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XXX (79-(Algebra)) XXX

ALE ( 79 ) A L G a fea-port town of Egypt, fituated in ALENGNER, a town of Portugal, in the province of ALEXANDRIA, 31. xy. E. long, and 40. N. lat. about fourteen Eftremadura, about twenty-feven miles N. E. of Lif- miles weftward of the 30. moft wefterly brmch of die ribon. ver Nile. ALENON fa/f, an obfolete name of the oil of almonds. Alexandria is alfo the name of a city of Italy, fituALENTEJO, a province of Portugal, lying foutlnvard ated on the river Tanaro, about forty miles N. W. • of Tagus. of Genoa, 8. 52. E. long. 44. 45. N. lat. ALENZON, a drong city of Normandy, fituated under ALEXANDRIAN, or Alexandrin, in poetry, a the fame meri.dian with London, in 48. 32. N. lat. kind of verfe, confiding of twelve, or of twelve and It is the capital of the dutchy of the fame name. fyllables alternately; fo called from a poem ALEORE, among ancient phyficians, denoted the in- thirteen on the life of Alexander, written in this kind of verfe

ter-vals of eafe that alternately fucceed acute pains.

fome French poet. ALEPPO, a large city of xlliaticTurky, fituatedinE. byAlexandrines are peculiar to modern poetry, and long. 37. 4. and N. lat. .36. 30. well adapted to epic poems. They are fomeIt is an inland town, lying almoft in the middle be- feem ufed by moft nations of Europe, but chiefly by tween the river Euphrates and the Levant lea. The times French, whofe tragedies are generally compofed Chriftians, who are allowed the free exercife of their the of Alexandrines. have theirofhoufes churches the in thewhole fuburbs. , religion, The beglerbeg Aleppoandcommands ex- ALEXANDRINUM, the name of a plnfter defcribed by Celfus. tent of country, between the Levant-fea and the Eu- ALEXICACUS. See Alexeterial. phrates. was alfo a name under which the fiftierALERION, or Allerion, in heraldry. See Alle- Alexicacus men ufed to invoke Neptune, to preferve their nets RiON.. ALESSANO, a town of the kingdom of Naples, fitu- from being torn to pieces by the fword-fifti.' among phyficians, properly figniated about twelves miles weft of the city Otranto. ALEXIPHARMICS, fy medicines which correft or expel poifon. ALESSIO, a town of European Turky, in the pro- ALEXITERIAL. laft article. vince of Albania, lituated near the mouth of the river ALFAQUES, amongSeethetheMoors, the name generally Drtnio. ufed for their clergy, or thofe who teach the MahoALET, or Aleth, a city of France, fituated in the metan in oppofition to the Mojabites, who Upper Languedoc, at the foot of die Pyrennees, about anfwer religion, among Chriftians. thirty-two miles fouth-weft of Narbonne, 2. o. E. long. ALFELD,to amonks town of Germany, in the biflioprick of 43. 10. N. lat. and circle" of Lower Saxony, fituated ALETRIS, in botapy, a genus of the hexandria mono- Hildelheim, about ten miles S. of Hildeftieim, in 9'. 50. E. long, gynia clafs. The corolla is tunnel-fnaped, the ftamina and 52.0. N. lat. are inferred into the bafe of the petals ; and the capfule confifts of three .cells. There are only three fpecies of ALFET, in our old cuftoms, denotes a caldron full of the aletris, viz. the farinofa, a native of America.; boiling water, wherein an accufed perfon, by way of the capenfis, a native of the Cape of Good Hope ; and trial or purgation, plunged his arm up to the elbow. the fragrans, a native of Africa. The two firft are ALGA, in botany, the trivial name of the lichen, fuperennial plants, and the laft is a fruit-bearing Ihrub. cus, and feveral other plants of the cryptogamia Thefe are all ranked among the aloes of different au- clals. thors. See Aloe. ALGAROT, in chemiftry, an Arabic term for an eALEUROMANCY, a fpecies of divination performed metic powder, prepared from regulus of antimony, by means of meal or flour. diffolved in acids, and feparated by repeated lotions ALEXANDERS, in botany. See Smyrnium. in warm water. ALEXANDRETTA, in geography, the fame with ALGARVA, the moft foutherly province of the kingScanderoon. See the article Scanderoon. dom of Portugal. A

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ALGEBRA is a general method of computation by _ certain figns and fymbols, which have been contrived for this purpofe, and found convenient. It is called an Universal Arithmetic, and proceeds by operations and rules fimilar to thofe in common arithmetic, founded upon the fame principles. But as a number of fymbols are admitted into this fcience, being

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neceffary for giving it that extent and generality which is its greateft excellence, the import of thofe fymbols muft be clearly ftated. In geometry, lines are reprefented by a line, triangles by a triangle, and other figures by a figure of the fame kind: Bur, in algebra, quantities are reprefented by the fame letters of the alphabet; and various figns have ♦ been