parliamentary burgh, Scotland, capital of the county of same name, and the
chief place in the south of Scotland; situated on the left bank of the
Nith, about 6 miles from its junction with the Solway Firth. It is
connected with the suburb Maxwelltown (in Kirkcudbright) by three bridges,
one dating from the thirteenth century. It is a pleasing, well-built town,
with various handsome public edifices. There are iron-foundries, hosiery
and tweed factories, tanneries, and coach-building works. The River Nith is
navigable to the town for vessels of under 60 tons, but the port has
decreased in importance since the development of the railway system.
Dumfries is a place of great antiquity. The church of the Minorites which
once stood here was the scene of the murder of the Red Comyn by Bruce in
1306. Burns spent his closing years here, and the street in which he lived
now bears his name. His remains rest under a handsome mausoleum, and a
statue of him was erected in 1882. Dumfries was the head-quarters of the
Young Pretender in 1745. Until 1918 Dumfries united with Annan, Sanquhar,
Lochmaben, and Kirkcudbright (the Dumfries burghs) in sending a member to
Parliament. Pop. 19,076.--_Dumfriesshire_, the county of Dumfries, abuts on
the Solway Firth, having on its borders the counties of Lanark, Peebles,
Selkirk, Roxburgh, Ayr, and Kirkcudbright; area about 1100 sq. miles or
702,946 acres, of which about a third is under cultivation. The surface is
irregular, but for the most part mountainous, especially in the north and
north-west districts, where the hills attain a considerable elevation, some
of them exceeding 2000 feet. The dales of the Nith, Annan, and Esk, the
chief rivers of the county, contain fine pasture holms and good arable
land. Oats, potatoes, and turnips are the most common products. Good cattle
are reared, and are much in request for the English market. The sheep on
the hill pastures are mostly Cheviots; on the lower and arable lands the
Leicester breed prevails. The minerals most abundant are coal, lead, iron,
antimony, and gypsum. Coal and lead are worked to a small extent. Limestone
and freestone abound in various parts. There are no manufactures worth
mentioning. The county returns one member to the House of Commons. Its
principal towns are Dumfries, Annan, Sanquhar, Lockerbie, Moffat, Langholm,
and Lochmaben. Pop. 72,825.
DUMONT (d[.u]-m[=o]n), Pierre ['E]tienne Louis, the friend and literary
assistant of Mirabeau and Jeremy Bentham, was born at Geneva in 1759, died
at Milan 1829. Ordained a minister of the Protestant Church in 1781, he
attached himself to the democratic party in Geneva, and when the opposite
party gained the ascendency he went to St. Petersburg, in 1782, where he
was appointed pastor of the French Reformed Church. Soon after he accepted
an offer to act as tutor to the sons of Lord Shelburne, afterwards Marquess
of Lansdowne, which brought him to London, where he became intimate with
Jeremy Bentham and Sir Samuel Romilly. Visiting Paris during the first
years of the Revolution, he gained the friendship of Mirabeau, whom he
assisted in the composition of speeches and reports, and of whom he wrote
some interesting _Recollections_. On his return to London he formed that
connection with Bentham which fixed his career as a writer; recasting,
popularizing, and editing Bentham's works in a form suitable for the
reading public. He returned to Geneva in 1814 and became a Senator.
DUMONT D'URVILLE (d[.u]-m[=o]n d[.u]r-v[=e]l), Jules Sebastien C['e]sar,
French navigator, was born in 1790, killed in a railway accident between
Paris and Versailles 1842. After completing his studies at Caen, he entered
the French navy, in which he ultimately rose to be rear-admiral. From 1826
to 1829 he commanded the corvette _Astrolabe_, which was sent to obtain
tidings of La P['e]rouse, and to make hydrographic observations. He made
surveys of the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, and found remains of
the shipwreck of La P['e]rouse on one of the Pacific islands. The result of
this voyage was the publication of _Voyage de D['e]couverte autour du
Monde_. In 1837 he sailed with the _Astrolabe_ and _Z['e]l['e]e_ on a
voyage of Antarctic discovery, and after many dangers, and having visited
many parts of Oceania, he returned in 1840. On his return he began the
publication of _Voyage au P[^o]le sud et dans l'Oc['e]anie_, which was
finished by one of his companions.
