OR, A DICTIONARY O F ARTS, SCIENCES, AND MISCELLANEOUS LITERATURE; Conftructed on a PLAN, BY WHICH THE DIFFERENT SCIENCES AND ARTS TREATISES OR SY STE M-S, COMPREHENDING The HISTORY, THEORY, and PRACTICE, of each, according to the Lateft Difcoveries and Improvements; AND FULL EXPLANATIONS GIVEN OF THE VARIOUS DETACHED PARTS OF KNOWLEDGE, WHETHER RELATING TO NATURAL and ARTIFICIAL Objects, or to Matters ECCLESIASTICAL, Including ELUCIDATIONS of the most important Topics relative to RELIGION, MORALS, TOGETHER WITH A DESCRIPTION of all the Countries, Cities, principal Mountains, Seas, Rivers, &c. throughout the WORLD; A General HISTORY, Ancient and Modern, of the different Empires, Kingdoms, and States; AND An Account of the LIVES of the most Eminent Perfons in every Nation, Compiled from the writings of the best Authors, in several languages; the most approved Dictionaries, as well of general science as of its particular branches; the Tranjactions, Journals, and Memoirs, of learned Societies, both at home and abroad: the MS. Lectures of Eminent Profeffors on different sciences; and a variety of Original Materials, furnished by an Extensive Correspondence. THE THIRD EDITION, IN EIGHTEEN VOLUMES, GREATLY IMPROVED. ILLUSTRATED WITH FIVE HUNDRED AND FORTY-TWO COPPERPLATES. VOL. IV. INDOCTI DISCANT, ET AMENT MEMINISSE PERITI. EDINBURG H. PRINTED FOR A. BELL AND C. MACFARQUHAR. MDCCXCVII, ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA. C, Caaba. C CAA THE third letter, and fecond confonant, of the ›› alphabet, is pronounced like k before the vowels a, o, and u; and like s before e, i, and y. C is formed, according to Scaliger, from the x of the Greeks, by retrenching the ftem or upright line; though others derive it from the of the Hebrews, which has in effect the fame form; allowing only for this, that the Hebrews, reading backwards, and the Latins, &c. forwards, each have turned the letter their own way. However, the C not being the fame as to found with the Hebrew caph, and it being certain the Romans did not borrow their letters immediately from the Hebrews or other orientals, but from the Greeks, the derivation from the Greek x is the more probable. Add, that F. Montfaucon, in his Palæographia, gives us fome forms of the Greek, which come very near that of our C; thus, for inftance, e: and Suidas calls the C the Roman kappa. The fecond found of C refembles that of the Greek ; and many inftances occur of ancient inscriptions, in which has the fame form with our C. All grammarians agree, that the Romans pronounced their Qlike our C, and their C like our K. F. Mabillon adds, that Charles the Great was the firft who wrote his name with a C; whereas all his predeceffors of the fame name wrote it with a K: and the fame difference is obferved in their coins. As an abbreviature, C ftands for Caius, Carolus, Cafar, condemno, &c. and CC for confulibus. As a numeral, C fignifies 100, CC 200, &c. C, in mufic, placed after the cliff, intimates that the mufic is in common time, which is either quick or flow, as it is joined with allegro or adagio: if alone, it is ufually adagio. If the C be croffed or turned, the first requires the air to be played quick, and the laft very quick. CAABA, or CAABAH, properly fignifies a fquare ftone building; but is particularly applied by the Mahometans to the temple of Mecca, built, as they pretend, by Abraham and Ifhmael his fon. Before the time of Mahomet, this temple was a place of worship for the idolatrous Arabs, and is faid to have contained no lefs than 360 different images, equalling in number the days of the Arabian year. They were all deftroyed by Mahomet, who fanctified the Caaba, and appointed it to be the chief place of worship for all true believers. The temple is in length from north to fouth about 24 cubits; its breadth from eaft to weft is 23; and its height 27. The door, which is on the eaft fide, ftands about four cubits from the ground; the floor being level with the bottom of VOL. IV. Part. I. САА the door. In the corner next this door is the black flone, fo much celebrated among the Mahometans. On the north fide of the caaba, within a femicircular inclosure 50 cubits long, lies the white ftone, faid to be the fepulchre of Ishmael, which receives the rain-water from the caaba by a spout formerly of wood, but now of gold. The black stone, according to the Mahometans, was brought down from heaven by Gabriel at the creation of the world; and originally of a white colour; but contracted the blackness that now appears on it, from the guilt of those fins committed by the fons of men. It is fet in filver, and fixed in the south-eaft corner of the caaba, looking towards Bafra, about seven fpans from the ground. This ftone, upon which there is the figure of a human head, is held in the highest eftimation among the Arabs; all the pilgrims kiffing it with great devotion, and fome even calling it the right hand of God. Its blackness, which is only fuperficial, is probably owing to the kiffes and touches of fo many people. After the Karmatians had taken Mecca, they carried away this precious stone, and could by no means be prevailed upon to restore it; but finding