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in throng Vaults of Brick or Stone, to be fired in the but imperfect Metals, which not having arriv'd at Matu- muift ot an Enemy s Fleet. rity , may be perfected by Chymical Operations, and railed
. is alfo it hmdVUtlatp See Measure. to red Metals. This, agreeable, but fatal Delufion, has
"udy the Phi-
M1NERA, in Medicine and Anatomy, a Term apply'd given rife to the Sefl of Fhilofophers, who ftu to thole I arts of the Body wherein there are collections lofopher's Stone. See Meth Gold Phii and coacervations of Humours made; which hardning, Stone, £5?c
ILOSOFIIER s
form Obtlructions, and produce Difeafes. we fay, the Miner's morbi, ckc.
In this fenfe
Cryjlal Mineral, fee Crystal Mmera/. MINERAL- WATERS, are thofe, which at their fpring-
MINERAL, in Natural Hiffory, is fometimes ufed in ing forth from under Ground, are found impregnated with the general tor io//, and applied to any Body, fimple, or fome Mineral Matter ; as Salt, Sulphur Vitriol £?c. Ses compound, dug out of a Mine; from which it takes the Water.
Denomination. See Mine.
In this fenfe, the Metals, Sulphurs, foflil Salts, Semi- metals, iSc. are Minerals. See Fossil.
On this Principle, they divide Minerals into twoClaffes ; the one fujible, and malleable ; i.e. which melt with Fire,
Such are hot Baths, Spavis, purging, i£c. Springs. See Bath, Spaw, Spring, ci^c.
MINIATURE, or Mignature, a delicate kind of Painting, confiding of little Points or Dots, inflead of Lines ; ufually done on Velom, with very thin, fimple Watcr-
and ftreichon the Anvil ; which are what weproperly call Colours. See Paintin
Metals. The others want thofe two Properties; and are Miniature is diftinguifhed from other kinds of Paint-
what in the flrift fenfe we call Minerals. ing by the fmallnefs and delicacy of its Figures, the weak- Some divide Minerals into Simple and Compound: To net's of their Colours, and faintnefs of the Colouring, and
the fcrft belong Stones ; Salts, as Alum, Nitre, &c. In- in that it requires to be view'd very near. flammable Minerals, as Sulphur and Bi tumen ; and Metals, Thofe Colours that have the lead Body, are the bed
as Gold, i^c. and moft commodiousfor painting in ilf/Mifltiires as Carmine.
Others ot the more accurate Writers, reflrain the Word Ultramarine, fine Lakes, and Green made of the Juices of
JW/uerWtowhat we oiherwife call Semi-metal. See Semi- feveral kinds of Herbs and Flowers.
METALi Painting in Miniature is the niceft and mod tedious of all
in this lenle, ^Mineral may be defined a compound others; being performed wholly with the Point of the Pencil.
Foffil, wherein there is fomethmg difcovered, in all re- There are fome Painters who never ufe any white Colour
fpefls like Metal, only that it is not malleable ; join'd, in Miniature, but make the ground of the Velom ferve to
or compounded with fome other Foffil, as Salt, Sulphur, raife their Figures ; in which Cafe, the Lights appear bright
Sione, <>r Earth. Such are Antimony, Cinm.bar, Bifmuth, in proportion to the depth and ftrcngth of the Colours of
Calammaris, Utnol, Tyntes, Marcaftes, Cobalt, Oker, the the Figures. Others, before they go to work give the Ve-
M i; n«, Lapis Hematites, Armams, and Stellatus. See each lorn a light walh with white Lead, well prepared and pu-
unfler its proper Article, Antimony, Cinnabar, Bis- rifled.
muth, Vitriol Calaminaris, &c. When the Colours are laid on flat without dotting, tho'
Some attribute the Formation of Minerals to the Action the Figures be fmall, and the ground either Velom or Fa-
of the Sun without ; fome to the central Fire within ; and per, it is not call'd Miniature but Wafiim.
fome think the Cold does all by uniting condenfing, and The Colours for Miniature may be mix'd up with Water
congealing certain Juices. of Gum Arabic, or Gum Tra°acanth.
DesCartes takes .Metals to have been form'd from the The Word comes from the Latin Minium, Red Lead,
beginning of the World ; and to have ranged themfelves, that being a Colour much ufed in this kind of Painting.
by the Laws of Gravity, about the Centre. Inprocefsof The French frequently call it Mignature, from Mitnon, fine,
time, he fuppoicsthcm to have been corroded by the acid pretty, on account of its fmallnefs and delicacy.
