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vent their being "proper Diluters of the neceffary Food. Indeed in robuft People, or thofe who labour hard, the Vifcidities of the Drink may be broke into convenient Nourifhmentj but in Perfons of another Habit and Way of Living, they ferve rather to promote Obftruclions and ill Humours.
The Age of thefe Liquors is the laft thing by which they are render'd more or lefs wholefume. Age feems to do nearly the fame thing as Hops j for thofe Liquors which are longeft kept, are certainly leaft vifcid: Age breaking the vifcid Parts, and by degrees rendering them fmaller and fitter for Secretion. But this is always deter- mined according to their Strength 5 in proportion to which they will fooner or later come to their full Perfection as well as Decay. For when Ale or Beer is kept till its Par- ticles are broke and comminuted as far as they are ca- pable, then 'tis they are the belt -, and beyond this they will be continually on the Decay, till the finer Spirits are entirely efcaped, and the Remainder becomes vapid and four.
We /hall only add, that thofe who mix Wine with their common Drink, are lefs fubjccl to Coughs, with other Diftempers of the Breaft, and to Dropfies ; yet are they more affected with Gravel and Pains of the Gout. See Wine.
MALTA, Knights of: An Order of Military Religious, who have bore various Names ; as, Hofpitallers of [S. John of Jerufalem, Knights of S. John, Knights of Rhodes, Order of Malta, Religion of Malta, &c. About the Year 1048, fome Neapolitan Merchants founded a Church after the Latin Kite at jerufalem, giving it the Name of £** Maria Mia Latina. They alfo founded a Monaftery of Religious after the Order of S.Bennet, for the Recep- tion of Pilgrims 5 and afterwards an Hofpital near the Monaftery, to take care of the Difeafed, under the di- rection of a Mafter or Rector, to be nominated by the Abbot of St* Maria delta Latina. Befides which, they alfo built a Chappel in honour of S. John Bap>ti8. In 1099, Godfrey of Bullen having taken %erufalem t endow'd this Hofpital with fomeDemefnes he had in France-, and o- thers imitating his Liberality, the Revenues of the Hof- pitals became confiderably augmented. Upon this, Ger- rardTom their Rector, in concert with the Hofpitallers, refolved to feparate from the Abbot and Religious of &* Maria, and to form a diftinct Congregation, under the Name and Protection of S.John BaptiB : And hence it was, that they had the Name of Hofpitallers, or Brothers of S. John of Jerufalem. Pope Pafchal II. by a Bull in the Year in 3, confirmed the Donations made to this Hof- pital, which he fettled under the protection of the Holy See ; ordering that the Rectors, after Gerard's death, fhould be chofen by the Hofpitallers. Raymond de Ptty, Gerard's Succeffor, took the Title of Majier : He gave a Rule to the Hofpitallers, which was approved by Calixtus II. in 1 1 20.
Such was the firft Rife of the Order of Malta. Now their firft Grand Matter finding the Revenues of the Hof- pital vaftly exceeded what was neceffary for the Enter- tainment of poor Pilgrims and difeafed Perfons, refolved to employ the Surplus againft the Infidels j and with this "View offer'd himfelf to the King of jerufalem. He di- vided his Hofpitallers into three Claffes. The firft confifted of Nobles, whom he deftined to the Profeffion of Arms, for the Defenceof the Faith, and the Protection of Pil- grims 5 the fecond confiited of Prielfs or Chaplains, who were to perform the Office 5 and the third of Servitors, who were not Noble, but were alfo appointed for the War. He alfo regulated the Manner of admitting Knights Brothers 3 and had the whole confirmed by Pope Inno- cent\ who gave them for Arms, a White Crofs in a Field Argent, which continue ftill the Standard of this Order.
After theLofs of Jerufalem, they retired firft to Margat, then to Acre, which they defended very vigoroufly in 1290. After the entire Lofs of the Holy Land, they with- drew to Cyprus, where K. Henry of Lufignan, whom they had follow'd thither, gave 'em the City of Limffon. Here they continued iS Years j when taking the Ifland of Rhodes from the Sarazens in 1308, they fettled there. And now it was that they firft took the Name of Knights, viz. Knights of Rhodes. Andronkus, Emperor of Conftan- tinople, granted to their Grand Mafter Foulque de Villaret, the Inveftiture of this Order; and the Donation was con- firin'd by Pope Clement. The Year following, with the affiftar.ee of AmadeuslY. Duke of Savoy, they defended themfelves and their Ifland againft an Army of Sarazens. In 1480, their Grand Mafter d'AuhvJJon made a vigorous Defence againft Mahomet II. and preferved the Iiland, in fpight of a formidable Army which befieged it for the fpace of three Months. But in 1522, it was attack'd by Soliman with an Army of three hundred thoufand Men, and taken by him, after having been in the poffeffion of the Knights 213 Years. After this Lofs, the Grand Mafter
and Knights retired firft into the Ifle of Camia. Sornt' time after Pope Clement VII. gave them Viterho. Laftly,, Charles V. in 1530, gave them the Ifland of Malta, which they ftill hold ; and hence they come by the Appellation of Knights of Malta ; tho' their proper Name is that of Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerufalem j and their Grand Mafter, among his other Titles, ftill retains that of Mafter of the Hofpital of St, John, and Guardian of thePoorof our Saviour JefusChrift.
