canvass upon an iron bottom, so as to form a sort of cylinder, whose diameter is equal to that of the ball which is adapted to the cannon. Case-shot, or canister-shot, are composed of a great number of small bullets, put into a cylindrical tin box. They are principally used, when very near, to clear the decks of the enemy. Besides these, there are others of a more pernicious kind, used by privateers, pirates, &c.; such are langrageshot, star-shot, fire-arrows, &c. Star-shot consist of four pieces of iron, whose bases, when separate, form the quadrant of a circle; so that the whole, being joined, forms a cylinder equal to the shot of the cannon. Each of these pieces is furnished with an iron bar, the extremity of which is attached to a sort of link, as keys are strung upon a ring. Being discharged from the gun, the four branches or arms extend every way from the link in the centre. These are chiefly intended to destroy the sails or rigging; but their flight and execution are very precarious at any considerable distance.

SHREW-MOLE (scalops, Cuv.); head elongated and terminating in an extended and cartilaginous snout, which is very flexible; eyes exceedingly small, and entirely concealed by the hair, requiring the closest attention for their detection. The auricle is entirely wanting, and the integument of the head nearly covers the tube leading to the internal ear. The feet are very short, and five-toed; the fore feet terminate in a remarkably large hand, of which the fingers are armed with long, flat and linear nails. The hind feet are very delicate, and the toes are provided with small hooked nails. When at rest, the shrew-mole resembles a small stuffed sack. This animal is found abundantly in North America, from Canada to Virginia. He burrows with great quickness. His soft and polished fur, preventing friction, tends to facilitate his subterranean march. Numerous galleries, communicating with each other, enable the animal to travel in various directions without coming to the surface. Under ordinary circumstances, the burrows are simply oval-arched galleries, running forward, either straight or in gentle curvatures; sometimes only one to three inches deep, at other times much deeper. His favorite food is the earthworm; and he destroys grubs and insects of various kinds in great quantities. In the winter, he burrows near streams, where the ground is not so deeply frozen. The shrew-mole is not only able to make his way rapidly under ground, but can run

quite fast when on the surface. If you attempt to draw him, by his posterior extremities, out of his hole, he clings by his fore paws with great force; and, when finally dragged out, frequently inflicts a severe bite on his disturber. Shrew-moles are most active early in the morning ani at mid-day. The precision with which these creatures daily come to the surface at twelve o'clock, is remarkable. The shrew-mole is covered with a bright glossy fur, about half an inch in length, and of a bright plumbeous color, very closely set, and in all parts directed backward. The whole fore arm is concealed by the skin, leaving the broadly expanded palm, with its fore nails, projecting from the fore part of the body in an awkward manner, if compared with the anterior extremity of other animals. The snout is composed of a cartilage, articulated with the premaxillary bones, and is moved in various direetions, by muscles situated on the side of the head; it is naked, and of a very light flesh-color. The mouth is large, and the size of the tongue considerable. The eyes are difficult to be discovered externally, without a good glass. The eyeballs are less in size than a grain of mustard seed. The aperture of the eye-lids will abou allow the passage of an ordinary sized human hair. The vision of this anima seems to be barely sufficient to give hin. an intimation of light, without allowing him to distinguish the figures of bodies. His whole structure seems to be studied with a view to facilitate his progres under the earth. The total length, from the point of the snout to the beginning of the tail, is five inches, and the tail is one inch long; the longest fur on the body, half an inch in length. A living specimen, kept for many weeks in a room. spent the greater part of the day in sleep. and was very active at night. He could not see in any light, as he uniformly ran his nose with some violence against every obstacle several times, before he learned to avoid those that were permanent. (See Godman's American Natural History. from which the above account is abridged.

