sulphate of lime. It was much used by the ancients for the manufacture of
ointment and perfume boxes, vases, and the like. It has a fine granular
texture, is usually of a pure white colour, and is so soft that it can be
scratched with the nail. It is found in many parts of Europe; in great
abundance and of peculiarly excellent quality in Tuscany. From the finer
and more compact kinds, vases, clock-stands, statuettes, and other
ornamental articles are made, and from inferior kinds the cement known as
plaster of Paris. A variety of carbonate of lime, closely resembling
alabaster in appearance, is used for similar purposes under the name of
_Oriental alabaster_. It is usually stalagmitic or stalactitic in origin
and is often of a yellowish colour. It may be distinguished from true
alabaster by being too hard to be scratched with the nail.
ALAC'TAGA (_Alact[)a]ga jac[)u]lus_), a rodent mammal, closely allied to
the jerboa, but somewhat larger in size, with a still longer tail. Its
range extends from the Crimea and the steppes of the Don across Central
Asia to the Chinese frontier.
ALADDIN, son of Mustafa, a poor tailor of China. A magician, who pretended
to be his uncle, gave him a magic ring and sent him to fetch 'the wonderful
lamp' from a cave. Aladdin secured the lamp, but refused to give it to the
magician, who shut him in the cave. Aladdin was rescued by the Genie of the
Ring, and by means of the Genie of the Lamp acquired great wealth, built a
magnificent palace, and married the Sultan's daughter. Afterwards the
magician got possession of the lamp, and caused the palace to be
transported into Africa. Aladdin was arrested, but was again saved by the
Genie of the Ring. He poisoned the magician, recovered the lamp, and by its
means restored his palace to its original site.
ALAGO'AS, a maritime State of Brazil; area, 22,577 sq. miles; pop.
946,617.--_Alagoas_, the former capital of the province, is situated on the
south side of an arm of the sea, about 20 miles distant from Maceio, to
which the seat of government was transferred in 1839. Pop. about 4000.
ALAIS ([.a]-l[=a]), a town of Southern France, department of Gard, 87 miles
N.W. of Marseilles, with coal, iron, and lead mines, which are actively
worked, and chalybeate springs, which have many visitors during the autumn
months. The treaty of Alais, signed on 28th June, 1629, ended the Huguenot
wars in France. Pop. 29,800.
ALAJUELA ([.a]-l[.a]-_h_u-[=a]'l[.a]), a town of Central America, in the
State of Costa Rica. Pop. 12,000.
ALA-KUL, a lake in Russian Central Asia, near the borders of Mongolia, in
lat. 46deg N. lon. 81deg 40' E.; area, 660 sq. miles.
ALAMANNI. See _Alemanni_.
ALAMAN'NI, Luigi, an Italian poet, of noble family, born at Florence in
1495. Suspected of conspiring against the life of Cardinal Giulio de'
Medici, who then governed Florence in the name of Pope Leo X, he fled to
Venice, and when the cardinal ascended the papal chair under the name of
Clement VII he took refuge in France, where he henceforth lived, being
employed by Francis I and Henry II in several important negotiations. He
died in 1556. His principal works are a didactic poem, _La Coltivazione_, a
splendid imitation of Virgil's _Georgics_ (1546); a comedy entitled
_Flora_; two epics, _Girone il Cortese_ (1548) and _L'Avarchide_, an
imitation of the _Iliad_ (1570); and a collection of eclogues, satires,
psalms, &c., partly in blank verse, the invention of which is contested
with him by Trissino, a contemporary.
AL'AMO, a fort in Bexar county, Texas, United States, celebrated for the
resistance its occupants (140 Texans) made to a Mexican force of 4000 from
23rd Feb. to 6th March, 1836. At the latter date only six Texans remained
alive, and on their surrendering they were slaughtered by the Mexicans.
AL'AMOS, a town of Mexico, State of Sonora, the capital of a mining
district. Pop. 12,000.
ALAND (o'land) ISLANDS, a numerous group of islands and islets, about
eighty of which are inhabited, formerly in Russia, situated in the Baltic
Sea, near the mouth of the Gulf of Finland; area, 468 sq. miles. The
principal island, Aland, distant about 30 miles from the Swedish coast, is
18 miles long and about 14 broad. The fortress of Bomarsund, here situated,
was destroyed by an Anglo-French force in Aug., 1854. The inhabitants, who
are of Swedish extraction, employ themselves mostly in fishing. The islands
were ceded by Sweden to Russia in 1809, and proclaimed a province of
Finland in 1918. A referendum of the inhabitants, taken in Dec., 1918,
decided in favour of union with Sweden, but on 22nd Oct., 1921, an
agreement for the neutralization of the islands was signed at Genoa. Pop.