The Order of Malta have no other Dominions befides that of their Ifland, and fome other little Places in the Neighbourhood, the chief whereof are Goza and Com'mo* The Government is both Monarchical and Ariftocratical; the Grand Mafter being the Sovereign, and the Chapter the Senate. It is Monarchical with regard to the Inha- bitants of Malta, and the ffles adjacent, and even with regard to the Knights in every thing relating to the Sta- tutes and Rule of their Order j and Ariftocratical, with regard to the Decifionof any important Affairs, which are not to be difpatched but by the Grand Mafter and the Chapter. There are two Councils, the one ordinary, compofed of the Grand Mafter, as Chief, and theGrands Croix j the other compleat, confifting of the Grand Maf- ter, the Grands-Croix, and the two Senior Knights of each Language.
The Languages of Malta are the feveral Nations whereof the Order is compofed. Of thefe there are eight, viz,. Provence, Auvergne, France, Italy, Arragon, Germany, Caftile, and England. The Pillar (as he is called,) of the Language of Provence is the Grand Commander, he of Auvergne the Grand Marfhal, he of France the Grand Jlofpitaller, he of Italy Grand Admiral, he of Arragon Grand Conservator, or Draper, as he was antient- ly called •-, the Pillar of the Language of Germany is Grand Bailiff, and he of Caftile Grand Chancellor ; the Language of England, which has been extinct fince the Time of the Reformation under King Hen -y VIII. had for its Pillar, or Chief, the Turopolicr, or General of the Infantry. The Language of Provence is the firit, on ac- count of Raimond de Pity, their firft Grand Mafter, who was a Provencial.
In each Language there are feveral Grand Priories and capital Bailiages. To each Language belongs a Hall, where the Knights eat, and hold their ordinary Affem- blies. Each Grand Prior has a Number of Comman- dries, The Commandries are either magiftral, by Right a or by Favour; the magiftral are thofe annexed to the Grand Mafterfhip, whereof there is one in each grand Priory. Commandries by Right are thofe which come by Right of Seniority ; their Seniority is computed from, the Time of their Admiffion, but they mull firft have lived five Years at Malta, and have made four Caravannes, or cruizing Voyages on the Turks and Corfah-s. Comman- dries by Favour, are thofe which the Grand Mafter, or the Grand Priors have a Right of conferring h one of thefe they confer every five Years on whom theypleafe.
The Noble Knights are called Knights by Right; ex- cepting whom, none can be Bailiffs, Grand Priors, or Grand Mailers. The Knights by Favour are thofe who, not being noble of themfelves, areraifed, on account of fome great Exploit, or notable Service, into the Rank of Nobles. TheServitors, or Serving-Brothers, are of two kinds 5 (1.) The Servitors of War, whofe Functions are the fame with thofe of the Knights. (2.) Servitors of Religion, whofe whole Bufinefs is to fing the Praifes of God in the Conventual Church, and to officiate each in his Turn as Almoners on board the Veffels and Gallies of the Order. The Brothers of Obedience are Priefts, who, without being obliged to go to Malta, take the Habit of the Order, make the Vows, and attach themftilves to the Service of fome of the Churches of the Order, under the Authority of a Grand Prior, or Commander, to whom they pay Obedience. The Knights of Majority are thofe who, according to the Statutes, are admitted at fixteen Years of Age. The Knights of Minority are thofe who are admitted from the Time of their Birth ; which, how- ever, can't be done without a Difpenfation from the Pope. The Chaplains can only be admitted regularly from ten to fifteen Years of Age 5 after fifteen they muft have a Brief from the Pope ; till fifteen the Grand Maf- ter's Letter is fufficient. Thefe are called Diaco's, and muft give Proof of their being born of creditable Fami- lies.
For the Proofs of Nobility to be made, e'er the Ad- miffion of Knights, in the Language of Germany, they go back fix Generations ; in the reft 'tis fufficient ro go back to the Great Grandfather on the Father's or Mother's fide. All the Knights, after their Profeffmn, are obliged to wear a white Crofs or Star, with eight Points over the Cloak or Coat on the left Side, which is the proper Habit of the Order, the Golden Crofs being only an Orra-
ment. _
There
