very strong. The principal soap-works are at Susa. Little, however, is prepared on a speculative anticipation of a demand for exportation; but any quantity may be had by contracting for it a few months before the period when it is wanted. A sort of woollen scull-caps are largely exported. They are in extensive demand all over the Levant, and are nowhere made in such perfection as here. Ivory and gold dust, hides, wax, morocco leather, sponge, barilla, coral, dates, ostrich feathers, &c. are among the articles of export.

The imports from Europe consist of woollens, coarse German and Irish linens, cotton stuffs, hardware, sugar, coffee, spices, tin plates, lead, alum, dye stuffs, wine, silk, Spanish wool, &c. There is very little direct trade between Tunis and England; but a good deal is indirectly carried on, through the intervention of Malta and Gibraltar. Marseilles has probably the largest share of the trade with the regency. In 1830, there entered the different ports of Tunis 194 ships, of the burden of 20,747 tons, exclusive of those engaged in the trade with the other African states and Turkey.

Exclusive of the trade by sea, a considerable trade is carried on between Tunis and the interior of Africa, by means of caravans. These import slaves, gold dust, ivory, feathers, drugs, &c. They carry back cotton stuffs, linens, hardware, spices, cochineal, &c.

Naval and military stores imported into Tunis pay no duty. Other articles pay a duty of 3 per cent. ad valorem on a rated tariff. Obstructions arising out of monopolies, &c. are occasionally thrown in the way of exportation; and in general it is necessary, before proceeding to ship, to obtain a tiskery, or licence to that effect, from the bey. That, however, may be, for the most part, procured without much difficulty.

Money.Accounts are kept in piastres of 16 carobas or 52 aspers. The piastre is worth about 1a. Id. sterling. The asper is an imaginary money. The value of foreign coins depends on the state of the exchange.

Weights.-Gold, silver, and pearls are weighed by the ounce of 8 meticals; 16 of these ounces make the Tunis pound = 7,773.5 Eng. grs. The principal commercial weight is the cantaro, coutaining 100 lbs, or rottoli, being equivalent to 111:05 lbs. avoird., or 50-36 kilog.

Measures. The principal corn measure is the cafiz, divided into 16 whibas; and the whiba into 12 sahas. One cafiz = 14 Imperial bushels.

The wine measure is the millerolle of Marseilles = 14.1 Imp. galions, or 64:33 litres. It is divided into 6} mitres.

RUINS OF CARTHAGE.

The principal oil measure is the metal or mettar = 5-125 wine gallons, or 19:39 litres; but it is of different dimensions in different parts of the country; and is larger at Susa, whence most of the oil is exported, than at Tunis.

The pic, or principal long measure, is of 3 sorts; viz. the pic woollen measure = 26.5 Eng. inches; the pic silk measure = 24-8 do.; and the pic linen measure 18-6 do.

For further particulars, see that chapter of Shaw's Travels in Barbary, &c. (one of the most learned and excellent works of the kind in the English language), that treats of the kingdom of Tunis; Macgill's Account of Tunis, passim; Jackson's Commerce of the Mediterranean, pp. 55-95.; Kelly's Cambist, &e.

The famous city of Carthage, one of the greatest emporiums of the ancient world, long the mistress of the sea, and the most formidable enemy of Rome, was situated near the cape which still bears her name, about 10 miles N. E. from Tunis. Such, however, have been the alterations on the coast, that the port of the city, within whose ample expanse whole navies used to ride, is now wholly filled up: antiquaries differ as to its situation; and the sea has in some places receded from 2 to 3 miles from the ruins of the buildings by which it was formerly skirted. The common sewers are still in a very perfect state, as are several cisterns, public reservoirs, and other remains of that sort, with the fragment of a noble aqueduct that supplied the city with water. But besides these and a very few Punic inscriptions that have been dug up, there is nothing left to attest the ancient grandeur and magnificence of the city, or to identify it with the illustrious people by whom it was founded and occupied till its destruction by Scipio Nasica. There are no temples, no triumphal arches, no granite columns or obelisks covered with Phoenician characters, and no ancient entablatures. These have all fallen a sacrifice to hostile attacks, or to the destroying hand of time.