18,000.
ALA'NI, or ALANS, one of the warlike tribes which migrated from Asia
westward at the time of the decline of the Roman Empire. They are first met
with in the region of the Caucasus, where Pompey fought with them. From
this centre they spread over the south of modern Russia to the confines of
the Roman Empire. About the middle of the fifth century they joined the
Vandals, among whom they became lost to history.
ALARCON' Y MENDO'ZA, Don Juan Ruiz de, one of the most distinguished
dramatic poets of Spain, born in Mexico about the end of the sixteenth or
the beginning of the seventeenth century. He came to Europe about 1622, and
in 1628 he published a volume containing eight comedies, and in 1634
another containing twelve. One of them, called _La Verdad Sospechosa_ (The
Truth Suspected), published in 1630 in a collection bearing the name of
Lope de Vega, furnished Corneille with the groundwork and greater part of
the substance of his _Menteur_. Hence Corneille's declaration in the
preface to that play that he had borrowed the subject from Lope de Vega.
His _Tejedor de Segovia_ (Weaver of Segovia) and _Las Paredes Oyen_ (Walls
have Ears) are still performed on the Spanish stage. He died in 1639.
AL'ARIC I, King of the Visigoths, was born about the middle of the fourth
century, probably in 370, and is first mentioned in history in A.D. 394,
when Theodosius the Great gave him the command of his Gothic auxiliaries.
The dissensions between Arcadius and Honorius, the sons of Theodosius,
inspired Alaric with the intention of attacking the Roman Empire. In 396 he
ravaged Greece, from which he was driven by the Roman general Stilicho, but
made a masterly retreat to Illyria, of which Arcadius, frightened at his
successes, appointed him governor. In 400 he invaded Italy, but was
defeated by Stilicho at Pollentia (403), and induced to transfer his
services from Arcadius to Honorius on condition of receiving 4000 lb. of
gold. Honorius having failed to fulfil this condition, Alaric made a second
invasion of Italy, during which he besieged Rome three times. The first
time (408) the city was saved by paying a heavy ransom; the second (409) it
capitulated, and Honorius was deposed, but shortly afterwards restored. His
sanction of a treacherous attack on the forces of Alaric brought about the
third siege, and the city was taken 24th Aug., 410, and sacked for six
days, Alaric, however, doing everything in his power to restrain the
violence of his followers. He quitted Rome with the intention of reducing
Sicily and Africa, but died at Cosenza in 410. Legend has it that he was
buried beneath the river-bed of the Busenzo, the course of which was
temporarily turned aside for the purpose.
AL'ARIC II, King of the Visigoths from A.D. 484 to 507. At the beginning of
his reign the dominions of the Visigoths were at their greatest extent,
embracing three-fourths of the modern Spain and all Western Gaul to the
south of the Loire. His unwarlike character induced Clovis, King of the
Franks, to invade the kingdom of the Visigoths. In a battle near Poitiers
(507) Alaric was slain and his army completely defeated. The _Breviarium
Alaricianum_, a code of laws derived exclusively from Roman sources, was
compiled by a body of Roman jurists at the command of this King Alaric.
ALARM, in military language, a signal, given by beat of drum, bugle-call,
or firing of a gun, to warn a camp or garrison of a surprise intended or
actually made by the enemy. A place, called the _alarm-post_, is generally
appointed at which the troops are to assemble when an alarm is
given.--_Alarm_ is also the name given to several contrivances in which
electricity is made use of, as a _fire-alarm_, by which intelligence is at
once conveyed to the proper quarter when a fire breaks out; a
_burglar-alarm_, an arrangement of wires and a battery in a house intended
to set a bell or bells ringing should a burglar attempt to gain entrance.
ALARM-CLOCK, one which can be set so as to ring loudly at a certain hour to
wake from sleep or excite attention.
ALA-SHEHR ([.a]-l[.a]-sh[=a]r') (ancient PHILADELPHIA), a town in Asia
Minor, 100 miles east of Smyrna, famous as the seat of one of the first
Christian churches, and still having a vast number of interesting remains
of antiquity, consisting of fragments of beautiful columns, sarcophagi,
fountains, &c. It is a place of some importance, carrying on a thriving
trade, chiefly with Smyrna, to which runs a railway. Pop. 15,000.
