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ing no other pursuit than pleasure, spend their income in the cities. In this city (for many centuries called Armata) and in Bergamo were the chief manufactories of arms of every description, to answer the demand of the Levant, where much luxury is displayed in this article. Venice, for a long time, sent thither supplies of beautiful and costly arms. The guns of B., and the steel prepared there, are celebrated in the East. B. has also manufactures of oil, fustian, linen, silk, paper and hardware. Much silk, wine, flax and cloth is conveyed into the interior; for the artificial irrigation, by the aid of Alpine streams and the abundance of lakes, together with the southern exposure of the territory of B., impart to the fertile soil of this delegation a great richness of vegeta-, tion, which is increased by the industry of the tenants, assisted by the advances of funds on the part of the wealthy proprietors. Under the government of Venice, the taxes were very light; nevertheless, the inhabitants of B. and its territory were very unruly subjects of the republic, whose police was so lax, as scarcely to punish those who undertook to revenge themselves. An end has been put to the disorders, caused by banditti in the territory of Venice, by the French and Austrian government in Italy. In 1826, a number of remarkable antiquities were found buried in a vault near B.

BRESLAU, capital of Silesia, on the river Ohlau, at its junction with the Oder, has 78,860 inhabitants, among whom are 4600 Jews. B. is the residence of both the military and civil governors of Silesia, and the seat of a superior council of administration, a superior court of justice, &c. It contains more than 20 Catholic churches, of which the cathedral of St. John on the Dominsel (island of the cathedral) is the seat of the bishop of B. Among 84 literary institutions, there are four distinguished gymnasia; two Lutheran, one Reformed and one Catholic. Among the libraries worthy of notice are the royal library, the library of the university, and the library of Rhediger, which belongs to the city, and is remarkable for its rich collection of manuscripts. The city possesses, in its senate-house, and in the church of the cross, standing on Sandinsel (Sandy island) two magnificent monuments of ancient German architecture, and, in public places as well as private collections, contains many exquisite works of

art.

It has also a theatre. B. carries on a considerable commerce, which has, however, been diminished by late events.

The two annual fairs of wool are numer ously attended. Among the misfortunes that have befallen the city in modern times, the siege in 1806 and 1807, by the French and the troops of the confederation of the Rhine, must be noticed. After the capture, the French began to destroy the fortifications, which have since been entirely demolished. The spacious walks and new buildings, which occupy the place of the works, have very much contributed to embellish B. The Catholic university was established under Leopold II, in 1702, by the Jesuits, and, in 1811, combined with the Protestant university of Frankfort on the Oder. In 1826, it contained more than 850 students. The Prussian government has done much for this institution, as well as for the other new universities in Berlin and Bonn.

BREST (anciently, Brivates Portus, and Gesobrivate); a seaport in France, and principal place of a district in the department of Finisterre, in the former province of Brittany, 23 posts N. W. Vannes, 694 W. Paris; lon. 4° 29′ W.; lat. 48° 23′ N.; pop., 25,865; houses, 2600. It has one of the best harbors in France, and a safe road, capable of containing 500 men-ofwar, in 8, 10 and 15 fathoms at low water, and it is the chief station of the French marine. The harbor and magazines were constructed in 1631, by Richelieu. The coast, on both sides, is well fortified. The entrance is narrow and difficult, with covered rocks, that make it dangerous to those not well acquainted with it. It contains two parishes and a marine seminary. The arsenal is an immense and superb building, and the dock-yards are well constructed. It is the seat of a governor, of an admiralty board, and a municipality. The climate of B. is wet and uncomfortable, and the sky is almost always obscured. June 1, 1794, the French fleet was beaten off Brest by the English, under Howe, who took from them six ships of the line, and sunk a seventh.

BRETAGNE. (See Brittany.)

