“Savannas,” sa-văn´nas. A wide plain without trees, and covered with
grass.
“Father of Waters.” Mississippi is an Indian word meaning “father of
waters.” The following line refers to the immense quantities of débris
that the river carries from hills and mountains, and in which many
relics of the past are found buried.
“Prairie,” prā´re. Often incorrectly pronounced.
“Courier-des-bois.” French—literally scouts of the forest.
“Voyageurs.” Travelers.
“St. Catherine’s tresses.” St. Catherine lived a virgin; hence the
expression means to live unmarried.
“Shard.” A shred. The word is obsolete in this meaning.
“Op-e-lou´sas.”
“Chutes,” shoots. A rapid descent in a river, or the opening in a river
dam.
“Lagoon,” la-goon´. A marsh, shallow pond, or lake.
“Wimpling.” Lying in folds; rippling.
“Pĕl´i-cans.” A web-footed bird of large size, and remarkable for its
bill, to the lower edge of which is attached a pouch which will hold
many quarts of water.
“Bayou of Plequemine,” bī´oo of plak-mēn´. One of the numerous lakes,
outlets, or, as they say in the South, bayous, of the delta of the
Mississippi. The southeast province of Louisiana, lying on the Gulf and
containing the delta, is called Plaquemine.
“Ten´e-broŭs.” Gloomy, dusky.
“Mi-mō´sa.” The sensitive plant; its name comes from a Greek word
signifying imitator, because the plant seems to imitate animal
sensibility.
“Atchafalaya,” atch-af-a-lī´a. A river or bayou of Louisiana connecting
with the Mississippi just below the Red River. The Atchafalaya river
is the outlet to the volumes of water bound by the levees of the
Mississippi. “Where thirty-eight years ago,” says a writer in _Harper’s
Weekly_, “the farmer waded across the Atchafalaya, now they find a
depth of one hundred and twenty-two feet. The question that this
wonderful change raises is whether the Atchafalaya will not eventually
absorb the Mississippi current. The results would certainly be serious,
and it is the opinion of many that unless proper care be taken, the
Mississippi will take this short cut to the Gulf.”
“Lō´tus.” An aquatic plant.
“Wa-chi´ta.”
“Cope.” An arch, or cover.
“Pĕnd´ū-loŭs.” Swinging.
“Under the lee of.” The word lee comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for
shelter; hence the expression means under the shelter of the island.
“Pal-mĕt´tos.” A species of the palm tree.
“Thōles.” The pin used to keep the oar in the row-lock when rowing.
“Têche,” tesh.
“Bac-chăn´tes.” Devotees of Bacchus, the god of wine in Roman mythology.
“Yule-tide.” Christmas-time.
“Sombrero,” som-bra´ro. A kind of broad-brimmed hat.
“O-zark´.” A range of hills running from the Missouri River in Missouri
into Indian Territory.
“Olympus.” The chief abode of the gods in Grecian mythology.
“Cidevant,” se-de-vong´. Former.
“Natch-ī-tōch´es.” Said to be pronounced by the inhabitants,
nak´-e-tush. A northwest province of Louisiana having a capital of the
same name.
“Carthusian,” kar-thū´zhan. One of the order of Carthusian monks, a
body famous for their austerities.
“Upharsin.” Dan. v:25.
“Oregon.” A name for the Columbia River.
“Wall´e-way.”
“O-wy´hee.”
“Fontaine-qui-bout,” fōn-tān-ke-bou´.
“Sierras,” sï-ĕr´ra. A saw-like ridge of mountains.
“Anch´o-rīte.” Hermit.
“Fä´ta Morgäna.” A phenomenon similar to the mirage in the desert.
Through atmospheric refraction objects at a distance appear contorted,
doubled, or inverted. It is oftenest seen in the Straits of Messina,
and is named from a fairy who is said to cause it.
“Shaw´nee.” A tribe of American Indians bore this name; they are nearly
all Christianized.
“Ca-măn´che.” A fierce tribe of Indians.
“Mo´wis.”
“Li-li-man´.”
“A-ē´ri-al.”
“Su-sŭr´rus.” Whispering.
“Asphodel,” as´phō-del. A species of perennial plant, famous for its
beautiful flowers.
“Ne-pen´the.” A drug used by the ancients to relieve from pain and
exhilarate. The word is derived from the Greek, signifying taking away
sorrow.
“Sag´ĭ-naw.”
“Wōld.” Wood, forest.
“Ab-ne-gā-tion.” Denying.
“Prĕs´aged.” Foretold.
“Wi-cā´co.”
Errata, in “Notes on Required Reading” for April.
P. 419, c. 2—“Amoor Darya” should read “Amoo Darya.”
P. 420, c. 1—The Russian Saint Anthony was _not_ Saint Anthony of
Egypt, but of Mount Athos, and belonged to a later age.
P. 420, c. 1—“Laraï” should read “Saraï.”