DUMOURIEZ (d[.u]-m[:o]-ri-[=a]), Charles Francois Duperrier, a French
general of great military talent, was born at Cambrai in 1739 of a noble
family of Provence, died near Henley-on-Thames 1823. He served as an
officer in the Seven Years' War. In 1768 he went to Corsica as
quartermaster-general of the small army which was sent for the conquest of
that island, and was afterwards made colonel. In 1778 he was appointed
Governor of Cherbourg. At the Revolution he joined the Jacobins, and
subsequently the Girondists, and in 1792 he was Minister of Foreign
Affairs. War breaking out between France and Austria, he resigned in order
to take command of the army; invaded Flanders, and defeated the Austrians
at Jemappes and conquered Belgium. Instead of prosecuting the war
vigorously, he now entered upon measures for the overthrow of the
Revolutionary Government, issued a proclamation, in which he promised the
restoration of the constitutional monarchy in the person of the heir to the
crown, but was attacked by the Versailles volunteers, and compelled to flee
(4th April, 1793). The Convention set a price of 300,000 livres upon his
head. At first he retired to Brussels, and after various wanderings found a
final refuge in England. His _Memoirs_, written by himself, appeared in
1794; an enlarged edition in 1822. He was also the author of a large number
of political pamphlets.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: J. Holland Rose and A. M. Broadley,
_Dumouriez and the Defence of England against Napoleon_; H. Welschinger,
_Le Roman de Dumouriez_.
D[:U]NA (d[:u]'n[.a]), or WESTERN DVINA, a river of Russia, which rises in
the government of Tver, about 15 miles W. of the source of the Volga, falls
into the Gulf of Riga, has a course of about 650 miles, and waters the
seven governments of Tver, Pskov, Vitebsk, Mogilev, &c., draining an area
of about 65,000 sq. miles. It is navigable for a considerable distance, but
is frozen for about four months each year.
D[:U]NABURG (d[:u]'na-b[u:]rg), DVINABURG, or DVINSK, a fortified town in
Latvia, formerly belonging to Russia, in the government of Vitebsk on the
right bank of the D[:u]na, or Dvina, 112 miles south-east of Riga. It
carries on various industries, a considerable trade, and has three yearly
fairs. The official name is Dvinsk, or Daugavpils. It was captured by the
Germans in Feb., 1918. Pop. 110,912.
D[:U]NAM[:U]NDE (d[:u]'na-m[.u]n-de; 'D[:u]namouth'), a fortress and port
on the Gulf of Riga, at the mouth of the D[:u]na, having a large winter
harbour for the shipping of Riga. Pop. 2500.
DUNBAR', William, the most eminent of all the old Scottish poets, was born,
probably in East Lothian, about 1460-5. In 1475 he went to St. Andrews,
where, in 1477, he took the degree of B.A., and two years later that of
M.A. After this he seems to have become a begging friar of the Franciscan
order, and made journeys in England and France, but he returned to Scotland
about 1490, and attached himself to the court of James IV, from whom he
received a pension of L10. On the marriage of James IV to Margaret of
England Dunbar celebrated the event in a poem of great beauty, entitled
_The Thrissil and the Rois_. His pension was ultimately raised to L80 a
year, and he was the recipient of various additional gratuities, though he
appears frequently to have addressed both the king and the queen for a
benefice, but always without success. After the defeat at Flodden his name
disappears from the royal accounts, and he probably died about 1520. His
works, which consist of elaborate allegories, satirical and grimly humorous
pieces, and poems full of brilliant description and luxuriant imagination,
first collected by David Laing (Edinburgh, 1834), were edited by John Small
and A. J. G. Mackay, for the Scottish Text Society, between 1884 and
1893.--Cf. _The Cambridge History of English Literature_ (vol. ii).
DUNBAR' (Gael., Castle Point), a town of Scotland; a royal and municipal
(formerly parliamentary) burgh and seaport in Haddingtonshire, at the mouth
of the Firth of Forth. It is a place of great antiquity, having originated
in a castle, once of great strength and importance, which underwent several
memorable sieges, on one occasion being successfully defended (in 1338)
against the English for nineteen weeks by Black Agnes of Dunbar, Countess
of March. In 1650, at the 'Race of Dunbar', Cromwell totally defeated the
Scottish army under David Leslie near the town. The harbour is not very
commodious, but the town is an important fishing-station. Pop. 4830.
DUNBLANE', an old episcopal city, Scotland, in Perthshire, 6 miles
north-east of Stirling, on the Allan. The ancient cathedral, partly in
ruins, dates from the twelfth century. The nave is 130 feet by 58 feet, and
the choir, now the parish church, is 80 feet by 30 feet. The building was
restored in 1893. Bishop Leighton held the see from 1662 to 1670. About two
miles from the town the indecisive battle of Sheriffmuir was fought in
1715, between the Royal forces under the Duke of Argyle, and the Jacobites
under the Earl of Mar. Pop. 4600.
