only legislator to the church, given to any mini fters or people any power or right whatsoever to call, fend, elect, or ordain, to that office, any perfon who is not qualified according to the de fcription given in his law; nor has he given an power or right to reject the leaft of them who ar fo qualified, and who defire the office of a bifhop or elder. Let a man have hands laid upon him by fuch as could prove an uninterrupted defcen by impofition of hands from the apostles; let hin be fet apart to that office by a company of mini ters themselves, the moft conformable to th fcripture character, and let him be chosen by th moft holy people on earth; yet if he aufwer no the New Teftament defcription of a minifter, h is not called of God to that office, and is no mi nifter of Chrift, but is indeed running unfent. No form of ordination can pretend to fuch a clea foundation in the New Teftament as the defcrip tion of the perfons who fhould be elders of the church; and the laying on of hands, whether by bishops or prefbyters, is of no more importanc in the million of a minifter of Chrift, than the waving of one's hand in the air, or the putting o it into his bofom; for now when the power o miracles has ceafed, it is obvious that fuch a rite by whomsoever performed, can convey no powers whether ordinary or extraordinary. Indeed i appears to have been fometimes ufed even in the apoftolic age without any fuch intention. (Se Acts xiii. 3.) In a word, whoever in his life and converfation is conformable to the character which the infpired writers give of a bishop or el der, and is likewife qualified by his " mightines in the fcripture" to discharge the duties of that office, is fully authorised to adminifter the facra ments of baptifm and the Lord's fupper, to teach exhort, and rebuke, with all long suffering and doc trine, and has all the call and miffion which the Lord now gives to any man; whilft he who wants the qualifications mentioned, has not God's call whatever he may have; nor any authority to preach the gofpel of Chrift, or to difpenfe the or dinances of his religion. From this view of the Independent principles, which is faithfully taken from their own writers, it appears, that, accord ing to them, even the election of a congregation confers upon the man whom they may choof for their paftor no new powers, but only a new relation between him and a particular flock, ving him an exclufive right, either by himself in conjunction with other paftors conftituted the fame manner, to exercife among them tha authority which he derives immediately from Chrift, and which, in a greater or lefs degree, poffeffed by every fincere Christian, according t his gifts and abilities.

"

(8.) INDEPENDENTS, SCOTS. There are tw fects of Independents in Scotland: the first whom have no peculiar denomination befides the general one of Independents or Congregationalis Their religious fentiments are ftrictly Calviniftic and agree in general with thofe of the English In dependents. (See § 4-) The other fect is gene rally denominated in Scotland GLASSITES, from their founder Mr John Glafs; (See GLASS, N and in England SANDEMANIANS, from Mr Robe Sandeman, who fpread their doctrines in Eng

lan

in 1471, with confiderable enlargements. Another was published in Spain in 1584; a copy of which was fnatched out of the fire when the English plundered Cadiz. Afterwards there were feveral expurgatory indexes printed at Rome and Naples, and particularly in Spain.

(5.) The INDEX OF A BOOK is that part annexed to a book, referring to the particular matters therein contained. Dr Johnfon is wrong ( 1, def. 3.) in reckoning an index fynonymous with a "table of contents." They are as different as the beginning and end of a book. The contents of a book are only intended to give a general and fum mary view of what is contained in it, in the order of its division into Parts, Chapters, or Sections; and as readers generally wish to know the subject or contents of a book before they perufe it, ought always to be prefixed to the work. The index, on the other hand, is intended to point out every important particular in a book, in its alphabetical order, that the reader may at once, and without difficulty, find out any article he wishes to be informed of, that is difcuffed or mentioned in the work; and as these are hardly completely known even to the author, till the work is finished, the index always appears with moft propriety fubjoined to the work. Every book of any extent ought to have both contents and index. Moft modern indexes to books are very carelessly compiled. About a century or two ago, very complete indexes were made to various learned works,by the editors of the claffics in ufum delphini, as well as by Minellius, Farnabius, Oudendorp, Ruddiman, and other literati. But now the compilation of an index, being thought too great a drudgery by many authors, is often entrusted to perfons very ill qualified for the tafk; in confequence of which modern indexes are feldom either complete or properly arranged. And if the work is extenfive, the reader is often perplexed with three or four different indexes, or an index divided into as many parts; while one complete general index, properly compiled and arranged, would anfwer the purpose much better. Thus that valuable and important work, Sir John Sinclair's Statifical Account of Scotland, has no fewer than three indexes, befides several alphabetical lifts, yet there is a vast mass of useful information contained in the 21 volumes of that excellent work, which the inquifitive reader will fearch for in vain through all thofe lifts and indexes; in the compilation of which elegance has evidently been preferred to utility.

(6.) INDEX OF A GLOBE, is a little ftyle fitted on to the N. pole, and turning round with it, pointing to certain divifions in the hour circle. It is fometimes alfo called gnomon. Sce GEO GRAPHY, and GNOMON,

* INDEXTERITY. n. f. [in and dexterity.] Want of dexterity; want of readinefs; want of handinefs; clumfinefs; awkwardness.-The indexterity of our confumption-curers demonftrates their dimnefs in beholding its caufes. Harvey on Conf. (1.) INDIA, an extensive region in Afia, which lies between 66° and 93° E. lon. and 7° and 33° N. lat. Under this name, the Europeans have erroneously understood all the countries which lie S. of Tartary, and extend from the eastern frontiers of Perfia to the eastern coasts of China, and

they have included likewife under the denomina tion of the E. Indies the islands of Japan, with all the islands in the Eastern and Indian Oceans, as far S. as New Holland. But the name of India can be applied, with propriety, to that country only which is diftinguished in Afia as well as in Europe by the name of Hindooftan. The countries to the E. of the river Burrampooter, viz. Aracan, Affam, Burmah, Cambodia, Cochin-China, Laos, Malac ca, Pegu, Siam, and Tonquin, which geographers have hitherto diftinguished by the name of the Peninsula beyond the Ganges, are no more to be confidered as belonging to India, than the bor dering countries of China, Thibet, Tartary, or Perfia. See HINDOOSTAN, 1—3, 9.

