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times vomited up. For the method of expelling these insects, seeMedicine.

ASCENDANT, in astrology, denotes the horoscope, or thedegree of the ecliptic which rises upon the horizon at the time ofthe birth of any one.

Ascendants, in law, are opposed to descendants in succes-sion; i.e. when a father succeeds his son, or an uncle his ne-phew, &c. heritage is said to ascend, or go to ascendants.

Ascending Latitude, is the latitude of a planet when goingtowards the north pole.

Ascending Node, is that point of a planet’s orbit, wherein itpasses the ecliptic, to proceed northward. This is otherwisecalled the northern node, and represented by this character £3. ^

ASCENSION, in astronomy, an arc of the equinoctial con-tained between the first point of Aries and that point which riseswith the Sun, a star, or any point of the heavens ; if it be in a rightsphere, it is called right ascension, otherwise it is denominatedoblique ascension ; or, which is the same, right ascension is (lie de-gree of the equinoctial, which comes to the meridian with the sunor star, reckoning from the first point of Aries; and the oblique as-cension, the degiee of the ecpiator, which rises with the sun orstar at a given place, hence the right ascension is the same in allparts of the globe ; but the oblique ascension changes accordingto tile latitude of places. The ascension is frequently reckonedin time allowing 15°to an hour. The sun’s right ascension in timeis useful in regular observatories, to adjust a clock by sidereal time.It serves also for computing the apparent time of a known star’spassing the meridian ; thus, subtract the sun’s right ascension intime at noon from the star’s right ascension in time, the remainderis the apparent time of the star’s passing the meridian nearly ; fromwhich the proportional part of the daily increase of the sun’s rightascension from this apparent time from noon being subtracted,leaves the correct time of the star’s passing the meridian. Thesun’s right ascension in time is also useful for computing the timeof the moon and planets passing the meridian. The practicalmethod of finding the right ascension of a body from that of afixed star, by a clock adjusted to sidereal time, is this: let theclock begin its motion from Oh. 0’ 0” at the instant the first point ofAries is on the meridian ; then, when any star comes to the meri-dian, the clock would shew the apparent right ascension of thestar, provided the clock goes true ; but as this cannot be dependedon, the error of the dock may be corrected; tlms, when a star,wiiose right ascension is known, passes the meridian, compare itsapparent right ascension with the right ascension shewn by theclock, and the difference will shew the error of the clock. £. g.Let the apparent right ascension of Aldebaran be 4h. 23' 50 , andwhen it transits the meridian, suppose the time shewn by the dockto be4h. 23' 52”, then, there is an error of 2 " in the dock, as itgives the right ascension of the star 2" more than it ought. If thedock be compared with several stars, and the mean error taken,we shall have more accurately the error at the mean time of allthe observations. These observations, being repeated every day,will give the rate of the clock’s going, or shew how much i"t gainsor loses. The error of the dock and the rate of its going beingthus ascertained, if the time of die transit of any body be observed,and the error of the clock at the time be applied, we shall havethe right ascension of the body. This is the method by whichthe right a-cension of the sun, moon, and planets, are regularlyfound in observatories.

Ascensional Difference, the difference between the rightand oblique ascension of any point in the heavens; or it is thethe space of time, that the sun rises or sets before or after sixo’clock.

Ascension of the Mid-heaven, Right, is the right ascen-sion of the meridian, and is equal to the sum of the sun’s right as-cension and the horary angle. To find the right ascension of thesnu trigoni metrically, say, as rad. : co-sine of greatest ded.: :tang.ot sun’s longitude: tang, of the right ascension. For the ascen-sional difference of the sun or any point in the heavers, say asrad : tang, of the latitude : : tang, of the declination of the sun orstar : sine of the ascensional difference.

Ascension, in geography, an uninhabited barren island on thecoast of Africa, about 600 miles N. W. of St. Helena . The EastIndia ships often touch at this island, and take in quantities ofturtle, which are very plentiful in it. Lon. 14. 18. \V. I .at. 7. 40. S.

Ascension Day, the day on which the ascension of our

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Saviour is commemorated, commonlv called Holy Thursday ; theThursday hut one before Whitsuntide.

ASCENT ', in logic, denotes a kind of argumentation, whereinwe rise from particulars to universals.

