his colour, a very striking character, is so unlike our own. The observation, that Negroes resemble monkeys more than those of the other varieties, is true in the same sense as it might be said, that the variety of the pig, which has a solid hoof, resembles the horse more nearly than other pigs; but the comparison itself is not a very important one, since it has been made, even by accurate observers, of several nations in the other varieties; as the Laplanders, Esquimaux, Caaiguas of South America, the inhabitants of the island Mallicollo, &c.

4. American variety. Red colour; black, straight, strong, and thin hair; short forehead; deep eyes; nose somewhat flattened, but prominent; a broad, but not flattened face, with the cheeks standing out, and the different features projecting distinctly and separately; the forehead and vertex often deformed by art. This variety includes all the Americans, with the exception of the Esquimaux.

Several idle tales have been propagated concerning the distinguishing characters of this race. Some have denied the existence of a beard in the male, and that of the menstrual discharge in the female; and others have ascribed an uniform colour and countenance to all the inhabitants of this vast continent. The concurring testimonies of all accurate modern travellers prove clearly that the Americans have naturally beards; that it is a very general custom with them, as it has been with several Mongolian and Malay tribes, carefully to eradicate this excrescence; but that various hordes in different parts of the continent preserve it as other men do. From a cloud of unanimous reports on this subject we select the following statement of the immortal Cook, respecting the natives of Nootka Sound. "Some have no beards at all, and others only a thin one on the point of the chin. This does not arise from an original deficiency of hair in those parts, but from their plucking it out by the roots: for those who do not destroy it have not only considerable beards on every part of the chin, but also whiskers, or mustachios, running from the upper lip to the lower jaw obliquely downwards." (Last Voyage, vol. ii. p. 240.) The observation concerning the menses has arisen from the women being secluded during their appearance. redness of the skin is not so constant, but that it varies in many instances towards a brown, and approaches likewise in some temperate situations to the white colour.

The

Cook states, that the natives about Nootka Sound are little inferior in fairness to Europeans; and Bouguer makes the same observation of the Peruvians on the Andes. It is also fully ascertained at present, that the Americans possess the same varieties of feature which are observed in the other

races.

5. Malay variety. Brown colour; hair black, soft, curled, and abundant; head moderately narrow, and forehead slightly arched; nose full and broad towards the apex; large mouth; upper jaw rather prominent; the features, when viewed in profile, projecting and distinct. The inhabitants of the peninsula of Malacca, of the South Sea, Ladrone, Philippine, Molucca, and Sunda islands, are arranged under this division.

As the Americans in their national characters hold the middle place between that middle variety of the human race, which we have called the Caucasians, and one of the extremes, viz. the Mongolians; so the Malay forms the connecting link between the Caucasian and the Ethiopian. The name of Malay is given to it, because most of the tribes which it includes, as those which inhabit the Indian islands near Malacca, the Sandwich, Society, and Friendly islands, also those of Madagascar, and thence to Easter island, use the Malay language.

The inhabitants of such various and distant countries may reasonably be expected to differ considerably in elegance of form, and in other circumstances of bodily organization. Hence some have even described two races in the island of Otaheite; one of light colour, tall stature, and countenance scarcely distinguishable from the European: the other of moderate stature, with the colour and countenance of the Mnlatto, crisp hair, &c. The latter, therefore, constitutes an intermediate gradation, passing towards the inhabitants of the western islands of the Pacific Ocean. And of these the men of the New Hebrides form a link of connection with those of New Guinea and New Holland, which are so very similar to the Ethiopian variety, that they might be arranged without impropriety under that division.

The varieties which we have just stated are so many proofs of that pliancy so wisely bestowed by nature on the human constitution, to enable it to adapt itself to every clime. Thus the goodness of the Creator appears, in forming the whole world for man, and in opening to him every opportu

nity of enlarging his habitation, and multiplying his scientific acquirements; instead of confining him, like the inferior animals, to a bounded range. He is completely unrestrained in the choice of his dwelling by considerations of air, temperature, &c.; and consequently far exceeds all other parts of animated creation in extension over the surface of the globe. Gmelin experienced cold of 126 below 0 of Fahrenheit's scale, at Jeniseik, in Siberia. The Greenlander lives, and follows his occupations, where the vegetable creation can no longer subsist, and where the snow-bunting, with the polar fox and bear, half frozen, and perishing with hunger, hide themselves in holes of the ground. On the contrary, in Senegal, the thermometer mounts sometimes to 117° above 0; and a natural warmth of 125° has been experienced. In short, man lives in every part of the known world (excepting some unexplored northern countries, and a few remote southern islands), from Greenland to Terra del Fuego, from Spitzhergen to the Cape, from the 80th degree of north to the 58th of south latitude.

MANDAMUS, is a writ issuing in the King's name, out of the Court of King's Bench, and directed to any person, corporation, or inferior court of judicature, commanding them to do some particular thing, as appertaining to their office and duty.

A writ of mandamus is a high prerogative writ, of a most extensive remedial nature, and may be issued, in some cases, where the injured party has also another more tedious method of redress, as in the case of admission or restitution to an of fice; but it issues in all cases where the party has a right to have any thing done, and hath no other specific means of compelling its performance. And this general jurisdiction and superintendancy of the King's Bench over all inferior courts to restrain them within their bounds, and to compel them to execute their jurisdiction, whether such jurisdiction arises from a modern charter, subsists by custom, or is created by act of parliament; yet being in subsidium judici, has of late been exercised in a variety of instances.

It is grounded on a suggestion by affidavit of the party's own right, and the denial of justice below. It is sometimes granted upon a rule to shew cause only, but sometimes it is peremptory in the first instance. When it issues to do the thing, or shew cause, an action lies for a false return, if there be in fact such false return; but the VOL. IV.

