(Excepting the alcohol, results are expressed in grammes per 100 litres
of absolute alcohol.)
+-------------------------------------+---------+-----+--------+-------+----------+---------+---------+
| | Alcohol |Total| Non- | | "Higher | | |
| Age, &c. |% by vol.|Acid.|volatile|Esters.|Alcohols."|Aldehyde.|Furfural.|
| | | | Acid. | | | | |
+-------------------------------------+---------+-----+--------+-------+----------+---------+---------+
| 1. _New_ 1904 | 61.7 | 45 | 5 | 82 | 125 | 8 | 2.3 |
| 2. _New_, still heated by steam coil| 56.3 | 22 | 4 | 61 | 100 | 3 | 1.2 |
| 3. _New_ | 67.7 | 51 | .. | 158 | 152 | 6 | 1.3 |
| 4. _Five years old_, 1900 vintage | 57.7 | 92 | 37 | 125 | .. | .. | .. |
| 5. _1875 vintage_, pale | 46.7 | 144 | 37 | 177 | 261 | 55 | 1.0 |
| 6. _1848 vintage_, brown | 38.5 | 254 | 109 | 190 | 488 | 32 | 2.1 |
+-------------------------------------+---------+-----+--------+-------+----------+---------+---------+
_Note._--In the above table the acid is expressed in terms of acetic
acid, the esters are expressed as ethyl acetate, and the aldehyde as
acetaldehyde. The "Higher Alcohol" figures do not actually represent
these substances, but indicate the relative coloration obtained with
sulphuric acid when compared with an iso-butyl standard under certain
conditions.
Brandy is also manufactured in numerous other districts in France, and
in general order of commercial merit may be mentioned the brandies of
Armagnac, Marmande, Nantes and Anjou. The brandies commanding the lowest
prices are broadly known as the _Trois-Six de Monlpellier_. In a class
by themselves are the _Eaux-de-vie de Marc_, made from the wine
pressings or from the solid residues of the stills. Some of these,
particularly those made in Burgundy, have characteristic qualities, and
are considered by many to be very fine. The consumption is chiefly
local. Brandy of fair quality is also made in other wine-producing
countries, particularly in Spain, and of late years colonial (Australian
and Cape) brandies have attracted some attention. The comsumption of
brandy in the United Kingdom amounts to about two million gallons.
Brandy, in common with other potable spirits, owes its flavour and aroma
to the presence of small quantities of substances termed secondary or
by-products (sometimes "impurities"). These are dissolved in the ethyl
alcohol and water which form over 99% of the spirit. The nature and
quantity of all of these by-products have not yet been fully
ascertained, but the knowledge in this direction is rapidly progressing.
Ch. Ordonneau fractionally distilled 100 litres of 25-year-old cognac
brandy, and obtained the following substances and quantities thereof:--
Grammes in
100 Litres.
Normal propyl alcohol 40.0
Normal butyl alcohol 218.6
Amyl alcohol 83.8
Hexyl alcohol 0.6
Heptyl alcohol 1.5
Ethyl acetate 35.0
Ethyl propionate, butyrate and caproate 3.0
Oenanthic ether (about) 4.0
Aldehyde 3.0
Acetal traces
Amines traces
Most of the above substances, in fact probably all of them, excepting
the oenanthic ether, are contained in other spirits, such as whisky and
rum. The oenanthic ether (ethyl pelargonate) is one of the main
characteristics which enable us chemically to differentiate between
brandy and other distilled liquors. Brandy also contains a certain
quantity of free acid, which increases with age, furfural, which
decreases, and small quantities of other matters of which we have as yet
little knowledge.
The table gives analyses, by the present author (excepting No. 3, which
is by F. Lusson), of undoubtedly genuine commercial cognac brandies of
various ages.
_Storage and Maturation._--Brandy is stored in specially selected oak
casks, from which it extracts a certain quantity of colouring matter and
tannin, &c. Commercial cognac brandies are generally blends of different
growths and vintages, the blending being accomplished in large vats some
little time prior to bottling. The necessary colouring and sweetening
matter is added in the vat. In the case of pale brandies very little
colouring and sweetening are added, the usual quantity being in the
neighbourhood of 1/2 to 1%. Old "brown brandies," which are nowadays not
in great demand, require more caramel and sugar than do the pale
varieties. The preparation of the "liqueur," as the mixed caramel and
sugar syrup is termed, is an operation requiring much experience, and
the methods employed are kept strictly secret. Fine "liqueur" is
prepared with high-class brandy, and is stored a number of years prior
to use. Brandy, as is well known, improves very much with age (for
chemical aspects of maturation see SPIRITS), but this only holds good
when the spirit is in _wood_, for there is no material appreciation in
quality after bottling. It is a mistake to believe, however, that brandy
improves indefinitely, even when kept in wood, for, as a matter of fact,
after a certain time--which varies considerably according to the type of
brandy, the vintage, &c.--there is so much evaporation of alcohol that a
number of undesirable changes come about. The brandy begins to "go
back," and becomes, as it is called, "worn" or "tired." It is necessary,
therefore, that the bottling should not be deferred too long. Sometimes,
for trade reasons, it is necessary to keep brandy in cask for a long
period, and under these conditions the practice is to keep a series of
casks, which are treated as follows:--The last cask is kept filled by
occasionally adding some spirit from the cask next in order, the latter
is filled up by spirit taken from the third cask from the end, and so
on, until the first cask in the row is reached. The latter is filled up
or "topped" with some relatively fresh spirit.
Brandy is much employed medicinally as a food capable of supplying
energy in a particularly labile form to the body, as a stimulant,
carminative, and as a hypnotic.
