Species. 1. The rubra, with red leaves and fimple footftalks, has thick, ftrong, fucculent ftalks and leaves, which are of a deep purple colour. The plant will climb to the height of ten or twelve feet, provided it is kept in a flove; but in the open air it will not grow fo large in this country; nor will the feeds come to perfection in the open air, unless in very warm feasons. The flowers of this plant have no great beauty, but it is cultivated on account of the odd appearance of its ftalks and leaves. There is a variety of this with green ftalks and leaves, and the flowers of a whitish green colour tipped with purple. 2. The alba, with oval waved leaves. This fort hath flaccid leaves, and fmaller flowers and fruit than the firft. The plants will climb to a confiderable height, and fend forth a great number of branches; fo they fhould be trained up to a trellis, or faftened to the back of the ftove, otherwife they will twift themselves about whatever plants ftand near them, which will make a very difagreeable ap

pearance.

Culture. Thefe plants are propagated from feeds, which fhould be fown on a moderate hot-bed in the spring; and when the plants are fit to remove, they fhould be each planted in a separate pot, and plunged into the tan bed, where they are to be treated like other tender exotics. They may be alfo propagated from cuttings; but as they arife fo eafily from the feeds, the latter method is feldom practifed."

Uses. The berries of the firft fpecies are faid to be ufed for ftaining callicoes in India. Mr Miller affures us, that he has feen a very beautiful colour drawn from them, but which did not continue long when ufed in painting. He is of opinion, however, that a method of fixing the colour might be invented, in which cafe the plant would be very ufeful.-This, we apprehend, might be accomplished by means of solution of tin in aqua regia, which hath a furprifing effect both in brightning and giving durability to other vegetable colours.

BASEMENT, in architecture. See ARCHITEC TURE, N° 70. 71.

BASHARIANS, a fect of Mahometans, being a branch or fubdivifion of the Motazalites. The Bafharians are those who maintain the tenets of Bashar Ebn Motamer, a principal man among the Motazalites, who varied, in fome points, from the general tenets of the feet, as carrying man's free agency to a great length, and even to the making him independent

BASHAW, a Turkish governor of a province, city, er other diftrict.

A bafhaw is made with the folemnity of carrying a flag or banner before him, accompanied with mufic and fongs, by the mirialem, an officer on purpose for the inveftiture of bashaws. Bashaw, ufed abfolutely, denotes the prime vizier; the reft of the denomination being diftinguished by the addition of the province, eity, or the like, which they have the command of; as the bashaw of Egypt, of Paleftine, &c. The bashaws are the emperor's fponges. We find loud complaints among Chriftians of their avarice and extortions. As they buy their governments, every thing is venal

with them. When glutted with wealth, the emperor frequently makes them a prefent of a bow ftring, and becomes heir to all their spoils.

The appellation bafhaw is given by way of courtesy to almoft every perfon of any figure at the grand fignior's court.

BASIL (St) the Great, one of the moft learned and eloquent doctors of the church, was born at Cæ. farea, in Cappadocia, about the year 328; and went to finish his ftudies at Athens, where he contracted a ftrict friendship with St Gregory Nazianzen. He returned to his native country in 355, where he taught rhetoric. Some time after, he travelled into Syria, Egypt, and Lybia, to vifit the monafteries of thefe countries; and the monaftic life fo much fuited his difpo fition, that upon his return home he refolved to follow it, and he was the first inftitutor thereof in Pontus and Cappadocia. His reputation became fo great, that, upon the death of Eufebius bishop of Cæfarea, in 370, he was chofen his fucceffor. It was with fome difficulty that he accepted of this dignity; and no fooner was he raifed to it, than the emperor Valens began to perfecute him because he refufed to embrace the doctrine of the Arians. Being at length let alone, he began to use his utmost endeavours to bring about a reunion betwixt the eaftern and western churches, who were then much divided about fome points of faith, and in regard to Meletius and Paulinus two bishops of Antiochia. But all his efforts were ineffectual, this dif pute not being terminated till nine months after his death. Bafil had a fhare in all the difputes which happened in his time in the caft in regard to the doctrine of the church; and died the 1ft of January, 379.— There have been feveral editions of his works in Greek and Latin. The beft is that of Father Garnier, printedin Greek and Latin, in three volumes folio. St Bafil's ftyle is pure and elegant, his expreffions are grand and fublime, and his thoughts noble and full of majesty. Erafmus places him among the greateft orators of antiquity.