BRETEUIL, Louis Auguste le Tonnelier, baron de; born in 1733; a French diplomatist; at first, minister plenipotentiary at the court of the elector of Cologne, afterwards at the Russian court, then successively ambassador in Sweden, Holland, Naples, at Vienna, and the congress at Teschen. His embassy to Vienna explains his attachment to the queen Marie Antoinette. As minister and secretary of state, he was a zealous defender of the monarchy: he was, therefore, considered as one of the greatest enemies of the rev

olution. After the 14th of July, he escaped the fate of Foulon by a hasty flight. In 1790, Louis XVI intrusted him with several secret negotiations at the principal northern courts. The convention issued a decree against him. In Bertrand de Moleville's history of the revolution, there is valuable information with respect to his last diplomatic labors. In 1802, he returned, with the permission of the government, to France, and died at Paris, in 1807.

Bretschneider, Henry Godfrey von, born at Gera, March 6, 1739, died at the castle of Krzinitz, near Pilsen, Nov. 1, 1810. He was a soldier, a provincial counsellor, librarian at Ofen and Lemberg, the adviser and confidant of Joseph II, a travelling adventurer, a poet, a writer of songs, a collector of engravings and pictures, an author of reviews and satires, a Peregrinus-Proteus, in a hundred different colors; yet, withal, an upright friend to what he considered the truth; a sworn enemy to all political and priestly imposture, which he unmasked without mercy; an encyclopedist, without having ever been connected with d'Alembert and Diderot; an instructer and benefactor of his age; in his writings and conversation, an enemy of Napoleon; hated by thousands; loved by all who were intimately acquainted with him; courted on account of his wit and social talents; feared by all fools and hypocrites. He received his first instruction in the academy at Ebersdorf, under the care of the Bohemian brethren, where he was taught by hunger to steal, and, by hypocritical cant, to doubt all that is holy. He has written a great deal, and no folly of the times escaped him. All were boldly exposed and forcibly attacked. His Journey to London and Paris (Berlin, 1817) was translated and published in the Edinburgh Magazine. If B. had written nothing but the Almanac of the Saints, for the year 1788, in which, in compliance with the wish of the emperor Joseph, he unsparingly attacks priests and priestcraft, he would deserve, for this work alone, to be known to enlightened foreigners.

BREUGHEL; the name of a celebrated Dutch family of painters, the first of whom adopted this name from a village not far from Breda. This was Peter B., also called, from the character and subject of most of his representations, the Droll, or the Peasants' B. He was born in 1510 (according to Mechel, in 1530), was a pupil of Peter Koeck van Aelst, travelled into Italy and France, copying the beau

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ties of nature, and, after his return, fixed his residence at Antwerp, where he was received into the academy of painters in that place. He subsequently married the daughter of his instructer Koeck, and removed to Brussels, where he died in 1570 (according to some, in 1590). In his rural weddings, his rustic feasts and dances, he strikingly represents the gayety of the villagers, as he himself had frequently observed them, in disguise, in his youth. He also etched, but many of his pictures have been engraved by others. He left two sons-Peter and John. The former, (called the Younger B.,) preferring subjects affording striking contrasts, painted many scenes in which devils, witches or robbers are the principal figures. This particular turn of genius procured him the name of Hell B. Among his pieces are Orpheus playing on his Lyre before the infernal Deities; also, the Temptation of St. Anthony. The former picture hangs in the gallery of Florence. The second brother, John, was distinguished by his landscapes and small figures. From his usual dress, he received the title of Velvet B. He also painted for other masters landscapes, as back-grounds to their pieces, and sometimes little figures in them. He was a very prolific artist. In connexion with Rubens, he represented Adam and Eve in Paradise. The figures in this picture are painted by Rubens. This piece, his Four Elements, also Vertumnus and Pomona, which were all executed jointly with Rubens, are among his principal performances. He is said to have been born in 1568. He visited Italy, and enriched his imagination with beautiful scenery. He is said to have died in 1640. Other members of this family, belonging to a later period, are Ambrose and Abraham, who, for a time, resided in Italy, and died in 1690; the brother of the latter, John Baptist, who died in Rome; and Abraham's son, Caspar B., known as a painter of flowers and fruits.