Court will not itself try the truth of the return in the first instance. It is usually applied to the restoring of officers in corporations, or to electing new ones where others have been wrongfully elected. See statutes 9 Anne, c. 20, and 12 George III. c. 21. It is a writ of very general application, and great utility, and may be said generally to lie where any person by his office has a clear duty to perform, and neglects to perform it, and the Court can order him to do the act required.

MANDRAKE, a species of the Atropa, from which a reference has been made, possesses a long taper root resembling the parsnep; running three or four feet into the ground; immediately from the crown of the root arises a circle of leaves, at first standing erect, but when grown to their full size, they spread open and lie upon the ground; these leaves are more than a foot in length, and about five inches broad in the middle, of a dark-green colour, and a fœtid scent: among these come out the flowers, each on a scape, three inches in length; they are five-cornered, of an herbaceous white colour, spreading open at top like a primrose, having five hairy stamens, and a globular germ supporting an awl-shaped style, which becomes a globular soft berry, when fullgrown as large as a nutmeg, of a yellowish green colour, and when ripe full of pulp.

Many singular facts are related of this plant, among which we select the following: the roots have been supposed to bear a resemblance to the human form, and are fi. gured as such in the old herbals, being distinguished into the male with a long beard, and the female with a prolix head of hair. Mountebanks carry about fictitious images, shaped from roots of bryony and other plants, cut into form, or forced to grow through moulds of earthen ware, as mandrake roots. It was fabled to grow under a gallows, where the matter falling from the dead body gave it the shape of a man; to utter a great shriek, or terrible groans at the digging up; and it was asserted, that he who would take up a plant of mandrake, should in common prudence tie a dog to it, for that purpose; for if a man should do it himself, he would surely die soon after. See Martyn's botany.

MANDREL, a kind of wooden pulley, making a member of the turner's lathe, of which there are several kinds, as the flat mandrels, which have three or more little pegs or points near the verge, and are used for turning flat boards on; the pin man

drel are those which have a long wooden shank to fit into a large hole made in the work to be turned; hollow mandrels are those hollow of themselves, and used for turning hollow work; screw mandrels for turning screws, &c.

MANETTIA, in botany, so named from Xavier Manetti, Prefect of the Botanic Garden at Florence; a genus of the Tetrandria Monogynia class and order. Natural order of Contorta. Rubiaceæ, Jussieu. Essential character: calyx eightleaved; corolla four-cleft; capsule inferior, two-valved, one-celled; seeds imbricate, orbicular, with a central seedlet. There are three species.

MANGANESE, in chemistry, a substance that has long been employed in the manufacture of glass, on account of its property of depriving that substance of its colour. From its appearance it was called black magnesia, or manganese. It was con sidered as an ore of iron, because it was found combined with the oxide of that metal. Bergman and Scheele gave an accurate description of its nature and properties. It is generally found in the state of an oxide, either white, or black, or red. The white contains the smallest proportion of iron and of oxygen. This ore soon tarnishes in the air by absorbing oxygen. The red contains more iron than the white, and is crystallized. The black or the brown ore is frequently crystallized like the red, Manganese is procured in the metallic state, by reducing the oxide to powder, and forming it into a paste with water. It is then exposed to a strong heat, not less than 160° of Wedgwood, with charcoal, and the metal, after a time, is found at the bottom of the crucible, or in the midst of the scoriæ in small globules, which amount to nearly one-third of the manganese employ ed. Manganese, in the metallic state, is of a greyish white colour, with considerable brilliancy, and of a granular texture. The specific gravity is 6.85. It is hard as iron; is one of the most brittle and most infusible of the metal. When exposed to the air it is quickly tarnished, and at length falls into powder, which is found to have ac quired considerable addition to its weight. But when heated in the open air it passes more rapidly through the different changes of colour in proportion as it combines with oxygen, to the absorption of which these changes are owing: hence manganese, like some other metals, combines with different portions of oxygen, forming with it differ

From the black, which is most abundant in oxygen, the chemists usually obtain what they use in their experiments. The black is evidently the metal at the maximum of oxydizement, the white is the one at the minimum. Manganese does not enter into combination with azote, hydrogen, or carbon. By means of charcoal the oxide is reduced, by being deprived of its oxygen. Phosphorus combines very readily with manganese, forming a phosphoret. It may likewise be made to combine with sulphur, forming a sulphuret. It enters into combination with the acids, and forms salts with them. These salts may be decomposed by the alkalies, which throw down precipitates of a yellow or reddish colour. None of them are decomposed by any of the other metals, which shews the strong affinity of manganese to oxygen. The pure alkalies favour the oxydation of manganese, and the decomposition of water, because they combine readily with this oxide. When the black oxide is exposed to heat, with twice its weight of dry soda or potash, a compound is formed of a dark-green colour, which is soluble in water. During the solution, this substance exhibits rapid changes of colour, and on that account has been denominated the "mineral camelion." There is no action between manganese and any of the earths; but its oxide combines with them, and forms vitreous matters, which are of different colours, according to the degree of oxydation of the manganese, and its mixture with iron. The native black oxide of manganese is applied to several purposes. It is the substance from which oxygen can be most economically obtained, large quantities of which are consumed in the formation of the oxy-muriatic acid em ployed in the art of bleaching. It is used in glass-making to remove from the substance the green colour which is derived from the oxide of iron. The theory of its action is thus explained: iron, in a low state of oxydizement, gives to glass a green tinge, while, if it be at a high degree of oxydizement, it either does not enter into fu