BASIL, a Canton of Switzerland, which joined the confederacy in 1501. It is bounded on the fouth by the canton of Solothurn; on the north by part of the margravate of Baden Dourlach, and the territory of Rheinfelden; on the eaft by Frickthal; and on the weft by part of Solothurn, the diocese of Bafil, and the Sundgare; being upwards of 20 miles in length, and about 18 in breadth. It is entirely proteftant; and contains 27 parifhes, and feven bailiwics. The lower parts of it are fruitful in corn and wine, and also fit for pafture; but the mountains are extremely barren. Here are many medicinal fprings and baths, and the air is wholefome and temperate. Both men and women for the most part wear the French dress; but the language commonly fpoken is the High-Dutch, tho' the French alfo is much used. The government is ariftocratical; and its revenues arife chiefly from fecularized abbeys, and impofts on goods carried through the country, to and from France, Italy, and Germany. Befides the military eftablishment of the city of Bafil, there are two provincial regiments, confifting each of ten companies, and a troop of dragoons.-The places of moft note are Bafil the capital, Wallenburg, St Jacob, Neue-Haus, &c.

BASIL, the capital of the canton of that name, is

the

Bail the largest city in all Switzerland, having 220 ftreets, and fix market-places or fquares. Its environs are exceeding beautiful, confifting of a fine level tract of fields and meadows. The city is divided into two parts by the Rhine, over which there is a handsome bridge. It is thought by fome to have rifen on the ruins of the old Augufta Rauracorum. For its name of Bafilia it is indebted to Julian the Apoftate, who would have it so called in honour of his mother Bafilina. It is forti fied with walls, moats, towers, and baftions, and contains feveral churches, betides the cathedral, which is an old Gothic ftructure; a commandery of the order of St John, and another of the Teutonic order; a public granary and arsenal; a stately town-houfe, in which is an exquifite piece of the fufferings of Chrift, by Holbein, and a ftatue of Munatius Plancus, a Roman general, who, about 50 years before Christ, built the ancient city of Augufta Rauracorum; an univerfity, which was founded in 1459, and has a curious phyficgarden, library, and museum; a gymnafium; a ftately palace, belonging to the margrave of Baden-Dourlach; befides a chamber of curiofities, feveral hospitals, &c. In the arfenal is fhown the armour in which Charles the Bald loft his life, with the furniture of his horse, and the kettle-drums and trumpets of his army. On the ftair-cafe of the council-houfe, is a picture of the laft judgment, in which, though drawn before the reformation, popes, cardinals, monks, and priefts, are reprefented in the torments of hell. Over-against the French church, on a long covered wall, is painted the dance of death; where the king of terrors is reprefented as mixing with all ranks and ages, and complimenting them, in German verses, on their arrival at the grave. St Peter's fquare, planted with elm and lime-crees, makes a pleasant walk; but a fpot regularly planted with trees, close by the river, and near the minfter, makes ftill a finer, as commanding a moft beautiful and extenfive prospect. The celebrated Erafmus died here in 1536, in the 70th year of his age, and was 'buried in the great church. He left his library and cabinet of rarities to one Amberbach, a learned lawyer of this city, of whofe heirs they were purchased by the univerfity. Befides this cabinet, there are several other curious private ones. The clocks of this city go an hour fafter than elfewhere, except at Conftance; a circumstance which fome afcribe to the famous councils held there, when it was thought the best expedient to bring the fathers earlier to the affembly, for the quicker dispatch of bufinefs; but others fay, that, in Bafil, it was owing to an affault being defeated by that means. About 400 years ago, according to the ftory, the city was threatened with an affault by furprife. The ene my was to begin the attack when the large clock of the tower at one end of the bridge fhould ftrike one after midnight. The artist who had the care of the clock, being informed that this was the expected fignal, caufed the clock to be altered, and it ftruck two inftead of one; fo the enemy thinking they were an hour too late, gave up the attempt: and in commemoration of this deliverance, all the clocks in Bafil have ever fince ftruck two at one o'clock, and fo on. In cafe this account of the matter should not be fatisfacto ry, they show, by way of confirmation, a head, which is placed near to this patriotic clock, with the face