_Adulteration._--A good deal has been written about the preparation of
artificial brandy by means of the addition of essential oils to potato
or beetroot spirit, but it is more than doubtful whether this practice
was really carried on on a large scale formerly. What undoubtedly did
occur was that much beet, potato or grain spirit was used for blending
with genuine grape spirit. Prosecutions under the Food and Drugs Act, by
certain English local authorities in the year 1904, resulted in the
practical fixation of certain chemical standards which, in the opinion
of the present writer, have, owing to their arbitrary and unscientific
nature, resulted in much adulteration of a type previously non-existent.
There is no doubt that at the present time artificial esters and higher
alcohols, &c., are being used on an extensive scale for the preparation
of cheap brandies, and the position, in this respect, therefore, has not
been inproved. Where formerly fraud was practically confined to the
blending of genuine brandy with spirit other than that derived from the
grape, it is now enhanced by the addition of artificial essences to the
blend of the two spirits. (P. S.)
BRANDYWINE, the name of a stream in Pennsylvania and Delaware, U.S.A.,
which runs into the Delaware river a few miles east of Wilmington,
Delaware. It is famous as the scene of the battle of Brandywine in the
American War of Independence, fought on the 11th of September 1777 about
10 m. north-west of Wilmington, and a few miles inside the Pennsylvania
border. Sir William Howe, the British commander-in-chief, while opposed
to Washington's army in New Jersey, had formed the plan of capturing
Philadelphia from the south side by a movement by sea to the head of
Delaware Bay. But contrary winds and accidents delayed the British
transports so long that Washington, who was at first puzzled, was able
to divine his opponents' intentions in time; and rapidly moving to the
threatened point he occupied a strong entrenched position at the fords
over the Brandywine, 25 m. south-west of Philadelphia. Here on the 11th
of September the British attacked him. Howe's plan, which was carefully
worked out and exactly executed, was to deliver an energetic feint
attack against the American front, to take a strong column 12 m. up the
stream, and crossing beyond Washington's right to attack his
entrenchments in rear. Washington was successfully held in play during
the movement, and General Sullivan, the commander of the American right
wing, misled by the conflicting intelligence which reached him from
up-stream, was surprised about noon by definite information as to the
approach of Cornwallis on his right rear. Changing front "right back" in
the dense country, he yet managed to oppose a stubborn resistance to the
flanking attack, and with other troops that were hurried to the scene
his division held its ground for a time near Birmingham meeting-house.
But Howe pressed his attack sharply and drove back the Americans for 2
m.; the holding attack of the British right was converted into a real
one, and by nightfall Washington was in full retreat northward toward
Chester, protected by General Greene and a steady rear-guard, which held
off Howe's column for the necessary time. The British were too exhausted
to pursue, and part of Howe's force was inextricably mixed up with the
advancing troops of the frontal attack. The American loss in killed,
wounded and prisoners was about 1000; that of the British less than 600.
Howe followed up his victory, and on the 27th of September entered
Philadelphia.
BRANFORD, a township, including a borough of the same name, in New Haven
county, Connecticut, U.S.A., at the mouth of the Branford river and at
the head of a short arm of Long Island Sound, about 7 m. E.S.E. of New
Haven. Pop. of the township (1890) 4460; (1900) 5706 (1968
foreign-born);(1910) 6047; of the borough (1910) 2560. The borough is
served by the New York, New Haven & Hartford railway, and by an electric
line connecting with New Haven. A range of rocky hills commands fine
views of the Sound, the shore is deeply indented, the harbour and bays
are dotted with islands, and the harbour is deep enough for small craft,
and these natural features attract many visitors during the summer
season. In Branford is the James Blackstone Memorial library (1896),
designed by Solon Spencer Beman (b. 1853) in the Ionic style (the
details being taken from the Erechtheum at Athens). On the interior of
the dome which covers the rotunda are a series of paintings by Oliver
Dennett Grover (b. 1861) illustrating the evolution of book-making, and
between the arches are medallion portraits, by the same artist, of New
England authors--Longfellow, Emerson, Hawthorne, Lowell, Bryant,
Whittier, Holmes and Mrs Stowe. The library was erected by Timothy B.
Blackstone (1829-1900), a native of Branford, and president of the
Chicago & Alton railway from 1864 to 1899--as a memorial to his father,
a descendant of William Blackstone (d. 1675), the New England pioneer.
The principal industries of Branford are the manufacture of malleable
iron fittings, locks and general hardware, the quarrying of granite, and
oyster culture.
The territory of Totoket (now the township of Branford) was purchased
from the Indians by the New Haven Plantation, in December 1638, for
eleven coats of trucking cloth and one coat of English cloth, but with
the reservation for a few Indians of what is still known as Indian Neck.
In 1640 the general court of New Haven granted it to the Rev. Samuel
Eaton (1596?-1665), a brother of Theophilus Eaton, on condition that he
brought friends from England to settle it. As Eaton went to England and
did not return, Totoket was granted in 1644 to settlers mostly from
Wethersfield, Conn., on condition that they should organize a church
state after the New Haven model and join the New Haven Jurisdiction. The
settlement was made in the same year, and about two years later several
new families came from Southampton, Long Island, under the leadership of
the Rev. Abraham Pierson (c. 1608-1678), an ardent advocate of the
church state, who was chosen pastor at Totoket. The present name of the
township, derived from Brentford, England, was adopted about 1645. After
the members of the New Haven Jurisdiction had submitted to Connecticut,
Pierson, in 1666-1667, led the most prominent citizens of Branford to
New Jersey, where they were leaders in founding Newark. The borough of
Branford was incorporated in 1893.
