(1) The head tract (_pt. capitis_), which embraces the head only.
(2) The spinal tract (_pt. spinalis_), which extends the whole length
of the vertical column. It is one of the most variable in its
modifications, especially in so far as the region from the base of the
neck to the tail is concerned. In its simplest form it runs down the
back in the form of a band of almost uniform width, but generally it
expands considerably in the lumbar region, as in Passeres. Frequently
it is divided into two portions; an upper, terminating in the region
of the middle of the back in a fork, and a lower, which commences
either as a fork, e.g. plover, barbet, or as a median band, e.g.
swallow. Very commonly the dorsal region of this tract encloses a more
or less extensive featherless space (_apterion_), e.g. swift, auk.
While, as a rule, the dorsal region of this tract is relatively
narrow, it is in some of great breadth, e.g. grebe, pigeon, coly.
(3) The ventral tract (_pt. ventralis_), which presents almost as many
variations as the spinal tract.
[Illustration: Fig. 2.--Pterylosis of the plover.]
In its simplest form it runs from the throat backwards in the form of
a median band as far as the base of the neck where it divides, sending
a branch to each side of the breast. This branch commonly again
divides into a short, broad outer branch which lodges the "flank"
feathers, and a long, narrow, inner branch which runs backwards to
join its fellow of the opposite side in front of the cloacal aperture.
This branch lodges the abdominal feathers. The median space which
divides the inner branches of the tract may be continued forwards as
far as the middle of the neck, or even up to the throat, e.g. plover.
Only in a few cases is the neck continuously covered by the fusion of
the dorsal and ventral tracts, e.g. flamingo, Anseres, Ciconidae,
Pygopodes.
For convenience sake the cervical portions of the spinal and ventral
tracts are generally regarded as separate tracts, the _pt. colli
dorsalis_ and _pt. colli ventralis_ respectively.
(4) The humeral tract (_pt. humeralis_), which gives rise to the
"scapular" feathers.
(5) The femoral tract (_pt. femoralis_), which forms an oblique band
across the thigh.
(6) The crural tract (_pt. cruralis_), which clothes the rest of the
leg.
(7) The tail tract (_pt. caudalis_), including the tail feathers and
their coverts; and
(8) The wing tract (_pt. alaris_). The wing tract presents many
peculiar features. Each segment--arm, forearm and hand--bears feathers
essential to flight, and these are divided into _remiges_, or "quill"
feathers, and _tectrices_, or "coverts."
The remiges of the arm, more commonly described as "tertiaries," are,
technically, collectively known as the _parapteron_ and _hypopteron_,
and are composed respectively of long, quill-like feathers forming a
double series, the former arranged along the upper, and the latter
along the lower aspect of the humerus. They serve to fill up the gap
which, in long-winged birds, would otherwise occur during flight
between the quill-feathers of the forearm and the body, a gap which
would make flight impossible. In short-winged birds these two series
are extremely reduced.
The remiges range in number from 16, as in humming-birds, to 48 as in
the albatross, according, in short, to the length of the wing. But
these numerical differences depend, in flying birds, rather upon the
length of the forearm, since the quills of the hand never exceed 12
and never fall below 10, though the tenth may be reduced to a mere
vestige.
The quills of the forearm are known as "secondaries," those of the
hand as "primaries." The former are attached by their bases at
relatively wide distances apart to the ulna, while the primaries are
crowded close together and attached to the skeleton of the hand. The
six or seven which rest upon the fused metacarpals II.-III. are known
as "metacarpals." The next succeeding feather is borne by the phalanx
of digit III. and hence is known as the addigital. Phalanx i. of digit
II. always supports two quills, the "middigitals," while the remaining
feathers--one or two--are borne by the last phalanx of digit II. and
are known as pre-digitals, while the whole series of primaries are
known as the metacarpo-digitals.
In their relation one to another the remiges, it must be noted, are
always so placed that they overlap one another, the free edge of each,
when the wing is seen from its upper surface, being turned towards the
tip of the wing. Thus, in flight, the air passes through the wing as
it is raised, while in the downstroke the feathers are forced together
to form a homogeneous surface.
Birds which fly much have the outer primaries of great length, giving
the wing a pointed shape, as in swifts, while in species which fly but
little, or frequent thickets, the outer primaries are very short,
giving the wing a rounded appearance. This adaptation to environment
is commonly lost sight of by taxonomers, who not infrequently use the
form of the wing as a factor in classification.
The tectrices, or covert feathers of the wing, are arranged in several
series, decreasing in size from behind forwards. The number of rows on
the dorsal aspect and the method of their overlap, afford characters
of general importance in classification.