turned to the road by which the enemy was to have entered. This fame head lolls out its tongue every minute, in the moft infulting manner poffible. This was originally a piece of mechanical wit of the famous. clockmaker's who faved the town. He framed it in derifion of the enemy, whom he had so dexterously deceived. It has been repaired, renewed, and enabled to thrust out its tongue every minute for thefe four hundred years, by the care of the magiftrates, who think fo excellent a joke cannot be too often repeated. Trade ftill flourishes here, especially in filk, ribbons, and wines; and the police is under excellent regulations. Moft of the offices are beftowed by lot among well qualified perfons. No perfon, without the city, must wear lace of gold or filver. All young women are prohibited from wearing filks; and the nearest relations only are to be invited to a marriage-feaft. For the government of the city there are feveral councils or colleges, and officers. Of the laft, the two burgomafters, and two wardens of trades, are the chief. The great council is compofed of the reprefentatives of the several companies of the greater and leffer city. Bafil was the fee of a bishop till the Reformation; but though there is one that ftill bears the title, he has now no jurifdiction here, and lives at Porentru, near the Upper Alface. The two Buxtorffs, father and fon, and the famous painter Holbein, were natives of this place. The council held here, in 1431, fat in the veftry of the cathedral.

BASIL, in botany. See OCYMUM.

BASIL, among joiners, the floping edge of a chiffel, or of the iron of a plane, to work on foft wood: they ufually make the bafil 12 degrees, and for hard wood 18; it being remarked, that the more acute the bafil is, the better the inftrument cuts; and the more obtufe, the ftronger, and fitter it is for service.

BASILEUS, bars, a title affumed by the emperors of Conftantinople, exclufive of all other princes, to whom they give the title rex, "king." The fame quality was afterwards given by them to the kings of Bulgaria, and to Charlemagne, from the fucceffors of which laft they endeavoured to wreft it back again.

The title bafileus has been fince affumed by other kings, particularly the kings of England, Ego Edgar totius Anglia bafileus confirmavi Hence alfo the queen of England was intitled Bafilea and Bafilissa.

BASILIAN MONKS; Religious of the order of St Bafil. That faint, having, retired into a defert, in the province of Pontus, founded a monaftery for the convenience of himself and his numerous followers: and for the better regulation of this new fociety, he drew up in writing the orders and rules he would have them follow. This new order foon spread all over the east; nor was it long before it paffed into the weft. The rule of St Bafil was approved by pope Liberius, the same year in which it was written and publifhed; and afterwards by feveral other popes; and, in these laft ages, by pope Gregory XIII. who approved the abridgement made of it by cardinal Beffarion, in the pontificate of Eugenius IV.-Some authors pretend, that St Bafil, before he died, faw himself the spiritual father of more than 90,000 monks, in the caft only. this order, which flourished fo greatly for more than three centuries, was afterwards confiderably diminished

But

Bafilic. by herefy, fchifm, and a change of empire. The greateft ftorm it felt, was in the reign of Conftantine Copronymus; who perfecuted the monks of St Bafil, imprisoning fome, and banishing others; infomuch that the monafteries were abandoned and spoiled of all their goods.

The hiftorians of this order tell us, that it has produced 1805 bifhops; and beatified, or acknowledged as faints, 3010 abbots, 11,805 martyrs, and an infinite number of confeffors and virgins. They likewife place among the religious of the order of St Bafil 14 popes, fome cardinals, and a very great number of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops, This order likewife boatts of feveral emperors and empreffes, kings and queens, princes and princeffes, who have embraced its rule.

This order was introduced in the weft in 1057; and was reformed in 1569, by pope Gregory XIII. who united the religious of this order in Italy, Spain, and Sicily, into one congregation; of which the monaftery of St Saviour at Meffina is the chief, and enjoys preeminence over the rest. Each community has its particular rule, befices the rule of St Bafil, which is very general, and prescribes little more than the common duties of a Chriftian life.