BREVE; a note of the third degree of length, and formerly of a square figure, as; but now made of an oval shape, with a line perpendicular to the stave on each of its sides: . The breve, in its simple state, that is, without a dot after it, is equal in duration to one quarter of a large, or to two semibreves, and is then called imperfect; but, when dotted, it is equal to three eighths of a large, or to three semibreves, which being the greatest length it can assume, it is then called perfect.

BREVET; a term borrowed from the French, in which it signifies a royal act granting some favor or privilege; as, brevet d'invention. It is applied, in England and the U. States, to nominal rank in the army higher than that for which pay is received. Thus a brevet major serves as captain, and draws pay as such. In the army of the U. States, officers, having brevets or commissions of a prior date to those of the regiments in which they serve, may take place in courts-martial, and on detachments composed of different corps, according to the rank given them in their brevets, or dates of their former commission; but, in the regiment, troop or company, to which they belong, they shall do duty and take rank according to the commissions by which they are mustered in such corps. (Rules and Art. of War, 61.) By act of congress, April 16, 1818, brevet officers shall receive the pay and emoluments of their brevet commissions only when on duty, and having command according to their brevet rank. The same act provides that brevet commissions shall, from that date, be conferred only with the consent of the senate.

BREVIARY; the book containing the daily service of the church of Rome, matins, lauds, prime, third, sixth, nones and vespers, which all Catholics were formerly bound to read daily. This obligation is now restricted to the beneficiary clergy.

BREWING. The juices of fruits contain sugar, which is essential to the vinous fermentation. But this does not exist, in any important quantity, in seeds. Instead of it, however, we have starch, and this may combine with water, so as to form sugar. This combination is performed very perfectly by a vital process; that is to say, it takes place only in a living seed, and not in one which is frozen, burned, or otherwise killed. It is known by the name of germination or growing, and is of familiar occurrence, being what takes place in every seed that is successfully planted. The seeds of wheat, rye, barley, &c. consist principally of starch. If a grain of these is examined, we find near one end of it a small body, which is the rudiment of the future plant, and the microscope shows us that this consists of two parts-the plumula, which is destined to ascend through the earth to form the stalk, and the radicle, which is to be spread abroad below, and form the root. Whenever a grain of barley, oats, or certain other of the gramineous seeds, is exposed to water, it begins to swell and absorb the moisture; and, at the same time,

if the temperature of the air is not too cold, the radicle thrusts itself out at the lower end; the plumula, on the other hand, pushes itself along beneath the husk of the grain to the other end, before it thrusts itself out. There are several curious considerations in regard to this process. The one which concerns us at present is this, that, as the plumula is passing along through the husk, the part of the seed along which it passes becomes changed into the substance known in chemistry by the name of starch sugar; that is, when the plumula has passed along one third of the length of the grain, that third is starch sugar, while the remaining two thirds are still starch; and so with the rest. The starch sugar seems to be some combination of starch and water. The final cause of the change is undoubtedly the support of the growing plant, sugar being evidently necessary to the growth of plants, as it is always found in their sap, and sometimes, as in the sugar maple, in great quantities. The moment, however, the plumula begins to protrude beyond the end of the grain, the sugar diminishes, as it is consumed by the young stalk; and the substance of the seed is also consumed, though by no means to the same extent, by the growth of the root. To produce this change in seeds, and thereby to fit them for yielding a sweet fluid, when mixed with water, is the business of the maltster; and it is an operation of great delicacy, upon the successful performance of which the success of a manufactory of ale or beer in a great measure depends. The first operation in malting is, to plunge the barley, or other grain to be malted, into a large cistern, containing water enough to cover the whole mass. The barley immediately separates into two parts; one is heavy, and remains at the bottom of the water, while the lighter portion, consisting of chaff, defective grains, &c. floats on the top. This latter is skimmed off as of no use. The heavier part, or sound barley, is suffered to remain till it has absorbed a portion of the water, sufficient for the purpose of enabling it to germinate. This is steeping. It is the first process, and usually occupies about two days. When the grain is sufficiently steeped, the water is let off, and the grain thrown out of the cistern, and piled in a heap, or, as it is technically called, a couch. After a few hours, the bottom and inner part of the heap begin to grow warın, and the radicle or root to make its appearance: and the germination thus commenced would go on rapidly but for the labor of