The first row of the series is formed by the _major coverts_; these,
like the primaries, have their free-edges directed towards the tip of
the wing, and hence are said to have a distal overlap. The next row is
formed by the _median coverts_. These, on the forearm, commonly
overlap as to the outer half of the row distally, and as to the inner
half proximally. On the hand this series is incomplete. Beyond the
median are four or five rows of coverts known as the _minor coverts_.
These may have either a proximal or a distal overlap. The remaining
rows of small feathers are known as the _marginal coverts_, and they
always have a distal overlap.
The three or four large quill-like feathers borne by the thumb form
what is known as the "bastard-wing," _ala spuria_.
The coverts of the under follow an arrangement similar to that of the
upper surface, but the minor coverts are commonly but feebly
developed, leaving a more or less bare space which is covered by the
great elongation of the marginal series.
One noteworthy fact about the coverts of the under side of the wing is
that all save the major and median coverts have what answers to the
dorsal surfaces of the feather turned towards the body, and what
answers to the ventral surface of the feather turned towards the under
surface of the wing. In the major and median coverts, however, the
ventral surfaces of these feathers are turned ventralwards, that is to
say, in the extended wing they, like the remiges, have the ventral
surfaces turned downwards or towards the body in the closed wing.
But the most remarkable fact in connexion with the pterylosis of the
wing is the fact that in all, save the Passerine and Galliform types,
and some few other isolated exceptions, the secondary series of
remiges appears always to lack the fifth remex, counting from the
wrist inwards, inasmuch as, when such wings are examined, there is
always found, in the place of the fifth remex, a pair of major coverts
only, while throughout the rest of the series each such pair of
coverts embraces a quill.
This extraordinary fact was first discovered by the French naturalist
Z. Gerbe, and was later rediscovered by R.S. Wray. Neither of these,
however, was able to offer any explanation thereof. This, however, has
since been attempted, simultaneously, by P.C. Mitchell and W.P.
Pycraft. The former has aptly coined the word _diastataxic_ to denote
the gap in the series, and _eutaxic_ to denote such wings as have an
uninterrupted series of quills. While both authors agree that there is
no evidence of any loss in the number of the quills in diastataxic
wings, they differ in the interpretation as to which of the two
conditions is the more primitive and the means by which the gap has
been brought about.
According to Mitchell the diastataxic is the more primitive condition,
and he has conclusively shown a way in which diastataxic wings may
become eutaxic. Pycraft on the other hand contends that the
diastataxic wing has been derived from the eutaxic type, and has
produced evidence showing, on the one hand, the method by which this
transition is effected, and on the other that by which the diastataxic
wing may again recover the eutaxic condition, though in this last
particular the evidence adduced by Mitchell is much more complete. The
matter is, however, one of considerable difficulty, but is well worth
further investigation.
The wings of struthious birds differ from those of the Carinatae, just
described, in many ways. All are degenerate and quite useless as
organs of flight. In some cases indeed they have become reduced to
mere vestiges.
Those of the ostrich and Rhea are the least degraded.
In the ostrich ankylosis has prevented the flexion of the hand at the
wrist joint so that the quills--primaries and secondaries--form an
unbroken series of about forty in number. Of these sixteen belong to
the primary or metacarpo-digital series, a number exceeding that of
any other bird. What the significance of this may be with regard to
the primitive wing it is impossible to say at present. The coverts, in
their disposition, bear a general resemblance to those of Carinate
wings; but they differ on account of the great length of the feathers
and the absence of any definite overlap.
The wing of the South American Rhea more nearly resembles that of
flying birds since the hand can be flexed at the wrist joint, and the
primaries are twelve in number, as in grebes, and some storks, for
example.
The coverts, as in the African ostrich, are remarkable for their great
length, those representing the major series being as long as the
remiges, a fact probably due to the shortening of the latter. They are
not, however, arranged in quincunx, as is the rule among the
Carinatae, but in parallel, transverse rows, in which respect they
resemble the owls.
In both ostrich and Rhea, as well as in all the other struthious
birds, the under surface of the wing is entirely bare.
The wing of the cassowary, emeu and apteryx has undergone complete
degeneration; so much so that only a vestige of the hand remains.
Remiges in the cassowary are represented by a few spine-like
shafts--three primaries and two secondaries. These are really
hypertrophied calami. This is shown by the fact that in the nestling
these remiges have a normal calamus, rhachis and vane; but as
development proceeds the rhachis with its vane sloughs off, while the
calamus becomes enormously lengthened and solid.