See E.C. Baldwin, _Branford Annals_, in Papers of New Haven Colony
Historical Society (New Haven, 1882 and 1888).
BRANGWYN, FRANK (1867-), English painter, was born at Bruges, and
received his first instruction from his father, the owner of an
establishment for church embroideries and kindred objects, who took a
leading part in the Gothic revival under Pugin. When the family moved to
England, Brangwyn attracted the attention of William Morris by a drawing
on which he was engaged at South Kensington museum. He worked for some
time in Morris's studio, and then travelled more than once to the East,
whereby his sense of colour and the whole further development of his art
became deeply influenced. Indeed, the impressions he then received, and
his love of Oriental decorative art--tiles and carpets--exercised a
greater influence on him than any early training or the works of any
European master. His whole tendency is essentially decorative: a
colour-sense of sumptuous richness is wedded to an equally strong sense
of well-balanced, harmonious design. These qualities, together with a
summary suppression of the details which tie a subject to time and
place, give his compositions a nobly impressive and universal character,
such as may be seen in his decorative panel "Modern Commerce" in the
ambulatory of the Royal Exchange, London. Among other decorative schemes
executed by him are those for "L'Art nouveau" in the rue de Provence,
Paris; for the hall of the Skinners' Company, London; and for the
British room at the Venice International Exhibition, 1905. The
Luxembourg museum has his "Trade on the Beach"; the Venice municipal
museum, the "St Simon Stylites"; the Stuttgart gallery, the "St John the
Baptist"; the Munich Pinakothek, the "Assisi"; the Carnegie Institute in
Pittsburg, his "Sweetmeat Seller"; the Prague gallery, his "Turkish
Boatmen"; and the National Gallery of New South Wales, "The Scoffers."
Brangwyn embarked successfully in many fields of applied art, and made
admirable designs for book decoration, stained glass, furniture,
tapestry, metal-work and pottery. He devoted himself extensively to
etching, and executed many plates of astonishing vigour and dramatic
intensity. He was elected associate of the Royal Academy in 1904.
BRANKS, (probably akin to Irish _brancas_, a halter; Ger. _Pranger_,
fetter, pillory), or SCOLDING-BRIDLE, a contrivance formerly in use
throughout England and Scotland for the punishment of scolding women. It
is said to have originated in the latter country. It seems to have never
been a legalized form of punishment; but corporations and lords of
manors in England, town councils, kirk-sessions and barony courts in
Scotland assumed a right to inflict it. While specially known as the
"Gossip's or Scold's Bridle" the branks was also used for women
convicted of petty offences, breaches of the peace, street-brawling and
abusive language. It was the equivalent of the male punishments of the
stocks and pillory. In its earliest form it consisted of a hoop
head-piece of iron, opening by hinges at the side so as to enclose the
head, with a flat piece of iron projecting inwards so as to fit into
the mouth and press the tongue down. Later it was made, by a
multiplication of hoops, more like a cage, the front forming a mask of
iron with holes for mouth, nose and eyes. Sometimes the mouth-plate was
armed with a short spike. With this on her head the offending woman was
marched through the streets by the beadle or chained to the market-cross
to be gibed at by passers. The date of origin is doubtful. It was used
at Edinburgh in 1567, at Glasgow in 1574, but not before the 17th
century in any English town. A brank in the church of Walton-on-Thames,
Surrey, bears date 1633; while another in a private collection has the
crowned cipher of William III. The Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, the
Scottish National Museum of Antiquities at Edinburgh, the towns of
Lichfield, Shrewsbury, Leicester and Chester have examples of the brank.
As late as 1856 it was in use at Bolton-le-Moors, Lancashire.
See W. Andrews, _Old Time Punishments_ (Hull, 1890); A.M. Earle,
_Curious Punishments of Bygone Days_ (Chicago, 1896).
BRANT, JOSEPH (1742-1807), American Indian chief of the Mohawk tribe,
known also by his Indian name, THAYENDANEGEA, was born on the banks of
the Ohio river in 1742. In early youth he attracted the attention of Sir
William Johnson, who sent him to be educated by Dr Eleazar Wheelock at
Lebanon, Conn., in Moor's Indian charity school, in which Dartmouth
College had its origin. He took part, on the side of the English, in the
French and Indian War, and in 1763 fought with the Iroquois against
Pontiac. Subsequently he settled at Canajoharie, or Upper Mohawk Castle
(in what is now Montgomery county, New York), where, being a devout
churchman, he devoted himself to missionary work, and translated the
Prayer Book and St Mark's Gospel into the Mohawk tongue (1787). When Guy
Johnson (1740-1788) succeeded his uncle, Sir William, as superintendent
of Indian affairs in 1774, Brant became his secretary. At the outbreak
of the War of Independence, he remained loyal, was commissioned colonel,
and organized and led the Mohawks and other Indians allied to the
British against the settlements on the New York frontier. He took part
in the Cherry Valley Massacre, in the attack on Minisink and the
expedition of General St Leger which resulted in the battle of Oriskany
on the 6th of August 1777. After the war he discouraged the continuance
of Indian warfare on the frontier, and aided the commissioners of the
United States in securing treaties of peace with the Miamis and other
western tribes. Settling in Upper Canada, he again devoted himself to
missionary work and in 1786 visited England, where he raised funds with
which was erected the first Episcopal church in Upper Canada. His
character was a peculiar compound of the traits of an Indian
warrior--with few rivals for daring leadership--and of a civilized
politician and diplomat of the more conservative type. He died on an
estate granted him by the British government on the banks of Lake
Ontario on the 24th of November 1807. A monument was erected to his
memory at Brantford, Ontario, Canada (named in his honour) in 1886.
