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EAG
EThe 5th Letter of the Alphabet, and the 2d Vowel. See Letter and Vowel. ^ E, is a Letter that admits of fome Variety in the Pronunciation, in moft Languages ; whence Gram- marians ufually conftitute fo many different E's, or Kinds of E. The Greeks, e. gr. have their long and Jhort e, viz- tj and m, Epfilon and Eta.
The Latins have an opener e, called vajthis ; fuch was the laft in the Word Here Mafter; and another clofer, as that in the Adverb Here Yefterday. This latter e and i, were frequently ufed for each other : Thus for here, they wrote fteri : And in divers Places we meet with Jibe, quafe, Sec. for fibi, quaji, &c.
The Roman e, was likewife fometimes wrote x : For which Reafon, there are fome Antiquaries, who take that Medal of Gallian, GALLIANO AUGUSTS, not to be any Satyrical Medal, as the reft have imagined ; nor to be a 2)ative Feminine, but a Vocative Mafculine, Galliano Augufe, wrote with an <g.
In Englijh we caiily diftingui/h three E's, or Sounds of E : The Firft, Mute, and not heard at all ; as in Amferdam, Senfe, Blue, &c. The Second, clofe or fhort, pronounced with the Lips near fhut ; as in Equity, Nettle, ckc. The Third, open or long ; as in Fear, Eafe, Sic.
The French have, at leaft, fix Kinds of E ; the Firft, pronounced like A 5 as in emporter, Orient, &c. The Se- cond, a final Mute, in the laft Syllable of divers Words not pronounced at all 5 as in bonne, donne, Sec. The Third, an amperfecl: Mute, pronounced much like the Diphthong ea, &c. as in Je, de, te. The Fourth, e ferme, or e mafculine, marked at the Ends of Words with an Accent e. The Fifth, 5s e ouvert, or longe, having the fame Sound with ai, as in ■mer, fejie, Sic. In the middle of Words it is fometimes mark'd with a Circumflex, and in the End, with an Accent fc. The Sixth, is an Intermediate e, between the ouvert and ferme ; as m Cabaret, Lett re, Sic. Some add a Seventh Kind of e, not reducible to any of the former, as that in Grammarien, Hifiorien, Sic. And others admit of only three Kinds, viz. the Mure, open, and fhut; but they m.akc "Variation therein ; which amounts to the fame thing.
As to the Form of the Letter E, we borrow it from the Latins, who had it from the Greeks, and they from the tPhteuicians, by Cadmus, who firft brought it them. Now the Phcenicians had the fame Characters with the Hebrews. Accordingly, the Form of the Antient Hebrew He, was the fame with that of our E, as may be feen in the Hebrew Medals, and the Jcfuite^iw/^'sDifTertation thereon, p. 143. AH the Difference between them coniifts in this, that the Hebrews reading from Right to Left, turn their Letters that Way; whereas the Moderns, reading from Left to Right, write their Letters accordingly.
The little e, was form'dof the great one, in writing it faft, and making the crofs Strokes at Top and Bottom without taking Pen off Paper, and then adding the Stroke In the Middle E.
The Greek h, H, Eta, was no original Letter ; but added to the Alphabet in after Times. OF this we have Proofs ftill extant in the ancient Monuments ; particularly, the Farnefe Columns, brought to Rome from the Via Appia, where the Epfilon E, is ufed in lieu of the H. e. gr.
DEMETP02 KOPE2, for DHMBTPOS E0RH2- 'TlS faid to
have been added by Simonides. Bibliand. de Ration. Cormn'un. Linguar. p. 40.
The Pronunciation of the w, feems to have been varied : 'iter enti anus informs us, that it was pronounced like the Latin e; but the Greeks themfclves, for fcveral Ages, pro- nounced it like an /. 'Tis difputed how the Latins render it in their Language. The common Opinion is, that they render it by an e: As in Aw^Ve*©-, pu-m, H.tw^, 0tmvt } Qi)oavf©- ) Sic. which they rendred 'Demetrius, Seta, He- mera, Thefeus, 1'hefaurus, &c. Tho 1 there are Perfons, exceedingly well verfed in Antiquity, who hold that they pronounced it like an i.
Lud. de 'jDieu, one of the moft Learned Grammarians of his Age, obferves as much in his Animadverfions on Genejis VI. 2.4. Adding, that 'tis for this Reafon, that the He- brews, e. gr. the Paraphraft Jonathan, exprefs it by a Hhirik; as, fui's&f, lTttDJ3-
y. Rod. Wetjten proves the fame in his Learned Orations on the true Pronunciation of the Greek Tongue, from an Infinity of Inftances. Citing to this Purpofe a M.S. Pfalter of the VHIth Century, where all the H's are expref- fed by t's. I n Effect, TVetJl-en proves, not only that _ the Latins pronounced and wrote it as an i, which might happen trom its being fo eafily confounded with an 1 ; but alio that they rendred it by an £ and ia ; that it was often ufed for T and El ^ and that in the Time of 'Plato, this Letter had a Kind of intermediate Sound between the
s and t. See that Author. See alfo Vojfus de IdoUL L. II. C. 16.