Nunc passim, vix reliquias, vix nomina servans,
Obruitur, propriis non agnoscenda ruinis.

Such mutilated fragments of buildings as still remain are evidently the work of a later age; of those who occupied the city between the period when a colony was sent to it by Augustus, and its final subversion by the Saracens in the 7th century.

TURBITH, OR TURPETH, the cortical part of the root of a species of Convolvulus, brought from different parts of the East Indies. It is a longish root about the thickness of the finger, resinous, heavy, of a brownish hue without and whitish within. It is imported cloven in the middle, lengthwise, and the heart or woody matter taken out The best is ponderous, not wrinkled, easy to break, and discovers to the eye a large quantity of resinous matter. At first it makes an impression of sweetness on the taste; but, when chewed for some time, betrays a nauseous acrimony. It is used in medicine, but only to a small extent. - (Lewis's Mat. Med.)

TURBITH (MINERAL), the name given by chemists to the subsulphate of mercury. TURBOT (Pleuronectes maximus), a well-known and highly esteemed species of fish. Very considerable quantities of turbot are now taken on various parts of our coasts, from the Orkneys to the Land's End, yet a preference is given in the London markets to those caught by the Dutch. The latter are said to have sometimes drawn as much as 80,000/ in a single year, for turbots sold in London.

Fresh turbots, however taken, or in whatever ship imported, may be imported free of duty. (See FISH.)

TURMERIC, the root of the Curcuma longa. It is externally greyish, and internally of a deep lively yellow or saffron colour; very hard; and not unlike, either in figure or size, to ginger. That should be preferred, which is large, new resinous, difficult to break, and heavy. It is imported from Bengal, Java, China, &c.: but some of a superior quality is said to have been brought from Tobago. Small quantities of it have also been grown in England. It has a somewhat aromatic, and not very agreeable smell; and a bitterish, slightly acrid, but rather warm taste. It used to be in con

siderable estimation as a medicine; but, in Europe, it is now only used as a dye. It yields a beautiful bright yellow colour; which, however, is extremely fugitive, and no means have hitherto been discovered of fixing it. It is sometimes employed to heighten the yellows made with weld, and to give an orange tint to scarlet; but the shade imparted by the turmeric soon disappears. The Indians use it to colour and season their food. (Lewis's Mat, Med.; Bancroft on Colours, vol. i. p. 276.)

The entries of turmeric for consumption amount to about 4,000 cwts.; but as the duty on the article when brought from a foreign possession was reduced in 1842 from 10s. to 5s. per cwt., and when brought from a British possession from 28. 4d. to 1d. per do., it is probable that the consumption will be materially increased. Its price, duty paid, in London, varies, according to quality, from 10s, to 32s. per cwt.

TURPENTINE (Ger. Turpentin; Fr. Térébenthine; It. Trementina; Rus. Skipidar; Pol. Terpentyna). There are several species of turpentine, but all of them possess the same general and chemical properties.

1. Common Turpentine, is a resinous juice which exudes from the Scotch fir or wild pine (Pinus sylvestris). The trees which are most exposed to the sun, and have the thickest barks, yield it in the greatest abundance. They begin to produce it when about 40 years old. The bark of the tree is wounded and the turpentine flows out in drops, which fall into a hole, or sort of cup, previously dug at the foot of the tree, holding about 1 pint. It is purified by being exposed to liquefy in the sun's rays, in barrels perforated in the bottom, through which it filters. In the U. States, the collection of turpentine is confided chiefly to negroes, each of whom has the charge of from 3,000 to 4,000 trees. The process lasts all the year, although the incisions are not made in the trees till the middle of March, and the flow of the turpentine generally ceases about the end of October. The boxes are emptied 5 or 6 times during the year; and it is estimated that 250 boxes will produce a barrel weighing 320 lbs. Turpentine has a strong, somewhat fragrant odour, and a bitter, disagreeable taste; its consistence is greater than that of honey; its colour dirty yellow; and it is more opaque than the other sorts. We import it almost entirely from the U. States.