In the emeu the wing is less atrophied than in the cassowary, but is
not yet completely degenerate. Altogether seventeen remiges are
represented, of which seven correspond to primaries. Since, however,
these feathers have each an aftershaft as long as the main shaft--like
the rest of the body feathers--it may be that they answer not to
remiges, but to major coverts.
The wing of apteryx, like that of the cassowary, has become extremely
reduced. The remiges are thirteen in number, four of which answer to
primaries. These feathers are specially interesting, inasmuch as they
retain throughout life a stage corresponding to that seen in the very
young cassowary, the calamus being greatly swollen, and supporting a
very degenerate rhachis and vane.
The penguins afford another object-lesson in degeneration of this
kind. Here the wing has become transformed into a paddle, clothed on
both sides with a covering of small, close-set feathers. A pollex is
wanting, as in the cassowary, emeu and apteryx, while it is impossible
to say whether remiges are represented or not.
AUTHORITIES.--The following authors should be consulted for further
details on this subject:--
_For General Reference as to Structure, Colour, Development and
Pterylosis._--H. Gadow, in Newton's _Dictionary of Birds_ (1896); W.P.
Pycraft, "The Interlocking of the Barbs of Feathers," _Natural
Science_ (1893).
_On the Colours of Feathers._--J.L. Bonhote, "On Moult and Colour
Change in Birds," _Ibis_ (1900); A.H. Church, "Researches on Turacin,
an Animal Pigment containing Copper," _Phil. Trans._ clix. (1870), pt.
ii.; H. Gadow, "The Coloration of Feathers as affected by Structure,"
_Proc. Zool. Soc._ (1882); Newbegin, _Colour in Nature_ (1898); R.M.
Strong, "The Development of Color in the Definitive Feather," _Bull.
Mus. Zool. Harvard College_, vol. xl.
_On Moulting._--J. Dwight, "The Sequences of Plumage and Moults of the
Passerine Birds of New York," _Annals N.Y. Acad. Sci._, vol. xiii.
(1900); W.E. De Winton, "On the Moulting of the King Penguin," _Proc.
Zool. Soc._ (1898-1899); W.P. Pycraft, "On some Points in the Anatomy
of the Emperor and Adelie Penguins," _Report National Antarctic
Expedition_, vol. ii. (1907).
_On Development of Embryonic, Nestling and Adult Feathers._--T.H.
Studer, "Die Entwicklung der Federn," _Inaug.-Diss._ (Bern, 1873);
"Beitrage zur Entwickl. der Feder," _Zeitsch. f. wiss. Zool._, Bd.
xxx.; J.T. Cunningham, "Observations and Experiments on Japanese
Long-tailed Fowls," _Proc. Zool. Soc._ (1903); H.R. Davies, "Beitrag
zur Entwicklung der Feder," _Morph. Jahrb._ xiv. (1888), xv. (1889);
W.P. Pycraft, "A Contribution towards our Knowledge of the Morphology
of the Owls," _Trans. Linn. Soc._ (1898); W.P. Pycraft, "A
Contribution towards our Knowledge of the Pterytography of the
Megapodii," _Report Willey's Zoological Results_, pt. iv. (1900); W.P.
Pycraft, "Nestling Birds and some of the Problems they Present,"
_British Birds_ (1907).
_On Pterylosis._--H. Gadow, "Remarks on the Numbers and on the
Phylogenetic Development of the Remiges of Birds," _Proc. Zool. Soc._
(1888); Z. Gerbe, "Sur les plumes du vol et leur mue," _Bull. Soc.
Zool. France_, vol. ii. (1877); J.G. Goodchild, "The Cubital Coverts
of the Euornithae in relation to Taxonomy," _Proc. Roy. Phys. Edinb._
vol. x. (1890-1891); Meijere, "Uber die Federn der Vogel," _Morphol.
Jahrb._ xxiii. (1895); P.C. Mitchell, "On so-called 'Quintocubitalism'
in the Wing of Birds," _Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool._ vol. xxvii. (1899);
"On the Anatomy of the Kingfishers, with special reference to the
Conditions known as Eutaxy and Diastataxy," _Ibis_ (1901); C.L.
Nitzsch, "Pterytography," _Ray Soc._ (1867); W.P. Pycraft, "Some Facts
concerning the so-called 'Aquintocubitalism' of the Bird's Wing,"
_Journ. Linn. Soc._ vol. xxvii.; C.J. Sundevall, "On the Wings of
Birds," _Ibis_ (1886); R.S. Wray, "On some Points in the Morphology of
the Wings of Birds," _Proc. Zool. Soc._ (1887). (W. P. P.)