ALAS'KA, a territory belonging to the United States, comprising all that
portion of the north-west of North America which lies west of the 141st
meridian of west longitude, together with an irregular strip of coast-land
(and the adjacent islands), extending south to lat. 54deg 40' N., and lying
between Canada and the Pacific (the boundary being adjusted in 1903); total
area, about 590,884 sq. miles. The chief river is the Yukon, a great
stream, now navigated in summer for most of its course. The principal
mountains (among which are several volcanoes) are Mounts McKinley (20,470
feet) and Wrangell (17,400 feet). The climate of the interior is very
severe in winter, but in summer the heat is intense; on the Pacific coast
it is mild but moist. Alaska produces excellent timber. Numbers of
fur-bearing animals abound, such as the fur-seal, sea-otter, beaver, fox,
mink, marten, &c.; and the fur trade has long been valuable. The coasts and
rivers swarm with fish, and salmon and cod are caught and exported. Gold is
now mined in several localities, especially Cape Nome, where a town has
sprung up. The aboriginal inhabitants consist of Esquimaux and Indians.
Alaska, called Russian America until 1867, was sold to the United States
for 7,200,000 dollars, the acquisition being ratified by Congress on 20th
June, 1867. It has a legislative assembly consisting of eight senators and
sixteen representatives, and the legislature meets biennially since 1913.
The capital was formerly Sitka, on Baranoff Island, but is now Juneau, on
Gastineau Channel. Pop. 64,356, latest estimate being
75,000.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: A. W. Greely, _Handbook of Alaska_; J. Muir,
_Travels in Alaska_.
ALASKITE, an igneous rock consisting of quartz and felspar. See _Granite_.
ALAS'SIO, a seaport of North Italy, on the Gulf of Genoa, a winter resort
of people from England. Pop. 5000.
ALASTOR, in Greek mythology, is a surname of Zeus (cf. Lat. Jupiter
_Vindex_) describing him as the avenger of evil deeds. The name or epithet
is also used to designate any deity or demon who avenges wrongs committed
by men. _Alastor_ is the title of a poem by Shelley.
ALATAU ([.a]-l[.a]-tou'), the name of three considerable mountain ranges of
Central Asia, on the Russian and Chinese frontiers.
ALATYR ([.a]-l[.a]-tir'), a town in Russia, government Simbirsk, at the
confluence of the Alatyr with the Sura, with a considerable trade. Pop.
11,000.
ALAU'DA, a genus of insessorial birds, which includes the larks. See
_Lark_.
A'LAVA, a hilly province in the north of Spain, one of the three Basque
provinces; area, 1175 sq. miles; covered by branches of the Pyrenees, the
mountains being clothed with oak, chestnut, and other timber, and the
valleys yielding grain, vegetables, and abundance of fruits. There are iron
and copper mines, and inexhaustible salt springs. Capital, Vittoria. Pop.
97,692.
[Illustration: A, Alb with its Apparels _a_, _b_, and Girdle _c_; B, Amice;
C, Stole]
ALB (from Lat. _albus_, white), a clerical vestment of the Catholic Church
worn by priests while officiating in the more solemn functions of divine
service. It is a long robe of white linen reaching to the feet, bound round
the waist by a cincture, and fitting more closely to the body than the
surplice. It is now little used except during Mass. After the Reformation
the _alb_ was not used in the Church of England, but since the ritualistic
revival in the nineteenth century it has again been introduced into a
number of churches.
ALBA, the name of several towns in ancient Italy, the most celebrated of
which was Alba Longa, a city of Latium, according to tradition built by
Ascanius, the son of Aeneas, 300 years before the foundation of Rome, at
one time the most powerful city of Latium. It ultimately fell under the
dominion of Rome, when the town was destroyed, it is said. In later times
its site became covered with villas of wealthy Romans.
ALBA (anciently ALBA POMPEIA), a town of Northern Italy, about 30 miles
S.E. of Turin, is the see of a bishop, has a cathedral, bishop's palace,
church with fresco paintings by Perugino, &c. Pop. 6872.
ALBA, Duke of. See _Alva_.
ALBACETE ([.a]l-b[.a]-th[=a]'t[=a]), a town in Southern Spain, capital of
the province of the same name, 106 miles N.N.W. of Cartagena, with a
considerable trade, both direct and transit, and manufactures of knives,
daggers, &c. Pop. 24,805.--The province has an area of 5737 sq. miles, and
a pop. of 273,380.
ALBA LONGA. See _Alba_.
ALBAN, St., the earliest British martyr, flourished in the third century,
and was, it is said, converted from Paganism by a confessor whom he had
saved from his persecutors. He refused to sacrifice to the gods, and was
executed outside the city of Verulamium (St. Albans) in 285 or 305.