at laft that they were unable to prevent the concourfe of pilgrims to Mecca, they fent it back of their own accord, after having kept it 22 years. The double roof of the caaba is fupported within by three octagonal pillars of aloes-wood; between which, on a bar of iron, hang fome filver lamps. The outside is covered with rich black damaík, adorned with an embroidered band of gold, which is changed every year, and was formerly fent by the khalifs, afterwards by the fultans of Egypt, and is now provided by the Turkish emperors. The caaba, at some distance, is almoft furrounded by a circular inclofure of pillars, joined towards the bottom by a low balluftrade, and towards the top by bars of filver. Juft without this inner inclosure, on the fouth, north, and weft fides of the caaba, are three buildings, which are the oratories or places where three of the orthodox fects affemble to perform their devotions. Towards the fouth-east stands an edifice which covers the well Zemzen, the treasury, and the cupola of Al Abbas. Formerly there was another cupola, that went under the name of the hemicycle, or cupola of Judæa: but whether or not any remains of that are now to be feen is unknown; nor is it eafy to obtain information in this respect, all Christians being denied accefs to this holy place. At a small diftance from the caaba, on the east fide, is the ftation or place of Abraham; where is another stone much refpected by the Mahometans; and where they pretend Α το Caaba. Caaba Cab. to show the footsteps of the patriarch, telling us he flood The fquare colonnade, or great piazza, that at a This temple enjoys the privilege of an afylum for all forts of criminals; but it is most remarkable for the pilgrimages made to it by the devout muffelmans, who pay fo great a veneration to it, that they believe a fingle fight of its facred walls, without any particular act of devotion, is as meritorious, in the fight of God, as the moft careful discharge of one's duty, for the fpace of a whole year, in any other temple. of a feah or fatum, and the 18th part of an ephah. A Cabal CABAL, an apt name currently given to the infa CABALIST, in French commerce, a factor or perfon who is concerned in managing the trade of another. CABALLARIA, in middle-age writers, lands held. by the tenure of furnishing a horfeman, with fuitable equipage, in time of war, or when the lord had occafion for him. CABALLEROS, or CAVALLEROS, are Spanish wools, of which there is a pretty confiderable trade at Bayonne in France. CABALLINE, denotes fomething belonging to horfes: thus caballine aloes is fo called, from its being chiefly ufed for purging horfes; and common brimftone is called fulphur caballinum for a like reafon. CABALLINUM (anc. geog), a town of the Ædui in Gallia Celtica; now Challon fur Saone, which fee. CABALLINUS (anc. geog.), a very clear fountain of mount Helicon in Boeotia; called Hippocrene by the Greeks, because opened by Pegasus on striking the rock with his hoof, and hence called Pegafius. CABALLIO, or CABELLIO (anc. geog.), a town CABBAGE, in botany. See BRASSICA; and A- CAAMINI, in botany, a name given by the Spa- CAANA, or KAANA, a town in Upper Egypt, CAB, an Hebrew dry measure, being the fixth part RECA. CABBAGE-BARK Tree. See GEOFFRÆA. CABBALA, according to the Hebrew ftyle, has a very diftinct fignification from that wherein we understand it in our language. The Hebrew cabbala fignifies tradition; and the Rabbins, who are called cabbalifts, ftudy principally the combination of particular words, letters, and numbers, and by this means pretend to discover what is to come, and to fee clearly into the fenfe of many difficult paffages of fcripture. There are no fure principles of this knowledge, but it depends upon fome particular traditions of the ancients; for which reafon it is termed cabbala. The cabbalifts have abundance of names which they call facred; thefe they make use of in invoking of spirits, and imagine they receive great light from them. They Cahenda, CAB [ 3 ] Cabbala They tell us, that the fecrets of the cabbala were dif covered to Mofes on mount Sinai; and that these have been delivered to them down from father to fon, without interruption, and without any use of letters; for to write them down, is what they are by no means permitted to do. This is likewife termed the oral law, because it paffed from father to fon, in order to diftinguish it from the written laws. There is another cabbala, called artificial, which confifts in fearching for abftrufe and myfterious fignifications of a word in Scripture, from whence they borrow certain explanations, by combining the letters which compofe it: this cabbala is divided into three kinds, the gematrie, the notaricon, and the temura or themurah. The first whereof confifts in taking the letters of a Hebrew word for ciphers or arithmetical numbers, and explaining every word by the arithmetical value of the letters whereof it is compofed. The fecond fort of cabbala, called notaricon, confifts in taking every particular letter of a word for an entire diction; and the third, called themura, i. e. change, confifts in making different tranfpofitions or changes of