(2.) INDIA, ANCIENT ACCOUNTS OF. By the name of India the ancients underflood only the western peninfula, on this fide the Ganges, and the peninfula beyond it, having little or no knowledge of the countries which lie farther eastward. But though originally they were acquainted only with the western parts of Hindooftan, they gradually extended the name of India over the other countries they discovered to the eastward; fo that probably they would have involved all the reft in the fame general defignation, had they been as well acquainted with them as the moderns are. By whom thefe countries were originally peopled, is a question which in all probability will never be folved. Certain it is, that fome works in thefe parts difcover marks of aftonishing skill and power in the inhabitants, fuch as the images in the ifland of ELEPHANTA; the ROCKING STONES OF immense weight, yet fo nicely balanced that a man can move them with his hand; the OBSERVATORY at Benares, &c. (See ELEPHANTA, STONE, N° 15. and OBSERVATORY, N° 3. Thefe ftupendous works are by Mr Bryant attributed to the Cufhites or Babylonians, the first distinct nation in the world, and who of confequence must for fome time have poffeffed in a manner the fo vereignty of the whole earth; and it is probable, that the fubjects of Nimrod, the beginning of whofe kingdom was in Shinar, might extend themfelves eastward, and thus fill the fertile regions of the eaft with inhabitants, without thinking it worth while for a long time to meddle with the lefs mild and rich countries to the weft ward. Thus would be formed that great, and for fome time in fuperable, divifion betwixt the inhabitants of India and other countries; fo that the western nations knew not even of the existence of the Indians but by obfcure report; while the latter, ignorant their own origin, invented a thoufand idle tales concerning the antiquity of their nation, which fome of the moderns have been credulous enough to believe and record as facts. The firft among the western nations, who diftinguished themselve by their application to navigation and commerce and who were of confequence likely to difcover these diftant nations, were the Egyptians and Phe nicians. The former, however, foon loft their in clination for naval affairs, and held all fea-faring people in deteftation as profane perfons; thoug the extenfive conquefts of Sefoftris, if we can be lieve them, must have in a great measure fupplied this defect. He is faid to have fitted out a flee of 400 fail in the Arabian Gulph or Red Sea

which being delivered up without fighting, he added them to the dominions of Porus, as well as thofe of another Porus, whom he conquered, which lay on the banks of the Hydraotes, a branch of the Indus. Notwithstanding this fuccefs, the Catheri, Oxydraca, and Malli, 3 of the most warlike nations of India, confederated and raised a great army against Alexander; who immediately fet out, and in a few days reached SANGALA, a city on the top of a hill, with a lake behind it, where the confederates lay encamped, furrounded by 3 circular lines of carriages locked together. In these ftrong entrenchments Alexander attacked them, and though they made a gallant defence, he fucceffively forced their entrenchments, and took the city by ftorm two days after; when 17,000 Indians were killed and 70,000 taken prifoners, with soo horfe and 300 chariots; while the killed and wounded of the Macedonians were only 1300. The people of the adjacent cities immediately fled to the mountains, and though promifed kind treatment upon their fubmitting, refused to return. Where upon Alexander ordered Sangala to be rafed, and gave the territories to those who had fubmitted to him. He next prepared to pass the Hyphafis and reduce under his fubjection the rich and fer tile countries beyond its banks, which were inha bited by a civilized and martial people; but al his rhetoric and all his popularity could not pre vail upon his troops to proceed farther. H therefore refolved to make the Hyphafis th boundary of his dominions; and having erecte 12 large altars, he offered facrifices, and exhibited fhows with great magnificence: after which, arri ving at the Hydafpes, he failed down the Indu into the ocean: having for that purpofe equippe a fleet of 80 large fhips with 3 banks of oars, an 20co fmall veffels and tranfports, under the mo skilful Phoenician, Cyprian, Carian, and Egyp tian navigators. Craterus and Hephæftion had marched before with another divifion of the army and in 3 days the fleet arrived oppofite to the camps; where Alexander was informed, tha the Oxydrace and Malli were railing forces t oppofe him. Upon this he refolved to reduc them, but at the confluence of the Acefines an Hydafpes, ran no small risk of his life, by the ra pidity of the currents, eddies, and whirlpools, a their junction, which swallowed up many of hi long veffels with all the men on board. Afte escaping this danger, Alexander went on thor and having divided his army into different bodies under Craterus, Hephæftion, Ptolemy, and hin felf, he marched through the defert, and furpr fed the Malli, who did not suspect that he woul have ventured through that barren and dream region. After taking feveral of their cities an cafties, and flaughtering the inhabitants, many whom fled and abandoned their cities, whi others burned themselves rather than furrende he at laft marched to their capital; but findin the inhabitants had fled, he proceeded to th Hydraotes, where he found 50,000 men encam ed on the oppofite bank to prevent his pallag He entered the river, however, with a party horfe, which fo terrified the Indians, that the

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