42

deprived of the right of suffrage. The reason of this difference is, that, among the Greeks, the actors were freeborn citizens, and the dramatic performances had their origin in the sacred festivals; but, among the Romans, the drama was introduced by persons of the lowest class, Etruscan players and peasants of Atella. Actors and actresses continued for a long time to be treated with little regard in France, after they had been admitted into good society in England. Marriages of Englishmen of high rank with actresses are not rare. In some parts of Germany, actors were formerly buried like suicides, in a corner of the burying-ground, separated from the other graves. How much the ancients studied the dramatic art may be seen from one fact, that Polus, a famous Greek actor, when he had to play Electra, in the tragedy of Sophocles, made use of an urn containing the ashes of his own son, to represent the funeral urn of Orestes. But here art ceased; this was again nature.

ACTs of the Apostles (roasts tov лooTór); one of the books of the N. Testament, written in Greek by St. Luke (q. v.), the author of the Gospel which bears his name. It is addressed to Theophilus, of whom nothing is known, and is evidently intended as a continuation of the Gospel, which the author himself calls his "first book." (Acts i, 1.) It has been universally received, and is generally allowed to have been written A. D. 63 or 64, but in what place is doubtful; Jerome says, at Rome; Grotius and Lardner think, in Greece; Michaelis, in Alexandria. It embraces a period of about 30 years, beginning_immediately after the resurrection, and extending to the 2d year of the imprisonment of St. Paul in Rome. Very little information is given of any of the apostles, excepting St. Peter and St. Paul, and the accounts of them are partial and incomplete. Thus the history of St. Peter terminates with the death of Herod, although that apostle is considered to have lived and preached 24 years longer. It describes the gathering of the infant church after the death of its Founder; the fulfilment of the promise of Christ to his apostles, in the descent of the Holy Ghost; the choice of Matthias in the place of Judas, the betrayer; the testimony of the apostles to the resurrection of Jesus in their discourses, attested by miracles and sufferings; their preaching in Jerusalem and in Judea, and afterwards to the Gentiles; the conversion of Paul, his preaching in Asia Minor, Greece and Italy, his

miracles and labors. Its place is generally at the head of the apostolicon, or before the epistles; but in some MSS. it is found after the 13 Catholic epistles. The style of this work, which was originally composed in Greek, is purer than that of the other canonical writers; and St. Luke, in his quotations from the Old Testament, always makes use of the Septuagint version.

ACUNA, Christopher de, a Spanish Jesuit, born at Burgos, in 1597. He is principally known as the author of a curious work, Nuevo Descubrimiento de Gran Rio de los Amazones, (A new Description of the Great River of the Amazons,) Madrid, 4 parts, 1641. Only two copies are said to exist at present. In 1682, a translation of one of them into French was published in 4 vols. 12mo. A.'s work is very curious.

ACUPUNCTURE. Kämpfer made known, more than 100 years ago, the Japanese and Chinese method of curing arthritic and rheumatic complaints by acupuncture; but it is only a few years since it has been carefully examined and applied in England and France. (See Churchill's Treatise on Acupuncture.) In Japan and China, this mode of curing is applied much more frequently than in Europe, and even to the tenderest parts of the body. It consists in driving a fine needle one or two inches into the flesh of the afflicted part. The opinions of the cause of relief by acupuncture are still very different. Some writers think a galvanic influence on the nerves takes place.

ACUTE. (See Accent.)

AD LIBITUM, used in music for a piacere, when the principal performer is at liberty to give way to his conceptions, to change the measure from quick to slow, or the contrary, without accompaniment, and to manifest his ability in the effusions of his fancy. The term is often used in the full score, to denote those parts which are not essential, and may be omitted.

ADAGIO (Ital.) expresses a slow time. Used substantively, it expresses a slow movement. Sometimes the word is repeated to denote a still greater retardation in the time of the music.