the malster, who, with a view of making all the grains grow alike, checks the growth of such as are in the middle of the heap by turning them to the outside, and vice versa. For this reason, malting cannot be performed, with any success, in summer, which would, at first sight, seem to be the fittest season. On the contrary, the best maltsters prefer the coldest weather; for, at this season, they can always keep the germination going on at the rate they wish, by heaping up the grain; whereas, in warm weather, it grows so rapidly, that no effort can make the process equal and regular. Thus the grain is turned backwards and forwards for 14 days, at the end of which period the acrospire, as it is called, or the plumula, having nearly reached the end of the grain, and the latter having acquired a sweet taste, the process of growth is suddenly and effectually stopped by spreading the whole upon a kiln, which is a floor of iron or tiles, perforated with small holes, and having a fire beneath it. There the life of the grain is destroyed, and it is thoroughly dried.-The malt thus made is ground, or rather crushed, by passing it between a pair of iron rollers. It is then prepared for brewing. The first step in brewing is called mashing. It consists in stirring up the malt with a quantity of hot water, which dissolves the starch sugar of the malt, and forms a sweet liquor called wort, similar to the must, or sweet juice of the grape, from which wine is made. The manufacture differs, however, in some essential particulars, at this stage of the process, from that of wine; for, if the wort were allowed, as the must is, to ferment without obstruction, it contains so much of the mucilage and starch of the grain, that it would run into the acetous, and from thence into the putrefactive fermentation, and would be foxed, as it is technically termed; that is, it would become_ill-smelling vinegar instead of beer. To prevent this, it is first boiled. This process renders it stronger, by evaporating a portion of the water; and, further, it coagulates or curdles the mucilage, which subsides afterwards, and is not again dissolved, thus separating an injurious ingredient. While boiling, a portion of hops is added. One object of this is to give an aromatic, bitter taste to the liquor, which habit has rendered agreeable. The principal object of adding the hops, however, is, to check the tendency to the acetous fermentation, which is always far greater, in liquor so compound in its character as beer, than in the simpler liquors,

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as wine and cider. It is further a common opinion, that hops add to the intoxicating qualities of the article; and this opinion is probably well founded.-After the worts are sufficiently boiled, they are poured out into large shallow cisterns or coolers, till they become cool, and deposit much of the curdled mucilage. They are then allowed to run into a deep tub or vat to ferment. If left to themselves, however, the process would take place very imperfectly, and it is therefore assisted by the addition of yeast. The true nature of this substance, notwithstanding much attention and some laborious analyses, is not yet understood. It excites fermentation, however, which continues for a period of time longer or shorter, according to the fancy of the brewer, and is then checked by drawing off the liquor into barrels or hogsheads. In these the fermentation still goes on, but it is now called by brewers cleansing. With a view to take advantage of this process, the casks are placed with their bung-holes open, and inclined a little to one side. The scum, as it rises, works out at the bung, and runs over the side, and thus the beer is cleansed from a quantity of mucilage, starch, and other unfermented matters. What does not run out at the bung subsides to the bottom, and constitutes the lees. After this cleansing is completed, the clear beer is racked off into barrels, and preserved for use. The scum and lees are collected, and the former constitutes the yeast for the next brewing.-Such is the general history of brewing, whether the product is to be beer, ale, porter or wash, except that in the latter the cleansing is not necessary.-Even this racking, however, does not remove all the unfermented matter. mented matter. Some starch and gluten still remain; of course, the liquor soon begins to ferment again in the barrels ; but, as these are closely stopped, the carbonic acid gas, or fixed air, cannot escape, but becomes mingled with the beer. Every successive fermentation causes some lees, from which the beer may be racked off, and, by repeated racking, the fermentative matter may be completely removed, and such beers become clear, transparent, and somewhat like the German wines, as, for instance, that commonly called hock. But, the disposition to ferment being thus entirely destroyed, they are, like these wines, perfectly still, and acquire no disposition to froth by being bottled. Hence old sound beers may remain in bottles for years without coming up, as it is techni cally called. The object of the brewer is

