ACT
Will have the greater part of the Afts of former ages to be fpurious. Fontanini d after ts, that the number of forged Afts now extant is very fmall. 'Tis certain there were fevere punifhments inflicted on the forgers and falfifiers of Acts. — [ d Vind.Ant.Diplom. c. 5. Jour.desScav. T.34.P. 1018.] The chief of the Englifh A&%\ or public records, are pub- lifhed by Rymer, under the title of Fcedera, and continued , by Saunderfon : an extract whereof has been given in French by Rapin, and tranflated into Englifh, under the title of Ma Regia c . Great commendations have been given this work f , and fome exceptions made to it : as that there are many fpu- rious Ms b, as well as errors in it ;. fome have even charged it with falfifications h .— [ c New Mem. of Liter. T. 2. p. 233. f Bibl. Choif. T. 16. p. 1. Journ. des Scav. T. 46. p. 182.
- Journ. des Scav. T. 75. p. 537. h Fennel, in Journ. des
Scav. T. 81. Seealfo Act. Erud. Lipf. an. 1728.] The public Afts of France fell into the hands of the Englifh after the battle of Poitiers, and are commonly (aid to have been carried by them out of the country. But the tradition is not fuppnrted by any fufficient teftimony, and has even been fhewn by M. Brunei to be felfe. V. Journ. des Scav- T. 84. p. 245. feq. Acts of councils. Thefe differed from canons, in that the latter contained only the remits, or the laws and regulations agreed on, and drawn up in form ; whereas the Afts included the pre- ceding debates, motions, &€■
In the firft collections of councils, only the bare canons were delivered. Afterwards they began to give the Afts as well as the canons.
Hence we have two kinds of fy nodical collections : one con- taining all the Afts, or tranfactions relating to matters of faith and doctrine ; the other containing only the canons re- lating to difciplinc, properly called the book of canons. Hoffman. Lex. Univ. T. r. p. 47. ACTION, {Cycl.)—Pbyfical Action, or the Action of bodies on each other, is a prefliirc.
If a body be urged by equal and contrary Anions or preffures, it will remain at reft. But if one of thefe preflures be greater than its oppofite, motion will enfue towards the parts leaft prefled. It is to be obferved, that the Anions of bodies on each other, in a fpace that is carried uniformly forward, are the fame as if the fpace were at reft; and any powers or motions that act upon all bodies, fo as to produce equal velocities in them in the fame, or in parallel right lines, have no effect 011 their mutual Anions^ or relative motions. Thus the motion of bodies aboard a fhip, that is carried fteadily and uniformly forward, are performed in the fame manner as if the fhip was at reft. The motion of the earth round its axis has no effect on the Actions of bodies and agents at its furface, but fo far as it is not uniform and rectilineal. In general, the Anions of bodies upon each other depend not on their abfolute, but re- lative motion. Quantity of Action, in mechanics, is ufed for the product of the mafs of a body, by its velocity, and by the fpace it runs through.
When a body is tranfported from one place to another, the Anion is the greater, in proportion to the mafs, to the velo- city, or rapidity of the motion, and to the fpace through which the body is carried.
Monf. dc Maupertuis a lays it down as a general principle, that " whenever any change happens in nature, the quan- " tity of Anion neceffary to produce this change is always " the leaft poflible." And this, he fays, is a law indicating the higheft wifdom.
From this general principle, and the common rule for finding a minimum by fluxions, he deduces the known laws of per- cuflion, for hard and elaftic bodies, and even the laws of reft, as he calls them ; that is, of the equilibrium, or equi- pollency of preflures.
This ingenious author feems to think, that the laws of mo- tion, thus deduced, afford a ftronger proof for the exiftence of God, or of a firft intelligent caufe, than the other argu- ments commonly alledged, and deduced from the order of nature. But we apprehend, that few metaphyficians will be of his opinion. The proof of a God from the order of na- ture feems to depend on two principles. I. That there is &n order in nature. 2. That this order is contingent. For if .th;s order was not contingent, but abfolutely necefTary, as Sp'mofa, and other atheifts pretend, it feems that no fuificicnt reafon, from the order of nature, could be affigned for the exiftence of a firft intelligent caufe. Now, Monf. de Mau- pertuis not "having eftablifhed the contingency of his principle of the minimum of Aft ion, his argument feems defective in .this refpect ; not to mention others.
Mr. Euler b has demonftrated, that in the trajectories de- fcribed by bodies urged by central forces, the velocity, multi- plied by the element of the curve, is always a minimum. Monf. Maupertuis c looks on this as an application of his principle, to the motion of the planets. — [ a Mem. de l'Acad. de Berlin, 1746. T. 2. p, 290. b Method. Inven. Lin. Curv. Maxim. Minim. Proprietate gaudentes, in Supplem. c Lib. cit. p. 267.] ACTRESS, Actrix, a female who acls, or does the office of an After. See Ac TOR, CpU '
A C U
Aftrejfes, or women actors, were unknown to the antierits, among whom men always performed the part of women : and hence one reafon for the ufe of mafks among them. Boindin. in Mem. Acad. Infcript. T. 7. p. 188. feq. Anrejfes are even faid not to have been introduced on the Englifh ftage, till after the reftoration of king Charles II who has been charged with contributing to the corruption of our manners, by importing this ufage from abroad a . But this can be but partly true : the queen of James I. afted a part in a paftoral ; and Pryn, in his Hiftriomaftix, fpeaks of women adtors in his time as whores ; which was one occafion of the fevere profecution brought againft him for that book b . — [» Apol. du Charact. des Angl. ap. Bibl. Franc. T. 8. p. 27. b TVhiilock, Memor. An. 1632. Wood, Athen. Oxon. T. 2. p. 434.]