SHREWSBURY; a market town and borough of England, in the county of Salop, and the chief town in the county, situated on the Severn. There is a very fine public walk, called the Quarry, along the banks of the Severn. The streets are, many of them, steep and narrow, and all indifferently paved. The public buildings deserve attention, both for their architecture and antiquity. The ruins of the castle consist of two round towers and a

curtain, the work of Edward I; the walls of the inner court; and the great arch of the interior gateway. There are six churches, a Roman Catholic chapel, and meeting-houses for Presbyterians, Unitarians, Baptists, Methodists and Quakers. The charitable institutions of Shrewsbury are the infirmary, the house of industry, an hospital, &c. In the suburb called the abbey Foregate are the remains of the abbey dedicated to St. Peter, at one time a great resort of people from all parts of the kingdom, to the shrine of St. Winefrid. Besides the abbey, Shrewsbury had formerly three convents and five chapels. Shrewsbury is a place of considerable trade. Flannels used to be the staple articles, and a coarse kind of woollen cloth, made in Montgomeryshire, called Welsh webs. Some manufactures are also carried on in the town, viz. of linen yarn, porter, &c. It is famous for its excellent bran, which is sent to various parts of the kingdom. It sends two members to parliament. Its origin is referred to the fifth century, when the Britons are thought to have established themselves here. It was often visited by the English monarchs, and became the scene of many military events. About two miles from the town was fought the battle of Shrewsbury, in which Henry V, then prince of Wales, first distinguished himself in the field, and Hotspur was slain. At the entrance of the town is a column of freestone, to commemorate the military achievements of lord Hill. Population in 1831, 16,055. Forty miles west of Lichfield.

SHRIMP (crangon); a small, crustaceous animal, allied to the lobster and craw-fish, which frequents shallow waters along the sea-coast. In shape, it resembles these animals, but is more elongated in proportion,and is destitute of the large anterior claws; and it is distinguished from the prawn by the absence of the long, anterior, serrated spine. The term is sometimes, but improperly, applied to the species of gammarus, which are much more abundant along our coasts; but these are readily distinguished by the compressed form of their bodies. The shrimp has ten feet; the tail is as long as the body, and termiuated at the extremity with scale-like appendages, which unfold somewhat in the manner of a fan. During life, the body is semi-transparent, and so much resembles sea-water that the animal is distinguished with difficulty. Its ordinary motion consists of leaps. It is abundant in sandy places, and furnishes nutriment to great numbers of fishes, aquatic birds,

&c.

The European species is in great request for the table, and, in the summer season, is carried in vast quantities to the principal towns, even at a considerable distance in the interior. We have a species common along our Atlantic coast, from Maine to Florida, which might be usefully employed, like the European; but it is entirely neglected.

SHROUDS; a range of large ropes extended from the mast-heads to both sides of a ship, to support the masts, and enable them to carry sail, &c.

SHROVETIDE, or SHROVE TUESDAY; the day before the first of Lent or AshWednesday, so called because on that day it was customary for all persons_to_confess their sins. (See Carnival, and Lent.) After confession, at least in England, it was usual to eat pancakes. Shrove Tuesday is called in German Fastnacht (fast-eve), and in French Mardi Gras (fat Tuesday).

In

SHUKOWSSKIJ, Wassily Andrejewitsch, a Russian poet, was born in 1784, educated at Moscow, took part in the campaign of 1812, and subsequently began his poetical career with his Liudmilla, a translation of Bürger's Lenore. He has formed himself on the model of Göthe, Goldsmith, Byron, sir Walter Scott, and Thomas Moore. His ballads, epistles and elegies are particularly esteemed. 1824, he published the third edition of his poetical works, in four volumes. In 1824, he was made reader to the present empress, and at present directs the education of the grand prince Alexander, heir-apparent to the throne. Shukowsskij must not be confounded with prince Shakowsskij, who is considered the first comic poet of Russia.

SHUMLA. (See Choumla.)

SIAM; a country in the peninsula of Farther India, or Chin-India, which is but imperfectly known to us. The Siamese empire is composed of Siam Proper, a large portion of Lao, a portion of Cambodia, and some tributary Malay states, extending from about lat. 5° to 21° N., and from lon. 97° 50′ to 105° E. Its area may be estimated at 190,000 geographical square miles, with a population of not more than 2,790,500, of which 1,260,000 are Siamese, 840,000 Laos, 195,000 Malays, 440,000 Chinese, &c. The greater proportion of the territory, although it contains some rich alluvial plains, appears to be mountainous: the soil is, much of it, fertile, the climate favorable, and the communication easy, so that the thinness of the population must be ascribed to the