to produce an agreeable beverage, distinguished not so much for absolute strength, or quantity of alcohol, as for color, flavor, transparency, liveliness, and power of keeping well. Some of these qualities are not compatible with the developement of the greatest quantity of alcohol or ardent spirit, which is the main object of the whiskey-distiller. To effect this purpose, he makes a kind of beer, which is called wash. This differs from brewers' beer in some important particulars. In the first place, the grain is not all malted: in England, only a part of it is so; in the U. States, generally, none at all. In the next place, it is ground a great deal finer than in brewing. If the brewer were to grind his grist as fine as the distiller, he would run great risk of setting his mash, as the phrase is; that is, he would make paste of his grain, and entangle the solution of sugar so effectually, that he could not get it out again. The distiller does not run the same risk, because he does not use such hot water as the brewer, and he can mash and stir his goods a great deal longer without injury, and even with benefit to his liquor. Again, he does not need to boil or add hops to his worts, for he does not care about precipitating the mucilage, or making his beer keep. In the next place, he adds a great deal of yeast, and ferments violently and rapidly, so as to decompose the sugar as quickly as possible, and is quite indifferent whether the worts even become somewhat sourish in the process, as, when sufficiently fermented, the alcohol is removed at once by distillation. If raw grain be ground, mixed with water at a certain heat, and allowed to stand, the change of the starch into starch sugar, or the combination of starch and water, takes place in the same way as in malting. It takes some time, however, and hence the distillers' mashes stand longer than the brewers'. It would seem, therefore, from this, that the malting of grain is not necessary for the making of beer; and, accordingly, this method of proceeding has been recommended by an eminent chemist, one who has paid much attention to this subject, and there can be no doubt that a certain description of small beer may be so made. But the process is not applicable to the finer and more valuable kinds of malt Liquors, for reasons which it would require too many details to explain perfectly.Besides the kinds of beer and wash already mentioned, there are others in very common use in the U. States. These are made by mixing honey, molasses or sugar

with water, and fermenting with yeast, or some other leaven. Beers made in this way are commonly mingled with some vegetable substance, as ginger, spruce, sarsaparilla, &c. to give them a particular flavor, and are familiar to all by the names of ginger beer, spruce beer, sarsaparilla mead, &c. &c. The wash of this kind is made from molasses and water, fermented in large vats under ground, by means, not of yeast, but the remains or returns of former fermentations. former fermentations. The liquor thus fermented is pumped up at once into the still, and the product is common under the name of rum. Of the beers manufactured from grain, as an article of consumption in that state, there are a great many varieties. These, however, may be all comprehended under three principal ones-beer, ale and porter. Beer differs from the other two in the circumstance of its being made for immediate consumption. There are two or three kinds of it, known by the names of strong beer, table beer, half-and-half, &c. These differ only in their relative strength, being all brewed upon the same general principle, and adapted to be used soon after they are made. It is of no consequence, so far as regards the principle of brewing beer, whether the malt of which it is made be of one color or another: it may be pale, or high-dried, or amber, or any thing else. It is not even of the first consequence whether the malt be good or bad, for the beer is drank soon after it is made, and if it is not, it is lost; so that there is little opportunity to discover any particular flavor. Moreover, it is a common and necessary practice to color it so highly with burned molasses or sugar, that the original taste of the liquor is, in a great measure, concealed. There is also a sort of fulness of taste which is given to beer, by this practice in part, but still more by the mode of fermentation. This mode is to stop the progress of the latter before the sweet taste is entirely gone, by removing the beer from the fermenting tun to the smaller casks. In some places, indeed, where the beer is to be sent out very weak, it does not go into the fermenting tun at all, but the yeast is mingled with the worts in the small casks, and it is sent out at once in full fermentation, and drank up, in fact, before this has time to subside entirely. Ordinarily, however, it is fermented a little in the tun, and then cleansed and racked in a very short time. When beer is sent out in this state, it is always necessary to mingle with it a quantity of what are called finings, that is to say,