence the liquor runs through a small wooden pipe. This liquor is more intoxicating than brandy distilled from wine.

RACK, or Arack. See ARACK.

To RACK Wines, &c. To draw them off from their lees, after having stood long enough to ebb and settle. Hence rack-vintage is frequently used for the second voyage our wine-merchants used to make into France for racked wines.

RACKOON, a species of ursus. See URSUS, MAMMALIA Index.

RACONI, a populous town of Italy, in Piedmont, seated in a pleasant plain, on the road from Savillan to Turin, on the rivers Grana and Macra. It belongs to the prince of Carignan, who has a handsome castle here. It is six miles from Savillan, and six from Carignan. E. Long. 7. 46. N. Lat. 44. 39.

RADCLIFFE, DR JOHN, an English physician of great eminence in his time, born at Wakefield in Yorkshire in 1650. He was educated at Oxford, and eurolled himself upon the physical line; but it was remarkable that he recommended himself more by his ready wit and vivacity, than by any extraordinary acquisitions in learning. He began to practise at Oxford in 1675; but never paid any regard to established rules, which he censured whenever he thought fit, with great freedom and acrimony; and as this drew all the old practitioners upon him, he lived in a continual state of hostility with them. Nevertheless, his reputation increased with his experience; so that, before he had been two years in business, his practice was very extensive among persons of high rank. In 1684 he removed to 4 I London,

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Radcliffe London, and settled in Bow-street, Covent Garden, 25 burgesses; and the population in 1801 was nearly Radnor where in less than a year he got into great employment. 2000. Though it is the county town, the assizes are Radnor. In 1687 the princess Anne of Denmark made him held at Presteign: it has one privilege, however, that Ragout her physician; yet when her husband and she joined is very extraordinary, besides that of sending one memthe prince of Orange, Radcliffe, either not choosing to ber to parliament; and that is, it keeps a court of pleas declare himself, or unwilling to favour the measures then for all actions, without being limited to any particular in agitation, excused himself from attending them, on sum. It was formerly fenced with a wall and strong the plea of the multitude of his patients. Nevertheless, castle; but both were in a great measure demolished he was often sent for to King William and other great by Owen Glendower, when he assumed the title of personages, though he did not incline to be a courtier. Prince of Wales, upon the deposition of King Richard He incurred some censure for his treatment of Queen II. W. Long. 2. 45. N. Lat. 52. 10. Mary, who died of the smallpox ; and soon after lost his place about the princess Anne, by his attachment to his bottle. He also totally lost the favour of King William by his uncourtly freedom; for, in 1699, when the king showed him his swollen ankles, while the rest of his body was emaciated, and asked him what he thought of them?" Why truly I would not have your majesty's two legs for your three kingdoms," replied Radcliffe. He continued increasing in business and insolence as long as he lived, continually at war with his brethren the physicians; who considered him in no other light than that of an active ingenious empiric, whom constant practice had at length brought to some degree of skill in his profession. He died in 1714; and if he never attempted to write any thing himself, has perpetuated his memory by founding a fine library at Oxford, to preserve the writings of other men.

RADIALIS, the name of two muscles in the arm.
See ANATOMY, Table of the Muscles.

RADIANT, in Optics, is any point of a visible ob-
ject from whence rays proceed.

RADIATED FLOWERS, in Botany, are such as have several semifloscules set round a disk, in form of a radiant star; those which have no such rays are called discous flowers.

RADIATION, the act of a body emitting or diffusing rays of light all round as from a centre.

RADICAL, in general, something that serves as a basis or foundation. Hence physicians talk much of a radical moisture. In grammar, we give the appellation radical to primitives, in contradistinction to compounds and derivatives. Algebraists also speak of the radical sign of quantities, which is the character expressing their roots.

RADICLE, that part of the seeds of all plants which upon vegetating becomes their root, and is discoverable by the microscope. See PLANT.

RADISH. See RAPHANUS, BOTANY Index; and for the mode of culture, see GARDENING Index.

RADIUS, in Geometry, the semidiameter of a circle, or a right line drawn from the centre to the circumference.

In Trigonometry, the radius is termed the whole sine, or sine of 90°. See SINE.