_Commercial Applications of Feathers._--The chief purposes for which
feathers become commercially valuable may be comprehended under four
divisions:--(1) bed and upholstery feathers; (2) quills for writing; (3)
ornamental feathers; and (4) miscellaneous uses of feathers.
_Bed and Upholstery Feathers._--The qualities which render feathers
available for stuffing beds, cushions, &c., are lightness elasticity,
freedom from matting and softness. These are combined in the most
satisfactory degree in the feathers of the goose and of several other
allied aquatic birds, whose bodies are protected with a warm downy
covering. Goose feathers and down, when plucked in spring from the
living bird, are most esteemed, being at once more elastic, cleaner and
less liable to taint than those obtained from the bodies of killed
geese. The down of the eider duck, _Anas mollissima_, is valued above
all other substances for lightness, softness and elasticity; but it has
some tendency to mat, and is consequently more used for quilts and in
articles of clothing than unmixed for stuffing beds. The feathers of
swans, ducks and of the common domestic fowl are also largely employed
for beds; but in the case of the latter bird, which is of course
non-aquatic, the feathers are harsher and less downy than are those of
the natatorial birds generally. Feathers which possess strong or stiff
shafts cannot without some preliminary preparation be used for stuffing
purposes, as the stiff points they present would not only be highly
uncomfortable, but would also pierce and cause the escape of the
feathers from any covering in which they might be enclosed. The barbs
are therefore stripped or cut from these feathers, and when so prepared
they, in common with soft feathers and downs, undergo a careful process
of drying and cleaning, without which they would acquire an offensive
smell, readily attract damp, and harbour vermin. The drying is generally
done in highly heated apartments or stoves, and subsequently the
feathers are smartly beaten with a stick, and shaken in a sieve to
separate all dust and small debris.
_Quills for Writing._--The earliest period at which the use of quill
feathers for writing purposes is recorded is the 6th century; and from
that time till the introduction of steel pens in the early part of the
19th century they formed the principal writing implements of civilized
communities. It has always been from the goose that quills have been
chiefly obtained, although the swan, crow, eagle, owl, hawk and turkey
all have more or less been laid under contribution. Swan quills, indeed
are better and more costly than are those from the goose, and for fine
lines crow quills have been much employed. Only the five outer wing
feathers of the goose are useful for writing, and of these the second
and third are the best, while left-wing quills are also generally more
esteemed than those of the right wing, from the fact that they curve
outward and away from the writer using them. Quills obtained in spring,
by plucking or otherwise, from living birds are by far the best, those
taken from dead geese, more especially if fattened, being comparatively
worthless. To take away the natural greasiness to remove the superficial
and internal pellicles of skin, and to give the necessary qualities of
hardness and elasticity, quills require to undergo some processes of
preparation. The essential operation consists in heating them, generally
in a fine sand-bath, to from 130 deg. to 180 deg. F. according to
circumstances, and scraping them under pressure while still soft from
heat, whereby the outer skin is removed and the inner shrivelled up. If
the heating has been properly effected, the quills are found on cooling
to have become hard, elastic and somewhat brittle. While the quills are
soft and hot, lozenge-shaped patterns, ornamental designs, and names are
easily and permanently impressed on them by pressure with suitable
instruments or designs in metal stamps.
_Ornamental Feathers._--Feathers do not appear to have been much used,
in Europe at least, for ornamental purposes till the close of the 13th
century. They are found in the conical caps worn in England during the
reigns of Edward III. and Richard II.; but not till the period of Henry
V. did they take their place as a part of military costume. Towards the
close of the 15th century the fashion of wearing feathers in both civil
and military life was carried to an almost ludicrous excess. In the time
of Henry VIII. they first appeared in the bonnets of ladies; and during
Elizabeth's reign feathers began to occupy an important place as
head-dress ornaments of women. From that time down to the present,
feathers of endless variety have continued to be leading articles of
ornamentation in female head-attire; but, except for military plumes,
they have long ceased to be worn in ordinary male costume. At the
present day, the feathers of numerous birds are, in one way or another,
turned to account by ladies for the purpose of personal ornament.
Ostrich feathers, however, hold, as they have always held, a pre-eminent
position among ornamental feathers; and the ostrich is the only bird
which may be said to be reared exclusively for the sake of its feathers.
Ostrich farming is one of the established industries of South Africa,
and is also practised in Kordofan and other semi-desert regions of North
Africa, in Argentina, and in Arizona and California in North America.
