a country of Africa, in Barbary; bounded on the north by the Mediterranean sea; on the south, by the country of the Berberies; on the west, by the kingdom of Tunis, Biledulgerid, and a territory of the Gadamis; and on the east, by Egypt. It is about 925 miles along the sea coast; but the breadth is various. Some parts of it are pretty fruitful; but that towards Egypt is a sandy desert. It had the title of a kingdom; but is now a republic, governed by a dey. He is not absolute, for a Turkish bashaw resides here, who receives his authority from the grand seignior, and has a power of controlling the dey, and levying taxes on the people. The dey is elected by the soldiers, who make no scruple of depoing him when they please.

a considerable town of Africa, and capital of a republic of the same name in Barbary, and under protection of the grand seignior, with a castle and a fort. It is pretty large, and the inhabitants are noted pirates. It was taken by Charles V. who settled the knights of Malta there; but they were driven away by the Turks in 1551. It was formerly very flourishing; and has now some trade in stufus, saffron, corn, oil, wool, dates, ostrich feathers, and skins: but they make more of the Christian slaves which they take at sea; for they either set high ransoms upon them, or make them perform all sorts of work. It is seated on the coast of the Mediterranean, in a sandy soil, and surrounded by a wall, strengthened by other fortifications. E. Long. 13° 12' N. Lat. 32° 34'.

called Tripolis of Syria, to distinguish it from Tripoli in Barbary, received its name from its being anciently formed of three cities at a small distance from each other, one of which belonged to the Aradians, or ancient kingdom of Arad, the second to the Sidonians, and the third to the Tyrians, perhaps as a common mart to those maritime powers. The present town of Tripoli is built at the distance of a mile and a half from the other, upon the declivity of a hill facing the sea, in 34° 20' north latitude, and in 35° 50' east longitude from Greenwich. It is surrounded with walls, fortified with seven high strong towers, and a castle, all of Gothic architecture; but the streets are narrow, and the houses low. The city contains about 8000 houzes, and near 60,000 inhabitants, consisting of Turks, Christians, and Jews. The baixa, or pacha, who resides in the castle, where there is a garrison of 200 janizaries, governs the adjacent territory, in which there is plenty of fruit. Tripoli and a great number of mulberry-trees, which enable the inhabitants to carry on a silk manufacture, from which they draw considerable profit.

All the environs of Tripoli are laid out in orchards, where the mopad grows spontaneously, and the white-mulberry is cultivated for the silk-worm; the pomegranate, orange, and lemon trees for their fruit, which is here very fine. The country, though delightful to the eye, is unhealthy; from July to September, epidemic fevers, like those of Scanderoon and Cyprus, prevail, and are principally caused by the artificial inundations made for the purpose of watering the mulberry trees, to enable them to throw out their second leaves, and from a want of free circulation of air, the city being open only to the westward.

genus of argillaceous earth, much used in the polishing of metals. It has its name from Tripoli in Barbary, from whence it was formerly brought to us, and has the following properties: 1. It does not effervescce with any of the acids. 2. It hardens in the fire; and by a considerable heat, its surface becomes vitrified. 3. Every kind of it, excepting that found in England, becomes red by calcination. 4. It is fusible by mixture with calcareous earth, as well as by means of borax and microcosmic salt. 5. Generally no salt can be extracted by washing, though sometimes the marine and vitriolic acid may be extracted by distillation. 6. When crude it imbibes water, but is not diffusible in it. 7. It tastes like common chalk, and feels sandy between the teeth, though no sand can by any means be extracted from it.

Tripoli is found of two different kinds: 1. Solid, and of a rough texture; brown, yellowish, and spotted like marble. 2. Fragile and compact; granulated, brown, or yellowish; this last being the kind met with in England. This last kind has also been found in Scotland; but the rotten stone found in Derbyshire, and likewise much used in polishing, is quite another substance. According to Ferber, the rotten stone is tripoli mixed with a calcareous earth. In the memoirs of the academy at Paris, for 1769, it is asserted, that tripoli is a volcanic product. In proof of this, we are there informed, that a coal mine at St Etienne having accidentally taken fire, and the fire having extended to some beds of schistus and bitumen, tripoli was found in the burnt parts of the strata, but nowhere else. Cronstedt is of opinion, that 100 parts of it contain 90 of siliceous earth, 7 of argill, and 3 of iron; but the red sort probably contains more iron.