See W.L. Stone, _Life of Joseph Brant_ (2 vols., New York, 1838; new
ed., Albany, 1865); Edward Eggleston and Elizabeth E. Seelye, _Brant
and Red Jacket_ in "Famous American Indians" (New York, 1879); and a
_Memoir_ (Brantford, 1872).
BRANT, SEBASTIAN (1457-1521), German humanist and satirist, was born at
Strassburg about the year 1457. He studied at Basel, took the degree of
doctor of laws in 1489, and for some time held a professorship of
jurisprudence there. Returning to Strassburg, he was made syndic of the
town, and died on the 10th of May 1521. He first attracted attention in
humanistic circles by his Latin poetry, and edited many ecclesiastical
and legal works; but he is now only known by his famous satire, _Das
Narrenschiff_(1494), a work the popularity and influence of which were
not limited to Germany. Under the form of an allegory--a ship laden with
fools and steered by fools to the fools' paradise of Narragenia--Brant
here lashes with unsparing vigour the weaknesses and vices of his time.
Although, like most of the German humanists, essentially conservative in
his religious views, Brant's eyes were open to the abuses in the church,
and the _Narrenschiff_ was a most effective preparation for the
Protestant Reformalion. Alexander Barclay's _Ship of Fools_ (1509) is a
free imitation of the German poem, and a Latin version by Jacobus
Locher (1497) was hardly less popular than the German original. There is
also a large quantity of other "fool literature." Nigel, called Wireker
(fl. 1190), a monk of Christ Church Priory, Canterbury, wrote a
satirical _Speculum stultorum_, in which the ambitious and discontented
monk figured as the ass Brunellus, who wanted a longer tail. Brunellus,
who has been educated at Paris, decides to found an order of fools,
which shall combine the good points of all the existing monastic orders.
_Cock Lovell's Bote_ (printed by Wynkyn de Worde, c. 1510) is another
imitation of the _Narrenschiff_. Cock Lovell is a fraudulent currier who
gathers round him a rascally collection of tradesmen. They sail off in a
riotous fashion up hill and down dale throughout England. Brant's other
works, of which the chief was a version of Freidank's _Bescheidenheit_
(1508), are of inferior interest and importance.
Brant's _Narrenschiff_ has been edited by F. Zarncke (1854); by K.
Goedeke (1872); and by F. Bobertag (Kurschner's _Deutsche
Nationalliteratur_, vol. xvi., 1889). A modern German translation was
published by K. Simrock in 1872. On the influence of Brant in England
see especially C.H. Herford, _The Literary Relations of England and
Germany in the 16th Century_ (1886).
BRANTFORD, a city and port of entry of Ontario, Canada, on the Grand
river, and on the Grand Trunk, and Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo railways.
The river is navigable to within 2-1/2 m. of the town; for the remaining
distance a canal has been constructed. Agricultural implements, plough,
engine, bicycle and stove works, potteries and large railway shops
constitute the important industrial establishments. It contains an
institute for the education of the blind, maintained by the provincial
government, and a women's college. The city is named in honour of the
Mohawk Indian chief, Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea), who settled in the
neighbourhood after the American War of Independence, in which he had
led the Six Nations (Iroquois) on the British side. The amalgamated
tribes of the Six Nations still make it their headquarters, and a
monument to Brant has been erected in Victoria Square. Brantford is one
of the most flourishing industrial towns of the province, and its
population rose from 9616 in 1881 to 20,713 in 1907.
BRANTINGHAM, THOMAS DE (d. 1394), English lord treasurer and bishop of
Exeter, came of a Durham family. An older relative, Ralph de
Brantingham, had served Edward II. and Edward III., and Thomas was made
a clerk in the treasury. Edward III. obtained preferment for him in the
church, and from 1361 to 1368 he was employed in France in responsible
positions. He was closely associated with William of Wykeham, and while
the latter was in power as chancellor, Brantingham was lord treasurer
(1369-1371, and 1377-1381), being made bishop of Exeter in 1370. He
continued to play a prominent part in public affairs under Richard II.,
and in 1389 was again lord treasurer for a few months. He died in 1394
and was buried in Exeter cathedral.
BRANTOME, PIERRE DE BOURDEILLE, SEIGNEUR AND ABBE DE (c. 1540-1614),
French historian and biographer, was born in Perigord about 1540. He was
the third son of the baron de Bourdeille. His mother and his maternal
grandmother were both attached to the court of Marguerite of Valois, and
at her death in 1549 he went to Paris, and later (1555) to Poitiers, to
finish his education. He was given several benefices, the most important
of which was the abbey of Brantome (see below), but he had no
inclination for an ecclesiastical career. At an early age he entered the
profession of arms. He showed himself a brave soldier, and was brought
into contact with most of the great leaders who were seeking fame or
fortune in the wars that distracted the continent. He travelled much in
Italy; in Scotland, where he accompanied Mary Stuart (then the widow of
Francis I.); in England, where he saw Queen Elizabeth (1561, 1579); in
Morocco (1564); and in Spain and Portugal. He fought on the galleys of
the order of Malta, and accompanied his great friend, the French
commander Philippe Strozzi (grandson of Filippo Strozzi, the Italian
general, and nephew of Piero), in his expedition against Terceira, in
which Strozzi was killed (1582). During the wars of religion under
Charles IX. he fought in the ranks of the Catholics, but he allowed
himself to be won over temporarily by the ideas of the reformers, and
though he publicly separated himself from Protestantism it had a marked
effect on his mind. A fall from his horse compelled him to retire into
private life about 1589, and he spent his last years in writing his
_Memoirs_ of the illustrious men and women whom he had known. He died on
the 15th of July 1614.
