THERMUM, an ancient town of Ætolia, on the Evenus. Polyb. 5.

THERO, or THERON, tyrant of Agrigentum, but no tyrant in the modern sense. See AGRIGENTUM, CARTHAGE, and SYRACUSE.

THERSANDER, a son of Polynices, and grandson of Edipus, king of Thebes. He went with the Greeks to the Trojan war, and was killed by Telephus. Virg. Æn. v.

THESEA, in antiquity, feasts celebrated by the Athenians in honor of Theseus, consisting of sports and games, with mirth and banquets. Such as were poor and unable to contribute to them were entertained at the public expense. THESEIDÆ, a name given the Athenians from Theseus. Virg. Georg. ii. 212.

THESEUS, a famous hero of antiquity, ranked among the demi-gods. He was the son of Ægeus king of Athens. He threw Sciron, a cruel robber, down a precipice; fastened Procrustes tyrant of Attica to a bending pine, which, being let loose, tore him asunder; killed the Minotaur kept in the labyrinth by king Minos, in Crete; and by the assistance of that prince's daughter, Ariadne, who gave him a clue, escaped out of that labyrinth, and sailed with his deliverer to the isle of Naxos, where he had the ingratitude to leave her. Theseus afterwards overcame the Centaurs, subdued the Thebans, and defeated the Amazons. He assisted his friend Pirithous in his expedition to hell to carry off Proserpine; but was imprisoned by Pluto, till he was released by Hercules. He also established the Isthmean games, in honor of Neptune: united the twelve cities of Attica; and founded a republic there, 1236 B. C. Some time after, taking a voyage into Epirus, he was seized by Aldonius king of the Molossians; meanwhile Menestheus rendered himself master of Athens. But at length Theseus being released from prison, retired to Scyros, where king Lycomedes caused him to be thrown from the top of a rock. Theseus had several wives; the first of whom was the beautiful Helena; the second Hyppolyte, queen of the Amazons, by whom he had Hippolytus; and the last Phædra, sister to Ariadne, who punished him for his infidelity to her sister, by her incestuous passion for his son Hippolytus. See EGEUS, ARIADNE, HIPPOLYTUS, and MINOS.

THE'SIS, n.s. Fr. these; Gr. Seoig. A position; something laid down, affirmatively or negatively.

The truth of what you here lay down,
By some example should be shewn.
An honest but a simple pair,

May serve to make this thesis clear.

Prior.

THESIUM, base fluellin, in botany, a genus of plants belonging to the class of pentandria, and order of monogynia. The calyx is monophyllous, with the stamina inserted into it: there is only one seed, which is inferior. There are seventeen species, one of which is a British plant, viz. T. linophyllum, or bastard toad flax. It has a foliaceous panicle, with linear leaves, and flowers in June and July.

THESPIA, an ancient town of Baotia, destroyed by the Thebans. See THEBES.

THESPIS, a famous Greek tragic poet, and the first representer of tragedy at Athens. He carried

his troop from village to village in a waggon, from which they performed their pieces. Alcestis was the first tragedy they performed at Athens, 536 B. C. See THEATRE.

THESPIUS, king of Thespia, in Boeotia, who had fifty daughters, all of whom Hercules got with child, of sons each, in one night.

THESPROTIA, an ancient country of Epirus, on the sea-coast, on the west of Ambracia; famous for its oracle of Dodona. It was seated between the Acheron and the Cocytus. Homer. THESSALONICA, the daughter of Philip II. king of Macedon, and sister of Alexander the Great. She was married to Cassander, and bore him three sons, Philip IV., Antipater, and Alexander V., but she was murdered by her son Antipater. See MACEDON.

THESSALONICA, a city of Macedonia, so named from the above princess, being anciently called Therma. It was once very powerful, and early received the Christian faith. It is a city of importance, and now called Salonichi.

THESSALUS, a son of Hercules and Calliope, the daughter of Euryphilus, who settled in Thessaly and gave name to it. Also a celebrated physician of Lydia, who flourished at Rome, in the reign of Nero.