2. Venice Turpentine, is the produce of the larch (Pinus Larix). It is obtained by boring a hole into the heart of the tree about 2 feet from the ground, and fitting into it a small tube through which the turpentine flows into vessels prepared for its reception. It is purified by straining through cloths, or hair sieves. It is more fluid, having the consistence of new honey, a yellowish colour, and is less unpleasant to the smell and taste, than the common turpentine. Genuine Venetian turpentine is principally obtained from the forests of Baye, in Provence; but much of that to be found in the shops comes from America, and is, perhaps, obtained from a different species of fir.

3. Canadian Balsam, or Turpentine, is obtained from incisions in the bark of the Pinus Balsamea, a native of the coldest regions of North America. It is imported in casks, each containing about 1 cwt. It has a strong, not disagreeable odour, and a bitterish taste; is transparent, whitish, and has the consistence of copaiva balsam. -(See BALSAM.)

4. Chian, or Cyprus Turpentine, is obtained from the Pistacia Terebinthus, a native of the north of Africa and the south of Europe, and cultivated in Chios and Cyprus. It flows out of incisions made in the bark of the tree in the month of July; and is subsequently strained and purified. It has a fragrant odour, a moderately warm taste, devoid of acrimony or bitterness, and a white or very pale yellow colour; it is about as consistent as thick honey, is clear, transparent, and tenacious. From its comparative high price, Chian turpentine is seldom procured genuine, being for the most part adulterated either with Venetian or common turpentine. The different species of turpentine may be dissolved in rectified spirit, or pure alcohol; and, by distillation, they all give similar oils, which, from their being distilled (and not from any resemblance to alcohol, or spirits properly so called), are vulgarly termed spirit of turpentine. If the distillation be performed with water, the produce is an essential oil, the common spirit of turpentine; and if the distillation be carried on in a retort, without water, the product is more volatile and pungent, a concentrated oil, as it were, and is called the ethereal spirit of turpentine. The residuum that is left, in both cases, is a brownish resinous mass, brittle, capable of being melted, highly inflammable, insoluble in water, but mixing freely with oils: it is the common rosin of commerce. -(Lib. of Entert. Knowledge, Vegetable Substances; Thomson's Dispensatory.)

The entries of turpentine for home consumption in 1841 and 1842 amounted, at an average, to 305,986 cwt. a year. It is entirely imported from the U. States.

TURPENTINE, OIL OF (Ger. Terpentinöl; Fr. Eau de raze, Huile de térébenthine; It. Acqua di rasa; Sp. Aguarras), the essential oil drawn from turpentine by distillation. There are two sorts of this oil: the best, red; and the second, white. It is very extensively used by house painters, and in the manufacture of varnish, &e The distillers have been charged with using it in the preparation of gin. Oil of turpentine is very often adulterated.

TURQUOISE (Ger. Türkiss; Fr. Turquoise; It. Turchina; Sp. Turquesa), a precious stone in considerable estimation. Its colour, which is its principal recommendation, is a beautiful celestial blue, which migrates into pale blue, and is sometimes tinged with green. Specific gravity, 3.127. It is destitute of lustre, opaque, and does not admit of a very high polish. It is much worn in necklaces, and every part of ornamental jewellery, from the size of a pin's head to that of an almond: it contrasts beautifully with brilliants, or pearls, set in fine gold, and appears to most advantage when cut spheroidal. -(Mawe on Diamonds, 2d ed. p. 129.)

Real turquoises are exclusively furnished by Persia. The mines whence they are obtained are situated near Nishapore. They are the property of the Crown, and are farmed to the highest bidder. They bring a rent of from 2,000l. to 2,700%. a year. (Fraser's Travels on the Shores of the Caspian, pp. 343–347.)

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TUTENAG, the name given in commercial language to the zinc or spelter of China. -(See ZINC.) This commodity used to be smuggled from China (the exportation of unwrought metals from that empire being prohibited) to Hindostan, the Malay Archipelago, and neighbouring countries, to the amount, it is supposed, of about 50,000 cwt. a year. In 1820, the British free traders introduced German spelter or zinc for the first time into the Indian market. In 1826, the importation of tutenag from China into Calcutta ceased and it has now been totally superseded throughout India bý spelter. Of this latter commodity there were exported from Great Britain, in 1840, to the East India Company's territories and Ceylon, 50,585 cwts., besides the quantities furnished by Hamburg, Rotterdam, Antwerp, and other continental ports.