E on the Keys of an Organ, or Harpflchord, denotes the Tones E, mi, la.
On the Compafs, in Sea-Charts, &c. it marks the Fall Point, or Wind. E. Eaft. ESE. Eaft South Eaft. NEj North Eaft, ££JV. See Winds and Compass.
In Calendars, E is the 5th of the Dominical Letters; See Dominic ^-Letters.
Among Authors, E. gr. ftands for Exempla gratia ; for Inftance. See Character.
In feveral Dictionaries, we find it noted, that the Letter E, among the Antients, was a Numeral Letter, signifying 250, according to the Verfe
E quoque Ducentos £? ghiinquaginta tenebit.
But it has already been obferved, that this Ufc of Nu- meral Letters was unknown among the Antients. Ifidore Hifpallenfis, an Author of the Vllth Century, fays as much in exprefs Terms, in the firft Book of his Origines, Cap. IIL In Effect, it was firft introduced in the Times of Barbarifm and Ignorance.
EAGLE, Aquila, AstdV, in Natural Hiftory, the largc-ft, ftrongeft, and fwiftert of all the Birds that live by Prey. See Bird.
It has a long, hooked Beak; yellow, fcalyLegs; thick, crooked Talons ; and a ftiort Tail. Its Plumage is cheflhut, brown, ruddy and white. Its Beak, black at the Tip; and in the middle, blue, tho' in fome yellow.
Its Airy, or Neft, is ufually on the highell Rocks, fome- times on the Tops of old Trees. It feeds its young till fuch Time as they are able to fly, and then drives them )ut of the Nefts. Its Food is Birds, Hares, Lambs, Kids and Fawns; nay, Sir Robert Sibbald allures us, Children too, when it can catch them, of which he gives an Inftance in the Orcades Illands. Trod. Nat. Hift. Scot. L.UI.p. 1, Si 14; Ray mentions an Eagle's Neft, found near the River 1)erwent, in 1668. It confiftcd of large ftrong Sricks, one End whereof was laid on the Crag of a Rock, and die other on two Beech-Trees : It was two Yards Square : In it were found one Eaglet, with the CarcaiTcs of one Lamb, one Hare, and three Grygalli. Synops. Method. Av. ■>. 6. The Eagle frequently watches the fifhing Hav.x, and affoon as it perceives it to have ftruck a Fifh, takes Wing, purfues the Bird till it lets fall its Prey, and often catches it ere it reaches the Earth or Water. *Pbilof. tranJatJ. No. 201. It lives very long, and as NaturaHfts afiure us, rarely dies but of Hunger ; the upper Part of its crooked Beak growing fo long, with Age, that it clofes up the lower, and fo difables it from opening and taking in Food.
Its Sight is quick, ftrong and piercing to a Proverb, The Reafon why the Eagle, the Fibres of wnofe Optic Nerves are not ftronger than thofe of other Animals, is able to face the Sun, and endure its brighteft Rays, the Jefuite Augelus, in his Opticks, aftures us, is, that it has two Sets of Eye- lids, the one thick and clofe, and the other thinner and finer, which laft it draws over the Eye, when it looks at any luminous Body, and thus breaks the Force of its Rays.
The Falconers have train'd up Eagles to the Game; but they only fucceed in Mountainous Countries. On Plains they can't keep any time on the Wing, and when they ftoop, or light, are weak, fo that the Saker beats them. See Falcon. Arijiotle, and Pliny, reckon up Six Kinds oi' Eagles, to which they give Names correfponding to the Difference of their Plumage : As the Eagle-Royal, called by Arijiotle, yvrtei®- and «?neia?, from the ruddy, golden Colour of its Feathers, which are likewife fpotted as it were with Stars. The Black-Eagle, Valeria, the fmalleft and moft vigorous of all. The White-taird Eagle, or Tygargm. The middle Jlzed Eagle, with a large Tail, living in Moraffes ; Morphnus : The Sea-Eagle, Halitfetus : "And the bearded Eagle, OjJifraga.
Eagle, in Heraldry, is the Symbol of Royalty, as being, according to c PhiloJ\rams, the King of Birds ; and for that Reafon dedicated, by the Antients, to Jupiter.
The Eagle, is the Arms of the Emperor, and the King of 'Poland. It is accounted one of the moft Noble bearings in Heraldry, and, according to the Learned in that Art, ought never to be given, but in Confideration ot fingular Bravery, Generofity, &c. On which Occasions, either a whole Eagle, or an Eagle NaiJJant, or only the H.'ad, or other Parts, agreeable to the Exploit, may be granted.
The Eagle is fometimes rcprefentcd with one Head, and fometimes with two, tho' never more than one Body, two Legs, and two Wings open'd, or ftretch'd out, in which Pofture, it is faid to be fpread or dijplafd .- Such is that of the Empire, which is blazon'd a fpread Eagle, Sable, diadem W, lanztLed, bcak'd and membred, Gules.
The
