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He is represented as more resembling a monkey than a

man.

Ramsey a very rich abbey, part of the gatehouse of which is still standing, and a neglected statue of Ailwin; the epitaph Ramtrut. on whose tomb, which is reckoned one of the oldest pieces of English sculpture extant, styles him "kinsman of the famous King Edward, alderman of all England, and miraculous founder of this abbey." It was dedicated to St Dunstan, and its abbots were mitred and sat in parliament; and so many kings of England were benefactors to it, that its yearly rents, says Camden, were 7000l. The town was then called Ramsey the Rich; but by the dissolution of the abbey it soon became poor; and even lost its market for many years, till about 200 years ago it recovered it. It is held on Saturday, and is reckoned one of the most plentiful in England. In the year 1721 a great number of Roman coins was found here, supposed to have been hid by the monks on some incursion of the Danes. There is a charity school in the town for poor girls. In 1811 the number of inhabitants was 2390. W. Long. o. 19. N. Lat. 52. 26. RAMSEY, an island of South Wales, on the coast of Pembrokeshire, about two miles in length, and a mile and a half broad. Near it are several small ones, known by the name of the bishop and his clerks. It is four miles west of St David's, and 17 north-east of Milfordhaven. It belongs to the bishopric of St David's, and was in the last age, says Camden, famous for the death of one Justinian, a most holy man, who retiring hither from Britanny, in that age rich in saints, and devoting himself entirely to God, lived a long while in solitude, and being at last murdered by his servant was enrolled among the martyrs. W. Long. 5. 20. N. Lat. 51. 55.

RAMSEY, in the Isle of Man, to the north, a most noted and spacious haven, in which the greatest fleet may ride at anchor with safety enough from all winds but the north-east, and in that case they need not be embayed. This town standing upon a beach of loose sand, or shingle, is in danger, if not timely prevented, of being washed away by the sea.

RAMSGATE, a sea port town of Kent, in the isle of Thanet, five miles from Margate, where a very fine pier has been lately built for the security of ships that come into the harbour, being seated near the Downs between the north and south Foreland, 10 miles north-east of Canterbury. The town is situated in the cove of a chalky cliff. It was formerly but an obscure fishing village, but since the year 1688 has been improved and enlarged by a successful trade to Russia and the east country. But what renders it most worthy of notice, is the new harbour, which is one of the most capacious in England, if not in Europe. It was begun in the year 1750, but delayed by various interruptions. It consists of two piers; that to the east is built wholly of Purbeck stone, and extends itself into the ocean near 800 feet before it forms an angle; its breadth on the top is 26 feet, including a strong parapet wall, which runs along the outside of it. The other to the west is constructed of wood as far as the low water mark, but the rest is of stone. The angles, of which there are five in each pier, consist of 160 feet each, with octagons at the end of 60 feet diameter, leaving an entrance of 200 feet into the harbour, the depth of which admits of a gradual increase of 18 to 36 feet. In 1811 the population was 4221. E. Long. 1. 30. N. Lat. 51. 22.

RAMTRUT, a deity worshipped by the Ranazins of Hindostan, where he has a celebrated temple at Onor.

2

RAMUS, in general, denotes a branch of any thing, as of a tree, an artery, &c. In the anatomy of plants it means the first or lateral branches, which go off from the petiolum, or middle rib of a leaf. The subdivisions of these are called surculi; and the final divisions into the most minute of all, are by some called capillamenta; but both kinds are generally denominated surculus. RAMUS, Peter, was one of the most famous professors of the 16th century. He was born in Picardy in 1515. A thirst for learning prompted him to go to Paris when very young, and he was admitted a servant in the college of Navarre. Spending the day in waiting on his masters, and the greatest part of the night in study, he made such surprising progress, that, when he took his master of arts degree, he offered to maintain a quite opposite doctrine to that of Aristotle. This raised him many enemies; and the two first books he published, Institutiones Dialectica, and Aristotelicæ Animadversiones, occasioned great disturbances in the university of Paris: and the opposition against him was not a little heightened by his deserting the Romish religion, and professing that of the Reformed. Being thus forced to retire from Paris, he visited the universities of Germany, and received great honours wherever he came. He returned to France in 1571, and lost his life miserably in the horrid massacre of St Bartholemew's day. He was a great orator, a man of universal learning, and endowed with very fine moral qualities. He published many books, which Teissier enumerates. Ramus's merit in his opposition to Aristotle, and his firmness in undermining his authority, is unquestionably great. But it has been doubted, and with much reason, whether he was equally successful in his attempts after a new logical institute. We have the following general outline of his plan in Dr Enfield's History of Philosophy. "Considering dialectics as the art of deducing conclusions from premises, he endeavours to improve this art, by uniting it with that of rhetoric. Of the several branches of rhetoric, he considers invention and disposition as belonging equally to logic. Making Cicero his chief guide, he divides his treatise on dialectics into two parts, the first of which treats of the invention of arguments, the second of judgments. Arguments he derives not only from what the Aristotelians call middle terms, but from any kind of proposition, which, connected with another, may serve to prove any assertion. Of these he enumerates various kinds. Judgments he divides into axioms, or self evident propositions, dianoëa, or deductions by means of a series of arguments. Both these he divides into various classes; and illustrates the whole by examples from the ancient orators and poets.

