visited Palmyra, Damascus, Lebanon and other regions; after which he went to Cairo, in order to proceed with a caravan, through the northern part of Africa, to Fezzan. In 1812, he performed a journey up the Nile, almost to Dongola; and afterwards, in the character of a poor trader, and a Turk of Syria, proceeded through the deserts of Nubia (where Bruce had travelled before him), under great hardships, to Berbera and Shendy, as far as Suakem on the Red sea, whence he passed through Jidda to Mecca. He was now so well initiated into the language and manners of the Arabians, that, when a doubt arose concerning his Islamism, after having passed an examination in the theoretical and practical parts of the Mohammedan faith, he was acknowledged, by two learned jurists, not only a very faithful, but a very learned Mussulman. In 1815, he returned to Cairo, and afterwards visited Sinai. Just before the arrival of the long-expected caravan, he died at Cairo, April 15, 1817. The Mohammedans performed his obsequies with the greatest splendor. He had previously sent home all his journals. His last thoughts were devoted to his mother. B. was the first modern traveller who succeeded in penetrating to Shendy, in the interior of Soudan, the Meroë of antiquity (still, as it was 3000 years ago, the depôt of trade for Eastern Africa), and in furnishing exact information of the slavetrade in that quarter. He found articles of European fabric, such as the Zellingen sword-blades, at the great fair of Shendy. His Travels in Nubia, in 1815, were published in London (1819) by the African association, with his researches into the interior of Africa.

BURCKHARDT, John Charles; member of the royal French academy of sciences, one of the first astronomical calculators in Europe, born at Leipsic, April 30, 1773, applied himself to mathematics, and acquired a fondness for astronomy from the study of the works of Lalande. He applied himself particularly to the calculation of solar eclipses, and the occultation of certain stars, for the determination of geographical longitudes. He made himself master, at the same time, of nearly all the European languages. Professor Hindenburg induced him to write a Latin treatise on the combinatory analytic method (Leipsic, 1794), and recommended him to baron von Zach, with whom he studied practical astronomy at his observatory on the Seeberg near Gotha, and whom he assisted, from 1795 to 1797, in observing 28

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the right ascension of the stars. Zach recommended him to Lalande, at Paris, who received him at his house, Dec. 15, 1797. Here he distinguished himself by the calculation of the orbits of comets, participated in all the labors of Lalande, and those of his nephew, Lefrançois Lalande, took an active part in the observatory of the ecole militaire, and translated the two first volumes of Laplace's Mécanique Céleste into German (Berlin, 1800). Being appointed adjunct astronomer by the board of longitude, he received letters of naturalization as a French citizen, Dec. 20, 1799. His important treatise on the comet of 1770, which had not been visible for nearly 30 years, although, according to the calculations of its orbit, it should have returned every five or six, was rewarded with a gold medal, by the institute, in 1800. This treatise, which proposed some improvements in doctor Olbers' mode of calculation, is contained in the Mem. de l'Institut, 1806. During this year, he was made a member of the department of physical and mathematical sciences in the academy; in 1818, was made a member of the board of longitude, and, after Lalande's death, astronomer in the observatory of the military school. In 1814 and 1816, he published in French, at Paris, Tables to assist in Astronomical Calculations. He also wrote some treatises in von Zach's Geographical Ephemerides. His labors in the board of longitude were particularly valuable. He died in 1825.

BURDEN, or BURTHEN; 1. the contents of a ship; the quantity or number of tons which a vessel will carry; 2. the part of a song which is repeated at every verse or stanza, is called the burden of the song, from the French bourdon, drone or base, because they are both characterized by an unchangeable tone, and bear upon the ear with a similar monotony.