BASILIC, or BASILICA, in the ancient architecture, denotes a kind of public hall or court of judicature, where the princes or magiftrates fat to adminifter juftice. The word is originally Greek, Saçının, q. d. royal houfe, palace.

The bafilics confifted of a great hall, with ailes, porticos, tribunes, and tribunals. The bankers too had one part of the bafilica allotted for their refidence. The scholars alfo went thither to make their declamations, according to the teftimony of Quintilian. In after-times the denomination bafilica was also given to other buildings of public ufe, as town-houses, exchanges, burfes, and the like. The Roman bafilice were covered, by which they were diftinguished from the fora, which were public places open to the air. The firft bafilica was built at Rome by Cato the elder, whence it was called Porcia; the fecond was called Opimia; the third was that of Paulus, built with a great expence, and with much magnificence, whence it was called by fome regia Pauli; another was built by Julius Cæfar, called bafilica Julia; of which Vitruvius tells us he had the direction. There were others alfo, to the number of eighteen or twenty. The bafilica Julia not only ferved for the hearing of causes, but for the reception and audience of foreign ambaffadors. It was fupported by a hundred marble pillars in four rows, and enriched with decorations of gold and precious ftones. In it were 13 tribunals or judgment feats, where the prætors fat to dispatch caufes.

BASILIC is alfo used, in ecclefiaftical writers, for a church. In which fenfe, this name frequently occurs in St Ambrofe, St Auftin, St Jerom, Sidonius Apollinaris, and other writers of the fourth and fifth centuries. It is thought that the name was thus applied, from many of the ancient churches having been formed of the Roman halls mentioned in the preceding article. In reality, on the converfion of Conftantine, many of the ancient bafilice were given to the church, and turned to another ufe, viz. for Chriftian affemblies to meet in, as may be collected from that paffage in Aufonius, where speaking to the emperor Gratian, he tells

Bafili lians.

him, the bafilica, which heretofore were wont to be Bafilic filled with men of bufinefs, were now thronged with votaries praying for his fafety. By which he must needs mean, that the Roman halls or courts were turned into Chriftian churches: and hence, we conceive, the name bfilica came to be a general name for churches in after ages.

BASILIC is chiefly applied, in modern times, to churches of royal foundation; as thofe of St John de Lateran, and St Peter of the Vatican at Rome, founded by the emperor Conftantine.

es.

BASILICS were alfo little chapels built by the ancient Franks over the tombs of their great men, fo called, as refembling the figure of the facred bafilica or churchPerfons of inferior condition had only tumba or porticuli erected over them. By an article in the Salic law, he that robbed a tumba or particulus, was to be fined fifteen folidi; but he that robbed a bafilica, thirty flidi.

BASILICS, in literary history, a name fuppofed to have been given by the emperor Leo to a collection of laws in honour of his father Bafilius Macedo, who began it in the year 867, and in the execution chiefly made use of Sabbathius Protofpatharius, who carried the work as far as 40 books. Leo added 20 books more, and publifhed the work in 880. The whole, 30 years. after, was corrected and improved by Conftantin Porphyrogenitus, fon of Leo; whence many have held him the author of the bafilica. Six books of the bafilica were tranflated into Latin in 1557, by Gentian Hervetus. An edition of the Greek bafilics, with a Latin verfion, has been fince published at Paris, in 1647, by Annib. Fabrottus, in 7 volumes. There ftill want 19 books, which are fuppofed to be loft. Fabrottus has endeavoured to fupply in fome measure the defect from the fynopfis of the bafilica, and the gloffes; of which feveral had been made under the fucceeding emperors,, and contained the whole Juftinian law, excepting the fuperfluities, in a new and more confiftent order, together with the later conftitutions of the emperors polterior to Juftinian.

BASILICA, in anatomy, the interior branch of the axillary vein, running the whole length of the arm.