DUN'CAN, Adam, Viscount, a British naval officer, was born in Dundee in
1731, died 1804. He went to sea when young, and was a post-captain in 1761.
In the following year he served at the taking of Havana; and in 1779 he
shared in the victory of Admiral Rodney over the Spaniards. In 1789 he
became rear-admiral of the blue, and in 1794 vice-admiral of the white
squadron. The following year he was appointed commander of the North Sea
fleet, and in Oct., 1797, won a brilliant victory over the Dutch fleet off
Camperdown, for which he was rewarded with the title of Viscount Duncan of
Camperdown and a pension of L2000 a year.
DUNCAN, Thomas, an eminent Scottish painter, was born in 1807, died at
Edinburgh 1845. He studied under Sir W. Allan, and was elected an associate
of the Royal Academy in 1843. His principal works were illustrative of
Scottish history and character. Among the best known of them are: _The
Abdication of Mary Queen of Scots_, _Anne Page and Slender_, _Prince
Charles Edward and the Highlanders entering Edinburgh after Prestonpans_,
_Charles Edward asleep in a Cave after Culloden_, and _The Martyrdom of
John Brown of Priesthill_.
DUN'CANSBY HEAD, a promontory in Caithness-shire, Scotland, forming the
N.E. extremity of the Scottish mainland, 1-3/4 miles E. of John o' Groat's
House, and 18-1/2 miles N. by E. of Wick. Close by the promontory are two
rocks, of fantastic form and great height, called the Stacks of Duncansby,
which in spring and summer are covered with sea-fowl.
DUNDALK (dun-d[a:]k'), a seaport and former parliamentary borough, Ireland,
capital of the county of Louth, on Castletown River, about 2 miles above
its mouth in Dundalk Bay. It has railway workshops, tanyards, and a
spinning-mill; the trade, chiefly in cattle and agricultural produce, is
extensive. It was the seat of the court of Edward Bruce from 1315 to 1318.
In 1649 it was captured by Cromwell. Pop. 13,128.
DUNDAS' OF ARNISTON, the name of a family several members of which held a
conspicuous place in the legal and political history of Scotland.--Sir
James Dundas, the first of Arniston, knighted by James VI, was the third
son of George Dundas of Dundas, a descendant of the Dunbars, Earls of
March.--His eldest son, Sir James, was member of Parliament for
Mid-Lothian, and was appointed one of the judges of the Court of Session
(1662).--His eldest son Robert was also raised to the bench of the Court of
Session, and filled that station for thirty-seven years. He died in
1727.--His eldest son Robert (1685-1753) was successively Solicitor-General
for Scotland, Lord-Advocate, member of Parliament for the county of
Edinburgh, and Dean of the Faculty of Advocates. In 1737 he was raised to
the bench, and on the death of Lord-President Forbes of Culloden, in 1748,
he was appointed his successor.--His eldest son Robert (1713-87) also
attained to the position of Lord-Advocate, and Lord-President of the Court
of Session.--His brother Henry Dundas, Viscount Melville, distinguished
statesman, was born in 1741 and died 1811. He obtained the post of
Solicitor-General in 1773, that of Lord-Advocate in 1775, and was made
joint keeper of the signet for Scotland in 1777. In 1782 he was appointed
Treasurer of the Navy and member of the Privy Council; and from that time
took a leading part in all the Pitt measures, and had supreme influence in
Scotland. Among other offices he held that of First Lord of the Admiralty;
and in 1805 he was impeached before the House of Lords of high crimes and
misdemeanours in his former office of Treasurer of the Navy, but was
finally acquitted. He was created Viscount Melville in 1801, a title still
borne by his direct descendant.
DUNDEE', John Graham of Claverhouse, Viscount. See _Graham_.
DUNDEE (Gael. _Dun Taw_, fort on the Tay), a city, royal and parliamentary
burgh, and seaport, Scotland, in the county of Forfar, on the north shore
of the Firth of Tay, about 8 miles from the open sea, 37 miles N.N.E. of
Edinburgh; in population the third town in Scotland. It stretches along the
Tay, or east to west, and of late years has been greatly extended in both
directions. The more recently made streets are spacious and handsome, but
most of those of more ancient date are narrow, and irregularly built. The
most conspicuous building is St. Mary's Tower, or the Old Steeple as it is
popularly called, 156 feet high, erected in the middle of the fourteenth
century. Three modern parochial churches have been built on to it in form
of a cathedral, the nave, choir, and transept respectively forming a
separate church. Among public buildings are: the town hall, several public
halls, the high school, exchange, infirmary, lunatic asylum, Albert
Institute and free library. University College, for men and women, was
opened in 1883, and affiliated to the University of St. Andrews in 1897. It
was founded by private munificence, receiving an endowment of L140,000, and
has ten professorships. Dundee has several public parks and recreation
grounds and a good supply of water. The town has long been celebrated for
its textile manufactures, particularly those of the coarser descriptions of
linen, and it is now the chief seat of the linen trade in Scotland and of
the jute trade in Great Britain, there being a great number of mills and
factories engaged in the spinning and weaving of flax, jute, and hemp.
