This section is from "The American Cyclopaedia", by George Ripley And Charles A. Dana. Also available from Amazon: The New American Cyclopędia. 16 volumes complete..
Abracadabra, a magical word with the ancients, supposed to possess some talismanic properties when inscribed and partially repeated in a triangular form, so as to be read in different directions, upon a square piece of paper or linen, folded and worn as an amulet or variously used in incantations.
 
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