BASILICATA, a territory of Italy, bounded on: the north by the Otranto, Bari, and Capitanata; on the welt by the Principato, and a small part of the Tufcan fea; on the fouth by Calabria; and on the east by the gulph of Taranto. It is watered by feveral rivers: but as it is almost all occupied by the Apennine mountains, it is neither very populous nor fertile; however it produces enough to maintain its inhabitants, and has a fmall quantity of cottor. The principal towns are Cirenza the capital, Mefi, Turfi, Rapollo.. Muro, Lavello, Tracarico, Monte Pelofe, and Veneso, which are all epifcopal fees.

BASILICI, a denomination given in the Greek empire to those who carried the emperor's orders and commands.

BASILICON, in pharmacy, a name given to feveral compofitions to be found in ancient medicinal writers. At prefent it is confined to three officinal ointments, diftinguished by the epithets black, yellow, and green. See PHARMACY,

BASILIDIANS, ancient heretics, the followers of
Bar

Bafilifk.

has in reality obferved in a fuppofed bafilisk, at an apothecary's fhop at Paris, and in another at the Jefuits of Pont-a-Mouffon.

Bafilippum Bafilides, an Egyptian, who lived near the beginning of the fecond century. He was educated in the Gnostic school, over which Simon Magus prefided; with whom he agreed that Chrift was a man in appearance, that his body was a phantom, and that he gave his form to Simon the Cyrenian, who was crucified in his ftead. We learn from Eufebius, that this herefiarch wrote 24 books upon the gospel, and that he forged feveral prophets; to two of which he gave the names Barcaba and Barcoph. We have ftill the fragment of a Bafilidian gofpel. His difciples fuppofed there were particular virtues in names; and taught with Pythagoras and Plato, that names were not formed by chance, but naturally fignified fomething.-Bafilides, to imitate Pythagoras, made his difciples keep filence for five years.

In general, the Bafilidians held much the fame opinions with the Valentinians, another branch of the Gnoftic family. They afferted, that all the actions of men are necessary; that faith is a natural gift, to which men are forcibly determined, and fhould therefore be faved though their lives were ever fo irregular. Irenæus and others affure us, they acted confiftently with their principle; comitting all manner of villanies and im purities, in confidence of their natural election. They had a particular hierarchy of divine perfons, or ons. Under the name Abraxas, they are faid to have worfhipped the fupreme God, from whom as a principle, all other things proceeded. There are several gems ftill fubfifting, infcribed with the name Abraxas, which were ufed by the Bafilidians as amulets against diseases and evil fpirits. See ABRASAX and ABRAX.

BASILIPPUM (anc. geog.), a town of Bætica in Spain; now Cantillana, a citadel of Andalufia, above Seville on the Guadalquivir.

BASILISCUS, in zoology, the trivial name of a fpecies of lacerta. See LACERTA.

BASILISK, a fabulous kind of ferpent, faid to kill by its breath or fight only. Galen fays, that it is of a colour inclining to yellow; and that it has three little eminences upon its head, fpeckled with whitish spots, which have the appearance of a fort of crown. Elian fays, that its poifon is fo penetrating, as to kill the largeft ferpents with its vapour only; and that if it but bite the end of any man's ftick, it kills him. It drives away all other ferpents by the noife of its hifling. Pliny fays, it kills thofe who look upon it.-The generation of the bafilifk is not lefs marvellous, being faid to be produced from a cock's egg, brooded on by a ferpent. These, and other things equally ridiculous, are related by Matthiolus, Galen, Diofcorides, Pliny, and Erafiftratus. Hirchmayer and Vander Wiel have given the hiftory of the bafilifk, and detected the folly and impofture of the traditions concerning it. In fome apothecaries fhops there are little dead ferpents fhown, which are faid to be bafilifks. But thefe feem rather to be a kind of small bird, almost like a cock, but with out feathers its head is lofty, its wings are almoft like a bat's, its eyes large, and its neck is very fhort. As to those which are shown and fold at Venice, and in other places, they are nothing but little thornbacks artificially put into a form like that of a young cock, by ftretching out their fins, and contriving them with a little head and hollow eyes: and this, Calmet fays; he

N° 42.