RADIUS, in Anatomy, the exterior bone of the arm, descending along with the ulna from the elbow to the wrist.

RADNOR, the county town of Radnorshire, in South Wales, distant from London about 150 miles. It is situated near the springhead of the river Somergil, in a fruitful valley at the bottom of a hill, where there are sheep grazing in abundance. It is a very ancient borough-town, whose jurisdiction extends near 12 miles round the government of it is vested in a bailiff and

RADNORSHIRE, a county of South Wales, is bounded on the north by Montgomeryshire; on the east by Shropshire and Herefordshire; on the south and south-west by Brecknockshire; and on the west by Cardiganshire; extending 30 miles in length and 25 in breadth. This county is divided into six hundreds, in which are contained three market-towns, 52 parishes, and in 1811 there were 4165 houses, and 20,900 inhabitants. It is seated in the diocese of Hereford, and sends two members to parliament, one for the county and one for the town of Radnor. The soil in general is but indifferent; yet some places produce corn, particularly the eastern and southern parts; but in the northern and western, which are mountainous, the land is chiefly stocked with horned cattle, sheep, and goats. See RADNORSHIRE, SUPLLEMENT.

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RADIX. See RoT.

RAFT, a sort of float, formed by an assemblage of various planks or pieces of timber, fastened together side by side, so as to be conveyed more commodiously any short distance in a harbour or road than if they were separate. The timber and plank with which merchant-ships are laden, in the different parts of the Baltic sea, are attached together in this manner, in order to float them off to the shipping.

RAFTERS, in building, are pieces of timber which, standing by pairs on the reason or railing piece, meet in an angle at the top, and form the roof of a building. See ARCHITECTURE.

ROWLEY RAGG, a variety of whinstone or greenstone of a dusky or dark gray colour, with many small shining crystals, having a granular texture, and acquiring an ochry crust by exposure to the air.

RAGMAN'S ROLL, Rectius Ragimund's roll, so called from one Ragimund a legate in Scotland, who calling before him all the beneficed clergymen in that kingdom, caused them on oath to give in the true value of their benefices; according to which they were afterwards taxed by the court of Rome; and this roll, among other records, being taken from the Scots by Edward I. was redelivered to them in the beginning of the reign of Edward III.

RAGOUT, or RAGOO, a sauce, or seasoning, intended to rouse the appetite when lost or languishing.

This term is also used for any high-seasoned dish prepared of flesh, fish, greens, or the like: by stewing them with bacon, salt, pepper, cloves, and the like ingredients. We have ragouts of celery, of endive, asparagus, cock'scombs, giblets, craw fish, &c.

The ancients had a ragout called garum, made of the putrified guts of a certain fish kept till it dissolved into a mere sanies, which was thought such a dainty, that, according to Pliny, its price equalled that of the richest perfumes.

RAGSTONE,

Ragstone

RAGSTONE, a coarse kind of sandstone which is used as a whetstone for coarse cutting tools. It is found Rain. in the hills about Newcastle, and many other parts of England, where there are large rocks of it.

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RAGULED, or RAGGED, in Heraldry, jagged or knotted. This term is applied to a cross formed of the trunks of two trees without their branches, of which they show only the stumps. Raguled differs from indented, in that the latter is regular, the former not.. RAGUSA, an ancient town of Sicily, in the Val di Noto, near the river Maulo, 12 miles north of Modica. E. Long. 14. 59. N. Lat. 37. 0.

RAGUSA, a city of Dalmatia, and capital of Ragusen. It is about two miles in circumference, is pretty well built, and strong by situation, having an inaccessible mountain on the land-side, and on the side of the sea a strong fort. It is an archbishop's see, and was formerly a republic, with a doge like that of Venice, who continued a month only in his office. It carries on a considerable trade with the Turks. E. Long. 18. 10. N. Lat. 42. 50.

RAGUSEN, a territory of Europe in Dalmatia, lying along the coast of the gulf of Venice, about 55 miles in length, and 20 in breadth. It was formerly a republic under the protection of the Turks and Venetians, but fell under the dominion of the French, and was since transferred to the Austrians, in whose possession it remains.