ALBANI ([.a]l-b[:a]'n[=e]), Francesco, a famous Italian painter, born at
Bologna in 1578, died in 1660. He studied with Guido Reni under the Flemish
painter Calvaert and the Caracci. It is said that his second wife, Doralice
Fioraventi, bore him twelve children of such beauty that they served him as
models for his paintings. Among the best known of his compositions are _The
Sleeping Venus_, _Diana in the Bath_, _Danae Reclining_, _Galatea on the
Sea_, _Europa on the Bull_.
ALBA'NI, Madame, maiden name Marie Louise Emma Cecile Lajeunesse, famous
singer, was born near Montreal in 1852, was trained at home by her father,
and studied also in Paris and Milan. She made her first public appearance
in Europe at Messina, in Bellini's _La Sonnambula_, and in 1872 sang in the
Royal Italian Opera in London. Since then she has attained the position of
one of the world's foremost singers, both in opera and oratorio. In 1878
she was married to Mr. Ernest Gye, the operatic manager. She adopted the
professional name of Albani from Albany, in the United States, where as a
girl she sang in the Roman Catholic cathedral. In 1911 she published her
memoirs under the title of _Forty Years of Song_.
ALBA'NIA, an extensive region stretching along the coast of the Adriatic
for about 290 miles, and having a breadth varying from about 90 to about 50
miles. The boundary on the east is formed by a range of mountains, and the
country is composed of at least nine ridges of hills, of which six are in
Lower or Southern Albania (ancient Epirus) and the remainder in Central and
Upper or Northern Albania. There are no large rivers, and in summer many of
the streams are completely dry. The Drin or Drino is the largest. The most
beautiful lake is that of Ochrida, 20 miles long, 8 broad at the widest
part. The Lake of Scutari, in Upper Albania, is the largest. Among trees
Albania has many species of oak, the poplar, hazel, plane, chestnut,
cypress, and laurel. The vine flourishes, together with the orange, almond,
fig, mulberry, and citron; maize, wheat, and barley are cultivated. Its
fauna comprises bears, wolves, and chamois; sheep, goats, horses, asses,
and mules are plentiful. The chief exports are live stock, wool, hides,
timber, oil, salt-fish, cheese, and tobacco. The chief ports are Prevesa,
Valona, and Durazzo. The population, about 850,000, consists chiefly of
Albanians or Arnauts, or, as they call themselves, Skupetars, i.e.
inhabitants of the mountains (by the Turks they are called Arnauts, by the
Greeks Arbanites, and by the Serbs Arbanasi). They are spread along the
coasts of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. History and legend afford little or
no record of the arrival of the Albanian race in the Balkan Peninsula. It
may, however, be safely asserted that the Albanians are the direct
descendants of the earliest Aryan immigrants, who were represented in
historical times by the kindred Illyrians, Macedonians, and Epirots. The
majority live in Albania, the rest in Montenegro, Greece, Southern Italy,
Sicily, Bessarabia, and Asia Minor. As regards religion they are either
Christians or Mohammedans. They are divided into several tribes, among whom
the Suliotes are partly of Greek origin. The Albanian language is a branch
of the Indo-European languages, and related to the long-ago extinct
language of the Messapians. The language consists of numerous dialects,
which may be divided into those of the Tosks in the south and the Gheggas
in the north. Though their country became a province of the Turkish
dominions in 1431, they maintained for centuries a certain degree of
independence, which the Porte never found it possible to overcome. On 28th
Nov., 1912, the complete independence of Albania was proclaimed at Valona,
a provisional government was founded under Ismail Kemal Bey, and Albanian
autonomy was agreed to at the Ambassadorial Conference in London on 20th
Dec. On 21st Feb., 1914, the crown was offered to Prince William of Wied,
who arrived at Durazzo on 7th March. The prince was supported and advised
by an International Commission of Control, but he left the country at the
outbreak of hostilities in 1914. Attempts made by Essad Pasha to establish
a military government failed, and the country was overrun by the Austrians,
who captured Durazzo on 28th Feb., 1916. On 3rd June, 1917, the general in
charge of the Italian forces proclaimed Albania an independent country, and
a provisional government was set up at Durazzo. Albanian independence was
recognized by the Powers and Albania admitted to the League of Nations in
Dec., 1920.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: H. F. Tozer, _Researches in the Highlands of
Turkey_; W. Peacock, _Albania, The Foundling State_.
ALBA'NO, a city and lake in Italy, the former about 15 miles south-east of
Rome, and on the west border of the lake, amid beautiful scenery. An
ancient tomb in the Etruscan style was for a long time looked upon as the
sepulchre of the Horatii and Curiatii. Here are also the ruins of the
villas of Pompey and Domitian. Pop. 8000.--The lake, situated immediately
beneath the Alban Hill, is of an oval form, 6 miles in circumference,
surrounded by steep banks of volcanic tufa 300 or 400 feet high, and
discharges its superfluous waters by an artificial tunnel at least 2000
years old.