BURDETT, Sir Francis, baronet, member of the British parliament, in which he has long held a conspicuous place in the opposition, is descended from an ancient and opulent family, and was educated at Westminster. He entered on his parliamentary career in 1796, when he was chosen member from Boroughbridge. He soon distinguished himself as an ardent and enlightened friend of reform, and the steady opposer of the arbitrary measures of the ministry, the suspension of the habeas corpus act, the sedition bills, and the policy towards Ireland. In 1802, he was returned member for Middlesex. In

1804, he was wounded in a duel with Mr. Paull, which arose from political causes. After the death of Pitt, he voted with the Fox ministry, and, in 1807, was elected to parliament from Westminster. In 1810, having addressed a letter to his constituents, in which he accused the house of commons of a usurpation of power in committing to prison the author of a publication derogatory to the dignity and privileges of the house, a writ was issued against him, ordering that he should be committed to the Tower. The execution of the writ was resisted, during three days, by crowds which surrounded his house. Several riots took place; but he was finally arrested, and conducted to the Tower, where he remained till the prorogation of parliament. He has since continued a vigilant and bold opponent of corruption and oppression on the part of the ministry. In 1815, he presented a petition of the city of Westminster, in favor of peace and parliamentary reform, with a speech, in which he advocated a peace with Napoleon, accused the ministers of a violation of treaties, by which, he said, they had effected the downfall of the emperor, and placed the Bourbons, a name synonymous with falsehood, on the throne of France.

BUREAU; a writing-table; afterwards used to signify the chamber of an officer of government, and the body of subordinate officers who labor under the direction of a chief.-Bureau system, or bureaucracy, is a term often applied to those governments in which the business of administration is carried on in departments, each under the control of a chief; and is opposed to those in which the officers of government have a coördinate authority. Sometimes a mixture of the two systems is found. Thus the business of the executive branch of government may be carried on by bureaus, while the administration of justice is in the hands of coördinate judges.-The bureau des longitudes, in France, corresponding to the English board of longitude, is charged with the publication of astronomical and meteorological observations, the correction of the astronomical tables, and the publication of the Connaissance des Temps, an astronomical and nautical almanac. (See Almanac.) According to the parliamentary usage of France, at the opening of each session, the chamber of deputies is divided into nine bureaus, composed of an equal number of deputies, designated by lot. Each bureau appoints its own president, and discusses all matters refer

red to it by the chamber separately. A reporter is appointed by each bureau, and, after the discussion by bureaus, the nine reporters meet, discuss the subject, and appoint one of their number to report to the whole chamber, where the final discussion and decision of the subject takes place. (See Réglement pour la Chambre des Députés, Paris, 1827, chap. v.)

BURG, John Tobias; an astronomer, born, 1766, in Treves; resolved, when young, to become a mechanic, for the purpose of supporting his father, but was prevented by his teacher, who perceived his great talents; studied mathematics and astronomy under Triesnecker; was, in 1791, professor of natural philosophy in Clagenfurt, and, in 1792, adjunct astronomer at the imperial observatory. He has distinguished himself by his theory of the motion of the moon. The national institute proposed, as a prize question, in 1798, the determination, by at least 500 accurate observations, the epochs of the mean distance of the apogee of the moon and of her ascending node. The committee who examined the calculations of the competitors found those of B. and of Alexander Bouvard both so excellent, that they determined to divide the prize between them; but the consul Bonaparte doubled the prize, assigning one to each. B.'s tables of the moon, according to the theory of Laplace, were published in 1806, by the national institute.

BURGAS, or BOURGAS; a trading town of European Turkey on the Black sea, in the government of Roumelia. The bay on which it stands is of sufficient depth for large vessels, and the exports are grain, iron, butter, wine, and also woollen goods for Constantinople. Lon. 27° 29′ E.; lat. 42° 31' N.

BÜRGER, Godfrey Augustus, born Jan. 1, 1748, at Wolmerswende, near Halberstadt, where his father was a preacher, died June 18, 1794, at Göttingen. Before his 10th year, he learned nothing but reading and writing, but showed a great predilection for solitary and gloomy places, and began early to make verses, with no other model than that afforded by hymn books. He learned Latin with difficulty. In 1764, he studied theology at the university in Halle, and, in 1768, he went to Göttingen, in order to exchange theology for law, but soon formed connexions here equally disadvantageous to his studies and his morals, so that his grandfather, who had hitherto maintained him, withdrew his support from him.