The feathers are generally plucked from the living animal--a process
which does not appear to cause any great inconvenience. In the male
bird, the long feathers of the rump and wings are white, and the short
feathers of the body are jet black; while the rump and wing feathers of
the female are white tinged with a dusky grey, the general body colour
being the latter hue. The feathers of the male are consequently much
more valuable than those of the female, and they are separately
classified in commerce. The art of the plumassier embraces the cleaning,
bleaching, dyeing, curling and making up of ostrich and other plumes and
feathers. White feathers are simply washed in bundles in hot soapy
water, run through pure warm water, exposed to sulphurous fumes for
bleaching, thereafter blued with indigo solution, rinsed in pure cold
water, and hung up to dry. When dry the shafts are pared or scraped down
to give the feathers greater flexibility, and the barbs are curled by
drawing them singly over the face of a blunt knife or by the cautious
application of a heated iron. Dull-coloured feathers are usually dyed
black. Feathers which are dyed light colours are first bleached by
exposure in the open air. Much ingenuity is displayed in the making up
of plumes, with the general result of producing the appearance of full,
rich, and long feathers from inferior varieties and from scraps and
fragments of ostrich feathers; and so dexterously can factitious plumes
be prepared that only an experienced person is able to detect the
fabrication.
In addition to those of the ostrich, the feathers of certain other birds
form articles of steady commercial demand. Among these are the feathers
of the South American ostrich, _Rhea americana_, the marabout feathers
of India obtained from _Leptoptilos argala_ and _L. javanica_, the
aigrettes of the heron, the feathers of the various species of birds of
paradise, and of numerous species of humming-birds. Swan-down and the
skins of various penguins and grebes and of the albatross are used, like
fur, for muffs and collarettes.
The Chinese excel in the preparation of artificial flowers and other
ornaments from bright natural-coloured or dyed feathers; and the French
also skilfully work fragments of feathers into bouquets of artificial
flowers, imitation butterflies, &c.
_Miscellaneous Applications of Feathers._--Quills of various sizes are
extensively employed as holders for the sable and camel hair brushes
used by artists, &c. Feather brushes and dusters are made from the
wing-feathers of the domestic fowl and other birds; those of a superior
quality, under the name of vulture dusters, being really made of
American ostrich feathers. A minor application of feathers is found in
the dressing of artificial fly-hooks for fishing. As steel pens came
into general use it became an object of considerable importance to find
applications for the supplanted goose-quills, and a large field of
employment for them was found in the preparation of toothpicks.
(J. Pa; W. P. P.)
FEATHERSTONE, an urban district in the Osgoldcross parliamentary
division of the West Riding of Yorkshire, England, 6 m. E. of Wakefield
on the Lancashire & Yorkshire railway. Pop. (1901) 12,093. The
industrial population is employed in large collieries in the vicinity;
and here, on the 7th of September 1893, serious riots during a strike
resulted in the destruction of some of the colliery works belonging to
Lord Masham, and were not quelled without military intervention and some
bloodshed.
FEATLEY (or FAIRCLOUGH) DANIEL (1582-1645), English divine, was born at
Charlton, Oxfordshire, on the 15th of March 1582. He was a scholar of
Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and probationer fellow in 1602, after
which he went to France as chaplain to the English ambassador. For some
years he was domestic chaplain to George Abbot, archbishop of
Canterbury, and held also the rectories of Lambeth (1619), Allhallows,
Bread Street (c. 1622), and Acton (1627), this last after leaving the
archbishop's service in 1625. His varied activities included a
"scholastick duel" with James I. in 1625, and the publication of (1) the
report of a conference with some Jesuits in 1624, (2) a devotional
manual entitled _Ancilla Pietatis_ (1626), (3) _Mystica Clavis, a Key
opening divers Difficult Texts of Scripture in 70 Sermons_ (1636). He
was appointed provost of Chelsea College in 1630, and in 1641 was one of
the sub-committee "to settle religion." In the course of this work he
had a disputation with four Baptists at Southwark which he commemorated
in his book [Greek: Katabaptistai kataptystoi], _The Dippers dipt or
the Anabaptists duckt and plunged over head and ears_ (1645). He sat in
the Westminster Assembly 1643, and was the last of the Episcopal members
to remain. For revealing its proceedings he was expelled and imprisoned.
He died at Chelsea on the 17th of April 1645.