TYRE, the principal city of Phoenicia, and the most celebrated emporium of the ancient world. This famous city was situated on the S. E. coast of the Mediterranean, where the inconsiderable town of Tsour now stands, in lat. 33° 17' N., lon. 35° 14' 35" E. The trade that is at present carried on at Tsour is too trifling to deserve notice; but as this work is intended to give some account, however imperfect, of the revolutions in the channels of commercial enterprise, we may, perhaps, be excused for submitting a few statements with respect to the commerce carried on by so renowned a people as the Tyrians.

Tyre was founded by a colony from Sidon, the most ancient of the Phoenician cities. The date of this event is not certainly known, but Larcher supposes it to have been 1,690 years before the Christian æra. —(Chronologie d'Hérodote, cap. ii. p. 131.) It is singular, that while Homer mentions Sidon, he takes no notice of Tyre, whose glory speedily eclipsed that of the mother city; but this is no conclusive proof that the latter was not then a considerable emporium. The prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, who flourished from 700 to 600 years before Christ, represent Tyre as a city of unrivalled wealth, whose "merchants were princes, and her traffickers the honourable of the earth." Originally, the city was built on the main land: but having been besieged for a lengthened period by the Babylonian monarch Nebuchadnezzar, the inhabitants conveyed themselves and their goods to an island at a little distance, where a new city was founded, which enjoyed an increased degree of celebrity and commercial prosperity. The old city was, on that account, entitled Palætyre, and the other simply Tyre. The new city continued to flourish, extending its colonies and its commerce on all sides, till it was attacked by Alexander the Great. The resistance made by the Tyrians to that conqueror showed that they had not been enervated by luxury, and that their martial virtues were nowise inferior to their commercial skill and enterprise. The overthrow of the Persian empire was effected with less difficulty than the capture of this single city. The victor had not magnanimity to treat the vanquished as their heroic conduct deserved. In despite, however, of the cruelties inflicted on the city, she rose again to considerable eminence. But the foundation of Alexandria, by diverting the commerce that had formerly centered at Tyre into a new channel, gave her an irreparable blow; and she gradually declined till, consistently with the denunciation of the prophet, her palaces have been levelled with the dust, and she has become “a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea."

Commerce, Colonies, &c. of Tyre. - Phoenicia was one of the smallest countries of antiquity. It occupied that part of the Syrian coast which stretches from Aradus (the modern Rouad) on the north, to a little below Tyre on the south, a distance of about 50 leagues. Its breadth was much less considerable, being for the most part bounded by Mount Libanus to the east, and Mount Carmel on the south. The surface of this narrow tract was generally rugged and mountainous; and the soil in the valleys, though moderately fertile, did not afford sufficient supplies of food to feed the population. Libanus and its dependent ridges were, however, covered with timber suitable for ship building; and besides Tyre and Sidon, Phoenicia possessed the ports of Tripoli, Byblos, Berytus, &c. In this situation, occupying a country unable to supply them with sufficient quantities of corn, hemmed in by mountains, and by powerful and warlike neighbours, on the one hand, and having, on the other, the wide expanse of the Mediterranean, studded with islands, and surrounded by fertile countries, to invite the

enterprise of her citizens, they were naturally led to engage in maritime and commercial adventures; and became the boldest and most experienced mariners, and the greatest discoverers, of ancient times.

From the remotest antiquity, a considerable trade seems to have been carried on between the Eastern and Western worlds. The spices, drugs, precious stones, and other valuable products of Arabia and India, have always been highly esteemed in Europe, and have been exchanged for the gold and silver, the tin, wines, &c. of the latter. At the first dawn of authentic history, we find Phoenicia the principal centre of this commerce. Her inhabitants are designated in the early sacred writings by the name of Canaanites, -a term which, in the language of the East, means merchants. The products of Arabia, India, Persia, &c. were originally conveyed to her by companies of travelling merchants, or caravans; which seem to have been constituted in the same way, and to have performed exactly the same part in the commerce of the East, in the days of Jacob, that they do at present. —(Gen. xxxvii. 25, &c.) At a later period, however, in the reigns of David and Solomon, the Phoenicians, having formed an alliance with the Hebrews, acquired the ports of Elath and Ezion-geber, at the north-east extremity of the Red Sea. Here they fitted out fleets, which traded with the ports on that sea, and probably with those of southern Arabia, the west coast of India, and Ethiopia. The ships are said to have visited Ophir; and a great deal of erudition has been expended in attempting to determine the exact situation of that emporium or country. We agree, however, with Heeren, in thinking that it was not the name of any particular place; but that it was a sort of general designation given to the coasts of Arabia, India, and Africa, bordering on the Indian Ocean; somewhat in the same loose way as we now use the terms East and West Indies.-(See the chapter on the Navigation and Commerce of the Phoenicians, in the translation of Heeren's work.)

