535
s e h
S C H
them. The great object, however, which they seem to have inview, is to overturn, or at least to weaken, the evidence of ana-logy, experience, and testimony ; some of them have even at-tempted to shew, that the axioms of geometry are uncertain, andits demonstrations inconclusive. This last attempt has not indeedbeen often made ; but the chief aim of Mr. Hume’s philosophicalwritings is to introduce doubts into every branch of physics, meta-physics, history, ethics, and theology. It is needless to give aspecimen of his reasonings in support of modern sceptism, andsuch of our readers as relish speculations of that nature can. be nostrangers to his Essays, or to the able confutations of them by Doc-tors Reid, Campbell, Gregory, and Beattie, who have likewiseexposed the weakness of the sceptical reasonings of Des Cartes ,Malbranche, and other philosophers of the same school.
SCEPTRE is a kind of royal staff, or batoon, borne on solemnoccasions by kings, as a badge of their command and authority.Nicod derives the word from the Greek vkiuttjov, which he says,originally signified “ajavelin,” which the ancient kings usuallybore as a badge of their authority ; that instrument being in verygreat veneration among the heathens. But cjoitttjov, does not pro-perly signify a javelin, but a staff to rest upon, from n»iA, itrai-tor, “ I lean upon.” Accordingly, in the simplicity of the earlierages of the world, the sceptres of kings were no other than longwalking staves: and Ovid, in speaking of Jupiter, describes himas resting on his sceptre (Met. 1. v. 178.) The sceptre is an ensignof royalty of greater antiquity than the crown.
Sceptre, one of the six new constellations of the southern, he-misphere, consisting of seventeen stars. See Astronomy.
SCHAALSTONE, in mineralogy, a species of the calc ge-nus, is of a greyish white colour, with varieties: it occurs massive,and the lustre of its principal fracture is shining and nearly pearly.It is translucent, brittle, easily frangible, and not very heavy. Ithas hitherto been found only in Temeswar , accompanied by oresof copper. It is composed of lime and silica.
SCHiEFFERA, in botany, a genus of the lelrandria orderand dioecia class of plants. Calyx quadripetalous; corolla qua-dripetalous, quinquepetalous, and often wanting ; fruit a bilocularberry with one seed. There are two species, natives of Ja-maica .
SCHAFFHAUSEN, a canton of Switzerland , formerly the12th in rank, bounded on the N. and W. by Suabia . It is 22miles long, and 10 broad ; and produces all the necessaries of life,as wine, fish, wood, flax, horses, sheep, wool, black cattle, anddeer.
Schaffhausen, a town of Switzerland , capital of the abovecanton, seated on the north shore of the Rhine , near a celebratedcataract, 22 miles N. by E. of Zurich, and 39 E. of Basil . Lon.8 -51. E. Lat. 47. 39. N.
SCHALATZKOI, a cape on the N. coast of Russia , on theTrozen Sea . Lon. 169. 25. E. Lat. 68. 25. N.
SCHAMBE, a river of West Florida, which runs into Pensa-cola Bay. Lon. 87. 12. W. Lat. 30. 28, N.
SCHANTZ-STRENEY, a fortress of Russian Finland , inCarelia, on the Neva, E. of Petersburgh. Lon. 31.15. E. Lat.«0. 0. N.
SCHAREDJE, an island in the Gulf of Persia, near Arabia.SCHARM, or DSJERM, a sea-port-town of Arabia, on theSea , 67 miles S. S. W. of Medina.
SCH AUEN BURG, a county in Westphalia .
,, Schauenbuug, the capital of the above county, lies 8 miles S.of Minden. Lon. 8. 51. E. Eat. 52. 17. N.
SCHAUM EARTH, or FOAMING EARTH , in minera-l0 ?y. a species of the calc genus, is of a very light yellowish,nearly silver-white colour, approaching sometimes to greyish-white,t occurs massive and disseminated, sometimes loose and compos-jW of fine scaly particles, or intermediate between friable andoose. Its instfg ls between shining and glistening. It is soft,nable, fine, but not greasy. With acids it effervesces, and is dis-ln It is a carbonate of lime, found in Thuringia and
c ^HEDUAN, an island in the Red Sea , 8 miles long, and 5cpV, equidistant from the coasts of Asia and Africa.