barbarism and bad government of the country. The capital of the empire is Bangkok (lat. 13° 50° N.), near the mouth of the Menam, the great river of Siam, the population of which Crawfurd estimates not to exceed 50,000. Ayuthia, the old capital, eighty miles from the mouth of the same river, which here becomes navigable, is the next considerable city of the empire. Siam Proper is the valley of the Menam, which, at its southern extremity, does not exceed 60 miles in breadth: its length is stated at about 360 miles, and its superficial area may amount to 20,000 square miles. The country of the Laos-a people speaking a dialect of the Siamese language-appears to be divided between the Siamese, the Chinese, and the Birmans, with which latter empires that of Siam is thus brought into contact. Subsequently to the civil war which broke out in Cambodia in 1809, that kingdom was divided between the Siamese and the Cochin-Chinese governments. The Malay states tributary to Siam are Queda, on the western coast of the peninsula, with Patani, Kalantan and Tringano on the east. The Siamese are one of the most considerable and civilized of the group of nations inhabiting the tropical regions beyond Hindoostan and China. In stature they are shorter than Europeans, averaging about five feet three inches in height. Their complexion is a light brown, rather darker than that of the Chinese. In the useful arts they have made little progress, and, in this respect, are much behind the Hindoos and Chinese. Their alphabet consists of thirty-eight consonants, and numerous vowels and diphthongs, and the characters are written from left to right. The language is destitute of inflections, and its construction depends, therefore, like the English, on juxtaposition. The literature is very meagre, consisting merely of some songs, romances and chronicles. Their sacred literature, like that of all other Buddhist countries, is in the Bali or Pali language, The Siamese are represented by travellers as servile, rapacious, slothful, disingenuous, pusillanimous and vain. The religion is Buddhism, resembling, in its morality and doctrines, that which prevails in Ceylon, but differing considerably from the Buddhism of Tartary, China and Japan. (See Buddha, and Fo.) The priests, or talapoins, live in monasteries, and are bound to celibacy. The earliest event of which we have any information in Siamese history, is the introduction of the religion of Buddha from Ceylon in the

seventh century of the Christian era. I 1511 began the first intercourse of Ears peans with this country, through the Pr tuguese. In 1684, the celebrated Siamese embassy was sent to Louis XIV, throug the influence of Constantine Phauleon et Falcon, a Greek adventurer, who, by a singular destiny, had become phraklang or foreign minister of Siam. In the mode of the last century, the country was evequered by the Birman prince Alone (see Birman Empire); but it has since ncovered its independence, and, during te reign of the late king (1809—1824. siderable acquisitions of territory we made.-See Crawfurd's Journal of Embassy to Siam and Cochin-China "Ladon, 1828).

SIAMESE TWINS, two youths born a the kingdom of Siam, with bodies singlarly united by a strong band at the jewest part of the sternum of each, were c ried from Siam, April 1, 1829, by capann Coffin, of the American ship Sachem extensively exhibited in Europe and the U. States during that and the three s sequent years. "The substance by wt-t they are connected," says doctor Warren of Boston, who examined them, “ is a trum two inches long at its upper edge, about five at the lower. Its breadth, fre above downwards, may be four int and its thickness, in a horizontai dư tion, two inches. Of course it is t rounded cord, but thicker in the perpes dicular than in the horizontal direct At its lower edge is perceived a su umbilicus, through which passed a : umbilical cord to nourish both chưa? in the fetal state. Placing my ban: 9 this substance, which I will denomir the cord, I was surprised to find it #1 tremely hard. On further examiħaTMur this hardness was found to exist at upper part of the cord only, and to le prolonged into the breast of each 1Tracing it upwards, I found it to be stituted by a prolongation of the enso — cartilage of the sternum, or extremKTA the breast bone. The breadth of *** cartilage is an inch and a half; sas ness may be about the eighth of The cartilages proceeding from each num meet at an angle, and then ** be connected by a higament, so as to m joint. This joint has a motion "puan and downwards, and also a lateral mat the latter opening in such way that, w„the boys turn in either direction, us edges of the cartilage are found to me and shut. The lower face of th lage is concave, and under it as ter