letters, placing one for the other, or one before the other. Among the Chriftians, likewise, a certain fort of magic is, by mistake, called cabbala; which confifts in ufing improperly certain paffages of Scripture for magic operations, or in forming magic characters or figures with ftars and talifmans. Some vifionaries among the Jews believe, that Jefus Chrift wrought his miracles by virtue of the myfteries of the cabbala. CABBALISTS, the Jewish doctors who profefs the ftudy of the cabbala. In the opinion of these men, there is not a word, letter, or accent in the law, without fome mystery in it. The Jews are divided into two general fects; the karaites, who refuse to receive either tradition or the talmud, or any thing but the pure text of scripture; and the rabbinifts, or talmudifts, who, befides this, receive the traditions of the ancients, and follow the talmud. The latter are again divided into two other fects; pure rabbinifts, who explain the fcripture in its natural fenfe, by grammar, hiftory, and tradition; and cabbalifts, who, to difcover hidden myftical fenfes, which they fuppofe God to have couched therein, make ufe of the cabbala, and the mystical methods above mentioned. CABECA, or CABESSE, a name given to the finest filks in the East Indies, as those from 15 to 20 per cent. inferior to them are called barina. The Indian workmen endeavour to pass them off one with the other; for which reafon, the more experienced European merchants take care to open the bales, and to examine all the skaines one after another. The Dutch diftinguish two forts of cabecas; namely, the moor cabeca, and the common cabeca. The former is fold at Amiterdam for about 214 schellinghen Flemith, and the other for about 181. CABECA de Vide, a small fea-port town of Alentejo in Portugal, with good walls, and a strong caftle. W. Long. 6. 43. N. Lat. 39. 0. CABENDA, a fea-port of Congo in Africa, fituated in E. Long. 12. 2. S. Lat. 4. 5. 4 CAB CABES, or GABES, a town of Africa, in the kingdom of Tunis, feated on a river near the gulf of the E. Long. 10. 55. N. Lat. 33. 40. fame name. CABEZZO, a province of the kingdom of Angola, in Africa; having Oacco on the north, Lubolo on the fouth, the Coanza on the north-eaft, and the Reinba on the fouth-west. It is populous, and well ftored with cattle, &c. and hath a mine of iron on a mountain from thence called the iron mountain, which yields great quantities of that metal; and this the Portuguese have taught the natives to manufacture. This proThe trees here are vastly vince is watered by a river called Rio Longo, and other small rivulets, lakes, &c. large; and they have one fort not unlike our apple-trees, the bark of which being flashed with a knife, yields an odoriferous refin of the colour and confittency of wax, and very medicinal in its nature, only a little too hot for Europeans, unless qualified by fome cooling drug. CABIDOS, or CAVIDOS, a long meafure ufed at Goa, and other places of the Eaft Indies belonging to the Portuguefe, to meafure ftuffs, linens, &c. and equal to #ths of the Paris ell. CABIN, a room or apartment in a fhip where any of the officers ufually refide. There are many of these in a large ship; the principal of which is defigned for the captain or commander. In fhips of the line this chamber is furnished with an open gallery in the fhip's ftern, as alfo a little gallery on each quarter. The apartments where the inferior officers or common failors fleep and mefs are ufually called BIRTHS; which fee. The bed-places built up for the failors at the fhip's fide in merchantmen are alfo called cabins. CABINDA, the chief port of the kingdom of Angoy in Loango in Africa. It is fituated at the mouth of a river of the fame name about five leagues north of Cape Palmerino, on the north fide of the mouth of the river Zaire. The bay is very commodious for trade, wooding, and watering. CABINET, the moft retired place in the finest part of a building, fet apart for writing, ftudying, or preferving any thing that is precious. A complete apartment confifts of a hall, anti-chamber, chamber, and cabinet, with a gallery on one fide. Hence we fay, a cabinet of paintings, curiofities, &c. CABINET, alfo denotes a piece of joiner's workmanfhip, being a kind of press or cheft, with feveral doors and drawers. There are common cabinets of oak or of chefnut, varnished cabinets of China and Japan, cabinets of inlaid work, and fome of ebony, or the like fearce and precious woods. Formerly the Dutch and German cabinets were much esteemed in France; but are now quite out of date, as well as the cabinets of ebony which came from Venice. CABINET is also used in speaking of the more felect and fecret councils of a prince or adminiftration. Thus we fay, the fecrets, the intrigues of the cabinet. To avoid the inconveniences of a numerous council, the policy of Italy and practice of France firft introduced cabinet councils. King Charles I. is charged with first establishing this ufage in England. Befides his privy council, that prince erected a kind of cabinet council, or junto, under the denomination of a council of ftate; compofed of archbishop Laud, the earl of A 2 Strafford, Cabes Cabinet. |