FEBRONIANISM, the name given to a powerful movement within the Roman
Catholic Church in Germany, in the latter part of the 18th century,
directed towards the "nationalizing" of Catholicism, the restriction of
the monarchical power usurped by the papacy at the expense of the
episcopate, and the reunion of the dissident churches with Catholic
Christendom. It was thus, in its main tendencies, the equivalent of what
in France is known as Gallicanism (q.v.). The name is derived from the
pseudonym of "Justinus Febronius" adopted by Johann Nikolaus von
Hontheim (q.v.), coadjutor bishop of Treves (Trier), in publishing his
work _De statu ecclesiae et legitima potestate Romani pontificis_. This
book, which roused a vast amount of excitement and controversy at the
time, exercised an immense influence on opinion within the Roman
Catholic Church, and the principles it proclaimed were put into practice
by the rulers of that Church in various countries during the latter part
of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century.
The main propositions defended by "Febronius" were as follows. The
constitution of the Church is not, by Christ's institution, monarchical,
and the pope, though entitled to a certain primacy, is subordinate to
the universal Church. Though as the "centre of unity" he may be regarded
as the guardian and champion of the ecclesiastical law, and though he
may _propose_ laws, and send legates on the affairs of his primacy, his
sovereignty (_principatus_) over the Church is not one of jurisdiction,
but of order and collaboration (_ordinis et consociationis_). The Roman
(ultramontane) doctrine of papal infallibility is not accepted "by the
other Catholic Churches" and, moreover, "has no practical utility." The
Church is based on the one episcopacy common to all bishops, the pope
being only _primus inter pares_. It follows that the pope is subject to
general councils, in which the bishops are his colleagues
(_conjudices_), not merely his consultors; nor has he the exclusive
right to summon such councils. The decrees of general councils need not
be confirmed by the pope nor can they be altered by him; on the other
hand, appeal may be made from papal decisions to a general council. As
for the rights of the popes in such matters as appeals, reservations,
the confirmation, translation and deposition of bishops, these belong
properly to the bishops in provincial synods, and were usurped by the
papacy gradually as the result of a variety of causes, notably of the
False Decretals. For the health of the Church it is therefore necessary
to restore matters to their condition before the False Decretals, and to
give to the episcopate its due authority. The main obstacle to this is
not the pope himself, but the Curia, and this must be fought by all
possible means, especially by thorough popular education (_primum
adversus abusum ecclesiasticae potestatis remedium_), and by the
assembling of national and provincial synods, the neglect of which is
the main cause of the Church's woes. If the pope will not move in the
matter, the princes, and notably the emperor, must act in co-operation
with the bishops, summon national councils even against the pope's will,
defy his excommunication, and in the last resort refuse obedience in
those matters over which the papacy has usurped jurisdiction.
It will be seen that the views of Febronius had but little originality.
In the main they were those that predominated in the great general
councils of Constance and Basel in the 15th century; but they were
backed by him with such a wealth of learning, and they fitted so well
into the intellectual and political conditions of the time, that they
found a widespread acceptance. The book, indeed, was at once condemned
at Rome (February 1764), and by a brief of the 21st of May the pope
commanded all the bishops of Germany to suppress it. The papal
condemnation met with a very mixed reception; in some dioceses the order
to prohibit the book was ignored, in others action upon it was postponed
pending an independent examination, in yet others (nine in all) it was
at once obeyed "for political reasons," though even in these the
forbidden book became the "breviary of the governments." The Febronian
doctrine, in fact, exactly fitted the views of the German bishops, which
were by no means disinterested. It must be remembered that the bishops
were at this time great secular princes rather than Catholic prelates;
with rare exceptions, they made no pretence of carrying out their
spiritual duties; they shared to the full in the somewhat shallow
"enlightenment" of the age. As princes of the Empire they had asserted
their practical independence of the emperor; they were irked by what
they considered the unjustifiable interference of the Curia with their
sovereign prerogatives, and wished to establish their independence of
the pope also. In the ranks of the hierarchy, then, selfish motives
combined with others more respectable to secure the acceptance of the
Febronian position. Among secular rulers the welcome given to it was
even less equivocal. Even so devout a sovereign as Maria Theresa refused
to allow "Febronius" to be forbidden in the Habsburg dominions; her son,
the emperor Joseph II., applied the Febronian principles with
remorseless thoroughness. In Venice, in Tuscany, in Naples, in Portugal,
they inspired the vigorous efforts of "enlightened despots" to reform
the Church from above; and they gave a fresh impetus to the movement
against the Jesuits, which, under pressure of the secular governments,
culminated in the suppression of the Society by Pope Clement XIV. in
1773. "Febronius," too, inspired the proceedings of two notable
ecclesiastical assemblies, both held in the year 1786. The reforming
synod which met at Pistoia under the presidency of the bishop, Scipione
de' Ricci, is dealt with elsewhere (see PISTOIA). The other was the
so-called congress of Ems, a meeting of the delegates of the four German
archbishops, which resulted, on the 25th of August, in the celebrated
"Punctation of Ems," subsequently ratified and issued by the
archbishops. This document was the outcome of several years of
controversy between the archbishops and the papal nuncios, aroused by
what was considered the unjustifiable interference of the latter in the
affairs of the German dioceses. In 1769 the three archbishop-electors of
Mainz, Cologne and Treves (Trier) had drawn up in thirty articles their
complaints against the Curia, and after submitting them to the emperor
Joseph II., had forwarded them to the new pope, Clement XIV. These
articles, though "Febronius" was prohibited in the archdioceses, were
wholly Febronian in tone; and, indeed, Bishop von Hontheim himself took
an active part in the diplomatic negotiations which were their outcome.