Brantome left distinct orders that his manuscript should be printed; a
first edition appeared, however, late (1665-1666) and not very complete.
Of the later editions the most valuable are: one in 15 volumes (1740);
another by Louis Jean Nicolas Monmerque (1780-1860) in 8 volumes
(1821-1824), reproduced in Buchan's _Pantheon litteraire_; that of the
Bibliotheque elzevirienne, begun (1858) by P. Merimee and L. Lacour, and
finished, with vol. xiii., only in 1893; and Lalanne's edition for the
Societe de l'Histoire de France (12 vols., 1864-1896). Brantome can
hardly be regarded as a historian proper, and his _Memoirs_ cannot be
accepted as a very trustworthy source of information. But he writes in a
quaint conversational way, pouring forth his thoughts, observations or
facts without order or system, and with the greatest frankness and
naivete. His works certainly gave an admirable picture of the general
court-life of the time, with its unblushing and undisguised profligacy.
There is not a _homme illustre_ or a _dame galante_ in all his gallery
of portraits who is not stained with vice; and yet the whole is narrated
with the most complete unconsciousness that there is anything
objectionable in their conduct.
The edition of L. Lalanne has great merit, being the first to indicate
the Spanish, Italian and French sources on which Brantome drew, but it
did not utilize all the existing MSS. It was only after Lalanne's
death that the earliest were obtained for the Bibliotheque Nationale.
At Paris and at Chantilly (Musee Conde) all Brantome's original MSS.,
as revised by him several times, are now collected (see the
_Bibliotheque de l'ecole des Chartes_, 1904), and a new and definitive
edition has therefore become possible. Brantome's poems (which amount
to more than 2200 verses) were first published in 1881; see Lalanne's
edition.
BRANTOME, a town of south-western France, in the department of Dordogne,
20 m. N. by W. of Perigueux by steam-tramway. Pop. (1906) 1230. The town
is built, in great part, on an island in the river Dronne. It is well
known for the remains of an abbey founded by Charlemagne about 770 and
afterwards destroyed by the Normans. The oldest existing portion is a
square tower dating from the 11th century, built upon a rock beside the
church which it overlooks. It communicates by a staircase with the
church, a rectangular building partly Romanesque, partly Gothic, to the
west of which are the remains of a cloister. The abbey buildings date
from the 18th century, and now serve as hotel-de-ville, magistrature and
schools. Caves in the neighbouring rocks were inhabited by the monks
before the building of the abbey; one of them, used as an oratory,
contains curious carvings, representing the Last Judgment and the
Crucifixion. In the middle of the 16th century Pierre de Bourdeille came
into possession of the abbey, from which he took the name of Brantome.
Brantome has some old houses and a church of the 15th century, which was
once fortified and is now used as a market. Truffles are the chief
article of commerce; and there are quarries of freestone in the
neighbourhood. The dolmen which is known as Pierre-Levee, to the east of
the town, is the most remarkable in Perigord.
BRANXHOLM, or BRANKSOME, a feudal castle, now modernized, and an ancient
seat of the Buccleuchs, on the Teviot, 3 m. S.W. of Hawick, Roxburgh,
Scotland. It was at Branksome Hall that Sir Walter Scott laid the scene
of _The Lay of the Last Minstrel_.
BRANXTON, or BRANKSTON, a village of Northumberland, England, 10-1/2 m.
E. by N. of Kelso, and 2 m. E.S.E. of Coldstream, and 10 m. N.W. of
Wooler. It was on Branxton Hill, immediately south of the village, that
the battle of Flodden (q.v.) was fought between the English and the
Scots on the 9th of September 1513. During the fight the Scots centre
pushed as far as Branxton church, but "the King's Stone," which lies
N.W. of the church and is popularly supposed to mark the spot where
James IV. fell, is some three-quarters of a mile from the scene of the
battle; it is believed in reality to mark the sepulchre of a chieftain,
whose name had already perished in the 16th century. Branxton church,
dedicated to St Paul, was rebuilt in 1849 in Norman style. Of the older
building nothing remains save the chancel arch.
BRAOSE, WILLIAM DE (d. 1211), lord of Brecknock, Radnor and Limerick,
spent the early part of his life fighting the Welsh in Radnorshire. He
was high in King John's favour, received a large number of honours, and
was even given the custody of Prince Arthur. But John and he quarrelled,
probably over money (1207). In 1208 John began to suspect the fidelity
of the whole family, and William had to fly to Ireland. After a number
of attempted reconciliations, he was outlawed (1210) and died at Corbeil
(1211). It is said that his wife and son were starved to death by John.
See _Foedera_, i. 107; _Histoire des ducs_ (ed. Michel), Wendover;
Kate Norgate's _John Lackland_.
A descendant, William de Braose (d. 1326), lord of Gower, was a devoted
follower of Edward I., and in 1299 was summoned to parliament as baron
de Braose; and his nephew Thomas de Braose (d. 1361) also distinguished
himself in the wars and was summoned as baron de Braose in 1342. This
latter barony became extinct in 1399; but a claim to the barony of
William de Braose, which, as he had no son, fell into abeyance between
his two daughters and co-heirs, Alina (wife of Lord Mowbray) and Joan
(wife of John de Bohun), or their descendants, may still be traced by
careful genealogists in various noble English families.
BRASCASSAT, JACQUES RAYMOND (1804-1867), French painter, was born at
Bordeaux, and studied art in Paris, where in 1825 he won a _prix de
Rome_ with a picture ("Chasse de Meleagre") now in the Bordeaux gallery.