THESSALY, a country of Greece, whose boundaries have been different at different periods. It was bounded on the south by the southern parts of Greece, or Græcia Propria; east by the gean; north by Macedonia and Mygdonia; and west by Illyricum and Epirus. It was generally divided into four provinces, Thessaliotis, Pelasgiotis, Istiæotis, and Phthiotis, to which some add Magnesia. It has been severally called Emonia, Pelasgicum, Argos, Hellas, Argeia, Dryopis, Pelasgia, Pyrrhæa. &c. The name of Thessaly is derived from Thessalus, its first monarch. Thessaly is famous for a deluge which happened there in the age of Deucalion. Its mountains and cities are also celebrated, such as Olympus, Pelion, Ossa, Larissa, &c. The Argonauts were partly natives of Thessaly. The inhabitants of the country passed for a treacherous nation, so that false money was called Thessalian coin, and a perfidious action a Thessalian deceit. Thessaly was originally governed by kings till it became subject to the Macedonian monarchs. The cavalry was universally esteemed, and the people were superstitious and addicted to the study of magic. Lucan. 6. v. 438, &c.; Dionys. 219; Cart. 3. c. 2; Ælian, V. H. 3. c. 1; Paus. 4. c. 36. l. 10. c. 1; Mela, 2. c. 3; Justin 7. c. 6; Diod. 4. Thessaly is now called Janna, a province of European Turkey, bounded by Macedonia on the north, by the Archipelago on the east, by Achaia or Livadia on the south, and by Epirus on the west.

THESTIA, a town of Etolia, between the Evenus and Achelous-Polyb. 5.

THETIS, in Pagan mythology, the wife of Oceanus, and the mother of Nereus and Doris, who were married to each other; and from this marriage sprung the nymphs of the earth and Among the sea nymphs there was one named Thetis the Younger, who excelled all the rest in beauty, and for whom Jupiter conceived

sea.

such a passion, that he resolved to espouse her: but being informed by the destinies, that she would bring forth a son who would rise above his father, he married her to Peleus. To their nuptials all the gods and goddesses were invited except Discord, who, to be revenged for this contempt, threw a golden apple into the assembly, on which was engraven, For the fairest. Juno, Pallas, and Venus, disputed for this apple; but Paris, being chosen to decide the difference, adjudged it to Venus. From this marriage of The tis and Peleus sprung Achilles.

THETFORD, a market town of Norfolk and Suffolk, situated in a pleasant open country on the Ouse, at its confluence with the Thet. The greater part of the town is in Norfolk, but part in Suffolk. The principal street, named Bridge Street, is in the road from London to Norwich.

Thetford was once a place of great note, and the ruins of ecclesiastical and other buildings strongly remind the visitor of ancient splendor. It had at one period twenty churches, and eight monasteries, besides other religious and charitable foundations; in consequence of which it obtained the epithets of Hierapolis and Monachopolis. But of these the names only of some remain, and of others only bare dilapidated walls. Three of the churches are preserved, St. Peter's and St. Cuthbert's on the Norfolk side of the town, and St. Mary the Less on the Suffolk side. St. Peter's, commonly called the black church, from its being built chiefly of flint, consists of a chancel, nave, two aisles, and a tower; the latter was rebuilt in 1789. The battlements on the south side, and the buttresses are decorated with ornaments, and large letters, inlaid in the flint-work. Some of the walls remain, with buttresses, windows, &c., of the ancient nunnery. This was founded by Uvius, the first abbot of St. Edmund's Bury, in the reign of king Canute. The conventual church was lately converted into a barn. Of the priory or abbey founded by Roger Bigod, for monks of the Cluniac order, in the year 1104, the ancient gateway, with parts of the church, &c., still remain. The monastery was suppressed in the year 1540. It had been the burial place of several noble families, who had borne the title of earls of Norfolk, and also contained numerous monuments of the Bigods, Mowbrays, and Howards. After the dissolution, many of the mortuary remains were removed to Framlingham. The site of St. Austin's priory is known by the name of the Friar's Close. Of the monastery of St. Sepulchre, which was founded in the year 1139, by William, earl of Warren and Surrey, there are also some remains; but here again the church has been converted in a barn. The site is called Canons. Of four other religious houses no vestiges remain. At the eastern extremity of the town are some considerable remains of fortifications, with lofty banks and deep ditches. They seem to have been the work of the early kings of East Anglia; there is also a Norman keep. The mount is about 100 feet in height, and the circumference at the base 984. Its slope is extremely steep. East of the mount is a large area or parade. The principal building in the modern town is the guildhall, where