ADALBERT, or ALDEBERT; a native of France, who preached the gospel in 744, on the banks of the Maine. He is remarkable as the first opponent to the introduction of the rites and ordinances of the Catholic church into Germany. He dared to assert, that the multiplication of saints and relics, and the practice of confession, were superfluous. On this ac

count, he was accused of heresy, by Boniface, the apostle of Germany, and condemned by two councils, at Soissons in 744, and at Rome in 745. Having finally made his escape from prison, he is said to have been murdered by some peasants, on the banks of the Fulda.

ADALBERT, archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg, a descendant of a princely house of Saxony, received his office, in 1043, from the emperor Henry III, whose relation, friend and follower he was. He accompanied Henry to Rome, where he was a distinguished candidate for the papal chair. Pope Leo IX, in whose behalf he had spoken at the synod of Mentz, 1049, made him his legate in the north of Europe, 1050. He superintended the churches of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, but aspired in vain to the dignity of pope, or patriarch of the North. During the minority of Henry IV, who afterwards became emperor, he usurped, in concert with Hanno, archbishop of Cologne, the guardianship of the young prince, and the administration of the empire, and gained an ascendency over his rival, by indulging the passions of his pupil. After Henry had become of age to rule, A. exercised the government without control, in his name. A.'s pride and arbitrary administration induced the German princes, in 1066, to remove him by force from the court; but after a short contest with the Saxon nobles, who laid waste his territory, he recovered his former power, which he held till his death at Goslar, March 17, 1072. He excelled his contemporaries in princely qualities, in talent, and in strength of mind; and if he had possessed magnanimity, and a wise spirit of moderation, he would have deserved the name of the great, which has been given him. The injustice and tyranny which stained his administration were mainly instrumental in producing the confusion and calamities, in which the reign of Henry IV was involved.

ADALBERT of Prague, the apostle of Prussia proper, son of a Bohemian nobleman, was educated in the cathedral of Magdeburg, between the years 973 and 982, and appointed bishop of Prague in 983.

He labored in vain to convert the Bohemians from paganism, and to introduce among them the ordinances of the church of Rome. Discouraged by the fruitlessness of his pious zeal, he left Prague, 988, and lived in convents at Montecasino and Rome, until the Bohemians, in 993, recalled him. But after two years, he again left them, disgusted with

43

their barbarous manners. He returned to Rome, and soon followed the emperor Otho III to Germany; on which journey he baptized, at Gran, St. Stephen, who subsequently became king of Hungary. After a visit to the monasteries of Tours and Fleury, he proceeded to Gnesen, to meet Boleslaus, duke of Poland; and being informed that the Bohemians did not wish to see him again, he resolved to convert the pagans of Prussia. But he lost his life in the attempt, being murdered by a peasant, April 23, 997, near what is now Fischhausen. His body was bought by Boleslaus, for its weight in gold, and became famous for its miraculous power. It was even visited at Gnesen by Otho III, in 1000, and removed from Bohemia by duke Brzetislaw. Its influence was greater than that of the saint himself. The Bohemians, who before had refused to receive the ordinances of the church, now suffered them to be introduced into Prague, on the sole condition, that these miraculous bones should be transferred to their city.

ADAM (Hebrew; formed of earth), the father of the human race, was, according to Genesis, made of clay, on the sixth day of the creation. God finished the work of creation by forming man according to his own image, making him master of all created things. He gave him Eve for his companion (in Hebrew, Heva, the mother of the living), formed of his flesh, that the earth might be peopled by their union. The garden of Eden, diversified with fruitful trees, was their abode, in which they found every thing to satisfy their wants, and to afford them pleasure. But in the centre stood the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; and of this their Creator had forbidden them to eat. Eve was beguiled by the serpent to take of this fruit, and to eat of it with her husband. This crime destroyed their felicity. The appearance of things was suddenly changed before their eyes. They perceived their nakedness, and endeavored to conceal it. In vain did A. seek to hide himself from the sight of God; in vain did he throw the blame of his transgression upon Eve; a curse followed them and the whole creation. Driven from the state of innocence, in which he was born, A. saw himself condemned to earn his bread by the sweat of his brow All the evils of life and the terrors of death came upon him. He had three sons, Cain, Abel and Seth, and died at the age of 930 years, 130 of which he passed in Paradise. The history of A. is

found, with little variation, in the traditions of nearly all ancient nations, who seem to have derived their information

from a common source..