RAJA, or RAJAH, the title of the Indian black princes, the remains of those who ruled there before the Moguls. Some of the rajas are said to preserve their independency, especially in the mountainous parts; but most of them pay an annual tribute to the Mogul. The Indians call them rai; the Persians, raian, in the plural; and our travellers rajas, or ragias.

RAJA, the Ray-Fish, in Ichthyology, a genus of fishes belonging to the cartilaginous order.

RAIANIA, a genus of plants belonging to the dicecia class; and in the natural method ranking under the 11th order, Sarmentacea. See BOTANY Index.

RAIETEA, one of the South sea islands, named also ULIETEA.

RAIL. See RALLUS, ORNITHOLOGY Index. RAILLERY, according to Dr Johnson, means slight satire, or satirical merriment; and a beautiful writer of the last century compares it to a light which dazzles, and which does not burn. It is sometimes innocent and pleasant, and it should always be so, but it is most frequently offensive. Raillery is of various kinds; there is a serious, severe, and good-humoured raillery; and there is a kind which perplexes, a kind which offends, and a kind which pleases.

To rally well, it is absolutely necessary that kindness run through all you say; and you must ever preserve the character of a friend to support your pretensions to be free with a man. Allusions to past follies, hints to revive what a man has a mind to forget for ever, should never be introduced as the subjects of raillery. This is not to thrust with the skill of fencers, but to cut with the barbarity of butchers. But it is below the character of men of humanity and good-breeding to be capable of mirth, while there is any in the company in pain and disorder.

RAIN, the descent of water from the atmosphere in the form of drops of a considerable size. By this

circumstance it is distinguished from dew and fog: in the former of which the drops are so small that they are quite invisible; and in the latter, though their size be larger, they seem to have very little more specific gravity than the atmosphere itself, and may therefore be reckoned hollow spherules rather than drops. Some of the more general facts relative to the phenomena of rain have been already given under METEOROLOGY. We shall here add some account of the speculations of philosophers on the same subject, in attempting to account for those phenomena.

It is universally agreed, that rain is produced by the water previously absorbed by the heat of the sun, or otherwise, from the terraqueous globe, into the atmosphere; but very great difficulties occur when we begin to explain why the water, once so closely united with the atmosphere, begins to separate from it. We cannot ascribe this separation to cold, since rain often takes place in very warm weather; and though we should suppose the condensation owing to the superior cold of the higher regions, yet there is a remarkable fact which will not allow us to have recourse to this supposition. It is certain that the drops of rain increase in size considerably as they descend. On the top of a hill, for instance, they will be small and inconsiderable, forming only a drizzling shower; but at the bottom of the same bill the drops will be excessively large, descending in an impetuous rain; which shows that the atmosphere is disposed to condense the vapours, and actually does so, as well where it is warm as where it is cold.

The

For some time the suppositions concerning the cause of rain were exceedingly insufficient and unsatisfactory. It was imagined, that when various congeries of clouds were driven together by the agitation of the winds, they mixed, and run into one body, by which means they were condensed into water. coldness of the upper parts of the air also was thought to be a great means of collecting and condensing the clouds into water; which, being heavier than the air, must necessarily fall down through it in the form of rain. The reason why it falls in drops, and not in large quantities, was said to be the resistance of the air; whereby being broken, and divided into smaller and smaller parts, it at last arrives to us in small drops. But this hypothesis is entirely contrary to almost all the phenomena: for the weather, when coldest, that is, in the time of severe frost, is generally the most serene; the most violent rains also happen where there is little or no cold to condense the clouds; and the drops of rain, instead of being divided into smaller and smaller ones, as they approach the earth, are plainly increased in size as they descend.

Dr Derham accounted for the precipitation of the drops of rain from the vesiculæ being full of air, and meeting with an air colder than they contained, the air they contained was of consequence contracted into a smaller space; and consequently the watery shell rendered thicker, and thus specifically heavier, than the common atmosphere. But it has been shown, that the vesiculæ, if such they are, of vapour, are not filled with air, but with fire, or heat; and consequently, till they part with this latent heat, the vapour cannot be condensed. Now, cold is not always sufficient to effect this, since in the most severe frosts the air is very often serene, and parts with little or none of its vapour 412 for

Rain.

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