He went to Italy and painted a number of landscapes which were exhibited
between 1827 and 1835; but subsequently he devoted himself mainly to
animal-painting, in which his reputation as an artist was made. His
"Lutte de taureaux" (1837), in the _musee_ at Nantes, and his "Vache
attaquee par des loups" (1845), in the Leipzig museum, were perhaps the
best of his pictures; but he was remarkable for his accuracy of
observation and correct drawing. He was elected a member of the
Institute in 1846. He died at Paris on the 28th of February 1867.
BRAS D'OR, a landlocked and tideless gulf or lake of high irregular
outline, 50 m. long by 20 m. broad, almost separating Cape Breton Island
(province of Nova Scotia, Canada) into two parts. A ship canal across
the isthmus (about 1 m. wide) completes the severance of the island. The
entrance to the gulf is on the N.E. coast of the island, and it is
connected with the Atlantic by the Great and Little Bras d'Or channels,
which are divided by Boulardeire Island. One channel is 25 m. long and
from 1/4 m. to 3 m. broad, but is of little depth, the other (used by
shipping) is 22 m. long, 1 to 1-1/2 m. wide, and has a depth of 60
fathoms. The gulf or lake is itself divided into two basins, the inner
waters being known as the Great Bras d'Or Lake. The waters are generally
from 12 to 60 fathoms deep, but in the outer basin (known as the Little
Bras d'Or Lake) are soundings said to reach nearly 700 ft. The shores of
the gulf are very picturesque and well wooded and have attracted many
tourists. Sea fishing (cod, mackerel, &c.) is the chief industry. The
name is said to be a corruption of an Indian word, but it assumed its
present form during the French occupation of Cape Breton Island.
BRASDOR, PIERRE (1721-1799), French surgeon, was born in the province of
Maine. He took his degree in Paris as master of surgery in 1752, and was
appointed regius professor of anatomy and director of the Academy of
Surgery. He was a skilful operator, whose name was long attached to a
ligature of his invention; and he was an ardent advocate of inoculation.
He died in Paris on the 28th of September 1799.
BRASIDAS (d. 422 B.C.), a Spartan officer during the first decade of the
Peloponnesian War. He was the son of Tellis and Argileonis, and won his
first laurels by the relief of Methone, which was besieged by the
Athenians (431 B.C.). During the following year he seems to have been
eponymous ephor (Xen. _Hell_. ii. 3, 10), and in 429 he was sent out as
one of the three commissioners ([Greek: symbouloi]) to advise the
admiral Cnemus. As trierarch he distinguished himself in the assault on
the Athenian position at Pylos, during which he was severely wounded
(Thuc. iv. n. 12).
In the next year, while Brasidas mustered a force at Corinth for a
campaign in Thrace, he frustrated an Athenian attack on Megara (Thuc.
iv. 70-73), and immediately afterwards marched through Thessaly at the
head of 700 helots and 1000 Peloponnesian mercenaries to join the
Macedonian king Perdiccas. Refusing to be made a tool for the
furtherance of Perdiccas's ambitions, Brasidas set about the
accomplishment of his main object, and, partly by the rapidity and
boldness of his movements, partly by his personal charm and the
moderation of his demands, succeeded during the course of the winter in
winning over the important cities of Acanthus, Stagirus, Amphipolis and
Torone as well as a number of minor towns. An attack on Eion was foiled
by the arrival of Thucydides, the historian, at the head of an Athenian
squadron. In the spring of 423 a truce was concluded between Athens and
Sparta, but its operation was at once imperilled by Brasidas's refusal
to give up Scione, which, the Athenian partisans declared, revolted two
days after the truce began, and by his occupation of Mende shortly
afterwards. An Athenian fleet under Nicias and Nicostratus recovered
Mende and blockaded Scione, which fell two years later (421 B.C.).
Meanwhile Brasidas joined Perdiccas in a campaign against Arrhabaeus,
king of the Lyncesti, who was severely defeated. On the approach of a
body of Illyrians, who, though summoned by Perdiccas, unexpectedly
declared for Arrhabaeus, the Macedonians fled, and Brasidas's force was
rescued from a critical position only by his coolness and ability. This
brought to a head the quarrel between Brasidas and Perdiccas, who
promptly concluded a treaty with Athens, of which some fragments have
survived (_I.G._ i. 42).
In April 422 the truce with Sparta expired, and in the same summer Cleon
was despatched to Thrace, where he stormed Torone and Galepsus and
prepared for an attack on Amphipolis. But a carelessly conducted
reconnaissance gave Brasidas the opportunity for a vigorous and
successful sally. The Athenian army was routed with a loss of 600 men
and Cleon was slain. On the Spartan side only seven men are said to have
fallen, but amongst them was Brasidas. He was buried at Amphipolis with
impressive pomp, and for the future was regarded as the founder ([Greek:
oikistaes]) of the city and honoured with yearly games and sacrifices
(Thuc. iv. 78-v. 11). At Sparta a cenotaph was erected in his memory
near the tombs of Pausanias and Leonidas, and yearly speeches were made
and games celebrated in their honour, in which only Spartiates could
compete (Paus. in. 14).
Brasidas united in himself the personal courage characteristic of Sparta
with those virtues in which the typical Spartan was most signally
lacking. He was quick in forming his plans and carried them out without
delay or hesitation. With an oratorical power rare amongst the
Lacedaemonians he combined a conciliatory manner which everywhere won
friends for himself and for Sparta (Thuc. iv. 81).
See in particular Thucydides, ii.-v.; what Diodorus xii. adds is
mainly oratorical elaboration or pure invention. A fuller account will
be found in the histories of Greece (e.g. those of Grote, Beloch,
Busolt, Meyer) and in G. Schimmelpfeng, _De Brasidae Spartani rebus
gestis atque ingenio_ (Marburg, 1857).