The friendship of several distinguished young men at the university was now of great service to him. In union with his friends, he studied the ancient classics and the best works in French, Italian, Spanish and English, particularly Shakspeare, and the old English and Scotch ballads. Percy's Relics was his constant companion. His poems soon attracted attention. In 1772, he obtained, by the influence of Boie, the small office of baily in Alten-Gleichen, and, by a reconciliation with his grandfather, a sum for the payment of his debts, which he unfortunately lost, and, during the rest of his life, was involved in pecuniary difficulties. In 1774, he married the daughter of a neighboring baily, named Leonhardt, but his marriage was unfortunate. He conceived a violent passion for the sister of his wife, and married her, in 1784, soon after his first wife's death. She also, his celebrated Molly, died in the first year of their marriage. At the same time, he lost his little property by imprudent management, and was obliged, by intrigues, to resign his place. He was made professor extraordinary in Göttingen, but received no salary, and this favorite poet of the nation was obliged to gain a living for himself and his children by poorly-rewarded translations for booksellers. A third marriage, in 1790, with a young lady of Suabia, who had publicly offered him her hand in a poem, completed his misfortunes; he was divorced from her two years afterwards. The government of Hanover afforded him some assistance shortly before his death, which took place in June, 1794, and was occasioned by a complaint of the lungs.-In the midst of these misfortunes and obstacles, it is astonishing how much he did. He has left us songs, odes, elegies, ballads, narrative poems and epigrams. In none of these departments does he hold a low rank; in some, the public voice has placed him in the first. Schiller criticised him very severely; he denied him the power of idealizing, and reproached his muse as being of too sensual a character. The judgment of A. W. Schlegel seems more just: he says, "B. is a poet of a more peculiar than comprehensive imagination; of more honest and plain than delicate feelings; his execution is more remarkable than his conception; he is more at home in ballads and simple songs than in the higher lyrical poetry; yet, in some of his productions, he appears as a true poet of the people, and his style, with some faults, is clear, vigorous,

fresh, and sometimes tender." The first collection of his poems appeared in Gőttingen, 1778. His poetical works have been published several times by K. Reinhard; last in Berlin, 1823-25, 8 vols.; so also his Lehrbuch der Esthetik (Compendium of Esthetics), Berlin, 1825, and his Lehrbuch des Deutschen Styls (Manual of German Style), Berlin, 1826.

BURGESS, in England; the holder of a tenement in a borough: in a parliamentary sense, the representative of a borough. The latter must have a clear estate to the value of £300 per annum. The burgesses in parliament bear a quadruple proportion to the members for counties; the former being (from England alone) 339, the latter, 80. The whole number of the former, from the three kingdoms, is 396; of the latter, 186. Before the North American revolution, the popular branch of the legislature in Virginia was called the house of burgesses: it is now called the house of delegates.

BURGHERS. (See Seceders.)

BURGLARY (supposed to be derived from the German burg, a house, and larron, a thief, from the Latin latro) is defined to be a breaking and entering the mansion-house of another, in the night, with intent to commit some felony within the same, whether such felonious intent be executed or not. This is the modern signification of the term, which formerly applied, also, to the breaking into a church, fort or town; and the breaking into a church is said, by sir William Blackstone (4 Com. 224), to be, undoubtedly, burglary. Both breaking and entering are considered necessary to constitute the offence. The opening a door or window, picking a lock, or unlocking it with a key, raising a latch, or loosing any fastenings, constitutes a breaking. Likewise, knocking at the door, and, on its being opened, rushing in, has been so considered. So, if a lodger in the same house open and enter another's room; or if a servant conspire with a robber and let him into the house, it will be such a breaking of a house, as, if done with intent to commit a felony, will be burglary. The breaking and entering must, however, be in the night, to make it burglary; and, according to lord Hale's opinion (1 P. C. 550), if there be enough of daylight in the evening twilight or dawn for discerning a man's face, it will not be burglary. But this does not extend to moonlight, since such a construction would secure impunity to many burgla ries. The breaking open of a barn, shop.