ADAM. Three brothers of this name were sculptors. The eldest, Lambert Sigisbert, born in 1700, at Nancy, where his father was also a sculptor, went, at the age of 18, to Metz, and thence to Paris. After four years study in this city, he received the first prize from the academy, and soon afterwards went as a royal pensioner to Rome, where he passed 10 years. The cardinal of Polignac commissioned him to supply the parts wanting in the 12 marble statues, found in the palace of Marius, and known by the name of the family of Lycomedes, which task A. executed with great skill. When the erection of the large monument at Rome, known by the name of the fountain of Trevi, was contemplated, A. was one of the 16 statuaries appointed to furnish designs. That which he offered was accepted, but the jealousy of the Italian artists opposed its execution, and in 1733 A. returned to France. In 1737, he was chosen member of the academy, and afterwards professor. The statue of Neptune calming the waves, with a Triton at his feet, is a fine specimen of his skill. Besides various other works, he now finished the group of Neptune and Amphitrite, to adorn the basin of Neptune at Versailles. A. was skilful in working marble; his anatomy is correct and his drapery good; but he was led astray by the bad taste of his time, which confounded the provinces of painting and sculpture. He died in 1759.-His brother, Nicholas Sebastian, born at Nancy in 1705, studied the same art, under the care of his father, and in the academy of Paris. At the age of 18, he was employed in a castle near Montpellier, and went, after 18 months, to Rome, in 1726. After two years, he gained the prize offered by the academy of San Luca, worked in connexion with his brother, spent nine years abroad, and was finally admitted into the academy of Paris. His Prometheus lacerated by the vulture was exhibited as a specimen of his powers, but not finished until some time after the exhibition. His masterpiece is the tomb of the queen of Poland, wife of Stanislaus. In regard to his merits, what has been said of his brother holds true of him. He died in 1778.-The third brother, Francis Gaspard, born at Nancy in 1710, was also a pupil of his father. In 1728, he joined his brothers in Rome, and improved greatly in their company. He

then returned to Paris, gained the first prize of the academy, and in 1742 visited Rome again, where he completed his studies. He then went to Berlin, instead of his brother Nicholas Sebastian, whom Frederic II had invited thither. He labored there several years, and died at Paris in 1759.

ADAMANT. (See Diamond.)

ADAMANTINE SPAR; a stone of peculiar hardness, approaching to that of the diamond. It will cut glass easily, and mark rock crystal. It is found in China and India, and, as M. Pini alleges, in Italy.

ADAMI POMUM. (See Adam's Apple.) ADAMITES; the name of a Christian sect, said to have existed in the 2d century; and also of a band of heretics, which, in 1421, appeared in Bohemia, during the commotions occasioned by the doctrines of Huss. They were called A. because both men and women were said to appear naked in their assemblies, either to imitate Adam in the state of innocence, or to prove the control which they possessed over their passions. The tradition respecting the former sect of this name appears to have had its origin in a name of derision given to the Carpocratians of indifferent reputation. (See Gnostics.) The accounts of the latter A. are not to be relied upon with more certainty. These were also called Picards, from the founder of their sect, Picard, (perhaps also Beghards.) They appeared about the year 1421, on an island in the river Lusinicz, where Zisca surprised them, but was not able to destroy the whole sect. In the following year, they were widely spread over Bohemia and Moravia, and especially hated by the Hussites (whom they resembled in hatred towards the hierarchy), because they rejected the doctrine of transubstantiation. They subsequently formed one sect with the remaining Taborites, who have occasionally been confounded with the A.