In drawing up the "Punctation" he took no active part, but it was wholly
inspired by his principles. It consisted of XXIII. articles, which may
be summarized as follows. Bishops have, in virtue of their God-given
powers, full authority within their dioceses in all matters of
dispensation, patronage and the like; papal bulls, briefs, &c., and the
decrees of the Roman Congregations are only of binding force in each
diocese when sanctioned by the bishop; nunciatures, as hitherto
conceived, are to cease; the oath of allegiance to the pope demanded of
bishops since Gregory VII.'s time is to be altered so as to bring it
into conformity with episcopal rights; annates and the fees payable for
the pallium and confirmation are to be lowered and, in the event of the
pallium or confirmation being refused, German archbishops and bishops
are to be free to exercise their office under the protection of the
emperor; with the Church tribunals of first and second instance
(episcopal and metropolitan) the nuncios are not to interfere, and,
though appeal to Rome is allowed under certain "national" safe-guards,
the opinion is expressed that it would be better to set up in each
archdiocese a final court of appeal representing the provincial synod;
finally the emperor is prayed to use his influence with the pope to
secure the assembly of a national council in order to remove the
grievances left unredressed by the council of Trent.
Whether this manifesto would have led to a reconstitution of the Roman
Catholic Church on permanently Febronian lines must for ever remain
doubtful. The French Revolution intervened; the German Church went down
in the storm: and in 1803 the secularizations carried out by order of
the First Consul put an end to the temporal ambitions of its prelates.
Febronianism indeed, survived. Karl Theodor von Dalberg, prince primate
of the Confederation of the Rhine, upheld its principles throughout the
Napoleonic epoch and hoped to establish them in the new Germany to be
created by the congress of Vienna. He sent to this assembly, as
representative of the German Church, Bishop von Wessenberg, who in his
diocese of Constance had not hesitated to apply Febronian principles in
reforming, on his own authority, the services and discipline of the
Church. But the times were not favourable for such experiments. The tide
of reaction after the Revolutionary turmoil was setting strongly in the
direction of traditional authority, in religion as in politics; and that
ultramontane movement which, before the century was ended, was to
dominate the Church, was already showing signs of vigorous life.
Moreover, the great national German Church of which Dalberg had a
vision--with himself as primate--did not appeal to the German princes,
tenacious of their newly acquired status as European powers. One by one
these entered into concordats with Rome, and Febronianism from an
aggressive policy subsided into a speculative opinion. As such it
survived strongly, especially in the universities (Bonn especially had
been, from its foundation in 1774, very Febronian), and it reasserted
itself vigorously in the attitude of many of the most learned German
prelates and professors towards the question of the definition of the
dogma of papal infallibility in 1870. It was, in fact, against the
Febronian position that the decrees of the Vatican Council were
deliberately directed, and their promulgation marked the triumph of the
ultramontane view (see VATICAN COUNCIL, ULTRAMONTANISM, PAPACY). In
Germany, indeed, the struggle against the papal monarchy was carried on
for a while by the governments on the so-called _Kulturkampf_, the Old
Catholics representing militant Febronianism. The latter, however, since
Bismarck "went to Canossa," have sunk into a respectable but
comparatively obscure sect, and Febronianism, though it still has some
hold on opinion within the Church in the chapters and universities of
the Rhine provinces, is practically extinct in Germany. Its revival
under the guise of so-called Modernism drew from Pope Pius X. in 1908
the scathing condemnation embodied in the encyclical _Pascendi gregis_.