BASILISK, in military affairs, a large piece of ordnance, thus denominated from its refemblance to the fuppofed ferpent of that name. The bafilifk throws an iron ball of 200 pound weight. It was much talked of in the time of Solyman emperor of the Turks, in the wars of Hungary; but feems now out of use. Paulus Jovius relates the terrible flaughter made by a fingle ball from one of thefe bafilifks in a Spanish fhip; after penetrating the boards and planks in the fhip's head, it killed above 30 men. Maffeus fpeaks of bafilifks made of brass, which were drawn each by 100 yoke of oxen.-Modern writers alfo give the name bafilifk to a much smaller and fizeable piece of ordnance, which the Dutch make 15 feet long, and the French only 10. It carries 48 pounds.

BASILIUS, furnamed the Macedonian, emperor of the Greeks. He was a common foldier, and of an obfcure family in Macedonia, and yet raifed himself to the throne; for having pleased the emperor Michael by his addrefs in the management of his horfes, he became his firft equerry, and then his great chamberlain. He at length affaffinated the famous Bardas, and was affociated to the empire in 849. He held the eighth general council at Conftantinople; depofed the patriarch Photius, but in 858 reftored him to the patriarchate; and declared against the popes, who refufed to admit him into their communion. He was dreaded by his enemies the Saracens, whom he frequently vanquished; and loved by his fubjects, for his juftice and clemency. He died in 886. Under his reign the Ruffians embraced Chriftanity, and the doctrine of the Greek church. He ought not to be confounded with Bafilius the Young, who fucceeded Zemifces in 975, and after à reign of 50 years died in 1025.

BASINGSTOKE, a corporation-town of Hampfhire in England, and a great thoroughfare on the weftern road. It is feated on a small brook, in W. Long. 1. 10. N. Lat. 51. 20.

BASIOGLOSSUS, a muscle arifing from the bafe of the os hyoides. See ANATOMY, Table of the Mufcles.

BASIS, or base, in geometry. See BASE.

BASIS, or Bafe, in chemistry, any body which is diffolved by another body, which it receives and fixes, and with which it forms a compound, may be called the basis of that compound. Thus, for example, the bafes of neutral falts are the alkaline, earthy, and metallic matters which are faturated by the feveral acids, and form with them these neutral falts. In this fenfe it is that thefe neutral falts are called falts with earthy bafes, falts with alkaline bafes, falts with metallic bafes: alfo the appellations bafis of alum, basis of nitre, bafis of Glauber's falt, bafis of vitriol, &c. fignify the argillaceous earth, which, with the vitriolic acid, forms alum; the vegetable alkali, which, with the nitrous acid, forms nitre; the mineral alkali, which, with the vitriolic acid, forms Glauber's falt; and the metal which, with the vitriolic acid, forms a vitriol; because thefe fubftances are fuppofed to be fixed, unactive, and only yielding to the action of the acids, which they fix, and to which they give a body and confiftence.

BASIS,

BASIS, among phyficians, denotes the principal inBaets, gredients in compound medicines.

BASKERVILLE (John), an eminent artist, efpecially in letter-founding and printing, of the prefent century. He was born in 1706 at Woverley in Worcefterfhire, and was heir to an eftate of about L.60 a-year; the whole of which income he allowed to his parents till their deaths. In his early years he conceived a love for fine writing, and cutting in ftone; and being brought up to no particular profeffion, he commenced writing-matter in Birmingham when about 20 years of age. The improvements in different manufactures there foon drew his attention, and he applied to the japan bufinefs, which he carried on for a long time with diftinguished excellence and fuccefs. In 1750 he applied himself to letter-founding, the bringing of which to perfection cost him much labour and expence. In a few years he proceeded to printing; and his firft work was an edition of Virgil on royal quarto, which now fells for three guineas. In a fhort time he obtained leave from the univerfity of Cambridge to print a Bible in royal folio, and edi. tions of the Common Prayer in three fizes; for which he paid a large fum to the university. He afterwards printed Horace, Terence, Catullus, Lucretius, Juvenal, Salluft, and Florus, in royal quarto; Virgil in octavo; and several books in duodecimo. He pub lifhed likewife fome of the English claffics. The best teftimonies of the merit of thefe performances are them felves; and Mr Bafkerville's name is defervedly ranked among those who, in modern times, have brought the art of printing to its greatest perfection. Not meeting, however, with that encouragement from the book fellers which he expected, he fet up a letter-foundery for fale a little before his death. He died without if fue in July 1775.

