(Moses), an eminent French Protestant divine, born at Bourgueil in Touraine in 1566. He studied at Saumur, where he was chosen professor of theology; and his learned works gained him the esteem of Catholics as well as Protestants, particularly of Cardinal Richelieu, who consulted him on a plan of reuniting their churches, which however, as may well be supposed, came to nothing. He published a piece in which he attempted to explain the mystery of predestination and grace, which occasioned a controversy between him and some other divines. He also wrote, An Apology for the Protestants; a Paraphrase on the New Testament; and several other books. This eminent divine died in 1664.

AMYRIS: A genus of the monogynia order, belonging to the decandra class of plants. The characters are: The calyx is a small single-leaved perianthium, four-toothed and persistent; The corolla consists of four oblong petals, concave and expanding; The stamens consist of eight erect subulate filaments; the anthers are oblong, erect, and the length of the corolla: The pistillum has an ovate germen, above; a thickish style, the length of the stamens; and a four-cornered stigma: The pericarpium is a round drupaceous berry: The seed is a globular glairy nut.—The most remarkable species are: 1. The eleocharis, or shrub which bears the gum elemi, a native of South America. It grows to the height of about six feet, producing trifoliate stiff shining leaves, growing opposite to one another on footstalks two inches long. At the ends of the branches grow four or five slender stalks set with many... Anys. very small white flowers. 2. The gileadensis, or opobalsamum, is an evergreen shrub, growing spontaneously in Arabia Felix, from whence the opobalsam, or balm of gilead, is procured. 3. Toxifera, or poison-wood, is a small tree, with a smooth light-coloured bark. Its leaves are winged; the middle rib is seven or eight inches long, with pairs of pinnae one against another on inch-long footstalks. The fruit hangs in bunches, is shaped like a pear, and is of a purple colour, covering an oblong hard stone. From the trunk of this tree distils a liquid as black as ink. Birds feed on the fruit; particularly one, called the purple grosbeak, on the mucilage that covers the stone. It grows usually on rocks, in Providence, Ithaca, and others of the Bahama islands. 4. The balsamifera, or rosewood, is found on gravelly hills in Jamaica and others of the West India islands. It rises to a considerable height, and the trunks are remarkable for having large protuberances on them. The leaves are laurel-shaped; the small blue flowers are on a branched spike; and the berries are small and black.

Properties. From the first species, which is called by the natives of the Brazils iciciriba, is obtained the resin improperly called gum elemi, or gum lemon. This drug is brought to us from the Spanish West Indies, and sometimes from the East Indies, in long roundish cakes, generally wrapped up in flag leaves. The best sort is softish, somewhat transparent, of a pale whitish yellow colour, inclining a little to green, of a strong not unpleasant smell. It almost totally dissolves in pure spirit, and sends over some part of its fragrance along with this menstruum in distillation: distilled with water, it yields a considerable quantity of pale coloured, thin, fragrant essential oil. This resin gives name to one of the official unguents, and is at present scarce any otherwise made use of; though it is certainly preferable, for internal purposes, to some others which are held in greater esteem. The second species yields the balsam of Mecca, of Syria, or of Gilead, which is the most fragrant and pleasant of any of the balsams. The true balsam tree is found near to Mecca, which is situated about a day's journey from the Red Sea, on the Asiatic side. It has a yellowish or greenish yellow colour, a warm bitterish aromatic taste, and an acidulous fragrant smell. It has long been held in great esteem. The Turks, who are in possession of the country in which it grows, value it much as an odoriferous unguent and cosmetic, and set such a high price upon it, that it is adulterated when it comes into the hands of the dealers, so that it is very difficult to get genuine specimens of it, and therefore it is very seldom used in this country: it has been recommended in great variety of complaints; but now it is generally believed that the Canada and copaiva balsams are equally efficacious, and will answer every purpose for which it can be used. Dr Allon says, that the surest mark of this balsam being pure and unadulterated is, its spreading quickly on the surface of water when dropped into it; and that if a single drop of it is let fall into a large saucer full of water, it immediately spreads all over its surface, and as it were dissolves and disappears; but in about half an hour it becomes a transparent pellicle covering the whole surface, and may be taken up with a pin, having lost both its fluidity and colour, and become white and soft, cohering, and communi-

cating its smell and taste to the water. This test, he says, all the balsam he saw in Holland bore, though it is rare to get any from London that answers it. The balsamifera, or rose-wood, affords an excellent timber: it is also replete with a fragrant balsam or oil, and retains its flavour and solidity though exposed to the weather many years. By subjecting this wood to distillation, Dr Wright thinks, a perfume equal to the oleum rhodii may probably be obtained.