"In the logic of Ramus, many things are borrowed from Aristotle, and only appear under new names; and many others are derived from other Grecian sources, particularly from the dialogues of Plato, and the logic of the Stoics. The author has the merit of turning the art of reasoning from the futile speculations of the schools to forensic and common use; but his plan is defective in confining the whole dialectic art to the single object of disputation, and in omitting many things, which respect the general culture of the understanding and the investigation of truth. Notwithstanding the defects of his system, we cannot, however, subscribe to the severe cen

sure

Ramtiat, Ramus.

Ramus

queen. 3. Aristippus, or the Jovial Philosopher. 4. Randolph The Conceited Pedlar. 5. The Jealous Lovers, a I comedy. 6. Hey for Honesty, down with Knavery, a comedy; and several poems.

sure which has been passed upon Ramus by Lord BaA con and others; for much is, we think, due to him for Randolph. having with so much firmness and perseverance asserted the natural freedom of the human understanding. The logic of Ramus obtained great authority in the schools of Germany, Great Britain, Holland, and France; and long and violent contests arose between his followers and those of the Stagyrite, till his fame vanished before that of Descartes."

RAN, in the old English writers, means open or public robbery, so manifest as not to be denied. Ran dicitur aperta rapina quæ negari non potest. Lamb. 125. Leg. Canut. cap. 58. Hence it is now commonly said of one who takes the goods of another injuriously and violently, that he has taken or snatched all he could rap and ran.

RANA, or RANULA. See RANULA. RANA, the frog; a genus of reptiles belonging to the order of amphibia. See ERPETOLOGY Index.

RANAI, one of the Sandwich islands discovered by Captain Cook, is about nine miles distant from MoWEE and MOROTOI, and is situated to the south-west of the passage between these two isles. The country towards the south is elevated and craggy; but the other parts of the island had a better appearance, and seemed to be well inhabited. It abounds in roots, such as sweet potatoes, taro, and yams; but produces very few plantains and bread-fruit trees. The south point of Ranai is in the latitude of 20° 46′ north, and in the longitude of 203° 8' east.

RANCID, denotes a fatty substance, that is become rank or musty, or that has contracted an ill smell by being kept close.

RANDIA, a genus of plants belonging to the pentandria class; and in the natural method ranking with those of which the order is doubtful. See BOTANY Index.

RANDOLPH, THOMAS, an eminent English poet in the 17th century, was born in Northamptonshire 1605. He was educated at Westminster and Cambridge, and very early distinguished for his excellent genius; for at about nine or ten years of age he wrote the History of the Incarnation of our Saviour in verse. His subsequent writings established his character, and gained him the esteem and friendship of some of the greatest men of that age, particularly of Ben Johnson, who adopted him one of his sons in the muses. He died in 1634, and was honourably interred. He wrote, 1. The Muses Looking-glass, a comedy. 2. Amyntas, or the Impossible Dowry, a pastoral, acted before the king and

RANDOM SHOT, in Gunnery, is a shot made when the muzzle of a gun is raised above the horizontal line, and is not designed to shoot directly or point blank.

The utmost random of any piece is about ten times as far as the bullet will go point-blank_The bullet will go farthest when the piece is mounted to about 45° above the level range. See GUNNERY and PROJEC

TILES.

RANGE, in Gunnery, the path of a bullet, or the line it describes from the mouth of the piece to the point where it lodges. If the piece lie in a line parallel to the horizon, it is called the right or level range: if it be mounted to 45°, it is said to have the utmost range: all others between oo and 45° are called the intermediate ranges.

RANGER, a sworn officer of a forest, appointed by the king's letters patent; whose business is to walk through his charge, to drive back the deer ont of the purlieus, &c. and to present all trespasses within his jurisdiction at the next forest court.

RANK, the order or place assigned a person suitable to his quality or merit.

RANK, is a straight line made by the soldiers of a battalion or squadron, drawn up side by side: this order was established for the marches, and for regulating the different bodies of troops and officers which compose

an army.

RANK and Precedence, in the army and navy, are as follow:

Engineers RANK. Chief, as colonel; director, as lieutenant-colonel; sub-director, as major; engineer in ordinary, as captain; engineer extraordinary, as captain-lieutenant; sub-engineer, as lieutenant; practitioner engineer, as ensign.

Navy RANK. Admiral, or commander in chief of his majesty's fleet, has the rank of a field-marshal; admirals, with their flags on the main-top-mast-head, rank with generals of horse and foot; vice-admirals, with lieutenant-generals; rear-admirals, as major-generals; commodores, with broad pendants, as brigadier-generals; captains of post-ships, after three years from the date of their first commission, as colonels; other captains, as commanding post-ships, as lieutenant-colonels; captains, not taking post, as majors; lieutenants, as captains.

Rank

RANK,

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