BRASS, a river, town and district of southern Nigeria, British West
Africa. The Brass river is one of the deltaic branches of the Niger,
lying east of the Rio Nun or main channel of the river. From the point
of divergence from the main stream to the sea the Brass has a course of
about 100 m., its mouth being in 6 deg. 20' E., 4 deg. 35' N. Brass town
is a flourishing trading settlement at the mouth of the river. It is the
headquarters of a district commissioner and the seat of a native court.
Its most conspicuous building is a fine church, the gift of a native
chief. The capital of the Brass tribes is Nimbe, 30 m. up river.
The Brass river, called by its Portuguese discoverers the Rio Bento, is
said to have received its English name from the brass rods and other
brass utensils imported by the early traders in exchange for palm-oil
and slaves. The Brass natives, of the pure negro type, were noted for
their savage character. In 1856 their chiefs concluded a treaty with
Great Britain agreeing to give up the slave-trade in exchange for a duty
on the palm-oil exported. Finding their profitable business as middlemen
between the up-river producer and the exporter threatened by the
appearance of European traders, they made ineffective complaints to the
British authorities. The establishment of the Royal Niger Company led to
further loss of trade, and on the 29th of January 1895 the natives
attacked and sacked the company's station at Akassa on the Rio Nun, over
forty prisoners being killed and eaten as a sacrifice to the fetish
gods. In the following month a punitive expedition partially destroyed
Nimbe, and a heavy fine was paid by the Brass chiefs. Since then the
country has settled down under British administration. The trade
regulations of which complaint had been made were removed in 1900 on the
establishment of the protectorate of Southern Nigeria (see NIGERIA).
Valuable information concerning the country and people will be found
in the _Report by Sir John Kirk on the Disturbances at Brass (Africa_,
No. 3, 1896).
BRASS (O. Eng. _braes_), an alloy consisting mainly if not exclusively
of copper and zinc; in its older use the term was applied rather to
alloys of copper and tin, now known as bronze (q.v.)Thus the brass of
the Bible was probably bronze, and so also was much of the brass of
later times, until the distinction between zinc and tin became clearly
recognized. The Latin word _aes_ signifies either pure copper or bronze,
not brass, but the Romans comprehended a brass compound of copper and
zinc under the term _orichalcum_ or _aurichalcum_, into which Pliny
states that copper was converted by the aid of cadmia (a mineral of
zinc).
In England there is good evidence of the manufacture of brass with zinc
at the end of the 16th century, for Queen Elizabeth by patent granted to
William Humfrey and Christopher Schutz the exclusive right of working
calamine and making brass. This right subsequently devolved upon a body
called the "Governors, Assistants and Societies of the City of London of
and for the Mineral and Battery Works," which continued to exercise its
functions down to the year 1710.
When a small percentage of zinc is present, the colour of brass is
reddish, as in _tombac_ or red brass, which contains about 10%. With
about 20% the colour becomes more yellow, and a series of metals is
obtained which simulate gold more or less closely; such are _Dutch
metal, Mannheim gold, similar_ and _pinchbeck_, the last deriving its
name from a London clockmaker, Christopher Pinchbeck, who invented it in
1732. Ordinary brass contains about 30% of zinc, and when 40% is
present, as in _Muntz, yellow_ or _patent_ metal (invented by G.F. Muntz
in 1832), the colour becomes a full yellow. When the proportion of zinc
is largely increased the colour becomes silver-white and finally grey.
The limit of elasticity increases with the percentage of zinc, as also
does the amount of elongation before fracture, the maximum occurring
with 30%. The tenacity increases with the proportion of zinc up to a
maximum with 45%; then it decreases rapidly, and with 50% the metals are
fragile. By varying the proportion between 30 and 43% a series of alloys
may be prepared presenting very varied properties. The most malleable of
the series has an elongation of about 60%, with a tensile strength of
17.5 tons per sq. in. Increase in the proportion of zinc gives higher
tensile strength, accompanied, however, by a smaller percentage of
elongation and a materially increased tendency to produce unsound
castings. The quality of copper-zinc alloys is improved by the addition
of a small quantity of iron, a fact of which advantage is taken in the
production of Aich's metal and delta metal. Of the latter there are
several varieties, modified in composition to suit different purposes.
Some of them possess high tensile strength and ductility. They are
remarkably resistant to corrosion by sea-water, and are well suited for
screw-propellers as well as for pump-plungers, pistons and glands.
Heated to a dull red delta metal becomes malleable and can be worked
under the hammer, press or stamps. By such treatment an ultimate tensile
strength of 30 tons per sq. in. may be obtained, with an elongation of
32% in 2 in. and a contraction of area of 30%.
In the arts brass is a most important and widely used alloy. As compared
with copper its superior hardness makes it wear better, while being more
fusible it can be cast with greater facility. It is readily drawn into
fine wire, and formed into rolled sheets and rods which are machined
into a huge number of useful and ornamental articles. It is susceptible
of a fine polish, but tarnishes with exposure to the air; the brilliancy
of the surface can, however, be preserved if the metal is thoroughly
cleansed by "dipping" in nitric acid and "lacquered" with a coating of
varnish consisting of seed-lac dissolved in spirit.