AUTHORITIES.--See Justinus Febronius, _De statu ecclesiae et legitima
potestae Romani pontificis_ (Bullioni, 1765), second and enlarged
edition, with new prefaces addressed to Pope Clement XIII., to
Christian kings and princes, to the bishops of the Catholic Church,
and to doctors of theology and canon law; three additional volumes,
published in 1770, 1772 and 1774 at Frankfort, are devoted to
vindications of the original work against the critics. In the _Revue
des deux mondes_ for July 1903 (tome xvi. p. 266) is an interesting
article under the title of "L'Allemagne Catholique," from the papal
point of view, by Georges Goyau. For the congress of Ems see
Herzog-Hauck, _Realencyklopadie_ (Leipzig, 1898), s.v. "Emser
Kongress." Further references are given in the article on Hontheim
(q.v.). (W. A. P.)
FEBRUARY, the second month of the modern calendar. In ordinary years it
contains 28 days; but in bissextile or leap year, by the addition of the
intercalary day, it consists of 29 days. This month was not in the
Romulian calendar. In the reign of Numa two months were added to the
year, namely, January at the beginning, and February at the end; and
this arrangement was continued until 452 B.C., when the decemvirs placed
February after January. The ancient name of _Februarius_ was derived
from _februare_, to purify, or from _Februa_, the Roman festival of
general expiation and lustration, which was celebrated during the latter
part of this month. In February also the Lupercalia were held, and women
were purified by the priests of Pan Lyceus at that festival. The
Anglo-Saxons called this month Sprout-Kale from the sprouting of the
cabbage at this season. Later it was known as _Solmonath_, because of
the return of the sun from the low latitudes. The most generally noted
days of February are the following:--the 2nd, Candlemas day, one of the
fixed quarter days used in Scotland; the 14th, St Valentine's day; and
the 24th, St Matthias. The church festival of St Matthias was formerly
observed on the 25th of February in bissextile years, but it is now
invariably celebrated on the 24th.
FEBVRE, ALEXANDRE FREDERIC (1835- ), French actor, was born in Paris,
and after the usual apprenticeship in the provinces and in several
Parisian theatres in small parts, was called to the Comedie Francaise in
1866, where he made his debut as Philip II. in _Don Juan d'Autriche_. He
soon became the most popular leading man in Paris, not only in the
classical repertoire, but in contemporary novelties. In 1894 he toured
the principal cities of Europe, and, in 1895, of America. He was also a
composer of light music for the piano, and published several books of
varying merit. He married Mdlle Harville, daughter of one of his
predecessors at the Comedie Francaise, herself a well-known actress.
FECAMP, a seaport and bathing resort of northern France, in the
department of Seine-Inferieure, 28 m. N.N.E. of Havre on the Western
railway. Pop. (1906) 15,872. The town, which is situated on the English
Channel at the mouth of the small river Fecamp, consists almost entirely
of one street upwards of 2 m. in length. It occupies the bottom and
sides of a narrow valley opening out towards the sea between high
cliffs. The most important building is the abbey church of La Trinite,
dating for the most part from 1175 to 1225. The central tower and the
south portal (13th century) are the chief features of its simple
exterior; in the interior, the decorative work, notably the
chapel-screens and some fine stained glass, is remarkable. The
hotel-de-ville with a municipal museum and library occupy the remains of
the abbey buildings (18th century). The church of St Etienne (16th
century) and the Benedictine liqueur distillery,[1] a modern building
which also contains a museum, are of some interest. A tribunal and
chamber of commerce, a board of trade-arbitrators and a nautical school,
are among the public institutions. The port consists of an entrance
channel nearly 400 yds. long leading to a tidal harbour and docks
capable of receiving ships drawing 26 ft. at spring-tide, 19 ft. at
neap-tide. Fishing for herring and mackerel is carried on and the town
equips a large fleet for the codbanks of Newfoundland and Iceland. The
chief exports are oil-cake, flint, cod and Benedictine liqueur. Imports
include coal, timber, tar and hemp. Steam sawing, metal-founding,
fish-salting, shipbuilding and repairing, and the manufacture of
ship's-biscuits and fishing-nets are among the industries.
The town of Fecamp grew up round the nunnery founded in 658 to guard the
relic of the True Blood which, according to the legend, was found in the
trunk of a fig-tree drifted from Palestine to this spot, and which still
remains the most precious treasure of the church. The original convent
was destroyed by the Northmen, but was re-established by Duke William
Longsword as a house of canons regular, which shortly afterwards was
converted into a Benedictine monastery. King Richard I. greatly enlarged
this, and rebuilt the church. The town achieved some prosperity under
the dukes of Normandy, who improved its harbour, but after the
annexation of Normandy to France it was overshadowed by the rising port
of Havre.