Salts, cSc and abundance of the parts thereof carried MINIM, in Mufic, a Note, or Character of Time ;
up along with thofe Salts by the fubterrancan Hear, and equal to two Crochets, or half a Semibreve. See Time
depofited in divers parts of the Earth. and Char acters of M</k
Moni. loumefort Tuppofes Seeds of Minerals, as of Ani- MINIMA Nature, or Minima Naturalia, among Philo-
mals, and Vegetables. Every thing, according to him, fophers, are the primary Particles, whereof Bodies confifl ;
comes from Eggs, even Stones ; and the largeff Rocks
were originally no more than Grains of Sand. See his Syfiem more at length under the Articles Metal and Ston e.
Others, asM. Geoffny, contend that Metals, £•?-■. maybe the refult of a mixture of certain Matters, which had no- thing metallic in them. Thus, in the Afhes of all Vege- tables wc find a ferruginous Matter which the Load-ftone attracts ; and yet it will hardly be faid that Iron exifted in the Plants. We fee no figns of Iron in Argilla, work it in what manner you will ; and yet add Linfeed-Oil, and by
call'd alfo Corpuscles and Atoms. See Corpuscle, Ato& Matter, £i?c.
MINIMA and Maxima, in the higher Geometry. See Maxima and Minima.
MIN1MENTS, or MUNIMENTS. See Muniments.
MINIMS, or Minimi, an Order of Religious, inflim- ted about the Year 1440, by S. Francis de Paulo.
Thefe have improved on the Humility of the Minors, by terming themfelves Minimi, or Minimes, a. d. Leait, or Smalleft. See Minors.
MINION, a fort of Cannon, or piece of Ordnance,where-
Fire you will procure Iron. And the like may be faid of of there are two kinds ; large and* ordinary. See Cannon
divers other Matters. and Ordnance.
II ence it is probable, Metals may be form'd by a mere The large Minion, or one of the largeft Size, has its Rore
combination ot different Ingredients ; much like Sulphur, 3 £ Inch Diameter, and is 1000 Pounds Weight ; its Load
which we all know ,s made by adding an inflammable is 3 -* Pounds of Powder ; its Shot 3 Inches in Diameter, and
Principle to a vitriolic Salt. The Earth may every where 3 | Pound Weight; its Length is 8 Foot, and its level
abound with thofe Matters, which arecontinually circulatin through iis Pores and Canals, and which meeting with an Earth homogeneous to them, fix thereto ; and commence Minerals.
The Minerals, Metal-,|and Stones lie in Beds ; and have done fo ever fince the Flood, if not from the Creation ; yet 'tis highly probable they have a faculty of growing in their refpective Beds ; that, as their Beds are robb'd and emptied by Miners, fo after a while they recruit again
Range 125 Paces.
The ordinary Afinion is three Inches Bore, in Diameter, and weighs about 8co or 750 Pounds Weight. It is feven Foot long ; its Load 1 i Pounds of Powder ; its Shot near three Inches Diameter, and weighs 3 Pounds 4 Ounces; and fhoots point-blank 120 Paces.
MINISTER, Servant, one that ferves God, the Public, or a private Perfon. SeeSEavANT.
In the Reformed Church, Priefls, or thofe ordain'd to
Thus Vitriol Mr. Boyle thinks, may grow by the help of preach, and do the other Functions o'f the Priefthoot the Air, and Alum does the fame. We are affured (fays call'd abfolutely
that Author) by the experienced Jgricola, that the Earth, or Oil of Alum, being robb'd of its' Salts, will, in tract of time, recover it by being expofed to the Air.
Asfor Metals, there is good reafon to believe they grow likewife ; from what has been alledged by Mr. Koyle, in his Obfervations about the growth of Metals, and particu- larly as to the growth of Iron. To the Inflances he brings from Pliny, Fallop'ms, Gcfalpims, and others, we may add, that in the Forelt of Dean in Gloucejlerfiire, the beft Iron and inlhe greater! Quantities, are found in the old Cinders'
which they melt oyer again. This fome impute to the adminiftring the Affairs of Juftice, Policf, tfc for "him Negligence of the former Melters in not exhaufling the See Officer.
Ore. But Mr. Derham thinks it rather owing to the new Minister of State, is he with whom a Prince entrufis Impregnations of the old Ort, or Cinders from the Air ; the Ad minilt ration of his State ; or to whom he commits than to any feminal Principle ,n the Ore itfelf. the Care, and Diteflion of the principal Affairs thereof.
The Chymifts generally take Minerals to be nothing elfe See State and Government.
See;;,,,
d limply Minijiers.
In this fenfe, Bifhops, %£c. are faid to be Minifters of God ; Minifters of the Word ; of the Gofpel, l£c. In fome Churches they arealfo called Pallors. See Bishop, Pri est Pastor, £i?c.
Ministers of the Altar, are properly thofe who attend and affi.il the Ptieft at the Adminiflration of the Eucharift. Deacon, and Subdeacon are Titles that properly fignify Minijiers ; Ai^kci-©- , Minijler. See Deacon and Sue- deacon.
OfEcersof State, $£c. are call'd the King's Minijle'-s ;