rounded cord, which may be the remains of the umbilical cord. Besides this there is nothing remarkable felt in the connecting substance. I could distinguish no pulsating vessel. The whole of this cord is covered by the skin. It is remarkably strong, and has no great sensibility; for they allow themselves to be pulled by a rope fastened to it without exhibiting uneasiness." To this we add, from the report of G. B. Bolton, esquire, read before the London royal society, April 1, 1830: "Under the cartilage, while they stand in their ordinary posture, are large hernial sacs opening into each abdomen, and into which, on coughing, congenital herniæ are forced, probably in each boy, formed by a portion of the transverse arch of the colon. Generally, however, and under ordinary circumstances, these berniæ are not apparent. Whether there is a communication between the two abdominal cavities, or a distinct peritoneal sac belonging to each hernia, is by no means obvious. When these herniæ protrude, their respective contents are pushed forwards as far as the middle of the band." If the connecting link be touched in the centre, the touch is equally felt by both; but, at half an inch from the centre, it is felt by but one. These two young persons, Eng and Chang by name, are natives of a small village, called Maklong, on the sea-coast of Siam. They were born in May, 1811, of Chinese parents. Their mother observed that she suffered no greater inconvenience at their birth than at that of her former children, as they were very small, and the head of one was presented between the legs of the other. Their parents were of the poorer class, and, until the youths left their home, they were engaged in fishing, manufacturing cocoa-nut oil, keeping poultry, &c., for the support of the family. They are about five feet two inches in height, are well made and muscular. They have been known to carry a person weighing 280 pounds a hundred feet. They are agile, can walk or run with swiftness, and can swim well. Their intellectual powers are acute: they play at chess and draughts remarkably well. Their feelings are warm and affectionate, and their conduct amiable and well regulated. They never enter into conversation with each other beyond a simple remark made by one to the other, which seems to be rationally accounted for by the fact that, their experience being all in common, they have nothing to communicate. The attempt has frequently been

made to engage them in separate conversations with different individuals, but always without success, as they are invariably inclined to direct their attention to the same thing at the same time. In their movements perfect equanimity is observed, the one always concurring with the other, so that they appear as if actuated by a common mind." In their employments and amusements, they have never been known to utter an angry word towards each other. Whatever pleases or displeases one has the same effect on the other. They feel hunger and thirst at the same time, and the quantity of food taken by them is as nearly alike as possible. Both feel the desire to sleep simultaneously, and they always awake at the same moment. Upon the possibility of separating them with safety there is some difference of opinion among medical men. The majority believe it impossible. (See the Historical Account of the Siamese Twin Brothers, by Mr. Hale, who has the charge of them, from which the above remarks are mostly taken.)

SIBERIA; a vast country of the north of Asia, with the Altai and Caucasus mountains on the south, and the Ural mountains on the west, the Pacific on the east, and the Frozen ocean on the north. It is one of the most desolate regions on the globe. A great portion of it is included within the limits of the frozen zone; and even the southern parts, from their physical structure, are exposed to a high degree of cold. Its situation also nearly excludes it from communication with the civilized parts of the world. The rivers generally have a northern direction, flowing into the Frozen ocean, the shores of which are barred by almost perpetual ice. Of the rivers, the Oby, Enisei and Lena are among the largest on the globe; others are the Irtisch, Angara, Selinga, &c. The Ural mountains on the west, and the Altaian range in the south, form striking features of Siberia. Another characteristic feature consists in the immense steppes (q. v.), or elevated plains, covered with long rank grass and aquatic shrubs, and filled with saline lakes. The natural productions of Siberia are gold, silver, copper, lead, iron, zinc, arsenic, sulphur, plumbago, &c. In the northern districts, the prevailing animal is the rein-deer. The chief fur animals are the sable, black fox, ermine, martin, &c. The ferocious animals are the bear, wolf, lynx, and wild hog. In various parts of Siberia there are found remains of extinct species of animals. (See Organic Remains.) The mass