ALBANS, St. See _St. Albans_.
AL'BANY, the original Celtic name probably at first applied to the whole of
Britain, but afterwards restricted to the Highlands of Scotland. It gave
the title of duke formerly to a prince of the blood-royal of Scotland. The
first duke was Robert Stuart (1345-1420), son of Robert II by his mistress
Elizabeth Mure, and brother of Robert III. He was virtual ruler of the
kingdom during the latter years of his brother's reign, and acted as regent
for his nephew James I (kept a prisoner in England) till his own death.
Another nephew, David, Duke of Rothesay, is said to have been starved to
death in Falkland Castle at his instigation. His son Murdoch, second duke,
succeeded him as regent, and was put to death by James for
maladministration. The third duke was Alexander, second son of James II and
brother of James III. A large part of his life was passed in France. His
son John was the fourth who bore the title. He was regent of Scotland
during the minority of James V (1515-23).
AL'BANY, a city of the United States, capital of the State of New York on
the west bank of the Hudson, 132 miles north of New York city, from and to
which steamboats run daily. The Erie Canal and the numerous railway lines
centring here from all directions greatly contribute to the growth and
prosperity of the city, which carries on an extensive trade. It is a great
mart for timber, and has foundries, breweries, tanneries, &c. Albany was
settled by the Dutch between 1610 and 1614, and the older houses are in the
Dutch style, with the gable-ends to the streets. There is a university, an
observatory, and a State library with 90,000 volumes. The principal public
buildings are the capitol or State-house, which cost about L5,000,000, and
the State-hall for the public offices, a State arsenal, and numerous
churches. Pop. (1920), 113,344.
AL'BANY, Louisa Maria Caroline, Countess of, a princess of the
Stolberg-Gedern family, was born in 1753, and married, in 1772, the
pretender, Charles Edward Stuart, after which event she bore the above
title. To escape from the ill-treatment of her husband she retired, in
1780, to the house of her brother-in-law at Rome, where she met the poet
Alfieri, whose mistress she became. After the death of Alfieri in 1793 she
opened her famous political and literary salon frequented by the Duchess of
Devonshire, the Duchess of Hamilton, Cardinal Consalvi, Samuel Rogers,
Thomas Moore, Lamartine, and Chateaubriand. She died at Florence in 1824,
where she was buried at the Church of Sta Croce, by the side of Alfieri,
whom she is supposed to have married secretly.
ALBA'TA, a name sometimes given to German silver.
[Illustration: Wandering Albatross (_Diom[=e]dea ex[)u]lans_)]
AL'BATROSS, a large marine swimming bird of several species, of which the
wandering albatross (_Diomed[=e]a ex[)u]lans_) is the best known. The bill
is straight and strong, the upper mandible hooked at the point and the
lower one truncated; there are three webbed toes on each foot. The upper
part of the body is of a greyish brown, and the belly white. It is the
largest sea-bird known, some measuring 17-1/2 feet from tip to tip of their
expanded wings. They abound at the Cape of Good Hope and in other parts of
the southern seas, and in Behring's Straits, and have been known to
accompany ships for whole days without ever resting on the waves. From this
habit the bird is regarded with feelings of attachment and superstitious
awe by sailors, it being reckoned unlucky to kill one. Coleridge has
availed himself of this feeling in his _Ancient Mariner_. The albatross is
met with at great distances from the land, settling down on the waves at
night to sleep. It is exceedingly voracious, whenever food is abundant,
gorging to such a degree as to be unable to fly or swim. It feeds on fish,
carrion, fish-spawn, oceanic mollusca, and other small marine animals. Its
cry is harsh and disagreeable. Its nest is a heap of earth; its eggs are
larger than those of a goose.
ALBATROSS, a name applied to a certain type of German aeroplanes, much used
for scouting purposes during the European War.
ALBAY ([.a]l-b[=i]'), a province, town, bay, and volcano in the south-east
part of the Island of Luzon, one of the Philippines. The province is
mountainous but fertile; the town regularly built, with a pop. of 34,000;
the bay capacious, secure, and almost landlocked; and the volcano, which is
always in activity, forms a conspicuous landmark.
ALBEMARLE, Duke of. See _Monk, George_.
AL'BENDORF, a village in Prussia, province of Silesia, 50 miles S.W. of
Breslau, remarkable for the pilgrimages made to its church, chapels,
statues, &c. Pop. 1800.