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fcther Liquor to temper and dilute if, or from any other Caufe, becoming converted into too thin, fubtile, and pene- trating a Vapour, is io far from moift'eiiing and cooling the Throat, that, on the contrary, it dries and heats it ;
and hence that Motion in the Nerves, the Senfation whereof, we call Thirfi. See Hunger.
Thirji fometimes alfo arifes from a mere Dryn'efs of the Part; and fometimes from /harp Salts, more immediately vellkating the Fibres of the Throat.
There are various Kinds of Liquors which quench Thirfi 5 fome by tempering the Stomach Liquor, others by diluting, and even diflblving the Salt j and others by moiftening and fuppling the Fibres.
Acids are peculiarly fitted for that End. See Acid.
'Thirji is fometimes eluded by rolling a leaden Bullet or a Pebble in the Mouth, which occasions an extraordinary Iflue of Saliva to moiften the Throat, &c. See Saliva.
Mr. Soyle mentions a Man who could ealily abflain from Drinking for nine Days, and yet his Diet nothing more li- quid than ufual 3 the Secretions of Urine, Sweat, $§c. being performed all the while regularly, and in the fame Quantity as ufual.
In dropfical Cafes, where there is not a right Secretion of the Urine by the Renal Glands, and the VefTels and Parts of the Body are loaded with too great a Quantity of ferous Hu- mours, a great Moderation in Drinking might be attended with good Succefs, provided fome Liquor could be found out to allay that uneafy Senfation : Probably this would be beft perform'd by Mucilages acidulated with Spirit of Vitriol or Sulphur, or Gcllies with Juice of Lemon, £j?c and that a final! Quantity of fuch a Composition now and then us'd, might be of as much real Service in quenching Tfaiffi, as Draughts of Liquors which increafe the Symptoms. See
THISTLE, Cardials, a Name common to divers Plants, whofe Flowers confift of feveral little narrow longifh. Leaves, ' in Manner of Tubes, rang'd clofe together like a Head, and whofe Leaves are very prickly.
The moft known of thefe Plants are i° Cardmis Beneditltis. The Apothecaries diftil a Water from it, faid to H of great Service in peftllential Difeafes, the worfe Kind of Fevers, and particularly as a Sudorific. The Water is likewife accounted one of the four common Cordial Waters : Its fixt Salt is much of the fame Nature as other fixt Salts prepar'd from Wormwood, f$c. viz. Anti-emetic, Diuretic, &c. See Car- duus SenediSius,
2° T\vz hundred-headed Thistle, or Eryngium vtilgare $ the Root whereof boil'd in Wine, is us'd with good Succefs againft Retentions of Urine : This is not properly of the tftiftl* Kind.
3 Our Ladies Thiflle, Carduus Albis Maculis uotatus vul- garis CB, the Decoction whereof is recommended againft the Dropfy, Jaundice, and Pains of the Kidneys.
The Fullers Thiftle, or Teazel ; See under the Article Teazel.
Order of the Thistle, or of St. Andrew, is a Military Order in Scotland 5 inftituted, as fome fay, by Uimgus, or Hungo, King of the fftggf, after a Victory obtain'd over Athelfiaiu See Knight.
The Legend is, that a Crofs of St. Andrew (the Patron of that Kingdom) appearing to him at the Time of the Engage- ment ; he bleft the happy Augury 5 took the Figure thereof into his Standard in Honour of his Protector s and inftituted an Order of Knights, whofe Collar is of Gold interwoven with Thifile Flowers.
From the Collar hangs a Medal reprefenting S. Andrew holding his Crofs in his Right Hand 5 with this Motto, Nemo me immune lacejfet, No Body /hall provoke me im- pune.
Others give a different Account of its Origin, and allure us, it was "inftituted after the Gonclufion of a Peace between Charles VII. of France, and the King of Scotland.
The Abbot Juftiniani goes up higher, and will have it to have been inflituted by Acharus I. King of Scotland, in 809 5 who, after an Alliance made with Charlemaigi;, took for his Device the Thiffle, with the Words Nemo me imptine laceffet, which, in Effect, is that of the Order : He adds, that King James the IVth. renew'd the Order, and took St. Andrew for its Protector.
The Order only confifts of twelve Knights, whereof the King is the Chief: They wear a green Rib'bon, with a Gold Medal enamell'd ; on the one Side whereof is the Image of St. Andrew, and on the Reverfe, the Device above men- tion'd.
Our Lady of the Thistle, was alfo a Military Order in- (ftituted in M70, hy Louis II. Duke of Sourbm.
It confifted of 26 Knights, whereof that Prince and his Succeflbrs were the Chiefs : Their Badge was a Sky-blue Girdle ; and, on folemn Occafions, a Mantle of the fame Colour, with a Gold Collar, interwoven with Flower-de- Luces, among which was the Word Bfperance, Hope, in Capitals.
They had their Name from a Thifile fix'd to an Oval, Which' hung to the Girdle.
