OBI....OBONNEY.

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in naval architecture, is remarkable for the slowness of its growth, its great bulk, and longevity. It has been observed, that the trunk attains, in general only fourteen inches in diameter, in the course of eighty years; but, after arriving at a certain age, its bulk rapidly increases. Dr. Darwin mentions the Swilcar oak, a very large tree growing in Needwood forest, (England) which measures thirty-nine feet in circumference at its base, and which is believed to be six hundred years old. The trunk of an oak belonging to lord Powis, and growing in Broomfield wood, measured, in 1764, sixty-eight feet in girth, and twenty-three feet in length; containing in the whole fourteen hundred and fifty-five feet of timber, round measure. The bark of oak is used in tanning, and its galls in dying, and for making an excellent black ink....Dom. Encyclopædia.

OBI, a word of African origin, signifying sorcery or witchcraft. Among the negroes brought from Africa to the West-Indies, there are Obiah men, who exercise the powers of Obi, or practise the arts of divination. The Obi is composed of a farrago of materials, among which are the following, namely, blood, feathers, parrots' beaks, dogs' teeth, alligators' teeth, broken bottles, grave dirt, rum, and egg shells. The negroes generally believe in the power of Obi, and often consult the Obiah men and women. This practice had such pernicious consequences in Jamaica, that severe, and even capital punishments were enacted against it. The Obi magic is thought to have originated in the worship of a serpent in ancient Egypt. "A serpent, in the Egyptian language, (says the learned Mr. Bryant) was called Ob; and Obian is still the Egyptian name for a serpent.' Moses in the name of God forbids the Israelites ever to enquire of the demon Ob, which is translated in our bible Wizzard. The woman (or witch) of Endor is called (in the original) Oub or Ob; and Oubaios was the name of the basilisk or royal serpent, emblem of the sun, and an ancient oracular deity of Africa....Bryan Edwards.

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OBONNEY, a malicious deity, worshipped by the negroes of the gold coast, in Africa. They believe that Obonney pervades heaven, earth, and sea; that he is

the author of all evil; and that when his displeasure is signified by the infliction of pestilential disorders, or otherwise, nothing will appease him but human sacrifices; which they select from captives taken in war, or if there be none present, then from their slaves.... Bryan Edwards.

OCEAN, that vast sheet of water which separates the continents, and extends, probably quite from the northern to the southern pole. Strictly speaking, there is but one ocean; the different parts of which have different names. That part of the ocean which lies between America on the west and Europe and Africa on the east, is called the Atlantic Ocean, and is about three thousand miles wide. That part which lies between America and Asia is called the Pacific Ocean; a name given by Magellan, because he found it remarkably placid. This is, in some places, about ten thousand miles over; but it is stated in Cooke's Voyages, that in the latitude 66° north, where the American and Asiatic continents are at their nearest approach, there runs between them only a strait, of thirteen leagues across; thence proceeding north, the two continents diverge, and in the latitude of 69° their distance from each other is about three hundred miles. That part of the ocean which extends from the eastern shores of Africa to the southern shores of Asia, is called the Indian Ocean, and is three thousand miles wide. That part which stretches from the southern parts of Africa toward the south pole, is called the Southern Ocean, and is about eight thousand and five hundred miles over; and that part which lies northward of Europe and Asia, is called the Northern or Frozen Ocean, and is three thousand miles wide. Although the water of the ocean possesses a kind of saltness, it is not a pickle; for animal substances quickly dissolve in it, and it is itself as liable as other water to putrifaction; from which it is preserved, not by its saltness, but by tides, winds, and tempests. The bed of the ocean, like dry land, appears to consist of mountains, hills, plains, and vallies; its average depth, as far as has been ascertained by numerous soundings, is about a quarter of a mile.... St. Pierre, et ceteri.

ODIN....OHIO RIVER....OHIO STATE. 271

ODIN, or Woden, the divinity of the ancient Saxons, Normans, Scandinavians, and Danes, who were the ancestors of the 'present British nation and of the AngloAmericans. They painted him as the god of terror, the author of devastation, the father of carnage; and they worshipped him accordingly. They sacrificed to him, when successful, some of the captives taken in war; and they believed those heroes would stand highest in his favor who had killed most enemies in the field; that after death, the brave would be admitted into his palace, and there have the happiness of drinking beer (the favorite liquor of the northern nations,) out of the skulls of their slaughtered foes. The fourth day of our week, or Wednesday, took its name from this heathen deity, called Wodin by the Saxons....Russell.