Shipbuilding is extensively carried on, and there are large engineering
establishments. Another branch of business is the northern seal and whale
fishery. Dundee is also famous for its marmalade and other preserves and
confectionery. The shipping accommodation includes five large wet-docks,
with a connected tidal harbour and graving-docks. The chief foreign trade
is with the Baltic and Archangel in the importation of flax and hemp, with
Norway, Sweden, and Canada in timber, and with Calcutta in jute. The
railway facilities of Dundee were greatly increased in 1878 by the opening
of a bridge across the Tay; but on the 28th of Dec., 1879, the bridge was
destroyed by a violent storm, when about 100 people in a train in the act
of crossing lost their lives. A new bridge, to replace the one destroyed,
was opened for traffic in June, 1887; it is a very substantial structure
about 2 miles in length. Dundee was made a royal burgh by William the Lion
about 1200, was twice in the possession of the English under Edward I, and
was as often retaken by Wallace and Bruce. In 1645 it was besieged, taken,
and sacked by the Duke of Montrose; and six years afterwards it was stormed
by Monk, when a great number of its inhabitants were put to death. Since
1868 the town has returned two members to Parliament. In 1888 it was raised
by royal grant to the rank of a city. In 1914 the burgh of Broughty Ferry
was annexed to Dundee, increasing its area to 5964 acres. Pop. 176,062;
population in 1921, 168,217.
DUNDON'ALD, Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of, British admiral, was born in
Lanarkshire 1775, died 1860. At the age of eighteen he embarked with his
uncle, then Captain, and afterwards Sir Alexander Cochrane, in the _Hind_,
of twenty-eight guns, and soon distinguished himself by his daring and
gallantry. In 1800 he was appointed to the _Speedy_ sloop-of-war of
fourteen guns, and in the course of thirteen months captured over fifty
vessels, but was at last captured himself. In 1805, while in command of the
_Pallas_ frigate, he took some rich prizes, and for the next four years in
the _Imp['e]rieuse_ performed remarkable exploits in cutting out vessels,
storming batteries, and destroying signals. On his return to England he
entered Parliament, and by his attacks on the abuses of the naval
administration made himself obnoxious to the authorities. He gave further
offence by charging Lord Gambier, his superior officer, with neglect of
duty (which was true); by denouncing the abuses of the prize-court, and the
treatment of the prisoners of war. His enemies succeeded in 1814 in
convicting him on a charge--since proved to be false--of originating a
rumour, for speculative purposes, that Napoleon had abdicated. He was
expelled from Parliament, ignominiously ejected from the Order of the Bath,
imprisoned for a year, and fined L1000. The electors of Westminster
immediately paid his fine and re-elected him, but he had to remain in
prison till the expiration of his sentence. In 1818 he took service in the
Chilian navy, his exploits greatly aiding the national independence of that
country, as well as soon after of Brazil. In 1832 he was restored to his
rank in the British navy. In 1831, by the death of his father, he had
succeeded to the title of Earl of Dundonald; in 1841 he became vice-admiral
of the blue; in 1848 he was appointed commander-in-chief on the North
America and West India station; and in 1851 and 1854 respectively he became
vice-admiral of the white, and rear-admiral of the United Kingdom. He was
reinstated in the Order of the Bath (G.C.B.) on 25th May, 1847. He did much
to promote the adoption of steam and the screw propeller in war-ships. He
wrote an autobiography, which, though left incomplete, is a most
interesting work.--Cf. J. B. Atlay, _The Trial of Lord Cochrane before Lord
Ellenborough_.
