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Oysters, Fossile. The largest bed that is known of fossile ioysters is that near Reading in Berkshire. They are entirelyshaped, and have the same substance with the recent oyster-shells; !and yet since the oldest histories that mention the place give an ;account ot them, we must suppose they have lain there for a longtime. They extend over no less than six acres of ground

Oyster Island, an island of Massachusetts , near the S. E.coast, in a bay or harbour to which it gives name. Lon. 70. 24. !W. Lat. 41. 35. N. j

Oyster-shells, are an alkali far more powerful than is gene- Irally allowed, and in all probability much better medicines than 1many of the more cosily and pompous alkalis of the same class, jThe proof of alkalis is in their solution by acid spirits; and Mr. !Homberg found, that they dissolved far easier in acids of nitre and ■sea-salt, than either pearls or coral, or indeed than any of the rest, jThis he supposes to be owing to their containing in the body ofthe shell a large portion of sal salsus, which is easily perceivedupon the tongue, and which keeps the whole substance of theshell in a sort of half-dissolved state. These shells produce very-sensible effects on the stomach, when it is injured by acid humours.Instead of preparing oyster-shells for medical use by calcination,Mr. Homberg recommends them to be powdered in a mortar.

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OZJENA, [o^aiva, from ; ozcne, l-’r.] a malignant ulcer ofthe nose, distinguished by its la-tor, and often accompanied with acaries of the bones of the nose. See Surgery.

OZAMA, a river of Hispaniola , which runs into the sea belowSt. Domingo; in Lon. 70. 33. W. Lat. 18. 18. N.

OZANAM, James, an eminent French mathematician, bomat Boligneux in Bresse, in 1040, of a wealthy family, llis fatherdesigned him for the church ; but his mathematical genius sheweditself so early', that he made that study his profession. He taughtthat science at Lyons. In 1702 he was admitted into the RoyalAcademy of Sciences ; and died of an apoplexy in 1717. lie wasof a mild and serene temper, of singular generosity, and of acheerful .disposition. His works are very numerous, and havemet with approbation. The principal are, 1. Practical Geometry',12mo. 2. A Mathematical Dictionary. 3. A Course of Mathe-

matics, 5 vols. Svo. 4. Mathematical and Philosophical Recrea-tions, the most complete edition of which is that of 1724, in 4 vols,Svo. 5. An Easy Method of Surveying. 6. New Elements, ofAlgebra , a work much commended by M. Leibnitz. 7. Theore-tical and Practical Perspective, &c.

OZW1EZIN, a town of Poland , on the Weitchel, 34 miles W,of Cracow '. Lon. 19. 10. E. Lat. 50. 10. N.

P.

P a labial consonant, being the fifteenth letter of the alphabet,9 and the eleventh consonant. The sound is formed by ex-pressing the breath somewhat more suddenly than in forming thesound of b ; in other respects these two sounds are pretty muchalike. When p stands before t or s, its sound is lost; as in thewords psalms, psychology, ptolemaic, ptisan, &c. When placedbefore h, they both together have the sound of/; philosophy, physic,&c. P and B are so like each other, that in ancient inscriptions,and old glossaries, these two letters have often been confounded.Several nations still pronounce one for the other, the Welch andGermans particularly, who say, pomm vinum, {ozbonumvinum.Among the Latins, as often as an s followed, the b was changed intoa p, as scribo, scripsi. St Jerome observes, on Daniel, that thelle-brews had no P ; but that the pit served them instead thereof; add-ing, that there is but one word in the whole Bible read with a P, viz.apadno. As an abbreviation P stands for Publius, Pondo, &c.P. A. DIG. for Patricia Dignitas; P. C. for Patres Conscript!;P. I 1 ’ for Publii Filius; P. P. for Propositum, or Proposittim pub-lice ; P. R. for Populus Romanus; P. R, S. for Pratoris senten-tia; P. R. S. P. for Prases provincial. P. M. among astronomers,is frequently used for post meridiem, or afternoon. On the French coin P denotes those that were struck at Dijon . In the Italianmusic P stands for piano, or softly; and P. P. P. for pianissimo, orvery softly. Among physicians P stands for pugil, or the eighthpart of a handful; P. J£. partes xquales, or equal parts of the in-gredients ; P. P. signifies pulvis pat rum, or Jesuit’s bark in pow-der; and ppi. preparatus, or prepared. As a numeral, P was usedamong the ancients to signiliy the same with the G, viz. 100:though Baronius thinks it rather stood for seven. When a dashwas added a-top of f, it stood for. 400,000. The Greek m signi-fied 80.

PA, two towns of China of the secopd rank, 1. in I’e-tche-Ii,50 miles S. of Peking: 2. in Sfc-tchuen, 695 miles S. of -Peking.Lon. 106. 24. E. Lat. 31. 51. N.

PABBAY, an island of Scotland , in Inverness-shire. It has a*onical appearance, and rises to a peak considerably higher thanthe adjacent isles. It is nearly' circular, and its diameter is abouttwo miles and a half. It is very fertile, except on the north-west.Lon. 7. 14. W. Lat. 57. 55. N.

PAUBLUM, among natural philosophers, the same with fuel.P.4CAJES, a district of Buenos Ayres in the province of I.a

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Paz, containing some rich silver-mines. The air is mild, some-times cold; the pastures are good, and cattle its chief commerce.

PAC E, a measure taken from the space between the two feet ofa man walking; usually reckoned 2j; feet and in some men a yardor three feet. The geometrical pace is five feet; and 60,000 suchpaces make one degree on the equator.

Pace, in the manege, is of three kinds, viz walk, trot, and gal-lop; to which may be added amble, because some horses have itnaturally.

PAC EM, a kingdom of India, in the island of Sumatra ; de-pendent on Acheen.

Pacem, the capital of the above kingdom, 120 miles S. E. ofAcheen. Lon. 97. 15. E. Lat. 5.0. N.

PACHA, a title of honour and command in the East, nearly sy-nonymous with bashaw. See Bashaw.

PACHACAMAC, or PACAMAC, a valley of Peru, in SouthAmerica, ten miles S. of Lima ; celebrated for its pleasantness andfertility. _ •

Paciiamac, in Mythology, the name given by the Peruvians tothe Supreme God ; to whom the temple in the above valley wasdedicated, and after whom the valley and town were named.

PACIIUCA, a town of Mexico , "famous for its silver-mines, ofwhich, Gemelli says, it lias 1000 within six leagues. It lies 45miles N. N. E. of Mexico .

PACIFIC OCEAN, that vast ocean which separates Asia fromAmerica . It is called Pacific, from the moderate weather the first,mariners who sailed in it met with between the tropics; and it wascalled South Sea, because the Spaniards crossed the isthmus ofDarien from N. to S. when they first discovered it; though it isproperly the Western ocean with regard to America .

PACIFICATION, in matters of polity, signifies the restoringof the public tranquillity. _ Hence.

PACIFICATOR signifies much the same with mediator, orone who endeavours to reconcile princes or states at variance. SeePeace, and Treaty .

PACK, in commerce, denotes a quantity of goods, made up inloads, or hales, for carriage. A pack of wool is seventeen stoneand two pounds, or a horse’s load.

PACKAGE, is a small duty of one penny in the pound, paidfor all goods not particularly rated.

PACKERS, persons whose employment it is to pack up all7 goods