The distance of the Red Sea from Tyre being very considerable, the conveyance of goods from the one to the other by land must have been tedious and expensive. To lessen this inconvenience, the Tyrians, shortly after they got possession of Elath and Ezion-geber, seized upon Rhinoculura, the port in the Mediterranean nearest to the Red Sea. The products of Arabia, India, &c., being carried hither by the most compendious route, were then put on board ships, and conveyed by a brief and easy voyage to Tyre. If we except the transit by Egypt, this was the shortest and most direct, and for that reason, no doubt, the cheapest, channel by which the commerce between Southern Asia and Europe could then be conducted. But it is not believed that the Phoenicians possessed any permanent footing on the Red Sea after the death of Solomon. The want of it does not, however, seem to have sensibly affected their trade; and Tyre continued, till the foundation of Alexandria, to be the grand emporium for Eastern products, with which it was abundantly supplied by caravans from Arabia, the bottom of the Persian Gulph, and from Babylon, by way of Palmyra.

The commerce of the Phoenicians with the countries bordering on the Mediterranean was still more extensive and valuable. At an early period, they established settlements in Cyprus and Rhodes. The former was a very valuable acquisition, from its proximity, the number of its ports, its fertility, and the variety of its vegetable and mineral productions. Having passed successively into Greece, Italy, and Sardinia, they proceeded to explore the southern shores of France and Spain, and the northern shores of Africa. They afterwards adventured upon the Atlantic; and were the first people whose flag was displayed beyond the pillars of Hercules.*

Of the colonies of Tyre, Gades, now Cadiz, was one of the most ancient and important. It is supposed by M. de St. Croix to have originally been distinguished by the name of Tartessus or Tarshish, mentioned in the sacred writings.—(De l'Etat et du Sort des Anciennes Colonies, p. 14.) Heeren, on the other hand, contends, as in the case of Ophir, that by Tarshish is to be understood the whole southern part of Spain, which was early occupied and settled by Phoenician colonists. (See also Huet, Commerce des Anciens, cap. 8.) At all events, however, it is certain that Cadiz early became the centre of a commerce that extended all along the coasts of Europe as far as Britain, and perhaps the Baltic. There can be no doubt that by the Cassiterides, or Tin Islands, visited by the Phoenicians, are to be understood the Scilly Islands and Cornwall. (See TIN.) The navigation of the Phoenicians, probably, also, extended a considerable way along the western coast of Africa; of this, however, no details have reached us.

But, of all the colonies founded by Tyre, Carthage has been by far the most celebrated. It was at first only a simple factory; but was materially increased by the arrival of a large body of colonists, forced by dissensions at home to leave their native land, about 883 years before Christ.—(St. Croix, p. 20.) Imbued with the enterprising mercantile spirit of their ancestors, the Carthaginians rose, in no very long period, to the highest eminence as a naval and commercial state. The settlements founded by the Phoenicians in Africa, Spain, Sicily, &c. gradually fell into their hands; and after Mons Calpe and Mons Abyla, the Gibraltar and Ceuta of modern times.

the destruction of Tyre by Alexander, Carthage engrossed a large share of the commerce of which it had previously been the centre. The subsequent history of Carthage, and the misfortunes by which she was overwhelmed, are well known. We shall only, therefore, observe, that commerce, instead of being, as some shallow theorists have imagined, the cause of her decline, was the real source of her power and greatness; the means by which she was enabled to wage a lengthened, doubtful, and desperate contest with Rome herself for the empire of the world.