HEDULE, a scroll of paper or parchment, annexed to a6on ’ ea , se > or other deed ; containing an inventory of goods, orle °ther matter omitted in the body of the deed. The.word is
a diminutive of the Latin scheda,, or Greek v/jiv, a leaf or pieceof paper.
SCHEELE, Charles William, a late eminent Swedish che-mist, born on the 19th December, 1742, at Stralsund . Whenvery young he received the usual education at a private school;and was afterwards advanced to an academy. He was led by anatural propensity to the study of chemistry, and took great plea-sure in performing chemical experiments. In the differentbranches of this science he made several important discoveries,and wrote a variety of interesting dissertations. Most of his essayshave been published in French , by Madame Picardet, and Mons.Morveau of Dijon . Dr. Beddoes also has made a very valuableEnglish translation of the greater part of Scheele’s dissertations,to which he has added some useful and ingenious notes. Onthe 19th of May 1786, he was confined to his bed, and died onthe 21st.
SCHEER, a town and lordship of Suabia, on the Danube , 3miles N. W. of Mengen, and 44 S. of Stuttgard.
SCHEFFLERA, in botany, a genus of the pentandria deca-gynia class and order. Calyx five-toothed; corolla five pe-taled ; capsule eight or ten-celled; seeds solitary, semicircu-lar. It has but one species, viz. S. digitata, a native of NewZealand .
SCH EHALLIEN, SCH EH ALLION, SHECHALLION;or THIGH ALLIN, a high mountain of Scotland , in Rannocb,Perthshire, famous in the annals of science, for an experimentmade upon it, by Professor Maskelyne, the late astronomer royal,to determine the universal attraction of matter, and which proveddecisive in favour of the truth of the Newtonian doctrine of at-traction and gravitation.
SCH FIN ER, Christopher, a German mathematician, as-tronomer, and Jesuit , eminent for being the first who discoveredspots on the sun, was born at Schwaben in the territory of Mid-dleheim in 1575. He first discovered spots on the sun’s disk in1611, and made observations on these phenomena at Rome, untilat length reducing them to order, he published them in one vol.folio in 1630. He wrote also some other tracts relating to mathe-matics and philosophy ; and died in 1660.
SCHELD, or SCHELDT, a river of France and Holland ,which rises in the department of Aisne , and runs N. E. by Cam-bray, Oudenarde, &c. and then runs N. to Antwerp , and a littlebelow Schowen falls into the sea.
Scheldt, or Escaut, a department of France , comprehendingpart of (lie province of Austrian Flanders .
SCHELENBURG, a town in Westphalia , 7 miles E. of Osna«burgh.
SCHELESTADT, a town in the department of Lfpper Rhine and province of Alsace, 20 miles S. W. of Strasburg .
SCHELLA, a town of Upper Hungary, 25 miles N. E. ofPresburg . Lon. 17. 40. E. Lat. 48. 32. N.
SC11ELLENBERG, or SCI1ELLENBURG, a town andfort of Bavaria , 5 miles N. N. E. of Berchtoldsgaden, and 22 W. ofIngoldstadt. Lon. 10. 58. E. Lat. 48. 46. N.
SCHELLING, an island of Holland in the department ofEems, and province of Frieseland : about 15 miles long, and 3broad, 15 miles N. of Harlingen. Lon. 5. 10. E. Lat. 53. 20. N.
SCHEME, [G'X’if-'-rc,] a draught or representation of any astro-nomical or geometrical figure, or problem, by lines sensible to theeye ; or of the celestial bodies in their proper places for any givenmoment. It is otherwise called a diagram.
SCHEMNITZ, a town of Upper Hungary. Lon. 19. 0. E.Lat. 48. 40. N. „ XT . . „„
SCHENECTADY, a post town of New York, in Albany
SCI-IENING, or SKENING, a town of Sweden, in EastGothland , 8 miles S. E. of Wastena. Lon. 15. 47. E. Lat. 58.
12. N. ■. . .
SCIIERARDIA, in bolanv, a genus ot the monogyma order,and tetrandria class of plants. Corolla monopetalous, funnel-shaped ; seeds two, three-toothed.
SCHERMBECK, or SCHERNBEGK, a town in Westphalia ,on the E. or right bank of the Rhine , 27 miles E. of Cleves.
SCHESBURG, a town of Transylvania , divided into Upperand Lower towns, 47 miles E„ S. E. of Colosvar, and 120 N. E.of Temesvar. x
SGHESCHMINSK,