A C A <

known root x, added to iO x, or to 10times x.

ABUTMENT, that which abuts orsupports the ends of any thing.

ACADEMY , in antiquity, the nameof a villa situated about a mile from theeity of Athens, where Plato and his fol-lowers assembled for conversing on phi-losophical subjects; and hence they ac-quired the name of Academics .

The term Academy is frequently usedamong the moderns for a regular society,or company, of learned persons, insti-tuted under the protection of a prince,for the cultivation and improvement ofarts or sciences. Some authors con-found academy with university; hut,though much the same in Latin , theyare very different things in English . Anuniversity is, properly, a body composedof graduates in the several faculties; ofprofessors, who teach in the publicschools; of regents or tutors, and stu-dents who learn under them, and aspirelikewise to degrees : whereas an academywas originally not intended for teaching,or to profess any art, but to improve it;Jt was not for novices to be instructedin, hut for those who were more know-ing, for persons of distinguished abilitiesto confer in, and communicate theirlights and discoveries to each other, fortheir mutual benefit and improvement.The first academy we read of, was esta-blished by Charlemagne , at the motionof Alcuin ; it was composed of the chiefwits of the court, the emperor himselfbeing a member.

Royal Military Academy . We havein England two royal academies, one atWoolwich, and one at Portsmouth.The first was established by his lateMajesty King George II. by warrantsbearing date the 30th day of April, andthe 18th day of November, 1741, en-dowed and supported for the instructingof the people belonging to the militarybranch of the ordnance, in the severalparts of mathematics necessary to qualifythem for the service of the artillery, andthe business of engineers. The lecturesof the masters in theory were then dulyattended by the practitioner-engineers,officers, Serjeants, corporals, private men,and cadets. At present the gentlemeneducated at this academy are the sons ofthe nobility and military officers, Theyare called gentlemen cadets, and are notadmitted under 14, and not above 16years of age. They are taught writing,

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arithmetic, algebra, Latin , French , ma-thematics, mechanics, surveying, level-ling, and fortification, together with theattack and defence; gunnery, mining,laboratory-works, geography, perspec-tive, fencing, dancing, &c. The master-general of the ordnance is always cap-tain of the company of gentlemen cadets.One second captain and two subaltern*constantly do duty with the cadets, onthe common; and there is the sam*number with those in the arsenal.

The academy at Portsmouth wasfounded by George I. in 1722, for teach-ing the branches of the mathematics,which more immediately relate to navi-gation.

ACANTHUS, in architecture, an or-nament in the Corinthian and Compo-site orders, being the representation ofthe leaves of the plant in the capitals ofthem. Acanthus is the name of a thorn,or thistle, which is called, in English ,bear’s breech, and goal’s horn.

ACANZI. in military history, thename of the Turkish light horse, thatform the van-guard of the Grand Sig-nior’s army on a march.

ACCELERATED Motion on obliqueor inclined planes. See Motion.

Accelerated Motion of Rendulums.See Pen do lu ms.

Accelerated Motion of Projectiles.See Projectiles.

ACCELERER, I'r. to hasten on; t»press forward.

Acckr.feitER. un siege, Fr. to carrythe trench under the mqin body of afortified place, in order to take it by aprompt assault.

AccfeLEitER une marche, Fr. to mak*extraordinary exertions in advancing a-gainst an enemy with rapidity; to makea forced march.

ACCENDONES, in military anti-quity, a kind of gladiators, or supernu-meraries, whose office was to excite andanimate the combatants during the en-gagement.

ACCENSI, in antiquity, were officersattending the Roman magistrates; theirbusiness was to summon the people tothe public games, and to assist the prte-tor when he sat on the bench.

Accensi, in military antiquity, wasalso an appellation given to a kind of ad-jutants appointed by the tribune tq as-sist each centurion and decurion. Ac-cording to Festus, they were supernu-merary soldiers, whose duty it was to, BS