Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 9, FOR-GOT

FOR [ T4
forming, FORMING of a Siege, is the making lines of circum-
Fonnola. ^ y^llation to fortify the camp, and diipofing things for
v the attack of a place in form.
They alfo fay, to form a fqyadron or battalion ;
meaning to range the foldiers in form of a fquadron,
&c.
Forming the Line, is drawing up infantry, cavalry,
and artillery, into line of battle. See Line.
Forming is alfo ufed in grammar, in fpeaking of
certain tenfes of verbs, which arc made from others by
a change of certain letters. The prefent tenfe is formed
from tire infinitive. Compound and derivative words
alfo, and even all that have any eytomology, are faid to
be formed.
FORMOSA, an ifland in the Pacific ocean, be¬
tween 1190 and 1220 of E. Long, and 220 and 250
N. Lat. about 100 miles eaft of Canton in China. It
is fubject to the Chinefe; who, however, notwitbHand¬
ing its vicinity, did not know of its exiftence until the
year 1430. It is about 85 leagues in length, and 25
in breadth. A long chain of mountains, which runs
from north to fouth, divides it into two parts, the
eaftern and weftern. The Dutch formed an eftablilh-
ment in the weftern part in 1634, and built the fort
of Zealand, which fecured to them the principal port
of the iftand •, but they were driven from thence in
1659 or 1661 by a celebrated Chinefe pirate, who made
himfelf mafter of all the weftern part, which afterwards
fubmitted in 1682 to the authority of Kang-he emperor
of China.
This weftern part of Formofa is divided into three
diftinct govemments, all fubordinate to the governor of
Tai-ouan, the capital of the iftand, who is himfelf fub-
je£f to the viceroy of the province of Fokien.
This ifland prefents extenfive and fertile plains, wa¬
tered by a great number of rivulets that fall from the
eaftern mountains. Its air is pure and wholefome *, and
the earth produces in abundance, corn, rice, and the
greater part of other grains. Moft of the Indian fruits
are found here, fuch as oranges, bananas, pine-apples,
guavas, papaws, cocoa nuts j and part of thofe of Eu¬
rope, particularly peaches, apricots, figs, raifins, chef-
nuts, pomegranates, water melons, &c. Tobacco, fu-
gar, pepper, camphire, and cinnamon, are alfo common.
Horfes, flieep, and goats, are very rare in this ifland :
there are even few hogs, although thefe animals
abound in China. Domeftic poultry, fuch as fowls,
geefe, and ducks, are exceedingly plenty •, pheafants
alfo are fometimes feen 5 and monkeys and flags have
multiplied fo much, that they wander through the coun¬
try in large flocks.
The inhabitants of Formofa rear a great number of
oxen, which they ufe for riding, from a want of horfes
and mules. 'J’tmy accuftom them ear1y to this kind
of fervice, and by daily exercife train them to go as
well and as expeditioufly as the beft horfes. Thefe
oxen were furnifhed with a bridle, faddle, and crupper.
A Chinefe looks as big and proud when mounted in
this manner, as if he were carried by the fineft Barbary
courfer.
Wholefome water fit for drinking is the only thing
wanting in the ifland of Formofa. It is very extraor¬
dinary, that e\rery kind of water in it is a deadly poi-
fbn to ftrangers, fur which no remedy has hitherto
been found. “ One of the governor’s fervants,” fays
1 FOR
Father de Mailla, “ w;hom I had in my train (a ftrong _ Formofa.
and robuft man), trufting too much to the force of his" ' J v
conftitution, would not believe what had been told
him concerning this water : he drank feme of it j and
died in lefs than five days, after every medicine and
antidote had been adminiftered without iuccefs. T here
is none but the water of the capital which can be
drunk : the mandarins of the place therefore always
took care to tranfport a fuffieiency of it in carts for
our ufe.” Our author adds, that at the bottom of a
mountain a league diitant from Fong-kan-hit n there is
a fpring that produces a ftream, the water of which is of
a whitith blue colour, and fo noxious, that no one can
approach it.
There are few mulberry trees in Formofa, confe-
quently little fflk is made in the country. Numerous /
manufactures, however, would foon be introduced in¬
to it, wrere the Chinefe permitted indiferiminately to
tranfport themfelves thither, and to form eftablifhments
in the ifland. Thofe w ho go to it muft be protected
by pafiports from the Chinefe mandarins, and thefe
paffports are fold at a dear rate ; fecurities are befides
required. This is not all: when they arrive, money
muft be given to the mandarins who arc appointed to
examine thofe who enter or quit the ifland, and who
generally difeharge this duty with the moft rigid feve-
rity. If they give no prefent, or offer only a trifle,
they meet w itli little mercy j and are fure to be fent
back, whatever paffport they may have. The Chinefe,
through policy, connive at thefe exactions, to prevent
too great a number of people from emigrating to this
ifland, which is rendered a place of great importance
by its proximity to China. They fear, and with great
reafon (efpecially fince Tartar emperors have been on
the throne), that if any revolt fhould happen in For¬
mofa, its influence might fprea^ and occafion great dif-
turbance in the whole empire. On this account, the
Tartars keep a garriion there of 10,000 men: which
they take care to change every three years, or even
oftener if they judge it neceflary.
Befides the capital, the Chinefe have alfo two other
cities, and fome villages, where they inhabit alone j
for they do not permit the Indians, who are their fub-
jeCts, to live among them •, they fuffer none to remain
but thofe who are either their flaves or domeftics.—
Thefe Indians are united into 45 villages ; 36 of which
lie to the north, and 9 towards the fouth. I he nor¬
thern villages are very populous, and the houfes are
built almoft after the Chinefe manner. ’Ihe habita¬
tions of the fouthern iflanders are only heaps of huts
or cottages of earth. In thefe huts they have neither
chairs, benches, tables, beds, nor any piece of furni¬
ture ; the middle part is occupied by a kind of hearth
or chimney, raifed two feet high, and conftruCtcd of
earth, upon which they drefs their victuals. 1 heir
ordinary food is rice, other fmall grain, and the game
which they catch by courfing or kill with their arms.
Thefe iflanders run with fuch furprifing fwiftnefs, that
they can almoft. outftrip the fleeteft greyhound. 1 he
Chinefe attribute this agility to the precaution they
take of confining their knees and reins by a clofe ban¬
dage until the age of 14 or 15. R heir favourite arms are
lances, wrhich they dart to the diftance of 60 or 80 feet
with the greateft dexterity and precifion. I hey ufe
bow's and arrows, and can kill a pheafant on wing with
as