Ascent, in physics, implies the motion of a body upwards, orthe continual recess of a body from the earth. The Peripatetics at-tributed the spontaneous ascent of bodies to a principle of levityinherent in them. The moderns deny spontaneous levity; andshew, that whatever ascends, does it m virtue of some externalimpulse or extrusion. Thus smoke and other rare bodies ascendin the atmosphere; and oil, light woods, &c. in water; not byany internal principle of levity, but by the superior gravity ortendency downwards of the parts of the medium where they are.

Ascent of Bodies on inclined Planes. See Mechanics.

Ascent of Fluids. See Hydrostatics.

Ascent of Vapours. See Evaporation.

ASCES1S, [from the verb, avxuv, used by the ancients inspeaking of the sports and combats of the athlet.T,] properly de-notes exercise of the body. It is also used by philosophers, todenote ;n exercise conducive to virtue, or to the acquiring agreater degree of virtue.

ASCETEKIUM, in ecclesiastical writers, a monastery, orplace set apart tor the exercises of religion.

ASCF/1 ICS, persons in the primitive times, who devotedthemselves to the exercises of piety, in a retired life ; and parti-cularly to prayer, ab-linence, and mortification.

ASCHAI'T'ENBURG, a town of Germany , seated on theMaine, in the circle of the lower Rhine .

ASCHAM , Roger, was born at Kirby-Whiske, near North Al-lerton in Yorkshire, in 1516. In 1530 he entered at St. John’scollege , Cambridge, where he obtained a fellowship, and was ap-pointed teacher of Greek. In 1544, Henry VIII . settled a pen-sion of 10/. a year upon him ; and in 1548, he was sent for to court,to instruct the lady Elizabeth (afterwards queen) in the learnedlanguages. It is very remarkable, that, though Mr. Ascham wasknown to be a Protestant, he continued in favour not only withthe ministry of those times, but with Queen Mary herself. Uponthe accession of Queen Elizabeth, he was employed as preceptor toher Majesty in the Greek and Latin languages, lie clied in 1568,not rich, but much regretted, especially by the Queen, who saidshe had rather have lost 10, 0oo/. He wrote* 1. Toxophilus. Thescliole or partitions of shooting, contayned in two bookes, writtenby Roger Ascham , 1344, and now newly perused. Pleasaunt forall gentlemen and yeomen of England, &c. Lend. 1571. It israther whimsical ; hut is admirably well written, and full oflearning. 2. A report and discourse, of the afiairs and state ofGermany , and the Emperor Charles his court, &c. 4to. A va-luable curiosity, &c. 4to. 3. The schoolmaster, First printedin 1573, 4to. Mr. Upton published an excellent edition withnotes in 1711. 4. Latin epistles ; first published by Mr. Grant in

1576. 5. Apologia contra missam, 1577, 8vo. flis works were

printed entire, in 1 vol. 4to. in 1769.

ASCI A, in antiquity, an instrument supposed of the ax kind,used in the fabric of the Roman tombs, anil frequently representedon them.

Ascia, in surgery, a kind of bandage.

ASCIDIA, a genus of the class and order vermes mollusca.Body cylindrical, and fixed to a shell, rock, Ac. two apertures,one on the summit, the other lower, forming a sheath. '1 here areabout 40 species. Animals of this genus have the faculty of squirt-ing out the water they take in. The expansion and contraction ofother bodies occasion their assuming various forms.

ASCII , [from «, without, and <nu», a shadow,] those peoplewho at certain times of the year, have no shadow at noon ; suchare the inhabitants of the torrid zone.

ASClTiE, [from n<rxo;, a hag, or bottle,] in antiquity, a seel ofMontanists , who appeared in the second century ; also a tribe ofArabs .

ASCITES, [from ua-x®‘, a bladder, ] a particular species ofdrop'}' ; a swelling of the lower belly and depending parts, froman extravasation and collection of water broke out of its propervessels.

ASCIUM, a genus of the polyandria moiv>gynia class and order.Calvx five-leaved, coriaceous; corolla tive-petaled ; berry one-celled, many seeds. '1 here is one species, a tree of Guiana .

ASCLEI'IA, a festival of rEsculapius the god of physic.

b ASCLEITAD