BRASSES, MONUMENTAL, a species of engraved sepulchral memorials which in
the early part of the 13th century began to take the place of tombs and
effigies carved in stone. Made of hard _latten_ or sheet brass, let into
the pavement, and thus forming no obstruction in the space required for
the services of the church, they speedily came into general use, and
continued to be a favourite style of sepulchral memorial for three
centuries. Besides their great value as historical monuments, they are
interesting as authentic contemporary evidence of the varieties of
armour and costume, or the peculiarities of palaeography and heraldic
designs, and they are often the only authoritative records of the
intricate details of family history. Although the intrinsic value of the
metal has unfortunately contributed to the wholesale spoliation of these
interesting monuments, they are still found in remarkable profusion in
England, and they were at one time equally common in France, Germany and
the Low Countries. In France, however, those that survived the troubles
of the 16th century were totally swept away during the reign of terror,
and almost the only evidence of their existence is now supplied by the
collection of drawings bequeathed by Gough to the Bodleian library. The
fine memorials of the royal house of Saxony in the cathedrals of Meissen
and Freiberg are the most artistic and striking brasses in Germany.
Among the 13th-century examples existing in German churches are the
full-length memorials of Yso von Welpe, bishop of Verden (1231), and of
Bernard, bishop of Paderborn (1340). Many fine Flemish specimens exist
in Belgium, especially at Bruges. Only two or three examples, and these
of late date, are known in Scotland, among which are the memorials of
Alexander Cockburn (1564) at Ormiston; of the regent Murray (1569) in
the collegiate church of St Giles, Edinburgh; and of the Minto family
(1605) in the south aisle of the nave of Glasgow cathedral. England is
the only country which now possesses an extensive series of these
interesting memorials, of which it is calculated that there may be about
4000 still remaining in the various churches. They are most abundant in
the eastern counties, and this fact has been frequently adduced in
support of the opinion that they were of Flemish manufacture. But in the
days when sepulchral brasses were most in fashion the eastern counties
of England were full of commercial activity and wealth, and nowhere do
the engraved memorials of civilians and prosperous merchants more abound
than in the churches of Ipswich, Norwich, Lynn and Lincoln. Flemish
brasses do occur in England, but they were never numerous, and they are
readily distinguished from those of native workmanship. The Flemish
examples have the figures engraved in the centre of a large plate, the
background filled in with diapered or scroll work, and the inscription
placed round the edge of the plate. The English examples have the
figures cut out to the outline and inserted in corresponding cavities in
the slab, the darker colour of the stone serving as a background. This
is not an invariable distinction, however, as "figure-brasses" of
Flemish origin are found both at Bruges and in England. But the
character of the engraving is constant, the Flemish work being more
florid in design, the lines shallower, and the broad lines cut with a
chisel-pointed tool instead of the lozenge-shaped burin. The brass of
Robert Hallum, bishop of Salisbury, the envoy of Henry V. to the council
of Constance, who died and was interred there in 1416, precisely
resembles the brasses of England in the peculiarities which distinguish
them from continental specimens. Scarcely any of the brasses which now
exist in England can be confidently referred to the first half of the
13th century, though several undoubted examples of this period are on
record. The full-sized brass of Sir John d'Aubernon at Stoke d'Abernon
in Surrey (c. 1277) has the decorations of the shield filled in with a
species of enamel. Other examples of this occur, and the probability is,
that, in most cases, the lines of the engraving were filled with
colouring-matter, though brass would scarcely bear the heat requisite to
fuse the ordinary enamels. A well-known 13th-century example is that of
Sir Roger de Trumpington (c. 1290), who accompanied Prince Edward in his
expedition to Palestine and is represented cross-legged. About half a
dozen instances of this peculiarity are known. The 14th-century brasses
are much more numerous, and present a remarkable variety in their
details. The finest specimen is that of Nicholas Lord Burnell (1315) in
the church of Acton Burnell, Shropshire. In the 15th century the design
and execution of monumental brasses had attained their highest
excellence. The beautiful brass of Thomas Beauchamp, earl of Warwick (d.
1401), and his wife Margaret, which formerly covered the tomb in St
Mary's church, Warwick, is a striking example. One of the best specimens
of plate armour is that of Sir Robert Stantoun (1458) in Castle
Donnington church, Leicestershire, and one of the finest existing
brasses of ecclesiastics is that of Abbot de la Mare of St Albans. It is
only in the 16th century that the engraved representations become
portraits. Previous to that period the features were invariably
represented conventionally, though sometimes personal peculiarities were
given. A large number of brasses in England are _palimpsests_, the back
of an ancient brass having been engraved for the more recent memorial.
Thus a brass commemorative of Margaret Bulstrode (1540) at Hedgerley, on
being removed from its position, was discovered to have been previously
the memorial of Thomas Totyngton, abbot of St Edmunds, Bury (1312). The
abbey was only surrendered to Henry VIII. in 1539, so that before the
year was out the work of spoliation had begun, and the abbot's brass had
been removed and re-engraved to Margaret Bulstrode. In explanation of
the frequency with which ancient brasses have thus been stolen and
re-erected after being engraved on the reverse, as at Berkhampstead, it
may be remarked that all the sheet brass used in England previous to the
establishment of a manufactory at Esher by a German in 1649, had to be
imported from the continent.
[Illustration: PLATE I.
Fig. 1.--Sir John D'Abernon, 1277. Stoke D'Abernon Surrey.
Fig. 2.--Margaret de Camoys. 1310. Trotton, Sussex.
Fig. 3.--Henry de Grofhurst, c. 1330 Horsemonden, Kent.
Fig. 4.--Sir Nicholas Burnell, 1382. Acton Burnell, Shropshire.
Fig. 5.--Margaret Lady Cobham, 1385. Cobham, Kent.
Fig. 6.--Sir John Corp and Eleanor, his grand-daughter 1391, 1361.
Stoke Fleming, Devonshire.
Fig. 7.--Sir Symon de Felbrigge and Margaret his wife, 1400.
Felbrigge, Norfolk.