of the population of Siberia consists of the native tribes, who are in a degree subjected to the Russian empire. Some of the most numerous tribes are the Burats, Yakoutes, Tunguses, Samoeides and Monguls. The prevailing religion is the system of Buddha, or of the Lamas. The commerce consists chiefly of two branches, one formed by the exportation of metals and furs, the other a mere transit trade, consisting in an overland intercourse carried on across Siberia with the Chinese empire. The theatre of this commerce is Kiachta. In 1825, Siberia was divided into the four governments of Tobolsk (with the province of Omsk), Tomsk, Yeniseisk and Irkutsk, with the province of Jakutsk, and the two maritime provinces of Okotsk and Kamtschatka. The population of the country is about 2,000,000, on a superficial extent of 4,280,000 square miles. Siberia was attached to the Russian dominions towards the end of the sixteenth century, and the sovereigns of Russia assumed the title of czar of Siberia, which they still retain. The importance of this region did not escape Peter the Great, who introduced manufactures, and settled Russian colonies in it. State criminals are also banished to Siberia. (See Martoinoff's Voyage Pittoresque de Moscou aux Frontières de la Chine (1819), and Cochrane's Pedestrian Journey through Russia (1827).

SIBYL, and SIBYLLINE BOOKS. Sibyl (derived by some authorities from dos, Eolic for os, God, and Boλn, for Boun, counsel) signified, originally, a female inspired or counselled by God. Of these prophetic virgins, who were believed to be thrown by a god into a kind of transport or insanity, in which they were able to unveil futurity, ancient writers mention ten, among whom the Sibyl of Cumæ, in Campania, was the most celebrated. According to O. Müller, the oracle of the Sibyls, and the worship of Apollo,were carried to Cuma from the Trojan Ida. The Sibyl of Cuma is said to have written, in Greek verses, the collection of prophecies famous under the name of Sibylline books, which, according to some, she herself, according to others, an unknown old woman, offered to Tarquin for sale. When the king, on account of the high price asked, refused to buy them, the old woman threw three of the books into the fire, and, on a second refusal, three more, after which the king, alarmed, paid for the three remaining the price originally asked for the whole, and committed them, as an oracle, to be consulted on important polit

ical occasions, to the keeping of two men The number, at a later period, was increased to ten, and by Sylla to fiftees About that time, the temple of Jupite where the Sibylline books were preserve was burned down, with the capitol. After the rebuilding of the capitol, the senate in 677, sent delegates to all the Italian an Greek cities, especially to Erythræ, in or der to collect whatever Sibylline verses they could find; and, after the reject : of those which were considered spuries. about one thousand of them were retain ed, and preserved in the new temple of Jupiter Capitolinus. The senate, at d ferent times, ordered all the Sibyll books which could be found in priva hands to be burned. Augustus did the same, and destroyed above two thousan such books, but caused the genuine Siby line books to be preserved in two chees of gold under the pedestal of the Ape. Palatinus. Yet the belief in every thi which went by the name of a Sibyl prediction was so strong that, in 772 Tberius caused an investigation of all su prophetic verses to be made, and receive, some of them as genuine; whereupon, n 785, one of the keepers of the sacred vumes proposed the admission of another book. In general, the Sibylline books remained longer in authority with the Romans than the oracles with the Greeks Though they were burned a second tir in the reign of Nero, yet, in the time of Aurelian (A. D. 270), some senators we in favor of consulting the Sibylline books respecting the event of the Marcomant. war. Yet they were then so corrupte that Christians could find in them pred tions respecting the Messiah. This co lection was burned under Julian (A. D) 363); and a fourth collection was burne under Honorius (395), by Stilicho; in sp of which a fifth collection was believes to be genuine. When Belisarius, in th middle of the sixth century, was besiegs : in Rome by the Goths, two Sibylla verses were considered as predicting th the siege would last but five monts which, however, did not agree with th event. It may be easily imagined ti the Sibylline books can have retaine their authority through so many centures only by the greatest vagueness, admitur of any interpretation, and never comm¦ting themselves. The still-existing conc tion of Sibylline verses, most complete it the edition of Gallæus(Amsterdam, 10% is of a later date, and is not consideres genuine. These had their origin in the second century, when there were per