shed, or other building, is not burglary, unless it be appurtenant to a dwellinghouse. A chamber in a college, or in the London inns of court, is, for this purpose, considered to be a mansion-house. The more usual punishment of burglary has heretofore been death. In the U. States, there is some diversity of punishment for this offence, the penalty being death in some states, and imprisonment for life or years in others. In Maine, for the principal and accessary before the fact, where the criminal enters a dwelling-house by night, with a deadly weapon, it is death. In New Hampshire, the offence, according to the common definition, is punished by imprisonment and hard labor for life. In Vermont, the punishment is imprisonment in the state prison for a term not exceeding 15 years, or a fine not exceeding 1000 dollars; in Massachusetts, imprisonment for life of the principal and accessary before the fact, in case of being armed with a deadly weapon; in Rhode Island, death; in Connecticut, imprisonment in the state prison not exceeding 3 years; in New York, a fine, and imprisonment with hard labor not exceeding 10 years; in Pennsylvania, for the first offence, imprisonment not exceeding 10 years; for the second, not exceeding 15; in Maryland, restoration of property, and imprisonment not less than 2 nor exceeding 10 years; in Virginia, restoration of property, and imprisonment not less than 5 nor more than 10 years; and in Louisiana, imprisonment not less than 10 nor more than 15 years; and the code of this state makes the crime the same where the culprit conceals himself in the house during the day, until night, as where he breaks into it during the night. The British statute 7 & 8 Geo. IV, c. 29, makes the punishment death; and this statute, pursuing that of 12 Anne, c. 7, makes the committing a felony in a house, and breaking out of it by night, burglary. This statute of Geo. IV also alters the definition of the crime, by substituting dwelling for mansion-house. [The American statutes generally adopt this description.] It also defines what shall be considered as part of the house, saying, that no building within the same curtilage, and occupied with the dwelling-house, shall be deemed a part of it for this purpose, "unless there shall be a communication" with the house "by means of a covered and enclosed passage." This provision clears up a doubt that had hung over the former law. This act also provides (s. 12), that, "if any person shall break and enter

a house and steal," &c., or shall steal any property in any dwelling-house, any person therein being put in fear," or "shall steal to the value of £5," he shall suffer death; and it does not appear, by Mr. Collier's edition of the criminal statutes, 1828, that any distinction is made, in this section, as to the offence being by day or night. This crime is punishable, under the French code (Penal. lib. 3, tit. 2, c. 2, s. 1, No. 381, 383), either by death or by hard labor for life, according to the circumstances of aggravation.

BURGOMASTER; the name of the chief magistrates of large towns in the Netherlands and Germany. Their number and term of office are different in different places. They are sometimes chosen for life, sometimes for a fixed period. They preside in the municipal counsels, &c. The same officer, in France, is called maire; in England and the cities of North America, mayor.

BURGOS; a city of Spain, the capital of Old Castile, and once the residence of its kings. It stands on the declivity of a hill, on the right bank of the Arlanzon. The streets are narrow and dark. It contains a college, numerous churches and convents, and a population of about 10,000. The cathedral, one of the most beautiful Gothic structures in Spain, was built in the 13th century, and, as well as some of the other churches, contains splendid mausoleums. It is so large, that service can be performed in eight chapels at once, without confusion. The wool of Old Castile passes principally through B., and it has some woollen manufactures. It was captured by the English in 1813. Lat. 42° 21' N.; lon. 2° 40′ W.

BURGOYNE, John; an English general officer and dramatist. He was the natural son of lord Bingly, and entered early into the army. In 1762, he commanded a force sent into Portugal for the defence of that kingdom against the Spaniards. He also distinguished himself, in the American war, by the taking of Ticonderoga, but was, at last, obliged to surrender, with his army, to general Gates, at Saratoga. He was elected into parliament for Preston, in Lancashire, but, refusing to return to America, pursuant to his convention, was dismissed the service. He published some pamphlets in defence of his conduct, and is the author of three dramas,—the Maid of the Oaks, Bon Ton, and the Heiress,-all in the line of what is usually called genteel comedy, of which they form light and pleasing specimens.