OHIO RIVER, a fine river of the United States of America, which has its source in the Allegany mountains, and is called the Allegany, till its junction with the Monongahela, at Pittsburgh, where it first receives the name of Ohio. It measures in all its meanders but little short of twelve hundred miles in length, and falls into the Missisippi. It is an excellent river for navigation with large boats, except at the rapids or falls, which are four hundred and eighty-two miles from its confluence with the Missisippi. It is one of the most delightful rivers in the world, whether we consider it for its meandering course through an immense region of forests, for its clean and elegant banks, which afford innumerable pleasant situations for cities, villages, and improved farms, or for its gentle current, clear waters, and smooth bosom which truly entitle it to the name originally given it by the French, of La Belle Reviere ; or the beautiful river. It is a quarter of a mile wide at Pittsburgh.

OHIO STATE, was admitted into the union in 1803; is situated between 39° and 42° north latitude, and lies between the Ohio river on the south, and the lakes Michigan and Erie on the north it borders on the west line of Pennsylvania. The district called New-Connecticut is comprehended in the state of Ohio; and is bounded on the north by lake Erie, and extends

272

OLIVE TREE....OLYMPIC GAMES.

south on the west line of Pennsylvania, to within about four hundred miles of Pittsburgh. The general face of this country is level, and the soil uncommonly rich and deep. The climate of that part of the state called New-Connecticut (according to Volney) corresponds with the climate of Maryland; although it lies in a considerably higher latitude. Mills are erected in various parts of this district; schools are established, and a charter obtained for a college.

OLIVE TREE, a very useful tree that grows not only in Asia, but in the southern parts of Europe, especially Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal; where it is cultivated to a very considerable extent, on account of its fruit, from which the sweet or sallad oil is extracted, and which also, when pickled, forms an article of food. The trees are planted from fifteen to twenty feet apart, and when tolerably good, will yield fifteen or twenty pounds of oil yearly, one with another. Olive oil is used as food; and medicinally considered, has lately been found an excellent preventive of the plague, when rubbed over the whole body immediately after the contagion has taken place. It is also beneficially employed for recent colds, coughs, hoarseness, &c.... Willich.

OLYMPIC GAMES, games celebrated at Olympia, in ancient Greece, in honor of Jupiter. These games were begun thirty-eight years after the time when Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, and were continued till after the commencement of the Christian era. They were attended at fixed periods, and with such regularity, that they became the great standard by which the Greeks computed time; each Olympiad being four years. During the games, wars and animosities between the numerous petty states of Greece, ceased; and the people came together from the remotest parts of their country, and always met in harmony, how much soever at variance they were at other times.— One only of all the competitors could obtain the prize, which was merely a garland, or crown of fresh leaves or flowers; yet was it sufficient to give the victor immortal renown in all the states of Greece. These games consisted of running, leaping, wrestling, throwing the

ONION RIVER..ONTARIO LAKE..ORDEAL. 273

quoit, and boxing; to which were added, in more polished times, the chariot race, and the horse race. There are beautiful allusions to the Olympic and to the Isthmean Games, in the writings of St. Paul.

ONION RIVER, one of the finest streams in Vermont. It rises about fourteen miles to the west of Connecticut river, and thirty miles to the east of the heights of the Green Mountains. It runs through a most fertile country, the produce of which for several miles on each side the river, is brought down to lake Champlain, at Burlington. It was along this river, that the Indians formerly travelled from Canada, when they made their attacks upon the frontier settlements on Connecticut river.... Williams.

· ONTARIO LAKE, one of that grand chain of lakes which divide the United States from Upper Canada.It is situated between latitude 43° 15′ and 44° north; and is about six hundred miles in circumference. The division line between the state of New-York and Canada, on the north passes through this lake, and leaves within the United States two million three hundred and ninety thousand acres of the water of the lake Ontario, according to the calculation of Mr. Hutchins....g Morse.

ORDEAL, an ancient method of trial, which prevailed in England and other parts of Europe, during the dark ages of popery. The ordeal was practised by the Anglo-Saxons in England, either by boiling water or red hot iron. The water or iron was consecrated by many prayers, masses, fastings, and exorcisms; after which the person accused either took up with his naked hand, a stone sunk in the water to a certain depth, or carried the iron to a certain distance. The hand was immediately wrapped up, and the covering sealed for three days; and if on examining it there appeared no marks of burning or scalding, the person accused was pronounced innocent; if otherwise, he was declared guilty.