the Lent assizes for the county are held. The old guildhall or council-house being in a dilapidated condition, the present council-chamber and apartment for the juries were erected by Sir Joseph Williamson, knight, one of the principal secretaries of state to king Charles II. The grammar-school is on the Suffolk side of the river, near St. Mary's church, and was founded by king James I. in consequence of a bequest by Sir Richard Fulmerstone, in 1566. The town also contains a county jail, bridewell, workhouse, a hospital sufficiently endowed for the maintenance of a preacher, a school-master, usher, &c.; and various alms-houses and other charitable donations. The Ouse is navigable up to the town.

Thetford is a very ancient burgh; but its charter of incorporation, by which it is still governed, was granted by queen Elizabeth in 1573. The corporation consists of a mayor, ten aldermen, twenty common council-men, a recorder, town-clerk, sword-bearer, and two serjeants at mace. The town sends two members to parliament, and has been honored with the presence of many of our sovereigns, particularly Henry I. and Henry II. Several charters, granted by the former, hear date at Thetford. King James I. made this one of his hunting seats; and the palace is still known by the name of the king's house. During the heptarchy, Thetford formed the metropolis of the kingdom of the East Angles, and in the twelfth century was the see of a bishop. It had then also a mint, which has produced a great number of Anglo-Saxon coins. The chief magistrate found here at the Norman conquest was styled a consul. In the vicinity is a mineral spring. Various extraneous fossils are also found here. The celebrated Thomas Paine was born here. Market on Saturday and two annual fairs. Twenty-nine miles south-west of Norwich, and eighty N. N. E. of London.

THEVENOT (Melchisedec), librarian to the king of France, and a celebrated writer of travels, was born at Paris in 1621. He laid down rules, and invented an instrument, for finding the longitude, and the declination of the needle, and assisted at a conclave held on the death of pope Innocent X., and was the French envoy at Genoa. He died in October 1692, aged seventyHis Travels into the Levant, &c., were published in English, in 1681, fol.; and in French at Paris, in 1663, fol. He wrote also L'Art de Nager, the Art of Swimming, 12mo. 1696.

one.

THEVENOT (John), another celebrated_travelver, who travelled in Asia, and published an account of his travels, in 3 vols. 4to. and in 5 vols. 12mo. He died in 1667.

THEURGY, in ancient seperstition, was that sacred part of magic sometimes called white magic, or the white art, in opposition to necromancy, or the black art. The word is formed from

tog, God, and pyov, work; q. d. the art of doing divine things, or things which God alone can do or the power of working extraordinary and supernatural things, by invoking the names of God, saints, angels, &c. Accordingly, those who have written of magic in general, divide it into three parts: the first whereof is called theur

gy, as operating by divine or celestial means; the second, natural magic, performed by the powers of nature; and the third, comprehending necromancy, sorcery, and witchcraft or magic, performed by the assistance of dæmons or departed men. See MAGIC. THEW, n. s. Į

Sax. deap. Quality; manTHEW'ED, adj. ners; customs; habit of life; behaviour in Shakspeare, it seems to signify brawn or bulk: thewed is accustomed; educated. Obsolete.

Home report these happy news,

For well yee worthy been for worth and gentle thewes. Spenser.

But he was wise, and wary of her will, And ever held his hand upon his heart;

Yet would not seem so rude, and thewed in ill, As to despise so courteous seeming part.

Id.

Nature crescent does not grow alone In thews and bulk; but, as this temple waxes, The inward service of the mind and soul Grows wide withal. Shakspeare. Hamlet. Will you tell me how to chuse a man? Care I for the limbs, the thews, the stature, bulk, and big semblance of a man? give me the spirit, master Shallow. Shakspeare.

THEY. Sax. gl. Pronoun, in the oblique case them, the plural of he or she; this or that: used also indefinitely like the Fr. on dit. The men ; the women; the persons. Themselves is the reciprocal pronoun.

Whatsoever evil befalleth in that, themselves have Hooker. made themselves worthy to suffer it. They are in a most warlike preparation. Shakspeare. Coriolanus.