ADAMS, John, a distinguished patriot of the American revolution, was born at Braintree, Massachusetts, October 19, 1735. The ancestors of Mr. A. had left England for the wilds of America, in order to enjoy their religious opinions unmolested. They were among the first settlers of Massachusetts, Henry Adams, the great-great-grandfather of John, and one of the original proprietors of the town of Braintree, having fled from England, with other Puritans, in the year 1630. Their condition was that of substantial yeomen, who possessed the fee simple of

their lands, and maintained themselves and families by manual labor. Mr. A. having, when yet a boy, evinced great fondness for books, and readiness in learning, his father_determined to give him a collegiate education, and placed him, in consequence, under the care of Mr. Marsh (who was afterwards the preceptor of the celebrated Josiah Quincy), that he might be prepared for entrance into the university of Cambridge. He remained in that institution until the year 1755, when he received his bachelor's degree, and in 1758 that of master of arts. Whilst at college, he is said to have been distinguished by intense application, retentiveness of memory, acuteness of reasoning, boldness and originality of thought, strength of language, and an honesty of character which could neither assume nor tolerate disguise. After he had left college, he commenced the study of law, at Worcester, with colonel James Putnam, and, during the period he was so engaged, instructed pupils in the Latin and Greek languages, in order to be able to defray his expenses himself.-Before proceeding farther, it may not be amiss to notice the posture of affairs in Massachusetts at that epoch. For a long time past, that province had been disturbed by almost unremitted contentions between its inhabitants and the parliament of Great Britain, on various important subjects. The English legislature had, in fact, nothing to do with the colonies, as all dominion acquired by conquest or discovery invariably accrued to the king. To him alone the emigrants paid allegiance and applied for protection, and, although parliament always affected to believe itself entitled to regulate their concerns, they received very little interruption from it in the exercise of the privilege granted them by the king of governing and legislating for themselves. In the course of time, however, parliament became jealous of the power, approaching to independence, which they enjoyed, and began to impose unconstitutional restraints upon their commerce, to violate their charters, and, in short, to treat them so arbitrarily, that their spirit was completely roused, and a vigorous resistance called forth. Massachusetts, especially, had become a theatre of perpetual struggle for power on the one side, and for freedom on the other. But it was hitherto only an intellectual warfare, no idea of a separation from the mother country having ever been entertained.—In 1758, Mr. Ă. left the office of colonel Putnam, and entered that of Jere

45

miah Gridley, then attorney-general of the province, and of the highest eminence at the bar. Gridley had, some years previously, superintended also the legal studies of James Otis, and, proud of his two pupils, used often to say, that "he had raised . two young eagles, who were, one day or other, to peck out his eyes." In 1759, Mr. A. was admitted, at his recommendation, a member of the bar of Suffolk. Mr. A. commenced the practice of his profession in that part of his native town now called Quincy, but first brought himself into notice by his defence of a prisoner in the county of Plymouth, from which time a sufficiency of lucrative business generally occupied his attention. In 1761, he was admitted to the degree of barrister at law, and shortly afterwards was placed in the possession of a small landed estate by his father's decease. In February of this year, an incident occurred, which inflamed his enthusiasm in the cause of his country's rights to the highest pitch. The British cabinet had long shown a desire to assert the sovereign authority of parliament over the colonies in all cases of taxation and internal policy; but the first evidence of its having determined to do so was an order in council, issued this year, enjoining the officers of the customs in Massachusetts Bay to execute the acts of trade, and make application for writs of assistance to the supreme judicature of the province. These writs were a species of general search-warrants, authorizing those who were empowered to carry them into effect to enter all houses, warehouses, &c., for the purpose of discovering and seizing such goods as were not discharged from the taxes imposed upon them by the acts. The officers of the customs applied for them, in pursuance of their instructions, to the court at Salem, but the demand was refused, on account of doubts concerning their constitutionality. It was then determined to have the affair argued by counsel in Boston. Great alarm now pervaded the whole community. Mr. Otis was engaged, by the merchants of Salem and Boston, to oppose the concession of so formidable an instrument of arbitrary power. In order to do so with entire freedom, he resigned the lucrative station of advocategeneral in the court of admiralty, which he then enjoyed. Of the masterly manner in which he performed his duty, Mr. A., who was present at the discussion, has transmitted a vivid account. “Otis,' says he, "was a flame of fire! With a promptitude of classical allusion, a depth