DUNEDIN (dun-[=e]'din), capital of the provincial district of Otago, New
Zealand, and the most important commercial town in the colony, stands at
the upper extremity of an arm of the sea, about 9 miles from its port, Port
Chalmers, with which it is connected by railway. Though founded in 1848,
its more rapid progress dates only from 1861, when extensive gold-fields
discovered in Otago attracted a large influx of population. There are many
handsome buildings, both public and private: the municipal buildings, the
post office, hospital, lunatic asylum, Government offices, the university,
high schools (boys' and girls'), the new museum, several banks (especially
the Bank of New Zealand), the athenaeum and mechanics' institute, the
freemasons' hall, and two theatres. Wool is the staple export. Several
woollen and other manufactories are now in existence. There is a regular
line of steamers between this port and Melbourne, and communication is
frequent with all parts of New Zealand. Through the opening of the new
Victoria Channel from Port Chalmers vessels drawing 16 feet can now ascend
to Dunedin at low water. Pop. 68,716.
DUNES, low hills of sand accumulated on the sea-coasts of Holland, Britain,
Spain, and other countries, in some places encroaching on and covering what
once was cultivated land, but in others serving as a natural barrier to
protect the country from the destructive encroachments of the sea.
DUNFERM'LINE, a royal and police burgh of Scotland, county of Fife, 3 miles
N. of the Firth of Forth, and 13 miles north-west of Edinburgh. The streets
though narrow are well built. Dunfermline was early a favourite residence
of the kings of Scotland, and at it were born David II, James I, Charles I,
and his sister Elizabeth. The Benedictine abbey founded by Malcolm Canmore
(1070) is now represented chiefly by the Abbey Church, in which are the
remains of Queen Margaret and Canmore, Alexander I and his Queen, David I,
Malcolm IV, and Robert Bruce. Dunfermline was made a royal burgh in 1588.
The town has greatly benefited through the munificence of the late Andrew
Carnegie, a native, who, besides other benefactions, settled on it the sum
of L500,000. In the manufacture of table-linen it is unrivalled by any town
in the kingdom. There are collieries adjacent. The Dunfermline burghs
return one member to Parliament. Pop. 28,103.
DUNGAN'NON, a town of Ireland, County Tyrone, 35 miles west by south of
Belfast. It has manufactures of linen and earthenware. Till 1885 it
returned a member to the House of Commons. Pop. 3830.
DUNGARPUR (d[:o]n-g_a_r-p[:o]r'), an Indian native state in
R['a]jput['a]na; area, 1000 sq. miles; pop. 153,381.--_Dungarpur_ is also
the name of the chief town and residence of the Maharawal of the state.
DUNGAR'VAN, a seaport of Ireland, County Waterford, on the Bay of
Dungarvan, much resorted to for sea-bathing. The harbour is shallow, and
the trade depends almost entirely on agricultural produce. Till 1885 it
returned a member to Parliament. Pop. 4977.
DUNG BEETLE, a name applied to a large number of lamellicorn beetles (in
which the antennae terminate usually in lateral leaflets) from their habit
of burying their eggs in dung. The _Geotr[=u]pes stercorarius_, 'dor' or
'shard-borne' beetle, and the _Scarabaeus sacer_, or sacred beetle of the
Egyptians, are examples.
DUNGENESS (dunj-nes'), a low headland on the S. coast of Kent, 102 miles
S.E. of Rye; has a lighthouse with fixed light.
DUNKELD', a small town of Scotland, on the Tay, about 14 miles north by
west of Perth; pop. 613. It is a very ancient place, and from 850, when
Kenneth I removed the remains of St. Columba from Iona to a church which he
had built here, became the metropolitan see of Scotland, till supplanted by
St. Andrews. The choir of the ancient cathedral is still used as the parish
church. Near it is Dunkeld House, the seat of the Duke of Atholl, the
grounds of which are the finest and most extensive in Scotland.
DUNKERS, or TUNKERS, also called DIPPERS, a religious sect in America,
founded by Conrad Peysel, a German, in 1724, and which takes its name from
the Ger. _tunken_, to dip, from their mode of baptizing converts. They
reject infant baptism; use great plainness of dress and language; refuse to
take oaths or to fight; and anoint the sick with oil in order to hasten
their recovery, depending on this unction and prayer, and rejecting the use
of medicine. Every brother is allowed to speak in the congregation, and
their best speaker is usually set apart as their minister.
DUNKIRK' (Fr. _Dunkerque_), a seaport town, France, department of Nord, at
the entrance of the Straits of Dover, surrounded by walls, and otherwise
defended by forts and outworks. It has several fine churches, a college, a
public library, and a gallery of paintings; manufactures of earthenware,
leather, soap, starch, ropes; sugar-refineries, breweries, and
distilleries, and a large trade. In 1658 Dunkirk was given up to the
English by Turenne, and continued with them till 1662, when Charles II sold
it to Louis XIV. It is one of the chief French torpedo stations, and during
the European War was a British base and frequently bombed by the enemy.
Pop. 38,891.