Why do you keep alone?

Of sorriest fancies your companions making, Using those thoughts, which should indeed have died

With them they think on.

They eat on beds of silk and gold, At ivory tables, or wood sold Dearer than it.

Id. Macbeth.

Ben Jonson's Catiline. The materials of them were not from any herb. Wilkins.

Such things as in themselves are equally true and certain, may not yet be capable of the same kind or Id. degree of evidence as to us.

They open to themselves at length the way. Milton.
There, as they say, perpetual night is found
In silence brooding on the unhappy ground.

'Tis remarkable that they
Talk most who have the least to say.
The flowers she wore along the day,
And ev'ry nymph and shepherd said,

THICK, adj., adv. & n. s. THICKEN, v. a. & v. n. THICK'ET. n. s.

THICKLY, adv.

Dryden.

Prior.

Id.

That in her hair they looked more gay Than growing in their native bed. Waken children out of sleep with a low call, and give them kind usage till they come perfectly to themselves. Locke. Sax. 8icce; Belg. dick; Isl. thickur; Danish syk; Teut. dick. Not thin; dense; coarse; gross; not rare; or clear; close: THICK'SKIN, n. s. hence frequent: as an adverb frequently; fast; closely; to a great depth: as a noun substantive the thickest part; a thicket: to thicken is to make thick or close; condense; strengthen; make closer: to

THICKNESS, n. s. THICK SCULLED, adj. THICK'SET,

Shakspeare.

Speaking thick, which nature made his blemish, Became the accents of the valiant, To seem like him.

Id. Henry IV. God caused the wind to blow, to dry up the abundant slime of the earth, make the land more firm, and cleanse the air of thick vapours and unwholesome mists. Raleigh. Poll a tree, and cover it some thickness with clay on the top, and see what it will put forth. Bacon's Natural History. It tasted a little of the wax, which in a pomegranate, or some such thick-coated fruit, it would not. Bacon.

THICKNESSE (Philip), born in 1720, was when young, and served in the West Indies; the son of a clergyman, and entered in the army on his return to England he obtained a captain's commission. He then married a lady of French extraction, expecting an ample fortune; but his views were disappointed, and becoming a widower, entered again into matrimony with lady Elizabeth Touchet, heiress of the ancient barony of Audley. Her fortune enabled him to purchase the lieutenant governorship of Landguard Fort; but the union involved him in family disputes, and contributed by no means to his happiness. About 1761 Mr. Thicknesse lost his second consort; and, on her only son succeeding to the title and estate of his mother, a disagreement took place between him and his father, who laid his grievances before the public in a pamphlet entitled Queries to Lord Audley, 8vo. He seems to have indulged what Dr. Johnson calls, the triumph of hope over experience,' with regard to matrimony. The year after he became a widower, he married the daughter of Mr. Ford, a solicitor, who long survived him. See the next article. By this lady he had several children, the difficulty of providing for whom induced him to retire first to Wales, and afterwards to the continent. Having travelled through France, Italy, and Spain, he returned home, and resided again in Wales, and at Bath. Shortly after the beginning of the Revolution in France, Mr. Thicknesse went abroad, intending to settle in Italy; but he died of apoplexy while travelling nea Boulogne, in 1792. Among his numerous and eccentric works are Man-midwifery analysed, and the Tendency of that practice detected and France and Part of Spain, 1777, 2 vols. 8vo.; exposed, 1765, 4to.; A Year's Journey through The new prose Bath Guide, 1778, 8vo.; The Valetudinarian's Bath Guide, or the Means of obtaining long Life and Health, 1780, 8vo.; A Year's Journey through the Pays Bas and Austrian Netherlands, 1786, 8vo.; A Sketch of the Life of Thomas Gainsborough, 1788, 8vo.; and Memoirs and Anecdotes of Philip Thicknesse, late Lieutenant Governor of Landguard Fort, and unfortunately father to George Touchet, Baron Audley, 1788, 2 vols. 8vo.

considerable accomplishments, was born in the THICKNESSE (Mrs. Anne), an authoress of Temple, February 22, 1737. Her talents and personal attractions having early introduced her into the world of fashion, she gave three concerts at the opera-house on her own account,