THISTLE-/#&£, a Cuftom in the Honour of Halton, in the County of Chefier, whereby, if in driving Beafts over the Common, the Driver permits them to graze, or take but a Thifile - y he fhall pay a Half-penny a Beaft to the Lord of the Fee,
. At Fiskerton, 'mNotthghamJJiire, by ancient Cuftom, if a Native, or Cottager kill'd a Swine above a Year old, he paid the Lord one Penny ; which was alfo call'd TM file-take.
THLIPSIS, is ufed by fome Anatomifts, for a preffing to- gether of the Veffels of a human Body.
THOMiEANS, Thomeans, Thomites, or Chrifiians of St. Thomas, a People of the Eafl Indies? who, accord- ing to Tradition, receiv'd the Gofpel from the Apoftle S. Thomas. See Christian.
Upon the Arrival of the Torti'gvefe at Calecut, in their firft Voyage to the Indies, they met with ancient Chriftians, who pretended to be defcended from thofe converted by S. Thomas.
The Thomeeans being inform'd of a new People arriv'd among them, who bore a particular Veneration for the Crofs ; fent Embaflfadors to them to make an Alliance with them, and to folicit their Affiftance againft the Gentile Princes, b-y whom they were greatly opprefs'd.
'Tis certain the Thomeeans are Indigent, or originally of India : They are call'd Nazareans ; but Cuftom has affix'd to that Name an Idea of Contempt .- Their other Name Mapptiley, and, in the plural, Mapptilepnar, is more ho- nourable.
They form a very confiderable Clan, or Cantbn ; but are al- ways divided by Factions, inveterate Enmities, f£c. The Clan extends through all the Lands from Calecut to Tra-ven- cor 5 not that all the Tract is poffefs'd wholly by them : Sometimes they have a whole Town to themfelves, and fome- times only a certain Quarter in it.
They own themfelves Strangers in that Country, and their Tradition is, that they came thirher from the Country about the City of Mailapvr, or S. Thomas, by reafbn they were* perfecuted by the Prince thereof. But the Time of this Tranfmigration no Body knows anything of j for they keep no Monuments.
The Thomeeans afcribe their Oonverfion, their Difcipline^ %$c. to S. Thomas : Their Breviary adds, that their Apoftle pafs'd thence into China.
We fhall not here enter into the Difpute, whether the S. Thomas fo fam'd in the Indies, be the Apoftle, or fome other Saint of that Name ; which latter is the Opinion &$ feveral learned Men, and particularly of M. Huet.
But the Progrefs of the Hiftory of this Church is not lefs difficult to trace than its Origin : Our European Books mention the Patriarch of Alexandria's fending Bi/hops to the Indies^ particularly S. Tanteenus, S. Frument, &c. It may be doubted, whether or no it were to thefe Indies that they were fent : Saronms, indeed, maintains it was 5 but the 'Portuguefe Author da Hifloria d' Ethiopia, endeavours to prove it was to Ethiopia thefe ancient Miflionaries went. All we know for certain is, that the Thomeeans, for feveral Ages, were furnifh'd with Bifhops from the Side of "Babylon* or Syria 5 and there is a kind ot Patriarch at Babylon who continues to furni/h them.
Whether or no their Apoftle ordain'd them any Bifhops, (the Order whereof may have been fince extinct thro' want of proper Subjects, as V.Souchet imagines) is a Queftion : All we can fay is, that the Thomaan Church, at the firft Arrival of the Tortugnefe, was wholly govern'd by thefe fo- reign Bifhops. The Language they ufe, in Sacris, is the Chaldee, fome fay the Syriac : As to their ordinary Language, 'tis the fame with that of their Neighbours.
The Chaldee was doubtlefs brought among them by their Bifhops : 'Tis added, that at the Time the Eaft was infected with Neftorianifm, Eutychianifm, {#?. the Bifhops likewife carry'd them thofe Herefies.
Such a Mixture of Opinions, with a total Interruption of Pallors, fometimes for feveral Years together, occaflon'd that horrible Chaos their Religion was in at the Arrival of the c Porwguefe ; For a Specimen whereof we fhall add their Manner of celebrating the Eucharift.
Over the Altar was a kind of Tribune or Gallery 5 and while the Prieft was faying the Beginning of the Office be- low, a Cake of Flower of Rice was frying in Oil or Butter above : When enough, the Cake was let down in a Basket upon the Altar, where the Prieft confecrated it. As to the other Species, for Wine, they ufed a kind of Brandy varioufly prepar'd in that Country. Nor was their Ordination much more regular 5 the Archdeacon, who was fometimes more reflected than the Bifhop himfelf, frequently ordained Priefts.
Their other Abufes were infinite : The (Portuguefe, for thefe two laft Centuries, have labour 'd the Reformation of this Church ; and have employ'd both the Ecclefiaftic and Secular Power therein ; To this End they have call'd the Thom<sm Bifhops to the Councils at Gca, have inftructed,
charg'd