The commerce and navigation of Tyre probably attained their maximum from 650 to 550 years before Christ. At that period the Tyrians were the factors and merchants of the civilised world; and they enjoyed an undisputed pre-eminence in maritime affairs. The prophet Ezekiel (chap. xxvii.) has described in magnificent terms the glory of Tyre; and has enumerated several of the most valuable productions found in her markets, and the countries whence they were brought. The fir trees of Senir (Hermon), the cedars of Lebanon, the oaks of Bashan (the country to the east of Galilee), the ivory of the Indies, the fine linen of Egypt, and the purple and hyacinth of the isles of Elishah (Peloponnesus), are specified among the articles used for her ships. inhabitants of Sidon, Arvad (Aradus), Gebel (Byblos), served her as mariners and carpenters. Gold, silver, lead, tin, iron, and vessels of brass; slaves, horses, mules, sheep, and goats; pearls, precious stones, and coral; wheat, balm, honey, oil, spices, and gums; wine, wool, and silk; are mentioned as being brought into the port of Tyre by sea, or to its markets by land, from Syria, Arabia, Damascus, Greece, Tarshish, and other places, the exact site of which it is difficult to determine.*

The

Such, according to the inspired writer, was Tyre, the "Queen of the waters" before she was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar. But, as has been already remarked, the result of that siege did not affect her trade, which was as successfully and advantageously carried on from the new city as from the old. Inasmuch, however, as Carthage soon after began to rival her as a maritime and mercantile state, this may, perhaps, be considered as the æra of her greatest celebrity.

It would not be easy to over-rate the beneficial influence of that extensive commerce from which the Phoenicians derived such immense wealth. It inspired the people with whom they traded with new wants and desires, at the same time that it gave them the means of gratifying them. It everywhere gave fresh life to industry, and a new and powerful stimulus to invention. The rude uncivilised inhabitants of Greece, Spain, and Northern Africa acquired some knowledge of the arts and sciences practised by the Phoenicians; and the advantages of which they were found to be productive secured their gradual though slow advancement.

Nor were the Phoenicians celebrated only for their wealth, and the extent of their commerce and navigation. Their fame, and their right to be classed amongst those who have conferred the greatest benefits on mankind, rest on a still more unassailable foundation. Antiquity is unanimous in ascribing to them the invention and practice of all those arts, sciences, and contrivances that facilitate the prosecution of commercial undertakings. They are held to be the inventors of arithmetic, weights and measures, of money, of the art of keeping accounts, and, in short, of every thing that belongs to the business of a counting-house. They were also famous for the invention of ship building and navigation; for the discovery of glass-(See GLASS); for their manufactures of fine linen and tapestry; for their skill in architecture, and in the art of working metals and ivory; and still more for the incomparable splendour and beauty of their purple dye.-(See the learned and invaluable work of the President de Goguet, Sur L'Origine des Loix, &c. Eng. trans. vol. i. p. 296., and vol. ii. pp. 95—100.; see also the chapter of Heeren on the Manufactures and Land Commerce of the Phænicians.)

But the invention and dissemination of these highly useful arts form but a part of what the people of Europe owe to the Phoenicians. It is not possible to say in what degree the religion of the Greeks was borrowed from theirs; but that it was to a pretty large extent seems abundantly certain. Hercules, under the name of Melcarthus, was the tutelar deity of Tyre; and his expeditions along the shores of the Mediterranean, and to the straits connecting it with the ocean, seem to be merely a poetical representation of the progress of the Phoenician navigators, who introduced arts and civilisation, and established the worship of Hercules, wherever they went. The temple erected in honour of the god at Gades was long regarded with peculiar veneration.

The Greeks were, however, indebted to the Phoenicians, not merely for the rudiments of civilisation, but for the great instrument of its future progress—the gift of letters. No fact in ancient history is better established than that a knowledge of alpha

There is, in Dr. Vincent's Commerce and Navigation of the Ancients in the Indian Ocean (vol. it. 624-652.), an elaborate and (like the other parts of that work) prolix commentary on this chapter of Ezekiel, in which most of the names of the things and places mentioned are satisfactorily explained. (See also Heeren on the Phoenicians, cap. iv.)