ACTUARIUS, or Actarius, primarily denotes a notary, or officer appointed to write down the acts or proceedings of a court, ailembly, or the like. V. Calv. Lex. Jur. p. 34. Aauin. Lex. Mil. T. 1. p. 15. voc. Aftarii. Fitifc. Lex. Ant. T. 1. p. 23.
In the eaftern empire, the AftuariiwQYe properly officers who kept the military accounts, received the corn from the fufecptores, or ftorekeepers, and diftributed it to the foldiers. Thefe acted as a kind of brokers with the foldiers; made bargains with them for receiving their pay before it became due ; for which there were fixed rates. Aauin. Lex. Mil. T, r. p. 15. Pitifc. Lex. Ant. T. 1. p. 23. Du Cang. Glofl". Lat. T. 1. p. 49.
Actuarius was alfo a title of dignity, in the court of Con- ftantinople, peculiar to phyflcians. Du Cang. Glofl'. Gr.
p. 46. VOC. AxWgios-
From an appellative, the word has become a proper name of a celebrated Greek phyfician, author of a treatife, ftill extant, on urines. Fabric. Bibl. Graec. 1. 6. c. 7. §. 7. T. 12. p. 635. feq.
ACUANITES, Acuanitje, antient heretics, called more frequently Manichees. See Ma n 1 c h e e , Cycl. They took the name from Acua, a difciple of Thomas, one of the twelve apoftles. V. Bibl. Univ. T. 24. p. 330.
ACUBENE, in aftronomy, a name given by fome to a ftar on the fouthern claw of Cancer. See Cancer, Cycl.
ACUHYATLI, in zoology, the name of a very large ferpent, of a poifonous quality, in America, more uiually known by its name of cucuruca, or curucuca. See Cucuruca.
ACUITION, in grammar and profody. See the article Acu-
TrTION.
ACULEATE, Aculeated, fomething that has Aculei, or
prickles. See Aculei.
Naturalifts divide fifties into thofe with aculeated and non-
aculeated fins. Phil. Tranf. N°. 204. ACULEATUS longus, in zoology, a name given by fome to
the pugnitius marinus longus, a fmall prickly Weft-India fifh.
See the articlePuGNiTius. Wilhtghby, Hift. Pifc. p. 340. ACULEI, among botanifts, &c. denotes the prickles or fpines
of plants of the thorny kind.
The word is Latin, formed from acus, a needle.
Among zoologifts, Aculeus is alfo ufed for the fting of a bee,
fcorpion, or the like.
The word Aculeus is alfo ufed for certain parts of the Echini
marini. See Tab. of Foflils, Clafs 10. Acui.ei pinnaru?n. See the article Pinnje. ACULER, in the manege, is ufed for the motion of a horfe,
when in working upon volts he does not go far enough for- ward, at every time or motion, fo that his fhoulders embrace
or take in too little ground, and his croupe comes too near
the center of the volt. Horfes are naturally inclined to this
fault, in making demi-volts. Guillet. ACUMEN, o|(Jb$, in the antient mufic, was ufed to fignify a
a found produced by the Intention, or raifing of the voice.
Acumen differs from Intention, as the effect from the caufe.
Vid. Arijioxen. p. 10 — 13. Ed. Meibom. ACUMINA, among the antients, denoted a kind of military
omen, or aufpice, fuppofed to have been taken from the points or edges of darts, javelins, fwords, or other weapons ;
viz. by examining whether they were bright or folid, ftiarp or blunted. Hoffman. Lex. Univ. T. 1. p. 50. Aquin. Lex. Milit. T. 1. p. 16.
Of this opinion are Turnebus a and Valtrinus b . Ccelius Calcagninus c fuggefts another hypothefis, viz. That Aatmina fignified ftars, or flames, mentioned by Seneca, as fometimes appearing over fpears and other weapons. Others, with Lef- calopier, fuppofe this omen to have been taken from the Acumina montium, or tops of mountains ; La Cerda, from the rojlra, or beaks of fhips ; Gevartius, from military en- figns ftuck in the ground, according to the degree of eafe or readinefs wherewith they were pulled out again. A German writer d has a difcourfe exprefs on aufpices, wherein he adopts. and defends this laft opinion.— *[* Turneb. Adverf. 1. 3. c. 12. h /. Valtr. de Re Milit. 1. r. c. 6. c Calcagn. Epift. d Matth. Difp. de Aufp. Vet. Rom. ex Acuminib. ap. Nov. Liter. Lubec. an. 1705. p. 54.] ACUPUNCTURE, or Acupuncturation, a method of curing many difeafes, by pricking feveral parts of the body with a needle, or inftrumerft of that form.
r This