BASKET, an utenfil made of twigs interwoven together, in order to hold fruit, earth, &c. As a measure, it denotes an uncertain quantity; as, a basket of medlars is two bufkels, of afafoetida from 20 to 50 pound weight. The ancient Britons were noted for their ingenuity in making bafkets, which they export. ed in large quantities. These baskets were of very elegant workmanship, and bore a high price; and are mentioned by Juvenal among the extravagant expensive furniture of the Roman tables in his time.

Adde et bafcaudas et mille efcaria.

Add baskets, and a thousand other dishes. That these baskets were manufactured in Britain, we learn from the following epigram of Martial:

Barbara de pictis veni bafcauda Britannis, Sed me jam mavult dicere Roma fuam. A basket I, by painted Britons wrought, And now to Rome's imperial city brought.. BASKETS of Earth, in the military art, called by the French corbeilles, are fmall baskets ufed in fieges, on the parapet of a trench, being filled with earth. They are about a foot and a half high, about a foot and a half in diameter at the top, and 8 or 10 inches at bottom; fo that, being fet together, there is a fort of embrafures left at their bottoms, through which the foldiers fire, without expofing themfelves.

VOL. III. Part I.

BASNAGE (James), a learned and accomplished author, and paflor of the Walloon church at the Hague, was born at Roan in Normandy August 8. 1653. He was the fon of Henry Bafnage, one of the ableft advocates in the parliament of Normandy. At 17 years of age, after he had made himself master of the Greek and Latin authors, as well as the English, Spanish, and Italian languages, he went to Geneva, where he began his divinity studies under Meftrezat, Turretin, and Tronchin; and finished them at Sedan, under the profeffors Juricu and Le Blanc de Beaulieu. He then returned to Roan, where he was received as minifter, September 1676; in which capacity he remained till the year 1685, when, the exercise of the Proteftant religion being fuppreffed at Roan, he obtained leave of the king to retire to Holland. He fettled at Rotterdam; and was a minifter penfionary there till 1691, when he was chofen paftor of the Walloon church of that city. In 1709 Penfionary Heinfius got him chofen one of the paftors of the Walloon church at the Hague, intending not only to employ him in religious but in ftate affairs. He was employed in a fecret negociation with Marshal d'Uxelles, plenipotentiary of France at the congrefs of Utrecht; and he executed it with fo much fuccefs, that he was afterwards entrusted with feveral important commiffions, all which he discharged in fuch a manner as to gain a great character for his abilities and addrefs; a celebrated modern writer has therefore faid of him, that he was fitter to be minifter of itate than of a parish. The abbe du Bois, who was at the Hague in 1716, as ambaffador plenipotentiary from his moft Chriftian majefty, to negociate a defenfive alliance between France, England, and the States General, was ordered by the Duke of Orleans, regent of France, to apply himself to M. Bafnage, and to follow his advice: they accordingly acted in concert, and the alliance was concluded in January 1717. He kept an epiftolary correípondence with feveral princes, noblemen of high rank, ar.d minifters of ftate, both Catholic and Proteftant, and with a great many learned men in France, Italy, Germany, and England. The Catholics efteemed him no lefs than the Proteftants; and the works he wrote, which are moftly in French, fpread his reputation almost all over Europe: among these are, 1. The Hiftory of the Religion of the Reformed Churches. 2. Jew. ith Antiquities. 3. The History of the Old and New Teftament; and many others. He died September 22.1723.

BASNAGE (Henry) Sieur de Beauval, fecond fon to Henry Bafnage, and brother to James mentioned in the laft article. He applied himself to the ftudy of the law, and was admitted advocate in the parliament of Roan in the year 1679. He did not follow the bar immediately upon his admiffion; but went to Valencia, where he ftudied under M. de Marville. Upon his return from thence, he practifed with great reputation till the year 1687, when the revocation of the edict of H Nantz

Bafuage.